Evening Star Newspaper, November 27, 1923, Page 6

6. THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. ., TUESDAY, e e ] WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE THE EVENING STAR _Wih Sunday Morning Editien. WASHINGTON, D. C. TUESDAY....November 27, 1823 Editor THEODORE W. NOYES. The Evening Star Newspaper Company Busigess Office, 11th St. aud Pennsylvania Ave, New York Odfice; 110 East iind 8¢ Chicago Office: Tower Buliding. Euregean Oftice: 18 Regent St., Loadon, aad, The Eveos: 3 he 8 more! etition, ' S5 vered "W carviots itk (R wmonth: dally ouly, 45 ; Sunday ealy. TR e e sent by mail or tel hone Maln 3000, | Colteation Ia made b Gar- Tiers at the ead of each moath. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia, Daily and Sunday. Dally only... tunday only Daily on Bunday oniy Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclugively ontitle@ to the use for repuolication of il rews dis- | Dtehes credited to it or uot ofherwise credited fn this peper and aise the local news pub- | lished Larein All rights of publication ef | ape dispatehes horein are also reserved. | —— - ‘| The Memorial Bridge. - President Coolidge has expressed his interest strongly in the project for The construction of a memorial bridge ! across the Potomac to serve as u di- | rect connection between the Lincoln | Memorial and the Arlington national esmetery. The Presfdent is ex-officio chairman of the commission named by Congress to carry out the construction of the b which was projected many vears ago. He now stites that he ix desirous to ha matter pushed to and there i - will be presented as an ftem in one of te appropriztion bills at the Joming scssion. When the memorial bridge was first propesed there was no Lincoln Memo- vigl on the Washington iunk of the ver. The bridze was designed as a ‘onnecting link between north and uth, symbolizing the reunion of the sactions, besides afle: g direct and convenient access to Arlington from the city. As time weni by, and the proposition lagged througn repeated postponement on the plea ef economy, 12 became more and more evident that sach @ bridge would suon be phys cally necessary to accommodate the nereasing traffic. Then came the em- Jacement of the Lincoin Memcrial in Potomac Park and the reason for a new br at that particu- point ed. A few months ago dent Hard- ing, I h chairman of the commission, decided with the con f the commission upon & site for the bridge. That accepted as definitety de- t only the position but the early construction of the bridge. Two years ago on Armistice day, on the cecaston of the burial of the un- kifown soldier at Arlington. the traf- fie across the river was so encrmous that a dangerous congestion occurred. It was then thought that survely the memorial bridge project would be im- medtately put into execution, as the oxperlence of that day so plainly | showed the urgent necessity of a di- rect commodious viaduct to the na- tional cemetery, the soen so gen- eral a patriotic intersst and the site of vast gatherings in the future. But the matter laggzed agai | a refor conel i i i i ! i | ! cuy particular decision was termining . i , nd now, two | vears from that time of such dramatic \demonstration, it is bil more urged for tmmediate Naturally there is a i to check volving Jarge ap; rot abscluteiy vial bridge, so long the object of pr erastination and postionenient, should not be put into the catezory of items that can be set aside because of the desirt to redaction in penses, It has become a public need. and it should be placed on the list o things to be done ut onee. ——— Many unserious people are going to be disappointed in Magnus Johnson if he preserves his evident determination | net to accept the comedy role rather | sratuliously aesigned to him. Laughs are scarce and greatly appreciated at the moment, but many a statesman | as hampered the usefulness of his © by @ tou gea di { entertain. ———— In consideration of European debts there is danger that ever : suished visitor from abroad will be | struck by the fact that Uncle Sam ioes not ook as if he were in immedi ate and urgent need of the won ——— Hitler hus gone on o hunger strike in Munich. Many people in Germany | bave been going through a similar physical experience, with no personal prominence whatever. i once action. dispos make w ex i ] ! 1 ——— 5 Police. i New York city needs more police, | and increase in the force is urged by the city authorities, newspapers and organizations. It is keld that the force is short ut least one-third the number of men needed. New York city has a population of about 5,840,000 and 12,- 359 police, or about one policeman for 457 people. Divide the population of | ‘Washington by 457 and on the present New York basis we necd about 983 noHce, approximately the strength ufl our force. Compare the land area and | number of automobiles in New York ! and Washington, and the relative strength of the Capital's police force falls considerably below New York. London, with a population of 7476, | 000 and an area of 603 square miles, { kas 23,200 police, or one for about 222 of population. New York city au- therities compute that the force of thefr city should be increased by one- tiird, which would give New York! 16,745 police. If the force were as| sirong as London's it would have 18,000 men. If the Washington police force were increased by one-third we would have about 1,500 men, and could get along comfortably for some time. The ratio of police to population is greater than was required in Wash- ington a few years ago. Whether or niot, there are more criminals in pro- portion to population, the work of a policeman has increased. A policeman has a wider range of duties than for- merly. Thus population, opportunities of criminals end the duties of the po- lige have inewemsed in greater ratio {near, though he is scarcely ithe parli i settl: | him. than the increase in the strength of the police force. There are larger crowds of people. There are more theaters end other places where crowds gather. There are more shop windows to break and stores to loot, more dangling purses to snatch and more pockets to pick. The automo- co-operation might be effectively brought to bear for a school-buflding program, high-pressure water