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About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 5, 1935)
Washington.—There is more de sire on the part of President and Secretary of State Hull to cooper ate with the League of Nations in the sanctions against Italy than has appeared on the surface. Both re gret exceedingly that the neutrality law passed by congress did not go further. They wish that the word “munitions” had been used Instead of “arms, ammunition and imple ments of war," which phrase Is so narrow In Its strict definition that it could not possibly he stretched to Include oil, or copper, for example, without subjecting the administra tion to another upset in the courts. But despite this lack of legal au thority, the government has been bearing down hard on exporters and would-be exporters of war ma terials One of the latest Incidents la that the shipping hoard bureau of the Department of Commerce— survivor of the old shipping board —warned a certain concern about to ship a cargo of oil to Italy that the proposed shipment was “disap proved." The excuse here was that the ship and cargo would have to run the gauntlet of the League sanctions, and the government had an Invest ment. It so happened that the ship the would-be exporter desired to nae had been subsidised. Aa a matter of fact, the only risk Involved la that in the time elapsing after the sailing and before the ship reached her Italian destination an actual blockade of Italy might be declared. For up to now there has been no more than a hint of actual blockade. No ships have been stopped by British or French war ships In the Mediterranean. No threat has been made that any will be. Nevertheless, Insurance on ships traversing the aea that Muaaolinl clalma the British now dominate, but that the Italians ought to, haa Jumped tremendously. For example, an American Importing Arm, which brings cargos of Aga and dotes from Persian gulf ports, has been serl ously considering Bending this freight overland to Atlnntlc porta, or else around the Cape of Good Hope. Change World Cruises Further, most world-cruise ships for the last month or more have been advertising visits to South Africa, and have been eliminating the Mediterranean entirely, although normally most world tourists want particularly to visit Italy and Greece and the Holy Land. So that the government. In this raise of Insurance rates, which Is Interpreted naturally enough aa a danger signal, la perfectly within Ita right In seeking to restrain ship ments. Yet everybody knows that this Is not the real reason at all, but merely an excuse. For the gov ernment could be just as much pro tected In Its Investment—through subsidy—In ships making the Jour ney through the “war sone" as It Is from any other maritime danger. Questioned about the situation, of ficials of the shipping bureau re plied blandly that the bureau “must conform to administration policy.'* That la the real answer, although the Interesting fact la that the pol icy has never been stated It has merely been hinted. The first hint came when the State department, with no hint of publicity, sought to restrain the Standard Oil from shipping oil to Its Italian subsldl'ary. The com pany made the thing public by giv ing out Its answer. Standard's real point la alto concealed. It would be perfectly willing to stop shipping oil to Italy If It wers protected by public action on the part of this government against Ita Italian sub sidiary. Keen observers here figure the government will do something to re strain copper shipments also, per haps using the same tactics Copying Wilton President Roosevelt Is taking s leaf from the book of Woodrow Wil son In talking over the shoulders of the diplomats to the peoples of the world. The President and his ad visers know perfectly well that there Is going to be no curtailment of armaments at the disarmament conference to be held In London. It has been a long lime since there was the slightest hope of It. Hence the administration’s objective has been switched to the future, and from the world’s rulers to the world’s peoples. While there is considerable i>essl mlsm about this accomplishing any thing, no one Is particularly dis posed to criticise It publicly. Army and navy officers have come hitter words about It In private. They agree with the general feeling that no one now living will be here when the fruit is borne. If ever. But they add that this propaganda will also reach the taxpayers, and through them the congress or the United States. Hence, they fear, the net result may ba to make no change what ever In the armament Bpending of any other nation, but to tend very directly to aiow down such spending by the United