Evening Star Newspaper, June 30, 1933, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTO D. C, FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 1933 WW THIS AND THAT ~ BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. THE EVENING STAR ‘With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. FRIDAY..........June 30, 1933 THEODORE W. NOYES....Editor The lvulu'lllr Nmn iper Company ce: ith_8: and Pennsylvania Ave tv vtk Sffce: 11 East 42nd Bt Eneand. by Carrier Within the City. 45c per month 60c per month w 5c per month ™ 5S¢ per copy Collection made at the end of each month. Giders may be sent 1n by mail or telephone fAtional 5000. Rate by Mall—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Wafly and Sunday....l ; Daily only . Bindsy only All Other States and Canada. 12.00 ; 1 mo., $1.00 1mo. 75 day o 50c. Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled the use for republication of sll news dis- edited to it or not otherwise cred- also the local nes ghts of publication l in are also reserved. —_——————————— Fog and Reality. It would be wholly out of keeping with President Roosevelt's proved qual- ities of tenacity for him to throw up the sponge on disarmament just be- cause Europe has not at once acted affirmatively upon the American pro- gram to bring about a warless world. So it is not surprising to learn that, after conferring with the President aboard the Amberjack II off the Maine Coast, Norman H. Davis is under orders to return to Geneva and resume his heavy task. Mr. Davis painted for the President an invincibly optimistic picture of the situation. In our roving Ambassador’s lexicon there is no such word as dis- couragement. He acknowledges that success is not immediately in sight, but says that Europe is fully per- suaded that to disarmament there is only one alternative—chaos—and that statesmen ‘“over there” are determined to avert such a catastrophic fate. Cer- tain political adjustments, Mr. Davis concedes, remain to be made, and he stresses as the paramount one among them what he cryptically calls “the stabilization of the German govern- ment.” Just what the Ambassador means by this is not clear. It is clear enough from the standpoint of France and Poland. They are not disposed to disarm until the Hitler autocracy re- nounces its avowed purpose to destroy the treaty of Versailies and revise the territorial arrangements therein pro- vided. In other words, the Nazis’ de- termination to abolish the Polish Cor- ridor and otherwise upset the Ver- sailles settlement in Germany's favor is a threat to their security which debars the Germans’ neighbors from giving serious consideration to any far- reaching disarmament scheme. Nor are their emotions in this direction stirred by America's traditional unwillingness to pledge herself in advance to con- tribute armed force to suppress aggres- slon against countries which divest themselves under a disarmament agree- ment of the means of defending them- selves. President Roosevelt, as he steered his little ship safely into the Canadian harbor of Campobello Island, said he rejoiced that Mr. Davis had just had the evidence of his own eyes to prove how two great countries—the United States and Canada—could live in per- petual peace along an unfortified border. That is a very pretty figure of speech. But if New Brunswick, on whose hospi- table soil the President now tarries before his return to Washington, were & state smarting under what she con- sidered political and military injustice and affirming on all possible occasions her determination to demand revision of the status quo some day from, say, the Province of Quebec and the State of Maine, the French-Caradians on their part and the “Down East” Yankees on theirs would probably hesi- tate to recede from what George ‘Washjngton called “a respectable de- Zensive posture.” If some such imaginary picture had been conjured up by the President, in addition to the unfortified border analogy, & good deal of reality would have broken through the fog in the North Atlantic, amid which the sailor Executive and his disarmament envoy yesterday envisioned the millennium. . e Otto Kahn continues to be rated by friends and admirers as to some extent one of those rich men who are’embar- sassed by overzealous subordinates who adcpt their own methods of increasing | the burden of wealth. oo One way to avold future wars would be the discovery of a system of political geography that would please every-| ‘body—something the world has never yet been able to attain. — e The Good 0ld Game in New York. Yesterday Mayor John P. O'Brien of Qreater New York stopped off at Tam- many Hall on his way uptown to at- tend & Bronx subway opening. Per- haps he stopped to get a drink of water or to have his shoes polished. At any rate, shortly afterward he went to a telephone and sent a message to his confidential secretary at the City Hall, and immediately thereafter a typewritten memorandum was handed out to reporters there to this effect: “I am a candidate for re-election.” A little later news hunters got to Mr. Curry, the head of Tammany, Wwho, stating that he had not seen the mayor when he called at the hall, de- clared: “I am very glad that Mayor O'Brien has decided to run again; I think he has made an excellent record fn his first six months as mayor.” While notking in the way of an in- dorsement of the mayor's action could be obtained frcm Boss McCooey of Brooklyn, it was recalled that he re- cently remarked to a friend: “I'd be & coward to quit O'Brien now; I'd rather be beaten forty or fifty times than desert the Mayor after the way he has stood up since the first of the year.” ‘Thus neatly has been stage-managed the decision of the bosses of Greater New York to stand pat with O'Brien in November. There has been talk lately that they may have to drop him because of the revolt over his proposed tax plan, advanced as an alternative for drastic economies in the municipal administration as & means of balancing ihe budget. It is altogether probable that Tammany’s decision, confirmed by the Brooklyn organization, to carry on with O'Brien in the next election was induced by the failure of the anti- Tammany fusionists to find an out- standing candidate, such as former Gov. Smith or Samuel Seabury, both of whom have declined. Without such a commanding figure a fusion move- ment to rescue