K 4-SPs Jr
THE MORNING OREGONIAN, MONDAY, JANUARY 6,-1902.
"3? T
tie 'Ofcegomort
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TODAT'S WEATHER Cloudy to partly
cloudy, with showers; brisk southerly winds.
YESTERDAY'S WEATHER Maximum tem
perature, 52; minimum temperature. 3S; pre
cipitation. 5 P. M. to 5 P. M . .38 Inch.
hove to Immediately, lowered her boats
and began picking up the unfortunate
passengers who had been crowded from
the lifeboats and rafts by the cowardly
French sailors and firemen.
It Is perhaps unfair to credit the loss
of the French bark Ernest Beyer to
carelessness on the part of the captain,
but the disaster will be figured in to
swell the list of losses which have be
come so great that underwriters have
advanced the rates on all merchant
sailing vessels flying the French flag.
The French bark Europe toppled over
In the Seine and was dismasted. The
Incident failed to serve as a warning,
for a sister ship, equally topheavy, was
relieved of so much of her ballast in
Portland harbor that she repeated the
performance of the Europe in a man
ner decidedly costly for the under
writers. The French bark Henrlette
dragged anchor in Astoria harbor; her
captain rfused the services of the tug,
and she is now at the bottom of the
river. Lack of control over the crews,
together with suspicion of the motives
of Consuls and agents, has caused a
great amount of trouble and expense
to nearly every French vessel that has
come to Portland this year. The natu
ral deduction is that the French ship
masters are either remarkably unlucky
or else unskilled In their calling. No
one need doubt that, if the whole truth
were known concerning the experiences
in Portland harbor by French masters
now protesting to our Government,
their own part In the proceedings was
discreditable in more ways than one.
PORTLAND, MONDAY, JAN". O, 1002.
THE ASPHALT EXPLOITERS.
Asphalt has become, so common and
o necessary a material for use in pav
Ing the streets of the cities of the civ
ilized world that general Interest Is felt
in the status of "the companies that
have endeavored to monopolize this
material. The source of supply of the,
best asphalt for paving purposes Is the'
-Island of Trinidad, off the northeastern
coast of South America. The supply
Is ample, yet it has been believed it
could be monopolized, and this belief
has been the basis of much heavy ex
ploitation, which, however, has resulted
disastrously to "Investors."
Under the bane of the Asphalt Com
pany of America, stock was issued to
the amount of $30,000,000, and bonds to
the amount of $30,000,000 more. The
bonds were sold mostly In Philadel
phia,, nearly at par. Later the 2a
tlonal Asphalt Company was formed,
with a stock capitalization of $22,000,000
and a bond issue of $6,000,000 more; and
the $30,000,000 of stock of the former
company, worth no more than the pa
per frn. which it was printed, was turned
'over to the National Asphalt Company.
Same smaller concerns were gathered
Into the combine. The bonds which had
been: put out required $2,500,000 a year
for Interest, and after a little it was
discovered, that there was smalL earn
ing power with which to meet the
charge. Then came a further discov
ery that there wag no monopoly of the
supply in Trinidad; and the result Is
that the two companies have been
placed in a Teceivership and may be
closed out altogether.
But the clever manipulators who got
up the scheme and sold the bonds have
-cash accounts rivaling those of the
Count of Monte Crlsto, and are living
In great style in the capitals of Europe.
A. L. Barber, chief of these, has given
orders in England for construction for
himself of a high-class steam yacht of
3500 horsepower. The world is almost
too small for him to 'bustle in. Such
is the greatness of those who are suc
cessful in flying financial balloons and
floating bonds on the great sea of
human gullibility.
the prench: at sea.
Evidence Is rapidly accumulating bn
'sea and shore, that the bounty-fed
French merchant marine is making an
intolerable nuisance of itself in more
ways than. one. This is perhaps no
more than could be expected from the
nefarious subsidy system. "When the
i talents, temperament and commercial
instincts of d .nation or of an individual
do not warrant their embarking in a
jkie of industry without being hired by
the government to go Into it, best re
sults are not to be looked fox. The
Frenchman has never been a successful
mariner. The weak points in that na
tion at sea have been in evidence since
Napoleon I sent fleet after fleet out to
be hammered to pieces by the more
skillful navigators and sailors of the
British navy. Naturally, there are a
'few men In the French merchant ma
rine who are brave and skillful nav
igators. There "was not enough of this
class, however, to go round when
"France inaugurated the raid on her
treasury In the form of a ship subsidy
bill, and in order to take the greatest
possible advantage of this charitable
measure she turned out ships faster
than sailors could be secured to officer
and man them. The result of this "hot
house forcing" of the Industry is shown
ki a large number of cases of reckless
navigation, and the careful navigator
.at sea Invariably gives a French ves
sel the same wide berth and consider
ation that would be extended to a dere
lict loaded with dynamite.
The latest and most serious case of
this reckless navigation is that of the
French bark Max, which sank the
steamer "Walla Walla off Mendocino
last Thursday morning. Here was a
vessel 200 miles north of the port for
which she was heading, and which
she had passed. The Walla Walla, not
dependent on the wind and tide, was
"following the usual steamship route,
which is so close In shore that It is a
decidedly dangerous place for a sailing
vessel in thick weather. The captain
of the Max may have an excuse for
missing his port by 200 miles and wan
dering In shore into the steamship
track, but his abandonment of the sink
ing steamer wiU not be so easily ex
plained. His conduct affords a striking
contrast to that of the captain of the
British ship Cromartyshire, which
struck La Bourgogne off Newfoundland
a few years ago. Although seriously
damaged herself, the Cromartyshire
TROUBLES AT PAXAXA.
