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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 11, 1907)
6 TTIE SUNDAY OREGOXIAX, PORTLAND, AUGUST 11, 1907. M)t (DrfiTtJittmt SUBSCRIPTION KATES. INVARIABLY IK ADVANCE. (By Mall.) Dally, Sunday Included, on year $8.00 Daily, Eunday Included tlx months.... 4.28 Dally, Sunday include, three month.. 2.23 Dally, Sunday Included, on month.... .75 Dally, without Sunday, one year 6.00 Dally, without Sunday. lx month..... 8 25 Dally, without Sunday, three months.. 1.73 Dally, without Sunday, one month 00 Sunday, one year . 2.50 Weekly, one year (Issued Thursday).... 1.50 Sunday and Weekly, one year -60 Bk CARRIER. Dally, Sunday Included, one year 8.00 Dally, 6unday included, one month. ... .75 HOW TO REMIT Send postofflce money order, express order or personal check on your local bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at the sender's risk. Give postofflce ad dress in lull. Including- county and state. POSTAGE RATES. Entered at Portland, Onion, Postofflce as Seeond-C!ass Matter. 10 to is Pag.-s i eent 18 to 23 Pases 3 cents 80 to 44 Pases 8 cents 46 to 60 Pases 4 cents Foreign postage, double rates. IMPORTANT The postal laws are strict. Newspapers on which postage Is not fully prepaid are not forwarded to destination. EASTERN BUSINESS OFFICE. The 8. C. Becicwith, Special Agency New York, rouins 48-60 Tribune building. Chi cago, rooms 610-812 Tribune .building. KEPT ON SALE. Chicago Auditorium Annex. Postofflce News Co., 178 Dearborn at. fit. Paul. Minn N. St. Marie, Commercial Station. Ienver Hamilton A Kendrlck. 906-012 Seventeenth street; Pratt Book Store. 1214 Fifteenth street; H. P. Hansen. S. Rice. Kansas City, Mo. Rlcksecker Cigar Co., Ninth and Walnut; Sosland News Co. Minneapolis M. J. Cavanaugh, 60 South Third; Eagle News Co., corner Tenth and Eleventh; Yoma News Co. Cleveland, O James Pushew, 807 Su perior street. Washington, D. C. Ebbltt House, Penn sylvania avenue. Philadelphia. Pa. Ryan's Theater Ticket office; Ponn News Co. New York City L. Jones Co., Astor House; Broadway Theater News Stand; Ar thur Hotallng Wagons. Atlantic City, N. J. Ell Taylor. Ogden D. L. Boyle. W. O. Kind. 114 Twenty-fifth street. Omaha Barkalow Bros., Union station; ldageath Stationery Co. Dee Moines, la. Mose Jacob. Sacramento, Cat Sacramento News Co.. 439 K street; Amos News Co. Salt Lake Moon Book & Stationery Co.; Rosenfeld A Hansen. Loe Angeles B. B. Amos, manager seven street wagona San Dirgo B. E. Amos. Long Beach, Cal. B. IS. Amos. Santa Barbara, Cal. John Prechel. San Jose, Cal. St. James Hotel News Fjtand- El Paso, Tex. Plasa Book and News Stand. Fort Worth, Tex. F. Robinson. j Amarlllo, Tex. Bennett News Co. ! San Francisco Foster A Crear; Ferry News Stand: Hotel St. Francis News Stand; L. Parent; N. Wheatley; Falrmount Hotel Vews Stand; Amos News Co.; United News Agents, 11 H Eddy street. Oakland, Cal. W. H. Johnson. Fourteenth and Franklin streets; N. Wheatley; Oak land News Stand; Hale News Co. ftoldfield, Nov. Louie Poll In. Eureka, Cal. Call-Chronicle Agency. Norfolk, Y'a. Potts Roeder; American News Co. Pine Beach, Ta-W. A. Cosgrove. PORTLAND, SUNDAY. ACG. It. 1907. ANOTHER PUNDIT ON JOURNALISM. The theory' of Mr. George Roberts, formerly director of the mint, that "if the man who conducts a newspaper has the true spirit of his profession the money-making feature will be subordinate and Incidental, his heart will be in the concerns to which he de votes his pen," is a principle that all newspaper men worth the name are ambitious to realize. Hearing Mr. Rob erts talk so airily about it, the uniniti ated might think it the easiest, as well as the most holy, task in the world. Ex perience, however, proves that it Is beset with some difficulties. For even money-making, base as money-making Is. is necessary, also in this lofty call ing. The newspaper must catch the spirit and reflect the spirit of the time, or it will not earn money enough to enable it to live; and to publish a comprehen sive newspaper takes a great deal of money." Again, the spirit of the time, unfortunately and often, is crooked, perverse, awry, causing immense loss, or total destruction, to the newspaper that tries to combat it. Many a news paper has found it necessary to "con form," in order to live sacrificing Ideals, for the time, to the necessities of existence. It will be said, of course, that this is cowardly; but the bravest man in battle, if he have also sense and judgment, will not try to carry an impregnable position by direct assault. He will wait on events and bide his time. A newspaper may ignore or combat petty interests; it may stand unshaken amid the ordinary or common fluctua tions of opinion, contending for what it holds to be the right. But in the his tory of every newspaper times come when it must yield something, or even yield all, to storms of. popular passion or folly, or suffer immense loss, even to the Jeopardy of its own existence. Many newspapers have taken such risks, and perished. Others have man aged to ride out the storm though broken and shattered the work of a lifetime lost, and power of recuperation lost with It. The Oregonian never greatly cen sured newspapers that yielded to the silver craze in communities where that craze was uncontrollable, for they had to-do it. or die.' It was a craze that shook some of the most powerful news papers of the tountry, causing them Immense loss. The Louisville Courier Journal defied the folly and combatted It, lost a large proportion of Its busi ness during several years, and immense sums of money. Similar was the ex perience of The Oregonian, whose fight for the gold standard reduced Its cir culation one-half, and Its advertising business greatly, till the popular fury excited