Evening Star Newspaper, August 5, 1937, Page 10

THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. (., THURSDAY, AUGUST 5, 1937 A—10 = THE EVENING STAR With Sunday Morning Edition. WASHINGTO THEODORE W. NOYES The Evening Star Newspaper Company. b T East sond St York Office: 1 Cast 47 A Onitago Oce: 433 North Michigan Ave, Rate by Carrier—City and Suburban. Regular Edition. The Evening and Sunday Star i | . tg 000 PeT month or 15¢ per week e Evening Star 450 per month or 10c per week The Sunday Star ... = -bc per copy Night Final Edition. 70c per month 5¢ per month he e ch month or Orders may be sent by mail or tele tlonal 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. Maryland and Virginia, / District Referenda. The “advisory referenda” bill intro- duced yesterday in the House by Repre- sentative Palmisano is a revival of the ed in December, 1935, by r Allen. The plan was sub- mitted at that time for consideration and discu n by local citizens, but little, if any, progress was made toward stimulating public interest in the scheme. This may have been due to a certain feeling of fu , or hopelessness, over securing fror the right to obtain such e: ns of public opinion as would result from a referendum; or, inery provided in the bill was ever utilized for referenda, of persuading Congress to abide by the results. For experience suggests that community opinion is often ignored, no matter how clearly expressed. The proposal is, however, fundamen- tally sound and the misunderstandings and confusion in Congress over local affairs should spur n interest in a method of r voteless and unrepresented Washingtonian with the machinery of the referendum for making vocal his desires. Many members of Congress confess to a I of knowledge &s to what the people want and state that they are confused by the demands and requests of the numerous independ- ent groups. To these a referendum upon any of the important problems would prove of real interest and value. The proposal is for referenda which would be advisory to the District Com- missioners and while they would not be bound by the result, it is presumed that Congress would give careful considera- tion to the verdict regardless of the opinion of the Commissioners. If Con- gress does actually authorize a refer- endum, as provided in the bill, the chances that it will heed the opinion expressed are greatly increased. The bill provides that not more than two referenda could be held in any one fiscal year. There could, however, be included any number of propositions submitted to be voted on. The selection of these subjects and in fact the calling of a referendum election is left to the dis- cretion of the Commissioners. This was & defect in the original draft of the bill end should be remedied by an initiative provision whereby the local citizens could by petition require the holding of a referendum election or the inclusion of items not included by the Commis- sloners. The bill is in good form for considera- tion and discussion in the civic organi- zations and by the citizens generally. Its perfection and enactment into law would mark an encouraging departure toward the recognition of vital American rights now entirely ignored in the gov- ermment of the National Capital. oot By the time Senator Borah gets through discussing a new deal for the United States Supreme Court there will be little left to consider except the prob- lem of supporting the justices who are earnestly endeavoring to serve the people. According to Mr. Borah, a competent Justice may be called on to serve at any time even though accorded the honor of a vacation with pay. One of the annoy- ing characteristics of Mr. Borah is the fact that he so frequently appears to know precisely what he is talking about. ——————— Interest is manifested in a low-cost housing program by Majority Leader Barkley. In the meantime new demands for taxes arise in a manner which com- plicate the ordinary problems of simple human existence. 1gress [ —— One of the things Senator Ashurst may find it interesting to explain to Ari- zonans is just what, if anything, has happened to the United States Supreme Court and, if so, how much and why. —————— A Word to the Sage. When American statesmen differ in their readings and interpretations of the Constitution of the United States, and even seek to interpret it quite to the contrary of established and accepted meanings, it is not a matter for wonder that foreigners go astray in their under- standing of the fundamental law of this land. In the light of the recent dispu- tation concerning the legal sense of the word “happen” in relation to the va- cancy on the Supreme Court a London dispatch, just printed, should not cause strong condemnation of the ignorance of a Hindoo astrologist named Pandit Burya Vayas, who has just been quoted as