It Is certainly true that the Isthmian
Canal Commission dismissed the Pan
ama route with a curtnessvhlch would
have been Inappropriate had Its mem
bers not felt that the exorbitant price
asked by the Panama Company ex
cluded It from consideration. But it
does not by any means follow that a
fuller consideration of the Panama
route would demonstrate Its superiority
to the one at Nicaragua. The contrary
seems to be the case. The argument
against Panama Is grave, if not un
answerable. Of course, a canal can be built at
either place. Given money and time
enough, and a canal could be built
across the widest part of the North
American Continent. It Is idle to pre
tend that either Panama or Nicaragua
is. an engineering Impossibility. Yet he
who win make a study of the two prob
lems will come home from his excur
sions impressed by nothing else so
much as by the stupendous nature of
the problem, wherever undertaken.
Think of a cut through a mountain
range 333 feet high, giving a depth of
2D feet below water and. a bottom
width of 11 feet that Is at Panama.
Think of a dam 1600 feet across the
valley, lOff feet high and 25" feet wide
that is at Nicaragua. In any case, it
is a project of such dimensions as to
stagger ordinary comprehension.
Then there are irremediable difficul
ties that will be permanent in either
case. Earthquakes, falsely asserted as
possibilities at Nicaragua but not at
Panama, must be expected at either
place." There have been 14 earthquakes'
on the Nicaragua route, and 28 along
the Panama. The latter were more
destructive, but none at either place
was severe enough to wreck the canaL
They probably would necessitate re
pairs things that are needed, on every
canal and railroad. The- harbors are
Inadequate on both routes. Greytown's
Is a waste of shifting sands, and at
Colon, the Atlantic end of the Panama
route, "northers" are so fierce that the
only safety for vessels Is to stand out
to sea. There are dry times and ter
rible freshets on both the Chagres and
the San Juan. There is Inefficient gov
ernment in Colombia and also in Nica
ragua. These difficulties supply per
manent menaces that- will require
money and patience to cope with.
Every great undertaking has great ob
stacles and great perplexities. It is
idle to look for a canal location that
does not present problems more stu
pendous and baffling than any engi
neering enterprise has ever before en
countered. The pyramids and the
Pennsylvania's- tunnel from Jersey
under Manhattan Island and two broad
rivers are child's play In comparison.
But a canal is to be built, and the
question Is, Where do we want It when
it is done? Panama Is shorter, it is
nearer for trade from the west coast
of South America to either New York
or Europe. Perhaps it can be built a
little cheaper, probably It can be oper
ated at less cost. But these are not
conclusive considerations. Some day
there will be a canal at Panama and
another at Nicaragua. Should ours be
the nearer or the- farther? Politically,
there Is no choice in this matter. It
is better to choose the route within
our more Immediate sphere of Influence.
There are other considerations:
Panama is in the belt of calms, and
in view of the renascence of the
sailer, the route would be increasingly
annoying and Impracticable. Lake
Nicaragua offers plenty of water, while
the supply at Panama must be ob
tained from artificial accumulation of
rainfall or other precarious device.
Nicaragua is the nearest for the all
important trade for us that between
our Atlantic and Pacific ports and to
the Orient. The Panama climate is ex
tremely unhealthy. White men cannot
work there, nor even live there con
tinuously.
Though it is aside from the merits
of the question, a weighty bit of cir
cumstantial evidence against Panama
Is its enthusiastic advocacy by every
body that doesn't want any canal at
all. The1 Greeks come bearing gifts.
The railroads, In their support of Pan
ama, offer the strongest kind of evi
dence that Nicaragua Is more to be
feared as an effective competitor.
raid; Governor Andrew never aided
Brown outside of the Kansas struggle
of 1S56. The crime of Brown had so
little popular sympathy at the North
that the Unitarian minister who offi
ciated at his funeral la North Elba, N.
Y., lost his pulpit at Burlington, Vt,
because of his attendance on this occa
sion. While It Is true that Brown had no
political party, not even the abolition
ists, behind him, nevertheless the South
probably believed that he had a large
secret following, and was naturally
alarmed for the future. Doubtless the
strain of feeling between the sections
was Increased by. the raid. The South
really had no Just cause for alarm, for
the raid made both parties more con
servative In speech and action; but It
thought it had, and some of its news
papers seem to be still of that opinion.
The logic of theRIchmond Despatch is
somowhat flimsy when It pretends that
Brown's raid Influenced the South to
refuse to acquiesce In Lincoln's election
In I860. There was certainly no more
danger of a negro Insurrection with
I the whole country under Lincoln than
there was with the South under Davis.
Suppose, the South had won the fight,
would the slaves have been any more
secure from Northern emissaries than
under Lincoln? Lincoln was as much
bound constitutionally to do his duty
by the South as was President Bu
chanan, and he was as sure to do It.
