PAGE 4
LA GKAisDE EVENING OBSERVER, TUESDAY, JANUARY 3, 1911.
Salle
Wesfs
Half Price Sale
of Waists, .
Childrens,
Dresses,
Jackets,
Union Suits
and
Wash Dresses
N
w. m
Full Sway !
High Quality Merchandise at Price Reductions that will surprise you
Great Reductions in Ladies' and
... In
Misses' Ready-to-Wear Garments
Entire Line of
Men's
Clothing
Reduced
25 to
50 Per Cenlf
-iaaBaaaaaaaaaaaaaBWBM MMMMHMIMHHIIMHMHHaHaMHH
Annual Sale Annual Sale Annual Sale Annual Sale Annual Sale Annual Sale Annual Sale
of of of of of of of
Fine Muslin Ladies' and Blankets and Men's Shoes Staley Brand Men's'
Embroideries Underwear Misses'Shoes Comforters all grades Underwear Dress Shirts
.
Prices Lowered in Every Department
- See our large Posters for Prices
J LO ,1
m
THE OBSERVER
BRUCE DENNIS
Editor and Owner.
Entered at the postofrice at La Grande
at second-class matter.
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
Dallj, single copy 5c
Daily, per week, 15c
Dally, per month , 65c
i. ..... !
This paper will not publish an ar
ticle appearing over a nom do plume.
Signed articles will be revised sub
ject to the discretion of the editor.
Please sign your articles and save
disappointment.
THE MAYOR'S MESSAGE.
Elsewhere In this issue th Evening
Observer prints Mayor Richardson's
message In full. It Is a document
worthy the careful attention and con
sldration of each and every citizen.
Without endeavor to bewilder the
reader with rhetoric or flowery lan
guage the new mayor calls attention
to some of the good things accomplish
ed by the Meyers administration and
then makes a few recommendations
that are proper and essential.
For instance, his statement relative
to the fire department is without doubt
one of strict Imporance, and later we
predict that the mayor will go a step
farther and recommend a paid fire de
partment for La Grande. There Is no
question as to the need of such an in
stitution and we believe Mayor Rich
ardson will at the proper time be a
strong advocate of It.
His reference to the health of the
community Is Important, and the rec
ommendation that all citizens be com
pelled to use city water Bhould be
thoroughly understood. Some might
think this Is an Interference with per
sonal rights, but it is not so. The pub
lic health Is not an individual matter.
One many may choose to neg
lect himself or his family and
cause Illness which might spread
through a whole community, in
which case that man has no right
to get up his own wishes and desires
above a community. Mayor Richard
son, in his campaign to protect the en
tire community will have the heartiest
support possible to accord an official
GEORGE PALMER, FRes. F. J. HOLMES, Tlce Pres.
IT. L. BREX1I0LTS, AssX fash. EARL ZODEL, 2d Ast Ch.
F. L, MEYERS .Cashier. ,
La Grande National Bank
of La Grande, Oregon
United States Depository
Capital, Surplus and Undivided Profits $200,000.00
by the great majority of the people of
La Grande.
It was with considerable pleasure
that we read what the new official
had to say regarding the Indebtedness
of La Grande. Everyone is aware that
La Grande is about sixteen months
behind In current money for current
expenses, and Mayor Richardson
touched upon this subject in no un
mistakable manner. He hopes another
year will witness La Grande paying
her paper at par, which would with
out doubt be one of the best things
this administration can do. Few things
tend to hold a city hack more than
the fact that Its paper is below par. A
discount of five per cent, does not
seem large but It places an odium on
the whole community that Is hard to
overcome. In his efforts to bring the
balance sheet even the new mayor
will hear little complalne, even if the
city taxes are raised a peg to do it.
As a whole the message Is a most
commendable Introduction of the new
administration.
BARRETT AM) G00I ROADS.
' DIRECTORS.
GEORGE PALMER, IT. I-.BRE.M10LTS
Tf. J. CnrRCII F. I, MET 18
F. J. DOLMES Yf. M. TIERCE
C C. PEXIXC.TON
W. D. CLEAYER
- F. M. BYRIT
With onr ample resources and facilities we caa rentier jom efii.
dent aerrlce aid handle yoor baiilaeis to jour entire satisfaction.
State Senator Charlie Barrett ' is
over from Athena today interviewing
his Union constituency regarding the
proposed good roads bill which Judge
Webster of Portland will have Intro
duced !n the legislature this winter.
