Evening Star Newspaper, December 13, 1928, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., THURSDAY, DECE} fBER 13, 1928 JTHE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C THURSDAY. ..December 13, 1928 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor tar Newspaper Company be Evening S - 7 n'allll Office: fcaro 14 t European Oflnmnme Rate by Carrier Within the City. The Evenine Star . 45c per menth The Evening and Sun (when 4 Sundays) The Evenine and Sunday St “when § Sundays).... The Sunday Star Collection made Orders may be sen! Main 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. tar 65¢ per month i1...5c per copy end of each month. y mail cr telepnone at'the t 0 by Daily only Sunday only . Canrs. 00: 1 00; 1 All Other States and Dafly end Sunday..1 sr., 312 Daily only -1 38 Bunday only 5 Member of the Associated The Associated Press i< exclusivel 1o the use for repuniization of all 1 patches eredited 10 it or not otherw fted ta this paper and also the | published herein bl pecial dispatches herein are also — = Ratify the Kellogg Tre Under a tentative agreement by the Senate committee on fol lations, the general pact for re tion of war—more popularly ki the Kellogg treaty—will be repo of that body tomorrow. It will formally before the Senate as & for ratification. Under the rules no formal order of priority is required. for bringing it to a vote. cen call for on executive session at pleasure, -and there seek the pact's adoption. It is the overwhelming view of the | foreign relations committee, as it un-| doubtedly is of the country at large, | that the treaty should be approved by the United States Senate without res- ervations. President Coolidge and Sec- retary Kellogg have given both public and private assurances that there is no necessity whatever for safeguarding America's rights under the pact by loading its ratification down with res- ervations of any kind. During the past week Mr. Kellogg has twice appeared before the foreign relations committee. ~He submitted himself to searching cross-examination on every phase of the treaty and of the negotiations leading up to its signature by fifteen nations at Paris last August. The Secretary of State.left Senators in no doubt on the two scores regarding which some question has been raised— (1) the Monroe Doctrine, and (2) the constitutional and exclusive right of Congress to declare war. Mr. Kellogg supplied convincing evidence that in neither of these respects are existing prerogatives impaired. Apart from the superfluity of reserva- tions, they would contain a danger the importance of which cannot be over- jooked. They could easliy imperil the ratification of the anti-war treaty by other governments. Sir Austen Cham- berlain stated in a speech in London # few nights ago that the British gov- ernment stands ready to give its ap- proval to the pact assoon as the United Btates had acted. But that was no blanket assurance. It plainly conveyed the thought that if America ratifies the treaty as it was signed by herself, Great Britain'and thirteen other coun- tries, the London government would, on its part, give its final and formal as- gent. No genuine friend of the cause which the Kellogg treaty essays to pro- mote—that ‘of bulwarking international peace—should throw obstructive res- ervations across its path, President Coolidge accurately eulo- gized the pact in his recent message to Congress. Praising it as a “simple and straightforward” covenant, he predicted that it “promises more for the peace of the world than any other agreement ever negotiated among the nations.” Those are strong words. They savor of the millennial. But they are fully justi- fied by the globe-wide and unmistakable sincerity with which fifty-nine govern- ments have affixed their signatures and pledged their adherence. No gesture on behalf of a peaceful world since the armistice approximates in far-reaching magnitude the value and validity of the Kellogg treaty. American public sentiment, with ex- ceptions so inconspicuous as not even o be enumerative, supports the pact | and demands its ratification. The Sen- ate will honor itself, gratify the country and stimulate a war-weary universe with fresh hope by promptly and un- qu'aunedly approving it. —— e If Mussolini were as powerful as he at first appeared, he would now be one of the men to be relied on to restrain any thought of another war. R The Senate Chamber. Senator McNary of Oregon has in- troduced a resolution proposirz that the law providing for the reconstruc- tion of the Senaté chamber bz sus-| pended. His proposal is both wise and | proper from a sentimental ground. The‘ legislative appropriation act for the| present fiscal year authorized the re- construction of the chamber. Plans have been drawn. The plans for the ! new chamber call for the removal of the Senate lobby, the President’s room and the Vice President’s rcom, pushing | the north wall of the Senate chamber | to the north wall of the building itself. The new chamber would be semi- circular, with cathedral windows in the | north wall. An appropriation of half | & million dollars has been authorized for this work. The reason advanced for the change | was the need of more direct ventilation for the benefit of the health of the| Senators. The impossibility, however, | of having open windows in the Senate chamber, especially during the Winter months when the Senate is always in session, is apparent. The mortality of Vice Presidents might be expacted to increase by leaps and bounds, since the Vice President’s chair would be only about eight feet from the windows in the proposed north wall. The House of Representatives has just completed the installation of a new ventilating plant. struction of its chamber, however, It is planned now to place a similar ven- tilating system in the proposed new Senate chamber. Senator McNary and those who are with him in his op- entitled ws dis- e cred- news | — | pleces. A sound view of the situation, ar 60c per month | | pionesrs in the aeronautical world gath- It has not changed the con- tilating system of the House before it begins to knock the old chamber to which might save the Government half a million dollars and also save the Senate ‘chamber as it is. It a special session of the new Con- gress is called in }*~-"» or April, or even in September, 1 the changes in the Senate chamber could not be undertaken for another year, unless the Senate should agree to meet outside of its regular chamber. This is unlikely. The Senate moved into its present chamber on January 4, 1859. Prior to that the Senate sat in what is now the Supreme Court chamber. In the 69 