Evening Star Newspaper, April 29, 1930, Page 8

A—8 * fTHE EVENING STAR WASHINGTON, D. C. @UESDAY........April 20, 1830 THEODORE W. NOYES. ... Editor The Evening Star Nfl;l!ll)fl Cempany Business Office 11th St. and Pennsyivania Ave. 110 East 42nd 8t. i Mmee: Lake Michisan Buiiding. opean Office; 14 Regent St. London. neland. New York Offc Rate by Carrler Within the City 2 revine siar 45¢ rer month and day 60c per month (when 65¢ oer month The Sunday Star L Collection made at the end of e ¢ rer copy ach month lers may be sent in by mail or felephone tional 5000. Rate by Mall—Payable in Advance. Maryland and nia. a: and Sunday. . only vy only Member of the .issociated Press. “The Assoclated Press is exclusively entitied #0 the use for republication of all news dis- tehes credited o it or not otherwise cred. 4 in this d als o the 1ght n '!)und-'i Btar y Star y and Sunday ouly .. lay only news s of public: ation Soecial Gispatches Berein are also rererved. The District Bill. ‘The difference between the District sppropriation bill as it passed the House and as it was reported yester- day to the Senate represents, in the main, the traditional difference be- tween the House and Senate in their respective concepts of Federal obliga- tion and responsibility in financing the American Capital, in keeping with its needs and the exclusive power of legis- Jation possessed by the Congress, ‘The House, appropriating the largest sy ever appropriated for the Fedetal Capital, confined the Federal share to the inadequate, archaic and unreason- able lump sum, inaugurated in 1925 at $9,000,000 and continued in the six fiscal years since then at $9,000,- 000. In addition, the House boosted water taxes, boosted main assess- ments, set in motion a plan drasti- cally to reorganize the District’s kinder- garten system at a saving in dollars but at the expense of the educational advances made in the system, figur- atively beat its breast in a passion of enthusiasm for its own generosity and, Jeveling a finger of warning at the unrepresented taxpayers in this com- munity, let it be known that their insist- ent demand for improving the Capital would result in an inevitable increase in their tax burden. The Senate, taking the same bill, Increased the Federal contribution by $3,000,000, making the lump sum $12,000,000 and bringing it more nearly to the sum that under substantive law, never repealed, would be appropriated in the current bill under consideration. The Senate eliminated the provision for &n increase in the water taxes and maln assessments, considered by the House as the necessary step to finance the improvement program for & water system that now supplies free water to the Federal and municipal governments. ‘The Senate eliminated the House plan for saving a relatively small amount in money by drastically reorganizing the kindergarten system and cutting down its teacher personnel. The Senate cut from $3,000,000 to $1,000,000 the amount for purchasing Municipal Center land, and otherwise trimmed items approved by the House in such manner that the wat, reduction in expenditure proposed in the bill now amounts to $1,422,262. Elim- {nation of the New York avenue improve- ment program and elimination of the Monroe street overpass item are two other tmportant actions taken by the Senate committee, but both of these elimina- tions are to some extent counterbal- anoced by authorizing the widening of H street from Massachusetts avenue to Thirteenth street, instead of from Seventh street, as the House provided, and ‘in substituting, through separate legislation, the Michigan avenue widen- Ing and grade-crossing proposal instead of the Monroe street overpass project. ‘The House bill would have reduced the District’s surplus—that is, surplus for general expenditure—to about $875,000. ‘The Senate bill would increase this sur- Pplus by the $3,000,000 added to the lump sum, plus the amount of reduction ef- fected by the Senate in the money to come from the general revenues of the District. The total surplus under the Senate bill, therefore, would amount to ® sum in excess of $5,000,000. This sum will, of course, be available for de- fraying the cost of some of the legisla- tive demands now pending, such as the police and firemen’s pay bill. It should, on the face of it, enable the District t0 meet these demands, including the financing of the water system improve- ments out of the general fund, without that drastic increase in the local tax rate that now is threatened by the ac- tion of the House, and potsibly to finance the Municipal Center without resort to a Treasury loan or advance. The Senate should approve the work of its appropriations committee by sending this bill to conference with the firm decision to stand by its guns and fight it out along that line if it takes all Summer. There will be changes in the bill, naturally, and there are points that tnvite sensible compromise. But the fundamental issue that lies in the Sen- ate committee’s decision to increase the Federal contribution in support of the American Capital must not be surren- dered. Fair-minded members of the House— and there are many—will insist that this issue be decided on its merits. De- clded on such a basis, the District need bave no fear as to the outcome. U — Reports of the probable state of the United States Treasury are almost as wariable as those of the Weather Bu- reau itself. The New Hindenburg Line. Pleld Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, second President of the German Repub- lc, has just completed five years in office. The Grand Old Man of the Reich, now in his eighty-third year, who hardly more than a decade ago personi- fled Prussian militarism, now incarnates the spirit of democracy which is steadily sccomplishing the renaissance of the war-stricken Fatherland. Had he not urgently requested that there should be no celebrations of the event, Germany would have marked in signal fashion the nation’s appreciation of Hindenburg’s merits. The world at large could appropriately have joined in such felicitations, for the venerable field ‘marshal’s service to the cause of Euro- pean amity has been no less eminent much nudy»gzmnmmn.mmma than his beneficent rulership within the Reich fteelf. ‘When Hindenburg ascended the presi- dential throne at Berlin in 1925, there was widespread fear both in Germany and abroad that the work of the revo- lution and the safety of the republic would be imperiled. Hindenburg was a militarist and & monarchist, it was said, and the ambitions of the class and caste to which he belonged would be certain to find favor at his hands. Those who succumbed to such anxieties ignored one { all-governing trait in the man. The new President was a soldier. He