Evening star. [volume], April 22, 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.
THURSDAY.-.April *2, 1937
THEODORE W. NOYES.Editor
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herein are also reserved.
The Relief Item.
A tug of war is coming in Congress
between those who believe that Federal
relief appropriations must be reduced
and those who maintain that Federal
relief, like the brook, must go on for
ever—on a large scale. The President
in his message to Congress on Tuesday
recommended an appropriation of $1,
600,000.000 for work relief for the fiscal
year 1938. In his original budget esti
mate last January, the President said
if the appropriations for relief could
be held to $1,537,123,000, the budget for
1938 could be held in balance. Since
that time it has been discovered that
the revenue from taxes would be hun
dreds of millions of dollars less than had
been estimated. It is this failure of the
tax laws to bring in the expected revenue
that has caused the immediate upset
of the apple cart.
There has been a distinct feeling, how
ever, among many people that until the
Federal Government really sinks its teeth
in the problem of reduction of relief
expenditures, there will be little chance
of balancing the budget. They would
have welcomed a recommendation by
the President, therefore, that the relief
item be less than $1,500,000,000. Even
a reduction to $1,400,000,000 would have
encouraged them.
President Roosevelt undoubtedly be
lieves that he is correct in estimating a
billion and a half dollars for relief. He
has been firmly convinced that the Fed
eral Government must see to it that
relief is granted to men and women
without work and without means of sup
porting themselves, and there is nothing
to indicate that he has changed this
opinion. The chances are, however,
that if a billion and a half or two
billion dollars be appropriated for relief,
It will be expended. The distributors
Will see to that.
The proposal is now advanced by
Senator Byrnes of South Carolina and
other members of Congress that the
relief appropriation be reduced to a
billion dollars—on the theory that It Is
better to try to get along on such an
amount and later, if necessary, augment
the appropriation when Congress meets
again next January. Certainly a billion
dollars will carry the country through
half the next fiscal year, which begins
July 1, if it can get along on a billion
and a half for the whole year. It seems
the part of wisdom to try to make the
billion-dollar appropriation do for the
entire year, and to discourage the dis
tributors.
It has never been possible to bring
about a public investigation of the dis
tribution of Federal relief. Demand after
demand was made for such an investi
gation last year. A national political
campaign was under way. The Senatorial
committee which was authorized to
make such an investigation—the Sena
torial Campaign Investigating Commit
tee—sat on the lid. Now that the cam
paign is out of the way, there seems
not even a practical reason why such
an inquiry should not be carried out.
Certainly congressional committees with
the responsibility of recommending ap
propriations for relief should have all
the data they can have, should know
all they can know' of how these tre
mendous relief funds have been ex
pended.
The wave of economy sentiment
which has struck Congress is due in
large part to a real fear that the credit
of the country may be injured if there
is not a halt in huge expenditures of
Government funds and also to a real
fear that if there is no such halt, the
alternative will be the imposition of
higher and higher taxes. It has been a
popular thing to spend money. It always
Is. It is not so popular when it comes
to paying.
Little Satisfactions.
Not many individuals are destined to
Win great victories, achieve large rewards
or enjoy distinctive fame. But a vast
number of people are entitled to share
In a multitudinous quantity of little
satisfactions whose importance ought
not to be underestimated in an appraisal
of the values of existence.
For example, a resident of Washing
ton recently went camera-hunting in
nearby Maryland, walked approximately
a dozen miles over unfamiliar roads and
cultivated in the latter portion of his
expedition a prodigious thirst. The
weather was unseasonably warm and
the man was ‘‘out of practice” for
strenuous exercise. So it happened that
he arrived in a tiny village in the back
country weary to his very soul and
almost literally gasping for a drink of
water. A wayside tavern accommodated
him, and the proprietor stood by with a
philosophic comprehension on his face
the while he rediscovered the pleasures
of a cool glass generously anticipated.
Similarly, a native inhabitant of the
District of Columbia long ago re- J
marked: “I know of nothing that has
pleased me more than the removal of
the old Calvert Street Bridge. For
twenty years I hated Its ugliness and
feared the possibility of its collapse
with tragic loss of life. Now it is gone,
and whenever I cross the valley and
behold its graceful successor I feel like
clapping my hands and cheering with
sheer delight at the improvement.” The
speaker may be a temperamental fa
natic, but ha belongs to a majority.
