THE MORNING OREGONIAN, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1901". THREEONONETRACK Contest for Right of Way to Kalama. ON NORTH SIDE OF COLUMBIA "Washing-ton fc Oregon, Portland &. Pnset Sound and Columbia Valley Fighting It Ont in the Court "-feager to Build. A triangular fight for possession of the right of way of the Portland & Puget Sound Railway, on the north side of the Columbia River, between Vancouver and Kalama, was begun In the Superior Court of Clark County yesterday. A pe tition for condemnation of the right of way was filed by the "Washington &. Ore gon Railroad Company, January 28. Ed mund Rice, of Olympia, is president of this company, and E. H. Guie, of Seattle, represents it as counsel, and the concern is supposed to be acting in the Interest of the Northern Pacific Railway Com pany. The Portland & Puget Sound Company opposes the move of the Wash ington & Oregon Company to condemn and take its property. The Columbia Val ley Railroad Company Intervenes, because it claims rights superior to those of the "Washington & Oregon Company In the right of way sought to be taken by the last-named corporation. The matter was heard by Judge Miller, at Vancouver, yes terday, and he took the question of prior ity of claims under advisement for a few days, calling -a jury for March 14 to fix the value of the property. The same pro ceedings will be taken before the same Judge in Cowlitz County today, the cases being the same In the two counties. "Who Are in the Fight. The Portland & Puget Sound Railroad Company is a corporation that was or ganized nearly 12 years ago, to build a line between Portland and Puget Sound. The Union Pacific and the Great Northern were equal owners in the company. Sev eral hundred thousand dollars were ex pended In building a grade most of the distance between Vancouver and Kelso, and In work on a great bridge that was to have spanned the Columbia at Van couver. When the Union Pacific system went to pieces in the hard times, its In terest in the Portland & Puget Sound Company was sold to the Northern Pa cific, thus leaving the Great Northern and the Northern Pacific equal owners at present. It is said, however, that the Great Northern, or James J. Hill, has a larger or more influential Interest in the property than the Northern Pacific has, on account of having paid taxes on the property, which the Portland & Puget Sound Company had permitted to become delinquent. O. C. McGilvery, of the law firm of Burke, Shepard & McGilvery, the legal representatives of the Great North ern In Seattle, represents the Portland & Puget Sound Company In the present proceedings. The Columbia Valley Railroad Company was organized about two years ago to build from a point opposite Wallula down the north bank of thfe Columbia to II waco, L. Gerllnger, of t"e Portland, Van couver & Takima road, being at the head of It. This company lias had sur veying crews constantly in the field since Its organization and has a line lo cated from Wallula to Ilwaco. Presi dent Gerllnger testified yesterday that his. company bad expended $35,000 in this ''work. These are the three companies that are now struggling for the right of way between Vancouver and Kalama, and it Is said that the one that shall be suc cessful will run trains over the route this year. Frocedings in Conrt. When the matter came on for hearing at Vancouver yesterday morning the Portland & Puget Sound Company moved for dismissal for lack of jurisdiction, which was overruled. Permission to trans fer to the United States Court was asked, and that was denied. Then a demurrer was filed touching the jurisdiction of the court, the competency of the petitioner and the sufficiency of the notice and pe tition. This was duly argued and prompt ly overruled. The chief point discussed was as to the power of one railroad corporation to take the right of way of another railroad, and the question as to whether the Portland & Puget Sound was a live corporation with rights that would enable it to protect Its right of way that had never been used and had lain un touched for 10 years, was considered by the lawyers, though it was not in the record. The court concluded that the no tice and petition followed the statute and was not demurrable. The Portland & Puget Sound people filed and served their formal answer, and then the Columbia Valley Railroad Company, through G. W. Stapleton, asked for permission to Intervene, on the ground that it was organized for the same purpose as the Washington & Ore gon Company and had a prior right to take the right of way in question, by reason of the fact that it had completed its survey