Evening star. [volume], September 25, 1937, Page A-6, Image 6

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

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THE EVENING STAR
With Sunday Morning Edition,
WASHINGTON. D. C. I
SATURDAY.September *5, 1937
THEODORE W. NOYES.Editor
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The Coolidge Doctrine.
While it is well established interna
tional law that we have no right to
interfere in the purely domestic af
fairs of other nations in their deal
ings with our own citizens, it is
equally well established that our Gov
ernment has certain rights over, and
certain duties toward, our own citi
zens and their property, wherever
they may be located. The person and
property of a citizen are a part of
the general domain of the Nation,
even when abroad. On the other
hand, there is a distinct and binding
obligation on the part of self-respect
ing governments to afford protection
to the persons and property of their
citizens, wherever they may be. It
would seem to be perfectly obvious
that if it is wrong to murder and
pillage within the confines of the
United States, it is equally wrong
outside of our borders. Funda
mentally the laws of justice are uni
versal in their application. These
rights go with the citizen. Where
ever he goes, these duties of our Gov
ernment must follow him.
—CALVIN COOLIDGE, April 25, 1927.
Mr. Coolidge laid down the principles
above quoted in a public address at New
York City. He was discussing disturbed
conditions in China, Mexico and Nica
ragua which had required intervention
by this country on behalf of American
life and property.
It was in the characteristically forth
right language of the Massachusetts
Governor who denied the right to strike
against the public safety "by anybody,
at any time, anywhere” that as Presi
dent of the United States ten years ago,
in what was destined to be knowm as
"the Coolidge doctrine,” he defined alike
the inalienable rights of American citi
zens abroad and the inescapable duty
of the United States to safeguard those
rights, t'wherever the persons and prop
erty of its citizens may be.”
The Roosevelt administration has
commendably, if tardily, identified it
self with the Coolidge doctrine—tardily
because only a fortnight ago the Presi
dent, in a casual remark to the press
at Hyde Park, warned Americans in
China to flee danger zones or remain
at their own risk. Today comes the
Navy Department with a manifesto that
Is a complete reversal of the Hyde Park
Ukase.
"Most American citizens now in
China,” the Navy declares, “are engaged
In business or professions which are
their only means of livelihood. These
persons are unwilling to leave until their
businesses have been destroyed or they
are forced to do so, due to actual
physical danger. Until such time comes,
our naval forces cannot be withdrawn
without failure in our duty and without
bringing great discredit on the United
States Navy. In giving assistance and
protection, our naval forces may, at
limes, be exposed to dangers, which will,
in most cases, be slight, but in any case
these risks must be accepted.”
In this proclamation of the United
States’ purpose to keep the Asiatic Fleet
under Admiral Harry E. Yarnell in
Chinese waters, to protect and assist
Americans “as long as the present con
troversy between China and Japan
exists,” there speaks not only the voice
of Calvin Coolidge, but the voice of
John Paul Jones, Stephen Decatur,
David Farragut and George 'Dewey.
American bosoms will swell with pride
and satisfaction as it dawns upon the
national consciousness that it has at
length become the voice of Franklin D.
Roosevelt and Cordell Hull.
It is a voice that radiates no murmur
of war or threat of war. It does breathe
In tones designed to echo across this
broad continent and the wide expanse
of the Pacific into the innermost sanc
tums of the Japanese and Chinese gov
ernments. It intones a fitting supple
ment to the remonstrance just addressed
to Tokio, admonishing the authors of
the murderous devastation now in prog
ress at Nanking and Canton that they
will be held to stern accountability for
any damage accruing to American life
and property from wanton attack on
our non-combatant nationals.
It is difficult to escape the conclusion
that the administration’s about-face re
apecting citizens who are business men or
missionaries in China is due to the
avalanche of righteous indignation
which descended upon Washington
when the recent policy of scuttle be
came known to an incredulous Ameri
can public. The back-water process, too,
doubtless was hastened by criticism of
the strange—and, as yet, not satisfac
torily explained—action of Ambassador
Johnson’s temporary evacuation of the
Embassy in Nanking at the demand of
the Japanese admiral “in charge.” The
tradespeople and n^ssionaries who for
the better part of _n century have per
sonified America in far Cathay and
borne the torch of our cultural and
commercial civilization across China
aeons before the New Deal was ever
heard of are entitled to the square deal
that is now belatedly guaranteed them
and which never should have been de
nied them.
