Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 7 June 1939 — Page 11

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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 7, 1939

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Hoosier Vagabond

DANA, Ind, June 7.—There are many people over the country who follow this column and who have been kind enough to be interested in my mother. She was stricken three years ago with an apoplectic stroke, and again two vears ago.

After a {ull life of hard, intense farm work, she came to a life in a bed and a chair. It has been hard for her, but she has been swell about it, as she has been about everything else in her life. My mother has always been a great woman. She has been, throughout a lifetime, tremendously vigorous, helpful, generous, quick-tempered, liberalminded, and the most understanding woman in our neighborhood. She has been a woman who thrived on action. She would rather milk than sew; rather plow than bake. No greater blow could fall on her than to become suddenly inactive. Yet she has taken it with her chin out. She has resigned herself to inaction, and to never being alone. Certainly she doesn’t like it. But she has accepted it, and that's that. It has been a year since I was last at home. I was immensely pleased at the change in my mother. Her face has filled out again, and has color in it, and is almost the same as it was before her first shock It is natural for people to remark on how well she is looking. But my mother doesn't like that. It makes her mad. “I'm no better and no worse,” she says. 5 5 ”

Likes to Go Riding

And what she says 1s true. there has been little change. le is semiparalyzed, and can get around only with help. She does not atempt to move unless my father is there to lift her and steady her. When I am home she likes the novelty of me helping her She is up around 6:30 every morning, has her breakfast, and sits and listens to the radio for a couple of hours. If she stays up too long she gets a headache, so she lies down on the davenport a little while in the morning, and again after lunch.

Outside of her face,

Our Town

ODAY'S piece is about children; more specifically about the 72 Indianapolis kids whose work is now on exhibition at the Herron Art Museum On the surface it looks like the work of precocious children. It almost had me fooled. As a matter of fact, I didn't get my bearings until I got home and had time to figure out the thing for myself. The work on exhibition at the Herron isn't the work of precocious children, for the reason that there isn’t anything like a precocious child anymore-—no matter whether the parents of the 72 bright kids may agree with me or not. What passes for precocity nowadays is the result of a father's false premise and the tendency of parents—and especially, of grandparents— to compare their youth with that of their offspring. The fond parent invariably reasons that the child's generation is identical with that of his own. It isn't anvthing of the sort. As a matter of fact, one generation is carried on the shoulders of the previous one. Graphically expressed, succeeding generations do not stand on horizontal planes but rather on n= clined planes, the younger generation always looking over the heads of the older generation. With the result that the kid's outlook is increased. He actually sees more than his father dees. More than his mother, too ” n 4

By Way of Summing Up I have also reason to believe that Nature is constantly developing, not merely in the individual, but in the species as well. The individual changes in the course of a generation, certainly in the course of a century. Periods of development which formerly embraced long spans of life were gradually compressed. To a degree that a modern baby—a 6-months-old,

Washington

WASHINGTON, June 7.—The Supreme Court has struck at the rising tide of intolerance in America by its decision invalidating the Jersey City ordinance under which Mayor Frank Hague broke up C. I. O meetings, threatened organizers, deported Norman Thomas, and boasted “I am the law.” { Individuals involved in the case before the Supreme Court had no other purpose, Justice Roberts said in his opinion, than to inform citizens of Jersey City respecting matters growing out of national legislation (the Wagner National Labor Relations Act), the constitutionality of which, as he said, the Supreme Court has sustained. “Citizenship of the United States would be little better than a name if it did not carry with it the right to discuss national legislation and the benefits, advantages. ana opportunities to accrue to citizens thereof,” Justice Roberts said. 5 » 5

Hoover Aiding Nazi Victims The temper which led to the Jersey City ordinance and to Mayor Hague's forcible suppression of free dis cussion is widespread and growing, manifesting itself in numerous ways. Gen. Moseley gave expression to one extreme form of it in his appearances before the Dies Committee. Several other cultivators of intolerance are trying to get footholds, chiefly on the Jewish 1ssue An unusually large number of bills have been introduced in this Congress reflecting the increasing

pressure of feeling. One would bar all immigration for five years. The Hobbs Bill, which has passed the

My Day

NEW YORK, June 7.—The kindly feeling I told you about yesterday, which prompts so many people to send gifts of one kind or another to our royal guests, also inspires many people to send us food which they hope can be served at some meal while they are with us. This has caused a frequen. variation in the menus for the various meals. Perhaps it is just as well, for some of my correspondents seem very much troubled that we are not asking a hotel expert to order and oversee the cooking of the food for Their Majesties. One particular correspondent seems to have been reading some columnist who writes on foods and wines, The columnist, in turn, seems to have taken everything he has seen printed without one grain of salt! Apparently even newspaper columnists will never learn not to believe everything they see in print. I hope that the food at the White House will be good. During the last six years the same people have struggled through the preparation of meals for visiting dignitaries and people of importance in our own coun=try. I can only pray that serving a King and Queen will not paralyze them! As the food at the big house in Hyde Park will be

