Evening Star Newspaper, December 9, 1928, Page 46

2 ‘ THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C. DECEMBER 9, L) 1928—PART THE EVENING - STAR With Sunday Morning Editien. WASHINGTON, D. C. BUNDAY.......December 9, 1928 THEODORE W. NOYES. . ..Editor The Evening Star Newépuper Company ce: Rate by Carrier Within the City. The Evening Star.. ... 45¢ per menth The Evening and Sunday Star (when 4 Sundays) . . .60¢ per month ‘The Evening snd Sun ar Twhen 5 Synda per month o Collection made at'the end of each month. Orders may be sent in by mail or telephone | Main 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. | M and Virginia. ..1 ¥r., $10.00: 1 mo., 8¢ 1 yr. $6.00: 1 mo. 50c | Ellly and Sunday 131 $400: 1 mol: 40c | aily only unday only . Al Other States and Canada. g::‘lv end Sunday..l );;»“x’.&i llm%. u,gg Sinday only 112101 ¥r $800; 1 mo. Goc Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for repusiization of all 1ews dis- patehes credited to it or not otherwise cred- ited In this paper and also the news published hersin. All richts of publication ¢ apecial dispatches herein are also reserved. | The Inaugural Chairman. During the period of his service here as officer in charge of public bulldings and public parks, Washingtonians have come to know Lieut. Col. U. S. Grant, 3d, as an able executive and an untiring worker whose daily duties have brought him into close contact with the affairs of the District and have given him an extraordinary knowledge of the hopes and aspirations of its citizens. They congratulate Col. Grant upon the dis- tinet honor conferred in his selection as chairman of the committee to ar- range the inaugural ceremonies of the next President of the United States, and they congratulate themselves upon the fact that this distinguished bearer of a famous name will direct an affair of such intimate interest to the Capital. Col. Grant will have the task of earrying out the wishes of Mr. Hoover that the ceremonies incident to his inauguration be simplé, and that they avold ostentatious show. At the seme time, he will bear in mind the hopes of Washingtonians and thoutands of others that Mr. Hoover has used the word “simple” in a relative sense and that some happy medium will be found between the rather rigorous simplicity of the last few inaugurations cnd the to ornate and stupendous &ffairs of other days. In keeping with the char- acteristic desires of Mr. Hoover, Col. Grant will, of course, be forced to curb an overenthusiastic demand for a gala show. But it is believed that his mili- tary training and experience, together with his sympathetic knowledge of ‘Washington and Washingtonians, will enable him to plan an inaugural parade to serve adequately as a demonstration of general popular rejoicing and en- thusiasm. While it has been a custom generally followed to select a private citizen of ‘Washington as chairman of the inaugu- ral committee, Dr. Work has in this case chosen one who to all intents and purposes is a Washingtonian, but who | limited resources of the Alaska Game | time wardens, each expected to vcover { ply would have been had she added, in | West, the fluttering English sparrows of the streets, with rabbits and with foxes and their diseases and family troubles. It is the best friend our furred and feathered friends have. The survey seems to view Alaska as a sort of land of promise and hope. In | the United States proper, or in a great many parts thereof, the damage to wild ! life has already been done. In some | sections it is irreparable; in others there remains a fair amount of hope for the | future. But Alaska, with its almost un- | touched riches in the way of interesting | and highly valuable forms of wild life, appears to offer a second—and perhaps | last—chance to a people which has pretty consistently fumbled its oppor- tunities to keep and to enjoy the good things with which Providence orig- | inally endowed it. Even totay that territory needs more | protection than is possible through the Commission, which has but seven full- the trifling territory of 70,000 square miles. Think that over; think of the animals which can be accommodated | in a slice of land larger than England | and almost $he size of Great Britain, | and think also of the pothunters who, if undetected and unmolested, can thrive thereon. The Biological Survey is convinced that in Alaska there exists a real and great opportunity to put into effect a wild-life administration pro- gram which may be a world-wide ex- ample. May the legislative, the execu- tive and the judicial branches of our Government all share the same point of view and act-accordingly. ———— Standardizing Santa Claus. A little girl once wrote a letter to an editor of the New York Sun and asked him, in effect, if there was a Sanfa Claus. The reply she received through the columns of the Sun became a classic. But one wonders what the re- a postscript, the query, “If so, how | many?” i One of the treacherous complications | of a complicated age is the task of ex- | plaining the ublquitous appearance of the modern Santa Claus. One finds him everywhere. According to the best tradi- tions, he should, at this season, be fat- tening his reindeer and working like a beaver in his toy shop, somewhere in the vicinity of the North Pole. But a stroll through the big stores downtown finds him sitting in several of them at the same time, and instead of directing the work of his elves and otherassist- ants he is merely answering embarrass- ing questions and making promises that, in many cases, should not be quite 50 big-hearted. And in the evening, Just before bedtime, when these same traditions of old demand that the time be given over to the making of good resolutions anent behavior between now and Christmas time, & twist of the radio dial brings in the booming volce of Santa Claus from any one of several different stations. © To the delicate business of explaining why Santa Claus in one store has & gray beard, and Santa Claus in another store has a white beard, thus is added the task of solving the mystery which lies in Santa Claus’ change of voice when he speaks holds, at the same time, an official status as an officer of the Government. That position should enable him to plan for governmental participation on a scale commensurate with the importance and dignity of the event, while his con- tact with citizens of Washington will enable him to allow for a demonstration, on their pert, which is not restricted to over the radio. But that is not all. Be- tween now and