Evening Star Newspaper, September 28, 1932, Page 8

A8 THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Editien. WASHING?ON, D. C. WEDNESDAY .September 28, 1932 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: 111 . “and_Pennsylvania Ave. New York Offce; 110 East 42nd 8t icago Office: Lake Michigan Building. uropean Office._14 Regent 8t.. London. England. Rate by Carrier Within the City. 45¢ per month The Evening_an: (when 5 Sunday oOrde; NAtional 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Daily and Sunday.... : Daily only Sunday only . All Other States and Canada. 1yr.$12.00: 1mo. yr.. $8.00: 135 3500 1mos Daily only 1yr. Sunday only lhe Associated Press. el r:ss 1s exclusively entitled tion of all news dis- ot ‘ot ‘otherwise cred- d 1 1bli: ecial dispatc Roosevelt's Physical Misfortune. Frierids of Gov. Roosevelt are said to resent what they denominate “a whis- pering campaign” concerning the health of the Democratic candidate. The im- plication is that because he suffered an attack of infantile paralysis ten years ago and does not have complete control of the muscles of his legs he is in dan- ger of a general collapse under strain such as would be his lot if he were elected President. Of course, the no- tion is utterly unscientific. Thousands of people have had infan- tilc paralysis and are little the worse for the experience. Sir Walter Scott is an historic example. He was stricken when a mere infant and was lame to the end of his days, but he lived sixty- one years and produced a phenomenal quantity of literary work of the first quality. He limped, but he made his goal. Scott’s great rival, Lord Byron., elso was handicapped by lameness, but he swam the Hellespont. Heine lay for years in “a mattress grave,” yet wrote the loveliest lyrics bf his generation. Alexander Pope spoke of his body as «g deformity” and Samuel Johnson thought his life “a long disease.” Homer and Milton were blind, but were not for that reason less brilliant of mind or exuberant of spirit. Beethoven was deaf at the time he composed his finest symphonies. Voltaire and Rous- seau were invalids throughout the greater part of their lives. The list might be continued endlessly. Lom- broso, the celebrated Italian psycholo- gist, believed that genius and i1l health are inseparably related. Men are greater than their handicaps. The human soul transcends the arti- ficial boundaries set by physical frailties. In art, in literature, in music, in science, in statesmanship, in business of every kind, it is the mind that matters, and the question properly should be not what sort of body & man has, but rather what type of mind. If it were other- wise, Olympian athletes should be the exclusive recipients of public trust, the exclusive Tepositories of creative genius. Mere health is not, nor can it ever be, the sole requirement of success. Indeed, it may be argued that superior intelli- gence is stimulated by certain conditions of ill-health. The will, in any case, the driving power of human effort, may be stronger, more abundantly developed in the nature of an individual whose ex- istence is threatened by disease than in one who has mnever had any such warning of danger. Physicians have declared that bSth the presidential candidates are in ex- cellent condition. The burden of labor each is carrying supports that view. President Hoover certainly does not ap- prove of any “whispering campaign” against his rival. He knows, as the country -ought to realize, that a man does not think with his feet. The battle is a struggle between brains, and neither leader has considered it in any other light. The people, in both camps, would do well to follow their example. Count Lennart Torstensson, the great Swedish patriot, led his armies to victory from a litter, and Franklin D. Roosevelt may be just as competent from a wheel-chair. He may be at once lame, as the gentle philosopher Epictetus was, and “dear to the immortals.” .- Volunteer remarks abroad which might produce misunderstandings should be easy to avoid at a time like the pres- ent, when local campaign eloquence is quite sufficient to supply the demand for oratory. ———————— Gandhi’s Victorious Fast. Mahatma Gandhi has fasted to vie- tory. He did not have to starve him- self to death. As soon as the British authorities in India realized that the “holy one” was seriously determined upon performing the happy dispatch unless they abandoned tneir proposed legislative reforms they accepted his terms for settlement of the differences between the caste Hindus and the un- touchables. The Mahatma went one hundred and forty-nine hours witaout food to achieve the most spectacular and far- reaching triumph of his tempestuous career. His weight shrank to ninety- two pounds. Had Gandhi’s fast per- sisted to the starvation point his death would have ensued. That was the one contingency which John Bull was bent, at ‘any cost, upon preventing. Once again, for the thousandth time in the course of empire preservation, com- promise saved the day. = It was not essentially in a spirit of human compassion that the British moved to thwart Gandhi's suicide be- neath the mango trees of Poona jail- yard. They were actuated by a com- moh-sense realization that if he had starved the life out of himself while a prisoner of the despised Raj, the tragedy would probably have fanned the smoldering embers of revolution into devastating flames. . British rule in India might well have been ob- literated by such a conflagration. Mother Britain elected to extinguish an incipient fire before it had time to blaze into furious destructiveness. Gandhi's spectacular performance was devised as a protest against the British government’s communal awards, which would divide the Indian popula- tion into twelve separate electorates according to religion, race and occupa- tion. Like the Congress party, the Mahatma is opposed to the whole idea specifically against special representa. tion for the depressed classes, the un- touchables. He brands untouchability as “the greatest blot on Hinduism” and took his stand against the proposed political reorientation mainly on the ground that, under the guise of giving the untouchables autonomous repre- sentation in the India legislature, it would in fact perpetuate the degrading segregation from which the depressed element is already suffering. The prelude to the ending of Gandhi’s fast and incidental victory was an agreement between the high-caste Hindus and the untouchables whereby the former pledge themselves to stamp out untouchability. It is they, and not the British “oppressor,” who are re- sponsible for