Evening Star Newspaper, May 17, 1933, Page 8

r A—8 THE EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. WEDNESDAY.....May 17, 1933 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor $he Evening Star Newspaper Company Business Office: nnsylvania Ave. 4and gt Lake Michigan Bulldine. 14 Regent 8t., London, Enelang Rate by Carrier Within the City. Bvening St .45¢ per month Bvening ant T when 4 Sunds: .60c per month ning_and Sunday Star und . Star. lection ma d ch month. may be sent in by mall or telephone jonal 6000. | Bate by Mall—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virgina. and Sunday. only . ay only . All Other States and Canada. and Sunday...1yr.$12.00; 1 mo., $1.00 only o 1yr. 3800 1 sy only . [lillyr, §5.000 1 mo., T8¢ mo.. 50¢ The Assoclated Press is exclus! \ae use for republication of il news dl. s credited to it or not otherwise cred- nd also the local news ed orat” AR Tights of Dublication of dispatches herein o reserved. .1yr,310.00; 1mo., 85c 1yrl s 1mo. 80c yr.. $4:00; 1mo..40c Voluntary Retirement. ¥he Senate Appropriations Com- mitéee has won the gratitude of Gov- @mment personnel by its inclusion in the independent offices supply bill of & provision giving to Federal workers of thirty years' sewvice the privilege of voluntary retirement—with full retire- ment pay, less three and a half per cent, until the statutory retirement age 8 reached. That privilege has been sought for many years by the Federal workers. Some of these, with good years still ahead of them and enjoying the advantages resulting from savings for old age, have sought the privilege of retiring and obtaining full benefits of retirement without waiting to reach the statutory age of seventy. ‘The fact that many Federal workers may be forced out of the service by the economy provisions brought new foroes to bear in favor of the voluntary retirement privilege. The independent offices bill now provides that employes who are retired by order of the Presi- | dent may receive full retirement benefit. The Senate Committee merely added the proviso that those who voluntarily retire will also receive such benefits. An immediate and practical advantage is thereby gained. In the case of two employes, for instance, one of them may ‘wish to retire and the other may hope to continue in service until retirement age is reached. Without the voluntary retirement feature, the President might have retired the employe who wished to continue in service and have retained the employe who wished to be retired. As 1t 13 now, those who take advantage of the volntary retirement privilege will sutomatically permit the retention of somebody else. It is & question, of oourse, how many will wish to avail themselves of this permission. That remains to be seen and depends largely on the results of the forthcoming reor- ganization and other economy measures. While the Senate commitiee made this welcome change in one provision affecting Government personnel, it is extremely unfortunate that it did rot follow the recommendation of its sub- committee and eliminate entirely, in- stead of modifying, another peovision relating to discharge of personnel ac- cording to State quotas. The modifica- tion in this section ordered by the com- mittee provides that “reductions of personnel shall be made with regard to both efficlency and apportionment of appointments by States, as provided by Iaw,” instead, as passed by the House, with regard to apportionment alone. The net result of this modification is that, efficiency and other things being equal, the employe who comes from the District of Columbia or one of the States with an excess of appointments over its quota—determined on the basis of population—will be forced out, while another employe, who comes from a State that does not have its full quota, will be retained. ‘The unwise and unfair discrimi tion here involved is obvious. Civil service positions are open to all citi- mens, regardless of place of residence. The District of Columbia and nearby States have furnished the largest num- ber of appointees for the simple reason that there were relatively few applicants from more distant localities. Now that these appointees have been selected on the basis of merit and eligibility, it is grossly unfair to penalize them in any way because of their geographical dis- tribution. Merit, and merit alone, should rule in the appointments to the civil service, and only merit should be considered when mandatory separations from the service are necessary. o No doubt Gaston Means, arguing that “all the world’s a stage,” rather enjoys playing the villain in & manner that eauses him to be generally hissed. ——o— John Grier Hibben. It is a great pity that John Grier Hibben should have been snatched out of life so suddenly and so tragically. ‘The news of his death must have hurt literally thousands of his neighbors and friends, near and far. He was a man much loved as well as sbundantly appreciated, and he will be remembered with affection and pride by all who oame within the wide circle of his scquaintance. ‘The civilization of the United States s fortunate, indeed, in its power to produce, to value and to use such leaders as Dr. Hibben was. If ever any doubt should arise as to the survival capacity of American institutions, the question would be answered by a mere calling of the roll of the nation- builders, among whom he certainly is to be numbered. They are the road makers, the bridge constructors and the temple architects of the land, She mentors, guides and teachers of the people. Unpretending in them- selves, devotedly earnest, tirelessly sincere, they create and they maintain the spiritual capital of the masses, the treasury of ideals from which the mul- titude draws the energy to conquer eircumstance. But they constitute no arbitrary aristocracy of genius. On the con- trary, they are of the people, spring from the people and never lose touch ‘with the people. In that fact, perhaps, ¥es an explanation of the amazing oAb of culture and refinement, the | | democratization of knowledge and man- ners, which has distinguished America these past fifteen