NA¥Y ^ T Prime Minister Okada of Japan has got a prompt Premier had come out strongly for a reduction of navies response from Washington. I told last night how the Nipponese Now Secretary of the Navy Swanson responds with a concrete offer. He suggestfa general sweeping cut of twenty-percent in naval armament. That should meet Prime Minister Okada’s ideas that he was'opposed to any change in the naval ratios. The Jjipnaese want their proportionate strength increase' Just now the war fleets are distributed in these proportions:- United States five. Great Britain five, and Japan three. Japan would like to have it changed to five-five-four. This the United States flatly opposes. These new out-spoken declarations make the issue pretty clear, the kxx issue that mm will be rangled for sometime to come. A If the powers can’t mutually agree about thos^ratios, the expiration t of the present treaties is likely to be followed by one of the bigges VvVn. S’ -- except in one particular, declared flatly and categorically ship building races on record ROOSEVELT Mrs, Roosevelt is ali ready in Oregon to meet the President, who is scheduled to land there^ The First Lady of the Land has been driving across the contine\ pretty mueh like any \ * other tourist,, lunching and dining at roadside beanaries and stopping for an oceasional hot dog* The President will find quite a contrast to the ocean breezes he has been enjoying* He*11' run plum into i&m heat wave* From Portland he goes to Spokane, where^ all sorts of forest-fires are raging out of control* Fifteen to twenty thousand acres have all ready been burned black, and a high wind is whipping along the flames SECRETARIES Tonight around a table in New York will gather as interesting a group of men as you could find In this country. The dean among them will be a white-haired gentleman In his early eighties. His name is J. H* Stanley Brown., Fifty- three years ago Stanley Brown wrote his address as —the White House, He was secretary to President Garfield, President Garfield had a daughter. There was’a White House romance* And the President’s wecretary married the President’s daughter. The only instance on record, so far as I know. Anyway, tonight at the Waldrof-Astoria, Stanley Brown rank as the oldest in a gathering of secretaries of A Presidents, Every man alive who has served a President of the United States as a secretary wll 1 "tHy there. And what stories 'jtf. they iwisM tell, stories of the White 'House, of the Presidents, I and the intimate side of government. This presidential-secretarial reunion held to celebrate a book just written by Ted Joslln, who was & secretary to President Hoover. It is called "Hoover Off the serialized Record," xnirami^by the Red Book. Edwin Balmer, SECRETARIES -2 Editor of Red Book tells me that a new (t Hoover is presented — picture of a thoroughly embittered President, whose tragedy was^that in spite of all the advice given to him by his friends and secretaries, he refused to , >> be a showman. HUEY LONG The battle of New Orleans is developing with military maneuvers that deserve a prominent place in the funny papers. The Kingfish Napoleon is making a retreat on the national guard front, but is executing another powerful offensive on the talk front. His demobilization of ^his Kingfish praetorians the Louisiana National Guard^with machine guns, rifles and gas bombs loaded back into the arsenals *•- that’s the retreat. The talk offensive is as offensive as usual, with scarlet blasts about vice and crime in New Orleansj^'*^ ^^*^7 ^ Mayor Walmsley, the New Orleans Julius Caesar, who is battling unto death with the Kingfish Napoleon has not retreated on the police front. He’s keeping the city hall crammed with his own praetorians, the New Orleans cops, machine guns and all# » There’s a big Walmsley offensive on the talk front. with the customary denunciations of AVIATION Aviation comes zooming along with a roar of propellers. The news is on wings -- at least a few items that go breezing through the papers today. There’s one thrilling little saga of adventure. And who’s the hero? Tny, Lindbergh, A day in Lindbergh’s life — quite a day. In the morning the Flying Colonel took off from the summer home of his mother-in-law, Mrs, Dwight Morrow, at North Haven, Maine.t He raced through the sky southward, but soon ran into a heavy fog. The whirring plane was englufed in an oceq,n of dense white mist. Lindbergh tried to go back, but he couldn’t get out of the fog. He tried to steer his way to the flying field a«t Portland, but he couldn’t break through the fog. In still another attempt he tried to get through to Bangor, but again couldn’t make it. Fog-bound over Maine, and no* way to get out — that was the Lone Eagle’s latest adventure, and it ended with a snappy thrill as the hero of the ocean skies had to grope down through the fog and take a chance on unknown ground for a forced landing AVIATXOM - 2 It was Lucky Lindy again, also