Evening Star Newspaper, February 15, 1925, Page 37

EDITORIAL PAGE NATIONAL PROBLEMS SPECIAL ARTICLES Part 2—20 Pages BRITAIN PARALLELS U. S. IN FIGHT OVER LEAGUE Same Arguments Raised Over Protocol | That Were Used Here Against Cove- nant, But Isolation Is Lacking. BY FRANK H. SIMONDS. ONDON.—For the American the outstanding circumstance of British public life at the mo- ment is the present debate over the League of Nations. Actually this debate is nelther new nor strikingly British. The simple truth is that the British people are discussing the protocol of the league in the same spirit and with much the same phrases as the American people six years ago examined the covenant. All the old arguments, objections and differences are coming up again in a fashion which, for the visiting Amer- fcan, 13 at once bewildering and familiar. When all s sald and done, the de- bate over the protocol arises from the fact that there are a large num- ber of Englishmen who belleve that this document if adopted would com- mit Britain to a guarantee by its own force of a new map of Europe and the territorlak arrangement made at the Paris conference; that it would contain involvements and commit- ments beyond any desirable limit. In a word, Britain shrinks from the protocol as America dWid from the covenant for exactly the same rea- sons. British Are Involved. Yet, always the situation is funda- Mmentally different, for the isolation of the United States, with 3,000 miles of sea Intervening, is still absolute, while, as the last war showed, the t=olation of Great Britain, with barely 20 miles of water, is imaginary. Thus, the arrival of a new European strug- &le would infallibly involve Britain, probably from the outset. British escaps from the actual dangers of the protocol by adopting the Amer- tcan policy of aloofness, however de- sirable in theory, is impossible in practice. What the average Englishman is feeling with no little disquiet and irritation is that after all he is tied to Europe. To put it even more broadly, as contrasted with America, he is committed, he is involved, his geographical position does not permit him to enjoy the luxury of a policy of isolation. In a word, he knows that if there is a European war he will be involved and he is involved; ajr and subme=ine weapons have de- stroyed his ancient security. Facen Awkward Dilemma. But In this situation he Is facing an awkward dilemma. He must in practice choose between two things, a definite pact of security, pleading Brifish arms to maintain French and Raiglan safety, or the ratification of the protocol league adopted at Geneva last Summer, which commits him simllarly to a defense of the status quo In Europe—above all, to the wiaintenance of the Integrity of the eastern states, like Poland and Ru- mania, whose integrity seems to him ipdefensible in the long run. Even here the afflicted Briton does ®ot find any easy, simple choice. For 12 he should decide that the simpler, ster outlet is to adopt the principle of Franco-Belgian security to insure the Rhine situation, nevertheless he 1s bound to perceive that France her- melf has by treaty pledged her sup- port to the Poles and Czechs for the malntenance of the integrity of both these stat Thus, in practice, to guarantee the Rhine would mean to guarantee the Vistula and Bug. Moreover, for the Briton there is & marked distaste, now, for any spe- elsl private alllance. Millions of Englishmen believe that the last war was precipitated and Britain's par- ticipation insured by Sir Edward Grey's various more or less secret understandings with France and Rus- sia. They believe that separate al- liances made war inevitable, that a repetition of that policy would Insure a repetition of ultimate calamity. For these millions, too, there is no basis in sentiment for any guarantee of French security, with a resulting condition which would approximate an anti-German coalition. Englishman’s Only Chelce. theless, the farther the whole | #ituation is explored, the mors con- vinced the Englishman becomes that he has only a cholce between a direct Franco-Belgian guarantee and the omnibus protocol commitment. What is even more annoving, as I have tried to make clear, is that in the end both alternatives seem to arrive at about the same point, for there is no vast dissimilarity between guar- anteeing the security of France directly, when France is bound to protect Poland, and guaranteeing the existing state of Europe, thus by in- clusion that of France and Poland. There is 2 remark attributed, with what accuracy 1 cannot say, to Austen Chamberlain, the foreign secretary, which puts the problem ‘with the utmost clarity. Chamberlain Is reported to have said: “To reject | the protocol would be disaster, to ratify it seems now impossible; the wit of man has not yet besn able to discover a"third possibility.” ‘Wonld Be Deadly Blow to League. No one in England mistakes the fact that rejection of the protocol would be a deadly blow to the league; it would in reality be a blow wholly analogous to that struck by the United States when it rejected the covenant and definitely stepped out- alde the circle. The leagus' might aurvive British as it outlived Amer- fcan defection, but it would then be-| eeme a wholly continental, European stitution. and Britaln would cease 8 Be & factor, even if it remained a tacit wember. Mt fne British do not want to atandon the league. It is true, I think, that the fortunes of the league t the moment are relatively at a low eint In this country. The protocol as proved a shock to Its friends, a relnforcement to its enemles, Eng- lishmen, quite as much as Americans, Bave