predicting that the Duke of Windsor may some day become President of the United States. Just to be explicit, for the benefit of those, even some Americans, who are not letter perfect in their knowledge and understanding of the Constitution, that instrument provides, in Article II, Sec- tion I, as follows: “No person except a natural-born citizen, or a citizen of the United States at the adoption of the Constitution, shall be eligible to the office N t of President of the United States.” It may be questioned whether Pandit Surya Vayas ever read the American Constitution. There are plenty of Amer- icans who have not read it. There are a great many even of those who have read it who do not understand it. Some of them, indeed, are in high place in this country. There is no occasion for scorn for the ignorance of this heretofore unheard-of Hindoo sage. Maybe he does not know that this Gov- ernment is founded upon such a docu- ment. There is no British “constitu- tion,” in the same sense of the American erganic law. Probably to the wise man of India who has just been quoted the Vedas are the only instruments of guidance. This venture of Pandit Surya Vayas into the realm of political prediction, whatever may be his state of ignorance upon the matter, brings to mind the saying of the late Congressman Tim Campbell of New York, who urged the then President of the United States, Grover Cleveland, to sign a certain act of Congress and when the President de- murred on the ground that the bill was plainly unconstitutional rejoined: “Aw now, Mr. President, what's the Constitu- tion between friends?” Just as between friends, however, even so remote a friend as Pandit Surya Vayas of India, it may be suggested that knowledge and understanding of the Constitution of the United States is de- sirable on the part of foreign advisers, although there may be some lack of per- ception on the part of American states- men, legislators and legal interpreters., B Study of Local Taxes. How do the Commissioners propose to utilize the $5.000- appropriated in the District revenue bill for further study of the local tax structure? The original Senate proposal would have given them enough money to turn the whole job over to some expert and let him do his worst. But the $5,000 provided in the bill agreed to in conference and approved by both houses provides a sum sufficient merely for clerical work. The Commissioners some time ago appointed a joint committee of citizens and municipal officials to make a survey and to report on the tax collection ma- chinery and other matters. The com- mittee performed an excellent job, and the results should be represented in beneficial changes in the tax collection office, bringing much of its antiquated machinery up to date. ‘Why not follow the same plan in con- nection with study of the local tax structure? The joint committee should be made representative of the com- munity, of course, but it should be kept small enough, in personnel, to prevent an unwieldy organization. Provided with funds for necessary clerical assistance, such a joint committee could render real and effective service in the proposal of whatever changes may be found neces- sary in the existing tax structure. The effective work which may be per- formed by local citizens in connection with tax legislation has been illustrated in the record of the Citizens’ Joint Com- mittee on Fiscal Relations over many years and, most recently, in the assist- ance rendered to members of Congress by the Municipal Finance Committee of the Board of Trade in shaping the final version of the tax bill. This committee took the wise course of trying to make the best of a not very good bargain after Senate and House had passed their bills, and suggested a program of modifying some of the tax plans which, applied in their original form, would have proved most burdensome. With the exception of the $1.75 realty rate, which was made unnecessarily high by the conferees, the Board of Trade proposals were, in effect, adopted throughout. Local citizens realize the danger of initiating even tax reform legislation, for such legislation is more apt to become the instrument for tax boosting than for any beneficial reform. But experience in this coming year with the new taxes will indicate the desirability of changes, and the Commissioners will be wise to -ask the co-operation of the tax-paying community in suggesting the changes that should be made. s Prediction is made that in a few years prohibition sentiment will again assert itself in this country and with command- ing emphasis. The fool and his bottle have no doubt been given too much free- dom, while persons who stay cold sober run the real risk of sorrow and expense. s = Russia looks the Asiatic situation over and sends a few flyers across the North Pole in a way that shows what