THE MORNING OBEGONIAN, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1800. hs rssomon. Entered at tbe fniUtmm at Parttend, Oregea. Editorial REVISED RmCIUITIOK RATES. Br Mall (postage prepaid), la Advance Dellj- with Sunday, per month &B 86 Dally Sunday eawepted. per yar....n.... T B8 Dejly with Bandar, per year 8 09 Sunday per year 2 09 The Weekly, per year .... 1 So The Weekly 1 monthe. ..... ........... 89 To CltT Bufeeormere Dally, per week, delivered. Sundays cxeepted.l5c Deilr. per weak, delivered. Swaaays totta4ea.29e Tbe Oregoalea dees not bay poems ar ster lea from Individual. aad eeaeet undertake to re turn any mamucrlate seat to It without eoHelta tlon. No stamps should be iaofeeed for tats purpose. New or dtseasstoa leteaded tor pabHeatleo In The Oregonlan should be addressed Invariably "Editor The Oreeeataa," set to tbe Base of any individual. Letters relating to advertising, eubscripticns or to any heemess matter should be addressed simply "Tbe Oregealan." Paget Bound Bureau Captain A. Thompson, office at 1111 Pacific avenue, T&ooma. Box 865. Ttooma postoffiee. Eastern Business Office The Tribune hMd ing Xew Tork eltr; "Tbe Rookery." CMcage; tbe S C Beckwltb specicl agency. Jtew York. For sale In Baa Franctooo by J. X. Cooper. 8 Xarket street, sear the Pateee hotel, aad Ooldetnlth Bros., SK Batter street. Tor sale in Chicago by the F. O. Xews Co.. 2 7 Dearborn straet. TODAY'S WEATHER.-rlr; winds besoming sou heart Tuesday afternoon. PORTLAXP, TCBSPAY, PHRTJARV 27 TKH TWWTi' MILLIONS. Debate has again arisen on the na ture of the money payment we made to Spain, on account of the Philippine Islands. What Aid we pay the money for' The motive mi very much but not i-together the same that induced us to pay $15,000.u to Mexico, at the dose of our war with that Republic The twenty million were paid to Spain as a soi&tium, to ease her pain, to soothe her wounded pride, to lubricate the Iu6iess of the Peace Conference, to go fruity or make a show of doing it, in the sight of the world. The money was paid very much on the principle that the tinkling of the guinea helps tbe hurt that honor feels." Spain was at our mercy. We could have taken the islands without payment of a dol lar But it would have been ungener ous Spain asked $1M,OOMM, and we gave her &MM.O0Q. It ws money je3, too, for protraction of the nego t ation was costing us much in main ".aanre of armament and in further ; ' paration for possible needs of war. Looking over the official report of the proceedings- of the Peace Conference, w " find a statement of the reasons v hioh moved UteAmerican Commission er to make this concession. The Com n Woners say: "Deeming it essential nat the present negotiations, which l-dAf already been greatly protracted, s-h u d be brought to an early and defi nite conclusion, we bet; now to present l. new proposition, embodying the con c i triors which, for the sake of Imme Gidte peace, our government is under Thr circumstances willing to tender." Turn follows the statement that the t i mm ssionerc were "authorised to of-f--r to Spain, in case the cession should be agreed to, the sum of $20,009,096, to be paid in accordance with terms to be fixed in the treaty of peace." The Commissioners didn't want to say that they were ready to apply a balmy du 'omatic diachylon, in the form of a ni 'ne j award, to the wounded honor o" tpain, but that they would compro n ii?e by payment of $30,060,vM, "for the ea.ke of immediate peace," aad as -a reason why "the cession (of the Philip P ins) should be agreed to." It seems i The Oregonlan that these statements nmkc it sufficiently clear why and on w hat basis we paid the twenty millions t Fpain. In diplomatic language, the r aMn w as substantially the same that moed us to pay the fifteen millions to iue-xieo, at the close of the war with that country. The treaty of Ouada 1. upe Hidalgo says we paid that money ti Mexico "in consideration of the ex tension acquired by the boundaries of tbe United States." In this recent case We had the further motive of hurrying the treaty of peace to a conclusion, and of showing magnanimity, before the V orld, to a helpless enemy. I THE FOOTPRINTS OF TUB PAST. India, though long accustomed to famine conditions. Is now face to face w n ha situation more distressing, if pos sible, than any that has confronted her people in recent years. Already many million" of persons are receiving stinted lief, and deaths from starvation are cul becoming more numerous. To wdd to the extreme gravity of the situ waon, India must this year rely very rgeiy upon, her own resources for ' edlng her people. During previous - aeons of famine In recent years, help .i8 been forthcoming front England, ..-I the English people are manifestly t . heavily taxed In other directions r w to give much thought or aid to sufferers of India. Not only is the Z eminent under tremendous pres- ; re, but aB. the money that can be r .Bed by private subscription and writable devices is being expended : - the relief of British soldiers serv- in South Africa, and for "the folk t at Tommy left behind him." Prom charitably disposed people of the ited States a full measure of aym- l hy goes out to these famine-stricken - atures. but in the very nature of ngs scant hob? must come from this ,arter. We have our own problem to r t of feeding the hungry in Puerto I o. and our own heavy war taxes to - ft, and though the pity of the pitiful ps out in small ways (as in the aa- r uncement a fow day o that the i ,t o& people ot .Forest urove nan raisen enough to maintain a family in India fvi a year). It is manifest that any thing like adequate assistance cannot V given by our people. As to the rest, Kussia has her own famine-stricken districts to look after and Germany sjd France their enosmous standing mles to maintain. So the problem 'apidlj