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3ORTLAXn. THURSDAY. JUNE 8. 190R.
LEST WE FORGET.
Features of the report of the grand
jury of Multnomah County, made last
Saturday, have not received proper at
tention. Since the local election has
passed there may be willingness now to
attend to some of these features which
hitherto have not received the attention
they deserve. The report contains this
statement, viz:
The provisions of the new charter relative
to the granting of franchisee were enacted to
protect the city's interests and to jrevent the
giving away without sufficient and ample com
penfcatlon valuable franchise.-' upon the main
streets of the city, and the franchises there
tofore granted upon our main Mreets were
soon to expire. The action of the Council' in
enacting those blanket ordinances can only
be explained by stating that such action was
the successful attempt to defeat the city in
receiving a fair and Just componaatloR for
the franchises upon nme of Its prominent
etrcots which were soon to expire, and the
city, by the enactment of thwe ordinance.
has transferred to corporate Interests fran
chlses for a considerable period of time at
a compensation rid leaks ufly inadequate and
for a longer period than they Would have
been permitted to have granted or given wn
der the provtelans of the new charter.
Now who are they who prevailed
with the Common Council to "transfer
to corporate interests franchises for a
considerable period of time at a com
pensation ridiculously Inadequate"?
Let us quote further from this report:
In this connection It appear to uk that
the Pacific State Telephone Company, the
Portland General lMectric Company. the
Portland Consolidated Railway Company and
the Portland Ga Company have formed an
alliance offemdve and defensive for the pur
pose of asetoting each other hi securing any
rights and privileges to the twnettt of any
one that they may require from the Council.
or to defeat any legislation that might h
lnimloal to them.
The monopolists of Portland, the plu
tocrats, the "first families," own or are
deep in the direction of all these com
panies. Mr. L&dd, Mr. Lewis, Mr.
Mills. Mr. Ainsworth. Mr. Adams and
the rest, are the gentlemen who have
been dealing and dickering and prevail
Ing with the Common Council, as set
forth In the grand jury's report and
have "obtained franchises at compen
sation ridiculously inadequate." All
the -while these gentlemen have been 1
posing, through their newspaper, under
direction of their editorial dummies
and hired men, as advocates of popular
rights.
Admit that the Common Council,
yielding to this pressure upon it, has
made grants that it ought to have with
held. Even then, why attack the Com
mon Council alone? "Why not Indict
these highly respectable persons repre
sentatives of the four companies who
have been "monkeying" with the Com
mon Council these persuasive gentle
men who have been using "influence"
to get from the city, through the Com
mon Council, property worth Immense
sums, without payment even of the
conventional "one dollar" for It why
not indict them? "Will the plea that
these gentlemen are "friends of the
people" if you may believe their or
ganthat they may rob the people,
may get an immense property, for
nothing, that belongs to the people
stand for their sufficient excuse and
justification?
Some of the franchises obtained in
the manner censured by the grand jury
not a dollar paid for them, but
obtained through "influence" are now
offered for sale by these publtc
spirlted gentlemen at millions of dol
lars. They announce through their or
gan that the sale will be effected. Pos
sibly it will.
However, there is one sure result.
Their effort to possess themselves of
the remaining streets of Portland, with
out paying anything for use of them,
was checked by defeat of their scheme
last Monday.
It is universal that those who at
tempt public grafts characteristically
pose as champions of popular rights.
Johnson Was not so far wrong when his
Incomparable sarcasm defined patriot
ism as "the last refuge of a scoundrel
Yet perhaps not In every case.
This report of the grand jury contains
features which, still are as pregnant
with meaning- as they -were before the
election of Monday last.
THE COST OF LIFE INSURANCE.
The Oregonian a few days since said
that the policy-holders In our great life
Insurance companies would like to
know more about their internal man
agement and the disposition of their
funds. "We have lately been finding out
much a great deal too much about
the methods employed by one Insurance
company. We have no reason to be
lieve and we do not suspect, that sub
terranean means are employed by other
companies to secure for favored individ
uals Improper benefits from the great
funds hoarded by the Insurance com
panies. We shall be willing to believe
that the policy-holder will get In the
end all that he has been promised until
we know better: and we shall hope and
think always that no occasion will ever
arise when he may feel regret over an
Investment In any established life in
surance concern. At the same time
The Oregonian must express gratifica
tion that Its inquiry as to how much Is
annually paid by policy-holders to In
surance companies and by insurance
companies to policy-holders is com
pletely answered in an article In the
June number of the magazine World's
Work. Mr. Sereno S. Pratt writes on
the highly pertinent subject "Does Our
Insurance Cost Too Much?"
