THE MORNING OREGONrAN, SATURDAY, "MARCH 12 1504.
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TOBTXAND, SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 1204.
THE PROTEST OF IGNORANCE.
The protest of United States Senator
Bacon against the acceptance of the
statue of Frederick the Great, tendered
by Emperor William, on the ground
that the great Prussian King "was not
In sympathy with American Institu
tions," is utterly absurd. The statue
is to stand in the grounds of the War
College, with other statues of famous
soldiers, among whom President Roose
velt has suggested that of Hannibal,
whom Napoleon at St. Helena named as
the greatest soldier of antiquity. Na
poleon at the same time described Fred
erick the Great as the greatest 30ldler
of modern Europe, saying that his vic
tory of Leuthcn, where with only 30.000
men he completely defeated 80,000 Aus
trians, placed Frederick In the first
rank of great soldiers. Among other
statues It is suggested that those of
Gustavus Adolphus. of Sweden: Tur-
enne. and perhaps that of Wellington
or Marlborough, might be placed ih the
War College grounds. It is clear that
the acceptance of the statue of Freder
ick the Great no more implies our sym
pathy with his absolutism than the
presence of a statue of Alexander ' or
Caesar would American sympathy with
their modes of government.
Frederick's statue is simply offered tor
us by Emperor William as the statue
of a very great soldier, and from the
Prusisan standpoint a man of heroic
patriotism, who successfully defended
bis country for seven years against the
combined invasion of Austria, France,
Russia and Sweden. Frederick is one of
the most illustrious names in the his
tory of the evolution of the art of war.
Themilitary text-books describe Epam-
inondas, the famous Greek. General,
who fell In battle at Mantinea, 362 B.
C, as the founder of modern strategy
and battle tactics; that Is, he made war
a matter of scientific skill and brains
in the movement and formation of
troops, intsead of being won by mere
weight of numbers and ferocity of
fighting. The tactics of Alexander were
doubtless based upon the fundamental
principles of Epaminondas, by which
Avar was made an art through which a
comparatively small number of highly
trained soldiers were enabled through
tactical skill to defeat vast masses of
gallant but untrained men. The Greeks
had discipline and an inferior kind of
battle tactics before the days
Epaminondas, as is shown by the vic
tories of Marathon and Plataea and the
famous "retreat of the ten thousand,"
but Epaminondas was the first General
of antiquity to so enlarge and improve
the science of war In the matter of
strategy and tactics that he was able to
defeat Sparta, the military state of
Greece, with the Thebiuis whom the
Snartansi had hold in nnntomnr
Epaminondas is therefore held to be
the great fundamental thinker and re
former in the art of war In ancient
times. He was a revolutionary thinker
and executive, and, outside of the use
he made of the Macedonian phalanx,
Alexander's fundamental tactics were
those of Epaminondas. Napoleon
deemed Hannibal the greatest military
thinker and executive after Epaminon
das because he took the most worthless
raw material, men of all races, colors
and religions, mere mercenaries, and by
drill and discipline set them up into
soldiers with which he was able to whip
the best-drilled and disciplined troops
of the ancient world, even as Epami
nondas had set up his Thebans into an
army that were able to defeat the Spar
tans, whose sole business in life was
military training and the pursuit of
war. Coming down to the history of
modern Europe, Napoleon ranked the
great soldiers of history by the difficul-.
ties they had to overcome in point of
numbers" and the ability of the enemy's
leader, and, measured by this test. Na
poleon deemed Frederick the greatest
soldier of modern history.
Gustavus Adolphus was a great sol
dier, who made memorable changes in
tactics, as Maurice of Nassau had be
fore him; Cromwell was never beaten
in battle; neither was Marlborough; but
they made no changes In the art of war,
while Frederick was not only a great
soldier in the sense of military leader
ship against overpowering numbers.
but he reformed and changed the battle
tactics of his 'day so that they were
accepted as the standard tactics by all
the great military nations of Europe
until Napoleon's day, and Napoleon's
most Important change consisted In his
concentration of artillery fire at the
critical points of attack. Frederick
seems to have made as admirable use
of his cavalry under Seydlitz as Napo
leon did of his cuirassiers under Murat;
but in the rapid assembling' of his ar-
tlllery and concentration of Its nfe at a.
- critical point, as at ITrlediana against
the Russians, Napoleon expanded the
art o beyond limits of Freder
ick. Maep-ulav. In his estimate of Fred.
,,, ,tv ? v. nnhto1 -urhother
I CltV-A, UUlliU IbUlttJ JW " 1 " w w
U.T" v "
cai, Caesar or isapoieon wm uear cum-
parison with what Frederick did during
the last months of 1757.
in the middle of June 'of that year he
teen fearful defeated at xoim by;
the Austrians under Marshal Daun; his
- n.,. - !, all!pg defend hv the
r " , , " 7 C7- ,7 ,
French, and In isovember his canital
i T a ai -r
ivjuj xii Lue juiuua ui me -n.usciiiJ.uB. xii
iiixri uxo lie eA.Lijuiii.eu iiiiiiaeji. xae
defeated the French at Rosbach. thouch
.. W!,o nnhmmhoroH -t-n-r. tn nna TTo
. . nn 1.
