Evening Star Newspaper, November 27, 1921, Page 49

, g - THE SUNDAY. STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, NOVEMBER 27, 1921—PART 2. | : ’ 3 THE -STORY THE WEEK HAS TOLDA B C POWERS o HAVE NAVAL HOLIDAY (Copyright, 1821, by Tie.Washington Star.) Some Sort 6f Agreement Likely to Bc HBE following is 2. briet summary of o . Loy Result of Example Set by the the most important' news of the world for the seven days ended November FRENCH: ARMY STAND MENACE TO -CONCORD stitutionality of the bill (not the amendment) is to be challenged at once. The medical pro- fession is indignant at what they call the * usurpation of its functions by Congress. Why should the comic spirit avoid Washington? * * % % ticipate in such an arrangement, on condition . that their administration be soundly reorgan- fzed—but where can a long-term loan be ne- gotiated? In London, saye rumor. Nei im- possible, I think. I expect to see some very interesting developments shortly in connection with reparations. LR 4G 'Britain—Briand ‘May Be Compelled to Break With Militarists. BY OLIVER OWEN KUHN N IMPLACABLE foe drew & ‘white-hot brand across the body of France. It is but natural that even today phys- fcal and mental reactions should continge. They were graphlically in- dicated in the eloquent and forceful appeal of Premier:Briand in the con- ference on limitatiop of armament. Not a statesman guiding the foreign destinies of France at the Qual d'Orsay but that strives eagerly to decipher the future that France may asmuch as Britain desires to reduee the tremendous overhead government expense, due .in large measure to maintenance of large armles and navies, - the Briand statement has caused considerable dissatisfaction in London. In fact, Lord Curzon, the forelgn ministef, has warned France she has the privilege of doing as she pleases, but she also may have the privilege of determining her own destinles, without the assistance of other countries. The whole proposi- tion is bluntly put, and even though it accomplish nothing it is g true key to BritisH official thought. Furthermore, the Briand statement comes at a moment whan there 1s much heated discussiop of the Franco. Hinders Closer Co-operation With Greatll nent tariff biil, canal tolls bill. United States of America.—The special ses- sion of Congress ended on Wednesday: the last mement final, L/avorable action was had by the Benate on the tax revision bill, by the House on the maternity bill, and both measures were slgned by the President: The President signed the anti-beer bill. Eress falled to eomplete action on the follow- ing-named Important measures: The perma- the railroad relfef bill, foreign debt-refunding bill, and the Panama Buch failure is te be especially regretted in the case of the forelgn debt-refunding bill passage of which would have had a re ing effect on eonference delegates. . The' most seems certain that Sinn At Feln would aeeept the leglance to the British The Con-—" himself. the clation of Ireland with wealth of nations by treaty: disclosure of continued Sinn Fein ‘intransi- Ulster seemed to be growing more, gence, ur- obstihacy, there was ju ; The Bri{ish Empire—It has leaked out and London eonference on Ireland never did give Lloyd Geofse an assurance would aceept the principle of Irish unity and agree to an all-Treland parilament the Binn trary, the Irish delegates have been through- out as intransigent on this head as de Valera The utmost eoneelvable limit of Sinn Fein unbending would be to consent to asso- rather than less, Intractable. Fein delegates to the that 1f Ulster saic, 1s not principle of Irish al- crown. OR the con- Russia. period of s the British common- Prior to this Yet, despite her stified hepe that ulti- militaristic in spirlt. He i ervice with the colors to two The Conference.—On Monday Briand made his great speech to the conference. France, he With more readiness than any other country would she disarim could she do so safely. showed why she could not do so safs:ly—be- cause of the menaces of Germany and seviet He proceeded to tell how the French army had been reduced by shortening the hen ‘n- stead of three years, and how a further re- duction s contemplated by reducing the term 10 elghteen months. Beyond that, France can- not go in reducing her military forces until she is assured of the “moral disarmament” of Germany and Russia, or unless she should re- ceive from other powers definite guarantees of assistance in caso of aggression upon her. France has renounced hope of such guaran- tees and must herself provide what Is nec- Washington Conference. BY BEN McKELWAY, ITH the progress of the _conference on the limita- tion of ermament, it be- comes more and more ap- parent that If Secretary Hughes' naval hollday plan is realised, the “A B C” countries of Latin America (Argen- tina, Brasil and Chile) will reach some similar agreement among themselves, the effect of which, while of minor importance te the rest of the world, will be of the utmost concern to Latin America. only feasible coaling_ station in that part of the Paclfic, she was put con- | stantly on her guard against the at- tempts by German vessels to put into her ports for coal and supplies. She would occupy an important posi- tion ‘s & neutral or as an ally in any war which would lead to the use of navies on the Pacific. And she unques- tionably needs & navy commensurate with this Importance and with her own coast line. * ok ox % As stated in this column in a previous article, land disarmament would per- haps constitute the most- far-reaching effect In South America of any agree- ment reached at the Washington con- forence, While Chile, Argentina and be protected. Not a member of the | Kemali eement in the near east,| strikin, o x r bill ‘are: legisiative branch of the govern- |the British charging that the French pelllo:e:;:rcx::.:her::ltu :::l'l':: ml:e £81 A F mtely mha WOl A8 ot nettle- casary for her safety. But France would be I ded A e e a | Brazil maintain the only navies of im- ment that has not been impressed by | have abandoned their allies to satisfy P! 2 ment.” All that is changed now. Certainly hcagtened (and Germany in the same de- forecast, but comments and observa- | POrtance, the other republics of South hideous possibilities