Evening Star Newspaper, December 20, 1926, Page 8

L T » THE EVENING L e—————ee e maneuver an automobile and tle»um'm immediate sense of apology. Kip- THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. December 20, 1826 Ttk . THEODORE W. NOYES. ... Editor - Xho Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office st S Fenm i A, i 2 Eant 3 1 g Chicars Office: Tower Bldine: Turopean Office; 14 Regent St.. London. England. The Evenine S 1th_the Sunday morn- “ T S eMvered by carriers within 18 city wt 60 cents rr 4“\07\((?:'“ dl',ls r?e"n A b Omders may. he sent by mail of coni hone Hain 500, Colection is made by carrier at end of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. ily and Sund 1 yr.. $0.00: 1 mo. .. TBe Yr. $8.00: 1 mo.. B0c RS R All Other States and Canada. oo and Sunday...1 7. $1200: 1 mo., $1. -4k 00: 1mo. - 78c E:Enongfiu' sl 8300 1 mon 38 Member of the Associated Press. The Assoniated Pres i exclusively entitled | 20 the use for republication of all news dis- R TR L o e S in nd_also the rblishad hetain Al riehis of publication ©f special disnatches hierein are also reserve s i — Eliminate Section One. The pending House bill (H. R. 1078) Ro create a joint congressional com- mittee to inquire into the fiscal rela- tions between the United States and the District provid, tion that the joint committee sha certain and weport “whether the pres- ent percentage proportion basis of ap- propriating . . as now provided by law should continue” or whether the United States “should contribute a fix- ed or lumpsum amount annually « « . in lieu of the existing . per- centage proportion basis,” and if so, “what would be & fair and equitable emount to be so contributed.” Clearly these words assume that wwhen the joint committee begins its “itally important labors the then ex- fsting substantive law shall provide for the present percentage proportion basis of contribution and that the first task of the committee is to ascertain ‘whether the then existing percentage ‘proportion basis provided by substan- tive law shall continue. But the first section of the pending ‘House bill contradicts and destroys the assumption upon which the sec- ond section is based. For the first section of the bill in effect repeals the present substantive law providing for a percentage proportion basis and sub- stitutes as permanent, substantive law for a fixed period a lump-sum . mppropriation. On the passage of the * ®ill this provision goes into effect at once, and when the joint committee begins its labor its first task will not <, be to ascertain whether the then ex- fsting substantive law for a definite proportionate percentage contribution shall continue, for the substantive law then existing will provide for a lump- sum contribution, and not one on a percentage proportion basis. In the battle between the percentage proportion basis and the lump-sum 7. plan the fact of being the substantive law is a distinct advantage. It is about the only tactical advantage that the sorely buffeted and impotent Dis- Ford frict now enjoys. In possession of this _ citadel it needs to fight only on the de- fensive, If the District is wise it will mnot surrender this stronghold unless ‘. and untll it is battered into submission by superior force, and further resist- ance is vain. 5 But section first of the pending bill, Pontradicting and stultifying section ®econd, proposes that the District under its banners inscribed “Financial Equity” and “Percentage Proportion . IBasis” shall abandon to the enemy its tower of strength, pending the de- {ision of which shall occupy the citadel permanently. In this clash between the first and Becond sections of the proposed law the second section should prevall. .- Changing the present substantive Jaw, pending the decision of the joint committee and of Congress whether or not it ought to be changed, is illog- dcal in principle, and in practical ef- fect unjustly hurtful to the helpless . District. " Do not impose the extreme penalty of expulsion from its citadel upon the District before the investigation begins ‘Which is to determine whether it shall mot transfer to real life the topsy- . turvy procedure of Alice’s Wonder- Jand where the Queen’s rule The Governor of Texas is & woman. Bo is the Secretary of State. So is the Btate labor commissioner. In case - @nything goes wrong with Texas the muotation will inevitably be revived, #Cherchez la femme."” Left-Hand Turns Barred. A temporary regulation banning left- $hand turns of automobiles on F street %etween Seventh and Fourteenth streets has been put into effect by the 4rafic office. Beginning today and ending Sunday the emergency meas- ure is designed to facilitate the han. dling of the heavy traffic which re- sults from the scramble of last-min- ute Christmas shoppers. Officlals are eonfident that material aid will be ren- dered by the rule and that one of ‘Washington's busiest streets will be icomparatively free from congestion. The adoption of this regulation @#hows progressivencss on the part of _the traffc office. Emergency meas. wres to meet emergency cases are the _order of the day and the office is to ‘Do congratulated on singling out one of the chief obstructions to traffic and taking prompt action to meet it. ¥ street must accommodate a large volume of traffic, especially during the Christmas rush, and any. measure which seeks to eliminate congestion ‘will meet with the hearty approval of the motorist body. And while on the subject of left- hand turns it may not be amiss to sug- gest that the time is coming, and very soon, when these turns will no longer be allowed on Washington’s downtown congested streets, especially on streets . @8 narrow as F and G. Traffic in this city is increasing and great strides and jams are constantly occurring. Of course left-hand turns are not re- sponsible for all the trouble, but they do contribute enough to the general congestion to single them out for spe- cial consideration when remedial meas- ures are discussed. It may be, there- fore, that the experiment will