Evening Star Newspaper, July 28, 1926, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. ‘WEDNESDAY.....July 28, 1026 THEODORE W. NOYES. . . .Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company The Evening Star. with the Sunday morn- g jora within . 3 livered by 3 = Jonth: dally only. 20 cent” mall or made by at' 60 cents per mon per month: Sunday ol per Tvnth, - Orders may. be Kznfixy telephone Mair 5000, Collection is carrier at the end of each month. il—Payable in Advance. and and Virginia. Daily and Sundas Daily on KA 4 Member of the Associated Press. 0-Associated Press In exclusivaly entitled to the use for repuhlication of all news dis patches credited to it or not otherwlse cred. ted Iu this paper and al local news g0 the local Dublished hereln. All rights cf pub cation o1 special dispatches herein are also reservs Traffic Changes. Changes in various traffic regula- tions are being contemplated by the traffic office. These changes include arking and the possible addition or subtraction of one-way streets and piher minor alterations. The traffic ouficil has urged that the extension of utomatieally lighted streets in the ul- congested section be deferred until her study of the situation has cen made, and also that one-way :ts De not added until that system is proved certain to have a beneficial tegardiess of the merits of the va- s propo: for changes in the fations, has the time not arrived 1 period of complete cessation of ‘tivity In the making of additional « rules for the purpose of a gen- survey of the entire situation? fas not the time arrived for both the lice Department and the Traffic De- ‘tment to concentrate on. enforce- pent of present regulations rather han the making of new ones? Washington traffic has just passed Lrough a state of confusion. Passage the amended traffic bill by Congress is been the remedy which will grad- Ally show results. There Is so much Jack time” to be made up, however, 1.at a period of concentration on pres- ‘nt regulations appears to be more jecessary than the making of new pne: As the first step in this campaign otorists should be taught that they unot disregard the automatic lights ith impunity; that they must keep to = mgit of the street; that they must ave properly adjusted headlights; hat they must give right of ‘way at neersections: that they must observe e speed limit over bridges and in all ctionis of the city; that they must ome to a complete stop before coming but of an alley or driveway; that they Just respect boulevard stop signs and, nost of all, show courtesy and con- ideration at all times to other users bt the street. The traffic office, on its part, should o that all plans begun by it are com- Jleted. Boulevard signs should be put p at all intersections of this char- . ter, safety zones should be painted— Lnd kept painted—wherever it is cemed wise, speed limits in the out- ving sections should be raised with- but further delay and the whole sys- e, as it now stands, should be made o function with smoothness and ex- hediency before other changes or ad- itions are contemplated. Iy in this way will Washington le to regain its equilibrium after most trying period. With the pres- nt machinery running properly and khowing the results that it surely will, Laditions and subtractions can be nade with little fear that confusion ill follow in their wake. e ——e—t————— A Chicago girl dged eighteen at- lempted suicide because her father Lpanked her for staying out i 2 b'clock in the morning. She has sensented to live on and some day 471 probably be profoundly grateful pr tne spanking. RS The Shipping Problem. The British are worried over their khipping. The latest figures show at their perventage of the world's serchant tonnage has dropped from ‘orty-one per cent in 1914 to little ore than thirty per cent today. For centuries the British flag has flown on every sea. ave carried British trade and the rade of other nations into every nook fhnd corner of the world. From a beriod shortly before the Civil War ntil the World War, the Stars and Ktripes had vanished in large part rom the overseas merchant trade. Much of the commerce to and from his country was carried in British bottoms. During the World War, however, he United States answered the call for ships and more ships, until a. vast onnage had been acquired at a cost pf some $3,000,000,000. Americans, as whole, had a severe lesson. The etirement of the United States from he ocean-carrying trade left this .antry helpless against increased ~sight rates, and even at times with- hut the carriers so much needed for .merican trade, when British and ther ships were needed for war pur- hoses. f This American tonnage in part is he cause of the lessening of the Brit- sh percentage of the world tonnage f merchant ships. The British look ¢ith ‘disfavor upon the rivairy of merica in the ocean-carrying trade. t is natural that they should. But hey should not delude themselves vith the idea that America is ever hgain to relinquish, as it did in the , its grip upon the overseas ship- bing business. Nor should Americans orget the lesson which they learned hnd for which they paid through the ose in the years following the open- ng of the World War. The same list of merchant tonnage shows British predominance in hipping to be lessening shows also 5 the ll.#lnn‘ the German and the . THE : EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., WEDNESDAY, JULY 28 1926. 