in case ' of particularly nationalistic Interests. fect January 1, 1923; lowering of the maximum Ulster will have nothing to do with a south gred “morally disarmed”) were she to re- tions by Latln Americans here on the America have armies which are large . \ B o T tb? Briand (6| surtax on Incemes of Individuals from 66 to Ireland assoclated with the British common- ceive assurances trom the great powers rep |effect in South America of an agree- |10 proportion to their population. The France’s lack of preparation' for |Paris may prevent acrimonious dis- 60 per cent; ralsing of the tax on corpora- Wealth of mations by treaty only. The hope resented in the conference that her difficulties ment among the world powers to|¢Xpense is large out of kecping with P d of. rpora A rish. mettlement recedes indefimitely. are recognized and that her policy concerning |limit maval buiflding Is Interesting.](he necessity, for in South America to- day, with only one exception, there are eventualities in a troubled Europe. Not a peasant but that shudders and 1o0ks in fright toward the east. Mem- ory has seared deep Germanic perfidy. The world sympaghizes, but asks: “Is France justified in demanding maintenance of the largest army in the .world today and in demanding a great Increase in her naval forces in the very halls where statesmen of the larger powers have been called together to, work reduction of things provocluva\of Wa t cussion of the Franco-Kemalist agree- ment between the two foreign offices, and should the French insist on their rights and still cling to a policy which England considers against her desires in regard to disarmament the breach which has steadlly grown since the Paris conference will be ‘wider. * koK ok Furthermore, the British and Ital- ians are much concerned at the mo- ment over possible French action in case Germany defaults her repara- incomes do net e “nulsance” taxes, act. tion Inecbmes from 10 o 13% per cent; increase of Income tax exqmptions for persons whose, ceed $6,000; repeal of the nd repeal of the transpor- tation taxes, to take offect January 1, 1923, Is estimated that the total tax reductions will ambunt to $70,000,000 for the present year, and to $835,000,000 for the year. 1922. No one apparently is pleased with the new Senator Denrose says that [t is “only Kkilled. St. Ganghl, leader of It the Bombay riots on the of Wales' visit. Tho charged his followers in his nostrils.” himself a_ fast till pacified. He knocked of Meantime cloting on a serious scale has broken out in Belfast—twenty-eight persons movement in India, was very much upset by lence, he was candid enough to find himself partly to blame for the ‘Therefore, the situation should be the non-co-operation occasion of the P’rince ugh he had strictly to® refrain from vio- vents which stunk he imposed on ff fasting on the 24th, Later, s now land armament was discussed. is just; were she to receive assurances that she is not “morally isolated.” After M. Briand sat down of delegations spoke in turn. me, except the Belgian representative, dell- cately avoided direct response to the appeal for approval of France's 'policy land armament, but each gave assurance that, 80 far as his country is concerned, France is not morally isolated. Mr. Balfour's response on the latter head was the finest burst of oratory heard at the conference to date. behind closed doors, land armament It is understood that it was the other heads All it seems to respecting These observations reflect a senti- ment which is growing in South America for some agreement to cut down the cost of armament as a pure- | 1y economic measure, not as insurance | against threatened wars. The navies of Brazil, Argentina and , Chile today are insignificant when compared with the navies of the lead- Ing powers. They are of little impor- tance outside South America and none of them {s maintained at an expense comparable to the upkeep of the lead- ing navies of the world. They are no no dispules which threaten war. Fifteen per cent of Argentina’s annual budget, for instance, is devoted to armament In other republics the proportion is | larger. Central America s already taking steps to cut down the expense of main- taining armies, for in the new republic, composed of Guatemala, Honduras and Salvador, the combined forces are to be anded, and one small army main- tained only for necessary patrol and police duty “Ias not\Prem; a rathie than hermed the ends denipelos | tlon Daymente. There: (8 % strong | (ransitlonal or temporary and dues Rt DAY RO, 1, T Meantimo the Drince has Conudered impracticable todraw up & gen e The naval strength of Argentina, Br. 01 sentiment in France th: 11 repara- the tax system on a stable or sclentific basi F Nl hay. D a - more an adequats r » A= L e T L U el A p Xt et I D Kverywhere he nas been eral proxram respecting land armaments at | thelr Coasts. . and “nats Ppresent |z and Chile. according to recent fs- world. that the floodgates of military expense may be closed and funds di- verted to restoration of national as well as international wellbeing, finan- cially, . economically and commer- clally?” * kR % These questions today are being answered in old-world capitals as national and political expediency pred- jcated _upon international - " agree- ments_dictate, but, generally speak- ing, there is a tendency to discount the French claims of German menace and most certainly to decry the dan- ger of Europe’s bolshevization, one of the things which the French pre- mier declared France stood as a bul- wark agalnst. tions payments must be met by Ger- many at stipulated times whether or no. Sanctions involving the use of large military forces in further oc- cupation of Rhineland regions have been threatencd. In fact, only a little more than a year ago the French struck forward without consulting the British, only to withdraw under pressure from London. The members of the reparations commission are as a unit in their demands that Germany pay the January and February in- stallments. That in January calls for 500,000,000 gold marks, while the ex- port payments fall on February 15, also involving a prodigious sum. The question of a moratorium for Ger- many during a period of years subse- quent to these dates has been sug- it chargeable most