davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1926-11-28
The Year of Storms,

More disasters by storm are occur
ring. The tornado that swept over six
States of the southern Mississippi Val
ley has taken a heavy toll of lives and
property. Nearly one hundred per-
sons have periShed and an immense
loss has been inflicted. The disturb
ance arose with the suddenness char
acteristic of these fures Of the air,
swooping down upon towns and ham
let's and tearing through the fields to
leave a path of devastation behind
There seem to have been several off
shoots from the central storm, reach
ing over wider area than is usual in
these cyclonic formations.
Storm losses have been exception
ally heavy during the current year
Hundreds Of lives have been lost and
countless millions of dollars worth of
property destroyed. Florida. the other
Gulf States, the Middle West, now the
lower valley. all have paid toll to the
storms. Floods have resulted from
tremendously heavy minfalls. The
water courses. have been inadequate to
carry off the waters thus precipitated
The final reckoning of 1929 in respect
to the damage done by wind and water
will present a sad total.
Some years are marked by earth
shocks that add heavily TO the casual
ties. Others are characterized by con-
fiagrations. This year is a wind and
water" year of disaster. 1t may be
merely a coincidence that so many Of
these seriously destructive storms
have occurred, or it is possibly a con-
sequence Of a mysterious cycle of nat
ural forces. The French astronomer
who predicted comparatively heat
less Summer missed the mark. Had
he forecast a season Of tremendous
blows from the skies he would have
scored heavily.
Evening star., 1926-11-28

and water. The plant Immediately
began to show profit. In 1928
net total of $4,000 was earned by
these utilities. Then the question
arose, Should the town cut down
water and power rates until there was
no profit. or should the local tax be
wiped out?
After considerable discussion it was
deemed wise to take the latter course,
and signs were erected and full
fledged real estate boom was under
way for tie tc~n with no tax. Stu
dents of municipal government mar
veled and other boroughs were en-
vious, but South River proceeded on
it's way, confident that everything
would be all right.
The fly in the ointment has now
appeared. Town officials had forgot
ten completely that road bonds issued
for completion of a well designed
highway plan would mature next
year, and also that there was no
money left to pay off the interest for
this year.
So the experiment has come to an
end. South River will return to taxes,
and although the citizens may grum-
BILE at first, there is no reason for
them to feel that they are being dis
criminated against Every other citi-
zen in every other town must pay
taxes, and South Riverites have had
two years in a unique Utopia.
Evening star., 1926-11-28
Spare the Holly!

Pleas for saving holly and ground
pine are made by the National Capt.
tai committee of the Garden Club
Of America and the Wild Flower
Preservation Society. The holly needs
help. Once it was tall and frequent
in this region. Small trees of the
species were quite numerous up to a
generation ago. The old trees have
been so Topped that they have been
killed or dwarfed, and large boughs
and small trees have been cut as
Christmas trees. A fair specimen of
the holly has become rare in the Dis
triCt, and those that survive are un-
der the protection of the public parks
or behind fencing in private gardens.
The holly standing by the road or in
the woods has little chance against
mutilation and death.
For twenty years much Of Wash
in low woods along the creeks which
flow into the Potomac in southern
Maryland and the northern neck Of
Virginia. Owners of the holly make
more or less money by sending it to
market or selling it to cutters. Con-
siderable holly remains along the
lower Potomac, but there are not
many tall trees, and at the increasing
rate at which holly is being destroyed
the finest species, the American holly,
will disappear. A campaign for saw
do not get much holly in the District,
because there Is not much to get. Per
haps the best plan for saving the
holly is TO discourage the buying Of it,
In the low woods and swampy un-
derbrush in a few parts Of the North
east and Southeast District and in
Prince Georges County there is still
a good deal left of that holly which
bears the "winterberry. The berries
find a ready sale, and this holly is
going the way Of its greater relation.
Those things which are indiscrim-
inately called ground pine, running
nine and Christmas green and often
"crowsfoot" and running cedar" are
being exterminated. These species Of
clubmoss live on the floor of moist
woods and thickets, and have long
been in use for making holiday
wreathS and fcSto0Ding walls and
even fronts Of buildings. The supply
Evening star., 1926-11-28
The Taxless Town.

