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THE MORNING- OREGONIAN, TUESDAY, JANUARY 2, 1900.
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TODAY'S "WEATHER Occasional rain; fresh
to brisk southeast "winds.
JPORT&ANBv TUESDAY, JANUARY 3
RENEWAL OP OLD UREA.H3.
Our "aunties" doubt -whether civiliza
tion is better than savage life. Hence
they are not yet reconciled even to the
acquisition of the Hawaiian islands by
the United States. One of the organs
of these sentimental dreamers says:
"It is doubtful if the sum of human
happiness has heen increased in Hawaii
since the good, old days -when fishing
and shaking the bread-fruit tree was in
vogue and people passed their time in
swimming, or making -wreaths for their
personal adornment. They had leisure
and could indulge a taste lor art, and
that is -what modern men down in the
dusty arena of commerce and specula
tion are after, and they rareiy attain
unto their desire."
Burke, In his "Vindication of Natural
Society," satirized this sort of argu
ment, very effectively. This book pur
ported to be a posthumous work -from
the pen of Bolingbroke, written with
the object of portraying the evils en
tailed on mankind from every species
of artificial society. In fact, it was a
reduction of the theory to an absurd
ity. Yet one of the curiosities of lit
erature Is the fact that It was taken
"by many of the sentimental and doc
trinaire people of the time as a serious
performance. It probably would still
he so taken by the sentimentalist of
our time who could write as we find the
person quoted above writing about the
Hawaiians.
The sum of civilization and of all Its
achievements consists in departure
from the idyllic conditions which it is
said the native Hawaiians have so la
mentably lost. The savage Is truly Na
ture's own, for she has fashioned him
in her own way. He has not been
spoiled by the arts of priest, politician,
tailor or teacher; he is not that "broth
er to the ox," the "man with the hoe."
Or, if nature's methods have been mod
ified to some slight extent by heredity
and tradition, the Interference Is not
serious enough to disguise any charac--iciistlc
part of the process. The para
dise wherein there is no labor, tenanted
by those happy beings who live by fish
ing and shaking the bread-fruit tree, is
the place where our "'aunties" would
expect to find the perfect man, enemy
cf the hoe, with no "blunted percep
tions or "'sluggish thought" or "owl
like stupidity." No low facial angle
there, due to generations of task-masters.
But if the world should accept this
philosophy, the descent would be first
to semi-civilized conditions, then to
barbarous peoples, then to savages, and
finally to brutes and reptiles. Man,
however, makes prpgrjess, not by fol
lowing nature, hut by compelling it
and turning its forces to his own use.
"We see in savages what nature -can do
when Bhe is not interfered with In her
"benign work. This world needs work
ers, not idlers. In his new book, "The
2L&T? of Life, Conduct and Character,"
W. E. H. Lecky, the great writer on
the "History of Morals," devotes con
siderable space to the social and indus
trial tendencies of the time. His ob
servations on the passing of the idler
are especially interesting. He finds
"basis for the progress of morality in
the fact that Idleness is regarded' with
less tolerance now than in times past,
and he thinks that in the future it will
become even more disreputable. He
Bays that the tendency is such that,
whereas young men at the beginning of
Victoria's reign who were really busy
affected idleness, now at the close of
the reign young men who are reaHy
idle find it necessary to affect to be
busy. It cannot be doubted that this
is a movement in the direction of a
higher morality. The man with the
hoe Is on the ascending scale; the man
with the tomato can is on the down
grade and far towards the bottom.
iTIGHT THE ENEMY "WITH HIS OWS
TOOLS.
A letter is printed in the New Tork
Bun, signed "B. M. C.;'.from a Grand
Hapids, Mich., correspondent,, who de
scribes himself as an ex-officer of the
Union army, in criticism of the English
tactics in South Africa. This letter is
worthy of attention, for it is doubtless
from the pen of General Byron M.
Cutcheon, who was colonel of the
Twenty-seventh Michigan regiment
during the war, and brevetted brigadier-general
for gallantry and distin
guished services. General Cutcheon for
a number of years after the war repre
sented his district in congress; he is a
man of ability and intelligence;' and his
military criticism upon the English
tactics in South Africa is the common
one that in every instance the English
generals have made a square front at
tack over open ground, and have suf
fered accordingly. In no instance has
any effective flank movement been at
tempted. General Cutcheon says that
Grant or Shermanwould have turned
the enemy out oftheir position instead
cf wasting men in "'spectacularjfront
attack," General Cutcheon further
says:
Such flanking movements have been rendered
Impracticable to the British commanders; first,
fcy the lack of mobility through the absence of
wagon trains, -which confines their line of advisee-
to the railroads: second, by the absence
of pTpcr and accessary pontoon trains for croc
lug treatas promptly; third, by the want of
sufficient cavalry for scouting and reconnolter
lng the flanks of the enemy's positions, and,
finally, by the Brltleh being overmatched in ar
tlJcry Are by the JongetNrAnegnos"vof the
Boers. "-XLl -
General Cutcheon is inot jquite fair in
his criticism of the Britjshcommand
ers. Grant and Sherman-were, like "X.ee
and Liongstreet, t supremely practical
soldierar when one thing would not do
they tried another. General Grant
made a direct front attack on Lee's
works at Sppttsylvania and won a suc
cess; that is, he broke Lee's first line
and forced him to fight on terms where
it relatively cost Lee more men in
killed, wounded and prisoners than it
cost Grant. Grant tried a direct as
sault again at Cold Harbor, and suf
fered a severe repulse, and yet Grant
made a direct assault on Lee's in
trenched line before Petersburg, April
2, 1865, and broke it. Sherman was
called "the great flanker," and yet
Sherman made a direct assault on
Johnston's intrenched line at Xenesaw
Mountain and suffered a severe repulse,
and Sherman's total losses between
Dalton and Atlanta, in spite of his
genius as a "flanker," were over 40,000
men killed, wounded and prisoners,
about equal to the losses of Grant be
tween the "Wilderness and Petersburg.
It took Grant from May 4 to June 20
to get to Petersburg, and it took Sher
man, with all his genius for "flanking,"
from May 4 to July 20. to reach Atlanta;
the loss in men was about the same.
These educated English officers with
out question keep pace with the text
books and military object-lessons of
their profession. They have done-the
best they could with the tools furnished
them, and they are not to blame. Gen
eral Buller, an old cavalry officer,
warned the war office that what was
wanted most of all was a body of 15,000
mounted riflemen; the Boere are
mounted riflemen; their mobility can
not be matched by Infantry, and with
educated modern German military tal
ent to play military engineer, artillerist
and intrencher, the Boer success, won
always on the defensive, is as simple
as Bunker Hill or New Orleans. "If
Lord Roberts is a man of practical
sense, he will organize a body of 25,000
to 30,000 mounted riflemen, who can
move as fast as the Boers, turn their
positions and overtake them for a fight
before they can elaborately intrench
another.
OCR IDLE MILLIONS.
The most impressive thing in the sta
tistics of Oregon's trade and industry
we printed; -yesterday is "thej-fina.nclal
exhibits Th banking! figures -tenS'a
strange story of accumulating1 capital
with restricted employment. Since De
cember, 1892, our banks have curtailed
their loans and discounts- tremendously,
with some moderate expansion since
low-water mark in 1837, and simultane
ously their individual deposits have
enormously increased since 1897- The
disparity between these accumulations
and Investments is so great as to 4be
disheartening if thjere were no, reason
to hope' for better things in the near
future.
For the banks of a community to
have nearly twice as much money on
deposit as can profitably be lent is not a
healthy condition. Our banks are, para
dox though It be, too sound. Their sta
tistical position Is toojstrong. If all the
money "oflhe "community were-locked
up in bank vaults, it would he safe
enough, but the country couldn't pros
per. To earn anything money must be
Invested; and investment, while it
yields profit, Involves; risks. December
9, 1892, the national banks of Oregon,
Washington and Idaho had $22,000,000 In
Individual deposits and $32,000,000 in
loans and discounts. Perhaps this was
an excess on the wrong side, though
such a proportion is by competent per
sons viewed as healthy. With the panic
of 1833 a period of liquidation set in.
By December the deposits shrank to
$15,000,000 and the loans to $22,000,000.
From then till the sprhig. pf 189J the
deposits averaged at about $16,000,000,
the loans and discounts being worked
down meanwhile to less than $14,000,000;
and this was a healthy condition.
But mark the sequel. Loans and dis
counts have expanded slightly, but de
posits tremendously, thus:
Increase
Loans,
1S97 $, 27.000
1S97 .. ... jsn,w
1888 ...... J05.Q00
189S .." 716.000,
1899 .-r.."..- -257.000
1S99 -1,072.000
Deposits,
$1,849,000
5.663,000
ll232.0CO
3,462,000
663,000
5,871,000
July,
Dec.,
May,
Dec.,
April,
Sept,
Gain for period.... $3,194,000 $18,645,000
That is: Since May, 1897, the banks
of the three states have increased their
deposits by $18,000,000, but their loans
by only $8,000,000. The deposits stand
at nearly -$24,000,000, the loans at $17,
000,000. "ThejiatlonafbankB of Portland
In their December statement show de
posits, individual and bank, of $7,842,
S7S, and loans and discounts of only
$2,824,828. This is safe, but It is too
safe. Let us taike by way o compari
son three strong institutions of con
servative Eastern cities:
Loans Indivld
and dls- ual de
Capital, counts, posits.
Nat'l Mechanics'
bankv Baltimore.$l,000,000 $2,912,000 $2,910,000
Girard Nat'l bank,
Philadelphia ... 1,000,000 6,417,000 6,352,000
Farm. & Mechan.
bank, Phila 2,000,000 4,450,000 4.841,000
Responsibility for the unprofitable
state of Oregon capital must be divided
up among several classes of persons.
Perhaps- the banks suffer from an ex
cess of conservatism, due to caution
learned in 1893, when large amounts of
capital were wiped out of existence
through unavailable assets. 'But these
deposits do not belong to the banks.
They belong to the depositors. Doubt
less large sums are on deposit in the
banks that could be lucratively invest
ed in industries of various kinds. Men
who have money are content to hoard
it instead of putting it out in trade, de
velopment of land, forests and mines,
buildings, manufactures. Many men
who could borrow money if they were
disposed to engage in productive un
dertakings fail to do so through sheer
lack of enterprise. Not the least culpa
ble class of our people are those who
have the ability, energy and" nerve to
handle large amounts of capital skill
fully, but to whom money cannot safely
be intrusted on account of their lack
of reliability. The men who have
money and credit are contented to take
it easy; the men who are all brains
and ambition have neither money nor
credit.
But this sort of thing cannot last in
definitely. The difference between hard
times and good times Is principally a
state of mind. Men can continue In
depression and gloom for only a limited
space of time. The constitution of the
mind is such that it necessarily rises
to hope and confidence. The same in
fluence that sent these deposits to the
banks will soon be putting them out in
productive enterprise. It is a splendid
condition of the development just be
fore the Pacific Northwest today, that
it will be able to "finance" its own
enterprises. With the opportunities for
profitable investment 'now Opening up
on, everjrjiand, these accumulated mll-
I lions of savings are not going to remain
long in the banks, Ainemployed and un
productive.' ORTTICAL YEARS FOR ENGLISH. CIV
I&IZATION.
The year 1898 was the most critical
year in the history of the United States
since" that of 18S4, which settled the"
fate of the civil war and compelled A
radical recasting of our written con
stitution through emancipation and ex
cision of human slavery, and 1896, when
widespread financial ruin was- only
averted through the defeat of Bryan
ism. The year of 1898 was thus fateful
because through unexpected events
we were not only hurried into war with
a European power, but in the settle
ment of peace decided to retain posses
sion of the Philippines, and thus be
came committed to a policy of national
expansion in practice beyond the limi
tations of our North American conti
nent. There was nothing in the theory
of this territorial expansion that need
ed any defense, but in practice our
prompt decision to meet an unexpected
emergency manfully and accept its un
sought and undesirable responsibilities
Was a most serious and far-reaching
undertaking in our national careen
We are just beginning to appreciate
fully how singularly fortunate wewere
wThen we. suddenly' went to war .with
Spain, not only in the fact that the
navy of Spain was incapable of decent
sea service; that her soldiers in Cuba
were not prepared to resist attack, but
also in the fact that the refusal of
Great Britain to permit intervention in
behalf of Spain made victory possible.
At three different times before the re
cent intervention of the United States
on behalf of the Cubans our govern
ment has been on the verge of a collis
ion with Spain; first under the foreign
complications which plagued Jefferson's
administration; second in 1854, when
Spanish authorities fired across the
bows of the steamer Black Warrior,
confiscated her cargo and fined her
captain, and thirdly in 1873, when the
Virglnius was captured and many of
the men on board were executed at
Santiago. The attitude which England
had uniformly maintained with regard
to Cuba up to 1898 would have made In
tervention in the affairs of Cuba on
our'part impracticable had Lord Salis
bury adhered to it. It was the com
plete "change of front on part of the
British foreign office which rendered
( the liberation of Cuba for the first
time possible.
In 1825 George Canning warned the
Mexican government that England
would oppose the seizure of Cuba by
either France or the United States, In
1854 Secretary Marcy wrote Minister
Buchanan that the action of the Cuban
officials in the matter of 'the Black
Warrior was due to their- confidence
that England and France would come
to Spain's aid, as they had done in
1851-52. In 187S the head of the British
ministry wrote Secretary Fish that
England would be unwilling to co-operate
with the United States for the
purpose of terminating the devastation
rof'jGvba unless' Spamshouldsassgnt to
the proceeding. France supported Eng
land's attitude, and, under the circum
stances, It was out of the question for
the United States to act single-handed
Imthe Cuban affair.; for the attitude of
Great Britain and France in 1875-76
indicated plainly that they would de
fend Spain against any forcible inter
ference on part of the United States.
France would gladly have taken the
same position in the spring of 1898, but
England was no longer willing to ob
struct the just designs of the United
States. It is clear from these facts
that but for this change of front on the
part of Great Britain we should not
have Interfered in behalf of Cuba; it is
clear that our interference was success
ful only because Great Britain cried
"Hands off."- We are where we are to
day in Cuba and in the Philippines,
with fair promise of good work in the
future, because Great Britain cried
"Hands off" to France in 1898; we are
in a better state of military and naval
preparation for the future than' we
have been for thirty years because
Great Britain in 1898 'changed her his
torical attitude regarding our interven
tion In the Cuban affairs. Now comes
the interesting historical speculation,
Did Great Britain change her attitude
from that of 1875-76 because of polit
ical prescience on part of her states
men, or did. Lord. Salisbury just happen
to build better than he, knew or in
tended? ' '
It is quite possible that Lord Salis
bury was farseeing enough to under
stand that Great Britain had nothing
to gain In helping to keep the breath of
life In the decrepit body of poor, old
Spain; nothing to gain in siding with
France In anything, and the support of
Spain would have simply meant help
ing a lot of French holders of Spanish
bonds secure their debt. There was
certainly neither honor nor profit to
Great Britain to side with French
money-lenders and Spanish tyrants to
save them from pecuniary loss and
military defeat. Sound English sense
may have been sufficient to decide Lord
Salisbury in this change of front in
English-Spanish policy. Lord Salis
bury knew that in the future Great
Britain had nothing to fear from Amer
ica naturally, and that it would be ab
surd to arm her "gigantic daughter"
with just occasion for criticism and
contempt; he knew that if Great Brit
ain ever needed the friendship and sup
port of .sympathetic influential public
opinion, vsSe would, not find ft in feather-headed,
fantastical France or rheu
matic Spain, so on general principles
Lord Salisbury decided that Great Brit
ain would do well to keep step with the
United States in the matter-of advanc
ing the cause of the largest liberty for
the greatest number under equal laws.
This was our crisis of 1898, and
we met all its unexpected events and
emergencies manfully and victoriously,
and now England in her turn has un
expectedly entered upon what will
prove her most critical and momentous
year since Waterloo.
The Boer war was not unexpected,
perhaps, but Its severity as a test of
Great Britain's power to crush a for
midable revolt of well-armed and ably
led white colonists was unexpected, and
Great Britain Is meeting it as we met
our terrible reverses in the first two
years of the civil war, with character
istic race fortitude and resolution.
Great Britain will be victorious, and
her victory will be that of humanity
and equal rights over the survival of a
civilisation that deserves to be as ob
solete as that of the Iroquois Indians.
The year of 1898 was our year of unex
pected emergency, test and trial; the
year of 1900 will be England's most crit
ical and eventful year since Waterloo,
for her. prestige as a great power is at
stake as completely as if the United
f States had heen repulsed, in every fight
in Cuba, "beaten to the refuge of our
shj.ps,, and had not heehable to-ally-and"-llru8n'Mhe
enemy '"back, to the ref
uge of their fortified towns only to be
slowly but successfully dug out of their
holes like foxes and obliged to surren
der their pelt.
THE DRIFT OF CHRISTIANITY.
The religious discussion tha-t is raging
in the newspapers throughout the
country makes evident the inability of
the old orthodox doctrines to hold and
reach the masses. It suggests, also,
the lines along which the "new evan
gel" is to proceed. In many represent
ative pulpits, indeed, the change-from
old to new is already strikingly mani
fest. Modern Christianity has drifted
far from the literal imitation, interpre
tation and application of Jesus' teach
ings made by the early church. Spec
ulative theology today cqmmands small
consideration compared with practical
ethics. The steady drift of the time is
toward replacement of the whole dog
matic system of belief by a tangible
code of conduct founded upon the
teachings of Jesus, who gave man an
example and an inspiration toward
righteousness. Christianity loses noth
ing of its real power and beautjr when
freed from supernatural or mythical
symbolism, The doctrine of eternal
punishment 49j' graduallySbeing shelved
by ,xnprs denominations as in Conflict
with thespTrit of the age, which be
lieves that "one shriek of hate would
jar all the hymns of heaven." The
God of eternal rage is rarely preached
today, ana creeds are coming to bere
garded as only .imperfect and tradi
tional garments of eternal truths.
The simple question between so
called "liberal Christians" of all sects
and orthodox Bourbonism is concern
ing the validity of the supernaturalism
that has been associated as a base
heathen alloy with gold of the doctrine
of the fatherhood of God and the
brotherhood of man. This Is a ques
tion of historical fact and philosophical
judgment, not a question of senti
mental intuition and assumption.
Christianity in its evolution is vastly
beyond the finest fruit and works of
paganism, but so Is Mohammedanism
infinitely better than the barbaric,
blood-drinkingpoly theism it supplanted.
Christianity for many centuries did not
bear mucn better fyujis than paganism.
Byzantine and Alexandrine Christian
ity wasiat barbarous faith In practice,
so fearfully' was' it adulterated with
paganism. When we remember Row
faith in supernaturalism, the savage
disputes oyer dogmas concerning the
atonement, the trinity, the resurrec
tion, eternal punishment, once made
modern Europe as red with blood as a
"cardinal's hat," we should not forget
that the superiority of Christianity Vas
a long and weary work of evolution
before it reached its present form of
comparatively humane faith and prac
tice. The influence of Christianity for
good has been just in proportion to the
rapidity with which it has cast off su
pernaturalism and medieval dogma anq
rested for its recommendation to the
hearts, of men on the thought, life, and
fate of Its founder as separated from
the theology that was invented by at
tenuated ascetics and morbid expound
ers of monkrbred metaphysics, and
nailed In the spirit of pious fraud to
the cross of Christ. A good enough ar
gument could have .been made for the
validity of the Greek theology meas
ured hy its 'frultB over the fetishism of
older and meaner nations. The spirit
ual distance between the Pantheon of
Homeric mythology and the faith of
Socrates is far greater than the dis
tance between the faith and moral pre
cepts of Socrates and those of Jesus.
It is not necessary to argue that
Christianity Is better than paganism.
So it Is, in its ultimate of the nine
teenth century, even as the Turk of '
today is more humane than the so
called Christian of the sixteenth cenjt
tury, who, whether Protestant or Cath
olic, was as inhuman and savage a
persecutor as the pagan persecutors of
the Christians from Nero to Diocletian,
because qf the, Infernal faith in super
naturalism, medieval dogma and 1the
'ology. "Christianity, separated from
medieval superstition and theological
dogma, is simply the most recent but
not necessarily the ultimate or final
stride of moral or religious evolution.
The question is not whether Christian
ity and monotheism today are not bet
ter every way than polytheism in
Greece -yesterday. The real point is
.thaf since -the Reformation there has
been an irrepressible conflict within the
Protestant church. The battle shout of
today Is nothing but the note of the
same bugle blown in the sixteenth cen
tury by reformers, and passed like the
torch of liberty from one strong hand
to another; from generation to gen-Ujij
eratlon. 1 I
This revolt has always come out of
the church itself, and is today heard,
like the voice of the imprisoned bird in
the tree trunk, within the church cry
ing for release and liberty in no uncer
tain tone. This evolution and elimina
tion within and without the church has
been steadily going on since Luther's
day; small thanks to Luther, who
bullded far better than he knew or in
tended. The drift of the day is to
Jesus himself more than ever before in
the history of the race. The life of
Jesus and the character of Jesus stand
for a worthy ideal for imItatIon, what
ever may be our faith or want of faith
in the authority of his so-called mira
cles. The tendency of th4 time is not
toward irfeli&ion bijtitoSvurd putting
religion on a rational basis. This ra
tionalism, teaches that the' legends
which ascribe supernatural "birth to
Jesus, ascribe to him miraculous pow
ers, that tell of a halt in the ceaseless
march of nature at his death, that re
port resurrection and ascension of his
materialized spirit, are not the life of
Christianity today, nor have they been
Its potentiality with 'the masses in the
past. Jesus lives in the world's heart
because of the obvious truths he spoke,
the beneficent and benignant life he
led, and the unselfish, high-souled
heroism with which he met his fate.
The annual number of The Oregonian
has gone forth to the public, an epit
ome of the resources of a vast section
of country, favored as never land was
favored elsewhere by nature in the
generous bestowal of her richest gifts.
The research and labor involved in the
presentment of this superb number was
enornious; the presentment itself is
amazing both in detail and aggregate,
even to citizens of Oregon, as showing
the wide diversity of resources and the
substantial progress made in their de
velopment within the past year, while
the, whole cannot be otherwise than, at
tractive 'to capital seeking investment
and to intelligent people seeking homes
or contemplating change of location.
The ijreat paper .is. not only a record
of the past year; "an epitome of the
growth of halt""aC century, and a-''fair
and f ull 'resentnieht bftlie resources
of a vast fegion?,it is a herald of future
development which, forsaking the slow
methods that Tvere Inaugurated by iso
lation and were attended by self-satisfaction
for many years, will go for
ward by leaps and bounds throughout
the vast empire of "opportunity that it
faithfully portrays.
The transport Thomas is eastward
bound from Manila, "bearing the hodies
of twa heroes who fell while upholding
the honor of their country in Luzon
General , Lawton and Major Logan,
both honored -names- in 'the country's
service, though that of the latter is in
the nature "of a reflected glory, he hav
ing had neither time nor opportunity to
test' his quality beyond the qrisis that
he bravely met with his life. That he
would have distinguished himself in
the service had his life been spared,
there can be no doubt, and he will be
honored as a brave man who was will
ing to do and to dare for his country,
and, in doing and daring, made and
closed his record as a soldier. The na
tion will stand with bowed and rever
ential head while the remains of these
heroes are consigned with tears and
-honor to the shelter of her bosom.
Not long since a leading Southern
BaptiBt paper came up boldly to the
help of the weak against the mighty
by deciding that women must not re
peat Scripture aloud in Suhdayschool
exercises, because it would be "using
the Bible to disobey the Bible." The
Southern Presbyterian synod of Vir
ginia is generous enough to allow some
what greater liberty to the women who
make up the rank and file of the
churches under its jurisdiction. It has
just decided after two years' prayerful
consideration- that women may sing in
church, as this is not a leading repre
sentative duty, like .speaking or praying
in public. They may also, It decides,
form missionary societies and pray to
gether "under the control of the ses
sion of the church." Orthodoxy, thus
intrenched, may reasonably consider
Itself safe.
There was pathos In the "Merry
Christmas and God bless you" tele
graphed, by the aged, sore-hearted
queen of Great Britain to her soldiers
in South Africa. The wish for a
"merry Christmas"' to soldiers far
from' home, suffering the hardships of
wax: and facing the perils of battle,
might be construed into something of
mockery but for the evident sincerity
of the greeting and the undertone of
almost motherly tenderness that It car
ried. England has indeed passed few
Christmas days in her histqry wherein
her people were so completely thrown
back, upon the conventional "God bless
you" in exchanging Christmas greet
ings, though they have bravely kept an
appearance of confidence to match the
courage which has "shown no faltering
under stress of disaster.
Medical science is struggling to dem
onstrate its ipqwer over disease in the
case of Representative Boutelle, with"
at length fair prospect of success. It
achieved one notable triumph last year
in the .rescue of .Kipling from death
by pneumonia, after collapse seemed
certain, but it failed to preserve the life
of Vice-President Hobart from a less
acute disease, though long confident of
its anility to restore him to health.
Unlike surgery, medicine Is not an ex
act science, and it is doubtful whether
as a science it will ever, beyond a cer
tain limit, pass the experimental stage.
It may be hoped that its remedial agen
cies have tbeen successfully applied in.
the case of Mr. Boutelle, and that he
will soon be restored to labor for his
constituents in the house of represent
atives. The distinguished dead of the year
are not numerous, and Include General
George S. Greene, United States army,
aged 98; ex-United States Supreme
Court Justice Field, United States Sen
ator Morrill, Rosa Bonheur, Castelar,
the famous Spanish orator; ex-Chancellor
Von Caprlvl, of Germany; Pro
fessor Marsh, of Tale college, and Gen
eral Lawton, United States army.
The reason why Agulnaldo does not
surrender is that Senator Hoar and
others encourage him to continue his
efforts to kill American soldiers. In the
expectation that this will cause the
American people to "get tired," and the
American soldier to turn tail and sneak
away from the-islands.
The Colesburg engagement shows
what the war will be when the onnos-
armies meet on even terms. The
rSoers are victorious if they can get the
British to attack, impregnable defenses
or fall into a trap. Flukes do not de
cide many important wars or long cam
paigns. Naval armaments depress the czar
and cause him to miss a year as to the
end of the century. But his alarm is
justifiable. Russia is weak on that
head and Great Britain Is strong.
Sales of the New. Year's Oregonian
yesterday by far exceeded the sales of
any former year; but the edition print
ed greatly exceeded any former edition,
and copies may still be had.
Emperor William, in a speech yes
terday, spoke of the day as the first of
the new century. Billy always was ec
centric, even a little crazy. But he is
a good boy to his grandmother.
AN AMERICAN BUIilET.
It Was Fired by Those Who Baeour
age Filipino Resistance.
St. Paul Pioneer Press.
More than one commentator on Gen
eral Lawton's death has remarked that
his life was sacrificed to the persistent
blindness and ill-judged utterances of o.
handful of his fellow-countrymen, but no
one has put it so dramatically as he did
himself in a letter written home about a
month before his death. In this letter he
said:
If I am ehot by a Filipino bullat, it might as
well come from one of my own men, because I
know from obee .-atlona confirmed by captured
prisoner that the continuance of fighting is
chiefly due to reportB that are sent out from
America.
And again:
I would to God that the truth of this whole
Philippine situation could be known by every
one in America as I know it. If the real his
tory, inspiration and conditions of thla Insur
rection, and the influenceo, local and external,
that now "encourage the enemy, as wen as tho
actual possibilities of these Islands and peoples
and their relatlons"-to this sreat East, could
be understood at home, we would hear no more
talk of unjust "sttooHnff of government" into
the Filipinos, or of hauling- down, our flag-in.
th ThiHnnin. Tf-ther -so-called antl-imoerial-
ista would honestfy ascertain the truth on taa
ground and not In distant America, they, whom
I Tjellevft to be honest men misinformed,, would
be convinced of the error of their abatements
and conclusions and of tha unfortunate effct
of their publications here.
This letter, written to Hon. John Bar
rett, ex-TJnlted Stages minister to
Slam, was read hy him at the dinner
of the New England Society fai New
York, last Friday night. It must have
come with Intensely dramatic effect upon
that assemblage. If there were present
any of tha men who have been so eager
to thrust before the public their criti
cisms of, the government concerning the
Filipino war, it would be strange If the
reading of that letter did not touch them
with a sense of shame and of culpability.
For Lawton's words, almost prophetic in
their essence, were the Words of a man
knowing the Situation thoroughly, famil
iar with the conditions at home and at
the seat of war, and capable of judging
them. It Is hard for an American here
at home to understand that the words
of a handfnl of extremists could move a
body of men so far away. Yet the very
fact that it does move them shows how
much those easily Influenced people are
In need of a firm control and especially
of a free- government. The mere publica
tion of such literature as the Atkinson
pamphlets and the Garrison poetry seems
to them, like a guarantee of authority,
unaccustomed as they are to freedom of
the press and used for generations to
espionage and surveillance. The mouth
Ings of the anti-expansionists have prob
ably been more real to the insurgents
than to the "antis" themselves, who are
most of them faddists, and Inured to the
indifference of the public. Lawton real
ized this, as others have realized it. His
words on the subject are practically tha
same words that have been spoken by
others in a position to know the facts.
But In his case their significance Is trag
ically deepened. Something of & remorse
and shame before the stricken family, if
not before their belied country, must pos
sess the Americans who, to all intent and
purposes, fired that death-dealing bullet
IN VCIAmE'S MAGAZINE.
Marie Twain Attempts a Fajrody.
Parts o Which Foaiow.
Mark Twain has a sketch and a poem,
"My Boyhood Dreams," in the January
McClure's. He doubts if any boyhood
dream has ever been realized, and as a
proof of his statement, instance the early
ambitions of Howells, Hay, Aldrlch, Bran
der Matthews and others all told him, he
says, under the seal of confidence. After
the dreams of these distinguished individ
uals, Mr. Clemens says:
Ah, the dnsams of our youth, how beautiful
they are, and how perishable t The ruins of
these might-have-beens, how pathetic! The
heart-secrets that"wre revealed that night now
so long vanished, how they touch me as I give
them voice! Thooe sweet privacies, how they
endeared us to each other! "We were under oath
never "to tell any of these things, and I have
always kept that oath inviolate "when speaking
with persons whom I thought not worthy to
hear them.
The verses with which he concludes his
article are Inscribed to the "old people"
to whose ambitions he has referred. Some
of the stanzas run:
Sleep! for the Sun that scores another Day
Against the Tale allotted You to stay.
Reminding You, Is Risen, and now
Serves Notice ah, ignore it while You may!
The chill TiVInd blew, and those, who stood be
fore The Tavern murmured, 'Having' drunk his
Score,
"Why tarries He with empty Cup? Behold,
The "Wine of Youth once poured, is poured no
more."
While yet the Phantom of fatoeYouth was
mine, ' ' - 1 .
I heard aVoice from out theJ,parkneua,,whlne
"O Youth, O whither gone? Return, '
And bathe my Age in. thy reviving -Wine."
In this subduing Draught of tender green
And kindly Absinth, with its wimpling Sheen
Of dusky half-lights, let me down -
The haunting Pathos of the -Mlght-Haye-Been.
For every nickeled Joy, marred and brief.
We pay some day its Weight In golden Grtaf
Mined from our Hearts. Ah, murmur not
From thl3 one-sided Bargain dream of no Re
lief! Whether one hide in some secluded Nook
Whether at Liverpool or Sandy Hook
'Tte- one. Old Age will search him out and
He when ready will know where to look.
From Cradle unto Grave I keep a House
Of Entertainment where may drowse
Bacilli and kindred Germa or feed or breed
Their festering Species In a deep Carouse.
Think In this battered Caravanserai,
Whose Portals open stand all Night and Day,
How Microbe after Microbe with hla "Pomp
Arrives unasked, and comes to stay.
O Voices of the Long Ago that were so dear I
Fall'n Silent, now, for many a Mould ring Year;
O whither are ye flown? Come buck.
And break my Heart, but blesa .iy grieving
ear.
Some happy Day my Voles will Silent fall.
And answer not when some that love it call;
Be glad for Me when thia you note and think
I've found the Voices lost, beyond the Pall.
So let me grateful drain the Magic Bowl
That medicines hurt Minds and on the Soul
The Healing of Its Prace doth lay If then
Death claim me Welcome be his Dole!
Other articles in the magazine include
the first part of the Rev. Dr. John Wat
son's "The Life of the Master"; Lieuten
ant Peary's account of his latest work
in the Arctic; "Blaine and Conkllng, and
the Republican Convention of 1SS0, by the
Hon. George S. Boutwell; "How the Plan
ets Are Weighed," by Professor Simon
Newcomb; and a number of short sto
ries.
"White Population of South Africa.
In an article in the December Forum, by
J. Castell Hopkins, tho following estimate,
by F. E. Garrett, of the Cape assembly,
of South African populations, Is given:
Dutch. English.
Transvaal SO.eOO 123.000
Free State 75,000 15.000
Natal 6.00O 45.000
Cape Colony 265.000 194.000
Totals 420,000 37T.0OO
429,000
Total whites 806.000
e
His Interest in the Scriptures.
New York Weekly.
Mother (in her daughter's boudoir) I
like that young man exceedingly. While
he was In the parlor waiting for you I
happened to go In and surprised him read
ing the Bible. The silly boy looked dread
fully confused, just as If true piety were
something to be ashamed of. I soon set
his mind at rest on that point, and he
seemed quite relieved.
The Young Man (at the club) That girl
Is 30 years old. I saw It In their family
Bible.
4 0
It Is a Practical Question.
Washington Star.
This government may not be perfect,
but It Is capable of establishing for the
Filipinos an Infinitely better government
than they are capable of establishing
for themselves. There may be gooa
grounds for differences of opinion as to
what should be done In the Philippines,
but scuttle In any form is repugnant to
national duty and self-respect.
Nice Distinction.
Chicago Tribune.
"You ride your wheel on Sunday, yet
you object to my going skating on Sun
day. What Is the difference?
'Well, when you ride your wheel you
are. always going somewhere. When you
are skating you're not. It's just like
dancing. Ana you Know it isn't the rlgnt
thing to go to a dance on Sunday."
NOTE AND COMMENT.
A change of years has not affected
Multnomah luck. . .,
Jlggs Why did you swear ofZT
Biggs I was broke.
Has California any-more football teams
to taste our Portland cheer.?
The Stanford team, with all eleven: mea
To win a. game, Will have to come' again.
Seven hundred and sevent3t-two .miles
Is a long way to travel for the small end
of an 11-6 score.
Guerln has chosen an Inopportune time
to make himself notorious. Real things
are happening now.
Jupiter Pluvius made a very good start
in 1S00. -Let us hoipe he will "have the
moral courage, to keep It up.
Whether the new century has begunhor
not, our letters have begun coming bear
ing date-in a year that looks liko-ihist
The Goldsborough made 32 miles an
hour against a 2Js-knot current. What
would the Oregon have done had she, been
built In Portland?
v
Agulnaldo is said to be ready tcMead
the insurgents In Manila. This Is likely.
He will lead them out faster than any
one else In that country.
At Eugene, a recently married man ot
69 Is suing his wife for restitution of
property alleged to have been secured by
fraud. He "had known her 25 years ago."
and was "innocently entrapped" he says.
The man who lacks but a year ot three-score-and-ten
presents a solemnly ludi
crous spectacle when he pleads his ver
dancy and guilelessness in the verbiage
of legal redundancy..
Tho state of Washington, it is learned
from-a report in course of preparatlbn by
a "boundary lino commission" at work
at Qlyropla, Is covetous of Desdemona
sands, Middle sands, and Upper sands, and
her commissioners think that state would
reap the benefit of not less than 335.0CO
from taxation and fishing licenses. Prob
ably It la only modesty which prevents
this "commission" from wanting to shift
the boundary line enough to the south
ward to. take in Tongue point, Alderbrook,
Astoria and Clatsop plains.
Considerable interest Is manifested in
the efforts to establish permanently In
Portland a fine symphony orchestra
Portland audiences will very rarely hear
such aggregations as charm Boston, New
York, and Chicago, if they wait for tha
fine Eastern orchestras to come here.
Those are luxuries that are few and far
between, because the expense of travel
is out of proportion to the receipts. Mu
sicians have concluded that if Portland
Is to hear very much fine music. It must
be fostered and encouraged at home.
There are fine players to be found here,,
who are willing to devote their time and
talents to such work if patronage shall
justify it. It 1s not alone the presence of
players that glve3 good music. There
must be an interest, a desire to near and
become familiar with higher music. Play
ers of the first rank may be found In a
city where there Is no aggregation of
f any merit whatever. The reason they do
not combine and practice "tho difficult
pIe"ces(whTch can be produced only by ag
gregation of talent Js $ha there; .Jena.
support ot .such organizations. Musfc
lavers feel that Portland should encour
age the present effort at such an organi
zation, and do It effectually and-Immediately,
as the beginning Is the time when
greatest support Is needed.
The famous battle-ship Oregon had just
arrived In Manila bayt Before embarking
for the "United States the officers of the
Second Oregon thought to make a social
call, as a matter of respect from the repre
sentatives of the great state for which
the battle-ship was named- Official notTce
was given of the date, and no one doubted
that the recipients of a magnificent sliver
service would b on dress parade to show
their gratitude. The silver servlce'itself
wellr It would be In a glass case, -an object
of adoration by every officer and man
aboard. The ship was visited, the guns,
engines, decks, quartets and salon In
spected with pleasure. Each new apartment
entered was supposed to hold the silver
service in state. A shadow of disappoint
ment flitted from face to face of the visit
ors when they completed their round and
no silver service was seen. One of them
timidly queried a naval lieutenant.
"A silver service, you say! A silver
service on board the Oregon? Well, I
don't remember. You say presented by
your state; a silver service presented to
this vessel? Strange I never heard of it.
Let me ask some of the other officers; I
have not been aboard many months.!
Some other officers were asked, and at
la3t one was found who had heard of such
a thing. A steward thought something
was packed below that might be it. Men
were sent down Into a chamber below
light, and unearthed the Oregon's punch
bowl. If those good people who were
frenzied over the ruin this form of silver
service would effect knew how harm
lessly It was resting In some secluded
corner of the battle-ship, perhaps they
would recall their deprecations. To the
people at large It may be said In appease
ment that the officers of the Oregon were
changed much after her effects were
packed for the long cruise and fight.
a
Forty Below".
Bismarck Tribune
Just pity tha householder who j
Must suffer now a thing or two;
He rises up from bed at dawn ' JJ
And hastes hla frosted garments on .
HI shivering frame: his Angers blows
That he may button up hla clothes J-
And Beeka to bathe but nothing flows f
"From the pitcher the water's froze. -
Then, swears just a little swear
And stumbles down the frosty stair .
Down sinks upon hie frosted knees
And blows in vain an Icy breeze - 7.
When he would start the kitchen Are,
But makes no blaze; in haste and Ire 5
To get the kerosene he goes.
But finds, alas! the oil ia froze.
Dear, dear! 'Twould drive a man. to drink.
He thinks a. kindly nip or wink
'From the decanter might warm up
The Inner man. He gets a cup,
Unto the sideboard moves In haste.
And turns the Jug with care, lest wast ,
Ensue, and turns and turns naught flowau
He flnd3 again the liquor's- froze,
JJow see, with anger in his heart.
He whittles shavings nice and fine, '
And las them In symmetric line;
From, out his pocket brings a match,
Eflsaj9 In vain to scratch and scratch.
His stiffened Angers thn he blows
To warm and finds his breath is froze.
He leaps into the air and seeks
To swear the frosty floor but squeaks.
Tho' opened wide his mouth, no word
Or sound or utterance can be heard.
He waves his arms and stamps the floor.
And liaps and waves and stamps once more,
So wild his anger, for he know
He cannot swear hla -voice la froie.