Evening star. [volume], March 14, 1940, Page A-12, Image 12

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

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With Sunday Morning Edition.
THEODORE W. NOYES, Editor.
WASHINGTON. D. C.
THURSDAY...-March 14, 1940
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Finland's Bitterness
Foreign Minister Tanner of Fin
land, in his broadcast yesterday
Informing his country of the harsh
terms of the peace with Russia, gave
voice to a bitterness against the
democracies which certainly—and
understandably—fills Finnish hearts
today.
“The surrender is not our fault,” he
said, “it is the fault of our being
forsaken by our fellow democracies.”
Thus stands Finland’s final indict
ment of those on whom she relied in
choosing to resist rather than yield
to the Russians last fall.
Certainly if Finland could have
received the help of a large allied
expeditionary force, the hope of suc
cessful defense against the Russian
hordes would have been better, but
In analyzing the blame which the
democracies must bear for Finland’s
fate it would be all too easy to stop
with the mere fact that the allies
were tardy in their promises to send
an expeditionary force and that
Sweden and Norway flatly refused to
permit an allied expedition to pass
across their territories.
Reasons for the necessity of
Finland’s acceptance of a Russian j
peace go much deeper. The crux of
the allies’ reluctance to go further
than they did earlier in the war was
the reluctance to violate Scandi
navian neutrality by force, thereby
probably bringing Sweden and
Norway into the war on the side of j
Germany. The Scandinavians like- j
wise were impelled, while rendering
the Finns every unofficial aid they j
could, to avoid giving Germany any
excuse for intervention in the “de
fense” of Scandinavian territory
against the allies, with whom Swed
ish and Norwegian sympathies
naturally lie.
Certainly the flat refusal of Sweden
to permit an allied expedition to pass
to Finland was not predicated upon
frivolous disregard for the fate of the
Finns. The Swedes, and the Nor
wegians too, share with Finland the
perils of Russia’s new bases on Finn
ish territory. But the danger of
immediate involvement in the war
certainly weighed more heavily in
the Swedes’ decision than the pros
pect of future menace from Soviet
Russia.
The railway which the Finns are
obligated to build from Kemijarvi to
the Russian frontier will give the
Russians access, if they decide to
move across Finland later, to the
head of the Gulf of Bothnia and a
base for possible attack on Sweden,
while the naval base at Hanko will be
a constant threat of intimidation
against Stockholm, which is now
within easy striking distance of 1
Russian planes and warships.
Given the necessity for Sweden and :
Norway to do all in their power to
stay out of the war, the reason for j
Finland's inability to obtain adequate
armed resistance was geographic
more than anything else. She was
the victim of her physical position,
just as Poland inescapably was
caught when Germany and Russia
decided to come to terms.
Recriminations now serve little
purpose. Finland is not entirely lost
to the cause of democracy, and she
has a job to do in the reconstruction
of her country, while she remains at
liberty to build anew her defenses as
best she can with what natural
barriers are left to her.
The disposition of the Scandina
vians t® conclude a northern defense
union with her, meanwhile, is on the
rise, promising that in the future the
independence and neutrality of the
northern countries will be defended
as a whole, and that neither the
Finns, Swedes nor Norwegians will
have to contemplate fighting alone
against future attacks.
_
Russia's Loss
Russia, it seems, has had its way
with Finland. But the price which
Stalin has paid for his “victory” is
high, indeed. Let it be granted that
he has asserted fiimself in the Euro
pean scene. He has “counted himself
in” as a player in the game of power
politics. It perhaps is true that he
has made himself feared. There can
be little question about his having
earned for himself the hatred of the
peoples of the democratic nations of
the earth.
Yet a small matter of less than a
quarter century ago the Bolshevik
revolution was advertised to the uni
verse as an unprecedented step to
ward justice and peace among men.
Lenin, the architect of the Soviet
system, claimed for his doctrine of
social change an idealistic character.
