Evening Star Newspaper, July 8, 1929, Page 8

k:] THE EVENING STA WASHINGTON, D. C, MONDAY, JULY 8, 1929. w THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C MONDAY ... .July 8, 1920 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: 11th St. &nd Pennsyivanta Ave. New York Ofmce: 110 East 42nd St. Chicago Office: Lake Michigan Building. European Office; 14 Regent St.. London. England. Rate by Carrier Within the City. The Evening Star. . 45¢ per month The Evening and S when 4 Sundays) - 60¢ per month The Evening and Sunday Star (when 5 Sundays) ..65¢ per month ‘The Sunday Star 5c per cony Collection made at the end of each month. Orders may be sent in by mail or {elephone NAtional 5000. Rate 7\" Mail—Payable in Advance. ! ryland n‘nd Virginia. Datly and Su Daily only . Sunday only All Other States Dafly and Sun 1y Daily only yi suncay only Member of the Associated Press. e Assoclated Press is exclusively ertitled to the use for republication of sl i ews dis- patches credited to It or not otherwise cred- ated in ihis paper and also (he jocal news published nerein. All rights of publication of special dispatches herein are also reserved. —_— e e Snakehouses and Schools. ‘The interesting letter appearing on this page today from a lady who writes with rare discernment of the relative importance to the community of a new mansion for snakes at the Zoo and ade- quate housing for our school children is a self-sufficient document that speaks for itself. Little wonder that she is mystified over a situation that finds a | city embarking on a building program for the National Zoological Park before it has been able to get rid of the port- able schools so eloquently described! ‘But she has merely discovered one of the illogical inconsistencies of the pres- ent system of finaneing the Nation's Capital. There are many more. ‘The Star’s correspondent concludes her letter with the admission that here in the Capital we are anxious that the snakes—“the beautiful, crawling, slimy things"—be comfortable. But she asks ‘whether we have not a right to expect as much for our children. She might have asked, in addition, if the commu- nity were given its choice between build- ing houses for snakes and birds at the Zoo and eliminating the portables, which would be done first? And further, if the community were forced to do without the snakes or the school bulldings so much needed, what would the decision be then? As a matter of fact the community has no choice as to where its money goes. It contributes to the National and Canada. 12.00; 1 mo., §1. $8.00; 1 1o, $5.00; 1 mo. 00 | s0c. Zoological Park, in relation to the Fed- | eral contribution, in exactly the same proportion that it contributes to the schools. It contributes to other semi- national projects in the Capital, over which it has no more control than it has over the National Zoological Park, Jjust as it contributes to its own munici- pal institutions. The Zoo is popular in Washington. Washingtonians are delighted with the fine new bird house just being com- pleted and they are, no doubt, enthu- siastic over the prospect of knowing that in addition there is to be a house for reptiles and amphibians, with a wing for insects. They will be no less keen for the whole Zoo building program, which contemplates a small mammal house with a wing for apes, a pachy- derm house, a remodeled and improved carnivore house, a greenhouse to pro- vide potted plants for buildings and greens for animals and birds, an ante- lope, buffalo and wild cattle house, an open barless pit for polar bears, a monkey pit, three ornamental arches to the Zoo entrances and a fence around the park, the whole to cost about a mil- lion and a quarter dollars. But the community is even more in- terested in the facts relating to the portable schools, which were recently laid before the Board of Education by Dr. Ballou. These facts point out that in 1927 a small tornado tore the roof off a portable, from which the children had just been removed by a teacher who had the presence of mind to get them into the main building; that in March of this year portables on Grant road near Connecticut avenue and those in Wesley Heights were similarly damaged by a storm, which provi-! dentially came along when the children were at lunch; that the school officials and the Board of Education have in- dividually and collectively sought appro- priations to build the permanent school- houses and eliminate portables, and that had the five year school building pro- gram been carried out by Congress, nearly, if not all, the portables would ‘have been discontinued. Failure of that building program continues the flimsy and dangerous portables in use, badly lighted, badly heated, poorly ventilated, and in some cases with outside, un- heated lavatories. And, in addition to occupying portables, the school children must be content with part-time classes in the elementary grades. In Washington we are told that we must support the Zoo because Wash- ingtonians visit it. We are told that it should be the finest Zoo in the world. as it is maintained as a governmental institution. We are told that it has the third largest collection of animals and birds in the country, but lags far be- hind the zoos of New York, Philadel- phia, Chicago and St. Louis in build- ings, and a building program is begun to catch up. Meanwhile we are told that we must have the finest parks in the world, the finest municipal buildings in the world, the finest streets in the world, because this in the finest Capital in the world. Which explains, perhaps, but of course does not excuse, the con- tinued use of the portables. ‘When one metropolitan gunman takes another for a ride the passenger is not given a chance to walk back. — e “God Save the King.” That was a historic ceremony in gray Westminster Abbey yesterday when an emplre knelt in prayers of gratitude for the recovery of King George V. Only a fragment of his subjects was gathered within the walls of the venerable temple, where Britain’s noblest lie buried and where her Kings and Queens have been crowned through the centuries.” But their supplications and their paeans of solemn’ thanksgiv- ing echoed the sentiments that fill the whole British people—that realm on which it is the Briton’s proudest boast that the sun never sets. The keynote of the abbey ‘une in “an invitation to prayer ' i : ] mo. 8 isc | thanksgiving,” taken from the orderluut Mr. Rockefeller is now reported to of service used in giving praise for the recovery of King George III in 1789— the year of the American