Evening Star Newspaper, December 20, 1932, Page 8

A8 THE EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. TUESDAY.....December 20, 1932 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Ofice: 11! . and Pennsylvania Ave. New York Office: 110 ‘East 42nd St. Chicago Office: Lake Michigan Buildi European Office: 14 Regent 8t.. Londoi Encland. Rate by Carrier Within the City. The Evemng Star_..._..._...45c per month The Evening and Sunday’ Star % (when 4 Sundays)...........60¢ per month The Evening and Sunday Star (wken 5 Sund: ). ..65¢ per month The Sunday Star.... ee......5€ DET CODY Collection made ot the end of each month e sent in by mail or telephone Rate by Mail—Pay2ble in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Daily and Sunda 1yr., $10.00; 1 mo., 85¢ | Daily only . 1yr, $6.00: 1mo. 50c | Bunday on! + $4.00; 1mo.. 40c nd also { 4 1l rights of publication of re also reserved. Mr. Hocver's Debt Proposals. Members of Congress are well within the truth when they describe the spe- cial message sent by President Hoover yesterday on the combined subjects of War debts, disarmament and world eco- | nAmics as one of the outstanding state | Its refe! ve power, papers of his admin ences to price levels av copsumplive capaciiy, currency fluctu- ations, gold standards, trade barriers and other pelitico-technical matters naturally cannot be followed with com- plete understanding by the average| citizen. But the President's broad deductions | and specific recommendations are so sane and plain that neither in nor out | of Congress is there any ground for not grasping or acting upon them. Mr.| Hoover, with respect to the creation of | — Y avallable for work. The battle against the snow was continued until it wes won., It was not ever thus. Washingtonians remember the storm of ten years ago which the District attempted to fight with a few picayune plows and scattered gangs, with the result that traffic was hopelessly snarled and even the prin- cipal streets of the city were impass- able. Last Saturday morning, long be- fore daylight, the District was getting ready to launch an attack that in- creased in intensity as the snow fell and did not end until every available truck in the District’s service, and all laborers as well as all unemployed who | could be put to work, were on the job. Per diem employes in the District do not usually report for work ‘on Satur- day, but, fortunately, enough of them | did report last Saturday morning to form the nucleus of an organieation that quickly grew as the word spread that men were wanted. At the same time the unemployed who gathered at the municipal woodyard for the weekly payment for “made work” given them by the Board cf Public Welfare's Un- employment Committee were notified, and some fifteen hundred of them were pressed into service at forty-five cents an hour. Many of them worked two eight-hour shifts. By cutting red tape the District officials are paying them today for this work instead of waiting until Saturday, the regular pay day. For these unemployed the silver lining of the snow clouds is not hard to find. Washington has suffered the minimum of inconvenience from one of the heav- iest storms in years. e Tke Troublss of Mr. Curry. The last signs and evidences of the reign of “Jimmie” Walker, the “little mayor,” as Gov. Franklin D. Roosevelt used to refer to him in moments of re- laxation, are to be swept from New York City. Not by the Republicans, or even by Al Smith, or the acting mayor, Joseph A. McKee, but by John F. Curry, the Tammany boss. Chief Curry, who wishes to remain chief of the five Dem- a fact-finding agency to deal with gen- | eral 1d economic chaos, informs} Congress that he would be happy if 1t: would itself set up such a body. If| Congress does not care to do so, the in the exercise of his execu- | prerogative, purposes moving to | end. It is a decision the wisdom d urgency of which alike speak un- nswerably in its favor. Rome is burn- inz, and Mr. Hoover is opposed to fur- | ther fiddli The President sets forth with ele- mentary obviousness that discussions| cotton much to the Tammany boss.|ular conprehension related to both debt questions and the | coming World Eccnomic Cenference | Smith, was Governor of New York | lems in simple a State, which did not sweeten the feel- | “cannot be concluded during my ad- | ocratic tribes of the greater city, sees an opportunity to build up and strength- en himself through patronage which the former mayor, the wise-cracking Jimmie, seems to have used for his own purposes while I~ was in office, and, by the way, in good Tammany standing The Curry edict is now “off with the political or official heads of the Walker outfit.” The real menace to Mr. Curry as Alfred E. Smith. Mr, Smith never did He denied Curry an office when he, Mr. #H® EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. ¢, TU iSD. DE ('FMBER =o, 1932 away in search of provender in the usual bird fashion. In a few minutes thay returned for a further experience of comfort. The pejformance was re- peat:d again and again throughout the day. Sparrows are smart. They are amaz- ingly competent in making useful ad- justments to circumstance. Their genius for adaptation is characteristic of the species. Originally they came from Asia. By way of Northern Europe and the British Isles they reached America in 1851. Some thirty different subspecies | have been recognized. Each has de- veloped in its own way, made its own necessary compromises with its environ- | ment and su:vived. The so-called Eng- | lish sparrows once were hated because | of their aggressive disposition, but their ! bad manners seem to have been cor- | rected, and today ornithclogists say they “arc eiving much good service as de- istr 5 of harmful insects.” ossibly there may be a lesson for hu- man beings in the capacity of the birds is particuiarly hard. Existence often | appears to depend upca the ability to change, the talent to alter the habits and customs of previous years, Just now, when the whole earth is being dis- turbed by shifting economic