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THE MORNING OEEGONIAN, THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 1900.
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jsoon. southeast winds.
PORTLAND, THURSDAY, JANUARY 25
TRADE "WITH SIBERIA. '
Count CassinI, the Russian ambassa
dor at "Washington, tells the corre
spondent of the Boston Herald that
there are as great opportunities for
American industry and trade In Siberia
as In China, if not greater. Yesterday's
Oregonian, in its shipping columns, had
a very favorable account of present
and prospective commerce between
Portland and Siberian ports. What
Siberia -w ill want from us is indicated
fcy the cargoes already shipped, name
ly: Lumber, flour, provisions, feed and
Jtrults. Our Eastern states are filling
for Siberian shipment enormous orders
of steel rails, locomotives and miscel
laneous machinery. Mining, in vari
ous parts of that vast country, will, it
is believed, soon have very extensive
I development.
Count CassinI says that Siberia is
i eo.ua! in area to Canada and the United
States, and he adds that the country
offers the most alluring inducement to
capital to assist in its development. It
jnust, however, be remembered that so
ivast a proportion of the country lies
; Within the frozen circle that no devel
; or ment like that which has taken place
I in the United States and Canada will
ever he witnessed there; though doubt-
lless localities will be found as favora
ble to development as even the best
parts of Canada. Of course, the resem
blance between large part of Siberia
and the great northern portions of Can
ada iS very close,, and no large popu
lation can ever exist in either.
To what extent Siberia may become
a w heatgrowlng country Is yet a mat
ter of conjecture, and therefore of dis
pute. It seems probable, however, that
Siberia at some time not distant will
begin to contribute considerable quan
tities of wheat and barley to the out
side world. This, if it prove true, will
interfere with our shipments of cereals,
tut it is probable that increasing ship
ments of lumber will be steadily want-
: ed. Yet it is admitted by Count Cas-
Blni that while encouragement is now
freely offered to American enterprise
and to importations from America,
these privileges are likely to hold good
only until such time as the Husslans
in Siberia are prepared to undertake in
earnest the industrial development of
the country. ""Open door ' privileges
then w ill probably be withdrawn. This
statement, from such a source, may
suggest to us that we should not bank
too heavily on the permanence of Si
berian trade; for we shall probably see
the time when Siberia will apply the
doctrine of protective tariff in a very
rigorous way. The Russian minister
indeed is entirely frank about this;
hence his statement that there are at
present great opportunities of trade
wAh Siberia which the United States
ought to Improve Is subject to a some
what discouraging limitation. But he
says our people ought to go there, take
leading part in the industrial develop
ment of the country and get the bene
fits of the protective policylhat is to
c me. This invitation is -not alluring
encugh to attract much attention in
America unless there should be great
gcid discoveries, and perhaps not then.
fr the Russian government might be
expected to outdo even the masterful
policy of Uncle Paul Kruger, in absorp
tion of the proceeds of the mines.
It is British policy alone that sup
ports open trade in Asia that is, Great
Britain alone, of Old World nations,
stands for the "open door" in Asia that
is essential to the Pacific commerce of
the United States. Of Russian exclu
slveness we have, indeed, no right to
ceir plain, since the like policy has long
been our own. But it will not be ad
vantageous to us to find, as the out-
ccme of changes now going on in Asia,
Russian policy ascendant there.
An analysis of the Russian budget for
1900, made by the New York Journal of
Commerce, shows that the ordinary
and extraordinary expenses are esti
mated at $905,006,000, or"$7,000,000 less
than in 1898, and the ordinary and ex
traordinary receipts are $822,000,000,
maldng a deficit of nearly $83,000,000.
This is an advance over 1898, when the
deficit was $51,262,457. As the famine
grews and much of the Siberian rail
way will need to be rebuilt, owing to
defective material and bad location, the
deficit estimated for 1900 will, in the
Journal's opinion, be largely exceeded.
Hence the indisposition of capitalists to
lend more money to the czar's gov
errment, the idea being that the Rus
sian debt is already heavier than Rus
sia can safety bear. M. Witte, the
finance minister, attributes the mone
tary stringency and difficulty he en-
c unters in getting money to a general
apprehension of war, which, he thinks,
would not exist if other governments
shared the czar's pacific sentiments.
M, Witte has personally done much to
counteract the ambitious schemes of
the military element in Russia. He is
a friend of peace and orderly finance.
He is probably aware, though he can
not say so, that Russia's enormous
armaments are the cause largely of
Europe being today an armed camp.
If the pacific sentimenisf.of the czarf"
says the Journal, very correctly, "would
cn-y restrain Russia from adding to
its already large forces in a locality
where they menace China and Japan,
and from pressing forward its slow
absorption of Persia and from threat
ening Afghanistan, they would have
very much greater value for the world
at large. Nothing would so much pro
mote the peace of the world as a sub
stantial indication that Russia had sus
pended for a time her policy of expan
sion in every part of Asia, from the
Bosphorus eastward, and in the Balkan
peninsula, where she cannot expand
without menacing Austria and the
whole Mediterranean region."
A STAGE IN SELF-GOVERN3IENT.