been wont to think .of the league A% 2 permanent conference rather than as an association of nations undertaking very specific, not impos- sibly onerous, duties to preserve peace, responsibilities which ‘might eonceivably be tremendous. Ne Escape for the Brit ‘. But where the American, with his 2,000 miles of sea, can draw back, no such escape is available for the Briton. If he should adopt this policy, then, as Herriot's recent speech indi- cated, France would stay on the Rhine indefinitely as the sole method of guaranteeing her security; real ce in Europe would be impossible at a date early or late, a new con- fagration would break out almost wsurely, involving Britain as a bel- Ugerent in any case, shooting to pleces ner markets, accentuating the axtent of her unemployment. it has inescapable clarity—the di- ymma which is new disturbing 'the aation possessed of-the.greatest po- litical instinct in the world, but with a profound, incurable objection to making decislons in advance, to mortgaging future freedom of action by specific contracts. The British people are not willing at the moment to say that they will intervene in Europe under ny circumstances which can only be imagined now. They are not even willing to guar- antee the future of France against tresh German attack without know- Ing in advance all the circumstances of the moment. Distrusts Europe's Map. Dominating all, too, is a profound distrust existing of the map of Europe. The Briton does:not belleve in Poland, Czechoslovakia, In Greater Rumania. He belleves that these states in their existing boundaries oonstitute inevitable affronts to Rus- sia and Germany in a not distant future. Ie does not care a red her- ring about self-determination—or any other abstract principle. What ap- pears to him is that these countries, newly created or expanded, seem in- capable of self-defense, doomed to invite attack; he is resolved not to be let In for a new war with Ger- many or Russia, or both, to defend frontiers which he has never himself accepted. As to the Franco-German situation, his mind is much clearer, provided only this situation were met. He has no particular sentimental love for France; we have passed out of the area of sentiment. But he sees that France is not going to abandon the Rhine barrier without a guarantee of security from him, either direct or through the protocol. ly to the point, recent events have tended to give him a more favorable view of the French mind. He does believe that France will retire, pro- vided guarantees are forthcoming. Militaristic France No More. You must appreciate the change of mind in Britain with respect of France to estimate present conditions exactly. The militaristic France of Poincare has disappeared. Now the majority of Englishmen see France as a country honestly concerned with security, ready to retire behind her own frontiers, abandon any coercion or mutilation of Germany, provided only security is assured. And, be it added, not ready to retire otherwise. The Englishman neither liked nor approved of the French position. He regards it as unreasonable, quite naturally, since it is calculated to be embarrassing for the Briton himself. But he does see it with comparative precision, he does see that it Is a na- tion-wide opinlon, he does recognize that something must be done about it. that it may be possible to do some- | thing about it in the long run, when the whole matter has been thrashed out. Now we are just here in the discus- sion. The people and the new cabinet have recognized that the real dicision | is between the protocol and the mak- ing of a new exclusive treaty of guar- antee with France, which would have all the disqualifications of a speclal al- liance and would not in the end save the British from embarrassment, or worse, if trouble broke on the Vistula, not on the Rhine. Again the mass of the people see that If Britain sum- marily rejects the league now, the league will be compromised, the Brit- ish influence In it destroyed. Two Logical Solutions Seen. There being only two obvious logical solutions, it Is safe to guess that the British will ultimately find a third, which is neither obvious nor logical, and will probably consist of taking a little from each possibility. 1 hazard the guess that the Baldwin government will do nothing which would lay it open to the charge at home or abroad that it had wrecked the league. But it seems equally tain that it will not lay itself open to the charge that it has pledged the youth of Britain to the defense of the Poligh line in the swamps beyond the Pinsk, or even in the corridor along the Lower Vistula in war, all of which 1s another way of say the British are now likely to follow the example of the United States Sen- ate in the memorable fight over the covenant. They are apparently to ac- | cept the protocol with reservations, with reservations drawn in the same spirit as those of our own legislature. They are considering indorsing the object of the protocol, but they are going to water down the obligations involved and do nothing hastily. But will this satisty France? Obvious- Iy not. Therefore, as a corollary, one hears more and more of a speclal pact with France under the league, a so- called regional pact to which in the end Germany, too, may be admitted, a pact which guarantees not the security of France and Belgium immediately and directly, but the perpetuity of the fron- tlers lald down at Paris so far as the Rhine region is concerned, and obligates the British to use their resources to re- strain any nation—which means, in practice, either France or Germany—if either seeks to disturb the