North Carolina Newspapers

VOL. L HUMAN LETTER /OPENER FOR U.S. Ira Smith Reads All Mail Sent to White House. About the Only prominent man whose autograph one may be absolute ly sure of any more is that of the President. There Is an inviolate rule at the Wlilte House In Washing ton that no one may imitate the Pres ldent's signature, no matter how close v ly one might be able to do it, or how inconsequential the letter to which the signature must be' attached. If the answer is sent in his name, the signature is genuine. If you liave N . a letter from the White House with Calvin Coolldge's'signature, you may feel certain that the autograph, at least, is real. , Human Letter Opener. Whether the President ever saw your letter to him or dictated the an swer, however, is something else again. Oftentimes, more than one thousand letters reach the executive offices in a day—to say nothing of several hun dred telegrams which come over the White House wire. On an average day, the mail contains something like four hundred letters. By the time tliese have been sifted and hand picked, there are not more than two dozen letters laid on the President's desk for liim to read and answer per sonally. . The opening and sorting of this mail is a man-sized job. The human let ter opener who holds it Is Ira Smith, who has done nothing else day In and ' day out—year 4 in and year out—for the lost or more. lie opens that comes to the. Whlto\ House —-sealed up or tied up—by mail, express or messenger. If a crank were to ship a bomb or" an infernal machine to the President, the man blown up wouid be Ira Smith and not President Coolldge. Reads Even Personal Letter*. Mr. Smith cup read the English lan guage perfectly, with the exception of three phrases, "Personal," "Strictly Confidential," "Slemp, Do Not Open." He does not know what these mean. In other words, "Very Private" on a letter to the President has much the same effect as to hand a nut to a squirrel with the suggestion, "Do Ept open until Christmas." "Supposing I wanted to write and tell the President something that I wouldn't want anybody else to see and that I knew he, himself, wouldn't want anybody else to see—something, maybe, that really oughtn't to be known except by him and me—how ■would I go about It?" I heard asked recently. The answer is it couldn't be done. The only way yet discovered for a man not In the habit of writing to the President to get a letter Into his hands without Its first being opened and glanced through, by some one else Is to give it to the President himself. Trick* Only Cause Delay. While the White House letter open er ordinarily pays no attention to "Personal,'\ there are a few letters to the President that he does not open— those written by members of the Pres ident's family «na by Intimate friends. Mr. Smith Is clever at recognizing handwriting. Sometimes a writer Incloses his let ters In nn envelope addressed to Sec retary Slemp or to his private secre tary, Mr. Clark, explaining that the letter Is about something that the President wouldn't want even his sec retary In on. Not Infrequently some body sends a letter to the President In care of Mrs. Coolldge. None of these schemes work. The only result is to delay It. Anything addressed to the President's family must go to the White House first and then be sent over to the executive offices. A letter to the President In closed with one to Mr. Slemp Is opened and read by Mr. Slemp and If It were of much consequence It would reach him anyway as he would show It to the President If he thought It worth while. Finds Ultra-Violet Rays Are Weight Reducers The ultra-violet ray la equnHy effec tive as a weight reducer or groducer, according to Doctor Llvet and Doctor Vautler, who described to the Acad emy of Medicine In Paris the excellent results obtained when the rays were applffed to a number of obese patients, bringing about a loss of weight of from sight to twenty pounds after thirty applications. The same rays, used to tone up debilitated patients, caused them to put on flesh. Skuntu Capture a Town j At least a score of families of skunks have Invaded West Chester, Pa, and aire housekeeping beneath porches in several sections of the bor ough. The niinl' are causing no trouble, but control the territory ad Jsceot to their retreat* THE ALAMANCE GLEANER Repair Shade and Ornamental Trees Suggestions on Proper Meth ods to Follow in Mending Damage of Winter. (Prepared by the United Stat Mi D.partm.nt