Hs Invited the workers everywhere
A
to support his experiment in prole
tarian government. The Influence of
the “new” Russia, he said, and his
followers repeated, would be altru
istic in its effect. Such was the
theory of the proposals for the liqui
dation of the first World War an
nounced from the Kremlin in 1917
and 1918. «
Stalin inherited the traditions of
Lenin. Under his guidance, the Red
republic would practice a higher
morality than that of capitalist and
imperialist states. Russia was to be
a force for the amicable settlement
of international disputes. Bolshevik
representatives at Geneva would*in
sist upon disarmament. The succes
sors of the czars condemned such
dictators as the masters of Italy and
Germany. Fascism, it was argued,
was the real enemy of civilization
and progress. The American branch
of the Communist movement met in
convention under the Stars and
Stripes and saluted a gigantic por
trait of Abraham Lincoln in proof
of the humanitarianism of the
Marxist philosophy. What more
could doubters ask for evidence of
the fallacy of their skepticism?
The answer was not long in com
ing. Stalin the Great Philanthropist
entered into an alliance with Hitler
for the control of the Baltic area,
joined in the conquest of Poland,
coerced Latvia, Lithuania and Esto
nia, attacked Finland, now threat
ens Norway, Sweden and Denmark,
perhaps Great Britain and France.
For his adventure he pays whatever
respect the world public had for him.
It was not much, admittedly; but,
such as it was, it is lost.
Finland, meanwhile, takes an hon
ored place among^he “little” nations
which may suffer, yet do not die. A
thousand years hence fathers will
tell their sons the story of the valiant
armies of General Mannerheim and
of their heroic defiance of a foe fifty
times as strong in every strength
save that of freedom.
Allied Plane Purchases
Disclosure that an allied purchas
ing commission is seeking priority for
French and British orders at Amer
ican plane factories and is endeavor
ing to secure governmental approval
for release to the allies of certain
new types of Army and Navy planes
has stirred up a keen controversy
among legislative and departmental
leaders concerned with the shaping
of national defense policies. The
situation apparently was discussed at
a White House conference yesterday
and a special inquiry has been
launched by a subcommittee of the
House Committee on Military Affairs.
In the background of the agita
tion is a strong difference of opinion
between administration officials and
some members of Congress over how
far the United States should go in
giving to France and Great Britain
the realistic aid which President
Roosevelt has advocated. The isola
tionists fear that continued co
operation with the French and
British in their quest for planes and
munitions of American manufacture
might “involve” us in the European
war. The administration, with the
backing of a preponderant public
opinion, has discounted these vague
fears and has rendered effective,
although necessarily limited, assist
ance to allied purchasing agents. In
line with this policy the new Curtiss
P-40 pursuit plane, capable of mak
ing four hundred miles an hour; the
P-39 pursuit ship, designed to mount
a small cannon, arid other new types
have been released to France and
England.
Since our interests, as a democracy,
naturally lie with the European
democracies in their war to prevent
the spread of totalitarian aggression,
it is only logical that we should let
them buy, for cash, the war supplies
which they need to carry on their
worth-while battle. To hold that
Germany would declare war on the
United States for permitting such
sales is absurd in the extreme. It is
just as fantastic as the argument
that an unrestricted loan to Finland
would have dragged us into that ill
starred conflict, or that harbor im
provements at Guam would start
Japan on the rampage in the Pacific.
Of course, care should be taken to
see that our military arid naval
secrets are guarded properly, lest
they fall into the hands of possible
future enemies. And foreign pur
chases should not be allowed to
delay our own preparations for se
curity in a turbulent world. As a
matter of fact, the allied orders
undoubtedly will benefit our plane
industry by speeding up production
methods—and the tests which our
planes receive under fire in Europe
could not be duplicated here.
————————
New Hampshire's Primary
New Hampshire, the lead-off State
among the baker’s dozen which con
tinue to hold presidential preferen
tial primaries, will send a Roosevelt
pledged delegation to the Democratic
National Convention and an “unin
structed” delegation to the Repub
lican National Convention.
The decision of the State appears
to be in line with the general attitude
of the country at this stage of the
preconvention campaign for presi
dential nominations. No one doubts
that President Roosevelt can have a
renomination at the hands of the
Democratic convention—if he wants
it. There has been no such crystalli
zation of sentiment among the Re
publicans as to warrant a prediction
that any one of the candidates for
the presidential nomination is out
ahead.
