Evening Star Newspaper, January 23, 1929, Page 8

8 THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Mornigg Edition, WASHINGTON, D. C. WEDNESDAY. .January 23, 1929 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: 11th St. and Pennsylvania Ave. New York Office: 110 East 42nd St. Chicago Office: Tower Bullding. European Office: 14 Regent St., London, England. Rate by Carrier Within the City. The Evening Stai 5 per ruonth The Evening an (when 4 Sund: 60c per month star (when 5 Sunda: 65¢ per month The Sunday Star . ....5c per copy Collection mace at'{he end of rach month. Orders may be sent in by mal or telephone Main 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Qally and Sunday. yr.$10.00; 1 mo., 85¢ ol Ira : . Sinday only . » $4.00; 1 mno., 40c All Other States and Canada. Daily and Sunday..1 yr..$12.00; 1 mo., $100 Daily only 75¢ Sunday onl: 50c $8.00; 1 mo., $5.00; 1 mo.. Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Fress is exclusively cntitled to the use for republication of all rews dis- patches credited to it or not otherwise cred- ited in this paper and also the 'ocal news published herein. All rights of publication of special dispatches herein are also reserved. Tllogical Inconsistencies. Representative Griffin of New York asked the House a puzzling question yesterday. It should be answered. But the odds are that it will remain as only one more of those dark and enig- matical mysteries in the fiscal relation- ship between the United States and the District for which there is no compre- hensible explanation. Mr. Griffin reminded his audience that a year ago activity in research on the part of certain proponents of the lump sum resulted in their discov- ery that the financial obligation, as & municipal taxpayer, of the Federal Gov- emment to the District amounted to about five million eight hundred thou- sand dollars. The difference between that amount and the “magic” lump sum of nine million dollars was three million two hundred thousand dollars, and this balance was cofiweniently la- beled “Exhibit A,” representing the financial obligation of the Federal Gov- ernment as a partner in the task of Capital building and maintenance. But, said Mr. Griffin, the figure of five million eight hundred thousand dollars was debatable. The Bureau of Efficlency’s corps of energetic young men was thereupon set upon the trail to determine the exact obligation of the Federal Government as a fmunicipal taxpayer. The bureau found it to be seven million four hundred and forty thousand dollars. The difference be- tween this amount and the magic nine millions is only one million five hun- dred and sixty thousand dollars. So, presto! One and a half million dollars becomes “Exhibit B” and rep- resents that generous contributi of the Federal Government toward Cap- Yemergency brakes when he saw the bus on the crossing. There is something clearly inconsist- ent in these two accounts. If the snow was falling as thickly as reported, there would have been no opportunity for the moforman to see the bus at a standstill far enough away to justify the motor- man in thinking that he had a chance to make the crossing in time. If he had been so close as that he would have made the crossing in safety, ‘The public hopes that there will be no confusion as a result of the multi- plying of inquiries and that the re- | sponsibility will be definitely fixed, to the end of the taking of corrective as well as punitive measures. It matters but little who is punished, if it should be proved that one of the operatives was guilty of a criminal blunder. It does, however, matter greatly that from this disaster should come some guar- antee of security for travelers. This is what is generally known as a grade crossing. The fact that the railed vehicle was operated by electric- ity rather than steam does not differ- entiate it at all from the usual category of such intersections, where the un- railed vehicles should have the protec- tion of barriers and clearly visible warnings so long as the lines of travel cross at grade. There should be no such death traps on lines of heavy travel anywhere in this country. ————— Japan's Enduring Grievance. For practically the fifth year in suc- cession the Japanese government has taken occasion to remind the United States that the American immigration ~-THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D.'C., compromise. It naturally aroused a dif- ferent sort of opposition, yet it was without the taint of possible “Federal interference.” Under the provisions of the measure the school board has the right to call for the services of experts in any of the Government departments to pass upon the qualifications of any newly established institution to grant degrees. Doubtless it will do this. There should be no question of qualification. The measure passed yesterday by the House seems the most practical way to meet the situation which is recognized by the Bureau of Education, the Ameri- can Council on Education, the Associa- tion of American Colleges and all the regional coilege associations. — The Community’s Interest. A policeman was shot the other day in this city by a man who then turned his weapon upon himself. The police- man, lingering for a short time, died, asking forgiveness for his slayer, whose wound was not mortal. Thus a question is presented which is being answered differently, according as sentiment sways the individual. Should the killer be prosecuted and punished because his victim with his dying breath asked that he be pardoned for his crime? ‘There is no ground for doubt in such & case, however the emotions may be evoked. The killing of the policeman was a crime against the community. It was not a matter of personal vengeance, The slayer was disturbing the public peace and menacing the lives of those about him, aritl the policeman was sum- moned. As he surveyed the scene, pre- paratory to moving to the house where law of 1924 still rankles in Nippon's breast. Addressing the Diet at Tokio yes- terday, Baron Tanaka, in the dual capacity of premier and foreign min- ister, included in the annual review of the international situation the now familiar viewpoint of his government and people. After alluding to “the ever-strength- ening bond of economic and political friendship” with the United States, Baron Tanaka sald: “But I wish to add that the matter of immigration law, which has been pending for the past few years, has not yet been composed. A satisfactory solution of a problem like this must, after all, depend upon mutual good understanding which, I am fully confident, is growing year after year.” It would be difficult to conceive of a more statesmanlike utterance. It is| dignified. It is