expert skill can do with unfamiliar territory. —ee—s Another Bureau. Mr. Average Citizen, who ultimately must foot the bill, may be pardoned for inquiring why it is necessary to set up another Federal agency to administer the proposed Wagner housing legislation. At a rough estimate, there are six or- ganizations with an army of employes now concerned with some phase of hous- ing: Federal Housing Administration, Home Owners’ Loan Corporation, Fed- eral Home Loan Bank Board, Resettle- ment Administration, Public Works Ad- ministration and the farm tenancy set- up in the Department of Agriculture. This would seem to be sufficient machin- ery to house all the unhoused, with some- thing to spare. But if the Wagner bill becomes law it will bring into existence a seventh group, the United States Hous- ing Authority, with an administrator at $10,000 annually and two directors at $9,000 each to guide its destinies. Each of these will get travel allowance and, in the natural course of things, a personal staff, that will run this initial overhead much higher. This organization is expected to end up as part of the Interior Department, under President Roosevelt’s plan to do away with independent agencies. But from an economy' standpoint that will mean exactly nothing if 1t still is to be weighted down with directing heads drawing higher-bracket salaries, Bimpli~ fication of the Government structure should aim at reduction in costs, and this move alds no more in that direction than did the recent placing in the Inte- rior Department of the new Bituminous Coal Commission, with its seven mem- bers and a consumers’ counsel at $10,000 each. Somewhere there must be a halt to the spread of Government agencies, and certainly no better opportunity could be found than in this instance, ——ee—. James Steadman. When James Steadman, twenty-one- year old colored laundry worker, was caught in an elevator Tuesday afternoon, he did not die of fright. Rather, it was from injuries to his body that he suc- cumbed. His spirit was unhurt. While firemen, called to release him, struggled to get him free, he sang and prayed. His pain, of course, was agonizing, yet he had courage equal to his need. The story merits retelling because it points a moral worthy of remembrance. Humanity, it seems, is born to_trouble. No living soul is exempt from suffering. But something innate in heart and mind supplies the requisite defense against the temptation to surrender. The race is optimistic, not despondent, in its lot. So it survives. And the power of the brave hope with which mankind is endowed is a demo- cratic heritage. Providence grants it to everybody. It is the fundamental reality of human existence. Steadman, for ex- ample, was trained in no academy to shame the Spartans with the hardihood of his behavior during his mortal ordeal. He came into the world with the instinct to be manly under all conditions, how- ever trying. It was part of his nature to “take it” without complaint. His song, then, should not be forgot- ten; his prayer should be heard. God does not bestow such gifts for nothing. Instead, He shares divinity with His chil- dren. What other explanation can there be? ————— Amelia Earhart has been given up for lost. The fate of Rex Martin appears to be even more conclusive although regis- tered in considerably less time. Flying fields continue to train men, but the toll exacted of competent flyers becomes heavier and more inexorable. = oot China looks over portions of the Asiatic map where Japan has assumed control and counting up the square mileage thinks she has a greater grievance than Spain, at the other end of the map. e Nothing i3 heard from Rex Tugwell beyond the implied assurance that the ‘Western Hemisphere's molasses business is progressing favorably under new aus- pices. ——ee—s- Shooting Stars. BY PHILANDER JOHNSON, Thoughts and Words. He hadn't anything to say. Though other people raised A mighty din from day to day, His thoughts he seldom phrased. His friends would sometimes stand in fear That he would be forgot. They said his silence must seem queer, Because he knows a lot. The mighty din on every hand Voiced sentiments so free That many couldn’t understand Just what their sense might be. He hadn't anything to say, Excepting now and then. But when he spoke he showed a way To help his fellow men. The speaker whom but few will heed Must magnify his tone. The real thinker does not need ‘To use a megaphone. Seeking a Candidate. “We want a man who knows all the ins and outs of legislation and who understands human nature,” remarked the idealist. “I dunno as I regard your notion as entirely practical,” replied Senator Sorghum. “But if you're a’ solutely sure you want & man who can answer all those requirements why don't you resur- rect one of those old-time lobbyists?"” Jud Tunkins says