for the entire line, had filed its definite maps, which had been duly approved; that it had bought land for right of way, had obtained authority to cross Government land on its route, and had opened negotiations for rights of way across Indian lands. These acts, it was contended, showed the good faith of the company and gave it an interest which should be considered in the pres ent proceeding, and this could only be done by means of the intervention or cross-complaint. The Washington & Ore gon Company opposed the intervention on the ground that the intervenor was too late In trying to establish its claim to the right of way. Judge Miller admitted the intervention and court adjourned till afternoon. "Which Has Prior Right T Four hours of the afternoon were con sumed in taking testimony to show the right of the respective parties to con demn. President Rice, Chief Engineer O'Neill and County Surveyor Webster tes tified for the Washington & Oregon Com pany. The two railroad officials told or the survey that had been made between Vancouver and Kalama and of the in tention to go forward with the construc tion of a railroad on the route. This line followed exactly the old grade of the Portland & Puget Sound road. County Surveyor Webster testified that the old grade had apparently been abandoned by the Portland & Puget Sound Company before the Washington & Oregon Com pany surveyed the line. President Ger llnger, of the Columbia Valley Company, testified that he had had surveyors In the fioid on his line ever since the com pany was organized, with the exception of 16 days, and that progress was made as fast as circumstances would permit. A part of the Columbia Valley survey, he said, was on the Portland & Puget Sound grade, which steps had been taken to obtain. As evidence that the Colum bia Valley was not simply occupying the ground for the purpose of keeping others away, he cited the fact that where Its purvey would come In conflict with that of the Washington & Oregon, the Co lumbia Valley surveyors had located the line to one side. He said the company had spent $35,000 in locating Its line and buying state lands for right of way; that it had filed with the proper officers maps of definite location, and they had been approved; that authority had been ob tained to cross Government land, and negotiations were In progress with the Department of the Interior for right of way across certain Indian lands. Chief Engineer Watson also testified regarding the work and plans of the Columbia Val ley road. The purpose of the testimony was (o show which of the two companies seek ing to get the old Portland & Puget Sound -right of way should be entitled to preference. The Columbia Valley" con tention was that, though it had not be gun the condemnation proceedings, It really had a better right In the field than the Washington & Oregon, because it had proceeded further with Its work; that while the Washington & Oregon had only a partial survey on which to base its claim, the Columbia Valley had com pleted its survey and gone much further in perfecting Its arrangements for build ing; In fact, had gone so far that this stretch between Vancouver and Kalama was about the only unsecured portion of the route, and that had been allowed to rest because' another railroad com pany was the owner of It. Judge Miller took under advisement the question as to which company had prior right to the disputed grade. A jury was called for March 14, to fix the value of the right of way, for whichever company the Judge shall decide to be entitled to take It. LOXG ROUTE TO NEHALEM BAY. Line Suggested by a Citlren of Glen coe, "Washington County. GLENCOE, Or., Feb. 12. (To the edi tor.) I have noticed of late quite a lit tle correspondence from people living along the proposed railroad to Nehalem I cannot see any reason why a road over the Cornelius Pass from Ltnnton, and on through the German settlement to Phil lips and Glencoe and Mountain Dale; thence following east to Dairy Creek to the head of Pebble Creek; thence down the Pebble Creek to the Nehalem; thence down the Nehalem to Vernonla, and down to the "Lower Nehalem Valley, and around by the coast to Garibaldi and Tillamook. This Is the most direct and most prac tical of any of the proposed routes, as It passes through a scope of country un surpassed In dairy farming and grain raising. This route not only passes into the timber and coal regions of Wash ington and Clatsop Counties, but it passes through the best part of the farming land of the state. This section of Washington County around Glencoe is so far from the South ern Pacific at Hlllsboro and Cornelius