Evening Star Newspaper, March 10, 1925, Page 6

THE EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASBXN'GTON, D. C. TUESDAY . ...March 10, 1925 THEODORE W. NOYES. . The Evening Star Newspaper Company Bustness Office, 11th £t. and Pennsylvania Ave. ok omee: 110 gt e Chicago OMe:: Tower Bu European Office 16 Regent St.,London, Lngland. Tl the Sunday morning Fa within the Gy only, 45 The Eyening Star, edition, s delivered eity at 60 ceuty pes ceits per month; Sunday onl Orders may be sent by m moath. made by car- one Main 5000. Collection B e e of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance, Maryland and Virginia. Dally and Sunday. .1 yr., $8.40; 1 mo,, 70¢ Dally only 5 -, $6.00; 1 mo., 50¢ Sunday only $2.40; 1 mo., 20¢ All Other States. i Daily and Sunday.1 yr., $10.00; 1 mo, 85¢ Daily only.......1yr, $7.00;1mo, 60c Sunday only......1yr, $3.00;1mo,35c Member of the Associated Press. The Assoclated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all mews dis. tehes credited to 11 or ot otherwise credited this paper and also the local news pul lished herein. = All rights of publication of peciul dispatches herein are also Teserved. The Schools. With the §19,000,000 five-year school building program about to be put into operation, with increases in the sal- aries of local teachers provided for and with the compulsory education and school tendance bill enacted into law together with provision for a census of all Washington children be- tween the ages of 3 and 18 years and adequate machinery for enforcement of the law, Washington is about to enter upon an era of elementary and high school development hitherto un- precedented in the city’s history. The comblned efforts of the Board of Edu- -ation, the public, the District Com- missioners and the Government of- ficlals immediately concerned has born admirable fruit, and there is every promise that, when the five vears of bullding shall have been completed the educational facilities of the Dis- trict of Columbia will stand as a splendid example to the cities of the Nation. This, in contrast to the long years of increasing inadequacies and make- shift solutions in the form of part- time and oversize classes and rented or portable structures—years in which District children have suffered both in the matter of education and health—is a most happy conclusion. That it is to be fully taken advantage of, that the funds available are to be =0 expended as to achieve the maxi- mum in results to the desired end of a model public educational system, is evidenced by the careful and efficient process of study and survey being un- dertaken by school officials and the District architect. School construc- tion and location in other citles as far West as Chicago is to be thoroughly ‘nvestigated, and from the experiences and practices of others are to be zleaned whatever is best for local usage. The sum available, $19,000,000, is a ge one—but the arrears to the cor- rection of which it is to be applied are of long standing and very extensive. Tt is belicved that the five-year pro- gram, supplemented by nominal an- nual apprcpriations to care for imme- diately prospective increases in at- tendance, will put Washington where it should be in the matter of public education. But there are no funds available for mistakes. Given evidence that evéry penny it has so generously appropriated has been expended with wisdom and is earning interest in the matter of better educated and more healthy Washington children, Con- sress might well be prevailed upon to increase the fund available should it prove inadequate for the program as laid out. But any tendency toward rash experiment which resulted in un- | wise and inefficient expenditure would inevitably incur congressional disap- proval and render difficult that con- tinuation of the program so essential to the future. So it is that the Washington public views with whole-hearted approval the businesslike efficiency of those charged with carrying forward the program as they go about the task of winnow- ing the wheat from the chaff of school construction, with a view to applying the best to local needs. With every scheme given its proper consideration, with every step taken with due cau- tion, with every energy lent to the task of getting the utmost possible for the Washington school children of today and tomorrow out of every dol- lar spent—the dream of a model school system for the National Capital should, and no doubt will, become a reality. —— e Americans have been regarded abroad as representing the spirit of reckless innovations. Yet there can be no doubt that we are most con- servative. We still lend patiently ad- miring ears to “Listen to the Mocking Bird with Varlations.” o Charges of lese majeste have been preferred against Blasco Ibanez; all of which helps to increase the royal- tles, ———— The position of Vice President of the United States is no longer one of leisurely _quiescence. ————— The Soviet government in Russia is now defending itself against plots, al- though it originated in them. e Europe at Geneva. History may be written this week at Geneva, where the council of the League of Nations is assembled, or the outcome may be just another of those innumerable futile conferences which bave been held in Europe since the treaty of peace was signed. Rep- resentatives of the nations are gath- ered in the Swiss city deeply fm- pressed with the conviction that the time is at hand when something should be done to guard against re- currence of war, but the scales in which success or failure will be deter- mined are so delicately adjusted that even a guess -as to the decision is hardly worth while. Austen Chamberlain, the British forelgn secretary, is there with his scheme for a guarantee of French and Beigian security to which Germany would be @ subscribing party. It