Evening Star Newspaper, February 21, 1932, Page 24

THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTO! D. C, FEBRUARY 21, 1932—PART TWO. W THE NATION’S PILOTS BY THE RIGHT REV. JAMES E. FREEMAN, D. D., LL, P, Bishop of Washington. {THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. EUNDAY......February 21, 1932 YHEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company ‘Pennssivants ce: 110 East Ave. o <t 42nd gt e: Lake Michigan Building. ce: 14 Regent &., London, Englan w Y onicaso Of European Rate by Carrier Within the City. a5 Bia; S Per month ar (when 4 Sundavs) .....80c per month The Evening and Surday Star (wheh 5 Sundays) 65c per month The Sunday Star Collection made g.«’“m 5 B Vont Atione Sood, e 1n by ma Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. s:x:.v and Sunday.....1yr. $10.00: 1 mo. 88 1 36.00: ily onlv - 1y, : 1mo.. unday only 1¥r. $4.00; 1mo., 40c or telephons ARl Other States and Canads. fly and Bunday...1yr.$1200: 1 mo ily only 1yr’ $8.00; 1 mo: ne 1yr. $5.00; 1mo., 0" 7t [ Member of the Associated Press. e Assoctated Press is exclusivgy entitled to the use for republication of all s paicnes s dis- credited to it or not otherw d in this paper and also the Bublished herein. All richts of publici special dispatches herein 150 1 Children on the Stage. At the instance of some of the theater people and with the indorsement of some of the leaders in the community, Senator Capper has proposed an amend- ment to the District child labor law to permit the employment of children in theatrical performances. The amend- ment is quoted here in part: ‘The Board of Education of the Dis- trict of Columbia, or a duly authorized sgent thereof, is authorized to issue a work permit to any female person under eighteen years of age and to any male person under sixteen years of age, said quoted an unnamed American as thus depicting the situation of the United States: Italy has no coal or iron; France no oil; Great Britain must import two- thirds of her food supply; the United States is dependent on other countries for tin, silk, nickel, rubber and many other commodities. The tires on Amer- ican automobiles come from the rub- ber plantations of the Dutch East In- dies. American newspapers are made of Canadian wood pulp. We, in the United States, could not manufacture a telephone receiver or an electric light bulb without calling on help from abroad. Take the question of steel, for example. Forty different commodi- ties, assembled from 57 different coun- tries, are necessary to its manufacture. Nickel from Canada, vanadium from the high Andes of Peru, manganese from the Caucasus, chrome from New Caledonia in the Southern Pacific—it is by grace of these materials, and through the sweat of the laborers of these countries, that we have locomo- tives and turbines and skyscrapers. A country that could not make a loco- motive, an automobile, or an airplane without materials from abroad can scarcely be called self-contained. There is food for thought by our tariff-makers in this recital of facts not generally appreciated by the aver- age American. —_——rte. A World Language. A common tongue for all men—Eng- lsh in its basic grammatical principles and with a preponderant English vocab- ulary—is predicted by Dr. N. A. Cobb, retiring president of the Washington Academy of Sciences. Such a world language, Dr. Cobb be- lieves, already is in the process of for- mation. It is being brought about by the slow accretion of changes taking place below the current of social con- sciousness. It is unlikely that any de- liberate action can either hasten or retard the evolutionary movement which is taking place. Sooner or later, it becomes increas- ingly evident, something must be sub- permit authorizing and permitting the appearance of such person on the stage of a duly licensed theater within the District of Columbia, in any profes- sional traveling theatrical production not considered offensive to public de- cency: Provided, That such person shall 2ot appear on said stage after the hour of eleven o'clock in the evening of any day. Application for such permit shall be made by the parent or guardian of such minor to the Board of Education of the District of Columbia, or a duly authorized agent thereof, at least forty- eight hours in advance of the scheduled theatrical performance. The board or its agent shall issue a permit when satis- fled that the minor is receiving educa- tional instructions and that the health and morals of the minor are properly feguarded. ‘The tendency is to regard the pro- posed amendment as a reasonable pro- posal to permit the appearance of child characters in “The Blue Bird,” “Peter Pan,” “Little Eyolf,” “The Wild Duck,” *Little Women,’ Poor Little Rich Girl,” “Allegiance,” “As Husbands Go” and other stage works of outstanding merit; to remember the Barrymores, Mrs. Fiske, Maude Adams, George Cohan, Sarah Bernhardt, Mrs. Siddons and a number of other great artists who began as children the development of valuable stage careers that brought en- joyment to millions. And with these thoughts in mind as arguments in favor of the amendment, opposition may seem to be relegated to abstract theories asto whether this and that are “good” or “bad” for children. But the amendment raises a number ©of very practical questions which should receive thorough consideration. In the first place, is the demand for the meas- ure coming from the stage or from the box office? Is the amendment sought in behalf of the careers of future art- 3sts, or in behalf of those who stand to gain financially from their employ- ment? Is the Board of Education equipped to pass on the physical con- dition, the educational training and the moral background of a child actor with- in a period of forty-eight hours—or even a week? Is the Board of Educa- tion, in addition to its duties to the school ehildren of Washington, to un- dertake the censorship involved in deciding whether or not a traveling performance is “considered offensive to public decency”? Attend some of the Stage performances in Washington thea- ters—some of them all of the time and all of them some of the time—and try to figure out what constitutes offense *“to public decency” and what public decency is. Then conceive such respon- sibility as resting with the Board of Bducation—or its “agent.” The White House Conference on Child Welfare decided that the limitations in ‘the District upon children in theatrical performances should not be lowered a: to age limit. Only seventeen States and the District impose these limitations. This amendment not only lowers the #ge limit, but removes it altogether. Consideration of the legislation should not be approached from the viewpoint of allowing some future George Cohan or Maude Adams to receive the profes- sional training of debatable value re- sulting