years of its occupancy the Senate chamber has been the scene cf great and historic debates, during the Civil War period for example, and more lately during the controversy with Ger- many and later still during the World War. Danlel Webster was the orator at the ceremony of laying the corner stone of the Senate wing of the Capi- tol in 1851. There is a mellowness about the Senate chamber which comes with long usage—a mcllowness which | would vanish completely with the com- plete change In the design of the chamber which is now proposed. For reasons of sentiment and equally for reasons of economy, it would appsar the part of wisdom to follow the lead of Senator McNary in this matter. A Meeting of Pioneers. The Prosident's address yesterday to the distinguished group of leaders and ered here for the first meeting of the Civil Aeronautics Conference was in Senator BMM a summing up of avia- |, tion’s relatively short history; a sketch of the foundations now laid to support the great structure of the future, the dimensions of which are just beginning to take shadowy form in the minds of the builders. One of the notable fea- tures of this address was the fact that its recountal of the work of pioneers was delivered to the pioneers themselves, for in the President’s aucdience sat men whose names are synonymous with the development of aviation from the be- ginning—Wright, Fokker, Caproni, Lind- bergh, Chamberlain, Courtney and weak. A low liner, for instance, might be caught by number one pinch fielder, who was particularly good on this type of ball, and u lazy looper by number two, while the regular outflelder could specialize on soaring flies hit straight at him. There are other objections, of course, to the plan, such as the deep-rooted conviction of every pitcher that if given a chance he will prove himself a Babe Ruth at the bat. Pitchers, of course, are normally weak hitters because they conzentrate entirely on their ability to whiz the ball over the plate, but somc of them are really good batters, and {all of them do their bit with the ash at one time or another. Certainly, if | pitchers.were no longer allowed to bat |1t would remove much interest from the gamz. What Washington fan, for | instance, would pass up the opportunity | of seeing Fred Marberry make his an- nual single to right field or Irving Had- i ley smash one to left center for. three bases? And what local fan does not enjoy the suspense occasioned by the removal of a pitcher who has held the opponents to a féw hits for a pinch batter and wonder whether the pitch- er’s successor will do as well, either in be‘ting or twirling? No, the grand old {game is all right the way it is, and | tinkering with an almost perfect piece {of mechanism generally leads to fatal results. r—oes If anybody consults Vice President the office he now relinquishes is not as it used to be—one that calls for good- natured self-effacement. Bringing the U. S. Senate to an attitude of deference to official authority is one of the larg- est-taska of the time. -t A few European economists are in- clined to intrust finances to American thought without admitting that it rep- resents the most wisdom, but conceding that it represents the most money. — et Theatrical revivals are interesting in disclosing that while costumes and turns of speech may change, the underlying principles of human impulse remain very much the same. — e So many great statesmen now write others. They have lived to see the trails they blazed become beaten paths. The purpose of the conference, how- ver, is not to dwell upon the glories of the twenty-five years that have-passed since Orville Wright and his brother flew their crude plane over the dunes at Kitty Hawk. The conference, bring- ing together some one hundred and twenty-five delegates from thirty-nine foreign countries, hopes to undertake the practical task of obtaining inter- national uniformity of laws and reg- ulations governing the mounting tide of air travel. The magnitude of this task makes it unlikely that the breaking up of the conference will witness the draft of a formal treaty, the need of which is beginning to make itself felt. But the discussions and conferences arranged for the delegates will no doubt develop a concrete expression of ideas which eventually may find their way into a code of international law covering com- mercial aviation. By the close of the conference these delegates, through the interchange of opinions and informa- tion, will have gained a better under- standing of some of the general trends in their chosen field, to equip them for their part in controlling the destinies of a new form of endeavor. One is impressed by the similarity be- tween the aims of this conference and those of the Interpational Radio Con- ference held here last year, when sev- enty-nine nations were made signatories to the draft of a code’of laws governing the international aspects of radio. Ra- dio and aviation, infants in the world of industry, have grown so fast that the business of keeping them properly clothed is one of the pressing necessities. ‘The radio conference led to the erea- tion of an international bureau and to plans for a series of quadrennial inter- national conferences, the next one of which will be held in Madrid in 1932. It is probable that the present gather- ing, called by President Coolidge, will take similar steps to pool and make aveilable to all nations the discoveries and developments in the field of com- mercial aviation. e e Threats of an influenza epidemic should call for personal consideration for the health of others. They are nothing to be sneezed at. P, The Ten-Man Base Ball Team. Of surpassing interest to the mil- lions of base ball fans who are in a state of hibernation for the Winter months is the proposal by President John A. Heydler of the National League for a ten-man team. Whether Mr. Heydler made this revolutionary suggestion in a spirit of levity or with a desire to stir interest in the national game while the snow is banked high | on once-green base ball fields has not | been revealed, but suffice to say that his idea has received wide publicity. Presumably starting next season, the president of the National League would have each team composed of ten offi- cial players, if its manager so desires, the tenth man acting as pinch batter on all occasions for the pitcher, thus permitting the hurler to stay in the game where normally he might be re- moved for a substitute batsman. It is not likely that many real students of base ball will find merit in Mr. Heydler's proposal. The national game, as it is played today, with its drame and suspense when the