davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1935-05-18
STARS, MEN AND ATOMS
Notebook of Science Progress in Field,
Laboratory and Study.
BY THONAS HENRY
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

pleasant or unpleasant, would be q
highly complex association of pleas
ant and past experiences. For ex-
ample, the emotional sensations
aroused by a beautiful display of
flowers on a balmy May day would
not be the result alone of the colors
and odors of those flowers but of
these qualities plus past associations.
1t requires more than beauty to
arouse the sense Of joy in beauty.
The beauty alone would arouse no
emotional response, for example. in
an individual suddenly appearing in
the world with adult faculties but
no past.
Essential to a mood, DR.. johnson
pointed out, are its ''fringes," the
borders where the sensation of the
immediate experience impinges on
past experiences. The feelings aroused
by the Spring flowers might be. for
example, the immediate visual and
odor sensations plus grandmother
garden in Springtime, plus a walk
with girl on a May evening, plus
the flowers at the funeral of a
friend, plus thousand other exper-
fences. All these experiences of the
past would not be realized consciously
but they would enter into the result,
with the consequence that one might
have a strange bitter-sweet sensation.
In one sense, the emotion might be
compared to the concentric circle set
up by pebble dropped in water. The
farther away from the center the
feeblef and feebler these grow until
they disappear altogether. The i'm
mediate sensory impression Is like
such a pebble dropped in the waters
OF memory, of total life experience.
1t is the "fringes" that provide the
feeling.
Now normally, as one grows older,
these fringes associating the present
with the distant past fade away al
together. There is a very pronounced
fringe between the experiences of this
Spring and last Spring. There is a
much weaker fringe associating them
with the Spring of 1920. The asso-
citation with the Spring of 1910 is
much weaker still. Finally, the asso-
ciation with the first two or three years
OF life may be very weak, indeed, or
even non-existent. That Is one of the
reasons advanced for the almost COM
plete forgetfulness of the events of
early infancy. AS the years have
passed one fringe after the other has
weakened or dropped out altogether,
and consequently the feeling asso-
ciated with sensations arising from ex-
perience has changed. But the process
has been so slow that it has been
imperceptible.
In these cases, for some unknown
reason, all the "fringes" have been
blotted out at once, or submerged in
some way so that they have no effect.
The individual can make no feeling
associations and consequently can
have no emotions. One Is lost in the
present.
Evening star., 1935-05-18

larly, q Car parked in front of drive
way or alley is an intolerable nuisance.
This new regulation will not Of
itself solve the parking problem, which
is admittedly difficult one in Wash
ington. 1t will indeed to some extent
add to the congestion in spaces where
parking is permitted. 1t may lead
ultimately to a definite undertaking
to solve this problem, which is steadily
becoming more complicated with the
increase in the number of vehicles
and the necessary establishment of
prohibited zones.
Evening star., 1935-05-18
Rail Pension Decision Casts
Doubt on Social Legislation