According to the showing made by
Mr. Pratt, the total income of thirty-
one life insurance companies, including
three Industrial insurance companies,
in the United States, for the year 190i,
reached the immense aggregate of
5uC0.172.553. It was. of course, mainly
from policy-holders. On the other
-hand, the amount disbursed by the
thirty-one companies was S363.5o3.924,
of which $232,G64,2f.6 went to the policy
holders. Thus we see that the policy
holders in that year paid out more than
twice as much as they took In. If these
figures are correct, insurance compa
nies are storing up annually for the
benefit of the policy-holders, of course
about $200.000,ff00 of new money more
than they are paying out, representing
an Investment that at the present rate
of accumulation must eventually con
trol the entire financial world. The
following table shows how the disburse
ments were made by the companies In
1904:
Per cent.
Death ckhm 3C
Endowments 7.0
Surrendered poWoies .. 9.5
Dividends to policyholder 9.0
Annuities , 1.6
Total to poMey-boMors . C3.7
TaxfA 2.5
Commise4onR ........ 17.7
Salaries, etc 9.4
Other disbursements 6.7
Total taxes and east of administration.. 36.3
Total to poHcy-hotderw C.7
Total taxeji and ef of administration.. 3G.3
Total dseurMmenta 109.0
It appears that the single item of
commissions alone represents nearly 18
per cent of the total, or about S6G.000.OOe,
while salaries are more than 9 per cent,
or SJ2.000.000, making a very satisfac
tory total of S8S,009,00 paid to the
agents and representatives of the
thirty-one companies. But this is noi
all. In 1904 the commissions paid on
new business amounted to $33,667,327,
or 42.36 per cent of the premiums re
ceived on new business.
If this ratio Is continued through the
years, it would seem to be established
as a fixed rule of the insurance busi
ness that the Insurance agents
and officers receive from the In
surance company regularly more
than one-third as much as the policy
holder. That Is to say. for every
one thousand dollars the beneficiary
gets in the event of death, or the ma
turity of his policy, more than S333 goes
to the agents or officers of his com
pany. Unquestionably It costs some-
Lining to maintain the insurance busi
ness. Development has been rapid, and
It is not surprising that income is large
ly In excess of disbursement. Admin
istration, taxes, advertising, commis
sions, all are parts of legitimate and
unavoidable expense. But what the
public now wants to know, and will
probably find out before the present
agitation terminates, is whether the pol
Icy-holders, or the agents, or the offi
cers, or the directors, or the trust conv
panies. or the banks, are the chief bene
ficlarles from our system of life Insur
anoe.
NORWAY.
The hostile action of the Storthing,
or Parliament of Norway, towards
Xing Oscar, has a touch of the amus
Ing, in spite of the vista of trouble to
several nations which is opened by
their resolutions. A few words of ex
planation are in order. In the first
place, the union of the two countries,
Sweden and Norwayv was imposed on
Norway by the great powers of Europe
opposed to Napoleon In 1S14, To strug
gle against such odds would have been
insane. Consequently Norway took her
medicine, but with a wry face- She
could make conditions, however, and
did so. She stipulated that she should
be continued in the constitutional
rights which she then possessed, and
should in no way be merged in the
Swedish kingdom.
The main points thus - preserved to
Norway were that she held to her an
clent Storthing, or Parliament, which
was to remain the supreme authority
in the kingdom. The Storthing could
not only pass laws in relation to inter
nal affairs, such as finance, taxation.
local government, and the like, but no
limit was expressed in the treaty to its
jurisdiction over foreign affairs. It Is
true that there was provided a joint
Council of State, in relation to the ap
pointmcnt of joint Ambassadors for the
two countries, but. so far as appears
from reading the public documents of
the time, no express limitation of the
essential rights of Norway as a sover
olgn state was either proposed or was
assented to by her. By custom, ex
tending over a long series of years.
joint Consuls have been appointed to
act for the two countries. The King
was to be a constitutional monarch
that Is. his powers were stated in and
limited by the constitution of each na
tion, as regarded tholr separate affairs,
and also by the conditions of the act of
union as to the joint sphere of actios.