It is an eminent case of better late
than never 1
More Federal Money.
The Democratic Governor of Nebraska,
described as a ‘TOO per cent Roosevelt
man,” told the press and presumably the
President, that what his State wanted
was more Federal money. This is scarcely
cheering news. It reflects an attitude,
however, which has grown with each
passing year of the New Deal in all parts
of the country. The President did not
have to take a trip to the Pacific Coast
to learn it.
How long the administration can con
tinue to pour out “more Federal money”
no one knows exactly. The President
has already been given a billion and a
half dollars in a lump sum appropria
tion to be used for the W. P. A. and for
other kinds of relief during the fiscal
year that ends next June 30. Even that
is regarded as not sufficient by many of
the Governors and the executives of the
larger cities. Congress meets again in
January, if not called into special session
before that. Further demands for more
Federal money may be, very probably are,
in the offing.
It will be interesting to know how
sympathetic an ear the President lends to
such demands as are being made by the
Governor of Nebraska. The country is
beginning to realize that aside from the
huge "emergency” appropriations, such as
this latest billion and a half for relief,
the administration is spending more and
more each year on the running expenses
of Government, instead of less. It is
creating more and more bureaus, more
and more permanent agencies of Govern
ment. saddling on the country permanent
increases in Federal expenditures. More
and more Federal boards and "admin
istrations'’ are created. The President's
own program contemplates setting up
Federal boards to deal with wages and
hours, two new major departments of
the Government, with cabinet heads, six
new “assistants to the President" with
salaries of ten thousand dollars each and
their own assistants in the way of secre
taries and clerks and chauffeurs.
All of this increased Government ex
penditure during the past year has
thrown the budget out of gear still fur
ther, has increased the Federal debt to
more than $35,000,000,000. Deficits, in
stead of balanced budgets, grow in this
garden of Government finance. They
grow at a time when the revenues of the
Government are greater than they have
ever been before during peace times in
this country. They grow when taxation
of the people is higher than ever before
in peace times. They grow while the
probability of still higher taxes is con
stantly increasing.
The President may turn his back on
these demands for more Federal money.
Some of his friends in Congress are fully
aware of the dangers of these recurring
huge expenditures and some of them are
particularly exercised about the situation
of Government finances. There is, how
ever, in the immediate offing a congres
sional election, an election that is of
major importance to the New Deal ad
ministration. Under such circumstances
It is likely to be a herculean task to put
a stop to the flow of Federal money, a
task into which no one who views with
complacency the output of more and
more money is likely to put his heart.
When Ambassador Nelson T. Johnson
declares he is not deserting he does not
pause to locate the precise authority for
bringing an ugly word into the annals
of diplomacy.
The death of William Loeb recalls the
days when Theodore Roosevelt trans
notod on ovtronrrllno r*V7 omminf r\ f hnci.
ness with only one personal secretary.
President Roosevelt has several
speeches in mind that will be closely
studied by his secretaries with a view
to decision on their delivery.
One of the burdens on radio is the
selection of able speakers in an effort
to settle too many questions at once.
•
No Coasting.
Without seeking to “asperge” his parts
of speech, as Mrs, Malaprop would have
said, it may be questioned just what
President Roosevelt meant by his remark
at Cheyenne when he told the welcoming
crowd: “I do not want to coast, and the
Nation does not want me to coast, with
my feet up on the front wheels.” The
posture suggested is not altogether
clearly indicated. What wheels does the
President mean? Surely not the steering
wheel, if he suggests a motor car as the
vehicle which he is figuratively driving.
Such a prank would not only not be in
keeping with the presidential dignity,
but one that nobody would ever expect
of a chauffeur. Nor indeed the running
wheels of the car. That would entail a
most extraordinary gymnastic. About
the only vehicle that can be conceived
for a “feet on the front wheels” position
is one of those things that the boys make
out of odds and ends of running gear
which they steer with their feet, an alto
gether erratic mode of transportation,
without power other than gravity.
