Evening Star Newspaper, January 26, 1925, Page 6

ITHE EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. BIONDAY......January 26, 1925 -~ YrHEODORE W. NOYES. ...Editor i ¥The Evening Busing Ofce, 11th St. and Pennsylvs N York Ofice: 110 East 42nd Chicago O “Tow ar Hulhfln‘:. Furopean Ofice : 10 Regent St London, England. Star Newspaper Company Ave, The Evening Star, with the Sunday morning edition, In dellvered by carriers within the city ‘at 60 cents per month: daily only, 45 cents per month; Sun 20 cents’ per month, Orders may_be v mail or tele- phone Matn 5000. Collection fs made by car- Tiers at the end of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance, Maryland and Virginia. Datly and Sunday..1yr., $8.40; 1 mo,, 700 Dally only........1yr, $6.00; 1 mo,, 500 Sunday only.......1yr, $2.40; 1 mo, 20c All Other States. Dafly and Sunday.1 yr., $10.00; 1 mo, 85¢ Datly onl i Sunday ociated Press, is exclustyely entitled tion of all news dis- not otherwl Member of th The Assoclated P o the use for rv atches credited to in this paper and lished “hereln. ~ All speclal dispatches b credited local news pub of publication of are also reserved Not a Suicide Job. In a farewell speech to newspaper correspondents stationed at the White House C. Bascom Slemp, secretary to the Presjdent, took occasion to dis- credit a popular belief that the duties of the presidential office are necessar- ily such as to break down the health of the incumbent. In support of hie denial that election to the presidency mmust be regarded as a “form of sui- cide,” Secretary Slemp cited the fact that President Coolidge has gained eight pounds in weight since succeed- ing to the office and continues in splendid health. We often hear it said that what is one man's meat is another man's pol- son, and this may well be true of the presidential duties; that the effect of these duties upon the President’s health depends upon the tempera.| ment of the man. It is a common- place in positions of less responsibility that one man will .succumb and an- other flourish under equal burdens. Much depends upon the way the man goes about his tasks. If he can do his day's work and when the day is done put his problems aside and en- ®ege in wholesome recreation, he will last much longer than if he carries his work problems with him when he tries to play. President Coolidge, according to Becretary Slemp, “trains for the work of his office as a prizefighter trains for a fight.” He has his meals at reg- ular hours, keeps regular hours at his desk, is regular in his exercise and recreation and gets plenty of sleep. And, though Mr. Slemp does not so specity, it is probable that after do- ing each task to the best of his ability he refuses to worry over the manner of its doing. Given a sound body to start with, any man by following such a program can do an enormous amount of work without impairment of his health. Mr. Slemp does not exaggerate the popular belief that the presidency has become a killing job. Prevalence of this belief is due to the undoubted fact that President Wilson sacrificed his health to the great tasks he had undertaken, and that President Hard- ing died in office because his resist- ance to disease had been weakened by overwork. With two such object les- sons before him President Coolidge is wise to “train like a prizefighter” and to insist upon regularity in his hours of relaxation. The public will rejoice that by such methods he is not only preserving his health but thriving upon the herculean labor he has been called upon to perform. ——— Instead of being terrified by the phenomena of nature, humanity now rejoices in the announcement that so far as facilities for observation are ncerned the recent eclipse proved one of the most s ful that ever mappened. i The wonderful results to be attained by logic are again illustrated by the manner in which the recent world war was in some way a. great favor .o the U. 8. A, A New Iowa Idea. The old saying that there is nothing new under the sun is considerably dis- credited by the demand of the Iowa Republican central committes that Smith W. Brookhart be denied the seat in the United States Senate to which he was elected last November. Certainly the demand raises a new issue In American politics, and one that is full to the brim of interesting possibilities. Demand that Senator Brookh: debarred is not based thet he did not receive a requis umber of legal votes, but it is charged that he was guilty of “fraud and deceit” in that he obtained the senatorial nomination as a Republican and continued to pose as a Republican ‘until the time for filing independent candidacies had expired and until it was no longer possible for him to be removed from the Republican ticket,” whersupon he repudiated the national ndidates and platform of the Repub- lican party and supported the candi- dacles of La Follette and Wheeler and the platform upon which they stood. “Members of the Republican party were thereby deprived of having a candidate for United States Senator,” the Iowa commlittes asserts. Senator Brookhart already has been “punished” for his disaffection by the Senate Republican caucus, which read him out of the party. But to under- take to read him out of the Senate for the same offense is something very different. 'The Constitution takes no account of political parties or of party nominations. Party loyalty is no- where made a test of fitness far office. 