davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1935-02-18

stairways has come to be regarded a.
a contingency quite unlikely to arise
Yet, owing to a dispute over an ad-
justment of pay recently effected, New
York this morning faced the possibil-
ity of a complete stoppage Of all the
up-and-down transport lines, and the
prospect was appalling.
To several million people in a large
and busy city the elevator has become
as much of a necessity as the mean:
of getting along the surface for miles
between home and work, in the few
minutes allotted to travel. If sin
gle car of an outfit of elevators i:
out of order there is bitter com
plant. To have every car haltec
would be to throw out of geal
all the machinery of business
and finance There is no substitute
for the elevator but the stairway, and
by most metropolitan dwellers and
workers a fight Of steps is considered
as something which the architects
have been required to include in their
designs for tall buildings merely as
matter of routine of planning, to be
used for single trip from one floor
to the next in a hurry when the
elevators are filled to capacity or are
stopped for a brief period for repairs.
1t is virtually impossible for the
metropolitan dweller and worker to
conceive the condition of city with
out elevators. So it is that the phrase
general strike Of elevator operators
is regarded as little more than fig
ure of speech, expressing that which
cannot possibly occur. Yet 1t may
occur some day, perhaps today, and
then the metropolitans will have
something new to consider, the use
of the ancient means of passing from
one level to another.
Evening star., 1935-02-18
An Elevator Strike.

Any interruption of the transporta-
tion system in great center of popu-
tion causes tremendous confusion and
loss of time and even danger to the
public security. In New York a break
down in the subways or the surface
lines checks the flow of traffic to the
point Of demoralizing business. A
simultaneous shutdown of all these
lines for even a day would very near
ly paralyze the metropolis. Just so a
complete stoppage of the vertical
transport in that business, financial
and Industrial center would cause an
enormously costly check upon all
activities, for very great proportion
Of the industry Of the big city Is de-
pendent upon the mechanical means
of ascent to the heights to which
building construction has been car
ried In the past few decades. Such
stoppage has been threatened by the
calling of strike of all elevator op-
orators.
The skyscrapers have become the
housing for several million people en-
gagged in the daily work of the great
town. They have been carried up to
heights that make elevators an abso-
lutte necessity. An accident to the
'1ift" system of q single one of these
great towering warrens of busy hu-
manity affects thousands, workers and
customers, clients and callers. So es-
sential Is that system that resort to
Evening star., 1935-02-18
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM FILE.

name was Frances Perkins, and she
now heads the United States Depart
ment Of Labor as the first woman to
sit in the cabinet of an American
President. Secretary Perkins is, Of
course. one of the chief sponsors Of
the social security bill now before
Congress.
George c. Hanson, trouble-shooter
No. l of the United States Foreign
Service, who is shortly to become
charge d'affaires in war threatened
AbysSinia, has brought back to Wash
ington as a souvenir of his recent
years in the Far East a remarkable
collection Of moving pictures made in
China, especially Mongolia and Man
churia. They were shot by James A.
Mills, famous international camera
man Of the Associated Press. Views
Of Harbin, where Mr.. Hanson was
consul general when the japanese
embarked upon their Manchurian ad-
venture in 1881, portray vividly the
havoc wrought by floods in that re-
gion a year or two earlier. The
American Red Cross rendered valiant
relief service on that occasion.
\
President Roosevelt has put his foot
down hard on White House press con-
ference questions that deal with pend
ing legislation. He requests the scribes
not to ask him about such matters
and particularly not to draw deduc-
tionS from his refusal to discuss them.
Such deductions in the past, Mr..
per cent wrong" 1t was a request
for an opinion on the Rayburn- Wheeler
holding companies bill that extorted
the new ruling from Mr.. Roose-
velt, who enunciated it in unmistak-
ably stern accents. The President as
serts it's invariably been his rule
to refrain from discussing business
pending at the Capitol. This dlctum
would seem to dispose Of the theory
that If Congress balks on the Pres
ident's legislative program, he might
go on the air and urge people to
wire your Senators and Representa-
tives."
X II X X
WIcu IUTIueT O6LaCOr Jun watson
of Indiana was in town the other
day he spun what he calls the best
yarn on himself extant. He was being
introduced as a chautauqua lecturer
1t was the first meeting of a new
season. Last year." the presiding
officer announced, I'VE went in the
hole. The bank still holds our note
for $1,000, which represents our loss.
So this season we had to cut expenses
and get second-rate speakers. I have
| the honor to present the majority
leader of the United States Senate"
X X y X
According to data issued by the
American Liberty League, approxi-
mately 100000 employees Of the Fed
eral Government are already covered
by old-age retirement schemes. On
June 80, 1884, about 40 900 persons
were receiving pensions under the
Federal employees retirement act Of
1920, the lighthouse retiremnt act and
the Canal Zone retirement act. The
average annunity paid under the first
OF these acts was $965.16.
Copyright. 1880
Evening star., 1935-02-18
Pillars of Peace"

