--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 25 number: 4 published: 1922-02 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Passing Events," *Improvement Era* 25, no. 4 (February 1922): 377–381.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2504unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera2504unse start_page: 377 end_page: 381 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1922-02) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera2504unse publication_year: 1922 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1922, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Passing Events The Anglo-Irish treaty was ratified by the Parliament, Dec. 16. India was proclaimed a republic, Jan. 1, by Mahatma Gandi who had previously been given dictatorial powers by the all-India national congress. The name of Waterloo was changed to Loncire Jan. 7, by the Belgian government, out of deference for the French who there met their "Waterloo" in 1815. Two French vessels were captured, by a Spanish gunboat, and one was sunk, Dec. 16. They were carrying arms and supplies to the insurgents in Morocco. Earthquake shocks were again felt at Elsinore, Sevier Co., Utah, Dec. 20, at 2:45 a. m. People were aroused from their sleep, but no damage to property was reported. The death of William Henry Wilkinson occurred at his home in Salt Lake, Dec. 31, 1921. He was born in Philadelphia, Pa., and came to Utah in an ox cart company in 1862. The four-sided Pacific alliance between the United States, Great Britain, Japan, and France was signed by the respective delegates, Dec. 13, at the office of Secretary Hughes, Washington. The German flag was hoisted in New York, Jan. 3, on the pole from which it was lowered in 1917, at 11 Broadway. The consular officers of the German republic are now located there. One Thousand Mennonites have arrived in Yellowstone, Ala., where they intend establishing a colony. They came by railroad from Regina, Can., and were well equipped for agricultural pursuits. France accepts the American naxval proposition, limiting the navies of France and Italy to 175,000 tons in capital ships each. The acceptance is made with reservations, according to the dispatches of Dec. 20. Madam Sun Yat Sen was kidnaped, Dec. 20, and carried into the mountains, by daring robbers. She is the wife of the president of the Chinese southern republic, and is held for a ransom of $500,000. Dr. George H. Brimhall of Provo celebrated the 69th anniversary of his birth, Dec. 10, and was the recipient of a basket of flowers from the students of the B. Y. U. of which institution he is president-emeritus. Traffic accidents in Salt Lake City during 1921 totaled 594 in which 18 persons were killed and 261 injured. During 1920 the number kdled was 23, and injured 385. In most of these accidents automobiles were involved. Briand resigned his position as premier in the French cabinet, Jan. 12, as a result of adverse criticism of his policy at Cannes. The step taken 378 IMPROVEMENT ERA is considered as a serious setback to the progress of the inter-European discussions now going on or planned. Twenty inches of snow was reported, Dec. 19, from Logan. Railroad and street car service was temporarily interrupted in the valley. Wet snow was reported from other parts of Utah. The temperature at Salt Lake City varied from 32 to 34 above zero. Five children in two years is the record of Mr. and Mrs. Hyrum A. Jensen of Huntsville. Triplets, all boys, were born on New Year's day, 1920. Twins, a boy and a girl, were born on New Year's eve, 1921. The five are reported to be healthy and all doing well. A free golf course was given to Salt Lake City, Dec. 24, by Bishop Charles W. Nibley, when he made the exceedingly liberal donation of the beautiful Wandamere park, worth $150,000, to the city, on the condition that the park be maintained "forever and ever" for that purpose. The allied supreme council met at Cannes, Jan. 6. At the first session it was decided to call an international financial and economic conference at Genoa, Italy, for the purpose of discussing European economic re- habilitation. Germany and Russia will be invited to this gathering. Soldiers were called out against rioting women, Dec. 14, on persistent rumors that a female mob was headed toward Pittsburg, Kan. Women rioters in motor cars were sweeping down the east border of Crawford county, and the sheriff asked the governor for troops to handle the situation. The bishopric of Poplar Grove Ward was reorganized, Jan. 1, with the selection of Paul C. Child as bishop, Robert Scott as first and Stewart T. Tanner, Jr., as second counselor. Eulogies to the memory of the late Bishop Frank Stanley, who died Dec. 14, were paid by members of the stake presidency. A treaty with Colombia was ratified by the chamber at Bogota, Dec. 24. It is the treaty which was approved by the United States Senate, April 20, 1921, and by which this country agrees to pay Colombia $25,000,000 for the loss of Panama in Nov., 1903, during the administration of the late President Roosevelt. For the relief of starving Russians the house bill appropriating $20,000,000 was passed bv the Senate, Dec. 20. It carries two amendments, one appropriating $300,000 to be used for the hospitalization of former service men in Arizona, and the other setting aside $100,000 for the use of the government in relieving unemployment. Bomb plot cleared up. By the disclosure of Wolfe Lindenfeld who was arrested at Warsaw, Poland, Dec. 16, the mystery of the Wall Street, New York, explosion Sept. 16, 1920, is said to be cleared up. It was in- stigated by the Third Nationale and was aimed at J. P. Morgan. Rumors of a new plot were circulated