Evening Star Newspaper, January 9, 1924, Page 6

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. - WASHINGTON, D. C. WEDNESDAY. ..January 9, 1924 ‘THEODORE W. NOYES. ,..Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Bustuess Office, 11th 8t. and Pennsylvania Ave. New York Office: 110 East 42nd St. Chicago Oitice: Tower Bullding, Earopean Office: 16 Regent 5t., London, England, The Evening Star, with the Sunday morning edition, is delivered by carriers within the eity at 60 cents per month: dally only, 48 cents per month; Sunday oniy, 20 cents’ per month. Orders may be sent by mail or tele- Phose Main 5000, Collection is miade by car- Tiers at the end of euch month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia, Dafly and Sunday : 1 mo., 70c Daily only... mo.. 50¢ Bunday oniy mo., 20¢ All Other States. Dally and Sunday.1yr., $10.00: 1 Daily only.. 1y, $7.00: 1 0., 555 Sunday only......1yr., $3.0 Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled o the use for repnbleation of all news dis- telies credited to it or not otherwise credited n this paper and also the lo-al news pub- llshed herein. All rights of publication of pecial dispatches herein are also reserved. -_— Power From the Potomac. There is a probability that Congress will take action toward setting the upper Potomac at the work of pro- ducing light, heat and power for the Capital. Representative Zihlman of Maryland has introduced a bill which | ‘would authorize the Secretary of War to construct dams and other works for the development of the water- power of the i'otomac in accordance with the recommendations made by Maj. Tyler, “and within the limita- tions therein provided, co that the | hydroelectric energy generated may | be made available for the use of the government and for the use of the people of the District of Columbia at ® reasonable cost.”” It has been re- ported that in carrying out the project tor developing electric power from the Potomac river there would be no need for scrapping the existing eiectric power plants and that these could be connected with the superpower plant of the Potomac Ever since men began force of river falls and rapids in gen- erating ricity there have been proposals to utilize the Potomac, espe- clally that part of the river between Great and Litte Falls, for the produc- electric power. Several sur- vevs and reports have heen made by ang all veports have been 1420 Congress created he Feder Commiss nd dire m the to use the elec tion of ers and In 1 Wi d it and economic re i, 2 terpower o report to Congress « value of a ower plant at or near Great Falls as | in the Lanzfitt survey and plans. Exhaustive hearings were held Ly the waterpower coni the oftice of chief of en; Army with making studies that mnight enable the commission to comply with the act of Congress’er the beginning of 1921 Maj. M. C. Tyler, Corps of Engineers, submitted & report which stands as the last word in Potomac surveys for the purpose of developing electric power. That re- port was approved by the power com- mission, which recommended to Con- gress that it “authorize an immediate start in the development of power in accordance with the Tyler report.” The commission also said that it was sure that all power developed by the Potomac wouid find a market in the District of Columbia and adjacent ter- ritory. Several members of Congress are active in support of the Potomac power proposal, and there are so many features to commend it that a strong sentiment will probably de- velop for early affirmative action on this matter. roposed ineers of the was charged and inve. ions American Growth. It was only a comparatively few years ago that the country was as- tonished to find that it was cqpting a | hundred million dollars to run the United States government for a year. The Congress that appropriated fed- eral funds to that amount was known as _the hundred-million-doilar Con- gress. A little later it hecame neces- sary to shift the scale and speak of a billion-dollar Congress. But it requires, no stretch of the memory to recall the thrill of pride when the hundred-mil- lion mark was reached, pride some- what mixed with apprehension. This recollection is prompted by the ennouncement that the New York state board of estimate and control has submitted its budget to- the le lature for the mext fiscal Year calling for appropriations of $116,290,582.86. Here's the hundred-miliion mark for one state excceded. But there is more to come. This recommendation repre- sents a drastic cut in the estimates, a reduction of $63,000,000. Here is something for the student of history to ponder. A single state cut- ting its estimates for maintenance by $63,000,000 for one year, a sum large enough to run the whole American government of eighty vears ago for several years! ——————— Dinosaur eggs over 10,000,000 years old are’' to be offered at auction in order to finance Scientific research. ‘This opens up the interesting pos- sibility that an egg after becoming useless may, by being kept a long time, be regarded as ornamental. ———e———————— The Crooks Fleeing Philadelphia. Gen. Butler has thrown a scare into the crooks in Philadelphia by serving notice to the police force of that city that he expects a 100 per cent execu- tion of the laws. His public announce- ments as newly installed director of public safety have had the effect of driving out of town a good many of the. habitual lawbreakers of all de- grees. Probably they are seeking new pastures “or a time in expectation that the present energetic administration at Philadelphia will soon subside, and that they can return to their old feed- ing ground. But they are not going to have’'an easy time reaching other pastures as rich in verdure as those on which they have been grazing. Naturally, New York is the most inviting fleld for fhe fleeing rogues. But New York is putting up the bars. Measures have just been taken in Manhettan t0 check the inflow of 2 unl on | ission, and | e ———— crooks and undesirables. Instructions have been issued to patrolmen and de- jtectives to arrest every Philadelphia jlawbreaker who may be recognized. 