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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 10, 1909)
10 THE MORXIXG OREGONIAX, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1909. PORTLAND, OREGON. Entered at Portland. Orccoo. FostorBcs aa 8con4-Class Matter. Subscription Rate Inmitblr In Advance. (By Mail.) Dally. Eunday Included, one year 98.00 Dally. Sunday included, six months.. 4.23 Daily, Sunday Included, three .months. . 2.23 Dally. Sunday Included, one month.... .75 Dally, without Sunday, one year 0.00 Dally, without- Sunday, six months.... 3.25 Dally, without Sunday, three months. 1.73 Dally, without Sunday, one month OO Weekly, one year 1.50 Sunday, one year 2.50 Sunday and weekly, one year. 8.50 (By Carrier.) Dally. Sunday Included, one year..... 9.00 Dally. Sunday Included, one month.... .75 How to Remit Send postotnce money order, express order or personal check on , your local bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at the sender's risk. Give poatofflce ad dress In full, -Including county and state. Pnntaare Rate 10 to 14 pa (ten. 1 cent: 18 to 28 pages. 2 cents; SO to 40 pages. 3 cents; 0 to 60 pages, 4 cents. Foreign postage double rate. Eastern Business Office The S. C. Beck wtth Special Agency New York, rooms 48 50 Tribune building. Chicago, rooms 510-512 Tribune building. PORTI,AXr, FRIDAY, - DEC. 10. 1909- BRITAIN'S POLITICAL HTRlT.iI.E. Does anyone suppose the British electorate really wishes to suppress the House of Lords? If any think "so, they have but to -wait for the disil lusionment. Even If the coming elec tion should go against the House of Lords, neither Its position nor Its power will be seriously shaken. But will the election go against the po sition now taken by the House of Lords? Thv parties probably will come out of the conflict on nearly even terms. There is a balance of forces in the British electorate that is the wonder and admiration of the republican-democratic world. The key Is found In the adherence of all the people to representative government, with the House of Lords acting as a check but only as a tem porary check if the people are earnest on radical measures. Such' check exists, in a degree. In our Senate. The misfortune is that our Senate hasn't the respect among our people that the House of Lords has in Britain. The reason is that few of its members have Individual, family or historic charac ter. Too many of them are elected on their advocacy of cheap theories and buncombe issues. .. Of course, we -could have nothing In our country like the British House of Lords. It wouldn't be. suited at all to us; yet it will do for illustra tions and for contrasts. In our own political action. Undeniably the programme of the Commons Is in the direction of state socialism,, resisted by the Lords. Neither party can triumph completely. Tet the contest is one of Intense Inter est to all people, the world over, who watch the struggle In a country where opinion Is free, between those who are advancing towards state socialism and those (who resist it. In our country the problem Is essentially the same though presented in wholly different phases. 1R. COOK AND ins PRETENSIONS. "The darkness deepens" about Dr. Cook. Men having actual knowledge of Arctic conditions have believed in him but little. Few in New York or in London have had faith in him at all. It Is the common opinion that his stories, both as to ML McKInley and the Journey to the Pole, are fabri cations. New incidents, . seemingly confirming this Judgment, are contin ually coming to light. Two men ap pear who confess they were principals in the fabrication of his astronomical and other observations for submission to the University of Copenhagen. It must be admitted that these men are not. themselves, admirable char acters, since they first helped forward a fraud, and afterwards not fretting the money promised them exposed It. But the proofs they submit, when examined by. competent persons, will tell: and then they may be dropped out of the account. It Is all but incredible that any man should attempt a fabrication, of this description. Even yet, it is well to wait for the final Judgment of those competent to express an opinion on the data and details furnished by Dr. Cook. If they are actually fraudulent, no ingenuity can disguise them, or protect him from . the scorn of the world. These statements by men who pro fess to have made up Cook's "calcula tions" for him, follow hard upon the remarks by Professot H. C. Parker, of Columbia University, on Cook's al leged ascent of Mt. McKInley. Pro fessor Parker accompanied Dr. Cook on the Mt. McKInley expedition, and declares it Impossible to believe that Cook had reached the summit. Cook, he says, "knew nothing of mountain climbing, had no scientific training, and seemed to realize his total Incom petence for such work." It appearing impossible to reach the top of the mountain that year. Professor Parker returned, and Cook remained behind, to "hunt a little." as" he said and tn "look over some of the nearest gla ciers." Parker's analysis of Cook's state ments leaves "the explorer in a piti ful position. By his barometers, Cook says, he found the height of the moun tain to be 20,390 feet. But the high est barometer scale we had," says Parker, "was only 18,000 feet." Parker knew, because he was, in fact, in charge of the expedition. As to Cook's qualifications, Parker says that he very much doubts whether. If placed in the streets of New. York, with the best Instruments made, Dr. Cook "could calculate his latitude and longi tude with absolute accuracy." It Is not merely that Cook Is In a painful position. It is really a pain