Evening Star Newspaper, June 27, 1935, Page 10

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C THURSDAY +.June 27, 1935 THEODORE W. NOYES..........Editor s xS R S The Evening Star Newspaper Company. 1140 8t Snd Fenbupivants Av New Yerk Offce: 110 East 420d 8t Chicago Office: Lake Michigan Building, Buropean Office: 14 Regent St.. London. Engiand Rate by Carrier Within the City. Regular Edition. . .4b¢ per month 80c per month 85c_per munth B¢ per copy The Even Sunday Sta Night Fi Night Fis n 70¢ per month bt Rioal gac, Suntey 550 per month de at the end of each month. B8 Gent by mail or telephone Na- tional 5000. ith Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia, Daily ard Sunday. Daily only - Sunday only . Daily and Sund: Datly only_. Sunday only. Member of the Associated Press. e Assoclated Press is exclusively entitled to the%ise for republication of all news dispatches credited 1o it or not otherwise credited in this paper and also the local news published herein. All rights of publication of special dispatches herein are also reserved Up and Down the Hill. The King of France and his twenty thousand men who marched up the hill and then marched down again Jad nothing on the administration in the way of quick reversal of strategy. On Monday night at a conference between the President and Democratic Senate leaders the plan was adopted to attach the proposed new high levies on inheri- tances and incomes to the “nuisance” tax extension resolution, which, to be effective, must be passed before July 1. Plans were made to that effect. The general reaction throughout the coun- try to this maneuver was decidedly un- favorable. At a White House press con- ference yesterday the program to push the new tax legislation through before July 1 was repudiated. Meanwhile, the Senate rushed through the nuisance tax extension measure within fifteen min- utes, with an amendment reducing the new term of taxation from two years to one, and sent it back to the House, where it had originated. Thus was the “rider” plan dropped. Just what happened to cause this abrupt change of purpose is somewhat of a mystery. There is evidence that the first proposal was to utilize the nuisance-tax extension to serve as a carrier for the “share-the-wealth” sched- ule of higher taxation on large incomes and inheritances. There is evidence also that the purpose was to secure immediate action, if possible, by this use of a measure which had to be enacted before July 1. And there is evidence that the senatorial group that called at the White House on Monday night had a perfect understanding to that effect. And, finally, there is evi- dence of a reversal of plan, leaving the chairman of the Finance Committee of the Senate in the uncomfortable position of having to abandon the five-day drive for enactment of the new taxes before July 1, which he had undertaken as & result of the Monday night conference. Just what caused this change of pace must be léft chiefly to the imagination, with some collateral circumstances as an aid to understanding. The suggestion is made that the public reaction to the drastic tax plan was too unfavorable to be ignored. -It is also hinted that there was a doubt as to the constitutional pro- priety of in effect “originating” & specific revenue-raising measure in the Senate. The possibility of another ad- verse Supreme Court decision may have been considered. It is true that clause one of section seven of the Constitution, which provides that “all bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives,” also provides that “the Senate may propose or concur Wwith amendments, as on other bills.” But would this veritably tax-raising pro- posal have been sufficiently germane to & mere extension bill? Would it not be far enough within the twilight zone of dubiety to give the Supreme. Court ground for rejection? The King of France who reversed his march was probably wise. The present reversal of sirategy assuredly is. Many job seekers have to be disap- pointed. Along with the political plums there must be a few sour grapes. o Submarine Warfare. Bharp exclamations of skepticism mingled with cheers in the House of Commons this week when the first lord of the admiralty announced that the Anglo-German naval agreement includ- ed a pledge by the Nazis to abolish un- restricted submarine warfare. The Reich has undertaken to adhere to part four of the 1930 London treaty requiring warships not to sink or render a mer- chant vessel incapable of navigation until her passengers, crew and ship’s papers are placed in a situation of ab- solute safety, either through proximity of land or the presence of an adequate rescuing vessel. Germany has agreed, in other words, to abandon that form of “ruthless” warfare which made the U- boat & byword, was responsiblg for some of the worst horrors of the World War and eventually drew the United States Into the conflict. The Germans, Parliament was in- formed, are ready to commit themselves to “humane” submarine tactics “irre- spective of whether they are adhered. to by other powers.” This is a reference to France and Italy, which signed the London treaty, but are not