is denicd that it is the British program to scrap the Geneva protocol for arbi- trution, security and disarmament, but were the British proposal to be accepted by France, and a treaty along the lines suggested be entered into, the protocol inevitably would be scrapped. This would leave the smaller nations touching Germany’s eastern frontier high and dry, so far as se- curity was concerned, and they are protesting vigorously and using every argument to hold France in line for the Geneva protocol. France is be- tween the two fires of her great need of a British guarantee and, loyalty to her allies in the East. If the British guarantee could be had with Germany lett out, or if Germany would come in without qualification as to her eastern boundaries, the problem would be relatively simple, but neither of these courses seems possible at this time. British opposition to a guarantee compact which does not include Ger- many is easy to understand. It would mean simply the realigning of Europe into two hostile camps, forcing Ger- many to seek associations elsewhere, probably with Russia, to offset the combination arrayed against her, an almost certain assurance of future war instead of a guarantee of peace. But the French, with logic from which it is difficult to escape, argue that an- other peace treaty with Germany is not worth while so long as Germany refuses to abide by the peace-guaran- teeing clauses of the treaty of Ver- sailles, and that if Germany will abide by the Versailles treaty no further guarantees from her are needed. The French are unable to see any value in @ new treaty contalning guarantees less strong than those by which Ger- many now is bound in theory, but re- fuses to observe in practice. In the above are outlined only a few of the difficulties and conflicting vital interests which stand in the way of an agreement, but Europe's need of some sort of an agreement assuring a period of peace is so great that there is hope, and even a fair chance, that a way will be found in spite of the apparently insuperable obstacles which must first be overcome. r.—.——— Economy is commended to people of all classes, but there has never yet been a social system which did not| provide the best service for the most liberal spender. R Test of Party Loyalty. What constitutes party membership and party loyalty? The question, raised in the Senate when the Re- publican majority yesterday disci- plined four insurgents—La Follette and his followers in the recent cam- paign—was settled at least tempo rarily so far as those Senators are concerned. They were held to be no longer Republicans and no longer loyal to the party because they had failed to support the party platform and the party candidate for President during the last campaign. They were denied committee assignments as Re- publicans. Those who believe in party regularity will applaud this action. Vigorous protest was voiced by Re- publican Senators from the West. What would they have said had Sen- ators La Follette, Brookhart, dd and Frazier voted for John W. Davis instead of La Follette and Wheeler— the latter, by the way, a Democrat? Yet a vote for La Follette, theoreti- cally, was just as much a blow at the Republican nominee as a vote for Davis, the Democratic nominee. “Had the campaign been military in- stead of political, and the leaders in question been found outside the ranks of the Republican army, what then would have been said of their loyalty? On the other side of the question rests the argument that these Sen- ators were elected as Republicans by those calling themselves Republicans in their particular States. Is there more reason for denying the Repub- licanism of the Senators than of the people who elected them? It is true that of the three States represented by the four Senators, two voted for the Republican national ticket in the last election and one did not. It is also true that in one of the States, Iowa, the electoral vote was cast for Coclidge even while the voters were electing Brookhart. At the bottom of the contest in the Senate over the disciplining of the four insurgents lles the fact that the Republican party has had for years a progressive wing and a conservative wing. The progressives in the party fear that an attempt is being made to stifie them, to weed them out. It rep- resents a contest in the party itself between these two wings, a contest that in 1912 split the party asunder and gave the progressive wing the lion's share of electoral votes—though at that time the progressives appar- ently left the old party under the leadership of Roosevelt. No one thought of chastising the progressives then in the Senate—or if they did they did not advocate such a course openly. But in 1924 the tables were turned, and the conservative wing of the party was overwhelmingly in the ascendency and continues to be today. ‘The time has come, in the opinion of the regular party leaders, to stamp out insurgency, and they are under- taking it. How wise, or unwise, this course may be time will tell. It is noticeable that the Democrats made no such ef- fort to discipline Senator Wheeler, La Follette's running mate in the cam- paign. Apparently they believe in a more tolerant attitude. Had they been as overwhelmingly triumphant as the Republican organization at the last election thelr attitude might have been different. Senator Borah of Idaho, Himself from the progressive West, urged tolerance in the hour of victory. Three of the Senators disciplined con- tinue to claim to be Republicans—bet- ter Republicans, they say, than some of those who lashed at them. They ate, however, has decided that despite these protests of party loyalty the evidence is aguinst these Senators. ‘What reason, they ask, is there to be- lieve that thes¢ insurgents will not two years and four years from now bolt the party platforms