THE MORNING OHEGONIAN, MONDAY, DECEMBER 23, 1901. h rgaracm. Watered at the Fostofnee at Portland, Oregon, as second-class matter. REVISED SUBSCRIPTION RATES. By Mall (postage prepaid). In Advance ally, with Sunday, per month $ S3 Sally. Sunday excepted, per year 7 &) Sally with Sunday, per year 3 00 Sunday, per year ...... 2 00 The "Weekly per year 1 DO Tha "Weekly. 3 months 60 To City Subscribers Sally, per week, delivered. Sundays except d-15s Sally, per week, delivered, Sundays Included.20o POSTAGE RATES. United States Canada and Mexico: 10 td 14-page paper .lc 24 to 28-page paper 2o Foreign rates double. News or discussion Intended tor publication to The Oregonlan should be addressed invaria bly "Editor The Oregonlan." not to the name of any Individual. Letters relating to adver tising; subscription or to any business matter ehould be addressed pimply "The Oregonlan." The Oregonlan does not buy poems or stories from Individuals, and cannot undertake to re turn any manuscript sent to it without solici tation. No stamps should oe Inclosed for this purpose. Eastern Business Ofllce. 43, 44. 43, 47. 48, 49 Tribune building. New York City; 409 "The Rookery." Chicago; the S. C. Beckwith special agency. Eastern representative. For sale in San Francisco by L. E. Lee, Pal ace Hotel news stand: Goldsmith Bros.. 230 Sutter street: F. W. Pitts. 100S Market street; J. K. Cooper Co.. 740 Market street, near the Palace Hotel; Foster & Orear. Ferry news rtand. For sale In Los Angeles by B. F. Gardner, 59 So. Spring street, and Oliver & Haines. 100 So. Spring street. For sale In Chicago by the P. O. News Co.. 217 Dearborn street. For sale In Omaha by Barkalow Bros.. 1015 Farnam street. For sale in Salt Lak by the Salt Lake News Co.. ,, "W Second South street. For sale In Ogden by W. a Kind. 204 Twen-ty-flf th street, and 'by C. H. Myers. On file in the Oregon exhibit at the exposi tion. Charleston. S. C. For sale in Washington. D. C, by the Ebbett House news stand. For sale In Denver. Colo, by Hamilton & Kendrlck. 900-812 Seventeenth street. TODAY'S "WEATHER Occasional rain; brisk southerly winds. TESTERDA1-S WEATHER Maximum tem perature. 52; minimum temperature. 42; pre clrltation. 0.4S inch. PORTLAXD, 3IOXDAY, DECEMBEIUKi. SATAX KEIHJKING SIX. Obscure and elusive at the best, the trust problem is not notably cleared up ty the denunciation of trusts offered before the Chicago bankers Saturday night by the president of the steel trust As everything Is to be gained by sharp discrimination in terms. It is worth, while to look carefully at Mr. Schwab's definitions. "We can distin guish the trust, he says, by three things. It restricts trade, it raises prices, and It throttles competition. The "consoli dation," however, which term Mr. Schwab affects, expands trade and low ers prices. If you find a business com bination that seeks to eliminate compe tition, reduces output and raises prices, that is a trust If you And one that does the opposite, that is a consolidation-Persons who are engaged In -disreputable practices do not like the termi- nology popularly applied to their craft "Scab" and "rat" are repudiated by the nonunion workman, but for ali that "both have passed into the vernacular. American Catholics resent the expres sion "Church of Rome," but the most careful editor cannot altogether keep It out of his paper. The old "American" party passed into history by its derisive nickname, "Know-Nothing." Nobody is at pains to find a euphemism for "cop perhead," and all languages grow oy accretion from terms originally coined by hostility and scorn as -well as by complacency and pride. The trust by any other name -would smell as rank. Its essential nature is objectionable, and the hope of the trusts to escape odium by convicting the popular name for them of inaccu racy is vain. Mr. Hanna once said there are no trusts, and while he may ixaxe been technically right, he was In reality as wrong as Mr. Schwab is to day in seeking to draw one of the worst of the trusts out of the general cate gory. The sole fragment of truth In what Mr. Hanna contended for was that the old trust method of deporting shares of independent concerns In a common "trust" fund has been super seded by the modern trust method of forming a central stock company and purchasing the independent ooncerns outright The nature of the beast Is the same, though he is working with a new tool. And so, when Mr. Schwab pre tends to differentiate trusts and con solidations on the basis of raising or lowering prices, he most dismally fails, because everybody knows that a trust or "consolidation" or "combination" or "community of ownership" will raise or lower its prices, not according to Its name, but according to what It 'thinks will increase the dividends. Trust arguments destroy each other. "We have constantly been hearing about the beneficent function of the trust in destroying competltibn, that enemy of progress and bane of public morals, when along comes Mr. Schwab and says that trusts that is, "consolidations" don't destroy competition. He doesn't explain just how they promote competi tion, and that would really have been worth while, inasmuch as the steel trust Itself, for example, has combined a large number of independent com petitive plants under one non-competitive ownership and management "We have been hearing how the beneficent trust had saved industries from ruin by rescuing thetn from a paralysis of lnsupportably low . prices, and now comes Mr. Schwab to assure us that the way In which the trust really does get on is by reducing prices. Tnere may be trusts or consolidations that aim to promote competition, and discourage restriction of output, and fight desperately in the direction of lower prices on their own goods; but the steel trust is not among them. If the trusts would actually do these things, Instead of talking so much about them, no doubt the popular antipathy to them