Evening Star Newspaper, April 21, 1925, Page 6

6 THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. TUESDAY........April 21, 1825 THEODORE W. NOYES. .. .Editor Tke Evening Star Newspapsr Company 21 g BRI OMe: Now Fork' Office. 110 East 48nd St. Chicago Office : Tower Bullding. Oftice: 15 Regent St.. London, England. pean The Evening Sta: with the Sunday morn- Ing edition, is delivered d by carriers within the city at 60 cents per month; daily only, 45 cents per month: Sunday only, 20 cents per montn. Orders may be sent by mall or telephone Main 5000. Collection is made by carrier at the end of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Dafly and Sunday. ...1 yr. $8.40: 1 only . 150 mo., T0¢ 1 mo. ! o Sunday only - 20¢ Daily and Sunday Daily only . only Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dis- atches credited to it or not otherwise cred- ted in this paper and also the local news published herein. ~All rights of publication 1 spect ches herein are al The Clark Art Collection. Rejection by the trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York, of the William A. Clark collec: tion of paintings, sculptures and other objects of art brings to Washington the issue of its acceptance or rejec- tion. Under the terms of Mr. Clark's will the collection was to be taken by the New York institution as a whole and housed adequately and separately, with decision within four montha after his death. In case of rejection it was and humidity, were taken to the Weather Bureau. In getting records from the clouds and epace above the meteorologists believe that they will be able to extend and refine the sci- ence of forecasting. The surface of the United States and Canada 1s quite thickly dotted with observing stations, and some trial steps have been made toward gatnering metsoro- logical data at sea, and marine ob- servations for use on land and sea will be extended. Weather science is young, but it is a vigorous and promising youth, serving mankind with skill afd zeal. Long-range forecasting probably will bdcome as satisfactory as our pres- ent day-to-day service. Sclentific agencles are busy with this problem, and the Smithsonian Institution in particular has been studying the matter for a number of years, It may be considered probable that weather observation planes will get C|as much publicity in the news as mail planes or even as war planes and that Washington's weather plane will become a famillar object in our sky. ————— Japan and America. The Japanese Ambassador, Tsuneo Matsudaira, accredited spokesman for his country in the United States, ad- dressing the Federal Council of Churches in New York last night, again pledged Japan to peace in the Far East and discounted all talk of possible war between Japan and the United States. The Ambassador 18 to be congratulated upon his frank and friendly statement of the relations existing between his country and America. Too often the voice of the “jingo,” irresponsible or actuated by selfish motives, is ralsed in both coun- to be tendered to the Corcoran Gal- lery of Art, in this city, under the same conditions, with the same time limit for decision. New York has de- clined to receive it, on the ground that under the museum's traditions and rules such a collection cannot be kept intact and separate. This is Washington's opportunity. It is not to be denied that the gift, one of the most valuable ever made to any art collection in the world, has its embarrassments. To accept it en- tails a large expenditure for building und probably an additional main- tenance expense. The Corcoran Gal- lery is not so richly endowed that it can readily find the means for com- plying with the terms of the will and the conditions of the gift. But there remains the possibility of additional revenues, supplied for the emergency, secured from the community and from the wealthy friends of the Capital else where, to enable the gallery to grasp this golden opportunity. Washington's art collections have been increasing in marked manner for some years, until the Capital has be- come one of the notable art centers of the United States. William A. Clark recognized this development in his lib- eral endowment for holding here, at the Corcoran, a biennia] salon ot American art which has become one of the important and significant na- tional exhibitions. The eddition of his collection to the art treasures of ‘Washington would materialiy forward this city's progress, would bring vis- itors and students in greater numbers. TUnder the terms of Mr. Clark’s will no provision is made for the disposi- tion of the collection in case of its re- jection by both the Metropolitan Mu- seum and the Corcoran Gallery. It would seem, therefore, that the trus- tees of the Corcoran Gallery of Art have the last word in the case. Should they be compelled to decline the gift its future is problematical. It may be sold or it may be housed privately in New York or elsewhere. The execu- tors of the estate must decide. It is hoped, however, that this decision will not be necessary, that the Corcoran trustees will find & way to accept this gift under the conditions of the will. Certainly Washington would respond to an appeal for funds to help the trustees to carry out the terms of this priceless gift. Possibly the executors of the estate could find a way in such cir- cumstances to ald in order to secure the establishment of the collection in the most suitable housing in the city in the artistic development of which Mr. Clark was keenly interested. —— The Associated Press. The Assoclated Press is observing the twenty-fifth anniversary of its present organization at the annual meeting of {ts members in New York. For a quarter of a century this great newsgathering agency has been faith- fully discharging its duty as the col- lector and disseminator of informa- tion in all parts of the world for the benefit of the press and the people of America. It has maintained the high- est principles of journalism by its fidelity to fact and its abstention from partisanship in the presentation of the nev It has enabled its member newspapers to keep their readers fully