Evening star. [volume], April 02, 1937, Page A-10, Image 10

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

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THE EVENING STAR
With Sunday Morning Edition.
WASHINGTON. D. C.
FRIDAY__..April 2, 1937
THEODORE W. NOYES__Editor
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No Excessive Taxation.
Excessive taxation in Washington
could result from either of two methods
of increasing local taxes. One method
would be to pile a tax burden on the
District in excess of that borne by com
parable communities. The other would
be to tax the District in excess of cur
rent revenue needs.
The tax bills introduced in the House
threaten both kinds of excessive taxa
tion. An addition of $12,000,000 to the
tax burden would amount to an increase
of about 40 per cent—a drastic increase
under any conditions. It would, more
over, increase the local tax burden sub
stantially above those of comparable
cities, according to the census figures,
making Washington one of the most
highly taxed cities in the country when
It should be one of the lowest.
Looking at it another way, an increase
of $12,000,000 in the local tax burden
would be at least $6,000,000 in excess of
current revenue demands to balance the
District budget. If the purpose of rais
ing this $6,000,000 of excessive revenues
is to reduce by that amount the real
estate tax, as suggested in some quar
ters, the real estate tax reduction should
be ordered concurrently with the col
lection of new taxes. The real estate
reduction certainly should not remain
merely a possibility while the tax boost
becomes a certainty.
It would be more reasonable to view
the introduction of the nine tax bills,
however, as affording the House District
Committee, to which they will be re
ferred, an opportunity to select only
those which will produce, as fairly as
possible, the minimum of new revenue
needed to balance the District budget.
Senator Capper and Senator King have
already made such a suggestion and it
will be adopted, no doubt, by members
or the House committee.
The people of the District, of course,
tvill not admit that the deficit confront
ing the District now is due to inadequate
local taxation. If extraordinary condi
tions justify some increase in the local
tax burden, equity even more clearly
demands an increase in the Federal pay
ment. The financial responsibility for
avoiding a deficit should not be placed
exclusively with the people of the Dis
trict while the control of the budget re
mains exclusively with the National
Government.
Each of the new tax bills will natu
rally receive careful analysis at the
hands of those whom they affect and
by the committees of Congress. The
choice of tax measures which necessity
demands should be based on the least
harsh and most equitable distribution of
new burdens.
In this respect, doubling of the gaso
line tax presents the dangers of gaso
line tax diversion into channels wholly
unrelated to the obligations of motorists.
Once such diversion is begun, there is
practically no limit and the experience
In the States suggests that the point of
diminishing returns in gasoline taxes is
Quickly reached.
In connection with the proposed in
come tax, the extraordinarily high yield
from the existing tax on intangibles (for
which the income tax is a proposed sub
atitute) is to be considered. The
Federal income tax “green slips’’ now
available to local tax collectors have
already demonstrated their efficiency in
bringing more taxables to light, with
consequent increase of the yield, and
the District has always stood relatively
high in its assessment of intangibles.
A local income tax in the District pre
sents complications not encountered in
other jurisdictions. If Federal employes
are subject to a local income tax while
exempt from such taxation elsewhere, it
would mean, as Mr. Collins suggested
during the hearings, “a corresponding
right (to tax such incomes) that must
be given to the States.” If Federal em
ployes were exempt here, the income tax
probably would fail to produce the
needed revenue and would be fantastic
In its inequity. As it is, the bill neatly
exempts members of Congress and elect
ed or appointed officials serving a definite
term—thus cutting down considerably
the potential yield. The local intangibles
tax is not to be condemned as a poor
revenue raiser. It is expected to pro
duce more than $2,500,000 next year.
There is the additional important con
sideration that the National Govern
ment’s taxation of incomes has pre
empted this source of revenue and Fed
eral income taxation is apt to increase.
Other considerations will of course
present themselves as the tax bills are
subjected to study and analysis.
Day to Remember.
Tes, of course, the world is full of
trouble. But it also, quite as truly, is
brimming over with Spring. And this
latter fact is more Important than the
f
former. Humanity needs the release
which it represents.
Indeed, to the bystanding philosopher
the annual emergence from Winter is a
phenomenon of supreme significance.
He likes to talk about it, likes to think
that his friends do not object to his en
thusiasm. Even to a professional pessi
mist, he supposes, April must be a relief.
Its promise is encouraging to a com
munity which certainly is not disadvan
taged by a glimpse of the returning sun.
