Evening Star Newspaper, October 11, 1927, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. TUESDAY. .....October 11, 1827 carriers within Evening Star with the Sunday morn Tt delivered by month: dail Mafl—Payable in Advance. - bl‘mhnl erd Virginia. o b gk * All Other States and Canada. aily and Sunday. 1w, ’lS.‘N‘; mo.. $1.00 Bl s iR 73¢ o J 88 Member of the Assoclated Press. 880 Pross 13 exc Jeively entitled o Ao Tepusication of Tl news dig- Atches credited 10 it OF not otuers 3 R ot paver snd aiso ihe"local news published herein. Al rizhts of publication ) dispatches berein are also reserved i Fort Washington as a School. ! Fort Washington, declared surplus by the War Department and sought as part of the Greater Washington park syster~ in the environs of Mount Vernon, :- ..ow likely to be taken for & new anc important, ideal use. Part of the industrial preparedness program of the War Department, in obedience to specific mandate in the 'mew Army act, is the operation of an {ndustrial college in the Munitions Building to train Army officers for key positions in industrial procure- ment, and the institution of a “Muni- tions Battalion” of college men who are destined to be industrial leaders for special intensive training in Army needs. | The idea is to take 400 care- leully selected men at the end of " 'their junior year in college and send ‘them to a modern “Plattsburg” for three months, then back to finish their \menlor year in college and get their de- |gree, then into camp again for six \months, and then turn them loose to / ‘vise in Industrial life, and be ready to {serve e a civilian industrial reserve west universities And it is well it should be so. American college foot ball today is the zenith in clean sport, played solely for glory. It is not exclusively brawn-bullding, for it fosters courage and molds character as we'l. A gridiron star with merely bulk and muscle is not worth his train- ing table salt to a team. He must have a head to go with his iron arms, fleet legs and stout body. Above all, he must be a gentleman, and, in those institutions with genuine aca- demic requirements for teams, he must be a scholar besides. This Nation of idolators of manly— and womanly—arts welcomes King Foot Ball to his realm. Long may he score! —————————— The 0il Decision. Civil litigation over the leasing of the Government's naval oil reserves, after three years of battle, was yester- day terminated. In a unanimous de- cision of the Supreme Court, delivered by Associate Justice Butler, and in a vietory no less sweeping than that un- der which the Elk Hills naval reserve was recently canceled, the Government regained unqualified possession of the Teapot Dome reserve; the words “faithless public officer” Iwere pro- nounced against ex-Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall, and “fini was written to the non-criminal phases of one of the most sordid incidents in American political history. The extent of the governmental Vic- tory may be briefly indicated as fol- lows: The Sinclair interests today oc- cupying the reserve were pronounced to be trespassers in bad faith. Com- pensation for such expenditures as they have made in the development of the illegally occupied premises was retused by the court, which held that they must go to Congress for relief. The lease and contract made by Fall to Sinclair were declared to be Wwith- out authority of law and fraud and corruption in the transaction held as proved by the evidence. Justice Butler's decision dealt at length with the Government’s conten- tion that $230,500 in Liberty bonds found theirr way to Fall from Sinclair after the former had resigned from the-cabinet. “There is nothing in the record that tends to mitigate the sin- ister significance of that enrichment,” he said. And later, “taken in connec- tn time of the Nation’s need. It ip planned to operate this camp Tor at least 10 years to build up the /! afficlent industrial reserve, and it is " ‘planned to take Fort Washington for 'this purpose because of its ideal situa- Ition near Washington. " No better use could be made of this “ historic old fort. It would give it ad- ditional historic value, It would not "yntertere in the least with the plans to {leventually include this site in the .great Capital park system, because probably little would be done in the ““way of connecting up this link in the “park chain for at least a decade. In "the meantime it would remove that '/army reservation from the possibility of its being taken over for private '"@evelopment. ‘" The purpose of the school is excel- ! fent, not only to help build up a wall preparedness for the Nation, but o n the picked, educated men from o sections of the country into & P touch with their Government, them to love and serve it, them realize more closely and 'ylwnuhnmnm burden of | Thelr training in the school at Fort [Washington is destined to discourage poy Nation planning to war to 'Amigrica, a4 to shorten , it any, Sclence devotes much attention to the subject of rejuvenation with the assistance of monkeys. And Yyet monkeys, howsver young, always look Punishment might go further in de- Jterring crime it it could provide for a |cancellation of all further access to the theatrical billboards. —_————————— Foot Ball. Tennls, polo, yachting, swimming, jgolt, pugilism ~nd base ball having had itheir respective seasonal sways, now [pomes that other monarch of sport, ‘oot ball, to rule the hearts and pas- tlvnl. and exercise the lungs, of its iniverse of devotees. It base ball reigns undisputably as e naticnal professional game, col- foot ball has quite as absolutely nded the throne of national ama- ur sport. There is, happily, every dication that its sovereignty as a n-professional pastime will not be hallenged. Since “Red” Grange two ago broke through the line of jdiron tradition and threatened foot 1l with a big business touchdown, e game, as a purely school and uni- ersity sport, has advancel in popu- rity, if that were possible. Its status