4 THIS AND THAT French merchant fleets are on the increase. They are Increasing be- cause these nations are expending more and raore money for the con- struction of new ships. ,With its great fleet of merchant ships constructed to meet war neces- sitles still lying idle in considerable proportion, the construction of new ships In this country for the over- seas trade has practically ceased. ‘This is the problem which Americans must face. Other countries ' are building improved ships, ships that will offer better service, and quicker, than many oi the ships flying the American flag. The time is coming, and coming soon, when there must be replacements of the old tonnage in this country. It is a problem which Is giving ‘much concern to men in- 0c | terested in keeping the American flag on the seven seas. A plan to meet the replacement needs should be worked out as speedily as possible by those in control ———— Carry Out the Original Plan. Deep and dangerous waters are being reached by the National Capital Park ‘and ‘Planning Commission and the office of public buildings and parks in their departure from the plan for two bathing pools for the Dis- trict, which already have been author- ized by Congress. Delay and nuisance are being courted by theso agencles, which, instead of taking what has al- ready been provided and approved, British ships | seek to change the entire plan and to throw the whole matter back into its prelimirary stages. Two large bathing pools, costing $370,000, have been approved by Con- gress. Because of delay in the selec- tion of sites the House appropriation committee refused to make the funds available, but they will be immediately available when locations are decided upon. If this delay had not occurred construction of the pools would even now be under way, and Washington would be assured of bathing facilities early next Summer. ’ As it is, the commission has em- barked on a new plan, totally different from that authorized. It has decided that several pools would be better than two large ones. According to the commission’s new plan these smaller bathing pools wouid be scat- tered throughout the city to serve in- dividual neighborhoods. It is difficult to dovetail this line of reasoning with the desires of the peo- ple of Washington, who want, need and should have bathing facilities at the earliest possible moment. The plan of the commisgion, even if it had merit, should not be considered when the delay which it would entall is realized by those charged with the re- sponsibility of carrying out the law passed by Congress. Congress has act- ed on the proposition of bathing pools for Washington, after due thought and consideration. In passing the bill it followed the wishes of the residents here, and the law, as it now stands, should not be flouted. The delay that has been encountered 8o far has been solely in the selection of two sites. What possible ground could there be for the thought that a larger number of sites would be easier to select than only two? A bathing pool at best is not a particularly wel- come addition to a residential neigh- borhood. It has many of the factors of a nuisance. Therefore, why should the people of Washington have this nuisance dispersed throughout the city? The people ‘of Washington em- phatically do not want it spread. They want it concentrated in two places, preferably hear the river. They want the pools, and they want con- struction to begin at the earliest pos- sible date. Inasmuch as there appears to be no sentiment for putting this matter back into its first stages before Congress and changing the plan already decided upon, it would seem that the agencies charged with carrying out the desires of Congress and the people should concentrate on the speedy culmination of the original plan and not depart on new schemes peculiarly their own. ————t—————— The man In the boulevard in Paris cannot understand why the United States Government should not be as reckless with money as the average American tourist. —————————— Mexico has at least varied the argu- ment by making it a contention be- tweén politics and religion instead of science and religion. Sesquicentennial in Arrears. Reports from Philadelphia indicate that the Sesquicentennial is not pay- ing expenses. Indeed, it has devel- oped that at present the exposition manegers need $3,700,000 to meet out- standing obligations. The operating deficit from “the 31st of May to 19th of July was $637,055, or about forty- five per cent of the operating expense. In .other words, the exposition has taken in only about fifty-five cents for every dollar that it has cost to run the big show. The reason for this is not far to seek. The exposition was opened in an unfinished condition. The build- ings were not completed and the ex- hibits were not installed. Indeed, the show is not yet ready for the public, and consequently the public has not patronized it. Those who went early were disappointed, and they spread the word. Had every building been finished and every exhibit in place on the opening day the attendance would 1 doubtless have been big enough to carry the income past the expense point. But people did not relish the prospect of going long distances to see a lot of carpenters sawing wood and driving nails, and piasterers put- ting on stucco work, and trucks haul- ing materials and cases. Such exhi- bitions of American industry and en- ergy are to be witnessed in any city in thls country without charge. Practically every one of the exposi- tions undertaken in this country has been tardy. None of them has been fully ready on opening day. It seems to be a chronic condition in the case of our big shows. Of course, the Sesquicentennial will be ready in all respects for public view in a short time. When the word to that éffect spreads m@ Wil be a large attendance. Apart from any pa- triotic motive the people will go in great numbers to Philadelphia to see the largest “fair” held in this coun- try for a number of years. They will g0 to be instructed and entertained, particularly the latter. In these days of motoring there wiil be little diffi- culty about hundreds of thousands moving “Sesquiward,” and in these times of prosperity multitudes will be able to spare the time and the money for such a journey. It may be that in the season the losses will not be balanced, but the present rate of loss surely will not be long continued if the exposition management will soon announce that the last nail is driven and 5he last exhibit installed. Safeguarding the