Whether by accident or design,
Secretary Hull chose q timely mo-
ment-the imminent threat of war
between Italy and Abyssinia-to re-
state the conditions under which the
United States is prepared to cooper
ate with other powers for preserva-
ton of peace. The Secretary of
State, speaking on Saturday night be-
fore the Canadian Society of New
York, defined the four pillars of a
sound peace structure" These, he
said, are Cd the remuneration of war
as an instrument of national policy;
90 a promise Of non-aggression; 80
consultation in the event of a threat
to peace, and "a non-interference
upon Americas part with such meas
ures of conStraint as may be brought
against a deliberate violator of peace.
Judge Hull was at pains to stress
that these conditions are subject to an
effective disarmament agreement" and
he made plain, in declaring our willing
ness not to hinder collective action
against an aggressor, that this attitude
would be assumed provided America
independently concurred in the de-
cision as to the identity of the ag-
gressor.
Secretary Hull thus reaffirms the
proposals made to the Geneva Con-
ference in May, 1888, by Norman H.
Davis at President Roosevelt's direc-
ton. They are designed, the State
Department chief points out, to "as-
sist in general pacification and stabi-
lization, of equal benefit to all coun-
tries and with no implication of any
intervention on our part in contro-
verSies between individual states"
But the Secretary of State gives
Europe and Asia an emphatic indi-
cation of Americas international
creed when he warns that the -four
pillars of a sound peace structure"
might readily crumble were they to
be built on the shifting foundations
Of unrestricted and competitive
ornaments" 1t is for that reason
that the United States insists upon "a
real limitation and reduction of the
instruments of warfare" as an indis-
pensable accompaniment Of the pro-
gram in which we are ready to take
part.
Judge Hull utilizes the occasion,
too, to notify all concerned that the
Washington treaties of 1922 set up
IAN integrated system for mainte-
nance of peace and stability in the
Far East and the Pacific" Those
treaties, the Secretary of State says,
"in their essence still embody the
basic principles we believe in and
stand by"
With a great European power mo-
bilizing for war overseas, with Asia in
chronic turmoil over Japanese Chinese
Soviet conflicts, and with the League of
Nations apparently as helpless as ever
to suppress these threats to peace,
it is well for the United States to
place on record afresh, in fortnight
terms, the precise circumstances in
which it is willing to join in inter-
national action to avert or stop war.
If the rest of the world Graves our
cooperation to that end, it now
knows exactly what has to be done to
bring it about.
Evening star., 1935-02-18
The cardinal sings!

The cardinal sings!
Sitting on q bush above q patch OF
snow-there Is still some left-he
bursts into the first melody Of the
year.
Not as sweet, by any means, as that
of the thrush, his song heralds the
coming Spring.
Already the home gardener Is able
to find few leaves, notably Of tulips
and jonquils, peeping above the moist
earth.
What moisture there has been! How
happy the plants, shrubs and trees
must be over all the water put into
the earth for their benefit!
Let us speak of the happiness OF
plants as of any tangible thing.
Surely they must have some sense
OF happiness when conditions are very
much to their liking.
Such happiness would not be ours
but, from a vegetative viewpoint, il
would be happiness. We insist on
! that.
Listen to the beautiful cardinal,
singing in the snow.
He is the first of all birds to sing
really new song this year.
Other birds chirp and twitter.
The brave bluejay screams from
the locust tree, answering back the
crek-crek of fat gray squirrel.
Only the cardinal sings, so far.
And his song Is not much Of song,
after all, compared with the bubbling,
vivacious melody Of the thrush.
The latter bird will first sing In this
vicinity on or about April %.
There are few things that can be
predicted more confidently.
y y y
Now that the cardinal has sung, we
may look forward to Spring.
For when these few song notes are
heard, the robins are not far behind
Almost any day, now, happy resi-
dents OF our suburbs may expect to
see some fine fat robins hopping
around on the lawn in their never
ending search for earthworms.
Little thought Is given by the ma
Jorlty OF mankind to the humble
fiShin' worm, the typical garden
worm, immortalized in the works of
Darwin.
The theory Of mankind's descent
from the anthropoid apes is con-
nected in the popular mind with the
name Of Charles Darwin, but really
he devotes a great deal more space
to the species of small worms which
live in the soil.
Without these worms gardens
would not thrive as we'll as they mostly
do. and many varieties of birds would
suffer extinction.
Among the most voracious OF
garden worm eaters Is the robin,
whose thick beak is able to drag them
out of the earth.
Just how the bird knows where to
dig is a small mystery to those who
have not made q special study of
the matter.
Gardeners sometimes are inclined
to think that the robin must scent
the worms, but he probably goes by
sight alone, his eyes being exceedingly
keen. Both birds and fishes have
good eyesight.
If any one wants to see what good
food worms are for certain creatures,
of the Cichlid family, group of trop-
ical fishes popular with some home
aquarium enthusiasts.
Two well-known members Of the
family are the angel fish and the
Evening star., 1935-02-18
SHOOTING STARS.
BY PHILANDER JOHNSON.
NegatiOn.