dacades. Dr. Hibben symbolized the fellowship to which he belonged. He was born the son of & pocr clergyman, serving an impecunious suburban congregation. He perforce was obliged to struggle for his educa- tional opportunities. When he was graduated at Princeton and had bad & year of study abroad it appeared that his prospects were no more colorful than those afforded by following in his father's footsteps. But, as it happened, he was possessed of talents which could not be hidden in a rural parish. He was summoned back to his alma mater, and there, through nearly twenty years, he toiled upward from obscurity into celebrity, from book to book, class to class, to the presidency of the univer- sity. Surely, no other man ever earned promotion by more layal spplication, more generous expenditure of thought- ful effort, more unselfish helpfulness. His students paid him the homage of enthusiastic imitation, and the school and soclety benefited accordingly. As Woodrow Wilson's successor, Dr. Hibben kept academic standards high and university morale constructively ex- uberant and liberal. Princeton was an Athens, and Dr. Hibben was its Soc- rates amx Ivs Plato combined. He knew that Old Nassau would prosper in the ratio of its national service, and he governed its affairs with that concep- | tion of its function in his heart. 80 it was that he was a national influence and took his place in the national acene. Even after his retirement he carried on the work to which he had dedicated himself, Now his career is ended, his story is | told. It is proper that the Nation should | mourn his departure, but, more impor- tant, it is proper that the Nation should rejoice that he lived and provi- dentially endowed and enriched his country by his labors. ———ree. Roosevelt's Appeal Welcomed. President Roosevelt's message to the governments of the nations of the world urging that steps be taken immediately to disarm, to preserve peace and to make & success of the coming Londan Eco- nomic Conference has been widely ac- claimed both in this country and abroad. Although it was launched at a psychological moment, when the arms conference at Geneva appeared headed for the rocks and there was expecta- tion of the international political pot | bolling over in Europe, it is now dis- closed that the President has had in mind such an appeal for the Jast four months. That he seized the hour he | did in which to broadcast his message to the world is regarded as an evidence of real leadership. While the message was couched in diplomatic language, the President's Pproposals stand out in bold relief. From his pronouncements it appears that the United States Government is prepared to play a more co-operative part in in- ternational affairs. In many quarters a change in the American foreign policy —which has been one of friendly iso- lation—is expected, although the Presi- dent made no suggestion that this coun- try is to become entangled in foreign politics. He did recommend the adop- tion of the plan advanced by Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald of Great Britain at the Geneva conference, call- ing for drastic cuts in crmaments and providing for & “consultative pact” in the event of aggressive and warlike movement on the part of one nation against another. The President went further. He called for a new pact among the na- tions to ban all aggressive weapons of war and for a promise that no nation would send armed forces across its frontiers. The Kellogg-Briand multi- lateral peace pact already in existence bans resort to war in the settlement of international disputes. The President has no purpose of piling ome non- aggressive pact upon another or pyra- miding treaties that mean in the end one and the same thing. And for that reason it is generally interpreted that the administration is swinging over to international agreements which will, in effect, put teeth into the treaties of non-aggression. That the United States Government | intends to practice what it preaches in the event that such agreements as out- lined by the President can be effected, it is now disclosed that there will be no more landing of American Marines and naval forces in Latin American coun- tries, even for the protection of the lives and property of American citizens. That is to be the policy under a prom- ise not to send armed forces beyond the frontiers. Where treaties exist look- ing to the duty of troops on foreign soll, no violation of the proposed new agreement would be found, however. For example, American forces now in China are stationed there in accordance with definite treaty agreements. The fact that President Roosevelt sent his message direct to the president of the Russian government, Kalinin, was interpreted by Senator Borah of Idaho and others as a virtual recogni- tion by the United States of the Rus- sian government. That this interpre- tation was premature was disclosed at the White House itself. The incident of the transmittal of the message direct to the Russian government, it is said, stands by itself. Whether, however, the administration intends in the fu- ture to recognize the Soviet government is an entirely different matter. The President’s message to the gov- ernments of the world will be varjously interpreted in different lands. How- ever, the insistent note in the message is his demand for action for peace and economic recovery, not at some future date but now. He has warned them that the time has come for the nations and their pecples to realize that they can only go forward to peace and pros- perity through willing co-operation and good will. And he has pointed out, too, that if the Geneva and London confer- ences are allowed to fail, the blame for failure will be placed by the world on those who are responsible. —_—— e Rookies. Great is the joy of the base ball manager and his public when a rookie makes good. The newcomer, fielder or pitcher, who has won fame in the minors by his skill afield or at the bat or in the box and steps out into the “big | time” of the national game does not | always make the steeper grade, but when he does, when he flashes his speed and cracks out