Rails. A statement issued by the chairman of the automatic train-control commit- tee of the Association of Railway Ex- ecutives is somewhat reassuring to the traveling public of this country. It shows that progress is being ac- tually made In the installation of de- vices on the lines covered by the In- terstate Commerce Commission’s orders first issued four years ago. Ninety-elght per cent of the installa- tions first specified in 1922 are either in actual operation or under construc- | tion, covering 7,503 miles of track out of 7,770. Thirty-four roads, with 5,841 miles of track, have the work com- pleted, with the exception of the com- pletion of installation of apparatus on a few locomotives. Construction work is under way on sixty-two per cent of the mileage specified. These figures are indicative of an actual, if tardy, accomplishment of the work covered by the commission’s orders. It cannot be too vigorously pressed to full completion. Every lit- tle while a collision occurs that takes many lives and does enormous dam- age. The traveling public is keenly apprehensive of the risks entalled in riding on trains operated under the old visual signal system. There are no safeguards in the findings of cor- oners’ jurors fixing the blame upon signalman, or engineman, or flagman. Penalties applied to blunderers when they survive the accidents do not re- store the lives of victims or heal the wounds of those who are injured. Only the actual installation and operation of automatic train-control systems will guarantee security. vt Voluminous bathing suits are to be sponsored by French fashions. The beafity contests over here will go on, nevertheless and notwithstanding, and Paris' may yet find Florida and New Jersey setting the styles for “‘smart- nes: i ——tte- Government management of a sales system for farm products can hardly be established without:creating some official who will often;feel more puz- zled than a base ball umpire. ——r———————— The fish presented by President Coolidge to Gov. Smith was placed in a museum. Mr. Coolidge goes on catching so many that it 1s likely to lose its chief distinction as a curiosity. ——————— Regardless of any turn in Texas politics Pa Ferguson is always to be congratulated on having a most loyal and helpful wife. et Discussion by Senator Borah and Chancellor Winston Churchill wouid contradict an impression that we are already having one. ——av— The notorfety thrust upon Aimee McPherson will doubtless be borne with patlence. Almost any kind of notoriety is marketable at present. ———ret— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. The Big Show. 1 shall offer a confession which you must admit is sad. My taste has greatly changed since days of yore. I'm fond of brisk athletics and per- formers lightly clad; But I don’t enjoy the circus any more. Where the motor horns are sounding I behold daredevil skill. The costumes on parade can never bore. I stand and gaze. I don’t—and scarce belleve I ever will— Enjoy a regular circus any more. Playing Safe. “Where do you stand on the great questions of the hour?” ““Well,” answered Senator Sorghum, “I'm pretty sure I have the great majority. with me when I say boot- legging 1s wrong and bathing suits ought to be larger.” Going to Europe. Goin’ to Yurrop! Yes, Sirree! Seein’ all that there is to see! Gettin’ in that fast workin' clime, An eddication in six weeks’ timel Of course, there are things to see an’ hear, In our own hard-workin' hemisphere. But them sights abroad are the sights foe me. Goin’ to Yurrop! Yes, Sirree! Jud Tunkins says he’salways buyin’ something a salesman says will save him money; and yet he keeps gettin’ deeper. in debt!” Endless Interest. “What shall we do with the North Pole when we discover it?” asked one explorer. “Easy question,” answercd the other. “Leave it where it is and then try to find it again.” “When the truth is not clear to you,” said Hi Ho, the Chinese philoso: pher, “summon a throng, start an ar- gument and be loud of voice.” Those Discouraging Old-Timers. I struggle to express my mind Enriching human wisdom's store. But everything I think, I find Has been much better thunk of yore! “In de old days,” said Uncle Eben, “everybody was satisfied an’ happy to ‘step out an’ march wif de per- with even a record attendance later’ cession. Now you got to mmm‘ifla v BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. If we were to write of some of the absurd things we know about, no one would believe us, so here goes! Bach one of the following little stories from real life is as true as Truth, although the reader may have a hard time crediting some of them. The Painter. This actually happened in a north- ‘west residence section. A painter was kLired to go over a house, and he came up one morning to look the property over. After carefully inspecting it fore and aft, he announced that he would return in the afternoon to start the awork. / . About the middle of the afternoon he came back in his small car, bring- ing ladder, paint and plenty of brushes, He unloaded his equipment and materials, carefully looked over the house he had selected, and set to work. Two hours later some friends of the people who had made the contraot with the painter called at their home, and, in the course of conversation, mentioned they had seen a painter three doors down the block taking shutters off a house, busily painting away. ““Why, that looks like our painter!” said the woman, peering out. “He said he would be back but never showed up.” “Maybe you had better go out and see if he is your man.” 4 “Absurd,” declared another. ‘“He couldn't make a mistaks on these houses—this one doesn’t look at all like that one. This house has no shutters.” “I belleve I'll go out and ask him, anyway,” said the woman, so she set forth, followed by a small gallery. “Are you the man who was to paint our -house?’ she asked the tanned individual on the ladder. The man looked down, brush sus- pended In air. “Why—-" ‘A foolish look overspread his face. ‘Yes," he grinned, “I guess I got the wrong house. y mistake.” “Well, I neve exclalmed the woman, “At that,” mused the painter, de- | scending, “TI ain't so foolish as the man who put a whole new roof on the wrong house.” * ok ok % The Zero Gas Bill. Another group of householders being away from home all day, the reader of meters for the gas company = a hard time making a computa- At last. however, he managed to get in, solemnly took his reading and went away, much to the satisfaction of all concerned, as a member of the household had to be late at work in order to allow the man to read the meter. The next month the gas compeny sent a bill which read as follows: State of moter April 20..2500 State of moter May 25...2500 Consumption 00 The bill was neatly made out, both main statement and attached receipt: Amount of charge * ok ok % The Letter of Thanks. ’ Bill Jones ordered a cap from a big malil order house in a neighboring city. The price he pald was 78 cents, or i expect much. When the cap arrived, however, it “WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS Midsummer in Washington always brings one hot weather ‘‘rumor” story of prime interest. ‘Last vear it was the report that Secretary Mellon would shortly resign to be succeeded by Dwight W. Morrow of J. P. Morgan Co. This year it is the tale that David A. Reed of Pennsylvania will quit the Senate to succeed E. Gary as the head of United States Steel. Important if true, with heavy underscoring of the if. Stories of this type make their appearance out of thin air, are on many tongues at the Capital, circumstantiated by plausible arguments, theorfes and deductions, but entirely lacking any responsible authorship and invariably without the slightest direct confirmation of the parties most concerned. 1 * ok ko The Reed story seems to have had its origin with recent after-dinner con- versations of Pennsylvania politicians. It proceeds in this fashion, that Reed is sick of the political game and dis- gusted with Senate cliques and blocs; a stalwart Coolidge defender, who has frequently found himself bearing alone on the floor of the Senate the brunt of attacks on the administra- tion, and shabblly rewarded at the ‘White House when patronage was passed out; grieved by the defeat of his colleague, Pepper; forced by politi- cal expediency to become an ally of Vare, much to his personal distaste; facing a most arduous and unpleasant Job in defending Vare's title to a seat in the Senate when the real fight— and it will be a real fight—comes around. * ok ok k On the foregoing hypothesis is plant- ed a fact or two. Reed termed the Pennsylvania voters “‘dunderheads” in referring to the Pepper-Vare fight. And in the Congressional Record are several other equally candid and un- flattering remarks of his, which no first-class politiclan in his right mind would ever think of uttering publicly. This ‘proves,” according to the stor: tellers, that Reed is not contemplat- ing running again at the expiration of his term two years hence. That Mr. Gary will retire from the Steel Corporation within another two years at most has a far sounder basis in fact. He is on record as saying that the time of his retirement is near at hand. Two years looks like a pretty good guess. D 1t is also true that Sen:ltlnr Reail;s Pittsburgh law firm, naturally enough, has lon: had close affiliations with the steel industry. The Mellon fam- ily is only one of their many rich and distinguished clients. Senator Reed is a lawyer of the first caliber, with demonstrated business acumen, execu- tive capacity, abundance of good health, full of ginger, neither too young mnor too old—in a word, he has the qualifications for Gary's job. Such at least is the Washington estimate. Then to “cinch” the story comes the highly confidential “tip” which a Rep- resentative declares he heard a Sena- tor say he had been told by a banker friend, whose New York partner had whispered, that it was secretly ported in Wall street that it was arranged Gary, when Gary steps down. * ok K K Representative Allan T. Treadway of Stockbridge, Mass.,'has earned a repu- tation of being one of the most urgent pleaders in the House for coal legisla- tion. “To remove New England from the grip of the anthracite monopol. is the way he puts it. A genial per- son is Treadway, who in private life is proprietor of the Red Lion Inn, one of the tourist landmarks of the Berk- shire Hills., Visitors there this Sum- mer discover that the heating of the inn in cold weather is quite a prob- lem, and that last December when an- thracite coal in New England was scarge and Mine Host Tréadway, 0 disdained anthracite substitutes, 2 alr H. | culture is about the most popular Gov- that Reed should luv:csedl turned out to be a well made,.good looking article, and of exactly the right cut and proportion to look well on_Jones. Needless to say, Jones was thor- oughly pleased, so much so, in fact, he decided to take his pen in hand and indite one of those letters of ap- preciation all of us are planning to send but seldom get around to. “Gentlemen,” he sa'd. ‘“Cap re- ceived, and I want to say that I am very much pleased with it. I have} paid $3 for caps which I did not like half so well. Thank you.” Three days later Jones got a let- ter from the mail order house read- 1ng: “Dear Sir: Since you are not satls- fied with the cap, piease send it back at our expense and we will refund the money you paid for it, together with transportation charges. Very truly yours, et * ok K The Seventh Anniversary. J. Phlox Smith, successful business man, rather prided himself on remem- bering his wedding anniversary. Few husbands do it, although all wives do. It being November, Phlox Smith briskly entered his /favorite florist shop, and put in his order for 7 chrysanthemums. He started to warn | the girl to get exactly the right num- ber, no more nor less, but thought that would be redundant. Smith hated redundancy. The clerk, impressed by the