Evening Star Newspaper, March 20, 1925, Page 6

6 THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. FRIDAY. Merch 20, 1925 THEODORE W. NOYES . Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Dusiness Office. 11th &t and Penassivania Ave. New York Office: 110 Eaxt 42nd St. iling. London, Eagland. Chicago Oftice: Tow, European Uffice : 14 Regent 51 The Evening Star, with the Sunday morning ~dition, is delivered by carriers Within the 17 at 60 cents per mou i: ually ealy. 13 ceats per month: Sunday ooly, 20 cenfs per month. _Orders may be sent by mail or tele- phone ‘Main G000, Collection is made by car- riers at the end of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Daily and Sunday....1 yi.. §5.40; 1 Daily only 1ye, $600: 1 Kunday iy A 2 All Other States. Daily and Sunday....1 vr., $10.00; 1 Daily only. § Bunday onl $3.4 Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled th the uss for republication of all news dis- patches credited to it or not othepwise credited in this paper and aiso the local news pub- lished hereis. All rights of publication of special dispatches berein aré also reserved. The Price of Gasoline. The Senate adjourned its special mession with Senator Trammell of Florida pleading urgently for action on his resolution for an investigation into the increased price of gasoline. Iis resolution, which was introduced weeks ago, in the last regular session of Congress, and reintroduced in the special session of the Senate, was never permitted to come to & vote. This was a vastly different attitude from that assumed by the Senate when Senator McKellar of Tennessee put through a resolution in 1922 call- ing for an inquiry into the prices of masoline, which had advanced greatly. ‘That resolution went through with a rush, and the investigation made by the Senate committee on manufac- tures, headell by La Follette of Wis- consin, was credited at the time with halting increases in price and bringing about reductions. 3 Here in Washington last Winter consumers saw the price of gasoline advance 5 cents a gallon in a very few weeks, an increase of 25 cents on every five-gallon lot put into the gas tank. During the debate on the Trammell resolution the Senator from Florida pointed out that the produc- tion_of gasoline during the month of Decémber had broken ail previous records. Yet the price mounted. The charge is made by Senator Trammell that when the price of crude oil is low great quantities of the crude are purchased and refined and that then advantage is taken of the public and of the producers of crude oil by in- creasing the prices of gasoline. Opposition to the Trammell reso- lution was led by Senator Harreld of Oklahoma, who admitted in a "con- troversy with Senator Caraway of Arkansas that an investigation would probably beat down the prices of gas- oline, as it had in 1922.23. But Sena- tor Harreld contended that a reduc- tion in the price of gasoiine would re- sult in lowering the price of crude oil, which he insisted would be unfair; would result in the curtailment of the production of crude oil, which, in turn, éventually would bring about an increase in the price of gasoline again. The prosperity of great oil com- panies in this country has been mar- velous in the past 30 or 40 years. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been issued in stock dividends the records show. The pricés of gasoline and other ofl products fluctuate with so much uniformity that charges of price fixing have been made fre- quently. With billions of dollars in- vested in gas engines and automobiles gasoline has become a necessity, as much a necessity almost as meat and bread. The public must pay what is demanded. Now it appears the price of gaso- line is to be reduced a cent a gallon in Washington, Baltimore and other Eastern and Southern parts of the country, with the prospect, it is said, of a still further reduction. The very announcement seems to bear out the charge that prices move up and down with astonishing uniformfty over vast areas of the country. And such move- ments make advisable the closest scru- tiny on the part of the Government, to make sure that the increase in prices is not merely for the purpose of gouging the public. Associations of ‘consumers to own and operate filling stations is a sug- gestion advanced by Senator Tram- mell to meet the situation. Such as. sociations could go into the open mar- ket, buy from independent producers and.be a strong weapon again undue increases in the price of motor fuel. Failing in his effort to bring about senatorial, action on the prices of gasoline, he will cafpaign in the interests of such associations of con- sumers. These associations, in his opinion, would be far more effective than the entrance of the Government into the distribution of gasoline to consumers® Out in South Dakota and Nebraska, however, Gov. McMaster— now Senator—and Gov. Bryan took the bull by the horns and established State filling stations, reducing the price of gasoline far below the price asked at the company stations. They broke the price of gas in those States. ‘This was temporary relief. But the associations of consumers could be madé permanent, according to Sena- tor Trammell, and would always be there to meet unjust increases in price. ——————s The human troublemaker fades into insignificance when an earthquake or a tornado breaks into action. LS e Starving Russian Children. A copyrighted cablegram from Ber- lin to the New %ork Times says com- munist Russian’ ‘papers now admit that the number of starving children in Southern Russia alone numbers more than 750,000, and that the gov- ernment at Moscow is unable to cope with the situation. An official investi- gating committee reports that the gov- ernment is giving partial aid to not more than 90,000 of the famine suf- 7 | ferers, this partial aid consisting of a { plate of thin soup and two slices of | black bread as a daily ration. More | than half a million of the “children of | the proletariat” are simply aban- | doned to their fate. ¢ Such & condition appeals pawerfully | to the sympathies of tie world, but, what about the world's judgment of | the government that is responsible for | the condition? If the government of the Soviets bad exhausted its re-| sources in an effort to avert siar; tion it, too, would be entitled to sym- pathy and