Evening Star Newspaper, March 20, 1935, Page 19

Page views left: 0

You have reached the hourly page view limit. Unlock higher limit to our entire archive!

Subscribers enjoy higher page view limit, downloads, and exclusive features.

Text content (automatically generated)

Washington News FURTHER BLANTON AGTIVITY - STUDIED BY CRIME GROUP House Committee Seeks Data on Varney Pro- motion Case. COMMISSIONERS DENY SEPARATE PROBE PLAN Representative Indicates He Will Not Attend to Hear Lieutenant. BY JAMES E. CHINN. Another Police Department case in | which Representative Blanton. Demo- crat, of Texas is reported to have interested himself was under investi- | gation today by the Special Crime Committee of the House. Information has been given the committee that Blanton communi- cated with Police Supt. Ernest W. Brown with respect to Lieut. Frank A. Varney of the ninth precinet, who until recently headed the eligible list for promotion to a captaincy. Recent efficiency ratings placed Varney's name far down on the eligible list Jjeopardizing his chance for an early Ppromotion. Maj. Brown said Blanton became interested in Varney's case before he undertook to assist Inspector Albert J. { Headley. Brown Gives Intimation. The committee was given an inti- mation of that case by Maj. Brown when he was on the witness stand Monday, denying he had entered into the so-called “gentleman’s agrecment” with Blanton to force the retirement of Inspector Thaddeus R. Bean, so In- spector Headley could be advanced to the rank of assistant superintendent. The name of Varney was not men- tioned at that time, but Maj. Brown testified Blanton had attempted to in- fiuence the department in the case of another police officer. Lieut. Varney is expected to be call- ed before the committee to explain the case. Blanton will be invited to be present to hear the testimony, but he already has announced he would not have any further relations with the committee, describing it as “a tin can outfit.” Commissioner’s Probe Denied. Commissioner Melvin C. Hazen was quick to deny this morning published reports that the Board of Commis- sioners contemplated an independent inquiry of the Police Department upon completion cf the Crime Committee’s investigation. “There will be no investigation by the Commissioners,” Hazen declared, “unless something unforeseen develops to necessitate it.” ‘The Crime Committee yesterday ad- journed its hearing until 10:30 am. temorrow after hearing Hazen deny emphatically that Maj. Brown had advised him of the existence of the “gentlemen’s agreement” to force Bean’s retirement Hazen made the attention was called to a letter writ- ten last August by Maj. Brown to Rlanton, in which he said the Com- missioner had been informed of the arrangement to elevate met with his approval Denies Agreement. “I never made any agreement w.ith anyone,” declared Hazen. “Inspector Bean was promoted to an assistant superintendent with out any strings. A gentleman’s agrecment is not worth a whoop unless the Commisisoners are in on it, and the Commissioners did not know anything about this one.” The only reference Maj. Brown made to the so-called “deal,” Hazen explained, was that there had been rumors Inspector Beaa planned to re- tire, and whether there would be an objection to the elevation of Headley. Hazen said he told Maj. Brown at that time he would consider Headley's promotion at the proper time. Commissioner Hazen was on the witness stand only 35 minutes, and in that time he not only denied Maj. Brown's statement, but made a series of recommendations for improving law enforcement conditions District An increase in the police force and passage by Congress of bills providing compulsory automobile liability asur- ance and for strengthening the gam- bling laws were among his principal requests. He also urged passage of the bill authorizing the Commissioners to use public works funds for con- struction of the proposed new courts building. The committee did not administer the oath to Hazen whea he took the stand. He was the first witness in several weeks who did not take the oath. Chairman Randolph explained he did not believe it was necessary to place the Commissioner under oath. Only a few questions were asked of Hazen. and most of these came from John R. Fitzpatrick, committee cova- sel. The Commissioner spent the major portion of his time on the stand making a detailed statement of his position in the Blanton-Brown “deal.” Backs Magistrate Courts. ‘The Commissioner also indorsed the proposal of Corporation Counsel Pret- tyman for a magistrate courts system to handle various minor offenses, re- lieving the Police Court of these cases. When Hazen completed his recom- mendations, Fitzpatrick began ques- tioning the Commissioner about the Blanton-Brown ‘“gentleman’s agree- ment.” The committee counsel called Hazen's attention to the correspond- ence exchanged between Blanton and Maj. Brown, in which the name of the Commissioner