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THE MORNING OREGONIAN TUESDAY, JULY 9, 1901.
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POBvTLAJVD, TUESDAY, JULY 9, 1001.
JTO REASON FOR IT.
Though the importation of tea is
telowly increasing, the Pacific Coast
ports receive no benefit from it The
country as a whole imported 70,000,000
pounds of tea in 1898, 74,000,000 in 1899
and 84,000,000 pounds in 1900, but the
imports through Pacific ports are sta
tionary at about 1,000,000 pounds.
This stagnation in direct trade across
the Pacific may be due to the tax on
tea. The tax operates equally, it is
true, but here on this coast is espe
cially felt the lack of return cargoes
- or ships that take over our wheat,
Sour and lumber. It is Interesting to
observe, also, that members of the tea
trade, who favored the tax, are seeing
their mistake. They said it would dis
courage the use of cheap tea. The
actual effect is the reverse. One of
J these short-sighted worthies is thus
quoted:
The retail dealer could not raise his price at
all because his competitor had on hand some
old teas which he was selling on the old basla
The retailer, therefore, has been buying lea
staiSljrpeorer than before in order to meet
4ti taltor's figures. If the duty continues
j fW9 years longer tea will be reduced to one
! st a low price. The retailer who had
i Warn te the habit of buying 35-cent tea now
1 fsay .IB-cent tea in bond and pays 10 cents
laSr-MiMr'lM collects in turn from the con
MMr. The effect has been to discourage the
mwr res of tea, which are now sold at
4siMMtJthe. same prices as before the duty.
Trig hurrnmr'r'irnp teas get poorer teas than
tor the buyers of good teas get what
to at about the same price, and the
yay the tax.
Btaanint testimony to the correct-
' paM of this assertion is borne by the
Ooyfniment statistics. In 1893 we im-
s prt4 7f .&00.000 pounds of tea worth
Xlijm.m, and in 1900 we imported 34,-
"" 9MW -pounds of tea worth also $10,
Mt,IM. The tea we get now is so much
f lumper -that we buy 84,000,000 pounds
for -what we used to pay for 70,000,000
pounds. Yet if there is any change in
the price of tea of any uniform grade
It isupward.
" "We ot & tax on tea and no tax on
, because the ugar trust wanted
4Jrtrade In coffee to beat Arbuckle
,-witn, ana oecause tne tea traae tnougnr.
they could use it to Improve the grade
In use. Another reason was the Treas
ury needed the money. If there are
any other reasons for its laying or
jjgalnst its abrogation by Congress at
the December session, we should be
glad to have them pointed out.
The tax on tea operates just like the
lax on wool. A man who "wears $15
suits of clothes isn't going to pay $20
lor the same grade if it is taxed $5.
The family that uses 35-cent tea willj
pay that price after the tax of 10 cents
a pound is laid, and take what it can
get. -
ARGENTINA'S DIFFICULTIES.
Later dispatches tend to discredit the
fast Teport that Argentina was about
to rise en masse against the govern-
eatls.pjau for refunding the national
jebt SChlsJs-disconcertlng. As misery
lore company, so does folly; and It
""would .hive been pleasant for this na
tion, which settles mint ratios by ap
peal to popular vote, to find in the Ar
gentine a national crisis turning upon
the rate of interest on a public debt
With them, however, as with us,
there are mitigating circumstances.
Part of the disaffection at Buenos
Ayres is caused by the scallng-down
process the republic inclines to with its
creditors. Originally the heavy provin
cial debts bequeathed from the Baring
boom and failure were converted by the
national government into bonds of
lower denominations. The foreign debt
aggregated $437,700,000, and the Internal
debt was $6,375,000 gold and $105,951,300
paper. It is now proposed to convert
the foreign debt again and the Inter
est reduced.
The Argentine Government, In fact.
has the hardest kind of a time to get
along. Though it manages to keep its
gold revenue above the indispensable
gold expenditure, it has the paper habit
in an exaggerated form, and annually
rn.akes a much larger paper expendi
ture than it takes paper receipts. The
paper dollar as a medium of exchange
I is quoted at considerably less than one-
I halt the gold dollar.
Added to this are the crop difficulties.
i A correspondent of the London Econo
mist, writing May 19 from Buenos
Ayres, reported that the great staple,
wool, was of an inferior quality and
that the other great staple, wheat,
-would show a deficiency. Speaking
generally of the foreign trade, he said:
The shrinkage la exports is S per cent, and
In imports 11 per cent, the combined value of
both being nearly $10,000,000 gold lees than in
the same period of last year, when tne decline
In trade set in. As the first quarter of the
year is always the. busiest It Is to be feared
,tht the returns for tho second one will be
still more unfavorable, and the receipts from
customs up to date, which are published dally,
unmistakably point that way.
General Interest In Argentine affairs,
especially her competitive cattle and
wheat productions, is now enhanced
for Oregon by reason of ex-Chief Jus
tice and ex-Governor Lord's presence as
United States Minister there. The
place is one beneath his capacity, but
if international complications should
arise, the Government would And itself
fortunate in having: him there. Given
the opportunity, and Minister Lord
would' exhibit diplomatic ability of
high order. When we consider the pre
cariousness and costliness of domestic
politics, it is not strange that a diplo
matic career offers serious temptations
to men of civic ambition and high char
acter. In the twentieth century our
important diplomatic relations will
more and more require such men at
foreign posts.
