Evening Star Newspaper, April 2, 1935, Page 8

A8 THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C | TUESDAY........April % 1935 . THEODORE W. NOYES. . . Editor PR The Evening Star Newspaper Company 110n 5t Ane Pennsvivania Ave New York Office: 110 East 42nd St. Ghicazo Office: Lake Michigan Building. uropean Office: 14 Regent St.. London, England. Rate by Carrier Within the City. Regular Editi The Evenine Star 5¢ per month The Evening and Sunday Star (when % Sund: _.60c per month The Evening anc, Star (when 5 Sund ~.65¢ per month The Sundey Star.. ... -5¢ per copy ays) Sunday ays). . .. c per month | P c per month de 'at the “end of each be sent “y mall or 0. ight Pinal Sta: Collection ma month. Orders ma telephone National Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia. Daily and Sunday. .1 yr., $10.00; 1 mo.. 85 Daily only. . 2 $6.00: 1 mo., 50¢ Sinday “only 4:00: 1 mo. 40¢ All Other States and Canada. Dally and Sunday. 1 yr.. $12.00: 1 mo.. $1.00 Daily only. - 1yrl $8.00:1mol. " iac unday only.. .. 1 $5.00: 1 mo’. 50c Member of the Associated Press. Tre Associated Press s exclusively en- titled to the use for republication of all news dispatches credited to it or not other- wise credited in this paper and also the local news published herein. Al riehts of Dublication of special dispatches herein are also reserved. = Dodging the Issue. The virtual admission by the ad- ministration, through the Department of Justice, of the unconstiutionality of the N. R. A. and the lumber code, when it prevailed upon the Supreme Court yesterday to dismiss the Belcher case, is scarcely calculated to en- courage Congress in the passage of a new N. R. A. law. Nor is it calculated to inspire those business concerns | which have sought to live up to the codes of fair competition to continue to do so. To the man on the street the failure of the Government to go through with this Belcher case, in- volving the constitutionality of the N. R. A, means that the Government ‘was quite sure it would lose, that the law would be declared unconstitu- tional. Presumably, the man on the street is correct in his version of the affair. In the Belcher case was raised a long list of charges against the N. R. A. and its constitutionality, all of which were specified in the Govern- ment's appeal of the case to the Su- preme Court. The course of the Government in this case cannot be a subject for gratification. If it was intended to hold in abeyance a test in the Supreme Court of the constitutionality of the national industrial recovery act, it can be applauded by neither the up- holders of the N. R. A. nor by its op- ponents. It is, at best, tricky. The Government should be the first to bring suits to speedy trial and deci- sion. The Department of Justice. in its drive against criminals in this country, has attacked court delays, some of them due to technicalities raised by lawyers, as partially responsi- ble for the spread of crime. Yet here is the Department of Justice itself seeking delays in court in an effort, apparently, to keep alive a law which may be unconstitutional. Business has been divided in its attitude toward the N. R. A. There are those who believe that the codes of fair competition give hope for more honesty in ousiness and strike at the | “chiseler” and the sweatshop. These friends of the N. R. A. can scarcely avoid feeling that the Government has let them down. The Lumber Code Authority, Inc., which has been | entirely friendly to the N. R, A.”went | into the Supreme Court yesterday | with a petition that the Belcher case | be not dismissed. On technical grounds the code authority was de- nied by the court the privilege of | intervening. In its petition to the| court, the code authority recited Lhe} fact that the Attorney General had | announced that the lumber code was | unenforceable in the courts, and that this announcement, coupled with the | dismissal of the Belcher case. had completed the wiecking of the code. And, the vetition significantly added: [ “The present uncertainty surround- | their immediate objective no other ing this code, which was created by | aim than to reflect current develop- | lower court decisions, renders any ment, to illustrate as comprehensively | new legislation equally uncertain and | s possible “what American painters | unenforceable.” The unwillingness of the adminis- | tration to permit a test before the Su- | preme Court in the Belcher case will | make many members of Congress balk | against the writing of a new law to | extend the N. R. A. for two years. ‘They do not like the idea that the | administration is willing to go ahead | with the writing and enforcement of a law which it fears may be unconsti- tutional; that it is willing to use its executive power in practical disregard of court decisions. ‘The new N. R. A. bill, written by the administration and now intro- duced in the Senate, is declared by Senator Borah and others to be further away from the Constitution than the present law. Instead of being a modification of the existing law it clothes the executive with still greater powers over industry. Surely it looks as though the time were ripe for a showdown on this New Deal scheme, to determine whether the executive branch of the Government is above the law. —————raee The Medical Center Plan. Commissioner Allen's plan for a great medical and hospital center in the District deserves, and will doubt- less receive, the close and continued study of the distinguished group ap- pointed for that purpose. But the nature of the plan commends itself to the thoughtful consideration of all District organizations of citizens. What practical handicaps may be found in the path that must be followed in at- tainment of the objectives outlined by Mr. Allen will, of course, be discov- ered and pointed out by those famil- iar with the professional problems in- volved. But it is difficult to believe that any of these will be so great as to block achievement, once there is sufficient public sentiment in favor of the objectives. And with the de- sirability of the