Evening Star Newspaper, November 23, 1932, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. WEDNESDAY . November 23, 1032 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company 11th_8t. e T . Ave, e 4 t St and risar Bundine. chieeo. Ofice: Siropean Office London, Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. fiuyhml and vmi;la. . Dally only ... \L$6.00: Bunday only . All Other Sta Daily and Sunda: Daily only . Sunday only 1 1yrn 1yr, $5.00i 1mo., ated Press. lusively entitled 1l news dis- Member of the Associ: ssociated Press is excl Patches cre fiper and also_the e i herein. All rights of publicatio Poecial dispatches herein are also reser local news n of ved. The Debt Conference. The conference between President Hoover and President-elect Roosevelt on the foreign debt question has cleared the air in some res] . No joint pro- gram or plan is to be advanced for deal- ing with the requests of the debtor nations for further postponement and review of the debts. What is done from todey until March 4 will be done by the President. The President-elect will have to carry on thereafter in any way he sees fit. So the dream of a united front presented by the Chief Executive and his successor passes: The Presi- dent-elect made it clear to the Presi- dent, according to reports, that he does not intend to become involved in the debt matter until he assumes office and has the actual authority and re- sponsibility. The conference at the White House yesterday afternoon, however, Was not without its value. It provided the Presi- dent-elect much first-hand information regarding the debt situation as it af- fects this country and the nations of ‘Europe. He sat with the man who has dealt with the debt situation for the past four years, and who earlier than that Was & member of the World War Debt Commission which . arranged with the debtor nations for the payments to this country. No theories were presented by the Presicent in this conference, but the cold, hard facts were laid bare. Both the President and his successor have in mind serving the best interests of the United States in connection with the debt problem. This may or may not be accomplished by insisting upon the rigid enforcement of the debt agree- ments. Other avenues will doubtless be examined. But it must be admitted that the sentiment in this country, as ex- pressed by the great majority of con- gressional leaders of both political par- ties, has taken a firm stand against any further concessions to the debtor nations. And without the consent of the Congress the Chief Executive is practi- cally powerless to review or revise these debt settlements. President Hoover’s hope in arranging the conference was that through the leadership of the President-elect on Capitol Hill the program for dealing with the debts might have been facil- itated. The President-elect, however, ’has made it clear that he does not intend to seek to influence the Congress at the coming short session. The President's effort, therefore, so far as Gov. Roose- velt is concerned, was a “water haul” He has still to deal with the congres- sional leaders, and single-handed. President Hoover is not a man to scek to avold responsibility. He has borne the burden of government in one of the most difficult periods of America’s his- tory and has borne it courageously. His course in this debt problem has been as much in the interest of the coming administration as that of his own. And, more than that, it has been in the in- terest of the whole country. He will| now go forward with his own recom- mendations to Congress, and the Amer- ican people, as well as the Congress, will have to judge them. ————r———————— A Communist has never yet been a real menace in this country. So far he has been one of those irritating gocial specimens who insist on going ‘where they are nct wanted and on try- ing to monopolize the occasion. Never in Their Lives. One phrase in the text of King| George's speech from the throne yes- | terday in London is especially worthy of general attention. “In particular,” he said, “I am distressed that many young men and women have never in | their lives had an opportunity of regu- ‘ lar employment.” Of course, the thought is as accurate as it is pitiful. British industry has declined to such a point as to exclude | from the labor market thousands of | people who normally would be able to sell their time and strength, if not their intelligence, at & price commensurate with their natural needs. Unskilled, untrained, unadjusted, these thousands exist on public or private charity. They make no contribution to national pros- perity and progress. They constitute a useless leisure class. They are mere bytanders. But they cannot be ignored. They are consumers. They must be fed and sheltered. In effect, they must be en- dowed. They are a social liability, a| burden, an expense. It follows that they represent a danger, a threat to the sta- bility of the State. It is from their ranks that mobs are recruited. Men and women without productive value, they themselves are poignantiy conscious of their predicament. In the circumstances they develop either a psycholegy of apclogy or & psychology of resentment. They want work. They wander from town to town in search of jobs, But the search is in vain. Some are competent in a limited degree to labor in the fields, the mines, the mills. ‘But agriculture, mining and manufac- turing are overcrowded with people still more competent. In an era of depres- sion, when industry of every kind is in | distress, there simply is no place for | inefficient hands. ‘What can be done to solve the preb- Jem? The King spoke of ‘“provision for unemployed persons * * * designed to maintain their morale and fitness to resume work when opportunities can be | truth. | name most frequently found in every “provision” will be. But, certainly, he understands and Parllament under- stands that “opportunities” never can be found in this generation for the employment of men and women without skill or training. There will be difficulty in finding “opportunities” for those who are educated in some ordinarily useful art, craft or trade. And even when the trained surplus has been accommo- dated, the untrained will remain to be dealt with and helped. The outlook for the latter class is bleak, indeed. Emigration has been suggested as a partial solution. But experience has shown that it is, in fact, no such thing. The problem is not to be solved by the trick of mass migration to some| other quarter of the globe. Cheap labor | is overabundant everywhere. State employment, an authorized condition of peonage, has been men- tioned, the theory being that the unad- justed multitudes might be organized into labor armies for national service. | But Englishmen are temperamentally | unfitted for slavery. Other remedies have been postulated. | Some of them have been tried. With- | out exception they have failed. The| dole and other philanthropic devices Lave been used to conceal the bitter But possibly the King has in mind| two policies of relief. The first of these | is that of developing new industries in | Great Britain and in the empire at| large. Within the memory of King George at least four great advances in industry have been made; the auto- mobile, aviation, motion pictures and radio have been synonyms for bread and butter to thousands of workers. | The question is: What next can Eng- land do? ‘The second policy is that of educat- ing the unemployed. The untrained can be taught. Government schools of in- dustrial training are indicated. Through institutions of that kind the men and | women to whom the King referred may be related with the potential “oppor- tunities” he mentioned. The United States has much the same problem, and Americans will watch with sober interest every effort of Parliament and of the British people themselves to find a practical solution. ————— A Good Start Made. Decislon between what has come to be known as “an old-fashioned inaugu- ration” end a “simple inauguration” rests primarily with the President-elect, and during his brief stay in Washington Gov. Roosevelt will be importuned to make known his wishes in the matter | so that the machinery can be set up and put in motion. The occasion which marks return to power of .a political party brings fresh vigor and enthusiasm to the inaugural ceremony. There is a new host of celebrants who seek more than ordinary manifestations of victory, and this fact alone will tend to launch bigger and better plans. There will be many who will argue that “what the country needs today” is a return to the pomp and ceremony of the past in ushering into office & new President. In the end, the amount of hard cash that can be raised in these lean times will go far to settle the matter, regard- less of what sort of ceremony the Presi- dent-elect’s advisers may deem ap- propriate. One matter, immensely important to Washington, has apparently been de- cided already in the nomination by local Democrats of Rear Admiral Cary T. Grayson for the post of chairman of the Inaugural Committee. As this is written, the appointment seems to have been decided upon rather than tendered. But it is practically certain that if Admiral Grayson is formally requested to accept he will take the job and Washingtonians may congrat- ulate themselves, as well as Admiral Grayson, upon the selection. The post calls for a man with an extraordinary amount of common sense as well as one who possesses the confidence and esteem of his fellow local citizens, and Admira]l Grayson meets these qualifica- tions exceedingly well. His good taste and discretion may be counted upon to arrange an inauguration that is in keeping with the dignity of the occa- | sion and to prevent the sometimes im- | petuous enthusiasts from seeking to turn it into a cross between a circus and a county fair. No matter what sort of an inaugura- tion is generally planned now, the de- tails require & vast amount of time and labor for perfection in the next | three months, and it will be well if the groundwork can be laid while the President-elect is in Washington and those who must do the work assigned to their tasks. —— vt Fame is peculiar and the spotlight has & method of its own. “Smith” is the census. Yet when it is mentioned now “Al” is always understood. ———v—o— If a debtor declines to pay, the debt | still stands. The debtor should at least | apologize and not assume an authori- | tative manner. B e Debts and Manchufia. At first glance, it seems a far cry | from war debts to the plains of Man- | | churia, yet current developments in | Geneva and Paris carry a certain sig- | | nificance that is interesting and which | | may become important. The Prenrhi press indicates a suddenly warm sym- | | pathy for the case which the Japanese | have just presented before the League | | Council in defense of their occupation | of Manchuria. Except for the Socialist | and Communist papers, which regularly aseail “Japanese imperialism,” Parisian | editors express the view that Nippon | | has set up a stronger position at Ge- | neva than the Chinese and should be | commended rather than censured for| their action in Manchuria. | Foreign observers in Paris, especially | Americen, are quoted as belicving (hut} there is more than meets the eye in| this Japanophilism. For meny months | there have been unofficial statements | that a secret understanding between Prance and Japan existed, covering certain territorial arrangements in or adjacent to China, and now the Paris boulevards are buzzing with the story that there is looming, perhaps in the not distent future, a rapprochement close enough to constitute a definite military and political alliance. In the news columns of The Star this week a well-informed writer on diplomatic events catagorically suggested that these French