PROTECTION IS REFUSED.
Mention was made in Sunday's Ore
gonlan of the charter of the big steel
American ship Astral to load wheat at
San Francisco for the "United Kingdom,
and now comes the news that the
steamship Oregonian, one of the very
latest additions to America's merchant
marine, has been chartered for similar
work. These engagements are very
serious matters for the shipping sub
sidy grafters. They have repeatedly told
us that the protection afforded them
in jthe "coastwise" trade was all that
enabled American ships to keep afloat,
and that the withdrawal of that pro
tection meant financial ruin to their
owners. Now we are confronted with
the spectacle of two of the very finest
representatives of America's merchant
marine being withdrawn from the pro
tected coastwise trades and put in com
petition with British, German, Italian,
French and Norwegian ships.
Of course, the owners of these ships
may not be familiar with their busi
ness, but as the Astral is owned by the
Standard Oil Company and the Ore
gonlan by some of the oldest shipping
men in America, it is hardly probable
that they will lose any money by
switching over from the coastwise to
the foreign tijp.de. As a matter of fact,
the only trip the Astral ever made be
tween American ports was when she
"coasted" down from the Maine yards,
where she was built, to New York,
where she loaded for Shanghai. Had
the theory of the subsidy beggars been
correct, the operations of this fine ship
would have been confined to trading
between American ports. The rate re
ported for the Oregonian is 40 shillings
per ton, which is the same rate paid
for the British steamship Glenlochy,
which was chartered a few days earlier,
and the Italian steamship F. S. Clampl,
which was chartered yesterday for ex
actly the same business.
The withdrawal of these American
ships from the coastwise trade is not
the only thing that is making the de
mands for a subsidy appear more ridic
ulous every day. The workings of the
subsidy scheme as presented by the
French fleet now headed for the Pacific
Coast offer an admirable illustration of
the injustice worked on the taxpayers.
There are thirteen French ships headed
for Portland, and all but two of them
are coming in ballast Not one of these
ships is bringing freight from a French
port, and not one of them has carried
freight to a French port for the past,
year, and yet the French Government
will bq called on to pay the owners of
this fleet something like $150,000 sub
sidy for the trip to Portland and re
turn. The subsidy is of benefit to no
one but the owners, and the French
shipper in need of tonnage with which
to move freight finds the rate regu
lated, not by the French subsidized fleet,
but by the fleets of the world, with
which it is brought in competition.
Grain freights out of Portland today
are exactly the same under all flags,
and If the Astral and the Oregonian
were today drawing a Subsidy which
their owners are seeking, the rate
would be exactly the same as that paid
the British, German and other ships
for similar business. In other words,
the subsidy would all go to the ship
owner, and 'the producer would pay not
only full rates for Jils freight, but in
addition his share of the subsidy tax,
from which he would derive no bene
fits whatever.
SICKLES ONCE 2IORE.
General Sickles has grown very angry
over the matter of what he describes
as the promised removal of Pension
Commissioner Evans. He says, among
other things, that "on November 27 last
the assurances of the Republican Na
tional Committee that Commissioner
Evans would be superseded were rati
fied by the President in the presence of
a number of representative 6oldiers
from different parts of the country
when we visited him at the White
House by appointment to congratulate
him upon his re-election. He then
stated tp us that it was his intention
to choose a successor to Commissioner
Evans at the expiration of his term of
office. The testimony of these gentle
men will be given If necessary. The
same assurance was given to me In the
week followlnr inauguration In March
last when the President gave me the
name, confidentially, of the successor
to Commissioner Evans whom he had
chosen."
On June 17 last General Sickles wrote
the President a letter, urging him
"without further -delay to make an ap
pointment which will satisfy the al
most universal desire of your comrades
In the Civil War for a change in the
Pension Bureau." General Sickles now
gives notice that "if Evans is not re
moved there will be music." General
Sickles bitterly denounces the leading
newspapers of the country for their
"constant attacks upon the old soldiers
and the G. A. R." It will trouble Gen
eral Sickles to find anything in the
press criticism he complains about so
severe an attack upon the G. A. R. than
is found in the following extract from
General Sickles' letter to President Mc
Klnley: If you continue the present Commissioner in
office, jou will find yourself in painful conflict
with the sentiments of the Civil War veterans,
who, with almost entire unanimity gave ou
.their cordial support In November last. So
strong Is this feeling in Kansas and Kebrasita,
for example, that, in my judgment, botn of
those states would vote for Bryan, if an elec
tion were to come oft tomorrow.
General Sickles here says that If Com
missioner Evans should be retained, the
G. A. R., as a body, in Kansas and
Nebraska, would change their vote of
i900 and now vote for Bryan; or, in
other words, the only Issue for the
Grand Army fn 1900 was not honest
money, National credit, the honor of
the American flag in the Philippines,
but pensions. If any newspaper which
has ventured to question the merit of
the existing pension system ever said
as mean.a thing of the G. A. R. as that
Quoted from General Sickles' lotlac. -we
have never seen it. The G. A. R. ought
to be preserved from such friends and
champions as General Sickles.
FARMING BY MAP.
A soli map, printed in colors, will
soon be issued by the Department of
Agriculture, the object being to make
known to the farmer, wherever he is
located, in the most lucid manner pos
sible, just what crops will bring him the
most certain and profitable returns.