. .
and defeated tnem at Leuthen a month
after Rosbach, with 40,000 men. This
was the battle that NaDoleon called a
nnctomluu - It- a nAtr tVio nrniidsct
,, . - . .
"""lc l"c Jrluoa"1'1 At""cl
, "l 141 13 ". "l
worm s greatest men in tne neic. oi war.
a man who is described as an example
unrivaled In history Of What capacity
an(j resolution can effect against the
.o- ....i -,- thev
utmost spite oi ioriune, is iu ue re
jected on the plea that he was not in
sympathy" with American Institutions."
His stitue is only offered and accepted
t r ooitio -l.t oo tVinf
. ' tt't , , . ,
of Goethe, or Schiller, or Wagner, might
be offered as great names in art. uen-
tral Park, In New York, the people's
nark Is full of statues of eminent men
TrhQ had no sympathy with )Ur lnstitu
x, , ,- ,
ISr bCOlt.
X'UBSUEB Bi rAiis,
The most melancholy aspect of the
- Rrtetnw rpnort and its Incident debate
in the House is the extremity in which
" PUIS tne oemocraiic party. xn true
and rlgnttui auty or every nign-minaea
and conscientious Democrat (we under-
-tnnH thpro !in no nthorst Is to find out
.n. ponMlwln ,a nintr nr.
lltl,uUn, " - o "
will be compelled to ao ana espouse its
opposite. It Is according to this rule
that Democrats who were for Panama
when the Administration seemed com
mltted to Nicaragua became Nicaragua
partisans as soon as . the Administra
tion took up Panama. It is according
to this rule that Democrats abandoned
their trad-ltional stand for honest money
and their traditional policy of expan
slon as soon as honest money became
Republican doctrine and expansion was
Intrusted. to Republican hands
But on the postal inquiry the country
is In Imminent peril of never finding
out the true Democratic view of the
Erlstow report When numbers of the
leading Republicans in the House arise
to hurl Invectives at anything, It must
be Inexpressibly painful for Democratic
members to sit stllr and not respond in
enthusiastic praise of that very thing.
The Republican rage is due, they are
sure, to Infamous motives which every
true man must denounce. But In this
case to defend the Bristow report.
which Is the object of Republican rage,
would only be to indorse the operations
of a Republican Cabinet officer and in
cidentally the Republican Adminlstra
tion. Hence there Is presented the de
pressing spectacle of Democrats unablo
to rebuke either the atrocity of Repub-
lican investigations or the nefarious-
ness of the Republicans accused. This
is a claim on sympathy which must
'break even the bounds of sedate and
circumspect neutrality.
Another moral of this episode is the
obligation put upon those severely -crit
ical organs of public opinion that have
been moved to anticipatory condemna
tion of the laxity of the Postoffice De
partment's investigation. Where are
the strings of Republican trepidation
and conscious guilt that so strongly
bound Messrs. Conrad and Bonaparte
and fairly strangled Mr. Bristow?
Where those restrictions Avlth which
the cowardly Payne was to encumber
the inquiry Itself and the subsequent
report? Where the signs of weakness
which President Roosevelt himself was
to manifest as soon as the Investigators
began to get busy? None of these, alas,
seenj to be In evidence; and yet there Is
no E'lgn that any of these hostile critics
have seen the error of their predictions
and now will acknowledge the injustice
of the charge. Will any of them say
that Roosevelt. Payne and the rest
were falsely suspectear iNot tney.
New insinuations and prophecies of evil
claim their attention.
AMERICAN WHEAT RESERVES.
The Bureau of Statistics of the De
partment of Agriculture In Its March
report places the amount of wheat re
malnlng in farmers' hands on March 1
at 132,600,000 bushels, or about 21 per
cent of the crop of 1903, compared with
2VA per cent of the previous crop in
farmers' hands on a corresponding date
last year. Comparatively speaking,
these figures might seem bullish when
they are considered along with those
.of last year, but an analysis of the sit-
uatlon nas a tenaency to exiraui sujuc
of tne strengtn wnicn tney wuum seen.
to indicate. The figures of the Agricul
tural Department cannot always be re
lied on, but in this case, by taking the
figures on the crop at the department's
estimate of 63S,000,000 bushels and their
figures on reserves at 132,600,000 bushels.
the effect of any discrepancy on the
situation as a whole would be nullified.
Assuming these figures on reserves
In farmers' hands to be correct, it is
annarent that there Is an "Invisible
supply" of wheat of pretty good pro
portions somewhere in the country
The exports, flour included, to March 1
were 100,000,000 bushels. The consump
tion at the rate of five bushels per cap
ita, which Is slightly higher than the
ratio used by the Government, would
account for a total for the eight months
since the opening of the cereal season
or 266,400,000 bushels. The visible sup
ply last Monday was reported at slight
ly under 35,000,000 bushels, making a
total. Including stocks reported In farm
ers' hands, already accounted for of
534,000,000 bushels. As the crop of 1903
was 638,000,000 bushels, there is appar
ently an Invisible supply, exclusive of a
carry-over from the previous season, of
104,000,000 bushels. This amount, to
gether with the visible supply of 35,000,
000 bushels and the 132,600,000 bushels
reported In farmers' hands, show
stocks on March 1 to be 270,000,000 bush
els. From these stocks home consump
tion will require 133,000,000 bushels, and
Spring seeding approximately 20,000.000
bushels, leavltifc a total for shipment
to July 1, exclusive of former carry
over stocks, of 117,600,000 bushels.
