THE MORXING OEEGOXIAN, FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1901.
te rgeomem
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Eastern Business Office. 43. 44. 45, 4T, 48. 49
Tribune bulldlnc. Js'ew York City: 463 "The
Rookery." Chicago; the S. C. Beckwlth opeclal
agency. Eastern representative. .
For sale In San Francisco by L K Lee, Pal
ace Hotel news stand; Goldsmith Bros., 230
Butter 6treet: F. W. Pitts, 1003 Market street;
J. K. Cooper Co.t 740 Market street, near the
Palace Hotel; Fester & Orear. Ferry mws
etand.
For sale In Los Angeles by B. F. Gardner.
253 So. Spring street, and Oliver & Haines. 106
Bo. Spring street.
For sale in Chicago by the P. O. News Co..
217 Dearborn street.
For sale in Omaha by Barkalow Bros., 1012
Farnam street.
For sale In Salt Lake by the Salt Lake News
Co.. 77 W. Second South street.
For sale In Ogden by W. a Kind. 204 Twenty-fifth
street, and by C. H. Myers.
On file in the Oregon exhibit at the exposi
tion, Charleston, S. C
For 6ale In Washington. D. C, by the Ebbett
Hoube news stand.
For sale in Denver, Colo, by Hamilton &
Kendrick, DOC-912 Seventeenth street.
TODAY'S WEATHER Cloudy and threatcn
fing. with occasional Usht rains; southwesterly
Svinds.
YESTERDAY'S WEATHER Maximum tem
perature. 45; minimum temperature, 41; pre
cipitation, 0.10 inch.
JPORTLAXD, FRIDAY, DEC.
I
O, 1001.
TWO SIGNS OP THE TIMES.
The livestock men said one thing In
"their resolutions that Is worth the whole
)cost of the meeting. No free hides, they
eay, so long as we have protected
leather and shoes. It Is an Impregna
ble tariff platform. No free wool so
Jong as we have 'protected woolens. No
free raw sugar and protected refined
sugar. No free ore and protected rails.
If the farmer, miner and planter must
compete with the world, then so can
the protected trusts, still bawling as
Infant industries, for the mother's milk
Of protection.
"With Germany confronting an experi
ence Identical, so disinterested observ
ers say, with that England went
through just before the corn laws re
peal, Lord Rothschild has the hardihopd
to propose protection for Great Britain.
Impressed with the signs of progress,
he suggests to go backward. Because
Germany is beginning to see that she
can buy food cheaper than she can grow
It, and that dear bread is a worse al
ternative than concentration of the
country's energy in manufactures and
commerce the way England climbed to
pre-eminence, he thinks Great Britain
should reverse Germany's suggested
course. From the van of the racers he
eees the next In rank, making a spurt,
and he thinks the way to beat him is to
turn and run backward. Great Britain
didn't grow great by clapping burdens
on trade; nor will she In that way hold
her eminence.
JACKSON AND M'KINLEY.
Much is made by all the public eulo
gists of President McKInley of his un
wearied devotion to his invalid wife.
Secretary Long, Secretary Gage and
President Roosevelt all make much of
this fact, and John A. Kasson, In the
current number of the Century, goes so
far as to ascribe the popular affection
felt for President McKInley largely to
his ceaseless consideration for his side
wife. Probably too much has been
made of this trait of our dead Presi
dent. It is a rule among intelligent,
well-bred American gentlemen tb be
exceedingly considerate of the comfort
of their wives, sick or well. Indiffer
ence to the comfort of an invalid wife
would make any reputable man in pri
vate life an object of contempt among
"his neighbors, and surely the first gen
tleman of the Nation is expected to be
as humane and! well-bred as the aver
age intelligent,. well-bred private citi
. sen. The domestic life of our Presi
dents, without exception, has been
'"blameless, although few of them fortu
nately have had. wives whose Invalid
condition demanded the ceaseless at
tention that was necessary in the case
HDf Mrs. McKinlej'.
The devotion of President McKInley
to his wife was quite equaled by that of
President Andrew Jackson, a man born
and bred in rude times, and yet a man
distinguished all his days for absolute
personal purity of life and for his grave
and respectful treatment of all women.
!The maiden name of Jackson's wife was
Donelson. She married Captain Rob
ards, whose ill-treatment caused a sep
aration and ultimately a divorce. Jack
eon, through misinformation, married
Mrs. Robards before the divorce was
legally complete, but promptly remar
ried her on discovering his "error. False
reports concerning the marriage sub
jected Mrs. Jackson to unfavorable
criticism by Jackson's political enemies,
but after Jackson had killed one of her
detractors in a duel the criticism was
effectively silenced. Thirty-seven years
after his marriage Jackson was elected
President, and the chief joy of the grim
old soldier was that his "Rachel" had
lived to see him attain this great honor.
"Rachel" had become a poor, sick, old
woman by that time, and Is described
as "exceedingly homely," but her chiv
alrous husband was as proud and fond
of her then as he was the first year
of their marriage.
