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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 21, 1901)
Entered at the Postoaice at Portland. Oregon, as second-cla.ss matter. REVISED SUBSCRIPTION RATES. By Mall (postage prepaid), !n Advance Daly, with Sunday, per month $ S3 Da:y. Sunday excepted, per year......... 7 CO Dal, with Sunday, per year tl 00 SurUa. per year 2 00 Tie Weekly per year 1 CU Tro Weekly. Z months . 50 1o City Subscriber Dai'y. per week, delivered. Sundays except-d.l5c Iall, per week, delivered, Sundays Included.20c POSTAGE RATES Urlted Elates Canada and Mexico: 10 to H-page paper.... ...........t.........lc U to 28-page paper ...2c Foreign rates double. News nr dicurslon Intended fcr publication la The Oregonlan should be addressed Invaria bly "Editor The Oregonlan." not to the name cf any individual. Letters relating to adver tising subscription or to any business matter should be addressed elmply "The Oregonlan." Eastern Business omce. 43. 44. 43. 47. SJ 40 Tribune building. New York City: 4C3 "The Rookery," Chicago; the S. C, Bcckwlth epeclal egency. Eastern representative For sale In San Francisco by I E. liee. Pal ace Hotel news stand; Goldsmith Bros., 23a Sutter street; F. TV. Pitts. 100S Market street; J. K. Cooper Co., 74C Market street." near the Palace Hotel; Foster & Orear. Ferry news stand. For sale In Los Angeles by B. F. Gardner. 259 So. Spring street, and Oliver & Haines, 100 So. Serine street. , For sale in Chicago by the P. O. News Co., 217 Dearborn street. For sale In Omaha by Barkalow Bros., IMS Farnam street. For sale In Salt Lake by the Salt Lake News Co., 77 W. S-cond South street. For sale In Ogden by W. a Kind, 204 Twen-ty-flfth street, and by C H. Myers. On file, In the Oregon exhibit at the exposi tion, Charleston. S. C For sale !n "Washington, D. C., by the Ebbett House news stand. For sale in Denver. Colo, by Hamilton & Xendrlck. 000-012 Seventeenth street. TODATS "WEATHER Showers; with winds Hiostly southerly. YESTERDAYS "WEATHER Maximum tem perature, 40; minimum temperature, 34; pre cipitation, 0.06 inch. PORTLA2VD, SATURDAY, DEC. 21, KEYS TO CHARACTER. The sage motioned his visitor to a Chair, and scrutinized him closely. His stainless blue eyes bespoke the frank and manly soul, but In the meeting eye brows he detected the mark of insin cerity. The unusually well-developed organ of firmness Vas strangely offset by & weak mouth. The prominent nose iwould have demonstrated the visitor's iforce of character had it not been for the weakness revealed in the small, receding chia. The eyes, set close to gether, betrayed the artist tempera ment, but they were given the lie by the broad, flat fingers indicating the bent for mechanics. Cranial develop ment pointed plainly to generosity, but the diminutive ears showed how the heart was closed to every appeal for lelp. His stolid glance bespoke the list less mind, but in the beetling brows were plain evidences of shrewd powers of observation. As he had come up to the door the sage had noted that the visitor set his heels down hard, like all men of Napoleonic purpose, but when he shook hands he did so with that passive movement that stamps the vacillating and easily swayed. His straight, black hair indicated resolu tion and method, but slovenly arranged attire discovered laziness and disorder. So the sage requested his visitor to call again and bring specimens of his pen- manship and wash his hands so his palms could be read. , " This fable teaches us that the busi ness of foretelling the future, for pleas ure or profit, is attended with grave obstacles. Those who have consulted in turn the phrenologist, astrologer, medium, palmist, gypsies, tea-grounds and playing cards have learned by ex perience and some expense how difficult it is for these various schools to agree on details, and while the patient's name, age and various other things al ready known to him or her seem often miraculously revealed, the events of to morrow are ascertained with the great est difficulty and even doubt. Even where science is on firm footing, the most trustworthy indications are often at fault. Children of the same father and mother, even twins, exhibit the most marked antagonisms In disposition and capacity. Some, born with high tempers, control them. Others, born with sweet dispositions, are spoiled by overindulgence. "Whether the big headed infant Is a genius or an Idiot time only can reveal. Almost every family flock has Its black sheep the sister in exile, the brother that went to the gallows or the penitentiary and some of them are all black sheep but one or two. Children bom in the days of poverty may be homely -and forceful tnose m later affluence be handsome but useless. From a man's inheritance or early training It Is impossible to say what his end will be. From the New man home went out two boys similarly bred and educated, but while one be came the great Catholic preacher, poet and cardinal, the other went to the ex treme of unbelief. To them has been applied a beautiful stanza in one of Dr. Holmes poems: From the same cradle's side. From the same mother's knee, . One to long darkness and the frozen tide One to tho peaceful sea. No man has the future in his knowl edge; but better than this, every man has his future largely In his keeping; and he has it altogether in his keeping, so far as the most important part of it is concerned. One last dread day that comes to all it will make little differ ence where the lost bracelet Is, or whether grandfather made another will, or how near the dark lady comes to us by water with money or without; but it will make all the difference in the world how we have lived. Every man, that is to say, Is not hl9 own fortune teller, but his own fortune-maker. He gathers in at harvest time the fruits of his own sowing whether of wild oats or golden grain. "BIRDS OP THE COMING STORX." Chicago anarchists who were arrested at the time of the murder of Presi