Evening Star Newspaper, May 26, 1935, Page 1

WEATHER. (U. 8. Weather Bureau Forecast.) Fair and slightly warmer today; tomor- row fair; light variable winds. Tempera- tures—Highest, 71, at 5 p.m. yesterday; lowest, 47, at 5:30 a.m. yesterday. Full report on page A-13. Subscriber or Newsstand Copy Not for Sale by Newsboys Sy Shae WITH DAILY EVENING EDITION () Means Associated Pre: No. OVERTURES BEGUN BY WEYERHAEUGER FOR SON'S RETURN Notices to Kidnapers Ap- pear as Officers Slack- en Hunt for Heir. 1,575—No. 33,262. FATHER HELD READY TO | PAY $200,000 RANSOM, | Representatives of Millionaire Lumber Family Reported Absent,, Seeking to Reach Abductors. | | | By the Associated Press. i TACOMA, Wash., May 25.—The wealthy family of 9-year-old George Weyerhaeuser, kidnaped lumber for- tune heir held for $200,000 ransom, | began negotiations with his abductors | tonight for his safe return. | While Federal agents and police ap- | parently held aloof, the grief-stricken family inserted two advertisements in | the classified columns of a Seattle| newspaper in an attempt to communi- | cate with the kidnapers. 1 The second of the two, received by the newspaper before the first was printed but too late to prevent its| insertion, read: | “Due publicity beyond our control please indicate another method cf‘ reaching you. Hurry, relieve anguished mother. Percy Minnie.” | ‘The first appeal said: ‘Expect to be ready to come Mon- day. Answer. Percy Minnie.” The unusual signature and the cryptic wording of the message were believed to conform to instructions given Mr. and Mrs. John Philip Weyer- haeuser, jr., parents of George, in a | special delivery letter they received | last night more than six hours after | their son disappeared. | Simultaneously reports were circu- ! lated that Charles Ingram, named by | the family as its representative in | negotiations, and F. R. Whitcomb of Tacoma, brother-in-law of Weyer- | haeuser, were mysteriously absent | from the big Weyerhaeuser mansion. Personal Contact Seen. Tt was reported they left the home about 1 p.m. and that they might be trying to reach the kidnapers per- sonally. The insertion of the advertisements in the Post-Intelligencer, Seattle news- paper. coincided with previous infor- mation the family had been instructed to communicate with George's abduc- tors through the columns of that paper. | Previously the family had started to comply with the request, but re- portedly delayed doing so on the ad- | vice of Federal agents. Authentic sources said the ransom | note, signed “The Egoist,” directed | the parents to sign their reply “Percy | Minnie.” | From still another guarter, mean- | while, it was learned Federal agents had received information about a strange “tan sedan” seen in the vicin- ity of the Lowell School four or five days before George's disappearance. It was while on the way home at noon yesterday from the Lowell Bchool that George was abducted. A. B. Comfort, a former reading clerk of the State House of Repre- &entatives, was understood to have informed the “G" men of the mys- terious sedan, but he would neither confirm nor leny this fact. { Telling of Seeing Sedan. It was understood, however, his 16- year-old daughter Jean had told of seeing the three men watching the school during the past four or five days and that an investigation was | to have been made yesterday, but that the machine 'nd its occupants failed to appear. No guards or watchers were in evi- | dence about the Weyerhaeuser home tonight. Authoritative sources indicated, moreover, that Department of Justice | Agents, of whom there was a small | army here, do not intend to enter the | case with every resource at their com- | mand until George is restored to his parents. The ransom note gave the Weyer- | haeusers five days in which to post the | $200,000 ransom. One day has passed | already. Police, meanwhile, pretty definitely fixed the hour and the place of the kidnaping at about 12:05 p.m. yester- day, in front of the Annie Wright Seminary, exclusive girls’ school. They based their conclusions on the | “(Continued on Page 4, Column 1) . 21 NATIONS SEND ENVOYS TO PARLEY All Members to Be Represented | . at Pan-American Union Session. By the Associated Press. BUENOS AIRES, May 25.