Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 10, 1912)
TTTT MOKMAO OKKfiOXIAIY. SATUKDAl', FEBRUAKT lO, 1913. $t (Dmrmnan Cntar.,1 at rort:nd. Or"n. rosto.flea aa jotr;jl.oo Hatra Inrarlal ly la Advanea. IBI VXII-) r" Siinita lne!iitd. n r t Fal'y. Sunday lnrlu.l4. ! month... Ja..r. Fund lm-:uci- 1. thr- m-'itthl. I-al.y. Sun. lay lrci-.i'1d. ana m-nth... without 'ir..H. on y-ar...... I-::y. w!:Anvt Sunday, montht. . .. I'Vi:y. vlihout mndy. thr mial&a. !':;". without Sunday, ona ro'snin itiy. na yaar 4.3.1 3 IS .T.1 " .i1 1 T.1 .AO ... 1 " ... t- ... i ... . .. runuav. on ar ua2ay ana w;y. ona year IBT CARRIER.) r". ot!iy ln-hI.d. on yaar . . !.: H indu lnc!ulcl. on month. Haw I Rmi 8nd f'o.toff'r monyor r. iiprM oMr or pronl ch-rk on yeur lecal ku- Stamp. Colo or ,urrI""7.7lI ai tta ndi-a ru Oiva p"it-ir re auirraaa ii fu;u includirc county and state. r-notac Kair 10 to 14 !" 1 tmt: 1 to : cum, 2 cnt; to paaae, I cnt; 4 to . pac-a. 4 crnta. Foreign poatas. di.bla rat. . Ka.i-ra Hnlarm ntnrr Vrr Conk 11c Nw Tor. lirinaalcat bulidlns. Cnl caro. steer buildup ainona Office No. a Resent atreet. 8. W.. London. rOBTLAXD. SATVKDAT, FEB. It. 1st. ma tor oatob at higii rwna. layor Gaynor. of Kwr York, is not entirely convinced that Msh prices are an .vlL At least In his judgment they an eilL At least in "' are no greater evil, perhaps, than low prices, and he tnvues ino puuw remember periods when the coat of liv ing was unaU and yet everybody was shrieking how difficult It was to keep starvation. It must be admitted in candor that neither high nor low prices are in themselves either good or evil. The harm comes In when thure happens to be maladjustment between prices and Income. If everybody had a aumptu ous salary and IX that salary rose pro portionally with prices and fell when they did there would be no complaints about the cost of Uvlr.g. In fact, were everything properly adjusted the cost of llvln would be a subject ot com o:et Indifference to tru-Jcal people. With such perfect arrangements their means would Increase when gooas were dear and diminish when they were cheap, and no misery would ever ensue from changes of that nature. But of course society with Its complex ities and Inequities Is far from any ad- lustment of this kind. Kaiarleai and wages do not always rise with the cost of living, though thev are fairly prompt to fall with prices. That there Is a tendency for Incomes to go up with the prices of goods Is undeniable, but the impulse acts too alowly for general satisfaction and In many Instances It does not act at all. For exumplo, a person who lives upon Investments must always expect to feel the full distressing Influ ence of rising prices because the rate of Interest does not Increase at the same rate as the cost of commodities. The same Is true to a degree of the salaries of bank clerks and bookkeep ers. They are almost the last people In the world to receive a general In crease of pay, no matter how badly they may need It. The reasons for this curious circumstance are numer ous. One of them Is that such em ployes are not organized. Another Is the Insecurity of their tenure. There are many candidates for each place and a demand for an increase of pay might perhaps lead to the loss of em ployment altogether. Thus they are disposed to suffer while evils are suf ferable rather than leap into worse ones. Taking things as they are both fall ing and rising prices bring hard times. In the former case money Increase In purchasing" power, but It Is usually so much harder to get that the promised advantage Is lost. When prices are rising, money loses part of Its value In the market, and. since for many It Is no easier to get. suffering naturally ensues. Given time enough, circum stances would adjust themselves to high prices or low ones, though In the process great misery would be inevit able. It Is the fluctuations which are accountable for the constant com plaints and distress. The Ideal to which we ought to look forward In , the matter of prices is such an ad justment between Incomes and the cost cf living that they would always rise and fall together and In the same proportion. Whether this is' practicable or not Is another and a deferent question. :1!1 the world Is supposed to grow wiser as It grows older and we are not Jjstified In fixing any limits for hu man Ingenuity. Many of the problems which once perplexed the world as much as the cost of living have beeij eoived. The day may come when some astonishing genius will solve this one. He may show us how to make wages and the Incomes from Investments fol low a sliding scale In accurate corre spondence with the prices of goods. Mayor Gaynor" theories as to the cause of prevailing high prices are more sensible than original. He does not believe, for Instance, that the tar iff Is wholly responsible. This 1 un expected sanity In a Democrat, but It is pleasantly near the truth. The tariff certainly would not raise prices If competition were left to work un impeded. The trusts use the tariff to keep out foreltn competition. They then smother home competition and this leaves them free to fix prices Just as they please. So we see that the tariff Is only Indirectly answerable for the cost of living. Could we annihilate the trusts, as Mr. Bryan hopes we may some time, the tariff would be perfectly innocuous In this particular, though It might have other tins to account for. How to get rid of the trusts which thus ' mar the perfect beauty of the tariff alo engages Mayor Gaynor's attention. He tells us that if the New Jersey cor. pot-Htlon laws were properly altered f'tir-fifths of the trusts would dis appear at once. Wc cannot quite convince ourselves that the question is so simple. The In genuity of lawyers Is probably compe tent to organize trusts under any sys tem of statutes which could be devised. The laws of New Jersey encourage the game, but no conceivable change In them would stop It or materially hinder It. As long as combination presents economic advantages it will go on regardless of legislation. Stat utes can modify its form, but not change Its substance. Judicious opin .lon looks rather to controlling than to annihilating the trusts. Could their economic advantages be diverted from Individuals to the great public they would cease to be objectionable to any. T"dy but Inveterate doctrinaires like Mr. Pi-van and his disciples. It does ri'.t ms'.ter to tho puhi'c by what ma i l.lr-ry production and distribution are curried on as long as the necessary work is performed, cheaply and with attention to the general A ITNANC1AI. OBOT. Take the case of Marion Countr for an exnmple as to the working out of the West high finance road scheme. J Out of the total bond issue .Marion County would draw about J500.000. But to get thl $500,000 from the state Marlon County would ultimately have to pay back 1900.000 In principal, to say nothing of Its share of the interest outlay. Now Marlon County could borrow. 1n lieu of these state funds, an extra 1500,000 for thirty years at 5 per cent and save approximately 11.000.000 by the transaction, counting In Interest payments. In other words, the state bonding scheme- will cost Marlon County SI. 000.000 mere than a purely county bonding scheme and five it not a foot more of highway. Multnomah. Jackson, I'matlHa. are in a similar boat. Who Is to gain by the proposed fronxied financing? Why, Coos. Curry. Harney. Crook. Wheeler. Grant. Malheur and a doxen other counties that are small In taxable property value. Take a look at the map of Oregon. There are Crook, Klamath. Lake. Grant, Harney and Malheur lying east of the Cascade Mountains and com- prising about one-half the area of the , state. These six counties will d about S5.000.000 from the bond proceeds. Including interest, the s U2.500.000 under araw sale tate pay out J12.500.ooo under tnis scheme for building roads In the six counties alone. As lis share, Multno mah County Is to be bound down to pay an average of SI 00.000 yearly for forty years for building roads none of which will be less than 00 miles away and nil of them across a range of mountains. Think of It! If anybody should seri ously sutrgost to the Multnomah County Commissioners that S100.000 be directly appropriated for build ing roads In the southeast corner of the state he would be hustled off to the insane asylum. Tet Governor West Is advocating Its equivalent, and a repeti tion of It every year for forty years. He extols such an Imposition from our street corners and indorses It from public rostrums. Misguided Portland young men are running their legs off soliciting signatures approving his scheme. Protests by the County Court are met with newspaper Jeers. The person who suggests that we pause to consider Is denounced as an enemy of good roads by the Governor's friends. Eut what do the men of Multnomah and Marlon who are now stretching their Incomes to pay taxes and street and sewer assessments think of the case? LASIX'S CON'SCUTNCE. There are two kinds of conscience. One restrain a man from crime. The other drive him to remorse after crime has been committed. The latter Is the more picturesque. The former is the more useful in dally Ufa. The latter is of great value to romancers and poets. The former hold society together. It is uninteresting and com monplace, bat it Is the foundation of law and civilization. The remorse which I, E. Lakln, of Idaho, confessed to his pastor for a murder he had committed two years ago was deeply pathetic. Nobody can read the account of his misery with out painful emotion. But of what practical use Is bis confession? If it put the State of Idaho In a position to punish him. the punishment will be to some degree superfluous. Lakln needs no more suffering than he al ready feels to deter him from commit ting new murders, though It must be admitted that his execution might fur nish a wholesome example to others who are Inclined to violence. But upon the whole the conscience which prevents a man from committing crime Is more valuable to himself and the world than the kind which bring him to the confessional. To produce the conscience that de ters and restrains Is the highest work of education. The Biblical writer who said that one who controlled himself was greater than the captor of a city struck the truth In the center. But with all its educational effort the world has never yet produced that self-control except In a small minority, and we have to rely on the strong arm of tho law to do imperfectly what a properly nurtured Individual would do utomatlcally for himself with un erring certainty. Moat people find it easier to control themselves la serious matters than in small ones. "This I nothlnr but a trifling affair." one Is .inclined to say to himself, "therefore I will let myself go." The hablr of letting himself -o grows upon the man until finally his enfeebled will finds itself powerless In some Instant of decisive importance and a life which might have gone on happily to Its end lapses into crime and hopeless remorse. PR. TRANCIS S. nOYT AND HIS WORK IN UKXOON. Rev. Francis S. Hoyt, first president of Willamette University and a resi dent ef Oregon from 1860 to I860, died at his home in Cincinnati on January zi. aged so years. The announcement of the death of this honored nonegen arlan has been heard with tender re gret by many who were In touch with Dr. Hoyt and his religious and educa tional work in the formative decade Included in the date given. Upon his arrival In Oregon Territory sixty-two year ago Dr. Hoyt found a beautiful wilderness with small set tlements here and there on the Wil lamette River and out in the open country of the Tualatin plains and por tions or lamnm ana Marlon Counties, where the lure of land and beauty had overcome, in the pioneer mind, the dread of Indian depredations. Ac companying Dr. Hoyt was Rev. John linn. Of their comrades of that era. but two remain Rev. John Fllnn, of this city, and Hon. Asahel Bush, of Salem. "He held tenaciously to central prin ciple and ever kept In view ultimate ends: wa hopeful and optimistic, though not visionary or impractical, and could bear sacrifice and privation In the present for the sake of the future," Such was the Inventory of character and Ideals taken of Dr. Hoyt by that fakhful historian of Protes tant missions in tho Pacific Northwest. Rev. H. K. Hlncs. The work of Dr. Hoyt In Oregon belongs to the early history of the state. Its results live and will continue to live and grow, in the work of Willamette University. A pleasing Incident recalling his work in Oregon was the visit of Dr. Hoyt last June, and his gracious and grateful reception at Willamette Uni versity by a number who were students at that institution In th far -au years of hi presidency. Venerable in j moderate welfare. appearance, white-haired, cheerful and till optimistic, he wa welcomed and revered as, first president of "Old Wil lamette." Among the most pleasing of the many social occasions that Illus trate the spirit of good comradeship for which tho name of the pioneer unl. verslty stands. Dr. Hoyt's visit last June takes precedence In significance. Out of this visit and in Just acknowl edgment of his work in its feeble and far away beginnings has come the sug gestion to endow a "Hoyt Chair" in Willamette University, for which a pledge of S25.000 will be required. Such a choir, dedicated to Oregon history, painstakingly and Intelligent ly presented without discrimination In the matter of creeds, would be a trib ute to his memory of which the entire state might Justly be proud, and from which future generation -would surely profit. THE rROMlSE TO OBEY. It Is held by some sticklers for truth as against vain repetitions in the mar riage service that as long as the sol-ea- n statement "with all my worldly goods I the endow" Is exacted of the bridegroom, the bride should not rebel at the word "obey" In the marriage service. Neither In. law nor in fact does the bridegroom endow the bride with "all of his worldly goods." hence the promise Is an empty one a empty as the vow made by the bride to "obey," which, as every one knows. Is taken usually, if not universally, with circumspect mental reservation. It Is not clear, says the New York Sun. that anything is to be gained by leaving out the word "obey" from the bride's vows: Indeed, considering how lightly and cheerfully other promises are made by men and women upon en tering the married state, the cynic ae puzzled at the stand taken for and against this one word "obey." Yet some clergymen, notably the Arch bishop of Canterbury, stick scrupu lously to the old form, and refuse to solemnize marriage without it. even though the -bride stultify herself in making It, or mumble it insincerely and Impiously. This is one of the shams of which the marriage service might very prop erly be divested. That of "with all my worldly goods I theo endow" I an other. Dropping these, there would till be promises enough in marriage, which, if kept inviolate, would make the contract sacred and perpetual a regards the lives of those who enter Into It before clergyman or magistrate, Why insist upon "tithes of mint, anise and cumsnln" and neglect the weight ier matter of the law? Why "strain at a gnat and swallow a camel"? Why not make and hold the' principles of marriage sacred and shake off the hams, whether of implied servility on the one side or of all abounding gen. eroslty on the other? TRANSPORTATION' AND AGRICTLTCKR. When railroad men recognize the Importance of and seek to promote ag. riculture and farmer come in friendly touch with the promoters and man agement of railroads, "a get-together" la effecjed that Is a grand promise of prosperity of the entire country on a fundamental basis. Agriculture with out adequate transportation represent hard work and small pay, while a transportation system without agricul tural backing is an inconceivable prop osition. There are still those in Oregon "left-overs, so to speak, from the ter rltorial era who recall the days of 60 cent wheat with only such market for the toilsomely-produced surplus of the virgin grain fields a could be fur nished by the tramp windjammers that reached our port then, as now, Port land; when there was practically no market for the generous surplus a vast bulk of orchard produots before the days of orchard pests; when dairy ing products found no market beyond that represented In an irregular way by the village store, and by a livestock market which a few hundred steers each year would supply. There were few people in Oregon then. It Is true, but beyond living liter ally upon the fat of the land them selves there was nothing in farming for farmers. Times have changed hd the greatest factor In the change that 1 noted on every hand Is and has been the railroad. Of what avail is a big crop if there Is no way to move it promptly? Handicapped by lack of transportation agriculture, though it early took vigorous root In Oregon, languished. The efforts made by farm ers, not to grow things but to gtt the surplus products of their fields, or chards and pastures to market, as viewed from this distance, were most discouraging almost. Indeed, pathetic, It was from the stress thus represent- ed thnt the Grange was Introduced in this state, and a valiant but long a los ing fight the Grangers made to widen their market and so systematize their business that they would have some thing let for themselves of their year's work beside bread for their households and seed that would enable them to repeat the dull routine of the year before for their labor and their pains. Steamboat were built after a time, but freight charges and many han dlings absorbed the farmers' profits; an attempt to build and operate a steamboat, build warehouses and un dertake grain storage for themselves proved disastrous. And It was not until railroad building and operation' In conjunction with river traffic came .that agriculture began to expand and to prove remunerative in the state. Then came by alow degrees diversified agriculture and with it Instruction in the Agricultural College in the matter of farming systematically and scientif ically with the certainty of profit from the land and from farm labor. The practical experience of railroad men In relation to agriculture is an in teresting topic; not less interesting is the practical experience of farmers in relation to railroads. When represent atives of the two get together on terms of amity, it is to. the benefit of both. "There Is a wonderful Interest in the whole country in farm life and the farm management." said President Gray, of tho Hill lines in Oregon, when speaking at the convocation exercises at the Oregon Agricultural College a few days ago. This is true in a sense unknown and undreamed of in former years. Farming was then considered a sort of natural occupation for men. as was housework for women. Instruc tion in either was not considered neces sary. Times and conditions in both of these vocations have changed. Ad justments In accordance with growth and intelligence and knowledge are necessary to the well-being of agricul ture and homebuilding as vocations. Following such adjustment of values, literally speaking, will coma state- wide prosperity, of which railroad transportation will be an active ad junct, going In advance of agricul tural development when necessary and keeping pace with it in every section of the state. Democratic Insistence that, if Sen ators be elected by direct vote. Con gress shall have no control over the elections, does not speak well for their sincerity In advocating direct election. They would rather postpone this re form till doomsday than run the slight est risk that the negro vote be counted. Unless they change their attitude there will be but one means of accomplish lng the reform that Is, election of a two-thirds Republican majority in both Senate and House pledged to carry it through. Such a condition shows how far from expressing real Democratic sentiment was Bryan's slogan, "Let the people rule." The Democrats men tally added the proviso: "If they rule our way." Mr. Schwab's admission that he sells stoel abroad cheaper than at home vi tiate his whole argument in favor of the presnnt tariff. The volume of our steel exports has become so great as to prove that our manufacturers can compete in foreign markets and make a profit. They make such exertions to extend foreign trade under these con dltlons that the profit must be worth while. Then all the additional price which the tariff enables them to exact on steel sold In the United States Is excessive, profit a tax levied on. the American consumers which they are expected to pay Joyously for the de velopment of Pittsburg millionaires. Take a pencil and figure it out your self, Mr. Taxpayer in Pendleton. Uma tilla County is to be one of thirty-four counties to receive an equal share of S16.000.000 raised by road bonds. It Is also to share in S5.000.000 more ac cording to its area, which is about one-thlrtleth of the state's area. Uma tilla pays about .054 of the state taxes. The S20.O00.O0O in bonds run for thirty years at 5 per cent. How much can you save by chucking the state bonds and borrowing your awn money for the same period at the same rate of inter est? Doesn't It figure out more than S1.000.000? If ever it "were excusable to do evil that good may come. It was so in the merciful deception practiced on Abe Ruefs mother. It Is Inevitable that, in punishing the guilty, the law should often Inflict suffering on the innocent, but where this suffering can be avoid ed or mitigated, it should be done. The mercy shown by Judge Lawlor was less to Ruef than to Ruff's mother, with whom the law has no quarrel. Should Judge Hook' "Jim Crow" decision keep him off the Supreme Bench it will look very much as if he were punished for exercising his Judg ment consclenclously. Is not' this an assault upon the Independence of the Judiciary? It Is not the same in form a the recall, but doee it differ essen tially from it in effect? Many Orangemen in Belfast are dis appointed at being deprived of the op portunity to crack Nationalist skulls. With bloodless shlllclahs resting in the corner, they mourn the passing of the good old times, when they could be sure of a scrimmage on St- Patrick's day and the anniversary of the battle of the Boyne. . Uncle Sam ho no objection to Mexico' indulgence in revolutions pro vided the bullets are kept on the Mex ican side of the border, but if any of them should stray over to our -side and wound any of our citizens it may become our business to step across the line and stop the fight. Viscount Haldane's mission of peace to Germany would have more perma nent success if the British and German newspapers wolud cease fanning the flames of hatred by meklng a cause- of quarrel out of every little incident. Enforcement of the eight-hour law In election day machinery will make the people's choice an expensive lux ury. Some day, perhaps after the mil lennium, the laws will be mads to fit like tenon and mortise. That clergyman in Eastern Wash ington who is champion pool player of the place is a mdn of whom his towns yen are proud. In his zeal for aalva tio i he never misses a cue. Mayor Gaynor tells a Democratic gathering he prefer high prices to hard times. Possibly he remembers the battered old rooster he wore in his hat a score of years ago. There will be something doing when the Texas Rangers meet any Mexican troops, regulars or "Zaps," on the sa cred soil of the Lone Star State. They may "Remember Alamo!" Lake County, whose name explains Its amphibious aspect, ha 700,000 acre to be watered under irrigation projects. The wily Yuan Shi Kal may yet emerge as the dictator of China, aided by the divisions of the republicans and the Incompetence of the Manchus. Japan's home minister would estab lish a national religion. He ought to be able to make a composite from the hundred of the white man. There will be five doors to enter the Baltimore convention, but thirteen ex its. Fatal number to hoodoo the ticket. Oregon buttermakers have never felt need of fighting oleomargarine until now, but are warming up for a contest. There is something In law, after all. A man has been fined ten dollars for smoking a cigarette on a streetcar. Spain and Portugal pay in disastrous floods for having stripped their moun tains of forests. Women voters may yet rescue Ta coma from the follies of promiscuous recalling. Now Canada Is afraid of American potatoes, the best that are grown. The Lorimer inquiry is changing into a trial of Hlnes for bribery. Will Portland be represented In the lis of indicted dynamiters? The men of Ulster wer mere bluff ers. Taft would be a big war President, J MR. MVEKS TELI.S OF VANCOUVER His InformaUoa Gained From Score of BaalaMa Men Tnere. PORTLAND. Feb. . (To the Editor.) In The Oregonlan today Mr. L. D. Taylor, ex-Mayor of Vancouver, B. C. brands as "exagerated" and "malicious ly" false the statements I made in a letter printed in The Oregonlan Jan uary 30. Inasmuch as I fully expected some rabid slngle-taxer to challenge my statement, I was extra particular to understate every fact. Mr. Taylor refers to bank clearances to refute ray statement that trade with the retail merchants is the dullest In years and- holiday trade was poor. If Mr. Taylor will delve into statistics a little further, he will find that moving, the enormous wheat crops swelled the bank clearances and that the holiday trade cut very little figure. The way to find out whether the mer. chants are doing any business and had a good or poor holiday trade Is to talk with the merchants themselves, their buyers and salesmen, not one but a ' hundred, not In one line of business but in a doxen. Mr. Taylor does not deny that the real estate market there has collapsed and that hundreds of real estate men have gone out of business, but he replies the laws do not permit