Evening Star Newspaper, May 17, 1923, Page 1

WEATHER. Fair tonight and tomorrow; some- what cooler tonight. Temperature for twenty-four hours ended :z 2 p.m. today: Highest, 84, at 5 p.m. yesterda, owest, 56, at 6 a.m. toda Full' report on page 7. ch = Closing N. Y. Stocks and Bonds, Page 28 o No. 28871, as post _offic ¥intered ns second-class matter hington, D. C. CHINESE TROOPS | ENGAGE BANDITS; CAPTIVES IN PERIL Briyands Take Prisoners Farther Back Into Moun- tains After Clash. OUTLAWS ATTEMPTING TO REACH MAIN BODY Indefinite Delay in Liberating Prisoners Feared—Diplomats Again Urge Action. Br the Associated Press. Anxiety over the foreign captives held in the Shantung hills by Chi- nese bandits was heightened today when word reached Tientsin from Tsaochwang of a clash between ticops of the Chinese government| and members of the outlaw band A detachment of bandits attempt- fag to join the main body at the Paotzuku mountain stronghold was €£aid to have been driven back after a sharp fight. This incident, it is fear- ed, may add fuel to the smoldering vindictiveness of the bandits, who al- ready are said, in an unconfirmed re- port, to have hurled three Chinese captives over a precipice as a warn- ing. The brigands repeatedly have ihreatened to kill all prisoners if t100ps were not withdrawn and the bandits, in accord with the terms @rafted by their chieftain, granted, immunity and enrolled in the national army. Move Back Into Mountains. Further advices from Tsaochwang confirmed the report that the ban- dits ‘had moved their captives far- ther back into the mountain wilder- | ness, and communication with the | captives was becoming increasingly | difficult. | A report reached Shanghai yester- | day that bandits entrenched back of | Lincheng were contemplating a sortie | 10 kidnap more foreigners who have| been at Asaochwang negotiating for | the release of the captives. Two_traine of coal from a mine near Tsaochwang were seized by the bandits. The 500 troops who were guarding the coal were said to be untrustworthy and likely to go sver to the brigands. Consuls Impose Censorship The American consuls at Lincheng and Tsaochwang have imposed a cen- sorship on all outgolng telegramy and lette : - The bandits are reported to blame the pending government for tem- rorizing in the promlised withdrawal of troops. The Tuchun of Shantung province renewed his assurance tLat the troops would be moved away, Lut | the bandits are quoted as saying| they will hold the captives two weeks longer. Another the situation which is causing worry in official circles is dissatisfaction among _the government soldiers, many of whom have not been paid for more than a year and are on short rations. Diplomats Again Protest. In Peking the diplomatic corps sent the Chinese government another urgent communication, expressing astonishment at its failure to obtain | results and repeating a previous noti- fication that the government would Le held responsible. Reports to Peking were not optimistic. Negotia- tions with the bandits were reported deadlocked. | The bandit chief was said to be communicating with the notorious bandits of Honan province, with the object of combining and thus further intimidating the government. Indefi- nite delay 'in the liberation of the captives feared in diplomatic clrcles. BRINGS NEW DEMANDS. phase of is Frenchman Released on Parole by | Bandits. D5 the Associated Press. PEKING, May 1:..—V. Barube, a Frenchman, who was among the cap- tives held by the Suchow bandits, has been released on parole and has ar- | rived at Tsaochuang with further de- mands from the captors for the re- moval of the troops. It is expected he will return to the bandit head- quarters today in accordance with the promise he made on leaving. | Releane Not Near. 1 SHANGHAI May 17.—Leon Fried- | man, held captive by the Suchow train | bandits in their mountain stronghold of Paotzuku. today managed to get a message out to his brother, Max Friedman, here, stating, "Don't ex- ( Dect release for several weeks: nego- iiations progress\ng slowly; health &o0d.”’ 1 —_— TIE-UP THREATENS N. Y. J IN STRIKE OF ARTISANS! 80,000 Men Involved in Demand of | $1 a Day Increate in Wage | of AllL Cratts. By the Associted Press. New York, May 17.