THE MORNING OREGONIAN, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1900.
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lOR.TX.AXD, r JDAY, FEBRUARY 11
VBS THRAATIOtfAI. OHESS-BOARD
Gerniafly le taking measures to in
croaoo greatly her naval armament.
Th plane are said to require the ex
pendlture of &00,M,M6. TMs would
bring the strength of her navy up to
f France, at least, if not in excess
tt. Probably ttoe real object is to
Germany equal or superior to
; on sea, as she is oa land. At
same tame tteere Is thought of Rus
B&, Situated between Bunia and
3aoe, two powers that may unite,
iSttcmmar ha the instinct of preserva
81 agednet them, and wishes to in-
her strength upon the sea. Be-
Germany has growing colonial
inbeeaajte though site never has been
oossrtil colonising power. It is
35? 'immBeity Germany has much
tWsWafjfct of the need of naval arma
itwnt agateet OreeJt Britain; or the
TJntaao. Mates. These three great na
ttoini of Teutonic stock have the in
stinct of peace with each other, as
they have the instinct of apprehension
of trouble wttih Russia, supported by
Frnnce. Oar wa interest in this riv
alry seems, indeed, very remote. We
are so far from the scene of the con
flict that it looks to us as though its
consequences never could reach us. But
if the great Eastern world, containing
almost the whole population of the
globe, should become subjected to the
iron yoke of military rule would it
ptop there? Would there be any limit
to the aggressions of despotism? No
nation can disarm while its neighbors
remain great military powers. The
military power of France on one side
and of Russia on the other is a bar
to the complete industrial development
of Germany. The converse is just as
true as to Russia, for the vastness of
the Russian empire and the character
of its population except it from the
rules that control higher civilization.
There are thinkers who believe that
the cominc struggle for supremacy ol
the world will Me between the Teu
tonic races and the Slav races. These
are terms of the most general charac
ter, yet the main line of distinction and
exposition Is clear enough. Russia is
at the head of the Slav races; the Teu
tonic, branching from Germany, is the
larger element also in Great Britain
and the United States. The affinities
n either side are very marked. France
r '-mains the leading nation not natur
a. y affined to either group, but with
tharacteristtos and ambitions that in
t lite her to act with Russia. Austria
is scarcely to be taken into account,
i r there is probably bo great nation
" : power hangs on a slenderer
ttn.ad. Composed of a number of
ve.y different races, there is mani
t st lark of the power of welding them
t "ther, and the very existence of the
n narchy is continually threatened
h the possible disruption of its in
c - tfruoue dements. Possessing, like
Trance and Germany, a territory easily
l- aded, the most that can be expected
cf t is that it will retain, for a limited
ilr - only. Its present status. Upon a
1-v-aJv-up its German elements would
Tr& Itate to Germany; its Slav ele
ments to Russia. As to Italy, though
the great problem of Italian unity has
Ix-en solved, that kingdom shows no
t gns of life. It te not a first-class
r ww, and there is no indication that
its -vitality will extend much beyond
th peninsula It occupies. France.
Austria, Italy, important as they are,
tr not principal factors. The real
c MiU-Pt is whether tine civilisation of
Tl SlaA or that of the Saxon shall be
tlie leading civilisation of the world.
This struggle is coming sooner than
It would seem. If we compare It with
the slnv devetopmeat of races and na
tions in the past. Not that we shall
Lve to see It; It may be generations
abead of us, but the rapidity of social
changes today is as much greater than
that of like changes in past ages, as
the !pfed of the locomotive is greater
than that of the coach or caravan. We
see rothtng now but a cloud the siae
cf a man's hand, but the air is preg
nant v, ith a storm that will darken the
v ho e sky. The events of the pres
ent time may be only the faintest pre
monitory murmurs, and there may be
a dozen conflicts at as many points,
fiv lowed by as many reconciliations.
Tbr real evidence of the nature of the
struggle is the massing of ethnic,
racial, social and national forces on
either side. It Is not difficult to see on
vi bat side of tmc conflict lie the prog
ress of civilisation, and the hope of a
growing freedom, for commerce as
well as for men. In the matter of land,
Russia possesses nearly one-sixth of
the entire 'world, and her territory is
continually grow tug larger by conquest
and colonisation. Her possessions are
great ct In extent than those of any na
tion that has ever existed. Her pop
ulation exceeds one hundred and twen
i) millions, and her territory Is free
from the possibility of conquest. Her
system is the negation of modern civ
ilisation, and if it do not break up by
explosion from within it will force a
struggle with its opposite la the outer
w orld Our own country Is so situated
that it may not have to take any part;
and yet. where our sympathies should
be where our interests lie, must be
tt parent to every one who takes a
c.'"np'v-hrnsive vie We think Ger
xrJU' s naval armament is based on
this Instinct, rather than 'on thought
of conflict with Great Britain or the
United States.
A MENACE TO BUSINESS.
A decision that touches the very core
of the credit system in trade Is that
by Judge Hanford, of the United States
district court of Washington, in the
Conbalm bankruptcy proceeding. Con
baim was Indebted to the Washington
National bank on four promissory
notes. Within, four months of bank
ruptcy he hod made payments which
extinguished two of the notes, leaving
a small balance due on the tMrd and
leaving the fourth whoHy unpaid.
