La Grande evening observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1904-1959, April 28, 1913, Image 4

Historic Oregon Newspapers

La Grande evening observer., April 28, 1913, Image 4

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Newspaper Page TextV; THE OBSERVER BRUCE DEN N i S EDITOR AHD OW5EB. , . ere4 at the fettolflee at Lm Grande. Orerem, m eeeend class natter. 8CB8CBIPTI0N BATES. 'JlT. alngle eopy U (It. ner week Sail, imp month . WILSON AND THE PHILIPPINES. President Wilson m declinnig to set , a definite date for the independence of the Philippines U taking the wise course. That the inlands are far from ready for independence is an admitted fact When they will be is a question that cannot be answered at present. Growth in powers of aolf government, self restraint and gener al education is necessary before the : natives can be trusted with contra' of their own affairs. . As the situation has developer there is not a great deal of difference between the Republican and Demo- cratic parties o;i this question. When Bryan ran for the presidency in 1D00, imperialism was an issue. It is such no longer and fhe administration rea lizes that fact. The United Slater has entered into world affairs, defi nitely has become a factor in world politics. However we might like to turn back to the old isolation on this continent we can not. Ridding our selves of the Philippines would mean THE GREAT FLOOp OF WIS. The nation which ha solved the greatest engineering problem of the age, the Panama canal, apparently stands helpless before a nooa srcua tion within It own boundaries that already in our short history has cost iiiiianifa of lives and millions in property. The . Mississippi river, the largest in the world, and its tributaries for nearly a century has been the great est interrogation point in this coun try. That the cfuestion it raises has not been answered has been due, not to lack of facilities, not to lack of knowledge, not to lack of warning, but simply to lack of common sen.- The crime of the pork barrel is re ihla for the inundation that made 400,000 homeless last year, de stroyed many lives and laid waste the area of many principalities. palities. This government already has spent more than $200,000,000 in confining the Mississippi and it sfeeders which wisely expended, spent according to a systematic and comprehensive plan, would have wade life and property safe forever in the myriad cities, towns and open country situated eith er on the main river or on one of its many branches or sub-branches. Be cause it has been foolishly, heedless ly expended we have year after year a flood situation that only China would tolerate. For half a century the engineering department of the government has been recommending, almost implor ing, a definite plan of flood protec- only a partial lessening of. the bur den. We can not so easily get clear . t,on' gr the Kreat va,ey that ,ieg be. or Hawaii, Guam, and the otner ra- tween the Appalachians and the cific dependencies, to say nothing of Rockieg. it we nave permitted the our moral obligations in Cuba and periodictti nida on the treasury that Latin America. hag defeated this end we have done The Democrats have found it euny jt against the advice of our own ex to criticize the Republicans on the perta, administration of the Philippines and . This ig a big country..but it is not other possessions, but now that they 0 Wg that jt cannot meet thig prob. are in power it is hard to take any (,em and conquer it it can, if it will, other attitude than has been taken. Ph.nillfiv nmcnt the noliev that has .VUw.H.rf j t w man of the board of the St. Louis and San Francisco railroad,' a line that traverses a district almost annually inundated, has taken an especial in terest in this plan, .and for a time it looked as though the government would consider it seriously. The .last appropriation bill, however, broke the records for reckless rapacity, and did not provide any more than has pre vious bills for permanent and 'con nected Improvement. . ' . In 1849 we had a flood that spread over 160 squares in New Orleans and submersed 1.600 building's. In 1874 an overflow of rivers . in western Pennsylvania caused tfie loss of 220 lives. In 1881 thousands of acres in Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota" and Mis souri were Inundated with great loss of life and property. In 1862 the val ley of the Mississippi and Ohio riv ers were flooded. In 1883, parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Kentucky were covered with water. The loss in Cincinnati alone mounted up into the hundreds of thousands. In 1881 the Ohio overflowed, drowning fifteen and making 1,500 homeless. On May 31, 1889, the rising of the Conemaugh river in Pennsylvania under incessant drain burst the dam eighteen miles above Johnstown. The official esti mates give the dead as 2,142 end the damage as $9,674,105. The disaster of last year is too recent to need emphasis. How -many more catastrophes- will be needed before the pork barrel and the policy it signifies is abolished for ever? i 1 ' i ' i ' ', ' " ' ' ; ' , , sri ft Aeolus MONEY FOR THE FARMER. To give the islands independence now or in the immediate future would be to consign them to chaos and anar chy. It might mean abandoning them to the exploitation of a foreign power permitted various communities to de stroy any" semblance of systematic waterway . improvement by reckless grabbing for purely local better ments. The politicians who nave only too ready to grab and adminis- fathered their own nests by absurdly ter profitable colonies. extravagant appropriations for trif- Yet to say that the Philippines jng -improvements that only have shall be independent when they are postponed the adoption of a sane gen "prepared for independence" is very erai scheme can be made to realize indefinite. What standards deter- that they are gambling with human mine fitness for self-government? ives. Better than that, the selfish Who is to determine when the proper constituents that have measured, the standard has been reached? These efficiency of a congressman by the and other questions suggest them- amount of money he was abla to graft selves. One can not help thinking for unnecessary local vork can be that if any very rigid conditions were enforced many countries now nomi nally independent would be deemed unworthy of the privilege. Mexico, for Instance,, would be considered ns unworthy of control of its own af fairs. Many of the other "republics" of the opera bouffe revolution belt likewise would be disqualified. . The difference in the situations leis in the fact that in these cases we have no present control, whereas with the Philippines we have. In the end the natives will be better prepared to make good use of independence if ' they remain in Uncle Sam's school for a while longer. made to feel that thc-y were playing a game in which death sweeps in the stakes. It was suggested last year that the government take its equipment of machinery made idle by the rapid completion of work on the Panama canal and use it for deepening and straightening the Mississippi and its tributaries. It is held by engineering experts that the opening and widen ing of the various streams, deepen ing them and in Rome places canaliz ing them would remove forever th? annual menace offered by the sprin? rains and the melting of the snow on the watershed. B. F. Yoakum, chair- The Test of Tirr?e Time determines whether the policies under which a bank Is oper ated are safe. - i; " - This bank haa been In business twenty-six years. It has grown steadily until It has become one of the atronKt snd most prosperous financial institutions In the West. The soundness of Its policies Is attested by the long list of conserv ative business men who transact their business here: also by an earned surplus of $130,0i;0.W, the work of time and the res-ill of conservative management. ' This bank has facilities for taking care of more hlsh grade bm' ness and offers Its service to those who appreciate the best In banking. La Grande National Bank La Grande, Oregon Capital. $100,000.00 Surplus. $130,000.00 Resources, 1,100.000.0s DESIGNATED DEPOSITOR OK IMTED STATES G0YER'J!ET. UNITED STATES POSTAL SAVINGS DEP0S1T0RT. ! Currency and banking reform, m the opinion of many, should come before the tariff in the Democratic legislative program. It is held that our present loose system is a con stant menace and that hence it is more important to dispose of this be fore taking up the tariff. The weak point of this contention is that it is made so late in the day. The tar iff program already is under way. The importance of new currency and banking laws, is indicated by the steps the conference on marketing and farm credits has taken in draw ing the attention of the president and congress to the necessity for making our financial system fit in with the farmer's needs. It is a fact that in few civilized countries of the world is it so hard for the farmer to secure at a moderate rate of interest the capi tal needed for the conduct of his busi ness. In the last presidential cam paign the lack of facilities for rural credit was dwelt upon and various suggestions for reform made. Em phasis was placed especially on the methods in vogue in Europe, particu larly in Germany. When we finally do get around to detailed consideration of the banking problem it is highly important that with the relief which is extended to industry the absolute necessity of taking care of the farmers also be ta ken into account. A farm run by an efficient, energetic man certainly should be gilt-edged security for an advance of such money as is neces sary to enable him to work it to the best advantage, and the terms of such a loan should be as liberal as those given to the factory owner or the head of a business establishment. In fact, agriculture should be recog nized in our banking law as a busi ness so important from social point of view as to merit the greatest pos sible liberality. The conference which closed re cently has given us much to think about as to the pecular position in. which the farmer is placed as to cred it, transportation and m.