—All 21 member nations of the Pan-American Union will be represented tomorrow at the opening session of the fifth Pan-American Commercial Confer- ence, which will attempt to facilitate the flow of commerce and travel among the American nations. Argentina’s foreign minister, Carlos Saavedra Lamas, will deliver the in- augural address. Jose Carlos Macedo Soares, Brazilian foreign minister, will respond. Distinguished guests of honor will be President Agustin P. Justo of Argentina and President Getulio Vargas of Brazil. Although tariff barriers are not on the program, hope that something may be achieved in the way of smoothing complexities in customs regulations and easing the path of air navigation and international railway communications was expressed by many of the 100 or more delegates here. Argentina, as host nation, has 15 representatives, the United States 13, Chile, Uruguay and Brazil 10 each, Bolivia and Paraguay seven each and the others from one to five. The American group is headed by Alexander Wilbourne Weddell, Am- bassador to Argentina, and includes ‘Junun Lay, Minister to Uruguay. ‘ READY TOBATILE, Js | less, even as it is useless to speak Entered as second class matter post office, Washington, D. C. Roosevelts Watch Son in Action in Severn Crew Race See Franklin Jr’s. Har- vard Boat Finish Sec- ond te Navy Eight. By the Associated Press. President Roosevelt returned to the White House last night after an after- noon on the waters of the Severn River watching the crews of Navy, Harvard and Pennsylvania race at Annapolis, Md. Mr. and Mrs. Roosevelt made the occasion a family party, for they were witnessing their third son, Franklin, jr., row in the Harvard junior varsity crew. They saw the junior Harvard team beat out Pennsylvania and come in second 1n a close finish against Navy. Young Franklin was watched closely by his presidential father in the referee’s boat. Later the youth joined Miss Ethel du Pont of Wilmington, Del, who was in the presidential party. Later, young Roosevelt brought a| group of his fellow oarsmen to the White House, there being 25 college boys present at dinner. The President arranged to board a | launch this morning to meet the Gov- | ernment yacht Sequoia far down the Potomac River for cruising on its re- | turn from Annapolis. (Details of the race will be found in the Sports Section.) MUSSOLINI WARNS Mobilization of Officers of ’12 Class Follows Cham- ber Speech. By the Associated Press. ROME, May 25.—Orders for the! mobilization of thousands of officers and technical experts of the class of 1912 tonight followed upon Benito Mussolini’s assertion before the Chamber of Deputies that Italy “is| ready to assume all, even the su- preme, responsibility,” in East Africa. Military sources estimated unoffi- cially tonight the mobilization order would effect upward of 20,000 trained subalterns and technicians of the class. | A decree published in the official | gazette required “subalterns and all troops of limited classes (experts)” to present themselves immediately. Three Classes Kept. In an address to the Senate May 14, 11 Duce said “we shall maintain under arms for all time necessary three classes, 1911, 1913 and 1914, and moreover one class—1912—in reserve.” Today he told the cheering Cham- ber of Deputies that only enemies of Fascist Italy “can pretend to be stupe- fied or simulate protests for military | measures which we have taken or for those which we shall take.” Counseling his people not to cher- h too many ‘llusions about concilia- tion of the Italo-Ethiopian contro- versy, he -alled the border clash at Ualual 'ast year “the signal bell * * * which imposes on Fascist Italy the fulfillment of inescapable duties.” | The premier, mapping the course of European events during recent months, said only one problem— Austria—stands between Italy and Germany. Dismisses Reich Arming. Germany's unilateral repudiation of the armamen's clauses of tue Ver- sailles treaty, even though it “sud-| denly cut in two” the “normal de- | velopment of the European situation,” | he dismissed with this phrase: “Te make recrimnstions is use- again of disarmament.” While he declared (ne Italo-Pranco- British solidarity achieved at the Stresa Conference in May “effective, | constant and omnipresent,” Il Duce | directed several keen shafts at Euro- | pean critics of his East African pol- 1y, among them France and Eng- 1and (French and British pressure at Geneva Friday was credited with in- ducing Mussolini to accept arbitra- tion of the dispufe.) Treats Ethiopian Situation. The attitudes of individual states on the issue, he told the deputies, “will offer the occasion for demon- strating to us taeir concrece and not only superficial and verbose friendship.” While devoting most of his atten- tion to the Ethiopian situation, Mus- solini reviewed the foreign political field in general, citing these impor- tant developments since the first of the year: 1. The Franco-Italian accords of January, which he saia “can be con- sidered satisfactory” since they “cre- ated premises »f effective collabora- tion between the two countries.” 