1t is true the Constitution makes the Senate the sole judge of the election and quallfication of its members, but never in the past has it been proposed to unseat a Senator on the ground that he was disqualified by disloyalty o his perty, or that such disloyalty constituted fraud of a character to in- on 2 | that the $600,000 item will be in the once started making party loyalty a test of fitness for membership in that body, one cannot help but wonder where the experiment would end. Would, for instance, refusal of & candidate for the Senate to support a nominee for his party for justice of the peace constitute & disqualifylng breach of party loyalty? Absurd, you say. Well, then, would refusal to sup- port his party’s nominee for governor constitute such a breach? Or refusal to support the candidate ‘n his dis- trict for the House of Representatives? Unless the loyalty test was to be con- fined to presidential candidates it would be difficult to find a stopping place down the scale of consequential office. And how about a Senator who, after attaining office, refused to support the President upon some vital question of national policy which had been made an issue in the campaign and had in. fluenced the casting of votes by which they both had been elected? Unless he had declared himself in advance upen that issue would not he, too, be | chargeable with “fraud and deceit”? How many Senators are there of either party who would be willing to have the Iowa theory of party discipline carried to its logical conclusion? Con- tents of the box Pandora opened would seem tame and commonplace com- pared with the things which would be likely to escape once the Senate under- took to comply with the Towa demand that Senator Brookhart be denied the eat to which Iowa voters elected him. ————— Chancellor Luther’s Program. There is reassurance for the world in the declaration of policy by Dr. Hans Luther, the German chancellor, published elsewhere in today's Star. The whole external and internal policy of his government, he says, will be based upon payment of reparations THE EVENING that sun spots wers seen, and specu- lation ‘as to them has not ended. Theories have been put forward, some have been cast out and others are still debated. It is written that the eclipse of July 8, 1842, “marked the beginning of serious and accurate attention to the complex physical features of total solar eclipses.”” Theres were descrip- tions of thecorona as a “white lumin- osity,” and of the red flames and “pro- tuberances” mountainous in height, cloudllke and eruptive. Astronomers have been using photography in con- nection with eclipse’observations since 1860, and although the eclipse of Janu- ary 24 was the nineteenth, having a total phase somewhere on the earth since 1900, no eclipse was so much photographed as that of Saturday morning. Sixty eclipses of the sun having a total phase will take .place between now and the year 1999, and no doubt astronomers will take more and better photographs of many of themgthan ‘of the late eclipse. Astronomers and related scientists have learned @ great deal about the sun. They know its mean distance from us is 93,000,000 miles; that its diameter is 866,400 miles, 100 times the diameter of the earth and 1,000,000 times the volume of the earth. They know that the highest temperature earth men can create in any furnace is about 12,000 degrees, and they com- pute from the sun heat reaching the earth that the temperature at the sur- face of the sun must be about 1,000, 000 degrees, and that the temperature probably increases in the depths of the solar globs to a heat we cannot think of. They ses by the mys. terjous sun spots, irregular, grouped. scattered, variable and shifting, that the sun turns on {ts axis, as the earth and the other planets do, and at speed four times that of the earth. They compute that the force of gravity on under the Dawes plan and the main- taining of the friendliest possible re- lations with all nations, excluding none. He rejoices that the United States has elected to satisty its claims against Germany through participa- tlon in the Dawes plan annuities rather than by seeking a separate set- tlement, as he belicves it will inspire confidence in German stability and willingness to pay. Dr. Luther denies emphatically that his government is either Chauvinistic or reactionary. He vows fealty to the constitution of 1919 agd a republican form of government, &and answers im- perialistic outputtings by, some of his nationalistic confreres by citing that |the cabinet is on record before the Reichstag with a pledge to stick to the present form of state. In no other way, he makes it plain, could the goy- ernment maintain itself in office. The Luther statement ought to have a salutary effect both within and without Germany. The greatest need today of Europe and of the world is a period of tranquillity and of heal- ing adjustments at the points of con- tact between nations. It may be that the Dawes plan will not work, that it will not be productive of the repara- tions payments it is expected to pro- duce, but there is nothing else in sight which gives any promise of a satis- factory settlement, and it ought at least to be given a chance to function without unnecessary handicaps. Two things are primarily essential to the working of the Dawes plan. One is belief outside that Germany intends honestly to try to meet the require- ments of the program. The other is a settled understanding in Germany that the Dawes plan offers the easi- est way out for the German people and that if this breaks down it will be worse instead of better for them. To both these primary essentials the Luther statement contributes mate- rially. — g Money for Parks. There is a good prospect that Capi- tal park development may go forward, not at the rate contemplated when Congress authorized creation of the National Capital Park Commission, but at a rate which under pressing need for economy may be considered fairly satisfactory by persons who be- lieve that park extension should be in | keeping with the growth of the Cupi- tal. Tt is reported that the $600,000 recommended by the Budget Bureau | for use by the National Capital Park | Commission for park and playground extension will be included in the Dis- trict appropriation bill when it is re- ported to the House. That item was dropped from the bill in the course of hearings by the District of Co- lumbia appropriations subcommittee, though the act creating the park commission contemplated an an- nual appropriation of approximately $1,100,000 for expenditure by the commission. Representations , and appeals by influential men supporting the National Capital Park Commis sion persuaded the chairman of the committee on appropriations to re- open hearings, and the prospect is bill when it goes before the House. There is the hope that in discussion of this matter before Congress the full sum of $1,100,000 will be voted for next year's work in Capital park de- velopment. e e Loss of the Isle of Pines treaty draft may suggest calling in a