davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
The FiddlerS
Virginia's Assembly

virginia s Assembly
Members Of the General Assembly of Virginia fiddng
while the State is burning
The State burning because the present
excessive taxes which being levied support exravagan
and antique forms Of which contribute nothing
20 the welfare of the people
Faced with this condition and with the imperative demand
0f their constituents for tax reduction the legislators
bled in Richmond proceed calmly seriously propose
new and additional taxes
Those legislators fail entirely understand the temper
their people and their financial condition.
The great bulk Of Vgnians hard hit by the depression
are in financial pit
The most casual study Of tax sale figures for the 100
counties in the State will show this in concrete form.
With these conditions prevailing the legislators supposed
representatives Of the people, talk of The people
Of Virginia cannot pay the taxes now in force.
Where is the money coming from to pay additional ones7
The General Assembly to the people of Virginia
reduce the governmental expenditures which the
people called upon to pay.
The assembly cannot shift this burden by declaring that
the waste and extravaganza arise in the county
units
Of course that where the waste is that is where
the economy be effected
But the task of effecng that economy lies upon the
sembly.
Before talks Of additional should take definite
steps eliminate at least half Of the county units in the
State Counties which maintained in all their luxury
90 give local to few 5000 persons have
place in the modern scheme Of things.
Millions and millions Of dollars being wasted upon such
units
They bs abolished and it is the duty Of the General
Assembly to start that work immediately,
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
LISTEN, WORLD
By Elsie Robinson

, KNOW IT'S SAFE TO GO
AHEAD. IF YOU WANT TO
STAY IN THE MODERN PIC
TURES YOU MUST GET GO
ING-AND YOU MUST BE A.
SELFSTARTER.
You must think for yourself,
decide for yourself, break your
own trails, run your own risks,
carry your own responsibilities
and your your own penalties.
All of which is mighty tough on
millions of fine, friendly, we'll
meaning citizens who were
taught that obedience was the
foundation of righteousness and
that people who thought for
themselves and took chances
were queer and unreliable, if
not downright criminal.
What's happening to such
people today, if they persist in
hanging on to the old rules?
Plenty is happening-and all of
it painful. They're being
rubbed out" as actually and
tragically as though they were
moved down by machine guns.
For the modern world has no
time or energy to waste in coax
ing people to live. And why
should it?
IF YOU DON'T LOVE LIFE
ENOUGH TO GO AFTER 1T
UNDER YOUR OWN STEAM,
THEN YOU DON'T DESERVE
TO SHARE IT-AND YOU
WON'T!
So if you want to make good
in 1884, you've got to "have
what it takes" Have you?
YES, YOU HAVE!
No matter how great your
failure in the past-no matter
how low you may be feeling
at present-YOU HAVE WHAT
IT TAKES TO MAKE THE
GRADE, IF YOU'LL JUST BE-
L1EVE AND USE 1T.
So let go the apron strings
draw d big, long breath-take
a running jump right into the
middle of the parade-AND
GET GOING!
Copyright 1894, King Features
Syndicate. Inc.)
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

This is the seUenth of q series
of articles BY Mr.. Williams on
the reorganization OF the Aero
nGutics Branch OF the Depart
ment of Commerce.
Having waited until the ex-
ira session Of the new Congress
adjourned last June to select
a successor to Col. Clarence M.
Young to assist the Secretary
of Commerce in administering
the air commerce act of 1925,
Mr.. Roper has been able to
keep to himself ever since then
the reason for the appointment
of the Hon. Ewing Y. Mitchell,
of Missouri, to that office.
Former United States Sen
ator James A. Reed, of Mis-
souri,, may be able to tell his
former associates in the Senate
what qualifications Mr.. Mitchell
possesses to exercise the au-
thority and responsibility now
assigned to him These include
the general supervision and di-
rection of the Aeronautics
Branch, the Lighthouse Service,
the Coast and Geodetic Survey
and the Bureau of Navigation
and Steamboat Inspection.
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

turned the pages in a hap
hazard fashion, hoping that I
would drop dead before I
reached page 10.
The first picture that came
on magazine was '"The
London Illustrated News" a
respectable sheet if there ever
was one) was of a dead rhin-
oceroS, lying on his side with
his mouth open and his eyes
looking right at me. Somebody
had shot him in Java and had
seemed to think that his photo
graph would please. It did
not please me, and I turned
quickly to the next page.
Here I found a photograph
captioned: "Our Wonderful
World: A Pouched Curiosity
Among Birds" The caption
writer was putting it mildly.
It was not only a "pouched
curiosity; it was a pouched
horror. Snapped by the cam
era-man just as it was leav-
ing the water on some devils
errand, this bird Il call it a
''bird" because it had wings)
presented a terrifying appear
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
Examiners Protest