ex- igencles of the situation call for sub- stitutions of runners, pitchers and bat- ters, but permitting none of these play- ers to return to the fray and allowing full scope of managerial ingenuity and player ability, is a pretty good affair as it stands, and needs no major changes to draw millions through the turnstiles. It would appear almost as logical to have an eighteen-man team as it would to have ten men pitted against the enemy. Then a pinch runner could stand beside the slow-footed batsman and streak down to first with the speed of a deer while the hitter remained com- placently in the box after knocking out a long one to the scoreboard. With a slcw-thinking outfielder, a quick-wit- iud pinch fielder could be stationed nearby to tell him what base to throw to after a catch, or the idea could be carried even further and two or three | | position to the drastic change in the historic Senate chamber are urging for print that serious deliberations are liable to be interrupted by the boy who comes along and calls for “copy.” e As usual, those who cashed in early on Wall Street are shrewd investors. Those who got caught in the receding market are gamblers. S i ‘When great disasters become frequent, resentful inquiry is hindered by the fact that the latest causes forgetfulness of the others. ————— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Appeal to Ancient Friend. Are we growing misanthropic? This is something to be feared. By some old hilarious tgpic ‘We no longer can be red. ‘The banana peels that throw us Animate no merry jest. And a mother-in-law will show us Many a thought that's for the best. Elephants and donkeys grinning Have departed on their way, ‘While the syncopated sinning Brings no joy-compelling 1 Santa Claus! Here is a letter Which is free from idle chaff! “Bring us something new and better ‘To produce an honest laugh!” Mechanics to the Rescue. “Invention has made a mechanical man that can talk.” “It's good work,” declared Senator Sorghum. “A. substitute is needed. Mere humanity cannot hope to survive the ordeal of campaign oratory.” Jud Tunkins says a man who thinks of nothing but moncy cannot be ex- pected to think of anything very origtnal, Printed Pages. To Letters, with deep reverence we look For joys that must endure. The Calendar joins with the Pocketbook In Christmas Literature. Relief. “Any prospect of farm relief?” “Considerable,” answered Farmer Corntossel. “It looks like we won't be expected to go on sittin’ up nights listenin® to talk that doesn’t mean much for us agriculturists.” Wild Landscape. ‘The Cubist Artist rambled ‘With dangerous indecision. He ‘'sees the world #ll scrambled * And views it with derision. Quietude ¥mpossilbe. “Do you favor a quiet inauguration?” “Cf course. But how are we going to 7ot t? Even if we refrain from cheer- ing and -singing on the sidewalk, in- numerable visitors will make the roar of traffic something tremendous.” High-Power Saint. Dear Santa Claus! Dear Santa Claus! You keep us all in line. The world admires you now because You are a salesman fine. Games. “I'm sorry you got mixed into a crap game.” “It isn't so dignified as the stock exchange. But it is content with more moderate sums and works faster.” “A jazz band,” sald Uncle Eben, “is a great comfort to lonesome folks dat 'ud rather hear a loud noise dan nothin" at all.” r—or—s Not a Comfortable Seat, Either. From the Springfield, Mass., Union. In a few more years, perhaps, old- timers on the New York Stock Ex- change will recall with more or less fondness the good old days when a seat could be bought for $600,000 or less. P Tt Takes That Long to Pay "Em, From the Pacucah Evening Sun. A medical writer says that the last generation has learned to put off death gn additional ten years, thus marking another distinction between death and taxes. ——r—r—— Particularly 13 Miles Out, From the Sioux City Tribune. It is reported that a gambling ship is doing business 13 miles off the Pacific “pinchers” could be clustered around an outficlder to catch various types of Coast. Why worry about individuals who will travel out of bounds just to shat the Senate try out this new ven- flies on which the regular piayer was get skinned? ! Dawes, he is likely to bz assured that s THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Some of the most entertaining read- ing one can find costs neither time nor money, since it may be picked up on the front door step as one enters. ‘Whether it should be classed as fic- tion or biography we leave to the astute average home owner cares not what it may be just o long as it interests him. We refer, of course, to the thousan and one circulars, dodgers, patent mad cine calendars, ctc, which are plenti- fully sprinkled arcund the city. Some of these are seasona! affair: such as the almanacs, many of whica are being distributed at this time, owing to the imminence of the New Year. Butchers' handbills crop up almost any day. There seems to be no season when the populace does not eat meat Then there are any number of dodgers thrown around in the interest of mer- cantile establishments with neat articles to sell, ranging all the way from silk stockings to aluminum pans. All of these specimens of printed mat- ter are placed upon doorsteps or in mail boxes by young or old men who seem glad of the oppohtunity to pick up a sum of money whose extent must re- main in doubt The granddaddy bf these bill is a patriarchal-looking old fellow a long white beard and a surprising spry step. He makes on~ think of 2 dwarf, yet is nearly 6 feet tall, although staoped. | Once he made a mistake and pas two bills to the same side of the street. ng his blunder. he ratraced his | s30rS second bill. * K kX Thus he never | knows that his patient efforts have ! gone for nothing. His employer, of | course, is equally in the dark. As long as the man left with 5,000 | almanacs, and returns with an empty bag slung over his shoulder, all is O. K. | As far as the man is concerned, he| knows that he was true to his trust. If the bdss asks, “Did you put one at each door?” he can truthfully reply, “Yes, sir.” A fellow can't be expected to do police duty after he has worked a block. | He has yet other rows to attend to, and | must be about his business. If Johnny Junior, aged 5, and Tim- | my, aged 11, come along five minutes after he has gone, and collect the en- tire batch, surely no one in the world Is to blame except the system. Thus a boy as a boy gets the patent | medicine almanac complex, so that when he is grown he never departs from it. Small samples of foodstuffs often are | thrown around from door to door. One | wonders what