restrained. It breathes a quiet but unmistakable determination one day to see righted what the Jap- anese look upon as a wrong. But it is conspicuously devoid of saber rattling. It is couched in terms designed to appeal to the American sense of Justice. In the days immediately following enactment by Congress of the so-called exclusion act of 1924, Japanese ha- tional pride was wounded to a degree ital building and maintenance to which our legislators point with such glowing pride. Why, asks Mr. Griffin, if three mil- lon two hundred thousand dollars represented the Federal Government’s financial obligation in Capital building and maintenance last year, does one million five hundred and sixty thou- sand represent that obligation this year? Mr. Griffin suggests that “no further elucidation of the illogical inconsistency of the lump sum is needed.” Nor is there. But a number of other illogical inconsistencies present themselves. One is that the lump sum of nine million dollars, representing a Federal contri- bution that was considered just, equita- ble, generous and bountiful in a Dis- trict appropriation bill of twenty-nine million dollars plus for 1925, remains, in the minds of its progenitors, equally just, equitable, generous and bounti- ful in a budget of thirty-eight million dollars plus for 1930, Another illogical inconsistency is that ‘while proponents of the lump sum care- fully agree, on the one hand, that the Federal Government is only a tenant, paying the landlord District a fair amount for his living quarters, they just as carefully argue, on the other hand, that the District landlord must raise and spend his money only as the tenant directs and as the tenant chooses. The right of the tenant so to do is in part justified by the fact that he pays a modicum over what he, the tenant, says is fair rental. Yet another illogical inconsistency, traced to the dictatorial yet cumber- some method of appropriating for the District, 16 that while the Budget Bu- reau returns to the Commissioners their estimates, refusing, in the sacred name of gconomy, to sanction them, or order- the Commissioners, in the sacred name of economy, to cut them, the baf- fled Commissioners are figuratively bofled in oil, tarred, feathered and ridden on a rail because they “allow” unegxpended District revenues to remain idle in the Federal Treasury, when the Commissioners have no power to spend this surplus and when the exclusive power of appropriative and all other District legislation is in Congress. e ‘Theaters that close during a bad sea son at least have the solace of knowing there are no traffic problems to be placed at their doors. - Nineteen Dead at a Crossing. Four investigations, it is reported, have been started to determine respon- sibility for the shocking collision at Bellevue, Ohio, between a bus and an electric interurban train, as a result of which nineteen are dead and others are disperately injured. The ‘crash oc- curred in the midst of a heavy snow- storm. The bus had been stopped short of the crossing and the driver had gone fdrward to observe the tracks. Seeing no sign of an approaching train, he returned to his bus and resumed his course, only to be struck when athwart the track. It is sald in his behalf that no warning signal had been given of the approach of a train, and that al- though it was impossible to see for more than 150 or 200 feet, the electric motor was running between forty and fifty miles an hour. On the other hand, it is urged on behalf of the motorman of the electric train that he had seen the bus stop several feet back from the crossing, which visibly beclouded the interna- tional horizon. War, sooner or late was the recourse to which, many thought, the proud, militant empire of the East might resort, to avenge the injustice of which Japanese held them- selves to be a victim at our hands. ‘That dread prospect, happily, is defi- nitely banished. It will be recalled that both Presi- dent Coolidge and Secretary Hughes advised Congress in vain to permit the State Department to negotiate another immigration ment with Japan. But there ensued an indiscreet passage in Ambassador Hanihara's letter to Mr. Hughes, which Mr. Lodge and other Senate leaders interpreted as a threat, and the exclusion provision thencefor- ward was assured of adoption. Japan does not seek to have the bars of restrictive immigration let down in{ the United States. Probably she would | be satisfied with quota status, which! would admit, it has been estimated, fewer than two hundred of her people a year. What Nippon does crave is some action by the United States which will remove from her citizens the fgnominious stigma of being classed as undesirable, fifth-class immigrants. Until “mutual good understanding” paves the way to some adjustmenttof it, it is plain from Baron Tanaka's statement that Japan will regard the exclusion law as an enduring grievance. oo 1t is difficult to convince an earnest and whole-hearted dry that twenty-five million dollars’ worth of practieal pro- hibition, would not represent a first- rate investment. ————————————— A moment of supreme power is cov- eted by every mortal. Commissioner Grover Whalen finds that moment by officlating personaliy as a traffic cop. ——_— Diploma Mills. The diploma mill bill, sponsored by the Washington Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade to put an end to an intolerable situation here, has finally been approved by the House. The measure has had a stormy his- tory during the past two years. Any ef- fort to regulate the business of educa- tion is certain to arouse honest opposi- tion. The course of such legislation strikes unsuspected snags and intrudes upon fundamental principles. This was the situation in Washington. The unsavory conditions were obvious. This city was the center of an educa- tional underworld, made possible by the extreme ease with which degree-grant- ing inssitutions could be incorporated here under the law. The existence of literally scores of extremely low-grade “colleges” and “universities,” whose campuses were dusty attics and whose classrooms were mail boxes, was under- mining the reputation of the city's bona-fide institutions of higher learn- ing. All these garret colleges were with- in the law, although some of them were the disturbance was in progress, he was fired upon and wounded. The definition of murder involves the element of “malice aforethought.” The law has repeatedly held that this “malice” may be only momentary, may be Instantaneous in development and in passing. If a shot is fired blindly in the air, with no particular aim, the victim is not the object of intent to harm or kill. But-when a shot is fired at an in- dividual without