Evening Star Newspaper, July 10, 1921, Page 29

EDITORIAL PAGE NATIONAL PROBLEMS SPECIAL ARTICLES * _ Part 2—10 Pages GRIDIRONING THE U. S. WITH AIR HIGHWAYS Plans Being Worked Out for Transporta- tion Lines for National Defense in War and Increasing Commerce in Peace. BY WILL P. KENNEDY. REAT highways of the air . gridironing the entire United States have been charted by the War Department with the design that they shall be the princi-| pal transportation lines of the future | for use in national defense, but even more so for increasing commerce. These plans are being worked out . under the general supervision of Gen. | Charles T. Menoher, chief of the air| service, but the co-operation of civic] and business organizations all over thé country is being sought. Author- izatfon for this work is found In the Army reorganization act of June 4, 1920, which provided for the air serv- ice of the Army, and the mapping out and development of these great air- ways is part of the program for building up the air service. It also carries out the President's message of April 19, in which he a3~ pressed the wish that the Army could De entrusted with the development of airways: The President was advised, of course, regarding needs by the na- tional advisory committee on aero- nautics and approved their recom- mendations In his appeal to Congress. He urged that an appropriation of $2,000,000 covering two years should be made for this work, and a bill cov- ering such appropriation is now being prepared. In the schemes of reorganization of the administrative branch of the gov- ernment general federal supervision of eir communication and transporta- v tion is contemplated, either in a de- partment of communication and trans- portation or by some other agency. Work of the Air Service. Already the air service of the Army has done a great deal of work forl other federal departments and agen- ® cies and in co-operation with the de- partments of Agriculture, Treasury, Interior, Commerce; for the states of New, York and Pennsylvania, and many other governmental services. The War Department's tentative plans are for development of these great airways through the National Guard. which, under the reorganiza- tion, constitutes one-third of the en- tire Army, and the organized reserve, which, under the reorganization con- stitutes one-half, while the Regular Army will be only one-sixth. The part“that elvie spirit and commercial enterprise is to take in this big de- velopment for the future of natlonal defense and commerce is in establish- ing municipal fiylég felds and land- ing stations In 'es where the air service does not’ have airdome or group airdomes. The principal com- munitles are now being urged to set aside such municipal fields or com- reons for use of the Natlonal Guard, organiged reserve, wir station and similar activities. It is contemplated that about such commons approxi- mately forty-five acres in area will » srow up concessions for the Army, for the National Guard, Aero Clubs, commercial profects related to avia- tion—so jthat they will be centers for national/defense and commercial avi- ation. There has been considerable preju- dice against aviation, due to a num- ber of fatal accidents, but those in closest touch with developments as- . sert that aerial transportation will be not only the pleasantest, but: the safest method—avoiding the millions of chances for fatal accidents in rail- road train or automobile. It is claimed -that the accidents have.been due to lack of ground organization and putting planes specially designed and conmstructed for war to uses for which they are not adapted. Eight Great Afrways. In a general way eight great air- ways have been charted—three transcontinental, one along .the At- lantic and Pacific coasts, and three cutting the country north ad south from the Canadian border to the Mexican border and Gulf. Airdomes and group airdomes have been pro- vided for along the coast lines and borders, with municipal landing fields ul‘ airdomes dotting the interior ntry. ar:ropoud Atlantic coast airway stretches from Portland, Me., to Key ‘West, Fla.; the Pacific coast airway from Seattle, Wash.,, to San Diego, Cal. The northern transcontinental airway would stretch from Boston and New York across Binghamton, Buffalo, Cleveland, Chicago, Billings and Helena to Seattle. The central transcontinental airway would sweep . from Washington, D. C, across Pitts- burg! Columbu: Springfleld, Il Rock Island, Omaha, Sidnéy, Chey- enne, Rawling, Salt Lake City, Bat- tle, Mont., and Reno to San Francisco. The _southern transcontinental air- way would ryn from Savannah, Ga., and Jacksonville, Fla.,, to Montgom- ery, there diverging to Park and New Orleans; from Park to Little Rock and Dallas, where it again diverges 2o Sweetwater and El1 Paso on one