would be measurably assuaged. Then the term "trust" would not be the one of opprobrium Mr. Schwab now correctly conceives it, but a name of honor he would be proud to claim. Other things the trusts could do to mitigate the undesirable significance of their name would be to cease to close up independent plants they acquire, to offer to forego a protective tariff on the wares they freely export, and to sell their product at hdme as cheaply as they do abroad. Practical demon strations of this sort would goon re move much1 of the popular discontent with the trusts. There would still re main a matter of sentiment which may never be overcome, and that is the con viction that the trust is essentially mo nopolistic la ambition and tendency and that this property must always be false in principle and pernicious in practice. SCHLEY CASE PROBABLY OVER. Common law has ordained, that the prosecution always has the last word. In spite of all the safeguards the Indi vidual accused has been able "to wrest from hostile Government this one pre rogative of closing the case has been regarded too dear to be foregone. It seems a little hard, perhaps, that the instigator of trouble, whether criminal prosecutor or civil plaintiff, should be given the superior opportunity to make his accusation stand, but so it is; and in domestic Issues the rule is still the same, for the last word In this field ajso Is by universal consent awarded to the feminine author of agitation and dis pute. The Navy Department seems to have an idea there is no limit to this good old rule. As to Schley, it began on him, and now it is determined to have "the last word." The court of inquiry decided "Schley's wrong, we are right" and now let no more be said. Secre tary Long approves the majority report He has his say, and observes, "Now let no more be said." Who has not heard the bully-ragging disputant announce his conclusion of a heated argument and then say, as if to bear all before him, "and let that be an end of the mat ter"? The Navy Department is well advised. Further discussion of the Schley case is not good for It. The affair is a mess. It always has been. It has blasted two noble careers In our naval history, em bittered the Maryland man's memory of gallant victory, and broken Sampson's heart as well as mind; it has clouded the administration of Secretary Long, whose superior talents and high char acter deserved a better fate; it has been a blot upon two Presidential terms and has embroiled both Army and Navy in a discreditable feud. All this is reason enough why the Navy Department should wish an end of the controversy. But the complaint Is not Justly directed toward the persecuted Admiral and his friends. The offense is with those who set out to asperse his record, and who counted on, as they re ceived, the aid and comfort of the Navy Department It comes with bad grace from the Sampsonltes, therefore, to deplore the controversy and bewail Its devastating effects. They should have thought of that before. Not that we wish to be understood as predicting a persistent agitation on the part of the Schley partisans, or a widespread popular sympathy with them in such effort Far more likely is their appeal for satisfaction to be in vain. The people want Justice, but they don't want it badly enough to put themselves out for it It is fair to con clude that the public is tired of the whole affair. And if it Is, Schley's at torneys may .be Interviewed and Schley papers hurl black letter and double leads at the verdict and Congress and the Navy Department in vain. The av erage man is red hot for justice when his Barometer is high and the wind fresh. But he will not be bored. Past the point of ennui no National crime need hope for redress. RESPONSIBILITY FOB, DISASTER. The decision of the court of Inquiry In the case Of the abandoned ship Pin more, while somewhat of a surprise to people who had formed their opinions from a casual reading of the stories given out at the time of the wreck, is undoubtedly just The court was com posed of H. B. M. Consul James Lald law, who has listened to testimony in scores of shipwreck cases; Captain Froggatt, and the venerable Captain Porter, who was commanding a ship when the PInmore's master was a babe in arms. It was. well fitted by age and experience to judge rightly In the case, and the verdict will be accepted with the consideration to which It is entitled. On sea or shore, In time of disaster, the saving of human life Is paramount to all else, and the testimony brought out at the Inquiry showed that the lives of all on board the Pinmore were Im periled to such an extent that death was staring them in the face for hours "before they decided to take to the boatB. An older and more experienced man than Captain Jamleson might have re fused to heed the clamorings of his cr"ew and remained with the ship, but would hardly have been credited with superior judgment by so doing. Had the anchors failed to hold, the unman ageable ship might have drifted into the breakers, where escape by the small 'boats would have been impossible. That portion of the verdict which has the most Important bearing on the Co lumbia River's maritlirie interests Is found In the tenth section, which reads as follows: The evidence before the court justifies It In expressing its sense of the necessity for the Improvement in the towage and pilotage 'serv ices on the Columbia Rler bar, and also the better marking of the channel to enable ves sels to enter by night as well as by day. This testimony, supplemented by the statements of the captains of a num ber of ships which have been delayed off the mouth of the river through the inefficient tug and pilot service, will carry considerable weight, and should be heeded. A few years ago, when the traffic in and out of the river was not one-half as great as it is today, both Oregon and "Washington supported pilot schooners, which were kept cruis