Evening Star Newspaper, January 17, 1931, Page 1

WEATHER. lowest, 32, at 10:30 p.m. yesterday. Pull report on page 14. Closing N.Y. Markets, Pages 11,12& 13 he No. 31,672 post offic: Entered as second class matter Washington, D. C. BEED ASKS DELAY OF SENATE ACTION ONS5000FUND Request for Postponement Made After Conference With President Hoover. LITTLE CHANCE IS SEEN OF DEFERRING MEASURE Suggestion Is Offered That Sum Be Advanced as Loan Instead of Gift. By the Associated Press. Postponement of consideration of the $25,000,000 appropriation for Red Cross relief work for two or three weeks, pending the Red Cross campaign for $10,000,000, was advocated today by Senator Reed after a conference with President Hoover. ‘The Pennsylvanian, stalwart sup- porter of the President, at the same time indicated he favored the $25,- 000,000 Federal appropriation proposed by Senator Robinson of Arkansas, the Democratic leader. Senate leaders believed there was Httle chance of deferring the $25,000.000 issue and House leaders hinted strongly there was every liklihood that the ap- priation would be approved there, us putting the issue up to President Hoover. He indicated in talks with adminis- | tration leaders today that he was op- posed to it. Loan Fund Suggested. ‘There also was talk at the Capitol of making the $25,000,000 fund a loan to the Red Cross to be used if necessary. Whether this suggestion came from the President or from administration leaders seeking a compromise was not made clear, but it was evident that it was not acceptable to the forces back of the drive for the fund. Senator Reed declined to comment on his White House visit. His proposal was known to be in accordance with the views of the President, however. Complaint_was voiced yesterday by Red Cross officers that the Senate con- troversy over a Federal appropriation Was dering their campaign for $10,- 000,000 in subscriptions from the people. ‘The President indicated strongly he would state his position to the public Af the Senate overrode his opposition. As debate was renewed, Senator Bing- ham, Republican, Connecticut, led the administration fight against the appro- ?&x’n}:fl?u which he characterized as a No Longer Slow. Bingham said it had always been the PERSHING ENCOUNTERS FRENCH INTERFERENCE Painleve Details Joffre to Head Group of Officers to Act as “Go-Between” to Supply Needs of Americans. CHAPTER VI BY GEN. JOHN J." PERSHING, Commander in Chief of the American Expeditionary Forces in the World War. S soon as the formalities incident to our arrival in Paris were over—and I made them as brief as possible—we got down to work, as it was urgent that we should begin at once to lay the foundation for the development and employment of the American Army. Its size, its organization, its place on the front and the selection of lines of | communication all had to Be determined as far as practicable before our troops in any numbers should arrive. To expedite handling the many questions that must arise, especially in our relations with the French war office, which controlled practically all indus- trial facilities and transportation, it was War Minister Paul Painleve’s idea that there should be a group, of French officers placed at our disposal. He thought an agency familiar with the Prench organization, authorized to communicate directly with the bureaus invelved and through which he could make our wants known, would aid us in matters of procurement. Joffre Heads Group. Marshal Joffre was designated as the head of this liaison group. The instruc- tions received by Marshal Joffre from the Minister of War were transmitted to me in a polite note. Naturally, it was pleasing to think of being assoclated with Marshal Joffre, but I thought the adoption of the plan at this time would only add an extra channel through which requests must pass and that this would complicate rather than simplify matters. The scheme indicated that a sort of tutelage was contemplated, which also made it objectionable. In my opinion it would be more expeditious to utilize the French officers on duty at my headquarters and develop a workable system through experience. I explained my views to M. Painleve and readily arranged for the officers of our supply departments to confer directly with the chiefs of the corresponding bureaus of the French organization. But this was only the beginning and we soon found thai we had much to learn of the difficulties of dealing with French bureaus, either directly or indirectly. There was no question but that under the great enthusiasm the afternoon of our arrival there existed serious despondency among all classes. The terrible strain of the previous years of continucus fighting, with heavy losses, was telling against both the French and the British. Temporary successes in different theaters of war had brought small comfort, followed as