Evening Star Newspaper, March 22, 1940, Page 1

Weather Forecast Fair, colder, with lowest about 22 to- night; tomorrow increasing cloudiness; possibly light snow at night. Tempera- tures today—Highest, 45, at 9:10 am.; lowest, 36, at 1:45 a.m.; 40 at 2 p.m. From the v;adhe% States Wea etails on Pi New York Markets 88th YEAR. No. 35,0 ther Bureau report age A-2, Closed Today. 24, British Sub Torpedoes Nazi Vessel English Plane Shot Down in Air Fight Near German Border By the Associated Press. LONDON, March 22—The first torpedoing of a German merchant- man by a British submarine and the increase to six of the Danish mer- chantmen sunk by German sub- marines in the last two days today 3,000,000 Pounds Pe Foeni WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION ng Star WASHINGTON, D. C, FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 1940—FORTY PAGES. ## Greatest Pressure on Earth Produced in Experiment Here r Squbire Inch Achieved; A Major Help in Study of Earth’s Interior By THOMAS R. HENRY. marked the ceaseless sea war while ]Goodl ; Friday also failed to bring a | ull in aerial fighting. | A British pursuit plane crashed | Eiunlesul ot abiefoall in flames on Netherlands soil today after an aerial battle between Ger- man and British flyers above the German frontier, a dispatch from Amsterdam said. The plane fell in a marsh about & mile west of Lobith, where the Rhine enters Holland. Netherlands soldiers, because of the nature of the terrain, were unable to reach the wreckage immediately. It was presumed, however, that all the crew were killed. 10 or 11 Planes Involved. | Witnesses said the battle started when four British planes, flying | rather low, were attacked by six or | seven German craft. They were uncertain whether the fighting began over German or Netherlands territory. The British planes quickly climbed to about 20,000 feet and three of them streaked off in a northwesterly direction and disappeared. Accounts differed as to how many | German planes attacked the lone British plane which was brought down. Two German craft, however, ‘were seen to drop a smoke curtain, and a big Nazi plane was believed to have scored a direct hit with a small cannon. Sunk Eight Miles Off Denmark. The British submarine’s victim was the 4947-ton Heddernheim, which the admiralty announced went down 8 miles off the Danish coast | shortly before midnight last night. | Of the 36-man crew, the Danish coast guard cutter Skagen rescued | 35; one man was taken aboard the | submarine. | The German ship’s sinking| brought to 60 the number of German 'vessels the British claim to have ac- eounted for since the outbreak of the war, 25 of them captured. Previously recorded German mer- | chant ship losses from submarine | action have been the Bolheim, sunk | in the Gulf of Bothnia December 12, | allegedly by a Russian submarine, and an unidentified ship captured in mid-Atlantic in October by the French submarine Surcouf, world’s | largest undersea vessel, of 2,880 tons | surface displacement. Newest Danish Losses. Newest Danish losses, announced | by the British to have been caused | by German submarines, were: ‘The 3270-ton Christiansborg, re- ported torpedoed without warning. | Whereabouts of the crew was un- | known. The 1206-ton Charkow, sunk off the Scottish east coast, with the whereabouts of her crew unknown. (In New York shipping agents said today that the Christians- borg was carrying United States grain bought by the Danish gov- ernment. They said the ship loaded at Philadelphia, Baltimore and New York and was bound Tor Copenhagen, a neutral port.) The other Danish losses, which brought to 13 the number of Brit- ish or neutral ships sunk or dam- aged in the last three days, were re- ported yesterday. They included the 1,654-ton mo- torship Algier, torpedoed in the At- lantic Wednesday midnight with Joss of four of her crew and one woman passenger; the 1229-ton Minsk, 11 men missing; the 2,109- ton Bothal, 15 missing, and the 1,- 153-ton Viking, 15 missing. ‘Torpedoed Without Warning. Authoritative British sources said that all six Danish ships, except possibly the Charkow, had been *“torpedoed without warning by Ger- man submarines.” ‘The Norwegian ship Svinta yes- terday was listed among ships damaged by air attack. Three sea- men on another Norwegian ship, Tora Elise, it was disclosed today, were killed when the vessel was attacked by German warplanes Wednesday while