his hits and baffles the opposing batsmen he is welcomed with high accl Sometimes he maintains the first which he sets in major THE EVENING company and becomes & star. mln., he fades away after a few brilliant per- formances and joins the ranks of the crocus players, so named by & veteran commentator of the game a good many years ago in this town, inspired by the annua). spectacle of the firs; flovers of the Spring, which quickly pass. Lately the Washington team has had two rookie workers who have shocked the foe and gladdened the home sup- porters of the pastime. Both of them found their opportunities in the acci- dental displacement of regulars. One of them, taking the place of a flelder who was “beaned” by a pitched ball while on the Western trip, demonstrated a batting prowess of exceptional value, winning several games in succession by timely hits, then himself becoming a temporary “crock” by s mischance. The other, hastily recalled from the minor team where he was seasoning to flll & vacancy caused by strained ten- don in the leg of a veteran inflelder, yesterday achieved the remarkable rec- ord of five straight safe hits as his bow as & Washington batsman, while ac- complishing wonders in the fleld. The game is maintained by the rookies, who come up the line year by year to replace the ageing and faltering seniors. They reach the zenith of base ball opportunity with every incentive to make good. Not all of them do s0. SBome languish on the bench for months be- fore their chance comes to break into the blg line-up, Some are traded back into the minors, there to be stars in the lesser heavens. Now and then they step right out and hit the ball s0 flercely and field 80 accurately and pitch a0 effec- tively that they must be kept, and then it 18 that the home crowds applaud the Jjudgment of the powers of management. May the rookies keep on coming and making good, even with hostile teams, to maintain the high average of skill which is. the fundamental element of the sport’s appeal to the supporting Ppublic! ————— Attention is called to the fact that modern War equipment gives over-| whelming advantage to the aggressor and puts a premium on low cunning. One of the reasons war has endured so long is that war has been confused with high-claas sportsmanship, from “which it stands distinctly apart. —_———————— It is fortunate that art collectors do not detect the touch of propaganda that often lurks in famous creations. Other- wise many famous paintings might long have gone to oblivion as the Lenin por- tralt in the Rivera mural is doomed to go. ——ra————— Much money is referred to as having mysteriously disappeared. The Teal| mystery in the matter lles in the fact | that the same queer sort of transaction | can keep on repeating indefinitely. ———— e President Roosevelt does not object to | travel, but is sufficiently modern to em- ploy radio to save some of the time that would be required for personal in- terviews. ¥ ————— In view of the fact that he was to face & highly attentive world audience in- stead of the same old town hall crowd, Hitler proceeded immediately to revise his remarks. ————— Russia is not fully recognised, but there are diplomatic incidents in which she is not allowed to pass un- noticed. The only difficulty about permitting the public to have the kind of tax it desires les in the fact that there is no such tax. Earnest effort is being made to bal- ance the budget by revenues from big enterprises rather than from deductions for small pay envelopes. SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Non-interference. ‘When you find a feller ready ‘To perform the needed work ‘With a heart that's true and steady And s hand that doesn’t shirk, If you can't be of assistance As you see him persevere, Trying hard to make the distance, ‘Well—at least don't interfere. When you find a man so clever ‘That with him you long to go, You might copy his endeavor And attempt to steal the show. Do not be a trouble breeder; Let the track be clean and clear. If you cannot be a leader, Well—at least don't interfere. After a Round of Tips. ““We are often accused by foreigners of caring too much for money.” ““We have gone too far,” said Senator Sorghum, “in trying to convince them to the contrary by giving it up without & murmur.” Jud Tunkins says it’s a mistake to take & man’s last dollar from him. If you have any kind of a heart he'll turn around immediately and borrow five from you. ‘War Less Grim-Visaged. Of war a thoughtful man once told ‘With humorous conceit. ‘We vowed that he was overbold ‘With ribaldry complete. And then he seriously spoke. Said he, “Let’s try to laugh, Hoping henceforth war’s but a joke And not an epitaph.” Self-Estimation. “He thinks girls fall in love with him because he’s rich!” “He is quite correct,” said Miss Cay- enne. “If they fall in love with him there must be a reason, and I can imagine no other that would be in any degree sensible.” “The value of gold,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “is due much to an- cestral impression. If it were something to be eaten it would have little more value than the seasoning required to go with t.” Overobliging. My radio! My radio Your jesting I must praise. It brings me back the long ago— Those happy childhood days. My radio! My radio! . When ragtime tunes you bring I wish that you—like friends I know— Would think before you sing. “Dar may not be much luck in a rabbit's foot,” said Uncle Eben, “but dar’s more dan is likely o be in some recchorse’s hoofs.” 