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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 22, 1907)
8 TIIE MORNING OREGOXIAN, TUESDAY, JANUARY 92 1907. 8ft (teaman ei'BscKn-riox bates. tT INVARIABLY IN ADVANCE, Vk (By Mall.) Tt n.tly. Sunder Included, on year. . .S Oft !.! ly. Sunday included, six mootbi. . . . 4.25 i'cUy, Sunday lncluUcd, Urea monttit.. 3 l'ally, Sunday Included, one month T$ ral y, without Sunday, on year ...... 6.0C 1 '-.My. without Sunday, mix month. ... . -2i Dally, without Sunday, tbrca monthi. . X-75 Dally, without Sunday, on mootb - Fundfly, on year Weekly, one year (Issued Thursday)... 1M Sunday and Weekly, ozia yar -& BI CABKIEB. Dally, Sunday included, ona year...... 0 Dally, Sunday Included, one month 73 HOW TO REMIT Send postofllee money order, express order or personal cneclc on your local bank. Stamps, coin or currency re at the sender's risk. Give postoaice ad dle Si in full including county and itaiii POSTAGE AATEb. Catered at Portland, OresoD, PortoBlw as Second-Class Matter. 10 to If Pages X cent 3 to 28 Pages cents 0 to 44 Pases .......3 centa 8 to 60 Paes caata Foreign PoBtag, double rates. IMrOKIAM Th postal law, ara strict. Newspaper, on which postage ti not fulll prepaid are not forwarded to destination. A8TUN BtblNKUS OFflCS. The I. C. BecavwStb Special Ajfoncy New Torn, roorpj 43-oQ Tribune building, cw- catto, rooms B10-G12 Tribune building. KJUT OX SALE. CUteaaro Auditorium Annftx, FoatoBlo New. Co., ITS Dearborn street. fet. Paul, Mbui. N. SL Marie. Commercial ta Hon. Colorado Snwlnarsw Coin. 'Western X4ewa Ucavcr-flamllton f Bendrick, we-du Seventeenth street; PraVt Book Store, 1214 fr'lfteentn street; i- Weinstetn; H- P. Han een. Kmum City, Mo. RlckMcksr Cigar Co, Math and Wainu Minneapolis U. J. KavanauBb. 50 South Third. t'lTvlaad, O. Jamta Puaiaw, SOT Bu- AtJantic City, J, 11 Taylor. New York Clly-L Jones k Co., Astor Hour; Broadway Ttieater News Stand. Oakland, C al. VV. 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One is the hypothesis of the London papers that Ills cool rejection of American as sistance was the result of a, nervous breakdown under the strain of the earthquukp and lt conwrjuenoetJ. The other f u nji y fpa t u re of t lie case la the anxious apprehension in England let the American people take offense at the slight. There seems to be some fear in London that we may go to war with tjrreat Britain to avenpe our wounded honor.' As to the Governor's nervous breakdown, we think the metropolitan papers have - iieerleetcd to acqunint themselves adequately with the Indur- ated quality of Mr. Swettenham's ncrvee. They are not of the sort that break down. The clyhteen-imh cable of a suspension bridge might break down; ec might the wire rope with which a donkey engine snakes fir logs through the woods to the Pktdway, but not Governor Swettenham's nerves. They are made of sterner stuff. It would take .more than one earthquake to ruffle the even surface of the im measurable self-satisfaction of that ex alted potentate. When the earthquake began Us tan- t mine Governor S wet ten ham,- It is re lated, was seated under a palm tree in rite paiaee yard, arrayed in a ma- Jtic suit of white duck and deeply en caged in the statesmanlike occupation of abBorblnfr a highball, while three little pickaninnies wafted a way the mosquitoes from the countenance of his hiph miprh tineas with three big- fans ma.de of banana leavoB. Tie earth quake shock shook the mighty hand of Governor SwctteMvam. and ejrliiKIefl the ambrosial liquid 'of the. hijrhball over his white duck pants. "Who daree," shouted, the Governor in an aw- lul voice, '"tunc to taKe liDerties with our Imperial person?" It la an earth- 'luake. j-our -hiKhnesa," cried the Lord Mlh Executioner, abasing himself be- tor? Mr, SwctteiinaiTi. "Tell me not ol carthriuakcs." ropliod tho Governor. "I have heen Insulted. grr.-sly insulted. Aly person hae bpeii outraged." A min- lite later the Grand Ylzler hastened into th? Kardpii.' and. making hla sa laam, informed Mr. Swettenham that Kingston, the capital of the Iceland. was In ruins, the Inhabitants buried under the fallen walla and a eonfla- rratlonrKlnnr over their bodies: "How dare you Insult me with these trivial uetails?" roared Mr. Swettenham. "TYhat care I for falling cities or bur- led people or burninjr bodies ? I tell you, my sacred person has been out raged. The one important damage which this earthquake has clone Ik the Fpilllng of my highball over my pants. Kor that I propose to demand satis faction." It this account is true, and there seems no reasonable frround for ques tioning: Its substantial accuracy, the Ijondon papers need not worry over Mr, Swettenham'fl nerves, nor hie nerve either. They are entirely safe. To an intellect like hi. occupied with matters of Imperial, importance, such as the tlampeninff ot his -white ducks by a ppllled highball, to Bay nothing of the loss of the hiRhball itself, the destruc tion of a capital city, or a. dozen capi tal cities, pales Into Insignificance. Mr. Swettenham told Admiral Davis to go somewhere else and play, not -becaucie he was nervous. . but berauee be was nervy. He Is of that official type hioh ha been tKe pride, the Jest and the de spair of the sensible people of England, from the beffinningr of her history. Im penetrably stupid, exasperatingly GeOf- satisfied. IncompariWy