THE MORNING OREGONIAN, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1902.
Entered at the Postofflco at Portland. Oregon,
as second-class matter.
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TODAY'S WEATHER Showers; southwest
erly winds.
YESTERDAY'S WEATHER Maximum tem
perature. rS; minimum temperature. SO; pre
cipitation. 0.27 inch.
PORTLAXD. FRIDAY, OCT. HI. 1002.
Observe that Dr. JosephI is at work
on an act to reform abuses In connec
tion with the transfer of insane per
sons to the Asylum. Observe that the
Federation of Labor is at work on bills
for protection of child labor and against
overcrowding: of theaters. Observe that
the Taxpayers' League is at work upon
reformatory measures for city and
county governments. Observe that the
Game Association, is at work on amend
ment of the fish and game laws. What
are the members of the Legislature do
ing? Possibly sawing wood certainly
saying nothing. It is the habit of our
Legislatures to give little concern to the
tasks for which they are elected. The
evil of conducting lunatics to Salem by
Deputy Sheriffs instead of by Asylum
nurses trained for the purpose is per
fectly understood, and its correction
was officially urged as long ago at least
as when George McBride was Secretary
of State; yet no Sregislature has taken
the trouble to eradicate the abuse. Its
perpetuation has been tolerated, out of
regard for a number of considerations,
the least discreditable of which Is the
desire of Sheriffs and deputies to enjoy
journeys to Portland and Salem at pub
lic expense.
Executions should take place In the
Penitentiary instead of in county jail
yards; but If half a dozen members of
any Legislature ever cared about it,
they concealed their desires most po
tently. Governor Lord devoted himself
assiduously to a study of the state gov
ernment and its needs. His words fell
on stony ground. Secretary Dunbar has
made an exhaustive examination of the
assessment and taxation problem, and
shown us the weak spot where corpora
tions with intangible assets escape their
rightful burden; but nobody apparently
has paid the slightest attention to that
admirable piece of work. Such reforms
in the civil and criminal code as we
have are due to the Bar Association.
Such local amelioration as we can boast
is due to Judge Cleland and the Tax
payers' League. If we get the good
charter that has been framed, it will
be the credit of a commission laboring
between sessions. Ed Bingham has leg
islated himself all over the Oregon elec
tion laws, but others drew the pay for
their enactment In view of the record,
it may be proper to felicitate the pres
ent Multnomah County delegation upon
the decision to get together and discuss
measures in advance of the session. In
this way they may be able to pump up
an Interest in public affairs which is not
usually expected to encroach upon their
normal occupation of balancing be
tween Senatorial candidates.
Among recent contributions to the
anthracite problem is one by Mr. J. J.
Hill, the redoubtable head of Northern
Securities, who denounces as unjust the
practice of the coal roads In charging
four times as much per ton per mile
for anthracite as for bituminous, even
in the same train. This and similar re
flections have little pertinence now in
the face of the railroad attitude of
What are you going to do about it?
But It is well enough to bear in mind
that their pertinence may be somewhat
enhanced in the month, of December,
when a certain deliberative body con
sisting of two housss will be called to
order In Washington. It may not have
occurred to the anthracite presidents
that members of the Republican and
Democratic parties are likely to vie with
each other in the promulgation of
animadversions cn the operators of
Pennsylvania, and perhaps in the advo
cacy of still more pointed and business
like investigation. A committee of in
quiry, empowered to send for persons
and papers and ascertain to what extent
if any the Sherman anti-trust act is
violated, and composed In about equal
parts of Bryanic Democrats and Roose
veltian Republicans, with secret anxi
ety concerning the labor vote, might
give Presidents Baer, Wilcox and Cas
satt a bad quarter of an hour. Perhaps
it would even be well for the operators
to come to terms with their men before
the present Inquiry proceeds to its bit
ter end.
It will be a memorable epoch in Wash
ington State history If this Winter oses
Senator Turner ordering his men at
Olympia to vote for Governor McBrlde's
commission bill and Governor McBride
ordering his men to vote for Senator
Turner's re-election. Such an event Is
not at all Impossible, and every day
heightens its probability. We shall not
condemn the parties to this 'arrange
ment, because conditions in Washington
are such as to afford very cogent de
fense for so questionable a procedure
on the Governor's part. He can say
that his own party, or that portion of
it controlled by Wilson and Ankeny has
betrayed the plain mandate of the Ta
coma convention and turned its back
upon the "railroad commlsslonJiiWas in
honor bound to support 9f$enti-
ment has been so aroused In favor of
the commission that It would be apt to
condone an act of so patent party per
fidy. A Governor owes allegiance to the
people before his party, and It would
not be hard for McBride to plead ne
cessity as the justification of his course.
The dramatic character of the situation
is not lessened by the fact that the
commission itself is a fals2 alarm of the
hollowest sort.. The preposterous idea
that only through, a railroad commis
sion can abuses of taxation be remedied
appears to have been swallowed whole
by the Washington votera It is cer
tainly a most curious development of
politics that compels a Republican Gov
ernor to go outside his. party for help in
his anti-trust.- and anti-railroad cam
paign, especially when he goes to, the
only man of real force and danger to
his own party In the enemy's ranks. It
Is an Impressive reflection, by the way,
how potent a figure Senator Turner
would be today if lie were a McBride
Republican instead of a free-coal, anti
imperialistic Democrat and Populist.