they had beep all too frequently by disastrous reverses. Gave Aid at Once. With actual conditions in mind, one could fully understand why the allies had been so insistent that a contingent of American troops be unmediately sent to France to bolster their morale. While not yet prepared to do any fighting, we could and did furnish men for service behind the lines. We also provided raw material and certain manufactured supplies as rapidly as possible and financial aid without stint. The following significant statement made by Mr. Lloyd George at a meet- ing of the allies at the Quai d'Orsay, May 4, 1917, showed that the allies ex- pected little real military aid from us and doubted whether the shortage in tonnage would enable us to maintain large American forces: “It is upon the shoulders of Prance and Great Britain that the whole burden of war rests. * * * America is still an unknown. We must not count upon her aid in a military way for a long time to come. Five hundred thousand Americans brought to this side of the water would be useful to us, if the war lasts so long, but we must live while awaiting them, and we do not know whether we will have next year the tonnage necessary to maintain such con- siderable forces transported from the other side of the Atlantic.” —— Notes U. S. Unpreparedness. " The possibility of our being able 1o send a completely trained and Mpe‘ the kind we have provided in the $45, 000,000 we have already appropriated for feed and seed loans. “I have no objection to loans being liberally given for that purpose. But (Continued on Page 3, Column 1.) SECRETARY DOAK TO GIVE RADIO TALK Coast-to-Coast Forum Audience to Hear Views on Immigration's Effect on Labor. Secretary Doak will discuss immigra- tion and its relation to the unemploy- ment situation in this country in an ad- dress before the National Radio Forum, arranged by The Washington Star and broadcast over a_coast-to-coast network of the Columbia Broadcasting System at 9:30 o'clock tonight. Secretary Doak, who was appointed to succeed James J. Davis when the lat- ter was elected to the Senate, will be speaking publicly for the first time since his appointment. Since assuming of- fice Mr. Doak has devoted a great deal of time to the study of this vitally im- portant subject. As head of the De- partnent of Labor he is directly re- sponsible for enforcement of the im- migration laws. His familiarity with the immigration question long preceded his appointment to the secretaryship, however, since he has been for many years prominently identified with labor unjons. FUGITIVE CAPTURED AFTER PISTOL JAMS Three Pursue Man Surprised by Tiny Girl Playing at Hide-and-Seek. ‘Trapped in a coal shed in the rear of 311 Twelfth street southcast, where he bad hidden after fieeing from a home in which he had been found hiding by a 1%;-year-old girl, Roberi Lucas, 24, colored, was captured when, it is alleged, his gun jammed after firing one shot at two men who pursued him. army within a reasonable time, even though there had been sufficient shipping was remote because of our woeful state of unpreparedness. We had no such army and could not have one for at least a year. Allied hopes were, therefore, centered on our sending individuals or small units to maintain their strength, and a situation might easily have arisen that would have made it necessary for us to do so. It was most fortunate for the allies that the central powers did not then have.the necessary forces on the Western front to assume a vigorous offensive. The more serious the situation in France the more deplorable the loss of time by our mnaction at home appeared. It is true that a committee at the War College In February had presented a brief outline report on the organization of a limited force, Vet no comprehensive general plan had been considered for the formation or employment of such a force, much less for a larger one. In an indorsement on a War College memorandum dated May 28, 1917, which referred to a recommendation by the Prench that administrative, engineer, quartermaster, sanitary and dock personnel be sent first, to be follawed by com- batant troops, the acting chief of staff, the late Maj. Gen. Tasker H. Bliss, sald: ‘Wanted Moral Effect. Gen. Pershing’s expedition 1s being sent abroad on the urgent in- sistence of Marshal Joffre and the Prench mission that a force, however small, be sent to produce a moral effect. We have yielded to this view and a force is being sent solely to produce a moral effect. If all necessary arrangements are not made on the other side, it is the fault of the French general staff and not of ourselves, since their officers were and are fully cognizant of our unpre- pared state for sending a serious expedition for serious business. “Our general staff had made no plan (so far as known to the Secretary of War) for prompt dispatch of reinforcements