business doc- tor and a card index expert. o Reports of the Eclipse, Informal reports from astronomers who observed the eclipse have a tone of enthuslasm. Weather was good over a wide area and plans for photo- graphing the sun during all phases of its eclipse were carried out. There were many columns in newspapers de- scriptive of the “glory of the celestial spectacle,” geyser-like flames that spurted 1,700,000 miles from the sun, or two sun diameters, and there was much’ description of the corona. The men of science have developed their photographic plates, and study of the observations of the late eclipse are going on in @ systematic way. It is ligely that man’'s knowledge of the sun may be enlarged. The sun has been a subject of speculation since man came upon the earth, and anclent sages studied it so well that they learned the movements of the earth and some other planets about it. the sun is 28 times greater than on the earth, and that the normal earth man if he could bs translated to the sun would weigh 2 tons. With the spectroscope the astronomers and physicists find in the sun’s atmos- phere the vapor of iron and metals so refractory that we can only reduce them to a semifluld state. They do not yet tell us how the sun generates its heat, how it keeps up through hun- dreds of millions of years the work of generating it, and whether it is cooling as-other bodies cool when they lose heat. Scientific men have achieved won- derful things, and they will press on in the quest of knowledge. This quest will be taken up by younger men as their seniors pass on, and the juniors will start with the treasure of be- queathed knowledge. —————— Said Willlam Jennings Bryan: “The eclipse was like Democratic defeat. | The sun will shine again.” This cheery attitude is the more admirable when it is remembered that the eclipse last- ed only a few hours while the Demo- cratic obscuration must endure for four years, and maybe longer. ——————————— The Secretaryship of Agriculture does not eppeal to Mr. Herbert| Hoover. Mention of him may have | been only in deference to a custom of | regarding him as a good man for al- most any vacancy that may occur, if he could be spared from other duties. et Considering the frequency which the Russian government changes its ideas, Trotsky may con- gratulate himself on having lasted rather well. with ‘The opium habit has not of recent years had enough hold on the Chinese population either in Asia or America to make it too drowsy for warfare. ————— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON: Smoked Glass. . It is not ours to see the truth quite clearly, Its great eternal glars Would hurt our timid consciousness severely— Beyond what we could bear. Wo ses the truth.through mists of phrase and story. We smoke a glass with care. The sun's resplendent, cruel noon- tide glory Is more than we could bear. Desirable Influence. “Are you interested in cross-word puzzles?” “Very much,” answered Senator Sorghum. “I admire them. They tend to improve literary and conversational style. I have never yet seen a puzzle containing a word that was not fit to print.” Valued Error. When scandals fret the public mind, As scandals often do, It brings us great relief to find So much that {sn't trye. Jud Tunkins says opportunities are kind o' revengeful. A man who neg- lects them will find them neglecting him. The Rum Runner. ‘The skipper wrote it in his log. While seated on the prow; “I used to be an old sea dog; I am a rum hound now!” Subtle Procedure. “I understand Crimson Gulch has passed an ordinance forbidding any citizen to buy bootleg lquor from Snake Ridge.” “Yep,” answered Cactus Joe. “The Guich is their only market. If them Snake Ridgers have to drink their own stuff there won't be any of 'em left in six weeks. We're goin’ to put that there iniquitous village off the map, but we want to proceed lawful and strategic.” The Big Consideration. On the Fourth Day of Margh we will have to endure A blizzard that frolics so free— But we know that the country is safe and secure Whatever the climate may be. “I has heard de end of de world per- dicted mo’ dan 20 times,” said Uncle Eben, “and on each occasion de world simply seemed to_pick up an’ make validate his election. If the SenatelIt was through Gallleo’s telescopela fresh start.” STAR, WASHI) A colored man stood by a shady tree at the edge of a big, hot field. The boss was not in sigght. So the man settled down at the foot of the tree for a good snooze. Just then a white-wooled patriarch came along, a regular Uncle Remus of an old darky. He looked ‘at the-young man sprawled on the ground. “Motion yo'self, niggali, motion’ yo'self,” said the oid man, prodding the younger' with his foot. “Ef yo' ain't got nuthin’ to do make out like yo' has.'” Which was very good advice, not only for that colored man, but for most of us living in this world where nothing seems permanent but change, as Elbert Hubbard said. Even modern entertainment seems ruled by the gods of motion, those mysterfous and stringe gods that propel radio impulses at the rate of 163,000 miles a second, spin motion pictures 16 times a second before our eyes, untll we seem to see but one picture moving, and turn countless automobile wheels at assorted speeds over unknown miles each day. These modern gods are electricity, camera and gasoline. Speed is the first name of each of them. Those who fume now and then at our so-called “faze age” might do well to remember that not only Is the genius of our time ex- pressed in speed, but the very genlus of creation seems somehow based on tremendous motion, Those gods have & little, shy brother called electron, a fellow who vibrates faster than they all, hidden in his lair, the molecule. This shrinking electron “motions bimself,” to use the old darky's expressive way of putting it. That is why the world wags. ik Motion in anfmal life is best seem, perhaps, in a puppy. Now a puppy is a oute little critter which never stays still for a second. It runs here and.there, tumbles over its fellows, lies down only to jump up, jumps up only to sprawl itselt out again,. Only when the beneficent night comes does the puppy crawl close to its mother for @ rest: Most little things are/llke that, tao. The kitten is a bundle of animated fur, its whole being set in motion by & bit of string. Its bright eves take In everything and anvthing that moves. A healthy child fs motion incarnate. Some bables are in motion constantly when awake, their sieep serving to re- charge their motors of vitality, so that when they wake again they can bounce up and down in their bouncing device: and keep their arms—and sometimes their lungs—healthfully exercised. Growing & bit older, a healthy little girl or boy is on the run from morning to night, as any parent knows. The average American small boy of the ages from 9 to 12, say, is & very demon af vivacity. 