damning of faults. surtax on Incomes. the 65 per cent has done. Senator Smoot, theugh he voted for the bill as “somewhat better” than existing law, finds with unfair discrimination— He 18 for prompt re- vision, so as to eliminate the discriminatory rater and to effectively reduce the miaximum He has this to say of the reduction from 65 to §0 per cent: 50 per cent surtax will keep money out of. business investments and prevent circulation of it for extending business, just the same as Mr. Mondell, saying farewell, opined that “this session, so far at least as the House is <oncerned, may be properly classed as one of ed by the Gaekwar wit wIhe has Now for a pretty mess style of the Levantine scamp on earth! The British, we are had come to regard as able to Eritish acclalmed with unbounded enthusiasm. ‘Wednesday he was at Barroda, being entertain- cence, the sober Associated I’ress account of which reads like pure romance. The negotiation in London between repre- sentatives of the British government and an Egyptian delegation headed by Adly Pasha een broken off and the Egyptians have returned to their own country. the rupture has not been officially disclosed. over” on Chicherin—have made a treaty with the Ameer of Afghanistan (whom Chicherin interests. On h a fantastic magnifi- him would to attempt The cause of conference in Egypt in the best agitator—the meanest China. be determined in his absence. a program at present. addressed itself during the present, and that M. Briand was told that he might return to France secure that nothing prejudicial to the French policy enunciated by It is sufficiently obvious that it would be foolish The question of land armament, then, post- poned and the details of Mr. Hughes' pro- posal for reduction of naval armaments being under cxamination by the naval experts, the re- mainder of the week to the grand question of Mr. Sze's ten “principles.” submitted as a guide for the delegations of the confer- told, have “put one his man) not unfavor- is correct. Russian ‘‘consul- the conference. 100 general. They ence concerning China, were not adopted by have been criticised The very opposite criticism Some of them are too specific— their adoption would precipitate discussion of certain matters which must be approached strength could hardly be diminished. But there is no reason, it {8 pointed out here, why a naval hollday for ten years would not be agreeabie to Ar- gentina, Brazil and Chile, while htere 13 every reason to belleve that such an agreement would be welcomed by all three powers. There could hardly be a more propitious time for such an agreement. The three countries are badly in need of funds for the de- velopment of their natural resources and the establishment of domestic in- dustries. They are at peace and there are no threatening questions or dis- putes between them which might ::::‘r;l;c:p t.hre ne;guny for the main- of their pre 2 strong navies. Proportionseely, The advantage of a limitation of ar- Argentina—Two dreadnaughts. two predreadnaughts, four armored cruisers, one fight cruiser, submarines and air- plan Brazil—Two dreadnaughts, two coast defense cruisers, two light crulsers, one smaller cruiser, submarines and air- planes. Chile—One predreadnaught, two cruis- ers, four protected cruisers, submarines and destroyers and a fleet of 100 air- planes. * k% % The Auto Club of Argentina is advo- ating the construction of an extensive system of highways throughout the country, according to reports 1o the department of commerce from Buenos Aires, and next May the first national Cryptically summarized, ~reflexes. | gested o save Germany from bank- 3 : ; X s t sessions in ates” (I e. anti-British propaganda centers) Beome FEVbe Sfated as follows: - |ISEISE 2018 0 10 TS LT on' e A dm“;u .hnd :mor;.unl cm:‘mr‘esp" are not to be allowed on the Afshanistan fron- warily. mament, or a naval holiday, is noth- |road congress will be held in Buenos the history of the American .Congress. tier of India. In licu of Mr. Sze's ten points, the confer- Ing new to South America. It was|Aires. which is expected to result in speech, may be stated as follows: ing of all nationg represented on the proven in 1901, when Chile and Ar- considerable activity in road building. France, unless there be radical | re, H - L b 3 ace raise,” it certainly - = 3 3eid s ¥ . s verge of war s planned to connect the princij future, endangers, not aids, the pe 1f this course is decided and should | P e tiparantiy “tnere Germany.—The reparations commission re- nferance Is evidenily' going about the Chi- |OVer a’ boundary. entered into an |clies of the country by modera igh- 3 nese business very circumspectly. Up to the agreement to limit building in their | WAYS and increase facilities for trans. of Europe France's foreign policy of the mo- ment, not the German menace, is re- sponsible for decisions to maintain large armies. Firm insistence upon her present large army in the face of desires to disarm will further estrange Great Britain and her former ally. There will be set up a barrier be- tween closer relationships between Ttaly and France by virtue of France's insistence on larger naval armament than Italy. France’s stand may force Britain to withdraw from her agreement to armament curgailment. * kX X Probably -the most vital of all the possibilities which have arisen in re- cent weeks and accentuated by the Briand speech urging full protection France demur, will the French use their armies to force collection in face of the opinion of other nations? This is. a question that has been raised in foreign capitals. * % x % It also is pointed out that the main- tenance of large armies by France, though in & measure justified by fears of future German aggression, is nec- essary if France maintains the po- litical dominance she has builded up since the war. It is pointed out that offensive and defensive agreements between France and Poland demand that the French be ever ready to back Polish interests in the east, this menace being largely Russian. But France's interests lie to the south- ward, in Rumania, as well as in Jugo- slavia, and understandings of often- eulogy. j certainly was diligent, } will be remembered that ed with the bil rights guaran to the Constitution and were none to