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-y-v - S,'- "Viik- . f f il 10 THE WASHINGTON TBIES, SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1913. r j-y .- -,m- - rf-jwit -Irtfaghtitgttm-Smej? Published Evkrv Evening (Including Sundays) By The Washington Times Company. The Munsey Building, Pennsylvania Avenue. Frank A. 3Tun&cr, Pros. It. II. Titherlnu'ton, Src. Fred A. Walker, Treasurer and General Manager. ONE TEAR (INC. SUNDAY). !3 .0 I 6 MO.. Tl 73 I 3 MO . 9c Entered at the Poatorflce at Washington, D. C , as fecund class mail matter Washington, D. C, Sunday, ' ember 23, IMS. require a good many years even to make a good showing of accomplishment. The Maryland commis sion announces that it is entering upon a program looking to gradual and persistent elimination of these danger spots. This is now perhaps a very spectacu lar sort of public service, but it is one of most substantial value. Some Views Taken in Uncle Sam's "Beautiful" Backyard Section AX ENCLOSED ALLEY' IK SNOWS COURT. CONTROL OF WASHINGTON'S PARKS. BUSINESS CALM RESTORED. Following the Munsey Trust Company's taking over of'the United States Tnlst Company's business, busi ness and financial Washington saw the clouds of ominous portent break away even more rapidly than they had gathered. By the close of business on Sat urday signs of anything abnormal in the financial sit uation had well-nigh disappeared, and there" is assur ing promise and universal confidence that the begin ning of the new business week will be marked by a resumption of conditions entirely normal. JOHN H. MARBLE. The death of John H. Marble takes from the Interstate Commerce Commission its youngest mem ber, in point of both age and service. Moreover, he distinctively represented the application of the merit system to appointments on this commission. He had been an examiner, then secretary, demonstrating the highest aptitude, ability and character in every serv ice. President Wilson appointed him to fill the Lane vacancy on March 5 last. In considerably less than a year's work he had proved that he was destined to be one of the real forces of the body. Therewas every prospect that he would make a career in that particular work, and that the public interest would benefit in proportion as he accumulated experience to re-enforce his other high qualifications. Probably the youngest man that ever sat on the commission, his conscientious over-application to work had most to do with his untimely breakdown. The case is a peculiarly sad one, the blow to family and friends being as severe as it was unexpected and seemingly quite without the realm of possibility. CAMPAIGN AGAINST ARMAMENTS. Never before in recent times has England waken ed so generally to the burden of the growing naval armaments and expenditures. The campaign for re duction and relief is now taking a definite and urgent character. The chancellor of the exchequer, speaking in the house of commons on August 15, last, declared that public opinion was quite apathetic upon the expendi ture on armaments, and intimated further that no government could take action leading to an interna tional limitation of such expenditure without a strong public opinion on the question, the existence of which he doubted. His own feeling on the subject is. of course; intense; he has declared that Europe is menaced by revolution if the mad rivalry is not somehow checked. The English national peace council, which de clares it is confident that there is a widespread feel ing against the cost of armaments, and that the danger of the immense vested interests in war prepa rations, which are fixing themselves upon the tax payers in every land, is increasingly perceived, is seeking to focus public opinion upon this question with a view to obtaining that strong expression of op;nion without which ministers appear to be unable to act. Sir Algernon Firth, president of the congas of the chamber of commerce, pointed put at Antwerp that in 1912 Europe alone spent 366,000,000 on armaments, and that at the present rate in ten years' time the cost would equal the value of the whole mercantile marine of the world. THE GRADE CROSSING PROBLEM. The elimination of grade crossings over railroad rights of way is a matter that commands attention in all parts of the country. The last few years have brought it the more sharply into view, because the use of the automobile has vastly increased the danger of accidents by reason of the grade crossing. The Monday news nowadays is largely a weekly casualty summary ot the horrors