Evening Star Newspaper, June 25, 1936, Page 12

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHI THURSDAY e THEODORE W. NOYES..........Editor s bl e e et The Evening Star Newspaper Company. D. C. June 25, 1936 New York Office. 1 *nd 8t Burten Bme e Kevent St London Ensiana Rate by Carrier Within the City. Resular Edition 3 B}:I B!Idl!,u 45¢ per month (when 4 ‘Sundays). 60c ver month ihs_and Sunday Stat Jundays) . ¢ per month 5S¢ per copy 7 ¥ h. S ‘telephons Na- nd ers may be sent by mall or onal 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia, All' Other States and Canada. Daily and Sunday._1 yr. $12 mo. $1.00 only. 1ivr. Member of the Associated Press. The Assoctated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dispatches eredited to it or not therwise credited in this paper and also the local news published herein il rights of publication of special dispatches ereir, are also reserved Criticizing the Court. The criticism of the United States Bupreme Court in which Senator Barkley and Senator Robinson indulge them- selves at Philadelphia is not destined to lessen the court's prestige, nor was it so intended. The court has come in for plenty of criticism in the past and will doubtless receive its share in the future. The distinctly unfavorable reaction to its decision in the New York minimum wage case follows the course of similar waves of criticism of the past. The in- teresting point now is the use to which this unpopular decision is being put at Philadelphia. Senator Barkley and Sen- ator Robinson both emphasize the deci- sion in the New York case in explana- tion, as it were, of the difficulties en- countered by the New Deal in the enact- ment of laws that would stand the test of constitutionality. Senator Barkley went to some length in describing how five men may interpret the Constitution one way, and four men may interpret it another way, asking what, under such conditions, one may expect from 531 members of Congress? But of the eight cases against the New Deal only two of them were decided by five-to-four decisions. Three of them were unanimous, one was eight-to-one and two of them six-to-three. The New ‘York minimum wage case did not involve the New Deal. And if the New Deal is anxious to remedy the condition ap- parently exposed by that decision the procedure of submitting a constitutional amendment would certainly be more logical than criticizing the court. The danger of criticizing the court when such criticism comes from those in high places is that it may weaken respect for | the courts as an essential branch of our Government. That danger is hardly present now, for public sentiment in support of the courts is stronger than the criticism. Senator Barkley's reference to the fact that other Presidents have criticized the | court may be interesting historically, but is of no particular importance. Senator Barkley recalled, in this connection, President Theodore Roosevelt'’s state- ment in 1910 in which, referring to two “there would be really a grave cause for alarm” if these decisions indicated the court’s permanent attitude, for “such decisions, if consistently followed government.” The really interesting thing about Theodore Roosevelt's 1910 speech before the Colorado Legislature. and his sub- sequent proposals in connection with the recall of decisions of the court, is that they brought more criticism down on the head of Mr. Roosevelt than Mr. Roosevelt had been able to bring down on the head of the court. least one of the cases mentioned by Mr. Roosevelt—the so-called New York bakers' case—that decision has been rather consistently followed, and, over thirty years later, the whole system of popular government is yet to be upset. In his famous history of the Supreme Court Charles Warren mentions Mr. Roosevelt’s criticism in the bakers’ case along with three other cases which were unpopularly received. But, he concludes, “when serious error can be claimed in only four cases out of 564 involving the police power of the States and out of the multitude involving the power of Congress acting under the commerce clause, it would seem that the evil com- plained of was practically non-existent. Certainly no other branch of Govern- ment, and no other human institution, ever functioned with a slighter per- centage of error.” ———— In discussing the potato crop Secretary Wallace will scarcely fail to give some thought to the cold potato Al Smith dis- dained when reminded that he was at liberty at any time to claim the keys to the White House ice box. —_—————— Reckless extravagance is feared when bonus money is spent. This would put the high bracketeers in business to the trouble of paying more income tax to be expended under Government auspices. Accuracy. Politicians as a class are notorious for their contempt for accuracy. Every na- tional campaign provides numerous ex- amples of their willingness to distort the truth in the interests of theoretical par- tisan advantage. The current struggle s no exception. For example, consider Senator Alben W. Barkley’s citation of Theodore Roosevelt as an advocate of restriction of the Supreme Court. The