to Gen. Pershing, nor the prompt dispatch of considerable forces to France. * * * But it seems evident that what the French general staff is now concerned about is the establishment of the important base and line of communications for a much larger force than Gen. Pershing will have. “They evidently think that having yielded to the demand for a small force for moral effect, it is quite soon to be followed by a large force for physical effect. Thus far we have ho plans for this. * * *” Piguratively speaking, then, when the assistant chief of staff went to look in the secret files where the plans concerning the situation that confronted us should have been found, the pigeon-hole was empty. In other words, the War Department was face to face with the question of sending an army to Europe and found that the general staff had never con- sidered such a thing No one in authority had any definite idea how many men might be needed, how they should be organized and equipped, nor where the tonnage to transport and supply them was to come from. Allies Made Proposals. As already noted, both the Joffre and Balfour missions did not hesitate to make proposals regarding the employment of Americans, and each had ex- pressed the hope that our man power, either as individuals or in small units, might be assigned for training and service with their respective forces. Their suggestions were no doubt to some extent prompted by the beliel that we would be unable within a reasonable time to build up a separate army capable of operating independently, although it was suspected that this was not the only reason and that after all the allies were not keen for us to have an independent combat army. There was certainly a sentiment among them in some quarters that while our entry into the war was necessary to bring victory, we had come in late and therefore could not expect much credit for what we should do. ‘The thought found some basis in the attitude of the leading allies regarding one or twe other nations, whose entry igto the war was often openly attributed in allied circles to the selfish desire of being found on the winning side at the end of the war. Of course, it was never even hinted that we were moved by such motives; but there is little doubt that the formation of an American Army was not looked upon with favor. Our belief in the existence of such an attitude on the part of the allies naturally stirred in our minds a feeling of distrust, which was emphasized by their later efforts to dominate, and which, therefore, continued to be a factor in all our relations up to the end. Desired American Army. In the midst of the various opposing opinions and schemes of the allies, the idea remained fixed in my mind that the jmorale of our troops, their proper Lucas was found in a closet on the second floor of a house at 254 Eleventh street southeast, by Gertrude Bane, «daughter of Solomon Bane, wBo con- ducts a grocery store on the first floor. She and anotser child were playing hide-and-seek in a bed room. Gertrude opened the closet door to look for her «Iriend, who had hidden, and saw Lucas crouched in a corner. Sbe ran screaming to her father's store. Mcanwhile, Lucas down a back stairway, into the kitchen, and fleeing man down street to Twelfth street at South sfimhm avenue, Lucas ran into an jov., D. A. Robinsou, 655 ¥ streey, north- east, and W. W. Morrissette, 1007 I street northeast, followed. Trapped in & shed, the men said he opened fiie with a pistol, the shot narrowly who later American Army instead of being allotted beyond our control as replacements in the ranks of the allied armies. In fact, every consideration dictated that our Army should in no sense be in a subordinate relation to the others, but that we should plan from the start to build up our own independent organization. Although we were generally committed to operate with or near the French, the selection of the actual front was largely dependent upon the ports and lines of communication available. It was therefore necessary to consider the dif- ferent possibilities of the problem as a whole before making final decision. Every consideration dictated that our Army should be in no sense in & sub- ordinate relation. It was finally decided we should use the ports of Bordeaux and St. Nazaire. It was likewise estimated that the rail lines leading to the Lorraine sector, with collateral routes avallable, could be improved to meet our needs. Lorraine Front Favored. WASHINGTON, D. C,. | to investigate the Amtorg Corporation, training and their best strategical use all demanded their concentration into an | 9 COMMUNISM HELD GRAVE THREAT BY FISH COMMITTEE Report to House Advises Full Publicity on Aims as Remedy. SOVIET FIVE-YEAR PLAN IS CALLED DESTRUCTIVE Would Be Able to Finance Reds in World Revolution, if Success- ful, Group Convinced. By the Assoc:ated