objectives there can be little or no disagreement. It would seem that Commissioner , | workable plan which presents Allen has hit upon a non-govern- mental undertaking for the District of the purposes for which government financial aid, in the form of self- liquidating loans, will be made avail- able under the pending work-relief bill. The project would not only of lasting benefit to the community. But before the administrators of Gov- ernment funds are convinced that the plan is practical the community and its medical and social welfare leaders must also be convinced. There must be the formulation of a definite, its benefits in such a light that they cannot be ignored. The first meeting of the Advisory Committee chosen by Commissioner Allen, to be held tomorrow, may. be undertaking that will figure largely in the Washington of the future, e More Police Needed. The special subcommittee of the | House investigating crime conditions |in Washington has rendered public | service in expediting that part of its 'rcpert which urges an immediate in- crease in the Police Department. The committee’s findings in this re- spect will be of great value to the Senate Subcommittee on District Ap- ipmprinuons, which is meeting today to begin the final marking up of the | 1936 appropriation bill for report to | the Senate. The special committee’s report is in | | | police and District officials and with | the earnest pleas of a committee of | citizens which made its own, inde- | pendent investigation of police needs. | It doubtless will receive the sympa- | | thetic consideration of the Senate | subcommittee, which has already re- ceived evidence from Maj. Brown and ‘others regarding the necessity for the | modest increase asked. | Major Brown and other witnesses | have pointed out that in spite of the | heavy increase of local population and | automobile registration within the | past few years the police department has suffered an actual decrease in personnel. -The decrease resulted chiefly from the workings of the economy act. Replacement of pa- trolmen unwisely dropped in the name of economy should have been accom- plished as a matter of routine. But the recommendations of the Com- misisoners were ignored by the Bureau of the Budget, while the Commis- sioners, in view of shortage of local revenues, were not able to make requests for increased police personnel beyond replacement needs The resulting situation finds the police department undermanned to the extent that, in view of the extraordi- nary demands for special details in connection with various Federal activi- ties, there are not enough patrolmen to cover all beats; traffic duty is | slighted and other police activities | suffer. that: This recommendation is based upon evidence before this subcommittee and the testimony of competent witnesses, The House Committee states each one of whom urged this subcom- | mittee to consider favorably an in- crease in police personnel. The subcommittee is unanimous in its conclusion that this addition to Washington's first line of defense against crime should be provided—and at the earliest possible date. “The earliest possible date” is the | beginning of the next fiscal year. The recommendation for the increase should be cdrried into the 1936 appro- priation bill, now before the Senate 1 | Subcommittee on District Appropria- The weather man will make mistakes tions. —e———— Corcoran Biennial Exhibition. The fourteenth biennial exhibition of contemporary oil paintings at the Corcoran Gallery of Art provides oc- casion for consideration of the pre-‘ vailing trend of esthetic enterprise in America. Indeed, it is for that specific purpose that the display has been arranged. The trustees have as of today are doing.” It follows, logically enough, that the works selected to be shown repre- sent different schools, different con- cepts and different methods. In these respects the pictures mirror the char- acter of American civilization. The democratic nature of the national mind and the liberal temperament of by the canvases themselves and by their arrangement. composition, like each individual art- | ist, bespeaks independence. But that does not signify a state of anarchy. On the contrary, it is a manifesta- tion of disciplined freedom—the exhi- bition is, in effect, an institutionaliza- tion of the co-operative instinct of the pe(nfie; it was brought together in line with the basic philosophy of the Nation and severally and corporately testifies for the fellowship and toler- ance of the generality of citizens. Visitors to the gallery, certainly, will find subjects and techniques on view which they will not approve or enjoy, hut tHey should not forget that the same rule applies i the books they read, the plays thev see and the music they hear. Much more important, in the circumstances will be the themes and the manners of treatment wiich they will discover among ‘he pictures in harmony with their standards of appreciation. The elemental catholicity of the exhibi- tion will be understood and indorsed by all who ~emember that it is inten- tional, purposeful and both idealistic and pragmatic. In brief, the trus- tees have accomplished exactly what proof of the vitality, the exubeiance and the increasing maturity of Amer- ican painting. Professional critics, meanwhile, have agreed that the fourteenth biennial has a special importance ‘'which may not be apparant to the casual pil- grim. Skilled in appraisal as they are, they det:ct a change which the larger and less widely experienced that is distinctly in line with some | furnish employment, but it would be | regarded as the starting point in an | line with the recommendations of the | the threatened ' the national spirit are demonstrated | Each individual | they desired—they have assembled | THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1935. THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Ipul:llic may not apprehend—the aca- demic pictures, they have said, are somewhat less academic, and the modernistic pictures are somewhat less modernistic. An interaction, it