La Grande evening observer., March 13, 1915, Image 1

AN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER PRINTS THE NEWS THE DAY IT HAPPENS
VOLUME XIV.
LA GRANDE, OREGON, SATURDAY, MARCH 13, 1915.
"NUMBER 237
H. K. THAW IS FOUND NOTj GUILTY OF CONSPIRACY
SPRING CAMPAIGN ON CONTINENT NOW VICIOUSLY OPENED BY BOTH SIDES
JURY ACQUITS
MID 4 FRIENDS
ARE ALSO FREE
MOTION TO SEND THAW TO NEW
HAMPSHIRE FOLLOWS VER
DICTS APPEARANCE.
ACTUAL FATE DECIDED
AFTER HEARING MONDAY
Not Guilty of Conspiracy la Charge
Preferred Against Harry Thaw and
Charge Against Four Othera are
Dismissed Thaw Again in Tombs
.'" Pending DiapoaUion of His Case. ;
New York, March 13. Harry Ken
dall Thaw, slayer of Stanford White,
was acquitted today on a charge of
conspiracy to bring about hia own es
cape from Matteawan insane asylum
1913. .... ... ,
s soon as the. verdict was brought
ttorney Stanchfield, who handled
w's defense, moved that Thaw be
sent back to New, Hampshire as a free
and a sane man?" Justice Page set
Monday afternoon for hearing argu
ment on this, motion.
1 Thaw was recommitted to the
Tombs pending the argument. Mo
tion of the state's aUorttJ,-yhargr
against Thaw s four .-co-defendants
who helped him drive out of the insti
tution in a big automobile, were dis
missed. .' ' ';
BAIN HINDERS - ATTENDANCE
Union Crowd Reduced to One by it
, .-; - Several Go From Here.
Rain last night hindered attend
ance of several , Union and North
Powder teachers 1 at the meeting of
Union county teachers in Elgin. Sev
eral auto loads had planned on at
tending but a heavy rain last even
ing spoiled the roads and there was no
time to catch trains.,. ' Prof. ' Smith
was the only Union man to get to
Elgin.- About, a half dozen of the
high school teaching orce and sever
al from the grade schools in - La
Grande went out. on the morning
train. In regard to the. list of speak
ers at Elgin,, the Recorder last even
ing said: . i ; -
. Among the speakers on ; the pro
gram are Principal W.' V. Connor, of
Imbler; Principal E. E. Borneman, of
Island City; Supt. A. G.' Smith, of
Union; Pnn. C. E. Olsan.'of the La
Grande high school, and Supt. John
Girdler, of La Grande. N. C. Maris.
field worker for industrial fairs, will
also have a prominent place on the
program. .The institute is held under
the direction of County Superintend
ent A. E. Ivanhoe, who will be pre
siding officer of the meeting.'
Teachers will have an opportunity
for the discussion of their own- prob
lems in a round table discussion.
This meeting is not restricted to
"teachers alone, but" is open to the
general public and all interested in
the public schools are, cordially invit
ed to attend. ' - '' '
NEW STEAMER ORDERED
Cramps Will Build Sister to Santa
, Catalina for Coast Trade.
between Portland and Atlantic ports,
has awarded Cramps, of Philadelph
V ia, a contract for building the first
ship in the new steel fleet ' The boat
will De a aupneate oi rap aania vain
: Una and will cost $600,000.
Rush for the Jitneys
Toledo, O., Mar 13. The all popu
Tar jitney bus threatens to ' become
more popular in Toledo.
A heavy explosion wrecked a
: Toledo anartment and store building,
1 1T 1
-cm
' P1, VJanf BhAAlr to In--, OMfl. KaWS.
vaner extras were soon on the street,
Alia U . U . V U11UVI1 b "
Newsboys yelled: "All about tho
explosion. '
Jitney bus owners yelled: "am
aboard to the explosion:"' '
Every jutney did a rushing bus!
ness.