The map is to cover the entire area
of, the United States, and will be on
such a scale that every ten-acre patch
will be represented by one-eighth of
an Inch square. Bach farmer will be
able to procure a chart of his own lo
cality on a larger scale, so that he can
arrange his planting in accordance
with the suggestions made. The "work
Is first done by townships, and , these
are Joined to make counties, -which are
finally combined into states. The re
sult will be, not to make farming easy,
since work is the tribute which Nature
exacts of those who would convert her
domain to the uses and needs of man.
But it will make returns from agri
cultural labor more certain and profit
able. It is explained that hitherto the
business of farming has been to some
extent guesswork. The farmer formed
a surmise as to what crops his lands
would produce most abundantly, and
proceeded on this basis with his plant
ing. From a study of this map, it is
supposed that experiment will be large
ly eliminated from agricultural and
horticultural work. Prune trees will
not be planted In soils where In the
very nature of things they will not
thrive; lands suited to certain grasses
will not be wasted in the vain attempt
to grow cereal crops that "will not prop
erly mature or return a profitable yield
of grain, and so on throughout the ag
ricultural calendar.
To enlighten farmers properly on the
subject, this map will call attention to
certain conditions of soils which have
been subjected to thorough chemical
analysis. One of these is acidity a
property that has often been recog
nlzed by observant tillers of the soil,
who have yet lacked the knowledge to
correct or utilize .It. Another is ex
cess or deficiency of certain elements
of plant growth, which can be correct
ed or supplied by fertilizers, and yet
another is alkali. For the last science
has ascertained both the source and
the remedy. With the latter the ag
riculturist is chiefly concerned, and it
Is held to consist in linderdrainage to
wash out the alkali and to prevent the
accumulation of seepage water in the
subsoil. So It goes on this land for
cotton, that for wheat; this for gar
den truck, that for corn; this for
grasses of one kind, that for those of
another; this for hops, that for flax, or
perhaps both will flourish side by side
and can be so grown as a diversity
of products.
Truly, if the farmer is not the most
successful of all citizens of this He
public, it will be because he prefers
plodding to planning, and neglects to
study the book of knowledge which sci
ence and a generous Government has
opened to him. The old idea that boys
could engage in farming successfully
simply because they were boys, and
that no special instruction in the vo
cation beyond acquiring the art of
running a straight furrow was needed,
has fallen into line with the other idea
that every girl or woman, because of
a 6lmple generic fact, was able, without
special Instruction, to cook and perform
household work generally. And It may
be added both are obsolete, except
where common sense still struggles In
an environment of Ignorance which
science In more enlightened places has
penetrated and dispelled.
Of course men are still found who
plant their potatoes in the moon, as did
their great-grandfathers, and women
still abound who, under the belief that
their daughters are born housekeep
ers, send them out into the world of
domestic service -wholly unacquainted
with the details of the vocation, but
these are being, evolved from practical
life as fast as agricultural colleges, soil
maps, fanners' institutes and cooking
schools can do it. Xiet the good -work
go on, even though in prosecuting it J
there are frequent stumblings, and
many ludicrous and costly mistakes.
GERMANY'S CEREAL SHORTAGE.
According to Consular reports based
upon the highest authority of the king
dom, the cereal harvests of 1901 in Prus
sia will show the largest and most dis
astrous deficit that has been recorded
in recent years. A memorial calling
the attention of the government to the
threatened calamity that overhangs the
agricultural population has been pre
sented to Chancellor Count von Bulow,
urging that certain prescribed meas
ures of relief be at once set in motion.
This remarkable document is signed
by Count von Schwerln-Lowltz, presi
dent of a permanent commission which
sjerves as an advisory committee on ag
ricultural subjects to the Prussian
Government; hence it has the stamp of
highest official authority, and on this
account it has produced a profound
sensation throughout Germany.
Frank H. Mason, United States Consul-General
at Berlin, has carefully
studied this memorial, and presents a
synopsis of his findings through a bul
letin that has been given out bythe
Department of Agriculture. He says:
"Never since 1S93 have any consider
able portions of Prussian wheat-fields
stood at so low a figure at the middle
of May as In the present year; and
when it is remembered that this stands
for only half the normal Winter-wheat
area the remainder being wholly lost
the extent of the disaster will be
.apparent" Combining facts with fig
ures, he finds that the deficit as com
pared with last year's crop will be
1,053,515 metric tons. At 175 marks
($41 65) per ton, It will cost 183,750,000
marks ($43,732,500) to replace this defi
cit with imported grain.