A serious5 proposal" in "congress that
federal judges shall hereafter be elec
tive Instead of appointive leads on to
many speculations. The proposal Is
sufllciently sure of rejection to excite
no alarm, but it may serve to remind
us that popular government is a thing
of slow growth rather than an act of
special creation. It is a process in
which we are moving towards a goal
yet unreached, in as true a sense as
the Cubans are, or the Filipinos. We
are in advance of them, but we are not
at the end of the journey, at the sum
mit of the ascent.
When the constitution of the United
States was adopted, it became a mat
ter for careful consideration how far
the American people had advanced on
the way of self-government. Upon the
answer to this question the grand old
statesmen of that day divided. Some,
like Jefferson and Wilson of Pennsyl
vania, had almost unlimited faith In the
capacity of the masses for self-government.
Others, like Hamilton and Mor
ris, distrusted them. Some wrere for
lodging powers in president and con
gress that would permit little popular
Interference; others were for the wid
est possible application of popular sov
ereignty. We know, without looking, what the
result of such differences inevitably
must have been. It was a compromise.
The people could elect representatives
to the lower house of congress, but they
were not trusted with election of the
president. They could not elect the
senators, as this was a very important
matter involving all executive appoint
ments to office and all treaties with
foreign powers. Between the people and
the senate were interposed the legisla
tures, and between the people and the
presidency was interposed the electoral
college, which was created for no other
purpose than to serve as a buffer be
tween popular feeling and the moment
ous responsibilities of the presidency.
Time has shown us that the people
can be trusted to elect the president.
Half the truth would doubtless be that
the aristocrats of 1787 were too distrust
ful of the people, but the other half Is
that the people of today are more fit
for self-government than those of
Washington's time, when a popular
vote might have resulted against the
war for independence. Time now be
gins to show us that the people can also
be trusted to elect the senators. Their
fitness in this respect seems to be the
subject of general conviction among
thinking men today, and the realization
only waits upon removal of obstacles
set in the way by red tape and political
machines.
As to the judiciary, however, progress
has not been so rapid. It was recog
nized at once, when our government
and the separate states themselves
were formed, that the masses of the
American people could not at that time
be trusted to select courts that were to
interpret laws. It Is only in the most
highly trained community that discre
tion can be guaranteed to withstand the
appeals of demagogy and the arts of
popularity. Clamor might remove the
just judge and elevate the unjust.
Progress has been made, and now it
has become the rule rather than other
wise for state judiciary to be elective
instead of appointive. Public opinion
has been enlightened to the importance
and profit of continuing good judges in
office. In every community the names
of elected judges in supreme and circuit
courts, retained till death or honored
retirement, are household words. In
these narrow local circles, where char
acter and attainments of incumbents
can be known of all, popular control
of the judiciary can be relied upon to
an extent that is manifestly impossi
ble in wider political subdivisions,
where votes are controlled by partisan
impulses. Whenever the day comes that
the masses can bo depended upon to
select the judiciary with care, and con
tinue judges during life or good behav
ior with the same certainty that now
obtains under appointment, the change
will be made. There will be no resist
ing it.
These interesting phenomena of race
development are instructive to all who
realize that human institutions, self
government among them, are products
of slow evolution from rude beginnings
up to a beautiful, harmonious prime.
They have no concern or value to those
who hold that self-governing communi
ties are miraculously born, complete in
stature and mature in powers, from the
womb of time. They are unintelligible
to those who hold that a congeries of
semi-civilized tribes in the Philippines
can, through a form of special crea
tion, be made a republic by simple
bestowal of a name.
GENERAL BULLER'S 3IOVEMENT.
General Buller's movement against
the Boer army on the line of the Tugela
river is reported to have to come to a
halt, even as that of General Methuen
did after crossing the Modder river and
suffering severe- repulse In attacking
the enemy's intrenched line at Magers
fonteln. This movement was really be
gun on the 11th inst., when a British
mounted brigade seized the Springfield
bridge and Potgleter's "drift. On the
16th inst. a British brigade crossed
Potgleter's drift in the evening, and
the remainder of the column crossed
the next day. The British met with
little or no opposition from the Boers
in their passage of the Tugela river,
the latter retiring about five miles from
the river to positions already fortified
or easlly"intrenched. Gfeneral Buller's
forces consisted of General Warren's
division, on the extreme left, which
crossed the Tugela river at Trichard's
drift, about six miles west of Potgle
ter's drift, where Lyttleton's brigade
had crossed, followed by Hllyard's at
the Springfield bridge. .
This turning movement ot General
Buller's, directed against the Boer right,
flank, wras sound strategy. General
Buller planned to have General War
ren's division envelop the right of the
Boer position while they were at
tacked in front by the brigades that
crossed at Potgleter's drift. The plan
was sound and prudent, and probably
would have been successful If executed
by infantry against infantry, but, exe
cuted by infantry against equally well
armed mounted infantry, it was fore
doomed to difficulty if not to failure.
The Boers offered no serious resist
ance to General Buller's advance across
the Tugela, because their tactics were
to remain on the defensive In positions
already selected, and from which in
case of defeat they could fall back on
the forces south of Ladysmlth for sup
port. The Boers have made just resist
ance enqugh to allow them to concen
trate their forces at the critical point of
attack, and there they have stopped,
leaving General Buller the gloomy al
ternative of making a hopeless frontal
attack or of beginning his flanking
operation all over again.