and candi- dates? Why, they demand, should Senate committee plums be granted them now? Committee assignments in themselves are insignificant encugh. The r2al attempted punishment lies in reading these men out of the party. e A member of the Swiss National Council was convicted in court of being a blasphemer, and was showered with floral tributes by admirers. “All the world's a stage,” and the rough- talk drama refuses to confine itself to the footlights, ————— Fifty-Six Years’ Service. Retirement of a man who has worked for the Government at Wash- ington G6 years is an interesting bit of news to most persons. Now and then The Star prints a story of a man Wwho has served the Government an unusual time, and at the close of that service is presented with & watch, a sheaf of flowers or other souvenir. The latest story of this kind is of the re- tirement of James Watts, 56 years with the Government in Washington, 4§ years a White House gardener and many years assistant head gardener. Col. Sherrill, engineer officer in charge of public buildings and grounds, and F. F. Conklin, chief clerk of that office, made short and otherwise effective speeches, and many fellow employes gathered at the simple, touching cere- mony. Some of the words spoken of James Watts were of his coustesy and loyalty. Watts went to work in 1869 at the old Naval Observatory, where his father was the gardener, and was transferred to the White House con- servatory. This man has had some- thing to do with the growing and sathering of flowers which have done their part in thousands of ceremonies, many of which because of their impor- tance or impressiveness we speak of as historic. During his long service this man has not stood under a spot- light. No doubt he has as many true and sincere friends as men in con- spicuous place, but James Watts has certainly not often had his name and picture in public prints. He was one of the humble workers of the Govern- ment. There are many others of them, men and women who work faithfully and with zeal, draw & moderate, and generally a very moderate, stipend, and get not much official notice and little praise. Not many of us can work for the Government, or can work at all for 56 years, and when a man ““carries on” so long and retires with good wishes of those who labor with bim it is a matter worth noting. ——o——s Filibustering has, by grace of cer- tain courteous customs, long been re- garded as a necessary evil. It is still recognized as an evil, but the question has been conspicuously raised as to whether it is necessary. e ——— Statistical research does not encour- age much hope that it will be possible to meet housing conditions in the Dis. trict of Columbia by the discharge of a few hundred Government employes. ————— It Is stated that young Leopold and Loeb are model prisoners. This in- formation may promote an inclination to leave them undisturbed in con- genial circumstances. —————— If its possibilities could have been foreseen the ceremony of swearing in Senators might have been made a matter of executive scssion. e — S In the course of time the regular base ball season may be regarded as a brief interruption of the literary la- bors of the stars of the diamond. —————— Biographers are at a disadvantage owing to the fact that there is always enough present agitation to over- shadow interest in that of the past. —e—. Time gradually heals our irrita- tions. Nobody appears to care much what has become of G. C. Bergdoll. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JORN Filibustering. Of Courtesy we often speak With reverence sincere, And vow that people ought to seek That virtue, far and pear. But Courtesy rests not alone On superficial style. ‘When it is practically shown It is the most worth while. Remember, when considering taste In any age or clime, It is not Courtesy to waste A Nation's precious time. The Important Consideration. “What plans do you favor?” “That's of no great interest,” an- swered Senator Sorghum. “The ques- tion now is not so much what you favor as what you can get by with.” Human Habit, Since Eve and Adam banqueted neerby The apple tree, It has been human ncture to defy The pow'rs that be. No matter how beneficent and wise And provident, It is man's privilege to criticize His Government. Jud Tunkins says you can often judge what & man ain’t by what he’s most anxious to pretend he is. No Inducement. “Some day we will all be traveling by aircraft.” “What for?” asked Mr. Growcher. “Every town has the same motion pic- tures and concerts and we may as have no present intention, they say, of joining with Senator La Foilette, the fourth insurgent, in the formation of @ new liberal party. Had they done 0, what voice would have been raised in protest ageinst their elimination from the Republican party? The case against them would have been: com- plete. The Republican majority in the Sen- well stay where we are.” Supervision. Such illegality we see ‘We fear it cannot cease Till every citizen may be Employed with the police. “De only excuse foh profanity I knows of,” said Uncle Eben, “is dat it sort o’ seems to intertain a mule.” PACIFISM BY ARCHIBALD HOPKINS. 