Evening Star Newspaper, December 9, 1926, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WABHINGTON, D. C. THURSDAY . .. .December 9, 1926 THEODORE W. NOYES. . . . Editor R a e i e ol S ‘The Evening Star Newspaper Company 11th St 2 b ustness : 1. "and Bennarivanta ce: 110 ve. 2 St. England. Fi 1 Evenls tar. orn- tng SHERE it b the Sunday morn; ': wt 80 cents o : dally only. ?fl- ‘gtf month ] % cer {I Soghen: 3 i Rfl:u!ul only, 21 S Ordera may ‘he_sent by mail o M, o a0 ol el ¥ e &7 Rate by Mall—Payable in Advance. e Maryland and Virginia. and Sunday. -1yr. $0.00: 1 mo.. 75¢ BERE e R E R All Other States and Canada. 12.00: 1 mo.. ,l‘iofl aBim: 38 Member of the Associated Press. ted Prass fs exclusively entitiéd se for republication of all news dis- ited 1o it or not qtherwise cred- hotitne: Al rithte 'of Dublication riEhis o ca Teln ‘ars. 130 roserved 1yr] Db herein, pecial dispatches he — ‘While the District budget as it is Ppresented to Congress for the fiscal yeoar 1928 is considerably less than the estimates submitted to the Budget Bureau by the District Com- missioners, it stands as an increase of approximately $2,000,000 over the propriations for the current year. The sum called for, $38,619,859, is about twelve millions less than the eriginal estimates submitted by the department heads to the Commis- sloners and slightly under $3,500,000 less than the budget as sent by the Commissioners to the bureau. In these curtailments all of the branches of the District government have suf- fered. The pruning process has af- fected the schools, the streets and all the executive divisions of the munici- pal government. Still at the figure submitted advances dre effected in practically all of the allotments over current appropriations. Thit the District government is rapldly growing is evidenced by these ennual differences between initial ®nd final estimates. Every depart- ment of the municipal organization 1s expanding and every one needs more than is finally allotted. Never, in fact, has the allowance of funds been sufficient for the actual require- ments. Arrears accumulated during a long period of comparative neglect and economy and much of the pres- ent increase is in the way of caring for those arrears. Meanwhile the District {s growing in population and in equipment. If it were possible at one move to catch up with all of the necessitles accumulated during the period of curtailments there would still be necessary an annual increase in the budget to cope with the steady growth. Under the Ilump-sum provision which has been adopted recently from year to vear the District will pay approximately $30,000,000 of the amount appropriated and the Gov- ‘ernment $9,000,000, which works out to a ratio of less than one-to-three, instead of the one-to-one of the or- ®anic law and the two-to-three of the amended substantive law. Under this principle of lump-sum appropria- tions as the budget grows the ratio falls, so long as Congress holds strictly to the arbitrary $9,000,000 of lump-sum appropriation. That branch of the budget which pertains to the District school sys- temn shows a gratifying increase, a total of over $13,600,000 being writ- ten in for that purpose. The direct appropriation Is nearly one million and a half over the current appro- priation, while the authorization for new constructions is $1,195,500, as against $850,000 for the current year. Still the provision for new construc- tions is not sufficient. There is need of a much further advance toward the provision of new quarters for the steadily Increasing school popula- tion which, despite recent additions, continues to be inadequately housed and accommodated. Evidence of the steady growth of ‘Washington mot merely in numbers but in efficlency of municipal or- sanization is afforded by these constant advances In budgetary pro- visions. A high scale of efficiency prevails in the municipal organiza- tion. The taxpayers get full return from their contributions in service. It is unfortunate that all of the branches of the organization cannot be glven as much as they estimate to be required. Were this possible the District would be indeed blessed with an ideal municipal service. e —— Another complication asserts itself n farm reliet—one which requires at- tention from the scientist as well as the statesman: An epidemic of hog cholera has asserted itself on uncom- promising terms. ——o— Southern Railway Headquarters. The suggestion has been advanced that in case the square to the east| of the present District Bullding is taken for . public -uses ‘in the new bullding program of the Government, the Southern Railway Company, which occuples that structure, may remove its headquarters from Wash- ington to another city. This propo- sition should arouse all the civic organizations of Washington to an effort to prevent such a change, which would cause a serious dislo- cation of several thousand people, employes of the corporation, engaged at the headquarters. These offices have been located in Washington for a number of years, and the force has been steadily enlarged. Removal of the headquarters to another city would, if the force were kept un- changed, entall serious losses to the employes, many, -perhaps most, of whom have become home owners in ‘Washington and in the adjacent Vir- ginia ares. . There are urgent reasons, of course fully appreciated by the of-' cers of this corporation, for the maintenance of headquarters in Washington. This is the most sig- nificant terminal of the system. It is, mereover, the place of contact with the Interstate Commerce Com- mission. From the local point of view it is important to retain this large éstablishment. - The present quarters occupled by the rallway company are, it is un- derstood, not fully adequate for its pubposes. An enlargement is likely to be required in the mnear future. It is opportune therefore that this matter of a possible change to an- other local site be considered now with the Government preparing to move toracquire all of the land within which the headquarters build- ing stands. District business inter- ests should take up the matter at once and do what is possible to in- sure the continued presence of this important business establishment at the Capital. A World Economic Conference. ‘The