By all means let us have the Hop
Inspector, and while we are out for
something new as a means of extract
ing money from the state treasury, why
not make it worth while? Give the Hop
Inspector a deputy or two or three or
four, a secretary, a stenographer and
an advisory board. In the future as In
the past there will come years when the
hop crop will be a failure, or when the
price will recede to a point where the
crop will not pay for the picking. Then
what opportunities would be presented
to the Hop Inspector for earning his
salary by telling in pamphlet form (from
the office of the State Printer) Just how
it happened! Of course, the men who
buy the hops will pay more for stock
examined by a state inspector than for
uninspected goods, just as the Washing
ton wheatbuyers pay more for state in
spected wheat than for that which they
inspect themselves, and if the Inspector
says moldy, Immature hops are all right
the buyer will have to take them at the
price called for by the Inspector's grade.
We demand, we insist, we must have
a Hop Inspector, and after we get him
the neglected onion growers, the potato
bug catchers and the bean producers
are entitled to recognition. By a con
sistent course in this matter we may
in time s'e the necessity for an in
spector of inspectors, then an inspector
of the inspector of inspectors. Great is
the pursuit of a livelihood without the
necessity of labor, and inspectorships
and commissions are the best methods
of obtaining the end desired.
LAXD LAW FRAUDS.
The action of the Interior Department
in the matter of frauds against the
Government under the timber and min
eral land laws is, so we take it, designed
to correct a loose, irregular and tech
nically dishonest practice which has long
prevailed here and elsewhere in the
newer parts of the country in connec
tion with the taking up of Government
lands. This action is timely, for at the
rate the lands are going, especially in
forested districts, there will soon be
nothing left in the hands of the Gov
ernment and no bar to the operations of
speculative exploiters whose whole in
terest is their own immediate profit and
who -are not restrained by considera
tion of effects to follow their devastat
ing operations.
There has been almost no pretense of
living up to the requirements of the
law relating to land entries; and It is
not going too far to say that not ''one
timber entry out of ten Is either legally
or morally "on the square" when the
aim and spirit of the law are taken into
account. The most common offense is
misrepresentation of the purpose for
which the land is taken. The entry
man or the entry-woman, since women
are quite as active as men In this mat
ter of timber land speculation swears
that application is not made on specula
tion, but in good faith to apply 'to his
own exclusive use and benefit, when,
as a matter of fact, three times out of
five he is acting for somebody else or
with a definite understanding that a
certain market will be provided for the
land when the title shall be in shape to
transfer. A long train of evils follows.
The man or woman who starts in to get
a timber claim by misrepresentation Is
not likely to halt at any means neces
sary to gain the end sought. Rank per
jury is excused on the ground that It
Is common and safe, and by the fact
that It is more or less inconvenient
and unprofitable to conform to the letter
and spirit of the statute.
A fraud of this kind, practiced for
many years, not condemned by public
opinion, winked at by the officers
of the Government, in the view of most
persons loses Its criminal character. It
has been so here. Men otherwise of
good character have taken the position
that since there has been no other way
to get possession of the land, a technical
fraud is quasi legitimate under the prin
ciple of necessity. It has been argued
that since the development and progress
of thetcountry has been largely depend
ent upon the appropriation of public
lands, there is no moral delinquency in
gaining possession of the lands by what
ever process may be effective, no mat
ter how it may tally with the technical
requirements of the law. These argu
ments, supported by the almost uni
versal feeling that a fraud against the
Government harms nobody, have very
commonly overborne all scruples, and
the system of irregular and fraudulent
practice which the Secretary of the In
terior has set about to correct has been
the natural consequence.
And, human nature being what It is,
it is a consequence not very surprising,
nor, in all cases, very severely
to be censured. That It has been a
means of state and community prog
ress is certain, and on the whole no very
great Injustice has been 'done. Some
schemers , have grown rich under the
practice, 'but at the same time the
profits of the system have to a great
extent fallen into the hands of persons
who, by their presence in the country
and by their energies, have contributed
to the causes which have given value to
the public lands. The laws governing
the disposal of public lands have not,
on the whole, been more nearly In ac
cord with the conditions and necessi
ties of the country than has been the
irregular practice which has grown up
through evasion of the laws. There can
be no doubt that progress in many
forms would have been delayed by a
strict adherence to the letter and the
spirit of the land laws; and It is because
of this fact that the Irregular practice
grew up and hag until now been toler
ated. Here as elsewhere, when laws
have failed to meet the requirements
of the conditions and the times, an in
formal practice has usurped their "actual
if not their nominal authority.