2. The Franco-British conference at London in February, a “projection of the Franco-Itaiian one in Rome,” which “fixed some fundamental points in regard to the political reconsfruc- tion of Europe.’ 3. Germany's unilateral denuncia- tion of part five of the Versailles “(Continued on Page 3, Column 3. $32,736,933 IS VALUE OF A. I. DU PONT ESTATE Bulk of Resources Willed to Charitable Organization. D. C. Man Executor. By the Assoclated Press. JACKSONVILLE, Fla, May 25— Estate of the late Alfred I. du Pont was valued at $32,736,93363 in a petition filed as his will was probated today. Du Pont, who died at his estate here April 29, left the bulk of the for- tune to Nemours Foundation, charita- ble organization. The widow, formerly Miss Jessie Ball, will receive a $200,000 annuity for life, the Jacksonville estate and contents of the du Pont estate at Wilmington, Del. Executors were named as Mrs. du Pont, Edward Ball, a brother-in-law, and Reginal Huidekoper, & son-in-law, of Washington. A number of du Ponts employes received $1,000 each. i WASHINGTON, D. C, A. A A.ISINDORSED BY HEAVY VOTE OF WHEAT FARMERS Continuance Is Approved by 5-1 Margin, Early Re- turns Show. TOTALS FOR 28 STATES ARE 139,586 TO 24,363 Half Million Believed to Have Expressed Desire on Life of New Deal Agency. By the Associated Press The A. A. A's wheat adjustment program today was projected into 1936 as partial returns from yester- day’s referendum showed the Nation's wheat farmers recording themselves by about five to one for continuance. As the first returns began to roll in from the Northwest early today the available figures for 28 of 37 States showed a vote of 139,586 in favor to 24,363 against Initial and fragmentary figures from Washington, one of the 10 largest wheat- producing States, car- ried on the slignily less than six-to- one figure that vrevailed to the east- ward 66,296 to 9,376 in Kansas. Kansas, producing around a fifth of the Nation'’s wheal, thumped up a total of 66,296 in favor to 9,376 against as midnizht passed. Final returns irom Oklahoma, one | of the big ten and the first to record complete returns, showed 15,894 “ayes” as compared with 2,534 “noes.’ As the returns mounted, recording a smashing victory for continuance of the A. A. A. program—barring some drastic reversals of the trend—Secre- tary Wallace issued a statement in Washington asserting that “we can safely* assume that the farmers of America intend to keep having a voice in the economic decisions whicn affect their incomes.” Chester Davis, the A. A. A. adminis- trator, and George E. Farrell, director of the A. A. A's division of grains, also issued somewhat jubilant state- ments. Davis, speaking from Wash- ington, declared the vote had “a great deal of significance” in connection with the A. A. A. program as a whole.” “Indispensable Democracy.” In a statement, Wallace said: “If the official count bears out this unofficial one, we can safely assume that the farmers of America intend to keep having & voice in the economic decisions which affect their incomes. So long as the privilege of economic self-determination does not work in- justice to other classes—and farmers have not thus far caused such injus- tice—the process is indispensable to an_effective modern democracy.” Farrell, in his statement, indicated pleasure at the number of non-signers of A. A. A. contracts who voted for continuance of the wheat adjustment program. He said: Davis, after saying the result of the referendum would have an effect “not only as to wheat but possibly also as to other farm products,” declared that the wheat plan “served as a pat- tern for the major adjustment pro- grams.” Had Lead From Start. From the start the trend in favor of the A. A. A's plan ranged be- tween 6-to-1 and 10-to-1. First re- turns set the higher figure, with a later slump. Whether the substan- tial mergin would be retained when the ballot count ranged up toward the half million votes expected could not be predicted. In Washington Agricultural Adjust- ment Administration officials watched closely for the first returns from the Far West, where Washington and Oregon rank high in production, to determine if the early Midwestern trend would hold good