In the main, the Roosevelt slate
of delegates was without opposition,
e though two delegate candidates
pledged to Postmaster General “Jim”
Farley and another couple favoring
Vice President Gamer were in the
k
field, and two others were running
unpledged. The top vote-getter for
Roosevelt was the Mayor of Man
chester—and he had only about
eleven thousand votes. One of the
Farley delegates had over four thou
sand, and another, supporting Gar
ner, more than three thousand votes.
The eighth man on the list for dele
gates at large, supporting Roosevelt,
had a little more than seven thou
sand votes.
It is clear that the third-term
boosters made a clean sweep in the
Democratic primary—but, neverthe
less, there were Democratic voters
who did not look with favor on an
other nomination for the President.
In the final analysis, the number of
Democrats who are* unfavorable to
such a nomination may be taken into,
consideration by the party leaders.
Other primaries are to be held soon
In Wisconsin, Illinois and Nebraska.
In Wisconsin and Illinois the Presi
dent will be running against the Vice
President, and the Garnerites are
putting on an active campaign in
both States.
Republicans are taking satisfac
tion from the fact that in their pri
mary twice as many votes were cast
as in that of the Democrats. Pre
sumably the New Dealers, who are
demanding a third-term nomination
of the President, did all they could
to get out a large vote for the Roose
velt-pledged slate of delegate candi
dates, even though only a handful
of non-Roosevelt delegate candidates
were in the field.
New Hampshire Republicans have
their favorite-son candidate for the
presidential nomination in the per
son of Senator Styles Bridges—for
mer Governor. The leading candi
dates for the presidential nomina
tion, Dewey, Vandenberg and Taft,
kept out of the primary, leaving the
field to the favorite son. Senator
Bridges, whose hope probably lies in
the uninstructed delegates sent to
the national convention, had recom
mended that the New Hampshire
group go uninstructed.
New Hampshire in the past two
years has very definitely given evi
dence of a return to the Republican
column from which it strayed in
1936. Its Governor and its entire del
egation in Congress are Republican.
There was nothing in the primary
to indicate that it would not continue
to be Republican in 1940.
Headache
In the frantic rush to pay income
taxes by tomorrow, it is possible that
many victims have overlooked a little
gem of thought contained in the
last sentence of Uncle Sam’s billet
doux to taxpayers, under the head
ing of “Deductions.” As an example
of what can be done with language
if the user is willing to scrap all
rules, it is in a class by itself. Word
for word, it reads as follows:
“No deduction is allowable for the
amount of any item of expense or
part thereof allocable to a class of
exempt income other than interest.”
Fired with a humane desire to cut
down insanity in the United States,
a corps of experts has been working
on this for some time. A report of
the survivors has just been turned in,
which settles the whole question.
Quite clearly, they say, the taxpayer
is debarred, except insofar as the
act is inoperative, or inoperative in
part, with exceptions, from deduct
ing, except in certain instances, or
from allocating either whole or frac
tional items of expense carelessly.
To be more explicit, it is O. K. for the
item, whether split or intact, to be
part and parcel or integral with ex
empt income if said income is tax
free by virtue of being classed as
interest; but, on the other hand, the
aforementioned item or essential part
of an item is not exempt from tax
within the meaning of the statute if
applicable or otherwise pertaining to
income exempt by virtue of being in
some other classification or alloca
tion than that of tax-rree interest.
Guy Victor Collins
Guy Victor Collins gave to The Star
the better part of his life. He came
to its employ at sixteen and died still
actively engaged in its service at
sixty-eight. During the half century
of his identification with its progress
he found the satisfaction which
derives from consciousness of work
well done, duties honorably per
formed. He was happy as few men
are in a world replete with disap
pointment and frustration.
His younger contemporaries per
haps may have wondered at the
serenity of Mr. Collins’ bearing.
Some of them, doubtless, guessed
that it derived from a philosophy of
devotion to simple, natural and
unchanging values. He loved flowers,
birds, his home, the comfortable
pleasures of a quiet fireside, unhur
ried talks with cherished friends,
outdoor games, occasional travel,
leisure for reflective contemplation,
cheerful books. There was no strug
gle in his career. He refused to be
involved in fruitless controversies,
empty arguments. When others
raved or ranted at the troubles of
their times he smiled at the spectacle.