But a time has come when a vital
Interest of the country, is menaced by
irregular practice In the matter. of land
entry, when a system of land and tim
ber piracy carried on without any sort
of consideration for the law or for the
interests of the country, threatens to
destroy our wealth of timber. The Sec
retary of the Interior does well in this
emergency to draw tight the reins of au
thority so long held with a slack hand,
and by strict construction and severity
of proceeding under the law to protect
the public forests against the vandals
who are seeking by dishonest means un
der cover of the law to make them their
own. This calls for a change of policy
on the part of the local land authorities,
and .in this connection good results may
very easily be attained. Let the offi
cials of the land offices be Instructed to
Inform applicants for lands that the law
Is to be enforced in its spirit and letter,
and this declaration alone will serve to
stop 75 per cent of the irregular and
fraudulent practice; and a prompt sys
tem of inspection and prosecution will
make short work of such fraudulent en
trymcn as fail to take a kindly hint.
The current practice is largely due to
the attitude of the land authorities, and
a change of front on their part will al
most Instantly check it. It is a situa
tion in which the department cannot
bear severely upon the irregular entry
men without exposing its own delin
quency; for, if its agents had, in their
dealings with entrymen, taken care to
exact obedience to the letter and the
spirit of the law, the number of fraud
ulent entries would have been relatively
few.
CHOLERA IX ASIA.
The terrible ravages of the cholera in
the Philippines, in China, Japan and
Egypt are doubtless due to the fact that
it is almost Impossible to make Oriental
peoples obey quarantine regulations and
observe necessary sanitary precautions
in the matter of keeping the supply of
drinking water free from contamina
tion. When the cholera first visited this
country, In 1832, it was exceedingly de
structive. There were many deaths in
Quebec, Montreal, Boston, New York,
Baltimore, Philadelphia, Cincinnati,
Buffalo and New Orleans. It followed
the great routes of water 'transporta
tion along the rivers and the canals.
All the towns on the Great Lakes, on
the Ohio and the Mississippi suffered
greatly. The cholera came again in
1S49, but its victims were few. The yel
low fever in the first years of the Re
public was destructive in New York and
Philadelphia and appeared atNantucket
Island, but it is many years since the
yellow fever, save in sporadic cases,
has been known north of Memphis, and
there has been no serious visitation of
the cholera since 1832.
When the cholera appeared in Europe
It was very destructive in London and
Paris in 1830-31, and was a fearful
scourge in St. Petersburg. But since
1832 neither Western Europe nor Amer
ica has had serious visitation of chol
era. The explanation lies in the fact
that quarantine measures are strictly
enforced among enlightened nations that
are incapable of enforcement among
Orientals. Furthermore, science has
discovered that the most fertile source
of cholera epidemic Is polluted drinking
water. - It is said that when the cholera
last visited Paris persons who drank
nothing but bottled mineral waters all
escaped the disease. The disease was
spread in one district by ignorant
women washing the clothing and bed
ding of the cholera patients in the
brooks and streams connecting with the
water supply. Pure drinking water is
difficult to get in Oriental countries, and
the natives are hopelessly filthy in their
habits and absolutely indifferent to the
importance of keeping the drinking
water free from all chance of pollution.
The same condition of ignorance of and
Indifference to sanitary laws prevails
today In Asia that prevailed all over
Europe in the Middle Ages and as late
as the close of the seventeenth century.
In the fourteenth century the plague
destroyed in Europe, it Is estimated,
not less than 25,000,000 of people. Eng
land suffered so terribly that labor was
scarce and demanded and obtained high
wages. The plague ravaged London as
late as the reign of Charles II, and the
great fire which followed burned up the
filthiest part of the city, so that the
pestilence never reappeared. The city
of the Middle Ages had no drains or
sewers of any sort. None of the domes
tic decencies of life were respected, and
the result was a state of frightful filth
out of whose tainted atmosphere, soil
and water finally stalked death in vari
ous forma When Asia enforces the
measures of Western Europe against the
plague and the cholera, Asia will be
as exempt from these dreadful diseases
as Europe.
PROTECTION OF GAME.
The members of the Fish and Game
Association at their last meeting ex
pressed apprehension that the Mongo
lian pheasant, the finest and most beau
tiful of all our game birds, Is destined
to an early extinction, ahd recommend
ed that the law be changed so that none
of these birds should be put on sale in
the markets. In our judgment this
change would only hasten the exter
mination of the birds. The people
would favor, we believe, complete stop
page of the shooting of these birds for
a term of years, but while it might be
possible to enact an odious law, it would
not be easy to enforce It, and to pass
a law allowing only sportsmen to hunt
and eat Mongolian pheasants would
be to invite everybody who was not a
sportsman to violate the law directly or
Indirectly by buying the birds of lawless
pothunters.
The general public would say the pub
lic ought not to be taxed to protect a
game'bird only to furnish recreation and
game dinners for the sportsmen and
their friends. If they are to have ail
the game that is shot, so that none can
be legally purchased in market or out
side of it, the general public cannot be
fairly asked to protect game for the
recreation of a small portion of the pub
lic. The people of the state are inter
ested as a whole in the preservation
of its game birds, but they are not In
terested 33 a whole in the preservation
of these game birds If they are destined
when shot only for the pot of the sports
men and their friends. This kind of a
law would at once put a premium on
poachers, for the general public would
say, if the law makes it impossible for
us to buy a pheasant In market, we
will do our best to get our bird without
the open market.