she was traveling in a British convoy. Crew members said on their arrival in an English port that 10 planes participated in the attack and that British fighters shot down one of the planes. The skipper of the Aberdeen trawler Star of Peace reported his ship had struck what he believed to be a German submarine in the North Sea last night. The trawler hit a “large metal object,” the captain said, but no sign of wreckage was found when he circled the spot. His ship was| undamaged. | Damaged Ships Reach Port. Two vessels which were damaged by German bombs in the air war during the last few days, but reached port, were the British Northern Coast, 1,211 tons, and the Norwegian Erling Lindoe, 1281 tons. Another air bomb victim, pre- viously unidentified, was named as the British Barn Hill, reported still afloat, although flve seamen were killed Twenty survivors of the Algier, who reached shore after 10 hours in a lifeboat, said their ship sank with- in three minutes after being tor- pedoes. The Admiralty, while declaring that German contentions of having sunk nine ships in Wednesday’s air raid on a convoy were “in excess of the actual facts,” acknowledged that five had been damaged. Millions Throng to Resorts. Even the munitions workers took 8 holiday today as millions of urban Britons thronged to country and seaside, while rural dwellers came to the city for Easter vacations de- spite the quickening tempo of war at sea and in the air. | Terrestrial Magnetism Department | ' Mail Order Traffic pressure achieved. The pressure was exerted on a few® — Its vol- | ume was reduced, Dr. Goranson re- | ported, about one-tenth. That is, | each molecule of the salt—far too | minute to be seen under any micro- | scope—had most of the empty space | squeezed out of it. The atoms were squeezed together to the point where | they probably actually touched each | other. Work on the cascade bomb—a | bomb within a bomb—has been in| progress for the past year at both | the Geophysical Laboratory and of the Carnegie Institution. | The greatest pressure ever achieved on earth, approximately 3,000,000 pounds per squaye inch, was produced last night at the geophysical laboratory of the Carnegie Institution of Washington. With a group of the world’s foremost experts on high-pressure phenomena gathered here, under joint auspices of the institution and George Washington University, Dr. Roy W. Goranson of the Carnegie staff worked late into the night to secure with his newly devised “cascade bomb” a pressure such as otherwise is reached only in the far depths of the planet. Colleagues at the laboratory could hardly believe the story this { morning until they had inspected the bomb for evidence of the 200,000 times the weight of air, The inner bomb consists of a cyl- inder and a piston. Beneath the piston is a small space for the ma- terial which is to be put under pressure. The space around the cylinder is fillled with some liquid which does not “freeze” easily un- der enormous pressures. Last night, Dr. Goranson used varsol, a petro- | leum product very similar to kero- | sene, which is used widely as a cleaning fluid. He might have used honey and alcohol or sugar sirup and alcohol, or at higher pressures, | lead or tin, which are metals with " (See SCIENTISTS, Page A-3.) Postal Fraud Order Strikes at Mexican Ban Clamped on All Letters to Tia Juana Domestic Relations Agency By the Associated Press. The long arm of the Post Office | Department—synonymous in this instance with the long arm of the law—stretched out today to inter- rupt a mail order traffic in what the department called “these so-called Mexican divorces.” Immediately involved were the Domestic Relations Bureau at Tia Juana, Mexico; Antonio Legasty, identified as its proprietor, and “of- ficers and agents as such.” Said the Post Office Department: “All mail addressed to this con- cern and parties should be returned to senders stamped ‘fraudulent— mail to this address returned by or- der of Postmaster General,’ and no | cern and parties should be issued or certified.” “Persons ' securing these so-called Mexican divorces through the mails from courts wholly lacking in juris- | diction over the parties do not secure divorces valid in the United States,” said Vincent M. Miles, department solicitor. “Even their validity in Mexico appears to be open to ques- tion.” “The evidence before me,” he added, “shows that this scheme was deliberately designed and is being operated through the mails of the United States to defraud persons desiring divorce.” Department officials said the | “fraud order” was directed only at | the bureau named and they did not | know whether other agencies may conduct a similar mail order busi- ness. The department acts, they explained, only on specific com- | plaints of violations of postal laws. Baltimore Relief Stamps Planned by U. §. By the Associated Press. BALTIMORE, March 22.