United States Government is to be invited to send delegates to an in- ternational economic conference to be held next May, according to a reso- lution adopted yesterday at Geneva by the Council of the League of Na- tions. At the same session Austen Chamberlain, the British foreign min- ister, and other leaders advised ;| against an early conference for the limitationeof armaments. In their opinion, it would not be advisable to hold an arms conference before 1928. To the American mind, this is some- thing like putting the cart before the horse. It would seem that economic understandings could be more easily negotiated if political understandings were first arrived at, and political un- derstandings lessening the menace of war, of course, are a necessary part of agreements for the limitation of armaments. It would seem also that a reduction in the financial burdens of armaments is 80 necessary a part of any -program for the economic re- habilitation of Europe that an eco- nomic conference which did not welgh the possibilities of relief through arms limitation would be like “Hamlet” without the prince. But if that is the way Europe wants to go about the task of setting its house in order, it is Europe’s own affair, and American criticism prob- ably is not in order. The thing of real interest on this side of the At- lantic is the invitation to the United States to send delegates to next year's economic conference. The American Government and people will want some pretty explicit information as to the program of the conference before they will be intrigued by the idea of becoming a member of it. They will want to know, for instance, if repara- tions and intergovernmental debts are to be on the agenda, with proposals for all-around cancellation, and Uncle Sam in the role of Uncle Shylock if he declines to be the goat. Bhey will want to know also if the conference intends to take up the internatjonal banking idea of lowering tariff bar- riers, with an ambition to open up the rich American market to Euro- pean exploitation. It may be, of course, that the in- vitation to the United States is wholly altruistic with no thought other than what is for America’s good, but the disposition in this country is very likely to be to wait a bit and see how the game is framing up. The Coming Readjustment. In the latest proposed allocation of space within the Mall-Avenue triangle to the immediately projected struc- tures it has been proposed to place the Hall of Archives on the Pennsyl- vania avenue front rather than on the Mall front, which was first contem- plated. It is to be hoped that this will be reconsidered and that in the final layout of the space a departmental bullding will be placed on the Avenue frontage. The Hall of Archives will be both a storage and a research building. It will house the non-current Govern- ment records and documents of his- toric importance in a manner that will make them available for consultation. Provisions will be made for its use by students and writers, as well as by the Government itself. It will be a veritable museum. It will not draw a large crowd of people and its easy accessibility is not so important a factor as in the case of a bureau or department building housing a large personnel. It should be the policy of the Public Buildings Commission in using the great triangle to place on the Fif- teenth street and Pennsylvania avenue sites those structures that are the most active. There are great num- bers of people in Washington who have daily business with the Govern- ment departments, who seek offices close to the public bureaus with which they are constantly in contact. It is desirable therefore that these working Government “‘shops” may be so placed as to afford a maximum of conven- lence to the public. ‘Washington will undergo a consid- erable readjustment when the new structures are located as now pro- posed within the Mall-Avenue tri- angle. This concentration of the pub- lic bureaus and departments will somewhat dislocate existing condi- tions and it is highly desirable that the specific locations should be deter- mined as early as practicable to give the longest time possible for the changes that are inevitable, gt The Scrivener mystery might be made almost as interesting as the ‘Hall-Mills case. Sincere effort is being made to solve it. At the same time it is sanely recognized that a crime complication is no municipal asset. ——————— Blowing the Whistle. An amusing case in the New York Traffic Court the other day serves to draw attention to the paucity of sound emitting from traffic officers’ whistles, especially from those officers who refuse to use the proper amount of lung power or whose whistles are in need of repair. A chauffeur was arrested for failing to obey the signal of a crossing policeman. Appearing in court he gave his version of the incident in the following language: ‘Your honor, I sure would have ‘stopped if T had heard the whistle, but I thought the ‘peep, peep’ as I passed the corner was a bird in a tree.” The judge, confident that this was only another novel excuse, but with a desire to be fair to the de- fendant, ordered the officer to blow THE his whistle. A faint “peep” was all that was heard, and sentence was sus- pended. ‘There have been many occasions in Washington when an officer’s “peep,” which probably sounded like the Na- tional Capital’s particular bird species, has gone unheeded by the motorist. ‘Whether or not new and stronger and better whistles should be furnished to all traffic policemen is a moot ques- tion, but there would seem to be no doubt that the description given of the New York whistle would fit some of the local officers’ “sirens.” The least that can be done, in view of the manifold noises of present-day traffic, is for every policeman to take an extra big lungful of air before he blows and to be sure that his whistle is in such repair that it will give out all the sound and authority that it was designed to do. e Million-Dollar Donovan. “‘Million-dollar-and-quit Donovan,” the Boston, Mass., man who, when he was a boy of eleven, vowed that when he made a million dollars he would retire from business to enjoy himself, and who last year at the age of forty-five announced that his million was accumulated, has just died. On January 