date specified is 1910, and the Progres- sive leader at that time was in revolt against Republicanism. Yet the New Deal keynoter quoted him as though he were a regular and accredited spokes- man for the organization with which as & matter of fact he was at war. Again Senator Barkley complained that Herbert Hoover “unbalanced” the na- 4] | spects, be preferable. decisions of the court, he suggested that | up, | would upset the whole system of popular | | budget based on And in at tional budget, forgetting, or pretending to forget, that a Democratic Congress was in control of expenditures during half of his term of office. But the Kentucky Demosthenes is not the only sinner against history. His friends at Philadelphia have tried to dramatize an equally unjust misrepre- sentation of Mr. Hoover. They sent an empty hay wagon into the streets to publicize their version of a thought so frequently mangled as to deserve the correction of faithful reprinting. What Mr. Hoover really said was: “If protec- tion to American industry and agricul- ture is taken away, grass will grow in the streets of a hundred cities, & thou- sand towns; the weeds will overrun the fields of & million farms.” Only definite intention could alter such a sentiment into something useful to the re-election of President Roosevelt. But there can be no question about the attempt being made. Of course, there are individuals who are not disturbed by the momentary prosperity of error. But their attitude of resignation may be dangerous. The course of nations on occasion has been deflected by falsehood. Bismarck’s muti- lation of the famous Ems telegram is an illustration. It caused the Franco-Prus- sion War, which in turn promoted the World War of 1914-1918. Like Brutus, Mr. Barkley is “an hon- orable man.” Why then does he stoop to methods unworthy of his cause? The same question, incidentally, may be asked of certain Republican spellbinders. D Budget Practice Change. The provision in the District bill leav- ing to a presidential investigation de- termination of next year’s lump sum will radically affect submission of the Dis- trict Commissioners’ estimates to Con- gress and might well be taken as the opportunity for a needed reform in the handling of the local budget. Heretofore the practice has been for the Commissioners to bundle their needs into the limits of available local revenue, as estimated by Auditor Donovan, plus the lump sum. In the past two fiscal years the Commissioners have recom- mended to the Budget Bureau a lump sum in excess of $8,000,000—representing the average lump sums of the preceding ten years. Both times the Budget Bureau cut the lump sum to the previous year's appropriation, $5.700,000. That action alone threw the Commissioners’ budget out of balance. Local needs, requested as coming within the revenue availability of an $8.000,000 lump sum, were arbi- trarily eliminated when the lump sum was cut to $5,700,000. Under literal in- terpretation of Budget Bureau rules such needs might never be presented to Con- gress, remaining, as a matter of fact, concealed from the appropriating com- mittees. Next Fall the Commissioners will have to submit a budget predicated on the amount of local tax revenues to be avail- able. The amount of the lump sum will not be known until the President makes | his recommendations to the new Con- gress. methods in budget framing will be pos- sible: Either submit to Congress a local budget of needs, regardless of revenue availability, or delay the submission ot any District budget to Congress until the amount of the lump sum becomes known. The latter method would, in some re- There is really little excuse for the exercise by the Bud- get Bureau of its arbitrary control over the expenditure of local revenue. There is little to be gained by Budget Bureau examination of the local budget. By submitting directly to Congress a local revenue availability the Commissioners would be held direct- ly responsible for local fiscal policy in- | stead of sharing that responsibility with the Budget Bureau, inviting repetition in the future of “buck-passing” over re- sponsibility for not properly presenting certain manifestly desirable and urgent needs. Under a local budget trimmed to fit a known revenue availability the choice of items for maintenance and improve- ment becomes a matter of judgment. The Commissioners are in a better position to exercise this judgment than are the subordinate officials of the Budget Bu- reau to whom is delegated the task. If the Federal obligation to the District is to be fixed in advance, and fixed without relation to the amount of local revenues, | little excuse remains for Budget Bureau examination of local estimates. —_— e The confidence expressed by party managers in Philadelphia may recall the fact that before the battle the odds on Joe Louis were 10 to 1. —e——s France’s Peace Policy. France’s Socialist government, despite mounting domestic vicissitudes, has has- tened to formulate and proclaim a foreign policy. It is disclosed as a con- structive program to consolidate Euro- pean peace by every means compatible with French security. In