—An in- novation in handling of relief cases will come to Baltimore next month when the Federal Department of Agriculture’s “stamp plan” is ex- tended to approximately 60,000 W. P. A. workezs and relief clients here. Under the plan, each eligible per- son will be allowed to purchase $1.50 worth of orange stamps a week ‘for each member of his family. For each dollar’s worth of thes» stamps purchased, he receives free 50 cents in blue stamps. i . The orange stamps may be used at food steres to purchase any kind of food, but the blue stamps may be exchanged only for certain items, listed by the Government as sur- plus foods. Merchants accepting the stamps will send them to the office of the Baltimore stamp plan director, who will arrange to have the merchant reimbursed in cash. J. Milton Patterson, director of the State Department of Welfare, said there was no plan for extend- ing the program to any other Mary- land city. Participation by relief clients will be voluntary. Rail Wreck Kills 16 RIO DE JANEIRO, March 22 (). —Sixteen persons were killed and more than 100 injured today in a collision between two passenger trains, crowded with Easter week end travelers. The accident near Mage, a railway junction not far from Rio de Janeiro, was testatively attributed to confusion over signals. | money orders in favor of said con- [[BrymNathan SYE, Labor Board Needs Increase in Staff, Madden Says Report on Survey by Regional Directors Is Disclosed By the Assoclated Press. Disclosure of a confidential report claiming “ineffective” administra- tion of work of the National Labor Relations Board brought today from J. Warren Madden, board chairman, | a statement that only by increasing the staff could the work “be more expeditiously and satisfactorily done.” ‘The report was turned in last fall by a special committee of four re- gional directors asked by the board to make a study of its adminis- trative machinery, which functions chiefly under the direction of Secre- William M. | Leiserson, newest member of the | board. had criticized Mr. Witt's work and demanded his removel. The 10,000-word report—which officials said resulted in one or two changes in top personnel organiza- | tion—was held confidential by the| board, but was made public today by the special House committee headed by Representative Smith, Democrat, of Virginia, which is in- vestigating the agency. Mr. Madden i said in a statement that the board committee’s recommendations for expediting administrative work had been under consideration before the survey was made. Office Understaffed. “For some time we have realized,” Mr. Madden said, “that the secre- tary’s (Witt's) office has been under- staffed and able to perform its nu- merous functions only by overwork | on the part of its small staff.” Mr. Madden called the report “ex- cellent.” “The substance of the report,” he said, “was that the staff assigned to the secretary’s office was inade- quate to handle the work. “Suggestions were made for a breakdown of the functions of the secretary’s office with a view to dele- gating certain of the duties of the secretary’s office to additional per- sonnel, “There was nothing whatever in the report which reflected anything more than a recommendation that if the board were willing to make & large increase in the staff for han- dling the case work from the field and supervision of the fleld, the work could be more expeditiously and satisfactorily done.” The board committee consisted of four regional directors—A. How- ard Myers, G. L. Patterson, W. M. Aicher and Edwin Amelliott—who were set to work on the inquiry last October after Mr. Leiserson had criticized the office of secretary. This four-man committee summed up its findings in eight conclusions, described as showing some of the major causes of conditions which had evoked criticism of the board. Made Five Recommendations. It also made five recommendations, and board officials said today that at least one of these, appointment of an official to handle Mr. Witt's personnel duties, had been complied with. Such an official was named in October. It was explained also that Confidence Vote Given Reynaud, 1 Over Majority Cabinet Is Called To Decide Whether To Resign By the Associated Press. PARIS, March 22.