ing off the mouth of the river all the time, there being as high and fifteen pilots engaged in the work. The rivalry thus engendered caused the cutters to cruise twenty to forty miles off shore, and any ship showing up within a ra dius of thirty miles off the mouth of the river was sure of picking up a pilot The Pinmore came up off the mouth of the river and was unable to secure a pilot or a tugboat It was Captain Jamieson's first trip to the Co lumbia, and, being unfamiliar with the course of the current or the prevailing winds at this season of the year, he drifted hither and thither at the mercy of the wind and tide. Had any of the Columbia River pilots been on board, they could have kept him out of the northerly drift that set him in to the beach, or, failing in that their familiar ity with the locality would have en abled them to sail into Gray's Harbor. A little more efficiency on the part of the pilot service would probably have prevented the Ernest Reyer from get ting north of the Columbia River. The court of inquiry, however, does not discriminate. It recognizes the ne cessity for an improvement In the tow age as well as the pflotage service at the mouth of the river. The Pinmore was twice within hailing distance of a Columbia River lug, but secured no rec ognition, and it was four days after her presence at anchor near Gray's Harbor was known in Astoria before a Puget JLSoucd tug camo down, within five hours' run from Astoria, and rescued her. Under the old Flavel regime, when the bar was in much worse condition than it is at the present time, commerce groaned under the burden of the ex cessive charges levied by tugs and pilots, but the service rendered was ef ficient There was no loafing around Astoria, but Baker's Bay and Fort Ste vens were far enough away from the ocean for Flavel's tugboats and pilots, and when ships were reported in dis tress the boats remained outside for days at a time searching for them. A happy medium of the old Flavel tug and pilot service and the modern sched ule of prices is what is needed at the mouth of the river. Portland has much at stake in this matter, and no effort should be spared to correct the evils which have reflected so seriously on the port within the past six weeks. ' LESSONS OF BEREAVEMEXT1. Sudden death has removed two of Portland's well-known residents under circumstances of most heartrending na ture. It is hard to say which Is the more distressing the cruel wheels of the electric car, crushing out the life of the busy man and faithful official, or the dark hour of childbirth, carrying away the devoted wife and mother from under the very gaze of agonizing love. Death Is the great leveler. Grief holds impartial sway in the humble lodge of the late keeper at the City Park and in the stately mansion on Nob Hill. De cember's rain falls' alike on the laurel that Mr. Myers had planted with his own hands and over the stately sward at Twentieth and Hoyt December's cold wind stirs alike the cedar boughs that mourn their recent master and the ivy clinging yet where Mrs. Mackenzie's fingers had fastened it to marble pillar and granite wall. Probably few of us know how large a place we fill till we are gone and sor row sits alone to catalogue Its loss. Each of these two occupied a position, that no one else could fill, and consola tion, unless it can restore the departed. Is of no avail. What the one home wanted was the husband and father; what the other wanted and now so be seechingly wants Is the wife and moth erJust that and nothing else. Other friends remain, but they cannot fill up the vacant place. The world is just the same, except for that one thing-, and that one thing now seems all the world. Nothing can be done but to perform as unobtrusively as. possible the last sad rites of respect, to summon the for titude of resignation, and to live again in fancy the experiences that have gone before. For Memory Is the only friend That Grief can call its own. Which Is the best judge of the de parted the casual world of business or society, or the Intimate sharer of the life? Is the throng the nearest truth, who go scarcely heeding, perhaps coldly criti cal, on their way, or the bereaved one who sees in his loss a great calamity? Let us say It is the mourner, who has had the best opportunity for judging. Let us believe, as all of ua one -day would like It to be believed of us, that there is a great deal of good in all of us, which only close and confidential acquaintance can disclose. Let us think, in view of the evidence, that what passes for imperfection is our own de fective vision, and that if we could see beneath the surface we should find goodness we dreamed not of, and de votion that would put the careless criti cism or neglect to shame. We like to speak well of the dead, and sometimes this propensity is accounted an amiable weakness rather than good sense or the highest morals. But per haps the truth is that the merits we are quick to realize when one is dead ex isted in plain view all along, only we were too blinded with bustle and care lessness to see them. Both these two led prosaic, humble sort of lives, not lending themselves readily to heroica Each was concerned about a multitude of trivial details, one with his trees and bushes, walks and sloping banks, birds and beasts; the other with household cares and making home beautiful, and lately with an expectant dread of an event so common that It happens some where, they say, every moment of the hurrying night and day. But In all these cares shone forth that single-minded devotion which hallows even the meanest life If it is steadfast, and without which the grandest career is a dismal failure. Perhaps we do well, therefore, to seek out and emphasize the good that was in the dead. There Is in every life, and all through our common human nature, a great deal that Is good and noble and worthy of all praise. And he who goes through