WAR BULLETINS
Bordeaux, . March J3 The Cana
dian Pacific liner Montrose is ashore
on the Portugal . bank near Mbrura,
Senegal,; on the west coast of Africa,
according ; to .cables received " here.
She is sending wireless calls for as
sistance. The' Montrose is a four
master,1 built in 1901, and. nas ac
commodations for several hundred
passengers. . The captain is G. S.
Webster. : . ' ; '
She was commandeered as a British
troop .ship, at the beginning of the
war, and it is assumed she was either
returning - with troop from South
Africa or transporting Portuguese
troops, to Portuguese colonies there. '
' London, March, 13. A steamer be-,
lieved to be the "Anna," a Swedish
boat, ran afoul a floating mine and
RESIDENT OF CITY
flEARLY 40
Ghin Jin Hwg,a Chinese who has
lived in La Grande practically since
such a name appeared on Oregon's
map, died' last evening after a brief
illness, aged about 70 years. His
'Viar hMkrt' tfllrcin fn ihpi Ttohnen-
kamp chapel where the funeral will
be conducted from tomorrow at . 1
o'clock. ';, .. : : ' ,-- '':-:,.''
Chin came to La Grande nearly 40
years ago, 38 years according to his
- .; ELGIN, HAS GRIEF
Mater Service There Indicates Water
Famine .'-. : - . -
Elgin is facing a serious proposi
tion in regards the .water system. To
the unitiated the fact that a crew of
from four to ten men have been em
ployed daily for the past four or five
weeks in repairing breaks caused by
the long continued cold spell of tlie
past winter, it may appear as a trifle
but when it ia considered in dollars
and cents the situation assumes an
entirely different aspect, says the El
gin Recorder.
As many as 16 breaks have occurred
within a single block, each requiring
repair ' work that results' in an av
erage cost of no less than $2.00, or
in this particular case,' and there arc
many of almost equal proportions, a
total expenditure of $32.00 to the
block' for repair work.
In short, the repair work that has
been made to. the city y&ter 'mains
during the past few weeks has cost
during' the past few' weeks at the
rate" of $200.00 per week.
This has been the approximate rate
of expense for several weeks and the
end Is not yet. . It u reckoned by
many in a position to know that the
trouble will not cease before the last
of April and if the past and present
rate, of expense continues until that
time the total expenditure will be
such that the city will be placed in
a compromising position in a financial
way. '-.'-
There is :no- particular criticism to
offer. The city water supcriiilond
tr.ts and the various city authorities
it ve coped with the 'situation as best
they could.but the question is whether
or not the right course is being
pursued, in that many believe, and
figures almost substantiate their con
tention, that it would be cheaper in
the end to replace. the smaller, dam
aged mains with new pipe.
The Recorder . doe not advocate'
this policy from a direct viewpoint,
but it is a matter in which the city
officials ought to deal with, the ut
most care and business judgment.
It is not a shortage of water or
insufficient pressure for fire purposes
that is causing the apprehension, as
from a general standpoint, there is
a sufficiency for both, but it is the
financial status that ia being daily
created that causes the alarm.
The repair work must be done and
must be maintained until the system
is in perfect working order, but it is
just as imperative that every care be
exercised in seeing to it that the re
pair work be done with a view to per
manency and economy that will not
allow of a repetition oi the present
condition.
.." " Attorney Moves Office.
Attorney Jno. S. Hodgin has moved
his offices to the La Grande National
bank building, where he is now lo
cated. .
sank off Scarborough. Her crew of
18 are reported saved, except two who
were killed. .
