Evening star., 1926-12-08
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

He is the father Of the House, closely
pursued for that honor by Represent
atives Butler of Pennsylvania and
Haugen Of Iowa, both Republicans.
Representative Jack" Garner Of
Texas is the Democratic daddy Of the
lower branch, with 13 terms, includ-
ing the one in which he will sit next
year, to his credit.
X X X X
Overheard in the distinguished
strangers gallery Of the Senate on
December g. when the clerk was
reading Senator Walsh's resolution
for investigation of Senator Gould Of
Maine: What has Congress to do
with the Halls-Mills murder case?"
The query was caused by the circum-
stance that New Brunswick" Can
ada. not New Jersey was mentioned
as the scene of Mr.. Gould's alleged
moral turpitude." The fact that the
Senate is asked to probe an episode
that occurred beyond the borders of
the United States prompts the wit of
that body, Senator George H. Moses
Of New Hampshire, to suggest that
the case in reality ought to be sent
to the League Of Nations!
X X X X
William G. Deming, president of the
Civil Service Commission. opines, in
the language Of the old.time printer,
that preparation for and passing of
civil service examinations are not all
fat" Out Of 975 different kinds of
examinations held last year, many
were. Of course, comparatively easy,
while others were difficult. technical
and sometimes unique. Among the
latter Is the announcement of an ex-
animation for bolometric assistant at
the Smithsonian Astrophysical OBJ
servatory. Briefly, bolometer Is an
electrical instrument for measuring
minute quantities Of radiant heat.
"Such test" Mr.. Deming observes,
sis enough to make any one see
stars"
Edward N. Hurley of Chicago is
the latest one-time member Of the
Wilson administration to succumb to
memoir.writing. The shrewd manu-.
facturer and financier, who was war
time chairman of the United States
Shipping Board and president of the
Emergency Fleet Corporation, has
written what its forthcoming publish
ers depict as "the inside story of the
war" Mr.. Hurley's revelations will
appear uISI dS d uc~SpctpCl oCA Ic1l CIIu
later as a book. He has never ven-
tured into literature before. The
Chicagoan is one Of the three Demo
cratic members of the World War
Foreign Debt Commission, which
made this years funding settlements
with our European debtors.
X X X X
Tsuneo Matsudaira, the Japanese
Ambassador at Washington. chooses
the annual dinner Of the Japan So
ciety Of New York for recurring pro-
nouncements on the subject OF
Japanese e-American relations. = The &C.
complished Nipponese diplomat so de-
livered himself this week. Among the
things he discussed was the system Of
exchange visits between American
and Japanese schoolboys, recently in
augurated, and, according to Mr.
Matsudaira, destined to become reg
ular institutions. The Ambassador
referred to another channel Of pop
ular diplomacy"-the sending Of dolls
by American children to their "un-
seen friends in far-off Japan" Deal
ing with more serious subjects, Mr..
Matsudaira took occasion to explain
Japan's new land laws. He declared
that these permit all foreigners (even
from California, which debars JAP
anese land ownership there) to own
real estate in Nippon on equal terms.
(Copyright. 1926.)