;f,.. .-
'Hi'
LA GRAKDi; EVENING OBSERVER
' SATURDAY, MARCH 7,
r,n-: pom
v,
THE OBSERVER
' 1,1 J III !J.! XL. 1"
600,000 a year on his personal property we roaa ana unuginB mo n-.u,
as well as justifiable. We are draw- developing maerially a great contl-
BBUCE DENNIS, Editor and Owner, ing closer to the millennium.' but wenent, and assimilating the greatest
have not vet reached it. In the mean- I"-" uu...n.
Entered in the post-Uke at La
Grande, Oregon, as second claaa
matter.
Advertising rates on application. All
copy for display advertising must
reach the ofllce the day before the
ad appears.
time such step on the part of the T . . nt-llv w hava keDt UD tne
tax commi;ion may be justifiable I physical standard, We lead the world
but it is not good judgment,
NOBLE PRIZES.
' Address all communications to
THE OBSERVER, 1710 Sixth Street
SUBSCRIPTION RATES.
Dally, single copy 5c
Daily, per week 15c
Daily,' per month .65c
Daily, per six months in ad
vance ....$3.50
Wly, r yew in ft
ially, by mail per year In ad
vance $"
Weekly Obsirver, per year in
advance ....$1.50
RIDING A FREE HORSE TO DEATH
We have no sympathy for the tax
dodger, whether he is the man of
wealth, the corporation or the small
tax payer. The nracMce of swearing
away thousands of dollars or hundreds
of dollars from the tax rolls for' the
sake of dodging a fair share of any
assessment, is entirely out of date and
is just as much a crime as putting
one's hands into the community treas
ury and extracting a handful of cash.
The man who pays taxes on property
with a tax valuation under the pro
portion of his neighbors, knowing and
deliberately is none the less n thief be
cause he is not prosecuted for thiev
ery.-
But the pendulum swings both
ways. When it swings too far in one
direction it gains impetus to the same
extreme in the other direction. That's
what it is doing right now in many
places throughout the country and the
trouble is that the pendulum keeps
right on swinging. Undoubtedly that
is why it is so often said that history
repeats itself in cycles of years. It
is the same old pendulum swinging
back and forth, back and forth.
Just now the man of wealth is get
' ing many bitter raps. The "common
people" have the whip hand and the
lash is made to sting with a vehe
mence that savors of vindictiveness.
In matters of taxes as in other things
the burden is being shifted to the
shoulders of the wealthy class. We
hold no brief for them. Many of them
may deserve the punishment. We are
certain that some of them do. But
there is, it must be remembered, such
a thing as riding a free horse to death.
A Cleveland incident serves to bring
this to mind. Down in Cleveland they
have as a taxpayer a man who is con
sidered the wealthiest individual in
the world, John D. Rockefeller. Few
people today have any love for him,
but he has been an asset to Cleveland
in many ways. His fame has helped
to bring fame to Cleveland; his money
has contributed to the support of the
municipality possibly not so much as
it might or ought to have done, but
still it has contributed largely.
The pendulum is swinging to the
other extreme in Cleveland. The men
of wealth are being assessed to the
limit. Mr. Rockefeller's name was
placed on the assessment rolls for the
payment of taxes on $500,000,000
worth of personal property. This
would bring his taxes to $1,500,000 a
year. It would be a fine thing for the
small property owners if Mr. Rocke
feller consented to this arrangement.
According to the tax commissioner's
own statement the East Cleveland tax
rate would fall considerably.
It appenrs, however, thnt Mr.
Rockefeller docs not propose to con
sent to the arrangement. It is re
ported that he is moving away from
Cleveland. Perhaps ho is not justified
in moving away, but this is beside the
question. If he moves the tax rato is
going to lose all that ho is contribut
ing, now as well as several of the
other advantages incident to possess
ing the world's wealthiest man as a
resident.
There are times and places when
and where good judgment and justi
fication are not synonymous. This
seems to be one of them. The tax
commissioners of Cleveland appear to
have ridden a free horse to death. If
every municipality hnd the same sys
tem of assessment and the same de
termination to assess everyone on the
game plnne it would be good judgment
to force Mr. Rockefeller to pay $1,-
In 12 years from 1901 to 1912 in
clusive, 56 persons ' representing 14
different countries have won Noble
prizes. The , Journal des Debats of
Paris, give's them as follows: Ger
many 18, France 13, England 6, Swed
en 4, Holland 3, Italy 3, Spain 2, Nor
way, Denmark, Belgium, Russia, Por
and and the United States one each.