—A general strike | of artisans’ unions will tie up con- struction In this city June 1. unless their demands are met by the Bullding Trades Employers Association, labor leaders asserted today. It was reported 80.000 men would be involved. including 35,000 who, accord- ing to Tom Clark, president of the Jate building trades council. have yoted overwhelmingly for a strike, They demand an increase of $1 a day in the wages for all crafts. restoration of collective bargaining, re-establish- ment of the trades council and a con- tract to replace the existing bonus eystem of Increases, which average $1 @ day. Union representatives and officers of the employers association have been summoned to a joint conference at the hullders’ exchange .this afternoon to discuss demands of the various crafts, e BANK SAFE BLASTED. Money ‘and Securities Taken; Total Loss Unestimated. LINCOLN, Neb.. May 17.—An unde- termined amount of money and se- curities was taken from the safe and ult which were wrecked when the tirafton State Bank of Grafton was robbed early today. Election Called To Fill Seat of Senator Nelson By the Associated Press. ST. PAUL, May 17.—A special primary and election was called today by Gov. J. A. O. Preus to fill the vacancy caused by the death of the late United States Senator Knute Nelson. Under a writ authorizing such a step, the governor set June 18 for the primary and July 16 as the date for the election. ADAMS APPOINTED TOBEL.S.SENATOR Democrat Named to Fill Seat! Made Vacant by Nichol- son Death. By the Associated Press. DENVER. Colo. May 17.—Alva B. Adams of Pueblo is Colorado’s new United States senator. lie was ap- pointed today by Gov. William I Sweet. Senator Adams is a democrat, He will succeed the late Samuel D. Nicholson, re- publican, who died in April. The new tor a conservative. He is an attor- ney. He was born in~ Colorado and is son of Alva Adams, three sena- times Governor of | Colorado. Gov. Sweet ignore r ecommendations of Woodrow Wilson, Willlam _McAdoo and Willlam J. Bryan in making the appointment. * Huston Thompson & member of the Federal Trade Com- mission. was urged by the former ident, while Mr n asked the gover nor to appo Mossiosn Shafroth, son of ex-Sen- ator- Shafroth, Senator Adams will serve until after the election to held in the fall_of 1924 when a senator will be elected to complete Senator Nich- olson’s term, which expires In 192 The ~appointment was carried through by Gov. Sweet despite last minute efforts of a group of progres- sive democrats who opposed Senator Adams. = Senator Adams was born at Del Norte. Colo., October 29, 1875. He graduated from Yale University in 1896 and completed his law course at Columbia University in 1889. Re- oz 2 asva b, avams. turning to Pueblo, he has practised | law there since. He was a delegate at large to the democratic natlonal convention in 1916. During the world war served as a major in the judge advo- | cate general's department. Against Rall Board. In a statement issued following his appointment today, Senator-elect Adams sald: “l belleve that a further test of private ownership of the railroads, with continued government super- vision, system is changed. “Some parts of the Esch-Cummins railroad bill I do not indorse. I favo: the repeal of the clause creating the | Rallroad Labor Board. worked well. “I am in favor of law enforcement, and that applics to the eighteenth amendment. Bootleggers, of course, are a menace. but they are not so much of a menace as the saloon. Favors World Court. “lI am in favor of an adequate and effective line of defense. We ought to be better prepared than we were in 1917, “The international policies of Sena- tor La Follette and those who agree with him do not meet my approval. “The preservation of peace is of far greater importance than the suc- cess of political parties, and if the President and his party can promote world peace I shall be glad to sup- port their efforts. T hope the Senate will give its consent to the protocol establishing United States member- ship in the Internationa! Court of Justice." 100 INTERNED IRISH ON WAY TO FREEDOM Back in Holyhead, Wales, as Re- sult of Art O’Brien’s Suc- cessful Efforts It has not By the Associated Preas, HOLYHEAD. Wales. May 17.