happens to John and Tim | when they gather two or three dozen samples. Such a result no enterprising manufacturer could foresee. * K K K Our particular favorite is the al- manac which contains the long-range weather prophecies. It doesn’t matter how much the United States Weather Bureau sneers at such prophecies, there remains a sneaking notion in the head of the average man that maybe it can be done. One is willing enough to admit that The happy hunting ground of Bolivia and Paraguay, known in the native language as the “Gran Chaco,” bids fair to become the field of contention in the next wal The disputed area is as graat as all of New York and New Eng- land, It is covered with virgin forest, inhabited sparsely by savages and ha'f- civilized aborigines, and until within the last decade, when American and European oil companies began to find traces of oil in the land, it has not been considered of immediate consequence of account of its natural resources. Never- theless, in that region, there has been for three or four centuries the seed of war between Bolivia and Paraguay, be- cause Bollvia has disputed the latier's claims to its sovereignty. Even that dispute might not have led to belligerency if a way had been found to restore Bolivia’s corridor across Chile and Peru to the Pacific Ocean, lost as a consequence of the disastrous war with Chile in 1879, or if President Coolidge could have found a way to restore that access to the sea for the land-locked country, as an auxillary issue in the arbitration of the Tacna-Arica arbitra- tion, by which the boundary between Chile and Peru was settled. Bolivia offered to buv that corridor, and its surrender by either Peru or Chile would not have been of serious consequence to either, while of untold importance to the inland nation. But now Bolivia is in despair as to access to the Pacific | | | demand for a port on the navigable Paraguay River, giving connection with the Atlantic Ocean. Bolivia, in her distress, is in a dan- gerous mood and openly threa‘ens to seize by arms what she has tried for many years to acquire bv negotiation and what Paraguay has held for four centuries by right of discovery and set- tlement and by concession from the | King of Spain. Bglh cul?nt s belong to the League of Natlons and that organization has reminded their governments of the obligations to submit their differences to international arbitration and refrain from hostilities. At the same time the communication from the League of Na- tions adroitly intimates that as this is an American question there are means of adjusting it in the Western Hemi- sphere—or words to that effect—mean- ing the Monroe Doctrine and its country >f paramount interest, the United States. * ok K K | | | | ‘Both countries have signified the in- tention to adhere to the Kellogg-Briand multilateral treaty, pledging them not to follow a national policy of settling disputes by means of war. They have | not yet signed the treaty, much less ratified it, and the treaty itself is not vet in effect as between any nations, but they have promised to sign and ratify it, making war an outlawed means of set- tling disputes. In the meanwhile, their i ing, and, according to Bolivia, hostile acts have been committed within the Gran Chaco, the disputed territory, by Paraguay, but Paraguay claims that Bolivia fired the first shots when a Paragueyan force drove Bolivian in- vaders back from the border. The American conferenc2 now in session in Washington 1is also actively seeking to prevent war. Such war might easily involve other nations. * kK K So far, the attitude of Paraguay has been strictly defensive, and that of Bolivia is actively hostile in “pushnig the claim for an outlet to the sea through Paraguayan territory. It is granted that Bolivia sorely needs_such access for hef commerce—as might be sald also of Switzerland and of certain South American inland nations aside from Bolivia. If the organizations of neutral na- tions ‘are given power to adjust the dif- ficulty, it is predicted by diplomats that a settlement may ke reached which would include a sale of a port on the Paraguay River to Bolivia, to- gether with the right of navigation of States and Canada share the St. Law- rence without friction, * ok k% While the dispute has grown acute professors of literature: certainly the | and demanded the return of the | | and an Intense desire to be helpful. BACKGROUND OF EVENTS BY PAUL V. COLLINS. and, turning to the east. renews her | | before Sebastian Cabot, who continued |colony in the Plate reglon. The first blood is boil- | .1v\here Chaves received from the viceroy {he great river to the sea, as the United | motion is impossible. So On_ the other ; | perpetual | much for the theory! | hand, most people believe that some- thing very close to it may be realized some day or other. In regard to weather forecasts made a whole year in advance, common sense tells one that it simply can't be done, yet the perpetual hope of mankind in |short cuts and miracles leads one on |to the simple feeling that maybe the | fellow will hit it, after all! What a wonder worker he is, to be | |sure! This hardy man has dispensed with the elaborate daily telegraphic service of the Federal weather agency. | | He has done away with its thousands | |of employes and, therefore, does not ! have to pay them the hundreds of | | thousands of dollars which Uncle Sam | must fork over annually. Yet, despite these handicaps, he | calmly sits down and writes off the way the weather is going to be for the en- | tire year in prospect. As far as any | one could say to the contrary, he could | just as easily do the same for the next five years, or the next decade, or the next century. He is nothing if not thorough. Of | course, he allows himself a bit of lati- |tude. He does not say that “There will be a snow in the District of Co- lumbia on January 1.” The United | States is too big to permit of such a | precise prediction as that. | He ‘merely indicates that during the | first three days of January there will be “cold weather” generally throughout ih> country. The more one thinks of that propheey, he more he is likely to feel that this Is a good beginning. We feel so sure ihat he will be found correct that we intend seemng that our coal supply is up to the minute Yes, the more one thinks of his dar- g, the more-he is willing to admit that is_going to be reasonably cold om| the New Year! % * The “testimonials,” of course, are the most interesting reading of all. In them one finds raw human nature, hopeful, friendly, buoyed up by faith| o i Our favorite reading |s the almanac. | It must have begun i youth. We