6
HARRISBURG TELEGRAPH
A NEWSPAPER FOR THE HOME
Founded 1831
Published evenings except Sunday by
THE TELEGRAPH PRINTING CO.
Telesraph Building, Federal Square
E. J. STACKPOLE
President and Editor-in-Chief
F. R. OYSTER, Buaineaa Manager
OUS. M. STKINMETZ, Managing Editor
A. R. MICHENER, Circulation Manager
Executive Hoard
I. P. McCULLOUGH,
BOYD M. OGLESBY,
F. R. OYSTER,
OUS, M. STEINMETZ.
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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER fi, 1019
The devil ncrlcr tempted a man whom
he found judiciously employed. —Spur
ycon.
CITY AND STATE
ONE of the gratifying features
of tho co-operation of the city
authorities and State officials
in the development of the Capitol
Park plans is the fact that while
the big problems are being worked
out by the experts engaged by the
Board of Public Grounds and Build
ings, the proper officials of the city
have been on the Job and ready to
proceed with the undertaking inso
far as it relates to the city's part
of the improvement. City Commis
sioner Lynch, the superintendent of
Public Works, personally Introduc
ed in the City Coneil the ordinances
which were passed months ago au
thorizing tho widening of both Wal
nut and Third streets along the
park. These streets are going
to add materially to the general
setting of the State grounds and the
extension of the width of each street
to forty-eight feet in tho clear will
greatly relieve the Increasing con
gestion of the central business dis
trict. A sidewalk on the west side
of Third street between Locust and
North of sixteen feet and a side
walk of similar width on the south
side of Walnut street between Third
and Fourth will provide for the
pedestrian traffio that is bound to
increase with the important de
velopments In the neighborhood of
the Capitol.
Governor Sproul and his asso
ciates on the Board of Public
Grounds and Buildings are more
than pleased with the promptness
of the city authorities, in providing
for the improvements that have
been outlined by the State and city
jointly. As a matter of fact, Hur- j
risburg has manifested a consist
ent desire to do everything possible
In harmonious co-operation with
the officials of the State to make
of this city an attractive seat for the
government of the Commonwealth.
The enterprise and vision of the
authorities on Capitol Hill have
been met at every turn with a for
ward-looking program on the part
of the city. This is as it should
be and all our citizens are back of
their ofHcials in the constructive at
titude toward the State.
Harrisburg is being gradually
hedged about with farm expositions
through community co-operation.
These small affairs are indicative of
the desire of the farming interests
to develop the most modern and
scientific fairs for the upbuilding of
that important industry. One such
exposition held near Hummelstown
this week is an example for other
communities, and eventually these
must result in a great combination
State fair in Harrisburg, which will
still further educate those who till
the soil in tho most up-to-date
methods. ,
NOT TO RE FOOLED
SO THE radical wing of the
Socialist party hesitated to call
itself the Communist party and
declined, for the present, to add a
torch to its insignia because "it
didn't want to alienate the sym
pathies of the working men of
America, without which it could not
hope to succeed." This is interest
ing information indeed. After it
had safely corralled the "labor
rote" of the country and was pre
pared to overturn the Government,
then it would be ready to take on
the uniform of the terrorist, fly tho
red flag and put the torch on Its
standard, but not before. The
working people were to be fooled
Into supporting a party designed to
destroy the United States.
What a pack of ignorant fools
these Communists are. This is not
Europe. The working people of tho
"United States are tho back-bone of
the country and there is no such
thing as a "labor vote" here, nor
a "capitalist vote" either, for that
matter. Men in this county are
educated. The little red school
house has attended to that. And
they vote according to their in-
SATURDAY EVENING, HXRPasßtmo oSP&L TELEGRXPH SEPTEMBER 6, 1919.
dividual views. They are the most
difficult people to fool in all the
world and they will laugh In their
sleeves at this nonsensical talk from
Chicago about making Communists
of them all and then leading them
forth to destroy tho country that
affords them the best home and the
greatest opportunities of any on
earth.
ONE PHASE OF IT
MAJOR GENERAL ATTER
BURY talked vigorously and
without reserve at a "welcome
home" celebration the other day.
This railroad leader of vision and
experience is entitled to speak on
such an occasion. At an age when
many men are thinking of retiring,
he volunteered for service in France,
and was sent abroad to undertake
the herculean task of organizing a
railroad system capable of handling
3,000,000 men, supplies and equip
ment, with a prospect of doubling
those numbers if the war had kept
up. So he earned his right to speak
on the war and its effects, for few
men have had such opportunities
for observation.
