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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 24, 1913)
TTTTC UTOTIXTXG OREGONTAX, MONDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 1913. PORTLAND, OREGON. Entered at Portland. Oregon, rostofflce as second-class matter. Subscription Kates Invariably In Advance-. (BT MAID v rtlr. Sunday included, one year "JJ Pally, Sunday Included, six raootht J-' Dally. Sunday Included, three months... 2.3 pally, Sunday Included, one month -j Dally, without Sunday, one year f ially, without Bunday, six months i j ai:y. without Sunday, three mODtbs.... Dally, without Eunday, one month JJJ Weekly, one year eunday, one year... f"f!J bunday and weekly, on year (BY CARRIER) Eslly. Bandar lnelnded, one year ' 52 ally, Sunday Included, one month. How to Remit Bend postoflleo money or ter, express order or personal cbecK en your local bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at sender's risk. Give postofflce address In full. Including county and state. Postage Hates 12 to 18 pages. 1 celt; 18 to 82 pases, 2 cents; 14 to 48 pages, 8 cents. B'J to 6o pases. 4 cents; 02 to 7 pages. , cents; 78 to l2 pages, 6 cents. Foreign poet age, double rates. . Easterat Business Offices Verree Conk. l!n, New York. Brunswick building. Chi cago. Bteger building. - Han Francisco Office R. J. BWwe'.l Co T42 Market street. rORTLAND, MOXDAY, NOV. . 24, 1918. i , NATION AX DUTY. - The Washington correspondent of the Brooklyn Eagle, a conservative and careful newspaper, friendly to the Vilson administration, and apparently enjoying its confidence, says that "a few things can be stated on high au thority concerning the purpose of the President In putting Huerta out of office" and gives them as follows: He mtxst go because he does not meas ure up to the standard set by the Admin istration for the sister republics of the IJnlted States In the Western Hemisphere; because treachery and murder were an es sential part of his rise to power; because lie is not a constitutional ruler. He must go for what the Wilson Administration be lieves to be the ultimate betterment of Mexico. vi i vnlTiff mnrt not nroduca a condition of anarchy In Mexico. . . . The whole Latin American policy of the v llson Ad ministration Is hanging on the outcome in Mexico. The Administration 18 seeking to lav down the principle that the republican -governments to the south of the United states must De in reality repuDiic&n, roa .ducted according to constitutional methods; that dictators, tyrants and military rulers will not be tolerated or recognized; that the people must actually rule iu such coun tries, as they are supposed to rule; that lnurder and civil war cannot be substituted tor a sane and. civilized conduct ot govern mental aifalra. ." Here probably la as nearly correct .' statement of the Wilson policy to ward Mexico an can be made. It Is an ambitious p.-ogramme based upon jan idealistic conception of our obli gations toward all Central and South American countries, and worthy of commendation and support, if it be agreed that the President's premises are correct and that it is our right and duty to tell the other countries on the American hemisphere what they ought to do and must do. But there are some other considerations that Jress themselviBS upon the attention of every thoughtful American citizen. Mexico has never had a constitu tlonal ruler measured by the Ameri can standard; nor have most South American republics. Must all these Latin-American countries be Ameri canized by us, whether they like- it or not? The charge against Huerta that he trapped and murdered Madero Is not proved, though It is generally assumed to be true. It has been repeatedly denied by Huerta, but his denials have no weight at Washington. It is a very heavy responsibility. for the Presi dent to base a national policy in s grave crisis upon mere presumption of the facts. v . If the purpose has been to "put out' Huerta, why is he not put out? If the United States makes a demand of any kind that Huerta go, why he is not made to ge? If he was not to be made to go, why was a demand made? What we see now, and what the world sees, Is an obvious retreat from a sup posed policy of firm insistence to a weak and slow process of quarantine or isolation or ostracism or non-rec ognition, whatever it is. We are sim ply drifting and waiting. Every president Mexico has ever had except possibly Madero was a dictator or tyrant or military ruler. Madero achieved the presidency through revolution and bloodshed, and Was a general in the insurrectionary movement. He fell primarily because ha was unable to control the army. He was not a constitutional ruler in any true sense. The people have not actually ruled In Mexico, and the majority of them ere unfit to rule. How are they to be made to rule? Why should they be made by us to rule? If Huerta goes, through compulsion or persuasion from the United States, we cannot escape the Immediate ob ligation of substituting a government better and stronger than Huerta's The Mexican problem has only begun when we get rid of Huerta, If his Ko'ng is "not to produce a condition of anarchy" as every one .believes it will, unless a greater than Huerta shall arise it will be because we un derwrite the new Mexican government. . Are we prepared for that? Have we no duty but to tear down? Then are we to leave Mexico to its fate? Or must we build up? To meet the Just expectation of the world, and to sat isfy our national conscience, we must be responsible for Mexico after Huer ta, if we are to be the instrument through which Huerta is ejected. ' Through the interference of the United States, and through the ap peal made by President Wilson to the ' nations of the world, the difficulties of Huerta have been greatly increased for he has not the open support of any nation, and it is certaini that his financial resources have been greatly limited. Yet Huerta has sustained himself up to this time in the face of overwhelming obstacles both at home and abroad. It would