the greatest and finest of all col- lege athletics is in no discernible nger. The 1927 season, now swinging into stride, has opened under condi- jons that emphasize the truly n: ional character of foot ball. The iEast, ancient and classic seat of grid- ron pre-eminence, long since forfeited that exclusive distinction. Proud rvard last Saturday succumbed to {a superb Midwestern team from Pur- |due. While the Crimson was trailing {in the dust and dusk of Soldier |¥Field, the bulldog of Yale was being Imuled at New Haven by an invin- cible eleven from the University of tion with other circumstances dis- closed, it is persuasive evidence of such a conspiracy between him (Fall) and Sinclair.” The significance of the Supreme Court's opinion is, in view of the cir- cumstances, very grave. On Monday Fall and Sinclair go on trial here on a criminal charge of conspiracy to de- fraud the Government in connection with the leasing of Teapot Dome. Yet evidence in a civil action which “strengthens and confirms the infer- ence” of a willingness to conspire and “persuasive evidence” of a conspiracy are not, it should be recognized, neces- sarily sufficient to win ‘a convic- tion upon a criminal charge. That charge Sinclair and Fall must now meet. They go as men who are, in the eyes of the law, innocent until proved guilty. Upon the ability of the Government to prove beyond the shadow of doubt the shameful charge for which the highest court of the land finds “persuasive evidence’ will depend whether the physical punish- ment of a prison sentence shall be imposed upon the defendants. Yet to ‘men who once stood high in the public confidence it cannot be that the an- swer mattess much. .For in the meas- ured and unqualified scorn of the greatest court in the world they have heard the opinion of their fellow citi- zens. Exit—“Abie’s Irish Rose.” The evening of October 22 will mark the end of a record-breaking run of more than five years on Broadway for “Abie’'s Irish Rose,” a play that prought a fortune to its author, Anne Nichols, and throaty sobs of despair from a large class of dramatic critics who maintained stoutly to the end that it was no good; an insult to intelligent theatergoers, a blot upon the escutch- eon of t\e stage and something ought to be done about it. In closing its 2,327th performance in New York, however, this comedy will have demon- strated again the hazardous task con- fronting those professional diagnosti- cians of entertainment who set them- selves up as judges of what the public wants, or should want. The critics, for the most part, did not like “Abie’s Irish Rose.” They said so at first as & matter of perfunctory duty, When the public refused to agree witk them they maintained their stand as a mat- ter of principle. In the end they al- ways mentioned “Abie’s .Irish Rose"” with an accompanying gesture of im- potence, figuratively throwing up their hands as much as to say: “Well, such is life! Don't blame us for it!” There was nothing deep, nothing subtle, about “Abie’s Irish Rose.” Nor was there a moral, unless it be that true love never runs smooth and will triumph in the end. There was some humor in its lines, though most of them expressed that type of huror exhibited on the silver screen by cus- tard ples and missiles of crockery. There was nothing inspiring about “Abie’'s Irish Rose” to lift men up and bid them do bigger and better things. But there is no mystery about its success. The people liked it. They went to see it twice. They laughed at it and they applauded it. It was written with the hope for that result only in mind. To what higher hope does any author aspire? ] Effective but without great credit in fire prevention is the little cigarette lighter that refuses to work. Teams from Midwest, South and Wer West for the past eight or ten 'yelrl have repeatedly taken the meas- ure of the “Big Three” or “Big Four” .golleges on the Atlantic seaboard. In 1924 the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame 'achieved the national championship {isy ®o irrefutable a margin that no one challenged the Midwesterners' claim to & title never before decisively won. Next Saturday Knute Rockne's men @o battle, for the first time, With the Navy at Baltimore. Crowds ranging in size from 50,000 0 100,000 go to foot ball games nowa- days. Attendance has come to be Jimited only by the capacity of mon- ter amphitheaters like the Yale Bowl ESSEAME P Safe Airplanes. A refreshing departure from long- distance stunt flights and other espe- clally hazardous airplane contests has been made in the Daniel Guggen- heim safe aircraft competition, En- tries are now being received and already five British and two American aircraft manufacturers and designers have filed applications. Before the entry list closes the trustees of the competition expect to receive applica- tions from French, German, Italian and other foreign manufacturers, Prizes totaling one hundred and fifty thousand dollars have been announced for the awards zr safe airplanes. good kave stirred interest in aviation and contributed to man's scientific knowl. gdge of the air, real progress is seri- ously retarded by neglect of aerody- namic safety characteristics of modern planes. Performance has been the goal instead of improvement in the vital element of safety. It is to correct this tendency that the safe aircraft com- petition was begun. It has long been realized that the time must come when airplanes will be able to land and take off within a small space. Many crashes occur be- cause of the inability of the pilot to set his machine down in a restricted inclosure. The present-day airplane must have a large area to get out of, and it is this feature that must be conquered in order ta remove one of the biggest obstacles to progress. The air-cooled engine has marked a distinct advance in aviation and well designed installation has removed most of the fire hazarde, except, of course, in a crashed landing. But even these fine new motors do not pull a heavily loaded