Newspaper Page Text
w gening pfar With Sunday Mornint Edition. • THEODORE W. NOYES. Editor. WASHINGTON. D ■ C. The Evening Star Newspaper Company Main Office: 11th St. and Pennsylvania Ava. New York Office: llo East 4'Jnd St Chicago Office: 435 North Michigan Ave. Delivered by Carrier—Metropolitan Area Regular Edition. 4 Sundays. 5 Sundays. Evening and Sunday 80c per mo. 90c per mo The Evening Star- 50c per month The Sunday Star 10c per copy v, Night Final Edition. 4 Sundays. 5 Sundays Night Final and Sunday 90c mo. $1.00 mo. Night Final Star- 65c per month Outside of Metropolitan Area. __ _ Delivered by Carrier. 33}* and Sunday Star .*1 no per month 33}? Evening Star- fiOc per month The Sunday Star- 10c per copy Rates by Mail—Payable in Advance. Anywhere in United States. _ . _ 1 month. 6 months. 1 year Evening and Sunday S1.00 $ti.00 $fo nr Th* Evening Star . .75 4.00 8.0C The Sunday 8tar__ .50 2.60 6.0C Telephone National 5000. Entered at the Post Office. Washington, D C as second-class mail matter. Member of the Associated Press. Jb* A“ociated Press is exclusively entiUed to .r*Publlcatl°o of all news dispatches nan.r .nrt .iL lv."0,4 otf>erwjse credited in this !iSb tb* l0,cal Pc?'a Published herein. publlcat,°n of special dispatches herein also are reserved A:14^__THURSDAY. Nov. 11. 1943 Armistice Day Twenty-five years ago today, The Star printed in connection with the news of the surrender of Germany those beautiful lines of Lord Tenny son, written in 1842, in which the poet visioned “the wmnder that would be” when “The war-drum throbbed no longer, and the battle flags were furl'd In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world.” Such a prophecy had meaning then at the moment wiren “peace with victory, peace with righteous ness and justice” was being achieved. The Allies had fought a fair fight and had won a fair triumph for “the principles of humanity.” It w’as not unreasonable to hope for “peace that will endure.” But The Star realized the tremendous proportions, the vast implications of the task that lay ahead. “Now will come the work of reconstruction,” it said. “The war has dislocated all the activities of mankind, and the utmost wisdom will be required in the process of rehabilitation.” During the ensuing two decades the United States did much to translate the common aspirations for universal harmony into accomplished fact. It is not historically accurate to contend that because the Senate “rejected” the League of Nations America lapsed into a selfish condi tion of isolationism. The record shows repeated endeavors on the part of the Government and of the people in their own private capacity to aid in the fulfillment of Tenny son’s forecast. At the Washington conference of 1921-2, in the pact of Paris in 1928 and at the London Naval Conference of 1930 the repre sentatives of the United States went far toward the ideal of collaboration W'hich had developed from the tragic experiences of ruthless strife be tween 1914 and 1918. It was an American who first suggested co operation against the aggressions of the original Axis power—Japan— In 1932. Small advantage, however, is to be had from debating the past. The lesson of the quarter century now concluded is perfectly plain. It is this: That peace cannot be obtained by wishing. Only by rigid loyalty to practical procedures of law’ and order is it possible to prevent evil factions and tyrannous leaders from committing crimes of organized violence against their neighbors. Exactly how the problem of main taining not merely peace but decent standards of civilization in the world can be solved has not been deter mined. but there have been ap proaches to it. Constant turmoil is no more necessary or inevitable among nations than it is among individual persons. It is on this logical and scientific ground that humanity's hope for the future is based today. What Tennyson foresaw' has greater attraction in 1943 than when he wrote or even when The Star reproduced his words on November 11, 1918. A Dubious Proposal It is easy to believe that the sup porters of the Truman resolution, which would put Congress in the position of urging Stabilization Di rector Vinson to reverse his decision in the railroad wage dispute, are Influenced by the best of motives. Before approving the resolution, however, the members of Congress should satisfy themselves that the consequences of their act would be constructive and not destructive. Specifically, the Truman resolu tion, if adopted, would advise Judge Vinson that Congress regards the original recommendation for an in crease of eight cents an hour for nonoperative employes as an ap propriate and valid settlement. But Judge Vinson has ruled that it is an invalid settlement, because it violates the Little Steel formula and the President’s “hold - the - line” stabilization order. Hence, Congress, in effect, would be urging