THE 'MORNING OBEQONIAN, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1902. Entered at the' Postofflw at Portland. Oregon, as second-class matter. REVISED SUBSCRIPTION RATES. By Mall (postago prepaid, In advance) Dally, with Sunday, per month $. 55 JJally. Sunday excepted. pr year T M luily, n-ith Sunday, per year X Sunday. pr year.... . 2 OO Th Weekly, per year 1 The Wcsky 3 months W To city Subscribers aljy. per week, delivered. Sunday cepted.l5c oally. per week, delivered. Sunday lncluded.203 POSTAGE RATES. United States. Canada and Mexico: H r to 28-page paper 5c Foreign rates double. News or discussion intended for publication Jn The OrKonlan should be addressed Invaria bly "Editor The Oregonian." not to the nam of any Individual. letters relating to adver tising, subscriptions or to any business matter should be addressed simply "The Oregonian." The Oregonian doea not buy poems or stories from IndU-ldualK. and cannot undertake to re turn any manuscripts sent to It -without solici tation. No stamps should be Inclosed for this purpose. Eastern Business Offlce. 43. 44. 45. 47. 4S. 4P Tribune bulldlngr. New York City: 610-11-12. Tstbune building-. Chicago: the S. C. Becfcwlth Special Agency. Eastern representative. For sale In San Fran-l " - t. E. le. Pal ace Hotel news stand: Goldsmith Bros.. 230 Butter street: F- W. Pitts. 100S Market street: J. K. Cooper Co.. 74C Market street, near th Palace Hotel: Foster & Orear. Ferry news and: Frank Scott SO Ellis street, and N. Wheatley. 813 Mission street . For sale In Los Angeles by B. F. Gardner. 259 South 8prlntr street, and Oliver & Haines. 805 South Spring street Foe sale in Kansas City. Mo., by r.-"ecker Cigar Co.. Ninth and Walnut streets. For sale In Chicago by tho P. O. News Co.. 217 Dearborn street and Charles MacDonald. C3 Washington street. For sale In Omaha by Barkalow Bros.. 1W2 Fai-nam street: Megeath Stationery Co.. 1303 Fernam street , For sale -in Salt Lake br the Salt Lake News Co.. 77 West Second South street. For sale In Minneapolis by R. G. Hfarsey & Co.. 24 Third street South- For sale In Washington. D. G. by the Ebbett House news stand. For sale in Denver. Colo., by Hamilton & Keadrlck, 006-912 Seventeenth street: Louthan & Jackson Book & Stationary Co.. Fifteenth and Lawrence street: A. Series. Sixteenth and Cunts streets. TODAY'S WEATHER Occasional rain; con tinued cool: westerly winds. YESTERDAY'S WEATHER Maximum tem jerature. 4S: minimum temperature, IK): pre cipitation, 0.0 Inch. PORTLAND, FRIDAY, AOVE3H5ER 2S. The authorities at Washington have very wisely taken out of the hands of local associations of sheepmen the busi ness of apportioning range privileges Jn the Mount Rainier forest reserve. The theory upon which this duty was given Into the hands of the sheepmen's associ ations was that, having a direct interest In the perpetuation of the ranges, they might be depended upon to guard them against abuse; and, further, 1 that it wouid be a simple matter to apportion tr- grazing privilege fairly among themselves. But this theory has not worked out in practice. The members of the associations have been more than willing to overcrowd the reserve ranges, and have. In some Instances, connived to outwit and thwart the Inspectors in the exercise of their duty. And In the mat ter of apportioning the grazing -grounds there has been gross unfairness in the interest of large fiockowners with a "pull" as against smaller operators with r.o chance to make themselves heard. In short, the system has failed. The most equitable results, we believe, will follow administration of the reserved ranges by agents of the land depart ment carefully selected for expert knowledge and Incorruptible integrity and instructed to seek out the means of doing justice all round. The matter is one in which the sheepmen will serve their own Interest by a course of fair dealing and good temper, for anything like serious contention among them con cerning the use of the reserved tracts may result in the withdrawal of the grazing privilege altogether. They would better have a care or in 'their ef forts to over-reach each other they may make a bother o'f the whole matter and bo all suffer together in the withdrawal of all privileges in the matter of ranging in the reserves. It is plain from results In this state and elsewhere where the "referendum" principle has been submitted to the peo ple that it is a taking thing. For exam ple. In the recent election in Illinois vot ers were invited to declare for and against a referendum proposal, and while a very great number took no no tice at all of the matter, those who did give heed to It declared overwhelmingly in its favor. In the state at large, exclu sive of Chicago, 1G2.6S5 votes were cast fcr the proposal and 25,883 against it. In Chicago 1G1.941 votes were favor able and 24,917 against On the question of electing United States Sen ators by popular vote, submitted at the same time and in the form of a pro posal, the vote was practically Identical with that above set forth. While thus it appears that great numbers of voters are eager to try the experiment of direct legislation, it may be doubted if there Is any very general comprehension of the methods of the referendum or of the du ties which it imposes upon the general voter. Certainly It has been shown by recent events here that, in spite of the general enthusiasm of our last campaign for the principle of .direct legislation, nobody really knows much about it the lawyers as little as anybody else. It is possible, with reference both to the re sult in Oregon and in Illinois, that the apparent great popular favor of direct legislation proposals is due more to dis trust of Legislatures than of any special wish to take a closer hand in the busi ness of making laws. The coal operators desire to have" their case tried out on Its merits. ThlsVthey say. Is their Just due, after the censure to which they have been subjected by the public. The request on its face is a fair one, and the commission can do no less than accede to it The right is not entirely upon one side of this or of any other