Perhaps the Master Dramatist, em
ploying Nature for the purpose, shifts
the seene deliberately. Thus, He manip
ulates contrast and achieves varying
effects of light and shade, profit and loss,
victory and defeat. His children, it may
be suggested, never could appreciate
fulfilment if they had not been per
mitted to make the acquaintance of
denial.
But be that as it may, a fragment of
time so congenial as today is something
to remember. Not for any incident
which goes to stir the pen of a chronicler
of human evolution, not for any event
which mankind long will care to recol
lect in terms of human progress or re
trogression—rather simply because plain
people on their way to work this morn
ing said to each other, “Spring is here
at last.” All men are poets at such a
moment, and the circumstance is worthy
of citation.
The Japanese Elections.
At this long range it is difficult to dis
cern the true inwardness of the latest
whirl of the political kaleidoscope in
Japan or to prevision the outcome of
the parliamentary crisis provoked by the
militarists. First-blush impressions are
that the political parties have been out
maneuvered by the army and navy,
whose leaders suddenly forced the
Hayashi cabinet to dissolve parlie 'ent
and call for the election of a new uiet
on April 30. Thus, prompt revenge has
been wreaked on the civilian elements
which in January caused the overthrow
of the Hirota cabinet on the ground that
it was dominated by the armed forces
and was steering Japan into dangerous
channels. Although the succeeding gov
ernment formed by Gen. Senjuro Haya
shi as premier excluded the political
parties from membership, the latter
were appeased by the manifesto of For
eign Minister Sato, pledging a policy of
“equality” with China and a correspond
ing program of non-aggression.
The army and navy hotspurs planned
to bring about a dissolution of parlia
ment some weeks ago, but decided to
wait until the military and naval budget
of $400,000.000-odd, largest in Japanese
history, was passed. The politicians
have not been sent about their busi
ness because they denied the war lords
adequate funds or put brakes on their
policies, but because the parties ware
pressing for revision of the electoral law
which gives the government, now mili
tarist-controlled, wide powers in super
vision of national elections. The civilian
groups held up certain measures urged
by the army and navy, including a
law for preservation of military secrets,
in order to hasten electoral reform. Re
senting these tactics, the army high
command selected dissolution as the best
means of chastising the political parties.
Stripped of technicalities and ex
traneous aspects, the issue at the polls
seems fairly clear-cut—whether civilian
or militarist influence shall prevail in
the government of Japan. The result
may not turn out to be a landslide for
the army and navy, even though General
Hayashi's cabinet has command of the
election machinery. Many things have
disillusioned the Japanese people regard
ing the plans and achievements of the
armed forces. The “investment” in
Manchuria and North China has failed
to pay promised dividends. Taxpayers
find military and naval budgets increas
ingly unbearable. The business world is
progressively conscious that Japan’s
trade interests both in Asia and in the
western world are suffering grievously
through suspicion of Tokio foreign pol
icy. The forthcoming election will give
the people of the empire a chance to
record their views regarding programs
which have produced these unfavorable
developments and to call for a regime
designed to create confidence abroad
and sound economic conditions at home.
> « —
There are polite formalities of speech
to which statesmanship is normally in
clined, but Senator Glass, accustomed to
the hard hitting of old-time patriotism,
declines to adjust himself to the ping
pong play of perfunctory repartee.
Theodore Roosevelt used to be in favor
of what he called “the strenuous life.”
His brilliant and often impetuous meth
ods made his career what managers of
professional entertainment would term
“a hard act to follow.”
The analysis of the Supreme Court
will be a laborious task if it becomes
necessary to study the particular politics
of the regime under which its member
ship was appointed.
A New York Bye-Election.
A bye-election occurred yesterday in
the seventy-sixth legislative district of
New York, to fill a vacancy in the State
Assembly caused by death. It was an
important election, for the lower house
of the Legislature is very closely divided.
The death of the Republican incumbent
brought the membership to seventy-five
members as against seventy-four Dem
ocrats. A Democratic victory would have
effected an exact division between the
parties. A Republican victory in the
district was essential to give that party
a constitutional majority in the chamber.
The Republican candidate won, with
19,348 votes to 8,139 for his opponent, a
majority of 8,139, or approximately sev
enty per cent of the total vote cast. In
November the Republican candidate was
elected with a vote of 27,865 against
24,965, or fifty-six per cent.