a man who says he wishes he were a boy again always thinks about the swimming hole and the ball ground instead of the school house. Fearless. Some say the modern seaside maid Is rather bold. She must be brave. She's not afraid Of catching cold. An Investigator. “Your boy Josh doing anything?” “Only intellectual labor,” answered Farmer Corntossel. “He has decided to study the unemployment prohlem from personal experience.” “A physician,” said Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “must be able to lecture on human anatomy and learn to be silent about family skeletons.” Human Limitation. Let us go on in stout array, 8till striving for a better day, And if perfection is not met— ‘Well, no one ever found it yet. “A man must hope foh de best,” aid Uncle Eben, “but he mustn't sit down an’ hope for a few hours an’ call it a day’s work.” California Politics. From the Long Beach (Calif.) Press-Telegram. All the political experts are sure Gov. Merriam is running for something, and they do not expect to see him repeat the performance of the foot ball player who ran the length of the field—to the wrong goal. Deaf. Prom the Indianapolis News. Weeds that grow continually probably never heard about the movement for & N i Danger in Organic Constitution Change To the Editor of The Star: This is a warning concerning amend- ing the Constitution. Republics were tried several times in the little city-states of ancient Greece, in ancient Rome and in medieval Italy. In every instance they failed, were followed by a reign of terror in which the land was filled with the cries of women and chil- dren, then a dictatorship, then-back to monarchy. Conclusion: Republics in the past have proved to be unstable forms of government. Therefore a plan or consti- tution that can produce one that is stable and works fairly well is, humanly, a mon- umental work. The United States Constitution, blocked out by Pelatiah Webster, fash- ioned and carefully finished by a group of wise men “engaged in a great and arduous struggle” for good government, provided a republic fashioned after the long-struggled-for but wonderfully suc- cessful Brittsh democratic monarchy. Here, for the first time in the history of the world, man had a republican form of government on a large scale that appears stable and actually works fairly well. I say, for Heaven's sake leave it alone! It would be very easy to destroy it by a very little tinkering. The unstabilizing effects of the popular election of Sena- tors and the abolition of the “lame-duck E ion” are already becoming apparent. I solemnly warn my fellow citizens against any more organic changes, unless they be such as will secure greater hon- esty and more personal responsibility of public officers and more freedom and greater protection of the rights of the people against tyrannical encroachments, In other words, you can safely add to the Bill of Rights of the Constitution; but safely change it organically? Never! ERNEST HAVILAND HOBBS. ] Ireland’s New Charter of Independence Explained To the Editor of The Star Your editorial, “The President of Eire,” repeats a strange error common in the American press and unaccountable save as a notable achievement of a most adroit propaganda. You say “the new charter does not contemplate immediate aban- donment of the British link.” referring to the constitution of the republic of Ireland, adopted by an overwhelming popular vote on July 1. The truth is that precisely this “immediate abandonment” is expressly provided for in the new con- stitution. Effective December 29, it sev- ers the last pretense of the last tie that in any way or in any degree connects it with Great Britain. You say further that “while there is absolute severance so far as internal af- fairs are concerned, Downing Street's authority temporarily continues in the realm of foreign relations.” If you will kindly read the new consti- tution’s definition of the republic’s status in international affairs, you will see at once how you have been misled as to this point also. When the new const n comes into effect Downing Street will have no more to say about Ireland than it has to say about Siam. In other words, the complete, absolute perfect national independence of Ireland is accomplished after seven hundred vears of such a struggle as the world has never known elsewhere, and the Ameri- can press insists upon ignoring this most important historic event of these times. ANDREW I. HICKE CHARLES EDWARD RUSSELL, Publicity Committee, Kevin Barry Co., A.A.R.LR. Subsidies Proposed for Promotion of Culture To the Editor of The Star: ‘When one speaks of the national inter- est in sports and the endeavor to obtain better plavers for the various college and professional teams, another observation becomes insistently necessary to be ex- pressed. Scouts go up and down the