Evening Star Newspaper, May 15, 1937, Page 18

By Leila Mechlin. HE Phillips Memorial Gallery has been completely rehung since the close of the loan ex- hibition of paintings and sculpture owned in Washington, and although only a few new pictures are added, the effect is strikingly dif- ferent from that created by other ar- rangements in past. Primarily it stressed that which is modern. In the main upper gallery are featured paintings by Cezanne, Matisse, Gau- guin, Picasso and others who have more or less turned the world of art upside down. In the small gal- lery at the foot of the steps, 11 paint- ings (water colors) by John Marin are to be seen; while in the little library on the first floor to the left of the entrance, only works by Eilshemus are at present on view, and above Ssairs one small gallery is, likewise, &lven over to abstractions by Braque. Thus many facets of this contempo- raneous art may be seen and studied comparatively. At the end of the large upper gal- Jery, where habitual visitors have become accustomed to see the master- piece by Renoir, “Luncheon of the Boating Party,” there now hangs the large, familiar canvas, “The Terrace,” by Pierre Bonnard—a painting ap- proximately 6 by 8 feet in dimensions —broadly and rather loosely painted, but in such wise that at a distance the illusion of outdeor light and air is most realistically presented. This great canvas is flanked by two small ones by the same artist, both figures, Within doors, but in identical man- ner and similar color schemes. Bon- nard's work is not meant to be looked at close to, but at a distance, when the several planes fall into place, and, from the seemingly confused mass of oolor, unity of effect is attained. Centering the wall to the right is “The Torso,” by Matisse, with be- side it the ailer still life by the same painter, “Anemones and Mir- ror,” which lends a rich note of oolor. Cezanne's “Self Portrait” and his lovely landscape, “Mt. St. cent,’ perhaps the finest thing he ever did, hang on this wall side by side, and at the other end may be ®een a landscape featuring curving river, painted by Marjorie Phillips, which admirat distinguished com g On the opposite wall, facing “The ‘Torso,” he famous Van Gogh, " so very characteristic genius’ manner of whipping up his paint with swirling strokes indicative of restless motion. To the right of this is Picasso's “The | Blue Room,® well known through re- production, but pleasing neither in oolor nor composition, and to the left a colorful and superb fruit piece by Maurice Sterne, whose works must either be liked or disliked heartily, never half way. Redon’s “Myster: impossible of solution—hangs here next to “Cabs for Hire,” by Eilshemus, Wwhose mental reactions are as trans- | ‘parent and simple as a child’s. Like- wise Per Krohg's “Blacksmith” and a starkly painted trce trunk, “Old Tree,” by A. H. Maurer, are mated. In this gathering a full length por- trait study of “Sulking Boy,” by George Luks, one of the first paintings acquired by Mr. Phillips for the gallery collection, appears again and to excellent advantage. Here, too, *Mano, the Dancer,” by Derain, lends distinction on an end wall, beautifully complemented by two little still life studies—"Lemons and ~ Tangerines,” | by Albert Andre, and “Fruit and | Plate,” by D. Edzard, precisely right | in color and style, to offset the more | important composition. This place-} ment is little less than a stroke of | genuis on the part of wWhosoever was | responsible for the hanging. | N THE large gallery below stairs, | are several old favorites, paintings | which can be seen again and again | Wwith undiminished pleasure, such as; the Courbets—“Rocks at Ornans” and | “The Mediterranean Sea"—the land- scape with cotonwood trees or blos- soming fruit trees by Derain—the “Repentent Peter” by Ed Greco, “The Uprising” by Daumier; Chardin’s ex- quisite still life and our own George Fuller's enchanting portrait study of a young girl, which is to be num- bered among his most sensitive and superior works. Attention is also caught and held by a little painting by Fantin Latour of “Manet in His Studio,” which is peculiarly engaging. | The master is seated at his easel, look- ing toward his model, a young boy posed to his left, while standing be- hind him and peering over his shoul- der are three men, presumably col- | leagues. This littie picture has the | toneful quality of works by those of | the older school 2nd would fit in with | the several paintings by Daumier dis- played in an upstairs gallery together with Delacroix’s