Evening Star Newspaper, June 28, 1937, Page 10

A—10 D. C, MONDAY, JU ——_eeseAHAe _—_—— ——— e -y . THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Editien. WASHINGTON, D. C. MONDAY_ ________________.June 28, 1937 THEODORE W. NOYES -. Editor The Evening Star Newspaper Company. 11th 8t And Pennsylvania Ave New Yo-k Office: 110 East 42nd 8t. Ohicago Office: 435 North Michizan Ave. Rate by Carrier—City and Suburban. Regular Editlon. The Bvenine ana Sunday Star X 456 ber month or 15¢ per week The Evening Star 5¢ per month or 10c per week The Sunday $ta = --8¢ per copy Night Final Edition, nday 8tar—..70¢ per month ~__53c per month m t of each month or e, Orders may be sent by mail or tele- phone Natloral 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance, Maryland and Virginia, Daily and Sunaay_. 1 yr. $10.00: 1 mo. K5c Daily oaly yr "$6.005 1 mol, 50c Sunday only__. yr. $4.00; 1 mol. 40c All Gther States and Canada, Dally and Sunday. 1 yr. $12.00; 1 mo., $1.00 Daily “oniy_ 1 yr.. "$%.00: 1 mo.,~ 7dc Bunday onlv. $5.00i 1 mo. 50c = v Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dispatches creaited to it or not otherwise credited in th! paper and also the local news published herein, All rights of publication of special dispatches herein are aiso reserved Politicians’ Nightmare. Shadows of coming events were cast in sharp outline last week during debate on Senator La Follette's surprise move to boost income surtaxes and to lower ex- emptions. The Senator's position was very nearly unassailable, for it was based on simple fact, which is that if you con- tinue to spend money, you have get to raise it in taxes. Nobody could disagree with that. The weak spot was that the bill then under consideration—the extension of nuisance taxes—was not the proper in- trument for a wholesale shake-up and realignment of income tax rates. And the administration Senators jumped Jovrfully on that with both feet, promis- ing that next year, after one of those “thorough studies” which the Treasury s forever making, there will be plenty of opportunity to tackle the income tax rates again and, presumably, to hike them. So the matter was postnoned. But it was not the boost in surtaxes that got under the Senators' skins so much as Senator La Follette's oft-re- peated demand that exemptions be low- ered and more income taxpayers brought into the fold as direct contributors to the expenses of government. That is the sort of thing that makes the average politician see red and beat his breast. For the income taxpavers today repre- sent & very small proportion of the voters, and to lower the exemptions means to tax more voters. There are those, in addition, who see it from Senator Borah's angle. “What we are proposing to do here,” said the Senator, “is to lower the exemption from 81000 to $800 with reference to the single individual, and from $2500 to $2,000 for the man with a family. My contention is that that will take from the persons who have small incomes the possibility of maintaining them- selves upon American standards.” But what s this additional tax to be paid by lowering the exemptions? For the $2500 salary, with the exemption lowered by $500, the tax would be $20. For the $1,000 salary, with the exemption lowered by $200, the tax would be $8. Does Senator Borah mean that $20 in one case, and $8 in another case, repre- sent the difference between maintaining and not maintaining “American stand- ards”? Twenty dollars a year is about thirty-nine cents a week; eight dollars & year is about sixteen cents a week. Compared with the monthly “check-off” or compulsory membership tax of the United Mine Workers of America— 81.30—Senator La Follette's exemptions do not appear fantastic, or enough to epell the difference between maintaining and not maintaining “American stand- ards.” Which, as a matter of fact, should come first, union dues or an income tax to help support the United States Government? Sooner or later Congress will have to grant Senator La Follette's demand and lower the income tax ex- emptions to bring in new taxpayers. The limits have been about reached in the upper surtax brackets. The middle- class incomes, and the small incomes— which means the voters—are about the only ones left to soak. And the politi- cians squirm whenever they think ebout it. ————— A picnic that lasts three days shows how much may be done for politics by not taking the subject too seriously. Even the ever-alert Mr. James Farley is com- pelled to carry newspapers with him and admit that he is a day or so behind in his reading. o Radio’s Gain. Yale University lost a great and gifted friend when Dr. James Rowland Angell retired from the office of president, but the Nation is delighted to hear today that the National Broadcasting Com- pany has taken full advantage of the opportunity and engaged him as edu- cational counselor, No other event in years has been more significant as an indication of potential improvement in radio policy. The public is justified in feeling definitely reassured of the good intentions of the networks. Indeed, it would be difficult to over- estimate the importance of