THE MORNING OEEQONI'AN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16, 1902.
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I
PORTLAND, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10
THE OPERATORS AXD THE LAW. "
When The Oregonlan, a week ago to
day. called attention to the effrontery
of the anthracite coal-carrying railroad9
In demanding the letter of the law, the
while they were themselves such
flagrant violators of law, some very'
good people hereabouts, who are still
living in the industrial atmosphere of
ten years ago, were much alarmed at
what seemed to them "popullstic" utter
ancjea They will be reassured to know
that the identical views and proposals
contained in The Oregonlan were put
out at the same time by conservative
journals elsewhere. We have hitherto
reprinted many utterances of papers
like the New York Evening Post and
Brooklyn Eagle in reprobation of the
operators, and now we wish to call spe
cial attention to what two of the ablest
and most conservative papers in the
United States, one -Republican and one
Democrat, say with reference to the
defiance of law shown by the coal-carrying
railroads. First, the Chicago
Tribune, conservative Republican:
The coal-carrying roads nullify the constitu
tion of tb state which gave them charters.
They violate the National laws governing Interstate--.-commerce.
They defy the common
law,Tvhlch is rooted in fundamental principles,
which experience has 'proved are essential to
the welfare of the people and to the growth
and maintenance of human liberty. The-. coal
carrying roads are engaged in an unlawful- con
spiracy, yet their managers complain -of
breaches of the law in the anthracite coal "re
gions. They are the most flagrant and Impu
dent lawbreakers in that part of Pennsylvania.
Whenever a coal road mines coal It openly vio
lates' the .constitution of Pennsylvania. Every
meeting of the representatives of the road to
fix the price of coal or the rate charged for
carrying it to market is an open - violation of
the laws of the Nation and the state. There Is
no law designed to protect the consumers of
coal against extortion which the coal-carrying
roads have not persistently and publicly vio
lated. The roads are "habitual crimifcils." By
their reiterated offenses they have put them
selves out of court. They are entitled to no
consideration or -compassion. They have worn
uui me patience or the people. The severest
treatment they are likely to receive will not
uaiaucr man tney deserve.
Next the Chicago Chronicle, conserva
tive gold-standard Democrat:
When these organized criminals -who
to be In prison, demanded of the President that
lie send troops Into PennsvlvnrMn c.oi,..
the miners as criminals they demanded than
H.m. 5 i 'awless act- ad Mr. Mitchell
demanded In return that tho President put the
UnYtaT? I" Prison for violating laws qf the
t r7..T "" come mucn nearer
X """"""'"B i oniy something that ought
to be done but something that the President
1 f t ,ih0at overriding the law himself!
r,, 4 .. uenmna iat the laws be
cured. By all means let their dm k .
piled with. Let steps be taken at pnee which
&tl the law by pWlng tne
- . uiiuu ucmnu me oars
These papers have fous-hr 'w..iicm
ror; years. They are still Its uncompro
mising foes. But they realize that when
it comes to defiance of law the coal
carrying roads themselves have set the
pace and that under rigid application
ui. id.w meir properties could be pun
Ished and their officials convicted.
Justice is not an instrument for op
pression of the weak bv thP nnworf,,!
The law Is not aimed at support of one
bet ot-laworeakers and attacks upon
iiuuier set ot lawbreakers. Courts are
not established as the peculiar resource
oi one party to Industrial disnntp
When one order or type of the enml
munity's elements comes to regard' the
law as us special possession, for em
ployment or disregard at its conven
lence, it needs to be undeceived, in the
interests not only of law and order, but
oi common morality.
The Tacoma News, having no direct
knowledge of the wheat business for
this year, last year or any other year,
is unable to determine whether the
figures It prints on the subject are cor
rect or otherwise. On Monday the fol
lowing appeared in its editorial col
umns:.
Bradstreet's reported 008,000 bushels of wheat
In stock at Tacoma on October 1. 1002. whii
Seattle had 105,000 bushels, and Portland 693.
000 bushels. Tacoma had 108.000 bushels more
tnan I'ortiana ana Seattle combined on that
date. At the corresponding date in inni rnrt.
land reported 823,000 bushels; Tacoma, 69S.O00
bushels, and Seattle, 235,000 bushels. Do you
see where the wheat center on the North Pa-
kjuc ioasi now is?
With all due respect for the occasional
accuracy of Bradstreet's figures. It Is a
tact that the stocks of wheat at Port
mna on uctober l were over 1,100,000
bushels. They were so large that with
the heavy daily arrivals at that time
exporters were obliged to order the Dy
nomene ana .pass of Brander around
from Puget Sound, where they were
unable to secure cargoes. There was
but one lone vessel on the disengaged
list at .Portland, but the engaged ton
nage had a capacity of over 1,600,00(T
bushels. There were six disengaged
grain ships on Puget Sound at the time,
and they are still there looking for bus!
ncss. The wheat shipments from Pu
get Sound from July 1, 1902, to October
1, 1902, were over 200,000 bushels less
than they were for the same period last
year, , and even record-breaking ship
ments for the month of October will
hardly bring the shipments of Seattle
and Tacoma up to the figures reached
by November 1 last year.. Incidentally
It might be remarked that two-thlrds of
the wheat shipped from Pugot Sqund is
handled by Portland and San Francisco
.buyers, and Portland banks supply the
finances for handling moro than two
thirds of it.