from public appearance on the eommercial stage, but from the view- point of protecting some seven or eight year old child who could be hired, through parent or guardian, to regale the first row at a burlesque show with B “cute” dance or song. If the amend- ment can be worded to prevent theatri- cal exploitation and commercialization of childhood, it should be studied on its merits. It is believed that, as now worded, it only encourages and permits such exploitation. e During the George Washington cele- bration the people who have been lis- tening in on speeches from the United States Capital will come to the seat of Federal Government and see the orators hard at work. - oot On Being “Self-Contained.” ‘We Americans are fond of believing that Mother Nature decreed that this should be a land utterly sufficient unto ftself—that whenever it suited our book, we could indulge to our heart’s oontent in the doubtful luxury of a pplendid isolation. Particularly are we prone to think that, were such & thing {magineble as a complete blockade of our cossts and borders by & eombina- flon of hostile forces, Uncle Sam yet would be in position to do business as usual, oblivious to the iron zing drawn around him. - The other day the chairman of a @great London financial institution, Lloyds Bank, Ltd, in deploring the growth of international trade restric- tions, through teriffs and otherwise, Ppointed out that hardly any important ountry in the world todsy can be de- SEld » Wit wbesxprioe, e stituted for the present confusion of tongues. For something more than half a century, at least, Latin has not served the purpose of a universal language. For nearly 2,000 years the speech of ancient Rome was comprehended in learned circles throughout etvilization. Knowledge of Latin was & necessary foundation for all higher education. This common language of the learned well may be credited with having been one of the greatest factors for inter- national understanding the world has known. But of late years it seems to have fallen into disfavor. It no longer is a required part of the curriculum of high schools and colleges. Its use has been practically abandoned in scientific liter- ature. This seems to be due to three primary factors. In the first place, thinking has gone beyond the bounds of Latin expression. Secondly, the gram- matical principles differ so strikingly from those of the modern European languages that men cannot “think in it.” Thirdly is the rampant nationalism which has even invaded the province of language. So it is entirely possible that a modi- fled English will be the Latin of the future. The present situation is becom- ing intolerable. Noteworthy contribu- tions in many lines of thought are being made in Russia, Turkish, Scandinavian, Finnish, Chinese, Japanese and Hindu. These remain almost entirely closed books to the scientific workers of other nationalities. We may expect to see the day when English, French and Ger- man, the classic languages of modern sciences, will be of no more intrinsic significance than Chinese or Finnish. No man will be able to learn all the essential languages and at the same time learn anything else. Languages originally were the result of the isolation of peoples. Through the centuries an enormous emotional sig- nificance has become attached to them. Will the end of the isolation in itself be sufficient to undo the work of the isolation, in the face of the emotional barrier to be surmounted? This remains one of the most intriguing questions for the future to answer. —— e ‘While he was applying for an auto- mobile license in Capetown, G. Bernard Shaw asked the official how long he had been driving. The official answered “thirty years,” and thereupon Mr. Shaw rejoined, “Then you will soon drive as well as I do,” and proceeded immediately to go out and wreck his car. This has not been a good season for the eminent playwright. This is one of several of his little jokes that have recently gone wrong. R Popular imagination is suddenly aroused to intelligent recognition of the fact that most Chinese are not laun- drymen and most Japanese are not jugglers. The nations of the earth need better acquaintance, but war is a rough means of effecting it. A Defaulting Government. Litigation in a way unparalleled in political history is now in progress in Australia. The Loan Council and gov- ernment of the commonwealth have de- cided not to permit the defaulting fed- eral state of New South Wales to escape its obligation to respect its bonded indebtedness, but to proceed against it in the high courts as if the state were an individual delinquent seeking to evade a debt. Last year the commonwealth of Australia, in order to protect its federal honor in Great Britain, advanced the money due from New South Wales for oversea interest payments. The legal proceedings now instituted seek to re- cover these funds. Meantime the fed- eral authorities at Melbourne have taken steps to impound any moneys that may otherwise be pald to New South Wales, including its share of federal aid for public works. Under an arrangement effected in with their own. Sir Harrison Moore, professor of law in Melbourne Uni- versity, declares that if the people of the defaulting state could be identified with their government, it would make separation from New South Wales “an inevitable measure of self-preservation for the rest of the commonwealth, un- less it was prepared to make New South Wales' policy its own.” Australians are discussing other drastic means to cope with a situation that may by no means find its solution in the law courts. If defaulting by an Australian state can threaten the political unity of the commonwealth, as it apparently is doing, it is being seriously suggested that the cause of federal union may require the extraor- dinary axercise of his authority by the King's representative, just as if the federal system did not exist. ‘That would be a recourse from which the crown would shrink—a precedent London wotld ponder over twice and thrice before establishing. ———— o A Well Remembered Crow. ‘The charge of nature faking, which was often made about twenty-five years ago when an eminent naturalist occu- pied the White House, cannot success- fully be laid against the resident of Staunton, Va., who traced a rooster that had been stolen from him by recogni- tion of the bird's voice. There is no reason to doubt that a man can come to identify the crow of his own gal- linaceous male. He hears it dally, and sometimes nightly. He is wakened by it every morning. If a fancier of the fowl he comes to admire its range of tone and strength of expression. Per- haps he prides himself upon his rooster’s voice. This bird disappeared, along Wwith some of the female members of the family. The owner was bereft. There may have been no sentiment for the hens, but the