Evening Star Newspaper, January 26, 1930, Page 30

§ g the highest necessary this tea- T o e s | o Sy | e R WASHINGTON, D. C. UNDAY.......January 26, 1930 THEODORE W. NOYES. ...Editor ) AU SN R - A The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: st m” ivania £ze Tk Office: 110 East 42nd 8t. e SR SASKRS England. s s o Rate by Carrier Within mEEEE “The 1 “‘m;{i:’,‘i,‘:" I Ational 3000 " " Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. gfly Iol;?, Sunda: ¥r.. $10.00: 1 mo.. 85¢c ¥ri. 56.00: 1 mo.. 50¢ Sunday only yra $4.00: 1 mo.. 40¢ All Other States and C: {ly and Sunday..lyr.$12 ily only .. 1yr., 3 das’"only i3 8 Member .n.l‘ ihe Associated Press. e A o o the tise rd Patebes creai wise ‘cred. ted in this ons . = Published berein. te b-— All_rights of publication of ¥ AT the City. 45c yer month T 60¢ per month 5 +85¢ per month 1>..5c per ccpy end of cach month. mail or telephone Municipalities and Taxpayers. Chicago's financial difficulties, which “have come to a climax during the past Week and for which a provisional remedy 4s now in sight, may-direct the attention “of the people of this country to the question of municipal business. It #hould have that result if the plight of ‘Chicago is recognized by the country at large as the result of administrative in- competence characteristic in general of municipal management in America. _ The spending of other people’s money by public authorities is not conducive to ‘eare or frugality or scrupulously honest ‘Wdministration. City government is, as "'® rule, regarded not as a business, but as political adventure. The taxpayers, instead of being considered as partners " In a business, are rated as forced con- tributors to funds manipulated by alder- ‘7men, councilmen, mayors and chiefs of *“bureaus, somewhat for the public good, and somewhat for private and decidedly ~~for political advantage. *' Chicago is simply a horrible example “‘of the manner in which the relations | | motors are still further perfected human Engines have likewise shown a very distinct improvement. The introduction jof the radial air.cooled motor, which did away with the complicated cooling systems formerly used, made perform- ance of unusual consistency ‘possible. In this connection it is significant that in the Army round-the-world flight a few years ago the big motors were changed after only 60 hours of flight, but in the establishment of the duratiop refueling record in 1929 one motor ran continuously for more than 420 hours. It is obvious that as planes and failure will be the cause of a higher percentage of such accidents as oc- cur. While the “foolproof” plane will never be constructed, ships of the | air will probably become so free from | structural and engine defects that the human element will be responsible for an overwhelming percentage of the ac- | cidents. In motoring this stage has al- ready been reached. The automobile of today is just as safe as the driver makes it. Motor car manufacturers and airplane manufacturers seek to improve their products, but, human na- dispatches herein are also reserved. | ture being what it is, there is little pros- pect of comparable gains being made in its betterment. So it is up to the manufacturers to turn out the safest product that it is possible to construct. | After they have déne that the human | element will have to look after itself. Conditions in the Schools. Congestion and other problems con- fronting Washington's schools are often described by statistics and large arrays of impressive figures that mean much to the expert, but leave the layman cold. For that reason the series of arucies, which begins elsewhere in today's Star, describing in detail the conditions found in each of the school divisions and in each of the schools, should prove in- teresting to parents with children in school and to others who take a natural interest in the vitally important public school system. While the articles gat- urally +mphasize the defects and ob- vious faults in school facilities that make themselves apparent to the visitor, there has been no attempt to paint the school system needlessly black, nor to dramatize conditions in a manner that ‘between the taxpayers and the munici- | Would unfairly minimize the admittedly pal organization have been perverted ffrom the ideal of local administration. - That city has grown to its present great #ize, with a population of between three and four millions, without any orderly, - -logical process of political expansion. * Expedients have been adopted to meet new conditions from time to time. The Tesult is a total lack of co-ordination. ‘There are no less than twenty-two tax- ing units in the city. There are four "“money-spending bodies. The budgeting "ot expenditures and income has been smerely a gesture of compliance with praiseworthy features, such as fine, new buildings, modern equipment and the efforts of the school personnel to make ends meet and accomplish as much as possible with the means at hand. Nor have the articles attempted to ‘“ex- pose” conditions. The conditions are there, for any to see, and have existed too long. The striking fact in any survey of nent seems trivial and idle and’far ‘too feminine. The Democratic women are much more interested, she says, in “doc- trine” than in the teacup, more con- cerned in what the Republican tarift threatens to do to the family budget than in a pleasant gossip over the cups that cheer but do not inebriate. “Doc- trine,” however, has a cold, harsh sound, especially as a substitute for afternoon tea. Perhaps Mrs. Ross may discover that tea, after all, has its uses, even in the field of politics. Tea played an important role in Boston Harbor more than a century and a half ago