hobnobbings with the Japanese, if they are actually in progress, may be the price the United States will have to pay for this coun- | If he decides to accept this offer—per- | often wondrous ways. have happened than that some of our Old World debtors should seek to make international hay while the sun shines and to play off against the Hoover- Stimson doctrine of non-recognition of Manchukuo a policy supporting Japan in the present crisis at Geneva as a slap back at America’s debt attitude. It is well known that the Japanese have always counted on powerful Euro- pean friends at court when the Man- churian business reached the showdown stage. It may just be that European- Asiatic statecraft synchronized things for this week and hour, when Man- churla and debts occupy the world | limelight simultaneously. — rat——— Jimmy's Autobiography. Somebody has offered former Mayor Jimmy Walker of New York the sum of $50,000 for an autobiography. At least that is what Jimmy says, at Nice, where he is sojourning. He is strangely discreet regarding the name of the pub- lication in which this human document is to appear if, as end when it is writ- ten. He does, however, go a trifle into detail regarding his mode of opamtion,\ haps he may be really maneuvering for a competitive bid—he will remain on the Riviera and collaborate with an American author who is living there. So it would seem there will be a “ghost writer” if Jimmy takes the plunge into | literature. Of course, his identity, is| undisclosed. There will be some dis-| appointment on the part of the expec- | tant reading public, presumably avid | for Jimmy’s own story, if there is any| suggestion of collaboration. Jimmy has | a style of his own, lively, witty and en- tertaining, and it would be a pity to| blend it with that of any other writer, | however skilled and discreet. Perhaps this unnamed ghost writer will be| merely an adviser on points of policy rather than an actual contributor, for the writing of this biography will have its perils. Public interest in it will be chiefly on the score of its candor rather than its syntax, its frankness rather than its figures of speech. But then, after all, Jimmy may not write his autobiography, with or without help. He has not always in the past carried out his plans, and the fifty-thousand- dollar bid may have some strings on it. Anyway, the dispatch from Nice offers an interesting possibility of future en- tertainment. Psychoanalysis is called in to explain | another morbid murder, thus associat- ing crime with intensified mental im- pulse rather than with impudent selfish brutality, which can be handled by any average jury without the aid of a newly inflated issue of polysyllables. R When a campaign is over, everybody is supposed to sing “Oh, He's a Jolly Good Fellow,” although on some occa- sions the recipient of the compliment can scarcely fail to feel that one or two of the vocalists are thinking of the music and not of the words. ——v———— A November touch of Winter is a re- minder of what is to come and of the need of providing against distress before it happens instead of delaying until it may be too late. Unlimited power is offered by Hin- denburg to Hitler, provided he will agree | to certain restrictions. Subtlety of dis- tinction has always been a basis of most | European political philosophy. ———ro— Experienced financiers agree that a ; short upward step in the stock market is more desirable than a sudden bound | which overstimulates the imagination. e S S Japan desires more time to discuss | Manchurian policies. Diplomacy s cog- | nizant of the conversational as well as | the financial moratorium. ! ————————— Trotsky keeps writing, although his industry should have made his theories | understood many years ago. | —e—— Nobody knows what to expect if| marchers come to the National Capital. The marchers themselves do not know. ——e———— SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Unrest. There is no such thing as idleness In sky, on land, or cea. Even the distant stars must press Or through eternity. And human hope will still compel This mortal strength and skill Te toil, i not for what is well, Perhaps for what is {ll. Recognizing No One. “Did you ever have an attack of amnesia?” “No,” answered Senator Sorghum. “But I'm expecting one any day. Some | stoutly his program of keeping the con- BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Almost every one knows somebody or other who has evolved a sure-fire scheme for the restoration of pros- perity to our beloved land. Mostly thest plans are too compli- cated and show on the face of them wherein they would fail. Our friend Templeton, Jones, how- ever, has a scheme so simple that it conceivably might work. He thought it up, he says, while walk- ing through a busy downtown store, where hundreds of people were buying things. “It came over me in a flash” he said, afterwards, “that prosperity les not alone in selling things, but - cially in buying them. The accent been too long on salesmanship. “These people were getting a real kick out of purchasing. It was buy- manship which interested them. “You could see it in their eyes, in their very motions. “When human beings are interested they are like cats catching mice. “They look handsomer, more eager, more alive. e “I saw clearly, as no doubt thou- sands of others have seen even more clearly, that thcre can be no extra buying unless people have erough money to live decently first. “Given a slight surplus, they will spend freely, because it is in human nature to spend. “There will be no spending if there is no surplus, but, if they are given that slight excess, there can be no holding them back. “That is a law of human nature under civilization, as far as I can make out, especially in the cities. “Imitation is as powerful a factor with human beings as among monkeys. “We all like to do what we see other people do. Even the philosophical