the jugtification of self, defense there is but one possible charge when death ensues. Forgiveness is noble, but the victim of the crime in this case cannot him- self pass judgment. Society has a stake in the matter. The crime is as much against the community as against the individual. The plea for mercy for his slayer Is creditable to the unfortunate officer of the law, but it cannot and it should not cause any slackening of prosecution, ————————— An immense rallway equipment is found necessary to the Florida.journey of President-elect Hoover. Charles Lindbergh could have enabled him to make the trip safely and much more rapidly. ————————— A signature of the King ends the Ttalian constitution. Mussolini may feel warranted in repeating the words of an old-time East Side statesman, “What is the Constitution among friends?” v London has placed a ‘“night club queen” on trial for bribing police of- ficlals. Customs are becoming much the same on both sides of the Atlantie. A theory is gaining ground on Broad- way that a show cannot draw appre- ciable patronage unless it is so big and expensive that it cannot pay for itself. —————— Florida land speculators have had their troubles, but the Florida hotel proprietor is still enjoying the same old sure thing. 1t is boldly stated that the courts are trying to handle more liquor cases than they can comfortably carry. Unlimited liquor prescriptions for “flu” may threaten physicians with an epi- WEDNESDAY. THIS AND THAT | BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. What difference does it make whether your music comes to you from 3 miles or from 3,000 miles? ‘The craze for “distance” in radio reception is a phenomenon which one may confidently expect to disappear from the minds and hearts of Americans with the passing years. Radio is new yet. ‘The “fans” do not know exactly what they want, or why they want it, and these charges may be made with peculiar confidence in relation to the thousands of new music lovers made by radio. It is undoubtedly true that the essen- tial mystery and wonder of radio broad- casting, solidly built on the foundation of wireless, has caused literally thou- sands and hundreds of thousands of persons to love music who five years ago had little Idea that they had any sense of music in their souls. 1t is equally true, perhaps, that every one who listens to radio broadcasts is by no means a music lover. In other words, to turn on the receiving set and to permit it to roar away full blast for an entire evening does not, in itself, prove to the world that the owner really loves music. Maybe he just likes noise! * ok K % The result of these confusing trends, these essential conflicts, is that dis- tance reception, as the process of receiv- ing broadcasts originating at a distance through the originating station direct is called, has come to usurp a major place in the art and science of radio. No sooner does a purchaser of a new set get the instrument in the house than he begins to turn the dial hope- fully for out-of-town stations. He takes “local” for granted and proteeds at once to the investigation of the so- called realms of the ether. No one can blame him for doing it. “Distance” has been the great hue and cry of the sport since the palmy days of the crystal sets and the 3-tube “bloopers.” There have been more plain lies told about distance reception in radio than “‘whoppers” by fishermen. Even the ardent golfer has nothing on the average radio “fan” when it comes to tall tales. To listen to such a “radio nut” is to have no other idea than that all he has to do is touch his one dial and the stations come rolling in from near and far, on -any and all nights, irrespective of weather conditions, dis- tance or any other matter whatsoever. ‘What does he care if experts have testified before the Federal Radio Com- mission that the “effective radius” of even the largest and highest powered stations is 50 miles? A, He bought the set, therefore it is “up to him” to give his friends wonderful accounts of its distance-getting gpility, not so much to uphold the reputation of the set as to sustain the impression that whatever he, wonderful man, pur- chases, must be at the peak of its re- spective class. o ‘This obsession with “distance” has led too many radio enthusiasts to for- get that a modern radio set is, after all, a musical instrument. Before all it is a musical instrument. Its distance-getting abilities help make it the wonder it is, but they are not essential to its complete enjoyment as a musical instrument. po ‘The basis of popular radio is and must continue to be music. There is no escaping it. As wonderful as the broadcasts of great events, sports, con- ventions, etc., are and will continue to be, they are and must remain second- ary to the primary business of broad- casting, which is that of transmitting musie, good, bad and indifferent, to the people. Any one who is interested in finding out the truth of this statement has but to take a typical broadcasting day— about 18 hours—at any one of the greater stations, and to compute the respective amounts of time given to music, on the one hand, and to all other sorts of broadcasting, on the other. He will see that the radio industry, with sure instinct, has realized that music, classical and popular, with ac- cent on the popular, is the basic com- modity of broadcasting. It is what the people want. In the evening, when the greatest number of persons “listen in,” music constitutes almost the entire broadcast. S Now. the whole point of our argu- ment rests on this fact, that music, whether coming from 3 miles or 3,000 miles, is just the same music. Let us grant, for argument, that one might receive just as well from 3,000 miles as from 3—although we have never seen or heard a set that would do it—what difference would it make to the listener, after the first thrill of getting the call letters had vanished? ‘The truth is that no reception is as good, musically speaking, as that from a first-class high-powered local station. We will never forget the installation of our new electric set. After the radio store man had fooled around with the dial for several minutes, bringing in out-of-town, he went back to WRC. “After all,” he said, with a pleased smile, “there is nothing like local.” 