Evening Star Newspaper, February 15, 1937, Page 1

WEATHER. (U. 8 Weather Bureau Forecast ) Increasing cloudiness, followed by raim late tonight or tomorrow; slightly warm- er tonight, lowest about 33; colder late tomorrow. Temperatures—Highest, 46, at 2 p.m. yesterday; lowest, 29, at 12:45 am. today. Full report on page B-10. Closing New York Markets, Page 18 85th YEAR. No. BRITISH WARSHIPS FIRE ON FASCIST PLANEATTEMPTING 10 BOMB VESSELS Six Missiles Dropped Near Two Destroyers in Span- ish Waters—Official Pro- test Sent to Gen. Franco. FRENCH RAILWAY LINK BLOWN UP BY REBELS Air Raid on Border Declared Made by Squadron of Italian-Manu- factured Craft—Madrid Assault Is Reported Repulsed by Loy- alist Defenders. BACKGROUND— Non-intervention vs, intervention has become the cruz of the conflict in war-torn Spain. Although na- tions have agreed to a hands-off policy, recent charges and counter charges have been made of outside assistance. France’s latest ulti- ‘matum claims to definitely establish that Italian and German munitions and troops have aided materially in the course of events favoring the insurgent movement. The fall of Malaga last week is definitely attributed to outside aid, although Italy has issued another denial. A conference in London today between British and French representatives is erpected to set a final stand on non-intervention. Br the Associated Press. LONDON, February 15—Two Brit- ish destroyers opened fire when an airplane, “believed to be a Spanish insurgent plane,” attempted to bomb them off the coast of Algeria, official circles disclosed today. The plane dropped six bombs near the destroyers Navock and Gypsy while the vessels were stationed near Cape Tenez, it was officially an- nounced. The bombs did no damage to the ships. Official Protest Made. Official protests against the bomb- ing were immediately dispatched by 33,893. Entered as second class matter post office, Washington, D. C. @h WASHINGTON, D. C, Trans-Atlantic Air Mail Service Provided in $750,000 Request BY WILL P. KENNEDY. An initial appropriation of $750,000 for establishing during the forthcom- ing year trans-Atlantic airmail serv- ice on regular schedules between New York and London is the highlight of the Treasury-Post Office appropri= ation bill reported to the House today. The bill, the second regular supply measure of the session, is to be taken up for discussion in the House tomor- Tow. The grand total of the measure is $1,500,955,151, which is $15,041,067 below the budget estimates. This is an increase of $234,900,149 over the appropriation for the 1937 fiscal year, but this year’s bill contains the second increment to the old-age pensions re- | serve account—$500,000,000, an actu- | arial item over which the Appropria- tions Committee has no control. This is nearly double last year's increment, so that aside from building up this social security reserve, the bill reported today really provides for were granted in the 1937 measure. The bill carries $718,485,790 for the $99,851 less than the two departments | Treasury-Post Office Bill, Totalling $1, 500,955,151, Would Provide 4 New York-London-Round Trips Weekly Treasury and $782.469,361 for the Post Office Department. Four round trips a week between New York and London are planned in the inauguration of trans-Atlantic airmail, passenger and express service, beginning about November 1. This comes just 10® years after Charles A. Lindbergh’s flight to Paris in 1927. Representative Ludlow, Democrat, of Indiana, who is in charge of the bill carrying this appropriation, as presi- dent of the National Press Club in 1927 crowds who hailed him in the Capital on his return from Paris. Development of the trans-Atlantic air projects climaxes a series of inter- national conferefices during the last year. A number of groups from for- the matter with Government officials, | including Second Assistant Postmaster | General Secretary of State R. Walton Moore and representatives of the Commerce, War and Navy Departments. Representatives of Great Britain, (See AIRMAIL, Page A. COAL CONTROL BILL BEFORE CONGRESS House Ways and Means Unit Summons D. J. Representatives. BULLETIN. The United Mine Workers' Policy Committee directed the union offices today to expel William Green, president of the American