ful thing for the whole iworld. Truth is everything. DAIRYING IN OREGON. The inspiring story of success which Mr. J. D. Mickle related at the State Dairymen's convention. Is not at all marvelous. It can be paralleled by the experience of many men who, like him, have escaped from a hard life and poor pay in the city to find health, liberty and fortune on a small farm. Dairying is as much of a scientific calling as fruitgrowing, and It is strange that the people of this state have not found it more attractive. The returns are large, and yet Oregon is far from producing enough butter and cheese for home consumption. This fact becomes the more surpris ing the more one contemplates the natural advantages of this state for dairying. The mild climate reduces the process of wintering cows to a very simple and comparatively cheap one. Clover grows almost everywhere west of the Cascades. Corn for ensi lage is - easily raised. Root crops thrive With- moderate attention. But In spite of all these favorable con ditions, dairying does not move for-? ward In Oregon as It should. We ought to supply the home-demand and pro duce a large surplus for export. Per haps the numerous big estates In the Willamette Valley somewhat hinder men of small means from engaging in the dairy business-.- Certainly, they re tard orchardry. Very likely the exag gerated fear of tuberculosis ' has also been a deterrent. Oregon cattle breed ers " ought to pay some attention to developing a. cow - which can endure the climate better, than the Jersey does. There is no reason why we should not produce a native breed which shall be at once profitable In the dairy and adapted to local con ditions. . THE WATER-PIPE QUESTION. When the proposition was before the city to require water pipes or mains of the diameter of ten inches or less to be laid at the expense of the owners of property directly benefited. The Oregonian supported it; for it seemed reasonable and right to require property held in large or considerable tracts for rise In values to pay the cost of laying water mains that were expected to Increase the land 'values two to five fold. Question was. why the whole city should be taxed for the benefit of landholders and speculators about the suburbs. It is found, however, we are told, that the plan is Impracticable or un workable. The main reason given is this, namely, that it is impossible to distribute the benefits, on any calcula ble system; hence, the assessments will be resisted, and contractors re fuse to offer bids on the work. ' It is explained or asserted that it Is a very 'different matter from apportion ments of the cost of constructing a sewer or paving a street; for the sec tion or district served by improve ments of this character is clearly ascertainable; but the water system of the city Is a connected whole, and a main or large pipe laid In one locality may extend far Into others; moreover, its laterals or branches penetrate very far beyond the original section paid for by those to whom the cost of the stem was charged. The objection is that contractors, knowing that payment will be resisted, make no tenders for the work; and the .present, situation, therefore, is a com plete Impasse. The theory that the property benefited should pay is sound, but the difficulty- of defining and allotting the benefits, on a con. tinually extending and interlocked system, is said to be an insuperable obstacle. Hence the Standstill, and hence the call for a vote to change the conditions. Further, the existing situation Is an obstruction to street improvement. The supply mains should be laid down before the streets are paved; and it is sound economy to require this. But pavement of streets is blocked by the failure to get the water mains laid down, . Now, what is to be done about all this? The Oregonian exceedingly re grets that the purpose to make large and unoccupied tracts pay for the supply mains that will so vastly in crease the value of the property, Snds this difficulty in the execution. Whether further study will bring more light, or suggest a remedy, it can't now say. The present state ment Is merely a tentative one, and it will be two months till the vote 18 taken; so there. is time to examine the subject further. Should the ten-inch clause be repealed, the whole subject will be in the hands of the Water Board, as aforetime, to be governed by their restrictions and regulations. Yet it. should be remembered that these Conditions, during their continu ance, never were satisfactory, and be cause of this they were changed in 1907. This is the most puzzling of all questions now before the city. The main root of the objection to the change now proposed tfie change back to former conditions Is that there is no liking for "the unearned increment," except among the com paratively few who expect to be bene ficiaries of it. And yet, improvement must not be arrested. SECRETARY WILSON'S BLUNDER. Conclusive evidence Is at hand showing that Secretary Wilson, on his recent investigation of Western for est reserves, visited but one compara tively insignificant reserve, in the ex treme eastern part of Idaho. There were fifteen other reserves in Idaho, all fit greater Importance than the one to which the Secretary pal his hur ried Visit, and the trip was made for the purpose of enabling the Secretary to obtain accurate knowledge of the entire forest reserve policy. It iwas on the information thus 'gained that Mr. Wilson so glibly announced in his annual report that there would be no more withdrawals from the forest re serves, thus Indicating that millions of acres of ripe timber, now rapidly deteriorating, would remain uncut, to rot In these