But if the South had won, Lincoln
would be under no constitutional obli
gation to foster and protect slavery in
a foreign state. Victory for the South
would only have moved the Canadian
asylum for fugitive slaves down to the
Ohio River. The Brown raid doubtless
hastened the outbreak of civil war by
exasperating the South; but it Is ab
surd to suppose that the South decided
to repudiate Lincoln's election In 1860
because It was afraid of a succession
of abolition raid?, resulting In a gen
eral negro insurrection. John Brown
I was a monomaniac, a man "socially dis
eased and perverted, but not mentally
diseased." as Dr. Spltzka Eays of the
anarchist who killed President McKin
ley. With or without the Brown raid,
civil war would probably have come
after Lincoln's election, for the seeds
of civil war. were sown by the compro
mise of 1S50.
that fully 800,000 tons will be produced.
This enormous mass of raw sugar Is
almost unsalable today under our pres
ent duty and the tremendous fall In
price; so that without a change In the
present industrial conditions In Cuba
her plantations will become as desolate
fas those of Jamaica and BarDaaoes,
The people of Cuba depend upon the
sugar and tobacco industry for their
livelihood. Secretary Root is right when
he says that we are bound In moral
honor- to regulate our tariff duties on
the chief agricultural products of Cuba
so that she will have a chance to get
on her fett as a eommerclal and indus
trial nation. The Inexplicable thing is
that Mr. Root seems to have no Idea of
the graver case of the Philippines.
According to the latest estimates by
competent authority. English-speaking
Inhabitants of the globe number
133.0Q0.000. The only populations of
greater numbers that speak any other
single language are those of China and
India. By their superior activity in
commerce, the English-speaking peo
ples are spreading faster and farther,
and are Increasing their numbers more
rapidly than any others. Nearly all
the nations which hold colonies as
part of their empire rule popular
tlons In their? colonies which large
ly exceed these of the home coun
tries In the number of inhabitants.
The population of the colonies of Euro
pean nations figures up after tela. fash
Ion: France, 94.7S1.014; Germany, 71.
032,014; Russia, 128,932,173, and the Unit
ed Kingdom, 390,000,000. From this It
appears that the, British flag flies over
more than onc-"quarter of the inhab
itants of the earth. But of the total
British "colonists" 300.000,000 are Asl- J gained from experience, from study and
EXPERIENCE TliX GREAT TEACHER
PORTLAND, Jan. 4. (To the Edi
tor.) Experience has taught the
fruitgrowers of Oregon much within
a few years which they are turning as
rational men are expected to do to their
profit. This fact is recalled by the state
ment made before the farmers Institute
held at Covo a few days ago. In regard
to the uncommercial fruits that were
planted In that section 15 to 20 years ago.
"Plums, peaches, greengages, pears, and
some of the prunes," are enumerated as
among the worthless fruits, from a com
mercial point of view, that were then
planted, and which have proved an un
profitable Investment In money and en
ergy.
Almost twice that number of years ago
this tendency t,o plant trees bearing un
profitable because unmarketable vari
eties of fruit was developed In the Wil
lamette Valley. Tons of greengages, of
&weet .Summer apples and of early pears
rotted In orchards during these early
vears. A very small portion of the
abounding yield of these fruit trees suf
ficed for home consumption; another very
small fraction glutted the local market,
and the vast residue dropped from the
trees and rotted upon the ground. These
were years of discouragement to the fruit
grower. Fruit pests were then unknown
on the Pacific Slope, the trees were of
rapid and rampant growth, began to bear
early and bore with astonishing abund
ance. But there was literally "nothing in
raising fruit" of the kinds then univer
sally raised. There would have been lit
tle In It, whatever the varieties cultivated,
at that time, owing to the limited demand.
No care was taken of the trees, for the
very sufficient reason that there was no
demand for their product, and the de
cline of Willamette Valley orchards be
gan, and continued until cf these old
orchards now scarcely a trace remains.
In recent yeare. however, fruitgrowing
has been re-established upon a more in
telligent basis, and with knowledge
AMUSEMEXT&
Broadhurst's well-known comedy", "What
Happened to Jones," was given at Cor
dray's last night by a well-balanced com
pany to a house that filled the theater
to the doors. Judging by the merriment
the play created and the applause at
the conclusion of every act, it was more
than satisfactory.
Few comedies are so admirably con
structed and so laughable throughout as
this most successful of Broadhurst's ef
forts. From the time the book agent is
projected into the household of an elderly
professor, by a curious accident, till he
makes his final bow. there Is always
something to laugh at. There Is hardly
a moment that js not occupied by some
ludicrous situation, and the lines could
hardly be brighter.
Mistaken identity has, as In most
farces, been liberally made use of, but
It has been done cleverly, and the happy
experiment of making a book agent try
to play a bishop Is an Innovation that
deserves the success It has achieved.
Dean Raymond was the Jones of the com
pany, and seeemed fully alive to all the
possibilities which are continually con
fronting that worthy. He kept the au
dience amused whenever he was on the
stage, and made much of the large op
portunities he has been givers
James Durand was a good Professor
Goodly, his work in the last two acts,
when Goodly was trying to bear the pres
ence of the drummer as best he could,
was particularly clever. Walter Green
made an excellent bishop, and Lysander
Houk was sufficient as Richard Heath
crly. Miss Iva Merlyn was a pretty and
vivacious Cissy, Clara Reynolds-Smith as
sisted In the fun-making by her interpre
tation of the role of Mrs. Goodly, Maud
Cooling was a good Marjorie, and Eliza
beth Ellson and Gertrude Bell got con
siderable out of the character parts en
trusted to them.