It is explained that this, tabulation
does not include the prizes awarded
to Roosevelt and Root for services
in the cause of peace, but credits us
with the one given to Professor Mich
elson of Chicago university for phy
sics, in 1907.
A prominent newspaper says rather
whimsically that if the Noble Foun
dation had been in existence it could
hardly have failed to make awards
to Graham Bell and Edison. It might
add that if it had existed it could
hardly have failed to honor Whitney
for the cotton gin and Morse for the
telegraph and divers others for var
ious original work. At it is we do not
come out much if any better in a cal
culation according to population. The
addition of the Root and Roosevelt
prizes for peace promotion would in
' crease our percent a little, but would
not alter our relative position.
Here is something for us to think
about. If we are entering into the
world as a power this tabulation shows
us the small part that we play in com
parison with other nations when it
comes to high attainments. Our gen
ius seems to have run in other di
rections money making for one, in
which we have been a world beater.
And then we have been busy "making
BANK STATEMENT.
No. 9214.
Report oMhe-'condition of the Unit
ed States National bank at La GinndR,
State of Orccn, at the close of busi
i'ps, March 4, 1911:
Resources
Loans and discounts $323,918.88
U. S. bonds to secure cir
culation 50,000.00
To secure postal ' savings ; '
'.....6,000.00 5,000.00
Expenses and interest paid 1,464.54
Bonds, securities, etc 9,644.39
Banking house, furniture,
and fixtures 25,979.35
Other real estate owned ... 7,910.00
Due from National banks
(not reserve agents 4,964.31
Due from state and private
banks, trust companies
and savings banks 6,618.30
Due from approved reserve
agents 17,093.69
Checks and other cash items 4,281.31
Notes of other National
banks 11,285.00
Fractional paper currency,
nickels and cents 354.40
Specie $38,335.26 .
Legal tender notes . . 160.00 38,495.25
Redemption fund with U. S.
treasurer (5 per cent of
circulation) 2,500.00
in Olympian games if not Nobel
prizes, and as Germany has imported
American athletic trainers to teach her
how to compete successfully in this
way, perhaps we could import Ger
man talent to teach us- how to win
Noble prizes. For the present the re
sult seems to support Edmund Gos
se's theory that small nations are
more congenial for the support of gen
iuses than large ones. . .; -,: ' , . i
MILLION SFOR JUNK.
Advocates of universal peace point
out the futility of battleship. contruc
tion by citing some of the figures in
our own naval program.
The United States began about 1899
the construction of what is known oa
the "new navy." Since that program
was begun, the ships of the new, or
comparatively new, type have cost ths
people of this country for construction
alone $477,800,000.
And yet the United States ranks
only third among the nations in the
strength of its navy. The latest fig
ures show the following battleships
either in commission or building.
Great Britain, 72; Germany 39; Unit
ed States, 36; France, 29; Japan, 19;
Italy, 17; Russia, 15; and Austro-Hun-gary,
10. Of armoured cruisers, Great
Britain hns 45; Germany, 16; the
United States, 11, and France, 20.
These statistics indicate the compara
tive strength of the various navies.
The people of this country have not
complained of the naval program, but
they cannot understand why it is nec
essary every year to keep on building
new battleships. The explanation is
that the life of a fighting vessel is
very short. Improvements follow one
another so quickly that a battleship
20 years old is practically worthless.
There is now in the list of American
battleships only one vessel built prior
to 1900 the Iowa, completed in 1897.
The Oregon, the Indiana, the Massa
chusetts and others constructed about
the same time as the Iowa, and con
sidered in those days to be the last
word in fighting vessels, are no longer
regarded as of real service. They
are not even included in.. the list of 36
battleships accredited to the United
States navy.
The same situation exists in other
countries. Peace advocates point out
the frightful loss of time and money
and energy in carrying out the naval
programs of the nations, .when of
time all the "latest'n.battleslW will
be so much mere junk. Of jscourse,
through the incessant construction of
battleships the nations maintain . a
paper supremacy and give themselves
the assurance that they are prepared
for war. But that satisfaction of
national pride and jingoism is the only
real result of the frightful expense
to which the people are put year after
year.
No wonder that the movement to
JL A
Complete Line of
3 yinnnaiTiiias im ramw
i f RVV;
AM
Total $501,509.42
Liabilities.
