davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star., 1941-06-18
FLORIDA AVE.

Dear Sir:
DO mockingbirds take to the woods
at this time of the year?
I'VE had three that came every day
and all day to our window ledge for
raisins.
They disappeared about three weeks
ago and we are mystified.
For the past few days we have been
hearing new song that we cannot place.
"One rather high note repeated very
rapidly from 20 to Is times. 1t Is not
the cardinal. We know his songs very
we'll
IF you will answer these questions in
your column Gen. C. and I will be
grateful.
And with sincere appreciation of that
column which is always must reading
for us, Sincerely, M. p. c."
Our correspondents bird is flicker.
This is a wonderful bird, member of
the woodpecker family, which is often
seen and heard In the city.
The song is long series OF high
pitched notes, given in a loud voice in
even time.
While the notes are mostly all on one
pitch. given by some as G, occasionally
the first few notes rise a bit in pitch,
and the last fall slightly.
Some Investigators say the song
sounds like wick wick wick-wi
whereas others give it as uit-quit-qYit-
quit" etc.
The note is repeated from 20 to 25
times, usually, but sometimes has been
known to go on for 80 times.
The song always is fortissimo, and has
been said to resemble an oboe.
The flicker is one of the woodpeckers
which likes to drum on metal, usually a
downspout
This drumming is held to be love
call. Sometimes the bird drums, and
then gives the long rolling call.
He has several other songs, one being
courtship call, sort of squeaky whistle.
The downy woodpecker, which is only
a little larger than the English sparrow,
gives a high whinny, of about 13 or IA
notes of the same pitch, rapidly drop
ping after that for or notes, which
are slightly longer.
4
The flicker is a great clown.
1t flops its wings and tail and makes
droll gestures while it sings to It's mate.
1t is about II inches long, the upper
parts gray-brown barred with black, the
underparts light brown, black and golden.
This is the bird with a hundred names.
That is, it is abundant in all parts Of the
country, and people seem to have Wed
with each other over the years to give it
names.
These are the popular or common
names. They range from yellow-shafted
woodpecker, golden-winged woodpecker,
clape, pigeon woodpecker, and high hole,
to yarrup, wake-up heigh-ho, hairy
wicket, ant woodchuck and yowker bird.
Some of these names refer to nesting
habits, others to the CHEEKY, vigorous
personality Of the creature.
Evening star., 1941-06-18

that no one knows where they are.
Perhaps this is why distorted
standards of value prevail in France,
where nothing can be measured any
longer as it used to be. Certainly
something is wrong when traditional
enemies can be rated as allies and
rescuers, and natural allies, provid-
ing the only hope of salvation, can be
considered enemies and destroyers.
1t is not too much to say that lies
have become truth, and black has
become white and vice versa.
Never in any country at any time
in history has there been a more
crying need for a real Bureau of
Standards, to resurrect that missing
yardstick and discard all its delib-
erately falsified substitutes Unless
unhappy France is totally dead, its
wrathful citizens may do what it's
government will not, and perform
this act of both honor and common
sense.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Tax Exemption Problem

Chairman McCarran of the Senate
District Committee has taken a wise
step in appointing subcommittee
to study the complicated problem of
tax exemption in the field of char
liable institutions. This problem
has come to the fore recently as a
result of the city-wide review of all
local tax-exempt property now being
conducted at the District Building.
That there is need for congressional
action to correct injustices arising
from a technical Interpretation of
the outmoded Tax Exemption Act,
passed in 1877, has become abun-
dainty evident as the resurvey of ex-
empted properties progressed. Budget
Officer Walter Fowler, directing the
review, told the Senate committee
that District authorities "are putting
back on the tax books some property
we know should be exempt" but they
feel that they have no alternative
If the 1877 law Is to be taken lit
orally. For example, several WASH
ington hospitals, including Chill
drens, already have been restored to
the real estate tax list, because the
old statute exempts only buildings
belonging to institutions of purely
public charity, conducted without
charge to inmates, profit or income"
That Congress never intended that
hospitals be excluded from the ex-
empt class is indicated by the fact
that they had been free from real
estate taxes ever since enactment of
the exemption law-until the recent
survey resulted in new interpreta-
tion. -
Chairman McCarran has intro
duced a bill to exempt ten local
hospitals from taxation, and has
referred the measure to the new
subcommittee for hearings. This
bill deserves prompt consideration.
for these hospitals are entitled to
immediate relief from the extra bur-
den put upon them by the tax ruling.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
THIS AND THAT
BIZ Charles z. Trdcetcell.