rooster was cherished. Suddenly came a sound. It was fa- miliar, though subdued. It was—yes, it was the voice of the vanished cock. And it was near at hand. Came some sleuthing, and the sound was traced, of all places, to the house next door. Could the cock have strayed from home? No, it was not a wanderer. It must have been kidnaped. What to do? Make forcible entry and seizure? No, that were unlawful. Summon the law itself! A search warrant in the hands of a constable did the trick. The house next door was entered and in a bag were found the rooster and a hen, the veritable rooster of the well remembered voice. Arrest, protest that the birds had been bought, denial by the owner with the sentient ear, identification of the loot, and doubtless punishment of the pilferer. Advice to all owners of domestic fow Learn your rooster’s crow by heart and unless the wicked thieves wring its neck forthwith upon seizure or take it out of hearing, you have a clue to the corpus delicti. But make sure of the voice, lest the law turn and rend in case of a mistake of identity. — Republican and Democratic har- mony ceased just about the time the League of Natiens showed signs of fatigue. The dove of peace has been a game little bird, but there is a limit to its endurance. —————————— Some trace may survive of ancient Asiatic sentiment that made foreigners unwelcome to both China and Japan. ——r——————— Uncle Sam could restore order in the old hemisphere, but he could not guarantee its preservation. +ao—. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Ultimata. There was a lady who in wrath complete Dismissed the suitor kneeling at her feet. She warned him, “I have spoken once for all, This word of mine I never shall recall. You need not telephone your grief to tell— Save now and then perhaps to say ‘Farewell.’ A few days sped along and she was seen With smiles for this same suitor, all serene. “Why,” she was asked, “do you permit this joke After the words of parting that you spoke?” Said she, “I say, like nations, as the talk extends, ‘What is an ultimatum among friends?’ ” Confused Calculation. Arithmetic, so grim and gray, 1929, New South Wales was entitled to draw something like $1,000,000 a month from the national treasury. This is to be withheld. Between now and June, another $5,000,000 allocated to the de- faulting state will fall due, and this sum, too, will be applied upon the debt which New South Wales repudiated. How serious is the straln upon the Australian commonwealth’s whole financial structure, due to the tactics of its largest constituent state, is indi- cated by the inception of a campaign to dissociate New South Wales from the rest of Australia. Efforts of the com- monwealth and other states to balance their budgets have been rendered futile by the incalculable demands suddenly thrust upon them by having to shoul= dew Mew Bouth Wales' cbligaticns along Still more of you I'll have to learn, And presently be on my way To make my income tax return. On money, gone in other days, My figuring often fails to fit, I fall into a dismal daze ‘While wondering what I did with it. The Hoodoo. I wish that I could learn to be A mascot in perpetual glee; A candidate I dare not choose, For those I like 'most always lose. Progress and Politics. < “Are you always progressive in your ideas?” “I'm careful about that word ‘pro- gressive,’ " answered Senator Sorghum. “Out in my part of the country & man who labels himself a Progressive in politics is regarded as a person who works terribly hard without getting anywhere.” Jud Tunkins says there are still big open spaces to be cultivated, but us farmers object to them because they're too far from the movies. Gossip. “She has suddenly grown very eco- nomical. Is she hoarding?” “No,” answered Miss Cayenne, “she is trying to save up enough from the housekeeping money to enable her to g0 to Reno for a divorce.” “The good old days of war,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “were those in which soldiers could frighten one another by inventing new effects in false faces and firecrackers.” “Life seems easier foh young folks dan it use to,” said Uncle Eben. “Now dey does a little studyin’ between dances an’ actually gits paid fob pickin’ fsbapjo” _ . Tert: “Thy wise men were thy pilots.”—Ezekiel, zzvii.3, With deepened pride we affirm that in every period of our national history, in every great crisls, God has raised up strong leaders to direct the destiny of the Republic. One cannot read the dramatic story of the birth of the Na- tion, of its growth, of the many vicis- situdes through which it has’ passed without realizing that something more than the human element has distin- guished its progress. Among the fig- ures that stand on the horizons of our history none is more commanding or more compelling than that of George Washington, whom we remember with deep affection as “the Father of His Country.” In all lands, among the good and the great, he ranks as one of the conspicuous and outstanding leaders of all history. Those who knew him best and observed him most closely have borne eloquent testimony, not only to his genius as a leader, but to the moral and spiritual values that were conspicuously evident in his personal habit and practice. “Moral and spiritual grandeur” has been repeatedly used as expressing thase excelling_qualities that adorned | Washington's life. It is well that the Republic at this time gives recognition to the 200th anniversary of the birth of one whose name and deeds are in- wrought in the very fabric of its life. It is well that the youth are freshly challenged to study again the life and character of one who stands foremost among those who have made and pre- served us a Nation. At so critical a time as the present. wh disillusionment _and bitter disappoint- ment shadow the life of nations the world round, it is not only profitable, | but supremely important, that we should look unto “the rock whence we are hewn” and take stock of those essential elements embodied in great personalities that alone secure to us “life, liberty and the pursuit of hap- piness.” been asked, “What makes a great?” Repeatedly the answer has been given by the most discriminating students and observers of bListory, “The kind of men it produces.” Judged by this standard. and by this standard alone, we of America may with confi- n unrest and | Repeatedly the question has | nation | dence claim a position of real great- ness and reassure ourselves that what we have inherited shall remain firm and secure in spite of all the storms | that beat upon our household. The |genius of the statesman. the courage | of the soldier, the contributions of the educator and the scientist have added | much to make this Republic what it | is. but, greater than all these, render- dering all these possible, is that quality of