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About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 8, 1938)
Slovakia Granted Autonomy For First Time Since 835 A.I). Prtpared by National Geographic Society. Washington. D. C.-WNIJ Service. In the terrific shake-up which has been rocking Czechoslovakia to its founda tions, one adjustment has taken place with relatively little destruction. It is the promotion of Slovakia to autonomy. For the big east ern fraction of the Czecho slovak republic, this means an administration of its own for the first time in more than a thousand years. The pew government gives Slovakia complete control over ita own affairs, except matters which also concern the Czechs, such as foreign policy, finances obtained by Joint debts, and national defense. The farthest eastern tip of the nation, Ruthenia—adjacent to Slovakia on the east—has governed itself under a similar autonomous arrangement since the formation of the republic. Slovak Spelling Book Best Seller. The green valleys of Slovakia shelter a people who have been ruled from capitals outside the prov ince since about 835 A. D., when Prince Mojmir began enlarging the powerful little Moravian empire, to the west, at Slovakia’s expense. (The adjacent western province of Moravia today is a relic of this re gime.) Within a century, Slovakia was snatched back into the realm of an eastern capital by invading Mag yars, and for the succeeding thou sand years until 1918 it was part of Hungary. Yet, through centuries of foreign domination, the Slovaks have doggedly preserved their tal ents and traditions, and now they emerge as a small but distinct group of people with a culture of their own. Until the formation of the Czech oslovak republic, education in their own language was rare among the Slovaks. Taking stock in 1918 at the end of the Hungarian regime, they found that the former govern Chinese Junk Still Controls River Traffic ——And One Even Crossed Pacific to Establish New Record! Prepared oy National Geographic Society, Washington, D. C.—WNU Service. If it’s news when a small but mod em motorboat conquers an ocean, then the same accomplishment by a 36-foot sailing vessel designed 2,000 years ago comes under the head of maritime drama. Such a story re cently made the headlines when a man, his wife, and two crew mem bers arrived in California from Ja pen in a Chinese junk. While modern steamers are be coming more numerous in Chinese waters, the old-fashioned junk, with its oblong sails, low, square bow, and high, decorated stern, contin ues to hold an important place in the economic life of old Cathay. Behind it is a checkered career as trader, fisherman, pirate, and man of-war; yet this vessel still hauls much of China's vast domestic trade along coastal lanes and inland river roads. Bobbing up and down in the harbors of big cities, it offers the only home that millions of families have ever known. Carried Early Compass. The Chinese junk, though some times described as topheavy, slow, and lumbering, is, nevertheless, both adaptable and efficient in the hands of an expert sailor. Varying types have been evolved through centuries of use to meet current conditions and shipping needs of in. dividual ports. Flat bottoms mini mize injury when vessels go aground in the numerous shallows and sandbars that menace Chinese river traffic. Sails of cotton cloth or matting are so cut and balanced as to be quickly adjusted in fre quent coast squalls. Certain shipping improvements finally adopted in Europe originated long ago with this craft. Trading between Canton and the Persian gulf in the Third century, Chinese junks carried early, if not the very A humble, peaceful pennant home in Cnechonlorakia, neem ingly far removed from the agonic* of war. ment had provided about 135 Slovak' schools per million of Slovak popu lation—none of them of high school rank. Books in Slovak achieved a circulation of hardly more than 500 copies before the republic was formed. The native language, cher ished in the home, was not to be used in such semi-official places as post offices and railway stations and cemeteries. The republic formed in 1918, however, made Slovak an offi cial tongue of the same legal status as Czech. Immediately thereafter, a simple Slovak spelling book be came as popular for adults as for school children, and an edition of 50,000 was promptly sold out. Languages Similar. The language of the Slovaks dif fers from that of the Czechs much ; as English differs in England and the United States. Czech and Slo vak can understand each other’s speech without the use of a diction ary. Many of the differences between the two are due to the westernizing influence of Germanic Austria on the former, and the eastern influ ence of Magyar Hungary—and occa sional contacts with the Turks—on the latter. An important factor, however, is the fact that three fourths of Slovakia is mountainous, from the Little Carpathians in tho west to the lofty peaks of the High Tatras on the northeast. Mountainsides bear a large part of the virgin forests which give the Czechoslovak republic the advan tage of being wooded over one-third of its surface. Logs are floated down the River Vah, Slovakia's chief wa terway, and smaller streams to less wooded plains in the south. Flocks and herds high on the mountain sides give Slovakia a supply of leather, wool, and foodstuffs, includ ing sheep’s-milk cheese and the quaint Miss Muffet fare, curds and whey. Here is the Chinese fishing junk, Mummel-Hummel, in which Dr. E. Allen Petersen ami