2 1 STAR, WASHINGTO Ny ‘Templeton Jones stopped to admire the armful of iris blossoms. ‘They were very nice blooms, he thought, but nothing unusual, not any better than he had in his own yard. Now Jones has a keen eye for such things, and & very fair mind, and if they had been bigger or better in any way he would have known fit. ‘What was his surprise to hear, there- fore, that these specimens represented some of the newer varieties, about which he had often read. He had never seen them, except at shows; now here they were before him —and he would not have known them anything exceptional if he had not been told! * % ¥ ¥ Mr. Jones wondered if this were not often the case, that newer things. in floriculture, often are no better than older varieties. It is just the newness thereof, and probably the cost, which constitutes their charm to many. Out in the garden rows, old things do quite as well, even if “old.” After all, quite the oldest varieties, in the more popular flowers, are com= paratively new, as the world goes. * k% x ‘The reasons for the incessant clamor for newer and newest varieties are many; some of these hinge on com- merce, others on human nature. It is well that there is this incessant production of new varieties, whether in iris, or peonies, or lilacs, or gladioli, or ‘whatnot. Man has an investigational spirit. ‘To rest satisfled with what one has is not possible for certain natures. ‘The demand for ‘“something new” | him. annually confronts the producers of floral beauty. ‘The home gardener often feels it, especially after he has gardened for a number of years. He may feel, personally, that no new variety of gladiolus ever will give him the thrill he first experienced when his first blossoms of the old variety Byron L. Smith opened in his small garden. ‘With what happiness, in a flower sense, did he inspect the creamy Elora, one bright dewey morning! His reward for waiting 89 days—or | dri had it been 92 days—for his Schwaben bulbs to flower had been well repaid. * % % He is still willing to believe that no gladiolus spike, no matter how florif- erous, or how different, will ever pro- duce finer or more exquisite blooms than those, when properly grown in full sun. Keeping up with the new flower va- rieties, perhaps, is something like at- tempting to keep up with the new books—it is an impossible task, espe- clally in these days, when the creation of new things has gone into a sort of mass production, too. ‘The average home gardener settles this matter for himself, happily, most usually by not bothering with the newer things. He may read the catalogues and muse over the novelties, but the fact is that he purchases few of them. This is left, and most properly, one may believe, to those persons who do what is calied specialize in some one flower. *x x % Such persons, indeed, are the right ones to indulge in experimentation along these lines. 5 They have both the inclination and the money, and it takes both. The average gardener finds that the purchase of older varietles which he has not tried is experimentation enough for him. The specialist, putting his entire | or_color, or any of D. C, WEDNESDAY, time and effort on one thing, must have new varieties to keep up his in- terest. He may create himself, but this is s branch which is un- a commercial venture, since thy he logical end of piant experiments- | %R t tion, not only for purposes of gain, but also to diffuse over the world another beautiful flower. DR ‘The home gardener of amateur variety, then, safeguards him- selt from too much tation with the newer things by his natural leaning toward the old and tried. These fall into two classes, the old others, and the old and tried by himself. Every one who gardens in a very small way—we must insist upon that— knows the difficulty experienced in get- ting away from the known varieties. Every time the desire to change arises the well known voice of caution is heard. “Why monkey with them,” it says, u}v‘ge,n these old ones are so beau- Truly, the old flowers are as beau- tiful as ever they were. No doubt there are many varieties, in all the better known flower fam- ilies, which have been “back numbers,” in a sense, by other and newer creations. ‘The point for the home grower to keep well in kind is simply whether the betterments really are so large as to make old things back numbers—for Perhaps the improvement may not }n u‘luuhnenmbee.ncmmnd or it! Even if 50, 1f the old variety genuine- ly had merit, it still will have it, will it not? * k¥ ¥ ‘This, we belleve, is what must never be_lost sight of by the amateur. Beauty is beauty, and if a flower ever had it, it possesses it still. There is not so much atyle change, in these creations, as among the ladies esses. ‘The sensible grower will not be car- ried away too hastily by the enthusiasm of the creator, the man who has spent his entire time with one flower, and who has helped bring into being either a new type, or a slightly different shape, er matter. Such a man, naturally enough, would be an enthusiast. His natural reactions must be taken with the proverbial grain of salt by the amateur who has no par- ticular personal interest in the matter. * k% 8hould he junk his old and satisfac- tory varieties of iris, for instance, to replace them with newer ones? An affirmative would be more in place with these flowers, perhaps, than with many others. Some experts go 50 far as to say that certain well known older varieties should no longer be planted by any one, since they have been totally out- classed by later “editlons.” ‘Templeton Jones, iris “fan,” but by no means an “‘expert,” wondered about that, as he looked at the armful of newer creations by the hybridizers. Lovely, indeed, but not particularly more 50 than the old time-tried, old varieties in his border by the garage. The difference in shades and tints was not so striking, as he remembered. Side by side, perhaps, but not apart, as his memory made the comparison. He ‘would keep his old iris, and be glad for them, growing in luxuriance in almost pure cinders. Deplorable Plight of Federal Workers Under the Regime of U. S. Economies To the Editor of The Star: As a Government employe who feels very keenly the injustice of the various attacks made by certain of our big busi- ness organizations on Government workers as a whole with the object of reducing our wages, and also the eco- nomic unsoundness of the continued attacks on our civil service by groups looking to the destruction of our present merit system, I desire to thank you and your staff for the splen- did support given us lately through editorials, articles and Mr. 