DO IT RIGHT OR NOT AT ALL.
On the eve of the consolidation of
Portland, East Portland and Album, the
Councils of the last two places rushed
through a number of franchises grant
ing privileges to corporations. They
did this because they knew that the
consolidated city would be bound by
their actions, and they wanted to make
hay while tho sun shone. That action
forms a black chapter in the history of
Portland. It Is never mentioned but
with regret and shame, and to the dis
credit of the conspiring Councllmen.
The situation in 1S90 has Its parallel
In 1902. In the expiring hours of the
present charter an effort is under way
to bestow upon certain applicants a
Job lot of franchises of various kinds.
The extent and moment of the privi
leges asked may be accurately meas
ured by the formidable array of legal
talent that interests mena'ced have en
gaged to contest their issuance. Due al
lowance must be made for that portion
of this .opposition which springs solely
from undue conservatism, from purely
selfish Impulses, from rival concerns,
and from the natural disinclination of
any man to see the street In front of
his own property approprlatedfor pub
lic or quasi-public uses. But with al
lowance for all this, it is perfectly cer
tain that no considerable body of oppo
sition could be enlisted to applications
of this kind, unless they found suffi
cient ground In justice and reason to
justify an appeal to public opinion.
In every Issue of this kind,-wisdom
must steer its course between the two
extremes, corporate aggression on one
hand and selfish obstruction on the
other. Nothing Is more certain than
that a town of 100,000 people scattered
over forty square miles of territory
must have plentiful street-car service,
and that liberal facilities for extensions
not only encourage Investment, but pro
mote municipal development. It has
been a very prominent factor In Port
land's progress that Its street-car sys
tems have constantly spent money like
water for extensions and equipments.
On the whole, their policies have been
too liberal for the good of their stock
holders. Millions have been lost in un
profitable lines to ambitious suburbs.
Some, like the Barnes Heights road,
have been abandoned. Some, like the
cable read, have been sold for a song
and reorganized. The town has been
well served by Its street-cars and will
be better served If the ambitions of
their managers can be be realized. All
thatthe companies are making Is spent
for new lines, new rails and new cars.
It takes a good many nickels to buy a
single seven-inch rail.
On the other hand, the Councilman's
first concern Is his oath of office and his
duty to the people. It Is exceedingly
doubtful how much revenue could now
be. justly exacted from our street-car
lines. But It is Inconceivable that any
franchise should now be granted which
does not fully conserve every right of
taxation which will justly belong to the
people ten or twenty years from now,
and which will accrue under ;the char
ter adopted by the people in June. It
is idle to eay that the charter Is not
yet law and may not become law. It
has been approved by fhe people and
a Legislative betrayal of It Is the remot
est of possibilities. No privileges Incon
sistent with the new charter should be
granted now.
The present Council has a commend
able example before it in the care which
the last Council devoted to undertak
ings of this kind. If it Is less faithful
t,o the interests of the people, its record
will forever rise up to condemn it. It
does not behoove the present Council to
rush franchises through in plain defi
ance of the mandate of the people last
June. It should either do the work
right or leave It alone.
MITCHELL, OP THE MIXEWORKERS.
Mitchell, the leader of the anthracite
coal strike, has won the good opinion
of fair men of high ability, like Abram
S. Hewitt, who is entirely opposed to
him from the beginning. "Holland,"
tne New York correspondent of the
Philadelphia Press, writes that Journal
that ex-Mayor Hewitt thinks the coal
strike an event of deep significance;
that he has been led to this opinion
through a recent Interview with John
Mitchell. Mr. Hewitt's impression of
Mitchell was that he was a man of ab
solute sincerity, of unquestionable per
sonal integrity, of unquenchable zeal,
who has committed himself with the en
thuslasm of a possible martyr to his
convictions that the day la not far dis
tant when the great body of wage-earners,
the wealth-producers, of the United
States, are to control not only their cap
ital, which is their labor, but must be
dominant In the Government Itself.
Mitchell holds that labor can never hope
to receive Its fair share of the increase
of wealth in this country until It pos
sesses majority power in Legislature
and the control of the Executive. Mr.
Gompers shares these, views with Mitch
ell. .
Mr. Hewitt thinks the day is not far
distant when there will be a formidable
struggle for a change Involving govern
ment upon socialistic lines, or by class,
such as Mr. Mitchell and Gompers
contemplate; that Is, the test must come
which Macaulay, Carlyle and De
Tocquevllle pointed out long-ago as in
evitable In America. Mr. Mitchell would
have every trade completely unionized,
and when that Is done there is also to
be perfected a federation through the
machinery of the American Federation
of which Gompers is chief. Mr. Mitch
ell looks forward to the day- when there
is to be government by a class, by the
great body of wage-earners in the
United States, who will, through the
ballot-box, capture majorities in "the
Legislatures, In the Federal Congress
and ultimately choose the executives of
the State and Nation.
