Evening Star Newspaper, February 2, 1925, Page 6

THE EVENING With Sunday Morning Editior WASHINGTON, D. C. MONDAY..... . February 2, 1925 THEODORE W. NOYES. .. .Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Busisess Office. 11th St. and Penmsylvauia Ave. New York Office: 110 Fast 42nd St. Chicago Office - Tower Pui'disg. European Ofice . 16 Regent St.,Lomdos, Eagland. The Evening Star. wit edition. 14 delivered by City at 60 cents per mouth conts per month: Sundsy omly. cents per month. Orders mas he seat by mail or tele phome Muin 5000. Collection i made by ear. Theex st the ‘end of cach month Rate by Mail—Payahle in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. the Sunday merning carriers withis the Daily and Sunday..1sr., $8.40: 1 mo., 70c | Daily only 1yr., $6.60; 1 mo., 50c Sunday only 1 yr, $2.40; 1 mo,, 20¢ All Other States. Daily and Sunday.1 yr., §10.00; 1 mo., $3¢ Daily only J1yr., $7.00;1mo., 60c Sunday omiy......1yr, $3.00;1 mo., 26¢ Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press s exclusiveiy entitied fo the use for republieation of all news dls- Patches credited to It or not otherwiae eredited in tils paper snd wiso the local news pub 1ished “herein. " All “rights of pablication of svecial dispatches herein s The Nation’s City. course of his talk on the District housing question in the House the other day Representative Wood of Indiana made some obseryations re tpecting the character and status of the Capital which call for attention and some correction. He said: There seems to be a misconception nbout the City of Washington. This city is not to be in the United States. This city is the seat of the Federal Government and if the primary plan had been car- In the ried out there would have been no oc- | casion for profiteering Washington. The original design was make this city, as distinguished from all other capitals of government in the world, purely a seat of govern- ment, where the business of the Gov ernment would be “transacted, whe in the City untrammeled, those who are necessary | for the transaction of the business of the Government wouid live at the low- est possible cxpense It was provided that instead of hav- ing a lot of ramshackle buildings be- tween the Capitol and the White House there should be nothing but official buil What a picture that would be if it were a fact today! It never was intended that there shonid ba man- ufacturing here. It never was intended that there should be commercial houses here. except those that were permitted by the Government tq supply the de- mands of those who are engaged in per- forming the functions of this Govern- ment. In an evil hour somebody pro- posed, for the purpose of ralsing rev- enues, that they sell town lots in the City of Washington. That is where our troubles began The “evil hour” of which Repre- sentative Wood complains came very early in the history of Capital making. The United States, taking by gift from the owners of the city's site one-half of the building lots, put them on the market for the purpose, as Mr. Wood says, of making revenue, They were =0ld broadcast. They were even offered for sale in Europe. The purpose was advertised to be the provision of a fund for mot enly the erection of public bulldings but for the equipment of the city in all the essentials of municipal life, particularly street improvements. An implied bargain was made with the purchasers of these lots that a part of the proceeds of the sales would thus be spent. The Government never kept this part of the bargain, but neg- lected the community which it thus created, and it thereby contributed to the ramshackle character of which now complaint is made and which can- | not be attributed exclusively to the negligence or the lack of enterprise or of public spirit or of Capital-making conception by the unofficial residents of Washingt. Tt was, of course, i city such as Representative Wood describes should evolved, city strictly and solely devoted to Govern- ment purposes, with all save Govern- ment workers admitted to residence on suffrance and under rigid regulation, confining their activities and limiting their enterprise. Had the Govern- ment, however, maintained its ba mpossible that a be a gain and discharged its duty in this | not surprising. New York has always self-imposed undertaking of Capital | been a center of radicalism. From it creation, Washington would have been | went forth Trotsky to Russia to join spared much been suffering, would have developed more speedily as Capital City of high merit, worthy of | her will, to join her comrades of com- Federal organiza- | munism, only to suffer grievous disap- the Nation whose tion centered here For over three-quarters of a century | revolution had turned backward and the Nation neglected its National Capital obligation. In 1878 it half- way assumed that obligation, and then the Capital began to develop as it should have developed in the begin- ning, as a city worthy of the Nation. The evils and the uncapital-like condi- tions that had accumulated during the long lapse of indifference and neglect have been in part cured, but many re main. Washington itself has appealed repeatedly for Government action to correct them—as, for example, in the matter of the development of Penn- sylvania avenue, the south side of which is obviously suited for public building sites, but which has been neg- lected under a veritable mortmain of possible condemnation to the point of decadence. The misconception about of Washington, of which complaint has thus been voiced in the House of Representatives, originated in the Government itself and is in no wise the fault of those who have made this city their home in the course of years and decades done much—indeed, have done the most—to make it a city worthy of the Nation's pride. e If a banquet accompanies resignation in Government this wiil be a busy ‘Washington caterers, the City every ircles, season among Base Ball's Golden Jubilee. ifty vears ago the National League of Base Ball Clubs was organized, and now that organization’s successor, by direct descent from the original, is celebrating its golden anniversary. ‘This is to be the jubilee year in or- ganized base ball. Washington, a new- comer, comparatively, though repre- sented in 1875 by a well known