Christmes Santa Claus Is going to appear elsewhere. He will be found at Christmas tree parties in the Sunday schools, and the youngster who does not note discrepancies in the physical characteristics of the Santa Claus in the stores and the Santa Claus at Sunday school cannot boast of a par- & favored few. It is to be hoped that the ceremonies ©on March 4 next will set & new precedent and serve as an example upon which to model future observances of these quad- rennial great occasions in the life of the Nation. ————— When sensational fluctuations occur in the stock market, speculation is ' mecessarily alarmed. The man who contents himself with a study of basic and reltable values should feel little ‘uneasiness, Provide More Protectors, Herbert Hoover, President-elect, has already expressed himself of the opint jon that in this country there is too much water between fish, thereby en- dearing himself to the fraternity of the angle. It may be that he is also con- vinced that there 1s to0 much atmos- phere between game protectors, those Federal officers employed to enforce the migratory bird treaty act, & piece of legislation which benefits not only all mature lovers but eventually all dis- ciples of Nimrod. It must be a proud and distinguished sort of job, that of game protector, but at the same time somewhat burden- some. There are only twenty-four of them in all, or an average per State of one-half of one protector. Presidential electors are common in comparison. Two average sized States form quite a “beat” for one of these men to cover properly, even with what little assist- ance he can count on from deputy United States game wardens and other limbs of the law. This point is foreibly brought out in the annual report of the chief of the Biological Survey of the Department of Agriculture, a document dealing with almost every aspect of conservation. Citizens everywhere, the bureau points out, express their ape proval of the migratory bird treaty act, but assert that its enforcement is nota~ bly Inadequate. There are too many hunters ready to violate the law if given half a chance, while the appro- priation available for the enforcement | of the regulations thereof allow for the full-time employment of but the two | dozen protectors aforesaid. ‘The Blological Survey administers no fewer than seven important Federal conservation laws, including the migra- tory bird act. It informs the country that respect on the part of sportsmen and the public in general is growing from year to year, which is good news. ‘Two dozen more of these protectors, or one for the thousands of hunters in each Commonwealth, would speed things up. ‘The survey does & number of interest- ing and useful things. It has inaugu- rated studies of the relative abundance of migratory wild fowl from year to year. It desires authorization by Con- gress to make more extended research into the relationship between abun- ticularly high I. Q. March 4 Herbert Hoover will be President, and one of the things that Mr. Hoover did was to standardize the paving brick. To have standardized the paving brick is no mean accomplish- ment. Bui, if we have the standardized paving brick, why not a standardized Santa Claus? A Santa Claus is really much more important than a mere pav- ing brick, and the hit-or-miss methods of today which produce scores of Santa Clauses, no two of which can wear the same suit of clothes, should be remedied immediately. There should either be one big Santa Claus, who stays up North until the night before Christmas, or Mr. Hoover should insist that a standard for Santa Claus be drawn up by & conference of Santa Claus experts and the pattern religiously followed. It is hard enough having to explain how Santa Claus can be in so many different places at once, without the additional complication of telling why he is a short, dumpy little fellow one minute and & lean and rangy specimen the next. r——— ‘The enthusiastic response to the Hoo- ver good-will tour is an assurance that the world has much to expect from an era of tactful diplomacy. A friendly gesture counts for as much as a well chosen word. ) From Ox-Goad to Joy-Stick. Could Christopher Columbus have voyaged as a young man to the New ‘World in the Santa Marla and retraced his journey as a nonagenarian in the Mauretania, the differences in vehicle, the changes in transportation as a whole, obtaining in his single lifetime, would- have been far less spectacular than those experienced by Ezra Meeker, Oregon Trail ploneer, who started on his last, long trail a day or two ago. In the physical experiences of this brisk little man a veritable miracle was embodied. Born during the presidency of Andrew Jackson, the Summer of 1852 found him among the hundreds who were pressing across the plains from JTowa toward California and the great Northwest in the covered wagon drawn by the patient ox. Nor was he a boy, but & man of twenty-one and married. At the age of ninety-four he made the return trip in an airplane, this time crossing the whole continent. It seems but yegterday that Meeker in The Star office, alert, modest, attractive. One viewed him and con- versed with him almost in awe. His presence, his past, set one to pondering on the ever-increasing speed with which our modes of life change. Here was & little, white-haired, white-bearded man, whose keen eyes, peering through gold- rimmed spectacles, had long ago looked out from leaguered, lumbering, canvas- topped prairie schooners on hostile or suspicious Sloux, Crows and Assini- boines, many of whom had never before {seen a white face, Recently they had looked down serenely from a fuselage dance of wild life and successful for- estry. It deals with the teeming rein- deer of .Alaska, the great elk of the far aloft, under which the continent slowly unrolled like a map. The day's | grateful friend or an envious enemy. Journey of the 50s was ticked off almost in seconds by the plane. In between the two trips, the first and the last, Meeker at the age of seventy-six had gained the attention of the Nation by duplicating his original outfit and journey as nearly as possible. It took him twenty-two months to come by ox-train from the western end of the Oregon Trail to the National Capital. That of itself was no mean achieve- ment. On his return trip West on that occasion he traveled by fast ex- press train. Think of it—at twenty-one in an ox-cart, at seventy-six in a trans- continental express, and at ninety-four in a plane, each the best and the fastest method of travel of its period! fellow