Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-07-01
NO, CHARLEY; WE REGRET
THAT J. VERNE IS DEAD
Mr.. Halls Inquiry In Council Reminds
us That a Jules 10 Needed to Write
Of a World Going Mentally Blind

Of World Going Mentally Blind
0TS JULES VERNE in the house?' said
Charley Hall brightly when Mayor
Moore, having come up again for mir,
casually Informed the City Council that
$4,000, 900 would be needed for odds and
ends of public work preliminary to the
fair
or course, Councilman Charley knew that
Jules was dead Charley is no dummy. He
wished merely y show the fellows that,
given the proper background, he could swing
devastating pcrsihage with anybody.
1t might be a good thing for the world
If Jules were alive. For he had imagination
and a sense of humor-rare qualities of
mind that might yet save those national and
international situations in which the mere
reason and logic of less gifted men seem
utterly futile. He might write terrifying
romance of generation of men gone spir-
itunlly blind and tearing at each others
throats in the darkness and mistaking good
for bad and friends for enemies and lies for
the truth and defeat for victory.
This, for example, is the 1st Of July, and
| half the country is packing for expensive
vacations while the other half insists that 1t
| hasn't the means to live safely or in de-
cency. And the thing that would interest
| NJ. Verne--the most distinguished hunter
| of romantic contrasts that ever lived-is
that none of the people who are in such
| hurry to get away from home pause to
| consider that they may have to walk back
They may have to walk back if there is n
railroad strike. And there will be a railroad
| Ill, ali Ia, ,,b, bnyo 70 loo1 wi
the new crisis on the railroads are as lacking
in tact as T. DE Witt Cuyler, spokesman
for the railroad executives.
Let us admit that the attitude of the
| shopmcn is wrong headed and that their
| threats are of sort to irritate the public's
nerves. Even then Mr.. Cuyler's lecture on
| patriotism. indicting the union men as near
| traitors because they ignore the authority of
| the Railroad Labor Board, sounds bit
| hollow. It happens that the Pennsylvania
! Railroad Company was the first to question
| the authority of the board. 1t said at the
| outset, through General Attcrbury, that it
would retain the right to run its own af-
| fairs in a pinch. Mr.. Cuyler wrote nothing
publicly on the subject Of patriotism to
General Atterbury.
Jules Verne, n student always of the phe-
nomenal and the perverse IN nature ana
humanity, would DE sure 10 put ME-. 'uEler
in his book just as he would put the equally
significant Mr.. Gompers in. He would be
sure to snatch at Charley Hall and Mayor
Moore and all such people. They would be
a sort of Greek Chorus in the background
of n drama in which most of the ruling
statesmen would oppear MS blind men fight
ing among themselves for the right to lead
| tho world further on n downhill road.
- Julos would trv to show that Governing
Idea founded in Justice. is what civilization
lacks. He could prove, IL he were as clever
rs he used TO be- that an idea of that sort
is Ms far from the economic field in the
United States as it is from Europe. as far
| from Mr. Cuyler as il is from Mr.. Gompers
| and the radical shopmen. And he might
| find bitter amusement in demonstrating that
there are as many ruling cliuues warning
ior 'o"''o' anu p'va's :" p'.'t 40
'here are III Tue po'''''"' ito'' 'An' ,o''''nu,
| 10 iea'e 'he a''ieu countries 'espati'"s anu
| desperate anu "c'u""s ","N.i '' 'ne "',e.'
'hat count than '"e p'op'e 'Aes uet'"''u !"
the p'oodiest vi wars.
| jules h'is"t """' ""ne ee"i """'
| imaginative minus a'f'"us nave per'e''ea'
that there Gun De no unity oi hun'ah pur-
| poses, no great WorAs' no rea' progress 80
| long as the "ofiu continues ~ oe NAH hau
| with seinshhess'
W.. ,o,,. ,.now vboro tho Novor oxnoots
| . .ho. Gro ooo OOo ,r vbo,bor Ia
.,1,. noo.s or horss IN COT - ot oIl or
,,h.,Lou ho hod IN tho bocL of b,s mind ,
,oa,no 30 shoc,. the community nv crooti,,
.,.,auorotod ,mnrossio, of tho fairs COST