Capital stock paid in $100,000.00
Surplus fund 13,000.00
National bank notes out- .
standing.... 50,000.00
Due to other National banks 2,314.38
Individual deposits suhject
to check 256,626.75
Demand certificates of do-
! posit 4,908.77
Time certificates of deposit 67,717.91
Certified checks 548.68
Postal savings deposits .. . 1,332.90
Bills payable, including ob
ligations for money bor-
I rowed 15,000.00
Total $501,509.4'
State of Oregon, County of Union, ss.
j I, T. J. Scroggin, cashier of the
above named bank, do solemnly swear
thnt the above statement is truo to
the best of my knowledge and belief.
1 T. J. SCROGGIN, Cashier.
CORREST Attest:
I WM. MILLER,
J. C. HENRY.
A. L. RICHARDSON,
Directors.
Subscribed and sworn to before me
this 7th day of March, 1914.
F. S. IVANHOE,
Notary public.
Our Famous
FIDELITY $15.00
SUITS
JUST ARRIVED IN THE MEN'S DEPT.
THESE GARMENTS ARE GUARANTEED ALL WOOL FAB
RICS, THOROUGHLY SHRUNK, HAVE SHAPE RETAINING
FRONTS, TAILORED UNDER SANITARY CONDITIONS AND
GUARANTEED TO GIVE SATISFACTORY WEAR.
THE STYLES INCLUDE ALL THE NEW ENGLISH AND
NORFOLK MODELS, BESIDES REGULAR BOX-BACK AND
REGULATION STYLES FOR BOTH STOUT MEN AND MEN
OF REGULAR BUILD. :J I
THE PATTERNS ARE VERY ATTRACTIVE. SEE THEM
IN OUR WINDOWS. AND THEN COME' IN AND SEE FOR
YOURSELF JUST HOW PERFECTLY THEY FIT. YOU WILL
BE SURPRISED AT SUCH REAL VALUE IN A SUIT FOR
$15.00. ,
fe. ,. j iJ-o r ik.
,.m
1 1
$15.00
No
More
$15.00
No
Less
cease building battleships by interna
tional agreement is meeting with such
ready response among the common
people of the whole world.
TROUSERLESS MAN.
STOCKHOLDERS IN THEIR OWN
CITY.
SALTS HNE FOR
A
lt it,. tiJ
We eat too much, meat, whJeii c'.t;;
Kidneys, then Back hurts ami
Blaudur bothers you.
Most folks forget thnt the kvlwyj
like the bowels, gvt sluggivh -i-i'l c!t.,.y.
and need a flushing occusioni'i.v, cim- v
lmve backnche and dull mi-eiy in th,
kidney region, severe hcadm-iii-H, il.eu
mntio twinges, torpid liver, acid st'immh,
sleeplessness and nil sorts of LluiMe- iiia
orders. You simply must keep yr.nr Uiiiiieva
activo and clean, and tlie no;nfnt you
feel an aclio or puia in the kidney
rcpion, get alxmt four ounces of Jad
BiilU from any pood drug store hero,
tuko a tabli'spooiilut in a glius of water
before breakfast for a fow days and
your kidneys will then act fine. This
famous salts is made from the acid of
crapes and lemon jmne, combined with
lithia, and is hnrmloss to fluli clogged
kidneys and stimulate them to normal
activity. It also neutralize" the acids
in the urina so it no bnipcr irr;titir,
thus ending bladder disorders.
Jad Salts is hariulvi.; iu?-;-oiiive:
makes n delightful edVrvos.cn'. lit!. la
water drinlt which everybody ainu'd tairr
now and then to keep thir kidneys clenrj,
thus avoiding serious complications.
A well-known local drti!gii.t dvs he
sells lots of Jad Salts to folks who H-li-'. t
in overcoming kidney trouble whih it
only trouble.
Adv.
More than 2000 residents of the city
of St. Paul, Minn., are possessors of
$10 city bonds, bearing interest at 4
per cent. The number of stockholders
is increasig and it already includes
hundreds of thrifty workmen who hold
small blocks of what might be con
sidered preferred stock. The plan has
been an experiment in St. Paul, but it
is being worked out successfully and
it is being 'Watched with interest
throughout the country.
The idea was conceived with a view
to interesting as many persons as
possible in the city's financial welfare.