and upset a number of politicians in America and in Great Britain. And now there is a row over tea among the woman politicians, with some of them inclined to view Mrs. Dodson’s tea plan a8 a noble experiment and others attacking it. Mrs. Ross takes the tea issue seriously. She fears that if the women attempt to mix tea with politics, the men will hold them in contempt. So she has put forth a statement through the pub- licity bureau of the Democratic national committee, in which she announces her “doctrine” substitute for afternoon tea. “When I was elected Governor of ‘Wyoming," says Mrs. Ross, “some of the newspapers that were shocked at the advent of a woman in that position suggested that the State House would become the seat of pink tea govern- ment.” She fears that the advent of five o'clock tea as a campaign feature | cq)) would confirm rather than dissipate such an unfiattering opinion, It is not quite clear why Mrs. Lloss should be so disturbed over the tea plan of her Republican opposition. ‘There is no present tariff duty on tea, nor does there seem to be any plan among the Republicans to impose such & duty, strange as it may seem. Perhaps a national referendum on tea drinking might be of assistance in settling this important dispute. —_————————— It may take a little while for Russia to take up the Mexican break-away in the ranks of New World Sovietism. Soviets have so many international irons in the fire that it is hardly pos- sible 1o be alertly vigilant every time one of them begins to cool —_——————— Delegates to the London Conference are no doubt congratulating them- selves, in view of the way in which every point is watched, on having gotten through the roll call without any denonstrations that might lead to misunderstanding. ———————— Collectors of old books and docu- ments do not devote themselves entirely the school system as a whole lies in the matter of sharp contrasts. Brand- new buildings for some children, worn and ancient structures for others; un- ‘= business principles, but without any real “ttempt to maintain relationship be- ‘tween income and outgo. # In the first place, in Chicago as ! 'practically everywhere else, the cost of anunicipal administration, honesty be- .- ing assumed for the moment, is entirely too high. Municipal forces are too “large. Political debts are paid by public Buresus are enlarged to make room for mewcomers in a change “'pf administration from one faction or party to another, Never does the new- In another respect the Chicago case is characteristic of many American municipalities. This is in-the inequality .., Of assessments and therefore of tax levies. * 'The heaviest burden is borne by the amall taxpayer and the largest property owners have had the benefit of “con- sideration” for political reasons. Just now in the midst of this really tragic erisls, marked by great suffering on the part of those who are failing to receive their salaries from the city and county governments, there is & bitter warfare, spiritual rather than physical at pres- ent, between the small owners of prop- *‘erty and those who hold titles within the business district, the latter having been benefited lately by the cutting off ©f $300,000,000 in assessed valuations . while the ratings for tax purposes of those in the outlying districts have been increased. Lively demonstrations in protest against this discrimination have been threatened, such as torchlight processions and mass meetings. In the present state of the public mind such manifestations might lead to disaster. New York is piling up a tremendous debt which will probably never be lig- ‘uidated. But New York’s funded debt, ‘which in 1929 amounted to more than & billion and a half dollars, is based upon an established relationship to the Assessed valuations of property and on the tax levies. A debt limit is definitely fixed by law amounting to about nine .- and a half or ten per cent of the total assessed valuations. Thus, if the law is observed strictly, and if valuations are reasonable and equitable, there is always a margin of security. But the @ebt is increasing rapidly in Greater New York, and is now greater than the national debts of several of the larger countries of Europe outside of war ob- . ligations. ——— e , Some arguments are never settled. After all these years there is still a more or less satirical discussion of whether Chicago or New York is #ntitled to recognition as the wickedest city on the continent. ———— ‘The Navy is reacy to go to the rescue of the Byrd expedition if need be, a ‘reminder that the victories of peace may be greater than those of war, The Human Element. ‘With 56,201,308 miles flown in avia- tion in the first six months of 1929, and & fatal accident for every 169,944 miles, Clarence M. Young, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Aeronautics, points ‘out in his semi-annual report that the . Jauman element is vesponsible for lightly more than half of the casual- ~*ties. The percentage of human failures *’in the air is placed at 50.04 for com- .ismercial flying, which is slightly lower '* than that of the two services, the Army " @t 63 per cent and the Navy at 74.6. Plane construction in the past ten Years has made strides. It is of time i E B g £ £ : g H b | i b if -3 : EB EEEE i E é i H 2 E wieldy classes and pari-time classes in some buildings, small classes of 20 or less in others. If 35 pupils to the class is accepted as the desirable educational maximum, it is found that there are about 721 classes in the schools that exceed that maxi- mum. If 40, the desirable maximum under conditions in Washington, is accepted as the standard, it is found that 323 classes are above 40, while in 19 there are 50 or more pupils. - But