Evening Star Newspaper, January 27, 1933, Page 8

fTHE EVENING STAR With Sundsy Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. FRIDAY. January 97, 1083 —e YTHEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company usiness Off lith St ‘and Pennayivania Ave, New York Office: 110 East 41pd 8t icago Office: Lake Michigan Building. ropean Office: 14 Regent St.. London. the City. s 400 Der month " 60¢ per month " 85¢ per month e y e month Collection ma h ments. ders may be sent in by mai [Ational 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. ryland and Virginia. Bally and Sundsy. aily only .. Bunday only All Other States and Canada. {ly and Sunda: yr., $12.00: 1 me El:n only . yr.. $8.00: 1m nday only yr., $5.00; 1m Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled iblication of all news dis- 1o ihe use o BB oe G Rerwias cred: this paper and local ted in nd also the published herein. Al rights of pul #pecial dispatches here Too Late to Start Now. Tt is not political cowardice alone, as Senator Tydings inferred, that prevents & balanced budget. More than courage & required to keep Government expen- ditures within Government income. If political cowardice alone were respon- sible for the uncertainty now prevailing over Senate policy on the pending ap- propriation bills, Senator ‘Tydings’ tongue-lashing, administered in the Senate vesteraay, would have been fully deserved. But political cowardice is only & part of the difficulties faced by this short session of Congress. It is mot certain that the courage implied in adoption of & resolution to keep all appropriations within curtailed Government income would not turn out to be imprudent rashness. Congress cannot within the space of little more than a month be expected to balance the budget by blindly slashing expenditures on the running expenses of the Federal Gov- ernment, with some cuts in the direc- tion of subsidies and veterans’ aid, and expect to do it without creating a de- gree of demoralization approaching chaos in the machinery of Government. Senator Robinson yesterday pointed out that while he was in full sympathy with Senator Tydings’ efforts, there was snother side of the picture. That side of the picture is the spectacle of a Congress which, with almost two months of its three-month session gone, most of 1t spent in sudden and futile spurts in all directions, followed by periods of disgraceful inaction, starts to hack appropriation bills arbitrarily to bring the expenditures down to the receding level of national income, with the result that the attendant confusion will be so great that the appropriation bills themselves will probably be lost in the dust, with the prospect that few, if any, of them will emerge before March 4. Of course, Senator Tydings is ab- solutely correct in pointing out again that Government costs have got to be cut, some of them pretty ruthlessly, and that in the end it is as demoralizing for a Government to spend more than 1t receives as for an individual to do the same thing. But less than a month ago House leaders formally abhndoned efforts to belance the budget at this short session of Congress. The “horror” of a sales tax was too much for them and there were other complications. ‘Where on earth is the logic of a deci- slon by one branch of Congress at this late date to take up budget balancing when everybody knows that budget bal- ancing under the circumstances, if at- tempted according to the Tydings plan, 18 impossible? As Senator Robinson pointed out, “This budget-balancing business is not as simple as some have stated. It is extremely difficult at this time, when prices are falling and in- comes are diminishing. * * * We talk a great deal about economy here and about balancing the budget. But we have done little toward that end. When the time comes to make reductions we break up into factions, with the result shat little or nothing is done.” And with the record of this short session of Congress in mind, everybody knows what the possibilities are for any real constructive budget balancing in the short time that remains. The country would receive more real inspiration and confidence if the Senate g0t down to earth and transacted the necessary and highly important busi- ness of approving the appropriation bills before March 4, leaving questions of major governmental fiscal policy, relief, ebte., until the swearing in of the new Oongress with a workable majority. Nothing constructive can be done now by whittling away on the relatively small expenditure that represents nor- mal maintenance of governmental func- tions. The Democratic program for economy and reconstruction cannot be put into effect until after March 4. ‘To attempt a half-hearted application of some of its features now would be useless and furnish further dishearten- ing evidence of the confused bewilder- ment of Congress. —_— e Award of a rebate of $250,000 to ©Capone’s friend, Frank Nitti, presents a puzzling proposition. Theoretically Nitti had no business with the assessed in- come in the first place. —_——————— A Hero of the Sea. Any story of rescue at sea has an sttraction for readers in general and for readers who have traveled abroad in particular. In the latter class there will be many who, having memories of great storms and nerve-tensing experi- ences on the Atlantic or Pacific, will be in position to appreciate to the full the narrative of Capt. Giles C. Sted- man's timely relief of the survivors of the British freighter Exeter City. Only thirty-five years of age, a mere Poungster as a commander, Capt. Sted- man has been so thoroughly schooled in maritime tradition that he knew with- out being told the unwritten law by which help is given in such circum- stances. A terrific gale blowing, a dis- abled ship sinking—that was the prob- lem. It was necessary—imperatively necessary—to solve it. More than two hours distant from the scene when the first radio signals of distress were received, Capt. Stedman drove his ship, the American Merchant, to the spot ‘with all possible speed. But even when the Exeter City had been sighted nearly Wwelve hours of battle with the wind o Sy 1 iblicati in are also rese: ves intervened before the had been transferred from k to safety. The hero of the exploit modestly takes no personal credit for the achievement. “Plenty of oll,” he says, “and one big prayer was what did it.” Four men Were lost before Oapt. Stedman was summoned. Capt. Ernest Legg, his ‘third officer, a seaman and an apprentice had been swept over- board by the first devastating wave which stood the stricken ship “on