stretch and to San Antonio and La- redo on the other. The other arm of the airway from Montgomery to New . Orleans sweeps along the shore to . Galveston, then through San Antonio > and Del Rio and along the border through El Paso, Douglas, Tucson, Phoenix and Yuma to San Dieg One of the north-and-south airways starts at Chicago, and goes over Springfield, IlL.; to St. Louis, to Park, ‘where it joins the southern transcon- tinental line. There s also a shorter airway from Topeka over Wichita, frulea and Oklahoma to join. the southern route at Dallas, and taence to Laredo.. Another north-and-south alrway-is from Billings, Mont.; over Cheyenne, Denver, Pueblo, Trinidad, Amarillo to Sweetwater. The Ilast sirway is from south of Spokane, over Bolse to Salt Lake City, and then a 5 ing southwestward to Goldfleld and . Los Angeles. 73 Thoss members of Congress who are A declaring that airways will be the biggest lines of intercommunication in the future, practically relegating the railroads to the junk pile, point out that it is quite proper for Uncle Sam to develop them with federal money, since they are the latest step in intercommunication, which is of vital need to the country in time of war and constantly in time of peace. They lay stress on the fact that Uncle Sam has done relatively little for the development of commercial aviation a8 a transportation agency, while to date 196,000,0000,000 acres of land have been given to the railroads, and vast sums of federal funds during and since the period of government opera- tion.. They point out also that fer many years millions have been ex- pended annually on river and harbor improvement; that In building the Panama Canal alone Corfgress spent more than $380,000,000. Uncle Sam has fostered all of the common car- rlers, they say, except airways, and it is time now to authorize the appro- priation of - $2,000,000 asked by the President on the advice of the na- tional “advisory committee” on aero- nautics. “If we are to keep abreast of the times and give our nation all that it requires to make the most of its natural resources, then we must foster the airway,” these forward- looking congressmen say. Alrcraft for Long Hauls. Under the departmental reorganiza- Tfon scheme, the federal agency, view- ing the transportation and communi- cation problem as a whole the advo- cates of airways development argue, would consider the airways of prime importance in the transportation sys- tem. They point out that it is the logical means of transportation for long hauls—with no maintenance of way, no congested traffic, the vehicles of the air moving in three dimensions of space along well organized airways. It is projected that for exceptionally long hauls the lighter-than-air craft will be used. Monster dirigibles will ascend to sufficient altitude to pass over all storms. Heavier-than-air craft will be limited in their cruising radius only by fuel supply. Railways would then come second in importance as common carriers be- cause, although shipping covers greater distances, the railroads touch & larger number of communities and more directly affect the daily life of citizens and industry. Eventually, it is forecast that shipping or water haul will garry only the slow and heavy cargoes. The same picture of the future places automobiles and trucks as doing the bulk of short- haul traffi¢, both passenger and mer- chandise, with the auto pushing the trolley lines out of existence. As a start towards development of airways, a transcontinental route fol- lowing the general line of Cleveland, Chicago, Omaha, Reno and San Fran- cisco is about 40 per cent comfleted in organization. Thus far it is de- signed only for day flying. Some flelds are too small and subsidiary landing fields are not sufficiently well marked. A model airway has been operated between Washington and Dayton, Ohlo. The air service is now work- ing on a definite proposition to make this route as near perfect as pos- sible with a view to extending it all over the United States. Plans of the Alr Service. ‘The air service's design for a modern airway is something as fol- lows: A permanent municipal land- ing fleld or main terminal every 200 miles; a less important st6pping place every 100 miles: a subsidiary station every fifty miles, with the best pastures every few miles marked oft as emergen®y stopping places in the event of a faulty motor or gas shortage. Meterological stations would be located at main terminals. Here would be a weather forcaster with powerful radio apparatus.. Radlo sta- tions would be located at 100-mile stops, where the weather, cloud banks and other dangers in the way of the aviator can be accurately forecast and due warning given. Signal devices would be installed at every fifty- mile station. All of the general and many special aids