1f a burglar comes to rob you, . Ask him in, To resist a fellow creature is & sin, So let him have your cash, After all it's only trash: Non-resistance is the only way to win If a ruffian assaults you, Don't complain: Mankind was meant to give and suffer pain. Abolish the police And assaults at once will cease; Preparedness Is nelther safe nor sane. If a brute insults your sister, Why object? You never should get angr: just reflect If you cringe and run away, The truly good will say, Behold another one of the elect. Say nothing with the very Slightest dash Of anything belligerent or rash If ever as a Nation We should beg for reparation, Let it be on terms reducible to cash. 1f your neiglibor carries on A bloody brawl, Burning, plundering and killing great and small The way to serve humanity Is to treat him with urbanity, Until there's no one left to kill at all Whatever else you do stay prepared. of any danger's only shared By scurvy pollticlans And those who make munitions. There isn't any reason to be scared Send our Navy to the bottom Of the se If your carrlers are threatened they can flee Dismantle all your forts; They will serve for peaceful sports, Where strife and bloodshed nevermore shall be The parasitic Army Must disband. They are nothing but a curse on every hand Let them learn to work their way; Teach them how to run away When enemies invade the helpless land. Haul Old Glory down from every Pole and mast. 1t recalls a bloody, dark-and baleful past When we thought that we were right For our liberty to fight, But we've learned how very Wrong we wese at last ‘Why should you love and venerate The flag? It Is nothing but a variegated rag, And this vaunted patriotism Is @ cause of needless schism, Provocative of silly, harmful brag The people who have trouble Are the brav 1f you'll only be a coward or a slave Your troubles all will cease, And you'll live in blessed peace: Remember you have got a skin to save BACKGROUND OF EVENTS BY PAUL V. COLLINS. It is readily conceded that the rise and fall 'of the mercury In thermome.- ters and barometers do not cause the changes of weather, but simply re- cord conditions which produce these changes. Where are those conditions originating? The Smithsonlan Institution, by its astrophysical observations, under the charge of Dr. Charles G. Abbott, is seeking to expand the knowledge of weather by golng beyond the surface of the sea of atmosphere under which men live, as the deep-sea monsters do at the bottom of the ocean. Primal causes of the variations of atmos- pheric conditions are sought in the variations of heat radiation of the sun. usually about 5 per cent—some- times as high as 12 per cent. The causes of such solar variations are traced to the presence of sunspots— holes in the gaseous envelope of the sun. When there are many sunspots they seem to increase the heat radl- ated, just as 18 caused when one stirs up the fire of a grate by poking it and moving the coals. The sun- spots are immense chimneys through which pour burning gases. Dr. Abbott predicts that when the sclence of sun variation becomes bet- ter understood and measured more ac- curately than is now possible, weath- er forecasting, extending months or years ahead may become reliable. It is even suggested that miraculous in- sight enabled Joseph to predict with the certainty we may know in the future the seven fat years to be fol- lowed by the seven lean ones. The Smithsonian Institution has been h:- vestigating sunspot influences for 20 years. Since December, 1823, there have been active prognostications made in the United States by Dr. H H. Clayton, connécted with the Smith- sonian Institution, and located at “anton, Mass. O any years Dr. Clagton was i charge of weather observations of Chile, South America, where long-range fore- casts were made upon the baslis of the sun’s radiation of heat. Dr. Abbott has been quoted as stating that the Chilean forecasts were astonishingly accurate, although not infallible. The sclence is new and undeveloped, cient. e Humphreys, head of the United States Weather Bureau, does not in- dorse all the sunspot doctrines. The United States forecasts continue to be dependent upon observations of af mospheric conditions upon earth, igno: ing the infinite universe. * ¥ ¥ ¥ The science of weather predictions based upon sunspots is not so simple as to declare that whenever there are many spots with consequent increase of sun. heat, there must be uniform, proportionate and immedlate increase of earth temperature. Although it takes a beam of light only § minutes to travel from sun to earth, it takes the heating effect of sun- spots some 10 days before noticeable on earth in warming our atmosphere, and then the temperature does mnot rise uniformly all over the earth. There are many other influences at- fecting wind and clouds, which cause variation of local conditions; the problems are complicated by all of ese. lh’l‘hcre are private weather prophets who sell long-range weather fore- casts and prosper by their continued patronage from shippers, amusement managers and market speculators. It would not be safe to belittle all such, although conservative authority re- s skeptical. B ere afe progressivo or _radical prophets and astronomers or astro- physicists, who seek knowledge even {n searching for the influences which cause the storms in the sun, mani- fested in the swirling sunspots. Where doctors disagree, who shall decide? Are even conservatives al- ways infallible? * k¥ % One of the ultra-sclentists of Yale University recently published an article in a scientific magazine based upon records that the star Alpha Centuari had made its closest lD( proach to the sun 28,000 years ago, and ever since has been receding. Blaming the statement upon the proofreader, it is now conceded that & wrong sign was used in the report, for it should have been recorded that the star will arrive at its nearest point to the sun 28,000 years in the future. That slip of 56,000 years in sclentific statement, while unusually inaccurate considering the authority behind it, may suggest what vast differences may arise in facts of actence, the data are In- | The stars, of which our sun is far from being the greatest, may be setting influences at work which control the storms of the sun, mani- fested in the sunspots, which in turn affect our temperature and winds. The rise and fall of wheat prices in our markets are due to conditions, perhaps, fixed not by the barometri- cal conditions studied by our ‘Weather Bureau as