of Affiiaultor*.) JXr 1 —*— 7 ' — injury and destruction of trees of all kinds during the winter season has brought many inquiries to the United States Department of Agri culture regarding the proper methods to be followed In repairing the damage done. The following suggestions are made by the department: The first thing that should be done is .to remove such large broken -ijrancheß as are now, or may become, a mtnnoe to life and property; this is usuallyxbest done by cutting at the point broken. Attention should then be injuries on the main trunk, if split, or partially split, from the main trunk, all splintered wood i bout the woitod should be removed with a sharp gouge and 'mallet, if not so situated -that It can be sawed off. The scar should be smoothed In the manner Indicated in Farmers' Bulletin 1178, Tree Surg ery, and treated as an open cavity, or ns a large surface wound, as the case may necessitate. Repair Larger Branches. Attention should next be given to repairing the injuries on the larger branches In a similar manner, and last of all to the smaller branches. Sometimes, when a limb Is broken away the tree Is so weakened at the point of breakage that It may again break in a severe wind, and to obvi ate this the top must be pruned back more or less severely. In case of split crotches, the advice given Jn Farmers' Bulletin 1178 should be fol lowed regarding the general treatment, •'including bolting through and above the crack. In cases of estates where a great amount St Injury has occurred, and only a comparatively small force is available for repairing the damage, the final cutting of 4ong stubs can be conveniently left for a time, but wounds Qr breaks on the main trunk, or close to it, should be attended to promptly, In any case before warm weather arrives. Leav* Cavltle* Op*n. It is not to fill cavities. It is better in most cases to leave them open. All final cuts should be Im mediately covered with some good an tiseptic and waterproof paint It will not be necessary to specially treat the ends of long stnbs that are to ba re moved close to the trunk later In the season. In no part of repair work should climbing spurs be used on a tree. Spur marks cause Injuries through which it is possible for disease and decay germs to enter and cause damage. In some cases more severe than would have developed from the original simple break. For details of treatment of all scars and wounds send for a copy of Farmers' Bulletin 1178, which can be obtained from the Office of Publica tions, Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. O. Remember that prevention la better than cure. The open wound of today becomes the decayed spot of next year and the deep rotten cavity of ten years from now. It la better to spend a few daya or dollars in care ful repair work now than hundreds of dollars for extensive tree surgery in 1930. Chinese Wants Divorce From His "Flapper" Wife The East is east, and the West Is west, and the • customs of the two should never be Tom Wing, Chinese businessman, gravely In formed Judge Grahan at San Fran cisco In his divorce s ilt against Tom Sink Shee, who from her husband's testimony, appears to have been a mueh Americanised Chinese flapper. "I marry her July IS, 1922, Hong kong," explained Tom Wing. "She then velly fine China girl. Take her to Amellea, two months she allee Mf;llcan girl. Step out allee time. She tellee me keep baby, she have good time. Then she go 'way." Tom Wing and Infant son live at 1115 "Stockton street. Soviet Coins Appear; First Out Since War Russians clinked hard money la their pockets at Moscow recently, for the first time since the war, with the Issuance of the new soviet sliver coin age. A small amount In fractional ruble coins was put out by the state banks and within a few hours nearly every shop bad some of them. Simultaneously the government fixed the prices of nearly all staple com modities, and to maintain the parity of silver and the new small gold*value paper, ordered all banks to accept these new Issues at par. GRAHAM, N. C., THURSDAY. APRIL 17. 