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VOL. XIV.
IJGE DEFICIT
AJiSUAL REPORT OF POSTMASTER
6ISERAL FILED, SHOW-ING
RECOMMENDATIONS.
IL BOS
Enral Routes Dave Been Extended,
Wages Increased, More Curriers Put
on Service, Froved la Every .Way
let Deficit of Last Year is Cut
Down Greatlj Jew Rates on
Jfagaslneg Advertising: to be Main
tained, -rt..-.r:-v-.:,
' v
Washington, Dec. 12 Showing ' a
wonderful reduction in the post office
deficit, outlining required legislation
and picturing the. postal conditions as
they exist this year, the post master
general today filed his annual report
It says in part: -
A year ago the fiscal records of the
postal service disclosed a deficit of
seventeen and a half million dollars,
the largest in the history of the coun
try In the sapce of twelve months a
reduction of eleven and a half mil
lions has been made in this deficit, the
exqess of expenditures over receipts
as reported for the year ended June
20 last amounting to only $5,848,566
. .88, ... . ''-.. , '...;. I
it is most gratifying to report that
, this unprecedented reduction has been
made without any curtailment; of
postal facilities. On the contrary, the
service has beeYi largely extended. At
tempts in previous years to reduce a
, deficit by restricting the development
otthe postal service have invariably
failed' The (policy of the present ad
nijlnistratlon has been to wipe out los
sfls by increasing the . postal business
along profitable lines, and while thus
; enlarging the department's Income to
reduce as far as possible the rate of
' expenditure by cutting out "'wasteful
; processes, by simplifying and render
. log more effective ' the methods of
handling ppstal business, and by rais
ing to the highest possible standard
the filclency of o cers and employ
es. , . .... ; .... -;
r Every practicable measure has been
taken during the year to accelerate
the movement of the mails. The more
quickly mail matter can' be handled
the less expensive is the process. De
lays of any kind are costly, for they
Jesuit In complaints that must be giv
en attention, and the time thus con
Siimed is a source of heavy loss. ' The
; department has accordingly devoted
. .'Itself with great earnestness to the
"work of increasing the efficiency of
the mall service, considering this the
wrest method of making the postal
establishment self-supporting.
'. I Postal SaTlngs System.
The Board of Trustees created by
vhe act of June '25, 1910, to control,
jupervlse, and administer the postal
' Savings system has made substantial
progress In perfecting a plan of oper
atlon. After a most careful Investigation
ijnd numerous conferences with lead
., ing bankers the board unanimously
nodded to adopt the plan of using? cer
; tlflcates of deposit instead of pass
books. ';. .,
j I In order, to make the first .trial of
, ,the new system as comprehensive as
wssible under the limited appropria-
u vroviaea Dy uongress a single
post-o ce In each State and Territory
has been selected at which postal sav
ngB dej;K8its will be received from the
1st of January next; . ,
The amount ftrmmhrlfttAd fnr th
(first year of the system was only;
1100,000, and from this sum must be
raid an the expenses of equipment, In
cluding the engraving and printing
of forms, certiflctaes, bonds, etc., as
well as the cost of clerical assistance
yor the conduct of the "postal savings
Ijmislness. , ; s, .
j Owing to the smallness of this ap
;ProprIatlon It haB been impossible thus
:-jr to establish postal savings de
l posltoriea in the large city post-offlc-'
The offloes designated are all of
i I"6 .second class. In their selection
(; Ir has been the purpose Ho choose
f immunities in which the conditions
-e exceptionally favorable for the de
velopment of a postal savings busi
ness. JTost of them are Industrial cen
ters where wage-earners will be es
pecially benefited by the kind of bank
'ng facilities, afforded. , A large pat
ronage of the service Is expected
from foreign-born Americans in these
titles who are now remitting consid
erable sums to their native countries,
"Bually ln the form of money orders,
"'any of the places selected, particu
J" in the West, are not adequately
Provided with other savings lnstltu
l'ons. The work of furnishing the
POST OFFICES
CUT DO!