Practically everybody entertains at least
one “pet peeve”; also experiences, on
occasion, a gratification sweet beyond
the power of words to tell. Whole
nations went momentarily mad with
happiness in November, 1918, when the
World War ended. Their reaction was
not basically different from that of the
ardent admirer of Theodore Roosevelt
who dropped dead of felicity when by
accident he met his hero face to face!
But most satisfactions are less cata
clysmic in their effect. The genial com
fort of a kindly fire on a Winter eve
ning; the soft breeze of an early morn
ing in May; the gentle fragrance of
June roses; the quiet mists which cur
tain Autumn woodlands; the thrill of
graduating from school and the excite
ment of appointment to a first job; the
pride of possessing a home and the
luxury of parenthood; the blessing of
work done and honest effort appreciated;
the gladness which accompanies re
covery from illness—all these, it seems,
are little scraps of sunshine which ap
pear in every sky. No chronicler may
record them, no poet bother to sing
about them. The explanation, perhaps,
is that they, providentially, are so mar
velous common.
The British Budget.
Describing it as a ‘‘national defense
contribution,” Chancellor of the Ex
chequer Chamberlain has confronted
British taxpayers with the most stag
gering budget in the nation’s contem
porary history. As part and parcel of
the scheme to finance the vast £1,500,
000,000 rearmament program, the gov
ernment proposes drastic levies both on
private incomes and business profits. An
Increase of 1.25 per cent in income tax
will raise that impost to 25 per cent,
or, ,'n terms of American money, to one
dollar on every four which a British
taxpayer earns. Business will be sub
ject to a tax of 33’a per cent on all new
earnings over the average of the past
three years. Heralded by one observer
as ‘‘the most savage budget” since the
monetary crisis of 1931, the govern
ment's own supporters are left stunned
and resentful, although the Tory ma
jority in Parliament is sufficient to
assure approval of the program even
in the teeth of violent protest.
The new budget signals to the whole
world the deadly determination of
Great Britain to shoulder the defense
burden which international conditions
impose upon her, no matter at what
sacrifice. The chancellor of the ex
chequer leaves no doubt that his de
mands must be fulfilled if the essential
requirements of the army, navy and
air force are to be met. Although the
British people are thus brought to
realize that their national finances are
being placed on practically a war foot
ing, their mood is to face the situation
manfully, in the realization that the
contemplated measures are designed in
fact to avert the more dreadful and far
costlier catastrophe of war.
.The exchequer reckons that the new
taxes will produce revenue resulting in
a surplus of £252.000, instead of a deficit
of £14,898,000, on the basis of present
taxation. Although the income rate is
to be raised to five shillings in the
pound, existing exemptions for single
persons and married men with families
will remain. It is estimated that the
gross tax increase will provide an addi
tional £75,000,000 annually, with a grand
total revenue of £275,000,000. Tax re
turns from business profits, likely to be
relatively small at first, are expected
eventually to yield from £20,000,000 to
£25,000,000 annually, dependent on con
tinuance of good times. Apart from tax
funds to finance rearmament, the gov
ernment plans an extensive series of
loan issues, which will eventually place
fresh loads on taxpayers’ backs.
Mr. Chamberlain presents the ex
chequer's case with almost brutal
frankness. He confesses that armament
will overshadow the budget for several
years to come. With industrial recovery
steadily on the march, the government
has no lack of confidence that, heavy
as are the burdens now to be imposed,
they can be carried without undue
strain. They come at a time when
British credit is exceptionally high and
revenue expanding in all directions.
This comforting prospect, the Chancellor
points out, can only be arrested by some
great international disturbance beyond
British control or by reckless expendi
ture upon objects not vitally necessary.
Our British cousins, facing facts in a
spirit of grim realism, are courage
ously and unmistakably minded to see
things through until world conditions
present a happier outlook for them
selves and the rest of mankind.
Language Expanding.
It is the business of language to grow
and there can be no doubt that English
is expanding at a consistent pace. From
Albany, for example, there comes Just
now a dispatch which illustrates in con
vincing fashion the current vitality of
the common speech of the American
people. The story quotes an opinion
handed down by Judge Irving Lehman
in the New York State Court of Appeals
concerning the phrase “overage” as em
ployed in the motion picture industry.
Said the learned justice: “The parties
who made the contract presumably un
derstood the meaning of the words they
used. * • * xhe parties may, if they
choose, use their own special dictionaries,
but when they ask the uninitiated to
construe their contracts they must fur
nish them with dictionaries they have
used.”