—Premier Paul Reynaud won a one-vote majority of confidence in the Chamber of Deputies today and immediately an- nounced a cabinet meeting to deter- mine whether he would drop the reins of government he has held a little more than 24 hours. Of the 535 Deputies present, the official count gave him 268 votes. There were 156 against and 111 ab- stentions. There were absentees, however, since the membership of the Chamber now is 551 It was said in the corridors that the new Premier-Finance Minister was determined to remain in power |unless his seven Radical-Socialist ministers resigned, a step they were reported to be considering. The vote was taken on an order | of the day, which was read to the | Chamber by Independent Radical | Auguste Brunet. It read: | “The Chamber approves the gov- ernmental declaration and has con- fidence in the government to con- duct the war to victory.” Energetic War Pledged. Making his first appearance as| Premier before the Chamber of Dep- | uties, M. Reynaud earlier pledged in | a ministerial declaration “to direct all French energies to fight and to win” the war against Germany, which, he sald, was “aided by the| treachery of the Soviets.” His government had only one rea- son for existence, he said—“to win the war.” “To win is to save everything,” he said. “To lose is to lose all.” Replying to questions as to what the policy of his government would be the Premier said: “We have not forgotten the pain- ful hours of the last war. There are some errors that we will not repeat. M. Daladier has known how to save human lives.” This indication of a continuance of the strategy of a war of siege against Germany brought applause. Applause Is Slight. Only a few timid handclaps greet- ed the Premier as he mounted the rostrum. Similarly only a few re- | sponded when he had finished his | declaration. Short outbursts from the Right oc- curred when he spoke of “the treach- ery of the Soviets.” Vice Premier Camille Chautemps | read the same declaration in the Senate, where it also was received | cooly, although the Senators cheered former Premier Edouard Daladier, Defense Minister in the new cat- inet, when he walked in with other members of the ministry. The Senate voted to meet secretly | April 9 to discuss army and air | questions. Criticism Begun. Immediately after M. Reynaud's| reading of the declaration in the Lower House, Radical-Socialist Lu- cien Galimand began detailed crit- icism of the Premier. He said the rapidity with which | he made up his cabinet led the deputy to believe M. Reynaud ex- | pected to be forced out of office. | His statement drew applause from Rightists although his own Radical- Socialists were restrained. The Radical-Socialists in the chamber met in a party caucus shortly before the Premier spoke and the majority of the members favored abstaining from the prospective con- fidence vote, but decided to meet again before taking definite action. * Cabinet Make-up Scored. Radical-Socialist Vincent Badie followed M. Galimand with scathing criticism of composition of the cabi- net. Louis Marin, extreme Rightist, then declared that his followers would vote against M. Reynaud. “We want a war government,” he told the Premier. “Your cabinet does not meet our desire.” There were murmurs throughout the chamber when M. Marin said military and diplomatic events were looming and “perhaps an interior movement is imminent.” He was thought to be referring to what he regards as a danger that Socialists will return to power. Reynaud Answers Critics. ‘M. Reynaud in reply to his critics explained he had constituted a large government because he did not wish to concentrate power in a few hands. There are three more Ministers in the M. Reynaud cabinet than in M. Daladier’s ministry which pre- ceded it. M. Reynaud said he had requested M. Daladier’s participation before he attempted to form a cabinet | | ' Drivers Transfer | in the District today began transfer- | N Concrete-Mixer To Teamster Union Transfer Ends Dispute That Tied Up Building Work Here Last Fall BACKGROUND— Climaz of labor troubles which plagued private and Government building construction in