Evening star. [volume], August 09, 1930, Page A-4, Image 4

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

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A-4
THE EVENING STAR
With Sunday Morning- Edition.
WASHINGTON, D. C.
SATURDAY...... August 9, 193<
THEODORE W. NOYES. . . .Editoi
The Evening Star Newspaper Company
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ited In this paper and also 'lie local i ews
Published herein. All rights of publication of
special dispatches herein are also lesened.
The Report on the Drought.
The President’s summary of reports
©n the drought, assembled by the De
partment of Agriculture, emphasizes
one of the peculiar aspects of this
national misfortune that should sim
plify the work of relief. Within the
area most seriously affected there are
approximately a million farm families.
They possess about 12 per cent of the
country’s live stock. But unlike calami
ties that take form in widespread flood,
fire, cyclone or earthquake, the path of
devastation now beaten by blistering
•un and absence of rain does not repre
sent wholesale destruction and ruin.
The condition of the farm families
Varies with the crops that have been
planted, with the location of farms, and
With other factors that have a distinct
effect in mitigating or accentuating the
results of the drought. In some parts
of the drought area failure of home
gardens means failure of a food supply
upon which the people are most de
pendent. Others, with pasturage gone,
with cattle Tailing and with no pros
pects for other feed, are pushed to the
Very brink of financial disaster. Still
others have harvested crops that will
probably bring extraordinarily high
returns because of the shortage else
where. Even within the blistered areas
Os drought there are oases of plenty.
"The situation,” says President Hoo
ver. “is one to cause a great deal of
Concern.” But the background of the
picture of bleak conditions predominat
ing in certain areas is one of a Nation
that overflows in the abundance of its
food supply; adequately equipped wltn
means of quick transportation; ready
with organizations for relief long since
perfected to deal with emergencies far
more sudden and for which there has
been much less time for preparation.
Individual cases of suffering and ruin
are heartrending. The farmer whose
herds a few months ago were sleek and
fat, grazing in well watered pastures,
may have seen the work of a lifetime
slowly crumble before his eyes. Farm
ers have put in crops that have with
ered and died. But back of them stand
neighbors who can help out, and a
Nation that Is putting machinery in
motion to bring more permanent and
adequate relief. There is no effort in
any quarter to minimize the actual
want or the danger of extreme suffer
ing. The comfort lies in ability to
realize the tangible proportions of the
disaster, and, knowing it, to proceed
With the available remedies.
Our Navy is to retire three battleships
In advance of Japan's ratification of
the Naval Treaty, “as a gesture of
International conference confidence.”
Bo Uncle Sam is beginning to concede
putts.
Filling stations of five big oil com
panies are soon to start selling tires
in addition to service, gas and oil. Right
out from under the noses of the chain
drug stores! •
A French observer reports that Ger
many has a big aftny They had an
other big one some years ago, but, like
many a big fish, it got away.
“Covering Up’’ the Pollution.
One of the purposes of the act creat
ing the National Capital Park and
Planning Commission was to "preserve
the flow of water in Rock Creek.” Since
Its creation the commission has made
extensive purchases in the Piney Branch
and Soapstone Valleys, and in two other
valleys In the northern corner of the
District, and is planning further acqui
sitions along the streams of 9 ach
Drive, through the valley noriL of
Georgetown and in the valley to the
south of the Bureau of Standards, thus
preserving streams which feed Rock
Creek and which otherwise would be
converted into sewers.
At one time it was planned to turn
lower Rock Creek into a sewer at a cost
of about. $6 000 000. This would have
enabled progressive real estate dealers
to fill in parts of what used to be a
beautiful valley—and still has Us pos
sibilities —and sell it for lots. Instead
of that the Pari: Commission has
bought or is buying about 159 acres of
land along lower Rock Creek at a cost
of $1,900,000. The creek and Us valley
will be preserved to form the long
sought connecting parkway between
Rock Creek Park and Potomac Park.
It comes as a disappointing surprise,
therefore, to hear from the District's
new Engineer Commissioner, Maj. Got
wals, of a plan to put a roof over Rock
Creek from a point near the Q Street
Bridge all the way down to the Po
tomac. Surveying the "chasm between
two ash dumps” that now beautifies this
section, and which will grace a part of
the connecting parkway, Maj, Gotwals
is quoted as being unable to see why
anybody “would want to travel down
there.” But "if the demand for this
boulevard” persists, the major believes
that Rock Creek might stUl be covered
up and a road built along the “roof” of
the creek, possibly to serve the whims
and the fancies of the eccentric motor
ists who will want to drive down there.
If one of the purposes of the Park
and Planning Commission act was to
“preserve the flow of water in Rock
Creek” there is not much sense in pre
serving the flow 1 and then covering It
up. where nobody will see it. If Maj.
Qotwals does not understand why any
§» afamld want to mm «mr
- 4
Jecled connecting link between Rock
Creek and Potomac Parks he might
- profitably spend a few hours In study
of the parks and parkway projects of
q the Capital.
Much of the work of the Park and
r Planning Commission, of which Maj.
_ Gotwals. as Engineer Commissioner.
y now becomes a member, has been and
for years will be devoted to remedying
mistakes of the past. One of the great
mistakes was the desecration of Rook
Creek Valley and other valleys leading
Into It. Tire sewage pollution of Rook
b Creek and of the Potomac is a shame
ti and a disgrace. Radical measures are
h needed to clear these streams of pollu
,y lion. Such remedies are not to be found
* in covering Rock Creek over to prevent
the stench. That would merely invite
more pollution.
The Engineer Commissioner of the
c District who refuses to give up the prob
c lem of purifying these streams as some
thing too difficult or Impractical, who
o goes after it tooth and nail with the
c Idea of correcting an evil that can be
corrected and who gives it the serious
study that formulation of an adequate
program demands, will have accom
; plished something worth while.
1 It is to be trusted that Maj. Gotwals’
first impression of lower Rock Creek as
a sewer that needs inclosing will be
succeeded, after serious study of the
, plans for future Washington, by a
. strong determination to eliminate the
5 sewer and to leave the creek.
