Evening Star Newspaper, March 16, 1923, Page 6

THE EVENING STAR, With Sunday Morning Edition. T WASHINGTON, D. G, FRIDAY........March 16, 1823 THEODORE W. NOYES......Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Offes, 11th At. and Pennaylvanis Ave. New York Oft:e: 150 Nawau Chicago : Tower Bulldlng. Zuropean Offee: 18 Regent St., London, England. JThe Eening Star, wits the Suaay mersing i ellvered thin. the city A0 60 et S onch Saly oy, 40 ceats Pur month: B /20 cents per month. ders may be sent by or lslephons Main 5000. Collection fs made by earriers at the ead of each month, Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Dally and Sunday..1yr., $8.40; 1 mo., 700 Dfi" Oniy e 19r. $8.00; 1 mo.. 50 Bunday only. 1yr., $2.40; 1 mo., 20¢c All Other States. o Daily and Sunday..1 yr., $10.00; 1 mo., 85¢ Daily oty v 1 e 337.00: 1 mo. 806 Sunday only.......1yr, $3.00;1mo, 25c Member of the Associated Press. The Assoclated Press is exclusively entitled tc the usé for republication of all news dis- Tatches credited to it or Bot otherwise credited in this paper and also the local news pub- lished herein. All rights of publication of wpecial diwpatches herein are also reserved. e ——e— Alley Homes. The pressure for housing space in Washington is shown by & count of persons living in alley houses, made by police, at the suggestion of Com- missioner Oyster. The figures show that the alley population, compared with a count made three years ago, is practically stationary. In fact, an in- crease ix shown, the figures being 9,017 for 1919 and 9,582 of this date. The number of houses is set down as 3,246. Under the law the Commlissioners must close these houses on June 1, this vear. Efforts were made to have Con- gress postpone the date, and also to close the houses by degrees or zones, one-third of them at a time. The ef- forts failed and the law stands. It is feared that these people will find it difficult, and perhaps in many cases impossible, to find quarters elsewhere, and that a grave public "emergency will have to be met. Various thoughts arise in connec- tlon with this matter. It is conceded that alleys ought not to furnish sites for hum: habitations. When the campaign against alley dwellings be- 5an, far the greater number of those homes were distressing affairs. That was in the time when men and women were living in ‘'shacks” on commons and in out-of-the-way “'shacks” were not what are popular- 1y called shacks now, fot a shack may be a plain and comfortable dwelling place. The old shacks were generally rude shelters struck up of pieces of waste tin and old boxes and, of course, ‘were without water or sewer connec- | tion. There used to be many of these in the territory through which James Creek canal ran and between New Vork avenue and what is now Poto- mac Park, They have disappeared. Many alleys harbored a lawless popu- lation and gave the police much trou- ble. Alleys were unpaved and dirty, and many of the “homes” were with- out water and sewer connection. Great changes have been made. Many alley houses now are reasonably well built and comparatively sanitary. The alleys are paved, lighted -and regularly cleaned by the street.cleaning depart- ment. There is not now the same pressing need for imfediate wholesale evdcuation of the alleys. But the law must be carried out, and the 10,000 people of the alley's must on June 1 find homes or have homes found for them ‘elsewhere. Unless, indeed, some legal basis for an injunction may be found which will hold things as they are until Congress has the opportunity in December to provide for the gradual emptying of the alley houses, begin- places. These | forth that the first step in the Ce misstoners’ plen would be the con- struction of a quay along the water front. Here would be provision: for steamboat traffic. Travel and freight shipment by steamboat between Wash. ington and the lower Potomac country have suffered a remarkable decline since the coming in of the automobile and the heginning of the bullding of #60d roads, hut there lo & wide extent of country along the lower river and its wide creeks which very likely can always be better served by boat:than truck, and these parts of Maryland and Virginia may develop as im- portant food-producing sections. River steamboat traffic may come back, and there should always- be provision along the Washington water front for these picturesque carriers. Corisidera- ble traffic between the Chesapeake, lower Potomac region and Washing- ton is carried on by sloop-and schooner, and commercial sailing craft would find accommodation on the water front under the Commissioners’ plan. Un- der that plan the city would build ‘warehouses, renting them, or space in them, to persons engaged in water- front business. A beginning of this policy was made several vears ago in erecting the municipal fish market, and that experiment has been highly satisfactory. One feature of the plan is to make Potomac Park more cessible to the people of the old section of Washington east of Water street. The whole proposition is a great proj- ect and deserves success. —————————— Income Tax Returns. There are two causes for gratifica- tion in the surprising increase in in- { come tax returns for the calendar year {1922. One is that the government will enjoy a larger revenue than had been | expected, and the other the evidence that business has been better than was thought. The increases are the more remarkable because of decreases in | the rates, which, without an increase in general prosperity, would have operated naturally to decrease the totadl of tax receipts. The Treasury estimates that collections for the first quarter of 1923 will approximate $400,- 000,000, or about $7,000,000 more than for the first quarter of last vear. This despite the fact that the excess profit tax has been dropped and that the minimum for surtaxes now is $6,000, | instead of $5,000, and that the increase from 10 to 1233 per cent on capital stock, adopted in lieu of the excess profit tax, does not become effective untfl June 15. There could be no better demonstra- {tion ‘thanthis tax showing of the | happy situation in which the United States finds itself, Other nations are taxing their people so heavily as to slow up production and destroy initi tive, with no relief in sight, and vet are able hardly to make a beginning | at balancing their budgets. This gov- ernment is abie to reduce its rates of | taxation, and under the reduced rates to increase its revenues, at