Evening Star Newspaper, September 2, 1927, Page 8

) . HE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. IRIDAY.. .September 2, 1927 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: 11th 8t. and_Pennsylvania Av New York Office: 110 East 42 St. Chicago _Office: Tower Building. Furopean Ofice: 14 Regent St.. London. England. The Evening Star with the Sun irc edition is Jelivered by carrie e city A 60 cents per month: 43 cents per month: Sundava only. i te wer ‘month. Orders mav he sent hy mail or 1iephone Main 6000, Collection is made by “atrier at and of each month. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. yland and Virginia. vr. $900: 1 mo. 7! Vr. $6.00: 1 mo.. B0 11wl $3°00° 1 m Ouly und Sundav el 1 All Other States and Canada. nl vr. $12.00: 1 mo.. $1 00 Doy oty Sunday § ez ®$R00: 1 mo- © 78 <unday onlv... 1vel $400° 1 mo. Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press t4 exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dis- patehes creditid 1o 1t or not otharwise ered ftad in this naper and also the local news pubhished herein. = All rizhte of bublicxtion £t sprcial dispatehes herein are also reservad. No More One-Man Cars. on by the Public Utilities Commission, reached yesterday, to deny the application of the ‘Washing- ton Railway & Electric Co, for per- mission to install additional one-man cars maintains the policy heretofore adopted. While it may precipitate an application for an upward revision of the fare schedule, this ruling will be received with gratitude by the public, which desires an improvement rather than a deterioration of the service. ‘The commission did not act upon a resolution proposed by the Engineer Commissioner directing the retirement of the front-exit, one-man cars now in use on the Anacostia line and their replacement by rear-exit cars similar to those in use on Wisconsin avenue, or by two-man cars, though that res- olution will later be considered. 1t the traction companies should apply, as it is indicated they intend to do, for an increase of fares, the new commission will soon have before it the task of considering the whole question of local rapid transit. A re- valuation of the properties of the com- panies may be fnvolved. Since the préceding valuation by the former commission there has been a change in the rapid transit situation. Motor busses have come into use, operated both by the traction companies and by others. They carry a large num- ber of passengers, some of whom are drawn from the former patronage of the street cars. Meanwhile, the num- ber of motor cars has greatly in- creased in the District, affording in- ' dividual transportation to an unde- termined number of people. These changes have undoubtedly af- fected the business of the traction companies. There has been no in- crease in trackage, for it has been the policy of the Public Utilities Com- mission to provide for the greater demand for rapid transit by means of bus lines rather than track-borne cars. Therefore, there has been no increase An capital investment, though possibly replacement valuation of the traction plants would be higher than under the previous estimate, owing to in- creased prices for materials and labor. The question is whether the replace- ment valuation is to govern. On that point doubtless there will be contro- wversy. Denial of additional one-man car service is in line with the policy of maintaining a high standard in the District. Undoubtedly the public pro- test against the extension of this pervice in the particular instance under consideration was due to the fear that from this precedent would follow other increases in the number and proportion of one-man cars on the local lines. Had the commission decided otherwise than it did, it would ‘be constantly faced with requisitions for an extension of the one-man car service throughout the District, and the issue was in effect between vir- tually certain deterioration of the service through the adoption of an economical expedient and possible in- .crease in the fare rate. Even though there may be such a revision—and it should be granted only upon a positive showing of need based upon actual business—car-riding Washington feels that this present ruling makes for greater safety and better service. ———ra——————— Cabaret girls in Berlin kiss a. bald- headed patron and leave lip marks on his pate which arouse the hilarity of the general throng. The practical Joke is substituted for genuine wit. The involuntary participant in the *“act” should be entitled to a share in the salary. i East-to-West Flying. With the apparent failure of the second overseas expedition from east o west, it beginsto Rok as it there was some almost impenetrable barrier to a non-stop airplane flight over the Atlantic in the direction of the United States. Statistics laboriously gathered by the Navy concerning all of the ocean flights that have been made since Col. Charles Lindbergh startied the world last May by completing the New York-to-Paris jump, show that the illfated Nungesser and Coli flight was undertaken on the best day, as far as meteorological conditions were concerned, that could have been pick- ed during the last ten years. If this is the case, ther it is hardly possible that the Princess Lowenstein-Wertheim ex- pedition, which left England on an ambitious flight to Canada, but which, dospite an intense search, i3 still miss- ing in the ocean wastes, could have fared well in the matter of weather eonditions that were encountered. In the same report of the Navy the fact is stressed that while only one decent flying day has been had in ten years, and that one was promptly soized upon by the gallant Frenchmen for thelr east-to-west attempt, there have been comparatively only a few days, four or five in number, when conditions could be said to be auspi- clous for a west-to-east flight during the year. These days, the report points out, were used for the four sujcessful American crossings, those o' Lind- bergh, Chamberlin, Byrd and Brock. It is probably very natural for America to believe that efficiency of design and construction and skill of pllotage is responsible, to a large de- gree, for the triumphs that have been won this year in overseas fying. Cer- tainly American planes and pilots have demonstrated conclusively that they are among the best in the world, it not | the best, and that the American air- cooled motor leads the way in avia- tion engine design. But it is signifi- ~ant, however, that never has an ocean | crossing been made from east to west in a heavier-than-air machine, except, of course, the flight from England to Labrador of the Army round-the-world fiyers and flights to South America, and that two well considered and care- fully planned attempts have ended in failure. 