Greater New York from the grip of the Tiger will be quite hope- less of success. So the good old game will be played again and Mayor O'Brien will be renominated and will be re- elected, however loudly the taxpayers may roar. —ve—s Business Philosophy. Otto K. Kahn and other partners of the firm of Kuhn, Loeb & Co. have during the recent lean years paid no income taxes to the Government, or very little. Mr. Kahn himself paid no income taxes during the last three years. This did not mean that the senior partner of this large private banking concern had no income. It merely meant that Mr. Kahn, like‘other men of greal means, had made use of the provisions of the income tax law which enabled him to write off stock losses against income taxes. The revelation a few weeks ago that J. P. Morgan and the partners of the J. Morgan Company had paid no income taxes in 1931 and 1932 set the country gasping. The present testimony of Mr. Kahn before the Senate Banking Com- mittee merely confirms the belief that generally speaking the great wealth of the country in large measure avoided paying income taxes through the same method—that of selling securities to show losses at the close of a taxable year. Mr. Kahn told the Senate committee that the profit and loss provision of the income tax law was bad and should be abandoned. In the light of the in- quiry into the manner in which these provisions have operated there can be no doubt that the country generally will agree that there should be a change in the law. Indeed, the Con- gress already in the industrial recovery act has undertaken to fill up the holes through which men of wealth have been able to avoid paying income taxes. It was Mr. Kahn's contention that whére profits have been made through the in- crease in value of securities there should be no increased taxation, as well as when there were losses there should be no writing off of the losses. There is a difference, however, in the two opera- tions as they have been permitted. For example, a man may earn through a profession or work for which he is paid a considerable sum 4n one year on which he pays an income tax. The following year he may be unable to make a tenth as much, due to many conditions. In the third year he again earns as much as he did in the first year. There is no provision of law by which he can charge off his loss of earnings in the second year against the tax he must pay at the close of the tkird. Mr. Kahn, like the Morgan partners, told the committee that he had little recollection of the transfers of stock at the close of the taxable year by which he was enabled to write off his in- come tax. Apparently, from the testi- mony, these were details which were left to the office forces and to the lawyers. But Mr. Kahn insisted that he had no intention of doing anything to the detriment of the Government. He was, it is asserted, acting wholly within the law when he transferred large blocks of stock to his daughter in December, 1930, with an indicated loss of $117,584, and then obtained these securities again by reassignment from her in March, 1931. It is obvious that the transac- tion was purely for the purpose of avoidipg payment of an income tax which Mr. Kahn would have been com- pelled to hand over to the Government had he not taken this “loss.” It seems improbable that members of Congress who voted for the provisions of the in- come tax law under which such opera- tions are held to be legal did so with the expectation that such devices would be found for tax avoidance. The senior partner of Kuhn, Loeb & Co,, in his testimony before the com- mittee, said that it was a hazardous piece of business to “gamble” on the country’s prosperity in the way of a profit and loss provision of the income tax law. He is right when it comes to the collection of the necessary revenue through any such income tax law as has been in operation in the past. How- ever, Mr. Kahn defends “speculation” in all kinds of business, even to the ex- tent of the buying of stocks on margin. In his opinion, such buying is only “gambling” when the man cannot af- ford to take the losses he might have to incur. Apparently what is specula- tion for the wealthy man is mere gambling for the poor. Mr. Kahn has proved an interesting and alert witness before the Senate Committee, although his philosophy of business and Govern- ment does not appear entirely consis- tent. —_— e ‘The farmer is commanding prices sufficient to enable him to forget the sorrows of the “man with the hoe” as well as the adventures of the Wall Street man with the rake-off. R Fears begin to arise that there iz no more use of organizing official expedi- tions to Euroge than there is of bring- ing marchers to the U. S. Capital. —— e Lost: An Island! Ganges Island kas been mislaid. At least, that appears to be the case. A Japanese hydrographic expedition an- nounces thet it cannot be found. The supposition is that it has sunk beneath the waves of the Pacific. If s0, it may be gone forever, or, conceivably, it may eventually come back. Small islands, like that which bears the name-of the great Indief river,| have a habit of popping into or out of existence. It is cne of their char- acteristics, a symptom of their youth- fulness. They come, they go, they come again. The chart makers have a grand game of hide-and-seek with them. No sooner are they properly entered on the maps than they erase themselves. And then, when the new charts are drawn and their absenee is recorded, they emerge frem their ccean concealment and blandly settle down to the business of drying off in prepara- tion for another dive. Ganges should be somewhere in the vicinity of 30.57 degrees north latitude, 154.10 degrees east longitude. The Japanese naval surveyors looked for it \ 4 P.| Swanson’s statement of s revised naval there, but it was missing. 