1, 1826, Joseph D. Donovan sold his business and told his friends and associates that he was going to devote the remainder of his life to play. Yesterday, less than a year later, he passed away in & hospital. His untimely death accentuates the widely held bellef that men who have been active in business for the greater part of their lives are prone to lose their grip when they retire and are easy prey for whatever disease at- tacks them. In Joseph D. Donovan's case this would seem to be especially true. He was a man of the greatest determination and persistence; he had to be or he could never have carried out his announced purpose of retiring when he had procured his miilion dollars. Any man who makes, by his own efforts, such a large sum of money by the time he is forty-five is not only endowed with exceptional quali- ties, but must likewise possess a high degree of enterprise. Yet less than a year after he retired ‘rom the hot competition of the business world he was stricken with a fatal illness. This same thing has happened many times. A fortune is made and the maker retires. Soon.after, with no business worrfes and no necessity to be up and about, sickness over- takes him. The inevitable conclusion is that when a man has made busi- ness his life's work he should still retain interest in it until his life span is finished. ———————— Rumor that the price of gas will go down several cents will cheer motor- ists to a degree that will almost per- suade them to suspect that there is, after all, a Santa Claus. ————— In his message to Congress Presi- dent Coolidge referred candidly to the large amount of “unfinished business" which has frequently been the subject of comment. e A tactful creditor can enable a debtor to pay without loss of self-respect. The self-respect is the consideration of highest value, among individuals or nations. Bootleggers bring Christmas cheer, possibly to the ultimate consumer and perhaps to the thrifty undertaker, A small boy used to ask for a sled and a pair of skates. Now he requests a ticket to Florida. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. The Practical Spirit. New customs must assert themselves ‘When Winter snows draw near us, ‘We do not talk of gnomes and elves, The bargains are what cheer us. The faith in Santa Claus must end, And yet we are not surly; ‘We once said, “Merry Christmas, Friend,” But now we say, “Shop Early!” Laconic. ““What are you going to say onthese important questions that have arisen?” “I'll say ‘Present’ when the roll is called,” answered Senator Sorghum, “and ‘Aye’ when my party requires my vote.” The Superseded Injun. The old cigar store used to show An Injun at the door, That Injun vanished long ago, Alas, he is no more! ‘The figure of old Santa queer Once more bids us behave, ‘We hope he will not disappear Like that old Injun Brave. Jud Tunkins says a man who is laughed at is likely to get rich if he can keep people laughing long enough. Persuasions. “Why pay rent instead of owning your home”” “Don’t ask me,” rejoined Mr. Plods- by. “The landlord for an apartment house was a better salesman than the suburban realtor.” Art and Necessity. “I cannot sing the old songs,” ‘Wailed the soprano sadm “The recent and well sold songs Are popular, though bad. “I cannot sing the old songs, ‘With sentiment replete; I Charleston to the bold songs— Good Lord! I've got to eat!” “An_astronomer,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “looks into the skies and discovers beautiful things so distant that they must be measured by light years. The joy of mathematics is rudely interrupted when he is noti- fied that his bank account is four dol- lars overdrawn. Footwear. “How shall we get rid of bootleg Ii- quor?” “You can't do it,” said Uncle Bill Bottletop, “‘until you'get rid of gum- shoe politics.” “Children,” said Uncle Eben, “ought to obey deir parents, but some of ‘em ain't g'ineter do so unless de parents quit tryin’ to act frivolous.™ EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. “A sleeping child gives me the im- pression of a traveler in a very far country.”—Emerson’s Journal for Sep- tember 16, 1840. There is something in the sight of a person asleep that affects-the average person so. Circumstances may alter the case, but, as a general thing, there is a look to a sleeping face that softens the human mind and conduces to the kindest feelings of humanity. Surely the human race needs, at this time {n its history almost as much as at any other, all that it can get of kindness, decency, gentleness and a few other qualities which men in everyday social intercourse have agreed to treat in a conspiracy of si- lence. These ideals have been so long re- garded as property of the pulpit, mere- 1y, that few there be, in everyday con- versation, who dare to consider them, especially if they be masculine, for snr of being regarded as mollycod- es. Yet there is nothing effeminate about the ministry (although, no doubt, there are some misguided persons who do think it so), and the toplcs consid- ered by the ministers of Jesus Christ may well be brought into general con- versation. The high ideals of human conduct held forth to us on Sundays and in writings of various kinds could be used as tabletalk topics with the greatest advantage, and would really run less chance of disrespect than does a broadcast church service. * ok ok % It will remain a question with many whether a gentleman sitting in his home on a Sunday morning, surround- ed by the ordinary distractions of his household, is in a fit mood to listen to divine services in a becoming manner. There is something about putting on one’s best clothes and getting out into the fresh air that puts an American, with his church-going traditions, into a proper frame of mind for humble consideration of his relation to God. It is to be feared that too many ac- cept a radio broadcast of a church service as simply an entertaipment “feature,” on a par with a jazz band or the song-and-dance boys who en- tertain at a different time of day. The fact that every minister who broadcasts receives letters from per- sons praising the work and thanking him for the inspiration received mere- ly shows that many do, undoubtedly, accept the services in the proper spirit. For every one who so writes