narrows down to one of self ..e.p for India, and this under present i .ndHionc means wholesale suffering iud starvation for a period of some months, at toast. Meanwhile, the wastefulness of war i es on. and the beatific visions of .ace interpreted by poets aad pro i aimed by phllanthroptots through k ug years seem as far as ever from re alltauon. This Is but to say that the j-oent treads in the footsteps of the ; est. and that human nature is human i k ' ure still, though some of Ks ae j.t me have been softened by pity, as show n in the tremendous efforts of the 1 . d Crostv Society to minister to the uraea upon oatue-ueiae ana miu . t tot miseries of the wretched non- combatants in war-desolated provinces, aad in the sublime charities that look after tbe necessities of the widows and orphans of war. But the shouts go up for "Bobs" and for Kitchener, for French aad for Buller; for Cronje, In hie determination to fight to the death, aad for the lesser warriors of the rank and file British and Boers. Certainly, as far as ever from realization seems the dream of Longfellow of the time when The warrior's name will be a name abhorred, Aad every nation that shall lift again Its band against its brother, on its forehead Will wear forevennore tbe Curse of Cain. Hounded hy the passions of men, urged by their ambitions, spin-red on, it may be, by the underlying energies of progress; dominated by economic considerations that lie without the sim ple realm of mercy and have a wider range than a present demand of bread for the hungry, the upheaval of the nations goes on. The present treads in the footprints of the past; history re peats itself over and over, as it must do, with man as its moving, subduing force. This is a fact. Whether deplor able or not depends upon the point from which it is viewed, but in detail appealing forcefully to the pity of mankind. EXPORTS OP AMERICAX FLOUR. One of the most Interesting features of the rapidly growing foreign trade of the United States, and one that is sug gestive of substantial profit to the pro ducers and shippers of the Pacific Coast, is the wide extent and increasing demand for American flour in certain markets. The United Kingdom is still the best customer that American mil lers have abroad, but the possibilities for this product in Asiatic markets are practically boundless. Great Britain took nearly 11,000,000 of the 18,250,000 barrels of flour that were exported from the United States last year, but nearly every country In Continental Europe buys some American flour. Last year flour was shipped to Germany, Holland, France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and some other countries not specially enu merated in the report, the total ship ments to Continental Europe amount ing to over 2,500,000 barrels. To countries other than Europe, the shipments of American flour reached the surprising total of 5,500,000 barrels. These included over 1,000,000 barrels to Hong Kong; 855,000 barrels to the "West Indies, exclusive of Puerto Rico, which took 185,000 barrels, and of Cuba, which took 563,000 barrels; 550,000 bar rels to South American countries other than Brazil; 515,000 barrels to British North American possessions; 397,000 barrels to South Africa; 267,000 barrels to Japan, and about 400,000 barrels to other ports, including those of Mex ico, China, Australia and the East In dies. The best feature about this trade, next to the practically inexhaustible supply that can be drawn out by de mand, is that it is rapidly growing. The exports of 1899 were a million bar rels in excess of those of 189S, showing clearly that the consumption of flour is growing among people who are not generally classed as bread-eaters. This opens the door to a tremendous supply of American breadatuffs. If the de mand is intelligently met and diligently cultivated, it will result In creating a market which cannot fail to add largely from year to year to the prosperity both of the vast wheatgrowing and milling industries of the United Statefe. The mills of this country produce in aggregate about 76,000,000 barrels of flour annually for home consumption. In addition to that, they made nearly 19,eOO,(NK) barrels last year for export. This is a substantial tribute to the en terprise of American millers, since it shows about 41 per cent of the wheat export of 18&9 was in the form of flour. Though this is gratifying, there is still room here for growth. The proportion ought to be much larger than that, since every bushel of wheat that is ground into and exported as flour means an addition of from 5 to 10 cents a bushel In the price paid by the for eigner for the surplus product of our wheat fields. This, besides, leaves a tremendous bulk in "millstuffs" that can be turned into dairy products for the home market and a Judiciously ex tended export trade. ANOTHER POLITIOAI, BUGBEAR. Now the bugbear has risen that ten millions of Malays in the Philippine Islands are to become American citi zens, with rights to come and go and to enter into competition with Ameri can workingmen. It is easy always for the politician to conjure up terrors for the worklngman. Not that he cares a fig for the welfare of the worklngman; but he wants to persuade the worklngman that he, the politician, is his champion, guide, de fender and friend for the worklngman has that which the politician wants and is desirous above all things to fool him out of, namely, his vote. The whole Inhabitants of the Phil ippine Islands are perhaps eight mil lions, of whom one-third may be Ma lays. The majority consists of tribes but little advanced from the savage state. It is not an industrial popula tion. The notion that euch a population would leave the soft, tropical climate to which it has always been accustomed, and come to a country where climate and all the conditions of life would