Evening Star Newspaper, June 11, 1922, Page 43

-THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. JUNE 11, o 1922—PART ‘CONGRESS NOW TURNS TO CHILD LABOR AMENDMENT Lack of Uniformity in States Is Cited as : Showing Need of Federal Action. BY G. GOULD L OLN. OW would you like to be 2 to child of five, work six and even compelled eight hours a day in a factory? how . To put it still wa another would vou like to have a child of | Yours work for six or eight hours a day in a factory? It does not séem possible that in the United States—and comparatively near the National Capital—children are compelied to work various kinds of workshops five, #ix or seven ysars of age. they are compelled to work, for child of that age would scarcely choose such occupation of his time. Twice the Congress has attempted in *hildren Of course, a Supreme Court was called upon to vass on another case from the same judge in North Carolina. in which the constitutlonality of the act was ques- tioned, and again it decided that Co gress had no Jjurlsdiction in this matter. The overwhelming sentiment in the country and In Congress in favor of regulating child labor made it y sible to put through the s relating to child lxbor. It s a two-thirds vote of both of Cengress to submit an amendment to the Constitution to the states. But it is belleved there will be no trouble In getting the necessary two-thirds in both Senate and House, once a vote is had. Such an amendment will be epposed by some who hold that the states should have control of all such matters. But the fact of the matter is that the staes have had control, have been in a position to control i child labor sinee the formation of the toput! an enil to the 'laborof Mitle [EOVETBIEnt. They have not. as a patie - e fghote, done so. re scems to be children in this country and twice it | dirong belief in many barts of the has failed. The Supreme Court of | country t there should be unl- _the United States has ruled that the | formity in the law dealing with child labor. and such uniformity is practi- tederal law. prohibit child labor are unconstitu- tlonal—that they invade the of the states to control such matters. President Expected Constitutional Amen And now the sentiment in the coun- enacted to control and| g rights only through federal legislation jand federal enforcement. States Have Laws of Varying Standards. Today all of the relating to ¢ these laws are good, a tates have laws But some of compared to try which forced the enactment of | the standard set by the federal law, the federal laws regarding child|and some of them are not. In some labor is gathering back of the pro-|of the states the laws are well en- Pposal that the Constitution be amend- | forced, and in others they are not ed so as to give Congress full au-|The federal Congress recognized the thority to deal with this matter, so| fmportance of having the government important to the development of the|look after the interests of the chil- child. President Harding is prepar- [dren when it established in the De- ing. according to a letter addressed | partment hor the children’s by him recently to Representative | bureau. i has done a large John Jacob Rogers of Massachusetts, | amount of valuable work for child to send a message to Congress deal- wre. Among other things it has ing with the subject and to urge|investigated throush its special that a constitutional,amendment %e | agents the question of child labor. submitted by Congrefs to the states! The Lureau the enforcement of for the first law of Congress regulating Al £ of resolutions pro- | child | econd law was en- posing such an wmendment to the |l forced through the bureau of internal Constitution have been introduced in. revenue \ Congress. A half dozen or more have | buremu has recently feen introduced since May 13, the| f the stat date that the Supreme Court knocked and the federal the props from under the second fed- that in twenty- eral law for the control of child ws compa Lvor- labor. Senator Hiram Johnson of 3 1 ndard. Tt California offered the first resolution | found. too. ti sixteen of the in the Sen House Repre-|states and the District of Colum- sentativ “alifornia, Tague the laws are good in principle, of Massachusetts, Fitzgerald of Ohio. | but admit of exceptions which really Perlman of New York and Raker of €alifornia have all introduced reso- lower the standard ! to a considerable i extent. In thes states children are Intions recently and Representative | permitted to work in vacations, at Rogers of Massachusetts offered | work that “is not harmful,” to work such a resolution in April. 1921 In|for their parents and not for any fact., Mr. Rogers has introduced a|one else, and to work on account of similar resolution in each Congress| “poverty.” In five other tes the of which he has been a_member for|laws fall helow the federal stand- the last ten yvears. The Rogers reso- lution goes further than those of others, since it gives Congress also the power to control the employment of women as well as all persons under twenty-one vears of age. Mr. Rogers takes the view that, If the fundamental law of the land is to be amended to enable Congress to safeguard the children. it should go as far as the enlightened coming generations may desire to go. So he has provided for the regulation of the employment of all persons unti they are lezally of age. and of women over that age. The other resolutions relate merely to children under eighteen years of age. Congress Hax Tried Twice To Regulate Child Labor. In fts fivst effort to meet the child labor situation Congress invoked the control given it by the Constitution over interstate commerce. 