Evening Star Newspaper, December 15, 1926, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. O, WEDNESDAY, —_——— THE ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. MWEDNESDAY...December 15, 1926 THEODORE W. NOYES. . . . Editor fThe Evening Star Newspaper Company Business : 11th St. and Penn: ania Ave. New York Office: 110 East 42nd St icago Office: Tower Building. Suropean Office; 14 Hegent St.. Loidon. { England. The Evenine Star. with the Sunday morn. e aditiom. fa delivered by carriers within £he cite w7 60 cents’ per mont ¢ only. 85 cenis Par monthi: Sundaye only. 20 cents BeS ponth, Orders may be sent by ‘mail or isphone Main 5000. Coliection is made by ®arrier st end of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. aily and Sund; . 3yr.S0.00:1mo. 75 586001 1 mo. 500 El:lfllfl'l;mél'ny. L1 3500: 1 mo: 250 All Other States and Canada. 12.00:1 mo., 1’.00. €8.00: 1 mo. T $4.00: 1 mo. Member of the Assaciated Press. The Assortated Press 1y exclusively entitled €0 the “ise for republication of all news dis- atches credited to It or not otherwise cred in this paper and also the local news publishad herein. Al rights of publication ©f #pecial dlsputches hiereln are also reserved -_— A Billion-Dollar Dsy. This is a busy day at the Treasury ©f the United States, one of the busiest of the year, and yet although transactions totaling about a billion dollars are in progress there is no sensation, there is no outward dis- turbance—there is, indeed, no inner agitation. A billion-dollar business is belng carried on just as calmly as 18 the hundred-dollar day's work of & small shop. For one item, the Treasury is re- deeming certificates of indebtedness amounting to about $453,001,000 that mature today. At the same time it 1s issuing something over $200,000,000 | of new certificates of indebtedness, | bearing interest at 3% per cent, the{ issue having been already heavily § oversubscribed. Interest aggregating , $77,000,000 on the First Liberty loan ; 3% per cent bonds, on the convertible 4 per cent bonds, on the convertible 43 per cent bonds und several other issues is also payable today. Then come payments by foreign govern- ments on their war loans reaching a total of about $95,000,000. Balancing the outgo items will be an income of about $400,000,000 in internal revenue taxes. This is a sample day, though heavy in detail. There have been numerous occasions on which the Treasury has been receiving and paying cash by the hundreds of millions since the ‘war, during the period of debt man- agement. This particular day has its special interest, however in view ©f the fact that it so nearly coincides with the decision of the House ways and means committee that the Treas- ury surplus should be used for debt reduction rather than tax reduction or rebate. ‘The story of finance, especially Gov- ernment finance, is not particularly thrilling. It is difficult to compre- hend it. Yet some day it will be pos- sible to tell in terms that will be vivid to all the narrative of how the United States Treasury attacked the enormous burden of debt created by the war. By frequent new issues of short-term notes at ow rates of inter- st the wuocessive deb installments have bear met without the slightest disturbance of the money market. Immense sums in interest have been saved by these refinancing processes. Bvery one of these new issues has been oversubscribed. They have been sought eagerly by banks and individ- uals. Money, or the equivalent credit, has flowed back and forth between the Treasury and the banks in a stu- ‘Pendous volume, with a constant lowering of the Government’s indebt- edness. Back of all this success in the smooth administration of the war ob- ligations is the strong credit of the United States. And back of that credit is the success of the tax meas. ures that have been enacted! The people have pald their taxes fully and have kept the Treasury amply supplied with means to manage the debt. ——— ot e The death of the Emperor of Japan 1s surrounded with the mystery that has been preserved from time im- ‘memorijal about everything pertaining to the sacred ruler of Japan. The office Is regarded as too high to per- mit fts occupant to mingle in the pub- licity of politics, to the interference perhaps of the plans of the politicians who surround him. Pass the Triangle Bill! Placed on the Senate calendar with ® favorable report from the committee on public bulldings and grounds, the Smoot bill, authorizing the purchase by the Government of all the lands ‘within the Mall-Avenue triangle for bullding purposes, is in a position for early consideration and passage. A similas bill is before the House com- mittee and will doubtless receive sim- lar approval in that body and be placed in an equivalent position. It s therefore in order to look for action at this session on the measure, ‘which, without actually making appro- priations for the purpose, announces the Intention of the Government to se- cgre the lands not already owned by 1t which lle within the bounds that have been laid down to encompass the prospective building sites under the new program of Federal constructions. A long step will have been taken ‘when this measure is adopted. It will then be distinctly established as the policy of the Government to acquire this area, which has so long lain un- der the ban of prokpective proserip tlon. Tt will establish the axis of pub- Yo improvements in a manner to per- mit private enterprise to proceed in the iImprovements that have been held in sbeyance untll the Government pronounced its policy. It cannot be too often urged that immediate action is in the interest of everybody in this connection, the Gov- ernment for the sake of economy of purchase of lands that are inevitably necessary for construction purposes, the owner. of these lands who have suffered for years because of the in- 5 ¢ decision and delays 1 the formulat city closer than ever to the accom- plishment of the ideal of development. Postponement of the measure to the next session would mean the loss of valuable time and a certain increase in the cost to the Government. Al- thoukh the design to take over all these lands has been plainly stated by those in control of the detalls of the building program, it cannot be