can | see the same course instruction in | operation today. Often small boys fol- | low after the dispensers of alm | carefully picking up the booklets wher- | ever the man left them. ¥ Usually this bright trick is not in-| dulged in until after the man has| passed off the block. A man who will take two botiles of medicine wants to be helped. He is expecting to be helped, and evidently is willing to believe himself aided at the first favorable sign. It is questionable whether most medi- cine works first on the mind or on the body. Here is Mrs. Simon J. Lonacre of Cross Roads, Ohio, who was ailing for many years until a friend induced her to try “your grand remedy.” After six bottles she was well again, and wants to urge the wide world to try half a dozen bottles, too, that they may recover in their turn. Although the reader may have little wrong with his internal economy. if he have one- tenth of the imagination possessed by a half-grown grasshopper, he will con- sider the proposal of sending for a half-dozen bottles on his own account. It is comforting to read of all these aches and pains which so many brothers and sisters have had, and inspiring to understand that today they are free Irom them. One feels as did Lucretius’ man on shore when he saw the mariner buf- feted by the waves. He was glad, not that the sailor was in trouble, but that he on the shore was safe from such misery. So ‘the reader cons the pages of the almanac, happy that he is free from such illnesses. He lays it aside, making a mental note to check up on the weather prediction for next January. through recent developments, it is not | | of transient origin. Tentative but un- ratified settlements date back to 1879.| In 1887 an agreement was made in a conference, under ‘which the disputed Gran Checo was divided into three cross-sections, the southern section be- ing awarded to Paraguay, the northern to Bolivia and the middle to remain neutral until some further arrangement could be found. But the agreement was rejected by Paraguay as unfair to that country, which claimed full sov- ereignty by reason of discovery four centuries ago. In 1894 another tentative boundary | was found running from a certain point on the Paraguay River to the principal course of the Pilcomayo River, at 61 degrees 21 minutes west. That would have given Bolivia a great area of land, but still no port on the Paraguay River, hence no outlet to the Atlantic, and so it was refused, and never even submitted to the Bolivian congress. Nineteen years later direct negotiations were opened, but failed because of dis- agreement as to the port. In 1913, by agreement, all previous treaties or nego- tiations on the controversy were defi 1itely annulled, so as to enable the coun: tries to start all over again. Paragua insists_upon her undivided sovereignty | from the Paraguay River to the first ranges of the Andes, yet some of the western regions of the Chago have been under de facto rule of Bolivia for many years, and, as a “voluntary” concession, Paraguay offers. to relinquish her claims to such territory under Bolivian control. But that is not a port to the sea and that port is the key to all of Bolivia's | agitation, * kK K According to Paraguayan claims, the Gran Chaco region was discovered in 1515 by Juan_de Solis, who first found the Parana River, and, according to the customs of nations, claimed all the region watered or drained by that river system. De Solis sailed up the River Plate 17 years before Pizarro came to Peru to conquer the Incas, and 10 years De Solis’ discoverles up the Parana River. Charles V recognized De Solis discoveries and undertook to found a two settlements failed. but a successful one was founded at Asuncion in 1537, whence an expedition, under Irala, penetrated Chaco in 1542, and to the present site of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. In 1547, when Irala became governor, he led an expedition across Chaco and spent three years at Chiquitos, near the base of the Andes. This is the basis of Paraguay’s claim to title to all of Chaco —confirmed by four centuries of possession. WA The first Alto-Peruvian (Bolivian) to descend to the lowlands of Chaco was | Andes Monso, together with Nuflo and Chaves, with Paraguayan troops, 1556- 1560. Nuflo was killed by Chiriguano Indians, leaving the command to the Paraguayan officer, Chaves. Gov. Irala then commissioned Chaves to lead an expedition of 220 soldiers and 13,500 Indians to Chiquisaca and Lima, i i of Peru proprietorship of all Chaco, and | Chaves, operating with Paraguayan troops, founded Santa Cruz de la Sierra, |and placed 60,000 Chiquito Indians in | “encomiendo settlements.” | Another Paraguayan, Vera, in 1585 | fcunded a settlement on the Bermejo River, at Concepcion de Buena Es- peranza, All this time the Spaniards of Alta Peru (Bolivia) made no attempt to | settle Central or Eastern Chaco, but in 1591 Tarija was founded by Alta Peru in the extreme west of Chaco {as a fort to protect against the Chiri- i guano Indians. Paraguay is ready to ! concede that western region of Tarlja and Santa Cruz. For more than three centuries all of Eastern and Central Chaco has been policed from Asuncion —the capital of Paraguay—and Para- guay declares that that country has never even agreed to sell any part of her territory in Chaco, except that | “The District of Columbia, in the last | women generally, in a District under {of the unemployed. District Views Approved.! National Capital Is Source of Pride for Entire Nation. To the Editor of The Star: As a citizen born here in '77 I desire to add my approval of the article on the District of Columbia, written by a former president of the board of the District. The particular section which inter- ested me was work for Mr. Hoover as follows: “Will the incoming President be able to force the application of prac- tical business methods for the relief of the overcrowded public schools of the National Capital?" In the name of litile children it s hoped that he can do $0.” analysis, is the Capital of the United States. It is the home of the Nation. Municipal activities which elsewhere would be purely local in character take | on a national aspect. The people of the entire country have a direct interest in | the territory in which is located the | seat of their Government.” ; In regard to this latter statement | let me say, personally, that even the | nearby citizens of the States of Mary- land and Virginia have an erroneous idea of the relationship of Congress toward the District of Columbia. During the recent presidential cam- palgn a Virginian visiting Washington for the first time told me that it had been noticed down his way that the District people wanted more from Con- gress, and as Congress appropriated | everything for the District, why did they clamor for the vote? This point seems to me to bear rather close rela- tionship to the statement of the forme: president of the Board of Commission- ers in the District, to wit: “The people of the entire country have a direct in- terest in the territory in which is lo. cated the seat of their Government How can they have a constructive in- terest in the territory if they are not intelligent on the subject? My experience has been that the con- servative business men and public- pirited residents of Washington City, who say so Iittle and contribute so will- nd_generously.