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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (July 30, 1909)
THE MORNING OREGONIAN, FRIDAY, JULY 30, 1909. r CRAWFORD HEARS SETTLERS9 PLAINTS Attorney-General Tours Bend District as Member of Desert Land Board. CALLS GRIEVANCES SLIGHT Thinks Settlers Who Demand Water for More Land Than They Pay for Will Have Little Standing In Claims Before Board. BEXT, Or., July 19. (Special.)-. M. Crawford, State Attorney-General and member of the newly formed Desert Land Board, has fceen in Bend investi gating complaints recently made by set tlers against the management of the Deschutes Irrigation & Power Co. who have a 200.000-acre segregation under the Carer act in the vicinity of Bend. After spending three days looking over the situation Attorney-General Crawford declared himself of the opinion that for the most part the settlers' grievances are alight, and that the company is conduct ing Its affairs in a manner thoroughly satisfactory to the" state. When asked : what were the nature of the complaints ' preferred, he said: Some Settlers Want Too Much. "The chief point at issue and one that is of particular interest as having oc- i curred elsewhere, is this: A settler buys. say, acres; that Is, he pays for 20 acrea of lrrlglble land, exclusive of that which Is worthless, either because of rock ledges or from a conformation which prevents water being led upon it. But after constructing his ditches the settler finds he is in possession of more than 30 acres capable of irrigation, and thereupon maintains that the ditch com pany must supply him with water for the extra acres, free of cost. In my opinion and I believe the Board will agree with me the settler is not entitled to any further supply of water if he finds his lrrlglble acreage In excess of the amount contracted for. and if such . case arises, must pay for the additional ' water required. And should the settler's irrigible land prove less in quantity than is called for by his contract, the com pany must either refund money propor tionately to the lack, or substitute other land." Contract Violated, Is Charge. One complaint placed before the Board Is that land has been sold under a con tract which calls for water for such land from the "north canal," a ditch not yet built, which lands are at present Irrigated with water taken from a totally different 'ditch, led from the Deschutes at a point 'several miles from the pro posed north canal outtake. The conten tion is that such action Jeopardizes the water rights of settlers on the land in volved, the conditions of the contracts and the actual water supply being at variance. Mr. Crawford refused to give any opinion on the legal status of the case, but. while stating that precedent seemed to show that as long as water was actually being put on the land its source was of small consequence, said that the ' company would be obliged to build the north canal. Tomorrow the Atorney-Qeneral ends his trip by a visit to Laldlaw, to in vestigate matters in connection with the defunct Columbia Southern project, the management of whose valuable 27,000 '. acres segregation will probably be turned over to a new company as soon as the existing contracts are annuled 'and ad- , Judication arranged satisfactory to the ' Interests of the settlers. Settlers Question Crawford. Testerday a meeting was held at Red mond of 00 of the settlers on the : segregation of the Deschutes Irrigation and Power Company. The object of the 1 gathering was to question Attorney-Gen- eral Crawford, concerning the questions . at Issue. When speakers intimated that the set ' tiers conceived their Interests slighted by the previous hoard, and their requests ' for information and assistance Ignored by that body, Mr. Crawford said to them that it was the Intention of the present ; desert land board to give the most care i ful consideration to Just such matters, , admitting, as he said this, that in his : opinion the old board had perhaps com ! mitted some minor slnfl of omission, and these from a lack of understanding ' of their task. "Until very recently." said Mr. Craw ford, "the state authorities have enter tained the mistaken notion that the su pervision of the details of the Carey act segregations, in whose formation con tracts are entered into with both the state and the National Government, lies ; entirely with the authorities at Wash-' 1 lngton. Now. however, the