work so well in its temporary try-out on F street that it will be made permanent. ‘While this would be a drastic step for Washington it would probably prove most beneficial, and result in the ac- commodation of a far larger amount of traffic, efficiently handled, than could possibly be the case under the present system. A High-Pressure Lesson. Yesterday morning a fire occurred in one of the most closely butlt blocks in the business district of Washing- ton, causing a loss, it is now esti- mated, of $100,000. Incidentally, sev- eral firemen were badly hurt, though fortunately none of them was dan- gerously injured. The fire was ably fought, in difficult circumstances, An enormous quantity of water was used, all of it coming through the filters. Only a slight margin prevailed be- tween the confinement of the blaze virtually to the initial premises and its spread throughout the entire block. Had a high wind been blowing at the time an immense loss would have occurred. It would in such circum- stances have been impossible to ob- tain as much water as the case re- quired. For many years the installation of a high-pressure fire service has been urged. When it was first proposed the cost was estimated at $100,000. Now it would cost many times that amount. After long delay the ques- tion has been referred to a commit- tee named by the District Commis- sioners, which is at present engaged in a study of the situation, securing information from a number of cities in which the high-pressure system has been installed, and it is expected that in a few months the report will be ready for submission to Congress. Inasmuch as all the water now used for the extinguishment of fires comes through the reservoirs and the filters, every time a severe blaze oc- curs the city’s supply is depleted. On some occasions in the past, especially during the warmer months, the heavy use of water to extinguish large fires has seriously checked the flow of water for domestic use. Sev- eral times it has happened that two large fires' have occurred simultane- ously, with the result of a shortage of water at both. The high-pressure system would take water directly from the river, pumping it through speclal mains into the business district. It would be ready for use on almost any fire directly from the hydrants without the aid of motor pumps. There would be not only always an abundance of water, but water under pressure suf- ficient to reach all but the tallest buildings. The fire-fighting apparatus assigned to the center of the city would consist simply of hose carts, trucks and towers, permitting the dis- tribution of the “steamers” through- out the residential and suburban areas. ‘Thé cost of the high-pressure sys- tem will be very much greater now than it would have been when it was first proposed. During the years of waiting many times the first-com- puted cost of the system has been lost through damages attributable directly to the lack of sufficient water pressure at downtown fires. ‘Whatever the cost of this installation, it will be a valuable insurance against catastrophe. With a high-pressure service installed Washington will be practically immune from a general conflagration such as in even a city of this character is possible, and such, indeed, as might have resulted from yesterday's blaze had there been a high wind to spread the flames through the block of origin. ———————— Musical jurors when {inclined to- ward a gloomy verdict may avoid gay modern tunes and revert to the “Dead March” from “Saul.” ——rwt—————— Americaphobia. suffering from a severe This dis- ease, germinating from the war, is prevalent in several countries. It is raging in France, in England and also in Germany. In the first-named country it manifested itself last Sum- mer in the form of outbreaks against American tourists, incidents that were of short duration and of no moment in themselves, but which were sig- nificant of an unfortunate state of public feeling toward the United States. In England the resentment found its most pointed expression in a poem by Rudyard Kipling. Now comes Germany with a musical revue just produced in Berlin under the title “Oh, U. 8. A.,” which has made a tremendous hit. According to one newspaper notice it is based entirely on the “bigotry, hypocrisy, record mania and capitalistic rapacity with which the United States is drenched.” All this feeling comes from one cause. It is due to the fact that the United States entered the war some time after it started and then not only supported the allies by a large armed force, but virtually financed them in thelr war making with loans that were negotiated by them on the basis of repayment. There would seem to be no reason for rancor against this country on that score, but apparently the situation is simply a proof of the old adage that a sure way to alienate a friend is to lend him money. But why Germany should be aroused on the score of the “rapacity” of the United States is somewhat of a mystery. There is, of course, ample basis for German feeling against Americans because they, entered the war, and further. more to a great extent financed it in its later stages. But to gibe in Berlin at Uncle S8am as rapacious is alto- gether too ridicilous. These ebullitions of feeling will sub. side. Indeed, every time one of them have been taken during the last year.|occurs there is a reaction favorable In the morning and afternoon ruskjto the United States in consequence. )zo.