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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (April 15, 1905)
8 Entered at the Postofflce at Portland, Or., ax second-class matter. SUBSCRIPTION BATES. IN VAKIABIT IX ADVANCE. (By Mall or Express.) y-!1.. cnnigr -rear ........... $9.00 -r. II.. j fr .,.,,..- .(t- m nr. the ........ O.W JO-iiJ tfuu ou.uv, . Daily and Sunday, per month Dally without Sunday, per year... 7.SU Dally without Sunday, lx months.. .... .w TfK- nrithiMit sndav. threa' months..... l.w vuiiiv Trityinnt fiunflay. Tcr month...... .05 Sunday per year. 2.00 Sunday, three months... ' -0 BT CARRIER, nntitr m-itViont Sundav. ricr . week. ..... . .13 Dallv ner ceeli. Sunday Included.. .20 THB WEEKLY OREGONTAN; (Issued Every Thursday.) trw-- ner -veir l.W) Weekly, elx months '& "Weekly, three months 00 HOW TO RKMIT Send poetoKlce- money order, express order or personal check on your local tank. Stamps, coin or currency are at the sender's rielc EASTERN BUSINESS OFFICE. The S. C. Beclcwith. Special Agency New TorU; Rooms 43-50 Tribune building. Chi cago; Rooms 610-512 Tribune building. The Oregonlaa. does not buy poems or stories from Individuals and cannot under take to return any manuscript sent to It with ati niii.tatin "Vrw t2mT should be In closed for this purpose. KEPT ON SALE. Chlcaco Auditorium. Annex. Postofflce iCetre Co.. 178 Dearborn street. Dallas, Tex. Globe News Depot, 260 Main street. Denver Julius Black. Hamilton & Kend rick. 0D6-B12 Seventeenth Btreet, and Frue nuft Bros., 605 Sixteenth street. Des Moines, la. Moses Jacobs, 803 Fifth etreet. Goldfield. Ncr. C Malono. - Kansas City, Mo. Rlcksecker Cigar Co.. Ninth and TValnut. Los Anreles Harry Drapkln; B. E. Amos, fi14 West Seventh street. MfnneD0li- M. J. Kavanaugh. 50 South Third; I Regelsfcurger, 217 First avenue South- New Tork City L. Jones & Co., Astor House. nclcland. Cal. "W. H. Johnston. Four teenth and Franklin streets. Ogden T. R. Godarfl and. Meyers & Har ron: D. r. Boyle. Omaha Barkalow Bros., 1612 Farnham; Mageath Stationery Co.. 1308 Farnham; McLaughlin Bros.. 246 South 14th. Phoenix. Ariz. The Bcrryhlll News Co. Sacramento. Cal. Sacramento News Co., 429 X street. Salt Lake Salt Lake News Co., 77 "West Second street South. Santa Barbara, Cal. S. Smith. San DIeco. Cal. J. Dlllard. San Francisco J. X. Cooper & Co.. 746 Market street; Foster & Crear, Ferry News Stand: Goldsmith Bros., 236 Sutter; L. E. Lee, Palace Hotel News Stand; F. TV. Pitts, 1008 Market: Frank Ecott. 50 Ellis; 2i. Wheatley. S3 Stevenson; Hotel St. Francis News Stand. St. Louis. Mo. E. T. Jett Book. & News Company,-SOS Olive street. Washington. D. C. Ebblt House News Stand. PORTLAND. SATURDAY. APRIL 15, 1003. IS IT A QUESTION OF CONSCIENCE? A iriena asKs xne uregonian lor a statement of Its opinion on the question whether the American Board of Foreign Missions ought to nave accepted the Rockefeller money; and moreover its opinion on the debate that has been held on the subject in other words, which side, in its opinion, has had the better of it. "Taking the last part of this inquiry first, The Oregonian will only say ihat the debate has been an able one on both sides, has covered a wide range, in matters of a difficult and delicate kind in. high morals and con science wherein the lines are so close that there Is no sure guide for all, and each person therefore has a right to fol low his own judgment; which, again. depends on personal feeling and tern perament. It can only be said that the debate between the opposing forces s'hows an equal earnestness and conscl entiousness among them. But The Ore gonlan's own opinion is that they who urged acceptance of the money had the better of the argument; and, moreover. that it was proper to accept the money and to use it- Whatever may be said against Rocke feller's methods, it Is certain that he didn't accumulate all his wealth through unfair, oppressive or other questionable means. He has command of some honest money, certainly. But It Is not possible, nor is it necessary. to -enter into inquiry into the general tenor of his life. In order to ascertain and decide whether the money he may offer for a public purpose ought to be accepted, or not. If you go back to critical inquiry Into the origin of any of the great forces of government and society, you will undoubtedly find them "tainted" with wrongs. Is the British crown now immoral because of ancient usurpations? Would or should an of fering by Helen Gould be refused on the ground that her father got wealth by means that were as much criticised as those of Rockefeller and Carnegie at the present day? In this kind 'of goodness there Is nothing adaptable to present conditions, or to the moral requirements or tne present time, if captain Kldd's gold and sliver were discovered and of- fered for public purposes, religious or moral, what would these people do With It? Mr. Rockefeller and others like him roust settle their own account, at the bar of universal justice. Meanwhile, If uie oner mtmey mat can De used for purposes honorable and benevolent, why shouldn't it be accepted? It should be; yet the aebate. upon It hes had a good result, in that It has concentrated attention upon the evils of a system under which their wealth was accumu lated, and it will stimulate the general purpose to provide remedies. But there is some soul of goodness in ilngs evil; or It would not long be asslble for the human family or hu- th: possible for the human family or hu man. race to live in the world. This real goodness consists often and very large ly in turning evil things to good ef fects. Goodness itself, as the greatest of