District early last fall came when local teamsters struck in protest of failure of concrete-mizer truck drivers to transfer membership from engineers’ union. Team- sters’ local and five union officials subsequently were indicted for anti-trust law violation after Jus- tice Department investigation. Strike was suspended pending further negotiations. By THOMAS C. HARDMAN. Operators of concrete-mixer trucks | ring their membership from the Op- erating Engineers’ Union to the In- ternational Brotherhood of Team- sters, marking the end of a long dis- pute which last fall tied up for weeks millions of dollars in construction projects and resulted in a District Court indictment against several teamsters officials. ‘The Teamsters’ local—the Drivers, Chauffeurs and Helpers Union, No. 369—which claimed jurisdiction over the trucks on the basis of a decision | handed down by a national referee of the American Federation of La- bor, parent organization of both unions, signed supplemental agree- ments late yesterday with three of the four local concrete companies | operating mixer trucks and was to close an agreement with the remain- ing employer this morning. Blanketed In. Under the terms of the agree- | ments members of the engineers’| union in good standing were blank- eted in the teamsters’ local by simple transfer of membership. Those not in good standing were required un- der the terms to pay the teamsters’ initiation fee. Stuart M. Keyser, business agent for the teamsters’ local, explained that, in all, about 175 men are af- fected by the agreement to transfer. Of these, he sald, approximately 88 are in good standing. The agreements signed with oper- ating companies supplemented con- tracts already in effect with the Operating Engineers’ Union. One section provides for a closed shop. This clause was not included in the old contracts. The wage- hour provisions, though worded dif- ferently to comply with the lan- guage of other teamster contracts, remain virtually the same. Officials at the Justice Department, which has pressed charges of viola- tion of the anti-trust laws against the teamsters’ local and five union officials, said the truce between the two unions will have no effect, as far as the department is concerned, on the criminal proceedings against the teamsters, as court action was based on “past conduct.” The court has under consideration a demurrer and alternate motion to quash the indictment, filed by Joseph A. Padway, chief counsel of the A F.of L. 5 The suit has drawn Nation-wide attention as the first of a number of similar indictments handed down “(See LABOR BOARD, Page A-5) Earthquake Recorded NEW YORK, March 22 (P.— Father Joseph J. Lynch said today the Fordham University seismograph recorded a “sharp” quake yesterday which he estimated to be about 10,300 miles distant from New York and in the direction of Australia. By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, March 22.—The en- gagement of George Jessel, 40-year- old comedian, to Lois Andrews, 15, Broadway showgirl, was at the stage today where “it all depends on mother.” Mrs. Geraldine Andrews, mother of the beauteous Lois—who ronce socked Producer George White in the eye backstage at the “Scandals” —arrived by plane from the West Coast. Said Lois: Normally, nearly all Good Friday (See LONDON, Page A-3) % “I am going to have a long talk with my mother about the marriage. I love Mr. Jessel very much.” & George Jessel, 40, May Wed Songstress Lois Andrews, 15 Jessel, former husband of Norma Talmadge, said, “It depends on her mother and perhaps a little more thought. It's too quick, too bewil- dering to say, but she’s so lovely.” He previously had described re- ports that they would be married as “premature.” Lois will be 16 next Sunday. She displayed her spirit last Sep- \tember by poking Impresario White after he withdrew her from a song she had been rendering, a song about “A Smart Little Girl With Oomph.” 2 (See FRANCE, Page A-3.) Summary of Page. Amusements, A-14-15 Comics _..C-6-7 Editorials __A-10 Lost, Found, B-14 Obituary ..-A-12 Foreign British sub torpedoes German mer- chantman. Page A-1 Reynaud wins one-vote majority confidence ballot. Page A-1 Thousands join Holy Land’s Good Priday rites. Page A-4 Newsmen find little sign of real damage on Sylt. Page A-4 Social Credit leading in Alberta elec- tion. Page’ A-5 Japan will not aid Britain, Arita tells Diet. Page A-7 National Madden says increased staff needed by Labor Board. Page A-1 Labor Board administration faulty, own report said. Page A-1 Treasury balance finadequate for .