If shipments should continue for the
remainder of the season at the same
ratio as for the eight months prior to
March 1, 50,000,000 bushels more will go
out as wheat and flour, leaving a total
of 67,000,000 bushels in addition to the
carry-over from 1902, which will be on
hand. This amount will be on hand
July L and by that time new wheat
from the south and southwest will al
ready be pouring-into the. primary mar
kets Ih a pretty good stream. In the
face of these figures, which are believed
to be approximately correct, It would
seem that the chances for any further
advance of consequence under existing
circumstances must be accomplished al
most exclusively by manipulation. For
such manipulation the" May option" In
Chicago offers the most alluring Induce
ments, and with a rampant bullish feel
ing 1 pervading the country. Inducing
farmers to hold for Letter prices, it Is
not Improbable that a corner could be
worked In 3Iay.
Beyond that month the outlook is less
promising, and if the American crop for
1904 maintains its good condition the
foreigners who are at present dumping
their cheap wheat on the. Liverpool
market will have their judgment vindi
cated by lower prices abroad. In this
connection the fact should not be lost
sight of that the American markets are
still several cents above the Liverpool
parity, and that we must eventually
seek a market with the Europeans for
some of our "wheat. If It Is not sold In
the remaining few months of the cur
rent cereal year. It will drag over Into
next season, and go foreign with the
1904 crop, whlch just at present prom
ises to be sufficiently large for the good
of prices, without any added weight be
. ing placed on It. .
ON FAMILIAR GROUND.
Evidence that the Japanese military
movements are proceeding largely on
the lines so signally successful in 1894"
gives the campaign in Manchuria most
Impressive and significant Interest.
"Prussian precision" was the admiring
comment of the London Spectator in
1894, on the Japanese movements in
their war with China, It may be added
that "Irish dash" was joined to "Prus
sian precision" when the occasion de
manded. The Japanese swept through
Corea and southeastern Manchuria in
1894, and they are therefore campaign
ing over familiar ground in their pres
ent war. The advantage of exact ana
personal knowledge of the topography
Is immense, and to this Is added the
Inspiration of former victories on tie
same ground.
The conditions that confronted Japan
In her war with .China were much the
same as those that confront her today.
China had more troops and had open
land communications. Japan was able
to land her troops from transports
practically without Interruption. The
Japanese Invasion of Corea was care
fully planned, and the programme, to
use a familiar phrase, was carried out
without a hitch. Troops were poured
into the country, and the Chinese fell
back upon the fortified city of Ping
Tang. The Japanese advanced 4ipon
the place, and on the night of Septem
ber 15 carried it by assault. Three col
umns attacked at the same moment.
one of them crossing a pass so narrow
that the men had to march several
miles In single file. Three weeks later
the Japanese captured Wlju, on the
Corean side of the Yalu. They met
with little resistance in crossing the
river, and then marched northwest
upon Mukden. In the present Instance
the Japanese' have occupied Ping Tang
without having to fight. They are now
evidently preparing for an advance
over" the road they traversed In 1891,
The Russians are said to be in force
along the Manchurlan side of the Talu,
and along 'the railway from Mukden to
Liao-Tang. The railway runs, roughly
speaking, south from Mukden to
Llao Tang, and the Talu River is al
most parallel, 150 miles to the east. The
Chinese in 1894 occupied almost ex
actly the' same positions as the Rus
slans, and the Japanese drove them
back steadily by a straightforward
movement. In the present case the
Japanese seem to have prepared a sur
prise for the Russians, for the latest
dispatches report a Japanese force at
Fengwangcheng, which lies between the
Talu and the railroad.
The town is situated on the best
road that passes through the- Corean
frontier, so that the Japanese have an
easy march to Antung, at the mouth
of the Talu. The - advanced Russian
force is thus placed between two fires.
Reports concerning the Japanese troops
at this point, however, are contradic
tory, and it has not been revealed
whether Fengwangcheng has been oc
cupied in force or not. It is improbable
that the Russians would abandon such
an Important strategic point without a
fierce struggle.
In the war of 1894 a second Japanese
force was landed west of the Llao
Tung Peninsula. This body, under
General Oyama, marched down the
peninsula upon Port Arthur, which was
captured by assault. While nothirfg
has escaped the Japanese censorship
that throws any light on their plan of
campaign, it is evident that they are
repeating their forward movement in
Corea, and have probably landed troop:
at the base of the Llao Tung Peninsula,
either to take the Russians along the
Talu in the rear or to isolate For
Arthur.
M'BRIDE ON DANGEROUS GROUND.
The signal failure of the McBride
forces to beat Ballinger, the Republi
can candidate for Mayor of Seattle, to
gether -with Campbell's two-to-one vie
tory In the Tacoma primaries, and the
defeat of the McBride two-convention
plan, seemingly show that the power of
the chief of the anti-railroad forces in
Washington is waning. These humill
atlng defeats, following so closely on
each other, would indicate that the
Washlngtonlans are losing their confi
dence in the chief executive and his
policies; Mayor Campbell, of Tacoma,
will undoubtedly be subjected to the
same kind of knifing that the McBride
Preston men gave Mayor Ballinger, of
Seattle; but. even should they be more
successful In Campbell's case, "this will
not improve the Governor's chances
for re-election.