1924 Reward for J eatera Who Lighten Life'* Burden» England knights her playwright* and her men of wealth, and so does France, bnt France has gone a long itep further and awarded academic palms to three clowns, the Fratalllnl brothers, for their beneficial effect on the public morale. No task Is harder than finding new jokes or making old ones appear fun ny, the New York World states. There Is a continuing dearth of merriment, only occasionally relieved by obliging amateurs. When a good story cofties to light the city pounces on It like a hawk; it is passed from mouth to mouth in every office and factory till It wears thin with-handling. Obvious ly the m&rket is undersuppiled, and the art of eliciting smiles should be subsidized as well as honored. The better comedians of the revues, who receive but a shame-faced fame, deserve at the least congressional rec ognitions and pensions from the pub lic treasury. They are ill "line of descent from Will Kemp, Shakespeare's clown; Grimaldl, whose memoirs were edited by Charles Dickens, and all the harlequins &t history. ~Since there are no orders of nobil ity in this country, those who succeed In being particularly excruciating should receive cash prizes or gold medals easily convertible Into cash. As a nation we are too serious, not as a matter of choice, but because there Is so little first-rate wit to be found. And we deserve our fate. What have we ever done to encourage the successful clown except to laugh at him? College Instructor Find• Mixer Earns More Money Who has the greater income after college years—the scholar or the mix er? How rates the student of chemis try? One answer laf glvefi by an In structor in the University of Michigan. He has prepared a sort of alumni who's who and for how much. The scope of his Inquiry Is not known, but his compilation points to the conclusion that In the ten-year period since graduation, high scholar ship men have reached an average annual Income of $3,000, with men prominent In extra-curriculum activ ities placed at an average of SIO,OOO a year. A word of explanation goes along with the figures. Says the in structor : The statistics do not prove that the men of the highest grade are incapa ble of , earning big money—they mere ly show these melt do not prefer lines of work which are most lucrative. 80 we conclude that those who wooed the lamp in college are reward ed In the measure set by their choice of career, and that those who wooed other flames have come to a more golden fortune. Scholars er mixers— young men in college all have their oil cans. Some there be who burn their oil, and some there be who mere ly spread It, but oil's well that ends well.—Nation's Business. Agm of the Sun The age of the ann haa been fixed at something between two billion and three billion yeara by Prof, Walter Nernst, after researches announced at a meeting In Berlin of the Society for Induatrlal Progress. The estimates are based In part on the rate of de composition of radio-active elements, and in part on deductions from Bin atein'a theory of relativity concerning the relation between mass and energy. Early estimates set the age of the sun as low as ten million years, but geolo gists ehowed this was too short to al low for the erosion and other changes observed In the crust of the earth since It became aolld. The radioactive decomposition of uranium to lead Is a more accurate cosmic clock, and this indicates that the solid crust of the earth has existed for at least one and one-half billion years. According to Nernst, the sun, while getting past middle age, la still good for 400,000,000 years, after which will form on its surface and life such as we know It will cease upon the earth. Wants 'Em 'Liminatmd *- tt you don't care tar those towers," explained the archi- "we can easily have them elim inated." Mr. Bullloo-Bagge furrowed his brows and puffed out his cheeks. Then be looked np from the plant. "H'm I" he grunted. "They look real handsome as they are, but If you think Umlnatln' 'em will make 'em any 'andsomer, then. 1 sec, let's 'ave 'em Uminated." Satisfactory "So yon want to mairy my daugh ter? What Is your financial standing T" "Well, sir, rve figured out every ex emption possible; I've bad the best legal advice that money would secure; Tve done everything I could dp to dodge It —and I still find that I cannot escape paying an Income tax." Take her. She's yours."