actually re- stricted by it, because the Paris and Rome governments failed to ratify the pact containing the U-boat clause. Britain, America and Japan alone are bound by the provision. Members of the House of Commons minced no words in challenging the de- pendability of Germany’s pledge not to use submarines as she used them before. A Labor spokesman asked whether any nation on the verge of defeat would sbide by treaty provisions if that meant losing the war. The first lord of the ad- miralty retorted that this would mean that no treaty could be made with any- body; that it would denote a return to “jungle wsr.” The Laborite became more specific, observing that “Germany once upon & time gave an unqemldn( not to violate Belgium, but she did.” Great Britain and the United States are on record in favor of the total abolition ef the submarine, Until that weapon, stigmatized at the Washington Conference by Mr. Balfour as “the as- sassin of the sea,” is outlawed and ban- ished fron ali navies, fleets which pos- sess U-boats will unquestionably remain under the temptation to use them in case of desperate emergency under almost any circumstances designed to meet the military, naval and economic necessities of a given belligerent’s situ- ation. At the new naval eon!eanu which the British project, to give general effect to the Anglo-German agreement, or through other bilateral pacts, the London government doubtless will renew its efforts to put the submarine beyond the pale. Until that is accomplished, or nature renounces as its first law that of self-preservation, the danger, unfor- tunately, will persist that some nations may find it legitimate to indulge in that “frightfulness” at sea to which the Germans resorted. It is altogether un- likely that the menace of the submarine can ever be removed except by its utter abolition through international agree- ment. An Effort to Aid Youth. In his statement explaining objectives of his newly created National Youth Administration, President Roosevelt recognizes that the “final solution of this whole problem of unemployed youth will not be attained until there is a re- sumption of normal business activities and opportunities for private employ- ment on a wide scale” That is, of course, true. Without the expenditure of tremendous sums in creating work, in or out of school, it is rather difficult to understand how much practical head- way can be made in improving the eco- nomic condition and work opportunities of the half million or so young men and women between the ages of sixteen and twenty-five for whom the National Youth Administration is to function. Their condition, like that of their elders, depends upon the condition of the country. The greatest step in behalf of unem- ployed youth, open, however, only to young men, was the creation of the Civilian Conservation Corps, originally planned to admit those between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five, now taking in those up to twenty-eight’ years old. | The expansion of the camps after the first of the next fiscal year is expected to make possible the eventual enlist- ment of about 600,000, as compared with the 350,000 now enrolled. The C. C. C. was originally conceived as tempora it may still be construed as temporary, but its success and popularity have given it aspects of permanency more solid than other relief ventures. The National Youth Administration, however, is in no way connected with the C. C. C. It is to start with an initial grant of $50,000,000—a sum so small, viewed relatively, that its expendi- ture represents a side issue. While there are four main objectives outlined, sum- med up as helping young men and women to find jobs, giving them voca- tionsl training and helping them through high school and college, the broad idea is evidently to centralize direction of a unified plan for the whole country in aiding youth. State agencies will be set up, werking with advisory commit- tees of citizens, in the attempt to make the plan effective. The President asserts that “satisfac- tory progress in setting up the work program for the unemployed is being made” and that removal of unemployed from relief to jobs “should be well under way during July.” The youth-aid movement is to supplement the larger work-relief program. While there is some comfort in noting that the Presi- dent regards progress on this latter program as satisfactory, it is to be hoped the plans of the National Youth Admin- istration will be more generaliy under- stood, more definite and more effective than has been the case so far in work- relief. ot A Subway Survey. For a good many years the possibility of a subway system for Washington, to relieve the surface traffic congestion, has been more or less under consideration. No definite steps have ever been taken to that end. ‘While the physical condi- tions have been favorable to such a development, financial considerations have been a deterrent. The District, especially in late years of increasing in- disposition on the part of Congress to share the cost of Capital development and maintenance between Federal and local funds, has not been in a position to undertake