The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1920-12-29
ON SECOND THOUGHT
By JAY Z. HOUSE
(Frou Philadelphia Public Ledssr.D

The New York Tribune believes
there is no reason why President
Wilson should not continue to live in
Washington, and counsels moderation
on the part of those who resent his
decision to do so. We feel the same
way about it. If the president can
stand it, let him go on living in Wash
ington, we say.
We fancy the presidents decision
to live in Washington will have less
effect on the public mind than his
recent purchase of $150,O00 house.
Roughly speaking, there are one hum
bred millions of people in this country.
Half of them believe it impossible
for a man to pay $780, 900 for house
without first selling out to the inter
ests.
Nor can you blame them. The most
persistent and continuous propaganda
on the hypothesis that every man who
has little money is crook.
1t may interest you-at any rate, it
Intrigued" a reader living in Paoh-
to know that Commander Stackhouse,
who is disposing of the surplus musical
stores at the navy yard, has both first
and second violins for sale.
curiosity. What became of that once
favored musical instrument the B
flat cornet?
Our experience is that the "fillum"
world always yields a wheeze to the
man who has the patience to look for
it. 1t was learned yesterday that the
plan of a Philadelphia producer to bill
THE Four Horsemen of the Apoca-
lypse" as the greatest racing drama
q
in authority who had taken the pre-
caution to read the book.
To us the incident is the thin enter
ing wedgeAof a revolution. in the mo-
tion-picture business. We believe the
time is coming when motion picture
directors will read the books they pro-
duce. We go further. We believe the
day not far distant when those who
write the titles will be expected to
do so.
The news that Jesse James the
younger is depicting the role written
around his well-known father in the
screen version of 1.-THE James Boys in
Missouri inlpels us to add a marginal
note to the gossip and anecdote of the
James boys recently current in the
column. In doing so we deal with a
pathetic incident, and one in which
proud ambition was thwarted.
Jesse the younger studied to be a
lawyer. When he was admitted to the
bar he set up practice in Kansas City
and was doing well. But at an I'M
fortunate moment young Jesse was
connected by the authorities and in
the public mind with a train robbery.
They failed to send young Jesse to the
penitentiary--in Missouri they do not
send those who can claim kinship with
the James or Younger brothers to the
penitentary-but the unpleasant in
cident ruined his law practice. and he
was compelled to fare forth into other
fields of endeavor.
Now. we do not know why suspect
ed conplicity in a train robbery should
ruin the practice of a young attorney
particularly in Kansas City. We
merely set forth the salient incidents
of the tale; we do not attempt to il
Illuminate them. i
"Give the Russians time" the Hon.
Link Steffens is quoted as saying.
They have a plan and are working
along it scientifically"
In other words, Mr.. Steffens be-
speaks for Russia the same friendly
consideration and the same sympa-
thetic public attitude he demanded for
the playful Mcnamara boys at the
time they were sentenced to the peni-
Tertiary for blowing up the office of
the Los Angeles Times. Whatever
Mr.. Steffens's other qualities of heart
and mind. he is always on the side of
the downtrodden and oppressed.
Reference to the playful Mcnamara
boys may recall to your mind our aca-
demic forecast with reference to Mr..
Mooney. We were sure Mr.. Mooney
would be out in time to vote for presi-
dent. and predicted n great reputation
for painstaking and accurate prophecy
on the prediction.
Now we shall have to start all over
again. and we no longer are as young
as we We're.
Lo, the Aged Indian.
Sir-The New York Herald IN. a
recent editorial on 1.-THE Pilgrims and
the Indians makes the following re-
markable statement: "Of 100000
natives on the continent when the
white man arrived to arrest their evo-
luton but 100000 survive" 1t would
have been a noteworthy event If q
single native had survived for 500
years, but to think of 100000 surviving
almost passes belief. E. H. A.
We are not so sure the Herald
writer's dope" is wrong. We have
known certain Osages. Poncas. Sacs,
Kaws. Choctaws and Creeks. if not on
terms of equality at least on those APP
preaching intimacy. Many of them
look fully 800 years old.
But, at that. the red Indian has his
points. He is one biped who considers
silence golden and who construes a
couple of gutturals as an Grafton.
Now that the glad holiday season is
upon US. we lean again upon the
thought that no smart man waits for
a woman to reach a position directly
under the mistletoe
The public is credulous enough,
goodness knows, but you can't fool il
by equipping a Henry car with q