countrymen will miss his pis- turesque presence, and will always be glad that one man lived courageously, happily and successfully to accomplish these three epochal journeys. oo A Strictly Family Affair. Dowager Queen Mary not long ago created a national gold medal for award to “the best mother in Rumania.” Now a dispatch from Bucharest announces that she has conferred it on her daughter, Princess Helen, mother of the nation’s seven-year-old King. The initial impulse, on hearing this news, may be softly to chuckle and to think, “Pretty soft for the royal family, rewarding each other like that.” How- ever, Queen Marle has done nothing more than what almost every maternal grandmother would do if she could. If her daughter is any good at all, she is convinced that the latter is the best mother not only of the nation but of the world. Every worth-while young mother is similarly rewarded in her own mother's mind; the only difference is that Marie, wearing the ermine, can create a medal, order it cast and give it to her daughter. Nor will it be an unpopular award. Still another point to be borne in mind is that maybe Helen deserves it. Everything one has heard about her on this side of the world would bear this out. The prize was open to all women distinguished for charity, for patriotism and for child welfare work. After a little consideration is given the matter it is apparent that any one who is raising a king, about the hardest kind of child to raise properly, is likely to be distinguished for all three every hour in the twenty-four. oo Various lines of senatorial comment characteristic of personal viewpoint were fully foreseen. The adage, “It is always the unexpected that happens,” has no standing in the United States Senate. oo Any discussion of peace arrangements is always likely to call attention to an ancient trait in human nature. It has never yet been entirely possible to please everybody. .. ——— ‘There are few national legislators in 80 stern a frame of mind that they will almost hesitate about saying “Merry Christmas!” — e Nobody has the temerity to suggest that by this time there might be a movement to revise street car fare downward. ————— When the bulls and bears stampede, the stock market is no place for those figuratively known as lambs and goats, B e —— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Speech. ‘This human language may seem queer ‘When experts take command. Sometimes the more of it we hear The less we understand. Dumb animals have talents small For talk; they go and come ‘Without palaver. After all, Perhaps they're not so dumb! Promotion. “What will become of that eminent person to whom you referred as a ‘lame duck'?"” “His talents and experience will be highly capitalized,” answered Senator Sorghum. “Instead of a lame duck, he will be the goose that lays the golden egg.” Jud Tunkins says a man who studies hard is likely to be put in the class with Einstein, as one of the few who know exactly what they are talking about. Drama Dialogue. ‘We used to try and memorize ‘The words, poetical or wise, ‘That on the stage we heard. Just now we struggle, with regret, ‘To seem indifferent, and forget ‘The questionable word. Strictly Serlous. “You should learn to take life seri- ously.” £ “You have a wrong idea,” said the racketeer. “I may find it necessary to shoot a bootleg competitor. But you mustn't think for a moment that I am doing it in fun.” = “He who assists another,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “must wait for time to show whether he has made a Rabbit Vendetta, He killed & young rabbit, it seems, Vendetta asserted its schemes— At night he'd a habit Of eating Welsh rabbit— Which brought him some horrible dreams. “De last p'litical speech I heard,” said Uncle Sben, “entertained de audi- ence so much dat it sounded to me mo' like a pastime dan an argument.” s Mari Etta Chicken. From the Akron Beacon Journal. A man named Jay Walker was ar- rested in Marietta on a charge of steal- ing chickens. Now if somebody named ge'r} Swiper gets pinched for jay-walk- oo Jones—Isn't He— From the New York Evening Post. ‘Three persons were denled citizenship because they had never heard of Gov. Smith. But this was before he beat Bobby Jones, B ) We've Noticed That. Prom the Little Rock Arkensas Derocrat. A commentator says there is little wife-beating now. Well, both of them :lr;anutnhomznmmumnu His | Bishop of “The glorious liverty of the chil dren of God” (Romans, vili.21) “Glorious Liberty.” Is the Christian religion designed to restrict or broaden our vision of life? ‘This is certainly a pertinent question and one that is repeatedly asked. If we may take the evidence garnered from the early days of Christianity, we { that the Gospef is the greatest emanci- | pation proclamation ever given to man- kind. 'The great Master himself de- clared, “Ye shell know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” The effect of His teaching upon the lives of those who hecame His followers is made evident in such statements as those which came from the lips of the great Apostle, St. Paul. Writing to the early converts, he declared, "Stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free.” The greater freedom and the larger liberty he exemplified not only in his teaching, but in his life. Bound as a prisoner and appeal- ing_for justice to the highest tribunal at Rome, he enmumtl&apoke and wrote as one who was enjoying utter freedom. He contended, and properly so, that freedom or liberty is not affected by environing conditions; it is a state of mind. Acceptance of the leadership of Jesus meant to him, and to the early disciples, complete emancipation. They were no longer in bondage. Old and hard systems that had once been their boast were now like shackles cast aside. It was this that made their religious habit one of deep joy and satisfaction and that endued them with a kind of courage hitherto unknown. Those who, like them, have recognized the sover- eignty of Christ have experienced a like dom. The Christian philosophy of life takes no cognizance of restricted areas or flelds of service and denies all limita- tions, however hard and exacting they may be. As a matter of fact, some of the greatest benefactors the race has known have been those upon*whom the b e EVERYDAY RELIGION BY THE RIGHT REV. JAMES E. FREEMAN, D. D, LL. D, g ty, We | are bound, whose vision is are certainly warranted in believing | W ashington most serious restrictions were imposed. They were those who could declas “Strong walls do not a prison make.’ Imprisoned in body they were free in spirit, and, Iike Bunyan in Bedford Jail, they traversed the world, unlet and un- hindered. On _the other hand, we constantly meet men and ‘women whose opportunities and advantages seem indescribably great, whose lives limited and whose und(‘rsml\dmg of life’s supreme purpose confines them within narrow limitations. Neither wealth nor knowledge itself is the guarantee of freedom. The glorious liberty of which the Apostle speaks, in one aspect of it, comes from a finer and fuller under-( standing of life's true aim and purpose. ‘When once we have eliminated the fear element as it concerns our essential and proper place in the great scheme of life, we liberate forces within us that are highly potential and we see our- selves in our right relation to the eter- nal purpose and will of God. There can be no question about it, the happy and contented people are those who have the consclousness that they have found their place of largest service and are prosecuting their tasks with the deep Capital Sidelights ‘The gentleman in the wheel-chair attracts the attention of all visitors to the House of Representatives. He is extremely modest and retiring, but once in his career he caused consternation by his abrupt id decidedly uncon- ventional appearance at a ‘“party” in decidedly decollete attire. In the early 80s, Joseph Jefferson Mansfield, the veteran member from the ninth Texas district, was station baggagemaster, and car recorder at Rosenberg, in Fort Bend County. Rosenberg, now & prosperous and thrive ing clty of several thousand, was then but a rafiroad junction, on the bald prairie. The surrounding country was uninhabited and unfenced, but noted for its prodigality in production of mosquitoes. Three railroads centered in Rosen- berg, the Southern Pacific, the Santa Fe and the “Macaroni.” Quite a lot of railroad business was transacted, both passenger and freight, but it was of a transfer character. About the only local business sacted consisted of supplies for one lunch counter and two saloons, which, by the way, were not without their patrons. The duties of the car recorder and baggagemaster were continuous both day and night, requiring two, in their performance. Mansfleld had an assist- ant in the person of Leslie P. David now a banker of Gonzales, each bei: on duty 12 hours a da; thing not un- understanding that they are “in tune with the Infinite” To believe that “All are but parts of one stupendous whole. _ Whose body nature is, and God the soul,” means to liberate the best that is in us and to give to life and its service a finer menmn*. Regarding life on the one hand as a game of chance, and on the other as & well ordered, well designed plan in which we play an essential part, deter- mines for us our discontent and dis- satisfaction, or our serenity and peace of mind. The glorious liberty we may enjoy comes from the deep consclous- ness that we are living a life in conso- nance with the will and purpose of God and that, so llving it, we are contrib- uting to the betterment and enrichment of the world. BY WILLIAM HARD. The sea—and affairs overseas—may be regarded at this week end as the déminant theme in Washington thought ahd action. The Kello{l treaty for outlawing war as an institution among the nations {of the earth has been accorded the | position of highest honor among the egislative prospects of the present Con- gress. ‘Trotting almost abreast of it, bg a fine irony, is the bill for adding 1 fast robust cruisers and 1 great air- plane carrier to our Navy. Campaign orators returning to Washington-—as, for instance, Mrs, Medill McCormick, who stumped every county in Illinois last Summer and this Fall—report that {rom all audiences the l?pll\ll! for out~ lawing war and the applause for build- ing more warships were precisely equal in_volume and in enthun&sm. Back of these two items of natlonal licy, however, there is a third item less observed but even more vital and vigorous in the inward counsels of the National Government. This third item is the sudden revival of growth in our American merchant marine. Americans are beginning to ro to sea again and our Rip Van Winkle Amer- fcan maritime merchant power seems l‘t: last perhaps to be really reopening eyes, Forecasts . Shipbuilding. It is mulble safely to predict now that within the next few years some 40 excellent modern merchant steam- ships will be bullt in American ship- yards and sent into overseas merchant traffic under the American flag. Governmental loans for facilitating the construction of 13 of these ships are already in process of arrangement in the United States Shipping Board. Loans in ald of the remaining 27 will become subjects of negotiation within the not-distant future. All these shij ::ryl R bfll!; ng granted by the Post Office Department to American companies and which have been wna&hfl by them. The infl\lv't.).t‘:emogu is dcvlo‘hp';nmt upon our na ing capacity - cm& and crucial. ‘e have set for ourselves the goal of acquiring and maintaining naval parity with the B ish Empire. In such parity there are three elements. There is first an e?uamy of fllhfins fleets. The crulser bill is & step towar that equality on our behalf. It is far, indeed, from being a complete step, but it 1s a step and it will do something to reduce the present crushing cruiser superiority of the British. The second element in parity at sea between us and the British is naval bases. The British on this point out- class us in a ratio of at least three to one. Scattered about the world—over- seas from the shores of Great Britain— they have at least nine bases that are thoroughiy developed and equipped. ‘We—overseas from our continental shores—have not more than three bases worthy of ln{ high Kmmawnfl regard, our inferfority in this respect is—and will be—extremely difficult to remedy. In any world-wide conflict it would leave us at a great disadvantage. British Far in Lead. The third element in ‘l;-rny at sen becomes therefore for us of extreme im= portance. It is equality in merchant ships. We are, of course, ridiculously far from any such equality today. The number of our ocean-going merchant ships capable of steaming 15 knots an hour is some 50, The number of Brit- ish Ffimflm '5;1‘!,85 capable of that speed is at least 200. We now, however, are at last begin- ning really to hope that considerable additions fo our merchant fleet will be possible and_that these additions will consist of ships splendidly suited to the highest types of service. The connection between merchant marine strength and naval strength is not being overlooked by our authorities. The plans of every merchant ship on which a loan is authorized by our hlg~ ping Board are carefully examined by the Navy Department before the loan is authorized. Look to Use in War. ‘The Navy Department scrutinizes the plans with an eye to the following T the ship must be 1. The engines of roperly located from the standpoint of properly locate Ay, the maximum of safety af 2. The interior of the ship must be s0 constructed as to be readily re- arrangeable for wartime transport purposes. 