INK SLINGS.
—They say that all signs fail in
dry weather and that is probably the
reason that the Granger’s picnic
hasn’t brought rain.
—Canadian scenery is just the same
as it was prior to 1918, hence our
amazement at the number of tourists
from the States who are flocking there
under the guise of enjoying it.
—Philadelphia papers are making
a great ado over Vare’s determina-
tion to put an end to the career of
Judge Renshaw. The papers are right
and Vare is all that they brand him as,
but Judge Renshaw is down and out
because Vare has more to say about
what is done in that city than all the
rest of its inhabitants put together.
—Babe Ruth, like all the others
who have been catapulted into noto-
riety by a sycophantic public, has
fallen down when the acid test be-
gan to be applied. The people just
must have heroes to worship and they
are not as fickle as some think. They
raise up many idols, but it’s up to the
idol after that.
—Down in Tulsa, on Monday, fed-
eral dry agents made a raid on the
rooms of the overseas veterans who
were in convention there. They found
some liquor in the room of a bootleg-
ger and haled all of the veterans, with
their luggage, into court because they
happened to be guests of the hotel
that was raided. Not one of the offi-
cious officials was out of the country
when it was in peril. Every one of
the men they insulted was.
—The only advice we have to give
those who expect to go to the prima-
ries on the 15th is to vote for the can-
didate who you think will be the
most creditable representative of the
party with which you are affiliated. A
good citizen—and there are very few
of them—doesn’t permit social or
business relations, or personalities,
to guide his hand when marking his
ballot. If you are a believer in De-
mocracy, Republicanism, Prohibition
or Socialism vote for the man who
would best uphold such principles,
whether you like him or not.
—We can’t recall just when it was,
but some time last fall we came near
going into ecstasies over the compo-
sition and press work on the Tyrone
Times. Tuesday evening we picked
up the Philipsburg Ledger of August
28th. The Ledger is always interest-
ing, of course, but because we discov-
ered nothing in it inspired by its vice
president—a gentleman whom it is al-
ways worth while to watch—we were
about to throw it down when the ap-
pearance of the sheet compelled at-
tention. Then we looked it over with
a mechanical eye that has been scans
ning country newspapers for forty
years and concluded that the men who
are setting ‘and pressing the Tyrone
Times haven't all the finesse that there
is in the craft in Central Pennsylva-
nia.
—Talking about signs; we have al-
ways believed that those who set their
onions and shingle their buildings in
the up or down sign of the moon, and
those who boost a pot because they
have a “hunch” have some leg
to stand on that we have never seen.
Two weeks ago we glanced over our
left shoulder, and glimpsed a new
moon through limbs of an intervening
tree. If anything could have been
worse than that tell it to us. What
happened. We came down to the desk
to find invitations to see State open
the new stadium at Morgantown, W.
Va., to be a guest “as long as you will
stay” while Cambria county is pulling
off its big fair, and to “bring three
friends and their wives and yours and
be my guests while touring around
Buffalo and over into Canada to see
the Toronto Exposition.” Isn't it
wonderful what seeing the new moon
over your left shoulder does. We'd
accept that Buffalo invitation if we
hadn’t written the paragraph above,
directing suspicion to those who tour
Canada.
—Here let us record our belief that
the John Ashley Dennis Post, Ameri-
can Legion, of Philipsburg, is compos-
ed of men whose bigness and real pub-
lic service transcends that of any oth-
er organization that we have knowl-
edge of. When the towns of Philips-
burg and Chester Hill and the coun-
ties of Clearfield and Centre thought
themselves too poor to contribute
much to the erection of an inter-coun-
ty bridge connecting Philipsburg and
Chester Hill, via Pine street, the John
Ashley Dennis boys volunteered their
services and, on Tuesday, completed
the concrete structure, having asked
for and received no compensation for
their services. We read much in Phil-
ipsburg papers of Rotary and Kiwa-
nis luncheons at the Philips. Of the
inspiring addresses that are made. Of
course we don’t believe that Rotarian
or Kiwanian is in physical fettle to
work on concrete bridges, but we’ll bet
that they have spent enough on their
weekly luncheons to have paid for
three bridges over the Moshannon.