and often successful team, takes a particu- s now the premier base ball city in the United States, holder of the world championship. Base ball had been played by pro- compared with any other | and who have | STAR| | | | | i Gty ouly, 45 | ning high | enormously. fessional teams long before the organi- zation of the National League. It had become, indeed, a national sport. But there was no business union of teams cstablished as a definite circuit with 4 regular playing schedule and with an organic law. The formation of the National League was the foundation of the sport as it is established today, a professional, commercial enterprise, ppealing to the sportsmanship of the people and to local pride. Base ball has become an immense business, invelving investments run- into the millions. Great values in real estate are held by the clubs of the various leagues. Players’ worth themselves mense sums of money are owned by holde aries that put the pay scales of the Government itself to shume are paid. Rich wards are earned by the plavers who are so fortunate as tq belong to pen- nant-winning teams. A professional base ball player of high standing is, indeed, a fortunate young man. In the course of the hall century elapsed since the National League was tormed the game itself has develojed. Though played on the ‘san~ general principles as in 1875, it is speec=r. more skiliful sport. Pitching has de- veloped to a point not conceived half a century ago. Batting and fielding are both better. The contests are shorter, closer and more (hrilling. The attendance has, of course, grown Little did the promoters of the National League, whose enter. prise is now being celebrated, think that the game which they were then rather dubiously promoting would de- velop into one of the leading factors in the business of public entertain- ment in America. contracts in im- franchise re- New York's Soviet. Yesterday, on the first anniversary of the death of Nicoiai Lenin, Madison Square Garden. New York. was filled with a crowd variously estimated at from 12,000 to 16,000. The walls of that historic meeting place, it would seem, are sufficiently elastic to ac- count for this wide range of attend- ance figures. It does not matter, how- how many thousands actually attended the meeting. The point of interest is that the place was filled to overflowing with advocates of the es tablishment of the Soviet government in the United States. They were led by a radical who is now out on bail from a prison sentence for anarchistic agitation pending appeal to the Su- preme Court. They were addressed by him and oth violent terms of denunciation of the existing form of Government and pleas for the adop- tion of Leninism in substitution. One of the speakers was a youth of 14, who declared that “it is our duty to mob- ilize the children to fight against the capitalistic system,” and who said further: “We must always be ready for the day strike. Down with capitalism! Down with its syStem! Up with the Soviet republic!” This meeting was not disturbed. Po- licemen stood at the doors and listéned to the speeches, to the cheers and to the singing of the “Internationale.” It was all rated as an ordinary Sunday afternoon diversion. That a certain percentage of the American people favor the establish- ment of a Soviet system here is evi- dent. That they form a very small minority is plain. Placing yesterday's meeting in New York at the highest number estimated, 16,000, it does not represent an impressive proportion of the city's population of 6,000,000. The question arises, is it better to let this small fraction of the people who are favorable to communist revolution come out in the open, or should they be suppressed and denied the right of speech and forced into secret meet-| ings? H There is nothjng deeply disturbing about such a meeting as that of yes- terday, save, perhape, In the evidence that the red propaganda is reaching and affecting the children of a certain class. Numerically the meeting was ever. s in to | | | | failure before his death, and he recog- jure of sovietism and clamor for its| |a higher average of temperature and | perbaps lar interest in this celebration, for it | not. particularly significapt, though large. The sentiments expressed were Lenin in the revolution of 1917. From it also went Emma Goldman, against pointment on discovering that the was headed again toward capitalism. It is somewhat significant that this meeting was held almost simultaneous- Iy with the announcement from Mos- cow that the Soviet government has gone another step back toward the capitalistic system, so called, restoring i competitive wages in the industries of | Russia and permitting piecework, banned by early Soviet decrees. The kreat experiment of Lenin proved a nized the fact. His successors are moving along the lines he laid down toward a return to the economic and governmental principles which were condemned eight years ago. His fol- lowers in this country do not recog- nize this change, do not see the fail- adoption here, They are to be pitied for their stupidity rather than con- demned for their mischievous but im- potent designs. —————————— Battlefields are famous, but only in rare cases do they benefit by the fame in any practical commercial way. By this time the fact should be realized by Herrin, TiL ———— A Ten-Million Snow Bill. New York taxpayers do not like snow. They would appreciate a change of climate that would give, their city entire freedom from frost. This is not a sentimental matter. It is purely a question of business. For snow costs the big city an enormous sum an- nually. Already this Winter more than $6,000,000 bas been appropriated for emergency snow removal, and it has been calculated that before the Spring comes the sum will have been swelled to $10,000,000. But some New Yorkers:feel not all of this immense amount of money can really be charged up against the climate. Some that T | stoner of accounts, 15 one of these skeptics. He has been recently check- |ing up on the snow-cleaning work with some interesting results. For in- stance, he has found that in one of the sections into which the ecity is divided, where 82 men were listed on the pay rolls as street cleaners, only 59 could be found on duty, with 23 unaccounted for. In another section