Demo fon INK SLINGS. —If Congress doesn’t soon get or- ganized the Presidents’ message will become obsolete. —Congress convened on Monday and the troubles of the Republicans began in earnest. —Let us hope that the hard part of the contemplated hospital drive will be over when the proper driver is found. —The only notoriety some can achieve is that acquired by making needless noise in driving their auto- mobiles. —Governor McCray, of Indiana, may not be as bad as Governor Wal- ton, of Oklahoma, evidently was, but any fellow with oné hundred and nine- ty-two charges against him has some answering to do. —In seventeen days Christmas will be here. Why not send them the “Watchman” for a year. Certainly few presents could be more acceptable to any one interested in the news of old Centre county. —Evidently Mayor Kendrick in- tends giving Philadelphia a better government than those who elected him expected to get. If he does the gang’s disappointment will be great- er than that of the reformers who thought he wouldn’t. —Again let us say that we don’t care to have any one present us with a saddle of venison unless he sends along enough sherry to properly pre- pare it with. We said the same thing at this time last year and all the hunt- ers took us at our word. —With President Coolidge, Pinchot and Hi Johnson all after Pennsylva- nia’s delegation to the Republican na- tional convention there ought to be some pickin’s for the boys who make a specialty of carrying a few pre- cincts around in their vest pockets. —Talking about the hundred and fifty million that is spent annually in this country for hair nets it does seem like 2 prodigious sum, but we are wholly disinterested in the subject be- cause that is one commodity that, per- sonally, we couldn’t conceive any use for at all. —Since Mr. Attorney - General Daugherty declares that Comptroller Craig, of New York, was actually guilty of contempt of court how can he recommend remission of sentence. Might not such a position create more contempt for law than the offense of Mr. Craig. —The Taylorville, Ill., woman gives as her reason for being well and hap- py at the age of ninety-six the fact that she has “never been bothered with a man.” She may be telling the truth, ‘but it’s only because she has reached the period of obsolescence that she admits that she has never had a beau. —Naturally we’re expecting to hear from our new Congressman ere long. Etiquette in the House isn’t as strictly observed as it is in the Senate and a first termer is not supposed to merely sit and look wise, so that we will not be surprised if the country is electri- fied some of these days with reading a great speech by the Member from the Twenty-first Pennsylvania on the necessity of making the West branch of the Susquehanna navigable as far west as McGee’s Mills. We're not saying that the Hon. William I. couldn’t sit and look wise, but we do say it would take all the joy out of being Congressman for him. —Time flies so rapidly that those who have ambitions to represent Cen- tre county in the next Legislature might well be seasoning a little tim- ber for their platforms. Governor Pinchot might be here any day in his “swing around the circle.” When he comes he is going to ask the people to nominate only “dry” candidates and pledge them to support his reorgan- ization plans. Though some of us may think our Member ought to rep- resent Centre county the Governor is not interested in that angle of the sit- uation. He wants Legislators in Har- risburg to represent him so that those who aspire should be giving thought as to which horn of the dilemma they intend hanging their hopes. —The Governor has called another conference of Governors to discuss the anthracite problem. His last effort in this direction resulted in nothing and the public is gradually becoming con- vinced that Pinchot’s real purpose is to retain front page prominence. There is a law that he could enforce, if he would, that compels coal produc- ers to ship relatively clean coal. Much of the coal that has come out of the anthracite regions for the past two years runs from thirty to fifty per cent. slate. We know because we bought some of the fifty-fifty kind last fall at $15.75 a ton. After its de- livery we noticed its impurities and for the mere satisfaction of knowing the percentage of them we shoveled two bucketsful from the bin, dumped them on a pile and picked the coal in- to one bucket, the slate into the oth- er. When done we had just one buck- et of each. It was fifty-fifty. As a matter of fact we had paid for the coal at the rate of $31.50 per ton. The dealer was not to blame for this. He sold us just what he got and paid for from the mine. The public would probably have no complaint at all to make of the present price if it were not compelled to pay for so much slate. And as the Governor has the power to correct this at once it looks to us as if he is only four flushing in his daily demands for conferences to devise regulations that will take years to enact. STATE RIGHTS AND FEDERAL UNION. VOL. 