was mentioned. “May I say first, with as strong lan- guage as I know, I never made any gentleman’s agreement, nor did I hear of any agreement to force the retire- ment of Inspector Bean,” declared Hazen, e FARM DEBTS ADJUSTED Debts amounting to $200,000,000 on 40,000 farms have been adjusted by the Farm Credit Administration dur- ing the past year, the agency an- nounced today. Most of these adjustments have been voluntary on the part of the creditors in the 44 States participat- ing in the debt-reduction program. ’ denial after his | Headley | atter Bean's retirement and that it | in the | UTITY APPEAL N. W. Jackson of the Keystone what remains of the desk where Mi a colored charwoman fell through the i L shortly before noon today and fell squarely upon the back of a stenographer seated at her desk in the Keystone Automobile Club, 1323 Connecticut avenue Amid a stunned silence and a tinkle of falling glass, the stenographer, Miss Gussie Swartz, was picked up and laid upon a divan, while the charwoman sat on the floor, surrounded by the litter of the broken desk. For at least a minute the score of employes of the motor club were too astonished to speak. Then the char- woman, Lillian Lockwood, 33. picked herself up and perched on a solid desk nearby. “Well, T swan!” blinking her eyes. Meanwhile, an ambulance was called for Miss Swartz. A diminutive woman of about 35, she-seemed half fainting from the shock and was removed to Emergency Hospital where X-rays will IKE a bolt from the blue, & 200-pound colored charwoman dropped through a skylight she exclaimed, he Fo WASHINGTON, Stenographer Injured as Woman | Falls on Her Through Skylight | | Automobile Club here is pointing to ss Gussie Schwartz was sitting when skylight on her. ~—Star Stafl Photo. | able. ‘WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION D.e, ELLENBOGEN ASKS SCALING OF TAXES 10 PAY PENSIONS Favors Merit System to Re- ward Employers Who Stabilize Work. OPPOSED TO REVISION FAVORING SMALL FIRMS Would Assess All Having Four or More Workers—Report Due Soon. A merit system by which employers who attain an effective degree of stabilization in their business would | be taxed less for unemployment in- | surance, is being proposed by Repre- | sentative Ellenbcgen, Democrat of Pennsylvania, in the form of an| amendment to his pending unemploy- | ment insurance law for the District of Columbia. | The merit rating would be operative | after a three-year period, during which | employers could attempt to stabilize ! their businesses. Since, under the pending measure, contributions would | begin on January 1, 1936, and pay- ments would start on January 1, 1937, Representative Ellenbogen said the | merit differential would not become effective until January 1, 1940. Opposed to Exemption. Coincident with announcement of the concession to employers, however, Ellenbogen said today he did not look | with favor upon changing the cm- ployer-employe ratio so that only those employing 10 or more would be tax- Under his present bill, District | employers hiring four or more em- be taken to determine if she has a fractured nose. A preliminary ex- amination showed only severe bruises about the body. doctors said. Miss Swartz lives at 1437 RRode Island avenue. The charwoman had been cleaning windows for Mrs. John Howard, wife of a Washington newspaper man, who occupied a studio apartment on the | floor above the motor club. After the colored woman regained her breath, she explained she had fallen through a glass and wood frame on which she was standing while cleaning a court window. The frame gave way, but the skylight, 25 feet above where Miss Swartz was working, merely titled, letting the charwoman through along | with a flower pot and a shower of broken glass. A little shaken and bruised by the fall, Lillian managed to summon a smile for reporters. She denied she had anything to say for publication and admonished: “Don’t you boys put may picture in ‘de paper. COST IS UPHELD Justice Martin Confirms As- sessments Against Companies. The right of the Public Utilities Commission to assess the cost of litigation against a public utilities concern which appeals to court from a commission decision has been up- held by the District Court of Appeals in an opinion by Chief Justice Martin. The issue was raised in an attempt by the old Washington Railway & Electric Co. and the Capital Traction Co., now merged as the Capital Tran- sit Co. to avoid paying a bill of $1,150 each because of the printing of the record and briefs of the com- mission in the issue of 1931 over fix. cash. Would Drop Legislation. District officials today regarded the decision as strengthening the hand of the commission in meeting con- tests raised by utilities against its orders. There now are pending in Congress proposed amendments to the District utilities act, which, among other things, would clearly grant the right to assess court costs against the utilities. People’s Counsel William