informed of all happenings in every quarter. Through its complex but efficient organization it covers the world. In speed, in accuracy and com- pleteness of news presentation it has made a record never approached by any other agency. In the 25 years now closing its service has compassed some of the greatest events in the world’s history. During the Great War the Associated Press kept the Ameri- can people, through their newspapers, in touch with every happening and de- velopment promptly and fully. Itisa co-operative organization and in no sense commercial. It is in its success & triumph of American journalism. ————— Hindenburg's desire for “a place in the sun” may suggest political predic- tions to the effect that Germany is go- ing to have & hot Summer, Extending Weather Observation. The Weather Bureau has begun the exploration of the sky for data to eld in making forecasts of District weather. The first of a series of airplane flights above Washington has been made with the aim of pro- viding weather forecasts for a longer period for the District of Columbia. The plane carried the aerological of- ficer of the Bureau of Aeronautics and various meteoroiogical instru- ments. Data registered by the aero- graph, showing altitude, temperature v tries, predicting trouble. The Ambas- sador very properly lald emphasis on the fact that Japan has been scrupu- lous in its performance of pledges made at the Washington conference on limitation of armaments and prob- lems of the Pacific. The sinister suggestion that Japan has negotiated a secret treaty with Russia, constituting a military men- ace, was flatly denied by the Ambassa- dor. Nor, he insisted, is any menace to the policy of the open door in China and the Far East to be found in the new Russo-Japanese treaty. The Ambassador denied’ there is any dis- position on the part of the Japanese government to take ‘“retaliatory” ‘measures ageinst Americans because of the laws of some of the States which deny Japanese the right to own property or because of the immigra- tion exclusion act. Dispatches from Tokio indicate that the Japanese leaders regard the immi- gration exclusion act as a closed in- ¢ldent. In fact, the same dispatches assert that leading Japanese would regard as unwise any effort to reopen the question at this time. Very wisely, it appears, the Japanese look askance at a movement fostered in either or both the countries to change the immigration law of the United States, believing that it would only again stir up ill feeling. These Tokio dispatches refer to a report that a country-wide movement is contem- plated here to do away with the pro- vistons of the law by which the Jap- anese are excluded from the United States and to place them on a quota basis. If the sentiment of the Japanese is correctly quoted in these dispatches— and there is no reason to doubt it, particularly in view of the statements made here by Ambassador Matsu- daira—it would appear, indsed, the part of wisdom not to stir up again an issue that has been settled. The Japanese Ambassador in his ad- dress indirectly referred to the thou- sands of miles which separate the two countries, declaring that, as a matter of fact, a war between them was a physical impossibility. Both nations are playing important parts in widely separated spheres. How could a clash advantage either of them? Out of the Washington corference came a better understanding, an un- derstanding which has not been eradicated by the enactment of the immigration laws of the United States. [ e —— A demand for dictionaries has been created by the cross-word puzzle that gives it & claim to be regarded as a literary impulse. It {s rudimentary, but it promotes & vocabulary which in time must stimulate interest in the grammatical arrangement of sen- tences, and then in the development of ideas to give the sentences vitality and purpose. ———————e Political assassinations have tet- riffied Sofia. In view of the trouble that has originated in that particular region the world at large is justified in reflecting more or less the local agitation. ——e—. Extensive Improvement Plans, Congress will have before it next session an important project of Capi- tal improvement.. A plan has been drawn which, if carried into effect, will give Washington a handsome harbor front, transform Water street into @ boulevard, remake M street from the Washington Channel, past the navy yard and south on Eleventh street southeast into &n automobile highway and connect the drives of Potomac Park with those to be con- structed in Anacostia Park. Bast of the navy yard Potomac avenue will be transformed into a boulevard connect- ing the upper Eastern Branch Park. and also connecting .the proposed drive to link the Civil War fort sites on the Eastern Branch - and those across the northeast and north- west sections of the District between the upper Eastern Branch and the upper Potomac. ; Every argument is in favor of the consummation of this comprehensive plan of Capital betterment. It has im- portant utllitarian features, will im- prove Washington in a marked de- gree and be of particular advantage to Southwest and Southeast Wasp: ington; will make the Potomac River and Bastern Branch and the river park system more accessible to the whole population, materially increase the good street mileage and create a boulevard ‘system embracing the en- tire District. The project includes several plans THE EVENING which have been discussed and ap proved by thé people of Washington, these being the improvement of the Washington waterfront with a view not only to making it better looking, but to advance its commercial use, a union of the river parks, Zoo and Rock Creek Park by & boulevard tem and a drive to connect the re- mains of Weshington's Civil War forts and the sites of those forts that have disappeared. ——— Ideal Government. President Coolidge, in his address before the Daughters of the American Revolution last night, declared that ideal government rests with the peo- ple. The organization which he was addressing has, he says, contributed richly to the maintenance of that ideal. It has aided in the assimilation as