by the silver fallacy exhausted itself. The Oregonlan's fight for the gold standard cost it not less than two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and only the defeat of Bryan and recovery of public sanity saved the paper from ruin. The theorist, who sees journalism only through his imagination, doubt less thinks these things easy trifles because "the money-making feature" is, or should be, "subordinate and inci dental." Yet some attention must be paid to money by the newspaper whose cash outlay for publication runs stead ily into enormous and ever-increasing sums. , No newspaper can be independent of the thought and purpose of the com munity in which it is published. In older communities, where there are few fluctuations of opinion, where experi ence has settled the main lines of ac tion, there is less difficulty; but in new communities, where opinions and poli cies, are still unsettled; where morals and morality even. In a thousand things pertaining to life and action, show more or less innovation and departure from the older guides of experience, the newspaper can no more be expected to Ignore and defy the customs, interests and prejudices prevailing about It than the pulpit and the church can; and the pulpit and church notoriously and In every age have been Just what the age has made them. That is the reason why so many Immoralities and cruel ties have been practiced In the name of church and religion. Among the forces of human life there is not much that burns with a pure flame; and Journal Ism on the whole does Its duty as well as the other forces around it. Accu sations of venality so often" heard against the press are seldom true. No newspaper that has a position in Jour nalism, or hopes to make one, will compromise its prospects by taking money for "Jobs" or by favoring "in terests" that seek advantages, whether of a public or private nature. Chief of all the conservative forces of society is the self-respecting and self-supporting newspaper. Such homi lies as that of Mr, Roberts are not necessary; and, moreover, they are in sulting In the Indecency of their sug gestion that' the Journalism of the country is actuated by mercenary mo tives, and falls below its obligations. But too much must not be expected from the newspapers of the country. They never can be much better than the conditions that surround them al low them to be. In our country all movements or 1rojects of a public na ture are carried Into politics and en gage the attention of political parties. Then comes the debate whether this or that is Vlght, or not, In connection in almost every case with the question whether It Is expedient and practicable, or not. The newspaper that Is earnest, strong and aggressive, may help a cause it espouses, or may injure It. The last consequence Is as likely to happen as the first. For politicians, and the peo ple, too, object to the "dictation" of the newspaper, and have been known to go over to the opposition party merely be cause powerful newspapers of their own party had opposed them and shaken off their influence as party bosses, or helped to do so. On the question of expediency there always Is liability to endless debate, with every variety of opinion; and things that are possible and practicable at one time are not so at another. The newspaper must meet all these condi tions, and a thousand more. In every case the question of "motive" is raised against It; and this question, though falsely raised and not having the least to do with the matters at issue, will often outweigh all the newspaper's ar guments, and the right of the matter, too. Newspaper men of experience, therefore, do not descant much on "the power of the press." They leave that to the imagination of sentimentalists, con trolled by "bookish theoric,' and to neophytes of Journalism, who have yet their experience to obtain. It is a mistake, therefore, to" imagine that the press of the country could "run" the country. Newspapers are di rected by men, who differ from each other as much in thought, feeling, prejudice, purpose, as other men. Even their Judgments of what is right will be at variance, and their judg ments as to what Is expedient more so. Moreover, It is through the disagree ments of Journalism, more than in the consensus, that results are to be had conducive to the welfare of the coun try. Men who know what newspaper work Is, who know from experience its possibilities and limitations, can very well dispense with the wisdom of the pundits and the sophisters who essay to preach to them about their opportu nities and their duties. NORMAL 8CHOOL SOLUTION. While it may be true, as the opinion I of the Attorney-General holds, that the Oregon Normal School board bf re gents has power to accept donations of funds for use in maintaining the in-' stitutions at Drain and Monmouth, it would not be good policy for the board to receive such aid If the acceptance carried either a legal or moral obli gation upon the part of the state to re pay the money. The last session of the Legislature left the Drain and Mon mouth schools without appropriations. Should the board of regents proceed now to create an indebtedness for these institutions, either expressly or by im plication, It will exercise, for all prac tical purposes, a legislative power, which it has no right to do. The proposal that funds shall be sup plied by people locally interested In the schools is but a repetition of the methods by which the Normal Schools became state institutions. Originally founded by private enterprise, a con cession of the use of the name of the state was secured and later came the plea for an appropriation. The nor mals have never stood upon their mer its, but have procured appropriations by indirection, crafty scheming