land searching for foot ball and base ball tal- ent, spending much time, money and ef- fort to perfect the different teams. Why is it that this same procedure isn't prac- ticed in certain ‘intellectual fields? We remember the classical periods of history because of the contributions of men to science, poetry, literature, art, drama, architecture, sculpture, philosophy; poli- tics, economics and government. but the great athletes of those periods fade into the shadows. We have a Government greater than the democracy of Athens, a national wealth above that of any other democ- racy of the past, vet we are far behind other cultures in the production of great architecture, drama, music, painting, sculpture, poetry and philosophy. If our billionaires and millionaires would show a national interest in scout- ing for talent in these fields, spending a small fraction of their fortunes in sub- sidizing the ability of men and women architects, dramatists, musicians, paint- ers, sculptors, poets and philosophers we would leave a heritage enriched by the past which would justify a civilization more fortunate in material goods and comforts than any nation has ever been. The geniuses of antiquity were the brightest jewels in the crown of wealth, as they might be again today if our rich men had the taste of their progenitors. JOHN WARWICK DANIEL, 3d. Enforcement of Trash Prohibition Law Needed To the Editor of The Star: Some twenty-five years ago the District of Columbia enacted an anti-spitting or- dinance. Prior to that time not only the sidewalks, but even the floors of the street cars, were in a perpetually filthy condition from the spitting practice. The ordinance was vigorously enforced and in a very short time the practice ceased. ‘We also have an ordinance prohibiting the throwing of trash and paper in the streets. No attempt is made to enforce it. The result is that the streets of the National Capital are littered with trash most of the time. The area around lower Ninth street is in a particularly disgrace- ful condition. I am informed that in some countries the policeman who sees a person throw- ing trash in the street gives the offender his choice of being arrested or getting down in public and picking up the litter he has made. Such a practice might be helpful here. With trash cans provided every block or two there is no reason to permit a small percentage of sloppy peo- ple to spoil the looks of an otherwise beautiful city. FRANK G. CAMPBELL. Fly-Shooting Guard May Be Spending Spite Energy To the Editor of The Star: Perhaps Mr. Art Gun, as he calls him- self in his criticism of the guard at the post office who was shooting flies, has made no attempt to find out just how this said guard feels. Perhaps he is just taking his spite out on the flies instead of the Congressmen who have just refused to give him a chance to live like a human being. . It has always been a good policy to know all the facts and perhaps some more can be learned about the guard. ‘What person with a family can live decently on $1,200, feed and clothe a fam~ 1ly of four and look and act respectable? GEORGE INGRAM, THIS AND THAT BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL. The light sleeper has many compen- sations, one of which is rain in the night. Heavy sleepers, who pride themselves on never waking up, must miss this treat. Stir of wind in the locusts, and swish of leaves and branches; clank of tin somewhere, and thump of a wooden gate; on all sides the many little sounds of the coming of the rain. The clock strikes 3—— And the rain falls down. Jt comes with ever increasing force, dashing against the screens and windows, slither- ing along the gutters in the eaves, pour- ing down the spouts. The light sleeper is glad. He would not have missed this for anything. His grass especially needed water. Here is the real thing, fresh from the heavens with Nature's miracle distilla- tion. The sleeper, now awake, can visualize the thirsty grass plants taking it all in, absorbing it with relish. This is not humanizing plants, it is merely seeing them as they are (even in the dark), living things needing food and water, and a great deal of both. *ox ok K Rain in the night has the mystic mag- nification of the dark. This is the same in this age as in all the ages of the past. It is one of the sure facts which unite one age to another, this age to all that went before. The night, mystic and glowing—and then to it storm is added. Night and the storm, outside; inside, ace and quiet. Though not regarded, it is a situation in life not too often met, such a dra- matic difference, kept so by just a few boards, bricks and shingles intervening. Not only a sharp line is drawn between wet and dry, between discomfort and comfort, but an even sharper distinc- tion is made between storm and- peace, between