conditions, mea and women to some degree must strive to emulate the sparrows, making constructive adjustments to the world as they find it, as the birds have done. Both birds and humanity will survive, Both are capable of constructive change, r———s Belief is cxpressed-on behalf of the Amerizan Federation of Musicians that lizht alcoholic drinks would create greater ¢emand for music. fme pe s to 1eplace the tunes whose charm bha: coen exhausted, but it cannot pre- vent the radio from distributing the performance of one jazz band to hun- dreds of towns that have musicians of their own necding employment. Even so delicate a thing as music faces the problems of distribution. L TSR The wife of a distinguished states- man lost jewels in a taxicab, recovered them, immediately lost them again and once more recovered them. The inci- dent is a happy reminder of the fact that hard working statesmen may still have gems and that the modern taxi- {cab driver is more likely to prove friendly trustworthy than the old- fachioned hack driver. —————— Reference has been made to Prof. This might | Tammany leader comes at present from | Einstein as a violinist as well as a | mathematician too profound for pop- While the world is struggling with these baffling prob- hmetic, he might be persuadsd to relieve the tensity by ministraticn, yet the economic situa- |ing of Curry toward Smith. After the | giving a scries of concerts. tion in the world necessitates the pre- liminary work essential to its success. | The undertaking of these preliminary | questions should not be delayed until| after March 4. Mr. Hoover there- fore announces his intention of “seek- ing the co-operation of President-elect Roosevelt in the organization of ma- | chinery for advancement of considera- | tion of these problems.” Early, though unofficial. intimations | from Albany seem to reflect a disin- | clination on Gov. Roosevelt’s part to join with President Hoover along the proposed lines. Nor does the President- elect evince any disposition to recede | from his previously expressed belief that normal diplomatic channels, rath- er than special representatives, supply the preferable means of tackling the debts and all co-related problems. Mr. Hoover takes direct issue—for the first time—with his successor on this score. “Adequate and proper machinery for dealing with these problems,” the President asserts, “must be created. It is clear that ordinary diplomatic agencies and facilities are not suitable for the conduct of negotiations which can best be carried on across the table by specially qualified representatives.” It would be unfortunate in the high- est degree if a difference of opinion over what is after all the relatively minor matter of method were to keep Messrs. Hoover and Roosevelt apart on these all-vital affairs. The President's appeal for the co-operation of his suc- cessor is so reasonable that many of Gov. Roosevelt’s admirers will be dis- appointed if he refuses it. In his own | former Governor had been di&lslmnsly} defeated for the presidency in 1928 the | R Greece will naturally be interested in to maintain themselves when nature | wears its most forbidding aspect and life | aj 2 work for more and better com- | “Litening-in” on street car conversa- tions is perhaps the best way to pass the tedium of a long trip, especlally in the morning, and particularly on a snowy day. The state of the weather, naturally enough, is the supreme topic. If you are fortunate enough to get right” in front of two friends, who enjoy a chance meeting aboard, you will get to hear a great deal about things meteorological. After all, why shouldn't people talk about the weather? Occasionally one hears it spoken of as a boresome topic, unfit for intelli- gent peopla to consider. ‘The truth seems to be that there is no other single topic so pervading, so largely of interest to so many persons, or which provides such incessant material. Every day is slightly different in such a climate as this, even in stretches of weeks when the general tone, as it were, is somewhat the same. Since the Currier & Ives pictures, now largely popular again, nothing has appeeled quite 5o much to the imagina- tion of the American people as a snowfail. Despite the misery it causes to indi- viduals, and the expense to commun- ities, @ snow is dear to the heart, if the body can at the same time be warm. ‘Then the warmth of the imagination plctures it in its best colors. And this feat is peculiarly possible to almost any one, if the snow is just beginning. The bitterness of it, the very coldness of it, has not had time to penetrate bone and sinew, to dampen the feet and heart. These two gentlemen talking about the snow remember the great blizz | of 1899, ‘That was a long time ago, gentlemen' One longs to turn in one's seat, and take a look at them, to see if they are as old as they scund. On second thought, one does not turn around. The thing would be impossible, in the first place. Here is a nice young lady jammed up against one’s shoulder, and s fat man hemming in the other side. There are human beings to right and left. One scarcely could turn if one had t On second thought, the listener doe. not want to turn around. Such an action would be impolite—and one of | the conversationalists might sneeze. Part of the street car complex seems | | to be to sneeze. Perhaps it is the “no | | smoking” signs, a relic of ancient days. | | Maybe passengers, not being able to smoke or expectorate, seize upon sneez- | ing as a vast relief. | Yes, the gentlemen remember the | blizzard of 1899. It wasn't so long ago. | after all. One of them recalls that he | was a very small boy in grade school, | and that he was rejoiced to hear, upoi that fateful day, that classes would be dismissed_at 1 o'clock. ‘What shouting and whooping ensued, as they broke loose from the old build- | ing! | They discovered, however, that their | noise was premature | | _Working one’s way homeward through | that blowing snow was not as joyous a | | performance as one expected. Somehow or other the flakes got into | one's eyes, the