-to-national cele- have the sense of national pride, and in this group may be includ- ed adjacent Virginia and Maryland citi- zens who aided in the buying of the ground for the White House in 1800. These citizens could contribute much information on the lack of education and understanding of the laymen of the States on the status of the District of Columbia with regard to Congress. Information on municipal affairs, as well as national interests, might be dis- tributed by the ever-ready radio and press to the people, the educational in- stitutions, the visitors to the National Capital and laymen of the States seek- ing accurate knowledge, ELEANOR DAVIS. Columbia Hospital's Need of Funds Cited| Tfo_the Editor of The Star: I am curious to know why Congress, in the Interior Department appropria- tion bill for the next fiscal year, pro- vides $260,180 for the Freedmen's Hospital (colored) of this city, while the Columbia Hospital (white), filling a most important need in Washington and supervised by a most efficient superintendent and administration, is ignored. I do not dispute the necessity of Federal aid for Freedmen's Hospital, but I feel that Columbia Hcspital, threatened with the closing of its hos- pitable doors for lack/of funds, is in very grave need of financial assistance at this time. Ceriainly a hospital that all these years has met so great a need for mothers and children—the most im- portant consideration in the economic welfare of the city—should not be for- gotten at this time. God forbid such an injustice! I appeal to The Star to'bring again to the attention of the authorities on the Hill the magnificent record of this institution, its clean-cut record of free service to the needy at the Nation's Capital, the high character of its service | to mothers—prospective ~mothers—to | Songress” contrel—an institution that de- serves well of Congress. I feel .that per- sonal inspection and consgltation with the superintendent, Dr. Motrow, would be immeasurably helpful in-determining the' future of this splendid institution and its function at the Nattonal Capital. INA C. EMERY. ————————— Gives Plan to End Starling Nuisance To the Editor of The Star: Concerning the starling nuisance on Pennsylvania avenue, discussed in Sun- day's Star, it occurs to me that this could be eliminated by the very simple expedient of harvesting the seed pods on the sycamore trees that line the Avenue. It is this food supply that at- tracts the birds. I have not Mr. 1 it would take half a dozen park em- ployes more than several days to harvest the crop. Cost of harvesting the pods ! probably weuld not exceed damag: to | itizens’ clothing and automobiles. The additional purpss® would be served of giving employment to a few FAY B. McCONKEY. e King Mihai Goes to School With Subjects From the Milwaukee Journal. A new school is being built in Rumania for the instruction of little King Mihai. His schoolmates will be the children of artisans and peasants, of tradesmen and the nobility. They will be drawn from every race and every ?mvlnce of his kingdom. King Mihai, or all his heritage, will be but one more child in this school, held down by its every rule of discipline. He will learn, among other things, that, however royal may be his place, he, too, is subject to the rules of grammar, to the compu- | tations of the multiplication table and | to every truth that mankind has learned through the centuries. He will discover many things that princes of an older generation never knew. In one class he is sure to see a lowly peasant’s son outstrip him in quickness of under- standing. In another he will learn that ! a tradesman's boy can outdo him in| memory. In a third he will see the | dunce cap on a scion of high nobility. | On the playground he will see that | physical “prowess is no respecter of lineage, In the old days, when royalty was | in highest flower and private teachers | taught within palace walls, all these things were spared to princes. The throes of instruction were suffered pri- vately and without possibility of em- barrassment. No lowly subject knew of the princely struggles with his a ¢'s. No ordinary mortal, by superior native ability, could excite his jealous wrath. Today King Mihai goes to an ordinary school to compete with his subjects in the ficld of knowledge. ‘Though he be king by heredity and their master in many things, he may not even be the peer in reading, writing and arithmetic. Little Mihai will learn many things in the next few years, but the greatest of these will be his own real individual insignificance. He will learn that, while fate put him on a throne, only per- sistent application can make him an educated man and a cultured gentle- man, He will see that high birth is only a start in life and a kingly future but a challenge. If he is wise and his counselors courageous. he will also see as thg years go on that his continuance on a throne in these democratic days depends very much on how he answers that challenge. the tortures of inscct pests in Chaco as being extreme. Other writers tell of the Chaco mosquitoes and other insects as being terrible, but allege that they do not exist on the east side of the river. They interfere with stock western regicn. 5 When President Roosevelt led his expedition of discovery he passed un the Faraguay River, and he describes raising thrcughout Chaco, and the country is still unsstt’ed and occupied only by barbarian Indians. (Covyrizht. 1928, by Faul V. Collina.) Hoover’s statistics on it, but I doubt if | D ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J]. HASKIN. Take advantage of this free service. If you are one of the thousands whe have patronized the bureau, write u: again. If you have never used the service, begin_now. It is maintained for your benefit. Be sure to send your name and address with your question and inclose 2 cents in coin or stamps for return postage. Address The Eve- ning Star Information Bureau. Fred- gric J. Haskin, director, Washington, D. C. Q. How many laws of all kinds are there on the statute books?