Federation of Labor, from the union. BY the Assoclated Press. ‘The question of Federal regulation |of the $11,000,000,000 soft coal in- dustry came before Congress for the | third time today on the eve of con- agreement for more than 400,000 miners. | The House Ways and Means Com- mittee called representatives of the PRISONERS KIDNAP North Carolina Officers in Desperate Pursuit of Convict Band. BY the Associated Press. RALEIGH, N. C. February 15— Seven or eight heaviiy armed convicts. believed to be holding two prison camp officials as hostages, led State and county officers in a desperate chase just south of the Virginia line after breaking away from the North Caro- lina Prison Farm at Caledonia, in { Halifax County, early today. | Campus M. Waynick, head of the | penal system, said his latest report in- | dicated that the fugitives had aban- | ferences to negotiate a new wage | doned the prison truck in which they | fled and had commandeered at least |two automobiles, possibly making | drivers of these cars hostages also. | The convicts were at first believed Great Britain to insurgent authorities | Justice Department into consultation | to have crossed the Virginia Line about at Palma, Mallorca Island, and Sala- manca, administrative headquarters for the government of Insurgent Gen. Francisco Franco. The attacking airplane was describ- ed by official sources as “apparently a Junkers (German) machine.” “The British government is con- wvinced it was an insurgent plane from the type of mathine and the fact it flew off in the direction of the Balearic Islands after the destroyers opened fire, they added. Rebels Hold Islands. (Spanish insurgents have held air- dromes and fortified positions in the slands off the eastern coast of Spain slmost since the start of the civil war last July.) The destroyers were en route from Gibraltar to Malta to join their squad- rons, naval officials declared. The first formal protest was requested by Sir Roger Backhouse, commander in chief of the British fleet in the Mediter- ranean. The British Consul at Palma was 4nstructed to protest to insurgent au- thorities at Palma and Sir Henry Chil- ton, British Ambassador to Spain, will transmit a foreign office protest to Balamanca. RAILWAY IS BOMBED. Planes Raiding French Border Iden- tified as Italian, PERPIGNAN, France, February 15 (#)—A squadron of insurgent air bombers cut the railroad between France and the autonomous Spanish state of Catalonia today. Four planes circled over the city of Cerbere, on the French side of the border, then dumped their loads of projectiles on Portbou, Spain, ripping up the railroad track for a long stretch. Three houses, including the head- quarters of the government militia, were damaged, as well as the railway station. Unconfirmed reports reaching here | said 12 persons were wounded in the raid and that fire had broken out in the Spanish city. ‘The Catalan ministry of the inte- (See SPANISH, Page A-3.) GIRL, 5, AND MOTHER DIE AS HOME BURNS on the evised Vinson coal control bill. #hey expected to decide whether publi¢ hearings would be neeessary. Representative Casey, Democrat, of Massachusetts, invited a group of coal proposal for & Federal Coal Trade Commission empowered to tackle “without gloves” problems afflicting the industry. As the two groups gathered, mem- bers of the United Mine Workers were preparing to meet spokesmen for the operators in New York on Wednesday. They will endeavor to draw up a new Applachian wage agreement before the existing contract expires on March 31. Wants 35-Hour Week Extended. The operators have notified John union, they would insist on extending the 35-hour work week, with no in- Lewis would fight again for a 30-hour week and a wage boost. Lewis probably will devote his entire attention until April 1 to the new wage contract for his own United Mine Workers, and then will demand a steel employes’ agreement. That was the word passed around today among usually well-informed labor men, although Lewis himself has refused to disclose his strategy in his 1937 campaign on the labor front. Unless one side in the coal contro- versy meets the other’s demands or a compromise is reached before April 1, about 400,000 miners will strike that day. Lewis' forces in the steel industry will continue their efforts in the mean- time to enroll a majority of all steel (See COAL, Page A-8) ARREST IS EXPECTED IN MURDER OF GIRL BY the Assoclated Press, SPARTA, N. C, February 15— Sheriff Walter M. Irvin said teday he expected to arrest a “definite” sus- pect in the killing of 16-year-old Elva Brannock “within a few hours.” The girl's ravished and strangled body was found in an ivy clump be- side the Smoky Mountain parkway five days after she disappeared on the way home from school. Father and Son Badly Injured, Baby Saved, in Blaze Near ‘Winchester. By the Associated Press. ‘WINCHESTER, Va., February 15.