reserves. To the Western people, who for years have had perfect knowledge of the iworthlessness of the Information diffused by the Department of Agri culture, it will not be surprising to learn that the Secretary of Agricul ture has been caught in the act of "faking." By no gentler term is it possible to describe his act in visiting one insignificant forest reserve In an obscure part of Idaho and then an nouncing a nation-wide policy based on "personal Investigation of the for est reserves of the. West." ' In view of past performances of the Agricultural Department, regarding the Pacific Northwest, "faking" of this character might be expected. Far out in the eastern part of Idaho resides the "spe cial agent" of the Department of Ag-. rlculture, whose duty It is to keep in touch with crop conditions, etc., in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Lo cated several hundred miles from the wheat districts of these states, and ap parently imbued ivvith' the belief that crop reporting is a branch of mathe matics, this "special agent" annually sends forth crop reports that are weirdly grotesque and extravagantly ridicujous. - It will be remembered that the wild estimates of this special agent a year ago made the wheat crop of Oregon, Washington and Idaho fully 15,000, 000 bushels in excess of the actual output of the three states. This big "surplus" that never existed was an important factor in swelling the crop of the Nation to extravagant . figures, which enabled "Mr. Patten and his I friends who had accurate information, to work one of the most profitable wheat deals ever attempted In . the country. The fearfully and wonderfully con structed figures of this crop expert on the 1909 Oregon and Washington crop are not yet at hand. ' He places the Idaho crop at something over 12,000, 000 bushels, or about 5,000,000 bush els In- "excess of the amount that can be located by the farmers, grain deal ers or railroads. If the Oregon and Washington crop Is similarly overesti mated, the three states ought to show up on the Government report with about 100,000,000 bushels, which would be important if true. . So far as the Pacific Northwest Js concerned, it would be greatly to our advantage if Secretary Wilson would maintain a discreet silence on crops and forest reserves until -he was in possession of accurate Information regarding them. MR. AYER'S LIBRARY REPORT. That a public library, with branches In different parts of the city, will be maintained in -Portland there can be no doubt. It has come to be regard ed as a legitimate public effort; and though the cost Is considerable, it is not probable that any . important and growing modern city will neglect the public library, or, having begun, will abandon it. At Portland there Is a fortunate combination between the old Library Association, maintained - more than forty years by private citizens, and the effort of the city to make provision to meet this public demand. As a con sequence of the contract between the city and the Library Association good service has been had at very small cost to the city. Use of a large prop erty and very excellent library has been secured to the public at moderate expense.' If possible, this arrange ment should be continued; but if con tinued, it will -cost the city more money than heretofore. If discon tinued, the cost to the city will be very much greater unless It shall be de cided that the public library is to be abandoned; and this is not a prob able alternative. The city, if it shall withdraw from the Library Associa tion, will be compelled to expend at once a very large sum of money for real estate, buildings, books, furni ture and general equipment, including provision for branches in .various parts of the city. So large a sum as one million dollars would not provide much more than an effective begin ning. On the other hand, by continu ation of the contract with the Asso ciation effective public service could be continued, with much less money. It is probable that the property of the- Library Association could ;ot be transferred to the city. Most of the value was derived from bequests, whose conditions must be kept and complied with. But- if a .public library is to be. maintained it would seem that branches must be provided; and. the suggestion of Mr. Ayer, president of the trustees of the Association, is that the city levy the tax authorized by the charter, buy suitable sites for branches and erect proper branch buildings. Further suggestion is that the associa tion sell Its present property the one half block on Stark street which would bring a, large sum of money, and buy with the proceeds an entire block further removed from the busi ness center the money for building to be supplied by the city, or from other sources. This certainly would be a better business arrangement for the city than to permit the contract with the Asso ciation to lapse, and then start in to establish a central library and branches, on the city's on account. For it may be supposed that Port land, having reached what may be called "the public library stage," will not abandon the policy of maintain ing a free library, with branches, as a public institution. Mr. Ayer"s sug gestions, therefore, deserve consider ate attention. THE MODERN FARMER. The old order changeth and the farmer is coming into his own. Not the farmer of the funny papers, with his patched Jeans held up by one "gallus," driving a spavined team with a broken-down cart. This class of ag riculturists is rapidly following the dodo, the great ' auk and other rare old birds into the dead and forgotten past. In his place has appeared a progressive, iwell-read,- prosperous