Evening Star Newspaper, June 29, 1924, Page 38

| THE EVENING STAR, \ ‘With Scnday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. SUNDAY.... The Evening Star Newspaper Compsny Businers Offte; 11th St. vante Ave. i s B Earopean Office: 16 Regent 8t., Condon. Bagland. The Evesing Star, with tbe Sunduy morming cdition, i fecred by carriers within (he €ity at centy mouth: Su ders may be 5000, Collection is made by carriers end of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginis. Daily and Sunday..1 yr., $8.40; 1 mo., Daily only. . .1 ::00 1 mo., Bunday only. 1yr, $2.40} 1 mo., All Other States. Tally only Sunday only Membser of tis Associated Press. The Asworiated Press is exclanively entitied to the ‘uee for republication of all mews dis- Pitehes credited to it or nt Gtherwise credited n this peper and sito the loeal news pud lithed heretn. Al rights of publication of special dispatenes Rereln are aiso reserved. No.ninating Speeches. Those who feel that the English lan- guage is lacking in variety had but to listen-in by radio during the last few days while the Democratic con- vention has been getting under way to be convinced to the contrary. First came the two “keynote” speeches—for really each chairman struck a “key- note,” though technically the tempo- rary is supposed to be more of a "key- noter” than the permanent—and then came a bewildering burst of nominat- ing and seconding oratory. More es- pecially in the discourses of Thursday and Friday as the candidates were named was the language revealed in ell its force and beauty of expression. The “keynotes” are usually pitched in tones of denunciation. The sins of the opposition must be scored in all their iniquity. The language then is drawn upon for invective and con- demnation. When it comes time to urge the claims of favorite sons words must be found to win adherents and supporters. They must be words of praise. The sins of the opposition are taken for granted. The sterling quali- ties of the man who is to lead on to victory over the fofces of wickedness muet be painted in the most vivid calors. Pérhaps those who listened-in dur- ing these past few days did not ac- quire many new words. Probably most of the parts of speech they heard were ld acquaintances. But the combina- tions were worth hearing. Such glow- ing combinations! Every human virtue was described, with every variant. A ecore of supermen were portrayed. Not one fault was to be found with eny of them. The plain positive would not suffice. Comparatives were too miid. Only superiatives would fit such a situation. In that part of the President-making process which consists of lauding the asplrants for party nomination it is ihe unwritten law that nobody shall be “knocked.” The nominator-orator muet ignore all others but his own man. 1t is also the height of good form never to mention him by name until the last moment. He must be spproached as a mystery, revealed as a secret. His qualities must be de- scribed as those of the ideal. “Our man,” “our candidate” are the usual means of camouflage. It is supposed to make for a dramatic climax to hold back the namie until the concluding words, then to spring it as a surprise. This method has become traditional. Tt has its uses. It serves as a match t6 the train of demonstration. Down in the arena sit the ranks of delegates, Everybody is primed for the explosion. The delegates of the “home state” have their banners and flags and noise- making implements all ready for use when those syllables are sounded. Woe hetide a nominating orator who looses the magic name prematurely. He is caught in the middle of his epeech by A tide of sound that sweeps him off the platform. Of course, everybody is supposed all along to know “who's who." Could anybody fail to recognize the paragon of the virtues who is being so minutely described? Yet when there are so many paragons es theré have been during these few days & listéner—es- pecially a listener-in—might be for- given for wondering now and then un- tf1 that din-causing name sounds forth. Do nominating speeches really nom- inate, by virtue of their eloquence? It may seriously be doubted. William Jennings Bryan nominated himself in 1596 by a speech on the party's plat- form. James A, Garleld nominated himself in 1880 by his speech putting John Shefman in nomination. Few zolden tongues have ever put the ob- jeets of their eloquence into candi- dacy. Brilliant as are the phrases of Thaise, the votes are cast finally for the men who are the most “available,” and frequently it has happened that the man chosen has been most plainly présented—or perhaps has never been presented at all. ———————e ‘There are moments when a Russian Hstening in from a distance might mis- take the proceedings at Madison Square Garden for a soviet convention at its best go-as-you-please pace. Our Shrinking Continent. ““The trip across the continent,” said LNut. Russell Maughan at San Fran- ¢isco, the other day, .“was made to awaken the people of this nation to the fact that-their country is very, very small, and that it is badly in need of protection in the sky.” Lisut. Maughan had just finished his won. dertul flight from coast to coast in twenty-two hours. He had, indeed, demonstrated that the continent had shrunk, in a little more than a year, g0, we'were wont to regard ourselves im America as guite secure from for- cign invasion, ledause of the distance from a conceivable enemy. But the great war proved it there is no such thing & immurity" Whrough distance. On the sea, under the sea and through the air may come a Jwvastating force. Airmen of several natA)ns are at pres- ent engaged in world-ervircling fiights. The globe itself is shrin ing. It appears that the nly modern plarie suitable for air com bat now on the Pacific coast is that in which Maughan made his reeord-breaking flight. One fighting plane fbr a coast line of many hundred miles! ,And that one about to be sped back toythe: east on its return trip! In @ recently printed “news picture” was shown a view of a “portion” of the fleet of airplanes built by Musso- lini for Italy’s defense. There were more than 250 machines within the field of vision, and, as stated, these were only a part of the new fleet. The United States is far behind other na- tions in this respeet. It has mot de- veloped its aerial arm at al} since the close of the war, but has retrograded. It has a wonderfully capable persormel of flying men, and some good ma- chines, but