it also is to be remembered that within the desirable limit of 35 pupils. One's thoughts, however; are not for the puplls in classes of 35, but for the pupils in classes of 45 and above. The parents of children in these overcrowded classes are not getting what they pay for from the schools. In Washington one can find brand- new school buildings, with auditoriums, playgrounds and the latest and best school furniture available for the stu- dents. But one may also find; as in the Johnson School, some students using folding bridge tables in leu of desks—tables, by the way, that are fur- nished by the parents. There are 420 pupils in this building, and there are 347 desks and chair sets. One¢ may find new buildings, ade- quately heated by steam. But one also may find old buildings, sooty and dirty as & result of ancient hot-air systems that do not always function, and one may also find permanent buildings still being heated by tall, iron stoves. Two of the Washington schools lack run- ning water and sewerage connections and are not even provided with septic tanks for open toilets. Other old buildings in use provide “play rooms" for the pupils in vault-like basements. In several schools the students are not allowed to use the play room, and must eat their lunches in the class rooms during recess on rainy days. ‘The same contrast exists play- ground facllities. A few schools lack all playground space and turn the chil- dren into the streets for recess. In the majority of cases the streets are roped off and closed to traffic during the re- cess. Some playgrounds are so poorly surfaced or drained that they cannot be used after a rain. In other cases, one finds fine surfaced play yards equipped with recreational devices. There are buildings still in use that were condemned as unfit as far back as 1908. Such conditions, it may be said, are merely typical of a growing city that developed faster than the provision of schools for its children. It is probable that most of the faults can be readily explained. But whether or not they are explained, they remain as evidence of shortcomings that must be remedied and that justify and demand a contin- ued. program of generous appropriation to wipe out evils that do exist. ——— et ‘There are two points which Bishop Cannon does not succeed in making clear—how the prohibition argument started and how it is going t0 end. ——— et Tea and Politics. ‘To tea or not to tea is stirring the woman politiclans. Mrs, Nellie Tayloe Ross, former Governor of Wyoming and at present vice chairman of the Demo- cratic national commitiee, is aroused thoroughly by the announcement of Mrs. Louise M. Dodson, new director of the women's division of the Republican national committee, that she intends to &5 & medium to develop a Republican organization, Over to literature. The discovery of some old financial accounts in connection with grand jury investigation is'de- scribed by New York legal connoisseurs as constituting a rare and valuable find. ———————— Leather remains on the free list. The price of a pair of shoes may be ex- pected to be about as it was, unless ‘Thomas Edison's laboratories work out some such plan for synthetic leather as they worked out for rubber. Pl e Authorities have decided ‘to make Hoboken, N. Y., a model city qualified to neighl across the river, ‘The Anti-Saloon Leéague keeps alive the warfare on alcohol. An anti-hop Joint league might help in the fight on illicit drugs. ——————— SHOOTING STARS. A promise that once seemed to suit. No talk of “obeying” Is hers; she is saying, “Be true to me, dear—or I'll shoot.” ‘The cooking school teacher May frequently reach ‘er, But that is not all she will learn, ‘The serious fact is She tries target practice As heroines please her in turn. This lass fiercely sealous ‘Won't weep when she’s jealous, ©Or mope in a sorrowing mute. She gives warning merely, And speaks quite sincerely, “Be true to me, dear—or I'll shoot.” A Fondness for Children, “Statistics say that the birth rate is decreasing.” “I'm sorry for that,” answered Sen- ator Sorghum. “The only hope I have for popularity in certain communities is to say nothing and kiss the babies.” Jud Tunkins says a good talker used to be glad to entertain. Now everybody, including himself, thinks he is wasting time unless he is selling something. Always Changing. “Times ain't like they used to be,” It's & sad old lay; And by history you'll see Times always were that way. Happy Boyhood. “Do you recall being & happy, bare- foot boy?” “Not exactly,” answered Farmer Corn- tossel. “About the happlest days I re- member are those when I managed to get a new pair of shoes.” “Disappointment should not dismay,” sald Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown. “The desire of todsy may make pos- sible the regret of tomorrow.” Play and Work. As Fortune played him varjous tricks, At last he lost his breath. He started playing polities— And worked himself to death. “A man ought to stand by his friends,” sald Uncle Eben, “which makes it important to pick out good friends in de _fust place.” Don’t Go Near the Water, Prom the Plttsbursh Pest-Gasette. are la on the at m:’" m‘ mm con- & wholesome example to the big | ! “ONE ; ishop of Text, Erodus, aiid49: “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that so- journeth among you.” We are being admonished that our cardinal and bes:tting weakness is law- lessness. When we are soberly reflec- tive we all concede that law is indis- pensable to our individual and cor- poraté well-being. To be “a law unto ourselves” means to set ourselves in opposition to the well-being of our neighbors. A household that rears its dren in an atmosphere of irrespon- sibility, and carelessness of the