The taxpayers paradise is soon to
be no more. South River, y. j., the
tatless town, has capitulated. and
its twelve thousand citizens will again
Join the ranks of those who dig deep
into their pockets for municipal needs.
Signs on all roads leading into South
River which describe the town with
no local tax" are to be taken down,
and the unique distinction enjoyed by
the thriving borough will fade into
memory.
II all came about in this way: In
1901 South River decided TO install its
OWN municipal plant for electricity
Evening star., 1926-11-28
EVERYDAY RELIGION
BY THE RIGHT REV. JAMES E. FREEMAN, d. d., Ii. d,
Bishop of Washington.

life. He, more than any other, was
able to reveal to men the possible
fulfillment of their highest hopes and
aspirations. He literally discovered
men to themselves. The men with
whom he consorted were, in the main,
peasants, many of them fishermen.
Among the more rugged Of these
was Peter. In his early associations
with Christ, he disclosed a cowardlce
and lack of trust that led him ulti'
mately to deny his Master. SO per-
suasive was the influence of Jesus
nat He ultimately lifted this disloXal
and cowardly man to a place of SUB
ime courage and ultimate martyrdom
Thomas, another disciple, had his ca
reer overshadowed by doubt and mis-
giving He could not believe without
proofs. 1t was the solicitude and pa
4ence of His Master that lifted HIM
from weakness to strength, dispelie
all doubts and brought him to a
place of supreme confidence and un-
failing devotion. No finer example OF
the power of this transforming con-
tact can be cited than the one in which
He dealt with the woman brought to
Him for condemnation. With Il touch
of chivalry He arrested her accuserS,
saying, "He that is without sin among
YOU, let him first cast stone at her.
Convicted by their own consciences
they left Him with the victim of their
accusation. Turning to the woman, He
said: Hath no man condemned thee?
Neither do I. Go and sin no more.
From the shame of her guilt He lifted
her to a new plane of Wholesomeness
and purity. He revealed to her the
long forgotten possibilities of her in
ner nature.
The power that He exercised when
He walked among men is repeatedly
emphasized in our life today. JWlce
born men," is the way Harold Begby
describes the transformation wrought
in those who have come under the
spell of this divine Master. The world
is seeking today for that which shall
renew it's spent forces, quicken Its
impulses and stabilize its life. 1t Is
demonstrated that ethical systems In
themselves are of little value. We are
beginning to learn that there is an In
describable power that proceeds from
the life of this sublime Master, and
that is as potent today as when He
exercised it on earth 1000 years ago.
He is the Liberator of our better ma
ture He is the Discoverer to men OF
those elements of strength that, once
called into being, enable them to tri-
umph over the baSer things OF thelr
nature.
Evening star., 1926-11-28
YOUR CHILD
In SCHOOL
By DR.. Frank ". BalLou,
Superintendent of Schools. Washington,
d. G.
An Educational DelusiOn.

