Evening Star Newspaper, June 1, 1930, Page 30

NDAY THE |EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition, WASHINGTON, D. C. PUNDAY........... une 1, 1930 THEODORE W. NOYES. .. .Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company 11t o Send FenOis vanta Ave ew York Shic ity 8t Chicago O lding. Sliropean Ofe ndon, Rate by s Bvenine Star....... ening and Sunday Sta; hen 4 Sundays) . : Carrier Within the City. ;3% per month 60c per month T i c rer copy at the end of each month nt in by mail of telephone Ational Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland an ia. g, Sunday, ily oni¥ junday only All Other States and Canada. mv and Sunday. 1yt 81300 § mo. s only 135 §8.00 1 m Member of the Assoclated Press. Associated Press s exclusively entitled e use for republication of all news dis- es credited to it or not otherwise cred- paper and also the locai news erein. All rights of publication of atches herein are also reserved. * P Washington’s Alleys. Disease, immorality and lawlessness $hrive best in an environment of se- c | among the first to rejoice? ] New York were paying honor to “that pioneer Republican, Hugo N. ¥rye,” who would ever think that in reality no such person as Mr. Hugo N. Frye existed? What was more natural than that Sec- retary Davis should “testify to the career of that sturdy patriot who first planted the ideals of our party in this region of the country”? And what could be & more appropriate addition than to say that “If he were living today he would be the first to rejoice in evidence every- where present that our Government is still safe in the hands of the people”? If the Government is still safe in the hands of the people of Pennsylvania, is it not obvious that it is still safe in the hands of the people of New York? And if Mr. Frye were alive today, would not he be among those rejoicing in that fact? Is it not within the realms of reason to believe that he would be The joke on the authors of the en- comiums 1s doubly enjoyed, because the higher they come, the harder they fall. But how many members of Congress, if asked to say a kind word in regard to U. R. Asleep, who suggested the Dec- laration of Independence, but never was credited for the work he really per- formed in that connection, would have taken the trouble to look up his identity before complying? And who can deny the truth of the statement that if Mr. in the North Carolina campaign; that, and the desire of the Simmons oppo- nents to gain a dominant position in the politics of the State. ' North Carolina was ene of the four States of the “solid South” which went Republican in 1928 in the presidential election. Senator Simmons declined flatly to follow the national Democratic ticket, although he would doubtless have been glad to support Senator Joseph T. Robinson of Arkansas, the vice presidential candidate, had he been the nominee for President. Despite this defection of Senator S8immons, who insisted that the people of North Caro- lina would never give the electoral vote of the State to Gov. Smith, the party lead- ers, including members of the House and Senator Overman, remained loyal to the national ticket. The vote stood 348992 for Hoover, to 287,078 for Smith, Senator Simmons' judgment of his State was vindicated by the lead of 61,914 votes rolled up against Gov. Smith. But the fact he was right did ness against him by the leaders who had remained faithful to the national ticket. As the present campaign has indicated, it has tended to increase that bitterness. The Republicans of North Carolina have for years been strongly organized Asleep were awake today, he would be the first to marvel at the high regard in erecy. Such an environment is provided by the alley communities of Washington— squalid villages in the interiors of large blocks, almost completely hidden by row houses on the surrounding streets. ‘The alley settlements have, in a sense, been forced upon the municipality by an accident in civie evolution—the sud- den and enormous increase in the colored population which followed the Civil War. The condition is almost peculiar to the National Capital, as is explained in 8 series of articles, the first of which appears elsewhere in today's Star. the last few decades Washing- bas been self-consclous of the All who have investigated report that many of them are and unsanitary and some of them are hardly fit for human habitation in this stage of civilization. The condi- tion frequently has been called to the Rttention of the public and of legislators. which that document is held today? ] An Ample Navy. The American fleet, under the terms of the London naval treaty, will be ample to defend the United States, in the opinion of Rear Admiral H. E. Yarnell, chief of the Bureau of En- gineering, in a report made to the for- eign relations committee. This is the view of & naval officer who has given the most careful consideration to the problem of national defense over a long period of years. Admiral Yarnell does not undertake to say that under the treaty agreements entered into in ‘Washington in 1922 and now in Lon- don the Navy would be sufficiently strong to defend the Philippine Islands from attack in the event of war. He does say, however, that the Navy as it stands today is not adequate to defend successfully the Philippines, and that it has never been in such a position since 1808. Furthermore, Admiral Nobody, so far is known, ever has serlously questioned the desirability of getting rid of the alley dwellings. But ‘establishment of a practical procedure for accomplishing this end has proved much more difficult than was antici- pated. Any condition woven so intimately into the fabric of s municipality hardly can be abolished by & mere denunclation and the stroke of & pen. Previous legislation largely has falled because apparently it has not given due oconsideration to the Sentiments and habits of the alley people and the property interests in- - Wolved. The earliest attempts to clean up the hidden villages appear to have been ditions; that familles were thess undesirable poverty and would own volition into better tions provided for same rentals. Actually § of the kind happened. The lley" folk stayed where they were—some because of sentimental attach- i housing Zorced shacks flock of houses them nething fRE ;IE' ‘Then came the legisiative effort to eviet them, by force if necessary. There ‘was no provision for their housing else- where. A great deal of extremely valuable property would have been left with no profitable means of utilization. ‘The attempt falled by court dectsion. Following these failures it was ob- vious that the abolition