the banks to loan on real estate. Some very responsible citlsens of Vancouver told me It was only recently that the banks had "drawn in" and ceased to find a way to accommodate real es tate operators. Well Informed business men stated there was no life in the real estate market now and nothing like the ac tivity and inquiry there was a year ago. They stated inside property was large ly In strong hands that had faith in the city and who would hold through the hard times. Conditions must have Improved won derfully fast since January 15, as Mr. Taylor writes on February 6 that "It Is estimated that only about 600 Idle men are In the city at present." Eleven days before, on January 25, no less than 20 business men in Vancouver told me that there were 15,000 idle men In their city. Judging from the size of the city and appearances in general, I thought this statement was exaggerated, and, desiring to be well within the facts, I omitted It from my letter. The administration at Vancou ver is to be highly commended for hav ing given so much relief In so short a time. The large emigration at this time out of Vancouver to Australia no doubt has made places for a good many of the unemployed. Mr. Taylor says "only on an average of 200 a day axe being fed by the city." I do not know over what space of time he takes to strike an average. If a long enough one is taken, the average might he made very low, but I do know that a great many more than any 200 men stood in the bread-line, or soup line, or free-meal-tlcket-Une on Janu ary 25. If Mr. Taylor calls this pros perity, let him make the most of It. It looks very much to me like "prog ress and tjoverty. The only reason for referring to single tax in connection with conditions in Vancouver was to show that Mr. Fels and his various cohorts In their writings and lectures have been wrong in crediting to single tax any of the prosperity whlcn Vancouver naa a Joyed in the past. F. S. MYERS. FACTS SHOIID BB MADE KNOWN Correspondent I'rarea Probe of County Matters in Fairness to All. PORTIJkXD Feb. 9. (To the Editor.) Anronoa the arravel pit deal and Alvera and many other alleged lrregu laritles the County Court Is so anxious to have probed and explained, allow me to raise my voice with many others and say, "So let it be done." After all that has been said of these affairs thov ibtnd wattinz- the decision of some nn If it la the duty of the grand Jury to recommend the appointment ana direct the operation or an expert ac countant, why thlB hesitation? As it Is they stand charged by the County Court as being prejudiced, unfair, ln KomnietD. a-uiltv of misstatement of facts, and beinir distinctly hostile. The writer was always of the opinion that a hostile Jury was a paradox. In tact, a Jury probe Is generally far from being a hostile proceeding and there is probably a reason for what may have sounded like Hostilities. However, an exDert should be ap pointed (not under the direction of the County Court or any otner mieresiea body) to make a thorough search of the records and fearlessly expose the alleged "skullduggery." If any exists. Such a course seems the only one open and Is owing to the taxpayers, whose right It Is to demand it. The County Court would probably welcome any recommendation the grand Jury would make and realizing that the errand Jury would be dismissed ana an other appointed before the Investiga tion was completed would be nappy to Bee the expert appointed and controlled by a body that would be unbiased and In no way connected witn tne anair. Anyway it is very easy to deter mine as to whether the grand Jury ha eiven the County Court a square deal and it is easy to find out if the taxpayers have been given a square deal, and It lies In some one's power to do it. We hope that duty will not be shirked and that it will be dis charged without further ado. As it stands now. the County Court remains charged with mismanagement by a retired grand Jury, and if not guilty of such charge should be vindi cated in the public eye. Will the Feb ruary grand Jury take hold of this In all seriousness and settle It for all time? We shall see. JACOB BURR. Arleta. Or. Miss Corelll's Nerves. CHE HA LIS, Wash.. Feb. 8. (To the Editor.) The editorial opinion of Marie Corelll and her alleged "literature" interests. It calls to mind a story ap plicable at this time. In a London apartment, where there was a conserva tory of muFlc presided over by a talent ed woman, Marie Corelll labored at her "literary work." so goes the story. The dally practice of a score of young women on pianos got on the nerves of Marie. Marie protested to the land lord, who had a hard heart. Then she protested to the woman at the head of the conservatory, setting up that the practice interfered with her "literary work." The disciple of Beethoven, too, was hard-hearted. She had not the same shaped head as the Salem young woman who wrote to The Oregonlan a few days ago. Marie was told gently, like the sound of a man falling down stairs, that If the piano practice would prevent .her writing any more such stories as "Wormwood," "The Romance of Two Worlds" and others, that a dozen more high-class Instruments would be Installed