States. In particular, they point out that the one nation which has given less heed to world opinion than any other, for some years, has been Japan. Naval officers, especially, have always believed, and still be lieve, thst war between the United States and Japan Is Inevitable. It is commonly known that the Japanese are oppressed by very heavy taxes to carry their arma ment load. But there Is not the slightest indication that the Jap anese |>eopIe intend to rise In their might and demand that their gov ernment curtail Its military expendi tures. On the contrary, all Indica tions are that the Japanese people approve Nippon's militaristic course, believe It to be essentia) to their future, and are fiercely willing to make any aacrlfice for their coun try. Military Rule in Japan Kven those most optimistic about America’s contention that armament cost should not be Increased by any nation concede tbla. What they hope for Is a change of sentiment, perhaps a year from now. perhaps later on. The answer of the army and navy to this Is that If the opinions of the Japanese did change, It would not make any difference. It haa been demonstrated too often, they Insist, that the Japanese people believe what they are told, and are abso lutely under the thumb of the mili tary oligarchy. In this respect, In the American military view, they differ sharply from two of the most military powers of Europe—Germany and Italy. For the present there Is no one to oppose the will of Hitler In Germany or Mussolini In Italy. Rut no one knowB what will be the situ ation In either country ten years from now. Or even one year from now. Italy and Germany are each dom inated for the time being by one strong man. And no one can ven ture a prophecy as to whnt would happen after that strong man passes from the stage. There is nothing comparable to that In Japan. In Nippon it Is a group of high army and navy offi cers who dominate. Canadian Treaty Down underneath all the clamor against the Canndlan reciprocity treaty, expert detectors of popular sentiment here believe the country will approve It. Further, they be lieve that If the treaty Is approved In Ottawa—which Incidentally seems by no means certain despite the ma jority by which MacKenzle King so recently came back Into power— the net effect will be a Roosevelt asset nt the polls. Should Ottawa reject the treaty, on the other hand, feeling here Is that the net effect will be Injurious to the administration In the election next year. This Is based on a fundamental political factor — human nature. Many business men, economists and experts In International trade have figured that If the reciprocity treaty negotiated with Canada In the Taft administration had gone Into effect, the net effect would hnve been ben eficial. Had the trenty gone Into effect, It Is reasoned, and bad the oppo sition to Mr. Taft promised the country to abrogate the treaty, then every one who was directly bene fiting under the treaty would have been driven to Taft’s defense, to protect their selfish Interests. But there was no possibility, as It appeared when Taft was running for re-election, that the treaty could be revived. Hence there was no selfish element to be driven to Taft's aid, while all and Biindry who thought they would have been hurt by the treaty were still resentful at what they thought Taft had tried to do to them. Lumber Interest* Howl This time the loudest outcries are coming from the Pacific Northwest, where the lumber Interests think they would be badly hurt by the treaty. Applying the 1912 chapter to the present situation. If the treaty Is rejected the northwestern lumber Interests will Influence a heavy vote against Roosevelt next year for what he tried to do to them. It Is not a question of big special Interests affecting the elec torate. No one ever accused former Senator Clarence C. Pill of Wash Ington. representing the hlg Inter ests. He worked for a high lumber tariff because It would benefit his state, and he figured the folks out there would appreciate It. So much has been wild by Pill and others that a very considerable segment of the Washington voters are now con vlnced that Roosevelt simply ts not the type to understand their prob lems on the other hand. If the treaty Is ratified hy Canada, although the feeling In Washington and Oregon on lumber, ami perhaps In upstate New York and Wisconsin on that million and a half gallons of cream which may tie brought In at reduced duties, will In* no different, there will lie ofTsets. For example, the orange growers of California, to say nothing of the producers of other fruits, will want to know If the op posing candidate proposes *o abro gate the treaty—to take away the advantage they will be enjoying un der it. C*»JMrt*ht — WNU SarvM*. Mrm in Sweden A Lock In tha Gota Canal. Prepared by National Geographic Society, Washington, D. G.