davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1926-03-29

, then from us) as we suffer now from
the merry whistlers. the melody we
were engrossed in must have been a
thing of mystery.
We recall the last time we whistled
| in public.
It was long after we had grown to
what Is commonly termed mans
estate. In the main we had given up
| whistling, but now and then, urged on
| by a day when physical ailments
were absent, and were replaced by
suffuSion of the mind which comes
to those who are more or less get
ting on" we burst forth in Whistled
song.
A handsome gentleman whose force
full character we admired had a pet
| ''bete noir," which was that of whis-
tling in the corridors. Often he would
issue forth. as Elisha after the mock
ing children Tor perhaps better, the
bears after the little ones), and would
command the offenders to desist.
Upon the occasion noted, we were
whistling loudly in the elevator. The
gentleman thereupon issued forth and
demanded to know "Who it was who
was whistling." In the most innocent
tone, we admitted the guilt. "Oh!" he
said, and retired.
The thing made us think, however.
If this sterling business man did
not like whistling of the loud variety,
undoubtedly there was some good rea-
son fe- 4.
Now time has forced us to agree
with him entirely.
The trouble with the loud whistlers,
the merry boys with leather lungs, is
that they never whistle in tune.
Show us lad who actually "stays
on the key" and we will present him
with our private medal for musical
achievement.
Then, too, whistlers seldom, if ever,
know a song completely. Usually
they start off we'll enough. Some of
them even manage to get almost to
the last few bars before falling down
In the tune.
Not one in a. thousand, however,
gets the ending right.
Now. the ending of a properly writ
ten song Is always in character with
what has gone before. One of the
greatest merits of a Victor Herbert
song is the ending. His endings bring
his songs to proper musical and es-
thetic resting places. kiss Me
Again is but one instance.
The cheerful whistler, however,
never ends his tunes right. He ends
human right and reason.
We, who are forced to listen to him,
ought to have rights in the matter.
If we cannot throw a brick at him,
or get after him with big whip,
surely we have a right to demand that
he know his song from beginning to
end.
Then, too, the cheerful whistler is
too darn cheerful.
Here he goes, in a world filled with
misery, sorrow and shame. in the
presence of sickness and death. war
bling as if no such things ever ex-
listed.
He ought to be ashamed of himself.
On all counts, therefore, we have
concluded that the whistler ought to
be extinguished, and we accordingly
appeal to Congress to pass a law.
Surely another little law will not do
us any harm.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

the st. Johns River. A heavy volume
of sea freight is moving in and out OF
Charleston, Savannah, Georgetown,
S. c.; Brunswick. Ga, and Whining
ton, N. c. There is boat freight serv-
ice from Norfolk to much of the Albe-
and there is boat service from Norfolk
through the inland waters to Beaufort.
There is growing sea-freight service
between Tampa and the west coast of
Florida with New Orleans and ports
on the northern coast Of the Gulf.
The shipment of freight from Balti-
more to Norfolk by water is increas-
ing and freight shipment from Phila-
delphia to Baltimore and Norfolk
shows so many signs of increase that
the canal between the head of Chesa-
peake Bay and the Delaware River is
being deepened and widened to pass
larger steamboats,.
1t would seem from the increase
in water-borne freight between our
Northern and Southern ports that the
North and South railroads east of the
Alleghanies are being given effective
competition. What the future holds
for the coastwise trade is a guess, but
it seems fair to believe that a vast
tonnage of North and South freight
will pass no nearer Washington than
the ship lanes off the Maryland coast.
One rail-freight gateway between
North and South is Pittsburgh.
Freight passing North and South that
far to the West is safe against sea-
freight competition to which North
and South traffic passing through
Washington is subject. Not far west of
Washington North and South freight
is passing over the Norfolk and West
ern and crossing the Potomac few
miles above Harpers Ferry. There is
another North and South crossing of
the Potomac at Williamsport used by
the Cumberland Valley and Martins
burg branch of the Pennsylvania sys-
tenn. 1t may not be so important as
the Norfolk and Western crossing
near Shenandoah Junction, but it
might be expanded.
Evening star., 1926-03-29
No Assembly Hall at
Langley Junior High
To the Editor of The Star.