to navigation would (Continued on Third Page.) Not Yet Thirty, Chosen For Important Federal Post ISummer of Hard Work Is Faced RINN - ' EDITORIAL SECTIO he Sundiny %im? WASHINGTON, D. C, SUNDAY MORNING, JULY 10, 1921. : “DOCKING” SALARIES " OF CONGRESSMEN By AdmlnlStratlon and COngreSS Almost Forgotten Law of 1856 Provides for BY N. 0. MESSENGER. RESIDENT HARDING, the cabinet, the budget reformers, Congress and all of- ficlal Washington have set in upon a summer of hard work. If there is any satisfaction In seeing other people with nose to the grindstone, laboring diligently, the country can derive gratification from observ- ing its public servants toiling in the vineyard. It promises to be a long, hard summer for the law makers and the administrators, for many are the problems to be solved, and diffi- cult and knotty. To be sure, a section of the Senate sought to “knock off” for a few weeks' respite, but found itself in the minority, and could not do it. So the Senate turned to and devoted itself to beginning work on the so-called soldiers’ bonus bill. The authors of the bill vehemently object to calling it a bonus measure; by them it is termed the “veterans' adjusted compensa- tion bill.” The finance committee claims that “no name could be applied that would be more irrelevant” than soldlers’ bonus bill. “It stamps upon a just and unquestioned national moral obligation the designation ‘gratuity,’” says the committee. * * k % The cost of carrying out the provisions of the proposed act ranges from a billlon and a half to five billions and a quarter, but the bill makes no plan to raise the money; that detail is left to the future. No payment of impor- tance is provided for until after July 1, 1922, “giving ample opportunity to adjust the esti- mated Treasury deficits and by reasonable economy to meet the added Mability incurred by this legislation without any increase in taxation.” One suggestion to raise the money 1s to utilize the interest payments from forelgn na. tions on the war loans made to them by the United States. But even that expedient lies in the lap of the future, since Secretary of the Treasury Mellon has not yet obtained from Congress the legislation he requested to read- just the payments of the foreign loans. The bill 1s meeting with strong objection in the Senate, and is certain to be amended materizlly from the form in which it was fubmitted by the Treasury Department. It is an open secret that many senators who would, on the final roll call, vote for the “ad- justed compensation bill,” have grave misgiv- ings of the wisdom of the legislation. Others have - their doubts as to whether the bill will bring to the veterans of the world war. the benefits' they expect to obtain from it. * X *x % Senators, in seeking to come to a determfna- tlon whether to vote for or against the bill, found themselves between two fires. On one side was the demand of the veterans and their friends and supporters for the bill, a demand which will find echo in the next election, when these men will have votes. On the other was the objection raised by the Secretary of the Treasury, by the chamber of commerce and by business bodies generally to the proposition, based on economic arguments and logic. One of the most matter-of-fact arguments heard against the bill was the suggestion that it seemed contradictory for the administrative branch of the government to be setting out on a widely heralded campaign of economy, seek- 1ng to save a few hnudred million dollars, while the legislative branch proposed to commit the government to future expenditure which would render economy futile. The practical aspect of the situation as re- gards congressmen Is held to be this: That Congress is showing willingness and disposi- tion to meet the demands of the ex-service men. The Senate, by a vote of 46 to 4, made its bill the unfinished business, giving it right of way. The record of Congress thus far, is altogether clear in favor of meeting the de- mand of the veterans. If, however, insuperable objections are raised against carrying out the project, based upon unanswerable arguments of finance and economics; and if the country, outside of the ex-service men, shows a seeming majority sen- timent In support of those arguments and against the bill, and Congress should decide to yleld to the major pressure, it could be claimed by congressmen that they had tried to do some- thing for the men, but had found it impossible, and should at least be given credit for good intentions. * %k X % President Harding’s visit to the Senate and his advice to senators to withhold action on the bonus bill, on the grounds elaborated by the Secretary of the Treasury, is expected to result in the bill falling to reach final passage at this wession. The President's interposition is calcu- lated, it