virtue, of religious faith of which Washington was a supreme exemplar. In these more trying and _difficult days we have at times disclosed a habit of critical analysis, a tendency to be censorious and ungenerous in our Jjudgments of men and things that is wholly unworthy of us. Again, we have placed undue store upon material val- ues, and we have thought of prosperity, with its attendant advantages and added luxuries, as the one consumma- tion devoutly to be wished. The deeper spiritual values that we cannot assay in terms of material growth and en- richment we have neglected or ignored. Last October at Yorktown we recalled in gzlowing pageantry and through elo- quent rehearsal the heroic deeds of & poorly equipped Army that wrought victory from the spear point of defeat. We were again reminded that some- thing other than force of arms con- stituted the assurance and strength of the little Army led and inspired by one ‘whose unfalling trust was in God and a righteous cause. ‘The story of Washington's public and private life s as an open book to be read and known of all men. He would I not claim for himself moral impecca- bility. He was human, like other men, but he had a faith and a trust that never faltered or failed him. His habits of private devotion, and his unfailing | practice of joining with his fellows in public worship bear eloquent testimony to the depth of his religious convic- tions. As patriot, as soldier and as the first leader of the Republic, he occuples a place so unique that his stature has not been approximated in any period of our subsequent history, but we may not forget that behind those excelling qual- ities, disclosed in his extraordinary public career, resided a deep and un- varying faith and practice that sus- tained and supported him in every act of his incomparable life. Field Against Franklin Roosevelt Offers A New Sixteen-to-One Democratic Puzzle BY GEORGE VAN SLYKE. NEW YORK, February 20.—As the belfef grows steadily that the Demo- cratic party is almost certain to go into a deadlock in the early balloting in its national convention in June, the | conflict within the party becomes more intense along a broad front. The favo- rite sons are supplied the impetus needed to speed up their campaigns and | the party is passing through a period of rapidly changing and probably danger- ous intrigues Speaker Garner's boom for the pres- idential nomination is growing beyond the limits of Texas and his gain is Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt's loss. With strong backing, Mr. Garner will be a real factor in determining the nomi- nation in the event of the dreaded deadlock. Willlam G. the contest as & boomer for Mr. Gar- ner. leaping into the same lifeboat with his arch foe, Alfred E. Smith How far that pair can travel together is an experiment of much interest to politicians. * % ox % Gov. Roosevelt is almost at a stand- still in the face of the combined attack of all his opponents but apparently has held his own stump in New York to strengthen his hold on delegations outside the Tam- many confines. His decision is awaited with keen interest and some apprehen- sion in the case of Sheriff Farley, New York County official, whose ouster was demanded by Judge Seabury, the in- vestigator, on charges of wrongdoing made at a hearing before the Governor. Politicians see possibilities of his action influencing his relations with Tammany and reacting for or against the morale r;: his campaign throughout the coun- 4 Al Smith is sticking closely to the course he laid down for himself, leav- ing his fate in the hands of his friends. | The issue between Gov. Roosevelt and Mr. Smith is joined clearly and sharp- ly in the New England States, where full sets of delegates have been entered for the primaries, and the early de- velopments apparently favor the Gov- ernor in New Hampshire and Vermont. This test will have more effect than the size of the delegations would in- dicate. * x % % Gov. Ritchie of Maryland, and Harry Byrd. former Governor of Virginia, are | following the same set of specifications, reaching_out into-new fields for dele- gates. Both have been in New York recently, in touch with the Al Smith forces and the sources of campaign supplies and funds. All the other favorite, son candidates —a flock of them—are bustling about in their own sections trying to get into the picture. The democracy has an- other sixteen-to-one issue on hand. This time it is not the old Bryan bi- metalism; it is sixteen potential and more or less active candidates. all against Gov. Roosevelt. The New York executive still holds first place; that is not yet disputed. All the others must be against him if they are to get anywhere. Their interests are iden- tical up to the point of stopping Mr. Roosevelt. That accomplished. they must fall into a free-for-all scramble. * K % % The sixteen, each of whom hopes and secretly expects to be the dark horse beneficiary, are: Alfred E. Smith, Owen D. Young and John W. Davis, of New York; Gov. George White, New- ton D. Baker, James M. Cox and Sen- ator Robert J. Bulkley, of Ohio: Gov. Richie of Maryland, Speaker Garner of Texas, Senator Lewis and Melvin A. Traylor of Illinois, Gov. Murray of Oklahoma, Harry Byrd of Virginia, former Senator James A. Reed of Mis- souri, Senator Joe Robinson of Arkan- sas and Gov. Bryan nnf Nebraska. l% is easily ible to figure out several comblnatigro;s which may be able to control one-third of the convention, supplying the 385 votes needed to bring on the deadlock. It can be done by Al Smith in various alliances or by other sets of combinations without Mr. Smith. e e political manipulators in charge othl;le l:gveml candidacies feel certain that Gov. Roosevelt can be held for seven ballots. The curious process by Which they arrive at that number is due mainly to the peculiar and unprece- dented instructions given by Ohio Democrats to their 52 delegates. Ohio must vote for four ballots for Gov. vhite, who insisted upon being entered as a candidate under a threat of a primary fight, and then for one ballot each for three other favorite sons. The three are not named, but they are Messrs. Baker, Cox and Bulkley. That ties up Ohio's big delegation for seven ballots, and plays into the hands of the allies and Roosevelt opponents, who are free to work out their com- McAdoo enters | He has taken to the | group may have close to 250 delegates, allowing Mr. Smith the 130 which his friends put down as his minimum. How- ever, that presumes considerable sup- port’ from New York, and the attitude of Tammany and the Empire State is still much of a mystery. Gov. Ritchie is_expected to have some 60 delegates, and Illinois will stand with 58 for Sen- ator Lewis until the tide sets in The way he is starting off. Mr. Gar- ner may have around 100 delegates. Mr. | McAdoo's support, combined