the pay roll bore 19 more names than the number of the actual shovelers. There are 120 sections in the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx and Brook- Iyn. If this scale of absentee pay- drawing is maintained throughout the entire municipality the drain on the treasury for unperformed work is heavy, indeed. The commissioner has said that he s saving the city approx- imately a million dollars a year by checking up on these pay rolls. The strange part of this is that the disclosure of these lapses of virtue on the part of municipal agents who have the hiring and paying of street cleaners has not excited the New Yorkers. They are used to that sort of thing. If it is not a snowstorm it is something else. Still, the taxpayers who think at all about the cost of city government are disposed to pray for open winters so long as the millions that are annually appropriated and actually spent do not, in fact, give them clean streets Washington has complained of its snow-encumbered streets and avenues this Winter, but has had no cause for grievance on the score of economy or graft. Every man who has been paid has been on the job, though undoubt- edly more men might have been en- gaged for the public benefit. And more would have been employed if Con- gress had granted a larger fund. ————— George W. Cable. Few of the present generation of readers will feel a particular sense of loss in the passing of George W. Cable, who died Saturday at the age of 80 He had virtually passed from public notice, and had not for some years contributed anything with his pen. Even had he continued, however, in the prodiction of novels such as those which made him famous a quarter of a century or more ago it is to be doubted if he would have held the at tention of any large part of the Amer- ican reading public. For George W. Cable had a style which unfortunately has passed from the favor in which it once was regarded. It was a charm- ing style of story-telling, an artistic presentation of life, a vivid presenta. tion of character. It had an a mosphere distinctly its own. Cable could not have written the kind of stories that are now the vogue. Although public taste has changed, the novels of such writers as Cable, who was cotemporaneous with Howells and Allen and Page and other novel- ists of high merit during the latter part of the past century, have, like theirs, a lasting worth. They marked a phase of American literary develop- ment. They were wholesome, clean, Inspiring pictures of American life. They have their historic value, par- ticularly as they dealt mainly with Louisiana types, unfamiliar save through fiction to the majority of Americans, S Washington schools are crowded. The situation is one to be deplored, but not so much as one which showed a lack of attendance. Education is one of the rights of American youth not to ba denied. e In contemplating suggestions for “debt cancellation” Germany would doubtless be willing to submit a few suggestions on her own behalf tending to make the program as thorough as possible. R ‘With much regret, no doubt, Mag- nus Johnson feels compelled to assert that the Minnesota senatorial election was conducted with no deference what- ever to the Golden Rule. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHIBANDER JOHNSON. Except—:! Life is evanescent. Everything must go, Sorrowful or pleasant— Except the snow. Friendship that we cherish, Or the sigh of woe; Everything must perish— Except the snow. All this world alluring 1s a fleeting show. Nothing is enduring— Except the snow! fhicult to Restrain. “Are you going to hold an investiga- tion?" “We're going to start one” an- swered Senator Sorghum. “But, once under w: 1 doubt very much if we'll be able to hold it.” A Gentle Diplomacy. My tailor sends a little dun. I'll start an agitation, And see fi he cannot be won Unto Debt Cancellation. Jud Tunkins says & true optimist either has plenty of money or is try- ing to interest some one in an invest- ment. Object of Interest. “Who is the young man who always calls on Sunday evening?” asked friend Fath “A very bright business man,” an- swered Miss Cayenne. “He seems very much interested in you.” “I'm not flattering myself. I sus- pect he's hanging around in hope of getting a chance to sell you some life Insurance.” The Average Socialist. All men should generous be And to divide agree; But such details, you sce, Are not for me. While others share each prize, My fortune holds its size— 1t is my mission wise To supervise. Evolution,” said Uncle Eben, “is of it may be allocated under another heading on the municipal ledger. David Hirschfield, who is commis- . gittin' too many folks worried 'bout where dey come from ’stid o' where dey’s gwineter. THIS AN D THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Now that everybody from the Presi- dent down has seen the eclipse of the sun, might it not be a good idea to turn our attention for a time to a few eclipses nearer home? Most of us do not have to look so far as the sun; we can observe an aclipse or two in ourselves almost any time we choose to gaze Intently that way. We looked through a smoked glass at the great orb of day, devoting a few minutes to the observation of ce- lestial phenomena, but commonly we do not spend even that small a time giving ourselves the once-oves. 1t we do. the glass through which we make our observations is so ter- ribly smoked up with self-conceit and satisfaction that crdinarily wo do not see our subject at all, except perhaps the gross outlines, the outer covering. the material clothes. Yet there is scarcely a one of us who has not suffered several eclipses tn comparison with which the shadow- Ing of the sun pales into insignifi- cance. After all, what have we to do with the sun, or the sun with us? The sun has been there for millions of vears. and we have been hore upon our earth for thousands upon thou- sands of years, and in all that time we have never been xble to swerve the sun one jot from its course, nor has the sun seemed desirous of chang- ing its wavs because of us or for us. Our astronomers. working with precise observations and higher { mathematics, have laid down certain laws which ‘they have derived from | their watchings and their figurings. {laws which govern the suns, the planets and the stars