1t provided that no goods made by child labor— beyond the limits set by the la should go into Interstate commerce. This was enacted in September, 1916, and became effective one year later, to give the manufacturers and the families which had been living off ehild labor an opportunity to ke other arrangements. The law was de- clared unconstitutional by the Su- preme Court in a_case which came to it from North Carolina, upholding an opinion of Judge Boyd. a federal district judge, just nine months after it became effcctive. Then Congress tried to control child labor through the power of Congress to levy taxes, of 1918, effective in 1919, it inserted 2 provision levying a prohibitive tax upon goods made by child labor. The ba revoked. but what will it avail them if to give them liberty they are deprived of life? The treaty of Ver- sailles took great blocks of peoples. tore them loose from the ecomomic moorings to which nature and the habits of generations had attached them, and set them adrift with racial hatreds and nationalistic prejudices intensified and free to work their inevitable havoc. Lok ko X This monumental error must be rectified before the processes by which Europe lived can be restored. The productivity and consumptivity of these people is as necessary to the lite of Europe as a man's vital or- gans are necessary to the life of his _body, and there can be no restoration of Europe's general health so long as these many millions in central and castern Europe are paralyzed by the s cruel situation in which they find “themselves. A possible solution of s the problem may be found in the “lately advanced theory that a nation’s economic boundaries need not neces- 4sarily run parallel with its political Loundarfes. The suggestion involves ths creation of economic federations which would permit the free flow of commerce without destroying the po- litical liberties of the component parts, It would not seem that the working out of such a program ought to present any insuperable difficulties especially when the peoples concerne: ¥now, as they know now, that their “yery llves depend upon it. * k% % 5 Persistent efforts have been made to have us believe that the Russian problem must be solved before there - can be a bettering of conditions in . Europe. but a study of all the factors fnvolved does not warrant acceptance _of that doctrine. The cHief urgency in the Russian situation is due to the fact that so many milllons of ‘Russlans are at the verge of starva- tion, but the processes now under consideration would be too long in fruition to serve their urgent necd. 1t is true, undoubtedly, that pros- perity cannot be restored to Europe fn ail its fullness until Russia has been brought back into the comity .of nations, but it by no means fol- Jows that without her there could not be a vast improvement in_the general European situation. With .the nations of western, central and eastern Europe at work again, pro- “ducing and consuming, exchanging their products freely, and hopeful of he. future, a final working out of-the and in the revenue act | lard. The last fi | sissippi, Virginia | Hours of Labor Are Not Uniform. are Delaware, Mis- Utah and Wyoming. The reports of the children's bu- | reau show, too, that in many of the I states the laws are not up to t in the matter of The federal standard, for example. provides that children urteen to sixteen years of age 11 not work more than eight hours nor more than six d with a maximum of forty a weck. Under fourteen 3 not permitted to work. Twenty states and the District of Colu meet these requirements: two states do so with exceptions, and twenty others have lower standards, permit- ting nine or ten hours per day, and {fifty-four or sixty hours per week Especially is this true in states where | there are large cauning interests. | The federal law said that children should not work between T p.m. and 6 am. and twenty-six jurisdictions, including the District are up to that { particular standard, while eleven have |laws a little below the standard, and { other states are distinctly below th standard, five of them having no regulations regarding night work. n investigation of the laws re- lating to child labor in some of the | federal standard L hours of labor. much in advance of the laws in this untry in safeguarding the children. 3elgium, Bulgaria. Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Greal Britain, New Zealand, Norway, Ru- mania and Switzerland, for instance, have adopted the fourteen-year min- imum. ' What America Is Willing to Do To Aid in Europe’s Restoration (Continued from Page 1) Russian problem could be left to the certain amelioration of time. i * ok ok % Europe wants America’s help. Then let Europe take up these basic po- litical problems with courage and vision, and solve them in a way make American help poss fective. The first question Europe asks will be: Will America consent to cancel- lation of the debts due her from the European allies? That question can be answered, in part, without further delay. Amer- ica will not consent to cancellation of a single dollar of the indebtedness on the ground that the whole of it It is not justly and properly due. will not regard a dollar of the i debtedness as a part of America's contribution to the winming of the war. America believes that the send- ing of two million soldiers to Europe at a cost to the American people of eighteen billions of dollars discharged our war obligation in abundant meas- ure; that it was, in fact, a larger contribution than we were called upon to make gauged either by the interests we had at stake or the danger we were in. They will not forego a dollar on the score that it ever was understood the debt was not o be rep: When the European na- tions were beseeching us for loans idea other than payment in full. To set up the defense now that they had mental reservations would be to convict