davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
CAPITAL and Chivalry.

The age Of chivalry is not past.
Comes Stanley Baldwin, leader Of the
Conservative party in Great Britain and
erstwhile prime minister, to prove that
the maligned era Of materialism In
which we live has not engulfed all traces
Of knightliness, even in the narts Of
trade itself.
Addressing dinner Of fellow steel
and ironmasters at Birmingham, Mr..
Baldwin made public confession that he
Is 'fbroke"--and proud Of it. In recent
times, he disclosed, shares in the iron
trade owned by him have deprecated
In value from three pounds (about $50
in 1929 to something like 20 pence go
certa) Ia 1891. The result "a the prac-
tical wiping out Of the one-tine con-
siderable Baldwin fortune.
e was In his simple narrative Of how
he preferred to court this fate, rather
than avert it at others expense. that
the Conservative statesman revealed hii
chivalrous philosophy. 1T may have
been bad business on my part" he said
"and suppose many modern business
men would ~ Il was-that / didny
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

1886 telephones added to the Bell
System in 1880 was much below nor
NAL growth" Nevertheless, the big wire
combination spent the tidy sum Of
$500, 100000 for new construction and
betterments last year.
\ X
Mere literary brilliancy has long been
old stuff in Indiana. Now comes a
daughter of the Hoosier land with
promise of national fame in music.
Temporarily she's a Washingto
Helen Corbin Heinl-and her husband
like a couple of hundred other Indi-
anans domiciled in the District, is a
newspaper man. She has been invited
to be the piano soloist with the United
States Marine Band when Capt. Bran
sons famous organization goes ON the air
over the coast-to-coast Columbia net
work on the evening of January a..
Mrs Heinl made her radio debut only
q few weeks ago. The response from
the choir invisible was immediate and
enthusiastic, with the result that she
is now headed for a regular career on
the wave lengths.
X +
Robert w. Bonynge, chief counsel of
the United States on the German
American Mixed Claims Commission, is
making a gallant fight to reopen the
great $4O,OOO,OOU 6IacK ION ana kings
land sabotage cases recently decided
against Uncle Sam. Bonynge was once
a Representative In the House from
Colorado. Some day he ought to write
a book about the colossal 10 years Of
the Claims Commissions activity. Fi1St
prize for comic relief, he thinks, goes
to the ex-Yankee brewer. who asked the
commission to indemnify him for loss
Of his business. His claim rested on the
argument that he was ruined by pro-
hfbition, which wouldn't have come
about except for the war.
One Of Waslhington's best-looking Of
fetal hostesses recently escorted her
brood Of youngsters on a tour Of the
Washington Monument. They insisted
on walking down every inch Of its SOS
feet, having experienced the thrill Of
riding to the top. So mother and kids
started the descending trek. About
half way down, Mrs. - found her
feet succumbing under the strain,
wnereupon she removed her shoes and
did the rest Of the journey In her
stockings.
(copyright, 1919
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
No Pinch Here.
om the Atlanta Journal.

from the Atlanta journal.
We have the word Of the Financial
World that 1880 marked the use of
more snuf than ever before. Faint
praise is better than none at all, and q
year which witnessed the consumption
Of more than SO, 900, 900 pounds Of SNUFF
during the first 10 months certainl-
merits whatever tribute that record de,
mands. The gain was slightly more
than per cent over 1925 Snuf using
average, and the Financial World points
with some pride TO an achievement
reached despite the general business
depression"
The significance of that increase may
be more profound than hasty conSid-
GRAFTON indicates. Nobody who wanted
snuff did without it, and yet it seems
reasonable to assume that snun is q
luxury that could. in q pinch, be sur
rendered. There Is no exact analogy,
for nothing is quite like SNUFF, yet we
suspect that many articles not In the
category OF necessary commodities win
turn up good record for the year.
There was so much talk of denial that
the general assumption became fixed
on false conception The truth was
that nearly everybody had what they
wanted. and now that 1880 and its
viciSsitudes are past, Il may be hoped
that healthier tone will invade CONVEX
sation and writing and be reflected in
sa11er public attitude. As q somewhat
1acetious but also pointed slogan, We
might even say, Remember the snutfF
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
An Evil Use for a School House.