\u- it is exceedingly difficult to*The French street rowa brought about [, lnnx‘s outburst evoked its own rebuke in England. Doubtless the Berlin revue will follow the same course. | For Uncle Sam has been patient and dignified in these attacks and there is no defensive armor quite so effec. tive as that. Time was when such assaults and slurs, such “pin pricks,” would evoke martial feelings. But the United States has no intention of actively resenting these slanders. It will pur- sue its course calmly and look upon the outbursts of temperament across the sea more in pity than in anger. And next Summer when the tourist tide flows eastward the people of this country will go back and spend their money freely, even lavishly, and con- tribute richly to the well-being of the peoples in those lands, who will take their dollars and rejoice, even as now some of them applaud the soap-box orators, the poets, the singers and the clowns who are making capital out of America's prosperity. ————— Men who suggest the possibility of a revolution because of a discovery that politics is not absolutely pure in all parts of the country lack perception. Politics s a big game. Horse racing is also a game, which has been found crooked and compelled to assume nu- merous restrictions. But human na- ture refuses to change and the horses go to the post before admiring crowds just the same. — o The Prince of Wales stopped a run- away horse that had thrown Lowen- stein, Belgian financier. The prince, when in the saddle, has not always been able to subdue a horse. He is effectual in the more courageous method of meeting one face to face. ————— Uncle Sam does not desire war. His friends throughout the world may cherish purposes of conquest or re- prisal. The domain of Uncle Sam was established In contradiction of just these ideas. ———— Mexico has undeveloped resources both for wealth and for political dis- turbance. Ben Franklin, with his ideas of thrift, would be a good coun- selor for Central America, could he make himself heard today. The end of a sensational trial, what- ever its outcome, has the beneficial effect of clearing a large amount of unpleasant debris out of popular recol- lection. —————— The general readers of the country have by this time become more than satiated with discussions of the rela- tions of certain phases of political life to the underworld. ————— Santa Claus is only a myth. He is a survivor in childish féncy and still retalns enough influence to call out the Fire Department every now and then. ———— A cold wave merely serves as a reminder that Washington, D. C., is @ versatile city affording opportunity for skating as well as golf. —_————— Lisbon’s recent earthquake did no great harm, and conveyed the valued reminder that Lisbon is still on the map. —_——— Those who have not “shopped early” thus far will now put in an ap- pearance and take what is left. ———at——— A fortune spent in politics has no doubt made many a man regret that he did not interest himself in backing a musical show. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Just a Little. Little bit o' jingle As Christmas comes along! Little frosty tingle That animates the throng! Little bit o’ bluffin" ‘Bout Santy, loved so well! Little bit o’ puffin’ 'Bout what folks has to sell! Little bit o’ sermon! Little bit o' song! Tryin' to determine How things should go along. Life must have its sadness, Joy again is won, Just a little badness; Just a little fun! Liberal Sentiments. “Do you belieye in the use of money in an election? “No, sir,” answered Senator Sor- ghum. “And yet I should regret limit- ing the possibilities of political prefer- ment to men who are notorious as political tightwads. Christmas Card. I sent my love a Christmas card. She seemed to take it rather hard. It showed a scene of cruel snows ‘While up the cost of fuel goes. Available Resources. “You are suspected of being & boot- legger.” “Not among responsible peopls,” answered Uncle Bill Bottletop. “My creditors are growing suspicious and my bank refuses to lend me a cent.” | Jud Tunkins says a Christmas tree is the supreme effort of Art to im- prove on Nature. Uncertainties. “What do you do when a bootlegger turns up in Crimson Gulch?” “What we do,” answered Cactus Joe, ““depends on who meets him fust. If he falls into the hands of the au- thorities he is bad off, but if he meets up with the hip-flaskers it's a case of ‘Hail, the Gang's All Here! " “A hypocrite,” sald Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “Is always nervous. He lives in fear that some one will find out as much as he knows about himselt.” Finish and Start. The man who says he has “arrived’— To him our hats we doff. But history ever has contrived To say, “You here get off!" “Goin’ to church,” said Uncle Eben, “is a test of whether a man kin learn umuch!nmd-ynh.kntorm( in six.” STAR, WASHINGTON, THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. We understand that a dear old 94 vears young, who once paid us i high compliment of comparing us to s Lamb, is very much perturbed over our taking the habit of pipe smoking. She still reads “This and That,” she says (so our informant tell us), but does so with serfous misglvings for our immortal soul and the daily state of our health, We are reminded of the good gentle man who wrote us to beware of too intense application, such work as ours being notoriously unhealthy, he de- clared, and who six months later wrote a note along the following lines. “Dear Sir: How do you feel? I hope vou are not ill. Do not forget that many men have died doing such work as yours,” ef In repiy to our 94-yearold reader, we can but say that she must not be too much disturbed over our taking up the habit of smoking a pipe. Our pipe smoking will not hurt any one, especlally ourself. We are very careful that it shall not. When one has passed through many years as an abstainer, he can- not jump into such a habit as that of tobacco consumption with the reck lessness of an irresponsible minor. He must necessarily use such brains as the passing years have given him. e In the first place, dear lady, most of our smoking friends do not regard us as a smoker at all. We are aware of this, although they attempt to hide the truth from us, in consideration, no doubt, for our heroic endeavors. Our total consumption of tobacco at no time during the past half year (our period in this iniquity) has passed two pipefuls a day, with some excep tions, when we may have smoked as much as three pipefuls. Perhaps there was one day when we positively could not think of any- thing to write about for you all when we did consume an extra pipetul of tobacco. ‘We know of