thinkers tells us, may "grow to a plurisy" that is, to excess, and "die in Its own too-much"." It will and does. whenever it stands so stiffly up that it refuses help from the ordinary forces of life and affairs; when it rejects the of ferings of the man who has cornered the oil or the flour market, or from the man who has accumulated a fortune by the manufacture and sale of beer. In The Oregonlan's humble opinion, this kind of goodness Is too severe and fan tastic for the practical uses of this world; and it has no doubt that this is and will be the general judgment of those who know that means practical and practicable must be employed in benevolent efforts for the human race. Practical religion and practical philan thropy must use the forces of the world they work in, or confess to failure. Should the offer of the contribution by a liquor-seller, or even by a gambler, for erection of a church or for endow ment of a hospital, in -Portland or else where, be rejected, or spurned? Would good morals require it? The Oregonian is of those -who think not. It cannot see that it is a question, of conscience at all. TROUBLESOME TO DEFINE. Mr. Parker wants a conservative Democracy.; Mr. Bryan "wants a radical Democracy. Both speak on "Jefferson day." Parker protests that the princi ples of the party cannot be "a collec tion of fads," and that property rights must be held inviolate. Government, In his opinion, should be restricted In its functions. And this is Jeffersonlan. Bryan Insists that the sphere of gov ernment should be extended and en larged, so as to embrace and Include whatever government can do for "the people." The earth, in his philosophy, belongs to each successive generation that inhabits it; the corollary of which is that no person should be permitted to take anything by inheritance, but that "the arth" "belongs to all equally. "A preceding generation has no right to mortgage the earth beyond its own occupancy of it"; which means that no debts " should be left for posterity to pay though posterity Is to have the benefits of the works for which the debts were created. Individuals have no just rights of property in "public utilities," and the state has no right to make debts for the next generation by Issue of bonds to "take over" these util ities. To do so Is to mortgage one gen eration to another. The functions of government must be extended and en larged, to meet these demands. This also is Jeffersonlan. (Meantime Attorney William T ravers Jerome, of New Tork, Democratic spellbinder, says the great Thomas Jef- ferson was a "faker." It isxa term of very wide meaning or application; and it would certainly fit Jefferson on sev eral sides of him. Meantime, further, no really adequate definition of Jeffer- eonlan Democracy is at this time avail able. HONEST CONTRACTORS AND THE CITV. The cheerful picture of delinquent contractors sitting around the City Hall, amiably listening to discussion of their shortcomings, is not the newest contribution to our municipal annals, Here is a paragraph from The Orego nian of yesterday: The contractors eat about the room with an Indifferent air, and answered, not when asked why they had not fulfilled their con tracts. BIchlll Bros, had several accepted streets upon their list, which they expected the money for. but. according to the note of the City Engineer, they were 270 days late In compleUng one piece of work. SO days late In another, and more than two months In one. Nlckum & Kelly were 123 days later than they agreed to be In completing street. M. J. Conley was more than 00 days too slow, and Gteblsch & Joplln took three months more time than allowed by their con tract to finish one street. R. J. Debuhr was aleo three months late. It Is hard foi contractors to under stand that the city is In earnest. For that matter, it Is hard for anybody to understand it. These gentlemen have long enjoyed Immunity from enforce ment of the ordinances. They have agreed to do whatever a punctilious City Engineer required In order to get the contract and have done just what they pleased In order to make the larg est possible profit. They have heard so much about penalties, and have learned so much more about how penalties are never enforced, that the word has -en tirely lost Its meaning. Hold up their pay? It never was done, and so it never will be done. Make them finish their streets or sewers or bridges on contract time? It Is a rash City Engi neer who defies the political pull of the contractors. They'll get his head. Re quire them to remove their litter from the public highways, or respect the In tegrlty of pavements? It is to laugh Call upon them to observe the provi sions of their contracts in any particu iarr numpn: city contracts were made to be violated, not observed'. But now we shall see about it. There is a City Engineer who means business. and .an Executive Board and a Mayor disposed to back hjm up. This City Engineer hasan old-fashioned notion that the city's affairs should be con ducted with strict regard to the rights of the taxpayer, and that the public treasury was made to be protected, not pillaged. If he has his way and there is every Inclination on part of the au thoritles to give it to him we shall have honest pavements, honest sewers and honest bridges, honestly paid for with honest money, to our very honest contractors. LXMJTATIO NS OF A MONOPOLY. Within the past thirty days Portland firms have chartered four extra steam ers to load flour at this port or Puget Sound for the Orient. The freight rate paid these steamers was $4 per ton. compared with $5 per ton charged by tne regular nners. xxcai miners as sart that it was imnosslble