Americans of the newcomers from other lands, and it has sought means to-help the native community to im- prove its condition, carrying into the backward and well nigh forgotten parts of the country the torch of edu- cational opportunity. The Daughters of the American Revolution, he said, are “putting the'ideals of the Revolu- tionary period into practical effect.” It is through such organizations of patriotic men and women, founded upon the most cherished traditions, that the ideal of government of, by and for the people will be attained. The schools teach the fundamentals of democratic organization. The vol- unteer assoclations of the people give them practical force in the dally life of the body politic. A great impulse is exerted by these assemblages. Last night the Presi- dent, addressing the Daughters of the American Revolution, spoke by broad- cast to millions of people. The mem- bership of the organifation is about 800,000. Those directly influenced by its activities total many times that number. The Daughters of the American Revyolution were organized more than & century after the close of the War of Independence and the establishment of the Government which it made pos- sible. While practically all conditions of life have changed, the fundamentals remain the same. It has been the task of this body of patriotic women to ap- ply those basic principles to the life of the Nation in these da; They have done their work ably and successfully in the development of that ideal of government which, as the President says, rests with the people, —————— A movie actress lost $75,000 worth of jewelry in @ New York taxicab. Ad- vertising is a considerable {tem of ex- pense, and the amount of first-page publicity courteously accorded the lady may, in the long run, represent e profit. ———— The fluctuations of the stock mar- ket are indications of the state of national prosperity only to the extent that they record the readiness of in- vestors to take a chance one way or the other. The basic wealth of the country remains unaffected. ¢ —— The importance of & young English- man may sometimes be estimated by the emount of popular attention di- rected to the manner in which he gets off a herse. —r—. The genial sagacity of Tom Mar- shall may betimes develop a sense of wonderment as to why Vice President Dawes should insist on taking the of- fice so seriously. ——————— If President Coolidge, after his com- ment on fishing as a pastime for boys, should go further and say that golf is only an old man’'s game, there would probably be a mutiny in Congress. ——— Germany has done France an in- voluntary service in demonstrating the futility of an unlimited issue of paper currency. Hindenburg insisted on going to the front and giving the French mili- tarists a pretext for their persistence. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Modern Youth. A little boy had stubbed his toe. I paused to comfort him. I waited for the tears to flow To make His bright eyes dim. But, though he seemed a bit annoyed, His -eyelids were not wet. And, oh, the language he employed I never shall forget! Last Stand. “You are a great stickler for sena- torial courtesy.” “I am,” answered Senator Sorghum. “There isn't much deference shown in stores, hotels and railway cars. There ought to be some courtesy some- where!” . Altitudes. The cost of living rises nigh. To overtake it I shall try. By using, as I travel far An airplane for a touring car. Yet as I seek to overtake The swift advance that prices maké And leave behind the earthly scene, How shall I pay for gasoline? Jud Tunking says it's queer how many people will go to see a show whose billboards - they would be ashamed to be caught looking at. Proceeding With ‘Caution. “Why did you refuse to marry Tommy Scadds?"” “Tommy is e frivolous chap,” an- swered Miss Cayenne. “I thought it desirable to refuse him a few times in a preliminary way to ascertain whether he is really in earnest.” Dangerous Exceptions. " citizens -~ assume—and thereby Keep getting sicker— That prohibition rules do not apply To bootleg licker. . ... Some they “Don’ brag too much ‘bout bein’ prim an’ proper,” said Uncle Eben, “if de principal reason is dat you can't afford to’be otherwise, STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Some bright soul with statistical inclinations has discovered that only Jne-tenth of 1 per cent of the popula- tion veads poetry. So he says. On this basis, only 100 subscribers to The Star care for verse, or probably 200, 800 or 400, counting the average unm- ber in a family. Figures, however, often lie, despite the old saying that they never do. The trouble is that statistics can be made to prove almost anything one wants them to prove. In such a case as the present, even the basic ground- work is unsubstantiated. Personally, 1 belleve that a great deal more than one-tenth of 1 per cent of the population of Washington likes poetry. Not being a statistician, I would not hazard any guess as to the number. I only know that T met a man yes- terday who could quote whole pas- sages from Alexander Pope's “Essay on Man,” although he had not read that tour de force for more than 40 years, he sald. | There are many more like him. Undoubtedly, however, there are those who are poem-shy. The minute they see thoughts arrayed in verse form, they “pass it up,” as the yer- nacular has it. Now this is too bad. Poetry—the old-fashioned kind—not only is filled with melody, but contains great thoughts better stated than prose can do it. One need never apologize for Poetry. . Yet for those afraid of verse one longs to do something. Why not translate a few of Longfellow’s most famous poems, for Instance, into Eng- lish prose, so that the unpoetical may not entirely miss these treasures? * ox K K Let us take first the famous SERENADE from “The Spanish Student.” Turn out your lights, you Summer star; dim them in what would be azure distances if the sun were shining, which it 1s not. Can't you see that my best girl is sleeping? She has washed her fair face in the approved style of the toilet soap ads, and has smeared on and off the cold creams recommended by the Countess