rights and privileges of others, is a menace to the community in which it is placed. A corporation that employs counsel to interpret law to its own satisfaction, or to evade and circumvent it for its own selfish ends, creates disorder and ultimately affects the stability of the large corporate is a part. We brand the individual who wantonly disobeys the laws that are designed for our social well-being as an anarchist and a destroyer of the and wealth of the community, whose benefits he shares, but whose obligations he refuses to bear. In & Nation as great and varied in its racial deposits as this one, a Nation that stands for the highest expression of liberty, there is always the danger that its ideals and traditions shall be set aside and ignored by the alien, who would impose upon it the customs and practices and ideals of his home land. Every now and again some one speaks of converting our American observance of Sunday in accordance with the so- led continental ideal of its observance. As a matter of fact, more and more we are setting aside that which the fathers of the Republic gladly recognized and reverenced, in favor of that which we unron from lands in which the day is neither recognized or reverenced. Again, in other more recently enacted laws— | law made by constituted authority and Demanded by BY WILLIAM HARD, LONDON, January 25.—The Ameri- can delegates to the Naval Conference here are necessarily confronted with what we Americans call the ‘“politics” of international affairs. By that word in this conference we mean any nego- tiations-or proposed treaties having to do with non-naval matters, such as “guarantees” and “security” and arbi- tration or conciliation or judicial set- tlement of international disputes. It is -muenfiy the preference of our delegations, and also apparently of the British delegation, to go at such matters with the greatest caution, but it is also becoming clear that the maxi- mum of naval reduction will possibly not be attainable unless such matters are given some consideration. This is because of the attitude of Prance. To this correspondent upon arrival here the French attitude seemed to be “political” merely, and designed only to build up a system of agreements and counteragreements and superagree- ments for the diplomatic expanding of French power. This interpretation now seems to this observer to be in large degree unwarranted. * ok ok In the French delegation here there is manifestly a most sincere anxiety for the physical “security” of France, and also festly a most sincere willingness to reduce the French naval demands if that “security,” by means of international agreeménts of a pro- tective sort, can be achieved. A precise summary of the French view in this respect was pronounced Premier Tardieu last Thursday eve- ni at the end of his radio address to the American audience. In the course of this address he spoke at first of what might be called the absolute needs of France from the naval stand- point. He dwelt upon the larde and distant French colonial possessions and the long and perilous French trade routes. He stated that “France with her colonies is an empire of 100,000,- 000 inhabitants and requires, as the British Empire Tequires, an effective naval security.” He then, however, made the 10110‘;131 illuminating re- na mark: “Our requirements are likely to become relative instead of ab- solute in proportion to the tees afforded against aggression an in- ternational agreement.” Interpreted, that remark means that the naval tonnage demanded by France will rise or fall as this conference fails to produce additional “'security” or suc- ceeds in doing so. The additional “se- curity” in question could come, as it were, in strong doses or in weak doses. The strongest dose, and the one which would most be desired in prlncl&u by the French, would be a pact binding the countries here represented to rush with their fleets to the defense of any one of their number which, under the sort of rules laid down in the covenant of the League of Nations, could be re- garded as having become the victim of an unprovoked attack by an ‘“ag- * K ok ok From that degree of strength the dose of “security” here concocted might be diluted down almost or exactly nothing. The degree of naval reduction offered by France would be propor- tioned to the degree of the dilution. ‘The problem, then, for the other na- tions in this conference is to discover just how small and weak a dose of “security” can be offered to France with the result of eliciting from her some sort of really valuable naval re- duction proposal. ‘The Italians are not averse, erally speaking, to political negotiations and treaties. The Japanese have the policy usually of going along with the con- sensus of opinion among the g.elt pow= ers. The stumbling block to the French ideas here are really the British and the Americans. Great Britain in such matters seems’ to be going through a mental revolution leading it toward the acceptance of the American theory which opposes inter- national promises to make war in order to stop war. The “sanctions” of the covenant of the League of Nations, under which all members of the league agree to bring physical pressure to bear upon an aggressor, are increasingly un- popular in Great Britain. It is freely predicted here that this unpo ity will some day become dominant in British thought, and that some British government in the near future will move toward eliminating “sanctions” from the League of Nations covenant. * ok ok K Meanwhile it is certain that the bulk of British opinion at this time would like to get through with this naval con- ference without incurring any further treaty responsibilities except those of a strictly naval