token of popular support for such a policy, the Chamber votoed confidence in the government by the impressive margin of 392 to 198. While France favors any measures calculated to strengthen the peace- preserving power of the League of Nations, the Blum government would reform the system of collective security, with a view to correcting glaring defects exposed in Geneva's futile effort to check Italy in Ethiopia. To that end, France would set up groups of nations, bound together by either their geographical situation or some other community of interests. These groups would unite to wage war against an aggressor, while other League members would lend sup- port by employing “preventive measures” in the form of economic and financial sanctions. Under these proposals France could maintain her close alliances with Soviet Russia and the Little Entente and escape possible isolation under the British plan for purely regional groups. In pursuance of these general purposes, along with an effort to promote dis- armament through nationalization of the French munitions industry, M. Blum an- nounced that France will hasten the nego- tiation of three mutual assistance pacts. > It would seem that one of two | One would apply to Western Europe, another to the Danubian Basin, and a third to the Mediterranean. With con- clusion of the last named treaty, the French feel not only that no one nation could establish a hegemony over the Mediterranean, but that the Anglo- Italian duel for supremacy there would automatically end. With lifting of sanc- tions, the French confidently expect Italy to return to full “European collabo- ration " In the course of this ambitious outline of plans to fortify France's peaceful relationships, Premier Blum made ges- tures in the direction of both Germany and the United States. Expressing a “sincere wish” to find a basis of accord with the Reich, he declared he does not doubt Hitler's peace assurances, “coming from a war veteran who for four years knew the misery of the trenches.” But the Fuehrer is warned that deeds rather than words are the only test upon which France can afford to rely; that French friendship in particular depends upon a Nazi undertaking to respect the ter- ritorial integrity of Russia, Austria and France's allies in Central Europe. The government declaration emphasized French reliance upon the traditional “sympathy” of the American democracy with European efforts to establish world peace on enduring foundations. France now commits herself to con- crete and practical efforts to organize chaotic Europe on lines designed to de- limit the danger of war. But it remains gravely open to question whether amid the seething caldron of Old World suspicions and rivalries a workable pro- gram, under or without League auspices, lies in the realm of the attainable. —————— The address of Merle Thorpe to the Kiwanis Club demands a chance for the average business man. When big figures are handled and the sky is the limit there is not much more chance for an average business man than there is for an average, unimaginative astronomer. ———— Al Smith made enough impression in the convention hall to cause a number of delegates to look nervous every time a messenger boy came in with a telegram. —_— e Ladies at the convention may have faith in General Farley, but few of them manage to wear the look of serenity of a Whistler's Mother postage stamp, e L An effort is reported to liberalize the administration platform. Some statis- ticians doubt whether liberality should g0 beyond the four billion limit. ——————— When tax burdens weigh too heavily on posterity some schoolboy is going to stand up before the elocution teacher and recite “The Prisoner for Debt.” ——— vt Shooting Stars. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Crop Curtailment. On whiskers frequently I gaze That statesmen are wearing. A few are left on view these days To keep us from despairing; For J. Ham Lewis meets the breeze With confident position, And Justice Uses, well at ease, This emblem of tradition. Though Jefferson and Jackson wore No shrubbery abundant, And Cleveland never tried to score © With facial fringe redundant, We think of Lincoln, Grant and Lee With reverence unshrinking And wish that we again might see Such men of noble thinking. Collegiate men have set the style For scientific growing, And faces now display a smile ‘With unobstructed showing. ‘When crop curtailment seems to make So oft a serious blunder, I'm asking, was it a mistake To plow the whiskers under? Watch Your Hat. “What's the idea of the big sign ‘Watch Your Hat'?” asked Senator Sorghum. “That's a political warning,” answered the barber, “to keep some gentleman who hasn't a chance from throwing his hat into the ring.” A Fish Story. A bathing beach has been displayed Where delegates are meeting, And loveliness is on parade To give a patriotic greeting. A woman's wit can’t be denied. *Twill simplify contention To let the mermaid vote decide The sense of this convention. Philologic. “Do you favor the New Deal?” asked the taxpayer. “I go further than that,” answered the man who was collecting his final relief installment, “I'm in favor of & new dole.” Triple Alliance. The Postmaster General whispered a word To the chairmen of two great com- ‘mittees. With solemn attention his warnings were heard In the farm lands as well as the cities. 