Dr. Angell's acceptance of a post which patently is designed to afford him a chance to apply his knowledge and experience to a fleld of teaching of as yet unmeasured efficiency and likewise to indicate con- clusively that the powers that control that field are conscious as never before of their responsibility to listeners. Perhaps it is not too much to say that the appointment of Dr. Angell sym- bolizes the intention of the broadcasting industry to reform itself from within rather than to be obliged to submit to reform from without. Criticism of pro- grams disseminated over the air has been growing for some time. Even the sponsors of commercial features have been talking among themselves about N what to do in the eircumstances. It is an open secret that the operators have been insisting on an elevation of entertainment standards. Also, the trade has begun to realize that the so-called “consumer reaction” to low comedians, blood-curdling melodrama and jazz has been becoming increasingly hostile. The people who pretend to enjoy that char- acter of amusement, it is evident, rep- resent relatively inconsequential pur- chasing capacity. Dr. Angell, therefore, takes up his new duties at & moment when conditions are favorable for the work he is to do. Presumably, he will be granted a free hand—the constructive liberty of move- ment imperatively necessary for the so- lution of existing problems. His country appreciates his willingness and confi- dently anticipates his success in terms of service of incalculable value. e Mexico’s New Deal. Sudden and significant action by President Lazaro Cardenas has ushered in a new deal for Mexico. Its essential characteristic is collectivism and takes the concrete form of nationalization of rail transportation and government control of agriculture. Expropriation of the hitherto privately conducted Na- tional Railways of Mexico, comprising 13.000 miles of lines, was speedily fol- lowed by a presidential decree placing the entire agrarian system under state supervision. The preamble to the decree indicates that government control may eventually be extended over the indus- trial as well as the agricultural fleld. The secretary of national economy is empowered to impose the provisions of the law upon the production “of all those articles affecting fundamentally the general economy of the country.” Complete authority is lodged in the government to determine what articles come within that scope. Associations, in which the government’s head will be all-powerful, would undertake the same character of regulation over industries as it is proposed to exercise through farm organizations. The railway system will be adminis- tered by a new government department. Its first duty will be to reorganize the lines and put them on a profitable basis. The government will reimburse Amer- ican and other foreign bondholders after a valuation of the expropriated proper- ties. About 37 per cent of the bonds is held in Great Britain, and some 30 per cent in the United States. The Mex- ican government owns the bulk of the common and preferred stock. Informed quarters regard it as certain that valua- tion will be placed far enough below the company’s outstanding obligations to eliminate the common stock. The latter has paid no interest for years. The farm control scheme bears a cousinly resemblance to the Roosevelt- Wallace A. A. A. set-up, minus certain voluntary features. Under the decree, the government may tell the Mexican farmer just what he may produce, and how much. While it is not clear whether all farmers must join state- dominated co-operative assoclations, the government can apparently force non- members into line through its control of markets. Not only is production to be strictly regulated, but maximum and minimum prices will be fixed for both imports and exports. Association members are required to turn over to “headquarters” all the produce they have for sale and absolutely refrain from offering it in the open markets. Expropriation of the railways and regimentation of agriculture carry Mexico into Ssome of the farthest- reaching socialistic experiments ever undertaken beyond the Rio Grande. The government decrees are not devoid of the totalitarian smack. Because of our proximity to Mexico and the magni- tude of American investments there, these new ventures in planned and controlled economy challenge this country's attention and will be followed with deepest interest. N ‘When statesmen gather for better un- derstanding, the presence of a genial per- sonality like Mr. Maury Maverick is always desirable. No matter how often a circumstance has served a jestful pur- pose, Mr. Maverick is one of the gifted people who can always relate it gently yet squarely to the immediate laughable present. e One thing that might be done with the income tax would be to stmplify it so that it will be understood at a glance by the persbns who are signing the papers. “Kolossal.” Recurrent smearings of Americans and American institutions by Dr. Goebbels and the government-controlled German press have not deterred Chan- cellor Hitler from drawing upon the Unfted States’ distinctive