recorded yester- day and last week, but by the stars in their courses millions of years ago. * ok ok X The heat we receive from the sun directly is greater than what reaches us from the atars. Dr. Abbott in- forms us that the bright star, Al- baran, radiates heat which, if col- lected over a square mile of carth, would produce one calory a minute, whereas the sun's heat in an area of three-eighths of an inch square (one centimeter) would nearly double that —1.94 calories a minute. We think of the size and weight of | the sun, as compared with the earth as stupendous. The sun is greater in mass than all the planets of the so- lar system combined. It is nearly 900,000 miles in diameter; the earth approximately 8,000 miles. Some of the sunspots are 50,000 miles across; the earth could drop into a sunspot lke an apple into a barrel The star, Albaran, has a diameter 60 times greater than that of the sun— 58,000,000 miles—and Betelgeux's di- ameter is 300 times that of the sun. Orionis and Lyrae are two and a half times hotter than the sun. Only yesterday the announcement came from the Mount Wilson Ob- servatory that the star Mirror has been found to have a 25 per cent greater diameter than Bepeldeuse— & diameter of 250,000,000 miles. The solid body of Mirror would fill the antire circle of the earth’s orbit. And with the sun at its center would ex- tend on all sides 32,000,000,000 miles outside our orbit. The beams that we now see started from Mirorr be- fore we made our Declaration of In- dependence. Who shall measure the influence of such worlds upon the storms of the sun and earth? * % x % So when issuing .a_declaration of astrophysical independence from the atmospheric conditions of our own little earth, the radicals ask why 5top at the near-station of the sun, only 93,000,000 miles away? If we were to travel—in imagination—upon the wings of light, we would pass the moon in f.2 seconds and the sun in 8 minutes, but the nearest star, Alpha Centaurl, would require more than four years, though we sped “like lightning”—six million million miles & vear. There are only four stars which would be reached in ten years. It would .take 500 years to arrive at Rigel, which is 13,000 times as bright as our sun, and the beam from Orion which we see twinkling tonight ac- tually left that star upon its earth- ward journey 100 years before Co- lumbus sailed to Cathay. Our 100-inch telescope makes visi- ble a billion and a half of stars all bigger than our sun; future telescopes will show that we of today see but the outskirts of the universe. There are visible stars whose beams, travel- ing with the speed of light, 186,000 miles per second, take 10,000,000 vears to reach us. All their radio effects upon the sun or upon the earth left thelr starting station millions of vears be- fore this earth cooled sufficiently so that God said, “Let there be light; and there was light.” * ok k% Our weather is forecast today upon the basis of the low or high barome- ter of the earth’s atmosphere yester- day. According to Drs. Abbott and Clayton, it will be predicated by the future scientist upon the sunspots of elght minutes past, though the in- fluences that cause those sunspots, which cause our low or high ther- mometer and barometer, were fixed and unchangeable millions of years before. The weather is not a caprici- ous whim; it is fmmutable. Science needs to collate facts and o read its proofsheets. (Copyright, 1925, by Paul V. Collins,) One Thing Lacking. Prom the Chicago Tribuge. About the only thing we lack here in America i a law making the im- rgortality of the soul compulsory. And so the weight of the earth has cnanged. Perhaps that is because woman has her thumbd on it.—Nash- ville Tennessean, tour own faces. NEW BOOKS AT RANDOM LG M THE LIFE STORY OF AN UGLY DUCKLING. Marie Dressier. Rob- ert M. MoBride & Co. “Fate cast me to play the role of} an ugly duckling with no promise of swanning. Therefore I sat down when a mere child—fully realizing just how utterly ‘mere’ I was—and figured out my life early. Most peopls do it, but they do it too late. At any rate, from the beginning I have played my life as comedy rather than the tragedy many would have made of it. Some derive enjoyment from the martyr feeling, but even as an infant T would rather be laughed at than pitied. My Instinct has always been to turn drawbacks into drawing cards. It was tripping over a rug as a fat, clumsy 3-year-old that really set- tled my career. I discovered that people laughed when I acted awk- wardly, so I began to fall deliberately from a desire to make my friends enjoy themselves. 1 wanted those about me to be happy. I wanted everybody to llke me,” Marie Dress- ler, talking. * k% % Hardly anybody nowadays owns up to a memory 25 years long. Nor under modern circumstances can so great a strain upon the recollective powers be expected. Grandmothers tripping blithely about, precisely like those “three’ little malds from school”; grandfathers—rheumy-eyed, "tis true. but incorrigibly gallant nevertheless —ogling misses of 17; these certainly cannot be called upon to make the herculean reach into the antiquity that & quarter of a century connotes. If, just possible, however, there should be one here and there of an older fashion of thought and behavior, that one might be able to recall the dim past when this “ugly duckling” com- pletely smashed the shell of general prejudice against the homely woman and feathered out luxurtantly under the syell cast by the magic of her own Infectious laughter. Such an one will be glad to go along here, par- takingly, with Marie Dressler from the very beginning of a career whose 25-year span appears not to have di- minished appreciably the powers of a truly unconquerable spirit. x % % x Marie Dressler romps through this story of her life just about as she has romped on, and