Constitution’s birth, “God Save the King! God save this realm! | that tradition which our British cousins delight to henor. Not all Americans realize that when the Britisher sings “God Save the King,” or stands at the salute when its inspiring tones are played, he envisions not so much the person of his sovereign as the empire of which the monarch is the living symbol. “God Save; Britain” is what “God Save the Kln‘"i really means. The subject respects the King and reveres the crown because !they personify all that the English- man, the Scotsman, the Welshman and many an Irishman hold dear—so dear that they are ready to give their lives for it, as hundreds of thousands of them gallantly did within the memory of most of us. In George V's case, nevertheless, as in the case of his beloved father, Ed- ward VII, and of his great ancestor, Victoria, “the widow o' Windsor,” the British articulate genuine affection for the sovereign himself when they say “God Save the King.” The recent re- turn of King George to London, after his long and desperate illness, was & triumph such as a conquering hero might covet. This simple, unobtrusive gentleman, snatched almost miracu- lously from the jaws of death, has a hold upon his people that is unmis- takable and not to be underestimated. His subjects look upon King George as a man who is every inch a King and a King who is every inch a man. There are radical souls throughout the world, and no doubt in the British Isles in particular, who fancy that when John Bull votes & Labor government, not easily distinguishable from a so- cialist regime, into office, the crown rests uneasily upon the King's head. Yesterday's events in old London town shatter that theory into absurdity. From Devonshire to Delhi, around the globe and all the way back, the ery is still “God Save the King!” — ———o—s Emphasizing Progress. In these Summer days when the tourists from all the States are motor- ing into Washington and then back to tell the homefolks and neighbors all about the Capital City, they are seeing development projects advancing im- pressively which remain fixed in their minds to be talked about again and again as evidencing the progress being made in beautification of this world center. | The front that has just been placed on the new central, administration building in the Department of Agricul- ture group; the facing stones being laid in place on the steel stiucture of the new Internal Revenue Building, the foundations of the world’s greatest of- fice building being erected for the De- partment of Commerce—all visualize the importance and stupendousness of the Federal building program here to adequately house Uncle Sam's work- shop in which picked employes from all the States labor for the betterment of each individual community and home. For this Federal housing program President Hoover has just advocated another $25,000,000, so that the work can go forward uninterruptedly, well co-ordinated and to meet the pressing demands for Government-owned quar- ters. The visitors are impressed with the fact that while the physical build- ing helps to adorn the Capital City the appropriations flow into other States for the building material and even for the labor employed, and that the build- ing will afford better facilities for carry- ing on work of direct benefit to each State rather than to the Capital City itself. The graceful spans of the new Ar- lington Memorial Bridge, which will physically unite the North and South, is thus symbolic to the visitors, but also serves an important utilitarian purpose in affording a convenient and impressive entrance to the Capital City for tourists from the South and West. When our tourist visitors find them- selves welcomed and made comfortable in a model camp, convenient to a water-side playground, from which they can make ‘comfortable” sightseeing trips not only through the District of Columbia but into the neighboring his- toric and scenic areas in Maryland and Virginia, they go back home with a truer realization of what the develop- ment of the Nation's Capital means to each individual citizen. It gives them a pleasant part in the building of the world’s most beautiful city—and it gives them personal service. When they see the war-time struc- tures known as “the Government Hotels” between the-Capitol and Union Station being torn down, so that citizens from all the States who come here by rail may have a pleasingly im- pressive first sight of the Capitol build- ing which is the physical monument of our self-government, a new feeling of respect, confidence, pride in their own citizenship surges through them. ‘These aze but casual illustrations of the works of progress that are impress- ing our visitors, sending them home with a deeper devotion to their country, a greater desire to aid in Capital build- ing, a confidence that their form of Government is secure, a zeal to make Washington a “soul city” as President Coolidge urged—to make it represent to the world the strength, power, resources, dignity and culture of the American Dpeople. Our Capital City is the home city of all the people, and each visit to it by our tourists makes them love it more and more. Washington, D, C., needs a big commercial airfleld. And what a town as large as the National Capital really needs it usually gets. ——————— John D. Is Ninety. John D. Rockefeller is 90 years old today. The venerable millionaire was born in 1839, more than 20 years before the beginnming of the Civil War. He re- tired from active business 30 years ago, ‘but his name is still symbolic of a great industry—an industry in which he was & ploneer. Mr. Rockefeller’s success in business is a matter of history. 