Evening star. [volume], January 24, 1923, Page 6, Image 6

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6
THE EVENING- STAR,
WRh Sunday Morning Edition.
WISHIJIOTON, D. C.
WEDNESDAY, .January 34, 1933
THEODORE W. NOYES.. .Editor
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The District Bill.
Aa the District appropriation bill
was formally reported to the Senate
by the committee on appropriations it
did not materially Increase the amount
carried, the committees’ additions
reaching a net figure of only $165,878.
bringing the total of the bill to $22,-
244,485, or $1,306,845 under the esti
mates for 1924 and $607,124.20 under
the appropriations for the .current
year. But this relatively small addi
tion to the bill did not include a num
ber of items which, having been
stricken out on a point of order in the
House, have been in effect restored by
the Senate committee, but which for
purposes of expedition in the con
sideration of the bill were reserved
for separate presentation with the full
approval of the committee. These
items involve a considerable expendi
ture, and if they are adopted by the
Senate, which is to be expected, they
will largely increase the total of the
measure and will bring it up to a
satisfactory figure.
One of the most important of these
■upplementary items proposed for
restoration provides for the erection of
several school buildings and the ac
quisition of sites. The total carried by
this particular amendment is $650,000.
Every penny of this money is required
for the relief of the congestion in the
school system. Indeed, the school
building program included In that item
is but a part of the total urgently nec
essary.
Another of the supplementary items
authorizes the acquirement of certain
tracts of land to be added to the park
system, including the Klingle Valley,
Piney Branch and Patterson areas, all
of which have been definitely designat
ed as required to round out the aeries
of public reservations in the northern
part of the city. The Klingle Valley
and Piney Branch spaces are especial
ly urgent needs, as if this provision is
not now made by law these areas will
probably pass' out of reach soon by
reason impending ‘‘improvements,”
which will take them permanently out
of range, '"he Patterson tract is in
the same category. In the course of
the past few years it has been fre
quently Urged by the Commissioners
for acquitfltiori, and it must soon be
taken or it, too, will be Included In
the development of the city.
An item is included in the commit
tee's supplementary recommendations
for the erection of an addition to the
courthouse for the use of the office of
the recorder of deeds, to cost $500,000.
This is urgently needed. The present
facilities for the transaction of this
important business of the District are
totally inadequate. Despite the in
stallation of metal shelving the files,
and records upon which depend the
titles to practically all of the property
in the District are exposed to destruc
tion.
One of the items of importance
stricken out of the bill in the House
on point of order' Is In this manner
proposed for restoration, that provid
ing for the purchase of a site for a
branch of the Ptlbllc Library In the
Mount Pleasant-Col jmbia Heights
section. The urgent needs of the li
brary require this addition to Its facili
ties, which will bring the collection
within closer range of the people for
circulation purposes.
In other respects the Senate com
mittee has both by its direct and
its supplementary recommendations
brought the District bill up to the
ysual standard of liberality, and if the
measure is passed in the form thus
proposed- it will, indeed, be a gratify- i
ing provision for District maintenance
during the next fiscal year.
The French diplomat is now giving
his most expert attention to the
mental processes of the German coal
heaver.
The Burden of Blame.
While the Senate was discussing the
District appropriation bill yesterday,
specifically at the point bearing upon
the provision of salaries for the police,
it digressed into a debate on traffic
conditions In Washington which elicit
ed some pointed opinions regarding
traffic accidents. Every member of
the Senate who spoke expressed the
opinion that some change In or addi
tion to the law Is needful to cure the
• evil of carelessness, which takes so
heavy a toll In life and limb In this
city.
Senator - Fletcher, for example, re
ferring to the case of Mrs. Hill, who
lost her Mffe last week, noted the fact
that the driver of the car that hit her
was discharged upon a bearing, and
that, he said, “is the record right
along. There are no policemen, no of
ficers anywhere about, to testify re
garding the facta The only witness
is the person who operated the car.
and be testifies and the case is thrown
out of court, and so it is day after
day.** In point of tact, In the case of
Mrs. HUI there were other witnesses
than the driver. But Senator Fletcher’s
observation is nevertheless generally
correct. As a rule these motor acci
dent eases are disposed of In favor of
the drivers of cars, for lack of positive
evidence of carelessness on their part.
Senator Fletcher continued:
L introduced a hill at one time, and
have offered It as an amendment to
the pending bill, regulating traffic In
the District, changing the rule of
evidence so that when an accident oc
curs a presumption of fact shall arise
that the person operating the car
wbs guilty of negligence. Instead of
putting upon the person who Is
maimed or killed the burden of prov-
Ing negligence, the man operating the
car must establish by preponderance
of the evidehce that he was not negli
gent. That would have some effect, I
think. Changing the rule of evidence
would have a tendency to make more
careful these people who operate
automobiles, taxis and trucks.
Undoubtedly if this principle were
established by law the moral effect
would be decidedly wholesome. At
present, as -Senator Fletcher says, the
burden of proof rests upon the victim.
The driver has assumed and has been
by custom and in a measure by law
given the right of way in the streets,
and the pedestrian has come to be re
garded as an obstruction, almost a
trespasser. He is in the paved area at
his own risk. The rules governing
speed at crossings and regulating
turns are so laxly observed and so
seldom enforced that no person afoot
can be assured, save perhaps at the
points of traffic regulation where an
officer is stationed, of clear passage.
Even at such points a turning car may
break through the line of pedestrians
moving parallel with the line of traf
fic impulse.
