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THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. WEDNESDAY . .February 26, 1930 THEODORE W. NOYES. The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Offre. 1ty o and Pennsyivania Ave, New York Office: 42nd s Take Mickiean Bulgioe. icago Office: Patonean Offce |4 Regent: Bi.. London: 54 Ensland. . . Editor Rate by Carrier Within the City. e Erenine . .45¢ per month e Evenin, 7 (when 4 80c ter month 8¢ per month 9 per cop «t the end of vach month. 0t in by mail or telephone Star... and Sun ays) Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. flv and Su iy only only 0. unday 40c e . $12.00; 1 mo.. §: $800: 1 mo’s Member of the Assoclated Press. ‘The Assoclated Press is exclusivesy entitied 1o the use for republication of all news cis- atches credited fo it or not otherwise cred- ted in this paper and also the incai iews published herein. Al rights of publication of special dispatches herein are also ‘eserved. A Political Boomerang. Since when did it become a high crime for a President of the United | States to warn Congress to keep appro- priations down lest there be a defi- ciency in the public Treasury? It seems incredible that prominent members of the Democratic party in Congress should rise in their wrath to criticize President Hoover because he has fin- dertaken to make the Congress and the country understand that by going be- yond the budget the Congress would bring about a situation that demanded increased taxation of the people. Yet such is the case. Representative John Garner, Democratic leader of the House, in & statement issued through the Bu- reau of Publicity of the Democratic Na- tional Committee, berates the Presicent for this warning, and Senator Carter Glass, in language that could scarcely be surpassed in its extravagance, de- clared that the presidential warning is the most shameful thing that has come out of the White House during his thirty years’ service in Congress. A little later, Senator Glass rescinded his criticism, after reading a statement from the White House to the effect that the President had warned the constit- uents of the members of Congress not to be insistent upon the passage of bills at this time which would increase appro- priations beyond the safety point. Sen- ator Glass said that apparently the newspapers and the Republican leader of the Senate, Mr. Watson, had misinter- preted the President's original state- ment. But Mr. Garner's criticism still stands unchanged. ‘The truth of the matter is that the warning issued by the President was in ¢he end directed to Congress. Con- stituents do not pass appropriation bills, although they frequently bring such in- fluence to bear on members of Congress that measures are put through. With a margin of safety beyond the budget fig- ures of only $50,000,000, it is time to warn not only the country, but also Congress, of the situation and to attempt to discourage the inauguration of new projects which might bring a deficit in the Treasury. Political attacks upon the adminis- tration by the Democrats are to be expected. If the Republicans were in tha minority and a Democratic Presi- dent sat in the White House, the boot would be on the.other leg and Re- publican attacks on the Democratic administration would be under way. But the wisdom of the Democratic in it as it has refused to recognize the Soviet government at Moscow. Declarationis by the supreme head of the Russian Orthodox Church to the effect that there are no persecutions do not convince. It is known that there are two divisions of the Russian church, one of which has gained recognition by the Moscow commissars and holds & precarious tenure through careful ob- servance of Soviet rules of repression and control. The other is the real fundamental faith of the people, under ban, harried, persecuted and even slaughtered. It is hard to get at the truth regard- ing conditions in Russia. There are lies and counter-lies about the Soviet and the anti-Soviet forces, about the Com- munist plan for collective farming and the “Kulak” movement in resistance. But all the lying is not on the anti- Soviet side, nor probably is all the truth on that side. Certain facts, however, are known, and it is on the strength of this knowledge that persecutions have bsen and are being conducted by the commissars constituting the su- preme authority at Moscow against the religionists of the old church, that pro- tests are now arising from every other land, not in call for war, not in demand for a change of economic and political policy at Moscow, but in the hope of preventing the hideous tragedy of the bloody subversion of religious faith in Russia. AREIETRY TR SR Abolishing Preliminary Estimates. The practice of submitting prelim- inary estimates to the Budget Bureau has probably been fully justified, up to this time, by the relative newness of the budget system itself. Submission of preliminary estimates by a depart- ment head amounted to a statement that “Of course, we do not expect to get this much, but here is what we would like to have. You tell us how much we must cut and we will do it.” But” budget practice and its principles of economy have been sufficiently in- grained by this time to permit the abolition of preliminary estimates. President Hoover's order to cut them out from now or. should result in a great saving of time and effort, and it certainly tends to place more respon- sibility on the departments and sepa- rate establishments and less upon the Budget Bureau. In the case of the District of Co- lumbia the preliminary estimates have long since outlived their usefulness. Last Spring, for instance, the Com- missioners pared their preliminary es- timates to a figure that was supported by anticipated revenue availability and sent them along. In accordance with the Budget Bureau's previous pol- icy, the preliminary estimates returned with the order that they be cut to an arbitrarily fixed figure that had no direct- relationship to revenue availabil- ity. But the Commissioners frankly told the budget officials that this was neither practicable nor economical— that the District had the money to spend and that preliminary estimates represented a minimum that for all practical purposes was irreducible. In the end their final budget figures ap- proximated the figures of the prelim- inary estimates. The pother over the preliminaries was wasted motion. Abolition of the preliminary esti- mates will mean that department or establishment heads hereafter must submit their estimates with the knowl- edge that they are final; that there is to be no allocation of top figures among