Evening star., 1937-01-09

V TOUNG Ben Franklin suggested
" to his father that he go down
in the cellar and say grace
over the barrel Of pork, In
stead Of doing it three times a day at
meal times. Senator Henry Fountain
Ashurst Of Arizona seems to have
about the same idea with regard TO a
constitutional amendment He would
scrape together all the odds and ends
Of proposed social legislation under
single constitutional change. He
says he will press such an amendment.
He is chairman Of the Senate Judici-
ary Committee, the most elegant ard
resonant OF statesmen, but by no
means just showpiece. He may start
something.
Senator Ashurst could and probably
would dress up Mickey Mouse on
Greek lines. His flowing polysyl-
lables would make Demosthenes seem
muscle-bound. AN occult gem which
glistens with an Ophidian eye" is Just
minor routine. He wears a morning
coat, pin-striped trousers and a long
black ribbon on his pince-nez. He IS
courtly and courteous.
Some of his adversaries have made
the mistake Of supposing he was Just
SO much snowy conversation. As did
the late Huey Long. The Senator
came mighty near fattening the King
fish when the man" Bilbo backed
away from the scheduled bout. In
fact, he came nearer doing just that
than any man in the Senate. assess.
ing against him, among other short
comings, the habit of shooting with
elliptical billiard balls"
Shuns "Quite" and Very
Nothing could persuade the Senator
TO use a word like oval" but some
thing interesting bobs up here, and
right in the news, too. He returns 10
the Seventy-fifth Congress with the
announcement that he has forsworn
forever the use Of certain qualifying
words, including, particularly, the
words quite" and very" He hints
that there will be less eff1oresence in
his discourse. 1t seems too bad.
He was born at Winnemucca, New,
while his parents were en- route from
California to Arizona. He was a COW
boy, school teacher. deputy sheriff,
student at the University of Michigan
and a member of Arizona's first terri
| torial assembly at the age of 21.
Among the old Faro trail he learned
! now 70 copper bet once in a while,
which was good training for states.
manship.
He has been in the Senate. a Demo-
crat. since 1912 When he was 10 wears
old. he wrote on the f1y-leaf of his
spelling book in big. round spencerian
| fourishes, Henry Fountain Ashurst.
United States Senator" If any of the
cast Of Victoria regina falls i'll and
Helen Hayes wants a substitute for q
victorian statesman or man of letters,
| she will know where 10 look.
Cullman Cultured Executive.
Howard S. Cullman, vice president
Of the port Of New York Authority.
says the films stand self-convicted of
being an analgestic to the social con.
science and potential unrest of tts
( 1ldSSeS.
The port of New York authority IL
sort Of no mans land. where two
States overlap economically. and
| maybe that accounts for Mr. Cullman
being intellectually ambidextrous,
doubling in the arts and business. II
seems to this writer that he SAYS MANY
sensible things, even if he does make
one take a dive into a dictionary
every once in while There should
be many cultural port authorities,
where business men talk like profess
| sors and vice versa
The Bankruptcy Court shunted the
Roxy Theater into Mr. Cullman's lap
four years ago. A tobacco importer,
he had had wide experience in public
affairs and humanitarian enterprises,
but none in the amusement field. He
said he wouldn't let the Roxy stay
| just big car barn. Like an old hand
in the business, he stepped up the
show and plugged management leaks.
He's pulling it through nicely, and,
lecturing at New York University. he
bases his conclusions on hard-won
experience
tcopyriEht 1877