Evening Star Newspaper, February 29, 1932, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR. WASHI NGTON, D. C. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 1934 Mw West a year or two ago. Quite mfldlnre courage in coming back to the THE EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. MONDAY. .February 29, 1832 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: 11th St. and Pennsylvania Ave. New York Office: 110 East 42nd St. cago Office: Lake Michigan Bullding. uropean Ofice: 14 Regent ., London. England. Rate by Carrier Within the City. Evening Star .. .45¢ per month Evening and Siunday Star unda: 60c per month. & ing -.65¢ per month The Sunday Star ... S5c yer copy Collection made at the end of each month Qrders may be sent in by mail or telephone NAtional 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Sun 17yr.,$10.00; 1 mo.. 8¢ A 1y, $6.00: 1 mo.. 50c 1yr. $4.00: 1mo., 40c All Other States and Canada. 1y and Sunday...1¥r.$12.00: 1 mo., $1.00 E-n; only . .......13yr. $8.00; 1mo., 7% day only [yr $500 1mo. 50c Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclysively ertitled o the use for republication of all news dis atches credited to it or not otherwise cred- ted in this paper and also the news published herein. Al rights of publiration ot special dispatches hercin are also reserved. A Way to Peace 2t Shanghai. Evidences appear that a disposition prevails at Tokio to effect en adjust- ment of the situation at Shanghai short | of an actual military success. Tentetive negotiations have been instituted, a meeting between representatives of Japan and China having been arranged on board a British warship. This meet- ing, it is explained, was held at the re- quest of Japan. Reports state that a Japanese proposal was advanced that each side withdraw to a distance that could not be spanned by artillery fire, the validity of the withdrawal to be investigated by a joint Sino-Japanese committee and supervised by neutral observers, if China so desires. The pro- position included the suggestion of a round-table conference after the with- drawal, including delegates.of the two contending powers and “all nationalities interested in the International Settle- ment,” to consider proposals to protect Chinese and all foreign interests in Shanghai, formulate a plan for the fu- ture status of Greater Shanghai and agree upon & plan for the policing of the zone which Japan insists must be evacuated by the Chinese armies. These suggestions may not prove to be immediately practicable, but it is evident that a disposition prevails on Japan’s side to bring about a settlement without major warfare, although heavy reinforcements are being landed by Japan in the Shanghai area, with the view of further operations. It is now quite plain that the Japanese campaign of aggression has failed. Further sacri- fices will not materially change the situation, even though the Chinese lines may be driven back to some extent. At whatever point the invading forces may be pushed there will still remain the problem of final settlement, which can- not be solved by the permanent hold- ing of Chinese territory by Japan. The immediate necessity is for Japan %o find a way to cease aggressive action without confessing defeat. The pro- posal of an enlargement of the area of international control at Shanghai is apparently regarded at Tokio as a step in that direction. If Japan can effect an adjustment on the basis of the creation of a wider zone within which China may not assemble forces it will perhaps have gained the stopping point ‘which will ensble it to proclaim the at- tainment of the objective that was sought at the outset. ‘The good offices of the other powers | may well be employed to the end of such a settlement as a provisional ar- rangement, leaving for future consider- | stion the matter of reparations. The wvitally important point at present is to stop the hostilities. Both sides must be brought to measure the grave in- jury to their respective interests that 'will be caused by further fighting. The flerce antagonism that has been evoked will not be lessened by continued con- flict, but will rather be increased. Japan's economic welfare demands the suspension of hostilities, which are daily increasing the ill feeling of neu- tral natlons. China must sooner or Iater face the consequences of yielding in any degree to Japan's demands in terms of internal dispute and perhaps oivil war inflamed by the fierce fac- tlonal rivalries that for the moment are suppressed in the face of invasion. Neither side stands to gain by fur- ther conflict. This is apparently real- imed now by both of the contestants. ‘The way to peace through an adjust- ment, whether effected directly be- tween the opponents or through the intermediation of the neutral powers, should be welcomed at both Nanking and Tokio. ———— Opinions as to whether or not prohi- bition should be taken out of politics are not important 5o long as there re- mains the very great and practical ques- $lon, “Can it be done?” e Moses and Garner. Peppery Senator George Moses and peppery Speaker John N. Garner are engaged dn peppering each other with political statements. The New Hamp- shire Senator has a reputation for quick thinking and quick speaking. So has the Speaker. Mr. Garner, accord- ing to Senator Moses, not only spoke out of turn, but unadvisecly, when in an interview with newspaper correspondents he charged the other day that Presi- dent Hoover had led the country into the panic of 1929 and the depression which ensued. Mr. Moses asserts with considerable emphasis that the Speak- er's attack on the President of the United States is only a beginning of the Speaker’s actual campaign for the presidency this vear. He adds that doubtless the Speaker will amplify his sttacks on the President to include such charges as that Mr. Hoover brought on the World War and that he loaned billions of dollars of American money ' to Europe during a Democratic admin- fstration. Sarcastically the Senator from New Hampshire suggests that! Speaker Garner first will decide “the more pressing question, whether he is Junning as a wet or as a dry.” Speaker Garner in his reply to Sen- | {pucand three hundred feet despite the of stock prices. ator Moses contented himself with sug- gesting that Mr. Moses had given his statement “about as much thought”as he guve to the now famous “ of the " comment he ion the insurgent Republican Senators of the Inot a candidate for the nomination for Mr. Garner. As a matter of fact, however, the personal attack delivered by the Speaker of the House on the President of the