had the | soldier’s passionate devotion to his oath. | When Paul von Hindenburg stood on the steps of the Reichstag in April five years ago and swore allegiance to the congtitution, all manner of doubt took wings as to his course in office. It would be steered sternly and uncom= 30¢ | promisingly in the direction of main- taining the republic. Hindenburg, it was once remarked by the late and lamented German Ambas- sador to the United States, Baron von Malzan, made the republic “gesell- schaftsfaehig” (fashionable) in Ger- many. Millions of his countrymen said to themselves that if the new order of things was good enough for Hinden- burg it was good enough for them. They mccepted it. They joined with him in sustaining it. They became his earnest coadjutors in developing it against & reactionary opposition which once de- luded itself into believing that the hero of Tannenberg would be putty in its intriguing hands. President Hindenburg has resolutely insisted upon remaining above and aloof from German party wrangles. He is guided consistently by what he con- ceives to be the best interests of Ger- many, regardless of partisan politics. Characteristic of his presidential phi- losophy was his stand last Autumn against the anti-Young plan referen- dum and his readiness to sign the new reparations laws in the teeth of Na- tionalist jeers and threats. There is a new “Hindenburg line” in Germany and in Europe. That the grim and genial gentleman who has s0 effectively adhered to it may be spared to carry on along the same line for another span of usefulness is a wish echoed far beyond the borders of the new Germany which he is so construc- tively leading. ———— b “The Powerful Arms Lobby.” In the course of a series of articles printed in the New York World regard- ing the evil of free armament by the criminal class in this country, resulting in wholesale slaughter, attention 1s given to the sources of supply. Manu- facturers of weapons take no pains to prevent their products, pistols, machine guns and other terrible devices for kill- ing, from getting into the hands of the lawbreakers. The laws themselves gre lax in this respect. Some States have fairly effective weapon restrictions, but these are nullified by the slackness of adjacent States, from which endless supplied are obtained. The District of Columbia, according to the writer In the World, is one of the readiest reser- voirs of criminal armament. The fol- lowing pessage occurs in the latest chapter in this chronicle of crime: The District of Columbia is another source from which gunmen draw much of their arms supply. The National Cap- ital is without a law of any kind to prevent the sale of pistols or any other weapon. Attempts have been made at various times io obtain legislation to free Washington from the indiscrim- inate sale of arms, but these attempts always have been frustrated by the powerful arms lobby. You may buy pistols at any one of twenty or more stores in Washington, and nobody will ask you why you want the pistol or what you are going to do with it. Specific reference is made to the “powerful arms lobby.” Would it not be well for the Senate lobby investigating committee to turn the light of its inquiry upon this branch of law-pre- venting enterprise? For many years Congress has been asked to enact a workable and effective pistol restriction law for the District of Columbia. Noth- ing has been done. Objections have been raised session after session of Con- gress to this proposal, recommended by District Commissioners, by police chiets, by citizens. On a few occasions bills have been approved by committees only to die on the calendars. Elaborate argu- ments, based upon ‘a fallacious reading of the constitutional injunction against denying the right of the people to bear arms, have been advanced. Somehow, in some manner, by some method, some influence has always managed to pre- vent legislation. There are only two conceivable in- terests that are concerned to prevent. legislation laying restriction upon pistol buying in the District of Columbia—the arms makers and the criminals. Hair- splitting about constitutionality of pistol limitation—which is absurd—has never been believed to be sincere. Meanwhile ‘Washington has been a free market for jeadly weapons, an armory for the crim- inals, local and metropolitan, and the crime record here is extensive in con- sequence Let there be light on this question of who I8 preventing legisiation to reg- ulate the sale of deadly weapons in the District of Columbia. —_———t—————— New diseases are brought to attention every year. New cures are also being discovered, and reports of science that the average span of life grows longer would indicate that humanity has rather the bestsof the situation. —e—. ‘Where the Blame Belongs. President Hoover in a special message yesterday called the attention of Con- gress to the fact that it has so far not finally passed a single one of the meas- ures for the better enforcement of the prohibition and other laws which he recommended at the outset of the ses- sion. This reminder of the President is very proper. The session is drawing toward a close. A great deal of time has been devoted in both Houses of Congress to speeches denouncing the lack of law enforcement. These speeches have not been made alone by “wets.” Some of the leading supporters of pro- hibition enforcement in the Senate have attacked the administration because of violations of the dry laws. Borah. Norris, Brookhart have had their say on this subject. But outside of talk, Congress has done nothing. The ad- ministration, on the other hand, under the laws that exist, has improved the personnel gnd increased the efficiency of the Federal machinery in criminal !law enforcement. | .The President and the members of the Law Enforcement Commission, after THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 16%. ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. to Congress a 1ist of proposed changes in the laws looking to more strict and efficient enforcement, not alone of the prohibition but of other Federal laws. Among the recommendations sent to Congress was the transfer of prohibition enforcement from the Treasury to the Department of Justice. Another recom- mendation looked to relieving congestion in the courts, so that law violators may be brought to justice. A third proposal was for a unified and more efficient border patrol to prevent smuggling of all kinds. The President also recom- mended the passage of & prohibition enforcement law for the District which would meet the needs of the situation. One of these proposals has been put through the House, the transfer of pro- hibition enforcement to the Department of Justice. That is all. It still awaits l-cuon in the Senate. The judiciary Icnmmlmz of the Upper House, which has among its members some of the severest critics of the administration who have not failed to discuss the short- comings of the administration in the matter of prohibition enforcement, held this House bill in its committee room for months while it considered, or some of its members considered, the advisa- bility of a Senate investigation of the prohibition enforcement officers of the Government. A few days ago, however, the committee finally decided to go ahead with a favorable report on the transfer bill, and the measure with some amendments was ordered reported to the Senate. As for the other recommendations of the President to strengthen law enforce= ment, practically nothing has been done. Members of the Senate and House have criticized some of the recommendations severely, but they have suggested no substitute remedies. There has been a lack of all constructive effort, appar- ently, on Capitol Hill. It is not yet too late for Congress and its committees to deal with these important measures. But it is exceedingly doubtful that a serious effort will be made to get through any legislation now except the transfer bill, —— Fame is not always enduring. The historic attention, and whenever they are mentioned there will be suggestion for an admiring thought of the late Gen. Barnett. R The sky continues to monopolize the interest of Lindbergh in spite of the fact that an admiring public was ready to equip him for life with a mahogany desk and a political job. e — The next great telephone invention may equip the dial with a device to pre= vent a loquacious subscriber from hold- ing up urgent business to make way for idle conversation. e It costs something to take a thor- | ough census, but it has frequently been observed that knowledge is better than riches. o g ‘When rivals appear on the political scene in Pennsylvania, there is always enough financial backing available to stage an imposing production. ——————r—————— Only the earth travelers ask whether flying is worth the risk. Aviators with- out exception declare that it is. oo Use of the term “perfect crime” may in fact refer properly to imperfect methods of detection. s SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Daylight Saving. I heard an ancient person say: “That daylight saving brings dismay, And T experience & shock Whenaver I observe the clock! I heve perused the ancient lore; One slight thing interests me more. 1 murmur, ‘How sublime it is!— I wish I knew what time it is!’ “I seek my radio friends in vain. I fear that I shall miss the train. My watch intensive thought demands hands. I don't care for the statesman's speech. Nor what the scientists may teach, Nor even what new crime it is— I wish I knew what time it is!” Question Not to the Point. “Do you think you will leave office poorer than when you entered upon it?"” “Hadn't gone that far into the mat- ter,” answered Senator Sorghum. “I haven't the faintest idea of leaving office under any circumstances what- ever.” Jud Tunkins says don't tell your hard luck story to friends. Enemies will enjoy it more. Apple Blossom. The apple blossom queen was there, So radiantly young and fair. She sald—"“Good tree, it would be fine Had you a warm fur coat like mine!” Studying Chances. “Why do you go to the races if you never bet?” “Por the sake of the sport,” answered Mr. Chuggins. “If our old flivver gets to the track and back without & break- down we call it & winning day.” “A rich man,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “must learn to be & purse bearer for the needs of others.” Incongraity. Men we call great we sometimes find To bits of spitefulness inclined. That makes us wonder after all How one 30 great could be so small. ‘We got a new church organist,” said Uncle Eben. “De old one was takin’ too much advantage of de fact dat both hands was always busy when it come b time to take up a collection.” P Coin Collectors Slighted. From the Worcester Telesram. Coin collectors are doubtless ready to concede that President Hoover is not making good. — et King Belongs to Union. From the Canton Daily News. bexh;‘u?.ucnn has been mwl:a a mem- T Of cf ers’ union, and never can um:: days when a m may have to go to work. Woman's Brain Equal to Man’s. Prom the Muskegon Chronicle. ‘The henpecked husband will be cheered at the snnouncement of the Cornell professor who said that a wom= an’s United States Marines will always be in | him. To know which way to turn the| . 1s only equal to that of man. figure of the ! THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. One may feel sorry for a human conscience. t must be an ui py thing, since it is doomed to bear the weight of 8o much sin and sorrow. Yet it has its happiness, too, and no one can be sure which will win. That is why the conscience ¢f an in- dividual, invisible though it is, and practically non-existent though it be, is nevertheless one of the most real things in the world, and one of the most n- teresting. g Conscience, says the dictionary, is the faculty, power or principle, conceived to decide as to the moral quality of one’'s own thoughts or acts, ¢njoining 1 what is good. The basis of conscience 1s knowledge. ‘The Latin from which it comes means “to know.” It may know what is right, but “there is many & slip 'twixt the cup and the 1ip,” as the foolish old maxim I'as it. * x K % Consclence, in the last resort, is really the human mind. ‘The word has come into use as a con- venient way of saying something, but in so doing it has taken away a bit of the prestige of the brain. ‘We do not intend here to go into a discussion of the relationship of the brain and the mind. If one wants to throw in the word “spirit” too, one gets a pretty kettle of mental fish. For all ordinary purposes the mind may be regarded as a product of brain, although this definition may not be sclentific, either from a physiological or psychological viewpoint. Life is bigger than either of these de- partments, however, so our viewpoint will hold water. L Conscience is a faculty, & power or a principle. Even so matter-of-fact a work as a dictionary admits as much. It is thought to decide as to the moral quality of one’s own thoughts or acts. The first sure fact about this intan- gible thing, conscience, then, is that it is a power which works for righteous- ness. ‘The second is that it is a strictly per- sonal possession. One's own thoughts or acts alone are involved. One’s consclence can no more funce tion for another human being than one’s stomach can digest his food for One cannot appreciate & fine paint- ing for another mrsan. or enjoy a great symphony for him. Similarly, one cannot be another man’s conscience. * K kK As near as two consciences ever come to meeting s In verbal discussions of the problems of good and evil, or in the writing upon such themes and the read- ing thereof by others. “Enjoining what is good.” ‘That is the key of the human con- science. Enough latitude is left in the definition of “what is good” to engage the attention of civilized beings for thousands of years. The nub of the question is there. What is good? Some say one thing, some another. Even religion has brought forth a world of different opin- ions. We were interested in the follow- ing, from an article by Dr. J. 8. Wade of the United States Bureau of Ento- mology in_the March number of the Scientific Monthly: “The first 11 s_of Muir's life were spent at Dunbar, Scotland, where he was born on April 21, 1838. His L MERCURIO, Santiago.