As long as the feeling prevails on
the part of drivers that they are en
titled to the right of way as against
pedestrians in all circumstances and
conditions, and that it is up to the
people afoot to avoid collision, acci
dents will continue. An enactment of
law such as that suggested by Sena
tor Fletcher will perhaps change this
point of view, and would give a meas
ure of guarantee of safety to the peo
ple who walk, who are, despite the
great increase in motor numbers, after
all the majority.
Capital and Labor.
Announcement that tba Brotherhood
of Locomotive Engineers has bought a
substantial interest In the Empire
Trust Company of New York and that
two high officials of the brotherhood
will become directors of the banking
institution marks one of the most
significant developments of the pres
ent-day labor movement in America.
This Is not the first venture of organ
ized labor into banking, but heretofore
its undertakings have been little more
than savings banks for the accom
modation of members. Now the en
gineers have Invaded the stronghold of
the “money interests.’’ and will have
a voice in the management of re
sources running Into the scores of
millions.
What effect this will have on the
future relationship® of employers and
employes no one can foretell, but it
certainly is evidence of a far departure
from the theory that the interests of
capital and labor are necessarily an
tagonistic. How now will the radical
agitator be able to persuade his fol
lowers that capital Is plotting for the
enslavement of labor, when repre
sentatives of labor arc admitted to
capital’s Inner councils? Most of the
big New York banks and trust com
panies engage in railroad financing,
and It is to be assumed the Empire
Trust Company is not an exception.
When a bank or trust company un
derwrites the securities of a railroad
Its fortunes are tied up with the pros
perity of its client. Directors Stone
and Prenter, representing the brother
hood on the directorate of the trust
company, might find themselves in a
difficult position when it carp* to de
ciding whether a strike should Imperil
the safety of the bank’s railroad in
vestments. The situation is full of In
teresting and unguessable possibilities.
It is a far cry today from the day when
British labor, forbidden by parliament
to organize, began to form secret
“beneficial” and “burial” societies in
order that the workers might confer
together on wages and working con
ditions. The early labor unions were
ruthlessly hunted down by capital and
their leaders thrown into jail. Now
capital takes the unions Into partner
ship. Tremendous new forces are at
work throughout the world, and social
relations are being changed in ways
undreamed of a feW years ego. There
still are radicals in labor who would
destroy capital and Bourbons of capi
tal who would keep labor under heel,
but the numbers of both are grqwlng
less and their influence is diminish
ing. It has been a long struggle up
ward for the man who works with his
hands, but each generation sees gains,
and the recessions never quite wipe
out the forward strides. Human prog
ress is not measured in the life span
of man, but in centuries and groups of
centuries. A hundred years ago men
hardly could have imagined a labor
union gaining a directing voice in a
great banking house. Today such a
fact is accepted as worthy of no more
than passing notice. Yet It possibly is
a far more significant event than when
the law at last grudgingly recognized
the right of labor to engage in col
lective bargaining.
The European war chest always ap
pears to have resources regardless of
the condition of the populace's pocket
book.
Trotsky’s apparently inconsequen
tial position begins to moke him look
Mke one of Russia’s undeveloped re
sources.
As the sick man of Europe, the
former Sultan of Turkey continues to
travel for his health.
Winter Coldi and Other Hie.
Health Officer Fowler says that the
wave of influenza In this District Is
not only In a mild form,, but Is subsid
ing. He believes that most of the sick
ness now prevalent of a pulmonary
character Is the ordinary “grip.”
Doubtless much that is called grip by
the sufferers themselves is nothing
more serious than the ordinary winter
cold.
There is, of course, danger, in every
cold. It may develop Into a more seri
ous infection. This does not mean that
the grip or the influenza is not of a
specific character induced by*a par
ticular element. But a cold which is
simply an inflammation of the mucous
membrane in the nasal passages tends
to lower the resistance power of the
sufferer, so that the active principle
of another ailment may flnd lodgment
and development. ,
It Is possible to avoid winter colds.
THE EVENING STAB. WASHINGTON. D. C.. ’WEDNESDAY. JANUARY 24, 1923.
They can be guarded against‘by a few
simple precautions of general health
protection. As a matter of tact a cold
means that there has been some negli
gence. some indifference to physical
welfare. It should not be regarded as
an inevitable accompaniment of cold
weather or sloppy weather or rain or
snow or ice. >
There ane two kinds of cold suf
ferers. those who fight it out and
those who submit and yield. It is a
question of which Is the better policy.
Much depends on the temperament.
It is always, however, to be remem
bered that the person who stays in
doors in order to treat a cold Is at
least not exposing others to the same
affliction save in the Immediate family
circle.
The most Important thing to remem
ber at this time of year, with pul
monary troubles prevalent, is not to
get frightened. Fear induces sickness
of this character. Imagination plays a
big part in the preservation of health.
A cold can be fought by the Coue
method, which, after all, is simply
individual fortification against fear.
Leadership and the Next Congress.
Although meeting day may be a
year away, the republicans are al
ready considering the question of
leadership in the next Congress—par
ticularly as respects the House.
The situation in the Senate Is pretty
well defined. Mr. Lodge will retain
his place at the head of the foreign
relations committee, and also his gen
eral supervision of the majority’s pro
gram. And In Mr. Smoot and Mr.
Curtis—both keen and clever men—
the one specializing in finance and
the tariff, and the other in parlia
mentary practice—he will have val
uablet lieutenants.'