General Atterbury deals not in
theories but in cold facts. Read
what ho says about the reduced pro
duction of labor on the Pennsylvania
system:
I have figures as it affects
shops like Renovo, on the Penn
sylvania lines. Prior to our en r
trance into the war you were oh
a piece work basis, as well as
working on a ten-hour day. When
the government took over our
railroad piece work was stopped.
The output per man per hour fell
from 100 per cent, to seventy-five
per cent. The shops were put on
aii eight-hour basis. This cut tho
output an additional fifteen per
cent., so the output per man per
day in our shops is but sixty per
cent, of what it was before we ,
entered the war. In other words, |
it takes ten men to-day to do
what six men did before the war.
Now, tho Pennsylvania Railroad
to-day has in its employ 168,893
persons, as against 147,718 before
we went into the war, or an in
crease of over fourteen per cent.
At the same time the traffic
units fell from 16,800.000.000 to
16,000,000.000 —or a reduction of
eleven pep cent, in the business:
fourteen per cent, more men did
eleven per cent, less work. Or,
expressing it in a little way, it
took vj 27 men in 1919 to do the
work of 100 men in 1917.
What we manufacture is ton
nage, and tonnage per man em
ployed has fallen off, notwith
standing the continued introduc
tion of heavy locomotives and
other instruments of increased
efficiency.
In the periods corresponding
to tlip number of employes I have
just given you, the average num
ber of traffic units per employe
has fallen from 113,932 to 89,308.
In the early part of 1917 we
were on a ten-hour basis. During
1919 we have been on an eight
hour basis. A twenty per cent,
reduction in time alone, had we
worked with exactly the same
effort that we did in 1917. would
have moved in an eight-hour day
91.146 units. As a matter of fact,
ns I have already shown you, there
was moved only 89.308 units. The
advocates of the eight-hour day
claimed an increase in efficiency.
In reality the results proved Just
the opposite—that there has been
a reduction in efficiency.
At the same time, the condition
of the power is getting worse and
worse, had order oars are increas
ing and the roadbed all over the
system is suffering from lack of
the ordinary maintenance and the
introduction of sufficient new rails
and ties. _ e t'
Po far as transportation affects
the high cost of living, therefore,
we have this situation: An in
creased number of employes, who
produce not only less transporta
tion per man. hut also per man
hour, of n. relatively low charac
ter, reacting on the general situa
tion. These additional men ne
cessarily have reduced the number
of men who otherwise would he
available for the production of
essentials other than transporta
tion—consuming more and pro
ducing less.
Thin would he alarming enough If
it applied to railroads alone, but de
creased production has entered into
even- branch of industry. No rea
sonable man expects workmen to go
hack to a pre-war wage basis, and
it would make no difference if he
did. Wages are high and will re
main high, but production is far be-'
low the normal output and it must
bo increased If prices are to come
down. It Is impossible to manu
facture goods cheaply or to operate
a train economically if workmen do
not do a full day's work for a full
day's pay. This is only one phase
of the high cost of living problem,
but it is of vital importance.
FARM TO MARKET
UNQUESTIONABLY one of the
biggest factors In the high cost
of living is our defective
method of distribution. Every ounce
of farm produce that goes to waste
because, for one reason or another,
it cannot find Its way to market adds
just that much to the high cost
of living. We condemn the farmer
for letting his goods perish rather
than bring them to the city and
sell them for low prices, but some
times he has no remedy. Often
he cannot bring them to market
and sell them at a profit, so he lets
them rot. He must have a profit
if he is to live.
Therefore, It is apparent that if we
solve the difficult problem of trans
portation from farm to consumer, we
have gone a long way toward re
storing prices by using up all the
crops produced, thereby keeping the
supply and the demand more nearly
equal.
A big step will have been taken
in this direction if Governor Sproul
is able to work out the system of
motor truck transportation from the
producer to the consumer which he
has proposed. The railroads cannot
handle the local business the farmer
offers, but the farmer could afford
to sell reasonably to the truck driver
who would call at his home regu
larly to relievo him of the time and
cost of transporting his wares to
market. Much can be exppcted if
the State can be districted from
border to border for the operation
of motor trucks taking the place of
the old-time slow going huckster
who used to buy up the wares of
the farmers for miles around and
then peddle them out to customers
in town. Modern methods can im
prove that form of service, which
before it went out of practice was
of vast benefit to the consumer and
the farmer alike.