68. BELLEFONTE Insincere Professions of Reform. The insincerity of Republican re- formers in Congress is clearly reveal- ed in the attitude of the Progressives in the House of Representatives. In a public statement issued by Repre- sentative Nelson, of Wisconsin, chair- man of the Progressive bloc, on Sat- urday evening, that ardent advocate of righteousness in politics said: “Congress is attemting to organize under the same old cry, ‘Hail, hail, the gang’s all here’ The opening maneuvers of the Old Guard leaders indicate promises of continued service to the railroad manipulators, grain gamblers, coal operators and influen- tial tax dodgers, but none whatever to the citizen who is unable to maintain a lobby that serves as the liason be- tween secret committees and favored interests.” That is the exact truth. The whole |! purpose of the machine leaders is to conserve the interests of those who supply funds with which to debauch the ballot and defeat the will of the people at the polls. The election of 1920 was the result of an orgie of bribery and corruption unequaled in this or any other country. For the consideration of liberal contributions a promise was made that taxes on big incomes would be greatly reduced and sur-taxes on excess profits abolished. The last Congress failed to fulfill this pledge in full measure and Gillette has been nominated for Speaker, Longworth chosen leader and commit- tees will be organized to carry out this program. The Democrats in the House are not quite numerous enough to stop it. And the Progressives for whom Representative Nelson speaks will not try earnestly to stop it. They will protest with some vehemence in the beginning but not for the purpose of improvement. The public interest is of little if any greater concern to them than to the Old Guard. Their opposition is purely selfish. They covet certain advantageous positions in the organization and if the conces- sions are made as they will be, no doubt, they will not only join in but lead in the chorus of “Hail, hail, the gang’s all here” with emphasis on ‘the last phrase; “what-the hell'do we care now.” If Mr. Nelson and Mr. LaFollette were sincere in their pro- fessions of reform in government they would join with the Democrats and wipe the corrupt machine off the map. Probably Bill Vare and Max Leslie will join forces in order to help Pinchot bag the delegation. In any event they are not likely to help Pep- per hand it over to any one. Ownership Not the Solution. In an address delivered before the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Engineers, assembled in San Francisco Sunday evening, former Secretary of the Treasury William G. McAdoo declared that government ownership is not the best solution of the transportation problem, “the greatest question before the United States today.” A short time ago Mr. McAdoo surprised a good many peo- ple with a statement that taxes may be decreased and the soldiers’ bonus paid without impairment of the na- tional credit or the dangerous deple- tion of the treasury. In his speech Sunday night he amplified this thought by the assertion that reforms in railway management will achieve the purpose. It is widely and well known that during the period of government man- agement of transportation railroad officials put every possible obstacle in the way to prevent ultimate govern- ment ownership. Notwithstanding these adverse conditions the enterprise was successful in every respect. But it may be safely said that the splen- did capability and unselfishness of Mr. McAdoo as administrator produced this result. If the directorship had been incapable, inefficient or selfish the opposite result wouid have follow- ed. In other words, the evils of gov- ernment ownership were averted and the advantages acquired by the care- ful and capable management of Wil- liam G. McAdoo. Candor compelled the railroad ex- ecutives of the country to admit the inability of corporations to meet the obligations which the war put upon them. In view of this fact it is not idle to claim that the railroads of this country contributed largely toward the victory achieved. If the railroads of the United States had failed the armies in Europe would have been impotent to function. But that fact is no reason for government owner- ship of the railroads. It is in favor of government regulation and Mr. McAdoo may be right in his estimate that the regulation should be more ef- fective than obtains at present. Many evils might be avoided if there were more brains and less stubbornness. ——1In the last Pinchot plan the Governor takes care to keep control of the power of appointing commis- sions. . Clyde Kelley Spanks Pepper. Congressman Clyde Kelley, of Pittsburgh, took Senator George Wharton Pepper across his knees, fig- uratively speaking, the other day, and gave him a good, hard, old-fash- ioned spanking. It wasn’t a spiteful operation at all. On the contrary it was a sort of fatherly affair and quite as painful to Mr. Kelley as any simi- lar wood-shed incident could have been to any