that the farmers and merchants are compelled to freight direct to Portland. By coming down along the Willamette to Linnton It would give saw mills and factories a chance, as well as making a dumping ground for coal and lumber. The advantages of this road are three fold, over the other proposed roads to Nehalem. First because it is the most direct; second, because it does not inter sect any other road or proposed road; third, because It takes Its course over the natural passes of the Coast Range. JOHN W. CONNELL.. FARMERS SEE THE COLLEGE. O. R. & N. Carries Them Free to In spect Pullman Institution. When the course of Farmers' Institutes was in progress in the Palouse country last Winter, Industrial Agent Judson, of the O. R. & N. Co., offered to give the farmers a free excursion to Pullman, in order that they might Inspect their agri cultural college, and get In touch with Its work, and perhaps get some new Ideas to be put In practice by themselves on their own farms. The first of these free excursions started Tuesday morning, when 5S farmers were taken from Walla Walla, Dayton, Waitsburg, Prescott and Tekoa to Pullman. They made a thor ough Inspection of the college and re turned home the next day. Yesterday 50 more farmers from Rockford, Garfield, Farmlngton, Latah and other points took advantage of the opportunity, and they will be returned home today. RAILROAD CARS IN JANUARY. Number Handled in Portland "Was 1172 Gre-ter Than a Year Ago. The siumber of loaded railway cars han dled In Portland last month Is 11,710, or 1172 more than In January, 1900. The number handled here in the past three months, compared with, the record for the same months a year previously, is as follows: 1899-00. 1900-01. Gain. November 13,303 13,804 501 December 10,283 13,909 3,626 January 10,538 11,710 1,172 The number of pieces of baggage han dled at the Union passenger station in the month of January is 24,064, as com pared with 21,606 for January of last year, a gain of 245S pieces. These figures do not include trolley-line business, nor do they take into account traffic handled by water craft. Railroad Yarn From Tncoma. TACOMA, Feb. 14. It is stated positively that President Mohler, of the O. R. & N. Co., acting for. the Union Pacific, has bought the Northern Pacific interest In the old graded right of way between Portland and Tacoma, which was owned Jointly with the Great Northern. The sale was made originally to L. Gerllnger, of the Portland, Vancouver & Yakima line and by Gerllnger was -transferred to Mohler. (It is stated positively by President Mohler, who may be presumed to have some knowledge of the matter, that there is no truth In the Tacoma dispatch.) Southern and Santa Fe Harmonious. NEW YORK, Feb. 14. The Mail and Express says: "Since the arrival of President Hays, of the Southern Pacific, and President Ripley, of the Atchison, in this city, im portant conferences have been held which are resulting in the establishment of a satisfactory traffic agreement between the two companies. This has reference both to the maintenance of rates and to the division of territory, with a view to pre venting all chances of friction between the two companies." Change of Great Northern Officials. ST. PAUL. Minn., Feb. 14. The ap pointment of C. E. Stone to be assistant general passenger agent of the Great Northern to succeed T. B. Lynch, re signed. Is announced. Mr. Stone Is at present assistant general passenger agent of the Northern Pacific, having gone with that road when the St. Paul & Duluth was absorbed by it. He was general pas senger agent of the St. Paul & Duluth for a number of years. The appointment was made by Vice-President Miller. Pacific Traffic Agreement. NEW YORK. Feb. 14. The statement was made in Wall Street today, but con fidentially confirmed, taht a pacific agree ment has been entered Into by the Atchi son, Topeka & Santa Fe and Southern Pacific companies providing for the es tablishment and maintenance of rates, and an equal division of freight and pas senger traffic. The agreement. It Is de clared, becomes operative at once. Burlington Carries Many Tourists. The Burlington road yesterday brought Into Montana 19 cars containing 767 pass engers bound for Washington and Ore gon points. These come from various points in Burlington territory, as far Bast as Chicago. Railroad Notes. The O. R. & N. has consolidated its of fice in San Francisco with that of the Union Pacific General Passenger Agent Craig, of the O. R. & N., is expected to arrive from St. Paul and assume the duties of his office about next Monday. A gang Cjf surveyors is at work south of Harrington, Wash., on the