£lt
r the Ex-Committeeman J
Interest In the final registration
In Philadelphia to-day, the opening
of registration in Pittsburgh, Thurs
day. and the general registration
situation in the third-class cities,
which all show increases, has
somewhat detracted from the re
markable scries of political battles
being waged in judicial districts of
the State. There are several which
in an ordinary year would be given
daily reviews, but which are now
scarcely being noticed by the State
at large.
The Philadelphia mayoralty and
first couneilmunic contest under the
new charter, the struggle against
the Leslic-Babcock ticket in
Allegheny county and the mayoralty
and councilmanic battles in Read
ing, Altoona, Erie, Allentown and
other cities arc winning some notice
because of the ardent variety of
politics being played. Hut some of
the judicial battles are fully as im
portant.
—Philadelphia has several con
tests for judge, two appointees be
ing fought. Judge Eugene C. Bon
niwell, Democratic candidate for
Governor last year, is a candidate
for judge this time. In Allegheny
county it looks as though all sciven
of the candidates for the Ave com
mon pleas court places would gtr
on the final ballot. Three nvfen ap
pointed to tho bench are candidates.
H. Walton Mitchell, appointed or
phans' court judge, is assured of
winning his place and so > K T. C.
Jones, of the county court. Senator
Charles H. Kline, Henry G. Wasson
and Stephen Stone, common pleas
benches, all have to fight.
—ln Washington county there
are four pretty ev.enly balanced
candidates for orphans' court judge
with Judge J. I. Brownson, of com
mon pleas, an appointee, unopposed
for election for the full term. In
Westmoreland, Judge D. J. Snyder,
a Brumbaugh appointee, is being
pressed by his rival for the appoint-,
ment. Judge C. D. Copeland. of the
orphans' court bench, with the
most singular line-up of old leaders
known in tho county in years. Cope
land is the Democratic loader of
the county and men like Ex-State
Treasurer James S. Beacom are
hacking him.
—Judges G. A. Endlish and G.
W. Wagner of Berks, and Aaron I.
Hassler, of Lancaster, are not op
posed, and Judge John M. Garman,
of Luzerne, might as well not have
any opposition.
—A judicial contest which is of
nbsorhing interest is being waged in
the Perry-Juniata district where
Judge J. N. Keller, of Mifflintown,
appointed by Governor Brumbaugh
to succeed the late Judge W. N.
Seibert, is being hard pressed by
James M. Barnett, the New Bloom
field attorney. The liquor issue is
out of this district now and it is a
case of personality and organiza
tion of the friends of the candidates.
Owing to the activity of various
Democratic officeholders in the dis
trict considerable resentment was
caused and this has had the effect
of strengthening Mr. Burnett. The
friends of the Perry county man
claim that he will be the next judge.
Certainly he now has a strong com
mittee behind him.
—James W. Leech, former com
pensation commissioner, is fighting
Judge S. L. Reed, appointed to the
orphans' court, with D. L. Pardons,
of Johnstown, also in the field and
In Somerset, where Judge F. J.
Kooser, an appointee, is not a can
didate for election, there are four
candidates, John A. Berkey, ex
banking commissioner, and Norman
T. Boose, a noted "dry." being the
leaders. Judge J. J. O'Neill, of
Lackawanna, is being opposed by
District Attorney G. W. Maxey and
W. R. Lewis. For the new com
mon picas place in Lehigh, for
which the Governor did not have
to make an appointment. Senator
H. W. Sehantz, Congressman A. G.
DeWalt and Ex-Senator M. A. Hen
ninger are "candidating" as only
men do in Lehigh. Judge Mac-
Henry Wilhelm, of Schuylkill, is be
ing opposed by Ex-Representative
John E. Sones and M. A. Kilker.
—And in addition to all this
there are fourteen associate judges
to be elected in the less populous
counties.
—Verily, this Is some political
year in Pennsylvania.
—Judge William H. Keller, of
the Superior Court, has the field all
to himself for election to the full
term. At the same time committees
of lawyers are working in his in
terest in every county.
—Next year Pennsylvania will
elect an auditor general, State treas
urer and a Supreme Court judge or
two as well as all Its congressmen,
twenty-five senators and all the rep
resentatives.
