Evening Star Newspaper, July 10, 1937, Page 6

A—6 ) THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition, WASHINGTON, D. C. The Evening Star Newspaper Company. 11th St and Pennsylvania Ave New York Offic 10 East 47nd 8t. ©Ohicago Office: 4; North Michigan Ave, Rate by Carrier—City and Suburban, Regular kditlon. The Evening and Sunday Star 65¢ ber month or 150 per week vening Star The EYening S0}, o er month or 106 per week The Sunday Star ---5¢ per copy Night Final ition, Night Final and Sunday 70 per month Night Final Star.. _ 5e per month Collection made at the end of each month or each week, Orders may be sent by mail or tele- phone National 5000, Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia, Daily and Sunday.. 1 $10.00; 1 mo, 85¢ Daily “only 1 £6.005 1 mo., 50c Bunday only V) $4.00; 1 mo., 40c All Other States and Canada, Sunday_ 4 yr., $1 1 mo. $1.00 £RE T 1 mo., 1 mo., Daily an Dafly on Bunday only”. 1y Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dispatches credited to it or not otherwise credited in this paper and also the local news published herein. All Tights of publication of special dispatches herein are also resérved. —_— e Call Tt a Day. To an ordinary mortal a day is twenty- four hours. There is no such limitation to & day in the Senate. When the upper house is in a fine, expansive mood, a day may become as long as ten ordinary days, or even a hundred. Back in 1922, when the Republicans were engaged in putting through a tariff bill, the Senate had a long day—probably its longest, It ran from April 20 to August 2, a total of 104 days. This extension of the ordinary day is no trick of the imagination—merely a trick of parliamentary rules. By the sim- ple process of failing to “adjourn” and by taking a recess instead, the Senate makes the sun and the stars stand still. The legislative day continues, so far as the Senate §s concerned, until an adjourn- ment is had. The only difference, really, between an adjournment and a recess lies in the words used by Senator making the motion at the close of the day's work, end the fact that when the Senate re- Eumes its session after a recess there is no “morning hour” for the transaction of routine business and the consideration of unobjected bills on the Senate calendar. The “legislative day” is & handy thing when there is a measure before the Senate which the leaders are seeking to expedite, It does away with the “morn- ing hour”—which is not & morning hour at all, but two hours immediately after noon, when the Senate begins its daily sessions at the regular time. It keeps the unfinished business strictly before the Senate until it is disposed of one way or another. The administration forces are making use of the long legislative day in the hope of breaking down the opposition to the President’s court bill and the compromise to which the administration has agreed. The long legislative day in 1922 came to an end only because of the death of Senator Willilam E. Crow of Pennsyl- vania. The Senate has an invariable rule when a death of one of its members occurs—it adjourns out of respect to his memory. How long the present legislative day of the Senate will continue it is difficult to estimate. Already # is on its fifth calendar day. The opposition to the bill may force an adjournment, or at least force the administration to lay aside the court bill, if there are other legislative measures or appropriation bills which must be put through without delay, Only by unanimous consent can the court bill be laid aside without a motion to displace it as the unfinished business. Already Benator Wheeler has declared that he will object to the transaction of any business by unanimous consent, as a retort to the threat of the administration to clamp down on the opposition and limit debate by exercise of Rule Nineteen. This rule say No Senator shall speak more than twice upon any one question In debate on the same day without leave of the Senate, which shall be determined without debate.” The application of this rule, under the Sheory that the “day” referred to in the rule is a “legislative day,” would mean that no Senator shall speak more than twice on the court bill unless permitted especially by the Senate. However, oppo- nents of the bill may offer innumerable amendments, and these amendments also mre debatable. The end is by no means in sight in this struggle, with both sides exercising their parliamentary wits. —— e As nations permit themselves to argue over assumptions of trade advantage, it would be interesting to know how much of the world can be directly figured as enjoving the benefits of a complete civilization. We are still quarreling over the Mediterranean Sea. Broadcasting Congress. There is a growing feeling throughout the country in behalf of radio broad- casting of congressional debates. Mil- lions of citizens would listen to the cur- rent discussion of President Roosevelt's plan for the “reform” of the