The play will run all the week, with
a matinee Saturday.
NOTE AND COMMENT.
Mr. Shakespeare
Tuesday.
will come to town
atlcs and 40,000,000 are Africans. The
United States Bureau of Statistics fig
ures out that no less than 00,000,000 of
the earth's inhabitants are colonials,
and of these colonials less than 15,000,
M0, or 3 per cent, are composed of the
people of the governing country.
CIVIL WAR OR SLAVE INSURREC
TION. The publication by the Richmond
Despatch of a bundle of letters ad
dressed to John Brown, and recently
found In the Virginia State Library,
adds nothing to our historical knowl
edge of the famous raid on Harper's
Ferry. A congressional committee com
posed of Democrats, Including Vallan
dlgham of Ohio, Investigated the whole
matter at the time, and Brown was
found to have given his confidence to
nobody in the matter outside of a few
obscure persons of no political Influ
ence or consequence. Governor Andrew,
of Massachusetts, and ThGodore Parker
believed that Brown had become a
monomaniac on the subject of slavery
through the loss of his son9 killed in
Kansas. None of the abdiltion leaders
had jany knowledge of Brown's plot,
but some of them, like Wendell Phil
lips, used his fate as a text upon which
to preach an anti-slavery sermon. The
odore Parker had been six months In
j Florence, Italy, when Brown made his
A CAUSE FOR ADJUDICATION.
It certainly becomes the German Gov
ernment to address Venezuela In terms
looking, not to an ultimatum with per
emptory time limit, but to progressive
adjudication, with due regard to the
Monroe Doctrine. The German claim Is
of 6uch a nature that If It were held
against a first-class power, no thought
of arbitrary measures would be enter
tained, for Venezuela certainly has a
case. The trouble grows out of the
debt owned by the Venezuelan Govern
ment for the construction of the
Grand Railroad of Venezuela. In
18S9 or 1890 some German bankers and
other capitalists obtained a concession
from the government for the construc
tion of a railroad from Caracas, the
capital, to Valencia, the next largest
city. The distance was about 110 mllea
Under the terms of this concession, the
government guaranteed 7 per cent in
terest on all bonds of the road, which
were supposed to cover the cost of con
struction. This guarantee meant that
if the road did not earn enough to pay
7 per cent on the bonds, the govern
ment would make good the balance.
The road was built In an extrava
gant manner. The total cost was near
ly $16,000,000, but the government al
leged It was not liable on more than
$10,000,000. The cost of construction, of
this road, which was only three feet
six Inches gauge and single track, was
about $145,000,000 a mile. Some of the
contractors, mostly Germans, retired
with comfortable fortunes. When the
road was opened for traffic It barely
paid running expenses, which amount
ed to $6500 a mile, or a total of $700,000
per annum for the whole DO miles.
Under these circumstances, the gov
ernment was called upon to make good
the guarantee of 7 per cent. In 1895
the Venezuelan Government obtained
a loan of $10,000,000 in Germany at 5
per cpnt, issued through the "Dlsconto
Gessellschaft" This bank Is charged
with appropriating $5,200,000 of this
sum In part payment of the debt due
to itself as a member of the original
syndicate which built the railroad, and
to have exacted a 20 per cent commis
sion for negotiating the loan. The bal
ance was destined to repay other for
eign railroad companies the various
sums owing them for similar guar
antees. The Venezuelans say that "the
$3,200,000. together with the $2,000,000
commission fee, was merely transferred
from the right-hand pocket of the
Dlsconto to the left; that the balance to
be divided among the other railroad
companies was not in cash, but In
bonds, which the Dlsconto absolutely
refused to redeem In cash, or create a
market for, thus practically making
them non-negotiable securities of no
fixed value, and that the result was
that the Dlsconto saddled upon the
country an extra Interest charge of
$500,000 without expending one cent In
cash."
The Venezuelan Government natural
ly objects to the payment of guaran
tees on what Is clearly an enormously
Inflated construction account. Another
railroad, the La Guayra & Caracas
Company, 23 miles, Is bonded for $75,
000 a mile; the Puerto Cabello & Va
lencia, 33 miles, for $55,000 a mile. No
wonder the government is unwilling to
pay guarantees upon such excessive
capitalizations. The situation is not
unlike that in Turkey. The common
people in both countries are remarkably
honest, but the whole official system
of administration is tainted with cor
ruption. Verezuela contains almost
600,000 square miles of territory, but
its population is only about 2,500,000,
and of this population only about 150,
000 represent the governing class. The
rest of the population are peons. Gen
many can, of course, if she chooses,
easily by force compel the Venezuelan
Government to came to some satisfac
tory agreement regarding this debt.
Just as France has forced Turkey to
make, settlement of her account. But
the German claim against Venezuela
seems to call for dispassionate adjudi
cation quite as strongly as did the
British claims over Orinoco territory.
We had yesterday, a statement by
cable from Lpndpn that Mrs. Gallup, an
American, was making a stir among
the light-heads of literature there by
a new Shakespeare-Baconian cipher.