line- of the Great Northern. The purpose of the sur vey Is to eliminate curves between Har- Irington and Mohler. NO DAMAGE BY FRESHET JANUARY FLOOD BENEFITED THE "WILLAMETTE RIVER. Few Lumps Formed, but There Is Plenty of "Water-Near Them Ea gle CHS Requires Attention. No comment was made at the meeting of the Port of -Portland Commission yes terday on the changes which the Legisla ture proposes to make In the personnel of Its members. President Wilcox and Com missioner Hughes pleasantly discussed the Senatorial situation at Salem while a quo rum was coming in, and then the little business on the table was hurriedly dis posed of. The session was over in 15 min utes. Soundings recently made by the Com mission as far as Knapp's, 18 miles below Portland, showed" that the big freshet In January caused little trouble. Indeed, the "Willamette was benefited, as the mouth of the river was scoured out. Lumps formed In three or four places, but there is good water alongside of them, and nav- day, the 20ih instant. Rev. Dr. E. P. Hill and Rev. Dr. Stephen S. Wise will give the principal addresses, and there will be informal talks from several others. The league will be formally or ganized, and officers elected. Work will then begin on collating the evidence which workers have collected, regarding any gambling which has been going on since the order was given to close, and as to the suppression 'of lotteries and regulation of the social evil. Data so collected will be turned over to the police, so that the District Attorney can co operate with the league in tarting prose cution against offenders. COULDN'T DRAW A STOVE. Horr Homer Davenport Made His First Failure as an Artist. Homer Davenport began his career as an artist on The Oregonian nearly 12 years ago. He now looks back with much amusement on his experiences of those days, and the story he tells of his first engagement is probably- even more amus ing to others than to himself. He was well known in, the Sllverton section as a boy who could draw uncommonly fine pic tures, and his friends expected him to make his mark in the world, so when he got word to come to Portland and go to PREPARING A SCEPTER FOR HIM. COUNTY JUDGE CAKE, FOR WHOM THE MULTNOMAH DELEGA TION IS BUILDING A THRONE. If the bill now before the Oregon Legislature relative to the County Judge gets through without changes, County Judge Cake will have greater powers than any of his predecessors ever had. Under the ptoposed legislation he will be empow ered to select the Road Supervisors, after removing those now in office. He will also be empowered to increase the number of road districts, and thus make more also be empowered to increase the Judges and Clerks of Elections will be in his hands, as he will have the authority to appoint two persons, to serve with him - self, as a Board of Election Commission. This commission will also make the of ficial canvass of votes. Judge Cake will appoint the Public Administrator and the Board of County Commissioners will meet only at his call. These are the powers the Multnomah delegation are endeavoring to confer upon Judge Cake, which have so far come to light. igation has suffered no Interference. Just below the Portland Flouring Mills the channel has slightly narrowed. There Is a short stretch at Eagle Cliff where the) depth has fallen to 21 feet at low water. This will require attention, as shipping cannot profit by the tides here, having to calculate on taking advantage of them at Tongue Point. The report of work done by the Com mission in January follows: "During January the dredge was em ployed 466.2S hours, actual digging time. The cost of fuel was $676 17, or about $1 45 per hour, burning cordwood and slab wood. When sawdust was burned the fuel cost was 62 cents an hour. The work of the dredge in January was: Cubic yards removed Hunter's Point 34,905 Slaughter's 150,421 Total 235,326 Dredging expenses-Pay-roll 51,440 09 Fuel 676 17 Food 306 49 Betterments 33 45 Repairs 65 97 Maintenance 248 21 Sundries 6138 Total J2.83176 "The cost per cubic yard was about 1 1-R cents. "The dredge completed work at Hunt er's on January 9, having made one long cut of 160 feet in width, 25 feet deep, and also another cut at the lower end, which gives a 400-foot channel there and im proves the turn at that point. The dredge then moved to Slaughter's, where she is working on a channel some 4000. feet in length, the greater portion of which is completed. At the upper end of this cut the work was Impeded with numerous sticks and several sunken snags. At the lower end, the material dredged has changed from sand to clay and stone, which makes