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In The Oregonlan should be- addressed invaria
bly "Editor The. 'Oreronlan," not lo the name
Qt say Individual. letters relating to advertis
ing subscriptions or to any business matter
should be addressed simply "The Oregonlan."
The Oregonlan does not buy poems or stories
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purpose.
Paget Sound Bureau Captain A. Thompson,
office at 1111 Pacific avenue, Tacoma. Box 953,
Tacoma Postoffice.
Eastern "Business Office 47, 48. 49 and 69
Tribune bulldlnr, New Tork City; 463 "The
Bookery," Chicago; the S. C Beckwlth special
agency. Eastern representative.
Tor sale In San Francisco by J. K. Cooper,
746 Market street, ear the Palace Hotel; Gold
smith Bros., 230 Sutter street; F. W. Pitts,
JO0S Market street; Foster & Orear, Ferry
news stand.
For-sale in Los Anceles by B. F. Gardner.
259 So. Sprlajr-street, and Oliver & mines, 100
So. Spring street.
For sale- in Chicago by the P. O. News Co.,
2X7 Dearborn street.
For sale in Omaha by Barkalow Bros., 1012
j: arnnam street.
For sale in Salt Lake by the Salt Lake News
Co., 77 W. Second South street.
For sale in Ogden by TV. C. Kind, 204 Twenty-fifth
street.
On file In Washington, D. C., with A. "W.
Dunn, 600 14th N. TV.
On file at Buffalo, N. Y in the Oregon ex
hibit at the exposition.
For aale in Denver, Colo., by Hamilton &
Xendrick, DOC-912 Seventh street.
"wine makes It legal. The upper classes
in Constantinople drink, to excess, their
ancestors did as far baclr as. we can
trace them, and the people is still to
be found which has not used and
abused intoxicating drink. The Turk,
however, never makes any pretext that
he Is drinking for an innocent purpose;
he advertises honestly that he drinks
to-get drunk, and invariably succeeds.
Illegitimacy Is almost unknown among
the Mohammedans, as it is In Ireland,
and the reason in both cases Is early
marriage. Of course, the harem life
would make a case of illegitimacy prac
tically unprovable. "The Thousand and
One lights" is full of testimony to the
vices of drink and unchastity. Prosti
tution is not unknown in Constantinople,
and there is no lack of the disgusting
'Oriental vices that Gibbon refers to in
the decent obscurity of his Latin notes
to the "Decline and FalL"
"WHEAT AND STOCKS.
TODAY'S TVEATHER-Generally fair; west
"to nortli jwinds.
POBTLA3TP, aiOJTDAY, MAY
PORTLAXD'S OPP-ORTUJOTT IX 2TE
HAX.E3I. The report of the officers of the Port
land, Nehalem, & Tillamook Hallway
Company, which Is published elsewhere
in this issue, shows the opening that
awaits Portland"" enterprise In the Ne
halem country. "The area reached by
the first 43 miles of line is capable of
furnishing a -gross traffic in lumber
valued at $5,000,000. This amount, dis
tributed over 10 years. Is an average
revenue of 1500,000 a year, against an
annual Interest charge of $32,500, being
5 per cent on a -$650,000 bond Issue for
building 43 miles. No account Is taken
of traffic from other sources of raw
materials, or from agricultural prod
ucts, the value of which will increase
as the region of production enlarges.
"Nature," says the report, "has created
Portland "as the gateway or seat of
, commerce for that country, and has
supplied us with 50 to 60 years freight
to carry without cultivating the
ground."
Recent investigations have demon
strated that the Nehalem line will not
be so costly in construction as was at
Urst estimated. A more southerly pass
on the jsummit reduces the grade from
2. per cmt to 1J per cent and lowers the
cost of work in proportion. It appears
irom tne report that the transconti
nental lines do not favor direct con
nection between Portland and Nehalem,
but the Northern Pacific has given as
surance in writing that so long as the
Portland, Nehalem & Tillamook is an
independent line going Into Portland It
may use any portion of the Northern's
main line. By this concession, the Ne
halem road can terminate temporarily
at Linijton or Springville, north of the
city, saving a snug sum thereby, and
use tha Northern Pacific track into the
Union, Depot This arrangement is not
altogether satisfactory, as it leaves an
opening for possible diversion of the
Nehalem traffic from Portland. On this
Important point the report says: "Still,
we have the right by law, and shall
exercise it, whenever we complete our
iactension of railway Into Nehalem and
Tillamook, to build to North Portland
a right of which all of the transconti
nental lines combined cannot deprive
us."
The company proposes to build and
have in operation by November or De
cember of this year, 43 miles of road,
which will cost $14,750 per mile, exclu
sive of rolling stock. To do this, the
officers recommend that $650,000 of 5 per
cent, first mortgage bonds be issued,
and that for eauipment $100,000 be
raised on preferred stock. The bonds
are offered to Portland investors with
the suggestion' that they could not do
a greater thing lor the city's prosperity
than to keep the control of this im
portant railway at home. In the pres
ent complexity of the railroad situa
tion on the Pacific Coast and in the
East It may devolve upon Portland to
protect home fields by building inde
pendent railway lines into them. The
Nehalem and Tillamook fields are cases
in point, or rather one case, as a single
line would tap both. This Immense re
gion is at the door of Portland, its re
sources are known to be practically In
exhaustible, and it should market its
products from Portland and buy Its
supplies here. If any one transconti
nental line should control the Nehalem
road there would be great danger that
the traffic of an Immensely rich coun
try would be diverted from Portland.
