Evening star., 1931-05-31
Capital Sidelights
BY WILL p. KENNEDY.

Just now when our seven big univer-
stiles and colleges in the National Cap.
ital and hundreds Of others throughout
the length and breadth Of these United
States are carrying a long step fur
ther the distinctive characteristic OF
our Government-universal education
by turning loose many thousands more
Of graduates, to be leaders in all walks
OF American life, 1t Is suggested that a
few practical observations of what real
life shows might be timely in this col
utnn.
For exafnple-some Of the most de-
voted workers in the Government sery-
ice, scores of them, who have achieved
notable scientific discoveries, inventions
| and studies" Of important money value
to the Federal Treasury and to private
| industry, are Phi Beta Kappa men from
our leading universities, distinguished
during their college years for outstand-
ing scholarship, and vino have had hard
struggles to bring up their families de-
Gently on the small salaries they have
received from the Government. Tl.ey
are men, and women, who consecrated
| their lives to specialized study for the
benefit of humankind as DISTINGUISHED
from "doing well" for themselves and
their families by commercializing their
talents and specialized training. It is
to protect such men and their families
that leaders in Congress are now active
TO provide adequate pay schedules for
those who have served their country 10
devotedly with superior mentality.
Then there is another interesting
facet on the finely cut diamond OF
Federal Service. There are literally
| hundreds Of very efficient employees
throughout the entire pay roll of Uncle
Sam, who have fitted themselves for
better jobs. for professional work. for
special lines of investigation, by self
education, by working days and going
to college nights-for Washington offers
such opportunity for study and re-
search as nowhere else in the world.
such employees, who have pulled them
serves up by their bootStraps," make the
best helpers to Uncle Sam-alI honor
| and glory to them!
Right here it might not be amiss Ia
mention the names of few important
oEnclals OF the Government who have
worked their way up in service-without
pull. by dlnt of work we'll done. Here
are a few on the honor rolf: Wilbur
j: Carr, Assistant Secretary of State;
Floyd n. Harrison. War Finance Cor
poration and Federal Farm Loan Board
j: Edgar Hoover, director of the Bureau
OF investigations. United States Depart
ment OF Justice; DR.. Julius Klein
assistant Secretary of Commerce
Edward G. Finney, former Assistant
secretary OF the Interior and now
solicitor for the department: w. A
Jump, budget oficer for the Department
OF Agriculture: DR.. w. w. Stockbereer
director OF personnel and business ad.
ministratlon, United States Department
| OF Agriculture, and Rudolph Forster
executive clerk at the white House
rms list could be greatly extended. but
! TINS shows how workers have climbed
from the humb.est positions in the
! Federal service 10 the highest posts ol
! responsibility.
There is another closely related grour
worthy Of emulation, who starred with
handicap of scsnt education who
had to fight for what education they
got and who BY persiStency, by match.
ing their common horse sense" against
the erudltion OF colie2e graduates. made
their way to important positions
Take as an Illustration Richard NJ FL
! Ilott, assistant controller general, who
vas In Congress up until last March
/ He had to quit school when IS wears Of
age to help support a large family
! When Presidenl Hoover called him IL
the White House to talk over his an.
pointment to his present position. h
! was amazed to learn that Dick" Ii.
lot had gotten SO far or such a sma
educa .ional footing. Then tlere Is
William Tyler Page, CLERK of the Eous
author OF "T.e Americans Cre&i'
and cne Of the most cultured men ir
! the Capital. who had to leave schco,
TO become a breai-winner at the ten.
/ Ger age CT 10. There are dozen OF
. more somewhat sim lar Illustration,
among the employees at the Capital
including Bert w. Kennedy, doorkeepe,
of the House
working side by side with these mer
who have progressed by earnest Effort
from handicapped start are graduates
from all OF the important educational
institutions in this country and some
from noted universities of the Olc
WorIdl-so that there is a place fol
all VINO Are willing to work for ad.
vancement in Uncle Sans service
College education is not a handinsn
neither is the lack of it-success lies
with the man or woman, whether he
or she Is willing to work to get ahead
And the greatest success is not ALWAYS
IN holding important positions. The
nigh positions can be won, as has beer
shown by specific illustrations, but sue
cess has come to many others who
made their choice to achieve somethinQ
lasting. in the way Of scientific study
ana who had to pass up their chance
at executive positions so that they
might pursue their studies of benefit
to all mankind. The Public Health
| Service, the Bureau of Standards. the
Bureau OF Mines and other scientific
agencies OF the Government are filed
with people Of such character.
+
One Of the riddles of nature. how
chlorophyll, the green pigment in the
leaves of plants, enables them to manu-
tacture their food, sugars and starches.
from water and oxygen. is being worked
out by one of Uncle Sans scientists.
Frank M. Schertz, of the Bureau of
| Chemistry and Soils. He is now ex-
tracting ,chlorophyl on a semi CONNER
clal scale in the Fixed Nitrogen Re-
search Laboratory Of the United States
Department of Agriculture.
DR.. Schertz explains that chlorophyll
bears a close chemical relationship to
haematin, the red pigment in our blood
In nature the functions of these COM
pounds can be considered somewhat
parallel. Haematin acts as carrier for
oxygen in the bodies of animals while
chlorophyll, with the aid Of SUNLIGHT. is
instrumental in converting carbon d.
oxide into sugars and cellulosic mate
rials.
| With large quantities Of chlorophyll
available. DR.. Schertz is sending sam
Piles to Investigators in all(parts Of the
United States for study soT as to learn
all possible about how this mysterious
mechanism works, because such knowl-
edge is vital not only in the study Of
/ certain plant diseases. but also to pro-
duce plant products synthetically.
This scientific pioneer explains that
| in the Autumn chlorophyll Is converted
into a colorless product and the yellow
pigments, carotin and xarthophyli. pre-
viously dominated, show UP. giving the
| beautiful orange and yellow foliage
characteristic of that season.