But Judge Lehman did not quarrel
with the prince involved. It simply
never occurred to him to challenge the
right of the appellants to communicate
among themselves In a Jargon of their
own selection. The privilege so to do Is
a natural prerogative which is exercised
by everybody everywhere. Cinematog
raphy, like other sciences, is articulate.
Its practitioners have developed a tech
nique which required new terminology.
They have sponsored new words and
likewise new interpretations for words
not new. Thus, ‘'lot” signifies ‘‘the head
quarters where motion pictures are pro
duced when special natural backgrounds
are not needed,” "throw” represents "pro
jection distance,” "footage” refers to "the
number of feet of film exposed on a
scene” and a “playback” is “a first re
production of a talkie for criticism.”
Similarly, radio has adapted to its own
purposes the words “announcer,” “an
tenna,” “channel,” “continuity,” “dial,”
"frequency,” "oscillation,” “pig-taii,” "re
flex,” “selectivity,” "sensitivity,” “spa
ghetti,” “spot,” “static,” “tickler” and
"wavetrap”—all worse than Greek to av
erage ears. And aviation, following the
same rule of procedure, has given circu
lation to “ace,” "air pocket,” "amphibian,”
“apron,” “bank,” "blimp,” “bus,” “ceil
ing,” "crate,” "downwash,” “drift,” “ele
vator,” “endurance,” "envelope,” "fin,”
“glider,” “grass cutting,” "hedge hop
ping,” “horn,” “jenny,” "joy-stick,” "pan
cake,” "pusher,” “stabilizer,” "taxi,”
“windmill” and "zoom”—mysteries to the
mind of a non-flyer.
Gradually, however, the specialized
jargon becomes absorbed into the stand
ard conversational pattern of the Na
tion and thus is assured of admission to
the formal lexicon of the whole cultural
community. Perhaps as much as half
the contents of an unabridged dictionary
traces back to particular invention for
particular application. Religion and law,
all the arts and crafts, every form of
labor, indeed every aspect of human
thought adds energy to the art of com
munication whose synonyms are "talk”
and "literature." Judge Lehman, there
fore, was not disturbed. He merely called
attention to a phenomenon of vast and
authentic interest.
-. mmm -
There is magic in a single word. Many
a radio audience is rescued from a state
of depression by timely reminder of the
need of fortitude expressed in the word
“cheerio!” The trees given in friendly
reminder by Japan might be insured
against further attack if the practice
could be established of referring to them
as "cheerio” trees.
Even the carousel of the roadside
“carnival” may have its solemn signi
ficance as it recalls the revenges which
the clown in “Twelfth Night” associates
with “The Whirligig of Time.”
The news phographers are always kind
to Aimee McPherson. Like the tattooed
lady, she has undoubted charm, much
of which consists in looking at the
pictures.
Inflation resembles an experiment cor
responding to the fiat method of creat
ing Kentucky colonels, who glisten
bravely but are of little good for action
even of a political nature.
Shooting Stars.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
Destination. ,
We've traveled through the sunshine and
we've traveled through the snow’.
We've traveled sometimes when we
thought we had no place to go.
We've had our hours of happiness. We've
had our hours of care.
But so long as we keep travelin’ we are
sure to get somewhere.
Each sunrise is a sign post that will point
the road anew.
Where we’re leavin’ from won’t matter
much as where we're goin’ to.
There have been some dreary places, but
the hills are bright and fair.
And so long as we keep travelin’ we are
sure to get somewhere.
Investigation.
“Do you enjoy all these Investiga
tions?”
“Not any more,” answered Senator
Sorghum. "They so often make what
at first proved to be only idle gossip an
example of cruel fact that is breaking
up old friendships and costing real
money.”
“Men are prone to disagree,” said Hi
Ho, the sage of Chinatown. “Even so
simple a question as that of the time
of day will cause calculations that yield
different answers.”
Low Ambition.
A dizzy course he’ll run
And face some loss,
Who merely seeks the fun
Of being boss.
Jud Tunkins says if the future were
as sad as some of us think, one thunder
storm would make people quit buying
garden seeds and purchase nothing but
umbrellas.
Unhappy Highwaymen.
“Any highwaymen in Crimson Gulch?”
said the commercial traveler.
“A few,” answered Cactus Joe. “You
can see their dust a quarter of a mile up
the road.”
“What are they running away from?”