cheerful kindliness of J. Phlox Smith, thought him such a nice young man that she instinctively put in one mone chrysan- themum for good measure. So that afternoon Mrs. J. Phlox | | Smith recetved 8 chrysanthemums in- stead of the proper 7, which Smith | | bad tried to buy, but could not. | * oK K * The. Sewing Cabinet. ‘Pempleton ' Haddington bought | his wife a nifty sewing ecabinet for Christmas. This was the day hefore, {and as Haddington did not want the | company to send it up so that his | | wife might take it in, he decided to take the cabinet home himself. | Luck was with him, his wife being downtown when he arrived home. | Happily he stowed the cabinet away {in a safe place. All went well until | Christmas eve. There was a ring at |the bell, and Mrs. Haddington answered it. There stood 2 man from the furni- | ture store, holding a neat sewing | cabinet on one hand. “Why, that's | not for us,” she said. “It must be” | | replied the man, ‘‘the tag has the | | right name and address on it, hasn't’ Liez “Templeton,” called Mrs. Hadding- i ton, beginning to see the light, “did | you order a sewing cabinet?” | | T. Templeton lost his aplomb for | |once. “Yes, 1 did,” he called. “Tell ‘em to take it back, I already got | one.” So Mrs. Haddington got her | |present before Christmas day, after | all. J - o B | The Windsor Chair. The next Christmas Mrs. Hadding- ton bought a Windsor chair at ln-" | other store. and told the clerk of the | sewing cabinet episode. ‘'Please don't | make a similar mistake,” she smiled. ! “Why, of course nof smiled the | clerk. | | In the afternoon & nice chair ar- |rived. Christmas eve came, and with | some such small sum, so he did not | it—another Windsor chair from the |did eight years ago. store. Sure thing! You can’t beat some of these big, efficient stores. closed his hostelry. So 'he knows whereof he speaks when he protests the hardships of the coal consumers. | Treadway'’s hobby is accumulating tea- | pots. His collection now numbers 1753, all different. * X X X i | The dog booklet printed and dis- tributed by the Department of Agri- | ernment publication of the moment. | Requests for them are fairly swamp- {ing the publfcations office. The idea |originated with Representative Harry | | B. Hawes of Missouri, an enthusiastic | ladmirer of dogs and their eloguent | protagonist in House debate. Uncle |Sam conducts surveys and prints much about horses and hogs, cattle and sheep. Why should not dogs be accorded like treatment? argued the Missourian. So he prevailed upon Congress to direct the Department of Agriculture to study the subject and report. The bulletin now published sets forth that there are 46 breeds of dogs recognized as ‘regular purps” by the fanclers. It is held by others that there are 60 breeds, including mutts, mongrels and mixed bloods, but the Government sticks to 46, and it may be right. It further solemnly declares that the total present canine population of the country s 7,000,000, which strikes the average man as a rather low estimate, since it allows only one dog to 18 per- sons. * ¥ % % The activities of the Republican senatorial committee thus far in the present campaign have not been visible to the naked eye. Members of the committee, however, give as- surances that the “groundwork” of vigorous and far-reaching committee activity is being laid. The commit- tee chairman, Senator Lawrence C. Phipps of Colorado, staunch Repub- lican regular and one of the Senate millionaires, has been sojourning in Alaska during July, but is due back in the States next week and is ex- pected in Chicago in time for & con- ference of leading Republican Sena- tors tentatively scheduled for August |9. After that date it seems likely {that the battle will be on in earnest. | The Republican congressional com- ! mittee, of which Will R. Wood, mem- |ber of the House from Indiana, is icha.!rmnn. maintains permanent head- quarters in Washington the _year round in charge of Farl Venable, a | political veteran of many hard-fought | Chicagn the middle of August to re. lcago ] e of August to re- main until election. { * ok ¥k A handsome black velvet jacket, white silk waistcoat and black velvet knee breeches are the latest addition to the “costume” collection in the Smithsonian Institution. Along with a pair of silver buckled pafent leather pumps, black silk hose and black tri- corn hat, they repose in a glass case adjoining the cases which contain the gowned plaster replicas of the wives of the sidents. The little placard which lal the exhibit reads: “Diplo- matic costume. Worn by Hon. Henry Cabot Lodge on the occasion of a re- ) ception at Buckingham Palace, Lon- Idon, 1895. Presented by the Lod; " (Copyright. 1926.) Pk | A Political Pike. From the Lowell Evening Leader. Posgibly Gov. “Al” Smith intends to have that presidential pike for future reference in 1928. Too Early for the Ki From the Nashville Banner: broadcast. about ning, tully eight hours before dren get home. “stories are usually 17 o'clock in the eve- | nitely established. When former Sen- | ington, and while Newberry was seat- { “Billy” Lorimer, Republi Having unearthed heavy expendi- tures of money in the ublican primary in Pennsylvania, w] result- ed in the nomination of Representa- tive William 8. Vare, a “wet,” for the Senate, the Senate investigating com- mittee is now busily at work in Chi- cago digging up information regarding large expenditures in the Republican primary wkich nominated Col. Frank L. Smith, an anti-world courter, also for the Senate. It seems tie irony of fate that this should be the work of a committee headed by Senator “Jim" Reed of Missouri, who is a bitter- ender against American adherence to the World Court, and who is also a “wet.” 1If these investigations should result in denying seats to both these Republican nominees—in the event of their subsequent elections—the vic- tories of the wets in Pennsylvania and of the anti-World Court group in Illinois will be largely wasted so