Evening Star Newspaper, January 26, 1942, Page 10

@he Foening Htar With Sunday Morning Edition. THEODORE W. NOYES, Editor. WASHINGTON, D. C. MONDAY. Eennsylvania Ave, Chicago Office’ 435 North Michigan Ave. Delivered by C-.rrlu—Clty and Suburban. Eyening and mn«ny"’l’gc c per mo, or 1. 00 Nvening B germo. or 1 e Sunday Star Night Final Edition. Nizht Fina) and Sunday stai tar Night Rural Tube Delivery. The Evening and St Ihe Evening Star Z The ta: Oc per copy. cunmmm made at the end of each Month or each week. Orders may be sent by mall or tele- Dhone. National 5000. Rate by Mail—Payable in Advance. 1 d St 1 12.00: 1 1,00 BRll? ", Sum 13 SR80 1 men *480 Bunday only _ 1y’ $5.00; 1mo, 80c per wee| C Per weel 10c per copy " 85c per month 90c per month Entered as second-class maiter poat office. Washington. D. C. Member of the Associated Press. The Associated Press is exclusively entitled to the use for republication of all news dispatches eredited to it or not otherwise credited in this Daper and also the local news Dublished herein. Al rights of ton of special dispatches ve We Must Act Now! Sunday a week ago Budget Director 8mith, representing the executive agencies, outlined in broad strokes the physical proportions of the prob- lem to be created in Washington by the prospective influx of 250,000 per- sons, drawn here in the next twelve months by the war program. Yesterday, a week later, District Budget Officer Fowler, representing the municipal government, furnished a statement of estimated increases in Capital City expenses to result from this extraordinary population, added to an already overcrowded city. Thus we have two sides of a tri- angular problem. The third side— or the base—is represented in the steps to be taken by the exclusively- controlling Congress in enacting nec- essary legislation and appropriating the money enabling the municipality to meet the load which the Nation’s war needs will impose on the Capital. Obviously, extraordinary steps | must be taken to meet an extraordi- nary situation. Obviously, it cannot be met in unrelated, plecemeal steps without careful co-ordination be- tween the three agencies of Govern- ment involved—the executive and | legislative branches and the mu- | nicipal government, the latter serv- ing both legislative and executive | branches in administration of Dis- trict of Columbia affairs. District estimates for fiscal 1943 were drawn and in effect approved by the President before Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor knocked them out— rendered them virtually without meaning in respect to changed con- | ditions. Why not withdraw these estimates, before hearings on them begin, and start over again in an at- tempt to plan in some orderly fash- fon to deal with the unprecedented " realities of the situation now facing the District? Either that should be done or an emergency war budget should be superimposed on the nor- | mal budget and dealt with separately. We can no longer hope for desir- able results by depending on the | normal—but now obsolete—process of local budget making, involving the practically independent functioning of the Commissioners, the Budget Bureau and at least four subcommit- tees and four full committees of Con- gress, in addition to House and Sen- ate. The situation calls for basic de- cisions to be reached jointly by repre- sentatives of the Budget Bureau, the | Commissioners, the District legis- lative and appropriations committees of Congress. These decisions should be based on the Budget Bureau's best estimates of the load to be imposed on the Capital by the war, the Com- missioners’ best estimates of the new | capital outlays and increased main- tenance funds necessary to meet the load and a congressional plan for some equitable and practical method in apportioning the expense between the National Government and the local community. Decisions thus ar- rived at should be strengthened by the prestige of presidential approval. Can we not act now, before it is i too late? Can there not be agree: ment on a sensible conception of the Capital’s problesm and an gqually sensible method of meeting it? Cer- | tainly we cannot permit, in the | Nation'’s Capital, repetition in another form of the disgraceful trag- edy of Pearl Harbor—a tragedy which would have been averted by proper 1 co-ordination of responsibility and | action in the face of adequate warn- | ing. Labor Armistice The acceptance by the American Federation of Labor and the Con- gress of Incdustrial Organizations of the President’s proposal for the ap- pointment of three-man committees representing each organization to consult with him on questions relat- ing to labor’s participation in the war