with Wil- liam R. Hearst's active campaign in California, may cost Gov. Roosevelt some delegates in that State. Gov. Murray is going into several primari and may pick up 40 or 50 delegates. * ok ow x With 350 to 400 delegates thus ac- counted for, for the fact that Ohio's 52 are out of reach may be a tremendously important help to the anti-Roosev forces. It gives the sallies wWho mu stop Gov. Roosevelt, if any one of the number is to have a chance. an o portunity for trading and working out Of course, if Gov. Roosevelt s s a the primarics by defeating some of the favorite sons. that will make quite a different situation. One of the big dangers to the anti- | Roosevelt forces is trving to pull too many conflicting interests and leaders | into a working alliance. According to the present outlook., Smith, Garner and Ritchie may be able to operate without broadening the coalition to the danger point. They can, that is. if Garner, | with the backing of Texas. drys. Mc- Adoo, and all the other elements against Al Smith, can be held in an alliance with the former Governor and his wet backers in the East. (Copyright. 1852.) o Government to Share Its Business NewsWith Trade BY HARDEN COLFAX. For the first time the private busi- ness man—the smail merchant, as well as the larger house—is to have immedi- ately available to him the results of investigations and studies of business probiems by the agencies of the Fed- eral Government and commercial or- ganizations. As the result of a co-operative agree- ment concluded this week between the Department of Commerce, the Na- tional Association of Commercial Or- ganization Secretaries and the Cham- ber of Commerce of the United States, individual business concerns of the country will now be able to utilize to the full the results of all the research of these general agencies into the prob- lems of marketing and practical mer- chandising. * X % x This movement is being furthered through the local chambers of com- merce and other business bodies. It means that the 34 district offices of the Department of Commerce through- out the country, the regional offices of the national chamber and the nearly 12,000 member organizations that are associated with the trade secretaries will be centers at which the local busi- ness man, whether he be “the butcher, the baker or the candlestick make: can find already briefed for him in- formation of the most practical nature which modern American organized methods can glean from actual busi- ness experience. * x % % The method, which has already been tried in several States. will consist in supplying local business bodies with digests. arranged in a practical way, of studies into merchandising prob- lems and reports of successful experi- ences. These digests will be kept cur- rent and the local bodies will offer them to merchants and manufacturers to aid them in solving their practical everyday marketing and operating dif- ficulties. In explaining the arrangement. Fred- erick M. Feiker, director of Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, points out that it has been made in response to the requests of many thousands of individual business men, organized industries and trades. For a number of years the department has been building up a clearing house of information as to new marketing methods, practices and ideas. as a re- sult of scientific research and the ex- perience of successful going concerns. This has developed some intensely prac- tical information concerning market analysis. store arrangement. costs of distribution, credit, advertising, train- ing of sales force, controlling stocks, managing & delivery service, chain store methods and various other phases of wholesale, retail and industrial distri- n. binations without worrying about what | butio te’s 52 votes may do in those g;l’&?“ That number of votes might easily tip the scales in the event of a t. close fig! o New York, Ohio and Illinois, the three big States. will have ten candi- dates in the list and control of 204 delegates. Of New York’s four—Roose- velt, Smith, Young and Davis—none is a possibility for the nomination for Vice President. Of Ohio’s four—Baker, White, Cox and Bulkley—White and Bulkley are distinctly Vice Presidential possibilities. Al Smith and Gov. Ritchie fall into & patural aliance with Ilinois, That The department heretofore has been regularly and directly replying to re- quests for information of this kind and last year it extended such serv- ices to more than three-fourths of a million business men and concerns. Now the favorable position of local commercial organizations for giving di- rect aid to individual merchants and manufacturers in their communities is to be employed to the full. As the plan has been worked out practically in certain States during re- cent months with selected groups of chambers commerce, it has been found that the merchants and other Joopl bmsiness men wems iDSY various deals without being stampeded. | new burst of speed and makes gains in | Capital Sidelights BY WILL P. KENNEDY. History is repeating itself, and a prophecy made more than 10 years ago is being fulfilled. Fifty years ago & youn{ boy, dressed in homespun, came to the Capital as a page. He was a direct descendant of two of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, but his family was in such reduced circumstances that his hands were swollen from working overtime on piece work feeding paper bags into & press, and his mother had sa% up all night to make his homespun suit. - That boy, by dint of steady applica- tion to his work, by being obliging and by self-education, has remained in the House ever since, and was for many years clerk of the House. That was William Tyler Page, author of “The American’s Creed.” Some 12 years ago Mr. Page noticed a young page who he thought prom- ised well. He became interested in the boy's efforts. He had the boy as- signed to special work at the Speaker's desk, in practically the same position as he himself had started many years before. Mr. Page arranged for a special resolu- tion to be passed assigning this boy to work in the clerk’s office, where he has been employed ever since. ‘When he started work in the clerk's office Mr. Page gave him a fatherly talk, promised to help him, and pre- dicted that if he would do his best he might eventually fit himself to be clerk of the House. He carefully tutored the boy in the work of the clerk's office, and explained to him the reasons for doing certain things in a particular way. Gradually the boy be- came thoroughly conversant with the duties of the clerk of the House. ‘The other day South Trimble, the Democratic clerk of the House. who re- cently succeeded Mr. Puge, wanted to start on a little trip South. Under the rules he had to designate an assistant clerk who would perform the duties of clerk