“You. The last high-power salesman
that hit the village left the boys so tied up
with monthly installments that they
won’t be able to pay for years to come.”
April Fooling.
The First of April came and went
And still you are uncertain.
The clouds that hide discontent
Hang like a fluttering curtain.
We see a tendency so strong
To an erratic ruling
And say, “Won’t you please go along
And try to stop your fooling.”
“De world in general," said Uncle
Eben, “seems purty much de same like
It is around here. Now and then a time
Is bound, to come when everybody has to
quit UJ£jp' polities and to to work.” ■'
Jefferson-Madison Hospital
Suggested as Memorial
To the Editor of Tile St»r:
On behalf of many whose opinions I
have heard, and many more no doubt will
agree, I have been prevailed upon to
set forth “our” views.
We object to the destruction of any
of our beautiful cherry trees. Men may
build memorials, poets write verses, but
only God can make a tree.
Every city of prominence has some
special attraction that makes it “stand
out” from other cities. These beautiful
cherry trees are Washington’s chief nat
ural attraction. Diplomatically it would
be an insult to Japan for their gift, If
such are destroyed.
Materially these cherry trees during
their blossoming season bring many
guests here, who spend much money in
this city.
The arrangement where these trees
now are is splendid, if left undisturbed.
Another monument similar to Lin
coln’s and nearby will have a tendency
to detract from Lincoln's. This should
always remain supreme. I am not, nor
are those whom I represent, unmindful
of the appropriateness of a monument
or memorial to the illustrious Jefferson.
Let us not be misunderstood on that
point. There are many distinguished
people whom we should remember when
the hungry are fed and the jobless at
work and our economic situation on a
more sound basis than at present.
Whereas Thomas Jefferson wrote most
of our Declaration of Independence and
otherwise served our country nobly,
James Madison wrote our Constitution
and contributed able service also.
I am sure if Thomas Jefferson were
living he would prefer his memorial to
be something useful to mankind; also
James Madison. It would detract from
neither to combine the two. Why not
erect a hospital, connecting therewith
a free clinic of the finest in the United
States for children and the aged par
ticularly. Have this built in a down
town area, clear away many old and
unsightly buildings and erect this use
ful and everlasting monument, help
ful to mankind as well as a thing of
beauty. May all the legislators, the
committee in charge and those in whose
hands this decision rests gravely con
sider our humble suggestions, bearing
in mind the greatest character ever to
leave his Imprint upon the imaginations
of this world gave his life for humanity.
Prayers and acclaim for a Jefferson
Madison Memorial Hospital.
AGNES TAYLOR MILLER.
Memorial Arch Proposed
As Tribute to Jefferson
To the Editor of The Star:
Haven't we enough stone and marble
buildings in Washingon without adding
another and thereby marring the major
beauty spot of America? The loveli
ness of nature in these enchanting
cherry trees abloom, mirrored in the
Waters of the basin, are surely more
soul-inspiring and enjoyable than the
proposed memorial to Thomas Jefferson
couid possibly be.
I3 this day when the Constitution is
lightly regarded why should we in de
termining the location of this memorial
be influenced by adherence to the
L'Enfant plan? The present project is
universally condemned. Its execution
would be worse than a blunder. It would
be a crime.
Why not erect in Jefferson’s memory
a beautiful arch on Constitution avenue,
a location where it can be easily seen
by our visitors, whose numbers increase
every year? No one who has seen the
Arc de Triomphe in Paris and the marble
arch in Hyde Park, London, in honor of
England's hero. Lord Nelson, can ever
forget their dignity, beauty and state
liness. These will stand when all other
buildings of Paris and London will be
In ruins.
Only two types of buildings of the
ancient world survive—the arches of
Rome and the pyramids of Egypt.
Arches are graceful and ornamental,
while pyramids are homely and clutter
up the landscape. We have two arches
in this country, neither important, one
in New York and one in Brooklyn.
Jefferson would never have condoned
the destruction of the unrivaled beauty
of these cherry trees, which reflect their
celestial loveliness in the bywaters of
the Potomac, referred to by former
Ambassador Bryce as “the most beau
tiful inland lake adjoining any capital
in the world.”
Jefferson would be fittingly honored
with a magnificent arch, imperishable
as is his fame, one built with stones
and marble contributed by each of our
States, as was the Washington Monu
ment, a memorial which would dignify
and ornament the Nation’s Capital.
MRS. CHARLTON M. CLARK.