Decision by the United States Su-
preme Court that the railroad pension
law is unconstitutional is accepted
by the press as creating uncertainty
as to social security legislation in
general under the New Deal Further
court DEGREES are awaited. and there
Is interest In the possibility that
Congress will be able to frame laws
to meet the restrictions laid down
by the court. Special attention Is
given to the fact that Justice Roberts.
who wrote the majority opinion, has
been at times aligned with the liberals
on the court, and to the vigor with
which Chief Justice Hughes aSsailed
the conclusions of the majority in
this 5-to-4 decision.
While voicing the opinion that "the
Supreme Court has saved the railway
pension question from its apparent
destiny as a political foot ball" the
Chicago Tribune advises that back
ward lines without a retirement sys-
tenn should heed the statements of
that tribunal and foster the employe
loyalty that is so paramount in the
railroads fight to regain a measure
of their former proud standing" The
Tribune also states that ito those
who are employed by one Of the "a
railroads that had established volun-
tary pension systems there will be a
sentiment of relief"
1t is pointed out by the New York
Sun that "the Supreme Court holds
that the pension plan is an attempt
to serve social ends by imposing con-
tractual obligations not in themselves
essential to safe and economical
transportation but desired as an in
strumentality for assuring employees
against dependency in old age"
Studying the position of Chief
| Justice Hughes, who wrote the dis
senting opinion, the Buffalo Evening
News observes that he challenges the
stand of the majority of the court
that the pension legislation deals
with matters which obviously lie out
side the orbit Of congressional power" "
The Chief Justice stated: THE funda-
mental consideration which supports
this type of legislation is that in
dustry should take care of its human
wastage. whether that Is due to ac-
cident or age. That view cannot be
dismissed as arbitrary or capricious.
It is a reasoned conviction based upon
abundant experience. The expression
of that experience in law is regulation.
When expressed in the government of
interstate carriers, with respect to their
employees likewise engaged in inter-
state commerce, it is regulation of
that commerce" The Evening News
concludes: THE Hughes dictum, al
though contrary to the ruling as es-
tablished by the majority Of the Su-
preme Court, expresses a viewpoint
which cannot fail to make o definite
impress upon the Nation"
why should not faithful employees
in the railroad service have security
in old age?" asks the Portland, Greg,
Journal while the Rochester Times
Union says: 1.-The principle that in
dustry shall take care Of It's human
wastage' and workers receive support
in their old age Is gaining ground.
Ultimately that principle should tri-
umph. Indeed, some of the railroads
have already adopted voluntary pen
sion systems. If the people Of the
United States wish contributory old
Evening star., 1935-05-18

many of the oldest lobbyists, who
have had hundreds Of varieties, still
keep q place Of affection for this tiny
fish.
Perhaps 1t Is no wonder, then, that
many citizens, not versed In the lure
of small fishes in tanks, honestly
cannot see" what any one can see
In Guppies.
They are quite frank in their lack
of enthusiasm for the Cups.
How may they be converted?
As far as the Guppies are con-
conversion at all.
II they had any say in the matter,
they would leave the tanks overnight
and 20 back to their original homes.
So much is probably true Of all
aquarium fish.
They are in captivity, whether the
owner admits as much or not.
Yet no one would advocate giving
up fish keeping, any more than one
would assert that ZOOS should be done
away with.
What is necessary is better selec-
ton Of fishes to keep.
Consider the Paradise fish, from
the rice fields Of China.
This Is an animal that never should
| have been put in tank, since there
! 1t Is no pleasure either to its So
called owner or to itself.
It was the first of the "tropicals"
| to be so kept, as far back as 1858,
but that Is no reason why it con-
tinues to be sold.
Yet it is, each owner In turn find
ing out that it is troublesome to
keep, and a vastly unhappy creature
in an aquarium.
When it first came into fame. it
was the only bubble nest" builder.
but today there are several other
groups. notably the Bettas and the
Gouramis, which display this habit
in the aquarium, and which are
much more satisfactory pets.
4 y II 4
The Guppy is a favorite, perhaps
the favorite, simply because every one
who knows anything about flshkeep-
| ing realizes, although he may never
have stopped to think Of the matter
that it is really at home in a tank
Although he probably would rather be
| in Central American pools, II he had
| any say-so, he makes the best of any
place he finds himself, determined on
getting the most out of his life. He
| is aided by the fact that in most
cases he knows nothing other than a
tank, having been born and bred in
one.
He Is worth knowing, by quite any
body, largely because he is so well
contented.
Discomfort is one of the reigning
vices OF the world today.
Almost every one is discontented.
Contemplation Of the Guppy. how
ever. helps.
Then even the most discontented
person realizes that to make the best
of things is not "hocum," or "the
bunk" or just a tiresome old fable
foisted of on us by those bent on
keeping us in slavery, or one sort or
another, but rather a good attitude
toward the plain evils of life. The
point is that what strikes one person
as an evil may not be so to another
at all. Hence, part Of the dislike and
rancor is solely in the mind. Even If
this part alone can be wiped out, and
some measure of content substituted,
one is far better of than before.
Little though he is, and just fish,
the Guppy swims a perpetual and
wholesome lesson every day.
If any one says he has never seen
this lesson in Guppy, let him look
! longer, until he does see it.
Evening star., 1935-05-18
Great Gems.