But with those laws we have no more to do than the ants that walk under our feet. or the birds that fly wer our heads. Solar phenomena are interesting, but for the average man »r woman they are not so profitable as the study of mankind, as exemplified in that ancient saying, “Know thy- self. % What have we allowed eclipsed in ourselves? This sort of observation needs an- other sort of glass than that used 1to look at the brilliant sun It ne- atates a crystal-clear medium, one free from possible flaws, for us- ually the observer will find enough flecks without adding any as he goes along. Nor does this personal “sun gaz- ing” need a magnifying glass, either | | That would be just as bad, in much | the same way, showing up too viv- idly our lack. We could not stand | the glare of the pitiless truth No, the observer of this eclipse at | home nm=eds ony an average pair of eys, fortified by an intellectual hon- esty that Is not afraid of the truth. | Most of us are so busy telling other folks their trousers are too big at| the bottom that we do not observe our own hang somewhat awry What are some of the qualities we | have allowed to be eclipsed in ourselves? | Let us turn the light full upon |h;\l‘ poker-playing @oul of ours and see what has been eclipsed. The first thing we notice 1s that there has been a shadowing of our power of appreciation. In the old days, when v\'e‘ were schoolboys together, we commonly | | wondered and appreciated the same | breath. It was “Gee!" and “What do you know about that!" Tt was “Gosh!" and | “Lookit! Lookit!" There waen't a thing | that happened within the ken of our eager eyes that did not attract our no- tice, and, equal it there was the slightest thing of merit about it we ad- mitted it. Even our mitigation of the deeds of | our fellows was in essence appreciation of the deepest water, since strenuous depreciation meant. in the long, long | thoughts of youth, something tremen- | | dously worth while to merit such great objection. Today our power appreciation Seems to have suffered an eclipse, if not total, at least partial. We have at- {tached ourselves to creeds, schools of | thought, schools of medicine, brands of to be Senator Willlam M. Butler's speech in Boston last week, which was read into the Congressional Record, ex-| plains why Calvin Coolidge is de- termined to have a simple inaugura- tion. The President’s official spokes- man recalled that the Masscahusetts man, who will be Inducted into the presidency on March 4. 1925, is the first Bay State citizen to occupy it since, exactly 100 years previous, John Quincy Adams was inaugurated. | Then Butler narrated how Adams took the oath, obviously intending to indicate that Coolidge is following that historic precedent in simplicity: | John Quincy Adams records in his diary that after two sleepless nights he was ready for his inauguration March 4, 1825 and was waited on by the marshal of the District of Colum- bia, with other members of local com- mittees, to arrange for the ceremony at the Capltol. Escorted by a smail detachment of local militla, he drove in his own carriage to the Capitol, followed by President Monroe and other officlals. * * ¢ The oath of office was administered by the Chief | Justice. The new President delivered | his inaugural address, and was then | escorted back to his own home, 1333 F street northwest, because Mrs. Monroe was ill at the White House, {and President Adams insisted that she should not bo removed until fully re- |covered. * * * At the inauguration, |local papers said the President was dressed in a black all-wool suit of clothes of domestic manufacture. The cloth was made in Massachusetts.” * % X ¥ Alanson B. Houghton, speaking at a farewell dinner in his honor at Ber- lin last week, said it was the first speech he'd made during his entire four years in Germany. If Houghton carries the silence policy with him to Great Britain, London and the Londoners will be grievously disap- pointed. Since James Russell Lowell, George Bancroft and moderns like Choate, Hay, Reid, Page, Davis and Harvey have represented America at the court of St. James, the American Ambassador has been regarded John Bull's principal speechmaking insti- tution. Houghton's refusal to spell- bind in_ London on the Fourth of July, Washington's Birthday and other occasions when the British ex- pect Uncle Sam's envoy to hold forth, will be regarded almost a cause for a rift in the Anglo-American lute. You'll hear in ‘Washington that Kel- logg's Secretaryship of State is a stop-gap, that Houghton's London or later Houghton will head the State Department. In that event, Medill McCormick, who leaves the Senate March 4, is regarded the like- llest candidate in sight for our blue- ribbon embassy. ok % = Elihu Root will be 80 years old on February 15. To celebrate the an- niversary the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace has issued a “reasoned estimate of Mr. Root's services” to the development of In- ternational law and to the promotion of more fortunate international rela- tions. James Brown Scott, secretary of the endowment, whe has heen as- sociated with Root's world actly, ities for 30 years, has compiled the testimonial. Mr. Scott avers that “when Elihu Root's countrymen are as far removed from him as he Is mission Is temporary and that sooner | 80ods, species of dogs, theories of gov- ernment, modes of expression. HE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1925. THE PUBLIC LIBRARY 9. BOOKS ON MODERN EURO- PEAN HISTORY. Two centuries following the close Nothing has escaped our fervor for (Of the Reformation are full of con- possession, €0 (hat we have our church, our philosophs, our doctor, our party, our shoes, our chewing gum, our dog, our forms of speech, our very pronunci- ation. % Now this Is good, in one way, but harmful In another. It is well for us that we belfeve whole-heartedly in our government, and love our of mint and rather than “bath.” When we carry this thing so far, however, that the possession of these preferences usually carries with It aversions of equal strength, then we have suffered an eclipse of our power of appreciation. When I shrink from reading some thing in which T do not beltove, no matter how w iten It is, how gincere the writer, then I am in the shadow of an