The entire home-grown breadstuff
supply of the German Empire In 1900
was 12,391,824 metric tons. Besides this
bulk there were Imported in excess of
exports 1,816,026 tons, giving an aggre
gate consumption of 14,207,850 tons of
the two principal bread-producing ce.
reals, "wheat and rye. Material short
age in the home-grown supply means,
of course, a corresponding demand for
foreign-grown cereals, but as the me
morial points out with characteristic
bitterness, this untoward prospect In
Germany has had thus far only a slight
effect upon the world's wheat market,
"for the reason that the United States
has 28,267,000 acres of growing wheat,
which at the estimated yield of fifteen
bushels per acre will give a surplus
that will fill the German deficit and
maintain the general wheat market
on an even keeL"
The commission through which this
report Is given out represents, natural
ly, and with creat "zeal 'and ability.
the Interests of the agricultural classes,
who form collectively the Agrarian
party, which Is now so aggressive in
German politics. From the standpoint
of these economists, the impending dis
astrous deficit in the wheat and rye
crops, and the consequent loss to Ger
man farmers, supply an additional
reason why their scant harvests should
be protected from foreign competition
and made to yield the highest prac
ticable price to the stricken husband
men. The fact that a deficit so serious and
imminent in German breadstuffs has
produced scarcely a ripple in the wheat
markets of other countries, and the
certainty that the deficit will be made
good by Importations, especially from
the United States, are thus early and
authoritatively put forward as proofs
of the need of higher prptectlon for
German agriculture. They may be held
to foreshadow the struggle in the
Reichstag next Autumn between the
impending tariff act and the commer
cial treaties. It need hardly be said,
observes Consul Mason in concluding
this bulletin, "that to all except Agra
rian economists the meager home
grown supply of breadstuffs and the
necessity ofe large importations should
rather serve as an argument in favor
of reduced than of Increased import
duties."
The solid South, which has shown
many signs of political transformation
In the last few years, is unmistakably
acquiring divergent opinions on Na
tional questions. This situation is
briefly described by Senator John L.
McLaurin, of South Carolina, In the
current "World's Work. Senator Mc
Laurin is a Democrat, elected by one of
th most "solid" of the Southern States,
and his testimony carries additional In
terest for this reason. What the out
come of the altering process will be, he
says, we can only guess at, but the
result is sure to be a great change.
Ho welcomes the new spirit, for he says
there Is no greater menace to "the sta
bility of a Republic than a minority
voting on great questions from a purely
sectional point of view. Whereas in
terest has centered heretofore In the
negro question, now that there is no
longer fear on this score sentiment Is
dividing and branching out toward Na
tional and domestic topics. The peo
ple and the press of the South already
have diverse opinions on the subjects of
expansion, tariff and ship subsidies,
and it will be remembered that in the
last Presidential contest the solid
South was held together loosely on the
silver question. Now, the public mind
is exercising itself on economic sub
jects and how to build "up industries.
There is still a strong, stubborn senti
ment of the old type, but it persists
largely from lack of information and
from prejudice. Senator McLaurin
does not expect the Democratic party
to be overthrown, but to adjust Itself
to the new conditions.
The so-called law-of-assoclations bill
passed by the French Parliament cur
tails largely the privileges of the re
ligious orders, especially In the mat
ter of holding property. Premier Wal-deck-Rousseau,
In his speech In ad
vocacy of the bill, declared that the
associations held In mortmain property
valued at 1,000,000,000 francs, and per
sonal property estimated at a higher
figure, and that this wealth had been
employed for political as well as for
religious purposes, and might continue
to be so employed, to the constant
danger of the republic. The govern
ment, added the Premier, therefore
proposed to place the associations in
such a position, by making their ex
istence entirely dependent upon the
will of the state, that It would be im
possible for them to be the center of
political propaganda. The church In
terests bitterly fought the bill, not only
as an attack upon religion, but as a
Socialistic assault? upon property. The
whole power of the Socialist party was
in support of the bill.
At the rate at which the list of as
pirants for .the various state, county
and municipal offices Is growing, there
will be a large crop of candidates ready
to pick before the"1 advent of June pro
claims the political harvest season as
at hand. Most of them will, it is true,
be cut down by an April frost that
being state convention month. In the
meantime, however, a year's time and
more than a year's substance will i be
squandered by a large number of able
bodied men in the vain attempt to se
cure a "push" strong enough to land
them where, to the best of their knowl
edge and belief, no work will be re
quired of them, but good pay will
promptly be forthcoming. Reflecting
upon the resources of forest, field and
mine that await development, and upon
the promise offered by Industry In a
thousand lines to the man who will
pull off his coat, this scramble for office
is, from an economic standpoint, a mat
ter of Tegret.
The "get-together" spirit, which ani
mates farmers of the Willamette Val
ley, as in contrast to the spirit of ex
cluslveness bred by Isolation in past
years. Is illustrated in the frequency of
farmers' Institutes and the steady
growth of the order known as the
"Patrons of Husbandry." This being
the busy time of year In agricultural
districts, such Institutes are fewer and
the regular meetings of the granges
are" more sparsely attended than at
other seasons, but the spirit abides and
upon all suitable occasions makes Its
presence manifest. Two new granges
have been recently organized in Clack
amas County, to which another will be
added this week, making the four
teenth lodge of that order In the
county. This speaks well for the fra
ternal spirit among farmers, and Is full
of promise for an enjoyable and profit
able season of recreation "after the
crops are all in."
Mr. Stubbs was in conference with
Union Pacific officials at Omaha Stln
day, but his visit, hevsald, was not un
usual and of no special Interest Mr.
Stubbs is a worthy disciple of President
Burt, who assured a Portland repprter,
that there might be a traffic conference
on at Salt Lake,, but he had heard
nothing of it.
What kind of a government can the
United States give the Philippines? The
New York Evening Post answers, no
better government than Croker gives
New York or Quay gives Philadelphia.
The Post's optimism Is equaled only by
its fairness.
The decision of the Supreme Court is
sustained by the yacht race. The flag
is the insignia- of liberty and independ
ence, but the Constitution does not nec
essarily follow it, nor does Independ
ence co ahead of the Constitution.
