Evening Star Newspaper, January 4, 1932, Page 8

GTON, D. C MONDAY, JANUARY 4, 1932 | THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASBHINGTON, D. C. January 4, 1832 THEODORE W. NOYES. .. .Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office 11th 8t. and Pennsylvania Ave. New York Office: 110 East 42nd St. ghh:l Office. Lake Michigan Bullding. uropean OMCQENIR!JH\L M., London, ne Rate by Carrier Within the City. Evening Star - 45c per month e Evening and Sunday ‘Siar (when 4 Sundays) 60c per month The Evening and Sunday Star ays) . +...85c per month | ;-5¢c per copy Collection made at’ the end of ‘each month Orders may be sent in by mail or telephone RAtional 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. {i7 ang Bunday.....1yr.$10.00: 1mo. g8c | iy only 1yr, $6.00: 1 mo.. 50c ay only 1vr.) $4.00; 1 mo., 40c All Other States and Canada. {ly and Sunday...] yr.$12.00: 1 mo., $1.00 gy only osisesid 1mo. 7% yri, $8.00 nday only ....1.l1¥r. $5.00.1mo, 50c Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusiv to the use for republication of a atches credited to it or not othe: ted in this paper and giso the local riews published herein, All rights of publication of special dispatches herein are also 1eserved. — = Taxes and Tariffs. With the Christmas recess out of the ‘way, the time has come for a showdown in the House of Representatives on the problem of increased taxes to meet the ‘Treasury deficit. It is a ticklish ques- tion, and the Democrats, who are in charge of the House, realize that fact. President Hoover and Secretary of the Treasury Mellon have submitted their recommendations for revision of the tax laws, recommendations with which many of the Democratic leaders have announced a disagreement. However, the Hoover-Mellon tax program is cal- culated to raise revenue which is vitally | needed, and before the Democrats can | brush the program aside they must offer & substitute which is at least effective.| The Policy, Committee, so-called, of the Democrats in the House and Senate is seeking to outline a tax-revision plan which will have the united support of the party in both houses of Congress, The Democratic leaders have balked at the administration'’s proposal to lower income tax exemptions so as to include a greater group of taxpayers. They have opposed the proposal to make the tax revision apply to the in- comes of 1931, and have opposed recom- mendations for tax levies on checks, radios and many other products and business transactions. None of these proposals for increased taxation is popular. No taxes ever are popular, It is quite naturally the desire of the Democrats not to arouse the displeasure of any more voters than they can help. From present indications the Demo- cratic tax program will tread as lightly on their toes as possible. It is a Re- publican deficit, they argue, and the Republicans should bear the blame for increased taxes. They could, of course, g0 ahead with the administration’s pro- gram and permit it to become law, but they must make a show of opposition if only for political reasons. One thing appears quite certain, however, and that is unless an effective revision of the taxes is made while the Republicans are in control of the ad- ministration, such a revision will have to be when and if the Republicans lose control of the administration. That would mean a revision of the tax laws by the Democrats themselves after they took office—not a pleasant prospect for & new administration. On the other hand, from the point of view of prac- tical politics, with the national cam- peaign only a few months away and an election next November, the Democrats might find it more profitable to impress upon the voters their reluctance to in- crease taxes. ‘The Democrats of the House also find themselves confronted with the tariff question. They have inveighed against the tariff law for a couple of years, de- claring that it was the root of all evil— although as a matter of fact the fincn- clal crash came before the tariff law was enacted. The probabilities are, however, that the Democrats will take refuge behind the fact that a presiden- tial veto would kill any tariff bill they might put through Congress, dealing specifically with tariff duties, and there- fore will not undertake such revision of the law. The Democrats, however, are expected to seek to change the so-called flexible provision of the tariff act and have the Tariff Commission report its findings to the Congress for action re- garding increases or reductions in rates | erusade. tries was shattered to its roots. In most cases the fires of political unrest were fed by the crises in trade, com- Imerce and industry. That as many governments in Latin America remain solvent or semi-solvent in light of everything that has happened in the Western Hemisphere during the past two and a half years is more note- worthy than the facts just made public about defaulted bonds, depressing as these revelations are. Much will doubtless be made by cer- tain hypercritical elements in Congress of the $24,000,000 profit in commis- sions admitted to have been made by the National City Bank in marketing issues of foreign bonds in the United States, including many South Amer- ican issues. The commissions were de- rived from flotations aggregating $1,- 71,955,000, according to figures sub- mitted to the Senate Finance Com- mittee. But it must be presumed that the National City Bank—as a type of the “international bankers” who spe- cialize in foreign flotations—has al- ways in mind the profits that will ac- crue to America in general, as well as bond investors, from these huge trans- actions. When Mr. Mitchell, the chairman of the National City board, was be- fore the Senate committee he indi- cated that American bankers lay down as a fundamental condition that the lion’s share of these dollar bond issues shall be spent in the United States. In the case of South America there needs also to be remembered that ‘hat continent is one of our best and biggest customers. In helping it we are al- ways helping ourselves and our trade. ———— Gandhi Back ig Jail. In the small hours of this morning the iron hand of Britain was clamped down once again upon Mahatma Gandhi, and by this time he is pre- sumably in jail at Poona—the same durance vile that was his lot less than a year ago. The Nationalist leader was rearrested under an ancient Bombay regulation which gives the police power to suppress agitators “for good and sufficient reasons.” Vallhabai Patel, president of the Indian National Con- gress, was taken into custody at the same time. The determination of the British authorities, acting through Viceroy Lord Willingdon, to brook no more insurrection at the hands of Gandhi and his group is thus unmis- takably indicated. ‘This latest act in the tragedy of India is the culmination of eleventh-hour efforts by moderate Nationalist leaders to bring about another truce with the British government. They found it im- possible to effect a compromise over the new ordinances against independence activities. Evidently believing that any concession in the direction of leniency would be misconstrued as a sign of what promises to be the largest mili- tary participation by the Federal Gov- ernment in a civil air meet in several years. The U. 8. 