of the alley villages, however desirable, was likely to prove & rather complicated procedure. ‘The alley folk, who would not move of thelr own accord, must be moved, but st the same time the property values must be affected as little as possible, and some place must be rendered avall- able to which the evicted may go. After a long interval new legislation now is before both houses of Congress which provides for a ten-year program of evictions and purchase and dis- posal of the property by the Govern- ment through the United States Hous- ing Corporation. ‘This measure avoids the outstanding mistakes of the past. It now is in the bands of the Bureau of the Budget, which may be relied upon to detect any defects in the financial arrangements which may escape the casual observer. It is to be presumed that the Commis- sioners will base their report on Budget Bureau findings. The measure provides for the appropriation of $500,000 a year | for five years to constitute a revolving | fund for the purchase of the alley prop- | erty by the United States Housing Corpo- | ration, which is then to dispose of the property to private interests for such Ppurposes as the erection of warehouses and garages, or to the Government for park and playground use. The area | pepresented would be replatted to con- form with the best uses and the city | street system. There is reason %o hope, at least, that the old, obstinate alley problem is | spproaching its final solution. Wash- | ington must walt many years before | 1t ean be expected entirely to solve it- self without legisiative stimulus. The progress of the Capper-Bowman bill will be followed with interest by all fa- miliar with these dangerous defects in the structure of the city. Yarnell declares that the United States would have to have a Navy twice as strong as the navy of its enemy if it were to be in & position to defend suc- cessfully the Philippines; that the fortification of the islands would have to be modernized, and that Guam would have to be fortified as a second base. He mentions other conditions, too, which would have to be taken into account. One of the arguments advanced by the opponents of the London treaty is that, in the event of war, the Philippines might fall. As Admiral Yarnell points out, in the event of war between the United States and Great Britain, it is to be expected that Canads would be promptly occupled by the military forces of this country, and that the British naval bases in the West Indies and adjacent waters would be seized by the United States. The British, de- spite the probability that these reverses might befall them in the event of war, have agreed to parity in naval strength with the United States. They have not demanded & navy twice the size of the American Navy. Arguments that a nation, whether it be the United States or another, must be in & position to de- fend successfully at all times its farthest outposts, if successfully maintained, would lead to & ridiculous situation, with the nations attempting to build their navies twice as strong as those of thelr possible opponents. ‘The United States in the event of war would undertake to defend the Philippine Islands, just as it would un- dertake to defend its merchant vessels, though they be thousands of miles from the shores of this country. In war there always enters the element of chance, the undetermined factor of human equation. The German army was pre- pared, and, under the estimates of its leaders, was entirely capable of march- ing to Paris and taking that city in 1914. Paris, however, was not taken. 8o much for estimates. The United States Navy, if the Lon- don treaty is finally ratified, will be adequate for the defense of the United States, Admiral Yarnell says without qualification. That 18 the point the people of this country are particularly interested in. Admiral Pratt, chief of naval operations, has declared that also to be the case. Other high ranking naval officers have expressed their dis- approval of the treaty, advancing many reasons for their position. The treaty, however, has been the object of attack principally by those who are opposed to any naval limitation. There is a group which believes that the United States should maintain an independent atti- tude, bullding or not building naval craft to sult its own tastes and desires. To this group the need for co-operation by the United States in any movement to limit armament in the interest of world peace does not appear. The sole duty of this country is to look after itself and its people, in their view. The duty of any nation lles primarily in the defense of its people. But in this day and age there is also the duty of help- ful co-operation and leadership in the interest of international peace. The opponents of all limitation would have this country turn its back on such co-operation. ———— Air maneuvers are fascinating espe- cially when faith can be retained that war is now an imaginary thing desirable e Each Memorial day that passes gives human fondness for hero worship its due a5 a supreme influence in the de- velopment of nations. Modern hero worship is more practical than the anclent in regarding heroes as fellow men of noble character and not as demigods. Tributes to Mr. Frye. The ease with which the playful edi- tors of a humorous column in the Cor- nell Bun obtained glowing tributes from leading statesmen to the memory of “that sturdy patriot” Hugo N. Frye (You- Go-And-Fry) is not surprising in this day of wholesale indorsement. It is probable that the request from the edi- tors for a kind word regarding the gal- lant party work accomplished by the late Mr. Frye merely passed through the aeutine course. 