'Men have been assigned to the Fail- road stations and ferry terminals, and 'a large squad is patrolling-Broadway in search of known ‘‘police charac- iters.” Arrangements have been made | with the chief magistrate of the city ,court whereby all persons reaching :New York who are known to have ! criminal records will be sent to the workhouse on vagrancy charges un- less they are able to prove honest in- tent. If New York's precautions are car- ried fully into effect the tide of the crooks from Philadelphia will have to |mrn elsewhere. It is not so easy for | {a man with a criminal record to find refuge nowadays. What with finger- prints and photographs and descrip- tion a man's identity once recorded thus is speedily recognized wherever such records are kept. The police de- ® partment in every big city s well; | equipped with such materials, and less a crook manages to slip by in the crowd and then hide in the pur- | lieus he is likely to be soon checked. { It every municipal police adminis- {tration in the country were simul- Itaneously to declare war upon the _crooks and criminals a great percen- ‘tage of them would be soon put be- hind bars. They cannot thrive in small towns. They must have large places for their operation. At present they only shift when pressure is too severe. If §0 per cent of these habitual |lawbreakers were thus jailed for a | year by a united police drive against |them the country would be saved an immense sum of money, much distress 1aud probably many lives ———————————— The Tax and Bonus Conference. | Tomorrow night a conference of re- { publicans of the House will determine I the majority sentiment of the repub- | licans as to whether the tax-reduction 'bill or the soldier bonus measure shall take precedence in consideration by the House. It promises to be a very important meeting in affecting {the course of legislation, although it lell not necessarily result in a de- | cision which cannot be later reversed i vote in the House. The action of a conference of republicans is not con- | sidercd as binding upon party obliga- | ion as a caucus is among democrats { With the demacrats a two-thirds vote {in caucus upon a proposition is held [ to bind all members of that party in { concurrence. | The cutcome of tomorrow night's conference, however, will_serve to in- dicate the drift of sentiment among .publicans, and whether it has 2anged since the passage of the nus bill in the last House,-as is claimed by those who are n ng the effort to put the bonus bill ahead of the tax-reduction measure. Yet too much confidence cannot be iplaced in such a test, for it must be {horne in mind that this will not be @ | clear-cut issue between bonus or no | I bonus. There is another element in- sived, the pendency of the tax-reduc- ’H.vn bill, which is regarded as an ad- ministration measure. It has been made plain at the White House that President Coolidge strongly favors passing the tax bill at the earliest | possible day As soon as the new rules are adopt- | vill be ied the soldier bonus advocates ! given their opportuni | cludes provision for a motion to dis- | charge a committee from considera- {tion of a bill and bring it into the | House. Then a motion could be made {to bring in the McKenzi¢ bonus bill, {identical with the measure which | passed in the last Congress, and take lit up for consideration. | The Speaking Picture. Among the wonder inventions re- | ported in the newspapers is the phono- | film, a combination of radio and mov- | ing picture. It is said that exact con- cordance or synchronism between the movement and-words of the actor iz achieved. It would seem that if the | “speaking movie” has come, or is near coming, that a revolution in the moving picture industry, or in the whole entertainment business, ap- | proaches. As an aid in popular edu- cation it would be hard to over- estimate the importance of such an invention. The best in dramatic litera- ture and the best of opera could be spread before practically all the peo- ple of the world. The most eminent men, teachers, clergymen, scientists and statesmen could address audi- !enc s everywhere. They may do this { now by means of radio, and we may {sce them in a pose or two on the | screen, but if radio and the screen { were synchronized the influence of agencies would be multiplied. One ef- fect of the speaking picture would probably be the fading of old screen favorites. There is a suspicion that many acceptable lens actors if called on to speak “lines” would fall short of requirements. No embargo can be arranged that will prevent the revolutionists from taking the Mexican regulars’ arms away from them if able to do so. More time is aiways required to | than to make a working plan to raise it. | National High School and Stadium. The Secretary of Labor, James J. Davis, makes a pleasant suggestion in proposing the “construction in Washington of a great national High school plant, with a stadium, Greek |theater and other features which ‘would attract many thousands of per- { sons here and in which great national pageants could be held.”” A national stadium at Washington has been pro- posed before as a place for holding the annual Army-Navy foot ball game and other athletic contests of nation- {wide and international Interest and signlificance. ‘When it was proposed at least ten vears ago to take over government reservation No. 13, a large tract be- tween the central-eastern built-up section of the city and the Eastern branch, as the site for the' Eastern High School it was planned to con- struct there a stadium as large as any other in the United States, and which perhaps would be the largest and handsomest in the United States. There would be little trouble to find resist- | if the code in- | each of these wonderful inventions or | { formulate a way to reduce taxation | |an. appropriate site at Washington [ for & national stadium. The establishment of a national high school . would be approved by 100 per cent of the people of the District. All kinds of schools are needed here—kindergarten schools, grade schools and high schools. It might be well to have a definition of a