8. Wright, aircraft tender, and the U. 8. S. Langley, air- craft carrier, with their full comple- ments of planes, will visit Miami. The [ Army Air Corps is expected to send one of its newly equipped pursuit squadrons from Michigan, bombers from Virginia and the famous “Flying Comet™ from Ohio. Tre Marines will be rep- resented by picked men from Quantico. More important to the National Capi- tal, however, will be a conference of national airport and transport officials at Miami preceding the races. One session is to be devoted to the Colum- bia Island contrgversy and its conse- quences. The plan of the Arlington Memorial Bridge Commission and the Commission of Fine Arts to erect giant granite eolumns and other threatened hazards t® Jocal air transport operations on ColumMe Island, apparently, is to have far-raaching results. The Columbia Island session is ex- pected to develop & program for na- tional legislation to bar construction of obstacles to air operations in the approach areas of busy air termimals throughout the country. Such legisla- tion probably will have to be of Fed- eral character, in view of the prob- lems of local politics involved. Many large city airports are located outside of the political limits of the cities they serve. The National Capital's air ter- minal, Washington-Hoover Airport, for example, is in Virginia, The Newark Airport, which serves New York, is in New Jersey. Many city airports are in neighboring counties. ‘The year 1932 will begin with air transportation not only a firmly estab- lished part of national life, but a grow- ing factor in world transportation and consequently in the promotion of closer international associations. Rate re- ductions, extensions of service, speed- ing up of equipment; all these are symbols of wholesome progress. Zoning of airport surroundings and the pro- vision of similar safeguards to opera- tion are part of a necessary program. o If that memorial statue to Willlam Jennings Bryan is going up here, is it because of his losing record? Even that was so far behind that of Sir Thomas Lipton that the erection might seem like an injustice to a greater man in the same line. ———s ‘Who says that this is not the violet season? Ellsworth Vines, jr., tennis star, has just published his national rankings. Ellsworth Vines, jr, is put down as Number One. Neither Ty Cobb nor Babe Ruth, both hardened profes- sionals, ever placed himself on an all- time or all-league base ball team. e British weakness and a license for fur- ther excesses, the viceroy moved swiftly and drametically to nip in the bud Gandhi’s proclaimed new war of “non- violence.” The Mahatma returns to his cell at Poona with prophecies of “a fiery or- deal” on his lips. He likens the strug- gle facing India to America’s fight for independence against the same British oppressor. “India, t00,” he says, “shall, in God's time, achieve her freedom by suffering, sacrifice and non-violence.” If bloodshed occurs, and Gandhi seems certain it will, he lays it in advance upon the head of Britain. That she is prepared to resort to it, if necessary, Gandrd reads between the lines of Viscount Willingdon's assertion that “we are prepared to deal with the Na- tionalist movement with all the re- sources at our command.” One of the extreme measures to which the viceroy is ready to resort is to ban the Indian National Congress as an il- legal organization. The embargo would make it a grave offense for anybody to contribute funds to the congress, which is the spearhead ‘of the independence Such & proscription would be aimed at wealthy Bombay mill owners and merchants, who have hitherto fur- nished the bulk of Gandhi’s campaign funds. Here in the remote West it is impos- sible to foreshadow with even approxi- mate assurance what may now happen in India. Gandhi says the war for in- dependence will go on—for months, for years, or for decades—and that while “the terror” lasts his people will, if necessary, “sacrifice all.” If the world may rely on that pledge, it can also take equally for granted the bulldog per- sistence with which Great Britain will rebuff any and all attempts to wrest instead' of to the President. This was the proposal over which the Democrat aided by the coalitionist Republicans in | the Senate, and the Republicans fought | for weeks during the consideration in Congress of the present tariff act. They may also seek some kind of an interna- tional agreement on tariffs, for the pur- pose of bringing about lower tariff levels and preventing at least a tariff war. ———— A rich gold strike in the Philippines % just reported. Will there now be another of those great “rushes” that have marked the opening of new lodes of the precious metal ever since man began to dig for yellow grains? - Latin-American Investments, It would be a thousand pities if the report just submitted to the Senate Finance Comm defaulted for- | eign bonds held in the United States tee on were to result in a lessening of our in- | terest in Latin American investments. According to the list made public by the committee, more than $850,000,000 is in default. All of the defaulting debtors are South American govern- ments, states or municipalities. The defaults include those of sinking fund payments, of interest, or of both. Federal bonds have been defaulted by Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Peru. Not only is the Brazilian government in default of the largest group of delin- quent bonds, but “nine states of the Brazillan government have also failed to respect their bonded obligations. Chilean government bonds are in ar- rears along with an issue of the city of Santiago. Together with bond de- faults by the Republic of Feru is one by the capital city of Lima. The great majority of defaults in South America occurred in 1931, Thereby hangs the tale. It was the year of revolutions. Onme after another Bolivia, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Brasil succumbed to the epidemic of unrest which swept the vest continent south of econemic India from her by force. Gandhi and his Nationalists have been offered do- minion home rule—local self-govern- ! ment within the