machine steeply enough into the air to avoid obstacles on certain kinds of take-offs and they sometimes fail and stall the plane when it is only a short distance above the ground. The airplane of the fu- ture will be so constructed and so powered that it will be able to ascend almost vertically into the air and de- scend so steeply that it will be able to flatten out and land within a re- stricted space. It will be entirely un- der control in a stall and be stable under all conditions of weather. It is the aim of the competition to stimu- late development of this kind of an airplane. Public confidence in the safety of aerial transport had two distinct re- actions during the past year. When Col. Charles Lindbergh and Clarence Chamberlain made their successful flights over the ocean the public faith in flying grew by leaps and bounds, but when fatality followed fatality this confidence was rudely shaken. With the concerted endeavor to de- velop the safe plane public confidence in aviation will reassert itself and aerial transport will become a major industry. —————————————— ‘When President Coolidge said “I do not choose” he made a few words serve as a text for much comment. Statesmen inclined to oratory are still mystified by the disregard manifested toward an opportunity for extended remarks in brilliant rhetorical phrase. —_— In spite of all the ovations showered on him, Mayor Walker was glad to be back home. He resumes his accus- tomed associations with the proud consciousness that he showed some of the European residents the time of their lives. o So much attention has been given to the exploitation of all possible mate- rial that it seems doubtful whether there can be such a thihg as a presi- dential dark horse in 1928. —— e ‘When a ‘“next war” is mentioned the only comfort offered is the grim idea that it will take place so rapidly that nobody will know it has hap- pened, —————.———— . The coming Congress will be studied with interest for the discovery of econ- omists who decline to waste even ‘words. England and America have a thou- sand reasons for friendship as against one passing suggestion for reseptment. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Sequence of Events. ‘We hear that sun spots, going strong, Bring thunder, wind and rain; ‘We're also certain that ere long Things will clear off again. The skies are speedily aglow, And very soon we find ‘That good “Old Sol” helps us to show A more contented mind. So when the tempest comes our way -Our fears let us restrain. However stormy be the day, It must clear off again. Established. “Why do you keep referring to the tarife?” “There are so many subjects open to controversy,” sald Senator Sor- ghum, “that it seems desirable to fol- low the good old political practice of years and,compromise on the tarif as an issue.” Slow but Safe. We ask of snowflakes that have gone ‘When warmer skies shone bright and clear; The airships fill the clouds at dawn; ‘Where is the mule of yesteryear? The Fordfliv now by gas is drawn, And General Motors persevere, And crowd the highway and the lawn. ‘Where is the mule of yesteryear? Oh, judge, your honor, like a pawn, By gas we are pushed there or here, And say, as swifter life goes on, ‘Where is the mule of yesteryear? Jud Tunkins says a man is never happy In idleness. If he has no work to do, he will dance industriously. “We speak with reverence of the past,” said Hi Ho, “with a generosity which remembers kindness and forgets injury.” Arms and the Man. We often ask who's right or wrong In taking a position. Another question sounds more strong: “Who has the ammunition?"” “An envious man,” said Uncle Eben, ‘“neglects his own affairs an’ spends 14 hours a day studyin’ de business of some one else. A Grave Matter. From the Toledo Blade. . Ring Lardner was half right. Tt is a world's serious to the team that loses. —_————e Tardy Fashiens. From the Waterloo Tribune. ‘What backward people they are in Africa! They are beginning to wear clothes, just when we have begun dis- pensing with them. Bad Economy. From the Baltimore Sun. An important domestic economy article treats of keeping hams, It i 2 ham, re opposed. STAR, WASHINGT OCTOBER 11, 1927 THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. The Saturday Luncheon Club met in the Subterranean last week, with Bernice, 5 years old, as the guest of honor. My Goodness also was present, as was’ this chronicler, whose duty con- sisted of the mundane but neverthe- less highly necessary task of paving the piper and keeping the minutes in his mind. Miss Bernice, who has flaxen hair and large come-hither eyves of pale gray, was rather sedite, as the com- pany seated itself, o'wing to the fact that this is her first year in school. Kindergarten is vhat the authori- tles call it, but to the 65 children, more or less, who go in morning and after- noon shifts, it Is School with a big S. After a cduple of weeks in kinder- garten, one feels very much up-stage, as the saying ls, tremendously im- portant, and greatly impressed with one’s growing weight of age. Think of it—this time next year one will actually be in First Grade! * K K K The Subterranean is s0 named from the fact that it is located under !the sidewalk of a busy downtown street. Seated cozily there, one—if he or she has reached the important age of 5 years—may watch the shadowy passage of the pedestrians above as they walk along unconscious of the diners below. The passing figures, of course, are decidedly impressionistic. - A man is reduced to a fleeting blurb,~a sort of shadow, while the loveliest lady that passes along the Wi is no more than a blot in the sunshine. How little do the brave gentlemen and fair ladies who trod that way realize that they are no more than blurbs and blots! To the Saturday Luncheon Club, however, that is all they are, just blurbs and blots in the otherwise un- | sullied radiance of the queer ceiling of the Subterranean, * ok % % Decidedly, it might give a severe jolt to many an important personage, who heatedly believes that he is Dis- tinctly Somebody, to know that Ber- nice regards him as simply a funny something to be greeted with a sub- dued shout! Bernice promised her Mama to be on her very best behavior, so that she does not shout very loud, mnor does she put more than two elbows on the table at once. She could, of course, put 6 elbows, or 10 elbows, or a thousand elbows, or a million elbows, on the table all at once, it she wanted to. 