Judge Vinson to violate the requirements of the stabilization program, as he understands them. The stabilization of wages gen erally, with the consent if not the hearty approval of Congress, has been left in the hands of the Presi dent and his subordinates. It might be possible to make a distinction in the case of railroad workers, who are covered by the Railway Labor Act, but it would be a hair-splitting distinction at best. For if Judge Vinson can be forced by moral pres sure of congressional action to ap prove a pay increase for railroad workers which he believes to be in violation of the formula, it would be impossible to refuse comparable in creases to other groups. In practical effect, the policy enunciated by Con gress in the case of the railroad employes would automatically be come applicable to all workers. Therefore, even if Congress should take such a step, its wisdom remains open to grave doubt. Congress cer tainly is not going to be in the posi tion of saying that it believes railroad workers should receive a pay in crease in excess of the 15 per cent limitation imposed by the Little Steel formula, but that other workers should be held within that limita tion. Obviously, the formula will have to be abandoned entirely if it is to be ignored in favor of the rail road union. And what is to happen then? If Congress were proposing to go ahead and substitute for the Little Steel plan its own wage stabiliza tion formula, as perhaps it should have done in the first instance, that would be one thing. But the Truman resolution contemplates nothing of this sort. It would not go beyond embarrassing Judge Vinson in the performance of his duty and de livering a mortal blow to the ad ministration's stabilization program, which is already on the ropes. Hav ing thus opened the flood gates of inflation, Congress would turn its attention to something else, leav ing to the President and his aides the Herculean job of erecting new safeguards along the line of retreat. To indulge in an excess of under statement, it is difficult to see any thing constructive in this kind of legislation. Home Is the Hero Senator Byrd has hit upon a happy if somewhat unusual idea in suggest ing that Secretary of State Cordell Hull be awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his great accom plishments at Moscow. But whether the proposal is acted upon or not, i “that gallant old eagle who flew far ' on a strong wing”—26.000 miles, to j be exact—must sense, without the i help of any special citation, how | truly deep and affectionate is the i esteem in which the Nation holds i him. Tire unique and heart-warming | welcome accorded him yesterday on j his return is proof enough of that. The President, who ordinarily re serves such a courtesy for visiting chiefs of state, wras there to grasp his hand. So were the majority leader of the Senate and the Speaker of the House. And so were Republicans like Senators Austin of Vermont and White of Maine. All in all, the scene at the National Air port was wonderfully American in character — informal, unpretentious, refreshingly homely, with the fine applause wholly nonpartisan, spon taneous and from the heart. “Well, well,” said Mr. Hull, a bit flustered and surprised. “You don't know how much I appreciate this.” It is a j measure of the man that he was i surprised to learn that his w'ork at Moscow had made him something of a hero in the land he has served so well for so many years. With or j without a medal, the knowledge of this must seem to him a reward j sufficient in itself. De Gaulle Wins Out The resignation of General Honore Giraud as co-chairman of the French Committee of National ! Liberation, and the simultaneous j dismissal by the Committee of vir j tually all Giraud's supporters mark the culminating triumph for General de Gaulle and his supporters, who are now in complete control of the French national movement. General Giraud's elimination from the political picture leaves him in command of the French forces in the field, but his position hence forth is merely that of a technician, entirely subservient to the orders of the Committee of National Liber ation, since it controls the move ment of reserves and the mobiliza I tion of additional troops. Giraud i formally acknowledged the trans 1 formation in the decree, which he signed jointly with De Gaulle, giving ( the latter sole power as chairman, with the power to change its com position “in order to separate the ! political and military functions, give the committee greater homogeneity in thought and action, and include political representatives of principal political tendencies and resistance ; movements in France." De Gaulle and his followers like wise dominate the body known as the French Consultative Assembly, a self - engendered organization formed in large part from members of the old French Parliament but with the