os rari Acs A —— INK SLINGS. —In just twenty days spring will be here. —Not all people who sleep their lives away have sleeping sickness. —We have had such a pleasant win- ter that no one will care if March does come in like a lion. —Anyway Mrs. Harding’s gowns will be no surprise to Washington. She has posed in them too much. —Von Tirpitz posing as “a friend and admirer of the United States” is an insult to the memory of the victims of the Lusitania. —Nature should arrange to send her snow storms on other days than Sun- day. So many are prone to seize up- on any excuse to remain away from church. ——If Europe really can’t pay us back what we loaned her during the war what would you sooner do: For- give the debt or fight to make her pay it? —So the first thing the new Hard- ing administration will do is to make peace with Germany. The second will probably be to make was with every- body not identified with big business. —The appointment of Charles Evan Hughes to be Secretary of State in the Harding administration doesn’t by any means inspire much confidence in the | deliberations of “the best minds of the country.” —There are still ten of Centre coun- ty’s one hundred and fifty-six orphan children in Armenit to be looked after. Have you done your bit toward pro- viding food and clothing for these des- titute children? —While eggs are selling at thirty cents a dozen itis the wise house- keeper who puts enough down in wa- ter glass so that she can smile when the hens go on strike and the price flits back to seventy-five. —Next month the public sales will begin in Centre county and we venture the assertion that the wild and thoughtless bidding that made mints of vendues during the past three years will not be so much in evidence. —Just to remind us that the snow shovel must have its fling before the hoe and the lawn mower come into ! their own some ten inches of “the beautiful” greeted our surprised eyes on Sunday morning when we awoke. —The Altoona Tribune thinks “it will be a fine thing for the nation and an omen of good for the future when our young people are saturated with Bible knowledge, as their grandfath- ers were.” By the way, father, mother! do you ever suggest reading a chapter from the Bible to your children? —While the tentative personnel of. Mr. Harding’s Cabinet is not meeting with that public approbation that pre- sages general confidence in the start off of the new administration would it not be better to refrain from criticism of what the appointees have been at least until we see what they intend to be in their new positions. —The Republican muck rakers are after Bernard Baruch, another one of the able men who served the govern- ment without pay during. the war, | are the two that are at present fo- | | menting the very growing tendency of Schwab met the same band of ghouls with tears. Dawes turned them back with a volley of oaths and, Barney | wittingly develop a disrespect for law. | Dr. Conwell’s proposal would clarify should wrench their lying tongues from their throats so that there may be an end of this miserable devilish- ness. —Anent the discussion as to the ad- visability of having daylight saving in Bellefonte during the coming spring and summer there doesn’t ap- pear to be any real reason why Belle- fonte couldn’t set her clocks an hour ahead without working inconvenience to farmers or other transients having business in the town. Practically all of the business mails arrive here in the morning, so that banking and commercial institutions would not be interfered with and the only possi- ble inconvenience would be that to the very small number of out of town peo- ple who visit our stores between the hours of five and six in the evening. ——The argument that it would cost this country thirty-five million dollars if we were to abandon our pres- ent naval construction programs for just six months is fallacious for the reason that we would save an equal amount in the expenditure for the work. It is true that labor and man- ufacturers of the materials consumed would suffer from suspension of such work, but if the only object is to fur- nish employment wouldn’t it inure far more to the public good if all this vast expenditure were to be made for works of peace rather than of war. If the government must find employment for men why not build hospitals and roads? —President Wilson has announced that he will not write a history of the peace conference. He prefers to leave that to a professional historian whose views might not be biased by the per- sonal equation. It is a pity. Wood- row Wilson is the one man who sat in Paris whose motives were wholly un- selfish and altruistic. He is the one man probably to whom more of the intimate secrets and aims of the oth- ers were revealed than to any other. He is a born writer and coupling with this talent the aptness at beautiful phraseology the literature of the world has lost a possible classic as well as an authoritative record of its most momentous event in this decision of the President to devote his remain- ing years to work for peace rather than recording efforts already made in that direction. 