progress slow, and is quite severe on the machinery. During the greater part of the month the weather was bad, and the high freshet carried down Immense quantities of drift, which necessitated considerable shutting-down of the work. "Owing to the lack of sawdust we have been burning cordwood and slabwood. The latter has been so green that the steam has been maintained with difficulty, and it is doubtful whether there is much saved in the 90-cent slabwood. However, ar rangements have been made for a suffi cient supply of sawdust, and, although we shall pay $1 a load. It Is expected that the fuel bill will be less, and more satisfac tory results will be obtained. A load of sawdust Is calculated to be about 200 cubic feet. The price formerly paid was 30 cents per 100 cubic feet. "On February 3, the cast-iron bushing for cutter head wore completely through, and it became necessary to lay up the dredge for repairs. She is now alongside the wharf at Slaughter's, with only a small crew aboard making necessary re pairs, and it is hoped that the iron works will have their work completed and the dredge again in operation by . Febru ary IS." ANOTHER STEP FORWARD. Constitntlon and By-Laws of Lavr Enforcement League. Another step forward in the crusade against gambling and,.kindred evils, was taken at a committee meeting of the Law-Enforcement League, held this week, when by-laws and a constitution were adopted. It was decided that in addition to the president and vice-president of the league, an executive council of 15 wlllbe elected to take such steps as are necessary to assist public officials in enforcing the law. . A public meeting of the league, -for which a number of special Invitations will be sent to reform-workers, will be I .held at the Y. M. C, A. Hall, on Wednes- work for The Oregonian, everybody in Sllverton rejoiced. They got up quite a celebration, and gave the boy a good send-off. "When I showed up for work," says Davenport. "I expected to draw horses and dogs and pheasants, but I was turned over to an advertising solicitor and told to go with him. He took me away up the street to sketch a stove. I must have ex pressed my disapproval," for I remember that the solicitor told me I ought- to turn my talents In a more practical line; that birds and animals -were all right, but there was nothing in it for me to draw them; that sto.ves and such things would make me rich and famous. "Now, when it comes to drawing ob jects accurately, to making mechanical drawings, I'm ijot in It for a minute. If my bread and butter depended on my making an accurate drawing of that chair I'd throw up the sponge and quit right now; I can't do it, that's all. Well, that stove had to be reproduced with so much fidelity that a little peculiarity In Its damper, which constituted Its only merit, would show in the picture. They brought the stove out into the street where It was light and where travel was obstructed for an hour or two while I was working on It. I found it very dif ficult. I couldn't get the four feet of the stove to touch the floor at the same time. The thing appeared to be dancing a High land fling. I brought the sketch to the office and worked It up and gave It to the solicitor to show his customer. The man looked at it critically a moment and then said: " 'If you'll print that in The Oregonian with the name of the stove and the state ment that I am selling that kind, my for tune will be made. I'll sue the paper for $50,000 damages, and get every cent of it." "After that effort I went back to Sll verton for a rest. There was no pro cession to welcome me, .but I noticed that the town was yet gay with the decora tions that had been erected in honor of my departure." Homer Davenport came back to The Oregonian, and for nearly two years his work graced the columns of the paper. Death of an Old Soldier. James Paul, a veteran of the Civil War and a pensioner, died at his home, 403 East Twelfth street, near Grant, Wednes day, after a brief illness of the grip. He was 61 years and 9 months old. He first enlisted in Company E, Second Kansas Volunteers, May 14, 1861, He re-enlisted in Company F, Eleventh Regiment, Kan sas Cavalry, February 12, 1863, and served till August 1, 1865. He has resided in Port land for four years. A wife and seven children survive him, the oldest being a son 20 years old. The funeral will take place today, under the auspices of George Wright Post, G. A. R. i i A "WINTER ROUTE TO THE EAST. The climate of Utah and Colorado Is temperate the year round, and clear skies and sunlit days are as proverbial In Win ter as in Summer. The mean annual tem perature in Salt Lake City