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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 11, 1909)
8. THE MORNING OREGONIAN, SATURDAY, . DECEMBER 11, 1909. s PORTLAND, OREGON. . KnteredVt Portland. Oregon. Postofflce as Frcond-Class Matter. babaciiptioa Ktrs Invariably In 'Advance. (By Mall.) Pally, Sunday Included, one year. ... .98.00 Dally, Sunday Included, alx months.... 4.25 Pally. Sunday Included, three month.. 2.25 Daily, Sunday Included, one month.... 75 Daily, without Sunday, on year 6.00 Dally, without Sunday, six months . 8.25 Daily, without Sunday, three months... 1.75 Dally, without Sunday. . one month 80 Weekly, one year ' 1.80 Sunday, one year 2.50 Sunday and weekly, one year 850 (By Carrier.) - Dally, Sunday Included, one year. .... 0.00 Dally. Sunday Included, one month 75 How to Remit Send poatofflce 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. Poatnca Rates 10 to 1 pages. 1 cent: 18 to 28 pages, 2 cents; 30 to ,40 pages. 8 cents; 40 to 60 pages, centa. Foreign postage double rate. - F-aatern Business Office The 8. C Beck wlth Special Agency New -York, rooms 48 r0 Tribune building. Chicago, rooma 510-513 Tribune building. PORTLAND, SATURDAY. 1EC. 11, 1809. fBOTBCTrVE T A TUFF ANT THE DEMO CRATIC PARTY. 'Our Southern. States are to be the chief citadel of protective tariff policy, In the time to come; and the timeis not far away. The Pacific States will Btand with them, on the general policy; and support will be had from sections of the Upper Mississippi and Lake States, and some support from New England and more from New York and Pennsylvania. Till industry shall be much further developed than now, till the South and the West shall be 'much more densely peopled, till the resources of nature shall be much further exhausted and the human pop ulation reduced much, nearer to de pendence on laborious effort and self denial, protective tariff will be main tained. But protective tariff, in the long run, must "go." Not., however, within this generation; probably not within tie next -two or three; nor till natural resources shall have been ap propriated and exhausted, and life in general reduced to the simple problem of labor for existence. In the present situation theoretical or academical discussion comes to nothing. It Is -easy to show that the protective tariff system helpH to make its beneficiaries rich, but the mass of workers also believe themselves ben efluiaries. to an extent, and districts ami sections that desire active Indus trial development in thtlr midst will h.inoort the policy, whichi as they are told, and believe, will invite the in vestment of capital, the development of resources, and the establishment of Industries, within them. It i-an't be made a party question. Hitherto the Republican party has been the main support of the policy, because the larger part of the manu facturing industries of the country has been In the Northern States; and the negro question, on various phases of which the country has been divided, has dominated everything. But the negro question Is practically settled. The states in wtych the negroes are numerous are left to deal with the r;t-e question alone. They have dis frar.t hisf-d the negro; and that fact is accepted by the North. The South row. therefore, turns Its attention to prolfitive tariff. It desires develop ment, the introduction and invest-m:-!!; of capital and employment of labor in the -higher Industries. Htth rto undeveloped,' or with little de iclopment, in these directions, the South Is now about to become the main pillar and support of protective tariff. Where docs the Democratic party stand? As the New York Tribune truly says: "One-half- its Senators and a large 'proportion of its Repre sentatives in Congress have repudiated the tariff declaration of the last Dem ocratic national platform, as mistaken in principle." Mr. Bryan dictated that platform; but no one of the ac tive Southern States agrees with it or with him. Between the Houston (Texas) Post and Mr. Bryan's Com moner, there has been recently a lively controversy over the tariff policy of .the Democratic party, and over, var ious semi-socialistic ideas that Mr. Bryan has been forcing upon his party. The Post says: Texa is not going to apologise to the Democracy of any other state. No con glomerate mess of Democratic-Populist fu aionlsts ever wrote a Texas Democratic plat form, and It Is our belief, founded upon ex perience in Texas far antedating Mr. Bryan's political activity, that the Texas Democracy will stand by Its colors but will never stand for a boss with a bullwhlp. Which Mr. Bryan's Commoner answers in this way, viz: The Poet may be ashamed of Its Repub lican company. It la on Republican grounds and must become accustomed to Its Repub lican environment, for It will have no other kind of company when the Issue Is properly understood. Now in fact this is a question that cuts directly across all party lines. All Democrats are not freetraders or low tariff men; -nor are all Republicans protectionists. Yet it will not be pos sible to effect a division between the imaln parties on tariff lines. The tariff ,1s a local question. It always was. Not till much further advance in our Industrial life can It be anything else. In the days of. slavery, when the labor of the South slave labor was de voted wholly to agriculture, the South was for free trade. It desired free ex portation of Its raw products and free admission of manufactured goods. But those days are over; that con dition is past; and the South, desiring now the development of varied indus tries the "nigger question" out of the way Is advancing steadily towards the policy of protective tariff, of which it will be. within another dec ade, the chief and most earnest de fender. .' Herein