addition of delegates from the underground and other resist ance movements in France itself. The Assembly's first decision was, by unanimous vote, to ask for the inclusion of two more delegates re presenting Alsace and Lorraine. The Assembly obviously aspires to be regarded as the successor of the French Parliament, just as the Com I mittee headed solely by De Gaulle j aspires to become the recognized j executive organ of France in advance of its liberation from German con j trol. Even before his formal eleva tion to the sole chairmanship, De Gaulle boldly announced that j France refused to recognize any decisions made at the Moscow con ference or elsewhere unless France was represented in the proceedings. This is part of the campaign he and his followers have consistently waged to transform their status from con tingent “trustees” to legalized rep resentatives of the France of tomor row. The steady eclipse of Giraud by De Gaulle during the past year rep resents a corresponding setback for American and British diplomacy. General Giraud was the choice of Washington and London as the dependable leader of French col laboration in the joint task of fight ing the Axis. De Gaulle was little more than tolerated. But this very choice compromised Giraud in the eyes of French nationalism, which was becoming more and more im patient of Anglo-American direc tion or anything that savored of control. De Gaulle, on the other hand, cultivated relations with Soviet Russia, and obtained diplomatic recognition from Moscow. This swung ail the Leftist elements in his favor, notably the organized Com munist movement within France itself, which is the most militant and effective section of the under ground. There can be scant doubt that both America and Britain have lost favor with all but the more con servative sections of French opinion, alike in North Africa and in the homeland. This is regrettable, though it is hard to see how it could have been avoided. The new French nationalism is extremely touchy and intolerant of any foreign control. Washington and London, by their armed intervention in North Africa, were bound to take precautions for the preservation of order and the safeguarding of their military situa tion there. Giraud's collaboration represented the best solution from those aspects. His elimination from the political scene raises a prob lem which will require careful diplomatic handling. — To Feed the Hungry As it begins its first formal deliber ations at Atlantic City, the new United Nations Relief and Rehabili tation Administration does not lend itself very readily to dramatization, yet its task is one that bears directly on the hopes, fears, fortunes and lives of scores of millions of human beings. Created through the agreement signed last Tuesday by the thirty three United Nations, ten associated nations and the French Committee of National Liberation, the organiza tion is designed primarily to offset the danger of widespread starva tion, pestilence, death and chaos in the first weeks and months of the coming peace, both in Europe and Asia. To this end, the forty-four signers have committed their coun tries, each according to ability, to draw upon their resources to pro vide food, raw materials, clothing, medicines, shelter and other things needed to revive the peoples vic timized by the Axis and to put them on a self-supporting basis as swiftly as possible. The urgency of this is obvious. As President Roosevelt declared at the time the agreement was signed, the Nazis and Japanese have deliber ately sought to reduce their vic tims to ‘ half-men—undernourished, crushed in body and spirit, without strength or incentive to hope.” It is these suffering millions, these helpless men. women and children, who will have to be succored the moment their lands are liberated. Humanitarianism alone does not dictate this. As the President says, it is a matter of enlightened self interest as well, for as our experience in North Africa, Sicily and Italy has shown, such relief has an immediate military value, and beyond that, in the long-term sense, it is essential to any international effort to ‘‘build the foundation for a secure peace.” Apart from the fact that one of its basic policies is to distribute the cost and burden of the problem pro portionately, according to each country’s resources, UNRRA is par ticularly praiseworthy and promising for yet another reason. As the first agency of its kind among the United Nations, it sets a pattern for future international collaboration in other fields. By working together well and successfully in relief and rehabilita tion, we shall be teaching ourselves to work in the same way in dealing with many another postwar problem. Co-operation may thus become a habit among us, so that step by step, in a more or less piecemeal fashion, we may one day achieve what the whole world yearns for—a genuine