A. Roberts said today that he believes it now will be possible to drop this fea- ture from the proposed amendment and thereby enhance the prospects bill. The decision of Justice Martin is regarded by District officials as being all the more important because the commission in the 10-cent car fare case, during the contest, withdrew its opposition to that change in fare when economic conditions changed, with the revenues of the company steadily de- clining. Even so, Justice Martin found the commisison was correct in requir- ing the companies to pay the cost of the record and brief in that case, con- firming the previous decision reached in District Supreme Court. Cites 1927 Amendment. While the decisionp was on the ques- tion of the cost of printing and filing the record in the so-called $1,000 cases, Justice Martin cited a 1927 amendment to the District utilities act, which reads in part: “That the expenses of any investi- gation, valuation, revaluation, or pro- ceedings of any nature made by the Public Utilities Commission of any public utility operating in the District of Columbia, shall be borne by the public utility investigated, valued, re- valued or otherwise, as a special fran- imposed by law, and such expenses, with 6 percentum interest, may be charged to operating expenses and amortized over such period as the Public Utilities Commission shall ¢t deem proper and be allowed for in the rates to be charged by such utili- ties.” Roberts, therefore, believes “threat of appeal” from the decision yester- day of the commission fixing the value of the gas companies has been rendered less likely by the decision of the Court of Appeals. ing the street car fares at 10 cents | of enactment of the remainder of the | chise tax in addition to all other taxes | ARPORT MATTER " AGAINISDELAVED 'House District Committee May Act at Next Reg- ular Meeting. The Washington airport problem again failed to reach the House Dis- trict Committee today and the com- | mittee adjourned after a brief ses- sion without any definite plans for consideration of the matter. It had a | definite assurance, however, that the| | airport question will be ready for its | | action at the next regular meeting. | | Immediately after the meeting of the full committee, an executive session of the Subcommittee on Parks and | Playgrounds was held for considera- | tion of the airport problem, which has | been before the subcommittee more |than a month. No decision was| reached and the subcommittee ad- journed at noon to meet again at 9:30 am. tomorrow. | The subcommittee will be asked to | make a definite recommendation as | to & site for a governmental air term- inal for Washington and is prepared | to submit a voluminous report cov-| ering its month of hearings, airport | inspection trips and studies. This re- port had been virtually completed today and is awaiting final commit- | tee action on the site. | While members of the subcommit- tee, headed by Representative Jennings | Randolph of West Virginia, had no | comment to make in advance of their | final decision, it is understood that a | “surprise” report is likely. Some of the subcommittee members | are said to consider there is a hope- less deadlock between the Gravelly | Point and Washington Airport sites, | and that the only way out is the se- | lection of an entirely new site. More | | than a dozen other proposed airport | tracts in Maryland, Virginia and the | District have been inspected by mem- bers of the subcommittee. The subcommittee had before it sev- | eral letters from Government officials containing final arguments in behalf | | of Gravelly Point as it met today. | Among them was one from Assistant Secretary of Commerce Ewing Y. Mitchell, sent to the National Capital Park and Planning Commission. Mitchell was the sponsor of a proposal | to locate an airport in East Poiomac Park. This plan met with a storm of opposition, but was partially instru- | mental in speeding up action on the | | local airport problem. Another, from | Frederic A. Delano, chairman of the Planning Commission, listed a number of arguments in favor of Gravelly Point and objections to other proposed sites, including Washington Airport. SLOGAN DEADLINE TODAY More Than 1,500 Already Pre- sented in Shrine Contest. | Midnight tonight is the deadline for submitting slogans in the Shrine slogan contest. More than 1,500 entries have been received in competition for the prize- winning slogan to be used in connec- tion with the imperial Shrine con- vention here in June. No slogans posted after midnight will be con- sidereds ployes are called upon to contribute to the insurance pool. In the rewrit- ten national measure, however, em- ployers who do not have at least 10 employes have been exempted. “The national and local legisla- tion cannot be placed entirely in the same basket,” Ellenbogen said. “Per- sonally, I am against exempting em- | ployers hiring more than four persons because I think it cuts off