there. In the Midwest it was noted early that some of the largest producing States were running in a trend of more than 10 to 1, with the average | pulled down by some of the smaller producers. Concededly, the decision held in its balance the life of much of the Roose- velt administration’s farm program. Vote to Decide Program. “The vote of the wheat growers will decide whether there will be a wheat adjustment program for 1936 and probably for succeeding years,” Davis said. “We believe the wheat program has helped the growers and we hope they will continue the ad- justment we feel to be necessary, but we leave the decision to them. “The result of the referendum will have a decided bearing on the future, not only of the wheat programs but other agriculture adjustment pro- grams as well.” The polls opened at 9 a.m. Satur- day in 37 States, and the voting con- tinued up to 8 p.m. In some instances, where com- munity wheat committees had regis- ters of all the farmers eligible to vote, it was possible to rush the re- turns to county committees before the closing hour. But the returns as a whole were withheld until long after nightfall. The attention of A. A. A. officials was centered on 10 States, where (Continued on Page 4, Column 6.) QUEEN MARY IS 68 Birthday Will Be Celebrated Quietly at Buckingham. LONDON, May 25 (#).—Queen Mary will celebrate her 68th birth- day anniversary tomorrow in the quiet of the family circle at Buckingham Palace. A small luncheon party will be given for the family. Because the anniversary falls on Sunday, the customary salute of 21 flm will not be fired until noon Mon- y. Pope Sees Frau Dollfuss. VATICAN CITY, May 25 (4).—Pope Pius granted ar audience today to Frau Alwine Dollfuss, widow of the assassinated Austrian Chancellor En- gelbert Dollfuss. Frau Dollfuss pre- sénted his holiness & bust of the late | told newsmen | McCart's REVIVAL OF BONUS AND INFLATION- 1§ HELD IMPROBABLE Leaders of Major Parties See No Chance for Pass- age at Present Session. DOOM HELD SOUNDED BY ROOSEVELT SPEECH | Patman CallsConference to Dis- cuss Action—Veterans' Politi- cal Party Rumored. BY G. GOULD LINCOLN. Soldiers’ bonus legislation was de- clared yesterday by both Democratic | and Republican leaders in Congress to be entirely improbable during the present session of Congress. “It's like a firecracker that fails to go off when it is first lighted; it won't !explode when you try it a second | time,” was the way one of the leaders put it, referring to the defeat of the | Patman “greenback” soldiers bonus | bill. | And if the bonus legislation seems dead for this session, so-called infla- tionary legislation, by the same token, appears to be even more s0. President Roosevelt's veto of the Patman bill, backed up by a very con- siderable vote of the Senate, appar- ently has turned the lrlck.‘ | Bonus Meeting Called. Nevertheless, the advocates of cash | payment of the bonus plan to hold | & meeting at the Capitol Tuesday at 110:30 am. to adopt a program of | procedure. The so-called Bonus Steer- ing Committee of the House, headed by Representative Patman of Texas, author of the now defunct bill, to | gether with members of the Senate intent on immediate cash payment of the veterans, will attend the confer- ence, which has been called by Pat- man. Representatives of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, of | Father Charles E. Coughlin, and of farmers’ organizations also may attend | the conference, it was'said. They still | talk of pressing for action now. privately they admit the situation does not look bright. particularly since the ‘Presidenl has announced he will veto any bil that is sent to him with a bonus rider. It looks as though the next serious threat of bonus legislation will have to wait until Congress meets next January. Conditions that exist in | the country then, plus the fact that a congressional and national ‘election will be in the immediate offing, are ilik!ly to be influential at that time. | If the President’s work relief program | has worked well and business has picked up, it may be even more diffi- | cult to get through Congress a cash payment bill. On the other hand, if there has been no real improvement, the demand for some such measure as the Patman bill will be pressed hard. Political Party Threatened. In the meantime members of Col gress are taking stock of the political effects of the defeat of the bonus bill. Reports reached the Capitol yes- terday that veterans are preparing to | | g0 into politics on a large