1f these young men in {only for pastime or educational research. —————— North Carolina Primary. North Carolina Democrats next Satur- day must determine whether they will continue the veteran Senator Furnifold | M. Simmons as their leader, or, turn- ing from him, will nominate for the Senate Josiah W. Bafley. The cam- paign in the Tar Heel State has aroused tremendous interest. It was Senator Simmons who strongly opposed the | nomination of Alfred E. Smith for the | presidency in 1928, and who later voiced his opposition to the election of Gov. Smith. His enemies today are under- and a large proportion of the vote cast for President Hoover in the State in 1928 was Republican. Obviously, under such conditions, a very considerable ma- Jority of the Democrats supported Smith in that election. It is equally obvious that if all the Democrats who voted for Smith two years ago now vote for Balley against Simmons, Bailey must be the victor. But old affections are not so easily cast aside. Senator Simmons has been a dominant figure in the politics of his State for more than a generation. He led the fight years ago which placed his party firmly in the saddle in the State for the first time since the days of reconstruction following the Oivil War. He has been & member of the Senate for almost 30 years and today hes the longest record of ocontinuous service of any member of that body. He has worked faithfully for the State of North Carolina during all those years. Today he is here, instead of campaigning in his State, acting as the Democratic leader in the fight over the tarift bill. Senator 8immons has not maintained his dominant leadership in the State without making enemies here and there. ‘They have been quick to follow the leaders who are now seeking to over- throw the man who has ruled politically for so long. What will happen in North Carolina next Saturday is still & matter of speculation. If Senator Sim- mons is defeated, the State will lose a valuable servant. Should he be defeated, the Republicans will enter the sena- torial race in the Fall with greater vim than ever, hoping to defeat Mr. Bailey. Although Mr. Bailey is an ardent dry, the defeat of S8immons will be hailed in many quarters as a victory for the wets, simply because Mr. Bailey supported the wet candidate for President in 1928 and not tend to lessen the feeling of bitter- | | STAR, WASHINGTON D. €. JUNE 1, “RUNNING WITH CERTAINTY” BY THE RIGHT REV. JAMES E. FREEMAN, D. D, LL. D, Bishop of Washington. Tezt: “Therefore I so rum, not as uncertainly.”—I Corinthians, ix.26. The race of life is determined when once we have fixed its goal. When we have eliminated the element of uncertainty and feel reasonably con- vinced as to what we conceive to be life's destiny we have determined very largely the method of its attainment. In writing his letter to the young con- verts in Corinth, St. Paul says: “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all” and again, “Every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in al! thinj He also adds, “I keep under my ly and bring it into sub- Jjection.” Having reached a definite de- cision concerning the purpose of his life, he conceived of his effort to attain its object as imposing upon him disciplines which he gladly accepted. To his mind, to attempt to run a race without proper fitness, or without obey- the rules of the course, was illogical and futile. This life in a right conception of it was preparation for something itely r and finer. The end he sought was of such supreme importance that he counted nothing that he might impose upon himself in the way of discipline as a hardship or lacking in value. His one effort was to attain the prize he sought. What this remarkable man as- sumed is our common experience in choosing & career. There is little that we attain in life in the way of pre- ferment or advancement that comes without strenuous and unceasing ef- fort. e 18 no easy road to attain- ment of any sort. To say that the world owes us a 1 or that rewards should come to us without our fitting ourselves to recelve them is contrary to experience. Everything that is worth having s worth striving for. Where the end we seek is a really desirable one the imposition of disci- pline is not a hardship, If the thing we seek is a ruling passion with us, there is real joy in every effort we make toward its attalnment. Life Senator Simmons declined to do so. The race for the Democratic senatorial nom- ination in North Carolina is as illogical as it could well be. . A member of Congress who dislikes the dial phone will ‘perhaps consider himself fortunate if the Summer's poli- tes does not develop same machine even more to his distaste. : —————————— Improved methods of submarine travel will no doubt derive new realities from Jules Verne fiction and set innumerable treasure seekers to work hunting for sunken ships, ——————— Anybody is at liberty to start a refer- endum. A publication dissatisfled with another’s poll of the populace can easily start another of its own. e A very few more successful journeys will give the Graf Zeppelin a high place among the safe and steady forms of transportation. SBHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Friend Policeman. T see a large athletic lad, An officer so fine. To meet him makes me rather glad; For he's a friend of mine, He only asks that I will heed ‘The rules that he and I must read; And not be careless, in & way That helps the ruians bring dismay. I know that if I meet a crash He'll be the first to make a dash To help me in my sorry chance, And bring along the ambulance, Admiring him, I stand apart— He's big of stature and of heart. I'm sure his duty well he knows When traveling down the line, ‘To him my salutation goes, For he's a friend of mine. In Favor of Argument. “Do you use the dial when you tele- phone?” “No,” answered Senator Sorghum. “I like an argument and I prefer the chance of starting one as soon as I pick up the recelver.” Jud Tunkins says after lookin’ at a fashion magazine he can't call it much of a compliment to tell a gal she's as pretty as a picture. Beneficent Influence. Base ball into debate is lent To bring a peaceful charm. It meets the need for argument And does no real harm. Consistent Career. “How did you lay the foundation of your enormous fortune?” “By following the rule which I still observe,” answered Mr. Dustin Stax; “sticking to business and not stopping to brag about my personal attainments.” ‘Association means much,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown. “Envy is dangerous when it leads a great man to cause those about him to appear small.” Influential Discourse. The graduate is understood, As mighty truths he teaches, And what he says is quite as good | taking to punish him for “party dis- loyalty,” just as the Democrats of Ala- bama who remained faithful to the national ticket in 1929 are seeking now to eliminate Senator Heflin, another op- ponent of Smith two years ago. That apparently is the whole issue involved As many campaign speeches. “A fortune teller,” said Uncle Eben, “dat was sho nuff reliable 'bout de future would be out de race track collectin’ big money stid o' stayin’ home tellin’ fortunes.” unsatisfactory to us and its toll drudgery where it has no design, pur- pose or ultimate objective. The mis- fits and the unfits that we meet day by day are largely men and women who have never worked out for themselves any definite philosophy of life, and who pursue their course aim- lessly and, all too frequently, hope- lessly. To them life seems like some blind alley; it ends in shadows