1t the Princess Wertheim plane, with its three occupants, is not found five persons will this year have paid the penalty of trying the east-to-west crossing. Tt is a well known fact that prevailing winds mitigate against suc- cessful Europe-United States flying, and it may well be that lack of suf- Nclent gasoline to combat these winds on the long trip is responsible for both disasters. The margin of safety in land planes for ocean flying is too small as it is, and those who in the future would attempt the difficult and hazardous flight will do well to ponder deeply before they set out on an expe- dition to solve the mysteries of the cast-to-west Atlantic crossing. ———r——————— Orders From Moscow. Meeting behind closed doors yester- day, the Communist party of the United States, in session in New York —it is officlally known as the Work- ers' Party—denled leadership to Wil- liam Z. Foster and favored Jay Love- stone, the secretary and temporary successor 1o the late Charles E. Ruth- enberg. This action, it was reported, was taken at the instance of the Com- munist Internationale at Moscow, which ordered the Foster group to cease opposition. This was not the only message which came from Mos- cow to the Communists in session. One was recelved that commended them for their part in the Passaic strike, the New York needle trade strikes and the recent anthracite strike, all of which were characterized as indications of growth of Com- munism in the United States. In this message from Moscow, which was given out for publication, was a denunclation of the “growing reaction of the powerful American imperial- ism which fights every suppressed people, from Nicaragua to China,” and a condemnation of the execution of Sacco and Vanzett! as “brutal class injustice” and the beginning of “a new campaign of persecution against the foreign-born working masses” by the American Government. It is important to note these con- tacts between the American Com- munist party and the Third Interna- tionale at Moscow, for they distinctly reveal the commanding influence ex- ercised by the Russian Soviets over the extreme radicals in this country. It has been heretofore explicitly an- nounced that this convention of the Communists was to consider ways and means of promoting the cause in the United States and establishing a So- viet government here. Yet there are radicals not of the extreme type, but bordering on it, who deny any connec- tion between their movement and the bolshevik organization. A review of the names of those iden- tified with the Communist movement in the United States shows a major- ity of them to be obviously alien, while it 1s believed that many, if not most, of the others have undergone a ‘sea change” in transition and translitera- tion. It will be remembered that many of those who participated in the first bolshevik movement in Rus- sia, notably Trotsky, changed their names to Slavic form, but withal there 1s a percentage of distinctly American workers in the Communist cause in this country who are quite as amenable to directions from Mos- cow as the others. There is no occasion for serious con- cern on the score of a possible Com- munist revolution in this country. Yet it is well to follow the movement closely, as it is evident the Govern- ment is doing. Publicity is a weapon of defense against these mischiet mak- ers. The more their meetings and speeches and actions are exploited the better .prepared the country will be to resist them If they should ever undertake a subversive movement. They have their own press, with its cirgulation among the discontented, and the native loyal press must keep pace with this influence in informing the non-radicals of America fully as to the claims and charges and pur- poses of Moscow-directed groups. ——————— One way to make aviation even more dangerous would be to introduce some form of, sky polo. Levine may not qualify as an ace. He will live in aeronautic history as the joker. e e Animal Laughter. A controversy has started between Prof. Averling of London and Prof. Boiton of Philadelphia over the ques- tion of the laughter of animals. Prof. Averling says that the hyena is the only animal besides man that laughs. Prof. Bolton says that cows, calves, horses and monkeys laugh, as well as dogs, which are the most cacchinatory of all the lesser creatures. It is a question whether the hyena really laughs. The sound that that unpleasant beast makes is not to be regarded as an evidence of good na- ture or pleasure. It sounds like laugh- ter, but that is simply a peculiarity of the vocal manifestation. Just so the jackass has been accredited with laughter, whereas his voice is lifted not in pleasure and is merely a broken series of sounds that somebody once upon a time thought to be an exag- gerated chuckle. Dogs laugh silently, usually with the tail, though some of them by a peculiar inversion manifest their pleasure by a curling of the lip in an expression that is usually assumed by the angry canine. ‘Whether cats are to be considered as laughing animals because they purr is a question. The rumble that comes from a cat's throat is more a token THE EVEN of contentment than of hilarity. The “kinking” kitten, moving with ludi- crous stiff-legged sidewise jumps, is more definitely hilarious than the qujet cat that turns on its tracheal buzzer. Just how cows and horses laugh Prof. Bolton does not explain. A horse will whinny, but whether that sound is one of amusement or of greeting is in doubt. Of all the placid