scale. They have come to the conclusion, it was said, that they can hope for little fur- ther legislation in their behalf if they hold aloof and maintain a non- partisan position in politics. For that reason a definite, political organization is said to be in the mak- ing, a kind of veterans Ku Klux Klan, secret in character. There was a re- port that a Governor of one of the States is ready to help promote such an organization in a big way. The organization would be committed to | the support of candidates for office ready to support bonus legislation, pension legislation and other laws favorable to the veterans of the World War. The advocates of such a program refer to the fact that for a long period | after the Civil War the G. A. R. dom- inated politics in this country. They do not see why a closely knit organi- zation of World War veterans cannot do the same for years to come. Up | “(Continued on Page 4, Column 5.) DICE GAME FATAL Loser Buys Drinks and Kills First Man to Enter Saloon. MEXICO, D. F, May 25 (#).—Six friends sitting in a saloon decided to play dice, the loser to pay for a round of drinks, police said today—and to kill the first man to enter, Felix Gutierrez Ramirez, a slaughter house employe known as “The Mari- huano,” was the loser. He paid the bill and waited. Within a few minutes a man entered and was stabbed through the heart. The victim, who was not identified, had never been in the saloon before, the proprietor said. Ramirez was taken to the peni- tentiary today charged with murder. The slaying occurred last night. By the Associated Press. Characterizing Controller General McCarl's criticisms of the Tennessee Valley Authority as a “power trust attitude,” Senator Norris, Republican, of Nebraska, father of the T. V. A hit sharply at his former secretary yesterday shortly after it was dis- closed that a new hearing for the pending bill had been ordered for this week. Chairman McSwain of the House Military Committee scheduled new consideration Tuesday of the bill by Norris which would broaden the ac- tivities of the T. V. A. and seek to circumvent recent court decisions. McSwain's committee tabled the measure Friday by a 13-to-12 vote shortly after McCarl had appeared as a witness it. Norris, who brought John R. Mc- Carl here years ago as his secretary, he could not explain critical attitude toward T. A g SUNDAY MORNING, MAY But | Norris Hits Sharply at McCarl, His Ex-Aide, for T. V. A. Views JIM, THAT 's AGOODE 26, 1935—114 PAGES. * ¥ N.R. A EYTENSION STATES HAPED 2-Year Program Approval in House Wednesday Is Expected. By the Associated Press. Congressional and administration chiefs in secret conference yesterday | | mapped N. R. A. strategy they hoped | would push through the House Tues- | | day and into the Senate's lap Wednes- | day a measure extending the recovery | | unit's life for two more vears. | What would happen after the bill | was returned to the Senate was prob- | lematical. But few of the conferees | | vesterday doubted that in the end | President Roosevelt would get almost | everything he wanted. | Participants in the two-hour meet- ing included Donald R. Richberg, | N.R. A. chief; Speaker Byrns; Senator | Robinson of Arkansas, the Democratic ‘leldcr; Chairman Doughton of the | House Ways and Means Committee, and Representatives Samuel B. Hill, Democrat, of Washington: Vinson, Democrat, of Kentucky, and Cooper, Democrat, of Tennessee, committee members. Doughton left the meeting to tell waiting newspaper men “there isn't a bit of news.” But after questioning, he said an N. R.’A. extension resolu- | tion was being drafted for presenta- | tion to the Ways and Means Commit- tee tomorrow. He added the hope the | resolution would be approved then. | Debate Curb Planned. | _If so, Speaker Byrns and Chairman | O'Connor of the House Rules Commit- | tee, another Democratic leader, said debate Tuesday would be limited to a “maximum of four hours.” Byrns asked Representative Boland of Penn- | sylvania, House Democratic whip, to keep members on the floor so the | measure could be passed and sent to the Senate around 8 or 9 o'clock Tues- day night. Some changes in planned extension resolution were | agreed to by the conferees. Robinson advised House committeemen to/ | “watch their step.” warning trouble | would follow any attempt to do more than extend the N. R. A. for nine and | one-half months, limit it strictly to | interstate commerce, and forbid price- fixing. | _Chairman Harrison of the Senate Finance Committee sent over word | that the House members should keep | {to a minimum their amendments to| | the Senate’s nine and one-half months | resolution. He added that “whatever | | the House does the Senate will pass| {on, and the bill will not go to con- ference.” Nevertheless, chiefs forecast privately their would include: | 1. A two-year N. R. A. extension. | 2. Provisions allowing code applica- | the originally- | House Democratic | bill | | "(Continued on Page 5, Column 1) RAIL VETERAN DIES Thomas D'Donnell Was Last Sur- vivor of Golden Spike Episode. | OMAHA, Nebr, May 25 (@.