untouchability. The im- perial government at London announces that it approves “with great satisfac- ton” the native compact concluded at Poona and will recommend the adoption of its main clauses to Parliament. One cannot be far wrong in guessing that the way out was of British rather than Indian origin. Thus ends, for the time being, an- other chapter in the tortuous course of British reign in India. It is, to be sure, but a milestone, and is not the goal with which either Britain or Gandhi’s fanatical Nationalists, with their clamor for independence, will be content. ———— Mr. Coolidge's New Job. In turning down the application of the carriers for a horizontal increase of 15 per cent in freight rates last year the Interstate Commerce Commission referred, in the course of its opinion, to the fact that: ‘The committee representing the se- mation of a special commission to con- sider the needs of the railroad situa- tion. Such procedure has been followed in England. and it is receiving con- sideration in Canada, whose problems are very like our own. We have no authority to constitute such a commis- sion and are, therefore, not in a po- sition to follow up this suggestion. The bondholders have, therefore, taken a more direct way in carrying out their proposal, the result of whic is found in the announcement of the commission of eminent citizens, headed by ex-President Coolidge, who will labor without pay to find out what is wrong with the railroads. Its members will aave at their service a large staff of experts and economists, and a more detailed description of the scope of its work s expected soon to come from Mr. Coolidge. But the nature of its task is outlined commissicn’s creation. The present plight of the railroads is not due wholly to the depression, this statement ex- plains, as some of the factors contribut- ing to their present condition are “governmental, financial, labor and management policies, some wrong in conception, some wrong in application, and others rendered obsolete by radical- ly changed conditions.” The fundamental concept of the cbm- mission’s chief duty is indicated in the statement that: No solution will be effective unless the problem of the railroads is consid- ered as an integral part of the entire transportation problem of the United States. whether by rail, highway, water- way, pipe line or air. A'part of the remedy for some Qf the besetting ills of the railroads undoubt- edly lies in legislation along the lines Ppointed out by the Interstate Commerce Commission in its last annual report. The principle of this remedial legisla- tion would be “proper regulation in the public interest of all competitive forms of transportation,” such as “restrictions on the size and weight of trucks and their lading as public safety may dic- tate,” taxation of trucks and busses, imposing upon them a “fair share” of the cost of highways; supervision of truck and bus lines as common carriers to prevent destructive and wasteful competition and such regulation of their rates and service as the public interest will require. ‘The new Coolidge commission will have the benefit of the Interstate Com- merce Commission’s investigation of these problems, which has been under way for some time, and of another m- vestigation into “such railroad prac- tices as may adversely affect net earn- ings;” also in progress. From the point of view of the Wall i Street Journal, however, one of the big jobs ahead of the new commission is to suppress ‘“what is politely referred to as the ‘rugged individualism’ of railroad executives. These men themselves have another name for it when they talk about each other behind closed doors.” A difficulty faced by the railroads now, says this paper, arises from the failure of the railroad men themselves to im- press Congress, the Interstate Com- merce Commission or the public at large that they have “done what they could do and ought to do to help them- selves,” and this failure, in turn, is attributed to thelr inability to sink their personal differences or reconcile their conflicting commercial interests to pre- sent a united front against the common enemy. The new commission ought to supply the unifying influence “which cannot be produced internally.” Mr. Coolidge’s success in a new role, more difficult in some of its demands than the job of President of the United States, will be watched with more than ordinary interest. A unique feature of the membership of the commission he heads is the variety of interests represented by such men as former Gov. Smith of New York, Bernard Ba- ruch, Clark Howell, the publisher, and Alexander Legge of Chicago, former chairman of the Farm Board, now re- turned to his duties as head of the International Harvester Co. The hope- ful sign in the creation of this com- mission is an obvious determination to undertake the solution of the compli- cated railroad problem under the aus- pices of citizens who will view their task from the point of view of con- tributing to the national welfare rather than benefiting any special group or class. The Puerto Rico Disaster. In the “Book of Puerto Rico,” an au- thoritative work on that island pub- lished at San Juan in 1923, in respect to the climate it is stated that during the months of July to October it is “subject to occasional visits from the destructive type of cyclonic storm known as the West India hurricane.” It goes on to say that the recorded storms of this character within the limit of the area of the West Indies during th® past four hundred years curity holders have suggested. the for- | pretty well in the announcement of the | | THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C. singularly free from the severest types of these storms, on only three occa- sions in forty years the center of a hurricane pessing over the island. Sub- sequent to the publication of this work Puerto Rico was visited by one of the most destructive hurricanes in history. September 13, 1928, a twister of ex- ceptional violence roared up from the southeast, and when it had passed on toward Florida—where it did tremen- dous damage—it left 1,000 dead in the island and a property loss estimated at $85,000,000, with 500,000 persons- destitute, withoat food or shelter. ‘The latest visitation occurred early yesterday, sweeping the northern half of the island with destructive force. ‘The present report indicates a less seri- ous result than four years ago. The death roll, which may be increased as later reports are received, now stands at 200. The property damage is not now estimated beyond the statement that $7,000,000 has been lost in the destruction