Federal Jjudiciary, if it were put on the air. The major networks, almost certainly, would be glad to co-operate. And the ad- vantage to the Nation is too notably ob- vious to require argument. Some day the Government may decide to build and operate its cwn radio sta- tion. The suggestion has been offered repeatedly, and there is a considerable body of opinion favorable to it. Perhaps the only objection worthy of considera- tton is that which expresses & natural fear of misuse of such facilities—the danger that, under partisan manage- ment, the ether might be filled with one- sided propaganda. ~But several answers are available for that theory of disapproval. In the first place, Congress could stipulate that the station be as free a forum as the Capitol Itself; it could protect the public in- terest by legislative enactment. Second- 1y, #t happens to be true that the popu- lation of the United States is possessed of intelligence - enough to recognize \ propaganda when it hears it, and its ef- ficiency in that respect would be in- creased rather than decreased by prac- tice. Indeed, it is reasonable to believe that the character of congressional debate and of administration pleading would be improved by expansion of the size of the national audience. Logically, speakers would be prompted to their best effobt, if they understood that all their fellow-citizens were listening. The chal- lenge to their pride, if no other motive, could be counted upon to stir them to their noblest endeavor. No harm, it would seem, could come of a temporary experiment. Let Congress permit the introduction of microphones in the Senate and House chambers for the Court discussion. The broadcasting proposal, then, would have a fair trial. If “the results were objectionable the project could be abandoned immediately. —rwon Japan at Peiping. Ever since their military operations in Manchuria and adjacent territory on both sides of the Great Wall, the Jap- anese have been suspected of systematic designs to extend their sphere of influ- ence to Peiping, capital of the old em- pire. Under the Boxer agreements of 1901, Japan and the western powers have the right to maintain Embassy and Legation guards there, as well as to pro- tect the railroad route to the sea at Tientsin. Under cover of the more re- cent pact with the Hopei-Chahar au- tonomous provincial government, the Japanese have been steadily secking to widen their authority throughout North China. According to Chinese statements, Nippon's garrison in the Peiping area has risen to 10000 men. Obviously its purpose is to lend something more than moral support to Tokio's recurrent pres- sure for political, military and economic concessions from Nanking—a policy which has met with progressively stif- fened resistance in that quarter. Last Thursday Japanese forces west of Peiping came into conflict with Chinese troops at the celebrated Marco Polo Bridge near the Peiping-Hankow Railroad. As usual, on the occasion of recurrent Sino-Japanese “incidents,” each side claims that the other started the shooting, which resulted in a minor number of casualties. The immediate controversy has been settled by with- drawal of both Japanese and Chinese troops from the vicinity of the clash. The affair is far from finally closed, be- cause Japan is demanding “reparations” for her killed and wounded and guaran- tees against similar occurrences in fu- ture. Evidently considering that the sit- uation bristles with danger, Tokio has ordered naval forces in Chinese waters to stand by for emergencies. One of the decidedly grave possibilities is that Jap- anese militarists may seek to magnify the Marco Polo skirmish into another Mukden. v There is, of course, no doubt of Japan's desire to consolidate her position in North China by compelling Nanking to vield to periodical “demands” looking to consummation of that objective. The re- tention of considerable military forces near Peiping—those concerned in this week’s imbroglio ostensibly were en- gaged in “night maneuvers’—strongly suggests that Japan intends some time to put them to practical use. It was only a few days ago that the Amur River episode disclosed a Soviet Russia disin- clined to push matters with Japan to a critical point. The suggestion now arises that Tokio war lords may think the moment favorable for pushing the penetration of North China and provok- ing “incidents” that would give it a semblance of justification, while also providing some test of Nanking's readi- ness or ability to put up a fight. R Another Dud. Representative Hamilton Fish would have been wise had he let well enough alone in the tax-avoidance matter. The House Ways and Means Committee was perfectly correct in deciding that the President’s name was not to be brought into the discussion. And aside from his generalities, which Mr. Fish had ex- pressed on the floor of the House, he seems to have had no case, no proof; in fact, nothing in the form of any interest- ing