— | Thomas O’Donnell, 93, said by Union | Pacific system officials to be the last | survivor of -the group that partici- | pated in driving the golden spike at Promontory, Utah, May 10, 1869, died at his home here today. | The ceremony marked the meeting of the Union Pacific and Central Pa- | cific lines to complete the country’s | first transcontinental railroad. | V. A. “unless it is another case of & man who got the presidential bee and was spoiled by it.” “Most of his objections were dis- tinctly misleading and unfair to the T. V. A,” the Senator said of the T. V. A. audit by McCarl’s office. “The suggestions he made indicates he wants to dominate the T. V. A. com- pletely and control it in every way.” McCarl sharply questioned some of T. V. A’s purchasing methods, and contended some of its operations had gone beyond the authority granted by Congress. McSwain declared he still had hopes of being able to reconsider the action by the Military Committee. “There is"no need to introduce & new bill until that hope proves vain,” he said. “But I have good foundation for such hope.” He contended, however, that even (Continued on Page 5, Column 1.) i ] Teacher Teaches | School Trustees || New Pay Wrinkle | | By the Associated Press. OSCEOLA, Mo., May 25.—Cleo Cauthon, a $50-a-month school- teacher, heard he was to be re- placed at the Burgess School by another teacher at $30 a month. He did some fast thinking. Then, he suggested to the School Board that the 40-cent school levy be cut in half and that he receive for a salary what- ever the levy brought in. Now the School Board, which accepted the suggestion, has learned how smart Cauthon was. He's draw- ing between $60 and $70 monthly. FCLES DEFENDS MONEY CONTROL Bank Bill Approved in Radio Address of Reserve Board Head. Control over the volume and cost of money should be lodged in a single responsible body, probably the Federal Reserve Board, Marriner S. Eccles, governor of the board, de- | clared last night in a radio address urging approval of the omnibus bank bill. Speaking in the National Radio Forum, Mr. Eccles denied the bill would result in political control of banking, and expressed the “sincere conviction” it is “in the interest of the banking system as a whole be- cause it will enable it better to serve the public interest.” The National Radio Forum is ar- ranged by The Star, and the address was broadcast over WMAL and a coast-to-coast network of other Na- tional Broadcasting Co. stations. A. B. A. Leaders Praised. Although rebuking a few “banking and business leaders, particularly in New York,” for their non-constructive | and non-co-operative attitude. Mr. | Eccles expressed his appreciation of the sharply contrasting attitude adopted by most of the leaders of the American Banking Association. He said the bank bill, now pending before the Senate Banking Subcom- | mittee headed by Senator Glass, pro- poses “a definite objective which is. in a word, that monetary policy shall be directed toward the maintenance of stable conditions of production, employment and prices so far as this can be accomplished within the scope of monetary action.” Listing the three principal means of monetary control as being the rais- | ing and lowering of the discount | rate, increasing or decreasing the re- | serve requirements of member banks in the Federal Reserve System, and | open market purchases of Government securities, he said the important step now needed is to “end diffusion of these powers, and to place responsi- | bility for the exercise of these three means of control in a clearly defined | body and to state the objective toward | the attainment of which that body | shall exercise the powers.” Reckless Inflation Denied. He said he has recommended plac- ing responsibility for the exercise of these powers in the Federal Reserve Board, and denied this meant reck- less inflation, ot that the bill's pur-| obtain control of the "(Continued on Page 13, Column 1) | NAVY PLANE’S MISHAP SAVES MISSING YOUTHS Ship Forced Down at Spot Where Pair Were Marooned and ‘Without Food. By the Assoctated Press. SITKA, Alaska, May 25.