of the citrus crop and a greater sum in the devastation of the coffee plantations, which were just reaching bearing stage after the catas- trophe of 1928. In the main the dwell- ings of the people are of slight con- struction, consisting of little more than thatched one-room buildings, which in a violent, twistine storm, such as that of yesterday, are whipped to shreds by the wind. In the towns and citles the construction is more substantial, but not even the stoutest buildings of ma- sonry can withstand the fury of the elements and great dambge is often done to them. If sufficient warning is given, all openings are sealed-with hur- ricane shutters, which prevent the flooding of the premises with 'the deluge that accompanies the storm. Puerto Rico depends almost wholly upon its agricultural products for sus- tenance; its sugar cane, its citrus fruits, its coffee, its coconuts and its tobacco are the staples which maintain the popu- lation of a little more than a million and a half. It is an island of great beauty, a garden spot, where life is pleasant and easy save for the occa- sional adversity of nature's heavy toll such as that just exacted by the ele- ments. ———r—e——— Blues are resented by many thought- ful citizens, because viewed as a revival of Puritanism. It can harcly be denied that Puritanism might have some mod- ern advantage if it could be so man- aged as to compel general church at- tendance that would Reep reckless drivers off the highway. - So many eminent statesmen have be- come magazine contributors that the ancient announcement, “Now Is the Time to Subscribe” may soon be as- suming the dignity of a campaign slogan. ——re— Some of the radio programs are so familiar that interest begins to fade. President Hoover's speaking tour will, in’ | addition to the importance of his com- ! munications, have an incidental value in contributing a genuine novelty. s It is often surprisine to reflect that, in spite of the exhaustive discussion of all kinds of topics now in progress, there will still be something left for Congress to talk about. s Out where the milk war has raged prohibition has not been uppermost in thought. Youth still asserts itself and the nursing bottle is considered of more consequence than the demijohn. A S — In an important broadcast care sometimes has to be taken to select an announcer who will not become so eloquent as to make it difficult for the main attraction to follow him. ——e———— An open door admitting especially large quantities might be of particular value to starvation areas in China. - o SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. An Inexorable Influence, We do not scan And judge the man All by the plan Of what he wears; But fashions start ‘With changeful art And claim a part Of woman’s cares. ‘While. modes today Seem chic and gay, A glad display To please the eye. ‘The fashion plate That's out of date Portrays a fate ‘That brings a sigh. The lass so fair ‘With graces rare You would compare Unto a rose; Yet think how queer That pretty dear ‘Would look next year In this year's clothes! A Bad Combination. “What’s the matter with my speeches?” inquired the orator. “The seasoning is wrong,” replied Sen- ator Sorghum. “You try to put so much ginger in them that they have to be taken with a grain of salt.” Spectacular Embellishment. “Why do you let your hair grow long?” “For the benefit of my audience,” re- plied the eminent pianist. “It gives the people who don’t really care for music something to amuse them till I get through playing Transformation. How many projects do we see ‘That change before completing. A peace assemblage may prove to be An indignation meeting. Sometimes a “cynic” is a rather good- natured chap who pretends to be miser- able, so that no one will experience pangs of envy on his account. A Word of Apology. “Republics are ungrateful” said the readymade philosopher. “Well,” replied Farmer Corntossel, “all the governments I ever read about got imposed on so often that you couldn’t blame ’em for growin' sort o’ cynical an’ suspicious.” Among the Speechmakers. Arithmetic is all thé rage, We're happy as the birds Dividin' up the offices. Or multiplyin’ words. “How many folks,” said Uncle M “is tryin' to improve de world in gen- have averaged s little more than one a eral an’ forgettin® to have de ashes car- umr*m gnmhm Puerto Rico, however, had been ried out'n deir own basementyy® L THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. What is life—just something to be got through, or has it a definite, worth- while intention behind it? This is a large question, and we do not -ask it here with any idea of at- tempting to answer it, but merely to elucidate, if we may, a single ten- dency. ‘Too many persons seem to work on the former theory, that it is just some- thing to be got through. Most of them would be horrified to have it put that way, but there is not much else to make out of it. If one really thinks that life has a purpose, a worth-while intention, he will not spend all his time in a ruthless rustle, bustle and hurry. He will give some of the time of it to decent contemplation, to a pause in a headlong flight in order to try to see | where he is going. If he has a home, he will stay in it sometime, instead of going downtown. If he owns a car, he will let it re- pose in the garage upon occasion, in- stead of flashing over all the roads as if their very existence depended upon him being on them. If he can sing, he will not necessar- ily move toward the opera stage at | once, nor find it expedient to sing over-| radio, just because he can sing. If he is able to make & good speech, he will not, therefore, find it essential that he rush to the first platform. He will not play golf to the detri- ment of tennis, just because he finds he is able to play golf best. He may prefer tennis. He will not fill his home with crowds of people merely because it will accom- modate them. What he will dg Is to be the master of things, rather than permit things to master him. Not entirely the master, of course; there is no one who can say as much for himself in the modern world. Even the most contemplative men have telephones and radios, and rush to. the one whenever it rings, and to the other upon mysterious urges to “turn on something good,” when they know it is likely to be something else again. A serious attempt, however, to be | master, helps make one so. It is the attempt which counts, even more than the succeeding. Success is a modern god. oftentimes found to be with feet of the stickiest sort of clay. Even success in great endeavors leaves one. at times, with a feeling of “what of i?” Just as winning an argument is a futile thing. in the last analysis. One wins, but there is no joy in the winning. The writer here won $5 on Philadel- phia to finish ahead of Washington, but would much rather have lost the 1bet, even though it had been made when the Athletics were in seventh place and the Nationals in first. Success is winning, and winning is not always as grand a thing as bally- hoo has pictured it. and, of all happy efforts, among the very best are those which have to do with the ordering of the perscnal life. The man who despairs of life, one may think. is the man who acts as if it were not worth thinking about as he goes along. So what does he do? He throws himself too furiously into his every activity, as much as if to say, “Anjthing, O Lord, so that I may not’ have time to think!” In his ranks will be found that most common phenomenon. the individual who is forever working. He is prodi- giously busy. He is busy beyond what hnis_proper work calls for. He is at it all the time, until he sometimes won- ders about it himself. sometimes to whoever will listen, by enunciating a popular theory that has a vestige of truth in it, that hard work is what makes the world go 'round. Even the motion of the stars fis dragged in to the support of the the- ory, which once was quite popular as a theme for commencement addresses. But perhaps it was true then. as it is now, that few of the graduates put much stock in it. They realized, al- though perhaps no one had told them, | that the successful speaker was a vice WASHIN BY FREDERIC China’s interests in Washington and the United States at large during the next few months are going to be un- cfficially, but none the less zealously. observed by a statesman and diplomat well known in these parts. He is DI. Alired Sao-Ke Sze. former Chinese Minister in this country. Dr. Sze has just arrived in the National Capital for this purpose. His name is still carried on the Chinese diplomatic list, but he sons of health, for Neariy a year. Dr. Sze was transferred from his post as Minister to Great Britain, in order to represent China at the League of Na- tions. when the Manchurian crisis set in last September. He broke down as & result of his strenuous activities in Geneva and meantime has spent most of his time recuperating in Spain. Dr. Sze. a graduate of the Washington high schools and of Cornell University, rep- resented China in the United States from 1923 to 1929, when he was sent to London. He and Mrs. Sze were prime favorites in Washington official society. ‘There's more than meets the eye in the announcement that the Republican high command has decided to concen- trate its remaining campaign energies i the East. It's the populous States along the Atlantic seaboard, north of Mason and Dixon’s line, and the adja- cent territory . stretching west to the Mississippi that the G. O. P. has its eye on. Gov. Roosevelt could carry every State south of Mason and Dixor Lne (including Delaware and Ma land) and every one west of the Mi sissippi, except Kansas, and yet lose the election. The areas just named embrace 31 States. President Hoover would need only to capture the 17 re- maining States of the Union north, east and west of the Mississippi, in ad- dition to the border States of West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri, to achieve half a dozen votes more than a majority in the electoral college. Any such outcome would mean such a close vote that the swing of al- most any small State would change victory into defeat, and vice versa, for either candidate. It would be a case of California in 1916 all over again. i “How 'to_Control Billbugs” is the title of a 22-page bulletin just issued by the Department of Agriculture. No one should rush to the conclusion that it_contains instructions how to ward off bill collectors. The billbug appears to be a nefarious marauder in agricul- ture, as it déstroys corn, wheat and other cereals, as well as forage plants, and it is vitally important that its rav- ages be checked. e booklet compiled by Secretary Hyde's bug experts gives a general description of the billoug, which belongs to the beetle family; its life history, the extent of injury in- flicted and means of suppression. 3 e Despite the vigilance of the United States fleet, now - stationed for an in- definite period on the West Coast, 8 successful Japanese invasion of Pacific waters is officially reported. The news comes from the Bureau of Fisheries in the Department of Commerce. It re- ports that Japanese oysters have now been introduced on an extensive scale in the waters of the Pacific that lap the shores of Washington, Oregon and California. It is feared that the Amer- jcan oyster industry is face to face with a real problem, from- the point of view of conservation of our native species and maintenance of the high standard of American natural sea food The cultivation of the Jap- the Pacific The good attempt is what counts. | He excuses himself to himself, and TON OBSERVATIONS has not been in actiye service, for rea- | president in half s dozen insurance companies, and the like, for which he did little if any work, and yet from whom he received a paltry $10,000 a year each just for the use of his name. Work didn’t have much to do with it. and the listeners knew it. They didn’t know what to call it, then, so they just called it nothing, but today they would brand it “a racket.” Whenever one runs across one of these furious workers, who has time for none of the so-called amenities of life, such as fall to even the most hard- pressed of common men, one may have a suspicion that the fellow is & sort of faker, deluding himself more than any one else. ,His fundamental belief is that life |is a racket, just something to be gone | through with. If he thought for an instant that it held a well defined pur- pose, would he work himself into a lather every day, and far into the night? No brief can be held against a legiti- mate and proper industry; that is not the sort of thing under discussion; what is held up to a littie light is the mirthless occupation with life’s essen- tials which leaves no time at all for the brighter, the lighter, and the more romantic side of the etéernal picture. The romance of life has all but faded from the stage. Shakespeare would be talking to strangers if he enunciated today his old theory that all the world’s a stage, and the people in it players. Too many human beings, in this day and age, in this America, and probably in all the world, play their roles un- consciously, according to birth, environ- ment, and previous condition of serv- itude. They