her nose for & minute or two.” Good men all, they will be mourned by those who have acquaintance with the brother- hood of navigation and are familiar with the devotion to duty which char- acterizes the entire fraternity. Capt. Stedman, it is recalled, is the “stout lad” who took twenty-eight men off ‘the ainking Ignacio Florlo in 1925. His name brought new courage to the Exeter City crew when it was known that he was on the way to them. brave sailor and a gentlema: phrase their spokesman used in speak- ing of him in New York yesterday. ‘The incident will be a new bond be- tween Great Britain and the United States. It, likewise, will be & new as- surance of the fact that heroism is not dead in dsys when it is just as much needed as ever it was in the past. The story may be commended to the atten- tion of pessimists who vainly imagine that the human race is growing “soft” and “cowardly” under the infiluence of civilization. —————t———— Gold, Tariffs and Debts. President Hoover's proposal that it | may become necessary to increase impert tariff rates in order to prevent the United States from being flooded with goods dumped here by countries with depreciated currencies is well de- signed to revive European interest in the gold standard. Today between thirty and forty countries throughout the world are off gold. The United States and France remain the only two important nations which adhere to the yellow metal; money standard. The Senate at Washington this week de- cisively rejected an anclent silver coinage scheme, which, while not essen- tially designed to displace the gold dollar, would have made for that “un- sound money” system upon which this country long ago turned its back. Various inflationary projects now be- fore Congress amount to other indirect attacks on the gold standard. There are unconfirmed reports that one of the conditions which™ President- elect Roosevelt may attach to recon- sideration of the war debts, when the big European parade starts at Washing- ton in the Spring, is the re-establish- ment of the gold standard “over there.” Such a demand would apply primarily to Great Britain. America’s interest, in case it were to be submitted, would rest on the already demonstrated fact that manufactures and raw products reaching this market from countries with depreciated currencies are out- competing domestic wares produced on the gold-cost basis. American foreign trade being already at the lowest level since 1905, it is not strange that bi- partisan favor is evoked by the Hill bill, pending in the House of Repre- sentatives. It provides that when the currency of any nation depreciates by 2s much as five per cent, all imports therefrom shall be subject to a customs tax levy adequate to compensate for the reduction. From London comes authoritative advocacy of return to the gold standard in QGreat Britain. 8ir Harry Goschen, chairman of the National Provincial Bank, told the annual meeting of its shareholders yesterday that “it would be generally agreed that sooner or later the pound must be anchored to a solid foundation.” He predicted that sterling would eventually again be linked to gold, though he would not venture to predict when a return to the old moor- ings would be feasible. While the British financier was speaking, M. Olement Moret, governor of the Bank of France, spoke vigorously along the same lines. He declared that re-establishment. of the world monetary system on a gold basis, together with progressive abolition of trade barriers through concerted measures, is the chief requisite to economic recovery. M. Moret, in the course of an annual report to his shareholders, took occasion to deny that France was implicated in any raid on the dollar m the Autumn of 1931, when heavy withdrawals of French gold from the United States gave rise to considerable anxiety. The United States, while undoubted- ly wedded to the gold standard, is by no means hostile to silver for monetary uses. This is one of the world's great silver-producing countries. -Because of that, it is at American insistence that silver was placed on the agenda of this year's world economic and monetary conference. But America’s vital interest in the silver industry is not likely ever to undermine its profound devotion to sound money as the bedrock of its currency policy. —————— Demand for the removal of a popular radio station because it interferes with alr experiments by the Navy may be the forerunner of a movement f a microphone merger. At present, s taneous interesting programs are harder to follow than a three-ring circus. — e Unified Control. Unified control, through govern- mental regulation, of the whole trans- portation system of the United States, rail, highway, water, alr, pipe line, power line and radio is reported to be the object of President-elect Roosevelt. At present, where regulation exists at all, it is handled by separate and “in- dependent” governmental agencies, the Interstate Commerce Commission, the Shipping Board, the Federal Power Commission, the Radio Commission and the Depertment of Commerce. If all these agencies of transportation and communication were owned by the Fed- eral Government, the matter might be much simplified. Doubtless under those conditions there would be a single De- partment of Transportation, though in view of the failure of the Government to set up a single department or bu- reau of public works this may be a wrong impression. With railroads, the busses, the shipping, the radio, the power projects, etc., all privately owned, a different situation is presented. The Government’ through the Inter- state Commerce Commission has under- taken to fix rates and to regulate in many other ways the operation of the privately-owned railroad systems of the country, called the backbone of trans- THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C. THIS AND THAT portation. It has proved a huge job. The commission has had placed under its jurisdiction also the pipe lines in interstate business. The real problem is whether any single agency of the Government, an enlarged and glorified Interstate Commerce Commission, as has been suggested, could eficiently operate if its powers of regulation were extended to all these systems and meth- ods of transportation and communica- tion while they are privately owned. Undoubtedly there is wisdom in the proposal that governmental lation of one system of transportation or communication should take into con- sideration what is done in the way of regulation of other and competing systems. The complaint of the rail- roads, for example, has been that, while they are under the most rigid regula- tion, there is no effective regulation of the charges made by motor trucks and busses and by the water carriers. At present there is no law for the regu- lation of motor transportation in inter- state commerce, although it has been repeatedly urged upon the Congress. It all these systems of transportation were under a single ownership, either private or governmental, the problem might be much simpler. What the country needs and should have is the most efficien’ ~nd reason- able system of transporta. 