variety for the curtail- ment of fighting fleets. Nevertheless, in order to drag a naval reduction offer ernment might well be willing to make considerable concessions toward French “political” desires, The problem then would become one of inquiring just how far the Amer- icans would be willing to go. It is realized that in no circumstances weuld the Americans sign a treaty commit- ting the United States to the use of tingencies whatsoever. Therefore, that mzo! treaty is eliminated from the It will also presently be realized here that in no circumstances will the Amer- icans sign a treaty binding the United States beforehand, in the midst of the unforeseeable emergencies of a future moment, to follow then any given named course of covert action what- spever, It is the general policy of the United States in respect to overt actions in the future to keep itself wholly free. The of treaty which would com- mit the United tes beforehand, for instance, to the breaking off of lo- interests of which it out of France, the present British gov- | tus armed force in any future named con- | Py ARY 26, 1930—PART TW®. LAW,” BY THE RIGHT REV. JAMES E. FREEMAN. D. D. LL. D. B hol Washin, gton. under our tem of &vmenb—va are admonis] that those who seek asylum here from foreign parts will govern lves according to the habits and practices inculcated in the fatherland. According to this dictum, there must needs be two kinds of law, one for the “I " and one for the “stranger that sojourneth.” The ultimate test, not only of our integrity as a people, but of our stability as a Nation, will be disclosed by our capacity to compel obedience on the part of the homeborn and the stranger to the law of the land. Here again let us insist that laws without ideals are inoperative. Nations are not made stable and secure by law alone, essen- tial as this is; they are made secure by recognizing and reverently observing ideals. If America is to grow more and more pagan, if it is to renounce the C‘l;en:tw ugrlnclptl: reverently recog- ni ose who gave it birth—yes, by those who gave thcir lives Snm fense of its . We may reac earn, from the history of other strong peoples and nations, the inevitable ruu&.o Just now we are am: self-confident. Our increas- ing th, our man-power and our money-power have intoxicated us. Ac- cording to the recorded story of another self-confident nation it may be written of us, “Every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” It is the part of folly for any man or any seemingly secure corporate interests to look upon the present drift of things carelessly and without deep concern. We may not need a “gloopyy dean” to over- emphasize or overstress certain perils that Joom on the horizon. It only requires a little bit of serious reflection, a modicum of common sense, a brief perusal of the history of other peoples, to make clear to us the supreme sig- nificance of the ancient word quoted above: “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.” Guarantees of Safety May Be London Conferees matic relations with offending powers or to the blockading of them or to the withdrawing from them of American trade is also therefore being eliminated from consideration here. * ok ok ok Plans are being made, however, to test the Americans out on ideas which are less rigorous and exacting and which are known to have been con- genial in the recent past to Amer- ican theory and practice. These lat- ter ideas fall into two divisions. One is a treaty of consultation, like the four-power pact between the United States, Great Britain, Jaj and France, which was signed at the Wash- ington Naval Conference of 1921 and which was ratified by the Senate. Such a trealy would commit the United States to consulting with the other nwen regarding breaches of the peace, t would commit it to no course of behavior after the consultation. the famous an treaties, calling for commissions of inquiry and of report Wwhenever breaches of the peace were threatened. The attitude of the American dele- gation here toward these two ideas has not yet been publicly defined. What can be said about them is only that they are not contrary to recent American precedent. In their anxiety to get the American itures to some sort of political fortification of a merely naval agree- ment here, the Europeans in the con- ference have suggested even that the naval agreements should be preceded by & quotation from the joint Macdonald statement in Washington of last October as follows: -“Each’ of our governments will direct its thought and influence toward securing and maintaining the peace of the world.” ' est dose of “security” that could be administered to the ;rench. ‘Whether they would consent to swallow it and in return grant to the world some re- duction of their submarine building intentions remains problematical. | (Copyright, 1930.) ———ee— Consumers to Benefit From Trade Economies The other idea would be a treaty like | to ‘That would be just about the weak- - BY HARDEN COLFAX. Business is ‘swinging into a stride of saving this year that promises to make waste disappear like snow in the Springtime. In a dozen lines of distribution plans are afoot to reduce overhead costs of 4 service to consumers through activities organized by trade associations and now along comes Uncle Sam with a pro- pou! to assist in at least three direc- tions by surveys of manufacturers' dis- tribution of groceries, of manufacturers’ distribution of drugs and of retaile selling methods of dry goods, Mass production has become the key- note of low-cost manufacture since the war, and new problems this policy has created, both social and economic, are being attacked with reasonable hope of solution, but the complexities