dent McKinley have of late grown ex ceedingly bold In their utterances against the official life of the Nation and those who represent it Open let ters and manifestoes have been ad dressed to President Roosevelt, breath ing defiance, disrespect and rebellion in response to his sharp arraignment of anarchy and anarchists in his late mes sage. A conference of anarchistip lead ers of different cities in Illinois has lately been held in Chicago the hotbed and breeding nest of anarchy, and the manifestoes referred to have been' sect out in accordance with the plans then and there formed. A general mani festo is yet to appear. This will be for warded to every member of the legis lative portion of the Federal Govern ment, and also printed and sown broadr cast by the organs of the "reds" throughout the country. Bold, audacious, impudent Abraham I-Isaak and his coworkers emphasize by their attitude the fact that the time has come to deal sternly with the dis turbing, menacing element that they represent. An open letter covering a page of the anarchistic sheet. Free So ciety, signed by Abraham Isaak and ad dressed to President Roosevelt, voices the views of the Chicago horde. Though carefully worded, the letter from first to last is full of menace and a defi ance. It concludes with the statement that "the Paris Commune was drowned In the blood of 30,000 human beings, but even today the intelligent people look back to that grand uprising with inspiration and hope." Reference Is made in like laudatory strain to other European movements looking to the overthrow of government, while the hanging of the Chicago anarchists is treated with the usual updertone of vengeance delayed but sure to come. The document closes: "In the words of August Spies, 'We are the birds of the coming storm.' " i If there Is any merit in this mani festo, it is in its boldness. The Gov ernment now knows, if it did not know before, exactly where to find these peo ple. Keeping within the pale of the existing law, they shout defiance at all law; claiming and enjoying the protec tion of liberty, they would turn its op portunities against its very life; glory ing In murder, they make outcry against the decree of the law by which the lives of their comrades taken red handed were required of them. Self proclaimed "birds of the coming storm," it is for Congress to arrest them in their flight, and with a determination exceed ing their own, first confine the storm to their furious ravings and then stop its rumblings. Made bold by the mur der of the President and arrogant through the failure of detectives to fix the crime, where it justly belonged upon anarchists who make dupes and tools of weaklings like Czolgosz, these self-proclaimed "birds of the coming storm" have clearly forgotten prudence In their last mad flight. TJXJUST, UNWISE AND OPPRESSIVE. It is one of the humiliating phenom ena of human nature that a man fre quently knows less about his own needs than the most casual observer could tell him. As to performance, the case is plain. The poet gathers his worthless pieces into the authorized volume and sets the gems aside to await the more discriminating publisher. Many a wife has dug her husband's cleverest work out of the waste basket Yet one would suppose that tea merchants, for exam ple, would know whether a 10-cent Im port tax was good or bad for their trade. Unfortunately, they don't, for their eager advocacy of the tariff has succeeded to frantic demands for its re peal. They have apparently been as wise In their generation as the trans continental railroads which have been retarding the development of their tcr. ritory by delaying the Nicaragua Canal, Inasmuch as the tax on tea was en acted three years and a half ago, it Is about time' for the true source of its origin to be made public. It takes about that long for the true inwardness of our "protective" schemes of various kinds to get to the surface. We place entire confidence in this acsertlon made by the Washington correspondent of the New York Journal of Commerce: The history ot the imposition of the duty on tea shows that it was in response to tho de mand ot Senator Tillman, ot South Carolina, who had the protection of the Infant tea In dustry at the Pinehum plantation, nenr Sura merville. In his state. In view. It was In direct compllanco with his motion that the Senate put on tho duty, -which was accepted In con ference. There was no particular opposition to It, as It seemed to meet tho views and wishes of the tea merchants who had been contending for years that something: should be done that would kill the trade In spurious teas. To take the last end of this explana tion first, it is a trifle disconcerting to find that the duty has not operated to keep out- the objectionable teas. No body but a shrewd business man, know ing everything about his books and bal ances, and nothing about the world, would have held implicitly to the faith that an act of Congress is omnipotent over the food habits of the people. Of course, it is nothing of the sort. We are all drinking the Identical tea we drank in 1897, and woe betide the grocer that eends something else to the house by mistake. Such little effect as the tax had was to encourage consumption of cheaper tea. There was a natural effort on the grocer's part to give his customers something that cost 30 cents and 10 cents tax in place of the article that had been costing. 40 cents. At a conference in New York the other day a grocer objected to the tariff because his 8-cent tea was thereby made to cost 18 cents. He was promptly and appropriately rebuked by another mem ber of the conference, who informed him that the tariff on tea was designed to keep out such cheap teas.