His optimism kept him free from fear.
Mr. Collins, for all these many
reasons, was appreciated by strangers
as well as by those with whom he
was associated day by day. People
who never heard his name trusted
him. As chief clerk in The Star
business office, he met the public
constantly, learned to understand its
problems and discovered solutions
for more than a few of them. He
was generous in praise of the least
of his neighbors, but wanted no fame,
desired no celebrity for his own
attainments. So, still serene, still
hopeful, still useful in the world, he
goes to his rest mourned with grati
tude and a profound affection to
fhich his colleagues proudly testify.
1
Of Stars, Men
And Atoms
Notebook of Science Progress
In Field, Laboratory
And Study
By Thomas R. Henry.
Accidental finding of what appears to
be a remote control tongue-tying center
in the brain, a hitherto unknown organ,
has Just been reported to American
neurologists by Dr. Richard M. Brickner
of Columbia University.
The finding came during a recent brain
operation performed under a local an
aesthesia in which .the skull was opened
and various bits of tissue of*the cerebral
cortex stimulated into action by touching
them with electrodes.
The supposed center lies very deep in
the grey matter of the left frontal lobe
of the brain, whose depths still are rela
tively unexplored in human beings. The
response was immediate and unexpected.
The patient, fully conscious and aware of
what he was doing, began repeating in
voluntarily something which sounded like
“err—err—err” and could not stop until
the electrical stimulation was removed.
Careful probing showed that the center
was less than half an inch in diameter,
but its precise thickness was not deter
mined. The response was particularly
surprising since the spot was some dis
tance removed from that point in the
brain known to control speech.
Dr. Brickner calls it “the area of
speech perseveration.” He has reported
his findings in the current issue of the
Journal of Neurophysiology.
The portion of the brain which enables
man to talk—an ability unique with the
human race—is the so-called Brocca's
area in the left frontal lobe. It is a small
bit of tissue which borders on one side
the temporal lobe behind the ear which
is the center of hearing and on the other
the brain area which governs voluntary
movements of the tongue and throat
muscles.
The new brain center is about three
inches away from Brocca’s area. The
patient was asked to repeat the alphabet.
This necessitated throwing Brocca's area
into action, as does the intentional mak
ing of any specific sounds with the throat
and tongue.
Then the newly found area was stimu
lated with an electrode. As soon as the
stimulation was applied the man could
only repeat incessantly the letter which
he had reached at that instant. If he had
said the alphabet up to L he would con
tinue repeating L until the electrode was
removed. Then he would continue nor
mally with the rest of the alphabet.
The man was aware that he was "mak
ing a fool of himself.” But apparently
there was no way possible for him to say
M. however hard he might try, so long as
this particular group of brain cells was in
action. In some types of organic brain
disease, and also in certain forms of in
sanity, this symptom, known as per
severation, is a prominent feature.
While it is probable that this center
exists in every human brain, the report
points out, this cannot be considered
certain. This particular patient was suf
fering from a brain disease and it is
barely possible that in some way an ab-«
normal function had been created for
a tiny mass of brain tissue. -
Assuming that the area exists in nor
mal brains, the report points out, it is
of considerably more interest even than
as a new brain center. It is about three
inches away from Brocca's area yet the
effect of stimulating it is manifested by a
pronounced effect on this center. This
is the first evidence known to brain
specialists of “remote control" stations
in the brain. A stimuli applied one
point definitely affects the ability of an
other point with a known specific func
tion, some distance away, to perform its
normal function. Brain stirgeons also
are puzzled by the possible purpose of
such an area, and it is difficult to con
ceive of a human organ being evolved
for no purpose whatever.
The problem as to whether the area
exists in entirely normal brains probably
never can be answered. The only way
to find out would be to cut open some
body’s skull and start probing. It would
be impossible to find anybody to go
through such a dangerous operation for
the sake of science. There is still the
possibility that the hypothesis can be
tested on some person with a head injury
which lays the brain bare, such as a
shrapnel wound in battle. Such wounds
first enabled brain surgeons to determine
the various motor centers in normal
brains.