keep their noses so busily to the grindstone that they have not time to see life as an interesting spectacle, in which one’s role, even if not self- | chosen, may be seen in its entirety, for just what it is, and no more. One divine ingredient of the best ac- tors in this drama evidently is left out of their composition. Humor, most graceful gift, vouch- safed even to the animals, on occasion, |is the fairest grace in the repertoire | He who has it will never take himsclf too seriously. He will not rush at life as though he were afraid that some- how it will_get away from him. He |will not unconsciously give himself | away, reveal himself as one who is }afrmd of things as they are, and therefore keeps himself so busy with |the first thing that comes under his hand that he has no time for contem- plating the divine show in all its glad- | ness and sadness, in all its glory and . in all jts wealth of adoration and | fe ‘The “fear of God” is an old, old phrase, one which confronts man not only in the earthquake and in the hur- | | ricane. but also every day of his life. if he will give himself time to think about it, and not go rushing around wildly, with his eyes shut tight to it. ‘The rusher, the hurly-burly artist, the man who makes one tired by his incessant busy-ness, is a coward, that is the plain truth of it. He is afraid! to think life through, by use of the in- telligence which God has given him | He is afraid to pause and wonder, ex- | | cept under supervision: he is a practi- |cal man, and feels that life is one thing, and the universe another. But ! evidentiy they are both parts of the same stupendous plan ! This modest man hege. who may be no wonder worker, is his superior when | it comes to caring to stand on his cwn |feet, in face of the eternal verities These are large, these self-same eter- nal verities: they were here vesterday, they are here to day. they will be here | tomorrow. There secms to be no end to them, as there seems to have been no beginning. They just go on. and mankind stands .n the center (or it seems the center to him) and looks on, it he has enough gumption to look, in- stead of burying his nose in life, love and politics, and permitting these and similar activities to take entire charg of him as If he had no more to about what he should do and how he should think than :if he were a wooden doll hauled around by wires on a stage he car> not look at and would not if he could. WILLIAM WILE. | _Corporation Counsel “Bill” Bride of the District of Columbia ought to be in | the good books of Controller General McCarl. The chief law officer of the | Capital area has just reached home | after a trip to Europe and back aboard | the Yankee Line steamer _Capulin, whose home port is Portland, Me. The | | Maine press acclaimed Mr. Bride on his arrival for his patriotic preference of American flag transatlantic boats. Did Franklin D. Roosevelt go to .Vuhni Bull for his recently proclaimed plan of | py farm relief? Authorities who have been X-raying the Topcka speech find that the Governor's six points are modeled [ closely after the British wheat s which went into effect last June. Tl Alll | law should do for British wheat growers | | the very thing Uncle Sam would like |to do for his farmers. First. it takes away the temptation to increase acreage | by fixing the number of bushels of | | wheat to be subsidized. It makes an | iallotment for each individual wheat | grower. Secondly, it puts an excise tax | |on_each barrel of flour sold in Great | | Britain, whether ground from British | wheat or imported. Thirdly, it fixes, | the fair price of quota wheat at $1.30 |a bushel.” If the grower gets less than | this on the open market, the difference |is made up to him by a “deficiency | payment” out of a tax on flour, These various United States of ours don't appear to be in a hurry to ratify ! | the Norris lame duck amendment, mo' ing up the accession of a new President | 1. So far only 15 out of 48 States have | taken action. New York was the first, |last March, and Texas was the latest, when its Legislature approved the amendment on September 7. At one | time there was a prospect that the re- | quisite three-quarters of the States would have acted in time to affect the President and Congress to be elected |in November, 1932, but this is now { impossible. * % % % “George Washington’s boyhood home town,” Fredericksburg, Va. will be host on Sunday, October 16, to the | clerical heads of some 16 to 24 lead- ing American religious denominations. They will come together to celebrate the 155th anniversary of the drawing of the act for religious liberty by Thomas Jefferson in 1777. The cere- monies at Fredericksburg will be con- ducted by the local George Washington Bicentennial Committee and are in- tended to mark the religious character of Washington—his stand for religious liberty and for the freedom of church and state. (Copyright, 1932.) —r—e—— All Relative. From the Milwaukee Sentinel. As near as we get at it we are trying now to get taxes down to a figure that would have scared us to death by its altitude in 1920. ——ees German Optimism. Prom the Indianapolis News. Those junkers probably haven't both- ered to figure out where they’re going | chairman. {can give 'em Pennsylvania on a platter | | sharply the other w: |and Congress from March 4 to January |\ ESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1932. “One at a Time” for Valuation Instruction To_the Editor of The Star: The Star has printed a summary of the 300-page Robertsonian production sent to the District Supreme Court by the Public Utilities Commission, seeking instruction as to the elements to be con- sidered in valuing public utilities for rate-making purposes. Recently it sum- marized the contents of the 215-page reply of the combined legal talent of five local public service corporations— not all of them being valued at this time. Now_ please publish paragraph 64 of the public utilities act, as follows: “That if at any time the commission shall be in doubt of the elements of value to be by them considered in ar- riving at the true valuation under the provisions of this section, they are au- thorized and empowered to institute a proceeding in equity in the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia peti- tioning said court to instruct them as to the element or elements of value to be by them considered as aforesaid, and the particular utility under valuation at the time shall be made party defendant in said action.” ‘The law says “ope at a time,” and at the time only when a public utility is being valued. That is the law's