of Rutabaga. And you big Summer moon up there —turn off the switch. Perhaps it would be just as well if you would sink entirely away. Evangeline, my best girl, is hitting the hay. And when she sleeps, she sieeps. ‘Wind, old topper, crawl back into yourself, and stop waving tiose win- dow curtains. She's a-sleeping in there, my best girl is. Kid o' dreams—tell her, in . sort of Freudian complex, that I am out here watching, while she is sleeping —my girl—my best girl—Lord, how she can sleep. Our next rendition is of A PSALM OF LIFE. Take away that mournful stuff about Life being nothing but a dream, and an empty one, at that. You got it all wrong, Bo. You're a dead one if you sleep too much. Things are never exactly what they seem, as W. S. Gllbert said, in one of his songs in “Pinafore,” when he announced that skim milk often masquerades as_cream. Life is the real stuff! It is earnest, too, and we are quite positive that the grave is not our goal. That wise crack about dust thou art, to dust returneth, was never meant to in- clude the soul. Not on your life! Neither movies nor funerals is our big end in life. The main thing is to get a move on us, and do our stuff, so that tomorrow we will be a little bit better than we were yesterday. It takes a long time to learn to draw a Gibson girl, and Time itself is an old slow poke. Our trusty old hearts, although we must confess they do the best they can, are in real- ity beating a tattoo to the grave. We wish we did not have to mention graves so much, but it is always es- sentlal in serious poetry. Friend of mine, don't let ‘em buf- falo you into being a whole herd of cattle in this here camp meeting we call Life. Hop to it and assert your- self. Read a few of these self-im- provement books, especially that one on “How to Be a Hero.” Don't let the clairvoyants ease your pocketbook, and don't worry too much about what you did or didn’t do last year. Hump yourself in the present. You got a heart inside you, ain’t you, and ain't God upstairs? Why, the lives of the cabinet mem- bers certainly remind us that we can make our lives sublime, and, de- parting, leave behind us various brands of assorted footsteps in the oil flelds. Think of it, friend—regular, man- size footprints, so that some feller who is down and out, and just about ready to apply to the Assoclated Charities, giving them the once over, can take heart again. ‘“Lord!” he will say. “My feet ain’t that big, any- how.” Let us, then, crank up the old car, with a carbureter guaranteed for any old journey, throw in the clutch, learn to crank her—and to wait. * kK K We come, now, to THE VILLAGE BLACKSMITH. The blacksmith of this one-horse town is some Samson. He must have been taking a physical culture course, and soon he will advertise himself as *“The world's strongest man,” He sure is a hefty bird, all right—why the muscles of his arms are like iron. Our old friend the smithy is not listed in the books of the Credit Men's Association, becayse this gazabo pays s he goes, You can see he is that kind o’ gink by looking at him, with his long, black hair sopped with hon- est sweat. He blows his old bellows at all hours and pounds away on his anvil with that big sledge hammer, whanging away like the sexton ringing the town beil at sunset. The kids coming home from school, 100k in at him. They like to watch the flaming forge and hear the Whoosh- whoosh of the bellows and try to catch the sparks that fly up as the chaff used to scatter from the threshing floor {n the old days before it was called bran. - Our old friend the Blacksmith go: to churck every Sunday, alway Johnny on the spot, sitting there among his boys, listening to the preacher and hearing his daughter's voice in the choir. It makes him happy to hear her sing—he dreams that it {s her mother’s voice in Paradise. And as he sits there he has to think of his wife, and as he does it, listening to their daugh- ter singing, he wipes a tear away with the back of his rough hand. Se, toiling, rejoicing, sorrowing, he goes his way, a pretty decent chap, after all. Every morning he starts something and every evening he has the satisfaction of seeing it finished, or on the way. This enables him to sleep with & good conscience. Thanks, Mr. Blacksmith! You hand out a real lesson, something I demand to end my poems with. The point is simply this: At this forge of our. lives we have to hammer out our fortunes, shaping each deed and thought upon this roaring anvil. Spirit_of Longfellow, forgive me: My heart nearly failed me when I started those paragraphs about the blacksmith in church. Yet even in a jazz prose version the reader will find a bit .of your great- ness, just as the fox-trot maker was unablé to ruin Strauss’ great “Blue Danube” waltz when he turned it into four-four time. Fox-trotting Longfellow’s lovely, graceful poetical waltzes but makes us all the more appreciative of them in their original form. Eyes Upon Hindenburg In New German Election The eyes of the world are upon Field Marshal von Hindenburg as he enters the stretch in his campaign for the presidency of Germany. Amer- fcan newspaper comment indicates a belief that his success would be a step toward the restoration of the old imperial power, but there is a strong incidental conviction that it would be disastrous to Germany. His oppo- nent, Dr. Marx, represents the more liberal elernents. “The first pronouncement of théven- erable fleld marshal,” according to the Syracuse Herald, “justifies all that has been charged regarding his se- cret hostility to.the republican gov- ernment and its general policies. For- tunately, there are many evidences that the voters of Germany will re- spond to the challenge of Hinden- burg’s candidacy in the right way Quoting a Berlin statement that the conservative nominee has the back- ing of Admiral von Tirpitz, “who, by insistence upon' ruthless submarine warfare in 1917, drew America into the world conflict,” the Atlanta Jour- nal declares ‘There can be no doubt that the nomination of von Hinden- burg has shaken Germany within, and throughout the world has chal- lenged a new distrust of the junkers and militarists. May