- The inci dent's bearing on the efficacy of the law is obvious. Logically, considered, however, if we grant the protection theory, the abolish ment of the tax Is indefensible. Tea is grown in the United States. The tariff protects it Therefore the tariff should be retained. From this conclusion there is, in protection logic, no anreal. It makes no difference how small the tea industry is, or how burdensome the tax, or how many the consutners and few the growers. The "principle" is un disturbed by any such considerations. We must not withdraw protection to any American industry. .To this reductio ad absurdum do the protectionists In Congress hold, and any effort to destroy this iniquitous tariff will be resisted on behalf of Tillman's South Carolina plantation. The simple fact as to the tax on tea is, of course, that it is needed neither for revenue nor for projection, and that its three-fold effect Is to wring money unjustly from the people, to hamper trans-Pacific trade, both ways, and to vitiate the quality 'of tea consumed by the Ameri can public CABINET CHANGES. The replacement of Postmaster-General Smith by Henry C. Payne Is likely to be followed within a few months by the retirement of perhaps all the Sec retaries appointed by President McKin ley save Secretary Root and Secretary Wilson. These retirements will not be due to any desire on the part of Presi dent Roosevelt to seek new Cabinet advisers, but to the natural desire of the officers of McKInley's Cabinet to retire at the first decent opportunity after the business machine of the Ad ministration had become familiar to the new President and the various depart ments put in the best possible order for the advent of new Cabinet officers. Before the murder of President McKin ley it was well known that Secretaries Hay, Gage and Long would be glad to return to private, life. Secretary Hay has suffered by sickness and severe do THE MORNING OBEGONIAN, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1901, mestic bereavement during the past year; Secretary Gage is weary of offi cial life at Washington, which is labor ious and 111 paid; Secretary Long is an 'able lawyer, who needs to return to his practice, for he Is not a rich man, and in event of the death or retirement of Senator Hoar he would naturally be among the candidates for the succes sion. The Secretary of the Interior has not made his administration of his de partment altogether satisfactory to the people of the West The present Secretary of War, Mr. Root, Is not only the ablest man in the Cabinet, but he is an old-time warm personal friend of President Roosevelt. If Secretary Root were to consult his own desires, probably he would be glad to return to private life, for he has suffered considerably from ill health since he went to Washington, and he sacrifices tho income of a very large and valuable legal practice by his ser vice as Cabinet Minister. It is natural that the Secretaries appointed by Pres ident McKinley should wish to retire, and it Is natural that a new President should wish to have his Cabinet com posed of men who are not only polit ical supporters, but personal friends, like Secretaries Root and Payne; but there is no ground for the apprehension that Presidenr Roosevelt has a Jack sonian temper that is Intolerant of all men save those who have always be longed to the Inner circle of his clans men. The changes which have taken place and are likely to take place In his Cabinet are not more sweeping than fol lowed the accession of Tyler, Fillmore, Johnson and Arthur. Tyler accepted the resignation of all the Cabinet offi cers of HarriHon, saving Daniel Web ster, within six months after Harri son's death, and Webster resigned in 1843. Fillmore retained none of Presi dent Taylor's Cabinet Andrew Johnson retained none of Lincoln's Cabinet from personal choice, save Secretary Seward and Secretary Welles. President Arthur kept none of Garfield's Cabinet save Robert T. Lincoln, who was retained doubtless for the same reason that he was originally appointed by President Garfield; he was the Upright, inoffen sive, entirely respectable son of Abra ham Lincoln; he was the shadow of a very great name. The successor of Mr. Hay has already been designated as Mr. Choate, our present Ambassador to England, but it Is doubtful whether Mr. Choate's profes sional Interests would permit of further devotion of his time to the public serv ice. In that event Senator Lodge, of Ma&sachusetts, might be invited to be come Secretary of State, for, like Sec retary Root, he Is a lifelong personal and political friend of the President, and he is particularly well fitted for the office of Secretary of State by his at tainments as a scholar and a writer, and his thorough knowledge of the po litical history of the United States in its relation to that of modern Europe. There is no reason for apprehending that President Roosevelt will make any changes in his Cabinet beyond those which are made necessary by events or prompted by the desire to Increase the working efficiency of his Administra tion. He is not of the temper of Jack son, who made passionate personal friendship for General Jackson rather than public efficiency the qualification for his Cabinet GREAT ORATORS SELDOM GREAT STATESMEN. The great popularity of Lord Rose bery as a most accomplished orator has been accentuated by his recent speech, but his own party, that listens to him with delight is divided In opinion as to whether Rosebery would prove a success If he accepts the Liberal leader ship. His record as the successor of Gladstone was in no sense a brilliant one, and his power and popularity with the English, public at present rest mainly on his 'oratory. A keen English critic once said that "England was made drunk by speeches and kept drunk by newspapers." Gladstone's gift of eloquence enabled him to main tain his Influence, or at least his follow ing, long after his defects as a states man had become clearly visible to in telligent observers. The same thing can be said with equal justice of Kos suth In Hungary and Castelar in Spain; their public eloquence was captivating, but their executive and administrative talents were small. This fact illustrates the