In dividual, who seldom gets beyond the reach of the telephone and the daily paper. The old system of haphazard farming has no attractions, for this modern agriculturist, and he has re duced his calling to a science. The lessons of adversity have aided In bringing about this change, but to the greatest extent it is due to the spread of good farming gospel, as taught In the agricultural colleges and demon strated on experimental farms. -With the elevation of his calling, the farmer is bringing about a remarka ble social, economic and moral change. The change that has been wrought by the gospel of better farming is strikingly set forth in a Pullman dis patch, printed in yesterday's Orego nian, announcing the resignation of Professor George Severance, of the ag ricultural department of the Washing ton State College. Professor Severance was drawing the very satisfactory sal ary of ?2000 per year for his duties as instructor at the college, but has resigned to become a farmer. He is to take charge of three farms Just beyond the boundary line in Canada, and is to receive a salary of $3000 per year, with all of his expenses paid, and is also to have an Interest In the profits. An automobile Is provided for his use In running-round his work on the farms and the -position is about as different from that of the old-time farmer as can well be imagined. The case of this college farmer Is not an exceptional one. The Oregon Agricultural College, as well as the Washington institution, is turning off large numbers of these 'modern farm ers, and to their scientific knowledge and modern methods is due much of the credit for . the vastly. Increased profits that have lifted mortgages and added automobiles, pianos -and simi lar equipment to so many of the farms of the Pacific Northwest: The new farmer is one of the greatest blessings that have come to the agricultural districts and as his success increases, as It surely will, the emoluments of the calling will excite the envy of less favored professional men. In connection with the announce ment of what is probably the last ill ness of Mrs. Frances Killen, at Walla Walla, It is recalled that this aged pioneer woman is the sole survivor of the sturdy men and women who es-' tablished homes In the Rock Creek settlement, . In Clackamas. County, from 184? to- 1856. ' "The " Nedy nelghborhod," it was called, when a postomce namea iNeeay was estaD llshed, about the year last named, at the country store . of James Vinson, a short distance from the Klllen do nation land claim. "Hardscrabble" was another designation of the settlement, each name telling Its ' own' story. Fifty years was the life of this pio neer settlement, as far as the original settlers are concerned. The land claims In perhaps every Instance have passed out of .the hands of the heirs of those to whom the title was made by the Government under the donation land law. The sites of the first set tlers' homes are still marked in some instances by rotting logs and by lilac and rose bushes, run wild. The Klllen log house, it is said, Is still standing. The sons and daughters Horn In these primitive homes have scattered out over the Pacific Northwest and be come ""identified with its enterprises and Its homes. ' Of the original set tlers of the neighborhood thus desig nated, Mrs. Killen alone survives, car rying feebly but bravely the weight of ninety years. The O. R. & N. has appropriated J600.000, to be, used In. straightening out 14.2 miles of road between The Dallesand Deschutes. In- the early days of railroad building, when the engineers located the line around stumps which were Joo big to be con veniently moved,". $40,000 per mile was regarded as a reasonable amount for constructing a new v line, and a good many miles of road were built for about half that amount. The pres sure of competition and the. necessity for reducing the operating expenses is now so great, however, that enor mous sums are spent in the elimina tion of curves and in reducing grades. The O. R. & N. has already expended .large sums in straightening the line and reducing grades between-Portland and The Dalles, and for a number of mires west of Pendleton. With the completion of the work now planned, the South Bank Road will, be In per fect condition for any kind of com petition which might be inaugurated by its great rival on the opposite side of the river. A long letter In the Corvallis Gazette-Times -signed "E. M." takes issue with the editor of that paper, who expressed the opinion that "one rea son why The Oregonian is so widely read is its strong editorial page." Of course, it doesn't become The Orego nian to quarrel with this dissenter. He doesn't understand The Oregonian, he can't understand it; and we should let It go at that; only he proceeds thus: Of course the real and normal appercep tion Is 'that The Oregxmian is the- paragon of virtue and morality; and of course, al most without exception, our statesmen, bankers, merchants and even our professors and preachers (at which latter especially as our teachers of ethics the writer has often Irreverently wondered) so adopt It; the most pleasing dally tperusal . and edification of which must consequentty be among their chief comfort and- solaces. How then can these wonderful hallucinations on the part of the present writer be accounted for? Oh, it's easy! As Horace Greeley used to say, "The man simply is a damned .fool." There, is some accusation of Secre tary Knox, on his lack of diplomacy In dealing with President Zelaya, of Nicaragua. We . think the criticism unjust. Knox merely wrote a few sen tences like this: It Is equally a matter of common knowl edge that under the regime of President Zelaya republican Institutions have ceased in Nicaragua to exist except In name; that public opinion and the press have been throttled. 1 and Wiat prison has been the reward of any tendency to real patriotism. If this isn't the language of true diplomacy, what is it? Observe, however, that it was not addressed to Germany, to Great Britain, or even to Russia or Japan. ' In the discussion of "Evangelism" at the meeting of the Ministerial As sociation at Vancouver last Wednes day, it was conceded that the "best time for conducting evangelical work Is during the regular church service." Adherence to this principle would, of course, put "Gypsy" Smith, Billy Sun day et al. out of a lucrative .Job. A highway, as perfect as possible, is wanted from Baker City to Haines. It is a most desirable thing. Yet the Baker Democrat is "given to under stand that one of the objections raised to the Haines road is Its expense." Now when you want a thing, that is a very shallow objection whether you have means of getting It or not. The two Senators of the United States, at Washington, from Portland, Oregon, could easily adjust at the War Department, Washington, the matter of the drawbridges at Portland, Oregon; only It Is a small matter, and they, being statesmen, haven't time to attend to it. It matters not whether it be Jer sey, Holstein, Ayrshire or Guernsey, or the Shorthorn dual anomaly, the object in view is to lift the Oregon dairy product from $17,000,000 annu ally to an indefinite figure. "While deposits. In all the banks of the United States foot up the stupend ous total of. $14,000,000,000, they do not equal the value of the agricultural products of the country during the last two years. Tillamook has elected a "wet" ticket. The ' open saloon cannot be worse than the disreputable state of affairs, moral and political, that has existed there in the year past. Merely as. a reminder, it may.be stated once - more that the sale of Red Cross stamps will continue until Christmas. The money goes to fight consumption. - Gresham, "little larger than the ordi nary crossroads, village, has voted bond3 for water and sewers.- This is an undertaking to eliminate the un dertaker. That is . an earnest-looking lot of men and women in session in -Woodmen Hall these days. They are not a milk-and-water-combination, by "any means. Mr. King," Portland bridegroom, ar rested for debt in San Francisco, has been "charivaried" with a vengeance. Having had'two full days of it, can any one point out faults in Oregon's normal Winter weather? Only two short weeks left. Go early and avoid the rush. A cheap relief In over-crowded streetcars would-be more straps. - LET BBTTi!(- PROPERTY PAT, ' Wky Should City Put Up for Extending; Water Mains. PORTLAND, Or., Dec. 9. (To the Edi tor.) I should like to express my opin ion about", the matter of the laying of water mains In this city, which Is now being discussed by Mayor Simon and his Water Board. It Is undoubtedly true that contractors are not anxious to bid on the work under present conditions. They are uncertain about their ability to collect from Individual property-owners. Mr. Simon believes that the work. should be paid for out of the water fund; and this is where I object. . He and some members of the board evidently had this change in view at the time when they proposed to raise the minimum price of water (meter rate) from 25 cents to 75 cents a month. While I do not want anything below cost, and think the minimum 25-cent rate Is too low, I can hardly see the Justice or neces sity of making the rate three times as high. I do not like to believe Mr. Simon possessed of any mercenary motives in this connection; at the same time there are no doubt many who have unim proved property, upon which they do not like to pay for laying the mains. Yet everyone knows that all Improvements, such as water and sewers, enhance the value of vacant lots as much In propor tion as they do to unoccupied land In a new subdivision, whenever a new resi dence goes up. Therefore. I am not in favor of paying the contractor out of the water fund, but. In Justice to him, and to induce him to bid on and do the work, can he not be paid for his work by the city, and the city collect from the property benefited by the improvement? That seems to me easy of accomplishment, when people get to understand that it is the settled policy that abutting property shall pay. PROTEST. THEORY THAT DR. COOK IS INSANE. No Other Interpretation of the Latest Fraud Disclosures. PORTLAND. Dec. 9. (To the Ed itor.) The disclosures against Dr. Cook published In today's Oregonian are not conclusive. While his "case may be said to bo weakening, he Is far from convicted of fraud. Though the statement of alleged hired accomplices Is published by so reputable a journal as the New York Times, it must not be accepted on its face as truth. It may be remembered that the Times was de ceived last year by a vagabond named Brandenburg, who peddled around other New York newspaper offices and then sold to the Times a forged article purporting to have been signed by Grover Cleveland. This article also cre ated a sensation. Is It not possible that enemies of Dr. Cook, who are not Inactive, may have engaged a man to Impersonate Dr. Cook and then deal with Captain Loose and Mr. Dunkle? Is It reason able to suppose that Dr. Cook, con scious of how his every movement is watched, would at this ' late day at tempt such a fraud? If the story pub lished this morning is half way true, the only conclusion is that Dr. Cook has become Insane. C. V; R. "Split" Electoral Votes. KLAMATH FALLS, Or., Dec. 6. (To the Editor.) The Saturday Evening Post, speaking of the editor of The Oregonian, said that in the Presidential election of 1896 California was split. How could this be possible under the present Electoral College system of electing Presidents? It does not seem probable that the state would select electors of opposing parties. V. T. MOTSCHEXBACHEL. Evidently this correspondent has not lived seventeen years in Oregon, else he would remember that In 1892, this state chose two Republicans and one Populist as Presidential electors. Of course. In a state where the majority or plurality is large an electoral ticket could not be split, but where the vote is very close, carelessness or personal feeling for or against one candidate may cause a split. This has happened in eight states In the past thirty-two years. For example, Hancock .carried California in 1880 by a few hundred votes, but Judge Terry, one of the Democratic candidates for elector, was defeated because . enough Democrats remembered his duel with Broderick many years before and would not vote for him. In Maryland last year and in 1904, the electoral vote was split Ed Howe's Philosophy. Atchison Globe. Somehow, we always hate to see a woman handle a gun. You can't work and worry at the same time to good advantage. A man who worries throws rocks at his troubles and hits himself. It Is as important to keep out of court as it Is to keep out of debt. There is an unusually large number of 10-cent heads this Winter wearing 9o0 hats. "Music uplifts me, but I drop back again as soon as the music Is over." Parson Twine." "I don't know how it is with others, but when I begin telling my wrongs, I lie like a thief." Ben Davis. The man who shouts most for good government is the one figuring on becom ing an active, salaried part of it. There are three things women should not do spit in public, yawn in public or blow their noses in public. No woman who uses ten words, when two would do, should be allowed in a business house until after working hours. When a guest at a dinner party, it is a misfortune to sit in such a position that everything is passed to you first, as you will not always know "what to do." It is often said every man should have a fad as a recreation. But most men have too many; we have noticed that the suc cessful man makes his business his fad. "This Newspaper." Morning Astorian, -Dec. 5. Yesterday was the 59th anniversary of the founding of The Portland Ore gonian, and the Morning Astorian tenders its felicitations to the men who have made it what it is, the lead ing member of the quintette of great est of American newspapers. We are proud of The Oregonian as one of the real institutions of the state and of the Northwest, in the development of both of which it has had commanding and successful part. With every other newspaper in the country we join in the hope that The Oregonian may go on its splendid way Interminably, rais ing its own high standards and build ing nobly with the great influence it possesses. Bargains in Used Wedding It Ice. i New York Sun. In a grocery of many signs the most conspicuous sign of all reads, "Wedding rice, 3 cents a pound." When questioned as to the particular quality of wedding rice, the gsocer replied: "It's speckly." Then he uncovered a box half filled with rice that showed a multitude of little black specks mixed with the white grains. "It would be too big a Job to clean that for cooking," he said, "but it's all right for weddings, and it goes cheap. This is a parish of . marriages. That church across the street is the- scene of more weddings than any other two churches In town, and two-thirds of the bridal rice Is bought here." Cleaning; the Augean Stables. Nehalem Enterprise. After waiting seven years to get the water high enough to scrub the floor without carrying the water, L. T. Othler took advantage of the recent freshet, which went over the floor and went through the performance of house-cleaning. He was determined to have his way whether the floor needed it or not. L FPTLB K f CA RA etXATITT X S V '1 S H fc-TJ, Facts Worth Knowing; About the Coun try X'nele Sam Is Watchlaa; Knr. (Condensed from a report Issued by the International Bureau of the American Re publics. Washington. D. C.) Everybody seems to be asking. In view of present developments, what, exactly, is Nicaragua, how large is It, what are Its resources, commerce and climate? There Is only four square miles dif ference between the area of Nicaragua and the State of New York. Take Con necticut out of New England, and Nica ragua would cover the rest of It. It is approximately half the size of the State of Washington. To be exact. It covers 49,200 square miles, which Is larger-than Holland, Belgium and Denmark com bined. It has a remarkable extent of coast line on two oceans. It has the smallest population of any Central American country, but is cor respondingly ( capable of great material development. There are only about 600. 000 people within Its limits. Of these, five-sixths are upon the western or Pa cific side. The eastern or Caribean shore lies low and is drained by many rivers. The only Industry of this section is the growing of bananas which were shipped in 1908 to the number, of 1,600, 000 bunches, valued at 60 cents a- bunch. The principal town here is Bluefields. a little south of. the center, having 6000 Inhabitants. There is one railroad in Nicaragua which starts at Corinto and runs to Managua and thence across to Granada on Lake Nicaragua, which Is the largest inland body of water In all Latin Ameri ca. If one wishes to go to Nicaragua, he .can take steamers on 'the Atlantlo side from New York. New Orleans or Mo bile. Going by Pacific, -he will take steamers from San Francisco or from coast points of other countries. The total value of the foreign trade of, Nicaragua in 1908 amounted to $7,500, 000, of which exports were $4,600,000 and imports $3,000,000. Nicaragua bought from the United States textiles, clothing, machinery, etc.. valued at $1,300,000. She sold to the United States, bananas, cof fee, rubber, mahogany, cattle, hides, etc. valued at $1,050,000. Nicaragua has a President, a Cabinet with five Ministers or Secretaries. 13 departments or states, andl five divisions like our territories. Its National As sembly consists of only one chamber, which Is now in session.. REPIBLIC FOR GREAT BRITAIN First. Hints of the Opening of a Cam paign Asnlnst Monarchy. London Dispatch to New York Herald. There is no denying that society is more than a little concerned at the great free dom which certain leaders of the labor party and others have recently been al lowing themselves in speaking of King Seward's place In the constitution. I understand that these speeches are not sporadic or accidental, but must be reckoned as the first hints of the opening of a more definite campaign against mon archy In this country. Informal exchanges of opinion have al ready, I believe, been made between cer tain labor and Irish members, and the speeches to which I have referred and the questions which' have been put in the House about the Prince of Wales' posi tion in the navy are the first results. There is no doubt that an attempt is about to be made to raise, again the ban ner of republicanism, which has been furled and hidden away in England since the early days of the reign of Queen Vic toria. There is an extreme section In the radical party which would give its sup port to this propaganda, and the idea that it has the sympathy of Lloyd George may have given rise to the rumor that there are strained relations between him and the King. Underworked Acres In America. Boston' Traveler. The United States has the most fer tile soil and the most favorable cli mate In the world, but by careless methods produces an annual yield of less than 14 bushels of wheat an acre, while England produces more than 32, Germany about 28, the Netherlands 34 and France 20. Of oats, the Unitod States produces an average yield an acre of 23 bushels. England 42, Germany 46 and Holland 63. In potatoes the United N States produces 85 bushels an acre. Germany, Belgium and Great Britain over 250 each. Germany, with an arable area not greater than some of our largest states, produces approximately 2,000,000.000 bushels of potatoes annually, while the annual crop of the United States averages 275,000,000 bushels per annum. In the year ended June 30 we imported 8,384,000 bushels. In the 10 years since 1S98 the acreage in the United States increased 22 per cent, while our exports decreased 67 per cent, showing that in a few years we shall be obliged to import the necessaries of life. The annual aver age yield of wheat an acre la less in the United States today than it was 30 years ago. Modern Damon and Pythias, Tramps. Kansas City Star. St. Joseph has a pair of tramps who pose as the modern Damon and Pythias. One was sent to the workhouse for 50 days and the other for 100 days. Damon got out first and was told to leave town. He couldn't bear to go without his friend, so he was sent back to the workhouse for 100 days. Pythias got out next and he couldn't leave town without Damon, so he wrote a councilman this note: "Dear Friend Morrison: There Is. a man In the workhouse by the name of Jack Knowlton who is serving out ioo days that ought to be pardoned out he has served 60 days of the 100 days & had served GO days before he got the 100. His pardner served 100" days & his time is out today he would like to go home in Texas so 1 believe it would save the city money to let them go to gether for one won't go without the other that was the reason he got back in the workhouse. Your friend, Joe Hiok." Damon was pardoned. Deer In Streets of New Haven. New Haven, Conn., Dispatch to New York Times. Deer are so numerous that State Game Warden Clark has warned boys and men not to throw sticks or stones at the animals when they are seen in the city streets. Monday night the Warden killed a buck which had sought refuge In a downtown ' stable. It had been chased and one of Its legs was broken. A few days ago a deer caught down town was taken In an express wagon and liberated in the suburbs. Dinner of a Skamania Dyspeptic. Stevenson Pioneer. R. C. Sly What little I eat is hardly worth mentioning. My appetite has gone entirely back on me. Now they had a very nice dinner, but I only ate four helpings of chicken, three of spuds, five of gravy, two dishes of tomatoes, three of corn, nine warm biscuits, six stocks of celery, four cups of coffee and two rounds of desert. I tried to do justice to. the meal, but I have Indigestion no bad I was compelled to quit at that. Self-Nomination. Yakima Republic The futility of trying to accomplish the things by legal enactment which the people ought to do themselves Is well ilustrated by the new direct pri mary law. It has been claimed for this law that better nominations would be made If the people had a chance to make them. But Individuals nominate themselves, as this system works in practice, and the people have mighty little to say, in the long run. about their candidates. - 1 NEW-SKTSCRAPER OF SX .STORIES. - W1U Adorn New York CMyj Rentable Area of 550,000 Square Feet. New York World. New York's largest' skyscraper wilj cast Its shadow over the Battery Towering SI stories above the ground, it will contain 11.000.000 cubic feet, with a rentable area of 550.000 square feet. In it will be 10 miles of plumbing. 