The Berkshire Eagle from Pittsfield, Massachusetts • 7

The Berkshire Eagle, Tuesday, November 25, 1986 A7 The hollow center Our Berkshires dm Iran dealings and arrogance By Anthony Lewis iIL, my 3J Elizur Smith and the paper business By Gerard Chapman BOSTON SEN. Sam Nunn of Georgia, a man not given to easy rhetoric, was talking about President Reagan's dealings with Iran. "I think the president was not fully aware," he said, "or informed, or capable of assimilating all the information his staff gave him." In that gingerly way Nunn approached a truth made plain by the Iran affair. The government of the United States has at its center a man who is not informed about the substance of foreign policy, who is unwilling or unable to grapple with the hard questions, who operates on instinct and hope. People on all sides of politics are reluctant to see that truth, naked as it is now.

Reagan supporters may naturally prefer to obscure it. And critics are mostly too delighted with a vulnerable Ronald Reagan, after all the Teflon years, to think about what it means for a superpower to have a vacuum in its leadership. sje sc sc sc The Iran affair is not just a matter of political advantage. It has shown us something frightening. The most powerful country on earth is run by a group of people who will play games in a dangerous corner of the world without knowledge of the players, without consultation, without respect for our system of government.

Here is a president who, when the facts of his secret arms shipments begin to emerge, tells his people that he was trying to bring "an end to that terrible war" between Iran and Iraq. And the way to do that, he wants us to believe, is to send 235 highly sophisticated anti-aircraft missiles and 2,008 anti-tank missiles to the side that refuses to talk peace, that presses the war as a religious mission! This is hardly the first occasion that has demonstrated Reagan's weak grasp of foreign policy questions. At Reykjavik, for example, he was confused on basic arms control issues, and his advisers could not agree among themselves because the president had never settled their longstanding conflicts of policy. But the Iran affair tested Reagan's competence in foreign affairs as nothing else has, because he chose to fly solo. He operated without the expertise of the operating departments, state and defense.

There was no one to say to the president, at any stage: "This is against common sense, Mr. President. It is too dangerous. think again." No one wanted to remember the lesson learned by President Kennedy at the Bay of Pigs, that policies worked out in secret by a small group of yes men are likely to fail. Critics are crying for the scalps of the two White House assistants who managed the Iran adventure, Donald Regan and John Poindexter.

Of course, a person of honor should resign after managing such a debacle. But the president who chose men so grotesquely ill equipped to run a foreign operation will be in office for 26 more months. Jimmy Carter diddle you, for months, in the hope that the president will be able to stand on the White House lawn with freed hostages before Election Day. George Shultz is a man of deep loyalty. If he stays on, at least for a time, it will be because of his loyalty.

At the press conference last Wednesday night the world saw a president who has lost his way. For Shultz to go now would be devastating to Reagan's true interest, and the country's. sfs Js 4 The departure of Shultz would also intensify the most dangerous feature of the Iran affair: the arrogance of power it represented. As with Lyndon Johnson in Vietnam and Richard Nixon in Cambodia, a president who did not want to hear about disagreeable realities acted on his own abroad in lawless stealth. Once again, in David Bro-der's phrase, there was "the fatal blend of ignorance and arrogance." The danger is not limited to Reagan's violation of the law requiring "timely" notice to Congress of covert ventures.

It lies in the underlying state of mind: the contempt of this executive branch for the way the American system works. The checks and balances may seem inconvenient, but they have saved this country from much folly and autocracy. 1986 New York Times News Service STOCKBRIDGE THE TOWN of Lee is acknowledged once to have been the preeminent center of paper manufacture in the country, in terms of the amount and variety of paper it produced. Although that is no longer so, it remains important in the industry and today still is host to three companies: Kimberly-Clark, Mead and Westfield River. Kimberly-Clark is the current incarnation of the original Platner Smith company, which was formed in 1835 by George Washington Platner (c.

1810-1855) and Elizur Smith. As in any new industry, there were several, even many, companies, with the inevitable shakeout which reduced the number, and Platner Smith was a survivor. Here we are concerned with Elizur Smith who, on Jan. 6, 1866, with his nephews Wellington Smith and DeWitt Smith, formed the Smith Paper Co. By virtue of innovations and good management by the three stockholders, he became a wealthy and distinguished man.