off, innumerable stages to the riotous delight of hosts of on lookers. A comedlenne of the drama, she, and a humorist of life and letters. In each, too, touched with the unconscious pathos in which true comedy and humor are both so deeply rooted. The pathos of cour- age is here, of the high heart of the gallant warrior. In her own way— which is always the way of laughter Marie Dressler goes back to those early days of her first engagement as “leading lady.” That was with a road company. She was then only 14 vears old. Many times since she has been leading lady under circum- stances of stability and profit and popularity. All of this is dashed off here with remarkable gusto and ob- vious enjoyment. And when the story is ended the reader finds himsalf in a mood of high elation. Not alone over the successes set down In this inspiriting record, though one does not withhold from the artist her full due for the happiness that she has bestowed, for the professional suc- cess that she has gathered in, for the honors that have been conferred upon her. But, after all, the great story, under all these other storfes, is the one that in its essence may be every- body's story—that of unfaltering courage and of the dauntless heart. * % % % The book is a sermon and a mes- sage—wholly free, however, from the hackneyed futilities with which the pulpit and the clergy have, unwit- tingly, endowed these terms. It is addressed to about the biggest audi- ence that can be mustered within the human family. This is a sermon to the enormous congregation of homely women. Nobody is strictly beautiful, either man or woman, though the concern here ls directly with women. Few are even compara- tively beautiful. The great majority are, clearly, plain and plainer. Set off against this fact and in clear aggra- vation of its effects is implanted the instinct for admiration, homage, love. In the animal world it is the male that must bestir himself to take on beauty and adornment, for it is the female that chooses or rejects. But —alas and alack!—in the human fam- known as their proper vocation. And what with the excess in numbers of women over men, the homeliest of the wemen are very likely to miss, through no initlal fault of their own, what is traditionally and plously known as their proper vacation. And what does this army of ugly women —unpursued and unsolicited—do about the tragic business? Many things. But not one in a million of them ever sits down honestly in front of her own face for any solution of her tremendous problem. No, in the first place she lies about herself to her- self. Not intentionally, of course. But we are fatally lenient toward If now and then one does own up to the truth she usually gets mad about it, mad at life and the better looking folks around her. Mad at the men, too. And this done, at once those fateful gravers of the features—anger, Jjealousy, resent- ment—get busy, and the actual trag- edy of the homely woman sets In for good and all. A million years, yet, the admiration of men will be the secret and sole object of women's existence. The only sign that it will ever be different lics in the rarely occasional woman who nowadays demonstrates the fact that she can live, if she must, and live usefully and happily outside the domain of personal male homage. And the trou- ble with these few is that they make their cholce of a life too late—after they have been compelled to give up thelr original desire for marriage and home and bables and purely feml- nine troubles. The whole polnt of Marie Dressler's story is that she 80 early saw that she would never do—never in the world. So, like the clever child she must have been, she hunted for the one thing she could do. She could make people laugh— and she has been doing it every day since this original discovery. Ugly? Not a doubt in the world about it. Look at the pictures in this book. All the heroines from Joan of Arc down cannot surpass the courage of this display. But listen to her. You know you envy her, I do, and you are not so different. Speaking from the present moment:— * ¥ ok ok “I've tried a little of everything— love, life, the stage, and now, after being behind the footlights all these vears, I'm closing the book of the past and starting again. There is no such thing as age. When we are young we have the strength to run around in thusiastic circles, but with the advance of years speed de- creases. As a compensation we achieve facility and experience, and, ah, that 'is very helpful., Though we may no longer be able to do 100 yards in 10 seconds, we do know the short cuts and they reconcile one to the approach of vears. Lack of money means nothing, for one is broke only when health is gone. One may be old at 16 or young at 80. As for me, I have the blood of ex- plorers in me and am out to conm- quer new worlds. I have no sense of having ended my career, but rather of having begun it Bravo! and good for you! and go to it! Dressler, you Inspiring ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN Q. Which broadcasting stations usé 1,000 watts transmitting power?— R.W. A. KDKA, XFKX, KYW, WBZ, WDAP, WGY, WJAZ and WTAM are the only stations given In the latest list of broadcasting stations as using 1,000 watts. Q. Is the same wood used for mak- ing bows that is used for arrows?— N K A. The Forest Service says that hickory and yew are used for making bows, while ash and oak are used for making arrows. Q. Can Chinese in this country ben- efit by the educational fund provided by the Boxer indemnity?—O. P. A. This fund {s handled in China, and the students who are selected to recelve the scholarships are there. Q. What s an annular eclipse of the sun?