perhaps there are hundreds, and even thou- sands, who thoughtlessly “turn on" the broadcast service and listen to it mechanically, chatting at the same time with other members of the house- held, making comments, perhaps caus- tic, on the “‘ecclesiastical tone” of the preacher, and in other ways acting in- :onsistently with holy worship. It must be a question, let it be reiterated, whether an invention whose main pur- pose seems to be the entertainment of a nation can be successfully used to preach the gospel of Christ and Him crucified with becoming dignity. * k% ok Let the kindliness which suffuses the minister’s voice, and which is ex- emplified in the general conduct of church people on a Sunday, well forth in the everyday conversation of the people. As it is, only a few situations gen- erally call for this wholesome consid- eration of the better sentiments in or- dinary daily life, and one of these is the spectacle of a sleeping child. Celia Thaxter expressed it well when she wrote: “Dear little head, that lies in calm content ‘Within the gracious hollow that God made In every human shoulder, where He meant Some tired head for comfort should be laid.” A traveler in a far country—yes! Then the trammels of every day are laid aside, and for a lef moment the onlooker is allowed "to look into the mystery of life. Many a thoughtless man has been turned to silent contemplation of life, love and gentleness by the sight of a sleeping baby, and many another moved to emotions which he did not know he possessed by the helplessness of his little boy sleeping by his side. Travelers in a far country, all these little ones, sleeping in their little beds the world over, some in luxury, some in misery, some sur- rounded by love, others by ignorance and vice, twins of evil. Sleep erases from the human coun- tenance, even from the fresh faces of children, the cares of the restless human mind, and, unless replaced by the strange emotions of the even more restless subconscious mind, there results a certain placidness, if one may so call it, hardly ever to be found on a wide-awake face. Although sleep may be regarded as a twin of death, there is really little chance of mistaking the two states, since the first is a loss of conscious- ness much less complete than the second. The aspects of life, the very act of breathing, the flush of normally coursing blood, even though slowed down, makes the sleeping face dif- ferent. * ok ok ok Swinburne, in one of his poems, sets forth the softening effect of the sight of a sleeping woman upon the behold- er, granted that the same beholder had the instincts of a gentleman. This is the normal effect of the sight of a sleeper upon a right-thinking be- holder. This appeal, made primarily by helplessness, touches the heart, and stirs in all but the most degen- erate the finest emotions of the human soul. Shakespeare’s poem about Tarquin and Lucrece has always seemed a very poor sort of thing, despite the praise given it, principally because it so violated this principle of human conduct. Men, women and children are, in- deed, travelers in a far country, and it would seem that every one recog- nizes this instantly when he looks at one asleep. In the hurly-burly of the day it is not so easy to see. The feeling resembles somewhat that de- scribed by Dickens in one of his stories, which beset a crowd when a drowning man was being brought back to consciousness. He was a worthless sort of man, or even worse, but when unconscious he made an appeal which he never could when in possession of his evil conscious mind. In a state something resembling that of sleep, men saw him only as a human being, a life struggling to retain life, and life is always precious to human beings. When he was finally put on his feet, however, this feeling instantly vanished, and the crowd said, in effect, “Aw, shucks!” or _something along that order. This is the effect the sight of a sleeper has upon the average human being. He sees in such a one, not so much a particular human being as a life. The sensitive will view sleep- ing animals in much the same way. They. too, are mysteries of life, most vividly realized as so when fast asleep, a mystery within a mystery, a dream within a dream. Nicaragua Regains Focus Of Interest for Americans American interest in the troubles of Nicaragua 1s stirred again by the appeal of President Diaz's govern- ment for support against a revolution alleged to be fostered by Mexico. In some quarters it is taken for granted that the United States must do what- ever may be necessary to maintain quiet in the little country near the Panama Canal, but much of the news- paper comment reflects a feeling that Central Americans should be per- mitted to settle their domestic prob- lems without interference. “Judged from the standpoint of pure justice,” according to the Pitts- burgh Sun, “we have been guilty of questionable practices in our Nicaraguan policy. But this can be sald in defense of the United States course: On the withdrawal of our Marines last year, Nicaragua was given a chance to work out her own salvation without interference. She made a horrible mess of it. Perhaps it is not right for us to pretend that we have not meddled in Nicaraguan affairs; perhaps it is hypocritical to pretend that President Diaz is the free choice of the legitimate repre- sentatives of the Nicaraguan people. But, whether or not we have been wrong in our manner of going about it, it cannot be denied that American control will bring that country peace and prosperity, which are not likely to be obtained in any,other way.” “Nicaragua is separated from Panama and the Canal Zone only by Costa Rica,” the New York Sun points out. “It is of the highest importance to the commercial world that the Panama Canal shall be safeguarded and that its safety shall not be menaced. For 13 years United States Marines were stationed at Blueflelds and maintained peace in the region The war vessels that carried them away in August, 1925, were scarcely out of sight when the present revolu- tion broke out; it has since been most destructive of life and property. That aid came to the revolutionists from Mexico may be shown from docu- mentary evidence and seizures of arms and munitiors, but that this assistance was furnished through