unemo- tional creatures known intimately the cow is about the most sedate and un- responsive. The voice of the cow is certainly not suggestive of laughter. It is a plea, a summons, a warning, perhaps, but scarcely a guffaw. This disputation between the Lon- don and Philadelphia savants, who are specialists in psychology, will, per- haps, provoke a flood of observation from the students of animal life and, possibly, instances of veritable laugh- ing creatures will be adduced to en- large the category of Dr. Bolton. R The World Flyers. While Edward Schlee and Willlam Brock were chafing in Constantinople yesterday under the Turkish red tape which forbade them continuing on thelr fast round-the-world airplane trip until official permission to fly over the country was given, a brother of Schlee was in Washington discussing with the Navy Department the most hazardous part of their expedition, which will be reached when they at- tempt to cross the Pacific. ‘Schlee and Brock had made fast time over the ocean and over Europe until they encountered the unexpected delay of nine hours at Constantinople, but a study of their itinerary after they reach Toklo discloses that they will have many obstacles to overcome In the twenty-four-hundred-mile jump over the Pacific to a small island. Their Atlantic flight, from New- foundland to England, in twenty-three hours, lends encouragement to their followers that they will be able to span the Pacific successfully. They are both experienced airmen and if the trick can be done they will prob- ably do it, to establish a round-the- world record that would make Jules Verne sit up and rub his eyes. ot e e Traffic regulations to teach pedes- trians how to walk the crossings will be incomplete until they reach the citizen who pursues an impetuous course in a shower while blinding himself with an umbrella. § i o ey Congressional effort to establish the metric system will never make much headway with the persons who insist on saying “two bits” instead of a quarter of a dollar. e e R The old press agent theory that any kind of notoriety is good advertising is In danger of being overworked since the grand jury has become the avenue of 50 much publicity. e Canadian epicures are demanding a. little more reciprocity as to the qual- ity of the liquors interchanged by smugglers. One of the influences against which an aspiring statesman has to protect himself is that of the illinformed vol- unteer press agent. For one man in politics who does not choose, there are dozens willing to be chosen. — e 'SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Copper Deluge. Away back yonder in the day ‘When costs were not so great, $2 tags were made to say “$1.98.” Alas, what troubles were set free, Increasing up to date, ‘When plain $2 came to be $1.98! The coppers jingled loud and strange. ‘The din we must abate! We babbled, as we'd count the change, “$1.98.” A handful for the carfare went, And two for things we ate; From this springs all our discontent; “$1.98." Service. “You have always worked hard for re-election.” “Yes,” answered Senator Sorghum. “A statesman’s business is to serve his country. And how can a states- man be of practical service unless he stays in office?” International Finance. ‘We argue many a question deep And as we start anew, In mind we always have to keep Somebody's I. 0. U. Jud Tunkins says a man who knows exactly what he is talking about must spend so much time investigating that he is liable to have not much left for conversation. “Money is a great influence for democracy,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown. “The unlettered man usually understands its value better than the philosopher. Economy. “The court jester has become entire- ly obsolete.” “Ah, yes!” sald the old retainer. “We must economize and depend for our laughter on the bright sayings of our precocious children.” The Unsleeping Wiz. ‘Why should a man his time employ On things that he cannot enjoy? So, Edison works all the night To use his own electric light. “Folks dat keeps on forever smilin’ don’t allus scatter sunshine,” said Uncle Eben. “Dey jes' gits folks nerv- ous wif curiosity as to what de joke's about.” r———— A Way to Stop Them. The Dayton Daily News. In Denmark the government puts poets on its pay roll, probably so they won't have to keep on writing. ——————————— Eternal Fitness. The Fort Worth Record-Telegram, After all, when one sees a hen- pecked man one rarely escapes the feeling that there is such a thing as the eternal fitness of things. Antiquateg. The Albany Eumnlq:"? Leap year is coming it isn’t as important as ce more, but t used to be. NG STAR, W ASHINGTON, Call a friend a llar and he will get over it. Tap him softly on the jaw and he will live to call you buddy again. Steal his purse and watch him hit you for a loan. Run away with his wife and he may be secretly pleased. Refuse to loan him your fountain pen, however, and you make an enemy for life! * ok kK The fountain pen is perhaps the greatest test of friendship in the world | today. If you want to hurt the average office associate to the core of his be- ing, just refuse, even in your most polite manner, to allow him to sign his name with your private pen. Now some persons regard fountain pens as quite as personal as tooth brushes. Perhaps there are not 10 men in civilization who would ask for the loan of one's tooth brush, but the number who will unblushingly ask for one’s pen is as the sands of the sea- shore, or, to use a more up-to-date fig- ure, as the pretty legs of the flappers in_any large city. What right has any human being to | ask for such a personal article as the | pen of one's bosom? * ok ok Xk Here Is the deft instrument, whether | in red, green or what color, with which one indites those sweet mes- sages to Myrtle. This is the suave writer wherewith one writes those magic bits of paper that pass in lieu of real money nowa- days. This 1s a miracle in itself, to many of us, that money may be paid out and received without a cent, red or otherwise, ever appearing in the trans- action. So vast s the trust of all of us in THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. the faith of the rest of us (aided by a few laws) that every one w checks without thought, and rec in exchange therefor whatever one | desires, according to the size of the | check, of course. The check is placed in the bank, | and the now rightful owner of the | sum of money represented by the face | value of the draft proceeds to write | another such check for some one else, | who. in his turn, blindly accepts it. | All this time not a dollar of either sum has moved an iota. Such is the marvel of banking, which, like stocks and bonds, remains a deep mystery to every one except those astute gen- tlemen, the bankers. * %k ok ok Since money is what every one | wants In this day and age, it would | seem that bankers are the most sensi- | ble gentlemen in the world, since they o directly to the source of supply. The remainder of us do all sorts of tricks to earn money. One bakes bread, another hammers industriously on rivets, another on the typewriter, a fourth turns somersaults on a vaudeville stage, another carries mail in an airplane, the next delivers ora- | tions. All these and a million more do what they do, at bottom, with the expectation of being rewarded with S0 much cold cash for what they have just accomplished. Generally they are, | The banker alone of all the men | | these | alas, | strument D. €. FRIDAY. SEPTEMBER we know goes direct to the money itself, and does not bother his head with these petty subterfuges which the rest of humanity call “making a living.” Is not the banker an eminently wise man? ‘Well, rather, * kK K A fountain pen, then, being such a close personal friend, ought not to be loaned out to any Tom, Dick or Harry who comes along. Let him have recourse to plebian pens, such as do duty in post offices. It is true that their nibs are very much the worse for wear, and that their shafts, or whatever one calls the part one puts the fingers around, may be smeared with lollypop from the ambitious hand of little Mary, who but a_minute ago indited a few lines to_daddy. We hate post office pens, and bank pens, and cannot blame any one for wanting to borrow our grand fountain pen. It is true that both these great in- stitutions have made enormous strides, in the past 10 years, to raise the standards of their free pen serv- with most Jaudable results, One can te his signature today without getting more than two l'ots on the paper and half a square inch of ink on one's fingers, whereas before the war one had to have recourse to a towel and a square yard of blotting paper. Surely this is a progressive coun- try. * ok ok % ‘The very memory of the old pens, however, lingers in the popular mind, so that every person with ordinary sense wants to borrow a fountain pen when he signs on the dotted line. What causes the favored owners of pens to hide them from the sight of man Is the very memory, of the way those old famiifar pens wrote. The multitude of fingers and in- | elinations in writing which ruined the points of the old familiar pens are the very human factors which will spoil even the hest constructed writing in- of today. One may be able to throw Fis foun- tain pen into the Grand Canyon, as the makers beseech one to, without causing so much as a scratch on its lovely surface, but, ah! throwing it into the outstretched paws of an office full of assoclates is distinctly another matter. * % ok X The hardy borrower of fountain pens never stops to realize that the news gets around. “Have you a fountain pen?” “No, but Jim has.” Soon Jim finds himselt maintaining a pen for the use of the whole estab- lishment, when he fondly thougat the thing was his one and only love. Shall a man keep his pen filled with the finest ink for the benefit of others who contribute not a cent to its up- keep? Common sense says “No,” as em- phatic a negative as Billy uses when you ask him to desist from swinging on the velvet curtains just afler he has finished eating his buttered toast. And he is right. Nof WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. With the exception of Frank O., Lowden, practically all the men in the | 1928 presidential limelight — Republi- | cans and Democrats alike—are already in high office. Speculation is accord ingly rife as to whether “eth siderations” require them. to al con- | resign | befor: shying their hats into the! White House ring. Precedent justi-| fies their hanging on to what they | have while aspiring to that which | some of them want. Gossip in this connection ranges particularly around | Secretary Hoover and Vice D’resident | Dawes. But those two eminent 1-‘ed»i eral officials can point to no less dis- | tinguished an example than William | Howard Taft. The Chief Justice was Secretary of War in Roosevelt's cabi- net throughout the aggressive cam- paign to nominate him for the presi- dency in 1908. Harking back to the | earliest days of the Republic, Madison, Monroe and Adams remained cabinet officers after both their nomination | and_election as Presidents. Warren G. Harding and Hiram W. Johnson held fast to Senate seats while gun- ning for convention delegates in 1920. Numerous State governors ran_for President while retaining office. Mar- tin Van Buren remained Vice Pregi- dent until after ho was elected Presi- lent. * ok ok * Good stories are cropping up at the State Department in connection with | rulings just promulgated regarding rank and precedence of American of- ficials abroad. It's now clearly de- fined whether a counselor of embassy or legation may walk into dinner ahead of a mere secretary, and just what place in the receiving line a military or naval attache is entitled to. Folks at home may think these things trifles light as air, but forcign service officials—to say nothing of their wives—take them with tremen- dous serlousness. Not long ago a Jjunior American consul, somewhere overseas, received an extra ticket for a court function. As he had no wife, two American women, bitter social rivals, badgered him for it. With rare diplomacy, he announced he'd bestow it upon the elder of the two. Neither went. Secretary Hughes once discus: ed precedence with this observe “The only