An independent road would force all
the transcontinental lines which center
here to compete at Portland for 2Ce
halem's business and find a market In
the East tor its lumber and other prod
ucts. This is the .kind of a line we
want, as;It makes Portland the point
of convergence and divergence of all
Nehalem traffic This is an undertak
ing that assures profit to those who
engage In ltfm addition to opening one
of the most resourceful and productive
regions In the JJnited States. It Is an
enterprise that invites the serious con
sideration of Portland capital. The
banks of thtrentire Northwest are glut
ted wltR deposits which have accumu
lated in the past four 'years of good
times. The stock of money Is larger
than ever "before In the history of the
country, and It is constantly growing,
because there is more of a disposition
to hoard than to engage in "business or
help along public utilities. If the Ne
halem railroad bonds will not tempt
money out of the-vaults, what will?
The wheat holder who pins his faith
in better prices for cereal to the theory
that a boom in stocks and other com
modities must pull wheat along with it,
is courting disappointment. It does .not
follow from this that wheat will not
advance in price, but the advance will
not be in sympathy with stocks, or even
corn and pork, but will be a response
to conditions having but little direct
bearing on stocks. As a matter of fact,
the conditions which would make wheat
prices high in this country would have
a tendency to depress stocks, especially
those of the railroads which receive
their largest revenue from the trans
portation of the cereal. The present
wild flurry in stocks Is an unhealthy
ebullition of local sentiment in this
country, aided by the skillful manipu
lation of professional operators. Manip
ulation of this kind could not show
such results with wheat. America is
the sole producer of Atchison, Wabash,
St,. Paul, Manhattan Elevated, Amer
ican Tobacco and similar Wall-street
staples, and the men who are lifting
them to fancy figrures have no fear thai
India, the Argentine, Eussla, Australia,
will cut in under them and demoralize
prices.
With, wheat, the case is different.
America grows only a moderate pro
portion of the wheat that is used in
the world, and the moment that it' is
made a tail to the Wall-street kite the
whole world" will have wheat to sell,
and will take advantage of the Amer
ican manipulation which might be
forcing prices to an unnatural figure.
The difficulty of forcing wheat to a
fancy figure by the same methods as
are now being employed to such great
advantage In stocks was well illus
trated in the experience of the Lelter
wheat boom. By adroit manipulation
the Chicago man succeeded in working
prices up almost to a record-breaking
figure, but when they reached a certain
figure he found America was his only
market, and it was selling and not buy
ing wheat. The fictitious values created
by his manipulation brought out wheat
from all over the world, .and the Eng
lish market, which is really the world's
market, was soon swamped under
heavy offerings which were beyond the
control of the American speculator.
With the decline In the European mar
ket, the American market naturally
followed, but the dethronement of Let
ter and utter collapse of his mammoth
wheat deal caused but a slight ripple
In stock markets. It was thus proved
that wheat and stocks had very little
J In common from a speculative stand
point, and the present strength in the
latter will find little or no reflection In
the wheat market.
There Is no question that a dollar's
worth of wheat, at present moderate
prices, t.s an intrinsic collateral value
greater than a dollar's worth of stock,
which in most cases is largely com
posed of water. Unfortunately for the
wheat-grower, however, the value of
his product is governed and determined
by world-wide conditions, while that of
the stock market is, to a large extent,
made by the juggling and manipulation
of a comparatively few operators in this
country. When the Wall-street juggler
takes a turn at stocks he is working
within the comparatively proscribed
limits of the American market. When
an American wheat operator attempts
to force prices up, he will find the
wheat kings of Rosario, Bombay, Odes
sa, Melbourne and every other big port
on the face of the earth selling out
from under him as soon as his manipu
lation has forced the cereal to a point
where he might make a profit by the
deal.
Wheat Is cheap, and the conditions
are, on the whole, not unfavorable for
an advance, but this advance will not
be due to any assistance from stock
market strength, but from natural con
ditions. Skillful manipulators in Wall
street can frequently add several points
to the value of certain stocks with but
little apparent effort, but when It comes
to forcing the price of wheat, a flock
of hungry chintz bugs or a full family
of Hessian flies in the fields of Kansas
can work all round the stock manipu
lator, and this Is the time of year to
look out for bugs and flies.
mark of esteem. But he doesn't pro
pose to go out and buy It.
Mr. Conger's declaration is welcome
as evidence of a rare quality in public
life the feeling that popular approval
and esteem may be desired honorably,
but, should not be bought or stolen.
There is a finer view, like that of the
lover who prizes favors that are given
him willingly out of affection. There
is a coarser view, like that of the
Oriental Prince who sends his slaves
to drag before him what beauty he will,
or like that of Tarquin, assailing with
smok)ng hot hand the pure breast he
could never win by fair means.