be oppressive to such a people, is simple idiocy. No appreciable number of Fili pinos will ever come to the United States to work or live; and no person of intelligence who stops to think about it can suppose they will. But of course the political agitator, who wants votes, will say anything. No absurdity dis concerts htm. One of the lessons of the naval battle off Santiago has been exemplified in detail in the reconstruction of the cruiser Atlanta. The terrible danger to the crews of war vessels during ac tion that lurks in woodwork was dem onstrated in the fierce fires that raged upon the Spanish vessels as the result of our bursting shells. This danger has been practically abolished in the re building of the Atlanta. Corrugated metal was used in the place of wood for bulkheads, and the wooden panels of the ceilings and walls have given place in construction to asbestos and non-inflammable paint. Wood is, in fact, rigidly excluded from the vessel in all forms, the furniture, bunks and frames being entirely of metal. It peonis from this that the vessel that in its construction defies the flames and is able at the same time to pour hot shot into its adversary, and capable of run ning as well as fighting, will be the In vincible factor In naval warfare in the future. In view of this fact, and of pothers developed by the two contests that wiped the fleets of Spain from the sea, it is no wonder that British states men are insisting that immediate at tention be given to the English navy for the purpose of bringing Its fighting craft up to date. TESTING HER STRENGTH. It is not impossible that England's present war may be to her a. blessing in disguise, since it will be sure to test her latent strength as it has never been tested since the days of Cromwell; for since Cromwell England has never had an army that was not, as Wellington said, small and Inexcusably out of con dition for service. It is easy to see why this is so. It is due first to the dread of a great standing army through which the despotic govern ments of Continental Europe have been created and upheld; and it is due, sec ondly, to the fact that since the days of Cromwell Great Britain has never had an enemy among the armed nations of. Europe when she had not allies of greater military strength to help her, save when she fought America In the Revolution and in 1S12. It is true that Great Britain fought France with Hol land, Prussia and some lesser German States under Marlborough, but while England's money was the army chest, England's soldiers were comparatively few. It Is true that England fought France with Frederick the Great for her ally, and It is true that England fought Napoleon with nearly all Europe at her back; but England fought them by using her gold to keep the armies of her allies on their feet. It was the test of the length of her purse and strength of her patriotism; not the military quality and numbers of her home soldiery, which are today being tested for the first time since the re cent revolution in the conditions of modern warfare, which enable a small body of men armed with modern maga zine rifles and cannon to bid defiance to frontal attack. Great Britain had become filled with an idea that a great fleet alone was adequate preparation against military dangers. Her army since Waterloo had never been pitted against a civilized enemy, save in the Crimean War. and in that war the Brit ish lost all reputation for formidable military quality, save that steady gal lantry that Napoleon always admired, even when he spoke contemptuously of the military genius of the average English general. In fact, until today Great Britain has never been prepared for war since the days of Cromwell, except in the sense of creating Conti nental armies through subsidies, sup plemented by her great fleet. But today, for the first time in- mod ern warfare, the British are left to flght alone against a white enemy well pre pared, well armed and occupying an exceedingly difficult country. This time of trial had to come to England, sooner or later, and the resolution and ability with which she meets it will prove her salvation, not only In the circle of her Colonial Empire, but against prospective coalitions against her on the continent of Europe. Eng land has learned from the Boers that not only an enemy armed with mod ern rifles cannot be dislodged by the frontal attack, but she has learned that artillery cannot disorganize a steady defense line and drive it from its sheltered position. Tou can do this against Filipinos, Chinese, Afghans, but Skobeleff could not even dislodge the Turks from Plevna. Great Britain had to learn this lesson from somebody, and better that she learned it from the Boers than from a powerful Conti nental nation. The Boer war will do for Great Brit ain what the Civil War of 1861-65 did for the United States. It will develop her enormous latent intellectual power and pecuniary material resources to the utmost. See what four years of trial did for both the North and the South. When the war broke out the Confed erates were mainly an agricultural peo ple. The great foundries and manufac tories of the Union were at the North, but under the stress of war the South soon established foundries for the man ufacture of cannon, factories for the manufacture of gunpowder and ammu nition of all sorts; factories for the manufacture of military harness and saddlery of all sorts, so that at the close of the war, if the finances of the South had been In sound condition, she could have made defensive war indefi nitely, for she could manufacture all the munitions of war and had plenty of food, so long as her railway com munications remained Intact. Further more, the South taught the manufac turing, inventive North the first lesson in ironclad naval warfare. This is what the stress of war did for the