—Election of a successor to Albert
L. Allen as assistant manager of the
State Workmen's Insurance Fund
which is expected to take place in
the next week or so is a very pro
lific source of discussion at the State
Capitol. W. W. Green, who has
been connected with the New Jer
sey State Fund for some time, is
said to have been seriously con
sidered and to have had an inter
view with Insurance Commissioner
Thomas B. Donaldson. The names
of F. E, Bcdale, who is in charge
of some of the coal rating work of
the State fund and located at
Greensburg, and Captain F. I. De-
Haven, now in the United States
Army, are two men connected with
the Pennsylvania fund who have
been talked of.
—Considerable recommendation
of Seth E. Gordon, assistant secre
tary of the State Game Commission
for several years, to succeed the
late Dr. Joseph Kalbfus, secretary
of tho commission for a long time,
is being heard of. Mr. Gordon lives
in Paxtang and has been urged by
a number of prominent men because
of familiarity with the work of the
commission and the plans for the
new reserves and other activities.
—George Baker, prominent in
Republican affairs in Adams coun
ty for years, is mentioned as a pos
sible deputy superintendent of pub
lic printing and binding in which
department it is expected that there
will be a number of changes .made
this fall.
—Jolin O'Donnell, of Pittsburgh,
said to have been prominent In the
polities of that city for years, is no
longer connected with the State
Workmen's Insurance Fund. He
was employed several months ago
as a claim adjuster and is said to
Jiave been recommended by friends
of Senator Max O. Leslie, of Pitts
burgh, hut according to men at the
offices of the fund he was hard to
find. Occasionally O'Donnell visited
the office at Pittsburgh, it is said
here, but the only regularity in State
service that he seems to have mani
i fested was when the payroll was
made up.
THAT GUILTIEST FEELING By BRIGGS
— T _ —J . ijmpmiriu.iiu- . .
f """" *\ f GET THE LOOK YHES TRVJIOSV
I HOWEST JUDSE I \ ) OF PTSAPPOTNTMEMT\TO CONVINCE
I VUOULDM'T HAVJE HAJ> J FRRED ' S PAC( Y THE JUDGE I
/(1 , if J T / THAT HAPPEN FOR / L^T. RI T E /
tfiAfeu
No Wonder Germany Quit
By MAJOR FRANK O. MAIHN
Of the Army Recruiting Station
, "The tank, more than any other ,
•weapon born of the great war," said
Major Frank C. Mahin, of the
Army Recruiting Station, 32 5 Mar- j
ket street, Harrisburg, "may be
called the joint enterprise of the
three principal powers arrayed
against Germany America.
France, and Great Britain. An
American produced the fundamen
tal invention, the caterpillar trac
tion device, which enables the fort
ress to move. A Frenchman took
the idea from this and evolved the
tank as an engine of war. The
British first used the terrifying
monster in actual fighting. There
is a common impression through
out America that the British Army
invented the tank. The impression
is wrong in two ways. The French
government has recently awarded
the ribbon on the Region of Honor
to the French ordnance officer who
is officially hailed as the tank's in
ventor. His right to the honor, how
ever, is disputed by a French civil
ian who possesses an impressive
exhibition of drawings to prove that
he and not the officer is the invent
or. As this is written a lively
controversy over the point is in
progress in France. Wherever the
credit for the invention belongs, the
French were first to build tanks,
building them only experimentally,
however, and not using them until
after the British had demonstrated
their effectiveness. In the second
place, it was not the British Army
which adopted them iirst in Eng
land, but the British Navy. The 1
tank as an idea shared the experi
ence of many other war inventions
in being skeptically received by the
conservative experts. The British
Navy, indeed, produced the first ones
in England; but to the British Army
goes the glory of having first used
them in actual lighting and of es
tablishing them in the forefont of
modern offensive weapons. Brought
forth as a surprise, the tanks made
an effective debut in the great Brit
ish drive for Cambrai. Later tho
enemy affected to scoff at their use
fulness. The closing months of the
tanks' brief history, however, found
them in greater favor than ever.
Up to the beginning of the summer
of 1917 there was little accurate in
formation in this country regard
ing the tanks. Somewhat hazy des
cription had come from Europe,
but about all that was known here
was that the machines should be
able to cross trenches about 6 feet
wide, that each should carry one
heavy gun and two or three ma
chine guns, and that their protec
tion should consist of armor plate
about five-eighths of an inch thick.