peace or modify the status quo in that region. What John Bull Will Say. In effect, John Bull is going to say quite characteristically, “As to the protocol, 1 approve of it in principle, as 1 do all other efforts to preserve peace— as 1 do the League of Nations from which it emerged—but given the state of mind in my country, particularly in my dominions, it is no earthly use for me to undertake to promise that if you get into a row with the middle or east of Europe I shall be committed in ad- vance to go to the fire. Maybe that fire will spread to my property in the end, but the fact is that I cannot make my Yeople understand this in advance. We belleve in a League of Nations, but for us you went too fast, too far, in Geneva. I shall have to wait until my people catch up. But pray do not think that this means 1 do not believe in the league. Oh, dear, no, nothing of the sort, on my wore A= to R e Security. Then to France, “Look here, this matter of security, what you want is the fact of security; what my people want i8 to escape the form of special alliance; therefore, how would it be for me to undertake to oppose any attempt to invade the neutralized regions of the Rhine, any attempt to modify the status quo created at Paris, any refusal to ac- cept arbitration, to resort to aggression, as defined In the protocol? You have no intention of attacking Germany, so that does not restrict you; if Germany at- tacks you, then I am committed. But as to Poland, your—if I may—so pecullar eastern involvements, don't count on me. about ow, broadly speaking, that is the present British temper; that is 'the direction in which events are moving slowly, deliberately—are even being gulded by the officially inspired pre articles. There is no tension: the at. 3 (Continued on Third Page)_ [ What Is equal- | cer- | ing that | EDITORIAL SECTION * he Sy Staf WASHINGT BY DREW PEARSON R. RUSSELL CONWELL was sitting in a comfortable rock- ing-chair reading a church magazine when I entered his study. He attempted to rise, but yielded to his 82 years and my request that he remain seated. Once 1 recall placing a table in the middle of a Chautauqua platform for Dr. Conwell. To the audience the table served as a stand for a glass of water. But those behind the platform knew that during the two hours Dr. Conwell held that huge audience with his “Acres of Diamonds” he gripped that table to keep from falling. In those days he carried a trained nurse with him, but kept on lecturing—a dif- ferent town every day. That was 10 years ago and Conwell had delivered his famous lecture about 4,000 times. Today he has given it 6,150 times. With its pro- ceeds—$2,720,000—he has sent thou- sands of boys to college. And he Is still lecturing. Still Preaches at 82. Moreover he still preaches in the Baptist Temvle and s still president of Temple University, both of which he founded. Today Is his 82d birth- | day. Dr. Conwell has not been a preacher all his life. He served as lieutenant colonel in the Civil War, then took a | newspaper trip around the world, prac- ticed law for a time and finally en- tered the ministry. Probably to these early experiences Dr. Conwell owes one of his strongest characteristics— an extraordinary understanding of men. Calling a Witness. Now, I had called on Dr. Conwell to take the witness stand in a little Investigation I was making of cer- tain charges that have been brought against the church. In many quarters recently it has been asserted that the | morals of our people are in an ap- palling slump, that crime is rampant, that the old standards of decency in our personal relations are being dis- carded and that the country generally 1s ‘golng to the dogs. Many persons have blamed the church for this. Are we really in such a bad way morally? | 1s religion actually dying out among | our people? Are the churches and their ministers responsible for this? I had been commissioned to put these questions up to the biggest churchmen I could find in America. Dr. Conwell is one of them. He was perfectly willing to testify. So I pro- | ceeded to fire my questions at him. The answers came from a man who | has spent a lifetime thinking on this subject. Here they are: Q. Dr. Conwell, what do vou think of present American morais? ' Worst Wit Knowledge. A. They are worse than they have ever been to my knowledge, and I am a very old man. | Q What trouble? A. The church has RADIO LINKS is the fundamental lost its way PO SUNDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 15, THE INDICTMENT That fewer people are going to church today than at any time It is charged— in our history; That scoffing at religious beliefs and practices has become general; That women, who have always been the support of the churches, are becoming more irreligious ; That juvenile delinquency is on the increase; That divorces are becoming more numerous; That license in personal relations of the sexes is growing at an appalling rat That drinking parties in the homes are taking the place of drinking in the saloons; That the Jazz Spirit rules our schools, our colleges, our books, our lays, our music and our social life generally, and— HAT IN THE GREAT WAR BETWEEN RELIGION AND JAZZ RELIGION IS LOSING OUT. THE COST $2,650,000,000 taken in hold-ups last year; $6,000,000,000 squandered in swindling stock schemes; $100,000,000 lost in forgeries by trusted employes. The total cost of our crime is greater than the annual budgel of the Nation, and it is growing. Ts all this true? Mr. Pearson has asked four of the greatest religious leaders in America to take the witness stand and submit to being questioned on this subject. They are