Evening Star Newspaper, February 1, 1924, Page 6

- THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 1924 THE EVENING STAR/bonus was ann thet stood between |hospital grounds shall be subject to With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. FRIDAY..:....February 1, 1924 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Ofiice, 11th St. and Penpsylvania Ave, New York Office: 110 East 42nd St. Chirago Office: Tower Building. Kuropean Ofice: 18 Regent St., Londou, England, ‘The Evening Star, with the Sunday morning edition, is delivered by carriers within the vity at 60 cecls per month: daily 4 vests per month; Sunday only, 20 cent ‘montl Orders Maryland and Virgini Daily and Sunday..1 yr., $8.40; 1 mo. Dally onl; 1 $6.00; 1 mo., 50¢ Sunday only. 1yr., §2.40; 1 mo., 20c All Other States. Daily and Sunday.1 Dally only. Y Sunday " on Member of the Associated Press. Tho Associsted Press in exclusively entitled 2o the ‘use for republication of a1 als- Patches credited 1o it or not otherwise credited in this paper and also the local news pub- iabed ‘herein. Al rights of publication of pecial dispatches herein are also reserved. e { 5e | The Senate's Declaration. Yesterday's actlon by the Senate, in unanimously adopting a joint resolu- tion declaring the naval ofl leases to have been exccuted ‘under circum- stances indicating fraud and corrup- tion,” and authorizing and directing the President to cause sult to be in- stituted immediately for their cancel- lation and annulment and to prosecute such other actions, clvil and criminal, as may be warranted, s, of course, niot yet an enactment. The House has still to act in concurrence to give the declaration force of law. There can be no doubt of‘such concurrence. Consequently in all likelihoed In a few days this joint resolution will have been laid before the President for his signature and, upon his approval, for his direction and authorization to pro- ceed. He will meanwhile have gone forward in the procedure thus pro- posed, through the special counsel he has suramoned. The specific propositlons in the joint resolution, thus adopted without dis- sent in the upper house, are that the leases were entered into without au- thority on the part of the officers pur- DOrting to act for the United States and in violation of the laws of Con- gress, were in defiance of the settled policy of the government to maintain & naval oil reserve supply in the ground and were executed “‘under cir- cumstances indicating fraud and cor- ruption.” There is no reason to dissent from the last-stated conclusion. The cir- cumstances that have been brought to light in the course of the Senate com- mittee's investigation essuredly indi- cate at least a wholly improper rela- tlonship between one of the officials signing the leases and officials of the two corporations receiving them. The transaction is tainted. On that ground mlone the leases may be canceled, of course, through judicial procedure. This follows whether or not the leas- ing of these lands was, as the resolu- tion states, “in defiance of the settled policy of the government” and “with- out authority on the part of the offl- cers purporting to act in the execution of the same for the United States and in violation of the laws of Congress.” On those two points there is a differ- ence of opinion, though the Senate yesterday by {ts unanimous vote evinced none. Even if there had been no hint of corruption in the granting of the leases the whole matter of leasing the naval oil reserves would have been properly subject to question. But the taint of fraud precipitates a legislative declaration on the whole matter. Con- gress, assuming that this resolution will pass both houses, now declares| itself as to the meaning of the law. It is for the courts to determine whether, apart from the question of corruption, there was authority on the part of the administrative officers of the government to grant these leases. ‘The resolution adopted yesterday does not of itself annul or vold the leases, though it declares them to be against the public interest. It directs the institution of action for their an- nulment and cancellation, and the prosecution of any civil or criminal charges that may arise through further disclogures. Thus the Senate, With the House presumably following, definitely passes the matter into the realm of the courts, where it now be- Tongs. + ————t—————— There was a time when the public believed that Ballinger and Pinchot had gotten all the excitement out of the Department of the Interior that it could possibly develop. — The Bureau of Education. The commissioner of education has told the joint congressional committee conducting hearings on reorganization of government departments that he believes the plan to include the public health service, the social service and the Veterans’ Bureau in & proposed department of education will not work satisfactorily., In the course of his testimony Commissioner Tigert said that many of the bureau spe- clalists have left the government wervice because they were given sal- aries two or three times as large else- ‘where, presumably by states and clties. One hears the same note of com- plaint in many government offices in the work of which there is ncededl technical knowledge for which there 13 a market in the world outside the sovernment service. No doubt the national government is a good pey- master as to the certainty and reg- ularity with which the salary is paid, ‘but & poor paymaster in the unwntl of pay it gives for men of specials egquipment, Even in the case of the great body ©of clerical workers the government, which twenty years ago paid higher slaries than were pald by private industry for the same kind of work, bas fallen so far behind in the matter of pay that it finds it hard to keep its Gepartmert forces recruited with men and women of the same intel- lectual qualifications as those who sought entrance to the civil service & few years ago. During the war and in the years following it there was Samtigfaction ” end gloom among thousands of them and actual want. They have resorted to economies that they never had to practice before. Under the classification law there is @ general increase in pay, but the in- crease above the former base pay, plus the bonus, is small. It seeks to provide a number of advantages for government employes, but as o pay- raising