system, better stieet lighting and other things, If all the civic organizations in Washington were to agree on meas- ures of Capital betterment and eom- bine their power to influefice public bile gives reckless men opportunities fand legislative sentiment it would, to commit crimes and escape which criminals of the previous generation did not have. Congestion in streets aids criminals in their depredations and in escaping. Traffic calls for much work by po- lice and is steadily calling for more. On the New York force of 12,000 men about 2,000 are doing “traffic duty,” and the number is not enough. Wash- ngton has drawn heavily on its small police force to regulate traffic part- time at some street intersections, but the strength of the traffic force is far below the need of the city and must be increased. Washington is not “‘well voliced.” though its polive department is eficient and honest. ———————— Albert Misses the Goal. According to a .late dispatch from Berlin, Dr. Heinrich Albert has relin- quished the task of forming a Gierman ministry, which he accepted the other day at the behest of President Ebert. He has, it seems, found it impossible to effect a combination cabinet on a non-partisan basls. Whether he has actually withdrawn does not vet ap- the type of man to persist and undertake a dic tatorship sueh as seems the only alternative to a political ministry When Dr. Albert took the chan- cellorship he was given. it i reported, power of attors . €0 to speak, in the form: of @ presidential decree dis- solving the reiehstag, be used in case that body failed to support him. Use of such a decree would rev tie normal process in the couniries in which the government depends upon mentary support. Dissolu- tion of the reichstag, however, would precipitate u situation calling for a man of the stoutest nerve, and there -Is nothing in the career of Albert to indicate that he poss Gualification. With the socialists holding the hal- ance of power iu the reichstug any effort to establish ministerial gov- ernment must predicated upo: ither accepiance of the soclalist p gram or outright detiance of that e ment, which means 10 proveed wi out parliame sup can be formed of the ¢! to the socialists. the monarek: aroup. the liberals. Each of thes: groups see soclalistic support for temporary pur. poses, but none will tie up to that fac- tor definitel Germany's outlook is 4 gloomy one. The very organization of government is attended with gravest diflicuities. The reparations question is fa ment. The finances are in disorder. Unemployment s £ ead and food 1s scarce T trizfits are playing a desperate game to force the government, 1¢ form it may take, to bring situation in which they can nake their desired deals with the Industrial- ists of France, Belgium and England to be u ses such a be tary . sposed the Lady Astor's Retoxt. cording to a dispatéy from Ply wouth, England. the Nish politi campaign is getting rough. A cus illustration is that of Ludy Astor is a candidate for the house of com- nions and is “stumpin Eritish candidates, on half. At Plymoufh she addressed a meeting in Eust End hail. A youthtul heckler, seeking to embai vasy her, loudi® called her * whereupon the titled candidate tur sharply and retorted, s IT knock that pipe out of mouth.”” The pipe disappeared and vouth aud all other flecklers wer silent for the remainder of the meel ing. A canvass in England is always a sharp cne becanse it is hing must be done quickly tances 1o he covered b not great, but they must be sughly c N of the district for which a candidate is stunding can be neglected. In some cases the eandidate is a stranger in the district and must be introduced. This is owing to the British system of permitting an aspirant for parliament to select his constituency—or have it selected for him by a munaging com- mittee—instead of the constituency selecting him as the nomiee of h party. Many cases have occurred o total strangers being presented to a constituency, and in some instances as do : her own an the fight in a district has been be-| tween two such strungers, newcomers in politics perhaps, As for heckling. the British votes loves to indulge in it. an inalienable privilege to quiz a i speaker in a campaign, to question him closely and to try to disconcer Indeed, the mettle of a candi- date is tested in that way and many a slow thinker has been bowled over by the quizzing of a crowd. In the same {way also has a hot-tempered aspirant for political favors been injured by a tactless rejoinder. Lady Astor's reply to the Plymouth heckler was probably pitched in the key of her environment. It least hud the effect of putting an end to interruption. ——————— A London fog has been regarded mere or less as a joke, but one that cuts off traffic for forty miles around the city has to be taken seriously. — Tncle Sam has bootleggers enough of his own to occupy his- attention without being inconvenienced by operators abrogd. —_————— Civic Co-Operation. Speakers at a “forum luncheon” of the Women's Clty Club have said that we need “better co-ordination and a directing force among the or- gunizations in Washington for civic betterment.”” "One of the speakers said that *‘we have more individual brains in Washington in proportion to the population than any other city of the United States,” and he. sug- gested that “a central force to co- ordinate and direct the activities of all civic bodies in the city™ be formed. Another speaker urged great- er co-operation and thought that such o Tt seems to be | about u | { | , 1 | or corner | ;0 { campaign no doubt, be a good thing. But there is no lack of harmony among the many District organizations toward achlevement of the main things for Capital maintenance and building. There is a general program which ' has behind it the influence of all central and outlying clvic agencles from the Board of Trade to the smallest citizens' aasociation and the most distant neighborhood club. They all stand for financial equity, for rep- resentation in Congress, better streets, better fire and police protection, better traffic regulation, enlargement of scheol facilitles, high water pressure tor the downtown district or the sec- tion of greater fire risk and for many other things lecking to the improve: ment of