NegatiOn.
The prices ought to be much less.
They're not.
They may go up, some men confess,
A lot.
The restless peoples far away
Should be abjuring fuss and fray
And all be working every day.
They're not.
Men should in all things be exact.
They're not.
They should not vary from a fact
A jot
They should disdain material thing
And never have their fads or filings,
They should be angels without wings
They're not.
Evening star., 1935-02-18

A reader can get the GnSlCer to
any question of fact by tDriting The
Washington Evening Star Information
Bureau, Frederic J. Hasktn, Director,
Washington, D. C. Please inclose
stamp for reply.
@. Where was badminton played
first?-J. w. s.
A. This game originated In India
and was known as poona. 1t was
played there for centuries without at
tracing much outside interest. In
the SOS, English Army officers took
q fancy to 1t and In 1872, when some
of them went home on furlough, they
took equipment for the game with
them. The formal introduction OF
poona to England was in 1873 in the
home of the Duke of Worcestershire
The dukes castle was named Bad
minton and thus the game acquired its
present name.
@. How many incorporated cities
are there in the United States?-
D. H.
A. When the 1880 census was taken
there were l5,477.
@. What was the total value of pas
senger cars made in the United
States in 1887. R. L.
A. The wholesale value of the
1927, 1853 passenger cars manufa actured
in 1888 was s795, ,304, ,780.
@. What is the width Of the path
Of total eclipse Of the sun?-N N. C.
A. The width of the path of an
eclipse averages 100 miles in the
temperate and torrid zones. Under
favorable circumstances greater widths
are possible.
@. How large is the Rosetta stone?-
N E.
A. 1t is a slab Of black basalt, three
feet nine inches in height, two feet
four and one-half inches in breadth
and eleven inches in thickness. The
date Of the inscription corresponds to
March 81, l95 BIC.
@. Was AL Capone convicted in
Chicago by Federal judge or jury?-
B. A. G.
A. He was convicted by a Federal
jury.
@. How long did it take Pietro
Mascagni to compose "Cavalleris
Rusticana"?-J. M.
A. In order to compete for prize
that was offered for an opera, the
composer worked constantly for eight
days and nights TO complete the
music.
@. Which British sovereign was the
first to visit France after the meeting
on the Field of the Cloth Of Gold in
1520?-M. L.
A. Queen Victoria. Her majesty
crossed in September, l843.
@. At what temperature does water
attain its maximum density?-B. o..
A Water has its maximum density
at about SO degrees Fahrenheit and
from that point it expands either by
cold or by heat.
@. How tall is Premier Flandin of
France?-H. NJ.
A. Premier Flandin is feet 4
inches in height.
@. Why were New Hampshire and
Maine not in the New England Con-
federation?-J. L.
A. Massachusetts,, Connecticut. New
Haven and Plymouth were men,
bers Of the New England Confeder-
alton. New Hampshire and Maine
were not taken in because they were
unlike the leagued Colonies in their
Evening star., 1935-02-18
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES Z. TRACEWELL.