* '
Proof of the Pudding.
* There lias been some uncommonly
> sound talk about war and peace at
Williams town this week. A distinguished
officer of the United States Navy, Rear
. Admiral A. J. Hepburn, an American
naval adviser at the London Confer
; ence, and Admiral Sir Herbert Ricli
, mond, K. C. B„ former president of the
British Royal Navy War College at
Greenwich, Initiated a discussion on
i the eternal question of armaments.
They stressed the point that anti-war
I arrangements like the Kellogg pact have
visibly failed to damp the world 'a de
, termination to keep its powder dry and
. its swords sharp. As evidence of such »
, policy. Admiral Hepburn instanced the
United States' Insistence upon naval
parity with Great Britain and Britain's
irreducible minimum of a two-power
naval standard, vis-a-vis Europe. Ad
, miral Richmond called attention to the
fortifications at Gibraltar and the Pan
ama Canal as steel-and-concrete facts
“which do not express a very great de
gree of faith on the part of at least
two countries that war is abolished for
all time.” The thought, energy and
millions which the two English-speak
ing powers are devoting upon outlying
"key” defenses are indubitably the
proof of the pudding—the pudding
which finds expression in the familiar
adage that self-preservation is the first
law of Nature or In another equally well
known axiom that God helps those who
help themselves.
Admiral Hepburn pleads for the edu
cation of an American public opinion
which will not fail to demand the con
struction of the "treaty Navy.” Unless
we proceed to build the lamdon fleet,
he declares that the United Statea will
suffer a loss of prestige in the eye*
of other sea powers. Admiral Hep
burn is unquestionably right. He is no
lesa right when he adds that if Amer
ica does not enter the 1938 Naval Con
ference with a strong Navy In hand
we shall not prove a very potent bar
gainer when we aeek further limita
tion. Tlie United States was able to
talk turkey at Washington in 1921-22,
because we had ships to trsde with —
built or projected.
Americans who think the road to
peace lies down the path leading to
steady reduction of naval strength will
be well advised not to obstruct the
building of the treaty fleet. If they
hamper its construction, it should be
made plain to them that they are
tacking in the wrong direction toward
the goal which they would sail. A
definite American naval building pro
gram. backed by a solid public opinion,
is the surest guarantee, riot only of
adequate national defense at sea, but
; of progressive naval limitation.
i One wonders jnsl what is the official
duty of prominent citizens, like Admiral
Byrd, whom the Governor of Kentucky
. appoints to his staff with the title of
“Admiral of the Mississippi” It may
. turn out to be helping the executive
lioid a levee.
- -+ ■■ 1
While ex-Presldent of Mexico Calles
was being married his hacienda work-
I men were unloading a truck toad of
wood not many feet away. Most grooms
have heard noises like this, but it was
just the pounding in their ears.
This Skeptic World.
Somebody is always wanting to know
things that are really the private busi
ness of folks -wanting to know and ask
ing impertinent questions with unpleas
ant implications. * For example, both the
Federal and the local prosecuting attor
neys for the Greater New York area
are asking some awkward questions
of a group of people regarding certain
financial transactions of three years
ago Such a nuisance! Such impolite
curiosity!
There was a vacancy on one of the
local New York benefits. Mr Ewsid
landed the job and allowed as how he
would be glad to get the appointment.
, Mrs. Kwald had some capital, having
been engaged with her father in the
management of a motion picture thea
ter. Mr. Healy, Tammany leader of the
distiict, aspired to buy himself a hand
i some home on Long Island. Learning
of the aspiration of Mr. Ewald, he sent
for Mr. Tommaney, chief clerk in the
, office of the sheriff, and disclosed his
. desire for a suburban home and his
- hope that perhaps Mrs. Ewald would
loan him the cash for the first pay
. ment. So Mr. Tommaney went to Mrs.
, Ewald and asked her for a loan for
t Mr. Healy. It so happened—matters
f fall out precisely so fortunately now and
i then —that she had just received some
j $5 000 in rash from her father and had
i another $5 0t)0 in bank. She really In
s tended this money to buy herself a
i home big enough for her own
] family and her parents, but Mr.
f Healy'* wish for a Long Island
s home was of course, paramount.
- So she loaned SIO,OOO, not directly to
1. Mr. Healy, but to Mr. Tommaney. And
Ic Mr. Tommaney gave her his note to run
o for three years, without interest. And
k the money passed, and shortly there*
- after Mr. Ewald got his heart's desire
t and became a Judge, and Mr. Healy
|. bought himself a Long Island house,
y with the Ewakl-by-Tenunaney money as
e g tfartab Thset Kn, Wm ld mm Joafc
THE EVENING STAR. WASHINGTON. D. C., SATURDAY, AUGUST 9, 1930.
; too unfortunate for words. She lost
t Mr. Tommaney’s note— lost it beyond
r discovery. And ao when folks began to
r ask annoying questions about the mat
ter she could not produce this com
l plelely exonerating bit of paper.
IJfe is like that, often, double-cross
, tug and distressing. People have such
I base thoughts about motives. They get
! beset with the notion that somebody is
t trying to get something wrongfully.
: They put tlie meanest possible inter
; pretations upon innocent actions. But
: the distress of the Ewalds and Mr.
■ Tommaney aud Mr. Healy, due to the
> pestiferous inquisitiveness of the dts
• trict attorneys, is at least cause of some
[ compensating public amusement, inas
much as for some reason the stories
they have told about the loan aud the
innocently coincidental judicial ap
■ poinlineiH are regarded In a playful
spirit, and there is much laughter In
even Tammany circles, while the non
political community is rocking with
mirth. Human nature can be positively
mean at times.
Our American Minister to Oreece de
clared that golf, far from originating
with the Scots, or in Holland whence
they borrowed it. goes back to ancient
Greece, as evidenced by archaic monu
ment*. He is only part way back to
the source. It undoubtedly began when
a couple of prehistoric guys began
knocking around with their war clubs
tlie skull of some deceased enemy.