A big diamond is great treasure,
but it may be white elephant on the
hands of the owner. Such diamond
is the so-called Jonkers stone, rated
as at present the largest uncut stone
in the world. 1t weighs 726 caratS,
being about the size of a hens egg.
1t was found in South Africa sixteen
months ago by a native digger for
Jacobus Jonkers, an elderly Boer
prospector who had worked the field
for eighteen years without appreciable
success. He sold the stone to a cor
poration for G75,oOo. Now, after an
unsuccessful effort to have it pur-
chased by popular subscription as a
silver jubilee present to the King and
Queen of England. it has been bought
at a price "in excess of s700,000," by
an American diamond merchant, who
offers it for sale in this country, and
declares that If it cannot be sold as
o single stone it will be cut into
several smaller ones and marketed.
It will be remembered that the
greatest stone ever found, known as
the Cullinan, which weighed 3,106
metric carats in its original form, or
about 2,903 carats of the former
standard, could not be cut as single
gem and was divided into nine large
stones and several brilliants, the
greatest of the former being 516.5 old
measure carats. If the Jonkers stone
can be cut singly it may outweigh that
remarkable product Of the lapidary's
art, known as the "Star of India"
These great gems are virtually
"museum pieces" veritable crown
Jewels, wholly unsuitable for personal
adornment. Possession Of one OF
them entails a heavy responsibility,
for although they are highly coveted
they become to an individual owner
q virtual liability. 1t is likely, there
fore, that the Jonkers will not remain
Evening star., 1935-05-18

There Is a strange sort Of death-in-
life in which one exists devoid of emo.
tions.
1t was one of the rarer forms Of
mental abnormality reported at the
recent meeting Of the American
Psychiatric Association in Washington
There were reports on three cases BY
DR.. Hiram K. johnson Of the Kings
Park State Hospital, New York.
The victim of this weird condition
is completely conscious and may &c
about the daily routine Of activitie:
the same as ever. There are no hal
lucinations and no disturbance OF
orientation with the world. But there
is no feeling about anything. There
is complete incapability for Joy, love
sorrow, dispair, anger or any other sort
of emotion. The condition comes
about suddenly and may disappear
Just as suddenly.
The picture of such a person, as
given by DR.. johnson, specifically is
quite similar to that of victim OF
profound depression, such as is en-
countered by alienists in various
pSychoses such as the manic-depreS-
sive or the victim of involution mel
ancholia. The patient may sit fol-
hours without speaking and with head
bowed.
Under the surface, however, the two
conditions are very different. The
subject of depression is afflicted with
painful emotions such as exaggerated
regret for the mistakes Of the past
fear of eternal punishment for imag-
ined sins, or complete despair of the
future. These states are exaggera-
tions Of conditions common to every
body. They represent the nth degree
of "the blues" The other type ap-
pears depressed because nothing in
terests the victim, either pleasantly or
painfully. There is no emotional
tone" of any sort.
Such a person in mental hospital
envies even the violently insane seen
about him. 1t is better to feel pain
than to feel nothing. A victim may
refer to himself as "dead-alive." "If
I could only go crazy" is frequent
wish expressed to the doctors.
The condition was summed up as
"the feeling that there are no more
feelings. The patients complain that
they feel desolate, empty and dead.
They cannot experience any more
10y or pain or any more love for
those near them"
Said one woman: "In everything,
even the most tender caresses of my
children, I find only bitterness. I
cover them with kisses but there is
something between their lips and
mine. This horrid something Is be-
tween me and all the enjoyments of
life"
Paradoxically enough. such patients
saw that they suffer terribly"
through the Intellectual realization
that they are so isolated from the
rest of the world. A hell Of ever
lasting fire, they feel, would be better
than a hell where the condemned
would be denied any feelings at all.
Something has dropped out Of their
psychic constitution which Is common
to the rest of humanity-sane and
insane. They constitute a class
apart-living in the world but with
out feeling associations with it.
II r
DR.. johnson sought in vain for any
explanation of the DEATH life"
phenomenon In the older psychol-
oeies. He found one, however, in the
new Gastalt psychology, which looks
upon sensations as wholes, the COM
ponents of which are inseparable.
Uudag this theory any emotion,
Evening star., 1935-05-18
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES Z. TRACEWELL.