limitations of the oratorical tem perament as distinguished from the mental constitution of a great states man. Kossuth by his eloquence and his pen stimulated the Hungarian revo lution, but when that revolution had bqen crushed by the intervention of Russia, Kossuth, at 49 years of age, went Into retirement and stayed In re tirement, dreaming over a barren ideal ity, for the next forty-five years. Cromwell, MIrabeau or Cavour could not possibly have played as great part as Kossuth and been content as Kos suth was to accept defeat and retire henceforth from the political battle field of his country. As well might you expect that jMapoleon Bonaparte would have hesitated to escape from Elba and organize the tremendous assault on the powers of Europe that fought, bled and grimly died at Waterloo. Kossuth was an orator, an enthusiast, an eloquent dreamer, a declalmer of poetic prose, not an organizing, constructive states man of the quality of MIrabeau, Ca vour, Bismarck. He was a poetic mind whom circumstances forced to essay the part of a statesman, but the sequel proved that he was a great agitator, not a great statesman, who knows when to- win by compromise, and not only when to blow the horn, but when to draw the sword. Kossuth was the greatest orator perhaps of this century, a most Inspiring, destructive agitator, but not a great constructive statesman. Kossuth was of the quality of political agitator and critic that was voiced in this country by the wonderful eloquence of Wendell Phillips and the greatly in ferior oratory of Charles Sumner. After Lincoln consented to emancipation, the work of Garrison, Phillips and Sumner as useful moral agitators was over. Garrison knew it and was. content, but Sumner livedto discredit his reputation for statesmanship by his utterly im practicable attitude on the question of the Alabama claims, while Phillips showed the infirmity of his very noble mind by adopting and voicing Ben But ler's absurd rubbish concerning green backism. The oratorical genius has its limita tions. Its work Is criticlshi, agitation. Inspiration, rather than organization and constructive statesmanship. When the twenty-two Girondist deputies were guillotined, it was truthfully said that, while a large majority of them could make an eloquent speech, there was not one of them that was endowed with the administrative ability and dauntless executive courage of Danton, who de plored their fate and vainly tried to save them by pointing out that In & time of revolution and war bold action is wanted rather than flowery words or political Idealism. The supreme gift which distinguishes the great orator from his fellows is his abnormal devel opment of the power of Imagination. This rare gift Is the source of the pe culiar effectiveness of a great orator's speech; his Imaginative power makes his logic glow, makes his wit and hu mor shine with new and fresh illus trations, makes visible new occasions and opportunities for criticism. So long as the work of the orator is that of an agitator, an lnspirer and a critic, his gift of the imagination su perbly arms him for battle. But when the battle Is won and men of calm, austere minds are confronted with the cold facts of a new and very trying military and civic situation, the orator of abounding imagination is generally a poor counsellor and almost Invariably an eccentric and vacillating executive. The true orator is seldom more than a great and useful artist, and his pe culiar power has been as notable in the history of the race as that of actor, poet, singer or preacher. Sometimes a great orator has been a great warrior, a great statesman, too. The Instances are few, because when the imagina tion is developed out of all proportion to the understanding, its appenls however useful to start a revolution, are not Instinct with the quality that wins the victories of peace. To Caesar and Napoleon alone in history is at tributed the ability to play the part of orator, warrior and statesman. The number of great orators are few, and of those the greatest Demosthenes and Cicero, had small claim to capacity for statesmanship. When the Imagination Is the predominant gift, the man is not likely to be a good administrator, a wise and vigorous executive, or a saga clous statesman. Citizens of Multnomah County have a proper pride in their schools. In the fifty-eight districts of the county out side of Portland 104 teachera are em ployed. The schoolhouses are for the most part comfortable and well suited to thepurpose, and a total of 2591 pu pils are in attendance out of an enroll ment of 2936. From a languid, hum drum existence, these schools have ad vanced within the past few years to a competitive stage that promises excel lent results. There Is-nothing else so dull as a country school, plodding along on a dead level, and nothing else so lively as a country school instinct with the desire to be In the front rank. Su perintendent Robinson Is to be congrat ulated upon having infused the latter spirit Into the schools of the county. Not the least of the unfortunate cir cumstances connected with the turmoil In Naval circles, of which Admiral Schley Is the storm center, Is the pitia ble condition of Admiral Sampson. A mental and physical wreck, largely as the result of the bitter disappointment caused by his absence from the great est naval battle In the history of the world, the Admiral Is no longer able to contend for the henors lost to him by unfortuitous circumstance. His friends await In pity the end because of the probability that it will be long delayed, while his critics it should not be said that he has enemies hold their peace In the presence of the misfortune that has overtaken a man who served his country long and well. The ceremonies of breaking ground for the Louisiana Purchase Exposition were observed at St Louis yesterday, though, on account of the severe weather, the imposing programme was greatly shortened. The day was chosen because it