It is in the House new selections
must be made, and, of course, made
with .care. . Mr. Mondell, the floor
leader in the present House, missed
his spring for the Senate, and so re
tires. Mr. Fordney and Mr. Cannon
are retiring from choice. Mr. Mann,
a most able adviser, Is no more.
The successors of these men In the
matter of House management should
measure up to a high standard. The
next House will take the lead in much
important legislation, and should fash
ion it with party Interests as well aa
the public’s interests in view. What
Is done will enter for hotter or for
■worse into the next presidential cam
paign.
Fortunately, the republicans arc
well supplied with the nteccssary tim
ber. There is leadership in a number
of their men; and good, selections can
be made, with ability, congressional
experience and geographical location
uli featured in the equation.
Miners who want a six-hour day and
a five-day week have- introduced prob
lems involving the relations of indus
try to the calendar which make the
old daylight-saving scheme appear
comparatively simple.
The contents of an ancient Egyptian
tomb recall historic events and condi
tions. But it Is not, necessary to go so
far. A scrap book-containing perfectly
legible * treaties and party platforms
does the same thing.
Ambassador Harvey has at last at
tained the distinguished position of the
statesman who has much to express
in conference and but little to say for
publication.
The unofficial observer Is in the diffi
cult position of an audience that is
permitted neither to hiss nor to ap
plaud.
Wilhelm Hohenzollern Is sufficiently
well provided for to be considered a
coupon cutter as well as a woodchop
per.
International business would face in
teresting complications should a theory
be established that all debts may be
considered strictly non-payable.
Theories of Dr. Coue are welcome if
for no other reason than that they
provoke no political controversy.
The drug peddler shows how even
the noble art of salesmanship may be
degraded.
SHOOTING STARS.
BT PHILANDER JOHNSON.
Familiars at the Feast.
A family skeleton once stood
At every feast, they say.
A family joke, not always good,
Now graces the display.
It Is a jest that grandpa dear
In early youth rehearsed.
We sigh, yet smile, when he draws
near.
Prepared to do his worst.
We simulate, to greet his chaff,
A spirit that is high.
Although the pretense of a laugh
Is gloomier than a cry.
I wish, when all Is sold and done.
Some power they’d Invoke
To give us bock the skeleton
And bury that old Joke.
Position.
“Our friend’s remarks sound like
propaganda.”
“Frequently,” replied Senator Sor
ghum. ‘
“What’s hto position on this public
question?”
“I’m afraid it’s merely a salaried
position.”
Jud Tunklns says the Darwinian
theory would get more respect If those
alleged ancestors had been able to hire
lawyers and make wills.
Currency Problems.
. The currency in foreign lands
In value takes a daily slip.
The weary tourist gently hands'*
At least a cartload for a tip.
Cynkax! Father. '
"Tout boy Josh has a big heart.”
•T hope,” rejoined Farmer Corn
tossel, “fur the sake of his health he
doesn’t get an enlargement of the
heart to correspond with his enlarge-,
ment of the head.”’
“Borne men,” said Uncle
backslid!n’ cause dey don’t' git much
tamfljr sympathy, ’ceppln* when dsy’s
bein’ reformed.”
THE WAYS OF WASHINGTON
BY WILLIAM PICKETT HELM.
in democracy’s great capital city
all men are equal.
The, humblest citisen may call on
the President at the White House.
All he has to do is await his turn and
not shove or crowd.
Any unknown with a reasonable re
quest and five minutes to spare can
see the General of the Army.
The Secretary of State walks to
work with the madding crowd.
The Secretary of Labor peels off
his coat, spits on his hands and doea
an auld-lang-ayne turn in a steel
mill.
The Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court swings to a strap In a crowded
car when he rides home. Usually he
walks.
Senators keep open house; repre
sentatives come half the way to meet
you.
There is nothing of snobbery In
Washington, at least not in the
American part of the official life of
the city. There isn’t half the trouble
in getting In to see the secretary of
anything that there is interviewing,
say, a retired coal baron. Every
thing is on the plane of democracy in
the center of government.
And those who govern are Just as
human as those who are governed.
You don't think so? Then, reader,
you don’t know. And you cannot have
heard the story of the Postmaster
General and Jenny, the waitress. 1
must tell you that story because it
Illustrates my point that first of all
a man is a man with a fellow feel
ing for a friend in trouble; and next
he is an official of the government,
call him bureaucrat or what you will.
I ,
Hubert Work of Colorado, one-time
doctor of medicine and but lately
president of the American Medical As
sociation. Is Postmaster General of the
United States. He rides to work each
day In a fine car supplied him by the
government. He heads the greatest
retail business in the world, the
postal system of America.
He sits in a beautiful office, and he
lunches with hts assistants and others
of Ms staff In the department res
taurants. He exercises vast power,
and he is just as human as Pat in
overalls.
Yes. more e<v. And he is not the ex
ception. but the type, of the high gov
eminent official in Washington.
Jenny, the waitress, serves his table
at luncheon. At least she used to till
ehe got another Job. Jenny Isn't her
EDITORIAL DIGEST
Opinions Vary When Arkansas
Nob Outrages Are Discussed.
Many of the nation’s newspapers In
discussing the mob outrages at Har
rison. Ark., are Inclined to find justi
fication on the part of the men In
volved because they operated un
masked and seemingly had provoca
tion. Others see In it Harrison an
swering Herrin. Additional comment
comes from those editors who seem
inclined to believe that a mob out
rage is a mob outrage, no matter how
and where It takes place, and who
feel that if such lawlessness is not
soon halted everywhere the “right to
justice will be swallowed up In the
tyranny of the mob.”
