Evening Star Newspaper, June 19, 1921, Page 29

. . EDITORIAL SECTION \ - The Sunday Star. MORNING, JUNE 19, 1921 EDITORIAL PAGE . NATIONAL PROBLEMS SPECIAL ARTICLES Society News Part 2—12 Pages ! SUNDAY WASHINGTON, D. -C. . NEW SHIPPING BOARD|Great Varietv in Pressi 'WAYS ARE SUGGESTED FACES A GREAT TASK Great Variety in Pressing Issues’ FOR AIDING FARMERS Mainten‘ance of American*Merchant Ma- Demandlng Attentlon Of PresldentITwo Branches of the Government Consid~ ¢ Vhb Shigolag Boasd had mld & very try's best known engineers, and has (B, 1n; pota contintiiis warm eoe. considerable number of vessels up to house in the 1600 block of 19th street.| hoon active in. promoting a closer [ merous clubs and engineering or- [mer. B AEmSul wartime prices to the consumers. " February 28, 1921. The grand total so +|1t has become his custom to pass that| ynjon of engineering organizations. g-nlutm:n‘-. llml l-kuu‘ .;thor of ‘sev- make business men and the public of was 457; with a total tonnage house every day. He occupied it as|ywyn Herbert Hoover he eided in or- | eral technical works, {ncluding “Ele- | Teulize that the prosperity of agri- of 3,084,921 deadweight tons. 'Of these secretary of the legatlon thirty years| ganizing the Federated American En- | ments of Machine Design,” “Industrial | - NEW JUDGESHIPS SOUGHT. Lure is of fandamental and vigal im_ 335 were steel vessels of various types, ago and paid $60 a month for it. To-| gineering .Societies, and is one of the | Education,” “Principles of Education.” T’ no TRt e A B atever affects agricalture .,,,. 1321 were wood and 11 wers composite. day it rents for $300 a month. vice presidents of the American En-|In his new post ' Dean Kimball oAt s crecion d:»ba “ :‘:‘ n New. v",:‘}y o:.'hlilr ,,l;:’,:‘ ;‘,m,.uy ;at,;_:fi.u,, For theso vessels the Shipping Board Senor Mathieu has seen other; gineering Council, the executive or-| will dlmtl thiu ul:qvm-- of the Friday. by the smu’m m o a clear realization that ,,,,““""m“ . recelved 3 total of $322,829,695.68. But GABRIEL NORADOUNCHIAN, changes. He has watched the trade| gan of this I::Grnuon. . S l:‘r:l::e:fl:n”: h:- w::‘;ll:gn r:’ the House. Senator. W ot :‘::Ie nbti ::: ffi?‘;:ém‘&‘infi‘%'? ..:"I. 3 the very fact that so many vessels have | vice ‘president of the Armemism ma-|of the United States with Chile in-| Dean Kim - was born in a - publs Now Tork, ‘adsworth, mr:lmn s for tna prombtinn o e L sold increases the difficulty of sell- un-l delegation. He Is also here to|crease more than 400 per cent, until| River, New Brunswick, October 21, | gional sactions DE every: state can, sald present court . e s s dome ndditionsl afd. He is an calendats were with busi-| sgNoR DON BELTRAN MATHIEU, rine Depends Largely Upon Acts of Officials Recently Appointed. BY G. GOULD LINCOLN. HE future of the American mer- velopment of the merchant marine under the Shipping Board since the war began BY N. 0. MESSENGER. ' RESIDENT HARDING, in his exercise of the functions of chisf executive, finds an amazingly large number of public, near- public and political subjects, widely dif- fering in character, brought to his attention for pines and Porto Rico also are to be given at- - tentlon more generously than heretoforeg * ¥ X X Congress bids fair to he in session through- out the summer and well 4nto the fall, even though the President does not expec{ action to the plan as containing fhe possibility 6f the creation of a new line of securities. . * Xk X * 2 When sugar got below 5 cents a pound, wholesale, last week, the wise ones in Congress were asking what had brought about the lower- ing of cost; whether any miracle of legislation ering Means of Relieving Agricultural Conditions—Recommendations. BY WILL P. KENNEDY. EALIZING that agriculture | etting $3 or $3 | horsehide for $1.50 a pair. 50 for a horschide, were able to buy gloves from that Today it and is enormous. Up to February 28 last final judgment thereon. Those assoclated with They found that the operation < ; ! 4 chant marine—the great fleets had wrought it. They fous e ope! i i 5 of merchant vessels built to|the total receipts from appropriations by him in the consideration of them declare that upon important legislation beyond tariff and of economic laws, ton technical to be interest- is the principal industry xr{ | they take the trouble to skin the hif Congress were $3,255,881,119, and the "instead of their muitifariousness appalling or taxes. President Harding does not make the this country, and that unless |and bring it to market they get ¢ meet the war emergency—I closely bound up with the United States Shipping Board recently ap- Pointed by President Harding. To a very large extent will the maintenance of 4n American merchant marine de- pend upon the administration of the new board. It is a stupendous task that con- fronts the incoming board. Congress