is the chiefest of all the signs of the disintegration of the Democratic party and herein are the causes of it. A few days ago General A. W. Greely brought out through his pub lishers. Little. Brown & Co., a new edition of his work, "A Handbook of Polar Discoveries," in which he deals at some length with recent reports and matters under discussion as to Cook and Peary. General Greely is one of the few persons exceptionally well quali fied to form an opinion. We haven't yet seen the new edition of his 'book, but find an account of it In the Springfield (Mass.) Republic. Greely calls Peary the discoverer of the deep sea at the Pole, and Cook the discoverer of the Pole. "Phenomenal as was the success of Cook, and unsur passed as were the final marches of Peary, the -writer, from his personal knowledge of the Smith Sound envi ronment, and of both explorers, finds himself constrained to give full credit to their reports, though Cook's are bitterly contested." Cook's success Is attributed to his following Peary's plan, and to his more favorable west ern route, through a game-filled land, and then over better Ice. But General Greely adds: "To R. K. Peary, more than to any other man, is due credit for the discovery of the Pole." And again: "In this great journey to the Pole, Peary exhibited high qualities as Arctic expert, as administrator and as sledgeman. He surpassed the speed record of all predecessors traveling 5 per cent faster than Cook." THE PEOPLE OR THE STEAMBOATS? Anent the Broadway bridge: C. F. Swigert wants a 300-foot draw or no bridge; C. F. Adams thinks it will be an awful waste of money; P. 1. Willis is In no hurry for the-bridge to-be built; W. D. Wheelwright is for throwing the bridge proposition over and digging a tunnel under the river; Captain Pease (first, last, and all the time a steamboat man who regards all bridges as a menace to the sacred rights of water craft), is absolutely opposed to the bridge; J. C. A'ins iworth Is non-commital; John Drlscoll absent. These men comprise the Port - of Portland Commission, which as a body -entertains the belief that it knows better than do the people of Portland themselves what they want. In the meantime impatient thousands chafe and stamp at the delay in crossing the river in going to and from their daily work and clamor for their will, as expressed at the polls for the con struction of Broadway bridge, to be obeyed. DAIRYING IX WINTER. That many obstacles confront the dairyman in Oregon, who conscien tiously desires to give consumers pure milk is manifest to everyone who has engaged, even to the extent of keep ing one cow. Animal conditions com bine with weather conditions to make cleanliness a task of which the great body of consumers of dairy products know nothing. Necessary confine ment of the cow In close quarters for the sake of warmth and shelter;" the Inevitable ooze and slime of the barn yard under the ordinary climatic con ditions of Oregon Winters, and the persistence In intelligent care of the milk equipment are matters that con spire to render dairying an exacting business. Still the forehanded dairyman finds himself on the approach of Winter prepared to meet the contingencies of his vocation, and the routine is not more exacting than that of many other Industries; nor is the work more disagreeable than any outdoor labor In the inclement season, while the hours are relatively short. Willing ness to do and knowing how, de velop an interest in the work, es pecially If the man owns the acres upon which his cows pasture. In the herd and in the equipment. Interest thus developed makes light of the dis agreeable features of the situation and opens the way to an expansion of the business from a mere living to a com fortable competence. AS TO CLEAN STREETS. It costs something to keep clean. The monthly laundry bill in every family is evidence of this fact. Clean streets also cost money. More than that they require intelligent plan ning and constant vigilance. Hard surface pavements must be flushed. The flushers will cost a considerable sum, of course, but if we are to have clean streets; if the old out-dated method of stirring up the dust in Sum mer with sweepers and raking the mud from the crossings with hoes in the Winter, all to very little purpose. Is to be supplanted by a street cleaning system that cleans! the street department must be properly and de cently equipped for the work. There is no wish to minimize the ef fort that the street department has made, with power brooms and hand sweepers and dumpcarts and sprink lers and men with shovels, to clean the streets. This effort, pursued from sea son to season and year to year, has cost the taxpayers a good bit of money. But that it has resulted in giving even a decent semblance of clean streets no one having sight 'and smell will assert. Other cities have solved the clean-street problem. Portland can solve it, but not by a system of false economy, that balks at the purchase of Equipment with which to clean the streets In the only way that It Is pos sible to clean them by flushing the litter of daily traffic into the sewers. BEWARE OF EXTREMES. " The closing of 11,000 saloons since January 1, as reported by Superin tendent Baker, of ths AntlrSaloon League, is indeed a remarkable ex ample of the radical change in senti ment regarding the liquor traffic. Naturally, Dr. Baker and his friends assume that most of these saloons would still be open'had it not been for the fierce onslaughts made against the traffic by the prohibition and anti saloon forces. Without detracting from the able efforts of these reform ers. It may again be said that it Is In the lower classes of men engaged in the liquor business that the temper ance workers find their strongest al lies. Within their own