"’For what these Arkansas farmers
did there was, of course, no legal ex
cuse," the New York Times says, but
“at any rate, the farmers aid not
wear masks when they went about
their savage w-ork and seemingly they
are prepared to take the responsi
bility for It and defend It as neces
sary for the termination of an Intol
erable situation. As for the strikers,
what they did, unfortunately, was
what too often has been dona by other
unionists without exciting the amount
of union condemnation which such
acts deserve from every good citizen,
either in or out of unions.” It was
“Harrison answering Herrin," the
New York World suggests, “one the
exact opposite of the other. The rail
way employee used sabotage to en
force their demands. The citizens
and farmers of Harrison could not
afford a local embargo -and therefore
organized a vigilance committee to
discipline the union. But the national
deflation of labor would not lead to
bitter, open warfare. In which mine
guards are shot to death and strikers
are strung up by merchants and farm
ers. If the principles and practices of
lynch law had not taken a dangerous
hold on the popular Imagination in
many sections of the country. Ab a
people we have not yet discovered the
futility of violence In adjusting our
industrial difficulties.’’
There was "no excuse” for the mob
and Its work, the Wall Street Journal
says. and. "like most cases of public
disorder, this one may be traced di
rectly to the cowardice of the civil
authorities. The railroads have law
and justice on their side: they need
no mob aid.” There is “an excuse”
for what happened, as the Philadel
phia Public Ledger sees It, because
Harrison “is a community maddened
and made desperate by threats of
strangulation and by months of vio
lence. The ‘vigilantes.’ of course,
have taken the wrong w-ay, but It Is
verv natural. If you are looking for
what public opinion can be like when
sufficiently goaded by violence, here
is a cross section of it-XS* miles long
in Arkansas.” This slew In no way
Impresses the Albany News, which
feels that “perhaps there Is a differ
ence between mob rule In Bastrop,
La., and mob rule in Harrison. Ark.,
but from the road if looks like mob
rule just the same. The details dif
fer—one'with masks, while this hang
ing and whipping In Arkansas Is
without masks, done by *vlgllanteß.‘
Armed citizens call It a house-clean
ing Getting down to brass tacks, It’s
a violation of constitutional guaran
tees to the individual. This matter
of mob rule strikes at a basic thing
in government. And there Is more
than one kind of mob rule.” The New
York Call feels that the outbreak
ECHOES FROM CAPITOL HILL
WOULD PUT PROHIBITION
AGENTS UNDER OTVMi SERVICE.
I am talking about genuine support
of the matter, not moonshine support.
I voted for the eighteenth amendment
to the Constitution, and I believe in its
enforcement, but in a Just and rea*
sonable manner; and I believe that
the men who are enforcing it ought to
be under the civil service law, in or
der that we may have the very best
men to enforce it. —Senator Shields,
Tennessee, democrat.
CURB THE
SENATORS.
We ought to remedy it (the civil
service system), but the way to
remedy it 1« to put restraint on the
Senators and the representatives and
the governors and the chairmen of
state committees and other fellows,
so that they will not be in a position
to go into a department or a bureau
and say to a man: “1 want you to re
tain this clerk, or discharge that one,
or promote this one, or demote that
one.” —Senator Norrte, Nebraska, re
publican.
real name, but It la the name by which
•he was called in the restaurant
Jenny had an ailing husband—tu
berculosis, or something. The other
treasure of her life is an ailing baby.
One day Jenny was absent from her
poet. Another waitress took her place.
Dr. Work noticed the change, but
said nothing.
The next day the substitute ap
peared again.
"Where’s Jenny?” Dr. Work asked.
“Her baby’s sick,” the substitute re
plied. , v
“Nothing serious, I hppe?” the Post
master General Inquired.
•T*m afraid It is, sir,” the waitress
answered. “Pneumonia, I believe. The
baby’s in Georgetown Hospital and
Jenny’s with her,”
When the Postmaster General quit
work that day ho went to his wait
ing car.
"Drive to Georgetown Hospital," he
told the chauffeur.
At the hospital Dr. Work inquired
for Jenny. She wasn’t there at the
moment, but the baby was. He might
see the baby in ward so-and-so.
The Postmaster General went to
ward so-and-so and saw the little
sufferer. He leaned over It and ex
amined It. Then he called the nurse.
“Let me see this patient’s chart,”
he requested.
The nurse brought the chart and
with It a young Interne who oblig
ingly started to explain what it all
meant.
“Never mind,” interrupted Dr.
Work. ’T used to practice medicine
myself."
The Postmaster General —Postmas-
ter General no longer, but a man of
medicine beside the bed of tiny suf
ferer—called for the physician In
charge. They held a consultation and
when Dr. Work made known his
Identity the physician In charge was
glad to adopt his suggestions. It
Isn’t every day that the president of
the American Medical Association
goes to Georgetown Hospital.
Dr. Work spent half an hour at the
hospital and when he left requested
that he be kept advised by telephone
of the baby's progress.
And. glory be. that baby lived and
got well and Is playing about now
with Christmas toys.
Maybe the Postmaster General
didn’t save the baby’s life. But I,
for one. am going to believe he did.
Human, did I say these high offi
cials are?
No end.
“originated in private property in
transportation. This has led to a
civil war between Ignorant farmer*
and union workers. It has provided
a mob dictatorship and overthrown
courts, police and executive power.