responsibll : ity of the state is understood, and its bodies of control are becoming both aware of the work that lies before them and, through study, capable of admin istering it." A statement which evoked great sat isfaction on the part of the settlers was that hereafter the dealings between the company and the board would be al ways open to the examination of the : settlers themselves. The "sagebrush diggers." as one of their own speak ers styled them, asked that regular re ports of the discussions and arrange ments entered Into between the board and the company should be forwarded to the secretary of the newly-formed Water-Users' Association, so that its members might he in a position to un derstand what was going on ami to present their side of the case when necessity should arise. Attorney-General Craw-ford expressed himself as heartily in favor of such a scheme, snd promised that it would be put Into Im mediate execution. PIONEER HOMESTEAD SOLD Woman Who Saw Indian Warfare Retires From Active Life. HARRtSBTTRG. Or.. July 29. (Spe cial.) Mary A. E. Smith, widow of the late Hiram Smith, has Just completed a deal whereby she disposes of her 550 a?rea of land situated six miles south of this city. The purchaser purposes to sell it in small tracts. Mrs. Smith has successfully conducted the affairs of this large farm since the death of her husband. 21 years ago. She is now In her 85th year. fhe was born near Wheeling. W. Va.. in 1824. Her par ents. Mr. and Mrs. Fleming, were of that type of sturdy pioneers who sought the Western border at the earliest op portunity. Thus Mrs. Smith, during her girlhood, had the experiences of pioneer life In many states. In 1S32 Mr. Fleming moved his fam ily to Fox River Valley, about 40 miles from Chicago. Very soon the country was overrun and made desolate by the Black Hawk War. At the onslaught 15 of their neighbors were massacred and scalped. Mr. Fleming was sum moned from his field work to assist in protecting the remaining women and children, who were placed In the bed of a large freight wagon, to which was attached 20 span of oxen, the men and boys forming a guard. They started in the afternoon and arrived at the Gov ernment fort in Chicago at noon the next day in a sorry and disheartened Plight. Mrs. Smith was only 8 years of age at that time, but the thrilling events which transpired and their escape are indelibly Impressed upon her memory. Mr. Fleming then moved with his fam ily to the neighborhood of Indianapolis, where he remained until 1840, when he went to Missouri, buying land in Platte County. In Mary Fleming was married to Hiram Smith. They made their home at Smithvllle until 1853. when they crossed the plains by ox teams, arriv ing in the Willamette Valley in Octo ber, and settled upon the land Just Vtli-om Smith rileil Anrll 12. 1888. I closing an honorable career of great usefulness. Mrs. Smith has no cnuaren of her own, but since in Oregon she has found scope for her motherly ln- Mary A. E. Smith, Aced 85, of Harrlabniw. Who Has Jnst Given Up Management of Large Farm. stlncts in the rearing and education of six orphaned children, who now bless the fate of having been committed to the beneficence of such an exemplary foster-mother. Mrs. Smith is remark ably vigorous in mind and spry for her age. She has bought a comfortable home in Harrisburg. where she can rest from the heat and burden of the day. BOILER EXPLODES, 3 HURT Dropping of Crownsheet Responsible for Accident at Marion. SALEM. Or.. July 29. (Special.) By the explosion of the boiler on a freight train near Marion, 15 miles south of Salem on the Southern Pacific railroad this morning, three trainmen were In Jured and considerable damage done to the train. The Injured men are: Charles M. Hoberg. of 343 Oak street, bruised; W. H. Kane. 435 Ross street, broken rib and bruised, and Walter Davis, 190 Broadway, scalp wound. Hoberg was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital and the latter two were sent to their homes In Portland. The accident was caused by the drop ping of the crownsheet of the boiler, which was followed by the explosion. Su perlntendent Fields is at a loss to ac count for the cause of this and is con ducting an investigation into the acct dent. It is believed that some dlsgrunt- eled former employe of the" company ox tramps had been tampering with the ma chlnery. NEW ROAD TO CENTRALIA City Will Be Junction Point for North Coast