— Mrs. James Rexrode, 28, and her 5- :m-old daughter, Lillie Mae, were to death in a fire which trapped them in their four-room dwelling 5 miles north of here early today. Her husband and a small son were seri- ously burned. Awakening to find her farm home near Jordan Springs in flames, Mrs. Rexrode picked up her small daughter and ran for the stairway. It collapsed beneath them. Her 30-year-old husband escaped through a second-story window with his 9-year-old son, Vernon, and 16- month-old- daughter, Lois Faye, in his erms. Flames severely burned the farmer and his small son as they made their way to safety. The baby escaped Without injury, it ‘was reported here. Rexrode and his son, Vernon, were brought to & hospftal here, where at- tendants said they had a “fair” chance t~ recover. operators to his office to discuss his L. Lewis, president of the miners’ | crease in pay. Informed sources said | 40 mi'es north of th» Caledonia farm, | but Waynick said they had been re- | ported seen heading west about 11 a.m. between Arcola and Brinkley, small villages in Warren and Halifax Coun- | ties, just below the State line. thrown into the chase to augment | the efforts of county officers. | Telephone Wires Cut. Fears that serious trouble developed | at the prison farm, born of the fact | that all telephone wires were severed, | disappeared when an official reported ;nt midday that the situation there was quiet. The official, Farm Supervisor N. E. Raines, said he was not certain | whether there were seven or eight | men in the fugitive group and that he could not name them until after his records were checked. Waynick was informed that the convicts overpowered Capt. R. D. Hinton, in charge of personnel at the camp, and Steward W. L. Roberts before making their getaway in the truck. He had an unconfirmed report that a red-headed youth had been abducted by the fugitives when they abandoned their truck and seized the boy’s automobile, Highway Patrol Watches. The big prison farm is located on the Roanoke River in Northeastern North Carolina, only some 50 miles from Virginia. Capt. Charles D. Farmer of the highway patrol here notified Vir- ginia patrol headquarters of the es- capes and also put his men in the vicinity on the trail of the fugitives. Waynick said word of the uprising was given by Charles Creech of the Caledonia staff, who had to drive some 10 or 15 miles to Halifax to a telephone. ‘There are some 400 white felons at Caledonia. About nine or ten years ago there was a rebellion there of such a serlous nature that National Guard troops were sent to quell it, but in recent years there have been no serious out- breaks. Lindberghs in Cairo. CAIRO, February 15 (#).—The Charles A. Lindberghs flew to Cairo from Alexandria this afternoon. Alaska Family Refuses to Flee As Great Glacier Nears Home BY the Associated Press. . FAIRBANKS, Alaska, February 15. —aA courageous Alaskan woman whose rqadside inn home lies squarely in the path of runaway Black Rapids Glacier refused to be frightened to- day by the approach of the thunder- ing ice mass. Housework went on as usual for Mrs. H. E. Revell in Black Rapids Roadhouse as the glacier, less than a mile away, continued its advance. “I'm not afraid,” she said, pausing from her duties as hostess to scien- tists and excursionists. “The glacier’s not moving fast now. It does make a lot of noise and sometimes shakes the house, but that doesn’t keep us from sleeping.” Mrs. Revell’s husband and her ‘son Harry share her determination not to abandon the inn until the last minute—all their possessions are packed for flight, however. “Probably it will break up when it comes to the Big Delta River. We're across