claimed that the Government has given notice of its purpose until it has formally enacted the pending bill. The other day in the Senate warning was sound- ed to the owners of these properties that they must not maneuver to effect an increase in the rates at which their lands will be taken. Unless the meas- ure is adopted by this present Con- gress thut warning cannot be consid- ered as of any force or effect. Every consideration, therefore, points to immediate action. There is no dispute on the merits of the plan. There is no question as to the economy of promptness. No obstacle lies in the way on the score of administrative op- position. Indeed, the President and the Secretary of the Treasury have expressed themselves as favorable. Passage of the bill, therefore, would seem to be one of the assured works of Congress at this session, short as it will be, e Loitering. Traffic officials of the District were busy yesterday explaining to Judge McMahon in the Police Court what agreement, if any, they had with taxi- cab companies relative to enforcement of the *loitering” law. The upshot of the case was that the defendant taxicab driver was fined $10 for park- g outside of a public hackstand, after the court had unsuccessfully at- rempted to jog the memory of the offi- clals anent the alleged agreement. Some of them remembered that a con- ference between the taxi Interests and the authorities had taken place, but could not remember just what had been the outcome; others could not even recall that there had been a meet- ing. At any event the court very prop- erly fined the driver for a direct viola- tion of the law, agreement or other- wise notwithstanding. The Star, for years, has urged strict enforcement of the loitering regula- tion, and, in view of the peculiar case Just concluded, it emphatically reiter- ates its stand. Loitering means not only parking on the city streets out- side of the regularly designated hack- stands, but cruising slowly around the streets in front of hotels and theaters and generally blocking traffic and mak- ing the task of control more difficult. ‘While taxicab chauffeurs are, as a rule, good drivers, they have not, in ‘Washington or anywhere else, com- piled an enviable record for courtesy on the streets toward the public. They likewise, because of this bullishness, do more than their share to cause nicked fenders and ruffled tempers. Every city unquestionably needs taxicabs for the transportation of the public. These cabs must be readily available and should be situated on properly designated stands. If Wash- ington s lacking in facilities for the taxi companies in the way of reserved space additional stands should imme- diately be apportioned; always with the realization, however, that the streets are in public ownership and that undue infringement on this own- ership by private organizations is im- proper. The streets are primarily for the public, and hackstands, popcorn stands, newspaper stands and all kinds of stands should be planned so as to result in the minimum curtail- ment of public use for private benefit. Parking space is now at a premium. At certain periods of the day and night it is almost impossible for the private owner to find room enough in which to squeeze his car. So this fact must be borne in mind when pub- lc space is allotted to private com- panies. An agreement not to molest taxi drivers for parking and loitering on the streets in violation of vital regula- tions for the conduct of traffic was not shown in the recent case, but the faulty memory of those called before the judge gives rise to a suspicion that perbaps there has not been the zealousness that there might have been in carrying out the terms of the loitering rule. ‘The motoring public, for this reason, ‘will hereafter watch closely the appli: cation of a regulation which is en- forced in every city in the country. ———————— Teapot Dome was right enough in its way if it had not been a misnomer, 0Oil can never be referred to as a fluld that soothes but not inebriates. The Missing Woman. ‘When a woman writer, author of popular mystery stories, disappeared in England nearly two weeks ago, leaving®no trace but en abandoned motor car, there was great hue and cry. The case suggested that she was trying out in actual personal experi- ence one of the situations that she had in the past developed in fiction. Scotland Yard took a hand in the search. Local police all over England hunted. Volunteers scoured their neighborhoods. The land was combed for a clue to the missing woman. In the absence of any known cause for her disappearance the matter became a profound problem. Photographs of the missing author were published in the English news. papers, and a day or so ago a cham- bermald in a Yorkshire health resort hotel saw one of them and found a re- semblance to a’' woman who had been there as a guest for some days. The matter was brought to the attention of the management, the husband of the author was notified and he went to the hotel, saw the woman and recog- nized her as his wife. She greeted him pleasantly, calling him by name, and they had a long talk, after which the husband announced that his wife had suffered from a complete lapse of memory. So the mystery is solved, officially. There has been no tragedy. and there is,” after all, no sensation about the case,. Merely a lapse of memory. That, at least, goes as the formal ex- of the matter. But who Perhaps the lady has, in fact, been spoofing the public and showing how easy it is to “disappear,” and by simply taking another name to live in a public place without recognition for days at a time. Here was a nation-wide hunt for a missing woman, with almost daily printing of her features, and it finally rested with a chambermaid to identify her, although the guest had been con- stantly mixing with the others in the | hotel, dancing with them, playing bil- liards and otherwise associating freely with them. If she was, in fact, trying out a theory she proved it Wretty thoroughly. If she was in truth a suf- ferer from loss of memory she demon- strated, unconsciously, how easy it is for identity to be lost, even in these days of wholesale publicity. Her story hi by ending,’ after all, and probably nobody is hap- pier over the outcome