her true friends of democracy prove equal to the crisis threatened. * ok KK The age of the candidate, never- theless, places a limitation dpon his activities, as viewed by the Raleigh News and Observer, which says: “It is well to bear in mind that he is 78 years old and-that he could hardly expect to live through the seven-year term, even if elected. His election would not mean necessarily that the militarists would be in_control, but it would mean a tremendous boost for them.” A more serious view of the situation is taken by the Milwaukee Journal, which holds that “if the for- mer Kalser, who deserted his armies in the hour of their defeat, went back to Germany to run for President, it would be more sensational, but no more significant than the candidacy of Marshal von Hindenburg.” . The Journal believes that Hindenburg is “but fugitive kaiserism’s shadow, and the parties supporting him make no bones of the fact that his electlon ‘would be a first step toward ultimate restoration of the Hohenzollerns." The movement headed by the aged military leader is tied up by the New Haven Register with growing pros- perity in Germany. “The nation's financial resurrection and rehabilita- tion have been most extraordinary,” states the Register. “With the resto- ration of the gold mark and the aban- donment of her flat currency, it was as if by magic that-industrial Ger- ‘many sprang forward and galloped-on toward her old goal of world commer- clal conquest. That the leaders of this renaissance are friendly to the Kaiser seems to be taken for granted, and so there may be much in the declaration that they feel strong enough at this hour to throw off thé mask and stand before the world once more as:de- fenders of the morarchy, with Hin- denberg, the loyal retainer, as the forefront” of their movement.” The Springfield Daily News, accepting this point of view, considers it quite likely that “the reports. of the ex-Kaiser's peremptory order to his former war lord are absolutely correct.” The News continues: “It was a wise choice, however, because Hindenburg still re- mains the idol of many thousands of > not wishing to, Germans, who, while see the imperial dynasty restored, still have much affection for the old sol- dier who led the country’s armies in the greatest of all wars.” The signifi. cance of the matter is recognized by the New York World, which expresses the views that “if Hindenburg should be elected, there will be only one con- clusion in the United States—that Germany is ready to scrap her experi- ment with democracy, is turning back to kaiserism, is considering revenge and is ready to throw over her friends in this country and take light-heart- edly whatever loss that policy in- volves.” * K ok x New problems for all the world are forecast by the Albany Knickerbocker Press, in' the event of the marshal's election. “To what avail the carefully worked out Dawes plan with all the effort it implied?” asks the Albany paper. “Of what use the elaborate and expensive steps that have been taken by this and other nations to sta- bilize Europe? Where would repara- tion go? What might the world ex- pect? An honest Attempt to answer any one of these questions will serve to emphasize what President Coolidge meant when he said of America's international relationships that no na- tion could be helped beyond i ability and desire to be helped.” The damage to Germany from such an election result is seen as of greatest concern by the Akron Beacon Jour- nal, which goes on to say: “Of all who would lose in such a disaster, Ger- many would suffer most, for by turn- 4ng hér back upon self-government, she would alienate her real friends in other nations who want her to be r stored to strength and prosperity. Yet the nomination may be a service to German republicanism and democ- racy, according to the St. Paul Dis- patch, which adds: “It will certainly clarify the issue and define the elec- tion.as a test between feudal Ger- many and republican Germany. ther beneficial possibilities are ob- served by the Hartford Times, which remarks: ‘“There is one consolation and that les in the possibilify that Hindenburg, should he be well’ beaten in the election, will lose caste as the national idol he now is on account of his military exploits. If Germany can teach him and the rest of the junker class that lesson, it will be worth a good many elections.” The Oakland Tribune, analyzing the vote in the first election, says: “If monarchism really has been repudiated it will be given another lesson of the same sort on April 26.” Pfik Head Duck Found. - At last a pink-headed duck has been discovered and captured In & jungle in India. Pink rabbits and | green cats have been seen aplenty, though not so often néw as a few years ago, but ducks have not ap- pealed to the visionary eccentricities of those who get themselves Into a condition to “see things.” Yet ducks are harmless and not ealculated to inspire terror, and it would have been better in those “good old days” for some of them to have substituted for wome of the things that were doing duty in that line. Yet it is possible that a few of those who are “making ducks and drakes” of the law may get the pinkeye even yet with some of ‘the things UESDAY, APRIL 21, 1925. NEW BOOKS AT RANDOM LG M THE PATERNITY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN. Willlam F. Barton, George H. Doran Co. THE SOUL OF ABRAHAM LIN- COLN. By William E. Barton. George H. Doran Co. Was Abraham Lincoln illegitimate? Was Abraham Lincoln irreligious? Ny This, the positive double answer. Yet, in both cases, between each question and its conclusive negation there stands something like 50 years of hot controversy. All of half a century has it taken to demonstrate that the long contention had no other foundation than an early idle rumor. This fact places one on familiar ground before the matter for every man is acquainted with the vicious activity of mere hearsay. Perhaps, however, not quite everybody realizes that rumor 1s, in effect, the universal scapegoat upon whose back are piled all the secret longings, all the secret indulgences of timorous folks desirous of