The flicker loves ants, and can be seen
gathering them in from crevices in side
walks. But just why this gave any one
the idea of calling him the ant wood
chuck we do not know.
*+**
He Is a noisy bird.
That is what yawker refers to. Walt
Whitman, in talking about his own
poems, referred to them as his "barbaric
yawp."
This is a handsome bird, somewhat
barred, after the woodpecker fashion,
with red splotch at the back of his
neck and black crescent at the throat.
The birds fondness for ants puts it on
the ground great deal, and this is one
of the surest identif1cations of it.
The ants are gathered in by the birds
tongue, which can be protruded quite
distance, and which is very sticky, al
lowing it to hold onto the ants.
The tongue of the flicker, as with most
woodpeckers, is tipped like an arrow,
and yet is so flexible that it can be run
far back into crevices in the bark of
trees.
The arrow point permits the bird to
stab larvae, and at the same time the
sticky secretion on the tongue, which is
somewhat rolled, permits it to take in
large supply of insects, notably the
ants, of which it is so fond.
1t seems that every tribe of creature
has really favorite food. Some men,
for instance, like beefstake best. Dogs
like raw meat, and many cats, though
not all, prefer salmon.
Flickers like ants.
You can see them, especially in spring
when they first arrive, walking along
the cracks in concrete walks, routing
out the ants which are stirred to life
by the season.
The f1ickers stand over ant hills, and
extend that long tongue, looping up ants
for all they are worth.
AS for the mockingbirds, they go to
the woods to train up their children in
the way good birds should go.
After the first nesting, most birds 60
to the forests. 1t gives the young birds
needed flying lessons, in order to get
ready for migration, and it shows them
the types of food upon which they must
depend.
Even English sparrows often fly away
from yard where feeding is kept up
all summer as well as winter.
They will be gone for a few days, all
the band of them, then they will sud-
denly come back, as if nothing at all
had happened.
What has happened is that they have
been renewing their acquaintance with
the bird heaven, the woods. 1t was here
that bird life first came into its own.
The boughs formed the claws, to perch;
the crevices in the bark afforded food,
and the leaves gave protection in storms.
Washington has been a bird city since
its foundation. With the cutting down of
many trees we might expect to see the
bird population begin to drop off, and
that, unfortunately, is exactly what is
happening
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Warns of Dangers Involved
In Proposed Decentralization Plan.
To tn. Editor Of The Star:

To tn. Editor Of The Star:
The proposed plan to move long
established departments and commits
sions to distant cities might seriously
cripple national defense; it would injure
the agencies of Government which were
transferred; 1t would inflict great hard
ship upon the men and women who were
working for those agencies, and it would
permanently injure the City OF WASH
ington.
War preparations must be centered in
Washington. But to bring here the
entire staffs of those who are procur-
ing supplies Of material and men would
be as unintelligent as to rely on few
enormous airfields for our air defense.
With such concentration q few bombs
might wipe out all the procurement
forces of the country and it is not neces-
sary in the days Of long distance tele-
phones and passenger airplanes.
The civil agencies which were moved
would be disrupted. Not only would
hundreds of dollars of expense be i'm
posed upon everybody who was trans
ferred. but their work would be inter-
rupted for many weeks while they were
resettljng and many members of the
stats would not move on, 30 that those
departments and commissions would be
injured.
Such mass nAgra6ana Weald work
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Summer in the Garden

Here in the garden there is peace.
The glaring sunlight softly throps
A benediction through the trees q
With ,Durm caresS on each pale
rose.
No branches stir NTH singing birds;
No ripple stars the Hlied pool
But underneath the UilloD'S shade
The cloistered aisles stretch dtn,iy
cool.
Crepe-myrtles spread a bright pink
cloud
Aboue the aoe-old bor1Dood trees,
And Uhere the iDhite gardertcs
bloom,
The air is heavy NTH gold BEES
A Idnguid silence hoUerS here
About the sundial in the grass;
The outside Uorld Is lost to vieU,
And time itself has ceased to pass.
WILLIAM ARNETTE WOFFORD.
Evening star., 1941-06-18