question upon which there is great divergence of opinion. That the miners demands are in some respects as to de tails arbitrary is not improbable. That their statements in some instances are overdrawn may be true. But behind all of this is the just claim which declares that the laborer Is worthy of his hire, and the simple, commcn-sense fact that his wage should in this day of vast profits to capital and increasing living expenses be sufficient to conform to the requirements of comfort for himself and in his home. Let this matter be probed to the bottom. Between the two ex tremes represented in the contention there must be a golden mean. It is clear that the operators will not reach this unaided. Equally clear is the fact that the miners will not voluntarily seek middle ground. The point of view jn each case is that of self-interest, and in neither case has it as yet shifted the fraction of a. degree. Public interest takts a wider view. It insists that the rights of the people in the premises be cot ignored or violated, while the con- tentlon between the operators and min ers goes on. To. meet this demand the coal commission was appointed. It Is proper that this commission should bend to its task until the way out of the labyrinth Into which the opposing forces of self-interest have led the coal Industry is found. If this effort fails, no man can foresee the beginning of the end of this bitter and mighty conten tion between the correlative forces of an industry the active prosecution of which is essential to the welfare of the masses and to the continued prosperity of the Nation. Senator Frye's appeal for a shipping subsidy as the only means of Insuring the construction of our merchant marine at home is In eifect a declaration of the failure of the protective policy, -for whose perpetuation he pleads In the same interview. All the materials enter ing Into the manufacture of ships are heavily protected now, and the labor employed in it has the same protection accorded to other American labor. Mr. Frye argues that our present aboundfng prosperity should not be menaced by a change in the tariff laws, and in the next breath he confesses that the pres ent laws are unable to keep the manu facture of shipping at home. His sub sidy proposal is, in fact, a new Jtnd mo mentous departure in the application of the protective principle. With the neia already occupied by indirect taxation of consumers for the benefit of a favored few, he offers to Inject the direct with drawal of public money from the Treas ury for handing over to the few million aire shipbuilders and shipowners. The only sincerity- in this whole business is the desire of thrifty private Interests to get, all they can at public expense. It is sought to alarm the business of the country at every proposal of abolish ment of unnecessary tariffs, but these same timorous souls' cast fear to the winds when they offer a radical and comprehensive change in the form of a fresh assault on the Treasury. It Is dangerous to touch the protective sys tem, unlets you are going to- touch It to the edification of the infant indus tries. Then, it is all right. The reply to unjust laws that we are all making money may be sufficient in Maine, but It is not sufficient elsewhere. There are persons in the United States who think .of justice sometimes as well as of pros perity. THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE. The position of Speaker Henderson during the short remainder of his term of office is not an enviable one, for the interest of members who have been re elected and of the political public will be centered In Speaker Henderson's probable successor rather than in him self. For this humiliating situation he has only himself to blame, for he might have been re-elected to Congress and been his own successor. The choice of a Speaker of the House means the se lection of an officer who wields scarcely less political influence than the Presi dent of the United States. Under the rules of the body over which? he pre sides, he-is the autocrat of legislation. He constitutes all the committees of the House, and this fact makes him exceed ingly Influential In the ranks of both parties. To administer the duties of an important office of such far-reaching po litical Influence ably, requires a man of exceptional power of self-restraint, a man of dignity, an accomplished parliamentarian,- who is a statesman In the fullhessof his mastery of all political questions and of historical knowledge, 'but above all things the occupant of the Speaker's chair needs to be a man of im pregnable personal Integrity, a man in capable of thwarting the will of Con gress by abuse of the opportunity and influence of his position. It is easy to see how a corrupt man In the Speaker' chair could advance his political or his pecuniary fortune by be ing in secret league with the friends of a measure that shad a job concealed in its belly. Distinguished occupants of the Speaker's chair have been charged with the abasement of their great office to corrupt purposes and have not al ways made an absolutely convincing de fense. The fact that It lies in the power of the Speaker to abuse his trust through unscrupulous partisanship, or corruptly to warp legislation In the in terest of those who have purchased his official Influence, shows that absolute, incorruptible personal and political in tegrity is, above all other qualifica tions, the most indispensable to the oc cupant of the Speaker's chair. Whether Congress Is economical or recklessly ex travagant rests largely with the Speak er; whether legislative robbery of the public treasury is frequently accom plished lies largely with the vigilance and a'cuteness of the Speaker. Mr. Cannon, of Illinois, in personal presence, political accomplishments and parliamentary skill, is not an ideal Speaker, but, while he has less culture and versatile intellectual endowment than Mr. Dalzell, of Pennsylvania, he has no Identity with the Quay machine; he Is not associated in the public mind with trusts and monopolies; he is under stood to be opposed to the ship subsidy