the establishments, but that each es- tablishment budget will represent the minimum amount upon which that es- tablishment can exist and perform its politician who attacks a Republican President because he issues a warning against running the Government into debt and forcing an increase in Fed- eral taxes is doubtful to say the least. Such an attack, however, shows the extremes to which opponents of the administration are willing to go for party advantage. In this instance, however, the attacks are likely to prove & boomerang. It may be a mistake to assume that Chief Justice Hughes has re-entered upon an office which combines ease with dignity. The dignity is unmistak- able. Grave questions will require deep study which may render repose a sec~ ondary consideration. ——— Students at the new school on the Rapidan are expected to be content for the present with a knowledge of the “three R’s,” without going into the subtle complications of evolutionary theories. Retirement becomes one of those sub- Jects which are likely to cause many a statesman loss of sleep. —_————— ‘Why American Churchmen Protest. | American refusal to recognize the| Russian Soviet government is not in- spired by a spirit of intolerance, nor does it betoken any lack of sympathy for the Russian people in their aspira- tion to develop'a democracy. There has never been from the beginning of the present anti-imperialist reaction in Russia any lack of regard for those who have sought freedom from tyranny in “Muscovy.” Yet it is commonly urged by critics of this Government's policy, which is supported by the American people, that it is inconsistent with American history, American struggles for independence and the successful establishment, of democracy here. ‘The United States refuses to recog- nize the Soviet government of Russia for two reasons—fiirst, its persistence in the prosecution of a campaign of Com- munistic subversion, and second, its refusal to recognize financial obligations. ©Of these two the former is the more serious. If the government at Moscow would cease its endeavor to convert the American people to Communism, would disband the Third Internationale, would effectively guarantee continued and sincere abstention from all such prac- tices aimed against the stability of this and other governments, recognition might follow even though there were still lacking guarantees as to the assumption and liquidation of debts. In this present protest of the churches ©f not only America but other parts of the world, in fact the combined religious organizations of virtually all lands, against the cruel policy and practice of work. The Budget Bureau will con- tinue to exercise its supervision of these budgets, but there will be no re- ductions merely to reach a previously determined figure. The reductions will be determined by the facts in support | mattes. THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 1930.’ THIS AND THAT It can have no part, inasmuch |are no cranks, no malevolent plotters,! no potential assassins and bomb-throw- ers. There is no known insurance against them. Eternal vigilance on the part of the guardians of public offices and personages is the best that can be had. As for espionage, desk-searching, shadowing and that sort of thing, it is rather too much to expect the public to belleve that the administration or any interest is engaging in such silly procedure. After the ridiculous jury- spotting that occurred during the Sinclair trial there is such an emphatic distaste for such practices that no one with a reasonable amount of common sense would dare to indulge in it. It all goes back to nervous tension There is a cure for such a condition. Strangely enough, it lies in more hard | work, in work that yields quick results. An early adjournment with all tasks ac- complished would put an end to this nonsense about bomb plogs. e Is Bakerlein Insane? Upon the arrival in New James BaRerlein, which is said to be the real name of the wholesale mur- derer recently arrested in Michigan, he was examined by two physicians rep- resenting the law organization of New York City and was pronounced legally sane. That, however, does not settle It is inconceivable that this mar will be tried for his crimes—or tha¥ zae which it is reasonably certain he rmmitted in New York State— wi#But the interposition of the plea of intanity, without the services of ex- perts on mental conditions. His con- fessions build up an ideal case for such a plee. If he has in fact committed the murders which he has not merely admitted, but has boastfully claimed, he is surely abnormal. If he has imagined them, or now recites them in a vainglorious spirit, he is assuredly unusual, to say the least. Unfortunately New York has no sys- tem of determining the sanity of per- sons accused of crime other than through the competitive testimony of alienists called for the State and for the defense, with a jury rendering judg- ment without any technical training in such matters. This is a poor method, uncertain in its results, expensive, pro- tracted and harmful to the prestige of the law. In this case the accused is not a person of wealth., There will be no large expenditure for experts for the defense. But that does not necessarily mean lack of talent on that side, Alien- ists have been known before to offer their services in notable cases. Though the medical profession does not ad- vertise, some members of it are not averse to inexpensive publicity, ————s. When oratory was a deciding factor in statemanship, there arose a fear of too much idealism. With it came a demand for the practical business man in politics. Every effort is being made by Mr. Grundy of Pennsylvania to measure up to these later requirements. ] His return to the Supreme Court will enable Mr. Hughes tb take up the study of new and interesting subjects per- taining to law enforcement with which the old days did not call upon him to interest himself. ——— e Dominican rebels are encouraged in an ambition to undertake a hard task by a number of people who have found running the government neithex pleasant nor profitable, ——— Great combinations of capital are now recognized as capable of practical usefulness. “Down with the trusts!” is an obsolete slogan. Even an octopus can be tamed. ———— Padlocking a garage goes beyond even the efforts of the officer who inspects street parking to make the impetuous of the estimates. ot Further investigation of prohibition that in order to proceed intelligently with a cure it is necessary at the outset to know the worst. ————. Ingehuity in traffic regulation is con- fidently expected to arrive at some method of