the same time permitting individuals and cor- porations to go ahead with their un- dertakings freed of the prospect that the fruits of their enterprise will be harvested by the taxgatherer. Here is an achievement of the re- publican edministration and Congress credit for which cannot be denied. Re- duction in expenditures, reduction in the rates of taxation and increase of { revenues constitute a trinity of financ- | ing the benefits of which will extend |into every part of the country and | will be shared by every class of citi- zens. Paying of taxes is never a pleas- ent operation, but the people will pay with a great deal better cheer now that they can feel the government has a constructive policy, and that they are working their way out of the war mire instead of deeper into it. —————————— Practical Conservation. | cessors, and yet gets $17.990 docked | jis of the opinion, it seems, that she their stands and conduct thelr busi- ness from these points. Every Washington motorist, and pedestrian, too, has seen the long line of “for hire” cars which ddily and nightly circle the Willard and Wash. ington Hotel block. Not only is the congestion ceused by so many cars e menace to traflic, but there have been times when hackers have violatsd every rule of the road in refusing to break the line for privately-owned cars to get to the curb. & Local theatergoers have mnot only suffered annoyance but at times ac- tuel danger from the wild scramble of some hackers to get fares. When the theater léts out some of these men have resorted to every subterfuge to procure passengers. They have broken into lines of cars waiting to get to the entrance, at times with an utter disre- gard of possible collisions; they have drawn up in front of the entrance and | h stalled their motors, hoping that by the time they were told to “move on” by the police they would have been able to get a fare, and have resorted to numerous other tricks which deley traffic and result in congestion. Stands have been provided for the hackers at accessible downtown points. According to law they must remain on these stands. The police have an- nounced that the campdign has be- gun for the elimination of the “loiter- er.” Washington motorists are solidly behind the department in its effort to provide safer driving conditions. The Commissioners are to be congratu- lated on their wise mov —————— The fist ight in which Mascagni, the composer, and Mocchi, his impresario, were principals rather complicates the old theory dealing with the charms of ynusic in relation to the savage breast. ————— As Germany contemplates her repa- rations bill it were well for her to re. member the words of that sage of long ago who observed that “silver and gold are not the only coin; virtue, toa, passes current all over the world.” ————————— Senator Hiram Johneon Is to oc-| cupy President Harding's old seat in the Senate. But it is to be noted he only gets it after voluntary relinquish- ment. ————————————— Another case of the ingratitude of republics. President Harding sticks closer to his job than any of his prede- from his pay ————— { “‘Boss” Murphy says the saloon will never return. Under prohibition Tammany has given the lie to the| charge that it could thrive only on barroom politics. i ————— i Scottish laborites in the British par- liament announce they will accept no invitations to hobnob with rovaity. Invitations to e recent hobnobbing did not include Scottish laborites. ———————— The value of the nation’s last year's farm products is set at $14,310,000,000. Tha the answer to that insidious query, “How'ya gon'ta keep ‘em down | on the farm2” —————————— Engiand, contemplating the Rubr, had best not stir the rice, though it sticks to the pot. i ————————— i i The Army planes that failed to ve- | lease the icebound Delaware would ! still be able to “cut some ice” in| Americe’s hour of need, —_——— May ti= new peace offer expected | to be made shortly by Berlin not sup- | THE WAYS OF WASHINGTON BY WILLIAM PICKETT HELM. ‘Washington has never known such & boom of bullding operations as to- day. On every hand and in every direction the city s being torn up and made over again. In the northeast and northwest sec- tlons. especially the city is extending its lines into virgin flelds where but Yesterday domestio, animals ran at large. Most of these new bulldings are homes, but as one comes nearer to the center of the city the character of buildings changes. Here s a mammoth apartment house nearing ‘eompletion. It covers Whole acres and-will houss hundreds of tamilles. There is another, almost as large, but a few blocks away. Yond is a pit whence will arlse Soon a new hotel costing millions and ousing more than 1,000 guests. Here is another great hotel but recently |$% opened. All around on every hand one sees 80 many hotels and apartments goin, up that one is tempted to wonder the city is not becoming overbuilt. How strange the city would appear today to a resident of a century ago! When Congress first met in Wash- Ington thers was but one hotel in the city and one more in Georgetown. A hundred years ago the number had grown to half a dozen. The favorite establishment of the young republic’s statesmen was the Indian Queen Hotel, which occupied the site of the present Metropolitan Hotel on Pennsylvania avenue. The Indian Queen was designated by a large swinging sign upon which was painted, in flaring colors, a figure depicting Pocahontas. It was as different from the hotel of today as black is from white. And how dlfferent, too, were the ways of its landlord, Jesse Brown. Brown was born in Havre de Grace and had learned how to run a hotel in Hagers- town and Alexandria. Whenever the stage drew in with customers Brown used to come to the curb to meet them. Such an impor- tant ceremony was not to be dele- gated to any employe. Imagine the proprietor of, say, the Washington, the Willard, the Raleigh, the Powhatan, or any of the city's leading hotels, going down to the station to meet his guests today! Brown escorted his guests from the stagecoach into sthe house. On the way in he sized each one up so that he might determine what sort of room should be assigned him. Hav- ing determined on the room, he would describe its advantages and’then send the guests off to the room under the pllotage of a colored servant. When the next meal was ready the immediate neighborhood knew it by the ringing of an exceedingly capable bell. Brown would meet each guest at the dining room door and