Washington. If the suggestion of a central body “to serve as a representative group | of cltizens and represent the eity in | its various efforts toward clvic bet- terment” should appeal to all the civic organizations they might give the plan a trial. With the large number of bodies in the District de- voted to the consideration of local affairs therc is never diffficulty in ascertaining fn which direction public opinion inclines on any proposal. —— e Guard Against Bombers. The Washington police departinent loses no time fn taking such precau- tions as it can agatnet homb outrages Explosions of bembs at the | Sparish and Ttalian consulates &t Fhiladelphia and bomb exploxions at | ses in that city put the local s on guard. and they acted Whether there was an in- hint that the bombers 1 transfer their activities to Washington is not known, but it likely that our police have taken pre- | cautions merely on the possibility that | as murderous “radicals” or maniacs ave set off bombs against the homes of foreign official representatives in Philadeiphia they might do at Washington. It is announced m-.n% w precautions designed to pre- extension to Washington of I bomb outrages as stirved the consulate district in Philadelphia have aken by the police in guarding | St and Tmlian embassies | words “extra othe xt nish The passed along to t and doubt there heen vigilance" police. no | Treasury. One of the most bitterly disap- pointed men who ever left Washing- ton with an ungratified ambition is the New York taflor sent down to measure President Coolidge for riding togs. He haa all the affabllity of his craft and arrived with high expecta- tions of a chatty time at the White House. When he departed he counted !up and discovered he had heard Mr. Coolidge talk exactly elght words. The tailor was ushered into the presi- dentlal presence and stated his busi- ness. Quoth Coolidge: “All right.” The sariorial specialist displayed sample: with a fine flow of eloquence. The Prestdent stepped to the window, fin- gered half-a-dozen likely fabrice, se- cted one and Yang for & messenger. ‘Send for Mrs. Coolidge,” he said. Mrs. Coolidge appeared, inspected her hus- band's choice, and handed It back to him, upprovingly. Whereupon the President returned it to the tailor and sald: “All right” The seance was ended. ok % There is schism in the very heart of the Coolidge country over the Mellen tax program, and expert schism. at that. It springs from Representative A. Platt Andrew of the arlstocratic Massachuwetts district in which his- toric Gloucester nestles. Mr. Andrew was an assistant secretary of Treasury during the Taft administy tion, quitting office after a sensa- tional dispute with Franklin Mae- gh. who was etary of the Mr. Andrew sails the Metlon proposals as biased arithmetie, caleulated 6 befuddle the public mind and prejudice it against the men who zave their youth and strength to A country Andrew is one of th acknowledged financial authorities in Congress. He was director of the mint before becoming an assistant secretary of the Treasury, and n- panted the famous Aldrich monetary commission to Europe. Prior to his official cureer Representative Andrew was u professor of economics at Har- vard. In 1917 «nd 1918 he was a lieu- tenant colonel in France. % % % Former Senator Frank B. Kellogg, soon to be American ambassador to Great Britain, is telling & good one on himself. Jle has Leen putting in some of his time at Washington call- ing on old-time comrades in the Sen- ate and discreetly observing the pr pects of bis confirmation. “Frank.” ®aid & famous western solon, “I'm Eoing to vote for you, and I'll tell yo why. ‘The last man appointed Amer! Can envoy to the court of St. James, who falled of confirmatior was Mar- tin Van Buren of New York, and then strengthening of the watch on all the assics and legations in the Capital - police are alert. —_————— manager of Hiram Jolnson's Mr. Frank Hitcheock wil with satistaction that the card- index systems have developed aniz gty the davs when he Postmaster General. —_——— e fact that Pr As since was once a farmer himself is| ing a number of senators of more less recent public distinction to cait his message with peculiar in. | terest. ————— Golden monkeys were left ax sen tries in the tomb of King Tut. If the gold is genuine and abundant some of | ions to the theory of | the social object evolution may yet be removed. ————————— Tils visi tinet compliment, t to this country was conside: the dis- ng {BY THE MARQU land, where { moverns Ivin Cool- | SPect for the authority of the law E DE FONTENOY. Criminals from every corner of Lu- rope. as well as from the western hemisphere, are flocking to the b the policy of the Berliy bas undermined hi t all re and where the maimtenance of orde {1s restricted to the Rubr districts { militarily occupied by the French, who, in spite of the sinister maneu- vers of Berlin 4nd the encouragement ! which it has given to every form of | resistance to the French, manage to avert bloodshed among the coutend- {ing Germun factions. Elsewhere in the Rhineland, however, the factional fighting is almost continuous, and !{those who have, for the sake of the {opportunities of plunder, enrolled | themselves under the banner of the separatists, comprising hordes of Ru sian bolsheviki and other scum, lose urgent engagen nOW appears that Lloyd George had in the political affairs of his own county wnts it — e i It would be a pity, indeed. nations permit a mere auestion the ethics of drinking to promote one of those quarrels for which Joln Bar- leycorn is famous. —————— The announcement that turkey will be cheaper makes the most agreeable postecript the President’s Thanksgiv- ing proclamation has had SHOOTING STARS. § ary | criminal { Trotsky, in some | norde obtained supreme power. no chance of destroying propert torfes and looting shops and pri residences in the most approved com- munist-anarchist fashion. That they very largely eriminals is shown by the significant fact that the other day, at Rheydl in the where they temporarily got the up- per hand, they made a special point ot devastating the police department {and particularly of destroying the registers and the rogues gallery, also all tha files and records. The insurgents huve followed & €imi- lar course elsewhere in the Rhine- land, just as the terrorists proceeded to do ‘at Petrograd and Moscow when Lenin and their savage ® ok % In thix connection {called that toward it may be re- the close of the | great commune insurrcction in Paris, ¥ PHILANDER JOHN: Procrastination. §in 1871, when, by reason of large {army of loyal troops massed at Ver- { sailles, the certainty of the defeat Now, what's today, good fricnd, with | the Tebelllon became apparent, and it you? 1= it a point from which you view A future iaden with the best 7! Of hope and human interest” Or is it but a tangle wherc ‘Waits many a half-remembered « To leave you weary steps ut last Clogged in the brambles of the past. A Treditional Viewpoint. “Do you intend to spend any money in your campaign.” “Not a cent,” answered Senator Sor- ghum. “If a man can't get a financial backer to spend the money he hasn't enough sense or pull to warrant his staying in the game.” re Jud Tunkins saye from what he can see of smart society most of it consists of either trying to get into the papers or trying to keep out of them. Double Identity. In eachh who plays or does a task We need to note both man and mask; The heartache, 'neath a smiling face; The frown, despite a jovial pace. L Selfish Safety First, “Why is everybody in Crimson Gulch carrying a gun?” “This here,” answered Cactus Joe, “is Safety First week and the boys had their own ideas about the way not to take unnecessary chances." Purchasing Xlusions. “Did you ever buy a gold brick ' “Once,” answered Farmer Corntos- sel. “But at that I wasn’t as foolish as Si Simlin. Si gives all his money to a bootlegger.” ] t's wrong to look foh trouble,” said Uncle Eben; “but dar ain’ no sense in actin’ like an ostrich when you sees it approachin’.” —_——se—————— In addition to his other calculations a rum skipper is now particularly ex- pert In measurements relating to. the twelve-mile limit. = 7 s was decided by the rebels to destroy the Tulleries and most of the other public bulldings by fire, the first measure in this diréction was the par- tial destruction of the Prefecture of Police, of the Ogence de la Surete and of the Ministry of the Interior, and the complete obliteration of all the criminal dossiers and records which the | Rhineland, | | when | he was elected P he Uni be was, resident of the United * ok kX Theodore Roosevelt, assistant seere- tary of the Navy, has decided to take another stop along the paths of glory trodden by his father. Head- quafters have just been opened on behalf of his campaign to secure the republican nomination for the gov- ernorship of New York in 1924 “Young Teddy"” has becn nursing am- bitions in that direction for some tme. He only publicly expresses them when friends suggest. as they ocCa! na]l)l' do, that he would make an ideal vice presidential candidate on the republican ticket. The colonel fs mot to have an unobstructed road to the gubernatorial nomination. Col. William Hayward, United States atto ney at New York, and H. Edmund Machold, speaker of the New York state assembly, have lightning rods up. k¥ % ¥ The Distriet of Columbia's municipal interests will find & new and valiant supporter in Senator Robert B. How- ell of Nebraska. Mr. Howell comes stralght to Washington from the Omaba city hall. There, over a pe- riod of nearly twenty years, he reor- ganized the entire communal lfe of the Nebraska metropolis. It has cheap water, cheup gas, eheap fce and cheap electrieity mainly because of Senator Howell's long, merciless grapple with public utility corporations. One thing is certain—whenever Washing- ton's civie nceds get @ hearing in Congress during the next six Howell of Nebraska will be an earnest and expert adv te of then * % % Richard Washburn Child, to ltaly, decides to for- sake diplomacy and return to his first love, literature, a likely candidate for his post is said to be Col. Arthur Woods, former police commissioner of New York. Woods has a fine admin- istrative record at Washington in connection with re-establishment of service men in efvic life after the armistice, and also as _collaborator of Ierbert ioover in dealing with unemployment problems. He was on aviation service averseas. Robert Russa Moton., Booker shinglon's successor at Tuskegee, recent White caller. Moton ix the only American negro ever attached to a President of the United States in diplomatic capac- ity. He accompanted the American peace mission to Paris in 1918 of Mr. Wilson's expert advisers on native races In connection wtih the disposal of the German eolonies in Africa. Moton went to urope on the fameous Orasaba, which carried the American per men who “covered” the pec onference. The negro educator pos sonorous bass voice and he contributed nightly to the musical program aboard ship. (Copyright, 1023.) When ambassador Criminals Reported Flocking To Unrestricted Rhineland would be a wise precaut all police records made out in dupli- cate, 48 to admit the copies being fled ols re. bevond the reach of the crimf classe fve and in- ternational, who are so vastly inter- ested in the disappearance of these g ||nu ntary proofs of their mis- m to have Republics seem to be the order of the day. The Ottoman Empire {s now a republle. where its exccutive com- bines In his person the offices of presi- dent, prime minister, spewker of the national assembly and chieftain of the popular party; that is to say, a species Angora Pooh Buh. Greece is to de- rmine, within the next fortnight, whether or not Ler monarchy is to be converted into o republic, and in the Rhineland an endeavor is being made to %et up a new republic to serve as a speciex of buffer state between France and Germany. But despite this pop- ular trend toward democratic forms of government (more than two dozen republics haviug Dbaen established within the last five years) there is no need for undue alarm on the part of the so-called “anointed of the lord.” For republics, which are often insti- tuted merely as a temporary relief from the strain of loyalty toward monarchy, are, as a Tule, short-lived nowadays, although Yuan Shi-Kai elected first president of the Chinese republic, some eleven years ago, expressed the hope that the new republic would “last over ten thou- sand ygar: Thus the present French