inimitable “Paganini.” It is a gem—a most enviable posses- sion Among the latest acquisitions now on view in the Phillips Memorial Gal- lery are two paintings by Eilshemus— one a landscape entitled “Moonlight,” the other a city picture, “Park ‘Avenue,” presumably, New York. Both of these are hung with the other works by the same painter in the little li- brary. They are larger canvases than Mr. Eilshemus usually has painted and are rather broad in rendering. The one is dated 1917, the other 1918. The scene of the former is a river bend | with bank covered by wild growth. Tha figure of a man in a small boat on the turbulent stream gives scale to the composition, dark in tone and but dimly lit by the round, pale moon in | the broad expanse of overtopping sky. The picture of Park avenue pre- sents a view south at twilight. The stretch in the foreground is brown and rather dreary, but beyond, and sharply differentiated in color, rise the sky- scraper towers against the luminous evening sky, the lights from their myriad windows already twinkling. ‘HERE are three other landscapes in 11" this one-man show by Eilshemus, *Bridge for Fishing,” which hangs over the mantel and unluckily loses much of its subtlety by artificial lighting; a *“Samoan Scene,” an early work, and “Twilight on the River,” which shows a charming sky tinted by afterglow. All three of these can- vases are sensistively rendered and peculiarly characteristic. Less pleas- ing, but perhaps equally indicative of individuality of genius, are two of the three figure compositions which make up the collective showing. In connection with the rehanging of the Phillips Memorial Gallery men- tion should also be made of the re- Vin- | in the library, which may be interest- ingly contrasted with the abstractions above stairs by Braque, who follows Picasso and uses as vehicles wel] known forms which he distorts. Hearty re- welcome may well be given to the mastely portrait of “Miss Van Buren,” by Thomas Eakins which now hangs in the front hallway. Within the past 10 years Eakins paintings have come to be numbered with the foremost and finest, collectors and museums vying for their possession. The recent sale of a portrait study by Eakins of a “Young Woman in Pink Dress” to a private collector has been prominently noted in the leading daily newspapers as well as art journals. The Phillips Memorial Gallery is fortunate indeed in possessing one of the most im- | portant works in portraiture by this | American master. | Incidentally and as indicative of the | generosity of museums in this country, one to another, it is interesting to know that this gallery’s renoir—“The Lunch of the Canoeists"—is now on loan to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and included in a special exhibi- tion which opened therein this week. More Galleries | Wanted. JASHINGTON is fortunate in its art galleries and in the fact that they supplement one another. The | great, new National Gallery of Art | will contain chiefly Old World master- | picces; the Corcoran Gallery of Art | takes first rank because of its Ameri- | can collection dating back to Colonial ‘days and bringing the record up to the present; the Freer Gallery is known the world over for its treasures of Oriental art, in addition to its works by Whistler; the Phillips Gal- |lery is at present stressing modern art, especially the French school, which | has proved so influential as measured by great works of the past, and the | Textiie Museum has a field of its own, supplemented, obviously, but not du- plicated, by the Clark collection, of | Which the Corcoran Gallery of Art is custodian. And still there are wants which are not filled. There is no national por- | trait gallery, although there are many | fine works in this field in Govern- ment ownesrship, portraits in some in- | stances by distinguished painters hanging in the Capitol and in govern- mental departments, to say nothing of the interesting collection of por- traits of men prominent in the World War—the most distinguished men of | the allied nations—painted to orderi and presented to the United States by 1 | & self-organized committee, of which | | Herbert Pratt was chairman. These | | paintings, which include portraits of | Cardinal Mercier, Admiral Beatty and | | Clemenceau by Cecilia Beaux, Lloyd | | George by Bolk, Foch by Tarbell, and | | Joffre by Johansen, to mention only a | | few, now hang in the ill-lighted cor- irldor of the rotunda in the Natural ‘Hlsrm}' Building of the National | Museum. Also there is no gallery for | the display of