loyal, they have broug-ht numberless- misfortunes upon their country at home and. abroad, but in eome way they have seldom failed in the end to retrieve them and bring vie- tory out of needless disaster. Enieland need not fear th-at America will take offeneeat Mr. Swettenham's queer performance. Suppose a man broke Into a friend's house In the nlcrht to tell him that it was on lire and the friend should order htm to mind liia own business, preferring to burn rather than be meddled with. Conduct like that does not make people angry; it makes them laugh. It is a Joke. Gov ernor Swettenham'a pompous . vanity and seir-sufflclency break Into the black tragedy of the Kingston disaster like th speeohes oC the fool In "Lear." They make one suspect that the ruler of the universe has, after all,- a sense of humor. The Governor, of course. did not Intend to be funny. He did. not even, know that be was funny. But to Americans, with their humorous vom mon sens, -when the gods vouchsafe such a situation there Is but one thins to do. and that is to laugrh. "We thall not nght Great Britain because Gover nor Swettenham ordered our fleet to go about Its business: but -we may be a trifle less zealous in offering- our serv ices another time. We are a youthful people and have not yet aulte accue- tomed ourselves to the eelf-restraint which perfect international courtesy re quires. We are still subject to bar baric Impulses and permit ourselves to show our sympathy for misfortune with childlike ingenuousness. But with time we shall acquire polish. We ehall learn to mind our own business end let other nations mind theirs. Perhaps we ehall even acquire that hlerher and finer art of -using the misfortunes of others for our own advantage which has so long been characteristic of international politeness. IX TWO NEIGHBORING STATES. Governor Ooodlng-, of Idaho, is urg ing a Railroad Commission upon the Legislature, and, being the Governor, he wants It to be appointive He is having- no little trouble over the proj ect. The other day he went before a meeting of the Idaho Woolgrowers As sociation and personally appealed to that body to indorse the commission. The convention declined by an adverse vote of two to one. The Weleer Com mercial Club, which had been dtepoaed to look favorably on the Railroad- Com mission project, and which had adopted a resolution to that effect, at a aubse- quem meeting reconsidered its first ac- tion and went on record as opposed to the whole scheme. More careful Inves tigation had convinced the business men of Weteer that any Railroad Com- mission would be inimical to the beat interes-t0 or Idaho. In the State of Washington, where there is an appointive commission, one of the members has Just retired under pressure. Me wad appointed more than a year ago by Governor Mead, his per- sonal and political friend, ag a reward for personal and political servicer?. The Governor Jid not remove him, nor ai? k. him to retire, but, on the contrary, he has made public a letter expressing his regret, at the withdrawal of the com missioner and unreservedly commend ing his public services. But the people were dlesatisned and made manirest their feeling In various ways. All of which illustrates perhaps what public sentiment may do on occasion. We in Oregon are interested now in the subject of Railroad Commissions. The Oreg-onian. therefore. - records without prejudice and without com ment the course of events in Railroad Commission matters in our two neigh boring states. - rosnwMXT or a tamc, The flret month of the new year Is rapidly passing into history, and as horizon to' indicate that the pessimists ivi c;i ntui m y ear peen predicting; a sma-Sh are "even approxr; mately correct in their assumptions. Iii the Pacific Northwest, and particularly th Portland, few ' if any signs of ap proaching trouble are- in evidence. With bank clearlnap. real estate trsnx- fers and building permits still break- ing records by enormous percentages of sain, with Jobbing and retail trade of greater volume than ever before, with employment at high wages for all who desire to work, with exports -of lumber limited only by the capacity of lonnage for handling it. with millions of bushels or wheat e:ill waiting ship ment to tidewater to get the advantage of the rising market, it will be a diffi cult matter to precipitate an era of hard times in Portland and Oregon in the immediate future. The ultra-conservative element which sniffs' danger from afar baees the pre diction of a coming panic or financial stringency on what 'ha happened In the past. It is pointed out that no less than nine serious patties occurred in the nineteenth century, and, reducing the problem to a mathematical "fcaeis, we mig'ht figure out that another crisis is fully due at this time. But no Previous Deriod of donroHMlnn rv- : round the. people of the. Pacific North-' west 6io well fortified against a finan cial storm. The situation is o well In hand, in fact, that, for the present at least, it la practically imposeitoie to brine on a panic. These great com mercial cataclysms are not Infrequent ly Induced by sentimental caueee. WHen busmen flows along emoothly tt 1 follows as a matter of course that the buyers and sellers are pretty evenly divided. Then men who are fearful of a slump let go of their holdings and those who have faith in the future take them up. In the