distracting attention from them- selves by virtuously ascribing their own shortcomings to that,one upon whom rumor is, for the moment, con- centrating. Only an elementary grasp of psychology s needed to prove that, plain evidence lacking, one can read into the life of another only that which he holds within his own life. The world does not change in this respect. So, at the time of the Lincoln scandal—just as if it were of our own day—it took nothing more than a few jealous looks directed upon pretty and vivacious Nancy Hanks to plant the seed that grew and flour- ished through the long years in a rich demonstration of biblical allegory turned upon the green bay tree, and the grain of mustard, and the little fire that kindled so great a matter. Rumor was as lusty then as it has ever been. So, not one man alone was haled_into the forum of public con- demnation as the father of Abraham Lincoln, but seven men instead at one time and another. Around the story a big library of polemics grew. Lifelong enmities were set and nour- ished by it. Political capital bulked enormously about it. Even the nat- ural reticence of Lincoln's own na- ture -was translated as shame and sorrow over the unchastity of his mother. Today one reads that old story in a new light. For beside him, read- ing, there stands a gaunt and weary man to whom the whole world pays homage and will so continue to do as long as freedom is a priceless posses- sion. Beside him, reading, there stands one who loved his brother too much to hold him in bondage, who loved his country too well to see it broken and divided. In this great il- lumination of the human soul what do external things matter? Let us, for the moment, assume that this man did no: have a father. What was that to Abraham Lincoln? What is it to us? But—for the consolation of the otherwise inconsolable—it turns out that Abraham Lincoln was born in wedlock, of a paternity indisputably lawful. * ok x X In a volume of over 300 pages Dr. Barton produces the _proof of Lincoln’s legitimacy. With good reasons he answers afirmatively his own self-imposed query as to whether or not the inquiry is worth while. Upon this, the author projects himself into the enterprise in a thorough-go- ing zeal of spirit, in an untiring in- dustry of research, and with an ex- celleht acumen and skill in the, weigh- ing of evidence, in the drawing of conclusions. _Proof, positive, rewards the undertaking. This proof is the climax of the effort to those who de- mand a clear lineage for Lincoln. This point is for these the sum and substance of the whole matter. For the rest of us, however, the course of the story itself is the vital part of the whole. The pictures of that early life, the light thrown upon the days of boyhood and youth, the struggles for education, the warm human heart, the capacity for friendship, the feel- ing for all humanity, the clear po- litical vision in the later days, the final stand for righteousness—these, given all over again in the zeal of Dr. Barton’s patriotic passion, make up a story that is fresh at many points and highly valuable through- out. e ol o “The Soul of Abraham Lincoln” is & study of his religious life. From the nature of the matter no positive result as accrued from the investigation of Lincoln’s birthright is obtainable here. The same method of critical analysis may be emploved, and is. But re- ligious feeling is too fluid, too elusive of exact definition to be confined within particular statement. Dr. Barton—so wisely, one thinks—does not in this special line of research seek to separate Lincoln’s religion from his life—from his daily be- haviors, nor from his general attitude before common human relationships. Out of this entirely rational mode of treatment there emerges a human being whose spiritual growth and in- sight vary and change in a measure along with the vital changes in his material life. This {s a man's re- ligion—not, it is true, expressed in theological opinions, but expressed more intelligibly in deeds and general acceptances. This is the picture—not only of one man’s religion, Lincoln’s or another's—but it is the true pic- ture of the rise and continuance of all religions. First, in every degree of existence, the need of a God, wheth- er this need spring in the breast of the savage or in that of highly cul- tivated man. It is the supreme and universal need. “If there had been no God, man would have been com- pelled to make one,” Voltaire so well states it. Then upon this basfc and universal need has grown every re- ligion in the world, shaped by ma- terfal environment and changing slowly as this environment with its attendant spiritual growth requires and demands. It is this fluldity, this evolutionary tide, in the spirit as well as in the body of man, that shuts off the idea of a static religion. Deal- ing with the life as well as with the opinions of Lincoln, Dr. Barton has here presented, consciously or other- wise, & most deeply ‘true and stimu- lating picture of the progress of the spirit embodied in the daily life and outlook of both individual man and man in the collective connotation of periods and peoples. Out of the complete portrayal, the keenly critical analysis, the logical | deductions of this work, this author establishes "the high spirituality of Abraham Lincoln, a spirituality de- voted to the illumination of all life and to the guidance of his own individual dealings with his fellow men, with his’ country, with the world. These two volumes, exhaustive and conclusive each in its own individual line of research and in its own par- ticular purpose, add greatly to. the interpretation of Abraham Lincoln in every stage of his hg{: career as well as in his final ‘martyrdom. The work is, moreover, a storehouse of in- formation since the.author has added to his own effort on this subject a carefully estimated bibliography on the life of Lincoln. Besides, to those not deeply studious, but actively in- terested, nevertheless, in the passage of a great man across the years—a man great in both spirit and deed— these two books will prove a treasure of information, gathered in under- and projected in cemplete are making.