—The hundred or more persons who were rounded up in England in the Irish raids last March and deported Dublin for internment arrived here to- day. Thelr return is the result of the recent_successful application of Art O’'Brien, one of the deportees, for a writ of habeas corpus. The government of the Irish Free State furnished a strong military es- cort from the jail to the steamer. Ex- cept for singing and cheering there ‘was no demonstration. U. S. Dies of Gold, Sayys Loucheur Give It to France, He.Urges By the Associated Pres PARIS, May 17.—“America is about to die of her gold.” said Luis Loucheur, former minister of liberated regions, in an address last night. He declared ‘that the United States had only one means of sav- ing herself from ruin; this was to tender France immediately all the money of which the latter nation might have need. He sald he had received an invi- tation to go to America to con- vince the friends of France there of the justice of her policy. He Is ranked as| he | chould be made before our | to, ¢ Foening WITH SUNDAY MORNING :EDITION - Star. “From Press to Home Within the Hour” ‘The 3tar’s carrier systera covers every city block and the regular edi- tion is delivered to Washington homes as fast as the papers are printed. Yesterday's Net Circalation, 93,176 WASHINGTON, D. C., THURSDAY, MAY 17, 1923—FORTY-SIX PAGES. GREEKS THREATEN WAR UNLESS TURKS YIELD ONINDEMNITY Maritza Ready to Move if Ismet Insists on Payments. SITUATION DESPERATE, GREEK GENERAL SAYS Despairs of Lausanne Averting Clash—Ottomans to Frame Treaty With U. §. BY CONSTANTINE BROWN. By Cable 10 The Copy CONSTANTINOPLE, May 17.—The ,fear among the Turks and the allies ‘ll\:fl the Greeks will cause a new onflict in the near east continues. The news from Lausanne is distinctly | unsatiefactory, Venizelos still insist- | Ing that Greece will pay no indemni- ty to the Turks, while Ismet Pasha {insists that the reparation condition 1is absolutely necessary, and refuses to make any allowance for the fact | that the Greek treasury is empty. May Give in Too Late. i It is believed in allied circles that 1in the end the Turks will give in and accept a nominal reparation, but i | i |some fear that they may do so when iit is too late. The Greek asmy Is in who have seen the troops along the | Maritza river declare that they are ! better than ever. Officers as well as | men are full of fighting enthusiasm, jand all units are ready to march | " i ex - President | Perfect fighting trim, and experts; | i 1 McAdoo and Mr. | \ithin one hour after the order to| | advance is received. | At present the Greek force along | the Muritza is made up of five infan- jtry divis fully equipped. while two more divi- | sions are kept in reserve. TLe oppos- |ing Turkish force is insignificant. | Fear Action May De Hastened. | It is reared by the allied offictals in Constantinople that the Greeks may | take advantage of the Bairam, the maln Turkish holiday, and hasten ac- tion so as to place the allies before having shown that once things have happened the allies are unable or un- willing to act. In Greece the war- like spirit has Increased, all the peo- ple there realizing that It is the last | chance for their country. “If we do not fight now.” Greek general to tle writer, “"Greece {1 lost. After the departure of the allied trcops from the near egst we are certain that war will bregk out in a few months. “The Turks then will take wéstern T (Continuea on Page 2, Column 2. | | | SARAZEN, HAGEN W N ENELAND Both Defeat Opponents in| First Two Rounds; Kirk- wood, Vardon Qut. Br the Associated Press. LEEDS, England, May 17.—Walter Hagen, the American golfer who {holds the British open championship, | and Gene Sarazen, American open| champion, today survived the first| itwo rounds of the professional | tournament being held here under the auspices of the Yorkshire Evening News. In the sccond round Hagen defeated M. J. Bingham of Stourbridge, 6 and 4. | jand sarazen won from George Gadd | of Roehampton, 2 and 1. : Hagen won his match in the first | round, defeating T. Barber of Alder- | ley Edge, at the twenty-third hole. Sarazen, in the first round, defeated | Mark Seymour of Rochester, England, {5 up and 3 to play, but Joe Kirk- wood, former Australian champion, was eliminated by H. . Kinch of Woodcote Park, 3 and 2. ! H Hagen's Luck Poor. i | Hagen had bad luck on the first| ltwo holes, after which he played well, | {although his opponent was apt at holing long putts. At the eighteenth | | Hagen missed a one-yard putt to win. | {He scored his victory on -the fifth; i extra hole by lifting his ball over a' | stymie to win the hole in 3. i Sarazen gave a fine all-around ex- i hibition. George Duncan defeated Harry Var- | don, 2 and 1. Kirkwood gave a magnificent per- | formance in the qualifying round' | yesterday. He made a new record {for the Headingly course by turning | dn a score of 67, which made his total | 39 for the 36 holes, the first 18 of which were played Tuesday. Hagen had 147 and Sarazen 151, Charles Hoffner's 156 was strokes too many to let him in, The sensation was the first faflure of Ted Ray In twenty-five years to| survive the qualifying round. The! 