eras of good times whieh preceded ome of the panics we have known in the past,- our facilities for the production of new wealth in the development of our farms, tlflds and forests were crude and limited in comparison with those we now enjoy. There was no such stream of gold flowing: into the state as la now coming here to pay for our lumber, livestock, grain, flour, fruit an other commodi- ties, and the per capita wealth of the Nation was so much emaller than ft ie now that as soon as danger was scented the East made, immediate drafts -on tho West for millions which had been loaned on mortgages. The West is now free from debt and Is making money more rapidly- than ever before. Hence tt follows that sentimental causes alone can make trouble at this time, and even a contiiAieo) reiteration of the prediction that there are breakers ahead cannot frighten the large num ber of people who are prepared to weather any ordinary gale. The timid warn us that tbere is danger in the enormous volume of business w are now handling, and that it has ' out grown the dimensions of tho money supply, and.yet the money, or at '.least the gold supply, is increasing about as rapidly as any other commodity. - Oood Judgment and prudence are. of courae, needed, and. they are traits of value at all times. It is essential that no man engage In speculation beyond the Hmlt of his power to protect his holdings. By following this course he will never be strained in order to pro tect them. When sentiment starts a run on a solid bank, ttmidi depositors not Infrequently draw out aU of their, deposits, and, simultaneously with the discovery that th bank actually has the money, return them. There is plenty of money in the country, espe cially In Oregon, and enough of it Is in the hands of careful business men who do not overspeculate to prevent any disaster. As t the (ramblers and X plungers wio tur operating on margins, entimental reaction would leave them in their original condition broke but their embarrassment would not precipitate a panic -that would af fect -legitimate business, and the latter is about the only kind that Oregon Is indulging in at thlo time. A PASSING SUPERSTITION. , How far ehoulcl a representative In Congress subordinate his private opin ions to the - wishes of his constituents? When bis own views conflict with. theirs upon a public question, should he vote to please them or himself? The New York Evening Foot, discussing' this question with ius usual ability, d-e- cldes unhesitatingly that it is the high- est duty of the Representative to sat isfy hlB own conscience, without regard to what his constituents -dee ire. This doctrine &eems very question able. It ie In harmony with the the'ory that the constituents are always wrong and the representative always right; but experience gives littldreaeon to be lieve that this theory is correct. Mem bers of the lower house .of Congress are almost always chosen because they represent the common opinion of their districts more accurately than some one else would. They are not chosen because they are better fitted to in struct or guide or preach, but because, upon the whole, they represent better than others the common trend of opin ions and wishes among- their constitu ent?. There is something Incongruous, almost absurd, in the expectation that the thousands of voters in a Congres sional district, meet of them txa well educated, ami intelligent as iheir repre- sentative, and many of them more so, shall all Quietly set aside their prefer ences upon public matters and accept whatever onee he may select for hem. The opinions which he adopts are in- variably, in the language of political authorities II Re the Poet, "conscien tious," 'Intelllg'ent and "eoneerva- tive," while those of his constituents are mere "clamor of the mob." As a. rule in -this country the opin ions of the common voter are q.ulte as intelligent and well-Informed and as likely to be conecientious ae those of the - average Congressman. If either muot give way, it does not eeem rea- sonable that it should' always be the people. If the Congressman is invaria bly to command them and receive do cile obedience, he should not be named thei lieii "repres !gn Whu' representative," but their sover- e h is more in accordance with just principles of government, 'for The people to take orders from their representative or for the representative to take orders from these who chose htm Ofcmce and whom he profeeaes to serve ? j The Post still clings to the antiquated and somewhat silly theory that the mere fact of a man holding: offlre en dows hlni with supernatural wledom. while no one who does not hold office can possibly think, either honestly or conscientiously, but should be despised a part of "the mob." The gradual pausing of thii venerable piece of su- perstition is one of the most encourag ing signs of the'UmeB. ( ' THE Bi ST RAIlRO.YDEItf, The uneasiness of the head which wears a rrov 1 1 in most catseis would be mild in comparison with that which adorns a railroad official in thee-e days ot Investigations on all sides and for all causes. Whatever (i''Kri- nr sruilt or innocence may attach 1Q Sir., Harriman and Mr. Hill, it is. a certainty that their hired men are haviiig tlie 'time of their livee dodrinsr the .brickbats which a Iongr-sufferlnr people are throwing in their fllrectloit-not tnat the public has any personal grievance against these able and. mild-mannered employes, but because they are-representatives or a system that, figuratively speaking, has some brickbats coming to it. Last week the Interstate Commerce Com mission eat in Judgment while the Spo kane jobbers prodded the railroad men. This week the Pugot Sound lumbermen are after them, because of the car shortage, and also in connection with alleged illegal acts of Mr. Harriman. The Interstate Commerce Commis sion, ilka some good theatrical road companies, finds more territory than can be played to advantage by one company, and has split up, and this week while Mr. Lane is rcfereeing the Seattle frame Mr. Prouty is holding the watch on the railroads -down in Colo- rado, where trie Denver jobbers are al- leged to have been suffering from the .