the river from it.” The 30-mile long glacier, 125 miles south of here last vear was merel‘:n object of interest to the family before it began its movement two weeks 8go, Mrs. Revell said. It was considered a “dyjng” glacier then and its face had receded for centuries, as evidenced by rocks and earth in its moraine. “Oh, yes, the face was so sloping we could step up it,” Mrs. Revell said. “But the ice has broken off now until the face is 300 feet straight up and there are pinnacles 500 feet high. Where the face was a mile wide last Fall, it’s two miles wide now.” Her husband said “we're all ready to move out if anything should speed up the glacier, but we're not in any dread of it.” Contrasting with the ice-age drama being enacted, airplanes carrying scientists and sightseers alighted on the ice of Big Delta River. Among the scientists who flew to the scene were Dr. Ervin H. Bramhall, who was with Byrd's second expedi- tion to the Antarctic; F. G. Rainey, head of the Department of Anthro- pology, and Dean James H. Hance, dean of the School of Mines and acting president of the University i{ Alaska. introduced Lindbergh to the cheering | - eign countries came here to discuss | Harllee Branch, Assistant | GUARDSANDFLEE Seventy highway patrolmen were | WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION WGARRAN ALTERS RATING FEATURES OF PAY RAISE BILL Amendments Follow Visit of Nevada Democrat to White House. ROOSEVELT TALK LINK TO MEASURE IS DENIED Senator Retains Intention to End Present Uniform Efficiency Classifying System. Following another visit to the White House today, Senator Mc- Carran, Democrat, of Nevada intro- | duced a series of amendments to the promotion and efficiency rating fea- tures of his ‘Government pay bill, without disturbing the basic object of increasing salaries that do not ex- ceed $3,600 a year. The original bill would have abolished the mandatory uniform system of efficiency rating now re- quired by the classification act and substitute a flexible rule under which the Civil Service Commission could have determined to what extent it is practical to keep efficiency rating records. The amendments offered to- day clarify the question of how to determine efficiency of employes for purposes of pay adjustment. McCarran made it clear his talk | with President Roosevelt had nothing to do with the amendments. The Senator still proposes to abol- ish the present uniform efficiency rat- ing system. If his bill becomes law, efficiency rating records could be estab- lished “where the work is fairly meas- urable on a quantity and quality basis"” after consultation between the depart= ment heads and the Civil Service | Commission. { Limited to Measurable Work. “They will be limited, however, to | work that is readily measurable and | not dependent on the opinion of a | rating officer, the point which has | heretofore caused so much justifiable complaint of employes affected,” Mc- Carran explained. If the commission decided to re- | | quire a system for keeping track of “the quantity and quality of the work | of groups of employes for the purpose | of fixing compensation, today's amend- | | ments make it mandatory that the | | pay of employes so rated be adjusted | semi-annually in accordance with his work record. | Where the commission deems it not practical to maintain service records for a given class or to make such rec- : ords the sole basis for determining | the salary rate, the amended bill makes it mandatory to raise such em- | ployes one salary step within the | grade at the end of each year until (See PAY, Page A-4.) FREAK STORM SENDS TEMPERATURE T0 29 Lightning and Thunder Occur as | Snow Falle—Rain Due Late Tonight. A freak storm—with lightning and thunder occurring while it was snow- | ing—drove the mercury below freezing | early today. Although Winter thunderstorms are not phenomensal, it is unusual, the ‘Weather Bureau says, to have light- ning and thunder while snow is| falling. The temperature dropped to 29 de- grees at 12:45 a.m. about an hour after the storm, during which the wind reached a velocity of 32 miles | an hour and about a quarter of an inch of snow fell. This afternoon, according to the forecaster, will be slightly cloudy, with rain expected late tonight or tomor- row. It will be somewhat warmer tonight, with a minimum of about 33 degrees. ‘Tomorrow is due to be colder in the late afternoon or night, with moderate | southwest winds shifting to west, Summary of Page. B-18 B-13 Page. Amusements Comics Editorial Financial Lost & Found A-3 Obituary ..