Evening Star Newspaper, February 19, 1932, Page 1

WEATHER. (U. 8. Weather Bureau Forecast.) Cloudy, probably preceded by light rain this aftetrnoon and early tonight; tomorrow partly cloudy and slightly cooler. Temperatures—Highest, 43, at 3:30 p.m. yesterday; lowest, 30, at 7 a.m. today. Full report on page 5. es 14 and 15 Entered as sec post _office, No. 32,070, Washington, ond class matt er D, C The Foening - Star. WASHINGTON, D. C., FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 1932—FORTY-SIX PAGES. ###% U. S. CIVILIANS LEAVE DANGER SPOTS IN CITY AS ZERO HOUR NEARS American Infantry- men on Duty Close to Line of Fire. JAPANESE PROMISE TO EXERCISE CARE Battle to Some in World War Expected. Comparable By the Associated Press. Two powerful armies waited tonight at Shanghai to go into what was expected to be a battle comparable to some of those in the World War. The zero hour was 7 a.m., Satur- day (6 pm., Eastern standard time, Friday), the time at which Japan’'s ultimatum to the Chinese commander expires. The Chinese premier said the government had rejected the Jap- anese demand to retire to a point 121, miles from the city. American infantrymen, patrol- ling the settlement border along- | side Chapei, were in one of the most delicate spots along the whole neutral front, close to the line of fire, where it was almost certain some stray shells would fall in a general bombardment. The Japanese command said care would be exercised, but if mis- directed shells fell in the settle- ment it could not be helped. American civilians were hurried out‘ of the danger z:nes. Tokio, awaiting a general election to- morrow, heard that Chiang Kai-Shek, | influential Chinese war lord, was on the way up to Shanghai with large num- bers of troops. The government was considering sending reinforcements to the Japanese expeditionary force. Up in Manchuria it was reported that the Executive Committee of the new independent state had chosen Henry Pu-Yi, the former “boy Emperor,” as the chief executive. In Geneva the League of Nations Council called a special meeting for this afternocn at the request of the Chinese delegate. AMERICA! LEAVING. Danger Zone in Shanghai as Major Offensive Impends. SHANGHAL February 19 (#).—Hun- dreds of American residents who live in the most dangerous spots in Shang- hai, with the prospect of a pitched batile between Chinese and Japanese armies tomorrow. were advised by United States Consul Edwin S. Cunningham today to evacuate these areas for points of greater safety either tonight or to- morrow: morning No arrangements were made to take out of the city itself. because the danger was not considered sufficient to warrant such a move, but Consul General Cunningham joined h the British consul general in issuing the warning to those who lived in the Hongkew and Yangzepoo districts, where the likelihood of Japanese or Chinese shells landing was thought to be_greatest Previously consular officials consid- ered tie possibility of evacuating women and children from Shanghai, but it was finally decided not to take this step. Between 100 and 200 Americans in the chief danger zone began to leave during the afternoon, following the consul general's advice. The officials continued to consider the foreigners in the rest of the settlement reasonably safe for the time being, although plans already have been considered for evac- Quit uating the women and children from the city on foreign ships if the situa- tion should grow worse. 115 Americans in Hongkew. The register at the consulate showed 115 Americans iiving in Hongkew, 12 at Yangtzepoo and 18 at the Uni- versity of Shanghai, between Kiangwan #nd Woosung. There are also quite a number of retired American sailors, marines and soldiers who have lived in Hongkew for years but who have not registered at the consulate. Meantime, American Marines and In- fantrymen on patrol along the north- western frontier of the settlement were in a bad spot in case the expected battle should begin. In the event of an artillery attack from Japanese batteries in Hongkew, these men would find themselves vir- (Continued on Page 2, Column 1.) RUNAWAY GIRL HURT IN LEAP OUT WINDOW Police, Summoned by Mother, Ar- rive as She Breaks Glass and Jumps. Leaping from the third-story window of a rooming house at 1437 Belmont street shortly before noon today, Anna Rose, 20, plunged to a concrete pave- ment and was seriously injured. She was taken to Garfield Hospital. ‘The girl, police were told, had run away from her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Victor Rose, who came to Washington from Boston a few months ago. She disappeared from the Belmont street address about two Weeks ago. Ths morning her mother en- countered her on Fourteenth street and took her home. When she refused to stay, police were called. As the radio car arrived the girl broke the window with her elbow and leaped out X-ray examinations are to be made to determine whether the girl's skull was fractured. Arms Conference Bars Showing of Famous War Film By (he Associated Press. GENEVA, February 19.