The poor, old lady died In 1S2S, and
thus failed to become the mistress of
the "White House. Her husband, then
a man of jC2, grieved over her death as
much as if she had been the most bril
liant -woman in the land. Colonel
James A. Hamilton, son of the famous
Alexander Hamilton, accompanied Gen
eral Jackson and his wife down the
Mississippi In 1828 to New Orleans. He
describes Mrs. Jackson as "an uncom
monly ugly woman in appearance, but
amiable, sensible, easy in her manners,
playful in conversation and fond of a
joke." She was a simple, kind, frank,
homespun wife, who commissioned Colo
nel Hamilton to buy her a bonnet as
soon as they reached the city, to wear
at the grand reception of the General
as the "hero of the battle of New Or
leans. Th this Journey Hamilton saw
that "Jackson's weak side was love and
devotion to his wife," and his attentions
to Mrs. Jackson won the complete con
fidence of the President-elect.
Jackson arrived in Washington Feb
ruary 12, 1829, and when Hamilton
called on him, the same evening, the
President spoke of the death of his wife
with deep feeling, saying: "Colcnel,
you knew her well and respected her."
This was the grave, self-restrained
speech of a rough, grim, uneducated old
soldier of 62 about the death of an "ex
ceedingly homely" old woman of 62. Is
not this devotion of General Jackson
to his sick, old wife quite as pathetic
as anything told of the conjugal life of
President McKInley? The only son of
President Pierce, a boy of 13, was killed
by a railroad accident just before his
mother became mistress of the White
House, and this dreadful bereavement
produced a settled melancholy in Mrs.
Pierce that was never lifted from her
heart. President Pierce, who was then
In the prime of his manhood, was for
tunately a man of sweet temper and
charming manners, and his devotion to
his wife in her state of chronic melan
choly obtained the sympathy and ad
miration of men of all parties. No finer
gentleman ever filled the Presidential
chair than Franklin Pierce, whose
sweet, sympathetic voice spoke the last
words of this world in the ears of
Hawthorne, whose kindly hands gently
closed his dying eyes.
A SETTLER FOR. ATHEISM.
If the United States Treasury Is called
upon to lose $1,000,000 in duties to be
refunded owing to miscalculations of
the Indian rupee, the punishment Is one
which will powerfully tend to restore"
and strengthen belief in the existence
of a just God. There are few more In
structive chapters in the voluminous
annals of official mullshness and fatu
ity. "When the enlightened government of
India, disregarding certain silvern ma
niacs and defective youth of two hemi
spheres, closed Its mints to the free coin
age of silver. It entered upon the en
terprise of maintaining the silver rupee
at 32 cents. The tas.k was hard, and for
a long time the result was in doubt.
But sagacity and determination tri
umphed, and through limitation of
coinage, a dastardly blow at a sacred
metal hallowed by the tears and blood
of the violent ward, the silver rupee
was held firm at 32 cents.
This was an event of knowledge to all
the 'world except to the adamantine
skulls and Inchoate gray matter of cer
tain gifted souls In the State and Treas
ury Departments at Washington, upon
whom, through an inscrutable' Provi
dence, had devolved the task of de
claring the value of foreign coins. Un
der cover or a more than ordinarily
asinihe and iniquitous act of Congress,
the judgment of these lofty minds af
fixed to the rupee the fluctuating value
of its silver as metal, and while the
rupee stood uniformly ,at 32 cents, its
"value" in the "Consular Reports!' rose
and fell with the London markets.
Appeal was made to the depart
ments, but in vain. They of State could
do nothing, in deference to them of the
Treasury. They of the Treasury were
even more powerless, uncomprehending
and palavering than those of State.
Somebody had computed the rupee at
Us bullion value, and that' .settled It.
In all Washington there was no head
accessible to the idea that what had
been once computed could be ques
tioned, much less changed.
Meanwhile, the Collector of Customs
at Boston knew that the rupee was
worth 22 cents, and he assessed duties
accordingly. The importers brought
suit to get the difference back, and a
decision has been rendered In their fa
vor. Similar overcharges, now In a fair
way -to be refunded, aggregate $1,000,
000. It Is well. Happily, also, the re
sult will in no way incommode the
serene and unapproachable Intellects to
whom the rupee is a silver rupee and
nothing more. It would tend to dislo
cate the solar system If not indeed the
Milky Way itself, of which we form
an indispensable though humble part,
if callow youth or paleozoic relic behind
State or Treasury desks should be ruf
fled or swerved by anything so unoffi
cial as real occurrences or naked truth.
A million or many of them would be a
paltry price to pay for departmental
dignity and composure.
INFORMATION WANTED.
Secretary Wilson appears to signal
advantage at the Chicago livestock
gathering. This Is the good, old man
but myopic economist who uses selling
as a synonym of greatness and buying
as an evidence of humiliation. It
makes your Uncle Jimmy mad to see
his country buying things from abroad.
We ought to sell everything and buy
nothing. Such manufactures as we Im
port, he says, show "that we lack either
the skill or the enterprise to use our
raw materials to the best advantage."
We must, he says, "stop selling plant
food in shape of grains that are raw
material for other nations."
Well, who's to make us? Here is the
Oregon farmer, shamelessly selling his
wheat to Europe. Why doesn't he make
it up into bread and biscuits Instead,
and make the base-born foreigner take
them? Some way must be found, either
to make every farmer his own baker or
cracker factory, or else to punish the
foreigner who wickedly wants wheat
to grind up for himself, and make him
call for prepared foods Instead of raw
material. Why, Indeed, should we set
the seal of Incapacity upon ourselves
by buying anything? Why should we
buy silks of France when we can manu
facture them ourselves, or cheese of
Holland, or glass from Austria, or sugar
from Germany?