1 and com- munication. Presumably that is what the President-elect has in mind in the consideration of thi; problem. The mere juggling of bureaus of the Gov- ernment and independent commissions into a single bureau, group or depart- ment might or might not serve the best interests of the people. Such an agency might be inefficient because of its huge size and the great scope of the job of regulation. On the other hand, if it were possible so to organ- ize the regulatory body as to place responsibility and to avold “buck passing,” with its costly delays, unified control would have great merit, and would open a way to deal intelligently with the transportation and communi- cation problems as a whole. —— et Assertions to the effect that some- thing must be done for the farmer do not suffice to elevate the Department of Agriculture to a position as repre- sentative of a preferred class. All de- partments are in receipt of voluminous correspondence from citizens who say the same tking. — e The inaugural parade is expected to pass in two hours. It would require much longer if all the citizens seeking jobs under the new administration were invited to fall in line. —_—a—————— It may be permissible to recall the old announcement of Gen. Haig, “Our backs are to the wall” Times were different when it was made and nothiog so easily managed as a “tariff wall” was referred to. ——e———— A January 20 fnauguration will be an effectual, automatic form of cloture. o SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. A Pessimistic Recipe. ‘When you feel your fingers tingling with a literary shiver, And you long to taste the pleasures of renown; When you wish to utter thoughts and set this sluggish world a-quiver, And electrify the country and the town, Do not think to win your way by gathering stores of erudition, Nor by weaving plots that picture | human fate; You'll discover, in contrition, regarded with suspicion As a prating, posing pedant, out of date. But, on the other hand, you'll meet with & success surprising By looking to your personal career. A political pretense may serve as first- rate advertising, And divorces are effective, they're dear. Don't attempt to dole out wisdom like a prophet or & cadi; If you do your cherished work is sure to fail. But assassinate s lady or to anything that's shady, And whatever you may write will have & sale. you're though The Stretch and the Pull “What we want,” said the man who sits on a store box and whittles, “is an elastic currency “I dunno ’bout that,” replied his neigh- bor. “Beétter not be too elastic er fust thing ye know it'll be like some stocks thet stretches accordin’ ter the 'mount of plitical pull thet's put onter 'em.” As It May Be. “What do you think of that prize- fighter's style of fighting?” “Well,” replied the expert, “his gram- mar is very good, but his metaphors are very crude and ill-chosen.” Restless. The man who says life’s but a dream— In vain we try to curb him— always bother others with nightmares that disturb him. Limited Opportunities. “Charley,” said young Mrs. Torkins, “i must be dreadfully unsociable to be & member of the French cabinet.” “The members are not selected for social reasons.” “I know it. But, as a rule, I don't believe they hold office long enough to learn how to pronounce one another's names.” A Plaint. “I am overworked,” said Cupid, with a weary little sigh; “I never get a chance to rest, so swift the moments fly; Pretty girls are so numerous, Wwith gallant youths to woo them; It keeps me busy every single hour at- tending to them. “I'm overworked; and yet some thought- less carping people will complain That engagements oft are broken; that they fail to stand the strain; When any honest critic of my present task will say That I've only time to do it in a super- ficial way.” “Doan’ be too skyaht ob gettin’ left,” said Uncle Eben. “De chickin dat sleeps 8 leetle ways back in de coop may be de las’ ter git 'is brekfus’ in de mawnin’; but he ain’ so easy grabbed off de roos’ at night.” Excitement in the garden is much the same as elsewhere. It is an intellectual interest in an outcome. The home gardener di season feels someth! same excitement over what will come up in the yard a few weeks hence that he felt, as a child, while waiting for the curtain to go up at the theater, or for & train on which he was riding to reach its destination. Anuxcip-uon may be mixed with some OIMII.. What will the peonies do? Will the foxgloves bloom this year, or be j;llt big rosettas of leaves as last year: How much will the perennials have multiplied”? How many of the lilles have sur- vived? ‘Will the ones which were supposed to “rest” a year come up at all? One wonders about the day lilies— have they multiplied or rotted out? How many of the lilacs, altheas and other shrubs set out last year will have survived? ‘Will the rose vines planted last Spring |;1V§c as too?d displays of flowers as one anf Will that curious plant, the Cobea scandens, come up from the roots this Spring, or has it Winter-killed? Will the brown-eyed Susan reappear? Trivial questions, perhaps, tg an out- sider, but mighty important to the amateur gardener, to whom every aspect of his plants is of genuine interest. Not success, alone, but failure as well, interests him. He is face to face with his own ignorance, Ignorance, held by many to be the mother of crime, also is the breeder of failures of all sorts. If every specialized knowledge there is a great deal to be learned, and until one at least approaches such knowledge he is faced with much lack of success. Even when he graduates from the rawly amateur status, he discovers that there is not only a great deal yet to master, but that coriditions beyond his control make for failure also. What will the peonies do? ‘The amateur solaces himsel! with the knowledge that the real answer to this one depends largely upon how the grower of those peonies treated them in their early days. ‘Two theories of peony culture are practiced by these growers, one advo- cating Fall planting, the