skillful Lindy. As he neared earth he saw a large plane on the ground. This hig bus had been forced a little while before to land on the field -- a sort of cross between a farmer's potato patch and an emergency flying field. That was lucky -- only Lindbergh couldn't land. There were too many cattle around. Cows were wandering everywhere. And you know if an airplane hit a cow, it would damage the plane, also the cow. So Lindbergh circled 'round and 'round. Luckily Ms predicament was noticed. Farmer Douglas and his hired hands drove the cows away, and then the Lone Eagle landed. He said "thank you" all around, borrowed a car and resumed his trip southward by land -- while Farmer Douglas and the hired hands built a barbed-wire fence around the Lindbergh plane to keep the cows away. The reason the Colonel was making the trip south was to take part in the flight of that giant new Pan-American Clipper Ship of the skies. As technical advisor to Pan-American Airways, the Colonel flew as an observer, with Captain Jtsoria Sergiev sky, the Russian War Ace and test pilot at the controls of the big AVJATION - 3 Sikorsky Flying Boat. It also has a Sperry automatic pilot, one of those robot flyers* The newspapers are telling us what a record-breaker that flight was* Staying less then eight hours in the air, it established eight new world records* These concern combinations of carrying heavy amounts of freight at high speeds for long distances. The eight new records make a total of thirteen champion flying-boat performances for the United States, records formerly held by the countties of Europe* The next aviation also concerns quite an epicmaking flight* And again there was a celebrity aboard, Elliott Roosevelt, son of the President* It was the voyage of the huge T. W, A* air liner, the City of Newark, to Chicago* With two Wright Whirlwind motors the omnibus of the sky beat its schedule by twenty minutes. The larger aspect of the flight is — that it initiates the first overnight air liner service to the Pacific Coast, Elliott Roosevelt was aboard in his capacity as Vice- President of the Aeronautical chamber of Commerce* The President's son didn't take his vice-presidential dignity with any stuffed- AVI AT I OH - 4 shirt solemnity. That's not Elliott Hoosevelt's way* He passed out newspapers to the other passengers, and remarked that he was — "playing hostess on this trip." And, a big, burly 200 lb, two-fisted hostess he made. But I understand the President's son is taking this flying business with plenty of eamestness. An article in the forthcoming issue of the HEW OUTLOOK telle us that in the last few months he has flown one hundred and fifty thousand miles, just to learn about flying and prepare himself for hie aeronau­ tical duties* The other bits of news from cloudland today tell us how Hew York City has seen its first air-train. I suppose you would call it a heavenly locomotive and three heavenly ears. Anyway, an airplane towing three gliders circled over the city for half an hour. The heavenly locomotive and the heavenly cars are intended to be a mail train. The plane to haul the gliders through the sky and deliver mail to Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington -- weather permitting PIbTGL You know that kind of funny picture where somebody pets the dog and the dog wags his tail, and the tail hits a trigger, and the trigger pulls a string, and the string does something or other which causes something else agaln^ It was something like that, but in a mighty tragical way* that*-happened in Q. big explosion down in Kentucky. A powder house blew up, killing six men. The State Bureau of Mines has found that a piece of wood from one of the exploded powder barrels has* a bullet hole in it. And that gives a clew to the story of what happened. The men were waiting in the store house of powder for their week1s pay. Two of them were quarreling. One of these drew a gun and opened fire. A bullet hit a keg of powder — and then the explosion HINDSNBURG %mmAlhe tributes from his former enemies that A would please old Paul Vc light — if he could hear them. Of the prominent army commanders who fought against him. the only one alive is General Pershing-. And Pershing, who is now in Paris, speaks up in praise of the enemy we"" ^ ^■— +-~'1 ^ ~ what an "outstanding figure of the World War" the Marshal was. and so does Austria, Germany's ally in the war. This oddly enough is attracting the most attention. Of course, it's because of the recent tension between Austria and Germany. Messages of condolence* flashed from Vienna. Hindenburg served so faithfully..