Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-11-01
WHAT THE GOVERNMENT Is DOING

be known as the National Reading Cir
Gle. and for admission to this circle
DR.. Claxton says that it is only neces-
sary to write to the home education d.
vision of the United States bureau OF
education. Washington. D. c., and ask
to be furnished Information about the
| reading courses which have been plan
ned under the direction of group. of
the best known educators of the United
States. Persons desiring to benefit by
joining the reading circle are merely
| asked to give their Names post Office
addresses, ages and a very brief state
ment of their education and occupation
When this brief information is given
members of the governments National
Reading Circle will be furnished a read
ing course including the best works in
the worlds literature. Only serious
minded young men and women are in
vited to join the governments new or
ganIZation. The members will under
take to read each of the books which
are listed at least twice within the
next three years from the time of
Joining the circle. and to each person
giving satisfactory evidence of having
read all the books OH the list Will be
awarded Il government certificate bear
ing the seal of the United States bu-
reau of edueat and signed by the
Of the aims of the bureau of educa ton
in starting this course, Commissioner
Claxton says:
Among all the books of the world,
style that they are called the literary
| Bibles These include the HAD and
| Odyssey of Homer, the Divine Com
edy' of Dante. the great dramas of
i Shakespeare, Goethes Faust and
| few others. Each of these is the en-
bodiment and revelation of the ideals
| of a race. an age or a civilization.
They appeal to the hearts and grip the
minds of all people everywhere. young
and old. learned and unlearned, of
| human books. and take firm hold on
| the human life which we all live, which
| few understand. and which in all phases
has interest without end The books
| to be recommended by the experts
| directing the national reading course
are books which should be read and
| understood by all who would know the
worlds literature and life.
| DR.. Claxton has obtained as experts
| to assist him in preparing the reading
men and women of this country will
| be invited to join. the following author
tiles in English literature: Charles Al
phonso Smith, who is the Edgar Allan
| Poe professor of English in the Uni
| versity of Virginia: William Lyon
Phelps. professor of English literature
| in Yale University: Charles Forster
Smith, professor of Greek in the I'M
versity of Wisconsin, and Richard Bur-
| ton. professor of English literature IN
| the University of Minnesota.
K :.
Persons interested in the movement
| to abolish the illicit traffic In habit
forming drugs in this
Anti-Drug Bill country were disap-
pointed to learn dur
delayed. ing the past week that
the so-called Harrison bill, "nich
passed both the House and Senate ana
was reported out of conference 1eil
short of one step in legislative proce-
dure which would make it ready LOT
signature by President Wilson.
Although the bill was reported out
favorably by the House and Senate con-
ferees. the conference report was ap-
proved only by the Senate. The ad-
! journment came too soon for action by
the House, and it will be now neces-
sary to await approval of the confer
ence report at the December session of
Congress. The bill will then be sent
to the President for signature.
The delay in the final enactment OF
the anti-drug bill brings about a
somewhat complicated situation, be-
cause the bill is drawn to take ef-
feet on and after the first day Of Oc-
tober. 1t was passed by the House
many months ago, but encountered
many delays in the Senate. where 1t
was considered by subcommittee OF
the committee on finance, with Senator
John Sharp Williams of Mississippi as
chairman.
The bill provides for the registration
of all producers, manufacturers or
dealers in opium or coca leaves OF any
compound, derivative or preparation
| thereof. and imposes on such dealers
a special tax of 81 year. The bill
lawful for any person to sell, ex-
change or give away any of these
! habit-forming drugs. except on writ
ten order of the person to whom the
with whom exchanged. on form to
be issued for the purpose by the COM
| missioner of internal revenue. Each
person who shall accept such an order
| is compelled by the law to preserve it
for a period of two years in such
way as to be readily accessible for in
spection by government officers the
law will make it possible to trace the
other until it reaches the ultimate con-
sumner, and in this way 1t is believed
that much of the Illicit traffic in the
use of habit-forming drugs may be
checked.
According to advocates of antf-drug
legislation, the law is far short Of be
ing ideal, because of the fact that 1t
has several provisions which NAV per
NIT a certain amount of Illicit traffic
The bill as originally written by for
mer Representative Francis Burton
Harrison, now Governor General of the
Philippines, provided that ha bit form
ing drugs should not be distributed by
any person except a physician. dentist
or veterinary surgeon who was per-
sonally attending patient. The words
"personally attend upon such a pa
tient" have been stricken from the bill,
making it possible, it is claimed, Tor
unscrupulous doctors to obtain and
distribute quantities of habit-forming
drugs to persons who are addicted to
their use.
Another section of the bill which Is
considered in the nature of a joker Is
the one which excerpts the use OF de-
cocainized coca leaves. A strip Is made
from coca leaves after the cocaine has
been extracted and is used In certain
! soda fountain beverages. Although TINS
strip does not contain cocaine. govern
ment experts believe that the strip
does contain habit-forming qualtles.
and they believe that it should not be
exempted by a joker. because they say
it is clearly a derivative of coca leaves,
and that the law was written to pre-
vent the sale of all habit forming de-
rivatives or preparations of the drug.
considerable restriction in the sale OF
coca leaves because of an improvised
system of keeping track of the i'm
ports into this country by customs Off
Gals of the Treasury Department. the
loI,to In; of dc Of all imDOrtS has