The popular idols who sit in Oregon's
seats of honor, without aid or consent
of political machines, afford a standing
rebuke to the practice of Iowa, where
men go out to sue the smiles of public
approval with force and fraud. Alas,
that public honor should become the
sport of brigandage, and affection be
sued with coin and bludgeon! This is
courtship become rape, which '
. . . Takes oft the rose
From the fair forehead of an innocent love
And seta a blister there.
SOMETHING NEW IN, EXPOSITIONS.
This is emphatically the era of expo
sitions. Never before in our history
has the desine to let the world know,
by sample, so to speak, what we are
and what we can do been so pronouneed
as at the present time. It is a matter
of common knowledge, and indeed of
record, that the expositions held In re
cent years at Philadelphia, Atlanta,
Omaha, New Orleans and Chicago have
had much to do with the remarkable
expansion of American trade, thus ful
filling the prime object which called
them Into existence. The social and
commercial features of these immense
fairs are, of course, not to be depre
ciated, since the touch hetween sections
and the widening of personal acquaint
ance Incident thereto are elements of
accepted value in the general process
of natural growth and prosperity. In
many respects the direct and indirect
benefits to American producers were
far greater from any one of our own
great fairs than those resulting from
any similar show in Paris, even though
our own was Inferior in proportions,
because, being upon our own ground, J
an aggregate display could be made
that was quite impossible at a foreign
exposition. The good thus accom
plished for American trade will doubt
less be more than duplicated by the
Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo,
while later the Lewis and Clark Cen
tennial Exposition in this city will per
form a substantial part along the same
lines, though with special significance
in regard to transcontinental and trans
pacific traffic.
Another form of exposition to which
Wilson, welL known here, was Chief of
the Corps of United States Engineers.
He would have attained his 64th birth
day and been placed on the retired list
on the 8th of October next Had he
remained Chief -until that date, two oth
er officers in the line of promotion, would
have reached the age of 64 and have
been retired without securing the rank
and pay of Brigadiers-General. These
were Colonel Henry M. Roberts, who
was 64 years old May 2,-and Colonel
John W. Barlow, who will be 64 on
June 26. It appears that for" some rea
son General Wilson retired some six
months before his term as Chief of En
gineers expired; that Colonel Roberts
was then appointed Chief and forthwith
retired to give a chance for Colonel
Barlow to be appointed, who also retired
forthwitn.
Colonel Gillespie was then appointed
Chief of Engineers and long may he
wave! This arrangement gave Colonels
Roberts and Barlow the rank of Brigadier-General
and three-fourths pay for
the remainder of their lives, which
probably they are entitled to, and ad
vances every one in the Engineer's de
partment three steps.
LESSON OF JACKSONVILLE'S FIRE
The prohibition of the use of intoxi
cating drink by the Koran is a iiead
fetter statute at present. The passages
in the Koran which forbid It are am
biguous, for the addition: of. water to
THE STRANGE CASE OP CONGER.
"I cannot be a candidate, but will ac
cept the nomination If it is tendered
me." This Is Minister Conger's reply to
the popular demand that he shbuld
stand for Governor of Iowa. In Oregon,
of course, such an attitude would be
appreciated at its true worth. The man
would be given credit for a manly ut
terance and the politicians would abide
by the popular will and nominate him.
But In Iowa, we take it, other things
are to be expected.
In contrast with the Oregon plan of
elevating to the Governorship or the
Senate, those men whose ability and
character are recognized by common
consent as fitting them for preferment,
let us contemplate the Iowan attitude
toward the man who cannot be a candi
date, but will accept If elected. The
answer of the boss to such an utterance
as Conger's Is, "Oh, but you must be a
candidate. You must put $50,000 in the'
pot. Tou must make combinations with
this and that other candidate. You
must put yourself In our hands. You
must promise this and that office to
certain men in return for v'otes to be
delivered. You must ask men to vote
for you and establish headquarters,
with an army of well-paid retainers."
All this, we understand, is precisely
what Mr. Conger doesn't feel like doing.
He thinks the office should seek the
man. -What money he has he needs for
legitimate purposes. He can't stoop to
entreat people to vote for him, he can't
be a candidate, with barrel, press bu-
reau,headquarters and staff. He would
accept If nominated, he would esteem It
an honor, he would welcome such a
American ingenuity and enterprise may
well give attention is found in the pro
posal made awhile ago by O. P. Austin,
Chief of the Bureau of. Statistics of the
Treasury Department. It is that a
floating, exposition be organized to
enable American exporters and manu
facturers to exhibit their products at
the doors of the people to whom they
wish to sell. Since this suggestion was
first made, but a few months ago, sev
eral minor enterprises of this char
acter have been undertaken, both in
Europe and the United States. It would
be a pity if' Europeans were to outstrip
Americans in reducing to practical use
a suggestion which, in- origin and char
acter 15 distinctly American, Mr, Aus
tin's plan has much to commend it. It
simply proposes to put into operation
on a large and magnificent scale the
commercial traveler method.
The American commercial traveler
understands his business and works it
Industriously. The floating exposition,
properly manned, would be the Amer
ican commercial traveler multiplied, in
tensified and equipped for Increased and
Increasing business, and the resulf of
its travels could not fall to vastly in
crease American trade. Mr. Austin's
plan proposes:
"A. floating exhibition to visit the
cities bordering upon the Gulf of Mex
ico and Caribbean Sea has been organ
ized at Buffalo, and will be made ready
during the Summer and leave In the
Autumn of the present year for that
field, and a number of other enterprises
of this character have been suggested.