3 e The system of chain broadcast, under the auspices of two great national or- ganizations, has practically reduced the cther to three or four sets of programs. Whatever any enthusiast may say to the contrary, every set has a certain number of stations which it will pick up every night with larity, and another group which it %ill pick up not so_regularly. The result is that one is confined, as a general thing, to the first set for night-in and night-out performance. And, as stated, these stations usually carry one of three or four programs, so that no matter where you turn you get the same thing. So why not stay at home? In the first place, out-of-town never comes in as smoothly and as free from extraneous noises—it is not necessary to call them static—as the local station. Even that fine station, WBAL, Balti- more, is accompanied by sundry clicks and code, dragged in even on the best of sets from the fathomless depths of the ether. Those who say nay simply haven't sensitive ears, that is ail. The ideal reception, the perfect re- ception of the future, will be simply “music in the air,” without the slightest suggestion of where it is coming from or how it is getting there. The room will simply be full of music. There will be no slight rush of “carrier wave” of any other noise whatsoever. There will be absolutely no sound ex- cept that combination made by the musicians. It may be submitted that the nearest approach to this ideal is brodticast music received on a good outfit from a good local station. Radio of the future, we are convinced, will have invisible apparati and will give two or three changes of program, and that will be enough. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE will seize upon the letter just addressed to the Western Mail and South Wales News by James J. Davis, Secretary of Labor. The text was cabled to the United States this week from London. To the people of his native land Mr, Davis communicates the somewhat startling news that “eighty-six per cent of the American pebple are poor.” Be- fore 1929 is much older Republican members of Congress, glorifying the blessings of the tariff, are bound to dwell eloquently upon the omnipresence of prosperity in the United States. There was some mention of that subject in the recent presidential campaign. Some authorities think Hoover was elected on the prosperity issue. Now comes Secretary Davis and reminds Welshmen that while “the American worker is demic of pen palsy. - SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. New National Holiday. 1t surely helps a man to think ‘When, by the water swishin’, He seats himself upon the brink To go a-fishin’. Since fishin’ thus assists & few To be exceeding clever, ‘Why not find out what it may do In group endeavor? Let us arrange a holiday For high and low condition, And cogitate as best we may; Let's all go fishin’. Self-sacrifice. “What have you done for your coun- try?” “I have given it my best effort,” an- swered Senator Sorghum, “and largely at my own expense.” “Your own expense?” “Yes. On several lengthy speaking tours I have provided my own cough lozenges.” i ” Pistols and Poison. The gangland bosses have a pride In every kind of homicide. ‘Their bullets they send roundabout And pass the bootleg poison out. Home, Sweet Home. “Going to leave the big town?” “Yes,” answered Cactus Joe. “I've got to quit. I'm tired o’ bein’ among strangers when the town is shot up perpetual. I want to get back to the old Guich, where the shootin’ is less frequent and more friendly.” “Listen closely and read much,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown. “Yet choose carefully to whom you shall listen and what you shall read.” March 4 Birds. ‘We'll have the -Eagles on our list barely over the line. It was easier, however, to deseribe the situation than to remedy it. Wash- ington is a Federal city. There is a great deal of honest opposition to Fed- eral regulation of education. Any step in this direction—even so slight a step as that of placing the degree-granting institutions of the National Capital un- der a Federal organization of any kind —naturally aroused suspicion. Legisla- tors looked beyond the immediate pur- pose of the proposed legislation to its ultimate implications. Thus the control had slowed down, but since he saw the bus continue at rest concluded that it was waiting for him to pass and con- sequently kept on going. The motor- man himself is reported as saying that of colleges and universities here by the Bureau of Education or by a board es- pecially constituted by Congress became practically impossible, The designation of the local school he blew two whistles and threw off his board to exercise this function was a N As we the fete prepare; And please, O Weather Man, insist No snoybirds shall be there! “When a man keeps talkin' an’ talk- in’,” said Uncle Eben, “he is sustained by de hope dat, wif patience, he can find out sumpin’ wuth sayin’.” S ————— What Does It Matter? From the Springfleld, Missourt, Leader. Science is making rapid progress in defining matter, we are told, and this may bring more light on what's the matter with the Democratic party. ——— vt This Borders on Socialism. From the Buffalo Evening News. ‘The pro{%erous always have been naughty. e world just seems worse because more &g Prospezous, better off than the worker of any other country in the world, he is not dwelling in Utopia.” “Jim the Puddler” adds: “It may be that we are on the way to solving the problem of poverty in America. I hope we are, but we can hardly claim we have sdlved it so long as many Americans are living under depressing conditions. The brother- hood of poverty is world-wide. We share it with you.” * K K ¥ President Coolidge disoussed with. White House callers this week a pro- posal to celebrate the diamond jubilee —the seventy-fifth anniversary—of the Republican party at Kansas City this year. He called attention to the fact that while most G. O. P. historians agree that the party was born in 1854. there is discrepancy between the various dates on which that event took place. Mr. Coolidge also reminded his visitors that Jackson, Mich., and Ripon, Wis., claim to have been the cradle in which the G. O. P. was rocked. When Senator Pat Harrison of Mississippi, the Demo- crat who specializes in razzing the Republican party, heard about “Cal’s” uncertainty as to where it originated, Pat said it made him think of some- thing which Booth Tarkington once observed about George Ade. “Intro- ducing Ade at an Indiana soclety din- ner in Chicago once upon a time,” ac- cording to Senator Harrison, “Tarking- ton remarked that George Ade is one of the few men who are claimed by two cities. Lafayette claims he was born in Logansport, and Logansport insists he was born in Lafayette.” * kK K Senator Arthur Capper, Republican, of Kansas, has a double in Washington who bears a distinguished name—Wade Hampton, a member of the District of Columbia bar, and descendant of the famous Confederate general, reconstruc- tion Governor of South Carolina, and United States Senator from that State from 1879 to 1891. Mr. Hampton, though younger than Senator