By Ernie Pyle

In the late afternoon, her chair is moved out onto the concrete cistern-top east of the house, and she sits there with her back to the road. “I'd lots rather watch the cows and chickens than the people passing on the road,” she says. There was a time after each stroke when my mother couldn't speak. But she can speak now, very slowly, until she gets tired. Then her words play tricks on her. It is her greatest disappointment and frustration, when I am home, that she cant get said all she wants to say. When I leave, she cries, and says, “I didn’t get to talk to you.” She is able to ride in the car, but doesn't go every day, because it is too hard to get her into the seat. She enjoys riding around, although she gets frightened easily. Her interest is not in gossip, and never was. It is in the actions and thoughts of growing young people, and the welfare of old neighbors. She always had an innate sense of fairness and justice. And it seems to me that she sees through and into the true worth | of people more acutely now than she ever did.

” 5 a Enjoys Company and Letters

She knows all the neighborhood news, and iikes| to have company. After I wrote about my mother | the last time, quite a number of people wrote letters | to her. But, of ccurse, after a few weeks there | weren't any more letters. She says she's sorry peopie! stopped writing. | Despite this enjoyment of new contacts, she has | no deep interest in that bigger world that constitutes the news of the day. She wouldn't miss hearing Lowell Thomas each evening, yet I believe Hitler and Japan and the World Fairs mean no more to her than the noise of a passing truck. Occasionally she gets a rash of the giggles. It usually happens when they come to the most difficult | point of lifting her into the car. And then it gets so funny that my father and Aunt Mary get to laugh- | ing, too, and they just have to cease operations ara hold her up till the giggling is over. | I haven't figured out yet just what causes these giggles, but I believe it is her acute sense of the | ridiculous—a woman like her having to be helped | around is just too ironic. It's swell to be able to laugh about it. !

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By Anton Scherrer

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let's say—experiences what formerly occupied a whole | lifetime. A modern 2-year-old has the mind of a full- | grown Papuan; a 4-year-old, of a Teuton: a 6-year-old. of Socrates; an 8-year-old, of Voltaire. A child 9 vears old is conscious of violet, a color unknown in the 18th Century. If you don't believe it, have a look at the work of the kids at the Herron. | It boils down to this: That what was once the privilege of only extraordinary people 1s now the) common property of children. Charlemagne, at a time when only the monks knew how to write, acquired the art, and history records the incident as an achievement requiring great effort and patience. Only a hundred years ago, the ability to play the piano was considered extraordinary. The appreciation for music,

” No More Surprises |

Which brings me to the thought—such as it 1s— that a child of today, owing to the ever incr:asing tempo of his time, sees more because his less privileged parents were obliged to see less. Seeing more, he can appreciate more. He can even record more. I know exactly what I'm talking about for I remember the afternoon I was with a mother and her 6-year-old when an airplane zoomed overhead. Soon as the mother saw it, she called her | son and said, “Darling, look at the big bird in the sky.” The kid gave his mother a withering look and said, “Why, mother, that's not a bird; that's a CurtissWright monoplane.” I'll admit that's pretty smart but knowing modern kids as I do, vou can't make me believe that even that is a bona fide case of precocity The truth of the matter is that kids don’t surprise me at all anymore--not even when they pull off a show as remarkable as the one now on view at the Herron,

By Raymond Clapper

House, would imprison indefinitely aliens who are subject to deportation but who cannot return to their own countries. { No one bill in itself is of horrendous consequence but the tendencies toward a drastic tightening, especially upon aliens, is manifest. Thus far it is still good politics to play the tolerance issue, and that is all that is holding back the aggressive minority agitation from breaking through | on the floor of Congress. It is the chief hope in| the situation. When John Hamilton, Republican National Committee chairman, was mentioned in the) Dies investigation recently, he seized the opportunity! to restate his record against intolerance, which is long and unmistakable. | ~ n 5

Independence Day Rallies

Orly a few know it, but Herbert Hoover has quietly raised funds and is directing refugee wook in Gers | many. He has revived his old Quaker organization | and has obtained the consent of the German Government to work among Jewish victims of the Nazi in| much the same way that he op2rated during the famine years in Bolshevist Russia. Mr. Hoover has reruste to permit publicity for this activity, which is | a pity Anyone who moves about the country will testify | to the growing spirit of intolerance. Developments in this direction are causing so much concern that a number of distinguished Amer- | icans, headed by George Gordon Battle, Senator War- | ren Barbour of New Jersey, and William Allen White, | are sponsoring a spacial independence day ceremony | throughout the nation under the auspices of the Council Against Intolerance in America. | It is the purpose of the committee to encourage | thousands of community meetings to dramatize the! necessity for defending the principles of freedom. | Thanks to the Supreme Court they can now put | on their show in Jersey City also.