nothing that gives a man a more imposing attitude of seri- ous thought than a pipe. To sit and look at a plece of paper without a pipe, clgar or cigarette is a plain ad- mission to the world that you are stumped. But to look at the same plece of paper while smoking—ah, that is dif- ‘ferent! One has the pleasing con sclousness of being in deep thought and the knowledge that he s so im- pressing others. It was our custom on first taking up pipe smoking to smoke a pipe after dinner at home, but the cat, Jack Spratt, gave us such a dirty look that we ended up by confining our smoking to the office. Hence we assert that at the present time we smoke but two pipefuls of tobacco daily as a general thing, hav- ing no need for recourse to a third never being in a quandary as to what to write about, the air being so full of topics that all one has to do is to reach up into the air and pluck one down. Smoking so little allows us to smoke the best. At the present time we are puffing away on millionaire tobacco. Only a millionaire or one who smokes very little could afford tobacco that costs $10 a pound. Now, for Heaven's sake, don't jump up to the conclusion that we are a mil- lionaire. We merely have expensive soothe our outraged sense of Ly the recollection that we smoke only two pipefuls a day, and therefore smoke only one-fifth as much | as the average pipe smoker (or should | we say real pipe smoker Therefore, our annual tobacco bill is no more than that of those who smoke common, cheap tobaccos. How he consumers of common, cheap tobaccos! From our proud p tion as a smoker of tobacco worth its weight in gold we look down with pity upon those content to use fodder as smoking tobacco. Poor, striving smokers, know ye not that our tobacco is “shade grown,” having been carefully nurtured under huge sheets of muslin, tended by hand like a baby, shipped to London, mixed there by magic, and shipped back across the seas to gonnolsseurs? Yes, sir. We are a tobacco con- noisseur—a pipe-smoking dilettante, i you will. Our tobacco in the can smells exactly like fruit cake—it makes you hungry when you open the li * ok kK So, you see, dear lady, there is noth- [ Writer Traces History Of Commissionerships ] To the Editor of The Star e, under the heading | crat to District Berth say: “The ac tion of Pr > in nominat ing a Demo v to be a made the subject of by Senator Norris of bit of political by-play in the yesterday aftern, 2 will investigate will find that the naming of a Demoera Commissioners of the in the! as one of the t of Co-| » custom act ere ating a permanent form of gove ment for the District was enac now close on 50 years. When the Ter ritorial form of government was abol- ished and the temporary form of com. | mission established, which vided | for three Commissioners, ident | Grant’s final appointments for these offices were Henry T. Blow of Mis souri, William Dennison of Ohio and John' H. Ketcham of New York, all ex-members of Congr: and_none citizens of the District, one, if not more, of them having been landed a lame duck in the Democratic tidal wave of the 1874 elections. Then & few vears later Congress enacted the act that Is in force at this time. It provided for the appointment of two clvilian Commissioners and an eng neer Commissioner, the latter to I an officer of the United States Army ing to fear. Santa Claus is going to bring us a $10 pipe, too, in which to smoke our $10 tobacco. We want to make our smoking mathematically correct, of course, The correct ratlo is important in supersmoking—the only kind we do. Of ourself we would never dare to pay $10 for a pipe. The one we are now smoking cost $1, and we do not see how a pipe could be better (or worse!). Santa Claus, however, has informed us that he is surely going to bring us one of those expensive pipes, and we still believe in Santa Claus. Who wouldn’t, when he promises to bring one a $10 pipe? We are quite sure that we will have a terribly gullty feeling when we first smoke that new pipe. Think of all the little orphans it would support, of all the poor people it would clothe and feed, of how many wolves it would chase away from how many doors, and of how many- But what's the use? ‘We will not spoil our merry Christ- mas by such thoughts. Surely we have earned our pipe. (Well, we rather think so.) ‘Any one who boasts of smoking $10 tobacco ought to have a pipe to go with same, and we know somebody who does that very thing who is going to have just that sort of fancy pipe, ! unless Santa Claus cannot find his| way down our chimney. Here we are irreverently reminded of the famous chapter in the book on Ireland: “Chapter I. “The Snakes in Ireland. “There are no snakes in Ireland.” We have no chimney, but Santa has no sleigh, either. So there! We have a nice mantel, though,| broad enough to hold any sort of pipé. | even one that costs $10. And on Christmas morning, dear lady, right after breakfast, we hope to smoke it in your honor—and in that of Santa Claus, our dearest friend. e e WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. American fs about to be visited—or. rather, crossed—by another scion of royalty. He is Prince Chichibu, old- est brother of Crown Prince Hirohito, the regent of Japah, who will become Emperor in the event of the passing of the present ruler now reported at death’s door. It is this tragedy in the imperial family that calls Prince Chichibu suddenly home from Oxford University, where he has been a stu- dent in Magdalen College—the Prince of Wales' alma mater—for the past year and a half. The Nipponese prince, & man of 24, will reach New York about December 28. Though he is immediately proceeding across the country, en route to his steamer on the Pacific Coast, Chichibu will be welcomed at New York in the name of the United States Government by J. Butler Wright, Assistant Secretary of State. Mr. Wright is Uncle Sam’s official glad-hander when distinguished strangers are in_our arid midst. ‘Whether Prince Chichibu will pass through Washington, to pay respects to President Coolidge, has not