That bill proMes for state aid to
counties that will agree to add twice
I me Hiunuiu pivvn d.t me suue lor roaa
building. In other words if I'nion coun
j ty would agree to nut up $ 10.000 the
.state would put up $20,000 for road
! building In this county. On the face
j of it there might be some attraction,
j but when one comes to analyze the
. matters It certainly is not the right
i way to solve, or attempt to solve the
I road question. In the first place, who
S pays the tax that will raise this mon-
ey contributed by the state? The en
I tire state, of course. Now according
! to the bill as It ' framed. If a county
I does not t.ike advantage of the state's
! offer then that county is out Its por
j tion of the general tax. which goes to
! some county that dos take the state's
offer. ,
j Put this Is rot the worst feature of
j the whole matter. Two years ago a
j man by the name of Judge Scott of
J Salem, came through eastern Oresron
talking good roads apparently for the
good of the cause. This year one
Judge Webster from Portland did the
same thing, apparently for the good
of the cause. No one could understand
how these men were giving of their
time and paying their own expenses
juBt to agitate a good roads move
ment. Here is the Joker. It now devel
ops that the Webster road bill pro
vides for state highway commission
er at a salary of $4,000 a year, an as
sistant at $1800 a yea and an army
of clerks and underlings, and it fur
ther develops that Judge Scott of Sa
lem and Judge Webster of Portland
are each a candidate for the position
of commissioner which position will
be created under the new bill.
Shades of darkness. Did you ever
see the like? It is almost a safe guess
out here In Oregon to attach a per
sonal motive to the act of every pub
lic man. Usually when the whole mat
ter focuses down it is found that a
salary is the pre and the man doing
the screaming is after that salary.
This paper is against the good roads
bill as framed by Webster. Thorough
ly against it with both feet We want
good roads as badly as anybody in
Oregon, but we are not willing to
raise o Judge Webster or a Judge
Scott on the public whefl these two
self-appointed road men have been
busy for two, years making for them
selves a soft place to lay.
And from the way Senator Barrett
talked to us today we think he will
oppose this measure on. .the , floor of
the senate, which will be but. the
right and proper thing to do.
Advocates of this measure say.
"We want an automobile road. from
one end of Oregon to the other so
that tourists will come here." .
They are wrong. Oregon Is too new
and not sufficiently developed to he
paying to tourists. What we . need
here is good roads for the farmer,
for the lumberman, for the wood
hauler, for the miner, so that pro
ducts of this great state can be haul
ed to market with as little cost as
possible. Automobile roads will be all
right later, but right now we need
practical highways that will benefit
the producer.
j Under the bonding act each county
j is empowered to vote bonds to build
roads in thet county. This is all right
and It Is good enough. Lets let the1-
?" J"?.d. " UMBRELLA REPAIRS
ui lU'O YUUlTOO caj;cuoc vi otaiv
aid which in the end provides jobs
for a lot of office seekers and sells
large quantities of road machinery.
SUIT AGAIXST GOYERXOR WEST
Covers from 50 cts
to Three Dollars
L C. Smith-La Grande
Today in Judge Knowles court the
case against Governor West, George
H. Currey and Senator Turner Oliver
was argued. It is a suit wherein a
railroad rate expert claims damages
from the above named defendants for
publication of a letter said to have
been written by Governor West when
he was at the head of the state railway
commission.
No, there is nothing serious about
the matter Just a case of a man being
hauled into court after he has achiev
ed prominence in being elected gover
nor. Mr. Currey and Senator Oliver
are Incidental in the case, for the be
lief Is that the real man the expert
rate man Is after is West.
But twenty-five thousand dollars
damages Is a good deal. A man must
show that he has been wronged to
quite an extent before he is entitled
to collect that much money, even from
a governor. Perhaps that letter of the
governor's not only curtailed the earn
ing power of this rate expert but put
him out of business, so to speak. But
at that $25,000 is a chunk of coin.
HoxevN Body to be Cremated.
Pasadena, Jan. 3 The late Aviator
Hoxey, was buried thin aft
2.30 from the undertaking parlor The
body will be privately cremated.
Groceries
and BAKERY
GOODS
S
Royal Grocery
Bakery
m
We Clean, Press, Repair and
Make Clothes to Please You
huts blocked, give us a trih.
THE WARDROBE
1118Adm Ave,Tel Main 735 BERT THOMAS