in his absence. He wrote a letter to Speaker Garner, naming his selec- tion as substitute, which was laid be- fore the House and entered on the Journal, as required by the rules of the House—and he designated Harry New- lin Megill, the page bov whom Mr. Page had trained, and who is now per- forming the duties of clerk, as Mr. Page predicted a decade ago. *x % % Any one who desires to have an inter- esting library of Washingtoniana —about Washington the man and Washington the city—can get it, many of the vol- umes free, through the George Wash- ington Bicentennial Commission and congressional distribution. and other volumes for the mere cost of printing from the Government Printing Office. There has never been a time when it was 30 easy to get so many human interest volumes about Washington, man or city, because these volumes are being published for the Bicentennial year. This Washingtoniana library is bo attractive artistry and high litera: well as educational and historical value. ‘The Public Printer in his annual re- port called the attention of Congress particularly to the work being published Under the heading “Writings of George Washington” we are told that *good progress is being made in the printing of the ‘Writings of George Washington. a monumental set of 25 volumes author- ized by Congress to commemorate the Bicentennial Celebration in 1932 of Washington's birth year. umes have been printed and bourd and the text for six more volumes is in type. A bill now pending in gress provides that of the 2,000 sets authorized ! the superintendent of documents, ed not later than July ublic libraries and instituty of learning shall be priced * * * One thousand es of London, dean of master printers, who designed for an Ameri comp anjon _type used by the Government Printing Office for the first time in the printing of the Washingtonp books, paid the following tribute to the Bicentennial publication: “I want to tell you how much I appre- ciate the generously worded copy vou sent me. It is next-door companion to Dr. Bridge's ‘Testament of Beauty.' These two books are my most charished Etecause they are the most personal and intimate of my book possessions. I can- not tell you how proud I am of them. “I can well believe that beautiful work such as this coming from the Govern- ment Printing Office will exert a big influence on American printing. because, after all, the purely ‘highbrow’ and the ‘striving-after-effect’ work is seen by a comparatively few." * x ok ok Other special publications memoration of the Washington Bicen- tennial include “An Account of the Vir- ginia Campaign and the Blockade and Siege of Yorktown.” by Col. H. A. Lan- ders, a royal octavo volume of 219 pages, printed in 12-point Kennerley tvpe on antique rag paper and profusely illus- trated by the offset process. “The Cor- respondence of George Washington and Comte de Grasse.” from the Washington papers in the Library of Congress. a royal octavo of 168 pages in 12-point roman_type. also on antique rag paper, and 853 copies of the following pam phlets relating to Washington issued by the United States George Washington Bicentennial Ccmmission: “The Mother of George Washington,” “Homes of Wash- ington.” “Family Relationships,” “Youth and Manhood.” “Home Making of George and Martha Washington,” “Social Life,” “George Washington the Christian,” the “Man of Sentiment.” “A Friend and Pa. tron of Music.” the “Leader of Men.” the “Builder of the Nation,” the “Man of Action in Military and Civil Life.” the “President,” and “Year by Year, and “Programs and Plans for the Ni tion-Wide Celebration of 1932 of the Two Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of George Washington.” * ok % % A book review of “Yorktown. 1781." by Col. . L. Landers, has been issued by the press section of the War De- partment: “George Washington. re- sourceful and successful commander in chief of our ragged Continentals, is at his best in the remarkable series of land and sea operations that culminated in the surrender of Cornwallis at York- town. His masterful leadership in ef- fecting the final concentration. involv- ing the employment of French and American troops in_harmonious co- overation with the French fleet under De Grasse, is ably presented in ‘York- town, 1781 “In preparing this book the author has gone deeply into the most authori- tative original sources and has studied the ground with an appreciative ey military values. His work displays not only professional military training, but a breadth of view which embraces the background of diplomatic maneuvers in England and France that had direct bearing on the outcome of the struggle then going on in America. Among the chapters devoted to the leaders on both sides, those on Lafavette, d'Estaing. Ro- chambeau, Cornwallis and Franklin at the Court of Louis XVI are especially worthy of note. The story of the sea battle between the fleets of De Grasse | wastes, or whatever you may please to|Spreads the c and Graves off the Capes of Virginia is | call them. are checked, there will be no one of absorbing interest. It is thi most comprehensive account of this ac- tion that has appeared in print, and the only one that is adequately supplement- ed with a battle map showing the posi- tions and movements of the ships. “This book is published as Senate Document No. 273, b;hmi sgnll:t):d ssgtvfl; ty-first Congress, e Un al Government Printing Office. It is beau~ tifully printed, well illustrated and sup- lied with excellent maps, For the orktown area the maps show both the fortifications of 1781 and the present road net, so that a person on the ground would have no difficulty in himself, * * * This a place on the shelves and military library States.” of every public in the United diately responsive. They have been particularly interested in the model store exhibit idea which has already assisted thousands of merchants modemise their store srrangemens. fCopyristt, 10039 Near the close of the session | Three vol- | in_com- | with %0 "be no SPEND FOR THE ™07 BY FREDERIC J. HAS Installment buying held up well during the first year of the depression, 1930, according to figures which have just come to light as a result of the Census Bureau's survey of distribution, taken for that year. There is every indication that this plan of purchase will be continued in view of the fact that in 1932 manufacturers have or- ganized to conduct a “spend-for-the- home” campaign. There has been a good deal of dif- ference of opinion concerning the soundness of the installment plan of buying. Some economists have gone so far as to blame this scheme for a large share in the depression. Others have taken the view that installment buy- ing has the advantage of spreading the distribution of needful goods and the | distribution of money paid for them | and, therefore, distribution of