place I want to be first, Hughes sald, “is at a fire.” * ok kK Ve, the new American figure of speech immortalized by Lindbergh, now has a companion piece. It is “Us,” and is the name of the new of- ficial organ of the National Constitu- tional Liberty League of America, This is the New York organization, headed by Assemblyman Louis A. Cu- viller, ardent wet, which aims to force the fight for repeal of the eighteenth amendment onto the floors of Con- gress. The subtitle of “Us” is “The American People.” * ok K K Switzerland has just won an impor- tant diplomatic victory at Washing- ton. It concerns Swiss cheese. This succulent specialty henceforward will be officially known as “Switzerland cheese.” Formal authority was se- cured from the United States Patent Office. The Swiss Cheese Association, it appears, tried to copyright “Swiss cheese.” But as the Federal authori- ties found that the outstanding char- acteristic of Swiss cheese is a series of holes, and thereupon decreed that a hole is nothing with something around it, no copyright could be grant- od. Hundreds of thousands of pounds of “Swiss” cheese are manufactured in Amerlcan dairies. Some of it is regu- larly exported to Switzerland. At any rate, according to Swiss authorities here, “most imported Swiss cheese s0ld In this country is no more native to Switzerland than is American chop suey to China.” * % Xk % Former Gov. McCray's farewell hours in Atlanta this week were de- voted to calls of thanks upon his jail- ers for kindly treatment during his three years there. Mrs. Mabel Walker Willebrandt's manifold duties as As- sistant Attorney General include su- pervision of United States prisons. The other day she addressed a national prison conference at Tacoma and pald a warm tribute to penitentiary officials. declared Mrs. Willebrandt, “are doing far more effective service in convict reform than all the psychologists, theorists, sentimentalists and profes- sional uplifters put together. Not all wardens live up to their opportunities, | Every year 400,000 convicts leave jails and prisons in America more embit- tered toward society than when they entered, because so many officials in charge of prisons are mot practical, educated, forward - looking, experi- mentally minded men.” it Among numerous plans thrown out of gear by the I-do-not-choose-to-run manifesto of Calvin Coolidge are the hopes of various cities regarding next year's Republican national conven- tion. San Francisco was “all set” to capture the jamboree, at which the President was to be renominated. But now comes a situation which finds California’s favorite son—Herbert Hoover—well out in front, and that'll scare any number of national commit- teemen, with other axes to grind, out of all thought of going to the Golden Gate in June, 1928. By the same token, Chicago appears to be barred, for Illinois has a brace of aspirants in the persons of Lowden and Dawes. Kansas City and St. Louis have their eyes on the Democratic convention, but the “Jim"” Reed menace threatens the ambitions of both Missouri metrop- olises. New York ever since the Al Smith orgy in Madison Square Garden, in 1924, has abandoned all hope of an- other Democratic convention for ages to come. As neither Michigan nor Minnesota has statesmen with presi- dential bees, JDetroit and Minneapolis, respectively, may win the party con- claves, * ok ok ok Maj. Gen. Charles P. Summerall, chief of staff of the United States Army, who is about to swing around the eircle on a Nation-wide tour of Army ppsts, omits no opportunity to talk preparedness to civilian communi- ties. “The other day in the West, Gen. Summerall hinted at a constitutional amendment. “I am not in favor of billeting soldiers in the houses of citi- zens without compensation,” he said, “but 1 hope some day to see the pro- vision which forbids billeting taken out of the Constitution of the United States.” The chief of staff was re- ferring to the inadequate housing facilities existing when we entered the World War. (Copyright. 1927.) s Queries About Amber Lights at Crossings To the Editor of The Star: After a trip to the Pacific Coast and return, passing through about 200 cities and towns, I wonder of what use is the amber light on our traffic sig- nals as used here in the District of Columbia, all traffic standing still. I could not help but note the smooth running of traffic in some of these cities and towns. Why are not all left-hand turns made while the amber light is on? Here we wait two com- plete changes of lights to make a left turn. Also why not right-hand turns on all lights—red, amber, green? 2. . ADOLPH. —.— Noise. From the Boston Herald. Letters were addressed to the Spde- tator in Addison’s time protesting against street noises. Ralph Crotchett wished to be appointed comptroller of the London cries, yet certain cries of that city and of Paris were most mu- sical, unlike those disturbers in Bos- ton of early rest, the milk men, with their rumbling carts, sounding as if great cannon were passing under the windows. There are many books about street cries. Kastner wrote a sym- nd Charpentier his opera with these Parisian themes. 0ld Boston had its street cries. The New England Magazine published an interesting article about them a good many years ago, Most intolerable fl§ those who would ding and talk quie{ s music in a res- “These so-called hard-bolled jallers,” | taurant, g o 1927 PHILOSOPHIES BY GLENN FRANK I have been thinking tc ight of a friend of mine who was born seven centuries too late. He would have been at home in the thirteenth century. He is ill at ease in the twentieth century. He thinks the only cure for the evils of modern times is for us to beat a hasty retreat to the Middle Ages and to adopt mediavelism as a way of life, walled towns and all. He never tires, when we meet, of contrasting the pre-machine age with tL's machine age of ours; and one of his favorite arguments is that in the Middle Ages men produced commodi- ties for use while in the present age men produce commodities for sale. Here are some of the things he says: In the Middle Ages, the consumer told the producer what he