—A film company today asked President Arthur B. Henderson of the World Disarmament Conference to permit the showing of the film, “All Quiet on the Western Front" under auspices of the conference, and permission was refused. The company sald it wished to impress the delegates with the horrors of war, but President Henderson decided it was impos- sible to accede to their wishes. The film will be shown anyway without conference auspices. CHINA TURNS DOWN DEMAND T0 RETIRE Premier Willing to Comply Only if Japanese Go Equal Distance. By the Associated Press. NANKING, China, February 19.— | Wang Ching-Wei, the Chinese premier, said tonight that the National govern- ment had rejected the Japanese de-| mand that the army at Shanghai re- tire to a point 1212 miles from the city. | The army will withdraw, he said | | only on condition that the Japanese | also retire an equal distance. The pre- | mier said these instructions already | | had been sent to the Chinese author- | ities at Shanghai. Wang Ching-Wei's reply was a five- | point proposition. First he said, the proposal for with- drawal of both Chinese and Japanese was acceptable, but the withdrawal of the Chinese only was a demand which | | the National government found it im- possible to accept. | Retuses to Raze Forts. Second, he promised that anti- Japanese activities be dealt with ac- cording to the law, pointing out that freedom cf speech and the press was guaranteed by law and could not be in- | terfered with. If anti-Japanese activ- | itles got beyond the limits of the law, | he said, such activities would be duly dealt with by the authorities. Third, he insisted that any proposal | for dismantling of the national de- fenses was unacceptable. He was re- | ferring to the Japanese demand that | | the éorLs at Paoshan and Woosung be | razed. Fourth, in the ordinary course of | events, the Chinese government did not | station troops in the Shanghai area, he said, adding that when normal condi- | tions were restored, the area would con- | tinue to be patroled by Chinese police. | Fifth, the demand that Japanese air- | planes should watch the withdrawal of | | the Chinese was declared unacceptable. | Wang said_investigators of such with- | | drawal, if it were absolutely necessary, | | must be third-party neutrals, and not | Japanese. Appeal to League Planned. A foreizn office spokesman said late | today that the National government | had instructed Ambassadcr W. W. Yen | | at Geneva to invoke article 15 of the | League covenant at the coming special | session of the League Assembly. Chinese officials _arriving from Honanfu -said China would resist any Japanese advance, not only at Shang- hal, but throughout the country. Chain of Trenches Visible. The government officials said net- works of trenches were visible along the | Lunghai and Tientsin-Pukow Railways “for hundreds of miles” on their train trip through Kiangsu Province. This indicated, they said, a determination to prepare for any emergency. Some Nanking officials professed to feel that only a tremendous national catastrophe, such as a war against a | foreign foe, would unite China’s op- posing factions and bring internal peace. e Blows Self Up With Bomb. BRNO, Czechoslovakia, February 19 | (A)—Joseph Stava, a cabinetmaker, | blew himself and his shop to bits with a bomb when a tax collector arrived to ;rmecmu upon the shop. He chased the collector out with one hand grenade |HEARS GEN. CHIANG | he said, whether a high-ranking gen- Heavy Reinforce- ments May Be Sent by Tokio. HEADS LARGE ARMY 90,000 Chinese Believed Massed for Defense of Seaport. TOKIO, February 19.—Japa- nese government officials en- gaged in a series of conferences late today which, observers said they believed, were called to formulate tentative plans for sending heavy reinforcements to Gen. Uyeda’s army at Shanghai. Newspapers reported that Gen. Chiang-Shek, former President, was leading a large army to Shanghai to support the 19th Route Army which is already | there, in anticipation of the be- ginning of the big Japanese drive tomorrow. Premier Suyoshi Inukai called upon Emperor Hirohito at the Imperial Palace after a confer- ence of selected cabinet members this afternoon. The news of Chiang Kai-Shek’s reported move, War Minister Araki was reported to have said, made the situation at Shanghai much more serious. Members of the cabinet were re- ported. however, to have agreed to do their best to prevent the situation from developing in such a way to necessitate a declaration of war. Immediately after the cabinet conferences the premier left for the palace to see the Emperor. 