preventing the frequent mis- understanding between the motor and the railway car. ———. By devoting himself strictly to the study of aviation Col. Lindbergh man- ages to avoid being lost in the fogs of political controversy. ———e—s. Nervous Tension. ‘Threatening letters to Senators, warn- ings to stay away from the Capitol lest they be caught in an explosidn destroy-~ ing the structure, hints of diabolical plots against the Government, sugges- tions that water buckets be kept on hand in the Senate Chamber for the extinguishment of the fuses of bombs dropped over the gallery railings, charges that administration agents are spying on Senators, searching their desks and shadowing their movements! Were this in truth Midsummer instead of merely a breath of premature late- Winter heat the caloric qualities of the atmosphere might account for the nervous condition of the legislators. But there is no genuine mind-disturbing quality in the air at present, as there is at times in the midmonths of the year. Can this be the result of fatigue, of long, hard labor at the legislative task? ‘The Senate has been in session now for nine months, with a bit of a recess now and then, toiling on two big “propoli- tions"—farm relief and the tariff. It has not yet finished work on the latter. The “big business men” of the Upper House, furthermore, are as individuals and citizens in the throes of making out their income tax returns. Life is hard and strenuous in the Senate. Nerves have their limits of endurance, and it would seem that those limits have now been reached. Crank letters? They are being mailed and received all the time. And it is a generally accepted axiom that the crank who writes a letter rarely goes further. His malevolent thought is expended in the writing. Of course, it is the rare exception that makes the trouble, and the rarely exceptional crank who writes sometimes delivers the explosive goods. Ordinary precaution against such a chance is always to be taken. Thorough the Russian government in persecution of churchmen and religionists in Russia, there is no hint of intolerance. Amer- ican churchmen are joining in this protest as individuals and as groups, as housecleaning at the Capitol and ordi- narily efficient police service ought to afford the necessary degree of protec- tion, perhaps with waterypuckets thrown in as good measure for emergencies. mmmmmmummw% automobile behave itself. e Coalition is an effort to persuade SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.. Ornithology. The Raven sat above the door. Funereal was his croaking. ‘While he repeated “Never more!” ‘The Parrot kept on joking. Each kept to a peculiar way, No conversational slacker, And all the Parrot had to say ‘Was “Polly Wants A Cracker!” Do not resent the gloomy friend Who proves a grim protester. Likewise remember, in the end, You cannot trust a jester. The Raven brought the prophet food, His thoughtfulness delights you. The Parrot suddenly grows rude And, maybe, even bites you! Managing Trouble. “Your enemies say you are looking for trouble.” “Maybe I am,” said Senator Sor- ghum. “A good politician needs trouble in his business. But he has to be ex- pert in handing most of it over to his antagonist.” Jud Tunkins says it's hard luck when you begin to lose your sentiment and regard -home only as the place where you pay your taxes. Patient Verbiage. A Conference, beyond a doubt, Is aiming at results sublime. 1t brings the dictionary out And keeps it working overtime. Fatalities. “Don’t you know this moonshine stuff will kill you?” “It will if you give it time,” said Cac- tus Joe. “But the citizens of Crimson Gulch are shootin’ one another up so fast, the licker doesn't get a fair chance.” “Wisdom,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “is very old, while Folly seems ever young and attractive.” Springtime. Though sunshine now is gayly met, In overshoes we stand aloof. There never was a Springtime yet That could be labeled “Blizzard- proof.” “A friend tells you 'bout yoh faults,” sald Uncle Eben. “An enemy fools you wif flattery, but he ¢oes keep you a York of i The happlest day Washington has known for a long time was the best of the recent Springlike ones which de- scended upon the city out of no one knew what bencficent Heaven, Men, women, children were trans- formed; dogs, cats, squirrels ran and leaped; rosebushes began to sprout and the grass to take on a greener look. Wil tlt wasn't Spring, it was exactly e it The same feel was in the air, the same warm sun shone, the same reac- tions were prompted in the hearts of human beings. Everywhere the topic of conversation was the weather. “Just like Spring, isn't it?” was heard a thousand times. “You don't need that overcoat today” grected every conservative person, A universal hope was expressed that the false Spring would last, but there was an instant headwagging in oppo- sition. Such days could not last; there would be snow and sleet soon; it was foolish even to think of Spring. * K % x Yet such pessimists did not prevent thousands of gardeners in the District of Columbia from.going into their back yards for an extended look at their particular bits of landscape. Some enthusias's even went to the extent of spending all afternoon there, pruning rosebushes, collecting the old leaves and gathering up the general debris which clutters up a yard over the Winter. Many who had forgotten that they had such things as yards suddenly be- came interested in them. It was as if the instantancous warm weather had unlocked a closed door, through which one went to make a momentous dis- covery. Snow and sleet do not help in keep- ing up garden enthusiasm. One musi the possessor of a better garden than most persons have to spend much time upon it when the winds blow and the leaves descend and the snow covers the land. Such a place can be and oftcn is arranged by carcful gardeners of much experience, who have spent enough time and money to be able to distinguish the really worth while from the ephemeral and merely showy. Most home gardeners, however, do not tackle the planting problem in any such com- plete spirit. They are content to-put in a shrub here, a few perennials there, without much thought about it one way or the other. ‘The result of this haphazard state of affairs is that when Winter comes, with all its discomfort and strange glory they crawl into their shells, houses, and are content to abide there in comfort until such time as Nature, in her mysterious procesScs, makes the \outdoors pleasant for them again, * ok ok % And Spring is pleasant. Yet some queer people, probably of inherently contrary natures, insist on