ranks the saloonkeepers can find the men who are damaging their business to a greater extent than It would be pos sible for the temperance clans alone to damage It. In making the liquor business ob noxious, these men go to extremes, and by their own conduct invite the punishment they are now receiving. Perhaps, however, it might be well for the temperance people to take heed lest they also carry the good work to the other extreme. This Is exactly what has happened in Ala bama, and It may happen elsewhere. Not satisfied with gradual elimination of the low class of saloons in Ala bama, and with antl-llquor statutes, which, properly enforced as they were in most parts of the state, were certain to Improve social and moral con ditions, the Alabama Prohibitionists sought to pass a constitutional amend ment permanently fixing prohibition In the state constitution. Alabama rebelled, and, in the lan guage of the New Orleans Times-Democrat. "The Prohibitionists have to thank their own over-zeal and the fanaticism of their leaders for the crushing defeat which closes a " suc cession of victories. Analysis of the returns shows that theusands who stood for prohibition not many months ago. must have revolted against the drastic provisions which the extrem ists sought to force Into the organic law." The New Orleans Picayune Is equally emphatic in explaining the cause of the prohibition defeat. Freely admitting that the liquor traffic should be under stringent regulations, the Picayune insists that the .attempt of the Prohibitionists "to say that a free citizen shall have no liberty as to what he may drink, or what he may eat, or wherewith he may be clothed, Is rank and unjustifiable despotism which should have no place among a free and enlightened population." The Times-DenTocrat offers some excellent advice which might be taken with profit by the liquor element throughout the country, as follows: ' . The decisive majority against constitu tional prohibition is not to be taken as a triumph for saloon lawlessness. It Is rather the triumph of moderation. Thousands who voted against the prohibition extremists will as quickly vote against saloon extrem ists. The1 dtvekeeper may not safely misin terpret the result as a statewide desire for the return of the days of .wldeopen lawless ness. It was the defiance of law and of common decency by proprietors of dives and low saloons that precipitated the prohibition Issue over the South and has won the Im pressive prohibition victories. STEPPING HIGHER. " The promotion of local men to high positions in the Harriman service, in-. stead of importation of Eastern men, will be-appreciated by the people hav ing business with ' the railroads. . r: B. Miller, who becomes traffic., man ager of the O. R. & N. and its Puget Sound connection, the Oregon & Washington, has grown up with the Harriman system, advancing by suc cessive stages from the position of messenger boy. Through natural ability, training and opportunity, he is well fitted for the very important position to which he has been pro moted. Mr. Coman and Mr. Skjnner are also Portland men who have risen from the ranks, and. like their traffic chief, Mr. Miller, are well qualified to ap preciate the .mutuality of the interests of the railroads and the communities they serve. As a school for railroad men, the traffic department of the O. R. & N. has a great reputation. Ben Campbell, in charge of traffic on the New York. New Haven & Hartford; James G. Woodworth. traffic manager of the Northern Pacific, and H. .M. Adams, of the North Bank line, are among the graduates of this famous railroad training school. PERPETUAI, MOTION AND COLLEGES. The Oregonian prints today a letter from Professor E. R. Shepherd, of Corvallis, in which complaint is made that the account of a reported "per petual motion" device, published on December 6, is "beneath the dignity" of this paper. Professor Shepherd suggests that it is "out of place in this day and age" to pay any attention to "perpetual motion schemes by hair brained inventors," and furthermore that it is wrong to ask readers "to peruse an apparently instructive col umn only to find it to contain the senseless schemes of a fanatic. We want more wholesome food." the Pro fessor concludes. The points he makes In this letter seem on their face to be important enough to receive more than passing comment. We shall take them up one by one, therefore, and see what there is in them. ' But first, let us premise that Pro fessor Shepherd errs in thinking that The Oregonian gave the Inventor's , fancy any ."apparent Indorsement." No one except Professor Shepherd can have failed to notice that The Ore gonian carefully reported only what Mr. Hornback said he had discov ered. Why not? If The Oregonian Is first to weigh the merits of any re ported discovery before printing; and then to say nothing if convinced that the discoverer is mistaken or lying, the public would miss; a ot of mighty Interesting reading about such great things even as the finding of the North Pole, for example. Who would say that The Oregonian had done Its duty by Its readers If it were to de clare that Cook or Peary, or anybody, had falsely announced that he had been to the Pole, and on that account were to refuse to print anything what ever about it? Absurd, of course. A newspaper does not Indorse every thing it prints In its news columns. A daily paper is a record of diurnal events, some material, some intellect ual. A few, are'truly important, the majority are trivial. But since every thing human legitimately Interests civilized man, the newspaper gives them all and trusts each reader to select what is suitable to his taste. Doubtless Professor Shepherd would prefer his morning paper filled with the proceedings of learned academies, but he must remember that his lonely patronage would not of itself maintain a publication. The taste of others, even though less select and erudite, must also be consulted for financial reasons, if for nothing else. The very fact that intelligence is now widespread makes the account of Mr. Hornback's "perpetual mo tion" perfectly harmless. Nobody can bo misled by it, while many have been Innocently entertained. Nor can a wise man "forget how many sciences have been founded and problems solved by efforts quite as badly di rected as Mr. Hornback's search for a "self-generating engine," as he amusingly calls his contrivance. The circle squarers In their long dynasty of crankdom have given us the geom etry of infinitesimals. The alchemists seeking the philosopher's stone, inci dentally discovered the laws of ele mentary chemistry, and astrology came to its senses as astronomy. While we smile at the cranks, it is best not to despise them too bitterly. So far as the dignity of The Ore gonian is concerned, irt our opinion, it is not lowered half as much by giv ing an account of Mr. Hornback's In nocent vagary as It is by printing Pro fessor Shepherd's querulous and Phar isaical letter. But this newspaper, as an organ of enlightenment, prides Itself upon Its hospitality to all shades and forms of opinion. It suppresses no man's views so long as they are Intelligible and not outrageous to de cency. Many of those who differ rad ically from the policy of The Orego nian find a hearing in its columns. The publication of Professor Shep herd's letter shows that it welcomes criticism, even when the strictures are childishly conceited. We do not agree with Professor Shepherd's remark that It is "out of place in this day and age to pay any attention to perpetual motion schemes." Wise instructors can util ize such schemes most fruitfully In their classrooms. Perhaps Professor Shepherd himself might enliven 'one of his lectures on physics by pointing out to his students exactly why Mr." Hornback's project will not work. What has misled the Inventor? Why can he not, utilize the energy of com pressed air to do -work for the mar ket while at the same time it com presses a new supply of air, and thus , keep a productive machine going for ever without supplying fresh fuel? Here Is an opportunity to enforce and Illustrate the laws of thermodynamics and the great principle of the conser vation of energy. A true teacher would eagerly seize upon it and make the most of it. He would not dismiss the whole subject with scorn. How many of Professor Shepherd's students can explain the reason why Mr Horn back's motor must, from the nature of things, fail? How many, of them have even heard of the law of thermody namics which dooms It? Without de siring to be Intrusive we advise Pro fessor Shepherd to think this over. The furious pace at which Germany has been . building 'warships in the past few years has at last brought her up on very nearly even terms with the United States in fighting strength at sea. From a numerical standpoint Germany, is slightly ahead on ships and guns, but the larger rifles and heavier tonnage of the American fighting ma chfnes are more than sufficientto off set this advantage. The American merchant marine, while attracting less attention than that of Germany, . is Still larger than the German fleet by about "Oti.000 tons net legister. Lloyds Register for 1909-10. in its tables, of vessels of more than 100 tons net reg ister, credits the Utlited States with 3590 of 4,963,812 tons, net register, compared with Germany's 2.171 of 4,266,713 tons." These figures do not appear imposing byyComparlson with Great Britain's 11.5,65 vessels of 18, 826,442 tons net register. China has entered formal protest against Russian administration of af fairs in Manchuria. St. Petersburg advices are that this is regarded as preliminary to a demand by China, for withdrawal of Russian railroad guards from Manchuria. As the removal of these guards has long been urged by the Russian Minister of Finance, there will probably be but little objection to their departure. Some Interest will be felt, however, over the posslbllity that the increasingly friendly relations between China and Japan may event ually result in Manchuria's becoming a field exclusively for the exploitation of the yellow races. In such a con tingency, kthere are a few whites In other parts of the world who will enter objection and they will insist on said objection being carefully consid ered. The Polk County Itemizer chides The Oregonian for omitting that co'un ty In the collection of Oregon units a few days ago, in which half a dozen were named and their specialties noted. Mention of Polk was hardly necessary, for most of the world knows that in addition to some excel lent newspapers and fine farm prod ucts It has the finest flocks of An goras that ever grew mohair and there are no sheep on earth like those grazing on its hillside pastures, owned by men who would rather pay a few hundred dollars for an animal than get It for nothing. The medicine dance of the be nighted aborigines of tbe plains is not more atrocious from the standpoint of civilization and common humanity than was the dance continued for four teen consecutive hours by several young girls before a mob of shouting spectators at Butte, Mont., one night' this week. The spectacle presented by the exhausted damsels, reeling and panting and staggering through the dance until dropping from exhaustion was at once disgusting and degrading to every Instinct of decency. The latest benefit for an eleemosy nary Institution seems to have, come to grief. 'The promoters came here from Seattle, where one can take a post-graduate course In the art of sep arating people from their money and remain at large, but the elements were against the proposition and Port land was found not to be so "easy" as she looks. The v housewife who had to pay a high price for a turkey a few weeks ago can nod with grim satisfaction of the destruction of several tons of poultry that had become putrid at Seattle. It was the demand from that city, so it was said, that ran up prices here, as the bulk of the supply went from Oregon. The latest issue of the Vancouver Columbian, expanded from the cus tomary weekb' to a "holiday and In dustrial edition," tells in detail of the marvelous growth of that city and progress of Clajk County In the year that is closing. It is unique in that it does not follow customary paths of boosting. A 300-foot draw may be practicable for the Broadway bridge, but it's un necessary, and would make extraordi nary cost In the construction of a bridge sixty-five feet in height, under which nine-tenths of the traffic of the river would pass, without requiring the draw to .be opened. Dr. Cook's records of his alleged dis covery of the North Pole are at last under the limelight of science as it beats upon the University of Copen hagen. It can only be hoped that they will stand the searching rays to which they will now be subjected. It's a proud thing to have states men in the Senate of such lofty minds that they can't attend to various lit tle things, such, as the hours of open ing and closing of the drawbridges at Portland. It Is another of the tri umphs of Statement One. In a report of the Visiting Nurses' Association expenditure of 40 cents for a dozen eggs is noted. Will the association oblige a confiding public by telling where eggs fit for a sick person can be bought at that price? The young man who insists on run ning away with a woman and marry ing her, against his parents' wishes, ought to be permitted by them to con tinue his run after the wedding cere mony is over. The people vote $1,500,000 for a bridge; the Port of Portland says no. The people vote to have no morer Su preme Judges; the Governor appoints more. Shall the people rule? Jeffries and Johnson can't find something new to say for the papers every morning the next seven months. In the interests of peace and har mony, let us hope the Copenhagen jury doesn't hang. Snowball succeeded football, but the Chinook wiped out the game. A FEW MORE) KIND WORDS. Appreciative Comment on The Ore gonlan's S&th Anniversary. Yakima Republic. The Oregonian is 59 years old. It is the best illustration in the West of what a great and useful institution a news paper may be. Woodburn Independent. The Oregonian. which on December 4 reaches its 59th birthday, is essentially a newspaper in every particular. As it has gained in age. it has gained in circula tion, service to its thousands of readers, and in vigor. The Morning Oregonian, so ably managed editorially and finan cially and inv all of the various depart ments, has grown old, yet, like the great state it has been a material factor in up building, it is flourishing, potent and more filled with Intellectual force and energy than ever before in its history. It was The Oregonian that piloted Oregon to its present eminent position, steering the affairs of territory safely past the shoals and rocks In early days, and today the paper is keeping step or in advance of the wonderful progress of the commonwealth.-' The work of Messrs. Pittock and Scott speaks for ttslf. All Oregon is proud of Its great morning newspaper.- Oregon Observer, Grants Pass. Last Saturday the Oregonian recorded its 59th year of publication. A very in teresting article in the issue of that date sketches the history of the paper, now one of the great journals of America, and. indeed, of the world. The Oregonian had a hard struggle for existence for ten years as a weekly paper, and at the end of that time the original owner, T. J. Dryer, transferred it to H. L. Pittock, who has since been and is now the prin cipal owner. Mr. Harvey Scott came In as editor in 1S65. and to his gifted pen and sound, common sense Judgment the paper largely owes its greatness. The Oregonian Is great because it has the best news service that money can buy, because its policy is broad and its edi torials able, forceful and fearless, and because Its reports of controversial events are unbiased and impartial even though the substance of them may be opposed to the position taken by the paper itself. In this latter respect The Oregonian stands at the head of the newspaper press. Chehalis Bee-Nugget. Last Saturday The Oregonian celebrated its -59th birthday anniversary. It may justly be proud of its position in the newspaper field. It Is one of the greatest papers In the West, if not in the United States. The Oregonian enjoys the unique position in the field of journalism of being fearless in Its utterances, conserva tive, truthful, progressive and loyal to its principles, its state and city. Tears of hard labor have been put into The Ore gonian to place it in the position of great respect it now holds in the public mind of the Northwest. The Dalles Optimist. Some may not agree with us in thinking that there are other newspapers, per haps in the large cities of the East, like Boston. Philadelphia or Chicago, that outrank The Oregonian. But if the reader will consider the matter well It will be found that we are not far wrong in our estimate. Mr. H. L. Pittock Is the chief owner, always has been since he bought It over 50 years ago. Mr Scott has been a minor stockholder. Mr. Pittock Is one of the best business men In Oregon, and one of the wealthiest. It has been this combination of a great editor and a great financier that has made The Oregonian what it is. Mr. Scott could not have done it alone, neither could Mr. Pittock. It took the qualities of both, but by their united efforts they have built up one of the great newspaper properties of the coun try. ... It is not "fashionable" for newspapers to praise Mr. Scott. There Is too much jealousy In the profession for that: but some day, too late for him to read It. the newspapers of the West will unite in saying that he "was" the great editor of his time. We prefer to say he "is," for we may not be alive to throw bouquets at him when he passes on. TOOK THIS PAPER ALL HIS LIFE. From the First Issue The Orejronlan Has Been In This Man's Home. ROSEBURG, Or., Dec. 9. (To the Editor.) Sir, the editorial article in The Oregonian on December 4. headed "This Newspaper," brings to my mind freshly many things in those years that have made Oregon history. My father subscribed for and received the first Oregonian printed, and it has ever been our newspaper since that time. I took my first reading lessons from its columns before there was any school in our vicinity in a corner of the French Prairie, where father had taken a land claim. We did not receive It very regularly, as mails were sometimes delayed by freshets and sometimes snow storms retarded the carriers. But we prized it the more when it reached us. There was a time, when T. J. Dryer was editor, that the ship -coming around Cape Horn was delayed that carried the supply of white paper, but The Oregonian came out printed on very coarse brown wrapping paper. I suppose you have it on file. After growing to manhood I removed to Washington and remained for 48 years. During much of that time I took many of our newspapers, as I do now. published In the State of Wash ington. Frequently, when the agent of those papers would visit ma and ask "Why do you eontinoe to take The Oregonian?" although It may have been a little Impolite, I was compelled truth fully to say because It was the paper that gave the news. True, many others gave -news, as I took California and many Eastern papers, but found none of them that gave what satisfied me as the old Oregonian did. I can only wish every reader would carefully go through your editorial in the daily of December 4 headed "This Newspaper" and get your ideas of what a news paper should endeavor to be. x L. H. RHOADES. The Oregonian would be glad to hear from any others who have taken The Oregonian, daily or weekly, from the beginning. Subsidies Once, Then Forever. Charleston News and Courier. "If .we would allow "Americans to buy foreign vessels and put them under the American flag," says the Philadelphia Record," the American shipbuilders would soon be able, as the German shipbuilders have become able, to meet any foreign competition." But that is not what the American shipbuilders want. They want to get their hands Into the American Treasury, not for the benefit of American commerce, but for the benefit of their own industry. Establish the subsidy plan now of building up American trade and we shall have the subsidy plan forever. That has been the case with all the infant in dustries of this country The protected manufacturers who have enjoyed the ben. efits of protection for more than a hun dred years are not yet able to walk alone. WHAT A JEWEL IS CONSISTENCY! In Assembly, This Man Makes War on Assembly. PORTLAND. Dec. 9. -,(To the Edi tor.) A. speaker in the Hieeting of the State Horticultural Society on Wednes day vehemently declared himself op posed to the holding of an assembly of Republicans of Oregon, although he himself at the time was In convention "assembled," supposedly for "the good of the order." This same speaker was proceeding under the auspices of an organization whose officers were chosen by an "assembly" instead of leaving their selection to the pomo logical proletariat, the humble apple raisers all over the state. Of course, the precise bearing the holding of an assembly of Republicans next year has on the proper coloring of the delicious Baldwin, or the most effective way of putting a satisfactory kibosh on the nocturnal burrowlngs of the prowling codlln moth, is not plain to the. naked eye or the inquir ing mind; but a fairly good line on the political purposes of the speaker was supplied by his remark that it Is time to "dismiss party prejudices" and vote Independently. To be sure! An assembly would pre sumably strengthen the party which holds it, while those opposed to the proposal are uniformly in favor of "cutting loose from party" see Demo cratic paper. Yet the first object to be accom plished by the direct primary law as set forth in its preamble is the injec tion of the life-giving principle into political organization. Ergo, the man who advocates the "cutting-loose-f rom-party-anyway" propaganda has no more real use for a primary law than he has for an assembly no matter whether he Is "working" on the street corners shouting, against all things in general and some things In particular, or whether he Is so enthusiastic a Spitzenberger that he sees imag-es of political bosses in his barrels of Bor deaux mixture and visions of an as sassinate Statement No. 1 in the swaying branches of his aristocratic Newtowns. The primary law is for parties it specifically says so while the anti assembly man is not.