the National art col- | | lections of which the Smithsonian | Institution is custodian. But, strange as it may seem, there is not in the whole City of Washington a single art | dealer’s establishment with a well- | equipped gallery for transient exhi- | bitions nor a single print-seller where | | the print lover and collector can ex- | amine prints of quality and make purchases. These last are almost | unaccountable wants. Much is said in regard to Washington, the capital of our Nation, becoming an art center, | but it should not be forgotten that no city becomes an art center until it has become an art market—the two go hand in hand. | | The Famous Bache Collection To Become Public Possession. HE recent announcement of the gift of the Jules S. Bache col- lection to the State of New York has caused no little excitement in art circles. This is a rich and valuable collection comprising 60 paintings of rare and superlative character. Accord- ing to the announcement, the terms of | gift include the Bache residence on | | upper Fifth avenue and provision for | their permanent housing. Like the Mellon gift, these works and funds | for the upkeep of the collection and | its housing are vested in a trust—the | Bache foundation—with the approval | of the Board of Regents of the State | of New York— and to be so controlled | and administered. Thus the collection | will be kept together indefinitely and another little museum will be added to New York. Such gift is immeasurably generous. It means a perpetual sharing with the public, but it erects barriers and creates limitations that may be worth considering. What has been and is the fate of such private museums when made into public institutions? The Wallace collection of London is perhaps the outstanding success. In this, interest has never waned. But even there the attendance is certainly not comparable with that of the Na- tional Gallery. The Gardner Museum of Boston (Fenway Court), which is on a very lavish scale and has a very varied content, iz admittedly very dead and cold, as & public institution —static; and, after a trial of unsuc- cessful showing in the donor’s private residence, the Johnson collection of Philadelphia has been largely trans- ferred to the Pennsylvania Museum. When the Frick collection was first opened to the public a year or more ago there were many who clamored for admission—so many that appli- cation had to be made in advance and tickets issued—but the attendance today, without such formalities, is, it is stated, only about 100 a day. In other words, the art museum in a converted residence, separate and alone, appeals to and reaches a very small public. Also 1t is a question whether or not the multiplication of small musetims is an unalloyed blessing. There can even be “too much of a good thing”— such as this. Obviously a collector takes pride in keeping together the collection he has assembled—he wants it to have his name—and today prac- tically all large museums will not accept gifts under such conditions, be- cause of the conviction that they break the sequence and lessen edu- cational vaiues. But how much safer and more permanent would such placement’ be in, for example, the new National Gallery or Art, which is coming into existence through Mr. Mellon’s munificence? Mr. Mellon has specifically stated that he hopes other collectors will make contribu- tion and join with him in upbuilding & national collection of the utmost value and artistic importance. As a national gallery the anticipation is that it will attract gifts from col- lectors in other cities. The Bache showing of the lovely abstract, paint- ings by Augustus Vincent Tack, orig- inally purposed for deczxauve panels ! coliection, unassigned, has undoubtedly given rise to speculation. And why, after all, }:ut 20 much P THE EVENING STAR; WASHINGTON, D. C., SATURDAY, MAY 15, 1837. REBIRTH GIVEN PHILLIPS ART Stressing of Modern Art Is Feature of New Arrangement and Has Effect of Developing Interest in Gallery—Needs of Washington and Some Patts of Nation. art be piled up in one city? Leaving aside the National Gallery of Art, which will be for all the people, why should not some of the fine, smail private collections go to cities in the West and South where no examples of really great art are still to be seen? The little museum has many advan- tages, but not, it would seem, in the great city. “The Fine Arts and Philanthropy,” a Guide Book To Giving. APROPOS of gifts of works of art to the public, a little book has been published by the Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co. of