'During his active career his methods in business were sharply ecriticized in some quarters. It is partly in answer to these criticisms God give us grateful | after the death of Mr. Rockefeller, it is hearts!” the dean of the abbey intoned | now proposed to bring it out while he is early in the impressive ritual invoked | still alive. It should be a work of great amid 2ll the pomp and reverence of | interest, dealing as it must with the ‘be busy preparing & history of his own life. Much work has already been done on this autobiography and, while it was originally planned to publish it ten years career of one of America’s most success- ful business men and with the develop- ment of a great industry. Mr. Rockefeller has passed the allot- ted space of man by a score of years, yet he is still hale and able to play his nine holes of golf, and is thinking of in- creasing the number to eighteen. Thirty years he has lived to enjoy the fruits of his labors. He has since his retirement from active business followed a routine course of work, play and rest, which he refuses to have disturbed. His day be- gins at 7 o'clock in the morning, and he tackles his work first, consisting of | “®F, attention to private matters. Then play and finally rest. He has been faithful to his routine and has preserved his health in an exceptional degree. He is one of America’s successful business men, who has been willing to relinquish his interest in active business and to give his attention to other matters. When he quit, he quit. He was in compara- tively bad shape. Had he continued in harness, he might have been dead long since. Some men die when they give over the routine of work to which they have been accustomed for years. They lose their interest in living. But that has not been the case with Mr. Rockefeller. A New Englander, mqre than ninety years of age, once said to an equally venerable friend that he had reached the conclusion the critical period of a man's life lay between ninety-nine and a hundred. He lived in the Berkshire Hills, where ripe old age is the custom rather than the exception. Possibly Mr. Rockefeller has reached the same conclusion. Judging from his present state of health, he may yet reach the century mark and pgss it. e . Traffic problems for Washington, D. C, are taken under careful consid- eration by the American Automobile Association, which usually knows what it is talking about. Maj. L'Enfant mapped out a beautiful city for horse vehicles. The atreets, avenues and circles now present considerations to be met which are practical as well as picturesque. The A. A. A, a national institution, may be depended on for in- itiative as well as respect for the con- ditions which have become familiar to drivers. e Osler hinted that a man’s interest in life began to wane at 40 years. It is too bad that he could not have cur- tailed his work and remained eligible today for a game of golf with John D. Rockefeller! References to “malefactors of great wealth” were frequently made by Roose- velt. It is now assumed that men com- petent to assemble and control great wealth are aware of their social and moral responsibilities. —_——————— A true diplomat knows when to re- strain his expression of proletarian sympathy. Ambassador Dawes will never go so far as to appear at court smoking a rough and ready pipe and wearing golf togs. ——oe—. Some of the writers on current eco- nomics might do the patient typog- rapher a favor if they would explain to him whether they are making serious “copy” or only making “whoopee.” —_——— His difficulty in finding a place to go indicates that even the most ornate Summer resort ad brings Trotsky no comfort whatever. ——eme Occasionally it may occur to Lind- bergh that the camera is overworking him as a volunteer film star, to the neglect of his serious aviation ideals, —raee Disarmament will not be completely possible until world diplomats cease to cling to penny ante ideas and decide to play the game on lines of big humanity. —_—a——————— Life would not be worth living in centers of fashion if some incident did not occasionally arise to call for the announeement that “society is all agog.” ——tee SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Storms. ‘The afternoon grows still and warm, And then we wait to hear The distant, sullen thunderstorm ‘That cools the atmosphere. ‘When human quarrels fierce arise, ‘The storm, perhaps, we'll find Is something Nature has devised To soothe the fevered mind. Relief. “Are you in favor of relief for the farmer?” “I am,” answered Senator Sorghum, “I need some surcease from care my- self. We politicians need farm rellef as much as the farmers.” Jud Tunkins says if you were sup- posed to believe all you hear, he'd be glad radio jazz doesn’t pretend to tell you anything. o December Fowl, This robin bird has wearied me. July bids me complain. Oh, how I wish that I A snowbird once again! ‘Valuations. “Aren’t you sorry for a man who has to pay alimony?” “Not if the woman is homely,” an- swered Miss Cayenne, “Whatever the alimony may be, the man is likely to feel that he is getting off cheap enough.” “The man who talks much and loud,” said Hi Ho, the sage of China- town, “is fortunate if he finds only himself as the one listener entirely. convinced.” Keeping the Books. Oh, pause before you merge, good {riends, As you pursue financial ends In terms gigantic—maybe rash— How can you ever count your cash? “Be kind to animals” said Uncle Eben, “but don't exaggerate de favor you's doin’ a chicken to lift her out o' de coop into de cool nightrairy could see BY CHARLES If one wants to study the handling of suspense in a novel he should not turn to one of the latest “thrillers.” In such works the ‘“plot” is almost too well manipulated; the preferable book is one dealing with less exciting material. s To the ambitious person interested in the technique of the novel we recom- mend Jane Austen's “‘M: While by no means the greatest of her novels, being topped by both “Pride and Prejudice” and “Emma,” this story is excellent on account of its technique. Let it be stated at once that any one may enjoy studying the novel without being able to write one, just as one mlxmhke an automobile engine apart without either being able to make it in '{he first place or to put it together n. It is largely a question of the inquir- ing mind. Those who enjoy a t.hwd story for the story’s sake have their reward. It is not necessary to dissect the work. ‘Those who both enjoy a work of fic- tion and its construction have a double amount of pleasure out of one and the same book. They read the story first, then think it over in their mind, with the chances very decided that the latter half of the enjoyment will be in no sense ferior to the first. In fact the latter greatly resembles the reminiscence stage after a party has seen a play or gone on a trip some- where, Every one knows that the greatest enjoyment comes in living the whole thing over again in conversation. One advantage in so recalling a novel is that the process does not nec- essarily require a~companion. In the privacy of one's own mind a reader may recall what he has read with the greatest of satisfaction. * Ok K K In the writing of novels there are two sorts of capabilities, in the main ‘The first builds up what may be termed the elaborate plot. Granted that a writer possesses this constructive abil- ity in the first place, it is not difficult to under: d how he works it out. It almost works itself out. ‘The second takes a slight pictorial theme, which may be .called almost plotless, especially as compared with the other type, and so handles it that the total result is not inferior to the other. In “Mansfield Park” the author has as material only the ordinary every- day life of the great English middle class. She wrote in a day when mar- riage was the chief aim of all women. Quiet romance is the theme of her few novels. Men and women walk in them just as men and women do in real life. Without in any sense being psychologi- cal, Jane Austen’s stories are a more complete representation of life as it is under civilization than any number of more brilllant novels which might be mentioned. She knew, better than most, in her artless yet studied way, that the real life of every man is mostly in his mind. The little everyday adventures, which were the only kind of adventures she knew anything about, come to take cn huge significance in her books. And the question is, and must re- main, Do not the adventures of every although they may be, occupy a simi- lar place in the lives of most of us? BY FREDERIC ansfield Park.” | Th day, plotless and of little significance |* The student of literature will do well | WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS THIS AND THAT E. TRACEWELL. to study “Mansfield Park” for one par- ticular bit of eraftsmanship, the sus- pense created in the reader's mind by the absence in foreign lands of Sir Thomas Bertram. Bit by bit Miss Austen builds. this up, with consummate fictional ability, un- til the reader unconsciously comes to look forward to the return of Sir omas. “When the cat’s away, the mice will | play.” The absence of the dignified British “household Jehovah,” to use the term created by the late Prof. Tridon, lets loose the pent-up play spirit of the daughters and sons of the household. They determine upon a play! Imagine one of our “snappy” youus novelists of today creating a real storv out of such a situation. Yet Jane Aus- ten did it, and “got away with it,"” to use the language of today's younger set. Deftly at certain points in the story Miss_Austen brings in a reference lo Sir Thomas, who is expected back time and again, but invariably ds=layed. The reader, as well as the characters in the story, progress under the cloud of that impending return. No one is permitted to forget that the serious, moral, eminent and always proper Sir Thomas is likely to come home some day or other, but no one is prodded into the belief that he will come home at precisely the wrong mo- ment, as he does. ‘This is where the splendid technique of the author shines. It is an effect which lesser writers must have labored for in vain, but which this woman se- cured easily because she wrote naturally about things which she understood. ‘The play is under rehearsal. Now it is an improper play, with speeches which young Victorian ladies ought by no means to speak, but the young people forget all about that in the excitement of their endeavor. ‘©n the afternoon of the first grand rehearsal of the entire three acts, just while a great stir is going on in ‘the billiard room, which has been con- | verted into a theater. there is a bustle | in another part of the household. x K Kk Sir Thomas has returned! If any one imagines that the lord and master of Mansfield Park creates a scene upon his arrival, they do not reckon with the sure craftsmanship of Jane Austen. Neither Sir Thomas nor Miss Austen | works in any such way. The former, under the skiliful maneuvering of the author, is exactly in character. He sees the theater with slightly |lifted brows, but congratulates the young house guest who originated the idea. . Then he quietly gives orders for the dismantling of the stage and the burning of the copies of the play. There is no fuss, no ranting, merely an assertion of the rights of the head of the household, in a day when the head of a house had rl"lhh.u, ‘The reader, no more n the young people, feels in any mood to question the master of Mansfield Park. His sturdy principles of conduct, his ideas of integrity, are his own, with that finality which makes an honest man respected where he is not loved. 0, there is no need to take up a ocker” to study fiction in the mak- ing: a quiet tale such as “Mansfield Park.” which is truer to life than most of the “thrillers,” will do very well. WILLIAM WILE Herbert Hoover's first four months in the White House have wound up amid considerably more personal satisfaction than he was deriving from his “job” at first. For one thing, the President is slowly—and, for a man of his tempera- ment, -laboriously — steeling himself against the unavoidable irritations of his exalted position. He is taking them less seriously. They are not worrying him nearly so much as they did. When the farm debenture fight was at its height, Hoover's anxiety almost created the impression of melancholy. He found that having Congress on his hands was a very vexatious business for a man who'd been used all his life to giving orders and having them obeyed. Now that the agricultural relief measure has become law and is about to come into actual operation, the chubby Hoover countenance is wreathed in smiles which are apparently not to come off. * K K X Having accomplished his purpose in the field of farm rellef, the President is now quietly girding himself for the next tussle with Congress—over the tariff. All the signs point to victory, or at least semi-victory, for the adminis- tration in that domain, too. The exi- gencies of Republican politics, with a view to the 1930 congressional elections, are working in favor of Hoover's plan for “limited” tariff revision. It is be- coming daily more and more apparent from the wails welling up from Demo- cratic national headquarters in Wash- ington that the cruelest blow the G. O. P. could deal the Raskobites would be a failure to enact the Hawley bill into lJaw. Democratic Senate votes will be cast heavily—>though by no means unanimously—against such rates as the House bill proposes. But the whole political world knows that what the Democrats dearly crave is a chance to shoot at & sky-high Republican tariff bill next year, when a new House and a full one-third of the Senate come up for election. Conversely, the shrewdest G. O. P. leaders are alive to the neces- sity of depriving the enemy of the 1930 target it wants. * kK ¥ Washington has never been the arena of such furious lobby warfare as the pending _controversy over the sugar tariff. Roughly, it is & one-sided fight by the Cuban interests (which are, in fact, American interests) against no fewer than five different domestic and insular sugar groups, which include the Louisiana cane people, the beet-sugar corporations of the Middle West and ‘West and the agencies which represent the growers of the Philippines and of Hawali. The Cubans include am their allies the compact organization o carbonated beverage manufacturers in the United States. For the most part, the strife among the rival sugar barons is a battle of mimeographs. They flood the mails with their “news releases,” emitted unceasingly from extensive suites of offices which are manned by professional publicity men and women and other past masters and mistresses in the modern an*ot* go-getting. * * Practically coincident with the func- tioning of the new Federal Farm Board the Harriman banking interests in New York, nitherto specialists in rails, bank- ing, shipping and international in- dustrial activities, are launching an agricultural security. It comprehends the old-established Gerrard concern, which for nearly half a century has | been growing cantaloupes, lettuce and other {ruits and vegetables in the fertile, irrigated sections of Arizona, California, Colo{ldo “tg New Mfilfo During the ar the organization hlnfl‘:gd l.m &lmds of roduce, which is equivalent to a train of almost 40 cars for every day in the year. Wall Street considers it a matter of genuine significance that at this time one of its largest underwriting houses is of- fering to the public securities of an incorporated farming business. Such type of nnmdng.ls ‘comparatively new in the United States, although familiar in Eng Ul land. * k ¥ % The present geological administration in power at Washington is in the throes of its first geological crisis. Smoky literaily, their full place in the sun. At t, Mount Mitchell, in the Blue to 6,711 feet, on the A% lantic seaboard, but sundry and divers authorities in the Tagheel State think that if the tape measure. were to be carefully applied to Clingman's Dome, Mount Guyot and Mount Le Conte, Mitchell might lose its pinnacled glory. So Dr. George Otis Smith and his oracular United States Geological Sur- vey have been asked to do some cal- culating. The work fs in progre: Meantime, Dr. Elisha Mitchell, the fi mous University of North Carolina geologist, after whom the mountain was named, continues to rest in peace in his grave atop the rocky eminence, in the course of ascending which he toppled to his doom some 50 years ago. * x * Prohibition achieves a classic victory with the impending dismantling of New York’s most famous brewery, the George Ehret_establishment, which for many years has occupied a square block and a half on East Ninety-second street. As a going concern, a European-American brewery combination in 1912 offered the Ehrets $40,000,000 for their property, which has been struggling now for 10 years as a near-beer mill. The six Ehret heirs admit they've been keeping the brewery going in the unflagging hope that light wines and beer would some day be legalized. Now they've decided that that hope is too remote to warrant further operating losses, so the place is shortly to be sold or put to some en- tirely different industrial use. * % x % One of the many members of Con- gress who are spending a working va tion is Representative W. Frank James of Michigan, ranking member of the House military affairs committee. He is touring the country inspecting Army camps and posts with regard to future legislation, especially proper housing facilities for our soldiers. (Copyright, 1920.) Chicago Confronted By Money Problem From the New York Sun. Dirty politics in Chicago and Cook County has produced a situation in which the city and county treasuries are bare and the ordinary processes of vernment are inadequate to fill them. his is the condition commonly de- scribed as “bankruptoy.” The word does not properly define the fact. The sity and the county have assets more than sufficient to pay their obligations; privately owned property is liable for their debts. The present emergency is the culmination of dissatisfaction among taxpayers, bred by corruption and waste in government. New York is commonly said to have been “bank- rupt” in the early 70s, following its exploitation by Tweed; its credit was restored by the heroic treatment to which it was subjected by Andrew H. Green in the office of controller. Solution of the difficulties in Illinois 1s to be attémpted by a committee of 37 conspicuous citizens, who will try to find the money to maintain the public services until the tax money now with- held comes in. It will be a hard job, but that the Chicagoans who tackle it will do it nobody doubts. They will be handicapped by the necessity of ob- serving the law, which has not been al- lowed to hinder the thefts committed by the looters of the city, but they will overcome even this disadvantage. When they are through, it will be interesting to see whether Chicago's voters, who knew exactly what they were doing when 4 ut their present mayor in the; office, wil hereafter for a moderate infusion of in the administration of their affairs. It is up to them: they will de- cide whether a city now bankrupt in cash shall proclaim itself bankrupt in common sense. Liquor Money. From the Dayton Daily News. It may be true that the money we used to spend for n%uor is now going into bank accounts, but the trouble is that the accounts are in the names of the bootleggers. o One Way of Cleaning Up. From the Utica Observer-Dispatch. It is now proposed to convert a num- iber of the l:;lmd New York theaters into swimming - forward step in cleansing the k it worth while to vote | ‘28 Luxurious Snakehopnses And Portable Schools To the Editor of The Star: To one who came to Washington two years ago, and has marveled ever since at the use of portable in the District, the announcement recently of the “world’s best Zoo” as a Capital project was incongrous indeed. Seventy-five portables are now in use, bullt 12 years ago for temporary use. They are dark, cold in Winter, hot in Summer, unhealthful, unsafe. And yet to them we send 2,000 of our most precious and best ioved possessions —our boys and girls. Men of ability and experience are being sent to foreign countries and to various cities of our own country to learn the best construction for animal houses at the Zoo, When and where have men been sent to learn better types of hous- ing for our school children? pecial attention was given to reptile houses—that they might be the best in