other asserting that Spring planting is just about as 8o the home gardener purchased a couple of good piants from each, and set_them out at the times specified. The roots looked equally good, the same care was given to all, in the same It will be interesting to watch their growth this Spring, especially to see if any will bloom at all. Not too much will be expected of them, but still they might do some- thing or other. The outcome is anticipated with in- terest. Even if they do no more than make good growth, and become fine, sturdy plants, one will be very well satis- fled. In some sections of the city the red tips of peony shoow were brought into of almost Spring temperatures. This was unfortunate, but not more s0 than the mean joke played upon the other growing things of earth. Forsythia, in some instances, came into bloom. including the lilacs. President Hoover is moving during these waning weeks of his administra- tion to boost the tariff in order to dam the flood of goods rushing in from foreign countries with depreciated cur- rencies. Nations which have left the | gold standard are producing wares so cheaply that these cea leap even the skyscraper Hawley-Smoot tariff and be sold in the United States for less than our own manufacturers can afford to offer them. It isn't generally realized that about 64 per cent of all the imports that came into the country in 1932 ar- rived duty free. One estimate supplied last six months of 1932 52 per cent of all imports came from lands with depre- ciated currency. Their cost of produc- tion was so much lower than the nor- mal cost that they were able, practically for the first time on record. to scale our tariff walls and invade the American market, previously barred to them by our protective duties. It is the resultant heavy damage to industry and labor in the United States that is behind the Hoover drive to raise existing rates. Some authorities expect the Roosevelt admimistration to demand restitution of the gold standard as a quid pro quo for debt concessions when bargaining begins at Washington this Spring. * X % % Politicians think there’'s more than meets the eye in the invitation to Ker- mit Roosevelt to join his fifth cousin, the President-elect, on the latter’s the Vincent Astor yacht. One breezy bit of speculation has it doped out that Kermit is slated to be Assistant Secre- tary of the Navy, in order that a Roose- tained. Theodore Roosevelt was the occupant of that post before becoming Governor of New York and President of the United States. Franklin D. Roosevelt himself was Assistant Secre- tary of the Navy during the Wilson ad- ministration. He *was succeeded by ‘Theodore Roosevelt, jr., who, in turn, was supplanted by Theodore Douglas Robinson, the elder Col. Roosevelt's nephew. In addition to his tribal back- ground, Kermit Roosevelt qualifies for a maritime job through his prominent connection during recent years with the shipping industry. He is one of the “real” Roosevelts who didn't take up arms against F. D. R. last year. leaving the feud to his mother, Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt; his brother Teddy and his sister Alice. * K k% Recently arrived residents of Washing- ton include John M. Harlan, son and namesake of the late Ascociate Justice John M. Harlan of the Supreme Court, who had 33 years of service on that bench to his credit when he passed away in 1911. Mr. Harlan, a brother of Miss Laura Harlan, Mrs. Hard- ing's White House secretary, bears an amazing resemblance to his famous jurist-father, especially the dome-like forehead and cranium of the Supremé Court justice. Thirty years sgd> the son was a leading figure in Republican politic$ at Chicago, un<uccessfully con- testing the mayoralty campaign as a reformer, especially against the traction interests, which then held the Windy City in their thraldom, much es the Capones of the present era used to do. Mr. Harlan, a Kentuckian, is thinking of hanging cut his law shingle in the Naticnal Capital, where he lived as a boy. * Kk % ¥ Washington on February 3 and 4 will be the scene of an interstate con- ference of legislators, the members of the American 'Legislators’ Association. The subject of discussion is the topic of the hour—taxation. It will range primarily around the problems of con- flicting taxation, an issue which vitally affects the financial situation of each of the 48 States. Tax competition be- tween the States and Pede! Government is creating a condition in- creasingly acute, and the conference will seek methods by which the States, acting collectively, can deal in an orderly way with the Federal Government, having understanding bene- of the Legislators’ Association sit in their respective State or Commou: Legislatures. The organization is proud of the fact that more than 200 members ot "ihe | the light and air by the few recent days | Leaf buds appeared on many shrubs, i to this observer shows that during the | crulsing vacation in February aboard | velt family tradition may be main-| BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Sturdy _climbing roses, notably the Dr. Van Fleet, fairly leaped into bud. othing could be done about it. The home garden enthusiast had to stand by and watch Nature fool her children once again. She has been doing the past three years; the plants should have begun to get used it by this time. An interesting speculation is this: Suppose the “weather” is changing after all}, Even the official prognosti- cators, we believe, have somewhat re- lented in their statements that no real chnn:de in climatic conditions has oc- curred. Almost every gardener honestly be- severe as they used to be and that the Springs are not as mild, but more in- clined to be raw. Memories of beautiful Januaries, and u&cchlly lovely Februaries, come to mind of recent years. The weather does seem to be chang- ing, at least to the lay mind. Until recent days the officials have coun- tered this belief by instancing certain records kept for many years, which tend to show that what the layman thinks is unusual has often before. 