—Go to the suburbs of the city for the most bewitching music: We are tired of the infernal clatter and bang of the society orchestras in the more ornate of the city's cabarets and restaurants. It is in the humbler, coarser, poorer quarters of the city, to the remoter precincts of the demi- monde, if you prefer to say, we must go to hear the music that really tran- quilizes and enraptures us. Ah, what other compositions, much more classic and technical, perhaps, can inspire in us the emotions that arise when we hear melodies of ‘Las Virgenes re las Olas,” “La Golon- drina,” or even “Nelly"? The cares and disasters of the day at once cease to trouble us. We are only alive to the auties and mysteries of life, discov- ered and enjoyed in every human group- ing. In these small, poor, place resorts of the outer ciréle, from dark till dawn are heard the strains f all the old, sweet, soothing lyrics that have charmed us all our lives. Recently, attracted within one of those dingy retreats by the sound of long-endeared and long-familiar music, 1 entered to be absorbed in the soft, pa- thetic harmony of “Juanita,” celestially produced by an old, discolored violin, and a dilapidated piano, with broken, blackened keys. Ah, that music! Never have I heard in any brilliant concert hall any melody that so entranced and comforted me. ‘The old tunes—the old songs—are the best, for they tell of the constancy and love of woman—of the innocent days of childhood, of the last good-bys, of unhappy days made glad, of heroism and victory, of patient suf- fering and faithful waiting. All the old airs pervade our hearts with the mourn- ful yet delightful fragrance of withered roses. * ok K K Urge Elimination of Grade Crossings in Spain. El Sol, Madrid.—Grade crossings con- stitute a problem which is each day more disquieting, and requiring the most attentive consideration. The elimination of these danger spots by subterranean passageway or by over- head bridges is & work which must be carried to completion. Though correc- tion of these zones has been in progress for some time, the feopardies are by no means decreased due to a still more rapid increase in vehicular traffic. That these accidents continue to mount in an appalling ratio is evidence of that colossal defect in human nature —the inability or the unwillingness to use a modicum of care. People approach a railroad grade crossing, or highway intersection, knowing perfectly well that it is there, and sensible of the fact that a train or other cars may be approach- ing, but many times without exercising the least precaution to asce tain way is clear. Absclutely inexcusable negligence of this sort has cost thou- sands of lives, and victim after victim, in the same localities, continues to com- mit the same errors that cost the Jife of his predecessor. Since such an aversion to taking care is an inherent trait in human nature. the authorities should give ‘edoubled effort to obsolete these traps for the | unwary, and so end the long catalogue f grade-crossing catastrophes, regard- less of cost. The elimination of every su:h'}‘\:ncflm in the country would cost less than the expense of the constantly recurring accidents, not only in the loss of life, but in the payment of damages to estates, the support of the naimed. and the maintenance of dependents. It is the transcendental proolem of the day. and requires constant and cffec- tive diligence until the possibility of these tragedies, 50 frequent in the past, is completely obviated for the future. * ok ok K Blames Women For Wedded Infelicity. Im, ial, Montevideo.—A = woman who has in her charge one of the many agencies established in Berlin with the object of glving advice and information to those persons who desire to contract " matrimony, and also to those already married who wish to get divorces, has declared in a public talk that the svelte modern woman is re- Highlights on the Wide World Excerpts From Newspapers of Other Lands if the |8 father, being religious in a most offen- sive manner, was a dour, morose man, having an amazing rigidity of prejudice and an almost unbelievable austerity and lack of common humanity in deal- ing with his children, with the result that their little lives were rendered unnecessarily harsh and bitter and loveless.” ok John Muir's father, “being religious in a most offensive manner,” probably thought that he had a particularly fine conscience, as no doubt he did. But this conscience only resulted in his being a dour, morose man, who made the lives of his children harsh, bitter and loveless. This is the saddest feature about the human consclence, that it works both, ways, not being able to step out of itself. In other words, often its knowl- edge is faulty, and, being based on knowledge, it can be no better a con- science than the depths of its knowledge. Thus sorrow clings to the conscience, more in some, but some in all, no doubt as an essential part of that trouble to which mankind is said to have been born “as the !plrks‘ fly upward.” * ok X “Conscience doth make cowards of us all,” sald Shakespeare, speaking for a particular character and occasion. “The guilty flee when no man pur- sueth, but the righteous are bold as an lion,” said Solomon. Conscience is all things to all men, but the peculiar thing is that every one rather prides himself on the quality of his own. Thus two middle-aged men who had not seen a burlesque show for 10 years, after attending a performance, met to compare opinions. “What did you think of it?” asked one, trying out the subject. “Terrible,” said the other. “I was actually shocked at the jokes, and as for the clothes—" “That's curious,” said the first. “I thought it was a good show. No, I didn’t mind the jokes.” “Why, they were terrible!"” “I didn’t mind them. As a matter of fact, the burlesque stage is just ter- ribly frank, that is all. It is all that we have left of the Elizabethan