-rketin. Progress along these three lines proerress toward a higher standard mid a lower cost of living. ANOTHER COXEY ARMY. What is the attraction in public office that causes thousands of able bodied men in this country to make a wild onslaught on Washington whenever a new administration takes the reins of government. President Wilson, by declining to see jobhunt ers, has conserved his own time and energy for larger affairs, but he also has doubled the troubles of his obi net. Secretary of the Treasury M-?-Adoo, beseiged by the hungry throrg, has been forced to leave his office by stealth and take refuge in a small hotel. ' . TVs fact that we have such a Coxey's army of place-seekers is HAS A SPRING SUIT FOR YOU ! From our large s election of new models we can fit the stout or slender man equally as well as the man of regular build and at the same attractive prices. . t Whether You Pay $15.00 or More You can be assured of perfect satisfaction if you buy at this, store. W e're Sole La Grande Agents for Benjamin, Hirsch, Wickwire, Fidelity Fifteens , . and REGARDING ROME. Sent out her troops and spanked Rome once upon her seven hills the world, Put other lands between the thills, On ev'ry sea her flag unfurled. small compliment to the nation at large. Public office that is filled by appointment lacks the security which is the attractive feature of the places under the classified civil service. The salaries paid are not large. The work, however, in some cases, is easy. Is an "easy" Job the accepted ! And I'm for Julius Caesar now, ideal? It would be discreditable to A 'though that gentleman is dead, the great body of self-suppo: tmg, ii f Because of such a life he led, dependent Americans if this Were J That copped the prize in ev'ry row, truo. But it isn't Most live men ' like positions that call for initiative, J- Caesar put Rome on the map. daring, original thought, that have e advertised it near and far; the stimulus of difficulty, of obstacles He mixed in ev'ry kind of scrap ' At boosting Julius was a star. He talked about it when at home, He bragged about it when awaV, Until from Britain to Cathay, They heard about the town of Rome. I wish we had some Romnns here, The regular, stem-winder kind ' Who'd whoop it up through all the year to be overcome, of knotty problems to be met. The truth is that there are no worth while jobs, in or out of the government service, that are really easy. Uncle Sam, because he is not so careful about the details of his work as he should be, has numerous places where oetty men can drone but when it comes to the big tasks And leave the other towns behind, he is as strict as the average em-1 1 wish we had some Caesar, too, ployer. I This gold, old town to' advertise It would be well if the ofi'iee seekers ' Until it grew to twice the size understood once and for all that the With brotherhood as thick as glue. only way to a fat salary is by being able to do the work better than the other fellow cr.n do it. Not only that, but he must be able to do it more decisively, more quickly jnd more easily, so that his energy is not frit tered away in the minor details. If a man has these qualifications, how ever, the chances are that he sticks to private business and is not bother ing covernment officials. Let's get together, you and I; We've got a town that's worth the while; I-et's open up, emit a cry That other folks can hear a mile. It's talk about this burg so dear Until it gets so big a thing They'll run excursion trains to bring The folks who want to settle here. A Bohemian is a man who knows Things are so quiet in Washinetnn how to eat spaghetti without getting that the country would be awfully it on the floor or over into the next g'ad if Vice President Marshall would house. make another joke. FORMS OF SALUTATION. Although the French have been trying for some time to find a form of salutation to take the place of the meaningless "How do you do," they appear unable to decide upon any oth er form. . While there are persons who think "How do you do" is meaningless, pos sibly they haven't stopped to think how lucid it is compared to what men of other nations say when they meet one another. The Turk says: "God grant you His blessing." The Persian says: "May yoar shadow never grow any less." The Chinese says: "How are you digesting?" "How are you passing it?" says the Spaniard. "Are you in good vigar?" comes ( from the Swede. j Tlie Egyptian, being a practical man, says, "How do you perspire?" The Dutchman says, "How do you travel?" Caucasians take off the hat, shake hands, embrace, bow and kiss, and pass on. (Fair substitute, that) The Japanese take off their shoes. Chileans rub their foreheads. Think what the poor politicians would do about election time drumming up sup port in a factory district. The Russian says, "Be well." "How do you do," may be a trifle meaningless, but unless a substitute is chosen from other than the pre vailing styles in other lands, it will stand unquestioned for centuries. Maybe Washington society is wait ing to see the Wilson family wash on the line before making advances.