—San | standi ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN Q. How far Basin?—G. B. 0. A. The office of public buildings and grounds says that the distance around the Tidal Basin is about two miles. is it around the Tidal 0. Q. Can a street car conductor re- fuse to change a $5 bill?—J. W. R. A. A local street railway company says that according to court decisions the conductor of a street railway is not compelled to make change for anything over $2, when giving change for street car fare. Q. Of the oil and gas wells drilled last year, how many are dry?—W. F. M. A. In 1923, 24,438 wells were drilled for oil and gas in the United States and out of these 5,883 were dry. How often are world falrs held? w. ‘A. There is no fixed time for hold- ing the world fairs. They.are usual- 1y held te celebrate some anniversary or centennial. Q. Why are people from Virginia called “beadles”?—M. P. A. A. The accepted nickname for na- tives of Virginia is “beadles,” from colonial times through the introduc- tion of the English beadles of the court customs. Q. When should eggs to bought to store?—W. S. G. A. The Department of Agriculture says that March and April are the best months to buy eggs to store them, particularly April. Q, Why are export marks required on all export shipmenis?—W. G. 8. —The Department of Commerce says that export marks are required on shipments for purpose of check: ing and identification. The same geo- metrical figures and the numbers ap- pearing on shipments are also noted on bills of lading and ship manifest. In all shipments where there is more than one package each bears its own unit number as well as the total num- ber of units in the shipment. In dis- charging cargo from a ship it is quite impossible to keep consignments ir- tact, the goods being piled up on the wharf without regard to individual shipments. Itis here the export mark proves invaluable in bringing and holding together the scattered units of a shipment. Many foreign coun- tries have rigid customs require- ments regarding markings and to omit them would subject the shipment to delays and penalties. In exporting to countries where the metric syste is used shipments are marked in kilos. In most cases this is required to fa- cllitate handling and levying customs charges at port of entry. Q. When did erman begin his march to the sea?—D. R. A. The march of Gen. Sherman may be said to have begun on July 17, 1864, that year. It ended December 21 of is the wholesale dealing fn led the “packing” industry? s the country became settled me necessary to bring meat supplies East from points farther and farther West, the expedient wasfound of slaughtering the animals and send- ing meat rather than live anir At first this practice was confined to pork which was salted down and pack- ed in barrels, hence the name “pack~ ing industry.” FQ. Why is a cape of land so called?— A. A cape is a headland. Caput ig the Latin word for head. Q. When and whi was the first ;’;;Ju‘r\gd Y. M. C. A. organized?—W, A. The first colored Y. M. C. A. was organized in Washington, D. C., in 1853. 'The first student organization for colored undergraduates was es- ablished in 1869 at Howard Uni- ity, Wa Q. How man; estimated that in India 0,000,000 Moslems. Q. When did Secret. the cabinet’—R. G. . He took the oath of office March 19, 1924, there are ‘Wilbur enter on Q. Are peanuts vegetables or nuf e 2 A. The peanut is a pea rather than a nut and belongs to the same group of plants as do beans and common garden peas, differing only in that it possesses the character above ground and Im or pod beneath the soil. Q. When did Lenin adopt his “ de revolution” 7— B. A. F. A. MacK Russian leader a Lenin after his return from exile on the Lena gold fields. Q. Why was “Old Ironsides” writs ten?—J. H. A In 1830, “Old Ironsides” (U, E. S Constitution) was reported unseas worthy and condemne be broken up. Oliver Wendell poem, “Old Ironsides Advertl: and the saved the vess and restored to service in 18 (Inform and entertain yourself by making constant use of The Star In- formation Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, director, Twenty-first and C streets morthwest. There is a wealth of in- formation at the command of the Star readers. There is no charge for this service except a 2-cent stamp for di~ rect reply.) BACKGROUND OF EVENTS BY PAUL V. COLLIN It seems an ungracious undertaking to try to put the Daughters of the American Revolution in a “back- ground.” It would indeed be audacious after viewing the 6,000 “daughters” | and “daughters-in-law” who are filling the new Auditorium this week. They present such a brilliant spectacle that Senator Spencer was moved to pay the compliment that they “looked just like an assemblage of Missouri wom- en"—a superlative from the show-me State. Has there ever before been such a significant gathering of American pa- triotism as appears in the thirty- fourth annual congress of the Daugh- ters of the American Revolution? Heretofore, the congresses have been held in their beautiful Continental Hall, but its capacity—1.660 seats— has long been inadequate to admit even the alternates of the delegations, without any onlookers. This year, the meetings are taxing the full capacity of the Auditorium, which seats 6,000. Next year, or the year after, the Daughters will have completed their proposed new hall, if the plans of the leaders are carried through and au- thority to build be voted at this ses- sion. * Kk ok K The society today exceeds in mem- bership 145,000, and the basis of rep- resentation at the annual congresses is one delegate and one alternate for each 25 members of local “‘chapters.” Theoretically, there might be today 5,800 delegates and an equal number of alternates. The society is grow- ing with nearly 1,000 new members per month. The loss by death is less than 2,000 a year, hence there is a net increase of 10,000 a year. Furthermore, the potential number of delegates, like Abou Ben Adhem's shadow, “will never grow less.” The descendants of each generation will be greater than their parents. As the generations increase, who can plan an assembly hall that