New-York tribune. [volume], August 11, 1921, Page 10, Image 10

About New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924

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2$ew MorkSft?mne
First to Last?the Truth: News?Edi?
torials?Advertisements
Meotxr el ti.e Aurt'.t Bureau ..? Circulation?. '
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 1921 (
?wsed by N?w TotK Tribun?, Inc., i New Terk i
fcjporsilon PublUhed dally, onlen Held, l'reel
d?at: G. Ternor Rows. Vlce-Proldent; Htim '
Rr.g?r? RfM, Secretary: K. K. XtaxneUI. Tr???uirr.
A m? ,-.. Trtf*?if lUilldlng. IM !\?siiu S!rr?t. N?t?
Volk. Ti^'pheae. Bfi'kmui :<00O.
?TBSCRirTloN RATES - By nul!. Including
Pm-kgr IN T11K UNITED STATES.
One Six Out
Pr Mill ToBtiMld. Year Monll? Mor.t.l.
Dal:? and ?undaj.$:: 00 J6.0O ?1.W
Oin<i wttX, 39c.
Daily only . 10 flo SH .?5
<)? ? ?week, ?5c.
Puv.day rn'.y . 4 09 2 25 .<0
Sub?!*? only. Canada. 6 90 !.1S .55
FOREIGN RATES
Dally antt Sunday.J2S 00 $13 30 ft.*?
Daliy only . i: in S 70 145
Sunday only . 9 75 S.13 S?
?ttered ?t tu? 1 oitoffl.-? ?t New York u teeond
C?a?* Hall Matter.
r.UARANTY
Vau ?an ?nr?nas? nfrchandls? a^vitilssd In THE
TRIBUNE with absolut? ?atety?for if dlsiatlilae
tlan raaulta In any cas? THE TRICUNE ?uaran
???? te pay your money bsok upon reaue??. No r-d
tas?. He Quibbling. We rnaka ?ood pr?m?tly If
In? aJvcrtiwr doe? nat.
M EM HER OK THE ASSOCIATED PRTSI?I
In? A*soc3?t?d Prta? lj exclualT?ly ?ntitlp?! to
t?l? u<? for ^publication of all tirwj dispatch?? |
eredi>d to H er not pUiernis* credited in tbt? ?
pip?r. and a'ao tlio local lit? of ?pontuietxi?
?rlyll published h?rln.
AM tight? of icpiiMlcation of all ?th? ?attet
r.?rcir\ al?o ar? re*?rr?j.
Poor John
In the whole history of New York,
so far as our reading of the records
has disclosed, no public official, much
less a chief magistrate of the city,
has ever made such a spectacle of
himself as our present Mayor in his
appearance during the last two days
before the legislativo investigating
committee in City Hall.
We say that without rancor. We
i.ay it without satisfaction. We say
it without partisanship. We say it
because it is a truth whose utterance
not only duty but the well-being of
the city imposes. We say it in the
tpirit of the truest pity for John F.
Hylan.
No spectator of what went on in
the Aldermanic Chamber on Tues?
day, and again yesterday?no spec?
tator willing to divorce himself of
prejudice and forget partisanship
tTid put aside the natural resentment
produced by the misgovernment and
the maladministration of the last
three years and eight months?could
listen to the man on the witness
SiTahd without being moved to pity.
He does not mean to be evasive. He
(?oes not mean to be defiant. He
stumbles, he hesitates, he qualifies,
or, again, in sheer desperation under
the pressure of his inquisitor's ex?
amination, turns to the lawyers sit?
ting at his side for some sort of an
answer. It, is not his ignorance
which excites pity. For ignoranc
we have only contempt. It is his
sheer stupidity?the stupidity of
schoolboys we can recall who were
even incapable of making their lips,
reproduce the answer whispered to
them by a desk-mate.
Incredible, unbelievable as it may
,-oem, it must be accepted that on
Tuesday last the Mayor, although he
had been chairman of the Sinking
Fi'nd Commission for forty-four
months, did not know the purpose
for which the commission exists. He
iiyf undoubtedly been told since, but
?f he were our witness we should
hesitate to submit him to opposing
counsel to-day to be examined on the
same matter. He would either have
forgotten what he has been told or
would have such a hazy picture of it
in his mind as to prejudice a jury.