90,000 Chinese Believed Massed. Mr. Araki, the minister of war, told the Associated Press correspondent the possibility of reinforcements under Chiang Kai-Shek might compel Japan to send an additional expeditionary force to Shanghai. = “Our intelligence reports,” he said, “indicate that there are at present 90,000 Chinese soldiers facing our men in the Shanghai area. including Chi- ang's troops, which are reported to have joined the 19th Army. If these reports prove true we may be compelled to reinforce our expedition propor- tionately He declined to say just how strong a reinforcement he considered necessary, but he explained that it probably would require 10 or 15 days to put the addi- tional units in Shanghai. He would not say definitely that the Japanese would not operate beyond the | 121;-mile zone to which the Chinese Army has been asked to retire. If the Chinese would attack Japanese on the borders of that zone, it might create a | situation requiring a further Japanese advance. he said.. He declined to say whether the con- templated reinforcements already are prepared to leave for Shanghai, point- ing out that the general staff always held the Army ready to deal with | emergencies. It has not been decided, eral will be sent to Shanghai as com- mander in chief. Meet After Cabinet Session. The premier's visit, coming on the eve of the general election followed a meeting with Minister of War Arakiand | Foreign Minister Yoshizawa. The three statesmen gathered together after the regular morning session of the cabinet. The war office general staff has been watching closely the developments in Shanghai. If the present Shanghai Japanese force should be doubled or trebled the war office was expected to name a special commander in chief with the full rank of general. Gen. Uyeda is a lleutenant general. Last Monday Minister of War Araki said further reinforcements might be necessary and the belief prevailed to- day that steps already have been taken to cope with whatever situation arises. Although it was election eve, the public and officials alike gave little attention to anything but Shanghai. They awaited anxiously the results of Gen. Uyeda’s ultimatum, which, they understood, might mean that the Japanese and Chinese Armies would be locked in combat before election day is over. It was pointed out here that the Japanese attack might be launched as | and then set off another in the shop. " (Continued on Page 2, Column 4.) By the Associated Press. BOSTON, February 19.—The Boston Post, in a copyright story, says Eliza- beth Barrett Cook, Brookline heiress, who met death at sea under strange circumstances on the freighter Chinese Prince, died a victim of her own hoax. The paper says that passengers who sailed with the girl on a trip to Europe | last December revealed they were con- | vinced Miss Cook herself wrote the | “hoax™ cablegram. The paper was told, they said. that Miss Cook sent herself a cablegram and followed it up with a fake attempt at | suicide. They said the girl landed at | Lisbon when the ship docked there |and went ashore, visited a telegraph |office and returned to the ship. A short time later, the paper says, & cablegram was delivered to her aboard | the ship saying that her sweetteart, a mythical one she named Malcolm. had died. The purser, the paper said, knew the message was faked. The paper says the girl refused to be consoled and one night while near the rail screamed about “being through ' ~ 'HEIRESS WHO DIED ABOARD SHIP CALLED VICTIM OF HER OWN HOAX Boston Paper Declares She Sent Herself Cablegram Telling of Fiance’s Death. with life” Two women passengers moved to her side and the girl gave up_her suicide gesture. These actions, the Post points out, were almost identical with the one pre- ceding the girl's death. A cablegram was delivered at Naples as the girl was about to sail for the United States. The cable said her sweetheart, St. George Tucker Arnold, M. I. T. grad- uate, had died. Later the girl’'s body was found in her cabin. Officials have revealed that a narcotic was found in her cabin. The paper says a third hoax mes- sage also was received by Miss Cook last June while in Wiesbaden, Ger- many, and she received a telegram that her mother was seriously ill in Naples. She hurried there only to find that her mother was not {ll. The author of this message has never been found. The paper says their informants be- lieve the 20-year-old hei~~ss was the probable author of all three messages and the victim of her own hunger the dramatic. HOUSE . 