3. The decks of the ship must be so bullt as to be capable of recelving and emplacing a suitable number of 6-inch guns for the ship's defense when on war-time cruises. In other words, all the 40 neéw pro- spective American merchant ships above mentioned will have & certain fighting value as auxiliaries, in some degree, to our regular naval fleet. This development has all transpired within the few months which have elapsed since the passage of the mer- chant marine act of last Spring with its new provisions for the increase of Iomn from the sken*pln( Board and for the increase of effective mll-clrryln{ con= tracts from the Post Office Department. The question of merchant ships, how= ever, can reach no satisfactory solution except in connection with a solving of the question of merchant seamen of American natfonality. On this point it happens lofl.umzlj lnm progress can likewise be reported. In the years immediately preceding the Great War some 90 per cent of the Merchant Marine Development Is Seen as Potent Naval Factor seamen on American merchant ships were forelgners. During this last fiscal year the sea service section of the Ship- ping Board placed some 60,000 men on American merchant ships, and 89 per cent of these 60,000 were American citizens, Sea Attracting Boys. American boys are once more begin- ning to be attracted to sea life. Further, the American officers of our Americen merchant ships are showing an interest in their potential naval :‘nmmon with railroad workers of that ime. In the Winter of 1882, the town of Rauenberf. which frlnclpnlly consisted of a rallway station house, was de- After this, temporary offices were provided for a time. The Santa Fe opened up a box , the “Macaroni,” in a tent, and the South- ern Pacific hastily constructed a ;vntherbonrd bullding, about 12 by 20 eet, This bullding had a rough board counter across the center, the rear por- tlon being occupled by the office force, while that in front was used as a wait- ing room for passengers, who, while transferring, were frequently required to walt for several hours for the ar- rival of & “wood burner” on the ad- jolglnl line. i n Account of scarcity of sleepin, uarters in Rosenberg, Mansfield pnn avid placed a few boards over the Joists of this temgaury office build- ing, upon which they spread a small mattress. This bed was occupled by them alternately, and the space above it, under the roof, was sufficlent for one person to sleep in comfort. It also served as dressing quarters. This sleep- ing and dressing quarter was about 10 :]e:tt! nwbove tlr:lc dflotgr.' nndi to reach fit, ere naile Wo of th one end of the buudlnq. S Mansfleld from childhood had been & somnambulist. It was quite common for him to get up and stir about in his sleep, sometimes even dressing and going to work In the car nga. On the night in question it was his turn to occupy the sleeping quarter, David being on duty. A “blue whistler” was raging, and among the passengere Ywho crowded into the bulld‘ng for protec- tion from the weather wns the Stutz traveling opera troupe, consisting of a value to their country. One thousand and _sixty-two of them have now enrolled themselves in our Merchant Marine Naval Reserve. Several hun- dred more will presently become mems bers of it. ‘They will thus be ready in war time to pass quickly into becoming an integral part of our naval fighting forces. It may in sum, therefore, be sald that both in the matter of ships and in the matter of men our American merchant marine prospects are, at least, improving—and improving sharply. nderlying this change, and abso- lutely fundamental to it, is the note- worthy obvious abandonment of all enuine agitation for the repeal of the Follette seaman’s law. That law for many years—because of its pro- visions for the safety and comfort of seamen on American ships—was de- nounced as a fatal impediment to American merchant marine success. Today a totally different philosophy of the matter has come into existence. (Copyright, Owners of U. S. Bonds Decrease in Number BY HARDEN COLFAX. Ownership of Federal Government securities is falling into the hands of & steadily decreasing number, all evidence indicates. Congress may be expected to consider legislation tending to correct this situa- uammbnbly not this Winter because of of time, tronlbly during the life of the Seventy-first Congress. In renewing his recommendation, with greater lm{mull> that Federal bonds be made wholl z' tax-exempt until such time as a constitutional amendment may be adopted permitting taxation of all so- called tax-exempt securities, tary of the Treasury Mellon, in his annual report last week, asserted that “there is no reason why the Treasury Depart- ment in marketing securities should be at & disadvantage as compared with Btates and their subdivisions, or why there should be discrimination against individual investors who desire to ac- uire United States Government securi- ties.” The Becretary would prefer tha all public bonds be taxable, but his “point s that until such time as that is made possible the discriminations should be removed. The fact is that Uncle Sam cannot market his securities on terms com- dogen or more, both men and women, The members of the troupe were making the best of their situation, some of them getting out thelr musicul instruments, upon which they were making some unusual sounds, which were accompanied by hilarious laughter. The general noise and confusion par- tlally aroused the sleeping Mansfeld, whose tgreaence on the perch above, up to this time, had bern unobserved. At the foot of the bed the boards sup- porting it extended some distance be« yond the joist, and as Mansfield, in his confusion, placed his weight upon this position, they kicked up at the other end, spilling him in the mids: of the crowd below, Pajamas were then unknown in Ro- senberg, and Mansfield was dressed only in a loose-fitting “nighty,” out of which he almost comple'ely escaped in the fall, the tail of the garment having hung in some way, causing it to be pulled up over head. e The commontion that ensued was in- describable. The light panel door was demolished and both windows smashed as men and women made their escaps at every exit. Whether they thought it was an angel, or a thunderbolt, has never been fully explained. Notwithstanding his 10-foot fall, it was some seconds before Mansfield could realize what had happened. The coal oil Jamp was then turned out long ;rimugh 1;1' i to h:cflge‘ l!