Washingtonians May Have
To Organize in Self-Defense
To the Editor of The Star:
The approved plan to uproot the Jap
anese cherry trees and put a concrete
fill in the Tidal Basin as start on a
memorial which will cost the taxpayers
several million dollars raises the ques
tion whether the public that pays the
bills, but whose wishes in the matter are
not consulted, should not in self-pro
tection organize a society to prevent the
further perpetration of monuments and
memorials.
While it is doubtless true that all such
undertakings are useful to certain
groups since they provide publicity for
their authors, profits for the architects
and for the concerns that supply the
materials, and, not infrequently, val
uable opportunities for the politicians,
they do not always appear designed in
the interest of the general public.
In view of the considerations in
volved it would seem not unreasonable
to suggest that any monument to be
erected or memorial to be established
at the public expense should be required
to meet certain minimum conditions as
follows: (1) There should be a recog
nized public demand, (2) the monu
ment or memorial should serve a useful
public purpose, (3) it should be some
thing of enduring worth or beauty, (4)
its construction should not involve the
destruction of existing beauty which be
longs to the public, (5) the planning,
award and construction should be so
supervised as to insure protection of the
public Interests and avoidance of pos
sible favoritism and graft.
E. M. JOHNSON.
Government Purchase of
Monticello Again Proposed
To the Editor of The Star:
If it is necessary at this time to have
a memorial to the late great Thomas
Jefferson why could not the Federal
Government purchase the Jefferson estate
at Monticello? L. E. PFANKUCHEN.
Works Both Ways.
Prom the Atlanta Journal.
Octavus Roy Cohen says contract
bridge has ruined conversation. And
vice versa, Octavus; vice versa.
Not For the Judge’s Ears.
From tha Green Bar Preza-Gazette.
To err to human, to forgive divine—
but It’s useless to mention it to the
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.
x wu uuuK.5 aireaay nave maae meir ap
pearance poking fun at gardening, and
no doubt more are on the way, because
gardeners of all types take themselves so
very seriously.
Both professionals and amateurs inter
ested in horticulture tend to look upon
their occupation and recreation with
genuinely bated breath. As for the
writers—
Gardening is real and gardening is
earnest—or at least so the hopeful reader
is informed, whether the work in hand
be educational or otherwise.
It is no wonder that some irrespresslble
souls have found this state of mind
humorous, and have seen fit to remind
us that gardening has its lighter side,
too.
That is why we have always made a
point of trying to keep tongue in cheek
while contemplating the garden and its
activities.
The tendency of all real lovers of the
outdoors is to take their activities there
with perhaps a mite too much serious
ness, as if what they were doing were the
only thing in the world worth doing.
* * * *
This is not their fault alone.
It is a failure of the age.
Especially in America we have devel
oped a naive belief that we have Just
discovered things that have been known
to mankind for centuries.
No doubt this comes about partly be
cause so many more persons today are
acquiring "background.” There even is
a book on how to acquire it!
There is an avid desire on the part of
millions to give themselves this elusive
thing, for want of a better name com
monly called background, but which
might better be called roots.
* * * *
Not only do thousands, therefore,
calmly assume that they have discovered
in 1937 photography, music, literature,
sports, foods, drama, magazines, garden
ing, tropical fishes, chess, houses, motor
boats and a thousand more things, but
they all tend to the extremely trusting
belief that because they are at last
Interested in these things that some
how these things must be extremely
better than ever before.
Old fogies, of course, couldn't possibly
have known such music as they know.
Why, didn't they throw out the entire
score of a well-known musical comedy
and "do” it all over again! And wasn't
the new far better than the old!
If any one dared to stand up for the
old, the only possible answer was he
was old himself.
Wouldn’t that be enough to floor him?
* * * *
The naive belief of the youngsters that
they alone of the ages have discovered
something worth while is extremely re
freshing.
It is a playboy attitude which marks
the adolescent mind, and often survives
far into so-called maturity.
Surely the natural tendency of man
is to overestimate the personal interest,
and to become obsessed with it, if at
all possible.
And so with gardening.
As delightful a hobby as this is with
thousands, it is very old. even in its
modern forms. It is true that no other
age managed to write many long and
beautiful books upon flower arrange
ment in vases.
No, in the old days people thought it
sufficient to pick flowers from the garden
and poke them into vases any old way.
iney mougni mat aumcient. But to
day such arrangement Is called “In
formal,” very.