Anarchy, In the worst sense of this
word, reigned supreme.”
Inasmuch as this time a “citizens’
committee" resorted to mob rule, the
Durham Hun sees in the affair a grow
ing “tendency to the overthrow of
law and order on all sides. Heretofore
the outrages have been committed,
for the most part. In the Interest of
labor. Here is an example of labor
suffering the effects of crime because
It exercised its right to strike. It is
a graphic Illustration of the fact that
abuse of rights on either side will
produce a conflict In which law and
the rights of men as free agents will
be the last thing considered.” It Is
the opinion of the Boston Transcript,
however, that "while there will be In
dignation. there will be no surprise”
that this happened. “The Arkansas
strike was a strike against the pub
lic safety. The sabotage that fol
iqwed it signified a concerted effort to
stop the road’s operation, regardless
of the suffering caused the farmers of
the community directly affected.
These farmers have finally come to
the conclusion that those guilty of
sabotage against the railroad are pub
lic enemies. Their final resort to vio
lence only goes to prove that 'gov
ernment Is protection’ and that where
protection ceases government ends."
Somewhat similar is the argument of
the Kansas City Journal, which feels
that “the inevitable happened in this
instance, as In many others. One ele
ment went outside the law to gain Its
own ends; another followed in re
taliation and with the determination
to put an end to the destruction ol
property and the Interruption of busi
ness. One extreme begot another.
Vigorous and Impartial enforcement
of the law, the protection of the
rights of all concerned, would In all
probability have prevented the de
struction of property, and therefore
the retaliation which has resulted In
mob violence. .It is idle to base any
solution of this or any other problem
on a situation In which property 1s
destroyed with Impunity to gain no
matter how just and desirable ends.”
The methods of the mob were “In
finitely worse than the evils they de
sired to exterminate.” the Asheville
Times holds, and “the Harrison vigi
lantes made martyrs of the very men
whom they wished to punish. They
aroused sympathy for those they at
tempted to condemn. Os course, there
is nothing unusual about this. It is
the Invariable denouement of stories
of mob violence.” Demanding how
far this thing is to be allowed to go.
the Savannah Press likewise Inquires,
“What is to happen when any number
of people form themselves into a
mob? Here is an uprising of the peo
ple absolutely unauthorized by the
court and abhorrent to principles of
justice and fair play. The governor
ordered out his troops too late and
withdrew them too soon. When is
this thing to stop? And what a
dangerous precedent such a mur
derous aggregation establishes!” The
peril from private “law enforcement”
Increases, the Indianapolis News is
convinced, as reports of various out
rages drift In from every section of
the country, showing the "disease Is
spreading rapidly. It is time that
people were awakening to the peril,
for It Is real and serious. It threat
ens the very existence of our Insti
tutions. There Is a moral In It ali
for courts, juries and peace officers.
While their derelictions cannot ex
cuse mob law. they at least furnish a
pretext for it.”
ANOTHER PLEA FOR THE
GOOD OLD DAYS. '
Oh. if the fathers who conceived
the theory upon which this Govern
ment must run could but return to
us and see the surrender by Congress
of its many powers to the executive.
—Senator Harrison, Mississippi, demo
crat.
THE INVASION
OF THE RUHR.
It means the enslavement of another
nation. Slavenr. c&nnot be. defended
on the basis of any treaty or of any
piece of paper which wae dictated
under physical coercion.—Representa
tive London, New York, socialist.
MEMBERS SHOULD PAY
FULL COST OF MEALS.
In all fairness we ought not to be
spending this $36,000 a year for our
restaurant, because if it is run all
the time, that is what it will cost.
We ought not to be spending the
people’s money in that way. I am
sure that we are all able to pay every
dollar of the expense of every bit of
our meala — Representative Blanton.
Texas, democrat.
Politics at Large
ST If. O. MESSENGER.
Upon what issues will the cam
paign of next year be waged by the
two old parties? Is there likelihood
of another party of material propor
tions being created?
These two questions are propounded
and discussed by the politicians from
time to time around the Capitol and
by the visitors from out of town who
drop Into political headquarters here.
The weight of opinion is found to in
cline to a negative answer to the
second question, on the ground that
the platforms of the two major po
litical organisations will be so lib
eral that there will be nothing left
for recommendation to the vote £®
other than an appeal to downright
radicalism, and it is not thought that
there Is enough sentiment ih the
country to support a radical party of
sufficient strength to menace the old
parlies, , ....
It Is contended that no such situ
ation prevails In the country as ex
isted in 19X2 which produced the bull
moose party In the republican ranks.
It cannot be said that there Is In the
O. O. P. a distinct faction to be class
ed as “standpat” or “old guard.
They are all progressives when it
comes to going on record. The stand
patters of yore may not have changed
their spots any more than the tradi
tional leopard, but they are not
flaunting them. The rampant pro
gressives of yesteryear have no need
to threaten bolt and revolution, for
there is nothing to bolt from. The
party’s profession of policies In
latlon and declarations by the ad
ministration should please the most
exacting short of downright bolshe
vlsts. There are some of this type
In both .parties, for that matter, but
not enough to make a dent In ejiner
if they should want to walk out.
♦* ♦ ♦
So no specter of a third party of
potential size Is stalking the land
at this time. There will be socialist
labor organizations and perhaps other
small groups marching under this or
that banner, but they will be but as
guerrillas hanging on the flanks of
the two big armies, the democrats
and, the republicans, as they sweep
into battle. They will absorb Che
small percentage of discontented and
radical elements of the two main P°*
Utica] parties and will be speeded on
their way with thoughts of good na
dance.