It has been pretty thoroughly demon
strated that all anti-railroad men are
not McBride men a fact that was no
ticeable though unheeded at the state
convention at Tacoma two years ago,
when the McBride commission plan!
was Inserted In the party platform
much against the wishes of a number
of anti-railroad men. Harold Preston
was defeated for United States Senator
because he linked his political fortunes
with McBride arid stood on an' anti
railroad platform while posing as
Senatorial candidate from a city and
county which may be said to owe its
very existence, to the railroads which
both Preston and McBride were so sav
agely fighting. His attitude brought no
strength to the McBride commission
bill, and the McBride aid. to Preston
alienated other and more valuable as
slstance from the railroad faction.
The State of Washington occupies
unique position in political history In
the West, tor the reason that such
large share of Its development and
prosperity is directly, traceable to rail
road enterprise arid activity. The fact
that the railroads have profited largely
themselves as a result of this enterprise
does not lessen the friendliness which Is
felt for them by some of the largest
commercial interests In the state. Rail
road influence was pouring thousands
of settlers into Washington years be
fore It could be enlisted in behalf of
Oregon. Railroad Influence established
from a Wasihngton port the first per
manent steamship line to the Orient
north of San Francisco, and railroad
influence gave Washington lumbermen
access to the Eastern markets years
before the Oregon mills were granted a
rate which would admit them to the
new markets beyond the Rockies.
This -explains why practically all of
Western Washington does not take
kindly to any serious fight against the
railroads and why practically every
anti-railroad measure that came before
the last Washington legislature was
killed. In Eastern Washington, where
the railroads have been less fair in
their treatment of the people, there Is
strong anti-railroad sentiment; but.
as' was shown at the last state conven
tion, antl-rallroad sentiment does not
necessarily mean McBride sentiment.
McBride had previously .fought against
railroad commission bill that placed
the appointing power in. the hands of
Governor Rogers, and some of the anti-
railroad people of today will fight
against a bill that will place similar
power In the hands of Governor Mc
Bride. The defeatof Ballinger at Se
attle would have been a victory of far
reaching importance for the McBride
faction, for it would have rallied to
their forces the wavering contingent
that is ever ready to drift to the vic
tors. By falling to defeat him the Mc-
Bride-Preston combination has dis
played a weakness which will render it
ery difficult for the Governor again
to make as good a showing of power as
he displayed when he forced his cele
brated commission plank In the last
Washington state platform.
As to the effect of the knifing done
Ballinger by Preston, the latter gentle
man could probably make a very accu
rate forecast. The Preston Influence
knifed John Wooding In the south dis
trict in King County two years ago,
thereby electing a Democrat. To even
up the score the south district mem
bers of the Legislature failed to line up
for Preston fcr Senator. Now Preston
is credited with some more knifing, all
of which is water on the Democratic
wheel, but which will bring Preston no
nearer to the United States Senate, and
may prevent Governor McBrlde's con
tinuance in. office.
The battleship Iowa recently blew off
the muzzles of two of her guns while
engaged in target practice. The public
would have passed this mishap, as it
has passed others of the. same kind,
both on the Iowa and other ships, as a
fnatter of course, but for the fact, as
brought out by the Army and Navy-
Journal, that the Iowa's guns were built
out of forgings which had been rejected
by three boards of officers after careful
examinations. This Is the second time
that the Iowa's guns have been crip
pled In a way that in a naval engage'
ment would have been fatal to the fur
ther effectiveness of the ship, and yet
they are practically new, having never
been fired in war except a few times
In the battle of Santiago. The disclos
ure in regard to the material used In
their construction brings out several
interesting and important questions
Are there any more such guns on our
battleships? Has it been the custom
to pass material over the judgment of
ordnance officers? If so, from whom
does the push or pull that makes this
possible come? If this statement is
true: It is clear that some one in au
thorit'y has perpetrated a swindle upon
the Government The Army and Navy-
Journal speaks further of "depression
among both officers and men who have
to deal with the big guns of the Navy."
This depression is easily accounted for,
since no one can tell when a gun made
of "condemned material" may blow Its
muzzle off In target practice. An an
swer to the above questions Is Impera
tive, especially since it is proposed to
snend a larae amount next year for
naval construction.
The swelling floods that are now tuirii
bling seaward from all over the Pa
cific Northwest emphasize the neces
slty for some storage system which will
prevent this waste of water. Not only
does.it spread havoc in its path, as it
races seaward, but it robs the soil ot
that in which it will stand in great need
before the "Fall rains" are with us
again. The removal of timber wnicn
formerly sheltered deep ravines in
whieh snow remained nearly all Sum
mer has been a great contributing fac
tor in causing these Spring floods, and
in many localities where this natural
protection has been removed something
should be done to remedy the damage,
The vast arid plains east of the Cascade
Mountains are rich in agricultural pos
slbilities If water could only be secured
for them, and If the water which
now rushing to the ocean could be only
partially controlled or stored it would
add millions to the wealth of the state.
This Is a matter which some day will
become o'f very grave concern, and a
satisfactory solution of. the problem will
be of inestimable value to the entire
Pacific Northwest.