's cartoon of last Saturday. At the beginning of last year, taken by and large, I am sure there could not have been found anywhere a group of employes who were more loyal to their employer, more interested in their work, or with a finer sense of fellow- ship and helpfulness one to the other. Lo al in that most of us glory in the realization that we are serving the vhole of the American people; inter- ¢sted in our work—where else will you find employes who spend, year year, the biggest share of their extra money, and in many cases even money that can be ill afforded, for education 50 as to better fit themselves for their positions?>—and our fine espirit de corps, demonstrated in our many wel- fare assoclations, founded and carried on by the employes themselves for the sole purpose of assisting the lower-paid members of our official family or those faced with long illness or other circum- stances that would ordinarily mean a community charge. In fact, we were good employes, good members of the community, and, best of all, we were the highest type of loyal citizens. EE Then what happened? Congress, faced with the necessity of & reduction in Government personnel, utterly dis- regarded the civil service merit system and set up & new and false standard of reduction, 1. e., the marital status of the employe. That is, instead of the reduction being made under the merit system, which would have cut off first those employes having the lowest ef- clency ratings, then, if there were still others to go, cutting off those with the least service to their credit, and, finally, if still others had to be dismissed, tak- ing into consideration economic needs where two employes were equally ef- ficient and had approximately the same length of service, Congress enacted a law that said employes should be dis- missed without regard to their efficiency or length of service if they happened to be married to another Government employe. ‘We, who indignantly protested such an attack on the merit system, pointed out that if the united efforts of all Government employes were not con- centrated on defeating this unjust basis, thus showing that we stood solidly be- hind the system under which we were employed and under which we had taken our oath of office, that the enter- ing wedge would have been made for the final destruction of that system. All during this year in which we have battled stanchly for the preservation length of service. Our people, under these continued at- tacks, are sick in mind and body. It is terrible to chronicle, but true, that Wwe have finally turned one on another in this matter of just keeping our jobs until men and women who have worked side by side for years are no longer speaking to each other, and one group has even gone so far as to petition Congress to enforce the marital pro- vision so that others (themselves) who will suffer by these two new injustices might be saved. God help us! A few short months ago we would have stood solidly together for our coun- try, our work and our fellow workers. Now, after a year of nerves, we are at each other's throats like dogs because it is yet to be decided which of us are to be allowed to keep on working. Any employed worker. who honestly gives of himself to his work and em- ployer realizes that the only true bases of employm: are qualification and efficiency. Any other basis immediately allows discriminations against one or another group that eventually react to the detriment of all groups. This was demonstrated plainly to some of us last year when the marriage clause was enacted by Congress. It is being dem- | ing onstrated very forcibly to other great groups now that the 30-year service and quota questions are before the Congress. The members of Congress themselves, as servants of the people, should be solidly against such fallacies rather than expecting to find the solu- tion of our lems in them. By advo- cating them they are undermining the morale of all public servants, and by enacting them into law they are in- dorsing the use of these and other standards of employment just as false :hmu[hout our private business struc- ure. The Star, as a great and leading newspaper in this, the largest com- munity of Government workers, can do wonders to help us out of the sick condition that this year of uncertainty and continual attack has reduced us to. Our return to normal healthy mental condition, of course, is predicated in the | ¥ final analysis on_ certainty as to our Jobs and financial ability to meet our obligations. But the type of work you have been doing the last few weeks will tend to unite us again, so that we will again stand shoulder to shoulder, ready to help each other no matter what hap- indicat pens. And this return to normalcy on our part, the 60,000 of us, cannot help but be reflected throughout the country in our friends, relatives and dependents, Thank you again for your support of | du the merii system, and please k on until Ccngress returns to its uner?y a8 far as we are concerned and helps us win back our rightful place as trusted servants of the American people. EDWINA AUSTIN AVERY. The Food and Drug Law. From the Roanoke Times. According to a Washington dispatch, administration leaders are seriously contemplating revision of the Federal of our civil service we have received | f some support from the newsg-pen and civic organizations throughout the coun- try, but that support has been given mainly because it was felt by the givers that such legislation was an attack on the institution of marriage and there- fore our very social structure. F danger in such a false s of employment or to every employed worker, from the very lowest in rank to the highest administrative officer, whether in private or public business, did not seem to be recognized except by the very few. The things that have followed in the disrupting and demoralization of our civil serv- ice, and which would logically follow in private business were such stand- were gudlfiud):.yt far- e, ey ote than mactags & in taking advantage of them in a way as to deceive the public. Newspaper publishers as well as putable manufacturers will &ropn move to strenghten the W and remedy its defects. reputable newspaper, t‘u’fl well reputable advertiser, ers iblic is misled by deceptive