Jig -saw puzzles are said to provide a
constant means of amusement and re
laxation for the President and Ills
guests at his Rapidan camp. Wood
working in general and the existence of
all presidential timber seem closely in
tertwined. There are cabinet making,
fence repairing, wood sawing and log
rolling, to say nothing of constant deal
ing with blockhead*.
There is something wrong with the
recipe somewhere. The communal vil
lage In Belgium, where each head of a
family is free from taxes, may get his
fuel from a community forest, and is
paid a bonus for each child, lias not
increased in population in ten years.
Is it possible that human nature may
have something to do with this failure?
Rocks 'up In Montana are said by
geologists to duplicate those in the
African Transvaal. However, spades,
rather than diamonds, appear to be
their long suit.
It is rumored that the fool-killer is
equipping himself with & set of climbing
Irons.
SHOOTING STARS.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
Old Acquaintances.
I wonder If the robin sings up In the
apple tree:
I wonder if his song's the same as what
it used to be;
And if. far down, the dusty road upon a
Summer day.
There’s anybody wishing when he sees
a load of hay.
I wonder if tlie willow bends above the
swimming pool
The way it did one day when I forgot
to go to school:
And If the honeysuckle sends abroad Its
perfume sweet
Where berry briars lurk to wound some
boy with shoeless feet.
The men I know are good and true; the
men that men should be;
And yet there's something lacking In
their worth, it seems to me—
For they could never trudge or romp or
climb the whole day through
And fill the world with joyous shouts
like friends whom once I knew.
The Art of Illusion.
"Remember,” said the earnest citisen,
"that the eyes of the public are upon
you.”
“That condition is provided for,”
answered Senator Sorghum. “In politi
cal prestidigitation the handout must
always be quicker than the eyesight.”
The Rural Railway.
“Aren’t tliese trains rather slow?"
asked the impatient traveler.
“Slow,” answered the conductor,
scornfully; “why, they go so fast we have
to make two trips a day, when we might
just as well slow down and pick up all
the passengers on one run.”
Enjoyment.
’Ti* not the man .who occupies
The place of prominence
Who feels tlie joy of living
In its most emphatic sense.
The man up in the grandstand seat
Os fun oft finds a dearth.
But the fellows In the bleachers
Always get their money’s worth.
Nut Inf armed.
“Didn’t you advertise ‘no mosqui
toes’?” asked the indignant guest. <
“Yes," answered tlie Bummer landlord.
"But 1 guess the mosquitoes didn’t read
tlie advertisement.”
On the links.
“Does that man pay you much for
being his caddy?” asked me boy.
“No,” answered the other. “He only
gives me some small change for being
caddie, but he gives me two dollars for
not telling what he aays when he misses
the ball ” .
A Dull Prospect.
If man to error were not linked.
And wisdom banished care and strife,
Reformers would become extinct;
And that would mean a lonely life.
“Some men,” said Uncle Eben, "specks
you to do mo' work flndin' a job dat’ll
exactly suit deir tas'e dan dey'd have
to do holdin’ down de job.”
Ideal Cool Spot.
Prom the Little Rock Arkania* Oaxette.
The South provides ideal Bummer
climate, if you go as far south as
Admiral Byrd did.
Maybe They Kau Out of Furl.
Prom the Asheville Time*.
Senator Hiram Johnson and his
comrades must have attacked the Lon
don naval treaty with smaller than 6-
inch guns.
Next Winter May Speed Solution
Prom the Toledo Blade.
At this writing it is not definitely
known how many millions of years It
will be before the sun loses its heat.
Umpires Must Be Deaf.
Prom the Toledo Blade.
Unlike a politician, a base ball um
pire most believe what he sees and
aotttoc that fat beam.
| THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELI.
Dmitri Merejkowski's "Romance of
I«ouardo da Vinci” is a book which
appeals to more different types of
readers than almost any we know.
Here Is a novel which is at once an
unforgettable character study, an in
comparable picture of the Middle Ages
and a moving narrative.
Its greatest charm is as a study of
human nature, because it is an honest
attempt to look a man In the lace and
understand him.
When one stops to consider the thou
sand* of difficulties which stand in the
way of character comprehension, even
of those one knows in daily life, it will
be realized that the job is difficult
a hen applied to a man gone several
bundle 1 years ago.
It was the poet Browning who called
upon mankind to see life through and
see it whole, but most men and women,
now as always, prefer to see ik in part,
rather as a collection of wishes than
actualities.
It is tlie exceptional man or woman
who Is able to accept another human
being as «lie is without fear or favor,
and particularly without asking that
he change or be changed, or change to
suit them.
We are unable to say to thoae we
meet. “I do not like you. but you
interest me.” Too often the silent
comment of the majority is, "I do not.
like your nose, therefore I hate you,”
or "I find your views do not agree with
mine, so kindly refrain from speaking.”
** * *
The special glory of “Tlie Romance
of Leonardo da Vinci” Is that the Rus
sian novelist has taken a man and
put him on paper ► that even the
most intolerant reader is willing to
accept him -as he is.
Tills seems to me an incomparable
seal. One will have to plow through
hundreds of works to find one to equal
it in this respect. v
Here the reader finds the dual per
sonality of Leonardo pictured by the
clever device* of giving impressions of
him. first by one of his disciples who
worshiped him, and, second, by one who
hated him.
All the time the queer warfare which
went on in Ijeonardo's own mind and
soul* as it must go on in tlie mind and
soul of every person worth while. Is
pictured In its entirety! *
It Is set forth by * writer who lias
muah in common witli his subject.
Merejkowski has had a hard fight in
the literary world, but the increasing
yearly success of such works as “Tile
Death of the Gods” and the one under
consideration shows him to be winning
out.
Yet before this eventuality he must
have known pain and sorrow, disap
pointment. conflicts of good and bad in
the Inner nature.