General Puller has done as well vas
p6Ssible for a "man whp undertakes to
turn an enemy out of a? position that is
at least as well armed as he is, and
presents a front of Intrenched mounted
infantry against his army of infantry
supported by not more than 3000
mounted men. General Buller has been
sensible and prudent, but the British
will never win in Africa until they have
a mounted force of 25,000 British Cape
Colonists, as well mounted and as well
armed as- the Boers. Given equal arms
and equal steadfastness under fire, and
superior mobility will win the day
every time. The Englishman is a brave
man, but he cannot expect to beat an
intrenched army of mounted men
equally well armed with himself, with
an army of Infantry not greatly supe
rior In numbers.
BURNS.
Tonight our Scottish fellow-cltlzens
will celebrate the memory of Burns.
No other Christian people on the globe
cherish the memory of any poet as do
the Scotch that of Burns. England has
no national poet whose memory is pas
sionately reverenced by both peer and
peasant. America's nearest approach
to such a poet Is Whittler, who fed his
young poetic impulses chiefly on Burns.
Ireland did not find a true national
bard in Moore, who was a bit of a tuft
hunter, which Burns never was, either
in his days of transient sunshine or his
last years of degradation and sorrow.
The truth Is that while Burns is easily
Scotland's greatest poet, he is loved'
and worshiped by his countrymen not
so much for his poetic genius as for
the fact that his muse was so Intensely
Scotch. If Burns had devoted his great
powers to the celebration of high poetic
themes that were not essentially in
stinct with the provincial life and color
of Scottish history, social habits and
traditions, he would not be the pet poet
of the Scottish people today, any more
than Pope or Gray or Cowper or
Wordsworth or Tennyson Is peculiarly
dear to the heart of the whole Eng
lish people. It was because Burns was
a great Scotchman, who from first to
last always worshiped Scotland, that
all Scotchmen worship the memory of
Burns.
The Scotch are an intensely intel
lectual people, but they are not pecul
iarly a poetlc-mlnded race. Many Eng
lishmen and Americans are more en
thusiastic admirers of the astonishing
versatility of the poetic genius of Burns
than the majority of Scotchmen, but
English and Americans admire simply
Burns, the warbler of beautiful, brook
like songs, the great humorist, the
trenchant satirist; while to Scotchmen
Burns is passionately dear because he
was a great-hearted Scotchman, first
and last and always, subordinating his
great powers to the glory and praise of
Scotland. Burns' heart was always as
responsive to Scottish life, sympathies
and memories as was the Highland
brigade at the battle of the Alma, when
stern old Sir Colin Campbell rode along
the line of battle and cried "Old Scot
land forever, boys." That Intense pa
triotic feeling was always expressed
eloquently by Burns, and because of
this he is as dear to the heart of Scot
land as if he had fallen at Flodden,
sword in hand, fighting for his country
and his king. In other words, if Burns
had been less of a Scotchman, but even
a greater poet, he would not have been
so enthusiastically worshiped by the
Scottish people.
It was because Burns sang Scotland
so tunefully and eloquently, and sang
nothing else so nobly and so long, that
Scotland in its intense patriotism wor
ships today and always will worship the
memory of Burns. Burns was a well
read man in the poetic literature of his
day, without being a severe student or
university scholar. It was fortunate
for his fame that he was not a man
of severe scholastic culture, like Milton,
for If he had been he would probably
have lost his charming spontaneity.
Shakespeare, Byron arid Burns are dis
tinguished for a certain rush, vigor and
freshness of movement and manner
which was pointed out to Wordsworth
by Walter Scott when he wrote him:
"You and I have to toll and work hard
over our poetry, but Burns and Byron
were born poets; they bubbled forth
brook-like songs or wrote verses that
make you think of a mountain torrent."
This is not the exact language of Scott,
but it is the substance of his thought.
Burns was not unlike Byron, who was
half Scotch, in some respects. He had
the same mixture of strong, vigorous
understanding married to a noble imag
ination. Both were strong reasoners In
verse; both keen and vigorous satirists;
both were natural radicals at war with
church-and crown; both were generous,
loyal, brave and truthful men; open
hearted, open-handed, affectionate
friends. Burns was probably a man of
sweeter and healthier mind and spirit
than Byron, for Byron's paternal an
cestors were aristocrats of vitiated
blood, while his mother had a violent
temper soured Ky trouble; so that
Burns had the advantage at least of
having had good parents on both sides,
and he was not a man of morbid spirit.
Had Burns been born a poor English
lord ,he would probably have behaved
neither better nor wbrse than Byron,
and had Byron been born of pious
Scotch peasant stock, he. would prob
ably have been very much such a man
as Burns. Byron's birth and breeding
kept him from being a .vulgar tippler,
and he was a man o sound business
quality, which Burns was not. Byron
made good bargains with his publishers
for every line he wrote, while Burns,
in a spirit of literary Quixotism, re
fused to accept pay for a great deal of
his best work in the matter of song
writing. With Byron's business sense,
Burns need never have been in pecun
iary straits. The greatest glory of
Burns is the brightest feather in By
ron's plume, and that is that he dedi
cated his genius to the defense and
exaltation of the primitive rights of
the people, as contrasted with the ac
quired artificial rights of caste, class
and aristocracy. Burns, like Byron,
skinned and scalded the heartless,
hypocritical hierarchy of his day, a
daring act, for which he- not only never
wras forgiven In his life, but it was
remembered to his prejudice long years
after his death. '
Oregon climate may generally be de
pended upon to regulate Itself In the
Interests ' of agriculture and hortiqul-
ture. People who for some days past
have been vexing themselves and
wearying others with doleful prognosti
cations of overlush gralnfields and pre
mature budding of fruit trees were
properly rebuked by the sharp frost of
Tuesday night, succeeded by a chill
atmosphere which has in it no sugges
tion of sprng. They now content them
selves by looking dubious and hoping
the cool weather will continue until all
danger to the fruit is oVer. It proba
bly will.