eclipse of the spirit of appreciation. “The Blues Have Got Me,” sings that inimitable comedienns, Marion Harris. In our case, lack of apprecia- tion has got us, and we are la an eclipse. So why stand we craning our necks at the sun, hurting our eyes by look- ing at it through a glass Insufficient- Iy smoked, when all the time we have a little eclipse in ourselves patiently waiting for our observation? * * * % bawth, Ferhaps our spirit of kindness has somewhat withered of late. It sensitive plant, at best, one that needs much tending after the victim reaches manhood or womanhood. If one finds himself kicking at a dog, or angrily rebuking children for some questfon, no matter how foolish It may seem, then he may know that! his kindness is under eclipse. If he never stops on the street to help an old lady across, if he growls at beg- gars always, he had best look to his kindness, and let the sun be for an- other hundred years “Buddy, can you help queried the tall man, in getic beggar voice. The Seventh street. “Well, seeing it's you,” well dressed cltizen, forking over two thin dimes. He suffered the loss ©of 20 cents, but not of his spirit of kindliness. With kindness is associated gentle- ness. This latter quality is mostly in- born, differing somewhat from kind- ne; which any one may cultivate Yet there are many people, born gentle, who have allowed this fine quality to suffer an eclipse. Only per- sonal observation can tell. One’s spirit of tolerance is very apt to suffer an cclipse after one gets to middle age, or even before then. Tol- erance, according to the dictionar: is “willingness to bear with the dif- ferences of others. We cannot bear to have a friend differ with us. We cannot stand to hear our own words contradicted. 1f we say a book is great, w resent some one else holding the exactly op- posite opinion. We are suspicious and i1l at ease, if we are devotees of the great Ameri- can game of poker, in the presence of the man who never plays poker, and we do not take him into our inner circle until he, too, takes up me out?” the apolo- scene was smiled the | poker. If we favor trousers with cuffs, we find it difficult to tolerate who wears his trousers bottoms plain, and if we drink the bootleg- ger's wares, we are constralned In the | When the Hohenzollern family presence of the gink who observes| the Constitution. But probably we have suffered no eclipse whatever in our tendency to- ward anger, suspicion, mean ‘“kid- ding.” our inability to be progressive, or our blas toward talking about t spiritual while living the purely ma- | tertal life. There was a man recognized when He sald, “Except ye become as Mttle children, ye shall In no wise enter the kingdom of heaven.” long ago who WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE from the founders of the republic, they will consider him as worthy as our Revolutionary fathers." * o x X Mme. Sadao Saburi, well known in Washington In 1922, 1923 and 1924, as the wife of the counselor of the Jap- anese embassy, has just been elevated to the highest post that can be held by any woman in Nippon. The Japanese Empress has appointed Mme. Saburl official interpreter to the court in Tokio. The position is one of great prestige and influence, because of its closeness to the throne and the du- ties of entertaining distinguished wom- en from overseas. Mme. Saburi is the daughter of the late Viscount Komura, Japan's chief negotiator with Russia at the Potsmouth, N. H., peace con- ference. Since the incapacity of the Japanese Emperor, his consort, to whom Mme. Saburi is now officially at- tached, has become the ruling force at the Tokio court. * X * ¥ Senator “Tom” Heflin of Alabama, vastly entertained the Senate, the gal- lery and the country the other day by | stating in all seriousness that the farmers of the United States are a lone and forlorn lot, without organi- zation, without a volce in Washington, and without friends except at elec- tion time. The solidity and strength of the American farmers is one of the political signs of modern American times. Neither industry nor labor, not even the Wall Street which the bucolic brother scorns and fears, is organized any better than the soll tillers. When public men like Heflin argue to the contrary, they are handing the country what is irreverently known as bunk. * %k k% Since Bascom Slemp left the right hand of President Coolidge, stories have crept into circulation that the calm and undemonstrative Vermonter didn’t prove to be the easiest boss in the world. The President’s some- what stern manner on occasion is sald by the wiseacres to have called (for the exhibition of Spartan loyalty on Slemp's part. A magazine pub- lisher has offered Slemp the oppor- tunity of writing a series of articles on “The Real Coolidge. No man has seen the President at such close and regular range in the White House. If Slemp decides to memoirize his /18 months at the White House, per- haps we'll learn whether he quit be- cause he disliked his employer's meth- ods or because he wasn't promated to the cabinet. * ok ox He may not beat Nicholas Long- worth for the Speakership, but Mar- tin B. Madden is undoubtedly at the moment the most popular, most lob- bled and most harassed member of the House of Representatives. There's a reason. Scores of major and minor appropriation bills are now in the hopper. Interested persons, ranging from the rank of cabinet ministers to departmental chief clerks, are passing sleepless nights and nerve- racking days. scheming and praying that Madden's committee, somehow, will jam through the maximum sums between now and the end of the ses- | sion. The veteran Illinoisan is thinking of establishing his head- quarters in the U. S. S. Shenandah from now until March 4 and flying the busy signal from the cloud: (Copyright, 1925.) fs ai the eclipse of the spirit,| | i | i | wood Young" | great deal fusion. The disintegration of Chris- tendom and the subsequent birth of the sovereign states marked a policy of aggrandizement at the expense of each other, movements toward recon- struction after the devastating civil and rellglous wars, and constitutional development, are excellently present- ed in two general survey books, Wakeman's “Ascendancy of Fran (F307-W136), and Hassall's “Balance of Power” (F30-275b). In the seventeenth and eighteenth cen- turfes England was engrossed first in struggles between the K.ing and the law between the King and Parlia- ngland Under the Stuarts” 4e), by G. M. Trevelyan, cannot be praised too highly, and Macaulay's “History of England” (F M11) will continue to be read until the English language is itself forgotten. 