New York en- titled “The Fine Arts and Philan- thropy,” which, while primarily in- tended for prospective donors, is full of enlightening facts. It is the re- sult of a survey made by this com- pany’s “Department of Philanthropic Information,” the services of which are open to any one interested in wise public giving. After establishing the importance and place of the fine arts in life, a brief account is given of vast sums donated in recent years to art museums and institutions de- voted to education in the arts. In six cities these donations, it states, in 1935, amounted to over seven mil- lion dollars. William R. Nelson's gift to the Art Museum in Kansas City is estimated at $11,000,000—that of Frank Munsey’s to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, $10,000,000. But of all, Mr. Mellon’s to the National Gal- lery of Art is most princely. These activities, it is shown, ex- tend over a wide field, and include the Coolidge gift to music in the Library of Congress; the Cranbrook Foundation for teaching in Michigan, endowed by George G. Booth, an- other newspaper man; besides the activities and beneficences of the several foundations. The public art collections of this country are ap- praised as worth over $2,000,000,000, and the museum buildings alone as representing expenditures of upward of $75,000,000. What is more—the yearly attendance at the Metropolitan Museum in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago approximates 1,000,000—which evidences a grati- fying appreciation. Excellent advice is given in con- clusion in regard to further giving, | especially with reference to stability and service. The issuance of such a book by a bank and trust company is in itself significant. A Washington Film Society Formed as Branch of Film Library, New York. FURTHER quickening of interest in art in Washington is evidenced by the formation of a film society here, as announced at a meeting held late last week at the Sulgrave Club, under the aegis of the Museum of Modern Art, New York. At this meeting John E. Abbott, director of the Film Library of this museum, told how it had been upbuilt and to what uses it was being put; and Iris Barry, curator, gave interesting account of the founding of the first Film Library in London with some of the leading British artists and playwrights co- operating. . A book by Vachel Lindsay on “The Moving Picture as an Art” lent im- Petus to the establishment of the Film Library in New York, funds for which were supplied by the Rockefeller Foundation. This library, it should be | understood, comprises not merely books and articles about moving pic- tures, but the actual films, and the collection now available through this source goes back to the infancy of the art and brings the record up to within two years of the present day. These films are lent to affiliated societies for educational use, which, however, must not conflict with the commercial. In outlining the purposes and pro- posed activities of the Washington Film Society, Mr. Robert Lincoln O’'Brien, chairman, especially stressed the possibility of co-operation with the diplomatic representatives of for- eign countries and of obtaining through them films made in other lands which would evidence original development. Obviously the intent is to regard the moving pictures as an art and to better realize its po- tentiality. But strangely enough when the word art is applied to the cinema, in almost every instance, it refers to the drama rather than pictorialization. For some reason or other the composi- tion of these pictures, their design, and visual merit, even as background for specific action, has so far been taken little into account as artistic expression. Yet what other picture- maker calls the fundamentals of art more constantly into use or creates for so wide and particular an audi- ence? If the newly formed Film Society will lead atteéntion in this direction and stress the duality of this art it will be rendering valuable service. Architectural League of New York Shows Notable Exzhibition And Especially Honors Charles Moore, Chairman of the Commission of Fine Arts. MANY of the mural paintings pur- posed for placement in public buildings and executed under Gov- ernment auspices have been shown recently, full size or by scale designs, in the Architectural League’s annual exhibition in the American Fine Arts Building, New York, which closes to- day. In fact these, with works in sculpture and handicrafts, dominated the show. The Gold Medal of Honor in architecture was awarded to