inclement and clement in the soul. * o ok % . Rain in the night is not just some- thing to be passed over sleepily, but a thing to be treasured, an experience to be classed with others. Nothing takes the edge off living more than to get into a frame of mind in which nothing is noticed except the very unusual. When one thinks of all the minutes of the day and night, of all the passing days, weeks, months and years, of all time, it is impossible to find every one of them scintillating with excitement. Some unfortunate persons expect life to be so, and. not finding it, try to make it so by devious and uncertain expedi- ents which, in the first and last analysis, can be called nothing more than cheap. But there will be real interest added to the most staid life—if any life can be called such—by knowing and cherish- ing, at the ve time, the essential natural things of the everyday. Among these rain must be reckoned One who enjovs it is never tired of exhorting others to do the same. This enjoyment can be secured easily by a little thought. “Learn how to make friends!” some- body shouts, offering to sell you a book. “Learn to value the rain,” somebody else says, quietly, offering nothing for sale. * ok ok % t is a difficult thing for the rain ad- STARS, MEN mirer to understand how any one else can possibly fail to do the same. But everybody knows how it goes. One per- son admires the tenor voice, another the soprano, and the first asks not sopranos, nor the second tenors. ‘The person who is an enthusiast about mushrooms collects 80 edible varieties and prides himself upon his knowledge, but has only scorn for the man or woman whe can tell as many birds by their songs. The rain enchusiast is likely to be a fellow who likes all things which are natural, who is inclined to measure the value of anything else by whether or not it is natural, right out of the heart of things. He appreciates the genius which made the airplane possible, but he does not like airplanes. He thrills at any device, which does all sorts of curious things with steel fingers. but he hates the throb and rattle of the thing If he had his way he would go back tp candles and quiet. P He can't go back, alas; no one can go back. Man is at the mercy of his ma- chines, which end by controlling the mind and soul, if not the body, of their creator. The only way anvbody by insisting that n things which typically ci to consider, are the best things. Thus dawn is something worth going to bed early to see, Nobody will want to see the dawn if he has not gone to sleep until 2 am. No one will thrill to rain in the night who is so sleepy that even a hurricane scarce could wake him. In order to see and appreciate the nat- ural things, as one goes along, it is necessary to live naturally. * % ox % can go back 1 aral things, the people refuse This working up of an interest in all natural things is likewise a natural thing It is very easy. Just begin, honestly and determinedly, on one department of great Nature and the chances are that in time the interest will grow Consider a man deeply interested in a field of human endeavor called “poli- tics.” Such a man, usual but not always, is a fellow interested solely and only in politics. Government and eco- nomics, as related subjects, are interest- ing. But bees and wasps—why, of course not! The politician leaves them to the scientists and then proceeds to poke fun at the latter when they pursue their proper studies. It is very easy to get around to rain in the night and its admiration, if one has admired the ways of bees and wasps in the garden. Those persistent fellows valiantly to make a home for in the mail box, buzzing out each time a letter w t therefrom, were forer and its guides and conducto The mind which is satisfied wit} observations and finds ng. in their way, as politics an (which nobody knows whether work or not), is the mind ch is never forced to seek satisfaction of its hunger in ways absurd and not a little pathetic. Rain in the night. to such a mind, will be something worth seeing and hearing, not to roll over and forget as quickly as possible. AND ATOMS Notebook of Science Progress in Field, Laboratory and Study. BY THOMAS R. HENRY. Stuff costing ten million dollars an ounce can't be wasted. That is a conservative estimate of the cost of some newly discovered vitamins and hormones in pure state, Dr. A. H. Corwin of Johns Hopkins University stresses in a report to the American Chemical Society. Compared with them, radium, priced at about $850,000 an ounce, is dirt cheap. ’ Such extraordinary values have made it necessary to develop chemical meth- ods for detecting the tiniest speck, Dr. Corwin said. The chief of these is the microchemical balance whose unit of weight is about one twenty-fifth mil- lionth of an ounce—or one gamma. This is about the weight of a