school of architecture for a towering monument to the “power and glory” of the Nazi Reich. Designed to be such a symbol, Der Fuehrer has just ordered the con- struction at Hamburg of a sixty-story skyscraper that will rival all but the tallest New York buildings. It will not be a sordid commercial structure like its Yankee prototypes, for it is to serve purely as regional headquarters of the National Socialist party. Soaring to an altitude of 820 feet, it will be surpassed by only a few of Manhattan’s mountain peaks like the Empire State and Chrysler buildings. Its distinctive feature, apart from height, will be a mammoth audi- torium capable of holding thousands of Nazi zealots assembled for spectacular occasions. Hitler appears also to have taken a leaf out of Mussolini’s notebook in the reconstruction realm. Just as Il1 Duce is creating a new Rome reminiscent of its ancient splendor, the Nazi chief in- tends to rebuild all three of Germany’s leading cities, Berlin, Hamburg and Munich, on monumental lines. The sky- scraper at Hamburg is only part of & general plan to give that great port & skyline more imposing than any other European city presents. The vaulting party citadel will be flanked by fifteen- A THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON; story buildings built on a mile-and-a- half riverside drive along the Elbe. There will also be a suspension bridge with the longest span in Europe and towering as far above the Elbe as San Francisco's newest adornment looms above the waters of the Golden QGate. The general idea is to remodel the Ham- burg waterfront so as to produce the maximum impression of Nazi might on the arriving foreign tourist and on the German returning from overseas. A quay to accommodate simultaneously four 25,000-ton ocean liners figures in the scheme. The Reich capital, Berlin, and the Nazi party capital, Munich, are to be done over on no less impressive lines. Berlin is to be made to rival Paris in spaciousness by ‘construction of broad boulevards through the center of the city from north to south and from east to west. Factories and tenements now lining the banks of the Spree will give way to picturesque driveways. Munich's architectural rebirth is to transform it into a city more befitting the dignity and pride that attach to the cradle of Nazidom. One portion of the program calls for a vast de luxe hotel to be used exclusively by Hitler's personal guests at the annual Nazi party congress. As such, it will do business only a fortnight each year. e ‘When Mr. Girdler tries to explain a situation he does not stop to analyze conditions which have already been thor- oughly discussed. He will never be an adept in considering the party as a means of mollifying the chap who prefers a ham sandwich to theoretical glories in which only a comparatively few par- ticipate. oo Even colleges have made passing errors in questions of politics; which may help to account for the fact that a group of college girls and boys on a picnic will often present old problems in a way that demands the modernization of old meth- ods. Some very wise minds have ear- nestly protested that this can be managed without a promiscuous resort to violence. ————————— In small matters Mr. Robinson has been more or less impatient. In those of great public concern he has indicated an appreciation of the conditions under which & man must work in order to make his future an evidence of his patriotism. o Preparations are under way for some of the greatest demonstrations of which the country is capable, in commemorating the glories of its achievement. Even the Fourth of July will be along as usual with reminders of good work well done, in a spirit of sincere patriotism. —— e As times go forward customs change, Franklin Roosevelt now rallies the small thirst to active political expression, while Al Smith, once the leader of his party, now studies the map of Europe for signs of peace. Shooting Stars. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON Books. Ev'erywhere you chance to look You will see another book! Here and there and everywhere Books are fluttering through the air; Books of history and travel, Books with problems to unravel; Books delirious, books all serious, Books that deal with crooks mysterious — Books where art serenely hovers, Not inside, but on the covers. Through the day they lightly scurry Like gay insects in a hurry, Butterflies of fancy winging— Here and there a hornet stinging. In the town—in sylvan nooks— All the air is full of books. A Distinction Unsought. “Do you believe you possess the high qualities of character which make a man a good loser?” “I flatter myself that I do,” replied Senator Sorghum; “at the same time I hope circumstances will never he ruch as to compel me to prove it.” Jud Tunkins says he guesses his boy is going to be a great scientist, because he's always learning things at school that he can't explain so's the folks at home will understand ‘em. The World Loves a Fighter. ‘They say it is wrong to fight, And what they say, no doubt, is right— But there is profit linked with fame In the old pugilistic game. A Discouraged