1 i i 1 i i { | 1 i | STATE RIGHTS AND FEDERAL CGNION. VOL. 66. BELLEFONTE, PA., FEBRUARY 25, 1921. NO. S. Dr. Conwell’s Timely Suggestion. The proposal of Dr. Russell H. Con- well for a referendum that would give the people an opportunity to definite- ly state their attitude on the construc- tion of the Eighteenth amendment is a good one, While there can be no doubt as to the intent to bring about Prohibition when the amendment was ratified there always was a reasonable doubt as to what extent it should be enfore- led. Since the Volstead enforcement act has become the law of the land wide divergence of opinion has been i revealed as to its fulfillment of the | hopes of those who supported ratifica- | tion. Some insist that it is not dras- i tic enough. Others hold the view that (it goes beyond the limitations they had in mind when urging ratification. For the purposes of this discussion ,it is not relevant that the wishes of | those opposed to Prohibition should ! be considered, for the government is | of democratic form and in a pure | Democracy the will of the majority prevails. That will has been express- | ed as being in favor of Prohibition as a general proposition, but we think we are quite within the facts when we state that at no time when the ques- tion was before the people was there a clearly defined statement as to just what Prohibition would prohibit. Judges, lawyers, intellectuals and others who look merely at the practic- al side and do not pretend academic discussion of the law, are already at variance, in many instances, over the many angles that have appeared since the law has become effective. Natural- ly this discord among those whe fa- vor the proposition is being turned to the purposes of those who oppose it and unless unanimity among those who favor can soon be brought to pass there is a very grave danger of legis- lation looking to its repeal being un- dertaken. ‘ We dare not hide our heads in the sand and delude ourselves with the thought that it will all come out right, because dissatisfaction and disappoint- ment over the present operation of the law is liable to make many of its friends merely passive opponents should an attempt to repeal it be un- dertaken. ; i et ja Most of the dissatisfaction has come because the Volstead act is im- possible of clarification. There is a | conflict over the respective rights of the federal and State governments, as well as over the possible infinge- ment of the ancient principle of law to the effect that a man’s house is his i castle. While there are many other points of difference these two are the vital ones, in our opinion, since they ' all classes to evade and thereby un- i the situation very much. He suggests | that “Congress. should be urged to! | submit to the people an amendment to | the prohibition amendment defining i accurately what the people. meant when they used the word ‘manufac- ture’ as applied to natural fermenta- tion; what they meant by the term ‘intoxicating liquors;” what = they meant by the word ‘beverage,’ and what they meant by the word ‘concur- rent.’ “The wide divergence of interpre- tation now breeds disrespect for all law and may lead to the repeal of the whole amendment, unless the people themselves are again consulted now.” Primarily Prohibition means to pro- hibit and when applied to intoxicating beverages it would appear that they should be totally prohibited. But the question arises out of that as to whether such was the desire of all the people who supported prohibition. Whether they were ready at the time they ratified the amendment to give up all right to do as they please in their own homes and refrain from the manufacture of home wines and brews, for it must be apparent that if Prohibition is to prohibit and it does not those who connive to prevent it are violating law and engendering dis- respect for it. Never was there a time when the country needed respect for constitut- ed authority like it does today and the operation of the Volstead act has done more to make the masses look lightly on their duty as citizens than any oth- er enactment that has been written in- to the statutes. Because no definite interpretation of it has been made every one puts his own construction upon its intents and purposes and its enemies fan the flame of disappoint- ment that has sprung out of this am- biguous situation. erm essnecn lp eeeee ——Everywhere in Pennsylvania plans are being laid for revival of county fairs on more elaborate scales than ever. They serve a wonderful community purpose and the thought comes to us that the Business Men’s Association of Bellefonte might well consider a revival of the Centre coun- ty fair." It has pushed several other constructive projects to successful conclusion why not the fair? | The New Cabinet. | — Up from St. Augustine, Florida, has been flashed the news that President- | elect Harding has arrived at a tenta- | tive decision as to the men who will be called upon to counsel with him in the capacity of Cabinet officers. While the list includes the names of of two men who have not been gener- ally discussed by those who have been busy gathering an official family about , the President ever since last Novem- ber all of the