appear to be obvious that if he had been recog nized by the United States as he had been recognized by every European power, the position of Huerta would now have been secure, and the paci flcation of Mexico, actual or approxi mate, would be an assured fact. But for the sake of a scruple, we have withheld from Mexico the opportunity of achieving order and peace, and we are directly accountable for the in creased confusion and disorder of all Its affairs, and the greater Insecurity of life and the bankruptcy of property i All this is aside from any consid eration as to whether we ought or ought not, on high moral grounds, or on any grounds, to have recognized Huerta, but it is a statement, of th situation as it is and an estimate of our responsibility therefor. Why have we interfered in Mexico Is there any way now we can escap our obligation to secure and guaran tee peace in Mexico? The late James B. Eddy was a de pendablo man on all occasions, wh knew his possibilities and limitations because he helped in t,he making of himself. British nativity gave him bulldog tenacity of purpose and American training west of the Rocky Mountains gave him the finesse that brought results. Ho was not des tined to set the world afire, hut he made a heap of kindling:, which is more than la placed to the credit of the average man. He was a good newspaperman in earlier years, which fitted him for any emergency. He died young, for a vigorous man of 58 is far from aged. His kindly, genial personality will be missed along his line of work, and' there will be many pang of sorrow for the- death of Colonel Jim." ANTICIPATING THE rrBIJC MINI. The most striking characteristic of the 1912 National platform of one of the political parties was Its ambitious, programme of social and industrial reforms. The most striking feature of legisla tive enactments in 1913 was the big list of new labor laws and Industrial measures enacted. These laws are enumerated in general terms in a bul letin Just issued by the American As sociation for Labor Legislation. Thirty-one states enacted laws di rectly affecting .child labor. Seven adopted workmen's compensation laws, making twenty-two in all. Eight states followed the example of Massa chusetts and provided minimum wage laws affecting women, while . nine other states adopted measures limit ing the hours of women's work. Four new states required reports on common occupational disease, two ex tended the scope of similar laws al ready in force, three enacted scien tific provision for protection against trade disease, and twenty-six states demanded greater safety for railroad employes. y Factory inspection departments were reorganized and enlarged in more than a dozen states, five adopted the Wisconsin plan of commission form of factory law administration; two, making twenty-six in all, limited the hours on public work to eight a day, and two passed laws requiring one-day's rest in seven. Every one of these laws parallels or conforms In some degree with planks in the Progressive party plat form, and practically the only social or industrial reform mentioned in the platform that does not seem to have been touched by current legislation is social insurance against the hazards of sickness, irregular employment and old age. ' . " Yet it is doubtful that political party pronouncements had much to do with adoption of this form of legis lation. In some states It, may have accentuated public interest In Indus trial welfare, but the laws were passed without party pressure and not as a result ot party dominance, .a no sig nificance in the parallel is the dis closure again of that remarkable abil ity of the Progressive party leader, Theodore Roosevelt, to express today what the people will be thinking to morrow. USE FOB THE USELESS. If Mr. Donk, of the Agricultural Department, can show a cheap, prac tlcaole means of saving the by-products of stumps and of making them salable he will have found a way of making hundreds of thousands, per haps millions, of acres of. Western land productive. The great obstacles to clearing logged-off land are the high cost per acre, if men are hired for. the purpose, the laborious, back breaking' work if the owner does it himself, and the apparent uselessness of the stumps after they are uprooted. If, as Senator Brady believes, the products of stumps will sell for enough to pay for clearing land, and If, as experiments show, distillate from stumps can be refined into wood alcohol, ethyl alcohol, turpentine, tar and oils, clearing- of logged-off land should not only go on apace, but should give birth to new industries in refining and selling these products. It remains to apply the methods of the experimenters on a large scale in the field and to convince capital that there is money in it. A large part of the work' of the present day consists in finding a use for that which is apparently useless. It has become a trite saying that meat-packers use all of the hog ex cept the squeal, and that their profit is made not from meat, but from by products. The carbon dust held in suspension by petroleum was formerly a nuisance to refiners", and its disposal was a source of expense, but it is now used in making electric carbons and has created a flourishing industry. Gasoline was also worthless to the re finers, but its use as fuel has made it more valuable than kerosene, much of which is now thrown away. Some cities have made profit out of. gar bage disposal, which costs Portland a pretty sum every year. The refuse of the farm is to be made into dena tured alcohol, now that the shackles have been taken off its manufacture. These . discoveries are. the fruit of the chemist's work. He analyzes everything and learns what useful in gredients are contained in the most apparently useless materials. He spies out every secret of matter and applies all to man's purposes. He is teaching us that there, is nothing use- less under - the sun to the man who will seek a use for all which comes to his hand. Only to the ignorant and Indolent is anything useless. A NEW