s:heme, and he Is thoroughly trusted by men of all parties as a man of impreg nable integrity and is in full sympathy with anti-trust legislation. The import ance of the office of Speaker of the House is shown by the fact that it has been sought and obtained by men of su perior public distinction. Henry CJay between 1S11 and 1S25 was ten years In the Speaker's chair, and was probably the most brilliant man that, ever occu pied the position, for while on the floor of the House a most aggressive and im petuous partisan debater, he was urban ity itself In the chair, going so far as to recognize "the gentieman from Arkan sas" and "the gentleman from Arkan saw" In turn, adopting the peculiar pro nunciation of each member. Langdon' Cheves, of South Carolina, a very able man, was Speaker of the Thirteenth Congress. John Bell, Speaker of the Twenty-third Congress, was af terwardn Senator from Tennessee, and polled nearly 590,000 votes for President in 1860. James K. Polk, who was Speaker of the Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth Con gresses, was elected President in J.84.4 over Henry Clay. R. M. T. Hunte'r, Speaker of the Twenty-sixth Congress, was United States Senator when. Vir ginia seceded, in 1861, and a distin guished member of the Confederate Cabinet. Robert C. Winthrop, Speaker of the Thirtieth Congress, was the ablest and .most accomplished man, except Henry Clay, who presided over the House. He was a fine scholar, an eloquent ora tor and a most admirable parliamen tarian. He was the orator at the York town centennial, and, although consid erably past 70 years of age, spoke with a grace, fire and power that commanded admiration and applause. Howell Cobb, who succeeded Winthrop as Speaker, was afterwards Secretary of the Treas- i ury in President Buchanan's Cabinet and a distinguished member of the Coo federate Cabinet Nathaniel P. Banks, Speaker of the Thirty-fourth Congress, was the first man to hold the office un der Republican rule.. He was a man of fine presenceand had a splendid voice for public business, and these qualities chiefly made him afterwards Governor of Massachusetts, Major-General of Vol unteers, and returned him to Congress for many years after the- Civil War. Speaker Schuyler Colfax became Vice-. President in 869. James G. Blaine rose from the Speakership to the stature of a formidable candidate for the Presi dency, was subsequently United States Senator and twice Secretary of State. Samuel J. Randall, when elected Speaker, In 1876, was easily the ablest Democrat la the House, and John G. Carlisle, Democratic Speaker for six years, became President Cleveland's Secretary of the Treasury in 1893. Thomas B. Reed expected doubtless to make the Speakership a stepping-stone to further political distinction, Dut he was disappointed through circum stances which he either could not or would not control. It Is clear that the Speakership has always been sought after by men ambitious of political dis tinction and influence, which is entirely natural, since it affords an admirable opportunity for intimate acquaintance with the leading members of both par ties In House and Senate, and with the President and his Cabinet. While the Constitution does not require the Na tional House of Representatives to choose its Speaker froni among its own members, nevertheless it has been our custom to follow the decision of the first House of Representatives under ' the Constitution, which made one of its own members the Speaker. Our long-established political custom has been to make the office a political one, an engine of party control over legislation. The Brit ish method is to choooa a non-member for its presiding officer and tb keep the Speakership entirely separate from party leadership. THE MORP.IIIXE HABIT. Dr. Thomas. Crothers, who is recog nized by the Medical Record as excel lent authority on Inebriety and the drug habit, in a recent book, describes, the morphine habit, whose prevalence is in creasing, as a far more dangerous vice than alcoholic drunkenness. Dr. Croth era finds that of the sales of morphine In our large cities not one-half can be traced to the legitimate demand of phy sicians and hospitals. The morphine habit Is especially frequent among phy sicians,, lawyers, business men and even clergymen. It is hot a noisy vice like alcohol, and It is not betrayed by the breath. A few years ago Dr. Crothers computed that out of a total of 3244 phy sicians in the Eastern and Middle States and some of the large Western cities, 21. per cent were using spirits or narcotics excessively. A "hypodermic- needle" mania exists, and itinerant peddlers carry them for the relief and use of their customers. When once acquired, the habit in the majority of cases is never broken, and brings physical, mental and moral ruin to the victim. There is nothing new in these facts and conclusions concerning the mor phine habit. Dr. A. P. Grinnell, former ly dean of the medical faculty of the University of Vermont, several years ago made a careful investigation into the prevalence of the drug habit in the country towns of his state, and proved by figures obtained from the druggists that the consumption of morphine was enormous. Great quantities of Quinine, too, were consumed. The' truth-is that the morphine habit was unknown to any appreciable extent In the United States up to about 1840, when the "total absti nence" wave, known as the Washlngton ian movement, swept over the country. Thousands of men who had been users of ardent spirits to excess for many years took the pledge, and a good many of them substituted the opium or mor phine habit for alcoholic stimulation. They were able In this way to keep up a reputation for total abstinence from liquor for a long time. In Ireland thou sands who had been persuaded by Father Matthew to take the pledge became In toxicated upon ether so frequently that the government forbade its sale except on a doctor's order. In Mohammedan countries, where, the use of alcohol is forbidden by the Koran, the smoking of opium prevails to "a considerable ex tent. There have been some Illustrious vic tims