United States has not made a favorable impression on the country. Its only possible excuse appeared to be politics, and the kind of politics which Senator Moses has ascribed to it, although Speaker Garner and his friends continue to insist that the Speaker is not a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination. The Speaker in his reply to Senator Moses made no comment whatever | upon the sting in the tail of the Moses statement. He sald nothing about his own stand on the question of prohibi- tion, which the titular leader of his party, Alfred E. Smith, has insisted is a paramount issye in the coming cam- paign. Obviously, however, a declara- tion on the prohibition question at this time is not in line with the campaign which Speaker Garner's friends are staging to obtain for the Speaker dele- gates to the Democratic National Con- vention next June. Perhaps & questionnaire dealing with prohibition may be started on its way to potential candidates for the presi- dential nomination of the Democratic party, just as the Republicans striving for preferment were catechized in 1928 by Senator Willlam E. Borah of Idaho. Speaker Garner’s insistence that he is might permit him to ignore such a questionnaire if it came to him. And doubtless it would have to be launched from an important Democratic source | to receive any attention whatever, and not by Senator Moses. p— Hopeful Signs. Legislative measures have been en- acted within the past few weeks, culmi- nating in the signing of the credit expansion bill on Saturday by the President, that it is believed will effect the stabilizing of the business of the country and promote the recovery of industry. The Reconstruction Finance Corporation, formed to provide funds to corporations, banks, railroads, farmers and other interests, is in operation. The credit expansion law is about to become effective to the end of liberal- izing the rediscount authority of the Federal Reserve banks, breaking up the “log jam” of securities in the member banks and causing & freer flow of cur- rency and & wider range of credit. Meanwhile, the President’s anti-hoard- ing campaign, conducted by & great committee of citizens, is under way to invite investments by the people who have withdrawi their funds from circu- lation. Bonds of small denominations at an attractive rate of interest are to be offered at once to this end of bring- ing out of seclusion large sums that have for many months been lost to business. Already a negative but definitely re- assuring evidence of improvement in conditions has appeared in a marked reduction in the number of bank fail- ures, both within and outside of the reserve system. Banks have been failing in all parts of the country at a dis- tressing rate, chiefly because of the failure of credits and the disappearance of currency. Attributable to the enact- ment of the two new laws, the check- ing of this sequence of faflures may be hailed as evidence that the tide has been turned from apprehension to con- fidence. Other signs are noted to strengthen the hope, indeed the belief, that this turn of the tide is not merely spasmodic but definite. The Federal Reserve Board's monthly review of conditions, Jjust issued, notes, for example, an in- crease of manufacturing products by almost the usual seasonal amount in | January. Wholesale prices, which had | declined in January and early Febru- ary, showed increases for & number of important commodities during the pre- | ceding ten-day period. | Recent advances in the stock market, | followed by reactions of profit taking, | have been recognized as the effect of a spirit of hopefulness induced by the | successive steps that have been taken by the President and Congress. There | can, however, be no sustained recovery | of security prices until evidence appears | that the earnings of the corporations are soon to be increased, assuring the maintenance or the resumption of divi- | dend payments. It is generally recog- nized that the price average in the stock market is, on the whole, below the investment value point. There will, | however, be no general and sustained | advance until confidence in the re- habilitation of the corporations is re- stored. The tokens of recovery are to be sought elsewhere than in the stock | exchanges, although the daily quota- tions serve as indices of immediate conditions. Soviet leaders are said to be afraid that a Russian army, if large enough to be influential, would turn its arms against its own government. This is discouraging news from an enterprise that was expected to distribute both wealth and labor in a manner that | would insure universal satisfaction. — a————— Success of a dictator does not depend | on real popularity so much as on the | power which can compel the prompt de- ! livery of cheers and indorsements when- ever demanded. Miss Nichols’ New Record. Miss Ruth Nichols, well known avi- atrix, has had her ups and downs, principally downs, &s indicated by the | number of weeks she has spent in hos- | pitals recovering from various crashes, but at least she now has the satisfaction of being one up on her mentor, Clarence Chamberlzin, who flew the first pas- senger across the Atlantic soon after Col. Lindbergh blazed the trail. Cham- berlain is experimenting with one of the new Diesel airplane motors in his ship. These engines, ofl burners, and weighing almost pound for pound that of a similarly powered gasoline motor, have performed remarkably well in the air. A month or so ago the transat- lantic fiyer decided that he would like | to see what altitude he could get out of his new plane and motor. He shot up to about twenty thousand feet and was very much elated. The other day Miss Nichols took up the same ship and game after grave injuries. Last Sum- mer, much against the advice of her| well wishers, she essayed a solo crossing of the Atlantic, but her new especially built plane suffered accidents which made it necessary to call off the at- tempt. The first mishap was in New York, where she did little damage to herself or pfane in a fast landing. She took off successfully some time later on the first lap of her transatlantic fiight, but on reaching Newfoundland, where she was to start her European dash, she again set the plane down at too high a speed and wrecked it be- yond Tepair, She was confined to a hospital with dangerous injuries for a period after that. Miss Nichols keeps everlastingly at it, though, and her new record, which beats her teacher by several hundred feet, is a tribute to her skill and courage. She has proved herself able to set up enviable marks for woman fiyers. She