dust particle. This very fact makes much further re- finement impossible, Dr. Corwin said, because dust particles occasionally will settle on the best protected instruments. Micro-balances, he said, are so sensi- tive that many disturbing factors other than dust can render their readings un- reliable. A vibration from a passing automobile or subway train can effect the balance seriously. The animal heat from the body of the operator or from visitors to a room may be recorded as- weight. “One company,” said Dr. Corwin, “was so naive as to advertise that it had a balance sensitive enough to weigh a beam of light. But a scientist desiring to weigh a hormone does not want to weigh beams of light. If a thermometer jumped ten degrees every time you turned on the radio you would not place much reliance on it as an instrument for measuring temperature. In the same way a balance which will record heat, light or the vibration of a passing auto- mobile is not a very reliable instrument for measuring weights. If, on the other hand, it were necessary to install every micro-balance in a dark, air-conditioned room with all dust ex- cluded and the temperature carefully regulated, and if the chemist could only read the instrument through a telescope from a distance, the device would not be practical to use in his work. ‘The present objective, Dr. Corwin stressed, is to get an instrument that will weigh accurately one gamma under laboratory conditions. In order to re- duce the friction of the movable balance parts scientists have studied methods for producing sharp knives. Knives have been prepared so sharp that the finest microscope is unable to detect their width. These knives, Dr. Corwin said, constitute the closest approach kncwn to the mathematical line which has length but no width. This is necessarily an abstraction in the world of reality. But these knives acted like cylinders large enough to see under a microscope during the actual process of weighing. This effect was due, it was found, to the deformation of the knife by the weight of the tiny balance. Said Dr. Corwin: “Just as there is no such thing as an irresistible force, so there is no such thing as an immovable body. The hardest substances known to man are deformed by the weight of these tiny balances just as a rubber tire gives under the weight of the machine. The deformation is not large, but by proper manipulation these balances may be used as instruments to measure the amount that a sapphire or a diamond would be squashed by the weight of a dime. In order to protect these delicate knives from injury while the objects on the balance are being changed it is necessary to separate them from the fiat bearings on which they ¥ move. Exactly as an automobile tire bounces when it goes over a bump these knives bounce when they are replaced on their flat bearings just before a weighing. This bouncing or chattering motion has now been shown to be one of the chief causes of error in precise weighings and by its elimination weigh- ings of a new order of accuracy have been made possible.” * ok % ok The Sahara Desert was once part of a great tropical forest. New evidence for this hypothesis is presented by Dr. Herbert Friedmann, curator of birds of the Smithsonian In- stitution, in a monograph on the birds of Ethiopia and Kenya Colony just issued by the Smithsonian Institution. The bird distribution, Dr. Friedmann says, adds to the accumulating evidence that the entire African continent once was covered by unbroken wilderness. The present dense jungles are survivals of this, while the Sahara and Kalahari Deserts, as well as the vast steppe and savannah regions of East Africa are of later origin. Once the drying up had started, Dr. Friedmann explains, and a connection between Africa and Asia by way of Asia Minor established, a fully developed open country fauna was ready to cross over. Previously it would have been held back by the forests As a result, he explains, the present- day life of the East African plains is very similar to that which flourished in Central and South Central Asia just be- fore the great ice ages. “Thus,” says Dr. Friedmann, “we have fossil evidence of ostriches in Mongolia and a living form in the Arabian-Syrian Desert, linking up with the well-known ostriches of the African plains. There could have been no ostriches in Africa before the forest gave way to the grass- lands, and the Mongolian fossil form is of the same age as the transconti- nental African forest. Therefore it is clear that the ostrich must be consid- ered as originally Asiatic and only sec- ondarily African.” e Education to Fit Needs. From the Willlamsport (Pa.) Sun. It is a progressive theory in educa- tion that the pupil should be taught that which will be of practical use to him in life, to help him meet the situation with which his