life without finding anything to honor and love only reveals the depths of his own depravity. HILL'S EXPLANATION CHILDISH. President Hill's statement of the cir cumstances that gave rise to the North ern Securities Company Is a testimonial to the power of public opinion. As such no fault is to be found with it, for It deals with matters of which It is proper that the public should be informed. But it is also a revelation of weakness, of conscious weakness, on the part of Mr. Hill, his friends and his enemies. This revelation is presented in Mr. Hill's ar gument, the essence of which is that the great and good men who direct the des tinies of the hew railroad trust hare been forced Into this position at tre mendous sacrifice to themselves for the protection of the dear people. And for this heroic self-sacrifice are they criti cised by an unfeeling public! One need not quarrel With Mr. Hill's statement of facts in order to see the fallacy of his insidious conclusions, though it is news that the Harriman people were first to attempt the cap ture of the Burlington system. But the Burlington having finally been secured for thQ Northern lines, and at least tem porary control of the Northern Pacific having been obtained by the Union Pa cific, seems no justification for the or ganization of a new corporation, the ap parent purpose of which was to crys tallize in permanent form the extrava gant "values" that had been manipu lated into certain railroad shares. Less than $250,000,000 of Northern Pacific and Great Northern stock constitute the as sets of the Northern Securities Com pany; yet that company is expected to earn between 4 and 5 per cent on Its capital of 5400,000,000. By this process the $250,000,000 Is made to yield a sum that would be legitimate return on $400, 000,000, and it Is done In a way calcu lated to protect the investors from pub lic scrutiny. Five per cent does not seem too large an Income from legitimate Investments, but 5 per cent on $400,000,000 is 8 per cent on $250,000,000, and a combination hav ing for its object the throttling of com petition In order that such great profits may be taken from the people very rea sonably arouses public hostility. True, as .Mr. Hill says, the railroad kings In the Northern combination might have sold their stock at a handsome advance, but it will take Mr. Hill a long time to convince the public that It was consid eration for the Interests of the people of Minnesota that deterred them from doing so. They did what it was for their private, selfish interests to do, and if the interests of the public were to reap benefit in any way, this would be entirely incidental to the main object of the deal. It Is nonsense for Mr. Hill to seek to convey the Impression that all this labored manipulation of colossal railroad Interests was for the particular purpose of keeping the spirit of the antl consolidatlon laws, and at serious finan cial los3 to the men responsible for the action. It is all gammon. f "Let time determine," says Mr. Hill, "whether the public will be benefited or injured by what we have done and will continue to do." This is a specious plea. It is the plea of a Gulteau or a Czolgosz, not of the magnificent rall-road-bullder and business organizer we have been accustomed to recognize in James J. Hill.- Time may be an essen tial element In proving the wisdom of some courses of action, but an act that is morally and legally and economically wrong cannot be made otherwise by lapse of time. Mr. Hill's entire explana tion Is obviously addressed to the peo ple who take the view J.hat his railroad trust is illegal and harmful. If it is so today, time cannot justify it A plea for tolerance, for time to entrench more securely the new railroad policy of non competition, will find small favor with the general public, and will probably move the people of Minnesota to more determined action against the combi nation. Professor G. F. Chamberlain, of Clark University, proposes to make English even more grammarless. He would slough off the few Inflections we have left do away with the subjunctive mood, and. In fact, achieve the com plete emancipation of English from Greek and Latin models. He would no longer say "If I were," or "If he go"; would sacrifice the Irregular and In flected parts of verbs in the participle and past tense and follow the usage of such verbs as "lit" and "let"; employ nouns and verbs In the same form as in "telephone"; renounce such plurals as "sheep" and "deer"; throw out the feminine suffix "es3" and the apostrophe of the possessive case; drop the adverb ial form for the adjective, as "neatly" for "neat"; give "but" and "as" the prepositional use; make "who," "that" and "which" Interchangeable, and ex clude further importation of Greek and Latin worda If he can accomplish all this he may approach the simplicity of the Chinook jargon, which from his polt of view should be an Ideal medium of expression. Recent Orders sent to all business men by the police department that ordi nances are to be enforced forbidding the sweeping of dust, bits of paper, etc., from store doors across sidewalks are emphatically making a cleaner city. No more are pavements littered with broken bottles and the general sweep ings of a store. No more doth the fes tive porter wash his favorite cuspidors at the corner, for all such offenders are liable to arrest Since the order went Into effect about eight persons have been arrested and fined $5 each, and, curiously enough, almost every of fender pleaded In extenuation that he had not been warned that the law was to be enforced. The next move is to Bpread the order In the residence por tion of our community and educate the householder and the boys and girls that we want and Intend to have a new and clean Portland. In this work the police deserve hearty commendation, and ought to get the co-operation of all good citizens. It is just as well to remember