Yesterday the Mayor admitted
that he did not know that the Bor?
ough Presidents, under the charter,
were required to file reports with him
every three months. He could not
remember ever having seen, much
less read, these reports. "So many
reports" go to the Mayor's office.
Again, he was against inspectors.
There were too many inspectors; too
many inspections by government.
But he had never thought of reduc?
ing the number of inspectors now
employed by the city. The number
jfl irj,excess of two thousand. Their
;jay roll exceeds $4,000,000 a year.
Senator Brown, counsel to the com?
mittee, gave him that information.
The Mayor on the witness stand
produces the impression of neve?
hoving thought about anything hav?
ing to do with the welfare of the city
;nd the lowering of taxes. Consoli?
dation of departments, he agree?
with Senator Brown, undoubtedly
would reduce the cost of administra?
tion, but he has never evolved a plan
nor caused cue to be prepared.
Forty-four months at the head of
vite greatest business corporation in
the entire world and not a plan pre?
pared nor one to suggest for a more
cvonomica! way of conducting it!
And yet Tammany and Hearst
propose this man as our Mayor for
| ?'iiother four years! Why we now
H ear v hy H ey -tar?! by
!-im upon thi ;i<? pie.
They '-an do with him as-they will.
He does not know and never will
know what it i .-ill about. Stupidity
fcrbids.
Poor John !
The Threw Muskotccr:
r*iorello, Reuben and YVilliai
Three Mu ketecrs ?>'? municipal poli
ti"K, apparently 1? ive rediscovered
the law of physic? which forbids
more than one body in one space at.
the K?me moment Doubtless il is
a vttOmt pernicious and embi
law, but there it i?.
Ho it i* neeessary to have coalition
-?hateful word?if the spur of the
three are not to trip one another.
There ;?re ihre? places on the ticket.
in not thi*< a dispensation of provi?
dent?? Why not take one apiece?
8' far i o ;-'"-.'.
But then come- th< ruh. "Com
4
promise on me as the head," says ?
Fiorello. "No, on me," says Reuben, i
"Not at all?on me," pipes in Wil-1
??am. It is trying to one of a party
of three when the others are stub-:
born and unreasonable.
But if we remember our Dumas '?.
aright, in addition to the Three Mus- |
kcteers there was a fourth. When ?
Athos, Porthos and Aramis found ;
themselves hopelessly at odds they |
turned in and got behind the im- j
mortal D'Artagnan. Without press- i
ing the simile too far, it seems pos- ;
sible to say that Major Curran is
D'Artagnan in the present instance, ;
and that the best compromise is to \
agree to follow his leadership.
Reduction First
The revenue measure, which Pr?s
ident Harding is said to favor, pro- !
poses to raise approximately $3,075,- :
000,000. For the present fiscal year,:
which ends June 30 next, Con-|
gross appropriated $3,800,000,000?1
$3,575,000,000 to cover authorized j
expenditures and the remainder to j
meet deficits accumulated during the'
money riot of the closing year of the j
Wilson Administration.
A ? reduction of $600,000,000 in j
revenue raised will redeem Repub-?
lican platform pledges. It will sig- j
nify a cutting down of expenditures |
such as the country has asked but !
at times has feared it would not j
wholly get. It will permit the lift- ?
ing of many tax items, with few!
additions. The President and Gen- j
oral Dawes are to be congratulated '
on the results of their economy cam-1
paign. The prospect now held out I
is one calculated to brighten eyes
which are scanning the future anx?
iously.
The governmental departments
never know what they can do in the
way of economy until they'are forced :
to try. The assumption of all bu- j
rcaucracies is that it is impossible j
to cut down. The only effective way l
to force the issue is to diminish the j
sums appropriated. Then it is found
that miracles occur.
It is better to raise too little than
too much. Supplemental taxes, in
case of shortage, can be levied. It
is fair to ask the future to bear a
little heavier part of the public bur?
den than it does. When the busi?
ness of the country gets going again
imposts that are now severe will
seem light.
The extra sesi?n was chiefly called
to reduce taxation and the Presi?
dent's common sense leadership
promises to have the happy effect of
bringing Congress back to its pri?
mary duty. Both economically and
politically a great mistake will be !
made if the President's recommenda- i
tions are not in the main followed.