-A-12 WASHINGTON AND VICINITY. McCarran amends pay bill after White House visit. Page A-1 Mrs. Roosevelt's correspondents against social legislation. Page A-1 House subcommittee plans exhaustive fiscal relations study. Page A-1 Man rescued after being trapped in water under pier. Page A-1 Dutch submarine O-16 arrives here for week’s visit. Page A-2 G. W. professor believed to have iso- lated leprosy germ. Page A-4 Airways traffic control system in effect at airport here. Page B-1 Four seriously hurt in week end traf- fic crashes. Page B-1 Marjorie Smith, missing over week, found in drug store. Page B-1 Family of eight homeless and destitute after fire. Page B-1 NATIONAL. Three former U. S. agents named as “labor” informants. Page A-1 President talks with Senators on courts proposal. Page A-1 Bill forecasts New York-London air- mail service. Page A-1 Hayashi meets opposition of Jap- anese parties. Page A-2 General strike of Reading, Pa., hosiery workers looms. Page A-§ Farnsworth spy trial will open to- day. ? Page A-3 Short Story _A-7 Society B-3 Sports A-14-15-16 Woman's Pg. B-12 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 15, ey fiig, ALY ¢ Foening Star 1937—THIRTY-EIGHT PAGES. *%%¥% % The only evening paper in Washington with the Associated Press News and Wirephoto Services. SATURDAY'S Circutation, - 136,730 (Bome returns not yet roceived.) SUNDAY'S Cireuiation, 150,701 UP) Means Associated Press. TWO CENTS. MR-SPEAKER, TS MEASURE IS FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF RIDDING QURSELVES | OF THE BARNACL €S AND KILLBILLS IN THIS BODY! C EXG-MEN SUPPLY .M. LABOR DATA Former U. S. Agents Sup- planted Pinkerton Men, Senate Probers Told. BY JOHN C. HENRY. Three former Government agents have supplanted private detective agencies in supplying “labor relations” | information to the General Motors | Corp., the La Follette Civil Liberties Committee was told today by H. W. Anderson, labor relations chief for the corporation. The former Federal officers are William Larson and James Cunning- ham, one time Federal Bureau of In- vestigation agents, and John Pierce, previously of the United States mar- shal’s office in Detroit. Discontinuance of Pinkerton and other private detective services was ordered by Anderson, he sald, after conferences with John Thomas Smith, General Motors counsel, and Donald- son Brown, finance officer of the cor- poration. The new system does not call for “undercover” work, Anderson explained. The discontinuance, January 31, was directly a result of the present investigation, said, although he explained, he al- ways had felt such espionage to be “bad practice” Brown and Smith agreed on this point, he added. Initial engagement of the Pinker- ton service, it was testified by Hale, effective last came with the beginning of an or- | “Irrevocable” ganization drive by the United Auto- mobile Workers, chartered by the American Federation of Labor. It was the U. A. W. that conducted the recent | General Motors strike. This testimony was offered after the committee, delving more deeply into the labor espionage policies of General Motors, had disclosed that the corporation bought such service from 16 different detective agencies | or individuals from January 1, 1934, to July 31, 1936. Payments for these services, in some cases made to General Motors officials, and later indorsed over to the detec- tive concerns, totaled $839,764 in the period studied. | Three General Motors officials, who | are or have been in charge of “labor relations” work for the concern, were on the stand at the time. Anderson was called first, and Louis Seaton, (See LABOR, Page ) — Missing Girl Home. BUFFALO, N. Y., February 15 ().