Secretary Wilson Is logical enough to
condemn all these processes of com
merce. He believes in trade, but he
would always be at the selling end of
the bargain. No one is more eager for
Increase of our export trade, but no one
is so passionately opposed to our import
trade. He insists that we shall grow
our own tea, and on the strength of a
production of 4500 pounds by Dr. "Shop
ard, of Summerville, he says that "the
production of several kinds of tea in
the United States Is now an assured
fact." He Insists that Porto Rico cof
fee plantations shall be enlarged so as
to furnish us all our coffee from our
own grounds. He is confident he has
solved the problem of producing in the
United States the Smyrna fig, the Afri
can date, the cotton of Egypt and the
tobacco of Sumatra and Cuba, and he
talks confidently of cocoa and rubber
production in this country.
We have no doubt the country is full
of statesmen who agree perfectly with
Secretary Wilson that . the Nation
should infinitely expand Its export
trade, and reduce Its import trade to
the vanishing point. But we have
never yet come across en explanation
how we are to get Europe to buy in
creasingly of us if we cease to buy of
Europe. "We dislike to harp on this
painful topic so persistently without
hearing any response from the Wllson
lan school. Therefore we here and now
advertise for some explanation. How is
it, gentlemen, that Europe will man
age to buy $.500,000,000 or so of us annu
ally and have no reciprocal purchases
from us with which to pay us? How
long can she keep it up? And after a
few years of this sort of thing, how
much value will she have as a cus
tomer? xFor a satisfactory explanation
of this Wilsonian theory our columns
are now open.
FURY OF THE GALE.
The British ship Nelson, which the'
ambitious newsgatherers of Astoria
sent to the bottom of the ocean with all
on board. Is safe In the harbor of Seat
tle, and far from being a total wreck.
The vessel unquestionably was sub
jected to pretty severe handling by the
elements, but her experience Is not a
new one. The unusually heavy gale
that has been raging along the Ore
gon and Washington coasts has left de
struction in its wake. The returns now
at hand confine the total losses to the
Highland Light and the C. H. Wheeler,
with the Ernest Reyer In bad shape on
the Washington coast north of Gray's
Harbor, the Clara Brown wrecked
at Seattle, the Umatilla reef lightship
adrift, and the Nelson roughly handled.
Amidst all of this destruction of marine
property. It is fortunate that but one
life was lost. Seldom, however, has a
gale raged with such severity without
adding to the mysteries of the sea by
sweeplng out of existence vessels which
will leave no survivors and no wreckage
by which their exact fate can be deter
mined. The Astoria report that the Nelson
had been added to this list of ocean
mysteries was generally discredited for
the reason that it would have been the
first case in the history of the port In
which a grain-laden vessel was lost in
this manner. In the old days before
the Government spent any money In
improving the mouth of the river, the
British ship Nimbus bumped on the
sands in passing out of the river, and
sank soon after getting clear of the
land, no lives being lost. That the Nel
son had sustained no damage of this
kind was known from the first, as six
other vessels crossed out with her, their
drafts varying from 20.2 feet to 23 feet,
compared with the Nelson's 19.-5 feet,
without any trouble.
About a dozen vessels have been lost
in the past 10 years off the Oregon and
Washington coasts through an insuffi
ciency of ballast, but the first loaded
wheat ship is yet to meet such a fate
in these waters. The news reports of
the accident to the Nelson indicate that
she was quite severely damaged by the
gale, and had she not met with relief
at an opportune time, she might have
established a precedent by being bat
tered to pieces almost In sight of safety.
Had the gale succeeded in placing the
Nelson among the "missing," it would
have again showed the futility of man's
efforts to cope with the unrestrained
and unrestrainable forces' of nature, as
exemplified by a gale at sea.
The ingenuity of builders and the skill
of navigators combined have brought
many a good shlp""'safely through ter
rific battles with the elements, but there
are times when the work of man avails
not. At uncertain Intervals since the
days when the fleets of Ulysses were
battered by gales on the Aegean Sea,
storms of fatal fury have swept over
the face of the deep. "Nothing can
stay and nothing can bind" their power
for destruction. From all reports, the
Nelson has weathered one of the worst
of these storms, but It would not be
surprising if some of the ballast vessels
have not fared so well. There are about
a dozen vessels now due at this port,
and half as many due at Puget Sound,
and until all of them have reported
there will be some anxiety as to their
safety.
AN OBJECT-LESSON IN PROHIBITION
Temperance is a cause; prohibition is
only a means to the end of temperance,
and its wisdom is only fairly tested by
Its practical results. Measured by its
results, more than fifty years of prohi
bition In Vermont have given no better
results In proportion to the population
than has license with local option In
Massachusetts. Vermont enacted pro
hibition about fifty years ago; its pop
ulation remains today about what it
was in 18S0, largely agricultural; the in
crease In population has been very
small during the last twenty years.
The state has been overwhelmingly Re
publican in politics; the dominant party
in the Legislature has granted every
request for ironclad amendments to the
liquor laws. Public opinion is conser
vative almost to the point of social
stagnation, and it cannot be fairly said
that the beneficence of prohibition as a
means to the end of temperance has
not had a long time of unbroken trial
in a most favorable field In the State
of Vermont.
In Massachusetts the Democracy have
occasionally elected a Governor and
Legislature, as in the cases of Gaston.