'Deed she could! 'Deed she could! * ok x % A boy on roller skates made a tre- mendous clatter, as he passed over- head, rolling over the heavy thick glass, set in solid steel, with reinforce- ments of iron or whatever it is such pavement windows are made of. The advent of the waitress, how- ever, brought the sky-gazing to a close, for the time being at least, for there were more important things to do. Ensconced behind a large bill-of-fare, Bernice immediately read several of the largest letters, after which she entertained the gathering with the fol- lowing song, done in treble monotone: 5 , B, P, M, QR, S T Uand V, W and X and Y and Z! Oh how happy will you be ‘When you learn your A-B-C!" * Kk % Amid the applause of the assembled guests, Miss Bernice forced herself to the prosaic but interesting task of telling the waitress what was what. “1 want,” she said, “‘some ice cream, and some malted milk—-"" “What kind of ice cream?” “Oh, some of the white kind; and—-" Luncheon was quickly served. The honor guest had a very large plare, with nothing on it, while heside the plate reposed in gentle dignity a tre- beaker of malted lacteal then, from the plate of My Goodness came a portion of braised beef, a crinkly potato and other vege- tables, “And what did you do In kinder- garten yesterday, Bernice?” pasted things, and “Drew.’ “And drew things, and learned a poem——"" “Can you say it?” “It was about the leaves falling down, all around, Polly on the ground.” “Polly on the ground?” “Polly on the ground, Polly on the ground!” ‘What teacher had said, of course, was “Piling on the ground.” But Bernice had heard it “Polly,” and so Polly it was. ¥ How would you like to be a school teacher? * ok ok % “When is that old girl going to bring me my ice cream?’ inquired Bernice, casting suspicious glances northward, The “old girl,” who really was a young girl, luckily was not within hearing distance, And at last it came, the “white kind,” indeed, the standard and orig- inal vanilla ice cream, beloved of old and young alike, which today holds its own well, however keen the com- petition from peach, chocolate, etc. And then it was “all gone,” to use childhood’s expressive phrase, accom- panied by the age-old sign language of 2 small and widely opened hand: Fingerbowls brought a very pleas- ant time to a close. “Even this shall pass away,” said the writing on the old ring. Bernice cast an ecstatic look at a fleeting shadow on the glass above her, the while waggling her fingers in the water. “‘Oh, see my fingers swimming!" she said. e . Middle-Class Life in Egypt Is Revealed in Excavations How middle-class Egyptians really ® To break entirely with the old re- lived, and how they clung privately to the old picturesque family gods when one pharaoh insisted that the nation worship one god only, is shown by excavations at Tell-el-Amarna, per- haps the strangest city of ancient Egypt, } 3 The Egyptian Exploration. Soclety. excavating at Tell-el-Amarna, has been working particularly at the ruins of a suburb once occupled by every-day Egyptian citizens, whose customs are still much less understood than the glittering lives of the kings and nobles. In a report of the excavations by Henrl Frankfort, he explains that the workmen's quarter was probably over- crowded. It consisted of a mass of small buildings, the best of which ran along two main road:, while others branched off along innumerable crook- ed pathways winding between gran- aries, chapels :nd. nl‘he;s buildings. The plan of the better middle-class homes called for a central room, serv- ing as a reception hall, and behind this a corridor leading to the domestic apartments, so that the private life of the house was cut off from the official or public part. In one house an excel- lently preserved bedroom showed that the legs of the bed stood on conical stone supports to avold sinking to the stone floor. Next was a bathroom with limestone bath and a runnel for carrying oft the bath water. ‘The city which the “suburbanites were helping to build and beautify was one of the most remarkable projects of Egyptian history. About 1370 B.C., the young Pharaoh Akhn- Aton broke away from the traditional religlon of worshiping Amon and many lesser deities, and declared that Egypt should worship one god only, Aton, the Sun’'s Disk. The Sun God, he maintained, gave heat and light to the world and was the one great creator and protector of the earth and all its people. Akhn-Aton or- dered all the temples to the old gods closed, their priests turned out, and the nameg of the gods hacked from the splendid temples and shrines. Greek Influx Ends | Macedonian Question To the Editor of The Star: The writer has read with a great deal of Interest the editorial in your issue of October 7, headed “Those Dangerous Balkans.” o As a result of the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913 and of the Great War, in which Bulgaria took the side of Germany and Austria, Greece was given a small portion of the section commonly known as Macedonia, which is, as you say, “a classic geogprahical rather than a political designation.” In order to place the situation in this part of Macedonia squarely be- fore readers of The Evening Star the following figures may be of interest. These were compiled in 1926 by the Refugee Settlement Commission, of which Charles P. Howland of New York City was then chairman. They were based on statistics of the com- mission, together with those of two other international bodies, viz., the Mixed mmission for the Kxchange of Greek and Turkish Populations and the Mixed Commission for the Volun- tary Emigration of Greek and Bulga- rian Populations. The two tables give the populations of the territory now comprised in Greek Macedonia for ‘the years of 1912 and 1926: 1912 513,000 475,000 119,000 98,000 1926 1,341,000 2,000 77,000 91,000 Greeks . Moslems . . Bulgarians . Miscellaneous ... 