measure it calls for no par- ticular rejofcing., Of course it is a considerable gain to have the bonus made part of the regular salary and 5 i when the cost of living declines, if it ever dees, that part of the salary which was the bonus may be added to the savings bank account. The government has a hard time holding specialists In education, metal- lurgy, cows, milk, Insects and other things. Tt is remarkable and praise- | worthy that so many young men re- Detter prospects to serve their gov- ernment at Washington, ————ee———— Japan in Turmoil. Japan is passing through a trou- blous time. Steadily growing since the disaster of last September, a spirit almost revolutionary in its force has now manifested in violent disorders in the diet. Dissent from the policies of the ministry has become acute, and a vote of no confldence was about to be precipitated when the session was closed as a precautionary measure. Personal encounters on the floor of the house marked the proceedings, the premier himself participating. Mis- siles were flung about and pande- monium prevailed. The scene was a reminder of the old parliamentary Bear pit at Budapest, which was long before the war the chief legislative storm center in Europe. Special efforts were made in Japan to prevent a political crisis at this time on account of the marriage of the prince regent, which occurred on the 28th of January, last Monday. It was hoped to avold disturbances both before and after-the event. But it has been found impossible to keep the political pot from boiling over. It is hinted that the anger of the opposition was inflamed to the breaking point yesterday by the derallment of @ train which was carrying a number of anti- ministerialists to Tokio for the diet sesslon. This train wreck has been at- tributed to government agenta. ) A general election is virtually cer- tain to follow the dissolution of the diet, and it is impossible to foretell the result. The “liberal” sentiment in Ja- pan is on the increase. There is no manifest antl-dynastic movement, but the royal prerogatives are unquestion- ably less popular now than ever be- fore. One of the chief issues at pres- ent arises from the financial measures adopted for reconstruction following the September disaster. There is also 2 hareh feeling against the preceding ministry, which resigned at the time of the attempt on the life of the prince regent on his way to open the sessions of the diet. The High Cost of Office. ‘When members of the British labor party took office in the new Macdon- ald ministry they doubtless did not reckon upon the high cost of cere- mony. Now they are staggered by the realization that part of the job is to attend court functions and that custom, which is one of the founda tion stones of the British system, re- quires that ministers shall, in the presence of the monarch, wear a cer- tain approved regalia. The cost of a uniform which meets the require- ments is about £150, and most of the newly named ministers are balking at the price. In the first place some of them have not that much loose cash to spend. Then, again, there is no such certainty of tenure that an in- vestment of this rather large amount ‘would be altogether safe. It is under- stood that three members of the cab- inet have agreed not to spend even the £56 necessary to hire court suits from theatrical costumers. Of course, it is not actually compulsory for a! cabinet minister to attend the cere- monial functions, and as a matter of fact {t may be doubted whether one of them would be barred or thrown out if he presented himself in his ordinary clothes. But that is some- thing probably none of them will try. In times of investigation the fact that one prominent citizen calls on another to inquire about his health does not necessarily imply sympathetic solicitude. . A few senators In considering sug- gestions for cabinet resignations are almost tempted to demand that the movement be made unanimous. There are a number of people Who ‘would not be surprised by & movement to proclaim Smediey Butler the Mus. solini of Philadelphia. There may be some temperamental depression in the oll business, but the price of gas shows its usual buoyancy. ‘The modern financial query f{s “Whet s @ hundred thousand dollars emong friends?” ———— G 14th Street Extension. ‘The Becretary of War approves the bill now before Congress for extend- ing 14th street through the grounds of Walter Reed Hospital. The measure has the support of the District authori- tles, and has been approved by a large number of civic organizations because of the need for uaother throughway between Maryland and the northern part of the District and the central section of the city. Fourteenth street from its north end is already one of the principal ways of the city, and its extension to the District line would in- Crease (ts usefulness. Becretary Weeks, in a letter to the chairman of the House District com- mittee, says that the pending bill 1s in the form recommended by the high- ‘way commission of the District in 1921 after extensive consideration, includ- ing a public hearing. It was agreed that the street could be built through the hospital grounds in such & way and with such grades that when opened the traffic would prove of as little annoyance to the hospital as possible. The Secretary points out that one provision of the the grade of the stvest tapproval of the Secretary of War, which will insure adoption of a grade which will meet the needs of the hos- pital. The Secretary sees an advan- tage in that the bill proposes that cer- tain streets already within the area which has been acquired for the ex- tension of the hospital shall be aban- doned, giving the hospital control and use of the land now included in those streets, It would seem that the bill for the extension of 14th street !as an ex- cellent prospect of being enacted by Congress at this session. —_——e————— Children and the Streets. The committee on streets and ave- nues of the Board of Trade has brought to the notice of Congress its views and those of the organization 50| 8ist the temptation of higher pay and |it Tepresents in part on measures for the safety of children in streets. The committee points out that this matter has been considered many times by the Board of Trade and other civic bodies, that temporary measures have been taken by the District govern- ment, and that “warning «nd