London, March 18. Reinforced by
six British warships from the Dar
danelles, Admiral Pierce's . squadron
is prepared to- begin the actual sea
assault which will bring the downfall
of. Smyrna, in Asiatic Turkey.' The
bombardment of the forts from inside
the harbor continues, with the Turk
ish 'gunners replying spiritedly. '
v Among the six reinforcing ships is
the British battleship Triumph, Ath
ens dispatches '-say. ' For several
hours this boat shelled the Moslem
defenses until forced to retire when
the Turkish projectiles began to ex
plode on her deck. -
YEftRS. IS
own statement of the situation, and
wi's undoubtedly one of . the N oldest
Chinese residents of Eastern Oregon
at the time of his death. He lived on
the river on Greenwood street and was
known to old settlers of La Grande
as an unobtrusive, industrious orien
tal. . He has a .brother here, but it is
not definitely known what his family
connection in the Orient are,
IVANHOE IN OFFICE
fast
' "
Former District Attorney is Back in
His Former Position
F. S. Ivanhoe, for several years dis
trict attorney, is today back in office
as pursuant to ' the findings of the
supreme court several weeks ago. Mr.
Ivanhoe has taken charge of the office
today, succeeding Jno. S. Hodgin.
i'Z Tho' Bottle' Came Back
. Vi,rernia: Minn...: Mar "'13. A. B.
.. : . , ...
r l i 3 l : .i . n.
uoates nus juhi. x-cl-civcii
a boi'.la
filled with the produce that made
Louisville, Ky., famous., The bottle
looked familiar. Investigation proved
that the very same.bttle that he and
a party of friends had emptied while
dropping down the Nil River. Be
fore throwing the bottle, into the
murky .waters, Coates slipped his
card into it and bottled it. Appar
ently some one picked it up and sent
it to Louisville, where is was origin
ally made. The distillery apparent
ly thought it a good enough joke to
carry-it a little farther. .
BEAD
LADY ATTACKED IN JITNEY
Portland, March 13 Mrs. Cecil
Marshall was attacked by male oc
cupants of a jitney bu early today.
The driver, joining- in the scuffle, let
go of the steering wheel and the car
RAILROAD EMPLOYES MEET TO
- TALK SAFETY FIRST ISSUES
Officials and employees from all de
partments " talked "safety first" in
this city today. Recently the method
of holding monthly "safety first"
meetings in Portland was abandoned,
and La Grande was made the gath
ering places of one representative
from each department in this dis
trict each month. Today the attend
ance drove the meeting from the of
fice of Superintendent Bollins to the
O.-W.. club house, where for several
hours, the men went through the var
ious questions of moment that have
come ud the naat month, and inter-!
changed suggestions for safety first. Sullivan, N. Nelson and Jim Nelson;
The attendance today was unusually i yardmasters, Ted Beuhler; for ma
representative, v chinists, Frank Rohan. . John Shea,
Amon gthose present, there being J system air brake instructor,, was in
34. in all, were many from out of I attendance. His car Is here also for
town. The agents present included! the usual school airbrake work.
HUE BRITISH
r OFF Kill
NO ESCAPE FOR THE EITEL
FRIEDERICK ALLOWED BY
THE ALLIES. ,
INCOMING VESSELSSeTB
' FLEET OUTSIDE LINES
I Should the Eitel Attempt to Make a
Run for it. She Will Encounter
British Cruisers Ready to Sink Her
British Steamer Puts Into Port and
Relates Seeing Ships.
! Newport News, Mavch v 13. Five
British warships are patrolling the
Atlantic outside the Virginia capes
to prevent the-escape, of the German
cruiser Prinz Eitel Friederich, should
the captain decide to make' a dash
for freedom ' from this port. The
British steamer Anglo-Patagonio has
arrived and her crew and officers re
ported they sighted the ships last
nigh while steaming through the
blockading litAj just before dusk.
RIFLE CLUB FORMS.
Union Civilians to Organize Under
National Rifle Club.
Citiuens of Union are Eoine to or-
fganizf.a rifle club. A meeting wit! be
j,e,i at the cltv hall next Sunday af-
tit noon at 2:30 o'clock, to complete
the organization of a Civilians' Rifle
club for Union. This club will be or
ganized under the direction of the Na
tional Kirlo association, .i organiza-
ti(m connected lhe' army depart
ment for the promotion of good
'marksmanship throughout the coun
I try. Under this plan high-power rifles
i tnraMb to-the club flvee. AddU
a5ma.and f0" 8re furn"
.isneci ai a very low price,
-
Count Witte Dead.
