Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-04-28
HundniSnS
BY WILLIAM ATHERTON DU PUY

IDEAS that may sweep the world may
L be incubating in the new countries d
Europe. says DR.. Bendrich Stcpanek, the
new Czech minister to the United States
Compulsory voting, for instance, is written
into the constitution of C2ccho- SOvakia'
That new nation has already held an eec'
tion in which every man and every woman
was required to vote or go to jail. 1t worked.
The result was that the will Of the whole
first instance of government which is in
reality by the whole people.
In the United States one Of the faults with
the government has been that many Of the
most intelligent people do not vote The new
theory is that voting is n duty which cit
zen should be required to perform, This
man from central Europe believes that the
theory is so obviously correct that ii will
be adopted generally.
When Representative Joseph W. B!rnS'
of Nashville. was going about his district
last fall beating the bush for votes he haa
one of his meetings completely spoiled ah'
in rather peculiar way.
iHtTe were Two spthhtIs dntuu VI n'"
and when each of them was well under way
a piping voice in the back of the hall nlped
up with this inquiry:
How about the kennal," with the en-
phass on the first syllable,
Neither speaker got just what the inter-
rupter was driving at. ignored the question
and went on. Soon the query, ''how abou,
the kennar' was repeated. Each speaSeI,
found himself thrown out Of his stride, fussef
and liSppDpprtp1 Zach snt short HIS Snfpcl
and sat down
Finally, Representative Byrns arose io'
the talk of the evening. He hadn't been
going long until that punCturing thrust "
his inflated enthusiasm came from the rear
How about the kennal"' queried Toe
piping voice.
Byrns wac mystified put out of strid.
He reeled bit. recovered himself got tne
flow Of his oratory to swishing gracelEH
between the banks of his Imagination, lhee
the dread question came again. IL wrecked
him, He went to pieces, was sunk Witno"
trace.
The three orators were riding back F"
Nashville in an automobile, gloomy ana niS
consOlate when suddenly one of them saw
a great light. -
II know what that little feller meant,
he exclaimed. 1T was the canal. ~
wanted to be told about the Panama Canal
During the war the office of m" adlumm
general OF the army had authority over 7"
cable messages that might go 10 France
Major General Peter {. Harris in rharsp
Tremendous pressure was brought to bear 10
get personal messages through but othcla
dispatches kept the lines busy every m!hu"
One anxious mother who had not heaiu
from her son at the fighting front i"r '"l,
months, importuncd General Harris TO ""'
just IL flash of inquiry.
Madame" he said, ~ myself have SVu
at the front ! have not heard from hIln ~
six weeks, but | know that his OrganNa
tion has been in the thick Of the fighting :
have no. sent Il word Of inquiry as 10 ~
own son. E,
\ few days thereafter he learned tna' o., ns
son was dead in France, had fallen I'au'"'
his company over the top.
{, is strange how quickly the hano -. W
experience grows clumsy when II u '"''
from its accustomed tasks. ,,s
There nrc the Republicans. for instant
who have run things pretty regularly 1rhor
| in Washington for two generations .",
sat out In tho drear for two prcSlur",Es ,Es
| terms and then came into possession " ,od
mill on Capitol Hin again not long ago. I'D I'D
what do YOU suppose happened the yer! ~"
! day Of C0ngrCSSt N
When members of the H9us" began N,
| file in to take their places they tounl.. tounu "
seats all occupied, That swarm OF tou,nMi
which. despite freight rates, keeps rnn"'~ n""r
about these days and insisting on u'H.SS
aging the cry Of hard times, had bro,aTJ
amateur Republican doOrkccpcrs as"c and
had walked right out on the ilous" uool ~
taken seats. A whskcred tnrmrr W%IIos,
stout wife and six children had srttIeu "o1 81,
| right in front ~ tho speakers desk ana -
ruminatingly munchng lunch