Joiner. “I have joined quite a number of or- ganizations,” remarked Farmer Corn- tossel, “but I haven't yet found one that']l enable an agriculturist like my- self to make payin’ dues and listenin’ to speeches take the place of regular work.” “Do not depend too far on ancestral reverence,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown. “Modern progress is fre- quently so daring as to put a steam shovel into a cemetery.” Men Who Count, We need the man of mighty mind To help the world along; ‘We need the folk who are inclined To laughter and to song— And be the talents great or small With which you may be blest, You're only needed, after all, As one who does his best. Although the duty may be slight That falls unto your lot, If you fulfill the task aright - You will not be forgot. Though fierce ambitions shun repose, Resplendent ’'mid unrest, ‘The men who really count are those Who simply do their best. “De man dat trusts to Luck” said Uncle Eben, “is always so ungrateful a8 to give his own smartness all de credit when Luck helps him out.” Veterans Ill-Treated by Administrative Officials To the Editor of The Star: I am in receipt of a letter from a World War veteran, resident in Wash- ington, who states that he has vainly petitioned President Roosevelt and the Veterans’ Bureau for action upon his disability case. Recently, he states, two men called at his house; smelling a rat he repaired to the kitchen and his wife advised that he was not in and asked the callers to leave a message for him. Incidently, he states, they took occasion to let his wife see big revolvers strapped on under their coats. The message instructed him to see a Mr. Tucker in the Treasury Department. He did so, and found that “Mr. Tucker” was connected with the Vet- erans’ Bureau. “Mr. Tucker” stood him up, thrust his fist in his face, told him that the White House and the Vet- erans’ Bureau were tired of his efforts to secure what he feels to be justly due disability compensation and that if he did not cease and deSist he would be carted off to an insane asylum for “treatment.” He also gave me the names of several doctors in Washington, to me unknown, with the statement that if an ex-service man went to them and planked down from $25 up their “compensation cases” would be adjusted promptly and satis- factorily by the Veterans' Bureau. Now I do know these things are pos- sible. Many years ago a young soldier in Florida was “bawled out” by a young lieutenant in most offensive language. He promptly invited the lieutenant to shed his coat and fight the issue out man to man.: Did the lieutenant do as challenged? He did not! The next morning the luckless private was ordered to the hos- pital, declared insane by official flat and incarcerated in St. Elizabeth's Hospital as insane for some twenty-odd years. Finally a Washington attorney secured his release on habeas corpus proceed- ings. Did any one in the Army receive punishment for this outrageous piece of “military justice”?> Not that I ever heard of. In 1922 Congress enacted a law order- ing restoration of the writer to the Army retired officer list, which law the War Department flouted. President Hard- ing ordered further investigation. Two War Department majors contacted me with the proposition that for a suffi- cient cash compensation they could and would so fix the “report” of this “investigation” that it would be favor- able to me and my reinstatement would immediately follow as the law orders. I refused to buy justice and I am still on the outside looking in. despite eight congressional verdicts of injus- tice and illegality. Perhaps we thousands of ex-service men should go “C. I. O.” and receive immediate and adequate attention from the White House. J. B. H. WARING, M. D, U. S. A, Retired. R =t Country Needs Round-Up Of Radical Labor Agitators ‘To the Editor of The Star: Right now, this country needs a gen- eral round-up of its lawless element, its radical leaders, and their cut-throat followers. If this Nation had more men like Tom Girdler and fewer molly- coddles there would be less so-called labor strife. These agitators are the same group that staged the so-called “hunger march” here when the coal and iron and big steel industries were operating at 25 per cent of capacity, or less. A Silver Spring, Md, citizen re- marked to me the surest way to hurt their feelings would be to offer them a good job. Rise in the Industrial index proved he was right. They permitted the steel industry to operate at 95 per cent of capacity only a very short time. At present it has been driven down to 74 per cent, and with this so-called wages and hours law about to make further inroads upon business there is no telling how much the decline will be accelerated. Many plans for expansion have been shelved already. There is already too much interference with business, and this measure will drive more small busi- ness men to the wall than all other fac- tors combined. Is this to become a Nation of molly- coddles? An Atlanta hotel man said not long ago he couldn’t keep a porter any more. If anything disagreeable came up the porter would quit, saying: “Ah