1t has been sald that no one has ever surpassed Macaulay the power of making the past live. Many biographies of Oliver Cromwell, who' has been called “the greatest ruler England has had since King Al- fred” have been written. Frederic Harrison, who is a master of the art of writing short biographies, has con- tributed what Davies calls “a well- nigh perfect little volume” on Crom- well to the Twelve English Statesmen series (E-C88h). Proceeding to the eighteenth century, W Lecky's “History of England | In the Eighteenth Century” (F1536- L494) gives an admirable account of events from the accession of Queen Anne down to the Napoleonic wars, | but to the reader who is too busy to| read the seven volumes, Grant Robert- son's single volume, “England Under the Hanoverfans” (F456-R547), is rec- ommended, particularly f. its dealing with foreig; and colonial affairs Macaulay's “Essays on William Pitt’ (E-P688ma), Lord Morley's “Walpole™ (E-W168m) and “Life of Edmund Burke” (E-B917m), are excellent bi- ograpbles of these three outstanding statesmen. Trevelyan's intensely in- teresting “British History in the Nine- teenth Century” (F456-T728) is only one of many good books dealing with the history of Great Britain during that period. In Voltair “Age of Louis XT (Y39-V835.E, v.24—30) we have the “most famous of all French men_of letters writing the history of the most famous of all French kings" Another good b k on this period is J. M. Perkins’ ance Under Louls XV™ (F3926-P415). and after reading it no one would find himself in the dark as to the deeper causes of the French revolution. Lord Morley has | written excellent literary as well as historical essays on some of the great men who heralded and to some extent made the French revolution— Turgot, Condorcet, Robespierre. two volumes on Rousseau, two on Diderot and one on Voltaire Mr. Hilaire Belloc brilllant _essay on (Home Ugiversity B415). H.'A. L. Fisher's “Napolcon (F3%442-F53Tn) is excellent for the reader to begin with and return to, for “nowhere else can clear, ac- curate and concise a bird's-eye view of the career of the great emper: be found.” Of the larger books, Fournier's Napoleon (F39442- F828.E) is probably the best. “The Second Empire” (F395-G933) by Philip Guedalla, published in 1923. 1s a very readable account of this has the Library written a Revolution 393 the man | beriod of French history The story of the rise and growth of Prussia from the far-off days were stlll weaithy burghers of Nuremburg down to the outbreak of war in 1914, Is presented without bias in Grant Robeértson’s and Marriott’s “Evolu- tion of Prussia (F47Pr-M3s7 A useful kupplementary book is Nor- s “Frederick the Great” (F4TPr-Y8sl). A good comprehensive recent European h “Europe Since 1815 book Sees Postal Pay Bill As Class Legislation To the Editor of The Sta Quite recently your paper had a of comment on the atti- tude of a Western judge regarding certain postal employes who were a cused of crimes, and blaming the I wages paid, stating that the s of $1.800 a vear was a wonder If that jurist Is aware of the fact that there are in Washington, to say nothing of the rest of the coun- try, hundreds of Government em- ployes working at starvation wages, paying them $200 less than the aver- age post office employe. Being a for- mer post office clerk myself, I aware of the conditions under which post office employes work, but to grant certain raises to one class of Federal workers and neglecting the condemned by all political parties. Every one familiar with the post office reclassification knows that their employes fared much better than the so-called reclassification imposed upon the other Federal workers, for the post office clerk automatically gets his $100 a year, which is not true of the other Government workers. As the writer himself Is not in the $1,800 class, I am in favor of a decent living wage for all Federal employes. but let that increase be for all, and not for the benefit of the favored few. W. J. MURRAY. Fund Raised by Clerks. To the Editor of The Star: 1 have been reading with much i terest your editorials on the retire- ment bill for Government employes, and I beg to say that, while admirable in many ways, you do not sufficiently stress one point, viz. that every penny of this fund, growing by mil- lions every vear, is contributed by the employes themselves, not one penny having been given by the Govern- ment, and every penny being deduct- ed from their wages, with or without their consent. Can you imagine what it means to a man with a salary of $100 a month to have $2.50 taken from that every month? And can vou still further imagine what it means to any Government employee when he reaches the age of 70, still in full vigor mentally and physically, to be forced out with a miserable pittance of $36 to $60 per month? It literally means slow starvation or beggary. And while on the subject of ages, Is it not queer that a Government employe becomes spperannuated at 70, while In the Sixty-elghth Con- gress there are seven Senators rang- ing from 71 to 80 and ten Represent- atives from 71 to 89, and one associate justice of the Supreme Court, $1, while many more in the above ranks are very close to the deadline of 707 An employe at 70, in full possession of his faculties, and with all his knowledge of affairs in his depart- ment, should not be forced out, for he much more valuable to the Government than a new and untried man aiming to make a record and merely upsetting things. And still less should he be forced out with the annuity as now provided, when he and his fellow employes have pro- vided and are still steadily providing the means to give him at least the bare necessities of life, which tue present anuity will not do. It is a crying shame, and this cruel, deadly cruel, condition should be cor- rected at once, and justice done, re- membering always that every penny of this fund s0om to amount to over £33.