framework of the em- | pire. They sullenly scorned it. How | they are going to better their position | by “non-violent” resistance to British | overlordship is something which Gandhi | and his idolatrous followers may under- | stand, but which observers remote from | the distressful Indian scene fail to com- | prehend. Impetuous Japanese officials and sol- diers who are arresting and assaulting peaceable Americans in Manchuria do not seem to have quite grasped the idea that Tokyo has been at considerable pains to promulgate that the penetra- | tion of the “three eastern provinces” of | China is an entirely peaceable proceed- ing ———————— American Aviation in 1932. Emerging from & year of progress which is the more remarkable in view of falling off in other lines of trans- portation, aviation goes into the new year with immediate promise of still further important advance. Beginning January 1, sweeping pas- senger fare reductions were made, &f- fecting the National Capital and 41 other cities in 18 States. The rate be- tweep Washington and Los Angeles is | now &ut to $152, as compared with the |old rate of $191, a saving of $39. In general, the rates are 6 cents per ! mile, with a 10 per cent reduction for round-trip rates. | The dawn of aviation’s New Year will be heralded by the All-American ' air races at Miami January 7, 8 and 9. This meet promises to be the largest | and most spectacular, aside from the | national air races, held in the United States. The foremost pilots of the So many prophets of good times in 1932 have come across with predictions, that if and when the tide turns for the better it will be hard to allocate the credit for the good news. — e Washington’s flaming youth is giving more than enough trouble for the police. Parental discipline would seem to be in order as the best means of lessening the pressure on headquarters, N SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Easily Managed. We've always found our Uncle Jim a philosophic man. He regulates existence on a very pleasant plan. He tries to do his duty as his duty comes along, And also has some time to spare for friendship and for song. A microbe wandered near. disposition grim. It straightway took a fancy to our dear old Uncle Jim. It seemed to like his company. It set- tled down to stay. And called in all its family to pass the time away. The doctors gathered round to put the microbe tribe to rout. They gravely said it was no use; they couldn’t turn 'em out. But Uncle Jim, he smiled and said: like this earthly game; There are lots of people living, and I guess I'll do the same.” He got the daily paper and he called for a cigar. His general health is now a cause of envy, near and far. A great big heart keeps up the circula- tion, so they say, And a jovial disposition beats prescrip- tions any day. It had a Art of Oratory. “I suppose you have been giving your people out home something to think about.” “No,” replied Senator Sorghum, “I have been telling them funny stories to keep them from thinking.” Peace Insured. “I suppose John Smith and Poca- hontas lived happily ever after.” “Of course. He was one man who couldn’t put up the shadow of an argu- ment when her relatives said he owed everything to his wife.” An Uplift Society. } Our meetings have been growing rather warm. From human need we shall not stand aloof. | But ere we start the general reform | Among ourselves we'll pass some sharp | reproof. Veracity. “Does that man always tell the truth?” “Yes,” replied Miss Cayenne, “If it's about somebody else.” Gradual Relaxation. “How are your new year resolutigns holding out?” “Pirst-rate. By amending them from time to time I may make 'em last all year.” | Uncertainty. ! You herdly know when it is time to smile or hzye the blues. | The puzzlcs in the paper look just like the weather news. Just how to occupy your time is what you never know. this country and forei nations, chiefly those of Latin America, will meet in competition for international tro- phies. Foreign visitors te Miami will wit- You'll mebbe go a-fishing and you'll mebbe shovel snow. “De kind of music some people makes,” sald Uncle Nben, “sin’t so Isthmus. Nm,flun-mumhum-mhudmunhlruflfl of these various ocoyd- try's erack Sghting pisne squedrons in slience” THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. “They were people who were not con- | tent to be happy,” says Daudet, “but gloated over their own happiness and relished it in a way to make your mouth water: especially the man, by the frre- sistible way in which he described the joys of their household in Winter.” May one happy person be happier than another happy person? It would seem so, and the great French novelist of a past generation points the way as truly as a compass to the North Pole. At least one of the ways. One may add to happiness, it would seem, by being conscious of it while it is at hand, instead of perpetually plac- | ing felicity in a non-existent future which perpetually recedes from one. The animals are happy, in a sense, but scarcely in the way a self-conscious human being is. The main point in this purely human happiness is that of selection. - It is not so much the large matter, as the small matter which here counts the most. This is where so many human beings fall down in the search for happiness. They want a thrill, instead of being | content with everyday existence, and attempting to find in it something to felicitate one’s self on. They expect something “big,” instead of realizing that there are a great many more small affairs, which, properly re- | | garded, may be the essential spirit of 1. * oKk It is precisely in matters disregarded so persistently by the crowd that the | wise man finds his securest happiness. It must be admitted that every one is | not so made as to be able to see the problem in this light. To such a per- son, the matters on which the other DULS 50 much stress, seem to be incon- sequential. And perhaps each such matter, in itself, is trivial; the solving of the riddle comes in the aggregate. 