The birds that are now shot in the
market season would be shot just the
same, only they would be shot earlier
and sold secretly. A law that would im
press the public as only for the benefit
of a favored class would make enemies
all around, but a law which prohibited
all shooting of these birds for a term
of years would Impress the public as
fair and not open to criticism as class
legislation. Perhaps the best protection,
the only effective protection, for the
Mongolian pheasant is to convince the
farmer that it would pay him to protect
his lands from trespass and make
sportsmen pay for the privilege of
shooting on his grounds. It is reported
that the present scarcity of Mongolian
pheasants is due to the fact that when
the birds are about half grown, in July,
they are hunted down by the boys of
the neighborhood. The farmers are too
good-natured to make any protest
against the young fellows killing the
blrdo, and this will always be the situ
ation, no matter what laws you pass,
unless the farmers could become satis
fied that strict protection of the birds
and renting out their shooting to sports
men whose killing should be limited to
a certain number of birds, would pay
them for the trouble of preventing an
invasion of lawless hunters at midsum
mer. Unless it can be made for the In
terest of the farmers to protect the
birds, the days of the Mongolian pheas
ant are few in the land. The beauty of
the bird and his excellence for the table
will be fatal to his existence unless
farmers find It worth while to abstain
from killing him and insist on absten
tion in others.
In the old states of the East it is not
difficult today to make a fair bag of
ruffed grouse, quail, snipe and wood
cock. The Springfield Republican had
letters recently describing a successful
hunt of this sort in the woodland near
Boston, and in the Berkshire Hills and
the Valley of the Housatonic, and there
is plenty of excellent quail shooting to
be had on Long Island. In these old,
thickly settled states wild birds do not
seem to become extinct. It Is not be
cause of game laws, for our Iawe are as
strict as those of the East. It must be
due to the fact that either there are
fewer wing shots or perhaps fewer per
sons who can afford the time and" the
money it costs to reach the hunting
grounds.
The Oregonlan ventures to ask why
the woodcock is not colonized in Ore
gon. We have the snipe, and the wood
cock Is found in the same climate at
the East. It is found nil over New Eng
land, is found in New York and New
Jersey, and in the Middle West. Why
not in Oregon? It is a fine bird, as large
aa our Oregon quail, and much more
difficult to shoot. Foreign grouse and
partridges are colonized In Oregon, and
why not try the woodcock, which is a
far finer bird for the table than our
Oregon quail or snipe?
The announcement of the death of
Mrs. J. C. Card, whosa funeral took
place yesterday, has been heard with
sorrow and regret by her . many friends
In this city. She had been for some
years prominently identified with public
work in womanly ways, and will in
these lines be greatly missed. As first
president of the Woman's Club, as a
member for some years of the board of
managers of the Baby Home, as presi
dent of the floral section of the State
Horticultural Society, in which' capacity
she managed several chrysanthemum
and rose shows in this city successfully,
she showed executive ability of a fine
order and an energy that was tireless.
The last six months of her life were
clouded by suffering and shadowed by
impending death, yet she bore herself
bravely in the face of the enemy until
at the last death came to be a friend
whose coming she hailed with gladness.
The impress of her endeavor will long
remain upon the community.
The Chinese Government levies no
Import tax on American flour and wheat
for the same reason that Great Britain
makes no exaction when these commodi
ties are admitted in her territory. The
Chinese and the British need our wheat
and flour, and they buy it only when
they are unable to buy it elsewhere on
equal or better terms. Any additional
cost which would result from the levy
ing of a tax would fall not on the Amer
ican shippers, but upon the people who
are levying the tax. Japan had a flour
import duty a number of years ago, but
as soon as her demands for flour and
wheat increased beyond her moderate
home production she abolished the duty.
The American flour trade in the far
East will continue to grow as the ad
vantages of wheat as food become
known to the Orientals, and not until
they promise to figure as exporters of
wheat and flour will an import duty be
levied on our products. '
We are indicted as follows by the
Salem Journal:
A granger who scatters a few handsful of
nickels among the children to see them scram
ble has his picture printed and the scene de
picted In the great Oregon newspaper. A de
serving young lawyer, like Webster Holmes, of
Salem, who has only good will toward every
body, is pictured In the same paper to look like
Rev. Mr. Parsons, the Methodist minister. That
Is metropolitan Journalism, holding up the tri
fling and trampling on the deserving young
man struggling to make a name for himself.
We certainly offer Mr. Holmes all due
apologies. If an artificial resemblance
to Mr. Parsons is calculated to blast his
career. But what has Parsons done to
earn such obloquy?
The man who makes two blades of
grass grow where 6nly one grew before
is not a circumstance to the man who
tears up wooden walks and puts down
cement. There are a few enterprising
Portlanders who have laid thousands
of feet of cement walks about their
properties. They deserve a monument.
The sympathy of the corrmunlty will
go out to the family of Mr. J. W. Fuller.
A loving husband - and father, whose
mental difficulties are due to excessive
work and worry In business, his mys
terious fate is one to arouse the keen
est interest among all who know him.