Cardinal Patrick Hayes of New York, Dr. Russell Conwell of Philadelphia, Rabbi Stephen Wise of New York and of the Federated Council of Churches. Dr. S. Parkes Cadman, president The first of these examina- tions, an interview with Dr. Russell Conwell, appears today. Dr. Conwell, acclaimed by a vote of 20,000 ministers to be one of Americ Diamonds'- this interview: s greatest preachers, whose famous lecture—“Acres of has been given over 6,000 times, boldly proclaims in That the church has lost its way. That morals are in the worst slump in all the 82 years he has lived. He tells why. This interview is a challenge It has quit saving souls and merely operates a mechanical machine. It pays more attention to buildings and charities than it does to men. It used to feed men's souls. Today it feeds men’s stomachs. It has become a glguntic charity organization. We have deserted spirituality for mechanics. Q. What do you mean by the me- chanics of the church? A. I mean all the side shows, such as community centers and conferences and sclentific discussions that detract from the main circus. We are 5o busy buflding buildings that we forget why we are building them. Our ministers spend more time begging for money than they do in preaching the gospel. Community centers are good things, but they eat up the energy of the preacher. And on Sundays, when You look for the people who ought to be in church, where do you find them? Over at the community center, making so much noise in the swimming pool that they drown out the sermon. Making B Men Good. Q. What s the essential function of the church? A. To make bad men good, and good men better. Which we forget all about because AMERICAS AS NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBORS People in Southern Continent Pick Up | Programs ! Understanding BY HENRY L. SWEINHART. TAND by, now!” says the an- nouncer in Schenectady, N. Y. Four thousand miles away. in Rio de Janeiro, an Ame | ican consul ‘“listening in | hears the command and waits to en- joy the next number on the program from home. The same music is heard in Mexico | City. in Panama and in Argentina; by | the “gaucho” out on the big cattle ranches of Argentina, and by hun- dreds of “radio fans” in Buenos Aires and elsewhere throughout that south- ern republic; by the rich coffee plant- er in Brazil, and by many of the workers on the plantations; in_the cities and villages of Mexico, in Pan- ama and in many other parts of Latin America. Thus does the radio, with its un- seen power, link the nations of the {world through the “music of the | spheres.” | Great Interest in Latin America. One does not have to be a Spanish scholar to understand that “Associa- cion Argentina de Broadcasting” means that they have organized a broadcasting club in the country named, and, according ‘to the latest advices recelved here, it had a mem- | Pership of 350, and was still grow- }ing. A large and steady demand for receiving sets and parts is looked for during the 1925 season in the South American republic, where the number of receiving sets already in use is estimated at from 180,000 to 200,000, according to a report to the United States Department of Com- merce. This is believed to be only a fraction of the “saturation point.” Radio is reported to be gaining in popularity in Argentina, due to the broadcasting stations, which send out not only popular musical programs of great variety, but operas from the famous Colon Theater, a8 well as de- bates which take place in the Argen- tine Congress. A broadcasting 8ta- | tion has been installed in the Capitol | Building, in Buenos Aires, to “cover” the doings on the floor of the Na- tional Assembly. Radio in Argentina has been placed under the supervision of the secretary of the mavy in co- operation’ with the minister of the interior, and there has been an allo- cation of wave lengths, up to 250 meters for amateurs, 352 to 426 me- ters for broadcasting stations, and from 600 up for maval and other gov- ernment stations. Argentina " pos. sesses the powerful Monte Grande wireless station, which is able to communicate with the United States, France, Germany and England. What Mexics Is Doing with Rado. Not only is Mexico receiving, but she is sending radio programs. The government has equipped a broad- casting station which is operated un- der the supervision of the bureau of educhtion and is now sending out daily programs containing both in- structive and entertalning feature Reports received here show _thai these Mexican progr: ing .picked, up_in various: i From U. S.—Better Is Furthered. United States and that they have been heard in parts of Canada. In addi- tion to a number of government owned and operated wireless stations in Mexico, the largest of which is at Chapultepec Park, near Mexico City, where there are three 300-foot tow- ers and nine smaller towers, some of the mining and other industrial con- cerns in Mexico have private stations. The government plants transmit com mercial as well as official messages, the chief value for commercial pur- poses being in certain isolated sec- tions of the republic. ‘Wireless Reports Explorers Safe. One of the greatest values of the radlo which has been proved already a number of times in Latin America, as well as in other parts of the world, iIs in getting in touch with dis- tant, out-of-the-way places, Inacces- sible to ordinary means of travel and communication. A recent {llustration of this was when an amateur radio operator in England picked up a message from the far upper reaches of the Amazon Valley in Brazil, an- nouncing that the expedition under Dr. Alexander Hamilton Rice, which had left