Capper, is constantly being mistaken for the Kansan all over Washington. Not long ago a man who met him in a street car began laboring eloquently with Hampton over District of Columbia leg- islation, because he thought he was addressing himself to Capper, chairman Df, }:\e Senate committce on District affairs. { * ok ok ok Insiders are persuaded that two con- didates, both Ambassadors, are running neck -and neck for the Secretaryship of State of the Hoover cabinet. One is Dwight W. Morrow and the other is Henry P. Fletcher. Morrow is said to have the personal backing of Presi- dent Coolidge. Fletcher, besides his as- set as a Latin American specialist, en- joys the support of the Mellon-Reed Pennsylvania influence, being himself a Keystoner. Morrow has to his credit the reputation of having smoothed out our ruffied relations with Mexico. Fletcher is a career diplomat, and might be more useful in wiping out the career- man system in the foreign service than an outsider like Morrow. The Presi- dent-elect is reported to be ready to sweep a lot of State Department tradi- tions and traditionists onto the scrap heap. Fletcher, it is suggested, would be a better broom for the purpose than Morrow. Morrow, on the other hand, is an experienced business man, and Hoover intends starring foreign trade in our international diplomacy. ok Kk Baron Tanaka, the Japanese premier and forelgn minister, has once again opened the Diet of Tokio by reminding It won't be long now, in all prob- | America that Nippon does r;nz consider ability, before some demon Democrat |our exclusion of > Japanese immigrants a closed incident. A Japanese !grl:‘ed Masuichi Azuma has just been deported from California under amazing circum- stances. He was found to be in the habit of mailing packages of poisoned fruits to Prince Tokugawa, Baron Shi- dehara (former Ambassador at Wash- ington) and to various Japanese roy- alties. Azuma was adjudged to be mentally unbalanced. According to the surgeon of the Japanese steamship aboard which Azuma traveled back to his native country, the man was a vic- tim of remorse and grief brought on by the American immigration laws which Pphohibit the formerly well known “pic- ture-bride” system. Under it young Japanese men resident in the United States were able to send for marriage- able young women in Japan whom they only knew by photograph. * K ok X Mrs. Cornelia Roosevelt von Zedlitz, American-born wife of a German sub- Ject and a relative of the late President Roosevelt, is asking Congress this Win- ter to restore her former American citi- zenship, IIl health debars her from re- suming her residence in the United States, by which Mrs. von Zedlitz could recover her American status under the Cable act, so she seeks a special dis- pensation. A resolution in favor of her aspiration has just been introduced in the House by Representative Bacon, Re- publican, of New York, and has been referred to the House committee on im- migration. Mrs. von Zedlitz is a daugp- ter of the late Charles Yates Roose- velt and was born in New York in 1870. She lost her American citizenship when she married a German in 1889 and went to his country to live. Her tition to Congress sets forth that she desires to regain her native political rights for sentimental reasons and in order to avoid German control of her property at her death. * kK ok James A. Wetmore, acting supervis- ing architect of the Treasury Depart- ment, has discovered that religious unity in the United States is not all it is cracked up to be. A chapel is about to be built at the new Federal prison for women at Alderson, W. Va. The other day representatives of Protestant, Roman Catholic and Jewish creeds met at the architect’s office to discuss the plans and specifications. On various de- tails it developed that their ideas are as diverse as denominational dogma itself. Most of Alderson’s “population” con- sists of women convicted of violating the narcotic act. The prison was es- tablished under the special direction of Mrs. Mabel Walker Willebrandt. (Copyright, 1928.) o Expert Spots Thief By Look at Writing BY E. E. FREE, PH. D. A remarkable example of how human character sometimes can be read from handwriting has been claimed by Max Pulver, famous handwriting expert of Zurich, Switzerland. A Zurich bank re- cently proposed, Herr Pulver states, to employ a new official. Herr Pulver was asked to analyze the handwriting of the intended candidate. While making his analysis in the bank's offices the expert's eye happened to fall on a nearby ledger written by some one unknown to him. Attracted by peculiari- ties of this handwriting, Herr Pulver gave it close study. The result aston- ished him. Clear indications existed, he decided, that the writer of that ledger was apt to be a thief, Although the Person concerned turned out to be an old and trusted employe, more careful investigation uncovered frauds exceeding 100,000 francs, which the criminal confessed. Repudiating all claims to “tell for- tunes” or to read the future by hand- writing, Herr Pulver insists that his methods are strictly sclentific, based on long experience and. capable of disclos- ing many elements of the character of almost any one whose normal handwrit- ing is available for examination. Pl Sounds Like a Skin Game. From the Indianapolis News. Probably the rabbits started that ;x}inremln rumor just to save their own les, JANUARY 23, | desires to keep Mr. Mellon at the head 1929,' ey Politics at Larg By G. Gould Lincoln. S Senators who are opposed to the re- appointment of Secretary Mellon to be Secretary of the Treasury in the Hoover cabinet may never have an opportunity to seek to block his confirmation by the Senate. Not because Mr. Mellon will fail to continue on in his present office, but simply because there is no limit by law to the term of office of the Secre- tary of the Treasury, and if Mr. Hoover of the Treasury Department he may do so without sending his name to the Sen- ate. The only member of the cabinet whose term of office is fixed by law is the Postmaster General. It will be re- called that when President Coolidge was inaugurated President in 1925, suc- ceeding himself, he sent to the Senate only the names of Postmaster General New to succeed himself and of Charles Beecher Warren of Michigan to be At- torney General. Mr. Warren had never been confirmed by the Senate, and it was necessary to submit his name. But the names of the other members of the cabinet, who were continued in office by the President, were not reappointed. * ok ok K Should Mr. Hoover desire to retain other members of the Coolidge cabines against whom protest might be made in the Senate, it will be possible for him to do so without asking