real step-father. But Senator George Wharton has been “going too far” lately, and Clyde con- cluded that he needed a reprimand and somebody had to perform the service. Possibly there are others who might have assumed the task more appro- priately, for Congressman Kelley is | not firmly fixed as a party leader. But it is doubtful if another could have done it better. : Senator Pepper struts around as a * great moral teacher in politics. While | Penrose lived he kept Pepper out of | office because he despised hypocrisy. { Then the political machine was a mon- ster of iniquity in the eyes of Pepper. The moment the machine took him in- to its embrace he appraised it from a different angle. He wanted to “spit in the eye of a bull dog” or perform some other act that would appeal to the minds of men of the Sam Salter type. The old liners resented his as- pirations to control the organization they had built up in the face of his opposition and felt that he should be informed of the fact. The opportuni- ty presented itself on Saturday and Clyde Kelley was equal to the occa- sion. Senator Pepper loves to serve the corporations and when Mr. Atterber- ry had him appointed Senator in Con- gress his opportunities opened up widely. The corporations want the tax on big incomes decreased and the soldier bonus proposition defeated. Pepper confidently pledged tlie Penn- sylvania delegation in Congress to both propositions. He had previously volunteered the assurance that he would go to the National convention with the vote of Pennsylvania secure- ly pinned in his vest pocket. That presumption provoked some adverse comment but the other was “the blow the soldiers and those who favor tax- ing those who can afford to pay com- missioned Kelley to speak for them. —The “Modoc” hunting crew that captured its limit of deer the first morning of the season will have three hundred and sixty-five days in which to reflect on the folly of shooting themselves out of the mountains be- fore they got started to enjoy them. The Sham Battle Ended. “The mountain labored and brought forth a mouse.” According to the news dispatches from Washington the Republican Old Guard and the Repub- lican insurgents have compromised their differences. The “gang” is not only present but happy. The Repub- lican floor leader, Mr. Longworth, has promised the insurgent chief, Mr. Nelson, that insurgents may offer amendments to the House rules “in committee.” It is a small concession but little was required. It is a sort of “peep-hole” view of the spoils feast, and spoils are potent forces in Republican politics. After the organ- ization is complete it will be easy to crush opposition. The Democrats in the House pur- sued a wise course during the period of disagreement. “We are unified and ready to take up the country’s” busi- ness,” Democratic leader Garrett stated, “whenever the majority party can reach the point where functioning is possible.” The Democrats have no interest in Republican quarrels in Congress or out. They are concerned only in performing their duties as representatives of the people. It is everlastingly to their credit that they stood aloof while the wrangling was in progress. Now that organization has been effected they can and will pursue the purpose of conserving the public interests. Possibly the Old Guard majority will keep faith and allow certain al- terations to be made in the rules of the House. Probably they will be re- quired only to give the insurgents a part of the patronage. In any event it is well that the deadlock is broken and that the business of the country may be taken up and considered. The rules are and have been unjust and oppressive to the minority. But there is little promise of reform in the con- cessions made by Mr. Longworth. The committee which makes the rules will be packed and while the insur- gents may propose changes the Old Guard will dispose of them. That is the lesson of experience. ——Maybe Pinchot will not get a chance to shy the Texas Governor's hat into the ring. He must have at least one delegate in the convention to do the throwing. ——*“Diamonds of Malopo,” a won- derful serial story begins in this issue. , PA., DECEMBER 7 that killed - father - The Friends of" | other Pinchot’s Hopeful Scheme. Governor Pinchot’s new plan for forcing downward the price of anthra- cite coal reads like a lullaby in joy- land. It’s almost too good to be true. It creates enough commissions and provides for enough agents, clerks and other officials to make every fam- ily in the broad Commonwealth hope- ful if not happy, regardless of the price of fuel. There would be a joint commission of five or seven according to the temper of Congress on the question, and a Pennsylvania coal commission of three Pinchot pets, and these commissions would be invest- ed with such powers and authorized or required to perform such duties as would employ a vast army of officials and keep them “as busy as nailers.” In inviting the co-operation of oth- er States in this tax-eating enterprise Governor Pinchot has taken