to sell the flour on a freight rate in excess of S4. This rate the regular lines refused" to grant, and business stood still until the exporters chartered the necessary steamers at a rate which the traffic would bear. This incident exposes the fallacy of an argument that is continu- I allv VkA?nf nut fnrtvnrrl hv th -rallrnnfl companies in defense of their attitude toward certain sections sadly in need of transportation faculties. There is only, a limited amount of traffic coming out of Central Oregon, the Wallowa country, the Clearwater and the Neha- Jem. for the simple reason that there are no facilities that will admit of any increase. It would cost 50 cents or more per bushel to get wheat from some of these Isolated localities to market; conse- quently no wheat Is available for ship- ment,'and, by the illogical railroad line of reasoning no railroads are necessary of reasoning, no railroads are necessarj because there Is no wheat. If the Pa cific Coast flour exporter were as thor oughly at the mercy of the transporta tion companies as the wheatgrovfer of Central Oregon, Wallowa or the Clear water, there would be no flour busi ness at this time. The regular lines of steamships have decreed that $5 Is the minimum rate, and buyers and sellers are unable to do any business at any thing in excess of a $4 rate. But the man. at tidewater Is in this case inde pendent of all transportation monopo lies. He can draw on the fleets of the seven seas " for tonnage, ana, witn a world's supply from which to select what he needs, the rate will always be governed by the law of supply and de mand, and not by the .arbitrary edicts of combinations- formed for esetabllsh ment and maintenance of rates which too often restrict trade. The profits on a $4 rate to the Orient are undoubtedly small for the steamship-owner, and the profits for the miller are also small, but .they suffice to keep the mllls'grlndlng and the ships moving, neither of which, would be pos sible if exporters were forced to pay the rate demanded by the regular lines. The steamship -companies will not cut rate6 or provide additional -steamers be cause there is no business, and there can be no business because the rates are too high or the service is too in frequent. The railroads will build no extensions because there is aninsuffl clent amount of traffic actually In sight, and the traffic cannot Increase because there Is no railroad to haul It out. This "endless-chain" system of logic may work with a fair degree of satisfaction on land, but the Portland exporters and the owners of -tramp steamers have severed a few of Its links where attempts were made to apply it to ocean transportation. THE HEART BELOW THE STAR. Except to that part of the public which recognizes a fly cop as readily as a harness bull, the policeman is to all appearances an automaton. He paces the street with measured tread, admon ishes a hawker to move on, or tells a bewildered visitor which car passes nearest toi394S Roosevelt street, all with the same air of living only for duty and of aloofness from the common needs and desires of life. Tet the po liceman is much as other men. He likes relaxation when he leaves his beat to say nothing of a few occasions while he Is on It and In the desire to increase his comfort has kicked up a little controversy which has brought him Into the papers In his more human aspect. Portland's patrolmen work in three shifts. The men report on and off duty at the following hours: Day patrol, 8:30 A. M., 5:30 P. M.; first relief, 5:00 P. M., 1:15 A. M.;" second relief, 12:30 A. M., 8:45A. M. Men of the day patrol are al lowed an hour for dinner, those on the two reliefs are not allowed to enter a restaurant, although they may put a ham sandwich In their helmets before leaving home To add to the good cheer of the first relief men, it Is necessary for them to walk home, as the street cars stop running before the shift ends. As for the second relief men, they, too, have their troubles. Owing to the per nicious activity of certain citizens It is becoming more and more difficult to ob tain a drink in this city after 1 o'clock in the morning. Policemen, indeed. may hear the sounds of revelry by night, but they cannot catch a glimpse of the light and sweetness within, even by peeping over the transom, for such peeping has been officially branded as overzealous. In addition to all this. there are various terrors of the night that make hard the lot of the relief men. One patrolman has been recently chased from his beat by a fiery, un tamed cougar.' The day patrolmen are comparatively safe from cougars, al though more exposed to the "danger of being run over by automobiles. From all this it might appear that the movement to make the shifts from 7 A. M. to 3 P. M., from 3 P. M. to 11 P. M.. and from 11 P. M. to 7 A. M.. was prompted solely by a desire to ease the lot of the night men, but this is not so, according to the remarks of Officer Price, who appears to be a deep stu dent of human nature In his opinion the agitation Is part of a nefarious plot by the day patrolmen, who want to get off duty at 3 P. M. to attend the ball games. "Those men- of the day relief," says this officer, "are becoming more aristocratic each day. They have gone so far that they want bankers hours. If the ohange were made. It would be at the expense of the men on the second Tellef. As it Is, we do not go on until 12:30. This gives us time to take our wives or our girls to the shows. But If we had to report for duty at 11 o'clock, where should we be? We should have time to go to the shows, but we should have to cut out the suppers, the very best part of our