non-manufacturing, agricultural South. For the North the stimulus was equally great. When the war began our peo ple thought they knew all about the capacities of railway transportation, but when the news of General Rose crans defeat of the 20th of September, 1S63, reached the East, the Eleventh and Twelfth Corps of the Army of the Potomac, on picket near the Rapidan, got orders to go to Bridgeport, on the Tennessee, and on the 2d of October these two corps were at Bridgeport, where the railway from Nashville to Chattanooga crossed the Tennessee River. In February, 1865, an order from Grant transferred General Schofleld, with 30,000 men, from Tennessee to North Carolina, a journey made in ten days. Our Civil War developed the latent energies of both sections, in all directions. So will the present war de velop those of the British people; for, though not a great war, It is a serious one. The experience of Nebraskan farm ers in- the last year should have taught them the fallacy of the cheap-money crowd's arguments. Owing to the pros perity that they enjoyed, the amount of mortgages on farms in the State was reduced during that time by nearly 58,000,000. Yet these same people only last November showed at the polls their determination to stand by the cheap-money idea and the cheap-money candidate. The condition reflects stub bornness that will not see, rather than a prudent spirit that desires to find the safe way and walk therein. Plg headedness never yet triumphed over the calm and unerring logic of events, and in the attempt to do so it merely makes display of its narrow quality. The march of the British to Bloem fontein will be over a treeless plateau about 4000 to 4500 feet above the sea. There is little water found along the direct route. The distance from Kim berley to Bloemfontein is 87 miles, and from Paarde Drift to Bloemfontein It is about 6 miles. The natural order of march from Paarde Drift would be along the Modder. The country be- tween Paarde and Bloemfontein is 1 wholly a. pastoral region, Th,e agricul- tural region lies 60 to 80 miles to the east in a narrow belt along the east ern frontier, and is bordered In part by the mountain region, where the Boers are holding General Gatacre in check on the Cape Colony side of the frontier. There are hills rising above the level of the plain which furnish opportuni ties for effective resistance, but they are not so numerous west of Bloemfon teln as east of it and in the Transvaal. The natural defenses of Bloemfontein are not equal to those of Pretoria, which has mountain ranges on the north and south, with forts on their slopes that command every approach to the city. Senator Pettlgrew, of South Dakota, is the only thorough reproduction of the old-time "copperhead" of 1862-65 that has come to the surface in this generation. In 1862-65 there were high toned, honorable men, like Horatio Seymour, of New Tork, who were openly hostile to Lincoln's war policy, but nevertheless were faithful to public duty and public trust, and then there were a number of men who- were con spicuous for speech and behavior that was nothing but covert treason to the flag whose protection they enjoyed and never hesitated to invoke. Such ma llgnants had Vallandlgham and Voor hees and Pendleton for leaders, while the rank and file of these malevolent, vitriolic "copperheads" from East to West was represented by such men as Senator Pettlgrew, who is a "Vermont "vinegar plant" transplanted to the soil of Wisconsin when he was 6 years of age. He settled in South Dakota in I860, when he was 21. The various transplantations that the Pettlgrew "vinegar plant" has undergone since 1854 do not seem to have abated the natural-born acerbity and malevolence of the man. Will those very belligerent persons who oppose neutralization of the Nica ragua canal and insist that we ought to fortify it be good enough to pay atten tion to what Admiral Dewey said on this subject the other day? The Ore gonlan printed the statement in its tel egraphic columns, but reprints it here with, because the Admiral's opinions on such a subject are those of a man who knows what he is talking about. He said we ought not to fortify the canal, and gave the reasons. They are as di rect as the fire of his guns at Manila, viz: ' Fortifications? "Why, of course not. As I un derstand it the .canal Is to be and should be a neutralized commercial pathway between the two great oceans. To fortify it would simply result in making' it a battleground in case of war. Fortifications would be enormously ex pensive, and ought not to uZ erected. Our fleets will be sufficient guaranty of the neutrality and safety of the canal In time of war as well as In peace. What would be the object of fortifi cation? Only to defend the canal. But we couldn't defend it unless we were strong at sea, and if we were strong at sea there would be no need of defenses on the canal. These questions, cut from an East ern paper, are sent to The Oregonlan: During the Spanish war, did the English peo ple get up mass meetings to express their sym pathy with the Spanish? Did the English Government allow foreigners to go there and make speeches and collect money for the Spaniards? Possibly these queries are sent in with a view to evading the "procla mation of neutrality" which it has been necessary to make to our bellicose correspondents; but possibly they are asked in good faith; and, assuming that they are sincerely presented, The Ore gonlan must say that it recalls no such meetings in England or contribu tions to the Spaniards, though a few speakers and newspapers expressed dis like for the United States. But in fact anybody can go to England and make speeches for any country, and collect money for any country on earth. He may not get much, but he has the right of free speech, for it is a free country. Now they