wanted. Now the consumer asks the pro- ducer what is being manufactured this season. In the Middle Ages, the things men made were consciously adapted to the human and even personal needs of the men who wer to use them. low the things men make are ad- justed to the necessities and limita- tions of the machines that make them. In the Middle Ages, the number of commodities was relatively small. ow the number of commodities is very large. In the Middle Ages, the character of commodities was varied. Now the character of commodities tends to uniformity. . In the Middle Ages, the quality of commodities was generally high. Now the quality of commodities is generally low. In the Middle Ages, the primary thought was to make goods for customers, Now the main thought is to find customers for our goods. In the Middle Ages, the things men made were marked by good material, skilled workmanship, durability and beauty. Now the general run of cheap ma- chine-made articles ara marked by shoddy material, a deadly machine sameness instead of the rich indi- viduality of skilled workmanship, a tendency to wear out quickly, and ugliness, I do not take my friend too seriously. Distance lends enchantment; I sus- pect that there were men in the Mid- dle Ages who long for the good old ages of their ancient ancestors; but I like to spend an hour with my friend, I'stening to him long for the Middle Ages, after 1 have watched the bab- bitt back-patting of a pep meeting in which the machine age is made the carrier of all virtues. (Copyright. 1927.) A Juggernaut in the Agricultural Grounds To the Editor of The Star: Tuesday, exactly at noon, a touring car of expensive make, resembling a Packard, raced through the Depart- ment of Agriculture grounds at the rate of at least 45 miles an hour, with a siren going that had a note of authority much like the fire engines. It headed for the old National Mu- seum, and, as far as I know, stopped there. I just managed to jump in time, and if there had been a large group of youngsters in the way there would have been a catastrophe, as the machine could not have been seen rounding the curved thoroughfare un- til it was less than 50 feet away. If there is any car in the District hesides the ones belonging to the Fire Department that has the privilege of tearing through the streets at such high speed, everybody ought to know about 1t. There are so many Fords nowadays that try to push you off the road by scaring you with a loud siren that if I had been driving my old buss instead of walking on this occasion 1 | do not believe I would have given this bird a thing, although I realize that one of us would probably have been carried out of the wreckage feet first. J. G. PRATT. ] Women Should Have Municipal Duties To the Editor of The Stai Your editorial, “Women Street Cleaners,” quoted by the Boston Tran- script of August 29, {is drenched through with “municipal sense,” which is common sense. Women should have a place in municipal affairs, and make a clean-up not only in the streets but the whole municipal household and make cities human and a delight and a joy to live in. Fifteen English cities are now in correspondence with a like number of American _cities, together with the mayor of Baden-Baden, who has had “Boston Folder” translated and mailed to each mayor in the German Re- public. WILLIAM A. RYAN, * Promoter, World League of Cities. Boston, Mass. Make Improvements Now to Relieve Building Slump To the Editor of The Sta The sudden slump in building opera- tions in Washington has resulted in considerable unemployment of me- chanics in the various building trades, such as carpenters, plasterers, paint- ers and the like. With Winter ap- proaching, it becomes a matter of con- cern that so many men, many of whom have families to support, are without work. ‘The purpose of this letter is to sug- gest that all persons who have con- templated making improvements along building lines have their work done this Fall as far as possible. Those who intend to have work done anyway can, by pressing their plans now, have the satisfaction of knowing that while getting their work done they will be helping many families to weather the ‘Winter. F. G. CAMPBELL. N How Does Anarchist Define His Creed? T> the Editor of The Star: 1 have read so much recently in con- nection with the Sacco-Vanzetti case about anarchists that I am curious to know how the present-day anarchist defines his creed. I am familiar with the etymological definition of the term; but so many expressions have other than their etymological significance that the anarchist’s definition might not accord with the definjtion of the dictionary, WILLIAM TINDALL. R Peace Better Than Trade. From the Salém (Mass.) News. French and German delegates have signed a trade agreement providing for a lower tariff between those coun- tries. Some fear is expressed that this will affect American trade. Ameri- can products enjoy a lower tariff than those provided by the agreement. The French may decide it to be necessary, to keep their agreement with the Ger- mans, to raise the American rates. But one possible result is that the new German rates will be applied to all imports. But even if the United States lost every dollar of its trade with France, that might not be the worst thing that could happen. More inti- mate trade relations between France and Germany ought to make wars less likely. Every such commercial tie works for peace. The broils of France and Germany have kept the world stirred up for centurles. If they can be drawn so close together by trade relations that they would stop fight- ing such a result would he worth more to the United States than any possible trade profits. ANSWERS TO Q. How old was Jack Johnson when he fought Pat Lester in 19267 ~—T. H. A. He was then 48 and Lester was 24. Johnson won the decision. Q. Were there e of the Mississippi?