effort constitutes what might be | called a labor armistice, but falls far | short of a rapprochement between the A. F. of L. and the C. I. O. In effect, the two wings of labor have agreed to call off their inter- | organizational war for the duration of the greater hostilities in which the | Nation is involved. What is to follow after that is any man’s guess. The President’s proposal was ad- vanced as an alternative to the call from John L. Lewis for a resumption of negotiations looking toward a full- fledged peace settlement between the A.F.of L. and the C.1. O. Since the two labor groups already had sub- scribed to a no-strike agreement while the shooting war lasts, Mr. Roosevelt is understood to have felt }s | losses. THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C, MONDAY, JANUARY 26, 1942. THIS AND THAT that his committee propossl would prove adequate to adjust any labor problems that might arise without incurring the risk of inflaming old hatreds and possibly engendering new ones which might attend a re- newal of outright peace negotiations, As far as it goes, this is probably valid reasoning, but it can hardly disguise the fact that the real barrier to the Lewis peace offensive was the old one of clashing personalities and mutual distrust within the labor movement. For some reason Mr. Lewis ad- vanced his proposal without consult- ing Philip Murray, president of the C. I. O, who first learned of it through the newspapers. That, as events have proved, was a tactical blunder of the first magnitude, and has served only to widen the breach between these two erstwhile friends. In the present state of affairs, the C. I. O. Executive Board stands squarely bzhind Mr. Murray, and Mr. Lewis has been rather roughly shouldered out of the picture. It remains to be seen what the lat- ter's next move will be, but it is merely stating the obvious to say that Mr. Lewis’ star as a labor leader —outside the conflnes of his own United Mine Workers—is definitely on the wane. In three major clashes —first with A. F. of L. President Wil- liam Green, then with Mr. Roosevelt, and, finally, with Mr, Murray—he has emerged second best. For him, as in the case of other former champions, the comeback trail will prove long and hard. EEpe—— Russo-German Climax Momentous changes in the mili- tary situation during the past week indicate that the supreme test of the winter campaign in Russia may be at hand. It is now nearly two months since the Red Armies began their general counteroffensive, nice- ly timed when the last German offen- sive had fought itself to a standstill amid the early rigors of the Russian winter, which caught the Germans exhausted, ill clad, with dangerously extended salients and with congested supply lines. Paced by crack Siberian corps, fresh and splendidly equipped, the Russian offensive gained initial suc- cesses which imperiled the German pincer arms and caused them heavy However, the German high command straightened their lines with the obvious intention of retreat- | ing slowly to a defensible front which they could hold until spring. For a the slowly retiring Germans, doing them much damage, yet nowhere breaking down the stubborn defense. Then, just a week ago, the scene | changed sharply in the Russians’ favor. The pivotal German strong- hold of Mozhaisk, within striking distance of Moscow, fell before a tremendous frontal attack combined | with pincer movements against what had become an exposed salient. The survivors of the 100,000 de- fenders are now retreating along the main railroad and highway to Viazma and Smolensk. This, in itself, is not a disaster. What imperils the entire German central front is the first real Rus- sian break-through to the north- ,ward, which, despite deep snow and 40 - below - zero cold, has already | one—against use of any Here the Russian | driven 70 miles. advance guards stand far to the west of Smolensk and due south of Lenin- grad, at a point where they claim to have cut the main north-south rail- way line from Leningrad to the Ukraine, which is the chief German lateral communication line. Further- more, the Russians here are only 50 miles from the other trunk railway which supplies thejr northern armies besieging Leningrad. This Russian break-through not only imperils the German northern and central army groups, but has been made in con- junction with a second Russian ad- | vance south of Mozhaisk which threatens to grip the German Viazma-Smolensk line in a gigantic pincers movement. Unless the Ger- mans can check both these sweeping Russlan advances, their entire east- ern front, as now constituted, will be in jeopardy and a general retreat under terrible climatic handicaps can alone save