In great cities where men don’t know
one another or what is going on a mile
distant from their home or business
environment it is well that they get
together for exchange of ideas, but in
small towns where the first fellow you
meet on the way to your business in
the morning can tell you just what
hour you rolled in the night before it
seems to us that it is a mighty flick-
ering flame of civic responsibility that
has to be fanned with weekly lunch-
eons, jazz music and slap-stick come-
dy.
STATE RIGETS AND FEDERAL UNION.
VOL. 70. BELLEFONTE, PA.. SFPTEMBER 4.
Pinchot’s Real Purpose.
west that the object of Governor Pin-
chot’s present activities is the Presi-
dential chair. According to a writing
man in Minneapolis, the effort to ac-
quire the Senatorial seat of Mr.
George Wharton Pepper is simply a
preliminary gesture. “The Pinchot
program,” he writes, “takes into con-
sideration the possibility either of
victory over or defeat by Senator
George Wharton Pepper in the Penn-
sylvania Senatorial fight. If Pinchot
wins he will be in better position than
before and if he loses he will be in no
worse place than formerly to attack
the third term ambitions of Calvin
Coolidge. This is certainly a comfort-
ing view of the situation for the
friends of Pinchot.
The news value of this statement is
contained in the information that the
Governor has organized “a letter writ-
ing program’ in which he appeals to
the followers of the late Colonel
Roosevelt. “He has the names and
addresses of men who might sympa-
thize with his views,” this writer
states, “and is sending them personal
letters on the letter-head of the Gov-
ernor of Pennsylvania.” He tells the
farmers in this confidential way that
his giant-power plan “means a solu-
tion of many farm difficulties by
bringing cheap power to the farmer
and small consumer.” In another par-
agraph of his letter he says: “The
time has come when the public must
be taken into consideration by the na-
tion-wide electric monopoly that is
being formed.”
This is an appealing proposition and
is to a considerable extent based on
fact. The menace of the monopoly is
apparent to all thoughtful observers.
Whether the Pinchot plan is the
surest remedy is problematical. The
Governor may feel certain enough of
it but he directs his arguments more
to prejudice than reason. That is, he
appeals to the Roosevelt followers by
laudation of that energetic conserva-
tionist instead of exposing a material
difference between his “giant-power”
plan and the “super-power” system
which has been endorsed by President
Coolidge. There may be a wide dif-
L ference and there may be no differ-
ence. In any event it is up to the
Governor to clarify the question.
—Young Mr. Rockerfeller pays the
largest income tax of any American
citizen. His last contribution to Un-
cle Sam was something in excess of
six million dollars. John D., Jr., prob-
ably didn’t feel that as much, however,
as the person who had to give up thir-
ty.
me meee fee emer
Why?
The second leg of Governor Pin-
chot’s “tour of observation” will end
in Juniata county to-night. It began
in Lancaster county on Wednesday of
last week, where two speeches were
made, Adams, Franklin, Fulton, Bed-
ford, Somerset and Fayette counties
were visited in the order named and
the Governor spent Sunday on a peak
of the Allegheny mountains near Un-
iontown. His addresses, all on the
theme of reform, varied somewhat to
fit the audience addressed. In Som-
erset, with Judge Berkey who recent-
ly escaped an impeachment, most peo-
ple believe by favor, within hearsay,
he spoke of the delinquencies of the
courts. In Uniontown where Public
Service Commissioner Shelby lives, he
discussed the faults of public service
boards.
It is gratifying to learn that the
Governor finds all the public institu-
tions in splendid condition. With the
close of his week’s work to-night he
will have visited nearly three-fourths
of the charitable, penal, and corrective
institutions of the State and has not
found a single fault. Of course there
were plenty of faults three years ago
but they have all been removed and
the Governor is confident that he can
lay his hand on the author of the im-
provements without moving an inch.