or Denver is about 55 degrees, and the average annual precipitation- 14.77 Inches. With such In consequential precipitation there can be little or no trouble from snow in the dis tricts traversed by the Rio Grande West ern Railway, and its immediate connec tions the Colorado Midland or Denver & Rio Grande Railroads. ' In fact Winter adds but new grandeur and charm to the travel scenes, and In fuses an element of variety and beauty to the unsurpassed wonders of nature along the Great Salt Lake Route. Tickets to. all-points East may be obtained at 253 Washington street. BUSINESS ITEMS. If Baby Is Cutting Teeth, B .sure and use that old and well-tried remedy, Mrs. Wlnslow's Soothing Syrup, for children .teething. It soothes the child, softens the-gums, allays all pain, cure wind colic and diarrhoea. The best that can be said about a medi cine Is said about Hood's Sarsaparllla. It cures. FAVORS DISTANT FARMERS POSTOFFICE DEPARTMENT "WILL HAVE BOX DELIVERY. It "Will Be of Great Benefit to Orego nlans Living on or Near Star Mail Routes. The Postofflce Department Is preparing new mail contracts on star routes, so as to include a provision whereby persons living along such routes may have their mail deposited in boxes to be erected by them. Postmaster Gore Summers, of Prinevllle, Or., has sent The Oregonian a copy of a circular recently received by him n this subject. Here it is: "A general advertisement inviting pro posals for carrying the mall on all star and steamboat mall routes In your state, for a term of four years, beginning July 1, 1902, will-be issued September next. It is the intention of the department to in corporate In all contracts entered Into for service under this advertisement a pro vision whereby persons living along the line of the route may, If they so desire, have their mail deposited into boxes to be erected by them for that purpose, ex cept on routes where the requirement' of such box-delivery service would be Im practicable, of which due report should be made, giving explicitly the reasons why such service is considered imprac ticable. "The general provisions of such box delivery service will be as follows: "Any person living on or near the route who desires his mall deposited in a box by the carrier on said route may provide and erect a suitable box on the roadside, located In such manner as to be reached as conveniently as practicable by the car rier, and such person shall file with the Postmaster at the postofflce to which his mall Is addressed (which shall be one of the two postoffices on the route on either side of and next to the box) a request In writing for the delivery of his mail to the carrier on the route for deposit into said mailbox, at the risk of the addressee. "It shall be the duty of the Postmaster at every postofflce, upon a written order from any person living on or near the star route, to deliver to the proper mail carrier for that route any mail matter, except registered mall, with instructions as to the proper mailbox into which said mail matter shall be deposited; but no mail matter so delivered to a carrier for deposit shall be carried past another post office on the route before being deposited In a mailbox. "The Postmaster at each Intermediate postofflce, upon receiving from the way pouch on any trip the packages of mail addressed to his office, will immediately sort out (before the carrier proceeds on his trip) the mail Intended to be deposited Into boxes along the Una between his office and the next office at which the carrier will arrive, and shall deliver the same to the carrier to be deposited Into such boxes on the same trip. "The carrier will be required to receive from any Postmaster on the route any mail matter that may be entrusted to him, outside of the usual mallbag, and shall carry such mall matter to and de posit it into the proper boxes placed on the line of the route for this purpose; such service by the carrier to be without charge to the addressees. "Themailcarriers must be of good moral character, able to read and write the English language, and be of sufficient In telligence to properly handle and deposit the mail for boxes along the routes. "The law provides that every carrier of the mall shall receive any mall matter presented' to him, if properly prepaid by stamps, and deliver the same for mailing at the next postofflce at which he arrives, but that no fee shall be allowed him therefor. "The contract price covers all the serv ice required of the carrier that Is indi cated herein. "In order that the department may act intelligently in preparing this advertise ment, you are requested to answer as specifically