The state Of Missouri may well hang
its head today, following the lynchtng
in which a school house and its furni-
ture were used as a funeral pyre. The
dastardly deed which the one who was
lynched committed had no extenuation,
but neither did the summary taking Of
the law into It's hands by the mob,
Civilization, If it means anything at all.
means the orderly processes Of the law,
as contrasted with the mob spirit. It IS
apparent that many Of the persons in
volved In this latest atrocity felt that
their revenge was legitimate, but the
consideration Of millions elsewhere viii
ind their act reprehensible. The use Of
q school, and its desks dedicated to the
search for knowledge, for such an OUT
rageous purpose can have no excuse,
Ia either theory or fact. Surely the chill
dren Of any community should be pro-
tected from such a destruction Of q
building which they look upon as being
dedicated to knowledge and enlighten-
ment. The deed Of the mob would be
terrible enough, In any event, but that
it should have used a school house as
a pyre VIII seem to many as heaping In
suit upon injury, and not alone upon
the helpless victim, but on the great
name Of education.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
Gathering Clouds.

With only six weeks Of its short session
1eft to 90, Congress must move quickly
70 complete the legislative program II
= special session is to be avoided. Much
VIII depend upon the lengths to which
the Democrats in the Senate and their
Republican allies are willing to 20 with
their proposal for an appropriation TO
buy food for the farmers and their
families In the drought-stricken area
and for the unemployed Of the cities.
Defeated IA their efforts to place In
the drought relief bill a provision for
the use Of the money carried BY that
measure to provide food, the Democrats,
under the leadership Of Senator Rob-
anson Of Arkansas, are demanding .
&25,0oo,o0o appropriation for that pur-
pose. They viii seek to place it in the
regular agriculture appropriation bin
Under the rules it will require a two
thirds vote TO place the item In the bill.
II . sunicient vote is not forthcoming,
Tmuch other relatively unimportant
legislation is going on the scrap heap"
according 10 Senator Robinson.
II has been wen understood that the
Senate Is IN q position to force special
session Of the new Congress during the
coming Spring by the simple expedient
Of talking some Of the appropriation
bulls to death. There has been o dis
position on the part OF the Democratic
leadership to avoid a special session, foI
several reasons. However, the attitude
assumed now by Senator Robinson, the
Democratic leader, may represent &
change Of heart. Certainly it would
make It appear that the Democrats art
intent upon making the President
choose between a special session and
eapitulation 70 their demand for a dole
60 distressed farmers and the unenn.
ployed Of the cities
In its efforts to defeat the Presiden
and put him Ia q hole" the Democratic
end Progressive Republican coalition o
che senate has repeatedly failed dur1nI
the present short session. The PreSiden
hes twicA sharply raped the coalition
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
Country Advises Congress
To Avoid Special Session

extra session of Congress which is
nearly evenly divided between the po-
litical parties and Is still further divided
into political factions. There can be no
confidence in a Congress like that; nor
expectations Of anything except tur-
mol at Washington all next Summer
II Congress Is in session. There Is
confidence that President Hoover viii
assist in steadying business and industry
If left for while unhampered by party
and factional politics. That an extra
session is necessary as has been init
mated by Senator Borah, or would not
be a business deterrent, as has been
said by Senator Barley Of Kentucky,
introduces this early into the situation
the buncombe that might be expected
from q small group endeavoring at the
last minute to compel President Hoover
to call an extra session. A half dozen
Senators can enforce one and stand IN
the national limelight while so doing"
Assuming that nobody can say with
any degree of certainty what the po-
litical complexion of the next Congress
may be-" and that Nthe administration
win be virtually powerless to carry
through any legislative program" the
Charleston Is. c. Evening Post con-
cludes: THE chances are against an
extra session, with the possibility that
the ProgreSsiveS may become so eXaS-
perated, what with the sniping Of their
ranks by such methods as Lucas,
executive chairman of the National
Committee, used against Senator Norris,
and antagonism to the whole Hoover
philosophy-with, perhaps, a genuine
determination to seek defeat Of the
President for denomination by the
Republican party next year-that they
viii resort to tactics sufficiently dilatory,
without being definable as fllibustering,
to force q failure Of the main legislation
at the short session and so neceSsitate
an extraordinary session."
Congress is viewed by the Oakland
Tribune as Gin race to see If it can
finish the necessary routine before
adjournment" and that paper quotes
opinion it can win that race If the
members do not insist upon debating
other issues The Buffalo Evening
News assails "demagogisn' in Congress
as detrimental to business" and
continues: Mere agitation, which
seeks to arouse popular prejudice and
passion from motives of political
strategy, is a very different kind of
mental exercise from frank and reason
able debate. Those who are engaged in
this form of harmful disturbance
could be brought to halt very quickly
if they were impressed with the idea
that public opinion fully understands
them and is tired of them. The times
are not right to treat the antics of
men dealing with public affairs merely
as a source of entertainment.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16

