Evening star. [volume], February 05, 1935, Page A-8, Image 8

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

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THE EVENING STAR
With Sunday Morning Edition.
WASHINGTON, D. C.
TUESDAY February 5, 1935
THEODORE W. NOYES.. .Editor
The Evening Star Newspaper Company
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The Senate's Power.
The Supreme Court of the United
States in its decision 1» the MacCrac
ken case again upholds the authority
of the Senate to punish for contempt.
The decision handed down by the
court does not extend the privilege
•f the Senate. It merely sustains a
power that has been the Senate's and
which has been exercised in the past.
The power of the Senate—and of the
House—to punish for contempt, as the
court points out, is limited. "It is
true," says the court in its decision,
"that the scope of the power is nar
row." And the court adds, "No act
Is so punishable unless it is of a na
ture to obstruct the performance of
the duties of the legislature." In
other words, the act for which the
Senate may punish for contempt must
be obstructive of legislation. Where
there is no legislative duty to perform
or where it can be proved that the
act complained of is not of a char
acter to obstruct legislation the Sen
ate may not punish for contempt.
Nor may the power to punish for con
tempt be extended to slanderous at
tacks upon the Senate which present
no immediate obstruction to legislative
processes.
TViû rofneel nf λ ν» ·-»*·/■»»·
questions put by a Senate committee
when it is engaged in investigations
looking to future legislation has been
held to be contempt of the Senate and
punishable by the Senate. Refusal to
produce papers in such a proceeding
by a Senate committee, when sub
poenas have been issued, is held to be (
equally an act of contempt of the j
Senate. To deny the power to
punish for contempt in cases of re
fusal to answer questions or to produce
papers would in effect greatly reduce
the effectiveness of senatorial inquiries,
perhaps nullify it. Congressional in
quiries have frequently in the past
been valuable to the country because
they uncovered corruption and prac
tices that wore inimical to the public
Interest.
The case now decided by the Su
preme Court involved William P. Mac
Cracken, former Assistant Secretary
of Commerce for aviation. During the
Senate inquiry into airmail contracts
Mr. MacCracken served as attorney
for some of the executives of air
lines holding contracts for carrying
the mails. The Senate committee
called upon him for the papers in his
files relating to airmail contracts. He
answered that some of the papers
amounted to confidential communica
tions between an attorney and his
clients. The Senate committee, how
ever, insisted upon the delivery of all
the papers. In the meantime Mac
Cracken and a partner permitted two
airline officials to examine the files in
their office and to remove some of the
papers. Although some of these pa
pers so withdrawn from the files were
later given to the Senate committee,
others were not, having been de
stroyed. The Senate adjudged Mac
Cracken in contempt.
The contention of the defense was
that the Senate had no right to pun
ish for contempt since the act com
Dlained of- thp rpmrwal anH HocfFiin.
tion of papers after subpoena, was
"the past commission of a completed
act which prior to the arrest and pro
ceedings to punish had reached such
a stage of finality that it could not
longer affect the proceedings of the
Senate or any committee thereof."
The defense further insisted that the
Senate could punish for contempt
merely as a means of removing an
existing obstruction to the perform
ance of its duties. MacCracken, it
held, had not declined to answer any
questions, and had produced all the
papers that were necessary and that
existed. The court overruled this
contention of the defense, holding
that the Senate had a right to punish
for a past and completed act, citing
precedents to uphold its decision.
The Senate, quite naturally, jealously
guards Its powers. The greater its
powers, the greater the duty ot the
Senate, however, to use them wisely
and justly. Inquisition may easily
become persecution.
Some of the Senators who at first
favored World Court reservations de
cided that they did not even want
a rain check.
Films for the Nation's Archives.
Vastly Interesting is the decision
providing that movie films of his
torical importance are to be accommo
dated in the new Archives Building.
A special portion of the edifice will be
assigned to such use and equipped to
such purpose, and Robert D. W. Con
nor, archivist, has announced the ap
pointment of Capt. John O. Bradley
to have charge of the work of receiv
ing, cataloging and storing appropri
ate material.
Films are history. That fact has
been realized from, the beginning of
photography. Plates made by the
earliest pioneers recently have been
printed for display in public museums
and great numbers of people have
found them worthy of Inspection and
comment. Celluloid negatives also are
available in notable quantity, and
many reels of pictures taken by
camera men employed by the several
news movie companies still are pre
served In the hands of persons who
doubtless will be happy to co-operate
with Mr. Connor.
Different Government departments
and bureaus likewise have film rec
ords which, obviously, should be pre
served In a central treasury. The
cinematic chronicles of the World
War period especially are valuable
and ought to be protected. They
illustrate an age as well as an event
and therefore have ethnographic sig
niflrance of a high order. Students
of later generations will appreciate
them.
But films deteriorate unless care
fully guarded. Some, it may be, will
have to be recopied. A fund to make
reproduction possible should be pro
vided. Facilities for the showing of
the pictures also will be necessary,
and Congress should appropriate
whatever money may be required for
that sort of equipment.