—Two Ta- coma youths, E. T. Forsythe and H. B. Morris, told today how the chance forced landing of a big Navy sea- | plane saved them from probable | death by starvation on the bleak shores of Lituya Bay. | Seeking adventure and gold in| Alaska, they said, they had been landed from a fishing boat two months ago and had expected to be taken into the interior on a prospecting trip. Their aid failed to arrive and their supplies soon became exhausted. The “blue fleet” Navy plane VP-7 was forced to land about 50 miles northwest of here. The Navy mine- sweeper Sandpiper recovered it and found the two Tacoma youths in their Wunp‘:m T Flandin Prepares to Seek | prepared FIVE CENTS IN_WASHINGTON AND SUBURBS CENTS ELSEWHERE TEN FLIGHT OF CAPITAL FOUGHT BY FRANCE Dictatorial Powers in Franc Crisis. | By the Associated Pres: PARIS, May 25.—France tonight ' was fighting the flight from the franc while Premier Pierre-Etienne Flandin to ask the Chamber of Deputies for dictatorial powers to | balance the budget. | The Bank of France today boosted | its discount rate to 4 per cent. effec- | tive Monday, in another effort to crush what it called “speculation” against French currency. Thursday's increase from 27: to 3 per cent failed to halt drainsge of gold from its vaults, Cover Is 97 Per Cent. | Currency in circulation is 97 per cent covered by gold, but the bank obviously is disturbed at the loss of 3,000,000,000 francs (about $200,000,000) in seven weeks and felt it necessary again to/ interfere. A stiff political battle in the cham- ber apparently faces the premier in | his demand for powers paralleling | those granted Premier Raymond Poin- care in 1926, when he stabilized the | sinking franc. | The bank's action Thursday in boosting the discount rate - per cent | served fleetingly to strengthen the franc against other currencies. but | the dollar and the pound quickly re- sumed their upward march. In view of Flandin's fractured arm, suffered in an automobile accident, | Minister of Finance Louis Germain- | | Martin is expected to go before the chamber's Finance Committee Wed- nesday, soon after Parliament recon- venes, to explain the financial and economic situation and the govern- ment’s program. Fear Felt for Gold Bloc. Dispatches from London quoted financial quarters as expressing fears lest further shipments of gold from France shake the none too sturdy | European gold bloc and promote fur- ther currency devaluation. If the Prench franc should go, these quarters said, the Netherlands and Swiss currencies would almost in- evitably follow suit. The Belgian belga already has been devalued. Authoritative quarters sald Flandin would seek to aid business recovery through government decrees. He is expected to ask powers not only to balance the budget—the 1935 deficit is estimated at 6.000.000,000 francs (almost $400,000,000) —but also to promulgate measures to restore economic activity. ‘The New York Federal Reserve Bank communicated with the Bank of France today, and Gov. Jean Tannery assured the Americans the franc was safe for the present. The large margin of gold coverage above the legal 30 per cent, he said, allows wide latitude for speculation and is “an unequal” factor in France's monetary security. YOUTH FATALLY CUT IN THROAT AFTER PARTY James Galiferro, 20, Found Crit- ically Slashed After Leav- ing With Couple. James Galiferro, 20, of 1004 Vir- ginia avenue southwest, died in Cas- ualty Hospital early Sunday morning | from cuts received after attending a party last night in the first block of N street southeast. Galiferro, his throat cut from ear to ear, was brought to the hospital by Clifton Thompson, 61 N street south- east, who told police Galiferro left that address with a man and woman | after a party. A few minutes later, | he said, he returned with his throat cut. Readers’ Guide PART ONE—General News, Sports. Lost and Found, Page A-9. PART TWO— Editorial, Civic Activi- ties, Special Articles, Travel, Clubs and Organizations, Cross-word Puz- zle, Stamps, Contract, Short Story. PART THREE—Society, Fashions, Vital Statistics, Who Are You?, City News in Brief. PART FOUR—Special Features, Stage, Screen, Music, Radio, Books, Art, Children’s Page, Autos, Aviation. PART FIVE—Financial, Classified Advertising, worth of gold | MILLION ALLOTTED T0 EXPEDITE WORK N CAPITAL PARKS Meridian Hill, Mall and Ar- lington Entrance Includ- ed