system of collective security guar anteeing a good and lasting peace. Phantom Fleet How big is the Japanese fleet? Reports have been going around that it is increasing steadily. We realize, of course, that there must be some new construction at the regular known Jap shipyards, and will be, until they are blasted off the map. However, the speculations refer not to these, but to well-hidden depots scattered widely through the Pacific. To these receiving stations are added, month after month, great numbers of Jap craft in all cate gories from battleships to barges and from cruisers to canoes. Hints have gone forth that the bases are so secluded that it will be virtually impossible for the United Nations to do anything about it. The vessels are said to be equipped with crews trained in the bitter experience of war, who know what it means to tangle with Uncle Sam, and to be under the command of an admiral of vast experience. It so happens that these rumors are correct, and no one knows it better than Tojo. There is good reason why these secret bases are hidden; there is no cover so effective as several hundred fathoms of salt water overhead, and no berth so cozy or safe from further damage as the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. It is also true that the fleet com mander has had vast experience, centuries of it, but there is no cause for alarm. Admiral Davy Jones is strictly neutral. One thing the younger generation does not miss because it never had it, but the thought of which causes a pang to the old timer, is the one time ability at this time of year to get for a nickel a fat sack of fra grant fresh-roasted chestnuts at al most any downtown corner. £ >aps Determined To Hold Bougainville By Maj. George Fielding Eliot. These lines are written on November 10, the 168th birthday of the Marine Corps, and it finds—as so many of the birthdays of that distinguished corps have found—Marines locked in battle with the enemies of the Nation. The Marines who are fighting today on Bougainville Island are engaged in the type of operation in which they are specialists—amphibious warfare. The value of the Marine Corps training In the conduct of landing operations has been underlined again and again by the events in the war in the Pacific. In the planning and conduct of a land ing. there is an infinitude of detail, and it makes a vast difference whether that detail is carried out by officers and men trained to do everything in the way that experience has taught is best and quickest and most economical both of lives and of time, or whether it has to be done by Army personnel whose basic training and experience are with ground operations and to whom landings are not the main business of life, but only an incident—who feel better and hap pier the farther they can get away from anything that floats on the water. Considering the nature of the Pacific fighting we have done, and of that which still lies before us, we can as a Nation congratulate ourselves on possessihg this corps of trained and seasoned specialists in dealing with the complex problems attending the transfer of fighting power from packed transports to deployed bat tle efficiency ashore. bucn a corps must be partly men of the sea, and partly men of the land; they must be at home, and happy, whether they are afloat or on solid ground. Indeed today they must in clude men of the air also, in order that the close association necessary to efficient support may be established be tween the surface elements of the corps and the airmen whose integrated co operation is so essential to the success of any modern battle. Their organiza tion, their equipment, and their tactics and technique are the products of all the vast wealth of experience that has come to be Marines, in landings small and large, during the 168 years of their active history. On Bougainville, at the moment, the Marines are fighting against an active and determined enemy. The Japanese cannot afford to give up Bougainville without making a hard fight for it; for Bougainville is the last Eastern bastion of Rabaul, the center of Japanese power in the Southwest Pacific. The fact that the Japanese have made a landing north of the Marine beach head at Empress Augusta Bay, suggests first of all that the interior communica tions of the island are almost non existent, so that the Japanese cannot move overland with any facility. Wheth er the fact that they were able to land successfully indicates that some of their reports about American naval losses in that vicinity may be true, is debatable. So far. there have been no reports of further American landings and there have been no reports as to the extent, if any to which the Marines may have been able to enlarge their original beach head. This is painfully reminiscent of the absence of detailed news about the land ing on Guadalcanal, where the naval covering