Press. Communism was branded & grave threat to democratic governments and their economic structure in the formal report submitted today to the House by its special Communist Investigating Committee. In a summary of evidence gathered in an eight-month study in every sec- tion of the country of Communistic activ- ities, the committee detailed its find- ings as a basis of legislative action. Its recommendations for strengthening im- migration and deportation laws and Federal surveillance of radical activities were to be made public later today. The group of five, led by Represent- ative Fish, Republican, New York, was ordered by the House last Spring to inquire into Communist activities. Their report estimated there were between 500,000 and 600,000 Communists and active sympathizers in this country. Only 12,000, however, were considered dues-paying members of the party. Aims Declared Universal. The principles and aims of Com- munists are the same throughout the world, said the committee and all take their orders from the Communist In- ternational with headquarters M« cow and “obey them implicitly.” ed, “that the surest and most effective way of combatting communism in the United States is to give the fullest pos- sible publicity to the fundamental prin- ciples and aims of the Communists.” | The five-year industrialization pro- | gram of the. Soviet Union if successful, the committee held, would become so great a money-making machine that it “may finance communism in world revo- lution.” “The purpose of the plan,” it con- tinued, “is not to build up but to tear down and destroy.” The committee said Russia had hurt the American manganese producing in- dustry and apparently was threatening the United States grain, lumber and wood plup industries and anthracite An_ individuaT ¥eport was submitted by Representative Nelson of Maine, ranking majority member, in which he predicted bolshevism could not obtain in this country, but suggested: “We perhaps need a new attitude of thought and a more liberal approach to some of our problems. The solution of this problem lies in the wisdom of our legislators and in the un clfishness of | our industrialists.” Close Watch Is Advised. He recommended legislation to enable the Justice Department to maintain a close watch on all radical activiti closer administration of the visa sy: tem and drastic laws for deporting un- desirable aliens, support of organized labor and rigid postal inspection of all radical publications. The committee, specifically instructed unofficially trading representative of the | Soviet Union, found its export and im- port trade amounted to many millions annually although “its business is con- ducted largely on a credit basis with only $2,000,000 invested capital and the commerce to America from Russia is only about one-third of the amount of purchases in the United States.” The committee said testimony regard- ing the documents seized in New York by former Police Commissioner Whalen had failed to establish their genuine- ness Testimony, it is said, also led to the opinion that the short-selling of wheat on the Chicago Board of Trade by Rus- sian agencies last Fall, was done with no intent to depress the price of wheat. “While the Communist so far have been unsuccessful in their plans for ‘boring from within’ and ‘capturing’ the American Federation of Labor,” the report continued, “They have suc- ceeded in weakening and virtually breaking up and destroying a number of the important unions of the federation, notably in the garment, needle, textile and mining trades. RESIGNATION OF MELLON DENIED AT WHITE HOUSE Reported Choice of Gen. Dawes as New Head of G. 0. P. Commit- tee Also Declared False. The White House denied today that there was any for tion for a pub- lished report that Andrew W. Mellon had submitted his resignation as Secre- tary of the Treasury, that Henry M. Robinson of California, would succeed him. The same account also stated that Gen. Charles G. Dawes would re- sign as Ambassador to Great Britain to become chairman of the Republican National Committee, and that Secretary of the Navy Adams would succeed him as Ambassador. This the White House also denied. Another statement that Raymond Benjamin of California, political friend of President Hoover, would 'succ George Akerson, who recently resigned as ’:’creury to the President, was enied. ‘The White House called attention to the fact that rumors regarding Secre- tary Mellon's resignation bave been frequent_virtually since he first took office. _Reports regarding the others were characterized as a collection of gossip and rumors. PRICE CUT MOVE GROWS Trade-Marked Articles Hit Hard- est in New German Measure. Then it became necessary to determine the sector where our forces, fighting | 4 as a unit, would be most effective. After lengthy study and consultation with allied leaders, it