as possible the following in quiries relative to existing route: No from to "First How many people reside along the line of the route who would probably be served by It? "Second How many boxes do you esti mate would be erected along the line 'of the route in event the box-delivery serv ice were required by the contract? "Third How much time should be al lowed the carrier in which to make the trip over the route each way, if the box delivery service were required? "You are also requested to submit such other recommendations for the lmprove ment of the supply of the offices now pro- Will Be Closed Sunday WE CAN'T SHAVE YOU BUT HAVE SHAVED THE PRICE on OUR RAZORS, STROPS SOAPS AND MUGS In fact everything that cuts at cut prlcts, at Laue-Davis Drug Co., 3d and Yamhill RELIABLE DRUGGISTS vlded for by this route as" you may desire to make. Any such recommendation for a change from the present service should set forth fully and explicitly the change desired and the reasons therefor. "It is particularly desired to know whether the frequency of trips on the ex isting route could be reduced, and whether the route could be. In whole or in part, dispensed with without detriment to the service: and also whether the existing schedule is the best, from a postal stand point, that can be arranged. If a change from existing days or hours of arrivals and departures is desirable, you will sub mit such schedule as will best serve the public interest. If. in your opinion, the present service is inadequate for the needs of the offices supplied by the route, state what additional facilltls are needed; and if a change in the present mode of supply of any office is desirable, state fully by what means such office should In future be suDolled. "It la very important that you give this matter your Immediate and careful con sideration, and submit only such recom mendations as represent your Judgment of the necessities of the service. "A failure to comply with these Instruc tions will be considered a serious derelic tion of duty on your part and will be treated accordingly "W. S. SHALX.BNBERGBR, "Second Assistant Postmaster-General." EASTERN MULTNOMAH. Unusual Activity Among the Farmers in Spring "Work. GRESHAM, Feb. 14. During the past few weeks of bright weather there has been an unusual acreage turned under for this season of the year. Farmers have been Industrious and nearly every orchard and berry field has been put In excellent shape for Its expected crop. Several hundred acres of new land will be cultivated this year, and the extent of new farming land Is steadily growing, the most of which will be put Into po tatoes the first year. More clover Is be ing sowed this Spring than before, which has been made necessary by the Increase of cows, whose numbers have been dou bled during the past two seasons. They require more feed and the ensilage system has solved the problem of how to preserve it fresh. At least a dozen new silos will be put up In time for the clover and green corn crops, which means more milk and more butter and cheese. The factory at Falrview will be gin Its milk route east of the Sandv March 1, taking milk from about 30 new patrons who have Just begun to be In terested In selling milk, while the Gresh am factory has arranged to be supplied with from 100 more cows. It will b necessary to enlarge the latter factory, which will be done next month. Grist Mill Improbable. From one of the committee appointed to raise the bonus of $2500 for a grist mill at Falrview, It is learned that the plan will probably fall through for lack of enthusiasm among those who should be the most Interested. It has been fig ured out by some of them that a 30 horsepower mill, with a capacity of 75 barrels per day, will not cost $10,000, and they are of the opinion that the required bonus is too large. One man offered to contribute $1000 if the money were paid back in time, and others are Inclined to be of the opinion that the mill com pany should take all the risk. This the company refuses to do, as it has offers at several other points and 'Will prob ably accept one of them. It Is almost settled that Falrview will not get the mill. Buildings Going Up. Smith's new addition to Gresham has been platted and is being sold in acre lots. Several have been bought and three new houses are going up, with more in contemplation. C. E. Hart and George Sunday are building residences to cost about $500 each, while Mrs. J. F. Clarke will have one much finer. Other improvements aro going on, among which is a windmill tower being built by F. Metzgar. which is 100 feet high and overlooks everything else In Gresham. The place