would seemn, is taking place; the vari- ous schools are influencing each other. !And that, t00, Is symptomatic of America—there s gireater unity among-| | the people, and it is well that their art should be witness to the growth. Shifting Landmarks. ‘The evolution of the Capital, in the execution of a broad plan of building and rearrangement of streets and | parks, entails some sacrifices of fa- | miliar features, landmarks that have | stood for many years. This is inev- | itable. For the development of Wash-‘ ington, the official headquarters of | the Federal Government, for many | years pursued an erratic. course, with- | out a definite plan, and additions to the equipment were made without re- gard for the general effect. Spasmodic advances were made from decade to| | decade, buildings were placed without | | reference to a definite system, monu- | | ments were established at convenient | | rather than appropriate sites. | Now a change is in progress and | corrections are being made which, | while perhaps immediately disturbing, | will eventually evolve a system of order | that will be far more suitable and ef- fective than the long familiar ar- rangement. Thus the latest proposals in this course of readjustment will cause the removal from their present | sites of two familiar landmarks, the | so-called Peace Monument at the, Pennsylvania Avenue abutment upon the Capitol grounds on the west, and | the Garfield statue, a short distance to the south. The former has stood on its present site for fifty-eight years, the latter for forty-eight. They are | to go to other locations, not yet de- | | | | Reading just to be reading some- thing is one way, but a better is read- ing about something because you are interested in it. Many persons fail to get the most out of their interests because for some reason or other they seldom read gnything about them. Yet there is scarcely anything which one can do or think abeut without its literature. There is a book, seemingly, about anything, in fact, many books about everything. § Of recent years this situation has grown tremendously. Not only specialists write upon sub- jects likely to interest others, but also those who make quick investigations and then write. An interested person soon comes to separate the latter from the former and to beware of their mistakes. These errors are unintentional, of course. They result mostly through sheer inability to comprehend so much in such a comparatively short time. He who becomes familiar with any interest, call it “hobby” or what not, soon discovers that these errors are natural mistakes, always made by the person who actually is not thor- oughly familiar with the subject about which he is writing. The wary reader is willing to over- look errors, because he realizes through his own experience that to err is human, indeed. The sad part of the non-specialist’s ! work, as far as he, the reader, is concerned, is that thereafter he is afraid that some of the remainder of | the work is equally in error, only he does not possess the requisite knowl- edge to “catch” it. He wonders how much of all he reads he can believe. * He who hopes to back up what he knows himself with what others know will not expect too much, then, of | any writer. termined. These changes; if wisely ordered, will " make for the fuller development of | the Capital and the more orderly rela- | tionship of the various features that | 0 to its embellishment and add to | its historical significance. The en- | largement of the Capitol grounds to | the north and west, with virtual merg- | ing with the Mall and the wider thor- | oughfares that have been created out of the unsightly surroundings, will give | the National “State House” a finer setting. just as the erection of the legislative office buildings, the Library of Congress and the Supreme Court | have contributed to its dignity and significance on other flanks. The rcassurance that these changes | are in accord with definite plans com- | forts those who deplore dislocaticns | that alter the familiar scene. The | hope is that another generation will not witness, further changes, to con- | form to a different scheme, adopted | without regard to the principles of relationship that have thus far in the main governed in the evolution of the new Washingion. | B S—— | As an ambassador of geod will Capt. Anthony Eden has agreeable and encouraging interviews regarding the business of Europe. In the meantime the President of the United States has gone fishing. Clarence Darrow’s analysis of N.| R. A. appears to have gotten Jfurther than the disclosure of some mild traces of psychopathic impetuosity, L — e i SHOO' | | BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. TING STARS. Unseen Protector. | And leave us wholly unprepared. A sudden chill new fear awakes When gentle Spring to smile has | dared | Yet for one mortal far below | Our hearts in gratitude will throb, For it is scmething 300d to know ‘The janitor is on the job. | | \' | When lights are bright and songs are gay Or sweet repose again is due ‘We think of one so far away Whose vigilance is never through. The radiator still we see We push a wire or turn a knob | And sigh, from apprehension free, | The janitor is on the job. Words to the Rescue. “That man is positively dishonest!” exclaimed ‘the visitor. “Your language is no! in keeping‘ with our higher educational stand- ards,” said Senator Sorghum. "You] should say that he has noi arrived at | the point of intellectual development that would enable him to discriminate between the gratification of the ego and the ethical responsibility to con- sider the needs of others” | | 1 Jud Tunkins says a war always takes along a lot of ambulances, in visible apology for the fact that such a thing cculd happen in a civilized world. Literary Crowding New stories come along, I vow, Much faster than w2 need ‘em. Everybody writes them now, But who has time to read 'em? Demand for Modern Improvements. “The raaio is a marvelous mech- anism.” | | “It is” replied Miss Cayenne. “All! that's needed now is