at this Joyous, season that the combination of candle-dotted Christmas tree and cotton-trimmed Santa Claus is an exceed ingly dangerous one. But a year or two ago a well-known Portland man wasse verely burned In Tacoma while playing the role of the bountiful saint, and hard ly a year passes without some accident of this kind to mar the general festiv ity. Either unusual precautions should be taken to guard the tiny flames that gutter and flare on the Inflammable fir branches, or the presiding genius of the occasion should wear asbestos fur. It might not be a bad idea for Fire Chief Campbell to inspect the larger, and con sequently more dangerous, Sunday school trees before they are lighted. Families will have to take the risks of household celebrations. Salesmen and ship girls, postmen and express messengers, delivery-men and the drivers of the thousands of cartB that are flying around town will be truly thankful when Christ mas Is gone. For them that one day means two Weeks of the hard est work of the whole year, 'of abnor mally busy and consequently irascible employers, and irritated and wrathful customers. If those who buy and those who sell will bear this In mind today and tomorrow they will be practicing a Christian charity that is In fine accord with the right spirit of the season. There are dehtlsts enough In Oregon now. This appears to be the conviction of the State Dental Board. And that's what's the matter with Oregon. There are enough or too many lawyers, doc tors, merchants, manufacturers, farm ers, worklngmen, if we take the word of those already in possession of each particular field. Through such enlight ened theories have all stagnant com munities reached their present exalted state of self-satisfaction. Senator Mitchell is pulling for an as say office at Portland, and Representa tive Moody is pulling for one at Baker City. Would there be more chance of an assay ofllce If they could pull to gether? By all means leUthe Seventh Ward record its protest against extinction, loud and without delay. Better so than that the charter should go to the polls with a whole ward unanimously against It As to reciprocity with Cuba, we have beep doing a great deal in that line In the past three years. It's Cuba's move. A hearty "Merry Christmas" doesn't cost anything, and It Is worth many times more than many a gift There are a good many houses that Santa Claus will not sse. Can't you show hlm-some of them? Some men take pleasure in Christmas because It comes only once a year. ANOTHER SOCIALISTIC FAILURE Chicago Chronicle. If the high-flying Socialists will peruse the annual report of. Commissioner of In dian Affairs Jone3 they will gain aonie valuable information on the subject or the practical workings of the system which they admire so much. The Indian Is a ward of the Govern ment Just as everybody else would be under the Socialistic regime. Individuali ty is discouraged. The great father at Washington provides for his children, and, like most children of older growth who are relieved of the responsibility ot look ing out for themselves, the red men nat urally look to him for everything and de pend upon themselves for nothing. Mr. Jones finds that the elaborate and expensive system of education maintained for the benefit of the Indians results not only In a waste of money but In positive Injury to the individuals whom It is sought to Improve. He makes the asser tion without qualification that Indian ed ucation as now carried on runs Its course unvaryingly from barbarism and Ignor ance to refinement and luxury and back again to Idleness and barbarism In prac tically every case which the Government takes in hand. Some people will be disposed to attrib ute the blame of this state of affairs to tho Indians, but there Is reason to believe that similar methods would produce the same results ultimately If applied to any other race or class. From youth to age the Indian la subjected to tho process or coddling by Government, and ho never rises above it Enough money has been Epent by the people during the last generation for the support of the Indian population to pro vide every aboriginal In the land with a comfortably furnished home. For educa tion alone the people have spent money enough to build and endow half a dozen first-class universities or training schools. I In spite of this the Indian remains as ho was at the beginning lazy, thriftless, without ambition, and, whether educated or not, wholly dependent upon the Gov ernment The Socialistic system was applied to the Indians In this country In the lim place on the theory that It was a necessi ty of the case. It was held to be cheaper to feed and clothe the savages than It was to fight them. This alternative Is no longer presented. The question now is whether the Industrious whites aro for ever to bo charged with the expense ot maintaining in Idleness a'" race which. In spite of all Ideas to the contrary, does not materially decrease In numbers, and which makes practically no Improvement. Under tho policy now pursued there can be no hope of progress. It was the socialism of the Indians themselves which made them objection able and dangerous to the whites origin ally. We have confirmed them In the de bilitating habits of that theory by apply ing to them the socialistic practices of the whites. The average man, white, red or black, will not work unless he finds it necessary to do so. For a hundred years we have put a premium on Idleness among the Indians and of late we have sought by higher education to develop nmong men naturally lazy and unenterprising qualities which never have been found In any race except as a result of Individ, ual energy and aspiration, promoted by stern necessity. The time Is near at hand when the red man should be given an opportunity to make tho solemn choice which sooner or later falls to most white men. Shall he work or shall he die? SAVE THE OLD HYMNS. Chicago