Butler and Russell, but in Vermont the
ultra-prohibition party has always been
in power in the Legislature, and the
courts have always given the law unfal
tering support. Now what Is the result
of this fifty years of prohibition In a
most favorable field, measured by the
character of the population, the absence
of any large cities and the unflinching
support of the Legislature and the
courts? The result is that Vermont
makes no better showing under prohi
bition than Massachusetts does under
license with local option. .Massachu
setts has an area of about 7000 square
miles, with a population of nearly 3,000,
000; Vermont has an area of about 9000
square miles, with a population of
about 314,000. Massachusetts includes
the great seaport of Boston, with a
population of 561,000; Worcester, with
120,000; Fall River, 105,000; Lowell, 100,
000; Cambridge, 100.000; Lynn, 70,000;
Lawrence, 63,000; Springfield, 63,000;
Somcrville, 62,000.
In addition to these cities there are
nine whose population ranges from
45,000 to 20,000. In Vermont there is not
a single city that exceeds 20,000 people;
there are nol a dozen towns in the
state that number 5000 inhabitants. It
would be difficult to present a more vio
lent contrast in fields of temperance
action and effort than Massachusetts
and Vermont The population of Mas
sachusetts is nearly half foreign-bom
or born of foreign parents; it contains
a large per cent of seafaring people,
while Vermont is an Inland state whose
population Is almost entirely .agricul
tural, save in a few large manufactur
ing towns. The record of Massachu
setts for crime, for all offenses against
social order, Is quite as clean, in propor
tion to the population, as that of Ver
mont The number of Federal retail
liquor licenses taken out In Vermont
under prohibition 13 as large In propor
tion to the population as in Massachu
setts, where the liquor traffic Is sanc
tioned under state law.
The Springfield Republican, an able
and earnest friend of temperance, prints
a letter from a Vermont correspondent
who notes a growing opposition to the
prohibitory law. The increasing state
expenses, the outflow of liquors from
town agencies, the failure to curb the
evils of Intemperance through strenu
ous measures unsupported by public
sentiment combine to produce apathy
even among the old-time adherents of
prohibitory legislation. The advocates
of local option have gained strong ac
cessions from men of fair convictions
who have hitherto either publicly ad
vocated the prohibitory law or quietly
contributed by their ballots to its con
tinuance. This is the situation in a
state that has had a prohibitory law
for fifty years, which is eo stern today
that a second violation of the law sends
the offender to the workhouse.
In Kansas there are twenty-five cities
where there Is an open, undisguised
violation of the prohibitory law. Includ
ing Kansas City, Kan.; Atchison and
Leavenworth. There are twenty-three
cities which permit saloons to be run
and fines to be collected by police offi
cers. The country drug store in Ver
mont Is, as a rule, a tippllng-place, and
the town agencies sell an enormous,
amount of liquor to a population of
vigorous stock and inhabiting a health
ful climate. The philosophy of prohibi
tion long ago ceased to have any stand
ing among statesmen and practical so
cial reformers, and today It is losing
ground in provincial New England, the
cradle of its birth. The time is gone,
never to return, for maudlin temper
ance revival rhetoric. The question
sure to be asked is concerning practical
results. Prohibition has been tested,
and it has been discredited by experi
ence. The tenacity of life shown by Pope
Leo XIII Is revealed in the fact that the
"coming conclave" to elect a successor
to his holiness was discussed thirteen
years ago and has not yet been con
vened. Within the intervening period
three of the five cardinals s mentioned
as his possible successors have died,
and the two others are no lenger con
sidered eligible. The venerable pontiff
Is now 91 years old, and if he completes
another year of life he will have reigned
longer than any of his predecessors, ex
cept Pius IX. Reports of his feeble and
failing condition continue to creep out
of the closely guarded Vatican, though
his Immediate death Is not feared. Still.
It cannot, In the Inexorable course of
Nature, be much longer delayed, and Its
announcement at any time would not
create surprise.
Leaders In Congress propose to abol
ish war revenue taxes, excepting those
on liquors, tobacco, mixed flour and
TEA. Here also comes Secretary Gage
recommending abatement of oppressive
and unnecessary war taxes, except
those on "fermented liquors, tobacco,
TEA and mixed flour." Why is tea so
persecuted? Is it adulterated food, a
useless luxury of the pampered rich, or
the instrument of a vitiated appetite?
Alas, good people, none of these; it Is
an article of Asiatic commerce, and on
that ground it must be put down If pos
sible, along with rice, silks and Japan
ese matting. The men who make our
tariffs do not live on the Pacific Coast,
and have no desire to further its devel
opment James G. Green, the murderer of E.
V. Benjamin, will pay the penalty of his
crime In Skamania County, Washing
ton, today. Possessed of a' Jealous rage,
he shot his victim through a window at
a midnight banquet succeeding a coun
try dance, last March. This is the sec
ond execution within a few months in
Western Washington of murderers of
this cowardly, sneak-thief type. Jus
tice did not lag in either case, though
in the latter, represented by the execu
tion today, some effort was made to
turn it aside. Governor Rogers, what
ever have been his official mistakes, has
a sound record in matters of this kind,
upon which fact both he and his state
may well be congratulated.
It ought to be Incomprehensible to
some of our Astoria friends how New
York can be the greatest port In Amer
ica and still have to "work the tides."
The following, from the World's Work,
shows that there Is something wrong
either with New York's greatness or
with the Astoria Idea:
Through the very center of lower New York
Bay, to tako the place of the old circuitous
toute, a direct channel is being dredged to a
depth of 40 feet. The bin ships like tho
Deutschland, the Kaiser Wilhelm and the new
Kronprlnz, which are forced now to await the
flow of the tide, will have regular sailing hours,
and tho need of a pilot with the skill of a
Hervo IUel will have passed.
