Evening Star Newspaper, November 23, 1927, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning_Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. WEDNESDAY . November 23, 1927 — THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: 11th St and Pennsylvania A New York Office: 1° 4 42nd St ice: 14 Regent St.. London European Office: 14 Rex a Ave. The Evening Star with the Ing edition is delivered by < lephone M tion is made by carrier at en Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. ryland and Virging a4 Sund Ly $900 av only I er 3800 1 mo 1 mo 1 mo All Other States and Canada Daily and Sundas.J st S1200: 1 mo The A ted In this narer an “Drafting” for 1928. President Coolidge’s position reg: ird- ing another term in the White House was stated in August when he made his decla fon, from South Dakota, that he did not choose to run for President in 19287 Immediately the country began to discuss. this state- ment, with a disposition in some a ters to question its sincerit to read into the verb an implication of willing- ness to respond to a demand. The President has refused to amplity his | words, holding in this matter an atti-{ tude that commands general respect. It is obviously mot for him to go|, further and state either a willingness to accept a nomination it tendered to him, or a positive refusal to permit the consideration of his name in any circumstances. Recently a movement has been set | on foot to “draft” the President for his party's nomination. Chain letters have been circulated by a group of Massachusetts admirers of the Chief Executive, to be spread over a wide area and to constitute a Nation-wide Republican demand for his nomina- tion. Immediately upon the matter coming to his attention the President expresses his disapproval of the move- ment and requests its discontinuance. The fact that he has not in conjunc- tlon with his expression on this sub- Jject gone further in his statement of August is by some taken to mean that he is still “‘receptive” to a demand for another candidacy. Yet that de- duction is not consistent with the at- titude which the President has as- sumed from the outset. It is not to be questioned that there is a general disposition to desire that the President’s name be presented to the Republican convention, or a feel- ing that if it is so presented it will sweep the convention, that in short if there is no positive and peremptory refusal on his part his nomination is most likely. At the same time it is felt that if the present condition pre- wvails for three or four months longer, ‘with no specific declination of the pro- spective honor, the argument against a “third term” in the White House, which was quieted upon the “I do not choose” statement, will be revived. Yet it is to be doubted whether that proposition will arouse much public feeling of opposition. No question is to be felt regarding the President's personal desire to be relieved of further service after March 4, 1929, He has labored diligently and faithfully. He has taken his duties most seriously and has devoted him- self assiduously to the task of admin- istration. He has, in effect almost explicitly, asked the country to permit him to retire. If there is a widespread and sincere expression of a desire that he serve another term, it will in ample season have manifested itself in a manner to permit of no mistake. ————————— After a musical producer has served a term in prison he is confronted with the task of utilizing publicity to the best advantage. Sentiment oscillates, and the outlaw of today frequently becomes the fair-faced favorite of to- morrow. = A crap game results in a fatality. The money involved is a slight ele- ment of the risk. e New York “Spreads.” New York City's metropolitan dis- trict, outgrowing its old limits, has been redefined on the basis of eco- nomic and social activities centering in the city, and new boundaries have been laid down embracing approxi- mately 3,765 square miles and extend- ing within a radius of forty miles from the City Hall. The new metro- politan district takes in parts of New Jersey and Connecticut, theoretically wiping out State, county and munici- pal lines, to combine for practical purposes some of the common needs of the 9,500,000 persons living therein, outnumbering by half a million the combined populations of Chicago, Phil- adelphia, Detroit, Cleveland, St. Louis and Boston. The boundaries for the new area have heen arrived at by methods approved by the United States Census Bureau, and the con- sideration of activities which center in New York includes such items as commuting, delivery and telephone service, in addition to the relative density of population. The Merchants’ Association of New York, which cre- ated the new metropolitan distric has announced that it will be substi- tuted, for census purposes, for the old metropolitan district, the boundaries of which extended in a ten-mile radius from the City Hall. The new district means no change in political units. It constitutes, sim ply, a convenient definition of the ter- rtory extending around New York, the activities of which center in the city. Its creation was brought about by the inadequacy of the old district for the purposes of determining the manufacturing and population cen- sus, plus the confusion in the public mind regarding its exact limits. With- in a few years it must be extended again, for the new metropolitan dis trict will outgrow its boundaries just s the old one did. For some time now a select com muttee of eaperts, financed by the A~ ) Russell Sage Foundation, has been busily at work on a plan for the regional development of New York City and environs. It is interesting to note that the area with which this committee is concerned extends for a distance of fifty miles in all directions from the center of Manhattan, about ten miles beyond the boundaries of the mew metropolitan district. Plans for this region will include the pro- vision of necessary recreational areas, such as