5o full of “pep” s the average boy that he must be &onstantly talking or yelling as a normal procedure to accom- pany his incessant movement. Booth Tarkington, in *Lis immortal Penrod . gtories, bLas glven inimjtable plotures of the ceaseless activity of the small boy, plctures of such enduring truth, set forth In such splendid fashion, that they will continue to live forever in the world’s literature. If any one reading here has not read these storles let me advise him to possess himself of them at once, One of the small boy's favorite objects of motlon—and emotion—is property. Every small boy seems at heart sov thing of a bolshevik, with this differ- ence: His “motion” against property is purely impersonal. He simply is no longer taught respect for property. That Is something he will acquire when he owns property of his own. Like a socialist who calm down considerably in his_talk after he comes suddenly into the possessigh of wealth, the small boy when he becomes a man gets a tremendous grudge against the new WASHLP Senator Willlam E. Borah of Idaho, who specializes in the unusual, has onge ugain done the exceptional and the unexpected. He has just repaid, to the last nickel, the funds spent in his State last vear by the Re- publican senatorial campaign com- mittee to help ra-elect the chairman af the foreign relations committee to the Senate. Evérybody knows that actlon of that kind, in Borah's case, oconstitutes a real sacrifice. He has no fortune and no income outside of hig congressional salary. He travels in ' Washington street cars, when he doesn’t walk, because he can't afford an autemobile. A riding horse is his only known luxury. Borah period- jcally turns down seductive offers from metropolitan law firms to ao- cept a partnership that would guar- antes him 10 times his senatorial salary. He prefers to serve the State that has honored him so long. H* % %k ok Representative Hamllton Fish, jr., Republican, of New York has put his finger on the pulse of a situation clamoring for relief. He wants Con- gTess to ralse the, pay of cabinet officers from $12,000 to $17,600, which would at least put them on a salary level with Ambassadors. But even $17,500 1s a hopelessly small income for an executive chief who must shoulder the obligations that go with a portfolio under modern Washing- ton conditions. It would be interest~ ing to know how much Mr. and Mrs. Hughes. have run behind during the past four years in trying to keep up the social front that the foreign secretaryship of the richest power on earth calls for. Uncle Sam, of courss, allows no cabinet officer a penny for “representation” purposes. Repre- sentative Fish’s bill, introduced {n the House last week, aims at making at least some amends for a scandalous piece of national niggardlin * %k %k % Mrs. Medill McCormick, wife of the retiring senfor Senator from Illinots, will go. to Chicago in a.day or tws to be with her “buddie,” Mrs. Nicholas Longworth, when the stork calls upon “Princess Alice.! Ruth Hanna Mo- Cormick and Alice Roosevelt Long- worth have been comrades for nearly 30 vears. Thelir friendship is rooted in the intimacy that existed between their distinguished daddies, Mark Hanna and Theodore Roosevelt. The legend has grown up that between Hanna and “T. R” a flerce enniity ocasfonally at political loggerheads, immensely fond of each other. Hanna was direotly responsible for McKin- ley’s appointment of Roosevelt as Ass sistant Secretary of the Navy. * k *x * Bverybody associates “swank” with a British nobleman, and, if the noble« man happens to be a diplomat be- sides, then the popular theory.is that he's the limit in self-esteem and um< approachability. This observer called at the British embassy the other day to see Sir Esme Howard, John Bull's Ambassador in Washington. It was the shank of the afterngon. The visit was by appointment. It was ex- pected, on the writer's paft, to be formal. Sir Esme boynded into his office at the appointed minute, garbed about as_informally as can be im- agined. He wore gray flannel trou- sers, a coat of the same material, with the collar turned up and a'sport shirt wide open 4t the meck. The hair of his Britannlo majesty’s Envoy Extra~ ordinary was rumpled. He promptly explained matters. “Been at work on the hand-ball alley,” he said. Then be told how he keeps “fit” by almost daily turns at one of the best training exercises extant. When Sir Esme tHoward ‘was & secretary at the Brit- THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. MONDAY,” JANUARY 26, 1925. small boys who infest the neighborhood. But he should remember that he, him- self, was once a boy just like those young demons out_there playing base baH in the street. Just why they would prefer to play in the street, at fmmi- nent hazard to every window in the neighborhood, 18 unknown. ' There 15 a swell lot around the corner where they could throw @nd bat to thelr heéart's content. But do they go? Not on thelr Jite! They swarm on the sldewalk, pitch three inches from a window, catch fouls tipped off the bat a foot from a glase-front door, and send up “high flys" which just miss smash- ing the gas lamp into smithereens. Motion s responsible! The boys are “motloning” themselves, that is all. * ok ok X Scores of stenographers 1in -business life have learned how to “‘motion” themselves. That is, they go through all the motions of being busy, although all the time they may he working a cross- word puzzle half eoncealed in the small drawer of their typewriter table Plcture ‘a sceme in a busy depart- mental office: The boss of the room was exactly on timp. ' Several others, clerks, are