This estimate of the ability, courage
and sincerity of Mr. Mitchell by Mr,
Hewitt Is. vers' complimentary to the
leader of the coal strike, but it Is some
thing confirmed by the fact that Mr.
Mitchell, at the recent conference with
the President, offered to leave the issues
to be arbitrated by a disinterested tri
bunal to be named by the President of
the United States, promising to abide
by the decision, even if it were against
the appeal of the miners. Mr. Baer
contemptuously refused ' to have any
thing to do on this occasion with i
tribunal of Mr. Roosevelt's choosing,
but shouted for more soldiers and
sneered at a Government that would
not furnish them. The public were most
favorably impressed by the action of
Mitchell In meeting President Roose
velt's request more than half-way, and
wero correspondingly disgusted with
Baer and his associates.
The mine operators seem to have lost
their fight by their folly and Insolence
in their conference with -the President,
and the proof of their defeat is fur
nished by their willingness to arbitrate
now before a tribunal of the President's
choice. They had reached a point where
they had to fish or cut bait, to, work
their mines or confess that they could
not obtain a working force, even with
10,000 soldiers for an escort and a de
fense for their miners. There was no
prospect that the Governor of Pennsyl
vania would call upon the President. for
troops without good cause, which was
wanting. They are forced to arbitrate
or let somebody take the mines for
whom miners will work.
NEGROES AXD INDUSTRIAL EDUCA
TION. The Oregonlan of re6ent date con
tained a letter from Brunswick. Ga,, in
which the subject of "Negroes and Edu
cation" was discussed by a corespond
ent in a spirit of injustice, brutality and
gross, willful misrepresentation that
falls not much short of falsehood. This
Brunswick correspondent In his bitterly
expressed hostility to industrial educa
tion advocated and executed by Booker
T. Washington asserts that "petty edu
cation" has made the negro "lustful";
that"the Ignorant negro Is of more
benefit to his race than his 'educated'
brother, who would advance more rap
Idly behind a mule and plow than a
history."
The long list of "black" crimes will only
terminate when we discontinue to educate the
negro -more than is essential fo$ his exist
ence. When we place him on our farms, and
wjiere his labor is required, then will we elim
inate him from the evil derived through his
Insignificant education.
This letter Is so full of falsehood that
It Is difficult to believe It was written
by a Southern man born and bred; it
reads more like the work of a "carpet
bagger." Intelligent Southern men who
were born and bred at the South as a
rule- favor negro disfranchisement for
many years to come, but that is urged
on the ground of political and social
expediency, just as at the, North we do
not grant women as a rule full suf
frage.. But Intelligent Southern men
are not only not hostile to Booker Wash
ington's scheme of Industrial education
for the negro, but they help support It
by their money and by their speech.
General Herbert, of Alabama, ex-Secre
tary oi tne .wavy, ex-confederate sol
dier and ex-slaveholder, has always
cast his Influence in favor of colored
industrial education. The Montgomery
(Ala.) Advertiser, an able and conserva
tive journal, recently has editorially
advocated such education, and there is
not a leading Southern newspaper
which has ever assumed the absurd
position that the presence of a depraved
criminal class among the negroes of the
South was due chiefly to '"the petty"
education he has received since the close
of the Civil War. The Nashville Amer
ican, an able Southern newspaper, re
cently made a most vigorous1 protest
against the view that negro education
is of no substantial benefit to either
blacks or whites, but rather an injury
to both. The American said that "If
the negroes were slaves, as was the
case, it might be advisable to keep their
minds in bondage, but the policy which
could keep the mind of a free citizen
steeped in ignorance cannot be wise
policy." The American concludes that
the education of the negro Is not only
a benent to him and his race, but to
the white race among whom the negro
lives and must live, and among other
things has this to say in defense of
Booker Washington's practical, far-
reaching service in the South today:
Practical education, manual training, Is what
the negro needs most. There may be many
half-educated negro preachers In prison, but
there is a vast number of negro convicts who
are absolutely illiterate. There are not too
many negro schools. There are not enough
good ones. A more general and thorough edu
cation of the people of this country, of all
nationalities, sexes and races, cannot weaken
or Injure the people or -the Government, un
less an tneones of education are false except
tho theory that only a selected few should be
educated while the populace should be kept In
Ignorance.
The meanest slur cast by. this Bruns
wick (Ga.) hegrophobist upon the col
ored race is the statement that until
the negro was free and obtained a
"petty education" he was not guilty of
aeeas or criminal lust, etc. This Is ab
surd. It is not the "petty education'
conferred upon the negro that has mul
tlplled this class of criminals, nor is the
negro of so-called "petty education"
chiefly distinguished for the commission
of such outrages. The negro Is at some
disadvantage, and as honest men we
ought to remember that we are respon
sible for it. The Southern necrro of to
day cannot but carry some moral taint
in his blood of the degrading, brutal
iiing scnooi or numan slavery. For
xuuie man years tne ancestors of
these Southern negroes -were educated
lu animalism ny their very environ
ment; there was no sanctity of marriage
enforced or respected. The great states
of Virginia and Kentucky bred slaves
for the cotton-picking and sutrar-frrow
ing states just as the great cattle states
breed cattle for the Chicago market
Under these conditions slavebreedinc
cultivated the animal passions of the
negro, who by the law of hereditary
transmission of moral defects would be
likely in his ignorant, imbrute.d condi
tion, to become a creature of turbulent
lust.