To the Editor of The Star:
Recently was a visitor at the Lang.
ley Parent-Teacher Association meet.
Ing at the Langley Junior High
School, but left shortly because l
valued health above pleasure. The
accommodations were filled to capac-
ity, showing interest in the work.
Owing to the parsimony of Congress,
this school is but partly completed,
already greatly overcrowded and by
next year will be hopelessly made
quate for the demands on it. The
only place for assembly is a long cor
ridor about 10 feet wide, accommodate
ing four lines mot rows of chairs, the
voices OF the speakers, located midway
of the 200-foot corridor, being family
heard by the rear sitters, when every
one holds both voice and breath. Ven
tilation is through occasional open
ings of the ends of the corridor, giving
a strong draft on the backs of one
half of the audience. The pupils in
assembly" must undergo the same
experience. So / have at last found
out why my daughter gets cough
in the Autumn and keeps it until
Spring. For lack of usual school
facilities, gymnasium exercises, pre-
scribed by rule, must be taken in this
same corridor and other unsuitable
places used for other school features.
So far the coal bin has been preserved
for fuel and the furnace for heating
but the latter is also doing double
duty, trying to keep more children
warm than the building was designed
for. What kind Of patriots does Con-
gress expect to graduate from such
accommodations? My daughter, for
instance, has already desired to stay
at home and do housework.
Congress passes laws resulting in
sentencing criminals to inadequate
jails and thus propagating hatred for
constituted authority that incarcerates
guilty and innocent in indecent and
discomforting quarters, as was shown
up 20 years ago.
Congress passes more laws sentenc-
ing children to school In Inadequate.
poorly equipped buildings, and the
child graduates" with the full, strong
appreciation of the stinginess Of the
Government and contempt for it's half
baked school system, which after q
century has still to be a beggar for
necessities, while the church can erect
across the way an ample parochial
school Of good design.
The item Of 100000 for Langley
completion ran the gantlet of slash.
ers as far as the House, but it seems
that 100000 is needed for the jail, so
at present only 100000 is left for
Langley, and the children of our
neighborhood must be stinted on edu-
cation and finish out later by night
and private schools as usual.
w. E. ALLEN.
Evening star., 1926-03-29
North and South Freight.

IN connection with the alleged need
for a belt railroad around the Dis
trict of Columbia for accommodation
of North and South freight there are
facts that seem not TO have been
stressed. One might get thesrhought
that all North and South freight must
pass through the Virginia avenue tun-
nel and across the railroad bridge at
Washington. North and South rail
traffic is increasing and with the
maintenance of present prosperity
will continue to grow. over long
series of years it is reasonably sure
that there will be a more or less
constant increase in the freight
tonnage between North and South
passing through Washington, but
the time when the freight yards
in Washington and near it can
not accommodate the volume of busi-
ness and when the bridge and tunnel
cannot pass all the trains is far dis
tant.
North and South rail freight is
growing, but it is obvious that there
is a mighty increase in seaborne traffic
between North Atlantic and South At
lantic ports of the United States.
There is news now and then of the
organization of new company for
the operation of ships between our
North and South ports, and there are
frequent items telling of the launching
of new, large ships for the older lines.
The number. size and business of ships
from Baltimore, Philadelphia, New
York and Boston to the South Atlantic
and Gulf ports of the United States is
impressive. Within two or three years
ships have been built for the run be-
tween New York, Baltimore and
Miami, giving sea. freight service be-
tween the North Atlantic States and
the south half OF the east coast Of
Florida.
There has been large increase In
freight-by-sea between our northern
ports and Jacksonville. and few days
ago g. ship was launched to ply be-
tweer one of our eastern ports and
Jacksonville and Palatka, the latter a
large central point for much of north
ern and central Florida. more than
sixty miles south Of Jacksonville. on
Evening star., 1926-03-29
Jury Trials.

Judge Levi Halls proposal to do
away with jury trials for fragrant vio-
lations of some classes of traffic laws,
notably driving while drunk and reck-
lessness. does not find favor with the
motorists. AS a means of relieving
court congestion, delay in trials and
small penalties, the Minneapolis jurist
would entirely eliminate juries and
mete out prompt justice.
There is one insurmountable barrier
to the carrying out of this plan. and
that is the constitutional right Of all
persons to be tried by juries If their
offense is serious enough to send them
to Jail on conviction. The plan un-
questionably would act as a deterrent
to the large number Of potential
Evening star., 1926-03-29
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