8till, one sticks to naive belief that the changing somewhat. And if it does, the plants will more or less readjust themselves to it. Then what would happen if, once they are readjusted to warmer times the year around, old Nature suddenly decides to go back to her old-style weathar and dishes up very cold Win- ters again, with real prolonged and balmy Springs as in the old days? Perhaps these vagaries have upset the faithful foxgloves, whose spotted bells are beloved of all gardeners. They didn't bloom last year, when they should; what is the matter with them? But there is no question so common among gardeners as “Why doesn't so- and-so bloom?" And the joke of it is that nobody knows. ‘There seem to be certain specimens of all plants which will not flower. ‘That is about all that is known about it, despite very learned statements. Perennials should have multiplied very well over the year, but as for lilies—there, again, one gets into dis- puted ground. Some of them “rest” and others do not, and whether a bulb is resting or dead is a matter for the experts, and even they might disagree, as they often do. It is to be hoped that the faithful day lilies have survived and done well, they are such likeable flowers, whose foliage is enough alone to earn them the estimation of mankind. That difficult plant, the Cobea scan- dens, is listed as tender perennial, or half-hardy, in some catalogues. Few seem to have good fortune with it— maybe it will come up as a surprise, since Nature has a way about her. | As for the “brown-eyed Susan,” one's best wishes go out to it, it is such a cheerful flower, there in the back bor- e’ et blooms remained in good condition, | without =~ change, for at least two months. There are not many flowers | which will do this; those that will can | ill_be spared from the home garden. | Yes, there is excitement in these | things, selected at random from one garden, but to be duplicated by every amateur in his own way in his own yard. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. | of Congress served a legislative appren- ticeship in their home States. | * X % | One of the agreeable surprises at Inauguration day headquarters, where, | of course, Democrats prevall, is the receipt of fat checks from perfectly | good Republicans. "One of the wealth- |fest G. O. P. women in Washington, | Mrs. J. Leander Loose, who has millions | made from biscuits, has sent in $1.000.| too much individualism and inability She is a particular friend of Vice Pres dent Curtis and Mrs. Gann. Her “bit’ | toward making March 4 a glorious holi- | day includes the purchase of one of the largest boxes for the inaugural ball. As evidence that civic pride knows no partisanship, Robert V. Fleming, treas- urer of the Republican Committee for the District of Columbia, has made a contribution of $250. * kX % Probably the first gifts—certainly | from abroad—to reach Mrs. Fyanklin D. Roosevelt and Mrs. John N. Garner in their impending new official incar- nations as. respectively, the first and second ladles of the land—have just been recejved by them from Japan. ‘Through e Japan Advertiser, well known American-owned Tokio daily newspaper, a Japanese lady, Mme. Takashima, presented the wives of the President and the Vice President elect with beautiful brocade handbags of ex- quisite pattern, similar to the ones used by the Empress and princesses of the Japanese imperial family. Both Mrs. Roosevelt and Mrs. Garner accepted the bags in gracious letters to Mme. Taka- shima. *x % x % Though it's nearly a month since he made war on the sailfish in Florida waters, there’ve just been released some intimate pictures showing Presi- dent Hoover in piscatorial action. Never during his four years in the White House has the Hoover counte- nance been wreathed in so unmis- takably happy smiles. They bear out the President’s well-known theory that true joy and contentment are known only to.the disciples of Izaak Walton. One wonders whether in these farewell and secluded moments at No. 1600 Penn- sylvania avenue Herbert Hoover isn't serenely and reflectively smiling most of the time, in contemplation of the fact that happy days will soon be here for him—release from the suthless rigors of the most grueling presidency of modern times. . * % % x How depression has hit the cigarette industry is graphically illustrated by the Treasury's comparative statement of in- ternal revenue receipts for 1931 and 1932. North Carglina, which pays overwhelmingly the lion's share of cigarette taxes, turned over only $171,- 864,395 last year, as compared to $215, 841,193 in 1931. e {copyright. 1933.) |Free Parking Has Made Taxed Garages Useless To the Editor of The Star: It won't be long before the parking hogs of this city will have free garages, as the District of Columbia will soon own all the huge garages here. The all-night parking has increased so_greatly in the past year that the public garages are “‘useless.” ‘These people have paid prices for these garages. The District govern- ment receives from these garages “out- rageous” taxes. The garages have been m!md & . lon’ blame the people for using the streets for & garage as long as they are allowed, as I presume they have their worrles, too. And why not take advantage of the situstion? But the District government should ral | not accept outrageous taxes from these huge garages that they have made . H. DULLING straight. it often during|bY lieves that the Winters here are not ss | the der, where last Summer the individual | bee China Suffering Today From Pacifist Policies To the Editor of The Star: Much has i are treaty obligations and the treaty ahu of the Occideatal na- tions with 3 Much can be said and has been said Japanese statesmen in defense and Justification of the activities of Ja S e ndispensatie o Ji on apan’s soclal, economic and industrial life. Manchuria and its immediate surroun ing territory offers the outlet for Japan's surplus population, and has the raw materials she must have if she is to survive as an industrial nation. Pur- thermore, it cannot be gainsaid that all that part of China that is coming under permanent control of Japan will enjoy & me order, security and pros- oerity it never known before. Japan is but practicing the villainies that have been taught her in the past by the ex- ample and practices of the Occidental nations. But, unfortunately for her, she is late in their practice, because the moral sense of world is now reacting in repugnance toward the prac- tices of the past and is developing a higher sense of the sanctity of treaties. Japan is a volun to that forbid the e is now doing in China. This alone subjects her to the condemnation of the civilized world is | under the awakened moral sentiment of mankind. This awakened sentiment in the Kellogg- Briand past, outlawing war as an in- strument of natlonal policy, and in the treaties regarding the political inde- pendence and territorial integrity of China. Japan has outraged the vir- tuous sentiment of the world by her flagrant violation of all these treaty obligations and by her ruthless methods against