For more than 200 years slavery edu
cated the negro Into a contempt for con
tinence and encouraged him to unre
stricted Indulgence. Given six genera
lions or more of such slave fathers and
mothers, what less terrible result could
be expected than a race In which lust
raged In the blood by the time emanci
pation was suddenly effected? Nobody
asks clemency for negro miscreants.
but since we of the North and South
assumed the responsibility of educating.
a wnoie race of men and women, father.
mother, to a life where the only mar
riages were cattle marriages, 'we at
oci owe oiesK ooutnern negroes we
doomed to the training of brujes under
amvei me ruuimentary training and
education to better things that the
lowest white man expects and receives
from the state. The least we can do in
reparation for the degrading education
we gave their slave fathers and mothers
and more remote ancestors Is to give
their tainted and corrupted children the
simple fundamental Industrial educa-
tion that Booker Washington and Coun
clll advocate and administer. We have
no business to ascribe to recent "petty
education" these monster children that
spawned by slavery are sometimes ac
cused of crimes slave-born and slave
bred. There was a gangof white rapists
recently discovered In Brooklyn. The
four men who were sent to state prison
from Paterson, N J., lor rape and mur
der were all educated whites, and yet
we do not argue that they were mur
derers ' and rapists because of their
schooling, but In spite of it.
The Chicago Inter Ocean has been in
terviewing pVomlnent men on the coal
strike. "I am more in sympathy with
the mlneworkers," said Charles L. Hutch
inson, of the Cora Exchange National
Bank, "than with the operators. In in
sulting the President the operators la-
salted the entire American people."'
"The miners are gaining in favor,"
added James H. Eckels, of the Commer
cial National Bank, "with all interests,
finahclal and otherwise. The operators,
made a bad Impression at the confer
ence In Washington. 'John Mitchell's
attitude, on the other hand, was praise
worthy." "Although I am a strong be
liever In the right of all employers to
manage their businesses as they see
fit," said Ernest A. Hamill, another
leading banker, "I think that in this
.case the miners have shown themselves
more deserving of public sympathy than
their employers. I believe I am echoing
the sentiment of the entire street."
"The , sentiment of La Salle street,"
terssly remarked John J. Mitchell, head
of one of the two greatest banks of
Chicago, "Is now with the miners." And
as the Inter Ocean itself remarks, such
men as those quoted are lmpelledl by all
their environment and by the mental
habits of years, to regard the strikers In
Pennsylvania with reserve and even
with distrust. Therefore, when they are
moved publicly to condemn the attitude
of J. Pierpont Morgan's hard-coal mo
nopoly, and pubiicly to express their
sympathy with the coal miners, there
evidently has been such a change "in
public sentiment as amounts to nothing
less than a revolution.
The Supreme Court of Nebraska has
handed down a decision forbidding the
reading In the public schools of the Bi
ble or the singing of such songs as
"Nearer, My God, td Thee." The decis
ion is:
Exercises by a. teacher in a pubic school. In a
school building, in school hours, and In the
presence of the pupils, consisting of the reading
of passages from the Bible and In the slnglnj
of songs and hymns and offering prayer to the
Deity In accordance with the doctrines, beliefs,
customs or usages of sectarian churches or re
ligious organisations, are forbidden by the con
stitution of the state.
This Is the tendency of present-day
theory and practice., and It is doubtless
better all round. The spirit of our pub
lic educational systems is more and
more hostile to religious or even moral
instruction. Persons who prize these
things ase coming in increasing num
bers to support denominational schools,
both intermediate and advanced. The
Catholic Idea is gaining ground, and is
measurably justified by its works. A
possible indirect effect of the develop
ment Is a decline In reliance upon the
state for things that private enterprise
may properly and In most cases advan
tageously achieve for Itself.
Much good is likely to result to Ore
gon from the visit of Eastern bankers
and capitalists who are here as guests
of Messrs. Morris & Whitehead. Thin
will .be both general and specific. To
have a definite place in the mlnrls nf
these men, who are so closely associated
with the business life of the East, is
important. It is sure to result in spread
ing information in circles where It will
greatly benefit Oregon. . The state -at
large, and the entire Pacific Northwest,
stand to gain greatly from this ac
quaintance. Specifically, it Is under
stood that these men already have In
terests m tnis country which they are
willing to augment considerably. They
have seen the Pacific Coast under con
ditions favorable for making a just es
timate of Its character and Its possibili
ties. We have every reason to believe
they are pleased with what they have
seen and the treatment they have re
ceived. This excursion is a strokp of
business policy that is in every way
commendable. It is a credit to the en
terprise of Its authors and Is sure to
bring results beneficial to the state..