of the opium habit. The famous Lord Cllve, the founder of the English Empire of India, committed suicide in a fit of mental depression following pro longed Intoxication from opium. The use of opium blighted early the line poetic genius of Coleridge. He used it first in 1796, for relief from rheuma tism. De Qulncey used it off and on for more than fifty years, but he finally managed to reduce his daily Indulgence to a very small dose. He cannot be said, however, to have ever absolutely abandoned the habit. Some of the dark passages in Poe's life, previously mys terious, have by later researches been exnln'ripd hv: hl nco nf tho nrlontoi drug. Dr. Crothers thinks that, "bad asM It is, alcoholic stimulation Is a light evil compared with the morphine habit." This conclusion is-justified from the fact that in many cases alcoholics have been completely redeemed from the chalnsof Indulgence, while the.vlctim of the mor phine habit Is seldom rescued from ruin. POSTOFFICE SQUARE. The touch with nature is so close in Portland that as a community we have measurably lost appreciation of its value. We accept the open and .green spaces of the city, the forests all about, the open country so easily available and even the glorious mountain views all as a. matter of course and with little thought of the charm which they give to life here; and it Is only after a sojourn away from home, where the surround ings are artificial or commonplace, that we take in in any conscious way the beauty and delight of It or realize its effect upon the mind and the spirit. And we are little mindful that much of what goes to give us this close touch with nature Is merely temporary, due to the youth of the city, and bound to give way before its future development. Nothing can be plainer than that the whole area on the west side between the river and the hills Is to be a compact and dense mass of buildings; that the open spaces, including the private lawns, are destined to disappear; that the shade trees are to give way In short, that the suburban aspect of the West Side is to be lost. Already we see the beginning of the evolution in the' ex tension of business westward, In the crowding of houses to the sidewalk line, in the growth of the "flat" abomination and a multitude of circumstances which mark the business progress of the city. In a time to come, when what has hap pened as far back as Tenth street shall have happened as far back as the hills. people will wonder why, in the making of the city, we did not save something more from" the wreck of nature some thing to afford relief from the monotony of brick- and mortar and to give variety and dignity and a touch of charm to the business heart of the city. And at such a time how grateful will be the open space and the bright lawns of" Ppstoffice Square If it shall be maintained in its present condition I And if it shall be lost through extensions of the building; what a loss It will be to the .future beauty and dignity of the city! Really it would be better, should the Government persist in its plan of enlarg ing the building, to have the block con demned and made into a permanent park than to permit the closing up of this beautiful open space with exten sions to the existing structure. Portland cannot afford to lose thiB bright spot in her business district. There are other places which can be made to serve the useo-of the postal service; this should be reserved and maintained for the better purpose of holding for Portland the close touch with nature, , the most charming of our local conditions, which is in danger of being wholly lost to future generations. Extremely unsatisfactory, also, Is the apparent determination of the Federal authorities to do with the Postoffice ex actly as they did with the Custom House. That is, they proceed to con struct a building", admirable In Itself, perhaps; but bearing at best a, remote relation to the uses to which it is to be put The Custom-Hous has needed ex tensive alterations, made at great cost and with exasperating delay, simply be cause the supervising architect didn't know what it was t be used for arid nobody in higher authority took the' trouble to tell him. Postmaster Croas man's representations to the depart ment have been treated most cavaljerly, and it is the evident purpose of the su pervising architect to make -a building to please his own inner consoiousness, and let the Government's business ad just Itself to the resultant combination of rooms and corridors as best it can. Isn't it about time for Portland to let somebody at Washington understand that it is on earth, knows it and pro poses to be recognized ? Shall the Post office Square be devastated at will by the Treasury Department, and the Post office and Federal business incommoded ad libitum in order to preserve unruffled the composure of the supervising archi tect's acute and powerful intellect? . The seventh annual report of the State Board of Horticulture will soon be ready for distribution. It has already been spoken of in these columns as a particularly fine document to send abroad. TJiJs fact Is due not more to the practical presentment In. words of tho condition, growth 'and processes of horticulture in Oregon than to the illus trations, which speak through the cam era of the development to which the fruit industry in various sections of the state has attained. A word-picture may convey to an imaginative person the beauty, and usefulness of a tree laden with line apples, pears or prunes, but a picture of a tree bending gracefully un der its load, aided in supporting it as the thoughtfulness of the horticulturist may suggest; or of a box of perfect apples ready for shipment, extended to 8000 boxes in bulk ready for packing, will appeal to the practical man as proof of conditions in fruitgrowing for which he is seeking and upon which he can rely. The report, thus embellished, will go abroad as a veritable missionary or as emissary extraordinary of Oregon horticulture, bringing, as it were, the fruitage of Oregon orchards to the doors of- those who are looking for informa tion concerning them as