and legislative' trading. The request that the board of regents conduct the schools with funds contributed by pri vate parties is but an attempt to create a basis for demand for appropriations at the next session for repayment of the money donated. Such procedure would be unbusinesslike if not illegal. If private parties wish to run the schools, let them do so. Let the board of regents lease the buildings to the local authorities at a nominal rental, to be conducted as private enterprises and without Imposing any obligation on the state. Oregon needs no donations. It has rio debt and has plenty of resources. When it .wants Normal Schools it can build and decently maintain them where and when it will. The sooner it abolishes forever the custom of accept ing private donations for public insti tutions, the. sooner will the. Normal school system be placed upon a busi ness basis, where it will command re spect at home and abroad. Let's have an end of mixing private and public funds and private and public business. NOTICE TO LAWBREAKERS. Since the plan has been adopted of giving gamblers ten days or two weeks' notice to cease violating the state stat utes, criminals generally may be dis posed to claim their rights under that section of the constitution which guar antees equality under the law. If gam blers' are given ten, days of grace, in which they may continue to violate the laws unpunished, why shall not break ers of 'other laws be granted the same temporary Immunity? But it is not likely that all criminals will Insist upon a fixed period of time. In order to be granted immunity like the gamblers, they would undoubtedly consent to the establishment of a graduated scale of Immunity periods. Thus it might be satisfactory to the classes interested If Prosecuting Attorneys would give no tice that robbers must cease their operations in nine days, blackmail ers In eight days, burglars in seven days, murderers in five days and automobile scorchers In four days. By conferring with attorneys for the various criminal leaders. Prosecuting Attorneys could ascertain what periods of time would be satis factory and the schedule could be an nounced publicly. The amount of time allowed is really of less Importance than the principle involved, for, since all men are created equal and all laws were enacted by the same legislative power, and are administered under one Judicial system, there appears to be no reason why, an immunity period should not exist for one class of criminals as well as for another. Then there would be equality for those who disobey the law as there is for those who obey. WAR WITH JAPAN. Captain Ignez Rodic, of the Austrian General Staff, has published a pamph let on the prospect of war between the United States and Japan. He believes that war is Imminent, that Japan is concealing the most hideous designs against us under a flimsy pretense of friendship, and that we are extremely foolish not to provide ourselves with a huge standing army, on the European plan, to defend ourselves. A transla tion of the pamphlet is published in the Military Service Journal for July, where everybody who likes may read it and form his own opinion of its wisdom. There are several reasons why the feudal militarists of Europe would re joice to see war break out between this country and Japan. In the first place, any war whatever always delights them, since It ' affords- an opportunity to make a scientific study of the art of butchery and devise expedients to make it more expert. To them a war is like a vivisection experiment' in a hospital to the young surgeons. They hail Its advent with rapturous delight . from purely, professional motives. Again, although professional soldiers are hired to kill one another, there is a fraternal sympathy among them the world over, as there Is among lawyers, who are hired to demonstrate each oth er's mendacity; and, since a new war offers chances of promotion to the members of the craft in the countries actually fighting, it is welcomed with kindly benevolence elsewhere. But there are still stronger reasons why feudal Europe, where every starving peasant carries an idle soldier on his back, would rejoice to stir up war be tween us and Japan If possilble. They hate both of us, for one thing. They hate the United States, and always have, because our institutions are a standing reproach to their own system of legalized and apotheosized robbery of the common people, and our freedom from religious and political superstition is a perpetual Incitement to their own brutalized populations to . break their chains. They hate Japan partly be cause It has never adopted what, by a delicate irony, these immemorial plun derers of the poor call "Christianity," and partly because it is today the most progressive Nation In the world. If there is anything that your thorough-going feudalist, particularly the Austrian feudalist, abhors it -is prog ress and the new ideas that underlie it. To an Austrian, an idea which is not at least two thousand years old is the most terrifying thing in the world. The European feudal militarists also hold It against Japan that she has put their fraternity to shame by routing the Rus sians, and has shown how much better use an enlightened, non-Christian peo ple can make of their vaunted strategy than they .can themselves. If ' they could induce the American people to pull their chestnuts out of the fire by making war upon Japan they would dance with delight openly, and secret ly despise us for being such fools. ( War between the United States and Japan could not benefit either of the belligerents in the slightest degree. Neither of them could gain anything of importance, and both must necessarily lose enormously. The most valuable thing that each would lose