P1ATFOBM NEEDED. The calling of a special National convention for the reorganization of the Republican party is now regarded as a foregone conclusion and discus sion has already turned to the ques tion whether the convention shall adopt a platform. According to Washington dispatch to the Chicago Record-Herald objection is made to its doing so by the leaders in the re organization movement, on the ground that the convention will be assembled under the old rules and on the old basi3 of representation, and that therefore anything it might do be yond reorganizing would be open to the complaint attaching to platforms and tickets that have been put out in the recent past. In this connec tion the dispatch says: The intimation has come from some of L.a Follette's ardent friends that here is a grand little opportunity for "Fighting Bob" to pitch In and make a contest for delegates with a view of attempting to force to the front, through the regular party channels, the radical political Ideas which he es pouses. If the convention should put forth no new declaration of Republican principles there will be a distinct feel ing of disappointment among Repub lican voters. The occasion calls for such a declaration. The platform of 1912 -Is not considered to have ex pressed up-to-date Republican senti ment. One-half of the party has prac tically repudiated it. It has no ring ing appeal. In halting, qualified phrase it half-heartedly endorses pol icies which are now foremost In peo- pie's minds and oh which the people demand an unhesitating declaration. The Republican party cannot too joon get off that "platform and build new one, which, will declare the party's position on the Issues as they are presented at that day and which will truly represent party sentiment as it then Is. By that time the Wil son Administration will have taken its stand, not only on the tariff, the cur rency and Mexico, but on the trusts. conservation, Alaska, the Philippines and other issues. The Congressional election of 1914 will be at hand and must be fought on the issues made up at the present and the coming sessions of Congress. On the result of such elections will hang control not only of the House, but of the Senate. That result will powerfully affect the out come of the election of 1916. The people will expect the party to de clare itself. Were it not to do so the effect would be the same as though an orator stood dumb before an audi ence and retired without uttering a word. There is no reason to assume that, because the special convention will be elected under the old rules, it will be disqualified to speak for the party. A great majority of its delegates will be elected under direct- primary laws. It is already assured that the. over- represented South and the few reac tionary Northern states will be in the minority. The popularly elected dele, gates will, therefore, control. The very fact that the convention changes the rules to make future conventions truly representative will be proof that it ia itself fairly representative. The occasion will require a party declara tion and the special convention will be the only body having authority to make It; therefore, the convention should make it. - INVESTMENT IX GOOD WILL. Since the New Haven road has been held up as the horrible example of a road with many accidents - the Penn sylvania road has been held up as a model in contrast with it. The Brook lyn Eagle finds one source of the Pennsylvania's good record in its ten sion system. In November that road added forty-nine employes to the pen sion roll, which, now has 4007 names. Since the establishment of the system in -1900 pensions totaling ?9, 308, 232 have been paid to 7691 persons, be sides $736,137 paid in superannuation allowances prior to that date. The length of service of the new pension ers ranges from twenty years the minimum term after which an em ploye has become eligible up to fifty two, and' only ten have served less than thirty years. The motto on the cover of the re port is: "The creator of loyalty is a public benefactor." The best means of inspiring loyalty is to provide for the old age -of a faithful employe. When a car or an engine is worn out it may be thrown on the scrap heap, but not so with the reasoning, human agents through whom a railroad must do its work. The quality of their serv ice will be affected by their outlook on the future. If they have nothing to look forward to except being thrown on the human scrap heap when worn out, a feeling of bitterness is apt to spring up in their minds which will prompt them to reckless ness at a critical Juncture and may cause loss of life and destruction of property. The same man. If con scious that the company had a place on the pension roll Instead of a place on the scrap heap reserved for him when grown old In Its service, would be more likely to exercise care in an emergency and thus to save by one moment's thoughtfulness a sum great er than the total he would later re ceive in pensions. The total of the Pennsylvania's pen sion payments is a large sum, but it is a good investment in ' good will, not only of the employes, for whose fu ture It provides, but of the public, whose lives and property it -safeguards. . Good will is an intangible thing which grows up in men's minds, but it has a value beyond estimate in dollars, and it becomes apparent in times of stress, disaster and public agitation. Storms of popular feeling pass over those corporations which have earned good will, but they smite those which throw men on the human scrap heap. EACH INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTABLE. The old question Jf Individual ac countability as against the accounta bility of society for the misdeeds of its members is raised ,by the Blue Mountain Eagle with reference to the case of Eddie Bell, accused of stealing a horse. This boy went to school, got as far as the fifth grade and at the age of 12 was turned loose to make his own way In the world. He began fol lowing the races, and the Eagle says of him: His years were