Road, Agent Says. CENTRALIA. Wash., July 29. (Spe cial.) Centralla Is to have two more transcontinental railroads. For several months there have been whispers here to the effect that the North Coast Rail road would come to Centralis. Today D. D. Long, purchasing agent, for the Spokane division of the North Coast, made the announcement here that he has maps showing the route of the pro posed line, which he is willing to show, and that Centralia is to be a junction between a north-and-south line and one running east and west. The southern terminal will be Portland and the northern Seattle. D. D. Long will make his headquar ters here for at least six months. He is buying large quantities of bridge tim bers and railroad ties. In stating that Centralia would be the Junction point for the North Coast he also said that another transcontinental road would come to Centralia. but did not name it. GUN CARRIAGE OVERBOARD . Twenty Tons of Steel Slip From Barge Into Astoria Harbor. ASTORIA. Or., July 29. (Special.) Contractor Lebeck met with nara iuck Wednesday afternoon while removing one of the gun carriages from Fort Columbia under a contract with the War Department to bring it to Astoria for shipment after having delivered there a larger disappearing gun and carriage. After the carriage had been safely placed on the barge and a start made, the captain of the boat towing it found that the barge was leaking and to pre vent It sinking" in heep water headed for the shore. Just as the beach was reached the barge gave a list suffi cient to permit the carriage, weighing over 20 tons, to slip Into the water. This was at high water, and at low tide the carriage is exposed on the sandy beach a short distance above McGowan and can be recovered, proba blv without any dami. LOCAL OPTION VOTE ASKED Whitman County "Drys" Start Cam paign for Special Election. GARFIELD. Wash.. July 29. (Spe cial.) The temperance forces of Whit man County held a convention at the First Methodist Church today. The meeting was presided over by H. M. Marvin, president of the Whitman County Civic League. It was decided to take steps to call an election on the local option law in every Incorporated town and also in the county unit. The executive committee, P. J. Wll mer. of Rosalia. R. C. McCroskey. Gar field, and H. M. Marvin, were selected to have entire charge of the campaign. Nearly every town in the county waa represented and great enthusiasm was shown. The election is to be called the first Tuautav In. November. . if., i ROADWQHKHURRlED Tillamook Expects to See Iron Horse Here Next Summer. DAVIS INSPECTS GRADING J Engineer Pleased With Progress Made by Contractors Over 600 Men Are Employed Near Tillamook End of Line. TILLAMOOK, Or.. July 29. (Special.) Engineer George L. Davis, of the Pacific Railway & Navigation Company, has been making an Inspection at both ends of the railroad. He is greatly pleased at the manner in which Contractor Sweeney is organizing his forces, getting the equip ment In and In getting to work. Sweeney has 500 men employed at the east end of his contract, and over 100 men at Neha- lem, which will be greatly augmented within the next few weeks. Arrangements have been made to start work on the tun nels at once, and this work will be con tlnued throughout the Winter by tha dif ferent crews organized for that work. As contractor Wakefield has also aev eral hundred men working in the neigh borhood of Garibaldi, it ie expected that his contract along the Garibaldi Beach to Fisher's Point, at the Nehalem River, where it connects with Contractor Swee ney's contract, will be completed thta Fall. Engineer Davis is of the opinion that the entire road will be completed by next June, as Contractor Sweeney has started In with a great deal of vim. showing al ready that he knows how to organize and push work as rapidly as possible. He la putting In the best of equipment and will have a different clasB of laborers from those previously employed by the other contractors, who have been exceedingly dilatory in carrying out their contracts. The situation looks bright at the present time for Tillamook County to get railroad connections with Portland next Summer, after yeans of procrastination. EXPERTS TALK IRRIGATION Meeting at Eugene Promises Good Attendance. EUGENE. Or.. July 29. (Special.) The mass meeting called by the promotion department of the Eugene Commercial Club, for Saturday, to discuss Irrigation for