a erew of three, including his wifey sailed from Yoko hama to Los Angeles in 85 days. first, crude compasses of magnetic iron needles. Riding in junks in his travels a thousand years later, Marco Polo found them larger and more sea worthy than Venetian ships of the time. He was especially impressed with their airtight compartments, which, preventing a leak in one sec tion of a craft from swamping the entire vessel, made it practically unsinkable. On the intricate network of ca nals, creeks and rivers that sub stitute in China for motor roads and railways, junks carry much of the nation’s enormous water-borne com merce. In all sizes, shapes and col ors, they ply the three great river systems that cross the land from west to east—the Yangtze, the Yel low river, and the Sikiang, or West river. One meets them sailing smoothly in open waters or strug gling through narrow, rocky gorges where treacherous rapids swirl In size they may range from a tiny, single-sail craft to a five-mast ed trader carrying up to 400 tons of freight. Hardly recognizable as a junk at all is one Chinese native ship which more nearly resembles a “floating packing case.’’ I_ NATIONAL AFFAIRS Reviewed by CARTER FIELD Chief topic of conversa tion is whether Roosevelt mints a third term, and whethS- he can get it if he does want it. .. Harry util ities on income tax returns . . . World indignation aroused over Hitler's treat ment of Jews. WASHINGTON.—As senators and members of the house drift back to Washington following the campaign, either to take up committee work or get themselves settled for the session to open in January, the chief topic of conversation is whether President Roosevelt wants a third term, and whether he can get it if he does want it. Right after the Roosevelt defeat on the purge campaign against sen ators who had op posed the White House on the Su preme court issue, there was a general conviction that ev ery time he lost a purge fight the Pres ident made his own nomination for a third term more cer tain. The theory here was that the Harry President would not Hopkins be able to control the organizations of his party in the states in which he had lost these battles, and that therefore he would not be able to dictate the nomination of a man, as for in stance Harry L. Hopkins, who would be certain to carry out the New Deal policies. Therefore, it was figured, the President would feel that the only way in which he could be sure of having the New Deal policies car ried on would be to take the nom ination himself. It was also felt that if the President were driven to this conclusion, which most ob servers seemed to think inevitable, the convention would not dare re fuse him. Since the election, and the more formidable showing of the Republi cans than had been expected, a lit tle doubt has begun to creep into this logic. Returning members of congress have told one another that they found Roosevelt himself consid erably less popular than they had supposed. They figure the drift is against him, and might easily reach a disastrous level, from the stand point of the Democrats, by 1940. Nearly all of them admit that the President could have been re-elect ed had he been running on Novem ber 8, though a few inject the modi fication that they are not certain to what extent the prejudice against a third term would affect this. Sentiment Found Moving Slowly Against Roosevelt But the point is that all politi cians realize that public sentiment seldom stands still. It moves one way or the other. For many months now it has been moving slowly against Roosevelt. There is no in dication that the tide has turned. It might turn next month and find the President stronger than ever in 1940, but, most observers admit, that would be a freakish develop ment. The natural swing of public sentiment runs with almost the reg ularity of the tides. Roosevelt reached flood about Christmastime after the election of 1936. His tide began to ebb in Janu ary, 1937, with the Supreme court proposal. It has not gone low enough yet to endanger him. The only question is where it will stop. Now the actual truth about all this is not so important—or will not be until election day. What is im portant is what politicians think is the truth. If the rank and file of the politicians of the Democratic party believe, at primary time, that Roosevelt is the only candidate who can save the Democratic party and keep them in office, Roosevelt will be renominated if a third term can be forced on him. If they think that Cordell Hull, or John Nance Garner, or Bennett Champ Clark, or Vic Donahey is more likely to win, not having a third-term prejudice to overcome, they are apt to defeat Roosevelt for a renomination even if he should want it Again Harry Utilities On Income Tax Returns It is rather interesting that, right in tiie midst of all the talk about peace between the administration and the electric industry, somebody —no one is willing apparently to take the responsibility for going so far—opened the door to further har rying of the utilities on the question of income tax returns. • The first announcement of what had happened was that an execu tive order had been issued under which the TVA investigating com mute could look at any or all in come tax returns of the utilities. The executive order was so broad in scope that it not only permitted all the corporation income tax re turns, but the individual ones as well. And it applied to every utility i In the United State*! When questions were raised by1 Republican member* of the com mittee, at