guar- antee of fair play and of instruction appropriate to each particular case. It does not scem allowable that cor- porations be led into court in a lump or go in en masse and so conspicuously out of turn. Might not both public and private interests best be safeguarded by with- drawing the entire proceedings and sticking closer to the obvious purpose of paragraph 64 JOSEPH W. CHEYNEY. - The Moral Is, Claim Everything From the New York Times Ornce Upon a time a candidate, lcellnlz‘ a bit low after a long, hard day at headquarters, confided to his nailonal chairman that he was worried about Penpsylvania. “Pennsylvania?” said the national “Why, chief, the election is ylvapnia. We | in the bag without Penn: and win hands dow Look.” And when he had added up all his figures the candidate did feel much more! cheerful. The next day, however, he| confided to his_treasurer that he was worried about New York “New said the treasurer. | the election is on ice; w York. For all we care| New York can go and jump off the; dox Look.” And when he had got through with a piece of paper and a stub percil the sun shone 2nd the car didate smiled. The next day, the weather being cold and drizzly, he had a sudden sinking of the heart about Texas and Michigan. | “Why. Governor,” said the director of publicity e got the election sewed up without Texas and Michigan We can give 'em Texas and Michigan for a Christmas present. Look.” And when he had replaced the cap on his fountain pen the opposition had Texas and Michigan, but the candidate was clected. The following day a friend inquired of the candidate how he felt, and the candidate replied that most of the time he felt fine. It ceemed too good to be true. but upon consulting 16 different | members of the headquarters staff he had learned that the election was a cinch without New York, Massachu- setts, Pennsylvania, New Jersey. Illi-| Ohio, California, Texas, Michigan, | ana, Wisconsin Minnes North | lina, Georgia. Missouri and Towa. | Without any one of them or with all of them?” said the friend. that's what worries me * said the cancidate. [ In Search of Safety. e Dos Moines Toibu 1 hundred panicky Chicagoans. ' loss cf their money in bar i2ilures, w w their deposits and olaced the cash in safely ceposit boxes | in a supposedly impreenable fortress of and bailleship steel It was inconvcnient to have to travel to this vault every time one needed spending money, but at any rate the cash wzs safe there. That is, it was safe until 10 days ago. Over Sunday a band of skilled burglars, equipped with highly efficient tools. | gouged and scorched their way through | the vault ceiling and rifled the boxes, corrying away loot estimated all the| way frem $200000 to $1,000,000. This vault, therefore, proved to be no, more secure as a hiding place for hoarded currency than many Towa dwellings and farm hcuses have been. And hoarders of money in safety de- are launched once more on their perennial search for the place where their money is really safe. It is a constant wonder that one of the safest places in the world for idle | money is so_persistently overlooked. Whoever heard of an acre of Iowa farm land being burglarized? Whoever of a quarter section “taking oc- e. Just now the yield on an investment in farm land is small. to be sure. But so is that of any other “safe” ‘invest- ment. Even today there is a moderate income obtainable from an unencum- bered farm. unl°ss it be located in a district where taxes are abnormally gh. And it should be remembered that | farm incomes will rise with improve-| ment in commodity prices, which is not the case with fixed-income securities. Perhaps these facts are already com- ing to be more generally realized. A | joint stock land bank operating in the Middle West reports the heaviest land sales for August of any month in its| history. Other land banks report a marked quickening in buyer interest. ‘There is.no imminent danger of an- other land boom. Sentiment, indeed. is v. And it is high | time we had a revival of interest in good farms as an investment which v\'l!li 1d a moderate income commensurate th its safety. ———or—s. Incorporating the Bards. From the Milwaukee Sentinel. A news item from Washington tells of the incorporation of a Poet Laureate League. Its principal aims are said to be the creation of a national poet laureateship: a similar office for each State:; to discover and encourage posts iand “to foster poetic activity through- out the Nation.” Secondarily, the league aims to build a magnificent palace of poets at the Nationzl Capital, where the works of all our American bards may be found and studied, presumably amid surrctindings more appropriate than thé public li- braries, where most of these opuses are now available. Somehow the notion of forming a corpcration to encourage poets and to establish lauresteships for them puts a rather more commercial aspect on the | movement than might be desired. Poets laureate, it may be recalled, do not usually draw salaries. They are honorary officials. expasted to produce flowing “hexameters when duly inspired by great events. Now if they are promoted by a cor- poration, they might have to work under some sort of union rules. And it is possible also that Federal or State offi- cials might get into the way of demand- ing odes when the laureates did not feel itke writing them. A Senator, for ex- ample, might be impressed by a convic- tion that his successful handling of a pension claim deserved a metrical tribute from the national bard. And, if the tribute were not forthcoming, the col- umns of the Congres:donal Record would to get the money to pay for that big army they want to establish. — e Lakeside Salute. From the Toledo Blade. back tude now, n}d, hon be filled with a bitter attack on laure- ates in particular and poets in general | . On the whole we cannot but fear that corporate promotfon of poetry and the | creation of 49 laureateships might be a bad thing for poets and poetry. Our output of verse is of pretty fair magni- we don’t believe that & lot of laurel-crowned would ‘matters, ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Washington is the world's greatest storehouse of all kinds of knowledge. You can draw on it free of charge through our bureau there. Any ques- tion of fact you may ask will be an- swered promptly in a personal letter to you. Be careful to write clearly, give your full name and address, and inclose 3 cents for reply postage. Send your inquiry to The Evening Star Informa- tion Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Direc- tor, Washington, D. C. Q. What is meant by the three-year eligibility rule in foot ball>—P. P. A. It means that students shall not be eligible to play on a college team more than three years. Q. From what plants is the straw made which is used in women's hats?