familiar streets and | houses seemed strange, deep banks of time scemed ripe for Mr. Curry and (Samuel Insull's desire to be a Tesident,| white impeded small legs at cvery step. | other Tammany district leaders, who |especially if he will go as far in pro- | also did not like Mr. Smith's ideas about a new and better Tamnmany, to ignore the man who had dominated Democratic politics in the Empire State for so many years. Mayor ‘‘Jimmie” Walker cast in his lot with the district leaders, and after an historic row, in | be a working unit in the governmental | '|High Lights on the Wide World which the late Marty McCue and Mr. Curry and one or two other district leaders fought it out in Tammany Hall, the leadership of the democratic or- ganization of New York County, the borough of Manhattan, went to Curry, with Walker reigning as prince regent for Tammany. Tammany triumphantly | re-elected the mayor in 1929, and the | goose was hanging high. The clouds darkened for the Tam-| many pet, Walker, more than a year ago. Ever since then Mr. Curry has‘ twisted and turned to get out of & bad situation without being thrown out. Unfortunately, Roosevelt was strong in the Bronx, where Flynn, the leader, is a particular friend of the President- elect. Until the Democratic National Convention and afterward Mr. Curry| continued to dominate the situation. At the convention Mr. Curry and Mayor Walker went down the line for Al Smith. Not because they loved him, | but becawse their followers did and | | because Smith seemed the best bet with | | which to halt the onward rush of Gov. | | Roosevelt toward the presidential nomi- nation. Roosevelt won, which was a | blow to Curry and Walker. Then things moting o |went in | Chicago. Id statuary in Athens as he developing new opera in —raee Program makers have not made it | certain whether former Gov. Smith will }ss’slem or b2 kept in readiness as an | extra added attraction. e Percentages are conspicuous in alco- kol legislation, with estimates as to a | sixty-six and two-thirds percentage of :votea in the House of Representatives. The energy expected of lame ducks | may form the basis of a startling esti- ! mate of what & flock of birds in good | condition may accomplish after March 4. ———— The European diplomatic negative is | expressed in a way to suggest that | Uncle Sam should not be in too great | haste in taking no for an answer. | e SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. . Trimmings. Oh, come, all good friends, from a far- away shore, We've lent all our wealth, but we may find some more, And many a neighbor is hoping to see | That Uncle Sam’s trimming the old| | Christmas tree. interest, the incoming Chief Executive | got just a little too hot for the mayor But the call seems unheeded, at least would find it immeasurably helpful to have had the closest possible insight into issues as certain to plague his administration from its outset as he nation of Lehman for Governor, &n- | Never mind the old tree. himself is to assume two and & half | months hence the responsibilities which the Nation has thrust upon him. In his two thousand five hundred words to Congress on the disordered state of the World President Hoover is strangely silent on one subject— namely, tariffs, He is apparently at- tempting to be consistent with the em- | bargo placed by the United States on | any discussions of tariffs at the World | Economic Cenference, which Mr. Hoo- | ver now links so conspicucusly with debts and disarmament. But that con- ference will not have swung into ac- | tion very long before other countries | will trot out tariffs for consideration in | and he quit under fire. He was out. A | reconciliation between Gov. Roosevelt | | and Mr. Smith followed and the nomi- | other Roosevelt man. At the same :tlme. Acting Mayor McKee was show- ing up the Walker regime in a light| that was terrifying to the Tnmmzmyi leaders. | Now Mr. Curry sees the lines drawing | closer ard closer. There s to be Roose- | velt in the White House, with the Fed- | cral patronage at his hand. There is| Mr. Smith in New York, with his| recommendations for a reform of the | city government and the wiping out of borough lines and, further, his menace as a possidle candidate for mayor. It is up to Mr. Curry, who has no par- ticular personal appeal to the rank and file of the organization such as has the for a witile. Responses are made in a cynical style, | “This holiday spirit is only & sham, Let us trim Uncle Sam. Remarkable Bird. “What is your idea of a lame duck?” “He's the most curious and courageous animal I know of” answered Senator Sorghum. “The oniy creature in the animal kingdom who can keep getting around by using his vocal cords for a crutch.” A Hard Trick. Debt fills us with a faltering doubt And prompts some effort rash To call the nuisance off without Surrendering the cash. Jud Tunkins says beer may make us one form or another. Germany has | former Governor of New York, to stir | pappier, although it hasn't done much formally notified her intention of do- irg so. | President Hoover reassures Congress | that ke “will not entertain the thought | of debt cancellation.” In the mnext| reath he suggests that if the Ameri- can people are going to have to make “further sacrifices” in their debtors’ favor, “adjusiment of cash payments must be compensated by definite bene- fits In markets, and otherwise.” Just how the United States could ever ex- pect Eurcpe to confer these “definite benefits” for our trade without lower- ing European tariff barriers is difficult to understand. And if Europe lowers hers, how .long wilk {{ be before she asks the United States to take down some of its own? Mr. Hoover's fact- finders should also be fact-facers, if their explorations are to be thorough. = It is perhaps a mistake to say that conferences do not get anywhere, since one conference always leads to another. —————————— A Good Job Well Done. The District Government did a good job in snow removal Saturday and Sunday. The reason it did a good job was that the officials were prepared in advance with