was said, to_give support to those sen- ators who desire to show sympathy with the project, but find themselves overruled by economic conditions. President Harding, it was construed by sen- ators, is willing to take on behalf of himself and the administration full responsibility for postponing action on the bonus bill, feeling that in urging it he was backed up by incon- trovertible arguments of fact and finance, which the ex-service men themselves must, in the end, acknowledge to be well founded. * % X X President Harding and Secretary Hughes are proceeding with consideration of the for- “elgn problems now in hand at a rate to warrant the expectation that ‘the administration's for- elgn policy may soon be announced. Men in-public life commented upon the lack of appreciable effect attending the declaration of peace with Germany. For weeks, while the resolution was pending in Congress, it might have been thought that the destiny of both continents rested upon speedy declaring of peace, and that business was holding its breath until the act should be signed by the President. The act was signed, and things moved along, Penalizing Members for Absenteeism, But It Has Been Enforced But Once. ' or failed to move along, just as before; noth- ing happened to indicate that peace had made #0 much as a splash. * K ¥ X It is sssumed that the first action to be taken in straighening out the forelgn situation will be to protect the rights of the United States in the after-war settlements, especlally with Germany, and that there will hardly be any indication in the immediate future of a declaration’ of policy as to creating an inter- national association of nations to preserve peace. 54 The treaty of commerce and navigation which is to be arranged with Germany is ex- pected to contain the substance of some of the rights reserved to the United States in the Versallles treaty, placed there in expectation of the Senate ratifying that treaty. These pro- visions, of course, will be only those which relate to questions arising directly between Germany and the United States. * * A fortnight of talk on the tariff bill in the House is calculated as being sufficlent to allow 8ll who desire to do 80 to “blow off steam” on the subject. There will be a number of notable _ speeches, from the leaders of the two big par- ties, and remarks from scores of individuals, who will be bent upon “getting in right” with their constituents. This tarift bill's consideration, it is said, Is likely to show greater independence of thought and more freedom of expression than of any predecessor. The decision of the republican caucus to throw open a number of schedules of the bill to amendment from the floor was in deference to the wide variances of opinion held upon the bill by republicans themselves. Other schedules are to be subject to amend- ment only by the ways and means committee, * k ok % It is not believed by old republican leaders that any marked insurgent movement growing out of the tariff bill's consideration will follow. The committee and the leadership have mot sought to ride ruthlessly over the progressive and moderate tariff republicans, but have been disposed to giye them every chance to press their views and their demands. With an op- portunity to debate and ‘to vote, it is contended by the old-line leaders that the republicans who hold these proposed rates to be too high should be satisfled and take the fortunes of war, as shown in the votes, not thereafter to be held up against the party. It will be the democratic policy, however, to seek to forward seeming dissension among the republicans over the tariff. One of the big assets counted by the democracy in the next congressional elections is a possible insurgent movement among the republicans, following the tariff bill's enactment. They count upon the “old guard” in the Senate to stiffen the rates to a point which will make the bill un- acceptable to the House mild protectionist re- publicans. (Copyright, 1921, by The Washington Star.) SYMPATHY FOR FORMER -SERVICE MEN WILL RULE WAR RISK INSURANCE BUREAU To serve the former service men with the same hearty loyalty with which they served the nation and to put the human sympathy into this work that they put into their sacrifices for hu- manity during the world war is the ambition of Col. C. R. Forbes, the new director of the bureau of war risk insurance. “I am running this bureau for the ex-service man. Personally I think no greater or nobler responsibility could be charged to any man -than to serve his comrades as they served the government and their fellow- men,” said Col. Forbes., For he Is “comrade” in arms to the beneficieries of this bureau, and comrade in sym- pathy and heart interest. He was awarded the distinguished service medal for notable work overseas. He