such a project. Street widening has been tried and street rail- ‘way routes have been changed and some have been abandoned for bus service, with others soon to come, but these expedients have not solved the problem. So that again the subway plan is now proposed. Chairman—~Norton of the House District Committee has introduced a bill to appropriate $25,000 for a com- prehensive subway survey. This bill di- rects the Commissioners to file a report to Congress not later than January 1, 1937, with detailed estimates and pre- liminary plans. . In the past two maift routes for pos- sible subways have been suggested, one ‘under Pennsylvania avenue and another under Fourteenth street. Doubtless if this survey is ordered other lines will be indicated as feasible and serviceable, If this survey can be made for $25,000, the money will have been well spent. There is need of specific information on the subject. At the present rate of growth the Capital is fast approaching the point of trafic saturation. Track changes and bus substitutions are not THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, in themselves a cure for this condition, The District could not possibly bear alone the burden of constructing a sub- way system. The financing of such a project would have to be by union of local and Federal funds in an equitable proportion. That matter may await later determination. The vitally impor- tant thing now is to make a survey, formulate a program of construction and thus to secure the basis for action. Back to Earth. It is possible that Senator Pat Harri- son and some of his administration col- leagues in the House and Senate are wondering today whether there was ever any special message on taxes from the ‘White House; whether there was ever a hurried conference of leaders at the White House last Monday evening, or whether these and the other frantic comings and goings of the past week were merely disturbing dreams. At any rate, there seems to have been a general awakening, an end to the tem- porary confusion of effort and ideas, a re- turn to the orderly processes traditionally associated with the serious business of raising revenue through imposition of new and heavy tax burdens, 1t is well that it is so and it is more important that this is now the case than it is to conjecture on the reasons for the spectacle of haphazardness to which the country has been treated in the past few days. The business of framing new revenue laws is back where it belongs—in the Ways and Means Committee of the House. While it still seems to be the case that the new tax program is desired for the present session, there has been an end to the unseemly and unreason- able haste which, in the beginning, threatened to mark consideration of these new taxes. And now, as the House Ways and Means Committee gets down to brass tacks, there may be logical explanation of ‘he full intent of the new revenue measures. Are they planned at this time to produce a part of the sorely needed funds to begin paying for vast recovery expenditures? Are they introducing & new program of taxation designed even- tually to bring about some balance in the Nation's budgeting? Will they be accompanied by a lessening of expendi- tures? Or are they, as widely interpreted, intended as an answer to the “Share the Wealth” shouters and the “Soak the Rich” advocates? In the process of hearings on the pro- posed tax measures some answers to such questions may be developed. At the same time, there is to be opportunity for studying, not only rates, but effects of proposed new levies. And if Congress chooses to stay here all this Summer in working out a new program of taxation, the time thus occupied will not be too much. e Much sympathy is expressed for the toilsome life of the letter carrier. A spirit of democracy distributes post office labor. There are times when the Post- master General himself has to work pretty hard. r—————————— Abyssinia hints at organizing Moham- medanism for military support. There may be more in these hot sand tradi- tions than the Mystic Shriners ever dreamed of. Shooting Stars. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Aid to Youth. For aid to youth we will expend A goodly share of pelf, And make each inexperienced friend Learn to behave himself. We'll teach him manners that imply A knowledge of the world And not to care how much or why New tax bills are unfurled. At 2 mature and serious day, Before it is too late, We'l teach some way the tax to pay That we sccumulate. Prolonging the Argument. “The pen is mightier than the sword,” said the readymade philosopher. “Let's modernize it,” replied Senator Sorghum, “and say that for purposes of peace the typewriter is mightier than the machine gun.” Jud Tunkins says a poker game by a group of smart men represents a brain trust that has relapsed into rugged individualism. Annual Assurance, On the Fourth of July a glittering sky ‘With patriot meaning will glow. With respect we will send salutations on high, A sentiment earnest to show. Of those documents old when the story 1s told, Of our pride there can ne'er be a doubt, As the splendors of Heaven on earth we unfold, 