Dispatches from Birmingham, Ala.,
show that there was a great increase
in the amount of pig-iron and cast-iron
pipe shipped from the Southern iron
field In 1899. The official figures, just
published, show the total shipment of
pig-iron from Alabama and Tennessee
in 1899 to have been 1,571,570 tons, an
increase over 1898 of 218,600 tons; from
the Birmingham district' alone ship
ments, were 945,969 tons, an Increase
over 1898 of 86,690 tons. Cast-iron pipe
shipments from Alabama and Tennes
see In 1899 were 146,637 tons, an in
crease over 1898 of 19,237 tons; from
the Birmingham district alone ship
ments were 57,239 tons, an Increase of
12,708 tons. Expert iron shipments
from the Southern field (practically all
from the Birmingham district) were
167,003 tons, a decrease from 1898 of 34,
675 tons. The decrease is very small
considering the extraordinarily brisk
domestic demand, and would have been
much greater but for the booking of a
large number of export contracts before
the domestic boom set in.
The insane rancher of Clatsop county
goes to the asylum with a murder
booked against him. There is probably
no doubt that he is mentally unbal
anced through hereditary taint, to a
degree that renders him a dangerous
man in the community. This being
true, the opinion of Dr. Beckman, of
the examining board, to the effect that
this man should never again be al
lowed his liberty, is strongly to the
point. When the cause of insanity is
one that it is impossible to eradicate,
any recovery of the mental balance
may justly be deemed temporary, and
its victim may very properly be perma
nently restrained of his liberty. Soci
ety has an undoubted right to protect
Itself, both from this man and his pos
sible posterity, by keeping him in con
finement during the remainder of hla
natural life.
The Pennsylvania Editorial Associa
tion has been so affected by the deal
ings of its members with the paper
trust that at its annual meeting In
Harrlsburg, on Tuesday, It adopted a
resdlutlon declaring that "if trusts are
honestly organized to reduce expenses
and consequently the cost of products,
they should depend on their own busi
ness sagacity, and not upon protection
given to them by the government," and
appealing to congress to "repeal such
tariff duties as seem to protect the
trusts in their extortionate charges."
The overwhelming republican majority
in Pennsylvania is sufficient to stamp
this utterance as of profound national
Significance in tariff disousslon.
The Indianapolis Journal recalls a
paragraph In President Polk's second
annual message to congress, December
8 1846, as follows:
The war has been represented as unjust and
unnecessary, and as one of aggression on our
part, upon a weak and Injured enemy. Such
erroneous views, though entertained by but
few, have been widely and extensively circu
lated, not only at home, but have been spread
throughout Mexico and the whole world. A
more effectual means could not have been de
vised to encourage the enemy and protract the
war than to advocate and adhere to their cauae,
and thus arive them "aid and comfort."
An excellent account of the proceed
ings of our "antls" of the present
time, and a very effective reply to
them.
Oregonians returning' from visits to
San Francisco say that the grave of
Senator E. D. Baker, in one of the cem
eteries of that city, is neglected, and
has been for two years. It is a natural
result of the mistake that was made
when interment of this distinguished
Oregon soldier and statesman was
made in California instead of Oregon.
Self-government Is an employment
for which only the trained are fit. It
Is as logical to make a republic out of
the Filipinos as to make a man a car
penter, by putting a plane in his hand.
Men like Senator Hoar denounce the
establishment in the Philippine islands
of the authority of the free government
under which we live, as the creation of
a despotism.
Puerto Rico's population has gener
ally been set down at'800,000. The cen
sus, therefore, shows that the previous
estimate has been too low by some
200,000.
Anglo-Saxon-Celtlc Domlnancy.
Toronto World.
For now 500 years the Anglo-Celtic-Saxon
race has preserved Its identity, in
spite of all sorts of admixture from other
races. It absorbs, It assimilates, but not
yet has any amount of admixture materi
ally changed It. The little leaven of that
people which sent the bowmen to Crecy
leaveneth the whole lump.
The course of such a race is not like
that of a purling brook rather It Is like a
thundering torrent Often It has dashed
Itself upon immovable obstacles: often It
has spread desolation In its path; its his
tory Is no more free from crime than 'is
that of other races; It has done evil as
well as good, and very likely it will con
tinue to be human and Imperfect to the
end of the chapter. But all such object
tlons to It are beside the mark. This race
was Invested by Providence with one Im
mense mission,, and in the main It has
been true to Its destiny, Is still true. No
matter what may be said to the contrary,
no matter What adroit appeals there may
be made to the sentiment for the under
dog during the present wars In the Trans
vaal and the Philippines, the fact remains
that the issue between the Ahglo-Saxon
and the rest of the world, from the day of
Crecy to the present hour, has been the
maintenance of a stream of political tend
ency which culminated In those Immortal
words which declare that "government ot
the people, for the people and by the peo
ple shall not perish" shall not perish, no
matter what his sins, so long as the
Anglo-Saxon heads the world.
n ii ft
General Bnckner for Expansion.