would be the friendship of-the other, to be replaced by an undying 'heritage of InternatloTial hatred. If the United States were de feated and weakened Germany would pounce upon Brazil, for which the Kaiser's mouth has watered ever since he spread his vainglorious wings upon his throne; and the rest of South Amer ica would be partitioned, among the other European nations. For, if Japan desires an outlet for her surplus popu lation and products, as Captain Rodic argues, her desire -is mild compared with Germany's, and she has an indefi nite area for expansion on the Asiatic continent, while Germany has none nearer than Africa. All the principal European powers are hungry for col onies and all of them have their eyes upon South 'America. Let the arm of the 'United States once weaken, let us become Involved In war with a power of the capacity of Japan, and our first reverse would be followed by a descent of feudalism, with its inveterate curse, upon this hemisphere. Those who doubt this are invited to remember what happened to Mexico 'during the calamities of the opening campaigns of the Civil War, though at that time the land hunger of Europe and the inter national rage for markets had scarcely begun. If Japan were defeated the case would be little better. We could not conquer and hold her territory, but Russia could. After we had destroyed her fleets and annihilated her armies the forces of the Czar would at once re sume their descent upon the Asiatic coast. Through our good offices the power and prestige of that cancerous tyranny would be re-established in the Orient, and thenceforward forever we should be confronted across the Pacific, not by a nation bound to us by every tie of kindred aspiration and traditional friendship, as Japan Is, but by the deadly malignity and Satanic policy of Russia. Would not Russia desire the supremacy of the Pacific as eagerly as Japan? Would she exercise more con science and neighborly forbearance In seeking It? Taking advantage of our tariff fetich and our ruinous shipping laws. Japan has captured the carrying trade of the Pacific. The' fault is entirely our own and the remedy is in our hands without the necessity bf a resort to war. We have. only, to direct our legislation to the promotion of the public welfare in stead of the advantage of private greed. But can we expect that Russia would be more hesitant than Japan to profit by .our fatuity?' She might not see her advantage so quickly. for the Mus covite official mind Is noted rather for cruelty than celerity, but when she did see it she would not be slow to, seize upon it; and what Russia once grabs she never releases. . Captain Rodic points out that Japan could land an army at almost any one of our unfortified harbors upon the Pa cific Coast. Perhaps she could, but what would the army do after it land ed? These harbors are separated from each other by hundreds of miles of country almost impassable for troops; they are cut off from the interior by two chains of mountains whose passes could be held . Imoresnably by small bodies of soldiers. In a territory where they could not move, with a hostile and armed population all around them, what would become of the Japanese army after it had landed? Never in the history of the world has a conquest been effected under such conditions. Captain Rodic thinks the Japanese could traverse the Coast ranges and find a hospitable retreat in the Interior where they could maintain themselves indefinitely without reinforcements. Such an opinion is not worth refuting. With five continental railroads pouring troops into their rear and every village in arms against them, the invaders would vanish like a mirage of the des ert. We have nothing to fear from Japan, and much to hope. We have only to treat this rising power with de cent courtesy and common Justice to preserve her friendship and "to share In the benefits" which herenergy, her en lightened spirit and her enfranchised courage are destined to confer upon the world. PERHAPS AND PERHAPS. Shakespeare hadn't much to do with geography, and when he spoke geog raphy, he usually made a mess of it; as when he fixed a seaport in Bohemia, or talked at large of "the new map with augmentation of the Indies." Milton, much later, had knowledge little more accurate. He had all the learning of his time, yet his geography was' still ptolemaic, and so was his astronomy. His cosmology, or cosmography, was Just a little in ad vance of that of Dante, who was two and a half centuries earlier. Knowl edge got ahead slowly, in those times. Nobody was particular about chron ology. . Shakespeare makes Hector quote Aristotle. Milton makes the Almighty himself argue like a Puritan pulpiteer or schoolmaster, on matters supposed to have transpired unnumbered ages earlier than the . Puritan regime; and he makes Katan, in those -unknown and unnumbered early ages, before the fall, dispute in the terms of theolog ical contention common in the period known as our . Middle Ages.. It all makes great poetry; but no poetry like that, or comparable with that, can be written now, or any more. It Is a question whether knowledge, slender as it still is. and uncertain and inexact as it still is in our day, yet is not now ( too exact or accurate for poetry, which, to be Impressive, must deal with the emotional and mys terious sides of our nature. It raises a doubt whether there ever will be any more great poetry. Our system of education teaches the exact sciences. It separates the actual from the possible, and turns down myth and .fable in every direction. The common schools begin It, and the acadamles and the colleges carry it on. Tou must study accuracy, to do any thing these days. Imagination is re duced to smallest limitsi Poetry suf fers, and the poetic