national high school. The adjec- tive “national” is put to many uses. Our present high schools are na- tional high schools in a very impor- tant sense. They are high schools at the National Capital and after school hours the students are numer- ous in public libraries and museums of the Capital. In the halls and class- rooms of the high schools are thou, sands of children of men and women from all parts of the United States Wwho have come to Washington as em- | ployes of the national government. | Thousands of the graduates go back to the home counties or states of their fathers because they believe such a course of most advantage. Other thousands wander out into the world beyond Washington because in an in- dustrial sense Washington is still a 15m.all city, and the boys and girls go where manufacture and commerce are on a grand scale. It is a pleasant rsuggestion and interests a multitude of people. It'shows that the Secre- tary is thinking. as hundreds of thou- sands of people are thinking, of Wash- ington as the educational center of America. —_——— Dogs That Bark. An injunction has been sought from a Connecticut court again. who owns dogs that bark. Those who seek the injunction say that the dogs injure their health. ‘The barking dog often gets into the limelight and sometimes Into court, vet in spite of this every dog not only has his day, but his bark. The bark- less dog has not been invented. While some dogs confine their vocal power | within proper limits and righteous { hours, there are dogs in Connecticut {and the District that become over whelmed with ambition to give bark j vecitals at night. No doubt they hear | plano selections, songs and canned music in the neighborhood when most men are abed and respectable home- keeping dogs aslecp, and they reason that barking by moonlight or without it is good form. and that if no bricks are thrown at musical neighbors they cannot perceive that any objection or objects should be hurled their way. on a dog’s reasoning in music matters he might enlighten us. A little high- | soprano dog. dozing cozily, dreams | that there is a cat fight in the alley {and barks encouragingly, “Fight it {out, Tom," and “Claw his ears A quick-eared hound two blocks off hears the high soprano @nd interprets her barks as “Robbers! Help!” B lieving her in distress and unable to | climb the back fence, he roars in splen- | aid bass, “Police! Cops!” and continues calling until everybody except the po- lice wakes up. A dozen dogs in all parts of the neighborhood rise from slumber and, placing their own inter- | pretation on the melody, call out, | “Tramps: ts?" “Dogeatchers!” and | the like. They are loud and persistent. | But dogs will be dogs. so why worry { ———— Enough adverse opinion was promptly expressed in the United States Capitol to end any hope that the Bok plan would be adopted by the natfon’s unanimons vote [ farmer this govern- ment's encouragement and assistance, and, like others in the same frame of mind, would like it, if possible, in the form of cash. ———— i | i desire Doubts begin to arise as to-whether Hollywood will give Mr, Will Hays enough time off to take charge of a campaign even if he wishes to do so. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Mr. North Wind. Oh, Mr. North Wind, can’t you change your ways? Remember Happy New Year, and the other happy dayé. 5 Why didn't you, when lights were fadin’ on the Christmas tree Start in and make yourself a resolu- tion same as me? gentle, kind and mild, And never more get reckless, in a joy- ride runnin’ wild. I set a good example, just for such as you to see. You should have made yourself a reso- lution, same as me. ! Oh, Mr. North Wind, I ain't so very wise. On second thought, it isn't up to me to criticize. A resolution’s often hard to keep, 1 must agree, And maybe you've backslid a little bit —the same as me. . Repressed Erudition. “Are you sure you thoroughly un- derstand the subject you are called upon to discuss?” “I have a pretty good grasp of it,” answered Senator Sorghum. “But I won't go too far in trying to explain it. It's better to be regarded by your constituents as a plain fellow seeker for truth than to let them think you're trying to break out and show your intellectual superiority.” e Jud Tunkins says a few motion pic- ture stdrs are all right in amusing the public, but too reckless about their in- terests when entertzining themselves. Loftiness. The loftiest thoughts, they say, are great To benefit the soul; And so I sit and cogitate Upon the price of coal. Gentle Sarcasm. “What did you say when he pro- posed’ to you?” asked Miss Cayenne. “I told him,” replied the superior girl, “that he was one of those who are their own worst enemies.” “Merely because he proposed to you?” “An argument,” sald Uncle Eben, “is mos’ generally made up of two or mo’ men tryin’ to "splain’ sumpin’ dey don't none of "em fully understand.” ) EVENING BTAR, WA It some psychologist could get a line | Maria ” | I resolved to keep my temper an’ bei “IN TODAY’S It 1s a foolish question to asl “How big 18 a piece of chalk?’ Yet how much more sensible is it to ask how much wood there is in & cord? In some localities farmers answer that a cord of sawed and split wood Is two feet wide, four feet high and eight feet long. DMost peopls belleve that that is just half a cord—but “most people” are not “sawing wood." How much coal Is there In a ton? Is 1t 2,000 pounds or 2,240 pounds? That depends on whether one is buy- | ing or selling. How long 1s & mile? Tt Is eight furlongs or forty perches—1,760 yards—as decrced by Queen Eliza- beth. That is 5,280 feet. In ancient Roman times it was 1,617 yards, or Roman ‘“paces”—a Roman being two steps. In the n Army it is 2,112 paces—a pace being thirty inches—but “the last long mile” is well known to be equal to ten of the first of the march, xx All the above measures are Wrong when one 1s “at sea,” where a mile (or a knot) is 1,151 of a landlubber's mile—2,026 yards and 2 feet. If one “gets In Dutch”—or rather German, he becomes confused again, by find- ing that a German “mile” is 1-15 of a degree at the equator, which is equivalent