force was driven off. tem porarily at least, by the Japanese, and where the Marines were in consequence left isolated for some weeks, and were for a time in serious straits. This may have happened at Bougainville, too; and if the facts are otherwise, it is to be hoped that no time will be lost in ap prising the country of the true conditions at the earliest moment that military security permits. I do not, however, wish to spread alarm. The facts as knowm are quite consistent with satisfactory progress on our part, too. It seems likely that we are in overwhelming naval and air su periority, which was not the case at Guadalcanal. The Japanese landing may have been a "quick sneak," one of those swift and unexpected moves which no vigilance can be sure of intercepting. We may be able to get reinforcements ashore, and mop up the new Japanese arrivals, whose numbers are stated only as "several hundred." One question has, however, been answered: the Japanese are determined to do their best, and to take very long chances indeed, to retain possession of Bougainville Island. They have already suffered severe losses in the various moves they have made; it remains to be seen to w-hat degree they will be able to translate these efforts into actual fighting power on Bougain ville itself. (Copyright, 104.1, N. Y. Tribune. Inc.) A Seamless Web Prom the Baltimore Sum. The requirements of total war. after all, are for a mighty army supported by a civilian economy and society operating at total efficiency. That means that the home front is fully as important to the military goals as is the military front. It means, as President Roosevelt has suggested, that the whole national war plan must be a seamless web with no hitches or holes between the civilian ac tivities remotest from hte front and the front where our total war power is brought directly to bear on the persons of our enemies. The military leaders are perfectly aware of this. It is true that they may make errors in their thinking on home-front issues. They share the proclivity to err with other humans. A vigilant civilian lookout for such errors is certainly in order. But until such errors develop to the point where the military leadership is clearly discredited, until Gen. Marshall and his colleagues have clearly shown that they are losing the war by errors on the home front, their suggestions on home-front issues should be granted the greatest respect. Long and Tough From the Topeka Capital. Unlike the Germans, who are begin ning to crack under the strain of heavy losses on the war fronts and hardships at home, the Japs apparently are main taining a feverish sort of morale w'hich will continue to be high, even after the people are reduced to starvation and the worst sort of misery. They have already endured much. They have been accustomed to so little for so long that additional burdens do not impress them as much as similar privations would affect the Germans. Viewed through the objective eyes of American newsmen who have lived in the filth and horror of Jap prison camps, the war in the Pacific will be long and tough because the fanatic Japs will make It so. A I THIS AND THAT | By Charles E. Tracewell. “FALLS CHURCH, Va. “Dear Sir: “My recent observation of local wild birds, which is necessarily confined to one hour each of the morning and eve ning, has brought many new and in teresting specimens to my attention, foremost of which is a pair of thrush like birds, of the same general color ing of cinnamon brown, with streaked breasts and a streak or ringlike mark around the eye, and the general appear ance of the thrush, except a trifle smaller, or about sparrow size. Be lieving the thrush and thrasher to have migrated long ere this, I am at a loss to identify this bird. "Tire junco or snowbird descended on me in numbers over two weeks ago, but seemed to be content with w’hat they can forage in the flower beds, such as dried seeds of annuals. I will not be concerned about their pre diction of snow until they begin to feed freely from the board, since I have known their habits in this respect. “My lone dove recently invited her mate and it is a beautiful sight to see this pair of soft, taupe-colored birds which appear to be tame enough to al low me to approach to wuthin a few feet of the board without flying off, although I have seen her chase the Jays off a number of times. “There must be a songster of some kind about the premises who entertains me far into the night, although I have never suspected a mockingbird, but the owl sings up until wee small hours, although this might be quite annoying to those of us who can hear well, and probably would be referred to as the mast raucous noise in the bird world. “A cricket on the hearth also pleases me with his cheerful chirping. “Sincerely yours, O. C.” * * * * Our correspondent s bird was probably the olive-backed thrush