We are told to believe that no right
thinking person would dare to select
flowers from his garden without first
studying the elements of beauty, then
applying them with his posies and his
vases.
This attitude finally drew a protest
from an eminent professor. He wrote to
a very prominent horticultural maga
zine, declaring that as fine as flower ar
rangement is, from several standpoints,
Its modern application has been carried
to extremes.
* * * *
What he really meant, without ,a
doubt, was that people were inclining to
the too serious view of gardening.
That Is why two books have appeared
poking fun at the hobby, why more will
come from the presses, as people begin
to relax.
We should enjoy gardening, above all,
else leave It to people who do.
Those who fuss and fume and even
fight over their gardening are going
at it the wrong way, and will pay for It
by losing much, If not all, of the sheer
Joy of the thing.
There Is a joy in being outdoors, even
in the smallest garden. The plot of
ground may be only enough for a small
pool and a few shrubs, but if the propo
sition Is gone at with tongue in cheek,
to some extent, at least, there Is every
chance that the rewards may be large.
* * * *
The good earth’s gifts not only sustain
us, but pay us back in more ways than
one.
The man with a seven-hundred-acre
farm may find It only worry and loss,
whereas he who genuinely loves his few
peonies may find Increased happiness In
their contemplation.
They sneered at Elbert Hubbard for
loving his white flowers, but today many
are seeing that he was right, after all.
They are willing to admit now that he
accepted the good in them to mind and
soul, without worrying too much about
their arrangement, the pests that -de
voured them, or the correct ways to
grow them.
* * * *
Keep your tongue in your cheek when
you are gardening. Don't let the ex
perts bluff you!
The most surprising things may be
done, in any garden, by the most Igno
rant people. They buy seeds which are
“no good,” yet manage to raise the most
astounding flowers.
Here, side by side, one good neighbor
does what the books say, digs down two
feet, puts in good soil and plenty of
fertilizer, sows aster seeds, Anally raises
a crop of puny blossoms, with most of
the plants struck down in their prime
by the “yellows.”
Another good neighbor does no digging
at all, spends not even a cent for fer
tilizer. buys aster seeds put up by a
seedsman no one ever heard of, grows
masses and masses of huge, beautiful
blossoms on sturdy and disease-free
plants which are a pleasure to behold.
Take the advice of the experts, but
use you own mind and follow- your own
wishes, as far as you can and desire. In
this way only will the full fruits of
gardening happiness come Into being.
Don’t become so wrapped up in the
hobby that you think nothing else, or
talk nothing else. Gardening is good,
but so is dinner. We Insist, so is dinner.
STARS, MEN AND ATOMS
Notebook of Science Progress in Field,
Laboratory and Study,
BY THOMAS R. HENRY.
Demonic titans of the ancient seas
whose bones lie scattered in the rocks of
50.000,000-year-old beaches may reveal to
paleontologists the dry-land ancestry of
the whales.
These were the archeoceti, or toothed
whales—creatures closely related to the
whales and porpoises of today, but not
ancestral to them and not so thoroughly
changed from the land mammals. The
largest of them, the basilosaurus whose
fossils bones have been found in the Gulf
States, w’as an animal 55 to 60 feet long
—doubtless one of the most formidable
beasts that ever lived. It-had the size
and all the means of offense and defense
of the reptile monsters of the oceans
which had disappeared. In addition, it
had an excellent brain.
A systematic study of these old whales
has just been carried out by Dr. Reming
ton Kellogg, National Museum scientist,
under a grant from the Carnegie Insti
tution of Washington in an effort to
decipher in their bones the land creatures
from whom they sprang. They may be
considered as first cousins to the whales
and porpoises of today, arising from
the same ancestors, but not so thor
oughly adapted to life exclusively in the
water. There is evidence, for instance,
that the monstrous basilosaurus was
equipped to raise the front part of its
body into the air at frequent intervals.
He probably lived in shallow water.
Others did not attain so great a size,
but may have been equally ferocious.
How did a land-dwelling mammal
change itself in the course of a few mil
lion years into a warm-blooded fish—a
creature for whom leaving the water
means drowning in air? This has been
a persistent puzzle to zoologists. The
whale is unquestionably of mammal
stock. It must trace its origin back to
the primitive mammals that rose out of
a dinosaur stock in the last days of the
great reptiles, about 120,000,000 years ago.