to four nautical miles. The British admiralty mile Is 6,080 | feet (roughly, nearly a mile and a | sixth of our nautical mile), while in our United States coast survey, ac- ording to Col. E. Lester Jones, in cammand, a-mile is 6,080.27 feet. *Way down south, the colored folks used to reckon not by miles at all “How far to Col planta tion?" “Two runs,hree whoops and a hol- nd ve're right jum by." t was about as accurate as most other measures, when vou know the anguage. Two brooks to cross, as far as you can be heard when you whoop, then repeat the whoop at that distance, then say “hello,” and that | is the end of the trip. i L Grocers know that twelve ounces of sugar do not make a pound, but they never argue that with a druggist Nor does the druggist weigh out six- teen ounces poison for a pint, though all know that “A pint's a The world and all apothecaries’ tables tell us that ft takes sixteen ounces to make a pint. | | of H ok ox % The more we go Into measurements the worse becomes our confusion. It we sell a bushel of potatoes or wheat lishman, he demands 2,218.192 cubic inches, when we know that he Is entitied to only 2,150.42 cubic inches. So we are in a “pack of trouble. i What is the difference between a ton of co; nd a tun of wine? One s prohibitive and the other prohib- ves—but dealing in smaller we find t in England a gal- 271 cubie inches, but in our ntry it is only 331 cuble In some states it takes thir- ty-one and one-half gallons to make barrel and in other states thirty- two galions. Lawsuits result over that discrepancy when a buyer from one state deals with & seiler from anothe: { i | * ok ok % Complicated as are the units of measure within the United States, | they are simplicity itself when com- | pared with foreign syStems. A Phil- fe" is 11.125 inches—regard- less of the “fillin’s” A “eatty”” has sixteen tael, while here a cat-o'-nine- the limit. Bowmbay 529 pounds ndy,” while in Madras only 500 | make a “candy How many | America equal one oriental | are one n SHINGTON, D. C, WEDNE | hearings were held. SPOTLIGHT BY PAUL V. COLLINS unit? If one debutante weighs 100 pounds, how many does it take for a Bombay “candy’—or even one of Madras? It is certainly most con- fusing. EE T The Constitution gives to Congress the right to regulate weights and Politics at Large BY N. 0. MESSENGER Statements by the supporters of i Senator Hiram W. Johnson attacking | the republican party and the,admin- fatration in the senator’s contest for the presidential nomination are caus- ing Increasing uneasiness in republi- can circles, There s apprehension | ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN | Q. Does a word contain the same number of vibrations on a phonograph (Tecord whether spoken fast or slow? Do different tones of volce cause 1\'nrm(lnn in number of vibrations in a given word?—G. P. H A. The Victor Talking Maching measures, but Congress has never ex- | that in case the senator Is defeated |Company says a word doesnot con- ercised that right, except as to stand- ards for payment of customs. The legislation on the subject has all been | will have inflicted deep scars upon the slow. done by state legislatures, which ac- counts largely for the dlscrepancies | between states. In 1993 Congress passed a law requiring that the net welght be stated on all packeges or other containers holding more than two ounces avoirdupois, er more than one liquid ounce. In the United States bureau of standards are held the original.and official yardstick, pound and gallon measures, Certified duplicates of these are supplied by the bureay to the several states and to Institutions requiring exact standards of meas- urement. * ok ok ox There is a bill now pending In both branches of Congress—intro- duced In the Senate by Senator Ladd of North Dakota, and in the House by Representative Britten of Ili- nois—which will straighten out all confusion as to weights and meas- ures by substituting the metric sys- tem for the complicated familiar welghts and measures now in use. This metric system is now used in neurly all countries of the world ex- cept the United States and Great Britain_and their possesslons. It is as much simpler than the old weights and measures as is our decimal sys- tem of dollars and cents simpler than the English sovereigns, pounds, crowns, shiilings, pence, and farthings. Similar bills were before Congress the last session, when extensive The terms of the present measure are modified and adjusted to meet the suggestions of experience given in those hearings. 1f the bill Is passed now it will not ¥0 into effect until January 1, 1933, so that “people with old mentality,” who cannot easily accept anything new, may gradually become familiar ith its tables and terms. Even then the law exempts most things which the maker wants exempted, but there is expectation that it will finally su- persede the present system entirely. * ok % X The chiet objection to the new &ys- tem appears to be that it requires a change—not that the metric system is not simpler and more easily han- dled after one becomes familiar with it Much ado is made by its critics over tables showing how complicated would be the interpretation of pres- ent units into the metric equivalents, but the proponents reply that that is not a fair objection, for when the metric system is used the old units are not\ used, hence there would be no such interpretation from one to the other. at * K ok * What Is the metric system? What Is its history? In 1801 the French adopt- ed as their unit of measure a “meter, which was calculated to be one-ten- millionth of the distance from the north pole to the equator. Subse- quently, it was found that the meas- ure of the astronomer was Inaccurate, 0 an arbitrary adjustment of the unit was made. The unit has no advantage over our standard upit—a yard—but the system of dividing or multiplying it—always by tens or their multiple, whol decimal—is what gives it all the advantage of ease in use. Lven weights are based upon the linear measures. A gram is the weight of a cubic centimeter of water at 4 degrees centrigrade—the great- est density of water. A