Evening star., 1937-04-07
WASHINGTON OBSERVATIONS
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

it might be around June /, he indicates,
before the committee would be ready to
report the bill out. Prognosticating
further Ashurst says he wouldn't be
surprised If it's August before a Senate
vote is reached. Prospects of an all
Summer session of Congress thus grow
apace. The chairman describes himself
as firm as Gibraltar against any and all
efforts from either side prematurely to
wind up hearings. The show must go
on he declares
X X
Col. Charles Burnett, just promoted
to be chief of the Bureau of Insular
Affairs in the War Department. with
the rank of brigadier general, is one
OF the United States real authorities
on Japan. Having served IL years at
Toxic as American military attache, he
has an extraordinarily wide acquaintance
among japanese leaders, including warm
friendships with members OF the i'm
perial house and influential figures in
the political, naval and military worlds
Both Col. and Mrs Burnett speak Japa-
nese f1uently, the latter having written
poetry in that language. Because of
his unusual status in the highest circles
of the island empire, Col. Burnett was
specially attached to the American dele
cation to the London Naval Conference
of 1880, at which he rendered notable
service as liaison officer between our
representatives and the japanese. Dur
ing his most recent Washington tour of
duty Col. Burnett was the general staff
officer in charge of foreign military
attaches accredited to the United States
and of our own attaches abroad.
Apropos this weeks World War ami
versary, new book left the press en-
titled Claude Kitchin and the Wilson
War Policies" In the guiSe of biog-
raphy of the late Democratic Represent
ative from North Carolina, the author,
Alex Mathews Arnett, deals graphically
with the opposition to the Wilson pro-
gram which eventually took the United
States into the fray and with Kitchin's
famous part in Washington events
which had their climax in April, 1917.
X X X X
Those 16 lone Republicans who inhabit
the more emaciated side of the Senate
chamber cut nowadays somewhat the
figures of cats which have just swallowed
canaries. At any rate their joint and
several countenances are wreathed in
sardonic contentment as they survey
recurring snarls among the Democratic
majority over the court-packing plan,
the sit-doWn strike and other issues on
which the New Dealers nominally under
Joe Robinson's leadership behave like
anything but band of united brethren.
The smiles of satisfaction with which
Senator McNary and his minority crew
view cantankerous proceedings across
the aisle are likely to widen into even
broader grins once the Roosevelt Gov
ernment reorganization plan is before
the Senate and further splits the Demo-
Gratis strife-torn ranks.
China is about to put Uncle Sans de-
linuuent European war debtors to shame
by resuming payments on the Chinese
loan floated in the United States in 1911
and in default since 1880. Arrangements
have Just been completed whereby in
terest will be paid at the rate OF 2ha per
cent in 1897 and 1888 and at the full
contractual rate Of per cent IN and
after 1889. The loan was originally
marketed as a s30,OOOO00 British issue,
an American section of $7,500,000 later
having been approved by the Washing
ton Government. After downfall Of the
old Chinese imperial regime, the loan,