When Conhaim went into voluntary
bankruptcy the bank filed a claim for
the unpaid balance of its account. In
disallowing' the bank's claim, Judge
Bjanford ruled that a payment made
by a debtor within four months of his
Insolvency is a preference; that a pref
erence "given" and a preference "re
ceived" are identical terms; that it is
the benefit which one creditor obtains
over the others that constitutes the
act a preference, and that it is no de
fense for the creditor receiving the
preference to say that he was inno
cent of the advantage he had gained;
and that a creditor shall not share in
the distribution of the bankrupt estate
unless he surrender his preferences.
Tha logical deduction from Judge Han
ford's decision, is that the estate of a
debtor within four months of his in
solvency is a trust fund for the benefit
of all his creditors, and that if cred
itors who receive preferences do not
surrender them, the trustee In bank
ruptcy may bring an action to compel
the restoration of the payments or
transfers constituting the preference,
to the bankrupt's estate.
While Judge Hanford's decision Is
susceptible of interpretation as within
the spirit and letter of the bankruptcy
act, it will work hardship in many
cases. Suppose, for example, that A
goes Into bankruptcy owing B a bal
ance of $1500 on an account of $400 and
C $2600, no part of which has been
paid. A, within four months of his
insolvency, had paid B $2500 on ac
count. According to the decision in the
Conhaim case, B has no claim for the
balance of $1500 until he shall surren
der to the trustee in bankruptcy the
$2500 which he received from A within
the four months' limit. B "may not
plead that he received the $2500 In the
ordinary course of his business and in
payment of a just debt. No matter
what was the Intent of A and B when
the payment or payments were made,
whether they were in collusion or out
of collusion, the benefit or advantage
which accrued to B determined the ef
fect and constituted the transaction' a
preference. A is clearly estopped from
pleading that In paying B he was
clearing on" his debt and that he in
tended to create no preference, for the
natural answer would be, "Why did he
not pay C also?" Under the Conhaim
decision, B has the option of retaining
the $2600 in full settlement of A's ac
count, or of surrendering the money to
the bankrupt's estate and participating
in the general distribution. Besides, B
Is face to face with the fact that the
trustee in bankruptcy may, if a correct
deduction has been made from the Con1-
haim decision, compel him, through
legal proceedings, to restore the pref
erence. One of the worst Inequities under the
old state systems of bankruptcy was
the privilege which the Insolvent had
of naming preferred creditors, and
which he invariably exercised to the
benefit of some local bank or loan
agency. The bankruptcy law was en
acted to cure this evil. Judge .Han
ford's decision completely cures the
preference evil and goes farther. Its
effect is that all moneys received by
credit men are, until the expiration of
four months, trust funds for possible
cases in bankruptcy; inasmuch as the
merchant has no means of knowing
which of his customers may become
insolvent or at what moment he may
be called upon to cover considerable
amounts into the bankruptcy court.
The effect would be to deprive the
merchant, for four months, of the free
use of large sums, and if he were In
straitened circumstances, a sudden- de
mand for surrender of considerable
preferences might seriously cripple his
resources. This would seem to be re
straint of trade and contrary to public
poKcy.
Information concerning the practical
working of the bankruptcy act is be
ing collected by an association of na
tional scope, with a view to recom
mendation of necessary amendments.
One change should be that a person is
insolvent when he is unable, In the
ordinary course of his business, to meet
maturing obligations; and the other,
that no preference shall be created
unless the debtor shall pay any one
creditor more than1 a specified percent
age of that particular obligation within
a specified time previous to Insolvency.
These amendments would simplify the
law and make Its operation less harsh
and Incongruous.
ANOTHER VICTIM OF A POPULAR
DELUSION.
Occasionally a so-called "healer" In
a so-called "science" presses his claim
to knowledge and power beyond the
limit of the physical endurance of his
patient, and merciful death supervenes.
Such an instance has just occurred at
Gladstone, a suburb of Oregon City,
the victim dying, as Is probable, from
neglect certainly without such assist
ance and attention as the sick are en
titled to receive in an enlightened com
munity. Perhaps the "heaier" in this
Instance was as Intellgent as such op
erators usually are, but he continued
to assure the family of the dying
woman that she would recover; to read
from Mary Baker Eddy's book in sup
port of the contention that disease and
death axe mere figments of "mortal
mind," and that all that was necessary
in treating the case of the suffering
woman was to deny the suffering and
oast out fear. There could, of course
(since the woman was reaHy sick), be
but one result of this assumption and
folly, and she died.
This is not an isolated case, even In
this community. Nor is the delusion to
which this woman fell a victim con
fined to the ignorant, nor are its vic
tims always among the lowly of the
earth. The death of Harold Frederic,
the distinguished journalist, under cir
cumstances similar to these in which
this woman's Hfe was ended at Glad
stone, and the stir that It caused
among intelligent people, are matters
of common knowledge. Numerous at
tempts have been made to punish, un
der the laws that provide penalty for
quackery, these pretended "healers,"
but punishment commensurate with
the crime of juggling with human life
in its hour of sore need has not yet
followed these 'efforts. The stumbling
block in the course of justice in such
cases seems to be the clearly proven
collusion of the victim with the quack,
the defense resting upon the right of
every individual when sick to employ
a physician or experiment with a the
ory, as he or she may elect.