taking place on Sunday, the majority of them to motor parties driving in the country and meeting accidents at crossings. Elimination of grade crossings in this country as, for instance, it has been accomplished in England, would cost hundreds of millions, perhaps even bil lions of dollars. It is one of those huge tasks that might easily enough have been accomplished in the beginnings, when the railroads were first being con structed, at modest cost; but n"obod,y then could fore see the difficulties of today, and moreover there was no capital with which to build the railroads any more expensively than they were first laid down. So the reformation of these conditions has become in creasingly expensive year by year. Now the rail roads and the community together face it, realizing that it is an affair in which responsibilities are mu tual. The public at large has never been rabid about grade crossings, largely beccuse the court rulings and legal enactments have divided the responsibility and financial burdens between the community and the corporations. If the entire cost could be dumped on the railroads there would long before now have been insistent demands that the business get im mediate attention, and the question of cost would have been shoved into the background. Public service commissions and like regulative authorities are giving attention in all parts of the country to this question, and through co-operation with the railroads and the local communities are! making ood progress toward doing away with the grade crossings. The worst and most aangerous at naturally getting attention earliest. At best it will The recent discussion of public comfort stations in the city parks has served to attract attention anew to the anomalous administration of the public parks of the city. With the exception of Rock Creek Park, the breathing spaces are under control of the War Department. Just why they should be is not at all apparent. There is good enough reason for placing engineering works in charge of the engineering au thorities of the department; but surely the parks of a large city are not accurately classified as engineer- inb propositions! , The protests against department plans for locat ing public comfort stations in the parks, in places vhere they will be most objectionable to the various neighborhoods, have developed the fact that the Dis trict Commissioners, charged with representing the general community interests, have no influence in such details unless by courtesy the War Depart ment listens to them. In the past, it must be said, the military masters of our parks have commonly been very well satisfied with their own judgment. The wishes of interested neighborhoods have had small weight. When the Commissioners sent Assist ant Corporation Counsel Whiteford the other day to ask the department to consider the wishes of the public in locating the Lincoln Park station, they went out of their province. That is all wrong. The Commissioners not only ought to be consulted in such affairs, but their determination ought to be final. The distribution of powers in Washington is such as to make the administration just about as remote as possible from the people. The public, streets be long, not to the District of Columbia, but to the United States. The parks are under the War De partment. The schools are administered by a board of directors appointed by the- District bench; yet even here authority is divided, because the District Commissioners have control of the physical proper ties, the building and repairing of school houses, which it would'seem ought to be under the same au thority that runs the schools. The man who is going to run the machine ought to have some part in de termining what kind of a machine is .to be turned over to him. If the schools become extravagant, the school board is blamed; yet in fact it is very well known that conditions imposed by reason of this divided authority have been in large part responsible for difficulties in reducing the administrative cost of the schools. Public parks, especially the small ones, which are intimately used by the people of their vicinage, ought peculiarly to belong to and be managed for the people. Perhaps the War Department's authority over them is a relicJ&anded down from the days when L'Enfant. laid out the town with thought of the possibilities that riot and revolution would al ways be as easily possible here as. in the mercurial French capital of his time. We are told that he organized the scheme of circles and diagonal ave nues