A correspondent of the New Tork Sun
holds that the larger number of cases
of grip, colds and pneumonia are to
large extent caused by excessively
heated rooms and offices. Steam and
hot air do the fatal work. This corre
spondent thinks that heat give's life to
the germs of ' grip, 'diphtheria and
pulmonary diseases. The percentage of
disease whs far less in the old-fashioned
houses with open grate fires. He
concludes by saying: "Just so long as
we live In superheated rooms, so long
we shall be laid up as we are with all
sorts of lung and throat troubles." In
our judgment. If floors were, bare, as
they are in hospitals, of carpets in both
rooms and corridors, there would be far
less throat diseases.
"Regular" Republicans - and "Inde
pendent" Republicans are' advertising
their own respective merits In the col
umns of this newspaper. It Is due to
the public to announce that such ad
vertisements are paid for at full space
rates, and that they can be readily
distinguished from true news articles
by the appended name of each Repub
lican, contingent- .
A native paper is authority for the
statement that China's population, as
calculated during the last imperial cen
sus, Is 425,447,325. Of this enormous
total the Chinese provinces- proper had
a population of 407,737,305; Manchuria,
8,500.t)00; Mongolia, 3,354,000; Thibet,
1 6,430,000, and Cbjnewi Turkestan, 426,000.
ONE REPUBLICAN DANGER.
St Paul Pioneer Press.
The only possible danger to the pros
pect of continued Republican ascendency
In the executive and legislative depart
ments of the Government lies In the atti- j
tude of the Republican "stand-patters" in I
Congress, who would postpone the slight
est concessions In the way of tariff revi
sion or reciprocity "until after election;" j
when, they anticipate, they may without
danger flatly refuse any concessions what
ever. As says the Independent:
Here is the most inviting field for Demo
cratic effort. With the slight but quite per
ceptible decline from a period ot boisterous
speculative prosperity these questions now
attract the attention ot thoughtful men. The
cost of living is .high, but wages are no
longer rising. In some industries they have
fallen. Great combinations that keep prices
high at home and sell at much, lower prices
abroad are nowobjects of popular enmity
and attack. There Is a growing demand
for a revision of that tariff which enables
them thus to discriminate against those who
gave them highly profitable protection.
Up to the present time the new publicity
laws aimed at great manufacturing corpora
tions have been of no account. Mr. Roose-
elfs suit against the railroad merger com
mends to the public his courage and fidelity.
but the masses desire that manufacturing
combinations shall be subjected to restraint
The president's argument that small com
petitors of great combinations wouia De
ruined, on would suffer moro than the com
binations themselves, by a reduction of tariff
duties affecting-the products is not generally
approved. Upon various phases ot tnese
questions concerning the tariff and what are
commonly called tho trusts the Democratic
party, wisely led. could make a very formida
ble campaign. The result oi it coum uui u
clearly foreseen.
The "stand-nat" element in the Repub
lican party no doubt contains a great
number of sincere admirers oi .rresiaeni.
Roosevelt They think that nothing more
than his renomlnatlon is needed to enable
them to meet successfully any such Dem
ocratic attack as that Indicated by tne
Indeiiendent Quite likely, this is true,
so far as the Presidency is concerned. But
the House of Representatives is also at
stake. Concressmen will find their con
stituents Inclined to make tariff revision-
after the manner of General HancocK
very much a "local Issue." Communities
whose industries have been blighted, busi
ness then who have found' the doors of op
portunity closed against them, citizens
whose incomes have failed to afford the
wonted comfortable existence, through
the operations of the trusts, may feel in
clined to vote against the "stand-pat"
Congressmen at the same time that they
vote for President Roosevelt because
whatever errors of concession he may
have made to the ultra tariff element of
his party for the sake of harmony they
believe him the right man in the right
place.
The extortions of the meat trust, the
paper trust, and of the score or more
other "bad" trusts, have been so fully ex
posed, that a failure by Congress to with
draw whatever support these have in the
tariff may be taken by the people as a
dereliction in duty; as stamping with in
sincerity the pronouncements of Republi
can platforms against trust domination
and as weakening the whole argument for
protection. The -protection sentiment of
the country Is strong, but It is not strong
enough to supoort monstrous abuses of
the ordinarily beneficent protective prln
clple.
Reciprocity with Canada, too a thing
which the stand-patters would deny along
with all other legislation touching in any
way the fetich of the Dlngley tariff 13
something which has commended Itself
so strongly to popular approval especially
In tne states along the border, from Maine
to Washington that It Is apt to have no
little Influence on the vote for Congress
men.
It will require a change of onlv 16 votes
to transfer the control of the House of
Representatives to the Democratic Dartv.
The margin is small enough to give a great
deal or emphasis to the warning of. the
Independent that upon these Questions
the Democratic -party may make- "a very
formidable weakness." The weakness ot
any Presidential candidate likely to be put
lorwara Dy tnat party would onlyl mod
erately affect the voting on Congressional
candidates.
Is Free Trade, at Hand?
New York Times.
Spring comes slowly up this way,
dui iree trade, we judge, Is almost
upon us. We are forced to this alarm
ing conclusion by perusal of the col
umns of our contemporary, the Ameri
can Economist, which Is the organ of
ine American protective Tariff League
-ine leading article in the current is
sue of the Economist is entitled "The
uest Editorial Brains." The Econo
mist has them. Some of the mightiest
protectionist intellects in this Renub
lie are enlisted in the' service of that
paper. Its editors are devoted to the
cause they espouse. They burn with
rervent loyalty to the principle of
high and higher duties on imnorts.