others have been more : or less associated with one or other of the portfolios since the moment Mr. Harding’s election was assured. The evidence of payment for services ren- dered is quite apparent, though in such instances it may eventuate that the public good has not been sacrific- ed on the altar of personal obligation, for Mr. Daugherty and Mr. Hays may have more ability than thejr very caustic critics credit them with hav- ing. The selection of Mr. Denby, of Michigan, for the Navy is the one sur- prise on the list. His name had not been publicly discussed in connection with any of the Cabinet offices and the naming of Herbert Hoover as Secre- tary of Commerce was apparently contingent upon the reception such announcement would receive by Sena- tor Penrose, who has a personal grudge at Hoover, and Senator Lodge, who is opposed to him because of his unalterable position in favor of a League of Nations. No sooner was the list given to the press than Mr. Daugherty, who has been the Presi- dent-elect’s handy man for years, left St. Augustine for Washington pre- sumably to study Penrose and Lodge while they were in the act of swallow- ing Hoover. If the food controller’s name stands it will mean either that Harding intends to be his own boss in some matters or that Penrose and Lodge were not insistent in their ob- jection; the result revealing the real situation through later developments. On the whole the Cabinet gives lit- | tle evidence that the much talked of | conferences of “best minds” are likely to assure anything out of the ordinary in the accomplishments of the new administration. It is reassuring grave doubt as to its composite abili- ty to solve the mighty problems that Mr. Harding has been given a man- date to work out. Subject to last moment changes the new President’s official family will be composed of these men: Secretary of State—Charles Evans Hughes, of New York, former Governor, Justice of the Supreme Court, and Repub- lican nominee for the Presidency. Secretary of the Treasury—Andrew W. Mellon, of Pennsylvania, a banker and financier, member of a family reputed to be | , among the wealthiest in this country. Secretary of War—John W. Weeks, of Massachusetts, former United States Sen- ator, and in 1916 a candidate for the Pres- . idential nomination. Attorney General—Harry M. Daugherty, of Ohio, who managed the pre-convention campaign resulting in Harding's nomina- tion. Postmaster General—Will H. Hays, eof Indiana, chairman of the Republican Na- tional committee. Secretary of the Navy—Edwin Denby, of Michigan, a former member of Congress, who has served as an enlisted man in both the navy and marine corps. Secretary of the Interior—Albert B. Fall, of New Mexico, now a United States Sen- ator. Secretary of Agriculture—Henry Wallace, of Iowa, editor of farm publications. Secretary of Commerce—Herbert Hoover, of California, former Food Administrator and conspicuous leader in various move- ments for European relief, Secretary of Labor—James J. Davis, of Pennsylvania and Illinois, a former union steel worker, who has become highest offi- cial in the Moose Fraternity. ——Labor demanded and received advances in wages to meet advancing hours or greater production. As a matter of fact, in most instances, shorter hours were given and decreas- ed production resulted. It is fair to assume, then, that labor gave no re- turn for the high wages paid during the war that it had not given during wage scale. It is certainly evident to the most radical mind that the public refuses to accept reductions in wages of living. - Cabinet, but sents to Hoover's appointment. in spots, but is so constituted as to raise cost of living. The increase was not paid as compensation for either longer the pre-war period at a much lower is not going to pay for something it does not receive and this is exactly what labor is asking it to do when it commensurate with the lowered cost —Mr. Harding may Hooverize his it remains to be seen whether he can Hooverize Penrose. It will be recalled that as recently as last spring Herb informed the public that “I am a Republican, but not the kind of a Republican that Penrose is.” The differentiation. was construed at the time as being decidedly uncomplimen- tary to the senior Senator for Penn- sylvania and, naturally, Penrose is expected to talk Turkey before he con- Giving Harding a Chance. Why not give Heading a chance? asks the New Republic. The public answer will be: Give him all the chance he needs to develop under the power and responsibilities of the Pres- idency. Only Providence can inter- vene to prevent four years of suprem- acy of his conception of how the gov- ernment should be conducted. He is our President and whether we look i with misgiving or hope or actual as- surance on his administration the fact of its functioning for at least one term is almost immutable. Democrats everywhere appear dis- posed to return good for evil. There seems to be no general disposition to i prejudge him and it has remained fox his own party to provoke bitter con- | troversy over the wisdom of his choice | for several Cabinet members. We | might, with justification, retaliate for | the