♦ ♦ ♦
It is generally conceded that the
democrats bid fair to frame a more —
shall It be said —radical platform
than the republicans. That might
seem to foreshadow the loss of ultra
conservative democrats who would go
over to the republicans In protest,
except for the fact that democrats
are not so prone to leave their party
as republicans have shown them
selves In the past to be. Moreover,
democrats of all shades of opinion
are now flushed with the hope and
encouraged by the prospect of vic
tory in 1924. They are still smart
ing under the sting of the unmerciful
thrashing the democracy r f<**Xfd In
1920 The trend of the last elections
awav from the republican party
really agreeably surprised them. Tne
change was greater than they had
reason to hope for In the shadow of
the seven million republican ma
jority. It Is regarded as probable
therefore, by the political sharps that
the most conservative democrats w 111
be Inclined to swallow more radical
ism than would ordinarily sit easily
on the political stomach In the pros
pect for rolling the republicans down
hill and over the precipice. New
York’s elections last November ex
emplified this disposition. There
were loud protests against the radi
cal platform of the democrats from
old-line democrats up and down the
fit Ale. But come election nay aoa.
with the amazing Increase In the out
look for a democratic victory and
winning back the state, the old
liners gulped down their resentment
and marched valiantly to the polls to
support the ticket and the platform.
♦♦ * *
Seeing what the* accomplished with
their promises to the voters, the New
York democrats are now Intent upon
making good on their campaign
pledges and enacting the legislation
proposed in their platform. Reports
coming to Washington of conditions
In other states are that the de
mocracy everywhere is Inclined to
follow the suit of the New York
democrats and make their national
and state platforms next year with as
near an approach to a blue-sky limit
of liberal recommendations as safety
will warrant.
♦♦ ♦ ♦
Discussing the first question pro
pounded—what issues will be sharply
drawn between the democratic and
republican parties?—the politician*
generally believe that, outside of as
sertions of superior progresslvlsm,
the tariff and the extent of partici
pation In European affairs will fur
nish the sharpest divisions between
the two parties. Over the tariff both
parties will assert their difference
with emphasis and with equal confi
dence In that difference bringing vie
tory to their respective banners. The
effects of the new tariff will have
been evidenced by the time the cam
paign opens with a year of actual
operation. They will be shown in
customs receipts, in either expansion
or contracting of manufacturing in
dustry and in employment.
Another issue will be the extent to
which the democrats may go In sup
porting government, state and mu
nicipal ownership. It is morally cer
tain they will go further than the
republicans.
♦♦ * *
There Is every expectation that a
tremendous effort will be made to
commit the democratic party in its,
national platform to support of the
league of nations and to participation
by the United States in affairs of the
old world. It’s a curious thing that
the advocates of the league are citing
the present conditions in Europe as
justification for their renewed fle
mand for this country taking a hand,
while the republicans point to the
same conditions as proof that the
United States did well In keeping out.
♦♦ ♦ ♦
Propaganda Is active In behalf ot
renewed agitation for the league and
for participation In the European
tangle. Newspaper men receive
through the malls a constant flow of
pamphlets and leaflets setting forth
the necessity of American interven
tion or participation and presenting
all kinds of arguments to support me
demand.
Here is an extract from the latest
which came over the writer's desk.
It quotes from recent speeches by
Lord Grey of England and Signor
Nltti'of Italy and says:’
"Lord Grey takes the position that
the problems Involved in reparations,
Interallied Indebtedness, standing
armies and the security of France
are all part of one great problem and
cannot be settled piecemeal. Signor
Nitti takes the position that the
United States was the decisive factor
In ending the war, so must the United
States become the decisive factor In
imposing the ultimate conditions of
peace. He points out that the su
preme qualification of the United
States in this crisis Is its ability to
speak the word of moral authority.’ -
The article goes on to say that the
United States ought to* be present at
every foreign conference as responsi
ble participant and contends that
“the world needs the United States."
The propaganda is designed for
effect upon the democrats. It Is not
likely to find an echo among the re
publicans. This administration and
presumably the majority of the re
publicans are absolutely set In the
present foreign policy and It Is be
lieved that the republican national
convention will, support It In Its plat
form.
CAPITAL KEYNOTES
BY PAUL V. COLLINS.
"On what meat doth this our
Caesar feed, that he Is crown so
great?" The body wears out and l»
rebuilt every seven years; some parts
of It oftener. Hence It is important
that it be furnished with the proper
building material. "You can't make
a silk purse out of a sow’s ear." Mor
can you make a brave soldier out of
fat salt middlings, sorghum, dried
beans and corn bread. That mate
rial is rich in carbohydrates and fur
nishes fat. But nobody cither loves or
fears a fat man.
♦♦ * *
Many physically defective men
grow up in the mountain regions of
the Alleghenies, although there is no
better climate in the world. An in
vestigation has recently been made
by the children’s bureau of the Labor
Department, which results in a report
that the cause of the defective man
hood lies In the diet, which consists
too monotonously of- corn bread, fat
salt pork, sorghum and dried beans.
There is no reason why the diet
should not include green vegetables,
eggs and a variety of meat, except
that the people have gotten Into the
habit of eating only the articles men
tioned.