the proportion of planes-to area is pitifully small. With a shrinking continent, and relatively a shrinking' airplane equip- ment, this country may well be anx- fous in the face of the demonstration just given of the ease with which an invading force ean reach-an American cbjective. Lieut. Maughan's flight should stimulate thought.and action should follow. Basiness Manager for Schools. Under the new law which recently passed Congress adjusting the salaries of the public school teachers, provision is made for the position of business manager of the school system. This has been long needed and often urged, and now that it has been written into the statutes and the post is created there is a distinct feeling of gratifica- tion. The public schools of the District have grown into a large institution, with a personnel of many thousands. The business of keeping the buildings properly suppiied with working ma- terials is in itself a large task. The expenditures run into big sums. The “paper work” of the business adminis- tration is heavy. For years it has been performed in the main by the super- intendent of schools, and as the work has increased his attention has been distracted in growing measure from the educational administrative work. Now he will be freed from this task, to the undoubted advantage of the school system. Few realize what a comprehensive and extensive institution the schools have become, Scores of buildings, hun- dreds of teachers and thousands of pupils are involved. Supplies to the value of many thousands of dollars are required. Repairs, done under the direction of the school authorities, though directly performed by the Dis- trict government agencies, call for su- pervision. Contracts, entered into by the municipal officials, must be in ac- cordance with the detailed approval of the school organization. The present condition of the schools is, while more favorable than récent- 1y, still unsuited to the best work of public education. There is congestion in practically every grade, and par- ticularly in the high schools. More buildings and more teachers are neces- sary. A comprehensive buflding project is required. Provision to that end by act of Congress is now hoped for as a measure of relief from conditions that hamper the schools at every turn. ———— The speschmaking discloses the fact THE SUNDAY tezuma’ and urge the Marine Band to play “Semper Fidelis.” But Wash- ington Barracks and Fort Myer are Iso with us and Forts Washington and Hunt a cannon-shot away. We ‘would like to see such a fight as we saw last year. Gridiron battles be- 'tween teams of mere civilians are in- .nocent and gentle compared with a Dattle between soldiers and marines, and if we could see a battle between naarines and sailors it would certainly he worth the price. We would dearly lii<e to have the soldiers and marines ‘wi'th us next season, and Washington will cheer them both till its throat grows faint. Thirstys Animals. iin one day two persons thought encugh of animals to write letters to The Star. One of these writers ask:s that the way to horse watering troughs be mnot blocked by automo- "I am sure,” sxys the writer, “that: no person would intentionally deprine & work animal of water dur- ing these extremely warm Ways, and have nio doubt that all who read this article will in the future leave a space iat the drinking troughs for our dumb friends who ‘have no voice to speak their woe.” It is not likely that many persons, perplexed to find parking places, will, it they find one &t a horse trough, refrain from using-it. Of course they should not tlock access to the trough. "The traffic rules forbid such parking. T'he trough is there for the benefit of a thirsty horse and the space about the trough should not be used by a car. There are not mearly so many horses in ‘Washington. as there were, but those that are left should be shown kindness andsthe water trough belongs to them. ‘The same writer- says: ‘“And once mare I must beg that the checkrein be loosened.” It really seems that old times have came back when read- ers of The Star write of horses and checkreins. Years ago there was much discussion of the subject and there-was general hostility to the cus- tom of many drivers in ‘‘checking” a horse so that he would hold his head high and put on a more toppy appearance. We used to have dis- cussion of the custom of putting “blinders” or “blinkers” -on the bridle of a horse and of the barbarity of “docking” horses' tails. If there is a driver in Washington who checks his horse's head too high or "“over- checks” him he should be admonished to exercise the gentle quality of mercy. Our surviving horses have enough hardship in the streets with- out hawing their heads«checked in an unnatural position. The other humane swriter to The Star ssys: “Much of’the cruelty to animals is not intentlonal, but is the resuit of thoughtlessness. One of the greatest cruelties this time of the year is neglect 1o give animals plenty of clear, cold water to drifk.” Do- mestic animals in some families lead a hard life, but it would surely seem fair play to dumb creatures to see that they have all the drinking water they want. —_—e——————— From time to time it seems absolute- 1y necessary for Samuel Gompers to arise and remind politicians that he may have a little to say about how or- ganized labor is going to vote. . —————————— The New York convention has many able and distinguished men in attend- snce, but it has not the floor manage- ment of the recent Cleveland gather- ing. — e No “Klan"” parade is considered pos- sible in New York, owing to the over- that while we have no demagogues there are a few who cherish mild sub- conscious hopes of becoming such. e A very admirable bit of teamwork enabled Mr. Cox and Mr. Baker of Ohlo to bring each other to the atten- tion of a fickle and forgetful world. —_—————— Hospitable New York people regret that so many out-of-town visitors are too busy to find any interest in looking at the tall buildings. Army and Marines. ‘Washington and Baltimore are ri- vals for the honor of entertaining the annual Army-Marine foot ball game next December. The rivalry is neighborly and sharp. In & way, Bal- timore has “the edge” in this matter. ‘The Army teamn ig of the 3d Corpe Area, and the headquarters of that corps is Baltimore. Last year it was the right of the Marines of the east to name the fleld of battle, and they chose ‘Washington. The Marines showed a fine sense of