—V. K. A. It is estimated that there are 7,900,000 laws on the statute books of the Nation, States and municipalities. Q. What is meant by technical posi- tion in the stock market?—A. C. A. This is used in reference to an artificial condition of the market, which has been brought about usually by | manipulating or overspeculation — an unnatural level of prices, which cannot last. Q. What do O. S. and N. S. mcan when placed after dates?—E. L. R. * A. O. S. means cld style. N. S.7 means new style. This refers to the change in the calendar. There 11 days’ difference Q. Can the President remove an ap- | pointee whose term has not expired?— G. C k. 'A. The Supreme Court recently con- firmed the power of the President to !make a removal of an appointee be- fore the expiration of his term. Q. Who were some of the famous skalds?—E. McG. A- The word poets who in pri long compositions in verse, usually in honor of the great and famo from the old Norse “Skald,” meaning “poet.” They were minstrels of a high | order, often attached to the court. The | carliest of these skalds was the mythi- | cal “Starkadh, the old.” The follow- | ing are among the most famous of his | successors: Thjodolf, author of “¥ngli gatal,” and Thorbjorn, the minstrel and author of “Haraldsmal.” Both of these | flourished at the end of the ninth cen- | tury at the court of Harold of the | Bright Hair. In the tenth century lived the Norwegian skald Eyvind, who sang the exploits of the famous Hako- narmal, and the Icelander Egil, who gave his name to the Egils-Saga. The last of the skalds was Skurla, who died in 1284, Q. What is meant by the Treasury balance?—C. V. A. The Treasury balance is the amount held in the United States Treas- ury each day after all the Government receipts and payments for that day have been taken care of. Q. How long does it take for the soft spot %1 a baby’s head to disappear? A. There are usually four such spots discernible on the skull of a newly born infant. "All but the anterior or great fontanel close within a few months. This closes about one year after birth, but in some cases persists during the second year, Q. What is a social wasp?—H. R. A. Social wasps are those that live in colonies and are all papermakers. Their nests are sometimes of large size and shelter a great many individuals. | @ will Spanish moss kill a tree?— | JW. W, A. As a general rule Spanish moss will grow on trees without proving a hindrance in any way. There are cases on record when it would seem that Spanish moss has contributed to the death of a particular tree, but other factors also were present. hold Q. How many warehouses were us) comes | liquor for medicinal purposes?—E. B. P. A. In_ 1927, the medicinal liquor | upder Gpvernment control was con- centrated .in 37 warehouses, Q. What is meant by wheat in bond? |—P. T, 8. A. Wheat in bond means wheat im- ported from Canada by American mills o be ground and the flour to be ex- ported. By this arrangement it is not necessary for the mills to pay the duty. | Q. What is the complete inscription | on the momement at the grave of Wil liam Jennings Bryan?—L. L. G. | A. The inscription _on the monu- | ment at the grave of Wililam Jennings Bryan at Arlington Cemetery, Wash- | ington, D. C. is as folows: “William | Jennings Bryan — Colone!, Statesman, | et friend to truth—Of soull sincere—In | Betion faithful—And. in haonor clear | Pn the reverse side of the monument the name “Bryan” and the words “He ept the Faith.” | Q.. Did the Monitor fight t! | mac after a trial trip?—L. A, | A. There was no opportunity for a previous trial trip. The Monitof had not_even been accepted by the GoveXn- Q How —W. M. G. A. Allegretto is a diminutive of allegro and as a time indication some- what slower than the latter, and also faster than andante. Like allegro, it is frequently combined with other words. Examples are allegretto moderato, et cetera, either modifying the pace or de= scribing the character of the music. ‘The word is also used as the name of & movement and in this sense is especial= | ly to be often found in the works of Beethoven. Q. On what date did the new Jap- anes Emperor ascend the throne?— ‘A." The Emperor Hirohito formally ascended the throne of Japan on No- vember 10, 1928. Q. What is.the greatest amount of oil ever consumed by an oil-burning ship between the United States and Europe?—J. W. S. A. No record is available showing the greatest amount of oil ever con- sumed by an oil-burning ship between the United States and Europe. The amount of oil used depends on the speed, the weather and the grade of oil. The Shipping Board has given us the record of the Leviathan. This record includes only the oil consumed at sea, and doesn't include what was used while the boat was in port. This trip was made in June, 1928, on ons of the Leviathan's regular trips from New York to Cherbourg to Southamp- ton, back to Cherbourg and then to New York. It was a trip of 6,436 miles. It took 11 days and 5 hours. Average speed was 23.86 knots per hour. In all, 42 barrels of oil were consumed. This is equal to 9,931 tons of oil. This averages 883.9 for 24 hours, an average of .643 miles per ton. Q. When Neptune is nearest to the earth, what is its distance?>—E. G. * A is then 2,629,000,000 miles he\Merri- M. fast is an allegretto tempo? away. Q. How should pearls be kept?— E. V.S A. It is a popular belief that pearls | deteriorate readily, yet the observance of a few rules is sufficient to care for them properly. They should be kept in as even a temperature as possible, for they expand and contract on exposure to heat or cold. The composition of the pearl is 92 per cent carbonate of lime, | 6 per cent organic matter and 2 per |cent water. It is essential that this water be retained in the pearl. In order that this may be accomplished should be kept in a container line a fine quality of oil silk rather than in :e l;ell:ephcle lined with absorbent ma- | terial. As Review of President Coolidge’s last message to Congress, discussed by the press as a review of his - administration, finds warm approval in many quarte not- withstanding a feeling in others that, the Cleveland Plain Dealer expresses “a message addressed to a lame duck sssion by a President whose successor already has been elected is likely always to be & work of supererogation.” “Mz. Coolidge was serenely confident, political philosophy had been vindi- cated by experience and approved by the American people,” says the Chicago y News (independent). The