1t is the mass of small matters, each one pleasing, which, taken together, help to give the person who has solved. or at least to some extent, the problem of happiness, the great fund of material which he_enjoys To such a person there is nothing inconsequential He is not content to be happy, mere- ly, but makes himself thoroughly aware of what happiness he possesses. Surely that is a better way to put, it fairer, truer, than Alphonse Daudet's “gloat- ing.” fhe honest Tealization of happiness seems gloating only to the man who does not understand it. If one is in- terested only in governmental matters, the building of a wasp's nest outside & window will seem utterly unworthy of moment. If one believes that things interna- tional are the only affairs the intel- lectual man should consider, and espe- clally talk about, he will not be very much interested in the joys of the rainy y. as described by the garden lover. Even the professional horticulturist, who grows evergreens, say, for a living, scarce will find the bubbling enthusiasm of the lover of beauty, as manifested in a point-by-point description of rain in the garden, food for much reflection. | To him the possible price of evergreens | will be the only consideration. | * X X X | It will be realized at once that it is here that the average person, man or woman, who may possess no special tal- | ent except this one, has the greatest| opportuhity to shine. The essential thing s that he Be not | ashamed of the triviality of his enthu- | siasm. Let him assure himself that happiness, after a * he is in some respects the blood brother to Earnest of the Great Stone Face, as described by Nathaniel Hawthorne, who was discounted by his neighbors, but woke at last to find that his own phy- siognomy had taken on a resemblance to genuine greatness. We may suspect that many a man, going around in na- tive simplicity, and therefore honesty. of mind, wili come to be regarded at last as far wiser, and infinitely better, than many of the flashier persons who persist_in believing that smartness is the hall mark of greatness, The joke of it is, and the hopeful thing, too, that the very persons who now insist on | laughing at these simple people will at last praise them. So much for the real ?mnesty in mankind, despite the differences of outlook. It is possible to be warm, fully warm, in Winter, without paying much atten- tion to it. Many people seem to think it childish to talk about such a thing. The truth is that no child in the world ever cared a rap about keeping warm, in theory or in fact; did not know, even, whether it was warm or cold, so long as it was playing happily and had been well fed. The consclously happy person is not a hog, rolling in warmth. He simply knows he is warm, and is glad of it. He is interested enough in the matter to be aware of it, that is all. If this should mean that he is not sufficiently interested in foreign affairs, and inter- national affairs, to have his mind stuffed with them, to the exclusion of the furnace in his own basement, he happily admits that so much is true. He is willing to be blamed, if any blame attaches to it. Warriors in foreign na- tions will continue to be warriors, no matter what he thinks of them, nor how much or how little he knows about them. But the furnace in his basement is something which comes home to his heart and bosom, as Sir Francis Bacon put it, 24 hours a day. iy One of the best ways of enjoying a home, at any season, but particularly in Winter, is to regard it as a ship. Come to think of it, there is some- thing shiplike about every house. There it sits on the lawn, like a ship in_the water. It has a fixed position and could be charted once for all. It breasts every wind that blows. ‘To some it may seem to get nowhere, but 1f goes everywhere, if one is able to seé that it does. ‘The very windows and doors of a good house resemble those of a ship; and the good householder keeps his house shipshape. He is helped in this, if he has the instincts of a sailor. Now every man has these, to some extent. It is not necessary to have sailed much, or to have owned a boat. « Love of the great seas is inborn. In every man’s ancestry there must be sea- faring people. We came from the sea, and go back to it again. The realization of the joys of the household, in Winter, or at any other time, comes easy to the person who sees his house as a ship floating. This requires a retentlon of some- thing of the imagination of the child, or its adult equivalent. To see a house asen ship is a gesture toward infinity. It means that one elaborates happi- ness out of materials near at hand, in- stead of looking for them elsewhere. It means that one person can be hap- pier than another, if he knows how. It points the way to those who do not know how, and who, perhaps, never will know how. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. Ambassador Dawes has just crossed | the Atlantic from England aboard a| German liner. Thereby harls a tale. | Before the general was permitted to take passage on the Europa, Secretary Stimson had to get the O.K. of John R. McCarl, controller general of the United States. When it was repre- sented to the czar in charge of Uncle Sam’s expense accounts that in order to reach Washington in time for Ge- neva conference discussions with the President, Mr. Dawes would have to break the law and cross on a non- American ship, McCarl relented and sald he would approve the expense. If the controller general had withheld his omnipotent consent the Ambassador might have had to foot the bill himself. Before the House Committee on For- eign Affairs at this moment lies a matter resultant from Mr. MCCarl'g‘ refusal to sanction a passage on British ship two years ago this Winter. | During the London Naval Conference of 1930 Admiral Hilary P. Jones of the American delegation's naval ad- visory staff was taken seriously fll. It was decided that he should be sent back to the United States by the first steamer available. It happened to be the Cunarder Berengaria. For more than a year and a half since then the State Department | has been working on Controller General McCarl to get the cost of Admiral Jones’ passage allowed. As the General Ac- counting Office has absolutely refused to audit it, Secretary Stimson finally decided to ask Congress {0 pass & special act directing the controller general to sanction the item. Nothing has ever been said about it, but the law appears to give the controller general the last word on war debts. ‘“Independently of the executive departments,” he is charged with the “settlement and ad- justment” of all claims and demands | whatever in which the Government is | concerned, “either as debtor or creditor.” | * K ¥ * Speaker Jack Garner no longer has the lamented “Nick” Longworth’s auto- | mobile to ride in, and has eschewed | one of his own, but he does not scorn the use of Minority Leader Bert Snell's car now and then. Something akin to the comradeship between Garner and | Longworth has long existed between | the present Speaker and Snell. They are at all events working harmoniously to get the House leglslntlv! engine started, particularly during thé conflict as to whether the Democrats’ tariff bill shall have precedence over the admin- istration’s taxation measure. Mr. Gar- ner and the minority leader were tour- ing about Washington during the week end in the Snell chariot. The Speak- er's hope is