Such cases belong to the class that I
cannot be reached by law, and, since
they are without the domain of com
mon sense, the first tenet in their creed
being, "deny the evidence of the
senses," nothing remains but to allow
folly to reap its harvest in this field,
unchallenged except by popular indig
nation and the protests of intelligence,
neither of which is likely to do any
sort of good. Like all fads, this one
of "Christian! Science," so-called, will
run Its course, playing upon the cre
dulity of its dupes by the way, now
ated then, to their death.
A GREAT HISTORIC AMERICAN.
The National Bar Associatioii'a pur
pose to celebrate the centenary of Mar
shell's appointment to the supreme
court is a gratifying tribute to a very
great American whose high qualities
have never received the popular ap
probation, that is their due. On the
4th day of February, 1901, a hundred
years will have elapsed since John Mar
shall was named by President Adams
for chief justice of the United States,
a position) he held for more than thirty-four
years, and through which the
federalist ideal of government was im
pressed upon our institutions, perhaps
even more firmly than could have been
achieved solely through retention of
the presidency, which was lost in the
retirement of Adams the month follow
ing Marshall's appointment. John
Marshall, by the unanimous confession
of all Intelligent readers of the history
of our country, belongs to that first
rank of great historic Americans which
includes Franklin, Washington, Ham
ilton, Webster and Lincoln; men who
were creative, constructive, conserva
tive minds, instead of being men of
destructively critical political genius,
like Jefferson) and Calhoun.
Franklin's rare political genius fur
nished the "germ theory" of the fed
eral constitution; Washington, through
the weight of his enormous public in
fluence, and Marshall, through the
power of his logic, secured the ratifica
tion of the federal constitution by Vir
ginia against the opposition of Patrick
Henry and Richard Henry Lee, by the
small majority of ten votes. Had not
Thomas Jefferson been fortunately ab
sent from the country, Virginia would
doubtless have rejected the constitu
tion, for Jefferson on his return bit
terly denounced the provision which
made the supreme court independent of
congress, appointive, with practically
life tenure in office. Jefferson held
the supreme court should be creatures
of the will of the dominant party in
congress, dependent for their election
and tenure of office upon the will of
the transient party majority. Jeffer
son sew that his party triumph in 1801
was a barren victory, because the last
and greatest act of President Adams
had been to place at the head of the
United States supreme court the ablest
federalist in the country and its great
est jurist Jefferson saw that with
John Marshall on the supreme bench
the federal constitution would not be
interpreted according to the views of
Jefferson, but according to the antag
onistic views held by Washington and
Hamilton.
It is an interesting historical fact
that the great saviors of the constitu
tion, Washington and Marshall, were
Virginia born and bred. If was singu
larly fortunate that the great state of
Virginia by the mouths of two of its
greatest men originally espoused the
Hamiltonian theory of our government.
It is true that Madison originally stood
up with Hamilton, but pn the return
of Jefferson from France Madison
seemed to fall away from the idea of
indestructible nationality whdeh he
originally upheld, for he wrote the Vir
ginia resolutions of 1798, which are In
line with the state supremacy doctrines
of Jefferson's famous Kentucky reso
lutions of 1798. Not only were Patrick
Henry, Richard Henry Lee, Jefferson
and Madison more or less anti-Hamilton,
but the ablest Massachusetts
statesman of the revolution, Sam.
Adams, was to all intents and pur
poses a Jeffersonian. The political
heresy of "state supremacy" set forth
by Jefferson with the acquiescence of
Madison in 1798 had greatly alarmed
Washington, who saw in its growth the
seeds of future disunion and civil war.
It was exceedingly fortunate for the
security of the Union that just at this
time of growing danger so great a law
yer and so Inflexible a believer In the
doctrine of national supremacy as
John Marshall should have been placed
at the head of the United States su
preme court. Just when Jefferson, the
author of the dangerous policy of state
supremacy, had been declared elected
president. Great sacrifices had been
made to secure the adoption of the
constitution. Virginia reluctantly
adopted it only because of the influence
of Washington and Marshall and the
absence of Jefferson. New York only
adopted it through the joint Influence
of Hamilton and the fortunate outside
presence and counsel of Madison.
South Carolina was only persuaded to
adopt it because of the concession that
she should have representation for her
slaves, and Rufus King, the ablest
leader of the anti-slavery men of New
England.confessed that he consented to
accept this feature because they all saw
that without serious compromises of
some sort or other on both sides there
would not be any federal Union. The
pains and the brains it cost to create
the constitution and the Union would
have been expended in vain if when
Jefferson was inaugurated in March,
1S01, he had not found that great Vir
ginia jurist and patriotic apostle of
national supremacy at the head of the
supreme bench.
Marshall was one of the few men
who are born great lawyers; that is,
men of original genius for the applica
tion of a few great fundamental legal
principles to an utterly new and un
tried experiment The legal expound
ers of the American constitution could
find no precedents for guidance, for
there was no parallel In the govern
ments of Europe of that day. So the
greatness of Marshall lay In the orig
inal power of his legal genius, which
was obliged to solve a new situation.