them from repeated en- circlements and destruction in detail. The Russian winter is now ap- proaching its peak of cold, while the | heaviest snowfall comes in February and early March. The Germans | must face at least two months when their handicaps on both men and equipment will be most severe. This is the grim ordeal they must weather against an enemy flushed with suc- cess and determined to make the most of every advantage. A beauty specialist advises all her readers completely to alter their | appearance during the coming year. Wait a minute—how many G-men have we available to cope with such a new problem? Constructive Lesson A second reading of the Roberts report suggests one thought that | It is | this: That nothing discovered by the | | investigating commission represents may be worthy of mention. proof that Japan enjoys any dis- tinctive inherent advantage which the United States has been shown to lack. The success of the raid on Pearl Harbor may be attributed to complacency on the part of Ameri- can commanders who simply could not imagine an air attack upon Hawall. American plans for the defense of Pearl Harbor were “adequate.” There were deficiences in men and weapons, but the major fault was that of human errors of judgment, “a lack of appreciation” of danger. As to the rank and file, the report says: “Offi- A cers and enlisted men , , demon- strated excellent training and high morale.” The Japanese pald for their “victory” & heavier price than the world at first supposed. At least 30 of their “estimated force of from 130 to 200 fighting, bombing and torpedo planes” were brought down. More important, however, has been the result of the incident in the United States. The assault upon Hawall united the American people as perhaps nothing else could have brought them together. It also taught them that nothing ever again needlessly may be left to chance. From now on they should be pre- pared for the most surprising de- velopments conceivable. They have learned that it is wise to anticipate disaster—and thus to prevent it. Machines and supplies, they under- stand, must be provided in unlimited quantities—planes, tanks, guns of every modern sort, ships of every use- ful kind, munitions for every defen- sive and offensive purpose, materiel of every necessary variety. In terms of potential production, the United States is superior. The Natlon's genius of invention, me- chanical skill, willingness to sacri- fice, essentdal strength and stalwart- ness of character are required to the end that life may be tolerable in the years ahead. “Force,” as Woodrow Wilson expressed it, “force to the ut- most” and the highest creative in- telligence of which “we, the people” of this good free land, may be capa- ble are demanded for the survival of our civilization. Justice Roberts and his fellow members of the board of inquiry have shocked America into a new comprehension of both the peril in which the Republic and its Allles stand and the promise of trilumph to which by processes of blood and sweat they may attain. Protecting the Spies ‘The Roberts Board of Inquiry lists high among “causes contributory to the success of the Japanese attack” on Pearl Harbor certain “restrictions which prevented effective counter- esplonage.” These restrictions, the report explains, prevented the Fed- eral Bureau of Investigation and the Army and Navy intelligence services from resorting to “certain methods of obtaining the content of messages transmitted by telephone or radio- telegraph over the commercial lines operating between Oahu and Japan.” Had the F. B. I. and intelligence offi- | cers been permitted to intercept solid month the Russians hammered | these messages, the report asserted, they might have obtained “valuable information.” The restrictions to which the board referred were threefold—legislative, judicial and administrative. The statutory prohibition is a clause in | the Federal Communications Act of 1934 forbidding any person to “inter- | cept any communications and di- vulge or publish” them. The Supreme Court has interpreted this phrase as outlawing any evidence obtained by law enforcement officers by wire- tapping or any other means of inter- i ‘ SePLt moamene aenb by MU O | atedl abt TaUbilliane Gt Gl | money available for taxes and savings wireless. The Pearl Harbor report discloses that the War Department reinforced these statutory and ju- dicial restrictions with an implied | warning—and an obviously logical “illegal measures” in combating espionage and sabotage in Hawail. From this it is reasonable to infer that by, em- ploying illegal measures our counter- espionage agents in Hawaii might have been able to obtain information which would