and impenetrable darkness. The Christian ideal of life widely differs from this. It sees, in each recurring day, no mat- ter what its disappointments, failures or success, an upward striving toward a definite’ attainment. It refuses to accept the defeats of today because it believes in fresher and larger oppor- tunities tomorrow. Men and women who are moved by such Christian im- pulses cannot be defeated. To believe that “our little life is rounded with & sleep” adds nothing of zest to the day’s task and furnishes nothing of interpretation to the sorrows and mis- fortunes that attend our way. To be- lieve, on the other hand, that we are moving on step by step, in spite of all the difficulties that attend us, to the fulfillment of our highest ideals and expectations, the realization of our loftiest aspirations, gives impulse and enthusiasm to every effort we put forth and enables us to rise triumphant over seeming defeats and failures. If this is our quest, if this is the end and aim of our search, then certainly it is worth striving for. There is stimulus and refreshment in that old hymn: “Awake, my soul, stretch every merve, And press with vigour on; A heavenly race demands thy meal And an immortal crown. A cloud of witnesses around Hold thee in full survey; Forget the steps already trod, And onward urge thy way. 'Tis God's all-animating voice ‘That calls thee from on high; 'Tis His own hand presents the prize To thine aspiring eye. ‘Then wake, my soul, stretch every nerve, And press with vigour on; A heavenly race demands thy seal And an immortal crown.” Civil Disobedience Seen In Fight BY WILLIAM HARD. ‘The rapidly approaching stage in the wet agitation in this country seems to be one which in India would be called “civil disobedience.” Many dry leaders here are less alarmed by plans for the repeal of the eighteenth amendment or for the modification of the Volstead law than they are by the quick recent growth of the open preaching of per- sonal individual disobedience to the pro- hibitory enactments. Great impetus has been lent to the disobedience development by the de- cision of the Supreme Court last week holding that the purchaser of illicit Jiquor is not guilty of any infraction of the eighteenth amendment or to the laws passed for furthering its en- forcement. It should be understood that the view taken by the Supreme Court 15 the siew which steadily and persistently has been taken by the lead= ing legal authorities of the Prohibition Bureau of the Treasury Department. Only the prosecuting zeal of local pro- hibition administrators or of local United States district attorneys ever brought purchasers of illicit liquor into the Federal Courts for attempted con- viction. The central Prohibition Bureau itself at Washington has always main- tained that the Volstead law and the laws accompanying it and fortifying it do not even try to visit penalties upon purchasers. Bureau Sees No Advantage. It is believed by the Prohibition Bureau that Congress, if it so chose, could indeed, under the -eighteenth amendment, and within its authority, condemn purchasers and subject them to punishment. It seems believed, however, by the Prohibition Bureau that no such action by the Congress would be of any clear advan- tage to the prohibition enforcement cause. The fear seems to be that pros- ecutions of purchasers, when the total number of purchasers is so large, would fall under one of two crushing impedi: ments. Either they would seem un- fairly to discriminate between a rela- tively few purchasers who would be prosecuted and the great majority of them who would go untouched; or important proportion of secuted, the s0 jammed with prohibition business that no other business could be transacted in them. For such and other reasons the Pro- hibition Bureau and the mass of the dry leaders in Washington are giving little support to the bill of Senator Sheppnrg of Texas, for inserting the word “purchase” into section 3 of the national prohibition act. Section 3 is on this point the decisive sec- tion of the act. The strong proba- bility is that at the end of this session of llie Congress the wording of section 3 will continue to have its present form, as follows: “No person shall manufacture, sell, barter, transport, import, exmn, de- liver, furnish or possess any intoxicat- ing liquor.” Careful students of the subject note, however, the presence and the reten- tion of the word * ss.” The word “purchase” will in all probability not be inserted: but the word ‘‘possess” remains. The question is thereupon here asked: ‘What legal good does it do the pur- chaser of liquor to be able to purchase it lawfully if he then at once finds him- self possessing it unlawfully? Private Citizsen Unmolested. To that question the prohibition au- thorities return no enlightening answer. | They simply say that purchase is legal and that possession is illegal. That is their position in principle. In practice it is well known that the prohibition authorities of the Federal Government make virtually no effort to raise the arm of the Federal law against the ordinary private citizen, who, having purchased liquor, is in possession of it with no intention to resell it, but with the intention only of consuming it him- self. It 1s at this point that the controversy regarding Representative Fort of New Jersey and his alleged defense of the legalily of “home brew” begins to re- veal itself in its true light. Representa- tive Fort was perhaps at first misled by section 33 of the national prohibi- tion act, one part of which states, “It shall not be unlawful to possess liquors in one's private dwelling.” He may also have been slightly misled by sec- tion 29, having to do in one part of it with fruit juices. Fruit Juice Section Involved. Section 33, authorizing the possession of liquors in households, is said by the Prohibition Bureau to apply only to lquors purchased before the coming into force of the eighteenth amendment. Section 29, permitting the household manufacture of “non-intoxicatin, juices, admittedly does not legalize the possession of them after they become “intoxicating in fact.” The general proposition remains true that possession of alcoholic intoxicants is by Federal statute, under the eighteenth amend- ment, stringently forbidden. Purchase is 1 and manufacture in the in- stance of frult juices is, to the intox- icating stage, legal with or without permit; but jon without permit of any intoxicating beverages whatso- ever (except pre-prohibition ones) seems clearly outlawed. This is at any rate the position taken by the most eminent legal luminaries among the Federal Government's prohibition