‘,.l-xe ladder to s perch, after wi Ppassengers were invited to return. Several members of the troupe received slight bruises, and all were more or less drenched by the cold rain, but after explanations were made, being good sports, they seemed to enjoy it. Mansfleld, deeming his quarters un- safe, afterward changed them over to Richmond, 3 miles where he boarded at the Natio Hotel, then resided over by David Nation and wife, rs. Carrie Nation; the latter after- ward becoming famous as a saloon smosher, * ok oK K ‘Thus early in the session Representa- tive James O'Connor of Loulsiana has pleasantly reminded his colleagues of their opportunity and warned them st indulgence in too much talk. ald: ‘A celebrated statesman who has ‘gone west' forever once said that some men could talk for half a minute and keep the world '.hl.nkmslfor half a cen- tury, while most of his countrymen could talk for half a century and not parable to the bonds of his children and grandchildren, for the lssues of States, counties and municipalities are wholly tax-exempt from Federal taxes, and hence yield a higher return to the investor than securities of the Federal Government which are exempt only from the normal tax. The aggregate of outstanding issues of the central government is decreasing; that of political subdivisions is increas- ing at the rate of at least a billion dol~ lars a year. On June 30, the Feder: QGovernment had outstanding $2,002,- 507,000 in registered bonds and $9,260,- 178,000 in coupon bonds, an regate of $12,252,685,000 in Liberty and Treas- ury bonds, besides other issues. O these, $2,185,000,000 were wholly exsmpt. On the same date, States an their subdivisions had outstanding $15,- 210,000,000 of securities, all tax-exempt. This sum now has been increased more than $150,000,000 and besides the voters November 6 approved bonds yet to be issucd which will run up another billion dollars, Individual investors, unable to get Federal Government securities with an attractive net yield, are turning toward the tax-exempt paper of States d subdivisions, Corporations, being Ject only to normal income tax rate, going out after the Federal bonds. contraction in the number of holders is rapid, allowing for the reduction in the Federal issues outstanding. Eight years ago it was estimated that there were from 14,000,000 to 16,000,000 holders of United States bonds, & num- ber carried to heights during the war, This year, the estimate is that there are from 5,000,000 to 7,000,000 separate holders, In the e!grm years, the value of Lib- erty and Treasury bonds outstan decreased 35 T cent, but the estimate number of holders decreased 65 ‘These private estimates appear fairly accurate in view of officlal Treasury figures, which show that in 1921 there were $4,117,754,000 istered Liberty and ’:n-euurg bonds ou the names of 3,385,645 accounts, while 1028 there are $2,092,507,100 registered bonds outstanding with 1,248,816 counts. There is no record, of kolders of coupon bonds, and are dughcmom in the registered bonds accounts, but the private estimates of totals appear sound from the factors applied. The official records of regis- tered bonds show that the average ac- count increased from $1,216, in 1921, to §2,396, this year. Of course, cancel- lations of small denomination bonds by flduclary institutions to purchase & larger bond for convenience may prove a deceptive element in this apparent contraction in ownership, but obviously not to & major extent, 9 (Copyrighi, 1028, 2§ 1{in furni f tnlnrig: of Col. per cent. | in | South America develop. He sa; keep the world thinking for half a minute.” ok koW The achievements of the Air Mail Service were forcefully brought to the :zrfi-'nmn lflld g; the sn:ug:gt of au jongress by resenta- tive clm Kelly of Pennsylvania, author of the contract air mail law of 1926. He emphasized that it has resulted in building ug‘the alreraft industry and shing & reservoir of men and materials for the aviation development which is vital to any natlon. The contract Alr Mall Service, if it had no other achlevement than the Charles Lindbergh to it, would be fully justified. He was & contract air mail flyer and was on leave of absence when he made his transatlantic flight. It is little more than 10 years lgfl when the first mail plane started on the flight from Washington to New York. It was an inauspiclous bm.nnm'. for the pilot lost his way and was forced to land without completing the trip. The Post Office Department con- tinued its ploneer work, and the air mail was a Government operation until ::\'o’ onn.ctment of the contract air mail The service now carried about 5,600~ 000 pounds a year, while the total welght of letter mail, excluding local letters, t cards and so forth, s 343,000,000 pounds a year. In other words, we are urrylns at present by aircraft about 1 pound in every 60. It is not an exaggerated statement to say that we shall ultimate- ly carry 1 Knund in 10 by this speediest of all methods of transportation, That means that we shall be carry- lng 34,000,000 pounds a year or almost 3,000,000 pounds a month, It will be ix times volume carried at present. There are about 40 letters to the pound, which at 5 cents per letter means revenues of $2 per pound. Rej tative Kelly is ambitious to ys: “It I8 a vitally important policy, not alone for the advancement o otfi’ com= creasing mutual understan and frien . It will bring all the re- publics south of us into closer relation= ship with the United States, and any- zmng which shortens distances adds neighborly feeling. The foreign air mail service links up with our domestic serv- ice, and all together makes for proj ress of which we may all feel proud.” r—oms Still Spouting. From the Toledo Blade, mmflc Etna doesn't know the cam- pagn 15 over, with these countries, but for in- | der. PENSIONS FOR | In the matter of payment of pensions to its ordinary, soldiers the United | States is the most generous Nation in |the world. In the last fiscal year a total of $228,965,672.49 was paid out in