1,205,000 The above figures yleld the follow- ing percentages: 1912 1926 Greeks Miscellaneous “Miscellaneous” in the above tables includes various nationalities, but is for the most part made up of what are _known as “Spanish Jews"—that is, descendants of the Hebrews driven’ Who during gime Akhn-Aton journeyed down the Nile from Thebes to a new site and built a capital on virgin soil, which he called the Horlzon of Aton—the lace now known- as Tell:el-Amarna. ere, a palace, temples fo Aton homes and many fine tomh-chapel for-wealthy followers of the king were erécted by armies of workmen. * ¥ x *x The Sun Disk was worshipped throughout the city officially, as the discovery of numerous small shrines shows. These shrines, bear- ing the effigies of the royal family engaged in worshiping Aton, are scattered at points along the roadsid and In courtyards. But despite the Pharaoh’s decree, in their homes, the common people clung to the familiar deities to whom they appealed in the distresses of daily life—the god Bes, patron of pleasure; the Cow-eared Hathor, and the Hippopotamus Tau- ert, guardian of mothers. Akhn-Aton’s religious revolution was doomed to failure, At his death his daughter’s husband, Tut-Ankh- Aton, succeeded to the throne. Rut the power and plotting of dissatisfied priests and officlals who preferred the old regime were too much for the young pharaoh. He went back to the worship of Amon and the rest of the gods, changed his name to Tut-Ankh- Amon, and finally abandoned the beautiful new capital and returned to Thebes with his court. Discovery of a red crystalline sand- stone head of the youngest of Akhn- Aton’s daughters shows the same peculiar shape which has become familiar in portraits and the mummy of her father. The view that this peculiarly shaped head was not due to, disease, as was at first suggested In the case of Akhn-Aton. but that it was a family characteristic. is sup- ported by the new find, and also by the fact that the head of Tut-Ankh- Amon is similar. So close is the re- semblance that it is considered pos- sible that Tut-Ankh-Amon was not only the son-in-law, but als¢ the son of Akhn-Aton. nand and Isabella. These people are now citizens of the Hellenic Republic and while retaining their religious and racial characteristics are polit- ically Greeks, just as the Hebrews of the United States are politically Ameri- cans, The international character of the three commissions responsible for these statistics insures their being free from racial prejudice. The per- sonal observations of the present writer, who spent many weeks in Macedonia last year, confirm their ac- curacy. In view of its present overwhelming- 1y Hellenjc population, it would seem that for Greek Macedonia at least the “Macedonian question” (always purely a racial one) no longer exists. B. P. SALMON. Opposed to Contests of Bathing Beauties To the Editor of The Star: 1 want to express my deep appre- clation of the splendid stand your paper took in a recent editorial on the “Bathing Beauty Contests.” I hope the press of the count: enerall, will follow your exampls Sl Conditions in Atlantie City during the bathing season have become in- tolerable and are a very grave menace to the youth of the country, who flock there in enormous crowds. The bathing beauty contest has reached out like an enormous octopus all over the country with a deadly grip on decency and morality. ‘We can stop it if we care enough. Every women’s club and church or- ganization should protest against it. Then such a wave of public sentiment would prevent the holding of another one of these indecent parades so de- bauching to both young and old. GEORGIA ROBERTSON. ————r————————— The- Silver Lining. From the Akron Beacon Journal. Because of her having dandruff a woman in Illinois got an idea for a seed-cleaning ding knows! MIS8 BROWN OF X. Y. 0. E. Phillips Oppenheim. Little, Brown & Co. ss Brown of X. Y. O." carries a clear distinction quite apart from any inside value of its own. For “Miss Brown” stands as the one-hun- dredth published Oppenheim novel. The one-hundredth! Time for a bit of a celebration— d®n't you think? Time for hats off in tribute to the man who for more than 40 years has in unabated vigor held fast to the wearing routine of plain work, that heritage from Eden against which the most of us waste much time in costly lamentation. Two novels a year, occasionally three, back, so far, the record r;f this writer. *® % The moment has now come for the appearance of the professional critic wearing the familiar smile so care- tully calculated to register complete sapience in matters literary. He talks and talks about the sins committed against literature by the modern nov- elist's rapld, and presumably head- long, methods of consiruction. Well this is his line. So, let us leave him to the keen personal pleasure of throwing it out to noose in for pun ishment many a hapless author caught in the act of sinning against the idols of professional eriticism. The novelists, manv of them, appear indeed to be callous to the devastat- ing Intent of this wiseacre. So long as readers generally like their stuff, why worry! And this brings us to that honest observer of books and their writers, the man who said that the supreme purpose of any book Is to be read. Subordinate to this are other aims but this, so far, remains the overtopping purpose of them all B This honest judge has brought us back again, face to face with Phillips Oppenheim, prolific novel writer, One hundred published novels! The clear emphasis of this ejaculation goes to the word “published.” For continued publication of any writer means, pri- marily and substantially, continued