themselves of having obtained money under false pretenses. * ok ok K Whatever of determination exists in America today to collect the debt arises a good deal more from resent- ment at Europe's apparent desire to evade it than from any special eager- ness to recover the money. Amer- icans know that a considerable part of the debt is probably uncollectable. They know that only a fraction of what is collectable could be collected | without doing serious injury to Amer- ican industry. They know, too, that because ofsconditions; in Europe, for which this debt is in part, hut only in minor part, rgsponsible, they are {losing hundreds of millions of dol- lars through loss of trade and depres- sion in industry, and that if present conditions are ilong continued they stand to lose much more than is rep- resented by the whole of the debt. And being practical people, Amer- icans will look at the debt question in a practical way. They do not be- 1leve, and Europe cannot make-them “believe, that KEuropean feconstruc- - ISuropean nations show that they are | to! bie and ef- | they never hinted that they had any ! BY HENRY W. BUNN. HE following Is a brief summary of the most tmportant news of the world for the seven days ended June 10: The Rritish Empire.—Ulster fears an fin- vaslon in force from Free State territory. The British government s pledged to defend Ulster against such an invasion. That the British zovernment shares the fear of one is shown by its dispatch of considerable relnforcements to Ulster. That which, above all, keeps Ulster on edge fs fear of co-operation of elements within Ulster with invaders from Free State territory. On June 4 British troops in Ulster attacked and ecaptured or drove into Free State terrl- been considering the condltions under which an International loan to Germany might be floated were, In response to a query as to the limits of their mandate, authorized & the reparations commission (by a vote of 3 to 1) to extend the scope of their inquiry to include Ahe subject of reparations. They were thus at liberty to debate whether modification of the London schedule of reparations payments or reduction of the reparations total, or both, might be essentlal to floatability of a loan and to report yea or may, and, if the nature and extent of the modification or (and) reduc- tion thought necessary. The French member of the commission (under instructions from Poincare) opposed this autho not, it would seem, that the French are unwilling to discuss mogification of the London schedule of payments over a term of years, nor that thes would refuse to consider releasing enough tory the “dissldent” troops of the Irish re liens on German assets to guarantee a loan, publican army. who had established them- it (0 SEURER 00 Pe "that the suggestion ves on Ulster territory In the Pettigoe dis- of reduction of the re tions total be made wAct of County Fermanagh. The British loss ynjess it be coupled with the suggestion of was nil, that of the southerners three killed. cancellation of war debts, and the Sans The afiair came about through firing, on June 3 and the morning of June 4, by southerners on British columns moving about on Ulster territory, one Briton being killed. (This ac- cording to a British report.) A communique issued from headquarters of the Irish republican army protests against the above noted action of British forces and de- mands a thorough investigation thereof by the British government. It declares that the south- ern Itish troops in the Pettigoe district are not willing that the lattar suggestion should be put forward for fear of affronting the United States. So, at least, it would seem, from 2 statement in the semi-official Temps, that the whole matter is extremely foEgY. Having their authorization, the bankers, it seems, were embarrassed by it. It is repor ed that they have “virtually decided” to pro- pose to the reparations commission adjourn- ment for three months and resumption of their dellberations at the end of that time. They irregulars or “dissidents.” but regular Free . .j, pccording to this source of information. State troops, and that they did not Justify present a report before adjournment, but, pre- reprisals by first firing on the British: that gymably, it will be very incomplete and the British fired without warning or provoeca- tentative. tion, killing seven Irish: that, the Irlsh re- o turning the fire. one Briton was killed: that A the British pushed into Free State territory Portugal.—It will be recalled how, several boundary between Free State and Ulster ter- ritory runs. (‘apts. Sacadura and Coutinho, completed three “hops” of an airplane voyage from Lisbon to The bolshevists (Heaven save the mark!) are alming to “reform” the Russian church. * % ¥ % Middle Eaxt.—There is a report that in May the French government signed a treaty with that powerful chieftain of the Wahabis, Ibn Sa'ud, the Emir of Nejd, under which the French engage to supply money, arms and ammunition to the emlir, who, in return, en- gages to oppose “the projected formation of an Arab confederation under British in- fluence,” and to assist France should Syria be attacked from Transjordania or Mesopotamia. The Journal des Debats charges that Britain contemplates relinquishing the Mesopotamian mandate, setting up Irak as an independent state, and obtaining concesslons from King Fuisal (more particularly as to oil) much 1 sweeping than those she now cnjoy The plot is all arranged. thinks the imagi- native French editor. Faisal would repudiate all cxisting concessions and grant new ones to the British, on condition that the French (whom Faisal hates) “be allowed no share in our advantage from them. ‘Under the San Remo agrecment, the French, it will be re- membered, are allowed 25 per cent of the Mesopotamian vield of oil Wherev there is oil, there is intrigue and suspicion and the seed of conflict. * k %k X Chinn.