This vagary has a peculiar attraction
for a class of minds upon whom argu
ments drawn from the canons of uni
versal literature are wasted. Thdp who
are fond of the Irregular and the mar
velous; even to the top of Irrationality,
accept notions- and theories of this kind,
A correspondent of the New York, Times
at London te'egrapha: . "Mr. Sidney
Lee (the most discriminating of all re
cent writers on Shakespeare) unac
countably chooses rp add fuel to the
fire by arguing with people with whom
it Is Impossible to argue. Mr. Lee re-
marshals all the old, sensible reasons
for believing that Shakespeare wrote
his own works. But It will do no good.
I have Just discovered a singular fact.
All pro-Boers and antl-vacclnationlsts
are Baconians."
from observation, and under the stimulus
of a constantly widening market, horticul
ture. Is a promising and constantly ex
panding Industry of the etate.
Fruitgrowers of Eastern Oregon might
have learned from observation the lesson
acquired by experience In the Willamette
Valley. But It seems they did not. and lit
consequence have now considerable orch
ard area that is unprofitable, because the
product will not bear shipping. Having
discovered this mistake, they cannot be
gin too soon for their own profit to rectify
it. since at best the process will cover
several years of practically unremuner
ative labor. C. A. C.
King County, Washington, Is making
a record too long delayed for the just
punishment of criminals convicted of
murder within its limits. Last August
Charles Nordstrom was hanged for a
most cowardly and atrocious murder
committed nine-years before, and now!
the execution of William Seaton, who
set In to kill an entire family of his
relatives with an ax In December, 1900,
and succeeded In killing his uncle and
brutally wounding two little nieces and
his sister, has taken place. A stolid
human brute, Seaton "died game."
That la to say, he showed neither re
morse for his crime nor fear of penalty.
A long-suffering community Is to be
congratulated m that justice has at
last come to Its defense In ridding It of
these conscienceless criminals. Its only
scores in a desperate game for more
than a quarter of a century.
The Chicago Tribune publishes lists
of donations and bequests to educa
tional Institutions, libraries, art muse
ums, charities and religious foundations
of various kinds In the United States
during the year 1901. which reach the
extraordinary sum of $123,888,732; and
It is certain that the whole of these
donations Is not represented in the lists.
Of this great sum, $68,850,961 has been
sfven to colleges, universities, acade
mies, seminaries and institutes of an
educational character. The Tribune
adds this editorial comment: "As to
the ultimate consequences of this
wholesale and Indiscriminate giving to
educational Institutions, some impor
tant questions may yet be raised, and
indeed some thoughtful persons are al
ready doubting the wisdom of such
gifts."
The row in the Port of Portland Com
mission Is inopportune and fraught
with menace to the port. It harks back
to our old difficulty here In making
every vital concern of the community
serve as football for the feet of rival
political bosses. The time ought to
come here some day when the welfare
of the state and city Is regarded of
more Importance than to feed the ambi
tion or the vengeance of partisan machines.
Concerning the Philippine clergy, the
Boston Herald (Independent) has thi3
sound suggestion: "If these Spanish
friars could be sent back to Spain, and
their places could be taken by Roman
Catholic clergymen of American birth
or training, even if our .Government
was compelled to pay a large sum of
money in liquidation of land claims. It
would be a highly satisfactory change
to have brought about.'
An esteemed newspaper of Eastern
Oregon renews the complaint that that
section of the state "has not Its right
ful share of state patronage." What!
with the whole state pouring money
Into Eastern Oregon through the scalp
bounty law?
By a slip made yesterday In an article
about the Astoria News, the name of
tRe Astorlan In one place wag Intro
duced. The subject related wholly to
the News, and the name of .the Asto
rlan did not belong to It.
Secretary Root, In his annual report,
which President Roosevelt laid before
Congress, said: "The same considera
tions which led to the war with Spain
now require that a commercial arrange
ment be made under which Cuba can
live." This Is substantially the argu
ment pleaded in Cuba's behalf by Gen
eral James H. Wilson In his address
before the American Free Trade League
more than a month before Congress as
sembled. The Cuban sugar output rose
from 308,000 tons in 1899 to 615,000 tons
in 1900, and this year it Is estimated
The wholesale trade of Chicago for
the year 1901, according to the Tribune,
amounted to $S92,800,000. Pretty big;
but Portland's wholesale trade was big
ger. In proportion to population.
If some people did not doubt Mar
coni's Invention, It would not bean In
vention. Therefore, If you are a skep
tic you are among the best friends of
the Inventor.
Or Her Own Head.
Philadelphia Record,
Mr. Buggin-Flf ty dollars for a bonnet!
Why, madam, It'a a- crime." Mrs. Bug
gin "Well, th? crime on my own
head,"
This letter is highly suggestive, but It
proceeds from the basis of a partial and
imperfect understanding of the fruitgrow
ers' problem. A newer country may learn
much about the fruit business from an
older country, and Eastern Oregon ought
to get some instruction from the mistakes
and the successes of the Willamette re
gion, where fruitgrowing has been long
pursued; but there is a limit to the value
of this kind of instruction, and it Is eas
ily possible to have too much of It or
to follow It too blindly. The familiar
maxim, "What Is one man's meat is an
other man's poiion," is quite as true and
as applicable If we substitute the word
"orchard" for the word "man." One
country may learn frcm another how to
prepare fruit for market, how to forward
It, how to so dispose of It to best advan
tage, but the experience oi one country
cr district as to the varieties of fruit
profitable to be grown is as likely to be
misleading and harmful as to be helpful.