too many contributors and would decrease the fund or increase the burden on others correspondingly. I am watching the | form of the national legislation, of course, and some conforming changes will be made in the District bill. Would Not Change Total. “As for the merit system proposal, I was very much impressed by several witnesses who urged this innovation. I think it will add greatly to the in- centive for stabilization of employ- ment. I would like to make it clear, though, that the amount of the fund will not change, total contributions | must continue to equal 3 per cent of | private taxable pay rolls unless ad- ministrators of the program find some other amount advisable. “Those who succeed in stabilizing their operations would be allowed to | contribute as little as 1!, per cent, others would contribute varying amounts. The three-year period would 1 be necessary to produce any accurate evidence of stabilization. | “I haven't submitted my amend- ment to the full committee, but I be- lieve they will approve of it. I expect to propose some other changes soon and I believe the committee will be ready to report the bill by next week.” | WITNESS ARRESTED FOR CARRYING GUN Father of Child in Attack Case Appears Armed at Harding Trial. Lorenzo Del Re, 36, of 1324 Kenyon street. was taken into custody by police this morning when he showed up at District Supreme Court armed with a loaded pistol. Del Re had been called as & wit- ness against Francis H. Harding, charged with driminally attacking Del Re's 6-year-old daughter. The wit- ness told police he armed himself after-Harding threatened him. The father was called to testify after his wife had told the jury she refrained from telling hér husband all the details of the case for fear he might kill the colored man. As Del Re stepped into the room, he was stopped by Deputy Marshal George Killeen, who asked the pro- spective witness if he was carrying a | gun. When Del Re admitted he had a gun in his pocket, Kileen disarmed him and turned him over to police. Several years ago Harding was con- | victed of attacking a white woman in a local hotel. He was sentenced to serve a vear and a day and released after serving seven months. ACCIDENT VICTIM'S - IDENTITY IS GERTAIN | Picture From Navy Yard Estab- lishes Dead Man Was Frank P. Stehlin. All doubt as to the identity of a traffic victim who died in Emergency Hospital last week was removed yes- terday when police secured a photo- | graph of the man involved. Frank P. Stehlin, 44, the dead man, had been identified by his widow, Mrs. Emma C. Stehlin, 400 block of N street southwest, but the correctness of the identification was questioned when local authorities received word from a St. Louis detective that he had seen Stehlin alive since his reported death. It developed that another man by the name of Stehlin who lives in St. Louis was confused with the traffic vietim. A picture of Stehlin was obtained from the Washington Navy Yard, where he was employed during the war. He had been separated from his wife for seven years. Stehlin, who had been living in St. Louis, was struck by a hit-and-run automobile in the 400 block of Mary- land avenue southwest March 10. The only clue to the car was a piece of broken headlight glass. WEDNESDAY, ening Shar MARCH 20, 1935. FHF Grades Crowded Into Single Room Bunker Hill School Is Relic of Inconveniences of Little Red School House Days. One of the class rooms at Bunker Hill School, which must accommodate two grades at the same time. Society and General PAGF B—1 REVENUE BUILDIN WORK IS HALTEDBY HOISTERS' STRIKE Action Follows Dispute on Jurisdiction—More Than 300 Affected. SHORTAGE OF MATERIAL STOPS CONSTRUCTION Fight Is Referred to Internation- als of Elevator Constructors and Enginemen. Strike in a jurisdictional dispute be- tween two unions, behind which are two rival building trades departments of the American Federation of Labor, today had virtually tied up construc- tion work on the new Internal Reve- nue Building addition at Tenth street and Pennsylvania avenue. The strike was called by the Hoist- ing and Portable Engineers when they were denied the right to hoist ma- terials for constructing permanent elevators. Elevator constructors working for the Otis Elevator Co. installing pas- senger elevators have been hoisting their own materials and today con- tinued to do so, while nearly all other trades on the job were tied up because —Star Staff Photo. Mrs. H. M. Silver is in charge ASHINGTON of the features of the little red school house of the nineteenth century in its more or less modern public school system. In the Bunker Hill School at Michigan avenue and Twelfth street northeast, the Capital has a relic of the days when more than one grade was housed in a single room under the supervision of one teacher To Bunker Hill's credit, however, it can be said it is not a one-room school house. It has two rooms. Space Partitioned. Improvisation has it even more. space and a huge entrance, the space just inside the front door has been partitioned to provide rooms for the kindergarten classes. In one of its rooms given are the first | and second grades and in the other are the third and fourth grades. There are no facilities whatever for the fifth and sixth grades, and these pupils are forced to travel longer dis- tances to find room in other schools. The Michigan Park neighborhood ! 