—A dispatch of June 5 reported that certain forces of Wu Pei-Fu had reached Kin- ¢hau in Manchuria (about 125 miles southwest of Mukden) by marching, that others were proceeding along the railroad against opposi- tion, and that still others were being conveyed to Manchuria by gunboats—altogether, 50,000 troops on the way to finish Chang Tso-Lin. A dispatch of June 7 announces that Wu Pei-Fu and Chang Tso-Lin have agreed to an armi- stice and peace negotiations. Gen. Li Yuan-Hung has made it & condition e It is expected that the lockout in the Brit- the lives of millions” (1. e., the requisitioning i : kK K Brazil, from Lishon to one of the Canaries, of his acceptance of the presidency of Chin 1t is understood that the British government thence to onc of the Cape Verde islands, et ?:;—”I:;"’"(:;"“g,‘,‘;g”";“":‘}, D e | authorized employment of British troops along thence to St. Paul's Island, a mere rock about puiSyn” Yat-Sen not only refuses to oblige, the Fermanagh border for the precise reason 750 miles from Pernambuco, and how thelr but continues to push north with & araggle: S S orE exped " hydro-alrplane was wrecked in the attempt 1o tailed mob of heroes. 'Tis rumored that the et lF:"d::;:r‘z‘;“::: ':’u""::‘ the tempta- oor'it in the tiny harbor of that island. A doctor I3 thinking of sulcide. Suicide fn China 9 B ous o r con- Portuguese crulser took them to the island of s not merely self-slaughter. It is often, rath- | swoulary) to carry a counter invasion tnto Fernando Noronha, about 350 miles from Per- er, an elegant method of ebxnresslr;‘g Qisep- Free '8 v. = nambuco, whither & new machine was sent proval or contempt which (there's the humor Free State territory. Of course. If regular {00 "rim portugal. They proposed to re- of it) cannot be retorted this side the Vel Free State troops invaded Ulster territory. from turn to St. Paul's rock in this machine, circle Jow Springs. Nobody's stopping vou, doctor! the point of view of the angels, Irish head- about it and fly back to Fernando ronha. '“W“'w“a’;(v"'d keep quiet, but equally, of hut in the attempt they were blown far from * % ¥ % & . machine was unfamiliar) and plunged into the ‘nited States of America.—On June e Irish people cannot be expected to remember mea. By happlest chance a British steamer ,l ston cut- that their own troops “started it. S eied e i3 foox flers back s Fer. Baiizond Labor Boird rendeced 5 dotisin On June 8 the British troops cleared out nando Noronha. A third machine arrived from ting the pay of 400,000 railroad shoperaft ! !'-“ulr;lli_gdinf fir-‘m;finln;n;!,e‘:v’-mlgr:r:"l.r:reanflfilletk Portugal and in this, on Monday, June 5, they workers by 7 to 9 cents per hour, effective 1 e ) o) Fe 4 3 our's " | Rt ot Gounty B made the flight from Fernando Noronha to : ted o cut: the | briicartillery, machine gun and riflg fire. The Pernambuco in five hours. Pernambuco greet- Julx L The beard \,h :xpe‘c] = e hers L and | British had orders not to fire and not to enter ed_them With a frenzy of enthusiasm quite Wike of railroad clerks, telegraphers L RrnTes erHitory unices oiey ohowld e juseified. for the fant descrven to bo sing Ky signal men prior to July 1. The chief execu- B RS AR R e "‘Pllfllrfih & Camoens, and is worthy of those great days lives of eleven associations of railroad em- BEronh 6 B fitirar e RCCOEAIDE (1o e of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries when have been in conference in Clncinnati | Briteh report Military necessity compelled Portuguese prowess was the admiration of ploves have been in con | e Brtisnto {j,‘;"‘;"a“;;“t‘""""hd'\';fl"ceflm;lu the world. These heroes are na springa throughout the week. The conferees decided H rhe stateterritony. | Nobauch ot imitaght since they muster between them more than 2 2 hop- Jritich casualties. i ¥ ster n - more that there should be a strike vote of the shop | tbritieh casualties. one man slightly wound- 4 hundred years Our youngsters are grown ST Lo followed by irike votes ;;: o x;‘r” b e O T insolent snd. disparage thely elfers LAV el Of other classes of workmen whose wages Biube dasmiito, ava beerymomel subsidencs oo aroiabour Cants Am00 Nt el ey Baireduced By lacenibosid aceisions LA | of disorder and:outrage in Belfast during the at elghty. would olimb vou an Alp. before AtTiel yotelof mamtanonce O e men iy ast weelk. at sy B 1 be conscquence of the board's decis s v AN breakfast, or, Col. Roosevelt, or the Pope? Week 'had already been decided on. The con- * K Kk vention of the American Federation of Labor, The conferences In London between mem- o e Prot ten “hlvr:l on--m;;I in f}l‘ncinnaru ye;fl;rd’n, is ex- bers of the British government and Irish lead- ussta.—The Protestant churches of Great pected 1o indorse the conferees’ decisions. ers committed to the London agreement con- Britain having, through the Archbishop of T e e aiow: i tinue. Canterbury. protested against the action strength of 133,000 (the House figure was ;i ken by the soviet government against 125,000), and an officer atrength of 12,500 (the It s sald that the chief criticism by the '3 I British government of the draft of the con- former Patriarch Tikhon and other ecclesi: "f,‘:.