'rhuy' searched the whole Megalhaes Archi- pelago for it, all in vain. It simply was not to be located. But perhaps if they go back next year and examine the same region they will have better success. ‘The planet earth is supposed to be old enough to know better than to practise suth skittishness, but in print of fact it is comparable to a gamboling lambkin for its utterly irrational fen- dency to “cut up.” Its continents are somewhat too large to do more than wabble, but ‘its emall islands skip around like porpoises. For the philosopher the current story of the misbehavior of Ganges is just & further example of the mutability of all things. There were no inhabitants “Don’t you like catbirds?” asks a correspondent. “I have not seen a mention of them in This like them because they are so sleek and bathe so often.” ‘These have been favorites of this column; if g has been written about them here, it is not because we do not care for them. The catlike cry alone makes them friends of all friends of the house cat. But in addition to their mew, which they make when disturbed, or are an, in any ‘way, they have a variety ol songs, and are picturesque, interesting to be discommoded by the event. Thus | birds. only the hydrcgraphers will be disturbed sbout it. And they, probably, will be accommodated by the prompt return of their errant subject. ———t————— A Navy Second to None. There can be no doubt of the in- tention of this present administration |jnquige to maintain the American Navy at its fullest possible strength under the existing tresties and at the highest possible point of efficiency as the first line of national defense. Secretary policy issued yesterdsy is a guarantee to that end. that the Navy is to be maintained in sufficient strength to support the na- tional policies and commerce and to guard the continental and overseas pos- sessions of the United States; to create, maintain and operate a Navy second to rone and in conformity with treaty provisions; to develop it to a maximum in battle strength and ability to con- trol the sea in defense of the Nation; to organize it for operations in either or both oceans so that only expansion will be necessary in the event of war; to make war efficlency the object of all development and training, and to maintain that effleciency at all times. Details of this policy are set forth in terms that give full assurance that under it there will be no weakening of this essential, defensive arm of the Na- tion, in ships, in equipment, in arma- ment, in man power, in training and in discipline. Under it full-fleet man- euvers will be conducted annually for 8 period of not less than two months. Shore establishments sufficient to sus- tain the forces afloat in peace and ca- pable of rapid expansion in emergency | edi will be maintained. Afrcraft auxiliaries will be developed in all Nnes. The sec- ondary units, such as cruisers, destroy- ers, submarines and aircraft carriers, will be kept up in tonnage to accord with the ireaty provisions. To carry out such a policy is to fol- low the lines of the soundest economy. It will stimulate industry through new constructions and give employment to now idle workers and it will guarantee security to the Nation. ‘Wages are going up and so are prices. 1t is an old race in which the consumer has usually regarded prices as having rather the best of the handicapping. President Roosevelt said awhile ago that no man can be right all the time, and he has the satisfaction of knowing that the same is true of the critics. — e As an observer, Col. House has in the past shown ability to make a great deal of news without rendering his own name especially conspicuous. —_— e In demanding recognition Russia has at least gotten far enough along to be sure that she cannot be passed by un- noticed. R SHOOTING STARS. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Learning. I'm learning lots 1 did not know. ‘The starry spots Up there aglow Reveal anew Both fear and hope As we look through A telescope. I also learn Of atoms small; ‘The glass in turn Reveals them all. Things that were hid My brain cells clutch. I wish I did Not learn so much. And day by day In plain old print Of wild dismay I find a hint. My calm it wrecks When'er I choose ‘To don my specs And read the news. ‘Welcoming the Fourth. “Does the Fourth of July make you nervous?” “Not any more,” answered Senator Sorghum. “After & few investigation sessions, ordinary fireworks do not affect me in the least.” Jud Tunkins says when a friend needs s little doctoring he never worries much until it is found necessary to call in some kind of an ‘ologist. Upward. ‘The market’s going very high. It leaves me far from ealm, Because s0 frequently I sigh, “So is the old thermom.” ' Cheerful Listener. “What is your favorite feature on the radio?” “I like every thing that ccme along,” said Miss Cayenne. “Sometimes I approve even of the static for inter- rupting something that threatens to become dull.” “You say love one another,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “yet you attempt reforms that provoke quarrels that extend from the family circle to the nations of the world.” No Hoarding. It's very wrong to hcard our gold, Of this we're well aware. | Are we not happy to behold Our ccnscience free from care! For when we've paid for rent and board And taxes, we will find, ‘There is no golden coin to hoard— Nor any other kind. “Don’t waste too much time arguin’,” said Uncle Eben. “If he's wrong he’s sinter find i out foh hissell” \ It is explicitly stated | shin Although not striking in coloration, in its plain slate gray, with black cap and tall, with some chestnut brown on the under parts, the catbird always attracts the bird lover by its lithe grace, 1ts sleekness, and quite attractive song. No doubt many a person, listening, mistakes them for mocking birds, al- though their ordinary is not as loud, nor as varied, and they do not in as much sheer mimicry. * k k% Long before wealthy persons residing in the North took to spending their Winters in the South, the catbird, true Perhaps it was natural that a bird named after the domestic cat should seek its ease amid warmth and sun- e. Dametella carolinensis is the scien- tific, or “fancy,” name for this friend of the gardener. The second of the name ghlnly indicates the rite States of human song writers as well as of birds. Surely Caroline hath a musical sound! x k% % As to the bathing habits of this bird, we cannot say from personal observa- tion, owing to our universal failure with bird baths. Of course, & bird bath is supposed to be_automatic. Put in a nice one, not too close to the house, and watch the birds bathe. Such is the theory, and, no doubt, the practice of many. . If there happen to be pet cats, how- ever, well—hous> cats recognize no kinship with catbirds. The fact that they both bear the same name means nothing in their furry and feathery