0.P. BACKS HOOVER'S PLAN T0 REVAMP BUREAUS Holaday Offers Bill Empower- ing Reorganization by President. EXECUTIVE’S ECONOMY RECORD IS DEFENDED White House Issues 30-Page List of Recommendations Over 12-Year Period. House Republicans today took steps to carry out President Hoover's request for authority to reorganize the Govern- ment in the interest of economy. Representative William P. Holaday of Illinois, a member of the subcommittee drafting the District appropriation bill, introduced a party-sponsored resolution to empower the Chief Executive to abolish, ccmbine or transfer any com- mission, bureau or other Government division by executive order within one year from the date of passage of such legislation. The measure carries with it a provi- sion that the number of employes and their combined pay in any new division of Government which may be created by the President under this authority, shall not exceed 80 per cent of the number and combined pay of those now employed. Report Called For. Representative Holaday has written into his measure a further provision that the President shall transmit to Congress a report of all executive or- ders which he may issue under this authority within 10 days after such orders have been issued. If Congress is not in session at the time, the report shall be submitted to Congress within 10_days after Congress next assembles. In the face of Democratic belittling, a vigorous movement is under way to defend the President’s economy record for consolidation of Government bureaus with duplicating activities. So seriously is the criticism being taken up that many observers forecast an end to ihe generally harmonious, non-political era in Congress which has seen the most conspicuous peace-time co-operation on legislation for the na- tional good. The White House itself has taken part in the defense through the is- suance of a 30-page list of recom- mendations for consolidation made by Mr. Hoover over the past 12 years. This was not officially linked to the sharp words of Speaker Garner and others who said the President was try- ing to create new positions instead of dispensing with present activities. Democrats Drive Ahead. A statement was made that the list was_issued “in response to numerous Tequests.” At the same time, besides a Repub- lican taking up of the cudgels on the House floor, an administration source pointed out that Garner's announce- ment of a special Democratic Com- mittee to study Federal reorganiza- tion had been issued one day before the President’s message to Congress on the subject and two days after this message had been handed in confi- dence to the press. Whatever the outcome, the Demo- crats drove ahead with their efforts to consolidate the War and Navy Depart- ments, claiming it would make a big saving. The President and all the high officials of both departments are against it. The House Expenditures Committee wili vote tomorrow on the proposal. Reply Based on Data. The White House's indirect answer to the President’s critics was in the form of a collection of statements, ad- dresses and messages made by Mr. Hoo- ver since 1920. This assembled data apparently is intended to show he has made frequent suggestions over a span of 12 years for improving the organiza- tion of the Federal Government. The first of these statements was during an address before the American Institute of Mining Engineers at Min- neapolis in August, 1920. On that oc- casion he suggested that a cabinet de- partment be established in Washing- ton, either new or to replace the In- terior Department. He set forth the advantages of such a department, say- 1ng there would be an enormous saving. Speaking in Philadelphia in_April, 1921, before the Engineers' Council, Mr. Hoover declared one of the great- est: problems of the then new adminis- tration was the reorganization of the Federal Government. “The inadequacy, the wastefulness and the inefficiency of our Federal or- ganization,” he said, “was evident enough under pre-war conditions. * * * The administrative units of the Gov- ernment must be recouped so as to give each of the great departments more nearly a single purpose.” ©On_this same occasion Mr. Hoover (Continued on Page 2, Column 8.) BILL ASKS SATURDAYS AS LEGAL HOLIDAYS Representative Britten Estimates Jobs Would Be Provided for 4,000,000 Under Plan. By the Associated Press. An unemploymen relief bill which would make Saturdays a legal holiday was introduced today by Representative Britten, Republican, of Illinois. He es- timated this would add 4,000,000 work- ers to the country's pay roll. Britten's measure would authorize the President to initiate the Saturday holi- day by advising Governors of States of the action of Congress if the bill is ap- proved. He said the bill was introduced upon the suggestion of Max Epstein of Chi- cago, who will be asked to testify be- fore the House Judiciary Committee on legislation for a five-day week. Epstein has made a nw of this subject. | rather than the usual banking channels “From Press to Home Within an Hour” The Star’s carrier system covers every city block and the regular edi- tion is delivered to Washington homeg as fast as the papers are printed. (®) Means Associated Press. TWO CENTS. _— e - ——— SHANGHAI AWAITS BIG OFFENSIVE TONIGHT THE GOVERNOR- HAS ABO! CKIN'UP A L‘:‘TTLE SETIP DTl_}EN' B (e uT y" b ORATORY DELAYS BANKING MEASURE Senate Expected to Reach Vote Soon on Bill for Credit Expansion. By the Associated Press. Oratory, all of it friendly. kept the credit expansion bill still before the Senate today, awaiting only a vote to move on to final enactment. Not a single word of opposition has entered the