'F‘l;]en:hman. Arnaud Massey, also! ailed. 1 three | ,' | | added that he did not know yet whether he would be able to ac- cept. “We are ready fo_ remit the debts the powers who fight be- " he asserted, “on the con- dition that ours be remitted to us.” England he continued, is “really disposed to grant remissions.” America, he went on to say, had disillusioned him greatly on this subject, adding: ‘““The America supported all of France's claim: during the discussion of the peace treaty, but once back home they forgot that solidarity. However, it cannot be ignored by America, which s l\lflerln: from a super- abundance of riches. America s about to die of her gold,” Revived Army Already oni ons and one of cavalry, al i an accomplished fact, past experience | { turnish the first vital HUSBAND 1S SLAIN: {of having shot and killed her hus- lof a claim against a railroad after ! screaming: ‘| tollowed the casket trom embas: 1 ACATA VT Nl 1, e Wt g i | \IOTE CONFIDENCE Mexican Deouties Back Ef- { fort for U. S. Recognition in ‘ Present Parley. | By the Assoc'ated Press. | MEXICO CITY. May | whelming indorsement of President Obregon's method of handling lhe‘ | recognition question was given by | the chamber of deputies today. when' a resolution expressing sympathy and | confidence in the executive was cary iried by a vote of 131 to 9. Senor, i Obregon sent a message to the ehg- | ber expressing his gratificatiof | The recogniticn commissiogers of | | the United States and Mexico fnet to-) day to discuss troublesome iarticle | {27 of the Mexican conllllutrn—th‘el { article that nationalizex the{ subsoil | | minerals. The United States'is ask- ! {ing Mexico to guarantee protection | ot petroleum rights acquired by | Americans before the promuigation i of the constitution. on May 1. 1917. | With the article formally before the ! conference, together with Mexico's | oft-repeated assertions that_its pro- ! visions are not retroactive, Presidenc | Obregon’'s commissioners expected to 17— Over- b | | ! be able to announce what assurances / | the administration was prepared to! offer in meeting Washington's request | for positive guarantees. § This question, it is expected. will; crisis in the | negotiations. MOTHER OF 3HELD Killed Man Because of His Brutality, Police Are Informed. : 1 By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, May 17.—Mrs. Mary Lanigan, mother of thirteen children. six of whom are living, was held without bail today charged with first degree murder. She is accused band, John, last night. on the thirtieth anniversaty of their wed- ding. Their son. Willlam, thirteen yeare old, was held as a witness. Police declared Mrs. Lanigan claimed she killed him because of his continued brutality to her and the children. He left her last year, she told the police, after he had spent $6,200 received by their son Richard, twenty-three years old, in settlement he had had a leg cut off in an acci- dent. Their daughter Anna, Mrs. Lanigan ! told the police, went to the father's | shop last night to ask far money. She returned home to say she had been beaten and thrown out. Mrs, Lanigan sald she then went to the shop with her son Willlam, énly to suffer the same fate. Police said Mrs. Lanigan shot her husband with a pistol she found in h's shop. She dashed to the street “1 didn’t mean to do it! With all his faults, T loved him! Poor John!" —_— - LERNER TO BE FREED. State Must Act Quickly to Hold ‘Wall Street Bomb Suspect. NEW YORK. May 17.—Noah Lerner, the latest suspect arrested in connec- tion with the Wall street explosion of 1920, will be released next Monday unless the state can present more specific evidence before that time. Meanwhile he is being held without bail. 40,000 HONOR VOROVSKY. Body Sent From Berlin to Moscow After Big Demonstration. BERLIN, May 17.