'Cause that's what the shootin’s about. Agricultural Illusion. “Does Crimson Gulch have many valu- able building lots?” asked the stranger. “There are some,” said Cactus Joe, “but nobody admits it. It's cheaper for us taxpayers to have everything assessed as farm land whether we raise or not.” & Brains Old and New, In Ethiopia men dwelt ‘Who heard King Solomon first hand." With great respect to him they knelt, The wisest one in any land. At present men are much inclined Prom Solomon to shift their bet, Since they are very apt to find That Mussolini’s smarter yet, “Weather prediction is bound to be uncertain,” said Uncle Eben. “Climate is like a race hoss. You can figure on what it ought to do, but not on what it's goin’ to do.” o A LA THE POLITICAL - MILL By G. Gould Lincoln. It's all very puzzling. But after rele- gating the recent feverish activities of administration leaders in Congress to the realm of bad dreams, the fact seems to remain that the President did send a message to Congress urging certain tax reforms. Monday’s conference be- tween the President and certain con- gressional leaders, and at which Vice President Garner also sat in, although it lasted two hours and three-quarters, amounted to nothing. At least that must be the conclusion after consider- ing the President’s press conference comment yesterday. ‘When the White House cdnference of Monday adjourned, Senator Robinson of Arkansas stepped across the doorsill of the Executive Mansion and dictated the following statement to a waiting group or 25 or 30 newspaper men: “At the conference, attended by the Vice President, Speaker Byrns, Chair- man Harrison of the Senate Finance Committee, Chairman Doughton of the House Ways and Means Committee and Senator Robinson, it was decided to press for action on the recommendations of the President as to amendments of the tax laws during the present session. The chairman of the Finance Commit- tee, Senator Harrison, will ask his com- mittee to consider the subject with a view to prgposing amendments to the Joint resolution extending certain taxes and with a view to adding these amend- ments to that joint resolution.” * ok Kok . This statement, while unexpected in some of its details, seemed clear enough. It was a declaration that the admin- istration leaders had decided to tack the President’s tax program on the joint resolution, then pending in the Senate, providing for the extension of certain excise and “nuisance” taxes beyond July 1. The subsequent activity of Sen- ator Harrison, his statements to the press and the meetings of the Senate Finance Committee to pass on these amendments all seemed to bear out Senator Robinson’s announcement of what the White House conference had decided. In order to prevent the lapse of the excise taxes—entailing a loss of $1,500,- 000 a day, every one knew that the joint resolution would have to be passed by Saturday of this week. Since the joint resolution was to be rushed to passage, and since the tax program was to be placed in joint resolution, it seemed quite natural to suppose that the tax program was to be put through by Saturday—or within five days. So the newspapers interpreted the matter. Newspaper intellect, or brains, or what- ever it is that newspapers have, how- ever, is not, it seems, what it used to be. The President at his press conference yesterday said emphatically that there had been no suggestion at the White House conference that the tax program was to be passed by Saturday. No one, he said, had intimated such a thing in any shape or form. No one had assumed that the measure, with its new tax pro- gram, would pass within five days. The newspapers were wrong. & % K The press comment on the proposal to rush the tax program—designed not only to raise additional revenue, but also to create a “better social order” through decentralization of wealth—was not favorable. There were rumblings of revolt in the House and Senate. Decla- | ration by Senator Harrison that there would be no public hearings on the tax amendments proposed because they would take a lot of time was not greeted with any enthusiasm. Senator Borah of Idaho, who favored the tax program generally, thought that course pursued would have a bad reaction in the coun- try. It did. * X kX Tt's all very puzzling. The White House conferges on Monday must have misunderstood each other. An explana- tion, perhaps, may lie in the suggestion that the House was to bring in a tem- porary joint resolution extending the | excise taxes for 30 to 90 days, to prevent any lapse in these taxes, and thereby permitting the Senate to consider be- yond Saturday the pending joint reso- lution extending these taxes for a year or two. However, Senator Harrison in the Senate said quite frankly that he proposed to use all possible speed to get the tax program tacked on the pending joint resolution, and get them both passed by Saturday. ‘When the President’s tax message was first read to Congress the general im- pression of many of the Democrats was that he would not insist upon having the tax program written into law before the adjournment of the present session of Congress. They let their