DESCRIBES POST
JGjDE UNION COUNTY, OREGON".
necessary equipment to the post-offices
selcted and thoroughly instructing
the postmasters and the;r assistants
in the operation of theE,vstem will
consume several weeks, but every ef
fort will be made to have the desig
nated offices ready for the new postal
savings system will be given at least
a month's trial in the original forty
eight offices before others are added
to the list, although it Is expected
that the number of offices will be
largely increased before the epd of
the current fiscal year. :
Parcel Post
The recommendation made In the
last annual report of the department
for the introduction of a limited parcel-post
service on rural routes Is
earnestly renewed. It is believed that
as soon as the postal savings system
Is thoroughly organized the Post-Of-
rice department should be prepared ta
establish throughout the countrv- aM
general parcel post. As the prelim
inary step In the development of such
a service it is hoped that Congress
will . authorize the delivery on rural
routes of parcels weighing as high as
11 pounds, which is the weight lim
it for the international parcels-post
This form of service can be conduct
ed with iittle if any additional ex
pense to the Government It. will not
teijuiro uin apyuuiuiient oi more car
riers, for those already employed have
the necessary equipment in the way of
horses and wagons to distribute the
mail as well as the ordinary mail.
Rarely is the latter of sufficient vol
ume to take up more than a small
portion of the mall space ln the car
riers wagon. A rural parcel post of
the kind proposed, if successfully con
ducted, would "probably lead to a more
general system. Before the parcel ser
vice is extended to the whole country
however, definite information should
be obtained as to the nature and vol
ume of the business to be handled.
It is accordingly urged that In con
Junction with the experiment on rural
routes a further inquiry 'be authorized
by Congress in order that the depart
ment may be in a better position to
develop the system on conservative
lines and that a special appropriation
for the inquiry be granted at the com
ing session.
Crusade Against Fraudulcuf Use of
v.: . Malls. ,.
The crusade started by the Post-office
Department early in the year
against the fraudulent use of the mails
has been pushed with great vigor.
During the last few months the prin
cipal officers of 34 corporations, com
panies and firms have been placed un
der arrest by post-office inspectors for'
swindling the public by this method.
In 46 additional cases individuals
have been arrested for coductlng sim
ilar schemes 'to defraud. It ds esti
mated that the 80 important cases re
cently brought to a head represent
swindling operations that have filched
from the American people ln lesa than
a decade fully a hundred million dol
lars.. As the work of investigation
proceeded it became apparent that
schemes for swindling! through the
mails were vastly more numerous and
extensive than supposed. Many of
these fraudulent enterprises proved to
be as far-reaching ln their ramifica
tions aa the postal service itself. Not
only have they swindled many thous
ands of credulous people out of money
roollshly invested, but to a large ex
tent they have shaken confidence in
legitimate enterprises. The stamiplng
out of these frauds Is therefore as Im
portant to capitalists engaged in law
ful business undertakings as It is to
investors. . Their attempts will un
doubtedly save to the American people
millions of dollare annually.
The department's former practice
of issuing fraud orders in Buch cases
proved ineffectual. While by that
method the offending concern wag dei
prlved of the use of the mails it was
a simple matter for its promoters to
organize under a new name and thus
evade the law. In the present crusade
the department's plan has been to
secure the arrest, conviction, ana im
prisonment of the swindlers them'
selves. This method, which Is prov
ing to be moBt effective, will be con'
tfnued until the fraudulent -use of
the malls is brought to a close. ,
' Annanl Vacations.
In the department's last report It
was recommended that a law be
passed granting thirty days' annual
leave of absence with nay to post-of
fice clerks and city letter carriers and
also to railway postal clerks who are
required to work sJx days or more a
week throughout the year. Such a
measure would place the employees in
the postal service outside of Washlngi
ton on the same basis as the depart
mental emnloyees ftvith respect to va
cations. It is hoped that Congress
will take the fleslred action at tne
coming session. r ' . ..
BUTS SNODGRASS FARM.
A. Mneiiborir of Cove Acquires Ttltle
, to Farm Near This City Today.