assistance, but the Soviet government has done nothing of the kind. At a time when it is permitting childven to starve by the hundreds of thousands there is indisputable evi- dence that. it is spending many mil- lions of dollars to pay for political propaganda in other lands, and hun- dreds of millions of dollars are being spent for maintenahce of a huge army that certainly is not needed for de- fense against any known enemy. Nor is‘that the worst of the picture. Last year the Soviet government ex- ported from Russia millions of bushels of bread grains to raise money for support of the army and to pay for political propaganda. It is due largely tolack of that very grain that 750,000 children are starving today. And yet theré are Americans who profess to believe that the government at Mos- cow is a civilized government, entitled to recognition as such and equal rank in the family of nations. g ————— Transfer Patent Office Jurisdiction. General public approval by interest- ed business and legal circles is expect- ed to follow President Coolidge's ex- ccutive order of yesterday transterring control of the Patent Office from the Department of the Interior to the De- partment of Commerce. The Patent Office, which was originally a section of the State Department when created In 1790, has been a part of the In- terfor Department since 1849. The work of the bureau has increased with the amazing growth of American in vention, and now it is issuing more than 55.000 patents and trade marks ! each year. | The change in jurisdiction now we- complished has been advocated by the congressional commission -established at the request of President Harding which considered governmental re- organjzation. It was rendered possible without specific legislative action be- cause the law which created the Com- merce Department gave the President discretionary authority to place such regular Government bureaus as he might select under its control. The transfer to the Department of Commerce was approved by Secretary Work of the Interior Department, and is quite agreeable to Secretary Hoover. One of the impelling motives of this change lay in discrimination against American interests in the administra- tion of patent laws in some foreign countries. It is expected that Secre- tary Hoover may find occasion to urge Congress to draft a new code of pat. ent laws. Secretary Hoover announces that he will undertake a vigorous cam- paign for the removal of injustices to- ward American patentess and Ameri- can manufacturers which exist by vir- tue of the character of certain foreign patent laws. This is noticeably true in the case of Germany, which enjoys favors and immunities under the American pgtent law which are not reciprocated to.American patentees by Germany. Indeed. the discrimination is 80 flagrant that a foreign patentee by registering his patent in the United States can_hold it for 17 years and prevent manufucture of the article in the United States. There is to be an international con- Vention at The Hague October 8, 1925, where proposals will be made for the equitable and equal treatment of pat- entees in all countries. The Depart- ment of Commerce will be represented at this meeting. It would seem that the Department of Commerce is the appropriate place in which to rest. jurisdiction, as the work of the Bureau of Patents comes so intimately in touch with business and manufacture at home and abrcad. ————— The new Attorney General will as- sume office with extraordinary distine- tion as the man who enabled the United States Senate to act with al- most unparalleled harmony and promptitude. N Theatrical revivals continue to be more or less modernized, and may yet lead to an enterprise presenting “Uncle Tom's Cabaret.” , SRS 0 matter how severe debate may | have been, the motion to adjourn is al- ways the signal for harmonious enthu- slasm. —ae— The Dawes plan for facilitating par- liamentary procedure will come up for consideration later. ——————_ The Palm Beach Fn-e The long-expected happened at last. Two great resort hotels at Palm Beach, one of them through news, fiction and illustrations famous throughout the country, have gone up in flames, Where they stood there is nothing now but smoldering heaps of light ashes. Only by good fortune the largest one of all, situated nearby, failed to catch fire. The wonder is they lasted.as long as they did. Both of them were about as inflammable as a varnished pine box and as potentially dangerous as a cache of gunpowder. One unanticipated feature of the catastrophe is the ap- parent entire absence of a casualty list, either among guests or fire- fighters. The conflagration could scarcely have occurred at a better time, {n the open season, at least. That season was drawing to a close; it was daylight; most of the guests were either out of doors or could; after timely warning, get out. ‘Those who have stayed in this type of great, frame Winter caravansery, it assigned rooms higher ~than the second floor, have vivid memories of the patent fire-escapes made of heavy manila rope; of the gloomy perusal of the printed directions that told how to fasten it around something immovable and then, seated in a loop, lower one's self to the ground; of the estimation of the distance to be jumped in case jrine is slowly working its way to a there were no time to work the rig- ging. Tjis type of hostelry has been for a century or more a common feature of American Summer and Winter resort life. At intervals one goes up like a pile “of kerosenescaked brushwood. The marvelous thing has been that so few lives have been lost in these con- flagratichs, many of the fires having happened in the off seascn. As thise clapboarsed and shingled monuments to American enterprise go, they are gradually replaced with fireproof structures in which “patrons can re- pose in confidence. Some day the couniry will fondly reminisce of the period of grade crossings and big frame. hotels. May the intervening time be counted in decades at the most. ———i e LA Cutting the Fleet Deficit. That the American merchant ma- condition of good health is to be in- ferred from an addrees delivered in New York by Leigh C. Palmer, presi- dent of the Fleet Corporation. He bad nothing startling to tell as to improve- ment in conditions, but that there has been improvement at all is eause for congratulation, fer