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XHr MOBBING OKEQONIAN, SATURDAY, JAOTAKY 13, 1900.
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PORTLAND, SATURDAY, JAKUARY 13
THE ABOSE5 OP A SYSTEM.
Bev. Alexander Blackburn, of Port
land, who professes to have been a sol
dier in the civil war, in a letter on pen
sions, published in The Oregonian of
yesterday, began thus: "As one who
draws a pension and is not ashamed of
it, though not dependent on the pension
for my bread, will you permit me
a word ?" Here is a man who uncovers
his moral nakedness before the public,
and. is not ashamed.
He admits that the pension Is noti
necessary to his support; yet by a
course 63: casuistry, reasoning from
false premises, argument loaded with
economic error, and manifest compro
mises, with conscience, he justifies him
self for seeking and taking it.
The purpose of the pension is totally
misrepresented by Dr. Blackburn. The
government Is not completing the pay
ment of the soldiers who have rendered t
service in Ifs wars. JBise it would pay
all aHke sick and well, strong arid in
firm. The very preamble of the "de
pendent pension buT of 1890 refutes
this assumption. It Is a bill "granting
pensions to ex-soldiers and sailors "Who
are Incapacitated for the performance
of manual labor, and providing pen
sions to -dependent relatives of deceased
soldiers and sailors." The spirit of the
law is right, but the loose wording Is
taken advantage of by unscrupulous
persons like Dr. Blackburn, who,
though-not needing pensions, and abun
dantly able to support themselves,
claim pensions on the ground that they
are not able to perform manual labor,
Buch labor, say, as chopping cordwood
though In fact many have fine Incomes
from professions and from property,
and not a few are rich. Xet they go
and swear they can't perform manual
labor, -and dra"w the pension. Some of
them, however, be It said to their
credit, are yet too -honest to pretend
that the "government is simply paying
a debt" it owes them. They find them
selves able to get the money, by per
version of the law, and they get it.
The general tone of Dr. Blackburn's
letter Is that everything that can be
got out of the treasury by the man who
served in the federal army during the
civil war is that man's due.
As one justification is the false as
sumption that it is a "debt," another
is an argument that the man who sup
plied the government with money for
prosecution of the war was a robber.
The government, however, was very
glad to get this money, and so was the
soldier; and the low rate to which the
credit of the country had fallen when
the lenders parted with their money
showed how slight was deemed the
chance of ever getting it back. The
country got its money as cheap as It
could and bought its supplies as cheap
as it could, and hired Its soldiers as
cheap as it could. To the patriotism of
its soldiers it owes great things, but
it is a debt which it does not undertake
to discharge with money, nor does it
grant pensions on that basis.
Still another audacity of this letter
is the cool assumption that the money
paid for pensions "scatters plenty"
over a smiling land, and "nobody feels
it except as a benefit" Of course, it is
no concern to Dr. Blackburn how the
money is obtained. He views it from
the standpoint of the man who has.no
financial or business responsibilities.
To such as he, money "comes by na
ture." Nobody has to toil for it, and
the greater the public expenditures the
greater the "benefits."
There is not a question that the pen
sions paid by the United States ought
to be liberal and. large. There are sol
diers who ought to have pensions, yet
have none. But there are many more 1
persons not in need, men who 'have
large or considerable incomes from pro
fessions or from property, men, and
women, too, who are wealthy or well-tQ-dD
who draw, pensions, some of them
large. The "widow" abuse is also very
great. So also of the "minor children"
abuse, in the case of those who have
estates. There- are, moreover, on the
pension rolls the names of thousands
whose terms of enlistment were very
short, and who never saw service es
pecially so towards the elbse of the
war.
These are- the bases of criticism upon
the pension system of the TJnite'd
States. They are just It is the busr
ness, as certainly it is the right, of the
citizen to discriminate between a sys
tem that the whole country cheerfully
supports, and the abuses of it, that
only men like Dr. Blackburn have the
hardihood to defend.
It remains a pity that a man of Dr.
Blackburn's pretensions cannot see the
Immorality of his presentation of the
subject It is not the money; it is the
debauchment of the moral sense of the
country to which such statements con
tribute, that gives most concern. How t
far it has gone, such a letter from such
a source gives, proof sad enough.
It is- interesting that the reduction in
Multnomah county's assessed valuation
fails even yet to bring the county's
state taxes down to the average ratio
as compared with population. "vVhile
the county has, according to the cen
sus of 1895, only 25.6 per cent of the
population, it Is to pay this year 26.3
per gent of the taxes. The figures are
$199.46. out Of "$757,782. As lriilrrmrn?.
county's propartSon o taxes to people I
is aooye the general average, other
counties must make it up in corre-
sponding reductions. The circumstance
Is the more striking In. -view of the nun'
dregs and thousands of poor people in
every large city, who swell the popula
tion but contribute nothing to tha
local share of the state burden. It
Is doubtful if more than one person in
ten- In Multnomah county Is a taxpayer
under the law. In cdtfntry districts, of
course, the majority of -men own their
homes, at least.
PRESENT AXTICS, FBTUKE SHAME.
Not ajl that Senator Pettlgrew says
can be set aside with contempt At the
basis of his criminal demagogy is a
foundation of truth. McKinley has un
doubtedly managed things with a view
to nis personal fortunes, and now much
he has suppressed or garbled, reports
from the Philippines, or disguised or
ders sent thitheT, is a mete matter of
detail. That the McKinley machine fre
quently regards itself erroneously as a
synonym for the government of the
United States has been ascertained and
commented upon long before Pettigrew
thought fit to lift up his voice in trea
sonable defamation.
Now Pettlgrew, having made out a
case against McKinley, commits the
same- offense named in his Indictment.
He confuses a part with the whole. He
regards It monstrous that our "puny
president" be regarded as identical with
the country's course, and then he pro
ceeds to denounce the course things
have taken because of McKinley's do
ings. The mistakes of McKinley da not
suggest to Pettfgrew that McKinley is
imperfect, but only that expansion id
altogether wrong and dishonorable.
Our presence in the Philippines is un
holy aggression, says Pettigrew, and
the Tagals are to be commended for
every shot they send home to our forces
Why? Because MCKInley is a puny
president Because Otis made some
changes in the words of a proclama
tion. Because a censor refused to send
a story about silver in the islands. Be
cause the full truth about the Sulu
agreement was held- back till after the
Ohio election.
This is very short-sighted statesman
ship, but it 'is prevalent It is, to be
sure, ridiculous that republicans should
adore McKimey because of the correct
ness of our course In the Philippines.
But It is just as ridiculous for popu
lists and anarchists like Pettlgrew to"
oppose expansion because they hate
McXlrrTey. Partisanship is no answer
to partisanship, if en who act as if Mc
Kinley could do no -wrong will doubt
less be ashamed of themselves When
his two administrations are over and
his weaknesses stand out in the full
light of impartial scrutiny, uncloud
ed by the needs of republican office
holders and office-seekers. But their
mistake is nothing compared to the pit
iful blunder made by those who are
standing in the way of their country's
honor and advancement, seeking by
every partisan device to dishonor it and
discredit its purposes.
There is a middle course, that the
people see, and that history will ratify.
McKinley has his faults, though hero
worshipers and candidates are blind to
them. But these faults need not ob
scure from the open mind the patriot's
duty and the grandeur of his country's
destiny.
CHURCH atJESTIOX IN PHILIPPINES.
Of the church question in the Philip
pine islands and of the relation of
Aguinaldo's -rebellion to it, General Jo
seph Wheeler writes:
The more 1 talk to people the more I aw con
vinced that the insurgents are actuated in a
measure- by; a spirit of communism, and in their"
talks, their most serious objection to the church
seems ta be the fact that the ecclesiastical or
ganizations own so .much of the property, and
one of Aguinaldo's most earnest demands la
that the church property be confiscated.
In this General "Wheeler agrees with
all the observers who have preceded
him. It was the ambition of the junta
with which Aguinaldo was connected
though he was not its head, but only
the intermediary between them and the
Tagal masses to use their position
and power in reconstruction of the
state, so that they might have in their
own hands the management of confis
cation of property under pretense of
"nationalizing" it. All our people in
the islands who have acquainted them
selves with the purposes and desires of
the members of the junta have borne
witness from the first that their scheme
of national Independence was based on
amhltious projects for their own ag
grandisement and enrichment Under
the rule of the United States there
must be complete separation of church
and state: and If the estates of the
church are to be dealt wfth, as proba
bly they must be, it will be done in an
open manner, Under the eye of the
world, with responsibility to the people
of the United States and to the opin
ions of mankind. In other words, indi
viduals will not be permitted to enrich
themselves through confiscation of the
estates of the church. "When General
Funston said that confiscation of the
property of the church would end the
rebellion at once, he simply meant that,
the main motive of the rebellion re
moved, the rebellion itself would col
lapse. BtJILDIXG WARSHIPS ON THE LAKES
Th statement made by Secretary
Long in his annual report that an
effort had recently "been made by the
United States looking to the abolish
ment of the agreement between this
country and Great Britain which pro
hibits the building of warships on the
Great Lakes, seems to have escaped
general attention. At least, very little
public comment has bpen made on the
matter. The agreement to which ref
erence is made was entered into at a
time when there was mutual distrust
between this country and England, and
-when there were practically ho ship
yards on any of the Great Lakes. It is
held that it has worked consider
able hardship in recent years to a num
ber of firms that have since developed
and that by its terms have been shut
out from bidding on government con
tractsthey "being outside of the pale
of the law so far as the construction
of warships is concerned.
According to this agreement we can
only maintain revenue cutters of a cer
tain size on the Lakes, and no vessel
of war can be built upon or brought to
these waters. In other words, the
Great Lakes are neutral waters,. and as
such, prudence in former years de
manded that they Bhould be so kept.
It Is belleVed, however, and so asserted
by naval authorities, that there is no'
longer any necessity for precautions
that were based upon mutual distrust
between the two nations. In this view
the joint high commission consented
to terminate the agreement and permit
war vessels to be built on the Lakes,
with certain restrictions, that were
ex
ample, armament and armor were not?
.TUtt
tn- be put on the vessels until they,
reached salt water, the understanding
being that only the hull and machin
ery were to be built on the Lakes.
The whole negotiation, however, fejl
through on account of the failure to
agree on the Alaska boundary,, and
Lake shipbuilders still find themselves
unable to bid on government contracts.
It is suggested that, though the gen-H
eral agreement with Canada has been
thought to a halt, this particular point
might be pressed to a satisfactory con
clusion, and that Indeed, in the inter
est of justice, it should be so pressed.
It is a question that Can readily be 4
separated from the others that came
before the joint high commission, all
of which are in abeyance on accdunt o
the Alaska boundary dispute, and read,
Uy dealt with upon its own merits. Its
pre'sent status may be taken as proof
that the agreement is obsolete so far as
sound reasons for its continuance are
concerned, and it only remains for it
to be remanded b,y official action to the
realm of things that have "been out
dated by events.
A THATfTCLESS TASK.
Lord Roberts and Lord Kitchener are
in Cape Town, with an army of 120,000
"Englishmen In South Africa. But
through the fault of the war office
at London the British campaign has
been so mismanaged from the start
that it will be a difficult- task for Lord
Roberts to correct It and repair the
consequences of the great strategic
blunder committed by the British in
the outset In trying to hold Ladysmith.
The true line of advance toward Pre
toria was through the comparatively
open country from Colesburg and Bur
ghersdorp to Springfontein, in the
southwest of the Orange Free State,
thence along the line of the railroad to
Bloemfontein, the capital of that state,
and thence to Kroonstad, and finally
to Pretoria. Ladysmith, after the fights
at Glencoe and Elands' laagte, was of
no strategic va'ue, and badly situated
for defense. General White, as was
pointed out at th'e time by the English
military experts, should have fallen
back behind the Tugela at Colenso and
taken up a strictly defensive attitude.
In thlB way he could have saved the
valuable railroad bridge at Colenso and
spared a strong force for the true line
of advance on Bloemfontein. But the
blockade of General White with 10.00Q
men and a vast quantity of valuable
stores in Ladysmith compelled General
Buller to abandon his original plan of
campaign via Colesburg and Burghers
dorp to Springfontein, and to weaken
General Methuen's column moving on
Kimberley. Sound strategy would have
held the Hopetown bridge, on the Or
ange river, to concentrate all the rest
of Buller's available troops at Naauw
poort for union with French and Gat
acre in the advance on the Orange Free
State capital.
The advance in force on Bloemfontein
via Colesburg and Springfontein would
have relieved Kimberley, just as Sher
man's northward movement from Sa
vannah compelled the evacuation of
Charleston. The garrison of Kimber
ley, the division holding the bridge at
Hopetown, would have swelled the col
umn moving on Bloemfontein to at
least 56,000 men, after prpvlding lor
holding bases and lines of supply but
with General White and 10,000 men
cooped up in Ladysmith, General Bul
ler was compelled to abandon his plan
of campaign until General White could
be relieved. The bad strategy of Gen
eral White in allowing himself to be
cooped up in Ladysmith was similar to
the blunder committed by the Confed
erate General Fembertoh, who, in defi
ance of the orders of General Joseph E.
Johnston, withdrew after defeat into
"Vicksburg, instead of saving his army
by retreat to Johnston's lines. The
British plan of divided columns has
wasted their strength, but for this sit
uation it is quite possible if not proba
ble that General Buller is not responsi
ble. Probably he was ordered by the
London authorities to proceed to the
relief of Ladysmith, but whether the
present military situation is due to lack
of military brains in the field in South.
Africa or lack of brains in the war of
fice at London, it is clear that Lords
Roherts and Kitchener have been called
to correct a fundamental error of tac
tics and strategy that has thus far
spoiled the British campaign. The
British army has lest In killed, wound
ed and prisoners about 9000 men since
the middle of October.
These losses are not a serious matter,
but the false military position that has
been created for Lord Roberts to cor
rect is not easily or quickly remedied
by mere numerical superiority. In all
probability, Lord Roberts did not con
sent to assume his present thankless
task of plucking the flower of victory
out of the nettle of defeat without the
stipulation that his military plans
should not be revised and corrected In
London. His first natural effort will be
to concentrate and make available his J
numerical superiority by concentrating
his army for the execution of the orig
inal plan of campaign against Bloem
fontein via Colesburg and the line of
the Orange river. This concentration
win take Considerable time, and it is
not likely that the readjustment of the
military chessboard will be complete
before the first of February, when at
least 30,000 reinforcements will Have
arrived. In the meantime, if any fur
ther "accidents" should befall Buller, or
Gatacre, or French, or Metnuen, the re
sponsibility for them cannot rest on
Lord Roberts, who for the present is
powerless to cure at once a lamentable
military situation that he did not cre
ate. Lord Roberts must feel today like
a d'octor of ability called to the bed
side of a patient, or rather victim, of
a quack, at a time when a priest is
wanted rather than a physician.
Market quotations in papers of East
ern Oregon afford food not only for
thought, but for action by farmers.
Wheat at points on or near the rail
roads is worth three-fifths to three
quarters of a cent per pound; but other
products command prices that would
seem to be highly remunerative. Pota
toes are quoted at four-fifths of a cent
per pound In large lots, and higher In
small quantities; apples and pears
range frQm "2 to 3 cents per pound;
cabbage brings 2 cents or more per
pound by the hundredweight, and In.
some instances reaches the 3-cent
mark; rutabagas and carrots are taore
variable, but often are listed at a rate
above potatoes. It certainly is not a
wise diversification of agriculture that
permits farmers to raise wheat at
three-fifths oa cent per pound In com
petition with the cheap lands and cheap
labor of the world, when cabbage
brings four times as much; and while.
the market is somewhat limited, a j
considered unobjectionable. For
small area devoted to cabbages or roots
ought- to bring a good income. There
seems to be no danger that farmers will
engage in cahbage-raislng or rootgrow
Ing. to the extent of overproduction; so
a few farmers may find it highly prof
itable to shift a part of their effort
from the wheat field to the garden plot
Stewart's address on the money ques
tion is valueless, for the simple reason
that he fails to discriminate between
the two functions o gold. One is a
standard of value; the other is a me
dium of exchange. Increase and con
traction of a circulating medium Is a
desirable resource for the ups and
downs of trade, through busy crop sea
sons and resting spells, days of com
mercial venturesomeness and hours of
enforced liquidation. But no such vari
ation as this is wanted by anyb'ady In
the standard of value, whose worth de
pends on its approximation to stability.
The standard of value wants' to be fixed
and firm. The circulating medium
wants to be adjustable to actual needs
of credit transactions, which are the
bulk: of all transactions. To repeat, Mr.
Stewart's remarks' are valueless, be
cause they confound the function of
money as a standard of value, and its
function as a medium o,f exchange.
Continental crities of England, who
have been hoping for a declaration that
foodstuffs will be treated as contra
band, may now retire to digest their
mortification wfth what grace they can.
Great Britain will release ships not car
rying contraband, and pay damages
upon appraisement. Meanwhile it Is as
true as ever that If she can reduce the
Boers In no other way, she will starve
them By embargoes at Lorenzo Mar
ques, and also as true as ever that no
Continental power will respect this pre
cedent the moment it has a chance to
starve England into humiliation.
The things that Mr. Kasson didn't
find out about the basis of his recipro
city treaties would make a very volu
minous report. It Is probable that the
senators who parade this oversight so
joyously are more concerned for their
own future successes than for our dip
lomatic decency and order, but this
does not mitigate Mr. Kasson'B grave
case of inadvertence. Or Is it possible
this defect is an afterthought, trumped
up to beat the treaty over Wb complai
sant shoulders?
The water power possibilities of the
Chicago drainage canal are now tils
closed, and must prove not the least
of its epoch-making achievements. The
time is not far distant when electric
currents derived from falling water will
be the determining factor in manufac
turing competition. Chicago, Minneapolis-,
Buffalo, Portland and Spokane
Falls will gain at the expense of cities
that must burn coal at whatever cost
of transportation.
A lawyer in Oklahoma advised his
client mortgagor to resist the foreclos
ing mortgagee with force, and the ad
vice was followed with fatal effect.
The other day a contest between in
coming and outgoing officials in San
Francisco was -settled through appeal to
force this also upon the advice of the
incoming official's lawyer. The legal
profession seems to apprehend "the
strenuous life" all right
The Oregonian seems to have done an
unintentional Injustice to Mr. D. Ij.
Lawton, of Medford, in the . dispatch
from Medford, printed January 9, which
characterized Mr. Lawton as "a Mitchell-republican
leader." The assertion
did not come through The Oregonian's
regular correspondent at Medford. and
for that reason, perhaps, should not
have been credited.
The return Stewart is to make for his
acceptance in the republican caucus is
certainly not explained by his speech
against the reform bill. Perhaps the
reward is in his readiness to speak,
while other obstructionists coolly pro
fess they have no desire for delay and
yet refuse to speak. Beside such shame
less effrontery honest old Bill's prompt
ness becomes a conspicuous virtue.
Federal interference in Kentucky Is a
weapon the administration will do well
to touch very gingerly, and McKinley
is just about cute enough to know it.
It Is hardly worth while, even to please
Bradley, to throw out of the window
every electoral vote south of the Ohio
river and the Pennsylvania line.
English newspapers believe that the
garrison of Ladysmith, if reduced to
extremity, will be able to cut its way
out. But they are less confident about
the garrisons of Kimberley and Mafe
kfng. France will make no demonstration
against England this year. Even her
diplomacy will be smooth. France has
the interests of her grpat exposition to
conserve. . .
The Dfcteh Gambit,
Rutland (Vt.) Herald.
There are, however, some points that
appear as plain now as tbey will 20 years
hence. The Boers, In the first place, do
not fight as the dervishes of the desert
or the Zulus or the Arghans do. Their
manueveTS show up-to-date knowledge of
warfare. They have, moreover, developed
a mobility rarely seen even in Europe,
and they manage a line of battle-radically
different from what we have been accus
tomed to see. And it is probable that
their plan of "battle has In the main been
developed as a return play to the British
attack. In other words, they mobilize
their brains as readily as their regiments
and battalions. Now, the British in near
ly every battle have been strikingly weak
In their scouting. They seem bent on
dealing hot blows on the enemy's center.
They secure their flank as best they may,
open lire with their artillery on the Boer
center, and when the enemy's guns are
silenced the British charge, under the
protection of their artillery, which stops
firing when there is danger of hitting the
British advance line.
Given such a plan of attack, the Boers,
I,f their forces are numerically equal to
"It, have a complete answer. Th'ey In
the first place have two and sometimes
three lines, one back of the other. The
moment that the British artillery opens
on their center, the Boers undoubtedly
prepare to fall back on the center of the
second line arid perform a double flank
movement. The center, as the Dutch look
upop it, becomes practically useless ex
cept to draw the British Into It. A strong
second line center and strong first line
flanks explain the terrible cross fires to I
wnlch the .British nave so often been sub
jected in battles of this war. This shows
how the Boers have been able to take so
many British prisoners. They open their
vllne of battle like the mouth of a huge
monster and close in on the British. A
ohess player would call It a Dutch gam
bit, and it can be successfully played
Only so long as the British are stupid
enough to rush into a eenter that is all
but surrounded by an j&rsenal handled by
fighting men.
The maneuver of the Dutch in retiring
their first line center to their second line
and advancing their second line flanks to
tho first lino has the effect of forming a
circular line of battle which the British
do not seem to understand. If they per
sist In their Weak center attacks, the
Dutch gambit will cost 'England half her
empire.
GREAT fclUTAINS DEBT.
Notv 638,000,000, Against 000,000,
000 in 1816.
The national debt of Great Britain on
March 31, 1S38, the latest date for which
exact statistics are available, amounted
to-63S,SG,4S2. divided as follows:
JL The funded debt
(a) Permanent 5!&lKt
W Annuities 42'&2
2. The unfunded debt 8J5'229
3, Other Capital liabilities 3.830,378
The permanent funded debt on the date
mentioned consisted of the following
stock:
2 per cent consols 522,653.360
2& per cent, 1305 S.'2
VJa Per cent 31,826.171
Bank of England debt 11.015.1UO.
. Bank Of Ireland debt 2.631760
Bond debt, 2 per cent 13,600,000
The increase of the national debt by the
new Issue of Consols, said, to be in con-
. templation, will check the process of pay
ing off the government obligations, wiilcn
has been going on for many years so
steadily and successfully as to justify the
following statement in Whltaker's Alma
nack for 18S9:
"The national debt took many years to
reach the gigantic proportions which it
assumed under the regency of George IV,
and any serious reduction was regarded
as almost hopeless, but it has been so
Vigorously and so successfully attacked
during the past 25 years that It bids fair
to be all but extinguished within a rea
sonable limit of time. Even so late as
1883 the funded debt stood at 713,000,000;
It Is now less than oS6,000,000, and within
the next 0 years, at the present rate of
shrinkage. Will be nearly 200,000,000 less.
The debt reached its highest proportions
In 1816, when It exceeded 000,000,000. near
lv all of which had been expended in for
elgn wars within a comparatively brief
neriod. At the accession of George in,
the debt was under 140,000.000, and in
the first 12 years of his reign it was re-
duced 10,000.000. The costly and unsuc
cessful resistance of the American Revo
lution added 121,000,000 to the debt, and
after this came the series of Continental
warB, from the outbreak of the French
Revolution, In 1793, until the exile of Na
poleon, at St Helena, in 1815. During
these 23 years of war, money was bor
rowed in the most extravagant manner,
and the government securities greatly de
preciated. From 1733 to 1801 the average
price of 100 3 per cent atock was 5T
17s 6d.
Since 1816 the reduction of the debt has
been going on steadily, but not rapidly,
until recent years. At the accession of
Queen Victoria In 1837 the gross amount
of the debt was 761.422.570. and In tbe
period from then until March 31, 18$8, It
was decreased by 123,156.058.
i a
Condition In the Boer States.
Consul-General Stowe, at Cape Town,
eays that Johannesburg In the Trans
vaal, and Bloemfontein, In the Free State,
are to all intents and purposes deserted
cities.
Johannesburg, the largest commercial center
In South Africa, has, so far ap trafle la con
cerned, ceased to exist. Thla once busr,
hustling city, producing monthly ever 15 tons
Of gold and yearly $00,000,000 trorth. Is silent.
"Up to this time goods have reached the Trans
vaal via Delagoa. bay, but It la not supposed
that "they will long be permitted to enter. The
two republics must then live on their own re
sources. Their cTops are ready for the slclsle,
but cannot be cut, as tho men are off to the
war.
Tiie exodus of outlanders from the South
African Republic and Orange Free State has,
I believe, been unprecedented In history. Many
of these people the mining population, the bone
and sinew of the country have scattered over
the world. Numbera of them, too poor to get
out of the country, are subjects of charity In
the cities of Cape Colony and Natal and have
to be fed.
a
Enormous Business Expanion.
The Record, of Philadelphia, says that
the number of new railway cars built In
this country last year, exclusive of cars
constructed by the railroad companies
themselves, was 123,893. Of these 117,082
were freight cars, and yet there was hard
ly a line of road which had sufficient cars
to move the freight offered. The Increase
in business was something .unprecedented,
and still the impression thrown off was that
the year's work was but the beginning of
vastly more future work. Our country
seems only just beginning Its real business
expansion.
Monstrous Frand Someyrhere.
Pension statistics "make so glaring an
exhibit of monstrous fraud somewhere In
the pension system that It seems astonish
ing any public man should dare to stand
for Its defense," says the Buffalo Express
(rep.). "Instead of bills further to increase
expenditures, congress should paea an act
ordering the director of the census to make
another count of the surviving veterans
this year, and to make it complete and ac
curate as possible."
' ' iM B'
It'n Sole Defect.
Brooklyn Hfe.
Scholar Professor, your -mnemonic sys
tem Is wonderful, and I am sure that any
one, after mastering the rules, can learn
to remember anything. But I am handi
capped by one difficulty.
Professor 'What is that?
Scholar I can't remember the rules.
Always Rendy.
New York "Weekly.
Caller We ate trying to raise a little
money to help the starving millions In
Average man AH right. Just get half a
dozen theatrical companies to give a ten
dollar combination benefit performance for
one dollar and a halt, and I'll so.
One "Woman's "Wisdom.
Chicago News.
Mrs. Dlggs How Is It you are so suc
cessful In manglng your husband?
Mrs. Biggs OH, I simply feed him well
and trust to luck.
Chicago's tffew Spell.
Chicago News.
Fonetlc spellng will hereafter rule In the
ofl3hul publicashuns ov Chicago university.
Had a Variety.
New York Weekly.
Friend Hello, Jinks, bow Is your cold?
Jinks (hoarsely) "Which one?
- c
"Wanted A Mnzale.
Tou may talk of your Caesars and Nebuchad
nezsars. Of your Pllnys and Plut09 and men of re
nown. But your Homers and Plates are all small po
tatoes Compared with a man whom, we have In our
town.
He is amarter than blazes, and hlo check doth
amaze us.
And the strength of hia lungs no power can
exceed;
For he roara like a Uon when he's shouting for
Bryan,
And his tongue is continually golnff to seed.
He is versed in toxicology, he Is good in
phraseology;
His learning's encompassed alone by the skies;
And when the truth he has told till Its rusty
and old.
He rings in a change with abominable lines.
TW man Is a pest; fox he gives us no rest;
He bores us with politics, science and law;
A reward will be offered for the first thing
that's proffered
That will stop this curmudgeon's noisy old
jaw.
George Williams.
Hubbard. Or., January 12.
THE OREGONIAN'S ANNUAL.
Tlionsrhtful Tr-Tbtitc to a Worthy
People.
Milwaukee. Evening "Wisconsin
Westward the star of empire takes its
way. It would be difficult to imagine a
more exquisitely artistic and wholly sat
isfactory example of newspaper half-tone
illustration than tho album which ac
companies the annual number of Tne
Portland Oregonian. The plates were
made in the office of The Oregonian, ana
the printing, executed In Portland, 13
equal to anything that could have been
expected had the publication come from
th& vicinity of the continent's eastern In
stead of Its western shore. Glorious
Mount Hood and other scenic accessories
of Oregon's metropolis and pictured poet
ry of epic grandeur and magnificence.
Portland's harbor Is the subject of an
illustration that acts upon the Imagina
tion like a view of Wondorland. The log
ging Industry, the salmon fisheries, the
mining camps, the cattle and sheep
Tanches. and the cosy homes of the Ore
gon farmers in the Willamette valley are
all portrayed in a manner calculated to
stimulate the imagination of an artist as
well as to arouse the interest of a polit
ical economist. The Oregon hop fields,
which supply the breweries of Milwau
kee, arc demonstrated to be as beautiful
as those of Kent. There are also pic
tures of the buildings of Portland, show
ing that the architect has followed the
march ef the star of empire, and there
Is the face of a Yakima brave, which
would Inspire a sculptor by lt3 masstve
dignity and repose. The many pages or
letterpress setting forth the statistics
of Oregon's material development are a
fit accompaniment of this artistic album.
It Is one of the marvels In the history of
the human race that the advanced civilisation-
which this Issue of The Oregon
ian espounds has grown up In a region
which within the memory of men now
living -was the ultima thule of wild re
moteness. "Lose thyself." wrote Bryant,
"in the continuous woods where roils tne
Oregon, and hears no sound save his
-own dashlngs." The region or the Ore
gon, now the Columbia, Is the busy haunt
of prosperous thousands. Truly, the Amer
icans have a great country and are a
great people. In 189? Oregon produoea
&,O0O,00O bushels of wheat; in 1899, 2000.
000 bushels. In 1873" her expenditures for
public education were $181,000; In 1899,
$1,327,(00. In 1879 her population was 90,-
000: it Is now -C5.000. The products or
farms, orchards, dairies and ranged m
Oregon In 1859 were valued at $15,000,000;
the yield of minerals was $3,700,000, of
which more than $3,300,000 was gold; the
manufactures were worth $36,000,000, In
cluded in which was the lumber cut,, rep
resenting $6,000,000; the product of the fish
eries was $2,400,000, and Portland's foreign
commerce was $9,130,000. Statistics like
these speak louder than rhetorical gener
alizations. The first copy of The Portland Oregon
ian bore date of DecemBer 4, 1850. It Is an
Instructive fact that the people who,
under God, have wrought Oregon's mar
velous progress are a people who even
In their pioneer stage read newspapers.
The newspaper Is one of the causes a3
well as ono of the accompaniments ot
American progress.
Correct on the Centnry'a End.
Grand Baplds (Mich.) Herald.
The Morning Oregonian, of Portland, Or.,
which is ono of the strongest and most
influential papers of the Northwest, be
gins the new year with an annual numner
for 1900, a splendid production, containing
38 pages, which is a credit both In me
chanical and literary work to the paper
and to the state. Besides the usual
amount of news, the number contains a.
review of the wonderful progress which
Oregon has made and the great activity
in every line of industry which has mace
the past year one of the most prosperous
In the history of the state. But especlalry
interesting Is the progress which has
been made In The Oregonian Itself since
the first number was Issued 50 years ago,
and which Is very apparent from the de
scription of the paper as It was then and
the appearance of the present number.
The annual number Is accompanied by
an excellent supplement, made up of fine
engravings of the state's Industries, prom
inent men and places of Interest, tna
whole forming a valuable memento. This
annual of The Oregonian, the last to no
published in the 13th century. Is one of
the best of Its kind, and is indicative of
a high standard of newspaper work to be
maintained throughout the year.
Cnuxe and Effect.
Chlcaso Frele Presse.
2U9feuiaIritu irc-nt eTbiS
5Jfoinin3 Qregonian" in spottlanb.
Ore., ifl ine ioutndittirc Iait3
Ietffuna. 2h illufhirfe Settafl tnt
fjalt iibir 500 botaufilicfc au35fufjtie
Sifter, Serin- au ben S3ttqs imbwi
ffenqegenben Qiegon'3 fotoie br Be
teutenbftcn SnbulTitQnTiqen ber Spa
rificfiifte. 2er ()ttaemAn' ijt bte
ctnffuDrei$fte Seiiumi ber notblidjen
$acificfiaaten nnb rcrt in Ogon,
SBafrjmgtort, Sbarp, bem teefUicfcn
Sftontena unb 3rHiFe$ Goium&ia jaM
Teis4 Sefer. 2ta3 Statf flerjt ' imter
enttflifcfcr unb faer eihing, to
wn bk imotmie'9?euiarrJnummr
jjpttbsx mtn J9ehHi3 q&kaL
Exhaustive Record of Progress.
Indianapolis Sentinel.
The New Tear's issue of The Portland
Oregonian is a mammoth affair. The illus
trated supplement appeals to the special
Interest of those who are interested In tho
progress of the country. It contains over
&0 illustrations, all printed on the finest
quality of enameled paper. The views era
brace all the noted scenic attractions of
Oregon, and they cover every Important
Industry of the Pacific Northwest.
Subject for Consrat-alation.
Buffalo Express.
The Express Is In receipt of a special
annual number of The Portland Oregon
ian, which has, among other interesting
features, a supplement containing 500 Il
lustrations of noted scenic attractions ot
Oregon an'd all of the Important indus
tries of the Pacific Northwest. The pub
lishers are to congratulated on tho ex
cellence of this special edition of their
paper.
Partisan, Say YonT Oh, Hot Hal
Burlington (IaO Democrat-Journal.
The Portland Oregonian, a newspaper
that 1s noted chiefly for being the most
partisan republican organ in the Pacific
Northwest, has just Issued an annual trade
edition that make3 a wonderful showing
for the city of Portland and the state of
Oregon. A specimen number is on our
table, and It reflects great credit upon The
Oregonian's enterprise.
o
Don't.
Corning Journal.
Bo not let a quick-tempered person stand
between you and a powder magazine; you
might get singed.
NOTE AND COMMENT.
Senator Clark ha3 doubtless discovered
that he was elected to a very high office.
The author of "Beautiful Snow" has
escaped with very little execration this
year.
Anyway, the prisoners at Ladysmith
don't have to read any of Alfred Austin s
poetry.
There may be a pleasure in the pathless
woods, but the fellow who Is lost In them
never finds It.
It Is singular that so many of the women
who have sensational adventsurea fit vari
ous parts of the world hall from San
Francisco.
If a committee of congressmen Is to be
sent to the Philippines. It should consist
entirely of antls. The others are needed
to make laws.
Great Britain would probably be more
grateful to the United States if the open
door policy bad been Inaugurated in Lady
smith instead of in China.
Toung men who've failed to get ahead
Have no real cause far fear;
They'll get a head Quite rapidly
By drinking wine and beer.
"While the antls are passing resolutions
of sympathy with Aguinaldo, they ought
to pass a few for that downtrodden and
oppressed patriot, Matthew S. Quay.
A French count says that France will
be a monarchy again. If this man's af
fairs are looked Into, it will probably be
discovered that he has been mentioned a3
a prominent candidate for king.
"Tou don't need to get so hot." said
the cook.
T guess you'd get hot." replied the fire,
"if you were not allowed to go out all
winter."
1 V
The following original poem was writ
ten by Aguinaldo and found among effects
of his which were recently captured:
1 want to be an angel.
And with tho angels stand.
For then lvd har two big strong wlnga
And fly to beat the band.
The fact that Portland Is without an
artificial limb factory Is the cause of a
large amount of money of the Northwest
aeeklnsr San Francisco and the Eastern
cities. Persons from the Interior are fre
quently seen in Portland hotels on their
way to some distant city to purchase ad
justable artificial limbs, which they woull
be glad to buy here. These people ex
press surprise that a large city, with all
the Northwest to draw from, should have
been without one of these Industries so
long. Accidents are continually happen
ing In Oregon. Washington. Idaho, Mon
tana, British-Columbia and Alaska whicli
necessitate nfeuse of wooden artificial
limbs, costirigffrom $100 to $200 each, an!
people who have thus been crippled for
life are obliged to go to Chicago, and
even to New Tork. to purchase what thoy
would gladly have bought at home.
Too many Portland men are accumulat
ing a bad habit of converting the rear
ends of street-cars into smoking saloons
and stand-up conversation parlors. Mjst
of them do not realize that they have
made a very gradual growth toward each
other and considerably increased the
length of their waistbands, and they for
get that when they face each other on
the car platform the space a taw feet
below their faces Is narrowed down.
the danger point for other passengere
who may want to enter or depart. An!
the conductor taking fares at the front
Interior cannot see the steps or te
whether he Is letting on one passenger or
three, or ringing to start up when women
or children are halt on or half off the
steps, and are thus being placed In daily
danger. Men who ride on the rear plat
form should be careful about accumulat
ing too much flesh.
Franca has adopted the 24-hour clock
a3 her official timekeeper. Her depots
will now bristle with cards announcing
the leaving- tune of the 23:01 Paris ex
press, and the airrivlng of the 21:06 Renncs
mall. Her people, however, will never
be able to catch any of those trains, for
the reason that, while they are counting
the strokes of the clock to learn the hour,
the trains will have come and gone.
France once did a great and wlso thing
In thl3 line. She Introduced tha admir
able metric system, which by sheer force
of merit Is slowly fighting down preju
dice and Introducing Itself all over tha
world. Just why she makes a deviation
from this rule of measures In favor of
time, and replaces a cumbrous and un
wieldy system by one still more cumbrous
and unwieldy, is not clear, but it Is "dead"
French, and the rest of the world will
have to let it go at that.
Soldiers who served in Luzon say that
the following general order from General
Otis has been Issued none too soon: "a.-
Lleged cases of bribe-taking, of the accept
ance of gifts from Inferiors, and of Ilka
misconduct, by persons holding positions
In the military or civil service, have of
late been brought to the attention of these
headquarters. It Is reported that passes
are obtained and transferred for a money
consideration; that compensation Is made
for the transportation of persons and
things on public conveyances or convey
ances controlled by the public, to officials
unauthorized to receive It, and for their
own benefit; and that contributions are
solicited. If not exacted, any at any rate
received, from subordinates for the pur
chase of presents to superiors. The com
manding general Is constrained to the be
lief that these reports, which are In the
nature of general complaints, and do not
relate to specific offenses, have- a more
or less substantial foundation. The evil.
corrupting and far-reaching In its effects,
appears to have reached a stage whlh
renders Its' suppression with a strong
hand Imperative."
o
The Lay of the Kanlrjrram.
Tell me not about Marconi, and his wireless
telegraph ;
He's a mud-stalled, one-horae chalee com
pared to met
Tha way I trek from Ladysmith. from Boer
and British staff.
Tommy Atkiaa stops his fighting: just to see.
The cables may be rusted.
The land wires down and busted.
But that ne'er cuts the current on my line;
I kill Plet Joubert dally.
Or apln you off quite gayly
A sorry, gory atory, extra fine!
Would you like to have a aortle out of Kim
berley, by hors
Or Infantry, with bay'nlts dripping gore?
I can brine you In all details, names, and num
ber of the force,
"With heroics auch as never were before.
I'm the Correspondent's safety-valve, without
me he'd explode!
He marks his message "Bush." and off go.
Skedaddling over kopje, over rand and veldt
and road.
And slve the merry ha-ha to our foat
Edgar "W. Townaend In Harper's "Weekly.