1.5, WORKERENDS LIFE WTH GUN Lear W. Kline of I. C. C. Be- lieved Worried by Sis- ter’s lliness. Lear W. Kline, 50, was found dead | early today in a clothes closet in his | apartment at 1229 Twelfth street. a bullet wound through his temple. He is believed to have been despondent | over the illness of his sister, who has | scarlet fever. | Police found a note in which he said he could not continue to live and gave instructions that paid from money due him Government pension fund. | Kline was sent home yesterday from | the Bureau of Stati: interstate | Commerce Commission, where he w. |employed as a senior clerk, with in- | structions to get a letter from a physi- cian stating other employes would not ‘be in danger of catching scarlet fever | by his coming to work. The order was given by George A. | Casey, assistant to the director of the | Statistics Bureau, who learned Kline's | sister, Miss Rachel Kline, 43, was ill | with *scarlet fever at the Twelfth street address. Detectives said Kline had gotten | authority from the Health Depart- ment to return to work on grounds the sister suffering from | scarlet fever is isolated in a room in | the apartment. Kline’s body was found by his mother, Mrs. Laura Kline, when she went to notify him it was time to go | to work. A pistol was nearby. { Coroner A. Magruder MacDonald | in the suicide. mother see that no “indorsers have to | pay one cent,” | retains some | Erected with enormous hall | all debts pe! the | I and North Brookland are served by the Bunker Hill School. Both of these are growing communities and the old school, formerly used for col- ored children, is not suited for exten- sions and the addition of annexes. The Board of Education has asked the District Commissioners to seek from the Public Works Administra- tion $115.000 to erect one wing of a modern. extensible type building. It would be the first unit of a structure that eventually could be doubled in capacity and equipped with an as- sembly hall and gymnasium when de- mand of the community warranted such extension. Four Rooms Sought. At present, however, the board is asking only for four completed class rooms. Unfinished space for four more also would be constructed to take care of the first required addi- tion to the building. Such a plan has been used frequently in recent years in the construction of new elementary schools and the policy has been found to be both practical and economical Bunker Hill School's two rooms quartered 83 pupils in 1929. In 1933 Daughter of Texas Representative on Honeymoon Home | Following their elopement and mar- riage in nearby Maryland Sunday night, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph A. LeGory, | the latter the 23-year-old daughter of Representative Patton of Texas, left by motor today for their home, Crockett, Tex. They broke the news to Mr. and Mrs. Patton yesterday and received a paternal blessing. They were ac- companied on the elopement by a few intimate firends and at first had planned to keep the marriage secret. The former Miss Bessie Lou Patton came here several months ago and expected, after her marriage. to con- tinue as a special clerk at the Cap- itol. The bridegroom. however, pre- vailed upon her to return to Texas, where he is in the cottonseed oil business. Mr. and Mrs. LeGory had been sweethearts since grammar school days. They attended the same high school at Crockett and. later, the University of Texas. The two told friends “they had been thinking about getting married” for seven years. LeGory drove over from Texas last week to see Miss Patton. They con- cluded to elope last Saturday and a Washington correspondent, 'MRS. F. C. BAIRD DIES; FUNERAL TOMORROW Mrs. Frederick C. Baird. formerly Miss Mary Hume, died yesterday after an illness of several weeks. Funeral services will be held at 3601 Macomb street tomorrow at 2 p.m. Mrs. Baird had a wide circle of friends in Washington. She was the said he would issue a certificate of | daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. | Thomas L. Hume. For a number of In the note Kline asked that his | years she made her home in Pitts- | burgh with her husband. More re- cently they moved to Washington. Northwest Washington, most crowd- | ed and populous area in the District, urgently needs 20 more public swim- ming and wading pools. Commissioner Allen yesterday said | ne was hopeful several of the tanks could be built with money due to come to the District from the $4,800,- 000,000 appropriation over which the Senate is still wrangling. The pool program