escort im or her to a seat. For this littie ritual Brown attired himself in & large white apron -covering almost his_ entire front and reaching well down below his knegs. i Brown himself sat at the head of the table, where he carved and served the principal dish. The excellences of this he would announce in a loud tone of volce, inviting his guests to l | |send up thier plates for what he sur-! | 3 portions. membered the particular likings of each guest, %0 that ori the guest's second meal or visit Brown was able to pay the subtle flattery of caling the guest not only by name, but unerringly naming the kinds of food ha iiked best. He also invited attention to other dishes on the table, which were serv- ed by guests nearost them. He was the capital's original hotel press agent. “Ladles and gentlemen,” he would announce in stengorian tones, “I have here a deliclous quarter of mutton from the valley of Virginia. Mr. A, let me send you a rare slice. “Col. B, will you not have a bone? “Mrs. C., send up your plate for a plece of the kidney. “Mrs. D., there is a fat and tender mongrel goose at the other end of the table. Wil you be so good as to rve? “Joe, old fellow, sweet potatoes. “Senator E., will you help to that chicken ple before you?" pass around the And the prices! Living then was €0 cheep that it was a shame to die Board and lodging at the Indian Queen Hotel was §1.75 per day, $10 per week, $35 per month. Transient guests were charged 60 ocents for breakfast, the same for supper and 76 cents for dinnper. Brandy and bufgundy were placed on the table in decanters, to be drunk by the guests without additional charge. It is rellably reported that Brown never watched a guest pour. On the Fourth of July, Washington's birthday and other holidays Brown would make eggnog in a mammoth unchbowl once owned by George ashington and would invite all the guests to partake. The tavern desk was situated be- hind the bar, with rows of large bells hanging by circular springs on the wall, each bell with a heavy, bullet- shaped tongue, that continued to vibrate for several minutes after be- ing rung. The busiest man around the hotel, with the exception of Brown himself, was the bartender. That dignitary prepared the drinks, answered the bells or sent a colored man to do so, received, sorted and delivered the ‘mail. and answered all sorts of ques- tions. He was Washington's nearest approach to a combined city directory and encyclopedia. Pennsylvania avenue was lavishly paved with brownish-red mud in those days. Where the present Post Ofce Department building is located there stood a large brick structure in- tended for a hotel, but not operated as such because of the financial trou- bles of the owner. The unfortunate owner disposed of the place through a lottery, but 1l luck pursued the house even then. The winning ticket .was held by minors, whose guardian could neither sell the building nor operate it, and it remained for many vears in a de- caying condition. The executive depart- ments were lodged in four brick buildings, ona in_each corner of a square, with the White House in the center. Some change since then' And. oh, ves. EDITORIAL DIGEST Demand That Spider Young's Death End “Subsidized Suicide.” The spirit of the Roman arena,| compounded with the more distinc- tively American, but hardly more en- nobling appetite for blatant pub- licity, accounts, in editorial opinion, for the spectacle that took place in New ‘York city a few davs ago, when Harry Young, a “human fly,” failed in his effort to climb the wall of the Hotel Martimique and fell ten stories to his death. The mental attitude of 3 crowd of 20,000 that would gather to ses so pointless an exhibition of daring receives scathing analysis at the bands of editorial writers. More important, however, as the press es it, is the fact that the performance was promoted by motion pictture pro- ducers as a_publicity “stunt” As a result papers all over the country are demanding that the death of “Spider” Young shall mark the end of what the New Orleans Times-Picayune, in a telling phrase, calls “subsidized sui- cide.” “It is a queer quirk in human na- points out, “contribute something to the world's needs.” while “the stunt man furnishes only entertainment and thrills. It is precissly because of the ufter uselessness of “stunt” hazards that they are to be con- demned, many writers insist. As the Minneapolis Tribune has it. “a dif- ference exists between necessary and unnecessary hazards. * * * Many of the deaths incurred through airplane accidents must be accepted as sacri- fices offered up to science” In Young’s case, however, “no public service was involved. Here no ploneering on behalf of science was in question. A man was simply prom- ised so much money to risk his life for the amusement of the crowd.” He Jost in the gamble with fate, and civilization gained nothing. But, replies the Pittsburgh Press, “there will al willing to_throw lives away to no purpose whatever as long as there are fooltsh spirits willing to pa: them,” and the “chief responsibility declares the TWorcester Telegram, “lies with thoss who do the hiring. Indeed. the “shastered human body that lay on a New York sidewalk was the result, the New York Post say “of a new development in publicity methods which goes far to justify the worst that is said by outsiders about American money worship,” for “play- ing with human life for advertising vs be daring spirits | Praises Rescarch Work ‘Wm. Henshaw Declares American Ruins Should Be Preserved. To the Bditor of The Btar: S ‘he imasination welt'as the cn- thustasm of scientlsts throughout the United States hus been stirred by the recent discoveries in Central America of archeological ruins which indicate that there may have existed in that reglon a civilization older, by many thousands of yvears, than any whose history is recorded in the pyramlids, temples and tombs of Egypt. It is, therefore, with very great pleasure that I read in last Sunday's Star an account. of the fact that Col. Willlam PEric Fowler of Washington s going to-the fifth international conference of American states, at Santiago, Chile, with the concrete proposition in mind for the creation of an international commission, whose function shall be, with the officlal sanction of the va- rious South American and Central American states, the protection from vandalism gnd natural decay of these ruins until they can be more fully examined by experts, and also to bring about the co-ordination of