at once. Which was "wormwood" indeed for Marie. BONUS. Counties in First Dlatrlct. BORING, Or., Feb. . (To the Edi tor.) (1) Was Eugene City ever the capital of Oregon? (2) How long a residence Is required to become a voter in this state? (3) What counties con stitute the First Representative Dis trict at present? (4) How can this be the 13th year of the 20th century, as you stated in a recent number, when only 11 years has elapsed since January L 1901, the beginning of the century? A READER. (1) No. (2) Six months. (3) Benton, Clackamas, ' Columbia, Clatsop, Coos, Curry, Douglas, Jackson, Josephine, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, Marlon, Polk. Tillamook, Washington, Yamhill (1911 apportionment).' (1) By counting the year 1900 the first rear o the present century. Half a Century Ago From Tha Oresonlan, February 10. 1862. From Jacksonville By last night's mall we received the Sentinal of Jan uary 25. Another flood had swept the valley, doing Immense damage. On tha 31st eight Inches of snow fell and it continued to rain and snow' all the week. The streams rose as high as they had been this Winter.. A tannery at Phoenix had been swept away, and a fine flouring mill toppled over in the water. The roads were impassable and the amount of damage done in the val ley cannot be ascertained. Cattle had suffered from the severity of the weather. Numbers He rotting on the hills and In tha valleys surrounding Jacksonville. , William M. Hand has withdrawn from the Senttnel and O. Jacobs, Esq., has taken editorial charge. It will con tinue to be a staunch Union sheet. A meeting was held at Jacksonville on the 18th to ascertain the practica bility of a wagon road to the Salmon River mines. One man said a pack train could go there in 16 days. Messrs. MoDaniels and Ballard were authorized to organize a company of volunteers to examine the route. It was found on the arrest of the Knights of the Golden Circle In Ohio and the examination of their papers that the New York Day Book was their organ and tbey had a fund to enable them to circulate the paper gratui tously. That was the favorite paper of the secessionists and Knights of Oregon. The Argus says the Clackamas com pany of cavalry will be immediately mustered into service. The City Council of Oregon City have authorized W. C. Dement, D. P. Thompson and A. L. Lovejoy and their successors to construct a railroad from Canemah down through Oregon City to any landing not held by virtue of a license, the work to be done within two years. The City Council of Oregon City has authorized J. H. and J. R. Moores, J. C. Bell. William Push, Reubin Lewis, Cook, Smith & Co.. and William H. Rector to- construct a breakwater, canal and flight of locks, commencing at the upper or northern landing and running thence In a southeast direc tion towards Canemah, to tha southern line of the corporation, crossing said line at any point necessary to make a permanent improvement, the work to be commenced within the year 1862. Mr. Clemens, In company with two others, arrived here last evening from The Dalles with Tracy & Co.'s express. His party left Tho Dalles on Monday, the 3d Inst., being seven days on the way. On the nrst day out they lost their way. The enow, which was about four feet deep, had changed the face of the country and obliterated all land marks. They traveled, they supposed, about 40 miles and at night came to a house, when they were put on the right trail and soon came to Mosler's, only ten miles direct from The Dalles. From there they traveled on the Ice without difficulty to Moffat's, 15 miles above the Cascades. Four miles below Moffat's they came to the Point of Rocks, a rocky prominence now covered with a sheet of ice. The river here sets in to the point with a strong current from the Washington side and is entirely clear of Ice. There seemed to be no way to pass than by going over the point and without hesitation they pro ceeded to cut steps In the ice. The summit was almost attained when the hatchet came off the handle and glided swiftly down into the river. There was now nothing for them to do but to back down, for to attempt to move forward on the Ice would be to precipitate themselves into the river or on the ice below. At the foot of the hill they found a deer dead, which had apparently fallen down its side. They returned to Moffat's and the next morn ing, falling to bet a suitable boat, crossed the river. At Wind River, whloh they expected to ford by wading breast deep, they fortunately found a boat. They reached the Cascades on Friday the 7th and came to Sandy -on the ice and walked from there over- i lnnd to this city. Mr. Riddle died of his injuries on the 30th ult. at the military post. Mr. Mulkey died on the 2d Inst, at the Des Chutes. The search for Allphln and Davis was unsuccessful. The Indian camps were all visited, but no traoes could be found of them, or of the stranger who first left John Day's for The Dalles. At the Des Chutes the mercury fell to the bulb, and the thermometer bursted. Jeffries has had both his feet taken off; Wellington has bad one taken off. The rest of the party will share the same fate, with the exception of Wil