** ♦ *
That lazy habit is not confined to
the mountaineers. The bane of a cer
tain type of boarding house menu Is
Its everlasting sameness. Even when
variety Is sought according to the
day of the week, the Monday dinner
appearing always on Monday, the
Tuesday supper always on Tuesday,
etc.. It steals the appetite. Worse
than that, the constant eating of the
same articles is not fair to nature,
for man Is made omnlverous, and
otnnlverous he must be or pay the
penalty.
Good soldiers and great men and
women come from the right soil, for
if the soil Is fertile there will be
plenty of good food. The “hog and
hominy” diet cannot produce well
round men any more than feed
deficient In the element* that make
up a balanced ration for live stock
can produce prise stock. No success
ful stock raiser neglects the balanc
ing of his ration for his animals —ex-
cept for the human animal. Until a
few decades ago even physicians
knew nothing of balancing rations
for the human animal. Even today
many physicians lack in-exact knowl
edge of dietetics and limit their
learned Instructions to patients to
"avoid starchy foods.’’ without indi
cating to the layman what are
starchy and what are rich In protein.
No layman can be assumed to know
what diet he should use any more
than, what drug he should swallow.
To faulty diet is attributed the seri
ous percentage of men and boys
thrown out from the draft at the
time of the world war.
♦* * *
When developing a park or design
ing a statue or a painting the quality
of Its artistic form is the prime con
sideration. If it be not beautiful. It
is nothing. When spanning a great
river with a bridge, artistic beauty.
should be considered —for there Is no
reason why a useful thing should be
ugly—but beauty Is of secondary,
not prime. Importance. A blacksmith
testifying in court as to the quality
of a certain piano swore that It was
“built strong,” for he had seen the
timbers In It. His testimony was ort
set by that of a musician who spoke
of overtones and tone. So It all de
pends upon our viewpoint whether
we want a bridge to be judged by Its
graceful lines or hy its adaptation to
the practical purpose to which it Is to
be put. Ruskin. describing his Ideal
bridge in his “Elements of Drawing.’’
demands that Its lines show the prac
tical purpose as the test of its
beauty—a short, low arch over the
narrow span; a broad, sweeping and
high arch over the main river; and
all to speak purpose, not conventional
design. Behold the Japanese bridges,
how they leap and spring high where
needed and creep and hesitate over
the little stretches! A bridge that is
obviously made up, regardless of Us
usefulness—drawn with compasses
and a straight-edge In the architect’s
studio—is as artificial as a painted
lady.
These remarks are apropos of the
controversy now “raging” between
two schools of thought as to the
Arlington Memorial bridge. The les
son. I trust. Is obvious; The bridge
which is merely pretty In Us lines is
not beautiful: for it would be a
nuisance, an obstacle to commerce In
stead of a help. It can be both use
ful and beautiful. There Is no reason
why a span should not be a draw
bridge. either upon a pivot or to rise,
and yet be Impressively graceful.
Let not the "blacksmith” but the
artist meet the problem, and let Kus
kin be the inspiration.
♦* * *
Secretaries Weeks and Denby of the
War and Navy Departments have
written to Congress their protests
against the Brookhart bill to author
ise civilians to purchase merchan
dise from the Army commissary
stores upon the same terms as sol
diers. The soldiers are entitled to
purchase anything at 10 per cent
above what the government pays,
although the government buys at Job
bers’ prices In enormous quantities.
The Secretaries protest that the
plan to let all civilians purchase on
the same terms Is impracticable, for
the government stores are already
taxed to their full capacity In gov
ernment buildings. If they were to
enlarge the volume of business to
accommodate 300.000 customers In the
District of Columbia it would be nec
essary to rent a chain of stores and
multiply overhead expenses.
Handle Babe Asleep
With Autosuggestion
To the Editor Os The 8t«r:
.The visit of M. Coue, brief though it
was. has centered attention for the
moment on the power and operation
of the subconscious mind (or "sub
liminal self," as it Is styled by some.
Including Maurice Maeterlinck In his
"Unknown Guest” and Dr. Morton
Prince In "The Dissociation of a Per
sonality”). Before this Impression
has faded I should like to call atten
tion to an Important use of this
deeper consciousness that experience
has shown can be made by parents
and others that have the care of chil
dren.
When It becomes necessary to han
dle a sleeping child—say, to remove
It from one bed to another—ls the
child be picked up silently it is apt.
as we all know, to start, perhaps to
resist, maybe to waken and cry. This
Is due to nervous shock caused by the
unexpected disturbance and can be
obviated completely by speaking to
the child before touching It, telling
It gently and distinctly what you are
about to do. It will understand with
out wakening. The subconscious
mind, which Is on guard, will appre
ciate the Import of what Is said and
convey It to the little slumberer. who
will. In consequence, not be startled,
but. yielding with confidence to the
person handling it, will nestle quietly
down Into the enfolding arms and un
resistingly allow Itself to be lowered
Into the new place of clumber, where
It will settle at once comfortably and
contentedly, with no break in Its
sound sleep.
I offer this suggestion to those par
ents and nurses to whom the Idea has
not occurred, and beg to assure them
that I speak from ample experience
with my own children, with whom I
followed the practice when they were
small and with Invariable success.
HENRY OLDYS.
The argument of Secretary Weeks
that the price at which merchandise
Is sold by the commissary stores to
soldiers does not differ materially
from the regular retail price may t>i»
challenged by advocates of the Brook
hart measure. No merchant can pay
hi* overhead and sell goods at merely
10 per cent above manufacturers' cost.