—! A. Buffalos existed east of the Mississippi River at the time when the first explorers visited that part of the country. They were probably killed off before the beginning of the | nineteenth century, for by 1850 none | remained east of the dry plains. Q. Was the placing of the body of Christ in a sepulchre hewn from rock in keeping with Jewish custom? —F. H. B. A. The ancient Jews of Palestine buried their dead by placing the corpse either in the earth or in caves hewn out of the rock. Sometimes the sepulchre was dug in the ground in the neighborhood of the family dwell- ing. More frequently, however, rocks were excavated so as to form com partments or galleries, with as many vaults as desired. These vaults were known as “kokim.” The burial place was often in a garden situated at least 60 cubits distant from the city. The site was usually marked by a whitewashed stone. Q. What is meant by a buckaroo? —R. W. A. As used in the West, it is a cor- | ruption of vaquero, which means a cowboy. Q. Please explain the term cloture. —0. K. E. A. Cloture is a method of ending debate and securing_a vote in the Legislature. In the House of Repre- sentatives no member may speak on a question for more than one hour in regular session, nor more than five minutes in committee of the whole, without unanimous consent. Debate is generally ended by moving the pre- vious question. In the United States | Senate there was no cloture rule un- | til the prolongation of debate during | the war compelled the adoption of a | mild rule, which can be used in ex-| tremo cases. er buffalos east w Q. Does radio have any effect upon the weather?—B. W, S. A. The Weather Bureau says that weather. How clouds are formed and how lightning and thunder are produced are pretty well known in every particular. It is also known that radio does not affect any one of the things that lead to the formation of clouds or to the production of lightning and thunder. Q. Does the owl, which is sup- posed to be such a wise old bird, really live to a very old age?—N. N. A.” Carl W. Neumann, a German authority, says that the life expec- tancy of the owl is 68 years, but this is not unusually long, compared With that of other birds, such as the falcon, vulture, golden eagle, swan, goose, eider duck, raven and parrot. Q. What is meant by Karma?— - A. It means the whole ethical con- sequence of one’s atts considered as fixing one's lot in the future state. In theosophy Karma is the doctrine of fate as the inflexible result of cause and effect; the law of retribution. Q. How long has it taken Niagara Falis to cut its way back to its pres- ent site? How far does it recede an- nually?—W. C. A. Geologists differ in their esti- mates of the number of years required to form the present Niagara cataract, these figures ranging from 7,000 to 70,- 000 years. Horseshoe Falls, the larger of the two cataracts, is now receding at the rate of about five feet a year, the American Falls only a few inches. Q. How large are the playgrounds swimming pools in the District? A. Pools are located on the follow- ing playgrounds: Georgetown, Thirty- third and Volta place; Rosedale, Sev- enteenth and Kramer streets north- east, and Howard at Fifth and W streets northwest (colored). Each pool will accommodate 100 bathers at a time. The pools are of the open-air type, 28 feet wide and 75 feet long, with a sloping depth of 3% feet to 6% feet. Each pool holds about 86,000 gallons of water, which is supplied from the city main. The water is BY FREDERIC J. HASK |land grants, radio waves have no effect on the | QUESTIONS ‘The water off while they are in use. is frequently tested by the health au- thorities, and the pools are kept in good sanitary condition, Q. Are there any Indians in North Carolina now—E. T. A. The latest records show 2,833 Indians in North Carolina. Q. Does the woman who is empow- ered to sign the President’'s name to imitate his signature or use her own style of handwriting?— N. M. A Q. Do strawberrics grow in Alaska? -5 A. They can be raised successtully and profitably and are destined to be an important branch of horticulture. Q. In what part did Louise Homer make her debut?—J. P, J. A. Mme. Homer first appeared as Leonora in “Favorita” in 1898. Q. What is the difference in the food value of white and brown eggs?— A. Other things being equal, color is of no importance as far as food value is concerned. Q. Is it possible to travel by rail from Calcutta to Mandalay via Assam?—R. E. A. There are no rail connections from the ends of the tracks which par- tially operate between Calcutta and Mandalay by way of Assam. Q. Ts any part of Washington be- low sea level?—J. H. B. A. No part of Washington is below sea level. The lowest sections are at river level, which is about one foot She uses her natural style. above sea level. The Geological Sur- vey says that the highest point in the District of Columbia is at Tennally- town, 420 feet above sea level. Q. What does ligan include?—V. 8. A. Ligan refers to goods sunk in the sea, but tied to a buoy so that they may be found again. Q. T have a record played hy Hugn Kreisler, violoncellist. JIs the artist related to Fritz Kreisler?—P, A. The two are brothers, Q. When will thé next meeting of the Mexican Claims Commission be | held?—M. G. A. The commission has been extend- ed two years to 1 The commission will resume its sittings some time in October on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. | Q. When did the present method of | preserving grape juice without fer- mentation start?—E. C. A. While the Romans and the Greeks preserved grape juice, the present commercial industry was founded in Vineland, N. J., about 1870. The in- dustry has grown considerably in the United States since the passing of the Volstead act. | Q. What was the production of the {Burma ruby mines last year?—R. D. A. They produced during the year | ending ¥ebruary 28, 1926, rubles valued at approximately $100,000. Q. Who was the architect for the Pan-American Building and when was it built?—K. L. A. The architects were Albert Kel- sey and Paul P. Cret. The corner | stone was laid May 11, 1908, and the building completed April 26, 1910, Q. Who was the first member of Congress to be buried in the District of Columbia?—M. C. A. Naisworthy Hunter, a delegate from the Territory of Mississippi, was the first to die. His death occurred March 11, 1802, and he was buried in Georgetown. 