Police Demoralization
The Tribune has marked with in?
creasing concern during the last ten
days the frequency with which
policemen have appeared in the news
charged with crime. The unlawful
.vets alleged to have been committed
by them range in seriousness from
assault to murder. We can recall
nothing like it since the days when
Tammany had the city by the throat
in the Van Wyck administration and
Devery ruled at 300 Mulberry Street.
Since Policeman Charles F. Tighe
ran amuck with a blackjack on July
28 hardly a day has gone by without
ihe reported beating of some citizen.
On Tuesday a policeman was arrest*
cd on the accusation of shooting to
death a man who had "called his
wife names."
We can only imagine how far the
Department of Police has gotten out
of hand under the present adminis?
tration. Such acts as have been re?
ported, excluding the case of alleged
murder, are evidence of demoraliza?
tion; no less. And it is not pleasant
to contemplate demoralization in our
splendid police force. Given a head
i apable of commanding confidence
and enforcing discipline, it has
demonstrated itself to be without a
peer.
But, good head or bad head, the
people will not tolerate what tho
criminally inclined members of that
department seem bent on doing.
Pc-.nam.an Obstreperousness
Panama continues to express aver?
sion to an acceptance of the arbitral
award of the late Chief Justice
White because it deprives her of ter?
ritory which she has long considered
her own. This is not surprising.
Great Britain did not enjoy accept?
ing the Geneva award, which re
??uirrd her to pay us $ir>,5('0,000,
but she paid it. The United States
v. as nut, jubilant over the f.sheries
award at Halifax, which required
!.? r to pay $5,500,000 to Great Brit
a n, but y'nc paid it. So while Pan?
ama muy not like to obey the arbit?
ral mandate it is legally and mor?
ally incumbent upon her to do so.
Panama pretends that her own re?
pudiation of the results of her own
voluntary agreement with Costa
Rii ? exempts her from all obliga?
tions under it, and that that agree
mi nt "cannot be revived to-day to
make it produce juridical effects in
detriment to Panama." That is an
amazing contention. In our juris
prudc nee, at any rate, and surely
in all nthers, no party to a contract
can annul it and escape its obliga?
tions by simply repudiating if.
Panama complains that any pro?
cedure t?) enforce the terms of the
White award would be a "direct at
-tack against the sovereignty of Pan
; ma." Perhaps so, if by "sov
ereignty" is meant the right to re?
pudiate the most solemn obligations
that a state can take upon itself, j
But of what worth is sovereignty i
without integrity?
Getting on the Job
The World last week rebuked The !
Tribune for saying that one thing it ?
specially liked about Henry Curran j
was the fact tha.t 1915 found him in i
Plattsburg in ft uniform. It ap?
parently offends our neighbor to
hear the candidate called Major Cur
ran, or even "Hank" Curran, as he '
was known in camp. "Mr." is the I
only proper appellation.
Once again The Tribune is re-,
buked?-this time for saying that !
Murphy, as boss, named the Tarn- j
many ticket, whereas he merely "rec-1
ommended" it. The coalition ticket, ;
over whose constitution there was j
six weeks of public consideration
and debate, was born, we are told,
with equal singleness of control.
If our neighbor wishes to assert
such things we know of no'way to!
enjoin it. But in some minds a
question may arise as to how seri?
ous is its opposition to the re?lcc- !
tion of Michael Rufus. In the last
municipal campaign The World was
vigorous, and after election the !
Mayor sued it for libel, a suit sub- j
sequently withdrawn at the prayer
of the plaintiff, who was so willing
to quit that he paid defendant's costs
?$2,000 or more.
It cannot be that any understand?
ing not to hit hard in the future
was a part of the settlement. So
The Tribune, having had the benefit
of The World's advice, ventures to
give a little in turn?namely, to ex?
hort The World to follow a course
in 1921 as creditable to it as was its
course in 1917.
Settling Upper Silesia
That the Upper Silesian question
will be settled without dividing the
Entente seems likely, despite the
gloomy prognostications of Sir Philip
Gibbs and other pessimists. The poli?
cies of France and England are
proved to be reconcilable and the
award is about what was expected by
those who have studied the geo?
graphical distribution of the plebis?
cite vote. Neither Poland nor Ger?
many has cause for grave dissatis?
faction.