pensions. This sum divided by the number of pensioners on the rolls lhnws“ |that the average annual pension |amounts to $466.14. There &re many classes of pensions which have been | authorized under different snlulz-n_! ‘The Civil War pensioners receive the | most, averaging $931.06 a year. Next come veterans of Indian Wars, who receive an average of $497.09; then Spanish War veterans, who are allowed | $364.2¢ on an average, and Jastly| Soldiers, Sailors or Marines of the i regular enlisted forces who have con- | tracted disability in the line of duty in time of peace. These receive an average of $236.34 a year. The practice of pensioning the fight- from early times, pensions taking dif- ferent forms, however. It is only in relatively modern times that fixed in- | comes have been ppid at regular inter- {vals. But in the days of the Roman | Empire the leglons recevied what werg called donatives from time to time, usually on some important occasion. Thus, a Roman Emperor would decree the payment of a donative to the le- glons on his birthday or in celebra- tlort of some victory. Almost invarlably a donative would be paid on the acces- slon of a new Emperor to the throne, England has pald pensions for years, but they have been much less than the American scale. Also England has special pensions. A life pension goes with the Victoria Cross. Then, too, the British Parliament has, by special act, voted very lnrge pensions to great military commanders and great statesmen in civil lite. Sometimes, in fact usually, these are turned over in a lump sum, the interest on which is expected to sup- port the reciplent in luxury for the rest of his life. The United States inaugurated the practice of pensioning soldiers from the very first. One of the first acts of the newly created Congress was to vote nemflma to the soldiers of the Revolu- tlonary Army. These were small com- pared to what later was paid, some of them being less than $8 a month. Days of Land Grants. However, the new Republic was very rich in land and veterans who desired had no difficulty in obtaining grants of public lands in what then was consider- ed the West. Mlni acres in such States as Ohio, Kentucky and the territory between the Alleghenies and the Mis- sissippl were patented to Washington's veterans. - Veterans of later wars such as the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Civil War and various Indian wars also were given land grants. Abraham Lincoln, for example, received a grant for his services as a soldier in the Black Hawk War. In no few instances these lands became very valuable, en= riching the veterans or their heirs. ‘With a continuing pension policy, the United States finds that the number of its pensioners is constantly undergoing change. Following a war the numbers increase rapidly; then, with the pas- of time, the numbers are dimin- ished by deaths until further military operations bring recruits to the pension rolls. The War of 1812 was ended more than & century ago, but 13 widows of veterans of that stru | BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. ing men of a nation has been pursued | le still are draw- | JUB( FIGHTING MEN Spanish War now constitute the most numerous class, there being 144,800 on the rolls at present. Civil War vet- erans are dying at the rate of more than 15,000 & year. Spanish Wer pen- sfoners, on the other hand, are on the increase. In the last year there has been a -gain of more than 25,000. This is due to the’ fact that, with advancing age, the earning power of these men has di- minished and they have availed them- selves of their pension rights, only as the need of assistance developed. Of the 414,000 soldiers who served in the War with Spain there are still some 100,000 who have not yet applied for pensions, At present {here are 197934 Civil War widows and other dependents drawing pensions. This is & decreas: of 14,708 in a year. There are 26195 widows and other dependents of Span- ish War veterans on the rolls now, a gain of 2,648 in a year. Wide Variation in Pensions. The lowest regular pension rate calls for only $20 a month. This applies to certain Spanish War veterans. The rates scale upward, however, depend- ing upon the degree of helplessness, There are classes drawing monthly pen- sions of $26, $30, $40, $50 and $72. Civil War veterans scale up to $90. These higher pensions are paid in case of blindness or where the veteran Is so disabled as to require the services of an_attendant. Only last May Congress passed a bill increasing from $30 to $40 a month the pensions paid to Civil War widows who had attained the age of 75 years. The files were searched to make a proper classification. It was found that 173,000 Civil War widows were in the $30-a- month class and that 103,858 were 75 years old or more. Payments under the increased rate began to be made on June 4. Last April Congress passed an act providing for the payment of double pension in the event of the death or disability of any officer or enlisted man killed or injured in the line of duty in connection with the operation of any submarine or aircraft. A glance at the pension rates of some European countries will suffice to show how generously the United States treats its veterans in comparison. France now is paying pensions to the extent of 792, francs a year. In terms of Ame! money this would be $31,680,000, or only about one-seventh of the amount paid out by the United States. Jugoslavia is paying pensions aggregating 916,358,000 dinars a year. A dinar is worth a little less than 2 cents in American money. Finland, another one of the succession states which grew out of the war, is spending 97,300,000 Finnish marks a_year, the mark being worth about 2'¥ cents. Lithuania is paying pensions of 1,111,000 1its, the lit being the equivalent of 10 cents. The budget of Poland calls for the payment o‘to ‘;0:..!3‘0.000 slotys for nsions, the 2! a 5 a little over 11 ce:tn, The Ru- manian budget calls for 200,000,000 lei in pensions, the leu hav- ing & present value of a little over half a cent. These succession states have been especially referred to, because, with the exception of France, and to some extent oslavia, which was built around old Serbia and Rumania, they all won in- ing pensions. Their husbands were little more than boys, nea: 11 of them privates and, after the war, married women still iounnr than themselves. At the peak there were 2,213,385 Civil War veterans on the Ie sion rolls. These have now dwindled to only 74,929, with each year seeing a further marked