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 in- formation of the highest order. Sub- mit your queries to the stafl of ex- perts whose services are put at your free disposal. There is no charge, ez- cept 2 cents in stamps for return postage. Address The Evening Star filtered and the pools are so construct- ed that an overflow is always going Information Bureau, Frederic J. Has- kin, director, Washington, D. C. Great significance is seen here in the new commercial treaty between France and Germany by which thera are mutual concessions of most-fa- vored-nation treatment. The develop- ment is regarded by American ob- servers as one of the most important steps taken since the World War to- ward real peace and good will in Eu- rope. “The two erstwhile foes,” says the Atlanta Journal, “thus ending a long and embittered tariff controversy, grant mutual favol so that agricul- tural products of France and manu- factured goods of Germany will move over the international border to the economic benefit of both sides. More- over, France renounces her privileges under article 18 of the peace of Ver- sailles, which permitted her to seize private German property within her houndaries ‘as a measure of reprisal for default on reparation payments.’ It is a good day for Europe and for the world when conditions which tended to perpetuate ill will thus give way to friendly coworking.” “One of the important milestones passed in the era of post-war recon- struction,” is the estimate of the Providence Bulletin, which observes that “German mechanical and chemi- cal products again will appear in France and the agricultural products of ¥France will now find their way into Germany. This means,” continues the Bulletin, “a new or revived mar- ket for French wine, one of the in- dustries on which France depends for her economic security. The Oklahoma y Oklahoman views Germany as “rising safely and surely from mental and physical poverty under the beneficent and tonic influence of reason and fact.” EEE “One of the best results of this trade treaty,” according to the Hamil- ton (Ontario) Spectator, “is that it ex- presses Germany’s interest in western rather than eastern Europe. There has been a fear rather than a feeligg that ambitious men of the imperial school might endeavor to turn Ger- many's purpose in the direction cf controlling Russia. Among the Ger mans there is an antipathy to the Muscovite hordes, which comes of the unity of the Teuton with the Gallic wesf The further thought is ex: pressed by the Ithaca Journal-News that “France and Germany together can pretty well dominate the situa- tion,” while “their rivairy and grow- ing hostility would be apt to lead to new and dangerous combinations.” “Each nation,” observes the Louis. ville Courier-Journal, “recognizes the other, not as a competitor, but as a buyer of the goods that it sells, and a seller of the goods it buys. The one is the complement of the other, a fact as true in commercial rela- tions bétween France and Germany as the interdependence of Ruhr coal and Alsace iron. Recognition of this obvious status should redound to the progress, prosperity and peace of the . two leading continental countries. The Rochester Times-Union points out that ‘¢he’ two nations are so dif- New Franco-German Treaty Called Important Milestone that they ought to get along well with each other, especially since, in the flelds where competition might be keenest, combinations have come about to reduce it to a minimum.” The Charleston Daily Mail holds that in tearing down tariff barriers, “the ill will and suspicion that figured 1 their erection are lessened materially and the way is opened for the growth of better relations.” With a reference to the fact that “there are, it is estimated, some 2§ tariff walls existing among the vai- ous European nations today,” the Bt. Paul Dispatch suggests that “should a general revision of tariffs take place throughout Europe, it i3 mot improbable that the effects would be felt to a considerable extent in this country, since American goods might be placed at a disadvantage with Eu- ropean §ood4s.” L A similar thought comes to the | Christian Science Monitor, whicl states that the signing of the treaty s well, provided other neighbors of either country will not suffer unduly therefrom. Of great importance, in- deed,” continues the Monitor, “Is it that any such accord, to be of lasting and true worth, be built upon a gen- uinely sincere foundation. Without this, no accord can be expected to accomplish much that is worth while. With it, the drawing up of the treaty and the fulfillment of its terms largely resolve themselves into simply ving expression to what is already in consciousness.” “Whether political progress in Eu- rope has preceded or followed eco- nomic rapprochements is a debatable question,” says the Chicago Dalily News. “Some observers hold that in- telligent leaders of industry in France and Germany prompted and guided Briand and Stresemann at both Locarno and Geneva. In any event, amicable an@ mutually profit- able commercial relations are bound to improve political and diplomatic relations. The new treaty may lead indirectly to substantial reduction and the eventual withdrawal of the allies’ armies of occupation in the Rhineland.” Seeing doubt as to the effect on the trade of other coun- tries, the Los Angeles Express be- lieves that “even should it result in some monetary loss, the world gen erally will rejoice in the new un- derstanding between the former en- emies.” “It is very likely,” argues the Baltimore Sun, “that massive facts in the economic relations of France and Germany are having substantial effect for peaceful relations. The people of the two nations desire con- ciliation and an end to wars. And the business men of the two nations have demonstrated time and again that they very ardently desire rec- onciliation and the resultaat security for trade. Both nations stand to win in business by settling their troubles and working together. Both stand to lose by not doing so. And that ferent iIn thelr economic constitution is a fact quite well known to those engaged in trade.”