The Aero-Medical Association,
as soon as its members heard
what was under way, went to
the public with a warning that
gave Assistant Secretary Mitch
ell pause. And the resolutions
of protest they adopted at Chi
cago against that part of Sec
retary Roper's reorganization"
which had to do with the medi-
cal examination of pilots. re-
suited in this ultimatum being
sent to Mr.. Roper, Mr.. Mitchell
and the then political ap-
pointees to the newly created
positions of assistant directors:
"The selection of medical
examiners of the Department of
Commerce has heretofore been
based upon ability and train.
ing, and political considerations
played no part.
Ths Army and Navy permit
th-ir pilots to be examined
only by those medical Officers
WhO have received special
training in GVi0tion medicine.
The longer a medical examiner
has acted for the Department
Of Commerce, the greater his
experience and ability, and
therefore the greater his Ualue
to the department.
1.-THE removal or appointment
Of :. edic0l examiners for DO.
EticGl reasons would result in
unsGtisf0ctorN unstGndardized
examinations that would be to
the detrinent of aeronautics in
general and result in an in
'eosed accident rate"
Nevertheless, Democratic Sen
ators in Congress were satisfied
either by Secretary Roper's de-
partment or by Executive Sec
retary Roper's office at Demo
cratic headquarters, or both, Of
the names of physicians and
surgeons who made up the list
Of medical examiners in their
respective States.
Whether they were asked to
offer recommendations for re.
placements or rather suggos,
tionS will probably not be known
until an outraged public senti-
ment compels the Congress to
turn the light of an impartial in
vestigation on Secretary Roper's
alleged reorganization of what
Congress intended to be nom
political and highly efficient
agency of the Federal Govern
ment.
Copyright 1884, by The
Washington Times)
The Washington times., 1934-01-23


Song-the battle cry of a great
people climbing out of the
trenches of despair, hurting
themselves across darkness and
hell-holes Of life's zero hour
going over the top!
THEY HAVE WHAT IT
TAKES!" #, as a people and
as individuals, we can prove
that fact, we're going to
emerge triumphant from the
offensive Of 1884.
BUT IF WE HAvEN'T-AND
CAN'T-WE'RE GOING TO
TAKE THE WORST BEATING
EVER ADMINISTERED TO A
BUNCH OF FATHEADS. AND
WE'LL DESERVE ALL WE
GET!
HEY HAVE WHAT IT
TAXES" Well, just what does
it take to make good in 1884?
What will it take for YOU to
make good in 1884? First, you
can bet on this-it WON'T take
what it took in 1894, or 1904, or
any other time in our previous
human history. It won't take
what it took for your father and
mother to make good SO years
ago, or what they taught you
that it would take 20 years ago.
It will take an entirely new set
Of ideas, ideals and attitudes.
, What did the Old Folks need
to make good in the nineteenth
century? They needed virtues
which suited a program Of
human relationship which had
been functioning, with a little
change, for hundreds Of years.
Nice, respectable, be-a-good-chlld
end-mind- teacher virtues
prudence, patience, persever-
ence, politeness, precision,
promptness, primness.
Now there's nothing against
such virtues. They're fine at
tributes and, if used intelligently,
still admirable and necessary.
But they are no longer suffi-
cient for. a 16-cylinder society.
They are not what it takes" to
make good in 1884.
If you want to make good to-
day-if you even want to stay
on the map-you must do far
more than sit pretty, use the
right fork and keep out of jail,
It is no longer enough to be
law-abiding and careful, model
ing your behavior on the old
maxim, BE sure you're right,
then go ahead"
FOR NOBODY CAN BE
SURE WHAT IS RIGHT IN
THIS TOPSY!TURVY MOD
ERN WORLD, OR TELL YOU
WHAT IS RIGHT. NOR CAN
YOU MANAGE TO SIT TIGHT
AND PLAY SAFE UNTIL YOU
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
ONCE OVERS
You Need All Kour Friends