suggestive, not only of the present, status, but of the future possibilities of the fruit Industry of this state. The dairy industry Is being farther and farther removed each year from the era of the old wooden churn and dasher. The latest advance has been made by adding a course of dairying to the cur riculum of the State Agricultural Col lege. Most of us who sprang from the rural districts are still loyal to "butter as mother made It." But, reviewing in memory the store butter of the period immediately preceding the creamery era, we are fain to believe that old-fashioned butter-making, for commercial purposes, at least, is a lost art Modern dairying is a science. There is no doubt about it, and to conduct it successfully it is necessary to know how. This pro cess the new course in the State Agri cultural College is designed to teach, and it may .be hoped that a large class of farmer boys and girls will avail them selves of the opportunity offered to be come familiar with it. The spirited controversy over Colo rado Iron & Fuel, and the cross pur poses distinctly manifest among anthra cite owners, give some hint of the per sistence of the personal equation and the obstacles it is certain to interpose from time to time in the way of "com munity of interest." The labor world also is threatening to rend Itself in twain over points of stubborn contro versy. The trust principle may at length bend human nature to Its will. But the way will be long and fraught with many vicissitudes. We have heard from time to time a great deal concerning . the healthy growth of this city. A striking illustra tion of such growth is seen In the pur chase by Fleischner, Mayer & Co. of a half block in the North End, -part of which has long been covered with rook eries In which crime breeds and law lessness runs, riot, which will in- due time be cleared and used as a building site for a large brick factory. The com mercial, moral and physical health of the city is benefited by this transaction. We observe with pain that Wayne MacVeaghis discussing the strike ques tion with Darrow, the miners' attorney. What has' Darrow got to do with it? Is he an employe of the mlneowners? A Tien for Lelknre. Great Round World. . Individuals will rather helplessly reply to a plea for leisure by saying: "What are we going to do? Competitors, 'hustle' and we must do the same or 'Starve." Some will urge that the American tem perature demands constant occupation, that "hustling" is our National trait Well, I have no desire to insist that we go back to stagecoach days. But all of us have plenty of opportunity to tone down a little. And why not try it? A National trait may be dangerous as well as useful may need control. If the aver age individual would make more leisurely use of his leisure there would not be nearly as many cases of nervous pros tration as there are now. Put on the brakes a bit Take things a little easier when you can. I know people who are never content unless they are "doing" something. Such abnormal desire for activity is not natural; it is an unnat ural cravfng. It will be well for us not to be so eager to gratify it SPIRIT OF THE NORTHWEST PRESS Auk Something; Easier. Albany Democrat. If -Mr. Geer is not the next United States Senator; who will be? Democratic, .bnt Intensely Loyal. Eugene Register. ' Tennessee gave Roosevelt a mighty hearty welcome" for a state that would not think. of giving him its electoral tote.. Yea, If Yon Look at It That Way.. Lewiston Tribune. v The Indian reservation had to go as civilization advanced. Similarly civiliza tion must now recede as the forest re serve advances. And Why Not the Borcalls? Aurora Borealls. The Morning Oregonian could materially assist In securing the $500,000 appropriation for the Lewis and Clark Exposition by pointing out how a goodly part of that sum cou'd be pruned, from other Legis lative gifts. Also Wnspa and Yelldvrjacliets. Ellensburg Capital. The Oregonian has stirred up la, hornets' nest in this state by coming out in sup port of Ankeny for Senator. That is its privilege, but we do not have to send 'him to Washington; but whether we will or not Is another question. And the. Barona on His Ncclc. iredford Enquirer. President Mitchell, of the Mineworkers' Union, looms up as the greatest man so far in the history of coal strikes, and it is to be hoped he will continue to tower above the arrogant coal barons as does a Hon above a mouse. Mitchell has right and. the people on his side. Scalping Knives Will Be Otrt. . ' Milton Eagle. The principal advocates of the coyote scalp bounty are men in the sheep in dustry, and among them there Is a dis position to have the law repealed or amended. Some of the strongeot opposi tion to the law will come from the Mult nomah delegation, and from counties throughout Western Oregon. Most of the money paid for scalps has come from west of the Cascades, and has been spent east of the mountains. The proposed re peal will inaugurate a warm fight. ZVo Joke for the Governor. Adams Advance. Governor Geer has decided against an extra session of the Legislature. Recog nizing the importance of an appropriation for the Lewis nnd Clark Exposition, nev ertheless the Governor assumes that an .extra session called primarily for that purpose would prejudice rather than ad vance the object desired. And, in addi tion to this, the Senatorial question was settled last June, which, to some of our latter-day political saints, may appear facetious, but so far as the Governor is concerned, there is nothing mirth pro voking about It In a Wide-Open Town. Seattle Times. s What a disgrace it is to Seattle that such a condition of affairs prevails in what Is known as the Tenderloin district! Day after day and night after night a thousand law-breakers ply their business unmolested by police or detective except when one party desires to revenge him self upon another. Then some den of Infamy is raided, some outrageous bawdy-house closed up for an hour or a day, or even a night and then the whole species of cussedness and crime goes on again as if this town were a veritable Sodom and