to find some way | | to fill it up with material that will include a larger supply of good news.” “ -age. Old tornado used to be Satisfied to frolic free While propellin’ through the air Folding bed and kitchen chair. Now it brings us new alarm As it runs off with a farm, Also with the hired man Plowin’ still the best he can. In the dust cloud as it passes We can see him. While the masses Cry in tones of anxious wonder, “Can he get the stuff plcwed under?” “You car’t stop people f'um gam- blin’,” said Uncle Eben, “but you kin at least try to make “em be good sports and stop cheltln‘."r He will realize that the great thing each book or article can do for him, in his special interest, is to help keep that interest thriving. Some persons achieve this end by P and meetings. Others find reading much more to their liking. True stimulation comes with each work perused, so that in the end every one genuinely interested in any- thing finds himself with a shelf of books upon the subject. Such a person will not understand the man or woman who proclaims an interest, yet never buys a single book upon it Nowhere wifl this be seen so well as in regard to the garden and gar- den literature. Many a person who likes to dig in the soil never reads so much as a magazine article about it. As for the purchase of a book, evidently that is unthinkable. * The other type will grant them the right to garden booklessly, if they so desire. but he will continue to insist that they are missing a great | deal. * & * * No doubt he is right. Not only do they miss the extra knowledge they might gain, despite the plain lacks often encountered, but, above all, they fail to gather unto themselves those increments of interest which good reading alone brings. In purchasing a book on a hobby, or any other interest, it is just as well to take one’s time. Today there are 10 volumes on any subject where STARS, MEN ersonal contacts, such as in clubs | only 1 existed before. Some of these, unfortunately, are of the type in- stanced above. Plainly, they were written by those who had an interest, but not enough personal knowledge. Hence the errors they made are un- intentional, but none the less errors. There are many books written for special purposes. Some of them are so finely illustrated that they will lure those who should not buy them. The booklover must beware of suc- cumbing to the pictorial lure alone. If the book otherwise answers his purpose, all right, but he often is in danger of falling for illustrations alone, without considering the “meat” he may or may not find. *® $ X% who never once think to buy a book on dogs. Yet canine literature is very large and quite old. Of recent years it has been extended magnificently, so that almost any problem pertaining to their rearing, training and breeding | has been treated at length. Suppose one is not astounded on every page. No one should expect {to be. It is wholesome to find out that one really knows something, | after all. In every such work, however, there will be at least one good point the reader never thought of before. Let him be satisfied with that. ‘The same applies to the entire list | of interests which engage the time, work, money and fancy of man. | There is nothing about which a | great deal has not been written. The point is: How much have vou read? If none, you have missed some- thing. o | . Let one's collections be as unme- | thodical as one pleases, after the books | are home they should be kept togeth- er, each topic by itseif somewhere. | Thus one shelf may be devoted to | garden books, another to games, an- | other to horses, another to dogs, an- other to embroidery and needlework, | or whatever the subject may be, vary- | ing with the person and personal likes and dislikes. It is a mistake to keep such works | scattered all over the house. Not only is there something gaingd by the sheer contemplation of the | solid row of them, but also they will | be there when wanted. It is amazing how often the very ok desired is not to be found. Perhaps it has been “loaned” (given) to a friend. Maybe it is beneath a pile of magazines, to be discovered months later. A work of reference, however, ought lo be available on the instant. | Every one knows how a question | seems to settle itself after a time, | especially when one searches for im- mediate knowledge but cannot find {it. The truth is that too often this settling is nothing but a forgetting. A question comes up. one believes the answer is to be found in such and such a volume—the book is gone, the question is forgotten and perhaps never answered. If the right book is at hand. the | thing is settled at once, to the satis- | faction of all concerned. including the | author of the book. Surely the writer! Many a thrill enjoyed by a good writer comes to him over the air waves, all unknown, perhaps, but none the less surely, when people read what he writes, consult him, from time to time, agree or disagree | Readers and writers form the great- lest club in the world, which. though it holds no meetings, is a great in- stitution just the same. It is the real brain trust. AND ATOMS | bo Notebook of Science Progress in Field, Laboratory and Study. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. “My good husband has found it embarrassing when I tell him where he has been by the odor he has re- tained on his clothes and skin.” Fortunately, few wives have the | keen olfactory discrimination of the | woman physician who volunteered the | above information to Prof. Donald A. Laird of Colgate University while he ! was investigating the different nat- ural odors of individuals—quite aside from those produced by personal cleanliness. Prof. Laird found considerable evi- dence that individuals smell different, families smell different, and races smell different. This might be assumed from the ability of bloodhounds to trace an individual. But Dr. Laird found that the ability s not confined to dogs. Some human beings have it to a very high degree—or, at least, they claim they do. ‘The psychologist pursued his inves- tigation, just reported to the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, among 254 “living persons of distinc- tion"—professional men and women, college professors, etc. He asked no leading questions, but waited for them to volunteer information after the subject of the conversation had been | switched to individual differences. Here are some of the instances he | gathered: A psychologist, 46 years old, said: “I often know whether a person has been in a room within the past hour or so by the odor. Often I can tell to whom an article of clothing belongs by the odor, though the persons are cleanly about their persons.” A consulting engineer told him: “As a young boy I occasionally was allowed to spend the night with some play- mate. I was in several instances im- pressed with the ‘family odor,” which later I thought I detected every time I came in the presence of any member of that family. In one case I have sensed the odor aura in the third gen- eration, long years afterward.” Said & woman writer: “As a child I used to amuse myself by recognizing various persons with my eyes shut, purely by the sense of smell. I have always enjoyed trying to separate the concomitance of a nasal impression— call it neither ‘perfume’ nor that bad | word ‘smell'—much as I enjoy placing the instruments in an orchestra of { men or insects or birds.” A noted Egyptologist told Dr. Laird: “I distinguish racial scents. Ameri- cans, Portuguese and Scandinavians. for example, to me have personal odor aside from uncleanly smell. Many Japanese have told me that all foreigners have a disagreeable odor to them. Orientals to me have a char- acteristic, not unpleasant, odor that clings to silks, jade, etc.” Another writer said: “Odors have always seemed to me definitely asso- ciated with , households. I have a cousin whose house smells just as his mother's used to smell.” * kK ¥k “What is the cause of these indi- vidual differences in human smell?” asks Dr. Laird. “The reports of our observers indi- cate clearly that it is not a matter of personal cleanliness and bath hygiene. Eating habits might account for some of the individual differences.’ A tem- porary factor might be the textile oils used in weaving or the characteristic and readily identifiable odors of fur or rubber in garments. ~ The characteristic body odor some- times attributed to red-headed persons might emanate from the skin pig- ments, as many blue and brown dyes can be recognized by their odor.” One of Dr. Laird's colleagues has offered him some rather far-reaching suggestions: “Is there an odor characteristic of | the mood or Does anger cause an individual to throw off a cartain odor? Does fear, dejection, idioey, insanity or any other mental state cause the body to throw off a characterisuc odor? I have been through a number of prisons and de- tention homes, and have noticed an odor in each <ifferent from the others and seemingly characteristic of the mood, temper or condition of the in- mates.” * % * % In the same journal Prof. Laird makes a ~ontsibution to the problem of relationship between handedness and sleep position. ‘There long has Leen an assumption in psychology that right-handed per- sons tend (o sleep on the rignt side and left-nanded persons on the left side. Dr. Laird sent a questionraire | to approximati2lv 300 persons listed in “Who's Who.” The answers he | received were Juite confusing. These eminent men and women ap- | parently slept on both sides, with lit- tle regard to handedness. But the problem was compiicated by the fact that when left-handed persons who ordinarily slept on the left side tried | ber was more disturbed than was | made the same sort of reversal. more objective data can be obtained, Dr. Laird says, “we are probably wise in going to sleep on our habitual side, especially .f we are left-handed. * ok k% problem of how a nerve impulse is carried across a “‘synapse”—the sub- microscopic in*erval between the ends of the aeurones which make up a nerve pathway—is offered by Prof. G. H. Parker of Harvard University, as a result o>f his numerous experi- ments with color changes in fishes, which he has reported in deta] be- fore the National Academy of Sciences here. Physiologists know that the in- finitesimally small interval actually exists between the threads of one neurone and the threads of another. One proof is that a degenerative proc- ess started in one nerve ends abruptly and does not pass over to the rext, as would be thc case if the pa‘hway were continuous. How, then, does a nerve impulse bridge the gap? Dr. Parker’s fish experiments con- vince him that the end of every neu- rone is a sub-microscopic secreting gland. When the nerve impulse hits it some chemical substance—perhaps a hormone similar to adrenalin or pituitrin—is released, which flows across the little gap, hits the end of the axon thread of the next neurone and activates it to continue the path of the impulse. He postulates two kinds of these “neuro-humors”—one like pituitrin, which is soluble in water and hence can be transmitted in the blood stream, and one which is only soluble in oil and can be transmitted through fat. Both seem to be required to ac- count for the nerve "hind the color cl ] Thousands of persons keep dogs with him. | temper of a people? | to sleep on the right side their slum- | | that of right-handed persons who | Until | An approach to a solution of the | Who Is to Blame for Juvenile Delinqueney ? To the Editor of The Star: On the front page of a recent is- | sue of The Star is the picture of a good-looking lad who is on trial in the District Supreme Court for larceny. He is only 16, just the age of my son, who might have fallen as he did. The paper is full of accounts of hold-ups by boys and young men. Congress just now is investigating crime. Why not investigate the source of crime—the absence of playgrounds in the District, which force our boys and girls to play on the sidewalks and in low pool rooms and gambling places which are the breeding places for crime? We have only too few playgrounds, but now the Park and Planning