Roa- noke World-News (independent Demo- cratic) holds that “most of the recom- mendations are sane and conservative {and in line with the best thought of the country.” ever, advises that Congress The latter paper, how- “should be !slow to follow the President in such vast ‘expenditures as are now proposed for cruiser building.” Among the approving expressions are those of the Spokane Spokesman-Re- view (Republican), which says that “it iis an able message, strong, sound and clear in every utterance”; the Cincin- nati Times-Star (Republican), that “he is justified in painting a rosy picture of the present-day condition of the country”; the St. Louis Times (Repub- Lcan), that “it is a confidence-beget- ting communication”; the Topeka Daily Capital (Republican), that “there runs through it, as through all of the utter- ances of President Coolidge, the moral | urge of responsibi national asviration “Comprehensiveness of grasp, cleal perspective, nice sense of valu r- tainly from his party's viewpoint—all these qualities mark the message,” de- clares the Birmingham New: 2mo- cratic). The Bangor Commercial (Re- publican) states that “he covered a multitude of matte) inform- ingly and intelligently chester Union (independent Republ an) feels that “it will command clos: attention both at home and abroad. The Buffalo Evening News (Repub- lican) calls it “a conventional, sensibl paver.” Two leading points made by the President are singled out by the New Nork Times (independent)—'‘moderaie and friendly sentiments about plans fo: national defense,” and the discussion of duty and high “puklic finance, governmental economy | and industrial progress.” The Fort Wayne News-Sentinel (Republican) is of the opinion that the message “can- not be said to have great place among the state papers c¢f his administration except in those sections which related to _our foreign relations.” ‘The Butte Daily Post (Republican) thinks that “Coolidge has wisely mad:> articulate the platform on which the Republican party won its successfal verdict at the hands of the electorate. The Toledo Blade (indenendent Repub- lican) declares that “it is indeed a creditable valedictory.” “Inasmuch as President Coolidge and President-elect Hoover stand in such thorough accord on major questio the message is of unusual interes suggests the Pasadena Star-News (Re- publican). The Kansas City Journal-Post (in- dependent Republican) observes “a firm resolution on his part to keep th2 budget balanced.” In describing the message as a review or record of the years of the President's term many papers agree, including the Flint Daily Journal (independent), the Richmond News Leader (independent Dem- ocratic), Utica Observer Dispatch (in- dependent) and Chattancoga Times (independent Democratic). That the dominant thought on his part was preparation for the close of his term s noted by the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin (independent Republican) and the Charleston Daily Mail (Independant Republican). “Overweaning ambition to leave his mark on the presidency after he has left ;Coolidge Message Appraised Administration | the office does not exist for Mr. Cool- idge,” observes the Fort Worth Star- | Telegram (independent Democratic), | with the added comment: “There is something very refreshing in the spec- | tacle of a President *ho can take his jturn and, having had it, clear himseif | entirely out of the way to allow his | successor a free rein.” The shadow of | the coming President is seen also by | the Davenport Democrat (Democratic) | as he had every right to be, that his| and Rock Island Argus (independent). “Behind the dissolving figure of Cal- vin Coolidge,” says the Cmaha World~ Herald (independent), “looms the | mounting figure of Herbert Hoover. | And so intently does the world await what he wiil have to say, when clothed with power and burdened with respon- sibility, that the familiar strains of the | Coolidge message to Congress fall, we fear, on somewhat' indifferent ears.” The Syracuse Herald (independent) | the Harrisburg Telegraph (independ- | ent Republican) see “no more than a reiteration of the President’s views” on | measures already presented. | “This is no swan song: it is the gen- tle sigh that precedes repose.” asserts | the New York Evening World (ind>- | pendent), and the Little Rock Arkan- sas Democrat (Democratic) emphasizes | the "unemotional” character of the | message. The Tulsa World (independ- | ent) calls it “coldly impersonal and | confined to stark facts, its phraseology yet rising at times to the heights of lterature.” | “Only on two keenly controversial | questions, agriculture and power, did | he take sides, and here he reasserted | his familiar position,” avers the Dayton | Daiiy News (independent Democratic), while the Memphis Commercial Appeal | (Democratic) describes the document as “the echo of confidence from the | noise of a_political victory,” and the Scranton Times (Democratic) believes that “chief criticism against it, we . | rather imagine, will be because of iis | negative character.” | *“There is not much in the {in the judgmemt of the Loul | rier-Journal (independent) hat couid not have been jotted down in advance | by any one familiar with the situations ! with which Mr. Coolidge dealt. | Londoners Lm: Their Taste for Ripe Cheese BY E. E. FREE, PH. D. Englishmen are losing their former taste for sharp-flavored cheese. At & recent meeting of food experts in cone nection with the grocers’ exhibition now being held in London, G. M. Dykes, cheese expert of the Empire Marketing Board, reported that a survey of Lon- don stores, just completed, shows strong demands for cream cheese and other checses of fresh, unaged type and mild flavor, with little demand for the sharp, evil-smelling cheeses once far more popular. Strong, “ripe” cheeses are {now asked for, Mr. Dykes said, chiefly by older persons, especially older men. The younger generation seems to be losing what was regarded as a fized national cheeses, once the pride and boast of Englishmen_everywhere, now fail, Mr. Dykes reported, to find a ready London market. Physiologists interested by Mr. Dykes' report speculate variously about the causes of what scems to be one of the few demonstrable changes of nae fticnal taste in the history of appetite, Increased outdoor life and exercise by younger English people seems to be the most probable cause, tegether perhaps with Increased eating of fresh v: tables and decreased use of meat. well known that slusgish digestions inactive hodies, Iting from heavy food and little exercise, miake people demand strong flavors as spurs to tor- 1pid appetites, on