Elizur Smith was born Jan. 5, 1812, in Sandisfield, in south Berkshire County. His father was a farmer and the young man was imbued with a love for the soil. But an injured foot confined him to the house, where a devotion to books altered his life. At age 16 he was sent to Westfield Academy, and in 1830 he became a clerk in a paper-company store, where he came to know the industry.

He purchased a half-interest in a mill and then entered into the association with Mr. Platner. The firm weathered an economic crisis in 1837 and with further acquisitions became a leader in the industry. Despite a popular prejudice for imported papers, the company dared to incorporate its watermark in each sheet sold and built up a reputation for quality. To the previous firm of Platner Smith belongs the distinction of producing the first paper made from ground wood pulp, whose lower cost much increased the use of paper in journalism.

And as noted in the trade journal, Paper World, "This company was one of the first to force a high speed, and by doing so nearly doubled the paper product. At the same time the width of ma- mals well supplied with everything for their comfort, but the birds and small animals are also subjects of consideration and care of the humane and thoughtful proprietor of Highlawn. At various points about the farm are spacious evergreen covers, judiciously located, for the comfort and convenience of these almost domestic animals "Mr. Smith does not reside upon the Highlawn estate, but it is very accessible from his fine residence in the village, which is very pleasantly situated on spacious grounds bounded by Main, Franklin and High streets surrounded by thrifty trees and is a home to which he is very much attached The house abounds in a wealth of rare books, pictures and gems of art gathered during his extensive travels in foreign lands he and his wife having gone abroad in 1875." In October 1879 Smith imported trotting horses from Kentucky and his stock grew to comprise some 30 brood mares. His stallions were famous in the racing community of the day, and included Alcantara, Commissioner, Pagan, and Commissioner.

Fanciers of the sport came from afar to see Highlawn Stock Farm in Lee, and its prize-winning trotters. Smith, took much interest in affairs beyond his paper mills and farm. He served in the Legislature as both representative and senator and was active in town affairs, and was a contributor to many worthy enterpriss. Again from the Gleaner: "Elizur Smith was at one time the foremost figure in paper manufacturing in America, and was in truth the 'grand old man' of Lee." He died at home on April 2, 1889, and many prominent persons attended his funeral at the Congregational Church. Although the Smith Paper Co.

lost its identity when acquired by outside interests, the name is not quite extinct. From the firm Smith Paper Inc. come the names of the spine Athletic Association, a social organization at the Lee mills, and the Spine Credit Union. And Elizur Smith's Highlawn Farm, now grown to 1280 acres (or two square miles), still exists as a Jersey dairy farm under the ownership of Col. H.

George Wilde. Now Reagan's old California friends are said to be pushing, with Nancy Reagan's support, for the removal of Secretary of State George Shultz. They say Shultz has been disloyal in making his distaste for the Iran adventure so clear. The argument fits the philosophy of the Reagan administration. What matters is not substance America's effectiveness and credibility in the world but politics.

What matters is how Ronald Reagan looks. You let the Iranians who destroyed chines was increased; indeed, the very first 100-inch machine was used by this company." From the Valley Gleaner we learn that "in 1865 Mr. Smith married Miss Mary Ann Smith and their home has been one of the social centers of the town During the marriage ceremonies the Columbia mill burned to the ground, "but Mr. Smith did not allow it to interfere at all with the joy of the occasion, not even going out to the fire." sft ijc sfc ic But Elizur Smith hadn't forgotten his love for the farm and about 1869 he began to relinquish management of the company, which was assumed by his nephew Wellington Smith. Elizur now had the means to indulge his fondness for agriculture, and again from the Gleaner, which quoted from the June 1882 issue of Wallace's Monthly: "Highlawn, the stock farm of Hon.

Elizur Smith, consists of about 700 acres of choice land, the surface of which is undulating; and such of the land as is not well drained by a sloping surface, is thoroughly drained by tile drain, 36 miles of which has been sunk upon this estate, which is not only indicative of the condition of the land, but of the energy and enterprise of the owner. Pure water is supplied either from natural streams or raised from wells by windmills of the latest and most improved construction, each lot being supplied with substantial tubs and return pipes, to insure solid, dry surroundings. "Not only are the domestic ani Immigration reform A fatally flawed law By Joel S. Dorfman Put the tube in the courtroom BOSTON THE IMMIGRATION Reform and Control Act of 1986, passed Oct. 17 by a reluctant Congress, is a deep disappointment to me and many of my colleagues in the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS).

