Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-02-15

dignity and hauteur Of the typical
I Spaniard.
Swinging across the map to the east
ward, the station at Lyon. France. is
voice with q suggestion of excitement
IN 1t announces "Allo. lei Poste de
Lyon La Doua." All French announcers
| convey, somehow, the impression that
something very tremendous is Just
about 70 happen. The air quivers with
potential excitement. 1t Is all very
French.
But for a real polyglot show the dial
| must nlft around the stations at Nit
tel Europa: Prague, the capital OF
Czechoslovakia. which is about as far
distant from London as Chicago is
from Washington, has an important
station. There are all sorts Of Ian
guages and dialects over there on the
edge OF the perennially troubled Balkans,
ana they md their way onto the air.
The strong station at Budapest brings
one language, while the station at
Vienna employs another. Announcers,
Tor the most part, often will make their
statements in more than one language.
out speakers and singers employ their
own peculiar tongues. The Magyar
dialects are about as numerous as the
tongues OF the Tower OF Babel.
Music Of All Countries Is Understood.
Music, however, is a universal lam
guage. Although there is a world Of
diherence between French chamber
music and Hungarian dance music, q
spanish love song and an Italian opera,
still the same standard eight notes are
employed in their production and all
are ineligible above any confusion of
language. The words of the songs do
not really matter
Perhaps out of compliment TO the
faet that Queen Marie of Rumania is
by birth a British woman, the big
station at bucharest makes announce
ments in English. This station is as
far from London as Denver is from
Washington, but the signals come in
strong and clear. Bucharest has quite
3 cosmopolitan station. Besides Eng
llsh and the native tongue, French and
German also are employed In making
announcements. King Carols capital
territory.
AS one goes farther to the eastward
the languages seem TO increase their
complications. Katowice, far of in
Poland, Is heard with its Halo.
Polskte Radio Katowice" Still farther
TO the east Is the great Soviet station
at Moscow. which boomS unfortunately.
There Is not much in the way of music
to be heard from this station, but il
seems never to rest In its task of SOW
ing propaganda over Europe. The
propaganda Is spoken in various LAM
guages, but English seems to be IA
vored. BY tuning in Moscow at almost
any hour one can hear of the dire
things which are to befaII the capi-
talist system, which, incidentally. has
made all this radio miracle possible.
Swinging the dial back, German sta
tons are picked UP, the cultural
language rolling through the air with
announcements of varied programs.
Down from the north come the tongues
OF Norway and Sweden.
English people listen very little TO
their own stations. They are closely
supervised by the government and
what Is known as the London regional
territory-that is, nearby British sta
tionS-is rather ignored. The rest of
Europe stands ready 10 pour into the
loud speaker so wide a variety of en-
tertainment that the somewhat stodgy
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS and censored
home programs are passed over.
An American, listening in for the
fiFst time IN London, has the feeling
that he is either at Ellis Island or
the Zoo.