have prevented Pearl Harbor from being caught off guard on December 7 last. sumption prompts the question: Why was this dangerous and absurd legal restriction on ‘“effective counter- espionage” permitted to continue in a time of great national emergency? That is a long, sad and, in view of what has happened in the Pacific, a tragic story. Itisa story of too great concern in some congressional quar- ters over possible “abuses” of wire- tapping and too little concern over the potential perils involved in what Justice Jackson, as Attorney Gen- eral, described as “guaranteeing” to spies and criminals “the safe use of the channels of wire and wireless.” That is exactly what the present F. C. C. Act, in effect, does. Director Hoover of the F. B. I, Mr. Jackson, Attorney General Biddle and Presi- dent Roosevelt are among those who foresaw the dangers of such a guaranty. All of them have urged enactment of special legislation to permit the F. B. I. and the Army and Navy intelligence officers to listen in on thg wire and wireless messages of spies and saboteurs and to use in- formation thus obtained as evidence in court. The House passed a bill of this nature in August, 1940, but Chairman Wheeler of thg Senate In- terstate Commerce Committee, who dislikes wire-tapping in any form, allowed the bill to die in a committee pigeonhole. Representative Hobbs of Alabama sponsored a second bill last year, but it was defeated in the House by a close vote, after opponents had raised the old cry against “Invading privacy of the home.” But, as The Star pointed out at the time, “the only privacy which the bill sought to invade was that of espionage agents, saboteurs and kidnapers.” So, fantastic as it may seem, our counterespionage agents in Hawail were compelled by law to stand by helplessly while known spies were using the wires and radio to plot our destruction. Wh;\t is even more in- credible is that this situation con- tinues to exist there and elsewhere to this day, although we are actually at war. And it will continue to exist until Congress awakens to its grave responsibility and quickly rectifies its errors of judgment with respect to wire-tapping legislation. . B N ! | ure by the middle of 1942 This natural as- | Forced Savings- Held Necessary Writer Sees Security Of Family Imperiled By Heavy Costs of War By S. H. De Vault. ‘There has been a great deal of discus- sion of the increase in the national in- come and the amount of money that is available for taxes and savings. Little consideration has been given to the effect of the increased lving costs on the amount of money available for taxes and savings. Normally, the percentages of the total income that go for cost of living are as follows: Rent, 25 per cent; food, 30 per cent; insurance, 8 per cent; automobile, 10 per cent; household items, 12 per cent; savings and taxes, 15 per cent. On the basis of these figures, it is apparent thet the cost of living consumes about 85 per cent of the total national income, leaving 15 per cent for taxes and sav- ings. Certain personal taxes are in- cluded in the 85 per cent of the income which goes for family living. In 1840 the total national income was 76 billions of dollars. Assuming that 85 per cent of this went for items of family living, this would give a total of 646 billions of dollars. The 15 per cent of the national income would be equivalent to 11.4 billions of dollars available for taxes and savings. From August, 1939, to December, 1941, the cost of living rose 12 per cent. The national income in 1941 has been esti- mated at 92 billions of dollars. There- fore the amount of money available for family living was 78.2 billions of dollars; the amount available for taxes and sav- ings was 13.8 billions of dollars. If the amount available for living is deflated by 12 per cent, the equivalent of the rise in the cost of living, there is left 68.8 billlons of dollars as the real cost of living. When this is added to the 138 billions of dollars for taxes and savings, it gives a total of 826 billions of dollars of real income. Had not the cosf of living risen 12 per cent in 1941, there would have been available an additional 94 billions of dollars for savings and taxes or for improvement of the stand- ard of living. This means that the in- crease in the gross national income can- not all be syphoned off in the form of additional taxes without affecting ad- versely the standard of living. The national income for 1942 is esti- mated at about 110 billions of dollars, of which cost of living will consume 935 billions of dollars, deaving 16.5 billions of doliars for savings and taxes. How- | ever, the cost of living will probably rise to 20 per cent above the