with thought that in case of uprisings of the populace, batteries of artillery posted in the circles could rake the streets and avenues with grape ! That view of the first utility of a public park could easily find a corollary in the -policy of placing the parks all under the War Department. But we have gone along quite a time without Washington rising up and oversetting the Govern ment. We don't believe Washington is likely to Sv it. The town seems at this juncture quite calm and peaceable, and there is no special reason why the public parks should be military reservations any longer. This isn't Mexico City, and military gov ernment is not needed. I A BACK YARD IN SNOW'S COURT uffi'Wi 4 111 m lil W II IBM Ml 1 1 klallllllllHlBalBBaW-iBaBPr -jcCB-Hs: I r' vC''HflHNfla0H&JI iBfliHHFH? wsHBS&fltfinrMMKjMBIH ONE OF THE "DEAD-ENDS." iiKlHnlfMU I rWl lp'EiWM M T I warn i IN CHURCHES TODAY THE FRISCO'S FREE TREASURY. Baby Specialists Thrown in a Flurry When Delegate Springs Surprise. It is not so very long since that the game of buy and sell, or loan and borrow, between a great finan cial corporation and its directors, to the immense! benefit of the latter, was played quite regularly. That some such transactions or other would be dis closed by any investigation of the Frisco receiver ship that went far enough back into the past was a foregone conclusion. The sworn evidence is to the effect that this particular line's directors played the game like experts and stuck to it until there were no more funds to play with. So far as the taking of oral testimony is con cerned, the investigation is closed. Something else may, of course, yet transpire that will explain away some of the transactions. But the best excuse for them that offers itself now is the fact they are not all of recent date. Even so, it is a pretty poor ex cuse. The ethical standards are indeed higher now than they once were; but such flagrant abuse of a; railroad directorate's opportunities as has been re counted this week was never justified, never honest. The last bit of evidence produced was the list of members of the syndicate that promoted and sold to the Frisco the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexican railroad. That list is impressive. It names the chairman of the Frisco's board; an ex-vice president of the Frisco; the treasurer of the Frisco; the f co rner counsel of the Frisco; two receivers of the Frisco and several directors; two large trust com panies, three large banking houses. The road was built for $4,000,000. These men sold it to their own unknowing stockholders for $7,000,000. Syndicate profits of this sort amounted in all to over $7,400,000. There is a great deal of buncombe and demagogy behind the public distrust of bankers as a class and corporations as a class. The more thoughtful element has its work cut out to keep prejudice down and legislation temperate and wise. Instances of wholesale looting of a railroad's treas ury like this make the work none the easier. The one comfort is that secret looting is daily growing more difficult and that it does no longer meet accept ed business standards. . , By EDITH LOBERT. Last week there foregathered In Washington nearly -100 baby specialists. Just about all there Is to knov about Infant welfare was brought to light, taken apart, and put together again in a mayner that rather bewildered a lay mind. The gathering represented the best brains in the country on this par ticular subject. From twenty-threo States, they camo to the Capital of the' Nation the "City Beautiful." Between learned discourses on how to boll the milk and why the baby should cry between 9 p. m. and 6 a. m., they were "slghtseetng Washington," admiring Its beautiful boulovards and its marble palacps. With historic facts about the Lincoln collection Juggling the -itai tigures on tuberculosis, the specialists were pre paring to leavo. Washington with a real star-spangled opinion of Its high ways and byfvays. But one afternoon a quiet-voiced woman in black, with a. gentle, kindly face, and yet having an air of authority and capability about her arose to address the speclallts. She didn't expatiate on the charms of the Treasury architecture; she didn't echo the sentiments of the megaphone gen tlemen about "Uncle Sam's backyard being the most beautiful in the world." She had less obvious but more Impor tant things than the flrst to discuss, and she had her doubts about the lat ter, for here Is what she told them: "Of the babies born in Washington. one in every tuenty-fle comes