parks and playgrounds for the dense population of New York City, and the highways and roads by which they may be made available. The plans are also being made with the idea of providing solutions now for the great problems of the future with- in this New York region—problems re- garding the location of industrial fa- cilities and the extensjon of public utilities. Tt is interesting that plans now being made for development of the New York “region” take in little territory that is not already included in the actual metropolitan area of the city, as newly defined. o Satisfactory, but Belated. Yesterday the New York Court of Appeals ruled adversely upon the ap- peal of Ruth Snyder and Henry Judd y from their conviction of the murder of Mrs. Snyder's husband. The crime was committed last March vs of mystery the case was fully cleared, and proved to be one of the most brutal and sordid “triangle” tragedies ever known in this country. Both persons accused of the murder confessed, each seeking in some degree to throw the culpability for the deed upon the other. They were jointiy indicted and jointly tried, and were both found guilty of first degree murder, with the death pen- alty. They sought reversal of the ver- dict on the ground that they should ve been given separate trials. The appellate court finds no ground for such a plea and affirms the verdict, and will at once set the date of execu tion. There is no further appeal, save for executive clemency. In this decision the appellate court proceeds upon the line of logic for the benefit of public security, to prevent prolongation of a case the outeome of which could not be different even if the defendants were granted sepa trials. So plain was their guilt that they could not have been spared from conviction in any ecircumstamces. They were equally guilty, having plot- ted the killing in cold blood. To set aside this verdict would have weak-’ ened public confidence in the integrity of the judicial process. There are altogether too many cases of delay and retrial on the ground of technical objections to the procedure in court. So frequently have the courts split hairs over infinitesimal questions of practice and pleading and rulings, in the face of assured guilt on the part of defendants, that the public expectation is usually, what- ever the circumstances of a crime, that the guilty will escape punish- ment, or at least delay it for many months, perhaps for years. It is, therefore, reassuring to find the high- est court in the State ignoring a plea that, it granted, would have prolonged the execution of the law for perhaps another year or two. The crime was committed March 20 last. The trial of Gray and M : THE'EVENING STAR WASHINGTO‘T D. C. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1927 ‘“‘easy money" out of the man whom he brought to his great prominence and who, for some reason not yet fully understood, divorced him as business manager on the eve of his Philadel- phia Waterloo. It would seem that the fistic fraternity is not particularly anxious to have the true inwardness of the matter get out. For, if the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth were told in court about the fight game, in specific terms of money and management, there might | be a revision by the public of its esti- mate of the “manly art” as a means of popular entertainment. gl In the Show Windows. A pedestrian in the business section of any city, great or small, is soon | convinced that the average male is a bandsman at heart. Talent there may not be, but desire there undoubtedly is. There several sorts of stores before whose windows men and bo; naturally gather. First, the clothier's or haberdasher's calls to man’s age- old instinct to bedeck himself and make himself desirable in the eyes of the fair. Second, the show window housing firearms, ammunition, hunt- ing knives, feathered fishing lures and the sartorial accompaniments of such diversions grip at the very roots of a male’s being, going back to the days when only he who was skilled in the chase could be hopeful of comfortable survival. The paler and more narrow- chested the man, the longer does he usually gloat over the guns, with nose almost touching the plate g Third in the list, and in what we are told is the proper sequence in the de- velopment of the race, comes the hard- ware store, with its display of glisten- ing saws, planes, chisels and other edged tools. To the creative instinct, the longing to make things, in the masculine human, these tools carry a tremendous appeal, even though the store-gazer may not be able to drive a mail straight. Somewhere in the first four—eth nologists and psychologists will place it a bit more accurately for you— comes the primitive instinct to make pleasing and melodious, or throbbing and inspiring sounds. ‘The small boy, the youth, the middle-aged man— even the elder—alike stare entranced | at the great glittering tuba, the snap- Py snare or booming base drum, the shrill clarinet, the silver saxophone, the coruscating cornet. In fact, it is thought that they linger before the showing of brass, wood-wind and tym- pani fully as long as before the fowling pleces and the fishing paraphernalia The primal man found himself a pretty feather to stick in his unkempt locks; happened on a nice lightning- riven, straight-grained piece of wood suitable for a bow or javelin; was lucky enough to pick up an elegant plece of flint wherewith to dig out his next and speedier canoe and spent the evening before his cave fire blowing pleasantly through a thigh-bone flute. Today's clerk, out for his hour’s noon- ing, or leisurely going homeward, stops in front of the four stores men- tioned and In imagination has very much the same sort of successful and happy day as did his three-thousand- times great-grandfather. — Many tasks have been undertaken by Herbert Hoover. Those who favor him for still higher honors point with pride to the fact that everything he are Snyder began April 26, and they were convicted May 9. That was unusually expeditious. But since the conviction six and a half months have elapsed. Although the outcome of the appeal is satisfactory it would have been much more effective if it had come within as short a period as that which elapsed between the murder and the convic- tion. 