republic is but seventy-three yvears old; that of Portugal dates from 1910. Those of Germiany, Austria, Hungary, Czecho- slovakla and Poland are still, so to speak., in their infancy, be. ing the offspring of the great war. That of (uba dates back from 1898 and that of Brazil was born a8 recently as in 1889. The oldest and senfor of all repub- lics now in existence is the United States, for the present Swiss repub- lic only came into existence some years later. The fornier republics ot Rome and Athens, of Genoa and of that Venice who was the queen of the seas, have passed away, while there are many who are firmly convinced had been filed there since the reign of | that erée many years have gone by the first Napoleon. The consignment to the flames of the Palace of the the present republics of Hungary, Austria and Bavarfa will have disap- peared from the political horizon and Tuilerfes 2nd of the Cour des Comptes | have made way to a monarchical form was merely tion. The main alm of the Communards and of their female allies, the Furies, 50 appropriately named the “Petro- leudes,” was to wipe out of existence all the eriminal records. That is why today the bulk of the criminal records on file at the Prefecture de Police and at the Agence de la Surete in Paris only date from 1870. Those which antedate that fateful year have been compiled since from provinelal source. If T draw attention to. this fact it is because in all the big cities of the United States and of Latin America, the element of the population imbued with communist doctrines and with anarchist ambitions is very large and constantly growing, thanks to bol- sheviki propaganda, richly financed from Moscow. In all of these cities considerations of mistaken economy stand in the way of increasing the police force in proportion with the growth of this actually or potentially criminal element. Each municipal police corps ousht to be at least twlc as_numerous in order to afford the only adequate protection of life and property against these foes of so- ciety, whom lack of union, rendering dificult any concerted movement, has prevented until now from getting the upper hand and from starting out to prnml!r and loot banks, shops, public a secondary considera- institutions and “the private dences of the wealthy. But wh these mobs, encouraged by bolshevist teachings, find the necessary leaders and obtain, momentarily, the upper hand to pursue that course of rapine and bloodshed for which they yearn. one of .thelr very first points of at- res: tack will be the police headquarters, for the purpose of destroying the rogues’ gallery and all the police records. Thai is why, in order to avert a fate such as befell the police records at Rheydl, in the Rhineland. the other day, and Petrograd an Moscow in 1917 and Paris in 1871, it l | 5 of government. very woman reading these letters will be interested to learn—if she does not already know—that St. Ger- trude, abbess of the Convent of Ni- velle, in Brabant, in A.D. 650, is the patron saint of mice. In all old pic- tures which remain of her she is shown arrayed in the garb of abbess, with"a mouse on each shoulder and a third floating about her head. The day dedicated to her memory is March 18, on which mice are supposed to hold high revel. That w holy woman should have been selected as the patron saint for the mice is somewhat surprising when one bears in mind the instinc- tive antipathy manifested by the fair sex for everything in the form of a mouse, which seems to inspire them with almost as much unreasoning terror as it does an elephant. For, if there is one thing more than any- thing else which fllls these huge pachyderms with the direct alarm, it is these tiny rodents. Prof. Nigel Lister of London. who has written and discussed learnedly on this fem- inine idiosyncracy, insists that won en have “an ancestral consciousness” that “mice are among the greatest of germ carrfers.” While it is perfectly true that woman's fear of mice is hereditary and ancestral, the germ- carrylng theory seems rather far- fetched. But so, too. is the alterna- tive explanation of the opportunities offered to mice by petticoats. when in search of refuge before the present fashion of abbreviated skirts came into vogue. For it Is well known that the more or lees tight-fitting cos- tume of men is a relatively modern innovatlon and that medieval male fashions were of an ampler and flow- ing character. Yet men have no such instinctive and hereditary hatred of the mouse as might have been ex- pected If that emotion were derived from fear of sudden invasion of their once ample and flowing robes and garments. It is a problem offering room for mo end of conjecture and speculation, for the solution of which we must look to the fair readers of these letters. vears | OVEMBER 27, 1923. NEW BOOKS AT RANDOM A SON AT THE FRONT. Edith Wharton. Charles Scribner's Sons. Against a background of war- time Parls, Mrs. Wharton projects this war story of George Campton and his family., It is important to mention at the outset that an undue allowance of family had fallen to the lot of Campton. For, beside the cus- tomary father and mother to which the bulk of the world's progeny can lay lawful claim, young George pos- sessed a supplementary purent in the person of a stepfather. The mother's frail and futile prettiness had made direct and substantial appeal to the heart ot Brant, rich bLanker, long after it had ceased to register any- thing at all within the interest of Campton senior. And, so, it had been arranged. Americans, these, who like o many others from all quarters choose, for various purposes, to live within the beauty and freedom of France. Nineteen-fourteen and the war. At this crisls, deep fear moved in and took possession of the mother and the two fathers of young Campton, a likable fellow inspiring in the three slders a common affection that, upon fre- quent occasion, served to bridge the chasm of a divorce-court decree. The family was frightened. Not George, who, a bit remote, appeared to be thinking of something especially alive and inviting. Like ny frightened people who talk, partly i 10 vonceal their fear, part to den fact that 12 thYs was no! F wgs Aamsrans, that th&e war, that even 1if 1t were. a few months would serve