speaking of this most beautiful of the seasons as if it were a poor second to Summer and really not as good as Winter. Not as good as Winter! Why, Win- ter is the time of heated houses, colds, sickness, sneezes, discomfort. Stores when they are not superheated they are too cold. Spring—and we speak of the real Spring, of course—is the one just right season for every one. Then the joy of life is at its height. ‘There is no need then to pretend to be happy to be alive—every one not ill is glad of the chance to participate again in this recurrent mystery of green leaves out of bare stalks and boughs. * %k x People formerly wrote Spring poems, hey have passed out of style, along with—we were about to say long skirts, but those are coming back again, or at least trying to come back again. the shuffle for a year, is now resur- rected with new and sudden emphasis. Mr. Hoover’s application of the brakes to congressional expenditures came as a rude jolt, and Congress did not relish White " House strictures about its spendthrift proclivities. First, because preachments of economy and budget are never particularly welcome to con- gressional ears; second, because Con- gress feels it ought not to have charged against it every proposal offered by every one of its 580-odd members; third, because Congress in expanding the public works building program was laboring under the impression that it was only trying to carry out Mr, Hoo- ver's promises. In enumerating various projected expenditures, aggregating a billion and a half dollars outside the budget limits, the White House was careful to avold commitment as to the merits or demerits of these proposals. ‘The President left entirely to Congress the solution of the riddle of how to stretch the avallable Treasury funds to cover every worthy enterprise. If Con- gress goes ahead and plunges the Treasury into a deficit, it must shoulder the blame, yet if it fails to provide ad- ditional funds for Mississippl flood con- trol, for roads, for veterans’ pensions and for Army and Navy pay increases it must shoulder the blame for that, too. Congress thus finds itself between the devil and the deep blue sea. * K ok % Everything is grist which comes to the farmer's mill when it comes to questions of tariff for products of agri- culture. One skyrocket boost in this category effected by the Senate last week will probably cause no pain %o the general public, but just how it will help the farmer is a bit of a puzzle. In the present law bent grass seed, used prin- cipally on golf courses, is dutiable at the rate of 2 cents a pound. The House raised this to 10 cents a pound and the Senate obligingly hoisted the rate to the giddy height of 40 cents a pound. This 300 per cent increase over the House rate and 1,800 per cent increase over the present law slipped in without a whisper of protest, although such fa- mous golfers as Smoot of Utah and Harrison of Mississippl were standing guard, while McNary of Oregon, Cou- zens of Michigan and Jones of Wash- ington were in the offing. * ok ok % ‘The March issue of Senator Arthur Capper’s magazine, besides paying a glowing tribute to Chief Justice Taft, of whom it says, “For 40 years, if ever, no one has served the country more ably in se many capacities,” declares: “The country welcomed the appointment of Charles Evans Hughes to succeed him. At 68 Hughes has unusual physical and mental vigor. He is the leader of the American bar.” The Kansas Senator was one of the silent majority during the oratorical assault on Mr. Hughes which accompanied senatorial confir- mation. * % ok x At the height of the post-war boom the price of silver bullion reached such & peak that the silver content of our traditional cartwheel dollar was worth 100 cents. Today, with the price of silver at the lowest point in 100 years, the silver content of the dollar is worth only 35 cents. World production of silver steadily rises, while world demand for silver continues to fall, partly due to the increasing shift to the gold stand- ard by nations whose currency was for- merly on a silver basls. The United States produces less than one-fourth of the world’s silver, and this comes chiefly as a by-product of copper, zinc and lead ores. Silver bullion and ore are now on the free list, but Senator Pittman of Nevada urges Congress to levy a duty of 30 cents an ounce to give to the American silver producer a monopoly of the American silver market. * ok Kk Kk “Many citizens of the United States have no idea where Porto Rico is,” writes Col. Theodore Roosevelt, ‘: new g:vemon “Since I have been here I ve received letters addressed Porto and homes mostly are too hot, and | | | | | BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Maybe the typical “Spring poem” of yesteryear will emulate skirts, and grow longer, if not fuller, After all, the mere words in a Spring poem do not matter; it is the spirit which counts. If the poems want to come back, there is no reason why they should not, so all versifiers should feel perfectly free to try their hand at it. No doubt there are many authentic aspects of Spring which have overlooked by all the tribes of poets since Homer. The present age knows the most honest outlook upon life and love since the civilized world began. ‘There is no reason why this cannot be put to good use in the writing of poetry. Too long has verse been standard- ized, not only in form, but particularly in subject matter. What is needed is a new poet who can approach subjects with a certain innocence peculiar to the animals, who do what they do without fear or shame. Necessary modifications would have to be made for human beings, espe- cially in the handling of the written word, but the same result might be achieved, with inconceivable benefit to literature, ‘The old tongue-in-cheek attitude would go, and in_ its place would arise—what already has arisen | in_the prose of some authors—a decent attitude of falrness toward life as it is | lived. H* % & Men and women mostly are hypocrites with themselves, not with other people. There are certain facts in life which are interesting, certain situations which are humorous, based on the primeval ethotions of the race. These nine- tenths of us blink, because we have bepn brought up to do 5o, but the ques- tion remains, Are we not wrong both to_ourselves and to this queer thing called life of which we rather suspect we make such an excellenty and unique part? One may step into a burlesque the- ater and see there a grand girl devold of modesty or shame, strutting her stuff before the footlights. Vulgar? No, not with that face. Here is Zola’s Nana in the flesh, utterly indifferent to good