'The issue before the appellate court was simple, and yet more than half a year passed before it was de- termined. There lies the chief trouble with the judicial process in this coun- try. Too much time is taken in the concerned on this score. A remedy must be found to shorten the period of review and to effect the swift, surc execution of the law. —————— Analysis is solemnly applied to bootleg liquor, regardless of whether the previous consumer has been sub- mitted to the test of an autopsy. —————————— Remus was too busy getting rich to take care of the things in life that really count for something. ——— vt Remus was a tyrant while he lasted. His history is that of most tyrants, high or low. . No Dempsey-Kearns Revelations. Keen disappointment is felt in cer- tain circles at the failure of the suit of Jack Kearns against Jack Dempsey for a third of a million dollars. Mon- day the case was brought to non- trial by agreement and the pyrotech- nics that had marked the beginning of the affair, at Newark, were suddenly cut off, with a final blast of bombs. There was a general expectation that the hearing of this suit, brought by Kearns against Dempsey for breach of contract, would result in the shedding of much light upon the inside arrange- ments of the great fistic game, which now has grown to million-dollar pro- portions. Kearns claimed that Demp- sey had signed an agreement with him to the effect that the former champion would place himself at the exclusive disposal of his long-time manager for future engagements. Dempsey claim- ed that the alleged contract was a forgery, his own name having been signed to it by Kearns. higher courts. Jurists are seriously |- has undertaken has been well done. T e A statesman who manages to com- mand respectful interest without re- maining silent is Senator Borah. ——— Some of the so-called “best fellers” are flagrant productions of worst writers. ——r—s A curfew law to prevent cards and dice after midnight might relieve po. lice responsibilities. o “King of Italy” is a deeply respect- ed title, provided, of course, that it has Mussolinf’s “0.K.” SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Singin’ Along. Singin' a song of the Autumn day With its hint of a glad tomorrow, Singin’ a song of the sky so gray That pictures a bit of sorrow. Singin’ a song of the snowflake white That seems like a frosted flower, Singin’, though things don't seem all right, Of the Sun and the Bloomin’ Bower. Botheration. “You have said many wise things.” “I have,” answered Senator Sor- ghum. “I am sometimes bothered by the fact that circumstances prevent me from taking my own perfectly good advice.” Big Job. The juror is supposed to be From simple information free And then proceed with wisdom grand | The gravest truth to understand. Jud Tunkins says an old friend is a pleasant reminder of the past, but too often an unreliable hope for the future. Making a Start. “I'm going to be an aviator.” ““Have you secured a plane?” “No. But I have sent word to the photographers.” Sleepfulness. “What time did you go to sleep last night?” “Ten o'clock. The general public is not concerned about the private affairs of the fight- ers so far as they affect them per- onally. But it is concerned to know the details of the business arrange- ments which reflect in the high prices charged for this particular form of entertainment. It is well known that the men who reach the upper strata of pugilism make big money for them- selves, their managers and the pro- moters of the bouts. Purses are enor- mous. The “gate” is in terms of millions. The “cut” of each partici- pant 18 enough to establish him in.lite, independently of all other occupations. Monday's abrupt close of the case may not mark its finish. Kearns has lost the first round of the engagement. He has suits planted in two other jurisdictions and may persist in them in an effort to squeeze some of the “Why so early? “I went to a theater and saw a dull show." “Ancient wisdom,” said i Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “admonishes us to be good and achieves no more genuine respect than the modern police regulations.” No Serious Radical. The fazzy singer no one dreads When heard in the Re-Vues. He never sings about the “Reds,” But only of the “Blues, Unforgetfulness. “There is one friend who has never rgotten me." “Why?" “I borrowed money from him.” “Tell de truth,” said Uncle Eben, “but don’t go out o' yoh way to tell it when tain’' none o' yoh business,” . The fresh-air craze has about run its course, if one may believe the evi- dence presented to his eyes in and around this great ci Not only have many row houses been built here in the past five years without sleeping porches, but perhaps the majority of detached homes lack this former’ essential. There is nothing else to it but to helieve that the vogue for fresh air, whether or no, is on the wane, and perhaps never will again occupy such a place as it did for 20 years or so. People are tived of freezing them- in the name of health! The terms “frest and “cold ai are not synonymous, and never have been, except in the misguided fancy of those warm-blooded propagandists who happen to be able to stand an un- sual amount of cold *in Winter too often means Many physicians are coming to believe that there is enough air obtaining admission to the aver. age home in Autumn and Winter through the mechanical agency winds, to make s unnecessary. Tt is a_real mystery why the man who is able to sit in a house all day without one thought of ventilation any particular pining for fresh will become suffocated the very ment he gets into bed He may have heen edroom, oblivious of the passage of time or the fact that not a one of