- 000,000 is taken from the pockets of the empioyes. LUCIA BORDERIL | that | condition r| am | rest is class legislation and should be | Q. Is there a city of the rame of Brass?—B. F. N A. Brass is tho name of a town in British Nigeria, West Africa Q. What is trench mouth?—A. H. A. Thrush or trench mouth is.ons form of parasitic stomatis due to & vegetable' parasite, and consists of white flake-like patches on ths mu- coys membrang of the mouth and tongue. The disorder 1s found gen- erally in childhood, particularly in bottle-fed Infants, although it was quite prevalent in the trenches dur- ing the World War. The transmis- sion of thrush spores is usually by means of feeding utensils, spoons, cups, etc. This accounts for tha epi- demic occasionally observed. Q. How much does the average person spend to have his clothes cleaned and dyed?—J. R, P. A. The Cleaning and Dyeing World says that the cleaniag ,and dyeing business of the average per- son amounts to $7.50 a year. Q. While in Paris we were served rfumed butter. How is it mada? E. C. A. The perfumed butter used Parls is made by taking parts of “fresh’ on a layer of some varfety of flow- ers, ‘according to the perfume de- sired, a plece of muslin being laid between the butter and blossoms. Another layer of flowers is placed above the butter and then ice fs added. Q. Is salmon, which has been frozen in a tin container, poisonous? H. L. A. The Bureau of Fisheries says if the can of salmon to which you refer was properly sealed and the salmon properly cured, the frozen would not cause poison. Is there. something that will make a better relief map than flour, er and salt?—w. M. A. The United States Goelogical Survey says that plastic clay which is used for molding in schools is the best to use in making a relief map. A little plaster of paris can be mixed with the clay to give it stiff- ness. Varnish can then be used over the relief map when it is completed. Q. How many people were in the colonies at tha time of Revolutionary War?—>M. M. H. A. In 1775 the estimated popula tion of the 13 colonles was 2,600 000. The population of the principal colonies was Massachusetts, 335,000 Pennsylvanta, 0,000; New 190,000; North Carolina, over 265,000; Virginia, 450,000, their the What is the capital of Lithua nia?—K. H. B ) A. Kovno has bee! capital, temporarily Q selected as the Q. Who shovel>—P. P. A. The steam shovel was invented in 1840 by an American named Otls. invented the steam Q. How many there?—l. B. A. According raphers there Europe, A yuth America and Australia authorities add the Antartic conti- nent, sithough this territory has not been sufficiently explored to deter- mine its exact extent 4 continents to are Africa, modern ix continents— North America Q. What when the |—H. W A.* The Public Health Service says that kerosene is usually the repellent uscd by Government officials and e ployes in tropical and semi-tropical regions against mosquitoes. A small portion of oil is dropped on the ex- | posea parts of the bady. Oil of elt- ronella, pennyroyal and lavender have | been found effective in some cases was used for mosquitoes Panama Canal was built? or unsalted butter and placing them | York, | ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC ]J. HASKIN the market which give long distance rapge. Twenty-five miles is the limit under normal conditions at night on a crystal set. Q. What is Mahatma Ghandl doing now?—E. G. R. A. Mahatma Ghandl is living qulet- ly in India and endeavoring to ad- vance the cause of self rule in Indla thrcugh more pacific ways than pre- vious to his imprisonment. He re cently underwent a fast because of the differences of opinion among his followers, who thereupon abandoned their disputes on condition he would break his fast Q. What country most chickens?—J. B A. The United States s first. On January 1, 1970, it produced 359,537,000 chickens. It produced also 2,518,000 ducks. Q. When was the custom inau- gurated of recelving the diplomatic corps first at the President's New Year reception?—F. A. B. A. James Monroe cabinet about the produces the consulted his procedure and it !wan decided that for the reception on in | January 1, 1818, the members of the diplomatic corps should be received at 11:30, and the general public from 12 to 3 o'clock. This was the first time that a fixed time was arranged Q. What was the name of the poem | written in the Garden of Gethsemane by a member of the French Academy after losing his only daughter In Palestine’—P. I M. A. The poem is la Mort de Julia,” Lamartine Gethsemane, by Alphonse ° de the New York Stock business?—M. E. 17, 1792, as voluntary associa Q. When did Exchange begin It was formed Ma an unincorporated tion by 24 men. Q. Is “Blumine” in ¥Sartor Resar- tus” the picture of a real person?— V. H. A. This character is gsnerally identified with Margaret ~Gordon with whom Carlyle was acquainted between 1818 and 1520 | Q. Who gave the Temple of to the City of Providence, R. BT A. The Temple of Music, consisting of a music stand of white marble in | Grecian design, seating a large band or orchestra and a chorus of 300, with | ad amphitheater, seating 25.000 per- | kons, was dedicated on September o1 {1924, illlams Park, Prov R. I It was bequeathed | the city by Willlam Curtis Benedic and the buliding will be known as ti Benedict Monument to Musle. 1 in_Roger | @ence, to Q. Ts there device wherel music played by a ships orchestra | be heard by all trevelers?—c. T. M | A. The Canadian Pacific liner Mont- | clare. running from Liverpool to Can ada, is the first ocean liner to be fit ted with a “ship's orchestra repeater. designed by the Marconi Co. to enabis music played by the ship's orch to be listened to by travelers in parts of the ship. What Roman e in the suburb of Se A. There were perors born ville—Hadr: dosius. Q peror was bor lle?—D. A. T three Roman the suburbs of Trajan and The t regard the Ba a Union v Q. Did Gen. Gr | tle of Gettysburg tory?—G. J. G. A. Jesse Grant says that his fat! | regarded the battle as a Confederat vietory. | (The Star maintains for the pleas | and profit of its readers an informatio { service Sinder the directorship of Fre | eric J. Haskin. The scope of the burea | ts national and_international, and subject is too elementary or 100 broad to enlist the personal attention of a How tive?