far as increasing the strength of the “we and the irreconcilables in the Senate itself is concerned. There fs no doubt, however, that the wet vic- tory in Pennsylvania and the wide publicity which it received has added impetus to the drive for modification or repeal of the Volstead dry law, and that the victory of Smith in Tilinols encouraged greatly the Sen- ators opposing the World Court. * ok * x Senator Reed is a Democrat, and the work he has been doing as chief ex- aminer of the Senate investigating committee, the Democrats hope, may result in aiding the election of Demo- cratic Senators not only in Illincis and in Pennsylvania, but in other States. The election of a Democratic Senator, however, in Pennsylvania would bring to the Senate a dry in the person of former Secretary of Labor William. B. Wilson of the Wilson cabinet. He would also be a supporter of Amer- fean adherence to the World Court. It must be admitted that it would re- quire practically a political revolu- tion to bring about the election of a Democratic Senator in the Keystone State. In Illinois George E. Brennan, the Democratic nominee for the Senate, is a wet of the wringing type. Fur- thermore, in view of the wet senti- ment in the State, particularly in Cook County, which is Chicago; in East Louis and in other populous cities of the State, Mr. Brennan will pole a very large vote. Some of his sup- porters insist he will win. Here, too, there must be a tremendous turn- | over of the vote for Democratic vic- tory. Mr. Brennan's chances next | November seem far brighter than those of Mr. Wilson in Pennsylvania. * ok ¥k Already in the investigation of the Illinois Republican primary it has been -developed that more than a quarter of a million dollars was ex- pended for both Col. Smith and his opponent, Senator Willlam B. Me- Kinley, respectively. This figure may be greatly increased before the in- quiry ends. Furthermore, there have been charges of gross corruption, though these have not vet been defi- tor Truman H. Newberry of Mich- igan was nominated and elected over Henry Ford in 1918, it later developed about $195,000 was expended for him in both the primary and the election. The cost of elections, like the cost of living, has apparently gone up since those days, and a dollar expended for campaigning does not go as far as it The Newberry case created a furore here in Wash- ed, he eventually resigned and retired from the Senate because of the un- pleasant notoriety the contest had brought about. * k¥ K It was in 1912 that the Senate by a vote of 55 to 28 threw out Senator of Tili- nois, after charges of corruption had been made in connection with his elec- tion in 1909 by the State Legislature. In those days the direct election of Senators did not exist. It was not until 1913, that the constitutional amendment for the election of Sen- ators by popular vote was adopted. It may be noted in passing that the di- rect election of Senators and the pri- mary system were not responsible for the Lorimer case, nor for that of Sen- ator William A. Clark of Montana, who a few years earlier had been accused of corrupting a State Legislature to bring about his election. The pri- mary system has been assailed by its opponents since the revelations in the Pennsylvania primary this year and declared responsible for the large ex- penditures of money in Senate nomi- nations and elections. The primary system is not so much at fault as some of the candidates and their sup- porters operating under that system. In the Lorimer election. it developed that a “Jackpot” or slush fund of $100,- 000 was raised to influence members of the State Legislature to vote for Lorimer. The Lorimer case hung on for three years. The first vote in the Senate was waken in 1911 and Lorimer was declared entitled to his seat by a vote of 46 to 40. But later evidence, unearthed first by an investigating committee of the Illinois State Sen- ate, was responsible for a second in- vestigation by the Senate committee on privileges and elections, initiated by the late Senator Robert M. La Fol- lette of Wisconsin. It is a coincidence that Senator Robert M. La Follette, jr., of Wisconsin is now sitting as a member of the Senate committee which is investigating the Illinois primaries. * ok kX The testimony in the Lorimer case was to the effect that Edward Hines, head of a Chicago lumber company, had raised the slush fund for the election of Lorimer. ' In fact, Charles 8, Funk, an official of the International Harves ter Co., testified that he had been ap- proached by Funk with a request that his company donate $10,000 toward the $100,000 fund. One of the facts developed by the Senate committee in its present inves- tigation in Illinois is that Samuel In- sul, public utility magnate, was the bright particuiar angel of the Smith campaign for the senatorial nomina- tion, contributing more than $125,000 to the Smith cause. Mr. Insul was catholic in his tastes, however, for he contributed lesser amounts to the candidacy of George E. Brennan, putting up $16,000 of the total $20,000 which Mr. Brennan admits was ex- pended by him and his managers in his campaign for the Democratic nom- ination. Vare had his angel in Penn- sylvania in the person of a wealthy Philadelphia real estate operator, and Pepper in the person of Joseph R. Grundy, head of the Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association. * Kk x ¥ The revelations regarding the oper- ations of machine politics in Illinois in connection with the senatorial pri- maries are as disheartening as those of the machine operations in Penn- sylvania. - * %k %k ‘While it has been generally ex- ed and understood that former pect Senator David 1. Walsh would be the | an, chil- | ce BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. Was Christy Mathewson a col- lege man?