should, however, keep her activities within the bounds of common- sense enterprises, such as her latest alti- tude record and not try to do what many aviation-wise persons think is almost impossible, that of & woman fly- ing the Atlantic alone. D S E— Announcement by Geraldine Farrar that she is, at & comparatively early age, perfectly content to retire from the stage could not be more impressive if it had been prepared by a capable press agent in contemplation of a series of farewell appearances. It becomes evident that Senator Borah is expected to hold himself in readiness to express ideas concerning politics at any time and relating to any portion of the habitable globe. ————————— In contemplating a recess about the middle of May, Congress gives due rec- ognition to the fact that a presidential campaign is pretty sure to demand every statesman’s undivided attention. - China refuses to be annoyed by any reproof for not carrying on her part of the war in the way Japan had it re- hearsed in imagination. e —r—————————— A cynical survey of enforcement might convince a New York statesman that prohibition has to be in politics or nowhere at all. e r————————— Radlo talks from Geneva are inter- esting. Fighting at Shanghal, could it be put on the alr, would be more so. —————————— Some of the war jesting is raising the question of whether humor is an admirable gift or only & bad habit. ——e— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. The Dull Teacher, Experience, that teacher famed, Still brings her questions out. Our best endeavors she has claimed, We linger on in doubt. Great mechanisms we devise; New marvels we discern— And yet we view with sad surprise The things we cannot learn. We try to find the way to live ‘Which brings contentment true; ‘What credence to withhold or give As rumors fly anew. We say in sorrow and unrest, As to old tasks we turn, “Experience, we have done our best. Some things are hard to learn.” A Time for Restraint, “What would you say if you were re- quested to become a candidate?” “I wouldn't say a word,” answered Senator Sorghum. “Ought you not to display enthu- siasm?” “Not too much. Nobody is liable to get the best publicity by getting up in meetings and giving three cheers for himself.” Mysteries. Jud Tunkins folks read mystery stories a lot, but to please the stories have got to be about murders instead of sbout what became of the taxes. Mutuality Desired. Td very much dislike to fight ‘With weapons I don't play, I hope that all T meet by night Are feeling the same way. Improvements. “You have all the modern improve- ments at Crimson Gulch,” remarked the traveling man. “T should thus aver,” sald Cactus Joe; “and I hope you notice the high-toned language.” “I understand your meaning.” “That’s the way with everything. The style has changed, but the meaning’s just 'bout the same. Instid of a hoss an’ & six-shooter, & gunman uses & high- | power car an’ a sawed-off shotgun. And instid of being appended from a tree, he's invited to & seat in the electric chair. It's beginnin’' to look to me like all civilization amounts to is doin' the | same old things in & different way.” “To laugh at the misfortunes of | others,” sald Hi Ho, the sage of China- town, “gives others an excuse to assume that you enjoy calamity and will not resent laughter at yomr own sorrowings. | It is this ungenerous reciprocity that so often has made the world hard to live i Ease or Hardship. ‘The joys of wealth come to an end ‘When wealth brings problems deep, | It may not mean much more to spend, But just more books to keep. “First thing you knows,” said Uncle Eben, “some o' dese nervy racketeers is liable to want medals for discouragin’ people from hoardin’.” Made for Down Speed. From the Columbus, Ohlo, State Journal That bobsled slide at Lake Placid | must have been modeled after the one in Wall Street. Let Him Try It. Prom the Milwaukee Sentinel. It certainly would be a joke if Mahat~ ma Gandhi decided to carry a con- ealed weapon. r Perplexing, From the Des Moines Tribune. ‘To follow Hollywood divorces nowa~ reached the official mark of twenty fact that at twenty thousand feet two of the cylinders of the Diesel blew out and she had to get her sdditional alti- tude with a badly functioning engine. Miss Nichols is not only one of the best of woman flyers, but she has shown days is almost as tiring as to keep track r—————————— Whose Head to Hit? PFrom the Nashville Banner. it b Soe. dangerous one another or the m‘ of | ticipate in_the Executi ‘The telephone is not just an instru- ment, but a sort of human being. Too long it has been lokoed upon merely as a mass of wires, poles and strange in- struments, made human by usage. 1t is possible to regard it as a human being, for that is what it is, in a sense. That' is why, for instance, that this column, primarily interested in human nature, turns from time to time to it. Human beings use it, of course, and thus many of the good and bad traits of people crop out over the wires. It is interesting to recall these matters, some innocent, somg revealing, others tragic. All this, however, is not what we mean when we say that the telephone is a human being and must be con- sidered as such. We mean that it unmistakably re- veals certain traits which set it off as @ person, almost, so that when one thinks of it in this way he sees some- things closer to him than wire and bakelite and rubber. * ok x % A very human thing about the tele- phone, for instance, is the fact that our strictly modern instruments get some- body to do part of the work for them. That is_essentially human. ‘These dial phones compel the user to put them to work. At first there was some complaint on this score, mostly by those who missed the fresh, vital voices of the operators. Mostly that resentment has vanished now, but that does not take away from the fact that the “whirligig” instru- ments make somebody else do part of the work. ‘That is so human! A machine which functions auto- matically, as we say, with the vast rev- erence which the modern mind has for anything automatic, is a great machine, but it is, after all, a machine. No one ice box as human. It turns itself on and shuts itself off with uncanny pre- cision, byt with all the precision of the unthinking mechanism. The automatic gas water heater in the basement is an- other wonderful machine of modern civilization, which has a little bit of copper which does its “thinking” for it. The dial telephone, however, is auto- matic with a difference. It compels the user to exert his brain and his hand, up to & certain point, or it simply will not work at all. It is really