It 18 due the number of business ummger.he food law to point out that most of not need to be One Fear Dispelled. Prom the Sioux Palls Delly Argus-Leader. Worrles about s molsture bave been & the fl.rlctb MAY 17, 1933. Deplores Move for China Monopoly on Opium Sale To the Bditor of The Star: For the past two or three years vague rumors have been abroad to the effect that China is about to establish 4 government monopoly for the sale of opium. This would bring in & revenue Have they ever shut down on them and gv-’n up the reve- nues? Never. The c! me in Indo-China, dhmlnm ds East h the been much money involved. l(lndmm th!m“ ibject oaderid are sul P! of thelr own. Not one of mm would dare for a moment to set up opium in Great ll;ul.u, Prance, their remote colonies. But with China the case is entirely different. China— if rumor can be relied upon—is delib- erately planning to drug its own people right on the spot. A unique under- taking. In 1912 China and the United States, as well as these European nations just referred to—signed The Hague Opium Convention, which calls for the ual and effective suppression use of oplum for smoking.” European nations have paid not the slightest attention to this clause in the —thelr opium monopolies are still runn full blast. Is China going to join them—and likewise chuck over- board her treaty obligations? It will be difficult for the United States to understand a move of this kind—for during these many years the United States is the one great power that has steadfastly stood by China in her long and gallant fight against opium. One can only hope that these dis- tressing rumors are unfounded. ELLEN N. LA MOTTE. Praises Star Editorial On Morale of the Army To the Editor of The Btar: Permit me to thank you for your editorial on Army morale and fair treatment which appeared in BSatur- day’s edition. It you beat & dog long enough it will cease to whimper with additional blows —and that is about what has happened | to the Army. The parallel continues to hold when one points out that under such conditions the dog is worthless. | It is a pleasure to know that condi-| tions are understood by the editors of | The Evening Star, and your editorial, | which stated facts fairly and calmly, | merits the approbation of every true| American and the thanks of every Army Thanks The Star for Aid Given Federal Workers | To the Bditor of The Star: This is a case of “when a feller needs s friend,” and we, the Government em- ployes, are indeed fortunate to have | found in The Evening Star such a willing and able defender. I thank you for the clear and com- prehensive way in which you have stated the effect of pending legislation, and am sure all other Federal employes are as grateful as I am for the efforts of your paper to see that Federal em- ployes a “square deal.” G EMILY A. SPILMAN. Many Housing Vacancies Suggest Lower Rentals To the Editor of The Star: ‘The Star of May 14 has 33 columns of rooms, apartments and houses for rent. This is the largest showing of housing vacancies I have ever seen. It Would seem to warrant some lowering of rents. Voluntary reduction would be better than a Rent Commission with court contests probable. THOMAS W. GILMER. ———s City Manager Cities. From the Lexington Leader. The city manager cities of the United States have made a splendid record during the years of depression in caring for the distressed, in reduc- the burden of taxation, in im- proving public services, in putting con- structive economies into effect and in balancing their budgets. Lexington, as every one knows, has been exceedingly | fortunate in having the new form of government in operation during the period of stress and strain, and has every reason to offer itself congratu- Iations at its satisfactory financial condition. Cincinnati, too, has made an admir- able record. While the past year brought more than a thousand cities to downright disaster, and led to their default and to the loss of their credit, under her city manager Cincinnati has | remained financially sound. Her citi- zens have paid their taxes promptly snd without complaint. The admin- istration finished the year with & small balance, after reducing operating costs by $1,000,000 over those of the preceding ear. cn?éx‘d"":e“ agency, in a report on nnati, says: “As waste in expenditure had al- ready been ly eliminated at the beginning of the depression, further economies have been the result of sci- entific planning and adjustment which te admirably the possibilities of e?mgcm/:tnuenctmem. ul! ‘i's wolrt:y of n operating costs were low- ered $1,200,000 from 1931, and in the face of rising relief costs, without re- ctions in salaries and wages, these already being low in comparison with other e cities.” ‘There was no {uhm: disorder in that city. Relief work was cal on ef- fectively and honestly. The city com- leted & new $40,000,000 terminal. ;’here has been no spirit of defeatism or of dispair. All the services of the municipality were maintained upon a high plane of efficiency. Physically the city was never cleaner, public health was never better, accidents were reduced, infant mortality was reduced and the city was decidedly an improved city, a more wholesome place in which to live than even in 1931. Steady prog- ress has been made right through the de] lon. mmn congratulates Cincinnati. Both communities have taken the right road and are faring well. An Established Shortage. Prom the Indianapolis News. That there is a shortage of homes in this country is something the homeless have believed for a long time. — et To Keep His Hand In. Prom the New York Sun. - not use mlnfi!hr un-edm.v. 3 ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Q. What ary the signs of s PM This | egg when held against a light?—W. R. This | and the yolk discernible. with your inquiry for direct re- X qcfl‘d& Address formation Bureau, Director, D. C. Q. Please give s biography of Strib- und Stril WAS Several followed. “The e” and “The Store,” were published in 1931 and 1932, respectively. QHow is a tennis net knitted so that n the meshes run vertically instead of diagonall; they ly a3 do in fish nets?