has been thoroughly aroused over re- President from the national defense fund $29,512.426, Its receipts from other sources, including operation of vesdels, sales, etc., amounted to $1,477,011,543. The total gross reccipts, therefore, were $4,762.405,089. During the debate in the Senate re- cently when the second deficiency bill was up for consideration, the assertion board had also had alloted to it by '.llel I~ +'far as can be found possible. even tiring him, he seems to welcome each new and different problem as it comes along, and relishes the novelty. Those around him seek, of course, to present questions to him in lhel_r crystallized state, as That is to say, they attend to the preliminary bolling down and skimming off until he can view the proposition in' what Uncle Joe Cannon calls “the last analysis,” a term he has used so often as to complaint that he “has Congress on his hands,” and could not very well, the Congress in extraordinary session in ad- vance of its regular meeting time. In fact, he feels rather sympathetic for the statesmen, and hopes that they will be able to get a long re- spite frgm labor before the regular session com- mences next December. In copgressional circles the feeling is said to be growing that it possibly would have been wiser to have put tax revision ahead of tariff since*he summoned’ ing to the casual reader, had brought it about. and that Congress, looked upon by the people as the great miracle maker for the nation, had nothing to do with it. . Congressmen say that it fs almost pathetic the way the people are coming to look to the federale rovernment and to Congress to right every disturbance that grows out of the eco- nomic laws, the actlon and reaction of trade in normal flow, and the application of the fronclad law of supply and, demand, financial credits and agriculture is on a stable eco- prosperity and industrial ctivit; the administration and 1€ branches of the federal govern:n have organized special committecs to investigate agricultural conditions. 1. Secretary Henry C. Wallace has just organized in the Department of jAgriculture a committee on economies nt | nomic footing there can be no general {So that where they forme and they pay $2 0 for the same glove. ¢ got two pairs or gloves or better for u horse hide they now get one pair of gl for three horschides Since December the buying power <2 the farmers has been reduced ain exactly one-third. This one-third - duction in the buying power of neariy one-half the population is one of tt have fncorporated it in the lexicon of legislation H B tion Bsilne or (08 ports that money has been wasted bY [ was made that the Shipping Board had| and offictaldom. amendment. Whereupon, a large number of the (IEhtness of """'"" it i il el R e Gl S e el the millions and more in the adminit somo $40,000,000 with which to continue President Harding's capacity for carrying senators and representatives are now going o The WIACS SXRERICr BRS UL 0oftNE TOF lagriealture princivally transportation, | 5o EIBESEOR 16 Gther Idustries tration of the Shipping Board and|operations, but that on the other hand, it around saying, “I told you s But when'the e governm n| or the rail- rural credits and finance, tariff and for- g is the biggest xingle in Emergengy ' Fleet Corporation. There is a demand for an immediate curtail- ment of expenditures. The Shipping Board has been denied the money de- manded for continuing the operation of vessels during the coming fiscal year—asked for in the second de- has_outstanding obligations of some $80,000,000. On another occasion Senator Freling- huysen of New Jersey, republican, made the charge that it was costing the Ship- ping Board $400,000,000 a year overhead to operate vessels valued at some $800,- " 300 days, almost a year, while others ficiemey bill. There is an understand- ing, however, that if the new board begins to make reforms in the matter | Of New Jersey and Warren of Wyomins, have insisted that it would be better to of “expenditures and adopts improved bulin:u methods Congress will put|Dburn or sink these vessels it sor;ethmx through another appropriation bill, | cannot be done to put an cnd to the tre- granting the money needed. mendous cost they are to the govern- ment. No Valuation of Vessels. A condition of world-wide depres- Future of Merchant Marine. sion makes the task of the Shipping| But there is another side to the Board very much more difficult than it | picture. Before the war the United would otherwise be. A report by Ad-|States was without an ocean-going miral W. S. Benson, then chairman of |merchant marine. Its merchant ma- the board. transmitted to the Senate|rine was confined to the coastwise on Shipping Board operations on June | trade of the country, from which for- 1, and now in the process of being|eign vessels are by law excluded. The printed, declines