human, in a way, because it makes some one else do part of its work. Is there a human being alive who does not do greclsely as much, if there is any feasible way of securing such co-operation? To like to have some one else do part of one’s work is not necessarily selfish. It means, above all, that one is able to secure co-operatioin, and there are few things in life more satisfactory or de- sirable than co-operation. Civilization is based upon it. ‘Therefore, it is possible to commend the telephone's humanity when it com- pels us to take & hand, actually and figuratively, in its action. It is almost possible to see the instrument smile. * ok kX Another intensely human thing about the telephone takes us out with the linemen on the lines, as the wires are called. You see, we refer not to the in- strument alone, when we say “tele- phone,” but to the entire interesting in- dustry. Maybe as you walked along & highway you saw strange tent-like structures of canvas hitched to the side of a pole, would think of regarding the electric | THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. or even suspended in mid-air out over the_street. ‘The linemen were doing some solder- ing there, and were using the tent to keep the wind from blowing the blow- torch. Now here is where the human touch comes in. The men can use these tents, we understand, whenever they so de- sire, not only to protect the flames, but to_protect themselves as well. ‘That is humanity in action. Civiliza- tion no longer demands that any one shall suffer just for the show of the thing. If suffering is necssary, men must meet it like men, if they can, but if there is any legitimate relief, it may be taken without question. Another human quality to the tele- phone—and this time we go back to the instrument—is the sometimes husky tone the thing takes on. One would swear it needs a cough drop. Every human being has had some experience personally with a Musky voice, and can sympathize even with a device of so- called inert substance when it suffers from the same defect. Perhaps a tele- phone instrument should not be called inert. That curlous word means with- out inherent power of action, motion or resistance; without active chemical or other properties. The phone Te- quires tbe magic, the mystery. of elec- tricity to make it “go” The word “inert” comes from “in.” without, plus “ertis,” art—that is, without art. But there is, curiously enough, no such word as “ert.” We can't say that a action is “ert.” And we ought to be able to. It is a question. Ry ¥ Another thing which makes the tele- phone human is the fact that one may get a bad connection over it. One is always making bad connec- tions with other human beings, on and off the telephone. There is no one who has not had the experience, at some time or other, of realizing that the human being with whom he is talking is not “getting” one. Differences in life habits, of ancestry, of education, of outlooks, and even more inlooks, make two human beings secure & “connection” which eliminates all hope of perfect understanding be- tween them. One sees that the “con- nection” will always be “bas that there is no hope of that meeting of the minds which is the essence of the per- fect contract. It is too bad. It is life. But perhaps the most buman thing about the telephone is the interdepend- ent quality of each and every part. Each part 15 vitally dependent upon every other part. Perhaps there is no other organization with which most of us come into contact daily which re- | quires such a perfect working of parts. It reminds one of the human body it- self, with every organ depending, in the last analysis, upon the perfect func- tion of every other organ for perfect | health. This is a human touch par excellence. The crowning humanity about the telephone is the human voice itself. That is where we all come in. The world of men loves to talk, and talk is the major product of the telephone. It is, basically, a pathway for talk. It takes the place of air. It unites the voice with the ear, it completes the circuit of —far more than electric—mind and mind. Such is the human service of the telephone, one which every user feels, although perhaps dimly at times, especially when the of the opera- tors says, “Excuse it, please.” WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS When Senator David A. Reed, Penn- sylvania Republican, from the steps of the White House last September, launched a proposal for a general sales tax as a means of raising Federal revenues to meet the growing deficit it was given the cold shoulder by Secre- tary Mellon, frowned upon by Mr. Hoo- ver and denounced by the Democrats. Senator Pat Haraison, ranking Demo- crat on the Senate Finance Committee then, declared that a sales tax “has no chance of recelying the backing of even a Tespectable minority in Congress.” Today the leaders of both parties in Congress and the Hoover administra- tion are more or less reconciled to the prospect of the adoption of a modified sales tax plan embodying a levy upon most manufactured products as the only way to bridge the financial chasm. Senator Smoot was fighting for a gen- eral sales tax 'way back in 1921 as & substitute for excess profits taxes, the high income surtaxes and the war time “nuisance” taxes. The Senate would have 'nonedo( it :l]!l’h tPresident Harding proposed & es tax as & means of raising the funds to pay the soldiers’ bonus. Senator Smoot only last November declared “a sales tax is the easlest and surest of raising revenue,” but after he had called at the Treasury the Utah Sena#or hedged on the general sales tax plan and advo- cated a broad system of excise taxes in line with the Treasury proposals. Since 1920 Canada has obtained annually from one-eighth to one-quarter of her total revenues from a general sales tax. * x K K Two distinguished visitors of dia- metrically opposite make-up were pay- ing calls on Capitol Hill last week— ex-Senator James A. Reed, Democrat, of Missouri, whose scorn of reformers and contempt for prohibitionists is un- stinted, and Gov. Gifford Pinchot, Re- publican, of Pennsylvania, reformer and dry crusader de luxe. Both men have longed for the presidency. “Jim" Reed called upon Speaker *“Jack” Garner. Reed said he expected to have the Missouri convention delegation in his vest pocket. Garner could have sald the same thing about the Texas dele- gation. Both Reed and Garner in their time have been boomed by Willlam Randolph Hearst. They have that bond |in common. Gov. Pinchot called on | Senators Johnson and Borah. Accord- ing to report he found neither insur- gent responsive