| Washington and Vicinity (See UNIONS, Page A-4) Today’s Star Patronage move would bar jobs to D. C. residents. Page A-1 Greatest pressure on earth achieved in experiment here. Page A-1 Concrete truck operators transfer to teamsters’ union. Page A-1 Editorial and Comment This and That. Answers to Questions. Letters to The Star. David Lawrence. Alsop and Kintner. Frederic William Wile. Constantine Brown. Charles G. Ross. Page A-11 Page A-11 Page A-11 Page A-11 Page A-11 Miscellany Reputation. City News in Brief. Vital Statistics. Service Orders. Bedtime Story. Letter-Out. Page B-14 Page B-11 Page B-14 Page B-14 Page B-18 Page B-18 Page B-18 Page B-19 Page B-19 ‘Winning Contract. Uncle Ray’s Corner. Cross-Word Puzale, farm use, Senate told. Page A-1 N Nature's Children. Phge B-20 5 J ”fl/ NG e ! ligs I Baltimore Ducks Put Own Designs On Eggs for Easter By the Associated Press. BALTIMORE, March 22— The egg-dyeing industry will get no business this year from Deputy State Game Warden E. C. Kerns, thanks to the fine, co-operative spirit of his ducks. The black East India ducks are producing eggs that are three-fourths black with intri- cate gray designs over the re- maining quarter. “They've been laying com- pletely black eggs for some time,” Mr. Kerns said, “but they just started putting designs on them this week. “I guess it must be the Easter spirit.” 'Planners 0. K. Bill To End D. C.-Virginia Boundary Dispute Commission Hopes To Take Measure Before Congress (Other Park and Planning News, Page B-1.) ‘The National Park and Planning Commission today approved a tenta- tive bill drawn up by its staff to settle once and for all the long and involved Virginia-District of Coium- bia boundary dispute. Provisions of the bill are: The legal boundary between the District and Virginia would be placed at the highwater mark on the Virginia shore of the Potomac River as it exists today, the United States, however, retaining title to all land at present in its ownership which thus would be thrown into Virginia. Thus, public offenses committed on the Virginia side of the river would be prosecuted in the Federal courts of Virginia if committed on Federal land and by the State courts or local courts if committed on State or private land. ‘The measure would put an end to existing no-man’s lands on the Vir- ginia side of the river where public offenses now go unprosecuted be- cause jurisdiction cannot be estab- lished either by surrounding political units or the District. ‘The Supreme Court has estab-. lished the highwater mark of 1791 as the legal boundary, but since the highwater mark has been greatly changed by filling and-dredging and by natural changes in the river channel, it is virtually impossible today to establish just where the boundary line is. A draft of the bill, which the commission hopes to take before Congress at a future date, was pre- sented to the commission by its sec- retary and legal representative, Thomas S. Settle. Edison Selects Manager For Gubernatorial Race By the Associated Press. WEST ORANGE, N. J., March 22. —Secretary of the Navy Charles Edison announced through his office here today that Arthur Walsh, executive vice president of Thomas A. Edison, Inc., would manage his campaign for the Democratic gu- bernatorial nomination. Mr. Edison is president of the company founded by his Pmer. Established in 1852 Most people in Washington have The Star delivered to their homes every () Means evening and Sunday morning. Associated Press. THREE CENTS. 'Paironage Rider Would Bar District And Nearby Residents House Committee Seeks To Give Jobs to States Under Civil Service Quota . Residents of the District of Colum- | bia, Maryland and Virginia would be | barred from further Federal em- | ployment this year under a House Appropriations Committee recom- mendation which seeks, in effect, to | give further patronage to Congress- men from States where the civil service quota has not been filled. The recommendation is in the form of a rider on the Labor-Federal Security appropriation bill which would limit hiring of non-civil serv- | ice employes to those States that | have not completed their quotas. In its report the committee de- clared that “in some of the agen- cies, appropriations for which are carried in this bill, there has