to place a value on the | war made it clear to the country that vessels owned by the government. The[a merchant marine is a great na- report says: tional asset. A tremendous mer- “It is obviously unfair to use as ajchant marine was built, at a huge basis for the ascertalnment of values|cost to be sure. But it was war of these vessels the prices obtaining in[time. Now the question is, how is the midst of a world-wide depression. |this merchant marine -to be pre- Therefore, it was thought best to omit | served to this country? And that is any attempt to place a valuation on |the fundamental question with Which the new board has to deal. 000,000. Other senators, including Edge along at the same time a variety of subjects fs marked, his associates say, by the power to keep them fresh in his mind, and whenever thé sub- Jject bobs up for consideration, to remember just where it stood the last time it was up. * % k ¥ From Alaska to Haiti and San Domingo: from a phase of the fiesheries of tHe Atlantic to ultimate Philippine independence; from dis- armament or from' peace with Germany to an apparently inconsequential but potentially dan- gerous, politically, row over patronage, the chief exgcutive ranges. And then, ever present, the legislative situation in Congress, which is of such great importance to the whole country and to the party in power. In the midst of all this mass of public busi- ness and a tremendous correspondence, he finds time to see the “plain people,” who call at the White House in great numbers, to give them a cordial welcome, and to take the necessary out- door recreation to keep himself in good physical form. * ok % ¥ \ The present administration has evidenced in- dication of intention to give more attention to some of the dwellers under the flag of the United States who are remote from the “states” and not in position tocrowd around the center of government and legislation and make their wants known. Alaska, according to definite an- nouncement from a high administration source procedure was decided upon, it will be recalled, the most strident call for legislation was pro- ceeding from the farmers, who pictured their condition as verging on complete ruin unless immediate protection of the tariff was provided. * % % % “Are the farmers cheering up?” is a question administration officials frequently ask of their friends in Congress, who keep in touch with the grangers. The burden of the reply is that the farmers are just now so busy that they are not having so much time to grumble as a while ago. All indications point to splendid crops, put in at somewhat cheaper cost than a year ago. The farmers are sald to be very much pleased with the attention which has been given them by this Congress and the administration. They find themselves under the protection of an organized section of the membership in Con- gress, which is looking out for their welfare at every turn and angle. Whether this is a good thing for the whole mass of the population is debated pro and con among the economists and philosophers) in Congress, but standing out above their dlputations is the conerete fact that the party in power is making a hit with bene- ficiaries, the farmers, and although parties to the plan include both democrats and republi- cans, the political party in power hopes to bene- fit. * % ¥ % Plans are declared to be progressing favor- roads, the government in this case being the Congress and lhe Interstate Commerce Commis- slon. - Last week th- financial district in New York was making earnest inquiries of congressmen and administration officfals as to whether the roads are likely to get the $800,000,000 they are demanding. They received rather scant encour- agement. Congress is doing its best to cut down appropriations just now, and the indications are said to be that.f there is any possibility of Congress finding an excuse for =ide-stepping an appropriation of nigh on to a billion, Congress will do it. * % ¥ % ‘Washington has come to be the great politi- cal headquarters of the country. Time was when the two parties thought that they must mestle close to the locality where the money- bags reposed, New Yark ‘city. Tt was deemed essential to be constantly “in touch” with the men who had the milllons which were to be tapped for campaign purposes. Now, legislation and administration are found to be of more importance politically than money. Both the democratic and republican national committees are to keep headquarters constantly “on the joh” at Washington, and the two na- tional chairmen will spend most of their time here. The democratic national committee has defi- nitely taken the critical atand to be maintained from now on until the congressional campaizn opens in 1922. “There's millions in it" from the 'eim\ market investigations. | 2 Congress has organized a spe- | ctal joint