But the fact is none the less satisfac-
tory on that account. Whoever is re-
sponsible for betterments is entitled
to just reward. It is the proper rec-
ompense for fidelity to public duty.
But there is an insistent vein of dis-
appointment in all the reports of the
Governor’s travels and talks. He hasn’t
said a word against the gravest of all
crimes against the State. He de-
nounces the bossism of Vare and Max
Leslie and the delinquencies of judges
and the faults of public service boards.
But he utters not a word of condem-
nation of the source of these great
evils. Without fraudulent voting and
false counting neither Vare nor Les-
lie could endure for a season and the
corrupt judges and dishonest public
service boards would disappear in a
twinkling. Yet Governor Pinchot ut-
ters no word of condemnation of bal-
lot frauds and false returns of elec-
tions. Why?
i pi mae
——We have a strong suspicion
that Babe Ruth has struck out.
— 1
Information comes from the middie
Three of a Kind.
The recent events by which Con-
gressman Vare acquired absolute con-
trol of the public life of Philadelphia
have aroused suspicions as well as
fears that in the near future he will
annex the rest of the State to his po-
litical dominion. A year ago it was
known that he had aspirations for a
seat in the United States Senate. But
his bungling control of the General
Assembly during the last session of
the Legislature destroyed his expec-
tations in that direction and it was be-
lieved that he had taken himself out
of the running. His late triumphs
have put a new face upon the political
situation, however, and Senator Pep-
per is seriously afraid that Mr. Vare
will do with him as he did with dis-
trict attorney Rotan.
But this danger is more imaginary
than real. The people of Pennsylva-
nia will not tamely submit to the au-
tocratic rule of any man of such lim-
ited moral and mental resources as
contractor Vare. One of the press
correspondents with the Governor on
his State-wide tour writes: “Gover-
nor Pinchot was quick to realize it
and in his speeches is striking a pop-
ular chord by attacking the Vare or-
ganization. Nothing that he has done
so far has enhanced his prestige quite
so much as his tirades against the
Vare machine.” “The Governor has
been crystalizing sentiment for him-
self by his attacks on the Philadelphia
machine.” This statement expresses
an increasingly obvious fact.
It is encouraging to feel that even
among Republicans the reputation of
a flagrant corruptionist aspiring to
high office excites a feeling of dis-
gust. The pity is that in an organi-
zation so strong there is no outstand-
ing leader to assume the direction of
the party. The present situation pre-
sents a choice of Vare, Pepper or Pin-
chot. Vare is condemned by his rec-
ord, Pepper by his support of the cor-
| raptionist Newberry in the face of a
court record of venality, and Pinchot
by his consistent aid to the corruption-
ists in refusing to denounce ballot re-
form. Maybe the spirit of righteous-
ness will some time assert itself in
Pennsylvania by turning all ‘the ras-
cals out and electing an honest Dem-
ocrat. :
— The price of diamonds takes a
shoot up just as the coal strike be-
gins and the public stands to lose
whether it takes the white or black
variety.
rete pees.
Babe Ruth in Trouble.
“Babe” Ruth has long been the
“stormy petrel” of the baseball world.
The highest salaried player and the
“hardest hitter” in all the leagues,
he has won the favor of the fans in
fuller measure than any of his col-
leagues or competitors. That this
popular laudation, covering a period
of years, may have “gone to his
head” is quite probable. In any event
he has not yielded gracefully to the
discipline essential in such employ-
ment and has in consequence been the
victim of penalties imposed from time
to time, more or less drastic.
The last flare up in which “Babe”
was involved resulted in a fine of $5,-
000 and the “bench” for a period. His
offences were, according to newspaper
reports, various. One charge is that
he remained out “among the boys”
longer than the rules allow and anoth-
er that he refused to obey the orders
of the field manager with respect to
play. For these violations of disci-
pline he was fined by his manager to
an amount that to the average player
would be excessive but to a $50,000 a
year man is a mere trifle. He appeal-
ed to the head of the organization and
was “turned down.”
