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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (April 30, 1906)
THE 1C0B.XIXG OMGOKUUC, X05DAT, JLFRH -30, 190T. DIRT M IS ON THE BIG CANAL Correspondent Surprised Not to See Greater Activity in the Ditch. STEVENS IS NO TALKER Chief Engineer Meets the Sixtieth Newspaper Man -Who Comes With Advice With Very Scant Cour teey and Kb Smile. BT TTOODTVORTH CLVM. CULEBRA, Canal Zone. April 12. (Spe cial Correspondence.) As In some vast necropolis, we find perchance one mour ner to a thousand deaa, so here at Cu lebra. where mountains must literally be torn down and towd into the wa. I find one puffins, snortlnp and industrious steam shovel to a thousand deserted acres. The monotone of the- onslne bell Is softened a It niters through the valley more like a requiem than a signal of Industry. Now and then there Is a rum ble as of far-away thunder: It is the blasting sans working with a dozen drills and a dozen cans of powder. Occasionally a train of flat-cars loaded with dirt steams away around the mountain, seem ing to effervesce with the consciousness of It own spasmodic energy. Then for a moment all Is quiet. In 15 minutes another dirt train may give chase to Its predecessor down the rickety track that leads to the dump. For an hour I sat upon the brow of C"u lebra Hill watching this fitful scene. Surely, this could not be the spot upon which the American people are concen trating their Interest. Stcnni Shovels Far Ketwecn. Comparatively no work Is being done on the canal proper. I say comparative ly, because If we should gather together the 38 5eam shovels that are working here and there along the line, bring In the 37.000 negroes that are on Uncle's Sam's payroll, and ring all th- bells and blow all the whistles of all the engines If we should do this within the area of one square mile, the scene would lie refresh ingly active. But when you look down the "prism." as the engineers call the Culebra cut. and see a. steam shovel, like a ncrvoup fly. on the mountain side, or glance down on the floor of the valley and see a tiny puff of smoke, as If a mosquito has rustVed its wings in the dust If you stand there on the brow of the hill, as I did. and slowly gtasp the greatnesp of It all. the appalling magnitude of the task to which we have set ourselves, I think you will realize with me that the "dirt has not begun to flyi" I say this ns a statement of fact not tip a crltklsm. The official bureau of information at Washington permitted the idea to get abroad that considerable digging was being done. But. If you stop to contemplate how much th-re is to do, and how much room there Is for more steam shovels and more trains and more tracks, you will come to the conclusion that the present condition is , activity only In miniature. Machinery and Men Arriving. More steam shovels are coming at least .iomc 60-odd have been ordered more laborers ar- being landed every .week more dump cars are en route more engines will soon be clanging tneir oens and pufflng their way to and rro. it may take another y-ar for this better condi tion to materialize. But let us turn around with our backs to the steam shovel. 'Che City of Culebra is rising before us. I counted TA houses in various stages of completion. The carpenters told me that when these 3 buildings are completed. mor will be be gun, and that th music of the hammers and saws will nut cw until a city of ample proportions shall have been con structed. Culebra Is Bclnp: Well Unlit. The site of the city Is on the hillside and the houes cling llk mountain goats on the steep Incline. Bonds have been built of crushed stone, perfect natural drainage has been Installed, a reservoir for drinking water has been constructed upon the crest of a still higher hill, a mammoth hotel Is catering to the appe tites of 300 white employes in fact, noth ing Is being left undone that will add to the completeness of a modern village, and 1 am told that It Is to Culebra that the administrative headquarters of the Canal Zone are soon to be transferred. Look once moru ai the intermittent ac tivity of the steam shovels, and then con template the energy that Is being exer cised by the carpenters, the w.lnters, et al. Yes. we are a nation of builders and not diggers. Where the Schoolmarm Presides. As I walked up the hill through the town there was a lull In the din of ham mers and saws, and this is what 1 heard: "Three times one is three: three times tvo Is six: three times three Is nine" It was not one voice, but a chorus, and I looked in the window. Thero sat a dozen llttl tots, sons and daughters of the officials, whose families were at Cu lebra. Presiding over them was as pleas ant and congenial a school marm as It ever has ben my good fortune, to en counter. She listened to their recital, patiently corrected their errors, and then 'she rang the recess bell. Out came the youngsters., singing and laughing, to romp for a few moments on the hillside. On the very crest of the hill, overlook ing the country for mile around. 