been no effort whatever to equitably dis- tribute among residents of the vari- ous States positions tha} are exempt from the operation of the civil service law.” Example of One Unit Cited. In one unit “employing a consid- erable nimber of attorneys approxi- mately 45 per cent of the total number were residents of only two States,” the committee added, ap- parently referring to Maryland and Virginia. “The committee is confident that the House, with knowledge of such a situation existing, would not de- | sire to countenance its continuance. | “A provision has been inserted in | the bill, therefore, preventing the use of any funds appropriated in the act for the pay of any employe here- after appointed if their State of residence is already over-appor- tioned.” It is claimed that the limitations placed upon the apportionment will | “more equitably distribute among residents of all the States the bene- fits of positions exempt from the civil service laws.” Attempt First of Its Kind. In addition to the District and its adjoining States, other States which have full quotas are New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, West Virginia, Rhode Island, North Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota, Utah and Kansas. Congressional veterans said it was the first time to their knowl- edge that attempts had been made to apply civil service apportionment to non-civil service jobs. The quota law, in applying only to the District and not to field jobs, is expected to create a serious situa- tion when the Social Security Board moves its offices from Baltimore to Washington socn. Many em- ployes in Baltimore are classified in field jobs and the probability is that when they move to the District many will become unemployed. The appropriation bill provides specifically “no funds appropriated in this act shall be available for the appointment of persons to non- civil service positions in the District of Columbia unless such appoint- ment is not in excess of the quota of apportionment” as established by civil service laws. The law does not apply to appointments made by the President. Salary Cuts Also Recommended. The committee also added an amendment to reduce salaries of employes who have received three (See JOBS, Page A-5.) Flying Businessman Startles The Soldiers’ Home Alfalfa Aged veterans at Soldiers’ Home got a taste of modern business methods today when a flashing red monoplane made an airport of what is usually just the Home's alfalfa field. The plane, descending in a twist- ing wind, made a perfect landing on the bumpy hilltop surrounded by trees. Out stepped A. S. Wikstrom, who explained to Policeman L. A. Grubb that he is contractor for the District reservoir being constructed on Sol- diers’ Home grounds. Mr. Wikstrom has to make his minutes count, he said, because his headquarters are in Bound Brook, N. J., and he had to get on down to Richmond, Va., ;h:; afternoon to inspect another ol After half an hour’s inspection of his project, Contractor Wikstrom was off again, having had no wor- ries except about newspapers. When a photographer appeared the flying businessman spun his propeller, leaped into his cabin, and cried out that the Civil Aeronautics Authority would take away his license if they heard about him. At the Authority, however, it was said that since Mr. Wikstrom had done his business well away from the business section downtown, re- stricted against planes, he was safe. Officials suggested that Soldiers’ Home heads might wish to com- plain of trespass, but Col. Matt C. Bristol, deputy governor of the home, said no. f Treasury Cash Held Inadequate For Farm Aid Morgenthau Deals Blow to Senate Plan To Meet Benefits By J. A. O'LEARY. ‘The argument advanced during the farm bill debate that some of the Treasury’s cash working balance could be used to meet the $209,000,~ 000theSenate has added to the meas- ure, was dealt a blow today when Secretary Morgenthau advised Sen- ator Byrd, Democrat, of Virginia, that the estimated balance as of next June 30 “will be about as low as it can be permitted to go.” In his letter to Senator Byrd, Mr. Morgenthau figures the working bal- ance as of that date at $1,011,000,000. The Virginian said, however, he nas been informed by Treasury officials that there should be deducted from that total $400,000,000 of obligations of various Government corporations and credit agencies, leaving $600,- 000,000. ’ Senator