night's enjoyment." This, however, is not the last word on the supper .question. Officer Price continues: "Some of the men might favor this change for the reason that they would be released from the re sponsibility of a feed after the show. They could make the excuse that they had to be on duty." Think of that! A trustful and hungry girl coldly left at the door of the theater, not even offered a sandwich, abandoned with some mut tered rmark about "duty," as If there could be a higher duty than that of pro viding crawfish for a girl who must otherwise sustain life on expectations of breakfast. One cannot but feel Offi cer Price is mistaken. There breathes no patrolman with soul so dead that he would welcome duty merely as a way of wooing on the cheap. Such a wretch would be unfit to wear a star. BRITISH POUTICS. If, as seems all but certain, the Bal four and Chamberlain sections of the Unionist party come together again, the resetting of the Balfour Ministry on firm ground will be a new departure. The give and take on each side will leave matters about as they were when Mr. Chamberlain left the Ministry, ex cept that the uniform free-trade policy may be relaxed sufficiently to allow taxing manufactured Imports from countries enforcing a protective tariff against British manufactures. The lim itation that no taxation be Imposed ex cept for revenue is hard to understand in view of the foregoing, since the es sence of the new proposal is for power to tax for "retaliation," which certainly Is not for revenue. The Chamberlain proposal for taxing Imported' food prod ucts 1r noted for entire abandonment. Conferences with the colonies on co lonial preferences are not to be pressed for Immediate action. The question whether new preferential arrangements with the colonies shall be sanctioned In advance by the British people, and then the results of ,the conference submitted again to popular vote for confirmation, is to stand open for the present. So the blessed spectacle is to be again seen of brethren dwelling to gether in harmony. A united front will be once more shown to His Majesty s Liberal opposition, and the Irish Home Rule party will have much work to do over again. Once more. In face of the Spectator's forecasts, the unexpected Is happening. Notice of the Dewis and Clark Cen tennial Exposition at Portland is ob served In all the important newspapers of the United States. If there was at the besrlnnlng any doubt that the event would not be adverllsed, such doubt has been completely dispelled. The Orego nlan's exchange list furnishes proof to It not available from other sources, ac tual or possible. From Its exchanges In every state of the Union It has dem onstration of the universality of the ad vertisement. In this work the Associ ated Press has borne a leading part. It has spread Intelligence about our centennial celebration to all parts of the country, and The Oregonlan's work for the Fair has thus been supported throughout by the active efforts, daily, of the Associated Press, No longer need there be any apprehension that this celebration will not be fully ad vertised. It is Indeed the leading theme in the whole United States, at this time. The bears knocked 2 cents per bushel off the price of May wheat in Chi cago yesterday, but the maximum decline in the July option was three eighths of a cent per bushel. This con firms the oft-expressed belief that either the May option was too high or the July option was too low. News dis patches call attention to the slmljarlty In the present May wheat deal and that engineered by Mr. Letter a number of years ago. No one as yet has discov ered any points of similarity between John W. Gates, who is behind the pres ent deal, and Joseph Letter. All that Letter had at stake was the hard earned millions accumulated by his father, while Gates U financing his deal with money which he himself accumu lated. The difference In the personality of the two men, all other conditions being equal, is sufficient to make a wide difference in the value of - the cereal they were engaged in cornering. David Belasco, the playwright, is en deavoring to do a little "trust-busting" on theatrical lines. The evidence In his case against the theatrical trust dis closes a striking similarity to that re garding other trusts that Is, the ac cused persons all express surprise at learning of the existence of a trust. The Standard Oil crowd was shocked and surprised to learn that the inde pendent oil men of Kansas were not on an equal business footing with them selves, and Abe Erlanger, the Rocke feller of the theatrical trust, innocently confesses that Belasco has plenty of In dependent theaters in which he can book his stars unhampered in any way by the trust The testimony of the head men of the beef, oil and thatrlcal trusts all tends to the belief that they are either fools or are Impressed with the belief that the rest of the people are. Santo Domingo is in the position' of the boy who thinks he is too big to be whipped and who yet has not the de cency to behave himself. Venezuela Is not far from the same condition. Old fashioned parents recognized this con dltlon early in Its development and did n6t often permit It to reach an acute stage. The remedy was sharp and se vere, yet withal simple and quickly and easily applied. The rod was drawn and the conceit taken out of the unruly youngster In short order. It looks now as If Uncle Sam would be compelled to assume the attitude of the old-fashioned father In regard to one or both of these bumptious states, with methods that would compel to quick results. Inso lence and weakness form a combination that is not conducive