it is not long ago that the American peaple could see little hope of ever having a self-sus- taining merchant marine. For the fiscal year ended in Jume, 1924, the Fleet Corporation showed a deficit of $50.000.000. Admiral Palmer estimates that for the current fiscal vear the deficit will be reduced to $36,000,000 and in the next year to $28,000,000. Cutting a $50,000,000 deficit almost in half in two years is no mean accomplishment. And Admiral Palmer emphasizes that it has not been done at the expense of efliciency in opera- tion. There has been a million-dollar saving in salaries, and more than an- other million has been saved in other administrative expensek, but the bulk of economies has resulted from more efficient management and better op- erating programs. Consolidation of lines has reduced expenses without impairment of service, American ship- pers continuing to be served with promptness and protected from extor- tion. The problem of return cargoes for American vessels continues to be one difficult of solution, but lately there has been an improvement in this re- spect, and we now are getting about our proportionate share of westbound traffic. But American ships must con- tinue to come back with only about one-third the tonnage with which they sailed out, for that is about the pro- portion of our import as compared with our export trade. When the time comes, if it ever does, that we buy as much as we sell, return cargoes will put our merchant fieet on a paying basis, but the American people are in no hurry for that day. We are do- ing pretty well right now in the mat- ter of foreign trade, despite depres- sion in a large part of the world, and the comparatively few millions with which we ‘“subsidize” our merchant marine is not a large item in the na- tional budget. o A number of nominations were con- firmed by the Senate with 2 neatness and dispatch calculated to impress the idea that a difference of opinion as to Mr. Warren ought not to be construed as an evidence of ill-feeling. ————— American tourists report that they find more courteous consideration in Germany than in France. Berlin, with all her perplexities and reverses, has not forgotten her diplomacy. ————— A large amount of agitation at least succeeded in cornering Gaston B. Means, although he is still out on bail. ——————— Legislative agitation hes ceased, and statesmen may resume the gentler oc- cupation of comparing golf scores. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON Consistent Performer. Infant in the cradle Laughin’ very gay— Next 'he was a-cryin’ ‘Cause he couldn't bave his way. Later on he worried, And his heart was grim ‘Cause a certain lady Wouldn’t have & heart for him. Then a favoring market Made life seem & joke— Next day he was wailing "Cause he found that he was broke. Just as when an infant, To this very .day He has kept on cryin’ "Cause he couldn't have his way. Polite Restraint. “Republics are ungrateful!” claimed the indignant citizen. “It might seem unbecoming in me | to mention it,” answered Senator | Sorghum, “just after having received a raise of salary.” Changing Sentiments. The genius whom I once admired, To blame T now begin. His great inventions make me tired When monthly bills come in. ex- Jud Tunkins says, anyhow, we've got entirely over one public peril. No one ever drives & trottin’ hoss down the Avenue so fast the police have to take him in. Low Visibility, ““At any rate, we have gotten rid of the corner saloon.” “For police purposes,” answered TUncle Bill Bottletop, “mebbe the cor- ner saloon had certain advantages. You've got to admit it wasn't as easy to hide as a hip flask. Accomplishments. The great performers that I hear In learned disquisition ” Show me how studious and severe Must be the true musician. ©Oh, Mockingbird, a truth to tell, You surely have me guessin'! _ How could you learn to sing so well ‘Who never took a lesson! { memory of that true gentleman, real | Bell Smallwood jtor and later news manager, he re- tasked Justice Hoimes if the middle “Flats is gittin’ so small,” said Un- cle Eben, “dat purty scon dar won't be much ieft of ‘home, sweet home’ ‘ceptin’ de tun THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. In the Summer of 1314 & tall, dark- haired man stood in the streets of Amsterdam. He was an American from his shoes to his hat. Looking up at him stood a small Dutch boy, probably b years old. Out of sky-blue eyes the little fellow azed with tremendous admiration t the face of the tull man. Gravely looking down at his little Dutch ftriend, the tall American's eyes twinkled, as hls sympathetic mouth beoke into & characteristic smile, the right side somewhat twisted up. The Dutch boy attached himself to hls new friend, and for several hours followed him around the city, as if he had becn sowme. sort of faithful, two-legged pPuppy. When the man left Amsterdam, the last one he waved to was the boy, who stood there watohing his” tall friend leave him forever. Maybe it was the unusual height of the man which attracted the stubby little Dutchman. But those of us who remember John B. Smallwood, who died two years ago yesterday, prefer to belleve thut the Dutch boy simply showed his good judgment and taste when he picked him out of the crowd of tour- ists to admire. This space tod 1 dedicate to the newspaperman and true friend, John Those who Knew him naed no fur- ther Incentive to renew here, for a few minutes, memories of their for- mer assoclate and friend. Those who did not know him per- sonully, I can ask to read hete, I am sure, hecause all the world loves & true gentleman. * % ox o An honest man’'s the noblest work of God, but u real gentleman is the rarest. Most of us have to récall,| from time to time, that we are sup- | posed to act llke gemtlemen. Our monkey ancestors will crop out. But John Smallwood was one who found it easy to act as a gentleman He never talked about the problems of a gentleman. It is extremely un- likely that he ever realized he was one. In fagt, it any one had accused him of being & gentleman, he prob- ably would have denied the allega- tion. He was like Ernest, who grew into the likeness of the great stone face without realizing it. Well born, well bred, it came natural to John Smallwood to be a gentleman without pretense, and this precious quality colored his work and his friendship. Those of us who knew him inti- mately realize now that he was the fine newspaper man he was because he personally ennobled his profession and knew as well that this friend- ship was as deep as it was because of the same rare traits. Amid the rush and hustle of the newsroom of, this paper, as city edi- talned the poise of the gentleman. 