lives. * ok k% Hence the bird baths set out by the cat fancier are very likely to be neg- lected by the birds. It follows, therefore, that few. birds, cat or otherwise. have indulged in their favorite sport of bathing in This an That's baths. They mostly stay in the trees, where they pour down their lusty and lovely songs upon the devoted head of this tor. One may have a suspicion, too, that human laziness has something to do with it. No doubt birds prefer nice clean bath tubs—but how many of these outdoor affairs, designed solely for the birds, are kept in proper condi- tion for them? Most of the bird baths one sees are dark and solled inside, and far too many of them are either too deep or not of sufficient depth. * x % % ‘The birds inform us that about 2 inches is the depth they prefer. This gives them plenty of room in which w aprend their wings and do a lot ‘:: Birds are not finicky, in the human sense, but there can be little doubt that & bird bath should be cleaned out more in than it is, and fresh water reliance on poured oftener, with less 2 and That. We | rainfall 2l The size of birds, we think, has & great deal to do with the affection of many nature lovers for them. Mostly we like very little birds, or quite good sized ones. The charming goldfinches, which visit Washington and vicinity for a few days in the Spring, are uni- versally loved and admired. Their tiny flashing bodies seem like butterflies. ‘The rubythroated hummingbird is the friend of all who see it. ‘The chesty robin numbers his hu- man friends by the tens of thousands. The fighting bluejays have.a million pertect plumage and. thelr boid wavs. perfect plumage and the ways. ‘The thrashers and the mockingbirds, command the attention even of who may not be um:un with them. * *x * At this point let us enter a plea for the very amateur bird lover. He—or she—may not know one bird from another and yet love them al After much acquaintance this ama- teur may know little more than he did before and yet be perfectly sincere in his_admiration. ‘There is a feeling in this world, no doubt correct enough, as far as it goes, that acquaintance should lead on and on to perfect knowledge. It one takes up a certain line of in- terest, after many days he is supposed to issue forth an “expert” or an “au- thority” at the least. * kK % Yet it may be questioned, in all sin- cerity, whether iration need result 80 _invariably. The great Order of Appreciators has many degrees, and not the least hon- ored of these is the First Degree, Dubs. Members of this are Appreciators merely. They know what they like, and their merit consists in liking it. They read books, and love them, al- though they could not write a best seller to save their lives. They attend plays, and appreciate good acting; they recognize first-class paintings when they see them; they know good government from mediocre government. Yet in no sense are they writers, ac- tors, artists, politicians. * % ok k .They are Appreciators. It is s0 with the things of the garden. including its birds. One properly may be an admirer of the featnered friends without knowing their names or much about their habits. Sometimes one may believe that it is d | well that all of us do not set up as ex- | perts in the garden or elsewhere, for |in that event the world would be so crammed with them that no work would be -done. It takes three or four years for some of us to tell a thrasher from a catbird, and this we mostly do by noting that | the thrasher eats ants off of tree trunks. | Our science is not very large, but our affection for the birds is considerable; |1t is always a happiness to see them and hear them. Not like the catbird? | Bless your heart, we would like it for | its name, if for nothing else. But the bird itself is so capable, so ! it wins for itself thousands of admirers, | including yellow Quincy, the cat. Only the other day we saw him sit- | ting on the driveway, admiring a cat- bird on the arching bough of a locust. And the bird seemed to admire him, in ture, for it mewed and put forth a great variety of sound in his direction. WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. In Dr. William E. Dodd, soon to take up his duties 8s American Ambassador to Germany, it is evident that a new and different kind of diplomat comes into the picture. Here's the inside story of his appointment: One of two conditions agreed to by the President | was that Dr. Dodd is not to be sub- ject to criticism by Government offi- clals, either in Washington or in Ber- lin, for living within the allowance for the office—that is, he is not to sacrifice the small savings of a lifetime in order to indulge in useless display in Ger- many. The traditions of our diplo- matic service, elg_chuy among _the younger element, Dr. Dodd feels, have been leaning more and more in the direction of extravagance. The Presi- dent said, when he called Dr. Dodd in Chicago, that he wished a university man in Berlin. Prof. Dodd replied that he would have to live the univer- sity life if he accepted the appoint- ment. The latter thereupon ensued. * K ok % Most of Ambassador Dodd's “small savings of a lifetime” are represented by his model dairy farm at Round Hill, in Loudoun County, Va. about 50 miles from the White House. He is intensely proud of the fact that the property is not and never has been in | need of “farm relief.” He thinks he has worked out a procedure there which, if applied to the country, would solve the problem of unemployment. It is a little old farm of high fertility, which yields 14 whites and 8 colored persons a living, pays taxes and nets the owner about 2 per cent on the in- vestment. The farm conforms to the instructions of the Maryland and Vir- | ginla Milk Producers’ Asscciation and does not contribute to the “surplus” except when so directed. * ok %k k The new Ambassador of the United States will arrive at his post not long after Dr. Hans Luther, German Am- bassador at Washington, reaches Berlin during this week end, on a leave of ab- sence, following barely two months’ service here. Ostensibly, the reason for his trip is to bring his famly to Washington, but obviously its purpose must be, his Washington colleagues feel, to acquaint the Hitler government with American reaction to recent events at Berlin, which have caused wide reper- cussions in the United States, mainly the Nazis’' persecution of