In September, 1917, decision had
been made to supply the American
Army with two types of tanks —
one the large size, typical of that
used by the British and capable of
containing a dozen men, and the
other a smaller one patterned after
the French two-man model and
known as the Renault. The deci
sion to equip the American forces in
Europe with tanks of two sizes was
made only after thorough confer
ences. The large British tank had
been successful, but its limitations,
recognized by British authorities,
caused our officers to think it best
to redesign in preference to copy
ing. In the manufacture of the
armor built for the Renault type
of tank, the French made no at
tempt to adhere to simple shapes,
and a new source of supply for this
armor had to be developed. Dur
ing the summer and fall'of 1918
our tank program had beerv aug
mented by the. development of two
entirely new types of tanks. One
was a two-man tank weighing 3
tons, built by the Ford Motor Co.,
costing about 84,000. This tank,
mounting one machine gun, has a
speed of about 8 miles an hour, and
was to have been turned out at the
rate of 100 a day. Tho other tank
developed was a successor to the
Renault, designed for production in
great volume. This tank was to
carry three men, instead of two;
and mount two guns, one a machine
gun, and the other a 37 mm. gun.
Cost of production of this machine
would have been much less than the
Renault; its weight would be about,
the same; and its fighting power
greater. Altogether an outlay of
about $17tt,000,000 was proposed In
the tank program. We had ordered
23,405 tanks of several different
types; and a large majority of these
would have been ready for use by
March of 1920. The Boche had
I' had unpleasant acquaintance with
Allied tanks; and these -jvero rela
tively few in number us compared
with the number expected. The
V
Cardinal Mertier's
Visit to America
By J. Olin Howe In Boston Transcript.
The Rev. Dr. Peter Joseph de
Strycker is here as the personal
representative of Cardinal Mer
cier, arranging for the visit of
the latter to the United States
this month.
While the King and Queen of
Belgium are coming to this
country soon, Cardinal Mercicr
will be the first Belgian of pro
minence in the war to visit
America. The Cardinal comes
first to New York and will then
visit other American cities, go
ing through to the Pacific coast
if he can arrange his affairs at
home so as to be away for a long
enough time to make this feas
ible. His first thought will be
to visit his colleagues in the Col
lege of Cardinals, and inasmuch
as Cardinal Gibbons is the
senior American Cardinal, Car
dinal Mercier may go first to
Baltimore. If that be the case,
he will next visit Cardinal
O'Donnell, and Boston will have
its opportunity to see the simple,
kindly, quiet man who became
a world llgure over night by
carrying out his pastoral duty
without regard to what might
come of it.
I FOUND Doctor de Strycker at
the office of the Belgian Bureau,
far over towurd the Hudson ]
river in Forty-seventh street, and
the humidity of a sticky August
forenoon seemed not to have af
fected him, despite the climatic dif
ferences between Louvuin and New
York. As he told me of the plans
for Cardinal Mercier's stay in this
country Doctor de Strycker's eyes
lightened and he had a word to say
about the pleasure of his task be
cause of the almost affectionate
interest Americans have in the Bel
gian Cardinal.
"You may not have realized how
Cardinal Mercier's stand fired the
imagination of Americans," I said.
"This is the land of liberty and no
thing takes hold of us more quick
ly or wins sympathy and appreci
ation more readily than action such ]
as his."
No Thought of Acclaim
But he didn't do it for that," re
plied the Belgian. "There was no ]
thought of popular approval in Car
dinal Mercier's mind when ho issued
those pastorial letters. Nor, pri- j
marily, was he intent on defying!
the Germans. It was with him
simply a matter of duty. It is a part >
of his daily task to aid his people i
in an hour of need with any words]
that may be helpful to them. Suf- i
ferlng and affiiction lay heavy on all ]
Belgium and his was the duly to]
lighten it if he could. He did his!
best to do it, and I need hardly tell '
you of the comfort and fresh cour-1
age Belgians took from what ho i
wrote.
"He is a philosopher, one of the I
great philosophers of his age. His ]
is a wonderful mind and he has de-i
veloped his intellect so that it has'
many sides. No subject under the i
sun but he has some familiarity j
with. He has made it a point to!
gain tho widest possible range cfj
information nnd store it awayi
against occasion when he might re-1
quire it.
"His conception of the science of i
sound and that fact is well known
in Belgium.