the Chinese and in disregard of the treaty rights of other nations. However much, we may condemn Japan and whateyer may be our feel- ings of sympathy for China, it is not the :n of wisdom for us to intervene in the matter unless our welfare and national security are involved. There- fore, any criticisms the undersigned may make of Japan are not based upon her activities per se or out of any par- ticular regard for China, but solely be- cause the consummation of the objects Japan has in view are fraught with the ,nvut danger to our own future wel- are and national security. China is really deserving of lttle sympathy. The Chinese have been a pacifist jple, throughout their 6,000 years of history. They have always had an ineradicable hatred and suspicion of all foreigners. They have been enslaved by the traditions of a dead past, and their minds have been closed to all modern progress and the accept- ance of anyti from the outside world. They have tolerated throughout their history the most corrupt and in- competent governments that ever ex- isted. By their pacifism and attitude toward the outside world they have invited and made necessary the intervention of the powers in their internal affairs in the past, and are largely responsible for the present sit- uation and its menace to the peace of the world, which is becoming more threatening every day. Had the Chinese n more militant and less pacifisti in the past and have followed the ex- ample of Japan in opening up their minds and their country to the things the modern world had to offer and was | anxious to give to them, and had they insisted upon efficient and honest gov- ANSWERS TO OQUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. P Stop a minute and think about this fact: You can ask our information bureau any question of fact and get the auswer back in a personzal letter. It is a great educational idea intro- duced into the lives of the most in- telligent people in the world—Ameri- can newspaper readers. It is a part of that best e of & newspaper— service. There is no charge except 3 cents in coin or stamps for return Do not use post cards. your letter to The Evening Star In- formation Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, ‘ashington, D. Q. When was the last national live blrdLlhoollhlld in the United States?— 3 D. A. The last Grand American was held at Kansas City, Mo, in 1902. PFour hundred fifty-six shooters par- ticipated. Thirty-three shooters tied for first tion with 25 birds each. the shoot-off H. C. Hirschey of Minne- apolis, Minn., was the ultimate winner. Q. What nominees for positions in Presidents’ cabinets have been rejected by the Senate?—H. R. A. Under Andrew Jackson, Roger B. Taney of Maryland was rejected as Secretary of the Treasury; under John ‘Tyler, James M. Porter was rejected as Secretary of War, David Hinshaw as Becretary of the Navy and Caleb Cush- ing as Secretary of the Treasury; under Andrew Johnson, Henry Stanbery as Attorney General, and under Coolidge, Charles Beecher Warren was twice re- Jected as Attorney General. Q. How should an Oregon fir mast for a yacht be cut and treated for use next Summer?—R. D. A. The Forest Service says that the wood for the constructon of a yacht's mast should be sawed out of the Ore- gon fir in a square shape and then tapered. It should then be worked down with drawing knives or it may be put in a lathe and turned. It should be cut out now and the wood allowed to be properly seasoned before its use in the construction of the mast next Sum- mer. No special treatment other than the seasoning is necessary. Spar var- nish is generally used to cover wood for such a purpose. Q. Can s postmaster also be town clerk?—T. W: A. The Post Office Department says that postmasters are not allowed to hold elective offices of any kind. Qh “'l"h“ is the Associated Press?— A. The Associated Press is a co- operative, non-partisan and non-po- litical association of newspapers. All member papers contribute the news of their locality for the general good and pay a weekly assessment for the service. The service consists of telegraphic in- formation as soon as possible of all im- portant happenings to such newspapers as are members of the association. The press controls private wires exceeding | 22,000 miles for day service and 28,000 miles for night service. Over 50,000 | words are recelved and transmitted | daily. The president and board of di- rectors serve without salary. Q. What is the average number of pigs in a litter>—J. A. W. | A. The average is 9 or 10, although | only about six are as a rule weaned and marketed. | Q. How longEzgo WES Worm gearing | ernment among themselves, they would | invented?—N. not be in their pitiable plight of today | or despoiled as they have been bythe | greedy and covetuous nations of the world. China, as a nation of 400,000,000 people, stands as an everlasting warn- ing to all nations of the disastrous con- sequences of pacifism and of incompe- ent and corrupt government, of clinging to & dead past, and of opposition to the acceptance of new ideas and of the social, economic, financial and indus- trial advantages that modern civiliza- tion had to offer her. Four hundred million people, impo- tent to protect their rights and defend their country and its territorial integ- rity against a modern state of 40,000,- 000! What a spectacle and a com- mentary! But such is the fruit and the reward of pacifism and the rejection of the teachings of modern civilization, of and unwllingness to co-operate for common good and general welfare af their country. ALEXANDER SIDNEY LANIER. States Should Ratify the Child-Labor Amendment ‘To the Editor of The Star: ‘The child-labor amendment to the Constitution will be nine years old in June, 1933; that is. it will be nine years since it was first submitted to the States. Only six States have accepted the amendment, while 17 have rejected 1t outright. To this can be added four States whose Legislatures could not muster two-thirds of the total vote for ratification. One State Legislature (Iowa) postponed consideration of the amendment indefinitely, and 16 other | bec States have taken no action whatso- ever. Of the remaining four States one house blocked approval in three of these (States) and in the fourth (State) a joint resolution was passed disap- proving the act. The amendment provides that Con- gress shall have power to limit, regu- late and prohibit the labor of persons under 18 years of age. Possibly, if the age limit were lowered, the act would meet with more favor in the States. The “State’s rights” sentiment