} You Need All KOur Friends
How do you treat those
whose merited ill-will you think
cannot affect you in any way?
Are you lofty and overbear-
ing, rude and condeScending. as
occasion dictates to you?
What do you care what they
think of you. since, whatever
THEY think cannot harm you,
in your superior position, IN
any way; this is the interpreta-
tion of your attitude.
And that is where you make
a big miStake-an error in
judgment.
There is none so high in pol
itics, business, or in society
that the ill-will Of another Is
Of no consequence.
You cannot trample on the
feelings of others and escape
evil effects.
It is not the way to prove
your superiority.
# you think so you are COW
cred with a veneer that de-
ceives you.
It pays to treat people so
well that they are your friends
and whether it pays or not, 1t
proves your good breeding.
Copyright. 1888. King Feature
: Syndicate Inc.)
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
The Human Side of the News
An Older Billy Sunday-Our National Anthem
BH EdWin C.. Hill

A voice out of the past is
heard a. in in New York. It
cries on hell-fire, penance and
salvation. But as I listened to
this ageing, acrobatic evangelist,
I did not see him as the man
of 70 he is today.
No, the pulpit faded and
with it the pews, the windows
and the brick walls. In their
place was a huge, barnlike
structure, roughly hewn and
filled with camp chairs. There
was, too, a large platform with
green carpet, and on it a man
ran up and down, waving his
arms, shouting, turning hand
springs and somerSaults, taking
off his coat and his vest,
throwing himself at length on
the floor.
Sawdust Trail
And he was saying: mo man
can pray Thy Kingdom come
and then look through the bot
tom of a beer glass" Then
again: Don't go home to the
woman who darns your old
socks unless you can smile.
Give her something decent to
wear besides those old Mother
HubbardS which make her look
like a bale Of hay tied with
WIRE"
And turning to the sisters,
he screamed: Lots Of you
women have not got religion
enough to go home and burn
that pack Of cards, take that
beer out Of your cellar and
dump it into the sewer, or take
back that dish you won at the
card party, you blackleg
gamblers.
On he went into the night,
putting on a show the like of
which New York had never seen
before and has never seen since.
Fifteen thousand men and
women in the crude tabernacle
laughed and went, were scandal
lied or found religion, while he
played the roles and mimicked
the voices of the hog-jowled bar
tender, the CRATER, the society
woman, the Ccmanche Indian,
the rube and the outcast. For
13 weeks he ran on Broadway,
packing them in his campaign
which drew down $350,000 and
led $4,000 men and women to
hit the sawdust trail of repent
ance.
A group of men and women
press around an auction block
in an art gallery in uptown
New Yory. The auctioneer,
with all the arts Of Snowman
ship, shows them a sheet Of
ordinary note paper, yellowed,
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
Qualifications

But if Missouri's former Sen
ator, whose presidential candi-
dacy Mr.. Mitchell oppose
knows what Mr.. Mitchell's
"other" qualifications are to
supervise the highly technical
matters assigned to him, he
knows more than do most Of
the pilots who fly the colors
over land and sea or the mails
and passengers up and down
the splendid system of Federal
airways, which was built up
under Colonel Young.
Apparently Mr.. Mitchell came
to his new office under the i'm
preston that it involved a very
close association with the head
quarters of the Democratic ma
tional committee. At any rate,
very early in his term he began
consulting the son of the Sec
retary of Commerce who for
some time has been the eXecu-
tive secretary of that commit
tee.
It was following a consulta-
tion between Mr.. Mitchell and
several of Secretary Roper's
political appointees, who were
then serving as assistant di-
rectors Of the aeronauticS
branch, that an appointment
was made with Executive Sec
retary Richard F. Roper at
the headquarters of the Dem
ocratic national committee to
discuss ways and means of re-
placing the medical examiners
throughout the country. At
this consultation it was ex-
planned to the politicians pres
ent that these medical exam
liners had been designated in
utter disregard of their polit-
ical affiliation. They were Sc
lected after an advertisement
had been placed in one of the
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
BLUE FUNK
By Robert BenchIey