talk of only 15 per cent discrimination against the new insular possessions. It is a pitiful retreat. Why not come out plump and plain, and say that wherever the flag floats commerce and industry shall have equal rights? To this complexion it must come at last. One who is wrong can't get right too quickly or com pletely. So the authors of this Puerto Rico bill would do well to face right about, and abandon the whole error. Louisiana is a state that produces sugar and rice. We find the New Or leans Picayune, a sturdy Democratic journal of three-quarters of a century, arguing for protection of "our high class American labor" (it is negro la bor in the South) against the prod ucts of Puerto Rico and the Philip pines! Where is anybody "at"? In P. W. Gillette's article on "Ore gon's Early History," which appeared yesterday, the name of Hon. J. W. Nes mith was printed "Hon. J. W. N. Smith." The correction Is made in or der that the authority of Mr. Nesmlth, on certain matters quoted, may appear. London's last census, nine years ago, showed a population of 4,211,000. New Tork confidently expects this year's census to show her to have above 3,6CO,000. She may pass London before the middle of the coming century. A Gift to Carnegie. Chlcaeo Tribune. Inst year the United States imported 674,000 tons of iron bre, mostly from Cuba It was used by the iron and steel manu facturers east of the Alleghanles, who cannot get Lake Superior ore so cheaply as do Mr. Carnegie and other manufac turers west of the mountains. The duty on that Cuban ore is 40 cents a ton, so the revenue of the government from that source was about $270,000 in 1S99. Were there no duty on the Cuban and New foundland ores the Imports would have been much larger than they are, the sea board manufacturers would be able to cut down the cost of the production of steel, and could compete more effectively with Western rivals. Mr. Abrom S. Hewitt, who knows a good deal about tho Iron business, says that tho Government, by retaining this duty of 40 cents a ton on iron ore, is making a present to Mr. Carnegie, whose work3 turn out half the steel made In the United States, of $10,000 a day. For, it tho duty were removed, Mr. Carnegie would have to lower the price of steel ?1 a ton to meet seaboard competition. A tariff pro vision which adds annually $270,000 to the revenues of the Government and $3,650,000 to those of the Carnegie Company, whose profits last year were $21,000,000 and which are estimated at $10,003,000 this year, is not defensible. That provision is net one to supply revenue for the Government, which gets next to none. It is not needed for the protection of Messrs. Carnegie and Rockefeller, who are large owners of Lake Superior Iron ore beds. It is not required to protect the wages of tbe labor employed in tho Iron and steel industries, Lit exists only la enable lit. Carnssic to make an extra profit of 14 per cent on his capital of J2S.O0O.0OO. Without it he wonW havo had last a year a profit of nearly 79 per cent. That is enough for a man who believes it is a disgrace to die rich. 6 DEMOCRATS AND EXPANSION. Indications of the ''Drift" in the State of Indiana. Indianapolis News, Ind. If straws indicate the drift, the Dem ocracy of Indiana will need a skillful diplomat to frame a platform. Already there are evidences of a break on the so called expansion question. Men that have sons battling in the Philippines or that wero represented In Cuba are not pre pared to say that America Is pursuing a war of conquest. Recently, Colonel Myers, ex-Secretary of State, whose Democracy has never been questioned, sounded a warning at the State meeting of the Democratic editors. Still more re cently, the Hon. S. M. Ralston, of Leb anon, the leader of his party In past campaigns, and who wHl likely be In diana's representative on. the National committee, while standing by the open grave of a soldier who had given his life to the flag in the Philippines, said: The exigencies of war put our flag, our sail ors and our soldiers rightfully In the Eastern archipelago, and eo long a9 they shall remain there, and battles occur, our hearts, our sym pathies and our prayers will be for the triumph of American arms and the emerging of Old Glory from the smoke of battle untarnished and with new luster. These are brave -words, but cold com fort for the Agulnaldos at home. They are not only patriotic, but they reflect the views of a sagacious politician who feels the drift of publio sentiment and respects it. Within the week, while Republicans wero naming their candidates at Rich mond, recognized Democrats, seeing no immediate future for their party, made affidavit that they intended to support the Republican ticket, that they might participate in the primary and aid in se lecting good men. AH the while, con servative Democratic journals throughout the State have uttered words of caution against even a suspicion of "copperhead ism" creeping Into the party utterances, and in every hamlet there Is a disposition to indorse the words of a cautious, con servative man, who, speaking along gen erai lines, declared: "I would be slow to put up the flag anywhere; but once up, debate ceases. The flag is there, and there it remains." Experience dating back to early Colonial times shows that the great heart of the people Indorses this simple doctrine e a A CHANCE FOR THE DEMOCRATS. They Should lie Evimiihinniatx, 1'ot Not Imperialists. Kansas City Star, Ind. By a "curious turn in politics the Demo crats In Congress have become the defend ers of the rights of Puerto Rico as against the protectionists. This may end up In causing the Democrats to espouse the doctrine of expansion with Constitutional privileges for the new possessions of the United States. The United States stands or ought to stand In the attitude of a mother to Puerto Rico. It