The bill grafts easy amnesties to potentially millions of illegal aliens (including agricultural workers and others claiming to have lived here since 1981) who can then petition for the immigration of relatives onto a demoralized immigration system. The illusion of "control" is fostered by the addition of more Border Patrol agents and money and an important, but severely hobbled, new law providing civil fines against employers who hire illegals. Further confusing the message, Congress opened loopholes such as requiring search warrants for agricultural fields, allowing visa petitions by fathers of illegitimate children, and making certain deportations harder while creating thousands of extra immigrant visas for certain Europeans and others. The bill is fatally flawed by its utter failure to define the public interest in controlling immigration. A vocal minority of congressmen, businessmen, ethnic lobbyists, immigration lawyers, and opin-ionmakers still feels that it is neither moral nor practical to assert America's sovereignty to police its borders and cities.

They brazenly assert that larger numbers of immigrants are beneficial. Congress should have considered the fate of the many tough enforcement pro- On to the lawn of the old courthouse he came, and now he sprinted for the old white pillars. He ran up the steps to the second floor of the courthouse. As Mike Parker rushed into the courtroom, the defendant, Vernon Parker was still standing in front of the judge. And the lawyer still was talking.

"He said he made good but he didn't make good on these," Mike Parker shouted. He held the bum checks over his head. He waved them. The judge looked up a look that cost the defendant a couple of years. The incident occurred just a few days ago, and I was elated to learn of it yesterday, for it produced immediate visions of an entire city, New York City, watching live television all day as its officials and judges and lawyers were being questioned while under oath.

For then, sometime during an afternoon, one of the witnesses will lie on television and somewhere a citizen will yelp and race to the subway and head for the hearing, so he or she can become the thing New York needs most, a Mike Parker running into a room with a meaningful document waving in the air. 1986 Universal Press Syndicate migration law, no matter how rational and just. The bill's provisions of employer sanctions were to be the silver lining, but I am not sanguine. It is little known that about a dozen states (including Massachusetts and California) have sanction laws, and these have not been enforced by the states, nor has this failure been protested or publicized by the Immigration Service. The sejvice will need multiples of its scant 700 interior investigators and a new aggressive attitude to check employers.

By Jimmy Breslin lawyer said, "I'd like to point out that my client, before coming in here for sentencing, took care of all his affairs in this county. He made restitutions for all of his stealing." The courtroom cameras took this in. And the picture was going outside, over a cable channel to the entire county. It seems the murder trial was so interesting to people that nobody in Madison County watched soap operas while it was on. The cable channel therefore showed the courtroom live even during a recess such asfthis one.

And now, as the lawyer pleaded for Vernon Parker over in the liquor store twjS blocks away the owner, Mike Parker, no relation, returned to his seat in front of the television set he had on a counter. Mike Parker had used the recess to get a beer. Mike Parker's eyes now writhed as he resumed watching the courthouse show. "What's he doing there?" he yelped, pointing at the picture of Vernon Parker Jr. "It's a recess," one of the guys in the liquor store said.

"This ain't the murder case." "I know that!" Mike Parker roared. "This boy committed a worse crime than murder. He robbed me." And in the courtroom, the lawyer was saying, "My client went out and made good on every bill he owed and every bad check he had around this county. My client has satisfied every complaint, your honor." RICHMOND, Ky. VERNON PARKER unsure of anything except that he was in real trouble, stood in front of the judge and asked his memory to tell him how a man acts when he wants to indicate true contrition.

Vernon tried a steady gaze. That wasn't too good because the judge looked straight back at him and the judge seemed to see something thoroughly distasteful, so Vernon bowed his head. Let the lawyer do the talking and earn his keep. This was at midmorning in the second-floor courtroom of Circuit Court Judge James S. Chenault.

The judge had called a short recess in a murder trial and now was using the time for other matters, one of which was the sentencing of Vernon Parker Jr. for robbery and forgery. 9f Sc jc 3C Parker's lawyer spoke, and the judge read through the presentenc-ing report. On the wall to the judge's left, a television videotape camera took in the scene. At the rear of the courtroom, high up on the wall, there was positioned a second videotape which also was on.

After the recess, there would be a third camera, placed in front of the bench where the stenographer usually sits. Here in the center of the country usually reserved for hillbillies you find the most technically advanced courtroom in the United States. The Madison County Court uses videotapes as the official record. Trials are shot with three cameras, from different angles, and the courtroom is excellently wired for sound. When you see this courtroom you immediately think of the effect that cameras in courts would have in New York City.