What! No Guppies in New Zea-
land?
This is the word brought to WASH
ington by a resident of that coun-
try, who saw the worlds most popular
aquarium fish in the home of a local
fancier for the first time in his life
the other night.
Those interested in these small
animals will feel sorry for the New
Zealanders.
Those not interested will congratu-
late them.
In the meantime the Guppies will
go right ahead swimming in streams
and tanks, ridding the former of
mosquitoes and making the best of
their restricted life In their glass
homes.
There is no gainsaying that the
Antipodes have an awakening COM
ing to them in regard to Guppies,
widely mispronounced as GOODIES and
goopies.
These little creatures probably are
there already, although the visitor
was unaware of 1t. AS catchers of
noxious larvae they are unexcelled
consuming vast quantities.
They are small, but mighty in many
ways.
They have been placed all over the
world, mostly for purposes of mosquito
control.
Wherever they have gone, they have
prospered.
This fact remains true, even for
bowl Of water.
1t is this, indeed which makes them
the fish they are.
For it is not commonly kept in
mind that no fish has any place In
home after all.
If we keep them there at best it is
humanity's fault not theirs.
*** **
the Guppy, If no more than because
it is one of the worlds best examples
Of adaptibility to environment.
Not even man, who makes the best
Of the tropics and the Arctic Circle,
can do better job of adaptation than
this f1shlet from Honduras.
Therefore it should win the admira-
ton of every person who values such
quality in living creature.
The Guppy should hold the admira-
ton Of every one who believes in sue
cess. There is scarcely a more sue
cessful creature in the world, every
thing taken into consideration.
The widest distribution OF this fish,
Of course. is in the home aquarium the
world over.
1t is kept in America, England,
Sweden, Germany, France, to name
but few nations whose peoples value
the Guppy.
1t is used in the study of genetics,
owing to the many generations in a
comparatively short time.
In direct competition with larger
and more snowy animals for the ad-
miration of fish fancier, the Guppy
manages to keep its place year after
year.
This is all the more astonishing,
since it must face that greatest handi-
cap certain amount OF scorn, owing
to its numbers
Anything which becomes common,
through numbers, runs the risk of Of
Tending a certain number OF persons
who profess liking only for the rare.
This is true in books, flowers, jewels,
automobiles, or whatnot.
Certainly 1t is so of the Guppy One
will even hear some fish fancier dis
claim, "Oh, I can't understand what
any one can see in the Guppy," when
all the time he knows quite well why
Evening star., 1935-05-18
SHOOTING STARS.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.

The Magnificent Silence.
A radio program was duly proclaimed
Where Wisdom would show us the
way.
The greatest of mathematicians was
named
But Einstein had nothing to say.
Now Thomas and Richard and Henry
recite,
For learned professors are they,
And their names we must mention in
accents polite
But Einstein had nothing to say.
A vast erudition a man may disclose
With silence complete holding sway
Though we're certain he really knows
what he knows
And Einstein had nothing to say.
Evening star., 1935-05-18
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC ]. HASKIN.