spirit, which has done ,so much to keep alive and to propagate resolute religious beliefs fades out too. We get on wonderfully In the ways of material progress, but is here the goal of human life? Yet the apothegm is that knowledge Is power. Perhaps it is. And yet perhaps It isn't. THE ATOMIC THEORY. The New York Tribune announces with a certain gusto, that the atomic theory of matter has not yet been dis proved." For authority it quotes Lord Kelvin, who used to be Sir William Thompson before his transfiguration. One may well believe that the. atomic theory has not been disproved. ' In the sense that it explains some phenomena and fails to explain others, it stands pretty nearly where It always did, but not quite. There have always been facts which the atomic theory could not account for. The propagation of light is one example; the laws of value in chemistry are another, while to pure metaphysics it has always been a sheer absurdity. Of late years the investigations of Hertz, Roentgen, Professor and Madam Curie, and their colleagues have great ly increased the number of facts for which the atomic theory offers no ex planation. Long after Galileo had shown that the earth rotates on its axis, there were plenty of eminent people who be lieved that it stood still, and even after the voyages of Columbus, multitudes held to the venerable opinion that it was flat. Very likely no amount of mere evidence will ever convince a re spectable minority of thoi--e who were taught the atomic theory in their school days that It is impossible. Death alone will change their minds, and perhaps not even that; for the nearer some of thflm come to death the more tenacious ly they cling to their errors. No scientist of repute ever taught that the atomic theory was demonstra ble. At best they have conceded to it the status of a working hypothesis, and they have always known that It was not a very good one. The new theories do not deny that there are molecules and atoms; but they hold that the at oms are very complex, instead of sim ple and indivisible. They are probably composed of smaller 'units of some primitive substance. The properties of the different atoms, like those of gold and zinc, depend upon the number of units they contain. Since It is conceiv able that this number may be changed in - any given case, perhaps we- may sometime learn how to change gold Into zinc, if we care to do so. Thus the latest scientific speculation revives the dreams of the alchemists. A WRETCHED ' TALE OF MOROCCO. The desperate outbreak of savage fanaticism, which the French are try ing to quell in Morocco, recalls the ad ventures of James Riley in that miser able country In the year 1S15. In the century which has elapsed since his shipwreck near Cape Bojador and his enslavement by the wretched natives, the' condition of Morocco has not changed for the better. The inhabi tants are just as filthy, dishonest and murderous, and withal just as pious, as they were then. Much like our trust magnates, they preceded each outrage with an invocation to Allah, and fol lowed it with thanksgiving and prayer; and they do the same now. Riley's vessel, the Commerce, of Bos ton, was cast away on the Moroccan coast in 1815. With great difficulty Riley and his men reached ' shore through the breakers, taking with them water, food and a tent for shel ter. The next day a mob of the villain ous Inhabitants drove them aboard the foundered ship again, murdered one of their number and stole their supplies. To escape drowning they set out down the coast in a leaky boat without pro visions, hoping to meet some vessel. They . were disappointed. Hunger and thirst drove them ashore in a desolate spot, where another robber band seized f them, stripped them naked and made them slaves. The Arabs, who rode camels, now made for the Interior, and Riley, with his men, were forced to follow. The sharp stones of the herbless desert cut their bare feet to the bone; the blazing sun blistered their naked skins. At night no shelter was given them. They lay shivering and groaning on the flints. Food there was none, either for Riley or his captors, except a little camel's milk now and then. The squalid savages had no dependable source of supply. They were constant ly wandering up and down the desert, begging, stealing, murdering and pray ing. They raised no crops; they carried on no Industry. They lived in constant peril of starvation and perpetual fear of death from other miscreants like themselves. . Finally, after a journey of 300 miles, one of the most horrible ever recorded, Riley and some of his companions were sold to a couple of Arabs who expected to make a profit from their ransom. A mass of sores, their bones protrud ing, half dead from incessant beating, they were now dragged back over sub stantially the same-route to the coast again. , Like their former owners, the new ones were always hungry, always thirsty, always in fear for their exist ence. But, since these wretches had money Invested in Riley and his men, they took some slight pains to keep them alive. Finally, after unheard-of sufferings. Mogador was reached and the captives were ransomed by the British Consul. Riley recorded his adventures in a narrative which was once widely pop ular, but is now almost unknown. It is Interesting and valuable still, for his case is by no means singular. For hun dreds of years the Moroccan savages have been murdering shipwrecked mar iners or reducing them to slavery more dreadful than death. Their country is worse than a pirates' den. It is the plague spot of the earth. It Is marvel ous and shameful that civilized nations have tolerated the prolonged existence of a pretended government which shel ters crimes so hideous. Now that France has a decent excuse for cleans ing Morocco of its miseries. It is to be hoped that she will make the Job a thorough one. No petty jealousy should be permitted to stay hef hand. Standard Oil is in trouble with the City of Indianapolis.