He had to do in law what Hamilton
had to do In finance, solve a new sit
uation without the help of precedent,
discussion and experiment Measured
by his versatility in both law and
finance, Hamilton was our greatest
statesman; measured by his genius for
law alone, Marshall was our greatest
legal mind. He stood at the top of
his profession whej he was but forty
one years old; he had been sir years
an officer of the Revolutionary army,
and was the son of a distinguished
colonel of the Continental army, a
schoolmate and life-long friend of
Washington, and Marshall himself was
the 'intimate friend of Washington,
who seemed to have an eye like that
of a hawk to discover young men of
precocious intellect like Marshall and
Hamilton. Marshall was firmly trust
ed as a great Virginian by the South;
as a great patriot by the North, and his
legal Interpretation of the constitution
on the side of national supremacy was
a wall "of legal defense against the
doctrine of nullification and secession.
Webster's eloquence gave the doctrine
schoolbook circulation, but without
Marshall and Hamilton to lean on,
Webster's eloquence would not have
counted for much with the thoughtful,
intelligent leaders of opinion of both
sections. If Webster, the pupil of Mar
shall, is worthy of honor, surely the
great legal master and teacher of
Webster was a greater mail and
worthy of greater honor.
MILITARY MOBILITY.
We are 12,000 miles from Cape Town,
but the Boer war had hardly broken
out when our experienced soldiers
pointed out that Great Britain's trou
ble would not be lack of menv but lack
of mobility; that the -English could not
hope for success until they had made
their army as mobile as that of the
Boer. That is, the British must put
into the field as large and- as well
armed a force of mounted riflemen as
the Boers possess. This Ib exactly the
conclusion that Lleutenant-General
Owen, of the British army, reaches in
the current number of the North
American Review. In other words, the
Yankee mind grasped the situation
quickly, viz., that, given equal arms,
rifles and cannon and trained soldiers
for leaders, mounted riflemen en
trenched in a difficult country could
not be dislodged by infantry. The sur
prising thing is that General Owen's
conclusion should not have been
reached by the English field command
ers before the outbreak of the war.
It is now said that it Is only the
want of a sufficient mounted force and
transport that has prevented a move
ment for the capture of Nerval's Pont,
on the Orange river, before now by the
British. This excuse is plausible but
not profound. It is said that from the
Basutos, a Kaffir tribe, under British
protectorate, plenty of ponies as good
as those ridden by the Boers could
have been) purchased long ago, and
that 25,000 colonial-born British could
have been mounted on these ponies and
formed a force quite equal to the same
number of Boers.
The trouble with the British army
1b that, though brave and steady, it
Is slow and heavy in motion. To illus
trate: Lord Roberts, in his excellent
book, "Forty-three Years In India," in
describing his famous forced march
with 10,000 men from Cabul to Canda
hor, states that among other thinga
carried on the train as part of the
rations of the English soldier was ale
and spirits. What would Grant, whose
field shelter during the Wilderness
campaign was nothing but a fly tent,
have thought of undertaking a forced
march with a train loaded down with
ale and spirits rations? What would
Sherman have thought of such a cum
brous train when he started with 100,
000 men from Dalton for Atlanta in
such a state of mobility that, as he
humorously expressed it, every officer's
baggage was cut down "to a tooth
brush"? Sherman, whenever he left
the railroad, took no tents or baggage;
but he took five days bacon, twenty
days' bread, thirty days' salt, sugar
and coffee; nothing else but arms and
ammunition. When Sherman started'
with 62,000 men from Atlanta for the
sea he took but one wagon to a regi
ment, and, of course, lived off the coun
try to a considerable extent. Behind
each brigade followed a due proportion
of ammunition wagons, ambulances
and provision wagons.
.Superior mobility made Grant's
VIcksburg campaign a brilliant suc
cess. Superior mobility enabled Grant
to cross the Rapldan with 100,000 men
and 4000 wagons; superior mobility en
abled him to lift up his army of 100,000
men from under Lee'3 nose at Cold
Harbor, carry it over the James river
and plant it immovably before the de
fenses of Petersburg; superior mobility
enabled him in his pursuit of Lee to
outmarch him and compel his surren
der. Superior mobility enabled Stone
wall Jackson to whip in, detail Banks,
Shields, Fremont and McDowell; su
perior mobility enabled Napoleon to
win the great victory of Frledland, en
abled Frederick to win Leuthen. Until
the British mount at least 25,000 rifle
men they will not easily out-maneuver
the Boers.
Correspondents at Turner ask The
Oregonian to "give the law of succes
sion of the president of the United
States," and to "state who is the vice
president at the present time." Chap
ter 4, of the laws of the forty-ninth
congress, first session, fixes the presi
dential succession. In case of the
death, removal, resignation or inabil
ity of both the president and vice
president, the secretary of state be
comes acting president until the dis
ability of the president or vice-president
Is removed or a president Is elect
ed. If there be no secretary of state,
the secretary of the treasury shall act
After him, the order of succession is as
follows: The secretary of war, the attorney-general,
the postmaster-general,
the secretary of the navy and .the sec
retary of the Interior. Upon taking
office, the acting president must, if
congress be not then in session, con
vene It In extraordinary meeting, giv
ing twenty days' notice. These regu
lations for the succession apply, of
course, only to such cabinet officers as
have been "appointed by the advice
and consent of the seriate, and are eli
gible, under the constitution, to the
presidency." The office of vice-president
has been vacant since the death
of Mr. Hobart The president of the
senate is not vice-president of the
United States.