per- son, who resents following the crowd, often discovers himself following it, just the_same. “I saw clearly, as I wandered among the happy purchasers, that they would spend if they had it to spend. Mere living makes it impossible for ‘em to resist. “As a matter of fact, they don’t want to t. resist. “They love to spend their money. That is what money is for, most of them will tell you. “The only necessary thing is to give them some to spend. “I don't mean great sums, but just small sums, sums in excess of living. Even in living itself a tremendous sum of money is spent, of course, but the possession of a slight surplus is the real key to the question, because this re- | blad moves fear, always a psychological hurdle, and allows for more money to be spent even on the necessities of living. X “But a littlé extra is essential for the purchase-of the hundred and one, the thousand and one, little extras, the niceties, as one might say, which make the everyda¥\ life a little more interest- ing, a little happier. “There is no upstage economics about this, of course. I don’t under- stand_economics, and I am beginning to believe, after the last three years, that nobody else does either. “Yes, I have read some of the books, some of the very latest, but, just be- tween us, either T am much too dumb to understand them or the writers thereof are playing the old game of using words as symbols, with special meanings, and then .demanding that you accept the symbols at their precise valuations. e “But I, too, have some brains; I question all people, either writers or non-writers, who talk in such terms that they are not to be understood by men of good will and common sense. “Economics, as commonly discussed WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. ' Pretty much the expected happened at the White House yesterday, when President Hoover and President-elect Roosevelt met to match views on the| war debts. The conference was cordial | and candid on both sides, but incon- clusive. Gov. Roosevelt maintained versation “wholly personal and infor- mal” as far as any commitments on his part are concerned. Newspaper men whom he received at his hotel immediately after the historic pow-wow in the red room were given the definite impression that Gov. Roosevelt quit the Executive Mansion heart whole and, fancy free, having left behind him no promise of any kind to recommend this or that to Congress. When the Presi- dent-elect accepted the Hoover invita- tion to the conference the Governor stressed, emphasized and underlined that “in the last analysis, the imme- diate questign raised by the European debotors creates a responsibility which rests upon those now vested with execu- tive and legislative authority.” In the vernacular of politics, Gov. Roosevelt in those words indicated a decided re- luctance to have the debts “buck passed” to him. It remains where it was before—exclusively on the door- step of President Hoover and the ex- piring Seventy-second Congress. ko Conferences with congressional lead- ers, held by Gov. Roosevelt late at night and continued today by Presi- dent Hoover, undoubtedly pegged the | speec! situation as the Hoover-Roosevelt dis- cussion left it. Great Britain, France, Belgium and the rest of 'em will have to step up to the cashier's window on December 15, pay the principal and interest installments then due and trust to luck for leniency through “revision” later on. Opinion is universal in Wash- ington that there will be no default- ing by any of the debtor governments. Their own self-interest is bound to pre- vent that. FBritain and Prance are of my constituents have notified me that they will visit me to see whether I car. fulfill the campaign promises I made.” Jud Tunkins says it's a mistake for a wise man to keep readin’ classical books when he ought to be findin' out what’s goin’ on right now. The Disturbing Spotlight. When statesmen shout in accents loud Before a large expectant crowd They make the talk red hot, because They yearn for gallery applause. Eut when in private they compare Their notes, they often get somewhere And find these problems so -immense | Best solved without an audience. Relief Quest. [ “Women dou't seem much interested in farm relief.” | “Ne,” answered Farmer Corntossel.| “Judging by the corset ads in the ma- gazines, what they're most interested in | is form relief.” “To imitate another is a flattery,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “save when so badly done that both author and mimic become ridiculous.” Concerning Beer. We've studied till our head’s feel queer Concerning baer And when fts here Will it bring simple, hearty cheer, | Or hexdaches even more severe? | “I likes peace an' quiet,” said Uncle Eben “an’ foh dat reason mebbe I's big creditor countries themselves. They can't afford to set a repudiationist ex- ample to the smaller nations which owe them money. The pound sterling may fall as a result of unfavorable weather on the postponement proposition. But the exchange market is not expected to be permanently or even seriously deranged. John Bull has shown dur- ing the past year, since he went off the gold standard, that he has inex- haustible powers of recuperation. “Britons never, never, never Will be slaves.” * koK % Sidelights on Roosevelt day in Wash- ington: The President-elect came to town on & special train of the railroad, the employes of which were not ad- vised by the president of the company to vote the G. O. P. ticket...Locomo- tive No. 5313 pulled the Governor’s spe- cial train into town. Woodrow Wilson usually demanded & 13 in the number of a railroad car or an automobile in which he was to travel...Uncle Fred- eric A. Delaro and Cousin Warren Del- ano Robbins were on the Reception Committee for Nephew and in Frank...