educa- tion In dangers of the streets are good, but do not seem to have entirely met the situation.” Figures of accidents to children in streets are given. The reservation of parts of streets for play at certain hours is urged, but the com- mittee quotes from a recent report of the Board of Trade that “the adequate remedy is in the hands of Congress, {but until that body sees fit to appro- priate sufficient funds to provide safe places for the children to play, such measures (the closing of streets to traffic at certain hours) adopted to ameliorate the situation as far as possible.” The adequate remedy is to be found in public playgrounds. In the parks more space is being given year after year for playing golf, tennis, base ball and foot ball and for riding horses, and no doubt large sections of park would be set aside for children’s play it children could use the space. The trouble is that as a rule a park is too far from home to be used by children, and the neighborhood playground is the only thing that will meet the need. Playgrounds are being established, but the creation of them goes on slow- demand for them. Gov. Smith's Legislative Fight. Gov. Alfred E. Smith of New York i8 to lock horns with the republicans in the legislature soon on his program of legislation which he desires at the hands of that body. The senate's judiciary committee has reported fa- vorably five of the more important measures which he desires enacted into law. The republican assembly is opposed to them and will seek to pre- vent their passage in the lower house. Gov. Smith sought unsuccessfully | in his first term to get these measures through against republican opposition, and went to the voters for a second term largely on this {ssue, being re- turned by a handsome majority. He, naturally feels that he holds a com- mission from the people in presenting them again and urging thelr adoption. The republican opposition is based on the allegell radical nature of the proposed legislation, and it is not like- 1y to yield to pressure, as fundamental differences of policy are involved. The contest promises to increase in bitter- ness as it progresses. It may be ex- pected to have an influence on the coming state campalgn and elections, emphasizing the wide contrasts in policy between the democratic and re- publican parties in the state. ————————— — A reduction in the income taxes for 1923 will compel the man who started early to get his figures ready for March 15 to revise his ealculations. But nobody will object to the extra arithmetic. —————— Germany appears willing to offer all the assistance possible in throwing light on her financial entanglements. Anybody who can help in straighten- ing out the books ought to be welcome. —————— Even the excitement over rent legislation is overshadowed by the in- terest in ofl leases. ——m———e SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON, ’ Hopefalness. “I surely hope it can be done,” Sald Hezekiah Bings, ‘“When people let their fancies run On various pleasant things— Reduce the taxes right away— Buppress wood alcohol— T welcome every promise gay They offer, great or small. “I would not cast a chilling mood On any good Intent— Reform the underworld so rude— Sweep graft from gov. nment— I don’t know how it will be won, ‘This right to engel wings, But I sure hope it can be done,> Sald Hezekiah Bings. Uncertainties of Fortune, “I hope,” said the thrifty man, “to save up some money and get rich enough to enjoy myself.” “Have you read the Investigation news?” asked Senator Sorghum. “What hes that to do with it?” “Well, you may get rich. But that's no sign you are going to enjoy your- self.” Jud Tunkins say® & man who tells all he knows wouldn't be so objection- able if he didn’t insist on telling it over and over again. Dangerous Wealth, Si Simlin says, with great alarm, He's found an ofl well on his farm. Perhaps the yleld will be so great That Congress will investigate. Taking No Chances. “Why did you dismies your French mald?” “I couldn't understand her when she talked fast,” answered Miss' Cay- enne. “I was afraid she was saying impertinent things to my face that I couldn’t understand.” “Maybe I's gine to change my plan,” said Uncle Eben, “an’ ‘stid o’ makin® should be | ly compared with the growth of the| IN TODAY’S A bill to provide for the construc- tion of certain public buildings in the District of Columbia was intro- |duced in the Senate last week by Senator Smoot and will be Introduced in the House by Representative Lang- ley of the committee on public bulld- ings and grounds. Tt authorizes the publio buildings commission to pro- ceed with constructfon, under cer- tain restrictions, limiting the expend- itures to a maximum of only $10,- 000.000 a year, with a total’ cost not exceeding $50,000.000. The work. therefore, cannot be accomplished in less than five vears, but may extend some time longer. The buildings covered by this pro- gram are: The brreau of intarnal revenue and other offices of the Treasury not now suitablv housed in government-own- ed_bulldines, The Denartment of Justice. The general accounting offioe. The Derartment of Agriculture, The national archives. The_eeneral supnly committes. he Department of Commerce. The Department of Labor. suThe Interstate Commerce Commis- jon. Various other independent govern- ment _establishments note suftahly housed in government-owned bulld- inga All the above devartments are now {n rented auarters badly adapted to their naeds, overcrowded and costly in rentals. Judeing tire proposed ing by the amount discussion it has oceasioned. it annears almost to rank in costliness and seriousness with the diewing of the Panama canal or the vovage of the Shenandoah across the polar continent Public records which are absolutely irronlaceable if destroyed are todav housed fn firetraps in various parts of the city. The salvage corps might arrive after a fire alarm in time to throw tarpauline over some of the records of the internal revenue bu- reau. of which records 70 ner cant fs housed in tinderbox construction The records of the oensus and of the Armv and Navy may be destroved in an hour. They are not fnsured, for the government cannot ineure anv- thing. and no insurance could mensure {h— money value, for they are price- ess. chives build- | € % %k ¥ There {s 2 great deal of interest in {the fact that the present taxes are {bringing a