either to Individ ual or national forbearance. The "Santa Fe" Railroad will spend $10,000,000 in building a cut-off that will get rid of some heavy grades and bad curves. More attention to Improvement of the physical condition of the rail roads Is now being given than ever be fore since inception of the business. As yet none of the other big systems has expended anywhere near as much money for this kind of work as has been spent by the Harriman system, but, as the Toads draw farther away from the constructive period their ex penditures for improvements in roadbed and equipment increase. Elimination of grades and curves means the move ment of greater tonnage per horsepower than was possible on the old tracks and an attendant saving in many directions. Exhaustion of the soil of the "cotton belt" of our Southern States, as a con sequence of excessive growth of cotton through many successive years, is noted by the Atlanta Constitution. That Jour nal advocates reduction of cotton plant ing and increase of other crops, partic ularly of corn, In which the South is especially prolific. Importation of fer tilizers, for production of cotton, has been carried nearly to a ruinous extent: and the Constitution recommends that the system be changed, less cotton planted and other crops cultivated. "Any other course." It says, "spells ruin." As the State of Oregon Is to take a census of population this year, so Is the State of New York. It is Interesting to know that the United States Census Office estimates the present population of New York State at 7,901,754, and of New York City at 3,902,097. But it Is admitted that the growth during the last five years may have been larger than that Indicated by the Federal estl mate; and it will not be surprising If the state census returns show a total considerably higher than that given at Washington. If the bones discovered by Ambassa dor Porter can be shown definitely to be those of John Paul Jones, Americans will be glad that the remains of the navy's first great captain will have an honored resting-place. In view of the mean burial of Jones, however, it may be difficult to establish beyond a doubt that the remains found by Ambassador Porter are those for which he has been searching. Dast week a family from Minnesota slept in their farmhouse in that state on Sunday night. They left for Oregon on Monday, arrived here in time to ex amine the farm in Benton County of which they had heard before leaving, and bought it on Friday, moved In on Saturday and slept In their Oregon home on Saturday night. The man who started the story that the pestilence at Tonopah was due to bad whisky was deservedly lynched Everybody knows that there is no such thing as bad whisky In Nevada. It must be the water. The total number of wolves secured in the President's hunt was eighteen. If he keeps up that lick when he goes back to Washington, the Senate will soon be without a quorum. The news from Saigon that a Russian hospital-ship had reported there full of wounded Russians was only a little an tlcipatory, that's all. Mr. Carnegie's declaration that it Is a disgrace to die rich brings about the only comfort that many of us have in this world. The delinquent contractors are doing a great deal more work about the City Hall than on the streets and sewers. Judge Parker gave his notice of the "Future of the Democracy" a strong obituary tinge. NOTE AND COMMENT. Let one boast be ours: never have we heralded Easter with anything that rhymed sonnet and bonnet. Why all this talk about the Beef Trust. There Is far more trust about a sausage. Collier's Weekly has a full-page Illus tration of one of Stevenson's poems. It Is so good that at first sight one thinks It is an advertisement of something. According to the New Tork Sun, some people lead the simple life, others the strenuous life, and others the equitable life. 'Vast Heaving. They'v found the bones Of "John Paul Jones. Speaking of politicians, .District Attor ney Jerome says: "You can take them by the throat and shake them until their teeth rattle if you only have the nerve." Far better policy, however, to shake them for the drinks. The packers talk so much about losing frnoney that it would not be surprising to find them asking the Government to reimburse them. Rather a good poem entitled "A Mood" is printed by the New Tork Evening Post. One stanza reads: Noontide Is slowly passim? on to evening. Slowly the shades are stretchlnc.out to East ward: , . Lose lie the hay-swaths where the mowers Jested; Silent are now both lark and poet blackbird: Rats nicker round me, while the ghostly white moths Dream round the rose cups, drunken with their fragrance. Rats! Poor poet; poor proofreader. "Uncle Sam to Dam John Day," says the Fossil Journal. Money makes candidate. the mare go; also the Election cards enliven the billboards considerably just now, and the wayfarer may learn what public-spirited citizens are ready to serve Portland. Custom has apparently decreed that a candidate must present, along with his announcement of policy, a portrait of himself. Consequent ly wherever one turns there Is no es cape from likenesses of Mr. Glafke and Mr. Merrill. It Is not easy to under stand why the portrait should be so In dissoluble a part of the election card. If pulchritude were their only platform. we fear several of our prominent candi dates would - be doomed to Ignominious defeat. There Is no need to send a deputation after the President to Invite him to the Fair. Just telegraph the single word, Cougars," and he will be here right away. Senator Burton must be losing count of hlA Mr. Cordray Is a candidate for the City Council. A man never does get over his liking for the show business. i 'Heavy Firing In the Distance." We thought that the liar who lied from Chefoo "Would never offend us more. But what did the space-filling; scoundrel do But hustle to Singapore: It would be just like Oyama to .sneak up and hit Linlcvltch, instead of waiting to hear the news about Togo and Rojcst ensky. On the Wing. Note and Comments Wireless Bulletins (Popular Style). 