the Jews. Dr. Luther will be called upon to report to Chancellor Hitler that the anti-Semitic crusade at length evoked official and critical attention in the highest quarters at Washington. Senator Joe T. Rob- inson’s vigorous condemnation of Hit- lerism in the Senate on June 10 was undoubtedly delivered with approval of the Roosevelt administration, following, as it _did, immediately on the heels of the Democratic Senate leader’s crulse with the President aboard the Sequoia. Mr. Robinson has received literally thousands of commendatory letters from all parts of the country. About the same time Acting of State Phillips permitted the American Jewish Congress to announce that the State De?nn.mant is following anti-Semitic actlvities in Germany with abiding in- terest and stands ready to do what- ever it can to abate them. Dr. Luther, too, can report to the Nazi chief that American protest against the anti- Wu‘m long since ceased to be only by American Jews, and a rem ce -in wh has become onstran all the forces of American public opin- | regardless of creed, are now sllied | ing ion, in the common name of humanity. le George Higgins London. An editorial from the Standard, dated June 15, has just in Washington, ding as fol- the Hull, the had been making the same speech the past twenty years. * k k% of Agriculture Henry A. y his speech 3 £ cynical Senator exphln:d. or Towa. Garst declares that if Wallace had not made a present to the American farmer of his invented type of so- called inbred seed-corn, which produces a high yield per acre, the young czar private fortune of a million dollars. That Wallace isn’t built that way is evidenced by his break with a custom gayly practiced by nearly all his prede- cessors. He has notified the depart- mental dairy at Beltsville, Md., that he will not accept free cream and ice cream, and the department green- houses have been informed that the Wallace family doesn’t want any | “graft” flowers. iy * * ® Representative James M. Beck, silver- tongued Republican, of Pennsylvania & tilting vigorously at the allocation of what he calls the Roosevelt adminis- tration's “monstrous” road - building fund ($400,000,000). He claims that the allocation “despoils” the industrial States of the East for the benefit of the agricultural States of the South and West. Thunders Beck: “New York State contributes nearly 40 per cent and gets about $22,000,000; Penn- sylvania contributes about $100.000,000 and gets back $18,000,000; Texas con- tributes very little to the $400,000.000 ‘and gets more than any other State ($24,000,000).” Beck adds that “if the industrial States ever awaken to the way they have been pillaged for the benefit of Southern and Western States, whose combined contribution to the common fund is far less than that of New York, there will come—when the present hystefia passes—a great reac- tion.” * kX % One of the sagest comments on the new Federal control of industry comes from George H. Cushing. whose Wash- ington publication, Survey, for years has been the acknowledged voice of the coal industry. He says: “Under this legislation legitimate business is given an opportunity to protect itself against the throat cutters. But it also is put on its mettle to organize in’such a way as to improve its own efficiency— that is why the anti-trust laws were modified. It is the opportunity busi- ness has wanted for a generation. The opportunity is here. This law is to be effective for two years. In that length of time a new routine can be established in coal. It is my experi- ence that. when a routine is once es- tablished, it is not abandoned, even though the occasion for the ‘ol tion disappears. Standard Oil, for ex- ample! The essential thing today, therefore, is to use the permitted or- ganization to establish the routine which will make the coal business profitable hereafter. If we can get that much out of it we can afford to forget all of the fine legal questions raised by the critics.” 2% £ Speaking of legal questions in con- necg::l with the industrial recovery act, lawyers and jurists seem persuaded that sooner or later the Supreme Court is bound be called upon to deter- mine the constitutionality of endless issues which the act raises, as well as many other laws enacted in the name of the new deal. A lawyer-constituent of this column voices the prediction that it may fall to the lot of Chief Justice Hughes to hand down a one- ich | man interpretation of many of these ticklish points. The attorney’s reason- is that the Supreme Court, as now progressives, with the Chief Justice oc- e -middle ground, plus a strong inwd.l.nw:!m liberal toward the 1 group, in whose opinions he has concurred more often than not. This pn'vl)hccy foreshadows that Mr. Hughes will be found favoring the constitutionality of the vast majority of the measures which have law under the “dicta (Copyright. 1933 The Bright Lexicon. From the Pasadena Post. “We must not fail,” said Premier Mac~ Donald_in ing the Eccnomic Con- g:u&u But = m!.hech ‘members h:'vl: e ! w they use Jexicon of . v while not showy, in any sense, always | 4 sleek, as our correspondent says, that S of agriculture could easily have made a | Replies to Mr. Terrio On the Marriage Clause To the Editor of The Star: Since your publication saw fit to per- mit the cpinions of a Mr. W. H. P. Terrio, upholding the “marriage clause,” to appear in its colymns, I | hope you will concede space to one ‘who sees the matter very differently. Mr. Terrio says the fair-minded citi- zen should be thankful that leaders are enforcing this clause. Well, it so happens the “fair-minded” citizen is not thankful for it, because he sees the injustice, the unfairness, the dis- crimination aimed at women in gen- eral. It is a step toward making wom- an again the clinging vine. It is only men like himself, in no way affected by section 213, who vcice such opinions and are ready to pat its authors on '{‘:b llm:k as being courageous and char- e. Section 213 of the economy act is one of, if not the most, unfair things passed by Congress during this de- pression. It' permits all kinds of dis- criminations and often hits where it hurts most. Granting the point some married persons work seemingly to hoard, they are a very small minority. ‘The average married woman would prefer to remain in her home if the husband’s salary was sufficient to meet their