Tribune. It was a sorry day for the hymnals when Professor Trlggs sent forth his sarcastic opinions as to the merits of various pop ular hymns. It seems to have aroused a desire for revision among" some of the de nominations. Curiously enough Us most disastrous effects are visible among Methodists, who, of all others, would be expected to cling to the old hymns which so often have been their songs of vic tory. At the recent General Conference of that church commissioners were -appointed to revise the hymnal. Sub-committees have been selected to carry out the details, and they will report In March next. It Is learned already that three of tho most admired hymns, and the three pcrhaDs which have brought more comfort to the sorrowing and the grief-stricken than any others, are doomed .o dismissal from the hymnal. These are, "Lead, Kindly Light," "He Leadeth Me" and " "Sweet Hour of Prayer." It Is remarkable that Newman's great hymn, "Lead, Kindly Light," which even Professor Trlggs ex cepted from his censure, and which com mends Itself both as literature and as an expression of devoutness. should be ex cluded. This and the other two hymns, which are universally popular, are to be tabooed, It Is said, because they are not definitely theological In statement of doc trine. Cardinal Newman's hymn not spe cially recognizing Christ; "He Leadeth Me." a paraphrase of the well-known psalm, because It makes no allusion to the mediation of Christ: and "Sweet Hour of Prayer" because Its closing lines Indicate that prayer ends here. If these statements be correct it would seem as though the commissioners were growing finical and laying more stress upon dog ma than upon devotion. But worse remains. It is- Intimated that Bishop Heber's two great hymns. "Bright est and Best of the Sons of the Morning" and "From Greenland's Icy Mountains," are also marked for condemnation, the first because It Is an ode of praise to the Star of Bethlehem and the other be cause it instructs people only In - geog raphy! Is It not time for the Methodist laity to rise In protest, or at least to find out whether these reports are true, for It these hymns arc to go there Is no reason why "Come, Ye Disconsolate," "Corona tion," and the "Dpxology" may not have to go also. They are no better and no worse than the others marked for ejection, from the hymnal. Is- there any surer or more pleasant way of going from "Jor dan's Stormy Banks" "To Canaan's Fair and Happy Land" than to the music of these simple old hymns of the old-time "meetln'-house." ? "Farewell." Chicago Tribune. "Farewell!" An6ther gloomy wort. As ever into language crept. Tis often written, never heard Except In playhouse. Ere the hero flits In handcuffs from our pitying view, "Farewell!" he murmurs, then exits R. U. "Farewell IV It is too slghful for An age that has not time to sigh. We say. "I'll see you later," or "Good-bye!" When, warned by chanticleer, you go From her to whom you owe devoir, "Say not good-bye," she laughs, "but au Revolr!" Thus from the garden are you sred; And Juliet were the first to tell Tou, you were silly if you said "Farewell!" "Fare well," meant long ago, before It crept, tear-spattered. Into song, "Safe voyage!" "Pleasant Journey!" or "So-long 1" But gone Its cheory, old-time ring: The poets made It rhyme with knell. Joined. It became a dismal thing "Farewell!" "Farewell!" Into the lover's soul You see Fate plunge the cruel iron. All poets use It. It's the whole Of Byron. "I only feel farewell!" said he; And alwaya tearful was the telling. Lord Byron was eternally Farewelllng. "Farewell!" A dismal word, 'tis true. (And why not tell the truth about It?) But what on earth would poets do -ft'lUumt ut AMUSEMENTa N "At the Old Cross Roads." opened a week's engagement to standing room at Cofdray's Theater last night, and more than justified the claim made for It that It Is the best play Hal Reld has yet writ ten. Although melodramatic to a marked degree. It Is almost entirely free from the blood and thunder heroics which distinguishes much of Reld's work, the characters are cleverly sketched and con trasted, the situations are unusually strong and well Introduced, and the com edy Is made Incidental to the play and not dragged In by the ears. The com pany Is thoroughly capable, and Is a credit to manager Alston. It was, there fore, small wonder that the play made one of the hits of the season, that cur tain calls followed one another in rapid succession, and that no one In the au dience seemed to feel that five acts were too long. The story's chief strength Is In Its con sistency. The drop of negro blood that makes a "nigger" out of its possessor, however white she may be Is the theme around which the plot has been woven, and the hatred of Parepa, an octoroon girl, for the husband who has ruined her and been forced to marry her supplies abundant material. The woman's daughter Is brought up as a lady, and the secret of her birth Is kept from her during her girlhood, but when her father, Thornton, a thoroughgoing scoundrel, at last tells her the secret of her life, the outraged mother can endure It no longer, and Thornton finishes the fourth act with a bullet in his brain. The trial and ac quittal of Parepa, the Inevitable discovery that she Is not a negro at all, but a Span lard, her betrothal to a large-hearted gambler who has loved her all the time, and several other livc-happy-ever-aftcr Incidents again fall Into the Reld styie, but the play as a whole Is far ahead ot his ordinary work, and well deserved the reception It received. Miss Estha Williams made a fine char acter of the octoroon woman, and proved for the severalth time to a Portland au dience that she Is an emotional actress of excellent ability. Mrs. Charles G. Craig captured the house by her clever charac ter work as a jovial old darkey. Edward Martin contributed to the comedy as Doc Martin, n. gambler. John J. Plerson