Programs of advertising in business
and campaigns for the raising of
money for charitable purposes and
other similar activities in our business
and social life are directed toward read
ing the so-called average" man. Be
cause he is thought to be so numerous
and so typical, plans are evolved for
selling him something or appealing to
him for his cooperation.
This same idea has found it's way
into our educational thinking. We
hear the average student spoken
of as personifying the boy or girl who
is about midway between the dullard,
on the one hand, and the genius, on
the other.
OF all the mistaken educational no.
tions this one is perhaps the most
delusive. There is no such an indi-
vidual as the average" student and
there never can be.
Individuals differ radically. Physi-
cal differences among individuals are
among the outstanding characteristics
of human beings. These differences
are so universal that we seldom stop
to think about them. We all know
that people differ in height, weight
and features. These differences are
the basis Of all our personal relation
SlllpS. LNCll SOlilC pctliS VI lNIiS no
not look alike. While a casual ac-
quaintance with twins who appear
identical may not enable one to rec
ogniZe differences between them, their
closest friends usually are able to
easily recognize the differences.
Individuals differ quite as much
mentally as they do physically. Every
teacher knows that children are able
to master their lessons with varying
degrees of success. Some work rap
idly, some work slowly some work
accurately and some work very in
accurately. Just as pupils differ in
their physical strength as shown in
their contests, they also differ in men
tai capacity. in courage, in persistency
and in ideals.
Even if it were possible 1t would be
impractica1le for the school to set up
its educational program for the
average" student. 1t would be a
dangerous practice educationally to
aim at reaching any one type of stu
dent. It is the duty of the school to
provide instruction for all boys and
girls. and the educational program
must be worked out in such a manner
as to give equal educational oppor-
tunity to all kinds of children.
To group them together and at
tempt to reduce them by means of a
common denominator to one type that
will include many of the character
istics Of all is fruitless task because
in formulating a program of instruc-
ton for an intermediate group it is
inevitable that all who vary there
from will receive little benefit.
To be successful, educational pro.
Evening star., 1926-11-28
MEN AND AFFAIRS
PY ROBERT T. SMALL.

would be more beneficial to speak ~
some time in the near future he VIE
speak In other words, he Will keep
his own counsel, for hs &-.3Tvs re
the best psyc iruiocical as well as thi
best practical politician in his partl
il not in the entire Nation.
Frank J. Hogan. the WashingtoI
attorney who is acting as chief couu
sci in the Fall Duheny trial, demon
Strated again the past week that III
has one of the most amazing lest
brains ever known to the An"rlcat
bar AIr. Hogan long. has been Z
ScVen-dav wonder To his brothers Vl
the District of Columbia bar. TheH
have told ut home and abroad of his
remarkable feat of eXtemporaneouSlH
framing a 27.0oh-Word Hypothetical
question in n will case not so many
years ago, using not single note ~
refresh his memory as to q name or 4
circumstance. The opposition in tha
will ease was so tlabberEaSted ii asked
for and obtained an adjournment &C
court So that it might study the stenn-
graphic transcript of the question and
see if il really covered the ground.
Upon the reassombling of court no
fault was To be found.
In his opening statement OF the
defense in the Doheny case Mr.. Hogan
transcribed his previous record. II
took him two hours To frame the
hypothetical question: lie occupied
three hours in outlining the oil fraud
defense. During all those three hours
Mr.. HOGAN consulted neither note nor
manuscript. He rccled off names ana
dates as if he were reading from care
fully prepared manuscript. He read
the contents of letters and kilograms.
from address to signature, holding
only his open hand in front of him.
He reCited the details of intricate CON
tracts and delivered dissertation on
oil lands oil leases and the oil busi-
ness in general, using the technical
phrases OF the business. Not once
was lie halted or corrected by Govern
ment counsel. The jury seemed as
much amazed as were the spectators.
The judge, the local lawyers and the
court attaches. accustomed to the
Hogan methods, alone were unaston-
ished.
Congress is not vet in session anil
won't he for another week, but the
national press gallery has been meet.
ing the past week At the FaIl-DOhcuv
trial. Jim" Preston. interchangeable
and irrcpresSible superintendent Of
tthe Senate press gallery, and bill"
Donaldson, superintendent of the
House gallery. with Willie" Collins
and other attaches of the press gal
leries of Congress. assisted United
States Marshal Edgar Snyder in
making arrangements for the press
at the famous trial.
fCopvrlsht 1q2GD
Evening star., 1926-11-28
Government Workers Who Work
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