August, 1939, fig- When the 935 billions of dollars is deflated by 20 per cent, there is left 748 billions of dollars as the real cost of living. Adding this to the 165 billlons of dollars gives 913 billions of dollars as the real in- come. Had the cost of living not risen 20 per cent above the August, 1939, figure, there would have been available an additional 18.7 billions of dollars for savings and taxes or for improvement of the standard of living. Federal taxes in 1940 amounted to $6.820,000,000, leaving $4571,000,000 as savings. Federal taxes in 1941 are esti- The in 1841 was 138 billions of dollars, leav- ing 0.8 of a billion dollars for savings in addition to the items of savings included. in the cost of living. such as equity in property, life insurance, etc. These fig- ures are on a calendar year basis and do not indicate the true situation. For example, certain taxes, such as income taxes levied against 1941 incomes, are not collected until 1942 and the real burden of these taxes will not be felt until about March 15, 1942, The amount of money available in 1942 for taxes and savings is 16.5 billions of dollars. As the rate of increase in national income exceeds the rate of in- crease in cost of living, more of the total national income is available for savings or taxes. The Federal Government expects to collect in taxes in 1942, 22 billions of dol- lars, or 9 billions of dollars in excess of the 1941 collections. It is apparent then that if taxes absorb 22 billions of dollars in 1942 nothing will be left for sav- ings if an adequate standard of living is maintained. Increased war produc- tion, however, substantially will reduce the quantity of goods available for civil- fan ‘use, which may reduce somewhat that proportion of the national income going to family living. It should be kept in mind that these figures are general and apply to all oc- cupational or income groups. Persons with fixed salaries will be at a.decided disadvantage because a 20 per cent rise in the cost of living is equivalent to al- most & 20 per cent reduction in salaries or wages. Likewise, the businesses en- gaged in the manufacture or sale of cer- tain civilian goods or in the manufacture or sale of goods now needed for defense purposes will be affected adversely. This applies specifically to businesses such as tire dealers, automobile dealers, con- cerns engaged in the selling of certain manufactured articles, such as washing machines, vacuum eleaners, radios, etc. The savings of most people in the low and medium income brackets go into the accumulation of equity in their mort- gaged property and into life insurance savings. These items alone may take as much as 35 or 40 per cent of the family gross income. Families with these fixed obligations may find it difficult to pay taxes and may be either forced to borrow money to pay their taxes or to forego | ownership of property or life insurance. | Those workers whose incomes are not fixed but increase with the rise in the cost of living will be relatively better off. ‘The purchasing power of persons engaged in manufacturing businesses has in- creased as fast as or faster than the in- crease in the cost of living. In other words, they can pay their taxes and still have more left as savings than in former years, when their wages were consider- ably lower. As much of the expenses of the war as economically feasible should be financed through taxes, but if the increased taxes are so much as to affect materially fam- ily living ‘and savings, this might jeop- ardize the economic security of the family. Some plan of forced savings should be inaugurated. Through forced savings a part of the war program could be financed without inflationary results. and white, or dark green and white. “The little fellows are smaller than an English sparrow, are very quick in move- ment, and sprightly, hanging and feed- ing head down on the house vines. “They do not seem to care for the bird seed and suet that is put out. “Yours very truly, G.R.P.” *xx2 Our correspondent has given a very good description of the goldfinch in its winter dress. This is the famous “wild canary,” as 1t is called in some parts of the country. Other popular names for this fine species are yellow bird, thistle bird, catnip bird, lettuce bird, shiner, salad bird, beet bird and American goldfinch. Wild canary is the most common, perhaps. © Certainly it well descripes this bird, especially in the summer dress, when the male is & pure lemon or canary yellow. *x ok The feeding habits of this bird are interesting. Hereabouts the goldfinch eats dande- lion seeds and chickweed. They light on such light stalks that they bend under them, and this often puts the little