Is this a straw? Does it indicate a
turn of tide? Political analysts will
differ. But the figures stand as evidence
of a larger Republican response to the
H
party call than that given by the Demo
cratic voters of the district. There was
no "issue” in particular. But there was
occasion for keen party interest, in view
of the close division in the Assembly,
the Democrats having a chance to tie
the membership of that body.
The drop from 24,965 Democratic votes
cast in November in this district to 8,139
cast in April may have been due to over
confidence. It may have been due to
lack of interest, or perhaps lack of ap
preciation of the chance to tie the As
sembly membership. And by the same
token the drop from 27,865 Republican
votes in November to 19,348 in April
may have been due to a general lapse in
interest, or to a failure fully to realize
the importance of maintaining a consti
tutional majority in the lower house of
the Legislature.
Whatever the cause, the result stands.
Was the Supreme Court question a fac
tor in the campaign? That hardly
seems likely. Yet Republicans generally
may derive more of encouragement from
this minor contest than their opponents.
A sense of fitness which includes a
capacity for timely self-restraint has
always distinguished the brilliant career
of the Honorable Carter Glass of Vir
ginia. The confidence of the citizenry
whom he has represented for so many
years in his native State has been un
swerving and the affectionate admira
tion in which he is held must be even
greater than before, not only in his own
State, but throughout the Nation, be
cause of the statesmanlike thought and
clarity of expression he brought to his
analysis of an impulsive incident of po
litical planning which has precipitated
an economic crisis. The world under
stands a little better why the historic
State of Virginia has always been so
proud of Carter Glass.
Almost every possible suggestion is
brought up in connection with indus
trial agitation. So far it has been pos
sible to keep the Sacco-Vanzetti case
from reasserting itself as a point of
gloomy reminiscence.
Professional educators very generally
acquire the title “Doctor.” They occa
sionally revive the ancient query, "When
doctors disagree, who shall decide?”
- . , --
Implacable enmities are such that no
matter what may happen Stalin will
deny to Trotzky the distinction of hav
ing had much to do with it.
Politicians have their superstitions
and sometimes mistake a lucky streak
for a mandate to be construed “go as
far as you like.”
Shooting Stars.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
From Fancy to Fact.
A man's imagination may
Suggest a lot of things.
He'd like to be a bird one day
And soar on joyous wings.
To be as peaceful as a dove
He seeks, so we are told.
Sometimes hell ask all things above
To be a lion bold.
He longs to swim just like a fish,
To run just like a deer.
Unto zoology his wish
In fancy still draws near.
And so he plods and minds his biz
Or kicks against the rule,
And at the finish finds he is
Just an ordinary mule.
In the Interest of Harmony.
“You disapprove of the custom of
handshaking?”
“Not at all,” replied Senator Sorghum,
“I like it. But I don’t quite admire the
tendency of a crowd to pick on one man
when they might be shaking hands
among themselves.”
Jud Tunkins says he likes a man who
sings at his work, providin' he doesn’t
insist on takin’ too much time off to
cultivate his high notes.
Heavy.
Though words but airy trifles seem
When uttered in debate,
When put on paper by the ream
They come to tons of weight.
Why She Remains.
“And you have had the same servant
for two years?”
“Yes,” replied Mr. Crosslots. “She
says she doesn’t believe in changing
after she has gone to the trouble of
teaching a family her ways.”
What makes some men popular is the
fact that they haven’t any opinions and
can conscientiously agree with everybody.
Art Is Long.
“A drop of ink makes millions think,”
It did in days gone by.
The eager mind is now inclined
To watch the pictures fly.
Ten thousand feet of art complete,
Devised with patient skill,
Is now employed in celluloid
To land one little thrill.
“Dar ain’ gw in ter be much peace o’
mind,” said Uncle Eben, “so long as
de white gemmen is anxious to git into
politics and de white ladies is pinin’ to
git into society.”
England Marches On.
From the Roanoke Times.
Lady Astor came off second best in a
debate in the House of Commons the
other day. Evidently big changes are
taking place in England.
Understanding the Laws.
From the Portland. Orel , Journal.
There is no need to worry if you do
not understand some of our new laws.
Even their makers don’t always under
stand them.
The Ultimate.
From the Toledo Made.
A sit-down strike of pantsmakers
would seem to be the climax of industrial
disturbance.
t» - A
THE POLITICAL
MILL
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.