Merchants must pay their help and a
thousand' other expenses, and. of
course, must have a profit. There is
undoubtedly a considerable difference,
therefore, in the commissary price
and the retail merchant’s price, but
that Is not a sufficient reason for the
government’s entering upon a policy
of socialistic merchandising and kill
ing private enterprise. The two
forms of business could never exist
In competition, for the merchant must
stand expense which Senator Brook -
hart quite overlooks In asking that
the government become his competi
tor.
♦* ♦ *
If this socialism be adopted for the
District of Columbia, how long would
It be before the people of Des Moines
and other cities of Senator Brook
hart’s state would become clamorous
for socialistic competition with their
private merchants? How long would
It be before bankruptcy would sweep
over the country and millions of em
ployes of private enterprises would be
thrown out of employment? How
long would it be before the govern
ment, In mercantile business of all
kinds, would discover that it might
also manufacture its goods? How
long would It be before sovietism
would paralyze America as It has
done to Russia? Then how long be
fore the idle millions would demand
revolution, that American fascist!
should take the factories out of the
hands of the government, and the
soviets would undertake to run the
Idle factories, though without either
capital or executive experience?
** * *
The Brookhart bill appears inno
cent and reasonable upon Us surface,
but It has within It all the germs of
overwhelming revolution because it
ignores every principle of economics
and established business. The first
principle of a republic Is that the
government should do nothing that
private Individuals, singly or asso
ciated together, can do successfully.
The government should never com
pete with the individual. To do so
is socialism and communism, not de
mocracy.
For the commissary to supply the
Army and Navy with merchandise,
for their own use. is merely a part of
their compensation for service. That
Is an entirely different matter from
selling to the whole population.
** * *
It is pitiful to see thousands of pa
triotic, intelligent women spending
their energies as they are doing in
the National League of Woman
Voters, resolving that "war is a
crime.’’ They are to hold meetings
to teach that war Is a crime—which
nobody does deny—when they might
do real good by discovering that one
third of the men of America are
"scarce half made up, and that so
lamely and unfashionable” that they
are not fit to carry a rifle and guard
their mothers and sisters from ma
rauding brutes. There is so much
work —real work—for women to take
hold of and do. as only women can do,
that It is pitiful to see so many senti
mentalize and sigh and “resolve”
over absolute vacuities such as "out
lawing war,” as if «ar had not been
an outlaw since Cain killed AbeL
America cries out for the help of
good American women. They have
helped so marvelously in the past
that their usefulness is beyond ques
tion. How can they fritter energy
over “outlawing war”? i
♦♦ * *
America calls for women to help
purify her every public and private
Institution—the movies, the litera
ture. What wonders might follow if
the standards of*fi- - Mon were purified
so that every "fsmlly magazine”
might be read aloud in the family!
America needs the touch of pure
womanhood in the guidance of young
women and young men. that their
ideals might be nob’e. America cries
out for Us womanhood to help the
Wallle Reeds, who are living a hell
on earth because they have been
trapped Into the opium devils’ lair*.
** * *
We want statesmen—whether in
trousers or petticoats—but the great
world questions which have wrenched
the heart of civilization for thou
sands of years, while mankind has
been groping up from the prehistoric
times, will not be settled —will not
be affected —by a few thousand
groups sitting about round tables and
telling each other that war is an out
law.
Why not tell that heat bums, that
the sun shines, that gravitation holds
fast all matter? War is a result, not
a cause. Sin of national covetous
ness is the outlaw, and that grows in
the Individual hearts. Pride of rulers
is the outlaw; and where does pride
thrive? Cowardice and deceit and
falsehood are outlaws, and they
spring up In the cringing hearts of
individuals.
There Is work for women as well as
men in the ennobling of personal
character. In the purifying of indi
vidual hearts. That does not sound
so grandiloquent as “resolving” to
teach Internationalism and a code of
treason to one’s own country, whose
Institutions are all that make tno
difference In the safety of the women
and men as contrasted with bar
barism and savagery
Says French Invade
Germany for Loot
To the Editor of The Star:
In your Saturday edition Maria W.
Carter protests against the Ameri
can disapproval of France's Invasion
of Germany and asserts that “we
have all become Shylocks” and given
up our ideals of a few years ago.
An examination of the facts In the
case will prove just the contrary.
They will show that. Instead of the
American nation giving up Its ideal
of Justice and right, we are uphold
ing that Ideal In our disapproval or
the French Invasion of Germany for
the sake of plunder. France has gent
her troops onto German soil, not for
a blow for her own freedom, not for a
call for the safety of her soil, but
purely and simply as a commercial
act, to get plunder, to secure the coal,
and that coal the very center of In
dustry on which Germany depends to
save her from starvation.
All the allies agree that the amount
fixed as to be paid by Germany was
excessive and not to be accomplished
In the time set. We have not in
vaded France for our debt. ■ But
France, laying aside the least pre
tense to any ideals higher than rank
commercialism, is now doing Just
what a few years ago she branded
the Germans as Huns for doing—en
tering with an army a neighboring
nation and seizing their goods and
at the point of the bayonet. If any
rational mind can And any similarity
between the courses taken by France
and America they surely are afflicted
with mental astigmatism. We have
used no force or threats and made no
disturbance about what Is due us.
France, Imposing an Impossible obli
gation by force of arms, now pro
ceeds to collect It with the sword.
Will Marla W. Carter explain where
are the lofty Ideals of France in so
doing and why wo Americans err in
protesting against this invasion,
which is a violation not only of the
treaty, but of all noble sentiments
the French proclaimed four year*
aro? ’ Virginia stuart.