is rapidly forging ahead and gives evidence of being the most pros perous town anywhere in this section. Brief Notes. Lumber for the Methodist parsonage at Rockwood has been all delivered and tha work of putting up the building will be gin in a few days. John Swift, a young man working In a logging camp near the Sandy, was struck by a falling limb and severely Injured on Monday. He suffered a broken right arm and a bad cut on the head, but Is pro gressing favoi.bly. "Work of improving the Section Una road with crushed rock has been finished and the crusher will be moved over to the Base Line road In a few days. Tho latter road has been scraped down in readiness for the new surface dressing. School elections and tax levies are tha principal themes among the people hero just now, and notices are being put up for school meetings next month in all the districts. Most of the schools are run for nine months each year, and great Interest is taken In their welfare. PERSONAL MENTION. Colonel Robert Pollock, of 233 Twelfth street, has so far recovered from his re cent illness that he was able to go to his farm near Cornelius this week. NEW YORK, Feb. 14. Northwestern, people, registered at New York hotels to day as follows: From Portland S. Rosenfeld, at tho Hoffman. From Spokane F. 3. Merrill, at tha Continental. From Seattle J. E. Garsk and wife, at the Hoffman; J. Redelshamer, at tho Her ald Square; G. B. McCulloch and wife, at the Victoria. "WASHINGTON, Feb. 14. General Charles F. Beebe expects to leave foe Portland tonight. Russellville Lyceum. The Russellville Lyceum has resumed meetings in the Blue hall on the Basa Line road. At the last meeting a literary programme was rendered, after which there was a spelling contest. The inter esting feature of the lyceum is the paper read at the meetings called "The Strych nine." It Is edited by Miss "Wyoma Lang and is made red hot The "fighting editor" usually has his hands full for several days after each meeting, owing to personal references made In "Tha Strychnine." He has nothing to do but scrap. J. C. Gill was elected doorkeeper and bouncer. He has to stand at the door and prevent all from entering who can not give assurances they will behave themselves. Those who do not keep or der he throws through the door and tumbles down the stairway without any ceremony. Order Is what Is wanted and what the members will have. Ordination at Baptist Church. The ordination service of J. Howard Everett will take place tonight at 7:30, at the Second Baptist Church. Rev. Ray Palmer will preach the ordination serv ice, and the Rev. E. M. Bliss will de liver the charge to the candidate. Tho Rev. Lapham will give the ordination prayer, and J. Howard Everett will pro nounce the benediction. A cordial Invi tation is extended to the general public. COLUMBIA SPALDING From the beginning the Col umbia has been the best known, the widest Known, and the most largely used of any. single product of the American cycle industry. That the Chainies: Bicycle has come to stay is an assured fact to those who have had an op portunity to study the mechan ism and test its ease of opera tion. The Columbia Chainless is the pioneer, and the Colum bia factory in which they are built, is the most complete plant for chainless construc tion in the world. It is written once a Hartford rider always a Hartford, rider unless you become a Col umbia rider. Our 1901 Hart ford Bicycles surpass anyof our previous efforts. They are without the shadow of a doubt the most desirable bicy cle ever offered for $35. WE WANT good, live agent in every city and town in Oregon and Washington. If Columbia! or Spaldings are not properly represented in your town, write us. i - el ' Wheels sold on easy pay ments. Second-hand bicycles taken in trade for new ones. Sundries at wholesale or re tail. Wait for our sundry catalogue, and we will make you money. American Bicycle Co. Portland Branch Columbia Sales Dept 132-134 Sixth Street In designing our 1901 Spaldings we were guided first, by our intention to perpetuate every distinctive Spalding feature, every characteristic point of excellence which in the past had made bicycles bearing the Spalding nameplate the mount of a great many discriminating riders. We have paid the closest at tention to every suggestion for improvement made by our me chanical engineers and test riders. We are well satisfied with the results and do not think the most fastidious rider can de tect anything that is unpleas-Ing. Our Vedette bicycles are built of seamless tubing, are highly finished, and stand out prom inently as. the finest bicycle ever offered at $25. HARTFORD VEDETTE