‘flf-(,’;f:."" was 11,000). The bill is now in stitution of the Free State prepared by the tics of the Orthodox church (twelve priests Our government has accepted the invitation Irish provisional government goes to & clause have been condemned to dcath and Tikhon of the British government to designate officers which would give to the Irish court of ap- being tried), the soviet government replied, to participate (with British, French and peals final decision in interpretations of the elling the archbishop that the protest “is ltalian officers) in an investigation of the Constitution. Such final decision as to the dictated by a narrow caste and is entirely Greek charges of Turkish atrocities upon onstitutions of other associated nations of directed against the real interests of the Rus- (reeks in Anatolia and Turkish charges of e tish commonwealth of natlons rests sian people and the elementary demands of Greek atrocities upon Turks in Anatolia. . | with the judicial committee of the English humanity.” Tikhon and the others having re- The Supreme Court has decided that labor privy council. sisted “the soviets' measures taken to save unions may properly be sued for strike dam- ages and that strike funds are liable to execu- tion in_that connection. ish engincering industry will end within a of church treasures). The Protestants are on a few dave, emplovers and employves having reminded that they did not protest when Rus- The MceCumber bonus bill was reported to composcd their differences. sia was blockaded. The Arehhishop of Can- the Senate Thursday. Senator McCumber esti- terbury has replied, protesting once more and mates that, if enacted, it will cost the people LR decluring that Patriarch Tikhon time and L -lll of $3,845.659,481. Senator Under- again oftered the help of the. church to re wood, also an economist of note, thinks the France.—The eminent bankers who, at the Jieve the famine situation, but his offers were cost ‘would be between $6,000,000,000 and request of the reparations commission, have declined. $7,000,000,000. soclety. One instinctively looks up tion is any such life and deaty mat- ter to this country as it is to Europe. But, they do want to see Europe re- constructed, both because such re- construction would be to their ma- terial advantage. and because they stand aghast at the danger that the achievements of a thousand years of civilization, a civilization from which they draw all they have of culture, ¥ be wiped out in an upheaval BY NELLIE MARGARET SCANLAN may ) A | oot of economic absurdities and po- | of Wellington, New Zealand Titical follies. If European statesmen will first have unda the political wrongs they one and then will show a disposi- tion to place reparations, budgets and currencies on a common-sense basis, Americans undoubtedly would be Wwilling to co-operate with a read- HAVE seen your national game of base ball for the first time. We don't play it down thcre where Rugby—and very rugged { the British debt should be canceled, ithe basis of what they can pay and 1 tion, { that ot Europe, and there is not ap- Ipartment of Commerce, United Btates justment of the allied indebtedness, to be followed by needed gold loans and commercial credits. * % k X ‘This does not mean they would enter blindly upon a program of cancell tion. The debt owed by Great Brit- ain to the United States, for Instance, has little, if any, responsibility for the general European situation. Great Britain is able to pay, and has gotten out of the war compensations which a great deal more than offset her debt to this country. It would be hard to convince Americans, therefore, that Rugby—holds sway. No country has yet succeeded in wresting the laurels from us in that direction. Base ball seems a cross between cricket and rounders, using & tapered rolling pin instead of a flat bat. But what T missed most about this national game was the thrill of Rugby, the friendly flow of blood, the frequent trips with the stretcher, the pause while the tummy or some winded player was vigorously rubbed, or that sudden halt when panting ruggers made of themselves a screen- ing circle while sarortial reinforce- ments were rushed up. Professionalism in any kind of sport is anathema in New Zealand. It is sport for sport sake, and a player accepting money fs liable to be barred for life. Americans aren't lazy, but they would much rather press the button and have it done that way. Personal exertion is not popular. Canned food and they think ways could be found by which payment of that particular obligation could be received without serious injury to American industry. But with the debts owed us by the other countries, it is different. With the necessary political conditions es- tablished, if German reparatians were readjusted on the basis of what Ger- many can pay and not on what she ought to pay, Yhen it would not be unreasonable for this country to have regara for the debts of the allies on not on what they justly owe us. It is very conceivable that with wise statesmanship in Europe there could speedily be brought about con- ditions under which this government and people would be willing to cagcel part of the debt due us. But Amer- jcans cannot be fooled into cancella- nor can they be scared into by the talk of universal They have not cancellation chaos and anarchy. yet lost faith in the soundness of American institutions or in the adaptability of American enterprise. Our situation is not on a parallel with parent any danger that it.ever will be. | Move to Standardize All Radio Apparatus The National Radio Chamber of Commerce is negotiating now with the various government departments, such as the bureau of standards, De- Signal Corps and United States Navy Department, with a view to co- operating with these departments in the standardization of radio appara- tus, methods of manufacture, meth- ods of testing, etc. The National Radio Chamber of Commerce intends to work with these departments and assist them in their radio probléms. It is planned in the very near fu- ture to have a central testing labora- tory for radio apparatus so that the various members of the National Radlo Chamber of Commerce and any other manufacturers interested may avail themselves of the services of such a laboratory for the purpose of