merciless propaganda that Mr. | Harding’s friends started the moment Woodrow Wilson entered the White House, but to what good end would that be working. The Democratic party has ever been ambitious for cen- structive work and, indeed, the past eight years of its dominance has been more fruitful in this respect than any corresponding period in the history of the government, so that its very prin- ciples actuate it to carry on rather than be guided by the spirit of jeal- ousy, disappointment and covetousness that inspired its enemies to the defa- mation of everything Wilsonian. Mr. Harding is a mediocre man. But, as the New Republic says, so were McKinley and Harrison when they assumed the Presidency. Like them, we hope, he will develop under the great responsibilities that will be his and prove that the country made no serious mistake when it lifted him out of semi-obscurity and placed him in the most important office in the land. Yes, let’s give Harding a chance. Even if he is to be a failure the ill ef- fects of his incapacity must be suffer- ed by all, Democats and Republicans, alike and the more co-operation he re- ceives the less of inefficiency there will be. We do not intend, of course, to re- “frain from constructive criticism nor is that to be desired. But we do hope that Mr. Harding will not be the ob- ject of an organized campaign of op- position that distorts, misrepresents, traduces his every act and motive such as was directed against President Wil- son by the Senatorial oligarchy that set out to accomplish his downfall the moment it discovered that the Presi- dency was vested in the White House and not in the Senate end of the cap- itol building. | ——Dr. Hugo Bezdek, if we may take the liberty of hanging a few fid- dle-de-ds onto the plain Czech name of the man who has cured all State’s athletic ills and is setting about the ical derelicts in the student body, evi- dently made a hit in Hollidaysburg on Tuesday night. He was the principal speaker at a Father and Son banquet given by the Y. M. C. A., and the Al- toona Tribune says it was “one of the best talks ever heard in the county capital.” He advised .the boys to “stick to dad” and also advised dad to “stick to the boy,” both bits of wis- dom being but the natural outcome of mutual understanding and proper re- lations between father and son. ——The principal trouble with gov- ernment is that it governs too much. Every near statesman thinks he must rush some new notion into statute form, commissions for. this, that and the other thing must be appointed to nose into and worry business men and individuals; public health and social welfare associations are constantly urging more inquisitions into person- al habits. State and federal regula- tions are such that we can scarcely take in a cent or buy a cheap cigar without reporting it along with every- thing else we do either to Harrisburg or Washington. The purpose of every one appears to be to pile troubles on and take none off. Isn't it about time to stop, look and listen; to find out whither we are drifting. Government human being and follow it with pro- scriptions clear to the grave. Is it any wonder citizens chafe and rebel ? ——The first criminal prosecution for railroad ticket scalping to be made by the Pennsylvania Railroad company in Pennsylvania for twenty years was concluded in Philadelphia last Friday when three offenders were convicted and sentenced to prison. Ticket scalp- ing once was a profitable and very common practice but the principle was wrong and laws were passed to pro- tect both the public and the carriers ahd the action of the Pennsylvania company in bringing to justice these culprits is commendable if for no oth- er reason than it stimulates respect for law. ——Subscribe for the “Watchman.” work of rehabilitating all of the phys- regulations control the inception of a Hiram Prepares to Fight. From the DuBois Express. In declining to make public at Sen- ator Hiram Johnson’s request the ne- gotiations between the United States and Japan on the California land question, Secretary Colby no doubt was influenced to this decision as much by a desire to leave the Califor- nia Senator free to make trouble with Mr. Harding and his Secretary of State over the Japanese difficulties as to side-step a disagreeable contro- versy himself during the brief period he is.to continue in office. Senator Johnson claims to have information that Roland S. Norris, United States ambassador to Japan, and Baron Shidehara, Japanese ambassador to this country, in the negotiations re- cently tentatively concluded, agreed upon a treaty “which in effect repeal- ed the California alien land law.” Secretary Colby has mildly disclaim- ed that Senator Johnson has a correct impresion of the negotiations as ten- tatively concluded, but in his zeal to protect the sovereign rights of his own State, the latter insists that the people of the West are entitled to know what the report contains before any more binding obligation is enter- ed into. Of course, Senator Johnson is not alarmed at the prospect of a treaty based on these negotiations being sent to the Senate before the ad- journment of Congress and the end