The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1939-03-02
On Capitol Hill
BY GEORGE L. KNAPP

Washington, D. C. ULNS) The
blessing which Justice Brandeis vision
ed and promoted forty years ago and
which Senator James Couzens called
so aptly "the long wage" has been
brought nearer for perhaps millions
of workers by Elmer F. Andrews, Ad-
ministrator of the Fair Labor Stand
ards Act, in his Interpretation of that
act.
Briefly, and with not legal frills,
Andrews rules that when the law
permits employer and employe to
agree on a certain excess of hours
for certain part Of the year, it
is fixing year as the measure of
the contract. The employer who
wants that privilege must pay for
it; and he pays in wages for the
year, not merely for the over
time.
Such ruling-and the Federal
courts are not SO anxious to overrule
laws as they once were-is bound to
have far reaching effect 1t gives
legal basis for. needed piece of ele-
mentary justice.
Some 20 centuries ago, Greek
poet, writing of the farming of his
day, called spring "the season of short
fare" 1t was; and it could be helped
in those days only by better farming
Andrews has brought relief from that
season of short fare within the reach
of workers who never see farm; and
he would be bold man who tried to
set bounds to that gain.
X X X
The United States Forest Service
announces that 1895 miles of shelter
belts were planted in 1888, out on the
plains where the droughts Of 1884 and
1886 were worst, and crossing the evil
"dust bowls" Of the nine species most
commonly planted, 72 out of every
hundred survived. Furthermore, it
was not lack of water which killed
most of the trees that died; but grass
hoppers, rabbits and mice, in the order
named, and the Forest Service in
fighting back with poison bait meas
ures-on the whole front-by truck
loads.
The object Of this planting is to
check dust storms and stop the drift
ing snow. A Russian engineer, Vladi-
mir Grodsky, now and for many years
employed at the Nevy Yard in Wash
ington, has told me how his father
tried this plan on the steppes of east
ern Russia, where the climate is much
like that of South Dakota. He plant
ed Is rows straight across the line of
prevailing winds. The outside rows
were just good sized, thick growing
bushes; next were small, quick-grow-
ing trees! then trees that would grow
to good height.
The last time Mr.. Grodsky saw that
place in winter, the steppe in general
was nearly bare of snow. The thir-
teen rows were nearly covered with
snow. They formed the rib of snow
covered belt about mile wide, within
which no ordinary drought would do
more than slow down either pasture
or crops.
That is precisely what the Forest
Service is doing on an immensely
larger scale. They started in 1885,
with 1875 miles of such belts; planted
! ,152 miles in 1886; 1929 in 1887;
and last year, a beltage making a to-
tai of 6,S7O miles.
1t is one of the finest and most per-
valuable jobs ever done.
The Forset Service reports that many
of the seedlings planted in 1885 are
now from 20 to 80 feet high, and al
ready are protecting about 80 acres
to each mile. The strips range from
North Dakota to the Texas Panhan-
die; so many kinds of trees are used.
Cottonwoods, elms - Chinese and
wild plum and several
others are used; and the chokecherry,
green ash and honey locust are prov
ing extra tough.
Last year, they tried small quanti-
ties of lilacs, honeysuckle, and su-
mach; and found 80 per cent of them
lived.