was first on the staff of Gen. Liggett, commanding general of the 1st Corps, and then transferred to the 33d Divi- sion as battalion commander and later as chief signal officer of the division. Subsequently he was with Gen. Cronk- hite, in command of the Sth Army Corps, with headquarters at St. Mi- hiel. Col. Forbes was in the Somme of- fensive, in all the offenses of the Argonne and In the St. Mihiel offen- sive. He put the greater part of his time on the line in France, The same spirit that prompted him to go into the Army prompted him.to take up his present work. He ac- cepted appointment as director of the bureau of war risk insurance because he felt he could serve in a humane and sympathetic way those who are responsible for winning the war and insuring human liberty. He came close to the men while serving with them. He got to know them person- ally, to appreciate their impulses, to understand more definitely and mors clearly the magnificent type of American youth who responded to the call. After the war the paramount sub- ject was rehabilitation and care of the ‘veterans. “I wanted to be part of the rehabilitation,” Col. Forbes ex- plains, “because I was satisfied that a humane agency should represent their interests.” Man of Broad Sympathies. Having suffered every kind of hard knocks and deprivations himself throughout a rugged life, Col. l-rbn‘ to emph: ington Col. repeating,: can feel sincerely for those who are going through similar misfortunes and his hand goes out as that of a brother to the man attempting to g himself and make for himself a p! in the world. As a small boy, ten years of age, Forbes went to sea on a square- rigger bound from Boston to Fre mantle, Australia, under a very severe skipper. Only & few days out from land he was beaten up by the skipper, who was intoxicated. It took them 164 days to make the voyage to Free- mantle, The entire crew was dom- inated by an inhuman and cruel cap- tain. All through his life there has grown from his own experience & the! highest.” ready sympathy for the other fellow who is being knocked about. 3 ‘While the world war was in prog- ress and the American youths were 1living overs niade thé hard side conspicuous, while the niceties of polite socety were thrown aside and men herded as ani- mals and slept as rats in the trenches, his fellows came to know and respect Col. Forbes for the traits he proposes ize in his administration of the war risk bureau. Esteemed by Subordinates. Senator Wesley L. Jones of Wash- recently young {friend, Reed College, Forbes never knew existed—a letter telling of a particular dent in which Forbes had been of service to enlisted men, and express- ing high appreciation of his ability an an Army officer and of his fellow- ships as a man. “I thought you would be interested in learning with what a friendly feel- ing he was regarded by the enlisted men in his command. well know, was not always the case. He was the squarest and most kindly officer, and the finest soldier in whose command I was. During those days I was coming contact with the men in my own com- pany as well as the others in the bat- talion and to a man we felt that Col. —at that time Maj—Forbes was a man and a friend. “I recall an incident in which a cer- tain Frenchman who ran a hotel had kicked out certain men of. the bat- talion from his barn loft where they were supposed to sleep. immediately over us was inclined to be intimidated by the Frenchman— who was entirely unjustified in his action—and was making ready to have the men pitch shelter tents in the mud of the courtyard. was very cheerful, because mud and rain are not conducive to slumber, but ‘when your C. O. tells you to do some- thing you do Shortly Maj. Forbes arrived. What he said to the Frenchman won't bear but passed out—and the company spent the night in the barn loft. “He certainly was human in his contact with us, and not only human, but helpful. handling the communications of the 42d Division and had the record for construction of lines. Communication operations and maintenance mighty smoothly, too;, while he was Wwith the division. regard for him as an administrator. He afterward went up to the front in charge_of the sonme of advance and I lost track of him, being or- dered to the fromt myself and there- after to the United States to bring over & new outfit.” I was told later by another officer who had been with him and who I met at Fort Leaven- ‘worth that his record had been of the Besides being thus qualified and Forbes was under conditions that portant. For example: received from a John Van Etten, in Portland, Ore.