needs. But what if said husband has a widowed mother; wife has a crippled father, an invalild mother? ‘Where now, Mr. Terrlo, is your re- mark that, when studied, this phase of the situation proves that the married woman employe deserves no sympathy? How much have the 17 unlucky per- sons dismissed one year ago today from the Government Printing Office helped to relieve the unemployed situation? None whatever! And while on that subject, where is the fairness of a thing which permitted the discharge of a picked 17 while there are more than 200 married persons still there whose spouses are employed by the Government? If one reads this mar- “two persons in the same department, but “two in the employ of the G ernment,” or words to that effect. Yet its existence permitted this dis- crimination. clause protects the taxpayer. let us understand a little more clearly in what way it helps. Surely not by judging an employe’s efficiency by his or_her marital status. ‘When we married women were given our jobs by civil service it was ac- cording to our M¥ng and not our po- litical “pull” or single blessedness. Any man who had rated higher in the place. So now our duty to the taxpayer is to kindly step aside for some one who did not measure up. If the question of who needs the jobs is to have first consideration— and we married women all agree to the to prove his or her responsibilities? Why was nothing said of brothers, sisters, fathers and sons, any whole family, being employed by the Govern- ment so long as it was not husband and wife. Unlike my worthy opponent, ¥ have been very gravely affected by this sports, Mr. Terrio, and let’s do prac- tice fair play toward our fellow men “and women.” Levy Taxes on Excess Agricultural Products To the Editor of The Btar: ‘The more I study the present agri- cultural crisis, and the more I consult persons competent on the subject, the more thoroughly I become convinced that the disasirously low prices pre- vailing are due to the fact that too much® farm stuff is being grown an- | osition, #o that individual farmers who | have in the past raised barely enough | to supply their living needs find that in a of depression they no longer realize sufficient profit to meet such needs, whereas those who pro- duce on an exaggeratedly large scale still find the business somewhat prof- itable, even at low prices, because of the huge quantities they have avail- able for sale. To remedy this intolerable situation, T think that a prohibitive or deterrent tax should be levied on all of a given product sold beyond a certain stipu- lated amount, whether the product be corn, wheat, cotton, tobacco, or what not. Suppose every individual farmer, or { every 100 acres of farm land, were al- lowed to sell up to 10,000 pounds of tobacco per year free of tax, all over that limit being subject to a 50 per | cent assessment. Such a plan would | tend to reduce the grand total of to- | bacco raised or sold in a year, while | at the same time not restricting in the least the crop marketable by any tobacco raiser engaged solely in earn- |ing a legitimate livelihood, and the automatic effect would be bound to consist in an unlift of the market value of tobacco to a sustenance-insur- ing level. Verily, humanity must be protected agal tself. It is an actual fact that many well-meaning farmers, instead of decreasing, increase their acreage of a particular crop when the price falls in order to fill up the deficit, thus in- augurating a viclous, or rather, one may say, a geometrically progressive suicidal cycle! Such a tax as suggested ought to be enforced this very season, in order to save thousands of hard-working, well- nigh destitute farmers from the pros- pect of sacrificing the result of their year's toil for a pittance inadequate to carry them through to the next har- vest. WILFRED STEVENS. ————————— Does New Deal Involve Russian Recognition? To the Editor of The Star: Once more the question of the recog- nition of Soviet Russia is in the minds of the statesmen as well as of the gep- eral public. As many other items under the pres- ent administration, this question also is recelving a “new deal.” This time it seems there is a tendency to arrive at something definite. A few facts in- dicate that the administration is begin- ning very carefully and diplomatically to investigate the possibility of the re- lations between the two nations. Pres- ident Roosevelt's direct message to the head of the Soviet government was perhaps a camouflaged attempt to shed some light on Russia’s attitude. The answer was, as should e been ex- pected, the equivalent of: “We want to beun.cwnmd. and we want to co- nite was necessary for the beginning of the bona fide relations. And now at the London Conference members of lengthy conversations with the mem- bers of the Soviet delegation. Americans were informed by the Rus- sians that the Soviet government is about to place a billion-dollar order in some country where the conditions will be_most favorable. Very well, a billion of dollars could not be easily found lying on the street, but it is u&w the art of American diplomacy determine and decide whether this is a substantial suggestion mA’w%fl ‘without te out & concrete pur- pose will bring the American people nothi but the expense involved in t.heh uj of the embassy and con- sulates. It should only be hoped that in this “new deal,” the American statesmen will be guided not by the Soviet in- terest, or by any_ sentiment, including that of a bitter Russian emigree, but as it was in many other instances dur- this administration, by considering of the American 8. SWEET, I riage clause correctly, it does not say| ‘The article of June 28, before re-| ferred to, states that the nu;ll'hxe- ease | qualification would have been given | fairness of that at this time—why was | it not stipulated that one be allowed | marriage clause and know whereof I peak. We do demand fair play in our| nually as a mere money-making prop- But this was not new: something defi- | the American delegation are having | wage The | This newspaper puts at your disposal & corps of trained researchers in Wash- ington, who will answer questions for you. seums, and to the numerous maintain headquarters in the Nation's Capital. If they can be of assistance to you, write your question plainly and send with three cents in coin or stamps. Do not use post cards. Address The Evening Star Information Bureau, g;dfifl% J. Haskin, Director, Washing- Q. If the eighteenth amendment is Irepuled how will liquor be handled,— . W. A. At the nt_time no decision has been by the Cenzress as to what method of distribution of alcoholic bevéiages would be used in the event that the eighteenth amendment is re- pealed. It been discussed, however, and many plans have been offered. Government control of the distribution of alcoholic beverages is one of the best-thought-of plans, similar to the Bratt system now in effect in Sweden. ilearn their profession?