They know the whole range ot pro-
Lecuunisi argument, syllogism, sug
gestion ana demonstration. In contro
versy with free traders they are in
vulnerable, and in the Dingley tackle
altogether irresistible. Yet they con
tent themselves and evidently hope
to content their readers with such ar
guments as this, which was evoked
we admit It with pain and humiliation
by an attempt of the Times to
prove Senator Lodge for saying that
the panic ot 18!J3 was due to the Wil
son tariff Dill:
The people of the United States are not to
be fooled by subterfuge or evasion. They know
perfectly well that the panic of 1803 was
caused by the election of a free-trade Admin
lstration, and Congress pledged to repeal the
ilcKlnley tariff. They know, moreover, that
the effects and the duration of the panic of
1883 were greatly Increased by the passage
and operatlono ot the Wilson-Gorman tariff.
How well they knew these things was shown
by the election of William ilcKinley.In 1800
and again In 1000.
A gem like that should have its
mate. He It is, taken from the same
number of the Economist:
Although the population of Great Britain has
lncreaeed largely in the last 30 years, yet eie
sells about $110,000,000 worth of goods a year
leas to foreign countries than she did 30 years
ago. while her Imports have Increased In the
same period more than $800,000,000 a year.
which Is nearly a -net loss ot $1,000,000,000
year, or ?1C5 for each adult male In England,
Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
A failing cause is usually supported
by the worst arguments. It would
tax the Ingenuity of the most malig
nant member of the Cobden Club to
devise worse arguments for the cause
of protection than are here put for
ward by Its chief organ.
Most Steel In Pens.
New York Press.
The latest figures show that more steel
Is used in the manufacture of pens than
In all the sword and gun factories In the
world. The first steel pen was made just
JW years ago. A. single firm today manu
factures axj,ouo,X) annually, using seven
and one-half tons of fine sheet steel each
week, or 78,000,000 pounds in a year.
Proud Malsle.
Sir Walter Scott.
Proud Malsle Is in the wood,
Walking so early;
Sweet Robin sits on the bush.
Singing so rarely.
"Tell me, thou bonny bird.
When shall I marry -aer.
"Wheh six braw gentlemen
Kirkward shall carry ye."
"Who makes the bridal bed,
f Birdie, say truly?"
"The "gray-headed sexton
That -delves the grave duly.
"The glowworm o'er grave and stoae
Shall light thee steady;
The owl from the steeple sing,
Welcome, proud lady.' "
MR. WILLIAMS' TARIFF POEM.
Springfield Republican.
The solid men of Boston will read with
particular Interest what the Democratic
leader of the House said on Tuesday re
garding the speech of Senator Quarles, of
"Wisconsin, at their banquet December 10.
He had been called to the Hub to show
New England that the success of Cham
berlain's programme In England would do
us no barm. The statesman from "Wiscon
sin discharged this duty by telling some
good stories, and winding up with a stump
speech of the bounding Western sort It
was from this part of Senator Quarles
eloquence that Mr. Williams took the fol
lowing quotation:
Let no fear of foreign frowns, no temptation
experiment In the field of legislation, lead
surrender the greatest heritage of American
statesmanship that Is, protection. Did you
er think it every inhabitant of China should
place an order for one cotton shirt we haven't
mills enough to fill the order In a year?
Having secured this nugget and text
and It Is not unfairly taken, either Mr.
Williams continued:
Now. in connection with thla speech, I found
this morning the advance sheets ot a great
poetical epic a great Republican epic; and I
propose to read It to the House. This Is the
way It reads:
Senator Quarles went to Boston Town
(God. eave the Tariff)
With the bankers and merchants to sit him
down.
To feast and speak and win renown.
(Watch out for the Sacred Tariff.)
Senator Quarles rose up and spoke
(Heaven guard the Tariff.)
Said the Chamberlain scheme was a kind ot
Joke,
Which need not alarm the American folk
(So Ions as they loved the Tariff.)
He begged them remember the Chinaman
ohlrt
(Stand fast for the Tariff.)
And the trade of the Orient rich as dirt.
Which Chamberlain couldn't possibly hurt
(Bow low to the Golden Tariff.)
The greatest heritage," says he
(Glasses round to the Tariff.)
Of American statesmanship must be
Protection; on this we will all agree." '
(Hurrah for the Glorious Tariff.)
'In England," quoth Quarles, with 'a noble
scorn
(Three cheers for the Tariff.)
The staple food of the poor is corn.
We own It all. Just as sure as you're', born.'
(Thanks be to our Hallowed Tariff.)
On corn no Ministry duties dare lay"
(Here's to the Tariff.)
'So there'9 really no reason to feel dismay:
In fact- we should all of us grow very gay"
(If fizz wasn't taxed by the Tariff).
His well-bred hearers suppressed their grins
(Grins may be named In the Tariff.). .
In Boston bad manners are rated as oins;
Still, under the board, there was kicking of
shins.
('TIs -treason to kick on the Tariff.)
Thus Senator Quarles won a measureless fame.
(Sing heyj for the Tariff.)