1In politics now from the Old World we learn Of a new labor-saving appliance. In one individual we may discern A marvelous Triple Alliance. “My ancestors,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “uttered words of wisdom which have guided my footsteps but did not provide me with the means of riding ipstead of walking.” Or Was the Name “Smithigin.” There was a man named Finnigan Who saw a fight begin agin. He had walked out Beyond a doubt, And then he walked right in agin! “When I sees a picture of a gentleman makin’ a loud speech,” said Uncle Eben, “I doesn’t pertend to know what he's talkin’ 'bout, bus I sho’ does sdmire his purty teeth!” F . \ 4 THE POLITICAL MILL BY G. GOULD LINCOLN. PHILADELPHIA, June 25.—The Roose- velt Democrats made another play for the support of women voters. The Demo- cratic National Convention voted to elect a full slate of women alternates to the Resolutions Committee, which drafts the party platform. The Resolutions Com- mittee, selected by the State delegations under the old rule, contained not a woman member. It was & man’s affair, This may have gotten under the skin of the women. Anyway, under motion of the handsome Gov. Paul McNutt of Indiana, the convention agreed to let the State delegations each pick a woman to become an “alternate” for the male members of the Platform Committee. The woman alternate will have a full vote in the committee, when the man member is absent. This is not quite the representation which the women would like, perhaps, but it is something. The National Committee of the party has two full members from each State, one man and cne woman, with ecual vote. If a similar arrangement was made for the women on the Resolutions Committee, it would double the membership. And, further, it would give the women a very great hand in shaping the policies of the Democratic party, as enunciated in the platform. * ok ok % The Resolutions Committee is con- trolled absolutely by the Roosevelt New Dealers. No plank is going to get by their watchful eyes which 15 not approved by the administration. That seems quite clear. Indeed. some of the Democrats like Senators Glass and Byrd of Virginia, Tydings of Maryland, and Adams of Colorado have refrained from going on the Resolutions Commitee, as they could have done, leaving the way clear to the selection of members not s0 antagonistic to New Deal measures. The action of these more conservative Democrats is-symbolic. These gentlemen are going along with President Roosevelt in the campaign, despite their distate for many of the measures he has advo- cated. There is a feeling against much of the New Deal, so-called, among other delegates to the Democratic convention. But they, too, are going to swallow their dislikes and fall in behind the party standard bearer. They are Democrats first and ready to subordinate their per- sonal views if they come in conflict with those of the President. * k% o Idaho Democrats are flirting with the idea of trying to persuade Senator William E. Borah to run for re-election to the Senate as a Democrat. Whether they will ever carry out their plan to request Borah to accept such a nomina- tion remains to be seen. It remains, however, that at a caucus of the Idaho delegates to the Democratic National Convention only 5 out of 17 delegates present were for going ahead with the nomination of Gov. C. Ben Ross, Demo- crat, for the Senate seat now occupied by Borah, and the rest favored the re- election of Borah and want to have him take the Democratic nomination. There are two difficulties which face such a plan. The first is to persuade Gov. Ross to stay out of the senatorial race, and the second, to persuade Senator Borah to accept a Democratic nomination. Borah has a great deal of support among the Democrats of his State. He has always had it. He is an institution in Idaho, as well as in the Senate of the United States. There has been a lot of talk among Democrats about putting Ross up to beat the veteran Senator this year. Ross has been a good vote-getter. But some of the Democrats who are friends of Borah would hate to see the State lose the prestige which Borah gives it by his presence in the Senate of the United States. The Democratic delegates here may have been encour- aged to believe that Borah might accept a Democratic nomination because he has been displeased by the action of Gov. Landon of Kansas, Republican presi- dential nominee, when the latter came out for a return, eventually, to the gold standard. Borah might be willing to accept the nomination of both parties. But it is entirely unlikely that he would | agree to run as the candidate of the Democratic party alone. * % ¥ x One of the first requisites of delegates to national conventions of the political | parties is patience. Never has it been better exemplified than at the present Democratic convention. The work of the convention might well have been