Products of the Hawaiian Islands are
admitted free of duty Into the United
States, and that policy is to be contin
ued. Why should not the products of
Puerto Rico and" the Philippine islands
likewise be admitted free? What pri
vate "graft" should be allowed to stop
it? Likewise if Cuba, from her geo
graphical position, be necessary to the
defense of the United States, as all
our statesmen have maintained, why
shouldn't her products also be admit-
ted free, thereby attaching her to us by
an indissoluble bond? Is this country
to be governed by a large general pol
icy, or by local and private grafts?
In answer to an Inquiry The Oxego
nlan will say that the expression, "bor
rowed the livery of heaven to serve the
devil in," is not Shakespeare's. More
over, In this form .it is erroneously
quoted. The source of this oft-quoted
thing is PoIloks "Course of Time," a
long and very solemn "orthodox"
poem, which nobody nowadays reads.
It is therein written: "He was a man
who stole the livery of the court of
heaven to serve the devil in." This is
one of two or three passages of a poem
once famous (written about seventy
five years ago by a young Scotch Pres--byterian),
which are still remembered.
The Edward M. Shepard dinner Sat
urday night seems to have passed off
harmoniously. Silver was ignored,
and thus the chief object of the gath
ering was achieved, namely, to cement
the sundered" wings of the New York
democracy. An incidental purpose is
believed to have been the launch of
Mr. Shepard's boom for governor.
The Transvaal war is the source of
infinite hilarity now to Boer sympa
thizers, who fairly gloat over the Brit
ish losses of 10,000 men.. But wait till
the imperial forces begin to close In on
the burghers and the ratio of losses Is
reversed. What walls and groans wo
shall hear of the fiendishnesa of war
and the criminality of slaughter.
It has taken the British a long time
to get ready; but unless all signs are
worthless, the Boers during the next
two or three months will get some of
that stuff calculated to "stagger hu
manity." It has been against the Brit
ish thus far. But a British force Is
now getting to the front and business
is likely to ensue.
The protectionists of the East now
join) nands with the free-traders, and
the free-traders join haifas with the
protectionists, to fence the United
States of America in. The cry of "an-ti-imperlallsm"
is their common bond.
MrBeckham issues a proclamation
in which he says he has been "legally
elected governor of Kentucky." Not
honestly elected, however.
Dewey Is hitting Agulnaldo's sensation-mongers
and liars some hard
blows, these days.
NOTE AND COMMIT.
Had there been any winter, we might
think that spring had come.
If there Is any money in fuel, it wllf
prooaDiy stay there this winter.
Mollneux may ibe a bad man. but he has
been a steadfast friend of the handwrit
ing' experts.
One of these days the senate will wake
up to find that it has passed a resolution
abolishing itself.
Judging by the number of times Buller
has retired lately, a whole battalion of
buglers must be kept bUBy blowing taps.
If Kentucky colonels would equip them
selves with Gatling guns, differences of
opinion among them, might be settled jaore
speedily.
A LInnton man has been arrested on
charges of polygamy and horse-stealing.
There are worse men ,m the world, it ap
pears, than Brigham H. Roberts.
It now looks as if the high-minded
Washington of the Philippines had. flown
the coop and left his noble band of
patriots to hunt cover on their own ac
count It is curious that the students of Ox
ford showed so little appreciation of their
extraordinary privilege in having Ruskin
as a profesor of fine arts. Some of his
most brilliant lectures were given to an
audipnee of four persons, three of whom,
as Ruskin bluntly told them, ought not
to have been at Oxford at all.
A newly-married couple, not long ago,
engaged board' at a bouse where there
were stopping a sad-faced widow and her
10-year-old son. The boy was bright but
very fresh, end often insolent. One day,
isenacucK sxaruea ms onae by aeclaring
that he wished he were single. Tears
came instantly, and then there was in
dignation, followed by a demand to know
what was the matter., "Matter!" replied
the groom r "why, I'd like to marry the
widow to get the right to lick that boy."
"Ah, general," said Dr COnon Doyle, as
he lighted his cigar on a red-hot fragment
of a shell which had Just landed near
him, "this is a rather difficult problem,
but handled analytically, I think we may
be able to reach a solution. Now, In the
first place, the river ia going to rise."
"How do you know?" inquired Buller.
"Well, I don't mind telling you," said
the author of Sherlock Holmes, side-stepping
to avoid a charge of lyddite, "I de
duced It from the circumstance of hear
ing one of your subalterns damning It as
I rode up. But, to continue, the Boers
have been sheuing again. How do I know
it? Why I have seen no less than 16
colonels around here within the last five
minutes. However, that is neither here
nor there. We must wait till nightfall
to reconnoiter the Boer position. Why
wait till night? My dear Buller, your
want of perception surprises me. We can
locate the kops only by the stars, and as
every one knows, there is a gun on every
kop. Now none of these Boers have ever
had a close shave, so we must not think
we can frighten them. On the other
hand, we will proceed scientifically to get
them Out of the way.