evidence regarding tax-avoiding prac- tices by members of the Democratic administration. The tax-avoidance show, so carefully staged by the Secretarx of the Treasury and his experts, has been a pitiful flop. It has been a flop without any help from Mr. Fish and other critical Republicans. The parading of prominent names has produced no sensation. No public clamor has demanded the heads of the tax avoiders. No great moral indignation on the part of the country has followed the exposure of practices, within the law, by which men of wealth cut down the taxes they would have paid had they not resorted to lawful means of reducing them. Had the Treasury experts shown ille- gal evasion of taxes, public response would have been immediate and there would have been little sympathy for the rascally rich. Had the Congress enacted legislation to close existing loopholes in the revenue laws, nobody would have objected—certainly there would have been no objection on the ground that the loopholes should not be closed. The exposure of prominent names, with all the political fanfare accompany- ing it, has been a dud. Why Mr. Fish wanted to contribute another dud is hard to understand. ———— Ventriloquists. The trick of pretending to make a dummy talk is as old as the hills. Egyp- tian and Phoenician priests were adepts at the business of pronouncing bar- barous religious concepts through the lips of stone and bronze images. The ancient Greeks flocked in crowds to oracles in which statues uttered words of wisdom under the management of hid- den seers and sages who generally de- served the popularity they enjoyed. And now again, in an age which 18 supposed to be sophisticated in the . i/ highest degree, ventriloquism is “com- ing back.” Perhaps a celebrated radio team, consisting of an impertinent mani- kin and an operator who is a genius at his work, is responsible Jor the vogue. In any case, it is an authentic fashion. Frank Marshall, a manufacturer of dummies, testifies that he has five thou- sand “offspring” currently extant in the United States. He produces an average of seventeen a week. Each costs ap- proximately as much as a human baby. Some are five fecet tall, wear evening clothes, sport monocles. Others, known in the trade as “small mouth clappers,” are costumed as “little girls,” “fresh kids,” ete. Mr. Marshall declares that the old technique is out of style. The public wants the dummies to be truly lifelike. So he has invented eyes that wink naturally, facial muscles that actually move in a wide range of expressions. His art may be inspected in night clubs, the movies and such vaudeville as still survives in the changing world of the theater. But, of course, the dolls themselves are helpless to entertain. To stir laugh- ter and applause they must be controlled by the skill of trained manipulators. The ideal combination is an amusing dummy and an actor competent to play two roles at once—a player who conceals at least half his talent; and that, by the way, the more important part of it. e One of the things discovered in the Pacific Ocean regions around Australia is & city, with a population of more than 6,000 people; destroyed weeks ago with- out mention in the records. The once prosperous city of Raboul, & German port on the Island of New Britain, has been destroyed and the life-saving in- stinct which men all share continued to be subordinated® to political argument. No wonder the portraits of Cordell Hull make him look exceedingly serious even at a ball game, ————————— “She Never Saw the Streets of Cairo” was a song introduced by Chicago to celebrate a dancer who claimed fame as “Little Egypt.” Like the modern figure, Mae West, Little Egypt was. compelled to forget her semblances of gayety in order to collect what might be due her from shows in which she figured with mathematical skill as well as choreo- graphic enterprise. r—————— Boy Scouts have had their laugh at and with a dignified community. It may be many a year before Boy Scouts S be back wondering at the beauties | of the landscape and contributing words of suggestion for its preservation and improvement. American youth is one of the great forces to be reckoned with in the future. e Air pilots are making a direct study of conditions under which they are com- pelled to fiy and to land. Their opinion is worth having as authoritative and sin- cere. o Greenbelt was designed to be a mod- ern town economically built. As now studied, it will prove to be a pleasant place for anybody to live in, if he can afford it. R The heat has measured up to 95 de- gress. Congress has business on hand, however, that defies the capricious read- ings of the thermometer, o Shooting Stars. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON. Summer Song. I never knew a citizen So serious and strong He would not loiter, To sing a little song. now and then, A tune in early childhood taught, A slight poetic phrase, Drifts into memory unsought From youth’s light-hearted days. The lilt now bids our sorrows fade— Though, in a moment more, Our cares again will be arrayed, All somber, as before. Now, when the Summer blossoms smile, Though much we know is wrong, Let us be careless for a while And sing a little song. Conscientious Silence. “Why don't you make a speech on the problems of the day?” “I am tempted to do so0,” answered Senator Sorghum. “But every time a man makes a speech he's merely . liable to start another problem.” Lure of the Pole. (Avologies to John Howard Payne.) Way up around that Arctic station Gladly I'd roam, Happy in its refrigeration, Far from the Hot Town at Home. Jud Tunkins says a real good talker these days is liable to see more of a fu- ture in radjo than he does in politics. Explanation Desired. “Your bathing suit is a dream!” “Do you mean,” demanded Miss Cayenne, “because it appears so beau- tiful or so unsubstantial?” Honeysuckles. Blossoms climbin’ ‘round the gate, Smilin’ at the sky, ‘Where the honeysuckles wait As the hours go by. Palaces are reared in pride, Fortresses are made To command the reverence wide Which to power is paid. Yet such splendor’s incomplete Wheresoe'er you roam. Blossoms with a fragrance sweet Whisper, “Here is home.” “A friend will kindly tell you about yoh faults,” said Uncle Eben. “You na- turally wants to do him de same favor. An' dat's whers friendship cesses.” 4 A Former President Taft And a Hotel Cuspidor To the Editor of The Star: The first Pan-American Congress was held right here in Washington about 20 years ago. Most of the meetings and all of the social functions came off at the Willard Hotel. Now, in those remote days a meeting called for plenty of spittoons, named cuspidors by the intel- ligentsia. The hotel certainly had any number of them, every one “a blooming idol made of brass.” Our outstanding exhibits in that line were six majestic vessels, each about 2 feet tall and 1 foot wide. Being appointed curator over all these antiques, this writer one afternoon gave these six sacred cows a most particular going over. After I got through with them they certainly looked to be worth any man's money. Every one of them was the “dead spit” of that “Grecian urn” that the poet Keats was raving about. Near 4 pm. a passing employe in- formed me that former President Taft was to attend a meeting in the small ball room at 6 pm. That gave me an idea. I planted my masterpiece right near No. 3 elevator, close to the ball room door, in a corner. It improved the landscape wonderfully. Then I stalled around. T wanted to take a look at his nibs. I had not seen him since his inauguration nearly froze me to death. He arrived. A flustered bevy of beau- tiful secretaries came trooping out of a nearby room—fixed up temporarily as an office—and promptly engaged his altention. Smiling benevolently, his ex- cellency shook hands. Then his ob- servant eve lit on my brass monkey, already harboring about a dozen cigar butts. “Ah, just behold this respendent container. How it shines and sparkles and glistens. It is noble” T walked away. The great Mr. Taft had admired the product of an honest workman's sweat. That was glory enough. As it happend, his next office (Chief Justice) was by appointment. But I swore then that if he ever should run again every cuspidor cleaner's vote in the country should be his. He had made a friend for life. May he rest easy. FRED VETTER. Urges Prohibition Of Windowless Kitchens To the Editor of The Star: Recently you published a warning is- sued to vacationists by the District Health Department against “raw milk, impure water, dirty food and unclean €gR beaters.” You stated the lowly egg beater came in for a severe castigation as “a notorious source for contamina- tion and infections because the cleaning of them is frequently overlooked.” A timely warning that the department might issue is one to apartment renters against the dangers of leasing apart- ments with windowless Kitchens. If the District government was really interested in the health of Washington the amend- ment of the building code prohibiting kitchens without windows would be a convincing gesture. The human system still requires fresh air and an abundance of it. Yet hu- mans persist in living in rooms where hardy house plants will not thrive. Years ago this writer was amazed when being shown the apartments of friends upon whom he had called to note that the kitchens were without windows and de- pendent for light and ventilation upon a transom in the wall between the kitchen and bath room. which had a window in the outer wall of the build- ing. The matter was brought to the at- tention of the District building inspec- tor's office, which admitted that the building code should be revised to pro- hibit kitchens without windows in apart- ment buildings. Evidently the code has undergone no revision, for new apart- ments also have kitchens without win- dows. Windows have always been regarded as an essential feature of a