praise, and yery few to love.” We must be allowed our [fittle fun. The House having passed an average of two bills or resolutions per day. < The Senate approved the conference report on the anti-beer bill by a vote of 56 to 22. The size of this majority is disconcerting. when first confront- the Senate passed an amendment reafirming the private teed by the fourth amendment ‘)rEECrlblng penalties for violations of those rights. The Senators went out of their way to raise a constitutional jssue presented by the bill and to assert them- selves strict constitutionalists. a heavy majority the Senate accepts a sub- stitute conference amendment, firms the constitutional guarantees only as to turned from Berlin to I much the wiser for th should like to know. T be. In some other way (1 have seen no definite 1t unanimously layed reparation paym Wirth gave stallments. on optimism or on the And now by which reaf- “government has been in 1 German Industrial Union (ihe Stinness crowd) has not been consummated, nor is it likely to ‘ject) to have procured the money for the de- assurances commission that the moneys would be forth- coming for the January But those assurances seem based commissioners, rather than on the solid rock of assured assets or credits. *aris on the 20th; how eir investigations one he loan for which the tiation with the present autonomy the government seems statement on the sub- ent on December 1. to the reparations and February in- The cession of other obstr! desire to be rid the Wirth is said to at once. has been the chief question discussed. Sze does mnos, to be sure, demand compl tariff autonomy shall en But to ask that a date n and the Un a 121% on abolition of the i tariff autonomy; and there uctions. It is up to China. Mr. Sze's demand for tariff autonomy Mr. lete my He asks for conference authorization for increase of the present cus- iom rate from a nominal 5 per cent 3.7 per cent) to an actual 123 per cent. But he asks also that the conference fix a date when complete Now ‘the principle of Chinese tariff autonomy scems to be implied In Mr. Root's four gen- eral_principles. fixed right now when the principle of tariff utonomy shall become fully effective is prob- (actual sue. be ited per cent kin. likin_remains to forbid » present con- are The above sample shows, I think, how dell- respective navies for a pgriod of five vears. That agreement prevented what | would have been a devastating war {g: both f;u;xmries and established m on a friendly basi; ! 1 bl sis which exls!s' * k% ok % The similarity between the Hughes plan for a naval holiday and this agreement of twenty years ago be- tween Argentina and Chile is one of the things which has caused so much ' interest here among Latin American | representatives. They argue that it| has been tried already, with complete | success, and there is no reason why it | should not be tried again, perhaps on a modified plan to meet present conditions. The Chilean embassy here has had translated the original text of her agreement with Argentina for a naval portation by the use of motor trucks and automobiles. * % % % A group of Ttalian capitalists, and aviation experts is to establish a regu- lar aerial transport service between Buenos Aires d Montevideo. The capital to be invested 1l be abeut $2,000,000. Three Caproni type airplanes, ith a carrying capacity of three ton: each, are to be utilized, performing th Journey between Buenos Aires and re turn in one day. Passengers and mai will be carried, and if the enterprise successful the service will be extended to_other citi Marked progress in aviation has been shown lately in South American republics and in the majority of cases the government is extending aid to development of airplanes for of France by her allles, is the pos-|sive and defensive character which the sanctity of the home., The fourth amend- a [ ooty of further s msement be- | have been made to further French| ment is not repudiated in part, but the effect contemplate a’:oI:l-lnf;;;'rtmnrfizy:rlrrz"r;ml)g:!-md::- Saterand :ET«:a;:sfirfea";;d:‘;fleu?r;':}:'v":é e Teament with Avganting Cor.a navallcommercial purposes, while theiranf]- tween Downing street and Quai d'Or- | political influence throughout the might seem to be just that. At any rate, one «l‘l\_xlx;es n)l'"‘w"“re O e hatever and axercise full sovereignty, But how? A interesting. ry uses are :n:g:‘;erum studied. the eay. Friendship exists, but it is in- creasingly apparent that the acts of both French and British are being more clasely scrutinized by the other. In the Briand speech the British see definite contradiction to the aims of the Washington conference, to which, in so far as naval disarmament is con- cerned, the British have readily sub- scribed. They see in the Briand policy the same one voiced by Clemenceau in the Paris peace conference and out of it They recognize the old military manikin~ that was holsted on every occasion in_the council of ten to dumbfound Lloyd George, Mr. Wilson and other of the world statesmen who then were seeking some adjustment which did not consider the French fear of .future German aggression. There is little difference in the state- ment of Briand ‘and the policy of Clemenceau which drew-from Lloyd George many firey remarks. In fact, the armament question hindered the FParis conferees as it may, unless un- foreseen _ developments transpire, hinder the conferees in Washington. *x kX X The British insist that where once the soviet danger of overrunning Bu- Tope with the ald of Germany exist- cd. this has been nulled by the im- potence of the Russians through eco- homic, financial and moral chaos, whole of eastern Europe preclude quick agreement to curtailment of land forces. Eastern Europe and the Balkans today, as always, have been potential seal of warfare, and if there are agreements existing be- tween the smaller powers and France, then the latter always must be in po- sition to keep her written and spoken ‘word, or else her influence would suf- fer decided setbacks in the very re- gions which France counts so much upon to furnish diversion in case ene- mies from the east ever menace her interests. These agreements have been costly to France, and they will continue to be in the future. Furthermore, they may _prove _embarrassing. Even