In their seats. The wheels are about to grind. o They start. At 9:05 in floats Flosste, the beautiful stenographer-typist, to use the preclse but unpoetical name for her given in the Clvil Service Com- mission files. Flossle {s surely pretty—and knows it. She is all out of breath after her fatile effort to make her desk by the stroke of 9 o'clock. The touch of rouge she put on her cheecks is entirely superfluous. Her bair is a bit awry—but does Flossie immediately set to put it aright? Bless her heart, no! For she has |learned the valuable lesson of managing to look busy when she ain't. Now, naturally, a girl's ‘first thought 18 of her appearance. She tosses off her small hat, hangs up her coat, sees her hair needs ‘“fixing,” but proceeds straight to her desk. . Floss thumps up her typewriter with a bang, rattles open a drawer, drags out two sheets of paper and a plece of carbon paper. These she fixes together in proper order after taking her seat. Then she places them in the machine, gives the roller a twirl and looks around. Bhe fe all set for work, Flossie is! It is a grand and beautiful bluff, noth- ing more nor less, and even the boss knows it, but even he is impressed by it. In other words, the bluff works. Flossie knows how to “motion” herself. For now she procecds to get up letsurely, stroll by the mirror, fix he hair, casually get.a drihk at the cooler, and gently drift out of the office door. She will be back, in maybe 16 minutes— or a half hour—but all the time the paper will impressively give the ap- rance of work ot her typewriter, You bet Flossie knows how to motion self. * X % % When the division ~superintendent strolls into a schoolhouse, teachers wax enthusiastic, pupils nestle behind their books in tremendous absorption When_the big boss walks into an office, bookkeepers bend over their desks with feverish activity, clerks hustle here and there, typists clack away with renewed vigor. Probably they are.writing, “Now is the time for all good. men to come to the ald of their country,” but it makes no differ- n They are motioning themselves. Yes, we have all got the motionitis, and I am afraid we will never get over it. “To rest is to rust,” said the old maxim, and it is partly right, if not totally so. And yet, now and then, it is good to just sit and “do mnothing,” giving one’s self gver to contemplation in a world Where nothing seems to stand still or be at rest, not even the ver: existed. They were in fact, while oc- |. chair in, which we sit. GTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE ish embassy under James Bryce's am- bassadorship, a hand-ball court was installed It fell into disuse, but Howard has now put it in shape and uses it regularly. * ok ¥ % Louls D. Brandeis, associate justice of the United States Supfeme Court, has an ablding interest in the weal of his native Louisville, Ky. He has Just given the University of Loul: ville funds for founding a depart- mental library for study of fine arts and musle, Justice Brandels has started the llbrary with contributions from his own private art collection. Some time ago he gave the university a soclological library and funds for cataloguing, shelving and additions. One day, the justice says, he hopes to be able to lay the corner stone of a library of muslc at Louisville Unt- versity. * Kk A x ‘Washington hostesses have a griay- ance against the Coolidge economy program. It has resulted in cutting down the blue book of the diplomatic corps, known as the Diplomatic List, from a monthly to a semi-occasional issue. The last one {s dated No- vember, and nobody is sure just when its successor will be published. Some- body— the culprit {s supposed to be & thrift zealot in the Bureau of the Budget—dlscovered that if the little blue booklet were to come out, say, quarterly, {nstead of monthly, several hundred dollars a year might be saved to this needy land. So the great la- dies of the :Capital, and officials who do a lot of entertaining, too, have been deprived for three months of the up-to-date and authentic data about the corps which the Diplomatic List provides. The corps changes from week to week almost as suddenly as the weather, and the dinner-giving community . clalms to be correspond- ingly inconvenienced by the absence of the little guidebook. N * ok ok % One of pur great retired service men, Rear Admiral Willlam S, Sims of the Navy, has found something with which to occupy his time. He's become president of the Newport County (R. 1) Safety Council—an association for making .the world around Newport safe for pedestrian and vehicular democracy. Sims, though old enough for the retired list, is.the father of a quintet of very young children. That's why his Netw~ port couneil emphasizes the need for teaching youngsters.safety and accl- dent prevention as zealously as they're taught reading, writing and arithmetle, " (Copyright, 1925.) VITAL THEMES Germany’s New Monarch- ist Cabiriet. By Henry T. Allen, Whe Commanded the American Army onm the Rhine. upheld t i 2" Uhe Corman Hepublic. Gen. " Allen, who doubtless knows as much about German conditions any American, interprets the situation which brought him'to the head of the German state.) How did it happen that a cabinet dominated by Monarchists has come into power in Germany, and what is the outlook for the future? It is unfortunate that the long cabi- net crisis should have occurred at a time when the Dawes plan is being installed and when the Interallied board of military control was making its report. The announcement by the Council of Ambassadors that the Co- Jogne bridgehead would not be evacu- ated on the presumptive date of Janu- ary 10, due to the alleged non-fulfill- ment by Germany of the disarmament clauses of the Versailles treaty, caused a political sensation that was utilized by the right as a political weapon, though inwardly they desired to have the British remain on the Rhine until all the French and Belgian troops had left the Ruhr. Many Germans believe, however, that England will not surrender that exceptional trade base, Cologne, &s long as there are any chances of seeing it go Into the hands of any others of the war part- ners. The expiratipn of the terms of the Franco-German trade arrangement| established