—H: T. A. He wag a graduate of Bucknell University, where he was both a base ball and a foot ball star. . Q. How many golf balls are sold or used In a year In the United States? —J. W. McL. A. The American Golfer says there is no way of getting any accurate figures on the number of golf balls used or sold in the United States. As near as can be estimated there were approximately 15,000,000 used last year. Q. Is the Grand Duchy of Luxem- burg affiliated with Belgium?—M. C. A. It has an economic union with Belgium, in force since May, 1922, which is to last 50 years. Under this agreement ‘there are no customs bar- riers between the countries and Bel- glan currency is circulated in Lux- emburg. Q. In considering the horsepower of horses and mules on farms, what size horse is the basis of computation? —N.E. W. A. A usual basis of computation is a 1,200-pound horse or rmule. It is considered equal to one primary horse- power, and larger and smaller work animals are computed on the theory that their power is proportional to their weight. Q. What is meant by being hon- ored with the degree of Druid by the Gorsedd?—G. W. R. A. The Gorsedd is an assembly, an essential part of the modern Eistedd- fod, the National Bardic Congress of Wales, whose objects are to encour- age bardism, the Welsh language and | customs, and to foster and cultivate a patriotic spirit. It is divided into three orders, the Bards, Bards and the Ovate Bards. The first are the poets; the second, re- ligious teachers, and the third, per- sons interested in literature, science | and art. The Druid is the highest grade. Women and men are eligible for all degrees. The first Gorsedd was held in America in connection with the World’s Fair Eisteddfod at Chicago in 1893. Q. When do leaves drop off maple and oak trees?—C. C. A. Trees leaves and defoliate at different periods in different sections | of the country. Generally speaking, maple and oak trees defoliate in Oc- tober and November. Q. What is the hardest element or ore next to the diamond?—G. A. gree of hardness being as 9 to 10. Q. What is burgoo?—C. H. D. A. This is an oatmeal pudding or thick gruel served to seamen on ship- board. Q. When cream has been acciden- tally beaten until it separates, can it be changed back to cream consistency In some way?—G. L. McL. A. The Bureau of Home Econom- les says there is no way that cream may be beaten back to its original the Druid | consistency after it has been sepa- rated by too much beating. Q. How many bodies are affiliated wl:‘h ;'hesl'edoru Councll of Churches” A. This is an interdenominational body of Protestant denominations in the United Statms and st the close of 1926 had 28 constituent bodies. Q. Has there ever been a Chinese bishop of the Roman Catholic Church? —J. 0. D. A. Until this year thers were no Chinese bishops. In June, 1926, three Chinese prelates were made bishops. Q. How fast has a wheel been turned?—P. M. 8. A. Probably the fastest turning wheel in the world is the turbine wheel on the special supercharger of the airplane used by Lieut. John Mac ready in attempting to break the world's altitude record. It makes 40,000 revolutions in a minute—about 700 a second. Q. What is the Mexican Biue Cross?—T. C. B. A. The that there are a million Mexicans within the boundaries of the United States, concentrated chiefly in the Southwest. Only 5 per cent of them speak English. They are Mexican citizens, and they live in the Mexican way, pursuing national habits and cus- toms. Were they not in alien terri tory, this million might be cared for by the Mexican Red Cross. The task, being one purely of social welfare, is not exactly in the line of the ordinary activities of the American Red Cross. This people forms a special problem, for which Mexico feels itself responsi ble. Thus there was organized at San | Antonfo, Tex., in October, 1919, the Mexican Blue Cross. Its service in cludes the distribution of food and clothing to those in want, the furnisi* ing of physicians and medicines for the sick, the transportation of the |sick or needy to Mexico, and the | burial of the indigent or friendless dead. It also looks after Mexicans | who are in trouble. | Q. When and where was the first | Safety Congress held?—L. R. | A. The first Co-operative Safet: | Congress was held in Milwaukee. | Wis., trom September 30 to October & 1913, Q. What is a coalition cabinet? G. E. | "A."A coalition cabinet is one in which members of all parties are M. | represented. A. Corundum ranks next to the! diamond in hardness, the relative de- | Letters are going every minute from |our free Information Bureau in | Washington telling readers whatever | they want to kmow. They are in answer to all kinds of queries, on all | kinds of subjects, from all kinds of people. Make use of this free service | which The Evening Star is maintain- ing for you. Its only purpose is to | help you and we want you to benefit from it. Get the habdit of writing to The Evening Star Information Bu- reau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director. Washington, D. C. Enclose two cents in stamps for return postage. Arsenal Problem Stirs Public To Demand Minimum of Risk Public discussion that has followed the disaster at the Lake Denmark Arsenal of the Navy, with the result- ing demand that accumulations of ex- plosives should not be at such places that communities are endangered, has raised several questions, chief of which is: “Where is the ideal site to be found?” “Above the smoke and ruin of the fearful disaster,” declares the Nash- ville Banner, “looms a warning to the effect that storage depots and manu- facturing plants for high explosives should hereafter be built far from centers of population of any size. It is to be presumed that the grounds of Lake Denmark were sufficiently removed from villages and towns when the purchase was made, but it would have been a comparatively easy and inexpensive thing at that time to acquire territory emough to have obviated much of the horror that has attended the recent catastro- phe. Hereafter, at any rate, it is to be hoped that all possible care is tak- en to put these potential