—Boston Transcript. BILL BOOSTER SAYS wemea POLKS QKX ASQOOOA* TMBI GtVt. *IH& FCUUCMI VMOCOMCC OOWM TO¥M TUt vvcMuua a. a*a scowl mekt# rous VJWO ecowu BACK, VMILE EV6RMOOW &AIU6S XX "tUt CHCERM CHAP'. „ Accept GifCof Land for Shasta Foreet A tract of land situated within tin Shasta national forest of California and owned by Hiss Mary Burt Brlttan, of San Francisco, has been given to the federal government and accepted by Secretary of Agriculture Wallace ' under authority given by congress. It will form a part of the Shasta forest.j The tract involved comprises 300 acres and was a favorite camping 1 place of Miss Brittan's brother, Judgs WllVlairf Giles Brlttan, now deceased. Notwithstanding the land's high mar ket value, Miss Brlttan preferred to donate it to the national forest sya-i tem for public use aa a memorial to■ her brother. The forest service. United States Department of Agriculture plana to make the donated tract attractive to campcra and will encourage Its use for all recreational purpose* to carry oat the wishes of the donor. Castle lake, a good-sised body of water, la located within the donated area and adds greatly to Ha recreational value. One of the prettiest views obtainable of Mount Shasta, abont fifteen miles •way. can be had from the altoroa of thla lake. Turkeys, Ducks and Geese Easily Killed by Vermin Turkeys, ducks and geese are more easily killed by the head lice than are other'kind* of farm fowls. The lice are only one of the six or eight forma which bother poultry, but a single hood louse haa been known to kill a turkey. It la a grayish white louse, and the* most serious of them all. For treatment, dip the tip of the finger In melted lard and rub this well around the comb. Dip again and rub back of ear, repeating for the other ear, the bill and jaw. This doee not give the bead a greasy appearance, but la enough to destroy the lice. A few drops of kerosene, carbolic add or atock dip may be added to the lard, to make It more effective. The bird should ba kept la a warm place for a couple of hours after thla treatment haa been given General Repair Work in Repair work on machines, buildings, fences, and other farm Improvements d»ne during the winter months, la out of the way when crops are demanding all of the available time. Such work will interfere wlt£ the work on crops If permitted to wait until the crop aea aon la here. It Is one of the charac terlstlcs of a successful fnrmer that ouch work la done In slack reasons and before It Is urgent The Inefficient farmer lets It go until the lsst minute and then loses on bis crops because be Is not working on them. A mem orandum list of things that need to be done helpe one. to remember these things and helps to get them done at the right time. No Feed Equals Pasture for Production of Milk There Is no one feed that can be fed In the bam that la equal to pas ture for milk production. Cow* may be fed ailage to very good adranUge when they are on pasture. If the pas ture la abort. Silage gives best re mits when fed In connection with other feeds. If silage was to be fsd alone, and compared with clover and timothy hay fed alone, there would probably not be very much difference. You would get best results by fowling three pounds of silage a day to one pound of hay. Silage and clorer or silage and alfalfa make tbe best cotoblna tkm. SALT LAKE WATER LEVEL IS GRADUALLY RISING Depth That Pioneers Found In 1847 May Be Reached, U. 3. Expert Asserts. Contrary to the belief that Great Salt lake was drying up, the water In the lake Is gradually rising and, In the opinion of J. Cecil Alter, In charge of the United States weather bureau •t Salt Lake City, Utah, It will reach the level It was at when the Mormon pioneers first came In 1847. Government statistics show that the lake, which la 100 miles long and 40 miles wide, had an average depth of 15 feet 10 Inches In 1868. From that time until 1008 .the water gradually lowered until (preached only a few Inches. However, it has been stead ily rising since reaching Its low level, and now the average depth Is 0 feet 4 Inches. Great Balt lake is said to be what Is left of ancient . Lake Bonneville, which at one time covered most of what Is now Utah and part of Ne vada. The old shore lines of Luke Bonneville are still visible on the hills around Salt Lake City. The gradual rise of the lake Is caus ing considerable trouble to railroads and farmers. The former have been to raise their tracks and farm ers who settled on the shores of the lake when the water was down have had to desert some of their land which J* being gradually submerged. 2SSS Tlie water of Great Salt lake Is about 20 per cent salt, and It Is esti mated that.should al) the water be evnporated for the salt content about 100,000,000 tons of the product would be obtainable. The lake Is popular for bathing because the water Is so buoyant that It Is possible to stay afloat without effort. There Is no ma rine life In the lake I>ecause of the salty conditio)! of the water and the suggestion that flsh be plapted there has been discarded by experts. ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦ Twice Divorced in One Day, Her Experience : . ** y **' WtF I B I A divorce decrae and an annulment were obtained on the fame day by pretty lira. William Cloudman De Vlnney of Loe Angeles, who had re married, believing her husband dead, and tater discovered that she had committed bigamy, as No. 1 was still alhre. She announcee that she will remarry De Vlnney as soon as she can obtain a final decree from Cloudman, her first husband. Screen of Smoke Uted Instead of Circa* Tent Those who lined their can up along the Qalreston roadside to get a free peep of the "stunts" of the Ontea Fly ing Circus which waa repeated at El lington field, near Houaton, Tex., did their gazing through a denae smoke acreen. To halt the pastime of th« "nonpayers" a smoke acreen three miles long waa laid down the On Ives- The amoke came from iihos phorua oxide. It la Very dens* und haa a disagreeable odor. It Is tin same "screen" used by the army unl navy. It tails to the ground and re malna there. An Instance Patience —Do you believe that lore ever flies out of the window? Patrice—l know It Only laat night Reginald stayed too late and p"i»n wouldn't take the trouble to open the door. —Tankers Statesman. Nothing to Worry About Speeder— What do you think of thatT We art going 05 and she's only half open? L Nervous Passenger— liut what If we should lose a wheal? Speeder Don't let that worry you; I've a spare one on behind. Plant Breeder Is Given Small Pay Greatest Factor in Retarding Development of Our Cul tivated Plants. (Prepared by the United State* Department of Agriculture.) The small and uncertain rewards which come to plant breeders, often after a lifetime of arduous work, la the greatest factor In retarding the de velopment of our cultivated pUnta to day, says David Falrchlld, in charge of agricultural exploration for the United States Department «f Agricul ture. The department is continually, bringing in new plants and seeds from all parts of the world, growing them- In trial gardens, and distributing the sur plus of promising kinds to thousands of amateur plant breeders In all parts of the country, but there ore too few skillful breeders to carry on the work at' the- rate which its importance de mands. "As we look over the long list of plant Immigrants," says Doctor Fair clilld, "we are struck with the fraC that most of them will need a long period of acclimatization and many of tliem will need to be bred with those varieties whlcfi we already have before they will prove their full value to the country. Just as the human Immi grants which arrive at Kills Island are amalgamating slowly but surely with the descendants of thpse who came years ago, so these plant Immigrants, many of them at least, will be known by the particular characters which they have contributed to the cultivated plants already here; for like all other living things, the cultivated plants on which we subsist are continually changing under the hands of the plant breeders and through the unconscious process of'selection which Is always going on. The fact that these plants which are Introduced need o be se lected and bred simply emphasizes the lamentuble circumstance that there are too few plant breeders In America and too little encouragement Is given to those few to carry on the painstak ing long-time work of breeding and selecting plants. "The general public has scarcely be gun to realise the self-sacrifice and lifelong devotion to its study which the successful plant breeder must give to any plant before he brings about any permanent Improvement In It or the easo with which years of effort may be wiped out In a single season of unfortunate occurrences. Neither has the public appreciated that the emolu ments which come to the plant breeder are rarely sufficient to cover even the expenses of cultivation and tho care the plants have required. It is this condition more than any other which la retarding the development of oar cul tivated plants today." Manure Loses Value if Exposed in Open Piles Farm manure loses a large part of Its fertilizing value If exposed In open yard for any considerable time. Owing to the addition of moisture from rain or melting snow the weight may not be greatly changed and the loss In fertility go unnoticed. -"Manure