bY the treaty also had| effect in delaying the organization of the new government. The trade of Alsace-Lorraine with Germany ‘fs about thres times gs great as with France. Thé Nationallsts were not averse to ‘thwarting a new commer- cial agreement with France, pre- ferring a reversion to the pre-war tariff conditfons which they know would bring reséntment by the ‘re- covered territory” to the new sover- etgnty. i The Centrists or Clericals felt that the political maneuvers of Dr. Strese- mann were sacrificing the preroga- tives of their party, which had fur- nished Chancellor Wirth as well as Chancellor Marx. They did not wish to be either the left wing of a right government or the right wing of a left government. The exceptional political tact of President Ebert was sorely tested in the effort to have Chancellor Marx or his immediate predecessor form a suitable coalition government. Fail-| ing In this and in forming a business government, ha called upon his min- ister of finance, Hans Luther, possi- bly a non-partisan, but in any event sympathetio to the German People's party, to form a cabinet. Dr. Luther was largely responsible for stabiliz- ing the rentenmark. He wants the Dawes plan to have a fair trial, though believing that even its authors | in the end will recognize the neces- sity for radical modifications. The names of the ministers he has se- lected indicate the trend to the right. They show decided gain for the Na- tional and the People's party, with a corresponding loss for the left, particularly the Soctalists, who form the largest party in the Reichstag, but haye no representation in the cabinet. The Democrats have one representa- tive, the Clericals and non-partisans three, and the People'’s party and the Natfonals have the rest. The crists and its solution will not facilitate the removal of the difcul- ties that are yet to be met in the aftermath of war. Fortunately, the economlic restoration of Germany will be the dominating motive of the new government, (Copyright, 1920.) THE PUBLIC LIBRARY 8—Some Books About Europe in the Middle Ages. | Two great figures stand out of the dark ages, Charlemagne and King Al- fred. Besides the fascinating cotem- poraneous accounts of Finhard, the tutor of Charlemagne’s soms, and of Asser, the counselor of Alfred, the pe- riod and the two great personalities are drawn in Davis' “Charlemagne” and in the volumes of essays on Alfred edited by Alfred Bowker (F4514- B676al). An age that produced Gothle ar- chitecture, the great postry of Dante, the romance of chivairy and the cru- sades and the joyous saintliness of St. Francis is an age well worth reading about and thers is an excel-y lent brief summary of the period en- titled “Medieval Furope” by H. W. C. Davis (F304-D29). “Medieval cul- ture,” he writes, “was imperfect, was restricted to a narrow circle of su- perior minds, offered no satisfactions to some of the higher faculties and instincts. Measure it, however, by the memories and the achievements that it has bequeathed to the modern world and it will be found not un- worthy to rank with those of earlier and later Golden Ages” The best account in English of the crusades, according to Prof. Davis, is Ernest Barker's article in the En- cyclopaedia Britannica now printed in a small book, (FO5-B243). The book deals clearly and interestingly with the two aspacts of the crusades, the religious, which offered a new path to heaven, and the interaction of East and West Material on the Renaissance is enormous, ranging from a brief but colorful account by Sichel, entitled “The Renaissance” (FE-Si 13r), to exhaustive works in several volumes, the best of which is doubtless “The Renafssance in Italy” by J. A. Sy- monds (FO6-Sy66). Col. Young has written two volumes on the Medicis (F35-Y88). The large type, fine il- lustrations and interesting treatment make the books nome too lo: graphio description of the Renals- sance and early Reformation will be found In the letters of Erasmus given in the brilllant biography of him by Froude. Nothing could give the gen- eral reader a more vital interest in the great issues of that day. For a more detalled but not lengthy ac- count of the Reformation, Seebohm'’s “Hra. of the Protestant Revolution” is excellent (FOT-Se3). ¢ Armstrong’s “Emperor Charles” (F475-Ar387) is an admirable account of the greatest political figure of the age. “It was fortunate,” Prof. Davies reminds the reader, “that when the Reformation movement swept over Europe, the chief power was in such wise and able keeping.” Sidney Lee, the great blographer, has written an absorbingly interest- ing aocount of six great Englishmen In a Few Words. i Our colleges try to communlcate knowledge by means of speech, by lectures.” We have got to stop it; we have got to begin glving our instrue. tion by reading. —DR, ALEANDER MEEKELJOSN. Whkt we need is a cabinet depart ment £o be known as the “home ece nomics department,” presided over by & woman. We have one for the Army, the Navy, the farmer, and so ¢n dawn the line, but none for the Aome,. It would deal with children, oethes, and how to keep husbands Py Mrs. MARGARET SHOTWELL. “Evos.tion Is a fact, obvious to any vne wWho will see it, and uccepted by all scientific men, but its explanation Is incomplete. . —DR.-VERNON KELLOGG. dward ts not Britisn Fagiasd te not pritiad My ‘brother He' 5 —PRINCE HENRY, at all. heart, of the sixteenth century with an intro? ductory chapter on the spirit of the time (E-9L512). To stats that the essays include Sir Thomas More, Sir Philip Sidney, Sir Walter Raleigh, Ed- mund Spenser, Francls Bacon and Shakespeare 18 to Invite reading. ‘Wonder Bird Colors. There are many species of parrots and they may be divided roughly into these groups: Lories, cockatoos, macaws, true parrots and parrakeets, says the Nature Magazine. The lories come from the East Indies and Australia. Many are wonderfully col- ored, and hand-reared specimens make engaging and playful pets. They sel- dom learn to talk really well and have the further fault of being rather hard to keep, sliiée they are brush- tongiued as an adaptation for pollen- Wf:“ -require a substitute for this somewhat unusual dlet. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS Q. When was base ball firet played in Washington?