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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (June 20, 1913)
IMPARTIAL NEWS E Associated Press Manager Is i Heard and Complete Rec- ord Is Produced. MATTER USED ON MERIT Senators Interested in Explanation of How Xon-Partisan Charac ; ter of News-Gathering r Body Is Preserred. i, WASHINGTON. June 19. The Senate committee in pursuit of the "lobby" to- iay heard Melville E. Stone, general manager of the Associated Press, tes tify concerning- the assertions in the correspondence of Clarence C. Hamlin ; to publicity beet sugar men had sought to obtain through the Associ ated Press. Mr. Stone, who appeared at his own request, produced practically "omplete records of correspondence on the subject and the committee mani pffsted interest In the explanation, by J he witness of the attitude of neutral ity maintained toward all interests by ihe news organization. "The rule )s absolute," said Mr. Stone, "that no publicity agent can give us "anything. We will not accept anything from them." Record Are PrenenteO. Mr. Stone presented all his letters Innd records bearing on the demands of Jite beet sugar interests for publicity ;through the news association. He Certified that October 12, 1911. John ,!Arbuckle. a sugar refiner, when leav ing for Europe, had given out a state ment favoring free raw- sugar. That statement was carried by the Associ ated Press, he said. Oa October 15 a hort statement which was given out rby Clarence C. Hamlin at Colorado "Springs, answering the Arbuckle state ment, also was carried by the Associ--ftted Press. The Arbuckle statement, ;lie said, was about 1000 words, the Hamlin statement about 150 words. ? Mr. Hamlin then wrote Mr. Stone .asking that the beet sugar Interests be Eiven as good treatment as the sugar fi efiners. Mr. Hamlin's letter was: ? "I am writing you as chairman of the .7'nited States Beet Sugar Industry, an organization which includes practic ally all of the beet sugar interests of Jhls country, and if anything further is necessary to give that to which I have to say credit, I would, refer you to jBny of the papers in Denver, as well Us to Senator Guggenheim and. Senators "'lark and Warren, of Wyoming. Also So Chester S. Morey, of Denver, presi dent of the Great Western Sugar Com pany, the largest beet sugar producer fn the United States. on-PnrtlBfin Character Conceded. 7 "Publicity is the last thins I wish Jto seek personally, but in justice to the great industry which I represent I feel justified in taking: up with you in person a matter which to us is of the Kiavest importance. On October 12 John A. Arbuckle, of Arbuckle Brothers, f.a.re out a statement which was print- d in full in every Associated Press jiewspaper in the United States con cerning the sugar situation. The mat ters contained in this statement were of such great importance- end some of J the misrepresentations so gross that I did not feel that these statements ehould go unchallenged. " "I took the matter up with the local representatives of the Associated Press, Jvlio followed it through the ordinary channels and was assured that the As toclated Press would handle 660 words representing the beet-sugar men's po sition on these questions, f "Of course, I understand the Asso ciated Press is in no sense partisan, and aims to be wholly fair to all of the great interests of the country, and all that the beet Interests ask is that they receive the same treatment at the hands of your association as is accorded to A tria in refiners in New York. ; "We certainly have no desire to bur. Xien the Associated Press with matter put out for the purpose, of 'boosting' pur industry, but when attacked, feel that we should be given as much pub licity as Is given to our opponents. Very truly jours, C. C. HAMLIN." Desire 1 to Be Impartial. ! In answer to Hamlin's letter, Mr. Stone wrote October 23, till: "I can well understand how you feel Jn regard to the matter. It is certainly my desire that the Associated Press ihall be just and impartial in the treat ment of every matter reported by it. "The Arbuckle statement was carried, "not because it was a statement of a su gar refiner, but because of its bearing on the general cost of living, which, as you know, has been the subject of keen interest in the United States. With the Advance in the price of sugar, coffee and other necessaries, there necessarily has been much feeling on the general subject. "When your statement in answer to ir. Arbuckla was presented, it hap pened to be a very busy day and night. The President of the United States was at