Until after the polling it was com?
monly assumed that the gross re?
sult of the plebiscite would be de?
cisive. German propaganda dili?
gently spread this idea, and in the
negotiations at Paris German agents
sought to enlarge the plebiscite area
so as to include within it? the largest
possible German population, while
Poland sought to restrict it. Ger?
many on this matter apparently ex?
ercised the greater influence. In ad?
dition, Germany secured the inser?
tion of a provision under which for?
mer German residents of Upper Sile?
sia could come back and vote. This
loaded the dice against Poland, for
though the Poles had the same re?
turning privilege they are poor, and
it was known fewer would be able to
return.
The Germans, therefore, not sat- j
isfied with the advantage which j
came from the enlarged area, mar- j
shaled people from all parts of the
world who could claim a right to
vote in Silesia and shipped in, the
Poles say, nearly two hundred thou?
sand outsiders"to swell the German
ballot. 'Then, when the test came,
Germany immediately cried out to
\ the world in triumph that the vote
was 2 to 1 in her favor. This was
' accepted until the final returns came
in. The-** showed a gross German
majority of only about 229,000.out
of 1,189,000 votes. Furthermore,
] they showed that the greater portion
of the coal districts, considered by
, communes, voted in favor of Po
? land. If the communal vote was
; used as a basis many of the most
valuable regions would not go to
Germany. So all the cuttlefish in
; the German propaganda bureau were
put to work again, and the Germans
cheered Lloyd George as hv opposed
: the Polish claims.
If the boundary is correctly re-'
ported Germany will gel a large
part of the coal measures, but. the
communal principle is recognized,!
and its application will insure fuel ?
to Polish industries. Many just Po- ;
l'sh claims are ignored, but. a strong
Poland can arise. And the great.
thing, exceeding in importance all
else, is the preservation of that'har
mony among the Allies on which the
whole future depends.
A Woman's Age
Women workers in Boston are pro
listing against publishing their ages
in the voting list on the grounds
that this will lessen their opportuni?
ties for jobs and weaken their
chances of marriage. Some go so
far as to say that it. might lose
them their present employment. So,
though few hesitate over the record
of their true ages in their election
districts, they protest against gen?
eral publication.
The question is a practical one.
Women well know that in business
and ?n another field the adage that
a woman's as ol?i as she looks still
holds good. And, being oblige?! to
? accept the age appearance bestows
; upon them, they naturally ask that
i *hey be allowed the converse privi?
lege of being accounted no older than
they appear.
'Che base ?-ulprit responsible for
the 8ccretivenc8s thus dolefully com
pclled, is, of course, man. Both as ;
employer and prospective husband
he demands youth in women. The
beauty of woman has been extolled
since mankind began, and beauty ,
and youth are nearly always one.
Mentality and usefulness haven't
really heen necessary until these lat?
ter days. And even now, as the ;
women of Boston sadly admit, these
new acquirements must be hidden
under the cloak of beauty when pos- ;
sible, and of youth always. So they
will not have their ages published j
lest the mask of youth, so jealously i
guarded, be torn away and they be j
exposed in their carefully disguised
ability.
"The girl over thirty," says the
secretary of the Boston Women's ;
Trade Union League, "is undoubt?
edly handicapped in seeking a job
. . . The sad fact is that many
business men prefer the 'flapper'
with short skirt and rouged lips."
She is in a position to know, and as
long as the condition exists women
doubtless v.ili continue to say that
their age is their own business.
A Fighting Navy
Truth in Mahan's Saying, "1 he De
fensive in War Is Ruin"
By Quarterdeck
In a letter to the writer The Con?
script says:
"There is one point thot you could
clear up in the minds of the '.shore
going' public. You are doing such
splendid work as 'liaison officer' be?
tween the needs of the navy and the
taxpayers thai it seems a pity to let
a single cloudy point, remain. You
have- referred to our prosent (almost)
one-plane navy as capable of defen?
sive action only.
"All our people are in favor of
waging a war for defense of the coun?
try only an offensive war is un?
thinkable? so the expression -defen?
sive action' I do not b:lieve conveys
to the shore-going mind the exact
idea conveyed by the same expression
when heard by a navy officer.
"Navy men know that usually the
best defense is offensive in character.