Every fruit dlitrlct, before best results
can be attained, must find out what Its
adaptations am with reference to produc
tion and market, and adjust Its energies
to accord with this, finding; and nobody
has yet found a way to accomplish this
excepting by experimentation involving
innro nr less loss.
To illustrate, California began fruit
growing on a commercial scale much
sooner than Oregon did, and the business
attained prominence there before it was
taken up here. Very naturally, the first
adventurers hero directed their efforts
largely In Imitation of cauiornia aims
nnd methods. The essential differences In
the climates and soils of the two states
were overlooked; the attempt was made
In a wet country, with a short working
season, to get results similar to those got
in a dry country with a long season, by
planting Identical varieties of fruits and
employing similar methods of cultivation.
Of course, the effort was a failure, and
many of our more enterprising orchard
lsts know how costly it was. Hundreds,
and evea thousands, of acres were plant
ed here upon the presumption that what
was advantageous and profitable in Cali
fornia would bo similarly successful here:
and the lesson that what is California's
meat may be Oregon's poison was en
forced by the most painful experiences.
In later years we have come to something
like general comprehension of the neces
sities of our own situation, and are mak
ing a start toward that specialization of
the fruit industry upon which its larger
profit depends. We are learning that It 13
better for us to grow a special kind ot
prune, which matures early, befora the
Fall rains come, rather than to grow the
varieties commonly produced In Califor
nia, which require a longer season for
maturing. We have learned, too, that
there Is for us large profit In apples, and
especially In the Spltzenberg and New
town PiDDln varieties. And these lcsson3
were not acquired by noting the experi
ence of other fruit countries. They have
come to us through our own experience,
and they have come to every other coun
try which has gained them in precisely the
same way. California had to learn by
slow and costly processes that her best
apple Is the Yellow Bellefleur. and Colo
rado, by precisely similar experience, had
to learn that hers Is the Ben Davis.
It Is this special knowledge that Is giv
ing to the Oregon fruit industry its spe
cial standing In tha general markets, and
which !r making it, when pdrsued upon
the best lines, widely and regularly profit
able. The orchardlsts who exchanged experi
ences and reflections at Cove last week
have in their relatively elevated and ab
solutely virgin country a fine basis for
tho fruit Industry. Their most profitable
specialty will probably be the apple for
which Oregon has a world-wide fame, but
this is not to be hastily assumed, for, as
above said, the only way to find out the
adaptations of any country in the mat
ter of fruit production is to bring into
comparison the results of multiplied experiments.
In the long run every successful fruit
country must by a sort of evolutionary
process work out Its own salvation. Tnls
Is being done in Western Oregon in vari
ous lines, and notably In connection with
the apple and the prune, as it was done
long ago with the cherry and the straw
berry. With longer experience, and with
the fruit business on a larger basis, even
more wonderful results to this end have
been achieved in California. There pretty
much the whole range' of horticultural
production haB been localized and special
ized, and the pre-eminence of California
In the commercial fruit world owes much
to this fact. The navel or seedless orange
Is one of California's very notable devel
opments, and something comparable has
been accomplished in relation to the
peach, the prune, the plum, the apricot
and other commercial lines of fruit pro
duction. The California orchardlst Is rap
idly acquiring a full equipment of special
fruit varieties evolutionized through the
influence of California conditions, and, of
course, especially adapted to production
under these conditions. This must be done
in. every part of Oregon. The needs and
adaptations of every situation, regarded
as to conditions of production and condi
tion? of market, must be studied, and
when they are learned we must set about
meeting them. Tho more we speciauze
our productions, as we have the Italian
C03IING ATTRACTIONS.
Warde fa "The Monntebnnlf.'" at the
Marquam Tonight.
Tonight at the Marquam Grand Theater
Frederick Warde will open an engagement
of four nights, presenting one of his
greatest successes, "The Mountebank."
Tuesday night Mr. Warde will present
"Julius Caesar," Wednesday night "Vlr
glnlus," and Thursday night "King
Lear."
"The Mountebank" it is said offers him
the best opportunity for the display of
his well-known abilities. He brings a
scenic production- and the best company
that he has ever had. Prominent In the
company are Barry Johnstone, last sea
son leading man for Madame Modjeska;
Charles D. Herman. Miss Antoinette Ash
ton, formerly leading lady for James
O'Neill: Virginia Drew Trescott, May
Warde, the tragedian's talented daughter;
Allcen Bertelle, John T. Hynes, Hamil
ton. Coleman, Francis D. McGinn, John
T.. Harris, Harry C- Barton. James F.
Fulton and Kennle McLeod. The sale of
seats is now open for the entire repertoire.
Aha! Mr. Weather Prophet, we told you
it would rain yesterday.
Mrs. Gallup seems to b'e setting a pace
that the London literati cannot follow.
The proceedings of the Port of Portland
Commission begin to promise war news.
Carnegie Is getting to where he can see
the poorhouse lights on a particularly
bright night.
