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Show NEWS REVIEW OF CURRENTEVENTS Southern Italy Devastated by Quake Thousands Killed or Injured. By EDWARD W. PICKARD SOUTHERN Italy was rocked and torn by the worst earthquake in that region since the terrible disaster that destroyed Messina in 1908. Definite Defi-nite figures on the loss of life may not be known for many days. At this writing it Is known that 2,013 persons were killed and twice as many injured. in-jured. Communications in the stricken area broke down and airplanes were being used for relief and exploration work. The provinces of Puglie, Campania and Basillcata sustained the worst of the temblor, but it was felt as far north as Ahruz.zi and Molise. The quake, which started at 1 :15 in the morning, centered around the old volcano vol-cano Mount Vultura, and the city of Melfi, just north of that cone, was destroyed, as were also the near-by towns of Lacedonia, Aquilonia, Bisac-cia Bisac-cia and Ariano. Many other cities and villages were partly razed, and famous palaces and churches were ruined. Even Rome and Naples were badly shaken, and several persons were killed in the latter city. Premier Mussolini promptly tool; command of the situation and rescue and relief measures were put into effect quickly throughout the devastated devas-tated region, the Red Cross and the army with hosts of physicians and nurses, being hurried to the scene. Pope Pius- ordered that aid be sent to places in urgent need and a relief fund held in readiness by the Vatican. Though southern Italy was thronged with tourists, it was believed there were no casualties among the Americans Ameri-cans there. Two days after the earthquake a tornado swept over the Venice district, killing a dozen persons and causing heavy damage over a stretch of 25 miles. GERMANY also' had its disaster, vastly less in magnitude but shocking enough. During the celebration cele-bration in Coblenz of the evacuation of the Rhineland, in which President von Hindenburg was the central figure, fig-ure, a pontoon bridge - across the Moselle collapsed and about SO men, women and children were precipitated into the river. Many of them were killed by the falling timbers and many others drowned. The bodies of 38 were recovered and It was feared more might be found by divers. The celebrations, which had been going on gaily for several days, were brought to an end by the calamity. OVER in England there was an airplane air-plane disaster made notable by the prominence of the victims. A Junkers air liner en route from France to Croydon blew tip near Gravesond and its six occupants were killed. They were the marquis of Dufferin and Ava ; Viscountess Ednam. a noted beauty and close friend of the prince of Wales; Sir Edward Ward ;. Mrs. Ilenril; Loeftler, well known society woman ; Lieut. Col. George L. P. Henderson, Hen-derson, the pilot, who was rated as one of England's best flyers, and Charles Shearing, second pilot. THAT London naval treaty is now in effect so far as American action goes. The senate by a vote of 5S to 9. ratified the pact, and next day President Presi-dent Hoover signed it with the gold pen used by the American delegates to the conference to sign the treaty in London. The document was then sent to London, where parliament was engaged in giving the pact its approval. ap-proval. In a formal statement President Hoover said: "It is a matter of satisfaction sat-isfaction that this great accomplishment accomplish-ment In international relations has at ail steps been given united support of both our political parties. "With the ratification by the other governments the treaty will translate an emotion deep In the hearts of millions mil-lions of men and women Into a practical prac-tical fact of government and international inter-national relations. It will renew again the faith of the world In the moral forces of good will and patient negotiation as against the blind forces of suspicion and competitive armament. arma-ment. It will secure the full defense of the United Stales, it will mark a further long step toward lifting the burdens of militarism from the hacks of mankind and to speed the march forward of world peace. It will lay the foundations upon which further constructive reduction in world arms may be accomplished In the future. We should by tills act of willingness to join with others in limiting armament arma-ment have dismissed from the mind of the world any notion that the United States entertains ideas of aggression. Imperial power, or exploitation of foreign for-eign nations." Immediately after the ratification by the senate, the President asked for the names of those who voted In opposition. op-position. These were Bingham of Connecticut, Hale of Maine. Johnson of California, Moses of New Hampshire, Hamp-shire, Oddie of Nevada, Pine of Oklahoma and Robinson of Indiana, all Republicans; and McKellar of Tennessee and Walsh of Massachusetts, Massachu-setts, Democrats. FIVE senators from wheat states Capper, Allen, McMaster, Howell and Pine called on Chairman Legge of the federal farm board in Washington Washing-ton and again urged that the board adopt Capper's plan and buy a lot more wheat in the effort to boost the price. Once more Mr. Legge refused, declaring the scheme would be at best only a temporary expedient and in the long run would make the wheat problem worse. He declared . the board, which has G0,000,000 bushels on its hands, would not purchase any more at this time and would sell none until the price advanced. "What we want." said Mr. Legge, "is something permanent. Stabilization Stabiliza-tion will work admirably on seasonal sea-sonal surpluses, but It cannot be used on an accumulative surplus. We have had an accumulative surplus In wheat for four years. Stabilization will not cure it. I don't say stabilization is a failure, but it won't work at the present time. To follow Senator Capper's Cap-per's plan would only encourage the farmers in Kansas to raise more 'wheat and make a bad situation worse." In Kansas the wheat problem is having powerful effect in the gubernatorial guberna-torial primary campaign. Governor Reed, who attacks the