The details of the operation are simple
and practical. The syndicate under
taking it addresses to manufacturing
and commercial firms circulars explain
ing the purpose of the exhibition and
the terms of participation. As soon as
the number of would-be participants is
large enough to permit the loading of a
vessel the exhibitors send their sam
ples to the port of departure. These
samples are then mounted and exhibit
ed on board the vessel especially fitted
for the purpose.
"Alongside of each exhibit there is an
advertisement giving prices and terms
of sale. Sales agents representing either
the syndicate or the individual exhibit
ors furnish all desired Information to
the visitors at the various ports where
the vessel stops. Interpreters are hired
on the spot in each country of a new
language. The sales agents, besfdes
seeing visitors aboard the ship, visit
also with their samples the towns in
the interior of the country.
"The exhibitors pay to the syndicate
a commission, to be deducted from the
realized sales and in proportion to the
value of the product. In addition to
this commission, the participants pay
a proportionate share of the cost of
chartering and loading the vessel and
the general expenditure of the under
taking." The plan for a floating exposition thus
outlined, to be fitted out with the spe
cial purpose of" extending trade with
our Central and South American neigh
bors, will doubtless appeal strongly to
the practical common sense of our
manufacturers, and the floating expo
sition will in due time become an ad
vance agent for the extension of Amer
ican trade.
A recent horrible murder near Pitts
burg inspired the Introduction of a biU
in the Legislature of Pennsylvania pro
viding the death penalty for the crime
of burglary. The text of this bill is as
follows:
?n TY ,Pon sha" b nibt willfully and
S! Crlr,bre.al or ent,h,to any public
.umff w me commonwealth, or
to any city or county, or to any body, corpo
rate society or association, or Into any church,
meeting-house, shop, warehouse or dwelllnsr
house. with Intent to kill, rob, steal or com
mit any felony whatever, whether the feloni
ous intent he executed or not. shall, on con-
ctlon. be adjudged ffnUtpf felonious bur
glary and be sentenced So"Surfer. death by
hanging from the neck., "
In support of the above, -t is urged!
"7L "unwary is always a premeditated
crime; that it Is usually committed by
the most dangerous of professional
criminals, and that it always involves
the possibility of murder. Many a man
has been hanged for killing another in
a moment of passion who was far less
dangerous to society than the burglar
who is prepared, not ,only to rob, but
to kill if necessary to his awn safety,
while in pursuit of his purpose to rob.
In this view, the burglar, the kidnaper
and the trainwrecker all belong to a
class of villains who ure more unfit to
live when taken in their crimes than
are some of the murderers whom the
law condemns to the gallows. The bill
noted has not, so far as we have ob
served, become a law, but many a
measure of far less interest to the
public is upon the-statute-books', not
only of Pennsylvania, but of Oregon,
than this proposed law. Public senti
ment in Pennsylvania would no doubt
be more apt to sanction its enacrmpnf
-than would that of i some other sta'tes,
wpeciuny mose or the Middle West,
where it has become the fashion to
sympathize with criminals as poor, mis
begotten creatures, who should not be
held to a too strict accountability for
crimes against the more prosperous
element in society.
Tennessee furnished more troops to the
Northern Army than any other seceding
Southern State, the total numw nf
J Union enlistments there beintr 31.000.
There were 8200 in Arkansas, 6200 in
Louisiana, 3200 in North Carolina, and
2500 In Alabama. Many of the most im-
portant battles of the civil War were
fought within the boundaries of Ten
nessee, and there are now resident in
It 18,250 Union war pensioners. East
Tennessee furnished nearly all the re
cruits to the Northern Army, and near
ly all the war pensioners of the Federal
Government from that state reside in
Its eastern counties. Recently the
Board of Trustees of the Federal Home
for Disabled .Volunteer Soldiers decided
to establish a branch at Johnson City,
Washington County, 100 miles north
east of Knoxville, the present
"branches" being in Ohio, Wisconsin,
Maine, Virginia, Kansas, California,
Illinois and Indiana. There are 25,000
disabled volunteer soldiers at these,
but there is now no Home farther
South than Hampton, Va.
Last year at this time men were
standing in long lines before the ticket
windows of boom transportation com
panies in Seattle, begging for the privi
lege of paying the high rate stipulated
for passage to Nome. Now agents of
the same companies, or their receivers,
are frantically attempting to work up
Nome business by offering rates of
transportation, passenger and freight,
which will leave them but a very mod
est margin of profit, If, indeed, they do
not result in loss. Rival companies are
engaged in a ratecutting business which
will try the longest purse severely, and
is likely to make quick work of the
shortest. Of course, there Tvas nothing
legitimate in this transportation push'
in the first place. That is to say, there
was nothing bearing the stamp of hon
est business to justify It That It
should end In the dismal repast known
as "dog eat dog" Is not strange.
BRIGADIERS WHILE YOU WAIT.
There has been uncertainty of late as
to who has been Chief of United States
Engineers. Among 'the appointments
telegraphed from Washington, April 29,
were the following:
Chief of Engineers, with rank of Brigadier
General. John Barlow, George L. Gillespie,
Henry M. Roberts.