this section of the Willamette Valley promises a good attendance. The meeting will be opened by an ad dress by Helmus W. Thompson, foyowed by another by lom Kicnaroson, or fort land, on "The Future of the Willamette Valley, if Irrigated." Professor S. For- tier, of California, Chief of the United States Irrigation Investigations, will speak on "What Irrigation Would Mean for the Willamette Valley." H. L. Hoi gate, division superintendent for Western Oregon, will deliver an address on the ."New Wrater Code," and ex-Governor Geer will speak on "The Benefits of Ir rigation." Arthur P. Stover, of Port land, irrigation expert, will speak on "What Irrigation Has Been Shown to Do In Oregon." The closing address will he made by Dr. T. W. Harris, of Eugene, whose sub ject will be. "How I Became Converted to Irrigation." RAILS REACH CENTRALIA Twin City Traction Company Will Distribute Iron on Streets. CENTRALIA. Wash., July 29. (Spe cial.) A carload of streetcar rails is in the Northern Pacific freight yards here and another carload In Chehalis. They are consigned to the Twin City Trac tion Company, which holds i franchises to build and operate a streetcar system in Centralla and Chehalis and between the two cities. The arrival of the rails has put new confidence into the streetcar project. The holders of the franchise are A. Welch and W. J. Patterson", of Portland, and Theodore Hoss, of Centralia. Mr. Hoss stated today that the rails would be distributed along the streets specified In the franchise, but as to when construction work would begin he could not say. LEWIS COUNTY PRESENTS CANDIDATE FOR CON GRESS. U. E. Harmon, of Chehalis. CHEHALIS, Wash., July 29. (Special.) Lewis County Re publicans are anxious to see U. E. Harmon, a prominent local attorney, nominated for Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the death of F. W. Cnshman. Mr. Harmon Is In dally receipt of letters from influential Repub licans in the district, assuring him of their support. Mr. Harmon was born near Kalamazoo, Mich., In 1864. His parents moved to Union County, 111., In 1866. where they lived until 1883 when they came to Washington. He and his people settled on a homestead about six miles from Chehalis and while living there, Mr. Harmon began teaching in the public schools of the county. In 1889 he was elected County Superin tendent of Schools, and re elected In 1891. He studied law during his term of office and was admitted to the bar in 1893. if k j Lj2 if. mMSwwtmm V-l ?5T Si' 5" i. DEXEGATIOV TO MEET BAL- LTXGER IX PORTLAXD. Secretary of Interior Will Be Urged to Recommend Building of Malheur Project. ONTARIO. Or., July 29. (Special.) A rousing meeting of the landowners under the Malheur Government irriga tion project was held at the opera- house this evening. The owners or land representing over 75.000 acres were present, many coming from a dis tance of over 20 miles. The meeting was called for the purpose of sending representatives to Portland to meet with Secretary of the Interior Ballln ger and the reclamation engineers and to urge the approval of the Malheur project. It was the unanimous wisn or xne meeting, in case the project couia not be completed at once. ' that it should be taken up and given its place and constructed in units as rapidly as the funds would permit, and that the funds received from Oregon, for the present and future years at least, should be used for the construction of this ana the other projects within this state. The representatives were given full authority to act for the landowners, and were instructed to do everything possible to assist the Secretary and the Reclamation Service in devising ways and means for taking up and complet ing this project. Some very earnest and encouraging addresses were made by Colonel C. E. S. Wood, of Portland: Walter S. Martin, of Pan Francisco: J. M. Joseph and C. W. Mallett and others of the large land owners here. The committee appointed from here were J. M. Joseph. A. W. Trow and Walter Griffith. This com mittee will leaye here on Sunday for Portland. SOCIAL CLUBS GIVEN BLOW Must Have License to Sell Liquor, and Cannot Sell at All on Sunday. OLTMPIA, Wash., July 29. (Spe cial.) A decision of the State Supreme Court rendered today, will make all social clubs In the state dry on Sundays and arid all other days of the week, , &i.tim J iratoAi J'' jv-t oflu fas Mia mm mmm also, unless regular liquor licenses are taken