its next meeting there after, Francis Biddle, this commit tee’s counsel, said that all that had been wanted were the corporation income tax returns of the Tennessee Electric Power company. No re-1 turns of any other utility corpora tion would be used, he said, nor would any personal income tax re- I turns. But, as Rep. Charles A. Wolver ton immediately pointed out, the ex ecutive order provided for all util ity corporations, and for all individ ual income returns based on utility corporations. He said that the in vestigators of the committee would thus have access to all such re turns they might care to look at, regardless of what might be select ed for use in the committee hearing, I Whereupon Mr. Biddle produced the original request, which was lim ited in scope, as he had said. His letter was addressed to Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau Jr. So there seems to be quite a mys tery as to the stage in the journey of these papers when the scope was widened to include all. Committee Members in Dark Over Executive Order It is also interesting that the members of the committee did not know anything about this request for an executive order until more than a week after it had been issued, save as they may have read it in the newspapers. Not only the Re publican members were in ignor ance; the Democratic members were as well. Chairman Vic Dona hey, senator from Ohio, rushed in to take the responsibility when the discussion grew hot, but he was careful merely to say that he took responsibility, not that he had au thorized the action in advance. Ac tually he knew nothing about it un til it had been accomplished. Actually, also, the scope of the committee’s investigation, broad as it is, does not contemplate an in quiry into the negotiations that the utilities are now conducting to sell their properties in TVA territory to TVA and to the various communi ties which are about to acquire their own distribution systems. The chief item of interest, Mr. Biddle contends, is whether the companies now negotiating for the sale of their properties have allowed as much depreciation, in computing the value of their plants, as they charged off in their income tax re turns before computing profits on which they would pay corporation income taxes. Hitler s Actions Cost Reich Return of Former Colonies Hitler’s actions since the Munich conference which partially dismem bered Czechoslovakia have cost the Reich return of those of her former colonies held now by Great Britain and France. This is the almost unanimous opinion of the diplomatic corps here, though of course no in dividual is speaking for quotation. It is common knowledge in diplo matic circles that Prime Minister Chamberlain promised Hitler that the question of the return of the German colonies would be promptly taken up. It is common knowledge also that this was really the in tention, in perfect good faith, of the British government. The knowledge is not nearly so definite, but cer tainly the impression in diplomatic circles in London, Paris and Wash ington was that France also would restore the German colonies. This was not only the intention, so far as the British government was concerned, but prac tical steps were un der way. For exam ple, a very consider able government ac tivity, which had been planned for years in one of these former German, now British, colo nies in South Africa and was about to be ''v started, was aban Adolf Hitler doned shortly after Munich. Those concerned were sim ply told that the government was no longer interested. No definite step backward in this program has been recorded since the recent Jewish outrages, but there has been an obvious political change, resulting from the temper of the people. Both British and French spokesmen have reassured critics, promising that there would be no restoration of colonies. World Indignation Aroused Over Treatment of Jews The argument is now being made that to turn a colony over to Ger many would result in the same fate for the Jews living there that be fell the Jews who were living in Sudetenland. Catholics and certain other denominations have joined in the fear that their own co-religion ists would suffer if Germany were given sovereignty again over these overseas territories. But far tran scending the effects of any of these groups is the national indignation that has welled up in Britain and France, surpassing any wave of world indignation since the Arme nian massacres of more than 40 years ago. The German situation will also re sult in tremendous pressure in the next session of congress for relaxa tion of the present immigration re strictions so as to permit persecuted Jews and others from Germany, Austria and Sudetenland to enter the United States. £ BeU Syndicate.