5:C0 A. M. President yawnsV 5f2S A M. President yawns again. 5:45 A. M. President stretches himself. 5:60 A. M. Presldont gets out of bod. 5:5t A. M. Grizzlies try to pull holes in after them. 6 A. M. President eats ten slices of bacon. 6:05 A. M. Prosldent eats ten more slices of bacon. 6:10 A. M. Cook quits job. 6:15 A. M. President asks for square meal In mistake for square deal. 6:25 A. M. President mounts his horse. 7 A. M. President catches, coyote by tall. :0l A. M. Coyote catches President by leg. S A. M. Grizzly if discovered.. 10 A. M. Grizzly runs. 10:01 A. M. So does hunting-party. 10:20 A. M. Grizzly Is half shot. 11 A. M. Grizzly Is killed. 12 noon President completes 10,000-word story for Everyone's Magazine. 12:01 P. M. Wlroless system breaks down. Linemen are now endeavoring to locate break. Tonopah's citizens may die from adul terated whisky, but they never blame the booze. There are said to be several persons now living who can romember a day on which there was no strike trouble In Chi cago. One thousand dollars for blinding a man is something of an eye-opener. Dord Mayor Dunne, of Chicago, with Pop Anson as his City Clerk, is all ready for municipal ownership of the ball team. Jf King Edward happens to run across Emperor William In the Mediterranean he shouldn't forget the success of that remark about It's being a long time be tween drinks. 'The latest wrinkle is the invisible cor set," says a New York paper. We always thought corsets were there to prevent wrinkles. Bananas are to be cheaper this year. There Is usually . a fall in bananas. WEXT J. Socialism. Louisville Courier-Journal. Once, as the story goes, two Irishmen were engaged In a discussion, when Pat asked Mike what socialism was. "'Well, socialism Is sort of an equal division of property,' declared Mike. What's mine is yours, and what's yours is mine. That's the Idea.' "'If you had 52,000,000,' asked Pat, 'would you give me one million?' " 'I would that.' said Mike. That's ac cording to my principles.' " Tf you had two houses would you give me one of them? was Pat's next question. Mike Insisted that he would. " 'And If you had two fine horses would you give me one?' "Mike declared that he would follow his principles. " 'And If you had two goats would you give me one of them?" finally asked Pat. "T would not. I have them,' de clared the socialistic disciple." Done Him a Service. Sydney (N. S. W.) Bulletin. A man called on a Kew (Victoria) par son, the other day, to arrange about get ting married, anf said he wasn't partic ular about the fee. "You burled my first wife for me for nothing," he ex plained; "so I shan't be mean about, it." ROJESTVENSK.Y, THE "SILENT ADMIRAL" Career ct Man Who Commands Itussla'a Iit Hope "Upon the Sen HI Hnbtt and Beliefs. From an Exchange. t Rear-Admiral Z. P. Rojestvensky Is a I cnTmvirAttvflv wnno n T-Tr. -r,- v-n . near Moscow in 1848, and after getting the theoretical. Impractical education of a Russian naval officer, blossomed out sud denly as a hero. For two unexampled feats of bravery in the war of 1S77-78 he gained the St. George's cross. He served In the Black and Baltic Seas, gaining a high reputation as a seaman, and in '1903 abandoned seagoing for the post of jhief of staff at the Ministry of Marine. In a year he made a reputation. He had fought well with his sword, but fought a much harder battle for efficiency. Had that battle been decided before February, 1904. Russia's naval disasters before Port Arthur would probably never have, taken place. Rojestvensky 13 a typical Russian and a typical naval officer. His men call him "Admiral Moltchallvl," the silent Admiral, and taciturnity goes well with the re served expression and manner of the Rus sian aristocrat. The naval man shows himself in his tastes, for he is devoted to theksea', not merely as a profession, but also as a Ufa passion. Rojestvensky is always at sea. When tied to the Ministry of Marino he spent his leisure navigating experimental craft and tiny sailing boats in the Gulf of Finland. He has written of the sea. and it is said that his society- friends dreaded him because he insisted on talking of nothing but the sea. Such a man ought to prove a good sailor, and. in fact, as a sailor and navigator not even Makharoff surpassed him. Rojestvensky; is a stern disciplinarian, but he differs from all disciplinarians, past and present. Blame in the form of a string of anathe mas might be expected from a "silent Admiral." Rojestvensky. however, is a humorist, and during the past months he has been worrying his ill-mated officers and men into efficiency by characteristic methods. Instead of storming or repri manding he issued periodically "general orders," holding up careless and ignorant officers to the derision of the fleet. "The commander-in-chief of the second Pa cific squadron," runs one of these, "has to inform the fleet that study was the purpose for which Cadets D. and F. were appointed to the cruiser Aurora. These young gentlemen have been wrongly given excessive leave, and the commander-in-chief now proposes to extend their holi- idays for such a lengthy period that they will be as weary of play as they now are of work." A whole scries of similar or ders was Issued, with the result that shirkers were terrified into hard work and ignoramuses into acquiring knowl edge. If the Baltic fleet has ben able to start at all It Is due to Rojestvensky. and to no one else. Whether the Admiral will prove as good In fighting as he has proved In organiza tion and discipline remains to be soen. His opinions are definite enough.- He Is an enthusiastic believer In the big battle ship, likening each armored vessel to a separate army corps, a unit In Itself which retains Us value though the fleet of which It formed part may have been destroyed or dispersed. When St. "Petersburg vacil lated about the dispatch of the squadron. on the ground that a fleet without torpe- NEW NATIONAL BANKS. New York Sun. On March H, 1000, our National banking act was so amended as to permit the or ganization of National banks with a min imum capital of 523,000 instead of $CO,C00. This was done to afford banking facili ties more easily to the many places In the Wast and South where banking capi tal cannot !je raised as readily a in the Fast. Has the experiment succeeded? A glance over the five years since the ex periment began will tell us. Since March 13, 1900, 2111 banks, with 5139,595,300 capitat have been organized. Have these new organizations met the geographical requirements? Here Is the distribution by groups of states: Banks. Capital. Middle Wettern States.... 725 $ 42.36c5.UW Southern States 15 Western States 516 Pacific States , US Island possessions 3 0.147..VX) 625.000 Total where most -wanted.1,075 smi.s2rt.aoo 3.1.M4.000 4.SKJ5.000 Eastern States New England States- Grand total 2.4U 5130.803.n00 This tabulation shows at a glance that five-sixths of the new banks have been placed just where they are most wanted, and two-thirds of that flve-sixtha partic ularly so In the Southern, Western and Pacific States. Oklahoma and Indian Territory, the coming 46th state In our Union, organized 203 of the new bank3, with 56.255,000 capi tal. In the Southern list Texas shows up nobly 270 new banks, with 5H.3SO.000 cap ital. Pennsylvania leads the Eastern list with 256 banks, of 520.922,000 aggregate capital. Ohio leads the procession for the Mid dle West as to new banking capital, with 0.395,000 in 132 banks, while Minnesota leads in the number of new banks, 160. with 53.431,000 capital. Considered as a whole, this showing of five years enterprise in new National banks is eminently satisfactory to the ncoDle for whose benefit, as a whole, our banking opportunities were enlarged. Loon's Great Dive. Forest and Stream. Solectman E. W. Haines, who Is also a dory fisherman, made an unprecedented catch in the bay here yesterday after noon, pulling from the bottom of the bay, where the water is 66 feet deep by actual measurement, an old gray loon, hard and fast to a baited hook that had been set for codfish. It has always been sup posed that loons made tneir leecung grounds In shallow places until Mr. Haines found the one caught In his cod fish trawl yesterday, which would seem to prove that deep water Is no hindrance to them when they are In search of food. Mr. Haines says the hook caught the loon through the breast, and It was so firmly Imbedded that It had to be cut out. Since the finding of the loon on the cod hook some of the fishermen believe that these fowl have been In the habit of robbing the well-balted hooks In the past. Duty of a Gentleman. London Express. On another occasion, having returned from playing poker at the club, my grandfather said: "When a roan Is hard up he should borrow; but he must devote his energies to paying back and remaining the equal of the man from whom he has borrowed. If he cannot pay back, let him be frank about It; for It Is better to steal than to cheat." And again: "To ride straight and to shoot straight, to win money cheerfully and to lose It cheerfully, never to be boorishly In debt or swinishly drunk, to enjoy flowers and music, and If possible to be In love with at least one good woman, is half the duty of a gentleman." "What's the other half, grandpa?" I had asked him. "Why, to be a gentleman, of course." Forbearance of Kansas Editor. Topeka Capital. It is noted that the Concordia Blade ab soultely refuses to be drawn Into a quar rel with the "cowardly whelp." the "Chi naman," the "It" who conducts the "de spised contemporary" over the way. do-boats and scouting ships was useless. Rojestvcnsky replied that he wanted only Daiuesmps ana armored cruisers. A fleet gains In mobility by not being ham pered with small craft" is one of his dicta. He declared that the Japanee successes at Port Artnur' were not gained really by torpcdo-boat3 and destroyers, but by the battleships behind them. His whole conception of a naval battle Is a fight between big shlp3 until the bigger arid more powerful destroy the smaller and weaker. Among his officers the Rus sian Admiral is not a favorite. They de clare that they never know his mind and that he springs surprises of blame upon them without warning. Many an officer whose work has been inspected without comment by the Admiral has afterward found his name quoted in an Ironical reprimand addressed to negligent officers generally. Rojestvensky has none of th bluff heartiness of manner associated usually with such genuine seamen. He Is said never to express approval, and he always issues blame In such a way as to make the culprit feel it most. His men. however, like him. To them also he is reserved and apparently unappreciative. But he is a redresser of grievances, and had he lived on -the lower deck instead of 'in the Admiral's stateroom. weW have made an excellent "sea lawyer." He examines the sailors' clothes, eats