drama.” ok % Now the speaker had a better con- science than the one who was shocked, but also his knowledge of the world was larger, and he had a philosophical mind which gave him a larger spirit of tolerance. A consclence should not be too touchy, else one will find himself in the fix of poor Mr. Muir, the elder. Such a conscience does, indeed, make cow- ards of us all, not so much in regard to physical deeds as in relation to thoughts, ideas, spiritual acts and espe- clally kindness. It is one thing to have a man's sized conscience, actively at work, and decid- edly another to make the mind (and ‘what is commonly called the will power) act upon the decisions of conscience. The average conscience is pretty true in its judgments, but every man knows how difficult it is to put those judg- ments into words and deeds. We are held back by a foolish shame, or lack of grace, from doing our best. The herd effects of grouping tend to make the average person ashamed of words and deeds In public which he would regard as correct and fitting in private. Consclence, although invisible, is an all-powerfui principle, which operates for universal good. Yet at times one must feel sorry for it, it tries so hard and so often fails. sponsible for the Trelur part of mod- ern wedded infelicity. ‘The morals of gentlemen living in the provinces are particularly undermined, says the lecturer, at the sight of deliclous feminine contours they see upon their visits to the city. They un« consclously compare these lithesome outlines of graceful femininity with the obese and somewhat shapeless wives they have at home, very much to the prejudice of the latter. Whereupon they regret their first choice exceedingly and desire very much to make an exchange, even in cases where the wife has always been very pleasant, helpful and amiable —heretofore. The sylphlike form is a novelty in the eyes of the countrymen and a glimpse of it is quite sufficient to jeopardize the happiness of many rustic couples. Mothers-in-law are also, in the opinion of our authority, no asset to conjugal relations, from the standpoints of permanence and contentment. Of the two varieties, the mother of the husband is generally the one that ex- ercises the most unfavorable influence | more or less upon the cordial relationship of those recently married. We are inclined to believe there is some justice in these allegations, es- pecially with regard to the interest evoked by the slender form, in con- trast to the unbroken periphery. L Mexico City H Hears First Spanish Talkie. El Dictamen, Vera Cruz—At the Olympia Theater, in Mexico City, re- cently was seen and heard the first talking picture in Spanish. The title of this film is “Sombras de Gloria” (The Shadows of Glory), enacted by Jose Bohr, an Argentine, and Carmen Valenzuela, a Mexican girl, whose stu- dio name is Mona Rica, in the prin cipal roles. The reel, in our language, gave a most {)lculng impression, both in the natural rendition of the spoken word and in the mechanical efTects, such as the rattle of the rifle fire, in the course of the drama. o Wisdom of Nebraska Policy Is Questioned From the Omaha World-Reraia Nebraska has won a complete legal victory over the men who wrest a meager living from the Missouri River by commercially fishing its waters along the western shore. The United States Supreme Court has upheld the validity of its statute which prohibits the tak- ing of fish from the river by nets, seines and traps. The State may now proceed without let or hindrance to a general clean-up of illegal fishing devices all along the stream from Falls City to Yankton and points west. The State ame warden announces that he is going to do just that. ‘While the State’s war on the commer- cial fishermen is constitutional, the question is still open whether it is wise or not. The advantage of the law is that it makes it supposedly easier for game and fish wardens to prevent sein- ing in lakes and streams wholly within the State. The fish taken from the Missouri in nets probably don’t mak nickel's worth of difference with fishing, but enforcement officials sus- pect that nets used in the Missouri are sometimes employed in lakes and other streams, resulting in the sad depletion of the game fish therein. The fish are in the Missouri in com- mercial quantities. Other States, no- tably Iowa, permit them to be taken with nets. But this source of livelihood is denied to Nebraska citizens because some of them, under cover of pretended Missouri River fishing, might drag an illegal seine somewhere else. ‘The question, then. is whether the good that is accomplished is sufficlent to offset the harm done; for harm is done when the State by one of its laws takes the honest bread out of the mouth of a single one of its citizens. Indus- trially, ne ly will ever notice the dif- ference. No community’s bank clear- ings will be affected. If the industry were big enough for that, the law never would have been enacted in the firsl place. It is possible only because it hits at the poor and the weak and the polit- ically uninfluential. o jturn equally t| answer.” NEW BOOKS AT RANDOM L G M. 'CES OF GEORGE MAR- TIN KOBER, M. D, LL. D. Volume I Tlustrated. Washington: Pub- lished under the auspices of the Kober Foundation of Georgetown University. The profession of medicine provided the taking-off point from which Dr. George M. Kober of Washington rounded up a wide range of distinguished and useful activity in many flelds allied irectly with the basic one of medicine and public health. Pro- fessional colleagues and others so placed as to be in touch with the character and diversity of general health service ren- dered by Dr. Kober have long urged upon him the desirability of a compre- hensive, orderly, permanent record of his work. This to constitute an avail- able source of first-hand information for the use of readers and students whose active interests run along one or another of the lines of pursuit which have so engrossed and directed Dr. Kober's strenuous and achieving years. The first volume of these recollections is now in hand. Very properly, it serves to set out a program for the completed work. To start with, there is a time table of Dr. Kober's life, beginning with his birth in Germany and naming es- sential points in his subsequent career up to the present. This biographical outline indicates the scope of the whole. Such program indicated, the story be- gins definitely with the author's early life in Germany. Here is a faithful accounting of the medieval township of Alsfeld, where Dr. Kober was born, and a painstaking backcast to include both ancestry and immediate family. One has the feeling that this author likes to linger around the old home. He m*n