jes’ ain't a gonna work fo’ you all no mo'! I'se quit! Ah can go back on relief. Ah don't hatta work less ah wants no nohow.” Wonder what the late C. P. J. Mooney, editor of the Memphis Commercial Ap- peal, would think about that if he were living? Mr. Mooney was the boss when I worked there in 1918. He hated strikes, he had no earthly use for labor leaders, and he believed all radical foreigners should be weeded out of labor unions and deported. Born at Bardstown Junc- tion, Ky, Mr. Mooney was a thorough- bred American if there ever was one. During the ill-advised railroad shop strike of 1922 he advised the men to go back to their jobs. Pleading was all right, but when he said that as a boy his ambition was to be either a con- ductor on the L. & N. Railroad or Presi- dent of the United States, a lot of strikers quit buying the paper. But the L. & N. is still running trains on sched- ule. Men from one town went to an- other. and it amounted to nothing save a switching of locations, not to mention loss of time and wages. Wonder, also, whatever became of those monthly union dues at a dollar a throw? And wonder what Lyman Delano, able chairman of the board of the L. & N, thinks about Cousin Franklin right now? E. H. ALEXANDER. R “Regulate Everything.” From the New York Times. The address of Bernard M. Baruch of the commencement exercises of Union College combined practical wisdom with historic perspective. He began by re- calling the guild and “mercantile” sys- tems which prevailed up to the end of the seventeenth century, when there was one form or another of absolute regulation of nearly every business and labor relationship, when all economic activity was in some kind of strait- Jacket. With the great revulsion against regimentation of mind, body and spirit that came toward the end of the eight- eenth century, the pendulum swung to the other extreme of the arc in the doctrine of laissez faire. Now, with our disappointment in some of the results of that doctrine, we have been plunging back again, rushing “from a freezing at the ice of ‘laissez faire,’ ‘regulate noth- ing.’ to a ‘burning of the other fiery extreme of regulate everything.’” Against this latest tendency Mr. Baruch offers a few words of temperate advice. Our efforts to control the eco- nomic forces in the last four years have been distinguished more for strenuousness than for wisdom. We will be more suc- cessful, he thinks, if we proceed to action only after careful study and never on emotional impulse; if we try to apply and adapt the natural laws and the human incentives that govern our econ- omy and never seek to ignore or repeal them; and if, finally, we attempt to deal with the “uneconomic areas” of ~ NE 28, 1937. -——J————L——.——_\“ THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. _ Gardening is good for the eyes. Soft greens of foliage, dark browns of earth and tree trunks never tire, strain or otherwise harm them. This is rest from more ardueus types of eye work, such as reading, sewing, knitting and so on and on. It is not to be wondered at, when one stops to think of the naturalness of these things, fresh from the soil. They were what the eyes were meant to look at evidently. Even in the brightest sun there is little possibility of glare, if the gaze is kept on the leaves of shrubs, flowers and trees. The green of grass, too, is one of the most restful in the whole world. There is in the Spring and Summer landscape, therefore, more real eye rest than at any other time of year. Especially in the suburban sections the eyes look out at a world of green, as extended as the green waves ef the ocean. There is no mere stillness any more than with the ocean; just as the latter is alive, moving, all the time, with its crests of dappled foam, so the foliage all around us is in motion, and varigated by sun and shadow and wind. * X X % Flowers may be looked upon as the crests of the waves of terrestial green. Because they are only foam, after all, in the general greenery, they do not hurt the evesight, even the brightest of them. Hence it seems that to relieve eye strain, a popular failing of the day, there is nothing better than gardening. In some ways the people of the older days had more sense than the folks of today. They built—and used—front porches, for one thing. What were porches? “Just “settin’,” as they liked to call it. While they were seated in nice com- fortable rocking chairs they were looking at trees, shrubs, leaves of all kinds, green lawns. they doing on those * kX % Since the disappearance of the front porch, the eyes of the Nation have been growing worse and worse. Maybe there is a connection; we be- lieve there is; certainly no such number of eyeglasses were to be seen on young and old alike as now. Soft green of asparagus, for instance,. who recalls it? Yet nothing was more common in the old days in the hundreds of small country towns which dotted America. The asparagus bed was carried on from year to year, its soft green, waving in the slight breeze, a treat to the eyes. It is safe to say that not a soul looked upon the asparagus bed in that light then. Not a soul. Asparagus was