—WNU Service. 44rTT'HI8 Is Sweden." says the peasant of Dalarna (Dale carlla), as he looks out up on the rolling pastures and blrch clad hills of the province dear to him as life, “Our ways are chang ing, of course. The good old days are no more. But you may still find a handful of us Dalecarllans who go on living as our fathers lived, tilling the same soil, hewing timber in the forests for our houses, spinning wool and flax for our clothes, hammering out copper and iron from our mines for utensils and tools.” With quiet dignity he towers in the doorway of his home, into which his gracious “Valkommen” bids strangers enter. The wind plays with the wide brim that gives his black hat a quaintly solemn Puritan air. But against the weathered gray of log walls he Is a vivid figure In his long, single breasted blue cont, his yellow buck skin breeches, red-wool stockings tasseled at the knee, low hand-made shoes adorned with gleaming steel buckles. Overhead, slender blades of grass, of apple-green lightness shoot up* from the sod of his thatched roof. Behind, framing the scene, stand silver trunks of stately birches, the graceful “white ladles" of the for ests of central Sweden. “We are a proud and independ ent people," he continues. “Swe den, as you know, has never sub mitted to alien rule. Only once, for a brief century and a quarter, Swe den Joined Denmark and Norway In experimenting with a Joint sover eignty. But we do not like the iron hand of our Danish kinsmen. “In the Stockholm ‘Blood Bath’ of 1520. King Christian II of Den mark beheaded more than 80 Swed ish nobles, therewith sealing his own destiny. It was that act of tyranny which led young Gnstavus Vasa, later king for 37 years, to rouse the strong men of Dalecarlla to the country’s defense. So one of the most Illustrious chapters of Swedish history has been written here.” The blue eyes glow with the fer vor of conviction. There Is a chal lenging ring in the sure, soft spoken words. “Know Dalecarlla and you will know the very heart of Sweden.” But the landowner or KKone goes a step further. Within view of crumbling fortress or surviving splendor of medieval chateau, where lazy swans swim forgetfully In the encircling moat, he halts in the shade of the wide-spreading beeches that line his fields of sugar beets or grain. Traces of Ancient Civilization. “The Ice sheet slipped ofT this southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula ten or fifteen thousand years ago,” he begins. "Our sci entists find traces of a civilization not unlike our own running back through seventy centuries and more. Our rune stones are not all deciphered; some of our Viking mounds are still unexplored. Not long ago we unearthed a grave from the Bronze age. Here In Skone"—lovingly he slurs the long o sound of the vowel a—“we turn up thousand-year-old traditions with our very plowshares!” Were It not for Ills lin|>erturbnhle poise, he might be off, at a signal, to search for the cradle, or one of the cradles of the human race. But quietly he turns Instead to histor ical fact, as he would like to read it: “Once Skone was an Independ ent kingdom In itself." ... He checks his flow of words and, chuckling, adds: "Know Skone and you really do not need to know the rest of Sweden!" In Stockholm the city-dweller, born Into an atmosphere of Old world leisure and acquiring by choice the ultra-modern conven iences that mechanical genius con trives to our age. wanders out to enjoy the lustrous tranquility of one of the “white nights" of the northern summer. He passes the magnificent willows of King's gardens and halts oa Norr bro (north bridge) to listen to the singing, foamy waters upder its spaa. It forms a link between the old “city between the bridges," with Its medieval quaintness of nar row lanes, and the newer Stock holm, with Its many public build ings Impressively modern In de sign, which suggest something of the splendor that legend and his tory have cast over the age of the Renaissance. Before him rises the facade of the house of parliament. “With the Socialists In the majority, things are In a bad way for our country,” he reflects gloomily. But he catches the Incongruity In his fears, too, as he faces the commanding simplicity of the massive royal palace. With in Its walls, for more than a cen tury, rulers of the Bernadotte line have held the reins of a limited monarchy, untouched by the terrors of revolution or the tumult of war. The quivering beauty of the ame thyst twilight, which before long will begin to throb with the glow of a ruby