—R. B. 8, A. If the sun Is very near the moon's node when our satellite becomes new, clearly the moon must then pass al- most exactly between earth and sun. Ir the same time she is in apogee, her apparent size is a little less than that of the sun. Then her conical shadow does not qulte reach the sur- face of the earth, and a ring of sun- light is left, surrounding the dark moon completsly. This is called an annular eclipse, because of the annu- lus, or bright ring of sunlight still left shining. Q. How many universities are there In Calro>—B. B. A. There is one university in i Egypt. It is known as El Azhar. 1818 1t included 200 moulahs, prieste, and 10,000 students. There is| no charge for fnstruction. The fa ulty receives no compensation, and the members are required to earn their living by private tuition or by clerical work. There ars in addition 1ght colleges in the city. Q. How many kinds of scallops are there along the Atlantic coast?— M G. A. Two species of scallop occur along the Atlantic coast of the United States—the common scallop and the larger and handsomer northern one, which {s sometimes four or five inches across, the valves very much flat- tened and without radiating ridges. The latter species is found from Vine. yard Sound northward, but fs more common along the coast of Maine, Nova Scotla, etc. The common scal- lop is scarcely half the size of the other. ~The ‘shell is considerably arched, and the radiating ridges are prominent. The ecallop is in great demand as a delicacy, the large ad- ductor muscle being the part specially sought after. Although the ordinary scallop is regarded as a delfcacy, the gTeat northern scallop, common i re- tired harbors on the Labrador cowst and fn the Gulf of St. Lawrence, is still more delicious eating. i Q. How much land surround Cathedral at Mount Bt A]bfin’?—'fir. l?;'e A. The Cathedral Close covers an area of 673 acres, Q. How many tmes has Easter come in March since 187573, E. & A. Ten times—1880, 1583, 1591, 1594, 1902, 1907, 1910, 1913, 1918 and 1951, Q. Who constituted the re-Ra- Phaelites?—H. W, i A, Dante " Gabriel Rossetti, his brother, Willlam; William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millals, James Collison, Frederick George St and Thomas Woolner. o o o0 Q. How many ships sail the seas?— | A. The total tonnage of the world amounts to approximately 20,000 or more ships. Q. Is Ada Jones the noted singer, llving?—E. N. C. A. Ada Jones died of heart at- tack on May 2, 1922, at Rocky Mount, . C, while on a concert trip, Q. Why did Japan give Shantung back to China?—P. C. W. A. The matter was adjusted by private treaty between China and Japan at the close of the Washington conference called by President Hard- ing. Under the treaty of Februa 4, 1922, Japan agreed to restore to China_the former German territory and China agreed to make certain payments on account of expenses in- curred by Japan in administering t: province and improvements made during its occupancy. The total amount of money was 73,000,000 yer worth approximately $35,000,000. Q. What State has the most pav road?—F. H. L. A. The Bureau of Public Roads says that, according to the Teports that are in complete form, California leads with 2,691 miles of paved roa h does the Liberty Bel A. J. 8. A. It weighs 2,080 pounds. Q. Were potato bugs a pest over the United States before 18757 S A A. The potato bug. originally confined to fhe Rocky Mountain reg: it fed upon the sand bur, readil tacked cultivated potatoss as s civilization advanced to its r glon. In 1859 it had spread eastward and reached a point of 100 aha. In 1874 the Atla was gained at several po ern spread was much m in the North, and in touched the extreme southern counties of Missouri. In fact, it was mot unti 1897 that it succeeded in establishing itself in portions of Mississippt Georgia. Q. How many cous the world? Do the; languages?—C. G. F A. There are abou countries time. have tions at- ies are thers in all have different 70 independent n the world at the present Practically all these countries a distinct language. The excep- e the United States, whose of- fliclal language is English; the South American republics, whose languages are either Spanish or Portuguese, and n is large rst opera? Daphne, composed 94 by a coterie of o vated amateurs of Florence. In thei econd opera, * solo singi was first introduced. Q. When wero nected by cable’—H. M. A. Cable communication began August 25, 1904 eattle and Sitka co Q. When was Godey’s Lady's Bo first published —L. P. A. It was first published in 1831 Q. In examinations for railway postal clerks what the basis for correctior of papers?—H. 1. E. A. The Civil Service Commission says the railway postal clerk examination is now based on the intelligence tests. By this they mean that all examinations are corrected according to rights and wrongs. A certain number of errors equal 100, and deductions and cred: are given accordingly. The general tests and mail tests are not the same. In cor recting examinations of mail tests t of 6 is allowed, while in genera ts the rate of 4 is allowed _(Let The Star Information Burea Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Twenty first and C northwest, answe your question. The only charge for this service is 2 cents in stamps for retur postage.) streets THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. When Fingal, the Irish giant, walk- ed over Scotland and Ireland cen- turies ago, he started a controversy that has scarcely been settled to this day. Was there such a bard as Osslan, son of Fingal, who actually wrote the poems called his, or were these epics the work of one James Mac- pherson, who first gave them to the world as translations? In the years following their pub- lication, in 1762, raged one of the Breatest literay squabbles of all his- tory. Fingal was made Scotch, by Macpherson—naturally enough—the poems singing the praises of Scotia. Old Dr. Johnson came out against the authenticity of the poems; Dr. Hugh