of Miss Sybil Baker, supervisor of District play- grounds, lists the requirements for Northwest thus: One large pool, such as exists at Takoma Park; ‘Two additional playground pools; Seventeen new wading pools; Remodeling Georgetown and Rose- dale Playground pools at cost of $50,000. Northwest Facilities. Existing swimming facilities in Northwest include three playgrqund pools, one of them for. colored; three large pools under the National Capital Parks Commission, two colored, and seven wading pools. “Children living near the water are bound to go swimming,” Miss Baker says, “and if you don’t want to lose { 120 More Pools for Wading . And Swimming Held Urgent She seeks a playground tank at La- fayette Park on Broad Branch or at the edge of Rock Creek Park near the projected Lafayette site. As a step toward the solution of the colored delinquency problem, Miss Baker proposes a colored pool at New Jersey and New York avenues, hub of the worst delinquency area in the Dis- trict. For Large Reno Pool. She urges opening of a large pool at Reno, where a large recreation center already exists. Miss Baker's extensive wading pool development seeks to put these three- foot water havens for very young children in every section of the North- west area. At these tiny tanks, contends Miss Baker, the youngsters learn the rudi- ments of swimming that enables them to feel independent and secure in the water when they are 10 or 12 years old. District pools under Miss Baker’s department last year attracted 183,448 swimmers. Georgetown drew 32,800, _municipal 60,891, and Rosedale, for colored, 47.411. The National Capital Parks Takoma pool, where varying admission from any. youngsters, they must swim in poals.” : Y 10 cents to 25 cents is charged, drew $§3,608 bathera. enrollment had jumped to 93. The present enrollment is 105. With this rate of growth and with the return of the fifth and sixth grades, justifica- | tion for the new building can readily be seen. If the Public Works Administration locks with favor on the project, the | present ancient building will be torn down. Caring for Overflow. At ‘ present the John Burroughs School, Eighteenth and Monroe streets northeast, and the Brookland School, | at Tenth, and Monroe, are caring for the Bunker Hill overflow. The over- flow has been of sufficient volume, too, | that the Brookland School already is | looking to the Crosby Noyes School at | Tenth and Franklin streets northeast to care for some of its pupils if the trend of increase keeps up in the next few years. ‘This project is another to receive the commendation of Dr. John W. Stude- | baker, United States commissioner of | education, who has sent a survey of the school construction needs of the entire country to Secretary Ickes. The commisisoner included 22 projects in the District of Columbia. ACTION ON GAMING - BILIS PLEDGED House Crime Committee to | Push for Passage as Stop- Gap Statute. | Early action on the anti-gambling bill designed especially to stop the “numbers racket” is promised by mem- bers of the Special Crime Investigating | Committee of the House District Com- | mittee as “stop-gap legislation.” | Chairman Palmisano of the sub- committee to which the District Com- missioners’ bill on this subject was re- ferred, today reiterated his determina- tion not to take any action on the anti-gambling bill until the crime sub- committee, headed by Representative | Randolph, of West Virginia, has made la report with the recommendations to | | the full District Committee. Palmisano jexpressed the opinion that he would whom | then probably arrange for hearings in | | they had known in Texas, helped to | spite of the fact that the need for such ! | procure a ring, license and preacher. ‘legislnuon has been emphatically‘ | shown. 1 However, an increasing number of | members of the Crime Investigating | Subcommittee realize that action must be taken on this bill. Representative Werner, Dmocrat, of | South Dakota expressed the opinion that “our subcommittee will probably take early action towards strengthen- ‘ing the laws against gambling, so as to strengthen the hands of the police 'and the courts in wiping out the numbers game and other forms of gambling.” “The need for such legislation has been well shown and there is a strong sentiment in our subcommittee that should be taken care of, instead of having it blocked behind more gen- eral stamping out crime in the Capital. I feel very sure,” Werner said, “that before long our committee will act favorably on trying to get.such a bill reported from the full District Cor mittee and passed by the House. Werner said he has found strong sentiment among the more active members of the Crime Subcommittee to report favorably the anti-gambling bill before the committee drafts a more comprehensive report covering other phases of crime in the District. BARON SILVERCRUYS' MOTHER SUCCUMBS Baroness Was Wife of Recently Retired Chief Justice of Belgium. Baroness