though Briand, the pacifist, may de- sire to abide by all dictates looking toward making future wars impos- sible and make France's policies co- incide with America's, Premier Briand faces ingrained prejudices, in- spired desires and concerted demands of the French people that France be protected. Today he nds a victim of the militarist policies framed by to circumvent militaristic and im perialist machinations at home is his problem. previous governments and militarist (& week- agreements with smaller powers. How [a hundred millions a year. policy of Gen. Dawes, director .of the by whom the traffic board is But circumvent them he | budget, 4, to let others blow his bugle must if France's policy is hewn tolinstitutes the line of practicality in easing the |for him—he is too busy—hence the emphasis from BY PAUL V. COLLINS. wonders why the Senate receded with such its strict. constitutionalist stand asserted with such emphasis. HROUGH the newly instituted federal traffic board, the gov- ernment will effect a saving of at least a million dollars ome experts estimate over it is the The con- industrial magnates ha / precisely that may mean. It is sald that the ve consented to par- U. S. to Be Saved Many Millions By Work of Federal Tratfic Board at the rate of $12.00 a ton, but this was “corrected” to $§9.20. Coal has been shipped from Hope- well to Toledo, Ohio, at a freight cost of $6.71 per ton, whereas equally good coal was available from Ohio mines at a freight cost of $1.60 to $2.10 a net ton. ’ Cordwood from Giffor: ., to Leavenworth, Kan., cost $15.50 freight | per cord, making the total cost $22.50 | per cord for government fuel, and the classic question is suggested: “What's the matter with Kansas"” cordwood? ing $5.75 per hundred pounds. The proper rate for the poles in the rough was $1.05 per hundred pounds, but the railroad insists on billing as the goods $4.334.80, instead of the proper com- mercial rate of $650. use of land-grant railroa of the route (which. in considerati of land given by the government to aid the building of the roads, are bound to allow half rates on all gov- ernment shipments) the actual freight bill on those poles shouid be onl about $325 or $375, instead of $4,334, advisory authority. Last July 2 Mr. Potts_addressed to his chief, Secre tary Herbert Hoover of the Depart- a letter outlining ere listed, and $o presents a bill for | the origin and history of the interde- partmental transportation committee ment of Commerce, he added, saved annually. faulty program would ruin all, seeing which, the conference is moving most warily. In view of the |and pointing out its limitations. ds over part | further cited some of the most fla- on | grant abuses of government traffic. which, he said, could not be corrected by the committee without adiitional help and power for investigation, but, by a proper classification iof all government property hundreds of thousands of dollars would be This agreement provided that two governments desist from acquir- ing vessels then in the course of con- lutrucuon—nrrap them, to all intents| and purposes—and from making fresh acquisitions. Both governments agreed to reduce their fleets propor-| tionately. This agreement. it is interesting to note no excepted submarines from the vessels to be disposed "of, and did not affect the construction of forts or other coastal fortifications. Reduction of their1 navies was effected by the sale of ves- sels to neutral countries. * k¥ % Chile today presents an interesting phase to the limitation armament; question for South America. With a coast line of more than 3.000 miles— more than the combined Atlantic and Pacific coast of the United States, she must have an adequate navy to police iher own shores in time of peace and to preserve her neutrality in case of between some of the larger It is maintained in some quarters that she could noty effect any reduction in her present | navy, although she might enter into lan agreement not to enlarge i 1Chile’s need for a large navy, a _com i paritively large navy, was shown during the European war, when her neutrality was more than once ques- tioned. because of her inability to war He | World powers. | ments b. Reports to the Department of Com- merce and discussions of a_proposal by Argentina to enlarge her mer- chant marine to a strength com- mensurate with that of Brazil and Chile have caused .conflicting state- by those in Washington famil- ijar withh Argentina's intentions on this subject. Argentina would lose, rather than gain, by an attempt to build and maintain her own merchant marine, it is stated. Lacking the raw ma- terial and the plants to construct vessels themselves, it would be im- practicable at this time to buy them abroad, it is argued, in view of the fact that it is a lack of market, and not tonnage, which is hurting Argen- tine export. Argentina, it is sald’ is watching with interest efforts of the nited States to maintain a suitable merchant marine, 4nd this country’'s experience so far would tend to re- tard rather than encourage any project she may entertain herself along this line. 3 As far as commercial rivalry be- tween Brazil and Chile goes, Argen- tina does not believe a merchant ma- rine of her own would help matters materially. The empty bottoms which leave her ports testify to the need of a market rather than a mer- chaat marine, which would have to be heavily subsidized by a govern- coupled with the disinclination of German people to have anything to do with that which savors of Moscow sioned by war and preparation for ictation in world affalrs. And, in- war. vai DENIES ALBANIA IS A PUPPET ON THE STRING OF ANY POWER Albania should give up her hard-won independence and become ‘an append- age of Jugoslavia? So far as the strength of the Al- ‘banian government in maintaining order in_ the interfor is concerned, 1 do not’hesitate the least in stating in the most emphatic terms that the Albanian government is doing bet- ter in that direction than any other Balkan government, Jugoslavia not excepted. Prominent foreign visitors who have only lately returned from extensive tours in Albania, among preserve it in all its phases against the infringement by at least three of the countries at war. Offering the yet it will require