out. J. R. Baughman, steward of the Spo kane Club, was arrested for violating the city ordinance by serving liquors to club members without a city license. He was convicted, and appealed. The State Supreme Court says the mere fact that liquors are bought by the corporation and served to stockholders does not prevent the transaction being I a sale, and that the title of the ordinance which relates to bar rooms and saloons is entirely sufficient to cover the exclusive club of Spokane, because the room where liquors are served is no different than a bar room. The conviction Is affirmed. DRAKE HELD FOR MURDER Discharged at Preliminary Hearing, South' Bend Youth Is Rearrested. SOUTH BEND. Wash., July 29. (Special.) According to his promise made to his attorney last SJonday night upon being discharged from custody at the conclusion of his preliminary hearing before Justice M. D. Egbert, on a charge of murdering Alfred Stringer last Sunday morning, Clinton E. Drake remained at his home yesterday, when he was ar rested on an information charging mur der in the first degree filed by Prosecut ing Attorney O'Phelan. He was lodged In Jail last night, and will remain there until the Jury term of court in November. 20-CENT OFFER PENDING Polk County Hopgrower Delays Accepting Price Offer. in SALEM, Or., July 29. (Special.) Hop men report that 20 cents for 1909 hops is being freely offered. Julius Pin cus today offered William Percival, an Independence grower, 20 cents a pound for 50,000 pounds, and the offer is still open, with the probability that it will be declined. It is reported that Jim Meyers, of Dallas, has been offered 20 cents by Klaber, Wolf & Meeter, of Portland. Conrad Krebs today refused 14 cents for 2 carloads of 1908 hops. Eights have been quoted at 13. Morrow Delegates Named. HEPPKER, Or., July 29. Special. ) The County Court of Morrow County has appointed J. R. Olden, G. W. Swaggart. Ends Sooner Than Expected! Bring Us $5 or $6 Today and We'll Give You a Fine New Warranted Piano ' j Only Eleven Fine New Instruments Included in This Sale Remain to Be Sold! All Will Be Taken Before Noon Tomorrow! The fairest opportunity in the wav of erettinsr really fine new war ranted pianos at the littlest of prices and littlest of payments is coming to an end. Many have called and secured a really fine musical instrument at these tremendous savings. There are several families who have bought two pianos during ihis Sell v 4. Remember, the prices are $138, $162 and $146 pay $5 cash and $5 a month. There are also four $300 pianos and two $350 ones at corresponding reductions; on these, terms are $6 cash and $6 a month. Come today you'll undoubtedly be too late to morrow. We found two well-known piano manufacturers with a large stock of finished pianos. They were ter ribly anxious to realize. We secured these latest high grade pianos at a most extraordinary reduction. We pass this advantage along to wideawake midsummer buyers. Bear in mind, we guarantee every instrument as to quality, and also as to price. Your money back if at any time within six months you can buy the same grade of pianos elsewhere, East or West, at anywhere near such low price. Should you later on want the best in the world, the Chicker ing or the Kimball, or that beautiful art piano, the Weber, or the Pianola Piano, we will any time within two years allow total price paid for these pianos in exchange toward . the former; Remember, it s at dispeTvsor of pianoreliatility Addison Bennett, R. F. Wiggllsworth and 1m. E. McBee as delegates to the National Irrigation Congress at Spokane. PLAYED POKER, IS CHARGE Pan! C. Morton Accused of Gam- bling on Astoria Train. ASTORIA, Or., Paul C. Morton, f July 29. (Special.) Portland commercial CHOObS INVESTIGATE There is a reason for the Popularity of the BUSINESS There's no common sense, there's no sort of reason, in eating doubt- . ful meat at any time or season. DEMAND INSPECTED MEATS PORTLAND. NARY! A traveler, was arrested by Sheriff Pom eroy this afternoon on a bench warrant issued from the Circuit Court and charg ing him with gambling. He was released on $KtO bonds to appear for trial. Morton is one of four commercial men who were arrested some weeks accused of playing draw poker on a train between here and Clifton. Paul C. Morton is traveling represent ative for Mason. Ehrman & Co. He lives at 221 Tenth street. Mr. Ehrman regards the indictment as trivial. COLLEGE OREGON hm rii jaufii