Costs, however, never will be ex
ceptional and every penny will be
justified in terms of educational and
patriotic service rendered. Nothing
can surpass the pictorial illustration
of history as an agent for the pro
motion of love of country. How won
derful. how thrilling it would be if
the Nation had movies of the inaugu
ration of George Washington or the
signing of the Declaration of Inde
pendence or the battle of Bunker
Hill!
Tor World Trade Peace.
While the European powers are
moving on the grand scale to tighten
up the machinery of peace in the
political and military realms, the
United States is accelerating its ef
forts to promote trade peace through
out the world and incidentally to
expand the market for American
goods. The basic purpose of the pro
gram upon which Secretary Hull has
energetically embarked is to induce
the trading nations, under a sy?tem
of mutual concessions, to abolish fac
tors which make for economic war,
such as high tariff barriers, exchange
controls, import quotas and other re
strictions now strangling international·
commerce.
In signing with Brazil the first regu
lar reciprocal treaty consummated
under the United States' new policy.
Secretary Hull expresses the belief
that it will "break the log jam of
world trade" and "cast a broad beam
of light and hope into the existing !
economic darkness' The pact with
the Amazon republic is an ideal speci- J
men of reciprocity. It clips twenty
five per cent off the Brazilian tariff
on sixty-seven American products. In j
return, the United States reduces j
tariffs on seven Brazilian products
and keeps on the free list Brazil's >
principal export item, coffee, together i
with eleven other commodities. There j
are, in addition, correlated arrange
ments for regularizing Brazil's' finan
cial obligations in this country.
The State Department is now
negotating lifteen similar reciprocal
treaties with Latin-American and
European countries. Preliminary dis
cussions are under way with several
others. Secretary Hull reminds com
mittees of Congress that nationalism
is rampant everywhere—an almost
incorrigible determination upon the
part of governments and their busi
ness people to do all of the taking and
none of the giving. Such tendencies
are not unknown in the United States
when tariff making and tariff bargain
ing are under way.
The Hull reciprocity program is a
declaration of war on that kind of
economic selfishness and isolation. It
is notice to the world that Uncle Sam
is ready to do business on the fifty-fifty
basis with all comers. To promote
progress in that direction, there is now
under consideration a plan to send
abroad, as trade missionaries, outstand
ing American business leaders, who
presumably will not only explore op
portunities for widening the market
for our wares, but also preach the
reciprocity gospel. They will be
within their legitimate rights, too, if
they emphasize America's ability and
purpose to withhold most-favored
nation privileges from countries which
insist upon maintaining discriminatory
practices against the trade of the
United 8tates. The State Depart
ment's Trade Agreements Committee
is now compiling a list of such gov
ernments.
America has hoisted the banner of
world trade peace. It is now for thoee
to rally around it, who will.
When Horace Greely said "Go West"
he had no possible thought of con
ditions to cause so many to go job
hunting In Hollywood.
An Architectural Standard.
Gratifying evidence that the next
addition to the Government's build
ing equipment in Washington will con
form to the standard lately set In the
development of the Mall-Avenue tri
angle and other spaces taken for con
struction purposes is afforded by the
statement that has been Issued by the
Federal Reserve Board, with regard to
the plans for its projected new hous
ing. The site selected, within the area
north of Constitution avenue and west
of the White House group, is in the
natural line of development of a con
sistent scheme of placements. Fur
thermore, the program for the struc
tural design, submitted to the archi
tects who have been selected for the
competition, Is calculated to "satisfy
the requirements of utility and beauty."
While considerations of practical use
fulness and adequate space will govern,
the dictum of the Commission of Pine
Arts, which has been accepted by the
Federal Reserve Board, that the new
construction must have "impressive
dignity," will prevail.
It is noted in this statement that the
proximity of the. projected building to
the Lincoln Memorial and nearby per
manent structures already erected on
Constitution avenue or later to be
erected In the "West Rectangle" sug
gests that the exterior of the Reserve
Board building should be In harmony
with its environment. That precept
should be maintained In all permanent
construction works In Washington.
Had It been adopted and faithfully
followed in the past, many misfits and
architectural blemishes would have
been avoided.
One passage In the program as
stated is of special Interest:
It Is, however, thought desirable
that the esthetic appeal of the ex
terior design should be made through
dignity of conception, purity of line,
proportion and scale, rather than
through stressing of mere decorative
or monumental features. For this rea
son it Is suggested that the use of
columns, pediments and other similar
forms may be omitted and should be
restricted to a minimum consistent
with the character of the building as
described.
There has been some criticism, not
in all cases justified, of the character
of the ornamentation of some of the
newer additions to the Government's
housing equipment In Washington.
Uniformity of design is not in itself
desirable, nor, in the conditions that
prevail, is it possible. Short of the
wholesale revision of the architectural
layout, at an impossible cost, would
such uniformity be feasible. Succes
sive impulses of building enterprise
on the part of the Government have
left numerous discrepancies, which
must be accepted and tolerated. Some
modifications are possible, as in the
case of the so-called State, War and
Navy Building, for the reconstruction ι
of which a plan has been adopted and !
awaits execution. In another case, the
old Pension Building, completed half
a century ago, a redesigning plan is
under consideration.
In the planning of the structures
that are to be placed within the "West
Rectangle" care should, and doubtless
will, be taken to avoid incongruous
misfits and departures, to perpetuate
anew the mistakes of the past. The
Federal Reserve building, designed in 1
accord with the instructions given |
to the competing architects, will per
haps establish a standard to be ob
served when the later comers in this
area, notably the contemplated homes
for the War and Navy Departments,
are undertaken.
The "Henderson Castle" was the
scene of many a throng when Mrs.
Henderson was a social leader. The
sale of Its furnishings will recall not
only occasions of entertainment, but
also important conferences for pur
poses of philanthropy and civic better
ment.
Radio announcers go so far afield 1
in their opinions that they some- I
times appear to entertain doubts j
about everything on earth, excepting
the wares they incidentally but ar
tistically celebrate.
Nobody wants to shoot Santa Claus,
although Mr. McCarl may, to those
who view fiscal problems superficially,
seem indifferent to what may happen
to a spirit of joyous beneficence.
Strikes in the automobile industry
cannot hinder business recovery, ex
cepting for those persuaded to deem
it expedient to suspend their own j
earning capacity.
In addition to consulting all avail
able authorities, the Supreme Court
may be expected to devote some time
to listening to the voice of safety.
Various economists favor the rule,
"when in doubt close the New York
Stock Exchange or the Chicago Board
of Trade."
In the war on crime the police re
porter takes on a position of leader
ship in current journalism.
SHOOTING STARS
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
Survival
The storms will sweep the ocean deep
And devastate the land.
Our patient vigils we must keep,
Though few can understand.
Men face despair beneath some care,
But all awake to see
The ocean and {he land are there—
And so, good friends, are we I
Respectful Audience.
"I shall listen with interest to your
speech on George Washington's
birthday."
"I'm not going to make any speech,"
answered Senator Sorghum. "What
Washington said Is still being heard
throughout the land, and it isn't for
me to Interrupt."
Initials.
'Mongst the initials on display
These two are noted, "Q" and "A."
Each question seeks an answer true.
Each answer brings a question new.
There's no decision so profound
That queries new do not abound.
Existence, since its earliest day.
Has been made up of "Q" and "A."
Two Varieties.
"How's your boy Josh doin'?" asked
the neighbor.,
"I don't know," answered Parmer
Corntossel. "He's got a job with the
Government, but I can't be sure
whether it's one of them jobs where
you work without gettin' paid or get
paid without workin'."
"My ancestors were fighters," said
Hi Ho, the sage of Chinatown, "who
wished to bestow peace on posterity.
I reverence their memories and would
rather go on fighting for posterity, as
is the custom.
Discarding Aces.
If you mislead your fellow man,
You must prepare,
However furtively you plan,
His lot to share.
If you are faithless unto some
Confiding elf,
You'll also find, in days to come,
You fooled yourself.
"Good advice is never wasted," said
Uncle Eben. "If others won't use It,
you kin take ^ yohself." , ..
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.
No crocus In bloom this February!
An old Washington ciutom, yellow
and purple flowers shortly after the
groundhog sees his shadow, takes the
count once more.
Last year, for the first time In years,
these friendly little flowers failed to
appear os schedule.
The year before that—1933—cro
cuses showed their colors on Febru
ary 1, and were In bloom almost all
that month.
No bloom, not even that of the so
called snowdrop, normally appears
earlier In this vicinity than the crocus.
Overlooked by those who want to
have their "çyes knocked out" by huge
blossoms, thè crocus is beloved by all
persons really garden-minded.
* * * *
There Is no snobbery In this at all.
It is but another Instance of at
tention to the particular, as distin
guished from the mass.
It is one thing to see a group of
flowers, quite another to see the In
dividual plants, of which the group
is composed.
The best interest in gardening con
tinues only so long as the gardener Is
eager and able to discern each plant,
one from another.
When this stage of his education Is
past he has gone out of the best joy
of gardening as an art.
He still may love the growing plants
and get a great deal of real satisfac
tion out of work with them, but he
will never again be able to enter into
the fullest joy of the gardening year.
* * * *
Therefore, the humble crocus may
be taken as a symbol, of something
held, if one still loves it; of something
mai,, ii ιυ is a. uiaiitr υχ nu cuiise
quence in his own mind.
Then all these thousands of city
folk who would not know a crocus
from a periwinkle—they have lost
something, eh?
This does not mean that they must
suffer from it, particularly.
Such things are not like food, and
clothing, and warmth.
One may not know a crocus from a
peony, yet be just the same man or
woman as ever.
A matter of no consequence to
them, of course—but surely they have
lost something, although rightly It
may make no difference to them.
* * * *
All of us have lost something, many
things, whenever we have failed to
grasp the good in pursuits.
The real bonus, or good, of life,
should not be a few paltry dollars.
It should be a vastly diversified
grasp on ell the good things that
ever were.
It should be a ready acceptance of
anything that any human being, any
where. had found worth while.
It should call for a thousand, maybe
a million, attempts, with consequent
failings, but glorious memories.
Consider the most cosmopolitan
person you know.
The chances are that, despite the
fact he has been everywhere, and
seen everything, his real range of
intense interests is very narrow.
He has not flown an airplane, he
has never bowled, he knows nothing
of deep-sea fishing, and wouldn't
know more than a dozen breeds of
dogs by name.
He thinks, and most of hie friends
do. too, that he Is something of a
wizard, when It comes to having been
places and having seen things, but
compared with all the things a human
might see and do he is but a piker,
not much different from most of us.
If any one wants an Interesting
diversion for an hour, he may think
over all the types of persons he has
never met. We have read of kings,
queens, explorers, scientists, actors,
playwrights, authors and the like, in
bewildering array, but many a man
who ratheir fancies his many-sidedness
will discover that, after all, he has |
not met many persons of renown,
even glimpsed them at $2 apiece at
lectures and the like.
♦ * * *
He would be a gre^t busybody in
deed who sought to do everything, j
know, hear and see everything.
This gigantic sampler of life and
living perhaps would become the prize
jack-of-all-tradee of the centuries and
in the end be little better of! than the
homebody, popularly called bourgeois,
who might lament to himself that!
he had seen nothing and been no- j
where.
What is possible for the latter is to
take a genuine interest m the many !
things which confront him every day.
Instead of maintaining, as so many
do, an Indifference based mostly upon
the fact that these things bring them
in no money.
Alas, how many things bring in no
pay, except the joy and happiness
which may be in them for those who
are able to find them!
And so it may be believed, without
reaching too far, that he who looks
for the crocus, because he loves the
crocus, is far, far better off than he
who pays it no attention at all.
* ♦ * *
The mystery of Nature Is nowhere
more strikingly shown than in the
fact that her thousands of bti'.ue lie
beneath snow and ice without taking
hurt from the cold.
Just cold air—somehow that does
not strike one as so inimical, but
much ice and snow—these impress the
average beholder with their powers
for harm.
Failure to see the earth for days, !
even weeks at a time, is an experience
comparatively new for many local
gardeners.
Some who began their gardening
careers as long ago as 1923 did not
have a chance until last year to wit
ness what many call "an old-fash
oned Winter."
Ten years Is a long time in any
gardener's life.
Yet hundreds who took up this out
door sport at about the time given
had to wait many years before they
realized that crocuses do not always
bloom In February.
During thoee years they built up an
entirely false idea of what plant pro
tection ought to be. They got the
idea, innocently enough, that such
protection was entirely unnecessary in
this climate.
Now they know better.
If the last two Winters have done I
nothing much except Impress the !
home gardener'with the need of fore
thought for his plants, they have done
some good in the world.
STARS, MEN AND ATOMS
Notebook of Science Progress in Field,
Laboratory and Study.
BY THOMAS R. HEMRY.
The great malaria epidemic eweep- !
ing over Ceylon—to date it has at
tacked a fourth of the population and
caused more than 30.000 deaths—is a '
striking repetition of what, la all
probability, caused the rapid downfall
of some of the world's greatest civili
zations, according to British medical
officprs who are trying to check its
spread.
Eight centuries ago Northern and
Eastern Ceylon was literally a tropical
paradise with great cities, roads and .
an irrigation system that was among
the wonders of the world. A military
invasion from India drove out the
populace. The great irrigation reser
voirs and ditches deteriorated and
mosquitoes multiplied by the millions.
Malaria got the upper hand. When
the refugees straggled back after the
invasion they perished. The great
cities, some of them almost the size
of Washington, tumbled down and
were buried under the jungle. Ever
^Lthe,whoIe countryside has sup
ported only a scanty, poverty-stricken
and malarial population. It has been
impossible to settle the land, either
with whites or natives
fiJ?Ul^odU!trent has 016 cona
tion of Southern and Western Ceylon,
where there is plenty of rainfall, swift
flowing streams and an equable cli
amCt 4nn ,™rts a population of
about 400 to the square mile. Parts
of this country are well known as
health resorts. The central plateau
land"Cribe<1 aS "a troplcal New Eng
rig!lt besIde it Is the malarial
jungle and every now and then, for
some unknown reason, the disease
breaks out and decimates the popu
lation of the fertile country. The
longer the epidemic persists the harder
to check it because the fields are left
r,T^Vat^ and 016 streami become
srJrhZl'h 7Ï0? ?resent ePyemic is de
ZlP&J* Lancet· official journal
of the British Medical Association, as
the worst in history and at a less
fntime might; have resulted
in depopulating the island.
The efficacy of malaria as a de
itT°ÏZ ?f„ civHizations is illustrated
rentrai Λ the Maya culture in
Central America—which represented
the greatest height which aboriginal
peoples attained in the New World
StraJiBe ,decllne and disappear
ance of the Maya cities beneath the
jungle often has been attributed to
nialaria, which produced & progrès
sively deteriorating effect once it had
gotten a foothold.
* * * *
A new kind of visitors to earth
from the vastness of outer space is
studied by Prof. Car] Stormer
former research associate of the Car
negie Institution of Washington and
now at the Norwegian Institute of
Astrophysics.
These are the luminous night
clouds, blue-white in color, which are
observed during the Summer months
speeding across the sky at a speed
of about 40 yards a second and at a
height of about 60 miles. They are
seen chiefly in high latitudes, mostly
between midnight and morning, and
move from east to west, so that they
have been noted over Canada within
about 33 hours of their appearance
over Norway.
After eliminating various other pos
sibilities—such as that of fine clouds
of water vapor or ice crystals at such
a great height—Stormer concludes
that these are clouds of interstellar
dust which drift into the earth's at
mosphere and may be considered as
essentially of the same nature as
ffleteaiv Tùelr tendency to recur
a certain period each year le also
characteristic of meteor showers.
The case of a 3-year-old girl who
weeps blood—apparently with no
physical abnormality of the eyes or of
the lachrymal glands to account for
it—is reported in this week's issue of
the Lancet, journal of the British
Medical Association. The account is
from R. L. Haviland-Michin, an
army medical officer in India. The
patient was the child of a native sol
dier. With no ascertainable reason
for the abnormality, there was little
to be done from the medical stand
point, but after about three months
of observation, the army medical offi
cer reports, the blood in the tears
finally has decreased until now only a
faint tinge of pink is discernible.
* * * »
Stinginess and sadism, or love of
inflicting pain, are companion quali
ties, according to a report published in
this month's issue of the Journal of
Nervous and Mental Diseases from Dr.
Oluf Bruel. Danish psychiatrist.
Besides giving a number of clinical
reports of cases where stinginess and
cruelty were combined, Dr. Bruel finds
that the relationship enters into the
idiomatic structure of the Northern
European languages. Thus, "to bleed"
any one is idiomatically synonymous
with taking money from the victim.
"To skin alive" is an expression often
used to describe a shrewd and profit
able business deal. The reverse ex
pressions are used when the speaker is
the victim.
Dr. Bruel finds that the districts of
Denmark where the populations are
reputedly the most parsimonious are
also the ones where the murder rate
is highest.
* * * *
Hair may be "vulcanized muscle."
The essential difference between
myosin, the protein substance of
muscle, and keratin, the protein sub
stance of hair, is that the latter con
tains a small amount of sulphur,
according to W. T. Astbury and Mrs.
Sylvia Dickinson of the Textile
Physics Laboratory of the University
of Leeds, who have just reported a
chemical study of the two materials.
Section 8 of Constitution
And Gold Clause Issue
To the Editor of The Star:
The answer to the "greenback letter
of W. E. Ryan" in a recent issue of
your paper will be found in article 1,
section 8. of the Constitution of the
United States.
Since some of the folks are keen to
wager on what the Supreme Court will
do in certain Instances it may be well
for them to read section 8.
I have a hunch the reading of same
will affect the betting odds and I
also have a hunch the Supreme Court
has read section 8.
The money power of this country,
which has lived off interest piled
upon interest for a century, knows its
back is broken. The center of the
money power is now the U. S. Treas
ury, which will make it flexible to
meet the conditions of the moment |
To save Mr. Ryan from looking up
section 8 and to save the betting boys
the trouble also I will say that sec
tion 8 reads this way: "The Congress
shall have power to coin money and
regulate the value thereof and of for
eign coin "
By the way, I haven't seen anybody
throwing away any of these dollars in
which some people say 41 cents is
missing. How come?
·. RUSSELL T. SDWABDa,
Food Prices, Beefsteak,
Rats, Cats and Chickens
To the Editor of The Star:
Mr. J. W. Westhaver mildly chides
the writer because he complained lh
a recent letter to The Star about the
unwarranted Increase In the price of
food without offering a solution to the
problem. He then makes this original
and unique suggestion for its solu
tion: Organize the farmers and con
sumers. Sure! Let's do that next
Monday morning. In lieu of our pos
sibly not being able to finish up that
little job before lunch time, Mr. West
haver suggests that "Government
control of processors-distributors
might provide the simplest solution of
the food problem." Now, this gentle
man surely is not so naive as to be
lieve the Government is going to be
interested in any plan that will tend
to lower prices to the consumer. The
Government's chief concern has been,
and still is. how to get prices up. The
fact that the big jump in food price
comes after the food reaches the
stores, thereby benefiting the farmer
not at all, seems to make no differ
ence to the Government. The idea is
to get the price up. The chain stores
must indeed think their own personal
Santa Claus is here.
Mr. Westhaver remarks on "the sys
tem that is denying Mr. Mumford his
daily beefsteak." What does he mean,
"daily" beefsteak? Why, I had my
monthly beefsteak (round) the other
night and I insisted the kitchen door
be left open while the steak was being
cooked and thus killing two birds with
one stone: Giving the neighbors an
olfactory treat and doing a little per
sonal bragging. Daily beefsteak, in
deed! The gentleman must be under
the impression that I have just come
to Washington to take a job at a salary
commensurate with the fact that I
control a couple of thousand votes
back in dear old Squeedunk County.
As a result of my letter of protest on
food costs in The Star Miss Stella
Stewart, chief retail division of the
Bureau of Labor Statistics, mailed to
me some voluminous reports on the
activities of her department in dis
seminating food prices to the public.
It was all very interesting and I thank
her but, reading it as intently as I
could, I was unable to find anything
that changed my opinion that the
average farmer would faint from
shock if he knew we here in Wash
ington are paying 5 cents a pound
for cooking apples and 4 1-3 cents a
pound for sweet potatoes. Maybe it
is a piece of impudence, however, for
me to presume any one except a
Democratic officeholder has the right
to eat such things.
Nothing so important as what the
consumer pays for his daily food is
going to receive any attention from
the Government. It must be some
thing important if it is to be investi
gated. In that connection I am in
daily terror that an old friend of mine
down in Maryland is going to run
afoul of Federal investigators. This
good old soul has a nice flock of chick
ens. but here of late the rats have
been cracking down on them like
ofBce-seekers on a Congressman. For
awhile it looked like annihilation for
the flock. Fortunately the old lady
also owns three cats and they have
solved the problem. Her modus oper
andi is to put the cats in the henhouse
as soon as darkness falls. Being good
ratters these noble cats have saved the
flock. Trouble is likely to arise, how
ever, because the whole performance
is a direct violation of an N. R. A.
code. I have tried to convince the
old lady that she should split the cats'
tricks of duty into 8-hour shifts, so
as to conform to the code, but she will
not listen to me. She is also ignoring
section 7-a because she will not per
mit collective bargaining by the
felines. Any day I am expecting to
hear she is in the hoosegow.
S. H. MUMFORD.
Washington Alone in
Car Parking in Streets
To the Editor of The Star:
With reference to James N. Galla
gher's letter in The Star of January
25 I will say I seem to have the same
trouble in trying to park my car for
an hour or two somewhere within a
block from my home.
That certainly is the truth about
cars being parked for days in the same
spot—in fact, there are any number
of cars parked right in this block for
a week or more, and probably they
will be there several days more.
Why does not the Traffic Depart
ment do something about it? I have
never visited a city with such poor
traffic regulations as those of Wash
ington.
You hear all this talk about build
ing more garages and getting more
parking lots, but what is the use in
doing that if you can use the streets
for garages? There are lots of
garages right now that hardly make
their taxes because cars can be parked
on the street.
I think if a man can afford to drive
a car he can afford to keep it in a
garage. I am sure the qjjy of Wash
ington would put up an awful holler
if every one who owned a piano parked
it on the street.
How can a garage or parking lot do
any business as long as the cars are
allowed to stand on the streets for
days? I want to state here I do not
own a garage or parking lot, but just
wanted to express my views on the
subject. I have been in a number
of large cities and in none of them
can a car be parked for days in the
same spot. P. O. STIMPSON.
Deadly Black Spider
Killed Near Baby's Cart
To the Editor of The Star:
The Bureau of Entomology says
that black widow spiders have in
creased alarmingly in recent years,
have become widespread and com
mon, and may be found in some
quantity in Washington.
However, it was more of a shock
than we anticipated when, the other
day, we discovered one of these pests
crawling toward the baby carriage
in #hich lay our young daughter. Any
kind of a spider bite would be serious
for a five-month-old infant, but
imagine our feelings when, after be
ing stepped on, this spider turned on
its back, revealing the significant red
warning sign, and tried to fight. For
tunately, the second blow killed it.
Apparently the creature gained ac
cess to our living room from the cellar
by crawling up a radio gTound wire,
which runs through a hole in the
floor. This incident happened before
the recent storm and cold wave. I
am aware that ordinarily this spider
hibernates In sheltered places out
doors, so perhaps the recent bad
storm and the following cold have
killed many of the pests, except pos
sibly some which may have got
into cellars, like this one, before
the cold set in.
For many years nature study has
been a hobby of mine, and while I
prefer birds, animals and fish, I know
enough about Insects to make me feel
that I identified this spider correctly;
therefore will you kindly publish
this letter so that your readers may
be on guard against this most dan
gerous of insect pests.
ROBERT A. MULLEN.
Demoted.
From the Winston-Salem (If. C.) Journal.
Cotton was once king in the abso
lute sense, but tariffs and the AAA
have reduced his realm to something
litoff oanetitutiooal monarchy,
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASK1N.
A reader can get the answer to
any question of fact by writing The
Washington Evening Star Information
Bureau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director,
Washington, D. C. Please inclose
stamp for reply.
Q. When is the Saar Basin to be
given to Germany?—M. R.
A. The territory will be turned over
to Germany on March 1, 1935.
Q. Why does wine age in bottles
while whisky doee not?—L. H. P.
A. The Bureau of Industrial Alco
hol says that "if whisky ages in the
bottle, chemical and physical tests up
to the present time have failed to
show it. This is undoubtedly due
to the fact that a whisky containing
the normal amount of congenencs '
does not have the proper conditions
to induce a slow oxidation process in
a bottle, as it does in the charred
barrel. On the other hand, wine, on
account of its high acid content in
comparison with that of whisky, will
age in bottles, which Is evidenced not
only by its taste, but by the precipi
I tation of tartrates."