ance, with it's underslung jaws
and eyes like eggs Benedict.
It had bits Of live fish protrud-
ing from its mouth.
The caption explained that
this bird "flies with its neck
bent back over the body" That
will give you some idea Of what
/ was facing; I, who shouldn't
have had to face a three-year-
old child in my condition.
So I tossed the London In
luStrated News" aside with a
fairly loud scream, and picked
up one Of our local newspapers
which had a rotogravure Sec
ton. And, within two minutes,
I was a mass of quivering flesh
on the floor of my room. May
I explain why?
There, in front of my very
eyes, was a photograph Of
something which, strong as I
am now after a good rundown
and a shot of sedative, I can
hardly bear to describe. I will
quote the caption:
Here's a What-Is It that has
people down Tampa way gaga.
It might even be the missing
link, or the thing that some
people see when they get the
D. T's. Anyway, from unim-
peachable sources comes the in
formation that a fisherman
caught it at Tampa. And he
was sober. It's two feet long
and its head is a cross between
a bulls and a 'possum's. It has
q mouth like a dog, and two.
rows Of small, sharp teeth; two
eyes in front and two in the
rear; a pair of long legs with
Webbed feet, and a chest like
a humans. It has no gillS.
Icthyologists are trying to fig
ure it out"
Well, there it was, right be-
fore me-not a drawing, but an
actual photograph, showing the
fiSherman's hands holding up
this "what-is-it" for me to see.
And it checked in every detail
with the caption, except that
the caption didn't say that it
looked like Louis PHILIPPE Of
France. It also didn't say that
the thing was looking straight
at me and sneering.
Now, on a tough day, to run
into a dead rhinoceros, a
"pouched curiosity" and a
"what-is-it" in rapid succession,
is an experience to make ones
blood curdle. My blood today
has been a little too thin even
to curd4e, but it did the next
best thing. It stopped circulat-
ing entirely.
When they found me was in
bed with the covers pulled over
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

time-stained. On that sheet Of
paper are 80 lines of verse,
written, in small, neat hand.
The 80 lines that at the third
rap of the hammer goes for
$4,000 of verse is our national
anthem, '"The Star-Spangled
Banner"
The Red Goats had captured
Washington and burned the
White House, and were bent on
taking Baltimore, Francis Scott
Keys city. Out in the roadstead
of Baltimore the British fleet
was bringing its guns to bear
on Fort McHenry. Francis
Scott Key, under a white flag
Of truce, got into a small boat
and had himself rowed to the
British flagship to appeal for
the release of a friend, DR.. Will
liam Beanes, who had been cap
tured and was a prisoner.
The British officers greeted
Mr.. Key courteously. When il
was proved to them that DR..
Beanes had treated their own
wounded, the admiral promptly
ordered the doctors release.
But they were not permit
ted to return Immediately to
Baltimore. They must await
the attack, the result of the
bombardmenit which was about
to begin.
Through the Night
When the guns began to
rain shot and shell against
Old Fort McHenry, Francis
Scott Key watched the fleet
close in on the fort and saw
the bursting shells crash against
its bastions, from which flew
the flag of the young Repub-
lie, the flag of red and white
stripes and Is white stars.
Throughout the afternoon
and the night of September
13, 1914, Francis Scott Key.
with breathless interest, watched
the shells falling on Fort Nc.
Henry,
And then, just before dawn,
the bombardment ended. In
silence and the dark young
Key paced the deck in painful
suspense, peering through the
blacknesS toward the fort, pray
ing for daylight, and the first
beams Of the rising sun bathed
in glory the shimmering stars
and stripes. The enemy were
hastily retreating to their ships.
The attack had failed.
And Francis Scott Key, re-
turning to shore, put down on
scraps of paper the lines that
had burned into his brain as
the British cannon hammered
Fort McHenry.
Copyright. 1894. King Features
Syndicate, Inc.)
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
Four Pay Cuts
Running to Fifty Per Cent