in Montgomery, comparable mora
torium and master plan proposal is
being studied by county officials.
In Arlington County, Virginia, the
County board Is in the process Of
Tightening rules governing residen-
tial B classification. Property so
zoned in the past could be used for
number of purposes-hotels, homes,
filling stations, etc. In some in
stances, it is claimed, property own
ers took advantage of the elasticity
of this classification to carry out
operations which the authorities felt
were, in effect, circumventing the
law. Under the new rules residential
B classification will be broken down
to B-1, B-2 and B-3, each for a spe-
ciflc purpose.
All of these steps indicate that the
public has had enough of such things
as too-low cost housing, spot zoning,
and of large housing developments
authorized without much thought to
the many factors involved in their
construction.
Building activity such as is now
taking place in the city and suburbs
tends to bring to light weaknesse,
in existing regulations, emphasizing
the need of orderly development.
Authorities striving toward that end
should have the utmost cooperation
of all who want the National Capital
area to reflect credit on those who
contributed toward its growth.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Discusses Traffic Conditions In
Washington and Maryland.

To the Editor Of The Star:
From my observations I would say
that the average motorist could save
plenty Of gasoline and Oil by having a
motor tune up," by keeping tires well
inflated, by slower pickup" after a
stop and by slower and better driving
in general.
The traffic director could help lot
by refining many of the traffic signals.
so as to provide a more even flow. by
strict enforcement Of the speed laws
including taxicabs and inter-city buses,
by elimination OF all OF the timed"
one-way streets and many of the reg
ular one-way streets.
AS to the anti-noise campaign, more
power to the police! Nowhere else have
I heard such a continuous din of horn
honking as in Washington and nearby
Maryland. 1t surely is the mark of an
inexperienced, nervous or selfish driver
Of the road hog" variety. With con-
ditions as bad as they are, I probably
don't touch my horn button once in
three weeks and when do the slight
est tap is usually sufficient. The Mary
land law that states: Blow the horn
when passing another vehicle" should
be repealed.
I thoroughly agree with Mr.. Sterlings
complaint that the Districts traffic reg
ulations are not only poorly enforced,
but are also the most complicated Of
any in the country. Where else in the
world will one find traffic conditions
as they are at Dupont Circle where the
signs say keep to the right" and the
streetcars run around to the left?
AS further aid to traffic, prohibit
those huge trucks and trailers from
operating on the Washington Baltimore
boulevard on Sundays and holidays;
do away with the Mount Rainier-to-
Beltsville street railway and pave the
right Of way for vehicular trafic, and
add about q hundred policemen to the
District trafic force.
Duluth, MINI. G. B. G.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Declares America Must Not Consent
To German Exaltation Of Force.
To the Editor OF The Star

To the Editor OF The Star:
The violent secession of Germany
from the society of civilized nations is
demonstrated by her acts to be an
insurrection against the universal con-
stitution. for which the legal right Of
war is forfeited.
Pretensions Of her government and
the acts of her public forces make Ger
many on land an outlaw and at sea
pirate, to defeat whom Is the lawful
duty of the United States as a RESPONSE
BILE member of the community that is
warred against
America must deny the responsibility
that Is the correlative power or inter-
vene with force to suppress the nation
whose objects in challenging with arms
the society and the law of nations are
illegal and who repudiates the duty of
nation and vitiates the rules Of war.
In international law any nation may
assist legitimate government to de-
feat an insurrection, if the insurrec-
tionists be not recognized as combatants
by the legitimate government. Ger
many's secession from the community
of lawful nations is unprecedented, and
the decision of America at this instant,
united with statement justifying in
law our action, will be as epoch making
in international relations as any in the
existence of that community.
The alternative would be a universal
crucifixion Of governments of, by and
for the people and erection in their
place of dictators, who, when not sa-
traps Of Germany, would be engaged by
projects of aggrandizement and aggres-
sion, and so opening a new era OF un-
just wars Of conquest and OF inter-
national lawlessness.
Failure of the United States to act
as justice and civilization require would
be an abdication by America from right
and duty and tacit acquiescence in the
dethronement Of law and the exaltation
of force. Germany, less than America,
is determining the fate Of nations and
the earth's future.
EDWARD CONN.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Wunted-New Yurdstick