to secure by private nego- tiation an agreement whereby unani- mous consent will avert useless debate and delay in the House, from emer- | gency to emergency. * oK oK x Arthur Sweetser of Boston, assistant director of information at the League of Nations, was a New Year week end visitor to Washington. He arrived in | the United States in December for a | rapid-fire (‘lose-\v) of matters interna- | tional on which "the League is always anxious to know the American viewpoint. Probably the most gratifying discovery Mr. Sweetser has made is Newton D. Baker’s undying loyalty to the League, just proclaimed--as many of the Ohioan’s admirers think—to the un- doing of his 1932 presidential fortunes. As to the World Court, the Geneva official learned that Senator Borah has pushed the protocol back into the Foreign Relations Committee pigeon- hole, where it has so long been gather- ing dust, despite the undoubtedly im- mense body of American public opinion thi‘b‘ favors our entry into The Hague tribunal, * x % x John N. Willis of Ohio, American Ambassador to Poland, who manufac- tures eutomobiles in his non-diplo- matic incarnation, 1s prolonging his leave of absence in the United States until next week’s Third Annual Na- tional Automobile Show in New York. On the forenoon of January 12—during the morning hours when most feminine ears are listening in—Ambassador Willys will broadcast a five-minute radio talk on “Women'’s Tastes in Autos.” A cyn- ical commentator might venture to sug- gest that the topic should“include some ations on back-seat driving, We ought really to be the smartest people 1 the world, i the lavish on education means anything. Secretary Ray Lyman Wilbur's Office of Education in the Interior Department has just issued some staggering figures about the amount spent in 1931 on readin’, writin’, arithmetic and minor subjects in the United States. The total was $3,200,000,000. Pupils en- rolled in public elementary schools numbered 21,211,325; in public high schools, 4,354,815, and in institutions of higher learning, 1,099,468. Private and parochial schools, both elementary and secondary, enrolled approximately 2,700,000 pupils. America's teachers * oK K ok Recent attacks on white wome: Hawail by natives and Orlentals l}lm:'r; caused the California Joint Immigration League to petition Senator King of Utah to include in his bill for Philippine in- dependence a provision excluding Fili- pino immigration inta both Hawali and the United States. The coming of Fili- pinos in large numbers has “already created in California a serious social problem.” declares V. S. McClatchy, leader of the California Joint Immigra- tion mittee. He predicts an “in- evitable racial outbreak” on the Coast unless Filipino immigration “is speedily stopped.” Not only are there recurring clashes between whites and Filipinos, McClatchy says, but between different tribes of Filipinos themselves. * K K ¥ One of the steadily growing branches of usefulness of the Federal Govern- ment is the division of fingerprints over at the Bureau of Investigation in the Department of Justice. It has been built up through the sleepless efforts of John Edgar Hoover, director of the bureau. In 1931 there were re- ceived 480,524 prints, which compares with 87,918 turned in during the divi- slon’s first year, 1924. Chiefs of po- lice in 1,468 different cities co-operated with Mr. Hoover in his effort to pro- mote a system of uniform crime re- ports. Nearly 1500 county sheriffs contributed Bertillon records. * * Society news in Washington fre- quently is of high political importance. Yesterday the Polish Ambassador en- tertained Senator Borah at lunch. Poland and Idaho have apparently buried the hatchet that played such havoc during Premier Laval's visit, in- cident to Borah's plain speaking to French journalists about the Polish Corridor. pmumbered 1,029,000. (Copyright, 1932.) oo Bugaboo of Impeachment. From the Bloomington Pantagraph. It may have had a frightful sound to some of the tenderfoot members of the House the other day to hear a Repre- sentative stand on the floor and de- mand the impeachment of the Presi- dent of the United States. Impeach- ment is the last resort in getting rid of a President who is convicted of actlons detrimental to the Nation's good. Of the 31 Presidents, none has ever been impeached; one was tried for im- peachment, but acquitted. But it would be hard to name any President against whom there was never a ery of “impeach him” at some time in the House or Senate. Over- heated oratory in opposition to policies of the President usually reaches its grand climax in the demand to im- peach him. . But seasoned . members of Congress usually “let it pass in one ear and out of the other,” so far as paying any attention to cries for impeachment. They realize that to bring about the deposing of a President would be & blot upon his name worse than the average American remembers against Benedict Arnold or Aaron Burr. Therefore, to impeach a President would mean his conviction of crimes and misdemeanors beyond any that a previous occupant of the office has ever committed. Violent disagreements between & President and members of Congress there have always been; violent de- nunciations of the President on floor of House or Senate. “impeachment” usually rough the halls of Con- marble stair- The Political Mill By G. Gould Lincoln. The political spotlight turns for a moment on New Hampshire. In the first congressional district tomorrow the voters will elect a successor to the late Representative Fletcher Hale, Re- publican. The Democrats have high hopes of carrying the district, although Mr, Hale won there in 1930 by a mar- gin of about 8,000 votes. The Repub- licans, who are backing former Gov. John H. Bartlett for the congressional seat, have refused to admit defeat, how- ever, and Bartlett is reported to have made progress in his campaign. His Democratic opponent is former Repre- sentative Rogers, who was elected in 1922, when the tide turned against the G. O. P. in the first half of the Hard- ing administration. The district also went Democratic back in 1912, so a Democratic victory there is by no means an unheard-of event. It the Republicans can nose out a victory, even by a much reduced majority, they will feel that they have won¥a psycho- logical victory to usher in the new year. x ok K X ‘The Democrats had quite a row in their State convention, which nomi- nated Rogers. A younger aspirant, Hurley, was only defeated after what has been rumored to be strong-arm tactics. Hurley is supporting Rogers. It is possible, however, that 1ll feeling among the Democrats may in part off- set the advantage which the Democrats feel is theirs growing out of hard times and the