the three windows has been up even so_little as an inch. He has given no heed, the equally important fact blinds are afting gently ir mo to the the either, that from despite the fact that the hest metal weatherstripping was installed, and that the operative who did the trick solemnly showed how one might hold a lighted mateh at the sill with out it heing blown out. Perhaps one might still hold match there, if one wished to indulg in such a silly trick. The match is not essential, the fresh air is. One | can have no legitimate protestagainst ir. It is the abuse of fresh one’s ire. s gentleman—this gen that gentleman, any gentle man—who has been reading steadily for four hours. Not once has he felt v eraving for additional 03 The fact that he was ab the book cannot account for his lack of interest, for the time being, in th tremendous necessity for “fresh air.” Few hooks are that absorhin, Let him once go to bed, however, immediately he feels as it he would be asphyxiated unless the were put up immediate them. or all three of them, the num- ber depending upon the extent of his belfef in the idea of “fresh air.” “Whew! T must put a window up I'm smothering in here. Funny 1 never noticed it before.” So he crawls out of bed, throws up a window, and goes back to sleep. with his mind benefiting wonderfully from the mixture of air, gasoline and coal smoke ting in. * x x They tell a story older works on p: fre: discovering the windows to be closed, a in some of the ‘hology of a lazy of | ¢ other ventilation | reading in his | ure of the keen north wind, and | " would | in Winte window | window: or two of | hods, mg air fan who, once in bed, and | fortable about it. THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. He was rewarded with a great clat- ter of breaking glass, and, thinking that his purpose had been achieved, he drew iths of “fresh air.” uttered a few exclamations of pleasure and went soundly to sleep. When he awoke next morning he was astonished, and somewhat amused at himself, to find that he had broken he water pitcher to bits. He had slept all night with the windows down—and unbroken—in the firm be- lief that he was getting plenty of the freshest air, He recalled how he had felt suffo- cated at the sight of closed windows ind how, after he heard the breaking he had inhaled deep breaths of hat he fondly imagined was air pour- ing in at the broken pane. The intense ph 1 satisfaction | which he had derived, he remembered, could have been no more poignant in | the case of actual fresh air than it | had been in the enjoyment of the air which his mind conjured up for him. f one is interested in trying thi nent on himself, he m in a number of ways will always be the will discover that the mind great deal to do with the fr tresh a y man- and the me—he has a ness of e W e Honestly, now, why should thou- inds of poor little habies be trundled around for hours in a semi-frozen state every Winter by fond mammas whe sincerely believe that by this per- ambulation their beautiful infants will | be induced to grow into strong, | healthy men and women? We never see such a poor little one, | with nose blue with cold, without feel- ing that the fres propagandists | have much to answer for in the next | Our observation has not been that this pushing of babies through so many million cubie feet of fresh | air for so many hours per year has | had any particular effect upon making | this o nation of strong, hardy men | | pired. | yards above her residence, and women. As a matter of fact, respiratory dis eases of all sorts, including cold ip, | influenza and pneumonia, have in- | creased Jargely since the vogue for | “fresh air” set in. The treatment n(l the latter disease, now more of a ma- jor sevious {1l than ever, swung from closed rooms and flaxsecd jackets, in , to wide-open windows for the pa- | tient 20 years later, but there is a | disposition on the part of some physi- | cians today to return to a more nor mal procedure, as the “fresh-air craze” L ns to die down. After all, the hardiest children, the toughest men and the sturdiest women this land has ever known were the pioneers, who kept every window down ind they didn’t have many either. They slept in feather ny of them entirely under the d and all. wrded cold as the enemy, ener of God's air. a germ of truth in the there can be no doubt. atment of tuberculosis seems to have been aided, although every one knows some patient who, after five ¥ spent in the outdoors, is no bet- ter today than at first. One can scarce- At fresh air alone has kept Food and the doctor count mething. Let us have fresh afr, by all means, hut let us not make ourselves uncom- unshine is a great deal more important than fresh air. That there fresh-ai threw his shoe in their general dires tion. T.do-not-choose-torun _now has twin brother in ambiguity. His is petitions. That is the long and short of the latest White House contribu- | tion to the 1928 discussion. In the language of the after-dinner story. “there was once an Irishman.”” Of that Celt it is related that after re- ceiving an_explanation of a puz situation, he ejaculated: “Be-gorrah, that leaves me just where I was be- fore, only more so!” Mr. Coolidge in-| tended the country to understand his position, as the result of the *“choose” manifesto. Unquestionably the Presi- dent hoped the spanking he gave Senator Fess of Ohio, archpriest of the draft-Coolidge cult, would remove any doubts created by the 10 Black Hills words. But the cold fact is that the number of those who believe the President can be induced to run has increased, not diminished, since the | Iess episode. There are few indica- tions, as vet. that the latest Coolidge plunge into the sea of language has cleared up matters. * k% % Invidious as it may seem for poli- ticians to harbor continued doubts as to the President’s ‘“real”_intentions, it's a safe estimate that 50 per cent of them—Republicans and Democrats alike—are persuaded not only that Mr, Coolidge will accept renomination