The novelist who will insert the Janu
ary prices of dress goods in his works
will -find readers.
Generals Kitchener and Dewet are yet
undecided as to the heavy-weight cham
pionship of South Africa.
If Edison Isn't inventing anything more
useful and less noisy than the phonograph
the reporters who are hanging about his
premises might as well go off watch.
Hanna and Foraker have decided to di
vide Ohio between them. The citizens of
the state will have to content themselves
with going w y b k and sitting down.
Miss Stone's press agent must either
have sworn off or celebrated the New
Year's advent too hilariously. He hasn't
sent out a line for the last day and a
half.
The Shakcspcare-Bacon controversy ha3
arisen again. Why not send a Marconi
dispatch to Igantius Donnelly about It?
He knows who wrote the plays by this
time.
It has been ascertained that Czolgosz
was fully responsible for his crime. As
the public Is willing to take full responst,
bllity for its punishment, why not let
it go at that?
"The Burgomaster."
The engagement next Friday and Sat
urday nights, with a matinee Saturday,
at the Marquam Grand Theater of "The
Burgomaster" will doubtless be - hailed
with pleasure by local theater-goers. This
Is a performance known, the length and
breadth of the land. The book, by Frank
Plxley, Is quaint, humorous and interest
ing, besides possessing that element of
historical accuracy in its introduction of
characters who live in record. The mu
sical score, by Gustav Luders, embraces
33 numbers. The sale of seats will open
Wednesday morning.
"Crimping" on Pngrct Sound.
The point of view from which a subject
Is considered frequently makes a great
difference In the interpretation of the
matter. For example, we find In the
Tacoma News, with credit given to the
Post-Intelligencer, the following:
Tho sailor boarding-house days of Old Man
Turk have asaln. descended upon Portland. The
tar Tvho falls Into the merciless hands of the
crimps that Infest the Oregon metropolla 13 as
sured an Interesting: time before he escapes;
and the marttr ot a -teasel la called upon to
spend a pretty penny In order to land bis
sailor man hack on board.
The Oregonlan has no Inclination to
condone any of the offenses which are
committed by boarding-house men in this
city, but In order that our Tacoma. and
Seattle friends may understand where
tho greatest Iniquity In this business pre
vails, we submit the following extract
from London Falrplay, the authority
which Is generally termed the "shipown
ers' Bible":
London. Dec 7, 1901. To the Editor of Falr
play Dear Sir: We read with Interest In the
current number of your valued Journal extracts
from letters by the captain of a steamer at
Portland lately. This "crimping- business"
seems quite new to your correspondent, but,
unfortunately for all salllng-shlp owners, as
you well know. It has been a meat objection
able charge without exception for many jears
back. Our experience this Autumn with sev
eral ships on the North Pacific means a. loss of
exactly 210. plus Increased wages for substi
tutes homewards. The standard charge at San
Francisco seems to be $25 per man. with $4
extra for- fees, etc.. In all ?20. The charge at
Portland again ranges from $30 to $33, with
the usual extras. But Tacoma crowns tha
lot. as there men cannot be got under a
charge varying from $53 per head upwards,
with the usual sundry charges additional for
fees, etc. We give ou the following extracts
juit received from Puget Sound, If you think
tlvy will interest j our subscribers and
strengthen In any way action taken up by the
Shipping Federation to put down this scanda
lous business. Yours truly,
SHIPOWNER NO. 2.
As the same boarding-houso gang con
trols the shipping of sailors in both Se
attle and Tacoma, we presume the above
communication will receive due consider
ation and republication from both the
Post-Intelligencer and the News.
Our carload of poem3 on "Beatlful
Snow" has arrived safely, and Manager
Lyons, of the Terminal Company, notifies
us that he will send it up here as soon as
he can get the Council to give him per
mission to lay a siding on Sixth street.
Edward F. Nishwltz, who was dis
charged from the New York police force
In 1SS6 for being absent without leave,
has been reinstated, with back pay
amounting to $6000. Nlshwitz has been
working as a machinist during the Inter
val, and now that he has been reinstated
and paid he has resigned from the force.
George and Henry Jacobs, two unbe
lievers at a spiritualistic seance in Austin,
Tex., made preliminary arrangements
whereby a departed spirit, returning bare
footed to the haunts of men, stepped on a
large and sharp carpet tack. The medi
ums Immediately shook tho dust of Aus
tin from their feet, lest some of the peo
ple who had helped them do a profitable
business might want their money back.
A new system of railroad operation Is
soon to go jinto effect on the Burlington.
It will be conducted on the same plan as
a department store. In that evory repre
sentative of the company will keep a
strict account of the receipts and expendi
tures of his own office and return a bal
ance to J. J. Hill every month. He will
be the sole manager of his department,
and his poflts and losses will bo charged
to him, instead of to the company. All
the bookkeeping of the company will be
revolutionized to meet the conditions of
the new system, which Is already the sys
tem of the Great Northern, where It has
proved very successful. The benefit lies
in the fact that every employe will en
deavor to make a good showing.
The Criminal Record.
Chicago Tribune.
The record of deaths by violence In this
country In 1S01 shows quite a decrease,
being 7S52. as compared with 8275 in 1300.