appreciable demand for that author on the part of the public. Now, no dealer in commodities is cannier than the purveyor of books. No other tradesman surpasses the publisher in shrewd oversight of his own field. It is for him to make no mistake about the demand for his line of goods. It is’ for him to measure in good accu- racy the rise and ebb of changing fancies on the part of readers, to de- tect the delicate pulse of satiety and boredom long before these hecome ob- vious to the market itself. In a word, it is the proper business of the pub- lisher to shape his merchandise to the measure and quality of the gen- eral demand for it. And, as specific point in evidence, Phillips Oppenheim appears to be a perfegly sound busi- ness bet on the part of his publish- ers. K K X You know the Oppenheim novels. ‘Well, “Miss Brown" is another one of the familiar pattern, another story of plots and intrigues that are cen- tered in certain groups whose plans are of , the international measure. Miss Brown herself may be a shade unreal, but the general movement of the story is of the usual spirited brand, touched more than a little with and mystery of political form and texture. A good, Oppenheim ad- venture, ® ¥ Kk Let us sit down to listen to Oppen- heim talking &bout himself, about his work and his life generally. Mar- ried? To a New England girl. Chil- dren? One daughter. Might as well clear up these vital points and get along. “My father was a clever story teller. When we were small children he made each of us write a story on Christmag evening—he wrote one him- sélt-and/ithey were read out and we voted as to which we liked best. My father always won. I shall never for- get his face of astonishment when one Christmas I won the prize. I was only 13, and was quite considerably pleased with myself.” Interesting picture of a home, it seems to me. b5 s 18 years old when my first short story was published, and only 20 when my fir: novel ap- peared—more than forty years of story writing—"and the first thing which occurs to me to say about it is that I do not think there can be an- other profession in the world which intains its hold upon its disciples. t8 such an extraordinary extent.” Here is the joy in work that, unluck- ily, so many of us fail to capture. “No, I don't know how a novel will develop when I begin it. I get a vi- sion of about two good characters— the man, he's the main thing, woma! very secondary.” Brown” is true to the letter of this statement. As a person she isn't within a thousand miles of Col. Dessi- ter, or John Glyde as he is part of the time. A fascinating man, this Dessiter or Glyde—with Miss Brown serving fair purpose, first as secret service aid and finally as the means of winding up the tale in the glamour of romance. ‘“These two elements”— Oppenheim talking again—‘‘together with my first chapter, constitute my preparation. Then I live with my characters for a while—eat with them, walk with them, play golf with them. Finally they begin to act according to their own wills; then I let them go, and they work out their own destiny. Soon, the first thing I know I have another book ready for the publish- er It's great fun really. £ I were to attempt to work from a synopsis 1 should be done. My story would be stilted and untrue. My characters would resent it and at once kick over the traces. They would line out in sulky and lethargic indifferencs So, I leave the synopsis alone. And as to plots—there are only about a score in the world and when you have used them all from A to Z you can lzurn them around and use them from Al lenerally speaking, half of my time is devoted to actual writing, and the other half is divided between exer- cise and sport, visits to London and travel!” Then Oppenheim speaks of himself as only “a yarn spinner. “I'm not what you fellows call a literary man. Yet—fame or money, 1 don’t believe I think of either when I'm writing a book. All I want is the best story possible. And I some- times feel .that one of my stories, it it's well done, may be remembered after I'm gone.” Here is that terri- ble urge of “Beyond Life” that Cabe; pictures so powerfully as the essen- tial urge of all writers. Then Oppen- heim touches upon the commonly con- ceded fact that many of his novels forecast events of importance with an accuracy that to many appear to be mysterious and rather weird. Nothing at all, this writer declares, except a mind turned soward national policies and the diplomacy of govern- ments in their relations to one an- other. This turn of mind coupled with and a good acquaintance with Europe, as a whole and in its parts. “I'm afraid I cannot lay any claim to being an actual prophet of world events. 1 don’t go into trances and neither do I gaze into a crystal to read the future. But I do try to keep abreast of contemporary events and try to put two and two together. It there is ‘writing on the wall’ I try to see it. I was not the only one who prophesied war with Germany” —as he did in a story coming out some time before this war—"The signs were t! for all to read who took the trouble.” Just a word here and there from Phillips Oppenheim, author of a hun- dred novels which stand as testimony of the continued vigor and deserving of this gifted “yarn spinner,” as evi- dence of & sustained popularity on the part of this intelligent zest{ul man with a decided gift and a good con- fallen sclence i the way of dramatic story ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. What has become of Lowell Sherman, who appeared in “The Reckless Lady” and other pictures?— M. W. A. Mr. Sherman, according to the latest information we have, is touring in vaudeville, Q. T am planning a trip to Hawali,| and want to earn enough while there to pay my expenses. \What are the possibilities?