Nobody has ever ventured to suggest
that Mr. Roosevelt was running such a
machine, in the course of his executive
service as head of the Nation. He took
over from his predecessor a fully rigged
vehicle, with a complete equipment of
motor, body and wheels. He has been
at the wheel, with his foot on the ac
celerator, stepping on it rather vigor
ously, steering it with skill through
hazards and around sharp turns, bump
ing now and then, it is true, against
somewhat obstinate obstructions, but
always carrying on, save on one route,
unwisely chosen, which brought him into
contact witj\ the court preservation
, prejudices of the Senate. On the whole
his pilotage has been entirely satisfac
tory, to himself, and, If the judgment
rendered in November, 1936, be accepted
as evidence, to the majority of the people
of the country.
But that remark at Cheyenne remains
as a puzzle. To be sure, it was only an
incidental, a bit of metaphor, and, being
of a negative nature, not particularly
illuminating as indicating the course that
is to be followed. Coupled, as it was,
with the suggestion that he wants to
keep in close personal touch with the
Nation, and with the reminder that he
has recently been fishing not only for
the game of the sea but for public senti
ment in the South, it indicates that he
wishes and proposes to follow the road
map of national opinion and desire, run
ning the car of state in strict accordance
with the rules of good drivership. Yet
there is that perplexing malaproplan
suggestion about the wheels. Will not
some one of the numerous secretariat
of the White House elucidate?
Men of famous records claim the at
tention momentarily of an alert judiciary
which responds finely to a public de
mand that it ‘consider questions related
to national honor and tranquility as
well as to those bringing up disputes
more or less of a household nature.
There may be moments when the
American electorate smiles. After per
mitting Charles Evans Hughes to go to
defeat for the presidency, it still pre
sents him to attention as the man
worthy to be the Nation's Chief Justice.
Japan has always been relentless in
her computations and while insisting on
bombs for purposes of martial prestige,
has never insisted on precise calculation
on the number of human lives for which
each bomb is expected to account.
Italy has contributed some of the most
appealing expressions to the world's
music. Unfortunately for the present
step in civilization, Mussolini must be
rated as a soldier and not as a musician.
Pictorial journalism has taught the
world to sympathize with a child re
gardless of the language he might speak
if allowed to reach maturity.
Shooting Stars.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
—
Life Worth Living1.
I know a man of whom, I guess,
I'd say his life was a success.
He never paused for crying.
And when a disappointment came
He proved all resolute and game,
And simply kept on trying.
Some days were dark and some were
bright.
He met them all with spirits light.
He had no time for sighing.
Said he, "Though hapless hours arrive,
You still are hopeful and alive
So long as you keep trying.”
A Charm of Music.
“Are you fond of music?”
“Very,” answered Senator Sorghum.
“At a great gathering it’s a great relief
to be able to join in a song with absolute
confidence that none of the words you
utter at this particular moment are
likely to be used against you during the
campaign.”
Jud Tunkins says Adam blamed Eve
for eating the apple instead of assuming
the wifely obligation of turning it a
applesauce and feeding it to him.
A Flower.
I love the flower not so much
For all its beauty, passing rare,
As far the hand whose tender touch
Has brought it near with loving care.
—
Helping the Home.
“Is your wife a help to you in running
the dear old homstead?”
“T’U sav shp is ” answprpH Farmpr
Corntossel. “She learned stenography
and got a good job in town."
“We reverence what is old,” said Hi
Ho, the sage of Chinatown, “because it
has passed on and cannot interfere with
our present business.”
Adventure.
The adventure’s worth while
With a hope and a fear.
It starts with a smile
And it ends with a tear.
When gay is the heart
As it turns to the sea,
The joy of the start
Is worth sorrows to be.
“A camp meetin’,” said Uncle Eben,
“is a great help in shown’ dat good people
kin git together and enjoy deirself, even
mo’ dan sinners.”
American Blessings.
From the Kalamazoo Gazette.
This must be a pretty good country,
after all. We haven’t had a civil war
for 73 years, an invasion for 123 years,
and we never have had a purge.
Hopeless.
Prom the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin.
The proposed grand jury inquiry into
gambling in Philadelphia probably won’t
do a thing about the age long problem
of how to beat the other fellow at his
own game.
■ » I ■ -
Trees in Autumn.
Prom the Port Wayne News-Sentinel.
Trees may be divine poems, but the sea
son is approaching when the house
holder with a rake is likely to think of
them as Just a lot of blank verse by
amateur rimesters.
Ethiopia’s Hard Luck.
Prom the Albuquerque Journal.
Ethiopia was smashed by Italy and
now is declared to be a member of the
League of Nations. Whether she can
recover frem both of these catastrophies
remains to be seen.