Among the small offenses Of everyday
there is none worse than the habit Of
most persons of grabbing up in their
fingers every photo or picture which
they are asked to view.
Not long ago we were privileged to
see colored photograph whose white
border was f1ngermarked beyond re-
pair by interested persons who had
been invited to inspect it.
No amount Of rubbing with gum
eraser afterward would remove the
smudges placed on the edge. They had
only wanted to see it, the owners of
those smudgy fingers would have as
serted
They would have been tremendously
offended, indeed, If the one who had
colored the photograph had intimated
any displeasure at their close grasp.
Why is it that most people must
seize in their fingers anything they are
invited to look at?
That is why germs and other precious
museums, and why stores keep most OF
their articles for sale beneath counters.
The hand helps the eye to see. We
may be an eye-minded race, but we
learned to use our hands before we did
our eyes, and we still, as race, want to
help our vision with the sense Of touch.
Perhaps you recall the proud day
when you first sailed out in the world
wearing your college fraternity pin.
You wore it, according to the approved
fashion Of the dear brothers, on the
left side of the vest, over the heart, and
all that sort of thing.
Yet it was noticeable that you also
permitted the coat to go unbuttoned-
also after the fashion Of the afore-
mentioned brothers in the city. The
entire chapter frowned upon the prac-
tice of rival members of Imply imp,
who persisted on placing their pins at
the extreme edge of the vest, near the
buttons You disliked such a display
but discovered that the unbuttoned
coat got much the same result with
less ostentation.
The great desire in regard to the
pin, or badge, was to conceal it and
to display it at one and the same time.
Now you see it, now you don't.
AS you look back upon those days,
from the vantage point OF the years,
you wonder at the innocent belief you
then held that all men, whether collie
gians or not, were interested in your
fraternity pin" and would recognize
it the moment they saw it.
You were glad for others to see it,
but you did not fancy at all their uni
versal habit of paving it. No sooner
did some one glimpse the glittering bit
of jewelry than they were eager to
grasp it, to twist it, to turn it, and
even to unpin It, If possible.
You may be able to recall the posi-
tive shrinking which you experienced
as Old Timothy, who knew nothing Of
the meaning or usages of a fraternity
badge, took the precious Jewel between
a grin1y, horny thumb and forefinger.
Would pearls and diamonds stand
the strain? You did not know, but
you feared for the worse At the time
you wondered why he could not look
at your pin without touching it. But
there was no doubt in Old Tins mind
that the hand helped the eye.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES 3. TRAcEWELL.