Os this every reader may be sure
from the masterful way In which he
has handled the documents of Leo
nardo. in which that great figure of the
Renaissance left to posterity his In
most thoughts.
** * *
In the average hands those sentences
taken verbatim from the collected writ
ings of the poet, inventor, scientist,
writer, artist, builder, who was Leo
nardo. would have amouiiled to nothing
more than words.
They may be found, as words, in
many a work on Leonardo.
But the Russian plays such magic
with them that in his book, without
any special effort, they become true
character revealers.
Now, why is tills?
How is it possible for written words
to be merely words with some, but re
vealers of character with others.
The explanation, one may believe,
Woodcock’s Dry Law System
' Makes Impression on Public
Effort* to reach the larger sources of
bootleg liquor and less spectacular
methods of prohibition enforcement, as
announced by Prohibition Director
Woodcock, have created an impression
of sincerity which the public declares
has not always been seen in the Gov
ernment’s approach to this problem.
There Is substantial doubt as to com
plete success, but improvement Is widely
forecast.
“One of Woodcock’s reliances,” accord
ing to the Newark Evening News, “is
tiie cultivation of a more favorable
public attitude toward it. That is es
sential, yet a Herculean task with a
large part or the population opposed to
the principle of prohibition. .Results al
ready are apparent, even though
probably not based directly on the
Woodcock program. Raids lit Brooklyn
and the capture of a New York garbage
scow laden with liquors have struck
hard blows at the contraband traffic.
Such achievements have immensely
more effect than a dozen minor cap
tures in night clubs and speakeasies and
make apparent that the promised
‘steady pressure’ against law violation
already is more than a promise.
The aim of “lawtul steady pressure,
as viewed by the Cleveland Plain Dea er,
“ought to get somewhere If anything
can ” while the Milwaukee Journal holds
that Mr. Woodcock “Is apparently a
man of good sense”; that ‘ more than
any of his predecessors, he seems to
understand what has been wrong with
enforcement In the past and he pro
poses to correct the evils which he has
**"Should the bureau succeed in put
ting the Illicit wholesale distributors
out of business,” In the opinion of the
San Antonio Express, "that virtually
would do away with the small boot
leggers’ traffic by shutting off their
supply. And so far as the new cam
paign shall reduce the ’big’ mens
operations, the petty traffickers will find
themselves handicapped. This scheme
is so obviously sensible the only wonder
is that it was not adopted at the out
set.” , ,
“One of the most significant, features
of tiie formal statement issued by the
prohibition director,” says the Pitts
burgh Post-Gazette, “is the absence of
a lecture to the public on criticism of
dry agents.” That paper finds that Mr.
Woodcock “is credited with showing a
disposition to discharge his difficult
duties in a broadened spirit.” The
Lincoln State Journal feels that “if he
has any success at all he will win for
prohibition enforcement much greater
respect than It has hitherto enjoyed.”
“The policy of warfare the prohibi
tion enforcement heads are starting out
to wage,” according to the Charlotte
Observer, “will be a drive on the com
mercial violators to be carried on from
every angle, but chiefly through aid of
groups of special agents made up of
trained experts. Allen violators will be
searched out and deported. There will
be an expansion of the field forces of
the Federal anti-liquor squads by >t
least 500 men, while there will be an
Increase in the forces handling alcohol
permits. • * * With effort concen
trated on the commercial liquor corpo
rations and,minor offenses ignored, the
new administration not only expects to
make enforcement more effective but to
remove the popular antagonbm to the
operation of the law ”
“The methods he lays down, if ad
hered to," in the Judgment of the San
Francisco Chronicle, “will at least be a
salutary example of Government respect
for Us own mandates. And it is a
reminder that should not be lost upon
the various branches of authority tinder
the police power that are sometimes
tempted to step over the line.”
That a larger force of dry agents is
needed or is reasonable is agreed by
the Grand Rapids Press and the Flint
Daily Journal. The Savannah Morning
News is impressed by the fact that “he
realises what his Job is.” and the Akron
Beacon-Journal, recalling the method
of "terrorising the lesser offenders,
while the commercial lawbreakers, who
flan tarltas thalr way to immunity, go
lies in the handling of such material
with sympathetic insight. Sympathy
is a quality far transcending kindli
ness.
Sometimes sympathy may seem even
cruel, but -analysis will reveal it to be
a character builder- that is. such aid
comes as the knife of the surgeon,
cutting away something superfluous so
that strength aifd health may follow.
leonardo the Florentine is made to
live again In this *matchless book. (An
excellent translation, by the wav, may
be secured for 95 cents in the Modern
Library.)
He lives because the reader, as tlie
result of tnue sympathetic ihterpreta
tion of materials. Is put in possession
of the many sides of a many-sided
character.
The dreamer and the practical man
were exceptionally blended In Leo
nardo. He is all thing* to all men.
Every one can see something of him
self In him.
** * *
As a picture of humanity in the so
called Middle Ages, the “Romance” is
of exceptional interest. There is per
haps no other work in general circula
tion which contains such a mass of
material as this book.
The author has searched endlessly
art hives and musty rolls, books falling
into shreds, art galleries, curious docu
ments and mighty tomes.
Tlie rich yield of this toil is painted
in a series of word pictures. The dis
cerning reader, especially he who lias
had any personal experience with re
search. will applaud the toll while lie
is admiring the result.
The alchemists live again. Here
come to life the strange doings in tlie
name of holy religion, little peeps into
the lives of human beings—rich, great,
poor, unknown.
Somehow those years just on tlie
threshold of modernity are a formless
void to most of u.s. although we may
have studied “Medieval History.” as
such, or be able to give dates glibly
enough.
Those of us who are honest know that
in the background of our minds we
have no real conception of tlie states
of mind of human beings in those days,
find we equally know, or think we do,
which is tlie same thing, that unless
one actually realizes such slates of
mind we can by no means enter iuto
the literary heaven set before us.
Tlie glory of our author is that he
is able, with basic material open to
everybody, to create lifelike men and
women, placed amid a mass of detail
which lends lifelike qualities to them
separate from their 9WII personalities.