General Simon B. Buckner In interview at Chi
cago. "The democratic party has no -future
until the element now in control has been
wiped out, and this promises to be done
at the elections of this year. Expedlenoy
not principle, is the motto of this ele
ment; the energies of its leader, Mr.
Bryan, are engaged in hunting for an
lssuek, which he hopes will attract votes,
and not In. the promulgation of those
great principles on which the democratic
party rests. With his defeat, which prom
ises to be more overwhelming than in
1896, there Is reason to believe the con
servative element of .the party once more
will come Into power. The controlling
element of the party today would com
mit It to opposition to expansion, when
expansion was the essence of Jeffersonian
democracy. As a practical proposition,
there can be no doubt in my mind as to
the wisdom of this country retaining the
Philippines."
CLARK, OP THE OREGON.
He Has Been Neglected by the Navy
Department.
Brooklyn Eagle.
It 13 not two years since the eyes of
the whole country were fixed upon the
Oregon on Its wonderful trip around Cape
Horn. The name oftenest in the hearts
of Americans was that of Clark, its gal
lant captain. Even the fall of Manila
and the apotheosis of Dewey, which fol
lowed, did not slacken Interest In Cap
tain Clark's voyage up through the South
Atlantic ocean nor lessen the prayers that
he and his splendid ship might join the
squadron patrolling Cuban waters In safe
ty. Well, they got there, the ship In such
fine condition that she did not need dock
age and repairs after her long race against
time. Her engineers said she did, but
Captain Clark said she did not, and
proved it by the speed she made in pur
suit of Cervera's flying and fated squad
ron. That was because not a gallon of
salt water had been allowed In the Ore
gon's boilers to crust the valves, although
Captain Clark" had to keep his men on
a 'short allowance ot fresh water to feed
the ship. We were all singing Clark's
praises then and glorying in his reported
dispatch to the secretary of the navy
not to confuse him with orders, and add
ing that he was ready to fight the whole
Spanish squadron If he met it.
That was two years ago. What have
we done for Clark, of the Oregon, in
the meantime, and where is he? Other
officers have been promoted, but he
stands two numbers lower in the scale
of precedence than he did when he sailed
from San Francisco. We are talking
about reviving the raitic of vice-admiral
to reward two of the heroes of Santiago
and to avoid the possibility of an ugly
political quarrel. What is the matter
with a commodore's star for the man
who saw his duty and did it and who
has left the politics of the navy depart
ment to less war-like spirits? There was
a conference of captains engaged In the
battle of Santiago at the White House
recently to discuss the proper award of
honors for that victory. But the case of
Clark stands apart from that of the
others. They never brought their ships
around Cape Hern In racing time and
then did their full share of fighting, too.
It is true, they did not have the chance,
but they never did the work and that, as
Lord Charles Beresford pointed out, Is
the real test in the case. The matter
is now before the house committee on naval
affairs. For months Captain Clark was
a naval hero second only In the popular
mind to Dewey. Once let the notion pre
vail that he has been overlooked or under
rated In the distribution of awards and
the dissatisfaction would react powerfully
upon the men responsible for such an In
justice. This is not a plea for the pro
motion of Captain Clark so much as It
Is that the committee on naval affairs
and the navy department do justice and
give fair play, as much for their sake
and the country's as for that of the gal
lant captain of the Oregon.
i a p '
A CHANCE TO KEEP STILL.
And Thereby to Show "Very Good
Sense.
Hartford Courant.
In this free country, where everybody
Is at liberty to think as he pleases, peo
.ple may sympathize with Boers or Brit
ish as they prefer. The majority of those
who have given the matter the most
thought and study seem to agree that the
best Interests of the world will be served
by the success of the English. That is
the firm belief of the Courant.
But there are still other considerations
for the honest and fair-minded American.
Selfishness is stronger than sympathy and
gratitude, considered sometimes a senti
mental impulse, has often a quality of
duty. When we fought Spain, we reached
out and pushed over a corpse that did
not know It was dead. Perhaps a corpse
should not be expected to know anything.
Now, suppose that, with defenseless
coasts and old-fashioned guns and an in
sufficient navy, we had had to face a live
nation armed with the latest Invented arms
and possessing ships and troops In plenty.
Where would we be today? Probably
deeper in trouble than ever before In our
history. Everybody knows that this ex
panding republic is not popular abroad.
An excuse for intermeddling between Spain
and us would have been quickly found, and
we should have been Involved In a quar
rel whose extent only the imagination can
measure if It had not been for one factor,
and that factor was England. She stood
firm and by her attitude prevented foreign
Intervention.
With 'everything prospering here and
with the American people standing as spec
tators of the great struggle in which Eng
land herself Is now involved, it seems In
credible that so short a time ago it was
our own country that stood on the brink
of troubles far more serious even than
are hers now. But so it was, and it was
England that saved us.
Watch the fight, have sympathy with
the "struggling Boers" If you feel that
way, but for your own self-respect, keep
your mouth shut and avoid the expression
of an ingratitude that is altogether dis
creditable. f a t
Imports and Exports.
The following table shows the total
Imports and exports In calendar years
from 1869 to 1899, and at the same time
furnishes an index of the industrial prog
ress of the country:
Year. Imports. Exports.
1 869 5438,455,894 $337,375,985
1870 461,132,058 403,of6 010
1871 573.111,099 46-,352,0S3
1872 655.S64.693 468 837 948
1S73 595,248,048 E67.S57.E67
1874 562,115,507 BW.&W.&S
1S75 503,152,936 510,947,422
1876 427,347.165 590,666.629
1877 480,216.300 620.302,412
1878 431.S12.483 737.092,073
1879 513,602,796 765.159.S2i
1880 696,807,176 889.683.422
1851 670.209,448 833,549,127
1882 752,842.507 767.E8l.945
1883 , 687.066,216 795,209,316
1884 629,281.860 749.366.42S
1885 5s7.868.673 88.219,7P8
1886 663,429,189 713,404,021
1887 708,818,478 715,301,044
1888 725.411,371 691.761.055
18S9 770,521,965 827,106.347
1890 823,398,726 857.502,548
1891 1222Q.24Z 970,503,616
1892 840 930.955 938.420.660
1833 7:6.548,924 876,108.781
1F94 676,312,941 825.102,248
1S95 801,669,347 824,860,136
189G 681,579,556 1,005,837.241
1897 742,595,f 29 1,090,709,0-15
1898.. .. 634,9:58.?29 l,?
1899 799,834 620 1,273,416,641
i a o '
Wit and Hmnor.
Louisville Courier-Journal.
Washington. The professional humorist
never had any standing in congress in
the American congress. Tom Corwin,
"Sunset" Cox and Proctor Knott were
anything but professional in that behalf.
They were spontaneous. So is John Al
len. John Randolph was a wit; So Is
Thomas B. Reed, and the critics say
there is a difference between wit and
humor. One day Springer came marching
down the aisle like a whirlwind, and, In
terrupting Thomas B. Reed, exclaimed:
"I'll inform the gentleman from Maine
that I would rather be right than presi
dent." To that Reed replied, quick as a
flash: "But you will never be either."
That was wit. Tears ago, Gurley, a
preacher of the Unlversalist faith, a mem
ber of congress from a Cincinnati dis
trict, made a speech criticising General
McClellan, who was then about to set
out on his campaign against Richmond
that collapsed In the seven-days' battle.
S. S. Cox answered him in a speech that
kept the country laughing a month.
Among other things Cox said that Gurley
had faith to believe that the pearly gates
of heaven would be wrue enough to ad
mit the rebel General Humphrey Mar
shall, who weighed 400 pounds, but he
could not find sufficient faith, though less
than In the estimation of a grain of mus
tard seed, in bulk, to place in the only
Union general who had yet achieved a
military success of moment. That was
humor.
o i
TACITUS AND GIBBON.
Selected From "History," by James
Ford Rhodes, In February Atlantic.
We approach Tacitus with respect; we
rise from reading his annals, his history
and Germany, with reverence. We know
that we have been in the society of a
gentleman who had a high standard ot
morality and honor. We feel that our
guide was a serious student, a solid think
er, and a man of the world; that he ex
presses his opinions and delivers his judg
ments with a remarkable freedom from
prejudice. He draws us to him with sym
pathy. He sounds the same mournful note
which we detect In Thucydldes. Tacitus
deplores the folly and dissoluteness of the
rulers of his nation; he bewails the mis
fortunes of his country. The merits wo
ascribe to Thucydides, diligence, accuracy,
love of truth, impartiality, are his. The
desire to quote from Tacitus Is Irresistible.
"The more I meditate," he writes, "on the
events of ancient and modern times, the
more I am struck with the capricious
uncertainty which mocks the calculations
of men in all their transactions." . . .
From a, thinker who deemed the time "out
of joint," as Tacitus obviously did, and
who, had he not possessed great strength
of mind and character, might have lapsed
into a gloomy pessimism, what noble
words are these: "This I regard as his
tory's highest function, to let no worthy
action be uncommemorated, and to hold
out the reprobation of posterity as a ter
ror to evil words and deeds." The mod
esty of the Roman is fascinating. "Much
of what I have related," he says, "and
shall have to relate, may perhaps, I am
aware, seem petty trifles to record. . . .
My labors are circumscribed and unpro
ductive of renown to the author."
It Is more than a strong probability that
In diligence, accuracy and love of truth.
Gibbon "Is the equal of Tacitus. A com
mon edition of the "History of the Decline
and Fall of the Roman Empire" Is that
with notes by Dean Milman, Guizot and
Dr. Smith. Nlebuhr, Vlllemaln and Sir
James Mackintosh -are each drawn upon
for criticism. Did ever such a fierce light
beat upon a history? With what keen
relish do the annotators pounce upon mis
takes or inaccuracies, and in that portion
of the work which ends with the fall of
the Western empire, how few do they find!