are altogether encouraging, says DR..
Klein. Until recently it has been
impossible to judge whether the in
creased volume of our export trade
was merely accidental and temporary
or whether it reflected a general trend
which might be expected to continue.
1t is now clear, he. says, that the
growth of our export trade from the
low point of postwar depression in
1921-22 has been of Il normal charaC-
ter and due to causes which bid fair
to- prevail. In no sense does it rest
upon "stolen" markets taken from a
War-harassed Europe. Developments
of recent years, especially those of
1896, indicate emphatically that
our gains were almost entirely bona
fide new openings of a sort never eX-
plotted before by Europeans or by
American traders.
A conspicuous feature of the bu-
reau's work, says it's chief, has been
it's greatly increased activity in the
field of domestic commerce, which
enables it now to serve the small To-
cal retailer as we'll as the great eX-
port organization. This phase of the
work has launched series of region
al analysis of distribution in different
parts of the country in order to dis
cover possibilities of eliminating
WaSteful marketing methods. Sur
veyS have already been completed in
Philadelphia and in the five South
eastern States, and others are being
made in New England and in Cali
fOrnia.
This work is being carried on with
the cooperation of trade organiza-
tions and research agencies through
out the territories involved, and it is
said that it's result has aroused wide
spread commendation because of the
possibilities for economic and more
efficient sales efforts which have been
revealed.
Evening star., 1926-11-28

grams must be flexible. The boy who
shows an aptitude in mechanical or
scientific directions can be helped
more by encouraging this aptitude
than by forcing him to give his at
tention chiefly to subjects in which
he has no interest. 1t is but another
way of saying that we must adapt
the school to the child and not the
child to the school. The individual
child is the all-important factor
School methods change, but human
personalities vary but superficially
through the ages. Teaching methods
are but means to an end. They exist
only for what they can accomplish in
aiding the boys and girls who are to
be our citizens Of few years hence
to be useful members of society.
Frequently this fact Is overlooked
Sometimes we view our schools too
much in terms of class periods. class
room exercises. fixed lessons to be
mastered and particular tasks to be
accomplished. Routine and definite
programs. of course, must be deter
mined, but they never can be substi-
tuted for real education-which is
training our boys and girls to carry
on the work of Nation.
(oopyright. 1920
Evening star., 1926-11-28

There has been much talk recently
of the wisdom of President Coolidge
in refusing to divulge his plans for
1928 ard it has been argued that even
if he has no intention of running
again it would be a foolish thing on
his part to let the politicians and the
people know it. The theory is that
once it is known a President is on
the way out, his prestige and his in
fluence are sadly impaired.
This certainly has not always been
the case. When Theodore Roosevelt
was elected in 1904 he announced at
once that he would not be candi-
date again in 1908. He proclaimed
the fact to the world and he regarded
his announced position as giving him
a freedom of action, an influence with
the Congress and the confidence of
the people above anything he could
have attained by silence. AT the time
of his election Mr.. Roosevelt had
served three years of the uneXpired
term of President Mckinley. lie re-
garded his election as the beginning
of his second term and announced
there would be no third.
After being out four years, history
records the fact that Col. Roosevelt
tried for a third term just the same.
But he made his race at that time
with no thought of election. He mere
ly wanted to make sure the defeat of
William Howard Taft, whom he had
by almost royal will placed in the
White House four years before.
Col. Roosevelt had four able and
active years after he had announced
he would run again. His executive
acts We're not measured by the politi-
cal yardstick and his influence with
his party was so dominant that he
was given carte-blanche to select his
own successor.
President Coolidge at the moment
finds his every move put under the
political microscope. Every gesture
he makes. every word he utterS is
searched for it's political significance.
Mr.. Coolidge cannot take hand in
the reorganization of his party affairs
ID reorganization which many be
lieve to be ceSSary-because of the
third term significance which might
be attached to if.
The President undoubtedly is under
q handicap at the moment because
of the prOmiScuouS third term talk.
G. O. =. leaders in widely scattered
parts of the country appear to be
getting in line with the third term
idea. Chairman Morris of the New
York State G.. O. Il. IS the latest to
get aboard the bandwa gon. Some APP
pear to think all of this whooping it
up for Mr.. Coolidge at this time is
designed to bring an expression from
him.
The truth of the matter is that if
Mr.. Coolidge believes it more bene
ficial to himself that he keep silent
he will keep silent. If he believes it
Evening star., 1926-11-28
Keep the Well Child Well.