an swered the requirements of rather a heavy vllllan. Thomas H. Ino made a good tramp. Louise Valentine was a charming pickaninny. Maurice Hedges was a clever Southern major, and the remainder of the cast was proportionately good. The mounting Is excellent, the first two scenes being pretty Southern landscapes, which add much to the atmosphere of the play. "At the Old Cross Roads" will run all the week, with a special matinee Christ mas day. "OLE OLSOX." Ben Hendricks Crentei Enthusiasm at the Ualcer Theater. Hilarity ran riot at tXic Baker Theater yesterday afternoon and evening, the oc casion being the advent of Ben Hendricks in his always welcome Swedish comedy "Olc Olson." Mr. Hendricks Is easily first among intorpretcrs of the Americanized Scandinavian, and certainly no other ever got a more rousing reception than he did from two big houses The people laughed energetically and persistently all the time he was on the stage. They laughed when he spoke, when he smoked, when he sat down, when he rose. In fact they laughed whenever their eyes fell upon him. Mr. Hendricks has come this year with a good company, and his comedy Is just as much of a hit as It always has been. The melodramatic side of It, while subor dinated largely to the humor, has no been lost sight of. and cheers were al ways forthcoming when the honest Swede refused to be the dupe of the vllllans, and announced that he would rather die than take a child from Its mother. But he turns readily from heroics to the more Important business of provoking mirth, and hl funny dialect his stolid Indiffer ence, his frequent exhibitions of strength in hustling objectionable people out of his presence, and his really artistic charac ter acting was what caught the house. Of the support Miss Nettie Trauband, a bright and lively little actress, was the star, her acting being cheering to the hearts of the audience, while her spe cialty was warmly applauded. Paul Jordon and Jefferson Bassett, a pair of precious vllllans, were "well played by Will B. Wheeler and Walter Wilson; William Ryan was a good G. Quintan Shingle, Miss Belle Francis was an acceptable Mrs. Jordon. and Mtes Annie Douglass made a roistering Mrs. O'Flannlgnn. The play Is well-staged, and the scenic features of the scene In which Ole effects a daring rescue from the teeth of a whirl ing saw was one of the hits of the even ing. The Swedish ladles quartet sang a number of songs In a style that earned fpr them repeated encores. The organiza tion Is one of the strongest that has ever been heard in Portland, and they more than deserved all tho applause they re ceived. Altogether the attraction Is one of the best Manager Baker has yet booked, and will no doubt crowd the house through the week. A srceiaT matinee will be given Christ mas day. COMIXG ATTItACTIOXS. Prlmrone and DoelcKtntler Mlnntreln nt the Martinam Tomorrow IS'Ijcht. Tomorrow night, at the Marquam Grand Theater, the big American minstrels or Primrose and Dockstader. will open their engagement, continuing on the Christmas attraction both afternoon and evening. These gentlemen are able actors them selves, and are surounded by a com pany of players any one of whom may bc considered as topllner in his act". Among these are Eddie Leonard, Will iam Halett, in the comedy line; George Pcarce, Harry Ellis, James Bradley. Fred Gladdls. Frederick Barnes, Walter Vaughn, vocalists; while the olio will In clude Lew Dockstader. George H. Prim rose, Zeno, Carl and Zeno; Olllc Young and brother, and Claudius and Corbln. Primrose and Dockstader are not biased, by any false economy ideas, and hence It is that they are able to give the best of entertainments because they always get the best entertainers. The scenic equipment Is said to be unusually beauti ful. The opening pcene Is something un usual In the Introduction of a minstrel company. The sale of seats Is now open. "rttKSit Ferry.' "Foggs Ferry," In a new dress, and said to be better than ever, will come to the Marquam Theater Friday and Sat urday nights, with a matinee Saturday afternoon. The play is said to be strong dramatically, and a marvel of realism. A good company Is promised. Woman Senlptor to Wed Her Model. Chicago American. Akron, O. Mrs. Maude Nees Fox, a sculptress and wealthy woman, has gone to Washington to become the bride of Dominic Corronl. Their love story Is ro mantic. Mrs. Fox and her mother were In Italy last year. Corronl was employed In the house at which they lived. He wanted to come to America, but had no money. Ad miring both him and his ambition, Mrs. Fox paid his way to her own home at Unlontown. a village of this county, and secured work for him on the Canton Akron Electric Railway. Coronnl was very grateful. He often called to see Mrs. Fox at her home, and Is said to have posed for her in her work. Mrs. Fox had secured a divorce from her husband, Louis Fox, well known to the vaudeville stage as a bird and animal imi tator, to whom she was married seven. years ago, and she told Corronl she would marry him. Corronl is 25 years old and comes or a respectable family. Mrs. Fox Is CO years old and pretty. Her father was V. H. Nees, and from him she Inherited prop erty estimated at 5100.000. She has done some fine work In sculpture. She and her husband will live at her country home in I TJnlohtotf n. NOTE AND COMMENT. Come early and znfcTup with the rush. It wasn't any of Miles' business, any how. v Be sure to have your chimneys swept out. Santa Claus will haTe to come In a gondola. v The esteemed General la evidently sorry he spoke. The Navy is more in evidence even than on May 1, 1S9S. The President has one Secretary who is a strenuist after his own heart. General Miles probably looks on the Sec retary of War as the Root of all evil. You can't make the express messenger see anything Joyous In the holiday season. Snow, snow, beautiful We didn't finish this, because tha weath er changes on us. Mnclay has been asked to resign. It was supposed that he had the good taste to do so long ago. England Is dead slow. The smallest and most despicable of South American Re publics has pulled off 16 wars to her one. Two more revolutions In Venezuela in one day. The sons of the revolution down there mu3t be too numerous to men tion. It is worth something to be a private citizen. You can't wear a $400 uniform, but you can speak your mind once In a while without running any risk greater than that of taking a licking. Savings bank deposits In this country are now the largest In the world, reaching J2.310.CCO.000. These deposits have doubled In about 13 years. Germany Is the next largest. 