"Lyddite, you say? My dear general,
you talk like a child. Listen to me. You
must procure from the commissary a
quantity of beets. Assign a beet to every
kop, and throw them out You may then
proceed In safety, for you will find that
not a single kop is within a thousand
miles of a beet
"I must leave you now, for I deduce
from the tremulo in the note of the can
non in the rear that Roberts and Kitch
ener are shaking for the drinks, and as
they will not do any business till they
can consult with me I must be off. Fol
low my directions, and the next time I
sea you I will know from the funereal
expression on your countenance that you
have been eating canned beef for that
Christmas dinner you were going to en
Joy In Pretoria."
Many kinds of flowers blooming in the
open air and new varieties coming into
bloom dally indicate that spring Is at
hand. The delightful weather yesterday
which caused thousands to be abroad was
enough to make one believe that spring
was already here, but though bursting
buds and blooming flowers are to bo seen
on every hand, the swallows have not ar
rived, and there is still a possibility that
the weather may go back on us. How
ever, with snowdrops, crocus, primroses,
wallflowers, violets and many other flow
ers blooming In the gardens, and the
florists windows filled with hyacinths, tu
lips, lilies of the valley, Chinese prim
roses, cineraria, cyclamen, carnations, as
well as more rare flowers, but few will
trouble themselves to think of the possi
bility of a cold snap. Through an open
window yesterday was heard a sweet
voice 8lnglng: "Spring Is coming, spring
Is coming; on the wind the peach blooms
fiylBg; UMea on the watar lying; welcome,
welcome, sprlnstlde, home." The singer
was a Uttte, Just a Httle. previous, for al
though it is possible to find a peaeh tree
in bloora, the bloesosas are not yet flying
In the breeze, and the statement about
the Miles la hardly warranted by the facts.
February Is almost half gone, and the
chances are good that the sprlB&-Uke
weather will continue to last through the
month, and that March will come In like
a lamb and go out like a dove.
FORTIFICATION AN E3D?TY THING.
Sea. PoTTcr Must Defend Oar Com
merce and the Canal.
New York Commercial Advertiser.
The making of a new treaty to establish
the international relations of an Ameri
can canal between the Atlantic aad the
Pacific was too large a matter to pass
without close examination. It was to be
expected that the senate would approach
It in a critical spirit, and that points of
possible objection would! be raised for dis
cussion. It is probable that these wlH
disappear w&h consideration .of the full
text of the treaty in the Hght of general in
ternational law and historical practice. If
not they can be removed easHy by amend
ment Agreement as to the spirit of the
treaty is too Clear for disagreement) as to
its language. OnJy two points appear to
be under susplcionr The guaraaty of the
neutrality of the canal and the pledge not
to fortify its terminals, though we ara
to police 1toe whole route. It la feared that
these would impair our power of national
defense in the event of war by permitting
neutral commerce and hostile navies to
use it to our hurt.
Thi3 overlooks the necessary interpreta
tion by international law and practice.
As against on enemy, the treaty would
not hamper us, as treaties are suspended
by war. As against neutral trade when
we were at war, we should have the soma
right to stop contraband -that we have on
tho high seas, with the enormous ad
vantage that none could escape our vigi
lance. As against belMgereots when we
were neutral, the practice, if the treaty
be reported correctly, would be precisely
that in our own ports. Either could e
It for peaceful passage, but neither could
stay more than 24 hours or use R as a
base of hostile operation.
As to fortifying the terminals, this would
be a barren right Defense of the canal
In war would depend absolutely upon sea
power; k would be useless, however im
pregnable, if it could be blockaded and cut
off from this country. There is nothing
in the treaty to prevent our establishing
strong naval bases as far from tSie ter
minals as Alexandria and Aden in the
Mediterranean and Red seas are from Port
Said and Suez, from which our fleet3
could operate for their defense. Indeed,
all that is said here is illustrated and
confirmed in the history of the Suez canal
in war and peace. It is neutral and unfor
tified, but as absolutely under English con
trol for purposes of national defenso as
the Solent Camera used it In the Span
ish war, and Transvaal trade not contra
band uses it in this war. No ripbt of
world comanerce suffers under British con
trol through sea power and local poMce,
no more complete than ours would be in
Nicaragua or Panama,
i a
The Words of Benton.