is still a stromg factor against passage. The Legislatures are jealous of any ex- tension of powers of Congress; also some of these able bodies (with feeble minds) are influenced by the enemies fi the poor and the exploiters of child bor. In 1920 there were 378,063 children between the ages of 10 and 13 years “gainfully occupied,” and in 1930 this number was 235,328. Of children 1 years old there were 257,594 in 1920 an 157,650 in 1930. Of the 15-year-olds there were 425201 in 1920 and 274,130 in 1930. Of those 16 years of age in 1920 they numbered 778,957 and in 1930 587,817. The totals show a favorable reduction when compared with earlier years (these are World Almanac fig- ures), for in 1910 the children “gain- fully ‘occupied” between the ages of 10 to 15 was listed as 1,990,225 (practi- cally 2,000,000), as against 1,060,858 in 1920 and 667,118 in 1930. However, the latter figure looms large in an age when an able-bodied man finds difficulty in obtaining work. Going back to the State Legislatures, of the five most populous States only one has ratified the amendment (Cali- fornia). One has condemned it in joint resolution (Pennsylvania), and the other three have not acted on it at all. Between the ages of 10 and 17 here is the line-up: New York, 93,880 males, 80,479 females; Pennsylvania, 87,152 males, 69,199 females; Illinols, 56,698 males, 39,082 females; Ohio, 38,- 020 males, 20,077 females; California, 22,550 males, 8,645 females. Thus it is seen that California, the State with the number of children employed (of the five) was the only one to ratify the amendment. It may be possible to induce some of the recalcitrant’ by changing the instead of 18, but excuse for a State action indefinitely on an amendment which has been by These Legislatures can act quickly enough on an amendment they favor, as witness the rapid ratification of the so-called “lame duck” amendment. What is needed is an act making it datory upon the State Legislatures mant to take action within & certain specified | been this sort. time upon an amendment of “State’s yights” jargon is obso- methods This were | where, so that even action on legisla- " legislation or not. Either pass s bill or defeat i, E all means decide § without cog- ffi-tm’d“a A. It is of great antiquity. Albrecht | Durer (1471-1528) made a drawing for the Emperor Maximilian of a car to be used in a triumphal procession. This vehicle had perfect worm gear. It is not known whether it was ever built. As known today, worm gears were first applied to driving wheels of automo- biles by F. W. Lanchester of England before the ‘close of the nineteenth cen- tury. They were introduced to the | United States in 1911 on an extensive scale by Hugh Kerr Thomas as part of | the regular product of the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Co. | Q. When and why as the capital of have invented a new alphabet. gve some information about it . T. P. | said: | (Plymouth, Vt.) vi moved from Willlamsburg Richmond?—P. H. - A. It was removed from Williamsb: in 1779, through the influence Thomas_Jefferson, who was then Gove ernor. Richmond is more central in lo= cation and was considereti less Hable to capture in time of war, Q. Who was singing the leading femi- nine role when Caruso made his last aps postage. . Get |Pearance at the Metropolitan Opera?— the habit of asking questions. Address | I . B. A. Enrico Caruso made his last ap- pearance at the Metropolitan Opera House in “La Juive.” Rosa Ponselle sang the leading soprano role opposite Mr. Caruso on December 24, 1920. Q. I understand that the Chinese Can A. The movement for modernizing In | the Chinese alphabet began some 30 years ago. The Board of Education called = national convention, as a result of which the “Juyin” or sound-indi- cating phonetic letters were adopted as the national phonetic alphabet. This was made up of 39 simplified Chinese characters or fragments of characters representing 39 elementary phonetic sounds. This has been taught in schools for some time. At present there is agie tation for the adoption of the Roman alphabet. Q. What museum has the best cole lection of Pleistocene animals?—C. R. A. The Los Angeles, Calif., Museum has the most complete representation of the skeletons of these animals. The bones have been recovercd from the Rancho la Brea, within the city limits of Los Angeles. This 1t pool is the greatest repository of prehistoric anie mal remairs known to modern science, Q. Has the Cape to Cairo Railroad been_ completed? “Who projected it7— A. It was a vision of the late Cecil Rhodes. In 1857 a railroad was started from Alexandria in the north and Cape Town in the south, with the idea of having a through route all the way, Today this is stll & dream, although meny miles have been conctricied. Th longest section completed is from Cap@ Town to Fort Francqui, 3300 miles, over which there is fortnightly train service, Q. Please give some information about Calvin Coolidge's mother.—A. W, A. Mr. Coolidge himself wrote touchs ingly of her in his “The Autobiograph$ of Calvin Coolidge.” Mrs. Coolidge was the daughter of Hiram Dunlap Moor of Scotch Welsh and English descent and his wife, Abigail (Franki “chiefly of old New Englan Coolidge “bore the name Empresses, Victoria Josephine Coolidge was an invalid practicall the time her son could remem Writing of her de: “In an hour was her 39th birthd: years old. We laid her away in the blustering snows of March. The greatest grief that can come to a boy came to me. Life was never to be the * ® * Five years and 41 years later almost to a day my and my father followed her. y: seemed to me that the boy I lost was her image. They all rest together on the sheitered hillside among five gen= erations of the Coolidge family.” Writing of his jour- to Washington, Mr. Cool saya: Vhen I started to Washi morning (following the death of Presie dent Harding), I turned aside from the main road to make a short devo- tional visit to the grave of my mother. It had been a comfort to me during my boyhood when I was troubled to be near her last resting place, even in the dead of night. Some way, that morn- ing, she seemed very near to me.” Q. How did kissing originate?