than the Scot- land Yard officials, to whom an un- solved case is a veritable tragedy. — R Good-By, Pi! There is a modest flower blooming in Beauvais, France, who announce that he can solve mathematical prob- lems which have baffled the world’s best brains for centuries and many of which have been deemed insolv- able. This amateur mathematiclan, whose name is Lepere, and who seems to be entirel offers to give a demonstration of his powers before a competent commission. Here are some of the acts which compose his repertoire. To begin with, he can square the circle, with the consequent disappearance of “pi,” that bugbear of schoiastic youth for nearly two millennia, during which the phrase “squaring the circle” has srown into a proverb Indicative of utter impossibility. He has solved the problem of the trisection of tri- angles, the multisection of a straight line, the circumference of a circle and an angle into equal parts; those of duplication, triplication and so on up to septuplication of the cube, and others so far beyond the average man’s powers even to state that not one person in a hundred will know whether the foregoing is transecribed correctly. Probably he will soon give the Einstein theory either a knock or a boost. All very well and fair enough and undoubtedly highly useful. But can he do this: Can he keep the stubs in his check book for, say, six months, so that at the end of that period his balance will correspond precisely to the figures given him by his bank? ———at—t “Beautiful snow” sentiment has all vanished, except as it relates to deco- tions on Christmas cards. There is no longer any joy in the music of sleigh bells, People simply sigh and bring out thelr skid chains. ———r—————— American ships may sail from Ship- ping Board control, but the Senate commerce committee has at least ar- ranged for a delay in the departure. —r——— Count Salm may have been a per- suasive suitor. By contrast he is an exacting bargainer when the honey- moon is over. ——————————————— Sclentists say that actual evolution is at an end. The real argument con- cerning it is, apparently, only begin- ning. Queen Marie’s home-coming was a sad one, with both diplomats and doc- tors awaiting her with great anxiety. ————————— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Undertaking Too Much. A fine philosopher I knew. On books he was intent. His worldly goods were very few, Yet on his way he went All cheerfully. A garden spot He furnished with some seeds, ‘Which proved, alas, that he could not Grow anything but Waeds! His thought he gave to problems vast And ever turned his face Toward Hope to find a way at last To elevate the race. He would improve our mortal lot And make it ssmething worth. He could not run a garden spot. He tries to run the earth! Disadvantage of Wealth. “Wealth does not always bring hap- piness.” “I should say it doesn’t,” answered Senator Sorghum. “Out my way they've been using so much' r oney that any one who wants a chance in the political game has to pretend to be as poor as possible.” Employment of Leisure. The sinner will not change his way, Although his blessings double. A five-day week leaves one more day For getting into trouble. Jud Tunkins says some men can prove almost anything by statistics, only they can’t always prove the statistics. No Santa! “Are you going to impersonate Santa Claus this year?” All the family knows there is no Santa Claus. So I can’t hope to get off by leaving some candy and toys. I've got to be myself and reach for the old check book.” The Big Noise. This life is like my radio. Effects the most emphatic Rise not from melodies that flow, But chiefly from the static. “The inventor of gunpowder,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “has not killed as many, people as the in- ventors of automobiles and wood al- cohol.” “All some of us kin learn by experl- ence,” sald Uncle Eben, “is how to make the same old mistake in a differ- ent way.” e No Chance at That. From the Boston Transcript. A lady correspondent formers will never they have brought 'on the millen- nium. They can’t possibly be content then, because there will be nothing to abolish, the ‘“re- be content until | ] EVENING STAR!/ of the program and the Capitat ttseit ! knows avout this phenomenon, atter ¥ in the final concentration upon a plan | all? which promises to bring the Nation's | “When you begin to turn over, it is time to turn out,” said no less an au- thority than Gen. Wellington. This is a heroic soldier’s prescrip- tion for cases of waking up too early in the morning, the common sense of which will appeal to every one. Those who will be able to carry it out, however, will be few and far be- tween, for there is something dis ful to the average man about g up at 3 or 4 o'clock. What Is one to do at that hour If the restiess one were a milk w, ther an, might be some rhyme and | reason to it, but your average man is much at loss to know what to do with himself between such a time and his usual hour of arising. Being creatures. of habit, most men have a set time for arising to take up their part in the world’s work. Many even have alarm clocks set to go off at_the appointed hour. The trouble with alarm clocks, as every one knows, is that after a period one fails to hear them. Let them go off ever o loudly, the intrepid sleeper sleeps right through them, as the ex Dpress‘on has it. Even if he is awake from 2 to 5, or from 3 to 6, or from 4 to 8, he will undoubtedly be sound asleep when the bell in the lighthouse ring: a universal falling of alarm no difference whether cheap or cos It that w to the me genius could devise a clock ould adjust itself automatically " eeping, that would Le an entirely different matter, and one out of which the lucky inventor ought to reap untold profits. * Kk ¥ 1t takes a soldier, no less, to reso- lutely throw off the covers and crawl out of his warm bed into a cold house at 3 a.m. for no other particular rea- son than that Wellington once de- clared, in a moment of abstractio When you begin to turn over, it is time to turn out.” & Y‘(l\s, general, but the turning out is ard. - The night is cold and bitter and the wind has been whipping in over the windowgill ever since 10 o'clock the evening before. i ‘The last cars have rattled into their metal garages. The last dogs have wakened everybody except their own owners. The determined broadcasters have turned off their transmitters at last, and rabid radio “fans” have been forced to call it off for the night, for few sets will get California, after all. And now one Is wide awake again, Just when the sleeping is best. One may lie upon one's back, if one pleases, but it is not a very diverting exercise. Rolling over on the right side fails to give the customary ease. The left side, for some unknown reason, is no better. ‘When you begin to roll ovef—— By George, he was right! There is nothing to do but turn out! ‘Accordingly, the covers are lifted, and the waker stands forth with cold feet and chills running down his spine, wondering what he is going to do from now until 6 oclocl(. 