Who has not read some historical
novel In which a small number of
characters live excitedly over a vast
range of country? Yet was there not
a feeling, even as one read, that some
how the thing was unreal, because there
were no pictures of the crowds, no
little incidents which brought out the
huge background?
In recent- years there have been
some attempts on the part of American
authors to correct this faulty canvas
without background by telling a story
by tlie expedient of giving a tremen
dous assortment of "pictures” snatched
at random from the national life.
But it will not do. The thing is too
disjointed. The only artistic treat
ment is the one employed by Merej
kowski, and the only reason that more
authors do not use it is that they are
unwilling or perhaps unable to put in
tlie necessary research to get enough
widespread basic material.
We can recommend “The Romance
of Leonardo da Vinci” to any reader,
of any age. It grows tiresome at times,
but so does life, does it not? And in
that. too. our author scores.
undisturbed.” avprs, “If Director Wood
cock can reverse this abuse of the pro
hibition law s application he will have
to be something of a miracle man.”
“After all, he do?s not ask much,”
remarks the New York Times, holding
that "all citizens must approve ‘the fair,
honest, earnest and lawful enforcement'
of the prohibition act.” The Baltimore
Sun states, “While applauding Mr.
Woodcock's zeal and industry, there will
be those who will remember other new
brooms and stifle a yawn.”
Taking up the proposed research by
which the enforcement bureau “will
compile Its own data and will draw Us
own conclusions,” the Hartford Couranl
comments; "Should Mr. Woodcock suc
ceed he would deserve many thanks.
Os tables, compendium.*) and figures pre
pared by partisans and proving irrecon
cilable points concerning the effect of
prohibition, the public Is weary. It
would welcome Impartial data from any
source, but it will remember when Mr.
I Woodcock issues his lirsi .statement that
| the Department of Prohibition may not
!be wiiolly an unprejudiced agency.
With tiie best intentions, those incliaige
may not be wholly immune to lire
temptation to make it appear that
enforcement is succeeding, that they
are performing their duties well. Only
the must tillable will expect that ail
agency charged with enforcing a law
will utilize its own resources to demon
strate that the law is not being
enforced.”
Tiie survey idea is described by the
Lynchbutg Advance as "sane” because
, of tiie delects in propaganda from both
sides of the liquor question, and the
Advance voices the thought that "half
truths are frequently more misleading
than out-and-out untruths.”
The “vigorous and relentless drive on
the commercial aspects of the unlawful
traffic" Is commended by the Morgan
town Dominion-News with the state
ment: “He is hitting at a phase of
enforcement that lias been largely
ignored in the tight upon petty retail
ing and the In termed late traffic in dis
tribution as typified by the organized
liquor rings in the urbeii centers. But
sound as is Mr. Woodcock’s idea of the
proper Federal approach,.it is doubtful
whether he can hope to accompiisu
more than temporary Improvement.
M'ne liquor racket extends from one end
of this country to the other. It lias
come to take its toll in ruthless gang
murder with sulking regularity, it is
the parent racket ot many others that
have sprung up under its lawless wings
and are directly or indirectly connected
with it.”
Rights of Consumer
' In Food Marts Urged
From t Ire Philadelphia Bulletin.
To the extent that the operation of
the so-called "packers’ consent decree,”
which prohibits the packing companies
from selling meat at retail, bears op
pressively on the consumers, It should
be modified.
The public Is entitled to purchase Its
meat supplies at the lowest possible
prices, and elimination of superfluous
middlemen is one step toward that end.
Bpread of profits and prices between
the farmer as producer of the cattle
and the packer Is notoriously high.
There is further inordinate spread be
tween the packer, and the housewife.
It has been pointed out repeatedly
that the high cost of living In the
United Slates Is due chiefly to the high
cost of distribution. The only way In
which the actual producer can get his
due an.l the consumer not be burdened
to a degree that will diminish the
capacity of consumption and demand
Is by seeL'ng maximum efficiency In the
Interspace of distribution.
In these days of steadily expanding
chain store enterprise, Justified by the
maintenance of lowered price*, the
packers have sound reason for main
taining their right to direct retailing.
But if they plead that right in the
name of tiie consumer, they must be
prepared to give him the benefit ot the
economies _
’ ’ ’
THE LIBRARY TABLE
By ih • Rooklover
A sympathetic but not altogether un-
I critical view of Jefferson Davis is
> given in Allen Tate's “Jefferson Davis;
' His Rise and Fall.’* Mr. Tate finds the
chief elements of strength in the Pres
> ident or the Confederacy to have been
' strict unrightness, broad knowledge of
1 political theory, good general educa
• tion and special military education (he
» was a West Point graduate), power in
debate, courage in devotion to a cause,
1 slowness in recognizing defeat. He says
1 of him: “Davis, the ablest debater for
Southern rights since Calhoun, was for
1 reasons that we shall see emotionally
bound to the Union” (at the beginning
‘ of the Civil War), and “Davis became
well grounded in the classics, especially
I Latin, and formed the habit,of omniv
-1 orous reading; so that he became the
best informed, possibly the best educat
-1 ed, man in the United States Senate.”
His chief elements of weakness, as Mr.
Tate sees them, were his lack of prac
tical political acumen, his poor judg
ment of men. his lack of social affabil
ity. his inability to see a point of view
• other than his own. his theoretical view
• of life, and the fact that he was always
' a nervous dyspeptic. With regard to
' his unpractical view of life, Mr. Tale
■ says: "Davis, to the end of his life, be
lieved that men* would Improve under
' the Joint influence of Christianity and
' science, and he had no suspicion that
' fie was ever the leader of a profoundly
anti-scientific society. He was, like his
1 contemporaries, a debating politician.
' not a philosopher. The anomaly of his
1 position in history never struck him.
' Routine political habits were conse
quently to become the bugbear of his
life." It was a noble mistake, this over
estimating of human ndture, but it was
costly for Davis.