There ought to be a law to restrain
the cheerful whistler.
Music we love.
The soul.shaking harmonies of the
symphony orchestra, the thrum of
guitar, the wall of the saxophone, the
waterfall of rippling piano cadenzas,
the haunting thrill of fair soprano,
the mighty bass of the gentleman who
siHgs when the Bell In the Light
house Rings
These we love, and will continue to
DO so, despite the protests of those
who have no music in their hearts.
We have wasted our share of precious
time playing upon the mandolin, mod
ern descendant of the lutte, and have
no apologies to make to anybody.
Happiness, too, is g. friend of ours.
The hearty laugh, whether in smok-
ing car, on the street or by ones
self, is something to be esteemed. Our
sense of humor is precious; we would
not willingly part with it.
But the young fellow who whistles
Always with the lung power of six
ordinary men every morning beneath
our chamber window ought to be
stopped.
Surely, out of all the laws being
passed to right human conduct and
make this fair world over nearer to
the hearts desire of sundry legisla-
tors, enough legal paper could be
spared for one small law against the
100, too inSistent whistler.
Just very small injunction against
the fellow would do. 1t need not be
lengthy, just inclusive. We want to
stop him, that is all.
4 X X
At first we thought the proper thing
to do would be to ask Mr.. Berlin not
to write a hit" more than once a
year. Then we considered that this
would be mainifestly unfair to that
we'll of melody.
Despite our suspicion that he had
Celeste Aida" in mind when he
turned out Always" Cby reason of it's
song pattern and basic modulations),
we recognize Mr.. Berlin as the out
standing composer in the popular vein,
and vein, too. which he is improving
right along. One only has to recall
"Everybody's Doing It."
The point of attack, therefore, is
the unreasonable and unreasonable
whistler, the merry young fellow so
full of the vim of life that he must
project his elan vital in long blasts
through the bellows actions of puffed-
out cheeks.
Our spleen against the merry whis.
tier is a new thing, that Is why we
are so ardent in the matter.
Once upon a time (cursed memoryD
we, too, indulged in promiscuous
whistling.
Our greatest joy was to get hold of
the latest "sure-fire hit" and infiict
it in a sure-fire manner upon the
entire neighborhood.
So we whistled through "Bedelia, 1"
"Arrah Wannah," Under the Old
Apple Tree" Sweet Adeline, Mandy
Lane" wait Till the Sun Shines,
Nellie" Under the Bamboo Tree" and
countless others.
We were not, 1t Is true, much of a
whistler. To get to the end of an ordi-
nary ballad, we were forced to change
the octave several times, so that
where the melody took a header for
high c, we brought 1t down an octave
to our level.
Therefore, to those who suffered
Evening star., 1926-03-29
Anthracite Coal Prices.

Concern is expressed by members
of Congress lest the anthracite mine
owners have resolved to compel the
coal-consuming public to pay the cost
of the recent strike, AMI it is urged
that some legislation is necessary to
safeguard the people against such a
proceeding. The difficulty is to know
what sort of legislation would be ef-
fective. To the extent that coal en-
terS into interstate commerce Con-
gress has jurisdiction, but the produc-
ton of coal is wholly an intraState
business, and prices, as a rule, are
fixed at the mines before the coal
passes into the hands of those who
transport it into other States. Be-
sides, there is neither desire on Capt.
tol Hill nor demand from the public
that Congress should attempt by leg
islation to fix the price of coal. Gov
ernment price fixing is abhorrent to
the American idea.
Hearings on proposed coal legisla-
ton are to begin tomorrow before
and foreign commerce and subcom-
mittee of the Senate committee on ed
ucation and labor has held several
conferences and collected a consider
able amount of data seeking to deter
mine some practical way to reach the
evil. One proposal is that Congress
shall now take UP the report OF the
United States Coal Commission, which
was headed by John Hays Hammond,
and put through it's program for full
publicity as to the costs of produc-
tion, transportation, etc, the theory
being that such publicity would tend
to keep competition alive and to pre-
vent extortion. 1t is generally con-
ceded that Congress has authority
under the interstate commerce clause
OF the Constitution to require such
publicity.
There are circumstances which
cause one to wonder if there is any
real competition in the business of
mining and marketing anthracite coal.
Only last week an Associated Press
dispatch from Scranton, Pa, stated
that local coal companies" had an
nounced that the customary reduc-
ton of so cents ton on April l would
not be put into effect this year, and
that "the present prices of anthracite
will likely prevail without change all
year" It is difficult to believe that
the local coal compa Mes arrived at
this decision all at the same time, in
dependently and without previous
consultation. If they did consult to-
gether and agree among themselves
not to make the customary April l
reduction and that present prices
shall prevail all the year it would
seem that they have laid themselves
open to prosecution for conspiracy in
restraint of trade. 1t might we'll be
that if the Department of Justice
would bestir itself in this matter some
relief could be afforded coal consum-
ers without waiting for Congress to
enact legislation of doubtful efficacy
Evening star., 1926-03-29
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

