Evening star., 1923-06-01
CAPITAL KEYNOTES
BY PAUL y. COLLINS.

problems nearer for Congress to at
| tack In 1928. Besides. an election
| comes next year.
| The United States expenditure for
| 50. 900 100000 in the last year. of
which more than $4,000, 100000 went
into homes. Construction continues
at the rate of $250,OO0,O00 a month,
which will aggregate fully as much
| during the current year as last.
Savings balances are II per cent
| more than year ago, wages are
| higher than ever known before and
| everybody has a job who is capable
| of working.
| Maybe the new homes will keep
pace with Representative Davey's
| population boom.
4 4 **
| Missouri reports a net loss of farm
laborers amounting to $4,000 In the
last year. That is about the proper
| tion of farm loss in many of the
states and farmers are hard put to
| get the necessary help. Is Mr.. Frank
| II. Vanderlip's hope that more farm
| ers viii be attracted to the cities to
equalize industries being realized?
| X X
| The rumors and fragments of in
| formation which come out OF the in
Nestigation Of the Veterans Bureau
| suggest the subterranean rumblings
/ OF some Vesuvius getting ready for
an eruption. The indications become
| more ominous as the investigation
| proceeds and the only limit to the
disclosures appears to be due to the
| smallness OF the congressional appro-
priation for pushing the investigation.
! Maj. Gen. O'Ryan. in charge Of the
| lnvestigatfon, thinks that 10000 is
Iar from an adequate fund for un-
| earthing facts concerning the reckless
expenditure of hundreds OF millions.
The last indications are that several
sensational indictments on criminal
charges are soon to be brought.
| X y X
/ The Department OF Agriculture has
| discovered that trees manifest diff
| ferent dispositions. Just as persons
and beasts do. Some trees are de-
clared to be lazy. even though sound
! and vigorous. The lazy trees bring
forth leaves. but no fruit-like the
! fig tree which Christ condemned, as
lesson to childless men.
The department has made demon
! strations on the citrus trees of
| Florida and California. and has found
ways TO wake them up. 1t is now
| turning TO Investigations OF other
| trees.
The dividing line between vegeta-
| bic and animal life is vague, say
scientists. There are plants which
| show almost human intelligence. They
/ sleep. and they show the instincts
+, of animals, as animals show the habits
of long lines Of ancestry. A flower which
blooms in the dark and never sees day
| light will respond To the periodic changes
| or night and day. Without seeing
! day, it will open it's petals when dav
| exists and close them when 1t is
bedtime for flowers. scarlet run
ner, raised from the seed in darkness
and an unvarying temperature. will
lift and droop it's leaves with the
ers respond quickly only to actual
| changes of light and gloom
Flowers have memories. They re-
| spond to the touch and care OF those
| who love them. and they wither at
the care of unfriendly hands
In the evolution of all animal life,
the simple cell of protoplasm is the
starting point. vegetable life the con-
Meeting link. and man the climax.
We may not be descended directly
| from monkeys. though both monkeys
and we come from some kind OF sea-
weed or diatom. and that from the
single protoplastic cell So there is
good deal Of human nature" in
! all of us-from a daisy to a walnut
! tree. or even statesman. All NAV
need waking up. All have lazy spells.
Copyright. 1923. by p. V. CoIlinsl