It has a common ancestry with bear,
elephant, mouse and man. Yet its struc
ture is so highly specialized for life in
the water that it has been impossible,
up to the present, even to suggest a family
tree. The monsters of the mammal world
are quite different from other water
mammals, such as seal or manatee. These
are still amphibian, at home either on
land or water. The whale is purely
aquatic.
From clues a'fforded by the bones of
the long extinct archeoceti Dr. Kellogg
comes to the conclusion that they were
descendants of some ancient creodont
insectivore—a creature with teeth evolved
for eating insects which preceded the
differentiation of mammals into the
dominant stocks of today—such as the
flesh-eaters, the primates or the hoofed
mammals. The direct ancestor, he be
lieves, must have been a flesh-eating
mammal with an elongated body, rather
long trunk and compressed tail like a
river otter of today. It may not have
been any larger. This creature hunted
its prey on the sea shore.
Now about 75,000,000 years ago the
enormous, flesh-eating reptiles of the
seas had become rather suddenly ex
tinct. Only the ancestors of the croco
diles remained to represent them in a
new age. The shore-dwelling creature,
naturally adapted for swimming, prob
ably encountered considerable competi
tion in the capture of food from other
mammals on the land side of its habitat.
More and more it turned to the sea
where there was plenty of food and no
worthwhile competition. Gradually it
came to spend more tig# in the water
1
than on land and as generation suc
ceeded generation its body became more
and more structurally adapted to an
ocean life. It had. for instance, very !
little use any longer for its short hind
legs. They were a hindrance rather
than a help. Eventually in the process
of evolution they were dropped entirely.
A plentiful food supply for which there
was little competition brought about an
increase in size. This, in turn, required
more food, and wider and wider excur
sions into the great deeps. Greater and
greater bodily adaptations were required,
and a change in food habits. Unlike the
land mammal, the whale could eat his
food only as he caught it. He could
not drag it to his lair and hide It. Thus
required a complete change in the "Insect
eating teeth” which In the more spe
cialized whales and porpoises of the
present completely conceals the evi
dence of ancestry.
A Jefferson Memorial in
Keeping With Character
To the Editor of The Star:
"In the Declaration of Independence
Jefferson gave a stop-signal to kings
on the one side and on the other a
beckoning hand to common humanity
that the road might be clear to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
A memorial to Jefferson that would
be an expression in keeping with his
character would be homes for orphan
children and the Indigent aged, those
unfortunate ones who are at the be
ginning and nearing the end of the
journey.
We can ill afford to destroy the beauty
of the gorgeous cherry blossoms and the
sentiment of friendship which these
beautiful trees represent merely that a
marble memorial may be reflected in the
waters.
It would more truly reflect the char
acter of the noble Jefferson to locate
two such memorial homes in beautiful
Rock Creek Park, one on the sunrise
side and the other on the sunset side,
where the aged might enjoy it as their
country estate, and where orphan chil
dren might be safe away from the
turmoil and traffic of the city streets.
OLIVIA MEGREW.
Literally True.
From the Illinois State Journal.
Scientists have discovered the existence
of waves in the brain. Apparently a
brainstorm Is more than a figure of
speech.
Three Years of Fun.
From the Sioux City Tribune.
Pessimistic industrialist says we're to
have three years of boom and then an
other collapse. Well, but think of the
fun we’ll have in the meantime.
Sure Way to Abolish.
From the Flint (Mich.) Journal.
If we want to abolish Congress, ali
that is necessary is to follow Senator
Pittman’s suggestion that the debates
be broadcast.
The Real Hero.
From tha Williamsport Sun.
A Vienna barber won a'contest by
shaving a .man in 18 seconds. The
customer should get a medal for bravery.
ANSWERS TO
QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. H ASK IN.
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 Icrr reply.
Q. When did the Spanish Civil War
Jtart?—M. W.
A. It commenced on July 17, 1936,
when a militarist revolt, beginning in
Spanish Morocco, accross the Mediter
ranean, spread to Spain.
Q. How many men have enrolled in
C. C. C. camps since they started and
what has been the average length of en
rollment?—E. J.
A. Approximately 2,000,000 men have
been trained in the Civilian Conservation
Corps. Eight months has been the aver
age enrollment.
Q. Where in New York is the play
ground named after President Roose
velt's mother?—M. P.
A. The Sara Delano Roosevelt Play
ground is on the lower East Side, New
York City, and is said to be the largest
playground of its kind in the world.
Q. How long has the G. k C. Merriam
Co. been publishing Webster's Diction
ary?—S. H.