Moreover, under the Norwegian const!
tutlon. the King has a right of veto of
acts passed by the Storthing, but this
veto can be overridden by subsequent
passage of the act over the veto. It Is
passing strange that. In this kind of
stipulated matrimonial union between
the countries, lasting for ninety years
no affection has sprung up. nor even
mutual forbearance developed. Their
union was declared irrevocable and la-
destructible, yet it seems to have been
throughout a paper union only. Now,
the incompatibility has grown. In the
heart of Norway, to a ground for dl
vorce. In all such cases. Individual or
national, the eventual outbreak may
have a slim foundation. But nations,
like married couples, can quarrel about
anything, or nothing, if they have a
mind to.
The mixed consular business Is now
the apparent casus belli. Norway de
sires Consuls of her own. and is able
and willing to pay for them. Her for
eign commerce is larger than Sweden's.
Her shipping is more -extensive. Her
fiscal policy has a free trade as
against a protectionist basis. And she
believes that the joint Consuls in for
eign countries have not done her Jus
tice. She, therefore, through the act of
her Storthing, demands the right to a
separate establishment. King Oscar
refuses to approve the bill, and Insists
that the joint Council of State handle
the question. Thereupon the Norwe
gian Ministry resigns. The King re
fuses to accept their resignations, com
plaining that he can get no other Min
istry. People and Storthing are at one
in proclaiming "Then, a King who can
not get a Ministry to govern his coun
try Is no King." and the ties binding
constitutional King to his constitu
tional country are dissolved.
Now comes in the amusing side of the
whple affair. "Personally." say the
Norwegians, "we have not only no ob
jection to, but real affection for. King
Oscar. As he has just proved himself
unable to govern us, perhaps he will be
kind enough to mention one of his
grandchildren, whom we may lake and
set up on his throne." Possibly the
iving may iane tne suggestion as a
compliment to the man. but an insult
to the King. And it may bear that ap
pearance.
What next? Sweden some weeks ago
announced that she would not fight
about It Norwegians seem to doubt
this fair profession. They are drilling
and arming, and filling up a war chest
wltfi their hard-earned savings. They
are -a poor, but intensely patriotic, folk.
Much depends on the statesmen of each
country. They, so far. are not widely
known.
THE COTTON GROWERS COMPLAINT.
The Southern' Cotton Growers' Asso
ciation has openly charged that the
Government statistics on the cotton
crop .are "Juggled" and manipulated to
suit certain Interests' In the cotton mar
ket Quite naturally the theoretical
farmers who are In charge of disburse
ment of the money annually wasted by
the alleged Agricultural Department
deny the accusation, which is a grave
one. Inasmuch as this Is not the first
time such charges nave been made re
garding both wheat and cotton. It wilt
require something more than a denial
to quiet the clamor that the cotton
bulls are making over the matter. It
will hardly escape public attention that
this complaint Is not being made by the
men interested in securing cheap cot
ton. Neither will It be forgotten that,
when the ridiculous and misleading
Government crop reports were assist
ing Sully In his famous bull campaign
In cotton a few yeans ago, the Southern
Cotton Growers' Association was
strangely silent regarding that mislead
ing information which was being used
so effectively in manufacture of senti
ment.
All of which goes to show that It
makes a difference whether It Is a cot
ton bull or a cotton bear that is gored
by the Government crop report, which
from the inception of the red-tape sys
tem of crop reporting has been useful
only as it supplied a small amount of
work at a liberal amount of pay for
the book farmers at the National Cap
ital. The Southern cotton planter in
this case, like the lady, "doth protest
too much." He Is apparently long on
the market, and wishes to relieve his
feelings. The stray dog that crosses
the path of the man who has just had
his money on the wrong horse Is pretty
sure of a kick, and the Agricultural De
partment in this case is the stray dog
that got in the way of the Growers'
Association.
"Perfectly harmless only when out of
his head," Is the label Huckleberry
Finn placed over his raft-tender. "Per
fectly harmless because It is always out
of Its head" would not be an lnappro
prlate sign for that monument of red
tapelsm, the Agricultural Department
The wise men In charge of that fifth
wheel on the Government wagon have
year after year overestimated the sire
of the Pacific Northwest wheat crop to
such an extent that, if the trade ac
cepted the Government figures as being
entitled to the slightest consideration,
the market would have been materially
affected. But numerous years of obser
vatkm have taught the wheat trade
that, so far as this particular wheat
section Is concerned, the Government Is
never even approximately correct in its
estimates. The blood of the Southern
gentleman has undoubtedly become
slightly heated by refusal of the ntar-
ket to advance, but If they will look a
little farher Into the matter, they
must surely find some other cause for
the weakness.