pictures of it, of the town itself 1in'its ancient buildings and quaint ways ofYlife. He goes out into the country for many a touch of its natural his- tory—the face of the land, the, growing things, the familiar animals round- about. And the people, these he follows through the political and -industrial vicissitudes on up to the revolution of 1848 and the migrations to America that so numerously followed that event. It is by this route that he himself, then just a little lad, came this way. Such careful painstaking as this single in- troductory section of the first volume shows indicates the scrupulous care of the author to include every possible es- sential in any faithful recording. The blood of this German, become Ameri- can, counts thoroughness as part of conscience itself. The remaining seven parts of Volume I have to do with the growth of the boy to the stature of medical student and to full-fledged pro- fessional. Then follow assignments to the Army, and these serve to deliver ‘here a very full account of medical of- ficers in field and camp. A tribute to the Army doctor of early days is given in more than one life sketch of men distinguished in that fleld. Here, too, is a brief account of the rise of the Army Signal Corps and the Weather Bureau, both derived in fact from the enterprise and acumen of a medical officer. From this point the story goes far afield, far as Dr. Kober's new duty in the West when Indian warfare made the Army surfon as important to the white man as his gun. The story closes with a record of Gen. Oliver Howard and his Indian campaigns. And that's the end of_the matter—so far. Yet Washington knows Dr. G Kober better as philanthropist than as Army man. It knows him as scholar, professor, scientist, as greatly absorbed in every phase of public health, in measures calculated to help the work- ingman. There is, therefore, much to follow in other volumes that will be of deep interest to both scholars, humani- tarians and just plain ?ople. And, in- deed, even when the subject is war time and the medicine-man engaged therein it is obvious that this writer's first in- terest is with the agencies of health and not with those of death and destruction. There is much here bearing upon the Indian's cause against the white man, even against the Government itself. There is keen interest in every meas- ure of sanitation and hygiene, in every discovery calculated to prevent disease as well as to cure it. So, it is plain to see that the latter part of this personal record is to go out into the highways of clvic improvement, into the byways of neglected corners for their clearance and purification. A story from which every one will garner something for himself out of just one man's dedication to work that builds toward finer and more healthful | existence, both individual and collective existence. * ok ok % THE ART OF LIFE. Prom the works of Havelock Ellis. Selected by Mrs. S. Herbert. Houghton Miffin Co. A pocketbook from Havelock Ellis for ready use. Love, art, morality, re- ligion, philosophy, constitute the cur- rency which it provides for the business of xettinf along with life. A useful book. Ellis is & long writer, & prolific word man. Busy peog:e cannot sort out from him that which they need and would like. Mrs. Herbert has done this for all of us. Let's hear Havelock Ellis talk, about—not love, not on Monday morning, not about art nor religion. Let's listen to what he thinks on morality — that wide topic on which every one believes that he himself pos- sesses the right brand, indeed the only real morality: “It would be amazing, if it were not tragic, to watch the spec- tacle of morality as it is played out on the scene of modern life"—Ellis talking now. “In reality nothing is simpler than the moral process of life. What- ever men see the majority of their fel- lows doing, that they call morality; whatever they see done by the minority outside that compact majority — that they call immorality. This is a com- monplace which has often been set forth. The mechanism is beautifully right.” But it fails to work. Fails be- cause the majority can never refrain fr@m vituperating the small minority, part of it in advance, another part lagging behind it. Yet it takes all of them to make a world, the majority so bitter against any minority, and this in bitter toward the mass. But “noth: can destroy morality. Nor can anything destroy immorality. All that happens is that the minority of one age becomes the majority of the next” * * * “Moral maxims that were wholesome in feudal days are deadly now.” * * * “Temptation is an essential form of that conflict which is of the essence of life. Without the fire of perpetual temptation no human spirit can ever be tempered and forti- fled. The zeal of the moral reformer who would sweep away all temptation would merely achieve the creation of a race of useless weaklings. Temptation is the ferment of life.” * * & ask that one’s own higher self should forgive one's own trespasses is the hardest prayer to answer that we can ever offer up. If we can breathe this prayer, and find it truly answered in & harmony of exalted comprehension and acceptance, then we have learnt, what forgiveness is. There is no other way to learn forgiveness. We cannot forgive others in any comprehensible sense un- less we have first learnt to forgive our- selves. So this petition should read ‘And may we forgive those who trespass against us as we forgive our own tres- passes’” * * * “Every great and vitally organized person is hostile to the rigid and narrow routine.of social conventions, whether established by law or by opinion; they must ever broken to suit his vital needs. There- fore the more we multiply these social routines, by so much the more do we discourage th:‘groducuvn of great and vitally organii persons.” * * * “The value of prayer is not to be called in question. It is a spiritual weapon of incomparable value. The most varied among the great figures of history have borne witness to the value of prayer.” * * =+ “I recall that in my early years I prayed with mhch fervor. No doubt my prayers availed me much. Yet if the things I prayed for had come to me I could have suffered no greater misfortune. We need the faith that our prayers will help us. We need also the faith that they require no And what does that mean? Gathered pretty much at random, here are sayings of vital from nummn most provocati 3 be | graph, W This is a special department, devoted solely to the handling of queries. paper puts at your di the services of an extensive organization in Wash- ingtgn to serve you in any capacity that relates to information. This serv- ice is free. Failure to make use of it deprives you of benefits to which you are entitled. Your obligation is only 2 cents in coin or stamps, inclosed with your inquiry for direct reply. Ad- dress The Evening Star Information Rureau, Frederic J. Haskin, director, ‘Washington, D. C. Q. How many pitched balls are there in the average nine-inning game of base ball?