kitchen. Where there is only a single window ventilating fans are often placed in a window to carry off the smoke and odors of cooking. The small ventilator placed in the walls of the windowless kitchen closets of the new apartments are in- sufficient for that purpose. The windowless kitchen deserves the severe castigation of the lowly egg beater and it is hoped that the solicitous Health Department will take cognizance of this menace to health and comfort. WILLIAM WALLIS. Parental Responsibility For the National Capital To the Editor of The Star: For the purpose of taxation, the Dis- trict of Columbia cannot be placed in the same category as the several States and Territories. The States and Territories have their own governments duly elected by their citizens, and their legislative bodies im- Pose taxes for the upkeep of same. The District of Columbia is the seat of the Federal Government, which rep- resents the aforesaid States and Terri- tories, and has ne right of franchise. Its affairs are carried on by a civil government appointed by the Federal Government, which reserves to itself the enactment of legislation and the imposi- tion of taxes. The right of Congress to tax the citi- zens of the District is‘unimpeachable up to a certain point. That point is reached when the taxes imposed begin to work hardships on the taxpayers. It then becomes the duty of the Federal Government to appropriate from the Federal Treasury enough money to make up any deficiency in operating expenses. As the parent is responsible for the child until the child becomes of age, so is the Federal Government responsible for the District; the only difference being the District can never attam that status until it obtains the right to vote, In making appropriations, enough money should be lopped off wildcat schemes, such as Rural Resettlement, W. P. A, P. W. A, etc, and added to the revenues resulting from current District tax rates. J. D. MURPHY., Pestilence Tax Suggested y As Revenue Raiser To the Editor of The Bta Much is said at this time about vari- ous kinds of taxes, some necessary and others silly. Taxing food just because it is eaten in a restaurant seems to be the limit. Of course, beverages, candy and other luxuries could be classified under the head of that name. We also have “nuisance” taxes and why not add “pestilence” taxes and under this head classify weight of automobiles and cigarettes? I have driven a car for many years and have smoked thousands of cigarettes and would gladly submit to those items and pay up. Now, to the point, chewing gum, bicycles and dogs are increasing to such an alarming ex- tent in the District that not only are they a nuisance, but should come under the pestilence classification and be taxed accordingly. PAUL SWEET. o Liberal and Conservative. Prom the Birmingham Age-Herald, A liberal is a fellow who doesn't know where he’s going, but is in a hurry to get there. A conservative is a guy who knows the routes, but is 00 laay to move. L] THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., SATURDAY, JULY 10, 1937. THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. Return of the thrushes to any one yard is & happy note of Summer. These beautiful birds, among the sweetest singers of them all, came back to Washington during the iast few days of April, of course. They did not, however, return to this one particular yard. Now, however, they have entered it at last, much to the satisfaction of the owners, who missed the society of these best of songsters. A thrush in the yard is worth two in the bush—or tree. There is no sight for the bird fancier quite like that of this bird down on the ground in search of food. Once he selects a particular lawn as a good feeding ground, he will return time after time. It means, too, that he will perch in trees and shrubs, and from that vantage point sing away in his inimitable manner. * K % % Thus the yard that has the wood thrush actually on the lawn also has it in the trees nearby. This is a great deal more than twice as satisfactory as having the bird in the neighborhood— It is just about one hundred times as satisfactory. It means that the watcher is able to enjoy real companionship with one of the finest of all living creatures. Those who may not have enjoyed this fellowship with a certain species of the bird kingdom naturally cannot under- stand it. That is why they may think there is not much difference between being able to hear the bird from the trees, and being able to watch it hop around in its sedate manner on the lawn. There is, however, all the difference in the world. The wood thrush is a creature which gives its best only on close acquaintance. It somewhat re- sembles one of these shy persons who seems rather dull until one gets to know him. * K X X A wood thrush on the ground is worth ten in the trees. The point is that if he is on the lawn during the day, he will certainly be in the trees early in the morning and at