fact that several of the State's largest and most important industrial cities are included in the district. With the Republican vote stronger in the rural districts, much may depend upon the weather and the ease with which the voters M the outlying precincts are able to get to the polls. If the Democrats win, they will hail the victory as a forerunner of many greater suc- cesses in the coming national cam- paign. Such a victory also would in- crease the Democrats strength in the House to 220 to 214 for the Republicans and 1 for the Farmer-Labor party. And conversely, if the Republicans wb the Democratic margin of control in the House will have been reduced so that the Democrats will have an actual majority of only three over the com- bined opposition. * K K K William Randolph Hearst steps for- ward as a President maker. In his radio address delivered Saturday night Mr. He st launches a boom for Speaker JegRt Garner of Texas. At the seme time he takes a crack at practically all the other Democrats most promi- nently mentioned for the presidential nomination, including Roosevelt, Baker, Smith and Ritchie. The burden of his criticlsm is that all these Democratic leaders are internationalists, inclined to follow the policies of Woodrow Wilson. Mr. Hearst's attack on Wilson is severe. ‘There has been more and more talk of Garner as a presidential possibility, ever since the by-elections to fill House vacancies gave the Democrats a ma- jority in that body and assured his election as Speaker. Speakers of the House in the recent past have tapped at the presidential door, but none of them has been able to enter. The late Speaker Champ Clark of Missours made a serious bid in 1912 for the Democratic nomination, but was de- feated in Baltimore by Woodrow Wilson. Garner, according to Mr. Hearst, is like Champ Clark, and Clark, Mr. Hearst insists, should have been nominated in 1912, ERE This is Jackson day week, the week in which Democrats are wont all over the country to get together and celebrate and talk over prospects of political vic- tory. Here in Washington, the Demo- cratic National Committee is to stage a huge Jackson day dinner and a meet- ing of the national committee the fol- lowing day. The dinner is set for Friday night, with three former Demo- cratic presidential candidates as the speakers, Cox of Ohio, Davis of New York and West Virginia and Smith of New York. The last time a big Jackson day celebration was staged here it was around 2 o'clock in tpe morning when the last of the speakers concluded and the weary dinner guests went home. The national committee expects to bring the dinner to an earlier close this year, and has allotted 30 minutes to each of the three speakers. Chairman John J. Raskob will preside and will turn over to Claude Bowers the job of acting as toastmaster when_the speaking begins. Bowers was the key- note speaker of the last Democratic National Convention in Houston. * K K K Unless there is a change in the present program_ the meeting of the Democratic N mal Committee on Saturday will ;e a more amicabie affair than that which was staged here last March, when the committee was torn over the wet and dry issue. Mr. Raskob, if reports be true, is not to insist that the committee go on record in favor of his “home rule’ anti-pro- hibition plank, although he is expected to report the results of a poll which he took of some 90,000 contributors to the last Democratic national cam- paign fund on the question of prohi- bition. The prediction has been made that this poll would show an over- whelming sentiment against the con- tinuance of national prohibition. There has been a growing tendency on the part of Democratic leaders not to at- tempt to make prohibition an out- standing issue at this stage of the game, but to seek greater harmony in Democratic ranks by sidestepping the wet and dry question. Mr. Raskob himself has gone so far as to say that he would not undertake to commit the party either wet or dry, but that he would be satisfied with a plank seeking @ referendum on national pro- hibition in the party platform. There will be a lot of interest, however, in the speech which former Gov. Alfred E. Smith makes at the Jackson day dinner, particularly if he stresses the need of making prohibition an impor- tant campaign issue. If he does it will be interpreted as & blow at the Roose- velt - for - President _movement, since Gov. Roosevelt and his followers have been inclined to soft pedal the pro- hibition issue at present. ‘Undoubtedly ears will be close to the ground Friday night to learn, if possible, ‘whether Gov. Smith himself is to be counted in on the presidential r:ce* H:Ls year. * The Democrats in Baltimore are to stage a curtain-raiser for the Jackson day dinner here and the National Com- mittee meeting. Gov. Ritchie is to be the guest of honor at a dinner given | Thursday night by the Concord Club. It is expected in some quarters that the Governor of Maryland will an- nounce himself a candidate for the| presidential ncmination on that oc-, casion, or, if he makes no formal an- nouncement, at least will make it quite clear that his hat is in the ring. Ritchie is still considered the Simon-pure wet candidate for the Democratic presiden- tial nomination. He has in his camp Hemphill, the Democrat who ran against Gifford Pinchot for Governor of Pennsylvania in 1930, and was only about 18,000 votes behind when all the ballots were counted. Hemphill ran on a wet platform. He had the backing also of many of the Pennsylvania Re- publicians who have been opposed to Pinchot, which made his going much easier than it otherwise would have been. Pennsylvania Democrats are so far pretty well divided in their pref- erence for the presidential nomination. Hemphill is for Ritchie and so are many of his friends. Joe Guffey, who used to be Democratic national com- | mitteeman for the Keystone State, is for Roosevelt, while Newton D. Baker | has a following, too. * K K K Senator Shortridge of California, ac- cording to reports, is to have plenty of opposition for renomination this year. At least three Republicans are said to be ready to enter the primary against him, including Representative Swing and Representative Crall and Tallant Tubbs, a State Senator. wringing ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. ‘This is & special department devoted to the handling of inquiries. You have at your disposal an extensive organi- zation in Washington to serve you in any capacity that relates to informa- tion. Write your question, your name and your address clearly and inclose 2 cents in coin or stamps for reply. Send to The Evening Star Information Bu- reau, Frederic J. Haskin, director, ‘Washington, D. C. Q. When did the New York Stock Exchange close and reopen during the World War?