farm board plan for reduction of wheat acreage, is up for renomination by the Repub licans and is opposed by Frank Haucke of Council Grove, a farmer, who upholds Legge's plan. r ETROIT, which has won an un-enviable un-enviable reputation as a vice center in recent years, has begun to clean house. Charles Bowles, who was serving his second term as mayor, was ousted from office last week in a special recall election, the majority against him being 30,950. When Bowles took office last year he appointed ap-pointed as public works commissioner one Joseph Gillespie who had been forced out as police commissioner in 191G, when vice conditions in Detroit were especially had. Under Bowles, the newspapers declared, gambling houses and speakeasies began running wide open and Police Commissioner Harold Emmons .was said to be afraid to close them. Finally, while Mayor Bowles was attending the Kentucky derby, Emmons did raid some places, and the mayor thereupon ousted him. Under the law a new election to fill the mayor's place must be held'within 30 days of the filing of the certified returns of t lie recall election. Under the law Bowles is automatically a candidate for re-election and any other candidates may go on the ballot by presenting nominating petitions signed by 14,000 voters. Only a few hours after the Detroit voters had put Bowles out of office, Gerald Buckley, a radio announcer who had been delivering addresses describing vice conditions In Detroit and criticizing the mayor's administration, adminis-tration, was shot to death in the lobby lob-by of a hotel by three men who escaped. es-caped. This was the eleventh gang murder in the city In nineteen days. Governor Green ordered the state police po-lice to investigate the crime independently inde-pendently and said he would call out state troops, if necessary, to stop the assassinations. There were points of similarity between the murder of Buckley and that of Jake Lingle, the , Chicago reporter. It was asserted Buckley hud been the intimate friend of underworld characters, and th Detroit police said they had In their possession an nllldavit purporting to show that he had been extorting money from bootleggers. OETER A. BOGDANOV, the Russian who heads the board of directors of the Aintorg Trading corporation, which Is the official -buying agency for the Soviet government In the Unlled States, Is much peeved. G rover Whalen, Matthew Woll and others told the congressional committee In-' vestigatlng Communist activities that Amtorg has been using lis powers for propaganda against our government. Tills Mr. Bogdanov strenuously denies, 1 nnd he says unless the charges are "thoroughly investigated and found baseless," the continuance of Soviet-American Soviet-American trade "will he an almost Impossible task." This was understood under-stood as a plain threat that governmental govern-mental interference with Amtorg will be. resented to the tune of more than $100,000,000 a year the amount of Russian imports from America the company controls, and can withdraw. The committee obtained from Bogdanov Bog-danov admissions that the Amtorg, a million dollar concern Incorporated In New York state, is owned by the Soviet bank of foreign trade, which In turn is controlled by the Soviet government, gov-ernment, and that high Communist officials have been sent here to head It, and only two naturalized Russians are among its directors. Amtorg has been extended credit of $80,000,000 by banks in this country. CLAUDIUS HUSTON, after confer- ' ring with President Hoover, an- nounced that he would resign as chairman chair-man of the Republican national committee com-mittee on August 7. This greatly relieved re-lieved the leaders of the party, who had insisted on Mr. Huston's retirement retire-ment because of revelations made before be-fore the senate lobby committee. rjEMOCRATS of Iowa In state con--vention adopted a plank In their t platform calling for "a reasonable A-definition" A-definition" of whnt constitutes Intoxicating Intox-icating liquor and advocating a nation-wide referendum on prohibition. The reason for this stand, the resolution resolu-tion says, is the "nation-wide scandal" brought about by dry law enforcement methods. In this way the Democrats accepted the challenge of the Republican Repub-lican state convention, which voted down a resolution urging modification of the prohibition law. QIOTLNG by the Egyptian Wafd- isls was renewed last week In Cairo and Port Said, and there were a number of deaths in the battles with the police and troops. Up to date the British had not intervened. Mjram Pasha, Egyptian finance minister, declared before the Interparliamentary Inter-parliamentary congress In session In London that In Egypt today a struggle strug-gle is going on between brutal autocracy au-tocracy and democracy, and that Innocent In-nocent blood is being shed. For the fourth time in five years, he said, the Egyptian parliament has been suspended sus-pended and the people goaded beyond endu ranee. LENN II. CURTISS, a distin-guished distin-guished pioneer in aviation, died suddenly in a Buffalo hospital at the age of fifty-two years. He was operated oper-ated on recently for appendicitis and was thought to he well on the road to recovery. Mr. Curtiss was one of the foremost aviation experimenters and ,vas ranked next to the Wright brothers. broth-ers. He retired from active business " shortly after the World war, retain- ' ing directorships in several companies that bear his name. Another well-known American who passed away was James Ends How, "millionaire hobo," who during his life had spent a large fortune In trying to help the hoboes, denying himself even sufficient food and clothing and other necessities of life. He died In a hospital hos-pital at Staunton, Va. Harry S. Black, chairman of the United States Realty and Improvement Improve-ment corporation and known as the moving spirit In the modem growth of New York city and the construction of many of Its greatest buildings, committed suicide by shooting at his country home at Lloyd Harbor, Long Island. He had been In poor health for a long time. (1. 1930. Western Newspaper Union ) |