the Sen- ate again to confirm them, except in the case of Postmaster General New, whose name, under the law, would have to go to the Senate, since he is completing his second four-year term as Postmaster General. Mr. New, for- merly a member of the Senate, is popular with his old colleagues and so far there has been no suggestion that his reappolntment would be followed by a fight against him in the Senate. But there have been threats among the Senators to oppose the reappointment of Secretary Mellon. Senator Nye of North Dakota has expressed his oppo- sition to the reappointment of Mr. Mellon and so has Senator Brookhart of Iowa, and the reappointment, it is said, would be displeasing to Senator Couzens of Michigan, all of them sup- porters of Mr. Hoover during the recent campaign. Postmaster General New's appoint- ment was confirmed without difficulty in the special session of the Senate which began March 4, 1925, after Presi- dent Coolidge’s inauguration. But the nomination of Charles Beecher Warren to be Attorney General was rejected after a long debate, on a tie vote. * ok Kk K President-elect Hoover is mulling over the recommendations for cabinet positions which havesbeen made to him in large numbers. Putting together a cabinet of ten members is a far more difficult task than would appear on the surface. Much as a President may de- sire to select as his official family men known to him personally and believed by him to have the proper qualifica- tions, there are other considerations which must be taken into account. The various sections of the country expect representation in_the cabinet. Various groups in the Republican party are looking for recognition. The selection of the cabinet, therefore, has to be con- sidered largely as a whole, and not from the point of view of individuals. Here in Washington there is strong dpinion that Mr. Hoover will place in his cabinet Walter F. Brown -of Ohio, at present Assistant Secretary of Com- merce. Just which department Mr. Brown will head, however, is still puz- zling the cabinet prognosticators. It is suggested that Mr. Brown might fill any one of three—Secretary of Commerce, Postmaster General or Attorney General. Mr. Brown, it is said, is highly regarded by Mr. Hoover, under whom he served ‘What do you need to know? Is there some point about your business or per- sonal life that puzzles you? Is there something you want to know without delay? Submit your question to Fred- eric J. Haskin, director of our Wash- ington Information Bureau. He is employed to help you. Address your inquiry to The Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, director, Washington, D. C., and inclose 2 cents in coin or stamps for return postage. Q. Is the official communication which an American consul makes to the Department of State called a “dis- patch” or “despatch”?—D. E. A. The spelling “despatch” is used. A communication from the Department of s':’ate to a tzonsul is called an “instruc- tton.” Q. What value may be a day in high school?—L. A. It has been estimated that the daily value of education in an elemen- tary school is $9; in a high school, $40, and in a college, $100. This study was based upon a survey of less than a thousand people and for that reason it is subject to inaccuracy. Q. Where was the first play given in America?—F. L. A. The first dramatic performagce ever given in America occurred Sep- tember 15, 1752, at Williamsburg, Va. Q. When were guns first used in England?—M. H. A. The early history of guns is large- ly a matter of conjecture. Explosives were used by the Chinese and the ancient Greeks. In the course of time the use of Greek fire became extended and tubes were placed in the bows of war galleys from which flaming ma- terial was discharged. The first record of guns in England is a picture with a description of a vase-shaped hand gun for firing an arrow, dated 1326. In 1339 cannons were used by the English at the siege of Cambrai. placed upon B. T. Q. What is meant by the expression “I ask this announcement to stand for the day” when a member is reported absent when a roll call is taken in Con- gress?—A. A. C. A. The announcement is often made so that, as other roll calls are held on that day on other questions, it will not be necessary to state again the reason given for the member's absence and failure to vote. Q. When will the orange blossom festival be held in Florida?’—E. D. V. A. It will be held at Winterhaven from January 22 to 26. Q. When did newspapers begin to carry advertisements?—N. E. D. A. In the seventeenth century small advertisements appeared in newspapers for books, tea, coffee or medicine. A heavy stamp tax hampered the growth of newspapers and advertising in Eng- land until 1855. In America, advertise- ments appeared in the early colonial papers. Brief notices told of new goods just imported from England, coffee, slave sales, runaway slaves and servants, or lost cattle. Newspaper advertising on a large scale dates from the estab- lishment of the New York Sun, in 1833, followed shortly by the New York Her- ald, the Philadelphia Puplic Ledger and the New York Tribune. Q. When was coal first used as fuel? —C. M. A. The value of coal does not seem to have been known to the ancients, nor is it known at what time it began to be used for fuel. Some say that it was used by the ancient Britons; at all events, i1t was an article of household consumption, to some extent, during ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. Is there a Ro dictionary?—R. §. A. A dictionary of about 12,000 word in the Ro language was published in 1928. The first publication concernin; Ro was distributed in 1906, Q. Do more vessels pass through th~ Panama or through the Suez Canal’ —J. W. G. A. In 1926, 5,197 vessels, with & net tonnage of 24,774,591, passed through the Panama Canal, and in the same year 4,980 vessels of 26,060,377 tons passed through the Suez Canal. Q. How many dead are cremated in the United States in a year?—J. H. A. The number of cremations distrib- uted among the crematoriums of the United States runs to over 10,000 each year. Q. What is the Amana Colony?— M. J. A. Amana is a post-village of Iowa County, Iowa, in Amana township, on the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, 26 miles northeast of Cedar Rapids. 1t is the principal abode of the “Community of True Inspiration,” a society of German Protestant Chris- tians, followers to some extent of Bohme and Schwenkenfeld. They moved to Towa from Ebenezer, N. Y., in 1855, . Can sponges be planted and made to grow?—P. S. G. . Sponges are one of the lowest forms of animal life. It is possible to detach buds or branches of the sponge, which will grow and live sep- arately. Marine gardens of sponges have been established in quiet lagoons in Florida. Q. Can boys who are crippled be- come Boy Scouts?