a plan, and when it be- came evident that Washington was in for one of its rare but heavy storms the plan was put into effect. Every avail- able wen vas mustered into service— snd B thizs 5 there are always men | his stumps. — e | 1 the Kaiser should attempt to sit on | the throne, & new one would be appro- | priate with a hot griddle as the model. S Smart Birds. Saturday’s snowstorm made living a | difficult business for sparrows. But somehow they managed. Their ordi- nary feeding grounds in the public parks and streets were covered with the white blanket from the skies. It was cold enough in all conscience for feath- ered as for other folk. There were a | few persons who thoughtfully scattered | | crumbs in sheltered places for the birds, | but, even so, finding a completely sat- isfying dinner was a problem. Never- theless, it could be done, and it was done. The sparrows did not die. One discovery especially helped them |to survive. The warm radiator of a | parked automobile attracted their at- tention, and a roving photographer of The Star steff was successful Sunday ricrning in the endeavor to “snap” a | representative group of birds clinging | to the honeycomb netting over the en- | gine. One single bird must have made the find in the first instance. The impulse toward imitation prompted the others to take advantage of its exam- ple. Soon nearly all the sparrows in town were congregated around the hoods of standing cars. They rested and re- laxed, got nicely warmed, then flew' in that line for our friends abroad, who have had it all along. The Onward Way. ‘We must go on, * Though weary hours go by, And wait each dawn, Although it brings a sigh. Affection points the way— 'Tis never gone— It proudly bids us “We must go on.” A Silence Seeker. “I did think of giving Henrietta a radio set,” said Mr. Meekton. “But I have decided to make it a piano.” “But Henrietta can’t play the piano.” “That's why I prefer it.” say, “A life with no sorrow,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “would be but a lonely existence with no hope of un- derstanding the world abcut us.” New Idea. Now holidays are in the air, For more of them we call, And later on we may not care For any work at all. We will when working days are scant, Revise the old refrain. The sluggard will salute the ant With infinite disdain. “If we could know exactly what's @ine ter happen in dis life,” said Uncle Eben, “we'd miss all de interest of goin® ahcad and findin’ cut for ourselves,” _ The narrator did not say all this, in | so many words, perhaps, but he man- aged to bring it all back over the stretch | of vears. | | " It seemed very personal, there in the | | grinding car, inching its way along the | tracks. Every now and then there' ! ORTH - CHINA HERALD,| Shanghal —A set of measures abolition of ju- throughout the country has been made pub- lic by the ministry of interior. According to these measures, the va- rious municipal and district authorities are to make a thorough investigation within their _respective jurisdictions. | “Slave owners” should be required to free their girl or boy slaves immediate- | ly. Should such siaves be voluntarily desirous of continuing in the service of their “owners.” their status should be changed to that of employes and they should be entitled to wages for | their services and to terminate their employment as in the case of ordinary | servants or employes. The measures also call for the estab- lishment of special institutions by the various local authorities for the accom- modation of homeless juvenile slaves { who have been set free. Such institu- tions should not only provide food and lodging but should also undertake the education of the released slaves as well as training them in some useful avo- cation. A | Slave-owners who refuse to set-their | slaves free in accordance with these | measures will be prosecuted according to the provisions of the criminal code, and will be further liable to a fine of not more than $300. Slaves who have already reached the age of majority will be allowed com- plete freedom in regard to marriage, the measures farther provide. * ok K Elephant Is Rival To World's “Oldest Man.” Manchester Guardian—Zara Agha, the world’s oldest man, appears to have | a rival in his claim to be the only crea- ture now living who knew Napoleon, for Budapest is calling attention to the fact that it possesses an elephant which came into intimate contact with the Emperor. It is a native of Siam. and was given to Napoleon during his dis- astrous campaign in Egypt. He took it back to Paris with him, but it proved s0 wild and vicious that he presently packed it off as a present to his father- in-law, the Emperor of Austria, who placed it in the Vienna zoo, where it again caused trouble and was trans- ferred to Budapest, where it has re- mained ever since. Reputed to be 150 years old, it has lost its youthful energy and spirits, and spends its days begging coins and cakes from visitors. * ok ok X Hinduism Held Facing Hard Test in India. Bombay Chronicle.—Hinduism is in the_crucible. Caste_system is going to recelve & severe jerk, Untouchability has been a matter of pride for bigoted orthodoxy but of shame to all intelligent Indians that 60,000,000 human beings with the machinery of consciousness should be treated as untouchables, as worse than beasts. In'the name of religion chal- lenges and counter-challenges are thrown and accepted. Why not leave religion alone and also the mystic at- mosphere? Consider the question in a scientific spirit. Modern sciences with the help of history will show a way out of the gloom and darkness, and bring the heaven to be gained after death here into this very world, which is not such a bad place after 2" '° cne human be- ing acted toward cnother with justice * * * poth being created by the same nature, providen'e, or “Swayambhu.” * * % Mystery Excursions Pepular in Germany. Deutsche Verkehrsblaetter, Berlin.