great pains to prove the legality of the plan. Before the adoption of the federal constitution, he states, the colonies entered into similar agreements and nobody protested. Since then several of the States have made agreements on various subjects and their validity has never been disputed, and the United States government has fre- quently negotiated agreements with State authorities and “got away with them.” In fact the Governor makes it plain that if the several anthracite using States and the government of the United States enter into his scheme it will be entirely legal and enforcible. The weakness of the Governor's scheme is the fact that it makes no provision to compel the States con- cerned or the federal government to join in it. At the last meeting of Ex- ecutives, held in Governor Pinchot’s office a couple of weeks ago, no incli- nation was shown to take the matter seriously. Governor Silzer, of New Jersey, made some suggestions but they were promptly rejected by those who were there in the interest of Presidential candidates rather than coal consumers, and the chances are the next conference will fail for the same reason. The New England Gov- ernors are for Coolidge, the Pennsyl- vania Governor for himself, and the prBject is practically certain to fail. ——Four weeks from next Monday there will be a general housecleaning at the court house; most of the faces which have been familiar landmarks there for many years will disappear and new pictures will appear in the court house ring. The advent of the new officers will also mean a number of new appointments, and while many people are curious to know who the lucky ones will be when the plum tree is shaken up to this time none of the officials-elect have made public the names of their appointees, and it is highly probable that no decision has yet been made. One of the most de- sirable appointments is that of clerk to the county commissioners, and while it is understood that there are a number of applicants they are ail oc- cupying the anxious bench at this writing. ——*Diamonds of Malopo,” a won- derful serial story begins in this issue. ——An item in one of the Johns- town papers announces the fact that Cambria county is to fall in line with “first-class counties” of the State by installing typewriter trans- cribing machines in the offices of the register and recorder for the purpose of entering all records in typewriting. Centre county has been using trans- cribing machines during the past twenty years and it is almost like an- cient history to learn that the big county of Cambria has clung to the slow process of having its records transcribed by hand with pen and ink. ——Grafting in Russia is a capital crime according to current reports. If that were the penalty in this State the Republican majority would soon disappear. ——If immigrants are admitted on parole after the quota has been filled it doesn’t gmatter much whether the quotas ar§flarge or small. ——The gold-beaters having gone on a strike the bootleggers of the country are wondering what they will do for Christmas gifts. ——The German Crown Prince that was declares he only desires to live the life of a quiet gentleman. He may possibly be quiet. ——Speaking * of foreign policies Secretary of State Hughes is the most uncertain’ problem now before the American public. ——The enforcement of the twelve- mile treaty was rather premature, as the treaty has not been written yet. nn ssi A AL It would be rather a sad thing for France if Germany is forced into a single-handed fight. . 1923. Secretary Hughes in Co-operation. NO. 48. From the Philadelphia Record. Secretary Hughes explains that the United States is still ready to co-op- erate with other nations, but it won’t entangle itself in an alliance. He rec- ognizes that our part in the world war was not that of an Ally, but of a co-operator. This was universally un- derstood at the time; hence the ex- pression the “Allied and Associated Powers.” “We are still opposed to al- liances,” he says. “We refuse to com- mit ourselves in advance with respect to the employment of the power of the United States in unknown contin- gencies; we reserve our judgment to act upon occasion as our sense of du- ty permits.” This is his present opinion of the League of Nations. But it was not his opinion three years ago, when he and his colleague in the Cabinet, Mr. Hoover, and 29 other eminent Repub- licans, advised voters to support Mr. Harding as the surest way of getting the United States into the League. Nor does it account for the fact that he and President Coolidge would par- ticipate in an investigation of Germa- ny’s financial capacity if all the Allies asked it, but not if one of them refus- ed. What does our co-operation amount to if it is conditioned upon a unanimous request to us to act? Nor does the statement of Secreta- ry Hughes justify the United States in serapping a lot of battleships. This puts it out of the power of the Unit- ed States to decide during the next 10 years what naval force it oug t to have. It takes three years