few and he was at an Im pressionable age. If he trot fatherly advlc it was orders to "crook" a race. If he wanted sympathy, as all boys do, he got it from a tout who complained that he let "sucker" slip. He was taught to obey the law because If he did not he would get the consequences. Fear of the law was hli only guidance. fo him the police was i moral custodian as well as a legal authority. This boy was born and Is now free and equal under the law, and, being so. Is held to the same accountability as all who are born equal under the law. The Eagle contrasts this boy's case with that of a boy who "is tenderly cared for, advised and piloted through the temptations that come to boys and brought safely to maturity with a full understanding of life and its responsi bilities." It concludes: No law can be found to differentiate the cases mentioned, and yet why can there not be an equity side of the criminal law that will leave to the conscience of the court the question of whether all men are born free and equal In the light of the law and must be held to tho same accountability? The answer to the question is that a judge has that power. He is called upon to determine the measure of ac countability and is given discretion to measure the punishment thereby. He is also given discretion to pass an in determinate sentence in the peniten tiary, which may be longer or shorter, as the prisoner gives evidence of re form. He may sentence Juvenile of fenders to the reform school, where reformation and instruction are the prime purposes. If a first offender shows evidence of repentance and, in the opinion of the court, will not of fend again if permitted to go at large. he may be paroled at once by the court. But society's first duty is to Itself, not to its individual members. It can be said as truly of society as of in dividuals that self-preservation is the first law of nature. The interest of society must be paramount over that of the individual if society is to con tinue In existence. That Interest de mands that one who violates the law shall be punished and restrained, both to discipline him and to warn others. The Eagle appears to hold society ac countable for -Eddie Bell's misdeed, but how can society be held accountable and punished? Crime calls for punish ment, but, even though society be re sponsible, It cannot hang itself or im prison itself. Nor can It safely ex empt from punishment those whose of fense la due to society's shortcomings. That would go far to break down all restraints and to dissolve society. Nor can the Governor, as the agent of society, be held . accountable for his official errors of Judgment in re leasing on parole prisoners who w'ould better be kept in confinement. So ciety must still, for Its own preserva tion, hold these convicts accountable when they again offend, as one of those recently released by Governor Lister offended In holding up a train. What society should do, and to an Increasing degree is trying to do, Is to combine Instruction and reforma tion with punishment. Boys like Bell should not be confined to a cell in idleness, for resentment will embitter them and render them more dangerous than ever to the public welfare. Just as' the public welfare requires that a criminal be locked up where -he can not again offend during the term of his punishment, so also it requires that he be reformed by being taught right principles of conduct and the wisdom of following them; and that he be In structed in a trade, ' In order that he may escape temptation to fall again and "may apply "the sound principles he has learned. Society will thus dis criminate between men who have of fended through their own depravity and those who have offended through lack of education and training or through mental deficiency. It will by this means discriminate far better than if it were to turn loose all the Eddie Bells as a practical confession that it was Itself to -blame for their misdeeds. Fatalities from oise of coal oil In starting fire are deplorable, all the more so as the victims are the wives and mothers or the domestic. There Is only one way to prevent them and the burden lies on the head of the family. It is his duty to provide fuel that will Ignite by ordinary means and when he fails the blame lies upon his shoulders. In this region of abundant fir wood there is no excuse for the man who does not buy it. William C. Brown, president of the New York Central lines, has resigned after forty-four years of railroading and will retire to his farm in Iowa. If precedent is anything to go by he will need to be a .busy farmer in or der to escape sinking into senile de cay. A brain and body which have acquired so high a degree of normal activity as his must soon fail when they slacken speed. The love of superfluous govern mental machinery Is one of the un accountable crazes which afflict the American people. A recent writer re volts against the fashion utterly" and wants all the states obliterated. Those who do not go quite so far may still see wisdom In merging the county with the city. Why support two costly ma chines where one would do the work more efficiently? It Is reported that the steamer Im perator is to be laid up for the Win ter and that her owners will sue the builders for failure to come up to re quirements. Winter is the dull season in trans-Atlantic traffic, and can well be used by the mperator's owners in fighting a lawsuit, in which the ship Itself will be the chief exhibit, and in reconstructing her. The deaths from football this year are . about as numerous as those in some Mexican battles, but -probably when we compare the number of dead and injured with the number engaged In football games - throughout the country the ratio of casualties will not appear alarmingly high. Why does not one ot the Mexican factions take Juarez and keep it? Do the contending armies merely take It to replenish supplies of cash and pro visions, rest, have a good time and then move on? The facts encourage that Impression. A ticket seller for the world's se ries