menaces so far from thickly settled communities that a repetition of the current in- ferno will be out of the question.” The Schenectady Gazette also insists “it is the duty of the Government to protect the people by surrounding its death caches with ample safe- guards, especially in the form of un- . inhabited areas.” “There may be explosions under the most careful safeguard,” says the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “but steps should be taken to prevent the spread- | ing of fire and explosions, and . to make sure that when they do occur they will be limited to military prop- erty. We do not intend to say how this shall be done. The question of location must be decided by Army and Navy experts.” The Lynchburg News feels that “all that can done is to minimize the danger as much as careful storage and the exercise of precaution can minimize it,” though it is convinced that “there will always be such explo- sions so long as high explosives are in storage for use.” The Des Moines Tribune advises giving “attention once more ‘to lightning rods.” It quotes an Army officer’s statement that “there is no complete protection against the more violent lightning bolts” and adds that “it seems a curi- ous thing that with all the great in- crease in knowledge of electricity .t 1s not possible now to provide securi- ty from these ‘bolts from the blue.’" * ok x x “It s only reasonable,” the Louis- ville Times agrees, “that New Jersey Y Senator Walsh and the fine run which he made against Senator Gillett in 1924, he will have his troubles this Fall. Not only will he have the Coolidge sentiment of the State, which is colossal, to' combat, but there are ructions among the Democrats of the State which will add to his troubles. Senator Walsh must not only poll the entire Democratic vote of the State but also many of the Republican inde- pendents if he is to come through a victor. Senator Butler will have the Republican organization back of him solidly. While there has been some soreness against him among the old ‘Lodge adherents because of the cold treatment accorded Senator Lodge at the Republican national convention in 1924, some of this has been dissipated and the Republicans will present a strong * ¥ % % Within the next week senatorial d jonal and tal T it o be napniaated o hie arld Senator Harreld is making the nomination in should ask to be relieved from the munitions menace,” .but it asks: “What State wants to assume the risk that New Jersey seeks to avold? True, some of the States have more open territory, but in any case a city, of a kind, must grow around a munitions plant. Employes must live and they will have to have merchandise, amusements, government. This coun- try's citizens, somewhere, must live in dread of being blown to smither- eens. But if New Jersey is to be freed from the menace, where are the explosives to be located?” The Newark Evening News takes the position that “the military forces of the country must be prepared to defend us"; that “munitions must be manufactured,” and that “supplies must be stored where they will be easily accessible if and when needed. The fact that New Jersey is a sea- board State,” continues the news, “requiring possible protection in case of war, puts upon it some of the re- sponsibility for its own defense. The department is showing a desire to consider our safety and peace of mind. That is doing all we can ask.” Quoting the statement by Senator Edge of New Jersey that “it is an outrageous and criminal practice to store high explosives in thickly popu- lated centers,” the Toledo Blade of- fers the opinion that “the arsenal is only on the thinning edge of a thickly populated center, and it is there be- cause New Jersey politics was stirred | up to get it for the State. It would |be a nice thing,” continues the Blade, “to get Government realty purchases and Government establishments for one’s State or community if the haz- ards assoclated with them could be left out. It is hard to see how that can be arranged in the case of powder magazines.” The New Orleans Tribune also em- be | phasizes the fact that “the citizens themselves are not unanimous in their opposition to rebuilding the ammuni- tion depot there. The Dover Rotary Club and a committee of 50 business men,” adds the Tribune, “draft reso- lutions asking that the depot be re- built. It offers employment to many civilians and loss of it would hurt the town’s business.” * ok k% “The pressure of public opinion,” states the Jersey City Jersey Journal, “appears to promise the removal of Government arsenals from populous centers, but it will probably be a slow- moving project, like all Government processes. The department has no au- thority by itself to change the loca- tions. Both that authority and the money with which to do the work must come from Congress.” The Passalc Dally Herald asks: “Might not great towers be set up to draw away harmlessly the stored-up electrical energy from the clouds, sav- ing bulldings from direct hits by light- ning? And might not a buried or semi-concealed type of magazine be ' more effective than those that have | been used at the navy depot? Bafety cannot be made absolute, with our present knowledge of the handling of explosives. Yet everything that can be done should be done to make life more safe for those who are charged with the duty of handling and guard. ing the great ammunition stores up in the north Jersey hills.” 9 The Roanoke World-News.adds that “the storage houses can be placed far enough apart so that when an ex- plosion occurs in one it will not spread to the others,” while the New York World believes “the time has come for our military departments to submit to strict regulation for the gen- eral safety.” . “Whatever the cost,” says the Al- bany Evening News, “ammunition should be stored where public safety is It may even be that it ind. Cer- feguards lightning.” Knoxville Sentinel insists that “principally those who serve their country are entitled to the