dusk. These are his two favorite times for singing. The thrush, with its speckled breast and sedate warm brown back, has an incomparable song, which is heard best at the two periods named. The bird prefers these times, and so must the listener. But it seems that no thrush sings quite as sweetly and as well which has not partaken of food close by his singing ground. Surely this is natural! Bird song, in part, at least, is based on the solid foundation of a full stomach. If one of humanity’s great violinists could say, as one did, that he never plaved quite as well as right after a good warm meal preceding his concert, it must follow that a simple bird feels much the same way about it, * % %k At any rate, no wood thrush sings so wildly well as the specimen which has | Just fed in one's backyard, and then STARS, MEN taken a seat on a branch of which overhangs the grass. There, just at twilight, it sings fits Interesting measures, far more varied than one might suppose who had heard it only once or twice. But just as a listener’s appreciation of a master violinist is increased by his visible presence, so the thrill which ac- companies the hearing of great thrush music is augmented by the sight of the singer. There are few birds which sing in a prettier manner than this thrush. Even the grating sourds which are heard be- tween the strains are part of the whole, and must be heard if the other is to be appreciated at its full value. * K K K The return of the wood thrushes to a yard is not such a simple thing as it seems. All this time—since the first day of May—they have been in the neighbor= hood. Their songs could be heard from time to time, being as they are very loud and clear, but all the intermediate notes were lost. The curious fact was that the yard held more birds than it had in many years. Maybe this was a reason for the absence of the thrushes—but their sub- sequent return proved it was no reason at all. Now they are present once more. Sunday evening four thrushes were to be seen, hopping around beneath the overhanging shrubbery as of old. It was the first time in three years that this sight had been presented. Yet all the time the shrubs had been growing taller and longer. Leaves on some of them were spaced farther and farther apart, show- mg that the root system was now in- adequate. s tree * % Kk There is perhaps a greater satisfac- tion in watching and listening to a wood thrush than any other bird. This is said with a due appreciation of practically all the songsters which come to this vicinity. Something there is to a wood thrush which sets it apart, which makes its annual return eagerly looked forward to, which makes its departure (within a few weeks, now) something to mourn in a quiet way. This is, without doubt, the favorite bird of quiet people. One had almost said cultured people, but we will be content with quiet people. All of these instinctively prefer the thrush to almost any other bird, at least deep in their own heart’s preferences. Openly they may not discriminate, in favor of this thrush, over the beautiful bluebird, the gorgeous cardinal or blue- Jay, the sleek catbird, the homely English sparrows, even. Somewhere in their minds and hearts, however, they have a corner kept in- violate for the wood thrush, and all that it means in their lives. It seems that this bird really means much to a great many people. Some will even go so far as to say that the best thing about suburban living is that it makes this one bird a close acquaintance and friend. Hence, whatever it is that makes it return at this time, to an individual yard, | 1t is good, just as the bird itself is. AND ATOMS Notebook of Science Progress in Field, Laboratory and Study. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. New light is thrown on the complex chemistry of seeing in the progress re- port of a ten-vear physiological research by Dr. Selig Hecht of Columbia Univer- sity and his associates. In the rods and cones of the retina of the eye is a substance known as visual purple. This is “bleached” when light falls upon it and in the process impulses are set up over the optic nerve which travel to the back of the brain. This visual purple, however, has the peculiar property of building up its pigment again in the dark so that the same process can be repeated. This it does indefinitely, as long as life lasts in the seeing or- ganism. Various chemical substances can be extracted from the eye, but Dr. Hecht and his co-workers found that visual purple could be made to act in the same way upon exposure to light in a solution contained in a test tube. Thus they can duplicate experimentally the organic process. They made an intensive chemical study of the material and have been able to classify it definitely as one of the pro- teins. Dr. Hecht and his co-workers ob- tained visual purple from the eyes of frogs and measured the rate at which the substance in solution passed through a porous glass. In