testing, calibrating and making such researches as may be Fans may sway and gallons of iced drinks be comsumed, but the choker chokes on. to eat, canned music to hear, canned brains to calculate, too much trouble o go to the theater, just sit at home snd listen-in to the concert. I am hourly éxpecting the arrival of the electrified golf club to speed the ball surely on its way and the magnetic hole to draw the halting putt till it safely goggles home. This would eliminate many of the troubles of the first seven yéars of golf, which are generally regarded as the worst . \ Through Antipodean Eyes jileaven from the middle west? OB, wad soms power the giftie gie us To see oursel's as ithers sce us. 1t would frae monie & blunder free us, Azd foolish motion. ‘When girls began to bob their hair the men grew resentful of the intru- sion Into their mode. Now the men shave their heads, lcaving a tiny doily of hair on top—a sort of men- tal mat. These are the ultra-mod- crns. The old conservatives and some of the casuals on Capitol Hill still have a fringe flirting with their collar at the back. Where person- ality dominates you forget the cut of their hair. Wet days are sufficiently depress- ing without adding to its gloom with black umbrellas. American optimism here shines once again. With pink and purple, blue and green, they erect domes of shelter over their heads and you can almost Imagine' the sun is shining. For weeks JJ have watched the growth of a new church. A hungry maw chewed out the earth for the foundations, and bricks and mortar, marble and steel are being piled and welded, riveted and bolted into a stately edifice. But what has struck me most is that all the negroes work with gloves on. The gloved hand of toil has replaced the horny hand. There is no reason why it should not, but I had never seen it before. not even in that workers' paradise, New Zealand. There is a steep bank where the honeysuckle grows and the houses above are enshrined in wondrous trees. When the sun has gone west— slipped down on that homeward trail | to bring the dawn to southern lands— i i I like to pass that honeysuckle wall in the deepening dusk, when the per- fume rises Into the warm, still night air, and like sparks from a forge the firefies flash their tiny lamps and disappear. At first I wondered what they were. Theirs is a light that does not shine in competition with the southern cross. We have no fire- fies, but neither have we wild beasts. In our vast and extensive bush there is not one lurking beast of prey, no bird nor animal to harm you, and snakes and serpents are unknown. What is social arbiter in Washing- ton? Are methods and manners, cus- toms and fashions & composite of British tradition, elements escaped from foreign embassies, and a Are ithey dictated by New York or sug- gested from Smith's Curse or Bad I Bill's Bend? After elections you hurl | masses of congressmen and their i familles, fresh off the turnips, the Inimple and gentle, the learned and | the unlearned, into the welter of capi- tal society. They absorb it like a sponge and return to their home town, where It is squeezed out, becomes a habit_and bears, official imprimateur. It is a pity to let them think that dinner frocks in the morning, evening dress in the afternoon and satin shoes with sports clothes bear the seal of for guidance. Of course, the top shelf of society does not house all the paragons. It would be tragic if all English women felt compelled to fol- low ueen Mary in her mode of hats. God forbid! But when the society cretionary powers as political editors and poultry experts, and can hit the high ones if they set a bad example, which may become a national institu- tion it not watched, then will you | tidy up a few of the loose ends which now tend to trip the transient in soclety. Lesser countries may be even more negligent, but America is t00 big and too much In the spotlight. She can not afford to. The fur choker clings with over- heated pertinacity about the neck of fair America. The barometer mounts, the humidity thickens, the perspira- tion caps; thinner and thinner become the materials worn, scant is the cov- ering which moistily adheres, every- thing in reason is discarded but the ! It would be tragic if all English women felt compelled to wear Queen | Mary hats. choker. Noon and night it nestles cozily above the topmost rim of cloth- ing. Fans may sway and gallons of iced drinks be consumed, but the choker chokes on. Some day I shail take my courage in both hands and ask why there is no closed season for chokers. No one has ever accused the Amer- fcan man of possessing that golden attribute—silence. He has had cen- turies of practice, allied to 'a natural inclination to become vocal on the slightest provocation, and to help himself out he occasionally coins a new word or two. And some of them are very apt. But, judging broadly, the average American woman s a better public speaker than'the man. Your trained politician knows his job, but when it comes down to the un- professional talker the woman wears the laurel. Nor is it “wind fried in oil 1t is usually backed by knowl- edge and common sense. In her in- articulate days she has been storing her mind, and, though you may not always agree with her, she will claim your interest, Inspire your admira- tion and convince you of her sincerity and self-confidence. I take off my hat to the American woman, i writers are accorded the same dis-iin Europe and can FRANCE NOW IN POSITION TO DICTATE IN EUrOPE Yolitical Alliance and Tremendous Mili- tary Makes Independence of Action in Future Comparatively Safe. BY OLIVER OWEN KUIIN. HROUGH sheer circumstance and political maneuvering France has won her place in the sun. Poineare undoutit inter hanee rather than curtail the viewpoint in