— A. They are knitted diamond shaj and the netting is then cut at the edges 30 that the meshes will hang square instead of in diamond position. Q. How mapy Christians are there in India?—S. E. A. Out of a population of about 247,000,000, Christians number about Q. Why is Justice pictured as a woman with eyes>—L. R. A. The figure which is blindfolded can traced to the conception of the Egyp- tian goddess Maat, ‘he personification of physical and moral law and order and truth. Maat became the personification of justice who awarded to every man his due. Maat was the “lady of the Judgment Hall.” Dr. Alfred Weide- mann, professor in the University of Bonn, writing in “Religion of the An- ciant Egyptians,” says of Maat that this | C. goddess of Truth and Justice, who is mentioned in some of the oldest texts, was occasionally represented with bandaged eyes, since Justice judges without respect of persons. In_ mot to Canada from the Q. ving United States, does duty have to be|in paid on_household goods?—E. R. A. For settlers going into Canada, household goods and personal effects may be taken in duty free. Q. Is it true that the American Philosophical Society owns millions of dollars’ worth of antiques?—D. M. A. The value of the treasures owned by this organization cannot be esti- mated in dollars. It is said that 78 per cent of the Franklin manuscripts is in possession of this society. other possessions which cannot be duplicated are a Gilbert Stuart por- trait of Washington, Benjamin Frank- | lin’s step-ladder chair, and Jefferson's chair in which he penned the Declara- tion of Independence. Q. What is the French Canadian word for werewolf?—P. W. A. Loup-garou is the term used to| describe this creature of the imagina- | tion. Q. Is the Eastern coast line of the United States sinking?—M. W. A. Observations at the present time do not extend far enough back to give definite evidence. They at present only show that if any movement is| taking place, that it is of a very small amount, probably less than a hun- dredth of a foot year. Q. What is blue ivory?—F. T. A. It is from the tusks of the ex-| tinct mammoths found embedded in the frozen soil of Northern Siberia. Its blue color is due to metallic salts which have penetrated them. rtrayal of Justice as a| be | Among its . A perfectly good, fresh egg shows full and clear before the light; there is almost no air cell at the large end outline is only faintly . A fixed air cell’ of one- eighth to three-sixteenths inck in depth a fresh egg as s run in general receipts. A large air cell with & mobile lower line indicates, according to size and fluctuation, a stale egg, or one becoming weak and watery. Q. What is the oldest domesticated Peruvian llama is presumed to be, because there is no record of the animal in any but a domesticated state. The most ancient traces show the llama as & beast of burden, while there is no record of it in a wild state. Q. What were the names of the _.ner men in the Mr. Dooley skotches?— E. L D. A. Mr. Hennessey usually figures m the conversations and Mr. McKenna is full of skeptical questions. Q. How fast does the water in the Mississippi flow down river at highest speed?—W. 8. A. This depends upon the location. On an average it would probably be from 5 to 7 feet per second. Q. Is it unwise to try to remove a stain from & garment without knowing the character of the stain?—M. D. A. The nature of the stain should | be known, if possible, before its re- moval is attempted, because this de- termines the treatment. If an un- suitable remover is used, the stain may be “set” so that its removal becomes difficult, or even impossible. For ex- ample, if boiling water, which easily removes most fresh fruit stains, is ap- plied to stains containing protein, such as those from milk, blood, eggs, or meat juice, it coagulates the albumen and makes it extremely difficult to remove. Ql. How large are circus rings?— "A." They are of uniform size, having & diameter of 42 feet Q. wnenis & person in his teens?— A. From his thirteenth birthday to his twentieth, a person is said to be teens, since the years end in “teen.” Q. Which is the purest, rain, snow, or dew>—R. A. F. A. The composition of rain water varies. Since rain is condensed water vapor it would be chemically pure if it ‘did not gather foreign substances from the atmosphere as it falls to the earth. Rain water washes down out of the air, dust, soot, pollen, spores of fungi and similar material. It con- tains a percentage of dissolved oxygen, nitrogen, ammonia and carbonic acid gas. In falling through the impure at- mosphere of cities it sometimes shows traces of nitric acid, sulphuric acid and other components. Snow is of similar composition, often with fewer impurities. Dew is the pur>st fo: of | water in nature. Like rain ii is dis- tilled water, but lacking the impurities which rain picks up whiie falling through the air. Of the three, rain water would probably be regarded as the most beneficial to vegetation from thil point of view of chemical constitu=- ents. Q. How high could the airship Akron ascend?—R. O. 8. A. The U. S. 8. Akron could nor- HU ascend 12,000 feet with a light oad. Q. When was the old Crystal Palace in New York City built —L. U. J. A. The old Crystal Palace at Sixth avenue between Fortieth and Forty- second streets was built in 1853 and used as an industrial exhibition hall It was burned on October 5, 1858. Germany’s Burni Held Blow to National Spirit Pride of Germany in its culture and its many contributions to the thought of the world are believed by the Amer- ican public to have suffered a drastic reversal in the burning by the Hitler regime of books which do not conform to the Fascist ideas. It is conceded that some priceless books have fed the flames, but the suppression of thought is declared to be among the futile things of all time. It is also pointed out that copies of such books as are valuable exist in other countries. “Time was,” recalls the Salt Lake Deseret News, “when students of chem- istry, philology, anthropology and psy- chology felt their educations not com- plete until they had mastered German and read the