4 ‘Well, the night cannot last forever. Didn't some one write a poem about an Egyptian king who had a ring on which was engraved the sapient line, “Even this shall pass away"? That must be down in the library some place. Perhaps that is as good THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. a way as any to pass the three full hours until the gas-lamp man comes around with his stick to turn out the lights. Happy lamplighter! He has some real reason for being up; but you, in vour slippers and bathrobe, have no more sufficient excuse than the dictum of a gentleman gone these many When you begin to turn over, it s _time to turn out.” The theory of this, you muse, is sound. If one resolutely arises from slumber—-no, it can't be called that— well, if one arises from lack of slum- ber, then, no doubt he will be good and sleepy that evening and will make up for lost time, as the boys say. Perhaps genuine ¢ f insomnia might yleld to this prescription. Cer- tain obscure chemical irritants in the stem worry the nerves, so that one cannot yleld, as one would, to that which the Ancient Mariner called “‘a blessed thing." Yes, the furnace is all right; a look into the feed door shows it to be in perfect condition. How bright the lights are, at this time of night; one light does the work of six! The backs of houses look silent in the darkness. Some have their win- dows clear up, some not so far, some but little, some not at all. After all, one catches one's self wondering, just how much truth is there iIn this “fresh air” business, anyway? Wh u have known old codgers who slept on featherbeds, and who had every window down every night of their lives, and they were as healthy as crickets, and their cheeks were rosy even unto a ripe old age. And you have known children raised as “‘fresh air babies,” who slept out of doors each one of their yet few years and who were wheeled out in blizzards and all that sort of thing, who yet had as many bad colds as any one. * K ok % You turn on the light in the living room, feeling somewhat shy about doing so, for fear the milkman might knock on the door. Positively, it would startle one to have the milkman knock on the door! Milkmen so seldom knock on doors; they seldom do anything except deliver milk, that it would astound one to have one knock on the door at 4 am. Suppose the milkman should knock and should say, ‘Hello, mister, I thought you might like to take a nice ride.” And you, in your slipper feet and bathrobe, which never stays shut in the front, would greet him with out- stretched hand and say: “Hello, Bill, glad to see you again! Wait till I get my gloves, and I will be right with you.” Whew! but it is cold in the milk wagon. You notice, with a start of surprise, that your living room is the only lit room in the neighborhood. Suddenly you wish you had not promised Bill to ride with him. If he is a milkman, that is his fault, not yours. A man doesn't have to take such a job, and to drag a friend into it, why— ou wake with a start. The sun- shine makes the electric light look pale. You have been sound asleep on the davenport, the alarm clock hav- ing gone off an hour ago. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. Col. George Harvey, American War- wick and former Ambassador to Great Britain, has just sailed for Europe. He will spend the rest of the Winter in its salubrious parts. Harvey once called his brother colonel, Edward M. House, “President Wilson's U-boat"— a subtle tribute to House's silent and invisible wanderings abroad. It's just possible that the editor-diplomat has the same kind of a submarine mission_on behalf of President Cool- idge. European affairs in the not distant future may be found engaging considerably more of our attention than they do now. If such a turn of events is in prospect, it would be un- commonly natural for Mr. Coolidge, who recently entertained Col. Harvey at the White House, to commission the latter to give the Old World a close-range “once over” and report back. The colonel, as a former mem- ber of the foreign service, is entitled to travel on a diplomatic passport. That extremely useful document was made out in his favor by the State Department at Secretary Kellogg's personal direction. B It prohibition, as many wiseacres think, is, and is destined to remain, the paramount political issue, it may be found feasible to rechristen the two great parties, in order that their respective members may divide on liquor lines. Suggestions to that end are now current. It is proposed that men and women who favor the eighteenth amendment and the Vol stead act “as is” should be leagued under the name of ‘‘Constitutional- ists.” Those of moister inclinations should be banded together as “Re- visionists.” The proponents of the new party names do not think these would have to become fixtures. One or two elections on a straightout wet-and-dry issue would, they think, settle the question, and permit the big parties to return either to their old names or adopt names expressive of whatever happens to the out- standing national issue. “Drys” and “Wets" are a lot more purely Ameri- can, because of their graphic brevity, than “Constitutionalists” and “Re- vislonists,” but are open to criticism as “undignified.” ) O Going the soclety rounds in Wash- Ingwngis a story, said to be based upon fact, that does vast credit to Baron von Maltzan, the German Am- bassador, as a master of that quality which is a diplomat's greatest