New York almost a vear previously, was safe, that it had achieved the object of the expedition and that all members were well. This message was communicated to the Royal Geographic Society in London and then transmitted by cable to the’ United States. With much exploration still to be done in various parts of South and Central America, and with parties off in sections of the continent not yet fitted up with telegraph and tele- phone, it is probable that the radio will play an even more important part in the future than it has in the past in helping to open up and de- velop some of the rich mining, timber and agricultural territories which have not yet been scratched by the commercial activities of man. Makes Latin American Masle P, Another important featurs of the radio, particularly in the United States, is that it is Introducing and making popular many of the songs and much of the harmony of the Latin American countries, which un- til & year or two ago were unknown here. Bands and orchestras through- out the United States, as a result of this movement, are now taking up and playing some of the old melodies which were sung by the Incas in Peru long before Columbus landed on the shores of the New World, and which have only recently been tran- scribed into print. For centuries this musio had simply been passed on through the imprint on the memory of the native Indians and no -attempt had been made to write it down. Through the activities; of the Pan- American Union here, with Franklin Adams, counselor, giving much of his inspiring thought and personal super- vision, there have been introduced to American audlences also many songs and other harmonious selections from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba, the Central American countries and other to the churches. we are so- busy wrangling over re- ligion. I believe in sclentific discus- sion. But the fundamentalists and modernists are fighting over a mere detall, when they might use their energy In making bad men good. Q. Are not the schools supplying what the church once did? A. Our schools teach us chiefly how to make money. That's one trouble with this countr. We're all bent upon making money. Money is a good thing, but it must rest upon a founda- tion. Unless the nerson who possesses it has a foundation of character, money is a danger. So is education. How dangerous education without character may be was just proved by Loeb and Leopold. In Temple University we have 11,000 boys all craving knowledge. Why? Because it will help them make money. They are so busy studying the practical things of life that we have difficulty in erowding in one hour of ‘spiritual or religious training. They are all good Christian boys, but they are so busy acquiring knowledge that they don’t have time for the basic things of life, They want to know! They don't care what they know. It's just to know!—about anything save spiritual values. They wlill spend more time 1925. Is Religion Losing Out to Jazz? sitting around working cross-word puzzles than we used to spend talking politics on cracker barrels. It should be the place of the church to give them more to think about. Glorifying Foree. Q. What is the cause of our pres ent moral slump? A. The war certainly gave it im- petus. KForce won the war. Imme- diately thereafter we bowed down or our knees to worship force. We put force to work. Prohibition is one w: we put it t work. We had been working for tem perance, which meant slow educatior and the gradual curbing of men' thirsts. But suddenly we saw an op- portunity to pass total prohibition with limitations so drastic that it was virtually necessary for doctors and good law-abiding cltizens to break them. All of which helped our wide- spread disregard for law. Q. Will we abandon prohibition? A. We may have to, though that would be a calamity. The only wa to get rid of the drink evil is to build up within a man’s character a law of his own against it. That law he will not break. That is my criticism of the child labor amendment. There is too much force about it. We give Congress the right to enforce certain restrictions when we ought to be doing this in our own homes. Why pass the buck to Congress? Child labor in some parts of the South is a terrible thing. But if the Southern preachers had the in- fluence among their people that they should have, those practices would have been stopped long ago. The church is to feeble to move. What Is the Remedy? Q. How can we get people to obey our present laws? A. Not with policemen. Gen. But- ler tried to do that in Philadelphia. | He claimed he would clean it up in 48 hours. How? By the simple ex- pedient of locking people in jalls. But he found he could jail every citi- zén In Philadelphia, and even that wouldn't make them any better. You can’t make men good by force. You can't clean up Philadelphia by putting a policeman in every doorway of the vice district, but you could do it eventually by putting an old-time preacher in every doorway. You can only clean up Philadelphia by helping men to build clean charac- ters. And that's the job the -church has quit doing. We have quit making good men out of bad. Q. What can we do to get back In the right track? A. 1am not sure. Iam an old man and T've been casting about—search- ing for the right way out—ready to throw the last years of my life into anything or any way that will lead ais out. Certainly the present state of things cannot last. This must be a transi- tional stage. ‘We can't get much worse, and, therefore, we must get better. b DISTRICT OBTAINS MODEL MILK LAW AFTER YEARS Long Fight Ends in Enactment of Meas- ure Protecting