works of the great minds of that country in the original. They turn away from the indecency with a feeling of horror. The silly gesture of the Nazi party recalls the acts of the Spanish conquistadores when they came upon the writings of the Mayas in Mexico and Central America, and feel- Lng them to be the records of devil- ridden people, burned them in the public places and destroyed records of incalculable worth. Of course, no such damage results from this infantile cel- ebration, for the books have all been scattered abroad and find their places in the libraries of the world.” “A people distinguished among all its neighbors for its breadth of knowl- edge and range of intellectual interest,” observes the Providence Journal, “sud- denly writes itself down as not merely national in its self-limitation, but actually provincial” That paper adds that “the best friends of Hitler at home and abroad must look on with mingled amazement and distress.” The Spring- fleld (Mass.) Republican feels that “if the Nazi censors had limited them- selves to a moral house cléaning they would have got applause abroad as well as at home,” but that “their absorp- tion in their own fanatical doctrines, to which liberalism of any sort is anathema, makes their index expurga- torius grotesque.” “The German nation,” sccording to the Columbia (S. C.) State, “is based on books, mortised and tenoned in books, lived in and by books, more than any other people in history.” That paper suggests that “one would have supposed they would reverence their books, honor the very word 'book,’ and set up books in their agoras to wor- ship instead of the borrowed Norse gods.” The the “last word” on the subject: “A good book" is the precious lifeblood of & master spirit, embalmed and treasured up on purpose to a life beyond life. As ood ost kill a man as kill a good k; who kills a man kills a reason- able creature, God's image; but he who destroys a good book kills reason itself.” The Columbia paper states that many of the burned books were immortal, and “some of them cannot be replaced.” It comments on history: “As the an- clent world never retrieved the loss of the library of Alexandria, it is quite possible that Germans may never en- tirely recapture what they have lost in this furious destruction of in which the Ge: spirit very things in wi Tman sp! lives, through which it works its will upon the world, and achieves its own | wif fame.” As to volumes on present conditions, the New York Times points out: “Many books have been written since the armistice to show that German fright- fulness was a hideous slander. real German spirit expresses itself in industry, thrift, order, peace, and a passionate love for art, science and high thi These protests have now Germany spirit of growing friendship by Ameri- former wmmfi of memg neutrals. new the last three months has been ying State quotes Milton in |the bo of Books | declares the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, | “far beyond even a semblance of suce | cessful repression of tastes. The de- |sire for knowledge is irresistible. People have awakened to an omnive erous appetite for literary productions. | There are persons who will read any offering of any writer. For every book burned there will be a hundred | phoenixes arise from the ashes—and each of the hundred will do more harm to the plans and aspirations of the book burner than would have come from those at hand when the order to burn was issued. It is & moot ques~ | tion whether the proper attitde toward Hitler is to laugh at his egotism or pity his lack of judgment.” “Books are widely circulated and the | destruction of a few copies in Berlin will not have serious or widespread | consequences,” says the Lincoln State Journal, while the Birmingham Age- Herald suggests that among the writers |of the condemned books are authors | who “are well known to American | readers. and they can determine for | themselves just how poisonous these |men are.” The Dayton Daily News | views all such destructions as resulting | from & “combination of ignorance with | zeal” and notes a “resurgence of the tribal temper,” while the Sioux Falls Daily Argus-Leader holds that the Ger- man authorities “encourage ignorance instead of knowledge,” and the Merid- ian Star predicts the downfall of the present German leadership. This “complete reversal of educa- tional principles” is “astounding” to the Indianapolis Star, while the Cincin- nati Times-Star sees prospects of a German “headache” and “tragedy” is the verdict of the Baltimore Sun. = T 5Amlup Wins the Wilderness From the New York Herald Tribune. ‘The Graf Zeppelin, still plying plac- idly between Germany and Brazil, be- gan a new season on May 6. North Americans who have seen the dirigible as a war craft haunted by tragedy, and who scarcely think of these great ships at all as vehicles for ordinary civilian travel, would be surprised to discover what a solid reputation diri- gibles bear in regions far to the south. Working with planes, the Graf has linked jungles with Europe and made highways above desolate savannas. On undless 0, deep in the selva, whence the nearest railroad is a thou- sand impassable miles away; in places where even a rough trail cannot sur- vive the rainy season, men nev- ertheless, of catching the plane o make the next trip from Pernambuco. They literally drop into town with thelr fam- ilies, including babies, wearing bygone fashions and little acquainted with streets. In only two parts of.Bolivia can one count on being able to find roads open—on the altiplano and in El Valle—but even in that land one can |rely upon the air. People who have never heard a “talkie” nor taken a train carefully consult air bulletins in the local cantina. Ranchers, mining, coffee, sugar and cattle men, who cus- tomarily voyage by mule, are familiar ith the flying schedules. Every day the Lloyd Aereo Boliviano announces proximate flights from Co- chabamba, metropolis of a vast and + “herwise agricultural region. On Sunday and Tuesday planes fly to Santa Cruz, andthence “on the first and third Pridays of the month” to Puerto Suaree, on on the River