Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-02-22
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE

Calvin Coolidge is in war paint. ANY
doubts on that score vanished last
week when he rose from his sickbed,
in the midst Of Washington blizzard.
to throw down the gauntlet to the
Senate opposition on the Italian debt
deal. The administration had three
ma jor detectives in the Sixty-ninth
Congress. 1t wanted approval Of
American adherence to the World
Court. IT desired tax reduction on
Mellon lines. 1t sought ratification Of
the various European debt settle
ments-in particular, the most i'm
portant one of them, that made with
Italy. The President has brought
home the bacon on the World Court
and the tax bill. But his bag of booty
will not be full till the Italian fund
ing scheme has senatorial sanction.
Hence, his almost unprecedentedly
vigorous demand that the settlement
he accepted by the one bra nch of
o. K.
Not for long time has Mr.. Cool
idge so directly bearded the Demo-
cratic party as he has now done in
connection with the Italian affair.
The White House spokesman put on
the presidential mitts with unaccus-
toned belligerency when he tackled
Democratic opposition to debt set
Element, The President unmistakably
meant to land an upper cut by COM
pairing the Democrats antagonism to
plans for stabiliaing world economics
with their taunt that the Republicans
are the party of isolation. That blow
sank home In responsible Democratic
quarters, but did not leave them
nn he
voked the counter thrust that Presi-
dent Coolidge ought to remember jan
uary 27-the day the World Court
resolution was passed in the Senate
and. so remembering. say the Demo-
Gratis, soliloquize where that ma jor adj
ministration project would have land
ed except for virtually solid Demo
cratic support. All of which back talk
seems to make certain that the polit-
ical fur is about to fly on Capitol
Hill.
X 4 Il
DIR. William M. Jardine, broncho-
buster, cowboy, agronomist and Sec
rotary of Agriculture, is beginning to
figure in the grand and glorious le-
gion Of presidential possibilities. He
says he might have been inclined to
take himself seriously in that con-
nection hadn't a recent poll In a farm
| journal been brought to his attention.
| There 1t was set forth that the farm
ers' candidate for President in 1928,
! in the order of preference, is either
| Lowden, Capper or McNary. Then,
as a postscript afterthought. 1t was
| added that Secretary Sardine is also
mentioned"
Benito Mussolini, among his vari-
| Gus other dictatorial activities at
| Rome, is Italian minister of air. He
| has just sent to Washington as air
attache of the Italian embassy that
! country's lace of aces" Comdr. Sill
vic Scarori, who holds the proud
| record of having brought down sin
gle handed 80 Austrian combat
planes during the sanguinary battles
| on the Alpine front. After the war
| Scaroni's Impressions of air fighting
were brought out in book form. They
| consist exclusively of letters written
| to his mother after each contact with
an enemy plane.
+
Recent disclosures that the Presi-
dent hands around "stogtes at cabt-
net meetings have led to semi of
ficial inquiry as to the smoking
habits of individual members Of the
executive household. At least three
Of them say mo, thank you" when
| tobacco in any form is offered them.
They are Curtis D. Wilbur, Secretary
| of the Navy; James j. Davis, Secre-
tary of Labor, and Harry S. New,
| Postmaster General. Secretary Mel
J lon smokes nothing but all-tobacco