-m in e complaint as afflicts Spokane. Thursday the Western aggregation of legal. ana traffic talent win come to Portland and afford the jobbers of this city an opportunity to expose their wickedness. .The Spokaiie complaint ana the . grilling that was ' given the railroads In presenting It was due to alleged favoritism ehown Portland. Portland's complaint ' l& due to an alleged favoritism shown Spokane. Viewed from a distance, it would seem that In the circumstances the - rail road men are in a position to appreci ate the predicament or the fabled Indi vidual who was between the devil "and the deep blue sea. Even with these legal diversions the railroad men have other - nroublee. Their trains run so slow that universal car shortage results, and they run so fat that the population of the XJnlted States l In Jeopardy by reason of an unparalleled .number of fatal acci dents. ' They are being censured and n ti-fl . for not delivering coal to the patrons along the line ttnd a-t the same time their engines are unable to make steam with the shale and dirt that they are trying to burn In lieu of coal that is unobtainable. This remarkable era. of investigation is not due to a sudden spasmodic movement on the part of the people. The conditions which have brought it about were mostly of slow growth. They -w ere In part a legacy of the old eehool of railroad men whose ''public-he-damned' policies resulted in the cultivation of a sentiment not un like that displayed by the youngster who impales on a spear a snake which has bitten him and proceeds to enjoy Its writhirrg- Added to this Is thp growing sentiment' of another class which eees In such colossal, aggrega tions of railroad capital a menace to our -future. Altogether the railroads are hardly In a position to' enjoy this glad new year. - When Benjamin Franklin said that It i hard for an empty cack to stand straight, he spoke without foreseeing some of the disclosures of the .modern, grand jury,' the Insurance Investigat ing commission, and, the Interstate Commerce Commission. He would not write such a proverb in these days, were he living, Tor the evidence now at hand shows that it is no harder for an empty sack to stand straight than It Is for those that are commonly re puted -to be full. In fact, if accurate statistics could be compiled, they would undoubtedly show that there ie more crookedness among the rich than among th poor. Very few men. ever bKtiw o rich, that they are willing to. a slig-bt class themselves with -the. people repre sented by the eacks tnat are full, and, in the effort to gt more, they are as likely to resort to dishonesty and trick ery as th man who is poor enough to be hungry and 111 clad. Franklin was a wise man. but he was a little short on information when he wrote -the proverb about empty sacks. The struggle with and for pensions continues. The McCumber bill. that lately passed the Senate, grants a, pen sion of $12 a month to survivors of the Mexican and Civil Ware who have passed the age or 62. 15 to those who are 70, and 20 to those who are 75 years old or over. The meaeure, like most others, is not satisfactory to younger veterans, who see in it in equalities that are distinctly undemo cratic. As far as that goes, however, all elaboration of the pension idea be yond the original Intent of taking-care of the soldier, d-teabled by war, is un democratic. Independence, not depend ence, goes hand in hand with true de mocraey. Let the fair no more bewail No. 7 foot that cannot possibly go into a No. 3 shoe. Here is the case of Miss Irene Davis, of McCloud. who had Just stepped out of the back door to go to the woodshed when a mass of snow end down from the roof, covering her com pletely, only one foot sticKing- out from the snow maa&. She was alone at the time, her mother -paving gone to vtelt a neighbor. Fifteen mjnutes later the mother returned, and. seeinjr the foot, dug- her out after twenty minutes' hard work, The young- woman's life was saved, and she owes it to the fact that her shoe was large erioug-h to be seen. Slow as the raiIroa36 are in building new lines in Oregon, it is only a ques tion of l short time w hen there will be roads extendJng acroa the interior of the state rrom the Valley to the Coast and down the Coast from the Columbia to the California line. The building- of these roads will -maftce great Industrial changes affording many opportunities for enterprising men to -make good in vestments. The motto of every man should be, not "Watch Oregon grow," hut "Help Oregon grow." Those who do the helping by going into the coun