— The national railroad’s excursions to unknown destinations, which operated at intervals during the Summer, have proved so popular that they are likely to become a permanent feature of the system. The Berlin division has just announced another mystery trip which will give all making the journey “glimpses of German art, industry and landscape.” The train will leave the capital at 6:30 in the morning, and return a little THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. would be a great “swoosh,” as a snow- plow went by. Flekes of real snow filtered through the ventilators, miraculously open; flecks of it invaded silken muffiers, and felt wet on the neck. Here was “atmosphere,” a real setting for talk about past blizzards. “Glad I got my coal in,” says one of the gentlemen. They talk about heating for at least & dozen blocks. Here is a profitable topic, at any time, but with peculiar appeal in cold, blustery weather, espe-| cially while the snow comes down. How wrapped up with life is the necessity for keeping warm! It is one of the primal needs, against which the desire for the frippery of life and living pales into the tinsel it so often is. ‘The blood of warm-blooded animals keeps at an even temperature, under the iucessant watch of a marvelous sys- tem of checks and balances. Out in the snow, or in the living roolx;:;‘ the blood stream keeps itself stable. ‘This is one of the “stable states” of | the human econcmy 50 interesting a mystery to the scientific investigator. ‘The blood keeps warm—very warm— to an exact temperature of a primeval setting, detemined upon so long ego | that the mind of man runneth not to the contrary. ‘That temperature is called “normal.” Centuries of experiment have proved that Nature is helped in this eflort of hers by various human necessities, such as food, clothing and proper heating. The passenger in the seat ahead s felicitating himself, as well he may, on the fact that his bin is full of fuel. His companion tells of being waked up by his cat meowing at his bedsi “I had a Ltte dog, once,” begins the other, in he conversation turns to dogs, al- ways & good subject, whether it 15 sun- shiny or gray, clear or rainy, or snowy. He had a little dog, once, which used to leap up on his bed in the morning, and sit gazing at him until he woke up. It never barked, but just sat there looking at him, and its eyes were the first things he saw in the morning, every morning. The gentlemen spent some blocks dis- ussing the relative merits of the arious breeds of dogs. One said he preferred bulldogs, the | other fancied the terriers, especially the wire-haired fox. “But I really like cats the best,” he went on. Usually such a remark would lead to an instant retort, on the part of the simon-pure dog lover, but this morning | there is no disposition on any one’s | pert to argue about anything. “Will you get next Saturday off?” asks one. The other, evidently a Government employe, says he doesn't know, hasn't heagd yet, no announcement has been Hopes so, he says. The conversation drifts to Christmas. The children are going to get a few ;{‘n.l\ll gifts, but no one else scems to be ine. The conversation turns back to the Snow. " look at it come dow! the Federal employe. “Some snow,” says the other, very emphatically The listener-in takes a good look at the gentlemen, as they leave the car. One meets h does not. You never can tell, and that is one of the interesting things about forming mental images of people from the sounds of their voices, and the trend of their minds, as gathered from their conversation. says Excerpts From Newspapers of Other Lands before midnight. The distance tra- versed will be some 280 kilometers (175 and the fares will be respective- Iy 6', and 8', marks (about $1.50 and §2) for third and second-class tickets. This price includes dinner, and any fees charged to enter places of interest included in the itinerary. Even the general direction of the trip is kept a secret, this circumstance enhancing the potency of its appeal. r——ooms Supreme Law of the Land Not Made by the States To_the Editor of The Sta - Your correspendent, James H. Quain, | might lay aside his text books and read | | with profit the second clause of Article |on December 15 by England and the | | VI of the Constitution of the United |other European nations. then it must States, as follows: “This Constitution, and the laws of | | the United States which shall be made | an pursuance thereof, and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under | | the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every State shall be {bound thereby, anything in the Con- | stiution or laws of any State to the con- trary notwithstanding.” No State or States can make any supreme law of the land; therefore, no | State or States can make a treaty, | | which (as heretofore stated) shall be |made by the President of the United | States, by and with the advice and| consent of the Senate. i The disorganizing action of the States | under the articles of confederation will reveal to any sincere seeker aftc- the | truth the vital reason why the i eaty- | making power necessarily wa; sur- rendered by the States and given to| the United States. “No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance or confederation”—that is ng the “powers | JOSEPH W. CHEYNEY. Unjust Criticism of Police For Hunger March Work To the Editor of The Star: If Senator Blaine had not placed quite so much credence in the hearsay evidence he has evidently been listening in on. or if he had experienced for him- self the actual conditions under which the rude police of Washington were working during the three days of the recent excitement, he might have a slightly different viewpoint—might, it is even conceivable. have indulged in some sirong language on his own account, ‘We of the District lear-d long ago to regard with more or les; patient in- dulgence the “interest” in District af- fairs of the gentlemen on the Hill, knowing full well that one of their favorite indoor sports—whether they be lame ducks hobbling out after years of self-sacrificing service to their coun- try, or newly hatched ducklings hurry- ing to sit in on the game—is to make a large and speechful