- That's the dif ference. AMERICUS. COMBINE TO BEAT ASSEMBLY. That Is What the Foes of Convention Really Propose. PORTLAND. Or., Dec. 10. (To the Edi tor.) The writer has recently been hand ed a neat circular of a few pages, over the signature of our senior United States Senator, of date Oct6ber 18, 1909, in which he states that on his return to Portland he finds an alarming condition menacing the liberties of the dear people of Ore gon, and, as a guardian and champion of their vested rights, he implores them to "band together" and surely defeat a proposed "three-shell game" of politics. Well, well! We feel like thanking our austere Senator for giving us that deilnite term. Surely the voters of Oregon have assisted some in the running of that kind of game the pafrt. few years, wherein Democrats, Populists and sorehead Re publicans have played the game with success politically. Now that the rank and file of the Re publican party shows signs of dropping out of the game, no wonder there., is alarm on the part of the gamesters, and cry of "Stop thief!" is raised all along the line. Here's richness indeed. , We blush with shame for our many old Republican friends in Oregon, who, according to Brother Jonathan, have done such awful things, and have at times kept such patriots are were elected to the last State Legislature from passing laws that the people by their votes said they did not want. Beware,' beware. Republicans of Ore gon; don't you so much as ask a good and capable man to accept a nomination for a public office at this time. 'Tis a damnable thing to do. But to "league to gether in a pledge to one and another" to defeat such a nominee and elect any visionary Jawsmith, of course, or cats paw who could rake chestnuts for their crowd is O. K., according to the author of the above circular. SELLWOOD. GET RID OF THE "A HUTTING" IDEA. Further Remarks on the Vexed Water Main Question. PORTLAND, Dec. 10 (To the Editor.) As soon as the holidays are over, the controversy over whether the city or the property benefited by Bull Run water shall pay for new mains is. going to be mighty lively. No doubt The Oregonian will welcome the fullest discussion. At the present stage of proceedings, one point should be made clear. Abutting property must not and will not be taxed for 10-inch mains. Pipes of that size are not needed on every street. With little knowledge of hydraulic engineering, I venture to say that one such main will adequately serve three parallel streets on either side. Therefore, in considering extensions, the district plan must be adopted. Equitable assessment of the cost of mains and laterals is not more of a "problem than assessment for a district sewer. Every separate lot within a new district is equally benefited: each should bear Its proportionate expense of the 10-lnch main. Let equity govern. Between now and election day, Port land must make up its mind as to a future policy not for next year, but for the next fifty years. Many who read this communication will live to see the city limits extended eastward to the Sandy There will be need for three or four, per haps five, pipelines from the head works in Bull Run River, and hundreds upon hundreds of miles of 10-inch .mains. The problem is tremendously perplexing, but we can take one step toward a solution If we eliminate once and for all the idea of taxing abutting property for the large mains. E. J. NEWMAN. Montavilla. SAYS HE GOT MO CIVIL ANSWER. Now This Frnltgronrr Wants to Have Fevr Things Done. DUNDEE, Or., Dec. 9. (To the Edi tor.) At the meeting of the State Horticultural Society In Portland I asked Professor Cordley if he advised the use of arsenate of lead in connec tion with the lime and sulphur spray. Thinking I was asking a question of some importance to fruitgrowers, I ex pected to get a civil answer, and,' being a taxpayer, I still think I had a right to ask the question. Instead of a direct answer from Professor Cordley, It took the whole "rank" to make me under stand that I had no right to ask that question. In 1908 I sprayed a portion of my orchard with the lime and sulphur and lead solution, and it not only made the fruit drop from the trees, but It also killed the foliage. Mr. Lownsdale, in trying to explain matters. Insinuated that it was not the fault of the spray, but that my apple trees were so badly diseased that the fruit would not ma ture; but he did not- explain why the unsprayed trees carried and matured a full crop. As it is Mr. Lownsdale's duty to have my orchard and all others cleaned up. I take this opportunity of Inviting him to come and have the work done now, and not wait until my wife is a widow. I have been in the fruitgrowing business in a small way during the past 18 years, but like many others I do not know it all hence the reason for asking the question men tioned above. W. S. ALLEN. Use of Japan's Savins; Fund. Indianapolis News. Of Japan's postal savings funds (about $50,000,000), the sum of $1,500,- 000 is loaned to the various prefectures. To that. extent the money of the people leopie I r the is being used to help ma work fo people. v THEY YELLED FOR ANARCHY." Comment In Spokane on a Recent Per formanee In Portland. Spokane Spokesman-Review. When C. E. S. Wood, a Portland at torney, addressing a meeting of social ists and I. W. ". sympathizers in that city, declared. "I am an anarchist, that's my ideal," the audience broke into enthusiastic jells. The speaker admitted that the "streets are primarily for traffic." but added, "If traffic is not impeded citi zens have as much right to use the Streets to talk in as to walk in." But who so well qualified to decide what streets are needed for traffic and what streets may -be used for public speaking as the people of each city for themselves? Spokane's Council enacted an ordi nance that permits speaking on any of the streets outside of the small area within the fire limits and on vaacnt lots within the fire limits. That is the law. The courts have sustained its constitutionality, and an ' overwhelm ing majority of the people of this city approve It. There are thousands of patriotic citi zens here whose devotion to free speech is surely as intelligent and high-minded as that of the motley combination of agitators, hobos and loafers who are back of this senseless attempt to annoy the industrious people of Spo kane. They possess, too, a proper re gard for the