yet been decided. The Japanese royalty, known as the “sports prince,” because of his passion for mountaineering, boating and tennis, is accompanied by Baron Hayashi, a distinguished mem- ber of his country’s diplomatic service and former ambassador in London and Rome. * kK K Plans are being perfected for a pic- turesque and appropriate welcome home to the 10 United States Army Air Service pilots who have just hopped off for a four-month flying tour of Latin America. Maj. H. A. Dargue’s gallant squadron of flve amphibian planes, due back at Bolling Field, Washington, around about the end of April, hopes so to time its ar- rival that the planes will land here on the day of the opening of the Pan- American Commercial Congress. This will be convened during the first days of May. Two hundred of the leading Chamber of Commerce officials of Central and South America will come together at the annual meeting of the United States Chamber of Com- merce. Never before have the busi- ness men of all the Americas clasped hands in joint assembly. * kK K One of the unrecorded episodes of Mrs. Carrie Chapman Catt's recent peace conference in Washington re- volves around an abortive attempt to bring Mrs. Woodrow Wilson and Mrs. Willlam E. Borah together over the tea cups. There is, of course, not the slightest enmity between the first lady of the League and the wife of the Senate chairman on foreign rela- tions. Nor was there ever any per- sonal hostility between Wilson and Borah. But a Washington society matron, with a flair for the higher politics, thought it would be in keep- ing with the spirit of Mrs. Catt's cause-and-cure-of-war _pow-wow to have Mrs. Wilson and Mrs. Borah “get together” cozily at 5 p.m. In- vitations were sent to them both. But, so this observer is veraclously in- formed, neither of them showed up. * ok ok K The late Associate Justice Mc. Kenna of the United States Supreme Court began life as a shorthand law reporter, like many a man who has achieved distinction, and never for- sook the art of taking notes in hier- oglyphics. For years Justice McKenna kept tab on arguments in the Su- preme Court by means of shorthand, and it was even his custom to write out his opinions by that means. He was fortunate in having a secretary who could decipher McKenna's notes with almost unerring accuracy. The be- loved old jurist left behind him a mass of shorthand papers which, when de- coded, ought to make interesting memoirs of McKenna's 27 years on the Supreme Court bench. * % ok ok Elthu Root was recently in Wash- ington, and, like the retired sailor who can’t resist visiting the old ship, he spent a lot of time renewing ac. quaintance with familiar haunts in both the departments of War and S‘late. Root will be 82 years old in February, but had difficulty in mak- ing, some of his former departmental assoclates believe it. Some of them aver he doesn't look a day over 62 The New York lawyer says that free- dom from worry is what's enabling ' him to age gracefully. Anxiety while Secretary of War, a post he design. ed, plled more years on him, Root says, than anything he ever tackled, and he claims to have relinquished the Secretaryship of State amid pro- found relief that grave responsibility was, at length, a thing of the past. e Marion de Vries, former presiding judge of the United States Court of Customs Appeals at Washington, never takes a constitutional down Pennsylvania avenue without looking wistfully at the Howard House, cor- ner of Sixth street, one of the Capi- tal's landmarks. De Vries and his brother, freshly graduated from the University of Michigan in 1888, came to visit Washington. It was the day of four-wheel cabs and colored cab- bies. The old railroad station near Pennsylvania avenue was the one at which the brothers De Vries arrived at night. They asked a venerable cabby to recommend a hotel. He spoke up for the Howard House. “How much’ll it cost to take us there?” Marion asked. “’Bout $1.50, boss,” the dusky charioteer replled. The brothers hopped in. They drove around many corners and were finally deposited at the Howard House. Next morning, when they looked out of their hotel window, they saw that the depot was just across the way, about 100 yards. Judge de Vries is a great fiscal expert. He is credited with au- thorship of the flexible-tariff section of the Fordney-McCumber act. He practices law. in Washington now. * ok ok ok ‘The name of a Coolidge from Mas- sachusetts—Julla Coolidge of Brook- llne—figures as defendant in a tax suit just brought by the Department of Justice on behalf* of the internal revenue commissioner. The lady died in 1921, and the Treasury is trying to recover from her executors the sum of $36,799. They made a return for Federal estate tax purposes, but did not include the value of certain prop- erty which the decedent in her life- time had conveyed to trustees and certain other property which she had conveyed to her children. The lower courts decided an initial action in the executors’ favor, but the Treasury is now taking the case to the Supreme to constitute the Board of Commis legal and bona fide cit . resi- | dents of the District for three ve at least prior to their appointment, thus protecting the disfranchised Dis trict from again becoming the roosting place of the lame ducks from the other sections of the country. While nothing in the act provides as to the clvilian members’ politics, it was then understood that the board would ¢ sist of a Republican and a Democ and this was carried out from tha time by all the Presidents down to the time of President Wilson, under whose administration two Democrats appointed, one of whom the cous the District of Columbia said was not legally qualified, and the Supreme Court of the United States, when the case was heard by that tribunal, did not_decide on the facts of the case in their opinion, but decided that the tax payer who brought the procecdings was not qualificd_under the law to bring the action. Later during Presi- dent Wilson’s administration, when vacancy occurred, he appointed Mi Mabel