committee to study the same | problems. The committee on economics of the Department of Agriculture is com- posed of: Chairman, Assistant Secre- Dr. H. C. Taylor, chief of the office of farm management and farm economics; Dr. W. A. Taylor. chief of the bureau of plant industry; IDI‘ John R. Mohler, chief of the bu- reau of animal industry, and L. M. Estabrook, assistant chief of the bu- reau of markets. The joint congressional committee is -composed of Senators Capper of | Kansas; Lenroot, Wisconsin; McNary. Oregon; Harrison, Mississippi, and Robinson, Arizona, with Representa- tives Anderson. Minnesota; Mills, New York; Funk, lllinois; Ten Eyck, New York, and Sumner, Texas. ‘The Wallace committee on economics is to correlate and bring together the information within the department bear- ing on the agricultural situation, to point out what action might be taken to al- leviate the situation, to consider in what way the department might redirect fts activities or reorganize its forces, and to formulate, so far as practicable, a lonz- | tary E. D. Ball; try from the vlewpoint of numbers employed—12,000,000 men: from the number of people supported—abor: 50,000,000; from the value of land and equipment — about $50.000,000.0005 from annual production — between $19,000,000.000 and $25,600,000.000. No other industry could have survived such a staggering blow as the 1o = of $8,500,000,060 in a single year, maln possible only by the fact that the farmers own the land and produce the food. Relief Methods Suggested. “What is to be done?” is the ques- tion that the joint congressional com- mittee must answer. Here are the recommendations-that will be made by those who have studied the prob- lem most closely, sympathetically, and yet considering the gelation of this industry to the general welfare: Firs A prime essential, which in- volves a long-time program, is ad- justment of production to consump- tion demands, so 4s t6 insure ample supplies without burdcnsome surpluses and uneconomic waste involved in such surpluses. < Second. Larger consumption by our own people of the surplus production Wwhen prices are cheap as a result vessels.” & ] a féw days ago, whose people and their wants ably fer the establishment democtatic Viewpolnt. -Anyway, criticlam (s the i {oa Sevorsble skasoniand e dawiak The situation is that the United| Semator Jomes of Washington.| 1 T%¥ CO¥8 “Eo. WASSC Beoble anld thewr wants e i :y“::‘ 0‘;"‘."_::::":”:‘::: only capital available to the minority party, ana | Ume Program that would ‘;,",'“5 about . supply and demand—that is, in times States government—the Shipping Board | chairman of the commerce commit-| from Congress and from the executive branch. flcates. For the moment, there s division of 't* YAIUe can only be estimated as time goes on. | Well balanced agriculture. This commit-1of plenty and low prices. This in= in this case—has a great number of |tee of the Senate, which degls with \essels which it desires to sell. But, at|all shipping matters, a strong advo- present, there is no market for them.[cate of an American merchant ma- The carrying trade has fallen off enor- | rine, has declared that a very critical mously. Also, other nations are get- |Situation exists with regard to the ting back into the game and are do- [merchant marine. He deplored the ing their best to obtain the trade from | waste of money that apparently has the American vessels. been going on in connection with thé It is the announced policy of the|3dminjgtration of the - ‘Shipping administration to do all it can to aid [Board, but he strongly urged that in the maintenance-ajt development of | many ¢ the ships should continue to the American merchant sharine. But it|be opipated, even if at a loss, in is also the desire.of the administration | order (4 build up the American car- that the government get out of thelrflfltlfido And to carry American shipping business and that the vessels produsy, in American bottorns. If now owned by it become the property [ the business is to be conducted at a of American shipping companies owned loss, then the government should and controlled by Americans. take the loss, but continue to operate, The report of the Shipping Board |Just as many great private business shows the conditions cxisting as of Feb- | institutions have done, until :times ruary 28, 1921, and it is belleved that|2re better. To throw the merchant there t been much change since |MAarine into the discard now, he in- Das oo sisted, would be folly which would ICTURE a man bglow the me- l dium in stature, plainly dregsed, President ‘Harding is said to have agreed to the contention that what Alaska needs most is enlarged federal authority to deal with the in- terests of the territories, and Congress, at the regular session next year, is to be asked to grant it It may go to the extent of federal autocracy to