ito cover and bury it, long before | America couid reach the 1ds of bat- tle. The real kernel of their fright, however, luy in the fact that some- where 11 the birth records of France George Campton stood. technically, a French Zen, automatical *ub- jeet to call in defense of the country should its safety be imperiled. The boy's father and mother. you see, had not chosen his birthplace wit forethought. But what would you Imminent parenthood must be an ab- sorbing thing with no leisure for scanning political horizons in search of unlikely war clouds. W it not less than fifty rs since Germany had drunk deep of French blood? <o their thoughts would run had the question com their minds at all. Th would have laughed at themselves for a pair of ©ld women at the notion of racing the Atlantic merely to secure i pure American citizenship for the ex- pected baby. into * x And George Camptont Lecame a ol- aler of France, cooling his heels un- der the desks of certain staff officers, barricaded against tha sound or scent of baitle by miles of eolid soldiery, rank and file. The combined influence Lot the two fathers had looked after that. From this rear zone of safety George sent back amusing letters on the excitements and dangers of war. Comfortable reading, those Jet Now and then they ere pitched to a slightly different key—“dull as ditch water,” * i dull.” Comfort able reading family back i Paris, to who duilness was truiy’ a heaven Periods of silence, but nothing to worry about that 1%, nothing personal to worry about There couldn’t be under the reumstances. fails shot to piece young George, “the only things that could get shot around here,” and so on in & pleasantry of boyvish nonsense that fell like baim and upon the hearts of those three at home. ® s » “Wounded?" ton?* It couldn’t be true u the formation of armies was against it. Everything In the potency of “pull” denied it. It simply couldn't be true. But it was true. And in some hospital near the fr George Campton lay crumpled and broken * * That's the story directing impulse. true. Yet other than that alone. It is the story of youth that must be served by all of lifc. thal must serve all of life as well. The story of youth adventuring, youth flaming high in a courage that is impersonal, self-for- getting, cruel even. And set off agalnst (his is the protective instinct of parenthood, the caution of matu- Pty the wisdome of experience, the temporizings and diplomacies ' that vears and disillusion inevitably bring. No, no, Mrs. Wharton, the last one to { weave a story into a symbol of youth ‘and age, into any sort of symbolical | content. This the likely | story of a young fellow who had a {very settled notion of what it was Uib 1o bim to do, of what he was going to do. No point in bothering the alto- gether fine folks who had alwa S0 much for him and who were get- ting no end of comfort out of the safety game they were trying to pull ot Onca out, the matter could be Settled, right. He could easily get transferred to where the real business was golng on. Of course, they might have to know, some time—in case, well, that would have to take care of ttmelf. more than once * The war itself—that is, the field, the fighting. the slaughter—enters here only by indirection. Instead, it is the Paris background of war that ands so sharply defined. Instead, alsa, it is the mental and emotional reactions of the Toup centering upon young George Campton that fulfills the complete triumph of this story. a handful of sketches—theso are Paris. The half-light of the station filled with departing soldiers: old Mume, Lebel, @ huddled and shape- less figure of bereavement; the great phesician, hurrying away to his fa- {ally wounded son: this one and that one, without regard to station, swept foxether in & common loss. Now and then some one notices & swift morn- ing smile on the face of the beauti- ful eity or a tender look at twilight, but not many. Paris is stricken clean of careless beauty. To an equal certainty of seizure, an equal economy of effort, Mrs. Whar- fon moves over to the strange rela- tlonships in the family of youns George Campton. With a touch here and there the natural hostility of the two men is suggested. One becomes deeply interested in watching the growth of mutual respect and shy liking that the partnership in young George praduces. Here is the real father's = natural jealousy secretly guarded—his self-reproaches over in- ability to do for his boy what the rich etepfather was dolng in such sincere affection and self-effacement. Here are any number of natural hu- man emotions worked out in subtle divination and a delicate handling that one seizes in & jov of apprecia- tion. The woman? Comparatively negiigible, as ls the only other Woman in this story. Mrs. Wharton has, this time, devoted her art to the three men in the curious rela tionship established, as matter of fact, by this same negligible woman. * ok % % As a structure—a something built —the story is of most satistying workmanship. As a record of human reactions under most unusua} cir- cumstances it is real, and rich, and bellevable. As a picture of Paris in war time it strikes one mdst'con- vincingly. The most interesting nov- el, the most perfectly conceived and executed art ti Mrs. Wharton has produced _since “Ethan Frome.” And “Ethan Frol is, beyond dispute, the unsurpassed—and one believes the unsurpassable—triumph among American short stories. LG M ccording to { in its essence and A war story, it I8 merely it any foundation, 1o fiealy fell te| talking about e =wwmewhat obscured | Then, belated letters. | Removal of Walton Viewed As Only Part of Problem “Young Camp- | erything ; s done | And they did “have to know"— | ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. R¢SKIN Q. Who has the authority to deter- mine the colors for automobile license plates?—B. A, L. A. The motor vehicle commiasion- ers of the individual states determine |the color of the automobile number plates. Q. Was the RBrazilian exposition well attended?—G. A. M. A. The centenary exposition opened on September 7, 1922, and closed July 2.613 3. The number of visitors was 8,626.4 Q. How many feet made into excelstor vearly? A. The forest service says about 100,000,000 board feet of raw material are used annually in this country in the manufacture of excel- sior. of lumber are AF. that Q. Why aro quiet, happy dayvs re- ferred ta as haleyon days?