Silvercruys, mother of Baron Robert Silvercruys, for many years counselor of the Belgian Em- bassy here, died recently in Brussels of pneumonia, it was learned here to- | day, She was the wife of Baron Franz | Stivercruys, recently retired chief jus- | tice of Belgium. She also leaves a daughter. Mme. | Suzanne Silvercruys-Farnam. Ameri- | can sculptor, lecturer and author, who | was with her when she died. Baron Robert Silvercruys, now counselor of the embassy at London, was also in Brussels, this is a distinct proposition that | hearing and broad plans for | they had no materials on upper floors | with which to work. Each Member of A. F. L. ‘The Hoisting and Portable Engineers | belong to one of the building trades | departments of the A. F. of L.. while | the Elevator Constructors belong to the other. Each of the locals is backed up by its own international union, and by the building traces department { “?lh which it is affiliated in the A. F. of L. | M. J. McDonough, president of the | building trades department backing | the elevator constructors, was firm | in declaring the elevator constructors | affiliated with his department were on the job and would continue to hoist their own materials. “We will co-operate 100 per cent with the elevator constructors in their fight.” said McDonough. | "About 300 men working on the | building for John McShain, Inc., gen- | eral contractor. were out of work to- day because of the strike by the seven hoisting engineers, who had been | hoisting brick, stone and matcrials { for the other trades. The only men {on the job today, according to the | general contractor. were plumboers and the elevator constructors. The only trade actually on strike was the hoist- ing engineers, McShain Arrives. John McShain, the contractor, ar- rived in Washington today from his home office, in Philadelphia, to look into the matter personally and see | what can be done. McShain explained he was the gen- eral contractor on the job, but that the Otis Elevator Co. has a contract direct with the Government and is not a subcontractor under his juris- diction. Thus, McShain said, he is caught by a fight with which he had absolutely nothing to do. Preliminary attempts to get the matter up to President William Green of the A. F. of L., McShain said, so far had been unsuccessful. Demand Is Refused. R. J. Henderson. representing | Hoisting and Portable Engineers' | Local, No. 67. contended the lifting | of materials for construction of ele- ‘,\amrs belongs to his union. When he demanded the work for his men it was refused. he said, and his union | called the strike John Possehl, general president of the International Union of Operat- | ing Engineers, said the jurisdiction of this union was clear cut, and that | the work in dispute here belonged | without question to his hoisting en- | gineers. The matter, he explained, had been taken up by the contractor and re- ferred to President J. W. Williams of the building trades department of | the American Federation of Labor before the elevator work started on the Revenue Building. Williams notified the contractor, Possehl said, that the work of hoisting materials for the elevators was vested with the engineers under the laws of the building trades department. But | the elevator constructors refused te abide by these laws and this decision, Possehl said, so there was nothing for the hoisting engineers to do but strike to claim their own work. The hoisting engineers will stand on this decision of the head of the build- ing trades department. Possehl said, >mphatically declaring there was noth- ing more for his international to do now but stand on their rights in the strike. He characterized the action of the elevator constructors as a “pirate move” to take away work be- longing to another union. 'FATHER GALLAGHER’S |FUNERAL RITES HELD Rev. Michael J. Riordan Delivers Sermon at Church of Im- maculate Conception. Funeral services for Rev. Michael Gallagher, for many years chaplain of the District penal institutions, were held this morning at the Church of the Immaculate Conception. Burial was in Mount Olivet Cemetery. Father Gallagher died Saturday. Rev. Michael J. Riordan, rector ot St. Martin’s Church, delivered the sermon at the services, which were presided over by Most Rev. Bishop John McNamara. Pastors of leading * churches in the archdiocese and rep- resentatiyes of the principal religious orders of the clery attended. Requiem mass was celebrated by Rev. Dr. John Keating Cartright, rec~ tor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception. Officers of the Holy Name Society and of the St. Vincent de Paul So- ciety served as active pallbearers, | Father Gallagher was reputed to jbe one of the best informed theolo- gians and authorities on canon law in the archdiocese. His labors for the poor of the RBaltimore archdiocese at- tracted widespread attention. For the past five years he had lived in re- tirement.

Other pages from this issue: