Evening Star Newspaper, October 3, 1936, Page 8

THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTON, D. C. SATURDAY October 3, 1936 THEODORE W. NOYES The Evening Star Newspaper Company. Bustpess Office: th 8t Pennsylvania Ave. cn)]lo‘v‘!"nrk o'fi:c‘ezef 0 East 42nd 8t ago Office: European Office: 14 Rexent 8. London. Rate by Carrier Within the City. Regular Edition. % e Evening Star____ ... ....45¢ per mont ar fwin 4" Bucaysy oot ___606 per month (wl 65¢ per month ‘The Sunday Star... -5¢ per copy Night Final Editlon. H Collection made at the en Orders may be sent by mail or telepl tional 5000. each month. ne Na- Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia ily an T y yri T $8l00: nasr -1 yr.. $4.00; Sunday only... mo.. mo.. Aoc mo.. 40¢ ily and nda: . $12.00: 1 Si? Snd,Sundar—} 7% 34500: 1 mo: Sunday onl: ¥r, $5.00; 1 mo. Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dispatches eredited to 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 Figuring on the Debt. The air, these days, is full of words about the national debt. In Pittsburgh Thursday night Colonel Knox and the President were at it nip and tuck, the Colonel on the offensive, the President in defense. To hear them talking one might have concluded there were two national debts. Colonel Knox was talk- ing about one of them while the Presi- dent was discussing the ogher. Their deductions did not agree, nor did the figures they used. Yet both were right. The President spoke of an increase of the national debt under his adminis- tration as being “the net amount of about $8,000,000,000.” Colonel Knox referred to “a Government deficit of about $14,- 000,000,000 since the advent of the Roosevelt administration. As far as the actual figures are concerned, they show a national debt of about $21,000,000,000 when President Hoover left office and a present debt of about $34,000,000,000— an increase of about $13,000,000,000. “They will tell you,” said the President, “that the increase in the national debt s “" thirteen billions instead of eight. * * * - When you are told that the United States Treasury has thirteen billion more of liabilities than it had in 1933 you should also be told that it has six billion of in- preased assets to set off those liabilities.” The President follows the style set by other New Dealers in discussing the na- tional debt, deducting the funds that have been loaned, by the R. F. C. and farm and home financing agencies, for instance, to banks, railroads, insurance companies, home owners, farmers and other private individuals or enterprises. This money, or a good part of it, will be repaid with interest if recovery con- tinues. But the money so loaneq still represents an obligation of the Govern- ment and is a part of the national debt until it is repaid and the money is used to liquidate the Government bonds by Which the money was obtained. Liquidation of these Government loans to private enterprises has already begun. But the money is not, at present, being used to reduce the national debt, al- though that was the original plan. It is being used to reduce the year's deficit. An individual who borrowed a thou- #and dollars from a bank, using half of it to meet current expenses and invest- ing the other half in sound securities, might argue that his net indebtedness was only $500—although he would have & hard time getting the bank to agree with him. But when his debtors begin to repay the $500 and he uses the re- ceipts to meet current expenses, instead of settling his own account at the bank, his argument loses whatever merit it had. And at present that is what the Government is doing. In this fiscal year over half a billion dollars are anticipated in net surpluses by Government lending agencies. .But the money is being used to reduce the deficit—not to reduce the national debt. The President spoke of the increase from thirty-one billions in 1933 national income to fifty-three billions in 1935, The figures are correct. But devaluation of the dollar in 1934 means that the na- tional income today is reckoned in fifty- nine-cent dollars (gold) whereas the income of 1933 was reckoned in 100-cent dollars (gold). And a significant figure in relation to national income is that whereas Government contributed 85 per cent to total realized income in 1929, Government today is accounting for about 17.5 per cent. The President’s reference to the sol- diers’ bonus obligation was somewhat confusing. “That payment i; now out of the way and is no longer a future obliga- tion of the Government,” he said. But until the money borrowed to meet the bonus payment—or to replace other dollars used for the payment—is repaid, the soldiers’ bonus continues to be a future obligation of the Government, to be liquidated only through taxation. ———————————— > In one short month the momentous question of which radio announcer showed the largest amount of prophetic intelligence will be decided. More Treaty-Breaking. ‘Those countries which comprised the old triple alliance—Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary—have achieved the dubious distinction of leading the world in the realm of treaty-breaking. Per- haps with the invasion of Manchuria in 1931-32, Japan is entitled to claim that she was first in that unenviable competition. But in recent times the Central Powers, plus the Italians, have been the pace-makers. With rearma- méent on land and sea and in Nazl Germany tore the treaty sailles into tatters. Then, by the air, of Ver- remili- pact of Locarno to & scrap Not long afterward, Mussolini, { o THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. (‘ SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3, 1936. THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. his war of conquest against Ethiopia, violated both the covenant of the League of Nations and the Kellogg pact. Now comes decrepit Austria and, on the pretext that the Nazi menace demands 1t, re-establishes conscription under con- ditions which presently will provide an army of roundly 200,000 trained men. Hungary plans to follow her former partner of the dual monarchy in thus abrogating the military clauses of the treaty of 8t. Germain. Austria’s rearmament, which began this week with the calling of eight thou- sand 21-year-old men to the colors for compulsory service, is not of itself de- signed to upset the military equilibrium on the Continent. It is important mainly because Vienna's action is postulated on the theory that the Hitler wolf is at the door. The plan has the full support of Mussolini and is taken in the teeth of warnings that the Little Entente states, which possess vast areas of former Austrian-Hungarian territory, are op- posed to letting Austria increase the army of 30,000 to which she was re- stricted at St. Germain. Despite grow- ing Italo-German intimacy, Il Duce still frowns at the specter of a Nazified Austria and a powerful Germany at the Brenner Pass. In the event of too severe protests, the Schuschnigg government proposes to submit its rearmament case to an inter- national tribunal. When previously such a recourse was taken regarding Austria’s affairs—projected tariff union with Ger- many—a World Court decision was ad- verse. Whatever betides, treaty-breaking apparently has become a world-wide habit and a more or less routine affair. President Roosevelt once said that the sanctity of treaties is the “corner stone” of international relations. The old block has been pretty well jolted out of its foundations in our day and generation. e — Greenbelt. Greenbelt, the Resettlement Adminis- tration’s low-rent housing project at nearby Berwyn, Md., is another manifes- tation of the New Deal’s avowed inten- tion to provide the more abundant life. Designed to show the feasibility of planned communities, socially and eco- nomically, the town is another of the now famous Roosevelt “yardsticks.” Resettlement officials candidly refer to this $7,500,000 investment of taxpayers’ money as an experiment. Technically, Greenbelt is termed a “demonstration project.” Conceived by Rexford Guy Tugwell, the town will be completed late this Wintér or early next Spring. At that time, some 3,500 persons, most of them probably Federal employes, will populate the village literally overnight. Evaluation of the project must cur- rently be limited to Resettlement’s prom- ises and plans. Even now, no definite program for amortization of that $7,500,- 000 has been adopted. In a recent series appearing in The Star one article was devoted to the financial phase of the experiment. The chapter was sanc- tioned by Resettlement officials before its publication to assure accuracy of fact and figure. The article revealed that the project could not be completely self- liquidating if it were operated as an exclusively low-rent community. If rents are low enough to accommodate the earner of $1,400 to $2,000 per year, only 55 per cent of the original cost will be returned to Government coffers—and so to the taxpayer—over a sixty-year period at interest. That means an expenditure of $3375,000 never to be regained by the taxpayers. Now, Resettlement claims that Green- belt will serve as a “yardstick” of plan- ning and construction costs for plan- ners and builders of future similar proj- ects, whether they be sponsored by public or private agencies. Unfortunately, the costs of Greenbelt have been increased by the necessity of using relief labor. All unskilled employes at the town have been taken from relief rolls. Various factors attendant upon this transforma- tion of dole-recipients into wage earn- ers have increased the initial expense at least $1,000,000, according to Resettle- ment estimates. It is, of course, patently desirable to put relief clients to work. 8ince this increase in construction and planning expenses cannot be accurately deter- mined, however, the value of Greenbelt as & “yardstick” of costs has been greatly Ziminished. But this is not the time to weigh the wisdom of starting such a project. The money has been allocated, much of it ex- pended, and the balance must be spent if any return on the investment is to be realized. The vital question, rather, is whether Resettlement’s planning, now in the critical period, can be coupled with a complete understanding of the town'’s potentialities to warrant this ex- pensive experiment. Every effort must be made by Resettle- ment to obtain at least a proportionate return on the investment. Part of the experiment’s burden rests with Maryland. That State is charged with granting a charter to the town and the all-import- ant duty of keeping Greenbelt's admin- istrative corporation devoid of State and county politics. Even the 1,000 fortunate families who will inhabit the “model community” share some responsibility. They must attempt to develop a “feeling of town ownership,” as Resettlement puts it. They must temporarily submit to New Deal paternalism if Greenbelt is eventually to approach the status of the normal Maryland community. They must, indeed, at first be socialized in accordance with Resettlement's plans for operation and government of the town. In the wisdom of current New Deal planning and the mutual co-operation of other interested agencies and persons | lies the answer to the question: Will the experiment work? Well Deserved Rebuke. If a judge speaking from the bench ever took the very words out of the mouths of a lot of plain, ordinary citie zens who could not speak for them- selves, it was Judge Robert E. Mat- tingly in Police Court yesterday when he gave a deserved dressing down to two officious policemen who had arrested & gentleman for kissing his own wife. ‘That was not, of course, the charge. The charge was disorderly conduct, the disorderly conduct consisting of the gentleman’s having had words—prob- ably very hard words—with the nosey policemen. It is easier to condone the gentleman’s losing his temper, which he admitted, than to find any excuse under the sun for the two policemen. Thelr conduct in this case is the very sort of thing that occasionally brings the force into disrepute with the tax- payers who hire them; hire them, by the way, to protect the public, not to annoy innocent and self-respecting citizens. The doughnut industry reports that it is prospering sufficiently to warrent ex- pectation that the statistical appetite for circles can be met in terms of nourish- ment as well as_pictorially by ciphers. Should computations become even more complex, the pretzel may be employed. —————r—e— ‘The pleasure of feeding the pigeons in Lafayette S8quare may cause some of the demand for peanuts in that vicinity. If an clephant should present himself in the neighborhood the complications of commerce would become baffling. o W. P. A. is commanding so much atten- tion for its cultural activities that for the moment this National Capital does not seem to care much whether or not Andrew Mellon awards it a real prize in the form of an art gallery. ——————————— A Harvard graduate was arrested In Shanghai while on duty as a photog- rapher for a Chinese newspaper. There are moments when the avoldance of for- eign entanglements, however desirable, simply cannot be managed. e cmees In his speech President Roosevelt notes commendable incidents in the career of Al 8mith, whose approaching radio date will reveal an opportunity for reciprocity in politics as well as in commerce. b There is always an inclination to measure the greatness of our forefathers by the extent to which some of their in- cidental expressions agree with the opin- ions of present-day statesmen. st The question is asked, “Where did Pro- fessor Tugwell blow in?” It may be found that the professor is a natural by-product of a gemeral demonstration | of spontaneous inflation. N As China contemplates assurance of beneficent supervision by Japan it is naturally reminded of racketeers who mention protection, at the same time submitting & price list. Conservationists of a political type are now determined to see if something cannot yet be done with all those Al Smith votes that were apparently wasted eight years ago. e Shooting Stars. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Historic Smiling. Rome sat upon her seven hills And smiled and smiled and smiled. By many great and beauteous thrills ‘The public was beguiled. Rome had been active, so they say, In strategems and law Until at last she smiled one day And simply said, “Hurrah!” Of Patriot Heroes Rome would hear Who served their country well. Some Solius Bloomius would draw near Of Patriot deeds to tell. Some Rex Tugvillius would conspire With an agrarian host, And when Rome seemed to go haywire ‘Was when She smiled the most. Degrees of Neighborliness. “Do you enjoy being neighborly with your old political intimates?” “Not at all times,” said Senator Sor- ghum. “There are things neighbors say over the back fence in the old days that are inappropriate at a town meeting or & church sociable.” The Real Parade. Where are you going, My pretty maid? “I'm going & voting, 8ir,” she said. “May I go with you, My pretty maid?” “You must or be out of The real parade.” Humanitarian. “Why don't you go home?” asked Farmer Corntossel. “I'm afraid to,” answered 8i Simlin. “The wife is waitin’ for me with & stove lifter and a rollin’ pin.” “We Americans are too lenient. In some parts of Europe they send a woman into the fleld harnessed to & horse!” 8i looked pensively into the distance and then exclaimed: “What a way to treat a horse!” “A rich man has much complaint to face,” said Hi Ho, the sage of China- town, “as he exercises vigilance as watchman over treasure that his family and their friends seek to scatter.” Bsse Ball and Politics. Base ball's the game that now holds sway With manners never rude, Outranking poltics that may Endeavor to intrude, Base ball with hope is never done, Though often, in the race, A man expecting & home run Can't even make first base! “De man wif de big voice gits de first attention,” said Uncle Eben, “same as & dition to elephants ad lnllu!klnconnhrwudhvgt. Dr. Bocock’s Plea for Hospital Fund Supported To the Bditor of The Star: I was very much impressed by the plea of Dr. Bocock, superintendent of Gal- linger Hospital, asking for an increase in funds for additional room in that insti- tution in order that he might do better work for the hundreds of patients under his care. I am an occasional visitor to that hospital and at times I have been sur- prised by the insanitary condition of things caused by a lack of space to do the work properly. Last Winter, when a similar plea was made by the superin- tendent for more room in order to do better work, a certain gentleman in the United States Congress, evidently visit- ing when there was a slump in the number of patients, hastily concluded that there was no more room needed. It took me back many years ago when I made an inspection of a certain school in the District of Columbis. The then health officer gave an adverse report of his finding. With the splendid corps of doctors and nurses that I have ob- served from time to time doing their best for the sick and afflicted, their work should not be hampered for the want of funds and other considerations. The hospital bearing the name of one of the most outstanding Senators of his day and time, this fact alone should be an incentive to the United States Con- gress to see that everything necessary for the accomplishment of proficient work be not lacking. In my younger days I acted as free chaplain of the Freedmen's Hospital for several years, being in charge of the eight wards and the chapel. Thus I have knowledge of what is necessary for efficlent work in such an institution, D. E. WISEMAN, Pastor, Church of Our Redeemer, Lutheran. Executive Power Always On the Side of the Angels ‘To the Editor of The Star: Mr. Roosevelt was never in better form than at Syracuse Tuesday night. Over the radio his speech was a perfect work of art, making the muscle-bound articu- lation of his rival. Gov. Landon, seem weak and dingy. But when admiration yields io sober second thought, two grave questions demand a more convincing answer, First, what are the real causes of communism? The Rooseveltian formula is very simple. Economic royalists breed bolshevism; soaking the rich destroys it. But when the rich finally refuse to be soaked and the near-rich come to their aid we have something else called fascism that is just as bad. A senti- mental bureaucracy that fosters class- consciousness cannot long hold the ance between these two dread alterna- tives. Mr. Browder knows this. 8o does Mr. Tugwell. What Mr. Roosevelt knows is anybody's guess. Second, when does opposition become “malicious”? The answer seems t0 be— when it must be taken seriously. Execu- tive power is always on the side of the angels, and any failure to approve and co-operate is prima facie evidence of some degree of moral turpitude. Espe- cially if one happens to belong in that high company of Washington and Jef- ferson, Jackson, Lincoln and Wilson! R. D. MILLER. R Acknowledment of Error On Ludke Citizenship To the Editor of The Star: We wish to thank that lady corre- spondent in The Star of the 26th instant for the “bit of information” regarding the Ludke flag case and admit we must have been wrong in intimating that Ludke was not a naturalized citizen. However, what I wish to emphasize is that the antagonistic attitude toward the flag is a grave error at this particular stage and might mean a message from Moscow. At dangerous crossings we in- stall danger signals, like “Stop, Look and Listen.” We might add when the red light shows it means danger ahead, or words to that effect. We would not forgive ourselves for censuring any form of religion that is based on the tenets of the golden rule, or the universal brother- hood of humanity idea. We presume the Jehovah creed is built on instruction found somewhere in the Bible, and we wonder how it can be antagonistic to patriotism and loyalty. Though I never was a Bible student I would deem it worse than folly to discard that Book for the worthless vaporings of Karl Marx and other red ruin stuff of alien origin. There may be “breakers” ahead. We'd rather be “safe than sorry” and its un- wise to “live in a fool's paradise.” WILLIAM W. PUGH. Safety Zones Not Secure For Waiting Pedestrians To the Editor of The Star: I read in the columns of your respected paper the account of the death of one of our citizens. The most regretable fact is that his death was the result of being struck by an auto while he was standing in a safety zone, presumably waiting for a street car, Of course, you have witnessed many instances where men, women and also children are standing in these so-called safety zones waiting for a street car in the day and, worse still, at night. Stand- ing there in a sort of fretful manner, staring at the on-coming autos, autos that dart by on both sides. What a strange spectacle to behold in this ad- vanced age in which we are existing. It may be supposed that the flood of events is too great for any one to single out this alarming condition and advocate its abolishment. Yes, people will have to continue to hasten across our streets and stand there in the very middle at the mercy of the multitude of drivers without knowing which of them is safe, Irrespective of what the circumstances may be, there is nothing that can miti- gate the great injustice that is imposed upon the people who are obliged to tolerate such a condition as part of their daily travel in this Capital City. AMERIGO P. ANSELMO. Lost Silk Hat Editorial Clarifies Syracuse Speech To the Editor of The Star: May I tell you how very much I enjoyed your editorial Tuesday night about the old gentleman with the silk hat who fell overboard? I knew there was something wrong with the fllustra- tion but I couldn't think just what it was until you explained it so satistactorily, And I enjoy. all your editorials. LOUISE KANTZ. The Thriller. From the Pittsbursh Post-Gasette. , we don't care much’ for a radio announcer who thinks he must tell us when to feel thrilled. The Newfoundland Rendezvous. Prom the Indianapolis News. Some of those Newfoundland bogs must be getting tired of having planes drop in without s moment’s warning. Rein in the garden spelled the end of the flowers. Though the New England asters were blooming, and the chrysanthemums on the way, with a few other things to flower, in the main the outdoor season ‘Was jver. That last rain, a real one, put every- thing in the mood to feel the first touches of real Autumn chill when it comes. Then the woody plants will lose their leaves, one byfone; the softer woods will die down to the ground; the leaves will be scattered from the trees, and every- thing will dig in for the Winter. Before all this happens, however, peo- ple with an eye to beauty can get their ill of the season, if they will look closely and ‘not let a little rain turn their thoughts away. % x % Rain is something the city person must approach with philosophy. 1t takes real intellectual grasp of situ- ations, as they arisé, to be happy with the fat lady permitting the water from her stubby umbrella to run down the back of your neck. This is an all too common situation in public transport. It develops, usually, when the lady tries to take her seat, in which act she bends forward at the waist, and permits the end of the short umbrella to poke the man in seat ahead. His collar, acting as a funnel, receives the entire drip, at least until he can make convulsive movements with his handkerchief, in sopping up the water. A dripping raincoat, too, is something to try the fortitude of the person who has none. Glistening wet, it is placed right along side the nice dry suit of the philosopher. * % % Such situations made quite sure that he who would enjoy the rain as it falls must be something of a thinker, in his own right. If this attitude is not only approached, but held forcibly, at times, the spectator will find few days more interesting than the one in which rain falls all day long. | He thinks, first, of how good it is for | the growing things of the garden. He knows, better than most. that it is the first real rain for a month. Everything was so dry. Yet everything—in the garden sense— looked remarkably well. It was just another of the unaccount- able things of an unaccountable season. It began everywhere increased in depth and height, despite the inimical Winter. Most persons, after such a hard season, ex- pected most shrubs and trees to do worse, but such was not the case. Everything | his reward, and so has the amateur home | last Spring, when foliage | Sounds and smells of rainy days must be taken into account, if one is to get the most out of them. Nor do we mean the smells of rub- berized coats in crowded places. ‘We mean the fresh clean ordors of the outdoor garden, smelling deliciously of wet loam and leaves. Often this fragrance is vitiated, at first, by a dusty smell, as if the water were taking into solution the very particles of dust which lack of rain permitted to pile up. *xx After the raln has been falling for sorhe time the garden has an entirely different scent. ‘Then all the wet grass comes up with & grateful essence of the outdoors, strangely reminding one of that other great outdoors fragrance, the sea breeze at_the shere. Each of these great natural scents has its own charm, one which has never been put into a bottle, and probably never wiil be. Every one has heard of the “garden after a rain,” but we hold up the garden during the rain as a fine place to be, too. Just a few steps in it, close to the house, if one wishes, and the whole aroma of Nature in little will come to the shiffer. He who sniffs in this world meets many objectionable odors, perhaps, but by con- trast is all the more enabled to rejoice at the good ones, and to understand and love them. % ¥ 8ensitive persons may feel sure that this fragrance of the rainy day is a very real thing, not just a figment of the imagination. It is a real herbal brew, made from the plant tissues themselves. Of course, the extraction is very weak. There would be no remedial value in it, but there is fragrance in it. Enough of the plant is washed to give | this fine odor of the very wet day. One | has to be in love with plants, perhaps, to appreciate it. Like many another good thing of this world, superficial acquaint- ance is worse than none at all. It is only when one becomes really interested in the garden, and its denizens, that every- thing about it becomes enjoyable. Thousands of piain people have entered into this mystic relationship with the earth. The so-called “dirt farmer” has gardener. One cannot have everything in this world. A man may raise huge crops and | | make much money, maybe, and still not burst forth with more leaves on longer | branches. Some thought this was to pro- vide for the cicadas, in laying their eggs. * x % % think about the fragrance of growing things in the rain. He has had one thing, but the amateur. who must do thinking | | to get his peculiar crop, has his own Despite the drought in this section. manifesting itself in an almost totally dry September, when often September is one of the wettest months, all sorts of | garden material did finely. The grass, in particular, was at its best. When that final real rain came down, the grass absorbed it gratefully, but | looked in as good shape at first as after- ward. This was just another of the queer quirks of the season. | subtle rewards. It is because this is so. because every one makes it so for himself, that the | small garden has come so into its own in recent years. Every one, philosopher or not, knows there is much more there than just a few flowers. a shrub or two | and a tree. There are birds there, winds, rains, frost and snow, the appearances of each and all. and the fragrances of each and all, making undeniable impres- sions on the least sensitive, but immense- | 1y more on those who stop to think about them as they go along. Thinking your | way around is one way of going places. STARS, MEN AND ATOMS Notebook of Science Progress in Field, Laboratory and Study. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. Venus, Earth and erratic little Mercury are engaged in a game of celestial foot ball—kicking whirlwinds back and forth around the disk of the sun. Such is the hypothesis presented through the Smithsonian Institution by Dr. Fernando Sanford of Palo Alto. Calif., in a study of the wide -variations in the number of visible sunspots with different configurations of the three | inner planets of the solar system. Some thirty years ago the English astronomer, Mrs. A. 8. D. Maunder, called attention to the curious fact that the invisible side of the Sun turned away from the Earth seemed considerably more favorable for sunspot activity than the terrestrial side. More spots were formed and fewer disappeared on the invisible side. For some unknown reason the Earth seemed to inhibit the formation of sun- | spots on its own side—or to aid their formation on the opposite side. If this were true of the Earth, Dr. Sanford reasoned, it should be still more true of the planet Venus, which is almost as massive a body and more than twenty million miles closer to the Sun, so that its influence should be more potent. He has checked this hypothesis with sun- spot records for 15 years. Earth and Venus move in different orbits. Sometimes they are on the same side of the Sun, sometimes on opposite sides, and sometimes half-way between. Dr. Sanford checked the sunspot phe- nomena on the visible side of the disk for all these planetary positions. He found that the sun-spottedness on the terrestrial side was approximately 80 per cent greater when Venus was on the opposite side of the Sun than when she was on the same side as the Earth. When the two planets were at 90-degree angles from each other, a condition which obtained 20 times during the 15 years, the sun-spottedness was about half-way between the two extremes. “It would appear from these results” concludes Dr. Sanford, “that the influ- ence of Venus on visible sun-spottedness is much greater when the planet is on the opposite side of the Sun from the Earth than when it is on the same side. That is, the apparent effect of Venus on sunspots is to repel them to the farthest side of the Sun. The phenome- non observed by Mrs. Maunder indicates that the Earth also repels sunspots to the farther side of the Sun.” The orbit of Mercury, tiniest of She planets, 1s so eccentric that it was diffi- cult to determine the precise effect, but Dr. 8anford’s analysis indicates that there is approximately s 15 per cent increase in sun-spottedness m;. the m e when Mercury is on oppuflmm.llc :‘I?ie. He also found a distinct relationship when Venus and Mercury were both on the side of the Sun op- posite the Earth. Now, Dr. Sanford points out, there can be little doubt that sunspots are highly the biggest electrical kick of all, due to its mass and position. Now sunspots long have been known to increase and decrease in definite eycles—the best known of which is one of slightlv more than eleven years. The relation of this cyclic progression to the planetary configurations remains to be worked out and probably is extremely complex. ‘There is a definite correlation between | the degree of sun-spottedness and the output of solar radiation. Again, as shown by the work of Dr. Charles G. Abbot, secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, there is a not- able correlation between solar radiation and terrestrial weather. Hence the configurations of the three inner planets may be ultimately an active cause of weather variations. Sun-spottedness is associated in a com- plicated way with the Sun's output of heat. 'This brings about, by and large, médifications of temperature over the earth. Hence the movements of Venus and Mercury may have an important effect on weather phenomena. Presumably the outer planets carry similar negative charges, but they are so far away that, so far as Dr. Sanford could determine, they exert no influence on sunspots. For them the whirling gas masses are too far away to be kicked. ———. California Leads in Soil Productivity Prom the Long Beach Press-Telegram. California leads the Nation in per acre production of watermelons and straw- berries, according to statistics compiled by the State Department of Agriculture. The entire State shares heavily in the watermelon production, but in straw- berries Southern Callfornia, especially Los Angeles and Orange Counties, leads. Study of these two minor crops indi- cates the infinite variety and importance to the State of its secondary crops, and further demonstrates the high produc- tivity of California soil. The watermelon crop, which will soon be pouring into the market, averages about $1,500,000 per year, and strawberries $2,000,000, & con- siderable contribution to the wealth of the State. In Southern California, the average acre yleld of strawberries is 209 crates, highest per acre yield in the world. This 1s due, of course, to both the highly pro- ductive soil in this section and the long season, which extends far beyond the natural limits of strawberry culture. Embarrassment. Prom the Sacramento Bee. Simile for embarrassment—The auto- mobile safety conference delegate who hit a télephone pole en route home. Food Reserves. Prom the Wichita Bagte. Science is preparing to make synthetic food out of sawdust. If Government re- letf continues the shelter belt will come in handy. #rom the Worcester Gazette. It is said there are 2,700 hidden taxes in this country, which partly why there’s nowhere left for the taxpayer to hide. 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, Divector, Washington, D, C. Please inclose stamp for reply. Q. How is the sprce measured which a plane needs for a take-off?—A. 8. B. A. The National Advisory Committes for Aercnautics says that the distance which an airplane needs for clearanca in order to take off is measured from the starting point until the plane clears a 50-foot obstacle or fence. This distance is approximately 1,000 feet. Q. How much time is taken for the ball leaving the pitcher's hand to reach the batter-up?—J. J. H. A. Mark Koenig went to West Point, N. Y., May 23, 1930, and, in making a speed test with a base ball before Army officers, threw it at a rate of 150 feet per second. Based on this, a pitcher can throw a ball from the mound to the plate (60 feet 6 inches) in about two-fifths of a second. Q. When will the New York Worlds Fair open?—W. C. “ A. The plan is for the opening on April 30, 1939. Q. Where did chimney swifts nest be- fore human habitations were built? —S. A. A. The chimney swift, chaetura pelagica, is a bird which has acquired a new method of nesting with the ad- vance of civilization. Before chimneys were common the chimney swift used to nest in dead trees. It has the unusual power of flying straight up and down, which makes it possible for it to get in and out of vertical apertures. Q. How many people are there at the Federal Reformatory for Women at Alderson, W. Va.?—D. E. D. A. The resident population of the in- stitution, including members of the staff who live on the grounds, is around 600 persons all the time. The institution was built to accommodate 500 inmates. Of course. the inmate population flucti- ates slightly above and below that num- | ber. Q. What is the per capita consumption of liguor in the United States?—T. A. A. In 1935 the per capita consumption of wines and spirits (based on wet terri- tory population only) was approximately one and one-tenth gallons. Q. What is the name of Julius Rosen- wald's son who is connected with Bears, Roebuck?—H. J. A. Lessing Julius Rosenwald of Phila- delphia is chairman of the Board of Di- rectors of the company. Q. How many Negroes are listed in “Who's Who in America”?—J. G. A. The names of over one hundred Negroes are found in the volume. Q. Where is Mrs. Robert Louis 8teven- son buried?—S8. K. A. In 1915 her ashes were taken to Samoa and placed in her husband’s tomb. Q. What is platinite?—E. J. A. This is a trade name for an allov of iron, containing 46 per cent nickel. This base metal alloy is used as leads for electric light bulbs. Q. How tall is Gov. Richard Leche of Louisiana?—E. B. A. The Governor is 6 feet 1 inch in height. Q. What is the Mechta race?—J. F. G. A. This name is applied to a type of man whose remains were first discovered in the cave of Mechta el-Arbi near Con- stantine, Algeria. The most important discovery of these remains, however, was made in 1928-9 in the commune of Oued Marsa, Algeria, where bones of over 50 individuals were unearthed, including nine complete skeletons. Q. What is the insect which attacks antique furniture?—H. N. A. The insect which attacks antique furniture as well as other types of sea- soned hardwood is the lyctus powder- post beetle. Q. How many people sre killed in fires on farms?—W. H. R. A. Each vear about 3,500 people lose their lives in farm fires. Q. Please give a biography of Belle Bart, astrologer —E. J. K. A. Miss Bart is 44 years old and a graduate of the Columbia University Law School. During the War she drove an ambulance in Prance. She received her training in astrology from the late Evangeline Adams. Her practice is said to run into six figures and she maintains an office in New York City, with branch offices in Paris and Johannesburg. In addition her activities include editing an astrological magazine and directing the American Academy of Astrology, & correspondence school. Q. What is a marchpast?>—C. B. A. This is a coined word used by Eng- lish officers in lieu of our word review. Q. What is cytology?—G. R. A. It is a biological term and iz the study of the structure of cells and their activities. Q. When did Lincoln's body lie in state at Independence Hall?>—E. W, A. From April 22-24, 1865, —_ e Warning Widows. Prom the Yakima Republic. State fair officlals announce a display of black widows, presumably to teach the populace what to avoid. There will also be the usual number of the merry variety, and the wise will get the same lesson from that display. e Straw Votes. Prom the Kansas City Star. Straw votes are more or less in the class of assorted relishes—good appe- tizers, but lacking in rib-sticking vitae mins. - -ee 8 A Rhyme at Twilighi B Y Gertrude Brooke Hamilton Afterglow ‘What does sunset leave in fading? Golden clouds against the blue, Changing to a dusky hue, Evanescent 4in its shading. ‘What does Summer leave in going? Little bird nests in the trees Swaying in the twilight breeze; Oft a blue-flecked eggshell showing. ‘What of love that has departed? ‘When the fire has burned to embersy Any one it warmed remembers The bright glow its high flame started.