@. VIII there be Sesquicentennial
coins made?-L. w. B.
A. The Sesquicentennial coins
which are in honor of the one hundred
and fiftieth anniversary of the 4th of
July, 1776, are to be coined in 50-cent
pieces and $3.50 pieces. They will not
be available until late Spring, as the
designs have not yet been approved.
@. How many readers are reckoned
to each newspaper sold?--J. u. Il.
A Newspaper publishers multiply
their circulation by three in arriving
at the probable number of people
reached by their papers. Magazine
publishers arrive at their approximate
number of readers by multiplying the
circulation by five.
Q. What makes a humming bird
hum? How large is this bird without
it's feathers?-R. r.
A. The humming bird has powerful
muscles which drive the wings in
rapid vibrations. These vibrations
cause the humming sound. Most of
the Hummers have no song, their only
notes being querulous squeaks OF
wrath or fear. A few of the tropical
forms, nevertheless, are said to be
slightly musical. The humming bird is
the smallest of birds, and when strip
ped of it's feathers is not larger than
bumblebee.
Q. Is the Panama Canal to be closed
for one year for repairs?-,C. w. II.
A. The Panama Canal Office says
that although repairs will be made
during the year 1926. the canal will
not be closed to traffic.
I,a
antitoxin to Nome?-G. II. B.
A. When the diphtheria epidemic
broke out in Nome, Alaska, DR.. Curtis
Welch of the United States Public
Health Service and few nurses were
the only persons available to treat the
disease in a territory containing ll,OOO
people. The serum was brought from
Nenana at the railhead TO Nome by
way of the Bering Sea. 1t was car
ried there in five days and a half
under adverse conditions, even though
this distance had never been made in
less than nine days. The men who
carried the serum were Leonard
Seppalla, Gunnar Kasson, Titus
Nicolai, Eskimo Pete Olson" John
Folger, Jim Kalland, Tom Green and
Bill Shannon, the first two being the
lost important, as they bore the brunt
of the Journey. Kasson entered Nome
at $50 on the morning of February 2,
1925.
@. OF what is German silver COM
posed?-L. f. l..
A. German or nickel silver in the
best grade is 46 per cent copper, "a
per cent zinc, 20 per cent nickel. For
common ware it is So per cent copper,
25 per cent zinc, 20 per cent nickel.
@. Who drew the first cartoon in
which the tiger was used as the en-
blem of Tammany Hall?-M. G.
A. The tiger as the symbol of Tam
many Hall, the elephant of the Re-
publican party, and the donkey which
Republican papers use as emblematic
of Democrats are the invention OF
Thomas Mast. Originally the donkey,
which came first, was not applied 10
he Democratic party.
@. Does the Great Dipper change
it's position at given hour during
the year?-B. NJ.
A. The motion of the Great Dipper
is practically the same in any year as
in the preceding, what small differ
ence there is being discoverable only
with the aid of astronomical instru
ments. 1t makes a little more than a
revolution in every "a hours, so that
if it is observed every night of the
year at the same hour, it is found to
Evening star., 1926-03-29
The Passing of a "Pretender. !"