T. Boardman a Commissioner and the old rule again prevailed. When President Harding came in. he appointed Cuno H. Rudolph, a Re- publican, and James F. Oyster, a Democrat, and at the expiration of their terms President Coolidge reap- pointed them, and the board continued a Republican_and a Democrat un the death of Mr. Oyster, when Pres dent Coolidge appointed Frederick A Fenning, a Republican, making the board entirely Republican. On the resignation of Mr. Fenning, President Coolidge appointed Proctor L. Dough- erty. a Republican, thus continuing & board of one party until the resigna tion of Mr. Rudolph and the appoint- ment of Sidney F. Tal'aferro, a Demo- crat. The board now as to politics is simply what has been the condition, with the few exceptions referred to, since the permanent commission form of government for the District of Co- lumbia was enacted. J. FRED KELLEY. o Flays Deer Importers. Society Threatens Legal Action to Stop Alleged Cruelties. To the Rditor of The Star: In The Star of the 14th instant ap- peared_an Assoclated Press dispatch from Fairbanks, Alaska, stating that 4200 Alaskan reindeer, scattered in pairs in various cities of the States, are helping department store Santa Clauses prove to the youth of the land that Saint Nick and his steeds are ready for their annual Christmas eve ride over the housetops.” The dispatch goes on to say, “Last year one Alaska firm shipped 80 deer, and the venture proved so syccessful that the number was increased to 200 this season.” The venture may have been success- | ful from the viewpoint of the Alaska firm doing the shipping, but if the ex perience of a certain department store in Washington can be taken as a criterion, it was not only not success- ful, but almost disastrous to the proprietors of that store as well as to the helpless animals. Out of six deer | shipped for exhibition, five dled a painful and lingering death, the re sult of long confinement in close quar- ters during transportation and change | of climate and surroundings from cold, fresh out-door alr to stuffy steam heated rooms. The last information this society has regarding the remaining one is that it was sick and not expected to pull through. It is probably dead by this time. This soclety desires to vigorous- ly protest against this practice of shipping these beautiful, helpless and innocent animals from their native northland to suffer and dle in th warm and humid Southern climate, and trusts it will not be obliged to in- voke the law against cruelty to ani- mals to put a stop to it. JOHN P. HEAP, Secretary Washington Humane So- clety. o English Held Ideal For Universal Use To the Rditor of The Star: During nearly 300 years efforts| have been made to devise an arti- ficial language that would be gen- erally acceptable as a universal lan- guage. Nearly 40 years ago Alexan- der Melville Bell stated that ‘“all efforts to create a new language for international use are really unnece: sary, because we already possess vehicle of communication, in our n: tive tongue, which, if not perfect, is sufficlently so, and is at least as good as any that has been proposed. What- ever imperfections may be discerned in English, their removal, if thought necessary, can be easily accomplished in books for foreign learners.” He further stated: “The crowning recom- | mendation of the English language for universality is the simplicity of its Court on the ground that the decision was “in error.” The issue at stake involves important provisions of the revenue law, from a constitutional standpoint. * ok k% Ireland’s army band may visit the United States next year, according to Michael E. Hennessy, sagacious po- litical writer of the Boston Globe. “Mike"” visited the ancestral heath in Erin a few months ago. Among the honors showered upon him by Presi- dent Cosgrave was a specfal concert by “Army Band No. 1.” The organi- zation is econducted by Capt. Brassee, a German turned Irishman, and who formerly led the crack band of %the Kalser's army at Potsdam. Hennessy says that the combination of a Prus- sian leader and Gaelic musicians has resulted in an ensemble without its superfor in Europe. The Bostonian had expected that Brassee's band would blare out for him a program consisting mainly of “The Wearin’ 0" the Green,” “The Harp That Once Through Tara’s Halls” and “St. Pat- rick’s Day in the Mornin’.” But, in- ad, it concentrated on the classics. ‘Mike” was asked to make a speech to the melody men in green. He told them how an American bandsman, who once played the cornet in a coun- town, became President of the United States—Warre! . Harding. grammar. In this respect English is immeasurably superior not only to other national tongues, but also to every form of artificial language that has been devised.” Any recent collection of statistics showing how great is the increased volume of commercial activities now carried on in foreign couptries by representatives from English-speaking countries may be mccepted as fair evidence that the day is approaching when Melville Bell's earnest advocacy of the adaptation of English to inte national needs may bear fruit. In an earlier essay than that from which the above quotations are taken he wrote: “The English language is itself reaching out toward universal- ity under the influence of commercial and soclal necessities. The present form of the language may be consid- ered as classical, and must be allowed to remain substantially what it is.: But English is undoubtedly susceptible of modifying simplifications which would easily and perfectly fit it for in-| ternational use.” FRED DE LAND. Regulars Suffice. From the Baltimore Sun. sioners, the civillan members to bejy, ANSWERS Q. Do all holly trees have berries? —G. H. G, A. Only the female trees produce berries. Q. Did lightning do much damage to the forests of prehistoric times?” A » virgin forests in e not entirely d rted from lightning, cool, dark, moist and ver: his made them much les B than the present-da thinned-out forests. they wer 0. R AL It is a kind of glass droy (ong