The National Sanitary Convention
censures San Francisco for Its Inefficient
handling of the bubonic plague. Which
will not, of course, inconvenience the
entire population of that city from re
affirming its solemn oath that there
never was any plague there.
Oregon and Washington mills are so
busy that the Government almost de
spairs of getting lumber for the Philip
pines in time. Serves the Government
right. Why did it adopt .the gold stand
ard and restore peace In the Philip
pines? It Is a fine thing for the Manufac
turers Association to get together in in
formal banquets like the one of last
evening Nothing is more needed in
Portland than "the cultivation of friendly
social relations among its business
men.
Lord Roberts ami His Titles.
St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Roberts, Earl of Kandahar, Pretoria and
Waterford, Viscount of St. Pierre. P. C.
K. P., G. C. B., G. C. S. I., G. C. I. E.,
V. C, D. C. L., LL. D., proposes to come
to the United States early next year.
Hadn't he better wait till that 750-foot
Cunarder is put In commission? Some
of his alphabet might get wet.
CENTENNIAL AND SPECIAL SESSION
Time No O-bJcct.
union Republican.
Yes, an extra session ia badly needed.
It would save Tour or five weeks of time.
This, of course, is sufficient to justify the,
great expense of the extra oesrfon (?).
Lane In Apathetic.
Eugene Register.
Only 11 Lane County people signed the.
petition asking Governor Geer to call a
special session, and that is about the ex
tent of special session sentiment in this
county.
"Portland Agitators" Is Good.
Astoria Astorian.
Senator Corbett Is out with the state
ment that the Legislature must give ?500,
000 to the Lewis and Clark Fair, or else
It will not be held. We believe the amount
asked will be readily forthcoming and that
the needs of the centennial require it.
The state can afford to make this contri
bution to the worthy cause, and will make
it unless the Portland agitators succeed in
creating enough hostility to hold up the
appropriation. Let Senator Corbett ad
vance Portland's suggestions and the Leg
islature will act promptly upon them, but
keep those agitators In the background!
IIr.lt r. 3I1H1 on Too Much.
larsrfficld Mall.
The Lewis and Clark Fair is a business
proposition. The state will reap great
benefits from the Fair If properly planned
and conducted, and this Is the only thing
that makes It desirable that the Fair
should be held, .or that the state at large
should contribute for Its support. Whether
$300,000 should te appropriated out of the
state fund Is a very open question. To a
Coca County taxpayer It looks to be en
tirely too large a sum. This section would
get no adequate returns for Its contribu
tion. The Fair will be a mint for Port
land. Let Portland "put up." If she
wants the Fair. If a JoOO.OjO contribution
Is needed, the Mail would suggest that the
state give a reasonable sum and Portland
make up the balance.
Absolutely Without Merit.
Astoria A3torlan.
If the fair Is not meritorious enough to
bo a success without a special session of
the Legislature, it ought to be dropped.
Of, course. It Is plain to every one that
Portland wants not only a S300.0CO appro
priation, but a United States Senator cr,
well. The Oregonlan has no one to blame
for this combination of politics and busi
ness but the people of Its own town, and
all Its misrepresentation will not hide the
real object of the advocates of a special
cession. It may be noted with -gratification
that fho sentiment for an extra s&i
olon. even in Portland, Is dying out, . for
the proposal was absolutely without merit.
Oregon will do anything reasonable to
help the fair, but it will not be held up by
the people of Portland.
Experience Against It.
Albany Democrat.
In Oregon a great deal has been said
about an extra session of the State Legis
lature to secure what is alleged to be In
the minds of some, -needed legislation.
There are two factions at work for the
session, one which took the Initiative,
which wants a law passed providing for
flat salares for nil state officials. In the
Interest of economy and numerous other
things, and the other In the Interest of a
big appropriation for the Lewis and
Clark exposition. The Democrat ls In
favor of the flat salary proposition, but it
ls very doubtful If an extra session of the
State Legislature would settle It, and the
people of the state would be at a large ex
pense on an experiment. The general ex
perience has been very decidedly against
extra sessions of either state or national
bodies. The truth Is, we have too much
legislation as it is at the regular sessions,
and It sometimes seems as if It would be
better for the country If Legislatures and
Congress did not meet as often as they do.
Too Many Chances for Jobbery.
Elgin Recorder.
The Oregon taxpayers have good reasons
for dreading even the regular sessions of
the Legislature and they will doubtless
look with suspicion upon the effort now
being made to have Governor Geer call an
extra session, a short time prior to the
beginning of the regular session, although
a special session at the present time might
prove quite a benefit to the state at large.
There has probably never been a time In
the history of the state when the condi
tions were so favorable for Jobbing the
taxpayers as the present. The election of
a United States Senator, the proposed ap
propriation of a half-mllllon dollars for
the Lewis and Clark exposition, and the
numerous raids being planned on the State
Treasury by the various state institutions,
indicate a condition of affairs that may
well cause the taxpayers to view the situ
ation with apprehension.