deprived the island of the only parent it had, and this Involves a sol emn obligation to supply something better instead. This duty would not be fulfilled by the United States it Congress should levy a duty on. the products of Puerto Rico. Its moral right to do that Is no stronger than Us right to provide for duties between the several States. As a question of abstract justice, Puerto Rico is as much a part oi the Republic as Ohio or Pennsylvania. It will be a gross violation of faith to put up any bars against It. The Democrats In Congress need not be hound or handicapped by the position taken by Mr. Bryan and other politicians of his school against expansion. The wiser members of the party have no sympathy with this idea. The Democrats who believe In Americanism may now espouse with perfect consistency the doctrine of expan sion with Constitutional protection for the new Islands. This wrould give them a strong and popular issue against the pro tection Republicans who assume that the United States has a right to treat Puerto Rico and the Philippines or any of Its in sular D3Ssesslons of aliens. It would seem Incredible that the Dem ocratic party has reached a limit of stu pidity that will cause It to neglect this chance of renewing Its allegiance to free trade and to Constitutional rights. a Exports From Oregon. The Oregonlan recently asssrted in a statis tical statement, published to quiet apprehension as to the loss of Oregon trade, that nearly the entire wheat and flour export trade from Port land had been attained within a period of the last 15 years. Astorlan, Feb. Si. Tho Oregonlan made no such assertion, and, of course, the Astorlan knew that it was deliberately mictating facts. The men who have the welfare of the State at heart feel no "apprehension as to the loss of Oregon trade," for the simple reason that Oregon Is gaining and not losing. Government statistics printed In The Ore gonlan last Tuesday showed that Portland exported more wheat In January than was exported from any other port In the United States, and about six times as much as was exported from Puget Sound. The Astorlan prints columns of distorted figures under the guise of Government reports, all tend ing to show that business in the State of Oregon is going to rack and ruin, from an Astoria point of view, but any one of its seven subscribers would look In vain In Us columns to find anything as favorable to Oregon as the last monthly report of the Bureau of Statistics. Every cargo of Ore gon products which floats past Astoria on Its way from Portland to the sea is as gall and wormwood to the chronic calamity-howler who perpetually seeks to Injure the commonwealth from which he gains his living. But there Is retribution in the fact that the "living" he gets Is a mighty poor one. o A Practical Point. Boston Herald. It may be remembered that, before the present Congress came into session, sev eral prominent Republicans of the coun try had declared their intention of favor ing the repeal of any protective tariff duties on articles the price of which had been raised to their consumers by the for mation of trusts. One member of Con gress is now. disposed to keep that pledge. Representative Hemenway, of Indiana, says that he has so notified the chairman of the committee on ways and means of the House of Representatives, and he adds: "I havo- also stated to him that I believed tho Republican party ought to act prompt ly where trusts are formed to control any article that is protected. We cannot per mit trusts to raise tho price of any pro tected article without being justly criti cised, and, in my opinion, if Congress will act promptly In these matters, no trust can successfully Increase prices upon such ar ticles as are protected." The editor of the Keokuk Gate City, of Iowa, who was a Republican member of the Congress pre ceding this, remarks on the same subject that, "If Congress will hit a few specific trusts 'like those of paper, tin and coppei by a prompt taking from them of the pro tection given them by a high tariff duty. It will teach swift instruction to all other trusts, and you will see how soon they will abate their pretensions," and he goes on to say: "The Republican party will not have the shadow of a chance to carry the Presidential election of this year if th'a Republ'can Congress leaves all the cormor ant trusts preying upon the American peo ple next November as they are now." a o p Tii llocnum. New York Tribune. Careful exanunatlon of the man with the hoe favors the view that there Is no de generating force in the implement, and that the arts of painting and poetry may be too sentimental in portraying the use ful &fror?r ssm glelfls it. In our coun try ho sometimes goes to the Senate afterward or Is made President; in France, where hte artistic archetype originated. he is sometimes the father of Presidents. In general, he can hoe his own row and need not be ovsrdrenched with tears of sympathy. Art should present him, when it does so at all, in an aspect of dignity, that of Virgil being a good exemplar and much truer to the fact than some of hi3 modern delineations. a What Cleveland Would Do. "Washington dispatch to Chicago Record. If President Cleveland were in power to day, in place of President McKlnley, he would be sending for members of tho House of Representatives by platoons asd trying to persuade them to vote against the recommendation of the committee oa ways and means, imposing a duty upon Puerto Rican products. He would deny the patronage of the Government to every man in Congress who refused to sustain the recommendations In Ms mes sage, and would shovel out postoffiee ap pointments to every man that stood by him. He would have given notice long ago that those who vote for a tariff on Puerto Rican products need not expect favors from this AdminJstratIo, and