A defensive war, one to preserve the
country, one in which a foreign power
is the aggressor, to be successfully
waged and the country defended in?
volves tactical offense. With n oni
plane navy we are incapable of tacti?
cal offensive action. Therefore our
navy is to-day not even a navy for
defense, because it cannot success?
fully defend. Until the two other
planes of the service are brought up
'in balance' the taxpayers' money is
invested in a burglar-proof safe with
the combination known to every
burglar in the world."
The Conscript is perfectly right. He
has hit the bullscye. We must not
have a "defensive navy." Mahun says
"the defensive in war is ruin."
Admiral Grant, in his testimony be?
fore the Senate, declared that, he
"would not fight a defensive battle."
He voiced the sentiment of the navy.
The writer has advocated a fight?
ing navy, a three-plane navy, the only
kind of navy that can tight an of
fensho battle with hope of winning in
1S21?a navy that can command the
air and the sub-surface of the se*
ai well as the surface.
For this reason, after supplying
22 dreadnoughts, .'',00 destroyers and
10 scout cruisers, we must supply air?
plane carriers and submarines. We
do not need more battleships just now.
We need other things. We must not
spend all the money in the United
States on n surface fleet alone! If wo
do we will commit a fatal blunder.
Insurance Funds in Realty
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: How far aro wo going t?* turn ;
our fiduciary corporations, organized
for specific purposes, into housing
mediums? It appears to me that there
should be a limit to the attempts in!
that direction.
The New York joint legislative1
committee has proposed through it
counsel, Mr. Untermyer, to require
fire insurance companies to invest 40
per cent of their assets in real est?t?'
mortgages in this stale. Th^so com?
panies do a country-wide business iin'l
nearly all the states have retaliatory
laws. How long will it be, then, befo it
oilier states will make a requirement
of tins kind? Will it. not follow that
we? will lie forced t?> take payment for
fire losses in mortgages?
If we required such companies to
make mortgage investments ami they
found it impossible to dispose of th?
mortgages when some lug tire en! led
for the payment of millions of dollars,
as was the case in San Francisco,
what other course could they pursue?
I'. S HAVILAND,
Plcasantville, X. V., Aug. !', 1021.
Use (or War Welfare I* und?*
To the Editor or The Tribune.
Sir: The plight of the woman worker
disabled through service with tin- A
K P. interested me ?!e? ply because, be?
ing an overseas work? r also, I know
thai there are a number of such
women and men, too now fighting
for health, who are uncertain of vic?
tory through* lack of funds tc pay for
medical care.
The answer is, in my belief, up to
the welfare organization which sent,
the worker overseas. It is not only
the duty but the privilege of the or?
ganization to rehabilitate its workers
according to standards of compensation
newly worked out, by the army.
Each organization has machinery for
this compensation, and the American
Women':' Over-Seas League would as?
sist "disabled civilian" in presenting
her case adequately and seeing it
through. It is a mutter of common
knowledge that the welfare organiza?
tions have unexpended war funds, n?"i
in my opinion those who so generously
contributed this money would wish
justice for the disabled t'irst of sil.
ALSO DISABLED.
! Luncnburg, Mass., Aug. f>, 19:21.
'"?'--? I
The Conning Tower
THE CARDINAL-FLOWER
/VLB. the dark woodland pool Lo
" belia bung?
A burning spot amid a --.'orld of
shade; ,
And 'the dim surface with her flame
she made*
Kin to that sea the man of Patmos :
sung,
Mingled with f.re. Each brilliant,!
cloven tongue
Found a reflection; tke undistin?
guished glade
Shone with a twofold brightness, and
each blade
And spire took beauty from th ?
gleam she flung.
Upon that sanguine bloom who still
may chance
Nor know some portion of their first
surprise
Who greeted it and sent it home to
France
To shew what marvels grew beyond
the seas -
Know, too, that spit2 of"' silks and
precious dyes,
? Richelieu was not arrayed like one
of these? G. S. B.
By a cable to the treasured Times
'we glean that Mile. Lenglen has
"only once used the deck court which
was built on the ship especially by
the steamship company." Without
having seen the court, we absolve Mile.
Lenglen from all blame. How a court
can be built on the dock of a steam?
ship so that it will give a player of
1 Mile. Lenglen's ability any real prac?
tice especially as she probably found
nobody on board who could give her a
I contest?we, for one, don't understand.
. . . Even without practice, however,
: she will win the American women's
? national championship.