to an alley mother. Of such alley babies, one In every four dies the llrst year of life." Causes Flutter. There was a perceptible Mutter, for It uiis Mrs. Archibald Hopkins who was making what seemed a remarkable h'auriien to the htrangers. Hadn't they just agrred that lnsanitar housing conditions were among the chief causes of infant mortality? And hudn't It just been proved to thfni that Washington, with Its lack of Industrial wretchedness uas the happiest. nio.st desirable place of residence in all the world? And hero uas a leader ill all the city's better ment activities calmly announcing llg ures that seemed more fitting for the stock .ird section of Chicago! What's the nnswer? Alleys I dare say It Is an old story to native Bay State Women's Club Wants Police With Rubber Soles 3LLDEN, Mnxs., Xov. 2. A pe tition to tunc the policemen of this cit j wear rn liber Miled shoes because lliej n'lik- so nincli noise ualkini: tlie streets liclv.een midnight and sunrise nil! Io presented tomorrow morning to Chief Foley by mem. hers of the Maiden "omen's Club. "What protertlon have we against hurclnrs if the policemen iiiuKn vn much noise when tlii'j nlk Hint It Is almost impossible to sleep nights when they clatter past residences which .inio brlek .sidcwallisr the petition reads'. Chief Foley, this morning, Indig nantly denied the intimation of one club ofticinl that hi men Hkert to wenr noisj -.hoes be enuse It guaranteed they woiild run no chances of a chnnce of accosting a burglar. ashingtonians. But I rather think it's going to be told and told again many times until sufficient pressure Is brought to bear upon legislators to pass the measure which will come up the next session of Congress. With Mrs. Ernest P. Blcknell, mem ber of the central housing committee, as guide. I visited some of the alleys nnd courts In question. We went over part of the route taken by Mrs. Wil son, wife of the President, last spring when In company with a number of Senators' and Representatives' wives, she Inspected the alleys. Our flrst visit was paid to Snow court. Enter ing by a narrow passage way off Twenty-fifth street we found oursehes In a criss-cross maze of dead-end alleys a tiny community In Itself. Only a block and a half away from Wash ington circle. Because of the solidly built houses that front the street, and hide thn view, no one outside the block would eer suspect the existence- of the lsol lated community within. There were jiibt two narrow and devious passage ways by which access could be gained to the court. To Convert Land. "This is the land the committee would like to have converted Into a play ground." explained Mrs. Blcknell as sho pointed to the vacant lota which adjoined the shacks, serving no earthly purpose whatever except aa & recep tacle for rubbish and a consequent breeding ground for disease. "That's one reason for our high death rate In the alleys,"' she continued; "tho LOOKING TOWAKD THE CAPITOL. Baby Specialists Given Inside Facts Relative to Conditions in the District. Preachers at Many Services An ticipate Coming of Nation's Great Holiday. equally important In measuring the quality of the product" Unfortunately, It Is hard, to find figures that show the difference between morals and love of righteousness on' the part of the alley dweller aa compared with the dweller on the street. "The only figures known to be avail able are those showing the relative fre quency with which Illegitimate children are born among a given class In the alleys as compared with the same class In the streets.- Among children born In 1912 to colored mothers living la homes on streets, one In five was IllegiUmate. Among those born to colored mothers living m-tne alleys, one to very two was Illegitimate. No one 'haaT-as yet ventured a defense of-tne Jo'-moral standards that bad housing Slleyihous Ing entails." v , , By this time we had reached Logan's court, just off Pierce street, between North Capitol and First streets. There are ninety apartments in this block, fifty-four of them facing on Pierce street. These rent for an average of ture were plied together in a miscel laneous array. "Come right In," she grinned, hospitab ly, as we made our way up tho steps. DaJnty lingerie, freshly laundered, hung on a line. The general disarray was"! lypicai oi me aney aweuer. "All washings from downtown, are they?" we inquired. "Oh. yassem, yas Indeed." . "This is the sort of place where babies must struggle for existence." said Mrs. Blcknell. "And altogether too many or them find the flehf in ton strnnir