—whom inei- The letter read: | ochievement. This, into particularly close doing it. The major and women is: Nobody - perative. it and don’t argue. that~ fellow about & favorable reward. He was at that time T have the highest and press of work. tested as a sympathetic comrade, Col. chosen by President Harding for director of the soldiers welfare work on account of his busi- ness and organizing experlence. profession a civil engineer, handled thousands of men. experience he has learned to appre- clate that always the human element and human contact with the men who are part of any industry is most im- When he left the army and went back to business he employed as many ex-service men as he could take care of, belleving that tney should get first consideration by all who represent capital and industry. As the vice-president of a large en- gineering corporation he was brought into contact with all classes of men in all corners of the globe. He learned that companionship and brotherhood of sympathy and honesty of purpose toward men resulted In the greatest Thus qualified in mind, body and heart, Col. Forbes undertook to make the war risk bureau perform its maximum service to the service men 88 YOU| . ¢ only in the material aid given, but in easing the way and making the men who fought feel that the federal ald was extended by a brotherly, sym- pathetic hand and that the bureau was there to do all it could for them instead of to find excuses for not Policy of the Bureauw. An order just sent out by Col. Forbes shows the spirit for ti.. .cer- vice men that he is determined shall rule throughout the war risk bureau. The bureau's policy with respect to the making of awards in connection with the insurance and compensation claims of the disabled ex-service men First.—No claim shall be disallowed unless the disallowance is ‘clearly im- Doubts are to be decided in favor of the ex-service man or woman and the Presumption is al- ways in favor of the claimant. Second.—Additional evidence should not be called for unless it is clearly indispensable and in close cases the rule that presumption is in favor of the men should permit the making of “It has come to my attention,” Col. Forb s writes, “that a great many diqllow-ncu have been made, and that almost automatically additional medical evidence has been required in every case recently filed. went |10 come to my attention that in some instances the papers in the file are already adequate to justify a de- cision without further delay or with- out asking for further evidence. Probably such cases constitute the minority and are due to the volume “However that may be, there is an almost uniform feeling in the fleld among our representatives and in the country at large among the ex-ser- wvice men, and other people that. this bureau is making too difficult the matter of the presentation and prose- | cution of a claim by continual de- mapds for new evidence and by the apparent attitude of resolving doubts in favor of the government and putting® the entire burden of proof upon the claimant. “Personally in dealing with the em- ployes of the bureau I know that this criticism is not based on solid ground. However, 1 also appreciate the fact that in efforts to secure scientific and professional decisions, it is quite likely that occasionally employes may fall in the habit of desiring more conclusive professional evidence in a gliven case. By he has In this employes shall be instructed that al- though I expect and desire no indis- criminate and unsound decisions rela- tive to a claim for compensation or insurance, nevertheless I am con- vinced that at present we are some- what too strict, and I desire liber- ality in the handling of claims before this bureau.” All of which—his fellowship and comradeship in arms, his experience in organizing and handling large numbers of men, his human sym- pathy, his: zeal to emulate the ex- ample of service given by the men themselves, his liberal policy In in- terpreting the law just as far as pos- sible in favor of the service men— leads the comrades in the American Legion to boast ‘that they have a “regular fellow" as director of their soldier welfare work. Col. Forbes is a big-hearted, ready- handed, enthusiastic, energetic, west coast man, whose one “weak Bpot” is soldier ald, helping the man who won the war for the world to make a fu- ture for himself. —_— SLUMP HITS THEATERS. NEW YORK, July 9.