unem- | ployment over a longer period. This, it is urged, makes for more orderly production, marketing and consump- tion. | There is no field which has not been | invaded by the instailment plan in Lhe United States. From the purchase of | dwelling—even an apartment—to the costs of the maternity ward the in- stallment plan has been employed. Chiefly, however, it has been used in the provision of the home itself and articles to be used in the home. This circumstance, in connection with the new “spend-for-the-home” campaign, seems 10 promise extension of the practice. The vacuum cleaner, the refrigerating machine, the plumbing and heating system, the electric iron, the washing machine, the ice cream freezer. the home itself and—in short. everything in it—bave been purchasable in in- stallments. While figures are not available for 1931 as yet, there are indications ihat installment buying did not materially decline, save as all business felt some contraction. Indeed. in some lines and in some sections of the country there | is reason to believe that there was an increase in the proportion to the total of the volume of instaliment buying Many persons who in the past had bought for cash or on open account, finding their circumstances straitened | by intermittent employment and their ready cash diminished. turned to the installment plan to obtain needed goods. Americans Good for Debts. ‘The extent of this has been depend- ent on the willingness of the merchant to part with goods on such a basis, but | with slack trade in many lines merchants | are often glad to employ almost any | method to move their goods off the shelves, if there is a reasonable chance of collection. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that the average Ameri- can is good for his debts, given half a | ;| chance i So far as household goods are con- cerned. less than half the total volume | is paid for in cash. This is true in probably no other country in the world. | The instaliment plan and the charge account are very largely American in- | ventions. Certainly they have seen their greatest development in the United States. |a steady ‘Taking figures for all goods sold by the household appliance chain stores— and these are regarded as fairly repre- sentative of all household furnishing stores—it has been determined by th- Department of Commerce that 39 per cent of the business is done on the installment plan. Another 21 per cent is sold on open account or a total of 60 per cent of all sales on a non-c basis. Open account may mean a. thing from 30 to 90 days. It refers to the charge account as contrasted the installment plan calling for state periodic payments. It will be seen that leaves only 40 per cent of the business on a cash basis. | Merchants do not ordinarily wait for their money until it all comes in by installments or liquidation of open ac- counts. They are able to borrow f: their local commercial banks to the tent of from one-half to three-quarte: of the amount owed to them customers pay up their acc merchant curtails his indebtedness u his bank One group of figures h: electrical and gas applia have come to make up a proportion of tk 1 of seh appliances sold, ly on deferre. payments. Gas and Electric Appliances. It appears that gas appliances attract a larger share of cash payments. The department’s figures reveal that cash was pald for gas household appliances o the extent of 44.3 per cent of the total. This, however, is seen to be well under half. Installment plan sales ac- counted for 40.7 per cent of the business with only 15 per cent on open account. In the department of electric house- hold apphances 1t 1s found install- ment buying re cent of the total. Op Ses eX- tended W 24 whole, ng only t paid for in to do w spec leas 38 per cas Gas seems to be increasing in use. Up until a short time ago, it appeared that devices for the use of electricity would usurp almost all other lines, The wide extension of pipe lines conveying natural gas at low rates, coupled with lower prices of coal which make manu= factured gas more economical to buy, has given gas utilization a fresh fm- pulse. A stimulated market for gas appliances has resulted. Electricity continues to gain, of course, not only in variety of uses, but in the wide dissemination of its eons nections. The wiring of dwellings g clectricity has not progressed ev all over the country, but ear}"l year sees gai For example, with a population of 953.786 ham 933 dwellings wired for electricity. A% kansas with a population of 1,854,482, or practically_twice that of Oregon, has only 96.955 dwellings wired for elece tricity—less than half as many. Widespread vertising campaigns in connection i “spend-for-the ted to be engaged n and ther reason to believe that installment buying will take a new lease on life and continue to be of service to the American people and a valuable outlet for producers and merchants. Fifty Years Ago, In The Star Traffic accidents were not unknown in Washington 50 vears ago. even though ~ there were no | Dangerous motor cars. In The Star o of February 18. 1882, i Driving. tne ollowing letter from a reader | “I was really glad to see the com-| ments in vour excellent paper on the recent injury occasioned to Senator! Lamar by a reckless driver. As you well the atrociously reckless driving and disregard of the rights of pedestrians in this city cught to be stopped. but !the question is how it can be done. Some months ago, in company With my wife and another lady. I was crossing the streets at Thomas Circle, where there is the greatest abundance of car- riageway. Notwithstanding this and the fact that there was no other vehicle in sight, the driver of a two-horse car- riage drove in a trot directly across ou >ath and had I not seized the reirs of the horse nearest us and abruptly stopped his progress, one or both of the ladies would, in another instant. liave been under his feet. For daring to interfere with his absolute and ex- clusive control of the streets the driver repaid me with menacing words and gestures. Determined to try if there was any remedy, I followed the man to the stable where he belonged and got his name. I then called on the district | attorney and related the circumstances to him and received the inform:ition that there was no law to meet such cases; that nothing could be done with | the drivers who dominate the avenu and streets of this city unless ti | cause death or bodily injury to the un- | happy pedestrians who are compelled to invade their domain. There is not a day in the year that some one on Pennsylvania avenue does not have a miraculous escape from being run over. Pennsylvania avenue is one of the most | crowded thoroughfares of any city in the Union, and I wonder that the local | authorities of Washington do not_fol- | low the example set in