— A. Some of the straws are: Bakou, from the pandanus plant in Java; Ma- nila hemp, from abaca in the Philip- pines; Leghorn, Turin, Florentine, from wheat straw in Italy; pandan, from bamboo in Java; Panama from carludovica (looks like palm) in Colombia and Ecuador* straw from’ysray palm in Porto Rico. Q. What foods contain vitamin G?— . H. A. Milk is the most important source | of vitamin G. The list of foods con- taining this vitamin is so long that it is safe to say that almost every one cats something daily which contains at least some of the vitamin, Q. How is asbestos cloth made?>—H. T. A. Asbestos is a mineral and is in- combustible. The fibers can be woven into cleth. Usually about 5 per cent of cotton is added to increase strength and ease of manufacture. Q. Who were the Saracens?—C. H. E. A. The Saracens were a people men- tioned by Ammianus Marcellinus as in- habiting the northern district of Arabia Felix. At the period of the Crusades the term was employed to designate all | infidel nations against which crusades { were preached, and in course of time it became the generic name of all Ara- bian tribes who embraced Mohamme- dznism and extended their conquests to | | Asia and Africa. Q. What is tea-lead?—M. M. A. It is lead-foil used for lining tea contziners when shipped from the Orient. Q. How does the mango grow on the | tree>—H. M. A. Konrad Guenther writes: “The mar hang from their stalks as though susperded on strings, reminding cne of the apples and oranges on a Christmas tree.” - Q. Who started minstrel shows?—C. R A. Minstrel is a_name introduced England by the Normans, and ch romprehended singers and per- < of instrumental music, together with jugglers, ‘dancers and other per- scns. “The Negro minstrels are a species of musical entertainment of a quaint and simple kind, which originated among the Negroes of the South, United <. and was first made popular at { public_entertainments by E. P. Chri the originator of the troupes of imita- tion Negro musicians. Q. When was there a wall along Wall Street. in New York City?—C. S. A. Wall Strect was so called from a wall that w o erected along its line by Gov. Stuyvesant, with gates at Broadway and Pearl sireet. This wall stood from 1653-1699. Q. How can the edelw the cold of the Alps?—R. A The plant has na white, woolly l-aves and floper-heads envel- oted in woolly bracts. This covering ss thrive in Efforts to Averti Collapse split bamboo, | Porto Rican | enables it to thrive in exposed situae tions by protecting it from drying up through excessive loss of moisture. Q. What is the story back of “By the Waters of Minnetonka”?—G. G. P. A. “What We Hear in Music” says: “This is based on an actual Indian theme. The song tells of the interest- ing old Indian legend of the young lov- ers of the Sun and the Moon Tribes, who loved each other against the tribal law and how, to escape, they fled to- gether and sank into the lonely waters of a tranquil northern lake. There they ‘were united forever, and the blue skies looked down and smiled upon their love.” Q. How many people left Egypt at the Exodus?>—W. H. P. A. The number has been estimated at a total of 2,000,000, since only men |fit to bear arms weer enumerated at 600,000. Q. What is meant by a signed edition of books?—R. K. G. A. A signed edition of a book means merely that the author has placed his autograph in each copy of the edition. This is thought to enhance the intrinsic value of each book. Q. Why does the planet Mars come closer to the earth some years than it does in other years?—-L. F. A. The orbits of the planets are oval, | and the earth and Mars move at differ- ent speeds. They do not reach the place in their orbits where the distance is shortest each year at the same time. Q. Which is the oldest academy of arts in the United States?—D. F. A. The Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, founded in 1805, is the old- est academy of its kind in the United States. It is the successor of a draw- ng school started in 1781 by Charles Wilson Peale. Q. What is used as ground for radio in an airplane?—S. T. A. All of the metal parts of an air- plane are banded together in such & way as to form a ground for & radio. | The larger the plane the better the ra- | dio reception. Q. How many members has the Y. M. C. A?>—C. D. A. There are now more than 10,000 branches in the world and nearly 2,000- 000 members. The first Y. M. C. A. was organized in London in 1844 by George Williams. | Q What is the dertvation of the word trivial>—G. N. A. Trivial comes from trivium, Latin word meaning a meeting place of three streets, or a crossroads. From this original use comes the extended meening, pertaining to the streets and | hence common, ordinary, or petty. Q. Why was Trotzky exiled from Russia?>—H. A. A. Leon Trotzky was exiled from Russia because of his opposition to the Russian government. ~After Lenin's death in 1924 it became apparent to the Communist leaders that theoretical Marxian Soclalism was at least in cer- tain regards inapplicable to the Rus- slan situation. As a result, a schism broke out in the Bolshevist ranl Trotzky at the head of the “d: _group.” His outspoken opposition to government, particularly during Chinese crisis of 1927, led first to his “cen 2 the government and then to his expulsion from office e the Q. How many bank failures have there been in this couniry since the yar>—E. J. M rding to the annual report of the comp:roller of the currency, the total number of bank suspensions in the United States since 1864 was 10,949, These failures include failures up 0 the end of the fiscal year 1931 Of Arms Reduction Lauded A strong desire to continue efforts toward world disarmement leads the public in this country to hope that the British note to Germany, in repl its contention that unless it is permit- ted to arm it will take no further part in world arms reduction efforts, may have the effect of modifying the atti- tude of France other nations President Hoover's expression of hop2 that Germang “shall continue to par- ticipate in the Arms Conference, which has now such promise of progress for the entire world, and that she shall lend her aid to this great purpose” also is credited with influence in the crisis. As throwing light on the subject, the Paris correspondent of the New York Herald Tribune finds belief that the London note “revealed Britain as re- asserting her traditional role as a bal- ancing