to suggestion that they pit themselves against Mr. Hoover in the Republican convention. Pinchot himself has been pictured as on the verge of taking the plunge into the cold water of the Republican presiden- tial primaries, if only some one would give him a push off the springboard. * x % x China’s trade boycott of Japan, in re- | cent months, in retaliation for her grievances against her aggresive neigh- bor, is not the first time the wily China- man has resorted to such tactics in his international relations. Perusal of the State Department files brings to light the now forgotten episode when China attegpted a boycott of American goods. It was in 1905, when China was an- gered by our Chinese exclusion policy, and sought to force our hand. The boy- cott was put into effect in Canton, Amoy, Foochow, Shanghai, Hankow, Tientsin and, in fact, in every trading center of the empire where American trade had permeated. It continued for six months, and while it lasted was rigorously observed. But it did not budge Uncle Sam, nor did it start a WAT, * kX ¥ Report] on Republican insurrec- tion in tl?;'hrm belt, a traveling jour- nalist sends word from Minnesota that the Farm-Labor y in that agrarian land is as flo as ever—perhaps more flourishing than ever. The Min- nesota Governor, Floyd Olsen, a sturdy Farm-Laborite, up for re-election this year, is quoted by this veracious re- porter as saying: father was 8 wede, my mother was a Norweglan. married & Bohemian and I speak like me!” sota delegates at the Republican Con- vention at Mr. Hoover * ¥ ok % Silas H. Strawn, president of the United States Chamber of Commerce, sailed for Europe last Friday to par- Paris meeting of the ive Council of the International of Commerce, which Chicago will be for | spokesm¢ whentherouum | dent of the International Chamber and chairman of the American section. Sil- ver, bimetallism, depreciated currencies, tariffs and trade barriers and interna- tional debt questions—in a word, all of the economic controversies in Pan- dora’s box of troubles—will be on call at the Paris meeting. Mr. Strawn will enunciate the American opposition to cancellation by the United States of the debts due her from Europe and her unwavering determination to protect her home markets by her tariff wall from destructive forelgn competition. With reference to the business outlook e —=mE o e a, was quoted as saying, “There seems to be no doubt that we have seen the worst.” * x % * ‘The man who clicked the first camera | shutter on the wonders of Yellowstone Park, in 1871, is this week visiting at the Department of the Interior, for which he worked 60 years ago. He is William H. Jackson, sprightly 89-year- | old landscape photographer of Denver and Civil War veteran, There were 20 | persons in a survey party commissioned by the Interior Department and headed by Dr. F. V. Hayden, who explored the Yellowstone area in the early 70s. Mr, Jackson was the official photographer and the only member of the party who now survives. The party was outfitted at Fort Russell, an Army post near Cheyenne, Wyo., and proceeded by | wagon as far as Fort Ellis, the entrance to Yellowstone. From there the explor- atory work was carried on entirely by the use of pack trains. Mr. Jackson got together the set of pictures of the Yel- lowstone region that induced Congress in 1872 to reserve that area from set- tlement. £ % %8 The Committee on the Costs Medical Care, of which Dr. Ray Lymt': Wilbur is chairman, currently reporting on its most recent researches, concludes that “American midwives as a group are found to be unsatisfactory.” That “chiropody is found to be a digtinct u.ng' separate branch of the aling art”—and urges ‘“closer co-operation between opthalmologists and optom- etrists.” The committee claims to have ascertained that as compared with 142,000 doctors of medicine and 67.000 dentists, there are 47,000 midwives in the United States with total aggregate income of $3,000,000, while 4925 chiropodists collect $14,775,000. The committee believes “the evolution of the chiropodist from the jtinerant corn cutter of the 90s” has been profound. Here are important matters to which Congress has not yet given attention, (Copyright, 1932.) ————— Mexico and Japan. From the Oakland Tribune. ‘The line-up of world opinion against the tactics of Japan in China is made longer by the emphatic statements of Excelsior, Mexican newspaper, which speaks the attitude of that government. If serious trouble were to come in the Far East, says this paper, Mexico would find itself unalterably allied with the United States. The editorial continues: “The United States is our neighbor, and we might as well accept that as a fact. Our interests lie with hers in this matter. We should continue to be friends. Mexico is and should continue to be at peace with the world, but we have our interests to defend, and these interests are allied with those of the United States. Mexico cannot see with indifference the grave developments in the Far Eastern sector.” It is the opinion of the Mexican edi- tor that while Japan undoubtedly needs room for expansion, her conduct at Shanghal is entirely unjustifiable. The editorial is particularly significant in view of the fact that country has tra- ditionally regarded Japan as a friend and has smarted under memories of controversies with America. Recogni. tion of the need for co-operation and friendship with America, of late, has been expressed by officlals and other en for the Mexican people, and cordial relations are a result. Chaplin’s Non-Fiancees. Prom the Pasadens Star-News. ‘There are at least ;six beautiful girls in Europe to whom Charles Chaplin X engaged, on rumors dicates. thing which has an inherent power of | The Political Mill By G. Gould Lincoln. Former Gov. Alfred E. Smith, a re- ceptive if not an active candidate for President, has made his position per- fectly clear on the prohibition question. He considers prohibition an issue of prime importance. He does not believe that the Democratic party should seek to minimize prohibition in the coming campaign or hide it behind so-called economic issues. He wants a definite proposal in the Democratic national platform calling for another amend- ment to the Constitution in line with the home-rule plan advanced by his friend, John J. Raskob, chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Four years ago the Democrats wrote a prohibition plank in their platform which was satisfactory to the drys and then nominated Al Smith. The then Governor of New York accepted the nomination and sent to the conven- tion a telegram which announced that he