Edward Keating, editor of Labor,
organ of the railroad brotherhoods and
formerly a member of the House from
Colorado, has the unique distinction of
having fathered two laws both of which
were later declared unconstitutional by
the Supreme Court. One of these laws
was last Monday revived, when the Su
preme Court reversed the decision of
that court made thirteen years ago, and
in efTect made the minimum wage act
for women and childrea in the District
of Columbia constitutional. The second
act of Congress which he sponsored as
a member of the House, invalidated by
the court, was the national child labor
act. In both instances, the laws were
held unconstitutional by 5-to-4 deci
sions of the court. There would almost
seem reason for speculation today
whether the Supreme Court, if it had
the child labor act before it again in
some shape or form, might reverse the
, earlier decision on that measure, too.
* * * *
Mr. Keating, who has labored for
years both in Congress and out for legis
lation to improve the conditions of the
people, socially and economically, was
a Democratic Representative from Colo
rado in the National House for six years,
from March 4, 1913, to March 3, 1919.
He went down to defeat in the 1918
campaign when the Wilson adminis
tration made the mistake of calling upon
the country to elect a Democratic House
to uphold the hands of the Democratic
President, Woodrow Wilson, while the
World War was still on and the Repub
licans and Independents thought they
were doing their bit in that conflict.
It was during his service in the House
that he introduced the national child
labor bill and the minimum wage bill
for women and children in the District
of Columbia, both of whioh were enacted
into law. He had a tough time in
getting the minimum wage bill to the
floor for consideration. It had been re
ferred to the House Committee on the
District of Columbia, which handles all
legislative measures relating to the Na
tional Capital. Ben Johnson of Ken
tucky, then a member of the House,
was chairman of the committee. He did
not believe in the minimum wage bill,
and it looked as though the measure
was to be pigeonholed in committee
indefinitely. It happened, however, that
Benjamin C. Hilliard of Colorado was in
those days a member of the House Dis
trict Committee, a friend of both Chair
man Johnson and Keating. Hilliard,
who later became a justice of the Su
preme Court of Colorado, was a great
raconteur, and he and Johnson used
to swap stories in the Democratic cloak
room. It was Hilliard w’ho persuaded
Johnson finally to appoint a subcom
mittee, with Hilliard as chairman, to
hold hearings on the minimum wage
bill. The subcommittee and the full
committee later both passed favorably
on the bill and it was put through the
House.
The suggestion is now made in some
quarters that if Congress would pass a
joint resolution asking the Supreme
Court to review the decision in the na
tional child labor act, it might be pos
sible to get a reversal of the opinion
handed down years ago on that measure.
The court was closely divided over the
act, when it was held unconstitutional.
The case involving the law had been
argued by an array of brilliant legal
talent. In the House, when the act was
under consideration, it is now recalled,
former Representative Swagar Sherley
of Kentucky announced that he had
begun a study of the child labor bill
convinced that the measure was uncon
stitutional, but had changed his mind
in regard to it and become con
vinced that it was, after all, constitu
tional.
* * * *
Before he entered politics, Mr. Keat
ing was a newspaper man, coming up
from the ranks to be editor of the
Rocky Mountain News and later pub
lisher of the Pueblo Leader. He always
was interested in the aspirations of
labor and a strong supporter of legisla
tion for the improvement of the condi
tions of labor. When the Democrats
came back into control of the Govern
ment in 1933, after having been out of
public office for fourteen years, Mr.
Keating's name was put forward in some
quarters for Secretary of Labor in the
Roosevelt cabinet. As the author of the
minimum wage law for the District of
Columbia, it is quite natural he should
be pleased over the recent decisions of
the Supreme Court.
The suit in the courts here to test the
constitutionality of the minimum wage
act was brought originally in the name
of a colored girl who worked in old Con
gress Hall, where Mr. Keating lived in
those days. He insisted, however, that
the employers were back of the suit,
being antagonistic to the law.
■4, * * *
Almost two months after being sent to
Congress, the President’s bill to reor
ganize the judiciary and to empower
him to appoint a maximum of six new
Justices of the Supreme Court is still in
the hearing stage before the Senate
Judiciary Committee. There is no end
of the hearings yet in sight, and the
day when it shall reach the floor of the
Senate for consideration is still, appar
ently, far in the future. The measure
has taken the center of the stage and
held it to the exclusion of almost all
other issues before Congress. Instead of
growing less, the controversy over the
measure has waxed more and more bit
ter, until charges are flying that the
administration is seeking to put the bill
across by the use of patronage and the
use of relief money.