would have used every other Influence and weapon at his command to carry bis point. President McKlnley is more amiable. Some of his supporters declare that he treats his opponents with more considera tion than his friends. He has not re tracted the recommendations in his mes sage. On the contrary, he tells every man who approaches him on the subject that the reports of the committee on ways and means and the Senate committee on Puerto Rico have not convinced him that it is either just or wise to impose aa em bargo of any kind upon commerce with our now possessions, although he does not claim to be Infallible, and admits tbe right of other people to hold different opinions. His defenders, too, say that President Cleveland broke up the Demo cratic party and hopelessly divided it by his autocratic attempts to dictate the legislation of Congress. President Mc Klnley does not differ from his party in the House on matters of principle. He concedes that Congress has the power to Impose taxes upon the commerce of Puerto Rico, but he questions the exped!. ency of exercising that power. a a Kmger'g Bitter Pill. New York Commercial Advertiser. Cecil Rhodes, uncaged and unransomed, is the bitter pill that relief of Klmberley will compel the Boers to swallow. And those diamonds that Cronje was waiting to commander would have been a fine war fund. So far as a patriarchal esti mate of wealth could go, there was doubt less a hearty appreciation of the money value of Rhodes and the diamonds, and a truly religious satisfaction in contem plating' future disbursements for Krupps and Creusots and food supplies. Of course, Kruger still sticks to his war texts and the Boer interpretation of them, but he must want more light. Rhodes free nd unpunished Is enough to shake his faith in the Psalms. o The Population of Europe. A scientific statistical work Just pub lished fixes the population of Europe at 381,000,000, an Increase of 79,000,000 since 1S70, or an annual increase of about 3,600, 000. The average density of this popula tion is given as 30 inhabitants for every five-eighths of a square mile. Belgium pre sents the most thickly settled state, with 224 inhabitants for every square kilometer. Then follow Holland with 152, Great Brit ain with 127, Italy with 111, the German Empire with 97, Switzerland with 76, Den mark with 58, etc. The least-crowded countries in Europe are Russia with 31, Sweden with 11, and Norway with 6 In habitants per square kilometer. 4 B Slioots and Booze. Washington Star. "Orddnarily," said Colonel Stillwell, "1 object to the conundrum. I regard it aa a primitive form of humor. I also resent these constant Jibes at the State of Ken tucky. They represent both deficiency of taste and poverty of resource. But Just to show," he continued deliberately, "that 1 am a broad-minded man who can accept a joke amiably, I will ask you a question: What is the difference between the State of Massachusetts and Kentucky?" "Give it up, Colonel." "Massachusetts produces boots and shoes, and Kentucky produces shoots and booze." 4 0 A Bonanza for the South, Louisville Courier-Journal. The high price of cotton this year is proving of Immense benefit to the South. About all the advantage of the increase in values will remain In the Cotton States, as the planters and merchants, contrary to their usual custom, did not market the crop early, but held it back long enough to get the full profit. Estimates, vary as to the amount of money that the rise has given to the South, but whether it be $60, 000,003 or $100,000,000 it is a very large sum and will he divided among the cotton pro ducers and small merchants, stimulating eery claes. 4 0 t ' The Patent Office. The report cf the Commissioner of Pat ents show that, in the year 1880, the total receipts of the office amounted to $1,326,487, a sum but twice exceeded In the history of the office. The patent office Is one of the departments which pays as it gees, and has turned Into the Treasury $5,600,600 more than It has drawn out. 3 Pennoyer's Version. New York Times. "Well, boys, It's goin' to be McKlnley and Samson Bryan araln." "Why do you call him Samson?" "Because he's the only man that ever defeated his- party with the jawbone of an ass." a 9 Calm Kc'Kontlon. Harlem Life. "Is Brbwn happy in hte marriage7 "Well, I think if Brown were to eee Mrs. Brown today for the first time he wouldn't even ask for an introduction. Still, he doesn't complain." a S Exception Proves tbe Rule. Philadelphia Record. "Whisky," said the temperance lecturer, "will destroy everything there Is in a man." "Yes," replied the unrtgenerate, "axeept his thirst." 4 0 No Longer n 3Irstery. Chicago Record. "I have discovered that Bdfeks is thor oughly unreliable." "Then you know just what you an rely on." 4 B A Warning. Boston Commercial Bulletin. Do not drop careless remarks. They can not be picked up, but you may be. 4 a A Gunnel of the Bice Grass. Cleveland Plain Sealer. . A cunael of the Blue Grass Lay groaning on bis cot, There was lots of woman's nerstag, There was juleps cool or hot; And a pistol lay beside Mm As he tomad and tumbled there, With the handle quite lnvitta? For his fingers long aad. spare. Then there came a pal reporter, Who beheld the ready gun. A3 it caught the ehining sotaader Of the giary of the eun; And he paused and mutely wondered O'er the wherefore aad the way. Till the proud aad naughty caeael ' Caught the question la Ms eye. Feebly then he raised the weapon, Aad he rattled as he said: "Safe, a eunnel of th' Blae Grass Ifi a gentleman whea dead. So I hang fas' to man gun, sea' Here his pulses eeased to beat " 'Cause I don't know whar Tm. goia' An' X dca't-toMCKha-TH meetr , NOTE AiYD COUHENT. Crooje's army- may be m tbe--hole, but it is stfll m the British patrJotisatlB jrtty1ttalrWtake cokL in the ovontof a dntit. If Bryan