Civilization’s Need.
Prom the Troy (N Y.) Record.
If this country is going to remain civi
lized,jit may be that It will need *ore
bombing planes. ^
Gratifying Development of
The President’s Cup Regatta
To the Editor of The Star:
Through the years since 1926 some
of us have noted, with a good deal of
satisfaction, the rapid growth of the
President's Cup Regatta, held on the
historic Potomac at the National Capi
tal annually since and beginning with
1926. As a member of the Corinthian
Yacht Club when the idea of holding
such an event here at Washington was
conceived by a progressive group of
members of that club, and as a member
of the club’s President’s Cup Regatta
Committee, and as chairman of the Pub
licity Committee for the first President’s
Cup Regatta, I had the opportunity to
acquire some notion of the magnitude
of the Job which the subsequent Presi
dent's Cup Regatta Committees and the
President’s Cup Regatta Association have
accomplished in the developlment of the
regatta on the Potomac into the great
event it has become in these later years.
The 1926 President Cup Regatta, the
first one to have tire sponsorship of the
President of the United States for the
principal trophy—the large and artistic
$5,000 gold President's Cup, was an event
of considerable scale. Washington had
not before seen anything in the shape
of a regatta to compare with it. The
Washington press estimated that abbut
150,000 people lined the shores of the
Potomac and crowded hundreds of offi
cial ana spectator water craft to witness
the regatta on the two days that first
regatta was held; that number of specta
tors was, probably, the largest number of
people who ever gathered together to
witness a sports-recreational event in
the National Capital. The senior Gar
Wood, the greatest racer of power boats
of his time, and other water sportsmen
of national renown who took part, told
us that our first President’s Cup Regatta
was. even then, the greatest power boat
regatta in the whole country—and if
those men were not too generous to us
with their praise, the President’s Cup
Regatta of 1937 surely will be a magnifi
cent commentary upon the very success
ful efforts of that very active organiza
tion of Washington men and women
wiiv/ nave omee mauc uie * icmurut a
Cup Regatta the outstanding event it is
today, and too much credit cannot be
given them.
Probably no form of recreation is more
healthful, more wholesome or more en
joyable than that afforded by sailing and
anchoring on the water in a boat. Ten
years ago boating—yachting some call
it who have the larger and more costly
craft—on the Potomac in the environs
of Washington was participated in by
only a comparatively few people; only
a few' hundred of the local people knew
what it was. Today, thanks to the great
stimulus of the President's Cup Regatta
over the years, the Potomac swarms
with boats of all kinds, of sizes, power
and sail, and thousands of people have
recreation, pleasure, and even health,
which they might not otherwise be
enjoying.
And in all this the newspapers of
Washington have played a very im
portant part, for without their interest
and support, from 1926 on, the great
growth of boating which has taken place
in and around Washington would not
have been possible, and I am sure that
all those who have been giving of their
time and effort to make the President's
Cup Regatta one of the greatest recrea
tional and sporting events in the world,
more than gladly give a full measure of
credit to the Washington newspapers
for their aid. L. R. ENDER.
Cites Important Problem
Of American Railroads
To the Editor of The Star:
The article in The Sunday Star set
ting forth reasons for collapse of the
stock market after Labor day appears
to have overlooked an important angle
which is in no way related to war scares,
but which is vital to the welfare of the
public, and deserves the careful con
sideration of all thinking persons. That
is the American railroad problem.
Last year the industry as a whole was
supposed to have emerged from the de
pression. with net income of roughly
$164,000,000. Yet 38 per cent of the
total mileage had no net income at all, j
while 30 per cent figured on ways and
means of lifting themselves out of bank
ruptcy. But for the year 1937 the picture
is considerably darker. First of all, the
loss of emergency freight rates cost
$150,000,000. Social security taxes and
pension costs will total $59,000,000. In
creased costs of raw materials will add
another $125,000,000, while wage in
creases for non-operating unions effec
tive from August will, by the end of the
year, have cost an extra $41,000,000. That
is some $375,000,000. and would require
a 30 per cent expansion in traffic to over
come this extra burden and turn in net
income equal to 1936, according to rail
road officials. But, alas, that isn’t all.