consumers heads down. Both male and female are more green- ish in winter. A good account of the feeding habits is contained in “Birds of America,” from which we quote: “In winter this goldfinch Xeeds largely on weed seeds, the seeds of birches and those of the buttonbush. “In summer it subsists to a large ex- tent on weed seeds, but destroys many noxious insects, such as cankerworms, plant lice, small grasshoppers and beetles. “The habit of feeding on thistles, which has given the species the common name of ‘thistle bird,” is well exemplified by the following fleld note: A thistle on which a goldfinch had been feeding was examined and on its leaves and the ground beneath 67 seeds were counted. “They appeared perfect, but close in- spection showed a slit through which the meaty kernal had been deftly re- moved. “Dr. 8. D. Judd reports having been able to approach within 10 feet of four goldfinches, who were feeding on rag- weed. Often they would alight on the | s | English sparrow has a part. although | same plant at once, then they would wrench off the seeds, extract the meat and drop the shell, their actions re- sembling those of a canary at its seed cup. “In one instance three alighted on a very small plant, which under their weight bent to the ground. downward, until they touched the earth, Letters to Denies That League Failed Because of American Fault. To the Editor of The Star I have read with interest Melvin Hil- dreth’s letter dealing with the League of Nations. Mr. Hildreth seems to feel that there is a general misconception as to the present status of the League and stoutly denies its failure or demise. The ideal for which this great inter- national agency stood certainly has not died. Even its critics recognized the League as an instrument of great po- tentional value and power—which in‘im- partial hands might have prevented the present cataclysm and guided the des- tinies of nations for generations to come. There is a tendency, however, to make the United States a scapegoat for the failure of the League to function. But the League did not fail because America was not a member. Nor did the League fail because of any defect in the ad- mirable machinery established in Ge- neva. The League of Nations failed, and lost the confidence of the world, because of the hands behind the ma- chine which set its devious course. That it could not succeed was evident from the first to those who were able to watch it function at close hand. This also was obvious to that most astute observer of international. affairs, the late Frank Simonds, who stated in the columns of The Star: “What few Amer- fcan champions of the League have recognized is that Geneva for all prac- tical purposes has become no more than an instrument in ‘the hands of the status quo powers of the European continent.” The aftempt of its exponents to place its fallure on other grounds must be abandoned and the truth admitted if the Geneva group still entertains the hope that public confidence will be suf- ficiently restored for the nations to salvage the League and place in its hands for solution the incredible problems that the world must face on the termination of the present conflict. It is obvious that some such international instrument must be -secured. But the wrecking of the great experiment in Geneva will make nations hold back until they can be assured of a non-political agency of unimpeachable integrity. GENEVA OBSERVER. Tells of Study of Smiles And a Scarcity of Them. To the Editor of The Star: “I want to congratulate you, sir,” I said, addressing a gtranger on Pennsyl- vania avenue early Wednesday morning. “For what?” he demanded. “PFor being the first person I have seen smiling in eight blocks this morniny replied. And that was true. In the three weeks I have been in ‘Washington, I have been more impressed with the lack of smiles than with any other one thing. Starting in the 2100 block of G street Nothing | daunted, they clung to the sprays, heads then shifting their position so as to hold the stems under their feet, went on with their meal.” PR A reader of this column, while visiting friends in the spring, watched gold- finches feasting away on something in the lawn, Examining this patch later, he dis- covered that it was chickweed they were after. Perhaps this is one good reason why too much bother is made over chick- weed by many persons who like a good lawn. While it is true that chickweed 1s a nuisance, and ought to be got rid of, somehow, maybe it is jwt as well to give the goldfinches a chance at it. In this way the nusiance may be much mitigated, while at the same time some of the best of our birds will be given. a favorite food. It is a question whether