fnv them. Also, this Is the sort of place j JS a month, so the tenants say. wiiid uuwiiiuwu people nave ineir v ashing done. "I wish we couldJmpress upon peo ple who are ready to help relieve dis tress among thewhltes only, that this is not a race problem It is a human problem. Just so long as people allow their prejudice to blind them to real facts, just so long will Washington have Its alley problems." From here we went to Freedmen's court, between O and TJ streets and Sixth and Seventh, over to Goat alley. ana clown old o street, now Neal. Much the same conditions prevailed, and In Thanksgiving Day Is being anUcL pated In many local churches today, al. though. In most s Instances, there will not' be servces until next Thursday morning. ' The Rev. John Compton Ball's subject at the Metropolitan Baptist Church this morning was "Thanks Be Unto God For ," tha sentence being left unfin ished, that It might Include everything physical and spiritual that men enjoy today. "Three Thanksgivings" was the sub ject of a sermon by the Rev. Dr. D. Butler Pratt at the lit. Pleasant Con. gregatlonal Church, this- morning, while at the Westminster Memorial Presby terian Church the Rev. T. B Davis preached on "Thanksgiving In Anticipa tion." A' Thanksgiving praise service will be held at the Sixth Presbyterian Church this evening. The theme -wlll be "Be Thankful." and the service will be in charge of the Rev. A. W. Spooner. Two pastors will this evening make the moral temptations and obligations of metropolitan life the subject of their sermons.- "The City and Its Peril!' will be discussed by the Rev. J. A. Campbell at the First United Presby terian Church. The Rev. S. Townseiui Weaver, of the Grace MT E. Church, will at the same hour preach on "The Perils and Privileges of tha City." A sermon along the same-lines will be that on "The Progress or the Common People," ,by the Rev. Drf James Shera Montgomery, at' the Metropolitan Me morial Methodist Church. The Rt. iRev, Lucien Klnsolvlng. Bishop. of 'Brazil, will preach the sermon at the Episcopal Church of the Epiph any this evening, his' subject being "ReUgJon's Simplest Demand.? The morning sermon there was preached by the rector, the JRev. Dr. Randolph H. McKlm, being a special service for Hi ram Lodge. No. 10, A. F. and A. M. The last of the afternoon services at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church will be held at 4:15 today, when the Rev. C. Herbert -Reese preaches on "Work." Beginning next Sunday, this service will be held at 8 o'clock In the evening. Home Club to Pick Officers Tomorrow chiMren have no place to play. In sum- the neya mt0 mmor streetSt eHm. nior there Is nothing but the hot. filthy natlng the dead-ends, would partially brick alleys and courts in wnicn tnojsoive tne proiem, rhililrpn ulav their games and In the winter the Ill-ventilated and often over crowded rooms do their deadly work in breeding tuberculosis germs." The allejs were lined with children, most of which were colored. In one of the houses mummy was ironing. Tubs, cooking utensils, and household furni- Influence Morals. "It is not In terms of Illness and death alone that the Influence of tho home and Its surroundings must be measured." continued my guide. "Mor als and love of righteousness are factors What's on Program This Week MONDAY. Meetings, twiiiim. Masonic Dawson I,udi,'c. No. 16, M. M. Staiibbuo. -' i""1 K,II' Dav,d' No N (hPcIal) I :; Mt. Vernon Chapter. No. -. Royal Arch. Ana rost'a No. 12; Kalllpolls Grotto, No. 1". M O V. P.. K. R. ceremonial; Temple Chapter. No. 13, Kastern Star. Columbia. No. 1.1: meeting of board of directors of Ma&onic and Eastern btar mine. Knights of Pythias Decatur Lodge. No. o. Cnlr.Tithl". No. 11. KdU.il. No 17. National Union-Scott Council, Pythian Temple; Northeast Washington Coun cil. Njrfheast Temple. Odil Fellows Union Lodgo, No. 11; Covenant. No. 13, an 1 Langdon. No. X business; Beacon, No. 15, degree work. Ksther Lodge, No. 5, Rebekah, social wsslon. K. O. T. M. National Tent, No. 1. business .