marks the anniversary of the signing of the treaty of New Orleans, December 20, 1803. A hundred years of expansionl And yet the expansion idea Is opposed by some as a new and dan gerous departure from the traditions of the Republic! Lapse in attention, responsibility, care call It what we may on the part of an old and thoroughly tried engineer has caused another wreck on thp South ern Pacific Railroad. Three lives were lost, and a number of persohs injured. The engiheer in this case did not mis understand orders. He simply forgot them. Reviewing the wreck and Its cause, the only verdict possible was: "There 1b no possible excuse for Engi neer Coffey." The appointment of a member of the School Board to take the place of the late D. P. Thompson Is a matter which cannot be too carefully considered. The educational and financial Interests of the district are large and growing, and the services of a broad-minded, ener getic man or woman are needed to fill acceptably a place vacated by the death of Mr. Thompson. Senator Gibson, of Montana, stated recently in an Interview in Washing ton mat tne "differences In the Demo cratic party in his state are all healed." To this the Fergus County Argus sig nificantly responds: "That may be true, as a good many of the members of the party are said to have taken the 'gold cure. " Richard Croker, accompanied by Sen ator Murphy, has gone to Frenchllck Springs, in Indiana, for "treatment." Invitations have been sent to William J. Bryan and Carter Harrison to Join the disgruntled patient at the springs. The trio will "take a course," the na ture of which it is not difficult to sur mise. The Sampson-Schley controversy has got oack to first principles; and is once more represented by the plain question: "Who fought the Rattle of Santiago?" It bids fair to take rank in history with that persiBtent question, "Who killed Cock Robin?" Sir Thomas Lipton is going to build still another Shamrock. Sir Thomas' mother must have thoroughly fastened the If-at-flrst-you-dcn't-succeed maxim in her son's memory. The Filipino women are now In favor of peace. Arrangements to withdraw the Army will no doubt be made speed ily. Marconi's nerve has been unshaken by his trouble with the cable company. His engagement is announced. Now that watermelons are to be made into whisky, will it be unlawful to sell ,them to Indians? Sampson ought to go down to history as William the Tactless. FORCIBLE RETIREMENTS. The Oregonlan of December 1. comment ing upon the fact that Colonel Henry E. Noyes, Second United States Cavalry, had been placed upon the retired list by order of jhe President, said: Authority for the retirement of an ofllcer against his will after reaching: the age of 62 Is expressly vested In the President by act of Corgress, but It has only been resorted to a few times -within the last few years. Colonel Crofton was retired by President Cleveland; General E. A Carr was retired by order or President Harrison; Colonel E. C. Balnbrldge and Colonel Charles E. Compton were retired by President McKinley, and so was General Charles P. Eagan. In the case Of Colonel Novm th TraMrnr has made no mistake. The Oregonlan simply quoted here the official record as found in the Army Register, and beyond the case of Colonel Noyes expressed no opinion as to whether former Presidents had been Justified in forcibly retiring the officers named above. Colonel William H. Jordan, U. B. A, writes us a letter regarding tho forcible retirement of General E. A. Carr, an, officer distinguished during the Civil War for gallantry at Pea Ridge, Wilson's Creek and Big Black Bridge, and further distinguished in tho Indian wars for his Important victory over Tall Bull, a noted warrior. The following explanation of the forcible retirement of General Cart shows a discreditable excess of his legal powers by President Harrison: General Carr was retired two years before he should have been, solely to make a vacancy for a certain Colonel. He protested against it in a letter written to the President stating that no one had 'any authority from him (as alleged as an excuso for the premature retirement) to presume that he would ask to be retired, pro vided he was promoted from Colbnel to Briga-dlcr-Gencral. not wishing to hand as a legacy to his .son Clark that he could enter Into such a bargain. The Oregonlan did not pretend to tne knowledge possessed by Colonel Jordan, and did not go back of tho record, except in the case of Colonel Noyes. The Ore gonlan Is not Justly open to censure from Colonel Jordan. Tho wrong done General Carr was the work of President Harrison. The record Quoted bv The Oresrnninn wns written by President Harrison in tho Army Register, and for that record The Oregon lan is not responsible. The Oregonlan had no knowledge of the matter beyond the record, and did not construe it, as It did in the caso of Colonel Noyes, to be a just exercise of legal authority. It did not speak ot what it did not and could not know. REGULATION AND CONSOLIDATION New York Commercial. The letters from Northwestern Govern ors received by Governor Van Sant ot Minnesota, in response to his invitation to them to co-operate with him in hl3 ef forts to annul the organization and the operation of the Northern Securities Company are Interesting chiefly in the rather astonishing conflict of law that they disclose in the matter of control of corporations. Of three states, Montana, North Dakota and Oregon, only the former ap pears to have any law at all similar In this respect to those of Minnesota. Tho Dakota constitution is very plain, but the statutory prohibition is rather gen eral and vague. Montana's law prohib its tho consolidation of parallel and com peting lines of transportation and has other general prohibitive provisions. By far the most interesting reply received by Governor Van Eant Is that from Governor Geer, of Oregon, who says: Oregon has ho laws regulating combinations ot capital, and non regulating freight