A. Since 1828. The last edition is its
tenth. It contains over 600,000 entries.
Q. Was Monterey at one time the
most Important city in California?—
H. M.
A. Monterey was formerly the most en
terprising city of California and the
principal military, commercial and finan
cial center. It played an important part
in the jealousies that divided the north
ern and the southern settlements. Ex
cept for a short time 0845-1847) it was
the capital of California until the con
stitution of the new State was adopted
In 1849. It was the county seat until
1872. The first American newspaper on
the Coast was published here and in
Colton Hall met the convention which
framed the first constitution of the State.
The first theater in California, the first
brick house and the first house of planed
lumber were built in Monterey. APer
the discovery of gold its importance de
clined and San Francisco took the lead
ing place.
Q. In what show is Gertrude LawTenc'1
playing since the Noel Coward shows
closed?—E. M.
A. Miss Lawrence is starring in Rachel
Crothers’ latest comedy, ‘Susan and
God.”
Q. Where is Bellechasse, the home of
Judah P. Benjamin, that may be re
stored as a memorial?—M. H.
A. It is about 20 miles by river from
the foot of Canal street, New Orleans.
An effort is being made to secure funds
to restore the house on his old sugar
plantation. Benjamin was a lawyer,
United States Senator and member of
the cabinet of the Confederate States.
His last years were spent abroad, where
he distinguished himself in his profes
sion.
Q. When is the Cincinnati Music
Festival to be held?—K. M.
A. Cincinnati will hold its Thirty-sec
ond Biennial Music Festival May 2-9.
Q. What is the American Rocket So
ciety?—L. P.
A. It is an association of engineers
and chemists who are making a practical,
yet scientific series of tests with rockets
by operating a proving stand to learn
what may be expected of a rocket under
varying conditions. They devote their
spare time on Saturday afternoons and
Sundays to these experiments.
Q. How many scenarios has Frances
Marion written?—K. L.
A. During the 20 years in which she
has been writing for the movies. Miss
Marion has sold more than 400 screen
stories, adaptations or scenarios.
Q. Please describe Marshal Foch s
tomb.—E. W. H.
A. The tomb of Marshal Ferdinand
Foch in the chapel of St. Ambroise in
the Invalides is in the form of a memorial
above a marble sarcophagus. It wa3
designed by the sculptor, Paul Landow
ski, and consists of a group of eight
poilus, who bear on their shoulders a
bier covered with laurel branches on
which lies the effigy of the marshal in
his uniform of war days. On three sides
of the base are reliefs showing the armies
of his command. On the fourth side
are the dates of his birth and death.
Q. What 1* the meaning of meristem?
—H. L.
Q. It is a botanical term for tissue
which has the power of developing new
forms of tissue, such as the cambium
from which new wood is developed or
the tissue at the apex, which is respon
sible for the growth in length of stem or
root.
Q. Please give some information abo.it
Mary Anne Talbot, the British Amazon.
—'T. W.
A. Mary Anne Talbot was born in Lon
don on February 2, 1778. Early in her
career she eloped in the disguise of a bo.v
with a captain. In 1792 she was a
drummer in Flanders. In the capture of
Valenciennes her lover was killed and
she deserted and became a caDin boy on
a French lugger. It was captured by tha
British, who transferred her to tha
Brunswick, where she served as a powder
monkey, being wounded in Lord Howe's
victory of June 1. 1794. For this she re
ceived a small pension. When the wound
healed she again went to sea, was cap
tured by the French and imprisoned for
a year and a half. Her sex was not dis
covered until shortly afterward she was
seized by a pressgang. She later became
a household servant to Robert Kirby, a
London publisher, who included an ac
count of her adventures in several books.
Q. What year did the United States
have its first income tax?—W. F. W.
A. The Federal income tax was first
imposed in 1916.
Unity.
Prom the Indianapolis Star.
Prom an apparel point of view Sally
Rand and Gypsy Rose Lee might be
said to have nothing in common.
A Rhyme at Twilight
By
Gertrude Brooke Hamilton.
In Retrospect.
The memory of a radiant day;
A cherished dream now laid away;
A melody divinely played;
The agony of hopes delayed;
First ownership of house or land;
The touch of a beloved hand;
The hour when some high idol fell;
Youth’s earliest taste of Heaven, or hell;
The thrill of a transcendent night;
A handclasp in a still twilight—
Vivid, forever set apart.
They hurt the heart! They hurt tha
.heart! &