the world. Does not some one covet for Washington the same reputation for schoolhouses? Plans are being made for electric in- stallation for heating, lighting and ven- tilation for these reptile houses. It is even intended to equip some with vitra- glass to admit violet sun rays. Children in the portables sit in dark rooms on a cloudy day, straining their eyes, or not seeing at all—simply make a guess at their work, for there is no artificial light. On cold days they hud- dle around a stove, being sent home on the coldest days to avoid actual suffer- ing. In one group of portables where the roof was torn off by a strong wind, children became hysterical at any sign of wind. All tollets are outside, un- comfortable and difficult to keep in a sanitary condition. Before the Home and School Association purchased benches, the children sat on the floor for class reeitations. ‘They would burn like a cracker box, be mere playthings for a strong wind, and are sieves in a heavy rain. Mothers are not “dogs in a manger.” They want the Zoo animals well cared for, their houses warm and light and ventilated. They want the snakes —the beautiful, slimy, crawling things— to be comfortable. But have they not a | right to expect as much for their boys LEILA PIER KING. ) Personal Pronoun Used Most Over Phone BY E. E. FREE, PH. D. “I" and “you” are the two col monest words in American convers tion, at least in that part of it con- ducted cver the telephone. “He” is a commoner telephone word than “she”; “get” is ahead of “have” or “want”; “see” is far commoner than “hear” or “feel”; the commonest word express- ing a definite action is “tell.” Such are a few conclusions from a census of the words used in 500 typical telephone conversations, as reported by N. R. French of the Bell Telephone Labora- tories, at the recent New York meeting of the newly organized Acoustical So- ciety of America—a census likely to be cited, once the psychologists have had a chance to analyze it, as not alto- gether flattering to American self- esteem. The thousand telephone con- versers were self-centered enough, for example, to use the word “I” aboul 13 per cent oftener than “you” the actual figures being 3,990 “T ind 3,640 “you's” in the whole series of conver: tions. which was used 3,110 times; " was used 2,060 times, and “on” was used 2,046 times. Verbs were used in the order “is,” “get,” “will" “see,” “have" and “know”; from which the psychol- ogist might gather that telephone con- versers are more interested in what they have or in what they are to get than in what they want to know. Sup- posed national optimism is perhaps re- flected in the fact that “will” was used far oftener than “won't.” “Do” and “don’t” appeared, however, almost ex- actly the same number of times. Neither “yes” nor “no” appears at all in Mr. French's list of 25 most-used words, so the relative telephonic preva- lence of yes-men and no-men is still unsettied. The entire list of 25 com- monest words is composed, it is curious to note, if words of one syllable. s and girls? 0 i Move for More Color In Men’s Dress Urged From the New York Evening Post. ‘There is a growing movement for color in men's clothes. Evidence of this tendency is to be seen on every hand. We have not yet adopted silken breeches in pastel shades or colored blouses with lace ruffi We are still bound by the conservatism which de- scended upon the male portions of society coincident with the growth of business activities. But things are look- ing up. It is the announcement that blue shoes are being recommended for men at a convention of the National Shoe Retallers’ Association which is respon- sible for these observations, but that is simply a straw which shows how the wind of fashion is blowing. We have already had the vogue for colored shirts and collars and more flamboyant neck- ties. [Even masculine underwear is going through a transformation. This change is not so evident as that in lingerie, but perhaps may be taken as indicative of how men would like to array themselves if they only dared. We are not sure of just what fashions we should like to see adopted, but there is nd reason why men should always remain as somberly dressed as present styles dictate. There was nothing drab about the way our grandfathers garbed themselves, although even they were conservative compared with their grand- fathers. Let us have a little more color by all means and some of the courage of our ancestors. Farmers’ Individualism Seen Ban to Ford Plan From the Louisville Times. ‘When Henry Ford suggests that farm- Ing should be conducted am a merger basis he speaks as a business man, but not as a student of human nature. Farmers are farmers because thev are individualists. There would be no fun in farming on a corporation basis. Farms without fences, lands farmed regardless of boundary lines on the area controlled by the corporation, might be made profitable on a mass production basis, but the farmer would cease to be ; m!]n_rmer, and that would not please Farmers like their little farms. They slave for them, lose money on them, wear themselves out on them, grumble cn them and hold onto them. That is why they are farmers. The Ford idea of co-ordination came from the farm, however. The Ford idea appears to be to make an industry all-inclusive and self-sustaining. The builder of the Ford plants was not con- tent to buy metal; be bought ore prop- erties; he bought transportation, too. On a large scale in the industrial world he did what the old-time farmers did— he reduced his buying to a minimum. Modern farmers have been abandon- ing the self-sustaining theory of farm- . They do not make their own clothes, build their own houses, produce their own fuel, build their own means of trans) tion. more—at the other fellow’s price. In- cidentally, they sell at the other fellow’s price also. Hit It Once in a While. From the Columbus Ohlo State Journal. Under the mere law of chances we suppose the eminent dietitians once in a long time hit on & recipe for some- thing that would be fairly good. New $10,000 Bill. Prom the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel. ‘The new $10,000 bill, with Salmon P. Chase’s of Ju?. Ho, huml circulation? i They buy more and | ™ it on it, will not be putabandoned hope into general circulation me middle "!