rates. Passenger fares are limited to 4 cents.per mile as a maximum; but two lines, the Northern Pacinc and the Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company, have voluntarily reduced tho rate to 3cents. The Oregon Rallroad& Navigation Company and tho Northern PaclflVCompany are making commendable efforts toward the development of their respective territories, and have become a great help to the people. Un less consolidation of railway companies should be followed by Increased freight and passenger rates, It would be difficult to see where objec tion to It would He. If this result should fol low. It Is a matter within the power of the Legislatures to control. It may prove an easier matter to regulate rates than to prevent con solidation. These vlew3 of Oregon's chief executive are worthy of careful consideration. Tho principal objection to consolidation of railroads seems to Ho in the fact that such consolidation tends to prevent that healthy competition between rival lines which undoubtedly Inures to the benefit of the public in the way of giving it cheaper freight and passenger rates and better service. But, if these rates were regulated by tho Legislature of each state, as they are In Oregon, where would the objection to consolidation He? It nppears very reasonable, as Governor Geer remarks, that "it may prove an easier matter to regulate rates than to prevent consolidation." Thoughts on Subsidies. New York Journal of Commerce. Senator Hanna told the Boston mer chants tho other evening that "if some thing was not done to protect the Ameri can merchant marine soon, every channel for trade, every hole would be plugged, by merchants of England, Germany and Prance until tho Americans would have to fight to get Into it." What does he mean by "plugged"? While the American mer chant marine Is said to hive been decay ing, American exports have been increas ing wonderfully. Certainly our export business Is not "plugged." Not only are vessels hunting diligently for American cargoes, but the Commissioner ot Navi gation has shown that a great part of them which do not carry our flag are owned by our capitalists and land their profits on this side of the ocean. Mr. Hanna is said to hive proved that Euro pean nations are paying subsidies amounting to $2S,O0O,O0O a year. And what good is it doing them? France is In a states of chronic complaint over the small growth of her merchant marine, which is more liberally subsidized than that of any other nation. Italy and Austria have hardly as much to show for the subsidies as France has. Tho mer chant marines that are growing fast are those of Norway, Germany and England. The first is not subsidized. Of the others, only a few lines receive either subsidies or heavy mail payments. Ninety-six or 07 per cent of English and German ship ping gets nothing from its government Smnshlng- Darwin. Letters of John Richard Green. On Saturday morning I met Jenkins going to the museum. We Joined com pany, ana ne proposed going to "Sec tion D. the Zoology," etc., "to hear tho Bishop of Oxford smash Darwin." "Smash Darwin! Smash the pyramids!" said I. in great wrath, and, muttering about "Impertinence," which caused Jen kins to explain that "the Bishop was a first-class in mathematics, von Vmntv nrt bo has a right to treat on scientific mat ters," which, of course, silenced my cav ils. Well, when Professor Draper had ceased his hour and a half of nasal Tan kceism. up rose "Samivel," and proceed-, ed to act the smasher; the white chokers, who were abundant, cheered lustily, a sort of "Pitch It Into him" cheer, and the smasher got so uproarious as to pitch into Darwin's friends, Darwin being smashed, and especially Professor Hux ley. SU11 the white chokere cheered, and the smasher rattled on. "He had been told that Professor Huxley had said that he didn't see that it mattered much to a man whether his grandfather was an ape or not Let tho learned professor speck for himself," and the like. Which being ended and let me say that such rot never fell from episcopal lips before arose Huxley, young, cool, quiet, sar castic, scientific In fact and In treatment he gave his Lordship such a smashing a3 he may meditate on with profit over bis port at Cuddcsdon. AMUSEMENT& The Grau Opera Company sang "Doro thy" at the Marquam last night, and, al though the limitations ot the piece are great they succeeded in pleasing a good sized house. Miss Mary Carrington was again tho star, her song3 being admirably sung and -accorded the reception they de served. It has been some time since so gifted a comic-opera prima donna has been heard In Portland. Stanley Felch as Lurcher, a Sheriff, showed that he has by no means lost his old-time power of amus ing. He contributed a couple of songs in the last act which made a hit, and Mamie Scott got a rousing volley of applause for her clever singing of "The Honeysuckle and the Bee' song. The remainder of the principals had but little chance to do anything. The opera was well costumed. This afternoon "Wang," and tonight "Rip Van Winkle." "CAIUIEX." Bizet's Opera. Subjt by Wilbnr-Klr-vrln Company nt the Baker. "Carmen" was given by the Wllbur Klrwin Opera Company at the Baker Theater last night in a manner that was satisfying to a fairly good house. Miss Kirwin, Mr. Huff and Mr.. Abbot sang the chief roles acceptably, and the chorus displayed considerable familiarity with the music The specialties were a strong feature, and called forth much applause. "Merry War" this afternoon and tonight. MATINEES TODAY. Attractive Bills at All the Locnl The aters. A special women's and children's mat inee performance of "'Wang" will be given by tho Grau Opera Company at the Mar quam this afternoon. The bright music, funnft comedy and the elephant will make this opera a strong attraction. At Cordray'a Richard Gulden's fine rural drama. "Old Jed Prouty." will be the attraction. The play is among the best that has ever appeared at the the ater, and