By Eleanor Roosevelt

entirely in the hands of my mother-in-law, I know | it will be good. My responsibility in Hyde Park is| only for one picnic, and even if everything should go wrong, the only result would be to make our neighbors across the water realize that we are still a young country and don't do some things here as| well as they do. One of our neighbors used to say that the only advantage in not being too good a housekeeper is | that your guests are so pleased to feel how very much | better they are. I should not be at all surprised if | some of the things which the King and Queen will remember and laugh over, when they return to their own fireside, will be the differences between the English way of doing things and the way they are done in Canada and in the United States. I remember a trip which my uncle, Mr. Theodore Roosevelt, took which furnished us with amusing stories for years afterward. It was not the pleasant, comfortable, usual things that he liked to tell about, but the things that were different and that struck him as a little queer or amusing. Isn't that so with you in your travels? ~ Thad my last fitting this morning for a dress made from a silk designed by my niece, Eleanor Roosevelt II, which combines the English thistle and the American goldenrod. Jt js really a lovely material. Then I lunched at India ouse, always an jnteresting place to visit, and returned to Wasihngton in

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the afternoon.

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art, poetry, mechanics—what you will—at one time only the property of the elect, is now so universal that even little children participate. a O0!l | 5 & |

(Second of a Series)

By David Dietz

Scripps- Howard Science Editor

ROOF that the moon, in some mysterious way, can exercise a definite influence upon the behavior of living creatures, has been discovered by Director J. F. G. Wheeler and his colleagues at the Bermuda Biological Sta-

tion.

For centuries farmers have believed that the phases of the moon affected their crops and that it was important to plant the seed at the proper time in the lunar

cycle.

The word “lunatic” is derived from “Luna,” the

moon, because of the old superstition that the rays of the

moon affected the mind.

Scientists have been inclined to laugh at these no-

tions and many tests designed to find some influence of the moon on life have in the past given

negative results. But Dr. Wheeler has found one creature of the sea who appears to live its life in obedience to the changing phases of the moon. And observations which he is now conducting seem to indicate that there may be many others who behave similarly. As vet there is no explanation as to how the moon exercises its control. But the fact of the matter seems firmly established. The story of the researches to date present a mystery of the sea, as thrilling to the scientific mind as any search for a stolen ruby.

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N the clear blue waters around the coral reefs of Bermuda there lives a little prawn or shrimp-like creature known by the formidable name of Anchistioides. (You pronounce it in five installments like this: ang-kiss-tea-oi-dees.) This little shellfish with the un-

| pronouncable name is about one

inch long and looks like a di-

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE

1—On what river is the city of New London, Conn.? 2—-With what sport is the name of Patty Berg associated? 3—Where is Albemarle Sound? 4-Which State in the U, S, is named for the brother of Charles II? 5--In units of length, how many links are in one chain? 6—For what government agency do the initials FBI stand? 7—Into what body of water does the Scioto River empty? ® 8 8

Answers

1—Thames. 2-—-Golf. 3--Off the coast of North Carolina. 4—-New York, named for the Duke of York. 5-100. 6—Federal Bureau of Investiga« tion. 7—Ohio River.

ASK THE TIMES

Inclose a 3-cent stamp for reply when addressing any question of fact or information to The Indianapolis Times Washington Service Bureau, 1013 13th St, N. W., Washington, D. C. Legal and medical advice cannot be given nor can extended rescarch be undertalen.

minutive lobster. There is nothing particular about its appearance to set it off very much from numerous shellfish of related form. The mystery of Anchistioides is in its behavior. Regularly each month, a few days before new moon, the tiny prawn makes its appearance in the surface waters off shore, Usually they appear about one hour after sunset. During the next hour or two they swarm to the surface in large numbers. A few hours later they are gone again. This happens each night until several nights after new moon but the greatest number make their appearance two nights before each new moon and two nights after new moon. Then they disappear. From the time of first quarter when the crescent of the moon is growing fatter and fatter, until the time of full moon, and thereafter until the moon has waned and passed last quarter, the tiny prawn is no= where to be seen. Then, as new moon once more draws near, the prawns again begin to swarm to the surface.