but has always intended to take it. Few of these men mean to challenge his integrity or impugn his sincerity. Their view that the President, when it comes to a showdown, will consent to lead his party a second time rests rather on their belief in Calvin Cool- idge’s strong sense of party lovalts and party duty. Republican loyalty and duty in the situation now de- veloping have a more concrete def- inition. They relate to the “Smith menace.” With every day's growing indication that the Governor of New York will be the Democratic nomince, there rises in the stalwart G. O, P. breast ths firm conviction that “Cal” is the only sure-fire bet to heat “Al” That's the actual foundagion of the draft-Coolidge busi- ness, the petitions affair, and all the rest of it. * kK *x Senor Don Carlos . Davila, new Chilean Ambassador to United States, does most of his W between 11 p.m. and 3 am. He says that's a habit inherited from a llh: time of journalism. Up to the hour of his recent dispatch to W f\.flhln;.:!on. as a diplomat, Senor Davila was editor of La Nacion, Chile’s foremost daily newspaper. ile contends that the brain functions at its best amid the relative quiet of the night—even when printing presses are rumbling near- by—and the Ambassador purposes carrying out in diplomacy the working customs he pursued as a professional seribe. La Nacion, Davila’s paper, has specialized in the employment of North American methods—editorial, reportorial and mechanical. Senot Davila, just turned 40, is the youngest Ambassador in Washington, and prob- ably the youngest ever sent here by any country. i Voawrw national Radiotele- which has been in gton since October ends on November 25, 76 sovercign bowers” will affix their signatures to the treaty upon which they've agreed. That is far and away the biggest number of governments which ever joined in an_international compact. The total includes every country in the world that is interested in radio, except Russia, which is a very con- siderable broadcasting power, but was not represented at the confercnce. The signatories take in the United States and Great Britain, which are the lords of the air, and lands as in- sonspicuous as Siam, which has only a couple of radio stations! * kK K Senor Manuel Quezon, Filipino “po- litico” leader now in Washington, is an ardent member of the Mystic Shrine, though an adherent of the Roman Catholic Church. When Que- the the ‘When the Inter graph Conference, session at \Washin, tcare of itself. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. a | vears ago as Resident Commissioner of ame | the Philippine Tslands he joined the I-do-not-approve - of - renomination- | fam« 1 v 1f we keep in the sun, the air will take us Lulu Temple of Philadelphia and is fond of wearing its symbolical fez. Whenever the Shrine Club of tivities or ceremonies Senor Quezon is accustomed to turn up, bedecked, and take enthusiastic part in its rites and frol * ok ok X President Coolidge will broadcast his Thanksgiving proclamation to the Na- tion tonight from his White House :\Ilul\'. the famous old cabinet room in the Executive Mansion. But some- times he has gone into the White House basement for a lio perform- ance, Whether the President addre: es the microphone from his living quarters or in the lower regions of No. 1600 Pennsylvania avenue, the basement is always turned into a broadcasting station for the purpose. A considerable paraphernalia_has to be installed, including the full equip- ment of a transmitting outfit. John B. Daniel, announcer of Station WRC, W hington, s: Coolidge has the “ideal radio voice” of the United States. The President’s nasal twang has the quality of “cutting through” the ether with particular clearness. * ok k% Dr. John J. Tigert of Kentucky, the ‘nited States commissioner of educa- tion, has startled effete Manhattan Island afresh by repeating his allega- tion that “there’s more illiteracy in New York City than in all the moun- tains of the Southern States.” Tigert's been “pretty well roasted” for an- nouncing that view, he , but the other night, at the annual meeting of the New York State Teachers’ As- soclation, he advanced it again in ac- cents that didn't inspire anybody pres- ent to challenge the assertion. Dr. Tigert's charge that “Little Old New York” contains more ‘“white trash” than the sections which breed “Hill RBillies” was evoked by assertions that it's in the South where American edu- cation is retarded. (Copyright. 1027.) UNITED STATES N WORLD WA Ten Years Ago Today Arrival of American troops in France has kept pace with quota called for by army program, Secre- tary Baker announces tonight, in first statement he has ever authorized in connection with the progress being made to increase Gen. Pershing’s forces. Declines to state number of troops now overseas, * * * Drizzling rains turn American sector into a sea of sticky mud, and low visibility has caused artillery activity to subside to normal. Tanks retaliate for shelling of town in which American headquar- ters is situated by sending an equal number of shells into the correspond- ing town behind the German lines. * & * president accepts resignation of Rear Admiral Capps as general man- ager of the Emergency Fleet Corpora- tion on account of ill health. * * ¢ Railroads propose drastic measure to relieve an increasingly serious trans- portation problem. Suggest common use of terminals, abandonment of com- peting passenger service, shipment of food to Europe from Gulf ports to re- lieve congestion at Atlantic ports. * ¢ ¢ Great Britain wants to decorate officers and men of American subma- rines for bravery, but Secretary Dan- iels replies that our laws forbid such decorations. ———— Just the Man for Calles. From the New York Herald-Tribune. If we were President Calles we'd hire Mussolini at any price. —om— Husband Is Defined. From the Detroft News. Scores Fritchie Story. Writer Denies Authenticity of Whittier’s Poem To the Editor of The Star: Having read in a recent issue of The