dawn, possesses his soul. And love for his capital city, of silvery waterways and emerald islands, conquers doubts. “Courage to experiment with new forms of the changing social order, ranging widely from statecraft to architecture,” he reflects, “and wis dom to direct these experiments, rooted firmly In past experience, to ward evolutionary progress—some thing of that courage and that wis dom Is the spirit of Stockholm, of Sweden, today.” In the Forest Land. In the solitudes of the Norrland forests the frontiersman has swung his ax during the brief dusk that Is high noon of the winter day. Throwing the logs on the Ice-locked rivers, natural floating channels for the timber Industry of the Far North, he waits for the release that conies with the thaws of spring. Under his hand the primeval for est has almost vanished, but the re growth of spruce and fir and pine Is straight and tall. For several dec ades the Swedish state, stepping In to check indiscriminate waste of virgin forest, has been a zealous guardian of this Its most Important source of wealth. By midsummer the rivers will have carried their cargo of logs, numbered by the millions, well down to sorting boom, near the mills, on the eastern coast, where the freighters He In port Hope sings in the lumberman's heart as, fascinated, he watches that silent trek of the logs toward the sea. It Is the season of light On the upper reaches of the Norrland riv ers the midnight sun blazes unre lentingly on glaciers and snow capped peaks, converting them Into rushing torrents and swift-surging rapids. Modern industry steps in and In turn converts that tremen dous natural force Into “white coal" for the country. Elec-tricity Is conquering the wil derness of the North. White coal, not black, feeds the trains that In unending procession haul ore to sea ports from the huge mountains of iron In the Arctic regions. The tempo of life quickens In the Far North. The frontiersman catches the rhythm of the whir of wheels In sawmill, the roar of tur bines In power plant, the click of steel rails In mountain tunnel. “Ours are the riches of the fu ture," he exults. “Here ure Iron ore flelds among the largest In all Europe. Outside of Finland, prob ably no other Euro(>eun country has such u high forest wealth (ours approximates 1,000 acres per 100 In habitants). Excluding Norway, what European power Is so lavishly blessed by nature with bounteous reserves of latent white coal? This Is Sweden, the Sweden of tomor row 1" Stockholm, the capital, turns away from the West. Sweden faces the Orient. The winds of industrialism coming from the West seem to have been tempered by the restless bat tling of the North sea and the lofty snow-capped fields. It Is as If Swe den had looked beyond the turbu lence of Russia and caught and pre served the spirit of the once serene East □HE1STMA8 In the Rockies! I felt thrilled, excited, as our train wound Its way in and out through the mountains, thun dering through tiie crisp, pine scented air. Now, we were climb ing an almost precipitous grade, now, slowing down for a dangerous curve, while every little while as a stretching plain was reached, the steady hand upon the throttle sent the long line of cars speeding like an arrow through the bright De cember sunshine. We were on our way to spend Christmas with Uncle Jerry and Aunt Emma. They had sent a hearty invitation for us to come o u t, and now we were almost there. I held my breath at the sheer beauty of the scene that stretched before our eyes. Moun tain peaks that seemed to touch the sky, can yons dropping thousands of feet, lakes cov ered by glitter ing thicknesses of ice, vivid green pines, looking like giant Christinas trees. I had never seen, never even visualized anything so beautlfuL A loud shriek from the big whistle, a slow crunching and grind ing of brakes, and our Min came to a stop. Uncle Jerry, rosy and smiling, stood waiting upon the platform, giving dad, mother, Helen and myself a true western welcome. “Aunt Emma is all excited about your coming," he beamed. A short drive through a wonder land of beauty, and the big sprawl ing ranch house came in sight. Aunt Emma stood in the doorway, and a cowboy, who was grooming a pony, looked curiously at us. All was bustle and excitement, hurry and preparation. Even the horses and ponies In the corral seemed excited, as If they sensed something in the air. The after noon and evening went by on wings. Christmas morning dawned upon a world that looked even lovelier than It had yesterday. A million Jewels hung on bush and tree, a sky of turquoise stretched Itself across the snow-covered mountains and valleys. Inside the ranch house a fire of crackling logs threw Its ruddy