“Bob” Lucas, chairman of the Republican National Executive Com- mittee, and Mark Sullivan, Hoover journalistic spokesman, were among those present at the Press Club dinner to the guest of honor...What is there in names? Secret Service men in charge of reception arrangements at Union Station were two Jacks—Slye and Ready. Slye was in France with Presi- dent Wilson. . . Was catc] their first glimpse of Col. Louis Mc- Henry Howe, power-to-be behind the Roosevelt throne, found a striking re- semblance between him and the late Willam F. McCombs, manager of the victorious Wilson campaign of 1912... Gov. Rooseveit's fondness for “speaking off the record.” ie., to newspaper men when not talking foz publication... Principal deccrative feature of Press Glub hanquet meru, the Capitol of the United States on a wet night. Members of Roosevelt entourage was prophetic. .."] better off foh not bein’ able to pervide de farnily wit.a radio meghine.” v humorist, discussing question t. said the Puure is ising guestion of today, is too for thinking ng ‘mystical my “Sometimes I think that if everybody concerned with prices and values and dollars and buying and selling would get together and agree to_ fo three- ftourths of the words they w and dally use in connection with these very human things and actions, the so-called | depression would solve itself, if not overnight, then shortly. “If everybody with something to sell wants everybody else to buy it, then the only way possible is to give every- body else enough money to do just that. “The only sure mg , as worked out during our so-called, prosperity (if that is the sort of thing §e want, and all the talk seems to poW that way) is to see to it that peopl ve enough money to buy. e e N “They will buy if they have the money. “You should have seen them the other day in that busy store. “It was an adverture with all of’ them. | “Their eyes glistened. | “Here was a modern frontier, the last stand of human interest amid a dull and sometimes depressing life. “The real depression, I often think, is that of the human spirit, not that of buying power. “But dollars play their part, without a doubt, in bringing about an elation of the human spirit. “I am one of those who does not be- lieve that money is as filthy as it has been pictured. “I never see anybody refuse any. * they have the y. refore, the thing to do is to see to it that they have the money. “T can hear the economists leap into | the breach with great guffaws of| learned laughter. ““That's the same’ I can hear them roar, ‘as saying that if there were no dlepmm there would be no depres- sion.” “Perhaps; no doubt they are the pe: ple, and wisdom will die with them. “But out of the mouth of igno- ramuses conceivably might come a thought which in time would wreck many & cl textbook. “Fifteen years ago, if you had told any manufacturer of safety razors that the real money in their luction would come from selling blades, he would have hl“'hu;d ;1& you, too. Practical ive awa) couid made Inm Just so you les “Several enterprising manufacturers, however, did just that, with the result that millions of blades were sold where one was sold before. * Kok * “Someth! of the same thing might be tried in life at large. “If a forced system of hiring men was put into effect, if for no other reason than to give them money to buy things with, it might result in an as- tounding return of our old-time pros- perity. “If they all had enough, they would not be afraid, and they would buy everything, from houses to goldfish. “Because, do you know what they were buying heavily that noontide, ag) I rambled through that big store? “Goldfishes and tropical fishes! “Little bits of life, ing jewels of | oceans and ponds and streams, to be carried home as surprises for some one, “Man loves to spend and he wil spend, if somehow he has the money to meni It might be worth the while of the master minds, in their wisdom, to see to it that the rank and file have enough, not only for their needs. but e“elr simple pleasures and delights as well.” “They will buy, if mone well sell we don't have it, it'll be “the first h” we didn’t. * Kk ok ok Representative George Holden Tink- ham, Republican, of Massachusetts, is in the vanguard of returning members of Congress, beaming from ear to ear across his bearded , as he recounts what happened in his dis- trict on November 8. Roosevelt car- ried it by 16.000-odd; Ely, Democrat, for Governor, by about the same mar- gin, and m, blican, _for Congress, by some 21,000. “How come?” ask Tinkham’s friends. “It was like this,” replies the big-game hunter from the Back Bay sector. “I left the United States in August and stayed away until the day before election.” Then Tink- ham recalls the case of the man who ran for some State office in Missouri two weeks ago, spoke in 190 out of 191 counties, lost every county in which he appeared, and carried the one in which he didn't make a speech. “Ver- bum sap,” says Bishop Cannon's Bos- tonian archfoe. * ok ok ok Mabel Walker Willebrandt motored info Washington on Monday of this week at the end of a quick, straight dash at her own wheel all the way from California to the Potomac. Portia went_home to vote and to work quietly for Republican victory. Whether the most unusual political weather which overtook the land of grape concentrate on November 8 took the redoubtable Mabel by surprise is not of record. The smile she brings back with her at least betokens that Al Smith’s Newark says she always likes Al's onslaughts, because he treats her like he would & man politician. ERE There’s an essence of drama in the efforts to restore the memory of Col. Raymond Robins, dry leader and peace advocate, who has just been found in the Appalachian Mountains near Ashe- ville, N. C., where he went in' quest of gold, just when the Chicago canventions made it evident there was no longer gold to be found in the cause of pro- hibition. The friend of Presidents, now fighting to regain his mental health, is being treated by Dr. Mark Griffin, one of two brothers who have gained fame in the handling