1 found a beautiful residence, whero Mr. Stevens, the chler ongineer of the canal, is per manently established. There Is no pret tier or more healthful site on the entire Zone than this. The breezes that blow around the wire-screened porch are cool and Invigorating. The vista is inspiring. A mll or two away, nestling on the crown pr another hill. Is the town of Em pire, its-Tvhlte walls glistening In the sun light like diamonds set In green. Mr. Stevens has his office here and the watch men told ms that every night he burns the midnight oil. poring over plans and diagrams and wrestling with the intricate problems that arc pf necessity Involved In such a gigantic enterprise. Engineer Stevens Not a "Mixer." Mr. Stevens is a worker. His friend claim that he works too hard. The worst that his enemies say is that he does not Know how to handle men. He has been educated In the school of corporation power I presented my card to Mr. Stevens. He glanced -at it. and then at me. He did not proffer his hand, he did not warm up. even to a smile. Jn a cold, deliberate manner he said": "Yes. you are about the sixtieth news paper man that has been here to help me .dig- this canal." I started to tell him I had troubles enough of ray own without essaying any canal work, but he said something about Jt being his busy day. So I departed for the wore congenial atmosphere of the working people. In the administration building. Just opesed tor, the transaction of feust&ue pertaining directly to the canal dining. we find a typical Government offlce. The clerks a hundred or more come and go the same as in Washington or any other place. There is an occasional clatter of typewriters and a persistent murmur of voices. My guide at Culebra was Lieutenant Foley, an old Washington boy. who is now In charge of the nineteen policemen that patrol the streets and camps In this thriving town. There are about 1500 la borers and 700 white employes here, all of whom constitute a considerable, com munlty. Law-breaking la rare, and th offenses are -insignificant as a rule. Tho law-breakers soon become stone breakers, however, and in the Jail yard they spend many days swinging a sledge hammer on boulders. Jamaicans as Skilled Mechanics. As we leave Culebra. let us take glimpse at the machine shop and the roundhouse, where the engines used to haul the work trains are kept In good condition. Here we find the foreman as black as the proverbial midnight, and naturally so. for he is a full-blood Ja ma lean. At night the engines come roll ing Into their respective berths, each with some variety of mechanical aliment. The engineer of the disabled steel calls loudly for the foreman. He comes; the case is diagnosed, the trouble ascertained, ana with the deft fingers of genius the fore man repairs the damage. Yet this fellow came to the isthmus two years ago as a common laborer. and was paid at the munificent rate of SO .cents per day. I understand his salary " 'now J1S00 a year. And he Is one of the men that really earns hla pay. There is no better place to study the adaptabll ity of the Jamaican ngro than at Culebra.- Most of the engineer are negroes and so are their firemen. They are all ambitious, work well, and from all I was able to learn are giving perfect satisiac tion. END SHIP SUBSIDY GRAFT IF PASSED, TRUST MAGNATES GET ANOTHER BLUDGEON. High Financiers as Mendicants Beg Millions Yearly as a Gift From the Nation. SALEM. April CS. To the Editor.) The proposed ship subsidy bill, embody ing, as It does, all the self-evident ear marks, dips and angles of a most stu pendous steal, naturally attracts and fas clnates the average National lawmaker of the upper house. The original bill called for only JS.O00,O annually, run nlng for a period of 20 years, aggregat ing the modest sum of J1GO.OW.000. This sum looks almost startling to the dlsln trestod observer, especially when he calls to mind thp fact that no one wants such an expenditure for such