Q. How many elephants are there
in this country?—D. A. M.
A. The National Zoological Park
says that the number of elephants in
this country is approximately 150,
most of them in circuses.
Q. What is the inscription on the
tablet in front of the Adler Plane
tarium in Chicago?—M. P. K.
A. On a plaque at the entrance of
the structure is engraved a declara
tion of the purpose of the institution,
reading: "To further the progress of
science: to euide to an understandiïii !
I of the majesty of the heavens; to j
emphasize that under the celestial j
I firmament there is order, interde- 1
ι pendence and unity."
Q. When did Uncle Joe Cannon1
first meet Abraham Lincoln?—H A D.
A. He first saw Lincoln at Charles
ton, 111., in 1858, when he heard a
debate between Lincoln and Douglas.
He met Lincoln about two years later
at the Republican State Convention.
Q. What kind of material are fairy
stones made of?—C. B.
A. Fairy stones are found in Carroll
County, Va., on top of Bull Mountain.
These are starlike crystals simulat
ing the Roman Maltese St. Andrew's i
Crosses. They are found in cross form
in their natural state. The stones
are a mineral hydrated Iron-aluminum
silicate in the orthorhombic system.
They have a subvitreous to resinous
luster and are brown or black in
color. The crystalline varieties are
frequently cruciform, owing to twin
ning. The proper name for such
stone is staurolite, which is a com
bination of two Greek words mean
ing cross and stone.
Q. How many of the ten tribes of j
Israel returned from the Babylonian
1 captivity?—J. J. S.
! A. After the Babylonian captivity
there was a general dispersion of the j
Jews and the records of only two
tribes, Benjamin and Judah, were 1
preserved practically in their entirety.
! It is impossible to say just how many I
j of the other tribes returned, or where
I their leaders settled.
Q. Are snow fences put up to keep
I the snow off the field or off the !
road?—J. T. N.
A. They are constructed to keep the
heavy snows from blocking the high
ways and making them impassable
to traffic.
I , . .
Q. Why are bandboxes so called?
—O. T.
A. They were used In the seven
teenth century to hold ruffe, which
were often called bande.
Q. When was the first shirt fac
tory established In the United States?
—J. H
A. In 1848 In Boston by Oliver
Winchester.
Q To what extent can sound t·
amplified?—R. K.
A. Under the direction of Dr. Ε. E.
Free, sound expert, a sound micro
scope has been developed by Cari A.
Johnson of New York University
which is capable of amplifying sounds
ten thousand billion times. In dem
onstrating the instrument, sound#
made by weevils chewing wheat grains
were so loud as to disturb adjoin
ing class rooms.
Q. How many impeachment eases
have been tried by the United States
Senate?—T. 8.
A. Twelve.
Q. When does dawn begin?—T. P.
A. It begins when the sun is 18
degrees below the horiaon. Its dura
tion therefore varies with the latitude
and season of the year.
Q. How long has the slide trom
bone been made?—G. N.
A. In its present form, it was known
as early as the beginning of the six
teenth century.
Q. Which were the States that did
not secede for which there were stars
in the Confederate flag?—L. V. B.
A. Mainland and Kentucky were
the two States which were expected
to enter the Confederacy, but which
did not.
Q. When did the Hejira begin?—
R. W.
A. The epoch began with the flight
of Mahomet from Mecca to Medina,
when he was expelled by the magis
trates, July 15, 622.
Q Is beauty sleep the sleep before
midnight or afterward?—M. L.
A. Sleep taken before midnight.
Q. What is meant by union in re
ferring to table linen?—Ε. T.
A. Union means half linen and half
cotton.
Q. What three cities in the United
States have the densest population?
—R. P.
A. New York City has the densest,
which is 4.000 per square mile. Chi
cago is next with 3.899 per square
mile, and then Cleveland with 3,852
per square mile.
Q. Whet causes the foxing of book
pages?—T. H. S.
À. The foxing of the leaves of
books is often produced when the
books are subjected to extremely cold
temperatures. When this is the case,
after the temperature moderates the
air laden with damp penetrates the
books and deposits its moisture on
the cold surfaces.
Q. How much damage is done to
plants by disease end insects?—A. F.
A. The Nation's losses from insects
and plant diseases are more than
$3.500.000,000 annually.
Q. Where does this expression
occur: "For of all sad words of tongue
or pen. the saddest are these, "It
might have been' "?—T. P.
A. It is in Whittier's "Maud Muller."
John Barton Payne Lauded
As Useful Public Servant
Newspaper comment on the death ·
of John Barton Payne is marked by !
: appreciation of the career of a man
! who raised himself from poverty to
a position of high esteem and spent
[ the closing years of his life in service
: to all distressed people.