liter is 100 cubic grams. All calculations are madesby moving the decimal point to the right or left, just as moving the decimal divides 'a dollar into cents or combines cents into dollars. kbt 1923, by Paul V. Collins.) ‘Dixmude Tragedy Brings Call . For Safeguards in Polar Flight The loss of the great French dirigi- | ble Dixmude from a yet to be fully determined cause during a trans- Mediterranean flight has once again emphasized that science has much to jlt'nrn about the “lighter than alr” | type of air craft. In view of the plans {to send the American naval vessel | Shenandoah on’ the proposed flight to \‘lhe north pule editors are prompt to {sound a warning that care must be taken that this great auxiliary and |her expert crew are not sacrificed |through lack of proper precautions. | Of ecourse, many editors entirely over- {look the difference in climatic condi- | tions that will be encountered and the | fact that the United States, alone of {all nations, has a sufficient ‘supply of non-explosive helium gas for its aero- nautical work. But, disregarding this fact. they are none the less earnest in urging the Navy to overlook nothing ythat will ard the Shenandoah fand her men. In this very connection the general sentiment may be sum- | med-up in the comment of the Canton | News, which Insists “‘Science exacts great toll of those | who would advance her progress, but it is sheer- nonsense to continue this useless sacrifice of human life unless there 1s some likelier possibility of safety than has been witnessed up to {this time. To this the Naw York Herald adds that the “fate of the Dixmude must give pause to those who still cling to their belief in dirigibles.” The Herald irecalls the enormous number of lives { that “have been sacrificed to the Zep- pelin idea,” arguing it “will be a bit- ter thing If governments go on and lose more gallant men using the dirigible in feats for which the plane alone is suited. The swallow rides the whirlwind, but the soap-bubble { breaks with the first gust.” The New York Evening World says “the sen- sible thing to do is to concentrate on the planes that have demonstrated their ability to serve their purpose to squander money on dirigibles, par. ticularly now, would be sheer folly,” while the Philadelphia Bulletin de- clares the loss of the Dixmude should ! teach the Fesponsible officials to check up every detail of the Shenandoah flight and “so far as humanly possible | leave nothing to chance in providing | for the safety of the crew in.case of | disaster.” * ok ok % | wives and children, The Pittsburgh Chronicle-Telegraph feels “it is still the part of wisdom to : make haste slowly in experimenting with this type of aircroft, for it means also experimenting with the | lives of brave men, who cannot be ! spared.” The Waterbury Republican, | furthermore, suggests that the United | States “Is vast enough So it can pro- ' vide varied flying experience and the | only dirigible that we have should be | put to exhaustive tests right here at | home,” while the Boston Transeript | asks “what assurance have we that the Shenandoah and its crew will | have more than a gambler's chance | of success?” Holding the same view: the Columbus Dispatch insists fur- ther that "until their management shall have made adyances which are not yet even in sight, no dirigible un- | der government control should be allowed to make any such cruise into | the unknown as has been proposed by | the Shenandoah.” 1 Tt is the opinion of the New York Times that the tragedy should not be | regarded as a deterrant in any way to | the development of the dirigible and fo the use of such ships for com- merce,” for while “they have their obvious frailties, their radius of travel is so great In competent hands that they are indispel le for many purposes.” Likewlse, the Indianapolis Star takes an optimistic view, be- ‘ause, “happily, this country is no longer compelled to use hydrogen in s dirigibles because of the supply of helfum the United States possesses, and the Dixmude disaster need not prejudice the public against the proposed north pole flight of the Shenandoah, as that craft will not be faced with the danger of an explo- sion. The general trend of opinion, how- ever, is somewhat like that of the Manchester Union, which, allowing for the greater safety of hellum gas, concludes “there remain enough other | hazards in operation of the big dirig- ibles to make it a matter of impor- tance to us to learn all that can be discovered about the case of the ill- fated French ship.” Pleads for Pension. Writer Declares Congress Owes More to Retired Employes. To the Fditor of The Star: Now that Congress is again In ses. slon it is earnestly and sincerely hoped and prayed that prompt action will be taken by that great body to consider and pass the measures now before it looking to the crying demand for relief by the government employes who have been compelled by law to yleld up their positions at the age of seventy or less and accept the comparatively small annuities granted them. It is a well known fact—known by every member of Congress—that in this era of the high cost of living a minimum of $350 to a maximum of $720 per annum is wholly insufficient to provide the actual necessities of life, including, rentals, ete. It is easy enough to say that something should have been saved for the rainy days, but upon reflection it will be scen and realized how utterly impossible it"has been and is for the great ma- jority, and especially those who had d in many casgs fathers and l'l'wl.huxl and sisters To support, as well as their own indi- vidual eéxpenses to meet, to do this. Who that has llved in Washington for many years does not know how exorbitant ‘has been the cost of liv- ing, and how almost {mpossible it has been for the many to do much more- than eke out a bare existence from their salaries. The great majority of government employes, particularly those who have reached the age of seventy (and are now practically debarred from doing other work, whatever their gualifications) have done long and ‘aithful service, and it would seem that they are ‘as much