‘h um!n p&fl :fld%dl;l e mean The e emphasizes ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Any reader can get the answer to any question by writing to our information bureau in Washi , D. C. This offer applies strictly to information. The bu- reau cannot give advice on legal, medi- cal and financial matters. It does not attempt to settle domestic troubles nor unde; exhaustive research on any subject ‘Write your question plainly and briefly, Give full name and ad- dress and Inclose 2 cents in coin or stamps for return postage. The reply is sent direct to the inquirer. Address The Evening Star Information Bureau, ;mdf‘;l:ca. Haskin, director, Washing- n, Q. What is hemp?—E. A. Hemp is a tough, which is used in rope making and in the manufacture of coarse sacks. Some of the finest hemp comes from Manila. ‘The State of Kentucky also raises a ;l‘ery high-grade hemp in large quanti- es. Q. Why is a theater pass called an Annie Oakley?—A. M. S. A. Theater passes usually have two W. L. holes punched through them and the | nickname for passes is an allusion to the accuracy of Annie Oakley's aim, for she often made a double perforation of a target with two shots. Q. Why won't times?—W. E. A. Popcorn may easily become too dry to pop successfully. It is the steam presaure developed within its hard shell v applied heat that causes it to ex- plode, and there must be moisture with- in the shell. Q. How much did gascline cost in 1890?—C. E. A. In 1890 gasoline sold for 6 cents a gallon. Q. How many girls and boys have | worked in the 4-H Clubs?—N. E. A. It is estimated that 5,000,000 dif- ferent girls and boys have worked in the 4-H Clubs in the last 15 years. regular United States postage stamps?—J. G. A. The stamps of the United States are issued in the following denomina- tions: 3 cent, 1 cent, 1!; cents, 2 cents, 3 cents, 4 cents, 5 cents, 6 cents, 7 cents, 8 cents, 9 cents, 10 cents, 11 cents, 12 cents, 13 cents, 14 cents, 15 cents, 16 cents, 17 cents, 20 cents, 24 cents, 25 cents, 30 cents, 50 cents, §1, $2 and $5. Q. How many books, fiction and such, does the American public buy in & year?—G. T. A. The American public consumes about 40,000,000 volumes of fiction, travel and biography each year. Q. How many kinds of snakes are there?—J. H. N. A. It has been estimated that there are 1,639 kinds of snakes in the world. '!;hn United States has about 162 spe- cles. Q. Have any women been appointed trade commissioners?—F. S. A. Three women now occupy the po- sition of American trade commission- er under the supervision of the United States Department of Commerce. Miss t | Elizabeth Humes is at Rome, Miss A. Viola Smith at Shanghai and Miss Gudrun Carlson at Oslo, Norway. Three women are acting as clerks to the trade 84 Next in the list comes “the,” ! commissioners in Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires. Six women are clerks to commerciai attaches in Bogota, Co- lombia: Barcelona, Spain; Madrid, Ot- tawa, Paris and Santiago. Q. At what age is a dairy cow in her best period of milk production? Does the butter fat content of the milk di- zmméshz after this age is passed?— A. A cow matures in milk production at 6 years and produces the maximum amount of milk from 6 to 10 years. The percentage of butter fat does not change. Q. Please give a simple wash to de- odorize the breath—R. H. S. A. Use a pinch of plain table salt on toothbrush with warm water, rinse and brush with cold water. Q. What ingredients will make cake keep moist for a longer time than usual?—J. D. T. A. Cakes made with invert sugar or honey will keep somewhat better. Q. What will remove oil stains from a white cement drive?—K. W. A. The Bureau of Public Roads says that you should scrape as much of the grease away from the concrete surface as possible. one-half inch of Fuller's earth and saturate this with benzol. Keep the Fuller's earth saturated with benzol. opcorn pop some- | are the denominatfons of | Over the spot place about | | | . | “The fibrous plant ! | mania,” The benzol will act as a solvent for the grease and this will be absorbed by the Fuller’s earth. After several hours, re- move the Fuller's earth and serub with soap and hot water. Q. How much nicotine is there is cigars and cigarettes?—F. G. G. A. Results showed that ordinary to- bacco products gave a nicotine percent- age varying from 2.89, the highest, to 1.06, the lowest, with an average nicotine percentage of 1.77. Q. Does the Emperor of Japan drink or smoke?—N. L. A. Count Yoshinori Putara writes: Emperor neither drinks mnor smokes. As far as we have been able to observe, this is not due to the fact that he is a teetotaler by nature, but because of the ruling principle of his life, which is that his life should be as simple as he can make it and that nothing unnecessary should enter into :'im This rule he carries out at all es.” Q. Who is the present owner of the portrait, “The Duchess of Devonshire.” by Gainsborough?—H. L. A. “The Duchess of Devonshire,” by Gainsborough, is owned by Mrs. Sat- terlee of New York City. Q. When was George Washington notified of his first election to the presidency?—M. M. A. George Washington was officially notified of his election to the presi- dency on April 14, 1789. He took the oath of office on April 30 of that year. Q. What is the largest denomination of paper money and postage stamps?— I K A. The largest bill printed at the Bu- reau of Engraving and Printing is the $10,000 bill. The highest denomination in postage stamps is $5. Q. Please give some information about _co-operative high schools.— W. B. D. A. The co-operative high school has been worked out very satisfactorily in certain communities. The funds for this type of school are obtained by ap- propriation from the tax moneys, just the same as any other public school. The advantage of a co-operative school is that a boy may go to school so many days each week, and then work the rest of the time. This is usually managed by two students to the job. While one is working, the other is studying, and vice versa. In this manner the em- ployer gets full time. and the student gets an equal opportunity for work and | study. Q. What is e significance of the name “Berean,” applied to a Sunday school class?—G. L. M. A. The name “Berean” is taken from the name of the anclent City of Syria, the inhabitants of which, according to Acts, xvii.1l, were noted for their ad- herence to the teachings of the Serip- tures and their determination to avoid all other sources of authority in re- ligious matters. Q. How was this country ruled dur- ing the American Revolution?—G. E. P. A. The country was under the general rule of the Continental Congress; each lcolony, however, made its own local aws. 7 QA ‘What is the heuristic method?