--esslon at T:20 o'clock and family night at bM o'clock In old Masonic Temple. Socialist party German branch meet ing. s:l." o'clock, iU K street north west. TUESDAY. Meetings, evening: Masonic Federal Lodge, No. 1, visita tion. S o'clock, Takoma, No. a; Mt. Iloreb Chapter, No. 7, Royal Arch, and It. A. Potomac. No. IS; Do Mol.iy Comnianrtery. No. 4. Knights Templar; Uohtrt do Ilrm-e Council of Kadosh, Scottish Rite, twenty-seventh degree; Klecta Chapter, No. '. Kastern Star, Bethlehem, No. 7, visitation. Friend ship. No. 17. Knishts of Pythias Webster Lodge, No. 7; Hxcelslor. No. H, grand visitation; Germanla. No 13; Capitol, No. it. Il lustrated lecture: Mrtle, No. i". Odd Fellows Washington Ixulge, No. 6. degree work; Golden Rule. No. 21. and Amity. No. 21, business: Fred D. Stuart Encampment. No. 7. grand visitation. K O. T. M. rtrlghlwood Tent, No. 5. Maccabee Hull. Brlghtwood. Socialist party Italian branch meeting, S.1S o'clock, VII K street northwest. WEDNESDAY. Meetings, evening: Mat-oHc- Harmony Lodge. No. 17. F. C; Grand Lodge frliool of instruction. Royal Arch, Grand chapter, school of Instiiiclion, Washington Command er), No. 1, Knights Templar, Naomi Chapter. No. 3. and Brookland, No. II. Eastern Star. Knights ot Pytbiaa-Ai;. Vernon Lodfie, No. 5; Hermlone. No. 12; Union, No -,', w2,rk; Columbia, No. 33; Friend ship Temple No. 9, Pythian Sisters, past chiefs' night. Odd Fellows-Eastern Lodge. No. 7 Harmony, No. 9. and Friendship. No. 12. business; Federal City, No. "0. initiatory degree; Columbia Encamp ment, No. 1. degree work. Socialist party Youne people's League, S:15 o'clock, Sll E street northwest. THURSDAY. Meetings, evening: Masonic The New Jerusalem Lodge. No. 9, business; Temple-Noyes, No 32; George C. Whiting, No. 22. meeting postponed; Washington Chapter, No. 2, Royal Arch. P. and M. E.; Capitol, No. 11; William F. Hunt Chapter. No. 17, Eastern Star, visitation. Knights of Pythias Harmony Lodge, No. 21. National Union Bancroft Council, Ty pogtaphlcal Temple; Dahlgren Coun cil. Pythian Temple. Odd Fellows Columbia Lodge, No. 10, Excelsior. No. 17, and Salem. No. 22, business. K. O. T. M. District Tent, Mariner's Temple. Socialist Party Women's Central Com mittee, social and luncheon, 5:30 to 10:30 o'clock. FRIDAY. Meetings, evening: Mason!." Naval Lodge. No. 4. special. M. M : St. John's. No. 11. E. A.: F. C. Hope. No. 20. M". M.; Eureka Chap ter. No. 4, Royal Arch; Almas Temple, Shrlners. ceremonial. 7 o'clock: Ta koma Chapter. No. 12. and Cathedral, No. 14. Eastern Star. Knights of Pythias Syracusians Lodge. No. V: Rathbone-Superior. No. 29; Rathbone Temple. No. S. Pythian Sis ters, degree work. Natlon'U I'nlon East Washington Coun cil. Weller'a Hall; McKlnley Council, Washington Hall. Odd Fellows Centra Lodge. No. 1, busi ness; Metropolis, No. 16, Lines of "wash" hunc across the court which had but onj entrance. Gar- oage cans with lids off were every- wiere in evidence. cjntldren pla7' eti on the steps or on the dlrt-o- pavements. There appeared to be but one garbage can to every three or iuur iiuzmies. Shot at Can. - , . waa imormea once when I came through here," said Mrs. Blcknell. "that tho people In some of the upper apart ments dldnt bother to bring their garbage downstairs at all. They simp-' ij maae a wtia shot at the open can with their refuse, and once in a while it struck where they- intended It," Our next visit took in Willow Tree tuun, wncre jurs. Wilson hopes to see a municipal wash house established. Inasmuch as most of the women In habitants of these alley take In wash ings as a means of livelihood, they would still be provided with means to ply their trade, in case the proposed changes should mean temporary hard bhip to them. "A numher of objectionable build ings here have already been taken down." said Mrs. Blcknell. "and somo of the conditions Improved through In dividual efforts. But there still re mains much to be done." I took a snapshot here of a view which Is not printed In the pretty souvenir books; of Washington. Tho Capitol dome, about which so many superlatives have been written forms the background for a row of shacks that suggests New Tork's East Side. I have often heard a Capitol guide pointing out the beauties of the western grounds to a party of tourists, referring to the smooth stretch of lawn as "the most beautiful backyard In the world." And It's true, of course. But what about the adjoining block to the southwest? Postmasters Asked To Solicit Deposits "With every new depositor you have contributed to the general happiness and thrift of your community," writes the Postofflce Department to post masters throughout the country, in a letter advancing the advantages of the postal savlngj system. Postmasters are urged to personally solicit deposits. "A serious drawback has been a lack of systematic publicity," the letter con tinues. In discussing the savings .sys tem. "It is surprising how little the puollc knows generally about the op eration of the service. It Is our duty to acquaint the public, especially In the larger cities, with the facilities the service affords." Sylvester Plans To Inspect Police Hon; Phoenix. No. 2S. business; Dor-! cas Lodge. NO. 4. Rebekah, business. Socialist pnrty Local Centr.il Washing ton. S.1G o'clock. Sll E street north west; Loral Northeast Washington. S:ir. o'clock. 