of the present administration. Rath- er, he is getting himself in fighting trim to make his power felt in deter- mining what the foreign policies of the next administration shall be. An unsettled Japanese question will be one of Senator Johnson’s most valu- able assets in his dealings with the incoming administration. His failure to join the consulting minds invited to Marion by no means implies that he was without points of his own up- on which he will insist when it comes to determining the policies of the Harding administration. The more he wants at other points, the less' yielding will he be in allowing the United States and Japan to close up their controversies with some mutual concessions at an early day, in which the Pacific Coast will be sacrificed. He means to hold a strangle hold on American foreign relations by reason of his veto on Japanese negotiations and in that aggressive attitude he will prove to be a formidable acer in de- termining what form of ‘world asso- ciatior?® this country shall enter into. So, Mr. Harding and his Secretary of Stafe will soon discover that the | Senator from California is not a Sen- ator who can be ignored when any policy affecting our foreign relations is to be undertaken. On the Japan- ese question he commands a big fol- lowing, and he can be depended on to use that strength for all that it is worth in bargaining on many matters. Hiram is a fighter who refuses to ac- cept defeat in anything on which he has set his heart, and as such, admin- istration leaders will not be slow. to recognize the wisdom of keeping him in a conciliatory attitude. mn The Italian Spirit. From the Philadelphia Public Ledger. Charles M. Schwab is undoubtedly right in his opinion, uttered after a brief sojourn in Italy, that the indus- try and the indomitable optimism of the Italians will see them through the ' present industrial crisis without a cat- aclysm. Bolshevism has done its best to wreck many a going concern; but even the most receptive minds among . the Socialists have fought shy of ac- cepting the whole program whose out- | workings have brought woe upon the ! workers of near-by lands. Finance "and commerce in Italy have suffered | grievously because of the war, as the { world knows, andthe unwillingness lof the workers of the Fiat plant in Turin to make implements of war is "but one more sign of the general ab- horrence of militarism that _prevails lin Italy today, where the Socialist in- | fluence is so strong. Workmen who might turn a deaf ear to the official supplication of the government have been taught by the critical economic situation that the rampant individualism of Russia's railway shops and mines and cotton mills and other factories does not pay. Italy understands the need of inces- sant application to make up for the years that were not merely unproduc- tive but destructive. It is not an itin- erant dilettante, but a field marshal of big business, who reaches the satis- factory conclusion: “Though great perseverance may be necessary, Italy will pull through.” Smuts Has Faith in Wilson. From the Philadelphia Record. It may take a few years for Repub- licans to reach a point at which they can understand it, but General Smuts has joined the very large number of foreign observers who do justice to President Wilson’s eminence and his services to the world. “Hundreds of years hence,” he says, “Wilson’s name will be one of the greatest in history. The League, which will be one of the most potential things in the future of mankind, came from the hearts of peoples, and embodied inspirations born out of the sufferings of the late war.” But the Republicans beat the League because its creation was the work of a Democrat, and the Ameri- can people were foolish enough to fol- low their lead. ——When in doubt as to your pa- per take the “Watchman.” | SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE. } —President Judge Barnett, of Juniata county, has denied a new trial to A. J. | Burke and W. A. Miller, members of the | state constabulary, who shot F. E. Whit- { zel, a fugitive from justice, who resisted arrest on a bench warrant. —Samuel Goldstein, a shoemaker, of Al- toona, reported to the police last Friday that he had been robbed of $1045 by a stranger who came to his shop, gave him several cigarettes which made him ill and looted the safe while he went to his apart- ments to get something to check the nau- sea. i { | —Henry J. Weaver, 84 years of age, of Rushtown, six miles from Danville, is “sot in his ways.” Determined to have a shave and a haircut one day last week, he de- cided he would walk to Danville to get them. He did, and walked home as well, despite the fact that roads are almost im- passable to vehicles because of the deep mud. —Arbor day dates for Pennsylvania have been changed to April 8 and 15, according to an announcement by the Department of Public Instruction. This change was made for the purpose of co-operating with the Liberty Bell Bird Club, which has done considerable work toward recognition of the second Friday in April as a national bird day. —One hundred and fifty snow shovelers on the Sunbury division of the Pennsylva- nia Railroad, who