— A. “Heuristic” is derived from the Greek “heuretikos,” meaning “inge- nious.” The heuristic method is one which incites the pupil to find out things for himself and use his own initiative. Q. How should the name “Rouma- nia” be spelled?>—R. H. A. The natives of Rumania when spelling the name in English, we are told, usually use “Romania.” The American spelling is uently “Rou- while the official organ of Great ' Britain, Whitaker's Almanack, uses the spelling “Rumania.” Q A. Physiology of Training says that there is no evidence to show that ath- letes as a class die young. On the other hand, they live longer than average men in similar circumstances. The occa- sional notice of the death of some one who has attained prominence in ath- letics leads to the hasty conclusion that such deaths are of a frequence that evidence does not support. Q. Has Canada an immigration quota similar to that of the United States?— M. A J. A. Canada has no_quota restriction for immigration. It has. however, cer- tain occupational restrictions. TIs it true that athletes die young? A. N. Value of Seaplane Emp]iasized By Rescue of Spanish Aviators Another illuminating chapter in the | rience goes to show that if fivers plan history of man’s conquest of the air is found by the American press in the adventures and thrilling rescue of the Spanish fiyers headed by Maj. Raymon | | { | well and take all precautions, trans- oceanic_flying need not be attended by loss of life.” “Rescue would have been impossible,” Franco, who unsuccessfully sought to | the New York Sun points out, “if they cross the Atlantic in a seaplane. The | had attempted, as so many others have, fact that the aviators are alive to tell their story is pointed to as proof of the value of this type of craft for over- water flights. | | | to make a flight over the Atlantic in & land plane. * * * The seaplane in which the Spaniards took off outlived hope itself and thus justified the faith “Magnificent failure” is the verdict | put in it. Their experience should point of the Cincinnati Times-Star, with the comment on the advancement in con- quest of the elements: ‘“We are doing the things of Magellan and Sir Francis Drake in a grander manner. Their galleons seem small and impotant ships when compared with our stately air- planes. new realm, the Western World, and our airplanes seek adventure in a new ele- ment, the heavens above. But it is higher adventure to attempt the con- quest of the air, withheld from man except in mythological imagination, as with the wi of Icarus, than merely to sail seas that had been uncharted. * + * And the camaraderie of the world that this most modern gallantry breeds was never better exempli- fied than in the search and rescue of the Spanish aviators by the British aircraft carrier Eagle. The descendants of the Elizabethan seadogs rescued the descendants of the men who sailed the Armada. The Erie Dispatch Herald views the rescue as “amazing luck,” and con- cludes that “their well-nigh miracu- lous escape emphasizes the dangers that lurk in these dashes across the Atlan- tic—dangers that have taken a heavy toll in both planes and lives during the last three years.” * * ok x “The whole world is the gainer” in the opinion of the Salt Lake Deseret News, “by each new triumph in the field so recently invaded by the ma- chines of man's creation: and_though some of the results do not at first ap- pear to be worth the cost, it is only at a high price and at sacrificial en- deavor that the world's progress is marked from stage to unfe‘ Every 1and rejoices in the rescue of the Span- ish birdmen. and applauds_the perti- nacity which Immlea the British sea- ir discouraging but in, ges of a great new human ro- m:n:;p:” says the Binghamton Press. That paper briefly reviews the most dramatic of recent flying incidents with the comment: “And so it goes, while the gripping romance of man’s con- quest of the air is written in myriad and criss-crossing skeins of action, all bound to the central motif of achieve- ment. It falls to the lot of the daily nevxpl?:m of this era to tell that re- story.” markabl The rescue, according to the Yakima , “just as searchers had Morning Heral around the world.” point that “the expe- ‘They sought adventure in a | linois State Journal'of the Nation. listening to vocal a moral to those flyers, more venture- some than informed, who are willing to venture transatlantic flight without suf- ficient preparation.” The Altoona Mir- Tor also feels that “the seaplane, prop- erly constructed, does give a certain surance of safety to those who adve: ture across the ocean, trusting them- selves to its keeping.” * X *x Further indorsement of the choice of a seaplane for the journey is given by the Kalamazoo Gazette, which believes that this “reflects a degree of judgment somewhat higher than that displayed by many of the numerous aviators who have attempted flights across the At- lantic and the Pacific in recent years.” Similar_approval comes from the Port Huron Times-Herald, which states as to general practice: “The flying boat or amphibian would be a frail craft for safety if the fiyer were compelled to ‘come down in midocean and perhaps in a storm. But at least it would offer & chance for rescue and safety.” “The fiyer who undertakes the jour- ney almost surely enters a compact with death,” however, avers the Chattanooga News. * * * “There is real manhood When one can ‘greet the unseen with & cheer,; as did these Spanish airmen floating on uncertain seas.” The Man- chester Leader holds that “from the sci- entific standpoint, their jll-starred ad- venture is likely to be more fruitful of information to be used in planning fu- ture transoceanic flights than any of the previous misadventures of aircraft attempting the passage over the wide expanse of water.” The Savannah News states, “The strength of their plane, and their overcoming of a great enemy in alighting upon the surface of the sea and staying there, make a victory for them which the Spanish people have every right to celebrate.” “The experience of the Spanish air- men, almost duplicating that of Comdr. Rodgers and party, attempting & flight from San Francisco to Hawail.” suggests the New Orleans ‘Times-Pic- ayune, “will help, let us hope, in the provision of better equipment or pre- cautions, or both, for transoceanic air travel.” o+ They’re All That. From the Yakima Morning Herald: Detroit police stopped & pl other day because it was silly. they want any shows in Detroit? —————————— Golf’s Curse. ay the ybon‘t of finding them, sends| “rom the Toledo Blade. A Detroit man_says golf il e Evidently he !.as been goll. .