seven or eight hours of de- | bate on this measure, which is expected | to restore confidence in banking circles | and pour out fresh credit streams from | the Federal Reserve system. An endl to the speechmaking was expected dur- | ing the day. Much Good Accomplished. Without having had a chance to be- come law, however, the bill and other | credit aids appeared already to have done inestimable good. The revived security markets have drawn the first | increase in loans to brokers and dealers shown in a Federal Reserve Board re- port since last September. The figure went up $13,000,000. At the same time hoarding decreased, reflected in a $17,000,000 drop in the excessive total of money in circulation. The anti-hoarding drive continued in full swing. concentrating upon plans for an issue of Government bonds in small denominations to be sold much as the war-time Liberty bond were passed out to the public, through local drives which absorb Treasury paper. Friendly Words Included. The continuing debate in the Senate kept harping on the timidity of bankers, !but, unlike the first day, the Senators talked about it, financial men were given some friendly words and a defense against charges of hoarding money and securities. Several pleas were made to have the credit relaxation made per- manent, but the sponsors of the bill stuck fast to the strict one-year limi- tation, preserving the bill as one for present emergency purposes. BLAGDEN KIDNAPING INQUIRY IS DROPPED New York Trooper Sent to Cleve- land to Investigate Story Is Recalled., By the Associated Press. CLEVELAND, February 19.—Investi- gation of the kidnaping story related by Harry Blagden, 45, sportsman, of New York State, was dropped today. State Trooper H. N. McGann of New York, who had come here to inquire into Blagden's story of having been kidnaped from Lake Placid, N. Y., said he would return home today, abandon- ing his investigation. Police Chief Wil- liam G. Barrows of Cleveland Heights also said he was dropping tne case. Blagden left the home of Claude Peck, where he appeared early Tuesday, for some destination which the Pecks declined to reveal. e sportsman said he had escaped in Cleveland after being held five days by three men. He said he made his getaway by overpowering one of the zu]..rdshwhlle the other two were eating & lunch. “PUBLIC EN.EMY" DIES Myles O'Donnell Succumbs Tuberculosis in Chicago. CHICAGO, February 19 (#).—An- other of Chicago’s original “public ene- mies” is gone. ‘The ravages of tuberculosis and not gang bullets removed Myles P. O'Donnell, 28, from the list of “public enemies” issued two years ago by the Chicago Crime Commission. Myles, a brother of William “Klon- dike,” was prominently mentioned in gangland’s affairs eight years ago be- cause he was riding in an automobile through Al Capone's territory in sub- urban Cicero with Assistant State At- torney Willlam H. McSwiggin when McSwiggin was shot to death. Radio Programs. on Page D-5 to Policeman in Auto Kills Boy Hidden by Chums in Paper Box By the Associated Press NEW YORK, February 19.— Patrolman Albert Ott, driving a Brooklyn pelice tow car, sounded his horn. Three boys playing with a large paper carton, scur- ried to the sidewalk Ott determined not to swerve, but to go right on over the pa- per box. His wheels hit it. The boys screamed. Ott jammed on the brakes. Too late. Nine-year-old John Elliott lay inside the box, dead, his skull crushed. STOCK PRICES UP ON BEAR RULING |Market Recovers After Mid- day Following Reaction Due to Profit Taking. By the Associated Press NEW YORK, February 19.—The stock soon regained its composure and de- veloped quiet strength today. after a bear stampede at the opening gave prices a violent convulsion. An opening upswing of $1 to $7 a share was quickly cut in half after the bear demand for stocks to cover their short sales had been satisfied pace of trading dropped off sharply. While 700000 shares were traded in the first half hour. it took an hour and |a half for another 700000 shares to | trade. The market started upward again after midday, and by early afternoon. there were numerous net gains of $1 | to 84 a share. | Bears appeared thoroughly fright- |ened for a time over the Stock Ex- change’s. order last night that after | April 1 brokers must obtain specific | permission from customers before loan- ing their stocks to short sellers. Brokers said, however, that it was largely the amateur bears who rushed to cover and that many of the more experienced traders were taking their time about retiring their short commit- ments. _Opinion _differed ccnsiderably as to the ultimate effects of the new ruling, although it was widely ap- plauded. Eastman Kodak, after running up $7 a share to $84.75, fell back to $80.62, then came up to around $82 by early afternoon. Auburn, after running up $6.50 to $128.50, fell to $122.87, then recovered to around $125. Union Pa- cific, after rising $5 to $93.37, relapsed to $89.25, then rose to above $90. United States Steel, after rising $3 to $52.62, slid back to $50.87. then bounced back above $51. These fluctuations were typical. ROSA PONSELLE ILL NEW YORK, February 19 (#)—Rosa Ponselle, suffering from a cold which she contracted while singing in Wash- ington Wednesday, postponed today & concert _scheduled in Baltimore tonight. Miss Ponselle’s doctor said she would be able to leave tomorrow night for Cleveland, where she is to sing Mon- day night. Her manager said she would keep the Baltimore engagement in March, probably March 18. EXPLANATION ‘::K pEPOSITS WHERE TEY FAR EXCEED (THE PUBLIC SALARY THEY RECEIVE POLICEMAN IS SHOT BATTLING SUSPECTS |T. D. Bacon Wounded Twice. | | Captures One of Assailants in Fierce Fight. Policeman T. D. Bacon, first precinct, was shot early today during a desperate battle with two men who, he said, ap- parently had just made an unsuccess- ful attempt to burglarize two buildings in the 600 block of E street. Con- tinuing the terrific struggle despite a bullet wound in his leg and another in his foot, the officer finally succeeded in | overpowering ome of the men—an escaped convict wanted for questioning in connection with several recent safe ‘The prisoner, who refused to give his name, subsequently was identified as John Kendrick, 37, who escaped from the New Jersey Prison Farm at Bor- dentown, N. J., last September 21. Suspicions Aroused. Bacon became suspicious of the pair, he reported to his commanding officer. Capt. William E. Holmes, when he saw them step from an automobile and en- | ter one of the buildings, which is said to house a gambling establishment. | The men emerged from the building & | few minutes later, Bacon said, and en- | tered an adjoining building. | While the men were in the second | building, Bacon said, he locked into their car and found an automatic shot- gun. They returned while he was still peering into the machine. he said. and | Kendrick, drawing a revolver, ordered | him to “stick 'em up!” | Bacon refused, he sald, and hoth men attacked him. During the melee, one of the pair was thrown through the show window of a shoe repair shop. The fight was at its height, Bacon said, when Kendrick fired the gun. One of the bullets plerced Bacon's right thigh and the other struck the little toe of his right foot. His right hand also was cut. Disregarding his wounds, he contin- {ued the battle. When he subdued Ken- drick the other man fled. Kendrick was lying across the fender of the auto- mobile, with Bacon bending over him and demanding that he surrender. when Park Poljceman W. A. Earl arrived. ‘The t precinct patrol was sum- moned and Kendrick was taken to the station, where he was booked for in- vestigation. Bacon, meanwhile, was taken to the hospital in a taxicab. His conditicn is not serious. While being booked, Kendrick is said " (Continued on Page 2, Colurn 6.) prale s dnaded e STAGE MASS PICKETING Thousands of Garment Strikers Hold Demonstration. NEW YORK, February 19 (@.— Thousands of striking garment workers participated in a mass picketing dem- onstration in the garment district to- day. It was the first demonstration of its kind since the strike began last Tuesday and many extra police were on_hand to preserve order. The strikers, numbering something over 20.000. are members of the Inter- national Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union, affilisted with the American Federation of Labor. They are asking better wages and living conditions. MRS. GANN TO BE 1t is well established today at the White House that Mrs. Dolly Gann, sist. and hostess of Vice President Cur: tis, will play an important role as party speaker during the coming na- tional campaign. Mrs. Gann said after an interview with Walter H. Newton, one of the President's secretaries, who was chair: man of the Speakers’ Bureau during the 1928 campaign, that she would make a political address on March 15, at Bos- ton, before the Business and Profes- sional Women's Republican League. It is understood that Mrs. Gann’s conference with Mr. Newton today, fol- lowing a similar one with him yester- obtain final mstructions re- Al GIVEN BIG ROLE AS CAMPAIGN SPEAKER FOR G. O. P. Vice President’s Sister Makes Good Impression in Early Efforts—Will Appear in Boston. :::‘d.l‘n[ the forthcoming political ad- in Boston. Republican leaders are known to have been well pleased with the reac- tion following Mrs. Gann's recent speaking trip in the Midwest. She was pressed into service again at the Lin- coln day banquet in Washington of the National Capital Republican Club, on which occasion she again acquitted her- self as a political speaker, to the satis- faction of the administration and Re- publican leaders. Now that Mrs. Gann has made such »_satisfactory impression in her early efforts as a campaign “stumper,” the feeling is general that she be used extensively in the coming campaign. robberies—but the other man escaped. , PITTS SUDDENLY ABANDONS APPEAL AND BEGING TERM