accom- plished within two days—perhaps in one, ‘The party has its candidates for Presi- dent and Vice President. Its platform could have been prepared quickly, for it will be drafted in accordance with the wishes of the administration. Yet the present convention is being strung out to cover five days of sessions. Two days of the convention were devoted entirely to speeches and to routine business. The delegates sit in chairs on the floor of the convention that are none too comfortable while the speaking goes on. They are expected to sit there for hours. And at the proper time they are expected to stage wild demonstrations, ~lasting anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. It takes not only patience and good humor on the part of the delegates, but also physical stamina. * ok k% Senator Barkley of Kentucky has been widely congratulated upon his keynote speech, which he delivered as temporary chairman of the National Convention, and the congratulations are deserved. His speech was good, New Deal Demo- cratic argument. It had plenty of punch and was well delivered. The Senator wisely cut a good deal from the prepared text of his speech—for it was very long. What he had to say was effective and effectively said. * X ¥ % Plenty of pressure is being exerted to persuade Gov. Lehman of New York to be a candidate to succeed himself and io rescind the announcement he made in New York several weeks ago that he would not make the race. New York, the Democrats admit when they are talking off the record, is likely to be a tough State for Roosevelt to carry next November. They feel that with Lehman at the head of the State ticket, the national ticket will be greatly strength- ened, and probably it would. There has been talk of putting a resolution through the National ~Convention “drafting” Lehman, on the theory that the Gov- ernor would not turn down the demand of the national party if it came to him in that way. Such action by a National Convention would be unprecedented. There is another view of a “draft” reso- lution. It would be taken as indicative that the Roosevelt Democrats were really afraid they might not carry the Empire State. * ok ok % X Despite denials by D. L. Lawrence, the Democratic State chairman of Penn- sylvania, that he had any such plan in mind, it is reported that Democrats in 20 out of the State’s 67 counties have filed to “pre-empt” the name of the Union party, in order to prevent the Lemke-O'Brien national third party ticket from doing business in the State under the name it has selected. If such & courss were pursued in other States THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Air-conditioning is very much in vogue now. " It means tempering and changing the nhysical state of air to better satisfy and meet human needs. This popular use of the term “air- condition” means that the air itself is conditioned, or changed. To air-condition the water of a home aquarium means that the air is the agent used to change the state of the water, making it more to the fishes' desire and health. This is done by blowing air, usually by means of a small electric pump of some sort, through a rubber tube and out of a piece of porous stone. Passage of these fine bubbles of air through the water actually “conditions” it, in the best sense, by sweeping it clear of low-lying gases, such as carbon dioxide and methane, and giving it life and movement. * K ¥ This is one of the most satisfying operations in connection with the popu- lar keeping of small fishes in tanks. To see a fish gasp for air and to watch it quickly relieved and breathing nor- mally as the result of & column of air forced from the bottom to the surface is one of the finest sights possible in this sport. This air-conditioning is known as aeration, but the latter word is really not good, because it puts the accent on the wrong thing. While some small amount of oxygen is put into the water as a result of this activity, the blowing out of the harmful gases is the main result accomplished. This agitation of the water is brought about without roiling it, in any sense, unless the tank is extremely dirty. It must be kept in mind that the dirt of an aquarium is natural dirt, in every sense, and does not answer to the usual definition of “dirt” as matter out of place. If aeration 1is controlled properly— which means a gentle stream of air bubbles, not a great, rapid rush of them—very little of the mulm will be picked up and swirled around. * ¥ k ¥ Air-conditioning a tank not only helps the fishes, but conditions the owner’s mind in two ways. He is pleased at helping his finny {riends, in the first place. In the second, he soon sees whether he is managing his aquarium properly. Not every one can be a manager in real life, in the business world, but the owner of even the smallest guppy bowl must manage it or permit his pets to be- come ill. If proper management is not made a part of the daily life of the tank. irre- spective of size, it “goes green,” or be- comes clouded with white particles, or so full of mulm, or the natural dirt which collects in all undisturbed tanks, | that the first time a