- It has been sell ing there at retail measures of oil which people were led to believe con tained one gallon each. Every one of them is a pint short. Now the City Council is after the fraud with a sharp stick, and the robber's attorney an swers that the company doesn't call these vessels gallons, but merely "con tainers." the same as paper bags. In which a grocer puts small lots of goods, and which may be of one size or an other! The subterfuge Is not deemed an answer. Of course the vessels were made to deceive and swindle buyers, by leading them to think they were getting gallons. Doubtless this trick Is practiced In many places, perhaps in all. What with rebates, short meas ures and other favorite devices, this robber has been fairly thrifty. The people of the West are warned by Western railroad and state officials to look to It that their coal bins are filled early and full. To be forehanded in this matter Is to meet the probability of a severe Winter with confidence and serenity. While householders object usually to laying in coal in advance of the season, for the reason that it slacks in the bins and becomes dusty and dirty to handle, all will agree that par tially spent coal Is better, in the event of a cold snap, than no coal at all. The prudent man will foresee the evil and hide himself behind a well-filled coal bin, providing, of course, that he Is financially forehanded as well as prudent. Hear Standard Oil's moan: "Shouldn't the law treat all alike? Nobody ever was fined so much before." But no body was ever so great a culprit. The only doubt In the matter is whether the penalty Is up to the magnitude of the offense. ' This robber has been In busi ness more than thirty years even this fine is only about one-half the annual dividend of booty during most of this time. Cannon and Hughes would trot as a great team in the election next year; but it Is doubtful whether Hughes would march In the rear rank. If he should consent he would expect, per haps, to succeed Cannon. It's never safe to nominate a man for the Vice Presidency with expectation of shelv ing him. Old Tom Piatt could give a reminiscence on that subject. "We are servants, not masters." Thus says Rockefeller. Does he think the American people are Idiots? Maybe he needs the service of a commission usually appointed by the County Judge. When a Seattle Constable levies on a debtor's wooden leg, It may seriously be asked whether a man's wig or a woman's porcelain teeth are-sacred to the minions of the law. President Roosevelt had no comment to make upon the decision fining the Standard Oil Company $29,240,000. Evi dently Judge Landis left nothing to be said. John D. says he is harnessed to a cart in which the people ride. Mark Twain should yield to him the title of prince of American humorists. It must have grieved Rockefeller when Ite read about Pierpont Morgan's J10.000.000 collection of paintings that he didn't furnish the oil. Rockefeller's declaration that he is working for the interests of the whole country may be. classified as unau thenticated news. One disclosure made by personal dif ferences at St. Paul is that the Great Northern has had a first vice-president on the payroll. It would have been more modest and quite as effective if Rockefeller had hired Chancellor Day to stand for that Interview. Mr. Bryan is not a very steady old warhorse these days. He backs and fills like some four-footed equlnes we have seen. Curious';.-, the richest man In the world is silent on the subject of violat ing an Important Federal statute. ' In his devotion to the Republican party Senator Foraker is going to fol low the Oregon plan. OREGON EPISODES RETOLD IF peace officers could always exercise the powers of a Sherlock Holmes, the life of a criminal would be so hazard ous that few would attempt such a ca reer. In fact, the career of the criminal would be cut short, however persistent his attempts in defiance of officers pos sessing such rare detective skill. The word "rare," as used here, is not inap propriate, for. though in the popular mind the Doyle stories have no counterpart in actual life, yet there have been instances, even here in Oregon, of work of which a Sherlock Holmes might well be proud. National Bank Examiner Claud Gatch tells of a case which he thinks belongs in the Holmes class, or perhaps above It, and Harry Minto, several years ago Chief of Police of Salem, was the hero. ' Gatch was cashier of the Ladd & Bush Bank, and one evening found the cash $300 short. He worked all night and most of the next day, trying to account for that $300, but could not solve the mystery. He studied, another day and then called In Mlnto. After stating the fact of the loss, Gatch explained that he had not even a suspicion where the money had gone, for he felt confident that no em ploye of the bank had taken It. In the hope of getting some sort of clue, Mlnto inquired whether anything out of the or dinary had happened in the bank the day the money was lost. "Nothing that I re member," replied the cashier, "except that some one left this pair of gloves on the desk, there." Minto took the gloves, looked them over, put them In his pocket and went out. Half an hour later he was on a streetcar bound for the State Fair Grounds. Arriv ing there he went to the racehorse sta bles. Hunting up a horseman with whom he was acquainted, Minto showed him the gloves and asked if he knew to whom they belonged. "Yes, they belong to Mr. Blank," nam ing a well-known and well-to-do horse owner of high standing in sporting circles, but a stranger