Byrd also had data from the General Accounting Office, esti- mating the working balance as of June 30 at $514,225114. Was Estimated Higher. In the debate two days ago Sen- ators Byrnes, South Carolina; Clark, Missouri, and Barkley, Kentucky, all Democrats, spoke of the working balance as $1,600,000,000. Senator Barkley also said at that time he did not think it should go below $1,000,000,000. Senator Byrd con- tended at that time that the un- encumbered balance would be about $500,000,000. Meanwhile, the Senate sought to pass the farm measure this after- noon if a final amendment to re- lieve cane sugar producers can be disposed of. Senator Ellender, Dem- ocrat, of Louisiana is seeking to aid producers who increased their acreage after the administration lifted the sugar quotas at the out= break of the war last September, to keep sugar prices from going up. | Three months later, Senator El- lender said, the quotas were re=- established. Morgenthau Letter. Secretary Morgenthau's letter to Senator Byrd on the Treasurys | working balance follows: | “The following information is furnished you in compliance with your telephone request of this morning. “In the 1941 budget submitted to the Congress in January of this year it is estimated that the Treasury’s working balance of June 30, 1940, will be about $1,011,000,000, a reduc= tion of $1,291,000,000 during the cur= rent fiscal year. The Treasury does not segregate its working balances in the general fund to show its obli- gation on any particular class of accounts, but considers its total working balance as available to meet the demands made on any of these accounts as well as to meet general and trust fund expenditures of the Government. “In view of the large amount of demand obligations now outstanding which the Treasury may be called upon to meet, such as the checking accounts and deposits of govern- mental corporations, credit agencies, |etc, in the aggregate amount of over $400,000,000; the unemployment trust fund, amounting to $1,640,000.- 000: special obligations issued for accounts of the Postal Savings Sys- tem and the Federal Deposit Ine surance Corp., amounting to $142- 000,000; and outstanding United States savings bonds with a re- demption value of $2,700,000,000. it is felt that the estimated working balance of the Treasury on June 30, 1940, as contemplated by the President’s budget, will be about as low as it can be permitted to go.” Savings Used on Farm Bill. By voting $212,000,000 for parity price payments, and $85,000,000 ad- ditional for disposal of surplus com= modities, the Senate has used up on the farm bill nearly all that had been saved on other bills for the purpose of avoiding -the $460,000,000 of new taxes recommended by the President in his budget. The long-awaited Senate battle over the administration’s reciprocal trade agreement program may start late today, if leaders succeed in bringing the $923,000,000 farm bill to a final vote by midafternoon. Facing at least a 10-day or two- week fight on the trade agreement resolution, Majority Leader Barkley is planning a session tomorrow and probably Saturdays in succeeding weeks, whenever major legislation is pending. The Senate late yesterday ap- proved amendments authorizing the Reconstruction Finance Corp. to make loans of $40,000,000 for the program of the Rural Electrification Administration and of $50,000,000 for the farm-tenancy program un- der Bankhead-Jones Act. The House bill carried a direct appropriation of $40,000,000 for the R. E. A, which the Senate decided should be financed instead by the R.F. C. The Budget Bureau recom- mended $25,000,000 for farm ten- ancy, for which the House made no provision. The Senate blocked & move yes- terday by Senator La Follette, Pro- gressive, of Wisconsin to increase the fund for the Surplus Commodity Corp. from $85,000,000 to $113,000,000 for the purpose of extending into 60 more cities the stamp plan for making surplus food supplies avail- able to families eligible for relief. | | Nazi Scout Patrols Engaged by French By the Associated Press. PARIS, March 22 —German pa- trols scouting east and west of the ar River engaged French outposts in lively exchanges of fire but were repulsed, French military sources said today. They said there were no French losses. Aerial forces of both sides recon- noitered over the front lines. This morning’s French communi-~ que: “A calm night on the whole of the front.” py