Much of this now can be checked up
on the brains of chimpanzees which
largely parallel man so far as motor
activities are concerned. But the chim
panzee has no speech center.
Commends Editorial
On Dr. John H. Finley.
To the Editor of The Star:
The cloak of anonymity ofttimes
covers the face of mediocrity and some
times conceals real greatness. I am
moved to bestow a few laurels on the
unknown figure of the writer of the
editorial headed “Dr. John H. Finley”
in this evening’s issue of The Star.
I thought I knew something about
and understood something of the scope
of the worth and attainments of the
man, John Finley, but the writer of the
editorial in question rang the gong for
me.
The transparent honesty of the man
Finley would have banished his nat
urally modest attitude and he would
be the first to admit, were he here,
that much fine writing appears in news
paper editorials—occasionally, a bit of
writing that borders on the field of true
literature: and he would be in perfect
agreement with me, I believe, when I
say the editorial of this evening deserves
to be put in the treasure house of the
newspaperman with the familiar classics
of Dana, Anderson, Church and 03rien
as an inspired example of editorial
craftsmanship.
I do not recall another eulogy couched
in such simple but exquisite phrasing,
meticulously accurate in appraisal—a
portrait come alive. An eloquent
biographical gem in four lucid para
graphs—a finished piece of reportorial
art and a genuine tribute from one
newspaperman to another.
The artistry that was Dr. Finley's
was mirrored perfectly by the > artist
who wrote the appreciation:,
It was one swell job! Congratu
lations! JOHN W. WARD.
March 8.
THIS AND THAT
By Charles t. Tracewell.
•‘ARLINGTON, Va.
“Dear Sir:
“Your This and That is the moat
enjoyable feature of the whole evening
paper to me. Many times I’ve thought
of writing to you, but never got around
to doing so; however, a letter in your
column recently, leap year day, decided
me!
“Especially so because it discussed a
subject which I was intending to ask you
about, and about one of my favorite
birds, the cardinal; but don’t get me
wrong, I may say that they (the birds)
are all my favorites, even, and includ
ing, the sparrows (English) and the
starlings.
“The lady’s letter states that on one
hot morning of last summer, she was
practically invited by a cardinal to
give him a shower bath with her garden
hose while she was watering her lawn.
* * * *
“I’ve had a feeding station and bird
bath for fourteen years, and have had
every one of every kind of bird that
is ever around this locality.
“I have watched them early and late,
and at all seasons, but I had never
noticed, until a year ago, that I had never
seen a cardinal bathe!
“My little granddaughter, aged four,
is just as interested in the birds as any
one, and she said to me one morning,
as we watched the birds breakfasting,
‘The cardinal must be awfully dirty, he
never takes a bath as the others do.
Did you ever see him take any bath,
grandmom?’
“It was then that I realized that,
truly, I had never seen the cardinal
bathe. From then on I’ve watched care
fully, but have not yet seen them bathe.
* * * *
“I talked with a man who works in
the United States Biological Survey
(bird banding division) and he said
‘you have never seen the chickens take
any bath, either, other than a dust
bath, and it may be that cardinals take
dust baths.’
"But if so, I’ve never seen them do
so. I’ve seen English sparrows and
robins do that, as well as chickens. And
I do know, and have seen the robin
red breast enjoy greatly a shower from
the garden hose, but he will also bathe
in the bird bath.
“Now I don't want to be a doubting
Thomas but I’ve read a lot of things
written in to you that I have found
rather hard to believe and '.hat cardi
nal's shower bath is one of them.
* * * *
“We Had a cardinal s nest in a lilac
bush last spring. The lilac is about seven
or eight feet high and not more than ten
feet distance from the back porch.
“A family of three babies was hatched,
and we had the joyous experience of
seeing their very first lesson in flying,
which was given by both parents about
the first of last July.
“I hope they will honor us again this
year. Now there are lots of other things
I’d like to write about to you regarding
birds, gardens and flowers. They are all
so wonderful and beautiful and to those
interested seem to make us all kin, but
Z fear to bore you and this is already
much longer than I intended.