was logical to conclude that from the purely military standpoint the employment of the American Armies on the Lorraine front would prove the most beneficial. In conference with Gen. Petain, who had reached the same missig conclusion, the decision was made accordingly. “oontinusd oo Pags 4, Column 2 SATURDAY, JANUARY 17, BRDE AT 00 WITH COMMISSN Opposes Procedure Ordered in Modifying Power Rate Consent Decree. Corporation Counsel William W. Bride announced today that he was not in accord with the procedure for modi- fication of the consent decree governing electric rates ordered late yesterday by the Public Utilitles Commission. said he would-file with the commission late today or Monday a statement of his position on the case and then, if the comniission insisted on bproceeding in the manner outlined in the order of yesterday, he would yield. “I cannot stultify myself,” Mr. Bride said, after a conference with William A. Roberts, his assistant, today. He added that “I shall file with the commission a statement in writing chowing exactly the procedure I would have advised them to take in his case had they waited for my advice. With this on record, if the com- mission desires to pursue .the course in its order, that lln‘t.helr busi- prepare the. in the way they want.” Mr. BPide said he would not make public the document which he will for- ward to the commission, but that he had no objection to its contents being released if the commission sees fit. Acted Before Receiving Advice, The commission late yesterday after- noon sent down instructions on the manner in which it wishes the consent decree modified. This action came as a surprise, as the commission had pre- viously asked for legal advice on the matter and took its action before the advice was forthcoming. It was learned today that the corporation counsel had ‘notified the commission yesterday he would have been ready with his opinion today, but the order came through be- fore his opinion could have been sub- mitted. Chairman Mason M. Patrick of the commission said the commission in sending its order yesterday had no in- tention of criticizing Mr. Bride, but that through the independent study of Vice Chairman Harleigh H. Hartman, the commission’s legal member, a de- cision was reached on the procedure to follow which made it unnecessary to take any advice from Mr. Bride. Mr. Patrick said Mr. Hartman had studied the opinion of Justice Jennings Bailey of District Supreme Court and had come to the conclusion that the commission had a right to go to court and seek modification of the decree in the manner outlined. Their decision, Mr. Patrick said, grew directly out of Justice Bailey's decision. He said he had asked Mr. Bride for legal advice on January 7, but that Mr. Bride had been busy on District legislation that he had not been able to give the re- quest sufficient consideration. The chairman said Mr. Bride in- formed him yesterday that the opinion would be ready today, but by that time the commission’'s mind was already made up and the opinion would have made no difference. At present the rates are adjusted as follows: The commission ascertains the profits made by the Potomac Electric Power Co. in each calendar year. If the profits exceed 7': per cent on an agreed valuation of $32,500,000 plus net additions weighted but undepreciated since 1924, then the commission orders the rates for the following year re- duced to a level which will theoretical- ly use up one-half of such excess. Modification Plan Outlined. As ‘a matter of fact, the reductions made heretofore have not had the ef- fect of reducing the profits of the company, but on the contrary they have increased them so that in no year since the consent decree went into ef- fect have the profits been less than 10 per cent. According to the modification which the commission intends to seek, the rates will be reduced if in any year the company makes a return of more than 6% per cent on its valuation. If the return exceeds 63 per cent, but does not exceed 7% per cent, then one- halr of the excess shall be used ih rate reductions as at presefit. If, however, the returns between 7% and 83 per cent on iis value, then the rates are fo be reduced by three-fourths of the excess earnings. If its profits, in any year, exceed 8% per cent on its value, then five-sixths of the excess shall be used for the ensuing rate reduction. In 1930 the company earned $1,660,- 000 in excess of the 7)2 per cent re- turn and consequently one-half of this figure, or $830,000, was used for re- ducing rates of 1931. Had the modified form of the decree been in effect the amount used for reduction would have been $1,376,000. In other words, much greater - reductions would have been made, the difference which would have been saved to consumers being about $546,000. i 5-Cent Bread Loaf on Sale. MOBILE, Ala., January 17 (P).