639 Eighth street north east. SATURDAY'. Meetings, evening: Masonic Dedication of Masonic and Eastern Star Home In afternoon. Socialist party Women's Central Com mittee, social and luncheon. 5:30 to 10:30 o'clock. The annual lnsnectlon ami rlrill nt th grand vlslta- Washington police force will be held December -I. 5. and & The inspections will be made by Major Sylvester, super intendent of police, and the Commis sioners. Tho flag trophy, awarded each year to tho precinct passing tho best inspection, both as to force and quar ters. Is tho prize for which all precinct captains compete. In addition to this trophy, tho Samuel II. Vandergrlft prizes to the mounted men of the force will bo awarded to Individuals after a special Inspection nnd drill of the mounted men. There are three prizes, aggregating Jo0 in gold. That there win be no discrimination In membership eligibility for the Home Club of the Department of the Interior Is Indicated by the fact that- the by laws, as drafted, provide no restrictions. The only 'prerequisite for membership Is employment in the-Department of the Interior In a tentative draft of the Home ' Club by-laws it -was provided that all white employes were eligible. The draft, submitted to employes to be scanned- before a. meeting tomorrow evening, contained no such limitation. Temporary officers will be elected to morrow night. Following, is the ballot: For president. ppresldent, George Otis; Smith. Geofoglcal Survey; secretaryr M- A". Rattigan, Gen eral Land Office; treasurer, A. Hi Thompson, Pension Ofnce. Board ot truestees John McPhauL General Land Office; John T. Reeves. Indian Office: John F. Keenan. pension Office; James T. Newton, patent Office; E. J. Ayers. Secretary's office; W. S. Deffenbaugh. Bureau of Education; Miss A. M. Fon taine, Geological Survey. W. A. Ryan. Reclamation Service, and Mrs. Edith T. Spofford. Bureau ot Mines. Charge Destruction' Of Eggs to Hold Prices Within a week special attorneys and agents all over the country are expected to file with the Attorney General's office detailed Information about cold storage houses and their handling, of eggs. The Department of Justice has been In formed by Congressman Kenneth D. McKellar that the cold-storage Interests of the country, by the manipulation of markets, have caused the high prices at present being charged for food. In ad dition to an Immediate Investigation by Congress demanded by Mr. McKellar, he has asked Attorney General McRey nolds to assemble evidence of the re ported conditions, with a view to Insti tuting criminal proceedings. Congressman McKellar told the De partment of Justice that he had been Informed that one storage firm actually destroyed eggs by the carload after Its warehouses had become taxed to their capacity, rather than allow the eggs to go Into the retail markets and curtail the plan of "cornering" the egg market. Community Xmas Tree Lighting a Problem Lighting the White House Ellipse and the community Christmas tree Is the problem now before the committee in chartre. and It will be decided at a conference to be held by lighting ex perts and the committee tomorrow. The tree will be strung with hundreds of electric bulbs, with a big star at the top. while the Ellipse will probably be lighted and warmed with great bon fires about the edge. The Boy Scouts of the District will help In the work. The fund now In hand Is $91. with contributions expected dally. The Atrum Club Puts on a Play The Atrum Club, a local organization, gave a play last Wednesday night at Odd Fellows' Hall, under the direction of Arthur B. White. The performance was a success. Those taking part were Marie Koonx. Walter Rathbone. Arthur B. White. . Ethel Cohill. John Vemeyer. Mrs. Wln fleld. George Edelin. Eric H. Carbaugh. Robert Jansen. James Rldgway. Nellie Clements, and John King. Frank Morrison Celebrating Today Washington friends of Frank Morri son, secretary of the American Federa tion of Labor, today sent congratula tions to him at the Seattle convention, the occasion being Mr. Morrison's fifty fourth birthday anniversary. Today also is the fifty-first anniver sary of Sir Gilbert Parker, author of "The Right of Way," which attracted so much favorablo attention at Poll's Theater last week. A -f . ..