Com- mission are taking away even those, our base ball and foot ball fields, our tennis courts and our swimming pools and in addition many of the beautiful trees on Potomac Park. Is this nec- essary? The reason given is that a dyke must be provided to prevent any overflowing of the Potomac. But the Potomac_has not seriously overflowed since 1870. Why not provide sewers and dig the channel of the river? Who | are these erudite gentlemen who seek to improve Washington by depriving our children of God's out of doors? Is it cheaper to provide playgrounds for the poor children of Washington, | who cannot go away to expensive | Summer resorts, as can the children of the Senators and Representatives, and prevent crime, or is it more desirable to prosecute and incarcerate young lads like Parks in our prisons, which are even now so frightfully over- crowded that they hold more than three times the number of men they were built for? Who is to blame, thi: voung, inexperienced lad. who has yielded to temptatjon, or the men on | the 7Iill, who are so callous, so in- | different to the rights of our young, helpless children? Men who are de- stroying the playgrounds which have cost thousands of dollars to build, to create “improvements” which shall deprive our children of their rights and force them into schools of crime? Liquor stores are everywhere. tests against having them placed in the immediate vicinity of schools have had no heed, gambling devices are in all our drug stores, all the in- gredients for crime plus our Supreme Court for sending our boys to prison for breaking the laws. Dillinger cost t! country aplenty. Is it too much to ask our lawmakers to take preventative steps by providing playgrounds to prevent future Dil- lingers? The children of Washington who are being deprived of their rights will become bitter toward such govern- ment and that is dangerous. ALBERT JOSIAH OSGOOD. SR e No Such Thing as a Law-Abiding Citizen To the Editor of The Star: You publish a letter from W. J. Dermott in The Star March 19 under the heading: “Freed Prisoners Menace to Law-Abiding Society.” Mr. Dermott suggests that I am more in sympathy with the “criminal” than I am in the interest of law-abiding citizens. In the first place we have no law- abiding citizens. There is no such thing as a law-abiding citizen, I con- tend. We all have criminal instincts and are more or less infected with the “devil.” In proof that T am not much in sympathy with the convicted criminal | I have witnessed the execution of more than 300. But I have learned that as you shout so back comes the answer. «If you shout brutality to a man he | will shout back with more brutality. { If Mr. Dermott will go to the Pub- | lic Library and there obtain a book | entitled “The Trail of the Dead Years” and read it over very closely he will | learn many things about the convict he does not now know. A paroled convict is not free and the rules of the parole are very strict, and if he violates the rules he will, 9 times out of 10, go back to prison and | there pay dearly for this misconduct. | His fellow convicts will treat him with contempt and he will not find it smooth sailing even in prison. victs as a rule hate parole violators, | as the acts of each affect all. Five per cent of the total popula- tion of Washington, D. C., are ex- convicts. I should think Mr. Dermott would have a hard time getting used to the smell of them E. E. DUDDING. Huntingtoh, W. Va. Recognition for Fingerprint Exp(‘rls To the Editor of The Star: The recent death of Sergeant Fred Sandberg. for many years fingerprint expert of the Metropolitan Police Force brings to my mind the fact that | two Washington men, one of whom was Mr. Sandberg and the other J H. Taylor of the Navy identification section, deserve the credit for bringing the use of fingerprints to the point where it is the most valuable “crime prevention” ally known to science in | | this country. It also brings to mind | that neither of these men was ever ! suitably recognized or rewarded for | their efforts and that their financial | remuneration in their field, chosen so | unselfishly, has been far less than it | would have been had they chosen to | use that same ability, farsightedness | and industry in almost any other line. | Your space will not warrant my go- ing into the history of fingerprint identification in this country, but I can take room to state that to these two gentlemen belongs the honor of | nursing this science along for many years until it has, only during the past few years, become recognized throughout the length and breadth of the land as being most valuable. When I came to Washington in 1920 only the Navy and War Departments had fingerprint identification bureaus. I immediately became convinced of its value and, with the help of Mr. Taylor, installed the system for the United States Coast Guard. The cen- tral identification unit of the Depart- ment of Justice was unthought of at that time. Now practically every de- partment of the Government uses this system in some form. It is too late for a grateful Govern- ment to do anything to show its gratitude for Sergt. Sandberg, but I feel that it should take some steps to | recognize the service of Mr. Taylor, who may well be termed the “father of fingerprints” in so far as these United States are concerned. I don’t know what form this recog- nition should take, but to my mind his services have been of far more value to this country than flying the Atlantic or the Poles. | JOHN ARTHUR SHAW. e—e— Still Perilous. From the Bay City (Mich.) Times. In Turkey some of the streets are set aside for the sole use of pedestrians and other streets for the sole use of automobiles. That may work out all when one pedestrian runs into an- other. Blue Suns and Moons. Prom the Worcester (Mass) Evening Gazette. It is reported that duststorms caused a blue sun in Kansas the other day. Such a rare occurrence doesn't usually t;mn once in & blue moon. Pro-! Con- | right, though it won't be very exciting | ANSWERS TO A reader can get the answer to any question of fact by writing The Washington Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. Please inclose | stamp for reply. i | Q. How long have the Golden Gloves tournaments for amateur boxers been | | held>—C. 8. | | _A. The Golden Gloves was started in | | New York seven years ago to stimulate t amateur boxing among boys and young men. Q. Does the imperial Japanese gov- ernment own and operate any or all of its armament industries?