the fact that, there are to be but two more performances tonight and this nfternoon will be a strong factor in drawing crowded houses. "Merry War,' a lively comic opera, will be given by the Wllbur-Kirwln Opera Company at the Baker Theater, and will close their engagement there tonight The company Whs made many friends dur ing its stay in Portland, nnd will no doubt be given a rousing farewell. COMING ATTRACTIONS. Minstrels at the Marquam. Primrose & West's Minstrels will come to the Marquam Tuesday night and give a matinee and evening performance Christmas. Both George Primrose and Lew Dockstadcr have long enjoyed repu tations as tho leaders in mln3trclsy in America, and are always counted upon to bring an elaborate entertainment with them. Their show this year is said to be the best they have yet had, and num bers some of the best-known entertainers on the stage. "Ole Olson" nt the Baker. The attraction at the Baker Theater next week, beginning with a special mati nee Sunday afternoon, will be the famous Swedish comedy, "Ole Olson." with Ben Hendricks In the leading character. Both Hendricks and the play are well known in Portland, having played here to crowded houses in times past, and there is every Indication that their old-time success will be repeated during the coming engage ment "At the Old Cross Roads." "At the Old Cross Roads," the drama which will entertain the patrons of Cor dray's Theater next week, opening Sunday night, is coming to Portland for the first time, but is heralded by a successful se ries of engagements in the East nnd through California. Arthur C. Alston, under whose direction the tour Is con ducted, enjoys a reputation of being a manager who understands the needs of the Western theater-goers, and he prom ises a better attraction this year than ever. Cannot Hurt America. Spectator. The policy which dictates tho "Milan decrees" never succeeds, and Napoleon when ho tried It was not hampered by the question of food, and had almost ab solute power In his own land. Four or flvo courts, and four or five parliaments, not to mention four or five peoples, will not hold together long enough to work America serious mischief. The "aggres sive economics" of which the Austrians complain will die away gradually, from internal causes, and "commercial suprem acy" will cease to be sought the moment It Is found not to be protltnble. Wo do not suppose, therefore, that the Conti nent will be foolish enough to attack America directly, or to run the risk of any battle of Armageddon with the Anglo-Saxon race. Cataclysmal events very rarely happen In politics. It Is well, however, for our countrymen to perceive that & nation may be detested though It Is not seeking to conquer South Africa, and to recognize that the causes which drive the Union and Great Britain to gether are not entirely sentimental. We have, It is true, a common origin, a com mon literature, and in many ways com mon aspirations, but we have also com mon Interests of a very binding kind. America, though itl thinks itself protec tionist, is not protectionist about food, and the kind of awestruck horror of free competition which great parties on the Continent are now betraying tends to drive all who speak English and sell and buy food freely into a single defensive group. That 13 a fact which 1? worth remembering when we grow frightened by the American commercial "Invasion" or hear that America Is rinuliHnp- iii- nut or read speeches in the Senate affirming that Great Britain must be allowed no Influence over the Nicaragua Canal. If we may not say as. yet that tho two states have common enemies, at least they have common rivals, who seem at this moment Just a little Implacable. The Matabelelnnd Piano. Good Words. The piano In a very primitive form is found In Matabeleland, where, primitive as it is. it Is as much appreciated as the finest "grand" in our own country, even though It consist merely of a number of pieces of Iron strung on a wooden board. A picture of one of these shws 23 pieces of Iron of varying lengths and breadths, no two alike, arranged in an ascending scale along the board. Thus a scale of 3 notes Is produced, auitn Kufnonf elaborate tunes. To .add to It3 sonorous ness, the instrument Is usually put inside a hollow gourd, round the opening ot which bits of bone are placed with the same end In view. The performer sits, places the gourd on his knee's, the open ing toward him, and plays his "piano" with both hands through the opening. Tho late Mr. Bent the great South Af rican traveler, describes the sound as "decidedly melodious," and recalling a spinet Vanity, Saltn the Preacher. Josephine Preston Peabody. In the Drawer, Harper's, for December. I lovo my little gowns; I Iwa my little shoes. All otandlng still below them. Set quietly by twos. All day I wear them, carelessly. But when I put them by. They look so dear and different. And yet I don't know why. Of all, the white, with ribbons 9 Gray reen. If I could choose: The fichu that helps everything Be gny; and then my shoes My shoes that skip and saunter. And one that will untie. They look so funny and so young. I bate to put them by. X0TE AND COMMENT. Look out for the tlnfolled cigars! Is a railway collision microbe abroad in the land? Once more the Irish become known to fame as a rising race. Don't pay moro for hers than you think she will for yours. At last reports only 'about two dozen wars were raging in South Africa. Why not make tho American soldier a Christmas present of another canteen? Schley's seamanship i3 of a type that requires no subsidy in the way of prize money. The Britishers are calling Kitchener an organiser of victory. The victory will bo exhibited when It Is duly organized. The ground has been broken for the St Louis Exposition. The whole City of Buffalo was broken as a result of the Pan-American Fair. Let rains descend and mists arlso. And moist chlnook winds blow! Remember that throughout the East It's 03 below. The