For scientific purposes it is impor-
tant that somewhere in the world
there be exact standards of length
and weight, and it so happened that
the honor went to France. In St.
Cloud was deposited block of metal
weighing exactly one kilogram, cor
rect to the merest fraction of mil
ligram, and q metal bar just one
meter long, kept refrigerated at con-
slant temperature to maintain that
length accurately. Now it is reported
Evening star., 1941-06-18

hardships on those who were transferred.
1t would mean great deal of expense
in time of rising prices, expense which
would probably not be reimbursed by the
Government, and it would cause incon-
venience to many thousands of men and
women
To the City of Washington it would be
a verv serious blow if established peace
time departments and commissions were
moved away, probably permanently, and
their place were to be taken by tenn
porary forces who would move out en-
masse when peace came and by so doing
leave the city fiat. RP.R.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Objects to Charges
At New Airport.
w. G. D.

To the Editor of The Star:
I read with great disgust the report
thai the public is going to be charged
to park their cars at the new Washing
ton National Airport and also that 10
cents will be charged to get out on the
promenade.
1t seems to me that there is no more
justification for charging there than for
instance at the Capitol, Washington
Monument, Zoo, Botanical Garden,
Smithsonian Institute, National Gallery
Of Art or the National Museum.
This airport was built through the
foresight of our President and with the
publics funds. 1t was to be an example
Of a model airport and now after it has
been paid for with the public's funds,
the public is again asked to pay for the
privilege Of seeing 1t.
AN AIR.MINDED CITIZEN,
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Tells Of Motorcycles
And Their Maddening Roar.

anu ntiT Nuduuening hOaF.
To the Editor of The Star:
Would Mrs. E. r. Cooke of Tuesdays
Star trade her Changing" streetcars for
the motorcycle that had difficulty in
getting started at 12:45 in the morning
beneath my window, and, in departing
could be heard back-f1ring for several
blocks, thus disturbing the rest of a
whole community?
From my observation, If streetcars
"clang," it is usually because automo-
biles are blocking the track 1t is Moth
ing for an automobile with only the
driver, to block and delay a streetcar
with 25 or more people in it. Streetcars
are part of the natural noise of traffic
through which one can sleep; but this
Is not so true of the automobile with its
rancorous horn.
Frequently, where live, there will be
string of cars two blocks long waiting
for the lights to turn, and rarely does
1t happen that some driver does not
start his horn. Often there is a chorus.
And for no reason, for horning does not
hurry the lights.
But the motorcycles are in a class by
themselves. They go roaring down the
street a perfect bedlam. On the other
hand. the cycle cops using the box to
report, across the street from me. are
rarely heard. So, motorcycles can be
operated quietly.
Business firms taking no interest in
the normal operation of their motorcycle
delivery service might be boycotted.
W. G. D.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Huskin's Answers
To Questions
BIZ Frederic J. HuSkin.

A reader can get the dnSDer to any
question OF fact By tOrittno The EUe-
nina Star Information Bureau. Fred
eric J. Huskin, director, Washington,
DC, Please incloSe stamp for reply.
@. Is 1t true that draftee is exempt
from paying the premium on an insur-
ance policy?-E. D. H.
A. Legislation signed by President
Roosevelt, October 49, 194l, provides that
payment of premiums on insurance poll
cies up to $4,000 face amount. may be
deferred while the soldiers are in service
and one year thereafter.
@. How many roller skating Kinks are
therc?-W. T. P.
A. There are $500 roller rinks in the
Unitei States.
@. What is the origin Of taking the
census?-C. J. N.
A. TIE Old Testament records the
enumeration at the Exodus of the fight
ing strength Of the Children of Israel
and of the non-military Levites. In the
Roman census, from which the modern
custom derives its name, the members
and property of every family were EMU
merated quinquennially for the purpose
of determining their civil status and
corresponding liabilities.
@. Is there male fish that produces
young?-H w.
A. The female sea horse places unfer-
tilized eggs in the brood pouch Of the
male, where they are carried until
Matched.
c. When did the Government take
over the railroads.&c.. P. c.
A. BY a procla nation dated December
26 1917, President Wilson took possess
sion and assumed control of the rail-
roads effective at IL o'clock noon on
December %, 1917 appointing William
G. McAdoo as director general of the
railroads.
@. What is the value of the skyscrapers
in New York City?-E. P. R.
A. New York's 81 skYscrapers build
ings over 30 stories high are valued at
| SITS, ,OOO, 900.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Appeals for Lights
For Wisconsin Avenue Traffic.