The fact that they are never

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seen at all in the daytime at any part of the month is not surpris= ing since there are many marine creatures which avoid the sunlight. But the lunar cycle of behavior is another matter. ” o 8 R. WHEELER has been keeping tab on Anchistioides since 1034. At first observations were made from the pier which juts out into the bay from the station's grounds. Objections were raised, however, on the theory that the light on the pier might be attracting the prawns

and in some way interfering with their natural habits. Accordingly the station's launch was used to make a swing of about a mile and a half in the dark, towing a standard net behind it. The contents of the net were then examined to see how many prawns, if any, had been gathered in. These hauls gave results, month after month, and year after year, which matched those from the pier. At the time of the new moon, the prawns were plentiful. At the time of full moon, there were none, It will occur to many people that the explanation lies in the strength of the moonlight. In other words, just as sunlight drives the prawns away, so does the light of the full moon. But the prawns are missing at the time of the full moon whether the sky is clear or heavily clouded. And they appear around the time of new moon whether the sky is clouded or whether the stars are shining brightly. The records indicate that no condition of weather, wind, or tide has anything to do with the problem.

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{ i 1939 BY NEA SERVICE, INC, 7. M. RES. U. 8. PAT, OFF,

"By the gods, | didn't know the stores sold pants for boys until | had outgrown my fatha:'s!”

THE SEA

ARAN 4 ~

3

HAR

QUALLY perplexing is the problem of where the prawns hide out at the time of full moon and in the daytime. Dr. Wheeler has tried deep dredging for them with no results. He has tried hunting for them under rocks and in crevices of the coral formations. They aren't there, Some shellfish bury themselves in the sand. But apparently these don’f, Experiments tried with captive prawns in glass aquariums only complicate the problem. Dr. Wheeler exposed the tanks to moonlight. Part of the tank was covered so that the prawns could stay out in the moonlight or take refuge in the shade. The prawns swam around in the moonlight, making no effort to seek cover and apparently were none the worse for their experience, Next he aquariums

tried exposing the to reflected sunlight. Once more ths prawns swam about without the slightest attempt to hide from the light. Recently Dr. Wheeler tried releasing some prawns in the waters near shore on a sunny morning. A short thread had been tied to each prawn and & cardboard marker to the other end of the thread. After one or two circling movements upon the surface, the prawns swam downward at an angle of 30 degrees. Dr. Wheeler had planned to don a diving helmet and search for the prawns in the bay but the sudden onset of stormy weather made it impossible to carry out the plan. He intends, however, to try this experiment again. The mystery of the moon's ef fect upon prawns is only one of many problems occupying the attention of Dr. Wheeler and his staff. The chief task at present

Upper Left—An artist's drawing of the Bermuda prawn seen only at the time of the new moon. Its name is Anchistioides. Upper Right—A part of the Bere muda harbor, scene of the operations of the Bermuda Biologi« cal Station. Lower Left—Dr. J. F. G. Wheeler, director of the Bermuda Biological Station, at his type. writer. Lower Right—Dr. H. B. Moore, biologist and assistant to the director, examines small marine animals dredged up by the scientific yacht, the Culver.

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is a systematic survey of the wae ters around the islands of Bere muda to arrive at a “census” of their marine population. ” n o

ORE exactly, the census is a plankton survey since it is the so-called plankton, the float ing, drifting population of the ocean, which is being studied. Life in the sea begins with the plankton, for the rule of the sea is eat and be eaten, and the plankton form the basic food sup= ply. Simplest of the plankton forms are the one-celled microscopic plants, various forms of algae and the equally tiny one-celled animals. A glass of the most transeparent ocean water is still crowd= ed with them. Larger forms of plankton ine clude sea-worms, tiny shellfish of many kinds, jellyfish, certain mole lusks like the pearly nautilus and many types of shrimps and prawns, These last are of particular importance to mankind because they form the chief food supply of the herrings, hakes, sprats and other fish sought by commercial fishermen, It is generally believed, how=ever, that a decrease in plankton will be followed by a decrease in the number of fish. Similarly, an increase in plankton means improved fishing. The problem of the plankton, therefor, has a dollar and cents meaning to the world of commerce and industry. ” n ”n TILL another surprise has been the finding of larval stages of shore life far out to sea. Thus, for example, the adult lobster lives close to shore. But larval lobsters have been found 15 miles out to sea. Eventually Dr. Wheeler plans to carry the plankton survey out 25 miles in all directions from Bermuda. Engaged also in the plankton survey is Dr. H. B. Moore who holds the post of biologist and di rector's assistant, Dr. Moore points out that the diatoms and other small plants in the plankton grow at the sur= face of the water because they require sunlight just as do plants on land. The animal forms, he says, come up to feed &t night. In the daytime, they are found at a lower level, driven down apparently by their negative reaction to the sune light. Consequently the distribu« tion according to depth changes from day to night.

NEXT—Explosions on the sea bottom.

es—By Wortman

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