"I am truly, E. L. M.
“P. S.—Would some time like to write
you my experience with the mocking
birds.”
* * * *
Come to think of it, we can’t recall that
we ever saw a cardinal taking a bath,
either! •
It is one of those things you never stop
to think about until some one happens
to call your attention to it.
Did you ever see a cardinal take a
bath?
Be lair, now.
If you just can’t see him doing it,
the chances are that you never did.
This wouldn't necessarily mean that
cardinals do not take baths.
They may be shy bathers.
Robins and jays and sparrows splash
around in the public eye, but cardinals
may be somewhat timid, when it comes
to the dally bath.
They may go away to the woods, to
that famous “ole swlmmin’ hole,” and
there wet their pretty feathers to their
rapid little heart’s content.
* * * *
How fast the movements of all birds
are!
How their hearts must beat!
Most of them, undoubtedly, ^ove to use
a regular bird bath.
The only sorts they dislike are those
too deep, and those without water in
them. The latter is, alas, all too common
in summertime.
Champion bathers of the bird world
are the starlings.
People who decry this clumsy bird
will have to think twice before they
brand it “a dirty bird,” as many do,
because 'it really must be among the
best, if cleanliness is, indeed, akin to
godliness. Martin Luther, by the way,
was responsible for that phrase. It
isn’t in the Bible.
* * * *
Let us assure the little girl mentioned
in our correspondent’s letter that the
redbtrd is not a dirty bird.
We have seen them at very close
range, a few feet, hundreds of times,
and feel quite confident that their
feathers are as clean as any bird's.
The question is, how do they manage
it?
Is it a water bath, a dirt bath, or how
or what?
This column does not doubt the cor
respondent who told of giving a cardinal
a shower. Nothing is plainer, in bird
observation, that not all of us see the
same birds in exactly the same way. It
is this eternal variation which makes
this sport so perennially interesting.
Letters to the Editor
Use »f Public Building*
PaHce Suggested. ‘ ! "
Tt> the Editor of The gfSr: -
With crime so flagrant In our Nation’s
Capital. I wonder if it tfrouldn't be pos
sible and a good policy to utilize the
special police of our public buildings. I
feel that they could and would do a
measure of good.
Would it not be possible for the Metro
politan Police Department to request
that these men (of whom I understand
there are approximately 900) carry their
badges and revolvers on their persons
as do the metropolitan police, 24 hours
a day, particularly to and from work?
These men are a high type, their
force being made up of ex-service men,
retired Army men and men taken from
the prison guard register of the Civil
Service Commission. These guards are
all familiar with the caution and use of
firearms and would constitute a very
worth-while supplement to our metro
politan department. A CITIZEN.
March 12.
O'Mahoney Employment Plan
Draws Criticism.
To the Editor of The St»r:
Of all the wild and revolutionary
schemes so frequently proposed, one of
the worst is that just attributed by the
Associated Press to Senator O'Mahoney,
Democrat, of Wyoming, who suggests that
Congress attack the unemployment prob
lem by taxing employers who make more
than average use of machine power, and
paying a bonus to those who use a greater
ratio of man power.
It does not seem possible that the
Senator can have considered carefully
the many ramifications of such a pro
posal or that he has consulted all the
business and other interests that would
be most affected. Moreover, to succeed
in enacting such a measure, he would
have to overthrow the theory, which
has been pretty well established, that
the introduction of labor-saving ma
chines results ultimately in greatly in
creasing employment.
It has been characteristic of the New
Deal theorists in Congress and in the
administration, to advance proposals of
this alarming character at the most
critical periods. The great urge now
is to increase private employment. Un
less arbitrary', socialistic or communistic
governmental power is used, increased
private employment can come only by
creating confidence in the minds of the
people who have the moneyed resources
to provide the various ways by which
such employment may be increased.
Surely this proposal is likely to increase
the timidity and uncertainty of capital
and to discourage desirable new business
ventures, or the enlargement of existing
ones.