St. Paul is one of the largest cities in
the country that has adopted the com
mission form of government and this
; is one of the reforms that the commis-
ion form of government has adopted.
1 Last July when the municipal govern
ment found is difficult to sell several
issues of city securities at par or
above, it was decided to cut them up
into small pieces and call on the peo-
j pie of the city to finance it themselves.
Certificates at $10 each, that can be
cashed at time for their face value,
plus the interest that has accumulated,
were issued.
The St Paul people took to the plan
with a vim. The first three dayR after
the sale began more than $220,000 of
the certificates were disposed of. By
December 1st, the total sales amounted
to more than $3,500,000. Last month
the sales of certificates were $286,000
in excess of the amount presented for
payment and the constantly increas
ing sales are now said to average more
than $5000 a day, the individual in
vestments carrying from $10 to $5000.
The city officers now hope to do
away with all of the old style bonds
end in time to keep at home the $600,
000 interest money which annually is
sent away from the city to eastern
holders of municipal bonds.
The popularity of the certificates
among the people is the fact that they
may be converted into cash at any
time without losing a penny of the in
terest nccrued at four per cent.
The Skin and Not the Blood.
Until recently it has been a genar-
, ally accepted theory thnt eczema wis
;a disacase of the blood. Scientists
hnve taught us thnt eczema is posi
j tively a skin disease and curable
I through the skin alone. Meritol
I Fc7emn Remedy is applied directly
(to the diseased skin. Do not delay
' trying Meritol Eczema Remedy. .
I NEWLIN DRUG COMPANY.
(Continued Trom Page 1.) '
told the Pullman conductor that' the
! former occupant of the berth was the
United States marshal. s
Eager to oblige the governmentonl
cial, who it was gravely suspected,
might be roaming around La GrantJ-j
without trousers on, the train wa? de
layed at Union while the station .mas
ter was directed to rush the garmmt
back to La Grande. r
Tremendous excitement reigned a
few minutes later when the occupant
of the upper berth poked his head
through the curtains and told the por
ter he had lost the lower half of his
suit. It was then realized that,, the
pants that had been sent back had
slipped from the upper berth to, the
lower. '"'
Obliging passengers dug into their
baggage. A pair of possibilities would
be thrust through the green curtains,
only to come back a moment later with
the smothered remark too small. In V'lc
next two hours the train scheduled was
smashed to smithers. At every sta-,
tion the conductor or some member of
the crew would rush up to a store in
a desperate search for a pair 44 inches,
around the waist. " ,' '.
Eastern Oregon seemed to be barren.-
of that size. At North Powder the
conductor reported that he couldn t
even see a barrel. Finally at Haines,
the station north of Baker, a pair cf
the proper dimensions was located ax
the conductor paid $12 for them.
At Baker a few minutes later tb
traveler was dressed and was down n
the platform to bid farewell to Is
friends of the adventure. He held 5;
the trousers with one hand while i
shook hands with the other. Ths cm-,
ductor had forgotten suspenders
Meanwhile the other trousers ws1
back to La Grande where they prob-'
ably remain. . ' iv ;
FOR RENT Modern five room house.
Pavement. Black 1662.
iuse.
Mf
FOR RENT Five room house, fu
nished Phone black 1191. 3-7-q
WHITE WYANDOTE EGGS-M
per seetting (15). J. P. BrennoHJ
Adams & Oak. 8-WtJ
Five room cottage with full Id
ment for sale or for lease of longpe
1
iod, is desired.
! Russell. ' '
Easy terms. JJ
i4
FOR SALE A small out house, cW
; Phone black 1102.
FOR SALE Assorted lot of cm
fruits and jellies. Also nice
carriage, cheap. Address F., care i
Observer. W
FOR SALE Black Minorca 4
White Leghorn setting eggs, frcs
selected winter layers. Mrs. G. i
Chanman. La Grande. ' 3-2-1
La Grande -National Bank
Organized in 1887.
" '
nBNrWJtATEH DEPOSITOR Y-MP rMTKI) STATES GOVERMCIST.
i'TUTED STATES PONT I, SAVIXJS DEPOSITOEI.
Capital
..... ......$100,000.00
Surplu r$140jOO'0.0'S
Total Resources'
.$1,000,000.00
For twenty-six years, in all kinds of financial weather, we h
successfully catered to the monetary wants of the people of U
Grande and the Grande Ronde Valley.
We respectfully solicit your business
La Grande National Bank
La Grande, Oregon