or evil, callous to the crude catcalls from the galleries. And one would have to be the first to cast a stone who should declare that she was a shame- less hussy only. ‘The tremendous sale recently in this country of a booklet dealing with cer- tain well known sly tendencies of human beings to laugh at the forbid- | den almost proves the desire of the called | average person to be honest, if only he could, if only his own life would let him. There's the rub. We take a fourth of life to learn certain things, then two-fourths more to unlearn them, and by the time we have got honest with ourselves and the warld we are about ready to give up the one and pass out of the other, ¥ i Life in the Springtime, . however, ought not to hold us long at these speculations. Brains often are a handi- cap, thinking sometimes a nuisance, intelligence now and then undesirable. Such days as that of which we write come too seldom in Winter to be used for philosophical thoughts, true or otherwise, as the case may be. Cer- tainly the city did not so use them at the time. ‘There was a certain feeling in the air, an “elan vital,” as a French phi- losopher once called it, which sang in fresh air on a staff of sunshine for all those longing hearts unable to frame such sweet songs for themselves. ‘Wind and sun, rain and shine, clouds and trees, grass and animals, all Na- ture's children are her first poets, makers of happiness, in so far as life offers it to living things. They write the best Spring poems, after all, because they live them. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS Mr. Coolidge’s favorite policy, econ- Rico, Cuba; Porto Rico, Philippine Is- omy in Government, after being lost in|lands, and Porto Rico, Central America, One college graduate addressed me as ‘Ambassador Roosevelt, American Em- bassy, Porto Rico’ I have had many requests for ‘foreign stamps’ of Porto Rico.” To those who may wish to know, Porto Rico is an island in the West Indies, its capital is San Juan, and it is a territory of the United States. o0 ‘The Sentinels of the Republic arrived recently in Washington for their annual conclave, and after it was over silently folded their tents and departed. They left behind a resolution of the follow- ing tenor: “We deplore the President’s practice of creating semi-official com- missioners and bodies, financed by pri- vate individuals and organizations, to investigate matters and activities pri- marily related to the individual lives of the people and to local communities and having no relation to the limited powers and proper scope of the Federal Government. Such activities tend not only to misdirect, the energies and abil- itieg of Federal officials and employes, butto divert public attention and eriti- cism from their failure adequately to erform the various functions that be- ong properly to the Federal Govern- ment.” bt Among the Hoover proposals cited by the Sentinels of the Republic as coming under their blanket condemnation are the following: Research committee on social trends, to direct an extensive sur- vey into the social changes in our na- tional life; proposed conference on bet- ter housing, proposed conference on recreation, planning committee for na- tional conference on child health and protection and a national advisory committee on education. (Copyright, 1930.) ———— Attempts to Smirch Hoover Are Attacked FProm the Charleston (S. C.), Evening Post. If there be any thought that all this stuff about members of the sugar lobby having private approach to President Hoover and whispered words with him concerning the tariff schedules applying to the Cuban product wilt redound to the political advantage of Mr. Hoover’s enemles, it is bad reckoning. In the end the whole business of seeking to smirch the President will react to the confusion and defeat of those engaged in it. That agents of the Cuban sugar lobby should have had access to the President and been able to get their views on the tariff schedules before him is entirely possible, although their adyertisement of claims to special avenues of approach and particular influences is no evidenge of such a thing.. No man in high posi- tion but is subject to numerous allega- tions of intimacy on the part of in- dividuals who are quite unknown to him, although they may, in one way or another, have come into actual contact with him. Also, there are many acquaintances and even some friends of the mighty who take service for inter- ests which engage them because of such association. And there are some entirely open and honorable representatives of legitimate concern in governmental policles who go straight to the point, seek audience with the high official and present an intelligent argument in sup- port of their pretension. The Cuban sugar interests may have employed all of these avenues of approach to Mr. Hoover, in an endeavor to enlist his lymrlt.hy for their cause. None of them would reflect any discredit on the President. It is quite possible that Mr. Hoover looks with favor upon the Cuban con- tention. There is, as a matter of fact, much of justice and right in it. But there has been nothing to indicate how he was disposed toward the issue. No one has claimed that he moved so much as his little finger in behalf of the Cuban interests. The only allegations are of vague influences enabling certain agents to get ward with or to Presi- dent, and one of an agent being Retirement Amendment Legislation Is Urgent To the Editor of The Star: Much has been sald as to the merits of the Dale and Lehlbach bills relating to retirement of civil service employes. It appears that the Lehlbach bill pro- vides for all or most of the benefits provided for in the Dale bill and greater benefits in some instances, but the fact remains that there is danger of being unable to get the Lehlbach bill through the Senate at this session of Congress, even if it should be favorably acted upon by the House. Many of those been | now retired are badly in need of addi- tional relief, and action providing for some should be taken as soon as practi- cable. The provisions of the Dale bill have been thoroughly considered and are well understood and there seems to be no good reason why prompt action should not be taken on the bill by the House. Surely the House would not refuse to consider the bill on the ground that the President might veto it, as Congress has the constitutional right to pass a measure over his veto. Con- gress might refuse to act on any bill on such ground. Subsequently consider- ation could be given the Lehlbach bill. The ground set forth that high- salaried employes contribute so much more to the