WHAT IS FAME?
Louisville Courier-Journal.
In the July issue of The Bookman, of
which he is the editor, Harry Thurston
Peck, apropos of Lord Rosebery's "Last
Phase of Napoleon," says:
How many writers of the English language
are there in any department of literature what
soever who impress you in the way 'wherein
Lord Bosebery impresses you? How many o
them sound even the faintest note of that dis
tinction which is his? That is the word dis
tinction, distinction, distinction the rarest
f thin? in human thought and expression, as re
is the finest thing in human life, what living
essayist possesses it? Mr. Henry James, per
haps, in a minor degree; Mr. "Whiblcy here anu
there; but no one else that we can think of.
There Is not a suggestion of It In Mr. Howalls,
and ven Mr-. Churton Collins, who has almost
every 'other quality that Is admirable, attania j
distinction very rarely. In fiction Is thero puch
a thing today except sporadically and In iso
lated passages? Even among those scholars
who have been nurtured on the classical liter
atures of Greece and Rome we can think oi
only one who has distinction", and that Is Mr.
J. S. MacUall a very Important exception, to
be sure, yet an exception which merely serves
to prove this rule, And among historians dis
tinction is sadly to seek. Professor MacMauer
Is Macaulay's sedulous ape. almost his carica
turist; Mr. Goldwin Smith is neat and lucid,
but nothing more. The late Bishop Stubbs
had a style that suggests a labyrinth full cf
brambles. There Is only one scientific student
of history and of historical theme who has dis
tinction, and that is Professor Munroe Smith
rind he, unfortunately, writes but little. Loru
Rosebery, however. Is a master of a atjle
whose charm Is all tho greater because It ts
indescribable.
Assuredly, Lord Rosebery has both in
his style of writing and In his person
ality what Hazlett describes as "the air
of a gentleman," call It "distinction," if
you will; but wherein is this quality
lacking In Mr. Howells. or Mr. James?
Perhaps In a cad, like James, and a prig,
like Howells. one does not look for the
Grand Seigneur. They grow cTSmmon
through sheer redundancy.
But who in thunderatlon Is Whlbley?
And Churton Collins? And Mackall, who
serves to prove the rule, ana Pro
fessor Munroe Smith, who "unfortunate
ly, writes too little"? Stubbs! Bishop
Stubbs! we have a fancy to have heard
of Stubbs second cousin to Potsy Grubbs,
was he not?
Mr. Harry Thurston Peck should not
be so recondite. The persons he names
may be Important as Importance goes
in the Literary Hemisphere of the
period; but they do not rank with
Slubsky, or DIsmukes, or HInky Dink
In popular fame. These Indeed he names
to conjure with. And Bath House"' John!
What's the matter with Bath House
John? Even Rosebery arrayed In all his
glory could never bo as one of these?
"BLOOD WILL TELL."
Maxim Ayiiose Application In In Most
Cases a Fallacy.
San Francisco Bulletin.
"The puppies fight well," exolaimed
Wellington, as he saw the fops and
dandles of the Guards braving the French
fire and dying like men. "Blood will tell,"
exclaimed the whole British Nation when
the names of the noble and commissioned
dead appeared in the Gazette after
Waterloo. Their meaning was that noble
ancestry begets a noble brood; that a line
of gentlemen. for forefathers gives a man
a certain spirit, stamina and courage
which the yeoman and the shopman lack;
that the thoroughbred man, like the thor
oughbred horse, is superior to the common
mustang or cart horse.
It is true that the traditions of a noble
family have a certain influence on tho
scions thereof and keep them up to cer
tain ideals, especially in the matter of
physical courage. Moreover, wealth, edu-,
cation and generous habits of living, with
which most men of good blood are famil
iar from birth, have a tendency to create
a keen sense of honor and a personal
pride that have a strong Influence upon
conduct. Yet examples prove that blood
has little advantage over the base-born,
either In the matter of Intellectual or
physical qualities.
The greatest men have been the off
spring of lowly people. The most rugged
Intellects seem to have cpmo from the
tillers of the soli and to have derived
therefrom a certain natural strength that
men born in castles and manor houses L
do not Inherit. Of all Kings and rulers,
the strongest were the founders of dy
nasties. The first holder of a hereditary
title nearly always Is the greatest. This
fact was known to the French wit who
said: "We cannot all be nobles. Some of
us must be ancestors." In literature and
all departments of learning the majority
of the masters were plebeians. Shake
speare was the son of a wool-comber,
Johnson of a bookseller, Horace of a freed
man, Socrates of a midwife but the list
would be too long If It were completed
here.
On the point of physical courage the
cadet of the oldest family In Europe and
the commonest kind of a plebeian are
equal. The well-born "puppies" fought
bravely at Waterloo, but no more bravely
than the common soldiers, the sons of
tenants on the "puppies' " estates. As
reckless and daring a body of men as
ever faced biasing powder was a regiment
in the Civil War recruited In tho lowest
slums of the Bowery. The stripling rough
In the cities of the United States is one
of tho finest fighting animals on two legs.
After all, physical courage Is a very
common and not a very lofty attribute.
When the Six Hundred made that charge
at Balaklava the horses went where the
men rode them, and six more horses than
men were killed, but the horses are not
celebrated. Tct physical courage will be
admired until the end of time, and nine
philosophers out of 10 would rather have
their morals Impugned than their cour
age: and ID philosophers out of 20 would
rather be the grandsons of great men than
be the famous founders of families.
They Didn't Afrrec.
Chicago Evening Post.
The new phraseology introduced by Dar
win and Spencer, the frequent references
to "survival of the fittest." "natural se
lection," "struggle for existence," "homo
geneity," "heterogeneity," etc., came trip
pingly on the tongues of the younger
members. But there was one old codger,
secure In his own wisdom, who occasion
ally waded out beyond his depth. The
privilege of a classical education had been
denied him. but an elementary knowledge
of Greek did not seem such an essential
that Its lack should keep him out of the
debate. So he sailed In. regardless of
consequences Having occasion to use the
word "phenomenon." he took the -opportunity
of a fine bit of sarcasm.
"Phenomenon, I say Mr. President, or
phenomena for I perceive that my
learned friends do not agree as to the pro
nunciation of the- word!"
Shaffer's "Vnln Glory.
Louisville Courier-Journal.
President Shaffer, of the Amalgamated
Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Work
ers, Is exuberantly boastful that the strike
which he has brought about Is to be one
of tho greatest strikes on record. The
strike may be In all probability will be
a losing one, and will certainly cost the
men he has ordered, to quit work many
thousands of dollars, but what matters
theso things if Shaffer can be at the head
of one of the greatest strikes on record?
Still Lives In the Past.
New York Mail and Express. -Bryan
Is telling the bourbons of Virginia
that his mind has not chansed about the
"principles" of the out-of-date platforms
of his party, and ho Is "fighting on."
Bryan's mind Is the only thing iri th
country which does not change, and his
Inability to learn or to forget is true bour
bon, but It will result In his "getting left"
farther behind at every move of events.
Expansion Sot a Theory.
Louisville Cdurier-Journal.
A New York estimate Is that the July
disbursement of Interest and dividends
will aggregate about 5120,000,000, against
$105,570,000 a year ago, and $94,000,000 two
years ago. Expansion In every sense Is a.
condition and not a tMM-v in this country
now. '
AMUSEMENTS.
"My California Home," a drama much
concerning black knavery and long-oppressed
but finally triumphant virtue, was
the offering by the Weideman company
at the Metropolitan last night, and it was
enthusiastically received by a very good
house. The scene of the play is a small
town In California where there are mines
and large tracts of land, the same being
the sole property of a young lady named
Gay Howard, who fn consequence Is some
what popular with the young bloods of
the vicinity. One of Gay's suitors Is poor
but honest; the -other Is a wholly bad lot,
who, after wronging the usual poor man's
daughter and escaping by tne stun or nis
teeth from an ax In the hands of said
poor man, proceeds to convince the easy
and unsuspecting denizens of the local
ity that the other suitor, who Is a very
square sort of a fellow, has been making
all the trouble. Naturally, complications
ensue. The girl listens to the hoarse voice
of calumny, and throws over the well
meaning suitor, although she etlll hart
bors in her heart a "hunch" that the
other fellow has considerable of the mer
cenary concealed about him. She decides
to run away, but gets no farther than the
left rear entrance, back of which she dons
boy's clothes, and comes back to see the
villain thickening the plot, tp block his
game. In the last act a delegation of min
ers arrive with a rope and the avowed In
tention of lynching the basely slandered
hero, but Gay, still in boy's clothes and
playing tho role of a cousin who was
looked for but never came, dashes in
from the wings and saves the unfortunate
young man's neck. Upon the almost sim
ultaneous arrival of the wronged girl and
her ax-wlelding father, the mask Is torn
from the villain's physiognomy and the
mob takes him outside, where they pre
sumably consummate their long-planned
festivities. Gay and trie true hero are
married, and, for all the audience knows,
live happily ever afterward.
There are a good many situations of tne
thrilling variety in the play, and so much
action that one sometimes gets out of
breath keeping up with it. The audience
cheered all good deeds to the echo, and
as warmly hissed the questionable deal
ings of the villnln. Between the acts
there were a number of really good spe
cialties. Miss Claire Canfield, who has
all the voices from sub bass to soprano,
sang two old favorites In a pleasing
style. Nellie Weideman's fire dance was
a popular number, and the Mullally sis
ters did a pretty danco and a clever Imi
tation skit
Tonight, "A Soldier's Sweetheart" will
be the bill.
Initial Production, "The Explorers."
"The Explorers," a new opera by Bert
Leston Taylor, the "Ilne-o'-type-or-two"
man of the Chicago Tribune, and Walter
H. Lewis, was produced for the first time
on any stage In Chicago, June 30. It was
well received by a large audience. The
play opens In Madagascar on a New
Year's day. Burdock Root Is In the Island
as a commercial traveling man for a
peroxide of hydrogen house. Lieutenant
S. Max Nix, who has a reputation au
over the world as an explorer, touches at
the Island on his balloon trip from the
South Pole. Having run out of things to
rpnrt ti rrfits some discarded magazines,
and sees in one of them the picture of
Malzle Fields, of Red Ear, la., who has
come into magazine notice as Queen of a
corn carnival. The impressionable Ger
man, denied any such visions in Terra del
Fuego and farther south, telegraphs from
New York for Malzle to meet him at the
Hotel Limit. Chicago, February 14. As he
signs himself simply "Nix," the Iowa girl
addresses her reply to "a distinguished
explorer who will arrive at the Hotel
Limit, Chicago. February 14." She has
read in a paper that he Is to address the
Women's Science Club, of Chicago, the
same day, and sends a duplicate letter In
care of Mrs Fuller Prunes, tho presi
dent. Root and Nix arrive In Chicago the
same day, but Root appears In the hotel
first. The fact that he Is direct from
Madagascar suggests "distinguished ex
plorer" to the clerk, and he turns over the
letter from Malzle. Root 13 the adventur
ous kind of a man who Is ready for any
thing, so he Impersonates xsix, meets
Malzle and promptly tries to win her. As
she dotes on explorers and Is anxious to
fit out a polar expedition In her own
name, the situation Is plain for the perox
ide salesman.
Nix, In the meantime, gets the duplicate
letter from Mrs. Fuller Prunes, but is too
late. He is stamped as a counterfeit and
even arrested.
These complications made the scene in
the Hotel Limit lively. The last act is in
Lincoln Park, where the Science Club Is
to hear all about both poles. Root has to
tell them in carrying out the fraud. The
plot Is cleared there, but Nix loses the
girl. Some of the lyrics are very pretty,
and tho music Is bright and catchy.
Charles Dickson, Edward Mackey,
Harry Stubbs, Ruth White and Lillian
Coleman scored large hits.
Notes of the Stage.
The only church at Mount Hope, O., Is
being converted Into a 'theater.
Alice NIelson has leased for the Sum
mer an estate at Thames Dltton, a sub
urb of London.
Blanch Bates continues to play to tre
mendous business at the Columbia The
ater, San Francisco, In "Under Two
Flags."
Mayor Thompson, of Salt Lake, bought
recently property on Main street, In that
city, measuring 25x165 feet, and contem
plates erecting a theater thereon at a cost
Of ?3O0.0OO.
Maurice Grau is reported to have an
nounced In London last Week his Intention
to retire after next season from the man
agement and lease of the Metropolitan
Opera-House, in New York.
Augustus Thomas delivered an address
at the commencement exercises of the
New Rochelle (N. Y.) High School, June
27. Mr. Thomas Is a member of the New
Rochelle Board of Education.
The Alcazar Theater stock company,
San Francisco, last week revived "Sapho,"
which continues, to be followed by "The
School for Scandal," with White Whit
tlesey Edwin T. Emery, Barton Hill,
Florence Roberts, George P. Webster,
Marie Howe and Paul Gerson in me
cast.
'
Suffering Among Metals.
Chicago Evening Post.
The brotherhood of man widened Into
the brotherhobd of the animal. Now
comes a British scientist who has found
feeling in metals. At a recent meeting of
the Royal Institution the scientist "struck
a piece of copper, pinched a piece of zinc,
gave It poison and administered an anti
dote." In each case the electrical emotion man
ifested through the galvanometer "was
painful to witness."
The London Mall suggests the formation
of a society for the prevention of cruelty
to metals.
An Interesting development of human
ethics Is suggested, though Indeed thte
extension is not at all original with tho
20th century. It Is an old story with the
poets, and with none mora real than
Omar:
AnJ thU reviving herb whose tender green
Fledges the river lip on which we lean.
Ah! lean upon it lightly, for who knows
From what one lovely Up it springs unseenT
And the clay whose "half-obliterated
tongue" Omar could heaY protesting to the
potter, "Gently, brother, gently, pray."
The Way to Stop Lynching.
Houston Post.
The Post wants to see the courts of
Texas punish criminals promptly and vig
orously and thus obviate any excuse what
ever for a resort to mob law. If the courts
and juries do not do their duty, Jet public
Indignation be visited on them, rather
than resort tp the administration of jus
tice outside the regularly constituted chan
nelschannels for which the people pay
heavily. In taxes and from which they have
a 'rfght to demand a- faithful discharge
of! duty.
NOTE AND COMMENT.
Hot wavps and moral waves are about
of equal duration.
Our esteemed friend Lone Wolf Is no
longer howling at the door of the Courts
of Justice.
There is great depression In Berlin. It
is rumored that the Kaiser Is going to
make another speech.
There Is a large cash balance in the
Pennsylvania State Treasury. No ex
planation has yet been offered.
Singular that the boy who was hurt on
the Fourth of July has not yet communi
cated with the pension attorneys.
Such Is the march of progress, that it
is very possible that King Edward will
wear a shirt waist to his coronation.
"When seen, made a prisoner of would
be a good rule for the guidance of a
Sheriff's posse of a highway robber hunt
We should now like to hear a few words
from Lincoln, Neb., on "Hot Weather,
Directly Traceable to Republican Mis
rule." Now that the hot wave has retired
from the center of the stage, Hon. J. P.
Morgan will proceed with tha continuous
performance.
We hereby claim the proud privilege of
naming the Illustrious Pat Crowe as th
man who kidnaped the $41,500 from the
Great Northern train.
Argentina In all probability Is merely
getting up that war to encourage Immi
gration. It will mean an Influx of thou
sands of war correspondents.
It has long been known that sea water
is a good conductor, but it may be news
to some people that It ha3 also bad con
siderable experience in breaking.