Employees of the Federal Government suffering not
from pay of 10 per cent BUT IN REALITY ARE
SUFFERING FOUR PAY CUTS
In any consideration of the pay cut provision Of the indie
pendent offices appropriation bill by the Senate it should be
borne in mind that the total pay cut for many individual EN-
ployes amounts to much 30 PER CENT OF THE BASE
PAY TO WHICH THEY ARE ENTITLED.
There is of course first the legislative pay cut of 10
per cent
Many think that that pay cut tells the whole story Of the
depression of Federal employees. IT DOESN'T.
There is in addition the DISGUISED PAY CUT known
the furough That cut disguised to every except the
employe when he looks at his shrunken pay check.
The urlough arbitrary pay imposed by admins
ave officers but made by the horizontal slashes
in appropriations.
After the DISGUISED PAY CUT, we have the INVISIBLE
PAY CUT
The INVISIBLE PAY CUT is the slice made in the en-
poyes real wages by the increase in the cost of living In
the last six months that cost INCREASED MORE THAN
PER CENT ACCORDING TO THE GOVERNMENTS
OWN FIGURES.
And that cut though invisible in the pay check is very
actual when the employees wife tries to pay her bills
But even the DISGUISED AND INVISIBLE PAY CUTS
COUPLED WITH THE 15 PER CENT CUT DON'T TELL
THE WHOLE STORY
In addition to all those there is the UNDERHANDED PAY
THROUGH BEING DENIED EARNED PROMOTIONS
worker in any establishment he is efficient and loyal
has right to expect promotion and increased pay he
moves into position Of responsibility.
CAN HE EXPECT TO ENJOY THAT RIGHT IN THE
GOVERNMENT SERVICE?
No. indeed He take the responsibilities but
Tor years HE HAS BEEN DENIED THE INCREASED
PAY WHICH GOES WITH HIS NEW JOB: That is the
UNDERHAND CUT FROM WHICH THE WORKERS ARE
SUFFERING.
Of course he is employe in Of the newly Gre
aed agencies he be promoted and have his pay
raised But not he is Of the old line who have given faith
fu service through the years.
THE SENATE SHOULD ADD UP THESE PAY CUTS
AND THROW THEM ALL OUT OF THE WINDOW.
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

slang. F or
e x a m p e,
tn ere a
whole era Of
A eric a n
ro W tn in
that current
expression:
at H e Y
HAVE WHAT
TT TAKES!"
A c t u q ! y,
tn a t isn't
"slangwidge"
at all. It's
q W York in G
slogan a
m q orOhin
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
Another Army of Shoppers
One Was Enough

Secretary Morgenthau Of the Treasury Department makes
one Of the most effective arguments yet heard AGAINST
income tax when he proposed house-tohouse canvass
throughout the country to round up tax dodgers and collect
two hundred millions in back taxes from them.
This to is frank admission that the tax is one
Of the most unavoidable ever imposed.
An army Of evaders army Of enforcers" fifth Of
billion dollars arrears shopping in the old familiar prohibition
manner and all at tremendous expensehs what the in
come tax means in fact the secrearys statement plainly
shows.
After experience with prohibition why on earth should
we make the same type Of blunders in the tax field?
Why especially when general manufacturer sales tax
would solve most Of tax difficulties at once burden
one end snooping yield and adequate and
do away with the evasion and corruption which the
tax always promotes?
We cant answer those questions-uness is that we
Americans have an infinite capacity for repeating mis-
takes
We have corrected prohibition mistake after IL
We keep with our income tax mistake though it is
prohibitions twin and has led to much aaround crooked
ness prohibition ever did.
The Washington times., 1934-01-23
AerOnauticS Bureau Victim
Of Political Control
Bu James T. Williams, Jr.

best known medical journals
of the country. This adver-
tisement requested physicians
and surgeons who had made
a study of aviation medicine
and were willing to accept des-
ignation as medical examiners
in the aeronautics branch to
write into the Department Of
Commerce and send recon-
mendations from their local
medical societies and a state
ment of their professional
qualifications.
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

my head muttering: Head like
a 'poSSum's, mouth like a dog,
legs like a colt and chest like a
human. Br-r-r-r-r!"
In fact, I am writing this
from under the bed-clothes, and
I'd like to see anyone get me
out before tomorrow.
Copyright, 1884, King Features
Syndicate. Inc.)
Robert BenchIey'S articles 1p-
pear in The Washington Times
each Tuesday, Thursday, and
Saturday.
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

This has been . rather trying
day for me. Not feeling in the
best of health (the New Year
hasn't worked out quite as
smoothly as I had planneO I
thought that I would more or
less spend the morning looking
at pictures instead of trying
to get all those typographical
symbols into the order that is
necessary to read a page Of a
newspaper or book. Sometimes
those words of type act up,
you know.
So just picked a magazine
Of pictures at random, and, get
ting a small boy from the Of
flee to hold my hand steady,
The Washington times., 1934-01-23

Have You What 1t Takes?
If you want to meet Ameri-
can history, red hot, right off
the griddle, study American
Evening star., 1934-10-14
FLETCHER DENOUNCES
CAMPAIGN ISSUE
ON FEDERAL RELIEF

Continued From First Page.)