—J. P. A. It was closed from August 1, 1914, to some time in the following December. It was also closed on single days a few times. Q. What is a cycloglyph?—J. D. A. A. A cycloglyph is a comprehensive | composition in sculpture comparable to | a cyclorama or panorama in painting. {‘ Q. What is Oberammergauerpassions- festspielalpenkkrauterklosterdel1 k a ¢ - fruhstuckskase?—P. R. K. A. A literal translation of the Ger- man word is Oberammergau Passion Play Alpine Herb Monastery Delicate Breakfast Cheese. | Q When will this sun spot cycle be | over—W. W. | A. The next sun spot minimum is | expected in 1932 or 1933. Q. Has there ever been a foot ball game decision rendered to either side When o scores were made?—E. M. A. This is done when a game is for- feited. The score is then fgturned as 2 to 0 in favor of the team not in fault. Q. What is & finer type of music— opera or classical music?—L. M. S. A. Opera is classical music and much of the so-called classical music is opera, | as the term opera is the plural of opus, and an opera is a number of opuses set to words for presentation on Q. How do the tusks of Indian ele- phants compare with those of African elephants?>—D. M. A. The tusks of African elephants are somewhat larger. An Indian ele- phant's tusks may be 9 feet long and 100 pounds in weight, while those of a full grown African elephant are rarely less than 10 feet in length and weigh as much as 220 pounds. These are average figures and individuals may greatly surpass them Q. Where was “The Garden of Allah” written?—N. V. G. A. Much of the novel was written in a peasant’s house above Taormina. Q. How long does it take a boat to pass through the Panama Canal®>—P. L. A. A vessel proceeding without delays requires only from 10 to 12 hours for passage. Of this time three hours is occupied in being lifted and lowered through the locks. Q. Did a act?—J. H. M. A. President Wilson vetoed the Vol- stead act, October 27, 1919, and it was passed over his veto on the same day in the House, and the following day in the Senate. President veto the Volstead M Q. Are salt baths good for goldfish? K A A salt bath is very beneficial to | goldfish as a remedy for parasites and fungus growth which attack them. A solution of 13 ounces of salt per gallon of water is prepared and the fish dipped up and lowered into the bath, where they should remain for two or three seconds. They may then be transferred to another vessel containing well aerat- ed water of the same temperature as that from which they were taken. This treatment may be profitably repeated daily for two or three days. Q. Is the K in the name Knute pro- the stage. Q. How does the Great American | Desert_compare with the Sahara in size?—B. C. D. A. The Sahara has an area of about 3,500,000 square miles. The Great American Desert, extending from the United States into Mexico, has an area of approximately 1,050,000 square miles. Q. What is the drink called dog-nose which is popular with the working peo- ple of London?—B. L. T. ‘A. Dog-nose is ale or porter forti- fied with gin. It is a slang rather than a trade name. Q. What was the nine-power pact?— | R. A. The nine-power pact was a trr‘nty} among the United States, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and signed by other nations, ~also, agreeing to maintain the present status in the Pa- cific. Q. —R. E. A. He was buried at Aix-la-Chapelle, his favorite and usual place of residence. He was, according to tradition, buried in a vault of & chapel in a sitting pos- ture on a gold throne, dressed in his full imperial costume. Q. What were the British and| French flags at the time of the Ameri- can Revolution?—M. M. A. The British flag was a blue field with the crosses of St. Andrew and St. George; St. George, white cross; St. Andrew, red. The standard of France at this period was white with the fleur de lis, or lily. Where was Charlemagne buried? | E nounced>—M. M. B. A. The Swedish legation says that # is. It is difficult for an English speak- ing person to make the correct sound. . What was done with the dirt taken from the Panama Canal’>—L. S. A. As the Rgnama Canal was cut through very uneven territory, the dirt was used to fill in depressions. When will the congressional re- apportionment bill go into effect?—S. H, A. It will go into effect for the next Congress. The total number of mem- bers in the House of Representatives will be unchanged, but the membershig from some of the State will be different, Q. Should the ends of a bow tie worn with a tuxedo be tucked under the points of the collar or worn outside them?—M. F. A. Thé tie should be worn outside of the points of the collar. Q. Is there any watch or clock which keeps perfect time?—J. P. A. No clock or watch keeps absolute- 1y perfect time. dstronomical clocks are very carefully regulated and errors de= termined regularly by observations of the stars. In distributing time by tele- graph and radio the distributing clock is adjusted to within a few hundredths of a second of the correct Eastern standard time. Q. Did George Washington actually see any of the public buildings ir Washington, D. C.2—N. T. A. He helped plan several of taem and saw the White House almost read) for occupancy and the first section o1 | the Capitol ready for use. Strong indorsement of the idea of | placing a limit on campaign expenses | in Federal elections is given by the press, but many feel that control of the | matter is difficult. Encouragement to | fraud in handling funds is seen by some newspapers, while it is suggested that if the statute is made too broad, it will offer encouragement to thcse who might be inclined to nullify a legitimate elec- tion of a worthy candidate. The plan is given In a report by Senator Nye's Committee, which has been dealing with this subject. “With the purpose of the Nye re- port,” says the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, “there ought to be general accord; with the inclusion of primaries for Federal elections wtihin the con- gressiona]l power of regulation, there ought to be agreement. The limitations on expenses to 2 cents a potential voter in senatorial campaigns and cents in congressional districts, with maximums of $50,000 and $10,000, re- spectively, are reasonable. So is the limit of '$5,000000 cn a Presidential election campaign of any party or can- didate and of $250,000 on a primary campaign for presidential nomination. But while there has been prior demand that the Anti-Saloon League and some | other organizations should make report of their g_fllticfll expenses, an inclusive law which would make every effort to influence opinion in the course of a Federal election