—The body - of Vorovsky, thé murdered Russian rep- resentative at the Lausanne confer- ence, is on the way to Moscow, hav- ing left this eity lasl nIght after a great demonstration. . Forty thousand German 1 unists 0" to the rallway: station. ':: You SEE " v a5 M ity 14 YA 4 o Minister Drops Dead in Home Hapns - TS MENV. DR, ROBERT TALBOT. OTED WEN SPEAK AL ISSUES f Drs. Rajshman, Biggs and Farranq on Conference Program Tonight. Three of tue most noted speakers in the entire’list of several hundred who are to discuss national and in- ternational ampects and problems of social work. Including health, indus- try, Jaw and Kovernment, the church, the home, the®school and public opin- | ion, during the entire week, under the National¥ Conference of Social | Work, are on Yhe program of the first general night; session in Memorial Continental Hull tonight These are »r. Ludwick Rajchman iof Geneva, Sgitzerfand. director of the health sestion of the league of nations: Dr.§ Hermann M. Biggs. health commissioner of the state of New York, dirgctor of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research and general medic3l officer of the city of New York for’a quarter of a century, and Dr. Livifgston Farrand, presi- dent of Cornel! University. More Than 5000 Here. With a record-breaking attendance, far in excess of the 5,000 expected, and with interest high as a result of the _stirring &ddress by Secretary Hughes of the State Department, in | which he appedied to the social work- ers as the great hope of the world most potent for achieving and main- taining peace at home and abroad, the success of the golden jubiles con- | ference here I3 already assured be- yond the hopesfof those in charge. Homer Folks, president of the na- tional conferenge and a leader in the work for more today that thiy is undoubtedly the most satisfactgry conference ever held and that its influence will spread through the eoming century and throughout the ‘entire world. The great service that workers in the cause of humanity have done to the nation and to the world was again emphasizad this afternoon by Secretary Hughes as the principal speaker at a complimentary luncheon in honor of President Folks. Red Cross Extolled. The spirit of} service extolled by Secretary Hughbs, with direct and specific reference to the Red Cross flared wp with hew vigor at a Red Cross session tfjis afternpon in the assembly. room jof the Red Cross bullding. James 1. Fieser, vice chair- man in charge of; domestic operations, made a general!statement on “The Red Cross Progrgm, Present and Fu- ture.” Other speikers were J. C. Lo- gan_of the soutkern division, Jokeph K. McClintock. assistant to the chair- man, and Dr. Livingston Farrand. Gustavus D. Pope, member of the éxecutive committee and chairman of the Detroit Chapter, presided. The _enthusiasg aroused at the meeting resulted in a number of STOUD _conferences among those de- (%num:eu Uil Lags 2, Commn 8. o Than thirty years, said | | | ST. PAUL'S RECTOR DIES SUDDENLY Rev. Dr. Talbot Was Mention- | ed as Possible Successor to Bishop Harding. Rev. Dr. Robert Talbot for four- teen years rector of St. Paul's Epls- copal Church. Washiugton Circle, brother of Bishop Ethelbert Talbot of Bethlenem, Pa, and who had been| mentioned as a possible successor to! the late Rt. Rev. Alfred Harding, a: Bishop of Washington, dropped dead this morning in his apartment at the Plaza, Washington Circle. Dr. Talbot. who was sixty-eight! years old, had suffered an attack of the grip last winter, from which he ihad not fully recovered. He had, however, attended to his church duties. | About 8:30_o'clock this morning he jtold Mrs, Talbot he would rest while before going to the church for the 11 o'clock services, He started for his bedroom when he suddenly dropped to the floor and expired within a short time. Born in Missour!, He was born in Fayette, Mo.. Au- gust 22, 1835, the son of Dr. John A. Talbot, a physician, and Mrs. Alice Daly Talbot. He attended the Kemper Military School and later graduated from Central College, Lafayette, Mo. | At Macon. Mo.. his brother conducted | St. James " Acade where he re-| ceived his theological education. Later | he studied at Leipsic, Germany. | He was ordained a deacon at Macon, | iMo., in 1879 and was elected a priest {in the