Under ordinary circumstances and
in usual employment Mr. Ruth might
quit his job. But it seems that he is
under contract for another year and
if he breaks the contract he is out-
lawed and will not be able to get a job
with any other league. He should be
made pay the fine but it is doubtful if
he ever will, for the president of the
New York team is a rather weak-
kneed plutocrat and has already
shown that by announcing that if “the
Bambino” apologizes to manager
Huggins everything will be all right.
——Former Governor Tener may
not be the favorite of the machine for
that office next year but his press
agents are doing their best for him.
er—————p evans e—
——An esteemed contemporary
lauds the automobile as an education-
al agent. It certainly is developing
new forms of profanity.
A ————— A A ———————
——We may miss Germany when
she joins the League of Nations but
we will still have Turkey and Mexico
with us on the outside.
I ——— te,
—If we could be granted the wish
that is uppermost the county would
have a gentle rain of about three day’s
duration.
Reasons for Reducing Tariff Taxes.
The new president of the American
Federation of Labor will have public
sympathy behind him in his effort to
influence Congress to abolish or great-
ly reduce the tariff tax on commodi-
ties the producers of which are cut-
ting the wages of employees. The
only appealing reason for protective
tariff tax has been that it guarantees
a high rate of wages. In reducing
the wages of labor in the New Eng-
land cotton factories this claim is re-
futed for the employers of those la-
borers are at present in enjoyment
of the highest rate of tariff taxation
in the history of the country. If un-
der such a rate of tariff taxation the
employers are unable to pay fair
wages protection fails to protect la-
bor.
Reducing the tax levy on incomes
affords comparatively little benefit to
the average citizen and practically
none to the ordinary wage earner.
Under the Mellon plan it would save
$20,000 a year to the man with an in-
come of $100,000 and a family of say
five. The man with an income of $5,-
000 and a wife and three children
would save $26. But the tariff tax on
necessaries of life for his family un-
der the existing law amounts to more
than $150. A cut in the tariff tax
equivalent to the proposed decrease in
the income tax would afford a vastly
greater advantage to the individual
and to a vastly greater number of in-
dividuals. But the Republican admin-
istration is pledged to help the few.
It is conservatively estimated that
ninety-five per cent of the revenue
produced by the income tax goes into
the public treasury and is available to
meet the expenses of the government.
An equally dependable estimate indi-
cates that only about twenty-five per
cent. of the tariff tax reaches the pub-
lic treasury, the rest being divided
among the producers of the taxed
commodities. No good citizen objects
to paying his just share of the ex-
penses of just government. But no
good citizen will tamely submit to ex-
cessive taxation to provide unearned
bounties to men whose only claim is
that they contributed freely to a cam-
paign slush fund. For that reason the
‘public demands tariff tax reduction.
The Governor is winning all
sorts of popular approval now but it’s
a far cry to primary election day next
year.
Women Voters Picnic at Oak Hall.
On Thursday of last week the
League of Women Voters held a meet-
ing on the lawn of Mrs. W. A. Ferree,
at Oak Hall. From forty to fifty per-
sons were present, among them being
several of the candidates seeking the
nomination at the coming primaries,
Mr. J. Kennedy Johnston, Mr. Harry
Keller, Mr. W. Harrison Walker and
Mr. John G. Love.
At 12:30 o’clock a box luncheon was
spread upon the tables provided for
the occasion, the hostess adding de-
licious baked beans and excellent cof-
fee. Every one present appreciated
and enjoyed this part of the program.
After lunch, Mr. Johnston, Mr. Kel-
ler and Mr. Love addressed the
League, commending them for the
work being done by the organization,
especially in trying to get out the
vote. Later in the afternoon Mr.
Walker added his bit by making a
short, spicy address.
After the addresses by candidates
Mrs. Robert M. Beach, chairman,
urged the League to more active
work. Following this was a wide-
awake discussion on the tax question.