If somehow, the trials of our political figures and our reputed Mafia figures were shown live on television each day to a city of millions, then finally there might be a public fury that is now so astoun-dingly absent. About which we will write more, this need to put our political figures on television for all to see and hear, and this was the reason we were in the courthouse in Richmond to begin with, but for now I must tell you what these television cameras did to defendant Vernon Parker Jr. "Your honor," Vernon Parker's Joel S. Dorfman is a U.S. immigration examiner in Boston.

visions still in the present Immigration Act of 1952. The special interests that continue to profit from open immigration vitiated the 1952 act, and are jiot addressed in this bill, while the "push" factors of poverty, overpopulation, and chaos abroad more than ever energize aliens to come to the U.S. Out of millions of illegal aliens, there are few deportations (only 804 from the New York City immigration office; in fiscal 1985) or interior arrests. While the Border Patrol now apprehends over 1.5 million illegals annually, the result is a ritual bus ride to the border without penalty, whence they can try again that very night. Because of endless appeals, it is virtually impossible to deport anyone who seriously contests his case.

Despite almost any number of violations of the immigration laws, an illegal who can minimally qualify for 1 any immigrant category (e.g., by marrying, United States citizen even in the middle of deportation proceedings), usually gains permanent status right away, because the law provides for no systematic administrative penalties, and Immigration Service lacks the zeal to apply its discretionary powers. ss sfc The top priority given INS adjudicators is reducing backlogs, not ferreting out the many fraudulent claims. Outside investigations are routinely denied because of lack of manpower. The bill perpetuates this pernicious practice in Title Part Sec. 111(a) by dichotomizing the service into "two essential elements" "border patrol and other inspection and enforcement activities" versus "examinations (adjudications) and other service activities." Rewarding persistent lawbreakers mundanely or by special amnesties will subvert any im Other Opinion Democrats and trade bills The Washington Post Presentation by illegals at hiring of easily obtained or counterfeited social security cards, drivers' licenses and birth certificates provides the employer with an affirmative defense.

He is not required to establish the validity of the documents or to ask for additional evidence. The cited employer is entitled to a hearing before an administrative law judge, administrative appellate review, and finally, appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals. Inexplicably, all employees hired before the effective date of sanctions are universally "grandfathered" in place and immune from checks. Until Congress can convincingly articulate why uncontrolled immigration is harmful to the public interest, aliens will continue to indulge their rational but selfish interests in gaining entry to the U.S., and their domestic apologists will, bv Dropaganda and litigation, create gaping loopholes in paper enforcement provisions.

The immigration Service by itself has not been and cannot be an effective bulwark without congressional and presidential mandate, real resources, and galvanized public opinion. 1986 The Christian Science Monitor In principle, it's entirely possible that the Democrats in the next Congress will produce a respectable trade bill. It's possible that their bill will be a model of enlightened leadership farsighted, fair and a credit to the country. It's possible but, on the basis of recent performance, you'd have to say that it's not very likely. Several eminent figures in the Senate's new Democratic majority say that a trade bill will be their first and most urgent priority.

Their intentions, they say, are the highest. But, like the election campaigns toward which they are aimed, trade bills that start out on the high road very frequently slide off onto the low road instead. The high road leads to a bill that would be genuinely useful. The United States is now engaged in international agreement to widen trade and strengthen present rules. Trade legislation is always a battle between vociferous and aggrieved special interests on one side and a broad national interest on the other.

Special interests, hard pressed by foreign competition, want protection but the protection always costs jobs in unprotected industries and pushes up prices throughout the economy. If the Democrats want to confirm the accusation that they are the captives of narrow industrial and labor lobbies, a trade bill offers them an unbeatable opportunity. The judge nodded and continued reading the presentencing report. Over in the liquor store, Mike Parker erupted. "He didn't make good on me!" He put his beer down and dove for the cash register.

Inside of which he had four forged checks that had been passed in the liquor store by Vernon Parker Jr. Mike Parker grabbed the checks and took off. He burst out of the liquor store and headed up the street and then he turned the corner and raced up a hill toward the courthouse. Here he came zigzagging through traffic of tow trucks, feed grain trucks, pickup trucks, yellow schoolbuses..