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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (March 7, 1891)
152 THE WEST SHORE, ILLUSTRATED, THE WEST SHORE. Here we have been sitting for I can not adequately egress my i....K' - hitiy days with a man whose aspirations are to betray us." It w,U never be I'Urll.lhllKD KVKKY SATURDAY, AT THE C'ORNKR Of COU'HWA AND WATK8 STREETS, PORTLAND, ORKIJON. New York OrntB, No. 48 Trihink IIiii.ding. Subscription Price, Four Dollars per Year. Single Copy, Ten Cents. AOMf M AU OOMUUMICAtlONt AM ATAKI Au RllMTTAMCtt PAVALI TO THE WEST SHORE PUBLISHING COMPANY, PORTLAND, OKKIiON. INTIMO AT Tnl MAT Off Ml AT MffTUWHH OMBQH. FM TRAMAWIMK3M THHOUOM TMt HAILS AT MOONO OLAH HATU. SATURDAY, MARCH , 1891. During the present week TllK West Shore has moved to its new building at the corner of Columbia and Water streets, and issues this number from its new location. A few subscribers will receive their paper a day or two Liter than usual. Once fairly settled in its new home, with all the added facilities there provided, THE WEST Shore will show what it can do as an illustrated journal of the highest class. 1 The Paris incident shows that the days when great nations went to war to avenge the wounded honor or give vent to the personal anger of a " divine ly annointcd " sovereign may not have retired so far into the dark ages as has generally been supposed. It may be that according to perverted human stan dards discourtesy to the kaiser's mother should be wiped out by the blood of thousand of human beings, while an equal discourtesy to the lovable, gentle, charitable mother of John Smith should go unnoticed, but the time will come when the world will have more light on that subject. The Side of the Hunt system of railroads, taken in connection with the failure of the Oregon legislature to pass the bill for a portage railroad around the dalles of the Columbia, renders the outlook for speedy relief of the inland empire from its heavy transportation burden very gloomy indeed. In fact, the situation has become so precarious that the energy of the boards of trade, recently convened in Walla Walla to urge action upon the legislatures, should now be directed towards securing the raising of a subsidy for the pur pose of affording the necessary relief. The immediate opening of the Col umbia river to navigation between the great producing interior and the sea is a question of such vital importance to the inland towns, Portland and Astoria that a proper effort ought to secure money enough to accomplish it in time to aid in the movement of the now growing crop. The Portland chamber of commerce should take the initiative in this matter. A California scientist, a word that often signifies profound knowledge on one subject and equally profound ignorance on all others, has suggested a remedy for the decrease in the number of salmon running in the Sacramento. 1 le would stop the canning business entirely, reserving all fish for the home market, so as to make the food supply of the state cheaper for home con sumers. He does not suggest any practical way of doing this, indeed scien tists of that stripe deal but gently with practicalities, nor does he pretend to show in what way the supiositilious cheapening of fresh fish will compensate the stale for the loss of its income from the exportation he would stop. He dors not suggest that oranges be all kept for the home market in order to make them cheaer, though it is a well known fact that Califomians pay dearer for their fruit than do those living far beyond the scent ot the orange blossoms. Science would better employ its talents in devising means for increasing production rather tlun in suggesting ways by which a valuable industry may be curtailnl or extinguished. After tlie irvrre reprimand administered to Metcalfe by the Washington legislature , it is to be hoped that no member iU Kain be so " indiscrete " as 10 betray the fait that he has been brilved. Such base treachery to his fellows was promplly and properly rebuked, and Metcalfe was held up to scorn as a man who, in willful disregard of the feelings and interests of his associates, failed to pocket his bribe ami hold his tongue. Such indiscretion, nay, such damnable treachery, would ruin the best legislature th.it ever tapped a sena torial barrel. The stars of invective were snatched from the blue vault of orator)- or the dome of thought of live speaWrs and hurled at the devoted Iwad of the offrnde r. " We have a nwn on the floor of the house," shrieked one indignant member, ." who acknowledges hinwlt a spy, traitor and felon. , ui..i.:..Mn iraislatiire will aeain have the done again. No member 01 a hardihood .0 bring disgrace upon his fellows by informing upon a bnber We do these things better in Oregon, and when Washington has elected a few more senators things will run much smoother in Olympia. The closing days of the Oregon legislature developed a situation that renders it necessary for THE WEST SHORE to present a second edition of its cartoon on the subject of consolidation and political bosses. " The Lotan gang "as it soon became known everywhere, went to Salem like'aroanng lion eager to devour most everything, but especially the "Simon crowd." The roaring was simply appalling and terrified every one but the special ob- ject roared at ; but as the session drew to a close it decreased in its intensity, and though the volume of sound was maintained the fierceness of its tone was lost, until in the closing hours they " roared like sucking doves." Simon re turned to Portland with the somewhat mutilated turkey under his arm, and the last seen of Lotan he lay prone upon his back, his feet wildly sawing the air, and his hands desperately clutching the much abused fowl's tail feathers. It is for the citizens of Portland to say whether they will ever permit the city to again become the abused victim of bossism. Now is the time to assert a manly independence. It is openly stated that Lotan will defeat consolida tion in order to again get a good grip on the turkey. If he does it will be be cause the citizens of Portland are so careless of their own interests, or so lack ing in self respect, as to submit their necks to a galling yoke without an effort for freedom. Another cartoon that needs a second edition is that one of the Oregon turtle on its way to Chicago. WEST SHORE read the motto Alis volat profiriis, and asked where were the wings. This so frightened the moss backs, who feared that in some way the wings would be provided, thai they hastily loaded a $94,000 capitol dome upon the poor beast's back and crushed it. We may not be represented at Chicago, but we can get the governor to issue a requisition upon the governor of Illinois for the arrest of a few vis itors at the fair, and bring them and out here to see our dome. We might have given them a promenade on a few wagon roads, if the governor had not interfered. That Oregon needs capital, and lots of it, can not be denied. It also needs a few legislators who know how to spell the word, and have enough intelligence to know how to obtain it. The West Shore understands the magnitude of the fair and realizes the supreme importance of having Oregon properly represented there. It started the campaign last summer, and made a vigorous fight to arouse Oregon to action. It does not propose to give up the struggle, but will continue the work of educating the people on the sub ject and making the legislators who failed in their duty ashamed of themselves. Heginning this week, frequent illustrations of proposed features of the fair will be given, and it is a safe prophecy that before long some sleepyheads will be gin rubbing their eyes and waking up. THE West Shore intends to keep the people of the entire Pacific coast alive to the magnitude and importance of the Columbian exposition. The disposition of the ordinary observer, when cause and effect go al most hand in hand, to mistake the one for the other, is shown in the contro versy now going on in Seattle over the Whitechapel question. A short time ago the city began a cleaning out process that caused hundreds of dissolute characters of both sexes to seek other pastures and led to the closing of a num!er of saloons depending upon them for patronage. The loss of the di rect trade of these individuals and a lessening of municipal revenue from this questionable source has led the observer spoken of to question the wisdom of the purifying process. He has never known a "live town" to be without them. They are a " sign of prosperity," and it is not only foolish, but sui cidal, to drive them away, is the burden of his argument. He does not stop to think that they are non-producers, that they live upon the industry of oth ers, that they are supported by money mat would otherwise go into more le-' gitimale channels of trade. 01 course they are only found in "live" and "prosperous" towns, jusl as buzzards congregate only where there is carrion lo feed upon 1 but so far from creating or administering to that prosperity, Ihey are leeches and parasites upon it as long as there is vitality left to sup port them. With the failure of prosperity they disappear, their departure be ing not the cause, but the result, of decreasing commercial activity. The very fact that Seattle has such difficulty in disposing of them is conclusive that it is a live city, where they find the best of subsistence, and its citizens need not worry about the financial result of their disappearance, if, indeed, the finally do disup)ear, which will doubtless not be the case.