an appeal to the Interstate Commerce Commission to get justice in that case. Government Is “Stung.” There have been shrewd, unpatriotic and unfair discriminations against the government, in making classifications and rates so that shipments by the government cost more -than similar shipments by corporations. Commodi- ties that only the government ever ships get unfairly high rates. For example, armor plate is not rated as iron or steel, but is put under a spe- cial classification, considerably higher, while ship piate, practically the same kind of commodity, but shipped by the steel corporations, has a lower rating. Steel helmets cannot be shipped as carloads of steel, but go first-class as “hats or caps,” no matter if they occli- py several cars; steel helmets are both heavy and bulky, in proportion to their value, and are not easily dam- aged in shipment. Undoubtedly, such a federal traf- ment which now can hardly afford to engage in profitless venture: THE NEW AUSTRUAS, BY FRANCESCO NTTT1. world of its burdens of debt occa-j It cost the government $1.4098 per hundredweight for freight on re-: fined sugar from San Antonfo, Tex. l Hoover Got Action. Secretary Hoover made a personal investigation and laid the Potts state- ment before President Harding, who directed that it be referred to Gen. Dawes, director of the budget, for | investigation. Gen. Dawes' comments are not of record. as the records ran out of characteristic Dawesjte expressions, but he promptly called in one of the patriotic specialists—a _ “dollar-a- year” investigator, R. C. Caples, for- mer “general trafic manager of the New ~York Central Railroad—and asked him to make an independent investigation of Mr. Potts' exposures. In the meanwhile Gen. Dawes called on Mr. Pott® to show him in more detail the basis of his preposterous claim of a serious leakage, and, at the request of Secretary Hoover, who tock unqualified interest in the in- vestigation, Mr. Potts prepared a memorandum giving" more details. This was dated August 12, and in the public has no conception of the stu- pendous magnitude of lhis traffic re- form, The board held its organizing meeting November 3, although not all of its members have been appointed. The extravagance.and waste which have long characterized the govern- ment traffic, and which- necessitates such a measure, are-almost unbeliev- able. - Shipments have been made by ex- press which should have gone by freight, at a saving of 70 to. %0 per cent; goods have been wrongly clgs- sified, and therefore been rafed 10 to 15 times as much as the correct rate under proper classification, and car- loads of shipments have been made across the continent with as much surd futility as the proverbial arrying coals to Newcastle.” Ito New York, and $1.982 per hundred- weight from San Antonio to Camp Dix, N. J. There were, and are, re- fineries not so far from New York and New Jersey. Salmon te Columbia River. The charge of $552.33 for 900 cases —63,000 pounds—of salmon from Nor- folk, Va., to Seattle, Wash., was what the home-coming of the Pacific coast “goldfish” cost. They might have traveled via the Panama canal for less, but why ship salmon at all to the world's greatest source of sal- mon? In the absence of a federal traffic board the taxpayer was lucky that they did not return by airplane de luxe, for homesick salmon do des: verate stunts with the aid of gov- arnment shippers. There being no salt in the Pacific ocean, 880 bags were shipped August 118, 1920, from Schenectady, New York, States, as well as every board of trade and chamber of commerce in the cities and towns, employs a traffic | manager. * * * | “The federal government does not| have a trafic manager nor a traffic force in any department, and the bureaus have a shipping elerk they are in most cases without any experience whatever in traffic work. * * ¢ T have devised a plan of procedure to unfold these wastes in the depart- ments which would result in an actual saving of $8.000.000 or $10,000,000 an- nually. 1 should be pleased to give Mr. Dawes much more along this line if he will grant me an interview.” Potts More Than Vindicated. When Mr. Caples arrived he was told by Gen. Dawes that Mr. Potts’ claim of a possible saving of ten mil- lions a year was probably an exagger- _(Continued from First Page.) To the Baitor of The Star: Inasmuch as Capt. Gordon Gordon- Smith, military attache to the lega- tion of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, .has taken exception to and con- troverted a number of statements made by Mr. Oliver O. Kuhn in con- nection with the Serbian aggression against Albania, may I be permitted to submit a few simple facts that go to the heart of the problem? Hungary to 7.000,000. Rumania has received 5,500,000 inhabitants of the old Austria - Hungarian empire, among whom are considerable groups of Magyars It is impossible to say how much of the territory given to the Greeks only contains the smallest propor- tion of Greek population. * % ¥ % Thus, there have been formed so many new Austrias, with this dif- ference, that, as I have said, in the Jointly with his employers, Capt. Gordon-Smith makes once more the oft-repeated and dried-up assertion that Serbia is inspired with a genuine affection for a free and independent Albania? But how come, then, that in the course of the last two years Serbia has twice invaded Albania, or was it dnly for the purpose of enjoy- ing the widely famed Albanian hos- pitality? Very unfortunately, —the ruins and desolation they are leaving behind belle the existence of any such love. But here there comes again Capt. Gordon-Smith to rescue his first false premise by inserting two lame conditions, to wit, that *“Albania must be really free and in- dependent, and not merely a puppet government, of which some power outside Albania pulls the strings; and secondly, the government must be able to maintain order in the interior d prevent acts of brigandage by trubulent clansmen on the territories of_its neighbors.” It would seem that Capt. Gordon- Smith makes the implication that Italy—that “the power that pulls the strings”—has made a puppet out of the Albanian government. But how would he, or any of his employers, for that matter, reconcile this Italo- phobia of theirs with the fact