Under existing circumstances it would
probably be better for those who foot the
bills if Governor Geer would convene the
Leglslatuse In special session to dispose
of the more Important measures, prior
to the beginning of the regular session.
Invoke the Referendum.
Dufur Dispatch.
We are sorry to see the Portland papers
making faces about taking the medicine
they prepared for themselves. Of course,
they are not really frightened about leav
ing this $500,000. appropriation to a vote of
the people, but, like the boy passing the
graveyard at night, they are whistling
pretty loudly. The using of the referen
dum, on this fair appropriation, would
be a severe lesson for Oregon, and partic
ularly for Portland, but It ls a lesson
that ls richly deserved. It ought to be In
voked! When the press of Oregon, with
all Its leading statesmen. Including 913 of
Its standing candidates for United States
Senator, advocates nd carries through an
amendment that makes it possible for a
minority of the voters of the state to
change the state constitution in four
months, no lesson Is too severe. The Tax
payers' League of Portland ls asking for
an extra session of the Legislature for
the purpose of finding out whether or not
the Initiative and referendum Is self-operative.
We would suggest that It might
be cheaper for the taxpayers to hire a
lawyer. If we haven't one in the Attorney-General's
office, and ask his opinion
about It.
Danger In Failure to Act.
Salem Capital Journal.
The Oregonlan says all that can be
done at a regular scfision of the general
assembly can be done at a special ses
sion. If thnt is true there ls all the more
reason why the work should be done at a
special session. Take the office of State
Printer. If all can be done at a special
session that can be done at a regular ses
sion, that office can be put on a salary,
and all the cost of the special session
saved on that one office alone. Is there
any excuse then for these prominent Re
publicans not holding a special session
and saving the people from ten to twenty
thousand dollars a year on this office
alone? The bills for tho flat salary law
can be drafted and made ready to pass,
and not take over 10 days for that pur
pose, and In that time no Senator could
be elected. If flat salaries are right four
years hcni-e, they are much more so right
now. If the referendum ls In full force
and effect now, that amendment Implies
legislation In Its final clauses now, and
not at some future time. If we have a
world's fair at all It shoud be set upon Its
feet now, and not wait until It will be
come difficult and doubtful whether any
thing can be done. Let Governor Geer
and the thinking men In the Republican
party analyze thin situation fully and
fairly, and they will see that failure to
act or refusal to act on any fallacious
plea whatever is fraught with danger to
themselves, and will work Incalculable
Injurj- to the commonwealth.
GENERAL BOOTH AND HIS FAMILY
The Independent.
The decline in public interest In thl3
country In the Salvation Army began
with the secession of Commander Balllng
ton Booth and Mrs. Booth to organize the
Volunteers seven years ago. Since then,
two others' of General Booth's children,
who had devoted their lives to the Sal
vation Army, have withdrawn from It,
unable to submit to the conditions under
which it was controlled by their father.
One can perhaps Imagine the pain which
such a decision Involved, much greater
than In the case of hundreds of others
who have withdrawn, but who were riot
forced to resist such strong parental in
fluences. The last of these secessions la
that of Mrs. Eooth-Clibborn, who was
regarded as the special successor of her
noble mother. I
One of tho chief blunders thnt "Gen
eral" Booth has made Is his evident at
tempt to establish a family dynasty. His
conduct would be called nepotism In a
secular army. Tho chief posts of hener
are given to his children or to his daugh
ters' husbands, in which latter case the
daughter has equil or superior authority
with her husband. It Is a matter of com
mon report that the four daughters
agreed, at their father's desire, that they
would never marry anyone who would
not accept their superior authority in
Army matters, and Mrs. Booth-Cllb-born's
unwillingness to maintain the con
tract led to severe rebuke from London !
and was one cause of her final withdraw
al. Where the son-in-law has, as has
Booth-Tucker In the United States, the
title of commander, the wife holds a
unique title, hero that of consul, and her
authority is nominally equal to that of
the commander, but really It Is supreme.
Until protests were made by the staff she
always signed her name above the com
mander's on official documents.
A curious illustration of this nepotism
occurred In the appointment of Lucy, an
Immature girl not 20 years old, to be
commander of the Army In IndTa. In this
case competent and experienced officers
were passed by, and the result has been
anything but happy. The peculiar con
ditions of the country, the Intricate diffi
culties of caste and tribal differences,
the complexities of officeshlp and sol
diery, made the post of leader one of ex
ceptional responsibility, only to be filled
by a man of the greatest experience, de
votion and ability. Such men the Indian
Army possessed, men who had grown up
with the movement, and by years of
self-sacrificing toil established them
selves In the esteem and affection of the
rank and file. But the "general," to the
amazement of the entire Army, appointed
his youngest daughter, not out 'of her
teens. The work was all but wrecked;
the best officers were driven from the
ranks, and the work received a shock
from which It still suffers.
It ls our impression that a very con
siderable reconstruction of the work of
the Salvitlon Army Is to be desired, but
that It is not possible so long as the
"general" does not retire. The Army is
topheavy with officers. The "target"
system encourages activity, but It also
promotes slovenliness of discipline. A
"target" is set before each officer, eo
many more soldiers, meetings, conver
sions, War Crys sold: a promotion de
pends on the reports that can be maTIe.