re- search and effort by the varlous archeological and other scientific bod- ies of both North and South America. Col. Fowler, whose interest in the ancient arts is well known and recog- nized by American archeologists, is to be congratulated in the opportunity given as a delegate to the Santlago conference, appointed by the Presi- dent of the United States, to pro- pound and urge a movement of this Breat importance to sclence. The best wishes of students in America and Europe are with him, I am sure, in this practical and neces- sary step, if the records of past ages are to be preserved and read into the true history of the western hemi- sphere. All who have become inter- ested in the recent astonishing dis- coveries in Egypt will hope, as I do, that Col. Fowler will meet with success in his effort to enlist the co-operation of the pan-American na- tions in one concerted plan, as pro- posed, to save thess priceless Ameri- can relics for all time, or until they can be carefully and systematically examined by experts. No one knows what the message of these ancient ruing will be, once it has been intel- ligently translated into our lenguage id thought, nor how far that mes- sage may change our modern ideas of the progress and evolution of man- kind. The discoveries in Egypt. As- syria, Babylonia and Mesopotamia heretofore have influenced our cone tion of prehistoric life and civili- ation. Not enough attentlon has been pald to the records at our very doors. Col. Fowler will have done an inestimable service to science if he succeeds in his effort to have created at Santiago an International commis- sion on archeologlcal research. WILLIAM J. HENSHAW. Sale of Easter Chicks Is Subject of Protest To the Editor of The Star Does it not seem strange that cruelty should be involved in con- nection with the. celebration of the joyous Easter season? But already for over three weeks live “Easter” chicks {have been sold throughout the city. It is against this traffic that I pro- test, for it brings in its wake a train of needless suffering to these pretty, delicate, helpless incubator bables. The first sale 1 noted and attended this year w in a downtown ten-cent store. The fact that the chicks seem- ed to be comfortably cared for in this particular store did not. insure this condition in all stores where they will be displaved, nor does the fact that the Humane Society will not allow them to be purchased in ess than lots of five guarantee all of them proper care upon reaching their new homes. In the first place, a considerable percentage of them are apt already to be or soon to be af- fected with one of the intestinal ail- ments common to young chicks, to which they finally " succumb within a week or so if the disease has gained headway. This was the case with the two sickly ones, the last of the batch, for which I made a special bargain and took to my veterinarian for diagnosis. This is a financial loss to the purchaser, although it might prove, on the other hand, to be the lesser of two evils for the chicks. It is obvious that many mothers satisfy their children’s natural desire for the cunning little fluff balls, but that they all do not realize that upon purthase responsibility only begins, for the baby chicks must be properly fed and warmed and given sufficient rest from little and squeeze often fatefully. 1t is a beautiful sight to see a child with a pet for which he is taught to care tenderly by wise parents, who 1 i i CAPITAL KEYNOTES BY PAUL V., COLLINS Much ado’ mbout the mct of a rep- resentative—Hon. Clarence MacGroegar of Buffalo, N. Y.—who has gone to the Jiafversity of Pennsylvania ‘o take a course In banking and cur- rency during the interval between sessions of Congress. He gets his portrait in the papers and is written up as doing a most remarkable thing—in going back to school after he had already “arrived,” for is he not & member of the House commit- tee on banking and currency? After the armistice, J the world war, thousands of American officers and enlisted men took advantage of the opportunities to attend courses in the universities and colleges of France and England while waiting for transportation homeward. The day has gone when any man grows too old t; attend classes taught by speclalists in studies he has not pre- viously or adequately studied. No one need be ashamed to learn. When one ceases to have enthusiasm for progress, then he is ‘“old"—never until then. Men of fifty, or older, ac- quire knowledge more rapidly and thoroughly than callow youths whose minds are divided between study and sport. When Congress convenes again, doubtless” where MacGregor sits (in the committee on banking and currency) will be the head of the table.” Faaik Maybe it was not due to the Mc- Cumber-Fordney tariff that the im- ports of all merchandise during De- cember last were greater than in De- cember, 1921, by $60,604,495, and the exports were also increased. TFor ex- ample, the total exports of coke, for the seven months of the fiscal year, hands that will squeeze | amounted to $3,762,654, as contrasted with the coke exports of the same seven months of the preceding year— ended December 31, 1921—amounting to $1,393,395. This coke export was in spite of the high American price, due to the coal and rail strike. All arguments fall to the ground which do not take in all of the facts. By what theory could an increased tariff on imports increase the im- ports? By what theory could a high tariff on imports increase exports, when the capital argument against tariffs on imports is that they will stop exports, since It is supposed that we cannot sell to any country unless we buy that country's products? Having presented the facts above, I am cautioned to let every reader put his own interpretation thereon. one with whom everybody will agree will demonstrate that he is a super- statesman. EE How often are civilians reminded of the reverence due to “Old Glory The flag must never be used as a tablecloth, in decorating a speaker's stand; it must never be subordinate to any other flag, etc. In view of the strictness of instructions to civilians, and even of the law of the District of Columbia, and also the Army and Navy regulations, regarding desecra- tion of the flag, it was amazing to sce in a Washington newspaper recently a reproduction of a scene over the struction in naval warfare is obtained in the United through the use of radio The photograph shows a naval en- gineer officer instructing two “gob: in the handling of a gun. which rests upon Old Glory, used as a covering across a box. 