something to eat. Commonly it was bordered with flowers, with radishes and other vege- tables placed close by. The passage of the bed of asparagus was the end of an era. It is easy to see that now. Still, there are many delightful bits of greenery to be found everywhere. * Kk ok X ‘The smallest backyard is as good as any for purposes of eye rest. ‘What requires seeing is not small, in most cases; the necessity for close looking, at times, immediately gives way to a larger seeing. This larger seeing is where rest comes in, for it means that one is looking at nothing in particular. Surely that is what is done when one is mowing the grass, watering the lawn, doing most of the small inevitable chores of flower or vegetable garden. Often the worker thinks he is looking, when really he is not. Handling the privet hedge -clippers might seem to demand eyesight, but actually it requires little. One is looking, of course, but not very much. * ok ok ok It holds good all through the garden. From gate to rear fence, from Spring to Autumn, and in Winter even the garden offers many pleasant sights, practically all of them remarkably easy on the eyes. With one exception, watching. This is not good for the eves, and most enthusiasts will find that out. The remedy is plain: Do not watch the birds so much. Even the enthusiastic beginner at bird observation will come in time to tone down his desires to the capacity of his eyesight. In time it becomes second nature to reach for a good pair of binoculars, when watching individual specimens, and to look only now and then at the mass of birds feeding at a station in Winter. *x X x *x Greens, browns, grays, which com- prise most of the garden picture, are natural colors, and hence are easier to look at than the bright colors of flowers. The latter are foils, as it were, for the more prevnlent tones. They are bright spots, from which the eyves shortly jump to green, or to brown, or the silvery gray of tree trunk. It will be found in almost every case that the beholder, whether gardener or visitor, seldom keeps looking at the bright flowers. There are softer colors and these, along with the greens, get the most attention. Surely there is some intellectual bond, too. between the sight and green, espe- cially. It is the great universal color, as soothing to eves as collyrium. It might be called Nature's eyedrops. One is always looking around in, or at, the garden, never staring in a set way at any one thing in particular. The eyes are used, but not kept fixed; they meet only natural colors, and these soft; they are at ease, even when active. What more could be asked? that of bird WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS One of the outstanding impressions derived from Belgian Premier Van Zee- land's visit to Washington is that Euro- pean tension is distinctly less than it was a year ago. This does not mean, of course, that another unforeseen episode, like the German bombardment of Almeria, might not suddenly flare out of the Spanish crisis and plunge the Old World into blood and tears. Barring such a development, as to which no responsible statesman would risk a prophecy, the outlook for peace is con- sidered far brighter than current alarms, fears and suspicions “over there” would seem to justify. Just as Europe's tan- gled economic situation does not at present warrant the convening of an- other international conference on trade and finance, the European states are seen as equally unprepared for war. The bellicose policies and actions of the Fascist powers and the defensive meas- ures which the western democracies feel compelled to take against them are plain indications that Europe expects war may come sooner or later, but not now. Official Washington notes with sym- pathetic interest Prime Minister Cham- berlain’s advice to Great Britain to “keep cool.” It is the unexpressed, but acknowledged, belief of American au- thorities that the surest way of avoid- ing trouble is for all Europe to take the Chamberlain admonition to heart— in the Yankee idiom, to keep its collec- tive shirt on. * o x % “A pleasant time was had by all” seems to summarize about everything that happened at Jefferson Island over the week end. President Roosevelt proved, as expected, a genial host, a good list- ener and a charming if not altogether successful advocate of all those causes, legislative and humanitarian, that momentarily are close to his heart. While certain recalcitrant members of House and Senate came and saw, there's no evidence they were con- quered. On the cardinal issue of the Supreme Court controversy, Adminis- tration opponents remain convinced that roll calls in both houses will promptly demonstrate that the picnic left pro and con lines unchanged in any mate- rial degree. While F. D. R. seems stu- diously to have avoided wielding the big stick, the get-together ended with & pretty general feeling that he ardently desires his “ought” legislative program, including the court bill, relief, a wages and hour act and & farm tenancy meas- ure, to be enacted before Congress ad- journs. Unquestionably, the broad objective of the love-feast was