"The life story of John Barton |
' Payne." says the Jamestown (Ν. Υ.) ί
i Post, "is such as that which has often j
been recorded in our American an- j
nals. His boyhood was handicapped <
by poverty. From the obscure vil- ;
lage which was the scene of his birth,
by his industry and sound judgment
through years of effort he rose to
distinction in the legal profession and
to the enjoyment of plenty. Though
a native of Virginia it was in Chi
j cago that he won special notice as a
1 talented lawyer." According to the
! Manchester <N. H.) Union, "he re
! alized that he did not live in a
Utopia and that, consequently, it was
ί necessary to work to live. So, lit
I erally and figuratively, he dug in;
first of all as a farm boy. Then he
became a clerk in a country store; I
next a lawyer. By the time he was
21 his name had countywide sig- ;
nificance."
"John Barton Payne," the Scranton
Times declare, "was an important cit
izen. He held big political offices, and
was regarded as a fine lawyer and
big business man. In these dual char- J
acters he held the offices of chairman
and later counsel of the United States
Shipping Board; he was Secretary of
Interior in the cabinet of Woodrow !
Wilson and judge of the Supreme
Court of Cook County, 111. The high j
places he held attest the caliber of
the man."
"His quiet but wide beneficencies
have come too little to the public
attention," says the Newport News
Times Herald. "Bom a Virginian, the 1
vicissitudes of the War Between the
States made him technically a West
Virginian, but his heart was ever with
the Old Dominion and on her he
showered beneficencies within his
means as a patron of art and edu- j
cation. · · · The scope of his
interest was wide, his devotion deep
and his loyalty intense. He has served
his generation well and history will
enlarge his stature. He was one of
the greatest sons that 'The Mother of
States' has given the Nation."
"But it is not in the realm of law
nor in political office that Judge
Payne will be best remembered," be
lieves the Lynchburg Daily Advance.
"As a humanitarian," they continue,
"his conspicuous service will be the
brightest page of his life. Although
65 years of age when called upon by
President Harding to become chair
man of the American Red Cross, he
did not fear to tackle so strenuous a
task and for years he devoted his
efforts to some of the largest relief
enterprises of all time."
According to the Atlanta Constitu
tion: "Under his direction the Amer
ican Red Cross has become the most
efficient organization for the relief of
the distressed the world has known.
In every visitation from which the
people of the country have suffered—
flood, pestilence, fire, earthquake,
famine, drought and unemployment—
the Red Cross under his guidance has
been the succoring organization to
save life and minimize suffering. * * *
For 14 years he served as chairman
of the Red Cross without remunera
tion other than, as he himself ax
pressed It, the 'personal satisfaction'
of serving those whose need was des
perate."
"The name of John Barton Payne,
who just died after a long and event
ful life," to the Dayton Herald, "1·
associated imperishably with the grqpt [
humanitarian work of the American
Red Cross, of v.hich he had been
chairman since 1921," and the Bir
mingham News points out that "it was
under his chairmanship that the or
ganization attained its greatest peace
time usefulness." To the Kansas City
Times "the range of his interest»" is
"remarkable." while the Des Moines
Tribune thinks that "if our system of
government provided for a community
Df elders, offering counsel and guid
ance as did those of ancient Israel
and Greece. John Barton Payne very
likely would have been among them
during the last quarter century." The
San Antonio Express pays tribute be
cause "during life's eventime, when
most men are content to retire. Judge
Payne carried forward his arduous,
greatly responsible labors."
"One of those tremendously busy
men, never too busy to help others,"
is the way the San Francisco Chron
icle describes him, while the Idaho
Statesman feels that "his life stands
as an example worth following today."
The Rochester Times-Union speaks of
"a career notable for public service,"
and the Nashvile Banner declares
that "he died rec6§xjized as one of the
world's greatest. Jywtfianitarians."
Workers Will Finance
Proposed Work Relief
To the Editor of The Star:
William Green, president of the
American Federation of Labor, pro
tests that relief employment at $50 a
month will injure wage earners instead
of being a benefit to them.
It might help us to keep this matter
straight in our minds if we recognized
fully that the $4,000,000,000 work
relief fund is not going to "benefit"
anyone—least of all the present wage
earners.
It is merely a necessary evil—pre
sumably necessary, at any rate, since
we have been unable to do without
it—but certainly an evil. Its sole
object is the relief of thoee millions
who, having been unable to find any
one to employ them and pay them
wages are unemployed and wageless,
and more or less destitute.
The idea that the fund should be,
or by any stretch of the imagination
could be, conceived as a benefit to
wage earners in general is absurd.
The only way it affects wage earner·
is that they, together with workers
in business and professional life, will
have to pay the bill. It will cost each
one upward of $100 for the current
year.
In other words, since seven or
eight millions of workers have been
unable to find any one to employ
them and pay them wages, their
fellows who are working have under
taken to perform that function. The
Government is merely their agent In
carrying out the plan.
W. H. HULL.
Sipn of Poverty.
Prom the Marshalltown (Iowa) Time»·
Republican.
The observant reporter remarked
this morning, "You can tell where
a poor man lives by the ashes on his
sidewalk. If you don't believe It slip
out west and satisfy yourself.'·
On the Anxious Bench.
Prom the Roanoke (Va.) Times. <
Many a citizen who couldn't raise
$75 if his life depended on it U await
the Supreme Court's decision In th·
gold case with aa much interest aa
Andy Mellon himself,