—D. D. A. According to Pliny, it was the opinion of Cato that kissing first began between kinsmen and kinswomen, in order that the former might know whether their wives or daughters had tasted wine. 2 pid was_gone. V. I was 13 ney Announcements that the budget will not be balanced in the present session | of Congress, coupled with a message from President Hoover advising prompt action on the matter and recommend- | ing a sales tax, have produced severe criticism of the legislative department | of the Government, together with some | revival of discussion of the standing of | the sales tax as a means of revenue. | “The PresideM's message.” says the Hartford Times (independent Demo- icnum, “‘presented plausibiy the argu- | ments in favor of the manufacturers’ sales tax, and very likely the merit of the controversy rests upon his side, but | no immediate ‘action along the outiines suggested should be expected. The budget-balancing proposition has now ome & responsibility which the Democrats in Congress have every present intention of carrying over into the next Congress in special session, when the opportunity for a party leadership and party policy | for both House and Senate will be quite | different from what it is today. The Democratic disposition is to look to Mr. Roosevelt and not to Mr. Hoover for| guiding advice in this concern. Neither on the Democratic side nor the Repub- lcan in the House just now is there | leadership capable of maintaining a | consistent control over legislation. The | great advocate of a revenue bill adopt- ing the principle of a general sales tax | is the yrly emgtlfln:tsz of ll;es Federal | Treasury. e deficit s loude: than language.” i der * Xk x % ‘That the President “is on the sound- est ground when he asserts that ‘the | greatest problem before the world to- day is the restoration and maintenance | of confidence,’” is the opinion of the Roanoke World-News (Democratic), Which charges that “the spectacle Con- gress has made of itself before the peo- | ple of the land has not been one to create confidence.” That paper also com- ments: “The President urges that the Federal budegt be balanced ‘as the | foundation of economic recovery. He might have gone further and asserted that long-continued failure to balance the budget is today the greatest barrier in the way of economic Tecovery. Had the Congress last Spring adopted the manufacturers’ sales tax recommended by the Democratic Ways and Means Committee, and had it appropriated money only within the limits of Gov- ernment receipts, this country would today be leading the world back to pros- | perity. The House runaway has already cost us nearly a year of uncertainty, and that uncertainty is not yet ended. * * * Congress is without the courage to bol- ster its extravagance by new taxes, whether they be by reduction of the exemptions on incomes or by imposition of such sales tax as the President pro- . The only answer a timid. vacil- Tting and almost leaderless Congress :l;l to the Nation's dfl:endl]m‘ is to keep Spenc money needlessly, regard- less both of the Nation’s cash position and of the Nation's credit.” * “What with & Republican Senate, a Republican President, and only six weeks left in which to work,” according to the Baltimore Sun (independent Democratic), “ has abandoned the attempt to balance the budget at this session, and has bequeathed the task to a Democratic President and a child-labor amendment should have the of State does m~,mmvhm it i, and will not be U] by al probably D of the 17 States yet to take | and practices herein condemned. this = Congress Receives Blame For Delay in Budget Action uniformly Democratic Congress which will come into office on March 4. The decision will occasion few regrets. The events of the last three weeks have made it clear that ess and firme ness were not to xpected in con- nection with budg matters in the face of the alignments now ex ington. The Rep tion, while re its ‘attitude toward beer has executed a belated swing to the sales tax and has. through Secretary Mills and President Hoover. launched what appears to be a partisan campaign to put the Democrats in a hole by obfuse cating the whole budgetary problem, | Meantime, after promulgating a bud- getary plan based on beer and increased | income taxes. the Democratic party in both houses has indicated with unmis- takable emphasis that it had no Stomach for the income tax feature of its declared program. Neither party's representatives in Congress have shown any disposition to grapple decisively with the economy issue. Further ef- forts to deal with the budgetary probe lem promised nothing except an intensis fication of the confusion * “It should be useful,” according to the Kansas City Star (independent), “to call the attention of Democratic members of Congress to the following paragraph from the Democratic na- tional platform: ‘The Democratie party solemnly promises by appropriate action to put into effect the principles, policies and reforms herein advocated, and to eradicate the policies, meill;\)gs e advocate an immediate and drastic re- duction of governmental expenditures by abolishing ess commissions and offices, consolidating departm and bureaus and eliminating extravagance, to accomplish a saving of not less than 25 per cent in the cost of Federal Government, and we call upon the Democratic party in the States to make a zealous effort to achieve a proportion= ate result.’” ik ‘Taking a comprehensive view of “the situation, the New York Herald Tribune (independent Republican) declares: “Retrenchment on any scale concelvable to politics will not suffice, nor will the addition of a few relatively painless taxes. The situation calls for a com- prenensive program which will include not only savings, but a searching re- organization of the tax structure, with recourse to a manufactures’ sales tax as one of its foundation stones. Talk of anything less may be put down as bedtime vaporings.” The Oakland Tribune (Republican) looks forward to “a Summer of debate on that which, for the welfare of the country, might better have been fin- ished this Winter.” The Minneapolis Tribune (independent) concludes: “There is obviously nothing to be gained by backing timidly away from the disagreeable realities which new revenues must involve. The Democrats, it is clear, are still groping about for some and highly popular means of balancing the budget, when no such means exist. They are badly divided on the proposal to incregse income tax rates; they are flatly opposed to Mr. Hoover’s sales tax, and it is to be sus= pected that they are loath to indorse, as an alternative to these, a substantial addition to the great number of special excises which are even now in force.” vt Women as Senators. From the Louisville Courier-Journal. The best reason we can think of for electing more women to the United m Senate is that not one of the obieinged * permit a Senator WILLIAM P, THOMAS, Jr, |or Short to monopolize all the