this way they meas- ured the approximate dimensions of its molecule. Its diameter turns out to be about three ten-millionths of an inch. “This shows visual purple,” Professor Hecht says, “to be a large molecule of the size hitherto found only for pro- teins, one of those substances rich in nitrogen which form the basic con- stituents of all living material. Its molecular weight is 810,000 times that of the hydrogen atom. Ordinary sub- stances like salts have molecular weights less than 500. The smallest protein, egg albumin, has a molecular weight of 35,000. “This is powerful evidence that visual purple is really a protein. Adding the recent finding that visual purple liber- ates a carotenoic when it is bleached by light or acted upon by chloroform, the substance is definitely placed among the proteins.” Bleaching solution of visual purple by placing them in the light, Professor Hecht points out, long has been possible in the laboratory, but only recently were he and his colleagues able to work out the precise conditions under which the substance recovers its sensitivity to color in the dark. “A visual purple solutfon .freshly pre- pared from frogs,” he says, “is pinkish purple. When exposed to strong light the color changes rapidly to yellow and then very slowly becomes colorless. If the bleached yellow solution is placed in the dark at 25 degrees centigrade and examined an hour later it is found to be distinctly pinkish again and this color fades rapidly on exposure to light. This procedure may be repeated several times. “We have measured the course of this regeneration in the solution by following its concentration which a highly sensi- tive photoelectric spectrophotometer which uses so little light that it leaves the visual purple unaffected. Regen- eration begins immediately and proceeds rapidly. More than half the increase in density is accomplished in the first ten minutes, although the concentration continues to increase for over an hour, reaching a value of about 20 per cent or more of the original solution. “There are two criteria for recognizing visual purple. One is its absorption spectrum, which in the case of frog visual purple is a nearly symmetrical curve. The second is its sensitivity to light. Within the errors of the experiment, the concentration and absorption spec- trum of the material removed by bleach- ing are practically identical with the concentration and absorption spectrum of the material freshly formed during the stay in the dark. There can, therefore, be no doubt that under the proper con- ditions visual purple can be formed again in solution from its products of decom- position by light.” ok & Study of Northern Hemisphere weather maps shows conclusively that persistent departure from normal of weather con- ditions over extensive regions of the Northern Hemisphere are closely cor- related with abnormalities in the state of the general circulation, Dr. Hurd C. Willett of Massachusetts Institute of Technology reported to the American Association for the Advancement of Science last week. Consequently, he stressed, the problem of long-range weather forecasting is to foresee the major changes in the general circulation pattern on which the per- sistence of normal or abnormal meteoro- logical conditions in a given area depend. This will require, he said, the general introduction of radio sounding balloon observations at a far-flung network of stations over the Northern Hemisphere. ———— Round-up of Unlicensed Dogs Might Increase Funds To the Editor of The Star On June 30 The Star printed a story that the District of Columbia check adds 7.000 to the tax list of the District gov- ernment and nets $321,459. and this amount is “new velvet laid on the rocky District financial path.” A few days previously The Star printed a story stating that Tax Collector Chatham Towers had on sale twenty- seven thousand license plates for dogs at two dollars each. It seems to me that this twenty-seven thousand license plates can be used in the precinct where I live. I believe if there is a thorough check of dog-owners in the District of Columbia by the Police Department, Mr. Towers will have to order perhaps another twenty-seven thousand tags, and at two dollars each, some more “new velvet can be laid on the rocky financial paths of the District of Columbia. ANDREW K. REYNOLDS. ———— According to Rule. Prom the Omaha World-Herald. When those North Pole Russians get fed up on sending out weather reports, we may expect the usual activity of revo- lution, counter-revolution and purge among them. o Research. Prom the Hartford Times. Press dispatches declare that the typi- cal chorus girl is & New England product. Let the research continue and determine the nativity of the “bald-headed row.” ——— European W. P. A, Work. From the Sacramento Bee. Europe’s adaptation of our W. P. A. idea probably will be to put unemployved to work digging the shell holes for the next war. —————————— Success. Prom the Grand Rapids. Press The secret of success is to write a book telling people how to be suc cesaful. 