—E. 5. P. A. Haleyon days is a name given by the ancients to the seven days which follow the shortest day of the year. The reference s to a fable that during this time, while the haleyon bird or kingfisher was breeding, there always prevailed calms at & From this the phrase “halcyon days” has come to signify times of peace and tranquillity. Q. Why is it _that fish swim up- stream?—J. C. W. A. The bureau of fisheries says that generally speaking fish swim up- Stream as it iz easler to get food when heading against the current. Q. Please give a description of the Altar of Heaven in China.—>M. Z. A A. The Altar of Heaven, in Peking Chin ists of u triple circular imarble ¥ o~ 218 sect wide at | the buws, 15 in the middle, and 90 ai | the top. The epj*rmost surface is paved with blocks of t~ sanie mate- rial, forming nine concentric ecireles, the' in 1081 consisting of mine blocks, and that on the outside of elghty-one blocks. During the time of the empire in China. the emperor was accustomed to kneel on the ¢ tral stone when offering prayers. Ti central sione is a perfect circle. The | altar was burned in 1888, but rebuilt Oregon pine was used for the pillars and blue porcelaln tiles for the roof. Q. 1 i Did Michelangelo prefer paint- ing to sculpture?—E. T. A, Michelangelo was essenially a ‘sculptor and palnted only under | iprotest. Also a poet, he expressed this idea in a sonnet in which he sald that in every block of marble he saw an imprisoned ldea awaiting | the sculptor's art to be freed. | Q. What religious body left Can- ada in the last five years. sacrific homee and goirg to Me nize?—E, B M. A. During the vears 19 {was a_ great exodus of Mo from Canada into the United States Mexico and Brazil The movemen' originated in the military service act of Canada, Mennonites being en- {tirely opposed to war and to partici- pation in any form of military ac- tivity. Q J. RS A. Petaluma eggs are careful graded and packed eggs from a cer- | tain part of Californ Petaluma | »s not refer to a breed of fowl | but is merely a trade name adopted by the association for advertising | purposes. | Q. Who colned the phras mighty dollar’?—J. W, C. What s. are Petaluma eggs’— | “AL- says: “The great obj throughous no genuine, villages.” Q. When cultivation?—E, M, While péars were probably cnl. tivited long bagore mention o 1hi fact appears in lterature, the fir mention we find of a pear orchard | In the Odyssey, book 7, where Homer describes the garden of Alcinous “ar, d there grow tall trees blossoming, pear trees and pomegranates and appl. traes with bright fruft, sweet figs an olives in their bloom.* almighty dollar, that ct of universal devotion our land, scems 1o hav devotees in these peculia: ere pears first putunder Q. Where was the Virginia home « Maj. Robert Chamberlyne?—F. A. I+ A. The home of Maj. Robert Chan - berlyne, who was the host of Mr Custis on the oeccasion of lLer fir-y meeting with George Washingto: was situated in New Kent count neur the present site of the Pamunk river ferry. The house is ne 10 standing. Q Mrs M R. A. Mrs. Grundy was persfonage :rvhsl‘nnl\' appealed to in the phr. Pue what will Mrs, Grundy say?” iy Morton ay, “Speed the Plough’ (1800), but who never appears :ngfli l?v\e dramatls pereonac. The phrass has come to stand for the judgment. of society in general upon ac « conduct e e Who was Grundy Q. Did the custom of labor parades originate in the United States?—C. 1. A. The custom of having labor perades on certain davs existed fnr many centuries, even before the dis- covery of America, It w the cus toni for the different guilds of crafis men to parade the streets of Londor, England, on various occasions. Q. Tioes a first-class clevator gal: full speed between floore?—G. A, W would depend 0; n peed of the el the distance between floors. term a fi ass clevator” high-speed elevator (500 feet per mir Ute or OVEr) is meant it may be safely assumed that it does not attain fu speed between two successive floor if of the average height of twelve fif*een feet. Q. Waus Omar Khayyam noted anything but his poetry?—a. J. A. He was a poct and an a but it was as a mat Iie made his most noteworthy contri- bution to ecience. He attempted systematic classification of types of equations of the first three degrees He knew the rule for expandi tinomial for positive integr a rule afterward perfected ton as the binomial theorem. D! by New A. The biological! surve: there ls nothing unusual pearing inland. It is & question of food supply. In fact. some vears ago a plague of grasshoppers appeared Utah, and the gulls appeared countless numbers and stcpped damage. A monument to commemo rate this is erected at Salt Lake City. the (Did_you ever write a Frederic J. Hasky You can our Information Bureaw any ques- tiow, of fact and get the answer in o personal letter. This is o part of that best purpose of this neispape -——SERVICE. "There is no charge ez cept 2 cents in stampn rerur postage. Ger the habit of asking questions _of Prederic J. Haskiy lettor $o A. It is attributed to Irving. In “The Creole Village” Washington he | The achment of Gov. Jack Wal-| ton of Okiahoma clears up no issues, in the opinion of the majority of edi- tors, who feel that Oklahoma has only | begun the general housecleaning {that will be necessary to bring about | law and order. Granting the incom- petency of Gov. Walton for the office, these editors think the outcome is Imerely an incident in the general movement of the Ku Klux Klan to get complete control of the political ma- chinery of the nation. This thought is particularly phasized by the Buffalo News, which | feels the masked missionaries have i1ssued their challenge, and “it is a {challenge which soon or late must be met, for the tenets of faith which it propagates have no place in Ameri- | can life.” The Boston Transcript ex- | claims: “The ‘king’ Is no more; let; Oklahoma now dethrone the Klan. It is the only decent thing to do.” Like- wise, the New York Post declares the overnor's removal is a “victory for faw over force and abuse of official| position,” but satisfaction in this out- tome fs tempered “by the