to build a battleship, and during that time a crisis might come and go. Nor does it justify the four-power treaty regarding the Far East. That binds the United States for a long period; practically permanently until the treaty is denounced. There is a reservation in the treaty regarding each nation’s right to decide when the time comes what it will do. But if there is not a very strong presump- tion what each nation will do, of what use is the treaty? The treaty is a promise by the participating nations of what they will do. ey might vi- olate their promise without a reser- | vation, but if it was supposed they were likely to do so the promise would be valueless and the time spent in preparing it would be wasted. It was a formal recognition of the sovereign- ty of each party to the treaty. . But that sovereignty does nif need to be acknowledged; it is a fact.” And it is sufficiently recognized in the League covenant. The United States was to have one member of the Coun- cil, and the action of the Council has to be unanimous, so that the United States could veto any recommenda- tion it was attempted to make through the Council. And further- more, while the economic boycott was to go into effect summarily, it was to go into effect by the action of the members of the League directly, and not through the Council. On the oth- er hand, if the economic boycott were not sufficient the Council was to ad- vise—not order—what further steps should be taken, and as the members of the League are sovereigns, they are not subject to the orders of the Council, but must decide for them- selves what they will do. We cannot refrain from referring again to the “League to Enforce Peace,” organized by one Republican ex-President, and the “posse comita- tus of nations,” repeatedly urged with all the energy of the other one. And if we should go back into ancient his- tory we should find that our agree- ment with other nations to suppress the slave trade was just as much of an alliance as membership in the League of Nations would be. If we have not said enough to con- vince the Mr. Hughes who is Secreta- ry of State in a Republican - adminis- tration, we have at least said enough to convince the Mr. Hughes who ap- pealed to friends of the League to vote for Mr. Harding. ; Prepared. From the Kansas City Star. A contributor to the New York Evening Post who wants a warless world has a new suggestion as to how that kind of a world may be re- alized. The suggestion is for the in- clusion in the cabinet of a secretary of peace. Whether a gesture like that would banish war or not we do not know, but it would make for interest- ing possibilities any way. With a secretary of war preparing for war and a secretary of peace preparing for peace, the chances for a deadlock in government—which is the condition government seems always to be striv- ing Jor—vught to be greatly height- ened. In case our government should adopt this suggestion, we beg to nom- inate Newton D. Baker, ex-Secretary of War, to be secretary of peace. As Secretary of War he was always pre- pared for peace. tm —— Ap ———— Earned Incomes. From the Bethlehem Globe. Nothing in Secretary Mellon’s plan for the reduction of income taxes has attracted more favorable attention than his proposal to reduce the tax rate on “earned incomes.” The essential justice of that pro- posal'is evident to anybody, when once the matter is clearly stated. An “earned income” is the income of the man or woman who works for wages or salary, or fees for any kind of per- sonal or professional service. The big majority of our tax payers earn their incomes. | SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE. —Joseph Effinger, a Shamokin insur- ance agent, has been awarded $15,000 dam- ages for the death of his brother, Thom- as Effinger, who was killed on the Phila- delphia and Reading Railroad on May 10. —A gang of thieves entered the Wright and Metzler store at Uniontown, on Thanksgiving day, tied the watchman to a chair, blew open three safes and escaped with loot valued at $6,000, including cash and merchandise. —After suffering twenty years with a fractured skull, John M. Schober, aged 71 years, died at Reading on Monday. He was born on a ship at quarantine, New York, while his parents, German immi- grants, were about to enter this country. —David ‘B. Gould, of Summerville, Jef- ferson county, celebrated his eightieth birthday last Wednesday by husking eigh- ty shocks of corn. In the evening he walked three miles to Heatville to attend & revival meeting, walking home at its close. —An attempt to crack a cocoanut with the butt end of a pistol proved fatal to William Kennedy, of New Castle, on Sun- day. The pistol was discharged by the hammering, and a bullet entered the youth’s abdomen. later. —Benjamin Hooliday, of New Kensing- ton, superintendent of the Crucible Steel company plant at Glassmere, died of heart failure last Thursday while attending the Pitt-Penn State football game in Pitts burgh. He collapsed in the grandstand at Forbes field and died en route to a