the architects of Rockefeller Center—three groups, Reinhardt and Hofmeister; Corbett, Harrison and MacMurray; and Hood and Foulihoux. Otto Eggers won the Long Memorial Prize for an archi- tectural rendering by a rendering of the Archives Building, designed by his partner, John Russell Pope. The Gold Medal of Honor in decorative painting went to Howard Cook, best known by his lithographs, for paintings made under a Government project for court houses in Springfield, Mass, and Pittsburgh, Pa. Willlam Zorach, who is producing a statue of Franklin for the Post Office Department Building here, was awarded ane of the sculp- ture prizes—a first honorable men- tlon—for a fountain group with horses. But of the utmost local interest was the award this year of the Friedsam Fellowship Gold Medal to Mr. Charles Moore of this city, chairman of the National Commission of Fine Arts. This medal is awarded “to an in- dividual who has contributed in the greatest degree to the development of art and industry.” At the time of the presentation emphasis was placed upon the service Mr. Moore has ren- dered officially in connection with the commission And m’\m shrough l “Adoration of the Child,” quired by the Toledo Museum by Piero di Cosimo, fifteenth cen!u'r_z/ Italian painter, lately ac- of Art as a gift from its founder, Henry Drummond Libbey. @ i | “Leaping Ahead,” an etching by George Edward Soderberg, on view in the Smithsonian Build- ing, current exhibition of prints. his writings and -in support of that | which is finest and best in architecture and the allied arts. A high and well- | merited honor. C. Powell Minnigerode Elected President of the Association Of Museum Directors. ONOR has come to another Wash- ingtonian in the art field, Mr. C. Powell Minnigerode, director of the Corcoran Gallery of Art, who, at the annual meeting of the Association of Museum Directors held here last week, was elected president. This associa- tion is made up of the directors of art museums throughout the coun- try, and the election of Mr. Min- nigerode is tribute to his standing as & museum executive and the esteem | in which he is held by his co-workers. The meetings of this association are not open to the public, no addresses are made, no papers read. The mem- bers gather around a table and in- formally discuss museum problems to their mutual edification; the pros and cons of new policles are discussed and news of general interest handed on. It is essentally a working organi- zation. Washington Photographic Society Makes Good Showing. 'HERE are some fine prints in the current exhibition of pictorial photographs by members of the ‘Washington Photographic Soclety, which opened in the Arts and In- dustries Building of the National Mu- seum the first of May to continue to the end of the month. Unfortunately for the reviewer, some of the prints Bulletin of were not signed, and on some the signatures were difficult to decipher, but among the outstanding con- tributors were V. R. Napier, Marion H. Briggs, Paul Fitzpatrick, Lloyd C Mathers, Harriss, C. A. Briges and M. T. Moor. The works include land- scapes, architectural themes, figures and portrait studies; many are excel- lent in composition, well handled as to light and truly interpretive. These are not merely picturesque themes well rendered, but subjects which have lent themselves to the interpretation | of beauty with strength and vitality. In such instances the camera has been rightly used ‘as a medium cf artistic expression and quite as truly 50 as brush or pencil. Painting by Eliot O’'Hara Purchased by Western Museum. LIOT O'HARA returned to Wash- ington this week after a consider- able absence in New England, the greater portion of which was spent conducting classes in water-color painting at Yale. Mr. O'Hara is rep- resented in the notable water-color exhibition lately assembled and set forth by the Brooklyn Museum. One of his Western water colors has recently been acquired by the Fine Arts Mu- seum of San Diego, Calif. Members’ Summer Exhibition Opening at the Arts Club. 'HE exhibition at the Arts Club changes tomorrow when the mem- bers’ Summer show opens. This will consist of paintings, drawings and prints as well as small works in sculp- ture. It is the concluding exhibition Exhibitions OCORCORAN GALLERY OF ART—Biennial exhibition of contemporary American paintings closes May 9. (Open 2 to 6 p.m.) Special exhi- bition color »rints of Oriental subjects, by Elizabeth Keith. NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART, United States National Museum— Permanent collections—Evans, Gellatly, Ralph Cross, Johnson, Har- riet Lane Johnson and Herbert Ward African sculptures. Stained glass windows by John La Farge and William Willet, paintings and etchings by Thomas Moran. Annual exhibition Association of Federal Architects, foyer of National Museum. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, DIVISION OF GRAPHIC ARTS— Exhibition of etchings by various well-known American etchers. NATIONAL MUSEUM, ARTS AND INDUSTRIES BUILDING— Exhibition of pictorial photographs by members of the Washington Photographic Society. FREER GALLERY OF ART—Permanent collection, paintings, drawings and etchings by Whistler. The peacock room, Oriental paintings, bronzes, pottery, minatures, etc. PHILLIPS MEMORIAL GALLERY—Permanent collection, paintings by old and modern masters; also works in sculpture. Special exhibition of drawings, etchings and water colors by Reynolds Beal. STUDIO HOUSE—Exhibition of work by students of Studio House during current year. TEXTILE MUSEUM OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA—Permanent collection, rugs, tapestries and other textiles of the Near and Far East, Open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 2 to 5 pm. Admis- sion by card, obtainable at office of George Hewitt Hyers, 730 Fif- teenth street. ARTS CLUB OF WASHINGTON—Members, Summer exhibition. Paint- ings, prints and sculpture. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, DIVISION OF FINE ARTS—Exhibition of etchings and other prints by contemporary printmakers; Pennell lithographs; drawings by American illustrators. Special exhibition of illustrations by Frederic Dorr Steele. PUBLIC LIBRARY, MAIN BUILDING—Exhibition of works by pupils of Eugen Weisz. WOMEN'S CITY CLUB—Paintings by Hattie E. Burdette. DUMBARTON HOUSE—Historical utility and pictures. art exhibit, furniture, articles of INTIMATE BOOKSHOP, LITTLE GALLERY—Exhibition of water colors f by Mitchell Jamieson of Virgin Islands, GALLERY OF MODERN MASTERS, 1367 Connecticut avenue—Water colors of New England and the West by Howard Giles. HOWARD UNIVERSITY GALLERY OF ART—Exhibition of children’s work of New York and Washington P, W.-A. | | case was at of the current season and will con- tinue until September or longer. Miss Eleanor Parke Custis, chairman of the Exhibition Committee of the Arts Club, left, nearly a fortnight ago, for Boston, where an exhibition of her water colors opened in the Vose Gal- leries the first of this month, continu- ing until today. This comprised some of the paintings she made during the Spring on her trip to Guatemala. From Boston Miss Custis goes to Gloucester, where she will reopen, for the Summer, her studio on Rocky Neck. Miss Keith's Prints on Exhibition In'the Corcoran Gallery Find Favor. THE exhibition of color wood-block prints by Miss Elizabeth Keitn of London, which opened in the Cor- coran Gallery of Art last week is at- tracting wide and favorable atten- tion. Especially notable in the col Post Office (Continued P‘r0£r| Pn_g? g-l\ mails after cancellation, the postal inspection service is brought into such fraud. Sometimes this transaction is completed without any belt being de- livered. At other times a belt is de- livered, like the “health” belts sold by fakers for $3.50. It consists of noth- ing but red sateen, straps and metal weights. THIS organization was Nation-wide and was started about 20 years ago by an old Russian, Simon Mohr. In one instance a total of $26,000 was taken from a widow 86 years old in Aiken, S. C. One swindler alone netted $350,000 before some one com- plained about him. Investigations of this racket were initiated less than a year and a half ago when a careless pair of “glimmer” men failed to deliver to an elderly woman a “radium” belt for which a $2,000 deposit had been put up. Her nephew was a prosecuting attorney in a nearby city and she complained to | him. He called in the postal inspec- tion service at once. With only the meagerest descriptions of the con- | fidence men, the inspectors went to work. A circular letter containing these descriptions was forwarded to every postmaster and rural carrier in the United States. Police depart- ments all over the country were asked for photographs of men arrested in similar operations. Bankers were called by postmasters and asked to keep an eye out for men of that de- scription and oversized checks from persons of modest means and known habits. In an Arkansas town, soon after such a conference, swindlers got $125 from an elderly woman after banking hours. They had asked her to write to her