One of Cove's' substantial and en
terprising farmers. A. Milenberg to
day closed a deal through the Currey
rea estate agency for the purchase
of the 160 acre farm three miles
southeast of La Grande known as the
Snodgrass farm, and a part of the W.
J. Snodgrass estate. He will take
possession about March 1st- The pur
chase price was $6500. . '
i m
nrnnnrn nv
:JiUiLl Lfl
P1EI
STEAMER POUXDIXG OX ROCKS
ON BLIGHTS ISLAND; SO
ONE KILLED.
P.SSEfiSERS BELIEVED SFE
Ship tin Been Fonndlnir to Pieces
Since Midnight Fasscpgm Had
Just Esceped Similar Accident
Boats Hurrying; te Rescue of the
Crew and FassepirersWlreless
Caught From Ship Operator, Today.
Seattle, Dec. 12 Local officials of
the Alaska Steamship company this
afternoon received word that the 103
passengers and crew aboard . the
Olympia were, rescued, beink taken
to Valdez. No word of how they were
rescued has been received. The ves
sel will be a total loss.
Seattle, Dec. 12 At 9:30 this moriU
ing no report had been received from
Cordova as to the fate of 106 persons
aboard the wrecked steamer Olym
pia, wntcn is being pounded to pieces
on a reef on Blights Island, Prince
wmiam sound, where she struck Sat
urday ,night during a gale. ,
According to last word heard from
Operator Hays aboard the steamer,
the igale continues sand waves are
breaking high over the vessel. Life
boats were ready to launch but won't
be used until a last resort. It is be
lieved the steamers June, which left
Valdebe and the steamer Dora, which
left seaward to aid have arrived. The
Olympia carried 52 passengers and
a erew of 54. . V . .
The Olympia left here Dec. De
riving at Cordova Satuday, leaving
Saturday night for Valdez. She struck
near, midnight, as shortly afterward
the naval wireless picked up faint
calls for assistance. The Olympia
carried 26 passengers who had sail
ed previously for Alaska on the steam
ship Northwestern, which ran aground
at False Bay, San Juan Island, Dec.
2. ; v., . -.. - ;,.
Aldez. Dec. 12 The U. S. revenue
cutter Donaldson, with two tug boats
started from valdez to aid the Olym
pia and will' probably reach there this
afternoon.
Passengers Reported Sa'fe.
Vancouver, B. C. Dec. 12 A wire
less picked up here says passenger at
the Olympia are safe. The message
was received at 9.30 this morning.
RETURN FROM FUNERAL.
Mr. and Mrs. Falmer and Two Girls
Return After Sad Visit East
Leaving La Grande several weeks
ago for a happy sojourn -with rela
tives in the east, but doomed to sor
row and grief over the sad demise of
their only son, is the story of Mr.
and Mrs. Vincent Palmer who re
turned to La Grande yesterday ac
companied by their daughters, Clar
olyn - and Margaret While in the
east their son, James Frederick died
at Red Oak, Iowa, at the home of his
grandfather, J&mes Frederick Pal
mer. Interment took place in Brod
head, Wis., the former home of Mrs.
Palmer. The Junior Palmer was a
husky, healthy youngster when he
left for the east with his parents
earlier In the fall.
$125,000 INSURANCE DEAL.
Hot Lake Sanatorium Is Insured by
.- La Grande Insurance Men. .
Walter ' Pierce, president of the
Hot Lake Sanatorium Co., is placing
$125,000 of insurance on the sanator
ium today. The total is being divided
ajnotig the local Insurance men.
I Li
Sll
POULTRY EHTRIES MEIfW
Birds are arriving In encouraging
numbers to be entered in the second
annual poultry show which opens to
morrow morning In the I. 6. O, F.
auditorium and the birds thus far
brought in indicate that the cackle
conclave will be far ln excess of last
year's event
Millar Purvis, x the well ' known
poultryman mill arrive this evening
to award the scores. Mr. Purvis is
editor of several poultry Journals, is
a lecturer of repute and his coming
alone means much toward the suc
cess of the show. ,
Give Poultry Away.
; Every day of the show a pair of
MONDAY, DECEMBER 121910.
nn
pp
nn flinn-ie
IDLY
S 1ITIESS
NDIYIDUAL KNOWING- MORE
THAN ALL OTHERS, LIKELY,
IS MISSINU. QUANTITY.
Himii LtfiSTHY OuE
State Coins; Over 1 Evidence Again
With Rebuttal Testimony Story of
Wills Being Drunk Is Refuted by a
Large Number of Witnesses for the
State Wag Road Gravel or Dusty
Is Question of Importance'
When Judge Knowles : reconvened
court this morning' the prosecution
had a line of work mapped out that
evidently will require . cooslderablq
time to complete. It. was notlcod in
the lobby of the court house that sev
eral new witness were an hand from
Elgin, and among them, Dr. Kirby
was recalled. '
It is believed that an important
point for the Jury is the disappear
ance of an eye witness to the shooting
and why he disappeared. Attempts to
show that Wills was the drun'i man
lying on the porch the night of the
homicide will be combatted to the
bitter end, for a number of witnesses
stand ready, and some have sworn,
that Wllla was not drunk, nor had he
been drinking anything during? the
day. This brings the matter up to
some other -man whose identity can
only be described as follows:
A man by the name of Myers was
hired for the threshing crew the af
ternoon of August 5th. Myers had a
partner a man who was touring, the
country with him-ro.nd the 'two men
went our to Porter's (Just before the
sThiptlng took place. . The unknown
man was drunk, according to state
ments made by people from Elgin,
and Myers was sober. When the shot
was fired Myers happened to be very
near. Porter and assisted in carrying
him into the house. He was a handy
man around the scene and knew as
mucli about the real transaction pro
bably as any man on earth. At six
o'clock the following morning Myers
and his partner concluded to move
on, but Myers was detained for the
evidence he would give afthe coron
er's inquest But his partner was
overlooked and has never since been
seen. That' partner was the drunk
man, is; the claim made by several
witnesses.-
- But what became of Myers?
He gave bond for his appearance
as a witness before the grand Jury
but disappeared and bag never been
seen since the coroner's Jury closed.
Why Myers and his peculiar partner
evaporated, as it were, is one of the
mysteries. Why he did not stay and
give In his testimony in the case and
render himself a valuable witness at
the trial Is what cannot be understood
by many.
Rebuttal Will be Lengthy.
Contrary to ; rebuttals in most
cases, the etate is believed to have a
long line of procedure up Its sleeve.
Instead of merely calling a witness to
either substantiate or contradict some
point, the witness placed . on the
stand in this rebuttal is taken down
the line of tragedy and rivet after
rivet in the mechanism of the prose
cution Is being clinched much as the
boilermakerV clinches his iron rivets
on a Job. , - v
Interest has not lagged for a mo
ment . and thla morning befor.e the
hour . of opening court had arrived
there was a large attendance. Elgin
people are here whether subpoenaed
or not, for the case is one of such im
portance that the entire county Is In
terested in it. . x
Pistol Story Is Important
' From the way in which attorneys
for the nroswuHon are weaving their
, ,. , .
some popular breed of chickens will
be given away on the raffle system.
Every person entering- the place will
receive a number and the winner will
draw the chickens. Tomorrow It will
be a pair of brown single comb leg
horns that will be given away. The
Observer will announce the winners
each day. . , . '
The show opens tomorrow and
continues for three days and ar
rangement to. have Mr. Purvis deliver
a lecture during his stay here will be
made after his arrival., lie Is now
completing a lecture tour, taking him
through Boise.
Kill. I!
chain of evidence !n an attempt to
break down the story of Parker find
lug a pistol l.i the dusty road at the
point where the shooting occurred,
it is considered that this Is one of
the vital poiuts from a legal view of
the trial.
J. M. Darr 'was called to testify re
garding the coudit'on of the soil In
the highway ln front' of the Porter
hom and he said It was of a gravel
formation and not subject to becom
ing dusty. Attorney Cochran for the
defense took the witness in hand and
grilled him pret;y lively finally suc
ceeding in not only getting a portion
of the evidence struck out, but alao
that portion of a prior witness, D. A.
Barnes, which bore on the subject of
dusty roada. Darr was in the road on
Sunday following the killing and made
examination of the surroundings. He
was also there Tuesday.
Cochran asked the witness if there
had not been refuse from an old saw
mill nearby hauled into the road at
that ipolnt but the witness did not
agree there had been.
Charles A. Flessar said he was on
the premises immediately after the
shooting; that he remained all night,
and had been over that particular part
of the road ;ln .question many times
mr in snooting. e saict tne. eract
spot of the shooting was never point
ed out to him but he observed the
road was gravelly and not very dusty.
The defense counsel went after him
with severe questioning. Attorney C.
E. Cochran said:
"Who told you to say there was no
dust in that road?"
"No one," replied the witness. "
. Chad wick a Firm Witness.
George v Chadwlck of Cove was a
firm witness. He "knew . Porter in
South Dakota and had been his friend
ever since. Porter came to this valley
!a 1884, according tto Jhadwkk. He
said he was called to the Porter home
on the day following the crime. He al
so asserted there was no dust in the
road to amount to anything; that the
ground was of a gravel formation,
and while some dust appeared ln the
wagon tracks, there was practically
no dust outside of the tread of the
wheels. The witness and defense at
torneys locked horns over the dusty
road question but Chadwlck held his
own very well and In the minds of
many he made a good witness for the
pro8ocutlon, , , . ,L. j..J. j
Just before the noonday "adjourn
ment Jewel Galloway was called to
the stand. He lived on the Porter
form from the time he was 12 years
of age until he was 25 years of age.
Evidence of this nature on the topo
graphy of the country and the dryness
of nearby highways, also the nearest
streams and the places where gravel
and rock were obtainable, is consid
ered valuable for a boy growing up
never forgets these points in his sur
roundings. ,Mr. Galloway said he
knew the condition of the road where
the revolver la alleged to have been
found and .that it is a gravel road
with very little dust; that the gravel
had been hauled ln at soma earlier
period in order to prevent the water
from crossing the road in the springr
time. He also told of the stream that
flowed nearby and the little branch
that was caused by a little spring a
few hundred feet distant. ;;
When Jewel Galloway had told of
the roadway as he had known it for
many years, stating there is a gravel
formation there and as a rule there
is little dust it had a bearing on the
entire " proceeding. He was followed
by E. E. Jones, former road sup
ervisor of that district who corro
borated the statement made by Mr.
Galloway.
Editor Lee Tuttle of the Elgin Re
corder was called to testify regard
ing his visit to the Porter home
the day following the tragedy, but
he could say but little concern ng the
dust in the road for. he had paid no
attention to' it, His impression was
that there was very little dust .
Dr. Kirby retold a portion of the
story of his professional visit to. the
Porter home after the shooting also
told of going out to give his horse
some oats after midnight and stumb
ling over a drunk man in the runway
of the barn. This, according to the
doctor, was the same drunk man who
had figured in a mysterious manner
In tl)!s case from the beginning, but
the man was not Al. Wills. Again it
was established , that the drunk man
was a (partner of Myers who disap
peared with Myers the next day after
the killing.
VOTE APPARENTLY IIEAYT.
Practically Fnifro . Registered Tote
of the City will bo Cnse Today.
'Quietly thouRt steady, voting has
been going on in the four proclncts of
the city today for the annual muni
cipal election. True , to an undesir
able custom In vogue, here for years,
many are. being sworn In, old time
voters even being included in tthe
class. The vote ,1s heavy in all the
precincts and the total vote when the
polls close tonight at 7 o'clock will
likelv be mora than th rop-intontwi
strength. Much Interest is taken ln
tne outcome but few predictions are
made. Friends of those not conceded
to be in the running are energetic in
Tustllng a heavy vote, ; hoping to
take advantage of lethargy among
those who forsee certain victory for
their particular friends.