—WNU Service, The Little Fir Tree By Henry Harding □HERE was very little sunlight in the forest. The trees were so big, all the grown up trees. The little fir tree stretched himself, and tried to imagine himself as full grown. Looking up at the sky and the stars and the moon, he listened to the big trees talk. “Isn’t the moon bright tonight,” one would say; and there would be a gentle rustling of their leaves as the trees would shake their heads in agree ment “I’m afraid you’re going to be stunted, because there is so much shade here,” a little squirrel said to the flr one day as he jumped into its branches and brushed the top limbs with his bushy tail. “It takes sunlight to make anything grow strong and tall.” So the little flr tree stretched him self up, and kept his head pointed up toward the spot of sunlight he saw clear up through the maze of heavy tree growth. He could be straight and upstanding, even if he hadn’t grown tall. Today the ground was all covered with the snow which stayed white in the forest. All but a few birds had gone south. Every once in a ; while there was the sound of steel striking against wood, and infre quently a crashing sound of falling trees. The tall trees began to tremble. “The woodcutters are out But this is a funny time of year,” one mur “I never saw a more beautiful tree,” he said. “It seems to glow.” mured to the others. Then one of the little snow birds spoke. “Have you forgotten that every year they come to cut Christmas trees?” “What are Christmas trees?” the little fir asked. “Oh, they cut down the trees and take them in the house, and put candles on them so they look like stars, and spangles that look like snow shining in the moonlight. And the people sing songs and give each other gifts, and it is a time of being glad,” the little snow bird twittered. “Oh, I wish they would take me,” the little tree cried in excitement. “I’d love to see it all. I'd love to make people happy. But I’m too little,” and he sighed unhappily. "Sh! Let’s all be quiet,” one of the tall trees exclaimed. “The woodsmen are coming near us. We must be quiet so they won’t notice us. Then we won’t be cut down and left to die.” But in spite of their silence, the men drew near. They looked at the trees, and one of them said: "Oh, these are all too tall. No house or church could hold them. Let’s get *• on. Just then a little lad who was riding in the sled, called to his fa ther: "Dad, can we find a little tree for sister? Couldn’t we find a cute little tree to put in her very own room?" “Ho! Ho!” laughed a big rough man. “In her own room? No little girl will stay in her room on Christ mas dayl” The lad’s father answered, sadly: “Yes, my little girl will. She had infantile paralysis last summer, and hasn’t been able to walk since. Sure ly, son, we’ll find a little tree for her.” “Here I am, here I am! come and get me,” the little fir tree called out lustily. And the little boy turned and saw the branches trembling, and the little snow bird flying away. “Why, dad, there is a cute little tree over there. Such a beautiful straight tree. Wouldn’t that do?” he called. The man got out from the sled. He walked to the tree and fondled it gently. “1 never saw a more beauti ful tree. It seems to glow. Molly will love it," he said with a smile. The little tree was so happy that he didn't feel the blows from the ax that cut him to the ground. And when they put him into the sled, he was still happy. The little boy called to his father: “It sounds as if the little tree was singing when the wind blows through its branches.” And the little tree laughed delight edly. Copyright.—WNU Service. I .. . -- , Farm Topics y PLAN AMPLE DIET FOR DAIRY COWS Weight, Amount of Milk as Guide to Feed Needs. By W. T. Crandnll, Extension Service. New York State College of Agriculture. WNU Service. The weight of the dairy cow and the amount of milk she gives deter mine largely the amount of feed necessary during the winter months when pasture is no longer available, recent research shows. Each cow should receive about three pounds of silage for each 100 pounds of weight A 1,000 pound cow, for example, should have 30 pounds of silage. Twice each day the cow should have all the good hay she will eat. ’ When silage is not available it may be replaced by good hay at the rate of 1 pound to 3 pounds of silage. The amount of grain to feed de pends on the breed, the volume of milk produced, and the quality of the roughage. A Jersey cow that produces less than 10 pounds of milk and receives all the good roughage she can eat should need no grain, but for every pound of milk over 10 pounds she should get one-half pound or slightly more of grain. A Jersey that gives 20 pounds of milk would thus receive 5 to (1 pounds of grain. A Holstein that Is giving only 16 pounds of milk or less needs no grain, but for every pound over 16 she should get four tenths of a pound of grain, accord ing to experiments by the United States department of agriculture. The feeder must be guided by the condition of the cows. If cows are getting thin give them more grain. If they are getting fat reduce the grain. They should be neither fat nor thin. Alfalfa for Layers Is Found to Be Advantage No general agreement has been reached on the question of how much alfalfa should be fed in the winter laying ration, but a six month record of egg production at the Wisconsin experiment station clearly shows the advantage of feed ing some alfalfa. While pullets on a basal ration, without alfalfa, aver aged about 76 eggs each in six months, the various lots given al falfa in the ration averaged from 91 to 107 eggs during the same period. There was no evidence that as much as 10 per cent of the alfalfa in the ration was detrimental to egg production or to the general well being of the pullets. Neither was there any particular advantage in feeding such a large amount. Some investigators have expressed the opinion that alfalfa should not make up more than 5 per cent of the mash or about 2 per cent of the en tire ration. The Wisconsin workers suggest that a farmer who purchases alfalfa leaf meal, but raises the grain need ed for a poultry ration will probably find it more economical to use not more than 5 per cent of alfalfa in the mash. On the other hand, one who grinds his own alfalfa hay for poultry feeding may want to