in migration. This bird is sometimes called the swamp robin. It is about 7'4 inches long, with up per parts olive brown, underparts white and buff with spots of olive brown. There is a conspicuous eye ring. The sides of the lower throat and whole chest are covered with wedge shaped marks of olive brown. The usual fall migration dates for this one are from September 1 to No vember 1, with the bulk of this traffic taking place between September 15 and October 9. There is some likelihood that the bird might have been a hermit thrush, since the Virginia home of our correspondent is located in a woods. The hermit thrush is slightly smaller, just 7 inches long, with upper parts russet brown, under parts white with dark splotches. This bird, too, has a conspicuous eye ring of dull white. The chest has many large triangular spots, with the points up, as are those of the olive-backed thrush. The migration dates for the hermit are from September 18 to November 8, with the average from October 16 to No vember 2. But the hermit is rare. Other small thrushes somewhat re sembling those already named are the veery and the gray-cheeked thrush. The veery leaves by October 1 and the gray-cheeked thrush by October 7. * * * * Reports have come in from a resident living at Pinehurst circle, in Chevy Chase, Md., of a similarly thrushlike bird. This specimen was with a flock of sparrows. Just as it flew over the yard, there was the sound of an explosion far to the south. This noise was not as sharp as the report of a gun. A single bird fell out of the flock, dropping to the yard. The owner picked it up and found it to be thrushlike, fitting either of the descriptions given above. No wound could be found on the bird. It seemed to be breathing its last. The friend of birds gave the creature two drops of whisky, which the bird received with a great yawp. This stimulation seemed very helpful, because in a few minutes the specimen was able to fly away on its own power. * * * * The smaller and rarer thrushes are much alike, and tjuite interesting birds from every standpoint. Most of them are shy and some of them are much given to frequenting small streams. None of them is seen a.s frequently around here as the wood thrush, the brown beauty which is almost 8 inches long. He, too, in some sections of the country, is called the swamp robin. The splotches on the chest give the bird this name, since young robins also have these spots, showing their kinship to the thrushes. The wood thrush some times is called the wood robin. During the past 50 years this fine bird has more or less dropped his char acter of a forest bird and has become a suburban bird, feeling quite at ease near the habitation of man. He still likes trees, however, and is a bit shy of the city, although to be found there, too. The wood thrush is a favorite of most suburban dwellers. He usually comes late in April, more often than not first showing up on April 28. His leaving time is in October. It is a strange fact that this very tame bird becomes tamest of all just before he flies South. In October it is possible to touch them, as they hop out of a fence comer. We have often done this with thrushes on Quincy street in Chevy Chase. Md., in late October, but at no other time of the year. Letters to the Editor Doubts "Indispensability” Of Any President. To the Editor of The 8'»r: If the maintenance of President Roosevelt’s so-called "social gains" is dependent upon his staying in office, as is contended by his New Deal followers, then who will maintain those "gains" when Mr. Roosevelt comes to the end of his earthly journey, which happens to all of us at sometime? Be that as it may, I sincerely hope that whoever is elected to the presi dency in 1944 will not be another "in dispensable.” In view of the way na ture has arranged things, an "indis pensable” in such an important office not only jeopardizes the American form of Government, but the very existence of the country. As it appears to me, what we want is a President who can step out of office ft any time without the Nation facing calamity. It is discomforting to think that there are Americans who feel that the existence of the country is de pendent upon one person. Such is too much like the concept that the emperor is the source of all goodness, knowledge and strength. J. J. SPERRY. Woodstock, Va. Sees “Attack” on South In Poll Tax Repeal. To the Editor of The 8tar, From time to time mention has been made of another possible attack upon the South if the poll tax repeal bill, now pending in Congress, fails of passage— namely, the reduction of the representa tives of the South in the House of Rep resentatives. This was again suggested by Charles Warren, former Assistant Attorney Gen eral and the author of "The History of the Supreme Court,” when he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee a few days ago, and later