con- nivance of the Mexican government is difficult to establish. The founda- tion for the implication that bolshevist propagandists are responsible for the situation appeeri r:ther vague.” “This country will do what it can to maintain peace and to prevent bolshevism,” says the Albany Eve- ning News, “but necessarily it must act with much delicacy. It must be sure that Mexico, as a government, is in connivance with movements in Nicaragua. That is a question that must be determined. However, Mexico should keep out of Nicaragua and it should keep out bolshevism. That is its own Interest.” The Utica Observer- Dispatch cites the fact that ‘“from 1912 to 1925, by the presence of Ameri- can troops in the capital, order was maintained, but it was maintained by keeping in office a government which was clearly in minority with the Nica- raguan people. There certainly ought not to be hasty decision to embark upon_such a policy again,” declares the Observer-Dispatch. ““There is nothing new about revo- lutions in Latin America,” declares the Duluth Herald. ‘“We are used to them and they go on indefinitely with- out getting much notice from us. Often these revolutions are promoted and supported from other countries, too; but that doesn’t bother us much, be- cause we are used to that also. We have found it pretty healthy to keep our hands off the domestic affairs of other countries in this hemisphere. ‘We should not cl that pallcx ex- cept for a_very reason, and the fact that Nicaragu: xlieu between this country and the Panama Canal, which Wwe approach by water and not by land, does not appear to be that very Bood reason.” The Decatur Review adds the opinion that, “whatever hap- pens, the United States should pro- ceed with caution”; that “the saving of the presidential chair for Diaz in itself could hardly be called our busi- ness, but if American lives and prop- erty are placed in jeopardy, then Uncle Sam should take a hand immedi- ately.” “‘Washington cannot mit bolshevism to get Central America,” asserts the Ann Arbor Times-News, “and it spems that bolshevism is playing a more or less important role in the present difficul- ties. The situation is such that the use of force may become necessary, regardless of consequences, in order to prevent even more serious conse- quences which might come out of a policy of withholding action.” * ok ok ok Charging that Calles of Mexico has been guilty of the “disregard of all elements of decency in international relations,” the Norfolk Ledger-Dis- patch remarks: “That Mexico is financing a bolshevik revolution in Nicaragua is serious, for the interpo- sition of another enemy government between the Rio Grande and the Canal would hold potential dangers, not only for the safety of the great waterway, but also the neighboring republics.” The Boston Transcript states that “it has been noted with some disquiet in the United States that the new Soviet ambassador to Mexico is Alexandra Kollantay, noted all over the world as a bolshevist propagandist; and in this connection it will be recalled that Moscow has re- garded Mexico as supplying the most fertile soil on this continent for the propagation of’the doctrine of world revolution.” In opposition to any form of inter- vention, the Fresno Bee declares that “the point is what these Latin Ameri- can nations do is none of our busi- ness, so long as they do not attack us or endanger the lives and property of Americans legally within their bor- ders. It is not the mission of the United States to censor the political thought of the world.” The Durham Sun condemns the attitude of the United States as ‘“high-handed im- perialism,” and argues, “When a na- tion, simply because it is stronger, as- sumes arbitrary and autocratic pow- ers, while denying them to others, over whom she has no legal or moral control, it violates every principle upon which the United States of America was founded.” Reviewing the entire sitvation, the Miami Daily News holds that “such anti-Americanism as exists in Central America is confined almost entirely to professional politicians, in and out of office. Politicians out of office in Cen- tral America are potential revolution- ists, and cannot forgive the United States for refusing to recognize gov- :lrnmenu emanating from revolu- ons.” afford to per- a foothold in Meet at the Crossings. From the Cincinnati Enquirer. More people are killed at grade cross- ings on the Sabbath than are killed in churches. Life Versus the Car. From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A Russian has invented a device to prolong life artificlally. Probably a basket in place of a fender for the gront end of auwmwbu,-. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1926. It is a trite saying that the French impressionists threw open the shut- ters of art and let in the light, but, like other trite sayings, it is absolute- ly true. Chief among those who ren- dered this inestimable service to us and to succeeding generations was Claude Monet, the announcement of whose death in France has lately reached us. On a visit to New York in the early nineties—much longer ago than is believable considering the vividness of the memory—the writer first saw an exhibition of paintings by Monet. Probably it was at Durand Ruel's Gal- leries, for it was Durand Ruel who as- sumed, and has continuously assumed, the role of fairy godfather or guardian ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. Was last Summer’s apple croj larger than usual?’—G. A. n v (A. The crop was estimated at 234,- 252,000 bushels. While in but a few States the crop was very heavy, pro- duction was above the average in nearly all sections and the crop was the largest in a dozen years. Q. Does a copper -wire made of a number of small strands have a greater or smaller electrical carrying capacity than a solid wire?