purpose. except certain transcendental "guys who go to make up the membership of our American "House of Lords." and shipping trust which, has more money tnan it Knows what to do with, but is desirous of putting Mr. Rockefeller in the ehadc as a capitalist and trust magnate. Mr.. Galllngcr. the most eminent of the whole boodle Senatorial gang, has la bored without cessation for years for the consummation of this stupendous win die. an outrage on the American people. The bill Is reported to have passed the bcnate.In the early days of March possl bly In a somewhat modified form, but as an entering wedge, nevertheless, whereby the original steal will ultimately be ac complished. What use would we have for fhlps If the agricultural, mining and other labor Interests should cease produc tion, and what would be thought of tho sanity of a National lawmaker who would offer a bill to appropriate and equitably aistnnute s,wg,wo annually for tho pit motion and furtherance of agricultural, mining and other producing Interests, without which these shipping syndicates and trusts would have little use for any snip wnaicver? There Is certainly no Interests of great er moment to us all than the success of the mighty host of producers, and no class who labors so constantly on so rmall a margin of profit. If we arc vis ited with times of financial dcDressIon. what do we do but helplessly wait until the farmers "raise good crops." and tnereby lift us out of our financial slough of despond"? The Galllngcrs tell us. In explanation or the grart. that the American ship owner In compelled to pay so much higher wages to American seamen than foreign sntpowners do that they are fast beeom Ing destitute, and that the little cratultr they ask Is indispensable to the mainte nance of our National prestige and nrlde. If It suited lhelr purpose better, the ship subsidy people would in the next sentence be telling us that, as a matter of fact, pretty much all American ships are manned by foreigners to our eternal dls grace. Suppose their statement to be true. Is it not equally true that there Is a corresponding increase in the wages of every employe of the agriculturalist. miner and all other forms of production? All will agree also that the farmer works longer houre. lives more economi cally, makes less profit and Is Infinitely more essential to the general prosperity or all. than the "capitalists." who. for present purposes, assume the role of mendicants. In order to perpetrate thin enormous graft. Can this measure be viewed In any other light than that of re quiring the producers of this Nation to dig these millions out of the ground and pass it up to these capitalist as a gift, ns an Inducement to them to use their capi- iai ior me lurmerance of their own flnan clal Interests? There can be no brand of brazen Impudence equaling the proposi tion. Our Government has been, in one way and another nursing and eoddltnc juki sucn progeny as tms. until the brats nave outgrown pretty much all parental amnoniy. ana give great promise of ulti mately disrupting the paternal household. Being above and superior to the law. thev are consistent in not often appealing to li. oui. win tne aid of past masters in intrigue, they bring secret forces to bear with a merciless power, to spread wreck ana ruin on all who presume to obleet to being devoured, digested and assimilated within their all-pervading financial grasp. juage uudersleeve has recently given testimony as to the right of Mr. Rog ers. Mr. Rockefeller, etc to hold lnr in contempt, and snurn all courts f justice. Judge Humphrey more recently krvo an illustration of the too fre quent complaisance of the courts, "where "large Interests" are involveJ. and explains the Senatorial anxiety to raie ana reoate commission of any effective power, by amending- tho bill SO AM tn irlvo PMlta, j 'jurisdiction tq the courts, where by corporate Influence and legal subter fuge it would remain forever, thereby cffectivtfly defeating all attempts- at rccieaiai legislation. There are esti mates b&sed on what seems sound logic, facts and figures, which that In 50 years a half dozen men of tne type or Rockefeller will literally own me inuea iaies, and in due time the arth. and "sit astride our lit tle world." With, or without subsidies unless the methods of these modrn world-.robbers are put in restraint, every decent, honest person wjllln the near future, receive notice to et oft the -arth. Then, any old ship -will beat pedestriaulsm. But who will hare the