of alcoholic cases. Their hospital has had on its roll a number of prominent personages who indulged too freely in the flowing bowl. It is a novelty for the hospital roster to have a dry leader as a patient. % ‘Word wings to Washington that Col. Edward M. House is also about to hie himself to the more inaccessible and salubrious South to escape the impor- tunities of Democratic hunger marchers in quest of Roosevelt administration jobs. Behind the scenes, Woodrow Wil- son’s Warwick for more than a year and a half has been an adviser in chief in the President-elect'’s camp. Jim Farley is said hardly to have allowed a day to pass during the late campaign without at least one long-distance talk with the Texas colonel on some matter | of major moment. House predicted Roosevelt's nomination and election as far back as the early Summer of 1931, when the Governor spent a day with him on the north shore of Massa- chusetts. (Copyright, —e— Great to Know Something. From the Oklahoma City Datly Oklshoman. Almost any American audience now sleeps through a discussion of the fi- nancial situation, but cheers wildly when beer is mentioned. They actually know what the speaker is talking about when he mentions beer. ———— Lowell's Out of It, Though. From the Hamilton (Ohio) Evening Journal. One_relative of He Cabot Lodge another for a thered 1932) both ]Efluk:ll parties declared against | cancellation in their recent platforms. | Any public official who should vote for | cancellation would thereby sign his own political death warrant. There is, however, a phase of this question that has not apparently oc- curred to our American advocates of cancellation, which is this: The money we loaned to Europe was not, in fact, loaned by the Government of the United States, but by those of our people who bought Liberty bonds. Our Gov- ernment was acting merely as an inter- mediary in the transaction. These bonds | are in reality obligations of our Euro- |F. pean debtors, and only technically obligations of the taxpayers of the United States, because they do not rep- resent obligations of our Government, except in a technical and moral sense, but are only evidence put out by our Government of the indebtedness of the several European countries to those of our citizens who bought these bonds. They were issued simply in lieu of the bonds of the several borrowers, who, for some reason, were unable at the time to furnish our treasury with their bonds for sale in the American market. When the Liberty bonds were issued our ople were assured that they would be quidated by Europe when due. If these debts are canceled or Europe re- fuses to pay them, the individual tax- payers of the United States will be looked to for their l'i)nyment,. If they are paid by the American people we will not only be making & gift to Europe of $11,000,000,000, but in addition will have to pay that amount to the comparatively few holders of these bonds. Is there any justice in this to the millions of our taxpayers who do not now and who never did own any Liberty bonds? In reality there is no difference in principle between these bonds and the outstanding external bonds of European and South American countries which have been bought by our people’ through international bankers. Both represent indebtedness of foreign countries. Would there be any more justice in making the American taxpayer pay our Liberty bonds, which are nothing more or less than evidence of Europe’s indébtedness to the holders of them, than there would be in taxing our people to re- imburse American holders of the exter- nal bonds of foreign countries, which have been defaulted or repudiated by them? There is a practical side to this ques- tion as well as the theoretical and technical, which should cause the American_advocates of cancellation to pause and consider the probable results of cancellation. We now have a tax bill in effect to raise four billions of dollars to meet the deficit, balance the budget and to operate the Government for the ensuing fiscal year. If we cancel Europe’s indebtedness, and thereby add to this the eleven billions they owe us, our people cannot stand this additional burden, even if the resources were avail- able, which they are not, because the sources of revenue are drying up more and more each month, with little pros- pect of lmfirovement. As aorollary to the tion of Europe’s debts to us the cancellation of our Liberty Bonds will follow of necessity, not only be- cause of the feeling of the people of the injustice of their being made to pay them under such circumsiances, but also because our Government could not find the revenue to ply them, and to attempt to enforce it would produce a revolution in the country. If canceled, the holders of thes: bonds will be ex- pected by the taxpayers to 1cok to Eu- rope for their payment and not to them, as they would feel that they would be under 0" more obligation under the circu to pay them than they ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS of all citizens of nqwlumkdirmly{wmu;w will use our Washington Bureau. newspaper mrkm Mr. -Haskin to act or its readers. He will take your matter to the proper au- thority. State your in briefly, write clearly and inclose 3-cent stamp for a personsal letter in y. Do not use post cards. Address e Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. Q. Where are the horse-racing centers of the United States?—W. S. A. The major racing centers in the United States are , Illinois, Maryland and Kentucky, where the sport is conducted under State laws; New York State, Ohio, San Francisco and New Orleans, where racing associ- ations operate under court decisions. Q. Which of the Presidents were grli:‘d sachems of Tammany Hall?