Indianapolis Times, Volume 38, Number 331, Indianapolis, Marion County, 29 April 1927 — Page 6

PAGE 6

The Indianapolis Times ROY W. HOWARD. President. BOYD GURLEY, Editor. WM. A. MAYBORN. Bus. Mgr. Member of tbe Scripps-Howard Newspaper Alliance * * * Client of the United Press and the NEA bervice * * * Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Published daily except Sunday by Indianapolis Time* Publishing Cos., 214-220 W. Maryland St., Indianapolis • * * Subscription Rates: Indianapolis—Ten Cents a Week. Elsewhere-Twelve Cents a Week • * PHONE—MA in 3500.

\aw shall be passed restraining the freeinterchange of thought and opinion, or restricting right to speak, write or print freely, on any subject whatever.—Constitution of Indiana.

■l* THERE’S A REASON Announcement that the Chamber of Commerce ■ill take a look at the proposal to spend several ■illions of dollars of the people’s money by the preslt city administration will be more than welcome those who pay the money. ■ Tbe plea of improvements is popular, always. there should always be improvements. No can grow without them. I Fine streets and well kept streets are a sign of and faith in the city and its future. ■ The building of a great coliseum would unHubtedly draw many visitors to this city, and cities Pe to some extent upon the men who come from places, to spend, to invest, to purchase. I But experience in many cities has shown there times to spend money and that it is best spent Hien there is complete confidence in the wisdom Id other qualifications of those who plan and spend. I The coliseum project, for example, meritorious I it may he, is one which will require unusual SSrutiny. ■The law provides for alternative plans for its conand operation. The sudden change of by the mayor as to the better of the two immediately after he had ousted one board ■ public works and replaced it with a membership |om his close personal and business associates Rould at least be a signal for examination, discus■on and reason. W If the mayor was ill advised in his first position, It is just possible that his reversal may be equally ■erroneous. Among the needed projects under contemplation, B one that will run into millions of expense, is |t of flood prevention. The board of public works which was uncereKniously cast aside had appraised the value of Bds which must be used for this purpose. It was lout half the cost of a former appraisal made for He present city engineer who was put into office Ist before the board of works which made that appraisal went out of power. I Upon this the advice and counsel of a business Hganization such as the Chamber of Commerce |ay be valuable. [ Street improvement projects under contemplaIsn mean more millions. If the city is ready to Hend this money at this time, it wishes of course |li be assured that the improvements are made |ider a business administration. Perhaps the new Hard of public works is better able to drive bargains H|h contractors than was the old one. The Charnel committee may be able to find out. Os course, the appointment of the Chamber Immittee suggests that there is a purpose to inject of business judgment and perhaps business Htctice into these matters. It may be the forePinner of a determination by the men who pay the taxes in this city to get a real business administration of all affairs, such as is offered by the City Manager form of government. That Mayor Duvall believed that the people were eager for just such an administration of the public 'business may be inferred from the fact that the political machine of which he has beer a part and so which he is indebted for office, forced through Rhe legislature a measure to prevent the people ■ from relieving him of power for another two years. An administration that relied upon public conIfidence hardly needs an act of legislature to protect lit from public opinion. It must be remembered that I when Mayor Duvall was elected, he accepted office I under the laws of this State which would permit the of the City Manager government at any ■time. The legislature protected him from that part ■f the contract with the people. I There is a reason, of course, for the determilation of the Chamber of Commerce to take an Ictive part in the spending of millions of money.