tail, made by dropping m glass Into water kable for the property (due to internal strain) of bursting into fragments when the wtched or the tail broken It is so called n Prince Rupert, nephew of Ch I, who first brought the drops to England. Q. Why the sandhill country th a re there so few fo of Nebru A. Th the sandhil windblown sands formations. or fossils to have bee streams to this section, < of fossils 6 v from the It may bo pos ished but ot tha rried by Q. When did “In God We Trust” first appear on the coins of this coun- C. 8. A. It appeared in its presence very largely to the in- creased religlous sentiment in _the dreaded crisis of the Civil War. S. P Chase, then Secretary of the T ury, having received a number of ap- peals from devout persons throughout the country suggesting and urging that the Deity be recognized suitably on our colns in a manner similar to that commonly found on the coins of other nations. addressed a letter to the director of the mint, at Philadel phia, stating that “no nation would be strong except in the strength of God or safe except in His defense. The trust of our people in God 1d be declared on our mational coin He ordered that a device be prepared without unnecessary delay, with a motto expressing in the fewest v\'nyvls possible this national recognition. Various mottoes were placed on coins in 1862 and 1863. The first ones bear ing “In God We Trust,” however, were coined in 186 Q. What kind of oil is meant when the Bible say e anointeth my head with oil"?—B. D. A. The holy anointing oil referred to in the Bible had a base of olive oil and was scented with flowery myrrh, sweet cinnamon, sweet calamus and cassia. These ingredients were prob- ably mixed with the oil in powder form, the mixture then heated until the ofl absorbed the odors and allow- ed to stand until the insoluble matter settled and the oil could be decanted. 1864, and owes Q. What British pilot brought down the greatest number of German planes’—A. N. V. A. Maj. William A. Bishop brought down 72 German machines, the largest number officially credited to any Brit- ish pilot, in over 170 air battles. Q. How much land is planted in cranberries?—J. T. H. A. In the past hundred years the area planted to cranberries has been gradually extended until now there are about 30,000 acres under vines with chief centers in eastern Massa- THE ADVANCE BY FRANK 1he recent spectacular advance of «ne French franc must be reckoned as having certain clear political con- sequences in addition to many econ- omic and financial effects. And, of course, the first of these political con- sequences is further to harden French public and political opinion against the Mellon-Berenger debt settlement. When I was in_Paris in the la days of September it was very franl aid that Poincare, either deliberately or because of innate cautions, had ed the moment for ratification, be- the franc had ma ¢ imiproved. In a word, what was meant was that the single change for ratification grew out of the panic condition of the first days of the P care regime, when the mere prospect of a new Merriot cabinet had already sent the franc below 2 cents. At that moment the Frenck Parlia- ment literally abdicated in a terror which was not a little stimulated by the mobs which gathered outside the Palais Bourbon, the building in which the French Chamber meets, and ex pressed their sentiments in cries which translated meant that Herriot should be thrown into the Seine. In that moment Poincare could probably have put through the Chamber any proposal, even the Mellon-Berenger treaty. * ok kK But today the franc has very nearly doubled from the low point of the Summer. And this has been accom- plished without any resort to Amer- ican financial aid. Therefore the popular conception, however er- roneous, is that American support is not nece: ry. And it is emphatically true that the single weighty argu ment for the ratification of the debt settlement consisted in the assertion that the franc and thus the French financial situation could only be saved by American money, which was not to be obtained save as a consequence of debt ratification. What was sald to me in September was that it would not be possible to ol ratification on the present terms unless there should be a new panic, a new collapse of the franc and a new imperative necessity for merican loans. But with the franc its present level mone of these circumstanc Xist, and as was to be expected, opposition to the debt settle- glent.mxl\'hll(‘h never had any popular r political support, has ag: c overwhelming. el ne must recognize, too, that on whole it has been an exceedingly b vantageous thing for France that the restoration of the franc has been achleved without Incurring new for- eign obligations. to obtain American loans easily, many of the necessary reforms, much of the required economy would not have been provided and the fundamental situation would not have been im- proved. * %k ¥ There remains, of course, the larger question ‘as to whether France ca stabilize without the support of f eign and particularly of American finance. Great Britain, with her i finitely greater strength, was not able to do it. Nevertheless, when he took office, Poincare was convinced that under his leadership and through the prestige of his name, France could save herself, and' there ig plain reason fn what has happened since to for- Hify him in his conyiction. Yet, despite present achievement, it remains true that no really hopeful attempt can he made to stabilize un- til the question of the floatinz and short-time debt is sett As long as there are notes to the value of billions of francs maturing at short intervals Scientistsfnow propose to produce artificlal “ghakes.” us. the reg enough. shakings-down are 0 QU BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. Wha isa Prince Rupert’s drop? | Had it bean possible | - | safeg: fec TIONS southern New rn Wiscon- sstern Washington and northwestern Oregon Q. What class o empted from jury servie Special laws in many § ry service lawyers, ph