reduction. Veterans of the Fifty Y A ifty Years Ago B In The Star Fifty years ago ex-President Grant was on KT. trip around ga.euwul“ol: hu‘t a o Gen. Grant and & nis poss ible candi- dacy for another Third Term, Mfilfinlm‘% House rvnllted ollowing in Star of December 2, 1878, shows how rumor was rife with his name in this connection: “The New York Sun will wldmuly not. shine upon QGrant's candidacy for third term, though it has withdrawn its beams from 'Tilden. mtpflm‘h delighted to find that one of the Madrid papers denounces Crant nra"'xumy of a gross breach of good breeding and etiquette and having failed to pay his respects and congratulations to the King immediately after his lucky escape from the hands of an assassin, because, forsooth, the rallroad tickets had been bought for Lisbon, and the loss of the sum could not, in his mercenary mind, be for a moment entertained'; and Dana quotes with evident satisfaction the statement of another Madrid paper ‘that Gen. Grant was .ullt{ of excess Y dependence in the Great War. A com- p:premfi of the amounts paid reveals how n-m::‘ hesl‘!:a. off I_:_ thee p:“ngoner of he Uni! . 0 . o :\ew states were plunged heavily into debt by the war and the post-armistice period and have slighter resources than the United States. This and That By Charles E. Tm-lu‘ ] ‘The restriped Jack Spratt was sitting :‘t.! ease on 200 gladiolus. bulbs ?re out to dry on the basement ”frfie thy smell of the bulbs ex- actly suited cat it A creature near to Mother Nature, as is a domestic cat, likes the smell of leaves, and dried stalks, freshly cul wood, bunches of herbs hung up to ack Spratt found the corms of the ladiolus much to his liking. o | “Ste preferred the wordlike, but when these were mn!uuy he made the best of what remalns Floal on his little sea of dark brown bulbs, his paws tucked under him, his snowy shirt front the +tide, Jack is to be scen almost any day. as he whiles away the thme in * mysterious cat fashion. ® R k% While Jack endoyx the comfort ol hot-water heat, Big Blackie sits out- doors on the window sill, warm in his ebony suit, ‘;zcklt has been coming around every at the Inm1\|el given him Premier Canovas del Castillo at his residence, 80 much so that he presented a much- to-be-lamented spectacle a few hours later in the interfor of the minister's box at the Royal Theater. Such an exhibition was the only thing wanting to stamp him as unworthy of all the civility showered upon him. “On the other hand, it will be re- membered that it has been alleged in Madrid letters that the Republicans of Spain are much dissatisfled on account of the lack of civility on the part of the Spanish government to Gen. Grant. 8o, perhaps, honors were easy in the matter of interchange of civilities. The other charge, that Grant was intoxi- cated at Madrid theater, may or may not be true, but from the general tenor of re| from Americans travel- ln{ abroad he has conducted himself with so much discretion and quiet. good sense as to have cmmmbg enhanced his reputation in the Old World. The charge of drunkenness against Grant is an old one, but the American people do not seem to have taken much stock in it in the past, and though' will not probably choose to make or anybody else President for three terms, e {ll think he was & good desl of * L Memory of the trade dollars, the coinage of which for the purpose of Trade Dollars oing business ‘on s for Bullion. silver basis was a tedibusing {'ill'wfl'lld in 1873, Teviv following parag: The Star of December 4, 1878: “Secretary Sherman has received froin San Frane an offer of one million trade dollars, deliverable there from China within sixty days, and replies that trade dollars will be bought as bul- lion upon bids each Wednesday, and that no preference will be given to trade dollars over other bullion. There is a strong speculative feeling' springing up to give silver bulllon in ti form_of trade dollars a greater value than other bullion, thus discriminating in favor of bulllon held in China against in the hands of our miners. amount of trade dol 969,360, the amount exported is $25, 815,050 and the Chinese nwrm:‘xx” are estimated as $5,000,000, which would leave in the United States $6,143,410. Those in tion were coined, others, for [ tation, but were put in circulation after they had to be legal ten- > * x The following paragraph in The of December 5, 1878, dllglflll hn.;:nr a definitel Base Ball rmnrlcu:' "::nimz . Fuerieas 7 Meeting. yion of " the National lfill’ll!‘t).f Professional Base Ball :l.ny- ers met in Cleveland yuufuly jyra- cuse, Buffalo and Cleveland clubs were admitted to membership. The cham- n_pennant for 1878 was awarded to he Boston club. The following amend- ments to the constitution were adopted: A morning and evening for a “handout,” which, in cat language, means o saucer of milk or a platter of meat. If he falls to receive either, he meows to get in. If he gets some breakfast or éinner, as the case may be, he washes his fac: contentedly, then quietly disappears, Bllelklel'!n ’expediunm to housc are a tral for every one. Added to the natural feline timidity displayed in a strange place, Biz Blackie manifests much fear of Jack Spratt, rightful resident. : ‘There seems to be an unwritten law in the cat tribe which runs: "rhnll shalt not trespass on ancther cat’s home.” * ok xR ‘Whenever Big Blackie comes in, therefore, he keeps & Wary eye open for Jack Spratt. Around and around the house he will 0, rubbing his jaws it every table leg, every chair leg, while purring vigorously. low he does enjoy being allowed in! And how little he knows what to dg with himself when he gets in. He is so nervous, so ill at ease, that it is dis- tresging to watch him. If he meets Jack, he bows up his back and spits viclously. At heart, however, he is & great coward. If Spratt makes so much as & move toward him, he runs away as fast as his capable legs can carry him. e weighs perhaps twice as much as Spratt, but labors under the mental handicap of knowing that he has no cat in | vight where he is. L kitchen door. He did so without further invitation. It was a cold murnlng.“ Once inside, Blackie made a beeline for the basement steps. He did not use to rub his face against the re- rigerator door handle, or to investigate the bowl of milk beneath the sink. He went straight down the s As he got to the basement floor & - ma-lr% object made a dash at him. Blacl saw Jack Spratt M.I:: upon him like smfurry a 51 §§§ series, —_— ‘excepting local \* pummpl was Y i N | act of delivering the :ball.’ g