COOLIDGE AND CALLES It is simply astonishing what a little show of sympathy and understanding will do in this world. "Gimme my top or I’ll bust you in the eye!” iellows the bully of the school yard to the little allow who by mistake has picked up the toy. At once, if the lad has any spunk at all in his ystem, he bitterly resents that kind of treatment, iikely enough he replies: “Will you take it now r wait till I give it to you?” Then maybe there’s fight. Our relations with Mexico for the past year or bo have been-like that. Secretary of State Kellogg, completely forgetful that human psychology is as jperative between nations as it is between individuals, has been blustering and bullying and threatening Mexico over her new land laws. Brandishing a large fist in her face, he has thunered at her that her laws are confiscatory as reards American property, and that unless she hange said laws to suit his fancy something dire nd sinister will happen to her and happen soon. Naturally Mexico got her dander up. She deled the laws were confiscatory and promised prompt nyment if any case arose which the State Department deemed confiscatory, but she’d be darned if Bhe'd let any foreign power dictate to her in the matter of domestic laws, not even the great United Btates. The natural result of this Kelloggian brand of liphimacy was that there has been considerable war talk both north and south of the Rio Grande. This week, however, President Coolidge delivered his now famous address before the United Press at New York. No one can accuse him of any rast amount of sloppy sentimentality in that speech, jut he did take occasion to tell Mexico he accepted, n good faith, her assurance that American property vould not be confiscated and he did say he sympathized with her desire to make it possible for the poor people of the country to own their own farms. Nothing very startling in that, it is true, but it did seem to bespeak the advent of some slight understanding and sympathy. And south of the border, the effect w’as instantaneous. By return telegraph, President Calles, in a formal statement, expressed his appreciation of the new note in Mexf-jan-American affairs. Now if Secretary Kellogg will only take the common sense and triily American good will cue given [him by his chief, there is no valid reason why, before long, the two countries should not be burying the hatchet. , #

ONE MORE CHIP GONE One more chip has gone from that Rock of Ages, the Constitution, in the decision of the local judge who has thrown away that provision of the Constitution which says that no bills shall be presented to the Governor in the two days preoeding the final adjournment of the General Assembly. He upholds the right of the Governor to exercise a “pocket veto,’’ which is merely a timid way of killing measures which he does not approve. True, that right has gone unchallenged for years and the Legislature has gone ahead violating the plain mandate of the Constitution under which the citizens of this State live and have the protection of their rights. The Legislatures have not only disregarded the Constitution, but have done so for the very evil reasons which this provision sought to prevent. They have held up important legislation, such as appropriation measures, until the last minute for the purpose of terrifying members of their own bodies in voting for the measures which would not meet with popular approval. The few canny leaders have known that their grip would slip upon some members as soon as the purely local measures were passed and that enough can always be held in line to either pass or kill particular measures as long as the threat of death for these local measures was held over them. The roason, assigned by the judge, is even worse than the practice, for it is, in effect, that great harm would be done if the Constitution were followed and all measures sent to the Governor within the legal limit of time. It means that nullification of the Constitution is better than the necessity of perhaps calling a special session of the Legislature. If expediency be an excuse for nullification, what is to prevent any citizen from casting aside any part of the Consttiutiou which interferes with his rights? 1C the courts can blithely say that one part of ihe Constitution no longer applies and that it is inexpedient to follow it, then they can tear up that document in its entirety, throw aside the bill of rights, declare, if they pleased, an autocracy of the worst sort. This is a constitutional government. When the Constitution can be nullified for the sake of expect iency we no longer have a government but judicial autocracy. Here Is one question that should be settled. The “pocket” veto Is a cowardly weapon at best. It means, that the Legislature has lost its power of passing laws over the veto of a Governor and that through this loss of power, the people no longer make their own laws. What part of the Constitution will be the next to be dynamited by judicial decree? Maybe the 100-cup coffee drinkers, the ten-quart porridge eaters, the 150-stick gum chewers and the rest of the clan should organize. And affiliate with the Amalgamated People Who Have Slapped Kerensky’s Face. Roller skating is advancing as a fad among the ladies. Probably they figure they may as well use the skates as associate with them. “Make Chicago Hum,” is one of Mayor Thompson's new slogans. We had thought the artillery attended to that.