ivening Star an account by Eleanc D. Abbot, great-grandniece of Barbar Fritchie, attempting to justify and give credence to the flag-waving stoi immortalized by Whittier's poem, wi vou please, in the intercst of justice and preservation of true historical events, be so good as to publish the following facts: (1) My father, the late Dr. Samuel 1. Cockerille of this city, served a kuide to Gen. “Stonewall” ke and was with him as he pas through Frederick on the morning September 10, 1862 He has often told me that the flag-waving event ne T occu 1 and deplored the fact that the poem is being continually published in a manner which would indicate that the event actually trans went throus valry escort, who did Jackson Frederick with a c advance of his troops, pass through the town until he some distance beyond it. Had bara Fritchie actually waved the flag in the face of his troops, it could. | therefore, not have been Gen. Jack son who gave the order not go fire, (3) Barbara Fritchie was bedridden at the time of Jackson's passige through Frederick (4) Jackson's troops did not pas Barbara Fritchie's house, but pa up what in Frederick was popularly | known as “The Mill Alley,” about 300 | (2) Gen. ntiated iteh- The last two facts a hy none other than jt nephew, Mr. Valerius F letter in regard to published in the Southern Histor Society Papers for Septembe: Volume VII, No. 9, as follow “I have just r 4 to the Sun purporting to set forth cer- tain facts in relation to the life and character of the late Barbara Ir ie, the heroine of Whittier brated war poem. It may not be im- proper to state that I am the nephew | of ‘Dame Barbara’ and had the settling up of her husband's estate in the capacity of administrator. This necess threw me into frequent | communication with that aged apd venerable dame. Barbara Fritch my venerable aunt, was not a lady of | Summer s your correspondent but an ancient dame of 96 when she departed this life: ind it is but truth to add that she | never saw the inside of the Federal Hospital in this city. Nor did she de- | part this life in September, 1863, but died on December 18, 1862. Nor did | any of the Federal soldiers from the hospital attend the old lady’s remains | to their last resting pl my certain knowledge, wa act, no | orders that effect having been | given. Therefore, none of these con- | valescing invalid soldiers were at my | old aunt's funeral. So much for this | branch of New York cor- | Now, a word as to the waving of | the Federal flag in the face of nw“ rebels by Dame Barbara on the oc- | casion of Stonewall Jackson's march | through Frederick. Truth requires me to say that Stonewall Jac with his troops, did not pass Fritchie’s residence at all; up what in this clty called ‘The Mill Alley yards above her residence; then passed due west toward Antietam, and thus out of the city. “But another and still stronger fact with regard to this matter may be | here presented, viz.: the poem by ‘Whittier represents our venerable relative (then 96 years of age) as nimbly ascending to her attic window and waving her small Federal flag deflant| in the face of Stonewall Jackson's troops. Now, what are the facts at this point? Dame Barbara was, at the moment of the passing of that distinguished general and his forces through FKrederick, bedridden and helpless, and had lost the power of locomotion. She could at this period only move, as she was moved, by the help of her attendants. “These are the true and stern facts, proving that Whittier's poem upon this subject is fiction—pure fic- tion—and nothing else, without even the remotest semblance or resem- blance of fact. “VALERIUS EBERT. “Frederick City, Md., August 27.” At the time that the above was published there was no denial as to the facts set forth therein, so it is hard to understand why a great-grand- niece of Barbara Fritchie should raise the question at this late date. Apparently the Fritchie family t ditions are not now as carefully main- tained as heretofore. As recent a work as Walter Geer" “Campaigns of the Civil War"” (19: in the appendix, brands the Barbara Fritchie story, along with that of Sheridan’s ride, as one of the three great myths of the Civil War. COLEMAN COCKERILLE. ———— Fox Theater Music Classes Are Praised To the Editor of The Star: As a much interested mother, may I urge all parents to have their chi dren take advantage of the unusual opportunity allowed the sixth, seventh and eighth grade pupils, through their schools, to attend the Fox Theater Saturday morning music appreciation classes? . Having attended the class last Sat- urday, 1 could not help making note of the profound quiet and deep (almost hungry) interest with which the great majority of the 200 children attending listened. This is one of the greatest accomplishments of a farreaching scope in the music appreciation de- partment of our public schools of Washington. It affords the ehildren an opportunity not only to appreciate the seriousness of one note off tune (though ever so little), but the seriou: ness of feeling the soul of the rend tion to the very connecting breath or pause of each bar. Prof. A. Kornspan, conductor of the Fox Theater Orchestra, expressed his aim and desire to treat these classes as strictly educational by having open class in his studio at the theater after each Saturday morning directing cla to treat in detail the spiyit and stor of the selections; also answer and ask questions to ascertain progress. He is most worthy in this movement. It seems to me this is a réal opportu- nity for the finding and developing of much heretofore hidden talent. In a most sincerely appreciative W may I express gratefulness to Mr Anne W, S. Bassler, sixth grade teach- er in one of our public schools, as the originator of this progressive music: step? Mrs. Brassler is, with Miss Clara Burroughs, in charge of music appre- ciation in Washington public schools, Her untiring co-operation has placed this line of our District education on the very top round of the