NUMBER
39
DEIffliTCIIIEF
JliSTICEIfl!
. Bi' TAFT
JUDGE WHITE DISPLACES COY.
HUGHES FOR HIGHEST Ptt
SITION ON THE BEM'H.
GonnR-ATiori is effected
Though Taft Was IncHncd to Appoint
Hughes Lawyers and Representa
tives Argue the Executive Out f
t no Notion Democrat White, Sets
New Precedent In Annals of Ap.
-.- miiMniARi'! imiit-
Washington, Dec. 12 Justice Ed
ward White of the Supreme Court or
the. United States was today nomin
ated to be Chief Justice. A few min
utes' aftierward congress confirmed
the president's nomination.
Judge Willis Vanderventer of the
Eighth circuit court of United States
and Judge Joseph Lamar of Georgia, V
formerly of the Georgia supreme court
were nominated for associate Jus
tices. Taft decided to appoint White
chief Justice instead of Hughes after
a long conference with Attorney Gen
eral Wkkersham.
White Is a Democrat' and this is
the first time ln history the president
has nominated a man to such a posi
tion of opposite political faith. Judge .
Lamar 1b likewise a Democrat The
makeup of the SuprAne Court now is.
Edward White, Chlet Justice;' John
Marshall, Harlan Joseph McKenna,
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Willara Day,
Charles Hughes, Willis Van Devanter
and Joseph Lamar, White has been on
the Supreme Bench since 1894. He
was aprolnted. by Cleveland. It Is
known Taft favored Hughes for the
position, but members of the Cabi
net presented objections of a number
of attorneys and congressmen so he .
changed his mind.
COMMERCE COURT MEN NAMED.
Taft Makes Appointments for Newly
Created Court of Commerce.
Washington. Dec. 12 President W.
H. Taft today nominated Martin Knapp
now cnairman or the interstate com
merce commission and Jnrtza Jul inn
Mack of Illinois and Robe W.
Archibald, united States Judge of the
central district of Pennsylvania, now
Judge of the customs appeal court,
and Win. Hunt, of Montana, Judge of
court of the customs appeals a
Judges for the - newly created com
merce court makine the bench tar
the court now to read, Knapp, Arch-
oaia, Hunt, Garland and Mack.
C. C. McChord of Kent.nc.kv find TV
H. Meyers of Wisconsin will be ap- '
pointed to fill the vacancy left pa
the Interstate Commerce Commission.
TROUBLE SEEMS BREWING.
' - ' ,
Game Wardens Return from Investl.
gatlon and Consult Prosecutor.
Chas. B. Oral, the game warden for
Union county and Joe Clemonp. the -game
warden for , Wallowa county "
have Just returned from Tu Kanon
ln the northern part of Columbia
county, Washington where they went
to Investigate the report of slaugh
tering of deer on the Oregon side of
Wenaha -forest Ireserve. Mr. 'dem
ons is at one of his old tricka tnd.
he wag allowed to Bee the district at
torney at once on his arrival. It Is
apparent that there are some grounds
for it looks rather serious. Mr. Oral
is in attendance at court today and
was in consultation with the district
attorney and J. L. Rand. The report
of their investigations will be made
public as soon as permissible. '
Imm J""-"
ALDRICH IN RUBBER TRUST,
Bookg Shows He Owns Big Majority
In Firm Known as Trust
New York, Dec " 12. Nelson W.
Aldrich, senator from-Rhode Island,
owns 346 shares in the United State
Rubber company which likewise Is
known as the rubber trust, according
to the New York World. The etory la
based on an examination of the book
or the company.
WALLA WALLA HAS 19,000.
' '
Population of Several Washfnrton
' Towns Announced by Dnrnnd.
Washington. Dec. 12-The census
bureau announced the population of
Centralla, Wash., at 7,311; Hoqulam,
8U71; Olympia. the (capltol, 6,896;
Walla Walla, 19.364; Aberdeen 13,
660; Belllngham 24,298.