referred to in the press by Senator Danaher. The suggestion is based on the 14th amendment, clause 2, which provides for the disfranchisement of a State to the extent that the right to vote is abridged for anything other than crime or rebellion. The attack on the South in this direc tion has been expected by me for some time, but I think this contention effec tively may be disposed of by quoting from the learned author of the "Prin ciples of Constitutional Law,” Judge Cooley, one of the most enlightened and informed jurists of his time, a Northern man who lived during the period when the 14th amendment was being con sidered and finally passed. In dis cussing the scope of the second clause thereof, which provides as above stated, he said, in part: "The provision is gen eral: it is not limited to freedom, but it applies wherever the right to vote is denied—or abridged for other cause than for participation in crime. The State of Connecticut denies the right of suffrage to all who cannot read, and Massachu setts and Missouri to all who cannot both read and write, and many of the States admit no one to the privilege of suffrage unless he is a taxpayer. So in the majority of the States a citizen absent therefrom, though in the public service, cannot vote, because the State requires as a condition the personal presence, the voter at the polls of his municipality. Possibly it may be said in respect to such cases that the repre sentation of the State should be reduced in proporition to the number of those who are excluded or are absent. It is not likely, however, that any such posi tion would be sustained.” To require the payment of a capita tion tax is no denial of suffrage, it is demanding only the preliminary per de Letters to the Editor must bear the name and address of the writer, although the use of a pseudonym for publication is permissible. The Star reserves the right to edit all letters with a view to condensation. formance of public duty and may be classed, as may also presence at the polls, with registration, or the ob servance of any other preliminary to Insure fairness and protect against fraud. Nor can it be said that the requirement to read is any denial of suffrage. It is obvious that this type of requirement was never considered to be an abridgment of the right to vote in any constitutional sense. By Mr. War ren's contention before the committee that the said poll tax repeal bill is un constitutional negates any such idea. This view rationalizes the 14th amend ment. and I do not believe it would have passed if it was believed that the regis tration laws and the like would be invalidated thereby. Thence I do not believe the above mode of attack upon the South will be upheld bv the courts. GEORGE WASHINGTON WILLIAMS. Baltimore. New Wage Scale To Halt Inflation Suggested. To the Editor of The Star: It would appear to me that the pres ent coal labor crisis is not the result of poor management on the part of the President or ‘‘pro-Axis'’ dealings by John L. Lewis, but rather the fault of a direct breach of logic by the admin istration. I refer to price and wage control. It would seem that our efforts at com bating inflation could be compared to one who, in trying to stop a kettle from boiling over, held the lid on tighter instead of removing the source of heat. It is that way, I believe, with wages and prices. We must take away the heat of sky rocketing wages instead of trying to "hold the line" of prices which, as Messrs. Henderson and Brown found, was not an easy job. After the initial impulse of fat Government contracts which drove them to unheard-of levels, wages still are creeping upward in spite of tightening ceilings. The spending power of the masses is greatly increased, thereby accentuating the danger of real inflation. The miners, although they are re ceiving adequate salaries to cope with wartime living, are aroused by the in equality of salary increases and seem ing discrimination between them and "war industries.” They feel that theirs is just as great a contribution to the war effort, and that they should be given some of the spoils. In spite of the need for a strict war time economy, certain industries—air craft and shipyard workers among them—are being paid fantastic sums for work which is not nearly the backbreak ing toil of mining. The answer in theory is simple. We must lower some wages and raise others so that the over-all relation among them will be that of prewar years. Per haps the wages of miners today would be a good starting point. From here we may build up to highly skilled tech nical work and down to laborers and apprentices. A fair wage scale such as this, in addition to eliminating a great part of the prevalent discontent, would help to decrease the so-called "inflationary gap,” and bring about a marked reduc tion in Government spending. g JAMES K. ROCKS. ' o. Haskin's Answers To Questions By Frederic J. Haskin. There are several hundred national organizations which maintain their headquarters in Washington. Here the information bureau finds the answers to many of the questions that newspaper readers ask. When writing be sure to sign your full name and address. Send your question to The Evening Star Information Bu reau, Frederic J. Haskin, Director, Washington, D. C. Inclose stamp for return postage. Q. In what presidential election did the highest percentage of eligible per sons vote?