—H. T. B. A. We are informed that the lure of Hawall has hecome so strong that far _more people are always seeking work there than there are positions | available. Therefore those without a position assured before leaving home should not make the trip unless amply provided with fund: Where was Sir Francis Drake . nglish admiral’s body was placed in a leaden coffin and buried at sea near Porto Cabello, Venezuela. Q. What is meant by the “repro-| duction new” theory?—B. M. T. A. The railroad and publie utility corporations hold the view that with the decreased value of the dollar they should he allowed to charge rates based not on the original cost of pro- duction but on what it would cost to reproduce their properties at present- day prices. This is called the repro- duction new theory. Opposing this contention is that of the National Con- ference on Railroad Valuatfon, which believes the fair basis for earnings and rates is the amount of the origi- nal investment, plus improvements that the railroads have put into their properties. This is known as the original cost or prudent investment theory. | Q. When is the transcontinental foot race to be held?>—C. P. C. A. The one prejected is to start| from Los Angeles on March 3, 1928, | finishing in New York City. It is| known as the international transcon. | tinental foot race, and is open to| any physically fit male athlete in the | world. Q. How large is Bafin Land’—L. K. | A. The island has not been com.| pletely explosed. Its size has heeni estimated at from 230,000 to 300,000 | miles, but the Putnam expedition has | this Summer measured a part of the coast and determined that the esti- mates are too large, the section - .eas-| ured redueing the total by about 5,000 | square miles, | Q. Has a person the right to make | a patented device for his own use| \\'ifit;hu:xt the consent of the patentee?| A. The grant of a patent for an invention confers upon the patentee the “exclusive” right to make, sell, use the patented invention. He may authorize other persons to do so, but any person who makes the patented device without consent of the pat- entee, even for use by himself only, is guilty of infringement and may be sued therefor in the United States courts, with a claim for damages in consequence of the infringement. Q. How were the hanging gardens of Babylon kept in place?’—E. L. B. A. The hanging gardens were in reality a structure, upon the roof of which were planted trees, flowers and shrubs. Q. What will remove pitch from pinon nuts after they are out of the cone?—C. R. W. A. Benzol will do it. Q. What inspired Rachmaninoff to compose the “G Sharp Minor Pre- lude’ . 8. N. A. The famous pianist made the following statement: “The ‘Prelude’ was composed when T was 20, and one at that age has no background.” n_bamboo be made into pa- T. It has heen considered imprac- tical because it was expensive to re- duce and seemed unbleachable. It is stated that these handicaps have been overcome and that a plant in India is to produce bamboo pulp in comme cial quantities at a reasonable price. Q. Where did Buddha preach his first sermon?—K. T. A. A tradition is to the effect that in the holy city of Benares Buddha preached his first sermon, standing beneath a tree which is still to be seen. Q. Ts green Castile soap made green by dyes?—A. E. A. The color of genuine green Cas- tile soap Is due to the natural chioro- phyll extracted from the olive pulp while obtaining the “foots,” or indus- trial oil, after the first pressings of the fruit for the finer grades. When other oils: are substituted, the green hue is artificially supplied. Q. J“"hgn was Holland Ilouse bullt? A. This was built In the Tuder style by John Thorpe for Sir Walter Cope in 1607. Soon the building passed into the hands of Henry Rich, Earl of Holland (in Lincolnshire), Cope’s son. in-law, who was executed in 1649. In 1 Holland House was sold to Henry Fox, afterward Baron Holland and father of the celebrated Charles James Fox. Tn modern times Holland House has belonged to the Karl of Ilchester. Q. Please give the derivation of the (!1.’":@ of the Garrigues Mountains,— A, Tt is a French term applied to the stunted kermes oak, a tsee which practically covers the mountains of that name in France. Q. Is it possible to discover at this time what the leading Spring color will be?—B. D. - A. Makers of matesdals for Spring are now having some of their ad vanced showings. One in particular is featuring gray. Beige is also find- ing an important place in Spring goods. Q. At what elevation is Lake Pla- cid?—A. M. D. A. This beautiful New York lake lying at the foot of Whiteface Moun- tain, is 1,864 feet above séa level. Find out iwhatever yow 1want to know. There is no room for ignorance in this busy world. The person 1who loses out is the one who guesses. The person who gets on is always the one who ects upon reliable information. Jie naver i . kin_to conduct an information bureaw in Washington for the free use of the public. There is no charge except two cents in stamps for return postage. Write to him today for any facts you desire.. Address The Evening Star In- formation Bureau. Frederie J. Has- kin, director, Washington, D. C. War Against Loot Disposers Gets Applause From Editors Propgsals :{o curb . organized crime by war on the-“fance;” or receiver of stolen goods, are receiving widespread support. 