liam Bolen. . Common Council The petition of William S. Ladd, praying for the ex clusive right to lay water pipes in tha streets of the city, was read and re ferred to a special committee consist ing of Messrs. King, Hallock and Barr, Colonel Cornelius designs to establish two camps of instruction for the volun teer cavalry, one south of the Cala- pooia Mountains and the other in the valley. Newspaper Advertising Is an In vestment Equal in Importance to Salesmen and Window Displays.and More Powerful as a Business Getter There is a clothing store in this city which started in business about 20 years ago. The day the store opened there appeared an advertisement in The Oregonian telling the people of Portland about the goods offered for sale in that store. And The Oregonian has continued to carry this store's advertising during these 20 years. The business of this store has increased steadily. And the space used in The Oregonian has been increased year after year as the business has grown. The business of this store and the greatness of The Oregonian's columns as a selling force have kept pace with the wonderful growth of the city. The man who is at the head of the business referred to gives credit to newspaper advertising for the wonderful increase in the volume of business done by this store. There are many small business houses in Portland which can increase their business by advertising in The Oregonian. They can easily be the big ones 6 or 1 0 years from now. Great growth may be accomplished by using small space at the start 'and increasing the space as the business grows and warrants an increase. N. Nitts on Caution By Dean Colli n a. Neselus Nitts, in whose cranial cap, The wisdom of Punkindorf was kept on tap. Saw a humming bird pass with a flut ter and flap. And an unerring quid brought the bird to mishap; Then on suffrage a while spake the sapient chap. "I sees Roosevelt has made recent dis course About woman suffrage, with vigor and force, Bxplalnin' and further dissertln' a lot On manners and means by which it shall be got; With all the assurance he's formerly shown With all other subjects, both known and unknown. "Thinks I when I reads it, 'Them senti ments oughter Shore make a big hit with a gal like my daughter. Who holds, on account of her liter'y gift. The office of ecrlbe fer the Ladies' Up lift.' But after I asked her opinion, she said, 'If that's your Idee, why then you're plumb mislead.' " 'What right's Roosevelt to butt in that away. And speak them there sentiments he's " had to say, 'Bout grantln' of suffrage wherefore and how? He'd better Jest tend to his business, I 'low. Instead of endltin' them there plans he endltes On how our wronged sect shall go after its rights.' "I start In to arguo, but soon I retires. Fer riots is somethin' I never desires. I claims Roosevelt is fur bolder than me. But he ain't got half my discretion, b'gee; Fer now, to all argument, I jest gives pause. And I've a good reason which same is 'Because.' " Portland, February 9. Country Tcwn Sayings by Ed Howe A man who praises the dead thinks he Is apologizing for a lot of his mean ness to the living. The men are making confessions here lately; the wifa who lias a "candid talk" with her husband now, might get re sults. Have you a friend you do not oc casionally roast a little behind his back? In speaking of the virtues of the dead, people are as extravagant as they are In speaking of love, or of the value of an education. A woman is always more disposed than a man to advertise a love affair. I am trying to find out, but I do not know. You don't? No one does. Writing for print seems to be as risky a business as gold mining. A few strike it, but thousands of others prospect for years and find nothing. A girl doesn't always want to get married because she fears her heart will break If she does not; sometimes she knows it Is up to her to get mar ried or go to work. The police cannot depend on the de scription of a burglar; he always looks bigger than he really Is to tha fright ened man whose house he enters. A boy is like an English sparrow he manages to get along. In. spite of everybody throwing at him. Alimony and Contempt. PORTLAND, Feb. E. (To the Edi tor.) Can a Judge put a man in Jail for nonpayment of alimony? If bo, for how long, or what punishment is customary, if any? AN OLD SUBSCRIBER. He can be cited into court and or dered to pay, and If he refuses Is In contempt and may ba Jailed. If de fendant can make showing that he has no means with which to pay, the im possible is not expected. Wheat In Canada. TWOHY BROS.' CAMP, Rufus, Or., Feb. t. (To the Editor.) Kindly ad vise us whether the United States or Canada produces the most wheat. We have one here who balieves that Can ada produces tha most wheat. L. JONE3. Canada's total wheat crop in 1911 was 186,000,000 bushels; the United States' total crop, 621,338,000 bushels. Charivari. RAINIER, Or., Feb. 8. (To the Edi tor.) I find several ways of spelling the word "shlvaree." What Is tha most commonly used? C L. STERLING. No. WAMIC, Or.. Feb. 7. (To the Edi tor.) Has single-tax ever been tried? If so. where? Did It give satisfaction to landowners? C. S. M'CORKLE.