** * »
It is easy to criticize policies and
, tactics which have failed, and the cause
ii of Jefferson Davis was lost. Yet, in
spite of ultimate failure, historians have
i been able to find few things to criticize
in the character and career of Robert
E. Lee. He was not only the idol of the
. Confederacy but he has been admired
1 by those of all political faiths as a great
t soldier and a man of simple, great
character. Mr. Tate says of him: "The
Eolith at the end of 11164 had a great
leader whom the people would have fol
lowed to the death—Robert E. lee. The
' previous agitation to make him dictator
now rase to a clamor and now it’
reached Congress. There is a story,
' perhaps no more than a legend, that
Rives of Virginia, representing a Junta
of tlie Congress, secretly approached
Lee with the offer to make him dictator.
He was now the real head of th? people,
acting as a subordinate to a government
which the people did not recognize.
But he was not the legal head, and. of
course, if the offer ever came to him
he turned it down.” Jefferson Davfs
, did not command this worship from the
people of the Confederacy, but he re
tained their loyalty. There were, of
course, deserters of the cause and plot
ters against Davis, but they were a
i small minority. “Edmund Rhett, voic
ing the general dissatisfaction with the
passive policy of Davis (in 1861) and
with Davis’ contempt for public opinion,
said, ‘Jeff Davis is conceited, wrong
i headed, wranglesome, obstinate, a
traitor.’ He was none of these things.
He would take advice—if it were sugar
coated with deference: he was obstinate
only in the face of unjust criticism—
and yet a politician must expect in
justice; he was wranglesome, but only
because he expected men like Gov. Joe
Brown to b? moved by facts and logic;
he expected them to accept his logic
while he dealt hard with their vanity
and self-esteem.” He was too honest,
too little subtle, for practical politics.
4* * *
The story of the refusal of Jefferson
Davis to believe in the defeat of the
Confederacy, of his final flight and
capture, is one of the most pathetic in
American history. On April 2, 1865,
while Davis was attending church at St.
Paul’s. Richmond, a message was
brought to him from Lee, reporting that
Grant had broken the Confederate lines
a few miles away and that Richmond
must be evacuated. Sunday afternoon
wax spent in packing government pa
pers and in notifying cabinet officers,
and toward night Davis departed for
Danville, Va., which became for six
days the seat of the Confederate gov
ernment. Then, April 9, came news of
the surrender of Lee. Every one else
realized that the end had come, but
Davis would not admit it. A day or so
before the surrender his hostess at
Danville asked him, “Mr. Davis would
Lee's surrender end the war?” He re
plied: “By no means. We'll fight it
out to the Mississippi River.” Greens
boro. N. C„ was the next retreat of the
Confederate government. There Davis
met Gen. Johnston and Gen, Beaure
gard. "The President surveyed the
gat liering with a calm, unhurried eye,
and seemed unmoved by the strange
ness of his situation. He began with
some remarks having no relation to the
critical moment. He still seemed to see
himself as the head of a powerful gov
i eminent, backed by immense resources,
perfectly secure, impressed by time. At
last he looked at Gen. Johnston and
said: ’Our late disasters have been ter
rible, but I do not think we should re
gurd them as fatal. I think we can
whip tlie enemy yet. if our people turn
out. . . , Whatever can be done must
be done at once. We have not a day to
lose.' Johnston said nothing, and finally
the President said. "We should like to
hear your views, Gen. Johnston.’ The
general spoke quickly, intensely, as if he
were in anger: 'My views are, sir, that
our people are tired of the war, feel
themselves whipped, and will not fight.
. . . We cannot place another large
army in the field. & . . My men are
daily deserting in large numbers. . . .
Since Lee’s defeat they regard the war
at an end. ... I shall expect to re
tain no man beyond the by-road or cow
path that leads to his house. . . . We
may perhaps obtain terms that we
ought to accept.’ During this speech
Mr. Davis sat with his eyes fixed upon
a scrap of paper on the table before
him. which he was folding and refold
ing with careful abstraction, even after
Johnston had ceased. He suddenly
looked at Beauregard, "What do yoii
say, Gen. Beauregard?” His voice was
low and measured Beauregard replied
"I concur in all Gen. Johnston has I
said." On April 16 Davis and his
dwindling cabinet continued their
flight southward, with a stop at Char
lotte, where in his last speech as Presi
dent he said. "I cannot feel like a
beaten man.” Through South Carolina
into Georgia the hopeless retreat went'
on, with Federal cavalry now in pursuit
Near Irwlnxville. Ga., he Joined Mrs
Davis and their children, and thev
rode along together until May 10, when
they were overtaken by Union troopers
and Davis surrendered. Os one of the
time-worn stories of the capture Mr.
Tate says: “It was said that Jefferson
Davis had on his wife's hoops when he
was cajAured, trying to escape in dis- :
guise. Thousands believed it then and
doubtless thousands believe it still ”
** * *
The author of “Visitors to Hugo,”
Alice Grant Rosman, has written a
newr romance in which a white onyx
intaglio ring and a statuette of an Eng
lish spinster play influential parts. The
characters in the story. "The Young
and Secret," are Jeremy Swithin and tils
titled wife, Lady Anne Clialllce; the
spinster, Marlon Swithin; a young
sculptor, Tony Corcoran, and Una
Swithin, daughter of Jeremy and ladv
Anne.
** + *
When Sir James Barrie was recently
made a freeman of his native Kirrie
muir (Thrums in his books) he said:
“It is easy to make a speech anywhere
else, but not here on this hill of mem
ories. to people who are more like me
inside than any other people are.”
It Lasts 28 Days.
Trem the Omaha Evening World-Herald.
So this is the month of Sol, accord
ing to that new-fangled calendar. Well,
the old fellow has certainly been cele
hwHn| th» QcduUoa,
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
- V
BY FREDERIC J. BASKIN.
This is a special department devoted
solely to the handling of queries. This
paper puts at your disposal the services
of an extensive organisation In Wash
ington to serve you In any capacity i
that relates to Information. This serv- !
ice is free. Your obligation is only 2
cents in coin or stamps inclosed with
your inquiry for direct reply. Address
The Evening Star Information Bureau.