>—V. S. A. | A. During the nineteenth century ! there were in Japan no private indus- tries of war. Government arsenals | manufactured all of the arms. After the Russian war, however, the gov- | ernment permitted the founding of the Japan Steel Works, which was the first | 1and only privately owned arms fac- tory in the country. It was capimlized“ at 15,000,000 yen, and a considerable block of Vickers. shares was acquired by | Q. How is it known that fish can | distinguish colors?—W. M. F. A. It is proved by the action of the flounder, which has been known to | change its color to conform to that of objects placed near or over it. Q. Which game is older, dominoes or dice?—E. L. R. A. Frank G. Menke says: “Dice are the oldest gaming instruments known to the world, with dominoes running a close second. Dice is purely a game of chance; dominoes involve skill. It is likely, therefore, that dominoes were created a short time after dice. Historians confess inability to estab- lish the origin either of dice or dom- inoes. Both can be traced back prac- tically to the dawn of each of the ancient nations. Q. Is a blow-out of a rear tire of | an automobile as dangerous as one on a front wheel>—N. C. | A. Tests show that there is no dif- {erence in danger. Tires worn to an | extent that their use is hazardous should never be used Q. When were envelopes first made? | —S. L. A. They were first made in 1839 by a Mr. Pierson of New York City in a little store on Fulton street. The | first envelope machine patent was granted January 23, 1849, to J. K. | | Park and C. S. Watson of New York. The first practical envelope folding | machiné that was successful commer- | cially was patented January 21, 1853, by Dr. Russell L. Harris of Worcester, | Mass. Window envelopes were devised ty Thomas Callahan, patented June 10, 1902. Q. When was the first time that a Metropolitan opera season was opened with an American opera?—G. McC. A. “Peter Ibbetson” made history on December 26, 1933, when this opera opened the New York season at the Metropolitan. The occasion was the first time an American opera or one in English had achieved this distinc- tion. Q. Is coke a clean fuel’—E. H. O. A. It is clean, but is apt to go out at very low rates of combustion. It ! should be burned in a manner similar to hard coal, as it is quite apt to form carbon monoxide and hence a little air should be admitted over the bed of coals. Q. What equipment is needed for home canning on a modest scale?— P.L. K. A. Sharp knives, a stainless steel or silver knife for paring fruit, a long- handled spoon, a flat wooden spatula or paddle, a fine mesh wire basket or colander, a jar-lifter, a wide-mouthed | Westminster Abbe; QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKI funnel and ladle, a quart measure, small measuring cups, scales, a confec + tioner’s thermometer, bowls of varying sizes and jars and jelly glasses. Q. Who commissioned Rembrandt paint the Anatomy Lesson?—W. E. A. Nicolas Pieterszoon Tulp, - the celebrated anatomist. It was designed for the little dissecting room of the Guild of Surgeons in Amsterdam. Q. Who gave the sobriquet “L'Aige lon,” to Napoleon's son?—M. B, A. It is attributed to Victor Hugo. Q. When were bars put on the wine dows at the top of the Veashington Monument?—H. L. G. A. They were installed in 1927 as a safety measure. to Q. On what day of the week was braham Lincoln assassinated?—C. C, A. April 14, 1865, fell on Friday. Q. Why is Ben Johnson, the great English writer. burled upright in E B Al A. Bell, in his life of Ben Johne son, says: “The smallness of the sure face occupied by the gravestone is explained by the fact' that the coffin was deposited in an upright position, possibly to diminish the fees by econe omy of space.” Q. What is m—ar;l._bv voicing with | reference to organs?—L. McK A. Voicing is a term applied to reg- | ulating the quality of tone in organ Fipes. Tuning has to do only with correctness of pitch: but in voicing a certain quality is aimed at. The first requirement is that all the pipes must be made uniform. This is done by carefully regulating the amount of wind admitted and the angle at which it strikes the upper lip, and also by slightly changing the edge of the lip. Flue pipes and reed pipes require different treatment, so that voicers today generally make a specialty of either of these pipes. Voicing requires a very fine ear. Q. Does Cuba use American cur- rency?—W. C. N. A. Cuba has her own currency. The monetary unit is the gold peso, which is equivalent to an American dollar. United States coins and bills are legal tender in Cuba and have a wide cir= culation there, Q. Why is Swedish steel the best? --G. B. A. Because of the purity of Swedish iron ore, Swedish steel was formerly the best in the world. Due to im- proved methods of refining, the steel produced in other countries is now equal in quality. Q. Which are the leading wheat Stat; Six A. They are North Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma. Nebraska, Illinois, South Dakota, Texas, Montana, Washington, Othio, Indiana, Minnesota and Idaho. Q. What was the Ry R M. ; A. The Rye House plot was a ccn- spiracy in 1682-83 among the leading Whigs to raise the English nation in arms to assassinate King Charles II of England on his return from Newe market at a house called the Rye House farm. It was frustrated. For alleged complicity in it Lord William Russell and Algernon Sidney were executed. Q. What is the lowest State tax levy in the United States?—F. L. The State of Nevada has a State levy of only 2 cents per capita. County and municipal levies bring up the average. House plot?