Senator Holt of West Virginia has led
the attack on the administration on
the ground that it is seeking to use
patronage, the handing out of Federal
jobs, to influence Senators to support
the measure. It was Senator Burke of
Nebraska who yesterday threw out the
suggestion that the billion-and-a-half
dollar relief appropriation which the
President is expected soon to ask of
Congress would be used to influence the
result. These are serious charges,
brought by Democratic members of the
Senate. It is no wonder that fur U
flying over this measure. Another in
dication of the high feeling now run
ning is found in the speeches delivered
by proponents of the President’s bill,
attacking Chief Justice Hughes, Asso
ciate Justice Roberts and other mem
bers of the court.
* * ★ *
The recent decisions of the Supreme
Court upholding as constitutional the
railroad labor act, the Frazier-Lemke
farm mortgage act, the Washington
State minimum wage act, and inciden
tally the District of Columbia minimum
wage act, caused a real flurry in official
circles here. Speculation as to what the
court will do with the Wagner labor
relations act were greatly stimulated
over night. This is a national law, re
lating to labor. There is a strong feel
ing in some quarters that the court will
hold the act in the main unconstitu
tional because it goes beyond the inter
state commerce clause of the Consti
tution and deals with labor that la
not engaged, as in the former interpreta
tiona of the Constitution by the eourt,
In interstate eommarc*.
r.
THIS AND THAT |
MY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.
"DICKERSON STATION, Md.
"Dear Sir:
"Up here on the mountains, too, the
birds are coming back.
"This morning a maltese catbird was
chasing a titmouse round and round the
garden.
“Suddeny the catbird flew away, for
a mocking bird was Imitating the bark
of a dogwood tree.
"All the while, in a walnut tree over
the barn a gray squirrel was setting on
her nest.
"No, not sitting—setting. You see, she
was trying to make a nut hatch.
"Yours for catbirds and This-and
That birds. "L. S.”
* * * *
A little foolery from the mountains
will be relished by the most sedate per
sons, now and then.
If it calls our attention to that best of
songsters, the catbird, It Is twice wel
come, for few of our feathered friends
are more interesting.
One of the joys of Spring and Summer
is this same bird, whose sleek grace and
whimsical song combine to please all his
friends.
Not every one, at first, will appreciate
the catbird at its full value.
He is not gaudy, in any sense.
His music is sometimes weird.
His very name will not please the in
veterate cat hater.
¥ ¥ ¥ ¥
A little acquaintance with the wild
birds, however, and one is sure to see
the value of this fine fellow.
He is regarded by most observers as
a distinct personality of bird land; if
there is any doubter, let him find out for
himself why this species is so-called by
competent persons.
Part of his value undoubtedly lies in
his varied and amazing song.
This is imitative, as the songs of the
mocking bird and the brown thrasher,
both of whom are held his superior.
Yet the catbird, living up to its name,
Interjects the cat-like mews and cries,
from time to time, thus giving his out
pourings a flavor all their own.
Once the bird watcher has fallen in
love with this sleek beauty, whose ap
propriate garb of gray and black feathers
seems particularly to fit his song, he will
come to regard this bird as one of his
favorites.
We have never seen this fail. Many
persons are unable at first to distinguish
it from the mocking bird, but a little
patience soon shows even the least un
observant that they really do not look
much alike.
* * * *
The “show-off" attitude of the catbird
is entirely his own.
Few other songsters preen themselves
so constantly, or flirt their heads and
tails so incessantly.
It is as if the bird realized how well
he sings, and wants to be sure that
everybody will watch him and listen to
him.
Probably the other birds do not like
him as well as his human friends. It
is said that he often robs the nests of
other birds, even as he uses part of their
songs in his own.
We have never seen a catbird injure
any other species, however, and are per
fectly willing to believe that this is on
a par with the general idea that English
sparrows are super-quarrelsome.
Most birds fight, from time to time,
chase intruders out of their chosen ter
ritory in Spring, and may be seen, now
and then, pecking at other birds.
They, no more than humans, are per
fect.
In the main, however, birds have a
pretty good record as good neighbors.
They live and let live, to quite as good
an extent as any other creatures, al
though in their ranks, as hawks, and
the like, they have their full share of
predatory creatures. But what large hu
man aggregation fails to have one or
more predators? Who are we, as a race
of creatures, to cast accusations at any
other? Certainly few other creatures,
save mankind, gang up on their fellows.