J. P. Morgan Is credited with having
persuaded the coal operators to consent
to arbitration before a tribunal of the
President's appointment. Morgan is the
dominant member of the Reading and
Erie voting trusts, and, of course, .he
could have ended the strike long ago
If he had desired to do so, and the fact
that he did not do so has cost the an
thracite railroads and the anthracite
mines a vast deal of money. Six of the
anthracite coal-carrying and mining
companies report losses in net earnings
for August of- 60 per. cent, compared
with August of last year. The Reading
Company loses over- 70 per cent. The
Lehigh Company falls from a surplus of
$430,433 In August, 1901, to a deficit of
$359,371. The Jersey Central loss is over
one-half, and that of the Ontario &
Western Company is 60 per cent. The
September returns, when reported, will
probably make no better showing. Add
to these losses the similar results for
the months of the strike before August
and It is clear that the coal operators
have suffered enormously by this strike.
Such credit as accrues to the operat
ors for the apparently near end of the
strike will rest upon Mr. J. P. Morgan,
but it Is doubtful If he has added
greatly to his prestige. Mr. Mitchell,
Indeed, has proved himself the abler
general. Morgan has misread the situ
ation, and appears to be one of those
able men of business who lack the vis
ion of a statesman, or he would have
used his paramount Influence over the
coal combination long ago and settled
the strike. John Mitchell was a better
judge of the ppwers at his command
than was Mr. Morgan. He knew that,
other things being equal, the working
men In a great strike generally have
the press of the country and the people
behind them; he knew that in a year of
Congressional elections the professional
politicians, if not actually disposed to
give the glad hand to striking labor, are
afraid to give it the frozen eye. In his
way Mitchell has proved himself more
than a match for Morgan & Co.
An Indirect but Important result of
the great anthracite strike has been to
rouse the anthracite-consuming public
to the danger of being dependent upon
a source, of supply that may be sud
denly cut off for months by a great
strike, and some substitutes' for hard
coal are likely to obtain permanent foot
hold. The use of gas from soft coal has
Increased, and, it is reported, will be
tremendously developed as household
fuel. It Is said that a device whereby
mineral oil can be used in a like man
ner is already finding application. The
practical Inventive genius of our people
has been so strongly' turned In this di
rection that It is quite probable that
anthracite coal as fuel has exhausted
Its best welcome.
SPIRIT OF THE NORTHWEST PRESS
" "When Wall Street Trembles.
Eugene Register.
When Hussel Sage takes a pill Wall
street trembles. If the 'aged miser should
die, it is thought' Wall street would shut
up shop.
Where the Tramp Gain.
Salem Statesman.
' The cost of living has gone up 40 per
cent ifi five years, but that does not affect
the tramp. He finds that he can get. a
living now with 60 per cent les3 effort
than it took Ave years ago.
Knock Off Some ot the Grafts.
Albany Democrat.
The next State Legislature, instead of
adding to the tax burdens of the people,
should knock off some of the grafts that
were thrown upon the people by the last
session, Increasing the state tax to the
immense proportion of 7 mills.
Oregon Weather Can't Be Beat.
Salem Statesman.
An old-timer says that four out of five
Falls In the last 40 years in the Willam
ette Valley have been just like this one.
The years when we have stormy weather
at this time, we ae apt to forget about
the average, which Is as fine as could be
desired in any country.
Happy Lot of Farmers.
Elgin Recorder.
With live hogs selling at 6Vi cents per
pound, wheat at 50 cents per bUshel. agd
other farm products bringing profitable
prices, the lot of the Eastern Oregon
farmer is evidently a pretty easy one at
present, especially as the-present harvest
has yielded good crops of -almost every
thing -produced in this climate.
People Must Rale the Cpnventlons.
Joseph Herald. '
In the conventions which will elect del
egates to the National Republican Con
vention care should be taken to see that
the trust magnates and coat operators do
not secure control nor be trusted as del
egates. The people want Theodore Roose
velt for President In 1904, and these mon
ey bags politicians should not be permit
ted to thwart their desires.
Presidential Duties Not Easy.
Pendleton East Oregonlan.
President Roosevelt Is advised to seek
rest. What Is considered rest for a Presi
dent would be irksome toll for most mea
The matters of state demand his" constant
attention, and there are politicians that
will find their way to him and bore him,
though they knew It would cost his life.
A well President deserves the sympathy
of the public, and a sick one should have
the prayers and best wishes of all of the
people.
Wants State to Supply School Books.
Astoria Astorlan.
It Is quite probable that, at the ap
proaching session of the Legislature,
some member will Introduce a bill pro
viding for the supply by the state of
school books. The law is one that Is bad
ly needed In Oregon. Many pupils attend
ing the public schools are unable to se
cure all the books necessary for the
courses taught, and it seems only right
that those children should be given an op
portunity to obtain a thorough education.
A law of this kind would have the effect
of doing away with the constant changing
of text-books, and in many other respects
of Increasing the usefulness of our school
system.
Have Become Commonplace.
Lewlston Tribune.
Political corruption In cities has become
so common that the fact that two police
men in Seattle have been "suspended"
from duty for a limited time for extort
ing money from women to save them
from criminal prosecution, and that a
Portland Alderman charges that the city
authorities there have collected for their
own benefit $500,000 from the disorderly,
classes, passes without a single comment
These things are now looked upon as
matters of. course, because they are done
under the name of party, and as long as
it is our party it is all right. That Is why
the boosters preach party loyalty and
seek to drill the people like they were a
regiment of soldiers.