51,900.000.000; Austria-Hungary. $1,201,240,000: France. 5S54.220.000. and the United Kingdom 5S29.020.000. Comparisons of this kind are not conclusive, because ravings in Germany are placed in co operative banks. Building associations both in this country and In European lands carry also a. large share of savings. In this country these hold 5700,000,000 of savings. A lady appeared as a complainant in a New York court the other day against a young woman who had persistently accost ed her on the streets, asking for alms. It appeared from the evidence of the young woman's own mother that her daughter had refused to work, saying she could make money easier by begging, and that she sometimes got 53 or 54 In a day, which she spent on dress and amusement generally. The fraudulent character of her occupation was further exemplified when, after the court had mercifully let her off with a fine of only 510. she coolly sent for her bankbook to pay it The Emperor Francis Joseph ot Austrli Is very plain In his tastes and habits. At C o'clock in the morning he takes his breakfast, consisting of some cold meat, coffee and fresh-made bread and cake. Between 12 and 1 o'clock he takes his de jeuner, two dishes of meat and some ordi nary pastry. Dinner Is served In his li brary at his writing desk. Not even a tablecloth is spread. The Emperor does not care much for wine. He prefers a glass of beer. ZCor- does he indulge In ex pensive cigars. A plain home-made cigar, the so-called Virginia cigar, long and thin, with a straw running Hhrough It, Is his favorite smoke. These cigars cost only 5 kreuzcr, about 5 cents apiece. Alexander McDowell, the clerk of the National House of Representatives, had a singular start in life. As. he tells the story, he was setting type one day In a printing office In Oil City, re., when ho saw a steamboat stop at a wharf near by. "I have set my last type." he said to tho man next to him. "Why?" asked his com panion. "Because," said he, "I'm going to Pittsburg." McDowell, true to his word, was a passenger on the boat When he landed at Pittsburg he saw a man on the wh'arf selling cheap Jewelry. He bought the mnn's stock for a very small sum and went back to Oil City. The oil boom was then at Its height, and McDowell had no trouble in selling his gold-plated rings and his gaudy bVooches at a price far beyond the few dollars they had cost him. When he had sold out he was over 5500 ahead of the game. He Invested the money Ju diciously and made more. Now he Is a banker and well off In this world's goods. The Work of the DcBTer. Everybody's Magazine. Standing on his hind legs, tho beaver begins by tearing off the moss and bark, his sharp teeth crunching through across the gialn of the wood Rauqd and round he goes, cutting deepest Into the side nearest the water, In the direction he wishes the tree to fall: and, strange as it may seem, nearly every tree felled In this vicinity had been successfully dropped walerward, and. Judging from the trees still standing, there Is really no reason for supposing that they inclined naturally in that direction. If the tree selected by our beaver Is a very large one. It will re quire many hours of patient work to gnaw It through, but a small poplar, of perhaps 12 Inches In diameter, fills after about one honr's work so, at least, say the trappers. Let us Imagine the beaver as he gives the final cut. The tree trem bles slightly in the gentle night breeze, and then, leaning over, commences Its downward fall, crashing through the brinches of Its neighbors, shaking off their few remaining dry leaves and fill ing the woods with the fierce echoes of lt3 dying struggle. PLBASAXTKIES OF PARAGRAPHERS Servant Pleas, ma'am. I'd like to give you a week's notice. Mistress Why. Mary, this is a surprise! Do you hope to better yourself? Servant (blushing) Well, not exactly that, ma'am. I'm going to get married. Tlt-Blts. Nothing to Do. "Yes. she's dreadfully dis appointed. She married him to reform him. you know." "And she couldn't do it?" "On the contrary, she did It in six months, and now she feels that she Is bereft of a mission in yie." Chicago Post. WSildn't Do. "Is my hat on?" began Mrs. Colftnirwood. when her husband interrupted: "Yes your hat's on straight. Come along, or we shall be latel" "If it's straight it won't do. Walt a mlnuto till I go back into tho house and tilt it a little." Detroit Free Press. Power of the Press. Famous Scientist (ex citedlySomething must be done to stop the spread of the opium habit among women. Great Editor (calmly) Very well, sir; I'll put In a paragraph saying that a hankering for opium is a sign of old age. New York Week ly. The Football Girl. "Have you got a lock of Jack Halfback's hair?" asked the sweet young thing, rooting for Princeton. "No," responded the girl In the Yale sweater; "but he gave me a piece of scalp and a lock of hair from Mr. F.ushcr. the fullback on the Columbia eleven." Puck. Curate (highly delighted) I've had a great compliment paid me today, sir. A member of the congregation asked to be allowed to see the manuscript of my sermon. Vicar That's very gratifying. Who was it? Curate (more pleased) Oh. Johnson. You know Johnson, the Inspector of Nuisaace3? Glasgow Evening-Times.