try newly opened izp will reap their reward in a financial way. The action of Governor Swettenham, of Jamaica, puts Unci Sam In the role OT the "buttlnsky" and duly snubs htm for hie offlcloueness. Perhaps it ie not too late for Congress to reconsider the relief meaeure that it passed on behalf of the Kingston sufferers. We- would not like to have our old money thrown back in our faces, even though the. act .was accompanied by. assurances of 'profound gratitude and the highest respect." Ivike the exuberant freshman in college, perhaps we would , deserve what we got. but it would not be pleas ant, nevertheless. Booker T. Washington heads the list of colored men who have achieved dis tinction through their end-eavor. The list is a long one and Includes tho names of both men and. women who have attained distinction a& educators, sculptors, surgeons, lawyers. Inventors. architects, musicians,- farmers and plan tens-no t because of color. hut In spite of It. 'Sporadic cases" these, that ao not militate aainatjthe. assumption of Professor Thomas that this is a "white man's world" and that there Is no room In it for colored people-. Of the - six McCuIly brothers who came to Oregon , in an early day and were identified with Its industrial and financial development, the last one died at hits- home In L.lnn County Iaert Satur- day: night at an advanced, age. The name was closely Identified with steam boating; on the Willamette River forty years ago. and the few now living who were1 associated with them remember kindly and with respect the men who bore the McCully name and engaged In the enterprise for which it stood. More so-called "big men" of the State of Utah Have been indicted by the Fed eral grand jury for frauds in the ac quirement or public lands. Perhaps they are big men in the sense that they have more -money than most people and have' been shrewd enough to commit their crimes without being prosecuted sooner. They are undoubtedly big men in the sense that they have committed bigger crime than moot criminals do. But they are not bis -men in morals or in standards of patriotic citizenship. The Xos Angeles youth of 1 - who drank, a quart of whisky at a sitting- on a ma died the- fool dieth. It Is not the lss the duty of tne authori ties, however, to rind out where the lad grot the whleky, and who were accee- sories before the fact to the fatal drink- ing bout that ended his life. The trades unions parade Saturdny night demonstrated at once the toy alty and enthusiasm of union men and the orderliness of their methods. There was no Indication of the -existence of a disorderly element In the ranks, and not the slightest menace of violence. A Railroad Commissioner should be accountable to the people,, and to them alone. Hence the Railroad Commission ers should be nominated and elected by the people. If so elected, they will not dare to be false to the trust reposed in them. Mr. Carnegie's, phrase, . "the -people. my partnene," sounds well, but the idea. prevails somewhat extensively that the partnership is one iij which the little fishes in the financial pool -have a very small chance at the loaves... I i . Richard Mansfield, the great, has Joined the army of dramatists. Genius for play-acttntr and play-writing , Is very rarely given to the same man. Even Shakespeare couldn't do both. Since the initiative and referendum and the direct primary have been In effect. in Oregon the politicians are will- insr to acknowledge that the voice of the people is the voice of Ood. Tough, isn't It. on Admiral Davie? Tn - an hour of dire calamity he lends Kingston valuable service aoid then Is told politely that h tutted in where he didn't belong. There le no need for epeechmaklng at the election of United States Sena tors in Oregon. The people do the talk ing in June. Good morning! Do you feel kindlier toward the -weather than you did a week ago? No country has a. monopoly of 'blith ering Idiots. There's Bacon, too. If only Bob Kvans-had been-there In Btead.of. Admiral Javls. WBERB ONU STATE GETS TAXES New Jemr DliMbu.e. 13410,000 to Local Districts. Hew York Tribune. Governor Stpke's showing of the change in recent year9 In the New Jer sey fiscal system must be gratifying to the citizens of Mint state. A dozen years ago the disbursements of the state treasury to the local taxing dis- tries were merely nominal in amount. Last year they aerS'i$rated SS.310.000. Had U not been for these disburse ments, had the local taxing districts "been compelled. to raise the full amount needed Ty them, as of old. the tax rate would have had to be twenty nine points higher than It was. Eut, instead of drawing upon the local dis tricts for Its own needs and compelling each township to tax Itself for state expenses, the state now contributes to each municipality and township a sub stantial sum. to enable it to lower its local tax rate. That Is a condition which surely should please the average citizen mightily. .When the Oovernor adds, however, that not a cent of this state bounty to tho local districts "came out of the pockets of the taxpayers" his well-meant words require a lit tle explanation. In the sense Hhat .the money did not come out of the pockets of the taxpayers of the dis tricts which received It. or out of the pockets of the gTeat mass or the tax payers of the state, "his statement is sufficiently correct. The money was raised by