"Even King Albert has been
known to discuss public affairs with
the Cardinn'—unofficially, of course,
for tho latter holds no official po
prospect of a collossnl drive hordes
of Americans, countless automatic
weapons, and a veritable tide of
| tanks, was enough to make Ger
| many quit."
Bargains in Islands
; [From the Cleve'and Plain Dealer.]
Not for their intrinsic value did
the United States buy the Danish
West Indies. Not because Denmark
was tired of bothering with them
and wished to unload did America
come to her relief.
We paid $25,000,000 for St.
Thomaß, St. John and Santa Cruz
because we desired and needed an
outer protection for the Panama
Canal. Having bought the three is
lands the United States is less than !
luke warm about acquiring any
more. West Indian islands are not]
sition in relation to our government, j
But the King is so well aware of the I
thoroughness of his knowledge and I
the keen perception he brings to [
bear on matters of current secular
interest that he finds it very pleas
ant to spend a quiet hour going over
many things with hi 3 elder friend.
I do not mean that he seeks advice.
That would hardly be' expected. Nor
that Cardinal Mercicr ever offers it.
"So when the Germans came to
Belgium Cardinal Mercier was well
prepared. He knew international
law l'ully as well as they did and
was as familiar with tho rules of
warfare among civilized nations. He
knew his rights and was determined
that they should not disregard thein.
There was nothing in the law of no
tions which forbid his issuing the
pastoral letters which he desired his
people to read and was not bound
to regard and regulations which
the German governing authority
might make on that point.
Tho Cardinal Defied the Germans ;
"The first letter on patriotism and j
endurance was issued without pre-]
liminary announcement and by the'
time the Germans saw it much ofl
Belgium was familiar with it, so that'
the situation was clear to everybody. I
The German officers soon came toj
see the Cardinal and expressed sur- <
prise that he had issued any such]
letter without informing them, but!
were willing to assume that he did
not know how offensive was his
action. They felt that they could
perhaps afford to let the offense go
for the time, but of course he would
not transgress again,
i "'I agree to nothing of the kind,'
rep'ied Cardinal Mercier. 'I am
fully familiar with international law
[and my rights under it and just
, how far you can go in governing
I territory which you claim to have
j conquered and where you must stop,
i You have no authority under which
you may interfere with me in this.
Your jurisdiction does not cover the
pastoral advices of the church. Do
not understand that I have sent out
this letter because of any misap
prehension on my part. I am under
no misapprehension. I have the
most perfect right to do what I have
done. More, it is my duty, and I
shall do it again if I find occasion.
; " 'lf there is unfamlliarity with
! the lnw, it is on your part,' said tho
Cardinal, 'not on mine. You can
not interfere between a pastor and
j his flock. Do not take it that I
! have erred at all. It is you who arc
;in error. I make you no pledges
ins to the future, and shall do my
! duty as I see it, having due respeet|
;for constitutional authority, but giv
i ing no uttention to any assumption
of power which you do not possess."
1 Doctor de Strycker discussed the
j Cardinal'* second letter, the suffer
,ings of Belgium and the outcome
of the war. Then the conversation
I took a new turn.
j He concluded: "Germany of to
iday feels differently townrd the rest
'of the world than before 1914.
"Her people know they failed in
i their effort to dominate the world
land they are not sure this could
j ever be accomplished. For the pre-
I sent, anyway, It is not so much in
I their thoughts as Is getting hack into
| the good graces of tho rest of
Ihnmnnity. The Germans are a
proud nnd sensitive people and it
cuts them terribly to feel that they
are despised and even hated by the
other peoples of tho earth. They
will. I think, do everything in their
'power to change that."
as a rule, profltab'e Investments.
The report from London that
Great Britain would gladly give tho
United States some or all of her
West Indies as part payment of the
British debt is neither preposterous
nor incredible. It 'osts money for
Britain to own and administer the
islands.
They are of no strategic vulue
now that the United States has the
Panama Canal and the Virgin Is
lands. If Great Britain could trade
in a batch of Indies for a hundred
dollars or so it would be a good
stroke of business.
It is not likely that the islanders
would object to the transfer of nl
'egiance. There Is. indeed, a fac
tion on some of the islands that
openly favors American annexation.
The only interested party likeiv
to make objection is the ' United
States. The American republic has
negligible Imperial ambitions, and
acquiring islands does not appeal to
the American fancy.
Halt the Profiteering
[From the Scranton Republican.!