What shall an officer do, sent to a post
where his predecessor's reports do not
seem borne out by the conditions found?
Will he be willing to confess a failure
and lose favor at headquarters?
That the Salvation Arniy has done a
noble work we acknowledge and affirm.
We know It has attracted a multitude of
enthusiastic and devoted people who have
spent their young lives In its service.
Eut we know, too, that a multitude of Its
best officers have left It. led by those
highest In authority, and by the "gen
eral's" favorite children. The British
army was found to bo wanting in South
Africa, not In the courage of its soldiers,
but In Its staff. Downing stre needed
sweeping, and sweeping changes are
needed In the Salvation Army.
Outcome of the Water Cure Libel.
New York Commercial Advertiser.
A Washington dlspctch In the Tribune
this morning gives facts and a miserable
showing they make in regard to the
charges which the antis brought against
the American soldiers In the Philippines
In connection with the water-cure method
of torture. Sifted down, the evidence
which the anti committee offered, with
veritable shrieks of horror, seems to
substantiate only one case, and this has
no relation to the Regular Army, but to
officers and men long ago discharged
from the Volunteer service.
The way in which the antls met tho
request of the Judge Advocate-General
of the Army, to whom tho charges were
referred by Secretary Root for investi
gation, was eminently characteristic.
They referred his letter to their legal
adviser, and the latter, ignoring all the
charges except one, sent some affidavits
In regard to that, and annexed to them
an anti tirade against Secretary Root,
containing nearly 100 unsupported charges
against him for suppressing and distort
ing evidence of Inhuman cruelty on the
part of the Army in the Philippines. Only
that, and nothing more.
Secretary Root is quite Justified in
treating critics of this caliber with con
temptuous silence. They have ceased to
have the slightest Influence with the pub
lic, and have driven away from their
company every independent In the land
whose mind ls performing its functions
properly.
What Constitutes Usefulness.
Henry Cabot Lodge In Success.
The man of business who devotes his
surplus wealth to the promotion of edu
cation or of art. or to the alleviation of
suffering. Is doing public service. So, too,
among business men and lawyers and
journalists, among the men engaged In
the most energetic and active pursuits,
we find those who are always ready to
serve on committees to raise money for
charitable or public purposes, to advance
Important measures of legislation, and
to reform the evils which are specially
rife In great municipalities. To do this
they give their money, as well as their
time and strength, which are of more
value than money, to objects wholly out
side the labors by which they support
themselves or their families or gratify
, their own tastes or ambitions. Thus they
meet the test of what constitutes use
fulness In a citizen by rendering to the
country, to the public, and to their fel
low citizens, service which has no per
sonal reward In It. but which advances
the good of others and contributes to
the welfare of the community.
Qua Gursum Ventus.
Arthur Hugh Clough.
As ships, becalm'd at eve. that lay
Wlth canvas drooping, side by side.
Two towers of call at dawn of day
Are scarce long league apart descried;
When fell the night, upsprung the breeze.
And all the darkling hours they plied.
Nor dreamt but each tho self-same seas '
By each was cleaving, side by side:
E'en so but why the tale reveal
Of those, whom year by year unchanged.
Brief absence Joln'd anew to feel.
Astounded, soul from soul estranged?
At dead of night their sails were flll'd.
And onward each rejoicing steer'd
Ah. neither blame, for neither will'd.
Or wist, what first with dawn appear'd!
To veer, how vain! On, onward strain.
Bravo barks! In light, in darkness, too.
Through winds and tides one compass guldes
To that, and rour own selves, be true.
But O blithe breeze! and O great sees.
Though ne'er, that earliest parting past,
On your wide plain they Join again. .
Together lead them home at last!
One port, methought. alike they sousht.
One purpose hold where'er they fare
O bounding breeze, O rushing seas!
At last, at last, unite them there!
NOTE AND COMMENT.
Seattle Is now announcing to theworld
"If anybody's It, I'm them."
The open season for Ghlnamen is over,
so the Municipal Court declares.
The officials of Portland have let down
their back hair and gone for the crimps.
General Botha says his purpose and aim
have been condemned by Europe. Smooth
Boers are now out of date.
The fact that Colombia is slow to adjust
the Panama Canal business Is good evi
dence that more revolutions are needed.
When a New York Judge sentenced a
negligent automoblllst to six months' Im
prisonment he administered swift punish
ment. From all reports, the officials In Wash
ington are saying to each other, quietly,
of course: "In time of peace, prepare for
Miles."
Now that the New York preachers are
going to act as dramatic critics, we may
expect a tremendous revival of "Uncle
Tom's Cabin."
The youngster who slips out of the
back door tonight in order to deport a
neighbor's gate wiil discover that his dad
brought home a shingle.
A grouse mistook the date, and, think
ing yesterday was Hallowe'en, tried to
look Into a plate-glass door on Park ave
nue. The bird was found dead. Probably
she saw that her "fate" was a pot hunter.