Gomorrah! Such a, condition is a disgrace to our civilization, to the city government, to the police depart ment, and an outrage upon the taxpayers who are assessed to protect criminals and crime that would disgrace the dark ages. There Are "Prolihhly" Others. ' Elgin Recorder. The Selection of a United States Senator would' be greatly simplified if the domi nant party was disposed to recognize the Mays law whereby 'the voters of the state expressed their choice for Senator at the June election. At that time a large majority of the voters expressed them selves as being in favor of Governor Geer for Senator, but as this decision does not coincide with the views of the poli ticians it probably won't go, and we will likely have another old-fashioned Sena torial "scrap" with all its attendant scandals. While there are probably quite a number of other Republicans in the state just as well qualified for the posi tion as Mr. Geer. the people would doubt less promptly ratify his selection, if it was done promptly on the assembilng of the session, so that other needed legis lation can be attended to. AMERICAN0PP0RTUNITIES INCHINA Kansas City Star. Mr. John Barrett, commissioner of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition In the Orient, calls attention in the current is sue of the North American Review to the opportunity for trade extension In the far East now open to the United States. The present opening is exceptional, he says, because American diplomacy is im plicitly trilsted in China and because American commerce is regarded as in volving no territorial aggression. The. trust of the Chinese In tho United States diplomatic agents has been- greatly strengthened by the events succeeding the Boxer uprising. These are familiar to all newspaper readers. They date from Secretary Hay's famous note stat ing the position of this Government on the preservation of China's territorial in tegrity, and include Various friendly acts down to the proposition to reduce the indemnity. The happenings of the last few years have convinced the Chinese, in Mr. Barrett's opinion, that commerce with- America is to be sought in prefer ence to that with other nations because it may be developed without danger of the partition of the empire. Therefore there is an unusual opportunity for American merchants to extend their trade in tho far East. That this -friendly feeling on the part of Chinese officials is not merely super ficial Mr. Barrett shows by citing cer tain Instances of its sincerity that have come under his own observation. For instance, tho government has given spe cial privileges and facilities for con struction to an American syndicate that has the concession for a railroad from Canton to Hankow. Another case of practical friendship Is In connection with the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. Mr. Barrett asserts that he has found re markable interest among viceroys and officials in all parts of the empire and that they have promised active co-operation in furthering the Chinese exhibit. He was much impressed by the earnest ness of their assurance that they desired to do everything in their power to further friendship and commerce between China and the United States. With the building of railroads the de velopment of the empire will be rapid. As Mr. Barrett points out, the merchants and manufacturers of the United States are in a position to secure a large share of the new trade if they will only take the trouble to go lfter it Lnhor Unions. Chicago Tribune. The critic of labor unions will produce a greater effect on his audience if he "wUl mix praise with blame, censuring the unions for what seem to him their errors, and at the same time giving them full credit for all the good they have done for workingmen. It is altogether true, as Mr. Kidd said, that the unions have come to stay. They cannot be scolded out of ex istence. They are 'a product and a part of modern civilization, and. as civilization progresses they will progress also, discard ing some of their crude methods and their faulty theories. EMBARRASSMENTS OF SOLOMON. Baltimore Sun. Schoolboys throughout Maryland will be pained to note a decision of the Circuit Court for Kent County asserting the legal ity of the time-honored method of Im parting knowledge by means of the birch. In one of the public schools of that de lightful county, where peach switches are abundant even If birches are scarce, the teacher dusted the coat of a refractory pupil by means of a rod. The parents of the boy had the teacher arrested upon a warrant charging fcer with assault and battery, but the court decided that the teacher was acting well within her con stitutional and legal rights. Nothing Is more common than for judges, in their conservatism and love for precedent, to forget that they started life as little boys. It is not at all unlikely that all three of the venerable Judges who sat on the bench and decided this case made a prac tice in early life of going to school with the seats of their trousers reinforced with geographlea In those old days the rod and the ruler were esteemed as essential in any scheme of education as the text books. Solomon was the great apostle of the rod. He had something like a thou sand wives, and, allowing five children to the wife, which was far below the average in those days, there were no less than 5000 children in this remarkable fam ily.. A Breakfast table with one man, 1000 women and 50CO children all gathered around it at one time, the former all talking at once in a discussion of the latest social doings in the Jerusalem F.our Hundred and the latter all asking for biscuits, and then Solomon's predilection for the rod may be understood. He en forced his views by. precept upon precept, line upon line. "A rod." he said, "Is for the backs jof fools." and a schoolboy can be the worst kind of a fool. "He that spareth the rod hateth his son." "Foolish ness Is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction shall drive it away." "The rod and, reproof give wis dom." "Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod he shall not