surplus into the Treasury, and one wonders whether the surplus, said to exceed $330. might not, some day accumulate enough to justify the erection of an | archives bullding in the Nation's Cap- {ital, where the public records belonic- ing to the whole nation mieht be safely stored—where some might be as safe as the liberty bonds of citi- zens are when they are locKed in safety deposit vaults. How many mil- Hons would be necessary to construct 2 real archives buflding? The Federal Building Commission answers that the estimate hardly reaches the fabulous figures of Tut. enkh-Amen’s resplendent tomb. though tha public seems to have gotfen such an {mpression. The archives building would cort $550.000—no _more, The government might issue bonds tat 413 per cent to erect such a safe- | guard for its treasures, and the en- | | 1 only $24,750 a year, if it had to bor- row the entire sum. Yet the govern- storing in inaccessible form the ar- chives thus risked, and pays more rent than the interést on such an in- vestment. If a private business execu- tive were running such foolish hazards his bankers would restrict his credits and_insurance companies would can- cel his policles—if such a “captain of industry” even thought of insuring his risks. * K % x The Department of Agriculture is spread over the city in twenty-two Punishment of 1 Crime never is partisan. That s one thing which the editors who are disgussing the oil revelations In ‘Washington agree on. If criminality is proven they feel it will, of course, be punished. Opponents of the ad- ministration naturally seek to make as much political capital as s possi- ble out of the situation which has developed. Yet out of the open par- tisanship appears to stand out the belief that if there actually has been corruption it will be promptly pun- ished. “The business has a nasty look,” the Springfield Republican (independ- ent) asserts, but “President Coolidge's hands are perfectly clean. But he took over the labilities, as well as the asserts of his predecessor in the office of President” To which the Waterbury Republican (republican) adds “two certainties have emel}ei The first is that President Hardin blundered sadly when he allowed his personal feelings to blind him to the fact that men of the character of Mr, Fall and Harry M. Daugherty were clearly not qualified to hold the pub- lic offices to which they were ap- pointed. The second Is that the gov- ernment {s not entitled to leass or sell its natural reserves to private interests except after it has been { most fully established at public hear- ings that such procedure is advis- able for the sake of thefir develop- ment.” And the Portland, Ore., Jour- nal (independent) feels “no more amazing revelation has ever been made In American political life.” * % % & “The further it goes the worss it gets,” the Roanoke Times (democratic) asserts, while the New :York Post (independent) argues “it is not sur- prising that President Coolldge Is talking of the Importance of fixing oriminal responsibility where it be- longs.” This is also the opinfon of the Brooklyn Eagle (independent democratic), which baldly declares “it is now time for a judge and a Jury,” and that by seeing this is made possible “President Coolidge can prevent the scandal from taking on_greater political significance.” 000 @ year, | tire cost of the financing would be | ment now rents floor space in scat- | b government belongs to all the people, | issue for that purjo: e s Soden And Drick fretraps forZud that its needs are national needs, | SPOTLIGHT BY PAUL V. COLLINS odds and ends of lofts and “shantle; and {s paying rent so high that the Secretary must dread to see the land- | lord looking in his direction. The Department of State occupies “rooms,” but lacks room and the dig- nity which it requires for proper functioning. The Department of Justice is crowded to a building which it has long since outgrown, and whose land- lord is urging it to vacate. The War and Navy Departments are housed in temporary war emergency buildings toppling on their unsafe foundations. Expert bullding inspec- tors think these may last two or three years yvet. though thcy will require underpinning and opher costly repairs. Practically all other departments are overcrowded or Inadequately housed. where they cannot function with proper cconomy and efliciency. The housing of the government was | planned for a country of 30.000.000. as it was before the efvil war, and has not kept pace with .the growth to 110.000.000, nor looked ahead to Its 130,000,000, as it will be within the next twenty vears. No expansion has come in the main bulldings since long before the world war, and only the fact that the temporary buildings thrown together in such haste to cov- er the immediate emergency of war work, requiring room for 117,760 workers, where there are needed in normal times only half that number. has it been possible for the work of the government to be carried on. These buildings were never intended for anything but makeshifts, and within ‘two or three years will be condemned as unsafe, as well as the are now inconvenient * % * % The bill which has been worked out by commission including members of both branches of Congress and Gertain prominent buflding experts, will provide a program, not for plung- ing into a great bullding scheme to be rushed within a year, but an or- iderly plan to cover at least five years, with some $10,000,000 of construction per year. All is under the control of the Public Bulldings Commission con- slsting of Senator Reed Smoot, chair- man; Senator Claude A. Swanson of Virginia, Representative John W. Langley of Kentucky, Representative Frank Clark of Florida, David Lynn, architect of the Capitol; Lieut. Col. rence O. Sherril, Corps of En United States Arimy, and Jam Wetmore, acting supervising architect of the Treasury. * % % % The commiasion is to hold power to decide as to the size and architecture | ot the buildings, thereby regulating the often exaggeratéd demands of each department as to space it Te- quires. The government already owns sufficient land for all the buildings, but may find it desirable to make some exchanges to improve locations and settings, All main buildinzs upon the avenues will be of classic archi- tecture, but such as are to be used only for offices of workers will be in tha style of office skyscrapers and be located off of the