impressions be known. Immediately the progressive group in the Senate set up a loud pro- test. Senator Huey P. Long of Louisiana took the floor with a roar that it looked to him as though nothing was going to be done after all about the share-the- wealth tax program, Most of the mem- bers of Congress were anxious to get through with a session that already has run almost six months. They did not take kindly to the idea of staying on in Washington this Summer until a new tax program could be put through, in addition to all the other “must” bills on the President’s list. But gradually the leaders were forced into an open position favoring the passage of the tax program at this session. * K K % In order to accommodate the members who desired to “get through,” the plan to expedite the passage of the tax pro- gram by tacking it on the joint reso- lution pending in the Senate seems to have been devised. But now the jig is up, apparently, so far as a speedy ad- journment is concerned, and it looks as though Congress “would be here until the latter part of August or September. The leaders are going back to the old way of dealing with tax reforms. They are to be originated in the House, after full hearings before the .Ways and Means Committee. One of the com- plaints of House members has been that these taxes should have their start in the House, not the Senate, under the constitutional provision providing that revenue legislation must originate in the House. The President’s decentralization of wealth tax program had its start as a political proposition. It is designed to go into the next national campaign. Politics has dogged its path since it first was presented at the Capitol. Unless there is a further change in the plans of the administration, however, Congress will now be kept here until it has passed a new tax law along the lines of the President’s recommendations. * % K % It is astonishing that the Democratic leaders who met with the President Monday to confer about the tax pro- gram should have announced and under- taken a course of action that did not have the approval of the President. But that seems to have been what happened. The President on Monday made no an- rous-cement as to the program for the tax legislation recommended. The ans nouncement was made by Senator Robin= son, and apparently concurred in by the other leaders Senator Robinson and Senator Harrison will follow the President’s lead in the THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 1935 THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E+ TRACEWELL. Tawny day lilies make vivid contrast with green shrubbery at this time. There is something extremely graceful about the blooming habits of the entire tribe of Hemerocallis—very old, but ex- tremely new, with more than 150 hybrids developed within recent years. ‘The man to whom much of this is due is Prof. A. B. Stout of the New York Botanical Gardens, whose book on the day lilies is the standard. These were old favorites in grand- mother’s garden, being called corn lilies. A great many very modern persons, especially those who come to the cities from small country towns, may profess to look with some disdain at these plants, until they discover that they are the “very latest.” Yet there is no need at all for snob- bery of any sort in connection with them. They are among the most beautiful flowers we have, and the easiest to grow. ‘When they are discovered by all gar- deners the city will bloom with increased interest and beauty for all. * K x X ‘The bright flowers at the end of very long stalks, swaying in the breeze, yet tough enough to stand wind and rain, give real points of interest to any yard. If one has the money to get some of the newer hybrids, the blooming season may be extended through many weeks. The older sorts, which are the cheap- est, are very beautiful, however, and will satisfy most of us. All the day lilies are free from in- sects—no small consideration in a day when more and more pests of all kinds are striking at our garden flowers. ‘Who would have thought a decade ago that the gladiolus, king of the garden, would have been stricken with the thrip? Yet during the past four years that insect has wrought havoc among them, so that today many persons have given up growing this lovely creation. Much work has been done on the gladiolus thrip by scientists all over the country. There are various treatments of bulbs, before planting, and fewer treatments for growing plants afterward. In time this problem will be solved, but for some of us the gladiolus will never be quite the plant it was before the thrip hit it. We do not want to fool around treat- ing and spraying. * ok ko So we can fall back on the day lily. Perhaps Nature will leave it alone. No doubt its comparative freedom from dis- ease and pests is due in part to the fact that man has more or less let it alone. It will be interesting to see whether the recent activities with these plants leads, in a few years, to the introduction of pests. We may hgpe not, and in the mean- time go ahead and enjoy them. ‘The name “day lily” was given because the blossoms, lasted only a day. New | ones open each