The sympathy of the community with
the friends and advocates of Rev. Mr.
Hoyt confronts a technicality in the
fact that the Ministerial Association
classes Itself as Evangelical. If this Is
established, it would naturally operate
to bar out non-Evangelicals, and public
opinion has no standing in court. To
this It may be replied that If the asso
ciation Is not merely "ministerial," but
"Evangelical" as well. Its name Is mis
leading and Improper. Unitarian, Unl
versallst, Catholic and Hebrew clergy
may not be evangelical, but they are
undeniably ministers.
"The United States Is the largest pro
ducer of steel and coal a fact which
alone guarantees our ultimate future as
a shipbuilding Nation." Thus, Secre
tary Gage, who Is apparently oblivious
to the fact that the assertion upsets his
plea for shipping bounties to other than
mail-carriers.
The problem how to get a drydock
has been solved after many strenuous
years. But that problem Is insignifi
cant compared with the present one
when to get a drydock. The anomalies
of this world are the queerest things
in It
Now that Congress Is considering reci
procity, those Interests will be sacri
ficed on the altar of the high-sounding
sophistry which make the least noise.
Let us hope Oregon woolgrowers will
make enough noise.
Mrs. Roosevelt says a woman can
dress well on ?300 a year. Many hus
bands hope their wives will not insist
upon it.
The last legs of the Boers still seem
to be about as good as any they have
had.
ENGLISH AND AMERICAN JOKES
Chicago Tribune.
Itjwas a clever remark of Anthony
Hope's at the Thanksgiving dinner in
London when ne aa,a tnat a11 that was
needed now in order to bind together the
two English-speaking nations was that
some one should calculate a common de
nominator for British and American
Jokes. The suggestion goes to the root
of the whole difficulty. Everybody knows
that In ordinary life nothing does more
to embitter personal relations than a
mutual misunderstanding in this matter.
Two men who don't enjoy each other's
Jokes are not likely to be close friends,
for although a man may endure it to
have his friend reject his politics or his
religion, he cannot possibly put up with
a similar treatment of his Jokes. "Love
me, love my Jokes," is a deeply philo
sophical maxim, and it applies to nations
as well as to individuals.
At present it explains a large part of
the embarrassment which arises in a
company composed of both English and
Americans. Few American Jokes can
thrive in the United Kingdom, and few
British jokes ever get acclimated in the
United States. In fact, on both sides
jokes are produced mainly for domestic
use, and only an exceedingly small pro
portion of them can be exported. This
is not as it should be. If every American
Joke were received with joy in London
and everj English joke called forth roars
of laughter In New xork, the Anglo-Saxon
alliance would be consummated in a
burst of international good humor. It
is hard to resist a man who makes you
laugh. Just now neither side makes
the other laugh often.
The English Joke is inclined to look
askance at the American Joke and say:
"See here, you are no joke at all, don't
you know. You arc nothing but an ex
aggeration. What Is the wit in lying?"
To which the American Joke Is likely
to respond: "The trouble with you Is
that you take too serious a view of life.
Why don't you try to be funny?" The
upshot of the matter is a series of
mutual recriminations. Only long-continued
acquaintance can remove the
Bource of the trouble. Local jokes, of
course, can never ' be expected to go
abroad. No Londoner can appreciate a
joke based remotely on tho crowded con
dition of Chicago street-cars. But gen
eral Jokes ought to have an International
circulation. If Anthony Hope can bring
this about he will inherit the title of the
Great Pacificator.
DENIS MrLVIHILL, MAYOR.
From Conl Shovelcr to Highest Ot
flee in Bridgeport, Conn.
The Outlook.
One of the most remarkable overturns
in the recent elections was in tlvs usually
Republican C:ty of Bridgeport, Conn.,
which this year (a Republican year) went
Democratic by a majority of more than
2000. The extraordinary character of the
revolution Is heightened by the pictur
esque personality of the successful candi
date. His name Is Denis Mulvlhlll, and
his occupation for the past 28 years (ever
slnco he came from Ireland at the age
of 30) has been that of coal shoveler in
the Wheeler & Wilson sewing machine
factory. According to the New York Sun
"he went to the factory and started the
fires at 4:30 o'clock every morning and
quit work at 6 every night." Though his
wages never rose above ?2 50 a day, he
supported Ws family and saved some
money. This ho invested In building lots
and small houses, and by his attention
to his property made himself successful
as well as popular as a landlord. He
never took part in 'politics until six years
ago, when he was elected Alderman from
a Republican district by reason of his
personal popularity with his fellow-workmen.
A9 Alderman he took his duties
seriously, showed himself Independent of
ring influences, supported the Republican
Mayor in Ws demand for a city stone
crusher to get rid of contractors' extor
tions on roadways, and all along the line
won for himself a reputation as the
"watchdog of the treasury." The cause
of his election to the Mayoralty thla year
Is pithily stated In a letter to us from
a Bridgeport Republican subscriber:
Our machine hadn't done a thing except bond
the city a few hundred thousand, create a. lot
of new cfllces that th people didn't want, and
Increase salaries galore. Mulvlhlll, aa Alder
man, said the machine hod better go slow, but
we thought wo were strong enough to carry
everything our own way.
The people were aroused against the ma
chine; hence the landslide.
Sinco his election Mayor Mulvlhlll has
outlined his proposed policy In these
words:
I'll serve all the people.
No politicians about me.
Public expenses must be reduced.
No Junkets.
Jo secret sessions. No committee meetings
behind closed doors.
I know the value of money. I have had to
work for It. Tho taxpayers' money shall be
used a3 If It were mine own.
He lvis begun his economies by blocking
tho plans to erect a new city hall, for
which the city had been authorired to
lssuo 5200.000 worth of bonds. "It is an
injustice to the taxpayers," he said. "We
can fix up the old building so that it will
last for another 10 years at least. I would
not have a house built for myself If I
had to borrow all fh,s money, and I shall
apply tho same principle to the expendi
ture of the city's funds." There are times
in every city's career when Just such a
man Is needed. Bridgeport wanted a man
mado of such stubborn stuff that he can
act economy as well as talk It, and her
present Mayor seems to be the man for
the hour. As Alderman for six years,
Mr. Mulvlhlll served the city without pay.
As Mayor or general superintendent of a
corporation spending $1,500,000 a year he
will receive a salary of $3000. If he meets
present expectations, his career will de
servo to be added to those which have
made America the land of hope among
the young men of the poorer classes.
Down With, the Chnrch Bnznar.
w The Presbyterian.
The main argument adduced In behalf
of these special entertainments for money-raising
Is that they bring the people
together and enable them to have a good
time, and that only In this way will many
persons give anything to the church.
But there are other ways of promoting
sociability. And as respects- those who
are not disposed to aid the church, save
through what they get a full equivalent
for, it Is time they were taught another
lesson, and come to know the Lord's
cause is not so Insignificant an affair as
to be maintained by low appeals to the
stomach or to the sense of amusement or
to the love of bargain, or to cupidity at
tho raffle or grab-bag. The world needs
to know that the Lord can support His
Kingdom without their aid. If they will
not give to Its maintenance directly and
cheerfully. He will not suffer It to go
begging. If his people will only have
faith In their own prayers and activities,
and press forward in his nnme, and
work and sacrifice as they ought. Has
not the hour struck when Christians will
Ignore the world and worldly methods In
advancing the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
llravo, Portland!
Astoria Astorian.
No better demonstration of the possi
bilities which lie stored in the money
vaults of Portland has ever been given
than the unprecedented accomplishment of
that city in raising practically all of the
5200,000 subscription asked for the Lewis
and Clark celebration In one day's can
vass by the subscription committee. It Is
an accomplishment of which our neighbor
on the Willamette may well be proud, and
will cause every webfooter in the state to
brace up, take the kinks out of his back,
put both shouldera to tho wheel, and help
to push this enterprise to a successful is
sue. Now that the moneyed men of that
city have seen what may be accomplished
by unity of action, it is to be hoped that
the same spirit will move them to reach
out and secure for this state some of the
choice commercial plums which are now
being gathered from the tree of prosperity,
very few of which have so far fallen into
Oregon's basket
' AMUSEMENTS.
C. H. Yale's "Devil's Auction." with
something like 32 people and enough scen
ery to fill several theaters, played to a
good-sized house last nisht, and although
It opened so late that it was 12:30 when the
final curtain was rung down, the crowd
stayed to the last, a convincing proof
that the performance Is pleasing. The
spectacles are all brilliant, the scenic
effects unusually elaborate, and many of
the mechanical tricks highly amusing. The
company. Including a dog that Is smart
enough to vote. Is all that Is required for
a production of the kind.
"The Mikado."
Clever opera well sung by Wllbur-Klr-win
Company at Baker's. Gilbert & Sulli
van's best and brightest opera "The Mi
kado," was very cleverly presented by
the Wilbur-KIrwin Company at the Baker
last evening. Miss Klrwln singing the role
of Yum Yum, and Mr. Kohnle that of Ko
Ko, while Mr. Huff, who has been laid
up with a sprained voice, reappeared to
play Pooh Bah. Tho principals were all
good, the play was prettily mounted and
costumed, the Japanese costumes of the
girls being especially tasteful. The opera
will be repeated tonight, and at two per
formances Saturday.
COMING ATTRACTION.
William Collier In "On the Quiet!' at
the Mnrquam Tonight.
William Collier, who is today without
doubt America's leading comedian, will
appear at the Marquam Theater tonight
in "On the Quiet," a comedy which was
written for him by Augustus Thomas, and
In which he has achieved a most brilliant
success. The same production is promised
as that originally given in New York.
During Mr. Collier's six" months' run
there the scenery has been specially paint
ed for the production by famous scenic
artists. The third act represents the deck
of a yacht, under full sail. The comedy
Is one of modern New York society life,
and Is said to be Mr. Thomas' best work.
Tho entertainment will be for two nights
and the matinee Saturday. There has
been a large advance sale, and the expec
tation is that the house will crowded at
all three performances.
Living; Picture nt the Baker.
"The Two Vagabonds" will be given at
the Baker at the matinee Sunday and
Sunday night, by the Wilbur-KIrwin Op
era Company. Between the act3 of this
opera there will be produced a series of
living pictures identical with those shown
at Proctor's Theater, New York. The
frame and all the accesserles of the pic
tures were purchased by Miss Klrwln
from Proctor, and she has spared no pains
to give them on an elaborate scale. They
will be featured all the week.