* * * *
Nor have we ever noticed that the
catbird is regarded by other birds as ob
noxious.
If they sometimes fly away from him,
as they will do, it is only because he is
larger.
It is common for a bird an inch longer
than another to be given the right of
way by the smaller specimen.
This is noticed at all feeding stations.
Few birds, even a starling, will remain
on the feeder platform when a jaunty
jay flies down out of the heavens.
The amazing sleekness, as if oiled, is
one of the main features of the catbird.
Few species are any better groomed. He
reminds one of a natty gentleman in a
dress suit, despite the fact that his col
oration is not exactly that, by any
means. Still, there is something so es
sentially well groomed in his dress that
the human beholder seems to see the
exceptional.
Ornithologists who have examined the
stomachs of many specimens of catbird,
in scientific research, declare that about
44 per cent is composed of animal mat
ter and 56 per cent of vegetable.
Practically all the animal matter is
composed of larvae and insects inimical
to man and his flower, grains, fruits, etc.
A small part of the vegetable contents
is cultivated fruit of some kind, but the
experts insist that the mocking bird
would much rather have wild fruits, and
that if some proportion of these are
planted along with the cultivated varie
ties, there will be no cause to fear dam
age from the bills of catbirds or any of
the other fruit eaters.
* * * *
Appearance and song, after all, prin
cipally engage the city and suburban
bird observer, and on these points the
catbird rates high.
Even his cat-like mews, often so real
istic as to fool experienced observers,
come to have an especial value, as com
ing from a bird.
If we could hear a cat sing like a
mocking bird, for instance, most per
sons would regard it as a great rarity,
but here is a bird which really meows
so much like a cat that even the friends
of the latter animal often are fooled.
"Slate-colored mocking bird,” he is
called in some sections of the country;
“black-capped thrush,” in others.
Both common names are tributes to
his powers of song. Let us be content
to call him catbird, and appreciate him
while he is with us.
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
Fourteen million workers in textile
industries throughout the world are in
volved in the deliberations of the World
Textile Conference meeting in this city.
Preparatory to the International Labor
Conference to be held at Geneva ne»t
June, where the recommendations of
this gathering will be among the topics
discussed, it aims to find a basis for in
ternational agreement as to hours of
labor and other working conditions and
as to production and competition in this
widespread and complicated industry.
With representatives of the various gov
ernments, of labor organizations and of
employers present, each having an equal
voice in its conduct, the conference will
be "tripartite" in character. With many
varieties of products, from the raw ma
terial to the finished article, be it of
cotton, silk, jute, hemp or what not, in
cluded in the scope of this industrial
problem; with national, racial, climatic
and other conditions to be considered,
as well as other factors, much of the
discussion will be of an involved, tech
nical character. With the United States,
however, employing more than 1,000.000
workers in this field; Great Britain,
Germany and Japan an equal number;
France and the Soviet Union about
900.000 each; India and Italy about
700.000 each, the conference assumes a
character of unusual and world-wide
significance to industry and commerce.
* * * *
Preparatory for its 25th annual meet
ing, which will be held in this city the
latter part of the month, the Chamber
of Commerce of the United States has
taken as the "’-eystone” of its program
"Business Looks Ahead.” With a wide
range of subjects to be discussed from
this standpoint, including inflation
dangers, taxation, international air
transportation, national conservation
policies, farm tenancy in the United
States and labor relations in industry,
chief interest is expected to center on
consideration of the world trade out
look. This portion of the program will
include questions as to tariff bargain
ing, what advantages foreign competi
tors have over American producers in
the American market and abroad, and
what restrictions should apply in the
interest of peace to this country’s world
trade in the event of a major armed
conflict abroad.