Operating brotherhoods want 20 per
cent wage increases or they say they
will go out on a strike. That would add
another $116,000,000. It is believed bank
lupty iui aii cave a. vay icw laniuaus
would follow if such demands were
granted, and in view of the fact that
most of them carry heavy insurance,
and that the insurance companies, in
turn, are heavy investors in railroad
bonds, it can scarcely be described as
charity toward the widow, to say the
least. They demand, also, “full-crew
laws.” And Congress wants a 70-car
train limit law, which will cost roughly
$98,000,000. It has already passed the
Senate. This is an additional rail
road burden of $591,000,000. However,
the railroads have refused the demands
of the brotherhoods, and the case is
expected to be put before the people
shortly by a fact finding commission
appointed by the President of the United
States.
The public may not be interested in
these figures now. But let no one be
deceived. This problem will have a
direct bearing on the cost of living in
1938. Either one of two things seems
highly probable. The railroads will be
come public property and be operated
by Federal Government, or there will
be increased freight rates, and possibly
higher travel rates. In the event of
Federal ownership, there would be loss
of tax revenues for support of both
politicians and schools. There would
probably be deficits to be made up by
additional taxes here and there, who
knows how or where?
War scares may be partly to blame
for collapse of the stock market, but the
plight of the Nation’s No. 1 consumers,
the steam carriers, cannot be overlooked,
nor can any one be sure that failure to
solve their problems will not lead into a
depression of even more devastating
consequences than the one popularly
supposed to have just ended, in spite of
all money-juggling schemed of the pres
ent or future administrations.
E. H. ALEXANDER.
i- * *
Comparatively Cool.
From the Omaha World-Herald.
After having mingled with his con
stituents for the last several days many
a Congressman has decided that, after
all, Washington wasn’t such a hot place.
Roads and Roundabouts.
From the Indianapolis Star.
Superhighways, urged as part of the
national defense, probably w<»ld call for
a lot of superdetours.
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.
Men are the great dawdlers in the sun.
One seldom sees women standing on
the sidewalks, just gazing idly around,
but scores of menfolk like to indulge in
this great sport.
No time is better for it than a sunny
September day, especially in the morn
ing, when the slanting rays come down
at just the right angle, evidently.
Then in every block are to be seen men
just standing, soaking up the sun.
The spectator wonders what they do
for a living.
Most are well dressed, so they must
have jobs. Or is that any test any more?
At times it seems that the jobless rather
overdo it, in regard to dressing. The
theory is that one should look success
ful, but certainly the man with too good
clothes scarcely gives the impression that
he needs a job.
* * * *
There is no time of the year better fa
dawdling in the sunshine than this.
Cool nights, cool mornings, warmer
afternoons.
And plenty of sunshine.
A real fine September it had been, ex
cept rather dry, which was a feature
which did not worry any except gar
deners.
Once an average person takes up home
gardening, even on the most limited scale,
he has a whole new series of rejoicings
and worries.
They balance each other.
Leaving a pure residue of happiness.
If the home gardener doesn't find that
at the end of his little rainbow, he ought
to give over the task. Not every one,
even with the greatest determination, is
meant to be a gardener.
Many persons, moving from apartment
to home of their own, try at gardening,
at first with vast determination, then
With flagging energies, until at last they
think up a good one—they “haven’t the
time for it any more.”
The tasks of life press closely, and
hedge them ’round; the duties of the
everyday leave no time for digging and
planting and spraying.
"I just haven’t time for gardening any
more,” they say, but it isn’t that at all.
They are tired of gardening, that is all,
but hate to admit it, even to themselves.
* • * *
Maybe these fellows standing along the
street, any sunny morning, are escaped
gardeners!
They have gotten away from the tasks
they have come to dislike, and are “jest
standing” around, sopping up ultra-violet
rays.
No excuse is needed.
They just stand, one here, two there,
three here. •
Despite the coolness of the morning
air, they have their hats off, in the
modern way.
Years ago only small boys dared go
without hats.
Then older boys, and young men, mostly
as a health measure.
Then all younger men, simply because
they liked going hatless.
Then older men, the famous middle
aged, during the Summer months.
* * * *
When Pall comes, however, older men
do not go hatless except for these office
escapes.
There seem to be a multitude of rea
sons why a fellow must cross the street
on sunny mornings.
Maybe it is for a cup of coffee at a
nearby restaurant.
A hat is not needed.
Standing a few minutes in the sun
seems to be a part of the program.