use 10 per cent. Pay for Dressing Poultry The question is raised many times among the poultrymei, whether the extra price received for poultry dressed or both dressed and drawn is worth the extra labor involved and the loss in weight of the birds which occurs in dressing. "A bird which weighs three pounds alive,” an ex pert explained, "loses 12 per cent of its weight when blood and feather dressed and 27 per cent when the carcass is drawn and prepared for cooking. A live bird weighing over three pounds and up to five loses 10 per cent when dressed and 25 per cent when drawn, while live birds of five pounds or more lose seven per cent in weight when dressed and 18 per cent when drawn. In figur ing the prices necessary to make up for the loss in dressing, one must consider the loss of weight as well as the labor involved.” Figures on Manure The production of manure has been figured out as follows for the various animals, says the Montreal Herald: Cow, about 70 pounds daily; steer, 60 pounds; horse, 44 pounds; hog, 9 pounds; sheep, 4 pounds. Cow manure contains the largest propor tion of water—77 per cent; sheep manure the least—64 per cent. Ma nures from horses, cows and hogs each contain about 10 pounds of ni trogen bearing ammonia per toh; from steers, 12 to 18 pounds; sheep, 30 pounds. Clean Chicken House Pays Careful attention to routine clean ing and maintenance jobs will pay the poultryman big dividends. The poultry house and equipment should receive a regular cleaning, prefer ably with a solution made from one pound of lye and six gallons of wa ter, advises a poultryman in the Portland Oregonian. Apply this solu tion to the floor and the lower part of the wall, and to the poultry equip ment. Brush it into the cracks and crevices with an old broom. $ Fruit Juices Essential to Sound Teeth , By PATRICIA LINDSAY “TViT ANY savage tribes have woo derful teeth in spite of the i fact they never clean them and do not know what a tooth brush is. It is largely due to the plentiful use of fruits, the Juices of which have a valuable cleansing effect.” "In recent years." a medical book goes on to state, "some dental au thorities have advocated cleaning the teeth with fruit Juices or food acids, such as diluted cider vinegar, instead of the usual alkaline tooth powders. It is claimed that fruit acids promote the increased flow of saliva and in this way bring about a greater alkaline condition of the mouth within a few minutes. Saliva, tcape Plenty ol fresh fruit Juices for beauty I as you know, Is naturally alkaline. Furthermore fruit is somewhat anti septic and is always healthful.” When fruit is reasonable in price and plentiful you should eat much of it Especially fruits with juices. And you should drink fruit juices without sugar to reap the greatest benefit and nourishment. Right Foods Aid Tooth Health There is one factor in maintaining sound and healthy teeth which is commonly overlooked, especially while a child is growing. That is which foods tend to strengthen and prolong the life of teeth. If the diet is lacking in the elements for build ing teeth and bones, then decay and loss of teeth is almost inevitable. Medical authorities commonly agree on certain foods rich in lime and organic mineral salts, such as whole wheat bread in preference to white bread; shredded wheat and whole grain products such as oat meal will help to build strong healthy teeth. Milk and eggs are both rich in lime. And vegetables eaten with the water in which they are cooked are strongly recom mended. Children and adults alike should eat natural foods, calling for exer cise of the teeth and supplying all the elements provided by nature. And every child should be trained early in life in the care of the teetb and in mouth hygiene. © Bell Syndicate.—WNU Service. HINT-OF-THE-DAY Bowling for Trim Hips Bowling is the ideal exercise to keep troublesome hip bulges down. In Hollywood it has become one of the most popular sports among the feminine stars. It keeps them svelte for the camera and helps to relax their minds and nerves after a busy day before the camera. Don’t be misled into thinking that only your arms will benefit from bowling. As a matter of fact, only about 20 per cent of the actual work is done with the arms. The back, the hips are each benefited by bowling, so much so that health and beauty experts declare that no other form of exercise is needed. One hour on the alleys twice a week will do marvels for your figure and it’s one of the few actual re ducing exercises that is a pleasure to take. Trumpets and Horns Are Important in Orchestra The brasses of the modern sym phony fall into two groups—the trumpets and the horns. In the former belong the trumpets, tubas and trombones; in the latter are found the various types of horns. In their relationship to the human voice, the trumpets would corre spond to the soprano, the trombones to the contralto and the tubas to the baritone or bass. True tubas have a cup mouth piece and are built upright with either three or four valves. Nota tion has been variable, though most composers use the F clef. To Adolphe Sax is due much credit for perfecting our modern symphonic tuba, writes an expert in the Chi cago Daily News. Formerly called the sackbut, the trombone is built with a slide which moves up or down the two fixed "legs.” There are seven positions for the slide, each producing its own harmonic series. It has been made in every register from soprano to contrabass. The "slide” method leaves nothing to be desired in tone Quality, yet valves were added.