morning, however, so, all in all, the plints offer about as much as flowers which stay in good shape longer. And there is something eminently airy and happy about the blooms, nodding on tall stalks above the good foliage. The latter is low—not more than a | foot and a half or two feet tall—but | the spikes or stalks stand four to five feet high. All the day lilies, and especially Hem- erocallis fulva, or tawny day lily, love part shade. They make excellent flowers for shady | gardens—in fact, there is none better. STARS, MEN The brain asleep is electrically active and extremely sensitive. Discovery of electrical waves initiated in the cortex by slight sounds which do not awaken the sleeper is reported in Science, organ of the American Associ- | ation for the Advancement of Science, by Alfred L. Loomis, E. Newton Harvey and Garret Hobart. These waves, detected by recording devices attached to the skull, have fre- quencies of from 20 to 30 per second and amplitudes of from 10 to 50 micro- volts. They are undoubtedly of cortical origin and differ for individuals. They appear in trains, at intervals of 30 seconds to 2 minutes, and each lasts from 5 to 12 seconds. The aplitude builds up regularly to a maximum and then falls. There is no correlation with heart beat or rate of respiration. Such a train can be started by rustling paper, coughing, ¢losing a door gently or starting low conversation. The sounds are not loud enough otherwise to dis- turb the sleeper. The same sounds do not start up these electrica! waves when the individual is awake. Neither does the man’s own snoring initiate them, except that they may be started by a single snore. The experimenters also found regu- larly recurring outbursts of waves not associated with any disturbance, and for which they can deduce no cause. * ok ox X The venom of one of the -world’s deadliest reptiles, Russell's viper of India, may have supplied a medicine which will save the lives of victims of the dreaded “bleeding disease,” found conspicuously among the royal families of Europe. The blood of victims of this malady will not coagulate. As a result they may bleed to death from a slight wound. An accidental cut or the extraction of a tooth may prove fatal. This is due to an absence in the blood of & chemical substance known as prothrombin, the presence of which is essential for the formation of the thrombin, which is the L actual coagulating agent. The blood of & person bitten by Russell's viper co- agulates throughout the body very rapid= 1y, causing death in a few minutes. Experiments now are In progress matter. Indeed, they have already done so, for the joint resolution extending the excise taxes has passed the Senate, and the whole proposition of tacking on the President’s tax program as & “rider” was abandoned as soon as the President’s pronouncements were known to the Senate leaders. R All the confusion which has followed the course of the President’s tax pro- gram in the last few days might have been obviated if the President in his message had said clearly that he wished to act on the program before House for several days after the mes- sage had Then the leaders went to President on Monday to get the matter straightened out. They came out with a declaration that it had determined to press for action at : of the Robinson If you have a garage side where shade lies most of the day, try some of these lilies, in their yellow, blue, white or other colors: Many of the older varieties can be purchased at very reasonable rates, and for most of us they will do quite as well as any. Once in the ground, they bloom every year without fail and without any bother on the home gardener’s part. This is a most desiruble feature. It is all very well to talk about the chores of gardening as if they were vast joys, as no doubt they are to a fortunate few, but many persons want something which requires less spraying and muiching and attention in general. Spraying roses, for instance, is a nui- sance, and who dares say it isn't? * K K X ‘Well, you won't have to spray the day lilies, either with liquid or dust. Wherever you put them they seem to do well, especially if there is some shade. Since there are many spots in many gardens where such things as petunias and zinnias and marigolds and other annuals will not grow well, it is a fortu- nate thing that so many of the peren- nials long for such a situation. Among these the day lilies must be given a place. ‘These are hardy border plants which occupy that strange position of being very old, yet at the same time are the darlings of the elite. There is just ome other class of plants at the present time which occupies the same position. These are the herbs, so called, the hundred and one, or we might almost say the thousand and one, things from literally all over the world which have been of peculiar value and interest to mankind for medicinal, culi- nary and other uses. From the Civil War onward in this country the herbs fell into disuse, aided by the machine age and science, until nobody but very old-fashioned persons, indeed, knew any- thing about herbs. During the last five years or so all that has changed. Herbs