—J. A. N. A. The Bureau of Standards says that a stranded wirg has less carrying capacily than a solid wire of the rame materi i=4g:ving ths same circumfer- ence. A s'randed wire offers more re- sistance ver foot than does a solid angel to this school of painters. It|wire haviug the same circumference. was the writer’s introduction to blue haystacks and purple cows, and it was something of a shock. Perhaps for this reason it became a memory of continuing vividness. * ok k¥ ‘What was it all about? Our eyes were not accustomed to so much light. The landscape paintings with which we grew up and in which we found beauty and inspiration were of the Barbizon and our own Hudson River schools; we were not accustomed to seeing color in shadow; we associated the spec- trum with science, not with art. The blue haystack and the purple cow be- came subjects of ridicule, a godsend to the wits and the jocular rhymesters. But the blue haystack and the purple cow were real missionaries; they not only had come to stay, but they did us a great service opening our eyes to a beauty about us which heretofore was practically unseen. * ok kK ‘What did it all mean? To understand that, we must examine briefly the theory which the French impression- ists evolved. In his excellent little book “The French Impressionists,” Camille Mau clair gives us to understand that Mo- net and Manet, leaders of the impres- sionist movement, worked for a long time without ever thinking that theo- ries would be built upon their paint- ings; in other words, that they did not set themselves up as reformers; they did not say to themselves, “We will do something that has not been done be- fore—something original.” They hap- pened across an old truth and adapted it to new needs. Thus almost invari- ably is progress made. Monet's dis- covery was “that the coloring of ob- jects is a pure {llusion, the only crea- tive source of color being sunlight, which envelaps all things and reflects them according to the hours with in- finite modifications. If light disappears, forms and colors likewise vanish. Col- or is therefore the procreatrix of de- sign.” All color being simply the irra- diation of light, it follows that all col- or is composed of the same elements as sunlight, namely, the seven tones of the spectrum. Having made this dis. covery, these clever painters, chief among them Monet, proceeded to paint with pure color in little comma-shaped dashes so that, seen at a distance, they would recompose as light and give the illusion of vibration. * kK ok “Claude Monet,” claims Camille Mauclair, “was the artistic descend- ant of Claude Lorrain, Turner and Monticelll.” By unconsciously join- ing hands with the scientists he opened a new road to landscape painting, deducing scientific state- ments from a study of the laws of light. His first luminous studies date back, we are told, to 1885, when he began painting series of pictures showing the same subject under va- Tying effects of light. He is sald to have arisen before sunrise and to have gone out into the open with some 20 or more canvases, which he painted in quick succession, hour by hour. He did several su series— “‘Hay-ricks,” ‘Cliffs of 'Coins de “Water-lilies"” and finally the “Thames” series. He would begin with the picture as the sun rose and paint the same subject in its differing light each hour, or in less time, during the entire day. If he painted thus a haystack 20 times over he would have 20 entirely differ- ent pictures which, exhibited collec- tively, would show the progress of light from sun-up to sun-down. To see such a series is to have one's eyes opened to the significance of the variations of color and form ac- cording to the quality and quantity of the light in which they are bathed. * ok k% Monet was, as many of his early critics declared, a madman, but his madness was an enthusiasm for beauty in nature, a worship of light. ‘When he began exhibiting he was de- rided, but he was not deterred. Today almost every great gallery in the world owns and proudly displays an ex- ample of his work. Not only that, but lesser painters have learned from him and have followed joyously in his footsteps. In France there are Pis- sarro and Sisley and a host of others. In this country doubtless his chief disciple has been Childe Hassam, but who shall say that Twachtmann and Lawson and many others, including, in fact, men who no longer use his prismatic method—Redfield, Schofleld, Gardner Symons—have not profited by his discoveries? Compare the paintings of the leading representa- tives of our own present-day land- scape school with the works of those who came before the advent of the blue haystack and the purple cow and it will be directly evident to what great extent we are indebted to Claude Monet. * ok ok % It is interesting to know that the very name “Impressionism” was de- rived from the title which Claude Monet gave to one of his paintings— “Impression.” It was used originally by kis opponents in derision, but it has come to signify a new vision. Elie Faure, as translated by Wal- ter Pach, traces the development of impressionism as follows: “Manet re- veals to Pissarro the secret of paint- ing frankly and without shadows. Pissarro, in turn, carries Manet with him to the flelds and shows him by his example, and especlally by that of the virtuoso of the group, Claude Monet, that the open air suppresses not only modeling but the very con- tour of the forms and substitutes for local tone an infinite interchange. of dancing reflections, tangled and indi- visible, wherein the form hesitates and is submerged in the tide of the universe. Manet, following his new friends, will, after that, paint but little save in the open air. There shall be no more studies combined in the studio, whose attenuated and mournful light stifles the vibrations of open space, changes the color rela- tions, renders pronounced the fixity of forms to the detriment of their moving surfaces and condemns the eye to return, little by little, ta its old habits of progressive gradations from the too artificial light to the too gloomy darkness.” * ok kK “Claude Monet,” Faure declares, “is intoxicated by the light and at a dis- tance of two centuries replies, through his lyricism under the excitement of free expanses, to the lyricism of Claude Lorrain inclosed in the rigor- ous architecture of the will and of the reason. He perceives the sun before all the others, even when it has not yet risen and when the sky is cov- ered. * * * He sees a hundred thou- sand colored atoms which other men see in a block. He distinguishes the ‘Winter sun from the Summer sun and the sun of Springtime from the sun of Autumn. The sun at dawn and the sun at twilight are not the same sun as that which shone during Q. What bird tober bird"?