Thanking the hostess for her part
in making the day a great success,
the meeting adjourned. Members of
the League present included the fol-
lowing:
Mrs. J. Kennedy Johnston, Mrs.
John G. Love, Mrs. Robert Mills
Beach, Mrs. W. Harrison Walker, Mrs.
Wilson Norris, Mrs. D. R. Foreman,
Mrs. John S. Walker, Mrs. Harry Kel-
ler, Dr. Eloise Meek, Miss Rebecca N.
Rhoads, Miss Mary Blanchard, Miss
Elizabeth B. Meek, Mrs. John Porter
Lyon, Mrs. Gregg Curtin, Mrs. John
G. Love Jr. and Mrs. Roy Wilkinson,
of Bellefonte; Mrs. George C. Hall
and Mrs. Fitts, of Boalsburg; Mrs.
Hogan and Mrs. Fisher, of State Col-
lege; Mrs. Frank Wieland and Miss
Wieland, of Linden Hall, and Mrs.
Charles Thompson, of Lemont.
eee eer eee
——Nobody has tried to swim the
English channel within a week and we
are beginning to think that foolish
ambition is waning.
Now that the oyster’s vaca-
tion is ended it may be predicted that
it will soon be “in the soup.”
iam pon sid
Sauerkraut has been eliminated
but “shredded cabbage” will smell as
strong and taste as good.
its er
Anyway we see no reason for
predicting a war over the French loan
settlement.
198
v. NO. 35.
War Debts and Peace Payments.
From the Philadelphia Record.
It is in the interest of the world’s
peace that the United States insists
on repayment of the war debts.
Chemistry and metallurgy and other
sciences have done a great deal to in-
crease the destructiveness of war, but
finance has done much more. If the
nations can be relieved of a part of
the cost of war they will be more apt
to indulge in it. If they have to pay
all the costs, no matter how long it
takes, they will be a little less ready
to invoke force.
Jeremiah S. Black, the great Penn-
sylvania lawyer and statesman, in
i litigation attacking some of the car-
| pet-bag legislation of Louisiana, de-
scribed public credit in predatory
hands taken from the citizen by taxa-
‘ tion everything he had above his sub-
| sistence and then reaching its long
arm and its greedy claws into the dis-
‘tant future and grasping wealth not
| yet in existence, but to be credited by
i the labor of generations not yet born.
Primitive war destroyed the simple
wealth of primitive men, the food or
weapons or shelter that had cost a few
hours’ labor. In 2 more advanced so-
ciety war destroyed the accumulations
of society. With all the resources of
modern finance at its disposal war
can reach far into the future and de-
stroy the wealth that has not been
created. The grand-sons of the Eng-
lishmen of today will be giving up
their earnings to meet the cost of the
world war.
It is now almost seven years since
fighting ceased, but Englishmen will
go on paying for that war for
another 62 years, at least, and it is
not certain whether Great Britain col-
lectively will have paid individual
‘Britons for their advances by that
time; Englishmen and Scotchmen of
the twenty-first century may be pay-
ing for the world war. i
We. used to be told that another
great war could not occur because the
bankers would not provide the money.
We have found out that nations ean
get along without bankers; the indi-
vidual population can be reached and
their accumulations taken by taxes
the means of a national debt. When
it begins. :
Germany has practically repudiated
its domestic debt, but the victors will
see to it that it pays a good part of
no possibility can Germany pa 1
the costs. The United States and Great
Britain have given financial assist-
ance to all other Allied and Associated
Powers, and the United States lent
its credit to Great Britain itself. If
the creditors were amiable and wiped
the score off the slates the continen-
tal nations would so much the sooner
get rid of their national debts and be
ready to incur new ones. Further-
more, if a good part of their expenses
were defrayed by America and Eng-
land war would seem to them a less
costly luxury than it is. But if all
Europe is collecting money from Ger-
many for the next 45 years and pay-
ing money to the United States for
62 years there will be a universal con-
viction that war must be avoided; ro
nation can afford it.