Hasn't a Safe Pilot.
Boise Statesman.
Richard Olney, In his Boston speech,
congratulated his audience because, as
he said, the Democratic party was head
ing in the right direction. Just how he
arrived at that conclusion is not ex
plained. The party never was more to
tally wrong than It is at this time. It
has some good Ideas and some bad ones,
and the two kinds are so mixed together
that the party is addled. Mr. Olney may
think it Is headed right on some question,
but even if it were It would amount to
nothing, for there 13 no bid derelict that
is not headed right at some time during
its tosslngs on the bosom of the waters.
What the people want Is a party that
heads right all the time. They find it in
the Republican organization, and for that
reason they, prefer to take passage' upon
that craft. They could get on a raft and
be headed right some time, but they
would never get anywhere unless It were
upon a rocky shore.
Refuse to Initiate.
Eugene Register.
With all the noise made by the Salem
Journal for a special session, and the pe
titions that paper has sown broadcast
over the state, urging the public to sign
them, it develope3 that only about 500
names have so far been secured as favor
ing such a session, and most of these
probably come from Marlon County,
amongst the Immediate readers of that
paper. As Oregon has close to 10O.Q0O vot
ers, the result is that the Journal's In
itiative and referendum on the special
session shows, unmistakably, that the
people, as well as the press, are practical
ly united In Its opposition to such a move.
If perchance the Journal still insists on
having a special session called. It will be
giving a black eye to its pet theory of in
itiative and referendum, which it urges
should apply in all matters of legislation.
It has given the people a fair chance to
speak upon the special session, and they
positively refuse, almost unanimously, to
stand for such a session. In view of this
fact. It Is time for the Journal to "lay
down" and let the Initiative and referen
dum govern in this as in all other matters
of important legislation.
Initiative and Referendum.
Pendleton Tribune.
The people of Oregon may have forgot
ten, or perhaps many never knew, the
powers they delegated to themselves by
their June vote on the initiative and ref
erendum amendment to the constitution,
How many voters know that it requires
only 8 per cent of them to compel the
Legislature to refer any measure to
vote of the people before It becomes a
law?
Every law must begin with: "Be it
enacted by the People of Oregon." The
Legislature Is no longer the state law
making body of the state, but the final
enactment of any law lies with the voters
of the state and Is governed by public
opinion.
The Tribune was not in favor of the in
itiative and referendum unless restricted.
as the evils of the system were too ap
parent. While the people should be given
every opportunity to express themselves
on matters of public interest, no small.
disgruntled, unworthy element should be
given the power of hindering legislation
or obstructing the well-meaning actions of
a big majority. Any expression of the
people on nefr laws should be well sup
ported, and the cause should justify def
inltA nrirnnlzation. Tho new method of
making laws will probably become very'
cumbersome when put into action, and it
would not be surprising if it failed to be
enforced In most instances.
It. however, has its advantages and
fundamentally Is right. It will require
care In Its administration.
VIEWS OF THE STRIKE.
May Not Be Necessary.
Buffalo Express.
So far. as la now apparent the only
course which the Administration can take
is to attack the coal-carrying railroads,
which are generally believed to . be the
real owners of the Coal properties,
through the interstate commerce law, or
the alleged coal combine under the anti
trust law.
LaTvbreaklnjr Railroads.
Senator Spooner at Milwaukee.
It is a quarrel between the operators,
the coal-mining companies and their men,
in which I sympathize with the men.
The . coal combination Is one, gentlemen,
which exists in violation of the consti
tution of the State of Pennsylvania, which
prohibits any railroad company from own
ing or operating coal mines.
The Interstate "Lavr -Available.
Chicago Chronicle.
Men sworn to respect the Constitution
perjure themselves by Ignoring It. If to
daythis hour a Federal order were Is
sued for instant procedure to apply the
Interstate law, the threat of the group of
mine operators, combined with the threat
of the group of miners to set aside the
sovereignty of the American people, would
become empty, the National sovereignty
wjuld be immediately and effectually re
established. The Real Striker.
Memphis CommercIal-AppAl.
The real striker Is the anthracite trust.
It has struck against fair wages. It has
struck against honest measurement. It
has struck against arbitration. It has
struck against union labor. It has struck
against the Federal anti-trust act. It has
struek against the constitution of Penn
sylvania. It has struck against the Presi
dent of the United States. And now It is
demanding Federal troops to support it
in its strike.
It Works Both Ways.
Portland Northwestern Churchman.
In England about 200 Roman Catholic
priests have just united In a movement
to renounce the authority of the papacy
in England, declaring their refusal to
obey Cardinal Vaughn and the pope, and
preparing for the consecration of one of
their own number as their bishop. Even
should this English move prove unsuccess
ful, still it proves that Intelligent Roman
ists are not going to be enslaved by
papalism, and they are looking for a high
er kind of Catholicism than can be found
in the Roman church.
Several hundred Roman priests have be
come members of the Church of England
during the past 50 years, and perhaps tho
above 200 will do likewise If their church
movement be unsuccessful. '
We have In our American Episcopal
Church many clergymen and laymen who
once were Romanists.