asset— tact. The other night, at a party at the German embassy, a bubbling young matron presented to the Am- bassador Comdr. Silvio Scaroni, air attache of the Itallan embassy. ‘“‘Mr. Ambassador,” rhapsodized the Wash- ington lady, as she introduced the andsome young Italian pilot, “‘Comdr. Scaroni was the ace of the Italian air force. He brought down 45 German planes in the war!” Baron von n bowed, smiled and remark- ed, “Well, I'm glad I was in diplo- macy, and not in aviation. * ok k¥ M. Maurice Leon, a Frenchman who was born in Turkey and is now a member of the distingulshed law firm of Evarts, Choate. Sherman & Leon in New York, is the author of a sug- gestion to create “The Coolldge Doc- trine” as a fixed principle of American foreign policy. M. Leon coined the idea on the occasion of the President’s latest message to Congress, which happened to coincide with the 123 anniversary of the Monroe Doctrine. Mr. Coolidge having declared that we of the United States “look with dis- favor upon all aggressive warfare, M. Leon observe: “Should the world be made to understand more and more clearly that what the President said to Congress represents the true thought of America, a powerful factor® for the maintenance of world peace would develop thereb; Mr. Coolidge has a great oppor- gl‘ngly to l:“:f flllempeoph in trl: it pat] Interna sponsibility and to find an Amerl- I can way to use American influence to prevent general wars. His message contains traces of what may ultimately become known as the Coolidge Doctrine, the second of a team with the Monroe Doc- trine, to draw the American chariot toward the goal of world peace.” * % k% Louis D. Brandeis, associate jus- tice of the United States Supreme Coprt, has just smoked the pipe of peace, according to Jewish news sources, with Dr. Chalm Weizmann, president of the World Zionist Or- ganization. They have been at log- gerheads for five years, ever since friction at the Cleveland Zionist con- vention over the question whether American Zionists should retain ex- clusive control of the expenditure in Palestine of funds by them contributed to the Jewish National Home. The party that espoused that view, which included Justice Brandels, was van- quished. It has never ceased its in- terest in Zionis: but worked on in- dependent lines. When Dr. Weizmann was recently in Washington, he and Justice Brandels had a long and friendly visit, and now all's well be- tween them. Mr. Brandeis has been in Palestine several times and is a devout believer in its future. * Kk k The extreme drys in New York State, who take credit for accomplish- ing the defeat of Senator James W. Wadsworth, Republican, for re-elec- tion on November 2, are circulating in Washington coples of the campaign speech which, they clalm, gave him the happy dispatch. It was made by Clinton N. Howard, chairman of the United Committee for Prohibition En- forcement. Howard decided to wind up the campaign agatneét Wadsworth in Rochester, “Jim's” home town. The Senator's venerable father, James W. Wadsworth, sr., who was. once in Congress asa member of the House from the Rochester district, attended the Howard meeting, although friends tried to dissuade him. A collection was taken at the end of the speech, to defray the expenses of the hall and advertising. “Dad” Wadsworth tossed a crisp bill into the hat, say- ing, as he did so, “It's worth $5 to hear the damned cuss!” Senator Wads- worth carried his home county, Mon- roe, by 30,000—his banner majority. * ok kK Behind the scenes at Washington two able young women will play roles in politics this Winter. One is Mrs. Medill McCormick, widow of the Senator from Illinois, daughter of VMark Hanna and crony of Alice Roose- velt Longworth, who will maintain a oolitical salon. The other is Miss Agnes Wilson, chief lieutenant of her father, Willlam B. Wilson, late Democratic candidate for Senator in Pennsylvania. Mr. Wilson has pitch- ed his tent in Washington to watch and wait for developments in the Vare and allied slush-fund matters. His daughter, who was at her father’s elbow when he was Secretary of La- bor in the Wilson administration, is in command of his political affairs. These may sooner or later include a formal contest for Mr. Vare's seat. * ok kK Senator Walter ¥. George, Demo- crat, of Georgla, has just told the Southern Society of New York that the day of free trade has passed in Dixie. He said that the South needs reasonable protection to industry, lower taxes on manufacturing corpo- rations ‘and accumulation of capital. If Senator George were to encounter the shade of Roger Q. Mills on Cap- itol Hill some evening there'd be a clash. (Covyright. 1926.) Art of Repetition Hers. From the Sioux City Tribune. The average woman hus a vocabu- lary of about 800 words, according to a Middle Western newspaper man. It is the turnover which produces © ¥gluwe. K ’ DECEMBER 15, 1926. the |John M. N old status Politics at Large By G. Gould Lincoln. When Senator Wadsworth days ago said, in an interview Republican naticnal headquar New York City, he believed Presi dent Coolidge would be the Republi can nomince for President in 19 he voiced the opinion of 99 per ¢ or perhaps an even higher percen of Republican members of Congr and of the Democrats, too. The lat ter, publicly at least, would deny the second part of Senator Wadswortl prediction—that if nominated Pr dent Coolidge would be re-elected, no matter whom the Democrats put up. The Democrats have not been signally successful in their contests with Mr. Coolidge. Not a little discussion is heard of the possibility of the Republican nomi- nation in going to former Gov. Frank O. Lowden of Illinois. B no one really believes, up to this time at any rate, that Mr. Lowden or any one else could wrest the nomination from President Coolidge if he candidate for renomination. I Mr. Lowden’s name is being an enterlng wedge by some who would [ to see the nomination go elsewhere than to Coolidge. If Presi- dent Coolidge should determine not to be a candidate to succeed himself, then perhaps Mr. Lowden would have a good chance for the nomination, though even this is open to some doubt. He has made himself solid with a large number of farm organiza- tions In recent years. His approval of the principle of the