—H. S. A. It was first played in 1860 on the grounds between the White House and B street on a reservation known then as it i now as tho White Lot. The Potomac Basa Ball Club had been organized the preceding fall, and the Na:ional Club was form- ed in the spring. The Potomac won by a score of 38 to 32, the first game of which a description is given. Q. May I send a radio set to Eng- land by parcel post?—L. R. A. The Department of Commerce says that radlo sets or tubes are not allowed to be sent into England or the British Emplre by parcel post. If they are, they are confiscated. Q. Is it true that a person s not aware that he is upside down in an airplance as far as physical sensa- tion goes?—W. W. W. A. One undergoes practically the same sensations when upside down in an airplane as he does when stand- ing on his head on the ground. Q. Are there any stars as large as the distance between the earth and the sun?—H, S. A. There aroc at least two stars whose measured dlameters exceed 93,000,000 miles. Q. How many easel pictures can without question be ‘attributed to Michelangelo?—H. F. W. 3 A. “The Holy Famlily,” which is now in the UMzl Gallery, Florence, is the only one. The work was executed by Michelangelo for. Angelo Don of. Florence in 1503. —— Q. What horses did Steve Donoghus ride while in this country?—J. M. A. Donoghue did not ride any horse other than Payprus in his recent visit to Amertca. Q. Are the Philippines in the East Indies?—J. A. B. A. The Philippine Islands are part of the East Indies. Sumatra, Borneo, Celebes, New Guinea and Java are the other large islands in the group. Q. What is meant by Doctor's Com- | mons in London?—J. A. M. A. Doctor's Commons is a popular name for the grounds and law offices formerly included in the College of Doctors of Law of the Ecclesiastical and Admiralty Courts of England. This district {s situated in the east aide of St. Paul's Churchyard, London. Q. Is Indianapolis north or south of the geographic center of Inciana? —G. C. E. A. Indianapolis is 14 miles south- east of the geographic center. Q. Recently. while in Boston, some- one spoke of the city as “the hub of | the universe.” How did this phrase originate?—C. W. McP. A. The Geological Survey £ays that Boston is often spoken of as “the hub of the universe,” though it {s not the center of even the State of w it is the capital. The “hub” in this phrase implies the clalm that from Boston as a center intellectual spokes radiate to the utmost rim of the country’s wheel of refinement Q. What will remove cigarette stains from the fingers’—P. E. T. A. Lemon juice or grapefruit juice | is helpful. ‘The stain wears away | very shortly if a cigarette holder is used for a few days. Q. How can the Government make | money in coining silver dollars?—S. W. L. A A standard silver dollar {s worth a dollar merely because the Govern- Passage by the Senats of the Un-| derwood bill for leasing Muscle Shoals 1s taken as a definite indication of policy on the part of the Senate to- ward the operation of the big plant. Editors generally approve the atti- tude expressed against Government op- eration. Much criticlsm is offered toward the changes of opinfon ex- hibited by the Senate, and much doubt is expressed by many that the House will take actlon during this Congre “The country rejected Government ownership last November al flatly as it could reject it New York Evening Post, which adds: “The Senate used up six weeks of its session and took two days of oratory, mixed with a parliamentary tangle and half-dozen ballotings, to do what it should have done in a single roll call” As the Baltimore Sun sees it, “one gratifying feature of the situa- tion s that a majority of the Senate— if that body can be said to know its own mind—Is opposed at this time to embarking the Government upon a vast and costly experiment. Further- more, President Coolidge is known to be opposed to Government operation if it can be avoided, and in negotiat- ing a lease, provided the Underwood YNl is enacted, it would seem rea- sonably certain thaf no effort will be spared to put the project into private hands.” “Whether the conference committee to which ultimately the measure will be sent will approve it is problemati- cal,” thinks the Chicago Daily News, which goes on to say: ‘“Whether, if the conTerence does approve it, the House of Representatives, which sponsored a very different Muscle Shoals profect, will accept it is even more problematical. At all events, the Underwood bill is based on the correct principle—that of private op- eration of the property under a fair lease.” In the opinion of the Cleve- lafd Plain Dealer, “reference of the problem to a commission, as proposed, would, of course, mean delay. Con- gress would finally have the decision to make. The question is whether a majority in the House and Senate feels it has all the information f{t s to pass on an issue that may mean much to several generations of Amerlcans.” “Perhaps the chief, if not the only compengatory, assurance the country will get out of this action of the Sen- ate,” ording to the Chattanooga Times, “will be the facts, first, that the great property is not to be scrapped, but that It is to be com- pleted for the future uses of the public; and, secor’, that it is finally to be operated by private interests under such reasonable and satisfac- tory Government control that the peo- ple will be saved from exploltation in the enjoyment of {ts beneficent products.” “Considering the highly controver- sial nature of the proposition and the House's expressed preference for the Ford lease,” thinks the San Antonio News, “it is quite unlikely that an agreement can be reached in the crowded six weeks remaining of the present session. Under the circum- stances, the Sixty-ninth Congress must begin consideration of the vexed problem all over again, and it will be without expert advice and knowl- edge.” This view is concurred in by the New York Times, which savs: “Despite Senator Curtis’ prophecy that some bill will become law at the present session, the chances are that the project will go over to December. In such & postponement no serious loss of time would be involved,” hile the Oakland Tribune thinks, o far as the Senate is concerned, it is probable there will be no more Muscle Shoals action for some time.’ ‘of the o | ng BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN ment says it {3. The acutal price « silver fluctuates as much as the pric. of wheat or potatoes. The Govern ment now s paying about 70 cent for the silver contained in.a silve dollar. The alloy and cost of manu facture do not wmount to the remalr ing 30 cents, so there is a margin profit for the Government. Last ves: about $8,500,000 of profit was ma: Before the war the silver in a dolia cost less than §0 cents. During t War it rose to $1.26 and to pres dollars being meited down for silve: the Government fixed the price of t metal at not to exceed one do. The price has declined again may go lower. Q. Was “Rasputin” the real n of the Russian monk who attracte 8o much attention a few years ago L E B A. Rasputin is from the word rasputny, meaning profijgate, libertine, licent was ‘an approbrious nicknal ferred upon the notorious monk whose real n Novikh. ¥ E 2 16 was Greg Q. Is the North Pole moving sout —C. C. H. A. Careful analy States Coast and seems to Indicato that the pole-pofr 18 shifting progresstvely southwar foward the continent of North Arm fca. The analysis shows a southwar drift of the pole amou trifle more than six inches a yes This would zmount to less than or mile in ten thousand years and wou equal only 85 miles in a million y by the United Geodetic Surve Q. What was the largest catfis ever caught’—T. H. R A. There 'is no authoritative recer, of the largest catfish ever caught, but the largest of the American ¢ is the gteat fork-tailed M cat which attains a weight pounds or more. Q. Who kad charge of the Phils delphia Centennial?—E. A A. Joseph R. Hawley was preside mmission and Alfred T. G shorn was director general of.th Philadelphia Centennial or World Falr. Q. Can you tell on a white wool swe: light scorch spots?—A. J. P. A. To remove a scorch stain, from a wool sweater, it is suggested tha you mix common laundr; reh with hydrogen peroxide to a thick cream Cover the scorched place and allow it to dry, then brush off and sponge with clear water. what er to to use take ou Q. Who was Sam Patch?—T. M. A. Sam Patch was a lad wide known for daring leaps and dives Born in 1807 in Rhode Island, he be a cotton spinner in Patersor np from a bridge into the tiver brought him such nc that he traveled about leap from bridges and diving f topmasts of ships. He was kille when attempting a jump of feet into the Genesee River, Q. Where was the Bible opene when President Coolidge was {naugu rated?—N. O. A Upon that occaslon the Bibl: ‘was opened without regard for boo chapter or verse, and, apparently, no account was taken of the exact place (If you have a question you want an wered send it to The Star Informatio Bureau, Frederio J. Haskin, direoto Twenty-first and C streets mortMoest The only charge for this service is cents in stamps for return postage.) Senate Muscle Shoals Action Seen as Indication of Policy proposition should ha law as quickly as possib Loutsville Herald thinks “the delay ! of ljttle consequence. The importar thing is that the matter be settled right. One does not dispose of & $150,000,000 property overnight. Tha trouble s that we shall not knbw ¢ the matter has been settled right un- til it has been ssttled, and settled years"” The Richmond Times - Dispatch says: “If the House is well advised it 'will insist on some such actio is outlined in the Jones bill, w provides for the reference of whols matter to 2 co fon for vestigation and report to Congress At present neither the Senate nor tk House knows enough about the mat ter to vote intelligently on it To which the Norfolk Ledger-Dispatch replies: “We cannot believe that our solons are so lacking in mental power nd so unfurnished in the upper ries as to be unable to understand any subject after its consideration has stretahed out over a period of years.” In the opinion of the Duluth Herald “in view of the fact that thus far the Government has not shown fit to conduot large industrial ent prises, the best way to scrve the pub- o interest seems to ba to lease ths property to a responsibls concern u der terms that, while promising profit without which private cap! will not venture, will fully protect the public interest. This is possibls under the Underwond bill. However the Underwood bill must pass t! Houss before it is law, and that not likely to happen immedlately enacted while the s Declares Motormen Do Not Merit Rebuke To the Editor o The Sta: An ordinary sense of falfness re fuses to let pass without comment the letter of Fred R. Hynson on care less motormen. The incident ctted is one in a hundred, and even 80, it {s « question whether the motorman was at fault. Are tho trolley men, run- ning on sohedule, supposed to stop for every speed maniac {n an au mobile who tears down upon them Almost every day I have occasion t wonder at the coolness and patlencs of the long-suffering men who run the street cars and could cite count less instances showing the care exer- cised by them In the face of the mos* flagrant lack of attention on the part of the irresponsibles in automobiles They seem to be a phlegmatio lot Are they really, or do they mot fesl sometimes like resorting to stronger language than the inevitabls “Lools where you are going, will you?" I suppose that is all they are allowed in defenss of themselves. Anyway, I am glad of this oppor tunity to express the appreciation I really feel for this class of men wt serve the public, for it seems to mo Some comment was called for. Tt firemen and the police do not perform their duties unnoticed and unsung and nefther should the motormen, | whose safe hands countless numbers of lives are placed each day. ELAINE W. COGSWELL Some Way to Hold Em. From the Birmiogham Age-Herald, A London professor says:that me’ are in the prime of life at the.age 27. The next thing is to discover son way to hold them there. ——.—— Why Some Men Fail. The Cleveland Times declares: the =ake of economy and efficient management;, We believe, with Presi- dont cbfldn. thdt the Underwood From the Birmingham Age-Heraid. Some men never accomplish any-, thing because they permit the means to overshadow the-end: