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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 1890)
306 WEST SHORE. An Jlluitrated Journal publiihed etery Saturday by the Writ Shore Publithing Company, Portland, Oregon, and Spokane FalU, Washington. L. SAMUIL, General Manager, Subieriptiou Price, ft 00 per Year. Single Copy, 10 Cent). Th Wiit 8hohi offers the Beet Medium for Advertisers of any publication on the Pacific Coast. MnUnd tU Foil Offlct in Portland, Oregon, for tranmtuion threw maili at Mond clan ratet, SATURDAY, DECEMBER SO, 1890. Attention Is called to the announcements on pages 317 and 318 of the new departments of " Poets of the Pacific Coast " and " Pnzilewits," to be commenced in January; also to the word contest now in progress, The Holiday Wist Show, issued last week, was the fineBt of any in the United States. Copies sent to any address upon the receipt of twenty-five cents. The doom of the seal is sealed. It is highly flattering to Mr. Parnell to compare him to Ciesar and Napoleon, even If it be only to prove that he is not crazy. treaty stipulations with the Indians. Hence, when matters became serious he began to make war in Washington insteed of in Dakota, and, doubtless, the one war did much to prevent the other. The revelations of this cam paign are another proof that the Indian bureau should be transferred to the war department. The Indians will receive far more humane, just and hon orable treatment from the army than they ever have from unscrupulous and speculating civil officers. The Conger lard bill is bad class legislation in so far as it imposes a tax upon lard compound on the ground that its production injures the pure lard industry. If chemistry can find a cheap substitute for any article now in use, provided that it be not less wholesome, legislation ought to encourage it to do so, rather than impose tax upon the product. This movement is of the same sort as those against glucose and oleomargerine. Science, in her work of giving man cheaper food and clothing and added comforts and conveniences, ought not to be impeded simply because the producers of older and more expensive ones see ruin to their business in the adoption of the new. The business of manufacturers of many lines of goods is con stantly being lost because of some cheaper substitute being placed on the market, and yet they do not appeal to congress to tax the new article. There is only one safe and equitable rule for legislation on this subject, and that is to require that all articles of food or merchandise shall be truthfully labeled, and this applies as much to imitation walnut furniture as It does to imitation butter or lard. Compel every article of merchandise, either food or otherwise, to be sold for just what it is, and then let the people them selves decide whether to buy or let it alone. Steamboat racing has " broken out " again on Puget sound. Wsbt Siioke will next week have something to say about the criminal recklessness of steamboat officials who Indulge In this reprehensible rivalry. The guns of the Charleston made as much noise firing a royal salute to King Kalakaua as they would for Kaiser Wilhelm. Guns are no respecters of persons; all you have to do is to pull the string and bear them bang. An Oregon legislative tragedy in two acts is depicted on the last page so strongly that it needs no word of explanation. In their efforts to hit capital the farmers of Oregon have not only failed, but have dealt them selves a blow, the bad effects of which Increase from year to year. The weapons must be cast aside. Comment upon the president's message by the press of the United States is about as interesting as a symposium upon yesterday's horse race. The democrats looked It over to see where they could discover a flaw, and the republicans sought eagerly for some scintillation of genius in statecraft; and being both disappointed they burst into scathing sarcasm or stomach turn Ing laudation so pointless and so witless that ordinary mortals must needs flee to the woods in disgust. Washington bis a military Poo Bah who could give that much-titled minion of the Mikado a few points. Not content with being the adjutant general, quartermaster general and commissary general he aspires to the unmilitary title of " general manager and supreme dictator," with the idea that the national guard of the state was created for his personal amusement, to be worn on his watch chain for a charm. The sooner the national guard rids itself of political generals and official damphools the quicker it will become an efficient military organisation. Mr. A, N. Cumming, at the conclusion of a long article on "America and Protection " In the London national Renew, sums up the situation as follows : " IYotectlon or no, America is now established as one of the most prosperous nations, and this in defiance of all known economio laws " Would It not be wise for Mr. Cumming to see if his " known economio laws " have not been Improved upon Instead of defied? The theologians are constantly revising their creeds, the physical scientists their theories and possibly Mr. Cumming and his brethren might do worse than follow these examples. Surely political economy is not an exact science. There has been war during all this Indian Messiah craie. To be sure the people have heard little about It, but General Miles has been in the thick of tin fray, the scene of hostilities being the departments at Washington For the first time in our history the military has done something more than tum their guns upon half starved and desperate savages. General Miles has had an experience with the Indians and his given the subject of their treatment so much study that he is peculiarly fitted to handle the present dllllculty. He knows that this trouble and three-fourths of all the Indian wars of late years were caused by the failure of the government to keep its The Farmers' Alliance meeting last week developed the fact that this organization is a delightfully inconsistent body. Its resolutions in one place Bay : " Believing in the doctrine of equal rights to all and special privileges to none, we demand that our national legislation be so framed In the future as not to build up one industry at the expense of another; " and to show how little they actually believe in that sentiment another resolution de mands that the government loan money at two per cent, on real estate and non-perishable farm products, which is the most pronounced class legisla tion ever demanded by any organization. The man who manufactures unperishable furniture or unperishable woolen blankets has as much right to demand money from the government at two per cent, as the man who raises unperishable wheat Another resolution demands that " all national and state revenues be limited to necessary expenses of the government, economically and honestly administered." II this be done how will the government have money to loan ? Lending money is certainly not a " neces sary expense," nor Is It " economical " for a government to collect money from the people, worth to taxpayers at least five per cent, in their business, in order to loan it to a special class of citizens at two per cent. Other prin ciples enunciated are of a more general and fundamental nature, and would call for the support of honest and patriotic citizens everywhere; but they can not be efficacious to bolster up an organization whose chief aim is to Mr..,., - , I 1 , . . ... m " auvaniage lor one class ot citizens at the expense of all others. Let the Farmers' Alliance drop its selfish aims and come out boldly upon the broader and more vital doctrines it endorses, and it can found a political party that will command both the respect and votes of the people. On the center pages of this number are given views of Vancouver bar racks as it Is, and one of the Hudson's Bay fort and military post as they were In the " auld lang syne." The old trading post was associated with the early and romantio history of the great northwest. At different times tt was presided over by such worthies as Dr. John McLonghlin, Peter Bkeen Ogden, Sir James Douglas, Dougald McTavlsh and James Graham. The military pt also has its traditions. One chapter of its history is given on Mother page; but that Is only an episode. Many famous military men have been stationed there-Wool, Harney, Wright and the explorer, Bon nevll . ; General Grant was for a long time post quartermaster; General rry U first adjutant; Geo. B. McClelland fixed the latitude and longitude Kill! n"' 0rd' Alvord' McFeeley- Uod 8n"y. Morro-Uunt- bM. Howard, Mile. Gibbon, the dashing Phil. Sheridan and the reckless rVJln i?' m MmM "PP" on lta lun- General aiker, Crittenden and Pickett became leaders in the lost can. From there Kearney and Stewart hastened to meet the first rising of the Rogue n2 Tn w,TVhm W(W Mnt ln hMto ve Lane and A.J. 5 ir ciif T: rom th,W Haller' RlD" ght started on StaKS vr U"4 U WM ,h option. In th. nas a History that this country has a future. i