'Has the party been court-martialed? The law makes it a misdemeanor, punishable with a fine of $100, but naval officers cannot be tried by the civil courts without consent of the naval authorities. *k K What would the new managing editor of the Post Office Department do if press time had passed and he found the wheels still idle, while two pressmen were smearing in over !BY THE MARQUISE DE FONTENOY. The | inscription: “Assurance of expert in-| cach others faces, inatead of startins the press? Harry New is a_dail: newspaper man; he knows what it means for the firat editlon to miss the mafle. Now he finds that tne mailz are migsing the public with an ade- quats supply of postal cards. Two postal card Inspectors quarreled, and 80 Uncle Sam is 265,000,000 cards be- hind requirements. The presses can't run during the squabble. * % K K How characteristic was the first act of Postmaster General Harry New upon coming into his new office! He showed his “nose for news,” devel: oped through long years in the man- agement of the Indianapolls Journal One might even picture him at thé {desk of the city editor. | _ “What's this? Dago bank in New | York busted? Thousands of Italians Jose their savings? Hold the for Get out an_extra—a circular at least, { printed in Italian, telling the Italians never again to trust their bank, while they can be perfectly safe in putting their earnings into the postal savings {Uncle Sam will never abscond. ' pays to advertise. Make the scare head bold: ‘Save Savings Sure’ Make it snappy! Gat onto the street in thirty minutes and beat the sheet around the corner. Tell them to mention this circular when they patronize— 1 mean, when they bring in then savings.” The present writer used to see Harry New In action just like that He is still true to form. Right up to the second! * ok ok k One objection to the teachers’ bill noted by former Representative Mon dell was that it tncluded funds for community and reereation centers They don't have such on Montana Main street; why should Washin spend money for such folderols? Porhaps the answer is given, in part, by the action of the United States Army, which enthusiastically indorzes the leadership of Mrs. Her- bert Hoover in a movement to en- courage development of the women of America, through physical exercise and hygiene. Mra. Hoover has prepared plans for representatives from public and pri- vate schools, colleges, universities and recreational associations throughou the United States, who will n Washington, April 6, to confer upon the best methods to develop physical education and recreation for v This will include athletic: require the fullest use of « centers evervwhere. Washingtc be handicappsd by the failure | school appropriation bill in Co where it would lead, if given proper support to its community center: The War Department Is interes tn view of the showing of physical defectives at the time of the draft— 25 per cent of American men were o defective that they could not be ac- cepted for military service an: [kind. Since that was the showing as to men, it i3 recognized as probabiy equally bad for the women. * * % The mortgage debt of farmers | sa1d to amount to 13.3 per cent of the {value of all the farms. If that iz al then the farmers well off, for mucl debt consists of purchase mortgages. and so represents courage and enter prise. It is doubtful if so good showing as to “rented capital” coul be made by other lines of business. It is parallel with the * d debt” of railroads or any great enterprise. Comparatively few merc b lower percentage of outside capitai thelr businesses, i upon to bewail that feature of gen- eral business. What the farmers are crying for i not more mortgages on the capital investment, but readier access to working capital, to use for the grows ing of crops and stock. That is now provided. by the late Congress, in the form of intermediate credits, and it is believed that the farmers can look {forward ta brighter days in the near future. The new facilities will help this vear's activities. (Coprright, 1923, by P. V. Ooliine.) ston | is Count Primoli’s Undraped Mona Lisa Among Treasures Given to Francé | the great Louvre Museum, in Paris i 1 i nirg with. those which are public | port the claim of Samuel Johnson that ! ture” says the Milwaukee Journal, advertising gome mad.” | some years ago, and its subsequent Count Joseph Primoli, now over nuisances. e ————— The British Debt. Prompt functioning of the agree. ment recently reached between the American foreign debt and the British debt funding commissions is witnessed in.the first payment, made yesterday by Great Britain, under the terms of the contract. Tbe amount of $4,128.- 085.74 was turned over to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York city. This 'eaves a balance due from Great Brit- ain' of $6,600,000,000. That govern- ment has sixty-two years to extinguish the debt, semi-annually paying interest in the meantime at the rate of 3 per cent for the first ten yvears, and 3% per cent. thereafter. Since the contract between the two governments was entered into there has been astonishingly little criticiam of the terms of the agreement. 1t was expected thers.would be an -outery against the reduction of the interest, inasmuch as the government of ‘the T'nited States is paying higher rates of interest on the money it obtained from the people to loan Great Britain. The peopie in general seem to have ac- cepted the transaction in a business- “like spirit of eomity between lender and borrower, the best to be done in the circumstances. It is also being recognized that this settlement affords @ striking example of the possibility of two nations gathering around the council, table and settling a financial question of large proportions without leaving any trace of bitterness or sens, of injustice. It is to be hoped recent dumpings of bootleg.liquor into the Potomac are not responstble for a dead whale. on its shores. it ¢ Senator Underwood says the high tariff Is making this & “hermit nae- tion:”” .And dwellers in the hermitage ‘are the envy. ot all other peoples. - -Water Front Plan. Tha improvement ‘of Water sireet and the east front of the Washington ohannel, in accordance with the Com- missioners’ plan just-approved by the ¥ine Arts Commission, would be of zreat benefit to the whole capital, and of, particular benefit to thet part of it which old residemts still call South Washington, and which even a few veterans cqntinue to speak of @s “the island.” The plan does not contem- plate that trade shall be banished from the ‘water front, and that it shall be given over to pleasure uses. Water street would be widened and paved, that ® might be-used by pleasure as. ‘well as by-commercidl cars. It is set Senator McNary, chairman of the| Senate special committee on reforesta- tion, gives assurances to an interested public that the committee will proceed | diligently during the summer upon the highly important task of studying plans for the reforestation of cut- over pine lands of the country. There : are millions of acres which are pecul- jarly adapted to the growth of timber if protected from fire. Co-operation between the federal government end the states is, of course, necessary for | effectively carrying out plans for re-| forestation, and Senator McNary ex- | presses himself as confident that this | can be accomplished. Reforestation is one of the most im- portant problems of conservation. However popular opinion may differ as | to the present use of the public lands farests or their preservation for other | generations, there can be no division of opinion on the restoration ef the acreage which has been cut. To re- store them to another growth and pre- serve them from fire while the timber advances to the marketable stage is the commonest kind of common sense. All citizens can unite in a program of action to this end. In the present undertaking of the Senate special com- mittes the first step is being taken to make a thorough survey and as- certaln actual conditions and fu- ture prospects. Then, for a national law, within the Constitution, and’ the co-operation of the states within their reserved rights. It is @ good work and should go on. \ Lord Cecil, on his trip to the United States to explain the league of na- tions, epparently is to adopt as his text the eplgram of Du Bartas, ‘’Tis whet you will, or will be what you would.” The ‘congress of Vienna was oriti- cized because it danced. So the con- gress of Lausanne totters. Egyptians cannot rob Lord Carnar- von of Tut tomb fgme, even if they do rob him of the spoils. Regulating the Hacker. Now that the Commissioners have won their long fight to regulate the hacking industry in the District, it is hoped that the police department will take immediate action in bringing vio- lators of the “loitering” law to court. ‘While there is no wish to.deprive the legitimate hacker of his livelihood, present traffic conditions in the Na. tional Capital make it imperative that hackers should not roam’the strests for their fares, but should remain on {The dollar that sneers | what is new is generally false. —————— 1s there any connection between the excessive price of sugar today and the bitterness which characterizes a half dozen European controversies? —————— Executions of Irish rebels cannot continue much longer, unless there is a new supply of rebels. —et—— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. King Dollar. The dollar is king, be it white or gold; It was king of old, it is king today— ‘The master of benefits untold, Or a monster to waken the world’s dismay. Here's to the dollar that rules us now— The dollar that hides when the mille shut down, when the toiler's brow Is furrowed by hunger’s pathetic frown. A trusted creature with work to do, At the call of duty it turns to sleep— A yellow tyrant whose retinue Revels when countless thousands weep! - An Assumption. ‘White folks needs de winter so's to sell de dlack folks coal, An’ help along de grocery man dat's takin’ in de toll. Dey's paid for dar improvements an’ some time dey wants to pass. Afirin’ up de furnace an’ a-lightin’ of de gas. Dey owns de almanec f'um dark No- vember up till May, But I's heard it recitated dat eash dog'll hab 'is day. T-dunno much ‘about de comfort winter % time kin bring, | . . But it's cullud folks's weather ‘when de birds begin to sing. Cullud folke's weather when de:sky so far away, ‘Wif its floatin’ clouds is smilin’ at de shadows in de bay; When de branches feather out ag'in an’ show a downy sheen Befo' de leaves comes out an’ hides de grey wif laughin® green ‘When de wil'flower nods to cheer up B8 a-loafin’ 'long you go; .. ‘When nuffin’s got & thing to do.cep’ g0 ahead an’ grow; De white folks has de blizzard an’ de pleasures it kin bring, * But it's cullud folks's weather. when de birds begin to-sing.- “this exhilaration that comes from | seeing another being like ourselves | deliberately stake the life we prize so | highly on the adroitness of toes and {fingers.” and, the Memphis Commer- jcial Appeal adds, “the man who feil {to his death is not alone responsible | for his-foolish attempt. We who de- imand thrilling feats for our enter- | tainment must share the responsibil- jity. 1¢ we had no appetite for such ideath-defying performances reckless men womid not attempt them for gain." The Norfolk Virginian-Pilot 1sees no marked difference between the {spirit_that “inepires the New York ! mob thap crowds into a downtown 1canyon ‘to watch the antics of a | human fiy” and the “Roman mob that { packea _the Coliseum™ or the “Mexican imob that crowds the bull ring.” ! Rather, the New York spirit {s “more {lowly,” for in gladitorial combats fand bull fights “there is at least the | powerful attraction of mutual com- {bat,” while “the contest between a {human iy and the perpendicular side of a_hotel is a one-sided game. The otel wall has nothing at stake. rAside from the laws and customs that spread a fair veneer over the isurface of things'" the Rochester { Herald finds “plenty of evidence that {we, even in America, are not far re- moved from our ancestors who lustily enjoyed bloodshed.” . “It ought to be rémembered,” the New York Herald holds, that Young “was merely doing what most other men In the world do when they un- dertake to earn & livelihood. * He happened” to have selected am un- fortunate means of _earning his bread” But granting that “many die dafly in the regular grind of work, in the mines, the factories, on the trains and_ine every other line of activity,” at least the men who take these risks, the Lapasing State Journal | Good risks in providing bonds are married men, profane men, fat men and men with "hobbies. th‘:(fl: ll!kl Tace, the Chinamen are the best risks Stoail . ~FREDERICK. WITHEY. American _women~ use too much makeoup. | This 16 too bad. because it inspires cfl!!c::lrln Ifn men ln:_teul.n{ tion of us wan! the