The Groaning Board
I loathe with a hate of the highest
grade
1 Boiled halibut and hot lemonade.
"It occurs to me,'' it occurs to Julius
'to write, "that if the newspapers were
iTellegen all they know we'd learn that
?a certain party was a diva in her
j own home town."
THE DIARY OF OUR OWN SAMUEL PEPYS
I August 9 Early up, and full of
: vigour from my long and sweet slum
: ber, and to the oflice, and heard there
?that the Olympic would dock this eve
l ning instead of to-morrow, so in
; threat haste to cancel my engagement
! for to-night, and so to dinner with
P. Hammond, and thence to the pier
' and watch the Olympic como down
! the river, and it came to the doel
! at nine forty, and my wife off, anc
' rejoiced to see mc, and looking bet
; ter than in a year, and the customs
men hurrying their inspecting anc
! examining so that we were on oui
(way home before midnight; and she
tells me many tayles of London anc
. ail very pleasant and merry.
10?To the oflice, and Irwin Greet
'come to see ma that I have not seei
since 1 was a young lad, and tells m<
-of Aith BlUTOtt and Bessie Kniglr
'and Estelle Leopold, who he says i
! the first giil ever he loved, a;id
pridefully told him she is my cozen
and cf other matters, li. Canby an?
N. Levy t) luncheon, and so to m;
scrivening, and home for dinner, an<
with ny wife to roe "Honor An
Even."
What Mr. Trumbull White want
to know is whether it is true tha
i the portrait of Bill Haywood is to b
found symmetrically repeated in th
i frieze surrounding- the Stock Ex
j change; and whether the portrait o
Mr. A. L. Erlanger appears in th
?decorations of the new Kiaw Theater
A "Good One" from "Sig"
Friend Frank,
Having read with interest the many'
?'stories" about, "lawn tennis" in your
valued sheet, I take my pen in hand ;
to write you one myself which might
easy be true also. It seems that
there is a young lady residing in "La
Belle France" known variously as "the
French girl" or "the wonder girl from
France," but whose real name I have
discovered is Suzanne Lcnglcn. Well,
to make a long story short, which is
not. always true <>f space writers,, eh,
Frank, this young lady goes by the
nickname of "Milly" on the "courts,"
which is short for Mamselle, mean?
ing "young lady," and I'll say judg?
ing by, the action pictures there is
plenty of support for the theory.
Well, it. has been drawn to my at?
tention that our own ''an' Scandi?
navian champion, Molly Bjurstedt, be?
came very chummy with "the French
?-ir!'' on her "native heath," and they
frequently appeared on the turf to?
ge I her a ? the saying i'?.
Now une ?lav if report has it right
our own Big' Bill '?"ild?'::. so called
because of his size and that his name
is William T, Tilden II, played a
friendly match against the two fair
Amazons of the racquet at St. Clou?!
or Louvre or some such public park
and as you may have heard Prank
l?ij? Hill ?s noted for his speedy serv?
ice known both as "cannon-ball" and
"railroad." So to 1>" perfectly fair
he would alternate in serving to the
two young ladies "dishing mi'' fust
an easy one and then a hot one. But
,. ; it happened th.- affair turned out
exceedingly unjust, since by the law
of averages he always served the easy
one to Milly ami the hot-to-Molly.
Ha, ha! Eh, Frank?
Will; the US'I apologies. lesu'Iv.
SIG. SPAETH.
Mora -m less sharpshooting was ac?
complished, according to The Eve?
ning Mail's headline, by the steamei
San .lose: "Ship, 99 on Board, Hits
Pacific Reef 1,500 Miles Awny."
' The Mayor said that "for practical
Iy three years and a half" he hat
been in his oil'ice from 8:30 or 8:4."
and hat! stayed until 6:30 or 7. with
oui going out to lunch; and there wa:
audible applause. That is the Pur;
tan, Complex: the feeling that re
maining at a task for a long time i;
prai>'* vorthy. Few of u., are withou
it, ?is few of us do not feel a virtu
ous glow at merely early rising. Bu
it i? otherwise in the columnar trad*
When a columnist stays around th
office more than two hours some
hotly comes up to ask him what's th
matter. No. the feeling o^ virtu
varies inversely a. tiie square of th
time employed in writing.
Yesterday w? could feel the wing
sprout and an aureole suffuse ua.