would Mre a. pcaca eeaeer,, .Ma speeches might better on ante m jwkat. These two theater Hies wet aeun the biggest in roaltom we ha yet hoauit oft The bee has been mightier ttnaa -the-pen in bringing' one K. Markln M jnoml. nenoe. Macrum is new ah aad In me teifcfciz contest, with Bryaa a seed flnooufti and me pfcOBOgraefe es the wuraiem, sMe e the distance flag. A huge bate of dtoeerdea THInlne pes- tal staass and earus hen been seUr in Manila for Me Mexican dollars. iaW. chase was a apeoulntloa la arama caJJooto lag. A young fettew was sxrastau m. tana the ether day fee throwing a grl a kiss. If kisses eanoot be thrown, after a while things will cease to such a-paas that one cannot heave a sigh. There are two well-known famlaes iu Devonshire, JSnglead. the Carews and the Careys, and It is eeM the the members of the Carew jamity pronounce tbe name "Carey," while the CanejH eaH. tsea selves "Carew." In Jewell County, Kaneae, ft.nwn imor rled a girl named Beose, the ether day This leads the loeal paper o say: The young men oM a eharMaMa aet. And the law can't touch Mm toe howttsg-lt either, if this is a. proMbKion Stejte." The villagers of Obersmmergau .are uj in aims against the proposed estabMehaent of a line of motor voMoton, aeoignad $ do away with the tedious two hours' drive from the nearest railway station to the village. They say it wBl detract from the devotional attitude whtoh att visitors to the Passionspiel are supposed to assume. "Apart from that," says the AuesmoMle Magazine, "it is bound to interfere with the prosperity of the village stage-driver and other rustle jehua' Professor Kolilekor, of the Naples Aquarium, recently went down into the Mediterranean in an iron oage, lit up by electricity. With the aM of a powerful receiver and a specially eonstmieted pho nograph, he registered the expreaoiono of surprise with. wMeh the fish welcomed his appearance. He notes that the sound made by one fish oiffeee greatly Irom that of another, and has summed up the results of his experiment m the eenvte tlon that the sounds by flowed win yet be recognized as a language. Heroes do not always need to be out on the firing line to prove their eueJHtao. One of the officers of the Oregon "Vetas teers tells the following little story of a Corporal in the regular army. His name was Keogh, and his nationality was that of most men of the same name. He was standing on one of the Manila streets one day, watching tbe Spanish aoWnera pitch pennies. Suddenly they coacod thetr pastime and began volubly commenting on the approach of an insurgent omeer, who, it being befooe the outbreak, bad the liberty of the elty. As the omcer ap proached, the Spaniards sprang forward and fell upon him, and one of them sent a dagger to bis heart. Keegh was all alone, but without a moment's hesita tion he ran among the excited Spaniards, seized tbe murderer, and held him till help came. The odds wrere against Mm, and he might have been easily ever powered and killed, but there was some thing In his coolness which told at Sean lards that he was an excellent man to let alone, and he was not molested. The Dawson City earreepondent of The Oregonlan sends the fonowteg story, which will prove that men do not forget to laugh, even when in the gran, pursuit of gold: Quite a. laugh occurred in the peotofflce recently, and the cause of It has jnet been ascertained. A disheartened miner work ing a lay on the Klondike, m writing to his wife in the old country, used the fol lowing: "I witt stay all winter 4a Daw son God-forsaken pteee, reyalty-bHrdened Klondike, and go to Nome next .spring. I am on Discovery on a lay, Bonansa. In writing to me be sura and write my full address, as the poetofflce here very stupid." His recent letter wMeh oouaod the merriment in the postomee bare the following superscription: JAMBS ATTiCmS. Dawse Very Step T. Cv BeyaRytwlM8d Godforsaken e a. lay, Baaaaaa. --J 4 a A Sons of tbe Bee Wemaa. Jshn J. Jteeaey m Mew Yeric Sea. Trekklaai trakknig! trasfctagf wm never tta trek be doae? WIH new th , will mevar tae e won, aad orr wea? Are we only as beasts ot tbe JaagJe aot H-tfca With a lair ta the bam at aiMalnht in the veldt, a tracktaas way? Ever the ward fc "' w watte train gees Deeper aad deeper aertlwwwd bayeta gcaey of our foes Deeper and deeper aertawaed ear fa" went before Bat the door f the tt to ehxwd-bi alaeedt where eaa w trek ar? Trekking' trekfctagl tioMctag'. tntnk ym we love net our heme? Think you mi father arte not the wm at the yellow team? Aad mother I see bar wiping beams mr afew " tW' . Turning and aaotag- aortfcwatd beams mo mountain well. jm , The cattle tbey seam ta be staaauay agjno n a brute despair. f "With a hmslBg took at tbe aortwm mar Jed the trelc in tba air' Evea old Tok mat bmbaa be tans mam the tempting bone I see Mm there m the eraer, man mm toeo- mgaleaei Trekking' trekking! taraMnag mjidgfc ta Zulumnd w an, The midnight tiger stammg ns'amft ar tbe savage foe Before-Urn eavag to to meal; aw "laaeanr' foe behind What have we dona to be lm'iim aa Mm a leaf upon the wtaeT Ah, over me Vapl we stfe mtaaurpeaett over tbe rasomg Vaa The Lord has tod as te met at mat Mmdly we followed Mb aaS; The land be promised Is seas te heap la e4 forever to heap Fwt, what noise la that la tka Ml mmlr yea a wK at the aheap? Trekktag! trek Wag t taraMetegi we have taehked. till ear tall strong men Have sworn aa oath by oar fathers Bad w shall never trek agate The doors of the nortbwaid valdt are' npraad the doors of ear heart am stioanj ' They stall ope then- fcxk te a brother's mwfc- but not ta the threat of wrong' There Is the gun your father bore when he eMmaad Majanars MM T to room. Wet. to bear It now with year father's faith, aad win For the mad to owro -the land lo oura-lf evera lead wag woa You go at the dawn, you aey, my ea? Yes, go at tbe daws, my coat