The cotton trade and the wheat trade
years ago began applying the acid lest
to the gold bricks which the Agricul
tural Department placed in circulation,
and the man who would take one of
them In the belief that It was the real
thing only makes himself ridiculous
when he "hollers." The crop reports of
Secretary "Tama Jim" Wilson are
amusing, if not instructive, but lo ac
cuse them ot having any value as "ad
vance tips" is to credit them with
something which they do not possess.
The Southern Cotton Growers Associa
tion must be Joking.
THE WASTE AND RESTORATION OF
THE WALNUT GROVE.
The wastefulness of the American
people, added to the legitimate de
mands of commercial life, has practi
cally destroyed the magnificent groves
of black walnut that fifty years ago
abounded In the great Middle West.
"The Winter's log that blazed In
many an open fireplace during the long
months of rigorous weather during
many years In the black walnut belt
represents a feature of the destruction
of this valuable timber that was due,
partly to the Ignorance and partly to
the carelessness ot the early settlers.
Many a sturdy hickory log shared the
fate of the walnut, the former being
prized for Its "flrekeeplng" qualities In
the days when matches were unknown,
and the latter for the fact that It ig
nited readily and made a cheery blaze.
To supply the waste Jiat thus went
on, the great American wizard of ag
riculture. Luther Burbank, has suc
ceeded by cross-fertilization in produc
ing a walnut tree that grows rapidly
and will, under proper conditions, make
good, to some extent, in a quarter of
a century, half a century's wastage of
the slow-growing walnut trees of the
past- Perhaps. Mr. Burbank may .be
able to perform a like favor to corn-
merce in producing a hickory of quick
growth. These two old trees stand side
by aide in the memory of natives of
the Middle West, who are passing down
the sunset slope of life, for the part
that they played Jointly In many an
Autumn nutting festival of the past,
and for the good cheer that they gave
to the Winter's hearth through many
a chilly moon. It is too much to hope
for a resurrection of the old stock In
time for the needs of the present cen
tury. But for the young stock of vig
orous growth, conjured by the "wiz
ard" from the best products ot many a
parent tree, there Is a certainty of sup
ply that Is reassuring and delightful.
The Imaginary line between pagan
and Christian between the teachings
of Buddha and of Christ has . been
obliterated In the treatment that the
Russian wounded and prisoners have
received at the hands of the Japanese.
Trained in the doctrines that account
the followers of Buddha as cruel and
Inhuman, the captured sailors of the
Russian ships expected to be put to
death by their pagan captors. On the
contrary, they were heroically rescued
from the perils of the sea and conveyed
to the enemy's shore, where food and
clothing and shelter awaited them.
Their wounded were placed upon clean
cots in pagan hospitals, where skilled
surgeons dressed their wounds and
softly-stepping, white-clad nurses did
what was humanly possible to alleviate
their sore distress. They were "sur
prised" these hard-pressed sailors of
creed-bound Russia when the pagans
Stretched ont handf of generous care
To lift the foes they fought so well.
In these manifestations of kindness
the world beholds an illustration of the
gospel of humanity, the simple tenets
of which are above all creed.
The commerce of the United States is
being slowly extended to the Islands of
the sea. Cyprus Is one of the latest-of
these to find room for American manu
factures. Consul Ravndal. our repre
sentative at Beirut. Syria, lately re
ported to the State Department from
that port that abundant crops were
harvested In Cyprus as well as In Syria
last year, the most primitive methods
being employed, and that In both prov
inces American agricultural machinery
could readily be introduced. The crop
prospects are good for the current year.
and. though our trade there is yet In its
Infancy. It shows encouraging signs
of growth, especially In the line Indl
cated by the dearth of agricultural ma
chlnery and implements. On our part
we would be expected to reciprocate by
buying Cyprus wool, skins and wines.
The toal trade or the island amounts to
about S4.000.000 annually, about equally-
divided between exports and Imports.
It is capable of substantial growth.
and is gradually Increasing as the
needs of the people take the form of
wants.
The rumored assassination of the
Czar caused a momentary! panic on the
Paris Bourse Tuesday. The Czar has
not been assassinated, but the rapidity
with which a panic gets under way
over the rumor of such a tragedy shows
very plainly how strong the probability-
Is that such a fate may overtake the
trembling despot. Assassination of the
Russian ruler would cause a shock and
upset stock markets for a brief period.
but It would not cause surprise to
large number of people who read of
the bitter internal strife tearing his em
pine to pieces. "The boast ot heraldry.
the pomp of power." and all of the
wealth of his kingdom cannot give to
the Czar the same peace of mind that
is today enjoyed by hundreds of his
former subjects who' are now catching
salmon on the Columbia River, un
haunted, as they dream between drifts.
by visions of assassins at home and
Togos abroad.