their food and tests their hammocks, and it anything Is wrong never ceases until Ha has got St. Petersburg to set it right. He never espressos comradeship with or affection for his men. They are there, he Implies, to do their duty, and he tooks after their welfare only because It facili tates the doing of duty. Rojestvensky. nevertheless, has bis hu man side. Neatness of pcrsou and Irre proachable uniforms he regards almost as important as gunnery and seamanship. His own appearance Is not distinguished, though his features are regular, and he has a lifelong wart over the nose wMeh Is the subject of much joking among Irrev erent "mltchmen." The Admiral, how ever. Is Invariably uniformed like an Em peror, and In this condition he will grub In grimy stokeholds and pick Ws wa among greasy cases of beef for hours i t the hope of discovering something wrwig. He is intensely punctilious and is respon sible for the paraphrase of Bacon. "Man ners make seamen." Another foible is his love of pretty surroundings. His ofc under the gilt spire of the St. Petersburg "admiralteistvo" was adorned with photo graphs, mirrors, relics of old friendship and cozy furniture and rescmblad a lady s boudoir .rather than a place of work. Ap parently, these harmless luxurls hi iw way demoralized his tough character, for his long swims and solitary cruises In single-handed yachts are constantly re ferred to In the Russian press. . , Rojestvensky did not want the command of the Baltic licet, though, once appointed, he never wavered in his belief that It should be set out. The terrible omen which accompanied his departure ha probably cost him In moral fighting power one of his best battleships. If he ver reaches Togo he will certainly do his bst. and there is no living Russian sailor whose best Is likely to be betu r. A BUSY EMPEROR. London Outlook. There is hardly a role on the diptematlc stage that he has not essayed. Ha dedi cates a cathedral In Berlin as the cham pion of Continental Protestantism. He is the guardian patron of Islam In the Balkans, in the Near East. and. now, it would seem, in Morocco. It was wonder ful that we did not discover him installed in Thibet as the apostle of Buddhism. Versatility such as this is one of the privileges of a nation that despises sen timent in politics as much as It exalts tt in literature. Germany ralsos . loans for Russia, supplies her with ships, ar ranges for the coaling of her flet and hunts down Nihilists at her request; yet Count von Bulow is able to flaunt in the Reichstag an assurance of Japanese sat isfaction with German neutrality. Ger many is the friend of Russia, but equally the friend of Turkey, and not loss con sistently the friend of Japan. With Im partial benignity the Kaiser decorates Stoessel and Nogl alike. He presses a statue of Frederick the Great upon America, and trusts the gift would be remembered If Denmark were to sell him the Danish West Indies, or Holland and the Dutch possessions that come within the scope of the Monroe Doctrine were to1 pasM beneath the scopter of the Hohcnzollernsj. He is the ally or Austria, yet the point of his sword reaches to Trieste. No man, indeed, keeps so many balls in the air as he. Sooner or latr there must, one knows, be a breakdown, but the glamour of so much dexterity remains none the less bewildering In Its fascina tion. Mr. Gilbert's Reply. Sporting and Dramatic New?. Mr. W. S. Gilbert was lataly requested by an Australian amateur composer to furnish the libretto of an opera on the old Savoy lines. His score, the amateur remarked, was perfectly certain to b satisfactory, for "he was a born musi cian, though he had been educated as a chemist." Mr. Gilbert, in answering to express his regret at not being able to comDlv. said he "snoulti nave prererrea a born chomtst who had been educated a a musician." Apologies of State. Kansas City Star. Down In Pierce City one night recently an officer caught a young man klseing his sweetheart and arrested him. When the Judge learned the facts In the case next morning he discharged the prisoner and said: "Go back and start In where you left off. If there was another one coming to you when the officer butted In. go and get it. And take with you the humble apologies of the State of Mis souri." To Richard Badger. (The publisher of Innumerable books of verses.) Bernlea E. Nevelt In Taeoma Ledger. Mr. Badger. Mr, Badger. 1 have written verses, too, Pretty verses, filled with yearning. After all that's fair and true. Dear they are to me- as children. Faults they have, but still 1 love them. But, alas, their winsome manner Falls to gain the august favor I Of the edttors whose sanctums. Trembling, they at times have entered. And I mourn their vain endeavor As they hasten, shrinking," homeward. Creep Into the sheltering scrapbook. There to He. In peaceful silence. But since reading all your poems. Poems not as good as mine are: Poems raw and green and ragged. Poems no editor would look at Hope has sprung up quick within me. And I hear my prisoned verses Crying from the burled scrapbook, "Send us. please, to Mr. Badger. BIchard Badger, off In Boston. He will recognize our beauty. He will welcome us ind put us On the famous Gorham presses. Give us antique boards, and send us Out to meet the jeering readers Who erstwhile have frowned upon u." So I gather up my verses. Long ones, short ones, glad ones, bad ones. Type them neatly, do not roll them. Send no stamps for return postage. Certain that In time I'll see them. Duly stamped with Gorham press mark While the genial Mr. Badger 'Trusts the accompanying volumes May be granted early favor In the Ledger book reviews."