a state tax upon franchises and the properties of certain corpora tions ojd the conditions are such that the corporation concerned cannot read ily, if at all, make the public pay those taxes for them by increasing their char Res to the public for services ren dered. Thus transportation companies, whose rates of fare are fixed by law or by their charters, must Keep on car rying: the public at those same rates, no matter how much their taxation is Increased. indeed, the cor- poratlons ana not the public that pay the taxes. But of course these taxes to come out of the pockets of certain taxpayers, to wit, the members of the corporations which ,are now taxed, but which for merly went free. Had it not been for the taxes, that sum of 93,310.000 would largely have gone to swell dividends, so that In that sense It was taken out of the pockets, or was prevented from going; into the pockets, of the taxpay- ers. Or perhaps It would he more ac curate to say the pockets of those who should be taxpayers, and who are now made to be taxpayers, but who hitherto have evaded their Just share or taxa- tion. For this great fiscal reform has been effected by a partial as yet only partial equalization of taxation. There was crying need of such equal!- zatlon In New Jersey, as there was and Is elsewhere, and that need has not yet been fuly met, althougn advancement in that direction has been so great and so taenenc I en t as to afford much en -couragement for completion of the pro- cess. DESERTIONS FROM THES NAVY. Tbf American Is Not Good Machine Soldier or Sflllor. v Chicago Ohronicle. There are more causes than one for the very large percentage of desertions from the navy. It is not altogether due, as some observers maintain, to the fact that high wages ashore tempt the sailors and marines to jump their contracts with the Government. That has somethluf to do with it. but It has not all to do with It. The truth Is that the young American and army and navy alike are almost en- tirely young American-Is not an Weal sailor in time of peace. He does not like restraint, he finds discipline Irksome and after the novetly of naval life has worn Off he is likely to grow restive under a regimen which include nothing save rou tine duties. This is especially likely to be the case when the sailor happens to catch a harbor assignment in which even the mild excitement of an occasional voy age is mteslngv It may or it may not be a good thing that the American young man of navy age Is imbued w 1th the belief that he ie as good as any other man. He does not concede that anybody is his superior. In civil life he -will- fight to maintain that thesis. "When he gets Into the navy and finds that he must abandon it he begins to think very seriously that tie does not like eailorins: at all. When he has pon- dered upon It lone enough he "sroe over the side" some dark nlfcht n 1 the navy tiaa another deserter on lto books. . This U not Agreeable but it Is true. The main impelling cause of assertions from the n.x-y and from th army too Is the independent spirit of the young American. He is we besl fIfllcr or 8ailor ln the world when there Is fighting to be don: he is anything but the best in' time of peace. There Is still another consideration which applies especially to the navy. The naval enlisted man has practically no hope of calninfr a mmmisslnii. Probably not one Bailor in a hundred would try for One even If It were available, but the knowledge that commissioned rank was within the reach of the men in the fore castle would be a powerful. If sentimen tal. intJucement to enlisted men' to remain loyal to the service, it voum supply tne esprit de corps whUh does not now exfflt between the otiarterdecU and the men's Quarters. Unfortunately, It L lacking because the ehanre of a sailor's getting a commission Is so small as to be prac- Hrally negligible. There are. therefore, several causet more powerful than. hiKh wasres ashore for naval desertions. We ehall altvays have plenty of seamen to man our ships In time of war. We are likely to have no end of desertions ln time of peace. The American la not a good machine soldier or sailor. Calm of a Truly Rural Life. St. Paul Pioneer Press. Congressman Frank O. Lowden has put himself down In the Congressional di- rectory as a farmer. An Rastern col league asked hjm how an Illinois farmer spent his time. Mr. Lowden replied that he got up about S A. M., had a light breakfast, smoked a cigar and then until noon dictated letters to his stenographer, and then . At that point his hearer decided that he would like the calm of a rural life without any more particulars and that if there were any more farm jobs of just that sort he would take one. Scolds Her 83-Year-Old Son. St. Paul Pioneer Press. Mrs. Mary E. Rarrell. of Montclair. X. J., Is 103 years old. A party in her honor was given the other night. Among the guests was her son John, who is in his 83d year. In the funmaklnff the son made a joke that his mother did not like. Turning to him sharply she said : John. if you don t oenave yourseu 1 11 nave to put you to bed." rite New HpanlNh Minister. Ohlrnrn Ohronicle. Ramon Pina, the new Spanish Minister . tVi.