an unusual degree, but decided to be necessary and salutary. Hawaii, the Philip- sentiment over localizing or centralizing the warehouses, but that detail is expected to yield to treatment. Secretary Hoover is taking an important part in the handling of this subject, and during the past week was in conference with grange representatives from all over the country. The attention of financial circles is being attrasted It is an outstanding feature of American politics that one party murt essay the construc- tive role and the minority the critical role. One - does things or claims to be doing, and the other must insist “It {sn’t 80; you are not doing any- thing.” And experlence has proven that with a certain element of the voters, readier attention is given the eritics thap to.the eonstructianists. " Coopreight. 1921, by Wasiagten Btar) Ambassador- From Chile Is Not Afraid to Discuss Diplomatic Affalrs Frankly & question which ought to concern you Americans more than it does, not as wall don't forget you must also face that barrier when you go out Trade calls on him are not confined to those tes would always keep in mind the inti-| mate relationship and interdependence of | agriculture and other industries. i This existence of this committee will | make it possible for the Departitent of Agriculture to counsel better with the special congressional committee, bringing te @ focus all the information within the department bearing upon the problem the congressional committee is considering. This economic cemmittee will also con- sult agricultural leaders, those spe- cialists in oolleges, and the men who are devoting their lives to a study of the bigger problems of agriculture. .. Plight of the Farmers. The present trouble with regard to agriculture is due principally to the disproportionate fall in prices. Prior to the war and during the war there was a certain well established rela- tion between the prices the farmer | cludes 4 return to normal per capita — consumption of meats. which declined during the war. Meatless days were all right in times when it was urgent that the supply be conserved for the soldiers overseas, but the trouble is the people have continued to cut con- sumption. Prices were high and the Ppeople got out of the habit of eating * meat, Third. Restriction by adequate tare iff of the importation of products of cheap iabor and transportation from foreign countries in competition with the United States. The farmers have suffercd not only because of our own surplus, but because also the ex- change rates attracted heavy ship- ments from abroad of meats, dairy products, vegetable oils, wool, fruits, nuts and other products from coun- tries where the cost of production is that date. None of the vessels of the of diplomatic courtesy. His advioe is much lower than ours. Shipping Board is now being operated ::;x‘nfm:n: ;: the lhearn of the Brit- alert, possessed of a pair of it applies to Chile alone, but to all|is an exchange of goods. ‘1t means buy- | eagerly sought, freely givey and per- | 8ot for his crops and the prices he{ poyrih, Better country storage fa- directly by it. Those that are in op- T nations engaged in the keen, brown eyes and a discon- | Latin America. Europe is regaining|ing as well as selling. If you don't buy | haps, if tales were told out of school, [paid. The conditions were fairly|cilities and credit facilities, mec- cri.tion are operated In conjunction with | CFFYIng trade. private interests, some of them being Reduction of Expenses. chartered to private interests and oper-i One of the things which Congress is ated entirely by those interests. For|looking to the Shipping Board to instance, of the government-owned ves- | bring about as soon as possible fs a sels 976, with a total tonnage of 6, reduction in its employes and the sal- 200 deadweight tons were at that time | aries of many of them. Senator Ken. uperated in conjunction with private in- | yon of Towa, republican, startled the terests, and 2i, with a total tonnage of | Senate a few days ago with a recital 184,078 deadweight tons, were operated |of the large mumber of highly paid entirely by private interests. employes, with salaries running as Over 730 Vessels Tied Up. high as $15,000, and many at $10,000 At the same time a yrand total of |and 3$6.000. The number of persons 786 vessels of all kinds, vith a total jemployed by the Shipping Board and tonnage of 3.891,688 deadweight tons, owned by the government were tied 8:544 on shore, and 388 on sea, exclu- up and not in operation. It was | sive of crews of approximately 43,000 stated that the expense of daily main- | Persons. tenance on these vessels not in opora-| The grand total of vessels of all “tion amounted to $26,766.72. Thiy iu Kinds owned by the government on a considerable daily expense, but the | F€bruary 28 last is given as 1,753, shipping