admiration & SME. JERITZA. Any simpleton can tell ‘which .way the wind is blowing today, but it {takes & man of brains, special insight and experierice to fell you how it will blow tomorrow. "“DAVID LLOYD GEORGE. it seems to me that all our legisla- tion is in the direction of prejudice, no matter whether-it is the eigh- teenth amendment or some other ex- pression of the supposed will gf the ople. PP bR, LIVINGSTON FARRAND. Men Bhould have music with thelr wark instead of .with _their play. Chopin's nocturnes induce in an office worker an cmotional state that dis- pels anger, while a manual worker FUL toll ewics anmard to » ‘march or s trot tune. L = ~“JACK HYLTON. _Put_into. the league of cov nants that war is murder, annexat! s i nd pro] nda is lying and Fitilen S the Botied tins, E 5 ” —SAMUE! i, LEVINSON. pparently for the movies. Haven Journal reports, “that affair was staged” and “the movies were on hand: half a dozen machines whirred as he went up. One would like to think their hand stayed as the poor fellow fell” but. theHartford Courant says, the camera “calmly ground away. preserving on its negatives the record from the time the man started up until his . bleeding body hit the pave- If_anything could reconcile Orleans Times-Picayune “to neorship it would be the certainty that so horrid a film will never be licensed.” but the Nashville Banner feels very differently about it. “Better make a full record and let more people see the horror of it,” the Banner thinks, “better let more peo- Me groan and shudder at its useless- ness. Better let people see that to defy death for no purpose is wanton waste. Better let them think how life may be conserved rather than how dramatically it may be thrown away The Boston Traveler finds “only one good _thing accomplished” by the New York fatality—that is, that “‘spec- tators, watching that man with a sign ‘Safety last' placarded on his back, ‘were vividly reminded of the resulis of adopting such a motto,” and the Grand Rapids Herald agrees that “the safety first movement as ap- lied to the precarious business of iving receives its strongest incentive from the fate of a proponent of ‘Safe- ty last.’ " Perhaps “the public conscience will be stirred by the tragedy,” the Boston Jransceipt hopes, to the ‘extent of putting @ ban hereafter “upon all such _exhibitions.” Certainly ~the courage required for such perform- ances, the Springfield News contends, “could be put to much better use.” IN A FEW WORDS We have no femininist movement in Italy. The women there have other ways of getting the things they want. —PRINCESS SANTA BORGHESE. American men and French girls should never marry. The gulf be- tween them is too great. America Is a nation of mentality and France is a nation of sentimentality. —VALENTIN MANDELSTAMM. The United States appears to have three différent foreign policies—one for nations like Haiti, another for na- tions like China and Mexico and a third for nations that have strong armies and navies. —SENATOR BORAH. IThe principle of “the railroads ve damned” doesn’'t apply in court any ‘more than the principle “the public be damned.” —JUDGE JACOB TREEBER. Senator Edge is not stealing my thunder jn advocating 3 per cent beer. 1 would gladly help him if I thought by so doing we could get our foot lon the rail again and blow the frotn . —GOV. AL SMITH (New York). It is much more important for an individual to be able to recognize and make allowances for the personal equation than to know all about hy- drogen atoms or some other physical % DR BARRY W.. OVERSTREET: - 3 irealize the great lessons instilled into him by making him feel that he is responaible for his pet’s comfort, but it is heartrending to see a child al- lowed to use an animal merely as a toy. Because of the risk of this rd these particular live “novel- I think that this Easter chick traffic should be wholly prohibited by law. and that every one with a kind {féeling for the dumb animal creation should be willing to back the humane organizations of city and country in whatever measures they take to bring this about. In the meanwhile, speak or write Store managers about the encouragement of this phase of cruelty. The sale of “Easter bunnies” or any other creature just for the novelty of a season should also carefully be looked into. The fact that the nation- wide “Be Kind to Animals” week (April 9-14) and “Humane Sunday' (April 15) follow the Easter season should be a special incentive to sup- port_and improve the anti-cruelty laws: VIRGINTA ‘W. SARGENT. “Foreign Affairs’ Gives Unbiased World Review To the Editor of The Star: We are strongly of the belief that there is a need in the United States today for a review where competent authorities may lay before the pub- lic their views on the international aspects of America’s political, eco- nomic and_ financial- problems. We ask the privilege of calling the public’s attentten, through your col- umns, to “Forelgn Affairs,” the American quarterly review recently founded on a non-profit-making basis oy the Council of Foreign Relations in New York. “Foreign Affalrs” is not the organ of any-one party or school of thought. It welcomes articles from men hold- ing widely different opinions, de- manding only that they be sincerely and ably written and, based on trust- Iworthy information. In addition to {its leading articles, “Foreign Affairs” iprovides a bibliography of recent | pooks in the international field, an iindex of reference material for ‘stu- dents and writers, and a list of trea- ties and trade agreements for the increasing number of American busi- ness men who find their work affected by conditions abroad. The very high standard of variety and “interest set by the editor of “Foreign Affairs,” Archibald Cary Coolld:u of Harvard University, is shown by a list of the contributors to the two issues already published. Among these contributors have been Gen. Tasker H. Bliss, Dr. Churles E. Ellot, Joseph Caillaux, Andre Tar- dieu,” John Foster Dulles, Premier Eduard Benes, Philip Kerr, Karl Kautsky, Charles H. Haskins, Ernest Boyd, Josef Redlich and other stu- dents of Internatlonal affairs of equal importance. 