have become the darlings of society, and garden clubs everywhere hear lectures on them, and persons everywhere, espe- cially in the cities, are planting them. ‘The happy thing is that one no sooner becomes interested in them, through whatever chance or angle, than one be- gins to read about them, to delve into the lore of centuries and find out some- thing of their history, charm and ro- mance. * % % % It is the same with the day lilies. Grandmother had ’'em, but she had no such opportunities to grow ’‘em in variety as the gardener of today. The reason is that the hybridizer's art was not developed then as it is now. The plant hybridizer creates new col- ors, even forms, and places such a wealth often we are embarrassed by the luxury. Sometimes this increased number of forms so complicates the situation of the home gardener that he wishes the plant breeder had let old plants alone. We hope this is not true of the day lilies and do not imagine it is, at least yet. It may be true, too, that in much in- crease of plant materials, within the same genus, some danger is run of and making it susceptible to diseases and pests. This may or may not be true of the gladiolus; nobody knows. At any rate, as long as the day Jily is the healthy, vigorous plant it fs, let us enjoy it and plant it in our gafdens. AND ATOMS Notebook of Science Progress in Field, Laboratory and Study. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, in London, reported in this week’s issue of the British medical journal Lancet, in which this veaom in difutions of one part in 10,000 has been used successfully to coagulate the blood of the “bleeders.” packed into the cavity from which a tooth has been extracted, with a rapid cessation of the blood flow. For the first time it is possible for a bleeder to go to a dentist with some assurance that the extraction will not prove fatal. ® X ¥ X Devious are the paths of science. Dr. A. F. Woods, former scientific di- rector of the Department of Agriculture, tells of one of the most remarkable pro- gressions from the apparently trivial to developments of great medical and com- mercial importance, which comes partly | from the files of the department itself. Familiar to every one is the green slime, known as “frog spittie,” which gathers on ponds and stagnant streams. It consists of stringlike colonies of algae, primitive, one-celled plants. Nearly a century ago a Swiss biologist, Wilhelm von Nageli, attempted to study these as a matter of interest to pure science. He found that they would not grow in tap water, but he could not detect any chem- ical difference between this and the pond water in which they thrived. Von Nageli’s curiosity was aroused, and after numerous experiments he came to the conclusion that the algae poiton in the tap water must consist of minute traces of copper from the faucet. There was only one part of copper to 50,000,000 parts of water, but this was enough to kill the primitive plants. He published his conclusions in an obscure pamphlet, which nobody read and which was forgotten for half a century. Actu- ally he had discovered the most sensitive test of copper known to science. Fifty years later the Department of Agriculture received a letter from a commercial grower of watercress. The “frog spittle” was choking his crop and he wanted to know what to do about it. An American industry whose product was valued at millions of dellars a year was seriously threatened. One of the experts, browsing sround in the library, came on this forgotten pamphlet con- taining an account of Von Nageli's work. The problem was solved and the water- cress industry saved. But this was only a beginning. The problem was water- borne diseases, barely heard of in the Swiss biologist’s day, had come to the fore. If minute traces of copper killed the algae might it not also Kill other one-celled organisms, such as the bac- teria responsible for typhoid or cholera? They tried it out and it worked. It also killed certain fish. But the door had been opened. If minute traces of one chemical substance had such specific lethal effects, might not another be found bacteria alone, leaving the fish and the algae unhafmed? Sedch for such a substance led to the discovery of chlorination of water, which was one of the major factors in pre- serving the health of the American Army in the World War. Progress. Prom the Worcester (Mass.) Evening Gazette. ‘The future housewife, says a scientist, will spend only seven minutes a day in the kitchen. We suggest putting the | telephone in the kitchen. growing | of plant material at our finger tips that | Coiton soaked with this solution is | 4 ANSWERS TO . QUESTIONS By Frederic J. Haskin, A reader can get the answer to any question of fact by writing The Washing= ton Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washing= tor, D.C. Piease inclose stamp for reply, Q. What is the extent of the tourist camp industry in the Unite® States?— R. R. E. A. There are some 30,000 tourist camps in this country, representing an invest- ment of more than $250,000,000. Q. What is the estimated age of some of the older petroleum deposits?