—G. E. G. ‘A. The number varies greatly. An estimate would be that games average about 100 to 125 pitched balls. Q. How long will the new boulevard be which is to be built from W!-lhlnq:- ton, D. C., to Mount Vernon?—E. F. T. A. It will be about fourteen miles in length and will overlook the Potomac River most of the way. It is planned to have it completed by 1932. Q. Where are the Maritime Provinces? B. L. T. A. This name is usually applied to the Canadian provinces of New Bruns- glck.dlflov: Scotia and Prince Edward and. Q. Please tell something of the life of Tom Noonan, called the Bishop of Chinatown.—N. A, L. A. Tom Noonan was born in New York City. He never knew his mother and_his father died when he was a small child. Living by his wits, he was at 17 an inmate of Sing Sing. Trans- ferred later to Dannemora, he was influenced by a visiting minister, who told of the work of Maude Ballington Booth. When he regained his freedom Noonan went to see Mrs. Booth, and that interview was the inception of his mission work. From a mere hovel on Doyers street his work increased so rapidly as to necessitate larger quarters and the mission members took over the Chinese theater on that same street. Now this former place of amusement is a home for'the wayfarer and down-and- out. The men are given food, shelter and the privilege of hearing the mel until such time as jobs can be d for them. Q. Should a man, let us say a Sen- ator, rise when a woman visitor enters his office?—A. H. D. A. A good rul phrased by Bradd; for a man to rise every time one of the girls in his office enters his private audience room, but he should always rise to receive a visitor, whether it is a man or a woman, and should ask the visitor to be seated before he himself sits down.” . What is a telega?—G. S. N. g. A rtude four-wheeled, springless wagon used by the Russians. Q. Is & sea Wi belxg bullt around Lake Okeechobee?—M. K. T. A. No work has started as yet on the engineering construction around Lake Okeechobee. However, provision is in- cluded in the rivers and harbors bill, which s soon to be presented to Con- ess, for such work. The rivers and arbors committee of the House of Rep- e0TgE | regentatives recommends that an appro- riation of $4,066,000 be made by the ?Jmm States to co-operate with the State of Florida in bullding a levee around the southern rim of Lake Okee- chobee, and the State to construct a would prevent the recuvrence of floods and be of other benefit to the Lake Okeechobee district. Q. How many English ships took part in the battle against the Spanish Armada?—R. 8. H. A. There were 130 Spanish vessels in the Armada. The English had 197 boats that took part during the battle. However, many were small boats and of liitle use. The fighting was done almost entirely by the large boats on both sides. Q. What was the known extent of the world four or five hundred years ago?—H. G. F. A. In 1400 the then known world ex- tended from the British Isles to the little-frequented Far East, north to the Scandinavian Peninsula and south to the north coast of Africa. Q. When did China ci from a monarchy to a republic?—N. W. A. The Chinese Republic was estab- lished Februery 12, 1912. Q. Please give formula for cleaner such as opticians use to clean the lenses of spectacles.—S. D. A. Most opticians use one-fourth ls- terine and three parts plain water for cleansing spectacles. Q. How long has landscape gardening been done?—M. A. A. The ancients practiced landsca) gardening, but little is known about the styles in vogue among the different peo- ples. From the early times of the Chris- tian Era to the thirteenth century the art was mainly practiced in the adorn- ment of walled gardens connected with castles or convents. Lenotre was a celebrated French landscape gardener of the seventeenth century. Q. How many Negro Roman Catholic churches are there in the United States? A There are about 150 Q. Who was the fourth of a group compcsed of John McCutcheon, George Ade and Booth Tarkington?—F. L. T. A, Usually George Barr McCutcheon, brother of John T. McCutcheon, is in- cluded in this group of Indiana ce- lebrities. Q. What was s person called who played a lute?—D. W. A. He was called a lutenist or lutist. Q. Are martens increasing or decreas- ing in number?—E. P, A. Hunter, Trader, Trapper says that for the past flve or six years martens have been diminishing at an alarming rate, due partly to advancing civili- sation, partly to the fact that they are closely trapped. The marten is one of the choicest furbearers. Q. Why is it considered bad luck to break a mirror?—K. R. M. A. An early belief was that one saw the will of the gods in the mirror. To break a mirror accidentally, therefore, was interpreted as an effort on the part of the Euu to prevent the person from mlns ito the future. Thi strued as a warning that the held unpleasant things. Q. Is the word “archipelago” applied to an island-studded body of water or to the islands themselves?—B. B. A. It was first applied to the water, but is now applied to either. It was originally the designation of what is now known as the Aegean Sea. Q. What r did the first convene in Washington, D. C.?—E. E.R. A. The second session of the Sixth levee around the morthern rim, also a channel around the southern rim. En- gineers believe that this improvement Congress was the first session held in ington, the National Capital. The Congress assembled November 22, 1800. All America Cheers Lipton For His VTrue Sportsmanship As the outstanding figure in “the America’s Cup” races for 30 years, Sir Thomas Lipton has won the good will | of the public on both sides of the At- lantic. Now, as he launches his new Shamrock V, the American press finds itself all but wishing for the success of the famous old yachtsman in what probably will be his final attempt to 1ift the international trophy. Observing that “Sir Thomas cherishes t hopes for Shamrock V,” the St. is Times describes him as “a true sportsman,” and remarks that “al- though Americans wish to hold that cup, they wish Lipton perfectly even luck.” The 'l;l‘mes m‘-ndi l‘zu;:"mh ':( “the clinging hopes of Br yachts- men, r&mf the British public, that the coveted trophy may this year be wrest- ed back from Yankee possession,” and adds that “these stimulated expecta- tions of a victory over the defender yacht are based on the change in the rules which will govern the cup races off Newport next September.” * K X Because of his