showing before their constituents by “picking on” the helpless District, secure in the knowl- ggg; that the District cannot “pick I strongly advocate that the mnext time we are favored with a visitation of the “great unwashed” we should let them go their own sweet way without police interference. Then, if they take it into their red heads to plant & bomb in the Capitol, perhaps Senator Blaine and his fur-coated, limousine-borne in- formants may be a trifle more lenient in their criticisms of a hard-working, hard-driven body of men. MRS. CHARLOTTE RANDALL. Extra-Curricular. From Springfleld (Mass) Daily Republican. Commonwealth College, a “radical, non-factional” labor school in the Ozark mental picture, the other | | by restrictive laws. foothills, has a student strike on its hands; not, however, as part of the curriculum, Washington Taxpayers Are Woefully Maligned To the Editor of The Star: During the presidential campaign of 1928 I heard Mr. Alfred E. Smith, the Democratic candidate, make the charge that the clvic government of the city of Washington was costing the tax- payers of the country at large over forty millions of dollars. Whether he | had been purposely misinformed I do not know. The point is that a man in his position should have known better, as proper information cculd easily have been had. In this year of 1932 the| United States Chamber of Commerce, according to an editorial in yoir news- paper, has rcpeated the charge and the same has been widely disseminate: | Confessedly, if Mr. Smith was ignora at the time his comment was made, which, if so, does in no manner excuse him, assuredly among the many sup- posed-to-be well informed gentlem composing the aforesaid large and in- fluential organization some of them knew the charge had no tenancy of fact behind it. However, this is merely preliminary. The writer travels the Atlantic_coa. from New York to Florida. Every where the people are imbued with the | idea the sole cause ¢ the Federal Go | ernment deficit anc of their increaseu | | taxes is Washington and the office holders. 1n other words they believe | | their tax money is being squandered for | the benefit of Washington and Wash- ingtonians. . lhis, I am sorry to say, they are being ¢ netted by some Con-, gressmen for pe:-onal considerations.| Is it not about tin:> to call & spade a| spfi st what sort of a dent would the | proposed reductions in Governmental | salaries, if carried into effect, make in the deficit. Why, in the interests of | truth, not to say justice, does not some | { medium ascertain the amount and ha <ame published extensively? It we 50 small in comparison as to ma; it ridiculous, The plain and bare rea- ons which have brought about the en- | ormous amcunt in the red the country fincs itself confronted with are that a | majority of the Congress have been using the public pocketbook to further their political fortunes, and now they are quick to respond to anything in | the shape of a smoke screen. Poor “Washington and _poor office holders! ~ You are to be the goat for the vast expenditures of money in the way of appropriations made to organ- ized eclements solely for their voting | power. This hullabaloo over salaries has been purposely made. If the clerks’ | | salaries were cut in half there would | | be no_appreciable reduction in the defi- | cit. Nor will there be until the cut is | made in the proper place. | |, Let the outlander come to Washing- | ton and get some first-hand facts on | how his tax money is being spent. Let | him stroll around the Senate and House | office buildings and discover the mag- | nificent and sumptuously furnished quarters his Representatives, themselves well paid personally, are occupying at his expense. In many cases he has | been compelled to borrow money to pay | | for this splendor or else let his prop- | erty be confiscated. Let him go over | and view the Roman garzge constructed | | with his money and ask some one who | kncws how much it cost. He will soon discover just where and how his tax money is being spent, and not on the | office holder, whom the Congress | now glecfuily has charged with being | in the main responsible for the plight | the country finds itself in. I wonder | if they are not chucklipg up their| eves to discover so good a chance to | put something over? | How much longer the public money | will be used for personal considerations | 1s perhaps difficult to say,. but, sooner | or later, if the practice is not stopped, | a state of demolition of public revenue | will occur. | No, it isn't Washington nor the poor | office clerks that are responsible in the | [urvm'.s s. Let the proposed cut be made | | if thought best. but don't let the coun- try at large continue in their misguided | belief that high salaries are the sole | | cause of our troubles. Congress should | | stop spending our money for its own! | personal benefit. H ROBERSON. S — 5 ‘Dangcr of Greag W Public Funds for Farmers To the Editor of The Star: | It is to be hoped that the Govern- ment will not at this time, or at any time in the future, sericusly consider | | granting additional special privileges to! agriculture, or for that matter to any Gther block of industry. When it is| realized that the Farm Board has u(-‘ terly thrown away $500,000,000 of tax- | | payers’ money for mo good purpose | | whatsoever and that this is more than | five times as much money as was paid | be understood that the Government has already committed a monstrous wrong 1n this waste of public money. But the strongest kind of political influence is now being exerted by the farm block at Washington and there is very great dznger of further waste of public money in this direction. The excuse for this subsidy of the farming industry is the enormous favors which have been provided to Eastern manufacturers under our protective system but, of course, two wrongs do not make a right. Any further favors to agriculture would inevitably re- sult in still - further increasing the production of wheat. cotton and other products by the artificial stimulus thus given. The