Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-12
Continued From Third Page.)

apartment were many days of hopeless
ness while his father, a cartmaker, and
out of work, eked out a livelihood by
lending a hand to servants in nearby
homes. There were many meals served
cold because his mothers poor health
made it impossible for her to prepare
the scanty fare in hot dishes. And
there was rent day when the $3.50
monthly payment to the landlord was
difficult to get
Yet, despite this environment, defeat
never entered the crystallizing phil
osophy of young Staining. AS an only
child, without playmates he sat through
the long Winter evenings in the room
where his father and politically
minded uncle discussed events of the
times. They were dissatisfied with their
lot. And the discomfort of these work
ers was voiced in discussions Of radical
doctrines.
AS talked with Thorvald Staining a
few weeks ago, 1 asked him which
events stood out most dramatically in
his childhood. Two incidents, he re-
piled, were projected above all others.
One was the strike of the cabinetmak-
ers in 1898. the other the strike of the
ironwor:;eIS in 1883, which they lost"
Had Urge to Use Ideas.
Stauning's strenuous boyhood fur
nished the urge to put into deeds the
words he had read and heard and the
ideas he had formed. A born master
of men, In him there was the age-old
desire of leaders to make the world
over in their own way.
To do this young Staining knew
more knowledge and training were nee
essary. So he misrepresented his age
as ID and entered one of the workers
night schools. There, after his long
day in the cigar factory, he studied
German and practical commercial
courses.
In his Office there are none of the
.rappings Of grandeur There is no mar
BILE nor silk nor gold 1t is large, light
room, with woodwork freshly painted
snowy white. On each of the milky
window stills sits a green ported plant,
unfiowered. A map of Greenland in
which Staining Is currently interested,
hangs atop several others on one wall.
and there are few modest shelves
of books
Behind his chair is stretched a gobe-
lin tapestry covering the entire end
of the room. In varied browns and
blues 1t depicts the ancient harbor of
Copenhagen in the days when that port
was q mistress of medieval trade. Thus
framed in this heirloom of a bygone
aristocracy that colorfully recalls the
Thorvald Staining. prime minister and
minister Of trade and fisheries, sits at
a vast oval table. Papers litter one end
of the limitlesS board and the other
end Is shiny, empty eXpanse of rose
wood. It Is a desk BETTING a giant
And Staining belongs TO such table
He Is 6 feet inches tall, with his
hulking weight evenly distributed over
his huge frame. HIS head and features
are on the same large plane. The Ro-
dinesque nose, the wide, bullying eyes
his great brown bearl. befit only a man
OF his Gargantuen measure. He looks
younger than his sc years.
He has the physical and moral at
tributes Of chief who could we'll lead
his people to battle. yet Stauning's first
interest is peace. He holds dreams of
a Utopian future without war and Is
fostering the sensational reduction of
ornaments bill of which his party is
making an outstanding political issue.
But in his framing of this plan, the
idealism behind the movement does not,
with the prime minister, overbalance
practical considerations.
Staining told me about this drastic
measure that would abolish compulsory
military service and do away with a
recruited army. supplanting it with VOL
unteers to be trained for army duty fer
period Of four months. If carried
through. it will put the war forces OF
Denmark en- the basis of State police
force and rank the country as one of
the first to make an independent move
toward disarmament.
The historical background Of the
Danish people has always been against
militarism." he said. Our country is
so small it cannot compete it'll the
great powers in armaments. ~ doing
away with Notifications and a large
standing army We do away with the
possibility Of provoking an attack"
But should this bill pass 1 asked,
land Denmark should find herself in
position similar to Belgiums in 1914.
might not a well developed defense
power turn the tide between two evenly
matched larger powers. or hold of an
enemy until help could arrived"