primar public_school children’s musical lad- der. The able assistance of the cha man, Mrs. Joseph N. Saunders, in charge of work of this movement through the Parent-Teacher Associa- tion, certainly did much toward the success of this first class. Parents of musically inclined chil- dren, come, show your interest, that vour children may benefit! One word seems necessary to urge the privilege of the classes to the children of the fourth and fifth grades, who are in the more receptive age, especially more unconsciously open to the rhyth- mic sense of music. Please know I offer this word pub. licly as just a deeply interested moth er backing the splendid movement. (Mrs) SUZANNE W. RAUSCHER. —————————— Wecman’s Mysterious Way. From the Detroft News. A husband is a man who gets angry because supper isn’'t ready or hasn't I zon was in the United States several any appetite if it ia, Many a woman with a $750 fur coat rides in'a §250 automobile, and that's why, iy recently, Ldent formerly is much used | by | searches on ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. When and where was Irving Berlin born?—Q. R. J. A. Irving Berlin was born in Russ| on May 11, 1888, Q. When does one & Blank” and when is the wor a led?—E. G A. The epithet “late when death has occurred any One says “the Harding,” late Roy o ot sav or “the la Q. Is the fu found in the A id uncivilized the northern U rang Tts f1 s of Canada ward t n Winter'is goo Eu i nessen, ieal Survey says th ple raise the fish the fur is rather Q. What will remove merenrochrome from elothes? R A. Mercurachron from textiles by rubbing hlorite. Q. Ts cented on the first or second syl —IL B It is accented on the second n ties of domes. B Q. How many var re recognized the Amer asso0 its function of qualit nd varieties of poult in America he six varieties incl the Bronze, White Holl Red, Black, Narrag t Q. Do o plant tandard Poultry which the promotion in all breeds plants throw off o v diffuse d: ally In direc absorb it mosphere throt nd - decompose it, on or enc f) leay and Q. Wi the A. Col. Gerini_in Ptolemy’s Geo; ces the to G Eastern ven Chinese legend Col. Gerini list of seven seas: surrounds India: Se Juice, surrounds Burm surrounds the Mala of Clarified Butter, s Sunda Archipelago; Sea of Milk, sur- Cambodia; Sea of irrounds southern sh Water, sur- rounds northern China and Mongolia. It is apparent, therefore, that the idea of the seven seas is of considerable antiquity and the original list may be older. Q. What republic has fts customs \dministered by the United States W. The republic whose customs are administered by the United States i Haiti. By the treaty of Februai 28, 1916, a political and fiscal prote ti by the United St B blished for a period of 20 s. The treaty provides that the President of Haiti appoint, on the nomination of the Pr dent- of the United States, a general receiver of customs to ‘take charge of customs houses. | extend | treating | zoate of soda, 110 of 1 per Q. When did the storm strike Wash. ch caused such destruction, 1rtly before the World War?—8. L. A AL wind and rain storm enced during the afternoon 30, 1913, ving observed in ing 18 proclaimed an- ‘anada by the Governor- he day is Monday of the vember 11. N. B. D. roup of hybrids known were first produ. sweet orange. expanded £16.000,000 was the fiscal year fust e Foundation' for teaching. Iy a form of W iEhe sl and The grains less rounded than and the husk v in color. Wild 1 1 as a vegetable, What is a chopine?—R. M. is a hig worn under to ma arer appear lawyer"? 1o expression is that in the earl history of Pennsylvan extraordinary ber of lawyers in Philadeiphia, of whom were noted for the ant intellect. ced to the days of 1 there were an he needle of a com- -D. T. B. Wh doe carth's points Forest?— nd is a st, which of Essex and t to Londol nally co I aln best method of er to keep it from H 2 1 of that there two w ider sweet. he fir: it and the seconc Q. What b b Chemist says of keeping is to pasteur- is to add ben- nt to a barrel. If the eider is to be sold, the benzoate of soda content must be de- clared upon the label. Q is h Is Ben Lyon married? How old —W. T. K. A. He is unmarried. Mr. Lyon was born in Atlanta, Ga., in 1901, Q. How many of the public school teachers in the Philippines are Fili- pinos’ C. A, ers and What do you need to know? Is there some point about your business or personal life that puzzles you? Is there something you want to know without delay? Submit your question to Frederic J. Haskin, director of our Washington Information Bure He is employed to help you. Address your inquiry to The Evening Star Informa- tion Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, direc- tor, Washington, D. C., and inclose 2 cents in stamps for return postage. C. re are about 310 white teach- ,391 Filipino teachers. Business Men’s Farm Report Gains Attention of Country Thoughtful attention his been given by the press to the report of the Business Men's Commission on Agri- culture, which was created by the National Industrial Conference Board and the Chamber of Commerce of the United States to consider the farm problem. By many representative dailies the commission’s conclusions are regarded as a long step toward recognition of the rights and needs of the farmer. Yet there is evident in some quarters a feeling that the very scope of the recommendations means delay and inaction. “It's just more of the same patter which has been fed to agriculture for many years past,” says the Sioux City Tribune (independent), while the To- peka Daily Capital (Republican) ob serves that “agriculture may obtain great benefits from the large policies suggested by the commission, but meanwhile farmers who have to live will continue to be up against it The Chicago Daily News, however, takes quite seriously the suggestion of the commission that “a partial solu- tion of the problem will be found in the reduction of duties on manuf tured goods,” insisting that “its de iberate recommendations should not