hos- pital. —Burglars late last Thursday night en- tered St. Coleman’s Catholic church in Turtle Creek, Allegheny county, dragged a safe from the secristy to the foot of the altar and made an unsuccessful attempt to open it. Rev. J. B. Shields found the safe when he opened the church for services the next morning. —In order to protect the watershed which feeds the reservoir of the Williams- port Water company from pollution dur=- ing the hunting season, the water com- pany secured the services of two state policemen to patrol its property and keep off trespassers, and two Williamsport men were the first to be arrested. —The life of Daniel Hehn, aged 60 years, a well known resident of Shamokin Dam, was saved on Sunday by his daughter, Mrs. Clinton Lawrence, who discovered his body hanging from a rafter in an out- house and cut him down. Despondent over ill health, Hehn had attempted sui- cide and would have succeeded had it not been for the unexpected appearance of his daughter. —Using a hacksaw which the authori- ties believe was smuggled in to him, Charles Getler escaped from the Wayne county jail Saturday evening and is still at liberty. Getler was held on a charge of theft and was suspected of having com- mitted a number of burglaries. When the sheriff entered the jail to feed the pris- oners he found Getler’s cell empty and the bars sawed. —Charged with highway robbery and assault with intent to kill, Troy North, al- leged to be responsible for a number of hold-ups in Montour county recently, was remanded to jail at Danville, last Satur- day in default of $1500 bail. Xe was ar- rested Friday night in Bloomsburg and taken to Danville to answer a charge of beating and robbing Michael McGraw, “of East Danville. —John J. Doonan, of Boston, Mass., and William Pechtel, of Glenn Falls, New York, 18 and 19 years of age respectively, at Tuesday afternoon's session of court before Judge Potter, in Columbia county, plead guilty to the charge of stealing from the Bloomsburg Silk Mill garage, the Es- sex coach of Rock Guinard several weeks ago. Judge Potter directed they be sent to Huntingdon reformatory. —George J. Keller, a member of the fac- ulty of the Bloomsburg State Normal school has a pet wolf, which he has reared since it was only a week old. It was sent him by a friend. Now, at the age of sev- en months, the wolf weighs about seven- ty-six pounds and is as tame as a dog. He shakes hands with people and does many tricks. With his master he is extremely tame, but with strangers he is a little shy. —A happy family with four children a year ago, Mr. and Mrs. J. M. Dolai, of Fairbanks, near Uniontown, were rendered childless Saturday night. Eight year old Lillian Dolan, the last child, was killed in an automobile accident. Two other children had previously met similar deaths and a third died of disease. The child was killed when she darted from behind one machine into the path of another when crossing the road near her home. —Joseph Mosley, of Berwick, 81 years old, a former slave, is still working every day in spite of his age, and at the hard- est kind of work. He is employed in a lo- cal rolling mill, a task that requires men oft. unusual physical stamina and ability. Mosley stands six feet three inches, weighs 319 pounds, wears a No. 16 shoe, and is proud of the fact that he has the biggest feet in Berwick. Mosley was a slave in Georgia when Sherman made his famous march to the sea. His master, he said, ‘was kind to his slaves and after the war paid them for their work. —Local and county authorities are con- ducting a thorough search for Edwin Wagner, the 13 year old son of Mr. and Mrs. H. E. Wagner, of Jersey Shore, who disappeared from his home on November 23. No trace of the missing youth has been found, and his mother is nearly fran- tic awaiting news of her son. When last seen he is said to have been in the compa- ny of a man and another boy, who left that place the above day. Edwin was wearing a light-colored suit and dark overcoat. He has dark hair and eyes. In- formation on his description has been sent from Jersey Shore in an effort to facili- tate finding the youth. —Determined to witness the annual gridiron classic at Morgantown, W. Va., between Washington and Jefferson College and West Virginia University, on Thanks- giving day, Denver Gump, aged 18 years, of Brave, near Waynesburg, lacking funds for the trip, climbed aboard a passenger special on the tracks of the Morgantown and Blacksville railroad, opened the throt- tle and started on a wild ride toward the scene of the big game. Ten miles out of Brave, the engine, passenger coach and caboose were derailed when, hitting a ten- mile an hour curve at a thirty-five mile clip, the engine toppled over. Gump was unconscious when found, but his injuries are slight. The train was made up and ready to start a run to Morgantown, the crew having left for their meals when Gump climbed aboard and started the en- gine. 'Railroaders said the damage to the train and equipment would total about $25,000. He died a half hour a —-