>—R. T. A. Scout training is valuable in help- ing boys to overcome physical handi- caps. The Scout organization has de- veloped a division called “Achievement Scouts,” in which other tests of skill are substituted for the tests which crippled boys cannot pass. Q. Is the coat-of-arms of Wash- ington and Lee University the one used by the Washington family—M. C. A. This coat-of-arms is a combina- ulun of the Lee and Washington coats- of-arms. Q. How does a snake crawling motion?—W. T. A. The organs of locomotion of all snakes are the muscles between ribs. The ribs are drawn closely to- gether first on one side and then on the other, thereby producing alternate bends of the body which result in a forward motion of the body. produce its Bt Q. What is the insurance term for one or more persons insured under one policy of liability insurance?—W. M. C. A. In liability insurance, one person is called the “assured;” plural, “as- sureds.” Q. Why is the conferring of a doc- tor’s degree called “laureation”? A. By the ancient Greeks the laurel was called “daphne” and was sacred to Apollo. Berry-bearing twigs of it were wound around the foreheads of vic- torious heroes and poets; and in later times the degree of doctor was con- ferred with this ceremony, whence the term “laureation.” Q. Can a person compelled to wear glasses get an aviation transport N- cense?—F. U. ~A. New licenses for aviation trans- port are not granted to those com- pelled to wear glasses. However, oc- the Anglo-Saxon period as early as as Assistant Secretary of Commerce. It hat been supposed in some quarters that when Mr. Hoover resigned from the office of Secretary of Commerce to enter the campaign for President last Sum- mer Mr. Brown would be his successor, but Secretary Whiting was picked by Presiden® Coolidge for the position. Mr. ‘Whitixg is an old Iriend and admirer of the Prisident, one of the original Cool- idge myn in Massachusetts. Mr. Whit- rumored, is not at all averse ning in the cabinet after Marcn present position. It has even been sujjgested that he has the backing of Prefient Coolidge in this matter. But thfse who know President Coolidge scout the idea that he would seek to in- fluence the President-elect in the selec- tion of the cabinet which must serve under him. * kKR Just how many of the members of the Coolidge cabinet Mr. Hoover will re- tain is still a question. One theory is tha® he will retain one only, Secretary Mellon. Another holds that besides Mr. Mellon, Mr. Hoover will continue in their present offices Secrétary Jardine of the Department of Agriculture, Sec- retary Wilbur of the Navy Department and Postmaster General New. Some of the well informed Republican leaders are inclined, however, to believe there will be a clean sweep, with the excep- tion of Mr. Mellon. As a matter of fact there is a great deal of ‘uncertainty as to just whom Mr. Hoover will ap- AD. 852. casionally an exception is made in the case of a pilot of long standing. War-Ofitlawry Pact Important As Influence on World Thought American comment on the approval of the Bgand-Kellogg anti-war treaty by the United States Senate empha- sizes the point that, however inade- quate may be any present-day machin- ery as an actual preventive of all war, the nations subscribing to the Briand- Kellogg pact at least join in setting up a standard of peace in a world which throughout histery has thought in terms of war. Quoting Lincoln as one who lauded the Declaration of Independence as “a stumbling block to offenders against the ‘glittering generalities’ of human rights,” the Topeka Daily Capital says, “Se will be the formal pronouncement of 60 leading governments of the world that war must go, that it is an evil, that it offends humanity, that it is finally now, for the'first time in man's slow upward march, against the law of nations.” ‘The Lincoln State Journal be- lieves that “if the nations involved fail to keep: this pledge, made on their Int to his cabinet. It is this uncer- ?:fiwy which gave Senator Pat ‘Harrison of Mississippi an opportunity to rise in the Senate yesterday and hold up to ridicule the possible anxieties of leading Republjcans regarding their official po- sitions ‘after March 4. * kK K Following_the conference of Presl- dent-elect gloover with Republican lead- ers from New York last week, it was widely heralded that a new deal had been put over in the Empire State, a deal which _practically eliminated Charles D. Hilles, Republican national committeeman, from the picture. A triumvirate, it was said, had been es- tablished, composed of Republican State Chairman Machold, Willam H. Hill, who headed the Hoover forces in New York during the preconvention cnm-l paign, and Mr. Hilles. ‘These three gentlemen, it was said, would handle the Federal patronage in New York State, and undertake to run the party. As Mr. Hilles has been recently ‘the arbiter in Republican politics in New York, it was broadcasted that Mr. Hilles was “out,” because he was one of the irreconcilables in the Republican preconvention campaign against the nomination of Mr. Hoover for President. But if Mr. Hilles was intended to pass completely out of the picture, why was he given a place in the powerful trium- virate? Not only has Mr. Hilles been a power as New York member of the Republican national committee, but he has the reputation of being able to raise funds for Republican campaigns in New York City- with great ease and regularity. A man who can do that is not to be lightly considered. There are other campaigns to come in New York. There is an awakening sus- picion fn some minds that Mr. Hilles is not s dead politically in New York as has been suggested. * ok k% A movement to establish in Wash- ington a National Republican Club is to be initiated Friday night, at a meet- ing at the Carlton Hotel, called by an “organization committee,” composed of Frank W. Mondell, former Republican leader of the House; Senator Porter H. Dale of Vermont and former Senator Porter J. McCumber-of North Dakota. The establishment of such a club is not a new proposition, but was ad- vanced back in the days of the late Mark Hanna. Senator Hanna died, and the projcet at that time came to naught. A National Republican Club in the Capital City, however, with suitable headquarters, housing the national committee and offering a meeting place for Republicans from all parts of the country, may develop into a powerful organization. It has at present the ap- proval of many of the leaders of the party, * ok ok ok Representative Homer A. Hall of Bloomington, Il is exejcised over the fate of retiring Presidents