who disposed of big blocks of tickets to speculators, has been fined $100. There are -those fans who will insist on nothing less than capital punishment for such an offender. The foreign-born man who came to this country when a boy will do well to .examine the records as to his po litical standing. The Mayor of Wood- burn has lost office because his father neglected to be naturalized. The Housewives' League of Or ange, N. J., is "busting" the egg trust by selling storage eggs at 3 3 cents a dozen and making a small profit. More power to the housewives! Governor West says Oregon Is ready with troops in case of Mexican inter vention. Furthermore, better troops would come from nowhere, outside the regular army. . We are promised "Jim Crow" mail cars by the superintendent of the Railway Mail Service. Why not Intro. duce the Hindu caste system In all its completeness? ,N Between official cares, Mexico and the strenuosltles of acquiring a son-in-law, we do not wonder that Presi dent Wilson wants no reception for New Tears. "Lawyers are as merchandise, bought and sold," declares a San Diego lawyer, bitterly. And they come mighty high, he might have added. When eggs reach the 75-cent pricr In San Francisco or elsewhere people should cease to eat them in further ance of commercial decency. The 12 toughest boys of Pittsburg are to be taken to a Nevada ranch for reformation. We should not care to supervise the Job. A sweeping eight-hour law is possi ble In California. Even the vinegar in barrels may yet be limited In its daily working. ' If these Booth brothers are the Christians they profess to be, let theqa effect reconciliation without further parley. According to a French paper, in tervention in Mexico would be an "oil war." Oil on troubled waters. With the lesson in organization by apple growers it 'was high time for action by the hop growers. The Forest Grove National Bank ha Just recently installed a najiasome new typi writer Forest Grove News-Times. Blonde or brunette? The boxcar "murder" turns out to be Just the ordinary Incident of beat lngthe railroads. TRIAJU OP STATE LIFE INSURANCE Plan Not Altogether Successful In Wisconsin la Charge. PORTLAND. Nov. 21. (To the Edi tor.) Recently in the Portland daily press there appeared an article in which Hon. J. W. Ferguson, Insurance Commissioner of the State of Oregon. was quoted as expressing himself as being heartily In favor of the State of Oregon entering the life insurance business. In this connection it might be interesting to note the facts con cerning Wisconsin's attempt in this direction. The following artfcle is from Rough Notes, date of November 13, 1912: "State Insurance a Reality," is the cap tion to a contemporary's account descriptive of the first policies issued under the "Wis consin State Life Insurance Fund." which, from other accounts we have seen,- does not appear to be much of a reality. It exists, however, b;' virtue of a Wisconsin statute enacted in 1911. Since then It has com pleted Its crcanlzatlon, obtained 200 appli cations for life Insurance In amounts In $1000 each, as prescribed by Its' enabling act, and that number of policies were issued tv u op October 27. 1913. That two years and more should be re quired to organize and secure less than a quarter of a million life Insurance Is pretty cool evidence that the State of Wisconsin is behind it only rn name. . The work of organization has been accomplished by a few officials In the employ of the state, as provided for by statute. In connection with their other official duties a rather inade quate provision for its immediate wants, which will -not be few If this "reality" sur vives Its nursing period. Then to reach adolescence It will apparently require more state aid than the law now allows It, which is nlL The state evidently expects neither profit nor loss from this so-called "State Insurance Reality." When the state needs life insurance money It goes' for it In a direct way by levying a tax on companies doing business In the state; one home com pany adds to the state'e revenue several hundred thousand dolalrs a year In taxes and fees, thereby causing Its own citizens Insured In that company. Indirectly to pay. But the state has not, as yet, pledged either money or credit for the redemption of any of the pledges made by Its so-called "State Insurance Reality." It has gone only ao far, by Its enactment of 1911, as to pro vide for a life Insurance company bearing the state's name without providing a single cellar to cover its. organization expenses. cost of management or losses, should the organization from within Itself fall to meet them. The state makes no provision lor these except that the "governmental ma chinery will be used In the administration of Its affairs." (Everybody knows how sta ble a changing state government is likely to be as a lire underwriter.; The alleged purpose of this politicians' bubble "Is to give -the people of the 'State Lire Fund' the benefit of the best oia line Insurance on a mutual plan at the lowest possible cost" le the statement made by Hon. Herman 1 Ekern.. -Insurance Commls sloner of Wisconsin, who adds. "To benefit the policyholders Is the sole consideration Of the total expense of the old line com panies, more than one-half goes to agents in salaries and commissions," this sentence of Mr. Bkern's above statement, if correctly reported, being a fair example of the verac ity and boldness of some state officials now scheming' to substitute state Insurance for the stable system that under existing laws Is meeting all public requlremetns at an ex pense too low to admit of further reduction without loss of efficiency and safety. It Is true that about one-half the ex penses of life Insurance consists In commis sions and salaries paid to agents, and, tak ing the case of a home company of Wiscon sin In verification of the Commissioner's statement, we find that while the total ex penditure of that company, during 1012, aside from cash paid to policy-holders ?37,267.800.S2 was $8,223,445.76, and of this amount $4,73:1, 585. 