—W. P. A. In the West Indies the name is applied te the bobolink. Q. How far is a league?—M. T. W. A. Its length varies in different countries. The Roman league was 1.376 modern English miles, while the league brought to England by the Normans was equal to 2.9 modern English miles. The metric league is 4 kilometers. At present the league IstvmWn as the “Oc- 2:07% on August 17, 1892. On A 31 she made the mile in 2:06% ll‘l"u' September 28 in 2:04. Q. What determines the hardness of the lead in pencils?—H. H. C. A. The amount of clay used. A special kind mined in Germany Iis used. For the soft lead little clay is used, while for the hard pencil the proportion is greater. Q. How wide is the Ohio River at Louisville, Ky.>—F. G. C. A. The width of the Ohlo River in the vicinity of Loutsville varies. Just above the city it has a width of 2,000 feet; at the city, 8,200 feet; just be low the city, 1,500 feet. FQV Do oysters contain vitamins?— 'A. Oysters are rich in vitamins A and B Q. How can a rubber coat be cleaned?—C. M. A. Rubberized garments such as raincoats must be wet-cleaned, using cold water. Some soda and ammonia should be added to the water or soap bark used. After rinsing the gar- ments should be allowed to dry in a cool place, never in a hot, dry room. is a nautical measure equal to the twentieth part of a degree—that is, 8 geographical miles, or 3.657 statute miles. Q. Wil you tell something about truffles? Are they grown in this country?—U. P. B. A. Truilies are subterraneous fun- gl, and in Europe, especially in France, are collected quite extensive- ly for food. While & few varieties of truffles or related forms are found growing wild in this country, their cultivation is not a commercial prop ositions It is recognized that (ruffles grow especially in association with certain oaks, and some years ago the Department of Agriculture imported and distributed two or three species of these oaks, but the industry has never really been developed in this country. Abroad, in regions where truffles are abundant, they are col- lected by aid of a dog or pig, or some animal having a keen sense of smell. Truffle hunting is an important busi- ness and requires considerable experi- ence and knowledge of forests. Q. What horse won the first mile race hitched to a bicycle sulky? —R. "A. Nancy Hanks, the famous trot- ter, was driven to a bicycle sulky in 1892 and lowered the mile record to Q. Why does slamming the oven door make a cake fall?—A. L. A. If an oven door is slammed when a delicately structured cake is baking, the tiny air cells are broken and the cake falls. Q. Which gives more heat, a paint- ed radiator or a bronzed one?— A. The use of bronze or aluminum paint reduces the amount of heat emitted by a radiator surface by about 20 per cent. Any good interfor paint or enamel gives better results. Ben. Robert E. Lee said, "The thorough education of people is the most efficacious means of promoting the prosperity of the Nation.” These words of the distinguished Southern general are mone the less true mou than when he spoke them. Our Washington Information Bureow {s one of the greatest agencies for the distribution of free information and educational data in the world. Its services are free to readers of this paper. All you need to do is to send in your query, together with 3 cents in stamps for return postage. Ad- dress The Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. BACKGROUND OF EVENTS BY PAUL V. COLLINS. The crisis of the Balkans again looms. An Albanian of note, Hving in Washington, but in daily touch with offical developments in the Bal- Kkans, views the sudden resignation of the Jugoslavian cabinet, although it is but a gesture of protest against Italy, as a most serlous lndlcau!on. He points to the formidable concentra- flonpuf French forces upon the Italian frontier as significant of impending war. The effort to construe the French concentration as merely a police defense against irresponsible raiders over the Italian border, he claims, is inadequate as an explana- tion, since the French are reported as bringing up heavy artillery, such as is not used in minor defenses, where tear gas, rifles and ‘machine guns would be the usual weapons. Italy is charged with being the dis- turbing element, bent on plunging Europe into another war, in order to expand her territory and seize full control of the Adriatic Sea, convert- ing it into an Italian lake. She looks with covetous eyes upon Albania, just across the sea, as the eastern D“OSI 0'(' the portal, of which her_ own heel’ is the western post. Italy nearly plunged the peace negotiations of Versailles into chaos in her demand for Fiume, and has never rested in her Machiavelllan efforts to gain con- trol over Albania. Now she has achieved her protectorate. What will Jugoslavia and France do about it? * ok kTR “What does it all mean?"” asked the Albanian, above mentioned. “It means that Italy has blackmailed my coun- try, and gained her end in a protec- torate, giving .her the right to take over military control whenever she sees fit to do so. She engineered the so-called revolt against the Albanian government three weeks ago, when a group of 100 exiled Albanians—all of- ficers—organized the movement in Zara, an Itallian city. From Zara the officers invaded Albania, expecting an uprising to give them supporters, but the government put down the revolt, with a loss of only 10 or 12 loyal Al- banians. The leader of that revolt escaped—he was a Catholic priest. If he had been captured, he would have been shot immediately. All the priests, whether Roman Catholic, Moslem or Orthodox, are corrupt. The people are misled by the priests, who are after power and bribes. “Within one week after that un- successful revolt, comes the treaty farced upon Albania by Italy. That c%nnrms my statement that the re- volt, coming out of the Italian city Zara, was of Itallan encouragemen and financial support. Here are th: provisions of the blackmailing treaty, not Yet ratified by either Italy or Al bania, but look at the naval demon stration that Italy is making along the coast of Albania while the treaty is under consideration by our Parlia- ment. Here it is: ““‘Article 1. Italy and Albania recog- nize and accept