Would Tacitus stand" the supreme test
better? There Is, so far as I know, only
one case in which we may compare his
annals with an original record. On
bronze tablets found at Lyons, In the 16th
century, is engraved the same speech made
by the Emperor Claudius to the senate
that Tacitus reports. "Tacitus and the
tablets," writes Professor Jebb, "disagree
hopelessly Jn language and in nearly all
the detail, but agree in the general line
of argument." Gibbon's work has richly
deserved its life of more than 100 years,
a period which I believe no other modern
history has endured. Nlebuhr, in a course
of lectures at Bonn, In 1S29, said that Gib
bon's "work will never be excelled." At
the Gibbon centenary commemoration, in
London, in 1894, many distinguished men,
among whom the church had a distinct rep
resentation, gathered together to pay hon
or to him who, in the words of Frederic
Harrison, had written "the most perfect
book that English prose (outside its Action)
possesses."
- d o
Where to Begin.
New Tork Journal.
President Hadley Is a wise man, but
In teaching the Tale Idea to shoot in this
direction he is not doing Justice to his
own wisdom. From what particular
things would President Hadley ostracise
the trust kings? From church? Look at
the bald, bowed heads In the Fifth-avenue
houses of God on Sunday. They are
all worn bare with trust schemes. Do
nations from trust magnates support the
ministers.
From social enjoyments? Go to the
assembly ball, the Patriarchs, the Ma
triarchs, the high and howling functions
at Delmonlco's or Sherry's or the privato
palaces along the Appian way. Trust
magnates bob and skip and smirk and
beam In mutual regard. How, then,
would President Hadley ostracise the
trust rulers? Will the colleges cast the
first stone by refusing to accept donations
from trust sources?
a t.
From a Debtor to a Creditor Country
New Tork Tribune.
Tho most remarkable annual statement
of commerce ever made by the United
States treasury has just been issued. In
1899 the exports were not only larger by
about 520.000,000 than In any other calendar
year, but were larger by about 544.000.000
than in any fiscal year of the country's
history. The nation hung out no red flag
to Invite cheap buyers last year. It sold
only what other countries wished to buy
strongly enough to pay more than the
most active domestic trade, and the lar
gest home consumption ever known were
paying for the products of industry. It
is to this fact mainly that the record of
1899 will owe the distinction which In com
mercial history it will have of definitely
changing the relation of the United States
to the rest of the financial world and
transforming this from a debtor to a cred
itor country.
a e
Fish Killed by Lightning.
Indianapolis News.
The Pennsylvania fish commission had
heard tales that the brown trout with
which some of the streams of the state
were stocked were particularly susceptible
to destruction from lightning, so they be
gan an Investigation, and they now an
nounce that the stories are true. It Is
the habit of the brown trout to swim closo
to the bottom of the stream It frequents,
and though he is not literally struck by
lightning, the electricity Is conducted to
the bottom of tho Streams which have
rocks containing a considerable amount
of iron In them, and so reaches and kills
the trout, while it does not affect the fish
that swim higher in the water.
a
Why News Dribbles.
Cincinnati Times-Star.
To understand the complete silence In
South Africa it must be remembered
that Kitchener Is there. The correspond
ents who accompanied him to the Soudan
were permitted to publish their obser
vations In book form after the campaign
was over, one correspondent cabling hi3
book from Cairo, but the newspapers had
to accept the mere announcement of the
final victory after maintaining men with
the forces for months. His railroad
to Omdurman was well under way be
fore he disclosed to the war office his In
tention to build It.
e
A Feat of Mnemonics.
The speech of Senator Beverldge, of In
diana, was a remarkable feat of memory.
It contained about 8000 words, but Mr.
Beverldge repeated It entirely without
notes, and so thoroughly had he memor
ized It that, although he spoke for Over
an hour and a half, he rarely departed
from the text of the printed copy pre
viously supplied to the press. At no time,
however, did the effort seem to be other
than extemporaneous.
' o-g
It Is "Very Trne.
Kansas City Star.
But the fact remains that If the ad
miration of Senator Hale, of Maine,, for
the Boer republic should tempt him to
take Up his residence in the Transvaal
he would not be permitted, to vote or to
exercise a voice in the government of
which he has become the advocate and
defender.
NOTE AND COMMENT.,
General Warren has a name that ought
to make him a game fighter.
Aguinaldo Is noted for speed, but he has
never been able to stand fast.
The sultan of Sulu may lead a happy
life, but he will never get to congress.
Senator Mason, It is said, Is a poor man.
Everyone knows that he is a poor thing.
St. Louis Is on the road to fame. Hence
forth she will be known as the largest
city on the Chicago sewer.
If President Hadley succeeds In abolish
ing millionaires It is to he feared that
there will be fewer students at Tale.
Now Kipling has been accused of writ
ing "David Harum." It 13 singular that
no ono has charged him with the author
ship of "Hamlet."
It Is better for the public to leave a man
a candidate, for then he Is supported only
by his friends. Elect him and all the tax
payers must support him.
Having all the prosperity tney can stand
and no taste for anti-imperialism, the
Southern senators are obliged to jump once
more on their colored brethren In order to
get support.
As showing the Increased ccst of plumb
ers' supplies, a local firm seeds The Ore
gonian a statement received thl3 week
from one of the largest manufacturing
"oncerns at the East, as follows:
The following percentages shew tho actual
Increase In costs of raw material. Which enter
largely Into the manufacture of cur llnee over
prices current, spring- of 1S0O:
Per cent.) Per cent.