of dis- of the ultimate consumer reveal a much less clear view of the future be- cause less has been done in their costly case. * ok ok ¥ Estimating retail: trade at $45,000,- 000,000 a year, which certainly is & conservative figure, if only as little as 1 per cent could be lopped off from the' cost of doing this volume of business it would mean $450,000,000 to be di- vided between lower prices to pur- chasers and profits to rietors. Ex- perience indicates ibilities of elim- :l’l‘l";l:l t;‘(::n me! a mrch:ll:uflm dollars el me; lising, but **'5da. to this ple asing prospect further parings Ml‘: in wholesale distribu- tion tz:lfood., Whether it be from jobber to retaller or producer to wholesaler or manufacturer direct to retailer, and the picture is brighter by other billions. * Kk Kk domestic commerce division of o e the Department of Commerce has been | than delving into distribution costs for the last three years, with increasing mands from specific lines to lend them a helping hand. The Department of Commerce ap- propriation bill, introduced in the House this week, makes provision for studies {to assist the manufacturers who dis- | tribute drugs and those who distribute groceries and the retallers of dry goods, a total of $71,000 be! allocated for these three projects. e handlers of electrical supplies, candy and a range of other commodities are clamoring for the assistance of Uncle Sam’also, but apparently will be forced to wait their o, * ok ok % ‘These surveys in reality will cost con- siderably more than the Government is prepared to spend on them, perhaps three times as much, and the dls.erenee will be supplied by the trade associa- B Somees o dneni s appears growing pular. Without the assistance of of Government in such affairs identity of the individual is con- in anonymity of ave: and maxima and minima. e * ok ok o will carry on the battle to reduce selling costs and thus place goods in the hands of consumers at lower but at the same time increase the margin of | At where none any te bon A N S tribution of merchandise to the hands | ¢ approxima oie | VéTs ©f business failures in general in- Meanwhile, other lines of business [busin Capital Sidelights E¥ WILL P, KENNEDY. ‘When ¢onservation of the public do- main was under consideration in the House, and when this legislation was being used to fire the first gun of & campaign against President Hoover on his use of a commission for important special work, Representative Robert XK::. of Massachusetts, known as “the scholar in politics,” as well as “the pro- fessor of golmul procedure,” aptly quoted the Bible to his colleagues. “With the customary adroitness that we all enjoy,” said Representative Luce, “the gentleman from Texas (Minority Leader Garner) has attempted to con- vince even his own side that in its rising vote on this matter it was not exercising partisanship. Up my way there is a homely fashion of answering that, to the effect that a certain denizen of the barnyard was discussed by its owner one day, who said, ‘It looks like a hog. it smells like a hog, it acts like a hog; why not call it & hog? Why not cali this what it distinctly and clearly is—an attempt to discredit the present admin- istration of the “There are contagious diseases. One has been raging not very far from this chamber for a period of many months. ‘We thought we had escaped it, but now we find this House threatened with a similar attack of feverish attempt to manufacture political capital. This I deplore, but I would turn away from such an unpleasant aspect of the situa- tion to a source that may calm even the gentleman Texas. I turn to Holy Writ, and €all attention to the thirteenth chapter of Numbers, where ‘we are told— bk Lord spake unto Moses, saying: “‘Send thou men, that they search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel; of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them. “And Moses so did. They were to search out the land. Mind you, this is the first appearance of the public-land question. “Presently the first great commission, consisting of 12 of the heads of the tribes of Israel, searched the land of Canaan and came back. Now, I regret to grieve my colleagues from California whom I see at my left, for I shall com- pel them to bow their diminished heads. The searchers were to bring back speci- mens of the fruits of the land: “‘And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, ln_d they bare it between two upon a staff. “Even California cannot produce a bunch of grapes that will require two men to cerry it.” (Laughter.) ‘When Representative Luce stopped his quotation at this point, Representa- tive McSwain, Democrat, of South Carolina, suggested that Mr. Luce “Yead that part where the whole commission then appointed were frightened to death, except.Joshus, and came back and said they dared not fight the Philistines.” * ok k% Tllustrating how conditions have changed and the enormous development that has comg in the past 10 years, Re tative Luce pointed out the growth of legislation during his own term in Congress. “In the Sixty-sixth Congress there were 1,095 bills reported by committees the House. In the Sixty-seventh Congress there were 1.450, in’ the Sixty- eighth there were 1497, in the Sixty- ninth ther:h:m 2,151 and in the last Congress, Se 2,625 bills. In these last 10 years work of Congress has almost trebled. ‘What is the effect upon itself and g&)n its product? At ti the ty-eighth Congress there were 162 bills and joint resolutions that ssed the House, but did not e aw: in the Sixty-ninth Congress, 428; at the end of the Seventieth Congress, 579. “This is the product of two things: Pirst, the birth rate, and second, the immense expansion of social