We do not speak at all of the numerous
males who are always watching excava
tion and other building works.
These are a part of every great city.
They are to be observed at all times of
day. They mostly resemble each other,
and no doubt are given their roles by
Fate and Fortune.
* * * *
Sun loafers of the better sorts require
no construction going on.
“Men at work" signs need not be dis
played.
All that is essential is a desire to enjoy
the sunny display of Nature in the raw.
This sunshine, flooding the concrete,
is as raw as sunshine anywhere.
It is the same thing to be found in the
desert, or on the high mountains;
stronger there, but essentially the same.
Some of the rays may be filtered out
\jy clouds and smoke, even in a city sup
posed to be smokeless, or nearly so, but
most of them manage to get through, in
cluding the heat rays.
These qualities of sunshine are not
strained; they fall upon the just and
the unjust alike, and make them pause
awhile.
These men pretending to look into
store windows—notice how there is al
ways sunshine, glinting in the glass,
warming things up.
No doubt they see what is inside, but
that is not the reason they are there.
Jes’ dawdling, that's it.
No spectacle so reveals the big city
as this, for the first thought, that these
men are mere loafers, is seldom correct;
the second thought, that there are all
kinds of hours for all sorts of labor, is
nearer to it.
Duties take many men to and fro, and
across streets.
The latitude of work says plainly
enough that in this going about they
shall not be like slaves, hurried to and
fro on merciless tasks, but as free men,
doing what they do because they want to,
perhaps, rather than because they must.
* * * *
The whole history of our city floats
down to the pedestrian, now at ease in 1
the sun.
He sees Walt Whitman going there, and
Thomas Hood, who once lived on Penn
sylvania avenue about Twenty-sixth
street.
Life was at a slower pace, then, and
probably better, more to be tasted and
enjoyed. Or was it? How can any one
know?
One thing is sure, they did not
; slaughter and cripple each other with
■ machines called automobiles.
Their pace was about 7 or 8 miles an
hour in the horse and buggy days, and
few were hurt. When automobiles
stepped it up, the maimings and killings
commenced in earnest: they were more
when the average street speed became 22
| miles an hour, they were more when it
became 30 and 35 miles per hour; now
that it is up to 40 to 60 miles, what ha\e
we? Every one knows.
STARS, MEN AIND ATOMS I
Notebook of Science Progress in Field,
Laboratory and Study.
BY THOMAS R. HENRY.
Earth is washed by a 24-hour tide
from the sea of Infinity.
Discovery of an hitherto unknown
physical phenomenon—the cosmic ray
day—has Just been announced by Dr. S.
E. Forbush of the terrestrial magnetism
laboratory of the Carnegie Institution of
Washington.
Instruments set up at the Coast and
Geodetic Survey station at Cheltenham,
Md„ show that these rays rise to a maxi
mum at about 11 am. every’ day, after
which they drop off to their minimum
numbers again. The findings are based
on continuous records since 1933.
These cosmic rays are by far the short
est and most powerful wave-lengths of
radiation. Power equivalent to a billion
volts or more, it has been calculated, is
required to propel them with the force
at which they strike the earth. Compared
with them the most powerful X-rays are
feeble. Some of them will go through
a foot of lead.
At the Cheltenham observatory the
number of hits are counted by a special
device—a lead inclosed chamber filled
with argon gas through which passes an
electric current which varies with the
number of ions, or electrically unstable
atoms, produced by the cosmic rays. Day
in and day out, for this latitude and ele
vation, the number should be approxi
mately 84 per cubic centimeter per
second.
This varies regularly with the time of
day, Dr. Forbush found, and reaches its
maximum just before noon. Roughly it
follows the progress of the sun and yet
it has been conclusively demonstrated
that cosmic rays do not come from the
sun and have no association with it.
They come from the vast reaches of outer
space beyond the solar and possibly be
yond the Milky Way galaxy.
* * * *
Rural folklore the country over de
clares that moonlight has some sort of
effect on crop growth. Whether it is sup
posed to be stimulating or depressing
depends on the local variation of the
superstition. Certainly the actual effect
—if there is any—must be small, but
plant physiologists have not been abso
lutely sure that it does not exist. When
all the factors that influence plant growth
are considered, it becomes very difficult
to assign any values to this one factor.