Petrograd, . March J3. Official an
nouncement is made of the death of
Count Sergius Witte, former premier
of Russia and one of the strongest
men in the history of the czar's em
pire. : ...
Mr. Bramwell at Lake.
F. S. Bramwell, who has been crit
ically ill at Portland, went to Hot
Lake today, being joinnd by his son
F. C. Bramwell here. He is consid
erably improved. ' -
crashed into. a telephone pole and was
wrecked. . '
The woman was picked up sense
less after the assailants had fled. The
police is seeking H. Stoikes, supposed
to be the driver.
F. D. Hall of Huntington, M. H.
Douherty of Baker, J. H. Keeney of
La Grande, and. T. O'Brien of Pen
dleton. Roundhouse foremen includ
ed D. W. Jackson of Pendleton, Wm.
Savage of Kamela, John Heath of
Pleasant Valley, M. J. Corrigan of
Huntington, and J. M. Burleigh of
La Grande. -' Other representatives
present, all from this city, includer:
for conductors, H. M -. ToplifTj for
brakemen, M. A. Fitzgerald; for en
gineers, v. ai. jacKson; lor nremen,
William Fowler: for carmen, J. V,
BRUSSELS S0"GSIDl
WARBLES IN U. S. At
When Brussels, theaters war
tuuwm inro noapiiais a - in
month, ago, Belgian aoagblrda
migrated to America to trill taatr
, melodies far from the din of bat
tie... - :r'''V..
Almost the last of the graad
opera stars to tear the annihi
lated Belgian oapKal . tor tho
Vnited. 8tetot wa jUloo Verlet,
"the Belgian Totroaaint,'! utd tho
only left attar the had epeat atv
eral week narslnf . In tho Red
Crosa.bofaltala. - ' . ;
RAILROAD COMMISSION IN ON.
TARIO TODAYu.
Man Who Appraised Plant for Bllsby
People, on Stand.
' Adjournment in the form of a re
rccss has been taken in the Eastern
i Oregon Light & Power company rate
hearing,- transferred from La Grande
to Baker yesterday -morning. The
. commission was required to go to
I Ontario to hear a telephone dispute
and will, return . to Baker Monday
1 morning, and take up more fully the
j testimony.
j Attorney H. E. Dixon, represent
ing tne commercial cmo here in the
hearing, has returned from Bakwr.
He affirms that a great deal of testi
mony was taken yesterday at Baker,
and that George M. Maddock, who
supervised the valuation of the com
pany's plant by the Bilsby people,
will be on -, the stand again Monday
morning. .--r 'W
A system of cost distribution' be
tween the Baker and the La Grande
divisions was advocated yesterday af
ternoon by J. A, Rockwood, electrical
expert, on the grounds that while . a
considerable amount of power gen
erated in this district is used in the
La Grande territory, hone is ; sent
back in exchange and the higher cost
in this district resulting from trans
mission and generation, is at present
assessed against the Baker dltricts.
Mr. Aitchison expressed himself as
being . surprised at this testimony as
it was in . direct opposition to that
given yesterday morning by- Rock
wood when he first took the stand.
George M. Maddock, who appraised
the property of the company, acting
for Bilsby & Co., of Chicago, gave
hia estimate of the electrical holdings
of the corporation as $2,180,000. He
wr.s on the stand for a large pari of
ihe afternoon, testifying concerning
details of construction used in the
various plamt,. ' ,.
Company's Accountant Testifies.
- Baker, Ore., March 13. Dayton
Taylor, auditor of the Eastern
Oregon Light & . Power com
pany, on the witness stand yesterday
at the hearing before the State Rail
road commission in the investigation
of the rates of the company, testified
that if the company was compelled to
do all its business on the basis of nine
cents per kilowatt hour, it would lose
money. Mr. Taylor qualified this
statement by explaining that he
meant if the company was obliged
to furnish "juice" for power purposes
and domestic use on the same ratio
as charged for current for lighting,
it would fall to show a profit and in
fact could not produce the power for
that amount , : .