that the Albanian government has set a stead- fast and unflinching attitude toward Jtaly in the matter of the main- t nce of Italian troops on the ¥sland of Sasseso, even when the other powers have virtually agreed to concede to Italy that right, as a repult of which there.has always been the imminent danger of a break in the relations between the two coun- tries? The incontrovertible truth is whom are M. Justin Godart, member of the French chamber of deputies (who made to the French press the unequivocal statement that the other Balkan states can take a few lessons from Albania in the maintenance of internal order), Professor Pittard of the University of Geneva, Switzer- land; Professor E. E. Jones of North- western University, Bishop Edgar Blake. of Paris, of the Methodist Church, have been profoundly im- pressed by that fact. The alleged subservience of the Albanian government to some other power and the accusation that it is rot strong enough to deal with in- tetnal order and with unexisting brigandage are simply cloaks of hypocrisy that conceal the ulterior designs of Serbia to do exactly what Capt. Gordon-Smith denies —to rob Albania’'of her territories. For has not King Alexander of Serbia himself declared only a few days ago that Serbia must have stronger barriers against Albania? What are these stronger barriers made of, if not of territories? And Serbia wants stronger barriers against a country which is fourteen times smaller than she, both in area and population. And how about the refusal of Jugo- slavia to accept the decision of the powers in the matter of the frontiers of Albania, which gives to Jugo- slavia additional territories? Capt. Gordon-Smith brings in as arguments to the contrary that Serbia has given way in the questions of the Banat, the Baranya, Klagenfurt and Fiume, and asks why Jugoslavia should change her policy in the matter of Albania2 The answer is very simple: Because it was the great powers that imposed their decision on Jugosliavia in those questions, and because Albani#, being too small by herself to confront the enemy, was abandoned without any real as- Coal m Example. Bituminous coal has been shipped Petersburg, Southern Virginia—to Muscle Shoals, Ala., at a freight cost of $9.20 & ton, while there were available ‘Alabama mines which could have supplied the coal at a freight cost of $1.20-to $1.40. The original billing on_this coal was from Hopewell—near Appointed:o Old Position By President Harding to San Francisco, at a freight cost of $704.86. It would have been a saving of money if the 88,880 pounds of salt had been cast into the Atlantic and the needs of the Army and Navy at San Francisco had been supplied from the several salt-producing works within thirty miles of that city, at a total freight cost of $33.55, instead of $704.86. In none of the above instances—and they might be multiplied infinitely —have all the items of overhead and supplementary cost been computcd.l Nothing is said of the trucking, handling, billing and requisitioning. The government is so used to compli- cated red-tape that that is not figur-} ed. It flc!lu*) costs the Treasury between $4 and $5 to pay a 50-cent account, and the issuance of Treasury warrants to pay its own expenses costs the Treasury $100,000 a year— Another $100,000 for other warrants. Carelessness in Pack! iR Carelessness, or ignorance, in pack- ing miscellaneous goods adds mil- lions of dollars annually to the gov- ernment’s freight bills. A 1ot of hospital supplies were shipped last January 13 from Camp Taylor, Ky., to Camp Knex, a distanee of forty-three miles. The shipment included food containers, instrument tables, drugs, a human skeleton, books, bed screens, stretchers, pajamas, etc. The esti- mated weight of all was recorded as 13,600 pounds and, as the shipment occupied a car, it was charged the minimum car weight of 20,000 p:unds, accordjng to classification of the shipmént. The bed screens and skele- ton were not boxed, and, :. “fore, the proper rate was three times first class, and since the rule is that, in a miscellaneous car, the rate for all shall be that of the highest rated item in the car, that skeleton fixed the rate on the entire 20,000 pounds, at three times first class—$333 for fic board could have aided greatly in the traflic problems of the war; it might have saved hundreds of mil- lions of dollars—especially during 1918, when, because of the war's ex- igencies, the government traffic ap- proached a billion dollars, and espe- cially when expert management of the traffic was so vital to expedition in meeting the needs of the war. It will be of unmeasurable value in the near future in connection with the extraordinary marketing of the gov- ernment’s surplus supplies, variously estimated at between one and five billion dollars, in all kinds of mer- chandise, which is to be sold to the public throughout the country. Made Worse by War. Such a condition of chaotic waste in government traffic has been known to many for years; it has been grow- ing through the decades, but not until the world war did it become of such serious proportions. Prior to the war the government's traffic was about $60,000,000 -a year. During 1918 iy ran up to about $900,000,000, and since the war it is estimated to ‘be from $200,000,000 to $350,000,000. There is no method of exact account- ing—nobody knows how much it There is a deputy disbursing offi- cer in the Department of Commerce, to whose desk come the rtaffic ac- counts of that department. He is N. M. Potts, formerly a railroad train dispatcher and traffic expert. Mr. Totts has long studled the traf- fic abuses, as they appeared to him, in his disbursements. He and John W. Kean of the Navy Depart- ment evolved a plan in 1912 for the organization of an dnterdepartmental transportation committee, composed of a representative from each de- partment and independent unit of the government. The project was pre- sented by these two men to the act- ing_secretary of the Navy, Franklin course of this memorandum he said: “Almost évery industry in the United ation, but that he should make an independent investigation and get the facte. Mr. Potts told the expert that {Not Disposea to Yield | To Demand That He Quit Ihe really believed the waste amounted ito twenty millions, but that he did not dare say so in writing, for he would not be credited. After Mr. Caples had spent five weeks in a most thorough and un- Liased expert investigation of all d partments he reported that Mr. Potts old Austro-Hungarian monarchy almost always it was the more cultured and evolved people who controlled and ruled the more backward, and now it is the more backward populations who are to control the more advanced. Thus almost all the new states are in a state of profound:internal trouble, which is not that of go erning similar peoples, But im- estimate was quite erroneous, for if the plans were put into effect the | saving would be not ten or twenty | millions of dollars, but from fifty tol Another government | authority has declared that both Potts | and Caples are wrong—the saving | sixty milllons. may reach from $100,000,000 to $120,. 