Some elements of the problem have
been attacked in experiments with the
effects of polarized light in plants con
ducted in the division of radiation and
organisms of the Smithsonian Institu
tion, the results of which are reported
in a paper by Dr. Earl S. Johnston.
Moonlight is ‘‘polarized sunlight” re
flected from the barren surface of the
earth's satellite. That is about the only
qualitative difference between moon
beams and sunbeams that science car
easily put its fingers upon. Their prop
erties of reflection and transmission have
become different for different directions
Dr. Johnston experimented with oat
seedlings, measuring the quantitative
effects of the two forms of light on two
fundamental phenomena of plant life.
One was phototropism, the tendency of a
plant to bend toward a source of illumi
nation. Thus a sunflower ‘‘follows the
sun.”
This behavior is explained by the
finding that growth is slightly inhibited
on the illuminated side. The tip of the
plant bends in the direction of least
growth. Thus & measure of the amount
of phototropism induced becomes a
rather delicate measure of the growth
inhibiting effect of different wave bands
and intensities of light.
The other was carbon dioxide assimi
lation. The basic phenomenon of plant
growth la the capacitj^or taking carbon
dioxide out of the atmosphere and mak
ing use of it. through the fundamental
process of photosynthesis, in the forma
tion of carbohydrates which are the
food substance of the plant itself, as
well as the basis of all life. A plant's
carbon-dioxide assimilation capacity has
been found to vary quite markedly ac
cording to intensity, wave length and
time of illumination. If a difference
could be found in either of these pro
cesses dependent on the polarization of
light, some basis might be established
for the supposed lunar influence of folk
lore. Dr. Johnston used polarized and
nonpolarized light in carefully balanced
amounts from one electric lamp and tried
to "balance” their effects. He found no
difference whatsoever, he reports, within
the limits of experimental error. If
there is any difference it must be sought
in relation to some other factor in plant
growth, or to some quality in moonlight
other than polarization.
Another Amusing Story
About Dr. Mary Walker
To the Editor of The Star:
The Star of September 23 carries a
letter from one of your gifted contribu
tors, Fred Vetter, about one of the un
usual characters of American history—
Dr. Mary Walker.
To the younger generation this kindly
woman is only known as something un
usual in public life in a generation which
is now for the most part departed with
her.
I never saw her but once but that was
under such unusual circumstances that
the fact may interest your readers.
At the time I was about five years old
and my mother had taken me into the
ladies’ retiring room in the railroad
station in Providence, R. I., with her,
when suddenly screams rose from a
dozen women and cries of ‘ There is a
man in here” came from several voices.
It was just Dr. Mary Walker with her
high silk hat, white boiled shirt and swal
low-tailed coat who had walked in and
caused all the confusion.
I was too young at the time to realize
all the confusion, but the incident has
grown in humor with the years.
JOHN H. MacCLANE.
Hopes for Leniency.
From the Muskegon Chronicle.
The Pennsylvania slayer who returned
to prison under three life sentences
probably hopes for leniency after he
has served the first two.
Financial Experts.
From the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel.'
It is rather ironic that those who know
the subject of money so thoroughly
usually have the least amount of the
thing whereof they speak.
■ . S i- ■
Pre-Alpliabetic Schooling.
From the Scranton Times.
Those of us who have put our school
days behind us had at least one advan
tage over the pupil of today. In our
class on current history we did not need
to remember what T. V. A., S. E. C.,
P. W. A., N. L. R. B„ W. P. A. and
other initials stood for.
Comparatively Quiet.
From the Asheville Times.
Edward F. McGrady, Government's
chief mediator for industrial wars, re
tires and goes into radio. There he
will meetMir less static even on the
worst da&.
ANSWERS TO I
QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.
A reader can get the answer to any t
Question of fact by writing The Evening
Star Information Bureau, Frederic J.
Baskin, Director, Washington, D. C.
Please inclose stamp for reply.
Q. Who played the part of Sonja
Henie's uncle in "Thin Ice”?—S. S.
A. Raymond Walburn gives an excel
lent performance in this part.
Q. How many doctors are there in Con
gress?—^ B. T.
A. The Senate has two, Dr. Royal S*
Copeland, physician and surgeon, and
Dr. Henrik Shipstead, a dental surgeon.
In the House of Representatives are Drs.
Sirovich, Pfeifer, Douglas, Crowther,
Larrabee, Griffith, Drew and O'Connell.