Supply—Quality High Now Through Co-operation. IVE years of ceaseless fighting to assure the District of Co- lumbla of a supply of pure milk came to a successful close last Monday when the House on one of the two remaining District days of the present Congress adopted the Lampert milk bill, which had already passed the Senate. Herctofore residents of the District have been forced to rely upon the honest efforts and pride of the deal- ers to keep the supply of a high quality, and, while excellent results have been obtained, there was noth- ing in the way of regulations to en- force proper sanitary methods. ‘What was done was done through compe- tition and a natural desire of most of the dealers to turn out the finest product possible. Under the terms of the blll the regulation requiring that all herds supplying milk to the District shall be given the tuberculin test annual- ly stands out as the most important. Pasteurizing, of course, Improves the healthfulness of milk and lengthens the time in which it may be kept sweet, but serlous doubts exist as to just how far it goes In killing the germ of tuberculosis. - This germ is believed to be able to resist the boil- ing point of milk and would, there- fore, be able to withstand the much lowér temperature of pasteurizing, which i usually placed at about 145 degrees Fahrenheit. The measure also provides that the farms supplylng milk shall be in- parts of Latin America; and this seems to have been well received. The United States Army and Navy Bands in this city have been playing a considerable amount of this music of the Americas; and Rear Admiral Carl T. Vogelgesang, who was head of the American naval mission to Brazil, when he came back ' from South America recently brought with him a lot of Brazillan music as a present from the Navy Band of Brazil to the United States Navy Band, and -a broadcasting program ‘was arranged. Latin America is being made known to the United States also.through another feature of the radio, namely, the - Pan-American nights which have been arranged and broadcast from Washington. Secretary of State Hughes spoke at one of the latest, and previously there had been Arg tine, Chilean, Mexican, Guatemalan and a number of other special, as well as general Pan-American nights, in which short talks by diplomatic representatives of those countries and appropriate music had featured the programs. % In Latin America, as \elsewhere throughout. the world, the radio is helping to remove the “isolatiol from remote places in all countries; it _has brought the mountain hamlet and the plantation ranch Into contact with the clity and clvilization; and it 13 helping to make the nations ot the American Hemisphere know and un- derstand each other better. spected and sraded as to the sani- tary conditions under which the milk has been produced. ‘Washington's milk supply has been of high quality right along. Nu- merous dairies may be ranked ratner low by the Board of Health, but these are usually the smaller dairles. Lacking laws an@ regulations up to the present, the health office, by a method probably unique in the country, has built up a record for quality in milk that will compare favorably with the best produced. This has been accomplished In three ways. Unoficial Inspecti First, by means of unofficial inspec- tions, the health office has been able to get a check on every milk planc in this city and on every dairy sup- plying milk to the city. The men carrying on this work adopted an arbitrary standard that represented the best thought in the country as to the proper methods of producing sanitary milk. Using this standard as a basis, they graded the various farms and dairies they inspected. These records were collected and, in the case of the farms, were tabulated and supplied to the dealers. This gave each dealer a clear understand- ing of the condition of the source of his supply. This brought in the second phase of the development. Dealers, en- deavoring to improve their supply; sought to sign contracts with the daijries listed as of highest quality. This competition brought about the allowance of certain additions in the price paid the farmers to those who produced the best milk. The added price naturally spurred the farmers on to added effort and the quality grew steadily better. Another angle of this phase also developed. In times of flush production or lowest con- sumption, when excess milk was to be expected, the farmers lowest on the list were sometimes left without a good market for their product. Bulletin Issued te Public. The inspectors, after grading the farmers, also graded the distributing plants In the city and then the chem- ista analyzed the milk for its per- centage of milk fats and other solids and for its bacterial content. With the resuits of all these ex- aminations before them, they were ready for the final phase in the de- velopment of the supply of pure milk. They allowed the dealer one-third on the food value and bacterial count of his milk. If this were perfect he would receive 3314 per cent. If his own methods in the handling of the milk were perfect he would receive another 3313 per cent, and if the farmers’ methods were perfect the final 33%4 per cent would be added and he would have a score of 100 per cent. After all of the dealers had been 50 graded, a list of the dealers, with their net scores, was prepared and sent out to the public, or, rather, to auch sections of the public as asked - -Pepnavivan Society News | BY JOHN T. HE new move in Congress to force up the postal rate on newspapers and magazines is a blow, not at the big publishers, but at the small md weak ones, and