'The latest suggestion bear- ing on the subject comes from the New York Crime Commission, which favors admission by courts of the un- corroborated testimony of an accom- plice in prosecuting a fence. The New York Times po'nts out that the provision for admitting such testimony was defeated when consid- ered with other Baumes laws, be- cause, it was argued, it would open the door to blackmail. “Wasn't the opposition unconscious- Iy too. tender to a criminal profession so hard for the law to get at and so essential to thieves?” asks the Times. “Juries are seldom accused of an ex- cessive desire to comvict criminals. Can't they be trusted, after due cau- tion hy the judge, to take for what they think it is worth the uncorrobo- rated testimony of an accomplice? The experiment is worth making. It will at least take away from the ‘fence’ one colgn of vantage.” Describing the present rule of testi- mony as “one of the loopholes through which receivers of stolen goods es- cape,” the Baltimore Sun declares that “many millions of dollars of property are annually lost’ through organized robbery, and police authori- ties have no doubt that receivers of stolen goods are at the bottom of much of this kind of crime. The actual thief,” continues the Sun, “knows little about disposing of his plunder. He must look to the ‘fence’ to get rid of his haul. Any change in the law which would give justice fairer chance to convict is worth consider- b * kK X “It is estimated that annually mer- chandise of various kinds worth $500, 000,000 is stolen in these thefts,” says the Salt Lake Deseret News, which holds that “if only half of this can be saved by the enactment af laws that will eliminate the ‘fence,’ the move- ment will have been very much worth while.” The Bangor Da Commer- clal, calling receivers of stolen goods “dealers in crime,’ adds: “They are not impelled by want to theft. nor are they one-t'me offenders. Their course is carefully studied, and they engage in a regular business that is offensive to the law and which is based upon encouragement in crime given to others. For them there should be no public sympathy. Cold, calculating criminals thrive upon the crimes of others and the misfortunes of the vic- tims-of theft are outside the pale. They belong behind the bars, where they can no longer prey upon honest people. Of the meeting of a committee of eminent men from various parts of the country to take up the question this month the Atlanta Journal ob- serves: “The combined labors of men of large affairs and M{h authorities on law, duly supported by public sen- timent, should result in far-reaching measures of protection against crimi- nal trafic in stolen good: ‘The sav- ing of the $500,000.000 a year to hon- est business and honest buvers will abundantly warrant the effort, and in addition all interests of society, moral as well as economic, will profit Dy an effective stroke against organ. ized crime. | “Only actual cash and a limited range of articles of high intrinsic value offer much incentive to the burglar or sneak thief who has no connection for disposing of the Rochester Times-Union explains. “When such goods as silks, furs and the like are stolen in quan- tity, it is fairly certain that receivers of goods who have facilities for dis- posing of valuable merchandise are! working_ with the cri . Most, police officials will agree with the con- clusion of the Crime C lon re- garding the part that the fence plays | big French And it Is notably, apprepriate that buSiness men should be' sélécted for this work.” The Providence Journal also lauds the fitness of the commit- tee, and states that “the need of more drastic 'aws has become impressed upon the financial and commercial fn- terests, and it is recognized that ener- getic action is required if the fight on crime is to be successful.”” The Jour- nal asserts that “if an enlightened and determined public sentiment manifests itself in sufficient strength, it would not seem that legislatures can refuse action that is so clearly essential to the public good.” “Unfortunately, the facts are not yet appreciated or sufficiently grasped.” it appears to the Saginaw Daily Ne “so that, generally speaking, the law: of the various States are not adequate to deal with the ‘fence’ evil. This stirs the National Commission to ef- fort to get competent measures to crush the intensive and extensive in- dustry.” An example of what has been done in one line to overcome organized crime is found by the Los Angeles Times, which sees in the present agi- tation the purpose “to prevent crime by taking the profit out of it,” and which describes the method as “a short cut that may prove impractica- ble, but which, on the other hand, may succeed where other methods have failed.” SR Gangs and Self-Extermination. From the Kaveas City Star. There ought to be some scientific or other methods of sowing virulent discontent in the ranks of criminal gangs. Members of such.§angs seem much more successful in making war on one another than the law is in making war on the gangs. They should be, of course, for they know one another’s haunts and habits. The effectiveness of gang feuds has been demonstrated in Chicago over a period of. years, and more recently in Detroit, where almost an entire membership has been killed ‘off with- ohux so much as one bullet from the w. We think a soclety should be or- ganized to prosecute research in gang- land, with especial reference to the feasibility of inoculating gangsters with the virus of dissension. We have seen that the Utopian doctrine of self determination as_ to peoples may be carried to most troublesome extremes but we should draw no limitations on e doctrine of self-extermination as to gangs. UNITED STATES IN WORLD WAR Ten Years Ago Today Gen. Pershing congratulates Field Marshal Haig on the recent impor- tant gains by the British in front of Ypres, and British eommander expresses hope that Americans will soon join them in battle, * * * Pershing’s gunuers now training with “heavies” to accustom themselves to the heavy artillery. Their French instructors say they will make splendid artillery officers with very little practice. ¢ ¢ * First detailed statement showing the clothing and sleeping equipment fur- nished to the 16 Natiomal Army cantonments is issued Secretary Baker; shows that 12,974,111 articles have been distributed to the 431,180 | soldiers who in wholesale robberies by organized bands, and its further conclusion that the laws of the different States are generally inadequate to deal with re- ceivers and sellers of stalen goods.” ok k% *The cons of the committee,” in the opinion of the rler-Journal, that ita cables to Holland and insists the Dutch must stop the transit of Ger- man war materials going by Dutch waterways. * * * Treasury De- partment issues statemént regardin, the second N: isville Cou- | scripti