proposed to fight for repeal of the eighteenth amendment. The telegram, addressed to the permanent chairman of the convention, Senator Joseph T. Robinson of Arkansas, who had been chosen to run as Vice President, was not read to the convention until the hour of adjournment had arrived. Smith was vigorously criticized by some of the Democrats because he had not sent the telegram to the convention be- fore he was nominated. This year, however, the Democratic National Con- vention will know just how Mr. Smith feels about this matter of prohibition when his name is befoye it for con- sideration. * k k With Al Smith feeling as he does about the prohibition issue and with Mr. Smith, according to many of his friends, holding a veto power on the nomination of a candidate for Presi- dent, Speaker John W. Garner of Texas will have to produce proofs of wetness it he is to be a compromise candidate at the Democratic National Conven- tion. It seems to be the strategy of his supporters for the nomination to have him gather in the delegates in some of the dry States before he goes on record in regard to prohibition. At present the Garner people are looking for dele- gates, and dry delegates look just as good as wet delegates. There is another candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, and in this case an active candidate, who feels about prohibition just about the way Al Smith and John Raskob feel. Gov. Albert C. Ritchie of Mary- land has left no one in the dark. He has not and does not intend to pussy- foot on the issue. And to do the Gov- ernor of Maryland full justice, he has pussy-footed on none of the issues. He has made many speeches in many parts of the country in recent months and has left no doubt in the minds of any of his hearers where he stands on the issues of the day. * K kK A strong belief exists in some Demo- cratic quarters that when it has been developed that Mr. Smith cannot be nominated Gov. Ritchie is likely to inherit much of the Smith strength in the convention. But that is not all, by a jugful, that the Ritchie people are counting on. They believe that their candidate will prove to be the recipient of & very large amount of second choice votes in the convention—votes that will turn to Ritchie when favorite sons from other States have had their brief day in court. And it is likely, too, that some of the Roosevelt delegmigs in a number of States would swing to Ritchie, provided it was found that Roosevelt could not make the grade. Gov. Ritchie, despite his would, it is believed, be a popular candi- date in the States of the South. He has an ancestor who was Governor of Virginia, and not a very distant an- cestor, either. He would run well in the States of the East and North, par- ticularly if he had the active backing of Al Smith. For some of the States of the West he wolld be rated too con- servative, Indeed, if he became the Democratic nominee for President there would be increased activity among the Progressive Republicans and independ- ents for the formation of a third party. If a third party were attempted as a protest against both the old parties, it might obtain a considerable protest vote—and most of the protest votes to- day are against the G. O. P. Under such circumstances, therefore, a third party movement would probably be more hurtful to the Democrats than to the Republicans. * X ok % Al Smith in his address delivered Saturday night in New York, declared that President Hoover had made him- self the champlon of the drys, particu- larly when President sent a dry message to Congress along with the report of the Wickersham Commission on bition. On the other hand, CI an Raskob of the Democratic party, in a speech in New York also, declared that Mr. Hoover was prepared to run on a wet platform Jf the Re- publicans adopted it. Probably one of these distinguished Democrats is right. * x ok ¥ The Democrats have $135,000,000 road commgtflmmmfi a relief for unemployment, through’ the House. It is particularly interesting that the Democrats did not put into the bill any o;‘)rovume?n‘ tbrh. “dole”; no measure rel for the un: 1 similar in any way to the nmm Follette-Costigan bill which failed not long ago in the Senate. The Democratic leadership is not playing with fire—in this case a Federal dole—at this stage of the game. On the other hand, the proposal of the Democrats to appro- priate $135.000,000 for road construction when the Treasury of the United States is only something like $2,300,000,000 behind already and getting deeper in the hole all the time, does not seem to measure up with the demand of Speaker Garner that no new legislation propos- Ing increased expenditures be brought into the House by the Democratic-con- trolled committees at this time. Repub- licans are asking of what use to pare down appropriation bills ten or a dozen millions of dollars only to go ahead and spend $135,000,000 which the country has not got in the Treasury, * ok x ¥ The real situation of the Govern- ment, so far as money is concerned, had a curious and realistic exposition in the Senate not long ago. A resolu- tion was called up by Senator Fess of 1Ohio to authorize the expendture of $50 on the part of the Senate out of its contingent fund to match a like sum on the part of the House to pur- i iap Rl i place of orge n. Senator Thomas of Oklahoma called attention to the fact that the only way the money could be provided was for the Federal Government to borrow it, since there is a big deficit in the Treasury now. A hundred and forty- three years after the birth of the Nation “which he founded the Govern- ment of that Nation did not have $100 to buy a wreath to honor Washington gwr%h hundred years after Washington's irth. * * X ¥ A straw vote taken by the Des Moines Register and Tribune in Iowa and reports from Michigan by political observers and by political leaders are giving the Republicans something to think about. In rock-ribbed Repub- lican Towa the poll showed 18,764 vot- ing for the re-election of President Hoover, while 18,817 favored the elec- tion of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who may be President Hoover's Democratic op- ponent next November. But that is not all. “Alfalfa Bill” Murray of Okla- homa had 16,508 votes cast for him; Smith, 7,693; Baker, 4,201; 3,670, and Young, 1,145. publican side, outside of the Hoover vote,” Dawes had 1498. This shows more than a two-to-one vote cast for Democratic candidates as compared to ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. ‘What do you need to know? Is there some point about your business or Ker- sonal life that puzzles you? Is there something you want to know without delay? Submit your question to Fred- eric J. Haskin, director of our Wash- ington Information Bureau. He is em- | ployed to help you. Address your in- | quiry to The Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. and inclose two | cents in coln or stamps for return post- | age. | Q How many base balls does a major league club buy for the playing season?