San Francisco, the plans for Justice Harlan's funeral were on, the McNa rnara trial was before the country, the world's series of baseball games was in progress, a critical situation in China existed, and there was an acute political situation in Mexico. All of these things crowded our one wire running from Kansas City to San Francisco, and I suppose our Denver office was forced 10 aDDreviate your statement. I am writing to the ciiief of our office there asking him for an explanation regard ing the matter; but I can well antici pate that this is what he would say. ' "I fancy the matter will come up be fore Congress, and then I trust we shall be able to give you as good a hearing as those who are contending on the other side. Sincerely yours, "ilEL.VIL.LE E. STONE." Wires Crowded: Story Condensed. Mr. Stone gave the committee a copy of the letter he wrote to C. D. Hag gerty. in charge of the Denver office of the Associated Fress, October 23. It asked for information as to the hand ling of the Hammond statement and concluded: "Personally I am inclined, to discour- aze carrying long statements of a con irovcrslal nature, but inasmuch as we lurried Arbnekle's statement rather fully, my judgment is that we might liave handled a little more of Ham lin's provided it was prepared as brietiy 4s our story here indicates." A reply from Haggerty said that r.CO words of trio Hamlin statement had come into the Denver office over the METHOD 0 SCRIBED GENERAL MANAGER OF ASSOCIATED PRESS, WHO EX PLAINS NEUTRALITY OF NEWS GATHERERS IN RELATIONS WITH PUBLIC AFFAIRS. MELVILLE wire from Colorado Springs, but that owing to the crowded condition of the Associated Press wires only 200 words had been' sent East and 61 words were cut out of the dispatch at relay points before it reached New York. Mr. Hamlin then wrote to Mr. Stone. October 27, 1911: "Permit me to thank you for your kind favor of the 23d instant and to express my appreciation of your posi tion in the matter. I can readily un derstand how the situation arose and, oi course. Know the Associated Press desires to do full justice to all inter ests with entire impartiality. There is to be a meeting of the beet sugar interests in. Chicago on November 15. at which time a statement will prob ably be Issued concerning this indus try and the reasons for the present high prices of sugar. I trust it will De such a one as your association will be able to handle." A'chj Merit Governs. Mr. Stone wrote to John P. Gavit, then superintendent of the central di vision of the Associated Press, at Chi cago: "There is to be a meeting of the beet sugar interests in Chicago on Novem- oer Jo at Which time a statement orob- ably will be issued concerning the in dustry and the reasons given for the present lug-a prices of sugar. On Oc tober 15 we carried from New York a statement from John Arbuckle on this subject and I suppose that tho one from jucago win c in some, sense an an swer which I think in justice we ought to carry. I personally did not know anything about carrying Mr. Arbuckle's statement, nor was I familiar with the contest between the beet Interests and the cane sugar interests. Please use your iudfirment rsiui-. ing the beet susar statement anri han dle it upon its news merit." Copies of all the dispatches caj-ried from Chicago by the Associated Press, at the time of the conferences of the Deet-sugar interests were also fur nished to the committee by Mr. Stone with a letter from Mr. Hamlin, thank ing him for the accuracy of the Associ ated Press reports. I am frequently more or less amused," Mr. Stone told the committee. at tne popular notion in respect to matters of this sort, and perhaps I may in ian iieBs say mat ootn as to the As sociated Press and as to all press as sociations and as to newspapers, I am frequently impressed that injustice is done by the refusal to meet the wishes of applicants for publicity. Publicity-Seekers Suspected. "Whenever a man comes into a. news paper office or into an Associated Press office and asks for publication of any thing he is met with a degree of sus picion. They all think he has some ax to grind, and he has a very poor show of securing justice. We have a rule in our service that has been in ex istence for many years that no publicity agent can give- us anything. We will not accept anything from him. "As an illustration of what I have said, a number of railroads have pub licity agents ana the rule Is absolute that the publicity agents cannot furnish us anything. We will not accept any- tning' irom tnem. Mr. Stone agreed to furnish the com mittee with the rules and by-laws of the Associated Press, and with all In formation about the origin of the Ar buckle statement on sugar in 1911, out of which the correspondence now be fore the committee developed. The committee requested him to hold him self in readiness to appear again later if requested to do eo. Free Sugar Side Heard.' Frank C. Lowry, sales agent of the Federal Sugar Refining Company and secretary and organizer of the "com mittee of wholesale grocers," testified concerning the efforts of the advocates of free sugar to influence public opin ion. Mr. Lowry told of his attempts to accelerate public opinion and to per suade Congressmen and Senators and spoke frankly of his efforts in the Na tional campaign of last Fall. He said he furnished most of the sugar infor mation which appeared in the Demo cratic campaign textbooks; that he pre pared data on free sugar for a. Demo cratic campaign document which the present Secretary of the Navy, Mr. Dan iels, said would get circulation of a million in pamphlet form and that he had telegraphed urging every member of the resolutions committee at the Baltimore convention to put a free sugar plank in the Democratic plat form. "Don't you call that a lobby?" asked Senator Cummins. , "It is not a lobby at all that is the direct primary idea," said Lowry. Two German Airmen Killed. BERLIN, June . 19. Two airmen were killed this morning at the Johannisthal Aerodrome. Aviator Kraftet,. carrying a passenger named Gerbitz, had ascended for a two hours' flight. There was practically no wind and the biplane was making good speed when it suddenly turned a somersault at a height of 100 feet; throwing its passengers to the ground. Japan Guards American Embassy. TOKIO, June 19. The government nas arranged for a stricter police sur veillance of the American Embassy in consequence of the action of unidenti fled persons who wrote on its walls last night In violently worded inscription in English dirsetad against the United states. xxikj juOKSoNG "OIlEGOKIA, FRIDAY, JUISE 20, 1 r ,.. . t , E. STOXE. BOYS MAY GET JOBS Minimum Wage Law Will Hurt Girls, Says Employers. WOMEN WANT $8 A WEEK Heads of Kansas City Firms Say if Legislature Acts, Inefficient Girla AVill Be Replaced by Per sons Able to Earn More. KANSAS CITY, June 19. That the creation of a law by the legislature establishing a minimum wage for women and girls In the state would prove a detriment to working girls generally was held by 16 represent atives of as many institutions employ ing large numbers of girls, at the final session of the hearing before the Sen ate wage commission here to-day. It was argued by these employers that the inefficient girla who could not earn the amount that the legislature might stipulate as the minimum wage would be thrown out of work. Witnesses admitted, however, that such a law would tend to raise the general standard of girl employes. 95-a-Weclc Girls Expensive. "If a girl is worth J10 or $15 a week, I would rather pay her that than I would to pay her $5 a week." said Robert Truit, manager of the National Biscuit Company. "The $5-a-week girl is expensive in the long run. S. Hareefeld, manager of the Paris ian Cloak Company, declared that so far as his firm was concerned he was willing that a minimum wage be es tablished, as there were few girls in his establishment who do not get more than the wage the legislature would set, were such a law enacted. "With us," said Mr. Harsefeld, "it would mean we would fill the places now filled by our less efficient help with those who could actually earn more." Boys AVould Get Jobs. Charles C. Peters, secretary of the Emery-Bird.Tbayer Company, said if a minimum law became effective, his de partment store would fill 110 places now held by girls with boy clerks. The store employs 950 girls. Testimony by wage earners to-day showed that the weekly salaries com monly paid in department stores run generally from $5 to $6.50. In many Instances, though, clerks receive $4.50, and in some instances the pay is as high as $7. All of the girls testified that a girl could not support herself in Kansas City on less than $8 a week. . WHEAT EXPORTS GAIN 7,705,119 BUSHELS OF AVHJEAT SENT IX ELEVEN MONTHS. Increase Over Corresponding Period Last Year Is -. About Million. Flour Decreases Slightly Washington, June 19. During eleven months ended with May, Portland ex ported 7,705,119 bushels of wheat val ued at $6,545,833 as against 6,829,943 bushels valued at $5,895,993 during the corresponding months of last year, as shown by the monthly statistics of the Department ' of Commerce. During May, Portland shipped 277,831 bushels of wheat. Puget Sound during the last eleven months exported 6.3S7.735 bushels of wheat valued at $4,534,581, an increase from 3,380,157 bushels valued at 12,730, 143 for' the, same months last year. Flour exports from Portland for the past eleven months amounted to 530,704 barrels, valued at $2,102,634, as against 689,766 barrels, valued at $2,749,004, for the same months last year. Puget Sound flour exports for eleven months were 2198.944 barrels, valued at $8,597,697, as against 2,549,487 bar rels, valued at $9,905,554. last year. Wilson Pardons Sick Smuggler. SAN FRANCISCO, June 19. President Wilson pardoned today Charles S. May, a carpenter who was serving a county jail sentence of a year for smuggling opium. May had two months more to serve. The pardon was granted on the recommendation of United States Dis trlct Attorney John Ij. McNab and Prison Physician Hall. May is a suf ferer from tuberculosis. RIGHT TO SUSPEND TARIFF BESTOWED Senators Would Give Presi dent Power to Retaliate Against Nations. REFORMS STRICKEN OUT Clauses to Which: Foreign Nations Objected Eliminated All Ex cept Income Tax Clause Ready for Caucus. WASHINGTON, June 19. An amend ment to the Underwood tariff bill adopted today by the majority mem bers of the Senate finance committee would give the President of the United States authority to suspend certain rates in the proposed law and to pro claim special rates against nations which discriminate against products of the United States. The amendment Is appended to the clause giving the President authority to negotiate reciprocity agreements with other nations and in some re spects resembles the maximum and minimum -clause of the Payne-Aldrich tariff law eliminated In the House bill. Articles to Be Specified. In substance the amendment would provide that when any nation discrim inates against the products of the United States or Imposes restrictions on United States exports or, in the opinion of the President, does, not re ciprocate in trade relations, the Presi dent by proclamation may suspend certain rates and put in effect other rates. Only specified articles. Is is under stood, are to be Included under the terms of this amendment, and the rates are specified also. Among the articles included in the list on which the President might suspend rates are fish, wheat, wheat-flour, coffee, tea, earthenware, wines and malt liquors, silk dress goods, tea, gloves, Jewelry, sugars and molasses. The duties pre scribed vary as to the different arti cles. Rates Definitely Fixed. Fish, it is reported, will be dutiable at 1 cent a pound, wheat at 10 cents a bushel, flour at 45 cents a barrel, cof fee and tea a few cents a pound. On other Items the penalty would be a doubled rate, while on sugars, which probably never would be affected, the rate would be only a fraction of a cent a pound. The amendment is sub ject to ratification of the Democratic Senatorial caucus, which will begin work on the bill tomorrow. Besides adding this amendment the majority members stripped the admin istrative provisions of the Underwood bill of many of its new features. In cluding the inquisitorial clause, which gave American agents the right to ex amine foreigners' books In cases of disputed Import valuations. They also struck out the provision requiring registration bureaus for commission ers and agents in American consulates, the provision to give the Secretary of the Treasury the right to determine the existence or non-existence of a foreign market; the anti-dumping clause, which provided excess duties on imports undersold In this country, and the 5 per cent tariff discount on imports in American vessels. Foreign Protests Forestalled. Having thus denuded the adminis trative section of its proposed re forms, the committee inserted an amendment providing for the appoint ment of a commission to be composed of members of the Senate finance and the House ways and means committee to make a thorough study of the whole tariff administration question and re port recommendations for its readjust ment. The action of the committee strikes from the bill all the provisions which aroused protests from foreign nations. The committee declined to approve the amendment which would give the Secretary of the Treasury authority to proclaim values of Imports Irrespective It raises the dough thoroughly and in just the right manner at just the right time. See hbw much better to-morrow's baking will be if made with THE WHOLESOME BAKING POWDER $3.00 A YEAR- NOBODY but you, or some one authorized bj you can have access to your papers or other valuables if