column of air is | blown through it the entire water is roiled seemingly beyond repair. As stated above, if the tank has only a fair amount of dirt in it, this will not happen at all. The circulation of water in the tank, by means of aeration, is definite but gentle, provided the air pressure is not too high. Most of the natural dirt which swirls up as it feels the pull of the air will be carried completely to one end or the other of the aquarium, thus manifesting positively the completely cleaning action | of the air. If bits of plant life, for instance, can be so carried, think of what that air is doing to the inimical gases in the water! But it will be found that all the dirt comes to rest on the sand again, and no harm is done, provided there is not too much of it in the tank. If aeration, or this real air-conditioning of which we speak here, kicks up “too much dust” in an aquarium, feel pretty sure that management is at fault. * X X ¥ Bad management shows itself particu- larly in hot weather. If more prepared food is put into a STARS, MEN tank than the fishes will eat, it spoils quickly and pollutes the water in no time. If the number of plants is inade- quate for the amount of animal life, or if the light is too intense for too long a time a day, something is likely to go wrong overnight. Proper balancing of such items means tank management and will be found to have the same application whether a little boy has a bowl of gup- ples or a few goldfishes or whether a successful business man or an eminent doctor has his battery of electrically lighted, heated and air-conditioned tanks housing many exotic fishes, some of them 80 rare as to cost real money. The air blown through the water not only adds its mite of oxygen and cleans the tank of harmful gases, but it also adds life to the water by setting up motion which in Nature is caused by winds and waves. * ok %k % While an average aquariuvm is really a small body of stagnant water, this cannot be said of the tank in which aeration is used several hours a day. The continual bursting of the bubbles on the surface, with their rapid run- ning forward over the water to the lim- its of the glass walls, the enhanced water surface caused by the ever-protruding bubbles, sets up a motion which closely emulates that of Nature. Indeed, Nature is surpassed, in one respect, for it may be believed that not very often does she cause columns of air to bubble up through the water any- where. ‘The {imaginative aquatic enthusiast can see before his eyes the gentle rush- ing of this cleansing column of air bub- bles, each one sweeping up some inimical gas or odor, each one bursting at the surface, releasing it. By the amount of these bubbles, so is increased the actual surface of the water. When it is recalled how limited this surface, in comparison with the ponds, streams, rivers and bays of Na- ture, it may be seen easily how vital to the health of the tank inmates is this increase of actual surface by the pro- truding bubbles. It is a pleasure to watch many of these smaller bubbles run into each other, amalgamate and swell to the size of a soap bubble as blown by children. This magic bubble swells and swells, aided somewhat by the froth of the water. * ® ¥ % Aquarium air-conditioning. as up, relieves them of gasping. | their appetite and, above all, gives them a sheer piscatorial happiness which is a pleasure for the right-minded human to witness. If all fishes in aquaria were kept “ac- cording to the rules” there would not be so much need for auxiliary help. As it is, very few of the millions so kept are given enough water per inch of fish life. Very few know what it is to receive the aid of the proper number of square inches of air surface per inch of fish. Practically all enthusiasts, although many of them know better, think that “just one more little fish will do no harm.” Hence the common spectacle of gold- | fishes gasping for air in tiny bowls and miniature tanks; of tmopical fishes crowded so thickly that they scarce can swim. In all such cases air-conditioning is literally a life-saver. With goldfishes a hand aerator may be used with success, best applied in the morning, for at least 200 “puffs” per two gallons of water. If persons who own fishes but have never tried air-conditioning could see what it does for them they would use this method at once, especially in hot weather, when thousands of aquarium fishes are just two gasps from oblivion most of the time, although their owners may not know it. AND ATOMS Notebook of Science Progress in Field, Laboratery and Study. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. Shortly after the middle of the last century both Europe and America ex- perienced vast clouds of .flying grass- hoppers which darkened the sun and aroused superstitious terrors that they were a foreboding of the day of judg- ment. The last such phenomenon was about 1880. Since then grasshoppers have hopped, not flown. There have been some great invasions, but thetinsect hosts have moved along the ground, where it is easier to combat them with trenches and poisons. The flyers disappeared. The mystery has just been solved by Dr. J. R. Parker, Department of Agri- culture entomologist. Hopping grass- hoppers are changed into flying grass- hoppers by heat and hunger. Grown at high temperatures and deprived of suc- culent green food in Dr. Parker's labo- ratory, grasshoppers in test cages ac- quired longer wings, became slimmer and took on brighter colors. This is true particularly of the species which does the most damage in the prairie and Rocky Mountain States. It is & curious provision of nature to preserve the grasshopper race. When conditions get so hard that they are on the verge of perishing they are sup- plied with wings to carry them to green pastures & few hundred miles away. Of late years, Dr. Parker says, the Western grasshoppers have shown a tendency to again enter the flying phase, after a lapse of more than 50 years. Extremely dry weather provided a stimulus almost, but not quite, strong enough to make the grasshoppers repeat their complete transformation. They have been more brightly colored than their immediate forebears and their wings have been de- cidedly longer. There have been some flights for as great a distance as 150 miles. : But, Dr. Parker says, there seems which permit such action, it would in- crease the difficulties, already many, which face the new third party from getting its presidential ticket before the voters. It is the kind of strategy, how- ever, which will not commend itself highly to many people. * ok ok * A story comes from Ohio that two eminent Democrats of that State are about ready to take off their coats and go to work for the election of the Repub- lican nominee for President. They are said to be former Gov. James Cox and former Senator Atlee Pomerene. There is considerable doubt, however, that Cox, who was the Democratic nominee for President in 1920, when Pranklin D. Roosevelt was his running mate, will ever take such a step. Indeed, Cox has seemingly given evidence of his support of the Democratic ticket this year. Pomerene, on the other hand, has made no bones about admitting that he does not like the New Deal. b little prospect that there will actually be another flying cloud. weather for a rapid increase followed by a period of severe drought would make it possible, but such a transfor- mation is extremely unlikely so long as man, by planting cultivated crops on land formerly covered by grass, provides good egg-laying grounds and plenty of green food for the hoppers. Meanwhile, the United States is co- rating with 25 other nations, chiefly those of Southern Europe, Southwestern Asia and Northern Africa, on more effec- tive measures of grasshopper control. All the participating countries have agreed to make yearly reports on the grasshoppers within their own borders. These reports will be distributed. the world over by the Imperial Institute of Entomology, in London. They are designed as aids against surprise attacks. The insects may be- come very numerous in desert or waste lands of one country, where they do no harm, and later migrate in a great swarm to neighboring countries where they do a great deal of harm. Continued re- search is necessary to locate more accu- rately the centers of outbreaks and to discover what makes the numbers of the swarms increase and decrease. Definite information still is lacking, Dr. Parker points out, on the transfor- mation from the solitary phase, which is relatively harmless, and the gregarious phase, which is dangerous. Several spe- cies occur in both phases and each phase can change itself into the other. Be- sides altering their habits so that they attack in a mass rather than as indi- viduals, the change of phase is accom- panied by various physical differences. In the solifary phase these insects are known as grasshoppers on both sides of the Atlantic, but when they change to the gregarious phase they become “lo- custs” in Europe and Asia. During the late 1870s there was terror all over the world at the flying clouds. In parts of Minnesota where they landed they covered the ground three inches deep. ~ Crops were destroyed throughout the prairie States. The most remarkable flying locust incident was reported from Russia in 1878: “A detachment of Russian troops bound for Gen. Lazeroff’s expedition against the Turcomans met with a cu- rious misadventure near the Georgian town of Elizavetopol. A few versts from the town the soldiers encountered an army of locusts about 20 miles long and broad in proportion. The officer in charge did not like fo turn back, re- pelled by mere insects, and, pushing on, the soldiers soon were surrounded. The locusts appeared to have mistaken the soldiers for trees and swarmed by the thousands around them—crawling over their bodies, lodging themselves in their helmets, penetrating their clothes and knspsacks, filling the barrels of their here | Suitable | ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN, A reader can get the answer to any question of fact by writing The Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. Please inclose stamp for reply. Q. Does Gov. Landon prefer to be called Alfred or Alf?