- TTnlttv. RtatAB 1c 47 vPAm nf a tro to nrl has been in the Spanish diplomatic ervlce since he was 22 years old. It is inderstood that his appointment to TV ash neton. D. c s a reward ror n s efficient services to the government, par ticularly as secretary- to the Aigeciras conference. GT A COMMISSION Why Should Democrat Care How It la Kamedt Pendleton Tribune. The persistent earnestness with which the Democratic press insists upon the railroad commission belnir appointed b the Governor Is of itself sufficient to cause Republicans to pause before they give their assent to the proposition. With great emphasis Democratic papers and members of the legislature declare that to refuse to permit a Democratic Governor to appoint the commission Is unmistakable proof that Republicans want it to be a partisan body, and that the only way to prevent It being such ts to the allow the Democratic Governor to name the men composing it. And yet, the Republicans, if they are at all shrewfl and not disposed to again surrender to the Democratic cabal ln Or egon, with Governor Chamberlain at Its front, will go ahead and provide for the commission to be appointed by the state board, consisting of the Governor, Secre tary of State and the State Treasurer. And why not? Why should the Demo crats care about the particular manner ot its appointment? The only phase of Its selection by a Republican board would be that it might not be Democratic. Do the Democrats care as to the political cast of its makeup? If so, why do they? And if they care it furnishes a sufficient rea son for not contributing further to their machinations in state politics. Cannot two Republicans whom the peo ple have honored act wisely in so impor tant a matter as one Democrat ? And are the Republicans to continue indef initely in the business of swallowing Democratic bait? Democracy' Southern learning;. 'Washington, D. C, Post. A year from now the Democratic party will be running up and down the South hunting a candidate for President of the United States. He may be found ln little Delaware:' he ma.y be found in big Texas: lie may be found on the banks of the Yazoo, In the State of Mississippi, It has been a long time since the coun try has had a taste of old-fashioned De mocracy. Those of our population who were fortunate enough to experience it have a recollection of what real corn bread was: but even in Kentucky the making of sure-enough corn, bread is rapidly becoming a lost art. Just as De mocracy got to be a lost art, so far as the Democratic party Is concerned, some ten or a dozen years ago. But there are some real Democrats left, just as there is some real corn pone left In Kentucky, and the Demo cratic party Is likely to be on a voyage of discovery a year or 16 months hence. The Oprn Railroad, Too. Echo Register.' It is nil right to keep the Columbia River open, and to . open it some more as fast as possible; but let us remember that It Is a pretty good thing to have an open railroad running past our doors. It would be a severe hardship to, have all Eastern Oregon depending on the Columbia River alone, as it once did. People from other parts wander around this way once In a while and teU tales of the hardships endured In those com munities where the, octopus does not go. The cost of transportation, the slowness of communication, where the railroads are not open are disadvantages we are prone to forget. The O. Ft. &. 2M. is de- veloping and has developed Eastern Ore gon, and the open railroad looks pretty good to a man who lives 100 miles from one. Cannon n a Christian Soldier. Baltimore New. Privat John Allen blew into the lohbv of the House of Representatives and" met Speaker Cannon. "How-dy, Joe.'!M he said. "How-dy, John ! "You are not as young as you used to be. Joe, hut you are well preserved." "Not as well preserved as you are, John, but I'm not complaininjr." "I should think not," said the Private, looking the Speaker over; "even a man in your aflEJuent circumstances has no right to complain when he has just had hi salary raised $4000 a year." "John." replied the Speaker impressively as he placed his hand on the Private's shoulder; "John, the true Christian sol dier takes what is coming to him without a murmur of regret." He Couldn't Help Being Good, Harpers Weekly. A well-known Allegheny clrfryman re cently spoke at a religous service in the penitentiary in Woods Run. He noticed that one or the convicts seemed extra ordinarily Impressed. After the service he sought him out and continued the Rood work by remarking: My friend, t hope you will profit by my remarks ast now and become 4 new man." "Indeed. I will." was the cherful re ply. "In fact. 1 promise to you that t will never commit another crime, but. will lead an exemplary lire to my dyin day," "I am very glad to hear you sfly that." said the clergyman, but are you certain you will be able to keep the promise?" -on. yes, - saia tne convict, yi m in Jail tor life." I. a Fl-ee Slapn S ner Back. Washington ( IX C.) rispatch. Nothing could be more cordial and chummy than an encounter between Mr. Spooner and Mr. Ija'F'ollette In the Senate marble-room the other afternoon. . They laughed, and joked together at a great rate. Mr. Spooner slapped his colleague playfully on the shoulder and Mr. Ia Iollette tapped Mr. Spooner on the back In a really affectionate manner. "Gosh!" exclaimed a cynical observer, "how those two chaps do love one another! Wonder how lonjf It will last?" WHERE EXTREMES MEET Mr. Brran "Well, Mr. Harriman, about Governmrat ownership before we DEFENDS ITALIAX IMMIGRANTS Dr. Candiani, Italian Consul, Repllei to Aspersions or Rev. C A. Cook. PORTLAND, Jan. :'l.