discrimination and picked the best. This year it is the right of the commander of the 3d Corps to pick the ground on which Leather- neck and Doughboy shall fight it out. ‘Washington agrees that Baltimore is a city of some size and merit. It belleves that it is = hospitable city, and that in its population are many brave men and beautiful women. But we believe that it Baltimore were in the District of Columbia by the side of the Potomac and the Eastern Branch instead of forty miles away beside the Patapsco and Jones Falls it would even be a greater city than it is. We admire Baltimore's Wash- ington Monument and the 8Shot Tower, beautiful Druid Hill Park, its busy harbor, its moving picture houses and its hospitals. But Wash- ington also has bright spots. Here the Goddess of Liberty—or, if you insist, the Statueé of Freedom—over- looks Bast Washington. A Washing- ton Monument of some pretension to height casts its shadow on green lawns, when the sun shines, and everywhere about the city great) by some four hours. Not by miles, but by hours, as compared with the 1923 continuous fiight of Macready and Kelly. Just so it had shrunk before the 1923 flight from the measure of a railroad crossing, and as it had pre- vious to-that shrunk from the old plainawagon crossing. :-What Maughan did a few days ago others can do, and probably in shorter time. The continent will doubtiess continue to shrink, by smaller and ler percentages, perhaps, but ap Dreeiabdly and, in terms of national de- fense, materially. Once upon a time, not so very long Americans in bronze or marble stand guard. The lilies in our parks are fair, We have men as brave, or as full of nerve, as those of Brother Baltimore, and we have women who have won the hearts of men, and can do it again if they wish. We entertained the warriors last year, and the soldiers of the land and sea said it was some entertainment. ‘Quantico is near us, and we have had the Marine Barracks and the Navy Yard for more than a hundred years, and there was perhaps & shade of preference for the strong And snappy fellows who sing “The Halls of Mon- crowding and the premium demanded STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, JUNE 29, 1924 _PART How Memories of Great Men BY THOMAS R. MARSHALL. Former Vice Preaideat of the United States. Enough good advice has been poured into the reservoir of American thought this month to wipe out, If the flood of counsel had ‘a proper distributing system, all crime, all vice, all wrong, all injustice, all hatred, malice and Il will. I am thinking not of the quadren- nial political conventfons, but the thousands of commencements held annually in June by our educational institutions, ranging from big univer- sities to high schools in emall towns, even to eighth-grade classes. The good which has flowed from these oc- casions should suffice to make Amer- lca what Eden was before the fall. The activities of the month which is the climax of the school year at which the best thought of the educa- tional world is advanced and ab- sorbed reminded us once again that it is impossible for us to get away from the contemplation of greatness. It would be futile for us to seek to disabuse our minds of the bellef that character and conduct are formed largely, if not wholly, through con- templation of the lives and services of men who are credited with the greatness of the republic. No one would dispute or desire to change the effect which these men have produced upon the lives of America. What they said and what they did properly remain an inspiration for the youth of the land. Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln are mot among the im- mortals, they are immortal. They live and breathe and move in Ameri- ca today as evidenced by the inti- macy of their presence in university, college, academy and school. Their influence is even greater, perhaps, than when they walked 1n visible form among men. * k% % He would be foolish, if not a bad man, who would seek to lessen the impulse which the lives of these men by hotels for sheets and pillowcases. ——————— . ‘When a convention has lasted four or five days band concerts and walk- arounds are likely to be regarded only as time-consumers. This Sunday in Manhattan political circles is a day of earnest if not strict- ly prayerful meditation. —e— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Rules and Regulations. The Golden Rule is claiming An unlimited respect; ‘When projects wé are framing It is treated with neglect. ‘We heed the regulations That to trafi¢ may pertain. From bolsterous emonstrations ‘We will prudently refrain. Ite merits have been tested Ever since we went to school; Yet no one gets arrested ‘When he breaks the Golden Rule. By Way of Variety. “When our delegates first met they all shook hands.” “Yes,” replied Senator Sorghum. “Later on they shook their fists. Mechanism. How often & project that promises glee ‘With dire dissppointment is loaded. We planned a steam roller which turned out to be An airship whose gas tank expioded. Jud Tunkins says one of the things to be admired about politics is that it encourages ‘the bands to play some- thing besides jazz. Incomplete Elucidation. Tenaciously the custom clings And leaves new troubles on our hands; This arguing about the things That no one fully understands. Utilizing thé Professions. ““The political affairs of the country should not be turned over entirely to ‘“There should be all Kkjnds of people. For awhile it looked as if our delega- tion was going to need doctors and trained nurses.” Arts of Speech. Let those who will display their skill In oratoric freedom. ‘Wise men don't rave. They try to sve Thelr words until they need ‘em. “De bugiest man I knows,” said Uncle Eben, “is one dat's allus stirrin’ up troudle for other people to settle.” £ave good citizenship. He is a dis- tinctly bad man who tries to place smirch upon these white characters. Too much of the good of the past can never be instilled into the mind of the present. It is well, therefore, to play up strong the virtues of th past and to avold reference to i weaknesses unless reference is ne. essary to point a warning. We cal not bear too much of the glorious characters of our history of whom we have heard so much again th June. They ars of the utmost value in the formation of character and fixation of conduct. Sometimes I fear that my mental fads are obsessions which cloud my ludgment. At any rate, I am unable to free my mind of