—Miss Virginia Skolyn, 29, attack victim, who police said had been miss- ing since midnight Saturday, returned | to her home shortly before noon to- day and said she had stayed with | friends because she was “afraid to re- turn home after dark.” Today’s Star EDITORIAL AND COMMENT. Editorials. Page A-10 This and That. Page A-10 Answers to Questions. Page A-10 Washington Observations. Page A-10 David Lawrence. Page A-11 Paul Mallon. Page A-11 Dorothy Thompson. Page A-11 Constantine Brown. Page A-11 Jay Franklin. Page A-11 SPORTS. “Composite” ring champ of past, pres- ent rated close. Page A-14 Gevinson on trial against Pena here tonight. Page A-14 Natie Brown cocky over outcome of Louis bout. Page A-14 Diz Dean, Hornsby at odds on hold- out issue. Page A-14 G. W. quint ranked among D. C.’s all- time greatest. Page A-15 Cooper licks “jinx” in winning Hous- ton open golf. Page A-16 FINANCIAL. Corporate bonds ease (table). Du Pont dividend voted. Mills use less cotton. Stocks sell off (table). Curb list uncertain (table). Steel activity climbs. MISCELLANY. ‘Washington Wayside. Dorothy Dix. City News in Brief. ‘Young Washington. Crossword Puzzle. Nature’s Children. Bedtime Story. Letter-Out. Winning Contract. ‘ Page A-17 Page A-17 Page A-17 Page A-18 Page A-19 Page A-20 Page A-2 ‘Page B-12 Page B-18 Page B-9 Page B-13 Page B-13 Page B-11 Page B-11 Page BAa4 | | Anderson } | Mrs. Roosevelt Holds Letters Show Prejudice Court Plan Foes Fear Ouwn Losses, She Believes. Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt hazarded a guess today that the majority of ! people who write to her in violent | opposition to proposed changes in the isupreme Court are against all forms | of social legislation. Judging from the context of the | letters she is receiving, the President’s ;wlfe said at a press conference today, |most of her correspondents who- de- nounce the judiciary proposal now | before Congress have something ma- terial that they are afraid of losing. Her mail discussing the issue is | about evenly divided for and against the changes, Mrs. Roosevelt said, but added that letters of opposition nearly | all reflect a prejudiced point of view. | The President’s wife expressed the | belief that it is advisable that every | aspect of -the proposed legislation (See MRS. ROOSEVELT, Page A-2.) EDWARD REFUSES TODELAY WEDDING Decision Carried to Mother by Princess Mary. | BY the Assoctated Press. LONDON, February day to have answered his royal fam- Wallis Simpson with a determined “no!” The exiled Duke of Windsor's “irre- vocable” decision to wed the woman for whose love he renounced his throne was brought to his mother and his sovereign brother yesterday by the princess royal, the family’s emissary to Edward at Enzesfeld Castle, near Vienna. Despite his sister’s failure to shake Windsor’s determination to marry Mrs. Simpson at the first opportunity, she was believed to have met with more success in clearing up the self- exiled monarch’s troubled financial affairs. ‘Two-point Agreement Seen. While the amount of money which King George VI, as head of the fam- ily, offered his brother, or the sum Edward asked to allow him to main= tain the royal dignity in exile prob- ably will never be definitely known, it was believed a two-point amicable agreement had been reached. 1. King George, it was thought, would m: Edward an allowance out (See EDWARD, Page A-8.) Is 15.—Former | King Edward VIII was understood to- | ily's plea to delay his wedding to | FISCAL RELATIONS STUDY ISPLANNED 'House Subcommittee Would Sift Details to End Controversy. BY JAMES E. CHINN, ‘The House Appropriations Subcom- | mittee in charge of the 1938 District | supply bill planned today to make an exhaustive study of proposals for set- tling the fiscal relations contrcversy between the Federal and District gov- ernments. J. L. Jacobs, Chicago efficiency engi- neer, who directed the latest fiscal re- | lations inquiry, is to be called before | the subcommittee, along with Charles Lord, Detroit tax expert, who aided the special Mapes Committee of the gation some years ago. Independent Study. a joint session of two special sub- committees of the House District Com- mittee. One of these subcommittees was assigned to consider the 19 pro- | posed legislative changes in the Jacobs i report. The other was appointed to | study various recommendations for raising additional revenue to offset part of a $10,000.000 deficit the Dis- trict is expected to face in the com- ing year, on the basis of the present $47,500,000 budget. The appropriations subcommittee, it is understood. decided to call both Jacobs and