will prove a powerful force to drive our press— | the voice of the people—under the | control of a few great publishing | monopolies.” This statement was made by A. C Pearson, national chalrman of the American Publishers' Conference, when asked for his opinion of the bill passed during the week by the House raising the Senate's rates on second-class mall matter. Mr. Pear- son is himself the director of one of the largest publishing houses in America. The bill is now before the Senate for action. Really Hit Little Papers. “The advocates of this bill think they are aiming a shot at the big newspapers and magazines. But they are wrong. It is the little fellows they will hit and drive out of business in some cases. This will leave the | field that much clearer for their | richer and stronger rivals. Moreover | it will tend to deprive the country of many of those numerous small weeklies and monthlies which carry the free discussion of all sorts of matters to our people. We need those little fel- lows in a Republican Government like ours. But if this bill goes through it will. mean the silencing of many of those. voices. this a good thing for our democracy " “Does the Government lose money on the carrying of second-class mail at the present rate? I asked. “It does mot” was Mr. Pearson's prompt reply. “Of course, postal fig- ures are huge and not easy to analyze. It is difficult to get at the actual cost {of any particular service. For in- stance, we made an experiment in one postal district. We managed to keep all second-class matter out of the mails for a definite time. That place emploved 30 letter carriers. Yet it was found that those 30 letter car- riers were just as necessary without the second-class matter in the mails. The newspapers and magazines did not add a single dollar to the cost of delivery in that office. Such mail is always held in post offices and sent out when the load of the postman s lightest."” No Loss to Government. 1 picked up a magazine from Pearson's desk. It was one of own publications. It had about pages of editorial matter and pages of advertising. “Is there any reason why that ad vertising matter should get the bene- |fit of a cheap rate?” I asked. “That | advertising is, in reality, a part of the | operating cost of merchants and manufacturers. Is there any reason why the Government should cafry it at a loss and at the expense of the public?” “Don’t worry about ment losing money on zine,” he replied, smiling. “We sell that magazine for $6 a year. Out on the Pacific Coast a subscriber gets it from us for $6 a year. Yet it costs us $15 2 year In postage to send it there. It is a large magazine and heavy. It yields the Government as much revenue as several small maga- zines, yet it is delivered ‘in one call, while the several smaller magazines require delivery at several places. This only {llustrates what I have al- ready touched on, namely, that the Government makes a profit on the larger magazines, while it loses on the smaller ones. Attacks Loss Claim. “But an official in the Post Office | Department,” I interrupted, “insists that the Government loses $79,000,000 a year on second-class matter.” “I am familiar with that gentle- man’s clalm,” said Mr. Pearson. “And I am sure he would never use those figures if he realized what a slam he 114 Mr. his | 100 | 200 the Govern- that maga- DRIVE TO RAISE POSTA RATES ON PRESS SCORED Higher Charges Would Result in Ruining of Smaller Papers, Publishers’ Official Says in Interview. FLYNN. Just consider them for a moment Ha says the department loses $79.000,000. Its revenus from newspapers and magazines is $33,000,000. That means the department is losing 240 per cent based on its revenue. Now remember this—many big publishers have quit using the malls altogether. The Chi- cago Tribune sends 55 per cent of its ssue by other means than the mail The Curtls Publishing Co. sende 70 per cent of the Saturday Evening Post and the Ladies'’ Home Journgl through freight, express and trucke The companies which carry this mate ter are private companies, and theg operate at a profit. Yet they are cas- rying this material for less than the present Government rate. Now, if a private company delivers those pub- lications and makes a profit, while the Post Office Department, with s higher rate, loses 240 per cent, whas Is the matter with the Post Offica? A New Attitude. “This attitude newspapers and of Con; toward magazines is some- thing new. Our early lawmakers were eager to encourage the wide distribution of printed matter among the people. The first low second- class rates were fixed by Congrese at about 2 cents a pound without any sress [ request for preference from the pub- lishers. Later—about 1871, I think Congress cut this rate in half. And here is a remarkable feature of that actlon—It was done by Congress vol- untarily and without the publishers, %0 far as I can find, moving a finger to bring it about. Now, at almost every session of Congress this deter- mination to raise the price of post- age on newspapers and magazines is brought up. “What is the reason for the change?” I inquired. High Rates Curb Spread. “It looks very much as if Congress were determined to punish the maga- zines and papers for their criticisms of itself. The change began to manl- fest itself first just after the wave of muck-raking which swept over the country about 15 rs ago. I am not defending muck-raking. But from that time on, Congress began (o mani- fest a spirit of growing enmity the press. The proposal to raise pos rates has been held as a sort of bl geon over the heads of per @ magazine owners. It doesn't 100’ a very wholesome thing, does it? 