1 never saw him display anger but once, and that was soon over. The nervous tenslon Incident to news gathering and printing tests the soul of any man. Thosa who pa through this test of fire with un- ruffied dispositions are true gentle- men of God. Such a man was John Smallwood. * k¥ % 1 imagine I must have looked at him in much the same way the Dutch boy did, the first time I latd eyes on him. He was my first boss. He came into the room and looked down at me from what seemed at least 7 feet. In reality, he was not TRACEWELL. much over 6 feet tall, but a certain leaness lent height to his appearance. At that time he hud no mustache. The whimsical twist of his mouth, 80 ready to break into & smile, displayed in full. That is the way I like to remember him. Reading one of your productions he would smoke! his old Jimmy pipe; but, if the story pleased him, he would take his pipe out of his mouth and smile. “Good story,” he would say. As city editor he cultivated a cer- tain gruftness of manner, to hide, as it were, the tenderness of his heart. When one first made his acquaintance, fn a worklng capacity, one was apt to_think him something of & grouch. But no man had less of that qual- ity. He early made the discovery that to be too pleasant risked losing some respect, and s0 he cultivated a gruffness which in reality was for- elgn to his nature. He knew the newspaper game. He had & keen nose for news, and the largest appreciation of the so-called “feature story” and the more con- templative sorts of writing. He often riled the cub reporters by his Insistence upon details. One might go out and get 99 facts on a story, returning reasonably well sat- isfied with one's work. John Smallwood, more interested in the which you did not get. “What about so-and-g0o?’ he would ask. “I forgot about that,” was the re- 1y. PRiWell, you hd better find out about that,” he would say if you said a man belonged to a gertain lodge, the name was not enough. He wanted the number, too. He was thorough. Once he sent me out to inquire of all the barbers along Wisoonsin ave- nue if they remembered shaving a however, Wwas 100th fmot | certain mas It was the man who was reported ttin ison in the soup Banguet 1 ‘Chicago. several persons having died as the result. Rumors had it that he had sscaped to Washington and had been seen in a barber shop on Wisconsin avenue. How the rumor got started nobody knew. % Who starts such rumors, anyway? Hastily rushing for the car, it was not until I was on my way that I realized 1 did not have the nll(hll:hv: idew what the murderer luoked like! Necessity is the mother of inven- tion, truly. When the barbers asked me to describe the man, -ourse, he had never been on in avenue, or any other street here. But when I got back to the office and looked up a description ot the man, I found that my guess as to his appearance tallied to a hair. xR % K Those who had the happiness of knowing John Smallwood, who was an honor to his profession, as he would have been to any other, can recall many instances of his friend- ship. He was wont to take his friends for rides in his car, especially if they had nome, and during such trips he might drive for miles without saying so much as a word. There was no embarrasement in being silent with John Smallwood. So he lived, and 80 he died. He left as he did the unknown Dutch boy, and went away forever, leaving us gazing after him with love and admiration.s To my old boss, then, I offer this small tribute today, in the firm be- lief that somewheré, somehow, he knows and approves. WASHINGTON - OBSERVATIONS ° BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. Associate Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes of the United States Supreme Court, nestor of that august body, was 84 years old on March 8. XA Massachusetts friend, congratulating him on that venerable anniversary. of the octogenarian years found him hale and hearty as ever. He replied that his “put” seemed to him to be tunctioning at top speed, and in jus- tification of that statement Justice Holmes sent his correspondent “a copy of my latest opinion.” Among his latter-day accomplishments is the use of a portable. typewriter, with which'he conducts most of his private correspondence. The son of the “autocrat of the breakfast table” in- herited a considerable glft for poetry. Some of the verse of which he is proudest was written when Holmes was & Union soldier in the Civil War. Confederate bullets falled to lay him iow, though in three different en- sagemonts they landed, respectively, in his breast, neck and heel.. Jus- tice Holmes has been on the Supreme Court bench nearly 28 years, an ap- pointee of Presldent Roosevelt. * % % % In a very literal sensq the mantle of Mark Hanna has descended upon a Washington newspaper man, Wil- liam Hard. A handsome fur coat which Hanna was fond of wearing has just been given to Hard by Mrs. Medill McCormick, the famous Ohlo “boss’s” daughter. Hanna _ be- queathed the garment to his son-in- law, the late Medill McCormick, and the latter’s widow thought her hus- band would be happy if he could know it was now the property of & close friend.. Hard on his part says he intends passing on the Hanna mantle to one of Senator McCormick's youngsters. Mrs. McCormick has just paid a visit to Mrs. Nicholas Longworth in Washington, her boon companion. * k% % Julius Rosenwald of Chicago, iger- chant prince and philanthropist, while recently the guest of Herbert Hoover disclosed some interesting figures relative to negro conditions in the North. Mr. Rosenwald, long a patron of negro education in the South, say that while in Dixte 80 per cent of the colored people live in rural com- munitles, 73 per cent of those in the North dwell in 10 circumscribed in- dustrial areas. Thess, with their round population of negroes, are: Indianapolis district. 47.500 Detroit-Toledo ditrict. 