exposed In flat plies In the open yard ,from January to April lost 85.6 per cent of the original nitrogen content, 22.6 per cent of the phos phorus, and 51 per cent of the potas sium, or about one-third of Its fertilis ing value In some Ohio tests. This loss Is avoided by keeping the manure under cover or Immediately spread ing It on the land. Station analyses show that n ton of fresh manure con tains about 11 pounds of ammonia, 4.5 of phosphoric acid, und 7.5 of potash. Most Ailments of Calves Due to Improper Feeding Most calf ailments are due to Im proper feeding or Insanitary conditions, or both. Keep the calf out of cold ruins as much ns possible, and provide a dry, well-bedded stall at night. Pro vide nature's tonic—exercise, sunshine, pure air, uhundance of fresh water, and a variety of feeds, and there will be little need for medical attention. Observe the calf closely at all times. If It should appear drowsy, • feverish, stiff, or sluggish, act quickly. Reduce feed at once and the disorder may be In a large measure prevented. Keep salt before the calf at all An abundant supply of fresh water should be available always. In case of-seri ous Illness consult a competent veter inarian at once. Alfalfa Saves Corn In the feedffig of plga an acre of clover or alfalfa pasture will gave 1,140 pounds of corn and 4«8 pounds of tankage as compared with dry-lot feeding, research In the animal hus bandry division of the United States Department of Agriculture shows. Pas ture feeding also is advantageous be cause of the fertility added to the soil by the of legume hay. * NO. Shaker Village for Sale The Shaker village on Lake M*> corny at Enfield, N. fe., la for sale. Seven white-haired survivors at the original colony have moved to Can terbury and settled under the leader ■hip of another dwindling community of Bhaker folk. The correct name at the Shakers la "The United Society of True Believers in Christ's Second Appearance," The name "Shake*" was derived from a peculiar cere monial dance In which the (lancers shake their shoulder*. ■' ' ' , '* • •«- »s* The 44 H01y AllianceV* I In the early part of the Nineteenth century the rulers of Austria, Prussia and Russia, on the suggestion of Ckar Alexander I, formed on alliance ad> cording to which the three rulers were to view each other as brothers and "delegates of Providence to govern three branches of the same family. 1 * They were to base their polldea on "the sublime truths which are taught by the ternal religion of God oar Savior." Tills agreement was called the "holy alliance." _ _ * Utilize Winter Days In Making Concrete Blocks Those situated near a good supply of sand can utilise the winter day* profitably In making concrete blocks, posts and other similar prodncta. The new blocks should be protected against freoslng for several days. Some of thoue concrete floors may also be c*6» structed during cold weather. If prop* erly protected. FARM HINTS »»»»»»»♦»»»»»»»♦♦♦ The reading fanner is usually the successful farmer. • • • There Is no excuse for lettfag tba pig pen look like a pig pen. . j • • • The feed of the sow largely fletw mines the success of her pigs. Better farm products at lea cost mean greater profits with leaa work. ) •• • r The fact that Ice water la excellent for cooling milk la no excuse for mik> Ing cows drink It. • • • Leaving atable manor* erpowj la the lots Is one way some farmers have of throwing away money. PROFESSIONAL CARDS * Dr. j. W. McPherson Dr. A. J. Ellington ! . Practice Limited to Diseases of the EYE. EAR. NOSE and THROAT and* REFRACTION OllicH Over City Drag Store IJUIILINGTON, N. C. HOURS: 9 TO 5 , J. B. BALL, D. C. CBiaoPßACrox Nervous and Chronic Diseases, N. O. Office: Over Alls* Alice Howlaiid'n ato re. Telepliuiie.: office. WO*. Healdeucc. IU. LOVICK KL KERNODLE, Atiorney-at-Law, G RAH AM. N. C. Auvciilod wltli John J. Henderson. Ollire over National ItanU of Alamance S. C. SPOON, Jr., M. D. Graham. N. C. Office over Ferrell Druj l o. ll> urn: '2 to 3 aud 7 to 'J p. iii , and by appoint ineut. l'houe »7* GRAHAM HARDEN, ML D. Burlington. N. C„ Olllce Hours: U to 11 IU m. * " " -ad by uppointmcul OlHce Over Acme Drug Co. Telephone,: Office 4H6—Residence 264 JOHN J. HENDERSON Atlorney-at-Law GRAHAM. N. C. Olllce over Natioul Sukol Altaasc x 7 s. c'ook.- Attorney-at- La«s* GRAHAM, .... N. 0 OOlco Patterson BolMlac Second Floor. . . m. WILUMIMtJI. . : DENTIST tii Iraham , .... North Carailaa | IFFICE IN PARIS BTJIT.DItTp *