en- forcement officials. on Prohibition tice in any way checked or com- ted by the Federal prosecutors. The Pederal Government declares possession illegal, but in effect makes not a stir to punish the illegality. Through this door the forces of “civil disobedience” rush in, Wet Tactics Change. Unharried by the Federal Govern- ment in their possession of liquor, and secure now from Federal prosecution for the purchase of it, they openly increas- ingly advocate a total disregard of the eighteenth amendment and of all its enforcing statutes. The period since the inauguration of President Hoover has been marked among the wets of this country by the steady decline in their speeches and in their publications of tg: argument “Obey the law and repeal 1t” and the steady rise of the sentiment “Abrogate the law by disobeying it.” It is not too much to say, out of an observation of & large part of the coun- try through reading and through travel, that the present prevailing wet inten- tion is to try to make the national prohibition act into a dead Iletter through active non-observance. Fight on Principles Foreseen. The administration is fully cognizant of this development and will not fail to take notice of it publicly and emphat- ically. Speeches by administration leaders and by the President himself will soon, it is suthentically rumored, summon the national mind to a re- newed consideration of the idea that every law, irrespective of its nature, is entitled to respact. Against the con- tention the wets are today constantly be | quoting the dictum of the prominent Washington theologian, Dr. John A. Ryan, 'gho has again recently declared, “The nature of constitutional prohibi- tion clearly deprives it of all clli'l"l'la to respect by liberty-loving citizens” It is a safe prediction that we are in for an era in which law-enforcing on prin- ciple and law-flouting on principle will meet, in a gigantic country-shaking de- bl (Copyright. 1930 o U. S. Can Produce Ample Foodstuffs BY HARDEN COLFAX. Despite the exodus from the farms to the cities, there is no question that the United States will be able to pro- vide its own foodstuffs without importa- tion, no matter how large its popula- tion’ may grow. This fact is stressed by officials of the Department of Ag- riculture, who declare that modern farming methods and improved ma- chinery will enable the farmers of the country to produce enough food for at least 200,000,000 people. ~Officials of the Department of the Census antici- pate that the population of the United States will just about become stabilized at_200,000,000. Farm power machinery not only in- creases production, but reduces expense, according to Nils A. Olsen, chief of the Bureau of Agricultural Economics. He added that the reduction in cost, es- pecially in some of the semi-arid regions of the West, by the use of farm ma- chinery was remarkable. The de- partment is making a detailed study of the use of power machinery on farms and ways to increase it. Officials of the Department of Ag- riculture point Eut that the improve- ment in machinbry has been especially useful in the fattening and prepara- tion for market of meat animals and in the dairy industry. They declare that the American people will not be forced to discontinue the use of animal prod- ucts and get a greater quantity of human food direct from the soil. They note that this is what has taken place in Eastern Asia, where the people have dispensed to a large extent with animal foods and depend chiefly on cereals. Needs No Expansion. According to Dr. O. E. Baker of the Department of Agriculture, this country will require for its own use hardly any expansion of the farm area and there is no imperative need for any decided in- crease in the area of farm land. “Nearly all the requisite increase in our crop acreage during the next 10 years,” Dr. Baker said, “could be ob- tained by cultivating the crop land that is now idle on farms. In addition our farms contain more than 100,000,000 acres of plowable pasture.” Dr. Baker declared that the tractor and the combine are alding to produce splendid crops on the semi-arid land of the Great Plains region and that there fn’bblbly will be a continued gecrease n the hilly and less fertile lands of the East and South. Larger Acreage Possible. fter 1930,” he said, “the country will still have available a half billion acres of potentially cultivatable land. This is a larger acreage than that now cultivated. Less than one-half of this potential acreage would have to be added to the existing crop area to sup- ply a population of 200,000,000.” Acre ylelds are being increased stead- by the use of fertilizer, and it is pos- sible that by the time any additional land is needed, not more than a quarter of the potential acreage would have to be tilled to feed 200,000,000. The electric utilities companies of the country are doing their part toward putting the fa:ms on an operating basis. Electric service, according to the Middle It remains equally true nevertheless that mere possession of intoxicating illicit liquors by a citizen who refrains West Utilities Co., is now being extended to thousands of farms. The advent of electrical erfergy into lculture marks 1930—PART TWO. Capital Sidelights BY WILL P. KENNEDY. ‘The army of Government employes in the National Capital and throughout the States are proud today that their own particular “lobbyist” is recognized as the best npmnuugflul ol'fll'lged interests seeki Teme le{ilh lon from Omm‘ln their behalf Robert H. Alcorn, chairman of the Joint Con- ference on Civil Scrvice Retirement Legislation, which sepresents approxi- mately 300,000 Govcriment workers in all branches of the Government service throughout the entire United States, has in effect worked himself out of job by securing the passage of the lib- eralized retirement bill, which has just been signed by the President, and which corrects many injustices and inequali- ties in earlier acts. Mr. Alcorn has been a familiar figure among members of Congress for the past 17 years, during which entire period he has been working daily for retirement legislation. He was first chairman of the Joint Committee of Employes of the Naval Gun Pactory, and is still chairman of that group. It was soon discovered after the for- mation of the Wi committee that no real progress could be made toward a Federal vetirement sys- tem because various groups of employes were divided among themselves as to what gl;m should be supported. There- fore the joint conference on retirement was formed in 1916, Hglreu'n'.ms sub- stantially all groups in the Government service. Mr. Alcorn became chairm: of the joint conference in 1917, and still holding that tion. ‘This joint conference includes such groups as the National Association of Letter Carriers, the National Associa- tion of Post Office Clerks, the Railway Mail Association, the rural carriers, or- ganizations of all navy yards and sta- tions and arsenals, the mechanical trades in the Bureau of !.