Conducted under this slogan, the
work Of the Child Welfare Society of
Washington has for more than twenty
years proved itself an increasingly val
liable adjunct to the community. Orig
inally initiated by Miss Mary Gwynn,
who continued as its president until
her death, the society has held stead
fastlv to the creed that no more use
full health work could be done in the
National Capital than that of teaching
Washington mothers the facts that
would insure the healthy growth and
development OF their children. With
centers established al various strategic
points throughout the city, mothers at
tending with their children were af-
fordeG the benefit of expert medical
diagnosis in the matter of the child's
condition, corrective dietetics and
hygiene were recommended advice in
the matter of averting contagious dis
ease was afforded and the child, so
long as the mother might wish, fol-
lowed in it's individual growth and
development by weekly examinations
at the centers and in the home.
The value of such work became in
creasingly manifest as the years pass
ed and the records Of the society be-
came public. Congressional support
was afforded. a happy and beneficial
relationship between the Public Health
Service and the society developed. And
ultimately, with the work of pioneer
ing splendidly achieved, all save two
of the eight established health centers
were voluntarily turned over to the
control of the District health officer,
under whose supervision they today
continue to perform an essential func-
ton with fine efficiency. The growth
of this work as it's value becomes in
creasingly evident to the community
and to Congress is to be confidently
anticipated
Two of the centers, located at the
Childrens Hospital. were retained by
the society. 1t is the purpose of both
the society and the hospital to develop
there a clinical and research center
which may serve as a model, not only
for Washington, but for the coun-
try at large. The sum of 100000 is
essential as a foundation upon which
this structure, free from further de-
pendence upon annual contributions.
may be erected. To the completion of
this fund, a considerable part of which
is already in hand. the society will,
for a week, beginning Wednesday,
bend its every effort. To any one
whose imagination responds to the
picture of a community where every
child is given the chance, today af-
forded to a pitifully small number, of
attaining to full and healthy maturity,
the project cannot fail to recommend
irSalf
Evening star., 1926-11-28
The Cows of Wight.

Keen pity must be felt for the farm
ers of the Isle of Wight, whose
COWS are frightened out of their milk
supply by the new foghorn just es-
tablished there. This warning signal,
known as a diaphone, originally de-
signed as a musical instrument, has
been developed to an extent that
gives its voice a range four times
the length of the thirteen-mile island
No wonder that the COWS of the Isle
of Wight jump and run in panic
when the horn blows. No wonder that
the milk supply falls off. Cows are
their supposed placidity. They are de-
cidedly temperamental. They have
been known to refuse their product to
mixers whom they dislike.
British officials realize the plight
of the dairymen of Wight, but they
feel that the needs of navigation are
greater than the needs Of the COW
men. There are more ships than
COWS, and the fogs around the Isle Of
Wight are thick and deadly ones
Hence it is now planned to install
more foghorns of the diaphone type
so that eventually that hitherto bless
ed island may be literally a "howlinG
Wilderness"
But perhaps, after all, the cows
of the Isle of Wight may become
accustomed to the diarhone. Cows
as a rule, adjust to conditions, and it
is possible that after a few weeks of
screaming hrrns and scampering
hoOfS the herds of the Channel island
will settle down to their usual bovine
existence, paying no more attention
TO the boots of the horns than to the
barking of the dogs. 1t is indeed just
possible that the quantity and the
quality of the milk will be improved
by the musical notes of the diaphones.
For there is really no guessing the
COW, which, though an extremely con-
servatiVe creature, has her own ways
that pass human understanding.