activities and common interests. “When this Congress began _the House had 65 lbers and the Sen- Today the and Senate 96, a In that time the popula- tion of the country has increased from 4,000,000 to 120,000,000 — thirtyfold The size of the Senate and House com- bined has increased less than sixfold. “On ':F of the work brought by the growth of the country have come addi- tional burdens by reason of the march of invention. these 10 years Droughs bo us the ‘pron: ese roug] us lems of the radio, the problems of in- terstate motor transportation and the ems of aircraft. The same pej brought the problems of the prohi- bition law. * ok k% Miss Ruth O'Brien, known the “best girl” of the textile industry, who is in c! of the textile and ciothing division of the Bureau of Home Eco- nomics, United~States Department of Agriculture, has just compiled a book to homemakers. She to 1,184 books and articles on the subjeet of clof and health, with articular reference the connection ween the two. There are many citations from German and other for- eign literature. Each reference states briefly what the publication or article covers, and, in many cases, from what %Ini of view the subject is freated. e several subjects treated are ar- ranged as follows: The effect of gar- ment style on health, in both the m'ny‘l‘lo]mxl &nl lml“ p-;cm as- pects, wi references to dis- ussions of c‘;fi:rnen'l. men’s and wom- en’s clothing; the effect of clothing fabrics on health, from the standpoint of their chemical and proper- ties; clothing, as & carrier of disease. mmenul agency, in so far as they Big business usually manages its own prob] because it can afford to have Tesearch and statistical and accounting departments developed to the nth Wer. The small merchant, or manu- acturer or wholesaler, however, is handicaj unless he has available to him experience of his friendly competitors and some chart of per- formance which indicates the safe and the dangerous courses and the elements of leak and waste: Hence such studies by the Government and by trade associations. * ok ok % Probably at no time has the battle for business between chain stores and independent dealers been more acute at this moment. chains have had the advantage of sta- tistical work and analyses, but the growth of such combinations is creating problems in itself, particularly those of | During personnel, which are difficult of solu- tion. Speakers addressing the Whole- sale Dry Goods Institute at its conven- tion in New York this week predicted that independents will have little more to fear from chain merchants. * ok ok ¥ Poor preparation for business ven- !ummm!mdmb:lm:%s: merce study closed that, in one community, out of 100 grocery stores operating 10 years ago, only & remain in business, but the 92 have been replaced by others, while of 100 drug stores a decade ago, 33 con- tinue operations. In another city 551 Slosed I8 year: onky o e Sepleced & year, rep! by itely 551 new ones. Sur- only 4 per cent are due to romises make the purses of the public more tary Academ: The | don, and later I was in active war serv- | in selected cities has dis- |, comfottable as well as to help mer- chahts & 1t it of their invest- ratnia of time ang soney; o (Copyright, 1930.) i WHAT GOVERNME BY FREDERIC ). HASKIN. ‘The American people are extravagant in their expenditures for the blessings of government as well as in the matter of automobiles, radios and the thou- sand and one other things for which they spend their money. just been completed showing what is spent on government of all kinds, Fed- eral, State, county and municipal, and they show the amazing total for 1927, the latest year for which a com not because of Federal expenditures, but because of those of the States and lesser jurisdictions. How the march of expenditures has continued may total of all expenditures for 974,000,000, in 1925, $11,126,000,000; in 179,000,000 ing back to 1913, we find that the expenditure was only u.;tu.m,ooo. costly than the Federal Government, in spite of the fact that the States need DOt SUPPOTt ANy Army Or navy or carry on many other activities which devolve upon the United States. Local govern- ments in 1927 spent 3!.“4.000,%. an n;mue of $300,000,000 o;:r the pre- vious year. This is to compared with $4,069,000,000 expended by the Federal Government. State govern- ments spent $1,656,000,000, and. the combined increase in both Federal and State expenditures over the previous fil‘:d w-xs &nly‘ about "l:o,&o‘o.ooo—onl- of the increase ding of local governments. iRk Local governments do more for the people than does the Pederal Govern- ment. The one item-of education is a costly ome. The Federal Government has ]nn omx "g; ldg‘uflm. but it is merely an ry department which aids local school authorities so far as it can. But the Federal Government builds no school houses nmor conducts any schools. This is done by the States, counties and citles. Per Capita Expenditure Increases. While the Federal Government spends millions in the improvement of l”!:lllc roads, it does so only along witl State governments. The eral aid road lppmfirhflam provide that a giv- en sum will be furnished if the State puts up a like amount. This is some- thing of a temptation to States and there have been cases in which, in order to gel the Federal aid, States have indebted themselves beyond the point of soundness.