‘nmvgg‘md gr’ilfm.nl and the Government ting ice. ‘The bill just signed by the President is the fifth act which the employes of the Government had been successful in get! enacted under the leadership of Mr. Alcorn. Three of the bills passed the Senate, which had been reported in the House committee on the civil service, but not until the closing days of the Seventieth Congress did the House approve Dale bill, and not until after Mr. Al- corn had circulated a petition which was signed by 291 members of the n Navy Yard a) 18 House, the greatest list that ever signed | Bank: any petition of House members on roposition pending before Congress. it bill recelved a pocket veto from President Coolidge, and out of that bill 'w the new Lehlbach bill which has just become law. % One naturally expects to find the best mece of road work in the entire eountr{ the Plaza in front of the Capitol Bullding. But tourists from all parts of the country driving through the Plaza note one square of cobblestone paving in the mide of this Plaza roadway. ‘The interesting story of this cobble- stone square is told by Harry Parker, colored messenger for the House ways and means committee for the past 40 gfin. who first came to Congress with illiam McKinley. “Harry” has known all the business leaders of the country as well as all leaders in national legislation for two- score years. He says that the cobble- stone area was used as a hitching place for horses b'l""‘"’fnw members of Congress, and that that area have been parked some of the best horse- flesh that was ever seen in Washington, Among those he recalls as having owned and ridden or driven these horses were Francis Burton Harrison of New York who was & member of the New York Volunteer Cavalry in American War, and later Governer General of the Philippine Islands; Wil- llam Bourke Cockran of New York, one of the most noted orators that ever sat in Congress; Frank O. Lowden of II- linois, who was lieutenant colonel of the Illinois National Guard during the War with Spain, later governor and candi- date for Vice Prseident; Isaac R. Sher- wood, who went into the Civil War as & private and was mustered out a brig- adier general, and who for many years drove the finest pair of horses in the Capital City; Joseph Crocker Sibley of Pennsylvania, Col. Edward Deaux Mor- rell, who commanded the Pennsylvania National Guard and later was commis- sioned brigadier general; Joseph Weeks Babcock of Wisconsin and many others. Harry also recommends that a tab- let should be placed in the new Na- tional Press Club Bullding to com- memorate the fact that the McKinley tariff bill was framed in the old Ebbitt House on that site. He recalls that the Dlnllt{ tariff bill was framed in the old Hamilton Hotel, at Fourteenth and K streets. * ok % % Dr. Ray Lyman Wilbur, Secret of the Interior, a noted educlwr‘f"tre- quently recalls interesting bits of his- tory in connection with present-day de- velopments, especially as they are con- nected with his own administration of the national domain. He has just brought to public attention the fact that, in addition to its value as a colos- sal reclaimer of arid lands and to its educational and recreational poten- tialities, the region in the vicinity of the Kmpoud Boulder Dam is interest- ing from a historic standpoint. On the banks of the Colorado River, in Clark County, stand the walls of the buildings that once constituted Fort Callville. Callville is interesting not only as a fort, but also as the head of navigation on the Colorado, when that turbulent and erratic river was negotiated by the hardy Mormons in an effort to establish communications by sea with the outside world. While their effort did not produce the desired re- sult, nevertheless the attempt was a step in the progress of the Southwest, and a picturesque adventure which ap- pears to be worthy of commemoration by_preservation of the old fort. With the formation of the lake upon the completion of Boulder Dam, the site on which the ruins of Fort Callville now stand will be submerged. It will there- fore be necessary, if the fort 1s to be preserved and restored, to remove the old walls to higher ground, possibly u Callville Wash a little way, but still near the river's edge. When the entire area is examined from the standpoint of future develop- ment and use, Interior Department olg~ cials plan to have consideration given to the proposal for the preservation of the historic old fort. e Danger in Tub. From the Butte Dally Post. An insurance statisticlan says most home accidents consist of folks slipping in the bathtub. Apparently cleanliness s next to clumsiness. is true that electrical power for a time will be used to & large extent in a vast variety of farm tasks known as “chores,” rather than as an addition to the ex- isting power-producing units available for tillage and harvest. Electrical Use Growing. At the beginning of this century the | total installed power per farm worker |in America was 2.2 horsepower. It rose | to 4.5 horsepower in the first 1““'41‘ of the cenfury and today the total capacity is undoubtedly in excess of 50,000,000 horsepower. There are now over & million tractors in use and the total of motor vehicles now on American farms is 5,426,900. According to the Middle West Utilities Co., the 50,000,000 horne))owu aggregate capacity on American farms is divided into a large number of small units which include the following: Animal power, 18,762,000; tractors, 1,000,000; trucks, 697,300; stationary e es, 2,500,000; windmills, 1,000,000, and central station electric installaf 3 500,000. ‘While farming still requires two-man hours of labor for each horsepower of work delivered by the animals and machines, this ratio, according to utilit: companies, is gradually being reduced. Hence an equal amount of food for the country can be produced in coming years by a far smaller number of workers. n| ticipation of such an event. And chil- Americans Save for Rainy Day BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN, ‘The American people could live quite | & while on their savings if employment | and income ceased completely, umrd-‘ ing to figures revealed by an examin tion of savings accounts in the United | States. Americans have a world-wide reputation for spending and they do| adily, yet | ars about half of them have part with their funds fairly re: it lpge something laid by for periods of de- pression, the proverbial rainy day. Fifty-two million savings accounts are being kept in the United States today, which means that nearly half of the people have something put by in the form of cash, readily available. The population of the United States is more than twice 52,000,000, but it must be remembered that population figures in- clude one-day-old infants, the palsied old, persons in jall and in lunatic asylums. So if only the active persons, moving around and making demands on sources of supply, are to be col sidered, it is safe to say that at least half save something from the movies and the soda fountain. It is equally true that a good many of these savings accounts are in the names of very young persons. Thrifty parents not infrequently open savings accounts for their children a few min- utes after they are born; some in an- dren themselves have been induced to run counter to their natural instincts and hoard pennies in cast-iron pigs, against the day when they will find enough accumulated to take it to a real bank, purchase a bicycle, enter college, or discover that the iron pig has been rifled. But, however it is figured, 52,- 000,000 savings accounts are a good many. The iron pig accounts are not listed in these statistics nor are hoards put away in socks, mattresses, in rat- infested walls, or beneath trap doors. All sueh accumulations are in addition. The money known to be on savings accounts at banks amounted in 1929 to $28,260,000,000, Without touching cur- the | operation out of savings and the Spanish- | panks, ings, g property other rent earn! ;mumn iy = ings, the American people could pay off the entire national debt u.; “on‘ nn\;“ s thropic rather than unded as philan ral money- tions. The first: were established in Boston and in Philadelphia in 1816. The design of the founders was to vide workers with a safe place to keep their save ings out of the hands of persuns whose judgment in investments and whose motives were not alwavs of the best. | Bank supervision was not so strict in | 1816 as it is today. 596 mutual savings ay there a |banks in the United States, but they | are concentrated in the Northeastern | section of the country. There are 196 out of the 596 in Massachusetts alone, while New York has 150. There are only 6 on the Pacific Coast and not one in the South. The mut banks are, indeed, mutual and are actually co-operative socleties. One of the most famous mutual savings banks in the United States was that headed by the | late Myron T. Herrick, formerly Ambas- sador to France. Its very name im- lied its character, the Society for avings. This bank is one of the most gmmnl institutions of Cleveland, People Get Saving Habit, A mutual sa bank has no stock. The depositors ves own such banks. The trustees are surrounded by many legal restrictions and may not participate in the profits. After deduct= ing expenses of operation, all profits made from investment of the depositors’ funds are divided among the depositors, excepting what is set aside as reserve banks Attri ::“M ‘active as mutual savings institu- tions are, their existence has not pre- vented a tremendous growth in the savings departments of commercial banks which promise no division of profits, but merely pay a fixed rate of deposit interest, ranging, as a rule, up to 4 per cent; in some localities con- siderably higher. Conservatively and honestly managed commercial ks substantial nest-egg left over. ‘The rate of savings has been ac- celerating. In 1011 the American . Association reported sa ts of $7,963,100,000 carried in 17, 200,000 scoounts. The jump from 1911 to 1920 from about $8,000, to $28,- 000,000 in amount and from 17,000,000 to 52,000,000 in number of accounts shows an incresse fl savin, . u(:; .ge-m than the increase Po) the same period. And Ex that interval the cost of living reached the higl point in history and the temptations to spend money were multip] All the money, practically, spent for automo- biles and every cent expended for radios has been put out by the American peo- le within that same period. Styles gl'! changed, too, in lots of things, yet the savings have gone up phenom- enally. Mutual Savings Banks Lead. An especially interesting aspect of the situation is that there is more money in mutual sa pay no profit to bank st are, in effect, financial co-operatives, than in any one type of commercial bank which invests depositors’ mone; mvmmwmhowmndm 3 y the eral Government, $7,889,000,000; State , chartered by various States, $7,- 412,000,000; trust companies, $4,023,- 000,000; private banks, $33,000,000, and mutual savings banks, $8,903,000,000, The amount of the average account in mutual savings banks is greater the average in the commercial banks. ‘The mutual average is $750 compared with $544 for commercial banka. are all safe in these times, save where great economic disasters overtake entire communities. Good service ren- fered customers by commercial banks has attracted ll!}o sums in deposits and those of such banks have grown with greater rapidity than the accounts of mutuals. In 1911 mutual sat banks showed deposits of $3,458,000,000, while national banks showed savings deposits of but $1,480,000,000 and State banks, $2,009,- hest | 000,000. Between 1911 and 1929 mutual savings acoounts more than doubled, but savings accounts in national banks in- creased more than five times and such- accounts in Stats banks between three and four times. Trust cumpmiynlmmh more than quadrupled. It is interesting to note that private banks saw their savings accounts dwindle from $51,000,« 000 in 1911 to only $33,000,000 in 1929. ‘These banks are not under Government supervision and there have been nums ous failures. Private pos has taken much of their busi« ness and the regulated commercial banks have also participated. llvlng are not increasing just now; indeed, in the last year there have been withdrawals. Al in th 1927-1928 there was & hu s." s is accounted for, 8o as the t'm'to!mourlodhm- cerned, by drawals to trade in the stock market and later for necessities imposed by the market fling. This temporary check in climbing savings is not regarded as representing any defi= nite change in American thrift. Another or two is expected to show new Bign fo Fifty Years Ago In The Star “Mr. Duncan, United States eonsul at Naples, in & dhmfib;;:; Depart- e W 2 Mt. Vesuvius -n'i:tsur of u-y":)"l'. i 1880, that the Railroad. new r:l‘m to the summit of Mount Vesuvius is about complete and will be opened to the lic in a few days. The ascent, hitherto