- He followed this testimony with the
statement that the Eastern Oregon
Light & Power company was com
pelled to reduce ' its rates from 15
1HERES
IS HUD OF DIG
BATTLE FROIIT
WINTER LULL IX NORTHERN
FRANCE APPEARS TO
HAVE ENDED.
GERMANS BSINGIN& UP
HEAVY REINFORCEMENTS
Germans Have Abandoned Plan I.
. Recapture Neuve Chapclle, Finding .
Oppoaaition Too Strenuoua Bird
men Kept 'Busy Making Map and
Dropping- Bomba Several Winged. ;
London, March . 13. A great battle
marking the opening of the spring .
campaign, is impending between Ar
mentleres and Laoassoe. Dispatches
from the continent' indicated German :
are bringing up heavy reinforcements
to ; check the British offensive which
has ' been developing rapidly in that- -vicinity.
- '; :. :::--s.f.,y
An . official communique issued t
Paris announces that British and In
dian troops are making further prog
ress towards Aubere, having delivered
a determined .attack upon- the Ger
man positions near there. . The Brit-,
ish took 612 prisoners yesteroay.
Side Campaign Abandoned.
Berlin, March 18 (Wireless via
Saville.) Official admission that tho 1
Germans have ' 'abandoned their1 at-,
tempt to recapture Neuve . Chapelle
is forthcoming from the ' war office. '
It is stated, "The attack had success
ful beginning but a superior English.
force was encountered, and the at
tempt was discontinued " -
British ' are showing the greatest
sort of activity in this district. Avi
ators are kept busy making maps and .
dropping bombs. .Three of them- were
brought down and captured, byt rifle- ;
men. .::--Kiftdft-ft'-".:iV;fe
cents per kilowatt hour to nine cents-
under ; coercion ; on the part, of the
city , government, which holds a club
over the company In , its : ability to
build a municipal power plant to op- :
erate in competition with the East
ern Oregon Light & Power company
whenever the taxpayers vote a bond
issue to finance the project. ,
The testimony of Mr. Taylor ;was
the . most interesting from a ! local
point of view, the greater part of the
testimony being relative to the financ
ing of the various projects of ' the
power -company, its methods ' of de--clartng
dividends, fixing rates of
power, etc. Ulyde u. Aitchison and
Thomas K. Campbell are the members
of the commission present, and Mr.
Aitchison is conducting the inquiry.
Mr. Neill, engineer for the commis
sion, was also present. The Eastern
Oregon Light & Power company was
represented by Wm. A. Jackson and
John L. Rand, ' while City Attorney
McColfoch was present in the interest
of the city of Baker.
. .' Nl -
FALL IS PAINFUL. S
Mrs. Ida French Sustains Broken Arm
in Fall at Her Home. - '
Mrs. Ida French, who lives at 1905
Th'rd street, fell yesterday at her
home and. sustained a broken at'ii.
Mrs. French suffers considerably to
day 'iut expect to be able to take off
the- splints in due course of. time.
New Texas Labor Law
Austin Texas, Mar 13. A 54- hour
week ' bill for women workers, cer
tain to become a law ut this session
of the lesislature. nassed the aanntA
with women in cotton and woolen ex
cluded from its protection. Sena
tor Bee, author of the measure, felt
constrained to anolool-a far tha, fanf
that it excluded these workers. He
sam that he had consented to it only
because fourteen of
told him they would not vnta tnr
if the 'bill did not exclude these work
ers.
$6 For Graduating Dress
. Mitchell, S. D. Mar. 13 Girl grad-
uates of the Mitcheil high school
have by mutual agreement decided
they would not spend more than $6
for their graduating ttress. This fol
lows high school agitation about rich
girls overdressing at graduation ex
ercises, to the embarrassment of
poor girls. '