on Wall Street on Dec. 17. Bishop Frank Stanley, Poplar Grove ward, died Dec. 14, at his resi- dence, 909 Concord St., Salt Lake City, after two months' illness. De- ceased was born June 11, 1851, at New Orleans, La. He traveled ex- tensively as a youth and during the Civil War served with the Confed- erate army. He came west in 1874 and joined the Church. A revolutionary party ivas formed in New York, Dec. 24, with the avowed aim of overthrowing the American government and establishing "The American Workers' Republic." One hundred and forty-six dele- PASSING EVENTS 379 gates were present, and the chairman, one James P. Cannon of Kansas City, said the party would be "fighting more and talking less." The Irish Free State is a fact. In its session at Dublin, Jan. 7, the Dail Eireann ratified the treaty with Great Britain, giving Ireland the same status among the association of British states as Canada, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. The vote was 64 to 57. De Valera is said to have announced his resignation from the presidency as soon as the result of the voting became known. Paragua welcomes Canadian Mennonites by assuring them of exemption from military service, and from taxation for a number of years. They are granted unrestricted freedom of worship, privilege of conducting their own schools, and of the use of the German language. The government has granted them a large tract of land which they will settle under the financing of an American syndicate. The Council of the League of Nations opened its session at Geneva, Jan. 10. A report was made on the progress of the international court of justice scheduled to open at the Hague, Jan. 30. Forty-five states had signed the statutes of the court; eighteen had approved of the optional clause for compulsory jurisdiction, and thirty had deposited ratifications of the general protocol of the court. The Yap controversy is ended by a treaty between the United States and Japan, by which Japan retains administrative control over the island, and the United States secures cable and wireless privileges. The mandate over Yap and all other islands in the North Pacific, formerly under Ger- man control, given to Japan by the League of Nations, is recognized by the United States on condition that American rights are protected in the mandated territory- Thomas Smart died at his home in Los Angeles, of heart troubles, Dec. 31, 1921. For many years he was president of the Logan First National Bank. He was born at American Fork, Dec. 16, 1852. Early in life he went to Franklin, Idaho, and then to Blacksmith Fork, near Logan, where he engaged in the sheep business. Four years ago he came to Salt Lake City. He was a director of the Utah State National Bank and also of the Beneficial Life Insurance company. Agreement on naval reduction was reached by the United States, Great Britain, and Japan, Dec. 15, on the basis of a 5-5-3 ratio, lhe United States and Great Britain acceded to Japan's desire to retain her newest battleship, the Mutsu, with proportionate changes m the American and British fleets. At the end of the ten-year building holiday the fleets will stand under the revised detailed plan as follows, Great Britain, 525,000 tons; United States, 525,000 tons, and Japan, 315,000 tons. Arable Land in Utah. According to an estimate by the State Engineer R E Caldwell, 4,000,000 acres of land in Utah are susceptible of irriga- tion. ' The total area which is partially drained or susceptible of reclama- tion by drainage is 255,000 acres. The average cost of reclamation of arid lands is estimated at $100 an acre, and the estimated cost of reclamation of the swamp lands is $30 an acre, making the total estimated cost of the and lands $400,000,000 and for the swamp lands $7,65U,UUU. Funeral services for Mrs. Lyda Lossee CoxSnow- 84 yean » of age wife of Joseph S Snow of Manti, Sanpete Co., Utah, who died Dec 29, at her home after a brief illness, were held Dec. 31 in the tabernacle. Mr s Snow was born July 24, 1837, in the county of ?ent Township of Zone Canada The family crossed the plains, arriving in Salt Lake valley September 5, 380 IMPROVEMENT ERA 1852. She was married October 11, 1854, to Fredrick W. Cox of Manti. In June, 1879, Mr. Cox died. Ten years later, July 29, 1888, she was mar- ried to Joseph S. Snow, also of Manti. James Leatham, 91 years of age, died at his residence, Salt Lake City, Dec. 21. He was born in Scotland, the son of Robert and Jane Urquhart Leatham. He joined the Church in 1848 and sailed for America, March 28, 1852. He arrived in Salt Lake October 5, and has resided in this city since. He was married in 1852 to Margaret Irvine, who survives him. Mr. Leatham was for many years in the employ of the Church as a builder and construction engineer, and later as keeper of the temple. He also filled a mission to his native country. Camille Saint-Saens died at Algiers, Africa, Dec. lo'. He was born in Paris in 1835 and was during his long career acknowledged to be the great- est composer and musician of his time. At the age of two and one half years he played the piano, and at the age of five he was considered an artist. Of Camille Saint-Saens the famous "Wagner said some forty years ago: "He is the greatest living French composer." He was the man of whom Liszt also once said: "I and Saint-Saens are the only two men left in Europe who know how to play the piano." President Hugh J. Cannon arrived home Dec. 23, after more than a year's absence. He accompanied Elder David O. McKay on a tour around the world in the interests of the foreign missions of the Church. Elder David O. McKay arrived home Dec. 24. They left in April, 1921, and traveled almost continually, and visited the