glow over the living room. The dining table was spread with tempting foods. Breakfast of home-cured ham and sausage, fluffy flapjacks and syrup, steaming hot coffee with thick cream. Then a short drive to the little church, an inspiring talk by the pastor, ana tne strains of the old and beauti ful Christmas hymns; neigh bors and friends stopping Uncle Jerry and Aunt Emma to wish them “M e r r y Christmas.” Back again through the clear, frosty air. and later the big Christmas d i n ner. Golden brown turkey and dressing on a big blue platter, a huge mound of snowy potatoes, native vegetables and relishes, tempting pieces of mince and pumpkin pie. And best of all, an appetite that only the mountains can give. A hundred things to see during the afternoon, the horses and ponies, the ranch equipment, the silver fox farm that Uncle Jerry had started, and n special show the cowboy* put on for our benefit. Food again in the evening, and after, a happy time around the tire. The cowboy* standing around the piano, where Helen played the old Christmus carols, their lusty voices Joining in the beautiful words. I thought of the beautiful setting out side as they sang: Silent Night, Holy Night! All l> calm, all is bright, Round yon Virgin Mother and Child Holy Infant so tender and mild, Sleep In heavenly peace! 1 stole outside for a few minutes as they went on to the next lines. A new moon was sending its silvery light down upon the world, a mil lion stars added their smaller gleam. Around me I felt the faint, myste rious noises of night in the open places, the stirring of unseen, un known things. My lips and heart Joined In the words thnt floated out from the warm, lamp-lit room. Silent Night, Holy Night! Shepherds quake at the sight! Glories stream from heaven afar, Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia; Christ the Saviour is born! I have spent many a happy and memorable Christmas, but never one as wonderful, as unforgettable, as this Christmas spent In the Rockies. • Western Newspaper Union. __——_._ Who Are You ? 88 ; The Romance of Your Name By RUBY HASKINS ELLIS An Alexander? TUB surname Alexander Is de rived from two Greek words meaning “to aid or help, a powerful auxiliary.” The Alexander family, according to antiquaries, was originally a branch of the MacDonalds, for Al exander MacDonald, younger son of the Lord of the Isles, obtained a grant of lands in the county of Clackamanan where he made his residence and his descendants took the name of Alexander as a sur name. In the reign of James V, Andrew Alexander married Catherine Gra ham. His son Alexander married Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir Rob ert Douglas. After two generations we find William Alexander tutor to the earl of Argyle, who appeared Slexanbtr at the court of James I of England, and by him was knighted In 1014. It was he who personally conducted the colonization of Nova Scotia In America, for which service the king made him a grant of the province. In 1625 he was made governor-in chlef of Nova Scotia. Scottish Alexanders of the same line came to America and settled on large tracts of land on the Po tomac river. The city of Alexan dria near Washington takes its name from this distinguished fam ily. A great general of the Revolu tionary war was William Alexander, whose patriotic services In the war and especially In the Battle of Long Island, 1770, are records of remark able bravery. lie was also known as Lord Stirling, have inherited this title from Scottish forbears, dating back for many generations. The Virginia Alexanders in this country began with John, who came from Scotland in 1059 and settled in Stafford county. He married Ta bltha Smart. The Colonial and Revolutionary roster records many by the name of Alexander who were loyal to their country in time of war. Robert Alexander (1720-83) was a founder of the first classical school west of the Blue Ridge, lat er named Washington and Lee uni versity. Alexanders in the New England states were represented by George, who settled in Windsor, Conn., and Robert a native of Scotland, who was living In Boston in 1084. • • • A Gibson? THE name Gilbson means “the son of Gib" or “the son of Gil bert.” Several families of this name fol lowed James II, of Scotland, in the settlement of Ireland in 1603, and during his long reign others set tled on the lands in the Province dpiisfion of Ulster lu the north of Ireland. So It Is that most Americans of this name are of Scotch-Irish extraction. Among the first Gibsons to found the family In this country was John, who came to New England In 1631 and settled at Cambridge, Mass. In 1G37 he became a free man. Another settler was Itlchard Gib son. a clergyman of Portsmouth, M. H., In 1637. William Gibson was a resident of Lynn. Mass., In 1665. • Panic Ledger, lee.