55900 1 Cleveiand-Youngatown. dlstrict. Kansfu C'ty district. Pittabu-gh _district Columbas-Ginclanati " district st. Louts dlst Chicago d'atrict Philadeiphia di ew York district. * K% Dr. Ales Hrdlicka, chief thropology of the United Stat tional Museum, is going to Chi other Far Eastern regions this year in the course of his restless quest for ever new data on man. He knows the Orient well already, as, indeed, he does almost every other country-on earth, uncivilized as well civilized. Dr. Hrdlicka decidedly beliéves that “the proper study of mankind is man. To it he has devoted a lifetime. A native of Bohemla, his mature years' and professional carser have been spent almost entirely in the United States, of which he is an enthusiastic citizen. His peta at the Natlonal Museum are a collection of 12,000 human skulls. - Dr. Hrdlicka takes a lively interest in the American Indian.| He told a recent congress of physi- cians in Washington that trachoma, a disease of the eye, is rampant among our redsking and assuming devastating dimensions. * K % * S " Starling, the giant of the Secret service squad, is eloser to Attorney General Sargent of an- Ni than anybody in Washington with the exception of Mr. Coolidge himself. When the colonel was sent “in ad- vance” to Plymouth, Vi last year, to make arrangements for the Pre: dent's visit to his ancestral heath, Starling and_Mr. Sargent became great pals. The secret service man was a guest for two weeks at the Sargent home in Ludlow. Giants both and sons of the sofl, they found they had much in common. When Sargent came to Washington the other day for the inauguration he was really “EQ" Starling’s guest, not “Cal's.” Several times during inaugs ural week, Sargent took his meals alongside the colonel in the secret service men's White House mess. * k% % Miss Janet Richards, Washington's famous “talk lady” and lecturer on current events, found herself along side & good-looking youth In the Senate gallery during the Warren debate. He seemed to be a stranger, and Miss Richards offered her serv- ices in pointing out notables on the floor. “That tall, handsome man who's speaking now,” she sald to the boy, s Senator George Wharton Pepper of Pennsylvania.” The lad replied: es, he's the only one I know. He's my dad!” * % ox % Chief Justice William Howard Taft Is about to make his debut on the air. He will broadcast for five min- utes from a New York station on the evening of Monday, March 23, in the interest of the Hampton-Tuskegee $5,000,000 endowment fund. LR John W. Weeks, Secretary of War, has only been waiting for Congress to adjourn to ‘embark upon a long- projected and extended vacation. Politicians say that the advent of a New Englander (Sargent of Vermont) to the Coolidge cabinet makes certain the eventual disappearance of Mr, Weeks (by voluntary ~retirement) from the executive household. A cording to' the same reckoning, a Western Republican will be the next Secretary of War. (Copyright, 1925.) Would Rate Auto Drivers.‘{ Tag 'Di'spl-yed on Car Would Show Speed Allowed Its Operator To the Editor of The Star: 2 Having driven a motor continuously for the past 18 years in the District, and having worn out (literally. worn out) a number of automobiles during that period I feel that I might be consideréd an experienced driver. As sucr ¥1 realize to some extent the serrous problems that confront the trafic squad, especially those pre- sented by the reckless driver. With a view-toward checking this danger- ous menace and with a thought to- ward giving a sporting color to good driving, I suggest that all drivers be rated. R . Automobile permits might read in part: “And is éntitled to drive his or her car not faster than 35 miles per hour; but careless or reckless driv- ing will be pumishable with either fine or reduction” of speed limit, or both.” v Should a person be convicted of careless or reckless driving, the first offense might bring a reduction from the 36-mile limit to 25 miles for a stated period, at the discretion of the Traffic Court. A second offen in the year) might reduce to 15 miles for a stated period. A third offense might bring a suspen- ton. of his permit for an inde period. 5 ‘When a person has had his limit reduced to, say 25 ms:. a tag bear- 1 aid so| minutely, picturing my idea of what| | such a fellow should look like. fin‘s\wm o Questions BY FREDERIC J, HASKIN Q. What year was it that March| was so windy that the water was blown out of Eastern Branch and the Potomac Electric Power plant was compelled to shut down for lack of water power?—E. E. D. A. The Wcuther Bureau says that this oceurred about March 2, 1914. It says that the northwest gale con- tinued throughout the day, the most violent of record, in point of dura- tion.'A maximum velocity of 60 miles an hour was recorded at 3:04 am. and an extreme vclocity of 72 miles | for an Interval of about one minute. Conslderable damage was done in sec- tions of the city. The tin roofs of mary houses were stripped off; fenes, awnings and chimneys blown down, and many plate-glass windows bro- ken. Telegraph and telephone servie was serlously interrupted—all East- ern communications being suspended. Portlons of the city were in darkness during the evening, owing to dam- ages sustained by the power com- panies. . In what year was the first bullding erected for the Bureau of Engraving and Printing?—C. E. A A. On June 30, 1875, Congress ap- propriated $300,000 for the purchase ot the site at Fourtcenth and B streets southwest, and for the erec- tion of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The building was completed and occupied July 1, 1880. In 1801 a wing was added to the southwest end and in 1904 a wing was added to the west end. Congress appropriated funds for the new building in 1907. This was completed and occupled in 1914, Q. On what day will Spring begin this year?—W. W. W. A. It is impossible to regulate the yea 80 that the seaxons begin at the same minute each year. 1In 1925, Spring begins March 20, at 10:13 p.m., eastern standard time. What ornaments were on the Q. walls of t —W. 0. W. A. A photograph of the Colleoni statue by Verocchio hung in front of the President’s desk in his study. In the office there were only two orna- ments on the walls, the signed manu- script copy of Ingalls poem “Oppor- tunity,” and a picture of Lincoin. Q. What day Is the Jewish Feast ipets” ?