the idea that out of very best things, unless we beware, we are in danger of losing the best Eliminating the spiritual side of man and the effect which the unseen foroes of God have upon him, no one dares say with certainty what course of conduct, what training, what lines of education are best for the making of man. What moves one man's_soul may passanother by untouched. What appeals to me may repel you. What one may think essential may be wholly negligible to another. ¥or most people, for aught I know, char- acter building ocomes from a oon- templation of departed greatness. Yet it seems to me that unless this is supplemented by something more there is an element of danger in it Out of this great good, In accordance with my obsession, there is a likeli- hood of some evil arising. I may ex- plain it as the attitude of mind which induces too many parents to admon- 18h their children: “Don’t do as I do; do as T tall yous' This never-ending contamplation of greatnegs and this constant attempt té fix the mind of the young upon the sun-crowned men of America may result in a lack of Help Mold Characteg of Youth to what is mistakenly thought to be great love is tracemble today a shrinking upon the part of parents becauss of a feeling of their own incapacity from attempting to bulld up the character of their young. The impulse of the father and mother s to give the children a better chance in iife than they had themselves, & better chance to know more and to be more. * ¥ % % A personal reference at this point, 1 trust, will not be misunderstood. I look into my own life and reveal what I see solely to stir up the con- sciences of fathers and mothers who are anxious to give their children better chances than they themseives had. My parents were no different from those of today. Among the plo- neers of the middle west, they had slight opportunities for accumulating cultural knowledge. No sacrifice was 00 great upon their part to give me what they called & better chance in lite. Statesmen of the past, scholars and great divines sat, unsecn guests, at our table every day. Patriotism, learning and theology were never- endingly drummed into my ears and {llustrated by the oharacter of some outstanding man in history. Yet I come {n these latter years to con- template whether there was not some- thing else beside all this greatness and glory that had to do with fixing my opinfons, regardless of how Eo parental responsibility, which’in turn. may produce a feeling in the mind of the young that it 18 not very im- portant what the father and mother think and say. Not to little love but ever ghort therefrom my conduct may have been. I7. T have been fairly patriotic 1 really wonder whether the attribute was de- veloped out of the lives of great patriots, or whether it came to me from an in- cident of my own bovhood days. My father was a country doctor and a Doug- las Democrat, yet when Sumter was fired upon three uncles entered the Union army. My father tendered him- self as a surgeon, and was rejected be- cause of & bad ankle brought about by what was commonly known as white swelling. During the long conflict he never entered a fee for his services against any member of a eoldier's fam- ily, and through the remainder of his professional career, which lasted until ago and sickness drove him out of ac- tive practice, he never accepted a cent from the widow or orphan child of any Union soldier whom he treated. I find myself wondering whether this concrete example of patri did not do more toward impressing on my mind the idea of loyalty to my country than the ab- stract theories and high-sounding phrases of all the great men who were Qquoted at our table. * % % x Although my father had, for his day, & good professional education, he had but slight opportunity of literary train- ing. One of the marvels at which I never cease to wonder was his making a public address. He would stumble along in awkward Hoosier dialect for perhaps fifteen minutes, and then strike his gait, and speak the rest of the time in Eng- lish as pure as Addison ever wrote. He had availed himself of the traveling li- brary installed by the Owens family of Indiana and read all the great authors of English. His mind was eaturated with their language, and in the hour of need it would come to his lips. Out of his experience 1 learned that any one, however hampered by fate and handi- capped by fortune he may be, may put himself in possession of the great facts of history and learn how to use them in- telligentiy. There can be no objection to the at- tempt of parents to give their children every chance in life; indeed. it is lauda- ble, but parents should not be too hum- ble. “After all, what they say to their children and do in their presence may leave more of an impress than the aphorisms drawn from the books. I can pick out at any commencement the young man who is safe for the future. He is the graduate who is proud of his father and mother, no how poor and shrinking from public sase they may be. These aro those pareats who have retained the respect of their children by supplementing knowledge of the world's greatnesa with private con- secration to character buflding. (Coprright, 1924, by Twenty-first Ceatury Press.) THE RADIO AND DEAFNESS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN Radio is brightening the lives of many persons who are hard of hear- ing. New radio experiments are has- tening progress in apparatus for over- coming deafness. The prospects there are really remarkable. But some of the stories about deaf people being cured by radio are fairy tales, beauti- tul but untrue. These and othér unadorned facts about the/ misunderstood subjéct of radio and hearing are related and ex- plained by Miss Josephine Timber- lake, who is thd superintendent of the Volta Bureau, which Alexander Graham Bell founded “for the In- crease and diffusion of knowledge re- lating to the deat.” More than once the report has been circulated that some individual, deat and mute from birth, picked up radlo ear phones and was enchanted ‘to find that he could underatand eve: ord of & speech. This is not plausible. To a person who had never learned the sounds of English words, the radio’s mes it heard, wouid be totally unintelligible. Other equally exaggerated stories are also current "the effact of radio upon & deaf per- son {s neither mysterious nor super- natural. It is not unlike the effect of the telephone. Every one knows some person who