banker a letter they dictated to facilitate cashing the check. In- stead, she went personally to the bank, asking that they be kind enough to cash her check. The banker asked her a few questions and said, “Go see the postmaster at once!” Since that time 33 “glimmer” men have been convicted, all the way from Los Angeles to Philadelphia, and are serving time in prison. Omne operated in Anacostia, D. C. The most horrible Barnardstown, Mass., where an elderly farmer with a blind, crippled daughter was defrauded of $500 to restore her sight. The parents of a mayor of Remington, Va., were among the & ki “Portrait of Miss Van Buren’ notable works owned by the Phillip view. lection is a number of prints of fa- | mous actors in Noh Theater in Japan | Her prints have been acquired by museums and native collectors in the Orient, which is perhaps the high- est tribute to their merit and dis- | cerning veracity that could be paid them. They bring the mysterious | charm of the Orient to our very door, while retaining its richness of color and elusive quality. This exhibition Wwill continue for another week, | Three Washington ! | Artists Exhibit in the | Brooke Farm Tea House. ‘ \DRIENNE LOUISE LOW, Mary Margaret Hudgins and Catherine > by Thomas Eakins, one of the ps Memorial Gallery, and now on Photo by J. H. Schaeffer & Son. Werneke (Mrs. Wheeler) are holding an exhibition of their paintings in the Brooke Farm Tea House, Chevy Chase. Mrs. Hudgins and Miss Low ma studios on K Circle, respectiv bers of the trio h past five years with the Wa Water Color Club and groups. There have bee these suburban exhibitions | since the opening of Sp» seem to have proved ver; by way of innovation. Art is produced in the coun hrought to the city for displa this order seems to be reversed—and wisely. instances after ‘“glimmer” men re-+ ceived cash secreted in houses they went back at night and robbed the place with sawed-off shotguns, tying up the owners and searching until they found the hiding place. One of these forays netted $23.000 in Liberty Bonds, fortunately registered and not nego- | tiable. stampeding the “glimmer” keteers ice sent 4| papers, 000 news stories to news- large and small, hoping to e danger to their . although ordinarily the; frown upon any publicity connected | with methods of investigation. | (ONCE Lagy Luck worked hand in hand with the Post Office when $10,000 in cash in a registered package disappeared in Florida in 1910. It developed that a raflway postal clerk had stolen it. gone out into the woods at night and concealed it in a tree stump. Next morning an elderly cracker went out with his dog to | cut some fire wood for breakfast. His land was near a railroad track, on'! which a camp car (railroad repair men go about on these) was stopped, with only the colored cook aboard. The dog was acting excited about a certain stump, so his owner and the | cook decided the hound had a rabbit and went over to get him out for “break‘(m:. The rabbit turned out to be the $10,000 in currency, which they split. A postal inspector was at work on the case. He heard that a 14-year- old lad had purchased a ny in a | in favor of relief clients were withe held by unscrupulous relief o forged and turned over direct t chants. Upon presentati: orders to the State relief adm tor, the merchants received the proceeds of which were tween the merchants, the ficlals and other conspirat scheme realized $265,000 fo: ants before 22 pe victed, including the ct the Mayor of the county seat. ON'T try to use a canceled stamp, however dim the markings may be. You may go to jail for it. Postal authorities are a'ways on the lookout for strange-looking stamps and coun- T stamps. Antedating a poste mark is also a Federal offense. How are the men asked to accom- plish these gigantic tasks trained? There is no inspection service except the school of experience. Entrance into the service is a promotion open only to those classified postal em- s who evidence greatest fitness for this class of wo: At the outset the neophyte in or is assigned to accompany an experienced inspec | tor, who acts es instructor, V earl; handle sonally some parts of the investi tion and eventually enti tions, selected with r stage of development, :\Iur itime | small town, paying for it with a $100 | | bill, bought a bowling alley w another $100 bill. Both bills were from the {lost package. When the boy was | asked about the source of his cur- rency supply he admitted stealing from his father, who had, he de- clared, lots of money buried in his back yard. Although all the