— Mobile bakeries put bread on sale today Sunces, - as" compared. with "30-0unce ounces, as loaves that have been selling for 10 He | The only evening in Washington wil Associated service. the Press news Yesterday’s Circulation, 118,517 Dog Keeps Shovel Idle Until Baby’s Rescue Is Effected By tha Associated Press. LIGONIER, Pa., January 17.— ‘The big steam shovel they're us- ing in the excavation for the new high school stood idle almost an hour yesterday while workmen tried to chase a shepherd dog who refused to budge. ‘They coaxed him. He bared his teeth. They “shooed” him; he growled. They made gestures at him and he barked. But he would not move. ‘Then Mrs. Prancis Bererson came along looking for Jane, aged 12 years. And the dog wagged his tail and barked gleefully. His vigil was done. And there, under- neath the shovel, they found Jane, sound asleep, her head on a rock. MRS. MLEANTO GET §1.500 PER MONTH Court Gives Publisher’s Wife 40 Per Cent of Income Up to $90,000 Yearly. Edward Beale McLean, newspaper publisher, must pay to his wife, Mrs. Evalyn Lucille Walsh McLean, 40 per cent of his income up to $7,500 monthly, according to a decree signed today by | District Supreme Court Justice William Hitz in the suit recently brought by Mrs. McLean for separate maintenance of herself and their three children. The decree is the result of a com- promise, the wife having asked for a monthly allowance of $10,000. A coun- | sel fee of $7,500 is also awarded by the |decree to Attorneys Frank J. Hogan, | Nelson T. Hartman, Edmund L. Jones and Adolph A. Hoehling. ‘The decree directs the Americ? Security & Trust Co. and Edward B. McLean, trustees of the estate of John R. McLean, father of the defendant, to pay, to Mrs. McLean the first day of 2ach and every month the sum of $7.500 provided that 40 per cent of the pub- lisher’s income shall equal that amount. If Mr. McLean's income should fall short of $7,500 a month, the reduction from that amount is to be made to a sum equal to 40 per cent of the income. The court by its decree retained jurisdiction of the case for the purpose of taking such action, if any, as may become necessary to enforce its order and for the purpose of acting on any application for the modification of the decree which may be made by either rty. Attorneys Wilton J. Lambert, Leon Tobriner and George B. Fraser ap- peared as counsel for Mr. McLean. The trustees were repreesnted by Attorneys J. 8. Flannery and Wilton J. Lambert. GENERAL DROPS DEAD Military Expert Stricken Minute After Daughter Expires. BUDAPEST, Hungary, January 17 (#).—Gen. Alexander Kirchner, 58, Hun- garian military expert at the Versailles Peace Conference, last night watched his daughter die of diphtheria. A minute later he dropped dead across her bed, ictim of heart disease. Cold Kills Three in Mexico. MEXICO CITY, January 17 (#).— Three more persons died here during the night from exposure as a conse- quence of the abnormally low tempera- tures which have prevailed this week. ‘The deaths brought the total from the cold wave to six.. Warmer weather was predicted for today. (P) Means Associated Press. TWO OCENTS. SON OF ARMY MAN, SHOT, MAY RECOVER Charles M. Wesson, 3d, Wounded by Policeman After Wild Ride in Taxicab. Hospital officials said today Charles M. Wesson, 3d, 23-year-old son of Lieut. Col. C. M. Wesson, U. 8. A, probably will recover from a bullet wound in the chest, inflicted by a policeman last night after Wesson commandeered a taxicab and, firing a pistol at random, compelled the driver to pilot him on a wild dash through the Northwest section. ‘Three policemen in an emergency car, attracted by the shots, were. in D. C. HEADS MOVE 10 GANGEL PAVING AGT ASSESSMENTS Amendment to Bill Would Permit Repayment to Some Owners. PROPOSAL TO EQUALIZE TREATMENT OF CITIZENS 1,600 Claims Now on File Ask Ad- justment of Borland Law Charges. The District Commissioners today submitted an amendment to & bill now pending in Congress whereby all as- sessments levied against local property owners fof street paving under the Borland law during the last three years would be cancelled and new assess- ments made. The amendment was re- ceived by Chalrman Capper of the Sen- ate District Committee. ‘The proposed amendment, if enacted into law, would operate as follows: If & property owner has slready pald an assessment of, for instance, $200 under the existing law while the assessment would only have been $100 under the new Borland bill, he would be given & refund of $100. This is only one of several further amendments to the pending bill which the Commissioners, through Assistant Corporation Counsel West, have trans- mitted to the Senate Committee. Scope of Court Rulings. Another amendment suggested if ai tion of the ;ew Bfl!