is hard of hearing, but who oan converse comfortably over a telephone. The telephone sends the message concentrated and direct to the ear. Then, too, the receiver is usually pressed against the bone in front or back of the ear, and this causes the message to be carried by what is known as bone conduction. Instead of travells from the outer ear, through the middle ear passage to the inner ear, gound vibrations are caught by one of the head -bones and clnfitd direct to the Inner ear. In consequence, if the person’s trouble is ir the middle ear, whers so many hearing difficulties’ are located, he may be able to use a telephone with a success that surprises his friends. Radio apparatus is even more ac- commodating than ~ the telephone. The individual who is hard of hearin generally requires a rather and delicate set. Whether a deaf per. son chn hear over & radio set de- nds on the extent and chatacter of 8 [ e85, Routcy speaking, if the apparatus in his head is suficent- 1y un-luud “h:.::: the highly am- ounds, E mw.“&; the possibility of radio im- proving his hearing in ordinary c¢on- Versation, thts is not very likely. It may ' be ' that practice 'in hearin voices over the radio makes the de person, who is apt to avold conversa. tion, mpre sucoessful in ocatching the ‘words of his friends. It may be, too, that the radio apparatus stimulates the ear to & slightly greater sensitive- ness., Loud Speaker Was Tes Loud. Several clubs for the hard of hear- ing have installed radio sets and re- port that they are extremely popular. At first one club tried using a loud speaker, but when the apparatus was adjusted so that all 6f the members could hear, the noiss was deafening. It upset business on three floors of bullding. Ear phones proved thore sAtistagiory, Each member ad- Jusiad ibis owa, for yolime, and on ts, when phones Efln‘h, the hgtd sets are divided by those who can hear with one phone. Indirect benefits of radio will be far u1°" lm’:hmn: :otl.hn gl‘l‘l:n‘i:‘: the pleagure they get from . ap- tus is vi much like the port- melmflc :lz’v!cel which many deaf people wear to amplify sound for them. These devices consist of a bat- tery, transmitter and one or two re- ceivers. Improvements in radio ap- paratus have consequently been ap- plied to portable hearing devices, and several electric companies have be- come interested in the problem of Porfecting elactric devices for the eat. A millionaire, who was determined to make science overcome his deaf- ness, engaged the services of one of thesé electric companies. The com- pany’s men studied the millionaire's case of deafness and his house. They experimented carefully. At last they established a battery about the size of a cupboard in the residence.. This battery was connected with each room in_the house. Now the deaf million- aire puts on head phones in any room and he ¢an catch any eound in it. One of the triumphs of this piece of research 1s that the ear phone for each ear is cohstructed to suit the ocondlition of deafness in that ear. This means that hearing mn the two ears is equalized. The deaf person whose hearing is botter in one ear than in the other s not able to distinguish the directions from which sounds come. If some one knocks at a door the deaf person has to guess which door is to be opened. If an automo- bile horn sounds on the street he has to look all around to see whence the warning comes. The millionaire's re- cefving apparatus corrects this in- equality of hearing, ust as eyeglasses correct inequality of vision. Cost May Be Reduced. This man spent thousands of dol- lars to achieve & semblance of normal hearing. Some day portable electric devices, which will be as efficient as the expensive battery and wiring, may be within reach of every one of the thousands who are hard of hear- ing. The apparatus is being devel- oped first. Then will come the prob- lem of making it cheap enough to be practical. At the recent convention of organi- zations for the hard of hearing, held ml :.nl-b city, the assembly hall was wired by the co = St nmy.‘ i urtesy of thres elec. osat from the yDes nected at éach seat in the hall. Successful as the best of the new apparatus appears to be, it is not yet considered commercially per- fected. For one thing, the phones make a slightly audible noise. When they were tried in one church for the benefit of several deaf members, other persons sitting nearby were annoyed. > Another fine of experimental work which goes hand in hand with the improvement of hearing devices s the development of an audiomete: This is & machine to measure hearing. Models have already been produced which measure the amount of hehr- ing possessed by an individual in _the difterent ranges of tome. Some deaf people can hear low tones but not high tones. Others cannot catch the middle tones of sa ordinary conver- e hi 4 at this means to a deaf person is explained by Wafren Pond, o+ ratlo fan who is also president’ of the w York League for the Hard of Hearing. He says, “I have heard oft and on, all my life, parts of the Melody in F by Rubinstein, but never the entire composition, until it came to me, over the wire, played as a cello solo, the deep bass notes of the instrument sounding like & beauti- ful pipe -organ—the glorious com- pleteness of it audiometer whan perfected will enable the ear specialist to test hearing with as much accuracy of 9 Capital Sidelights BY WILL P. KENNEDY. Anent the plight of the farmer as émphasised in Congress, the failure of the MoNary-Haugen bill and the fight to have relief for the agricul- tural interests included in the big party piatform pledges, we are re- minded by Representative W. C. Sal- mon of Tennessee that “‘from andlent times down to the present those who have tilled the soil and suppiied the necessities of life have been of sec- ondary consideration in the affairs of national councils. He quotes the thirty-eighth chapter of Ecclesiasticus from the Apocrypha, written 290 B.C,, as follows: How shall he bscome wise that holdeth the plow— That driveth oxen— And wlose discourse is of the stock of bulls— He will set his heart upon turn- ing his furrow: And his wakefulness hie heifars their fodder. All those put their trust in their hands. Without these shall not a dity be inhabited, And men shall not sojourn or walk up and down therein. But theysshall not be sought for the council of the people And in the assembly they shall not mount high. They shall not sit of the judge. And they