— B. O Fehapire, head of the Semitic division of the Library of Congress, says that the festival known a&s the “Feast of Trumpets” is the Jewish New Year. It occurred In 1924, | September 11: in 1825 it will occur | September 29; 1926, September 13. small are made? Q. How flags —H. B. F. A. The smallest of which we have heard is one in the form of a pin or button, and is 5-16 by 3-16 of an inch. Q. What is the Philadelphia mint mark?—L. M. R A, Coins made in the Philadelphia mint bear no mint murk. re quickly?—J. J. E. g moA old water freezes more quickly than hot, though vapor from hot water may condense and freeze be- fore the water itself. Q. Could the United States Navy elevate guns and observe the treaty 22C. E. A Tnere i¢ a difference of opinion {as to whether the United State will be following the terms of the Wash- ington treaty if the elevation of guns is raised so as to equal that of Great Britain. The British government holds that no alteration has . been made in the elevation of turret guns of any Britich capital ships since they were first placed in commission. It has been stated to be the view of Great Britain that an icrease in the elevation of turret gups is not per- missible under the terms of the naval treaty, which prohibits, subject. to certain exceptions cxpressly provided for, any reconstruction of retained cap- ital ships or of aircraft carriers, ex- cept for the purpose of providing means of defense agalnst air and sub- marine attacks. It is the opinion of the British government that the In- crease of the elevation of guns in- volved considerable reconstruction in the fullest sense of the term. The 13 capital ships of the United States have a range of around 20,000 yards. Only five are of the newer type and of extreme range. The British fleet, which Is supposed to be equal to our own, actuslly has a gunnery superior- ity in the groportion of 11 to &, as- suming that firing begins at these ranges. Q. Did President Monroe receive all the votes of the electoral college?— R. M R A. In the 1820 election Monroe car- ried every State, and of the 235 elec- toral votes he received 231 elector refused to vote for him and cast his ballot for John Quincy Adams, and three electors had died. Q. When was laughing gas first used by dentists?—W. W. L. A. Dr. Horace Wells of Hartford, Conn., firet used laughing gas suc cesstully in the extraction of teeth in 1844, Q. Where can I find the quotation to the effect that there is no choice of rotten apples’—W. C. I A. In the first scene d act of “The Taming of the Shrew” Shakespeare has the line, “There's small choice in rotten apple Q. Is Mother's day abroad?—A. K. M. - A. There is a movement on foot to extend this observance to other countri d a Mothers’ Day Interna- tional Association has been founded with headquarters at 2301 North Twelfth street, Philadelphia, Pa. observed Q. How long do chickens liv, LRI 3 A, It has been estimated that such fowls sometimes live 10 years. Q. What was name?—M. V. W. A. Whistler was baptized James Abbott. The McNeill (his mother's name) was added shortly after he entered West Point. There is not a college In the land where a student sooner gets a nickname. of Whistler's name (J. A. W.) com- bined with the self knowledge of his fluency of speech quickly suggested to him the use that would be made of them, and he instinctively shrank from the combination. The cadets had no access to the records, and before any cadet knew his initials, Whistler had christened himself . with his mother's name McNeill. The Abbott he always used for legal and official documeénts, but eventually he dropped it for all other purp: Whistler's first he Presidenfls office during {princinel « President Roosevelt's administration? | Q. Does cold or hot water freeze| One | The initials | More Effective Tostiie Editor of The Star: A change in the rules of procedure which would most effectively bring about co-operation between the ex- ecutive and legislative branches of the Government, avoiding the teia- porary supremacy of either one or the other, and situations wenerally regretted in and out of Congress, is une which has repeatedly been urged since the foundation of the Govern- ment. The most competent living author- ity upon the subject Chief Justice. Mr. Taft's experience ag a member of the Cabinet and as President led him, in 1912, to recom- mend in & message to Congress the hange in the rules to which refer- ehce is made. After hix retirement from the presidency he frequently took occasion to urge its favorable consideration. Justice Story held the same opinion In regard to the exist- ing lack of direct personal inter- course between the heads of the de- partments and Congress. He said The heads of the depurtments are. in fact thus prec! oposing or vindicating Naution seenrity amd streagtl, in done away w.in The Executive Is compelled to resort to cret and unseen influences, 1o private int views and private Measures will be a e intrigues. deadening P and ail patron combinationx, weight of silent age. It cannot be too often repeated that the men who founded the Con- is the present | Co-Operation In Government Is Discussed 1886, wrote an excellent treatise upon the subject. The frequent personal appearances before Congress of Mr Wilson himseif, as President, fur) | ed strong arguments for the presen of members of the cabinet. But the President caniot well be subjected to Interrogatories; nor can it be sup posed that he is sufficientiy familia with the affairs of each of the execu tive departments to be enabled to rep resent them all upon the floor of Con gress. President Remains Independent. The suggestion belongs to the velopment of our own laws and 1 be discussed within its capacity of ad justment to our American The President must remain independ ent of Congress as to the manner in which he may choose to communicate information in regard to executis matters. The heads of the executi | departments are there to aid hi | the performance of certain du |80 far are responsible to hin But Congrese creates offices and as all the heads of the ments are creatures of | legixlation, new duties siened to them The law organizing tl may be acceptad as a sol question, Congress ir office of Sacretary of the | clared that the Secr report and give inform branch of the lsgislature efther person or in writing respecting a matters which shall appertain to I alone 1a may be as ti reat Treasu shall