retirement fund than those receiving lower salaries, as a reason why the Dale bill should not be passed at this time, is of minor importance when compared with the urgent need of many now retired for immediate addi- tional relief, however small. Many re- ceiving the lower salaries, just as com- petent and meritorious in many in- stances as those receiving the higher salaries often through favor or influ- ence, would willingly exchange places with them and thereby relieve them of contributing the larger sums to the re- tirement fund. JNO. W. DAVIS. —o— A Protest Against the Protest Against Soviets To the Editor of The Star: Your editorial in last Monday's Star, “World Reaction Against Bolshevism,” does not sound like The Star speaking. The voice of tolerance which we are wont to look for in The Star is lacking. That broad appreciation of other na- tions’ struggles, political and religious, is missing. The Star should bear in mind that the American Colonies once “sev- ered the ties” which bound them to a despotism not unlike that which, here- tofore, has reigned in Russia. If Russia wishes to break loose from her political, social and religious entan- glements of the past, as England did in the thirteenth century when she closed all the monastic houses, what is that to us? We are kind enough to refuse rec- ognition of her government, so why should we work ourselves up into a fever over her method of handling her own religious pfoblems? ‘The supreme head of the Russian Orthodox Church, in a carefully pre- pared interview not many days ago, de- clared most emphatically that religion is not being persecuted in Russia. It is the “political preacher” (in her case the “political priest”) who is being prose- cuted, not “persecuted,” I am sure The Star ought to agree that the Russians have a right to make their own laws, and a further right to prosecute all those of their own people who refuse to recognize those laws. JEAN MONK. Comedian’s Desire For Tragedy Pathetic 2rom the Kansas City Times. ‘There seems to be no doubt at all that Charlie Chaplin, comedian, would like to be Charles Spencer Chaplin, tragedian. The story of the comedian's aspirations, at least his yearnings, has persisted until it has outlived the dis- trust that so often attends the ‘gossip about people of the stage. There is nothing new in the fact that a comedian would iike to do “something serious.” Besides, there has been a serious un- dercurrent in much of Chaplin's come- dy, even when his comedy has been most | farcical. The very soul of his humor | has been in his seeming gravity, his | apparent unconsciousness or oblivious- ness to his own absurdities. Perhaps it was fortunate that! Chaplin’s friends talked him out of a determination to play Hamlet, not that we should say he could not play the great role acceptably, or in time even with distinction. Who knows? Now, we are told, he is thinking of Svengali, in a talkie made of “Trilby.” This se- lection, we believe, would be unfortu- nate. It was hard enough for even so good an actor as Wilton Lackaye to make the rascally hypnotist real for his audiences. We fear the Chaplin followers might refuse to regard his | Svengali as anything except a graphic caricature, no matter how well he might act the part. But Chaplin should have his chance. He wants to show that he can be truly sad, even tragic; that he harbors emotions worthy of revelation which have not been sounded in the comic parts he has played. He has an ambition to make people cry or shudder as well as laugh. There have been other comedians with similar ‘aspirations. 'Nat Goodwin nursed his until he made a fizzle of Shylock. E. H. Sothern turned from light comedy, to the disappointment of his large following, went into the To- mances and finally into the Shake- spearean tragedies as well as comedies and fully justified his judgment. Even Eddie Foy, the greatest clown our come- dy stage has known, wanted to play Hamlet, and to satisfy him he was per- mitted to “do” a travesty of the char- acter. It was Belasco rather than the actor himself who turned David War- field from the fleld of comedy, in which he excelled, into the path of serious drama. Warflield has one great suc- cess in tears, “The Music Master,” and one quite respectable Shakespearean impersonation, his Shylock, to his credit. De Wolf Hopper once played Mark Antony in a scene from “Julius Caesar,” and has been unhappy ever since be- cause he could not play the part in full in a formal praduction. There is no telling what may lle un- revealed behind the comic mask. Our old tragedians used to delight in the farcical afterpieces in which they found rellef from the moods of drama and tragedy. One of the fine things about stock companies is that they develop versatility. Continued service in such an organization makes for fullness of training, fullness of powers. ———— 0ld Oaken Bucket Days. From the Akron Beacon-Journal. When school children drank from a common _dippcr, maybe germs didn’t have enough adversity to make them strong and dangerout L E sy Double-Facing Needed ow. Frqm the New London Day. Fable: There once was a pedestrian who looked to right and left before crossing a street. He was run down by a truck backing out of an alley behind him. Moral: Janus ‘of mythological fame could open a right thriving cult in these modern day: referred by Mr. Hoover to Senator Smoot, which, surely, was an innocuous gesture, perhaps no more than a courteous m(;thnd of being rid of an importunate suitor, Yet there is persistent effort being made to give a sinister cast to all of this apparently futile endeavor to engage the President’s favor for the Cuban sugar interest, based on nothing more authen- tic than the self-recommendations of paid lobbyists. It is too insignificant and puerile for any serious regard, and it is becoming utterly wearisome and m - onous. If there is any zllflfl in it the engineers of such strategy had better review their Jrojecu and change their line of operations. The lic will revolt against this sort of g before long, and the ineffectual assaults on the President will flare back uj the as- sallants and induce sympathy for their intended victim and an exaltation of him to the role of a good man unjustly blamed, than which there is no more popular l ‘This is a special department devoted to the handling of inquiries. You have at your disposal an extensive organi- zation in Washington to serve you in any capacity that relates to information. ‘Write your question, your name, and your address clearly, and inclose 2 cents in coin or stamps for reply. Send to The Evening Star Information Bu- reau, Frederic J. Haskin, director, ‘Washington, D. C. Q. Did Houdini appear in motion pictures?