Other specialties will also be given. The
operas for next week are as follows: "Two
Vagabonds," Sunday matinee and night
and Monday; "Fra DIavolo," Tuesday,
Wednesday, matinee and night and Thurs
day: "Pinafore,"' Friday and Saturday
matinee and night
Blnck Pnttl'M Troubadours.
Black Patti's Troubadours, the leading
colored troupe In America, will be seen
at Cordray's next week with Black Pattl
herself at the head of the company. Nu
merous new numbers, late songs and
dances, and many pretty effects in light
ing and cos-turning are promised. The
company Is said to be the best Black
Patti has yet had in. her support, and
good press notices indicate that they have
been favorably rescued wherever they
have been seen. The engagement will be
for a week with matinee Saturday.
LITERATURE AND LONGEVITY.
Hartford News.
The general idea that literary produc
tion of a high order is hostile to lonjr
life by reason of the nervous wear and
tear it necessitates would seem to be
erroneous. Scott wore himself out at the
age of 61 by excessive work, and Dickens
no doubt lived at too high pressure pos
sibly the same may be said of Thackeray
but in the great majority of cases lit
erary men possess that balance which
avoids nervous exhaustion, and the liter
ary life is a wholesome and moral one.
In our own country the average life of
29 leading writers, from Jonathan Edwards
down, Is C6 years. In nearly every case,
too, their productive powers havo re
mained unimpaired by old age. Bayard
Taylor worked too hard and Lanier was
broken by exposure In the Civil War.
Dr. Holmes and Whlttier enjoyed the
longest lives of anjv of our writers, each
passing his SSth birthday. Emerson,
Longfellow and Bryant lived long and
tranquil lives, and very few, perhaps
not one, of American literary men short
ened their lives by excessive deiot!on to
their natural pursuits. It will be noticed
that the average length of the lives of
great American writers Is greater than
that of their English counterparts by near
ly four years, though two of the Eng
lishmen, Carlyle and Newman, lived longer
than any one of the Americans. This
would still be true by -a slightly less
figure even were the exceptional cases
of Keats and Shelley excluded from the
English list. The reason Is probably
that literary Englishmen drink much
more beer and wlno than Americans do.
The habitual use of alcohol even In mod
eration is sure to result, in men of se
dentary habits, in liver and kidney dis
orders about the nge of 50. At least, no
other explanation of the greater longevity
of American writers suggests itself.
It is but fair to add that the a'erage
age of American writers would have been
reduced nearly a year had Stephen Crane
and Richard Hovey been included. Both
of these, though young men of great
promise, had accomplished at tho date of
their- death hardly enough to warrant
Including them in the category of "great
writers."
The living American writers who seem
to have done enough to entitle them to
admission to our literary Aralhalla are
Henry James, Bret Harte. Howe'.ls. Don
ald Mitchell. Weir Mitchell. Stedman,
Stoddard, Aldrich. FIske, Cablo and Clem
ens. They average now C5 years, and we
hope that they will increase the general
longevity materially. There Is every rea
son to say that they will do so. They
have already proved that devotion to the
literary life does not sap vitality. The
wild-eyed, consumptive, hectic literary irt
lst Is a thing of the past. Did he ever
exist except In the Imagination of senti
mentalists? Cost of Food. England and France.
National Review.
To say nothing of tobacco and match
monopolies, which, of course, mean dear
matches and tobacco, the French equiva
lents for English excise duties aggregate
47.ST0.000 a year, or about 10,000.000 more
than those of England. Setting aside the
octrois, the two totals would be very near
each other. The actual difference in the
cost of provisions in the two countries is,
however, very much greater than the re
spective scales of taxation will account
for. This fact Is bejng borne in on the
French people, and has of late engaged
the attention both of economists and sci
entists. In connection with the discussion
of old-age pensions, the Revue Sclen
tltlque drew a remarkable contrast be
tween the conditions of the working class
es in France and England. The conclusion
of .the writer was that the working class
es in Paris, though they have about the
same wages as are paid In London, are
not nearly so well fed as London work
men. Their provisions, he alleged, are
taxed at least 50 per cent of their value,
and the cost of living Is correspondingly
high. In illustration of this he quotes a
few comparative prices of staple articles
of food in the two cities:
London. Paris.
Francs. Francs.
Leg of mutton per kilogram.. 2 3
Rump steak per kilogram 2 CO 3 20
Butter per kilogram 2 40 4
Cocoa per kilogram 1 CO 7 50
Tea per kilogram 3 CO 12
NOTE AND COMMENT.
With the Walters' Alliance the tray Is
always high.
We are managing to struggle along fair
ly well without any beautiful snow.
Perhaps the moaning of tho bar is only
the echo of those In the city by the sea.
The sole survivor of Nebraska Populism
Is still baying the moon with great indus
try. The most welcome Christmas green I&
the long and crisp variety suitable for
rolls.
Slabwood may have been higher when It
was In the tops of the tall timber, but not
much.
Look out for that Santiam poem. Don't
fire till you see the whites of lt3 eyes.
See below.
Judging from all accounts. Marquis Ito
spells his name without the "o" when he
Is -in Japan.
The Santiam poets have carried out
their threat. This is Intended as a warn
ing. See below.
Has any one examined the grave of the
late R. Wagner since Nordlca began to
sing ragtime?
Have you received your invitation to
the coronation? We lent ours to our
friend Mr. Maher.
