Evening star., 1951-02-05

Star Staff Photos.
started the Bank of Bethesda in
that year. It is now a $13 million
institution. Today attractive small
homes are being built on all sides
and Bethesda businessmen seek
to make it the business center of
the entire area from Rock Creek
to the Potomac, including Chevy
Chase, Kenwood, Friendship
Heights. Somerset, Drummond
Highland Park. Glen Echo and
Cabin John.
Residents Defeated Proposals.
Opposition from the residential
population defeated them in get
ting authorization to float bond
issue for parking lots at the same
time Silver Spring was voted that
privilege at Annapolis. Now they
have it and $5O0,OOO in bonds will
raise the money necessary for Off
street parking in the shopping
area.
Bethesda's oldest organizations
are it's women's clubs. The New
comb club was started in 1906. The
original purpose was the develop
ment Of the members minds and
the club motto, Learning without
thought is labor lost" With the
passage Of the years. however, the
membership of the Newcomb club
has become as civic-minded as
any in the community. The men,
bers worked for library and bet
ter schools.
| The Woman's Club of Bethesda,
IAN earnest club for earnest
women" was. founded in 1911
Both these clubs are now members
of the Montgomery County Fed
eration of Women's Clubs through
which they are able to make their
civic interests effective.
Bethesda has its branch of the
League of Women Voters, League
Of American Penwomen. Red Cross
Daughters of the American Re-
volution and it's Community
Garden Club. It also has several
lparent-teacher associations and
neighborhood citizens associa-
tionS.
In Mrs. Bradley the women had
an effective spokesman who kept
herself clear of involvement in
party politics. In one of her early
editorials she made her position
clear.
/ Word politics" Avoided.
Il Except for the League of Wom-
en- Voters, whose members realize
they are a political action group
i Bethesda clubwomen eschew the
term politics. Their activities are
civic" although at times they
add up to considerable political
pressure at Rockville, the county
seat and Annapolis.
i The elected representative OF
the Bethesda section in the county
council is Mrs. Stella Werner.
1t may be significant that the
one woman member of the Senate
Mrs. Margaret Chase Smith, has
chosen Bethesda as her residence
i Spurned Republicans.
when the Records editor was
approached recently by Repub-
lican Party heads regarding the
possibility of the papers becom-
ing a mouthpiece of the Repub-
lican organization in Montgomery
County, the answer was an en-
phatic No." she wrote.
That didn't weaken the poi
shots she used to take at fellow
publisher, Col. E. Brooke Lee, OF
Silver Spring, Democratic boss o1
Montgomery County. Col. Lee
publishes the Maryland News.
When Col. Lee sought to defend
the county administration against
the criticisms of the League ot
Women Voters, Mrs. Bradley
snapped back in an editorial which
went:
Nov if the colonel, who created
this Utopia in the first place
could admit even for moment
that it isn't quite Utopian enough,
what can he expect of the Women
Voters? These women have ideas
of their own about county gov
ernment and it just isn't human
to expect they would coincide with
those of the colonel. =.
after running Montgomery
County for Is years the coloneIs
skin ought to be impregnable to
the remarks Of a handful of harm
less women. We are surprised
that he would take the time and
space to recognize them in his
paper. The colonel must be feel
ing his years"
Because owning, editing, writ
ing and publishinG a paper was a
pace that threatened to kill, Mrs
Bradley sold the Record last year
to Robert Jerome Smith, who also
purchased the Bethesda Journal
and combined them.
Mr.. Smiths name has been on
the masthead as editor. Next
week the name of Lila Thompson,
formerly of the Baltimore Suns
Washington bureau, goes up there
as managing editor. Mr.. Smith
has apparently learned that in a
matriarchal community 1t Is best
to make q woman the boss.