steps in this in- vestigation are not disclosed, the colored cook was found, even though his empoyers did not know his name, | and he had long since disappeared. A woman’s name and address was found in his effects, and he was found there, | | married to her and living high on | his $5,000. | | In August, 1935, postal inspection | men were so welk informed that they | arrived at the scene of a post office burglary before the burglars. This | was in Dendron, Va. A gun battle resulted in two robbers being killed | and the other three being sent to| the penitentiary. One had been| stopped by being shot in both ankles, | neat gunnery for any officer of the | law. | .A Nation-wide drive is now in prog- ress against so-called “correspondence clubs,” of which there are one each in Houston, Chicago and Philadelphia and two in New York, which violate laws against sending obscene matter | through the mails. Nine thousand persons, some with high standing in| their communities, are members of | these clubs. ADEPREDATION involving a co- lossal amount of labor by postal inspectors was the theft of a sack of | registered mail dispatched on the liner Leviathan in 1933, valued at| $131,000 in Italian bonds. The in-| vestigation extended to Great Britain and France and resulted in seven | convictions, among them Morris Ren- | koff, for 15 years regarded as an in- | ternational receiver of stolen prop- erty. The theft of letters from apart- ment house mail receptacles is ap- parently a serious problem in large cities. In addition to obtaining| money from letters so stolen, the| thieves forge and negotiate thousands | of veterans’, relief and dividend checks. One man convicted in Washington admitted operating this scheme in all cities of more than 50,000 population in more than 41 States, obtaining $38,000 in less than three years. Expert knowledge of financial and corporation matters is sometimes re- quired of postal inspectors. For ex- ample, Wallace G. Garland, Arnold C. Mason and associates promoted some 30 corporations, selling stock to the public to the extent of $10,000,000. An investigation lasting approximately eight months resulted in the indict- ment of more than 50 persons and 20 corporations. Persons on reliet in Floyd County, Ky., were the victims of a fraud that makes holding up a man at the point peopls vickimized. In two A few days later the same boy | | 4Cflr!t1}1ilvd From Page B-1.) purpose of this convention is to in- sure greater safety of life by international agreement tain technical fea'ures wr safely. Design an tures that will firther insure the safety of ocean trzvel will become & part of the program. | ANOTHER possibility in the devels opment of our merchan: marine under the new commission is the ese tablishment of soms system whereby men may be trained in any of those various services performed by those who follow the sea for a livelihood. The interdepartmental committee suggested some Kkind of maritime academy where young men could be trained in “the creative side of marine engineering, naval architecture, busi- ness management and trade.” The cwrriculum would also take care of training shipyard workers and estabe lish an officers’ training course whera properly qualified yoing men could learn to become officers aboard ships of the merchant marne. It is sug- gested that steamship cperators sheuld be given an opporturnity to propose names of young men in their emplov Who impress them as suitable ma- terial for marine service. The acad- emy would develop along lines simi- lar to those of the United States Naval Academy at Anrapolis or the | United States Coast Guard Academy in New London. “Witnesses have unanimously agreed,” stated one report of recome mendations, “that the outstanding need of American operators is greater patronage by domestic exporters and importers and by the traveling pub- lic. American operators feel that the general public, on its own initia= tive or under governmental urging, should patronize American ships more generously as a patriotic duty.” In the last analysis it is national pride that can put us back trumphant on the high seas. And, in the words of the President, “The time has come to square the traditional ideal of the American Merchant Marne with efe fective performance.” ASIAN ARTS Ideal graduation gifts; Chinese jewelry of semi-precious stones; raw silk embroidered ascots; Sum- mer handbags. 1143 Conn. Ave. NA. 4535 Abbott Art School SUMMER CLASSES Commerclal Art—Life and Fine Arts Fashion Tllustration—Children’s Classes Interior Decoration 1143 Conn. Ave. NA. 8054