— W A. The says t far is J. H 2 National Radio there are no cryst Q. a crystal set effec- Institute 1 sets on Sustaining of President Coolid, veto of the postal pay bill meets v | ried comment from the press of the country. To some editors the action means obedience to the mandate of the “seven million” recorded last No- vember; to others it is |tion of the power of leadership on | Coolidge’s part born of the confidence him by popular vote; to still is merely a “hollow victory” ¢ the narrowest possible mar- two votes, one against re- | committing the postal pay bill and the other sustaining President Cool- idge's veto by one vote,” says the Springfield Union (Republican), “in- dicate in a general way that, while there is a disposition in the United States Senate to gratify the postal employes, on the Republican side it stops just short of overriding the ob- jee of a President who has re- ently received such notable evidence of public approval and support.” The Topeka State Journal (Republican) thinks, “a sufficlent number of United States Senators seem to have derived a lesson from the election St vember to save the President's veto. The hint given by the voters certain was broad enough so that no cause for mistaking their meaning re- mained “It is fortunate in a large way that the President is sustained” thinks the Des Moines Register (indepen- dent Republican), which adds: “Wha ever we may say about it the fact as President Wilson saw, and as Roosevelt before him, the President is our prime minister, our political lead- er, our shaper of policies. He is the officer the people elect on a program he personally represents. There can be no responsible Government where the President is not recognized for what the people elect him to do.” * ok x ok The narrowness of the margin by which the veto was sustained, the Ohio State Journal (Republican) be- not much to be wondered in view of the fact that this is more or less of a lame duck Senate that anly a few, months ago passed the bill by a vote of 73 to 3, and that there is an honest difference of opin- ion among Republican Senators; as among other people, on the merits of the proposed wage increase at this time.” The Philadelphia_ Bulletin (independent Republican) thinks the President “had the vantage point of presidential power, and, in addition, he had reason and logic on his side.” The Bulletin adds, “However the two leverages, the vote is a signifi- cant demonstration of the power of the President, even with Congress, which a short time ago was recal- citrant.” “The vote on the veto message.” in the opinion of the San Francisco Bul- letin (independent) “is not to be taken as indicating positively who is and who is not generally in co- operative relations with the adminis- tration. It is an open secret that sev- eral Scnators, whose votes were ‘given in opposition, would have pre- forred, if it might have been done without self-stultification, to stand with the President.” The Rochester Times-Union (independent) says: “In a demonstra- | credit may be divided between these | specialist. Address The Star Informa | ton Bureaw, Frederic J. Haskin, Dire | tor, Twenty-first and C streets west.) Postal Pay Veto Considered In Various Lights by Editors |a se, the vote will strengthen tha { hands of Mr. Coonlidge and serves measure, at least. as an indic that his influence has been consider- ably increased by the results of the }last elecetion.” “One vote, the thi t possible margin, saved the President’'s veto,” declares the Louisville Post (inde pendent). * 'Tig not so deep as a well, |nor so wide as a church door; but 'tis | enough, "twill serve. a mar- |®in for jubilation on the part of the |administration, but it serves as a prop |to the President’s prestige and affords him a respite until he can work with )R more friendly Senate to be ushered in March 4. Fortunately for the Re- publican Party its representdtives |divided fairly well on the issue. That |fact alone prevents the sustaining of the veto from being interpreted as {abandon hope, all ye who toil’" | While in the opinion of the St. Louis { Post-Dispatch (independent) ““This | hairline Senate response emphasizes the fact that the fear of La Follette, the dread of an indecieive result at the. polls, with its consequent turmoil and uncertainty. buiked large in the November decision.” ok “People said last Spring, when the President vetoed the ill-advised and haphazard bill, that his course would be politically ‘suicidal,’ " remarks the New York Times (independent Dem eratic). “But today the political sui- cides .are to be looked for In other places than the White House.” The New Orleans Item (independent Democratic) declares that by the ac- tion “President Coolidge obtains full | control over Congress. The Senate reverses itself at his bidding. The ‘radicals’ are subdue and most of the blocs are broken.” In the opin- ion of the Cleweland Plain Dealer (independent Democratic), “The vote can ‘scarcely be interpreted as indi- cating, so far as this Congress is con- cerned, any large accession of strength to the President as a result of the recent Coolidge landslide.™ “B is true that Coolidge came near- er to exerting real leadership over Congress in this tion than at any previous time,” says the Roanoke World-News (Democratic) “But that isn't saying much, because here- tofore he h#sn’'t been able to show anything approximating leadership. { And we wouldn't quite call 23 votes with him compared to 55 against him real leadership.’ In the opinion of the Atlanta Constitution (Demo- cratic): “This does not show har- mony. In an organization of less than 60 party votes a defection of more than a third illustrates very pointedly the lack of harmony.” For President Coolidge, the Omaha World-Herald (independent Demo- cratic) believes, “it may prove a cost- ly victory. To gain it he has exe: cised ruthlessly his power of patron- age {o whip recalcitrant Semators in line. " Regardless of the merits of the postal controversy the spectacle is hardly an edifying one. We would like to think of Congress as using its independent judgment, deciding) Issues ou their merits, and not decid Ing-them according to their hunger for district attorneyships and mar- shalships and postmasterships, to pass out as pap to their hungry !rlendl.". {