A reader can get the anstoer to
any question OF fact By tDritfno
The Evening Star Information
Bureau, Frederic J. Hdsktn, Dtrec-
tor, Washington, d. C. Please
inclose stamp for reply.
@. Why did omahas owner choose
that name for the horse2-H. G.
A. Omaha comes from the Ormond
line and his owner, Mr.. william
Woodward. chose the name because
1t began with o.
@. How many prints are made OF
q motion picture?-M. P. p.
A. 1t depends upon the anticipated
demand. Distributors order in &C
cordance with the bookings which
they have and the cnes they think
1t probable they will get The num-
Der Of prints made varies between
so and ESQ.
@. What does the title mahatma
mean?-C. T.
A. 1t means leader or teacher.
@. How many aids to ship naviga-
ton are maintained by the United
States Lighthouse Service?-L. McC
A. Today it maintains over $4,000
aids to marine navigation. The great
er number of these are lighthouses
and buoys. There are, however, over
100 radio beacons, IS Hghtship sta
tions and 1,5OO fog signals.
@. How long has cremation of the
dead been practiced?-C P. G.
A. Cremation Of the dead was a
general practice of the ancient world
with some exceptions. During the
middle ages, cremation was discour-
aged and in its modern form dates
from the latter part of the nineteenth
century.
@. What early publishers name is
synonymous with the phrase free
dom of the press"?-K. F.
A. John Peter Zenger Q680-1746),
an American publisher, born in Ger
many. came to New York about 100.
In 1888 he began the publication of
the New York Weekly journal. In
1874, because Of his virulent criti-
cisms Of the Government, he was ar
rested and imprisoned. At his trial
the authorities used every means in
their power to secure his conviction.
The verdict Of not guilty created
much enthusiasm and was regarded
as a triumphant vindication of the
freedom Of the press.
@. How long does twilight last?-
c. L.
A. Twilight ends when the sun Is
18 degrees below the horizon. At
the equator. where the suns daily
path is perpendicular to the horizon,
the earth turns through this zone of
twilight in about one and one fourth
hours. In the latitude of the United
States the average length of twilight
exceeds one and one-half hours, its
duration being greatest in Midsummer,
when it is more than two hours.
@. Why is common brick red?-
r. G.
A. Because there is iron in the clay
from which it is made.
@. What department decides which
boys are to be enrolled in the Civilian
Conservation Corps?-C. B. E.
A. The Department of Labor is re-
sponsible for the selection of all ex-
cept war veterans, who are chosen by
the Veterans Administration.
O. Is a desert cool at night?-E. D.
A. 1t is much cooler than in the
daytime. Radiation in desert regions
is very high. so the temperature falls
when the sun is not shining.
@. Should people send out dime
chain letters?-A. j. A.
A. The Post ONCE Department an
nounces that the send-a-dime chain
letter scheme which has been sweep
ing the country in recent weeks is a
Evening star., 1935-05-18
More German Navy.

There seems literally to be no limit
to Germany's plans defiantly to re-
arm itself on land, on sea and in the
air, in violation of its obligations un-
der the treaty of Versailles. Close
upon the heels of the recent an
nouncement that the Reich has under
construction fleet of $50 submarines,
a class of naval craft specifically for
hidden to the Germans by the terms
of peace, comes the revelation that the
Nazis have secretly constructed 450
tiny, but swift and deadly, torpedo
boats as revolutionary in type as the
Germans celebrated 10,000-ton "vest-
pocket" battleships. The midget ships,
capable of speeding through the water
at sixty knots, manned by five men
and carrying four torpedoes, are de-
scribed by foreign naval experts at
Berlin as giving the sea powers of the
world as much food for thought as
Hitler's recently disclosed submarine
plans.
The advantages claimed for the
new German water bugs" are that
their cost is trif1ing, their operation
economical, their crew so small that
possible loss Of life aboard them would
be negligible, and that they can
change direction so fast that they
would be extremely hard to hit. With
any kind of luck, it is claimed, the
four torpedoes carried by the west
pocket" speed-boats could do terrific
damage to enemy ships and would in
any case constitute pestiferous de-
fensive problem for an attacking or
blockading feet. American naval
authorities say that the little ships
can operate only in very calm seas
and that other navies which have
experimental with similar vessels have
found them impracticable.
Having observed that disclosure Of
Germany's submarine program evoked
nothing more than astonishment and
resentment abroad, even in Great
Britain, which is chiefly interested in
preventing recrudescence of German
sea power, especially submarines,
Hitler apparently figures that he can
proceed without restraint to re-create
the German navy. If he is allowed
to build a fleet limited only by the
Reich's capacity to finance and man
It, the certain effect will be the re-
sumption of worldwide naval COM
petition, ultimately affecting coun-
tries as remote from the North Sea
as the United States and Japan.
The Germans are said to justify
their latest naval plans on the ground
that the Baltic countries "have at
least fifty submarines" But nations
fike Great Britain, France and Italy
are bound to envision future German
operations at sea in other European
waters than the Baltic and will pro-
ceed to develop their own fleets in
the light of this newest Nazi arma-
ment threat. The eventual result will
be an upsetting of the present balance
of international sea power as fixed by
treaty, with revision upward as the
universal and inescapable aftermath