cathedral at St. Louis, Mo., in i1882. Dr. Talbot founded Trinity | Episcopal Church parish at Kansas |City, Mo., where he was rector for i twenty-five years. He left there in 1909 to come to Washington to succeed Rev. Dr. Al- fred Harding as rector of St. Paul's Church _as a result of the election of Dr. Harding as Bishop of Washing- ton. Dr. Talbot is survived by his wife, who was Mary Stella Glaze of Macon. Mo.; a son, Capt. Ethelbert Talbot, U. 8. M. C.. now stationed in Haiti, and Bishop Talbot. He was a member | of the Masonic fraternity and of the | Woodmen of the World. i Capt. Talbot and Bishop Talbot have | been notified of the death. Arrange- | | ments for the funeral have not been completed. FINAL FUNERAL RITES FOR GOULD IN NEW YORK | Body of Financier to Be Sent From ! France May 26—Two Services Abroad. By the Assocliated Pres PARIS, May 17.—The body of| George Jay Gould will be embalmed | today, says a dispatch to the Herald from Mentone, and on Saturday the rector of the Mentone Episcopal Church will conduct a service at the Villa Zoraide, where Mr. Gould dled. The remains then will be taken to the mortuary chapel at Mentone. Another service will be held in the American Pro-Cathedral in Parls next Thursday, and on May 26 the casket will be sent to New York | aboard the steamer Paris. The final service will be held in New York IN PULPIT OF 5TH The pulpit of a little colored church at 1215 bth street northwest, from which the Rev. Willlam J. Tyler preaches the gospel to his flock every Sunday morning, is the center of population in Washington, it was re- vealed by the census bureau today. ‘Within an hour the little frame edi- fice has passed from obscurity Into the limelight of public attention. The findings of the census author- itles show that since the previous count was taken in 1910 the growth of Washington has begn northward and westward. For example, the cen- ter of population in 1530 was at 927 5th street, or, to be exact, 159 feot south of K street and 111 feet east of 5th street. In.the 1920 census the center had moved to 222 feet north of M street and only 57 feet east of 5th street. This point strikes almost exactly the rostrum of the Central M. E. Church. Near Police Station. Just across the strest from this pivotal point of pulation is the cond precinct police station. Charles 8. Sloane, the cens bureau ! measure of my I !m | Germany Sending 60 Million Marks To United States By the Associated Press. BERLIN, May 17.—The fourth payment by Germany to meet the treasury bills advanced to Belgium for settlement of Belgium's claims during the last half of 1922, was made by the government yester- day. This installment amounted 10 58,500,000 gold marks. Noting this payment, the Deutsche Allgemeine Zeitung today says: “In connection with the fore- going. we learn in official quarters that a shipment of 60.000.000 gold marks “already iy en route to America.” The newspaper does not explain this connection, but it adds that the sum will be accounted for in the next statement of the reichs- bank. The three previous payments on the treasury bills given to Belgium were respectively 47.400.000 gold marks, 48,600,000 gold marks and 47,400,000 ‘gold marks. The firol installment of 60,000,000 gold marks iy due June 13. PLANS SCHOOL PAY AND BUILDINGS BILL Senator King to Frame Com- prehensive Measure for District. Senator King of Ut democrat, member of the Senate District com- mittee and of the joint congressional committes which investigated the public schools of the District at the last session. said today he would prepare for introduction at the next session a bill providing for adequate buildings and adequate salaries for teachers. It is Senator Kings purpose to con- fer with Supt. Baliou in regard to the proposed bill before he leaves Wash- irgton. “I hope to have a comprehensive own ready to offer when Congress convenes,” said Sena- tor King. “In my opinion such legis lation should provide a building pro- gram which will meet existing needs and provide for future growth. Prob- ably it will take $8,000.000 or $10,000,- 000" to provide the buildings neces- sary. . “If possible, the existing needs— which are great—should be met by the construction of buildings and their completion within the next two ears. 1 do not believe that a bond ssue will be necessary, but that the!