Evening star., 1926-03-26

Alanson B. Houghton, storm center
of recent international events In
Washington. is sailing back to his am
bassadorial post at London during the
first week Of April. Administration
spokesmen insist that Houghton re-
turn to Great Britain with his pres
tige unimpaired as far as Washington
Is concerned. But events must DEM
onstrate whether any Of his diplomatic
tail feathers are missing when he as
sumes relations with Downing street.
Some authorities confidently predict
that Houghton will find a considerable
drop in temperature the first time he
communes with Sir Austen Chamber
lain, British foreign secretary. The
House of Commons having just acQuit-
ted Chamberlain of responsibility
for the League of Nations muddle over
Germany, Sir Austen would be less
than human if he failed to give his
famous monocle a twist of righteous
indignation the next time Houghton-
unterrified critic of the league-visits
the British foreign Office. France Is
'madder" at the American Ambassa-
QOT IMAM bTlldlI 40. Cl LdPc AASAoA
ton will now have to find another dip.
lomatic crony in London. Hitherto the
United States ENJOYS most intimate
friend there has been M. de Fleurian,
the French Ambassador to the court
Of St. James.
When Germany staggered human
ity in 1914 by the invasion of Bel
gium the allied cause had no warmer
friend anywhere in the world than
John Sharp Williams, then United
States Senator from Mississippi. Al
though Williams Is in political retire
ment, he keeps abreast Of events at
home and abroad, and just now is
keenly interested in the question OF
Americas European debt operations.
The Mississippian is q cancellation
ist. Having observed that James w.
Gerard, former American Ambassa.
dor to Germany, favors virtual
wiping out Of allied obligations to the
United States Treasury, Williams has
lust written a friend as follows:
agree with nearly every word
Gerard said. He might have add
ed that France never made us pay
one cent of interest on the loans
and supplies she advanced us in
the war for our independence. 1t
is especially shame to collect
money from Belgium and Serbia.
Nobody, individual or nation, ever .
ultimately lost anything worth ).
having by a policy Of magnanim'
ity or generosity.
On the walls Of the executive Of
fees Of the Washington telephone
company there hangs a copy OF the
first petition circulated for installa.
ton Of an exchange in the National
Capital in 1873. The petition recites
that if a sufficiently large number OF
subscribers could be assured IN ad'
vance the installation would be mace
with reasonable promptnesS. Among
the signers, who agreed to put In a
telephone, was Robert g. 1ngersoll'
then practicing law in Washington
The petition set forth that telephone
service-that was 48 long years ago
would not cost in excess OF "four ooi'
lars a month"
X * y X
The calm and cautious Christian
character of Calvin Coolidge-a u:
O. p. slogan in 1924-has popularized
ALTERATION in politics. Now. appar'
entity, everybody's doing 1t. Repre-
sentative Thomas w. Phillips, Jr.,
who calls himself western Pennsyi'
vania's candidate for the guberna'
torial nomination, hoists tax reduc'
tion--in accord with an august ex'
anple--to the mainmast OF his ship
of appeal. He has just observed that
PENNSYLVANIA is taxing away nope,