Q. Is Stephen the surname of Virginia
Woolf, author of "The Years”?—E. H.
A. It is the maiden name of the writer,
who is the daughter of Sir Leslie Stephen.
In 1912 she was married to Leonard*
Woolf.
Q. When did Billy Sunday, the evan
gelist, die?—L. L. F.
A. The Rev. William Ashley Sunday
died November 6, 1935.
Q. What is the unit of measure called
candy?—W. R. M.
A. Candy or kandy is a measure of
weight in the East Indies. In Madras
the candy is equal to 493.7 pounds, in
Bombay it is 560 pounds, and in Ceylon
it is equal to 500 pounds.
Q. Are any sweet peas perennial?—A N«
A. There is now a sweet pea on the
market which is perennial. It is a creeper
or climber, with pink or red clustered
flowers.
Q. Is it true that Washington A.
Roebling contracted caisson disease
while building the Brooklyn Bridge?
—E. W.
A. In building the Brooklyn Bridge,
Roebling worked day and night and spent
much of his time In the pneumatic cais
sons with the workmen, directing the
work in person and braving all the dan
gers that faced his men. As a result,
in 1872, he was stricken with caisson
disease. Unable to leave his bed, he con
tinued to direct the construction of the,
bridge, He was still an invalid when the
bridge was opened to traffic in 1883.
Q. When did Count Zeppelin establish
his zeppelin factory at Friedrichshafen?
—E. G.
A. It was established there in 1909.
Q. Who wrote the poem, "Rocked in the
Cradle of the Deep"?—J. W.
A. It is by Emma Willard, who was*
a pioneer in the education of women.
Q. What is meant by Cam and Isis?
—J. G.
A. The allusion is to Oxford and Cam
bridge Universities, literally the rivers
on which they are situated.
Q. What time is the cocktail hour?
—E. T.
A. Late afternoon is meant, usually
from 4:30 or 5 until 7 o'clock. 0
Q. Is it possible to see the midshipmen
drill at Annapolis now?—W. H. S.
A. The drills at the United States Na
val Academy will not begin until October.
Q. How many cities in the United
States have more than 100,000 popula
tion?-^. W.
A. In 1930 there were 93 cities of more
than 100,000 population.
Q. How many Bibles printed in the
Chinese language have been distributed
in China?—L. M.
A. In the 120 years since the first Chi-*
nese New Testament was published. 100.
000.000 Bibles or parts of the scriptures
have been distributed.
Q. WTiat are the names of the three
Sitwells who are English writers?- -C. K.
A. Edith, Osbert and Sacheverell are
the given names of the writers.
Q. Is Leopold Stokowski, the orchestral
conductor, married?—C. F. •*
A. He was divorced in 1923 from Olga
Samaroff. In 1926 he was married to
Evangeline Brewster Johnson. They have
two daughters.
Q. Why is it forbidden to bring a live
mongoose into the United States?—H. T.
A. The mongoose was introduced into
the British island of Jamaica to kill the
snakes and vermin infesting the land. It
proved a pest, killing game, poultry and
the native birds, causing a large increase
in insect pests. In 1902 a law was passed
prohibiting importation into the United
States.
_ ft
Q. How many stations has the New
York City Post Office?—E. H.
A. It has 71 classified stations and 93
contract stations.
Q. How large a navy has the Irish Frre
State?—S. M.
A. It has no navy. The name of this
country has lately been changed by art
of Parliament to Eire, pronounced Air uh.
A Booklet on Presidents
And Their Wives'
“Presidents and Their Wives,” illus
trated with pictures of both, tells the
story of the Presidents who have pre
ceded Mr. Roosevelt, with pictures and
biographical sketches of Mr. and Mrs.
Roosevelt also. Do you know how many
Presidents we have had, their names,
their politics, religion, education, birth- .
place, burial place, parents, wives, chil
dren, personal and public history? This
attractive booklet will bring you up to
date on essentials of United States his
tory in a few minutes. Order your copy
now. Inclose ten cents to cover cast
and handling.
Use This Order Blank.
The Washington Evening Star
Information Bureau. *
Frederic J. Haskin, Director,
Washington, D. C.
I inclose herewith 10 CENTS In
coin (carefully wrapped) for a copv
of the booklet. “PRESIDENTS AND
THEIR WIVES.”
Name
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City. .
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£ (Please order by mail only.)