—J. M. Mrs. Houdini says that he made a number of pictures, all containing stunts and escapes. The “Master Mys- tery” was a serial, featuring Houdini in practically every kind of an escape, trick, stunt or illusion that he did. Q. What is _the motte of the Kiwanis Club?—M. B. F. A. The present motto is “We Build.” The first motto selected was ‘Trade.” The first chapter of the club ‘was organized January 21, 1915, in De- troit. Q. Was William Jennings Bryan ever the United States Senator from Flor- ida?—A. T. M. A. Willlam Jennings Bryan was not a Senator from Florida, but that State was represented in the Senate from De- cember 26, 1907, to March 22, 1908, by ‘William James Bryan. Q. How hot and how cold does it get in England?—J. C. . A. The maximum temperature of the alr in Great Britain recorded in the shade at 4 feet above the ground is 100 degrees Fahrenheit. This was observed at Wilton House, Salisbury, July 15, 1881, and at Greenwich Observatory on August 9, 1911. The lowest tempera- ture of the air recorded in the shade at 4 feet above the ground —23 degrees Fahrenhelt, at Blackadder, Berwick- shire, December 4, 1879. Q. What kind of food is mealies?— R. T. ‘A’ Mealies is the South African name for maize or Indian corn. In the singular—mealie—it means an ear of corn. Q Can you quote the reply of Speaker Tom Reed when he declined the invitation to make a speech before lAh! Blue Grass Club of Kentucky?— B A. “I shall not accept the invitation tendered me by the Blue Grass Club. The reason is very simple. I have been told that during the late disturbances they said that if they had me in Ken- tucky they would kil me. I do not wish to be killed, especially in Kentueky, where such an évent is too common to attract attention. For a good man to die anywhere is of course a gain, but I think I can make more by dying later and elsewhere,” Q When was sheet first, rolled?—J. J. C. A. Production of rolled sheet iron dates back before 1620 in Bohemia, It was introduced into Wales in 1720, Q. What is a magic square?—W. B. G. A. It is an arrangement of numbers in form of a square so that every column, every row and each of the two diagonals add up alike. This sum is called the constant. These squares have been known for centuries, and in China and India® have always been worn en- graved on metal or stone as amulets or talismans. Q. What was Emmy Destinn's maiden name?—C. H. A. Her name was Kittl. She was born | at Prague in 1878. She studied violin iron “we | playing under Lachner and singing with ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Maria Loewe-Destinn, eventually adopt- ing the name of Destinn. She came to the Metropolitan Opera in 1908, married Capt. Haisbach, a_Czech aviator, in 1923, and died in Prague, January 3, Q. What suggested the title of Thackeray's “Vanity Fair">—M. N. A. Tt was the appropriate name for the ‘book, and was chosen from “Pil- grim's Progress”: “And the name of that town is Vanity; and at that town there is a fair kept, called Vanity Fair.” Q. On a rural route, should registered mail be delivered at the house or left in the mail box?—A. J. A. The, Post Office Department that registered mail is to be delivered {to ghe residence of the addressee, if within one-half mile of the regular lin | of travel by a passable road. Q. How do reindeer find food in the | Wintertime?—F. B. | "A. They dig through the snow for the ‘suceulent lichens or reindeer moss, upon which they feed in the Winter. | @ Are duels agaiust the law in | Prance?—T. C. V. | A. Prench courts reserve to them- | selves a discretionary power in dealing | with the cases of dueling and the prac- | tice is not obsolete in France. Q. What is meant by a straddle when dealing in stock?—C. N. S. A. It is an option giving the holder the double privilege of a “put” and a “call’—i.e., the right to demand of the seller or require that he take, at a cer- tain price within a certain time, certain securities. Q. Into how many languages has “The Message to Garcia” been trans- lated?—V. S. V. A. At the time that Hubbard wrote a foreword for an edition he said that 40,000,000 coples had been distributed |and that it had been translated into | Russian, German, Spanish, Turkish, | Chinese, Japanese and Hindu. Q. What is meant by a trial bal- ance?—H. Z. A. A trial balance is the testing of a ledger to discover whether the debits and credits balance by finding whether the sum of the personal credits in- creased by the difference between the debit and credit sums in the mer- chandise and impersonal accounts uals the sum of personal debits. ;‘%e equality would not show that the items were all correctly posted. Q. Please name the parks under the Jjurisdiction of the Secretary of War— W. B. W. A. There are 11 national military and other parks under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of War. They are: Chickamauga, Ga.; Obattanooga, Tenn.; Shiloh, Tenn; Gettysburg, Pa.; Vicks- burg, ‘Miss.; Antietam Battlefield, Md.; Guilford Court House, N. C.; Peters- burg, Va.: Fredericksburg, Va.; Spot- sylvania, and Stones River, Tenn. Q. How are the ends of railroad rails held together?—G. W. J. A. The ends of rai rails are put together with tie plates. Bolts are placed through the plates and rails and nuts screwed on the ends to hold them in place. Q. What did the Revolutionary War cost England?—D. M. A. It cost England nearly $500,000,- 000, besides the loss of the colonies and about 50,000 soldiers. Q. How old is Rudy Vallet?—V. E. B. A. He is 28 years old. “Failure” is the’word that Americans apply to the campaign being conducted in Russia to stamp out religious organizations. It is maintained generally that persecution always stren?'mms religion and that attacks upon liberty againgt the Soviet. “The Soviet government could have chosen mno surer method of fostering and encouraging religious _ belief,” maintains the Petersburg Progress- Index, “than in the determined efforts being made by the government to stamp it out. It is in high degree probable that millions now living shall see reli- glon flourishing and _prospering in Russia_as never before.” The Harris- burg Telegraph remarks: *“The poor fools who cannot see a divine will and intelligence back of creation are simply headed for their own ruin. Having failed to recognize the fundamental ftruth of divine orgin, all other of their calculations must one day fail. Make no doubt of it. God is not mocked. He has survived many, many such plots.” * kK K “Christianity has mnever yet been harmed by persecution,” according to the Houston Chronicle, “and it is to