use of labor-saving ma- chinery is responsible for what amounts to overproduction at the present time, and it is not the business of Govern- ment to make any industry profitable. If farming is becoming unprofitable, it 15 then simply up to the farmers to go into some other line of business. There is no danger of starvation because of insufficient arm products. What the farmers wan. more than anything else is international free trade. This would create greatly increased demands in a natural way and would thus produce the prosperity that is now denied to us HENRY WARE ALLEN. Wichita, Kans, Physician’s View of Socialized Medicine To the Editor of The Star: T have just read with a great deal of interest in the Journal of the American Medical Association, issue of December 10, your editorial on the report of Dr. Ray Lyman Wilbur's Committee for the Cost of Medical Care. 1 think you sized the whole situation up in asking why Dr. Wilbur and his committee do not include food, clothing, rent, fuel and all other necessities for those of small incomes, and why do they single out only the medical profession. Whenever the medical profession iz socialized and converted into one ci the bureaus controlled by politics, then the quality of medicine disintegrates and the “dear people” are really the sufferers. The relationship between the teal high-class physician and his patient and the personal interest that the physician takes in his patient, the sacrifice, the love and the interest, all are qualities of service that cannot be measured by the yardstick of a dollar. You cannot measure a profession as you can measure a trade, in dollars and cents. The dollar yardstick will not reach far enough to take in personal interest_that the real high-class doctor has in his private patients. I want to thank you most heartily for the position you and your paper have taken in this matter. JNO. B. WRIGHT, M. D, President. Medical Society of North Carolina. Cut From Below. From the Cleveland News. Toledo’s abandonment of street clean- ing illustrates municipal economy ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. This is a special department devoted | solely to the handling of queries. This| paper puts at your disposal the services | of an extensive organizatic: in Wash- | ington to serve you in any ¢ Jacity that | relates to information. Tt = service is free. Failure to make use »f it de-| prives you of benefits to which you are entitled. Your obligation is only 3 cents in coin or stamps inclosed with your inquiry for direct reply. Do not use post rards. Address The Evening Star Informaticn Bureau, Frederic J. Heskin, Director, Washington, D. C. Q. What relation s there between the weight of a golf club and the distance obtained?—W. J. A. I; depends elmost entirely on the speed with which an individual is abl> to swing the club at point of impact with the ball. Q. Should Dummy leave his seat to watch his partner play a hand at bridge?—A. 8. A. He should not. Dummy has the same status in the playing of the hand as the other players, with a few ex- ccptions, and should keep his sezt and follow the play. Q. Is a Presicent-elect of the United States protected by the Secret Service of the United S . 5. B A. He has a Sccret Service escort from the day he is elects Q. What was done with the money leit in the treasury of the Belgian Re- ief Commission?—M. M. F. A. In a report made by Herbert Hoo- ver is the following statement: “Certain balances * * * final residues of the fund were applied * * * to educational and charitable work to be mainta A | as enduring memorials to ths good will th d t> help jn of need through the Cc g Relief in Belgium. In this final liquidation of the comini been completed.” Q. What is meant by ice-blink?—S. B. | A. It is a name given by mariners to a luminous appearance of the sky caused by the reflection of light from ice. 1If the sky is dark or brown, it indicates | water beneath; if white, rosy or orange colored, ice is indicated. . Was tuberculosis known to the ancients?—N. P. A. Egyptian mummies show that tu- has | berculosis existed 1,600 years before the Caristian era. - Q. What is the Floating University?— . W. A. The term “Floating Uni: applied to the University wor which is, in effect, a modern u which carries its professors an dents around the world. A transatlantic steamship, equipp i class rooms, study hall and librar serves as a campus. The countries of the world are used as a laboratory. Q. Was there particular sieni: in the position that a knight his spear?—D. A. R. A. If he kept the point of his spear forward when entering a_strange l2 he came as an enemy; if he carr! spear against his shoulder with point back it was a token of friendsk Q. How fast do bullets pass throu the barre! of a Browning machine gun? —W. F. V. A. It takes about 1-500th second fc 2 bullet to pass through the barrel. On ‘bullet will travel about 100 tRe next cne leaves the barr Q. What was the “Berlin J.R.H. A. It was an order issued November' 21, 1806, forbidd portation of British goods a cluding fro: trol any neu touched at a British port. nder his 1 which had Q. Was Charles Stuart Parnell, “un- crowned King of Ireland,” ever impris- oned?—L. R. S. A. Charles S. Parncll was arrested October 17, 1881, under the coercion act for attempting to “wreck the work- ing of the law.” He was lodged in Kil- mainhan Gaol. An agreement of a tem= porary nature was effrcted and Mr. Parnell and his friends were released. the word usec. for ticn of the word Q. How long v gton Me ngten, D. C., to bulld the criel Highway from to Mount Vernon?— S. T A. It was begun in Septembe Jan 1 5, 193 1929; d aflected by tem- ar on the per- formance d such instrue ments ickel and 64 per cent most of the r is iron. Q When was Comimerce separ ment of Labor the Department of ed frcm the Depart- D. L. tment of Commerce Department of r tonnage is d 15,801 gross spectively, instead- of The change of ton- effected by the alteration or of various parts of her struc- i sing the actual size remoy ture w of the s 1s a Cafeterla Court?