—More theaters are closed on Broadway than at any time In the past tew’years. The slump in the theatrical business, managers sald, had been on the Increase since Easter, when business failed to re- cover from the usual Lenten depres- sion. Motion picture playhouses remaln open, but have been compelled to cur- tail performances, and in many cases to reduce prices. Managers said there had been great overproduction of films By firms which failed to foresee the existing slump. Many leased theaters also have been It has|returned to their owners. One large producing . firm, owning . theaters throughout the country, has play- houses waliting to be leased, which has not been the case in many years. It is virtually the -only producing firm which has planned a full sched- ule for the coming year. This plan wae adopted, it was sald, In order to an !hilr own theaters. One theatrical firm, which produces an lun;e of eleven new pla; - ach year, announced tl n ll 'ou ffer only four ‘musical sl ing the coming season. Ammm'. wuh & year- Ily output of twenty new productions, plans to offer only three. Other large firms announced similar curtailments. “It i{s my desire, therefore, that all| BY G. GOULD LINCOLN. HE Senate voted last week, 27 to 24, not to take a summer holiday, but to remain on the job in Washington. Aside from the question as to whether the Senate should or should not take a holiday at this time is the obvious fact that only fifty-one senators voted on the resolution and forty-five were absent. Senators desiring a holiday argued, not unjustly, that they were just as much entitled to a rest in the heat of the summer as were the forty- five senators who had flitted away from Washington without asking the leave of any one. There is a law on the statute books, enacted back in 1856, which says “The secretary of the Senate and the sergeant-at-arms of the House, re- spectively, shall deduct from the monthly payments of each member or delegate the amount of his salary for each day he has been absent from the Senate or House, respectively, un- less such member or delegate assigns as the reason for such absence the sickness of himself or of some mem- ber of his family.” This law has been honored in the breach. It has never been enforced except once a few years after it was enacted. Inquiry at the Capitol de- veioped the fact that never has there been an instance where a member has had his pay “docked” because of his failure to attend sessions of the Senate or House during the last half century. But the law is theré, and can be enforced if members of the Senate or House insist upon it. House Orders Enforcement. It is a fact that several years ago, in 1914, to be exact, when there was a strenuous campaign on and A. Mitchell Palmer of Pennsylvania was a candidate for the Senmate against Senator Penrose, and there was much absenteeism while the members cam- paigned, a resolution was brought into the House and adopted, directing the sergeant-at-arms to enforce the old law docking members who were absent. The resolution ordering the deduc- tions was adopted, with only a cor- poral's guard voting against it. But later, when the sergeant-at-arms came around to the members with a little paper to sign stating that they had been on the job during the month and were entitled to their pay, the House members were “up in the air” in about a minvte. The result was that the law and the refolution ask- ing its enforcement were ignored. Extent of Absenteeism. Absenteeism in the Senate and House is not confined to any particu- lar period of the year, though the members are perhaps more inclined to leave Washington and their duties here during the summer than at oth- er times. There is rarely a day when a roll call of the Senate shows more than seventy out of the ninety-six senators answering to their names. Generally, the number is consider- ably less than seventy. The House has a membership of 435, and the House members, 100, come and g0 as they desire. Day in and day out there are probably 100 absent. 1t the law were lived up to, it is likely that absenteeism would ma- terailly decrease. Of course, some of | the members would come and go just as they pleased, as they do now. But many would stick closer to the job if they knew that at the end of the| month they were to much for each day's absence. - Semtiment ot the Leaders. Leaders in the Senate and House and members who have struck close to their work here feel atrongly that all members of Congress should give like attention to their duties. Occasionally in debate the charge of absenteeism has been made against this or that member. The advocates fn Congress of some rule to keep the members on the job —and there are not a few such advo- cates—declare that it would result in expediting the public business and lessen the time the Congress would have to spend in Washington. So far, however, no group of mem- bers has come forward with any plan for the enforcement of the old law of 1856, or for some modified rule. Many new members probably have never heard of the old d Gives Fosmer Service Man Benefit of the Doubt Recently appointed director of the bureau of war risk insurance. e~ docked ‘w ] older members know it only as a law that {s not enforced. The practice of “pairing” on parti- san and other questions before the Senate and House, has made it pos- sible for members to be away from the sessions of the Congress without