Another trick some people indulge in,
much to the distress OF their friends,
is to seize upon any book they md on
table or In shelf and Immediately crack
the back Of it.
They do not mean to do this, Of
course. In fact, they do not know they
have done anything wrong. They are
simply heavy-handed. when it comes to
books. They handle them as If they
were made of iron, as, indeed, they
should be for some people.
The booklover wants such a man
to see his books, but at the same time
he shrinks from the ordeal, for he
knows from long experience that the
fellow by no means win be able to look
them over without handling them.
No, each book must be opened
squarely IN the middle, with a wrench,
so that the book is "split"-that is, q
huge crack appears at the backbone.
The offender is unconscious Of any
wrong, for broken-backed book is just
as good to him as whole one.
x
Rearranging chairs Is a speciality Of
other folks. No sooner are they seated
than they must hitch a chair forward,
or backward. Sometimes they carry it
to another side of the room.
There Is, OF course, nothing criminal
about their action, but often it is quite
perpleXing to the hostess. We will
never forget an occasion in which we,
all innocently, were the offender.
The lady had just had a sofa covered
with a beautiful covering, whose motif
was a peacock. When we insisted on
sitting on this couch it never occurred
to us that the offer Of more COM
Portable chair was made to lure us
e
only after we had left that we were
in its true light.
Then there is the guest who insists
on poking the fire in the fireplace, and
in rocking on squeaky boards.
What shall be done about them?
The answer is Nothing" of course,
only trivialities, which may or may not
be annoying.
Consider the gent who lights match
for your cigarette, and holds 1t so that
1t burns the end Of your nose, or threat
ems. to set your hair on ire.
There is the man who viii talk when
you would prefer that he listen to your
new radio. Afterward you wonder If
it was jealousy Of your radio or indif-
ference to all music.
A prime offender is he who permits
his faithful dog to leap and cavort
upon your new suit or overcoat. Some
guests have to fight of dog with both
hands, while pretending that they do
not mind this diversion at all.
Fido is so cute, and playful, surely he
means no harm. But even the most
faithful dog lover will admit that he
can be a nuisance upon occasion.
These are small matters, all, but of
the type to annoy some temperaments
very much, all temperaments some, ac-
cording to individual likes and dislikes,
to say nothing of idiosyncrasies.
Every reader can think up his own
pets along these lines. We have pre-
sented some of the more common ones,
in the spirit Of Lincoln's with malice
toward none. with charity for all"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16
from the indianapolis Star.

From the Indianapolis Star.
The American Railway Association
has unanimously agreed TO ask q respite
from rate reductions and for the with
drawal Of governmental competition in
transportation affairs. The railways
also ask q fairly comparable system Of
regulation for competing transportation
ton Of rate reductions and rate sus-
pensions and seek to be freed from
the menace Of adverse legislation.
They want, in other words, a chance to
make living and q reasonable profit
on their investment.
The companies undoubtedly are en-
titled to more corsiderate treatment
than they have received In recent years.
After the passage of the Esch-Cun-
minis railway act following the war, it
was believed the transportation lines
were to be permitted to prosper and to
develop. The terms Of that law are
more liberal than those Of any that had
been enacted before. The outlook was
bright so far as the railways were con-
cerned, but new complications have de-
veloped.
Nobody foresaw, even a decade ago,
the effect Of automobile, bus and truck
competition. Waterway development,
too, has had its effect on railway traits
called on to submit to several revi-
sions Of tariff rates, generally downward.
Cuts have been made in some instances
to meet emergency conditions, as the
lower rate on wheat to the seaboard in
order to stimulate export and the more
recent cut in rates on hay and other
fodder to help live stock raiSers in the
drought-stricken areas.
The railways have been hard hit by
the depression Of the last year. Their
15.5 per cent. Their return on invest
ment this year is estimated at Sal per
cent, and a large number Of the COM
panies have not made any profit. 9th
ers are running behind. The outlook
Is serious with the most prosperous and
is becoming critical with those less IA
vorably situated as to financial struc-
tl1re and traffic conditions
The fact that the railways have been
able to keep up as well as they have
Is due to skill in management. They
have increased efficiency and reduced
expenses. The service is better at small
er cost than ever before, but there is
limit to economies. The railways have
invested literally In needed betterments
in spite Of diminished returns. They
spent $89S, 000, 900 this year on i'm
provements. which Is $198, 000, 900 more
than was put out In 1928, in order to
give work to unemployed and to help
to get business back to normal. They
have been ready to do their part
toward maintaining and bringing about
prosperity and are entitled to consid-
Grafton in their own struggle for ex-
istence.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16