of the United States. He has offered in the House @ resolution which would entitle a | honor, no complicated agreement could do more than the simply worded pact.” . The Savannah Press calls it “a right- eous gesture,” and “A step forward, a movement for peace in solemn declara- tion against war,” is seen by the Bangor Daily Commercial. The Oakland Trib- une declares the treaty is “something upon which a world may build a better structure.” The Flint Daily Journal feels that “any nation which deliber- ately ignores and violates this pact must stand convicted before the bar of world opinion.” The Scranton Times describes it as a prospective “test of the good faith of the nations involved,” and the New Orleans Times-Picayune be- lieves the “danger of betrayal and treachery must be lessened.” “It is truly a crowning act for Presi- dent._ Coolidge’s administration,” avers the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. The Ann Arbor Daily News is pleased that “this Nation finally has spoken with a voice ringing with sincerity and left no doubt as to her desire to co-operate with her neighbors, near and remote, in the banishment of war.” The Schenectady Gazette calls it “a frank and official admission that every ible effort should be made to avoid a clash of arms.” “On the whloe, a very satisfactory consummation of a great achievement for peace,” observes the St. Louis Globe Democrat, while the St. Paul Daily News recognizes action which “will increase our prestige abroad a hun- dredfold,” and the Anniston Star con- cludes as to its effect: “Probably the lieve that we are making progress to- ward the day of permanent peace.” “If there was ever a time when bells should be rung and rejoicing be heard throughout the land, it is on the oc- 4 casion of this ratification.” says th®, Utica Observer Dispatch, and the’ Brooklyn Daily Eagle argues, “When honor and good faith are solemnly pledged to the promotion of peace and m‘e l;v:old;ncekcxm:nr, no nation will be el real t pledge al or fail to pause even when it mthlnhuym sovereign rights are in question.” “Just how significant the new treaty will appear 10 or 20 years hence states the Atlanta Journal, “only history can say. Its intentions are undeniabiy ex- cellent, and its influence should be al- together wholesome. * * * Let us hope that if events bring a practical and criti- cal- test, the good-will treaty will stand.” The Baltimore Sun points out that “the treaty undertakes to civilize our international thinking,” and the Worcester Telegram credits it with a gain in vitality “from its admission, its representation, its assertion of a uni- versal desire.” That the vote in the Senate represented a similar ratio of approval among the people is the opin- ion of such papers as the Detroit News, the San Antonio Express, the Lansing State Journal, the Haverhill Gazette, the Buffalo Evening News and the New Castle News. - “A new and better era in interna- tional relations” is forecast by the In- dianapolis Star, and the Wheeling In tengncer hails the “psychology of peace” sought by “the war-sick peoples of the world.” The treaty appears to the Albany Evening News to “seek to organize the ‘passion for peace.’” The Lexington Leader holds that the debate in the Senate “will serve to inform the world as to the real state of mind in lhnsccoumry." “Common sense triumphed. committee made its report l';;x; the p'z;hc: was ratified with only one vote in oppo- sition. Now let the Senate dispose of the crulser bill with equal alaerity!” ex- claims the Kansas City Journal-Post. The Chicago Daily News offers the view: “The ratification is a notable victory for enlightened and progressive public opinion. The treaty has great educational and moral value.” The Houston Chronicle thinks “it may be the bedrock for future world peace,” an opinion that is shared by the Harris- burg Telegraph, the Danbury News and the Morgantown New Dominion. “If the Senate really means the ac- most optimistic supporters of the treaty do not believe that it means the end of all armed conflict. But they see it as one objective gained and be- e————————————— President, after he steps out of the office, to become an ex-officio member of the Senate, with the pay of a Sen- ator. The sole living ex-President of the United States is Chief Justice Wil- liam Howard Taft. President Coolidge is about to go out of office. It has been suggested in some quarters that Mr. Coolidge may desire to continue in ac- tive politics and to run for election to the Senate at some time in the future. Under Mr. Hall's plan, Mr. Coolidge would become a member of the Senate without further effort on his part. Thp%lnois Representative proposes to amend the Constitution.to make his plan effective. Mr. Hall assumes that it is difficult for an ex-President, on account of the exalted character of the office from which he has just retired, to enter as freely into business or the professions as could a citizen who has not been President. He holds that a former Chief Executive should have a broader grasp and mofe intimate knowledge of public affairs than any other man ki Mr. Hall considers that his proposal would provide an honorable, dignified opportunity for further service by a former President and that the Nation would profit by his knowledge and ex- perience, tion it took.” asserts the Roanoke World-News, “it can hardly escape the next step toward peace, the entry of America into the World Court for In- ternational Justice. For when one re- nounces war as a means of settling dis- putes, legal machinery for a settlement of those disputes seems to become im- perative.” Progress, however, is slow, in the opinion-of the New York Evening World, which suggests as the only order of proceedings “patient, reiterated, cumulative pledges like this—each new one a little more confident and compre- m:.i'gve, a little less ‘reserved’ than the The Fort Worth Record-Telegram is of the opinion that “since the destruc- tion of the statesmanship of Woodrow Wilson those responsible have been en- deavoring in every conceivable manner to do éxactly that which he advoc: - except that it must be a Repul n measure. It can't be done,” adds the Texas paper. “Hence the procession of peace pacts and disarmament confer- ences which have been funnily futile, but which could have done no harm.” ‘The Tulsa World expresses the doubt that the treaty “would keep Europe or Lhej%rle;\(t fi::. of war.” “The Kel according to the Charleston Evening Post, “would not hold against such a flood of madness as swept the world in 1914—no, not for an hour. But it ma{ prove to be a focus around which anti-war sentiment may gather and harden in time into some- thing real. It is, at least, a ‘hopeful