Plar-Iroa 125jBolts ..Ill
Steel 100 Asbestce 31
Copper 81 Pipe -. 1S4
Tin-plate 7Plpe flttiegs .......111
Wire ....13i3IUvete ....110
Nails 17WOI13 ... . ...100
Lumber .......... 87f
Nothing has been heard thl3 season of
the wood trust, doubtless oving to the
mildness of the winter. A year ago tho
fact was freely stated that all the wood
dealers, even Including the slalwood men,
had combined to raise the price. The
wood-choppers, however, grumbled more
than usual, alleging that the city handlers
received all the benefit of the increase and
the producer was left out In the cold.
This winter, so far, much lees fuel has
been required to keep a house comfortably
warm, and the dealers appear satisfied to
sell all they can at the best price obtain
able, everyone on his own hook.
Every spring, when a few sacks of early
potatoes from California, and, perhaps,
some early onions and vegetables are
brought to this market, cutting remarks
are heard about the lazy, shiftless Oregon
farmers, who do not raise potatoes enough
to supply the home demand. For the past
three months every steamer leaving Port
land for San Francisco has carried away
an average of between 6000 and 7000 sacks
of potatoes, and a corresponding quantity
of onions, and Monday night the steamer
took away about 10,000 sacks of potatoes
and 1000 sacks of onions for the Califor
nia market. There are thousands and
thousands of sacks more to go, and pretty
nearly almost always It is ever thus. It
would be In order for Callfornlans to be
rate the laziness ot their farmers, If it
would do any good, for not raising po
tatoes enough to supply their own state,
but the fact Is that even Jn fiavoraWe
Seasons, good potatoes can only be raised
In a few sections of that state, and the
potatoes raised along the river bottoms
there are not to be compared with tho
Oregon product, either for eating or keep
ing. The Oregon farmer, like everybody
else, has his faults, but the amount of
potatoes and wheat he manages to turn
out yearly brings an amount of money
Into this state which might serve as a
mantle to cover a multitude of sins. On
the whole, tho Oregon farmer W at least
as much sinned against as sinning. And
when It Is remembered that "the farmer
feeds us all," and also all the cattle and
pigs and poultry, and the birds of the air,
he ought to bo spoken of with rsspect.
p
EpltnpbH.
Gentleman's Magazine.
The following Is to a member of OrIeIr
college, Oxford:
Randolph Peter
Of Oriel, the Eater,
Whoe'er you are, tread softly, I entreat you
For If he chance to wake, be sure he'll eat you.
On John Adams, of Southwell, a carrier,
who died of drunkenness:
John Adams lies here, of tho parish of South
well. A carrier who carried his can to his mouth wellj
He carried; so much, and he carried so fast.
He could carry no more so was carried at last;
For the liquor he drank, belnff too much for one.
He could not carry off eo he's now carrf-on.
e '
Manila's Nautical School.
Philadelphia Telegraph.
An Important movement has been start
ed at Manila to educate a portion of the
native population for a seafaring life. It
seems that the Spanish government was
maintaining a nautical school when the
first native insurrection broke out. The
Institution was then closed and has so
remained. Now it is to be reopened on
practically the original lines, but It la to
be under American naval control, of
course, and after June 1, 1901, a knowl
edge of the English language is to be re
quired on the part of the students.
ia ' i
Mr. Kipling: Explains.
New Tork Commercial Advertiser.
In reply to a letter from a woman at
New Haven, England, asking for a, deflnl-
tion of the term "Absent-Minded Beggar,"
Mr. Kipling's secretary writes: "Mr. Kip
ling desires me to say, in answer to your
letter, that the term 'Absent-Minded Beg
gar' is one used by private soldiers them
selves when they have rorgotten any small
duty, and beggar Is a generic term of en
dearment."
o
Canada's Small Immigration.
Philadelphia Times.
Though Canada has been making special
efforts to Increase her population by
means of Immigration, they seem to be In
vain. The last census showed that
emigration for the period covered by the
enumeration exceeded lmmgration 300,000,
and the papers are Inclined to admit that
the next census will not show much Im
provement. t o "
Thirty-Six Mills.
There's many a sold and stiver mine,
And some details of trade are noater,
But for a trade that's extra fine.
Commend me to the say taxeater.
lie breathes the air with head up high.
While poor taxpayers breathe a plgh.
He seems to us by heaven sent
To train our nerves when rascals fire- at
Our Patience on a monument.
That's smlllns at a. smooth-faced pirate
He ernlles and smiles while men cry "foul,"
And honest farmers raise a howl.
Are these the fabled mills of Zeus (
That grind so fine and srlnd bo slowly?
Ah, no; they're real, it Is no use.
We toas the sponge, we're vanquished wholly.
Then we Insist, take all for grist.
And let the landlord but exist.
Now Portland furl your royals free
At anchor near the rlverrf junction,
111 send, ere you will wed the eea.
My P. P. C. before the function.
When taxes drop and splendor flares.
I shall have climbed the golden stairs.
Portland, Jan. 24. H. F. Bodney.
vJ
jkri.-,;
to. -.!&