Oregon City courier. (Oregon City, Or.) 1902-1919, October 30, 1913, Image 1

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    Eugene,
Ore
OREGON
If you want to buy, sell or trade, try
a small ai in The Courier the best ad
vertizing medium in Clackamas County
and you will get the desired results.
The Courier is the Official State
paper for Oregon for the Farmers So
ciety of -Equity, and has the largest
circulation from Portland to Salem.
OREGON CITY, ORE., THURSDAY, OCT. 30, 1913.
No. 23
31st YEAR
DOVES OF PEACE,
OLIE
BRANCHES
OUR CITY IS SHY, LET'S GET
THESE PEACE SYMBOLS
WE FIGHT, GLADSTONE SMILES
Time to Make Sacrifice Hits and Play
Team Work for City
We have councilmen using the col
umns of the press to dispute and de
nounce each other over details of the
city government.
We have the physicians of our city
fighting the county court appoint
ment of health officer and long and
expensive litigation is ahead.
We have the city council and the
water commissioners fighting and de
fying each other, with no end of trou
hlfi and exDense in prospect.
We have before us the matter of
having a pure water system put up to
the people and already there are evi
dences of factional differences ana a
lining up before even the reports on
the proposition have been presented,
and which factions and differences
will defeat anv water proposition if
allowed to run.
We have no end of trouble and per
sonal differences in the matter of a
rjublic elevator, which the people vot
ed for eleven months ago, and which
there is little prospect of an early
completion.
These and many more smaller dif
ferences are scrapping and snarling in
Oregon Citv.
From September 15 to October 20,
more than a dozen residents of Ore
gon City purchased lots in Gladstone,
and within the last three months as
manv new residences have begun in
that thriving community. These men
will get their livelihood in Oregon City
and spend it in Gladstone.
This is a dead wrong proposition.
Gladstone has good water, lesser el
ectric lighting rates, lesser street im
piovement costs.
And it doesn't have half a dozen
municipal fights all staged at
time.
People get everlastingly tired of
these continuous municipal scraps,
Thev become thoroughly disgusted
and any day you hear the men on the
outside say: "I 'd like to get out of
this town."
Are we going to he kids all
lives?'. ' . '
Are we going to be the butt of jokes
for Portland and the subject of ridi
cule for the newspapers of the valley
for all time to come .'
For two and one-half years we
have been jn a constant turmoil, with
leaders fighting leaders and now the
matter has reached a soreness where
no matter what is proposed, no matter
how meritorious or needed, the oppo
sition faction at once lines up and
gets out the hammer.
This condition will never get us
anywhere. It will never get us pure
water or other things needed.
We know these conditions can be
.remedied. ' rr
We know the men fighting and ad
vertising this city have a loyal pat
riotism down in their hearts for this
old town.
Let's cut it out, bjiry the hammers
and play ball for a change.
Let's make a sacrifice hit once in
a while and see if it doesn't win more
games.
Let's get together, give a little,
meet the other fellow half way, cut
out all this petty spite and kid work,
and when a matter comes up that
stands for public good and a bigger
city, let's be in shape to come down
the finish together and get it.
A great growth boom started in this
city about two years ago.
Scrapping stopped it.
Scrapping will keep it stopped,
A pure water supply, a few doves
of peace in the council, a little salvo
on old sores, the finishing of proposi
tions under way, and the closing of
the doors to any more scraps would
start the old town on the hum.
Who's in? Who'll play it? And
who will favor putting any man, any
faction or any society or organization
on the black list who tries to start
something or keep something already
started going?
It's your move.
OH, YOU EASTERNERS.
You Eight Snow, While We
Strawberries and Roses.
This week Walter Hitchman
Pick
of
Clackamas has been delivering straw
berries in the city.
Not a few quarts of the hot-house
product, but the big Oregon out-of-door
product, the variety of which it
is said takes two bites to a berry.
Mr. Hitchman also .shipped six boxes
of these berries back east, to the un
fortunates who are fighting bliz
zards. Strawberries the last of October,
roses that bloom until Christmas, lawn
mowers that are run every month in
the year. No snow, no winds, no elec
tric storms, no heat, no cold, no in
sects, and the richest soil in the coun
try. Where else can one find this com
bination of things desired except in
the Willamette Valley?
Wanted! WOMEN
IT UllLVUi nnd Hirk
(over 18 years of age)
To operate SEWING Machines
in garment factory
Oregon City Woolen Mills
T
IS
CITY IS TOO BIG FOR OLD STYLE
FORM OF GOVERNMENT
.ET'S TRY COMMISSION PLAN
City Could Save Thousands and Ad
ministration Would be Better
Editor Courier:
When a man embarks in business
two things are bound to occur, either
success or failure. His success may
be due to luck, popularity or business
acumen. In the vast majority of cases
his business acumen decides tne late
of his business. '
Business acumen being the arbiter
of success or failure in a private bus
iness, it has come to pass in our iair
land that a private firm running its
own business can always beat a gov
ernment doing the same business. This
is for two reasons. First, the govern
ment always has to waste a 101 oi
money experimenting, and second, the
man's business life is at stake and
the government's is not, and it is ax
iomatic that a man wno ngnis iur ms
life will put all his power into it,
whereas, on the other hand, if the
government does not put its full
might into its work it will go on just
the same. If the man had laid down
he would have dug his own grave.
This being so, Emerson, the leading
business efficiency expert in America
said he could have built the Panama
Canal for one half the present price.
He not only stated he could do it out
he gave full particulars to Colonel
flnpthals how to save this one half
cost. Likewise the National Efficiency
Commission, whose career was ena
aA whpn it. had iust barelv begun its
work, demonstrated to the world that
our U. S. government was wasung
millions of dollars a year thru inef-
fimp.ncv.
This being the case with the Nation
al Government, how much more likely
is it to be true with a local govern
ment when the officials serve, witnout
pay and docommunity's business on
spare time ? And how much more like
ly is it to be true when the U. S.
o-nvernment officials have had time to
make themselves expert in their
functions yes and even have been com
pelled beforehand to prepare for their
positions, here where our officials are
allowed no time tor preparauun.
Tn a nutshell. Oregon Uity govern
ment is being operated contrary to all
business experience. Here we have
revenues of $75,000 a year in round
numbers, and vet expect Mayor Linn
Jones and the city fathers to take
carp of it for nothing a year.
True, it is a great honor to be a city
officer, yet is it reasonable to ask them
to sacrifice their liveiinooos to guara
this S75.000 without pay? Yet this is
precisely what we are asking them to
do.
The law holds a man liable tor his
mistakes and negliigence. I take no
sides, but I do say let us grant
that there were mistakes made
hv our officials, are they to blame?
Has anybody nerve enough to stand up
nnH tell Oreeron Citv and the world
that our mayor and councilmen and
other officials are to blame? I think
not, because it is absurd to tell men
to look after a business whose annual
revenues are $75,000, for no compeiv
sation at all. If there have been any
mistakes, negligence or losses. It is up
to our local citizens to swallow the
bitter pill and learn a lesson. You
can't get something for nothing and
there is no use trying.
If you want your city officials to do
their best you must renumerate them
for lost time, not only must you re
numerate them for time lost in the
transaction of city business but you
must allow them sufficient compensa
tion so that they can study up on and
snecialize in their work.
This being proven the question
arises what is the best plan to follow?
Shall we pay the councilmen and
others salaries, or shall we change the
charter in toto and have a new lorm
nf government?
Two years ago when I addressed the
Evening Star lirange oi roruana,
was in favor of a paid council, and
now think we should go further. It is
a question of choosing between the
better and the best. Both are good
but the best is the best.
COMMISSION GOVERNMENT has
now been written in letters bold in a
hundred cities in the U. S. to be the
hest form for citv government.
Put a man on pay and he can do
very well. Put him in as a commission
er and he will do MS best.-
You give him time, money and the
right kind of authority you also exact
direct responsibility.
As I said before a private lira can
always do work cheaper and better
than a government can do the same
work.
An ideal government should emulate
the private firm. Give your commiss
ioners their personal time, proper re
numeration and adequate authority
with the check of direct responsibility
and you will have an ideal govern
ment. You must pay for ideal govern
ment, but you will inevitably save
thousands of dollars. I insinuate
against no city official and I venture
to say that there is no city official
today who would not agree with me
that were he given adequate time,
money and authority by the people, he
could save the city many dollars.
If the P. Ry. L. & P. Co. wanted you
to serve as manager without salary
could the company blame you if its
operating expenses were doubled and
its system went to racKT now absurd
then to expect our city officials, with
out adequate time, money or authority,
to give us the best that is in them
If the aforesaid railway company
followed such tactics it would
bankrupt in a year. A government
PRESENT
H
SYSTEM
cannot go bankrupt, so it survives.
The remedy is obvious. -Let us put
the city on a commission government
basis and the city taxes will begin
decrease and the service and re
sults will go up. This also will shut up i
the calamity nowiers wno, at nmes
believe have mighty good grounds.
This will, best of all, give the mayor
and city fathers a fajr show.-We are
asking too much to "expect ten men
with no spare time, no renumeranon,
and cramped power to run with the
greatest success, a business witn an
nual revenues of $75,000 and a cap
ital of millions of dollars. ;.
It is but a step, they say, from the
sublime to the ridiculous and to ex
pect our city fathers to display ge
nius in government without wages,
spare time and without a large
amount of adequate power, is such
descent. It is painfully ridiculous.
Let's get busy and put through a
first class charter for a commission
government, the most successful city
government ever devised, and make
the first step for a greater and bet
ter Oregon City. Let us build for the
future and forget the past. The Pan
ama Canal will soon be open and we
want our quota of citizens. Let us be
ready to get our share.
m. u. Dye.
LOOKS LIKE DRY TIMES.
Public Sentiment Says Dry City After
Next Week Tuesday
Public sentiment sometimes . goes
wrong, but as a general proposition
it renders the verdict.
And public sentiment says Oregon
City will go dry next Tuesday.
The "drys are positive of it and
the "wets" are fearful of it.
It has been a most peculiar cam
paign on the part of the temperance
people a still campaign.
Mo speeches, parades, music or dem
onstration whatever just a personal
work, a man to man, woman to woman
work, a personal appeal to reason and
principal.
A peculiar situation in the campaign
is that some who have heretofore
stumped the county for temperance,
and have been aggressive workers for
no license, are decidedly passive in
the present campaign, while others,
manv of them, who never voted
against license, are openly saying they
will vote for temperance and give it
a trial in Oregon (Jity.
There is little doubt but what the
city will go dry, and the committee
of - one hundred estimate there will
be a majority of about 300.
Judge Campbell to Speak.
Ever since Meade Post inaugurated
the custom of inviting prominent citi
zens to address them at their regular
meetings there has been a largely in
creased attendance. At the last meet
ing Dr. Ford told of his experience
when a boy in Arkansas and Missouri,
during the progress of the rebellion,
At the. next meeting on Saturday,
November 1st, Judge Campbell will
tell the veterans his experience with
the First Oregon Infantry m the
Philippines during the Sanish Ameri
can war. A full attendance is ex
pected.
An Elevator Idea
To the Citizens of Oregon City:
1 would like to make a suggestion,
Don't you think that the money that
was voted for the elevator could be
put to far better use by building a
street car line up as far as Elyville,
that wouldn t cost the city as much
as the elevator will cost the city. It
would pay for itself and help the
people up on the hill and the elevator
won't help but a very little. You Live
Wires and City Council consider it and
give us all a vote on it again.
One that is Interested,
New Water Board
At a meeting of the City Council
Wednesday night, ired McCausland,
John W. Loder and Chris Scheubel
were appointed as water board to suc
ceed the water board recently deposed,
"THE GUARDIAN"
' : -53 ' '
. Ml I I I I ' 1 tlHPK T? -
Drawn by an Oregon City Girl
IN THE NAME
OF THE PEOPLE"
DOCTORS BRING FIGHT, LET
TAXPAYER PA.Y THE BILLS
flEAL RAW ONE' SLIPPED OYER
Hiding Behind District Attorney Be
cause it is Cheaper
Saturday last SOME ONE started
an action in the circuit court for the
removal of Dr. J. A, Van Brakle as
health officer of Clackamas county.
. WHO started it deponent sayeth
not.
On the comnlaint District Attorney
Tongue appears to the the complaining
daddy, but he in turn has handed down
the bunch for Livvy Stipp to father.
There are two reasons for this
course two beautiful and real -raw
reasons.
One is that sand seems to be a
miirhtv shv virtue among the physl
cians who are fighting Dr. Van Brakle
and the county court. They seem to
be perfectly willing to let Mr. Tongue
or Mr. Stipp get out on the firing line
while they remain in the tents, out of
public range, individually, and do the
brilliant strategy stunts.
Another reason and this is a pip
pin is that these valiant M. D's.,
these men who would be saviors of
Clackamas county (and incidentally
oust a doctor who does not belong to
their pill Sunday school), WOULD
HAVE THE TAXPAYERS OF THIS
COUNTY PAY THE BILL, by making
it APPEAR that the PEOPLE were
bringing the action.
Pretty soft for the pill pushers, but
pretty raw on the people the people
who have no hand in tne attacK, tne
people who are entirely satisfied with
judge Anderson's appointment.
So . the complaint is apparently
brought by the medical association,
alias District Attorney Tongue, alias
Deputy District Attorney btipp.
A sort of a John Doe, Richard Roe
proceedings. Safer and less expensive.
It charges tnat vr. van araicie is
not qualified (legally) to look after
health conditions in this county, and
asks the circuit court to remove him
and to punish hin with a fine.
Not satisfied to nave mm Knoctcea
down and dragged out, they would
have him further punished as a warn
ing to others who would heal without
drugs, not to poach on the sacred pre
serves of the M. D's. if he would neai
let him be orthodox, let him drug 'em
up, cut 'em up and play the game ac
cording to rule the old stand-pat
rule.
If the nhvsicians would come right
out where the grass is short and play
the game in the open, it would look a
lot better to spectators.
Whether he wins or loses Dr. van-
Brakle will not ask Clackamas county
to pay one cent of his defense. He is
in the fight for what he considers a
principal. He is fighting for a cause
osteopathy; he will pay every dollar
of the expense of his defense, and he
won t crow or moan at the final ver
dict.
On the other hand it appears that
THE PEOPLE are bringing on this
expensive fight, and "the people" may
pay the bills.
How many of you "people" are' a
party to this litigation 7 How many
of you have protested against Van
Brakle as health officer? How many
of you signed the complaint against
him? -
If the doctors want to fight let them
get in the ring and finish it This en
who will cast her first vote November 4
deavor to . stand behind someone and
dump the big expenses onto the tax
payers is on a level with the soldier
who paid a substitute $300 to be shot
in his place, and then asked the gov
ernment to give him back his money.
There is no demand for Dr. van
Brakle's removal. Public sentiment
is unquestionably with him. It's an
attack of a few doctors who appear
to have stomach hose in place of back
bone, and who are so devoted to tne
dear people that they would let them
pay the freight. . ; ,
But the deal won't go through, or
the Courier very much misjudges the
pe ople of Clackamas county.
It's all petty work. There is no call
for it Politicians rub the doctors
ears; the doctors chase over to Tongue
and ask him to stand for it; Tongue
dumps it onto Stipp, and "the people"
will settle for it is brought in the
name of the people.
And the people should not stand
for it. It is none of their shortcom
ings. And the Courier doesn't believe
they will.
The case will come before a circuit
judge in -due time, and no doubt it
will be appealed to the Supreme court
by one side or the other.
Joseph E. Hedges and Clarence Eat
on will assist in the prosecution, and
U'Ren & Schuebel and John Sievers
will defend Dr. Van Brakle.
LOST, small sorrel horse, 4 years
old, weight 800, white face, crook
ed nose, left hind foot white. Mrs.
Emma Rayner, Clackamas, Farmers
phone 1-9.
Crowded Out
Four columns of matter is left out
of this Courier for want of room.
We
I
50
Sample
Secured fromMARSHALL FIELD CO. Chicago
These Suits are identical with those now being thown by this firm's big
State Street store at $25 and $27.50
We have an even fifty of themNo two alike.
FOR SATURDAY
Alterations .
FREE
TvlASONIC TEMPLE BLDO.
IT
TWENTY YEARS WET, 4 YEARS
DRY, AND THE COMPARISON
LETTER FROM LEE TO ADAMS
City is Growing and Booming Since
Saloons Went Out
(The following letter is in answer
to one written by L. Adams of this
city 'to M. J. Lee of Canby. Mr. Ad
ams wrote to ascertain the condition
of that city, both before and after
saloons were voted out.)
Canby, Ore., Oct. 27. Mr. L. Ad
ams, Oregon City, Ore. Dear Sin
Replying to yours of the 25th, will
state that Canby was wet until Janu
ary 4th, 1909. Since that time Canby
has been continuously dry. But one
blind pig has been found in the four
dry years and that one was closed in
1912. John Sims pleaded guilty and
naid his fine.
During the wet reign of 20 or more
years Canby made but a poor showing
as a moral and a progressive town.
Onlv a coudIo of stores, a few ware
houses, no sidewalks, but a few feet
bevond the porches of these saloons
and what business houses were then
in Canbv.
Old wJoden school buildings, the
principal church holding services but
twice a month, being on a circuit with
Cams and Mulino.
Rova and drunkards could buy all
the booze they wanted while eight
councilmen tried to regulate the sa
loons four in number.
It was estimated that about $3000
per annum was sent out of Canby for
F . ... . . A 4 rtrtr
booze each year lor tne years oi iuo-6-7
and 8. This makes a total of
$120,000 worse than wasted to Canby
saloons. Besides several destitute
families and a great many others bad
ly off as for clothing, shoes and so
cial comforts for women and child
ren. But since going dry bank de
posits have increased from $75,000 to
$314,UUU.
And instead of the old wooden
shacks of which the wets have stated
are now vacant Canby has built since
going dry one $20,000 concrete lz
grade grammar and High school, $30,-
000 concrete 100x100 two story and
' basement general merchandise irtor
in the finest mercantile building ii
Clackamas county; $15,000 Odd Fel
lows Temple of concrete, two Btories
and basement; $12,000 Masonic Tem
ple concrete, two-story; $10,000 Meth
odist church, concrete; $3,000 addition
al concrete stores added to bank build
ing; $5000 opera house built by the
band boys; $100,000 worth of other
buildings and dwellings of credit to
any county.
Three months after the town was
dry the treasury was also dry and af
ter four years of dry, Canby has
more money than in the best days
when it was wet, and the city does
not have a single outstanding bond
or warrant. Each time since Canby
has gone dry when the wets try to
vote in saloons, Canby has gone dry
by increasing majority.
Seme wet told me in Oregon City
that Canby was full of vacant build
ings. Only one wooden store building
for rent and this building was erect
ed in the winter time of green wet
lumber set up crooked with the town
and used a short time to sell bank
rupt stocks of goods gathered at low
Place on
ii
HOW
IRKED
URDAY
Womesi
prices from failures in wet towns in
Washington. I could name the towns
as I have been there many times.
But Canby farmers and citizens do
not want anything but the best of
goods and are prosperous enuogh to
pay for the same. Consequently this
stock was boxed up and shipped to
some other place, while instead of the
old wooden shacks we have seven new
concrete store buildings.
All the old saloon buildings are
now in use, not one being vacant.
A short time after the town went
dry a few wets would go to Barlow
a mile and a naif away or to Oregon
City and bring back some booze, hut "
that soon wore off and now only a
few old topers that still live in every
community care to make the trip.
Barlow has had two saloons ever
since Canby went dry and if saloons
make a town you might visit Canby
and Barlow atid see what you think
of the comparison. i
Barlow has the vacant buildings in
stead of Canby.
Yours very truly,
M. J. LEE.
CAN YOU DOWN THIS?
Can You Vote Against Education at
45 Cents a Year?
Some figures got in wrong last
week on the library article, making it
read that the assessment would be
45 cents on $500, when it should have
read 45 cents on $1500, But as near
ly every voter in the county has re
ceived a circular letter explaining in
detail the proposition , voters have
readily seen the error.
There is little to be said for the
library project that has not been said.
This paper believes it is a splendid
proposition for the county and we
cannot believe the voters will reject
it. There is absolutely nothing in the
way of education that can be had for
anywhere near the money, and the
fact that it is a tax, rather than a sub
scripion, should not scare any man or
woman who reads or thinks.
A few years ago Tabbard Inn li
braries were scattered all over the
country. A book case holding about
fifty novels was put into all drug
stores and people fell all over them
selves to pay $2.00 a year for the
service. It was so cheap 60 stand
ard stories at four cents each.
. The county libraur plan is many
times ahead of this bookcase plan, and
at many times less expense.
It is hard to understand how a man
of family can find any good reason to
oppose a plan that will give him ac
cess to a valuable library for 45
cents per year, the average assess
ment in this county.
Situated as it is, with very little
railroad mileage, Clackamas county
has a little empire of ."shut-in" peo
ple, t And this country needs ftccess
to . library if any people in QVegon
do. f .
The . county library;, propci'iion
dmilrl Komi Tfr a ' 'vn Innhla B
means to an education to be voted
down. It is too cheap to have a
sound argument against it. Nothing
along this line can possibly be gotten
for anywhere near the cost.
Don t put 45 cents a year up against
a county and district library and let
it look bigger than the education. You
can't afford to vote this down it is
too big a bargain, too big an invest
ment. - " i
Wutcr Report Next Week.
Chairman Tooze of the water com
mittee says ho has received the offi
cial Bull Run water proposition from
the city officials of Portland, and is
preparing his report which will be
presented to the council and given to
the newspapers next week. It is also
expected that the Clackamas source
will also be ready in a few days, after
which the people can put them side by
side and decide which will be the bet
ter proposition for the city.
Sale
See Window
Display
OREGON CITY, ORE.