Evening star., 1926-04-23
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

my names McCarl.' replied the
New Yorker. Good God" calculated
Lieut.. Pitcairn, who nearly fell over
board as he envisioned what was now
about to happen to the squadron at
the hands of the Navy's pet aversion.
The lieutenant recovered conscious
ness in time to hear the visitor explain
that he was not the Federal cheese
parer, but merely Wall Street attor-
ney sojourning in the mystic East on
business for a client.
X X X
The railway brotherhoods are trying
to try out of the military affairs COM
mittee of the House and Senate the
bills to give military status and honor
able discharge to members of the
American Railway Service Corps on
duty in Russia in 1917. Some 100 en-
gineers, firemen, conductors and train
men are involved. The breakdown of
the Russian railway service threatened
the collapse of the allied Eastern front.
A disaster was in sight that might
have given Germany the decision. The
Kerensky government asked that a
corps of American railway engineers
be sent to help clear up the tangle on
the transsiberian line. A corps of
more than 200 men was raised under
the direction of Sam" NJ. FELTON,, vet
eran Chicago Great Western executive
and then director general of military
railways in the War Department. All
the men were experienced railroaders
and volunteers. They claim that de-
partmental red tape has deprived them
| of their military rights all this time,
although they served under the I'M
| preston they were full-f1edged COM
missioned officers.
* X X X
Vice President Dawes has just paid
his first visit to the Supreme Court
since he went there as a youngster
with his father, the late Gen. Rufus
r. Dawes, then a member of Congress
| from Ohio. Though lawyer, the
| Vice President never sought admls-
sion to practice in the Supreme Court.
| He was escorted into it's dignif1ed pres
ence the other day by a couple OF
friends, who placed him within the
charmed circle reserved for admitted
barristers. They were Col. Edward
| Clifford Of the Washington and Chi
cago bar, who had quiet but effective
charge Of the Dawes plan" at CleVe-
| land in 1924, and H. st. George Tucker
of Virginia, who was in Congress with
| William Mckinley and knew Dawes
in those early days. Chief Justice Taft
and his colleagues gave the vice
President a smiling welcome as soon
as they spotted their distinguished Wis
itor in the tourist throng.
X X X X
| Ten members of the United States
Senate have woman secretaries, but
| the rules bar them from the privilege
of the f1oor--the immemorial right OF
| male secretaries. Recently provision
was made to reserve for their exclu
sive use a front row in one Of the gal
leries, but that hardly makes up for
| the convenience of personal contact
with their big chiefs during session
Some of the front-rank members OF
the Senate have woman secretaries.
Cora Rubin is not only Borah's right
hand man." but clerk to the foreign
relations committee besides. Martha
| r. Gold is Senator Moses secretary
and clerk to the post offices and post
roads committee. Mabelle J. Talbert
| is Senator Norris secretary and clerk
| to the Senate committee on agricul
I ture and forestry. Lola Williams Is
| Senator Curtis confidential man
and clerk to the committee on rules
Other Senators who prefer the gen
tier of the secretarial species are
| Messrs Bruce, Dale, Weller, Under
wood, Shortridge and Overman. By
| general consent, the woman secreta
ries are as keen-witted a coterie OF
politicians as ever glad-handed dele
cation or sidestepped lobby.
Copyright. 1926.)