to Mlnto. The chief had Mr. Blank pointed out ..to him, and when an opportunity offered he approached and addressed the sportsman, carefully watch ing his countenance as he spoke: "Mr. Blank, you cashed a check at the Ladd & Bush Bank last Tuesday," and Mlnto paused an Instant, "and you got $300 more than the check called for. I came out to get the money," and he dis played his star. The horseman acknowl edged cashing a check, but denied getting $300 too much. "That's all right," said Mlnto, "but I want that $300." Mr Blank persisted In his denial, and grew indig nant, at the charge of theft, but when Mlnto Informed him that it would be nec essary to arrest him. the man broke down, confessed that he got the money and begged that he be not exposed. He assured the officer that he had never been guilty of such a thing before, and that under ordinary circumstances he would not have taken a dollar to which he was not entitled. When he saw the money counted out to him and knew he had $300 too much, he was seized with the im pulse to keep It. and did so. He wrote a check in Minto's favor for the amount and a half-hour later the bank books tal lied with the cash in the vaults. Here was the way Mlnto flguYed It out: That was an expensive pair-of-gloves. The man who owned them might very likely be cashing a large cheek, and he over looked them because he left the hank in a hurry or under excitement. Examina tion of the gloves showed that they had been used by an expert horseman.' Tills led to the fair grounds race track. When Mlnto mentioned the cashing of a check he could tell by the expression on Mr. Blank's face that he had the right man. Subsequent Investigation showed that the $300 was paid on a check In which one figure had been written In such a manner as to be mistaken for another. I. L. S. IT IS humiliating enough for a man to make a fool of himself, but It becomes exasperating when he does so in a public manner. A stranger who was staying at a hotel in Oregon City a few days ago will probably spend some time kicking himself for the ludicrous spec tacle be presented before a crowd that gathered In the hall in front of his door. It seems that one morning he awoke late, and after dressing could not find the key to his door. He knocked and pounded, but he could get no response, and finally opened the window and called. A guest in the room below responded by stlcking his head out of the window, at the same time that a crowd began ' to collect on the sidewalk. "Some one got Into my room during the night, took the key and locked the door on the outside," shouted the victim. .Then the crowd rushed to the hotel office and. led by the landlord, mounted the stairs. Just a they ' reached the stranger's room he opened the door and explained that he had found the key on the floor where it had dropped. ' AN INTERESTING athletic contest ' took place at Stayton recently, when, at trie opening of a new bowling alley, Lee Brown, aged somewhere In his SO's, defeated Mayor Kerns, the present incum bent of the office. Kerns is a young man. Lee Browri was the first Mayor of Stayton, and though he had not bowled since he left Indiana, many years ago. he ha not forgotten the game. An active life has kept him young In spirits though old in years. NEWSPAPER accounts of the recent escape of Charles T. Duke from the penitentiary describe his achievement as "clever." While working In the brick yard he stepped behind a tier of cord wood, put on a farmer's overalls and hat, picked up a measuring pole, and, after pretending to measure the pile of wood, calmly walked past the guard and down the road to freedom. Thus far the re ports agree, but some papers give the In formation that Duke was formerly a re porter, while others say he was a printer. While either a reporter or a printer is "clever" enough to carry out a trick like that, there Is reason to believe that the man was a reporter. If he had been a printer he would have written an order on the prison authorities for the atnount due on the wood and then used it as col lateral upon which to borrow $10 from the guard as he went out. Vacation at Saajamnre. Washington Herald. The President's at Oyster Bay Resting. He chops a cord of wood each day Resting. He takes a ten-mile run each morn, And then he hoes a field of corn. Oh. he Is busv, sure's you're born, Resting. The President has lots of fun Resting. He sweats, and shelters in the sun Resting. He Is tne last to go to bed. The first to greet the morning red. Oh, where Is he who can beat Ted , Resting? VERSES OF THE DAY Contradlctlona. Atlanta Constitution. Man wid de money Groanin wld his load; Man wid de patches Sin sin on de road! Happiness a strange on Fool you mo' en mo' ; Gallop f vim da rich man En take up wid de po'I Yit, ter glt 'urn up ter heaven Dla story mum be told: "Streams er mtlk en honey dar. En enlny streets er sold! The Secret. Helen Kay Whitney, in Harper's Monthly. I have a little brook In the deeps ol my heart, T ha: ciot-n It matter if the day be chill or r .ar? Colored like a tourmaline, and winged like a dart. Voiced UVe a nightingale, It sings all the year. , Small bright herbs on the banks of the stream, Moon-pale primroses and tapestries of fern; This is a reality, and life Is just a dream Iridescent bubble that the moon-tides turn. Footsteps. By Eva M. Martirt In London National Re view. There is a footstep in the house tonirht. I hear It, sometimes distant, sometimes near, Framing tht lonely corridors at will. Mid ever as It passes by the room Where you and I sit waiting, hark! it stops. And for a brealthless space halts at the door. As tho one stood there listening; then starts Upon its echoing pilgrimage again. Come close to me, dear heart. I ant afraid. Sit so that I can fee your