— A. The kitchi okeinaw, grand sachem, was an honorary offic conferred by the Tammany Society upon the following Presidents of the United States: ‘Washington, John Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, John Q. Adams and Jackson. The of- fice was abolished after President Jack- son’s term. f’ gghen ‘were post cards first issued? . Postal cards were first issued by A the Post Office it M: 1, 1873, under act o?m wp.r’bved June 8, 1872. Q. Is a bat & bird?>—J. T. mal; that is, it is warm-blooded, covered with hair, gives birth to its young alive and suckles them, but at the same time has the digits of its four limbs enor- mously elongated into winglike struc- tures, over which a thin membrane of skin is . Bats are therefore the only true fiying mammals. Q. When was hydrotherapy first vr:cueed;—.\ll hI. T. . Gen ydrotherapy was intro- duced by Ascl d 1,800 public m il during the period 334 B. C.-180 A. D, Q. What is glass cloth?—F. J. B. A. The term is sometimes applied to the flexible material made by weaving finely drawn glass threads. It is also used to designate a patented process for treat cloth in such a way that the ultra-violet rays will penetrate it. Q. Why do black walnut_husks make such obstinate stains?—F. B. A. The ice of the stains is probably due to tannin, which most fibers absorb or combine with very readily. It is possible that the tannin acts as a fixing agent, holding the col- ;gg matter of the husks firmly to the Q. Are th:uu“ any Ll:evoxutlomry ‘War on e nsion P O. W.F. 2 e A. No payments are now on account of service in the tionary War. Q. In what musical show was a song sung which included the lines “It is no time for mirth or laughter, the cold :rl);vdnswn of the morning after”?— H W.E. A. It is from George Ade's “The Sul- tan of Sulu” and was - sung by Frank volu- Q. What is meant by the sphere of mnumce?—-b!;. G. gm A. A sphere of influence is a terri- ‘political. influ or great | A. The bat is not a bird, but a mam- | town. being made BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. ligious organizations, but sometimes just private individuals, usually under the .| vow of perpetual poverty, who carried in their journeys a palm branch as the sign of having completed a pi et cstesni ant, ware ovmlly i grea 'm and were us entertained. Q. How long have the Russians used samovars?—H. W. A. For not morg than 100 years. Q. Why did the custom of placing flowers on graves originate?—W. H. A. The ancients believed that the dead enjoyed the fragrance of the flowers. Q. Why is wool clothing the warm- S O e . the purpose col body heat wool excels all its substitutes because not only does its woven fabric diminish the radiation of body heat but its fiber is a poor conductor of heat. Furthermore, wool can be spun into more bulky yarn than cotton or flax and hence is often preferred for making textile fabrics when 'thickness is desired. Q. Where and how tall do balsa trees grow?—H. W. A. Trees of the genus occur in Puerto Rico, Cuba, Jamaica, Trinidad and elsewhere in the West Indies and |in Honduras, British Honduras and | Guatemala. They reach a height of from 40 to 60 feet and a diameter of from 1 to 3 feet. They attain their best development in open places in the forest and in abandoned fields along the watercourses, where there is con- | siderable moisture. They grow raj idly. The lightest wood, which is con=« sidered the mcst desirable, is produced by the fastest-growing trees, which are sald to attain diameter of 12 to 18 | inches in four or five years. Q. What are the different forms of civilized government?—M. K. A. The principal forms of govern- ment in the world today are: Limited monarchies, as Great Britain; absolute monarchies, as Abyssinia; republics, as the United States; dictatorships, such as Italy and Russia; protectorates, such as Morocco. In addition, there are sev- eral independent principalities. @ How much money did the United States Government lend to France after the armistice and how much was in the form of postponed payment for . M. A. Of the prihcipal sum of $2.997.- 477,000 lent to France $1,027,477,000 was advanced after the ermistice. Of this post-armistice sum $407,341,145 represented purchases by France of war and relief supplies. Q. Who was the first actor to play in New York?—T. D. A. Anthony Alston is said to have been the first. . Where is Crystal Cave in/Penn- sylvania?—B. C. A. It is between Reading and Allen- Ca opened - to Q. How many cattle are there in Rus- sia?—N. C. W. A. The total number, including both beef and dairy cattle, reported for the . 8. R. in 1930 was 53,800,000, 50,130,000 cattle lored west portion of the Sahara, portions e ont B Jateciar of Lapiador, The an are kmown, but they have- plored in detail, and there are thou- merainty o Q. What weté palmers?—M. P. would be'to reimburse American helders of the external bonds cf forelgn countries which bhad been repudiated by them. It is not the purpose of this eom- munication to advocate cancellation ol Liberty bonds in the event our Govern- ment should cancel the Furopean debts, but solely to warn cur people of probability of such acticn. ALEXANDER SIDNEY LANIER. —ee—. Depression Plants Should Be “Prosperity” Flowers To the Editor of The Star: I was interested today to read in an article in The Sunday Star directions for making a depression flower. Just a few days before I had heard of it for the first time. A friend at th2 office told me about it and that eve- ning, curiously enough, I received a letter from my little nicce in Roches- ter, N. Y., telling me about the same thing, but it was made with coke and was a “depression plant.” Now so much has been written about the causes and the nature of the de- pression that one could scarcely add anything worth while in a few words. However, I believe that there is a con- siderable degree of agreement that the depression is characterized by the throwing out of kilter of the several factors of production and distribution, and that it is prolonged by the gen- eral spread of the tgsy::m:dolry of pes- simism, which for the time being has grown so strong that