entitled to favor and consideration as are those in the military branches of.the gov- ernment, for while they were not called upon to buckle on a sword or shoulder & gun and go Into the fleld, it was absplutely Incumbent upon them to. sit at their desks, oftentimes day and night, and do the work nec- essary to enable our soldlers in the field to do what was required of them. In view of these facts, then, are they not entitled to a much more generous consideration on the part of our lawmakers, simply in the way of granting authority for the increase of annuities, for as a matter of fact the government is not called upon to make any appropriation whatever from its coffers, the employes them- selves paying the annuities from the um of 2% per cent levied on their alaries monthly, and which has al- ready, In less than three years, re- sulted in a surplus sald to be more than thirty millio half-pence | measure or | | jduring the preconvention campaign | party when the campaign for the elec- tion comes on. Here s a sample of some of the things attributed to followers of Senator Johnson. Harold G, Ickes of Chicago, who was in New York last Sunday,'is quoted as saying: “The'thing that amuses us outside of New York is that for the first time in many years we have a President who s frankly a candidate of the large financial interests and who is openly fighting their battles. It may ;Interest New York to know that re | sentment against this is.sweeping the i west and northwest at a terrific rate. | In one state already an {ssue is being made of the fact that Mr. Coolidge’s closest adviser is Dwizht Morrow of the firm of J. P. Morgan & Co." * ¥ k % Pennsylvania is likely to loom large | in ‘the political eye from now on, due i to the alliance which has been effect- | |ed between the Johnson forces and Gov. Pinchot, the progressive, who | ranks along with Senator Johnson as a leader of the ultra-progressive ele- | ment in the party. alliance of these two for work in Pennsylvania is to keep the stat delegation to the national conven from President Coolidge. Secretary Mellon is to be the objective of tack on his tax-reduction bill and on renewed allegations of lack of vigor- i ous enforcement of the national pro. hibition law, to win delegates to Gov Pinchot. It Is not known yet what will be done with the delegates should this combination win.any to their side— whether It 1s Gov. Pinchot's intention to enter the presidential ra or not. { The major opinion, however, is that he wants to defeat the reguiar repu lican organization in the state that in the back of his mind is the thought that he wil] swing his dele- gates to Senator Johnson. The new combination is very con- fident that Gov. Pinchot can chop off 1a blg block of delegates and they are { boasting that they will control jthe delegation. . * Kk %k % This opinion is not shared, however, {by Senators Reed and Pepper of {Pennsylvania, who are working with Ithe regular republican organization for unrestricted delegates. Senator |Reed says he feels confident that the !delegates elected will be in harmony {with the organization, which i known to favor the nomination of President Coolidge, and declares it to be the judgment of the regular {leaders that Gov. Pinchot will not control any considerable part of the delegation. Senator Reed -savs that the prob- ability of President Coolidge's nomi- nation is steadily increasing. W e Senator Watson of Indiana, after a visit to the Whtie House, where he |made several recommendations for lappointments, told the newspaper- {men that he expected in a few days ito make a formal statement on his attitude toward the presidential nom- ination. The prevafling opinion among Sena- tor Watson's collcagues at the Capi- tol is that he will not enter the lists as a candldate for the presidential nomination. He is expected to sup- port President Coolidge. * ok ok ¥ Senator Underwood of Alabama has made the first dent in the tradition that a southern man should not be nominated for the presidency. Woman democrats {n Connecticut have In- dorsed his candidacy. LR Carm! A. Thompson of Ohlo has been chosen by Willlam M. Butler, the manager of President Coolidge's na- tion-wide campalgn, to become his general manager for Ohio. Col. Thompson was a close personal friend of President Harding and one of the best known republican politicians in the state, with a large following. * ok ¥ ok The object of the Frank H. Hitchcock, Senator John- son’s general manager, that the sena- tor will start in a couple of weeks on a speaking tour in the middle west. Indiana, Tllinois, Ohio and Michigan are to be scenes of an in- tensive drive by the Johnson forces. |George H. Bender, manarer for Ohio, day In Cleveland. and announced that the state will be thoroughly tanvass- ed in the senator's behalf. Maj. Clarence R. Martin of Indiana- polis has been named Johnson man- ager for Indiana. He managed the primary campaign of Albert J. Beve- ridge, when he was elected to the United States Senate. * %k * ¥ Coolidge leaders, whila apprehen- sive of the aftermath effect upon the party of Senator Johnson's attacks upon President Coolidge in the pre- convention campalgn, are inclined to the opinion that if the senator be- comes too vitriolic in his midws | speechmaking tour the effect may |to cause a reaction in the Presi- dent's favor and bring him valuable support. * ok ok * Should the Mellon tax-reduction bill be considered in g partisan fashion? The democratic and republican na- tional organizations each proclaim {that it should not be, and then each proceeds to attempt to show how the other side s doing so. Chairman John T. Adams of the republican na- tional committee, in a statement, points out that the democratic plat- form of 1920 advocated “tax reform and a searching revision of the war revenue acts to fit peace conditions S0 that the wealth of the.nation may not be withdrawn from productive enterprise and diverted to unproduc- tive expenditure.” This Is construed as tentative support of the pollcy !against excessive surtaxes, which Sec- retary Mellon holds. Chairman Adams of the republican committee goes