| revenues of the District will be suf- ficient. Congress must meet the situ- ation by making larger appropria- tions. If necessary, the taxes in the District_sbould be increased to meet these expenditures. Another District problem to which Senator King plans to give his atten- tion during the recess and at the next session reiates to the street railways. He is convinced that consolidation of the street car companies should be brought about for the benefit of the traveling public. He offered a bill at the last sesslon for this purpose, and will do s0 again when Congress meets SENATOR APPROVES NEW 1.5 BULDINGS Fernald Says Congress Will Back President’s Plan for Offices. Senator Fernald of Maine. republi- can, chairman of the Senate public buildings and grounds committee. in Washington today. id he believed the committee would co-operate heartily with President Harding In plans for additional government- owned buildings to house the gov- ernment’s agencles in the District of Columbia. Senator Fernald said he had read with much interest the reports that the President would make recommen- dations in regard to additional pub- lic buildings when Congress convenes next December. “We have not had a public bufldings {bill for many vears, and the govern- ment is badly in need of additional facliities both in Washington and else- where” said Senator Fernald. “In ‘Washington today the government is renting many buildings at a cost of thousands of dollars a vear. To con- struct the buildings needed here would be in the end an economy and would re- sult in greater efficfency. “The committee has given heed to the need for economy in penditures in_recent vears., eince the world war. But It seems that the time has now come when something should De done. 1 expect that legislation wili be prepared and passed at the nex: ses- sion of Congress to remedy the situi- tion." 5 DISTRICT’S POPULATION CENTERS STREET CHURCH official who worked out this point in the District, explained that it is not the geographical center. but is the| point from which the population of ! the city would balance, if placed on a rigid plane that would hold them. If all the inhabitants of the Dis- trict. he said, started from their homes by the shortest routes—or as the crow flles—they would meet at this point. The trend of the city toward the northwest is better illustrated by comparing the present center with the findings of the census of 1900. At that time the center was at §01 4th street northwest, which is four blocks south and one block east of e Gth street church. Strangely enough, this Inconspicu- ous frame structure is in itself one of the landmarks of Washington. It has been used as a colored church for nearly forty years, and prior to that time it was & public school. It will soon take on an appearance more in keeping with the fame which fate has thrust upon it. Pastor Tyler stated today that he ha begun a series of renovations ¢ will cost in the neighborhood of $10,000. The most extensive change, he sald. will be to put a cement front on the building with stucco decorations. government ex- | TWO CENTS. 1.5, WORKERS WIN CONPENSATONFO OCCUPATIONAL LS 1 Department of Justice Over- ! rules Controller in Granting Pay to Sick. | | | | COMMISSION VERDICTS | ARE FINAL, IS RULING | E500,000 Government Employes Af- ! fected by Decision—Harding in Fight. | Government employes today won a | victory when the Department of Jue- | tice overruled Controller General M. | Carl in a decision granting to the | United States Employes' Compensa- tion Commission full authority to pay compensation for disabilities ar from “occupational diseases.’ The decision, which was returned to President Harding for the commis- sion, reverses the decision by Con- troller McCarl, who had held that oc- cupational diseases were not com- | pensatory under the 1aw and that the government could compensate only for | personal injury. | More than 200 employes of the gov- j ernment whose claims have been held | up under the McCarl decision will | shortly benefit. Some of these are residents of Washington. Decision Is Final. The opinfon overruling Controller ! General McCarl was signed by Acting ! Attorney General Augustus T. Sey- mour, and held that the compensation commission “has the power, by virtue of the act under which it was created, | to construe the terms of the sald act, and that any construction