- The former Wilhem the Second telegraphed to the old Fie±d-MarshalTs son saying: M The Kaiser and Kaiserine are moutfning with sad hearts." Yes, the men who fought against him praise him - And, of course, the-e’s th§ Ex-Kaiser, whom Von And all Germany, of course, is grieving the death of its great old hero HINDENBURG - 2 One important thing to reckon with is the fact that a new kind of potentate has been created. Something new came whenf^rnmedlately after Von Hindenburg,B death this morning. Hitler mad e himself absolute ruler of Germany with the combined title of President-Chancellor. Tims he succeeds to Von Hindem- burg's dignity and keeps his old power of chancellor. At hie orders the German Cabinet in a secret session merged and com­ bined the two offices. And they also decreed that Hitler should hare the power personally to dictate and name his successor. Even Mussolini, for example, has not such legal power. Let's think about all this for a moment. The former Austrian house- painter, who was a soldier in the trenches and who began his political reputation with the ridiculous beer hall putsch fiasco, becomes an absolute autocratic ruler with powers unheard of in our time. Many people regard Hitler as the world's most sinister figure. He seemed to have reached the height of eminence. But now he rises higher -- President and Chancellor. Never heard of before. Last night I expressed the possibility that Hitler HJJjDggBURG - 3 might become in his new honors and dignities, just a grandiose figurehead. Was that surmise all wrong? Maybe. OTTO It has been reported that Prince Otto of Papsburg is in Italy. There’s no confirmation of this,, but in Brussels it is admitted that the ^rch-Duke and his mother, the Empress Zita have slipped away, bound for somewhere. Italy is the most likely destination. We’ve had reports of a possible marriage between the royal Arch-Duke and a daughter of the Italian king. And, it is surmised that Mussolini might be In favor of a restoration of the monarchy In Austria, vrfrtth the Arch-Duke Otto reigning on the throne of his ancestors. t RUSSIA A ticklish point of logic is raised in Uncle Sam's negotiation with Bussia. The Communists are reported to be will­ ing to settle American claims against Russia for a lump sum, to be paid off over a stretch of years* But they still balk at those Kerensky debts. The United States lent money to the Kerensky Govern­ ment. And it is a recognized principle of international law that the debte incurred by a government shall pass along to its successors. The Soviets succeeded Kerensky, and that seems to make the matter clear. Moscow argues however, that the United States went to lending money to the Kerensky regime, much longer than it should $ have done -- continued the lows after the Kerensky Government was really out of power, and the Soviets were in* This money, claim the Communists was really so much financing for the White Armiee that were fighting the Bolshevists. The Issue boils down to the tricky point of -- when does a government cease to be a government? The Great powers in faust tried *o ignore the unpleasant truth that the Bed Terror­ izing Communists were in the saddle to stay. MAR It sounds alarming to hear of armed men, state troopers with pistols in their hands, searching President Rooseyelt's estate at Hyde Park* They were not hunting for robbers or conspirators or anything like that -- but for a bear. Yes, a big black bear has invaded the property of the President of the United State a. The state troopers couldn't find the bear and now a posse of aimed villagers Is scouring the woods. And X*m expecting a telephone call anytime asking me if it's my bear. There has been a scare in my own neighborhoodt a big black loose in the woods. State Trooper Jagoda from his police pagoda phoned and asked if our bear had broken out. And yester­ day two calls came from over the hill at Kent, Connecticut. Another bear. The reason all these bear stories make me nervous is because a few weeks ago the New York game authorities informed me that is was against the law for any private person to have a bear in this state. They are dangerous, and, I’d have to get rid of mine, I thought some zoo or circus might like an Ursus BEAR - 2 Americanus* But meanwhllet I am still violating the law. My oim guess is that the reason for all the bear excitement is -- blueberries and huckleberries, A bumper crop this year. And how bears love berries. But just the same I'm under suspicion. that bear of mine sure has given me trouble. Who wants her? SAFETY FIK A bull-fighter fights the bull with a sword. How about fighting a bull with a safety pin? It really happened. A woman fought a raging bull with a safety pin. The Ottawa Evening Citizen of Ottawa, Canada tells a story of how a maddened bull knocked down Mrs. Josephine Wysscki and started to trample her. Her daughter started to beat the bull with a broom. That gave Mrs. Wysscki a chance to get up and take a safety pin from her dress. She went at the bull with the safety pin, and she jaboed and jabbed. And with that flimsy weapon, Mrs. Wysscki drove the beast away. Later on state troopers had to kill the bull. Spain may have its bull-fighting Belmontes, but we of the New World have our bull-fighting Mrs. Wyssocki. And, SOLONG UNTIL TOMORROW