it pushes aside the youthful, cheerful, optimistic spirit gen of America. ml:cmnotencmmethemuflo( ducing “depression flowers” or “de- pression plants” into our homes and cffices. However, I wouldn't advocate throwing these pretty and interesting |, = flowers away. Why not rather rename them “prosperity flowers?"” Let the soft coal or coke represent the industry needed to pull us out of the slough of despond; the blue rep- resent the fair and new day of promise; the pink the sunrise of & new hope- fulness; the gradual spread of the beautiful flower caused by the wonder- ful process of osmosis represent the welcome growth of the new prosperity. CARLETON LEWIS. B And Goes After Business. Prom the Springfleld (Mass.) Unicn. A girl may wear a golf outfit when she can’t play golf, and a bathing suit when she can’t swim, but when she puts on a wedding gown ‘she means business. ———— But They Did Stop. From the Cleveland News. Firemen of Monroe, Mich., who drove their engine into the side of a speeding freight train can logically claim that they stop for nothing. ——— Wilderness of Voices. From the Lowell Evening Leader. In these days of radio broadcasting | C% even a voice crying in the wilderness does not lack an audience. r—e—— If Not, Suppose He Was. From the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin. Man who has just returned to a Cambridge, Mass., library a book he had 38 years is evidently what you call a careful reader. Bad as Old “13.” From the San Antonio Express. “Firewood fight on farm fatal to father of nine"—“Father of nine chil- dren arrested in Boston for sending threatening letter . ., .” There's some- ihing in numbe; Judges May Be Married. Prom the Cleveland News. Faith in judicial power was well ex- hmcmu‘mmzm the | of the depression by intro- | % i 0y o A, Palmers were wandering votaries, sometimes members of re- sands of square miles where no man has set foot, so far as is known. ‘Hard Strugg Doubts as to the success of the treaty between this country and Canada for tlwwcou:tru”;f.hn of n:e St. uwmse’ waterway provement are raised developments at the hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In the general discussion there are on the railroad interests the cost, they will bave to ask the Sen- ate to take something on faith, to be- lieve, as they believe themselves, that connecting the Great Lakes with the Atlantic by a deep and broad waterway will prove a tremendous stimulus to the commerce and industry of a wide area. ashington obsefvers say pros- pects of getting a two-thirds vote for the treaty in the coming short n are not too bright. And a new admin- istration may favor a new treaty, which would involve further negotiations. Nevertheless, the advocates of the ship- way have a vision of great benefits which they will not abandon. They will keep up the fight. In the case of development of the United States such visions have frequently proved war- ranted, especially if they enough. It is the little plans, like add- ing three or four feet in depth to an outmoded canal, that have proved fail- he has cerned for the rights and of that Commonwealth, especially in matter of its share of the cost of struction and control of the el developed water power. He project, but the | scale. Oppositio: nounced in le Is Indicated ~ Over St. Lawrence Treaty But the way to ratification of the not all clear. If it 5 to be effe at the coming session of Con=- public sentimen sup] action. The ial slip betwixt cup and lip d occur in either Wash- ington or Ottawa. Seaway advocates on both sides of the boundary should beb vigilantly and impressively on the job.” “It is expected,” remarks the San Antonio Express, “that the treaty will meet determined opposition in the Sen- ate. The Canadian government com- mands a tary majority suffi- cient to assure ratification; but Ottawa has announced that the compact will not be submitted to the Dominion legis- lators until the United States shall have acted upon it.” The Express comments further: “The shipway plan is favored by many States and several Canadian provinces, as it would lower transporta= . | tion costs on their exports and imports. Moreover, the scheme embraces hydro- electric power development on a n to the treaty is pro- ebec Province, where Premier Louis A. Taschereau asserts that the hydroelectric power promised is not needed so far as Canada is con- cerned. He also contends that the treaty gives the United States ‘a it proprietary interest’ in the Welland Ship Canal, which connects Lake Erie and Ontario through Canadian terri- tory. New York State authorities are dissatisfied because they were not con- sulted regarding the disposal of the hydroelectric power to be allotted the United States.” Quoting the criticisms of the Lake Carriers’ Association, the Akron Bea- con Journal, recogmizing its charge of the burden of “huge expenditure,” adds: “The point is made that less than 5 per cent of the total tonnage handled on the Great Lakes in a normal season needs an outlet to the sea, and that the prodigious cost of the improvement cannot be carried by a government which is faced with the most desperate need of retrenchment. Another voice to be heard in this controversy is that of the Eastern railroads. They are op- posed to a heavy diversion of traffic from their lines to serve what they term as a purely mythical objective of ‘granting lower shipping rates to West- big | ern farmers.’” ‘The Jersey City Journal comments: “With the steady improvement in rail transportation, both as to time and cost, and the failure of most of our inland waterways, both river and canal, to move any appreciable amount of freight, or to be self-sustaining in mov- ing what they do, this seems to be a time to go slowly on any great ex- penditure for new waterwa present appearances there is no great danger that haste will be made.” ‘The New York Evening Post con- cludes that “this waterway would be