got their meals, with pie as dessert, besides $1 an hour, went on a strike on Monday, demanding tobacco and cigarettes. The foreman refused to accede to the demand, cancelled the order for pie and discharged fifty who stopped passersby for the “makin’s.” —A second attempt within a week to rob the safe of the Sunbury bottling works was frustrated by the police Saturday night, when neighbors told of seeing strange figures around the place. A door was found forced. In the snow was clearly seen footprints of a woman’s shoes. Chief Smith asserts that it is the belief that a woman dynamiter is doing the work. —A robber entered the home of Mrs. William Clark, on Brandywine avenue, Downingtown, for the third time within a few months. A trunk on the third floor was broken open and a sum of money tak- en. Visiting the room of an aunt of Mrs. Clark on the second floor, the robber took a purse containing $25 from beneath a pil- low, while the woman slept. The maraud- er escaped without his presence being de- tected. : —The body of Mrs. Sadie White, wife of Terrence White, of near New Castle, was found in a haymow. Mrs. White has been missing since December 24th, 1920, when Terrence White was married for the second time. He has been in jail at New Castle, charged with bigamy and adultery, and has steadfastly refused to tell where his first wife was, insisting he had sent her to Chicago. He will now face a charge of murder. —O. R. Wike, a resident of Lewistown, has developed a mania for building hous- es. He has built twelve houses in the last ten years, selling each ome just after he completed his work and had moved his family into his new home. He does not build through a contractor, but purchases his own material and does the work him- self, and it is his boast that when he final- iy settles down in his own home it will be a real one, built with experience and the best lumber, just to suit him and mother. —Albert J. Waddell, a young farmer liv- ing near Pottstown, who got a medal for bravery in the world war, last Friday won a $100 reward for capturing Frank Smith, a stranger, who in broad daylight threw a brick through a plate-glass window of a jewelry store, grabbed some watches and fled. Waddell heard the crash and, leav- ing his farm team stand on the street, ran after the thief. They scaled fences, and Waddell said that he never ran after Ger- . mans as fast as he ran-after Smith. Smith,. who gave his home as “Anywhere,” is al-; SO an ex-service man. —A series of robberies occurred in the Juniata Valley last Thursday night that indicate, the passage of a gang from one of the nearby larger cities. At Mifilintown the tobacco store of Charles Middagh was broken into and about $30 worth of tobac- co taken. §. Nu Harts’ blacksmith shop was visited and $60 worth of tools taken. A front window was broken in the little store of William Hoffman, on Monument Square, Lewistown, and a diamond ring ° and two watches were taken and all the way through the Big Valley thefts from poultry houses and smoke houses are re- . ported. Ee —James Crow, sixty years old, residing at Blairs Mills in Huntingdon county, was called to jury service in Huntingdon o last week and as a result took his first ride on the steam cars. Crow has lived all of his life on a farm two miles across the Huntingdon county line. A quarter of a century ago the Tuscarora Valley Railroad was completed within two miles of his til last week when he traversed its 15 miles to Port and thence over the Penn: sylvania Railroad to Huntingdon, the con-, ductors of both trains taking most excel- lent care of him. —Treated for neuritis and rheumatism: until his case was considered hopeless, Michael Hays, of Conway, a Pennsylvania railroad locomotive driver, has obtained complete relief by the simple procedure of pulling a large needle from his shoulder. Five years ago he was making his sched- ule run near Pittsburgh when he felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder. He was taken to his home and confined to bed. A few weeks ago he went to Hot Springs, Ark., where his negro attendant discovered a sharp point protruding from his skin. This proved to be a needle, and when ex- tracted Hays was cured. —William Mourey, a Columbia county farmer, maintained in court at Bloomsburg on Monday that he was not a millionaire, but that he was forgetful, and asked the court to name a guardian. He had placed $200 in gold in a bag of ‘‘snitz,” and then sold the bag to a Mount Carmel baker, for- getting all about the money. The baker returned the money, however. He had hid- den $150 in a tin box which he placed un- der a refrigerator on the back porch. Lat- er cleaning up the porch, he threw the tin can into a box of junk, and his grandson recovered the money. Mourey didn't be- lieve in banks and when he planted pota- toes last spring he hid several hundred dollars in the potato field. He hired men to dig the potatoes, and thinks they pock- eted the money, or it grew into the pota- toes. At least he never got it. He didn’t think about it until Sunday, he said. Ir- vin Kreisher was named guardian ‘for Mourey, who is 70 years old. home, but he had no occasion to use it un-