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Show Uhinhd about War Debt Hangovers SANTA MONICA, CALIF. In summarizing governmental govern-mental finance for the fiscal year, Secretary Morgenthau doesn't even list the thirteen thousand millions of dollars owed to us by defaulting for-cign for-cign nations. But Americans at large won't; forget. If you doubt! this, wait till one of, these debtor coun-' tries gets in a fresh; jam and turns to Uncle Sam for suc- cor and, brother, ' you can spell that last word the other way and still be right. We didn't know, what we were get- Irvin S.Cobb tinS into when we stuck around too long after the fighting ended .in 1918. Makes me think of a colored col-ored labor batallion who went on the loose at Brest on Armistice day. A hard-boiled top sergeant rounded round-ed them up: "Get to work on dem freight piles," he commanded. "But de mess all done over," declared de-clared a spokesman. "And us boys: only enlisted fur de duration of de war." "Lissen," barked the sergeant, "de war may be over, lak you specifies, spe-cifies, but fur sich ez you de duration dura-tion ain't hardly started." Woes of French Hotels IF, OVER the woes of the French resort hotels, anybody catches me shedding a tear, it'll come out of an eyedropper and not from the heart. I'm thinking particularly particular-ly of the romantic and soulful Riviera, Riv-iera, which, under the surface, is just as romantic as an adding machine ma-chine and soulful as a cash register. regis-ter. There, where E. Phillips Oppen-heim Oppen-heim once delighted to "op" and the Yankee suckers rushed in, ready for their skinning and never disappointed is the original home of the deft short-change and the mastodonic overcharge. There I've seen many a mistake made in the bill and never yet one in favor of the customer. Influenza Complications SINCE the last bedside bulletin, so many souls have inquired, that I am offering a supplemental report on the work of the wrecking crew. First I cracked an ear drum. (Cries of "Whose?") Then this clinging California influenza moved slightly south by west within your correspondent's area. So now I've fallen into the hands of a throat specialist. A fine fellow but easily satisfied in the matter of entertainment. His idea of a sprightly conversation is to hold down my tongue with a spoon and have me say "ah." What I claim is, when you've .heard one "Ah," you've heard 'em all. But he fairly hangs on my words. There's a gleam in his eye I don't like. He's beginning to crave my tonsils. Taking Political Side:. TODAY some entirely fair-minded patriot who is snuggled up close to the throne or hopes soon to be, proclaims: "Landon. is as synthetic synthet-ic as a rubber duck. Roosevelt is the only hope of an imperiled people. peo-ple. What price a constitution when we can have frankfurters?" Tomorrow another gentleman, who likewise is as unbiased as a spite-fence, bursts forth with something some-thing like this: "Re-elect Roosevelt and your country forever is wrecked. Landon Lan-don alone can save our threatened institutions. A real statesman. He eats in the kitchen and hates to wear neckties." Meanwhile, Mr. Roosevelt remains re-mains calm and seemingly confident. confi-dent. Governor Landon remains calm and seemingly hopeful. The Two Opposing Camps ON THE Republican side there temporarily is a lull. Incredible Incredi-ble though it sounds, Col. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., is not getting ready to run for anything. Later reports may change this. Organizing the speaking bureau for the Democrats, Chairman Ray-burn Ray-burn does not list among the chosen chos-en orators the name of his most distinguished fellow - Texan. In vaudeville it breeds a laugh when the second half of the sketch makes the wrong answers, but politics is something else again. Can it be that Uncle Jack Garner has become the Gracie Allen of his sex? Only they do let Gracie talk! A writer who isn't taking sides wonders at length whether the homespun suspender-wearing qualities quali-ties of Gov. Landon can overbalance the melodious and limpid lines of President Roosevelt. For this problem prob-lem the appropriate musical accompaniment ac-companiment would seem to be, "Poet and Peasant." IRVIN S. COBB. Copyright. WNU Service. |