many lawn makers do not do too much pawing around over their grass. A good lawn ought not to be such a difficult matter as it often seems. Perhaps by using blenty of seed, and trying to outsmart the various weeds simply by smothering them with the best types of grass plants, we might have fairly good lawns with- out perpetually trying to uproot all the | crabgrass and chickweed. Between these two, a lawn will look bare the year around, if too much time | is spent on trying to oust them. The secret may lie—we are not sure—in Haskin’s Answers To Questions By Frederic J. Haskin. A reader cam get the answer to any question of fact by writing The Eve- ning Star Information Bureau, Fred- eric J. Haskin, director, Washington, D. C. Please inclose stamp for reply. Q. How far are the Maltese Islands from Italy?—C. N. A. Malta is about 58 miles from the island of Sicily, the nearest point of Italian land. Its distance from the mainland of Europe is 140 miles, Q. What is the life expectation of men and women at the present time?— 8. R. E. A. Anmrong the white population of the United States, the expectation of life at birth for males is 6294 and for fe- males 67.31 years. Q. Will you please give me the weights | that eggs must be to be sold as small, medium and large?—M. C. A. The designation of eggs by the Department of Agriculture is: Small— 17 ounces, minimum 15 ounces (this means that no individual egg in the dozen can weigh less than 15 ounces to the dozen); medium—22's ounces, minimum 19 ounces; urn—u ounces, minimum 22 ounces. Q. Could you tell me how many gal- lons of fuel oil and how much natural gas it takes to equal a ton of coal?—F. H. A. It takes approximately 200 gal- lons of fuel ol and about 30,000 cubic feet of natural gas to equal one ton of coal, planting two or three times as much grass seed, both in the spring and fall, | as one commonly thinks enough. In this way, at least in theory, (and we hope in practice), the unwanted weeds are forced out through sheer luxuriance of desirable grasses. If such a scheme is tried, care must be taken to keep the newly planted lawn well watered at all times, not just a sprinkle, but a good | soaking, every other day. - xoxow The finch family is the largest of all | More than a thou- | the bird families. sand species exist the world around, The United States has about 200 species, in- | cluding some of the finest of all the | birds, the various buntings, glossbeaks, the cardinal, the beautiful purple finch, the goldfinch, snow bunting, and all the SparTows. The towhee, a favorite hereabouts, also is a finch. The indigo bunting, often seen in suburban communities, belongs to the group. Ornithologists have estimated that the finches save more than $100.000,000 a year for the farmers of the Tountry. In this desirable result the humble some persons would not be willing to admit it. Young sparrows of all species, exclu- sively insectivorous until August. at that time take to eating weed seeds, which have just ripened. In this way, the finches put America in their debt, ang will centinue to do so as long as agriculture exists. the Editor ‘ Letters to the Editor must ‘ bear the name and address of | | the writer, although the use of 1 a pseudonym for publication is | permissible. The Star reserves the right to edit all letters with a view to condensation. ployment. an ing a job 1is reason enuugh to smile. But why were they not smiling? “War nerves,” you will say. If so, is that good for us? Some one has said that if you want to pick a man to whip, never select one who smiles while he fights. In that two-mile walk I found just seven persons smiling out of perhaps two | thousand. One girl was smiling to her- | self as she walked along. A boy and a girl smiled at each other. the street,‘l overtook three colored per- sons—a man and two women—and they were laughing out loud and it sounded good to hear them. Later a lady who operates an elevator in ore of the agriculture buildings said | “Good morning” as I entered and she | smiled. I smiled, too, and she remarked “Well, I'm glad to see some one who can smile.” E. K. CHURCHWELL. Comments on Use Of Word “Americans.” To the Editor of The Star In C. H. Hill's letter appearing in The Star for January 22, he refers to our custom of calling ourselves Americans as “egotistical” and as assuming a “su- perior attitude.” not call ourselves Americans? Are we not Americans and proud of it? Our South American friends are also Amer- icans and I am sure we do not question their right to call themselves so. Ca- nadians, however, whom I have met and traveled with, did not wish to be called Americans. When, hearing them refer to us as Americans as distinguished from