on to say: “One of the features of the Mellon tax plan is a reductlon of surtaxes for the ex- press purpose of inducing the wealth of the mation to invest in productive enterpris®s securitles. This s the very thing ad- vocated in the above-quoted platform, and is the very feature which is being made the object of attack by certain democratic @oliticians. P The democratic national committee, through its publicity bureau, says: ¥The consensus of opinion among democratic leaders in the House who have first to deal with the Mellon tax plan is that every honest, thoughttul citizen should have this one object in view; a fair, sclentific scale of rates, and to the extent which the Mellon plan embraces them every citizen should be whole-heartedly for the plan.” Then in debate in Congress the democrats continually assert that the Mellon plan_is for the relief of the rich, & whole loaf for the wealthy and & crumb for the poor. They resist the suggestion of Secretary Mellon that the whole country will benefit by curtailing the temptation to invest in tax-exempt securities rather than in industry and flout the idea that .Nlllll‘fmlln for the nomination, the attacks made | Announcement has been made by | opened Johnson headquarters yester- | rather than tax-exempt | {tain the same fumber of vibrations when spoken fast and when spoken This is not due to the fa ‘of speed, Lut due to the fact that & person cannot speak exactly the same at two different rates of speed; if he did, then the number of vibra- {tlons would be the same. Different ‘lanes of voice do cause a variation in {the number of vibrations in a given {word. Q. Will you publish the Ten Com- {mandents in rhyme?—A, W. A. A version that has been ranged for children follaws ‘Thou no Gods ‘shalt have Before no idol bow the kne e not the name of God Nor dare the SabBath day {Give to thy parents honor Take heed that thou no Abstain from words and clean, ISteal not, for thu of God art seen, Tell not ‘a willful lie, nor love it: What is thy neighbor's do not cove but me, vain, profane, dge murder deeds do un- Q. Can the Japanese persimmon he grown in the United States?—C. H. K . The Department of ulture says that the Japanese persimmaon | been introduced into the United Sta and grows as far north as Washin iton, D. C. Q. How can a person fizure for himself what he should win in a pari- mutuel betting when | his horse comes in first>—A. B. A. Each horse in resented by a number: {each ticket Is taken from the {it registers sutomatically the machine showin just how many tick cach horse. The bettor figure. just what amount is in the pool and after ucting 5 per (the club’s commission), and di by the number of tickets sold on ¥ horse, he will know just how much he stands to win if his horse comes in first, Q |Lloyd’s pieture “Why Worry A. John Aasen, who played Harold Lloyd in “Why Worry eight feet, nine and quarter ches tall and weighs pounds. Q. Is it known which “The Raven” P'oe firét wrote A. In his essay on the p of composition in which in detail the constru poem he says that he wrote {eluding stan t ri . As machin » at all times are sold on n thercfor. How tall is the glant in Har 14 K, with 460 nza ¢ . L F. ilosophy explains of this tie con- American Desce May Now Join BY THE MARQUISE DE FONTENOY. Both in the United States and in Great Britain imposing genealogical works have been compiled claiming to enumerate the list of people who can boast of royal ancestry. The American work of that title is of much larger size than its transat- lantio counterpart. For, whereas the latter limits the names contatned thereln to those who can claim de- goont from British sovereigns, the roster of “Americans of royal de- scent” includes a very large nlez}hl‘V‘ of people who insist that they have in their veins the blood of the for- mer kings of Ireland. Now the English compilation con- sists of over 100,000 individuals of royal descent, including people of all sorts, classes and conditions, one of the best authenticated cases being that of a small village butcher, in the vicinity of Rugby, bears go back in an unhroken line to the wayward sister of King Henry VIII, who, after becoming the widow of King Louis of France contracted a love match with the Duke of Brandon and Suffolk. It is natural that a body numbering over 100.000, * comprising butchers and bakers and candlestick m not be regarded as very exclusivi and the result of this has been the formation of a new and far more { blue-blooded organization, soclety or club entitied “the Plantagenets’ the membership of which is confined to those who can show an unbroken line of descent, legitimate or even illegitimate, from the P! tagenet kings of England, the presidency having been accepted by the Duke of Beaufort. ninth of his line, and the who possesses all necessary qualifications. * ok ok K Up to the present time the Plan- tagenet Club has a membership of a ittla over 100, and If among the “Americans of royal descent” record- ed in the genealogical work bearing that title there are any who find that they can hark back to the Plantage- | worse than communicate with the old Duke of Beaufort at Badminton, his | country seat in Gloucestershire. It Is worthy of note_that this new society, following so closely upon the birth of that new and very numerous quasi-religious’ and patriotic saclety entitled “the Crusaders” which was accorded the privilege of holding a special cererony charactgrized by a considerable amount of medicval geantry in Westminster Abbey other day, comes into the public just at the very time when laborites, to whom the principle heredity {s anathema, are about to | undertake the administration of the government of the British ipire, with the object of putting Into exect tion many of thelr wholly revolution- ary doctrines. * % X X Great Britain's cholce of her new Ambassador at Madrid is of interest here in the United States, not only b cause Sir Horace Rumbold some time at Washington during the great war as counselor of the British embassy, but also by reason of the fact that he is half American. His mother, the first wife of the late Sir Horace Rumbold, eighth