10 miles of steam pipe. 65 miles of conduits and wiring, and 3000 electric fixtures. From curb to roof it will measure .416 feet. In building it will be used 14.000 tons of structural steel. 7.500,000 common bricks. 900,000 face bricks. 45.000 barrels of - cement, 633,000 square feet of floor arches, 266,000 cubic feet of cinder fill, 125.000 square feet of girder covering. 4f0. 000 square feet of .partition tile, 120.000 square feet of column covering, 21O.0H0 square feet of wall furring, 5oK) cubic yards of caissons, 17,000 cubic .yards of earth excavation, 2150 cubic feet of gran ite. 20,000 cubic feet of Indiana limesionp. 3000 tons of ornamental ttrra coita. ti.i.0oo square feet of wire lath, 85.000 square yards of plaster. 400,000 lineal' feet or spruce sleepers, SOO.000 feet of comb grain yellow pine flooring, 2300 windows, "0.v .square feet of glass, 3000 doors. 28O.0O pounds of window weights. 30.000 feet of ' copper chain, 450,000 feet of ground, 80,000 feet of picture mold, and 30.000 feet of base. Cinders required for floor arches and " between sleepers of the floors will fill 500,000 cubic feet approximately 25.000,000 pounds. It represents the consumption of 125,000 tons of coal, sufficient to develop 65,000,000 horsepower hours of energy. There will be 2100-horsepower boilers. 2000 horsepower in engines. 1200 kilowatts In generator' capacity, 65.000 square feet of " radiator surface, 190,000 candlepower In electrlo lights. . , Old buildings on the site are being torn down. The structure will be an addition' to the 25-atory Whitehall building. The completed skyscraper will front 307 24 feet on Washington street and. 1R0.8 on Battery place, covering 61,515 square' feet, or 21 city lots. It will cost $S,000,000. RATIXG FOR DIPLOMATS' LETTERS Autoarnph Missives of All IT. S. Presi dents to Roosevelt Brine SIKIO. New York Cor. North American. At the afternoon and evening sessions of the sale of the library of Louis J. ua ber $o061 was realized. - The collection consisted of many rra- . markable books by authors from the 16th century to the present day.' Charles Scribner's Sons paid $930 for a full set of signed autograph letters of the Presidents of the United States from Washington t; Roosevelt. One of tho most Interesting of the political letters contained in the set was penned by Theodore Roosevelt dp-, nounclng Tammany Hall when he was a member of the New York State Legisla ture. For two volumes or "Religlo Medici" by Sir Thomas Browne and Str Kencl DiKby. printed In London In 1612.. $150 was received: $201 was given for a first edi tion of Robert Burton's "Anatomy of Melancholy"; $156 obtained Robert Hel mont's "Diary of a Recluse." translated by L. Ensor. London, 1SS8. It was beau tifully illustrated. A decree of the Star Chamber concern ing printing, made in 1637 by Stikenian, brought $100. This was a very flue cony of the rare and celebrated original pamphlet. Mark Twain's original manuscript of the "Invalid Story" was bid up to $lso. It was signed In full by Mark Twain. Mrs. Browning's original manuscript of "Only a Curl,'" consisting of 14 stanziis, signed In full, was knocked down at Jino. The Same In Washington. Yakima (Wash.) Republic, The Oregonian believes that the theory of expecting the state to edu cate everybody for the whole duties of life, or the particular duties, is a mis take. It believes that the theory of taxing the people to give special educa tion, in any line, to a few, is a mis take.. It says the special institutions of Oregon, maintained by the state, are of no use to 95 per cent of the pop ulation, for not 5 per cent of the popu lation can take advantage of the in. These remarks are made by Tho Ore gonian in an editorial on the Oregon normal schools. They apply with equal force to those of this state. The peo ple of Washington are paying hun dreds of thousands of dollars In taxes every year to support institutions which are virtually local high schools, and which the people generally have no interest In or use for. Britain's Wind-Swift Navyw New York Tribune. Much the swiftest vessels in, the world ' built for heavy fighting are Britain's ; "battleship cruisers." The Indomitable. ; the Invincible and the Inflexible have de- ; veloped a speed of from 25 to 27 knots. . and are faster by several knots than, the j Dreadnought. The Indefatigable, launched " the other day, will undoubtedly equal tho best of them, and it is now announced that the Orion, the keel of which Is about ' to be laid. Is designed to show a speed of j 28 knots. If this thing kegps on, King I Edward's "superdreadnoughts" will ba ; traveling at the present rate of his finest , torpedoboat-destroyers. Crop of 1910 Cantaloupes Sold Ahead. 1 New York Cor. Denver News. A big New York wholesale fruit con cern has bought practically the entire cantaloupe crop to be grown in Colorado ; next season. The Colorado cantaloupe , was so well received in the East the past ; season that thee commission men early : decided to get a big portion of the lfllO crop. '! IN THE MAGAZINE SECTION OF THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN HOW THE TAFT CHILDREN WILL SPEND CHRISTMAS In former years they have had a "movable" home, hut now they are safe for four holidays. CENTENARIES OF THE COMING YEAR Among those to he remembered are Chopin and Schumann, the great composers, and that prince of humbugs, P. T. Barman. MEN WHO "SAW" THEIR WAY TO RICHES Great fortunes made by a few who could look a little distance into the future. INTERVIEW WITH KING ED OF LONDON Which is oire of the most nervy stunts of llashiumra Togo (Wal lace Irwin). ORDER EARLY FROM YOUR NEWSDEALER