— gullty- their fines, over. a n the Ten Commande ». Can you give them to t have but he knee. Take d in vain, nor dare Give to thy ed that thou m words and not, for thou of a willful lie, nor hbor's do not of State take pect to recognizing t the consent of certain countries by tk ed And His Hat Raise Smiles American newspapers from one end of the country to the other are havi fun commenting on the incid w clves the tall silk hat of Postmaste General Brown 2nd his official auto- mo “Postmaster General hat, which made it nece department to buy another ai of expensive make so that he erect with the proper dignity of a cab- inet officer, may become as famous as the hat of another great and immortal Republican.” says the Springfi (Mass)) Daily Republican. recalling the story about Horace Greeley, whose silk topper was crushed on a railroad train by a fellow passenger who failed to see it on the seat. “Red with rage above the famous fringe of white whiskers, the great man snapped out, ‘You might have known it wouldn't fit thet end of you.'” The Republican goes on to re- mark that “the head-cn collision be- tween a tradition of the past, as r sented by Mr. Brown's hat, an fashion of the present. as repres by the modern lo ng automobi which a tall man is expected to si the back of his neck and like it, may make social history, with the aid of the | drive for Federal economy,” and pre- | dicts that the already somewha used silk hat may pass out altogether. suggesting: “The time may come, and Brown's be not far distant, when a hat of that s kind will be so rare that they will begin | i putting ~speciments under glass.” However, the Providence Bulletin, professing its full us ing of the Postmaster Ge tude toward his plug hat, “The Government insists upon cere- monious behasior: very well, : it _pay for it!” ‘This journal quer “With other departments spending money right and left, why shouldn't hz have a limousine - with a roof bigh enough to accommodate him and his plug hat in an upright and diznified position?” It is a distressing picture | it paints of what would have happened had Mr. Brown not taken the bull by the horns: “What would the forelgn | correspondents and visiting_diplomats | think to se2 the Postmaster General sit- ting hunched up in the car provided him by the Government with his plug hat squashed down over his ears like a low comedian?” As the Spokane Spokesman-Review secs it, Mr. Brown should realize “that he is doing a public service by bringing to a focus the whole question of plug hats and low ceilings. Many other men of high ofcial standing have suffercd | from the predicament,” attests this paper, declaring that “the motor car | manufacturers have slighted them. In| designing cars they have passed by on the “other side. They have, in fact, made it well nigh impossible for the well-dressed man to wear even a derby or iron hat, in his goings about town. Now the issue is clcar, and Postmaster General Brown may go into history as | the man who made democrecy safe for the plug hat.” “But the circumstance of the Post- master General ordering a large car because the smeller previously pur- chased did not permit him to wear his plug hat, called attention to a plug-hat state of mind among Government offi- | cals,” contends the Newark Evening | News, as it suggests that “Mr. Brown | would have done well had he contented | himself with a fedora or got one of | those accordion-like toppers which are designed to withstand occasional impact against a car roof without damage.” The Meridian (Miss.) Star voices a similar thought: “Perhaps, it has never occurred to Mr. Brown that a new ‘topper’ might prove cheaper than a brand new motor car. If the hat does not fit the auto—buy another car. If the car does not match ties or hose or spats—order out another ‘limousine.’” “He hasn't let a little thing like a deficit or increased postage cramp his style,” asserts the Roanoke World-News, in the museum Evening again starting at the bottom of the pay roll, if not going much farther, though, according to this paper, “some one has figured it out that it took the cern, but nificant « which pu nistration.” however, re than that— things that the story that and Carter Glass oung, Melvin Traylor to would not accept appointments Franklin D. Roc t's cabinet because they could not afferd to take such & job* — rate World From the Chicazo Daily Tribune The B h government is again moved to protest to Moscow against laking. | the propagenda activities of the Com- nale in Great Britain > protest will probably ‘The munist Inte and In et as far as Soviet government no control over which joke is as good as There may be some tem) cation cf the Communist a icn, but it will be only on the surface. The great machi of mischicf making will go on. This is not a time when its directors are likely to reduce speed. On the contrary. If Communism cannot make headway now it is not likely to when conditions improve, and to check agitation now would be to miss the eatest opportunif nce the period of sorder immediaiely after tha war to prevent conditions from_improving. A British member of Parliament re- nationale, er was. modifi- | | cently called attention of the govern=- ment to instructions from Moscow to Communist agents abroad, which as- sert that “the world masses are now about to epter the second revolutionary phase—that of revolutions and wars,” that universal war is now inevitable and not far distant, and that the Com- munist organizations are taking leader- ship of the unemployed. The official press in Russia has pub- lished surveys of these activities throughout the world, including the United States, where credit is claimed for parades and street fighting, the con=- trol of the war veterans' movement, and demonstrations in Detroit, Chicago and elsewhere. The advance of Communism in China and India is_described and Stalin is acclaimed as the head of the world revolutionary movement. When the proposal to recognize the Soviet now pending in Congress is taken up it is to be ht:god this phese of the questlon will be roughly preu sented. = -