campaign, subject to the supervision and inquisition of a congressional committee, which may be partisan in its inspiration, needs to be cionsldered carefully as to its possibili- ties.” “If Congress enacts the proposed leg- islation,” thinks the Dayton Daily News, “the coming yearswill be a favorable | time to try it out. It seems unlikely | now that any presidential campaign | fuhd will reach anywhere near the| $5,000,000 limit set by the Nye Com-i , mittee proposals. Indeed, so extreme are the prospective economies of poli- tics thal we seem destined for an ex- hibition in the coming campaign of the possibilities of operating politics decently and sufficiently on the strength of the native good sense of the voters, aided only by those in- struments of education and publicity which operate without cost to candi- dates or campaign committees the year around—the press, the platform, the common intercourse of the people. The Daily News feels that State and Federal laws which have been enacted previously had “no_particular effect” and asserts that “the tricky and ex- cessive use of money has continued, ap- parently little restrained.” “In these days, outside the larger metropolitan centers, where intimida- Enforcement Problem Seen In Cutting Campaign Cosis is that though the bill submitted by the committee is futility at its windicst, it might command enough votes among tilters at windmills to be passed in one or both Houses. It accordingly deserves attention-” ‘ Assuming that “economic conditions are likely to enforce a considerable de- gree of economy,” the Lowell Evening Leader concludes’ “It is a difficult mat- ter to regulate, but at least it will not | be unreasonable to enact a strict ac- | counting for expenditures. That, one | suspects, operates as one of the most | practical checks on extravagance.” The Dallas Journal believes that “the limi- | tation would prevent excessive contri | butions to a party’s cause such as hav |been made in the past, with two fre- | quent after-charges that the candidate | backed by the most money has won.” | “Public sentiment alone can regulate | this sort of thing,” declares the Charles- 4/ ton (S. C.) Evening Post, with the fur- | ther comment: “It is absurd and im- practicable. There is no way in which an accurate accounting can be made |of campaign expenditures, and to put |an absolute limit upon the amount which may be expended, with nullifi« cation of the election as penalty would open up the possibility of such con- fusion as would make for worse evils than anything that comes from present methods. It would be possible, for ex- ample, for big business and finance, with command of unlimited resources, to nullify the election of a distasteful candidate who was a popular favorite by the simple process of flooding the campaign with money beyond the legal limit. It would actually put a premium on big expenditures.” It is agreed by the St. Louis Times that “the law would not apply to out- side unofficial interests,” and that paper charges: “We have had laws limiting the amount to be spent by an individual candidate. They have been observed faithfully as to the letter, but not ways in the spirit. Take, for instance, any candidate whose expenses are set by State or Nation at a fixed sum. The candidate jots down every contribution and every expenditure. He is honest about it and his record is straight. Meanwhile, those friends who formerly made direct cohtributions when there was no limit set on the amount that might be expended no longer do it to the same extent. Hav- ing a keen interest in the friend’s can- didacy they set up a campaign plan of their own. There is absolutely no col- lusion.” The Allentown Morning Call sees possibilities of fraud in the proposed system, and the Manchester Union re- marks: “There are so many ways in which much more than the law allows can be spent legitimately that the Nye tion and emoluments other than cold cash are used,” according to the Janes ville Gazette, “there is little, if an purchase of votes. We have progressed far on those lines. But another means of violating the corrupt practices act | which is so common in Wisconsin, but | not indigenous to the soil here, is the use of public officials, inspectors and all the array of pay rollers campaigning | for a candidate, with no expense to him, to hold their own jobs. This forms a scandal. With all its magnificent acumen and wisdom, this feature of elections, with non-reportable expenses, is not covered and we doubt if it could be” The Gazette advises that “Mr. Nye's bill should be gone over care- fully and made operative, though most bills or laws of a like nature are not.” “The members of the select commit- | tee” it is pointed out by the New York Sun, “chose to ignore the palpable truth that the direct primary has never encouraged that ‘equality of opportu- nity for citizens to scek public office which they find desirable. The minute regulation of the use of money in elec- tions is not likely to give the primary proposal is not likely to serve the ap- parent purpose intended.” ———— Something Wrong Somewhere. From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. ‘The gavel fashioned of West Texas mesquite wood, presented by Uvalde ad- mirers of Speaker Garner, snapped, we are informed by press dispatches, while the Speaker was practicing “whacks” for the benefit of news photographers, There’s a lot of mystery hidden in the paragraph, mystery of the sort that makes us all wish that the news bulle- tins would be more explicit sometimes. A Texas mesquite is a tough proposi- tion. Its wood is close-grained and highly resistive to all forces tending to disintegrate it. That a practice whack- ing could make a wreck out of a mes- quite gavel seems entirely impogsible. The only assumption is that only the head of the gavel was made of mes- quite. The handle, which was the part that snapped, might have been fash- ioned of some effete Eastern wood. However, there is some comfort in the a characteristic it never has had. The bill is discussed for two reasons. One | is that it represents in large part all| the immediate return that American citizens can expect from the $150,000 | voted to the Nye Committee; the other | ° rtridge, although the wet sup- e Sh(:" ’Pug:bs believe that he will e better chance because Short- , Swing ang Orail will all depend hewee‘x'm’mdn-\m 3 reflection that it was a West Texan who conquered the mesquite, an accom- plishment which is often more diffi- cult than it sounds, as anybody who has ever had the clearing of a mes- quite flat knows. — et Sure to Be Right Some Time. From the Duluth Herald. Pessimists are not without hope. The; are always looking forward they can say, “I m»."m‘;