Violators of the IiO.Tr.
Indianapolis News.
The situation then Is one In which the
operators are autocrats, having no compe
tition In marketing their coal and none in
fixing the price of labor. It may be added
incidentally that they have attained this
condition by violating the laws of Penn
sylvania, which, forbidding a railroad to
own a coal mine, were intended to prevent
just this monopoly. They violate the law
by owning the mines in one capacity and
owning the roads In another the same
men and then they prate about "observ
ance of law," and expect the American
people to be fools and children enough to
do their work for them, and back the
troops while they periodically drive back
this segregated labor to its unrelieved de
pendence when desperation prompts hu
man nature to acts of violence. Thus
the proposition is that the people are to
protect this monopoly in its control of
all the anthracite coal In the country and
all the means of transporting it, and in
the recurrent task of "putting down law
lessness" when labor attempts to. combine
to relieve its oppression.
The MlneoTcners the Conspirators.
Chicago Tribune.
It Is an axiom that those who Invoke
equity must do equity. It Is required of
men who go Into court for relief that
they appear there with clean hands.
These wholesome requirements are ig
nored by Mr. David Wilcox, vice-president
and general counsel of the Delaware &
Hudson, one of the roads engaged In the
mining of coal In defiance of the Pennsyl
vania constitution. Mr. Wilcox has writ
ten a letter to President Roosevelt in
which he makes the Impudent request that
the Federal Government proceed against
the United Mlneworkers association in
the courts on the ground that it is a con
spiracy to prevent Interstate commerce
by stopping through a striking the min
ing of anthracite, and as a consequence
its shipment from Pennsylvania to other
states. It is not necessary to consider
the legal points made by the writer of
the letter. It is sufficient to say that he
Is not the man to accuse the miners of
being In a conspiracy, and to ask the
Federal Government to proceed against
them. The road he represents has for
years been conspiring with other coal-
carrying roads to nullify the National
anti-trust law and the Interstate com
merce law. Their conspiracy was in work
ing order long before the miners' union
was organized. iThe unlawful purposes of
the conspiracy have been carried out per
sistently and defiantly, to th egreat In
jury of the public. Therefore charges of
conspiracy and of violation of the inter
state commerce law by miners do not
come with good grace from a veteran con
spirator. The confederated coal roads
should clean their hands before they ask
the President to , order the prosecution
of the miners for conspiracy. They should
disband their own lawless organization.
They should desist from violations of the
laws they accuse the miners of violating.
Then they will have some standing in a
court of equity. Mr. Wilcox's letter, com
ing as it does from one of a band of Im
patient conspirators, is a bit of inso
lence. Nothing in Shooting Xinparn.
New York World.
To such persons as yearn to "fill the
noisy ear of Fame." Superintendent
Welch, of the state reservation at Niag
ara Falls, gives a valuable pointer. There
Is neither glory nor gain, he says, in rid
ing through the roaring waters of earth's
mightiest cataract and surviving to tell
the tale.
Mrs. Taylor did It. She went through
the Horseshoe falls In a barrel, escaped
with her life a thing never before done
and deemed Impossible and believed her
fortune was made. She offered herself to
the public gaze as a lecturer, using the
barrel as an Illustration, but very few
have gone to see and hear her.
Mr. Welch thinks he has discovered the
philosophy of this curious popular Indif
ference to the nerviest deed of the time.
"The people are simply resentful that
any one should have triumphed over the
mighty Niagara," he says. A plausible
theory, too! To do a thing that mankind
In general has long agreed cannot be done
Is a dubious bid for popularity.
The citizen of the earth who first lands
on Mars will have a hard time of It. Who
on Mars will believe his story that he
came from the earth? Or who on the
earth, when he comes back, will believe
that he has been on mars?
Republican Tariff Doctrine.
"We favor such changes In the tariff
from time to time as become advisable
through the progress of our Industries
and their changing relations to the com
merce of the world. Ve Indorse the
policy of reciprocity as the natural
complement of protection, and urge ita
development as necessary to the realiza
tion of our highest' commercial possi
bilities. Iowa Republican Platform,
1002.
NOTE AND COMMENT.
It comes hard when the barbers have' to
answer questions.
' What's the matter? Mr. Lord hasn't
butted In for two days.
People In the East are beginning to get
out tlieir coal scuttles again.
The Chinese gamblers have discovered
that a door In time saves a fine.
It Is untrue that the moon will quit on
account of the high price of coal.
Now that tho baseball players are done,
the directors will -do a few stunts.
Now Is the time we begin to appreciate
the full value of a stone sidewalk.
So the Coroner may arrest the Sheriff
and the Chief of Police? Is reform a dead
Issue?
A froshly spanked boy is uneasy in his
seat. Mr. Mitchell is waiting for Mr.
Baer to get comfortably settled.
The earthquake In South America was
no doubt caused by his Satanic Majesty
shivering for want of coal to keep warm.
"Let the strike be settled," advises the
Post-Intelligencer. It will be. All hands
were merely waiting for long-range ad
vice from Seattle.
Mr. Mitchell Is letting his recognlze-the-union
fly float down the riffle awhile, and
says nothing. The best of fishermA
sometimes use bait.