price? In fact, -with the vessels now owned by the shipping trust, and tho added power afforded by the proposed subsidy, would not the Morgan combine reach for everything afloat? This subsidy is a standing: invitation for x shipping trust as deadly and ruit&us in it ef fect on our commerce wita the aa titxt, u &r tke prastat exiitlar mettle trusts to Individual interests la our aene. commercial, productive and agricultural affairs. That tae pro posed subsidy would he promptly utll Ized for the accomplishment of just such purpose, no candid and intelligent observer of past events can for a mo xnent question. It is not so much the proposed dissipation of S160.000.00e worse than thrown away or the fact that a debauched United States Sen ate is the Instrument through which the tolling millions are to be thus robbed and plundered. It Is the evl dent Durpose of these despollers of human interests to place the measure less curse of industrial slavery over all oceans, and thereby make complete the temporal curse of the human race. Such results arc inevitable, or the study of the history of recent trust exploita tion is a foollsn waste of time. I cannot but feel that the United States Senate, composed of intelligent citizens of jthls free republic, who are oath-bound as it relates to conserving the interests of our common country and who will solemnly dole out their long-drawn hypocritical speeches in pretended defense of their self-evident villainy, ought to be branded with eter nal Infamy. Senator Foraker. in his speech in the United States Senate April 1 In opposition to the Hepburn bill, the purpose of which is principally to put a stop to the rebate system on the part of the railroads, was much grieved to find a sentiment In thfe lower house and among the people, which re garded opposition to the hill as "a species of treason, against whom, and tn what way nobody seemed to know." Mr. Grosvenor, of Ohio, has Just re cently received a message from the people of his state whtch pretty clear ly indicates that they do know, and If the signs of the times indicate any thing-. Mr. Foraker is in a fair way to be the recipient of a similar notice. Another characteristic performance was the suppression. In the Senate committee. of the Payne Philippine tariff bill, not even allowing it to come to a vote In the Senate when it passed the House by a vote of 23S to 7L If any one thing 1 proved by such action of this Senate cabal, it Is tho fact that they are, as it relates to the Payne .bill, absolutely dominated by the sugar, tobacco and rice trusts. Thus, by securing the Forakers, Galllngers. Aldriches, Platts. Depews, Gormans. etc.. In control of such com mlttees as are likely to have trust In tcrests referred to them, the trust In terests are truly "In the saddle, and public appeals count for nothing. It Is only the controlling influence of such men that makes tho proposed ship-subsidy possibility, and except for the fact that we have a President who Is honest, patri otic and capable, the temporal Interests of S0.0CO.OOT citizens of this country would be almost without hope. "With the clearer understanding of these issues being acquired by the people, and the course being pursued by our Chief Executive, there Is hope that he time I not far distant when the average trust debauched United States Senator will find It to his Interest to "sit up and take notice. and that the professional "stand patter will also discover the fact that there Is some merit In Intrinsic Justice. The certainty of this coterie of trust owned Senators Invariable opposition to every measure tending to curb the rapad ty of their owners and masters, and their total indifference to the tolling millions who ask no gratuities, but are pleading for the privilege to live. Is something most truly alarming. It constitutes source of danger to our form of govern ment more portentous than that before which patriots trembled during the dark est days of our great Civil War. A ell max is not difficult of discernment on the not far distant horizon. Eighty millions of people will not forever continue to Implore, plead and pray to a corrupt cabal of trust hirelings for a Just con side-ration of their unquestionable rights ns citizens of this great republic. Trust must be rendered subservient to law. or our government in Its present form cannot continue to exist. TV. A. C. VERY LONG WHISKERS. The Wind Izz-crs Raided In Historic Pike County, Missouri. Soeneersburr fMn.l for. Votr TVirlr CnA Valentine