well-loved face. And watch the changing lights thrown by the fire Playing about your firm, compassionate mouth. And gleaming in your sorrowful, deep eyes. I am afraid, beloved! I can hear The footsteps drawing nearer. Hush, O hu?h! They pauee outside the door, as tho one fain Would enter. Ah, not yet! It is too soon. Listen! The steps pass on, and die away In the vast silence of the sleeping house. A little longer respite has been gained A little time In which I still may hear Tour voice, and see your face, and touch your hand. Tou think my nerves are overwrought to night. That my sick fancy conjures up strange things. But I know well that what I say is true. I knew, sweetheart, when first you brought me home. That Death lay waiting for me in this house. I heard him wand'ring restlessly at night Through t he dark passages and empty rooms I did not tell you ? No, such things as those One tells not even to one's best-helov'd . . , Do you remember how six months ago You brought me on a radiant Summer day To this, your childhood's home, a happy bride? Was ever happiness like ours before? We flung all thought of sorrow to the winds. Joyed In the present, drew up fairy plans For the glad future. AH our pathways led Thro a maze of sunshine, sweet with scent of flowers. Yet even then at times my heart grew cold. For often when alone I heard a step Approaching from some distant corridor; Put. looking o'er my shoulder hastily. Saw no one there, and laughed my fears away. But when the Summer days had passed, and all Our Summer flowers were faded, and the trees Put on their blazing robes of red and gold. Then In t he dark'nlng evenings we two sat In the old hall heMde the fire, and I Would hear the footsteps roam through dis tant rooms. And creeping In dumb terror close to you. Would hide my face and cover up my ears. Paying I could not bear to hear the wind Howling around the house so eerily. You kissed, me for my folly then, and. called Me names of tender ridicule, but now Your eyes are troubled and you do not seek To drive away my fears with laughing words Come-closer still, belov'd, and let me lie With face turned to. the door, that I may know The moment when It opens. 'Listen now! Down the long corridor the footsteps rsme Insistent footstep, stealing to the door. And watting, waiting, waiting! . , . Look not sad; I have no thought of sorrow. Just to lie Resting my head upon your shoulder, so. To bear and feel you there, is perfect Joy, Altho the hour of parting draws so near. For now Death's time has almost come. In deed He must be tired of wandering all night Through the dim pannages and silent rooms. Come closer still, sweetheart! I am afraid. Yet Is this fear? Ah no! How could I be Afraid to meet e'en Death with you so close ? My fear is gone . . , only ... I wish that Death Would wait a little longer! Just an hour. One little hour would mean so much to us. But he is weary and will wait no more. My eyes are heavy. If I clone them, you Will watch the door and rouse me when Death turns The handle, will you not? He waits there still. I cannot hear his footsteps any more - . . This rest Is sweet. Why do you speak my name i?o grlevlngly? Your voice sounds like a cry From magic places very far away. And I must answer when you call me so. See how I struggle back to you from worlds Of mighty silence, worlds of deepest sleep. Breathless I come, and spent, like unto one Tired with long running. Now at last my eyes t'nclose and I can answer you. But O. You did not teU me Death was In the room! How silently he must have entered. Stay, Stay near me, my beloved. It is dark. I cannot see you, thou I feel you near -But not so near as Death. Look, now he lifts The veil that shrouds his face and O, his face How beautiful! How deep and sad his eyes! He bids me follow him. Dear. I must go. He ha been kind and waited long for me. Roaming through empty darkness all alone While we two lived with Love beside the fire. O. call me not again, belov'd for Death Calls from the other side. Your volcft is faint A muffled cry across a misty sea But his compelling tone brooks no delay. He turns to "go. i hear his well-known step Fade slowly down the dim-lit corridor He calls. I cannot wait. Good night! Good -by ! The Liner of Tomorrow. i An viewed by two old salt?. Neptune sn4 Davy Jones, during a siesta In Davy Jones' locker. ) Harper's Weekly. Said Davy Jones, "I plainly see. We're losing of our grip; A trolley-car Just whizzed by me She tumbled off a ship. ' I dassen't hardly upward float. These great ships make me flinch; Why. when they launched the last big boat She raised the sea an Inch!" A mammoth ship went past just now," Said Neptune in dismay ; 'She had a golf-links on her bow. With eighteen holes to play; And as I drew a breath to dive. While she was rushing by. Some duffer golfer sliced his drive. And plunked me In the eye." "An auto jumped the steamer's deck. And dove into the sea. Without one warning 'honk.' by heck! And nearly flattened me." Said Davy .lones. with anger swelled. "The goggle-eyed machine! I wondered why my locker smelted So rank of gasoline! "In land and sa the trolley scare! Red autos break our bones! I gue?n we'll have to live in air," Said doleful Davy Jones. "But even that will hardly do," fried Neptune, In distress, "For strainers carry air-ships, too! You've got another guess!" Outrlnssted. Washington Star, Everybody's kick in. Klckin' 'bout the heat; Klckin' 'bout the prices We pay for things to eat. Kick In' .'bout the railroads An the Government; Klckin 'bout the taxes An the way they're spent; Klckin' 'bout the autos An the pace they set; Klckin' bout the grafters An' the pull they get. Old mulo looks dejected. Says in tones demure. "When It comes to klckin' I'm an amachoor!"