baronet of his line, was Miss Caroline Harring- ton, daughter of George Harrinkton of Washington, D. C., some time United States envoy at Bern More- over, his cousins, Henry and Cumber- land Rumbold, -have marrie Balti- more women, while Annie Rumbold another of his kinswomen, is the wife of Ernest K. Richardson of Philadel- phla. Sir Horace Rumbold there- fore, connected with many s in this country, | He is related, moreover, to some of the greatest houses of the aristocracy of continehtal Europe, including those of the Dukes -de la_ Rochefoucauld, of Harcourt,- of Noailles and. Poli- gnac, Iin France, and that of the Prin- cess of Lebanoff, in Russia. Indeed, the late Sir Horace Rumbold, father of Great Britain’s new ambassador at Madrid, was' born In Calcutta and educated in Paris under the care and roof of his aunt, the Duchess of Poli- gnao, in the Faubourg St. Germain. “'Sir Horace is descended from Thomas Rumbold, who was one of the cavaliers of King Charles the First at the battle of Vascby, also from Wil- Rumbold, who was master of the robes of Charles II, and from Henry Rumbold, who was & gentle- the the | amili l ar- | whose for- | akers, can- | net rulers of. England, they might do | spent | Q. What are the dimensions of the backboard used in basket ball, and {what is the distance of the basket | from the A, . A. According to “The Official Basket Bail Rules for 1923 and 1924” the di- mengions of backboards shall six t Lo Tizontally and four fe rti= 1lly. he baskets shall be s of white cord suspended from b Kk matal Tings cighteen inches in inside diameter. " These rings shall be in a horizontal position ten fect above the floc The 8 shall be s¢ ie ball momeniarily biasher net many . L O. rehipe six_lar hundreds of smail is Q. Who co ived th the natio: “a of muk- —S. C. is idea originated with Moina Michel, principal of th Normal Se Q there A. How in the The stenograph d States? 2 thas! census bureau says that 134 stenographers and Unite hat will keep ccl blades from ver knives rusting?—C All steel art tly preserved fro a lump of freshly drawer or cas les can m rust b burnt which be per- putting e in the they are roads owned and rument?—B. L. ilroad companies oper- state owns them them for a limited the government management of the trol—fing 1 the din ind on United © during took very war in Europe Most_of at that Four ce and remou took an of St. Mihiel. iittle and the active tar as Asia we cavalry re | prin: | duty. ~ One “syu part in the batt active (Did_you ever write a letter to Frederic J. Haskin? You can ask our information’ bureaw any question of | fact and get the answer in a per- somal letter. This is a part of that Lest purpose of this newspaper— Service. There is no charge except cents in_ stamps for Teturn post- Get the habit of asking ques- ws of Frederic J. Haskin, Director, The Star Information Bureaw, 1220 North Capitol street.) ndants of Kings Exclusive Body man of the privy cha | 52 1. while the f lands in the Hertfordshire. E ssex — | In view of this ancestry no credence | need be accorded to the spiteful gos p of Horace Walpole, who insisted |that Sir Thomas Rumbold, the first baronet of t ine and one of th | typical navot ety to- ward the end of e eighteenth ¢ tury, be « walter at Whi {Club in 1 | quence, the sulj fbon mot th him who It is per | Rumbold at | went out to | member of governor of I in the capac and not a me granted « his ber narine force pany. Th the orient was_the Lord Clive where he wi His prom where he w the governo: created ba to Engla enormous His_desc Bri became ‘urzon, tentiar n ‘Icuz,min; of and ing comes to wait” hat Thomas of sixt subordinate the t rge. But it was gentleman cadet had been because in_the India Com- reer in of Lausaune s ago, and who .5 as British hig ted much charm of rstanding of He has served at Cairo, at Rome, Vienna and Wa ial ailow for his rsian, His gh- who repre foreign cap- sold may be i from her in of diplo- 1 equipped manner inte at Tok eived spe foreign o 1 £ the la his_en o sreat Brit the envir macy and is peculiarly 1 for the role of ambassadres * % J In view of the important role which prohibition plays in the United States, |it may be of interest to draw attentipn | to the fact that in the recent general | election in Great Britain the candl- dates indorsed and supported by the {liquor trade wereSto a very great ex- tent, defeated at the polls. The ma- rity of the new house of commons is pledged to local option, and Ram- say Macdonald, the chief of the labor, party. who, ere a fortnight is past, is likely to take over the government of the empire as prime minister, de- clares that he strongly favors the cause of temperance, and that labor has resolved to place the drink trafiic under popular control. Both Herbert Asquith and Lloyd George have come out suongly as for- mer premlers in favor of local option and of the right of citizens of a local- ity to determine for themselves the arinking facllities in their immedigte area. Indeed, the defeat of the cdn- sorvatives at the polis just before Christmas is largely attributed to the attitude of Premier Baldwin, who, speaking in their name, declined to consent to any modification of the existing legislation on the subject of temperance, or o accept three de- mands submitted to him by the tem- perance council of the Christian churches, namely for magisterial con- trol of the supply of liquor to clubs, Jocal option and for the Sabbath closing of all dram shops, drinking bars and so-called “publics. Some time ago I related in these letters how Admiral Sir Reginald Hall Guy Gaunt and some retired flag officers of the roval navy had iden- tified_theniselves with the defense of the liquor interests as peid mans agers of organizations entitled “the Fellowship of Freedom and Reform,” ete. Sir Repinald and most of his naval associates identified with antl prohibition movements and with the opposition of any further restriction placed upon the production and, above all, the consumption of drink, have gone down in defeat at the polls and will have to find other means of supplementing their relatively meas ger pensions. \