ymen, teachers, police soldiers and railroad men, fireme employes. s there ither ar to the y Tor predicting 'z the infor jureau fnac code of 1909 is tha person who s i or publish any cour terfeit weather forecasts or warnings | of weather conditions, falsely repre sentin such forecasts or warnings to en issued or | hed by the | Weather Bur branch ot the Governme or shall mo- lest or inter h any weather or stor ather map or bulletin 1 ¢ the United 11l be deen r. und uch offense be fined in a s eeding $500, or be imprisoned to exceed 90 days, or be both fined and imprisoned in the discretion of the court.” ngly issuc convictic is Martin Lake 5 rtificial lake which is under construction. It will be the largest artificial lake in America. Its surface area is 40,000 acres and it will impound 530,000,000,000 gallons of water, Q. Did Lafayette visit New York when he was in this country during the Revolution? E A. J. A. Parker whole of the Revolution was never in New York. Q. What s the new name of the Syrian Protestant College of Beirut? G. D. A. Tt is now known as the American University of Beirut. The University rolls fnclude 421 Syrians, %60 Pales tinians, 149 Armenians, 144 Mesopc tamians, 108 Egyptians, 36 Persians, 33 Greeks, 20 other Asians and 51 Europeans and North and South. Americans. Q. Do the Japanese wash their clothes with hot water and soap?— PG A. Much of the washing is done out of doors with plenty of cold water and no seap. Cotton garments are hung up on bamboo poles passed through the armholes, and are pulled smooth and straight before they dry. ’sually silken garments are taken to pieces before washing, are smoothed ut on a long board while wet, then are set up on the board In the sun to dry. Ironing Is unnecessary. There is mo other agency in the | world that can answer as many legiti- mate questions as our free informa- tion bureaw in Washington, D. C. This highly organized institution has been built up and is under the per- sonal direction of Frederic J. Haskin. By keeping in constant touch with Federal bureaus and other educa- tional enterprises it is in a position to pass on to you authoritative informa tion of the highest order. Submit your queries to the staff of experts whose services are put at your free disposal. There is no charge except 2 cents in_stamps for return postage. Address The Evening Star Informa- tion Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, di- rector, Washington, D. C. OF THE FRANC H. SIMONDS. time there is a prospect of a real sur- plus. . It was this circumstance of the floating debt which wrecked the first Belgian plan for stabil zation, and the new effort was not undertaken until Franqui, the financial dictator, had “ooly transformed the floating short term debt into a_long term debt by mere decree. Exactly the same ourse has been followed in Italy. In any event, the next problem for Poin- care will be to deal with the floating debt, but it is vilain that he will be enormously helped if the retusa of ex- ported capital continues, for it will supply a very large accumulation of to permit the funding of the debt. * K K % There remains the very large ques- tion as to whether Poincare really believes in stabilization er valoriza- tion, that is whether he favors fixing a new gold value for the franc, as was done in Belgium, or the slow restoration of the franc to its pre- war gola value. One thing is cer- tain ana that is that when he took oftice he strongly inclined to the lat- ter view. The valorization of the franc would have the advantage of restoring the value of the vast investments of the people of France in the government loans during and after the war. If the franc were stabilized at its pres- ent value, for example, that is five paper franes to one gold franc, these bondholaers would lose four-fifths of thefr investment and the process would amount to an enormous capital levy. This, it may be said, Is the course advocated by all banking and industrial interests. The difficulty with valorization would be that it would gradually ex pand the gold value of the debt of ‘rance until on the basis of a totally restored franc it would exceed $35.- 000,000,000 or a sum equal to the British' debt_and twice that of the American. Such a debt, amounting to half the wealth of France, would in the opinion of all experts be far beyond the capacity of the natlou to’ bear. P I floating L T What is clear is, however, that | the present rise of the franc con tinues, stabilization will come if at Ul at a much higher figure than has been contemplated and mean- time French industry is beginning to suffer because the appreciation of the franc deprived it of that advantage in the world market which has_exp.ained the recent prosperity of French exporters:and the state of approximate balance between ex ports and imports. Thus while the bondholders have profitted, the busi- | ness interest are beginning to be embarrassed. 1f the French situation continues to improve or even if the improve ment to date is solidly maintained one can fairly conclude with respect {of the debt question that the French | will not ratify the existing accord, that they will certainly insist upon uard clauses which do not af the money terms but make French payments to us conditional upon_Germany to France and it 13 far from unlikely that there may be a growing demand for a revision of the money. terms themselves. which has not vet been asked. In any event Poincare is unlikely to bring up the debt question for some time and it is not improbable that he has, as yet, not made up his mind as to what he will ask the French Parliament to do. Before he took office he was certainly opposed to the debtagreement as were the more influential members of his eabl- net and in the present situation theit and the holders are entitled to de- t that the budget has and for first despite the boch balandblt Is no imperious necessity which over- But for most of | mand cash, the situation s precarious, | bears this opinion. Therefore, at most, ® long hiatus is indicated. (Copyright. 1926.)