4 We feel sure you will agree with us that _the establishment of an Ameri- can review such as “Foreign Affairs,” ably written and ably edited, is a pub- lic service of the highest importance and merits wide support. We have no hesitation in recommending it ‘strong- iy to all those who are interested in the development of a reasoned Ameri- can foreign policy. JOHN W. DAVIS, President Council on Foreign Rela- tions. %AV‘ID GEORG HOUSTON, E'W, ;W-}cx_flx_m) seventy and in such a critical state of health that he is not expected to live through the summer, has just presented to the French nation his beautiful villa—or, rather, palace—in Rome, with all its wealth of art treasures and its unique collection of Napoleonic relics. He is not unknown on this side of the Atlantic, for he paid a prolonged visit to the United States some sixteen vears ago, and {his Bonaparte mother born at {Bordentown, N.“4. The Villa Primoli, as it is called, stands on the banks of the Tiber, opposite the new Palace of Justice, with the principal entrance on the Via Zanardelli. Joseph Primoll is being roundly abused by his Italian fellow citizens {for making a present of the villa and of its contents to France rather than to his native land. They point out that France already owns in Rome the Farnese Palace, which fs described by the inhabitants of the Eternal city as the most beautiful palace in the world, and which is the official resi- dence’ of the French embassy to the court of King Victor Emmanuel. It dates from the reign of Pope Paul 11i of the house of Farnese, but was com- pleted by his nephew, Cardinal Ales- sandro, under the personal direction of Michelangelo. France has also the exquisite Villa Medici, which, assign- ed to the National French Academy of Fine ‘Arts, has long been used as a residential college for the three-year post-graduate course of the success- ful students and prize winners of the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. It is contended by the Italians that Jo- seph Primoli as a Roman noble, al- though & great-grandson of both King Joseph Bonaparte, the Bordentown, N. J., exile, and of the great emperor's eidest brother Luclen, should have presented his villa and its treasures to the Eternal city instead Of rather to & foreign nation. * ox k% When Count Primoli was in Amer- ica he was made much of as a par- ticularly favorite kinsman of Empress Eugenle and also of that old Princess Mathilde Bonaparte, who throughout her long life used to be known in Parls as “Notre Dame des Arts.” Her salons in the Rue Taitbout wers the rendezvous not only of everything that was most brilliant in- French arts and letters, but also of most foreign royal and imperial personages and statesmen of European renown, when visiting Paris. She was a per- fect mine of information and of ex- perience, and when she died she left to Primoli all her art treasures and the historical relics which the large income derived from the Russian es- tates which Crar Nicholes. I forced her repfobate Demidoff hus- band to assign to her when che left him had enabled her to gather around her. Indeed, she made Primoli her executor and Intrusted to him her entire correspondence and dlaries, which have yet to kee daylight. It was beneath her Toof that he estab- lished such a warm friendship with Alexander Dumas, the Younger, that the great author and playwright dedtvated “Denife” to the count. Among, the most remarkable treas- ures of the Villa Primoli is a portrait .| by Leonardo di Vinci, painted in 1503 of Mona Lisa, the wife of Don Fran- cesco del Gloconda of Florence, a | lagty, the.theft of -whose postreit from, f' had | | amazing recovery, contributed to give |it a w e celebrity, and to a:- tract tention of people in every country to the myst, matic smile. The the Primoli collection is a full-face portrait and represents the fair lady undraped and nude until the waist. the lower portion of her body being concealed from view by a heautify painted marble balustrade. * x ok ok While it has been claimed that La Gioconda was the mistress of King Francis I of France, there is no truth in the statement. For the monarch In question was but nine years olg, and had not yet succeeded to tlhe| throne. when Leonardo di Vincif painted so many portraits of Mona Lisa, and by the time that he grew up had won the battle of Marignan, had entered Milan as a victorioud commander and had first made thd acquaintance of the painter, La Gio conda was already resting in he] grave. The French king never se eyes on her in life. But he was sq much fascinated by her portrait tha he secured from Di Vinci the pictyrd of her which now hangs in Louvre. Having thus disposed of the legend| which includes La Gloconda among the many sultanas of this gayest and most susceptible of French rulers, th{ nude “Mona Lisa” of Count Primol would seem to likewise create disbe lief In the story, which insists tha the lady was modest, well behaved devoted to charity and so pious an devout as to rank almost as a saint Women of this kind are not in th habit of promenading about th gardens of their palace without stitch of clothing on them, and it 1 manifest that La Gloconda did nol refuse to display her charms in al their perfection to Leonardo di Vinc| S ' That the Primoli “Mona Lisa,” which came to him through the Napoleonic Cardinal Fesch of the XVIIL centurs \is authentic, is apparent from the fact that another nude portrait of her by di Vinci adorned the walls of the {1mperial Hermitage Palace at Petro- grad until the revolution of & (and may possibly be preserved the still). It is identical with the on belonging to Count Primoli, with the exception that it has the hair fast- tened up on the head instead of hang- ing down over the shoulders. More- over, in the great Chateau de Chan- tilly bequeathed by the late Toyal Duke of Aumale to the Institute of France there exists among the mar- velous collections there. a cravon de sign for the Primoli “La Gioconda,’ and which bears, like the painting the autograph signature of di Viie Primoli’s mother was Princess Char- lotte Bonaparte, and her mother was the daughter of King Joseph Bona- parte, Who occcupled In turn the thrones of Naples and of Spain before |seeking refuge in the United States. {Lucien Bonaparte, ‘son of the elder {brother of the great emperor, emi- {grated to the United States and mar- ried King Joseph's daughter—that is to say, his first cousin, at Borden- town, N. J. where their daughter, Charlotte, afterward the mother of Count _Joseph Primoll, was born. Count Prifucll 1s, therefore, a nephew of the late Cardinal Bonaparte, and through him inherited most of the treasures accumulated by his an- cestor, that wonderful old womtan, Donna Letitia Romolino, the mother of the great emperor and of his brothers, and who used to be known as_"Madame Mere.