—G. J. A. About 750 dozen. About 500 dozen are used by the team in play and prac- tice and more than 200 dozen are sold to the visiting teams for practice. Q. Did Congress ever declare against | a third term for a President?>—M. O. H. | A. When Grant was proposed for a third term, in 1876, the House of Rep- | resentatives, by a vote of 234 to 18, | adopted a resolution declaring that it | would be “unwise, unpatriotic and fraught with peril to our free institu- | tions” for the third term precedent to be ignored. | Q. How much does a cublc foot of | solid gold 'qh ?—T. R. A. Pure gold weighs 1,204 pounds per | cubic foot. Q. Are there too many lawyers in this country?—B. A. M. A. The legal profession is crowded. In the 1920 census there were listed 122,519 lawyers, judges and justices, of which 1,738 were women. This means | that there is about one lawyer to every 500 adults. Although some 10,000 stu- dents are graduated in law annually, a | large proportion of them never practice. but enter business where their training | stands them in good stead. Q Which country is_the largest in | or embroidery on a web of white can~ vas 214 feet long and 20 inches wide, depicting in a panorama the invasion and conquest of England by William | the Congueror. It is said to have been worked largely by Matilda, wife of the Congqueror, for the Bishop of Bayeaux, for the cathedral in that town in Nor- mandy, France. Is the radium used in the treat- ment of cancer and that used in the making of watch dials the same?—H. G. A. Radium used in the treatment of cancer is the same element that is rm]gloytd in making luminous mate~ rials, Q. Please give some Informa about "the life and works of the c'él‘l): oser, Eric Satie—J. F. M. A " Eric Satie, French composer, was born at Honfleur, May 17, 1866. He studied at the Paris Conservatory of Music for some years and had a pas- sion for Gregorian music and was most radical in his compositions. “Les Sara= bandes” (1887), “Les Gymnopedies” (1889) introduced the harmonic style which definitely took its legitimate rank in music in the mystery pieces of De- bussy. Satle has remained poor and obscure all his life. Q. How often does mall go to Ice- land?—T. B. A. The Post Office Department says that mail to Iceland zo‘: from New York to England about three times & week and takes from six to eight days. Mail is then sent to Edinburgh, Scot- land, and then to Reykjavik three or éour times a month and takes four ays. Q. When were rings first worn?— D.E L. A. The earliest existing ris those found in the wmbs‘ of nl‘x:ele‘l’l: Egypt. The finest examples date from about the 18th to the 20th dynasty. Q. What is the best method of take La | in governmental economy,” those cast for Republicans. ‘The Republicans in Micl fearful that unless there is & big change in business and employment conditions there may be a complete overturn in that State. But to offset these doleful Rmbucm prognostications there is a bel on_the of some of the world and which has the largest in, v population?—G. N. A. Russia (U. 8. 8. R.), with an area of 8,144,228 square miles, is the largest country in the world. China with 400,800,000 population has the greatest population. Q. When was water first brought into Italian cities by aqueduct?—D. P. A. As early as the year 312 B. C, Appius Claudlus Caecus constructed an aqueduct which brought in a supply of water to Rome. The seccnd aqueduct, known as the Anio Veius, was con- structed 40 years later TowarC the close of the first centurv A. D. there were nine ducts. Some of the structures still remain, both in Italy and in other parts of the former Roman Empire, examples existing at Nimes, | France, and at Segovia, in Spain. Q. In all the prisons in the United States how many of the inmates are women?—J. C. M. A. In the total prison population of 116,626, there are 4,390 women. Q. Was scripture read or a prayer offered at the inauguration of George Washington?—N. B. 8. A. Not at the inauguration cere- mony. After making the inaugural ad- dress, George Washington with the company assembled, adjourned to St. Paul's Church, where prayers were read by the bishop. Q. When the New World was dis- covered did the Indian groups through- out the two continents grow and use tobacco?—C. G. A. Tobacco was found by European conquerors of the Americas being used in the West Indies, Central America and northern parts of South America. It could not be said that all the Amer- ican Indian tribes knew of its use. Q. What Government bureau tests building materials?—G. K. A. The Bureau of Standards. % aw%“ is the Bayeaux tapestry? A Ttisa large piece of needlework g care of & new pair of skic?—R., A. Various commercial mixtures of wax and tar are used on skis. Oil or varnish is never applied to the skis be- fore waxing. The wax is applied by | hand and the friction caused by hard rubbing evenly spreads the composition and forces it somewhat into the grain | of the wood. The wax mixture can be | secured from any sporting goods store. Q. ‘How many lives were lost when the battleship Maine was blown up? H. H. A. It was blown up in Havana Har- bor February 15, 1898, with a loss of 266 lives. Q. Can Chinese understand the writing of the Japanese?—C. H. A. The Japanese language is v different from the Chinese, althol | the tvo may be considered distantly relat 4. Japanese looks similar to Chie nese in Western eyes because the Japae nese system of writing was derived from that used by the Chinese, just as the Japanese art was taken from the Chi« nese art. In this way a Chinaman would be able to tell what sounds were expressed by Japanese characters in a good many cases, but would not be able to tell what they meant. This is exact- |1y the same situation which exists among Western Europeans. An Eng- lishman can tell what letters are used in Polish and he might even make an attempt at pronouncing the words, but he could not tell what they meant without learning the language. Q. Where is the Caruso eandle placed?’—A. B. W. A. The memorial candle is in the Pompeii, which Caruso worshiped. largest in the world and cost $3,700. Q. What metal has the greatest heat capacity per unit volume?