prominent avenues. Thy will be n the class of the Depart- ment of the Interfor—convenient, but not classic. $ There Is some question as to what opposition will arise in the House, sfrom members who insist upon tying {up any project for naticnal buildings | with the needs of local post offices and {other local government expenditures, but it I8 believed that broad patriot- ism will recognize that the federal Ihaving no connection with the re- | spective needs of various local com { munitles. There Is a sentiment, hoy ever, that since there has been prac- tically a suspension of bullding all over the country sinca 1914, there are many localities justly calling for buildings, and all such will be con- sidered In due course, but not in con- | nection with the requirements of ef- ficlency in tqe general government in the National Capital. (Copyright, 1924, by Pasl V. Collizs.) Guilty in Oil Deals Is Demand of All Editors and the American people for a con- sideration.” This view has the in- dorsement of the Syracuse Herald (independent), which insists Mr. Fall, at least, “cannot plead that the lease was advantageous in justification of his own peculiar relations with Mr. Doheny.” e *“It 18 not too much to say,” asserts the Cincinnat! Timee Star (republi- can), “that Doheny’s testimony car- rles the most startling suggestion of graft in a high place In American publio life since Belknap, Secretary of ‘War under Grant, was driven out of office” Inoldentally, the Lynchburg News (democratic) feels the Presi- dent to date has “confused the lssue,” and argues “It is all nonsense to say President Coolidge and his friends have been sufficiently energetic in this matter. It {s nonsense to say that he is performing his full duty as long 28 two members of his cabinet are under suspicion in this very relation —Secretary Denby for not being properly alert in preventing the leas- ing of naval reserve ofl districts and Attorney General Daugherty, whose reputation Is such that he is evidently deemed an unfit person to take charge of the prosecution of the rascals and rascalities involved in the oil scan- dal” Exception to this contention is voloed by the Springfield Union (re- publican), which feels that the Presi- dent “hasmade it plain that he wishes no one shielded for any party, political or other reason. The exploitation of this affair for politcal reasons is not what the country demands It de- mands rather a cleaning out of every trace of official corruption in connec- tion with it, whatever the effect on individuals or parties regarding these ofl reserves” Emphasising this partioular conten- tion, the Seattle Times (republican) insists “should the Investigation dis- cloge gullt on the part of A. B. Fall, former Secretary of the Interior, he should answer to the law. The coun- try wants all the facts. Of one thing the American people can be sure, and that is the administration will take stucco | Opposes Bridge Plan. Writer Proposes Substitute Step for Virginia. ‘To the Editor of The Star: In The Sunday Star I noticed an | editorial regarding a proposed bridge ;across the Potomac river at either i Whites Ferry or Edwards Ferry, {leading in from Montgomery county, Md., to Loudoun county, Va., with the object of connecting the Valley of Virginia with Washington. Having had more or less experience !In the past eight or ten years in road | bullding, I feel I have a right to at !least express an opinion on the sub- Sect. It the people of the valley of Vir- ginia desire to be brought in close contact with the Capltal of the na- .tion the most logical direct and fn- expensive route would be over the old pike from Winchester to Wash- {Ington, as alluded to fn vour edi- | torfal. o better foundation can be laid, The state has already taken over a { few scattering miles of this long dis- | tance, but there is still left miles— i maybe not impassable, but somewhat | discreditable to the state—which has {a magnificent past and glorious pres- | ent and holding out untold possibili- | ties for future wenerations. Her peo- ple should therefore at least keep up With the progress of time. 1 have the misfortune of being { president of two good road associa- tlons, one from Washington 1o Dranesville via Langlev, and the other from Dranesville {0 Leesburg, I both chartered under the laws of the !state of Virginfa. The section from | Washington to Dranesville fs an wb- | solutely good road all the year round, | regardless of critie: with the ex- | cevtion of one mile Ly the state, the surface of which has I been worn wway. It is true this roud {18 narrow and in some places crooked, { but it meets with the approval of all jexcepting the men whose financial as- sistance” was lacking when it was changed from the worst road in the world (in this I do not limit it to any sectlon) to an oil-bound, up-to-the- minute macadam road. The section from Dranesville to Leesburg ~was never comfortably traversable by automobile until a company of which I am also president resurfaced it about ten years ago. A few progressive citizens of Virginia and Washington put their good money into this movement, not by the pur- 1 chase of honds, but simply common stock. They have pot recelved a Denny return upon their nvestment, 48 every cent from the toll gates h. 8 been put back in repairs. This s | tion 18 not an oil-hound macadam, it Is true, but it is a hard surface twelye months in the year, made and kept so by private funds, and thereby transe Iiormud from an impassable, seldom } traveled roadbed of the one-hundred. years-ugo type to a good road, over Which one can comfortably travel, What the state of Virginia should do instead of considering the building of a bridge across the Potomac to conn the Valley of Virginia with the natio: Capital through another state is to take over at once this old ke from Washe ington to Wincl eSter, remove the toll | Bates and connect with the valley plke, Sihich has already been acquired by the A bill has been introduced in the Vir- |ginla legislature for thiy purposs, but |the chances are that some energetic { member of the Virginia house of dele- gates will get consideration for a rosd teading from nowhere, with Its destina- tion just as remote, and thereby again ave’ out the rehabilitation of a first- | class roadbed from the nation's Capital [ Lo the fertlle flelds of the Valley of Vir- !ginia_and the health-giv: e i Eiving breezes of ave little patience with a commu- inity which hesitates fo assiat, or op- Pposes a good roads movement, nor does any action of the people meet my ane { probation when it votes down a bond i i A bond issu | a state’s high portant to the i the borrowing Improvement of stem is just as im- volfare of ehie state as of money by a live and progressive merchant is for his tem- | pora extension_or for the anticipated growth of his business and | the natural demand of the community in ! which he lives and business competition becomes evident. My main object fn this article is to originally built | | | Q. Just where Is the ‘Teapot Dome oll flela?