-,T0 the Edi' tor. In your issue of this mornlns? an address made by Rev. C. A. Cook of Rloomfleld. I. J., is rrport.d, Ir which the Rev. sir makes the following assertions: The Japanese and Chinese who are com ing to thta country are infinitely better thai the hordes ot Italians who are pourlnn Intc the larger cities. The Japanese boy comei hero to better himself. He Is neat, cleat and intelligent, while the Italians are with, out purpose and brlnit with them thlr o w evil practices. Vet California la stirred uj because a few Japanese and some Chines are coming to that state. One Japanese if worth 10.000 Italians, of tho kind that ar corotns to our Eastern cities. The assertions of the Reverend Bap tist Minister are, indeed, very broad and to the point, and. can be accounted for in two ways he must have been, when "he made such an assertion, un der the wings of Bacchus, or he must be classed among the most ignorant and misinformed public speakers who have ever delivered addresses from Portland's pulpits. That the statements are false, every reader who Is acquaint ed with Immigrant statistics knows. That the Japanese comes here to better himself is self-evident, as It is evident that after having: gained wealth he re- turns with it to his Oriental country, taking his earnings with him. Doe he ever become a citlxen of thia great commonwealth, stay here permanently and spend his wealth among the Amr cang? A few may. but everyone know that the majority does not. I wish to remark that the writer has absolutely nothing- against the Japanese he rec- ogrnizes them as sober, dean and ur- bane immigrants, seldom evading th law, and always, or almost always, av Inr their earnings. How about the Italians? is the as- sertlon true that the Italian imml- grants are without purpose and "bring with them their own evil practice 7 Don't the Italians come to stay and grow with the country? jos writer can safely assert that thirty two years ag?o. when he landed in this city, the number or Italian residents amounted to about ten indi- viduals. There is now an average or 60DO who are growing with the country. Who is building: the great transconti nental railroad lines? Who till tile gar dens that surround our cities and fur- nish them with the needed garden "stuff?" Who people our mills and fae. tories. build our electric railway. cn struct our aqueducts, equip our saw mills, and engage in a hundred other inlustrles? To the Irish and the Ital- ians falls such a lot. as it falls to the Scandinavian to hit I Id our lumber in dustry, in whK-h they cannot be ex- celled; When the reverend preacher asserted that t he 1 tal Ians come to no purpose, he asserts a falsehood. let the Chris tian gentleman, -supposing that he i one, correct his statement and not as sert from a pulpit what I am willing to brand as a wilful and malicious lie. casting a stigma on millions of honest laborers, who have come to this Vnited States to fioek a home, as on a horda of barbarians. The Rev. C. A. Cook, if he ts a gentleman, owes to the Italians an apology, and were it not that tnn Italians of tills city are a law-abiding class of citizens, he might meet with &ome Tnissrulded and hot-headed Ttsllan who would treat the Christian Kentle- man with all the courtesy that hi scurrilous attack well deserved. DR. C. F. CANDIANI. I Cordaylia of the Alley. T. A. Daly In Catholic Standard and TlmM, Ac the corner o the alley Kit Cordaylla MeNally. At the corner o the alley where the psoplu come nd $o In a penitent precision. f n to an' from confession In tho ould Ohurch of st. Joseph that m bullded Ions: aKO. Oh, 'tis wll she knows there's many Has the charitable pmny ( Mors convaynient to their fln(cf then thaU any other day. An" her tonftue. It Is to sooth'rln An' so mantherful deludth'rtn' There are mortal few whatever -hU b lettin' get away. For. oh, the Irish eyss of her. They twinkle at ye f"o. Ye hat to think th sighs of hr Are part o' the dls0uls of hrr( , So, -nix. she has yer penny gathered 1ft before ye know. There's small uio In wslkin f aether Jjsht to hurry in apast her. . Shure, she'll lt y. ffo, unnoticed, wid y. little load o sin; But, oh. man. she had ye spotted. An y or penny icood aw potted. ' Fur she knows that ye'll be softer comltr out than Roin' in, Fur there's nothln' but (food nature In the m finest Irish crayture "Whin he reels the vil Inside o" htm IS - clransert ot IVry blot. Phould CordaytJa then aldreas ye Wld her ootherln' "God bless '!M Tis not yru will dare to judge if she's de- servln" It or not. For. oh. tho Irish eyes of her, THey twinkle at Ye hat to think lh rlchs of hf Jre pnri o tne ci i b u ie i ns-r. "fnlrtlk" New Orleans Times- Pemncrat. T"t - shades of nt1i t, o" rMUil -view. Hart done as they're arcuMomed to When Secret ar y Root pawed by This motto Haunting to th? sKy; "CentrjJJz!" " 'Oli . stay!" t It e people -rl ct ; "explain Wherein would lie our proper" galD.' Put Secretary Rpot hin stride Increased and only thin replied: "Centralize ! They followed him far up th- holrht ; He hurged th hinner far from 11 sot. But unto all Inquiring n Returned with painful brevity: "Centralize I" They saw htm go to 'ashlnRton And there remark, hi jnurney dona: T-ntraHr!" From the New Tork Press- t beiween ni both, I think we'll bring tret throturh !" '