90 went to agents in commissions and salaries who fairly and honestly earned the money paid them, as they increased the amount of insurance in force on January 1, 1012, by $14,870,470 that year, while, during the same period, the company paid $1,205,506.73 In taxes to the various states, or a-bout one-fourth as much, as its agency force earned in productive business for the company the company's agents earning their money, while most of the taxes paid were spent by the state for general purposes over and above tile cost of its .Insurance department; for example, Wisconsin collected during the year $671,227 at a cost to the state ot $32,395 for the entire maintenance of its Insurance depart ment. Thus, $03S,632 of Insurance taxes were added unnecessarily by the state to the expenses of the "old line" companies doing business therein. In fact, a portion of it was used In part payment of the sal aries of state officials for the time they employed in organizing the 'NState Insurance Reality," that, after two years spent In promoting it, had not accumulated suffi cient resources to pay a single loss If the expense of promotion and printing were taken into consideration. What a realityl FRANK M. BRADLEY, C. A. HOOD, WILLIAM GOLDMAN, Conservation and Education Commit tee, Underwriters' Association of Oregon. ENLIGHTEXMENT IS DESIRABLE Definition Wanted of Professional Old Maid, bat Writer Has Own Ideas. PORTLAND, Nov. 22. (To the Ed itor.) Perhaps Mrs. Dunlway could en lighten the public further as to the dif ference between a spinster, a bachelor maid, an old maid and a "professional' old maid. I confess being quite in the dark as to Just what are the rllstin guishlng -earmarks of these different types, varieties and species of human females. Is It anything that has to do with mere age, with good health or good looks, with having a sweetheart, with a knowledge of eugenics, with darning socks or with the divorce law? Years ago an old maid was easily recognized. She was humble, obedient and rather Inclined to be peevish. She was a nondescript who happened to be neither a servant, wife, mother nor a woman who sold herself promiscuously to men. True, she might have been an actress or singer and been classified with vagabonds, as in England. But generally her activities were limited to doing a little fancy work and looking sad. Gentlemen and carefully sheltered and protected ladles of quality and dis cernment took much delight in sneer lng at her. Those days have passed. The oppor tunlties for employment have greatly increased. For a woman who happens to be born with brains and abundant good health, who gets the proper train ing and has a certain amount of good luck, even exceptional opportunities exist. She enjoys a good deal of free dom, manages her private life to suit herself to a large extent, gives in serv ice what she gets in dollars, and has definitely put behind her the Idea of making the catching of a husband the one great business of life. If she does marry, naturally she is not willing to go it blindly. She wants to know pret ty clearly in advance what the effect of marriage will be on her life. She is perhaps too careful In selection. With all possible circumspection, even with love as guide, her good sense tells her that mistakes may happen to the wisest and the best. She will not enter lnto an indissoluble bond that may bring her little more than vain regrets, misery and tears to embitter the rest of her lite. Is It because Of this attitude, I won der, that "aversion of the average hus band and father" is so pronounced for the "professional" old maid because she wishes to have an absolutely equal say in matrimonial arrangements, both before and after? Perhaps Mrs. Dunlway can tell me If I am right In suspecting that the dlf ference between the "professional" old maid and Just plain old maid is the difference between intelligence, com parative Independence, efficiency and serene cheerfulness on the one hand and submission, timidity, helplessness and a sour temper on the other. The old maid of bygone times aroused much unkindly scorn and deri slon, never aversion. Is this new emo tion awakened by the "professional' possibly the result of a threatened loss of the privilege or overlordshlp by hus bands and fathers or of the self-satis fied feeling of being more satisfactor ily provided for exhibited by some law ful wives and mothers? . (MISS) MARGARET MASON. A Toaat. Here's to the man who can hold his) tongue When he might by a word or sign Destroy the chance of a fellow man Who is trying to do the best he can To brace up and get Into line. Exchange. Half a Century Ago Twenty-five Years Ago From The Oregonian of November 24. 1863. A large number of citizens of Port land met at the Courthouse last even ing listen to the address of Marshall Turley, Esq., upon the subject of Ore gon railroads. After further remarks by Colonel W. W. Chapman, Hon. Wil liam Strong and others R. J. Ladd, Esq., was called to the chair and W. C. John son chosen secretary. A committee of ten citizens was appointed to draw up resolutions to be presented to another meeting tomorrow evening. Colvllle, "W. T., Nov. 2. W have had here great reports of mines discovered by a party under Captain Mullan on the Ponderay at the old Mormon establish ment. A party sent from here did not find anything that would pay. The Coutenay mines seem to attract most attention, ' There are - few localities offering greater inducements to the genuine sportsman than the vicinage of Port land. A short pull down the Willamette in a skiff will take the fowler to 'hose spots where most do congregate In lakes as well as on the river nearly all descriptions of aquatic fowls. Ducks in all their varieties, geese, brant, cur lew and snipe, all fat as butter and of excellent flavor, are brought to the city from half a dozen to 150 In a lot. By telegram from Treka, November 18 we receive the following: The Ore gon line is now completed from this place to the upper portion of Rogue River "Valley. The work Is going -on at the rate of about five miles per day. FEAR NEED NOT BE OF OLD MAIDS. Married Women Who Nerlect Homes for Politics Have Worse Influence. PORTLAND. Nov. 22. (To the Ed itor.) I noticed in The Oregonian of November 22 that Mrs. Duniway says that she l has stirred up a commotion of indignation among her esteemed co workers, the old maids of Oregon, be cause of a remark she happened to make before a reporter in Eugene. The first I learned of this commotion was when I read her letter, as I am not of her "esteemed co-workers." I would like also to ask if there is such a thing as a "professional old maid?" I have always thought that being what Mrs. Dunlway chooses to call an "old maid" was a eondtlon, a deplorable one, some" people might say, but in no sense a profession. However, I may be mistaken In this and stand ready to be enlightened. Now, with all due respect to Mrs. Dunlway, whom 1 think we all reeog nize as a woman of character and abll lty," I venture to say that the "mar. ried men. as voters," would be Just as safe in recognizing the leadership or the women whom airs. Dunlway a cries as they would be of many of the women who are now prominent in the work, and are loudest in their advice as to how the nation, and the fathers and the mothers and the children there of, should toe governed; and at the same time do' not seem to have the faintest conception as to their own duties and the government of their own homes and children, which, after all, is the main thing, for if all indi viduals understood their duties and practiced them the country would be quite safe. To say the least, many of these women are not very secure guides for the government of the Na tion. Now that the suffrage has been granted to women, or, in the opinion of some of the women to whom I have talked, thrust upon them, the greatest rear that we should have is that the women of common sense, either mar ried or what Mrs. Dunlway designates as "professional old maids." will not take the interest that , they should in the business of the government of the country, as many of the latter class are business women, and their time Is taken up with their own work, and are apt to leave the leadership in politics and government to the so-called "leis ure class," many of whom have no oual ification for the work and are looking for amusement, not responsibility. In the past one of our greatest trou bles has been that the business man has been immersed in his work and has not had the time nor the inclination for leadership in politics. He has let it fall Into the hands of men who. in many cases, have used their power for the furtherance of their own ends and to the detriment of the country. And now it Is to be feared that the business woman, and the woman who is taken up with her household duties and the training of her children, will not in terest herself in the responsibilities that go with the ballot. But if we are to have widespread suffrage, they will have to wake up. and take an interest, otherwise we stand in danger of being governed by fanatics and irresponsible women. Ji-HZABETH ALLEN. IS METER PLA5 GOOD BUSINESS? If Not, Why Do Private Corporations Adopt It, Is Query. PORTLAND, Nov. 23. (To the Edi tor.) A correspondent of The Orego nian, arguing for a flat water rate, takes the Inconsistent position that "rich men with big houses" and "houses with 20 or 30 faucets should be me tered," while "ordinary homes" should not be. Why? What is an "ordinary homes?" Where will you draw the line? Mere possession of a big house, or of 20 or 30 faucets is no indication of the amount of water a customer uses. Many faucets . are frequently installed in houses where little water is used, mere ly as a matter of greater convenience, and many "big houses" are the homes of our smallest families, where com paratively little water is used. A de cidedly fairer method would be to charge according to the number in the family. Meters cost money. Most things do, But a trifle over $1 per year from each family using water will pay for the meters. "Meters add greatly to clerl cal work In the water ofllce." The same might be said of the meter sys terns iff use by the Portland Gas & Coke Company and the Portland Rail way. Light & Power Company. It costs them large sums to read meters and pay for clerical work. If It is not trust ness economy to use meters why do these great corporations use them? If these great corporations, in control of the best business talent, find It profit able to use meters in the distribution of gas and electricity, why should not our great municipal corporation find it profitable to follow the same course? But over and above all these consider ations, why should not any citizen pay for his water. Just as he does every thing else, according to the amount he uses? The proposition to allow the owner of an "ordinary home" to use and waste all the water, he chooses at a flat rate, but to put the owner of a big house on a meter, is an advance, but not an improvement, on the socialistic doc trine, for socialism plays no favorites. The installing of meters has no bearing in any way upon the question as to whether or not the renter or the land lord should pay the water charge. Let the water user pay for all the water he uses instead of shifting part of his burden upon some one else, and give to the user whose water is metered the right to use water upon his lawn at any hour of the day, and there will be less complaint of want of water pressure during the morning and evening hours to which all con sumers are now limited under the rules. The city is not called upon to save us from "plumbers and salary-draw ing officials" at the expense of the man who may be unfortunate enough to live in big bouse and own two or thret extra faucets that he never uses. C. B. From Tho Oregonian of November 24, 1888. Indianapolis, Nov. 28. Powderly was re-elected general master workman -of the Knights of Labor this morning by nearly ar unanimous vote. Lewis ton, Idaho, Nov. 23. There is great activity here In the