realization of the part played in it, however le- | wally, by the Klan, and now it is Oklahoma's task to see that the Klan is equally powerless to place upon her the stigma of inability to guar- antee equal rights to all her citizens.” | Though Walton's removal seemed jus- tified, “he was not the only one that et eulity " continued the Wichita | Beacon, because “Oklahoma will do well to look in another direction and | {clean up the situation which brought about the recent dramatic crisis Granting that _the Oklahoma legisla- | ture was Justified in ousting Walton, | its duty to the publioc is not vet fully | discharged, agrees the Minueapolls | Tribune, which believes the formal| Jegislative promise of an inquiry into | the Walton accusations is a move in | the right direction, but it is only & start, and_ it asks, “Is there in fact an ‘invisible government' in Ok homa, or was Walton talking throug his hat?" imy em- * k ok % By no means commending Walton. because many of his acts were not bascd on sound judgment. the Mil- waukee Journal, however, sayi “Itroughout the trial even the shadow of the thing that brought the Oklahoma situation to a head—the Ku Klux Klan—was banished from the room. Leaders have pledged themselves to unmask the Klan and gisclose its membershin. Will they do i7" While admitting there wu: good and sufficient evidence to bring “hout the unanimous vote ugainst Walton, the New Orleans Times- Plcayune is also convinced that “the country is waiting to see what the Oklahoma lawmakers will do with the proposed legislation against se- erecy and mask.” The Roanoke Times neither pities nor sympathizes with Walton, but admits hifs removal from office by no means ends what has devcioped into wn usly chapter in Oklahoma's history, and adds, It would be a sorry day for Oklahoma or any other state when either the Wal or the klansmen among its |inhabitants gain the ascendancy. As the Grand Raplds Herald it.” “the Oklahoma legislature wiil bést eerve society and incidentally acquit itself of prejudice if it now Investigates alleged Klan outragos, finds and publishes the cxact truth. does honest justice to all concerned and then emulates Michigan in ban- RMing tho treacherons mask from the highways and from the Bill of Righte” With the same viewpolnt. the 8t. Paul Pioneer-Press suggests it cannot afford to do less than copy the Minnesota legislation of 1923 on the same sabject, which makes it & mis- demoznor to wear a mask in @ pub- lio place, except for purposes of amusement and _entertainment. As the Springfleld Republican sees it, “the state is rid of its king; now let it rid itself of its Kian. And those Wwho can best do. the ridding are the !Klansmen themselves. At best they / puts director. The Star Information L reau, 1220 North Capitol street.) have no valid exeuse for acting under cover to effect what it is their du to cffect as citizens. * % % % It is interesting to note that ti Oklahoma City Oklahoman believes the members of the house of repre sentatives who stuck so nobiy to the task of ridding the state of the mou strously inefilcient and corrupt gov ernor deserve the deep and lastin gratitude of the people of Oklahoma The Loulsville Courler-Journal cor cedes that a trial was not necessar to show that Walton was utterly ur- fit for the office, but insists “his r. moval is not a victory for the Klux Klan, but a rebuke administere by an indignant people, regardie his fight againat the Klan" T Cleveland Plain Dealer is also incl ed to think that “the unanimity of : senate’s verdict of guilty pretty fectually auswers the plaint of ton's friends that he was be d roaded” by a hostile faction: further more, “there is a lesson in this Okie homa case both for officials inc! to forget and for constituencies t dened with officeholders who should be removed.” The, Detroit News, lik wise, maintains that the unanimity of the vote will dispose “of any vestige of suspicion that Ku Kluxism enter into his trial, for Walton was tried for official misconduct, and misuse of the pardon power was' the thing on which his administration fe! In his warfare upon invisible gov ernment of intolerant sccret Orgar zations. Walton had the sympathy ¢ the nation, concludes the Chicago Daily News, but “Welton's record as Fovernor was not satisfactory to the friends of law and order in no w responsible for any Klan hostility tu m.” And the Akron Beacon-Journal rémarks. “In 5o far as the Oklahoma impeachment verdict represents normal protest which popular op always makes against encroachment upon its right to be the dominating force in government. the resuit |s distinet gain for 1t fntegrity of American_democracy.” To which ti Lincoln Star adds, “If the people America desire to draw a moral fro the experiences of Oklahoma in the impeachment of Gov. Walton let thew beware of intolerance.” Scores Police Ruse To Trap Bootlegger To the Editor of The Star: The methods resorted to by offi in enforcing prohibition are in many cases of & nature to indicate that the cure is more harmful than the ail- ment. Every law-abiding citizen de- sires to see the law properly enforce but when the enforcement entails un- desirable methods it is time to either improve such enforcement or wipe out the statute entirely. The newspapers recently printed an account of a policeman who tried to secure evidence against an alleged bootlegger. The latter, when solicited. sold the police & jug of water. This may appeal to many as a joke on ths police, but one phase of the matter I consider very serious. The policeman in the case disgulsed himself as & soi- dier of the United States Army in order to make the purchase. Under what authority was this Individual permitted to wear the Army uniform o put it in the light that a soldier was trying to violate the eighteenth amendment? A genulne soldier in the same circumstances would eventually be court-martialed for disgracing tho uniform. It doesn't seem possible the officers of the Army authorized a locul policeman to use a uniform for such a purpose 1f the local police ve 1o authority to employ such methods the Secretar of War should eniighten them. in jus- tice to the enlisted men who have no yet been driven to drink dus to sociul discrimination shewn them by ciyll- {ans generally. HARRY KABA A