reconstruction, #ench French Independence Clearly Shown. A vast section of the old world| French independence of action wa must bow to her desires, likewise her | never more graphically fllustrated whims and caprices. than In the past week, during LR Not since the days of the firstisions of world bankere called in 1 emplre has French influence been 5o {co-operate in the adfustment of Ge paramount as at the moment. Not|man rey $onh i AR toat s e sipce the days of Napoleon has herlloan be floated 1o aid Germans and military been so able to back politi- | thereby reconstiruct the ceonomic fai cal powers, {ric of the inent as a whole, The Alliances with other powers have i S placed her where she can dominate | the bankers should have the future of a majority of nations power seitle the of the continent. whole problem, cven if it involved the Her diplomacy has penetrated here- | curtailment of reparations the fins tofore unavailable recesses. until to- |amount of swhich ineidont w day the destines of tems of millions |1eft to the judzment of tie nanke of people, it may be said, can be|themselves " Fyance detwurred and ol controlled through decisions of Quai|most causcd Destiers vo Ares d'Orsay. {their sessions without taking tion Immediately after the declaration :upon the proposition of temderins of the armistice in the world war |Germany o loan. It w fie exooed France set about to fortify herself |ingly unwise to o GhEh Setoh & against future dangers cast of the |proposition without the full «o-oper- Rhine. That this protection be made afion of the < ac a4 whole. As permanent, her diplomats and secretmatter of fact the bankors probably agents worked in the countrics of jdid not wish 1o involved i southeastern Europe and in Poland. jany transsction ht be haz This bloc, it was hoped, would cur-jarded by France to co-on: tail German expansionist sehemes.iate and possible enforcement of s which, it is declared, were largely |tions 1o compel the Germans to heod responsible for the world conflict. In | Gr of the treaty of Ver the councils of the allies she set in \ a venture matural motion far-reaching plans looking Buarantees G . toward, not only protection, but prog- | In other we ress of the French people Whether tue of her treme it was Clemenceau, Legyues —or cal und military strengt Briand, the French always have kep! o5 one goal in mind. True, concessions Pt actaions S hkrd X2 were forced from France in delibera- unicss the French position Itions with other allies, hut in these quately protected concessions France gained other; A the French viewpoint at th things to counterbalance p\uipnardiu,nnwu[ mass b sAla to/be this: TN losses. whole financial woof of Europe de Yrance has given and taken in . pends upon adjustment of the tremer minor deliberations and in the set-|dous burden of d ne th tlement of those questions whichthemse Che would play but little part in thetailme lund future development of France But!the Unite reneh 1 in the major premises France has not, measure 10 he willing 1o tur Ger nany's obligations. given and ever has heen ready to re- ceive much. Political Domination Would Hold i\mrrh'n and England | Franee's Chief Goal SR " Political domination of the oldang wouia ‘ world which would insure future ' . e oo Y protection for France has been the gube frrance would 1ot one goal constantly before Paris. N0 yon whit and I2nslund ar matter who might be premier for the .10 be lert with the bag to ho moment, and today it may be said y¢ i q, 2that The Reanth was ré that goal s at hand if it has not! .u cannan 1o adju nt of repa been fully realized through & Well |iitions uniecs some way is found @ knit tem of alliances, treaties!cgive the international debt questior and agreements. Even though Paris announces that the ! branches of the French military ma- With the assumption of reins of [bankers m, nd a way to mes government by Poincare the French | French ob and at the same became adamant against concessionstime grant a | ttle rea which in anywise would relleve Ger-|Son 10 exnect ctory solut many of the burdens fmposed in the jlunless Amoric land ente treaty of Versallles, and which would | it the question readjustment « permit Germany to become a going ! ¢Pligations due them fre concern once more. France, to pro- | France. tect the French in future generations, | is not at all concerned as to whether | Germany ever fully recovers, a Ger- many which four times in past years has swept down over France with: consequent destruction and woe 10| the French people. | The full force of French political | influence is realized today. Particular- Iy did it become pronounced after the | Genoa sessions, where, it may be said, the French blocked any effort looking toward individual national conces: slons as advocated by Llovd George, In so far there may is concerne along this nent decides to 4 nt of Bo loans will stand in turn, cz it Englar unless the U cels Britain's debt d other countrics h Frenc viewpoint it will be be there little else for them to do. unless tic government wishes to break with France entirely and pursue the sugz cested course ‘nt with Ger Russia Owing 1o Yo gain early and_quick recovery of ({he fact thal e is strong senti- Europe. It was a French victory. andg;‘ffl“ ou Enel gainst such a pol- even though other powers threatened | (¥, P0 EOV 111L:;-r:( B uld dare break alliances isolating France. these:“ith France, uniess the French actu threats did not influence Poincare fn|all¥ commit some act that would be the least, nor will they do so in the future. | The French position is, unusual Today, notwithstanding the claims| that France cannot advance without full payment of German reparations | and her tremendous obligations as the result of German perfidy. the French maintain the largest standing