Efforts to reconcile the differences be
tween the Senate and the House neu
trality bills are about to be resumed
with the return to Washington of Repre
sentative McReynolds, chairman of the
House Foreign Affairs Committee, who
has been out of the city during the past
week. The conferees of the two bodies,
it is reported, are ready to meet in an
attempt to determine whether the man
datory features of the Pittman bill
passed by the Senate shall prevail, or
the provisions of the House measure
which give to the President a certain
amount of discretion in regard to em
bargo against shipment of arms and
other war materials from the United
States. With the administration itself
believing that the latter offers a better
opportunity to help this Nation maintain
its neutrality and keep from becoming
involved in war, well-advised opinion
predicts that the McReynolds bill will
constitute the backbone of the one even
tually adopted. Certain of the manda
tory provisions of the Pittman bill, it
is believed, however, will be added to it,
these being of a less controversial nature
in connection with steps to be taken by
this country in event of war abroad,
y y y *
To assist in paying tribute to the
memory and accomplishments of one of
his famous countrymen, the Ambassa
dor of France, George* Bonnet, will go
to Chicago to attend the celebration
next Wednesday of “La Salle day” in
honor of the intrepid explorer of the
17th century who planted the flag of
ftanoe in the land he named "Loulsi- ,
1
ana.” The Ambassador will speak at
a luncheon to be given by the France
Amerique Association, which, commem
orating the 250th anniversary of the
death of the discoverer, has planned
events at a number of points along the
route La Salle followed. Starting at
New Orleans and reversing his course
by going up the Mississippi River in
stead of down, some members of the
French mission will go on from Chicago
with the Canadian group to Montreal
and Quebec, where further celebration
will be held. Andre Chevrillon, member
of the French Academy, is chairman of
the special committee in charge of the
event.
♦ * * *
Taking a lesson from a novel method
practiced in Europe in preserving his
toric structures, the Government is
planning to restore to its Colonial con
dition the famous Hopewell Village, in
Pennsylvania, home of the iron barons
of the American Revolutionary period.
By a process resembling the setting of
a jewel from within, the stone work
of the 30-foot stack of the furnace,
which will be the center of the restored
village, is to be held permanently in
place in a way that permits the outer
face of the walls to retain its original
appearance without revealing any trace
of modern construction. This will be
done by forcing concrete mix from the
interior of the structure through the
weathered joints from which the 166
year-old mortar and clay were falling
away.
* * * *
In line with similar campaigns in
other fields, railroads, express com
panies and commercial organizations
have designated April as the month in
which special effort will be made to re
duce to a minimum loss and damage
to freight shipments. Officials believe
that losses of this sort can be greatly
reduced through improvements in the
methods of packing, loading and trans
porting shipments. Freight claims paid
by the railroads last year totaled more
than $20,000,000, the largest since 1931,
when it was nearly $25,000,000. There
is an economic loss to industry from
this cause, the officials believe, as well
as a drain on the carriers, and the
educational campaign to be conducted
this month, they hope, will better con
ditions in this respect.
* * ♦ *
Attempts of Chinese leaders to better
the economic condition of that coun
try’s millions through the co-operative
system apparently have met with fail
ure, as revealed in a report on the sub
ject by the American Council of the
Institute of Pacific Relations. • After
pointing to the phenomenal growth of
the movement during the course of a
few years, with a “staggering total” of
26,224 co-operatives in the country at
the end of 1935, the council reports that
"the movement has fallen a victim to all
the social ills inherent in China’s econ
omy” and that the co-operatives “have
substituted collective usury for individ
ual usury.”
(Copyright, 1937.)
Thrifty Forebears.
From the Atlanta Journal.
The only kind of social security avail
able to our forefathers was the root
hog-or-die variety. And they managed
very well, thank you.
All Set for Farm Relief.
From the Atchison Globe.
Gov. Alf Landon has bought a farm
near Topeka, will build a house on it
and live thare. If his crops fail he can
receive checks from the Roosevelt ad
, ministration.
'1
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASK1N.
A reader can get the answer to any
question of fact by writing The Evening
Star Information Bureau, Frederic J.
Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C.
Please inclose stamp for reply.
Q. When collecting a winning ticket
at the race track I notice that the cashier
always tears off the comer. Why does ha
do this?—G. V.
A. The tickets are printed on special
paper and by tearing them the cashier
can tell whether they are genuine or
counterfeit.
Q. How many newspapers are owned by
William Randolph Hearst?—A. P.
A. According to a recent article In
Editor and Publisher, William Randolph
Hearst now owns 25 dailies, 13 maga
zines and 10 radio stations. What is
described as the $220,000,000 empire of
the celebrated publisher includes news
paper syndicates, wire services, motion
pictures, mines and real estate.
Q. How much tax-exempt property do
the churches own In the United States?
—S. M.
A. They own about four billion dollars’
worth of tax-exempt property.
Q. What career did Frank Sauliere,
the youngest member of the A. E. F.(
follow when he grew up?—T. B.
A. He enlisted at Bordeau, France, in
1917, at the age of 12 years 7 months.