die." Solomon's peculiar situation somewhat weakens his testimony as lin advocate of the rod. Anyone would want to use the rod with 5000 children to discipline. In tlft.se days of labor-saving devices a man with his quiver that full would buy a thrashirfg machine and a steam engine to run it. The plain intimation of Holy Writ is that Solomon was a henpecked man, and but for this fact It is not at all unlikely that he would have advocated the rod for wives, as well as for chil dren. Possibly in his weariness of talk about new bonnets and the latest pro gressive euchre or ping-pong party or pink tea he was hinting at something of this kind when he mentioned the rod as a proper thing to be applied to the backs of those persons who are rvE overbur dened with brains. But. after making due allowance for Solomon m his plea for the rod, is. he not right after all, and was not the Kent County Court right in following the wise King? In the days when these Judges went to school flogging was the rule, and it Is not unlikely that each one of them has this fact impressed upon his mem ory In the most painful manner. It may be that without the peach switch not one of them would ever have reached the bench. It is greatly to be doubted whether any boy who never got a flog ging from his parents or his teachers has ever yet become President of the United States. Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a boy, and no certain way of driving It out of him, except by the switch, has ever been devised. And in the strcn ious days of old, when the bene ficial results of flogging were universal esteemed, the men who were raised were probably as good as those who are grow ing up under milder rule. The days are fast coming when the agent of some so ciety will arrest women for beating eggs or for having whipped cream on the table. It is not at all unlikely that there will be a law to prohibit musicians from beating time. It is evident that the Kent County Court has not yet caught up with the modern Sunday school methods of impart ing an education. It is Just possible that they may agree with Uncle Remus that you can "teach a nigger more learning with a bar'l stave than you can with a speliing-book." EMOT OF HARVARD. President Eliot's arguments on union labor convince us that Harvard is in need of further bequests. Detroit News Tribune. President Eliot, of Harvard, is rapidly acquiring doubtful distinction as the Burchard of labor employers. Providence (R. I.) News. The way President Eliot is being sat down upon should make you real glad that you .are not a Harvard mm. Hous ton (Tex.) Post. Still, there is reason to be grateful thnt such a dreadful scold as President Eliot, of Harvard, has turned out to be is .not a woman. Kansas City Star. Prollent Eliot, of Harvard, thinks the Methodists are too emotional. He would prefer to sneak along the trail to heaven in a lees demonstrative manner. Denver Post. Having lambasted the public schools. President Eliot has now turned his ener gies toward roasting the Sunday school. In his Judgment, there is nothing good save Harvard. San Francisco Call. After pronouncing a "scab" "a good type of American hero," President Eliot, of Harvard University, should not come to Butte with any expectation of being elected poundmaster. Anaconda (Mont.) Standard. 1 We must add a third president to our number, Samuel Gompers, who shows his Indifference to the Harvard College vote by calling Mr. Eliot a Benedict Arnold and a Judas Iscarlot Brooklyn Standard Union. President Eliot is willing for the rest of us to work 16 hours a day if we need the money. While they don't include that doctrine in the Harvard curriculum It 13 a side issue which goes among the general looseness of inspired conversa tion. Rochester Herald. Success of Wireless Teleprraphy. Chicago Tribune. The latest reports from Marconi's ex periments in wireless telegraphy as ap plied to transoceanic communication ap parently Indicate that his scheme is now out of the experimental stage, and that telegraph signals can be exchanged be tween the old and new worlds. A dispatch asserts that an Italian cruiser which sailed from a station on the southwestern part of England to Nov Scotia has com municated dally with the mainland and in mldocean had no difficulty in sending signals both east and wesr. Signals also have been exchanged between Cornwall and Tablehf-ad, Nova Scotia. In a limited way wireless telegraphy has been In use tor some little time in sending communi cations from one steamer to another In passing, signals between war vessels and regular reports of passing steamers from land stations, but never has so much been done as Marconi now says he has ac complished. It now remains to be seen whether wireless telegraphy can be made a commercial success. Marconi is backed by a company with plenty of capital, so that he will not be hampered by lack of funds- in the development of his sys tem. Wanted a Joshna. Atlanta Constitution. The Democratic party is not hunting any Moses, tl is neither bound in the" brick yards of the Pharaohs nor wandering in the wilderness without water or flesh for Its pots. It Is In the field, hand in hand with the Amnlekites qf autocracy, aristoc racy and un-Amerlcanism. It has Its cour age with It in full fervor; it knows now Its issue of battle without further deline ation; and what It needs Is. a Joshua who can lead the host with confidence and even make the sun stand still while .the foes of the people, the destroyers ofeolual r.ghts, and the pervcrters of American Demo cratic, government are put to a consum mate rout! NOTE AND COMMENT. Cold turkey. Now we shall have' to gQ back to ordin ary cigars. The turkeys may now hold their yearly thanksgiving. When a man shakes with the ague it' doesn't mean he wants to make it feel at. home. :1 The United States Treasury Is full of gold. This sounds nice, and many a man will devise some scheme to rid the Gov ernment of the surplus. University of Washington defeated Pullman, 1G-0; Whitman defeated Idaho; 16-0; Multnomah defeated Oregon, 16-0. Good heavens, this looks like a suite of 