make on to elther { the y de 1 federate government preserved the existing provisions of our Constitu tion, distributing the functions of the three sepurate and independent de- partments, the executive, legisia- tive and judicial, and after the words “And no person holding any executive office under the Cor ederate States shall be a member of efther House during his continuance In -office they introduced the following clause: But Congress way by law grant to the al ollicers in each of the exeutive de House Wit th "y weasures appes o therr depaun, No Evidence of Results, The Confederate government was practically in the saddle during the Civil War, and therefgre we have no means of judging in what manner this change of practice was carried out which they undoubtedly believed to be an Improvement upon that which still prevails in our Govern- ment In 1864 Mr. Pendleton of O troduced in the House of Repr tives a bill which read as follow Thut the Secretary of Ntdte, {of War, the Serretary of the Tetay of the T Lt 10 becupy | House of tepresentatises, witn the rig participate i debate on matiers relating | | the business of thelr respectve de under such rules as may be prescribed Seuate and House, respeetivels. That the sald Secretaries and | eral and the Postmaster Geners | 1he sessions of the Senate on the opening of the Wittngs on Tuesdny and Friday of o week. aud the sess ous of the House of Repre sentaiives oo the opening of the 'tiings on Mondey and Thursday of each aveek, to give information asked resoiution”or in reply to questions which may Le propounded to thes | nder the rales of tne Neuste and the House: and the Senate aad House may, by standing onders, dispelise With the attendance of one or wore of said officers n either of said dass Mr. Garfield of Ohio, later elected President, signed the report in favor of the bill. Mr. Pendleton in 1881, as Senator, Intruduced a similar bill | The report of the Senate committee {in its favor was signed by Senators {George H. Pendleton of Ohio, W. B. Allison of Towa, J. G. Blaine of Maine, John J. Ingalls of Kansas, O. H. Plat( of Connecticut, *D. W. Voorhees of In- diana, M. C. Butler of South Carolina and J. T. Farley of California. In order to carry into effect the provisions of the bill, they recom- mended a set of rules, to be amended as experience might dictate: Rules as Recommended. That the seeretary of the Semate (or clerk of the House) shail keep a notice book, in which he sball enter, at the request of any o in- ttornes Gen shail attend | member. any resolution requiring information | from any of the executive departments. or any question intended to e propounded to any of the Secretaries, or the General, or the Attorney General, reiating to ublic affairs or to the busiuess pending be- fore the Senate (or House). together with the name of the member aud the day when the same will be calied up. The member giving miice of euch resolu tion or question shall at the same time give | motice tiat the same shall be called up in the Senate (or House) on the following Tues da; Friday; provided. r question sheil be called up, except days after notice shaii have beeu given. The secretars of the Senate (or clerk of the House) shall, on the same day om which uotice ix entered, tranemit to_the principal officer of the proper departmedt a copy of the resolution or question, together with the same of the member proposing the same, and of the day wihen it will be calied up in the Senate (or. House). In the Senate (or House), 6o Thuredey and Friday of each week, befors any other by ness xhall be taken up, except by unanimious consent, the resolutions and questions shall be taken up in the order in which they hare beea entered upon the notice book for that The member offering a succinetly the object pe of his resol tion and the reasons for desiring the inform tion, and the Secretary of the proper depart ment ‘may reply, giving the information or the reason why the same should be withheld. and then the Senate (or House) shall vote on the resolution, unless it siall be with- drawa or postponed. In putting any questions to the Secretaties, or the Atlorney General. or Ppstmaster Gen. eral, no argument or opinion {¥ to be offered nor any fact stated. except so far necessary to explain such question; Anewering such questions, the Seerétary. Attoraey General, or Postmaster General, 0ot debate 'the matter to which - the than those necessary to explain the answer. Taft Used Keport. Ours not having the disadvantages of the typical parliamentary system, interrogatories could not be instituted or debates undertaken for the purpose of “turning out a government.” President Taft incorporated the Pendleton report in his message to Congress. Since then bills have been introduced In every Congress. Sena- tor McLean of Connectitut has re- peatedly introduced the bill, which was before the Senate in the Congress Jjust ended. Representative Montague of Virginia has followed the same course. nVith the enormous development of tive business, the necessity for the adoption of some such plan becomes daily of more vital importance. It is remarkable that President Wilson, in Gun Play Grows Passe In “Wild West” Movies All this censoring of wild West movies is just about two years .too late. The Westerners used to draw the crowds because they showed Hollywood nymphs being rescued by bad men from worse men. There was plenty of hard riding. * There and fancy two-gun shooting. It’ the bad men and the shooting_the consors are distressed about. They think little boys will bécome bandits (Did you ever write a letter to Fred- eric J. Haskin? You can ask owr In- Jormation Bureau any question of jact and get the answer in a personal let- ter. Tha s & vart of thot dest pur- pose of this newspaper—service. There ia no charge except 2 cents in stamps Jor returw postage. Get the habdit of asking guestions of The Star Informa- tion Bureau, Twenty-first and C streets northwest.) ing this number might be attached to his car license tag so that all— especially the truffic ofMcer—might see the driver's rating. “Also the re- duced Iimit might be entered on thé permit the driver carries. This rating idea might be worksd sfout in varfous ways, but thinking the basic thought might be of some through seeing so much gun play. Two years too late. here is no more shooting