Tho' New York Zoological Society has
published an important natural history
paper, by William T. Hornaday, director
of the Zoological Park, entitled, "Notes
on the Mountain Sheep of North Amer
ica." In a finely illustrated pamphlet of
50 pages, the six species of mountain sheep
Inhabiting North America are described
and figured for tho special benefit of tho
general reader, and the geographical dls
trlbutlon of each species, bo far as
known today, Is shown on a largo map.
Within the past six months two new
species of mountain sheep have been
added to the four previously known.
These are, Fannin's "Saddle-Back" sheep,
from the Klondike Mountains, described
by Mr. Hornaday and christened Ovls
fannlnl; and the Mexican mountain sheep,
from Chihuahua, Northern Mexico, de
scribed by Dr. C. Hart Merrlam. The
pamphlet prepared by Mr. Hornaday haB
evidently been prepared with special ref
erence to the wants of the general reader
and student, bu.t its scientific value is not
thereby lessened In the least It brings
together, for the first time, full Informa
tion regarding a highly interesting group
of American animals.
Twas on the shores where rolls the tide
Of mighty Oregon
That I found a chap with a yachtlnc cap
And a pale green sweater on.
Bis face was weary, his boots were worn.
And weary and worn- was he.
And this sad-eved man forthwith began
To heave this spiel at ma:
"Oh. I'm a chump, with a capital C,
I'm the sickliest sucker yet.
I'm a limit dolt and a Thompson's colt.
And a driveling Idiot net.
And he said these words In a manner that
"Was earnest and sincere,
And Impressed me so that I thought I'd go,
For I'm easily moved by fear.
But he said: "Pray, pause, my honest friend.
And a pointer take from me,
And you'll some day thank a hopeless tank
"WTio warned you not to be
A cheerful chump with a capital C
And the sickliest sucker yet.
And a limit dolt and a Thompson's colt.
And a driveling Idiot net.
"I've a lovely homo long miles from here,
And a Wife and children small,'
And to capture trout I sallied out.
And left them, ono and all.
I've fished and fished and fished all day,
I'vo climbed o'er mountains high,
And I had not booze enough to use,
For my throat is easy dry.
"And I've landed here by the Tlver side.
As the gloaming sifts below.
And the sephyrs breathe on the water beneath
In the rosy after glow,
A wreck of what was once a man.
And a pretty good man beside,
"With never a trout to be lied about
A thing to be scoffed and guyed.
"I have barked my shins, I have bruised my
nose,
I've been bitten from head to toe.
By mosqultos lean, with a hunger keen.
And possessed of bills like a crow,
I am smeared with worms and salmon roe.
Till I look like a kitchen sink.
And the whole long day as I fished away
I had nothing at all to drink.
"Excepting two quarts of bottled beer.
And a three-pint flask of rye.
And a bottle of ale, and some Scotch boo
pale,
So you see I was pretty dry.
Young man. be warned of my awful plight.
And when you start to roam
The woods about in quest of tnmt.
Stay quietly at home.
"There's lots of good fish in the sea, they
say;
. If that's so, go there quick; v
But don't be game for that chaps that claim
That there's plenty In the crick.
You've heard my tale, which is straight ard
plain.
And is neither ornate nor gay.
And I think with me you will quite agree,
When next you hear me say
That I am a chump with a capital C,
And the easiest Indian yet
And the limit dolt and a Thompson's colt
And a driveling Idiot net"
PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPHERS
A Longer Dog. "Have you had this dog as
long as the other one?" "Yes. longer. This
Is a dachshund." Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Just Like a Woman. Bcnham Why did that
woman keep you standing at the door for half
an hour? Mrs. Benham She said she hadn't
time to come In. Brooklyn Life.
Defined. "Say, pop, I've got to write a com
position on hope "What Is hope, anyway?"
"Hope, my boy. Is the Joyous expectation of
being able to dodgo our Just deserts." Life.
r A Reasonable Explanation. Minister Bridg
et these potatoes tasto moldy. Bridget Tis.
sorr, OI dare say, sorr they set nlxt to your
barrel o' sermons in the suller. Harlem Life.
Nell You surely don't think Jenkins's -Rife
pretty. Belle Certainly not. "But you told
May Sowers she was Just lovely." "That was
because May was an old flame of Jenkins."
Philadelphia Record.
Going Away "Gracious goodness, Harriot
seven trunks." "Don't get excited, Harry, I
haven't packed" a thing except that little Hit
of 'Home Comforts for the Summer Vacation
which you clipped out of the newspaper."
Chicago Record-Herald.
Against Her Rule. "Cholly Dlnsmore pro
posed to mo last nlghl." confided Miss Bunt
ing to Miss fctldufC "Did you ask him If he
could support you In the style to which you
have been accustomed?" "Oh. dear, no. I
never ask men who propose to me that ques
tion." Detroit Tree Press.
Management 'Don't you think you lose pa
tience with your husband on rather slight prov
ocation?" said the near relative. "I have to
provoke him sometimes," was the placid an
swer; "so that he will lose his temper, and
then give me anything T want so as to atone
for the way ho has" acted." Washington Star.
Their Busy Day. "Who," shouted the impas
sioned orator, "who among us has any cause
to be happier than his neighbor on this glo
rious day of tho Nation's birth?" A man wltn
his head bandaged and both arms In a sting
arose in the rear of the hall, and exclalmad:
"The doctors !" Baltlmoro American.