shall not understand the covenant of the judgment. Neither shall they declare instruc- tion and judgment, And where parabies are they shall not be found. But they will maintain the fabrio of the world; And in _the handiwork craft is their prayer. * * % x Apropos of the same fight for the farmers, Representative Otis Wingo of Arkansas quotes from a joint reso- lution that passed to establish a commission to represent the United States government in the observance of the 150th anniversary of the bat- tle of Lexington and Concord. where “the embattied farmer stood.” He predicts that just where they stand will be evident in November. *x % % How thick is an inch board? It would seem that there should be an immediate and 100 per cent correot answerage to this question. Yet so gfeat an authority as Secretary Hoover, an engineer of world-wide renown, testifies that it took months of conferences and compromises to determine the correct answer. Secre- tary Hoover explains: “The Department of Commerce, at the request of the lumber industry, held a number of conferences to dis- cusa the rules of the road in that inqustry and its relations to other industries and the common good. The problem was to establish more general and more constructive stand- ards of practice, ethics and waste elimination. “In the toll of formulating these standards there arose a question of how thick one-inch boards should be. It sounds easy. But it quickly de- veloped to be a question whether it should be one Inch thick when it was green, after it was dried, when planed on one side or when planed on both sides. “It devgloped nqt only that a choice had to be made along those four al- ternatives, but also that this choice had to be based upon a proper con- sideratfon of the conservation of our forests, on one hand, and the provi- slon of a material of such structural character as to constitute a square deal to the consumer, on the other. “It also developed 'that there were thirty-two different thicknesses of a one-inch board in current use and that some minority of manufacturers in the drive of unfair competition were gradually thinning the board until Tt threatened to become paper. “There also had to be developed the exact differences which threw a board 1into four or five diflerent grades, and there had to be a deter- mination of standard trade names for different species of wood. The point was that an accurate standard had to be determined before discrimination as to fair dealing and public service could be gauged. That occasion was the foundation of ethics in one-inch boards. These conferences estab- lished some eighty questions involv- ing the whole technology of lumber and comprising for the first time a definlté series of national standard: * % x x is to give in the seat of their Some years in the United States House of Representatives is the greatest education our country now affords to an American citizen, ac- cording to the late Représentative Bd- ward C. Little of Kansas, himself a citizen of the world's heart. Those who assembled around the altars of Harvard and Yale and other famous American schools enjoyed all the advantages that come with the development of American history and American citizenship, he points out. Others who trod the halls of Ox- ford or drank beer on the tables of Heidelberg or Vienna or Paris got a glimpse of everything in Europe worth while. In the Mosque ot El- hazar, at Calro, thoss of us who love mankind saw the youth of the whole Mohammedan world on exhibition at its studies and drank deep of the mysteries of that ancient abode of learning. Some have improved their resouroes and_polished their attainments by weeks In Japan or China, among the places where the world was rn. They sipped of the wisdom of Con- fucius and learned with astonishment of the 300-year-old statecraft and Ppoetry of Ieayasu. ‘When we came here to Congress, says Representative Little, wo knew that there were kings before Aga- mmnon and generals from whom Cae- sar and Alexander learned the art of war. By the time that the avérage man came to the hall of the House of Representatives he was on rea- sonably familiar terms with the char- acters and ocapacities of the great millionaire princes who so dominate the public and private life of this country. He may have known the youth of his native land showing his best on the field of battle for his country on the other side of the world. He may, perhaps, have lived in the palaces of the most ancient country of the Medi- terranean east and spent many hours &t the foot of the Sphinx, still keep- ing her own counsel. At any rate, he had known men ih all walks of ilfe and in all measures of victory and defeat. But never un- til he came here—to Congress—and recelved the diploma of several years' experience among his odlle: es could he possibly have sounded all the depths that are now in the souls and hearts of his countrymen, sent to represent them here with all the powers of this mighty republic Howevyer. provincial his feelings may have been, however narrow his views, he learned here the higher values of human nature, a and more generous understanding and oompre- hension of its attributes and a kindlier sympathy with all its ambitions. detail as the eye specialist can test vision.' ‘The speclalist who will pre« scribe an ear device for each in- dividual who visits him is not likely to appear for some time to- come, however. Before his day portable ectric devices must be perfected s0 t cheap instruments can bé made to suit the individual's hearing dif- culties. 