—WJCU Sere low. “Art of Canning” By IRENE KELLY C> McClure Newepaper Syndicate. WNU Service. THE buzzer rang Imperiously, once—twice. A green light showed over the door marked “Pub lisher, Private.” It was the signal for the office boy. Alex went in, came out, ambled slowly down the aisle. He stopped In front of a desk bearing the name "Miss Tait,” In bold, brass letters. ^ Perching himself precariously on the roll-top desk he pulled a bright yellow apple from his pocket. Be tween hidous crackling noises he announced in the loud swaggering manner he affected for fellow em ployees : “Big Bug wants to see you." Then he leaned toward her and whispered, “Got a hunch you’re go ing to be canned. He Just canned Isobel.’’ Then he straightened up. “Gee, you smell nice. You sure must use some swell perfumery." The owner of the desk was fright ened, annoyed and contemptuous, respectively. “Shut up and get off my desk. .. . What gave you the Idea I’m going to be canned?” The office boy shrugged thin shoulders. “Didn’t I Just say he canned Iso bel? Didn’t I? Heard him spring the old chestnut about too much overhead. If you take my advice— well, it's always better to quit than wait around til) you’re canned. When you know you’re going to be canned anyway. Gee, I got canned once.” His eyes took on a faraway look. A pained expression stole over his lean, pale face. Then be suddenly sprang off her desk. “Guess I’d better get out the matt or I’ll be the next one.” He was gone In a flash. Mabel Talt was already surrepti tiously powdering her tilted nose from the sheltering bulwark of her roll-top desk. For the last year she had edited: the Love-Lorn columns of the Seat tle Ledger, had administered what she thought were Just the right pills of advice to lovesick higl^ school girls; she’d lulled the minds of suspecting wives and soothed complaining husbands. Of course, she was ambitious for something better, but she was fairly young and this was a rather nice begin ning to what she hoped would be an outstanding newspaper career. She looked around her, as for the first time, noting the downcast heads with green eye shades, shirt sleeved arms and black-cuffed wrists moving rapidly about in a maze of disordered papers. Phones were ringing here and there and receiving soft or bellowing replies. Her heart took sickening spiral turns to a black and bottomless pit. She simply couldn’t hear leaving this place! As she passed by the city desk her soft round chin was raised Just a little defiantly. Hand on the pub lisher’s doorknob, she turned around' and swiftly surveyed the room, as a drowning person in one moment review's his past. Then sighing heavily she opened the door, crossed thick, soft carpets to the desk of the publisher. Mr. Cranage glowered up at her,, removed Ills thick glasses, wiped, them painstakingly with a pink, cloth, replaced them with madden ing deliberation. "Sit down. Miss Talt. What T have to say will take only a minute. I believe in coming right to the point about matters like this. We are having to curtail expenses—er. reduce our overhead, yon know— “Yes, I know.” Site was sur prised to hear her own voice speak ing as from a distance. Alex had been right for once. She was thank ful he had warned her. Now she could be first. “And l suppose some one will just absorb my work with theirs In their spare time. Is that it?" Her voice rose shrilly, and she didn't seem to be ahle to do a thing about it. Emotion engulfed her like a. great rising tide. “Let me tell yon something, Mr. Cranage. You can’t can me. I’m quitting. Do yon see? I'm sick to death anyway of telling all the nervous women in Seattle how to hold their husbands. M.v Job— well, anybody that wants her con stitution undermined can have it.” Site waited for him to say some thing. He didn’t. He Just sat there smug and—staring, like an over-ex posed photograph. “Well?” Her tone was belligerent* . her chin high; hut she knew the minute she left the room she’d fold up like a fan. Mr. Cranage toyed with the golf medal on his desk. “I was merely going to say, my dear, that our business office re ports an alarming number of air mail envelopes from your desk. Of course. If any of your letters ure preventing suicides. . . .” His eyes took on a thoughtful look. “Hut that is of no consequence now, I suppose. I’m sorry your work has been so prosaic. We’ll get some one else right away.” She swung on a slim, hYench heel with murderous Intent. Then, as if in a nightmare she heard Mr. Cranage say: “Er . . . how would you like to have charge of the Women’s Page, say — starting the first of th#> month 7”