Now, it is generally understood that
there canbe only one Chief of Engi
neers in the United States Army, whilst
here were three appointed, presumably
In one day, and nothing definite as to
which was "it." After wondering and
puzzling over the matter for several
days, the dispatches finally announced
that George L. Gillespie is Chief of En
gineers.. Before these lightning change ap
pointments were made, General 'J. M.
Recent statements of the press to the
effect that the oil well struck in Texas
in January, from which 25.000 barrels
of oil flowed daily, is the most prolific
well ever struck in the world, is dis
proved by a showing of the Consul at
Baku, in Russia. According to this
showing, a well was struck in that dis
trict last June that continued flowing"
until early In August at the rate of 37,
000 barrels daily.- He recalls also an
other well in the same district which
started off at 100,000 barrels a day, pro
ducing in less than forty days 4,000,000
barrels. The United States is a great
country, and Texas is a great state,
but according to this showing "there
are others" when It comes to spouting
oil.
What distressing things do happen at
times! Here, for example, comes the
Astoria Tobacdo and Liquor Dealers'
Association solemnly pledging its mem
bers to boycott the churches and to re
fuse the right hand of fellowship, so to
speak, to members of the Ministerial
Association of that city. What, it may
be asked, has- become of the liberties
guaranteed byour glorious institutions,
if the cruel boycott is allowed thus to
eat its way into the very sustenance of
a class, of worthy citizens?
The Jacksonville fire, with all Its sick
ening train of known and unknown trage
dies, will at least force home, upon the
American people tha necessity of finding,
and that without delay, some inexpensive
fireproof building material. A corps of
brave, well-drilled firemen and a copious
water supply ace of little avail against
such inflammable structures as those in
which the Florida fire originated. Man
Is at best a short-sighted creature, or
he would have learned before this o
use less lumber and more iron and stone.
Wood is indispensable for certain uses,
namely, where non-conductivity of heat
and electricity are essential. For these
uses It should be reserved. But not until
I our American forests have been shorn of
their glory will this lesson be learned.
No nation, other than our own, makes
such lavish use of wood, or has developed
a lumber Industry of such enormous pro
portions; and for this reason, so we are
told by Mr. Fernow, director of the New
York State College of Forestry, that no
other country In the world has been so
blessed with useful trees as the United
States We use every year eight times
as much wood and more than three times
as much lumber as the frugal Germans;
and at least four times as much lumber
as our cousins in Great Britain, who
have to import almost every stick they
use, and have learned to substitute stone
and iron wherever possible. The wood
bill of the United States Is one thousand
million dollars a year.
Until this wealth of virgin forest shows
I signs of exhaustion it is useless to ex
pect the average American builder' to turn
his attention to iron and stone, which
entail greater Jabor and expense, and
slower methods of construction, The di
rect result of the Jacksonville confla
gration, therefore, will be seen in quite
another direction, that of perfecting and
adopting some system of fireprooflng
wood that will retard, if not entirely pre
vent the wholesale loss of life and prop
erty by fire.
Science has been dealing with this prob
lem of fireprooflng wood with notably
good results during the past two years.
The latest method, Invented and success
fully developed by Joseph L. Ferrell, of
Philadelphia, Is described in a recent
number of the Scientific American. The
process differs from those which have
preceded It In several important particu
lars, among which may be mentioned the
following: The wood lsx not subjected
to any steaming or vacuum process for
the purpose of emptying the cells of the
wood by withdrawing the sap, prepara
tory to Injecting the fireprooflng liquor.
Again, the fireprooflng liquor Is forded
into the wood under a much greater hy
draulic pressure than has hitherto been
used, or even attempted, with the result,
as claimed, and that very rationally, that
fireprooflng is not only accomplished with
the least possible alteration of -the physi
cal properties of the wood, but, owing
to the extremely high pressure used, it
is accomplished much more rapidly, and
with more perfect saturation. The high
pressure approaching 1000 pounds to the
square inch makes It possible to secure
saturation to the very heart of the Wood,
even when large sizes, up to 12 by 12, are
being treated.
Two planks of white pine, ,each meas
uring 1 Inch by 8 inches by 13 feet, were
subjected to treatment exactly 10 min
utes. The liquor commenced to penetrate
the pores of the wood as soon as the
pressure reaohed 400 pounds. Before treat
ment the wood welehed Just 35. pounds.
dry; afterwards, 69 pounds, making an
absorption of practically 100 per cent in
10 minutes. Kiln-drying followed, the
moisture being evaporated and the salts
deposited upon the walls of the cellular
structure of the-wood in the form of ex
tremely fine salt crystals. When the
kiln-drying Is completed, the gain in
the weight of the wood is from 5 to 10 per
cent.
Contrary to what might be expected, the
enormously high pressures to which the
wood is subjected do not appear to injure
in any way Its physical properties. Lab
oratory tests show that the compressive
and bending strength of treated wood is
appreciably Increased, while treatment
does not in any way impair the ability of
the wood properly to take paint, varnish,
of polish, the specimens tested retaining
the native color of the wood, and the var
nished surfaces being fully equal to those
of untreated specimens. The flreproofed
wood is no harder to work with tools.
although, as might be expected, the tools
require more frequent sharpening.