Tapley. of Spcnecrsburg. and K. K. Gates, of Purr-will ir h1ft.r' by the people of Pike County to have the. ioiiKcr-i oearos in me wona. Gates was born in KentueW. n gold-hunter in . and haw llred In Pike .:ounty since before the Civil War. He Is an old friend of Champ Clark and former Judce of district. u his whiskers about his body and under ms ciothes. and the casual observer wuuiu not realize mat tne appendage is so mng. Valentine Tanlev ! whiskers are 11 feet long. He Is one of the oldest residents of the county and one of the wealthiest. He rtMhu. vi -v.i. kers with much pride, and dislikes any one wno questions wnethr they are the longest in the world. H u hat. hearty and liven an active life on the j arm. ooing me narccst of work which does not endanger his remarkable whis kers: but he will not burn hh n. around a fire. The belief that shaving muii..ch3 me Krowm oi a Deard is not sustained in the case of Tapley. for he stales that he never did shave. The beard appeared when he was 15 years of r . .DCiorc ne a) Tapley had. to plait his beard and tmt- th in . Inside his vest. In the next five years e Drean to wear it inside his shirt. Th next provision was to wear It around his uimy reneatn nis ciomes. nen me oeara vsi r-ivM t i -sras aeciarea tne longest In the world. a iPirjr rcceivea a nne offer to exhibit himself in a museum hut Vi a.m. llcity and the thought of leainjr the Tho Overland Mall. Outlnjr. The men who panned and backed th Overand Route wor .i- , but they could hsr ... . .,- ; ' """"' wiin- wul u miin armv or annt tjt every whit as big and brave in their iiumoitr SDneres or not ai " . . . .... viiu 11. was action, trnite-hot and picturesque, such as you may find today only on the nrlng line of an armr. in ere was an agent in charge of vnu uivjpion ox zii mn. r .. a ,. . . . iwou, nun an its stations and equipment. He oougni ana distributed rations, fodder. juui. nrncsn, ana Kept the buildings in repair. He fed his passenger and fOURht fOr their llVfS h Van hi. era on the Jump, and his mule teams fit and ready. His statlona -r. ... as well, in which he must stand off the inautn raids mat lent xest to a trip In the Overland coach. There was no ummonlnc a. TrrVlnr when a coach toppled off a mountain roaj. The agent wa Vine- nf v.i rltorr and his resnonihiiiti. mandcd that order of ability which made the American pioneers a race of giants. The stage driver tnnV hi and counted clmself lnrW if v,i. .vi would hold whiskey, without leaky and annoying Duuet-noies. at the end of his run. The road he must travel wan no more than a trail, and one of his chief concerns was to keep in It during the wearintr niebt hour. Kfa c ri.i., an art departed with the passing of this race of experts. Now and then you will find in the quartermaster's -wagon trains of the refjular army a grizzled pilot of four or six Govcrn- wai mutes who learned his trade In the far WesL and who hit iu wmit an heir to the skill of the men oa the boxes ef the "Overlaad. Hare Tea Seem There? Thrfciia)" There Jtt mweh a e far a BANK ALSO OPEN FOR INSPECTION FROM 7 to 10 AT NIGHT. Our New Home Open to the Public Today TC So great has been the growth. of the j OREGON TRUST & SAVINGS BANK, that larger quarters were necessary and the Officers and Directors extend to the public ' a cordial invitation to inspect their new home, Sixth and Washington, this Monday morning. We will have as good facilities for serving you in all branches of Banking as can be found on the Coast, and ask you to bring your friends and inspect our new home. V Directors: W.-H. MOORE LEO FRIEDE H. A. MO'ORE E. E. LYTLE W..COOPER MORRIS W. H. MOORE, President E. E. LYTLE, Vice President W.COOPER MORRIS, Cashier JJHHy HBa ssstew CIGARS and the Sign of the SHIELD IN PORTLAND We announce the opening of a UNITED CIGAR STORE in this city, Saturday; May 5th, at 147 Third Street.) We come to Portland because we believe there is room for us. In upwards of 40 other big cities wc operate stores on the original plan which will prevail here all known by the-sign of the UMTED shield the emblem of quality. Our stores 1nate a chain which links the Atlantic with the Pacific hundreds of them Our first store in Portland will be No. 409. These stores are all operated on one plan to give better cigars for the same money, more cigars for equal money and equal cigars for less money. Whether we do or not wc will ask the smokers of Portland to decide. UNITED CIGAR STORES COMPANY I flflflW I I I I 1 I I I I 1 I Vtr" . - ' i V t