"There Is the East, there is India," is
the legend by which is known a great
speech made by a great Missourian, which
may be read with profit at this time by
those Americans who are troubled wkh
gloomy fears about the dangers of "Im
pariaMsm." These were Benton's words
aft St Louis In 1S49, appealing for West
ern expansion:
"We live in extraordinary tlni-es, and. are
called upon, to elevate ourselves to the grandeur
o the- occasion. Three and a half centuries
ago the great Columbus, the roan who after
ward was carried home In chains from the .?ew
"World, Whloh he discovered, this great Co
lumbus; In the year 1402: departed from Eu
rope, to arrive in the Eaet by going to the
west. It was a sublime conception. He -waff"
in th line o success when the intervention
of two continents, not dreamed or before
stopped his progress. A khg and queen started
him upon this grand enterprise. It lies In the
hapds of a. republic to complete it. Let us
raise ourselves up. Let ua rise to the grandeur
ot the occasion. Let vb, now. In this conven
tion, rise above erverythi&tf sectional., personal,
local. Let us beseech the national legislature
to build a great road upon the great national
line which unites Europs and. Asia the Una
which will find on our continent the bay of San
Franctaco on one end, St. Louis In the middle
and- the great national metropolis and emporium
at the other, and, which onall be adorned, with
its drowning honor the colossal statue of the
great Columbus, Whose design It aceompllshfes,
hewn from a granite mass of a peak of tho
Rocky mountains, the mountain Itself tha
pedestal, and the statue a. part of the moun
tain, pointing with outstretched arm to the
"Western horizon, and saying to the flying pas
sengers: There la Eastl There Is Indlal"
a
Useless and Foolish Policy.
Boston Herald.
President McKInley has submitted to
the effect of a boycott in the South upon
one of his postmaster appointments. Ho
put a negro in the office at Hogansville,
Ga. The people did not personally attack
him, and they showed their wisdom in
taking this course. They protested against
the appointment, and then tihey boycotted
the office. The postmaster was sustained
by the president until It was found that k
was of no advantage to himself to be
continued In office, when ho was trans
ferred to a place in Washington. No one
seems to have benefited by this experi
ment The president had, in effect to
revoke the appointment; the colored man
could not afford to keep It; the people
lost the use of the office for a considerable
time, and perhaps they are to be punished
by Its being made vacant longer. If the
principle of appointing colored men to
postmastersMps could have been sustained
something rnight have been gained, but, it
seems, it could not Aside from, the race
question, It would appear to be only fair
that, in such appointments, there should
be a reasonable acquiescence In the wishes
of tho people among whom Incumbents of
Office are placed.
t
Baden-Powell's Idea of Tactics. -
London Daily News.
Private letters received in London from
Colonel Baden-Powell express that gaHant
officer's convlotion that the Boers wiM
have to be beaten as much by strategy
and wariness as by bravery and hard
fighting. He seems especially to lay em
phasis on thfe Importance of encountering
them with the unexpected and unusual,
and on the necessity of receiving wtfa
great caution any abnormal poMteness or
generosity on the part of the enemy.
a
Plaint of the "Innocent Bystander."
Baltimore American. ' .
She was bred In old Kitueky,
"Where the ballot-box Is stuffed;
"Where the gentle poker-playing.
Never yet was really bluffed: .
"Where the rivers murmur sweetly,
And the meadow grass Is blue;
And the doubt-dispelling shotgun.
Sends conviction into you;
"Where the sky Is ever lovely.
And the sweetest songs are eung,
And the innocent bystander,
Gets a bullet In bb lung.
"Where the ladles all are pretty.
And the gentlemen are brave:
"Where the just-observed bystander.
Gets a decorated grave.
"Where they drop their "tV so softly
"When they hold a chat with you;
And the innocent bystander.
Often has to be dropped, too.
"Where the candidate who's beaten,
Rises up and says he-a not,
"Whereupon, the said bystander.
Carries off a load of shot.
"Where the breeze is ever sighing.
Through the leaves a serenade;
And you see the constant flashing.
Of the bowle's gleaming blade"
Oh. she's down, there In Keateeky,
"Waiting till I come for her.
But as long as things are this wa
From this spot I'll never stir.
I must leave her 1ft Keatacky
Thitherward 1 11 not eaa4er
I am not afraid, but I am
just an innocent byetaikler.
GOSSIP Or? THE NATIWfAI, CAPlffAl,
WASHINGTON. Feb. .-Senator 81
raan has favorably reported-1 the seaata
hl3 WH appropriating $Mt iar enlarg
ing tha Portland pontoco bmUmg. With
the report Is an estimate from via secre
tary of the treasury snowing that the
Beceseary extensions and esrtarnaanents
win oast Xm.tm. bat Senator 9toa tbtaka
-there will be bo attneany ta aeearlng the
$4000 additional if the present bflt shall
pass, aadi he fatty eKpeets It win.
Oregon la Seelety.
No one la Washington enjoys the seelety
of the capital city more, or hi more warm
ly welcomed within Its circles, ,tnan hi
Miss Mary Tongue, daughter f Repre
sentative Tongue, of Oregon. TMs Is Miss
Tongue's second winter here, and, with
her many charms and winning manner.
has established herself firmly la the hearta
of her Washington friends. When she
first earae to Washington, at the begin
ning of the last session of congress, Miss
Tongue formed a large number of friends,
with whom she became a favorite, and.
while Washington changes suddenly and
often, she experienced no dUAenity in re
newing old acquaintances and making
scores of new ones when she returned
this winter. Many of the leading func
tions of the season so far hare found
Miss Tongue among the favored few. ana
every presidential reception has foend her
surrounded by hosts of admiring friends.