force in Europe,” while the Lon- don correspondent of the same paper reports that “to both the French and the Germans the British position ap= peared ‘too good to be true.’” Chserving that “this country i e party to the Versailles treal Providence Journal declares that the United States “is profoundly concerned by actions of Germany which adversely affect the chances of ultimate success of arms limitatien.” The Journal ad- vises: “If Germany shows a disposition to honor her treaty obligations, how- ever irksome and vexatious, until such time as they can be altered through her nternational sgreements. she will doubt- less ation that she has obtained in finan- cial matters.” * not * % “The British reply to Germany,” de- clares the Buffalo Evening News, “of- fers in effect the policy of equality by reGuction, but not by any resumption of building. That, of course, is the idea for which the United States stands. The Germans may bring their sincerity under question if they retire from the conference when the course of events is going so distinctly in the direction for which they argue. The French might help much by making a definite offer to reduce.” Viewing the present situation in the light of the American | demand for reductions among the na- tions, the Houston Chronicle takes the position that “France ought to agree to granting Germany a reasonable pro rata of armament under the new treaty, and all the nations should join with the United States in effecting a one-third reduction in armaments.” The Topeka Daily Capital holds that “France is in an indefensibe position as are the other armed powers, with a nation as important as the German | people reduced to the status of an in- ferior European state.” The Lincoln State Journal voices the demand that | “if France does not want Germany to arm. she will have to cisarm herself.” The Roanoke Times advises that “to keep Germany in a position of infe- riority, to continue to taunt her with the fact that she was vanquished in war, is simply to pave the way for new | troubles.” “The movement toward progressive disarmament on the part of the pow- ers represented at Geneva,” in the opinion of the Hariford Times, “can be helped immensely by an expression of German patience and moderation.” The Boston Transcript argues that “if the Germans persist in their absten- tion, they simply weaken their demand for defensive equality before the whole world, besides depriving the conference of the hope of substantial results.” The Salt Lake. Deseret: News believes that “the desirable trend would be to bring ,di.sarmlment of the other powers down to Germany's level.” * x x % Interpreting th: British position as upholding the idea that “each state may adopt for itself, in agreement with others, & limitation of its armament, with no distinction as to status,” the Newark Evening News states: “If this principle can be adopted and applied, receive the same kind of co-oper- | rid of the imposition : eriority and preserve its present freedom from the burden of huge armam-nis. While this cpens a door for Germany to re-enter the Disarmament Conference, it puts an obligation op the allies to prove their ' The Boise Idaho Statesman s that “the great powers have , and continue to violate, the asks: “Is it no. ironical y hold up their hands in horror and amazement when Germany suggests a desire to get into the dis- armament race also?” The Schenec- tady Gazette agrees that “Germal neighbors, far from doing their part to assure future peace, are stirring up a nationalistic spirit that is certain to develop into a militant force.” The San Jose Mercury Herald warns that “the world wants peace, and the na- tion that begins to rattle saber will feel its displeasure.” _“The British. government,” savs the New York Sun, “has kept wice open the door to an adjustment that may prove satisfactory to Germany.” That paper concludes that “it ought to be clear to Germany that Britain is quar- reling. not so much with the purpose Germany has in mind as with the means which have been adopted in trying to accomplish that purpose.” Asserting that “the largest possible re- ductions should be effected by the more heavily armed powers,” the San Antonio Express advises that the Brit- ish government “does the world a serv- ice by insisting that the results which practically all statesmen desire cannot be achieved by ‘peremptory challenge or withdrawal frofg the deliberations at Geneva.' ™ _“President Hoover'’s public declara- tion that ‘the United States is anxious that Germany shall continue to par- ticipate in the Arms Conference’" ac- cording to the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, “is said to be without prece- dent, in that, while informally spoken, it is the direct, personal appeal of the President of the United States to the German government. There is general belief that it will have important ef- fect.” The North Adams Transcript suggests that it gives the Germans “an idea of the attitude of America.” The Springfield (Mass.) Republican stresses the fact that “in spite of failing to rat- ify the Versailles treaty, the United States remains its beneficiary,” and voices the conclusion that the present | situation “mignt quicken the pace of | Geneva and force concestions from those powers which have bren stub- | bornly resisting cdissrmament” The | Jersey City Journal holds that “it is consistent for the President to indi- cate that the United States dicapprove of reerming Germaay. beceu-e this country approves, instead, of- disa |ing the rest of the world, includ itself.” | —————t———— Zuyder Zee Passes. | The Buffalo Evening News Completion by Dutch engineers of the | 18-mile dike across the North Sea | entrance of the Zuyder Zee marks the |end of that picturesque body of water. ‘Wilh the sea cut off, the greater p2rt of | the Zuyder Zee will be drained. Famed | seaport ~ towns ~ will become _inland villages. The queint Isle of Marken, | which has been detached from the | mainland of Holland since the thirteenth | century, will be lost as part of the ‘cemnl section of one of the “polders,” or drained sectors. What the Netherlands will lose in | pleturesqueness, it expects to gain on | the economic side. The value of the 900 square miles wrested from the sea is estimated at $210.000,000. The cost of the huge undertaking, expected to take {30 years from its beginning in 1918, will be about $190,000,000. History records few such ambitious projects. Holland reclaims for its rapidly in- creasing population an arei as large as the State of Rhode Island, which was dry land six centuries ago, when the ses. swept over it