right of home rule and have no Intention of yielding it to groups of discontented agitators pass ing false resolutions in Portland, Chi cago and New York. The Portland meeting that yelled vociferous approval of anarchy adopt eiT. apparently in all seriousness, reso utions containing much unconscious humor. These call Spokane "an up start town" and gravely demand that the imprisoned hobos be set free and "the rights of free speech be observed in Spokane just as if it were in the United States instead of the Inland Empire." Theconcluding resolution is the gem of the collection, for while the object of the meeting was to exhort hobos and other I. W. W. sympathizers to flock to Spokane and fill the jails, the resolution solemnly requests respect able travelers and Immigrants to main away. By "travelers and immi grants" they mean, of course. law abiding and otherwise desirable peo ple. In all seriousness, therefore, the resolution stigmatizes the I. W. W. and Its sympathizers as a horde of unde sirables, whose presence In any com munity will be regarded as a disagree able Infliction. The ink was not yet dry on the reso lution urging travelers and Immigrants to avoid this city when the concluding speaker appealed to all present to go to Spokane and help crowd the jails. WHY ALL THIS Fl'SSf All Thin Fuss About the Convention Assembly In Oregon t Gervais Weekly Star. Republicans are going to hold assem blies in Oregon, both county and state. There are those Republicans who want an assembly to discuss measures, candi dates and promulgate a platform. Again there are those who are opposed to tho movement, and within the party fold. This is a free country, and no one is denied the right to hold to his opinions so long as it is not treason or wrong doing. The plain fact is that there is a majority sentiment favorable to assem blies, and a minority faction, assisted by Populista and Democrats, without the party tie, who hope to profit by such an alliance and continued disruption of Re publicans. After all, is it not a battle for suprem acy of fwlitical power on each side? Is it not a fact that the primary law will be carried out whether or not assemblies are held? The minority parties, each one of them, have never attempted to nominate by any other method, and they will do so again next year see If they don't. Why all this fuss now that the Republican party is profiting by experience and will follow out the same programme as have the minority parties? Assemblies will be held, and they will not only nominate, but they will elect their nominees by Re publican votes. There are enough true and tried Republicans In the state who will uphold and perpetuate the partv. The primary law, the vested right of the people, will not he violated: its chastlty wlll remain unsullied. The voter will not be harassed by Republicans. He can vote and talk as he pleases so long as he remains within his vested rights and al lows others to think and act as their consciences may dictate rights we all hold to, cherish and respect. A Call to the South. Worcester (Mass.) Telegram. The South has spread broadcast over this country an invitation for the farmers who are longing for Canadian wheat lands to come to the warm section and take, up better farms for less monev. Those who have the migration fever are Informed that there are 600,000,000 acresof rich land waiting for them in the South, which is made to Include Oklahoma. It is admitted that some 200,000,ono acres of the land needs draining, but It is worth the effort, and the other acres are enough anyhow. The Southern people Inform their wandering brothers that if they go to the wheat lands of Canada they will have to live where the Winter is nine months long, and if they come to the South they will live where the Winter is only three months, and of small con sequence at that, as to the cold. In the variety of possible' crops the South lays way over the Canadian wheat section. There is no limit to what may be raised profitably in the warm section of this country- There Is a decided limit to what may be produced In the wild re gions of Canada. There are better rail road and river facilities for shipping the produce of the South than can ever be expected in the Canadian Northwest. The land Is easier to work, and the pos sible days of rest while the crops are. growing are longer. There is more of a boom in the South than In that cold, place to the northward. Why Is It Folly to PrinrT CORVALLIS. Or.. Dec. 9. (To the Editor.) It appears to me to bo be neath the dignity of The Oregonian to publish with apparent indorsement such folly as is 'found in The Sunday Oregonian under the title "Inventor Claims New Power." To quote: "I have evolved a contrivance which, by the aid of a series of air compressors that are virtually driven by their own power and will run Incessantly if re quired, at no further expense than is expended for oil to garnish the fric tion points." Isn't it a little out of place in this day and age that any attention be given perpetual motion schemes by hair-brained inventors? Is it right that your readers should be asked to pursue an apparently instructive column only to find it to contain the senseless schemes . of a fanatic? We want more wholesome food. E.x R. SHEPARD. "The Blameless Life." New York Tribune. We are told that the elimination of flies would add an average of two years to each human life in the United States and mean a money-saving of $20,000,000,000. And yet Charles Tenny son Turner apostrophized the wings of a dead fly as the "pure relics of a blameless life"! Request for Publicity. Washington Herald. "I will subordinate myself to the unity of the Democratic party," says David R. Francis. And when Mr. Francis discovers that unity will he kindly telegraph?'-