One of her closest friends Is Mrs. William
F. Aldrich, of Alabama, who on numer
ous occasions has entertained Mtos Tongue
as her guest. Aside from the larger func
tions. Miss Tongue has been several times
of the receiving party at private recep
tions. As the Oregon delegation Is eomaeeed
almost wholly of bachelors. Representative
Tongue being the only married man, it
does not cut very meek of a figure la so
cial life this winter. Were It not tor Xtss
Tongue, they would net be heard of very
much, although Representative Moody
takes great Interest In the different social
functions, and has been invited to many
during the season, and attends whenever
he has the time. Neither of the senators
takes much Interest in these social func
tions, and the absence of 3frs. Tongue
from the city prevents Mr. Tongue from
going out very much. The senators and
representatives, however, go to the White
House receptions, ae it Is really necessary
on account of their official positions. The
Xtors also attend state dinners at the
te House. Mr. Moody derives a great
deal of enjoyment from the social side of
the Washington life, much mote than any
other member of the Oregon delegation.
When the others go out It Is mere a mat
ter of duty than pleasure.
The Soldier's Hat.
Some of the correspondents have been
sneering at. the order issued by the war
department which prohibits the wearing
of the private soldier's hat in any other
form than that in which It is originally
shaped, which is of the Alpine style, that
has long been considered the most becom
ing for the average soldier's head. Now,
as a matter of fact, this order is a proper
thing, aad was made necessary by the
manner in which soldiers twisted the
brown hats that are Issued to them. They
have been worn in peaked shape, Indian
territory style, dented in at the top, suita
ble for a Georgia style, and then again
they have had the brim pinned up on
one or more sides, to give them a rakish
appearance. Some soldiers also have the
opinion that it is a n thing to decorate
their hats with all kinds of pictures and
ink drawings. It Is well enough for these
men to be taught that uniformity Is the
best feature of a soldier's life, and Wear
ing apparel is made into uniforms to be
worn according to the design for the best
interests of the army. General Miles was
one of the first to call attention to the
fast that the wearing of the bats in all
sorts of shapes by the volunteers gave
them an unsolcheriy appearance which
should be corrected. That was mere than
six months age, and Anally the order has
tieen issued by the department a con
formity with bis recommendations.
Effort for Metrle System.
An earnest effort is being made by the
house committee on coinage, weights and
measures to secure the adoption of the
metric system of weights and measures In
the United States. For many years past
this question has been agitated, and as
many times failed. But the committee has
now gone into the matter with a deter
mination, and the members of the commit
tee are almost unanimous In favor of
adopting the new system that Is, new to
this country.
Among those prominent in public life
who have advocated this system Is Secre
tary Gage, of the treasury department.
The secretary told the committee that
the metric system was really the universal
system of measurement throughout the
world, and that If it were once adopted
by the United States, Great Britain, the
only other great nation not now recogniz
ing it would fall in line, and make its
use absolutely universal. A number of
prominent government scientists, men
who have given much time to the subject
of weights and measures, also advocate
the change, and with such a general sen
timent In its favor, while its passage
cannot be safely predicted, it can be said
that it never had a brighter outlook.
One of the great points made in favor
of the system is that it te founded on a
decimal heals. Some members of the com
mittee say that it was a great pity that
when the decimal money system was
adopted, that the same basis was not as
sured in the matter of weights and meas
ures. They realize that to Inaugurate a
new system such as the metric would in
voke much comment and disapproval, but
they contend that all innovations of any
Importance have to undergo a period of
severe attack, before the general public
becomes educated up to the new and mora
advanced ideas.
When this bill is reported to the house,
as it undoubtedly will be, with a recom
mendation that it pass, there will prob
ably be more or lees discussion on the
subject. Probably one of the points to be
raised against the bill is that the present
terms or names used In the metric system
are not as phonetic or agreeable as some
of the terms we have become accustomed
to, and to meet this opposition, some have
suggested that while the system be
changed, the old names be retained, and
applied to the new units. For instance,
as the yard and metre are not very differ
ent in length, It is suggested that the
metre be known as a yard, and the centi
metre -as the inch. And se with the
weights;. the gram might adopt the name
of ounce, and the kilogram the pound,
while a litre would mean as much, under
the name of quart. '
i a
The Wonderfal Deetors.
Chlease Ttmes-SeraM.
They have Sound txk. bow eowoumptton may ba
positively eered;
Ills that used to worry people need a longer
be endured.
They've enseovered lyiiictuj aad porums, so we
feave seen ptelaly-totJ,
That wilt stee the sad aoetauny e- ever grew
teg M:
They are ftRding eat the ml arch ad, they're ad
vancing day by day.
Bet people keep oa dying la the name eJd
f ashJeaed way.
Word may eerae tenorrew an rung that some
herrtfcte disease
Has been mastered by some doatei- here at heme
They are stepping aH the fevers and arresting
aH the Ins,
That the human term Is heir te wnh their
serans and then- puis;
They are eaasteg men te vador at their tri-
Bet people keep en dring hi the same, otd
fashieaed way.
What a. wendrses thing te seteaee. They can
take a. germ from, yea
And eaostdt Ms htennaneM aad expM He
fenrtes, tee.
They have fewad- eat that the a towns, is of
very Mttte use.
They earn master alt Its fwatnoart with Ve
gfcseard ef a geese.
They are eutUag, they are dopmgv they're ad
vancing day by day.
But people keep oa dyine la the same old
fashioned way.