equalization fee in farm relief legislation has gone far toward cementing the regard of these organizations for Mr. Lowden. But Mr. Lowden was an odds-on favorite for the nomination in 1920 and he failed. He falled because of an injudicio use of money—to say the le: his supporters in M sourl. With charges of Republican slush funds likely to be an issue in the next campaign, and of slush funds in Illinols, Mr. Lowden's own State, the story of 1920 is not likely to be overlooked by Mr. Lowden's oppo- nents. This is the view taken hy some of the Senators and Represen tives from Western States, where Mr. Lowden {s supposed to be strongest. * ok kK According to some of the reports sent out from Washington, President Coolidge sustained his first defeat of the present session of Congress when the Republican members of the House ways and means committee tabled all proposals for tax revision or reduc- tion, including the President’s recom- mendation fof a temporary tax reduc- tion the first half of next year. A little reflection, however, may bring a_different view. President Coolidge in his annual message to Congress gointed out how the taxpayers might receive the benefit of the $383,000,000 surplus of taxes expected June 30, 1927. He suggested that the taxes payable in March and June of next year be lowered to the extent of this surplus. All taxpayers were to ben- efit. Does it hurt Mr. Coolidge in the eyes of the voters and the taxpayers to have this suggestion turned down? Or does it hurt the Congress which will not agree to such a tax reduc- tion? The President is found in the attitude of holding the cup of tax re- duction to the lips of the taxpayers and Congress in the act of dashing the cup aside. It is true that the Democrats are clamoring for a reduc- tion of the tax rates in existing law But they couid not conceivably reduce them below the surplus, and the Presi- dent’s plan, if adopted, would be ex- actly as effective as the plan of the Democrats for reducing taxation dur- ing the next year, and would leave it open to Congress to determine a year hence whether the permanent rates should be lowered. * ok ok ok Cheorles D. Hilles, Republican na- tional committeeman from New York and vice chairman of the Republican national committee, is intent upon having New York City submit a bid for the Republican national conven- tion in 1928. He will try, he says, to have New York launch a move- ment to entertain the Republicans in 1928. His idea is that the Democrats having shown the world how not to conduct a national convention in old Madison Square Garden, the Republi- cans should give an exposition in the new Garden of how it should be done. Doubtless a bid from the Republicans of the Empire State will be heard respectfully. The call of the West or Middle West, however, is likely to be effective. If President Coolidge is to be the nominee, as now seems probable, there is no need to win ‘the East to him. It may be advisable, however, to have the nomination con- summated in Chicago, Kansas City or some other Western city. * ok ok % Republican members of the Senate are awaiting with no little Interest the appointment of a Senator from Illi- nois to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Senator William B. McKin- ley. Republican leaders, anxious to put through all the annual appropri- ation bills and adjourn by March 4 without the necessity of a special ses- sion next Spring of the Seventieth Congress, resent the suggestion that Col. Frank L. Smith, Senator-elect, should receive the appointment and come here now. If Col. Smith is ap- pointed, it will lead immedidely to a contest in the Senate over his tak- ing his seat, and this contest may wnake it impossible to avoid a special session to complete necessary busi- ness. Col. Smith must decide whether it is better for him to make his fight to be seated in the present session, with Republican leaders irritated bacause of his insistence upon that course, or to wait until the S’e’gentlelh Congress, when Republican ranks are thinned and the national campaign is only a few months removed. * ok ok K Gov. Small of Illinois, the appointive power, must determine whether he will heed the warnings sent him from Washington against the appointment of Smith or whether he will heed the desires of Col. Smith (if Col. Smith continues to insist upon being ap- pointed). If Gov. Small declines to ap- point Col. Smith, unless Col. Smith makes it clear he does not desire the appointment, it will be regarded as a slap at Smith and his friends. Gov. Small, it is believed, is anxious to be a candidate to succeed himself as gov- ernor. That being the case, he would scarcely wish to offend Col. Smith and the element in the Republican party of Illinois especially friendly to Smith. Smith carried the State by a consider- able vote, even in the face of the charges made against him in connec- tion with his primary campaign. Republican Senators here frankly say they do not see how Smith is to be seated either at this session or the next. It is known that Senator Ashurst of Arizona, Democrat, will offer a resolution to prevent Smith from taking the oath of office pending a report by the Reed slush fund in- vestigating committee and a decision by the Senate in the case of Col. Smith. * ok ok ok ‘The Senate Republican organiza- tion having taken back into the party fold the last of the insurgents of the vintage of 1924, Senator Lynn J. Frazier, there is considerable inter- est in what the House Repub- licans will do regarding the Wiscon- sin insurgents who were thrown out of the party councils two years ago. The Republican committee on com- mittees of the House is faced with the problem righ w. A new chairmar of the commiittee on invalid pensic,rs is to be ch@sen, and Represenizive n’ of Wisoyalr, if his @ by Sustece?, would by ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. Which grows the United P . Since 1850 our populati I more than doubled and our has become 40 times greater. Q. What valuable campuses A. The Bureau that the following schdols have the luable grounds: Columbia Uni- ty of Chicago and the institute of Tech. ster, States or the on has wealth schools Education says Q. Why is some hair naturally curly hair is straight A. A. The contour of the hair is cir cular, oval or flattened. Whether a hair 'is to be curly or straight i llargely dependent upon its contour; the more oval or flattened it is the more it will be curled. The curliness is influenced aiso by the condition of b mosphere; naturally curly hair becomes more curled when the hair is surcharged with moisture, and less so in dry weather. Q. How many apples does the most profitable single apple tree produce?