will contain the multiplying Daughters of the Amer- ican Revolution? It is suggested that the new auditorium which the soclety will construct should be 1n perpendicular sections, like an “elas- tic bookcase.” There will always be room at the top—even at the top of a whatnot. * kK K The Sons of the Revolution point with pride &t their handiwork, for was it not the action of the “Sons” at a certain meeting in Louisville, in 1890, which made possible this mag- nificent organization of the Daugh- rs. teT)’le Sons of the Revolution had been organized in 1875, being direct successors of the first patriotic so- clety—the Cincinnati—made up of the officers of the Reyolution, headed by Gen. Washington. Not in all States were the Sons organized as far back as 1875. The first were in California, where the organization was of Sons and Daughters of the Revolution. Other States followed from year to year. In tl!"ns Summer of 1881, Mr. John A. ‘Stevens of New York expressed to Mrs. Ellen H. Walworth of Wash- ington, D. C., an intention to organ- ize in New York a unit of the Sons of the Revolution. Mrs. Walworth replied: “Surely not without the Daughters.” Th‘il suggestion as to the Daugh- ters was accepted by Mr. Stevens, and he proposed . that the women meet with him at the exposition of the Yorktown Centennial. That plan failed, however, but in 1883 Mr. Stevens did organize the Sons in New York. . * kK X The t came in 1890, when at an lnnur:lg:eyet.\ng of the Sons of the Revolution, in Loulsville, April 30, the men voted to exclude the women. ‘Was there ever an instance of folly in man wherein one might not quote the French: ‘“‘Cherchez la femme?' Surely those Sons must have feared the Daughters, haying heard how Eve had trapped Adam. Fear begets panic —panic desperation. Why blame those braye Sons? “Oh woman! woman! thou shouldst have few sins Of thine own to answer for! Thou art " ‘the author Of such & book of follles in & man, That it would need the tears of all the angels - To blot the record out!” How history ~doth repeat itself! Kipling warns us of the terror of a woman scorned. The poet tells us “Heaven has no rage ilke love to hatred turned. Nor hell a fury like a woman scorn- Entomology should have taught the men caution, for “The grub that is slighted today As a suitor presuming and bol 4 perhaps, be received in a dif- ferent way, ‘When soaring on pinions of gold * * * amidst the futtering of iridescent wings it is no wonder that the presi- dent general of the Sons of the Revo- lution and the president general of the Sons of the American Revolution, as well as the commander-in-chief of the American Legion, come like Greeks bearing gifts and tributes—flags and blossoms and flowers of honeyed words, that bees and butterfiles might be tempted with nectar. * ¥ X % That news from Louisville, like the shot from Lexington, was heard round the feminine world. There were some April show , here and there, but women of the Revolution were made of sterner stuff than tears of chagrin and vexation. The day following the Louisville ac- tion of the Sons of the Revolutior Miss Eugenia great: grandniece of President Washington, called upon Mrs. Florence Darli this city, and proposed that the ganize a society of “Daughte was decided to take no steps until September, because of the absence for the Summer of many women who would be eligible. On July 13 (1890) Mrs. Mary S. Lockwood, a writer on the staff of a Washington daily, reviewed a book telling of the heroic action of Hannah Arnett of Revolutionary fame, and Mrs. Lockwood _as! rhetorically, “Where would the Sons and Daugh- ters of the Revolution-place Hannah Arnett?” That brought a response from Wil liam O. McDowell, a great-grandson of Hannah Arnett, in which he offered to assist in organizing the woman descendants of Revolutionary herpes. He invited “every woman who has the blood of heroes of the Revolution in her veins” to send her name and ad- dress to him. Five responded—Mary Desha, Hannah McLaren Wolff, Louise Wolcott Knowlton, Sara A. Prior and Mary Morris Hallowell. These names were reported by Mr, McDowell' to Miss Desha, who ane nounced a meeting at the home of Mrs. Brown, which was held in the last week of July, 1890. Five women were present—DMiss Washington, Miss Desha, Miss Wolff, Mrs. Brown and Mrs. Ellen H. Walworth, That meets ing adjourned to August 8, when an actual organization was _effected, @ constitution, prepared by Mr. McDows ell, was adopted, and Mrs. Benjamin Harrison, the “first lady of the land,” was chosen president of the soolety, with Mrs. Morton, wife of the Vice President, treasurer. Mrs. Harrisor accepted, but M Morton declined, At the meeting November 1, 1890, 18 ‘women signed a formal draft of the records of the organizing, as above stated, and one of the signers of that record was Mrs. Lockwood, who had been out of the city at the time of the organizing meeting. Eox W In 1897 medals were awarded to the three recognized founders—Miss Washington, Miss Desha and Mrs, Walworth. A special medal was also authorized to honor Mrs. Lockwood, not as a founder, but for “service™ rendered in her July query as to where the Sons and Daughters would place such a heroine as Hannah Ary nett—which had brought forth 'the initiative of Hannah Arnett's de- scendant, Mr. McDowell, resulting 1 crystallizing the organization throug! bringing the actual “founders” tos gether. * X ¥ % The Daughters of the American Revolution stand, not for ancestral worship, but for pure patriotism, un- adulterated Americanism and emulae tion of the spirit of the patriotic foree fathers. The organization has chape ters in every State; also in many for- eign countries among resident Armeri- cans. It is doing important work in marking historic sites and preserving historic records, as well as upholding the highest ideals of loyalty, regarde less of party politics or religious creed. It opposes pacificism, com- munism and treason in thelr many insidious forms. co-operates with the American Legion, the Red Cross and all approved . patriotic influences and is the strongest and most har- monious patriotic body in American history. : r'd