Baltimore, Phil- adelphia, New York and other cities. and station policemen at the different | crossings to protect the passage of women and children.” * x ox % The installation of water meters was proposed 50 years ago, but in view of Wi the fact that there was ater great waste of water on Meters. the part of those who pay nothing for their supply, this innovaticn was opposed. | The Star of February 15, 1882, says: “There are at least two very serious objections to the joint resolution intra- duced in the House yesterday looking to the infliction of a water meter upon the helpless and bedeviled people of the District of Columbia. In the first place, there 15 in all probability a spec- ulative job at the back of the proposi- tion, as it appears to have been one inseparably connected with every at- | tempt to force the obnoxious device |upon other communities. ~ Secondly, | the measure is defective and oppressive in cannot be applied to public buildings and grounds, and there, as everybocy knows, is where the great wastes of water are to be founa. What makes the consumption of water in Washing- ton greater in proportion to population in other cities is the inordinate quantity of it that is used for mechani- cal and other purposes, in the Navy Yard and in the various Government shops, departments, etc., together with the enormous amourts aliowed to run to waste day and night in the public buildings and through the fountains in the public grouhds during the Summer season. Unless these consumptions or justice or sense in saddling the people of Washington with the inquisitorial, expensive and worthless infliction con- templated by the resoiution in question. There ought to be, and we believe there is, statesmanship enough in Congress to stamp the life out of this proposi- tion and all piddling measures like it and to turn its attention to securing to the National Capital an ample and per- manent supply of water, equal to all the needs of the place, now and for the future, no matter how much may be used per head by the people of other cities. e whole current of the Po- thousand dollars would turn the enmé volume of it, or so much of it as coul be carried, through our supply pipes and sewers. This is the point to whick Congress should address itself. In a city properly equipped and governed and as and as cheaply supplied as Washington, there can such thing ss waste of that ele- B & e B vod o its nature because its provisions| British Opinion Favors Rebuking of Japanese BY A. G. GARDINER. LONDON, February 20.—Japan’s defi- ance of the public opinion of the world and her scorn of treaties, coupled Wit the eminent peril of catastrophe to the interests of British nationals in Shang- hai, has consolidated feeling here and silenced her supportcrs in the press. The question is asked whether Japan has torpedoed the League of Nations. Events will supply the answer. The League Council’s note practically puts Japan in the dock and China’s demand for the summoning of the As- sembly of the League sisted. No one doubts th: ly will declare that Japan has violated the covenant and will call for action under Articie XVI. Meanwhile powerful pres- sure is being p ment to take the covenant in concert with th States and members of the League. It is felt that events are moving with such startling activity that further delay would be fatal. , e The Council's decision Friday to cal an extraordinary session of the full League Assembly lefi no doubt o practical unanimity of the Council in regard to aggression by Japan. In spite of the prr»-Japanm tone of the Paris press of late, the French government is fully in step with the rest of the Council. In regard to the powers outside the League, it is assumed that the United States ‘would co-operate. The case of Russia is perplexing. and some informed opinion holds the view that an under- standing has been reached between Moscow and Tokio. This, however, does not agree with o Soviet representatives, w the Russian government's sympathies are with China e As to the course of action open to the League, the London Times warns Japan not to reckon on a continuance of mere protest, and in the press and Parliament the British government is being urged to press the Council to substitute deeds for words. The w drawal of Ambassadors and the clos of ports against Japan are now advo- cated as_methods to bring Tokio to reason. It is ad of the defiant att these expedients are attended by grave risks. No possibility cz ruled out in the case of a power h has acted with deliberate disregard for treaty oblig | tions and the traditions of civilized | procedure, and it is recognized that Japan's predominance in her own waters is overwhelming. Moreover, the Japanese have threatened that 'eco- nomic action by the League and the powers would involve violent retaliation at Chinese ports, and even Singapore, should the risk be taken. It is significant that the most urgent pressure on the League comes from the liberal pacifist section of the press. Ve don't believe.” savs the new states- iman, “that united opposition by the League's states and America would be forcibly opposed by Japan. On the contrary. it is the only efective way of bringing Japan to her senses. “Japanese public opinion puts on a brazen front, but remains sensitive to the judgment of the world. And the question is not merely whether #he world can afford to fight Japan; it is whether Japan can afford to fight the world. Against concentrated economic pressure the Japanese could hope for nothing but a pyrrhic victory and the Japanese want no pyrrhic victories; they are realists.” Against the risks attending action ¥ is urged that the risks of Inaction are still greater. If the conflagration s belll must arise and the powers, in spite of themselves, will be caught in the vortex. Further, it the League is successfully defled now its prestige is gone and it cannot sur- vive the humiliation if the world re- verts to competitive armaments. In short, the danger of acting in concert is negligible compared with the danger of not calling Japan's bluff. All opinion agrees now on lamenting the fact that action was not taken in the earliest stage of Japan's challenge. (Copyright. 1932.) beauty and a promoter of health and comfort, and there should no more be orienting | tomac runs by the base of the Capitol.}a tax or a drawback on its use than book deserves | The expenditure of a few hundred|cn the use of fresh air. Finally, and conclusively, it may be said: First, that the meter system, when adopted, would prove an utter failure, as experience® elsewhere has shown that no meter has yet been invented that will accurately register the flow of water. Second, that the cost of furnishing meters to ail the --m;t;lm:o of l’was:mgmn mount up near] sum_requisite for increasing the water supply to the most ample emtent,