—O. E. P. A. Until well into the nineteenth cen- tury spprenticeship afforded the only means of acqt a of den- tistry, but in November, 1840, was es- tablished the Baltimore Col of Dental , the first college in the Surgery, world for the systematic education of dentists. cQ\i How old is John D. Rockefeller?— |C. V. | A. He was born July 8, 1839, so will | be ninety-four this Summer. | Q How much does concrete rise in temperature after it is set?>—A. B. A. Concrete rises about 40 degrees Fahrenheit above its temperature when laid. When huge masses of concrete are laid, artificial cooling is often em- ployed. Q. How long does it take to go to | Palestine from London?—S8. A. N. A. The trip can be made under nor- mal conditions in six or seven days. Q. Are there any gold workings in the old countries of Europe?—B. D. A. Very little gold has ever been re- covered in Europe west of Russia, and the mines which were worked in the Middle Ages had long been abandoned. Recently, however, with the great in- créase in the purchasing power of gold, old workings in Austria opened and now dredging operations have been started in the bed of the Danube River in Hungary. Q. What is a palla?—M. L. C. A. It is a small square, generally of cardboard, covered on both sides with fine linen, which is used in the Roman €atholic Church to cover the chalice during the mass. Q. When did New York City have a gagéant called “The Melting Pot"?— A. New York City in 1014 gave & “Pageant of the Melting Pot,” in which Irish, Bohemians, Croatians, Poles, Ruthenians, Jews and Italians of that city exhibited their native songs, dances and costumes. Q. Why was the Spanish-American WarR called the Fifteen Weeks’ War?— C. R. A. The extent of the Spanish-Ameri- can War is T}enenlly given as April 21, 1898, to April 11, 1899. However, hos tilities ceased on August 13, 1898. Q. What is the meaning of the | French name villefranche?—C. E. A. Ville means city or town and franche is equivalent to the franchise | or right to vote. Any city in France , |de Rouergue and Perigord. Q. In the early days how did dentists | 4, 4 ory and that have been re- | ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN. where the citizens vote is a villefranche, but four cities bear that name: Ville- franche, the largest of the group, which is a short distance north of Lyon; Villefranche de Lauraguais, Villefranche Villefranche Q. How man; le have been buried in the umm’sm?_a. S. A. Roughly speaking, about 70,000,000 have been burled in Continental United Btates since the history of this country - “g.kflauw( T}:nyun;:nd héwe been Chief e e United States Supreme S . P ere have been 11 since the foundation of the office, in 1789. Q. Was the poet Tennyson born a lord or was he created a peer’—D. M. A. He was the first Baron Tennyson. Born in 1809, it was in 1884 that Queen Victoria created a barony, Tennyson of Freshwater and Aldworth, in favor of ih'r poet-laureate. Q. What are the moving forces that are making history today>—A. H. F. A. Nicholas Murray Butler, in Look- ing , says: “Looking out over the whole panorama of civilization as it persents itself today, perhaps the four chief, deep-lying, moving forces | that are history are these: The increasing importance of economic the- Frmloe when contrasted with political theory and practice whose interests have dominated the Western World through so many cen- turies, the disintegrating influence upon conventional and established | habits and beliefs of the literally stu- pendous revolution in human knowledge and human interests which has been brought about by the extraordinary discoveries and developments of mod- ern science since the time of Copernicus and Newton, what may be described as the steady westernization of those old- est of civilized peoples which inhabit the Orient, and then those tendencles toward international association and | International co-operation with a view | to the establishment and protection of | the peace of the world and the ad- | vancement of the satisfaction and pros- ’peruy of human beings everywhere.”: Q. What special rights has | Britain in Egypt?—W. o S A. When the British protectorate | over Egypt was terminated Great Brit- ain reserved to its discretion four sub- Jects: Safety of the British Empire communications, defense of Egypt | against foreign aggression, direct or indirect; protection of foreign inter- |ests in ‘Egypt and of minorities, and guarantee for British interests in the Soudan. Q. How does Flammarion stand as A Camie Fiammars L e mmarion died in 1825. Opinions differ as to his standing in the scientific world. He is generally not ranked as among the foremost astronomers, being more particularly noteworthy for his treatises in the popular style. There seems to be no doubt. however, that he made some valuable contributions to the science of astronomy. Q. What do the initials OGPU stand for?