The bonds representing internation-
al indebtedness incurred in the world
war are bonds to keep the peace.
An Independent Party in Philadelphia.
From the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Under the title of the Freeman's
Party, an independent organization
will take the field at the November
election. Judge Renshaw, marked for
defeat at the primaries by the Vare-
controlled political machine, will be on
it. So will Coroner Patton. To what
extent other positions will be involv-
ed, we do not know.
The only reason why the boss has
ordered this raid upon the bench is
because he wishes to control politic-
ally the Municipal Court. The only
reason why he has decreed that Coro-
ner Patton must go is because he
wants to dominate that office. There
is no attempt at disguise. It is a per-
fectly raw and brazen proposition.
The Vare Dynasty, having again seiz-
ed the city by the throat, must
strengthen its grip at any cost.
We are just wondering if the good
people of Philadelphia are content to
let things go without a serious protest
at the polls. There is plenty of latent
independence, but whether it is inter-
ested sufficiently to take the trouble
to exert itself is quite another matter.
We shall see. The result of the first
day’s registration was anything but
promising. But there are two more
opportunities for advocates of good
government to record themselves.
An Easy Job for Alienists.
From the Clearfield Republican.
These days when the alleged emi-
nent alienists are so plentiful and easy
to hire why not buy up a goodly bunch
to pass upon the mentality of a Chief
Executive of a great Commonwealth
who brings himself to dispense with
the valuable and efficient services of
honest public servants like John W.
Reed on the Public Service Commis-
sion and fill the places with Millers,
Stewarts, Scattergoods and Kings. No
trouble to convince the public upon a
proper finding.
amie erp ee nie
——The primary election is defined
as a medium of the party “to select
the strongest candidate.” That may
have been true once but now it is an
agency for ratifying the choice of the
bosses.
and the earnings of their posterity by y
a war ends the process of paying for.
SPAWLS FROM THE KEYSTONE.
—Mrs. Vanda Batchut and her sever
month's old daughter were killed at Pitts-
burgh when pinned under the wreckage of
a chimney that fell from a house being
razed.
—Bedford countians, on Tuesday cele-
brated the completion of the Loysburg
Gap road with exercises and a parade,
which will likely start a movement looking
towards the completion of the improved
| road from where it now ends to the Hunt-
ingdon county line. }
—Three armed youths held up two mes-
sengers of the East End Savings and Trust
company at the entrance of the Bauer
Brothers Baking company plant in Pitts-
burgh, on Monday, and escaped with a
satchel containing abeut $7,000. The mon-
ey was being delivered for the weekly pay-
roll of the baking plant. -
—Blind and 72 years of age, Miles Lush-
er, of Rockland, Franklin eounty, is be-
lieved to have set a record for a man of
his advanced years and physical handi-
cap, when he tied and shocked 120 bundles
of oats in a period of two hours. A help-
er raked the grain while the blind veteran
bundled and stacked it. .
—James Beatty, of Dickerson Run, Fay-
ette county, claims to have the champion
snake-hunting cat of that section. Three
times within the past several weeks the
cat has taken to the house live snakes,
which were killed by members of the fam-
ily. The first was of the common garden
variety, while the other two were black
snakes.
—John Shadick and Paul Woodling were
arrested near Karthaus, last week, for tak-
ing game fish by an illegal device. The
arrests were made by wardens W. C. Kel-
ly, W. M. J. Davis, William Delanskey and
E. W. Turley. The men were given a hear-
ing at Karthaus and plead guilty to the
charge of taking black bass and brook
trout in violation of the law. They were
fined $30 each.
—While the police were busy investigat-
ing a robbery in the western part of Wil-
liamsport and searching for the thief,
Charles Black, 22 years old, of Baltimore,
who later confessed to the robbery, calm-
ly “registered” with the desk officer and
secured sleeping quarters in the “bums’
hole” conducted by the police for tran-
sients who have no other way of getting
lodging for the night.