DCell4 VI Illl4PpCs DohO VI
Orleans and "pretender" to the
French throne, does not materially
affect the political situation in
France. 1t merely removes one indi-
vidual from the line of claimants and
causes another to take his place. This
line, springing from that Duke of Or
leans, cousin of King Louis XVI,
who was known in the Revolution as
'Egalite," persists and will doubtless
continue Indefinitely, and as long as
it is in existence there will be a
monarchical movement in France.
Though an exile from France dur
ing practically all of his life-he was
born in England-Louis Philippe,
Duke of Orleans, was a consistent
claimant for the throne of France.
His great-grandfather was Louis
Philippe 1. the last king of the
1S48, and was overthrown in one of
the frequent readjustments that kept
France in turmoil from the outbreak
of the revolution in 1889 until the
establishment Of the republic in 1871,
following the Franco-Prussian war.
.Monarchical movements have. per-
sisted in France, divided between the
Bonapartists and the Bourbons, the
latter divided between the Legitimists
and the OrleanistS. On the eve of the
Great War, the Bonapartists having
practically run out of candidates and
the Legitimists' ranks likewise de-
pleted, there was concentration on
the part OF the royalists of France
upon the Duke of Orleans, he who
has just passed in Sicily. The mo-
ment was deemed propitious for such
q propaganda. The French govern
ment's action against the church and
disestablishment, the rise of social
ism and the fear of Germany COM
bined 10 foment royalist sentiment.
Meetings were held openly in the
Spring OF 1914 in Paris in favor OF
the restoration of the monarchy, with
the Duke of Orleans hailed as
king" Louis Philippe, however,
kept discreetly at a distance. The
time had not come for his arrival in
France to put himself at the head of
his forces and by a coup d'etat take
possession of the government. He
was being watched closely and would
doubtless have been arrested prompt
ly had he crossed the frontier. The
monarchist movement was more a
state of mind" than an actual or
ganization.
1t was freely predicted in Paris in
April, 1914, that unless there was a
nationally consolidating happening,
such as war with Germany, there
would be a. monarchical revolution in
France within two years. The con-
solidating influence, however, came
quickly, within three months, and no
more was heard of monarchism. The
Duke of Orleans offered his services
to France as a soldier in the Great
War, but they were declined. He
sought to enroll as a member of the.
Foreign Legion. but his identity was
discovered and he was rejected.
France desired no royal pretender in
the ranks to gain and hold public at
tention and perhaps become the imam
on horseback" to overturn the pres
ent regime.
Now the Duke of Guise, a cousin
of the dead Duke Of Orleans, becomes
the head of the House of France; his
only son, Henri. Baron of Boubres,
is eighteen years of age. Thus the
line of succession is preserved. The
House of France" survives all
changes.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

So complicated and abstruse are
some phases of District of Columbia
affairs becoming that an inquiry into
the affairs of the Commissioners Of.
ftce is likely to include psychoanalyti-
cal features.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

Memoirs of the Wilson administra-
ton are usually tentative and diffident
to degree which causes them to fall
short of the ''pitiless publicity" ia.
vored by Wilson himself.
Evening star., 1926-03-29
SHOOTING STARS.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
Business Is Music.

Business Is Music.
Where are the gentle songs so sweet
We caroled long ago?
They told how tender lovers meet
Beneath the moonlight glow.
The present song our praise receives,
AS in it's nightly toll
The radio tells Of carpet weaves
And of cod liver oil.
1t sings of tooth paste and of beans
And other products canned
1t sings about the type machines
That clatter through the land.
Although my radio I greet
With fond, expectant glee,
Somehow / always seem to meet
The station ADV.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

1t was Judge Gary who invented
the phrase "gentlemen's agreement"
HIS influence in American business
mas been great and beneficial. The
application of his ideas to world af-
fairs might have a decided advantage.
Evening star., 1926-03-29
Convenient CROSSWORD.

"Are you still doing crossword puz-
zles?"
''Yes," answered Miss Cayenne. "It
is always a convenience to stop duh
conversation by requesting word of
so many letters which means such
and SUCH"
Evening star., 1926-03-29

A senatorial investigation is re-
garded as success if it retains first
page newspaper prominence after the
first four or five days.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

The influence of Brazil in the
League of Nations shows that foreign
entanglements are just as hard for an
international body to handle as for an
individual nation.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

The demand for novelty is such
that many people having experiment.
ed with the corner saloon, and then
with prohibition, now want to try
something else.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

According to Senator Smoot, Europe
has borrowed more money than she
can repay. This is something like
what Ponzi did. but, of course, the
case is entirely different.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

The franc is at such low ebb that
a plain American twenty -five-cent
piece is regarded as better tip than
paper money in Paris.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

In his present administration of
German affairs Hindenburg does not
appear to regard the Hohenzollern
family as much of a political asset.
Evening star., 1926-03-29

Explorations in Egypt afford
glimpses into a magnificent past in
which affairs apparently were admin
istered largely for the benefit of the
jewelers. and undertakers.