minimum wages ot women In the employ of the Government is to be fixed at ?2 a day. Was the bill Introduced at tho instance of the milliners or the dress makers? Kyrie Bellcw. the,Engilsh actor, charac terizes as nonsense the assertion made by the St.Jamcs6 Gazette that American tours vulgarize English actresses. A statement of his to a Montreal paper Indicates some of the different conditions prevailing In England and America: "The actor who Is educated In the conventionalities of tho London stage requires a tour of such a country as America to broaden his mind and give him an experience that Is not to be found in the bandbox theaters of Lon don. It Is true that there are a few thea ters there that are now a credit to the city, but the land is too valuable to allow of space, hence wc have to act on a stage Httlo bigger than this room and when wo get Into the magnificent buildings of the United Stntes and Canada, we wonder at our own shortcomings." Every Representative from Indiana and one of the Senators are said to have been opposed to the .appointment of Francis B. Baker to the vacant Indiana Judgeship in the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, but tho President made the appointment just the same. The Indiana men were talking it over the next day, says a Washington correspondent "Don't sneer at Goshen any more," said Representative Landis. "For years that town has been a butt, like Oshkosh. but now it has the laugh on every lawyer in Indiana. Years ago there was a law firm there known as Wood & Baker. Wood was put on the Federal bench in the Circuit Court of Appeals. Later Baker, his partner, was made Fed eral District Judge. Last Summer Wood died and now Baker's son Is given Wroods place. So the son will hear the appeals in the father's cases and Goshen has taken all the Federal Judgeships in sight for a generation." Rev. Edward Everett Halo has observed a curious feature in "Robinson Crusoe," which ho mentions In a preface to a new edition "of that book, and which apparent ly had not been noticed, or, at least, had not had public mention before. In thl3 preface he says: "Readers who are curi ous In English history must not fail to observe that Robinson Crusoe was ship wrecked on his island the 20th of Septem ber. 165'J. It was In that month that the English commonwealth ended and Rich ard Cromwell left the palace at Whitehall. Robinson lived In this island home for 'JS years. These 2S years covered the exact period of the second Stuart reign In Eng land. Robinson Crusoe returned to "Eng land in June, 16ST; the convention Parlia ment which established William III met In London at the same time. AH this could not bo an accidental coincidence. Dcfoo must have meant that the "true born Englishman" could not live In Eng land during the years while the Stuart3 reigned. Robinson Crusoe was a ruler himself on his own Island and was never tho subject of Charles II or James II." The Irony of a MIehty Effort. Chicago Tribune. The man dashed down the street after the retreating StAte-3treet car. Every muscle was strained, his breath came in quick gasps, the beads of mois ture stood out upon his forehead. His feet were working like the pedals on a bicycle. He only touched the ground in tho more altltudinous . places. "I'll catch that street-car," he gasped, "er die!" Faster went the street-car. Faster went the man. He overturned fruit stands and aged blind men In his wild career. He knocked down children and trampled upon them. But onward he rushed. He collided with a baby buggy. The baby was knocked into the street. The mother of the child piclcod It up. She pointed a finger at the disap pearing form of the man. "Murderer!" she hissed through her clenched teeth. Ho draws nearer to the car. Nearer yet He reaches out his hand. . He touches the rail on the rear platform. He gives one last convulsive effort. He is on tho car. He sinks breathless into ft seat and mop3 his brow. The conductor touches him on the shoulder. "Git often here." speaks the conductor. "We're a-go!n to ther barn. No moro cars tonight" PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGUAPIIERS On Good Authority. "So you're going to leave this studio?" "Leave? No: who told you that?" "Your landlord." Judy. Sufficient Cause. "Tho extra's about soma so ciety dud bos." "What did he do?" "I dunno: but he did something! That's why they got out the estra!" Puck. Xcne Too Liberal. "Mr. Linger spends a great deal ot time with you. Molly." said Miss KUtlsh to Miss Frocks. "Yes. but that's all ha does spend." Detroit Free Press. "Is your new rector an agreeable man?" "In deed, ho Is real nice; plays golf and squash, owns a naphtha launch and autommy. and. besides, he Hn't a bit religious." Glasgow Evening Times. Hostess riease don't leave off. Miss Jessop. Miss J. But sha'n't I boro you? It Is possible to have too much of a good things, you know. Hostess Yes; but that doesn't apply to your playing ! Punch. Sho (gazing upwards) Row bright the Btars are tonight. Mr. Sampson! He (promptly) They arc not bright. Miss Clara, than than Sho (softly) Than what. Mr. Sampson? He Than they were last night. Tit-Bits. Involved Logic "It Isn't long now until Christmas," commented tho Optimistic Person. "If it was as long until Christmas as I'll ba short after Christmas. It would be 10 years away," remarked the Pessimistic Individual. Baltimore American. A Terrible Threat. Hired Girl Now, you go away right this minute. Tramp Flease, mum Hired Girl Go away, I tell you. Clear out. now, or I'll I'll give .you a piece of mine pie that the young missus made herself. New York Weekly. His Way of Putting It. "It Is true." said the person of high Ideals, "that you have at tained prosperity by your writings. But yoa have produced nothing that will live." "Well." answered the comfortable litterateur, "when It comes to a question of which shall live, myself or my writings. I didn't hesitate to sacrifice my writings." Washington Star.