Board found that it was|With a total tonnage of 11.028,966 tons. either impossible to operate these ves- | The number of vessels it had under sels because of lack of business or|COmstruction at that date was fifty- that it cost considerably more to!tWo of which fifty-one were steel and operate them than the revenue from |©Be concrete. The members of Congress who mounted to, and dis- :;‘l‘;n?;n::::‘o" 4 earnesyy favor the continuance of an OF thes vessels not in operation a[ddeauale American merchant marine large number were wood ves-|POInt to this vast fleet and declare elo_in fact, 269. The liat of vessels | that If the present opportunity is now " lost for the maintenance of the Amer- in operation showed only twenty-two ] of. the fleet of wood vessels on the|]ican flag om.merchant vessels in the ports of the world, it will not come seas doing business. It is these same 2900 T 10 WERG B B0l <ol wood vessels that the government is cration having great difficulty in selling. They L were constructed to meet a war need, because they could be built quickly| Here to Thank Americans certing way of saying what he pleases instead him to say, and you have a partial though accurate, description of his ex- cellency, Senor Don Beltran Mathieu, dean of the Latin American diplomatic corps in Washington, and regarded as one of what you would like the Chilean ambassador, the trade lost in the war, slowly tak- ing it away from the United States. Europe offers lower prioces, credit, and buys from us in exchange. No amount of talk is going to change the fundamental which now point to a loss of South American trade by the United States. easler laws of commerce, anything from us how aré we going to get the money to buy from you?" Frankness Not Peasimism. But the ambassador’s frankness can- not be mistaken for a pessimistic atti- tude on the relations between Latin America and the United States. On the other hand, Senor Mathicu has watched to a touch of Mathieu .wisdom. ‘more than one of the:international problems which beset the members of the Latin American representation in the capital may trace their solution (Copyright, 1921, by The Washington Star.) —_— uniform and stable. But—the farm- ers planted their crops when every- thing was at peak prices, and they kave been marketing the crops a'] deflated prices. | The congressional committee must take into consideration that the farm population is 51,400,000, while the city of the best informed men in the Unit- ed States on South Amarican affairs. He i8 a skilled and clever diplomat, yet there are few queries which ever elicit from him the diplomatic “I can't discuss it.” the Emergency Fleet Corporation u|ned one, yet the casual caller can al- ways assure himself of a cordial re- ception at home or office. student of economics, an expert on world trade, 2 wide readet and a pro- found scholar—yet the subjects upon which he loves to expand ate the high cost of living and the trouble one has in keeping a cook. Senor‘Mathieu came to Washington thirty-two years ago as secretary of what was then the Chilean legation. Three vears ago, in November, 1918, he returned, after an absence in other parts of thé world extending over twenty-nine years. as ambassador to the United States, most ment his government can give. “Yes, there have been many changes.” the ambassador will tell you. here when your country had only one story on its foundation. two. There were only about 60,000,000 T would not say, however, that you are going to lose it.” Fishing for compliments from the am- bassador gets no bite. “How does the American business man compare with his European competitor in the eyes of the Latin American?’ he is asked. . ‘There is no difference. Personality counts little there. It's the simple propo- sition of who sells chupat and offers thé best terms.” German Agents Active. Germany's commercial agents are making themselves prominent in the South American trade field, the ambas- sador says. Every day sees the arrival of more men seeking to revive relations with old customers. Germany is losing no time in regaining the position she once held in Latin America. She offers goods at low prices, and what is more, she is willing to buy {South American products in exchange. Senor Mathieu forecasts a rapid recovery for Germany, financially and otherwise. The emcrgency tariff—any sort of tariff, in fact—is sort of a persona non grata in conversation with Latin Ameri- jcan diplomats. Most of them will side- step the question with diplomatic dex- His post is a digni- He is a Here Thirty-Twe Years Ago. the highest and important diplomatic assign-] “I left Now it has the friendly interest in Latin America which has grown with the development of trade. This country is learning to know her sister republics of the south, he says, and this acquaiptance or friénd- ship is going to ripen with time. The already unite the republics of the west- ern hemisphere. Talk of the future reminds the am- bassador of a question of moment. “What must one pay for a cook in a few years?’ he asks. “When secr tary of the legation here I could hire a cook for $30 a month. Now I have to pay $80." Sees Benefits in Union. Like most of the thinking men in South America, Senor Mathieu i& watching with interest the formation in Central America of the Federation, or Central American Union. He sees in it promise for the future of Central America. He compares the effort to form a Central American republic to a combination of similarly engaged in- dustries; pooling the individual re- sources that the .-ln may in the end be greater. Senor Mathieu is deln of the Latin American corps here in more than one NEWEST SUN-SPOT GROUP IS WITHOUT PARALLEL —_— Cause of Recent Aurora Borealis Most Conspicuous in Mod- ‘ em History. e According to latest scientific esti- mate, the large group of sun-spots which became visible last month, ac- companied by disturbanees of the magnetic and- electrical comditions of the earth, manifested by magnetic storms, Interruptions of telephone and telegraph services over the greater part of the world, with brilliant dis- plays, were the most conspicuous in the history of modern astronomical observation and research. Some astronomers contend that larger sun-spots often appear with- out producing ‘any such terrestrial effects, and magnetic storms some- times occur in absence of sun-spots, 80 that the relationghip between the two phenomena is obviously excep- tional. There is evidénce that solar prominences are more closely related to the production of magnetic dis- population is 54,300,000, so that nearly half the people are consumers as well as producers. Since 1910 the propor- tlon of city people has been swing- ing up, while the proportion of rural inhabitants has been falling off pro- portionately. The city population is now 51.4 per cent, while the rural population is 48.6. So that the farm- ers buying power depends on the relation the prices he gets for his crops bear to what he has to pay for! what he must buy. He is nearly~one- half of the consuming public. The drop in 1920-21 on farm produce was 68 per cent, as compared with 1919-20. Translated into dollars, this was $1,400,000,000 on live stock and $7,100,000,000 on other crops—a total of $8,500,000,000 in price valuations for farm products. That $8,500,000,000 is one-third of the total crop and live stock prodygtion for 1920. It‘is one-third of the total national debt. It wiped out the.net income of agri- ‘culture. It reduced prices below the cost of production for practically all —— = O R P — crops below the pre-war average. Yet the retail prices the farmers pay have continued with very slight declines. properly adjusted to the farmer needs, 80 that he will not be forceu\ sell his products in a short period « yime for whatever they will brin.. One of the contributing causes of tho recent depression was that the farm- ers were squeezed for credit and forced to let their crops go cheap. The farmers must have long term credits by the very nature of their business. In other lines of busines: the turnover can be made in thirty to ninety days, but the farmer'’s crop represents an entire season. The proposed $50,000,000 relief fund is to take care of just this situation. In a conference with castern bankers at the White House an agreement wak {reached wheréby the easiern finan- ciers will make ,000,000 available, with the suggestion that western bankers make a like sum available. The scheme is to afford ample country storage under federal license for staple products which are susceptibie of standardized grading, to be cov- ered by warehouse receipts having the sanction of federal and state law, which makes them gilt-edged com*. mercial paper. Then if prices are not right the farmer will not be forced té sell at slump prices, but can let his crops go gradually, at the same time borrowing on his warehouse receipts to finance him. Fifth. Promotion of foreign trade o afford an outlet for America’s surplus production, by extension of the necs essary oredits and other methods of when vessels and more vessels were 8 By 4, and it ooks today as For Aid to Armenians|people here then—now there arej ... xot go the Chilean ambassador. | sense of the word. He 18 the guiding |turbances, whichs Heeo 38 an dllustration:) 4 Jesther jOrducing. ) the demand, an S as m: v about twice that number. But there| oo o % e says, “and you | star fof the younger Aiplomats of the |efvects of sof :l are only visible | manufacturer In Des Moines in a let-| Siwth. Legalized collective buying though the governmen going was one thing I found unchanged in wal i tar olar disturbances, the exact |ter to Secretary Wallace points out|and selling through