UP TO THE CHURCHES By N. D. Cochran * ■ Dr. Otlio F. Bartholow is not only pastor of a church at Mt. Vernon, N. Y., but is chairman of the Conference Commission on Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals of the New York East Conference of the Methodist church. During the recent conference he made a statement that is both ihteresting and important, saying: “The Methodist church is cordially hated, not only by the class represented by Mr, Sinclair Lewis and the rum organizations, but also by every evil organization of any kind whatever. We are not seeking to reform politics, but we are attempting to reform morals. We have been vilified and misrepresented on j every side.” If any church is hate din’ this land dedicated to religious liberty, it is unfortunate. Certainly there is nothing in Christianity, in Judaism or in any other form of religious worship, that has any standing in this country that merits hatred. Whatever of Protestant hostility there has been toward the Catholic church was not because of Catholic interpretation of Christianity, but rather because of a fuser that that church sought temporal as well as spiritual jurisdiction over ts members, and was seeking to make America Catholic in the sense that it should become subject to the Pope of Rome spiritually and temporally. In other words, some Amercan Protestants were led to fear the Catholic church politically. There is no more reason for anybody to hate the Methodist church because of the Methodist interpretation of Christianity than there is to hate the Catholic or any other Christian church for having its own beliefs concerning Christianity. But there are millions of American citizens who believe firmly in the constitutional separation of church and State, and who will vigorously resent any effort of any church to control the government of the United States. Millions who believe in the largest measure of personal liberty consistent with the well-being of organized society, never hated the Methodist, Catholic or any other church which sought by educational processes to reform and improve public morals. Great progress was being made in the promotion of temperance by the educational efforts of all churches, aided by successful efforts on the part of commerce and Industry, to eliminate the drunkard and promote sobriety. Only when some of the churches entered the field of politics and sought to make people sober and good by legislative enactment and the policeman's club did hostility toward such churches develop.” Nor is that hostility found entirely in the minds of the class repreesnted by Sinclair Lewis—whatever that is—the so-called rum organizations and “every evil organization of any kind whatever.” There are others who believe in temperance, sobriety, decency, good government and law and order, but who resent the entrance of any church into the field of controversial polities. These believe in the Constitution of the United States. They believe in absolute separation of church and State. They are opposed to the political lobby in Washington known as the Methodist Board of Temperance, Prohibition and Public Morals. And they don’t like the establishment of the AntiSaloon League as the political arm of a group of Protestant churches. If this resentment turns to hatred, only the churches themselves can cure it. All they need do to cur# it is to get out of politics and get back to religion.

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

Says: It Looks as Though Chinese Situation Has Taken Turn for Worse.

By M. E. Tracy It looks as though the Chinese situation has taken a turn for the worse, as though Chang-Tso-Lin were deliberately trying to provoke Russia into war. This ex-bandit, who has become master of north China, first made himself popular with western diplomats by striking a violent anti-red pose. He then obtained their permission to raid the foreign quarter of Pekin. Not satisfied with that, he raided tbe Russian embassy. He has just caused the strangulation of twenty-one Chinese, whom he captured within the Russian compound, and now he is reported as ready to seize the Chinese Eastern Railway which is operated jointly by China and Russia. It is not generally believed that Russia would declare war, even if the railway were seized, but there are bandits in Mongolia who would be more than willing to take up the cudgel for her. , There are other bandits in Mongolia and Manchuria who would bo just as willing to take up the cudgel for Chang Tso-Lin. Harding and Scandal It is a strange thing that the late President Harding, who was one of the best loved men ever to occupy the White House, should become the subject of so much anonymous scandal. As though “Revelry" and the kind of yarns it typified were not bad enough, we are now told “on responsible authority” that he was imperialistic In his attitude toward Central America, that he dreamed of carx-ying the flag as far as the Panama Canal. Secretary Kellogg is denying such a report. Whatever Harding might have thought as a private citizen or while he was a Senator, his policy as chief executive speaks for itself. As President ol the United States, be took no position and authorized no move that could be construed as imperialistic. Best Problem Herbert Hoover says the Mississippi is a national problem. He might go farther and say it is the best problem now confronting the Nation. Thirty States have contributed water to the flood. That is enough to show whose problem it Is and what is required as a remedy. Nothing in our economic structure has caused greater loss of life and property dui-ing the last seventy-five years. Nothing that our political leaders are talking about represents a worthier issue. Public Morality What constitutes public morality has been a puzzle since the dawn of consciousness. Socrates was sentenced to death because the Athenians thought his teachings corrupted it. Three plays nave just been suppressed in New York on the same ground. The Romans hitd a law against kissing in public. It is on record that a noble Senator was once arrested and fined for kissing his Wife. The Spaniards inherited that law from Rome and Mexico inherited it from Spain. To prove the point, a woman has just been arrested in Mexico City for kissing her husband. Silly as this may seem to us it probably doesn’t seem any sillier than some of our i-egulations and censorships seem to the Mexicans.