Frederic J. Has kin. director, Washing
ton, D. C.
Q. Is Milton J. Cross a musician? —
A. T.
A. Both Milton J. Crass and Graham
McNamee were recognised vocal soloists
before entering the radio field. Mr.
Cross is a tenor and Mr. McNamee, a
baritone.
Q. Why was the new Arlington race
track, near Chicago, constructed to
measure Its miles?—W. H. O.
A. This gives a longer finishing j
stretch than a mile track has, and the
consensus of opinion among racing men |
is that it is the ideal length for a
track. This flattens the turns out and
gives a longer straight-away.
Q. I have a flexible white gold watch
bracelet which needs cleaning. Pleafte
Inform me what to do.—H. H.
A. Fold a towel to about the size
of your wrist. Slip the bracelet over
the towel. Dip a fine brush in gaso
line and apply to bracelet.
Q. How far from the home plate is
the pitcher's box? Second base?—D.
R. R.
A. The distance from the home plate
to the pitcher's box is 60 feet 6 inches.;
The distance from the home plate to
second base is 127 feet S- 1 * Inches.
Q. When did Great Britain begin to
give unemployment insurance? —J. C. C.
A. In 1911 Great Britain passed her
first unemployment insurance act. This
act covered only certain trades, but in
1916, 1918 and 1920 certain changes
were made. Finally in 1921, an unem
ployment insurance act was passed
which is still in operation.
Q. How is fresh water secured on
shipboard?—E. O. W.
A. On a ship, salt water is boiled in
evaporators. The steam rises through
pipes to a distiller which consists of
coils with cold water running over
them. This condenses the steam,
forming fresh water.
Q. What is the National Institute of
Health?—F. D.
A. It is a new Government project.
The Ransdell bill creating it was signed
by the President on May 26, 1930. The
nucleus of the institute is the Hygienic
Laboratory of the Public Health Serv
ice. and it will now be known as the
National Institute of Health. The site
now occupied and adjoining land, to
gether with other sites as needed, will
be used for the erection of suitable
buildings.
Q. What is the i<tea in being present
ed at the Court of St. James? —A. S. R.
A. The greatest social distinction
which a woman can attain, in a day
when there are so few Kings occupying
thrones, is gained through being pre
sented at the Court of St. James. Lit
erally one makes her low bow before
King George and Queen Mary of Eng
land.
Q. Are conditions good or bad at
Ellis Island?—E. S. M.
A. Ellis Island is not the uninviting
place it Is generally thought to be.
Actually, said Mr. Hull, commissioner
general of immigration, it consists of
three small Islands. On these islands
are 27 buildings, Including hospitals and
power houses. The quarters occupied
Highlights on the Wide World
Excerpts From Newspapers of Other Lands.
LA UNION, Valparaiso.—As has been
stated from time to time in
these columns, we are much op
posed to the pending contract
with the American Electric Bond
& Share Co. transferring, to that en
terprise for a period of ail the
electrical rights and resoui%» of Chile.
This company, which already operates
the tramways and other services in
Santiago, has promised to improve the
communication between that city and
Valparaiso and other cities of Chile,
and also to furnish power and light
for every section of the country. Such
benefits are certainly to be welcomed,
but it is not to the national interest
that they should all be derived from
a foreign syndicate, which in the last
analysis is simply developing and ex
ploiting the country for the sake of its
stockholders.
The very fact that the contract is ir
recoverable for a period of a century is
sufficient danger. If the foreign
monopoly failed to carry out the provi
sions of the contract, it is doubtful
whether the government, even then,
would have the power to revoke it, so
many amendments and riders qualify
tlie original agreements in the docu
ment. We should not lightly transfer
to strange and alien hands the natural
resources of our own land, or rights to
provide us with the modem necessities
and conveniences of life. The men from
New York cannot be reproached for de
siring to get all they can for their
company. That is good business with
them, but, unfortunately such good
business for outsiders is not correspond
ingly advantageous for us, and our offi
cials and legislators who have permitted
the submission of such a monopolistic
contract are open to grave censure.
The proposed contract 1* unjust to
our people, and to our posterity, and
is besides prejudicial to all the native
business interests of Chile. We do not
believe that our patriotic President. Don
Carlos Ibanez, will ratify the contract
in its present form.
** * *
“Jan” Under
Ban in German Circles.
Cologne Gazette.—There is a growing
} antipathy throughout Germany to what
has been called by its originators “jaz*”
or ‘•ragtime” music. The "jazz band,”
the staccato "slap-stick" and cymbal
uproars, Negro songs, Negro melodies, I
Negro dances and "minstrel shows,” are
all under the ban of Dr. Prick, conduc
tor of the Weimar Symphony Orchestra,
and as a result are no longer consid
ered "au fait" in national musical cir
cles, which are inspired by the glorious
names of Wagner and Mendelssohn and
Beethoven. Barbarism in music no
longer charms.
** * *
Cyclist Invokes
Letter of Law for Freedom.
Neues Wiener Tagblatt, Vienna. —A
man arrested by a policeman for riding
a bicycle without a light at night has
Just succeeded in extricating himself
from the consequences of his act by in
voking the letter of the law. which pro
vides penalties for "vehicles” without
lights. A bicycle is not a vehicle, for the
bicyclist supplies his own motive power,
the same as when walking, and. sitting
upon a saddle, should be no more logi
cally required to carry headlights than
an equestrian.
*♦ ♦ *
A ska Restriction*
On Films for Children.
El Comercio, Lima—Our repre
sentative at Callao has received the fol
lowing letter with the request that it
be forwarded to us:
"Senor Corresponsal de El Comercio:
"The campaign which is daily becom
ing more vigorous against screen
dramas, corrupt and corrupting, de
serves the greatest support and indorse- j
ment. For the sake of the children, es- j
peclally. restrictions should be placed :
on certain sorts of films, which are any- j
thing but clean and uplifting in their j
scenes and suggestions. The old Roman 1
philosophers had a maxim which is as ,
true and vital today, as when it was ,
flnt uttered. 'Maxim* amentia pueria.