in Program. ICKES’ ANNOUNCEMENT HAILED BY OFFICIALS Finnan Will Direct Projects. Work Will Give 330 Men Jobs. BY NELSON M. SHEPARD. An allotment of $1,000000 to ex- pedite long needed national park improvements in the District of Columbia. including the completion of Meridien Hill Park, the Mall and the new approach to Arlington Na- tional Cemetery, was announced yes- terday by Public Works Administra- tor Ickes. Ickes' move came as a gratifying surprise to National Park Service of- ficials who received the first intimation of his intention only a few days ago, although every item on the program, of course, has long been urged. The allotment was made from an unobli- gated balance of P. W. A. funds and is the largest single sum the administra- tor has made available to the Federal park system in Washington, now un- der his jurisdiction Park officials estimated conserva- tively that the addition of this new work to extensive park projects al- ready under way here not only will meke up for work long delayed, but will put the National Capital im- provement program actually ahead of schedule. Small Areas Included. Included among the Individual projects in the new program are at least 100 small park areas scattered over the city, some of which have re- mained neglected 50 years for lack of funds. " ork on most of these, officials said, can be started immedi- ately. The specific projects covered by the $1.000,000 allotment and the cost for each were announced as follows: Improvement of the Mall — Side- waiks. sprinkler system and lights, $130.000. Improvement to small parks, includ- ing Pranklin, Folger, Lafayette, Ma- rion, Mount Vernon and Montrose, and miscellaneous small parks and reservations, $300. ‘Tree surgery, plant disease control and reforestation, $50,000. Palisades Playground and Park, | l]andscaping, grading. construction of small field houses and recreational facilities, $70,000. $145,000 for Meridian Park. Completion of Meridian Hill Park, $145,000. Continuation of the planning pro- gram begun in 1934, so that work on construction projects will go forward without delay, $20,000 Construction of a dike and revision | of grade on the Monument Grounds to afford flood control on Constitution avenue, $55,000. Replacement of swimming pools now located on Monument Grounds on other sites, one near the Hoover Play- grund and the other in Georgetown, $120,000. Improvements to the Memorial Bridge approach to Arlington National Cemetery, $80.000. Construction of a police and infor | mation lodge in Rock Creek Park, $15,000. Moving utility structures in Rock Creek Park to other locations, $15,000. Finnan to Direct Work. | Secretary Ickes made over the al- lotment to the National Park Service |of the Interior Department and the | work projects will be directed by C. Marshall Finnan, superintendent of | the Office of National Capital Parks. | Regarded as a Federal grant, it is | possible, Finnan explained, that some | of the work might be construed as | coming directly under the jurisdiction of the District government, such as | the removal of the swimming pools. In that event 70 per cent of such ex- | penditures may possibly be charged up to the District. The work mnvolved will provide em- | ployment for an average of 330 men, it was estimated, over a period of 14 | months. By the direet method of utilizing | unobliga funds of his (Conti INGALLS AIRPLANE IS FORCED DOWN Second Effort to Set New Record Ends When 0il Line Fails. (Wirephoto on Page A-4.) By the Associated Press. INDIANAPOLIS, May 25.—Laura | Ingalls’ second attempt to crack the | transcontinental speed record of | another famous feminine fiyer, | Amelia Earhart, failed today when | she was forced down here. | When she landed at the Municipal Airport she expressed keen disap- | pointment. “I feel she said. Miss Ingalls said her elapsed time of 10 hours and 45 minutes from Union Air Terminal at Burbank, Calif., to this city apparently was ahead of the time made by Miss Earhart between those points. After leaving Kansas City behind, a leak developed in the plane’s oil line, and it was this trouble that forced her down. Immediately upon landing here she put mechanics to work conditioning her plane for continuation of the flight to New York. She indicated she might attempt an East-West flight soon. “I think the best thing to do is to go to New York, turn right around and go back,” said Miss Ingalls, “You know an East-West trans- continental flight has never been made by & woman.” 1 very bad about it all,”