And great is the glory attached to his name
For breaking un Chamberlain's bad little game
(By the aid of the Splendid Tariff.)
Fast and wide has the story spread
(Chant praise to the Tariff.)
How a Senator, learned and wise, has said
That the English use maize for their dally
bread.
(Shout, shout for a Higher Tariff.)
Then this epic at the close breaks Into an
anthem; It becomes a poem In rhythm as well
as In thought. These are the last lines: .
The Tariff, the Tariff, Inviolate, Grand;
It has saved from destruction our dear native
land;
It has summoned the sunshine, the rain and
the snow;
It has made the fields fruitful and caused
wheat to grow;
It has saved ua from bankruptcy, fighting and
snarls.
But the best ot its blessings Is Senator
Quarles!
Amid the shouts of laughter which
greeted the conclusion of this, Mr. Dalzell
earnestly asked whether "my friend from
Mississippi Is not the author of that
poem?"
"The man who wrote this poem," said
Mr. Williams, "has adopted a nom de
plume, and when the gentleman from
Pennsylvania hears that nom de plume he
will know that It cannot be L The nom
de plume Is 'Lusty Lyre.' " (Great laugh
ter.)
Japanese Partisanship Subsidy.
New York Tribune.
There Is, too, a change In view, and In
tone In this country- We do not mean
that those who at first sided with Japan
are going over to the Russian side, or that
the friends of Russia are now shouting
for Japan. What we do mean Is that
neither side is doing so much shouting,
but is doing more calm thinking, and that
all men are coming to see that this is no
war of ours, and therefore it is not one
for us to grow hot over or to take sides
in, but rather one for us to look upon
much as a peace-keeping man looks upon
n nunrrpl hptxrpn twn of hfa nalffhhnro
both of whom he regards as his friends
and wants to keep as his friends. Amedi
cans should remain Americans, and not
make themselves blind partisans of any
foreign country. Some may hope Japan
will win, and may thlnic It for the good
of the world that she should, but there Is
no reason why they should rave against
Russia as a despotic butcher. Some may-
hope Russia will win, and think it better
that she should; but they have no excuse
for shrieking that the Japanese are pagan
barbarians. Both Japan and Russia are
great civilized nations, with which we
have close diplomatic, commercial and
othed relations. Our duty Is to keep those
relations unimpaired, and so to act that
all through the war each of them will re
gard America as a friend, and will con
tlnue to do so after the war Is over, no
matter wnicn of them wins. Such views,
we believe, have been growing since the
outbreak of the war, and now nrevail
generally throughout the land. It. is to be
expected that they will be maintained to
the end.
How They Do It in England.
Case and Comment.
The simple, lucid style In which a law
yer may question a witness Is illustrated
by the following verbatim fragment from
tne isngiisn law courts, as reported by
the St James Gazette: KIng& Counsel
(examining witness) "Did you I know
you did not, but I am bound to put It to
you on the Z5th it was not the 25th real
ly; it was the 24th it is a mistake in my
brief see the defendant he is not the.
defendant really; he Is the plaintiff
there is a counter claim, but you would
not understand that yes or no?" Wit
ness "What!"
"Antls" Even Then.
New York Press.
The following lines were written
years ago by a resident of New York
The tide of immigration still flows fast;
Millions of souls remove their bodies cor
porate;
Columbia's shores will be o'errtocked at last,
And Yankees must support them by
pauper rate.
And we continue to oppose Immigration
Just as our grandfathers opposed it then
and impatiently await the day when
will otop of its own accord, which it Isn'
going to do.
Gold.
Thomas Hood.
Gold! Gold! Goldl Gold!
Bright and yellow, hard and cold.
Molten, graven, hammered, and rolled;
Heavy to get and light to hold;
Hoarded, bartered, bought arid sold,
Stolen, borrowed, squandered, doled;
Spurred by the young, but hugged by the old
To the very verge of the chuchyard, mould;
Price of many a crime untold.
Gold! Gold! Goldl Gold!
Good or bad a thousandfold!
How widely Its agencies vary" '
To eave to ruin to curse to blesaf.
As even its' minted colas exprefa.
Mow staand with the. Imace ot Good Queea
AAd sw JBkc4r X
NOTE AND X0MMENti4; i
One- Way to Health.
a .n,t. innoiimntlvp who came out tn
this country with but one' lung is. riqw
greatly improved In health, and-has three
lungs. He married the other two. For
syth (Mont) Times.
O Springfield, O.
"Only pretty Fanny's way," says'Ro3e-
bery of Balfour.
"War in the Eat" Is the heading over a
patent medicine ad.
There Is no truth In the report thatrthe
ew York Evening Post will, support
Hearst
Radium jumped $4,200,000 a pound In two
days. How the shorts must have been
squeezed!
Tillamook growls at being shut off from
the news. Some places don't know when
they're lucky.
How Is- it that a bottle of poison Is" al
ways kept on the same shelf as the medi
cine bottle? Albany supplies the1 latest
Instance.
An official is accused of selling French
naval secrets-to Japan. A far more sen
sible move would be for France to get
hold of some Japanese naval secrets.
There Is an old story about a. literary
woman who told her husband she was
going to attend a lecture on Keats. "Yes,"
replied hubby, "but tell me, what are
Keats?"