Jack Dempsey" as they are known
popularly.
The latter, quite q parrish in size
will not live long in the aquarium
without some live food occasionally
but with it he is one OF the longest
lived Of all aquarim fishes. Speci-
mems have been known to live for
10 years in captivity.
No live food Is as good for the
Dempsey" as the earthworm. Those
who have read about Ntamins and
their importance in diet will see
vitaminic content in action, as II
were, II they see one of these fishes
consuming its weekly quota Of earth
worms.
AS long as they have worms once
or twice a week, they get along very
well on dry foods the remainder oi
the time
Cut of their feeding of fishin'
worms, however, and invariably they
come down Ill within a few weeks
go entirely "of their feed" and re-
fuse to bulge out Of a corner Of the
| aquarium.
| In once case one of these interesting
creatures, rated as among the most
intelligent Of the thousands Of fishes
in the waters Of the world, began
to develop google eyes," or "tele-
scope eye" as some call the disease
Two days after a resumption OF
worm feeding the swollen eyes had be-
gun to 60 down, and within a week
they were normal.
The vitamins in the live food did
the trick, If we can believe our scien-
fists.
1t Is fortunate for the birds and the
fishes and the squirrels and the other
wild creatures that they cannot read
They do not worry, in their natural
haunts, about vitamins. but they get
them just the same!
So would we all, perhaps, If we could
eat as naturally. and as from the
! stomach, as one might say.
How happy the birds must be, never
to have to worry about vitamins or
germsl
Sometimes one is inclined to feel
that modern life has been spoiled, to
some extent, and especially for sensi-
tive souls, by the insistence upon
| germs.
Is a germ the thing that causes a
disease. or does the disease cause the
germ2
Il 4 n y
Fortunately for the cardinal, beau
| tiful bird, he does not have to worry
about either germs or vitamins, but
goes right ahead eating what he can
find, and permitting the germs to get
grip on him If his natural resistance
| is not superior to their will TO live"
1t is interesting to note that as soon
as the heavy SHOWS began to leave
back yards the birds refused to be
cajoled any longer by bread crumbs.
When wet white lay like a blanket
over all the grass, and made the
shrubs gleam, the birds that Winter
with us were glad enough to come
to the lure Of bread and meat Canned
dog food.
AS soon as bare ground showed
| again, however, they turned up their
bills at the fare we offered them.
Even fat squirrel, a bird Of another
color, glad enough to eat bread when
| the snow was on the ground, scam
pered away without sampling it after
the good earth began to come back
again.
The creatures are wise, in their own
| way. They even know where the
vitamins are.
Evening star., 1935-02-18
A Sensitive Protest.

A Sensitive Protest.
you've gone to great deal Of
trouble and expense to give your boy
an education"
"I wouldn't mind that" replied
Farmer CorntosSel, "if Josh wouldn't
come home and expect to learn me as
much in two or three weeks as he
found out during the whole term"
Evening star., 1935-02-18
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN,

ministry and administration" Rhode
habitants were "tumultuous and schis-
matic9
@. What proportion Of the tele-
phones in New York City are dial
phoneS?-K. S.
A. About SO per cent.
@. Who wrote 1T Is Clever, but In
1t Art?"-J. r. S.
A. Rudyard Kipling wrote "The
Cmundrum Of the Workshops" the
poem in which the lines appear.
@. What Is an artifact?-D. K.
A. The term is used in archaeology
to designate product of human work.
manship. 1t is applied especially to
the simpler products of aboriginal art
as distinguished from natural objects.
@. What department selects the
sites for C. C. C. camps?-R. A.
A. The United States Forest Serv-
ice usually selects the land suitable
| for the establishment of C. c. G.
camps, but the rental or purchasing
Is taken care OF by the Department
of War.
@. What countries are considered
the great powers of South America?
S. D.
A. Argentina, Brazil and Chile.
@. What kind of a horse was used
in determining what one horsepower
| should be?-T. A.
| A. The term is used in archelogy
| eighteenth century when the me-
chanical force of expanding steam in
engines was replacing the force of
horses in hosting and pumping in the
British mines. The unit of horse
1 power was established by James Watt
/ as the power of a strong London
/ draught horse to do work during a
short interval, and used by him TO
measure the power Of his steam
engines. The unit IS $4,000 foot
| pounds per minute.
@. What does it cost to maintain
Hialeah Park when racing is not
| going on there?-G. B.
A. The Miami Jockey Club says
that it costs more than 100000 an
nually. Much of it is expended on
the upkeep Of the elaborate landscap-
ing. Visitors are allowed to visit the
track in the non-racing season.
Q. How long beforehand are invita-
tions to White House receptions sent
out? How are they delivered?-C. T.
A. They are issued two weeks before
the date of the reception. In Wash
ington they are sent by special mes
senger, outside of the city by mail.
@. What are the most important
products Of crude oil?-R. S.
A. They are gasoline, naphtha, kero-
Sene, gas oil, lubricating distillate,
wax, coke and asphalt.
Q. What Indian tribes have the
most Membership. S.
A. The three most important
tribes numerically are the Navajo,
the Sioux and the Chippewa.
Q. When did the play, Rain" open
in New York;. G. w.
A. Rain" with Jeanne Eagels as
the star, opened on November Z, 1922,
at Maxine Elliott's Theater in New
York.
Q. In the great altar-piece by Jan
and Hubert Van Eyck ther is a panel
decorated with a woman seated at
an organ. Who is she?-T. F.
A. This is the figure Of st. Cecilia.
Evening star., 1935-02-18
Calling a Halt.