Another great urge, to promote which
the- Government is expecting to spend
vast sums, is that for promoting military
defense of the country. Surely the
Senator cannot have considered the
probably disastrous consequences the
effectuation of his proposal would have
on the Government’s efforts in this di
rection.
It is just another of the many schemes
which have the effect of robbing Peter
to pay Paul, of transferring money from
one pocket to another, of further intimi
dating capital and of increasing the
apprehension of the flood of such pro
posals that would follow a third term
for the New Deal.
The New Deal has tried, pr proposed,
nearly-every way of solving the country's
present economic probldMUfexcept mux
sling its radicals and theorists and free- i
1
Letters to the Editor must
bear the name and address oj
the writer although the use 0}
a pseudonym for publication is
permissible. Please be brief!
ing business from all trammels and re
straints not absolutely necessary to se
cure honesty and fair play.
Why not try this before it is too late?
HENRY A. HAYWARD.
Jacksonville, Fla.
March 11.
Protests Dismissal
Of Procurement Workers.
To the Editor of The Star:
Passage of the Ramspeck bill will be
of very little assistance to hundreds of
employes being dismissed from Procure
ment Division of the Treasury Depart
ment, and from P. W. A. The current
layoffs place us in an anomalous posi
tion in relation the bill. If our notice
period and leave expire before the
agency with which we have worked is
brought under civil service by execu
tive order, we will not be included. If
we join another agency and are not
there exactly six months before it be
comes civil service; or, if we find
temporary civil service positions, we will,
again, be outside the scope of the bill.
The time element which involves not
only passage of the bill, but the Presi
dents confirmation of each agency
creates a harassing*situation. We must
decide whether to remain as long as
notice and leave will permit with the
old agency, hoping that it may be in
cluded before we are off the pay roll;
or whether to try immediately for a
position with another agency, and take
a chance on being able to complete the
required six-months’ period.
A large proportion of us in the Pro
curement Division have had from two to
four or five years service with the Gov
ernment as, undoubtedly, have a similar
group of employees in P. W. A. Failure
to receive status under the Ramspeck
bill would be an unjust and serious loss.
If these years of service are applied
toward our civil service status, they
would mean for some of us the attain
ment of the security afforded by rein
statement status; for others, advance
ment toward this goal. They would,
also, be applied toward old-age pension,
and would increase job-seeking op
portunities with those bureaus now
under civil service.
Tlie loss of these values is based not
on merit, but on sheer chance. Em
ployes with so many years of service
surely deserve greater consideration than
this. It was necessary for us to pass
examinations to be hired by the non
civil service agencies, and, furthermore,
those of us who were not good workers
could not have survived the budget
cuts and the annual appointment
systems which have characterized the
relief agencies. Cannot something be
done to assure us of fairer treatment
than we are now receiving under such
uncertain conditions, to give us the ad
vantage and security we deserve?
Those employes, also, who are from
States over their quotas even though re
taining their positions, encounter a
situation just as unfair. The time to
have considered the quota issue was in
first hiring them. Now that they have
given their service to the Government
over a period of years, have they not as
much right to security as others?
PROCUREMENT EMPLOYE.
March 12.
Answers *
To Questions
By Frederick J. Haakin.
A reader can get the answer to any
question of fact by writing The Eve
ning Star Information Bureau, Fred
eric J. Haskin, director, Washington,
D. C. Please inclose stamp for reply.
Q. When were Julia Sanderson and
Frank Crumit married?—K. E. W.
A. They were married on July 1,
1927.
Q. What is meant by the expression
"The goose hangs high”?—R. H.
A. It is believed to be a corruption
of “The goose honks high as in fair
weather.” The expression is used to In
dicate that the prospect is good.
Q. Where was the first public water
works in the United States?—C. L.
A. The first water pumping plant'Vj
operate totally for municipal purposes
was installed at Bethlehem, Pa., on Mafd
27, 1755. The water was pumped into
the water tower through wooden pipes.
The pumping plant was constructed by
Hans Christopher Christiansen. The firs*
municipal water supply system was
built at Boston by the Water Works
Co., in 1652. A series of wooden pipes
was used to convey the water from
nearby springs to a central reservoir
which was only twelve feet square.