‘l.ll‘:‘dtg.llfi cent to 6 per cent a year, but if any installment is not paid within the pre- scribed time, it would bear interest at the rate of 12 per cent & year, the same amount charged on de- linquent real estate taxes. ‘Today’s rapid pursuit when the taxicab careened | which. into Kalorama road from Connecticut avenue and the driver, John R. Jerion of 528 Ninth street southwest, swung his vehicle into a tree mear the curb. ‘The policemen reported they saw Wesson brandishing a pistol at the driver. Detective M. F. Mahaney of the eighth precinct said he had his service gun in hand when' the police machine halted behind the cab. ) Bullet Holes in Cab. Mahaney asserted that Wesson jumped from the cab and mn toward him, rais- ing his revolver as if to shoot. Ma- haney said he fired once, the bullet }tg“‘r?‘ Wesson in the chest below the art. ‘Wesson was removed to Garfield Hos- pital and placed under a guard. There were two bullet holes in the the: windshield of Jemsen's cab. Jensen said Wesson played with him “like a cat with a mouse,” firing the bullets past his ears and through the windshield from his seat in the tonneau. ‘The other officers with ‘Mahaney were Pvts. A. B. Cole and I L. Murphy. ‘They were dispatched the site of the proposed Masonic Te! at Florida and Connecticut avenues at the request of Henry Schneider, the caretaker. Drives Into Tree. As they approached they heard several shots. Later the taxicab, without lights, sped away, turning north on Connecti- cut avenue at Kalorama road, the taxi driver said he purposely swerved his car into a tree. The driver escaped without injury. He ran from the cab before the arrival of the police car. He later told police Wesson engaged his cab on uppeér Pennsylvania avenue with instructions to drive to the Washington Airport where Wesson had been employed by the Eastern Air Transport Co., dis- tributing literature to prospective air passengers. their arrival, Jensen said Wesson went into the airport office and immediately returned to the taxi, ordered the driver to retrace his course. As they were crossing Highway Bridge, (Continued on Page 2, Column 8.) g e i FUGITIVE KILLS SELF * Man Accused of Participating in Robbery Takes Own Life. CLEVELAND, January 17 (#).—Trail- ed to his home after his alleged confed- erate in an attempted holdup fell before a volley from a riot gun, Robert Elrick, 24, shot and killed himself today, po- lice said. Elrick’s companion, Willlam Corris, 19, was wounded 11 times when the pair tried to rob a filling station, where two detectives were lying in wait, police said. Corris, himself near deatn, gave police Elrick’s name. As a squad approached Elrick’s home, three shots were heard and he was found dead. Police attempted ‘o link both youths with the slaying of Albert Burke, an American district telegraph operative, during the burglary of a Jewelry store a week ago. « You probably already have learfied that the story of America’s World War activities, written by School Children! 4] This story, being the most authentic record of America's partic- pation in the great struggle, already is being used as text and being clipped by many school children for scrapbooks. Gen. John J. Pershing and now appearing in The Eve- ning and Sunday Star, is invaiuable in your school work. 47 If you did not start the story with the first chapter, you will be able to get the first six installments by addressing the Circulation Manager of The Star or calling him over the phone. National 5000. 7 Supplies sufficient to meet class room the schools on request. 21, 1914, and September 1, 1916, relat- ing to assessments for the paving of streets, avenues and roads, or under the act of August 7, 1894; and Commissioners are further directed e w:‘uzwmw n =4 against the al P ac- cordance with the provisions of this act, which meum:‘nu shall become a cess, if any, of such payments over the amornts of the reassessments levied hereunder.” Cost Not Estimated. No estimate was available today as to the amount of difference in money that would result from Teassess- ments, because, it was pointed out, offi- cials are not certain what the final outcome will be in cases where people have paid assessments with a notation that the -payment was made under protest. ‘The pending bill, which would be ap< plied to these past assessments under the new amendment, seeks to meet the objections of the ceurts 10 the old iaw by regulating the amount of the assess- ments according to the shape of the lot, the area it covers and the charac- ter of paving which is to be laid on heavily traveled boulevards. der the old law &:opmy owners have 50 per cent of the cost with no special provision for irregularly shaped lots, and with no alowance for the extra cost necessary to lay thicker pavements on main arteries. SEUBETLL ROAD-CAUSEWAY. PLANNED ACROSS CALIFORNIA GULF Three Advantages Are Stressed by Engineer in Plans Submitted to Mexican President. By the Associated Press.