in principle that any action directed against the political, Jjuridical and territorial status quo of Albania is contrary to their reciprocal political interests. “‘Article 2. In order to safeguard the interests above mentioned, the high contracting parties herewith take upon themselves the obligation to ex- tend each to the other mutual sup- port and cordial collaboration. ** ‘They undertake at the same time, not to conclude with other powers any political or military agreement detrimental to the interests of the other high contracting party or detri- mental to the interests which are com- prised in this pact. “*Article 3. The high contracting parties accept the obligation to sub- mit to a friendly procedure or to arbi- tr&!lon the settlement of those ques- tions which they are unable to settle the 10 or 15 hours elapsed between its rising and fits setting. * * * Here (in his pictures) are a hundred images of the same water, a hundred images of the same trees, and they are like the laugh, and the smile, and the suf- fering, and the hope, and the dis- quietude and the terror on the same human face, according to whether full daylight or broad shadow reigns, ac- cording to all the gradations which separate broad shadow from full day- light.” Elle Faure believes that Claude Monet saw the Japanese prints which influenced so potently Ingres, Manet, ‘Whistler and others and was moved by them. “But whereas Hiroshige or Hokusai collects into a single image a hundred thousand impressions, scat- tered over his days from one end to the other, Claude Monet, in the im- pression of a second, gives a hundred thousand possible images of the sea- son and of the hour when that second occurred. And the Oriental conven- tion and the Occidental analysis arrive at the same resmit.” by means of the customary procedure of diplomacy. “‘The detalls of this peaceful E cedure will be determined and d down in a special convention which is to be concluded in the shortest pos- sible time by the high contracting parties. ““‘Article 4. This pact is to remain in force for five years and may be denounced or renewed one year be- fore the date of expiration. “‘Article 6. This pact, after due ratification, is to be registered with the League of Nations. Ratifications are to be exchanged at Rome." “Made at Tirana, November 27, 1926." The crux of the pact is in the sec- ond clause of article 2, binding Al- bania not to make any other political or military pact with any other na- tion. It is construed that under the general terms of the pact Italy will hold the right to invade Albania with armed forces at any time when she construes that Albanian independence under the Italian protectorate is Jeopardized. No secret clauses exist, for the treaty itself is sufficient. * k% X ‘When the Turks invaded Europe in the fifteenth century the mouglflln tribes of Albania successfully resisted them for 24 years under the leadership of their hero, Scanderbeg, but after Scanderbeg’s death in 1474 Turkey finally conquered. While Turkey was fighting the Balkan War in 1912 Ismael Kemal proclaimed Albanian independence and set up a govern- ment at Valona. The following year a rival government was set up by Essad Pasha at Durazzo. Just before the outbreak of the World War the two -rivals were persuaded to with- draw by a European international commission of control and Prince William of Wied was proclaimed King, but upon the outbreak of the World War he withdrew to fight in the German army. Thereupon Essad Pasha usurped the throne again. In 1920, the Albanians revolted against Essad and set up a republic, organized for resistance to the oc- cupying Itallan army. There was severe controversy in the settlement of the question of independence of both Albania and Fiume—the latter Just north of Albania. President Wil- son contended for their independen: under the protectorate of the League of Nations. D'Annunzio, the Italian ultra-nationalist, captured Fiume and defled even the organized government of his own Italy to displace his posses- slon on behalf of Italy. He was finally ousted by the Italian regular army, but Flume was given to Italy by the peace settlement, and its territory ex- tended northward until it touched Italian territory. Fiume and Albania are bounded on the east by Jugo- slavia. Italy has not rested content with Albanian independence; during the peace negotiations of 1919, it was pro- posed, and strongly supported, that Italy might be given a mandate over nearly all of Albania if she would modify her demand for actual annexa- tion of Fiume. Greece was to be given Valona and some southern parts of Albania, while Italy would take over the rest, but the Albanians uttered such vigorous protests and strong de- mands for autonomy that, when President Wilson intervened, that plan was dropped. * * % The present President of the Con- stituent Assembly, Ahmed Bey Zogu, was elected in January, 1925, and he immediately introduced a new consti- tution, adopted in March, 1925. The new government consists of a ( Senate of 18 members, 6 of whom are appointed by the President, and Chamber of 60 elected members. The President retains the veto without ap- peal, and if the Parliament fails to give the cabinet a vote of confidence the President may dissolve Parliament and call for a new election. ‘The Albanian budget has never balanced under independence, so money has been borrowed from Italy, and Italians own the Albanian Na- tional Bank. Yet the government has always shown a leaning toward Jugo- slavia, and popular sympathy extends toward Jugoslavia, rather than toward the feared Italians. ‘The population of less than a mil- llon consists of Catholics, 15 per cent; Orthodox, 25 per cent, and Moslem, 60 per cent. More than 75 per cent are illiterate, but all are sturdy mountaineers and hard fighters, with the feud-tendency of the less advanced races. It is outlined that in case of hos- tilities the line-up will involve, on one side, Italy, Greece and Bulgaria, and on the other, Albania, Jugoslavia and France. In the light of such a line-up, the charge that last month's treaty giving Italy a protectorate over Albania was forced upon a weak and helpless nation is alleged, and the response from France and Jugoslavia mg be watched. « bt. 1926. by Paul V. Colline