'And it comes no a bad time,” Mr. Pearson added. “The already rate on distant zones has a tende to restrict the circulation of | zines and papers to the territ to their publication home. Th bad thing, and I will tell you w >resident McKinley said that the softening of th atreds b tween the North and South was one of the fine ievements his time. Who could undertake to meas- ure the value of such a thing to the country in billions of dollars? How much of that was done by Northern papers being read in the South and Southern papers being read in North? Is it not equal today for a magazine California to be read and for ome printed in to be seen regularly in California? Do we not want to see the problems of the Kansas farmer reach the toil- ers in the eastern cities, and the hopes and aspirations of the workers in the New England mills made known to the men out on the western plains and on the plantations of the South? The free interchange of thought between East and West, North and South, through the wida circulation of periodicals is a thing to be encouraged by the Government. 1t is our natlonal publications, more than any other thing, which have helped us all to know one another better. They have built up our ni tional consciousness. This bill is a di- rect blow at this important influence the in is thus taking at his own department The four industrial States of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio pay in personal income taxes $74,000,000 more than the amount paid by the other 44 States, and receive in State aid $52.000,000 less than the amount recelved by the other 44 States, according to a statement sub- mitted to Congress by Representa- tive Ernest R. Ackerman of New Jer- sey, a member of the House appro- priations committee, based on the latest Government figures available. Representative Ackerman argues from this that while the agrcultural West Is having its burdens alleviated the industrial East is very heavily burdened, its load is inequitable, it should have priority consideration by Congress, whereas the proportionate representation of these fdur States In Congress is only 121 to 410 members. Representative Ackerman says: “By far the major portion of the burden is still, I believe, being dis- proportionately borne by the income taxpayers of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio. Says Top Too Heavy. “It follows, therefore, as a natural sequence that the people of these in- dustrial States, who file 2,357,340 per- sonal income tax returns, represent- ing 34.7¢ per cent of the entire num- ber filed, are carrying on their pr fessional and commercial activities under a tax load which cannot other- wise than be a brake upon the wheels of permanent progress and a drag on initlative and enterpris: “A simple comparison of the wealth of these four industrial States with that of’ the other 44 States and the amount of taxes collected in each group discloses one phase. “A comparison of the numerical rep- resentation of each group in the Con- gress shows another. “A still further inquiry is shown in the returns yielded through State-aid projects. “A glance at the following table shows these inequittes in.inescapable facts and figure e The 44 other States. 413,000,000 70 Per Cemt Overpayment. “On the basis of wealth ‘the four States~of New Yark, New Jersey, d “Ohio. in our national life.” Overtaxing of Four States Paying $447,000,000, Charged paid $265,000,000 in personal incoma taxes. Compare this with the amount paid—$447,000,000— and you will see that these States have an overpay ment of 70 per cent because the in- dividuals living therein have an over- assessment to that extent “On this same basis of wealth the group comprising the 44 States shoulg have paid $595.000,000 instead of $413,000,000, the amount collected. ao= cording to the 1922 figures—$182,000.- 000 less than in proportion to their wealth by the last census of 1922! “Still considering the wealth of the two groups, we see that the four States, with considerably less than a third of the total wealth of the coun- try, as indicated by the census, pay 37 times as much to the Federal Gov- ernment in personal income taxes as they receive In “State aid” funds. Compare this with the “State aid paid to the 44 States, and it will be seen that they pay only six and a half times the amount of the “aid” in in- come taxes from the residents of all of those States combined. In other words, they receive nearly six times on the average what the four States, New York, New Jersev, Ohio and Pennsylvanla, receive.” Devastated Sections Of France Pay Big Tax The devastated regions of France, the seared waste that marked the rolling tide of conflict, are, from the fiscal viewpoint, rapidly becoming 1it- tle more than a historical phrase. Their productiveness, measured in terms of taxation, is again back upon a pre-war basis. “In 1919,” says Basil Miles, Ameri- can commissioner to the international chamber, in a report from Parls, “fiscal returns from the devastated reglons amounted only to 964,000,000 francs. By the end of 1923 the an- nual taxes paid by the inhabitants of these regions was 3,722,000,000 francs. For the calendar year 1924 ‘t is esti- mated that taX receipts will amount to.more than 4,500,000,000 francs. Thus the devastated regions, which fur- nished one-sixth of the revenues of the French government before the war, are again paying their pre-war share of the taxes of France. “In ‘1922 total tax receipts from Alsace-Lorraine amounted to 249,002 - 000 francs; in 1923, to 326,000,(t0 francs, and for 1924 they are estim ed_to total over 400,000,000 franca'™ -