Evening star., 1925-10-09

The next shindy IN the aircraft uni
verse fwhere there seems to be moth
ing else but is due when Comdr. Don
aid B. Macmillan returns from the
Arctic and blameS the Nays flying
boats for the failure of his Arctic ey-
peditiOn. The Navy itself isn't going
TO rise in its own defense. That Will
be attended to by Grover Cleveland
Looming, the brilliant young aeronau-
tical engineer who designed the am
phibian" planes which accompanied
Macmillan to the North. Ever since
Macmillan sent back word to civiliZa-
tion that his aircraft equipment hadn't
come up to the mark, Looming has
worn war paint and proclaimed his
intention of holding Macmillan to strict
accountability. If the commander re-
peats the charge in the press or on
the lecture platform, 1t is Loening'S
determination to pursue him and use
term which TEDDY" Roosevelt used to
like to call the shorter and uglier
word" Looming declares that if any
body ought to have known in advance
the limitations of aircraft in the Arctic
iCefields, that man is Donald MacMil-
Ian. The engineer is not minded that
the buck" for MacMillan's il-starred
venture shall be passed to the Navy
planes as such.
One of Gen. Herbert NJ. Lords prin-
cipal assistants in the administration
of the budget is Redmond D. Stephens,
who brings to his task wealth of ex-
perience in various professional fields.
Stephens is q lawyer by calling. with a
record of successful corporation prac-
tice to his credit. Since the war, in
which he held the rank Of captain. he
has been associated with various Fed
eral activities in Washington, mostly
connected with the War Department.
In Chicago Stephens was a law part
ner of the late American Ambassador
to Japan. Edgar A. Bancroft. He Wis
tied Mr.. Bancroft in Toxic some time
ago, and while there took occasion to
quake smote Nippon the Japanese
budget system. Ever since the earth
quake smote Nippon the japanese
have had Il pretty rigid Coolidge econ
ony program of their own. Stephens
found that 1t contained not a few
points of interest for the United
States.
So seriously does the Navy take the
charges that Col. Mitchell has prefer
red against it that it has sent over
seas for American officers who can
give the Presidents Air Board first
hand information. Rear Admiral Luke
McNamee. who for the past year has
been United States naval attache in
Great Britain, arrived from London q
few days ago at Secretary Wilbur's
order. The Air Board has already in.
terrogated him. McNamee, who used
to be chief OF the naval intelligence
service in Washington, Is an out
spoken opponent Of the united air
service idea. He has been able to OBJ
serve that system at work in Great
Britain and to acquaint himself with
the British navy's reasons for insist
ing that 1t be abolished as soon as pos
sible.
Onver on Sixth street northwest,
Washington, stands an old-fa ShioneC
three story red brick dwelling that
ought to be christened Telephone
House." On its third floor back, Al
years ago, a young man named Emile
Berliner, then a clerk in a dry goods
store on Seventh street, burned the
midnight oil while he worked out the
invention of the telephone transmitter.
One day this week Berliner, still hale
and virile at IS. took a group of
friends to visit his old home. More
than a generation has passed since he
last attempted to inspect the humble
lodgings he occupied there. The place
is still rooming house. The land
lady had some misgivings about show
ing Berliner and his party through.
When he finally contrived to identify
himself, she was overjoyed and felt
honored by the disclosure that she
poN 1nhabits SO historic premises.