co-operative ore be’ compelled to take a huge loss on these boate—as it will also on many of the steel vessels, too, unless the market improves considerably. These vessels were tied up, and still are tied up, at ports all along the coast line, from New York to Georgia, to Texas,'to California and to Seattle, Wash. One of the tables submitted by the board shows general reasons why these boats were not in opera- tion, and a great many were said to be laid up because of “insufficient ; many others were sald to be “not suited for commercial pur- poses,” and still others were reported to be without available market. Some of the vessels had been tied up for had been tied up a much less time. Over 450 Vessels Sold. W""""""“"“‘"""“""‘“'“ nechts ‘on the mear sact amd aine is sald. cne of the leading statesmen ;.-wtammlflww Armenia. - ‘ & / Washington. still second assistant secretary of State thirty years ago, and I wouldn't be surprised it he sits in the same chair. “Everything especally. ocost of being a diplomat—" Senor Mathieu must resort to the .gestyres which to the Latin American are bdrn. In 1889, he says, one could live com- fortably on the $4.000 a year Chile then allowed her secretary in Wash- ington, more comfortably, he ruefully states, which he receives today as ambassa- dor. And rents—on his way to his down- town office Mathieu directs his chauffeur to drive out of the way in order to pass a little this country today holds the majority of Chile’s total commerce. “Cén you keep l-hl! lnde? Thu.t.l will prevent anybody's coming in. True Me. Alsey A Aden & enough. But while you ars bulding the |most important ssaignment Their He has the same desk he had has And another thing. increased—taxes the Dexter S. Kimball, dean of the Col- lege of Engineering, Cornell Uni- versity, will be the next president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The nomination of Dean Kimbell, who succeeds Edwin 8. Car+ man of Cleveland, Ohlo, and of othet officers was announced yesterday. The nominations will be ratified by & mail ballot, in which the 15,000 mem- bers of the society in all parts of the country.wfil take part. Dean Kimball ig one of the coun- $4,000 va. $30,000. than on .the $30,000 salary in the morning, Senor 1865, and was graduated grom Leland- Stanford Untiversity with'the degree of A. B, in 1896. He paved the way south who come to America on their Their ’mmn will tie tighter the bonds which most important assignment. SELECTED TO HEAD LARGEST U’ S. SOCIETY OF ENGINEERS to the deanship at Cornell by serving as apprentice and journeyman In Port Gamble, Wash., from 1381 to 1887. The next six years he served in the shops of the Union iron works, San Francisco, and during 1896-98 was connected with the engineering départment of this concern. Later he ‘was a designing eéngineer for the Anaconda Mining Company, end in 1898 became an assistant professor of 1 machine design at Cornell. In 1904 he was advanced to a full professorship. Dean Kimbal] is a member of nu- and - professional divisions covering the more important spheres of engi neering and technical'effort. | _ nature of which is yet beyond the ken of the shrewdest scientific or as- e————————————— et | ¢ £, O T C L intellect, or observation of such celestial phenomena. The last maximum of sun-spots was in 1917. In 1920 this'phenomena con- tinued to décline, the mean daily spot area -for that year being about 700 millionths of the sun's visible hemi- sphere, or half of that of 1917. On a few occasions, especially dur- ing Augus® 1920, the solar disk was almost free from spots, while on some days in January and March the total spotted .area was more than 2,500 millionths. The prediction has been recently. made by some scientists that the maximum ‘sun-spot disturbances of the past spring indicated a probable medium temperature for the incoming summer, which begins next Tuesday: that for vears the farmers have been Dean Df Lntin American Diplomats in Washington crops. It carried prices for s me] i ull.duainplnln ganizations of producers, so that the§y can no longer be arrested, fined an@l imprisoned at the instance of weHl organized, profiteering middlemen, &s, fias happened recently in several states. 3 - Seventh. nomicdl system of marketing and diss tribution—so that not too much of any crop will go to gilut some para’ ticular market—so that large Wups plies will not have to be hauled bick thousands of miles, etc. Eighth. Reduction in freight rats 0 as to restore the relation of cost of transportation to the price of farm products. At present the freight ratés are 80 per cent higher than before the war, and on 150,000,000 tons of tnm preducts moved annually thy xcess coSt amounts to more (h; $1,000,000,000—most of which comes out of the price the farmer receivés. for his products and tends to sustajn More efficient and -eéo= _