— Q. How many people the United States?—L. A. In the United States. including Alaska. about 6,000,000 hunters pay go hunting in . C | fees for hunting licenses. Many Hopeful, OtlinersiDoubtful About Results of Work Relief Some hopefully, others with point- edly expressed skepticism, the news- papers accept President Roosevelt's victory in Congress over those who would have pulled to pieces his work relief bill, and now all await the | results of the $4.880.000,000 recovery | enterprise. | “President Roosevelt’s determina- tion that the dole, as such, shall be abandoned has prevailed.,” says the; Newark Evening News. “That is the high-water mark at this session of presidential control of the Congress, since the Executive has a fairly free hand and he gets the last nickel of | the amount he sought.” A similar | | opinion is held by the Birmingham | News, which declares: “The passage | of the work relief bill by the Senate is reassuring to the country in more ways than one. It not only settles the important question of relief; it also establishes once more President | Roosevelt's leadership in Congress.” | In applauding the victory of the administration, the Adrian (Mich.) | Daily Telegram remarks that with the choice between the President’s | work relief and the dole, “it does | not seem as though there should be | any doubt as to which is preferable.” “The favorable action of Congress | | on the President's $4.880.000,000 work | “rclicf program was long ago antici- pated by the States. several of them | | calling for a billion each for their | | projects,” observes the Pittsburgh | | Post-Gazette, and the Danbury News- | Times agrees that “it has been as |sure as any unaccomplished event | could be that the Senate would not | limit the sums which the President has asked for work relief.” This paper continues: “Here is the best hope for more production and better distribution. ere is the largest chance for a solution of our problems | | by methods that will leave our basic | institutions unimpaired.” It seems to the Charlotte News that | “Congress has indicated by its every“ vote the apparent inevitability of its | action.” The News adds: “It will | neither support a modest allotment nor chase rabbits with the irre- | sponsibles. By a painful, hesitating | process, Congress is making up its | | mind to take the middle course, and the middle course involves more | | money than anybody ever heard of | before.” i The Macon (Ga.) Telegraph points out that “the works relief bill prob- | ably carries the greatest amount of | money ever provided in one legislative | measure, in peace times, in the history of the world.” ' The Portland Oregon- ian points out that a history by Charles Morris, published in 1887 ex- hibits pride in the American feat of paying off a Civil War debt of $1,- 300,000,000 in 20 years. In this con- nection the Danville Commercial News recalls taht in the course of the Sen- ate discussion on the work relief bill | “it was contonded that the credit of | a government, corporation or indi- | vidual should be a safe risk up to| the amount of the net annual income” | and that the 1934 figure is expected | to be not far from $50,000,000,000.” | “Congress has just written the biggest blank check in the history of the Nation,” declares the Lancaster (Pa.) New Era, but the New ‘York Sun notes. that “the Senate bill de- fines certain broad objectives for the expenditure of $4,000,000,000 and fixes maximums in each classifica~ tion.” In any event the Boston Trane script expresses the hope that the administration “will regard the lege islation as permissive rather than mandatory” and will not spend “one | dollar more than is required.” “Given this sanction,” states the Akron Beacon-Journal, “it is now up to the administration to demonstrate its claim that the relief bill will take 3,500,000 workers off the charity rolls and serve as a final primer of the business pump. The country is not overconfident that either of these ends will be served. Government spending in the past has burdened the country with increasing debt without taking it out of the business slump.” The Syracuse Herald, the Jamese town Post and the Roanoke World- News express similar skepticism over the results of the huge outlay and predict that the President’s political fortunes will be inevitably tied up with the failure or success of the pro- gram, while the Charleston Evening Post has no doubt that “we go rolle ib';z"alo“g to ruin as merrily as may T — |The American Army Is ' Becoming Democratic To the Editor of The Star: Strange though it may seem, but there is a little town 'way out in South Dakota that has suddenly, even over night, become an isle of golden dreams, and where at least one person in the world still thinks that the world is a great place in which to live and that the people that inhabit this earth are, “may we say, sympathetic, off the record as well as on the record.” I refer to & young lad who, desiring to help pay off the mortgage on his dad’s home, ever so innocently asked the Army for a pair of horses. Well, it seems that President Roosevelt's spirit of neighe borliness and his common understand= ing, has pervaded even the crystal and steel-like disposition of the Army, for the lad received the two horses with tears of joy streaming down his face. I dare predict that some day this same lad will be a great Army officer, so great is the power that binds one’s soul to the forces that create within us our happiness. Such an incident tears away the war spirit of the Army end unfolds in its stead a new coat of peace. It is thus that peace will ultimately be realized, by the quilting, as it were, of small deeds of kindness, that create such a force that a new spirit shall make of us a new America, a democratic America. W. H. WEAVER. A Rhyme at Twilight By Gertrude Brooke Hamilton A Wet Night Rain is to the concrete ‘What tears are to the heart. It eases every tension Born of the city mart. It cools the long, dry stretches. . And such sefreshment That all the streets and crossings Seem swept by angel wings.