1v1s often said that hearing device are not in common usé among deaf persons Ddeécause such devices are conspicuous. But they are scarcely more conspicuous than the ubiquitous tortoise shell eyeglasses. - When por- are as suc- tabl l:fl“ de e . . onsaful lasese 10 rewsoring Derson (0 norosat thare ls 1itie Quces tion that they will be popular MEN AND AFFAIRS BY ROBERT T. SMALL It.is strange how men supposed to be endowed with political astute- ness will cling to the old idea that making a ot of noise at a national political eonvention is a sure way to nominate a man for President of the United States. The fact that all of the noise has been confined this year to the Democratio party does not mean by any chance that this strateglo folly is pecullar to the Democracy. The Republicans In the past have been guilty of the same sort of monsense. In 1920 at Chicago the opposing Lowden and Wood sup- porters staged demonstrations as bad as any of those perpetrated this year in New York. About the only effect the demon- strations have is to anger the op- posing delegates. They delay the proceedings of a convention, tire out the persons who have official business to transact and do absolutely noth- ing in the way of influencing the vote. They may entertain the gal- leries and provide employment for a fow hard-working bandsmen and cheer leaders, but otherwise they are stale, flat and unprofitable. There is not the slightest doubt but that the rowdy demonstrations on Thursday by the_advoeates of Gov. Al 8mith of New York did more harm than good to the man they were in- tended to honor. Very few delegates took part in the Smith parades. They were “outside” jobs, pure and simple, and they so badly wrecked an entire day's session of the convention as to exasperate and alienate many dele- gates who otherwise might have been favorable to the New York executive. Some one made the very pertinent remark that Al Smith did not need that sort of thing to convince the delegates of his popularity in his home town. * x % % The demonstration for former Gov. Cox on Friday was an entirely dif- ferent affair. It was confined almost wholly to the delegates on the floor, virtually all of whom stood upon their chairs, waved flags and sang the Dattle song of 1920 which declared “We'll nominate Cox or know the rea- son why” It was a demonstration which cheered to the echo when the band played “Should Old Ac- quaintance Be Forgot?’ It was marked with an enthusiasm that took account of the dignity which is sup- posed to attach to a national nomi- nating convention. There was no disposition on the part of the Ohio delegates to believe that all the delegates who took part in the demonstration intended to vote for Gov. Cox. They knew it was a tribute to the leader of four years ago, whose fidelity to the cause had been 80 eloquently portrayed by New- ton_D. Baker, the former Secretary of War. But these Ohioans have be- lieved from the first that with the balloting long drawn out there was a hope that the convention might turn again to the one who stood firm to the principles of Woodrow Wilson when many others were turning their faces away from the stricken man in the White House. * x % % A move was made at New York this past week to organize the “sur- vivors” of the Cox tour of 1920. In this instance the word “sarvivors" was used in its literal sense, for there were times during the campaign when thers arose the serious ques- tion of how body and soul were to be kept together. Fifty Years Ago In The Star Fifty years ago the project of im- proving ' the Capitel grounds and changing the Improvement of the '"::e "‘::"S - I oon e western Capitol Grounds. 4. was start- ed. The Star of June 22, 1874, saye: “The plan for the improvement of the Caplitol grounds, submitted by Fred Law Olmstead of the Central Park, New York, and for which pro- viston is made in the sundry civil appropriation bill to the extent of $200,000, is that on the east side the trees shall be thinned out so as to have open spaces or vistas, leaving the two clumps of trees that now stand om either side of the Capitol as they are. The surface of the ground will scarcely need to be re- duced, and if reduced at ull the trees CAf De left mainly as they are. Mr. Morrill says then thers will be con- siderable of an open space of oval shape on either side, and on the farther or eastern portion of the grounds the trees will have to be removed, because the grade of the ground will have to be reduced six feet. Then, fn the front, the 1dea of Mr. Olmstead 18 that the present plat- form of terrace is t00 Narrow to sup- part the magnificent structure above it, that it has too much the appear- ance df a cheap fortification and th base is too thin for the large build- ing_to stand upon. He _proposes, therefore, to extend the terrace about twenty feet and to support it by granite wall, surmounted by slight decoration, and that in the end there shall be far more aoceptable staitways on the west side, something in better proportion to the magnifi- and equal to those on the east side. * ’ * % THe last territorial assembly of the District under the form of gov: ernment abolished “Feather Duster by the act of 1874 = s became known in Legislature.” o.q) nistory as the “feather duster Legislature.” In The Star of June 23, in the course of a comment upon m protest adopted by that body against the abollshment of the elective franchise and the sub- stitution of a commissionership ov- ernment is the following, which ex- plains the origin of this designation: “It affords rather a sad commentary upon this eloquent appeal {n behaif of representative government sent up to Congress by this body (the only elective body under fhe lats form of government), that in adjourning sine die yesterday some of the members seemed to have carried away almost everything portable about the cham- ber—desks, chairs, clocks, water co0l- ers, mirrors, Inkstands, washstand: towels, combs, brushes, soap, an even the second-hand toothbrushe: One member, in his solieitude to pre- sérve some memento of this ast rep- resentative body and bulwark of the rmle of the District, took away a arge feather duster and, not to be ntatious about it, hé concealed the same upon his person with con- siderable ingenuity, by passing the handle down a trouser lag &nd but- toning the feather end enugly under his yest. * * % In The Star of Jume 24, 1874, is printed the sequel to this episede, as follows Legislative Loot “And so it seems the removal of vas Is Retarned. rious articles of furniture from the hall of delegates by .members and others was all a joke. But Gov. Shepherd and Maj. Richards, with an obtuseness that shows -a lack of appreciation of the finer kind of humor, were 8o far from laell{n the point oll Jh:. -m’ruud‘:an that they eompell e prompt re- turn of ’lhg,_walu carried off in furniture wagons in this facetious way, and, according to our report, All political slogans were forgot- ten in that primitive cry, r"\Vh:n‘ot;' We eat?™ The tour was made at the time that Mayor McSwiney was hun- er-striking himself (o death in a ritish jail, and so the Cox train ba- came known to those aboard it as “the McSwiney special” The mem- bers of the McSwiney Club, however, it should be stated, were not volun- teers in the matter of starvation They protested loud and long to th Democratic national committee. Sena- tor Pat Harrison, temporary chair man of the convention this year, was ||’Qlfl of the speakers’ bureau four Years ago and outlined the Cox tours He was pleaded with to send out = dining car_or to provide stops lonz though at “eating stations” to permit vivors to partake of f i not raiment. v © =k The national committee did have money enough to provide its candidate with a special train such as the Republicans placed at the dis- posal of Senator Harding every time he ventured away from the old front porch. There was a private car for the candidate—for which he helped to pay—and ordinary Pullman cars for the newspaper men and stenoz. raphers—for _which the newspaper men pald. These three wandering cars were pulled hither and thither by the railroads of the country very much as they pleased. Sometime: they were attached to regular train- More often they were run ‘special’ S0 as not to clutter up the regular trains. But at no time was provision ever made for feeding the poor travelers in the Pullmans. This was especially true during nearly two weeks spent on the jinsc of the Santa Fe system. Once upo arriving in Pueblo the M Swiner saw the Santa Fe tables in the restaurant fairly groaning under - beautiful spread. They dived head first for the doors “Are you from No. 87" demanded the doorkeeper. “No." ‘we replied; “we ara fust traveling with a candidate for Pr ident of the United States.’ “Then you can’t come in here said_the ‘guardian of the groaninx boards; “this lunch for No. 3 passengers.” We didn‘t know where No. 5 wa coming from or where it was goinc but we would have gladly exchanged places with its passengers. The height of our ignominy was reached, however, on the New Yor: Central’ lines. Our cars were ton heavy to add to a regular passenger train in running from Syracuse to Buffalo one evening. = the railroad officials ran us “special” and, miracle of miracles, they provided a diner. We could smell the food cooking as we climbed aboard and mouths began to water. Two couriers were sent ahead 1o find out when the “eats” would be ready. They returned crestfallen. The dining car conductor wanted to know if we would guarantes seventy-five dinners. We gaid we were only abou® twenty and failing fast, but we would do our best to eat as many dinners as possible. He sald that unless we gave him the demanded guarantee he would not open the dining car doors. ‘And he didn’t. That car was hauled all the way, dinner was prepared, but no one would be served without pav ing for seventy-five dinners. Now it Is proposed to organize the “gurvivors.” Omly one member of the gallant crew is missing—faithful old Jim Faulkner of the Cincinnati En quirer, who died a year ago. The celebration is supposed to tah the natare of an all-day spread; the bill to go to Pat Harrison (Copyright. 1924} Heard and Seen Mount Vernon is the mecca of the thousands of sightseers who come here during the summer from ail parts of the land, Very few of them leave the National Capital without having vieited the tomb of Wash- ington. 1t is a safe guesw that not a one who sees Mount Vermon but goes way with increased love and resp for he memory of the great Amer ican who 80 safely guided his coun- try during its formative period There is something eternal about Mount Vernon. The rolling grven the shining river in its bend, the stately white mansion, the gardens. trees, the tomb, all combine to leave a lasting impression upon the visitor George Washington had no autc mobile, o® radlo, or electric lights but he did have all of the thing: that really make life worth whil~ and he had them most abundantl: 1t is impossible to visit Mount Verncn and not realize thls. ** One hot day last wesk the shrine down the Potomac was crowded with visitors. The long walk from the gate to the mansion houss made man~ breathless, so hot it was But all were {ntent upon visiting the tomb. The old colored man who ehows visitors the last resting place of the Father of His Country had his usual hard time in getting all the visitors to bare their heads as they stood before the tomb. Now, one would think the veriest school child would not have to bo reminded to do that in that place. but mot only children, but men, fin fellows, too, you can see that, often stand covered there. They just don't think, that’s all. One woman, wearing a cloak despit- the weather, stood Dext the ivy that covers the tomb. The vigilant old negro was onto his job. 2 are you domg?’ he asked. The woman stepped back, confused revealing _the fact that she had snipped off & slip of the ivy under cover of her claak. o “Why, 1 wasn't doing anything she said. *T was just trying to =et little souvenir." That's all. not * * Oh, what a fall was there, my coun- trymen! \ No, not the lady at Mount Vernon. But a tall, handsome gentleman whose , dally pufsuit is that of doorman at a big hotel. Attired In his splendid uniform. with plenty of gold braid. and a shining oap, gleaming also with gold, he dail makes an important figure at his hosen site. . o is broad of shoulder, long of g lox:, and has a face befitting a diplo- mat, with its kindly eyes and greal gray mustaches. It is not at all dift cult for the imaginative to see in him a general stepped out of some ro- ance. mOne who had thus idelliflze]': l!R' id doorman was seate e ::l::grznl of the hotel, when in*came an ordinary looking man, large © frame, but totally undistinguished He had on a derby hat—and he was the doorman! No doubt about that But what a fall,“what a fall! CHARLES E. TRACEWELL ——— e everything is replaced, with the ex- ception of a chalr or two, a silver fce pitoher and the hairbrushes and p. And, yes—that feather duster is still missing. But we have no doubt it will be fortheoming yet. The member who, In & rollicking spirit of fun, carried it away concealed in his pantaloon's leg will very likely bring It back in the same style of exquisite humor. Probably the soan has gone where it will do the most 00d_and, it returned at all. it will §o°with depletion. The soporific weather excuses the use of the soap. The taking away of the clock can be defended, too, with cheerful mirth, on the ground that clocks were made | to gb. And =0 through the list, onlv for the unpleasant turn to the joke occasioned by the compulsory return of the articles. It is not 50 very much of a joke, you See, when, after taking off heavy furniture this swel- tering weather, you have to return it pér mandate of the'polite, and cartage both ways.” p Ay .