Will the distinguished Senator who
wants Agulnaldo brought to this country
please rise and state what the country
has ever done to him?
Soon will the flying snowflakes
Unto us mortals bring
The thoughts of things we'd like to have.
Among them gentle Spring.
That Milwaukee man who gave his In
tended a dog Instead of an engagement
ring wanted to be certain that the wed
ding was bound to occur.
London. Dec. 5. Dear Santa Claus: I
don't want a thing this Christmas, but
please give me a little peace. Your little
friend, JOHNNY.
Now a corner in pumpkins is being en
gineered, and the youth of tho land will
soon be deprived of the luxury of scaring
little girls to death with jack-o'-lanterns.
He never drank Tobasco sauce,
Or ww a West Point hop:
He never wore a shako high.
With flowing plumes on top;
He never made a touchdown In
The Army-Navy game.
But yet hl3 name was Funston," and
He got there, just the samel
Clara Morris says that Tomasso Sal
vlnl used too many I's in his autobiog
raphy. Miss Morris makes it an Invari
able rule never to refer to herself In any
of her writings.
Now war is waged in : and the times are
out of Joint,
And Spanish oaths are rounded with an .
Tamalc-eatlng greasers, with countenance!
dark. ,
Do deeds of nerve and valor (here place a 7).
The sound of guns Is heard abroad, machetes
loudly clash.
Sombrero-wearing officers around on bron
chos .
Tho pampas plumes are. trampled down whera
bloody feet have trod.
And history will call these times a gory .
Mr Editur, Dere Sur. Times Is auful
quite up hear so now 1 have rote mot
potry for yure valuble paper. 1 bin reedin
the rijlnal poi'ry u publish an 1 think. II
yure recders can stand that they ot 2 be
nt.i tnmi -a-hnt 1 hav rote. Yure
friend
TJ
OUR SUMMER BOARDERS.
Our Summer boarders all hav' flu tu distant
lands away;
They came here In the Summer time, but
didn't cum tu stay.
Sum came to hunt the grlzley bare and sum
to purchls trout.
And sum to brcth the mountln air and war
thare old close out.
And sum came here to rack thare hones anc
rest thare wcery brain.
And sum to cllmo the mountlns thare good
helth to regain.
And sum thare ware. 1 blush to say. whe
luved the brimmln cup.
Who all tho way from Salem came hero tt
sober ud.
But now thare gon it's lonesumllke along the
Santiam,
Tho borders round the table no longer crowfi
and Jam.
For sum hav gon' 2 Texas and sum to Flor-
day.
And sum are etln orlnges In Callfornlay.
i
Grim dcth ha3 called sum hence away, I
hope to hcvln 2 dwell.
But from what 1 no ov uthers. It's mow
likely thare in Portland.
. TILL.IE JOHNSON.
PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPIIERS
Just So. "Pa. what are prejudices:" "Oth
er people's opinions, my son." Puck.
Easily Explained. "I wonder why the baby
cries so much." said the young mother.
"That's easy." answered tho bachelor uncle.
"Why Is It?" demanded the mother. "Be
cause It Is a baby." replied the uncle. Chi
cago Post.
A Surprise for Charley Casscl. The Brldo
John, do you know anything about high
balls? "Why. cr-r. y-yes'm." "Then I wish
you would cook several for my husband's din
ner. I heard him tell a friend that he dearly
loved them." Life.
His Fault. Mrs. Caddie My husband's so
slipshod. HIS buttons are forever coming
off. Mrs. Goode (severely) Perhaps they are
not sewed on properly. Mrs. Gaddle That's
Just It. He's awful careless about his sew
ing. Philadelphia Press.
The Model Farm. "Does your son know
much about farming?" "I should say he
does," answered Farmer Corntosscl. "He says
he reckons he'll go to town an' make about
a million dollars, an then come back an run
this farm proper." Washington Star.
"Good-morning, sir." said the sojourner In
Jayvllle; "have you got any porpoise shoe
laces?" "No. I nln't. Smarty!" promptly
replied the storekeeper: "think yer funny,
don't ye?" "Eh?" "OhI I know what a.
porpus Is. nn' It don't wear no shoes." Phil
adelphia Record.
Desirable Furniture. "But these chairs."
she said, "however fashionable they may be,
are very uncomfortable." "Ah!" replied tha
salesman, 'tnat's the beauty of these chairs,
madam. "When a caller sits In one of these
chairs, madam, she doesn't stay long." Phil
adelphia Press.
The ButteriHe.
The
Voyage of Ithobai," by sir Edward
Arnold.
"We saw the butterflies by Isls, lord!
Thou had'st not missed the flag-flower, or tha
lote.
The blood-red granate-bud or palm blossom r
Nor all thine Egypt's gardens, viewing there
What burning brilliance danced on doubla
wings
From stem to stem, or lighted on the leaves
Blotting tho gray and brown with lovely blaze
Of crimson, silver-spotted. Summer blues
By gold fringe bordered, and gemmed orna
ment Alight with living luster. One, all pale.
The color of the sunrise when pearl clouds
Take their first flush; one. as If lazullte
"Were cut to fllmy blue and gold; and one.
Black wlth'gold bpsses; and a purple one.
Wings broad as Is my palm with silvery moons
And script of what tho god3 meant when they
made
This delicate work, flitting across the shade.
This breath a burning Jewel, at the next
With closed vans seeming like the faded twlff.
It perched on, or the dry brown mossy bark."