be doubted if the Soviets can harm it. ‘They might, indeed, injure the organized church for a while; but if Christianity is the vital force its disciples believe it to be, it will eventually overcome the fmaterialists and pagans who oppose it.” The Newark Evening News recalls that “France once made an attempt to sub- stitute a goddess of reason for the warmth of Christ’s divinity,” but that paper adds: “It is possible Russia’s ‘state atheism’ will suffer the same fate. 1t can, by decree and education, change men’s minds, but it cannot change men themselve: “The unrefined savagery of the Huron Times-Herald, “is likely in the end to be its own undoing. Religion, even more than political principles, has, from the beginning of things, pro- duced men and women who joyfully be- came martyrs to & cause, and who, in their sacrifice and punishment, brought defeat to their oppressors.” Holding ) that “persecution, no matter how vio- lent or widespre cannot crush the truth,” the Long Beach Press Telegram remarks: “Communism seems to have ignored one of the greatest discoveries of all time. It is expressed in the poet's declaration; ‘God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform.’ A verbal variatidn of the same thought is, ‘Man proposes and God disposes.’” x K K Ok “Such startling events as this savage drive to stamp out religion and the plan now afoot to dispossess wealthy peasants and turn their land over to workmen inexperienced in farming," declares the Providence Bulletin, “are [‘deeds which, in the words of the Arch- bishop of Canterbury, violate the ele- mentary principles of justice. They make Russia an enigma to America and indefinitely postpone all hope of reconciliation between the two coun- tries.” The Salina Journal points out that in this instance there are no “jealousies of creed or attempts to bol- ster prejudice between religions,” and concludes: “When it is evident that persecution that seeks to throttle belief in God does not distinguish between religions, we can hope, at least, the sowers of the seed of religlous hatred will find less fertile soil on which to work.” “Looking at the religious situation In Russia in purely political terms,” argues the Ann Arbor Daily News, “it would seem that the Soviet would be appre- hensive of the ultimate result. It is playing with two kinds of fire, both of which are serious menaces. One is the red fire of anarchy which is being fanned into flame, and the other is the fire of religious faith, which will burn more steadily and become every effort to extinguish, * Kok “Nothing in Roman or medieval or sixteenth century persecutions,” says the Atlanta Journal, “can compare for bitterness with the present Soviet on- * slaught’ nm the s:gflmu faiths “: of belief will consolidate world feeling | Soviet,” in the opinion of the Port| Americans Predict Failure As Soviets Attack Church | Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic, Prét- estant, all are under the ban. Churches | are being burned, sanctuaries destroyed and those who assert the rights of con- science imprisoned or put to death. Such is the growing burden of reports from that pathetic land where fanati- cism of atheists holds sway. * * * Aside from its religious aspect, such a course can but shock the rational world as an unparalleled invasion of human rights.” “Outwardly religious worship may cease, but it will surely assume activity at the first favorable opportunity,” in the opinion of the Racine Journal News, while the Albany Evening News expresses the hope “that the heart of the Russian people is still sound; that it has not been disturbed by the frenzy of irresponsible leaders.” The Ports- mouth Daily Times suggests: “One must remember that the Russian people have been as children, under a despot- ism not even benevolent, save as the rule of the Czars is compared with the reign of the Soviets. When the Rus- sian people grow up, they may throw off the shackles and establish a real government of the people, by the people, for the people.” * koK % “Let Russia try an experiment in government—so did we; let her try a new economic order—that is her affair. But to seek our recognition on profes- sion of being a ‘godless country’ would be to forfelt her case before it was heard,” argues the Milwaukee Journal. ‘The Memphis Commercial Appeal de- clares that Pope Pius and Bishop Man- ning, in urging a day of prayer for the people of Russia, “represent the senti- ments of tens of millions of Christians throughout the world, intent on pre- serving the essentials of the faith of the fathers,” and concludes: “The matc- rialistic philosophy proclaimed from Moscow interprets life in terms of things and not in terms of values. The two systems cannot exist together in the world. . There must be a trial of strength. The issue will not be decided in Russia through the rule of iron and blood. The issue will be decided by men and women who trust to the mightier weapons of the spirit.” “It is war against God,” asserts the New York Suyn, with the comment: “The Christian 'cathedral and chape, the Jewish synagogue and the Mosl: mosque and those who worship in them are the objects of a definite and highly organized campaign designed to oblitcr- ate the idea of a Supreme Being and to introduce and enforce the atheism which is elementary in the philosophy on which Communism bases its appeal.” The Buffalo Evening News sees in it a art of “the campaign to develop a col- lective system of agriculture” with the related subjects of church property and other personal rights. Referring to the fact that “Pope Pius called the world to pray for the Chris- tians in Russia” and that “he received prompt pport from the Church of Englan the Dubuque Catholic Daily Tribune states that the Russian papers “came out with the declaration that the present attacks on the Soviet gov- ernment abroad for the suppression of churches and wiping out of the rich farmers’ class were part of & concerted international movement against the So- viet Union,” and the Dubuque paper re- plies: “This is Russia’s defense against an outraged public opinion abroad, a reply to the representative of the King of Peace, who said he would pray for the persecuted Christians of Russia.” ———— Domestic Evolution. From the Worcester Evening Gazette, A:‘chhl':hc:l tell us that lnm-wher gen- eration the dining room will pass out of the average American home, but we may console ourselves with the that 1t may linger for a time breakfast nzok. o o —————— Art and Gastronomy. From the Loulsville Times. . The fact that 200 of them recently nttznd:: ; dinner ‘l:. 13: York would seem isprove that Poets don'® eat. _—