- As the population of the Nation in- creases it is necessary to spend more and mors money on government, but the per capita expendit has outrun the population increase. For the fiscal year 1927 the per capita cost of gov- ernment was $102.67. This compares with $99.17 in the preceding year and $91.88 back in 1923, This expense takes in all manner ices constantly increase in number and in variety. Governmental actions un- dreamed of but a few years ago now pila- tion has been made, of $12,179,000,000. | im] Each year sees the amount increase, | in 1926, $11,616,000,000, and in 1927, $12,- | V' Gol 9 the | their funds B, et B 1 T Ml ptlln& at a billion a year. thefe are the ten Pigures have | de be seen from these figures. In 1923 the | Depa: All of these activities cost money in large sums. When in 1017 the o Ll te govern- per cent more ments tha County and . For example, in 1937 spent 33.3 they did in 1923, purposes in 1927 than in 1933, and of this nearly $1,750,000,000 was e: ded by the local governments, with oniy the Federdl mefi’ thel counties, their expenditures an - :)r‘l)%r# in 1927 over 1923 mfl"-' ‘The States, counties and cities raise in wvarious ways. Real estate taxes account for a very large part of the money used. The Federal Government imposes no real estate taxes whatever. That is peculiarly’ the pre- rogative of local governments. en there are such taxes as those upon automobile license t businesses. For _example, restaurants must take out permits and pay dor them. How far the cost of it will §0 is a matter for conjecture. Not only Mr. Coolidge but others l:-‘ well have warned against governmen va- gance and declared that the hte’nktlu ‘et 80 of governmental services and such serv. | Prosperous as and when governments eall upon their people either for taxes or are usual. The Federal Government, of course, for loans the response is immediate and overwhelming. W. J. Bryan’s Daughter As a Congresswoman BY CONSTANCE DREXEL. “The first thing we must do %lm realize that war is not inevitable. en there must be a general realization that & mechanism must be evolved by which the nations can adjust their differences through flll;fi‘ll.v. - o} necessary in stitute arbitration for war. Public opinion is not a mysterious force. The problem comes back to the attitude of ordinary people—your attitude and mige.” B Mrs. Ruth Bryan Owen, new member of Congress from Florida, thus inter- rets her attitude of mind as she takes place with the House committee on foreign affairs—the first woman in the :llwrydthlcmlntrylow‘nthlt onor. She was called upon a few days mfl(ht!orherphuonthnwmm.l'cg tee and her seat in Congress, as a re- sult of a contest brought by William uns, h army officer, had forfe :l'omlp. Maj. 0"5 died two years * K k% It was like the daughter of Willlam Jennings Bryan, the fmz Commoner, to say “the attitude of ordinary people —your, attitude and mine,” for she is not a “high-hat” kind of person at all. She is simple, frank and unaffected. She is tall and distinguished, her frank- ly 'r y hair smartly cut to follow the outline of a finely shaped head. Now 44 years of age, she has kept her figure slender by exercise, mostly horseback .r:lldin‘, and she pays attention to her “Why did you want to come to Con- gress, and why, in particular, did you pick ' the foreign committee?” she was asked. to to Congress “I've wanted come ever since I was 5 years old, ever. since I was with my father when he came for his first term to Washington Representative from Nebraska,” she re- plied. * ok ok K “Look over there.” She pointed out opponent, Lfilflvl trie as | nouncing that Fifty Years Ago In The Star ‘While waiting for the full and final demonstration of the practical develop- P ment of the electric Electric Light light by Thomas A. Skeptioitm. Fire” vag dich dise mcuulcn m"h the mdmh&of the ventor, name and actions, The Star of Janusry 31, 1880, says: ¥ “The first announcements of ‘complete success' of Edisom's electric light were received participating in the stock-grabbing scheme, but late foreign papers contain has been - ou n Jel c:?ynmtmc‘al:o:u sage from Jersey g lur- the week five houses had been lighted with the ‘new electric lamp of Edison,’ that ‘the success was perfect,” and thes ‘s it " fall “in shares,’ ‘the shares of Edison Electric Light Co., issued at 500 francs, were quoted at nearly 30,000 frllw!i ‘The l&ndnn ‘Times &l Jan- uary 4 published a special telegram from Philadel, of that date an- s continued to burn tif of the window across the beautiful plaza | to in front of the Capitol. “We used to live in that house and my father often brought me to Congress with him. Al- though that was long before women were given the ballot, I didn’t doubt that women would some day be elected Congress. I took the t inter- est in politics. In my father's mlyl cam) and by the time he was m g his third campaign for the &mldmcy in 1908, I was old enough help actively and worked as his sec- retary.” “And when he was Secretary of State?” “I was not in this country at time. My busband was instructing in the Royal Milit y near Lon- ice during the period of my father's service in the cabinet. MI interest in forelgn affairs much farther back. my with my father and mother, I began to | have a wider and wider horizon of in- | terest. In every country we visited I saw the interrelations " of commerce and mutual interest which unite the | nations and at the same time are the cause of the strains and stresses tween nations which in the past have caused wars.” L Mrs. Owen made her her father to Canad: girlhood when I traveled | [ i tocks, factls”that Shey hadveis fluence in that direction. Paris, where the most exaggerated :u'amnu of Edison’s success were pub- ished, gas stocks held their the Figaro of the 7th said il:'n its the in- rican people, be eonvlnc'e’d lI‘)’l; and d-mo;:(nnbh -Briand “Do think that women have a particul cr'l:}uru’" t in this question of or “I most certainly do,” she réplied em- “While in 90 per cent. I tically. might ‘say in 99 cent, of the qumsofi:"um bonlf’: there s no ’ tives 0 S,