—C.P.T. A, Oil is found in rocks laid down in the making of the earth’s crust, even farther back than the Cambrian period, which dates back 1,080,000,000 years of geologic time before the dawn of primi- tive man, which occurred during the Quaternary period. Q. What percentage of automobile accidents are caused by tire blowouts?— V. W. McK. A. There were 7,740 vehicles in acci- dents in 1934 because of punctures or blowouts. Of these accidents, 400 re- sulted in fatalities. The percentage of vehicles involved in accidents because of blowouts was only six-tenths of 1 per cent. Q. By whom and when was the Balti- more Sun established?—E. R. B. A. The Baltimore Sun was established May 17, 1837, by three printers, Swain, Simmons and Abell. . Q. When were decimal fractions first employed in mathematical calcula- tions?—A. P. M. A. Some authorities are of the opinion that Sumerian inscriptions indicate that these ancient peoples were acquainted with a decimal system and also a sex- agesimal one. However, the first mathe- maticians to use decimal fractions in the modern-way were Christoff Rudolff in his “Exempel Buchlin,” published at Augsburg in 1530, in which he used a bar to mark off the decimal part, and Simon Stevin (Stevinus), who in 1585 published “De Thiende,” devoted solely to these fractions. Q. How many different names are there for frankfurters?—E. M. A. In some sections these sausages are known as wieners, in other sections as Coney Islands, while they are also called half-smokes, red-hots and hot dogs. Q. What was the first American ex- pedition to the Arctic?—A. M. A. The first American expedition in Arctic regions was made by Dr. Kane in 1853, who penetrated Smith Strait as far as Cape George Russell, Q. How long has the New York City Public Library been open?—C. B. A. The central building of the library, Fifth avenue and Forty-second street, | was opened May 23, 1911, Q. What percentage of feeble-minded- ness is hereditary?—P. R. A. Feeble-mindedness is more than 50 per cent hereditary. Of the remainder about 12 per cent appears to be due to | neuropathic ancestry—that is, the fami- weakening the structure of the plant | lies are characterized by such conditions as paralysis and alcoholism. Nineteen per cent is classified as being due to accidental causes, including certain dis- | eases such as menengitis, convulsions and fevers in early life, It 1s likely that in- herited syphilis also is a factor. Q. How long did it take Carlyle to rewrite the first volume of “The French Revolution,” which was burned?—J. C. A. Carlyle had no copy and but few notes, 2nd to rewrite the volume took a year's exhausting labor, Q. What was the A. B. plot?—G. W. A. This was a plot to destroy Secretary of the Treasury Crawford’s popularity by accusing him, in 1824, of malfeasance in office. A series of letters appeared in a Washington newspaper, signed A. B., reflecting upon Crawford’s integrity. They were written by Ninian Edwards, who acknowledged their authorship. He failed to sustain his charges, s0 Craw- ford was exonerated. Q. What is the meaning of the word Seminole?—J. B. T. A. The word Seminole means sepa- ratist or renegade. It refers to people who go out to settle towns and live by themselves. Q. What were the qualifications of the men selected by King James to revise the Bible?—J. R. A. The greater number of these learn- ed men were members of the Established Church of England, but no political, religious or sectarian affiliations were requisite to selection. The finest schol- ars of the nations—those best versed in both the modern and ancient lan- guages—were selected. The group was divided into six companies. Quoting from the report of the committee, the procedure was: “Every particular man of each company to take the same chap- ter or chapters and, having translated or amended them severally by himself, where he thinketh good, all to meet together, confer what they have done, and agree for their part what shall stand. As any one company hath dis- patched any one book in this manner, they shall send it to the rest to be con- sidered of seriously and judicially.” Q. When was the George Junior Re- public_established?>—E. M. A. This community, near Freeville, N. Y., was established by William R. George in 1895 as a method of reform in the treatment of dependent and de- linquent boys and girls. Q. For whom is Parkinson’s disease named?—W. W. M. A. Parkinson’s disease is named for the English physician, James Parkin- son (1755-1824). Q. When was the ice cream cone first , used?—F. C. R. A. The ice cream cone was first used at the World Fair in St. Louis, in 1904 R A Rhyme at Twilight By Gertrude Brooke Hamilton June Melody % ‘The air is soft and a faint, far-flung star Gives of its loveliness to tired earth; The hues of twilight form a shadowed bar, Now blue, now green, like distant ocean 2 surf, But rhapsody so swiftly turns to sorrow— We may not.know a dusk like this to- morrow. Your hand in mine is soft, your starry eyes Give of their loveliness to me alone, Your half-averted face must form no bar But turn to me because you are my own. So often desolation follows bliss—~ ' We may not know another dusk like I.hli