—A. B. A. It is an extension of the Salt Creek oil fleld and is about forty miles north of Casper, Wyo. Q. How many Ford gars wers sold in Europe last year’—a. M. K. A. During 1923, there were 07,460 Ford cars and 37,876 Ford trucks sold in Europe. Q. What I8 the value of the toys [prolluctd in Japan?—G. P. A. In 1923 Japan produced $17,600,- 000 worth of toys. Of this amount, $12,500,000 worth werc exported. Q. How many i flitary* cemeteries many sol- diers in each?—E. A. The cemeterial branch of the War Department says that following lare the American cemeteries in : Europe that will be permanent. The figures given are the approximate number of men buried in {tory | (Alsne,), 2, Suresnes at Paris, 1,- ; Meuse Argonne (Romagne-aous- Montfaucon), 13,969; Somme at Bon ,825; Olse-Alsne (Seringes-at-Neslcs, 6,028; St. Mihiel at Thieucourt, 4,141} Brookwood in England near London, 435; Flanders Field at Waereghem, Belgium, 362 Q. How many children contract tuberculosis through cow's milk?— H. 8., ir. A. The milk from cows infected with tuberculosis has been gstimated by authorities to cause at least 10 per cent of all the tuberculosis in tldren. Q. Can English walnut be grafted on American walnut trees?—C. O'B. A. The Department of Agriculture suys that English walnut can be }@rafted on cither black walnut or white walnut, but is usually grafted on the black walnut. Q. Why is Calvary 50 named?—A. C. A. “Calvaria” is the Latin equiva- lent for Golgotha, meaning a bare skull. The name was miven to a rock or prominence shaped to give the semblance of & skull. “Calvary” is the English derivative of “Cal- varia.” Q. By what namo was L'Aiglon family?—S. S. V A. His relatives called Him Franz {in ‘the days when he lived at { Schonbrunn. Q. Who szid *“I have oftentimes been driven to my kn when I had {no place cise to go"?—C. L. A. Abraham Lincoln said “T have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that |1 had nowhere else to go. My own { wisdom and that of all about me Iseemed insuflicient for that day.” Q. What is a gnu?—D. G A. This antmal, found in the heart ot Africa, has a head like an ox, the body and flowing tail of & horse, and the limbs of an antelope. i { | BY THE MARQUISE DE FONTENOY. Young Don Alfonso and Don Rafael { Figueroa, who arrived the other day !in the United States from Madrid and {are staying In New York, pending the jcompletion of the arrangements for {the elder of the two to connect him- self with one of the great concerns of Wall street in order to learn Ameri- lcan methods of business, while the { younger plans to enter Harvard, are {the sons of the Duke of Tovar, for- | mer governor of Madrid, and nephews ach ceme- | Aisne-Marne at Belledau Wood | known to menibers of the Hapsburg | | A NSWERS TO QUESTIONS l BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN - Q. How large & city is Rangoon?-- | 1 | A. Rangoon, Burma, has a popul { tlon of ubout’ 346,00 . 2 Q. What is the deri word “violoncello” ?—D. R, A. The word is a reduced form of violone which was the great medieval double-bass viol. Vicloncello s the diminutive, not of violin, but of violone Q. When was the first fork brought to dmerica?—K. E. - A. In 1633 the first fork was brought to this country. It was in leather case, with a bodkin and knife The owner was Gov. John Winthrop. Q. Is vermiliio to the United A. This name species of the | 14 indigenou. i ion of thr 1 | on_wood —F. E ocarpu and the A in the United }.Q. How high sez Jevel is the Delaware, Water Gap?—W., F. W. A. A geological survey says that the mountalns at the Delaware Water Gap are 1,500 and 1,620 fect high. The rives 15 290 feet above rea level at the gap. The Department of Agricuitur he frult of the Japan not_polsonous though {t rong flavor, {t car be used Best r ;mu"ll with | @ Are the nat —E. E J A, Negroe cent of the populat Q. Was Catl wife of Ienry —A. V. A. When verv voung, Catharine il ViIL, m Parr was married to Edward Bor tough, After his death she married Lord Latimer. Ho dled shortly before her marriage to Henry VIIL Aft the death of the king she mada fourth marriag ' Q. T wish to address a letter to a | minister whose first name I have fo | gotten. Should I say Rev. Mr. Jon —E. T. T. | A. It is considered proper to ad | dress | lea 2ev. Jones where the Christian cr _burean ever Depart Q. Has the ! been included i | ment?>—. L. A. The tweather burcau was ibranch of the War Department until 11891, when it was transferred to the | newly organized Department of Agr: | culture. Let The Star Injormation Burea answer yout questions. LAddress The Star Information Burcay, 1220 North Capitol street. The only charge for thiy service cents in gtamps fo return postage. n | . o |Young Aristocrats of Spain Come to Get. American Training |eral, who, having once taste sweets of absolute power, shows marked unwillingness to relinquish it, or to follow the example of his fellow dictator, Mussolint, in Italy i restoring parliamentary governmer: and working with t! tter's co tutional co-operation and support. * Darnzige ke app L1 as portending evil regardy in biras are shaking | their heads dolefully over the arrivil on the scene of the silk tailed winter thrush known In all that part of Ev cert | of Count Romanones, repeatedly pre- i A {mier and the acknowledged chieftain ) TO0® B¢ "the bird of dicaster’ Tt of the liberal party in Spain, The ORIV Occasionally tha e show, if I can, the folly it would be in my fudgment for the state of Virginia to try to reach the nation's Capital | 1 | through Maryland rather than to bulld its roads within its own borders as out- lined abo The state needs better roads and tl business necessities of the a right to demand them. ! ROBERT N. HARPER. {Upholds Mr. Marshall’s ! Views of Supreme Court To the Editor of The Star: son H. Ralston's criticism of former Vice President Marshall's views on the proposition to change the power of a majority of the Supreme Court to an- nul legislation shows with much greater force why his own views should not be allowed to go umchallenged if we would | important question. Mr. Marshall is evidently right in his contention that the majority ehould rule, the exceptions in the Constitution to the contrary notwithstanding. Thomas Jefferson, a pretty good authority on the science of civil government, be- { lleved “absolute acquiescence in the de- cisions of the majority, the vital princi- ple of republics, from which thers is no appeal but to force, the vital prin- ciple and immedlate parent of despot- ism,” and “the law of the mafority is the’ natural law of every society of men.” Mr. Ralston I8 in doubt whether the proposed change can be made by legislation. Why he should have any doubt on this point It is impossible to determine. The Constitution express! rovides that ‘the Supreme Court sh: ve appellate jurisdiction, both as to Iaw and fact, with such exceptionseand | under such regulations as the Congress {shall make.” The exceptions and regu- lations governing the appellate jurisdic- | tion of the Supreme Court are provided |in_ section 25 of the' judiclary”act of 789. Does Mr. Ralston know of any reason why this section could not be Tepealed | or ‘modifled if considered essential to {the public_good? It was modified in 1868, and Chief Justice Chase, deliver- ! ing the opinlon of the court, sald: “The | first question necessarily is_that of ju- i risdiction; for if the act of.March, 1868, i takes away the jurisdiction defined by | the act of February, 1367, it is useless, !if not improper, to enter’into any dis. cussion of other guestions. ¢ ¢ : What then Is the effect of the repealing {act upon the case before us, ‘e can- { not doubt as to this. Without jurisdic- | tion the court cannot proceed at all in any cause. Jurisdiction Is the power to declare the iaw, and when it ceases to iexist, the only function remsining to ithe court is that of announcing the {fact and dismissing the cause. And [this s not less clear upon authority | than upon principl - PO PIHOMAS F. MONOHAN. Yet the Baltimore Sun (democratic) | whatever steps are necesary to pro- | insists “President Coolidge's midnight message suggests that his hand was forced by the thickly gathering storm. The great mistake of his administra- tion was made at the outset in per- mitting his friends to make him an itect the people.” And the Newark News (independent), summing up what seems to bo the average editorial view, holds “it {s President Coolldge’s misfortune to have acquired a miser- able politcal legacy. He has become Seventy Held Right Age for Retirement active candldate for the presidential | executor of & politoal estate with a | To the Editor of The Star; succession. In doing this he tied his hands and lost his independence to a considerable extent. . Perhaps his midnight message to the country on & subject which Involves the homor of the government will permit him to geon kr the ground lost by his Initial m! 0. ‘The Duluth Herald (lndtmdmf‘) in turn, insists “Teapot Dome is bo! ing and the mcent it sends forth is not pleasant,” while the St. Paul Dispatch (Independent) has “no doubt the case Is now one for the courts. Mr. Fall should not be brought alone into that court. Mr, Doheny and Mr. Sinclair should go with him. If gullty the peniténtiary for all three.” But after all, it is not Teapot Dome only that 4s involved, the Milwaukee Journal (independent) points out, be- cause “the public should not lose sight of the fact that all of the ofl reserves sel aside for the future emergency use of the Navy have been ned to commercial exploitation.” In News _ feeis o G KA answered an Severnment betreyed the governmeay ) great many liabilities. He will need all the Puritan New England there may be left in him to clean up the of the oll scandals and carry the houseclesning he prome The Coolidge Ides. From the Topeka (Kaasas) Oupital. picture of the house, with the smoke curling out of How friend Stearns happened to hit on that symbol no- body has explained, but is there any- thing more suggestive of the old days| own request regardless of age. its ohimney. The letter of John R. Weathers, pub- | lished in The Star of January 28, is ex- actly right and expresses the sentiments of a large majority of retired govern- ment employes. There appears to be s organized effort on the part of high- salaried clerks to tncrease thelr retired pay &t the expense of lower-salaried Il which 1d be grossly unjust. They seveive the IArger saries and. san best afford to contribute to the retire- ment fund. Another proposition to which I most seriously object is that after thirty years' service clerks’ may retire at their This of economy and simplioity than the] proposition, .I_believe, would seriously little red schoolhouse? It asymbolizes the Coolidge idea as well as anything. cripple every department of the govern- ment service because of the large num- ber of the very best clerks in the service retiring. ‘The morale of the body of government employes would not keep one man in the service if he could be retired at per annum at sixty years of age. mm!'u:nwmm- £ DAvIS voung fellows are heirs to great | wealth and to a number of ducal and he |other titles which will come to them | dation. Deople have | poth grom thelr father and from their | the €arly summer of 1914 and there imother’s family, and enjoy the par- {ticular good will of King Alfonso, [since their father the duke, and thelr funcle Count Romanoncs, have alway: been his most intimate personal friends. | 'The Figueroas are very rich, having {long been identified with the tobacco An easy and simple analysis of Jack- | Monopoly, also controliing the lead- | | ing Spanish steamship lines and, to a great extent, dominating the mining iindustries of the kingdom, in the peninsula itself and in the Spanish zone of Morocco. They own most of the land around Malaga, and Count { Romanones, who, in addition to hav- iing been premier, has been repeatedly ! minister of iforeign affairs and presi- |dent of the cortes, owns the princi- inherited from his father, the late {Marquis of Villamajor, and is the i finest four-in-hand whip in the coun- itry. Indeed, it was while learning how to drive a four-in-hand as a mere boy that he upset the coach and | fractured his leg so badly that he has walked with a limp ever since. P He is the leading figure of the Spanish turf and, with the co-opera~ {tion of the king, has done everything {in his power to 4nterest his country- imen In horse racing as a substitute i for the former national sport of bull- ! fighting, just In the same way that { his brother, the Duke of Tovar, father {of the two young hidalgos now In { New York, has gone to no end of ex- !pense In fostering foot ball and the 1 boy scout movement. The latter owes |its inception and growth in Spain {to the duke, whose sons, now here, Iwere among the original boy scouts, among whom they learned the advan- | tages of democracy, since they found | themselves under thie command of one {of the voung officers of the organiza- | tion_who was no other than the son {of the principal hall porter of their i father's Madrilene palace in the Calle | Monte Esquinza. The duke has also ! been extremely generous in furnish- {ing the necessary funds for the foun- dation and Initial expenses of the thousands of foot ball clubs which are to be found everywhere in the peninsula and in the contests, of which the public seems to take much interest and to develop much more ex- citement than in the bull fights. The Duke of Tovar's palace at Madrid is familiar to every lover of art, thanks to its wonderful collection of 0ld masters. It is particularly rich in the works of Velasquez, Lopez and Goya. Whereas Count Romanones is \an advanced liberal of the most er {lightened and progressive order, am was the principal champion of t. | pro-entente policy of Spain during the | great war, his brother, the Duke of Tovar, affects socialism, He is the author of a book entitled “Social Studles,” fn which he expounds his ideas, which are to the effect that the king is far better quaiified to come to) an understanding with the social- ist party and to fulflll its aspirations than a republic. Both the duke and his brother, Count Romanones, regard the present state of affairs in ‘Spain with mingled sentiments. For while they admit that, through the dictatorate of Gen. Primo _de Rivera a number of sorely needed reforms have ybeen effected and potsonous abuses abollsi:ed, which, owing to political partisanship, it would have been impossible to’ ac- complish through purely constitu- tional and legislative methods, they i sary and urgent work has been com- pleted the general and his military assoclates should relinquish their alis solutist rule and permit the restora- tion of parllamentary governraent and strictly constitutional methods as the only way of averting a revolution and civil war. Indeed, both the oount and the duke have made strong appeal e s hold that now' that this very neces- | { apparition, which is always follo | by war, pestilence, famine o It has mot been scen st l'are records of the asr i its appearance in 1512, i Napoleon sustained the erushing defe | of his Grande ‘Armee, and t for the time being the Polish i for recovery of their national inde- I'pendence. What ‘the silk tailed thrush is to the people of the ancient city of Danzig, the raven is to the house of | Hapsburg. Shakespeare repeatedly re- fers to this somber-hued bird ae for- boding misfortune, and it has always been a bird of particularly il omen | to the former reigning house of the dual empire. Two days before tho Enpress Elizabeth was murdered in reach intelligent conclusions on this |pal racing stable in Spain, which he ; Geneva in 1898, @ raven had, while | fiying, passed her, touched her hair | with one of its wings as she was alking with her Greek reader, a oung Anglo-Greek of the mame of Herkey, In the gardens of the hotel at Montreux at the other end of the Lake Leman, where she spent the last few weeks of her life. The incident mado a deep fmpres- sion upon her and upon her attend- ants. For they knew the popular superstitions connecting the raven with misfortune to the Hapsburgs and were aware that the empress | made the role of the raven in the hls- i tory of the dynasty the theme of & ! singularly tragic and beautiful poem, | not dreaming probably at the timns {that her own assassination would be | foretold to her forty-eight hours be- ! fore it actually took place by one of the coal black birds. P On the last occasion that Empercr | Maximiltan visited his favorite pal | aco of Miramar mnear Trieste: befors sailing for Mexico, where he was 19 lose his life on the plain of Queretatay | he as well as his consort, the now | demented and octogenarian ex-Ems | press Charlotte of Mexico, were pers sistently followed in their final walk | through the garden by a raven which | they endeavored in vain to drive | aw: Crown Prince Rudolph wig i stated to have had a premonition o | his fate, when on the day before hig | trip to _the shooting lodge at Meyers | 1ing, where he met his shocking deati |a hige raven persisted in perching | on the windowsill of his bedroom ol | the Hofburg, defying all attempts 10 rive it away. b4 I ocks of ravens made thelr aps pearance over the gloomy fortress bf Imutz on the day in 1848 when ol iperor Ferdinand sole mly abdicates throna to his nephew, the entir ] then in_a state During the 4 eék Franeis Joseph's fatal at the end of 1916, big flights of ravens secmed t0 foregather from all parts of Ger~ many in the trees of the park of the suburban _palace at_ Schoenbrunn, where he lay dying, Never in living memory had they been seen In such immense numbers, and their criss {exercised a most depressing influence iapen the moribund ruler and upon n his entourage. Again they made their appearance at Schoenbrunn when his nephew and successor, Em- peror Charles, lay dying in exile and in the most straitened circumstances at Madeira in 1920. The association of the ravem for the Hapsburg Is said to date from the time of Count Rudolph of Hapsburg, founder of -the dynasty, who, having Jost his way in @ storm in the moun- hunting the chamois, wis large and in- ens on » aarrow ledge of which they seemed to be determined to precipitate him down nto the depths of the valley thou- sands of feet below. They are said to have especially assailed his head nd his face in their efforts to force him to shield himself with his hands and thus relinguish his hold upon the wfl h 11 b4 1 &;_nv‘ufi nging tQ.