Lord in order to get a complete picture of the divergent views of the two tax authorities, who studying the fiscal relations subject. ‘The Mapes committee recommendéd a Federal payment not to exceed $6,- 500,000 toward District expenses. ‘The Jacobs report proposed scrap- ping of the lump sum payment plan, as well as the 60-40 ratio principle still provided in unrepealed substan- tive law, and the substitution of a 3- point formula under which the United States and the District would reim- burse one another on an interchange of service basis. Plan Regarded Unfair. Lord is known to regard the Jacobs plan as unfair to the District. Jacobs and Lord are expected to be called before the subcommittee the latter part of this week, although the date has not yet been fixed. With Supt. of Schools Frank W. Ballou on the witness stand, the sub- committee resumed its hearings on the budget estimates at 1:30 p.m. today. Dr. Ballou was called to defend various items in the school budget. Tomorrow the subcommittee will hold an informal conference with a group of prominent Washington busi- ness and professional men, and re- turn to consideration of the budget estimates Wednesday. John W. Mills, 53, spent 15 minutes this morning in the cold Potomac River, trapped in the black dark be- neath a concrete pier with only 6 inches of air between the rising water level and the pier ceiling. After his rescue he was taken to Emergency Hospital, where his condition was found not serious. Mills, & 250-pound engineer for the Smoot Sand & Gravel Co., stumbled from the firm’s pier at the foot of Thirty-first street, Georgetown, shortly after 8 am. and disappeared from the sight of the horrified Edward S. Herrman, a fellow worker. Herrman was atop gravel screen No. 3, 30 feet above the pier level, when Mills went overboard. He hurried to the pier ready for a desperate search for his colleague, when from beneath the pier he heard a muffled voice: “Get me out; get me out.” The engineer, father of a 3-year-old girl, had tripped over a block-and- tackle rope on the edge of the pier as he carried a bucket of coal to a travel- ing forge and made an involuntary sideway dive into 8 feet of water between the pier and a gravel barge tied to it. He went far beneath the surface and when he came to the top he had traveled about 10 feet under the pier, leaving him ignorant of which direc= tion would lead him back to safety. ‘The construction of the pier—solid Man, 53, Rescued From River After Being Lost Under Pier concrete walls resting on a log sill a few feet above the bottom—shut out all light. Herrman, August Przybilla and T. G. Herbert, general superintendent of the gravel plant, apprehensive lest he become exhausted and drown, pried open a trapdoor in the pier and shone a flashlight toward Mills, 10 feet away. They heard him cry: “Hurry up, I can't last it much longer.” The dim light gave Mills an idea of his whereabouts and of the direction to safety. “Swim out the same way you came in,” called Herbert. The trap was too small to admit the huge form of Mills. Mills hesitated. To follow Herbert's instructions meant a dive into the dark to get under the log sill of the pier and meant that he had to come up flush with the front of the pier to prevent his being trapped under the gravel barge. After frequent exhortations, how- ever, Mills took the chance. Herbert, Herrman, Przybilla and others were standing on the pier edge awaiting his appearance, and a minute after his head bobbed up between harge and pier the men had swung him to safety. The fire rescue squad hastened him to Emergency Hospital, where he was treated for exposure. Milis lives with his wife and daughter at 1008 Twenty- ’ Senator House when it made a similar investi- | The study will be independent of | the one to be undertaken tomorrow at | have devoted considerable time to | NEW COURT BILLS, REFERENDUM PLAN ASKED AS FIGHT ON PROGRAM GROWS Ellender Seeks Retirement of Federal Judges From Active Duty at 70 in Sen- ate Resclution. BURKE WOULD PERMIT SERVICE UNTIL 75 Maverick Backs Amendment to Raise Question of Court's Right to Veto Laws—Martin F. Smith Urges Referendum Vote Throughout Nation. The Tert of Attorney General Cummings’ Address Appears on Page A-9. ‘Two proposed constitutional amend= ments dealing