—R. W. A. The initials OGPU are the ab- breviation for—Obedennoe (United), Gosudarspvennoe (State), Politichespoe g;nl)mw), Upravienie = (Administra- | tion). Q. At what time of day should a vegetable garden be watered’—J. B. J. A. The Bureau of Plant Industry says that water may be applied to a vegetable garden at any time of the day that is most convenient and when | the plants require it. Universal commendation is given by the public to the decision to postpone for & year the efforts of the railroads to reduce wages. This is a compromise which is ranked with other measures intended to bring about improved eco- nomic conditions in the country and, especially, to create purchasing power as & means of stimulating business. It is also felt that a labor struggle at this time would prove disastrous. “Abandonment of wage reduction,” in the opinion of the Portland Oregon Journal, “is evidence of the stabiliza- tion and improvement toward which there are to be more jobs and more profits.” That pa action certainly that “the buying power of the railroad workers will not be reduced.” The Connellsville Courier believes that “any wage reduction, such |as the rail executives had proposed, | would have been out of line with the Government's efforts to increase pur- chasing power as the basis for a pros- perity revival.” The Louisville Courier- Journal advises that “the Roosevelt business recovery plans should have a chance to prove their efficacy,” and that “if matters do not improve suf- ficiently by a year from now to justify continuance of the present reduced wage scale, it will be time to censider more drastic measures.” “A general strike or lockout, with its potentialities and prolo: and business, would have been a na- tional calamity,” says the Spokane Spokesman-Review, while the Newark Evening News declares that, “Ill-timed, in tne light of a definitely improving economic eut the railway wage reduction move was made on the eve of revolutionary changes to be by it about by new Federal railroad I = tion.” The Goshen News-Times sug- gests that “wage reductions are de- cidedly deflationary and every effort of the administration has been in the op‘p;shme dtltrlecuon," o “The settlement,” in the fi ent of the Chicago Daily News, "u“d'nmmpomnc to other interests than the railroads. The recently enacted railroad az:gper- mits a far-reaching experiment: the co-ordinating of operating faciities. Upon the economies effected and. the lower rates thus made possible rests to a large extent the success of the roads in recapturing their old predominance |in the fleld of transportation. Thanks im &r E:umu.n'l intervention, the ex- periment may now proceed without fear | of strikes and other i the railroads of the coun and their employes now linked with :.fi efforts of the Government to bring about recovery from the stagnation in business,” according to the Altoona Mir- ror, “each has demonstrated that busi- ness recovery should come first anc disputes afterward. If this coun- try is going to stage a comeback—an< we are optimistic enough to believe that it will—it will be through of all interests. The railroads and their employes have set a fine example to all others in this Realizing that it would be a difficult task to begin co- ordination with the railroads and their employes at odds over a wage dispute, the Government’s new co-ordinator, set up under the national act, was o orpanizations’ snd-efocied ‘n WO an amicable plenty of ¢ op:ndon,n ‘Any serious wage controversy would be unfortunate,” thinks the Lowell Eve- ning Leader, while the Danbury News- Times holds that “recovery must be sought in the restoration of " ships” and “the United States is not wal an uncharted path merely that railroads may grab more than their share.” The Rockford Register- lic feels that “the amicable spirit prevalled gives promise that a perma- we are headed; an indication that|jn per sees in the rail | of wing Dbitterness pnrfil of industry | {intoward interrup- | wcmzmnunhm‘ to put the new act into iCompromise on Rail Wages Linked With Recovery Plai nent setlement of the troublesome prob- lem may result from future discussions of the roads with their employes.” The Cleveland News sees “hope for the work- ers in other lines that their incomes will not suffer.” The Indianapolis News observes an effort to “keep a clear track for the Government's plan of railroad improvement.” The Charlotte Observer cites, to the credit of the lines, that “their problem is not simply the present problem of all business—it goes beyond that. They never shared in boom pros- perity in all the years since the war.” “Under the arrangement,” observes the Boston Transcript, “an increase in railway revenues in the immediate fu- ture cannot be urged as an argument for to the pay envelopes the 10 Fer cent previously deducted. That tself is no small gain for the car- rlers. They will know where they stand. And they are relieved of the dangers involved in complicated pro- ceedings under the railway labor act. ‘They will not be engaged in urging further reductions in wages at a time when business seems to be improving and living costs are likely to rise. It is a state of affairs the country will welcome. It is in no mood for con- troversies which can be avoided by mutual concessions.” “Untimely zeal” is seen by the Rut- land Herald in the action by the com- ,pu‘lele_s .“"mlp{lu:gl.g a wage-cut dis- pute,” ugl t paper recognizes that the railroads have sufleredo.?mm “t0o much regulation” and competition by motors. This view is held also by the Lexington Leader, but the Des Moines Tribune suspects that the railroads were “warding off for the present the danger of a row over restoring the older 10 per cent cut.” The Oklahoma City Times argues: “In the co-ordina- tion of transportation there should be an adjustment to place all common carriers on an equitable basis in the matter of labor and wages. Undoubted- ly the railroads have been handicapped in this respect in the past, largely be- cause of the power of the brotherhoods controlling important spheres of em- ployment. There must be an adjust- ment toward equality, if the railways are to have a fair chance of survival.” ——re— District Intangibles Versus Income Taxes To the Editor of The Star: I was glad to see some slight interest in my letter on the District intangi- bles tax. k" tyou consider ithi‘n the publie {in- rest, you may per] be willl to print one final sh%et. o g ‘To residents of the District who are dependent on small incomes from money at interest. You are paying to the District an in- tangibles tax which is approximately equal to 10 per cent of your incame There is no exemption. Anywhere else a falr income tes would be 1 per cent on your income and there would be exemptions in many ~ases. Is it a burden to you to pay 10 times ‘he tax in other places? gg:azyn h"edml,u vote. Wrxlte to some Sena an presentatives anyway And I mean write. P. R. WHITMAN. Appreciates Editorial On the Lindbergh 6ift To the Editor of The Star: : I cannot allow the editorial entitled “Footnote to Tragedy,” appearing in Saturday’s issue of The Star, to pass without expressing some of my emo- tions upon reading it. You have put into exquisite lan- those high sentiments which tragic story and m‘:‘;unnex