excellent sportsman- ship and his willingness to keep tryina we are almdst moved to wish him vic- tory in this, his fifth, and perhaps last, attempt,” declares the Hartford Cou- rant, explaining that “besides the de- feat of 10 years ago, Sir Thomas suf- | fered setbacks also in three earlier races” The Courant is surprised that “the public, not versed in the technical terms of sail racing, should show 8o | great an Interest in the event” and it offers the explanation: “Possibly it is the thought of the immense sums spent 'on the races—this year's expenditures ' have been estimated at $4,000,000— which excites public interest, but it is ! more likely that a large part of the | attention given to these contests is di- rected toward the personality of the challenging vachtsman, a man whose life outrivals fiction. For this blufl and good-natured Irishman the Amer- ican ple have a genuine regard, probably a secret hope that his forth- coming and fifth attempt to win the cup will be successful. ““We trust he loses again, but if any one ever does lift the America’s Cup, we cel hape his name will be Sir Thomas Lipton and his boat a Sham- | rock,” says the Cleveland Plain Dealer, recording that the challenger began to try to lift the cup 30 years ago. and giving the reasons ' for the veteran yachtsman’s optimism in the coming contest: “The rules have been changed & bit 8o that the boats that. vie for the cup this year won’t be quite such cranky racing machines as some of their pred- ecessors. Sir Thomas had had a jus' grievance on this score. His boat ha to safl across the Atlantic. The Amer- ican boats could be put away in cot- ton batting when the wind got healthy. This year defender and challenger must be a\lllly and finulnzly sea- worthy. ich helps the sportsman- ship of the races. Sir Thomas Lipton will be on hand to cheer his tkipper on and take the salute of his millions of American friends who love this old yachtsman who won't stay licked.” * ok ok % “If the America's Cup, captured from | England by the famous yacht of that name away back in 1851, is to be lost to this country, it is to be hoj now will be the time, and Lipton lucky contender,” agrees the Harrisburg Tele- hile at the same time stating that, “of course, America is bent on keeping the trophy at home, and dur- ing the coming Summer we shall be entertained by the Enterprise, which took the water the same day Lipton's yacht was launched; the Yankee, the Weetamoe and the Whirlwind, now in course of construction, contesting for honors as to which shall meet the Lip- ton boat in the finals.” Going the whole distance in words of encouragement, the St. Louis Post-Dis- patch confesses that “a good many of us, who rate ourselves 100 per centers, are secretly hoping that the Irish baro- net will realize the sporting ambition of his life.” That paper pays the fur- ther tribute to the challes : “It has been pleasantly ventur that the sportsman is the only bona fide inter- batter down the barriers and bigotries that divide the natlons. As to that we have no opinion, Lhoug we do believe that the sportsman, he merchant prince or village storekeeper, is inva- riably a person of tolerance, friendli- ness and understanding. Anyhow, if Lipton lifts the cup, Americans will join as heartily in the cheers as the Irish or the English.” * ok ok ok Forecast of “the greatest yachting season in years in American waters"” is voiced by the Providence Journal, with emphasis upon the fact that four American racers are to enter the con- test, and offering the opinion that “probal never before has there been such us, though friendly, competi- tion among designers and builders for the honor of defending the cup.” The Journal also predicts: “There will be arguments lore as to the respective merits of the four defender candidates from the day they sail their first race, a vast display of information, actual or fallacious, on the subject of yacht rac- ing, and many an exhibition of intense partisanship. If all the tall talk does not stimulate activity and competition down_through the classes even to the sail skiffs, the world will surely be out of joint.” The Salt Lake Deseret News joins the well-wishers with the statement that “there would be some consolation in be- ing beaten, 1f that must happen, by so gallant and persistent an opponent.” As to the conditions that have been imposed upon the challenger, the News points out that they were “met by the America, when in 1851 she sailed across the Atlantic, met the Briton's best in the races around the Isle of Wight, and beat all competitors ‘out of signt.”” ° Similarly recalling the ancient con- test, the New York World states the American yacht met “17 of the best boats that could be mustered against her,” and that “she not only raced but won so handily that Queen Victoria re- marked that ‘after the America there is no second’” The World concludes that “properly conducted, such a con- test must be a real factor in promoting international good feeling.” Col. Sherrill Praised For Cincinnati Work From the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Friends of the city manager idea are sorry to see the resignation of Col. C.O. Sherrill as manager of Cincinnati. ‘This quiet and able soldier in four and a half years of service gave the second city of Ohio a quality of mu- nicipal government it had never had before. It is to Cincinnati’s credit that she lfipmllhfl it, and so far at least has shown no disposition 10 let the foes oi l-tll:'tl kind of city government upset the plan. Col. Sherrill disclaimed knowl- edge of politics, but he lud‘:“thoroush knowledge about everything else a city manager needs to know, together with & pleasant personality and a winning smile. These qualities have now opened to him a place in the business world where they command a higher remu- neration, Those who know Col. Sherrill wish h‘l:xn .t‘ilm' fl-.:‘m the hope that = cinnati may succeed in the difficult task of finding his equal as its next city manager. Another upset in the city managerial world occurs in Watertown, N. Y. whose city council of five has just fired ils manager, J. Walter Ackerman, with an abruptness that would make Masch- ke’s boys blush at their own moderation. At this distance one would not ven- ture to the merits of the controversy, but the storm it has aroused in Watertown suggests that many of its citizens upon the precipitate ac- tion of their council as a bit indecent. Summer Dresses, Indeed! From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Of course, it will be said of the 174 dresses, worth $8,000, which were car- nationalist, that the ical sport is the w') er Ihhhm'fll “ tus ulmkvulnx;mlll«hn.me ried away from a Philadelphia store by they were