First in the program of recon
struction which demands the earn
est attention of the American peo
ple, is the reduction of the neces
saries of life. The high cost of liv
ing is the main cause of the pre
valent anxiety and unrest, and the
solution of this problem must pre
cede the settlement of the many
other questions that are agitating the
public mind.
The men in control of supplies
must realize that war prices for the
essential commodities cannot con
tinue in a time of peace. They
should address themselves to a com
mon sense readjustment of values
on a pie-war plan, so that industry
and commerce may be relieved and
the. purchasing power of the dollar
restored to something like what it
was before this country entered the
world conflict.
The increased cost of living makes
for other increased demands, and
those in turn add to the price of pro
duction, and the addition of a fur
ther price increase for supplies,
making a circle which shows no
limit. It is evident, therefore, that
prices must come down in order to
restore normal conditions and sta
bilize industrial enterprise.
In an address delivered a flaw
days ago at Niagara Fails by Isaac
Newton Stevens, president of the
Commonwealth Casualty Company,
he reviewed the prevailing economic
unrest in broad terms, tine of his
practical suggestions was that prof
iteering should be dealt with in the
same manner as usury. He says,
"there is no reason why the man
who loans you money, at usurious
rates, should go to jail, while the
man who takes it away from you at
four times usurious rates for the
necessaries of life should be regard
ed as a social or moral or political
leader and go unpunished."
After discussing the subject from
various angles Mr. Stevens says: "If
we are to expect the conquest of the
world, commercially and spiritually,
we must conquer greed and extrava
gance and lack of system in our own
transactions." The first duty is to
cut out profiteering and reduce the
cost of living to a reasonable basis.
Shall Prices Be Pushed Up?
[From Kansas City Star.]
It is self evident, as the President
said, that to meet the wage demands
of the railroad shopworkers would
entail an increase in the price cf
transportation that would at once
be added to the cost of livlhg. In
the same way a 6-hour day for the
anthracite miners with an advance
of 60 per cent, in wages would in
crease the price of coal which would
increase the cost of transportation
and of manufacturing.
Sometime, of course, the race be
tween wages and the cost of living
has got to stop. There are just two
ways for such an outcome to be
brought about. It will come as the i
I resui t of that sober thinking to '
which the President hus appealed.
Or else it will come with a jolt.
People will bo unable to puy the
high prices, the demand will fall
off and factories will be obliged to
close, throwing men out of work.
Such an outcome is to be avoided
at ail hazards, if possible.
But it can be avoided only if the
Nation as a whole is willing to ac
cept the alternative and meet the
high cost of living by increasing pro
duction.
Europe's Pie
Uncle Sam, don't linger,
Hear the warning cry;
Do not poke your finger
Into Europe's pie.
It will make you tremble,
Cause you pain and aches;
It does not resemble
Those that mother makes.
Strongly upper crusted,
Bottom sad to see,
It cannot be trusted
Not to disagree.
Stop the fuss and fidget,
.Bide at home for aye;
Keep your trigger digit
Out of Europe's pie.
—McLandburgh Wilson.
Old Missouri Houn' Dawg
! [From the De Ivulb County Herald.]
Rex, the Bunton greyhound, is
j dead at about 18 years of age. ile
lias been a rare, bony, historic, long,
lean, lank and hungry looking fig
ure around tills town a long time.
E. A. Bunton, owner of the dog,
brought him here years ago and he
is the last survivor of the mighty
string of hounds Mr. Bunton once
owned in this community. When
:Mr Bunton was asked about the
i outstanding qualities of the departed
I Ilex he said: "Oh, by grab, lie was
1 just a friend to everybody."
1
iaiming Cljat j
"From I have learned the
fishermen of Eastern Pennsylvania
have not wanted for good bass list
ing this summer and in some locali
ties it has been exceptionally fine,"
said Commissioner of Fisheries Na
than R. Buller to-day. The Com
missioner has returned from a tour
of northern counties and along tlio
Delaware river. "We have been
placing bass in a number of streams
the last few years and 1 wanted to
see how the fishing developed," said
the Commissioner, "and everywhere
1 received gratifying reports. The
fishing oh the Delaware has been
good and the whole Susquehanna,
basin has had pretty fair bass fish
ing. Of course, there are some
places where there has been poor
fishing, but as a general proposition
the bass have been found and have —'
furnished excellent sport. The plans
of the department contemplate a
distribution of bass from the hatch
erics this fall and we intend to
make the supply go as far as pos
sible, although the demands have
been very great."