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 is the earliest record of person’s nose being reconstructed by plastic surgery?—H. J. A. Justinian II in 700 had his nosa Teconstructed after it was cut off in battle, L% Q. What is the largest daily edition of a newspaper that has been published in the United States?>—C. R. . A. The Longview (Texas) News claims to set the record with its special East Texas edition of 370 pages. The News each year publishes an extra edition to celebrate the resources of East Texas. . Q. What percentage of coffee imported into the United States comes from Brazil?>—J. G. A. More than half of our coffee comes from that country. Q. How much water is used in running the railroads in the United States? —M. K. A. The railroads in this country require 600 billion gallons of water annually, the cost of which is approximately $50,000,000, Q. How much money is lost through embezzlement?—E. W. A. American business annually loses $200,000,000 through embezzlement, Q. How many marriage licenses ars issued at Elkton, Md.?>—E. W. A. In 1936 11,500 licenses were issued. Q. When is the Soviet Theater Fes= tival?—L. M. A. The Fifth Soviet Theater Festival will be held at Moscow from September 1 to 10. Q. What did the famous engineer, Joseph Baermann Strauss, receive for building the Golden Gate Bridge? —W. M. A. It is said that his fee was §1,- 000,000. Q. What are the most difficult letters to understand over the telephone?—H. L. A. According to Dr. Owen Perrine, New York sound-wave expert, S and P are the weakest sounds in the English language. Dr. Perrine says that the ears are least sensitive to them and they carry the poorest, Q. What operas has Walter Damrosch written?—M. H. A. The famous conductor is the author of four operas: “The Scarlet Letter,” “The Dove of Peace,” “Cyrano de Ber- gerac,” and “The Man Without a Coun- try.” Q. Where in England is the new home for racing grevhounds?—W. H. A. It is being constructed at Surrey on a 750-acre estate. Two thousand racing greyhounds will be housed in air-condi- tioned kennels. The establishment is sponsored by the Greyhound Racing As- sociation. It will include a large dog hospital, recreation quarters, and a vege- table garden. Q. How many steps lead to the cupola on the dome of St. Peter's?—C., F. A. Six hundred and ninety, Q. Did the late Colonel E. H. R. Green leave money to endow a whaling mu- seum?—C, F. A. Col. Green was intensely inter- ested in such a project. He had restored the Charles W. Morgan, one of the last whaleships, and collected many whaling relics at his estate at Round Hill, Mass. He failed to provide any money for the maintenance of the museum, and it is expected to be kept up by admission charges. Q. Is there such & thing as a drive-in bank for motorists?—E. R. A. The Security-First National Bank of Los Angeles is the first in the country to employ the drive-in system for the convenience of its patrons, Q. What State leads in the production of lettuce?>—J. T. S A. California leads, producing 65 of every 100 crates of lettuce raised in the United States. Q. How many visitors to Washington, D. C., take trips on sightseeing buses? —W. M. A. Last year 100,000 persons patronized sightseeing buses in that city, Q. Are any of the Capone gang left? —W. J. A. Courtney Ryley Cooper in “Here's to Crime” says he Capone syndicate still operates various houses of prostitu- tion and gambling in the vicinity of Chicago, and still owns the mayor.in at least one suburb. A Capone-affiliated motor company has been selling cars uninterruptedly to thieves, gangsters, and murderers for years, often extending credit to fugitive public enemies.” Q. What percentage of the advertising of large tobacco companies is spent in newspapers, magazines and radio?—H. W, A. Sixteen tobacco companies in 1936 spent a total of $38253474 in adver- tising. Of this, 748 per cent went to newspapers, 14.1 per cent to magazines and 11.1 per cent to chain broadcast. Q. How many kinds of sea gulls are there?>—W. B. A. There are approximately fifty-odd varieties of gulls in the world and twenty-two kinds live in or visit the United States. Do You Collect Stamy EVERYBODY'S STAMP BOOK {5 a mine of information far any one inter- ested in stamp aollecting. It tells about the first postage stamps, famous col- lectors and their collections; about the rare and most valuable stamps, and how to start and build up an interesting and rofitable collection. Beginners will find he booklet exceedingly helpful. Veteran philatelists will prize it for its authori= tative material. Send for your copy now. Inclose ten cents to cover cost and handling. Use This Order Blank The Washington Evening Star Information Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. I inclose herewith TEN CENTS in coin (carefully wrapped) for a copy of EVERYBODY'S STAMP BOOK.