be dismissed offhand and with a few convenient platitudes. The members of that commission are not free trad- ers, and they cannot be accused of wishing to destroy the protective sys- tem, cripple industries built up under it, and bring about wage reductions. They may be presumed heartily to sire the continuance of nation-wide and to contribute to its crease. ""Jt is contended by the St. Paul Dis- \tch (independent) that the comm! on “admits the case for the McNary- FHaugen bill, declares that the purpose of the bill must be met, and only draws back from specific approval of the bill itself. It is unfortunate,” adds the Dispatch, “that the conclusion of the commission in this r s not based upon the data t ered.” The Houston Chronic'e (Demo- cratic) emphasizes its opinion that the farmer s not dared frame such a comprehensive plan as this business man’s plan, and he is ready to lay his plan aside and help put the other one in effect, provided the large business interests of the country will take the lead in that direction. * K Kk % s it presents perhaps the most thorough and most impartial survey of the farm problem that has yet been conducted, it should be valuable in giving intelligent guidance to those Who recognize the gravity of the ques- tion and are anxious to do whatever is possible in the way of its solution,” declares the Baltimore Sun (independ- ent Democratic), and the New York ‘Fimes (independent), calling ‘the report the voice of business sensibly address- ing itself to the farm,” suggests that “ywhat first leaps to the eye in this re- port is the fact that the complaint of Western farmers about tariff discrimi- nation against them is held to be jus- tified. Considering the make-up of the commission, mostly Republican,” the Times adds, “this is as noteworthy as it is surprisin, “Out of this and other reports an extended debate will come when the Seventieth Congress meets,” predicts the Indianapolis News (independent), which praises the document as “nota- ble for its thoroughness and its calm appraisal of factors entering into un- satisfactory _economic conditions in farming.” The Omaha World-Herald (independent) concludes that “with the official admission of the business inter- ests that tariff reform, lower freight rates and waterways are essential to a solution of the farm problem, and not only essential but feasible and proper, it will be no longer possible to de- nounce nhlgno'rnnt and destructive radicals those who long have been urging these measures.” “It seems logical enough and it is economically sound doctrine,” avers the Charleston Evening Post (Inde- pendent Democratic), and the Fargo Forum (Republican) holds that “it should and undoubtedly it will, exer- cise a marked influence upon the whole trend of legislation in Con- gress.” The Kansas Ci Times (in- dependent) holds the opinion that “if the business men’s commission can succeed in convincing the industrial districts that there is a real farm problem that calls for national study and action, it will have made a val- uable contribution to nation-wide prosperity.” The Milwaukee Journal (Independ- ent) contends that “at one sweep the ground is cut out from under the pol- icy which the Government has been pursuing for seven years.” The Wa- terloo Tribune (independent Progres- sive) sees in it recognition of “the in- equalities agriculture is struggling under,” with presentation of a remedy s The Kansas City Journal (Repul can) thinks that “the specific_recom- mendations, except in some minor de- tails, clash with the theories of all factions of the farm relief movement.” but adds that “the report will stimu- late interest and discussion of the problems of agriculture in circles which have given too little heed to the serious situation.” The Santa Ba bara Daily News (Democratic), in general discussion of the situation, ob- serves that “a large proportion of the former opponents of farm relief have come to the realization of the fact that the prosperity of the country is fi volved in the prosperity or otherw of the farmer. The Springflield Union (Republican) offers the criticism, “The proposal of this solution awakes no other echo in the agricultural regions than the adop tion of a resolution by the American Farm Congress declaring that ‘Ameri- can agriculture and live stock indus- tries have entered an era in which v must have protection in the home markets from unrestricted competition of products of countries where land is cheap, standards of living low or labor meanly paid, if they are not to sink to the approximate level of such coun tries.’ “It is within the power of the Presi dent,” according to the New York Eve- ning World (independent), “to reduce the tariff on articles the farmer must buy in his business, but the flexibility cliuse has heen used merely to boost the tariff rates and increase the profits of the favored industrial groups. Why, then, mention the tariff?” this paper asks. “And why bother about the farmer who ‘votes right’ whatever is done to him?"” “The recommendations,” states the Des Moines Tribune-Capital (independ- ent Republican), “do include one that strikes at the inequality between agri- culture and protected industry—the one calling for ‘gradual’ and very cau- tious altering of the protective tariff. In every other respect the report, even as to its timing, suggests a willingness to play in with those whose effort is to keep anything from being done that really would remove any of the dis- crimination against agriculture and in favor of other industries.” The Bloomington Pantagraph (inde- pendent Republican) offers the judg- ment that “no definite, practical and conclusive plan for agriculture is to be found in the recommendations,” and the Muskegon Cironicle (inde- pendent) finds the report disappoint- ing “because it recognized that the difficulties of the agricuitural industry are fundamental, not to be cured over- night by some legislative palliative, but requiring long and careful treat menty’ i o = - v v v ¢