Q. What percentage of the students
who enter Princeton University gradu
ate?—F. H. H.
A. Approximately 77 per cent of th#
undergraduates entering Princeton re
ceive their degrees.
Q. Was Frank Capra, the movie di
rector, born in this country?—W. L. T.
A. He was born at Palermo, Sicily,
but has lived in California since he waa
three years old.
Q. What living lnventof has th*
largest number of patents?—E. M. L.
A. Carleton Ellis of Montclair, N. J.,
whose patents number 738, is America*
most prolific inventor. —
- *i
Q Please give some information about
the Christ of the Andes— B. 8 A.
A. The Christ of the Andes was
erected in 1904. It stands 14.000 feet
above sea level on the boundary lire*
between Argentina and Chile, and com
memorates arbitration by those coun
tries, settling the boundary question.
The statue is a gigantic figure of
Christ 26 feet high, the right hand
raised as if in blessing the world, the
left hand clasping a cross which ex
tends 5 feet above the head. It stands
upon a granite hemisphere 5 feet high
and weighing 14 tons, upon whose sur
face the continents are set in bronze.
The hemisphere rests in turn on th*
22-foot reinforced concrete base. Th*
statue is made from old bronze cannon
of the Spaniards, and the sculptor wa»
Mateo Alonso, an Argentine.
Q. When did Gene Tunney begin hi*
professional career?—L. L. S.
A. Mr. Tunney won the champion
ship of the American Expeditionary
Forces in Paris in 1919 and began Hts
professional career as a fighter in that
year.
Q. What percentage of real estate in
the District of Columbia belongs to
the Government?—S. S.
A. Approximately 46 per cent of th*
real estate in Washington belongs to
the Federal Government. *
Q. How many kinds of snakes are
there?—G. S.
A. There are 1640 known species of
snakes of which 592 species are poi
sonous.
Q. What is the story of the Cardiff
Giant hoax?—£. F. 8.
A. The Cardiff Giant was a gypsum
statue unearthed at Cardiff near
Lafayette, N. Y., in October, 1869. For
some time antiquarians and paleontolo
gists believed it to be either a work of
ancient sculpture or a fossilized man.
It was exhibited in many cities in the
United States but eventually discovered
to be a fraud. The statue had been cut
from a quarry in Iowa, wrought in
Chicago and buried in Cardiff. *
Q. Please give the date of the r$j
opening of the New York World*
Fair.—V. N.
A. The New York World* Fair of
1940 will open on May 11.
Q. When was ether discover
ed?—C. R. D. 4
A. Ether was the earliest known
anesthetic and w;as extensively used
in Europe before the introduction of
chloroform. It was discovered probably
as far back as the 13th century. F6r a
long time it was supposed to contain
sulphur, and hence the name “sul
phuric ether" was applied to it. Its
true composition was established by
Saussure (1807) and by Gay-Lussac
(1815). Later Williamson explained its
formation and chemical constitution.
Q. How many tons of coal per day
are burned at the Government central
heating plant in Washington, D. C.?
—W. I. H.
. A. The number of tons of coal burned
each day in the central heating plant
in Washington, D. C., varies widely with
the weather. However, it may be 6aid
that from 120 to 730 tons are used daily.
To date 732 is the greatest amount used
in one day.
Q. Please give the address of some
member of Henfry W. Longfellow*
family.—L. M.
A. The poet's grandson, Professor
H. W. L. Dana, may be addressed at 105
Brattle street, Cambridge, Mass. »
Q. Where was the first fireproof
building in the United States?—J. M. B.
A. The first building of fireproof
construction was erected in 1822-3 on
Meeting street in Charleston, S. C.
Q. How many towns in the United
States are named Chicago?—E. T.
A. Chicago, HI., is the only place of
that name listed in the United States
Postal Guide.
Q. Did Col. Charles Lindbergh's father
have any children by his first wife?—
O. R.
A. Charles Augustus Lindbergh had
three children by his first wife, Mary
Lafond. «
Q. Are coffee blossoms fragrant?-,
M. H. i
A. They have a fragrance similar to
that of white honeysuckle, but far
sweeter.
A