1 F. P. A.
MAYBE IT WOULDN'T LOOK SO BIG IF THEY'D QUIT BLOWING ON IT
Oonvriebt. 1821. New York Tribune Inr.
"American Valuation
Former Federal District Attorney Criticizes Valuation Provision
of Fordney Bill?Questions Constitutionality
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Apropos of your editorial in |
to-day's issue on "American Valua- !
tion," the wiiter, who served as a ?
District Attorney under Presidents Me- |
Kinlcy, Roosevelt and Taft, and Spe-!
cial Assistant to the Attorn^ Gen- ?
eral, has made some study of the
"American valuation" provisions as |
contained in the Fordney bill, known j
as H. R. 7456, now pending before the
Senate Finance Committee.
Your editorial treats the proposed
new method as if it were a simple
change from valuation of goods for
import duty on market value at the
foreign place of export to valuation at
the place of import into the United
States alter importation. In other
words, as if it were the same method
known as the "home valuation" put in
force by the tariff act of March 2, 1833,
and repealed within a few years there?
after.
That act, as construed by the Su?
preme Court (Aldridge vs. Williams, 3
Howard, 8), made the valuation the
market value at the "place of import,"
the "home port" of entry. The pres?
ent bill bases the "American valua?
tion" on a wholly different an?l revolu?
tionary principle. The market value
at the port of entry is not made the
criterion. In ?section 402, Title IV, it
provide?! for a different kind of valua?
tion for il iportations falling under two
classes :
(a) T'nose of like kind and competi?
tive with American products and (b)
those of unlike kind but comparable
in iise to American products.
For those under class (a) the
valuation is to he taken at the whole?
sale price "in the ordinary course of
trade" "in the principal market or
markets of the United States." It is
not based upon the market price at
which an importer at Xe ? York or San
Francisco, f? r instance, may sell after
importation to wholesalers in some in?
terior city, which the greater Ameri?
can production may make the prin?
cipal market for such product, but
upon the wholesale price to the re?
tailer at such ? principal market
wherever situate. Upon all imported
products sold at such place the mar?
ket price must, include under the act
"all costs, charges and expenses" to
such principal market, which neces?
sarily includes transportation to such
place and the wholesalers' and ante?
cedent importers' profits. It does not
necessarily follow and would not fol?
low as to many products t at the cit>
"f the largest port importations woult
be the pri: m\ 1 wholesale market "ir
the ordinary t ourse of trade." On?
city may be such principal market foi
one product, another city for another
Again, for those products cominj
under Class B the criterion is the coi?
to the producer, wherever produced i'
this country, of products of unlikt
kind but comparable in U3e, whethe
actually sold or offered for sale, or hav
ing a market value or not; thus as t?
many products fixing the estimate?
cost of production at undetermined in
terior points as the criterion of valua
tion for duty.
All these things are left by the ac
to administrative determination o
custom house officials, and instea
of simplifying valuation;? multip!
complications and leave the busines
community up in the air.
5 It is mere than doubtful whethe
the "principal market o: markets" pre
vision is constitutional. Article
Section 8, Clause I of the Constitr
ti or?, which provides "All duties, im
posts and excises shall be uniform
throughout the United States," has ;
been construed by the Supreme Court |
(Downes vs. Bidwell. 182 U. S., 244-j
278) to mean uniform in respect to the
people ol the several states, so that
"the ports of one state shall be given
no preference over those of another."
"Where the American valuation is
not made even at the port of importa?
tion, but at some other principal port
or some interior city, the railroad
transportation and other charges to
such principal market necessarily en?
ter under the act into the valuation
for duty, and a little consideration will
show that this will result as to many
products in destroying the advantages
of port locations of many of the states
as to favorable situation in respect to
shorter distances and therefore cheap?
er rates of freight from ports of ex?
port to such home ports, and it will
open the door to political combinations
to tax one sectioi) of the country for
the benefit of another through the
scheme of principal market valuation.
The act if passed will sow political
dragon's teeth, and as framed is of
doubtful constitutionality. It is not
the simple "home port" "American
valuation" which your editorial ap?
parently contemplated. It is not sur?
prising, therefore, that the proposed
new system has apparently staggered
the Senate committee.
MARIOX ERWIX.
New York, Aug. !?. 11)21.