While Death Waits The reprieve of Celestino Madeiros, forty-eight hours before he was scheduled to die in the electric chair may be taken as a sure sign that Governor Fuller of Massachusetts, intends to investigate the SaccoYanzetti case. Madeiros is the man who declared that Sacco and Vanzetti were not guilty of the murder for which they were convicted, and that he was positive they were not guilty, because he knew who committed it. His testimony is by far the most pertinent that has come out since Sacco and Vanzetti were convicted. Friends of justice will be glad to learn that, though her courts appear unable to do so. Massachusetts has a Governor who recognizes truth as more Important than legal forms. Unheralded Murder The most startling aspect of the Gray-Snyder case, and of all similar cases for that matter, is that while everybody understands just why and how the murder occurred after it was discoverred, pobody saw ifr* 1 coming. Here was a man and a woman plotting death for several weeks, and not one of their neighbors or relatives had the slightest inkling of it. This shows how close the criminal mind is to normal. If indeed, there is such a thing as the criminal mind. It shows the impossibility of guessing what goes on in another person’s mind, no matter how evil or menacing it may be. Albert Snyder drank his liquor and thought himself on that fatal night just as he might have on many another. Those at the party which he and his wife attended just before he was killed had no premonition of the tragedy, though the thought of it must have been uppermost in her mind. It is this aspect of the case that appalls us. V Who was the leading woman and members of the cast of the photoplay, “The Woman on the Jury?” Sylvia Breamer was the leading woman. The rest of the cast included Frank Mayo, Lew Cody, Bessie Love Mary Carr, Hobart Bosworth, Myrtle Stedman, Henry B. Walthall and Roy Stewart,

—This Isn't the Age of Miracles

-.-—. -~t r?T"^

Sings Tonight

rr- * iP'

Mrs. Lillian Flickinger

Tonight at Caleb Mills Hall, Mrs. Lillian ?Tickinger, lyric soprano, and Bomar Cramer, pianist, will appear In recital. The two artists will be presented by the City Walther League.

Looking Over Palace Show

There are four hits right In a row on view at the Palace. Three of them are especially fine. They are: Le Bena Edgecombe and boys; Pair of Jacks, radio singers, and Jimmy Allard and company. The fourth act is Fisher and Gilmore, who have a classy opening number and then go into a burlesque on how a modern Juliet captures her 1927 bashful Romeo. La Dena is a dancer who has built up a pretty, lively and a lovely dance act. She has the assistance of four boys who specialize in tap dancing and the eccentric modern clog. These boys would put any act over because they have ability and they seem to love their work. La Dena has several dance numbers which range from modern hoofing to a beautifully done ballet number. This act is there. Jimmy Allard Is one of those comedians who can either croon or actually sing his songs, just as he desires. Allard has enough personality and enough “business” to put his act over In the hit class. He does not rely upon his own personality alone, *but has bought a good playlet, dressed it splendidly and surrounded himself with a good company. His nifty burlesque song number stops the show. Clever. Pair of Jacks is made up of two young male radio singers who seemed to be well known the second they walked upon the stage of the Palace at the 8:50 show last night. They sing well, have a novelty planner of presentation, and, above all, they have class. A girl is introduced at the last minute, and she aids in the melody triumph. I missed the first act. No fault of the act. Only of mine. The movie is “Wandering Girls.” On view at the Palace today and Saturday. Other theaters today offer: "The Little Spitfire” at English's: “Dance Moods,” at the Lyric; Roy Cummings, at Keith’s; “The Better ’Ole,” at the Circle; “Beau Geste,” at the Colonial: “Risky Business,” at the Uptown; “Stick to Your Story,” at the Isis; “Johnny Get Your Hair Cut,” at the Apollo: “Mr. Wu,” at the Ohio, and burlesque at the Mutual.

Edith Busy Edith Clifford, the quiet singer who is now finishing her current Keith-Albee tour by playing the theater of Greater New York, is busily working on a repertory of new Bongs for next season.

Questions and Answers

You can eet an answer to any question of fact or information by writing to The Indianapolis Times Washington bureau 1322 New York Ave.. Washington. D. b . inclosing 2 cents in stamps for reply. Medical, legal and marital advice cannot bo given nor can extended research he undertaken. All other questions will receive a personal reply. Unsigned requests cannot ba answered. All letters are confidential. —Editor. What relation to me Is the (laughter of my mother’s brother and her son? The daughter of your mother’s brother is your first cousin. Her

Your Drains

The first section of this quiz will test your knowledge of geography. Group these ci|es with the right countries. The rest of the questions are scattering. The answers are on page 20: Bankok France Bogota Java Batavia Siam Dijon Colombia Montevideo Ecuador Guayaquil Uruguay 2. Who was Simon Bolivar? 3. How many branches has the Indianapolis Public Library? 4. How is the library operated? 5. How did the poet Shelley meet his death? 6. What was the name of General Robert E. Lee’s famous horse? 7. Zero on the Centigrade thermometer is what temperature on the Fahrenheit therometer? 8. What metals are mined in the northern peninsula of Michigan? 9. Is the spider an insect? 10. What American poet announced that he sounded his ‘ barbaric yawp” over the roofs of the world? 11. How does a lobster swim? 12. What animal can close Its ears and nose when under water?