After the war he attended college and
became a newspaper man. He is now on
the staff of a Boston newspaper.
Q When did Sherlock Holmes first
appear in literature?—M. F.
A. He was introduced in 1887 in ‘‘Study
in Scarlet.”
Q. What was the Baring Panic?—
L. H. S.
A. This panic in England in 1890 came
at the end of a period of violent over
speculation. The failure of the broker
age house of Baring Brothers precipi
tated the panic which at once spread to
a number of other banks and brokerage
houses. The intensity was alleviated bv
loans of gold obtained by the Bank of
England from the Bank of St. Peters
burg and the Bank of France.
Q Is Gabriele d'Annunzio living? If
so, how old is he?—W. H.
A. The poet was 74 years old on
March 12.
Q. How long has the ceremony which
will be followed in the coronation of
King George VI been used?—F. D.
A. The ritual known as the Liber
Regalis, adopted in 1307, has, with some
modifications from time to time, been
used in the crowning of all English
Kings since that date, and will be fol
lowed in the 1937 ceremony.
Q. Please give the salaries of some
of the highest paid radio comedians.
—H. R.
A. Eddie Cantor is reported to receive
$15,000 for each half hour program.
Burns and Allen receive $10,000 per
broadcast; Jack Benny, $9,500; Fred
Allen, between $5,000 and $6,000; A1
Jolson, $5,500; Ed Wynn, $5,500; Phil
Baker, $4,000; Milton Berle, $2,500, and
Charlie Butterworth, $1,500.
Q. Did Joe Miller ever compile a joke
book?—S. N.
A. Joe Miller, a popular comedian who
lived from 1684 to 1738, could neither
read nor write. After Miller’s death,
John Mottley compiled a book of Jokes
which he called "Joe Miller’s Jests.’’
Q. Please give some information about
the exclusive skiing resort in Idaho.
—H. W.
A. Sun Valley Lodge at Ketchum,
Idaho, was built at a cost of over $1,
500,000. The lodge has 250 rooms and
there are such features as an outdoor
hot-water swimming pool, chair ski lifts,
a solarium, clinic and a ski-supply shop.
Besides skiing, some of the outdoor
sports are dog sledding, paddle tennis,
curling, fishing and hunting.
Q. Have any of the gangsters and
racketeers prosecuted by Thomas Dewey
been acquitted?—G. T.
A. Mr. Dewey's record shows a score
of 53 convictions and no acquittals.
Q. What proportion of the land area
of the United States is drained by the
Mississippi River?—I. D.
A. About two-fifths of the area.
Q. Who wrote the "Comedie Humaine”?
—W. H.
A. This is the title of an uncompleted
series of nearly a hundred novels by
Balzac, designed to give a panoramic
picture of the manners and morals ol
the time. He began the work in 1829,
adopting the general title in 1842.
Q. Did the captain of the Titanic go
down with the ship?—J. A. A.
A. Capt. E. C. Smith of the S. S.
Titanic perished with the ship.
Q. Who was Parson Brownlaw?—H. P.
A. He was a camp meeting convert from
the mountains of Tennessee who rose
to fame as a lay preacher on a circuit
including five States. He used as weap
ons the Bible and a pistol, and had few
equals as a master of invective. He
spared no man or issue in his vitriolic
attacks. The following example of hii
lusty eloquence is from a lecture he
made shortly after the Civil War: “If 1
had been authorized some two or three 1
years ago to select about two or three
hundred of your most abominable anti
slavery agitators in the North, and an
equal number of God-forsaken and hell
deserving Disunionists at the South, and
had marched them to the District ol
Columbia, hanged them on a common
gallows, dug for them a common grave
and embalmed their bodies in jimson
weed and dog-fennel, there would have
been none of this trouble.”
A Rhyme at Twilight
By
Gertrude Brooke Hamilton.
Vagabonds.
Man, in his trailer, in bleak Wintertime
Motors along to a sunnier clime;
There, for a season, takes up his abode;
Then, Spring days beckoning, trails a
new road.
Birds, on fleet wings, when the cold
weather comes
Migrate to warmer, yet transient homes;
Northward again is their gay, carelesi
flight,
Trailing, in Springtime, the sun’s shifting
light.
Nomads of the earth, nomads of the air,
The instinct to seek newer regions thej
share:
Far cruising alike, on wings or on tire*,
They rest on the roads or on telegraph
wires.