the loss of voting strength to elther side. There are ‘“general pairs” which cover all kinds of question: entered into frequently at the begin- ning of a Congress by two members of opposite parties, and there are spe- cial pairs, intended to cover only par- ticular bills. Proposed Abolition of Pairs. Now and then senators suggest it would be advisable to do away with all “pairs” and this, undoubtedly, would tend to keep members in their places in Washington when important bills were to be voted upon. But if a member were {1l and unable to attend the session of the Senate or House it would be a hardship not to be allowed to “pair” with another member on the opposite side of the question at issue. It has been sug- gested by those who oppose “pairs” that it would be possible to prohibit pairing except in the case of illness. In the Housc a practice has grown up of obtaining “leave of absence” when a member desires to be away from the sessions for an apprecia- ble period. The member formally | 2sks leave of absence, and invariably it Is granted. This practice is not adhered to strictly, however, and in the Senate there is no such practice. Learning Constituents’ Views. It may be argued by members of Congress that it is right and proper for them to go to their homes during the sessions of Congress, in order to find out the sentiment of their con- stituents. On the other hand, many of their constituents come to them in Washingion, and thousands of others make use of a two-cent stamp to let the congressmen know what they want. No effort has ever yet been made to repeal the old law of 1856. It does not seem unreasonable to say, how- ever, that the law should be repealed or enforced. 1In 1856 when it was put through, it was the final provision of a bill regulating the compensation of members of Congress, Which changed their pay from a per diem basis—they were paid $8 a day—toan annual basis. The bill then fixed the salary of members of Congress at $3.000 a 3 The debate at the time shows there was little consideration given to the final paragraph provid- ing for docking the absentees. FARM RISKS GREATEST IN THE PLAINS STATES Fact Established by the Records of Corn. Wheat and Oats for the Last Fifty Years. Risks in the production of three great staple crops—corn, wheat and oats—are greatest in the plains states, extending from Texas to North Dakota. This gen- cral fact is established by the average deviation of the yield per acre from the average vield, computed by the bureau of crop estimates, Department of Agri- culture, for these three crops for each | state from the records of fifty years. On the other hand, the North Atlantic and the western states are regions of | comparatively low risk, or deviation of vield per acre from the average, for Wheat and oats, and the entire Atlantic ! coast and the west for corn. i The great corn belt, with its enormous | production and surplus above local con- sumption, is, after all, prominently sub- Ject to risks of weather, insects and dis- ease in the production of crops, and, while it would be going too far to say of this region as a whole that the results of its agriculture are either “a feast or a famine,” yet there is a tendency in this direction as the area covered by the average becomes more restricted to county, township and individual farm. 1700 MUCH WASTE SEEN | IN THE TURNING OF W00D Forest Service Urges a More In- telligent Use of Timber After It Is Grown. The forest service of the Department of Agriculture recommends a more in- telligent use of timber after it Is grown. Forest conservation deals with |ll|e utilization of wcod in the saw- mill or factory as well as with its pro- ' duction in the forest. There is just as much ‘conservation in making twice as many ax handles out of the same smount of wood as there is in doubling the amount of wood grown on a par- ticular area. Investigations made by the forest service have shown that in logging and manufacturing an average tree but 33 per cent of its total volume, in- cluding limbs and bark, is actually realized as seasoned rough lumber. Taking rough lumber as the starting point, only 85 per cent of it reaches the final manufactured form in plan- ing mills and sash and door factorles, and but 75 per cent of It appears as finished parts In the manufacture of furniture and vehicles. There is prob- ably no wood-using Industry in the United States in which there is a greater need of working out ways and the manufacture of turned products. In certain instances two tons of hick- ory stock—a high-grade material rapidly becoming scarce—yielded but 400 pounds of finished handl. The forest service is encouraging the drive launched by wood: urnln‘ mlnu- facturers for standard material, reducing waste lnd flw ing the timber supply. means of saving raw material (hln\ &