so render- | ed 1s final ana beyona interference by |other government officials.” | This feature of the Attorney Gen- jeral's declsion was interpreted to- {day as being directed against Con- troller General McCarl, with a view |to preventing his control over the finances expended by the commission | through which the controller claimed |the power to prevent payments for occupational diseases. Commission Pleased. | “The commission is highly pleased ! over the opinion of the Attorney Gen- leral” said Mrs. Bessie P. Bruegge- man, chairman of the commission. * !has always been felt that the con- ! struction which the commission has iplaced upon the terin ‘personal in- jury' was in accordance with the in- tent of Congress, and that Congress had placed upon the commission the ! responsibility for passing upon such questions without review or revision by any other authority. “It is understood that the Attorney General felt that the commission had | power to make the final decision upou { questions arising under the law, {without review by the controller, isince the controller's powers are de. rived from an act of 1894, while the commission derives its powers from an act passed twenty-two years later.” { " The opinion today from the Depart- ment of Justice overruling_ the | controller general of the United States, was taken in many quarters | as being the most open break which has resuited from a contest between the controller, representing and re- sponsible to Congress alone, and the various cabinet officers of the executive branch of the government. What significance may be attached to the action of the Department of Justico in the fight was not entirely clear today, but the compensation commission announced that it con- sidered the Department of Justlce ruling final and was making plans to operate thereunder. 500000 Aftected. Five hundred thousand government { employes fall under the benefits of the compensation commission and will be subject to the more libéral in- terpretation of its powers. Dissatisfied with the decislon of the {controller general which restricted | the benefits of the commission, Mrs. Brueggeman took the problem direet to President Harding, who asked the' Department of Justice for an opin- ion. feCarl,” Brueggeman _ex- plained today, “had asserted a right to pass upon activities of the com- ymiesion wherein a ‘payment’ was in- volved. and in so doing had ruled that compensation should not be paid for disabilitles accruing to federal employes by reason of ‘occupational { aseases. The commission challenged the | right of the controller to. interfers with its functions and also the legal- 1ty of his construction of the term in . question. In the meantime, the dis ! bursing officer for the commissi | had been notified by the general ac- i counting office that by reason of the | controller general's ruling, disburs ments made for ‘“occupational dis- eases” would be disallowed. 200 Denled Pay. | “The result was.” Mrs. Grueggeman continued, “that further payment to approximately 200 unfortunates was discontinued. These employes sut- fered from a variety of occupational | diseases, some of which were lead. j mercury, carbon monoxide and TNT poisoning, anthrax and, in some cases, tuberculosis. Applications for com- pensation for kindred ills continued to come to the attention of the com- | mission, but were of necessity disal- { lowed. “The opinion of the Attorney Gen- eral is exhaustive and discusses the question in detail, going into the hi tory of federal compensation from the beginning of the original act of 1908 | to the present time.” Ruling Approved. The Attorney General's ruling de- clarea “the fundamental purpose of an employe compensation act is a humanitarian one. It should be, there- fore, administered with sdhe regard | for humanitarian principles. The Em- | playes' Compensation. Commission, act- {ing in accordance with powers con- ferred on it by law, has construed = term ‘personal injury’ in the ma: i ner best suited to carry out the pur- | pose of the law. I am. therefore, of the opinion that the Federal Employea’ Compensation Commission is endow- led with the power under the act of, September 7, 1916 (public number 267 64th Congress), finally to d mine questions arising under said act and that ths interpretation of the sonal injury " to include I olumn (Continued on Page