with the Supreme Court were introduced in Congress today, as | well as a resolution urging President | Roosevelt to have a referendum vote | of the people on his plan to increase the size of the court. Ellender, Democrat, of Louisiana introduced a constitutional amendment under which the judges, both of the Supreme Court and the inferior courts, shall be retired from active duty at the age of 70. His amendment would also provide that their compensation shall not be dimin= | ished during their continuance in office or after they have reached the age of retirement. Senator Burke, Democrat, of Nee | braska, a leading opponent of Presie | dent Roosevelt's program, said meane | while he would propose a similar cone "sulunonal amendment. except that it would provide for compulsory retires ment of Federal judges when they { reach 75 years of age. In outlining this alternative, the Nebraskan asserted that, so far as he was concerned, there “can be no com- promise” on Mr. Roosevelt'’s proposal | to increase the size of the Supreme Court unless justices over 70 retire. At the same time. Burke said Attore ney General Cummings’ speech last night in behalf of that proposal was ! “an incomplete presentation of the case” which could be answered easily. Maverick Amendment. Representative Maverick of Texas, Dempcrat, introduced a constitutional amendment proposing that the Sue preme Court should have full authority to pass on the constitutionality of acts of Congress and to take away | from Congress the right to make ex- | ceptions and regulations in the jurise diction of the Supreme Court. Maverick’s resolution pointed out that nowhere in the Constitution is given the Supreme Court the power to declare acts of Congress unconsti- tutional. Maverick is a strong sup- | porter of the President in his present plan to reorganize the Supreme Court | and the rest of the Federal judiciary. His resolution is designed, therefore, not to give the Supreme Court a power which it has not exercised, but to raise a question as to the right of the court to exercise that power. Representative Martin F. Smith of Washington, a Democrat, wants a ref- erendum vote throughout the country on the President's Supreme Court plan. He introduced a resolution sug= gesting and recommending to the President that he take steps to have an advisory referendum on the court legislation, in which all the qualified voters of the country should partice ipate. Wants People to Vote. Smith in his resolution called at- tention to the fact that there had been no mention during the presiden- tial campaign of the President’s court recommendation. He says the people should have an opportunity to express themselves on it before members of Congress were asked to vote finally on the legislation. Smith said his proposed referendum could be conducted “expeditiously and at small ex| as the Post Office (See JUDICIARY, Page A-3.) 'TWO CHILDREN HIT BY TRAIN HERE Girl, 12, and Boy, 7, Seriously Injured While En Route to Deanwood School. ‘Two colored children were seriously injured this morning when they were struck by a Pennsylvania Railroad freight train in the 1300 block of Kenilworth avenue northeast while en route to the Deanwood School. At Casualty Hospital Eloise Owen, 12, of 4420 Douglas street northeast, was said to be suffering from multinie body injuries and Josephus Thomas, 7, of 4400 W street northeast suffered head injuries. Police were told two members of the School Boy Patrol—Clinton Luckett and Kenneth Robinson—were on duty along the freight line at the time, but were unable to avert the accident. The children were said to have halted in crossing the track to await the passing of a northbound train and failed to see another train approach- ing from the opposite direction. They stepped off the track in time to avoid being hit head-on, but were sideswiped by one of the freight cars and thrown 30 feet. Mrs. B. B. Brown, principal of the Deanwood School, Whittingham and Lane streets northeast, came to the scene immediately. She told police- men that pupils living in the Kenil- worth section are forced to cross the freight tracks in order to get to the school. The only underpass along the line in this section is located at Dean avenue, some distance away from the scene of u#y'- accident,