Blair defended them. Burlesques of the epics were printed. The matter became a huge toplc of conversation in all po- lite soctety. Table talk hinged on the questions:| “Do you belleve there was an old | bard, blind like Homer, named Os- sian, and do vyou think he really| wrote 112" “Do you think James Macpherson | really wrote the poems, and attribut- ed them to Ossian? Macpherson himself blew up in & huff, and refused to turn over to the disputants the anclent documents from which he declared he made the trans- lations. This, of course, put a de- clded black eye to the whols thing. So they argued, and argued, and argued, the result being the usual end of such arguments—some believ- ed there really was an Ossian, others that Macpherson “faked” the whole | thing. Neither side could convince the | other. There the matter has rested thesey centuries since. Critical opinion in- clines to the belief that Macpherson | perhaps had a few fragments of old | Gaelic poems, from which he built up his “translations.” Ee e Many have heard of Ossian, few have read his poems. Being among the former number, I was interested when I discovered an old copy of the book on the shelves of a second-hand book store. Here was my chance, at last, to read Ossian! Though several cen- turies late, I, too, could take a hand in the Ossian-Macpherson dispute, and live over again the keen delight of controversy Being in the happy situation of a man who is doing what he loves to do, it is my privilege to bring to the readers of this column many things which they, being busy on other af- fairs, would like to know about, but have not the time otherwise. I seized with delight, then, the old copy of Ossian, and bore it off to my den for study gt leisure. It is a fine old copy, prin in 1835 by “Walker, Printer, Phila,” and published by J. P. Peaslee, New York. The copy Is bound In green leather, outlined in gold, still bright. The print is large, and hand-set, of ‘course. On the title page, in the faded brown ofold ink, is a superscription. The romance of old books! One might weave a pretty story from that inscription. But I am glad, at any event, that the old book, carefully handled of old, has fallen into hands that will continue to cherish it. The volume has several hundred pages of preliminary discourse, setting forth the pro and con of the controversy, with the findings of the learned committeo which sat on the i but | they had committees in those And I suppose the chairman was the only one that did any work. Human nature is much- the same thtough the centuries. There is & small steel engraving of TRACEWELL. cpherson cn the title page. signed r 3. ol Pinxt.” That last means sculptor or engraver. He was the great Sir Joshua The face of Macpherson interesting, e pecially with his histo visited Am everything lity. is strange in connection the fact that he and was accused of from plagiarism to in The engraving shows a typical face of 4 man of the pre-Revolutionar: period, brushed back, nose lik. Washington's, sloping jawbones to « small but still determined chin. 1 must confess that after reading the discussions and reading the poems my sympathy is all with Macpherson As he himself said, “Th. who have doubted my veracity have paid a com- pliment to m genius,” He a stated, “Those who alone are capable of transferring anc t poetry into a modern language might be better e ployed in glving originals of the own were it not for that wretcheil envy and meanness which affects to despise cotemporary genius.” There in a the secret probably nutshell one may of Ossian did have a few scripts, and, seeing their possibili- ties, went them one better, but was afraid to publish them as originals. Tt {is interesting to Americans tc know that Macpherson came to Pen- sacola, Fla., in 1763, as secretary to Gov. Johnson. After executing hi office in settling the office of tha! colony, he visited several of the West Indies islands und several of “the North American provinces” and re turned to England in 1766 “When the resistance of.the Amer cans called for the pen, as F the sword of authority states, “Mr. Macpherso as one of the ablest. He published & pamphlet, entitled “The Rights o cat Britain Asserted Against the Claims of the Colonies,” for which he obtained great credit on account of the style and argument.” Evidently, George Washington did not read that pamphlet! * oK ok ¥ The anonymous author of the “Lifs of James Macpherson” in this volume did not care for his subject, since he concluded the tri-page essay with the following morse “Mr. Macpherson was tall, robust, clumsy and ill-favored In his person, coarse in his appetites, unpolished in his manners and loose in his morals. He was never married, but was en- gaged in a round of low amours. His memory may be regretted by a few, but must he execrated ie great- est part of his associates.” After this pleasantry one is amazed y on reading the “Poems of Ossian” to find them as clean as the Sea air that blew over Scotland. If Mr. Macpher- son were as bad as his biographer says, certainly something of it must have cropped out in the poems, trans- lations or originals, whichever they may be. But the poems of Ossian remain to- day, as of old, brimful of the highest sentiments and the purest descrip- tions, lacking anything that could offend. If Macpherson was a&s black as painted, then the only thing one can say is that a man’s private life makes no difference in what he writes. The devil himself, then, might write a lullaby, and the lullaby would be no less lovely because the devil wrote it A man’s writing ought to stand for, the best of him. If it does, he is to be judged on it, not on back-stair gossip. If Macpherson really wrote Ossian—and we judge him from his poems—he must have been a pretty decent sort, after all, have Macpherso: old manu- engaged i i | ‘ ¥ |