— N.L T. A. A tree owned by Joseph A. Kins. man of Kings County, Nova Scotia, produced 27 barrels of marketable fruit in 1898. This is the highest vield for a single tree as far as records show. Q. When was the Italian majolica first made?—R. H. A. The earliest date found on an Italian luster-piece is 1489. The only men acquainted with the E luster were Pesaro, Gubbio Deruta, and after a vogue of 80 years it became a lost art, about 1570. The craft has been revived with varying success, but the new enamels cannot compare in beauty with the old mod- els. The finest specimens of majolica were made in northeastern Italy. Vases, pitchers, platesy bottles and odd-shaped flasks were the most com- monly decorated objects, but tiles were - | sometimes made for floors and walls. Q. Where is the geographical cen- ter of North America?—W. P. H. A. It is impossible to say definitely where the geographical center of North America is because there are many acres of land in Canada yet un- surveyed. It is approximately located at latitude 49%° and longitude 99 Q. What is the origin of shellac?— R. E. A. ‘A. Shellac is a modified form of lac, which is a resinous substance formed by an insect as a coating on the twigs and young nches of various trees in India and neighboring countries. The term “lac” is the same as the In- dian numeral meaning hundred thousand,” and is indicative of the myriads of insects which make their appearance with every successive gen- eration. Lac inerusting the twigs as gathered is called ‘‘stick las the resin crushed to small fragments and washed in hot water to free it from woody particles and coloring matter 1s known as “'seed lac” or “grain lac,” and this when melted, strained through thick canvas and spread out into thin leaves is known as “shellac.” Q. How many bridges besides Lon- don Bridge are there across the River Thames at London, England?—A. W. A. Fourteen road bridges cross the Thames within the County of Lon- Reforming the popula- | don. G. M | e the most | | | fora® Westminster, London Bridge of the present tompleted in 1831, the Tower in 1894. Other great bridges thwark, Blackfriars, Hunger Waterloo, Lam Albert, Bat Putney and was, Bric wre o 1. Vauxhall, Victoria rsea, Wandsworth, ammersmith. Q. When was the refrigerator car introduced?——( A. Authorities differ somewhat as to when the refrigerator car was first used, but it is generally belleved that it was first operated in 1867 between Chicago and New York City. Q. What is the real name of the ::;wn"r_\' known as “the Grange'?—H. Meq. A. “Grange"” is the name popularly applied to the Society of Patrons of Hushandry, a secret association of farmers founded at Washington, D. €., December 4, 1867. The chief founder was Oliver Hudson Kelley, a Minnesota farmer. The Grange is & non-political order and makes its ap- peals to legislatures and Congress in the Interest of agriculture—in a spirit z;t falrness and for the common wel- are. Q Is key now A. Polygamy was abolished by the ew clvil code introduced into the Turkish National Assembly early in n]i\'gnmy permitted in Tur- C.- B Q. What is the total population of ance and her possessions?—A. F. B. nOA\. It 1s estimated at about 100,000, 0. Q. Who has been made warden of the Leavenworth Penitentiary?—R. M A._Since the r W. I Biddle, N permanent appointment has not been made. Thomas B. White {s acting warden of Federal Penitentlary at Leavenworth, Kans. Q. What of the Nav . A. The number of civil employees in the Navy establishment in the fleld. including navy yards, naval stations, inspection offices, supply stations, ord- nance and poyder factories, etc., was 40,450 during the fiscal year 1926. The number in the Navy Department at ‘Washington was 1,940, Q. How much does it cost to oper- ate the Bell telephone system?—cC. G. A. 'The Amerlcan Telephone & Tele- graph Co. says that the cost of oper- ation is over $700,000,000 a year, in addition to $3,000,000,000 invested in the plant. The man-power to build. maintain and operate the telephone system is 800,000 individuals. the civilian personnel Government statidtics bring out the fact that the uneducated man has only 1 chance in 800 to attain dis- tinction. There is no reason why any one should live under such a handi- cap in these days of free schools and free information. This paper sup- ports in Washington, D. C., the largest free information bureau in ex- istence. It will procure for you the answer to any question you may esk. Avail yourself of its facilities for your self-improvement. Inclose a -cent stamp for return postage. Address The Evening Star Information Bu- reau, Frederic J. Haskin, director, Washington, D. C. of Alphabet Fails To Win Aid of Skeptical Public A suggested saving of a billion dol- lars a year through reform of the al- phabet, as proposed by Dr. Godfrey Dewey of Harvard, has not yet re- ceived much approval from the pub- lic. In view of the apparent failure of simplified spelling, critles suggest that only the slow process of natural evolution produces such reforms or chinges. Some of them belleve also that anything which makes printing and publishing cheaper is likely to increase the output of unnecessary literary work. The new alphabet would consist of 24 consonants, 13 vowels, 4 diphthongs and a sign for the article “the.’” ““One of the interesting aspects,” as viewed by the Ann Arbor Times- New s that the professor has not pointed out a single benefit which culture would derive from the change. Possibly there would be some such benefits, but Prof. Dewey probably concluded that results expressed in terms of money would be more ap- pealing. Nevertheless, it may be that we Americans, who are supposed to be commercially minded, will not look with enthusiastic favor upon this pro- posal to commercialize the alphabet. ‘We like efficiency in manufacture