accom- plished—to enable Democratic gentle- men from Capitol Hill to brush shoulders with the President and establish a brand of political contact which the rank and file has resentfully missed in the past. * oK XX One of Washington's well-known_lnw- yers has just returned from a trip to ancestral heath in the Ozark Mountain country of Missouri. Among the high spots of his visit was attendance at the old home-town high school commence- ment exercises. As indication that the class of 37 is fully abreast of the times, he found it had adopted as its gndun:' tion slogan: “W. P. A, Here We Come! * K KX % Premier Paul Van Zeeland is de- termined that, as far as lies in his power, the Princeton Tiger breed in Belgium shall not die out. The Brussels states- man proudly explained to Washington friends that not only is he himself a son of Old Nassau, but that a brother shares our curve of progress and not try to regulate the healthy with the sick. Mr. Baruch’s address made no refer- ence to any particular piece of legisla- tion, but to no existing or proposed measure does it apply more aptly than to the pending Black-Connery wages-and- hour bill, which as at present drawn would give a single board of five men the power, backed by the most drastic penalties, of fixing at its own discretion the wages and employment conditions of the great majority of the workers of the United Btates. BY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE. that distinction; that his nephew and private secretary, M. Van Bellenghen, who is with him in America, took a graduate degree at Princeton in 1935, and that the youngest Van Zeeland, the premier’s 2-yvear-old heir, is already scheduled to enter the university as soon as he's eligible, prospectively with the class of 1957. * X o % Harry J. Anslinger, commissioner of the narcotics bureau in the Treasury, has just returned from Geneva, where he attended a conference which dealt with international control of opium pro- duction. He was quoted on arrival in New York as saving that the United States is “second only to China in the illicit traffic of narcotics generally.” Efforts at Geneva were devoted mainly to bringing about curtailment of the growth of poppies for opium manufac- ture. Mr. Anslinger is hopeful that the chief sources of poppy supply, Persia and Japan, will eventually be induced to restrict production through united pressure from western nations. A puwe- New Dealer, Uncle Sam’s narcotics chief has been on the job since 1930. Previ- ously he was in the diplomatic and con- sular services. Anslinger ranks as a world authority in the war on the drug traffic. * K K % Announcement that 17 directors of the closed Harriman National Bank of New York have just agreed to make a $900.- 000 compromise settlement for the benefit of creditors lends interest to a recent disclosure by Controller of the Currency J. F. T. O'Connor regarding national bank directors’ responsibilities. Within approximately one year, O'Con- nor’s office has compromised and settled by amicable adjustment claims against directors of insolvent banks in excess of $10,000,000. The controller points out that perhaps in the majority of cases neglect of duty “was neither fraudulent nor dis- honest, but resulted primarily from in- fringement of a prohibition in the na- tional banking law against the doing of particular acts.” Regardless of whether or not a loan is made to a debtor of ample financial responsibility, if the amount exceeds 10 per cent of the bank’s unimpaired capital and surplus, any director who participated in the loan or approved it in any form can be held liable for the fuli amount of en- suing loss. * % ¥ x When somebody asked the President at the White House the other day whether he had any notion of suggest- ing that Congress adjourn for 90 days, to dodge Summer heat, and then re- sume business about October 1, he laughed and said that gave him an idea. Then he explained that he thinks it would be “funny as a crutch” if he should devote a whole broadcast fireside chat some day to narrating the wild and weird things he's supposed to have done from time to time or to contemplate doing now. EI I ‘Women are marching on in Congress, despite the fact that they number only a mere half dozen—five in the House and one in the Senate. Their latest achievement is the appointment of Rep- resentative at Large Caroline O'Day, Democrat, of New York to head the House Committee on Election of the President and Vice President. She thus becomes the second woman congressional chair- man, Representative Mary T. Norton, Democrat, of New Jersey having been chairman of the House District Commit- tee and now become chairman of the Labor Committee. Her friends are con- fident Mrs. Norton preferred to retain the District post, but the Capitol hears that Boss Hague was anxious to have the gentlewoman from Jersey City accede to the House labor throne. Secre- tary Perkins is also said to have evinced the wish that a woman member should embrace the opportunity afforded by the labor chairmanship. (Copyright, 1937.) | ANSWERS TO | QUESTIONS BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN. A reader can get the answer to any question of fact by writing The Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J, Haskin, Director, Washington, D, C. Please inclose stamp for reply. [ Q. What percentage of professional bais)n l;(all players have attended college? A. About 40 per cent of the players in the American League today are former collegians, and about 60 per cent, of players now in the Nat*ional League have attended college in the course of their careers, Q. What is the largest vote a labor party ever cast in the United States?