Evening star., 1922-12-14
CAPITAL KEYNOlTES.
BY PAUL v. COLLINS.

: After me-the Deluge" exclaimed
the French grand monarch. but he
g, was no greater alarmist than are
the economists Of today. The timber
experts tell us that we have only
from five to fifteen more years sup
ply of the various Kinds of timber
left in America. That limit will roll
/ around so quickly that we shall
hardly have time to stop whiting
| before all the sticks are gone, and
| then we shall have no building ma
terial but adobe, concrete. steel and
paper. -..-
But now comes Secretary Hoover
with another wall of woe, and his
lugubrious message is that there Is
only enough oil in the hills and val
leys OF the world to supply the pres
ent generation. After us. the oilless
fiivver. run by wireless ether waves.
from the power OF white coal" to
wit: waterfalls. perhaps hundreds of
miles distant. Providence put man
kind upon the earth and the Lord will
provide either oil, coal, gas or ether
waves. Our present progress in sci
ence suggests that we need not take
| thought for the morrow, IL We only
wonders have been discovered in the
! last decade that what the next three
or four decades will produce is the
least OF our worries. There is at
present enough vegetable and fruit
waste to make sufficient industrial
alcohol to run our automobiles: and
the power of the sun and OF water
falls has never been guessed. Why
worry?
At a recent amnesty meeting
held in Washington, a newly elected
member of Congress declared that
both political parties lacked spirit
ual patriotism" Then the speaker
entered in fcrvid appeal for the
pardon of sixty-two criminals and
traitors who merely were convicted
of sending poisoned meat to the
sanguinary American soldiers at the
front. or purposely misdirected ship
ments Of food. in the hope of en-
barrassing the American Army. or
plotted to keep men from aiding the
cause of defense of the United States.
The advocate of Spiritual patriot
ism" neglected to plead for mercy
toward the loyal soldier who, after
Gus fighting and endless burdens Of
| watching. perhaps in utter eXhaus-
! ton. fell asleep on picket, and is now
suffering long sentence in Leaven-
worth. under court martial con-
viction. When has there been sim
gle word spoken by the pickets at
| the White House. who appeal for
pardon for convicted traitors--a sim
gle word Of appeal for mercy for the
loyal soldier under sentence for un-
| intentional violation of some mill
tary rule or obligation? We would
| not condone the offense of the sleep
! ing picket. nor of the violator Of
| discipline in the face of the enemy.
| but in comparison with the copperhead
behind the ranks, his is the first case
! to receive leniency. That is one in
| depreciation of real spiritual patriot
w. W. treason or mawkish senti-
mentality. The war is over, but the
distinction between Justice and in
Justice remains. The war is over
but the crippled and sick and dis
| couraged idle veterans are here yet
Let those who believe in spiritual
/ patriotism" remember them and think
less of the men whose aim during the
war was treason. and potential nur-
| der or our patriots at the front.
! .,* :. :: x
! The retail price OF food is slightly
advancing. and is from % to 81 per
| cent higher now than it was before
! the war. the differences depending
! upon the section of country. In Cana
da. it is said to have fallen to pre-
! war level. Tho fact that the cost is
still SO high with Americans, while.
our producers complain that they can
not even harvest their crops without
loss, demonstrates tina, the condition
is abnormal and wholly a matter of
distribution. Out in Wisconsin, where
potatoes grow 200 and 800 bushels per
acre, a farmer with q great potato
| crop undug. declares that the mere
| digging and hauling to market costs
| him 25 cents a bushel. and there he