for shootifig’s sake in the Westerns. “The Covered Wagon™ showed tHat the sweep of American history is screen stuff and it gets the crowds. The old type of Westerner, which Bill Hart had virtually copy- righted, is dead. Nowadays the ‘Westerners teach history and econ- omics and olology and pride of birth. The shooting remains, but it is no longer the works. The Indians ambush us ae our covered wagons blase the trall of empire and our steel rails link the s the ‘redekins; nof to shed blsod, but because they oppose destiny. . There's no mobility tn the “shooting. nobility is in our empire. Maybe this “Deadwood Conch” and “Thundering Herd” are of the old Dbite-the-dust school. If they are, the Postmaster | that o such reso- | imous consent, within lews than three same refers, nor state facts or opinious other was also plenty of quick drawing| {office,” as either House may require The Constitution not contaln [the words “cabinat officer - stitutional advisers.” It says that t} President may require the op writing of the “principal o |each department.” For thiy | such oMcers are said to be tutional advisers” to the Pres | The executive afficers of our Gover under ihe proposed change | rules, would be subject to a more d inite’ form of accountability. great advantages over the purel mentary systems of Europe and America, in which the cabinets governments are in reality, in most instances, committees of the major in the parliamentary body, selected t carry into execution its ger policy. does era Subject to Instability. Such cabinets are subject instabllity result trom parli mentary changes of opinion and an adverse vote is generally interpreted as involving the resignation of the cabinet or government. To ende to bring about the Eng parli mentary system, for inst involve amends tion, creating legs co have fixed periods for the elec |the Chief utive, membe |Senate and of the House of It the head of one ts, under the P the rules of procedure, was opposed by the majority Congress, there would be more thar one course open to him. He resign and the President could then appoint some one in his place without being under tie necessity of removing any other member of the administra |tion, or the head of the department might modify his views and submit a more acceptable measure. No encroachment by the legislative branch upon the comstitutional privileges of the President or of cabinet is suggested and no invasior by the executive of the jurisdicti of the legisiative branch, nor any modification of the constitutional distribution of the functions of the three independent departments of our Government, its distinctive and char- acteristic features. It would simply be a change in the rules of procedure which would not even interfere with the existing methods of communic tion by written reports or by the per- sonal presence before congressional committees of members of the cabinets and subordinate chiefs of bureaus of executive departments. A few words spoken by a competent head of a department would place {the whole of Congress and the coun- tpy on the same vantage ground as | the members of a congressional com- mittee. Direct information from t {heads of the departments would en |able Congress to be more quickl |advised by or communication rendering legislatien much iess ject to the present serious delay The discussion of the Isle of I | treaty, pending for 20 3 | illustration. Certainly, had the Secreta | of State at any time during that long riod been able to present persor and orally to Congress the ider tical arguments made by certain abic | Senators the treaty would have long | since been ratified. | The Executive may advocate = policy which Congress opposes, and {the absence of authorized means of oral communication may prevent the establishment of the har action necessary for the public fare. When, on the contrary | exists ‘an agreement between legislative and executive bran | an intercourse resuiting from a con mon purpose would be promoted tree oral communication Would Give Facts Orally. The proposition that the of the cabinet be invited before Congress would virtua a request to communicate orall directly what they now communicate in writing. The volume of printe matter is growing enormously, unt it becomes physically impossible fc members of either house to deal with it effectively. The great number of printed reports, although of value for reference, are in the mass prac tically unavailable for the purpose of supplying Congress with facts and information for immediate use. They ave created a situation in Wwhich Congress is unable to act with any degree of promptness There is no legislative Lody in the world containing men of higher qual- {fications of ability and character for legislative and executive office, in- cluding the presidency, than are found in our Senate and House of Represeptatives. To have served with distinction many years in Cor gress greatly adds to the important qualifications for that great office PERRY BELMONT Higher Wages for U, S. Employes Held Needed l To the Editor of The Star: When President Coolidge recently approved the two bills increasi salaries for Congressmen, Cabinet officers and other high officials, to- gother with increased pay for postal clerks and carriers, he admitted that this rich United States Government for many years in the past was buy- Ing service at an unfair price’ Don’t let us forget that the high cost of living also affects the remain- ing 65,000 Government employes at Washington and elsewhere, and they are entitled to the same reasonable consideration. Why do Government officials criti- cize the heads of our large industrial concerns for not adopting a higher wage scale, when they should take the lead in Congress for such a program for Government workers? 3 1 hope that President Coolidge will present and urge a compensation ad- Justment measure, after the new Con- gress i3 organized and showiug team- 1'am strong for President Cool- idge’s war ‘on waste; the taxpayers want efficien Let us adopt the slogan, “Millions for use and service, but not a dollar for waste.” Blg business will follow to t sontatives. serious mig ony the hes member to appea b value, I present it for considération. | public will take care of the censoring. 'if the Government but show the way. A. ¥ ENQUIST. —Chicago Tribune, CHARLES W. FAIRFAX.