you have a box at the SECURITY SAFE DEPOSIT COMPANY Fifth and Morrison Streets Prices Are But the Qualities Would Attract You Even if We Asked You Regular Figures THAT'S the big advantage of buying from a concern that specializes on merchandise of such sterling merit. You're not buying inferior goods because they're cheap you're buying the kind you'd be glad to own and saving a tidy sum over the price you usually have to pay. AVe must dispose of a great many suits before July 1st that's why this sweeping reduction is in force and our guar antee of "your money back on any purchase that" proves un satisfactory" holds good during this sale, too. uy Schloss-Baltimbre Clothes and Save $11 lO plO I O $15.00 $16.75 Be better dressed this ?,E&tf Successors to Salem Woolen Mills of foreign markets, a scheme designed primarily to protect the Government against loss of revenue under an ad valorem tariff through undervalua tions. This the committee thought not practical. It adopted, however, a sug gestion from the same sources making it unlawful to take up cases in the Customs Court on a contingent fee basis. Print Paper Changed Again. After reopening consideration of the print paper schedule today, the com mittee voted to reconsider its former action and struck out its amendment adding the countervailing provisions of the Canadian reciprocity law. As the bill goes to the caucus the Underwood provision remains undisturbed, print paper valued at not more than 2a cents a pound going on the unrestrict ed free list. The committe now has disposed of all the schedules and administrative features of the bill and tomorrow will turn them over to the caucus. It worked until a late hour tonight on the income tax, which will be reported to the caucus as soon as possible. SOCIALISTS FINED $500 Preacher One of Those Arrested for Addressing Street Meeting. KANSAS CITY. June 19. Rev. Thomas E. Green, pastor of the Beth any Congregational Church. St. Louis, and S. B. Davidson and Thomas R. Sullivan, of Kansas City, members of the Socialist party, were fined $500 each in Municipal court here today on charges of blockading the street while speaking at a curb Socialist meeting last night. - The police had ordered that no street meetings which might incite the labor element to violence he held during the progress of labor troubles between contractors and building la borers. Muffins and Gems Light, tender and delicious the kind that melt in your mouth if made with Rumford Bak ing Powder. 1 I Indeed Low at This Sale 14 on Regular Prices $18.75 $22.50 $26.25 $30.00 $15.00 Suits $18.00 Suits for the $20.00 Suits for the $22.50 Suits year than ever before wear &:Cavender RTti atai:der- NICOLL'S Great Semi-Annual Reduction Sale SUIT AND EXTRA TROUSERS FOR THE PRICE OF THE SUIT ALONE $25 to $45 Extra Trousers of Same or Striped Material, Just as You Prefer Satisfaction guaranteed In all eases. Oannents to order In a day if required. Full drees and tuxedo suits a specialty. Wm. Jerrems Sons TAILORS FOR YOUNG MEN 108 THIRD STEEET Off for the Day! See this couple starting out for a pleasant day in their machine. Are they happy? They most certainly are. And why shouldn't they be? They have just purchased this good little machine at a price so'low it astonished them. And now they are ready for a whole Summer of happy days spent whizzing' through the country in the gtod fresh air. They aren't the first owners of this car, hut you couldn't tell that to look at it. The former owner had to sell it because he needed the money, or for some other reason. So he advertised it at a vtry low price in the Classified Section of this paper under the heading of Automobiles. And when he did, this couple was right at hand to take advantage of this opportunity, because they had been looking for it for quite" a while. They had been watching these Ads every day and this was their reward. , Now, what they did, many other people are doing every day. And you can do the same. These Automobile columns are filled with ex ceptional bargains in used cars every day. If you follow them you will soon find the car that is exactly suited to j-our requirements and to your pocketbook. So turn over to these Automobile Ads and begin looking now. Pick out the1 Ads that suit you and go out and see the cars. Remember that the people who get bargains in Automobiles, or in anything else, are the people who are looking for them. And mention The Oregonian, please, each time you answer an Ad. for the $25.00 Suits for the $30.00 Suits for the $35.00 Suits for the $40.00 Suits Sehloss - Balthnore Clothes Clothing Company