Nov. is the season when the young man
rolls up his trousers at the bottom and
seeks the house of a maid where there is
a fireplace. Summer In a hammock Is
bliss, but Winter by the sldo of a pink
and white girl with kind eyes seems to
be more attractive. There Is always the
fire to poke up when the conversation
grows dimmer than the light.
President Cleveland has emerged from
his life of Innocuous desuetude with a re
habilitated vocabulary. He has always
been fond of the sesquipedalian vocable,
but In yesterday's speech he displays a
new and enlarged assortment, all neatly
arranged in pairs. He is reported to have
said once In a moment of confidence that
the end of every properly constituted man
was two legs; therefore, every bodily
perfect clause should stand on two latl
tudlnous words. But In Mr. Cleveland's
present address the words wear over
shoes. Infantile reasoning leads to belief In a
plurality of deities In the case of a
diminutive Portlander. The other day
he rushed In to his mother and cried:
"Mamma. I've come from Sunday school!"
"Yes, dear; what did you learn?"
"Teacher, she says God can come just
this quick!" and he swung his arm
swiftly.
"Yes. dear. But God ls always here
and everywhere."
The lad pondered a moment. Then he
said earnestly: "Gee, there must be a lot
of "em."
The old poplars on lower Couch street
have gone. Many a sea-worn salt has
sat beneath those stately but unappreci
ated vegetables and spun a yarn as twlst
e'd and kinked as his language. But prog
ress, which has no respect for the aged,
has decreed that these seven sleepers of
the forest shall be cut off from the land.
The wandering reporter In search of an elu
sive Item along the water front has often
discerned, as he supposed, the almost Il
legible initials of some couple who sat
against one of the sturdy trunks many
years ago. Possibly with the felling of
these trees will disappear forever the
traces and memoirs of the happiest hours
In the lives of two, now In separate
graves.
The story comes about a little boy
whose parents spend their Summers on
Clatsop Beach. It came to pass upon a
day that this youngster went out along
the banks of a slough to play. An hour
afterward he was dragged out of the
water by the hair of his head and taken
home to dry. His mother put him to bed
and rubbed him down with divers evil
smelllng liniments, In order that his blood
might flow within him. When all was
done that maternal anxiety could think
of, the mother said: "Billy, don't you
think you ought to return thanks to God
for saving your life?" There was a long
silence. Then a weak voice came from
under the blanket: "I s'pose so. mamma,
but I held on to the gwass myself."
A young girl who has elected to earn a
little spending money by securing a can
vassing outfit and taking orders for holi
day books called the other day at a neat
cottage on the East Side and was met
at the door by a middle-aged woman, who
appeared somewhatinterested In the sub
ject of books, but did not find anything
on the agent's list exactly to her liking.
"What I like to read about," she ob
served, "are the lives of great men." The
agent Immediately turned to her cata
logue a"nd produced the "lives" of Mc
Klnley. Washington. Daniel Webster and
others. The woman looked dubiously at
tho Illustrious names, remarking finally:
"Yes. I suppose they would be Interesting,
but I think I would rather have the Hve3
of Tracy and Merrill."
PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPIIERS
"Didn't you hear the doorbell. Bridget?"
"Yes, mum." "Well, why didn't you answer
It?" "I did answer it; I said 'Oh. fudge!
mum." Yonkers Statesman.
Passer-by Whoy. wherever be gwoln', Jarge,
thl3 tolme o' day? Jarsc Oh. w'm a-go!n' Into
the town to zee this 'ere Comet as they tells
about! Punch.
Aunt Arthur, how does It happen that Willis
Jones is promoted at school so much oftener
than you other boys arc? Arthur Huh! His
fatl-er's a promoter! Chicago Dally New3.
"Did the great author talk for publication
when he landed In Xew York?" "Certainly.
He wouldn't have had any thins to correct the
noxt day If he hadn't." Cincinnati Commer
ial Tribune.
"You admire that musician?" "Very much,"
answered Mr. Cumrox. "For his composition!
or for his performances?" "Neither. For his
nerve in charging $5 a seat." Washington
Star.
Now. that Yale College has honored a dialect
poet with a degree, we trust that Billvllle Uni
versity will be equally generous end make the
Yale professors honorary members of the Lit
erary Barbecue Society. Atlanta Constitution.
A Happy Town. An automobile occupied by
a gentleman and his wife passed through here
early Monday morning, cn TOute to Jacksonville.
The vehicle attracted a great deal of attention
from those of our citizens who happened to be
up at the early hour in which It passed through.
Girard (111.) Observer.
A Wicked Swindler. A clever swindler has
victimized about 150 members of the Vermont
Assembly by collecting 51 50 each from them
for a photographic souvenir which he did not
deliver. It was a shameful outrage to thus
deceive the guileless Green Mountain Legisla
tors. Such wickedness should be confined to
Etates like Pennsylvania, where a little Joke of
that kind would be regarded as .a legltlmata
spoiling of the Egyptians. As It Is. this heart
less robbery will be told to coming generations
of the descendants of these men who have
found the dangers of a great city "to be about
them aa they walked the streets of Montpeller.
Boston Transcript.