For Wisconsin Avenue Traffic.
To the Editor of The Star:
Wisconsin avenue Is thoroughfare
and vet there are no lights to regulate
the traffic, and all of Wisconsin from M
street through to Massachusetts, avenue
Is menace to pedestrians trying to
cross.
The problem is complicated by the
fact that Wisconsin avenue has street.
cars north and south. AL streets from
r to Mount Alto empty into it.
There are autos constantly going in
and out of the shopping lot across from
w place, also turning north or south or
up w place.
No thoroughfare in this city should be
open to overland trafiic and trucking
and street cars, without trafdc lights.
Is it possible for you to do something
about this before we have another Wis
consin avenue tragedy?
MRS. p. n. nANFO9Th
Evening star., 1941-06-18

@. On what occasion was a Burns
johnson bout stopped by the po'ice?-
F. H. A.
A On December Is, 1908, Tommy
Burns and Jack johnson met in the
stadium at Sydney, Australia. johnson
whipped Burns so brutally that the po-
lice interceded and stopped the fight in
the l4th round
@. Please compare the Hood and the
Bismarck in size.-T. S. H.
A. The AZ 100-ton British battle cruiser
Hood was 8601a feet long, with beam Of
los feet, and top speed of 80 knots. 1t
carried eight 15-inch guns and had
12-inch side armor, but only 3-inch deck
armor. The 35,000-ton German battle
ship Bismarck was 1925 feet long, with
a beam Of lib feet Indicating heavy
underwater armor), and speed of 80
knots. 1t carried eight 15-inch guns.
@. Who was the first billionaire in ths
United States?-A. S. L.
A. The first American fortune to pass
the billion-dollar mark was that of John
D. Rockefeller.
@. What is the motto on the seal Of
Princeton University?-T. F. H.
A. The Latin inscription is Del sub
numine viget"-Under Gods guidance
it fourishes.
@. How many people in the United
States heard President Roosevelt make
his last radio speech?-G. P.
A. 1t is estimated that $3.50 900 peo-
pie in 20,510,000 homes heard the talk.
@. When were amplifiers first used in
major league ball parks?-R. L. S.
A. Amplifers were introduced by the
New York Nationals at the Polo Grounds
on August 25, 1929.
Q. What race of people speaks the
most slowly?-E. K. G.
A. The slowest speech in the world I,
said to be Polynesian, which is spoken
at the rate Of so syllables minute.
@. Where is Light Horse Harry Lea
buried?-A. T. G.
A. Light Horse Harry Lee died az
Cumberland Island, Ga, at the home of
his old commander, Gen. Nathaniel
Greene. He was buried there, but in
1913 his remains were transferred to the
Lee Chapel Of Washington and Lee Uni
versity at Lexington, Va.
Q. What is the derivation of the ex-
preston with a grain of salt"?-W. P.S.
A. The use of the phrase dates back
to Pompey, the Roman general who
added grain of salt to his suspected
drink, as an antidote for poison.
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Care of the Feet-Hot weather

Care of the Feet-Hot weather
causes the feet to swell and burn,
and when your feet h-Irt you hurt
all over. Nothing is more impor-
tant to your comfort than the
proper care of your feet. Get this
authoritative publication contain
ing general information on treat
ment of foot ills, foot hygiene and
simple forms of exercise that will
strengthen and relieve your feet.
To secure your copy of this book
let inclose 10 cents in coin,
wrapped in this clipping, and mail
to The Star Information Bureau.
-------------------
Name
Address
Evening star., 1941-06-18
Letters to the Editor

Letters to the Editor must
bear the name and address of
the ,Driter, although the use OF
q pSeudonynl for publication is
permissible. The Star reserves
the right to edit all letters NTH
q UieD to condensation.
Evening star., 1941-06-18

@. How many roller skating rinks are
therc?-W. T. P.
A. There are $500 roller rinks in the
Unitei States.
Evening star., 1941-06-18

A reader can get the dnSUer to any
question Of fact by ,0riting The EUe-
ming Star Information Bureau, Fred
eric j. H1Sktn. director, Washington
D. c. Please incloSe stamp for reply