000,000. i Gen. Dawes ordered the immediate organization of the Potts plan—a federal traffic board. According to this order, the board is established under a “chief co-ordinator for gen- eral supply—Col. Smithers of the War Department, and, next in authority, a chief co-ordinator of - traffic, Com- mander Mayo of the Navy. The order called upon each department Secre- tary to appoint & member of the traf- fic board and a traffic manager for the respective departments. Secretary Hoover has appointed Mr. Potts as trafic manager of the De- partment of Commerce and to repre- sent that department on the board. Other appointees at the opening meet- ing of the board November 3 were Capt. Foster, War Department, and Messrs. Fenner, Treasury; Smith, Post Office; Fisher, Panama canal b reau, and Speed of the Shipping Board he Tatter serving as acting secr tary of the board. The other depart- ments have not yet announced their representatives. (Copyright, 1921.) SUNFLOWER CROP BIGGER. posing a common life oo gopul tions who have nothing if’ com- mon, and who detest each other. The idea of ruining the Germans and the Magyars has been “rer- dergd possible solely by theeead- mosY complete ignorance of Kpeei- dent Wilson regarding Eurgpea affairs. Thus, while, on moté Than one occasion, he reserved hisThirs! ness for Italy, and in some.at the Adriatic questions exaggeraisd his thesis, against Italy, that ¥4 to say, against the most natiomal state, with the smallest gro ¢ forelkners of all the continehi®gt Europe, he caused the distribé@lén almost casually of German, Maa- yar. Russian and Turkish.pepu- 1ations. All this is not permanent. One Austria was a continual ppe- occupation for all® Europe; . many Kustrins are altogether a contin: ual danget and profound causeist economical disorganization. ..., The conference at Washingto) cannot fail to take this -nui%fi{: into account, if it desires reallyuo work for peace. ssdr (Copyright, 1921.) i) b COMPLAIN OF COAL SIZES),, PHILADELPHIA, Novembey - — For saany monthe Sompiains Hemat pea coal in chestnut sizes and buék whegt in pea sizes have been mide by consumers, until buying of- fuel ot It is to -be anticipated that before many years have elapsed almost every e Canadian prairie prov- sistance on the part of the powers. Qur only fault is that our country is very small, so small that it can- not stand the overflowing tides of Serblan troops, and much smaller to withstand the hungry attacks of the starving Russian refugees of Gen. ‘Wrangel, whom Serbia diverted into the plains of Albanja. in search- of employment, whatever sort of em- ployment it might come out to be. CONSTANTINE A. CHEKREZI, - missioner of Albania - to the United States. 3 that Italy is the one power that lurxd well her lesson, so far as interference in Albanian affairs is concerned. In the second place, how Capt.Gordon-Smith would reconcile his assertion with the positive fact that the Albanian government adopted the most solemn procedure, by sending an official delegation to Belgrade, for the purpose of coming to a direct under- standing with Serbia. to be told only by M. Nicholas Pachitch himself. her|"* premier, -that: the princi) condition | - - - & such an understanding was that D. Roosevelt, in 1912, in the tem porary absence of Secretary Daniel and received his hearty “approval Mr. Roosevelt promptly issued & cir- cular to the secretaries of all de- partments, asking their views, and the plan received unanimous sanc- tion® The committee was appointed. Mr. Kean became its chairman .nal has been seriously affected. Eyen the large size coal has been mixed in inces will have its own silo. The|with stove and egg in many instanaes. growth of the dairy industry would| The complaint says the situations“is naturally bring this condition about, | going to react against the anthracite but the movement is being expedited | industry. Consumers have learned” in by the success of farms in growing |the course of many years, to kmow sunflowers. The yields are provingychesinut and pea by well deflncd more satisfactory than the farmers|standards. If these standards must generally dared to hope, and each | be changed the change should be done acre wiil yield on an- average from)epenly and with careful consideration fifteen to thirty tons of ensilage.. of prices, forty-three miles—whereas, if the skeleton had kept in its closet, the freight would not have exceeded $100. ‘A" shipment of fir poles was made from North Portland, Ore., to Mobile, Ala. The poles were in the rough, like telegraph poles, but they were intended to be finished, after arrival in . Alabama, into spar buoys for light- administration of the State Depart-|house service, and they were billed as ment cnused considerable ecriticism,| “spars.” The Louisville ahd Nashville .| and who has been.reappointed 4o -the | railroad-assessed a rate as.for spars— Harding.. one and a half times first-class, mak- WILLIAM E. PULLIAM, Former receiver general of Dominican ecustoms, whose removal from office My Presidént Wilson during Mr. Bryaw’s F. MONT REILY, Governor of Porto Rico, whose resig- nation or removal has been demanted by a majority of the fsinnd assem l Mr. Potts its first secretary, from 1912 ‘to 1914; then Mr. Potts served | He is- mow in Washington to defen as chairman-from 1914 to 1918, - himself, and declares he-has no inten- This committee, however, had only | tion ot quitting. Pl