Canadians, I asked “Are vou not also Americans?” the reply invariably was, “No, we are British.” V.M. T. Challenges Complaint About Scarcity of Rooms. To the Editor of The Star ‘Will R. M. Karet, whose letter regard- ing the housing shortage appeared in The Star of January 21, kindly explain his statement that “many business exe- cutives have to spend the night in Baltimore, returning to Washington the next morning”; also that “hundreds of persons have to stay in hotel rooms temporarily because they can find no rooms in Washington,” when there are five to six entire columns of “rooms for rent” ads in every Sunday's Star, and in the very paper in which his letter appeared there was a column and a half of advertisements of rooms for rent, and also when the Defense Housing Agency of the District of Columbia states that it has listed with them between 3,000 and 4,000 rooms for rent? INQUIRER. Adapts “Famous Saying” To Modern Usage. To the Editor of The Star: For use in connection with this Jap- anese business, I suggest reviving with s minor alterstion, s famous saying of the late President Coolidge, the sen- tence being made to read: “We do not choose to run.” HIRAM HALL. b, Further down | But why should we, Q. Is tiaere really a bird that can walk underneath the water?—R. M. O. A. The dipper or water-ousel lives on fish which it catches by walking along the bottom of a stream. It can also | swim on the surface of the water des- | Ppite the fact that its feet are not webbed. | Needlework — Welfare units all over the country are busy knitting | and sewing for the needy abroad, and our boys in camps here. If Yyou aren’t handy with a needle— either knitting or sewing —and want to do your share of this kind of work, send for a copy of our booklet on NEEDLEWORK. The instructions are simple—many il- lustrations are included to make the directions clear. To secure your copy inclose 10 cents in coin wrapped in this clipping and mail to The Star Information Bureau. Q. How many pairs of stockings does & woman use in a year on an average?— | J. W. W, A. The average woman uses between | 15 and 16 pairs of stockings a year. Q. Is Australia as large as the United States?>—M. C. A. The area of Australia is 2974581 square miles, while the area of the United States is 3,022,387 square miles, Q. How long does it take the trans- atlantic clipper to fly from New York to Lisbon?—L. W. A. The clipper leaves New York at 8 am. on Wednesday and Saturday and arrives in Lisbon, Portugal, at 4:30 p.m. Lisbon time the following day. Q. Will you please give me some tn- formation concerning Haydn's ‘Fare- well Symphony”?—B. P. M. A. The story is related that Prince Esterhazy, in whose service Haydn was, once thought of disbanding his orchestra. Haydn wrote and conducted a symphony in which the playerse were allowed to cease playing, one by one, putting out their lights and departing from the room until only the first violinist was | left. When the Prince inquired the meaning of this procedure, Haydn re- plied: “This is our sorrowful farewell.” The orchestra was not disbanded. Q. Hdw many women physicians are there in the United States?—G. P. A. As of March. 1941, there were 7500 women physicians in the United States. Q. Please tell us the minimum safe distance from the edge of a step, meas | ured vertically. to the ceiling of the staircase —W. E. A. The National Bureau of Standards says that a dimension commonly used in design of stairways is 7 feet. Q. How are the many gorgeous colors of the butterfly produced?—F. P. L. A. The colors on the wings of butter- flies are due to the arrangement of in- | numerable and minute scales. In some cases the scales themselves are colored, in others, the color effects are the re- sult of reflection of light by delicate ridges on each scale. Q. Who wrote a poem called “The Eternal Goodness?"—M. B. A. It is by John Greenleaf Whittier. Q. Can a watermelon be preserved for winter use?—J. H. A. By coating a watermelon with paraffin it may be kept well until Christ« | mas, although the quality will be in- ferior. Smoke Above the City The wind has died. Against the west- ern glow, From many hearths the smoke wreaths gently rise To char a lingering pattern on the skies And brush with beauty the sharp -roofs below. In mist, the story of another day Is written briefly here. But who can read The intertwining strands of love * and greed Before the blurring record fades away? The towers and bridges wear a veil of gold, Transmuted breaths, exhaled and interwoven, That rise from chimney, stack and murky oven, And catch the sunset, fold on vapore ous fold. The city’s day of toil and grime and eare Goes luminous shining on the air. INEZ BARCLAY KIRBY.