army obtain 3,000,000 All men shortly after mobilization. chine today are better developed tha at any time in history of the nation Furthermore, military advancement has not lessened one whit. even though some show of reducing the army has been made by shorter periods of service with the colors. n Most Other Powers Curtall Military. Other powers of Europe have cur- tafled their fighting machines. Even England, which after the war had a military and naval force, the greatest in her history, has curtailed each of | these. At least England today Is maintaining forces only sufficient to guard her outlying possessions and they do not approach the size of the French military forces. In most other | countries of Europe peoples and gov- ernments have followed the footsteps of England and have reduced fighting strength to the smallest possible number. The spirit of the peoples is against war in any shape or form, and Governments giving life to national desires have =set about reduction processes. France could, if she dared, March from one end of the continent to the other without serious hindrance. Fortified with one of the greatest armies in the history of the world and with political alliances which in- volve the closest offensive and de- fensive co-operation with Poland, Ru- mania and Jugoslavia, which in turn may dominate Greece through friend- 1y support, the French are in position to make far-reaching demands, and sentiment as to wlien all English on the slde of the government. It is be- lieved there is only on such move, that being sreement of further the ‘Rhine. And until the French actually take some etep in this dircction it is hardly probable Lioyd « rge will de- part far from his policy of attempi- ing to persuade the French to 1t British viewpoint But Little Chanee of Changing Amount. Unless the ced there diately revamping the reparations order to get a loan, for the treaty Versailles provides that curtailment of the reparations requires a una mous vote of the reparations body up until 1926, though a majority of votes up until that time will permit a moratorium. With the knowledge that the allies are not in position to violate the treaty at the moment and hardly will act until they may le- ally do o, France is placed in bet- “rench ter position. The French know that Germany cannot pay the full 33,000 000,000,000 gold marks now. but do believe that when Germany gets to going_she can settle in full, and the French are willing 10 wait, though bx waiting there n ome hardship At least the belief Germany can pay hinders decision to cut reparations now But while France oc ud- upies an antageous position for the moment it s a dangerous ome, and shewhi France continue to oppose the will of the majority of allies in read- justment faces | tion of « But with her politic: linnees tremem- dous fighting forces, France can well chuckle at attempts to undermine a domination which she could well en- force, should the people of France themselves be convinced that in en forcement the best interests of France alone can be served Many Complications Are Faced In Effecting Reclassification (Continued from First Page.) trative officer would be at the mercy of a few experts in the classifying | agency. . (2) A salary schedule eclastic enough to provide reasonable ad- vancement of the employe and give him an incentive for meritorious work and pervent stagnation. (3) A standard rating for positions that is comparable to the rates paid for similar work in private employ- ment, . having due consideration for the advantages enjoyed by govern- ment employes in annual leave, sick leave, shorter hours, etc. (4) A reclassifying agency to co- operate with the administrative agencies In allocating positions so as to keep the classification uniform in the several departments and prevent the upgrowth of the present existing evil of different rates of pay in dif- ferent departments for the same class of work. 3 (5) A range of pay from maximum to minimum so adjusted as to make it susceptible to legislative increase or reduction In accordance with vio- lent fluctuations of the cost of 1Iving without an accompanying —disar- rangement of job specifications. (6) A classification of jobs and schedule of pay so arranged that Congress and the executive in ap- propriating and estimating can con- trol the amounts to be appropriated and prevent too rapid an accumula- tion of emploves In the upper ratings of the various groups. (7) The establishment of standards of eficiency which employes must maintain in order to be promoted and clow which they may not fall witl- out being demoted. Research Work Aim Dr. C. G. Abbot, assistant secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and di- rector of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Abservatory, will leave Washington to- morrow for.Mount Wilson, Calif., where the institution maintains a solar ob- serving station at an altitude of 5.500 feet above sea level. During the field season Dr. Abbot will carry on re- searches “bearing on the heat of th stars and the temperature of the sun. Dr. Abbot also will make further ex- iments with the solar cooker, on which ¢ ra num- Ler of ye for conk: using onl, sun as fu was brought to a considerable degr of perfection Jast year. all of the cook ing of the field party for the whole seu- son being done with it. The apparatus consists of a parabolic cylindrical mir- ror with a polished aluminum surface which focuses the sun’s rays on a tube filled with mineral ofl which communi- cates with an iron reservoir of oil in which are two baking ovens of different temperatures. The circulation of (he, heated ofl produces a very high tem perature in the ovens, which is main tained for several hours, even after tha’ sun has gone down or is covered Ly, clouds.