Secretary of Agriculture Frederik
Rasntussen intends to ask the Statu
Welfare Commission at its coming
conference on various lines of spe
cial activity brought about by the
effort to reduce living costs to have
a survey made of the marketing fa
cilities in every city. "There aro *
various cities and boroughs where
there are market houses and some
places where there are none; other
towns where curb markets are flour
ishing and some where such mar
kets could be located advantageous
ly," said he. "My idea is to find out
just what facilities exist for market
ing. As far as I know this infoi
mation has never heen gathered for
the whole State and it may show
us something worth knowing. At
the same time we could seo just how
proximity to farming -and truck
gardening districts affects market
ing. I have Harrisburg, Lancaster
and some other cities in mind tv*.
ideal places for the survey."
Who is boss of the Capitol Park
extension territory embraced in-tiio
streets, lanes and alleys of the. twen
ty or thirty blocks bought by the
Commonwealth is a question which
is agitating the Capitol. The Stain
has torn down all the houses and
ripped up some of the paving anil
sidewalks from streets and also
taken a couple of blocks for a park
for trucks for the State Highway
Department. It has also roped off
what used to be Cowden street, from
State to North. The other day a
policeman, representing the fr.e
City of Harisburg, undertook to pass
through the roped section. A State
watchman "fliArged" him. The po
liceman was indignant, but the Stale
officer said that no one was to go
near the parked cars. The polio. -
man went up the old highway, any
way. The State man complained.
Who wins?
The nature lover has asked if we
know that the big oak trees at his
toric Paxton Church are the largest
and oldest living things in this sec
tion? Their diameter and girth
prove their age to exceed a round
century possibly two centuries.
Their very presence to-day com
mands the silence due to war ships!
And what interesting and quaint
tales they could tell, if blessed with
the power of human tongues! The
tombs of our ancestors under the
shadows of the monster trees speak
louder than words. Truly, it is
emblematic of the Great King and
His Kingdom. This locality must
have been a tree elysium. East of
old Linglestown, near the public
highway, stands a sturdy, massive
sycamore tree which measures 30
feet in circumference, or nearly 10
feet in diameter. Although self
planted. at least 100 years ago, it
selected a most favorable spot. Its
branches are 3 feet in diameter,
and reach outwards nearly 100 feet.
Within 300 feet of the ancient mon
arch, repose tye remains of an In
dian. The owner of the farm dis
covered the grave while digging
postholes, but would not disturb
the body. The tree stands alone in
a cornfield, as a silent monitor.
• •
"Do you know that some people
never have really good eating po
tatoes?" was an interrogation pro
pounded to me by a former well
known ex-official of the Pennsyl
vania Department of Agriculture.
"Let me tell you the reason: Pota
toes handled by large commission
firms are usually shipped in carload
lots, in bulk. Tt requires from 10
to 20 loads to till a car. In many
instances potatoes from at least
four to a dozen kinds of soil, and of
as many different varities are load
ed and mixed in one car. How do
such potatoes cook? Some will
cook in 20 minutes: some, in thirty;
some in forty; and some never so
you can eat them with a relish. The
good, old-style, dry, floury and pal
atable potato too often is missing
from our table. Even though you
pav your grocer a fancy price, it
w'll not Insure a fancy flavor.
While the average housewife may
know the wonderful difference in
the oualitv and flavor of various
varieties of apples, she is slow to
discriminate in the selection of a
table necessity that is used daily.
Excellence of quality has given the
Berks-Lehigh potato growing belt,
a Notional reputation. At the great
Allentown fair, the growers usually
enter over 500 baskets for competi
tion."
[ WaL KNOWN PEOPLE
Colonel J. P. Kerr, one of the
candidates for County Commissioner
in Allegheny county, is making
speeches nightly in his old-time
—Congressman E. R. Kiess, of the
Williamsport district, is making a
tour of the farmers' picnics in his
section.
—Colonel W. D. Uhler. chief en
gineer of the Stato Highway De
partment, has been covering over 200
miles a day inspecting roads.
—Senator William E. Crow, who
has been ill. is recuperating at his
farm near Uniontown.
—General W. G. Price, the new
commander of the National Guard,
has been visiting western counties
to view the situation.
| DO YOU KNOW
—That Harrlshurg building
regulations have been copied
by a number of cities?
HISTORIC lIARRISBURG
—Eor over seventy-five years stage
coaches hud headquarters at the
north end of Market Square.