lists over the knuckles. The flrst time
he charged that they were playing
politics with human misery" That
was when the coalitionists set up .
demand Tor far heavier appropriations
to aid the unemployed and the drought
stricken than the administration APP
proved. The second time was when the
President declined to send back to the
Senate the nominations Of three Federal
power commissioners at the behest Of
the coalition. In doing 50 the President
asserted that the coalition not only was
seeking to encroach upon the authority
Of the Executive, but also was raising a
false issue" All of these things and
the repeated defeats Of the coalition at
the hands Of the President and The
House have soured still further the
disposition Of the coalition Senators.
No matter how the coalitionists in
the Senate may feel about 1t, there Is
no liking on the part of the country for
a special session of the Congress IN the
coming Spring: It Is generally realized
that with the political parties almost
evenly divided in the Senate and House
and the Progressive Republicans again
holding the balance of power, ard
President Hoover again ready to exercise
the veto at the other end Of Pennsyl-
vania avenue, there is no hope for con-
structive legislation in such session.
OF what avail to have en- ineffective
Congress in session any longer than is
necessary? The only answer
is politics and more politics. The Demo-
cratic leadership Of the Senate should
think a second time before it undertakes
to force special session on the country.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16

The street car companies have taken
the connmendable course in refusing to
endanger the immediate realization Of
the great Capitol plaza project by
fighting against what amounts to a
special assessment of 100000 levied
against them, this amount represent
ing the cost of changing the layout
of tracks around the Capitol and
Union Station. BY notification that
the improvement expense, as far as
they are concerned, will be paid under
protest in the belief that the matter
viii later be open to discussion and
settlement, they do not prejudice an
issue that VIII become still more i'm
poEtant to them as other development
schemes involving trackage changes
proceed.
Plans for the new layout of tracks
are designed to improve the appearance
Of that broad stretch Of park area that
viii extend between the Union Station
and the Capitol Existing tracks on
Delaware avenue, which now cuts
through the heart Of the future plaza,
are to removed. The street cars from
Union Station to the vicinity of the
Capitol viii move over First street
east, instead of on Delaware avenue
CFess-town street cars from east to
west will proceed along c street and,
reaching the plaza, will duck under
civ 4os,
emerging near First street east.
While these changes Will undoubtedly
improve the appearance Of the whole
development, the companies, in their
brief filed with the Commission on
Erlarging the Capitol Grounds, empha-
size the fact that they VIII also tend
to make the Capitol less accessible to
the street car patrons. The changes viii
bring the new car lines nearest the
Capitol ct East Capitol and First streets,
and that Is long walk on rainy day.
This involves consideration Of the ques-
ton Of discriminating against the car
companies Ia favor Of the ''unregulated
taxicab operation to the very doors Of
the Capitol and Senate Once Build
tngs."
The settlement Of this point brings
into the limeliglat the broad matter Of
future treatment Of the street car lines
as valuable agencies In city transpor-
tstion. The same question VIII be raised
IA connection with new trackage layouts
ia the Avenue Triangle area. # street
car transportation has reached the stage
where new and more convenient
ayrangemsnt Of tracks ceases to be
matter Of great Importance. there can
be no criticism Of the plan Of treatment
at the Capitol II the street cars are
to continue to play an important part
IN transportation, more thought should
be given TO the advissbility of making
them more accessible at such points as
the Capitol than Of making them more
difficult TO reach.
As to the division Of cost Ia such
eases, the street car companies, oper-
attng their lines for commercial profit
and enjoying the benefits therefrorn,
have done wisely to proceed as the law
specifies. leaving the issue to be dis
eussed and decided on its merits after
due consideration.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-16

Debating has become q form Of pop
ular entertainment which resembles
pugilism in affording possibilities for
rough work and also possibilities of dis
Greet restraint which will substitute
spectacular effect for mercless attack.
Between two well seasoned debaters
there is little apparent inclination to
infiict real damage to the feelings or
reputation Of either contender. There
is no genuine quarrel involved, not even
over the division of the gate receipts.