Pacific Islands, Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan, India, South Africa, Palestine, England, Scotland, and parts of the European continent. Elder McKay in an address at Ogden, Dec. 25, said the missions were in a flourishing condition. Old tombs in Ethiopia have been discovered near Napata, or Gebel Barkal, by the Egyptian expedition of Harvard university and Boston Museum of Fine Arts, as reported Nov. 26, in a dispatch from Cambridge, Mass. The tombs contained twenty-six generations of kings buried more than 2,000 years, covering a period from 660 to 250 B. C. Among the buried monarchs was Tirhapa, or Tirhaka, mentioned in 2 Kings 19:9, who declared war against Sennacherib, of Assyria, when the latter was conducting a military expedition against Hezekiah, king of Judah. William Newell died in Salt Lake City Dec. 31, 1921, at the age of 91. He was born in Aberford, Yorkshire, England, and became affiliated with the Church in 1848. He left Liverpool, England, in 1854, and arrived in Salt Lake, September 30. Later he obtained employment at his trade as a shoemaker, until offered a position with the Bingham Canyon and Camp Floyd railroad in 1872. From that road he went to the Utah Southern, later entering the service of O. S. L., and was eventually pensioned from the service. He was a member of the Nauvoo Legion and also a Black Hawk war veteran. Leon Trotzky lias been expelled from Judaism, according to informa- tion received in Berlin, Jan. 1. The ceremony was performed at the synagogue at Ekaterinoslav, when, at the end of the Sabbath services, Moses Bronstein, the father of "Leon, known as Trotzky," at the head of his family of sons and grandsons, charged him with forsaking the faith of his forefathers. "He has proved an enemy of Judaism and a curse to hu- manity." The old man declared, "I want him expelled from the com- munity of Jews, damned and cursed beyond redemption in earth, in heaven and hell." The curse was then pronounced by the presiding of- ficer. PASSING EVENTS 381 Disturbances in Egypt, Dec. 24, caused the British admiralty to order two warships from Malta to Egyptian sea ports. Students, of the National- ist party, raided the government survey offices at Gizeh, a suburb of Cairo, whereupon British troops were rushed to the scene of the riot. Five per- sons were killed and twenty-five wounded. It is thought that the rupture of negotiations between the Egyptian delegation in London and Lord Curzon, the British secretary for foreign affairs, will result in an Irish question in Egypt, because of the intensity of the nationalist feeling among the people in the land of the Pharaohs of old. Later, outbreaks were reported from Suez and Port Said, and great excitement at Alexandria. Saints are withdrawing from Mexico, according to an El Paso dispatch, dated Dec. 15. Their lands at Colonia Morelos, Sonora, Mexico, accord- ing to Bishop O. P. Brown of El Paso, have just been sold to the Mexican government for $100,000, he announced. An order has been issued by the Mexican government, requiring that the lands at the Diaz colony be re- turned to the colonists. The delivery was expected to take place about January 1, 1922. According to Bishop Brown, there were about 800 "Mor- mons" at Colonia Morelos and about 650 at Colonia Diaz, in 1912, when revolutionary activity caused them heavy losses. The colonists are now scattered about the United States, particularly the southwest. A revolutionary outbreak in Lisbon, Portugal, was reported Dec. 19. It began with cannonading along the Tagus river and severe casualties resulted. The hospitals were soon crowded with wounded and dying. The dispatch adds that Cunha Leal, who recently formed a temporary ministry was attacked in the Carlos barracks and he and his followers were compelled to retreat. In October there was an outbreak in Lisbon in which Antio Gran jo, the premier and minister of the interior, and Jose Carlos Maia, former minister of marine, were assassinated. Since the assassination of Premier Granjo three new cabinets have been formed, one headed by Vasco Vasconceos, the second by Major Pinto and the third by Cunha Leal. Orlando Fisher Herron died at Pleasant Grove, Utah, Jan. 6, at the age of 86 years. He was one of the few remaining pioneers of 1847. He was born at Lansing, Mich., 1835. With his parents, who had joined th« Church, he emigrated to Nauvoo, 111., where both the parents died of pneumonia, leaving their family of eight children. Mr. Herron was the only one of the children to come to Utah, coming with Lewis Robison's family in Charles C. Rich's company. They arrived in Salt Lake valley October 2, 1847. He worked as herd boy for Mr. Robison and helped at the ferry each winter at Green River. Later in life he served as peace officer in Pleasant Grove for several years and also helped build the temple at Salt Lake. He remained a true member of the Church until the last. The death of Samuel Lozene Ensign, a pioneer of 1847, was announced Jan. 4, from his residence in Salt Lake City. He was born at Westfiehl, Mass., January 24, 1836, and arrived in the Salt Lake valley September 20, 1847. He brought the first sheep into the valley, and was largely responsi- ble for the extensive development of the sheep industry in the state. On December 29, 1858, Mr. Ensign married Miss Mary AngelL who survives him. Mr. Ensign was a member of the R. T. Burton company of the Nauvoo Legion. Besides his constant effort in Church work, he took active part in the development of industry and business in the Salt Lake valley. In 1857 he carried mail from Salt Lake to Fort Phil Kearney, Wyo., which in those days was a hazardous undertaking, requiring great endurance and courage.