Decision to Drop Contest and “Take His Medicine” Comes as Surprise. FOUR INDICTMENTS ARE STILL PENDING Prosecutors Dodds and Burkinshaw Refuse Comment on With- drawal of Action. ‘Withdrawing his appeal from a con- viction obtained more than a year ago, G. Bryan Pitts, who climbed from an obscure clerkship to become the execu- tive head of the F. H. Smith Co., today began serving a 14-year sentence in the penitentiary for conspiring to em- bezzle $5,000,000 from the corporation he controlled. Pitts’ decision to abandon his appeal and “take his medicine” came as & distinct surprise. Despite the over- whelming mass of evidence piled up against him by the Department of Jus- tice, Pitts had consistently asserted bis innocence and had steadfastly de- clared he would fight the conviction to the last. Four Indictments Pending. Four other indictments—one for em- bezzlement, two for perjury and one for illegal use of the mails—are still pending against him. It could not be learned whether any of these prosecu- tions will be dropped as & result of his action today. Assistant _Attorney General Nugent Dodds and Special Assistant Neil Burk- inshaw, who prosecuted the case, re- fused to comment on the withdrawal of the appeal. ‘The step was taken by Pitts through Attorney Dozier A. De Vane, who also withdrew an appeal which had been noted by Pitts from a conviction against him for contempt of court growing out of the introduction of alleged spurious documents at the trial of the conspiracy charges. May Be Given Credit. The sentence in the contempt case was a year and a day. It is expected this sentence will be allowed to run concurrently with the original sentence of 14 years. Pitts was refused bail after his first conviction, and consequently has received no credit for the 14 months spent in the District jail pending ad- judication of the appeal. There was & possibility, however, that he may be given some credit for this time. According to testimony at the trial, Pitts entered the Smith company in a minor position, but rose rapidly until he controlled the organization. Thousands of small investors were ruined by his operations, largely through the sale of greatly inflated bond issues. Many of the bonds he sold are now utterly worthless C. Elbert Anadale and John H. Edwards, jr., vice presidents, who stood trial with Pitts on the conspiracy charge, have since turned against him and made voluntary statements to the Department of Justice. Their testi- mony was used against Pitts at the contempt_trial. What effect. if any. the abandonment of Pitts’ appeal will have on the future prosecution of the contempt matters could not be learned. When Pittq was found guilty of this charge by Justice F. D. Letts, however, Mr. Dodds in- formed the court that additional cita- tions would be brought against “‘other persons connected with the fabrication of the allegedly spurious documents.” Stripped of His Fortune. Pitts now finds himself virtually stripped of the vast fortune he accum- ulated as head of the Smith company. The Bureau of Internal Revenue seized his palatial Florida home, his expen- sive automobiles, Fis wife's jewelry, bonds and other securities in satisfac~ tion of claims for unpaid back income taxes. He has also been named with officials of the bureau as defendant in a suit by the present Smith com- pany to recover all of these assets on the theory that they were stolen from the company by Pitts in the first place. Pitts, who has been in Gallinger Hospital for several days undergoing treatment for nasal hemorrhages, was sent back to the jail yesterday. It is expected he will be sent to Lorton Re- formatory to begin the penitentiary sentence in the near future LOS ANGELES DUE HERE Navy Dirigible Leaves Lakehurst on Training Flight. LAKEHURST., N. J., February 19 (). —The Navy dirigible Los Angeles left this morning on a training flight which is expected to extend as far south as Washington. The ship will return to the station late this afternoon, change crews and go aloft for a night training cruise. It is planned, weather conditions being favorable, to send the dirigible for a flight on Sunday in commemoration of Washington’s birthday. The itinerary would include Washington. TWO DIE IN TAX Twelve More Severely Wounded in Hungarian Village. BUDAPEST, Hungary, February 19 (®)—Two farmers were killed and twelve others severely wounded in an .| attempt to carry out a tax moratorium declared by villagers at Pacha. The villagers forced tax officials to return cattle they had seized in place of unpaid taxes. A clash with the gendarmes followed, in which the lat- ter opened fire after the people pelted them with rocks. The news of the clash provoked a stormy protest by Leftists in the Par- liament here today. e Bus Bomb Injures Three. HAVANA, February 19 (#)—Three persons were wounded, including one policeman, by a bomb placed in an omnibus on the outskirts of the city today. The perpetrator of the %lp‘ ‘was unidentified. & § -