— A L. T A. In 1892 a fusion of industral work= ers and farmers known as the Populist party, and roughly comparable to the Farmer-Labor party of today, mustered 1,027,000 popular votes and 22 electoral votes. The vote w: about one-tenth of the total vote cast. Even though the population has doubled since, no labor or farmer-labor group has even ap- proached the 1892 vote. Q. How much whisky was consumed in the United States last yvear?—M. E. A. For the year ending June 30, 1936, the consumption was 76.630.000 gallons of domestic whisky and 4,985,400 gallons of imported whisk Q. How does the life of an airplane engine today compare with that of one in 1929.—P. E. A. In 1929 an airplane engine had to be junked after 1500 hours, while today they last 4,500 hours. Q. How many people visit Washington. D. C..in a day at this time of the year?=w R. T. A. The Board of Trade bases its state ment on figures furnished by the Na- tional Museum. The Board of Trade estimates that 80 per cent of the toure ists visit the Museum. For the week of June 6 to June 12, inclusive, 50.750 tour= ists visited the Museum. This would average 7250 a day. If it is true that 80 per cent of the tourists do visit the Museum. the total number of visitors a day during this period would be 8,700, Q. How fast can a fox run?—M. R. 8. A. On a South Carolina road last Winter a specialist of the Bureau of Biological Survey clocked the speed of a fox which ran at the rate of 26 miles an hour for about 100 yards, gradually slowing to a speed of about 21 miles an hour at the end of a half mile. Q. Who first used the phrase, a war to end war?—H. W. A. The expression was that of H. G. Wells, the British novelist. Q. What is galuchat?—W. H. A. It is a leather of superior quality and durability made from the hide of the shark. Q. Was Heine, the German poet, an dnvalid>—W. R. A. When the poet was about 48 he was attacked by a disease of the spine and was thereafter almost continuously bed- ridden. Many of his wittiest satires and most beautiful poems were written dure ing this period. Q. Who was the greatest master of” counterpoint in musical history?—H. W. A. Bach was the outstanding maater of counterpoint. He disregarded the prevailing custom of writing in a few keys only and tuned keved instruments so as to render them nearly perfect for all keys. Q. When was khaki first used for sole diers’ uniforms?—V. C. A. Sir Harry Burnett Lumsden's Enge lish regiment first used it in India in 1848. Q. What is the practice of marrying a brother’s widow called?>—H. P. A. It is called levirate marriage. It was practiced by the ancient Hebrews, e\'e;n though the man already had one wife. Q.. What is the difference between a rebellion and a revolution?—L. 8. A. A successful rebellion is termed a revolution. A rebellion is a formidable organized attempt of subjects or citizens to end by force hte rule of their govern- ment over them. Q. How do you pronounce the last name of Sir Robert Baden-Powell, founder of the Boy Scouts?—E. H A. The surname is pronounced Bay- den Po-el with a long o. Q. What sciences are usually taught in high school?>—B. B. A. Physics, chemistry, biology. physi- ology, physical geography, agriculture and general science. Q. Has the vicuna ever been domest!= cated?—E. H. A. It has never been found possible to domesticate the animal. Q. How much coal has been sone sumed by the underground fire that is burning in southeastern Ohio?—W. M. A. The fire, which has been burning continuously for 53 years, has con- sumed more than 28,000,000 tons of coal. Q. What do Americans spend on Sum= mer travel?>—H. K. A. It is estimated that in 1936 Amer=- icans spent three billion dollars on travel. Q. How much cloth is made from rayon?—E. W. A. More than 700,000,000 yards of woven fabric were loomed from rayon in 1935. Q. What newspaper correspondent made a trip to the Sahara Desert about 14 or 15 years ago?—R. W. A. Floyd Gibbons made a trip through the desert from end to end in 1923. Q. When Audubon’s “Birds of Amer- ica” was first published, what did it sell for?—M. B. A. This magnificent collection of cole ored plates was sold for $1,000 a copy. ——— A Rhyme at Twilight b Gertrude Brooke Hamilton. If Ye Thirst. Gray, banking clouds have gathered in the sky; Soon it will rain. Subdued on city street the dust will lle, And country lane; And all the flelds of jaundiced corn and rye Grow green again; And cooling rivulets run by and by Adown my pane; \ While I, with a heart-drought to terrify, Feel my fears wane— Knowing when earth becomes too parched and dry God sends the rain. A