[Poi-sibly the valuation provisior
of the Fordney bill needs to be re
cast. But as to nrany articles then
is plainly an American valuation
and it is not always that of the por
cf import. For example, Elgin but
ter prices are standard and Bostoi
wool prices and St. Louis fur prices
It ought to be possible to iron out th'
variations so as to prevent the dis
crimination which the Constitutioi
wisely prohibits. As to the esti
mated value of goods whose like i
produced in this country, this is obvi
ously designed to cover the case o
exceptional goods.?Ed.]
Fight Films as a Text
l'o the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Is it not time to stop ail ih
cavil about the "brutalizing fight film:
pnd the so-called evils attending the
showing? If many of the foremo
women of America saw nothing wror
i;; attending the Dempsey-Carpenti
bout ?n Jersey City, why should thei
be any more evil in women going
see the motion pictures of the event?
As these pictures demonstrate mo
conclusively than any series of te>
books could the tremendous value
tikillful boxing in building up a stern
and healthier citizenship, it may
that the children of the coming goner
tion will have cause to be thankful f
the prospective mothers of the ra
who went to see the Dempsey-t'sirpe
tier pictures and were able to resol
that th"ir men-children at least shot
grow un physically fit. men of th?
hands as well as their brains.
A WOMAN
New York, Aug. 8, 1921.
An Elimination Contest
(From The Louisville Courier*Journal
More than 1,000 novels are writt
in a year in America; written a
published. Ten are read. Two ?
remembered for a few years. 0
survives a decade?once in a ?deea
Bach, Not Crambambuli
Harvard Glee Club Didn't Try "An?
cestral Horrors" on Europe
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: It is interesting to note in
your editorial "Crambambuli Abroad"
that you have labored under the de?
lusion that the Harvard Glee Club went
abroad this summer to entertain its
European audiences with ancestral
horrors of that description.
What makes you think that "the
audiences liked American college songs,
of which they knew little"? The
Harvard Glee Club gave up rendering
choice selections from "the 100 most
popular co'1-.'gc songs" and "songs
our fatheis murdered" some years ago.
Their present program is a good deal
stiffer with Bach, Palestrina and
Brahms, than that of the average "lay
chorus"--of which you speak ? in
Europe or anywhere else. Did you fail
to read in the public prints that the
European audiences had clamored in
vain for jazz and Crambambulis from
the Harvard chorus?
Sending over "a shipload of rah-, ah
boys from the cheering sections of our
football stands"?as you sugg? st ;s a
worthy idea. Their vocal efforts, wouid
undoubtedly be much better liked and
more honestly appreciated than the
musical standards and aspirations of
the organization which has been so
??ell represented by Harvard's wan?
dering minstrels this summer.
G. W. B. HARTWELL,
Harvard 17.
New York. Aug. 0, 1921.
Superfluous Amendment?
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: The Sixteenth Amendment reads
as follow-: "The Congress shall
Have power to lay and collect taxes on
incomes, from whatever source de?
rived, without apportionment among
the several states and without regard
to any census or enumeration.''
Senator Smoot's proposed amend?
ment reads:
"The Congress shall have power to
lay and collect taxes on incoi
rived from obligations issued or
created by a state or any political sub?
division thereof, after ratification of
this article, without upportioi
among the several states and without
regard to any census or enumeration."
The sta'.c3 having ratified the
Sixteenth Amendment to grant power
to Congress to lay and coll :Ct a I
come tax from all persons from "v/hat
ever" source the income is derived
without any reservation, as '
come from their own state securities,
the proposed amendment is ui
sary. The power to tax being un?
limited, that power is not ?.u?m
by naming in a new amendmc
specific source of income which
be taxed. To seek further
when all needed power belongs a
to Congress is a waste of time
misconstruction of the positi?
guage of the Sixteenth Amendment, bs
found in that all embracing word "what?
ever." IRVING H. BROWN.
Plainfield, N. J.. Aug. 10. L921.
A Simple Solution
?F'-om The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Why should the bachelors of Francs
be so incensed because of the
tax levied upon them? Xo tax is
agreeable, but this is certaii
worse than many others. The principie
is admitted in our own ??.come tax,
with its exemptions for marriage and
for children.
Since the war has left in France a
superfluity of women the wa:
cape from the tax is easy. Mut if any
sordid bachelor looks at the mattet
from the financial point of view ha
n.a> readily conclude that it is cheap?;t
i pay the tax than to marry.