The Washington times., 1921-01-02
Today
What Happened in l9202
A Short List.
What Most Important2
What for 1927
y ARTHUR BRISBANE
Copyright is2o.)

ict VI pcioo S'Shs' Ns
leave about 105,000,000 other
Americans quite cold.
Each nation would make a list
in which perhaps one or two
events would be thought worth
mention by the other nations. Here
is a list. Revise 1t to suit your
own personal list, as follows:
FYrst-Things that DID happen
TO you.
Second-Things that OUGHT to
have happened to you, but did
NOT happen.
Third-Things that DID happen
and ought NOT to have happened.
Fourth-Things that with good
management could be MADE to
happen in 1921.
From the United States point OF
view, these are few OF 1920's
doings that count:
We passed from criminal prof
iteering, fed by private and public
extravaganza, to foolish fear of
spending dollar. We did NOT
Jail one single big profitser. Other
nations Jailed many of them.
We had the "great and solemn
referendum" proposed by Presi-
dent Wilson in his Jackson Day
b letter, and 1t went off smoothly,
except for the League OF Nations
and for Democrats. They knew
how people nearby felt when the
top slipped off Mont Blanc.
Prohibition was copper riveted
as the law of the land, and the
Volstead Act with 1t, by decision Of
the Supreme Court. Prohibition
can no longer be attacked any
where except at the polls. There
you can knock down anything il
you show that you mean (which
Americans rarely 90.
With prohibition in force, as it
certainly will be for at least a
generation (modified, of course, by
bootleg whiskey), we shall decide
an interesting question.
Did all the successful nations
succeed with the help of alcohol,
or IN SPITE of alcohol? And did
the failures among nations fail be-
cause they drank no alcohol. or
IN SPITE Of prohibitions bless
ings?
The successful nations have all
used alcohol; the most miserable
failures, India, Turkey, Egypt, etc,
have been total abstainers. The
answer to the question will be
found here, after one or two cold
water generations.
Another amendment to the Con-
stitution, the nineteenth, gave
votes to women. The proclamation
of the nineteenth amendment was
undoubtedly the most important
happening in this country since
July 4, 1776. The unselfish, moral,
and benevolent half Of the human
race will henceforth help to make
laws. Public men will be obliged
to ask themselves: What do the
women want?" The answer will
give better government and better
public men-not at once, of course,
but gradually.
The monkey that bit the King
of Greece was one Of 1920's big
events" And we DO not even
know whether the monkey is dead
or still alive. That monkey bite
sent Constantine, married to
Hohenzollern, back to the Greek
throne. 1t changed the attitude of
western Europe toward Greece,
Turkey, and the whole Eastern
problem. No man can say what
influence that monkey may have
in the worlds history.
The Nobel Peace Prize was
awarded to President Wilson and it
is thought that Mr.. Harding will
make peace with Germany as soon
as he comes in. That ought to
get him next years peace prize.
Russia drove off all her enemies.
She holds the endurance record
for all revolutionary governments"
in the worlds history. Shot at least
twice, Lenin holds on, and Trotzky
bteulS LO nave SHOWN as COU1nan-
der of the Russian forces that the
Jewish fighting quality of the
Maccabees, the "Hammerers,' has
not died out.
This country, or rather its Ad-
minstration, still declines to rec
ognize the right of Russia to govern
herself-the idea seems to be that
If Wall Street government is good
enough for the United States it
ought to be good enough for Rus
sia. The Russians think they could
not afford it. They have read
about Hog Island and the aircraft
patriots.
Anyhow, like the little girl that
packed up her dolls and went
home, we are not recognizing or
trading with Russia.
John Bull is bearing up we'll un-
der that. We virtuously sent back
81 shipments OF Russian gold, fearing
1t might have belonged to the
murderous Romanoff gang. Eng
land signaled: "Hey, bring il
here; well sell you"
We had the great Wall Street
explosion, still mystery. Ireland
is fighting England, a real war
That started 700 years ago. Mex
tao hoe N nau. nr,,,I.,.