tollsome, will thus become a pleasant ride of but 10 minutes, at & moderate expense. The cost of the road is esti- mated at $100,000 and an exaggerated idea prevails that it will pay for itself in one year. The number of visitors will undoubtedly be largely increased The invention is attributed to an en- gineer of Lombardy and also to an American. It is quite different from that in use at Mount Washington in this country, or the more celebrated one of the Rhizi (Rigl) in Switzerland. The car is supported by two wheels, for- ward of the other, like & bicycle. = * % On the eve of the Republican na- tional convention at Chicago 50 years there was great The Eve of the uncertainty ss to the Convention, outcome of the Grant- Blaine race for the presidential nomination. The Star of 28, 1880, say: “The indications are now that a great battle for the nomination of a Eefl- dential candidate at Chicago will be rary or- fought in effecting the tem; ganization of the convention. ~ The Grant men have the subcommittee of the national committee, which has admission. This is no small advantage, and in the hands of skillful politicians vels. World Bank Is Called Imperfect but Useful BY GERVILLE REACHE, Noted Prench Journalist. St el 10 the By, o cle e a::n bankers preparing the Mm Young reparations loan. They did not welr to be very conversant with ir business. As 'a result there was a storm of criticism, which was scarcely Justified. The bank was no sooner founded than enormous responsibilities fell on its shoulders, while S. Parker Gilbert, free at last, ski off to gather laurels for his faithful and equitable lpslleltton of the Dawes plan. harged with mobilizing a fraction of the Young plan annuity and pre- & $300,000,000 international it meni a of the loan contract. This turned out to be & contradiction of the plan itself. The result was a protracted discussion, s part of which turned on pin points with the respective treasuries. At the first contact with realities the absurdity was realized of having con- fined this establishment to Basel, which is distant from every real financial center, and finally it was in Paris that the overlong negotiations took place. Montagu Norman, governor of th Bank of England, witnessed thess formalities with a broad, ironical smil Was he inwardly rejoicing over the diffi= culties in which Gates MacGarrah, the American head of the bank, was plunged? Doubtless he was not, but on this occasion he probably wished to stress once more the British reservations regarding the new institution. The causes of the British grievances are easily understood. After enormous sacrifices the British succeeded in main- taining sterling at parity. Sterling is still the leading international currency. it can be made to count for all it is worth, “The anti-Grant men are counting upon making a ‘ten-strike’ in the for- mation of the committee on credentials. Each State delegation will name one of its number to act upon this committee and it is confidently claimed that a ma- jority of the delegations are opposed to Grant. If this claim proves to be cor- rect, then the plan of the Grant men will be to vote down the majority report of the committee on credentials and adopt the minority report, which in the ] event of this sort of fight will undoubt- edly be in their favor. Another con- test may take place—and it will nat- urally precede that over the commit- tee on credentials, in the selection of ® temporary chairman. The Blaine men maintain that they have a major- ity in the national committee, who will have the selection of the temporary chairman. There is some reason to doubt the correctness of this claim. It was sald at the time Senator Cameron was chosen chairman of the natio committee that the Grant issue s made a distinctive one in the contest. Cameron was an open and pronounced Grant man. Still the Blaine members asserted that some of their followers voted for Cameron because of his fit- ness for the position. Senator Cameron, being an astute politician, appreciates the importance of a temporary chair- man friendly to his candidate, and will no doubt secure the election of a Grant man if ible. “The Blaine men are full of fight and will contest every inch of ground. At present it looks as if they will be left alone in their battle against the third term question. The other candidates for the nomination are apparently afraid to antagonize the Grant element by opposing it and the effect will be to help Grant.” oo Wall Street Unshaken. From the Akron Beacon Journal. Bishop Cannon has been freed of charges ®f mar] eculation by his fellow churg s is no evi dence th e bishop's flyel fls line Therefore it was considered due the British that the Bank for International Settlements should be established in London, where it would have the best opportunities to fructify its capital and deposits and also give the British a more important place in the manage- ment of the establishment. Indubitably the resistance and sta- bility of sterling amid the t-war European monetary catastrophes was useful to everybody and England should be justifiably proud of the example of financial integrity she has given to the world. But in matters such as repara- tions and interallied debts it was neces- sary account of the other prin- cipal interested parties. Why, once it was decided that the bank would not have its headquarters in London, did the British so strangely cold-shoulder and despise the new establishment? Britain could have played a more important part in the organization of the bank, but it was the British them- selves that declined. At The Hague when the issue of the German loan was considered, the amount was fixed in dollars, the bonds could have been printed in currencies, including sterling, but again the British refused. Itlis not easy to understand this attitude. Nevertheleas the loan has every chance of success. The operation is destined to bring into international re- lations between creditors and debtors new era which will be profitable to all the great powers. The attitude of the British govern- ment toward the bank will have con- siderable importance in the future. It devolves primarily on the prudence and Wwisdom of the directors of the Bank of England and the Bank of France to * establish harmonious relations first between themselves and then between all the central banks. Even considered , as it is, with all its defects and all its qualities, the Bank for International Settlements can phfl a useful part in this fleld. Like all human works, it is only an imperfect tool, but it is iter to use it as it is than to seek ip in the bud this endeavor toward inter-