The United States Chamber of Com
merce has come to the aid of Senator
Adams and his proposed amendment
TO the work relief bill, cutting the
total appropriation in that measure by
two billion dollars. This amendment
lost In the Senate Appropriations
Committee finally by vote Of twelve
to eleven. 1t will be offered again
during the consideration of the work.
relief bill in the Senate itself. Its
fate. however, is not likely to be
happy one. The sentiment in favor
of huge relief appropriations is still
strong in Congress. Democrats pretty
generally will support the Presidents
request for $4,8SO, 100000, and the Re
publicans are divided almost evenly
for and against the large lump sum.
The Chamber of Commerce repre-
sents organized business in this coun-
try. Through its Federal Finance
Committee it has gone on record
against the lump sum $4,000, 100000
appropriation for work relief. 1t has
proposed to cut the total to S2,000,-
100000. 1t insists that Congress
should keep control of the purse
strings and that beginning must be
made to curtail Government expendi-
lures if Government credit is not to
be smashed.
When Senator Adams of Colorado,
q Democrat, backed by several other
Democrats and most of the Republic
ans in the Appropriations Committee,
offered his amendment to cut the
total in the work-relef bill he gave
impetus to the drive against con-
tinuing vast governmental appropri-
ationS. His argument has been that
the Government can see that no man
or woman starves or freezes this year
with the expenditure of far less money
than is carried in the pending relief
bill. The Government has assumed
an obligation. Senator Adams insists
that If the Government appropriates
nearly s5,oOO 100000 for relief and
work relief this year it will very likely
find itself compelled to appropriate
similar sum next year. No govern
ment ever established could sustain
successfully such terrific drains, he
contends.
More and more the belief is spread
ing in this country that the time has
come to call a halt on governmental
expenditures, certainly beyond those
expenditures which are needed to see
that the unemployed are properly fed
and housed and clothed. The trial
Of new and costly experiments by the
Government is frowned upon in many
quarters. While the President has
argued that a continuance of the dole
system by the Government tends to
0Oh1A l4AC AllOA d4C VI l4IC pCOpIC
SO supported, Senator Adams replies
that the big expenditures, which
must inevitably be followed by heavy
taxes, are likely to break down the
morale of the vast majority of the
people who are not on relief. That
side Of the question is well worth
considering.
The effectiveness of huge govern
mental expenditures in election years
Is not myth. While it is quite true
that 1t is necessary to spend a great
deal Of money relieving distress In
this country under existing circum-
stances, there seems no good reason
why the administration should be
provided with a fund that is beyond
such needs.
Evening star., 1935-02-18

Stories of Russian cruelties under
the Car were placed before the SYM
pathetic public. At present cruelties
are only minor incidents of plans
which nobody is competent to explain
in terms Of social reformation.
Evening star., 1935-02-18
Dependable.

DepenuaDie.
There's one on whom you may depend
To lift a faithful voice.
He labors bravely to the end
That nations may rejoice.
With words of wisdom all profound
He makes his little bow
The man who simply stands around
And tells the others how.
His good intentions are so great
You hear him with respect.
He tempts you as the hour grows late,
Your labors to neglect.
His words have such glorious sound,
You wish fate would allow
That you might sometimes stand
around
And tell the others how.
Evening star., 1935-02-18

Inviting government to let business
alone sounds easy until it is remem-
bered that one Of the. objects of es-
tablishing governments is to protect
legitimate business.
Evening star., 1935-02-18

Hauptmann may take up a collec-
ton for his benefit, but according to
penitentiary gossip there will be no
Use whatever Of passing the hat
among his fellow prisoners.