Be Sure to Hear Mr. Milton C. W ork (Noted Bridge Authority)

LECTURE IN OUR TEA ROOM, Fifth Floor ’ May 3rd and 4th at 3:00 P. M.

Guests will be seated at tables of four and will play illustrative hands during the lectures. Afterward tea will be served. Tickets for single lectures, $1.50. On sale in the Tea Room and the Stationery Department.

son is your first cousin once removed. How do peanuts grow? Peanuts are seeds or pods that form on the roots of the peanut plant and grow under the ground. What Is the origin and meaning of the expression “to learn by heart?” It means to learn by rote, or perfectly by memory. The meaning of “rote” is a repetition of words or sounds as a means of learning them with slight attention to the meaning or to rules or px-inciples. The meaning of learning “by heart” was probably suggested by the regular beating of the heart which can be compared to tbe regular repetition of words or sounds when something is being committed to memory. Where was the movie dog actor “Rin Tin Tin” bom? Who trained him for the movies? What is his latest picture? He was born in the advance zone of the American Expeditionary Force in France in 1918, and was named after one of the “lucky dolls” of the war. Lieut. Lee Duncan, who adopted him, brought him to the United States and trained him so successfully that his film career has been a brilliant success. His latest appearance on the screen Is in the picture "While London Sleeps.” Find Missing Babe Was Taking Siesta Answering the call of a frantic mother, Motorpolicemen Harry Wenz and Fred Brennan rushed to 4106 Boulevard PI. late Thursday and started a search for Earl Humble, 4, who disappeared suddenly. After searching the neighborhood in vain, police returned to the home and decided to make the rounds once more. They got as far as the garage, where they found Earl nestled in the automobile scat, fast asleep.

APRIL 29, 1927

rvir\ cAuction ■ CWortt, Qy When to Bid a Solid Suit Over a No Trump.

The pointer for today is: Do not bid a solid suit over a no trump on the right unles within two tricks qf game. Yesterday’s hand was held by West who had to decide what to do after a declaration by South. 4 A-J-74^ C? A-K-Q-4-\o IMr * s My answer slip reads: No. 13. South pass; vWest should bid one Heart. No. 14. South one No Trump; West should pass. No. 16. Sonth one Spade; West should bid two Hearts. No. 16. South one Heart; West should pass. My reasons In support of these declarations are: No. 13. West's four-card Spades are not strong enough to justify naming them In preference to the much stronger five-card Hearts. No. 14. The hand is not within two tricks of game at Hearts with a No Trump bid against. The game probably can be saved and the No Trump may be defeated. A pass Is therefore the sound declaration. If West had a score it might be different. No. 15. West's bid is so clear that it is not in need of supporting argument. No. 16. South’s bid must be based upon a long J-10 Heart suit with great side strength (at least three tricks). There is no declaration th. t West can make with which he could hope to produce satisfactory results against South’s undoubted strength; and against South’s Heart bid he is practically sure to save the game and possibly may defeat the contract. Today’s West hand follows: AA444 O AScore love-all, what should West declare after the declarations of South, as stated In the answer slip that follows: Bridge Answer Slip of April 2ff No. 17. South pass; West should... No. 18 South one Spade; West should No. Iff. South one Heart; West should No. 20. South one Diamond; West should .. John F. DlUe 00.

Times Readers Voice Views

To the Editor of The Times: In your paper of April 21, I note that Board Member John A. Georg© favors the electric signals for the downtown district. The electric signals would be very good, but they ought to be hung in the middle of the street. As they have them today, some are on the sidewalk behind telegraphs poles, some are in the middle of the street and others are on poles. A motorist might have a wreck or run Into some one while looking for the signals. Another good thing—why not have the pedestrians move with the traffic, and give the cars the same chance to get across the street? This would help speed up the traffic? Let us hear from others. G. E. G.