!by detained aliens consist of large,
light well ventilated rooms, with floors
and dados of Dutch or shite glased tile.
A covered porch is available for rec
; reation in stormy weather, while a
| playground supplied with equipment for
games and entertainment for both chil
dren and adults is provided for use in
good weather. The aliens are first
| registered at examination desks, and
! their names checked with the list
I furnished by the steamer on which they
j arrived. A medical examination is then
given, immigrant inspectors then in
quire where the aliens are going and
I how much money they have, and they
are directed to a restaurant where food
may be purchased.
Q. How did Watteau first support
; himself as a painter?—B. B.
A. By painting pictures of saints by
• the dozen. These were sold to country
| customers.
Q. Do the Great Lakes freeze over in
the Winter?—R B. C.
| A. The Great Lakes do not freeze
entirely during the Winter, but the
harbors and often the connecting rivers
are closed by ice. The navigable sea
son at Soo is about 7 J i months, and
at Erie somewhat longer. Lake Su
perior freezes only in the shallow water
along the shore. The northern reaches
of Michigan are frozen, but the solid
ice stops well north of Milwaukee.
Q. How does one get a radio
license?—L. F. D.
A. The Federal Radio Commission
says, in accordance with an act of Con
gress, one applying for a radio license
1 must first apply for a construction
| permit. After he has been permitted
; to build, and his station is completed,
he may apply for a broadcasting license.
To be eligible to this license he mast
fill out an application blank for a cer
tain frequency upon which to operate.
If this is agreeable to the commission
he may be given a license.
Q. What do the letters T. D. stand
for opposite many articles in the cus
toms regulations?—A. B.
A. T. D. after a customs regulation
means Treasury decision. It signifies
that the Department of the Treasury
has Issued a special decision on that
article of the regulation.
Q. What are the names of the chil
dren of Sarojini Naldu?—G. H.
A. The children of the poet are
named Jaya Surya, Padmaja, Ranad
heera and Lilamani.
Q. What are the conditions under
which money is given from the Julius
Rosenwald Fund for educational institu
tions for Negroes?—G. D.
A. A condition is that the Negroes
raise a like sum or a greater one.
Q. What is the most popular Amer
ican dish?—S. M.
A. An association of restaurant
owners took a ballot on this and the
results indicated that apple pie holds
this distinction. It has been estimated
that on an average the American at
middle life has consumed something
like 7,638 pieces of pie.
Q. Who is the chairman of the
United States Civil Service Commis
sion?—N. H. K.
A. The chairman is Gov. Thomas E.
Campbell. He has been sworn in and
is fulfilling the duties of his office.
Q. Can a soldier or sailor on home
leave be arrested by local officers for
being drunk or disorderly or any other
crime?—W. A. M.
A. A . soldier or sailor in the United
States service is liable to the ordinary
criminal proceedings by civil authorities
if arrested for any crime committed
while on home leave.
debetur!’ —‘The greatest reverence la
owed to children,’ and unless we intend
to protect the children of this genera
, tion from the demoralizing influences
of the modern picture play, the race
is sure to sustain a distressing deterio
ration both spiritually and physically.
Bad enough that an industry which
could be svjch a power for good prefers
rather to serve man's baser instincts for
little larger gains, but to expose inno
cent children to these same malign in
fluences, by which, in their immaturity
and inexperience, they cannot fail to be
unhealthily impressed, is an offense
which long ago should have felt the
heavy hand of the law. Some of these
baneful productions have a debasing
effect even on sophisticated men and
women who can discount the luring and
inciting insinuations of the screen with
the knowledge of the true relations and
values of human life.
"Producers deserve no consideration
when they think more of their revenues
than they do of future generations. If
they are not willing to eliminate crime
: and salacity from their dramas, at least
they should be forbidden the right to
exhibit these improprieties to children.
Public authority should demand thus re
striction. In the meantime, parents
should be careful what films their off
spring are allowed to see.
“A TEACHER.”
** * *
Cigarette
Boycott Is Noticed,
La Opinion, Manila.—The first effects
of the boycott which the population
seems to have declared against imported
cigarettes are beginning to be noticed.
Local tobacconists complain that there
is no demand for foreign cigarettes,
and that quantities of these product*
are being left on their hands. The boy
cott is noticed not only locally but in
the provinces as well. One wholesaler,
whose sales used to average about
3,000 pesos' worth a week, now says he
is fortunate if he can get orders for |
500 pesos' worth. Domestic cigarettes
appear to have taken the place of the
imported article almost exclusively.
This condition is attributed to the
propaganda of u certain Communist ele
ment. which has distributed leaflets
urging all smokers to support local in
dustries and to abstain from the pur
chase or use of imported goods. These
crusaders insist that powerful foreign
interests are endeavoring to flood the
islands with all sorts of exotic goods,
and that cigarettes constitute one of the
largest items. The Philippine govern
ment is looking into the situation to see
if there has been anything improper
or in restraint of trade in connection
with the anti-cigarette activities de
scribed.
—l
Must Reverse Process.
From the Haverhill Evening Gazette.
Boston's superintendent of schools
says family ideals give courage. True,
it takes courage these days to have ,
either ideals or family.
■ * ttr ■ .
But Why?
From the New York Sun.
! Scientists have succeeded in produc
ing rate five days old at birth and prob
ably so blase that they would never look
at a trap.
Or Both.
From the Little Rock Arkansas Democrat.
It's hard to say which discourages a
young wife most—to discover that her
idol "has feet of clay” or that he has a
head of solid ivory.
Oklahoma and Ringside. f
From the Memphis Commercial Appeal.
The per capita cost of government in
Oklahoma Is $7.83 Much lesa than
j the price of a ringside seat.
Not So Dusty.
From the Milwaukee Sentinel.
After all, is tree-sitting more futile
than going motoring on Sunday?. ..