—S. B. M. A. Estimates based upon the census show that the greatest proportion of eligible citizens, about 80 per cent, went to the polls in 1896. Q. How high can bombers go?—L. C. Y. A. The B-17 Flying Fortress (heavy bomber) is reported to have a celling of at least 35,000 feet and the P-38 Lightning < high-altitude fighter) is said to have a ceiling probably above 35,000 feet. The 3-inch antiaircraft gun used by the United States Army fires a high explosive shell approximately 6 mile* in the air, while the 90-millimeter anti aircraft gun has a greater range, exact figures on which are restricted. Q. Did all the State Legislatures meet this year?—P. R. S. A. According to the Public Adminis tration Clearing House, all States were in regular session except Kentucky, Lou isiana, Mississippi and Virginia. The number of bills introduced was approxi mately 40,334, of whch some 38 per cent were enacted. Q. What was the locomotive that was captured in a Civil War raid?—A. B, V. A. The locomotive General of the Western & Atlantic Railroad, now the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis. It was captured on April 12, 1862, by Capt. James J. Andrews and his Yankee raiders, pursued and recaptured by the Confederates after a thrilling chase. Q. How many books are there in the Hoover library?—E. L. H. A. The Hoover Library on War, Rev olution and Peace, on Stanford Uni versity campus, contains an estimated 5,000.000 items. This includes official government publications of about 60 countries, books, films, maps, charts and posters in many languages, as well as currency and medals. Q. Do octopuses and squids really at tack men?—L. M. B. A. There Is no doubt that both are dangerous enemies and there are nu merous well-authenticated reports to prove that they have attacked men. Q. Where is the next World's Fair to be held?—E. F. F. A. If present plans materialize, ths next World's Fair will be held in Los Angeles, two years after peace is de clared. It is to be dominated by a Tower of Civilization, 1,290 feet high, which will be the world's tallest structure. Q. What is the longest hit that can be made in fair territory in the Yankee Stadium?—M. D. C. A. The American League says the longest hit that can be made in lair territory', Yankee Stadium in New York, has a maximum distance of 461 feet from home plate to the center field bleacher wall. Q. In what sea or ocean do the great est breakers occur?—D. F. A. A. The most powerful breakers are to be found on the coast of Guinea in Africa, where there is a constant west erly swell from the Atlantic Ocean. Q. Did Sarah Bernhardt have any children?—N. C. C. A. She had a son. Maurice, who was manager of the theater which bore his mother's name. He died in Paris at the age of 65. Q. What was the first best seller written by an Indiana author?—D. Z. A. “Ben Hur,'' by Gen. Lew Wallace, published in 1880, is generally given this honor. Q. How long has the capital letter U been used?—L. L. A. The letter U was originally a cur sive or rounded form of the letter V and not distinguished from it. By the 10th century V came to be used by preference as the capital initial form. The two letters, however, were not em ployed separately until about 1800, Q. What years are usually taken to include middle age?—T. F. A. The term is customarily taken to include the years from 40 to 60. Q. What is the origin of the name Texas?—L. N. A. The aborigines who occupied that part of the country had a term, “tejas," which meant “allies or friendly." The early Spaniards interpreted this as a tribal name and used it as a place name. With the English it took the form of i Texas. November Eleventh This day returns with troubling memory ■Of shming promises, yet unful filled, And dreams we cherished, in our ecstasy— That wars were ended, rage of battle stilled; That peace henceforward like a golden light Would fall unshadowed on the hearts of men. The dreams have faded. Hideous is the night Whose terror grips the shuddering world again. Again! How dare we hope? Yet, to despair Is but to crush the last intrepid spark, To shirk the burden of the cross we bear And sink from darkness to a deeper dark. Sternly, we bid the craven thought begone, For ours must be the just, com passionate hand That shapes the peace, the bright, impartial dawn With equal radiance for every land. INEZ BARCLAY KIRBlf,