—F. M. A. In this respect cast iron 8 the Most highest of any common metal. metals are roughly the same. Economy in Bureaus Viewed As Possibility for Future Reorganization of the departments and bureaus of the Federal Govern- ment, as proposed by President Hoover and the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives, are believed to offer opportunities in the direction of seeking economy and increased effi- clency. Efforts of other executives to accomplish similar results are recalled and it is pointed out that most of the existing agen-ies have earnest friends, but a ‘!,mrla for future action is recognized. “The time is ripe for some good sized reforms,” thinks the Milwaukee Sentinel, “and it seems reasonable to hope that many millions of dollars may be lopped off.” The Altoona Mirror advises that “the Federal Government should set a good example in economical administra- tion to the States and the county and municipal governments.” The Lincoln State Journal feels that “the need of consolidations is apparent” and that the proposals “should awaken new interest but points out that *“some details of the President's plan may not meet with Congress’ ap- proval.” “The Government must be conducted with the same sedulous attension to retrenchments and efficiencies,” accord- ing to the Pasadena Star-News, “that appertain to the successful operation of ‘rl plxm“;:;m&qsu enterprise or a prival ." Quoting Shakespeare’s thought that “there is some soul of goodness in things evil” the In- dianapolis News remarks as to the de- velopment of the various branches of the service that “before we know it, we have what the late Vice President said was not a bureau, but an entire suite, and one with ‘overstuffed’ furniture.” The News concludes: “Probably it would be rash to turn loose among our bureaus a crew of men equipped with axes. It might be wiser to follow the Shakespeare method. and | ‘observingly distil’ out of the evil the | ‘soul of goodness. * ok %k ! “The huge deficit which the Treasury faces,” in the opinion of the Roanoke World-News, “is sufficient _argument that reorganization ought to be effected wherever possible. When two principal branches of the Government agree that it 1s necessary for the sake of economy, it for no other reason, it is time to act. Squabbling over acquisition of credit under such circumstances is childish.” It is remembered by the Ann Arbor | Daily News that “other Presidents have | sought similar reforms in the past and | sults in anything worth mentio: the Morgantown Dominion-News as one which “contains points that deserve attention,” but that paper adds: “Seo far as economy is concerned, and this is the thing that is featured most in the message, we doubt whether a great deal is to be expected.” The Nash- ville Banner observes: “Certainly the cost of Federal activities is enormous and needs reduction, but in practically every instance the people of the United States are suffering more from local few years 2go,” according to the Buffalo News, “effected a consolidation of its executive services on much the same principles that the President proposes for the Federal Government. No one questions that the new organization is more logical and more defensible on paper. Nevertheless, it has not reduced State expenditures. If any claim for ecenomy can be made for it, the con- tention must rest on a supposition that the growth of expenditures has not proceeded quite so rapidly as before.” * x % % Considering the relative merits of the Hoover plan and the proposal in the House, the Fort Worth Star-Tele~ gram says: “The President's plan ap- pears to be for simplification of the administration of the Nation's business by placing what would amount to di- visional commanders over the various administrative units. The Democratic plan outlined by Mr. Garner is obvi= ously for simplification by means of abolishing a good many of the units. The President’s plan would reduce the number of units from an administrative standpoint only, the Democratic plan would reduce the number as reflected on the Federal pay roll as well.” “Fortunately there is no conflict be- tween the President’s proposal and the Garner resolution calling for a special committee to survey the Federal ma= chine,” says the Chicago Dally News, while the New Orleans Tribune offers the judgment: “Whether the survey re- beside the point. "W set. Httle store by it, especially as it probably will not report until some time in 1933." The New York Sun makes the com= ment on the resolution d the House: “As the vote of 2% 22b’lnd1- cates, this is the Democratic answer to the President's special message on the subject of reorganization of the Government, but those who interpret adoption of the resolution as mere partisan strategy will take too narrow a view of it. Economy is going to be without success.” It concedes, however, that “times have changed, just recently, | and the prospect for sweeping reforms | appears better than ever before.” The | Uniontown Morning Herald is convinced | that “there can be no disputing the| President's logic nor denying the justice | of his proposals.” The Oakland Tribune | warns that “the directing task calls for & man of force,” and that “while there has been widespread support of the wide theory of governmental reorganization, there will sbe protests from friends of the agencies which would be abandoned or curtailed.” The Miami Daily News states that “In so far as there is economy and not politics in the Presi. dent’s proposals, he ought to succeed: | havin President’s message appeals to | —_— good politics in an election year, to be sure, but many members of Congress in both parties must be convinced by this time that economical and efficient operation of the country’s business is s de- Eiratesy.The Bossas Tron Y Transcript clares: ‘“¥he plan adopted should originate from the most competent source. We doubt if that source is & ——— Pa Mah. From the Ann Arbor Dally News. to father of his country. even some of their leaders, that Hoover today is still a better bet than the Democratic nominee, whomever he may be. One reason given is the faith that the women of the country have in the President. That the women look with favor on Mr. Hoover was indicated in the Des Moines Register and Tribune poll. Men to the number of 10,431 supported er while 8,333 women voted for In the Roosevelt vote ———— Time Enough Yet. From the Celumbia (5. C.) State. It's sort of queer that with all the tree %Mm}u in honor of George Wash- ington, so far as reported, not a single one has been a cherry tree. Pinched or Puffed? the Harrisburg Telegraph. Pro- 12,308 the Yorker 30 auly G500 womed. o o the the Northwest,