—Properties of the Columbia and Mon-
tour Electric Railway company, the Dan-
ville and Bloomsburg Electric Railway
company and the North Branch Transit
company, will be sold at auction on Oc-
tober 15 and 16. The North Branch Tran-
sit company will be sold in Bloomsburg on
the morning of October 15, the Danville
and Bloomsburg company in Danville in
the afternoon, and the Columbia and Mon-
tour company in Harrisburg the next day.
—Fayette county officers are making it
s0 hot for bootleggers and booze runners
that a most unique place for concealing”
liquor has been unearthed. Tipped off.
that moonshine was hidden in the vicinity
of the White Rock cemetery, constables
alter Brown and Charles Wood found.
four gallons of the liquid hidden in a
tombstone. A bronze monument provided
sufficient room to hold the liquor. It had
been moved off the grave a short distance
and this aroused the suspicion of the offi-
cers, : :
—Lawrence E. Sands, president of the
First National bank of Pittsburgh, and his
son, John W. Sands, have identified Ches-
ter B. Miley as one of the two men who
held up their family at their home last
January and demanded $20,000 under threat
of kidnapping the banker's wife. Miley,
who was arrested last week in Amory,
Miss., and taken to Pittsburgh, is said by
the police to have been the man who shot
and wounded the younger Sands when the
latter attempted to escape and give an
alarm.
—A kidnapping theory has been advanc-
ed to explain the disappearance of Laura
Renner, aged 38 years, formerly of Reno-
ve and Lock Haven, who has not been
seen since she mysteriously vanished from
in front of the Quarryville postoffice, in
Lancaster county, several days ago. City
and State police have been notified and
several posses of citizens have been search-
ing in the lower end of Lancaster county
for trace of her. Miss Renner was living
with her brother-in-law, William Boloque,
in Quarryville. :
—Four methods of self-destruction were
used by Mrs. Beulah C. Kemerer, of Al-
lentown, in killing herself on Saturday, a
police investigation revealed. Using three
razors, she is said to have slashed her
wrists, throat and ankles; then to have
taken two kinds of poison, finally placing
an open gas tube in her mouth. The body
was found by her husband. The act was
said to have been due to despondency in-
duced by a protracted illness. A year ago,
police stated, Mrs. Kemmerer attempted to
end her life by shooting herself.
— Francis Xavier Wagman, aged less
than 2 years, and son of Mr. and Mrs.
Claude E. Wagman, of MeSherrystown,
York county, died as the result of burns
received Friday afternoon, when he and an
older brother were playing in the chicken
house with matches which they had ob-
tained and in some manner ignited some
straw. The older boy escaped, but said
nothing, and i* was some time before the
firemen discovered that Francis was still in
the chicken house. The smaller boy had
hidden for protection behind a grindstone
and was dead when found.
—Anpouncement has been made by
Grand Chancellor Boyer that the Knights
of Pythias of central Pennsylvania have
purchased Kinkora at the cove above Har-
risburg, where a Pythian orphanage and
eventually a home for aged will be estab-
lished. Kinkora contains 2,700 acres with
a stone mansion, with twenty-one rooms
and five bath rooms. It is surrounded by
a seven acre lawn. There is also a large
bank barn, farm house and several other
buildings. The price paid was $55,000.
The orphanage will be maintained by the
lodges within 100 miles of Kinkora.
—Because, he says, a gypsy fortune tell-
er predicted his death within five days,
Frank Oprzalka, aged 54 years, of Johns-
town, decided it was useless to combat the
inevitable and was slowly starving to death
when police were notified last week and
removed the man to the Memorial hospital,
where he is now slightly improved. Neigh-
bors notified a patrolman that Oprzalka
had refused to eat since the gypsy predict-
ed his death and that he was wrecking his
home. The police found that he had brok-
en furniture and some of the plumbing fix-
tures. He was extremely weak when re-
moved to the hospital, where more than
$1,500 in cash was found on his person.
The police are trying to locate the for-
tune teller.