—J. H. A. Gov. Landon has been known for many years as Alf. He signs his checks that way and prefers the abbreviation. Q. What play will be given at the Central City, Colo., festival this Sum- mer?—E. K. A. The production is to be Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Gondoliers,” di- rected by Prank St. Leger. Q. Do Ethiopians practice eircum- cision?—L. T. A. This is one of numerous Jewish customs still observed by Ethiopians. Q. What bodies of water does the Kiel Canal connect?—C. T. A. It connects the North Sea with the Baltic. It was built in 1887-1895 at a cost of $44,000,000. Q. Are national committeemen and committeewomen paid for their serv- ices?—N. C. A. They are not paid. Q. Why is money sometimes ecalled lucre’—G. T. A. The word comes from the Lat lucrum, meaning gain. Money is al a Latin derivative, from monet%, mean- ing money. Q. What is the name of the jockey who fell from his horse, was pronounced dead and then rode again?—G. H. A. Ralph Neves, riding at the Bay Meadows track, San Mateo, Calif., was pronounced dead after a fall. Adrenalin was administered and 24 hours later he had recovered sufficiently to ride, Q. When was the Field Museum, in Chicago, established?—E. R. W. A. The Field Museum of Natural His- tory was established in 1893, at the close of the World Columbian Exposition. Q. How much wood was used last year in the production of news print paper? —M. L. C. A. In 1935 the news print paper made in North America required more than 5,000,000 cords of wood. Q. How many bridges comprise the James River Bridge System?—W. L. A. The James River Bridge Bystem embraces three separate bridge struc- tures, connected by 11 miles of concrete approaches. The bridges are the New- port News-James River, across the mouth of James River, 25271 feet long. over open, tidal water; the Crittenden, across | Chuckatuck Creek, 2395 feet long, and the Nansemond River, across Nansemond River, 3,761 feet long. Q. Please explain the acquisition of the Purchase in Kentucky.—A. W. H A. What is known as the Purchase .n Kentucky is that portion of Kentucky lying between the Tennessee and the Mississippi Rivers now comprising the counties of McCracken, Marshall, Hick- man, Ballard, Fulton, Carlisle, Graves | and Calloway, still claimed by the Chic! asaw Indians in 1818. In October of | year the United States purchased t Chickasaw claims, a portion of which la in Tennessee. The question of boundar between Tennessee and Kentucky then arose and was fixed by a commission i 1821. Ordinarily the counties are re- ferred to only as “the Purchase.” They are sometimes called the Jackson Pur- chase because of the activity of Andrew Jackson as commissioner with Isaac Shelby in their purchase. Q. Was Tintoretto the artist’s real name?—A. R. A. His real name was Jacopo Robusti, but he was called Tintoretto—little di- er—from his father’s trade. Q. When Washington lived on Marke! street, in Philadelphia, was his house i the shopping district?>—T. 8. A. At that time the only business hous> ! near him was that of Henry Sheaff. Q. Who wrote the words of the sonz beginning “If I have wounded any soul If I have caused one foot to go —J. W. A. The lines are from “An Evening Prayer,” by Charles H. Gabriel. Q. What was the “Brigade of Riche- lieu"?—C. 8. A. This was a society, the purpose of which was to give expression to the dramatic ideas of the great cardinal. Q. In stock market parlance, what are cats and dogs?—H. T. A. Miscellaneous securities of doubt- ful speculative value are so called. Q. Is.there a country in Europe which has never been involved in war?—T. H. A. The little republic of Andorra, lo- cated in the Valley of the Pyrenees, be- tween France and Spain, has never been involved. It was declared independent by Charlemagne about 800 AD. and has been unmolested since that time. Q. Is Elsie Robinson, syndicate feature writer, married?—E. J. E. A. She is the wife of Benton Fremont. A Rhyme at Twilight By Gertrude Brooke Hamilton Motherhood. A singing spirit, rapturous eyes, Within their depths no wild alarms, No fear can clutch her in its vise— She holds her baby in her arms. Prayerful her eyes and full of dread; Her mind by panic tossed and whirled, Sensing strange, perilous paths ahead— Her boy has been claimed by the world. Quietude, twilight in her eyes, Her heart at peace, no more afraid— For out where man with mankind vies The son she reared has m: the grade. rifles and boring into their ears and n l0ses. “The commander gave the order for the troops to push on double-quick for Elizavetopol, but the road was so blocked the soldiers became frightened and, after they wavered a few minutes, a stampede took place. Led by a non- commissioned officer who had espied & village a short'distance from the road, the troops dashed across the fields, slip- ping about on the crushed and greasy bodies as though on ice. The soldiers were detained prisoners by the insects for 48 hours, and on the way to Eliza- vetopol found every blade of grass and green leaf destroyed.” That same year a cross-continental train was held up for three hours near Reno, Nev, by a host of locusts that covered the rails for three miles. 4