16. Twelfth street witnesses a sight almost forgotten now. At nightfall the agile lamp-lighter makes his rounds, and the small boy gibbers at the foot of the lad der. Thus history repeats itself. A small boy, who lives at Spokane, had been accustomed to visiting the station and making friends with the railroad men, says the Northwest Magazine. He per suaded his aunt to play train with hlxn the other day. He arranged the chairs In a line," and then said: 'Now. you be the engineer and I'll be the conductor Lend me your watch and get up Into your cab." He then hurried down the platform, timepiece in hand. "Pull out, you red-headed, pie-faced Jay," he shouted to the astonished youns woman. "Why, Willie!" she exclaimed in aston ishment. "That's right, chew the rag." he retort er. "Pull out We are five minutes late already. That boy is not allowed to fraternize with railroad men any more. Olcf-timers are reminded of a story about Stuart Robson and they tell It with great gusto as an instance of the famous actor's whimsical Rumor. It seems that Mr. Robson. In the. days of his youth, wos in the same company with Forrest. The latter had a voice renowned for its deper volumes and he was also a man of uncertain temper. In a play, Rich ard III, according to the story, Mr. Rob-son's-work did not please the star. One night Forrest burst out at Robson and, after reciting his lines as he, Forrest, thought they ran, cried in tones of roll ing thunder, "Mr. Robson, why don't you use a deep and manly tone, sir?" There was an instant's silence as the reverbera tions died away and then Stuart Robson piped forth in his Inimitable tenor, "Well, sir, how can I on $15 a week?' One of the most amusing occasions on which a Turk tried to conform to Euro pean customs without quite knowing what they meant happened when Baron Hauss mann came to Constantinople on a visit to Abdul Aziz, the then Sultan. One day Baron Haussmann had an Interview with the Grand Vizier, who did not know a word of French. At the beginning of the Interview the old Turkish pipes were brougnt In, and then Baron Haussmann began making a very long speech in French. The Grand Vizier could not un derstand a word, but listened most at tentively till he noticed that his pipe had gone out, and clapped his handsfor a servant to come and relight it Hauss mann, thinking he was applauding, rushed toward him with outstretched hand, in tending to shake hands and thank him. The Grand Vizier, seeing his hand put forth, shook it warmly and said, "Good bye," under the impreission It was Hauss mann's intention to leave, and quitted the room. There lived once upon a time a small boy whose great delght was whistling shrilly everywhere he went. Now it came to pass that his mother, a good woman and devoted to propriety, was seriously wroth at her son's propensity for whis tling. Therefore she chastised him and. told him to be good. He pursued the path of virtue for some days till his spirits got the better of him and he again vented shrill whistles. Now his mother called him to her knee and said. "Thomas, the minister ccmeth to dine; beware lest I catch thee whistling as do the heathen who live. In alleys." Thomas, her son. be took himself to the backyard and there pondered over his mother's commands. And as he pondered he saw above him the green fruit of the persimmon and be ing witless he took thereof nnd ate. In his despair he went then to his mother In the house, and when she saw his lips she seized him by the slack of hte coat, and said, "Thomns. don't you dare whistle." "Whistle!" hissed the boy, "I ain't trying to whistle; I am plzened!" Sir Charles Wyndham's famous alterca tion with "the man in the white hat" over the merits of a new play was a mere tri fle in comparison with the debate and division at a recent first night In an Aus tralian theater. In the middle of the third act a gentleman arose in the front row of the gallery nnd remarket!: "Thia is a bad play, and the acting Is even worse than the play." The leading actor came to the footlights an- retorted: "You've no right to Interrupt If you don't like It go outside." "Excuse me," re joined the malcontent, "I have the right to criticise what I have paid for. If I buy a pound of butter and find It bad I say so. I have bought a shilling's worth of this show, and It is an imposition. I want my money back." At this point a stalwart attendant interposed. Clawing, unparlia mentary language and smashing of furnl-" ture ensued. Eventually the champion of playgoers' rights emerged triumphant from the fray. Holding a shilling on higm he exclaimed: "It's all right; I've got my money back. The play can now pro; ceed." PLEASANTRIES OF PARAGRAPHERS. "I'm so glad to see you." she exclaimed. "Have you been In New York Ions?" "No, I still have a dollar and a half left." Chicago Record-Herald. "Old Gotrox says it was not long ago that be was very poor Indeed." "Yes; the last time the tax assessor was around." Cincinnati Commercial-Tribune. Wright Does writing pay? Penman I be gan to think It does not. I have written to a do:en friends to borrow $5, and I haven't got a cent. Yonkers Statesman. Mrs. Waggs I understand that drinking Is one of your husband's fallings. Mrs. Jaggs You have been misinformed. It Is his most pronounced success. Chicago Dally News. In South America. Tourist You certainly do have a great many Insurrections. Native Yes; our Insurrections are as frequent as your strikes, but fortunately, not as serious. Puck. "She's jest a-breakln that poor boy's heart!" "Why what's she been a-doln now?" "Went to the hog-klllin' with another feller, an now she's refused to be his company to the hangln' !" Atlanta Constitution. Maud Belle said the other day when she saw you trying to get up such a desperate flirtation with Youngrox she could hardly keep her countenance. Maym She wouldn't If she could help herself. Baltimore American. "I wish I belonged to a golf club." t "It isn't necessary-" "It Isn't?" "Oh, no. Just walk five miles In leisurely fashion and every 20 or 30 yards hit the pavement a hard whack with, your cana and swear." Chicago Evening Post