way of rail road surveys. The O. R. & N. and Northern Pacific both have parties sur veying from Lewlston to the great Camas Prairie country, 60 miles south east Salem. Nov. 23. Sheriff Herbert, of Wasco County, brought two prisoners to the penitentiary today. Vancouver, W. T., Nov. IS. Argu ments in the case of the bishop of Nesqually vs. John Gibbon, Thomas An derson et al, commonly known as the mission case, were concluded this morning and Judge Allyn decided in ubstance against th mission, teat Its claim to a part of the military reser vation was not sustained. Parkers. Polk County. Nov. 22. Jo seph Miller and R. G. Moore sold their hops, between 50,000 and 60,000 pounds, for 17 cents per pound. A large force of men is at work at the east end of the railroad bridge preparing for the erection of the ap- proach that is to connect Holladay ave nue with the bridge. Dr. J. N. Powell and his sister, Minnie Powell, leave on the steamer Columbia tonight lor California. Among th enterprises lately added to the manufacturing industries of the ity is the tannery of the Portland Tanning Company at the foot of Sher man street, incorporated by E. S. Lar- sen and Herbert Bradley. Little hope Is entertained for the re covery of James M. P. Chalmers, form erly of this city, who lies Hi in a hos pital in New York with diphtheria. J. M. Stott, Sr., uncle of Judge Raleigh Stott, was buried yesterday on his farm 14 miles east of the city. Deputy Clerk A N. Church, of the State Circuit Court, is 111. ORIGIN OF OREGON" IS TOLD. Now We Know Why Grass Is Always Green and Air Is Ever Balmy. Fraternal Brotherhood News. In the Before-Time when Mother Earth had but newly cooled and the vapors had descended and - the lakes, rivers and oceans had not yet sepa rated, and everywhere was water over the face of the earth, the Great Archi tect of the Universe, looking out over the great waste of waters idly plucked a twig from a branch in the Garden of Paradise and tossed it from him over the parapets and into the ocean. where, because of its sacred nature, it Immediately took root and formed an island. The Master was so surprised and de lighted with the result of his act that he at once christened the island "Ire land," which at that time meant "The Land of Warm Hearts," and at once decided to build another Island like it but more perfect. So he stretched out his wand over the bosom of the eastern Pacifies Ocean and at his nod there was upheaved through 5000 fathoms of emerald waters a beautiful Island whose shores are ever fanned by "the soft wings of zephyr oppressed with perfume." and whose hills are ablaze with all the floral splendor of the tropics. Thus was Honolulu born. But alas, it was located too far south. Its climate was too mild, too enervating for that hardy ideal race that will one day inherit the earth. So he sped him away to the shores of the land we call Asia and there lie again brought new land from the bot tom of the deep and decked it with his choicest treasures of grass, flowers and trees until even he himself began to wonder if Paradise were more fair. And again he found that he had located his land so near the equator that the climate was too enervating for the ideal race. Back then, he came across the ocean to the land which we now call Oreeon. and he raised it dripping from the bosom of the deep. He built a barrier of stately mountain peaks against the desert heat of the east and the bltlns' cold of the north. The equatorial winds were shifted from their courses in tho higher altitudes of the atmosphere, washed and tempered by the waters of the old ocean and then softly piloted across the land. The Icy waters of the Arctic were turned landward to Insure against too sultry a climate. Then he gathered together a wealth of mountain and plain, shaded glens and snow-capped pinnacles, terrace on terrace of mountain tops melting back in vista after vista of blue ether, into Fairyland Itself. With these and with flowers of even- hue, and bush, shrub and tree of many Kinds he bullded this favored land on the broad bosoms of whose majestic rivers today float the commerce of the big, round world, and when he had done he wrapped the whole of his crea tion there in a fairy mantle of the soft est of ethereal blue, a mantle which he ravished from the most sacred recesses of Fairyland. And when the fairies- returned to their kingdom and found their beau tiful robe gone they gave vent to tears which descended In Oregon In the form of a misty rain, and since that day. whenever it rains in Oregon, we know It is the fairies crying- for their beau tiful robe which today does duty for an atmosphere In the land of the Web feet. And thafs why the grass is always green, the flowers always in bloom, the air always balmy; that's why tin cheeks of the maidens challenge the beauty of the damask rose, why "vir gins are soft as the roses they twine." why young men are brave and the old men wiso in counsel. Like a Ship Without a Rudder Have you ever had the disagree able experience of trylcjr to Bhop with a friend who did not know what she wanted to or where she wanted to buy it? A conversation held In the shop ping vicinity was overheard the other day.. It went something like this: "I am so glad you came along with me. Tou have such good taste. My dressmaker is coming in the morning and I must get the materials for a dress this after noon." "What are you going to get?" "I haven't made up my mind, quite something nice but not too fancy. I thought a messaline, per haps, but the crepes afid brocades are newer, and then there are such pretty light wool materials now they are warmer too, but then you can't wear them on so many dif ferent occasions as you can a silk." Think of the time and patience that this woman would have saved herself, her companion, the sales people, and probably her dress maker, if she had started a few days before to plan her dress and had read the advertisements in the newspapers so that she would have decided what she wanted and would have known where to go for it. Adv. o