"Craps,'.' exclaimed Judge Sears. "What
are craps?"
Some thrifty inhabitant of Santo Domin
go proposes to dig up the bones of one
Christopher Columbus and exhibit them
at the St Louis- Exposition. As a con
sideration, this worthy 'Santo Dominican
expects a mere trifle of $100,000. St Louis
will want something more modern for such
a sum as that
J. J. Calvey, a clerk at the Auditorium Hotel,
found a purse containing almost $3000. and
when he returned it to Balnbrldge Colby, a
New York lawyer, he received a reward of $1.
"I think I'll send this on to the St. Louis
Exposition." said -the clerk, and held up the $1
bill. And an hour later It waa on the way to
St. Louis. Chicago Inter Ocean.
Virtue is its own, and often not its lone.
reward.
Eiwln Markham says that one of his
literary friends started a hennery last
Spring on Staten Island, according to the
New York Times. He didn't know a
thing about the business, but he set a
couple of hens and in good time had two
large broods of chickens. He was very
proud of them, but in a week or two they
began to- die. Then he called In a neigh
bor to look at them and to offer advice.
They wero skinny birds, apparently with
out ambition.
"What do you feed them on?" asked
the neighbor, after a brief survey. .
"Feed?" responded the novelist, as
though he didn't. hear aright "Why, I
don't feed them at all. I thought the
mother hens had enough milk for them."
A. H. B. sends a clipping from, the Peo
ple's Journal, a publication that cheers
the canny people of Aberdeen. The paper
has collected a number of "advertisement
ambiguities," part of the list fielng given
here:
Gentleman wants shooting.
Our pica cannot be approached..
Tea and coffee inside Mrs. Brown.
Wanted, -a horse to do the' work. ot a..country
minister. - . t ...
Wanted, an organist, and a lad to. plow the
same.
Bulldog for sale. Will eat anything i .very
fopd of ch"dren.
Inventor of new perambulator'"wi3hes to meet
financier to push same.
Annual sale now on. Don't go elsewhere' to
be cheated. Come in here.
Sixpence extra for admission to Gee the wild
beasts eating John Russell,- proprietor.
Gentlemen in the cabm are requested not to
use the seats until the ladles are seated.
Services on Sunday next at both west end
and east end chapels. Babies baptized at both
ends.
Wanted by a young woman, her passage to
South Africa. Willing to take care of children
and a good sailor.
A Chinaman, in intimating to his fellow-
clUzens In a Chinese city that he had started
business as a banker, hung out a sign with the
words, "European Loafer."
Our wide-awake British friends, say3
the Chicago Post, are felicitating them
selves on the appearance of a magazine
which Is called the Rapid Review, which
is descnoed as an anthology of periodical
literature with the purpose of giving
the reader a quick and authoritative. Im
pression of what is going on in the world.
It has seemed to us for some time that
a publication of this scope might in a
measure fill a long-felt want and we are
glad that these evidences of enterprise
are making themselves known. A few
weeks ago the musical editor of the Sat
urday Review contributed to his jpaper In
the form of an editorial from rans a
most exhaustive account of the pianola.
Its construction and purposes; thereby
enlightening the eager British public con
cerning the marvelous workings of this
wonderful instrument Now it would
seem that If affairs In the British Islands
have progressed to that stage where the
pianola Is the subject of interesting mag
azine discussion, It is nearly time for the
establishment of some such advanced
Journal as the Rapid Review. Ot course
the Review must not be too rapid; British
conservatism must draw the. line some
where. Still, It pleases us to. think that
our English cousins have at last obtained
a fair Idea of the planola,even-lf the news
came by way of Paris.
WEX. J.
OUT OF THE GINGER, JAR.
Mrs. Gudetblng-rl suppose most-of the pris
oners are brought here by bad company.
Guard Ob, awful, mum! They're usually ac
companied by a police captain or a ward, de
tectlye. Judge.
Editor of the Weekly Howl What on earth
is the trouble out there? Offlqe Boy WW.
there's a lot of married fellers wofs goln ter
kill you fer prlntln' an article about How to
Strengthen a Woman's Voice." Comic Cuts.
Tommy-Ma, what's a stepmother? Tommy's
Mamma-Why. if I ould die and father,
should marry again, the lady would -be- a step
mother. Toramy-Ob, i see. Yd stepdown
and out and se'd step ln.-Chlcago Dally
News.
Ethel Why were you In such a hurry
about proposing to Jack a Matud
Well you see I got a Up that.hls wealthy
aunt, who Is very sick, had-remembered him
ta herrtll to the extent of hall a million.
Chicago News.
Mm Brown How did you find out that Jones'
wife belongs to our sewing clrale? We
thoueht our membership list was a secreU
Brown-Easily enough. I've noticed that her
husband fastens bis suspenders with a string.
Chicago News.
The Circus Trust has decided to abolish
parades. The Feanut Trust' intends to raise
prices. And we'll laugh and call the next
Englishman a fod who cornea over here and
says the Americans dqn't enjoy themselves.
Kansas City World.
"Triplets," said Willie Wlnkletop 'with a
very knowing air. "always' coaie. to poor fami
lies. It's wbea God sends them a whole Hn
of. MJBPlea to pick from "a they hat
enough money to pay the epn?mn te take
two of 'em back."-Upgtaeo'