The bankers have seen the country, and
now that the rain has come they have a
good chance fo see what the lovely Ore
gon maiden looks like.
Really, it would be quite awkward for
Mr. Lord to put tlie Sheriff and Chief of
Police in jail, and exempt the Mayor and
Police Commissioner Ladd.
First Violinist Schmitz. -Mayor of San
Francisco, is going East just to be around
when they select the arbitrators. Brer
Baer might, as well hang up his fiddle.
"The season Is nearly at hand when we
begin to unload our old stock of pipes,"
says a ueaier in smoKers articles. r
we dont advertise bargain sales: we jus
their 'smokers and the amount of old
stock that Is worked off would surprise
you. The pipes that are purchased for
these affairs are not expensive ones, but
they answer the purpose, and in the mean
time we get rid of a lot of old stuff for
which there Is no other sort of sale."
Once in the course of a speech which
was punctuated by interruptions in Parlia
ment John Bright was saying: "Person
ally I do not feel disposed to wage war
agalnft these Philistines," when an unruly
member of his audience shouted. "Hee
haw!" "If, however," Mr. Bright con
tinued without a pause, "my friend at the
back of the hall will lend me one of his
jaws I shall be encouraged to reconsider
rny attitude, in view of the historic suc
cess of Samson when provided with a sim
ilar weapon."
The late John FIske, the historian, was
a man of enormous stature and extemely
sensitive about any reterence to his un
usual size. On one occasion when he was
visiting 'a friend at his home in a beauti
ful town In Connecticut, his hostess and
her daughter invited Mr. FIske to drive
with them one morning. The road was a
picturesque .onek which, winds along the
river at the foot of the mountains. At
one point the hostess suggested that the
party alight and walk a. short distance
through the field to get a particularly at
tractive view. Around this Held was a
high fence, with no opening but a narrow
stile. The ladies passed through and
turned to wait for their guest. For a
moment he contemplated the opening; to
squeeze through was Impossible, to climb
over was equally Impracticable. Finally
his deep bass voice broke the silence:
'Ladles. I think we would better continue
our drive."
An automoblllst was beinsr examined in
Cleveland, Ohio, as to his qualifications
to run his vehicle safely through tne
streets and public places of the city. The
Plain Dealer gives the following extract
from the testimony.
Q. Are you ambidextrous? ,
A. I think I'm dexterous all right, but
I'm not so sure" about the ambl.
Q. Ever troubled with color blindness?
A. Not when. asleep.
Q. How are your nerves?
A. Nicely, thank you.
O. What would you do if you etruck a
stretch ot wet pavement?
A. Slip.
Q. If you were running your auto at
thft rate of thirty miles an hour and a
man should suddenly drop in front of tho
machine, what would you do first?
A. Run over him.
Q.If you were bowling up the avenue
at a lively clip and caused a spirited
horse to run away, what would you do?
A. Turn down the first side street.
Q. Can you pronounce chaffeur?
A. Not on your life.
Whereupon the examining board con
gratulates the applicant on the cleverness
and directness of his replies, and gfve3
him the full degree of A. D., Automobile
Driver, on the spot.
PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPHERS
"I want mv watch fixed. It has stopped
twice " "It Is going now. Better wait till It
happens again." "But what if it shouldn't
stop again?" Life.
"They say Mabel has married a-high church
man." "Yes. He belongs to a little flock that
ma in a room in the sixteenth floor of some
business block." Chicago Record-Herald.
Football Captain That "scrub" halfback has
showed uo for practice with six ribs broke.
Football Coach Well, the boys will have to
practice breaklns his arms and legs, then.
Judge.
Judge Of course. I might let you off. Casey.
If you had an alibi. Casey Shure. yer Honor.
Oi haven'tr wan about me, but here's me lasth
quarter, if that'll timpt ye. Philadelphia Even
ing Bulletin.
"Old man Tcllum thinks he Is sure to set a
Government Job." "Why? He has no polltl-al
pull." "But he claims he has. He says he ate
the oyster that Oyster Bay was named after."
Baltimore American.
The Wife Really, my dear, you are awfully
extravagant. Our neighbor. 'Mr. Flint, is Just
twice as sqlf-denying as you are. The Husband
But he has Just twice as much money to be
self-denying with. Brooklyn Life.
"Thought your dad wasn't going to send you
back to college?" "Yes. dad did klek of the
expense, but I threatened to stay at home and
help run the business, and he decided college
would be cheaper." Detroit Free Press.
Grandma What? You don't want to go to
heaven? Bessie Well. I suppose I might, if 1
have to go somewhere! Puck.
"Let me show you our great 'North American
electric fan." "You ouht to call It 'South
American. Why so?" "It makes so many
revolutions." Chicago Dally News.
"Some of the magazines won't consider an
article that Is not typewritten." said the young
man. "Yes." answered Miss Cnyenne. "and
some of them read as If they accented every
thing that is typewritten." Washington Star.
"I see that a pugilist was killed recently In a
slugging match." "Well, that U no defense
of tho sport." "Well. I should say not. You
see" "You see we can hope for the same hap
py result all the time." Baltimore Herald.