and business, but we have not yet de- manded it of politics, which is one of our favorite sons, and we are not de- manding it of culture. We have never tried to regulate the use of paint by artists or the number of G-clefs and whole notes utilized by the composer. And, just as likely as not, we'll keep on using the old alphabet even at the cost of a billion a year. The more efficlent we become the more we like luxuries, and a billion for one of them is a bag of shell Raising the question whether “economy of space is the chief object of an alphabet,” the New York World feels that it is “easy to go Dr. Dewey one better.” That paper says: “Bor- rowing from Ring Lardner, we pro- pose the following: ‘Friends, I seen 2 or 3 pleces in the paper this a.m. about making up a new a b ¢, be- cause this here 1 takes up too much space. I am vs. that idea, on acct. I already learned this here 1, and what is the sense of having a new 1 when we got 1 already? Maybe the pieces in the papers are too long. but you don’t have to read them, & anyways you save yourself 3 cts. if you don't. What I say, cut some paper offen the bottoms of the news- papers & then the pieces won't be so long & we won’t need no newa be.’” * x % “A more practical movement than that of reducing printed matter by simplifying the alphabet,” suggests the Topeka Dafly Capital, “might be to devise some plan of reducing it by creating a general interest in less writing and printing. The saving that might be effected by cutting out all unnecessary writing and printing would make Prof. Dewey's reform seem_trivial. But, in point of fact, the Dewey alphabet would not pro- mote economy or restraint among writers; it might even, by making writing easler, aggravate the evil, if evil it is, of a superfluity of printed matter.” The Beloit Daily News also expresses the view that “the canny entitled to the appointment. The ques- tion is how far are the regular Repub- licans of the House willing to go for the sake of harmony, for the sake of bringing the Wisconsin insurgents back into the organization, and how far the Wisconsin insurgents are pre- pared to go in the way of co-operation with the regulars. As a matter of fact, to be cast out of the organiza- | tion by the party in Washington has tended to make martyrs of them in Wisconsin and has strengthened their hold in their own State. It is possible tiat the chairmanship of the invalid prasions committee will be held in | abeyance until after the beginning of the Seventieth Congress, when all the sagurgents can be cared for at the same time. . savant overlooks the drawback that his beautiful reform might give in- numerable writers just that much ad- ditional time to write a proportion- ately increased amount of trash for other people to read.” “Granting all the theoretical ad- vantages of the suggested rearrange- ment,” says the Manchester Union, “one must raise the objection, from the practical point of view, that the plan has been made an untimely of- fering. Midsummer is a much better season to discuss what perhaps ought to be, but hasn’t a Chinaman’s chance of being. In late November, with Congress and a presumably hard Win- ter just ahead, we've got to concen- trate on doing the best we can with the material at hand.” The Morgan- town New Dominion adds that “the trouble is that it's this generation which is called upon to take action; and the present generation always holds back such reforms, either from a notion that alphabets and spelling are sacred things or from pure lazi- ness.” * o Ex “Inasmuch as this plan is advanced for reasons of practical economy," concludes the Kalamazoo Gazette, “it may attract more general considera- tion than It would If set forth on purely academic grounds. Neverthe- less, the chances of its being favor- ably received by the English-speak- ing public are extremely slight. Some day we may have a simplified alpha- bet very much like the one Dr. Dewey suggests, but in all probability it will be the product of gradual, piecemeal simplification.” The Miami Daily News points out that “the chief cloud on the horizon at this time seems to be the tremendous expense that would be involved In rewriting all English dictionaries and recasting all the type used in English-speaking countries.” “No mean sum to save,” is the Oak- land Tribune’s idea of the billion dol- lars’ economy, but it states that “long years of tinkering with the language have so far yielded very little to sim- plified spelling enthusiasts,” and in- sists that “if change comes, it will come naturally and not artificially.” The Portsmouth Sun, however, de- clares that “as a matter of fact and as it is now, we are using, without thinking about it, 15 vowels or more instead of 5, but instead of having signs for the distinctions in the ‘a, e, 1, 0 and u,’ we have to carry the me fied pronunciation in our minds. It would be easier to learn the signs for the five or six shadings of the ‘a,’ for example, than to struggle in each in- stance, by memory, with the sound as it varles in the words ‘artistic,’ ‘father,’ ‘fat,’ ‘fare,’ and ‘ask. "Everybody admits that the saving from a thoroughgoing reform of spelling would be large,” states the Springfleld Republican. Tsaac Pit man, nearly a century ago, was try- ing to dazzle his countrymen with al- luring estimates of what they would save by adopting his ‘fonetik’ sys tem, but imagination in those days did not go beyond millions. In an- other century it may run into tril lions, and then something will really have to be done about it. We may be able to afford a billion a year for bad spelling, but a thousand billion would be extravagant. It makes one dizzy to think of the billions lkely to be wasted on superfluous letters before Dr. Dewey’s reform is put into effect.” The Muncie Star suspects that the educators to whom the plan was pro posed “possibly were not quite clear as to how a longer alphabet would decrease the space taken by words,” and it adds: “If there were any wom- en among those educators, they might have recalled the invention of the sewing machine that promised to be a labor saver to women; and, forth- with, women on its appearance began to sew more furiously than ever b fore, and have since produced score: of yardnuof stitching to ome in the