environment is likely to confront him. An excellent application of this theory is reported from Alaska, where the Eklutna Government School for Indians has decided that it is of no use to continue to pump culture into its pupils. Instead it will teach them cabin building, dog breeding and train- ing, reindeer farming, the cold storage and marketing of reindeer “beef.” the canning and curing of fish, growing of fruits and vegetables, the care of hides and furs, ivory carving and other tra- ditional crafts, dressmaking and tailor- ing. After all, as the school directors have decided, algebra, geography and kindred academic subjects are of little use in equipping an Alaskan Indian to fight the Lattle for survival against the inhospitable environment in which nature has placed him. Mal de Mer. Prom the Salem (Mass.) News. Seasickness is said to be not so com- mon nowadays, because people no longer sit around in their deck chairs and think about it. Very fine, though it raises the question how the fish are going to be fed. i " 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, Government building {n Washington is known as the Apex Build- ing?—W. R. A. The new home of the Federal Traia Commission -now being erectec is &o called because it is at the apex of the tri- angle of Government buildings hetween Pennsylvania and Constitution avenues, Q. How is helium used for medicinal purposes?—P. N. A. It is mixed with oxvgen for severe cases when oxygen by itself is too heavy a gas for a patient to in orifice has become ton sma Its use is now rectricted it will probably future. to admit ts price. b Q. What is meant byv use in insecticides?—F. C A. It usually crank case cides and as a sp! 1sects. guard againsg Q. How much are the heavyweight cham Joe Louis and Ton A. Tickets are p tickets to the 11p bout between $11.50, $16.50 Q. Does Mu to own an government s po, radio t The squar own are being eq with giant akers by me: which th tizen be informed of governmen ements. In order to mobilize the entire nation by over a million dol will be sper enlarging the w network. eap radio Q. How many Federal emploves ara under civi playe: in 19 York to Clover Gardens, but wa persuaded by Luigi to return to Lo where h 1 Club, the Mayfair Hotel and is now at Ciros. Q. What can be done to remedy m. onnaise that has curdled?—J. K. A. Beat one or two tablespoons of evaporated milk and then add the may- onnaise slowly. Q. Who succeeded Dr. Tyler Dennett as president of Williams College?—E. H. G. A. Dr. James Phinney Baxter, ad, Wil- liams College alumnus and professor of history at Harvard University, has been chosen as Dr. Dennett’s successor. Q. How large is Palestine?—W. R. A. It has an area of 10.000 square m!ley and the population is now 1,200,000, Q. What are the Oberlaender Travel ing Fellowships?—P. G. A. The Oberlaender Trust Fellowships are awarded to prominent American cit zens for the studv of German achieve- ments in fields directly related to tha public welfare. The holders of fellow- ships make their investigations inde- pendently as a rule, rather than enrolling in the universities. The two ma re- rements are that the proposed study be of value to the American people as a whole and that the candidate be one who can make his findings effective in the life of the present generation. Most of the work of the Oberlaender Trust is done in the fields of forestry, public health, art and music. Q. How long has Lady Astor had a seat in the House of Commons?—H. 8. A. She was elected to her husband's seat when he followed his father in she House of Lords in 1919. She has been returned at every election. Lady Astor was the first woman to sit in the British House of Commons. Q. What is the highest automobile road in Europe?—H. L. A. It is the Iseran Pass highway in France, with an altitude of 9.320 feet. The highway links Lake Geneva with the Mediterranean and runs near the famous passes of Mount Cenis and St. Bernard in the Department of Savoie near the Italian frontier, Q. How large does the plant grow which bears tea leaves?—O. C. D. A. This shrub or tree grows to 30 feet, high and the leaves may be 5 inches long. The flowers are white and fragrant and may be 1'; inches across, Canning Season Is Here. Tt is time for home canners to get bus The booklet on CANNING AND PRE- SERVING will help vou tempt the appe- tite of the family with more than one hundred tested recipes. Sections on fruits, vegetables, meats and chicken. Tells how to make fine jellies, jams, marmalades, fruit butters and pickles— how to bottle fruit juices and salt down fresh vegetables for Winter consumption. This 48-page booklet outlines the latest scientific methods and is a timely aid to household economy. Order your copy today. 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 the CANNING AND PRESERV- ING BOOKLET.