The latter figures were an Increase of
2050 over those of the preceding year. It
is not possible, of course, to obtain accu
rate statistics on this point by mall and
telegraph, as many cases are not report
ed, but they are sufficiently accurate to
Indicate that crlmo Is not rapidly Increas
ing In this country". The record of sui
cides, however, tells another and sadder
story. In 1S01, 7245 persons "shuffled off
this mortal coll," as compared with 6755
in 1900. The steady increase In the sui
cide habit, largely due to the ease with
which poison may be obtained, this be
ing the most common agency employed,
is tahown. by the following record of cases
In a series of years: JSOO, 2040; 1S91. 3531;
1S02, 3S60; 1893. 4436; 1S94, 4912; 1SD5. 5759;
1836. 6530; 1S97. 6600; 1S9S, 5920; 1SS9, 5J40;
1900. 6735; 1301, 7245.
Embezzlements In 1901.
Chicago Tribune.
The record of embezzlement and other
forms of financial dishonesty during the
years just closed, like that of the three
years previous it, is distinctly encourag
ing. The record of the last four years
is as follows: 1398. $5,851,263; 1899, $2,218.
373; 1900, $4,600,134; 1301, $4,085,569. As com
pared with the reports for a long series
of years preceding 189S these amounts are
comparatively small and they testify elo
quently to the general prosperity of the
times. It Is only In periods of panic or
general financial depression that the em
bezzler largely flourishes, or his work be
comes apparent. The banks, as usual,
were the principal sufferers In 1901, their
losses amounting to $1,513,496, due
even these figures are small when com
pared with those of some past years.
Mark TtTatn' Great Modesty.
New York Times.
The business methods of publishers came
up for discussion at a recent literary
gathering. William Dean Howells and
Mark Twain were present.
"The spirit of the age Is strenuous,"
said Mr. Howells. "And in order not to
bo behind the times the publishers modify
the verbiage of the circus poster with
scant politeness." "
"They do," assented" the humorist. "My
publishers speaks of advertising my next
book as a story by Mark Twain with no
further comment. But he shan't make a
holy show of me with his vulgar adver
tising simplicity. I shall Insist upon a
street parade at the least, because I am
a modest man and dislike to be made conspicuous."
New Corporations.
Chicago Tribune.
Katzen jammer Pleasure Club. Chicago;
object. Katzenjammer. Incorporators,
William C. Wiehl, Adolph Welnholz, Fred
W. Hlllcr.
Bromo Selzer Relief Club; object, to re
move Katzenjammer. Incorporators, same
above.
prune and the Spltzenbtrg aple, the fur-
I ther we shall gc awTy f ron competition.
Jepatha's Daughter.
Lord Byron.
Since our country, our God Oh! my sire!
Demand that thy daughter expire:
Since thy triumph was bought by thy ow
Strike tho besom that's bared for thee now!
And the voice of my mourning is o'er.
And tho mountains behold me no more;
If tho hand that I love lay me low.
Thero cannot be pain In the blow!
And of this. oh. my father! be sure
That the blood of thy child Is as pure
Aa tho blessing I beg ere It flow.
And the last thought that soothes me below.
Though the virgins of Salem lament.
Be the Judge and the hero unbent!
I have won the great battle for thee.
And my father and country are free!
When this blood of thy giving hath gush'd,
When the voice that thou lovest is husb'd.
Let my memory still be thy pride.
And (orget not I smiled as I died.
PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPHERS
The Worst Form. Mrs. Crawford I suppose
you suffer a great deal from your dyspepsia?
llrs. Crobshaw Not half as much aa I did
when my husband had it. Judge.
Mrs. Justwed This Is excellent cake. Did
you get the recipe out of a book? Mrs. New
wed No: I got it out of my head. Mrs. Just
wed No wonder.lt is so light. Boston Trav
eler. J
Mrs. CRourke (to charitable old Mr. Hart
well, who Is gl Ing away poultry to the needy)
Long life to er Honor; mire I'll nlver see
a goose agin but Iil think of yez! Harlem
Lire.
The Chicago Man Well, what did you think
of New York? The Colorado Man Thought it
was a mining town when I first struck It.
Somebody was digging In nearly every street.
Yonkers Statesman.
An Acceptable Present. "Mame got a set of.
fau-a teeth for a Christmas , present!" "Hor
rors! I didn't know she needed them." "Oh.
jei: a girl can't have too many sldecotnbs.
jou know." Philadelphia Evening Bulletin.
Accounting for It. De Sappy I don't under
stand why some people require so much sleep.
I can get along with four hours. Miss Redbud
The body doesn't requlro nearly so much
rest as the brain. Town and Country.
In the Picture Gallery. Guide This Is &
Cuyp. Wonderful feeling! So human! It rep
resents ono' peasant asking another a question.
Visitor What fidelity to nature! The other
fellow looks as If he didn't know a thing
about It. Brooklyn Life.
Feline Depravity. "O Horace!" walled his
joung wife. "I hae Just found out that
AJax. our beautiful Angora cat, ha been lead
ing a double life!" "That makes 18, I sup
pose." said Horace. "What has he been do
ing?" "You know I let him out every morn
ing, because he seems ta want to go and play
out of doors. Well. I have discovered that he
goes over to the Robinsons and leU them feed
him and pet him." Chicago Tribuner