The absolute fireproof qualities of wood
thus treated have been proved beyond
question by a number of experiments upon
lumber of various sizes. The excessively
hot flame of the Bunsen burner will make
a piece of treated wood glow to a cherry
red, but the Instant the flame is removed
the glow Is extinguished under the action
of the ammonia fumes from the salts.
Shavings and sawdust of flreproofed wood
may be soaked in benzine and ignited.
The benzine will burn away, leaving the
substance of the wood practically "un
touched. In fact, one might as well at
tempt to burn asbestos as to burn these
flreproofed shavings.
It is hoped that the next step in im
provement will be to" reduce the cost of
treating wood by this process. In the
case of a framed cottage whose total cost
was $3000, 5615 was paid for the wood, and
J1050 for fireprooflng it, making the cost
of fireprooflng It 35 per cent of the total
cost .of the house. The expense of fire
prooflng the wood In a Colonial stono
house worth $14,000 was 18 per cent of
the whole, while In a nine-story office
building costing $400,000 the fireprooflng
was only 1.7 per cent of that amount.
On the whole, however, the expense of
fireprooflng even after considering the
reduction, or possibly the total elimina
tion of the Item of Insurance is too great
for the purse of the common man. But
let the expense once be reduced and
the process can hardly fall to d uni
versally adopted.
AMUSEMENTS
In "A Suit of Sable," a light and pleas
ing comedy which was given last night
at Cordrays, the Belasco & Thall Com
pany had the best opportunity yet afford
ed them to show their strength as an
organization. Although the part of Dor
othea, played by Miss Roberts, is the
one around which the action centers, it
does not dominate the whole play, as do
Sapho and Nell Gwynn, and the other
members of the company have a chance
to do a little something on their own ac
count. The Dlot of the comedy is not intri
cate, but it is consistent and the dia
logue is unusually bright and true to
life. The situations are all good, and
the comedy element is kept constantly
foremost, so that there are no drags or
lapses Into sentimental drama. The
story briefly is this: Dorothea Van
Dresser, daughter of an ancient family.
Is confined for nine years of her girl
hood in a convent and taught nothing
but text-books and manners. Being
transferred to her father's home at a.
she yearns for an opportunity to throw
off restraint, and finally forms and exe
cutes a wild plan to do a dance at a
high Jinks of some of her bachelor
friends,, disguised as a dancer. She is
discovered in this escapade by her fath
er, and condemned to a trip to Europe
with a maiden aunt. Of course, the sen
tence (s not carried out. Jack Willough
by. who loves her, and who she loves
(of course, neither suspects the other's
passion). Is shocked by her appearance
at the dance, and effeats a "show down"
by declaring himself. Thus the play ends
happily, and the chapter ending in "for-t
ever after" begins with the drop of the
last curtain.
As Dorothea, Miss Roberts well dis
plays her versatility, for the character Is
utterly unlike either she has played , in
Portland before, and she does it remark
ably well. She Invests the Impetuous,
rule-ridden girl with a delightful sense
of humor, and her every scene Is thor
oughly enjoyable. The part Is by far the
most pleasing in which she has been seen
here.
Clarence Montalne makes a dignified
Stuyvesant Van Dresser and earns a full
share of the applause In the scenes in
which he appears. Lucius Henderson
seems to be a little too much 'aware that
he is being looked at. but his work in
the part of Jack, the lover, was earnest,
and he made an excellent foil to Miss
Roberts. Carlyle Moore, as Tom Fol
lansbee, did an excellent bit of character
work; Jack Morris made a good Willie
Lead, and George Webster was a. cap
ital butler.
Miss Juliet Crosby, as Mrs. Cruger,
was a charming picture of a society wo
man, and wore some very handsome
gowns. Lillian Armsby was a good maid;
Miss Stella Razeta did a brief but splen
did piece of comedy as Cllquot. the real
dancer, and Miss Marie Howe was :an Im
posing Aunt Matilda.
The play Is staged and costumed elab
orately. It will be the attraction to
night and tomorrow night.
"NATHAN HALE" TONIGHT.
Clyde FHch'a Play at the Mnrqnam.
At the Marquam Grand Theater to
night, Tuesday night and Wednesday
night the attraction will be Clyde
Fitch's well-known historical play, "Na
than Hale," with Howard Kyle In the
name part. The play was among the ear
liest and best work of the celebrated
playwright, and antedates many of the
historical pjays now on the stage. It Is
a short and simple story of the life of
the hero who was such a- romantic figure
In history, the earlier chapters being full
of comedy scenes In which Alice Adams,
Hale's sweetheart, figures pre-eminently.
The play is said to be handsomely staged
and in the hands of actors who afford
Mr. Kyle adequate support The sale ofj
seats has been unusually good. '
A Generous Offer.
Astoria News.
ASTORIA, May 3,-JIy dear Miss Port
land: While I do not always approve of
your actions, and think you are inclined
to be very affected at times, I wisn you
to understand that I am heartily In
sympathy with' the effort you are making
for the Lewis and Clark fair, and It is
my sincere wish that the exposition will
be most successful. If I can be of any
service to you (even to the extent oi
spelling the name. Clark without the
"e"), command me. Very truly yours,
MISS ASTORIA.
Notes of the Stase.
Florence Roberts has sat for her photo
sraph over 600 times.
jtrnest Beton Tnompson, tne "Animal
Man," calls himself Seton, not Thompson.
Harry Corson Clarke will play "What
Did Tompkins Do?" at Cordray's in the
near future.
Wallie Collier has made the hit of! his
life in "On the Qulet,,k and is spoken of
as the successor of N. C. Goodwin.
Juliet Crosby of the Belasco & Thall
company, is the wife of Mr. Belasco and is
a well-known leading woman, who has
made a reputation of her own.
' ii
Onr Immense Gold Holdings,
New York TJmes.
A recent dispatch from .Washington
called attention to the very large amount
of gold now In the Treasury, larger than
ever before, and, according to the dis
patch, greater than the amount of gold
in the national banks of any other country.
Unquestionably the accumulation Is in
excess of any In our history. But in
comparing it with the stock, in the for
eign banks, there Is possibility of some
confusion. There is, in fact, no exact
parallelism between the stock of our
Government and that of the various for
eign banks. The total gold In the Treas
ury Is $528,792,067. Of this more than one
half $283,646,9S9-is held solely on deposit
against gold certificates, and cannot be
regarded as in the possession or in the
control of the Government. Of the re
mainder $245)45,078 the reserve held
against outstanding legal tenders consti
tutes $150,000,000. This leaves practically
less than $100,000,000. The gold reserves
of the' foreign banks, which can only
roughly be compared with the $245,000,000
of the Treasury, are as follows, according
to the Financial Chronicle of April 20:
Bank of Gold.
England . $175,733,835
France 485,675,545
Germany 141,335,000
Russia 369.840.000
Austria-Hungary 193,340,000
While a strict comparison of the gold
reserve In our Treasury with that of Eu
ropean banks cannot be made, the fact
that our reserve Is larger than ever be
fore is a matter of congratulation, be
cause It results in part from the great
prosperity of the country, and in part
from the great Improvement in our cur
rency system. It must not be forgotten,
however, that the compulsory reissue of
the legal tender notes for which $150,000,
000 of the reserve is held Is still a part
of that system, and the time may come
when the reserve will not be adequate.
The wise use of our present prosperity
would be to abolish that dangerous pro
vision when it would not make a ripple
on the surface of business.
The Name Commended.
Will Governor Geer have to stand be
tween the silly women who signed the
Patterson petition for pardon and their
sex, by refusing to grant the request?
Is there any punishment too severe for
the crime Patterson committed, and
was it for protection of women that
the law was designed against vicious- I measure of success as we as a people
ness such, as his?
Gervals Star.
Whafs In a name? Everything! The
coming Oregon centennial In 1905 at Port
land has an appropriate name. It's a lit
tle long, to be sure, but It tells the whole
story with a little sentiment additional.
Instead of "where rolls the Oregon" it
will, later on, be: "See the people roll
into Oregon." Now, that our fair Is no
longer a- shadow, let all lend to Its fullest
lhave never done before.,
A Birth Notice.
Dalles Chronicle.
The first child born in the new mining
camp of Ashwood made Its appearance
on the 21st ult. It is of the female per
suasion and the little lady evidently
came to port without ballast, for she
weighed only four pounds. But the
miners are Just as. proud of her as if she
had weighed a ton, and on her arrival
they promptly put up a purse of $50 to be
put out at interest and presented to her
when she comes of age. The little one
belongs to Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Thomas,
and they have christened her Oregon.
May she live till that $50 investment
makes her as rich as Hetty Green.
X0TEAD COMME-XT. : J
Omaha Justice, It seems,, is not only
blind, but deaf and dumb.
The corner In rn will not keep-whlskjr
from going down right, along, j
A few more days like this and the Sun-"
day schools will begin to fill up.
The cup challenger Is always a phe-i
nomenally fast craft until the day ofthe
big race. - -
Agulnaldo Is keeping quiet these days,
but he is probably getting ln,a new. stock
of patriotism.
Thus far the shirt-waist man. has con
fined his appearance to the columns oC
the comic papers.
A three-tailed comet has been sighted at
Cape Town. Are not the British a lit
tle premature In celebrating?
"We'll never know for certain
That the gentle Spring has come.
"Till w hear the dread mosquljo
Golnsr hum-m-m-m-m-m-m-m-m
Perhaps that professor who says he
never kissed a girl is merely anxious to
exchange his chair In his college for one
in a museum.
Chief Klpley, of Chicago, has been re
tired. As he has made $300,000 while lal
office, he certainly ought to be wilUngMoi
pas3 the Job along. -
In answer to Inquiries concernlngf the.
authorship of the "Rip Van Winkle"
letters, recently appearing in The Ore
gonlan. It may be said that their writer
is Rev. C. E. Cllne, D. D., the Portland
minister.
Kansas witnesses in liquor cases are In
the habit of pretending not to know whuc
they bought at raided Joints. At Burling
ton the other day a witness swore thuc
he had purchased a number of "lon,c
necks," and that was all the Prosecuting
Attorney could get out of him. Tha pre-'
siding Judge sent the witness to Jail fo.
contempt. In half a day the man pleadtd
for his release, and, upon being brought
back to the courtroom, he explained that
a "Ions neck" was a "high ball." T.u
Judge and Prosecuting Attorney needed
no more light on the- subject. The wit
ness was excused and the Jointkeeper
convicted.
A recent Issue of a musical Journal pub
lished at Lelpslc, Germany, contained
the following curious advertisement!
"Wanted, a skilled musician, who can
compose before warm weather begins a
tragic opera in one act. The author of
the libretto will place at the disposal o
the composer a house, which Is furntehed
with a piano and Which is situated near
the sea in a most idyllic and romantic
country; furthermore, the composer will
be well fed and supplied with all neces
sary fuel. A poor but gifted artist ought
to be able to make his fortune In! a place
like this, and, under conditions such as ,
are here proposed. Those who apply for
the situation are requested to send 'bio
graphical notices of themselves to the
office of this paper."
Queen Victoria's favorite form of gift
was an Indian shawl. Thousands of these
articles of attire were presented by her
In the course of her long reign. King Ed
ward Is exhibiting a partiality for dis
tributing etchings and engravings among
his friends. His Majesty, who, white
Prince of Wales, was an industrious col
lector of "bjack and white" drawings
found himself the possessor of thousands
of duplicate copies of pubUshed works. o ,
art upon succeeding" to hia motnejra
unique collection. He has therefore- set
if apart a big store or drawings to be turnedf
to whenever he desires to make a per
sonal gift. When one considers thit,
apart from frequent liberal purchases of
Works of art, both Queen Victoria and
King Edward accepted copies of the ma
jority of notable etchings and engravings
published in the last quarter of a century
and more, the magnitude of His Majesty's
present collection can be imagined. His.
friends are naturally gratified that he has
decided to weed It out for their benefit.
"The morning after our arrival at the
hotel in Caracas." says W. E. Curtis, "I
called for a glass of milk while dressing.
On every subsequent morning during our
stay a glass of milk was brought to me
at precisely the same hour. Without in
structions; and although the servant was
told several times that it was not want
ed, she did not appear to understand,
and continued to bring it Just the same.
"In the hotel were electric bells. The
flrst day I rang for something, and a cer
tain boy answered the summons. The
next morning I rang again and again,
and no one responded- Finally I went into
the dining-room and found there half a
dozen servants.
" 'Didn't you hear jay bell ring? I
asked.
" 'SI, senor' (Yes, sir), was the reply.
" 'Then why didn't you answer it?'
" The boy that aHswers" your excel
lency's bell has gone IcTmarket with the
manager.'
" 'But you knew he was not here, and
you should have come in His place. k
" 'No, senor? It is nls occupation to
answer your bell. I answer the bell of
the gentleman in the next room.'
"And as long as I remained in that
hotel my bell was answered only by the
one particular boy. 1$ he was not in.
I could ring for an hour without receiv
ing a response, although the house was
full of idle seravnts."
Reciprocity.
Boise News,
A large number of Oregon papers are
giving extensive notice of the approach
ing session of the International Mining
Congress. They should urge that their
state be largely represented and Idaho
ans will remember the fact at the time of
the great Lewis and Clark exposition.
The Trne Situation.
Dalles Chronicle.
Some one has pertinently remarked that
so far as the United States is concerned,
the situation is Just this: Cuba shall have
the right to do as she pleases as long
as she pleases to do right.
PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPHEllS
"How did you like the pictures at the art ex
hibition?" "Splendid. I met everybody and.X
never received more attention in my life."
Philadelphia Times.
JTamma Why, Susie, you've offered your
butterscotch to everybody but little brother.
Why didn't you hand It to him? Susie (with
Innocent candor) Because, mamma, little
brother always takes It. Current Literature.
Defined. "Paw," said the heir, "what Is an
expert accountant?" "An expert accountant."
replied the father, "la a man who becomes
famous by robbing: a bank for two years be
fore he Is discovered." Ohio State Journal.
"What He Regretted. "Baxter says he caught
you carrying aronnd the umbrella that: he lost
two months aco." "Tea. and the meanest
part of It la that I had been fool enough to
gro and have It repaired." Cleveland Plain
Dealer.
Show Sunday. Fair Non-Purchaslngr Patron
ess (examining portrait of a friend exhibited
In his studio by rising- young artist) How
lovely! Quite too charming! (As if much as
tonished.) And so like her, too! ("With con
viction.) Honestly (to rising young artist),
I've never seen anythlns so marvelous, even
In a good picture! Punch.
Friendship's Tribute. The man at whoso
funeral they -were assembled hadn't drawn a
sober breath durlns the last 15 years of hi
life, and had been noted for being always In
trouble with his neighbors. "Well." said one
of his old acquaintances, turning sadly away
aftr the services were over, "he was a man
of mighty reg'lar habits." Chicago Tribune.
Inopportune. "I Just saw the young "Widow
Weeds. She looked Just charming In her
mourning," said the pretty woman. "I sup
pose," remarked her crotchety husband "that
you wouldn't mind being a widow yourself,"
"Oh! It's hateful of you to tali that way,
when you know I've got a blue silk waist that
I hayent' worn out yet." Philadelphia Press,
fi