ATter all, the public does not want the
town closed. Else why should so excel
lent a candidate as Mr. Paget get less
than 300 votes? Mr. Paget said he
would shut the town up tight. There
was no evasion about his platform. He
said clearly what he would do, and no
body doubts that he meant It. But the
people who have been howling for
closed town evidently feared that they
might be taken at their word, for they
voted for Candidate Lane, who dls
tinctly avoided making any specific
promises. Nobody believes that he will
put the lid on and fasten It down. If
the voters had thought he would, he
would not have been elected. There
are reformers and other reformers
with reservations.
Judging from the late shipment of
cigars some S0.000 not to mention a
ton or two. more or less, of cigarette
tobacco and paper, to the Alaskan
Army posts, our soldiers In the Far
North have nothing to do but smoke
and are phenomenally Industrious In
that vocation. One does not have to
be a "crank" on the evils of smoking
to regard with dismay this Inordinate
consumption of tobacco by men who
should conserve their strength and
nerve power In order to make good
soldiers. Common sense stands ap
palled at the possibilities of physical
deterioration that He' In this immense
shipment of tobacco to a few hundred
soldiers in garrison.
One new charter amendment provides
that the city as a whole shall pay for
all bridges costing S15.000 or more. The
day of cheap bridges Is over. We shall
never hereafter think ot putting up one
for less than J15.000. Why should we?
The city foots the bill, and It costs the
taxpayer nothing. He'll be a poor en
gineer, who can't make a bridge that
will cost over S15.000.
The torpedo-boat experts say it was
the torpedo-boats that won the battle
of the Corean Straits. The battleship
experts say it was the battleships. This
unhappy controversy between the au
thorities might never have been satis
factorily settled but for Admiral Togo,
who comes forward and says It Was all
"due to the Illustrious virtues of the
Mikado." Sure.
Doubtless It would be a great thing
if the Jury were drawn now at once,
for trial of the cases In the United
States Court, so the defendants might
have a chance to get acquainted with
the members.
Republicans go to a direct primary
and nominate a candidate for Mayor.
Then they go to the polls and defeat
him. There Is something wrong with
the direct primary, or with Republic
ans. Men who have been trying to steal
everything In Portland and lay the
blame on other people are not to have
"a cood" time" from this time on.
OREGON
For Woman's
The hoopskirt of our gra
Is coming back, they say.
Dame FasMoR o decrees.
Oh. pray, moat M$a and awful
August MadaaM. la heaven's
Avert thi rrr. plaaae:
This hoopskirt I am ra that it
The fair new woman will not nt .
And yet if thorn, OM Dame.
Shalt thus decree, sholl have to wear, I
This conic cage of skirted atrT
Or vanish from the gaaie.
For what is woman, old or mw.
Unless to Fashion she Is trtMt
She must conform alas!
O Fashion, wilt thou not be kianl?
Say, now, OIU Hag. If you don't ralad,
We'll let this terror pass!
Citizens of the State of Maine are
still talking about erecting- a reproduc
tion of Longfellow's birthplace as the
state's buildng at the Lewis and Clark
Exposition. The Maine people should
remember that art Is long and time Is
fleeting.
"Soldiers and Soldiers Widows Filed
on Government Lands." runs a conspic
uous sign In front of a building near
the entrance to the Exposition. One
Is constraned to Inquire, when did these
soldiers and soldiers widows do the
filing, and how Is the general public
Interested in the fact that they have
filed.
A Colorado newspaper man who vis
ited Kansas recently calls attention
to the fact that Atchison has but ono
dally paper, though it Is a city of 13,-
009 people. He also remarks that Kan
sas towns have fewer newspapers than
the towns of any state of which he
knows. This man should have visited
the "boom towns" of Kansas about 1
years ago. In the town of Wellington
there were eight dally newspapers.
not to speak of the weeklies, though
the population was less than S000,
Wichita had five dallies, while Garden
City, In the far western part of Kan
saa, had two daily papers, one of
which used the full service of the As
soclated Press, though the town had
scarcely 3000 people. The same paper
Is now a small weekly, with patent In
terlor, but It Is quite sufficient for Its
field. Bleeding Kansas bled printers
ink at every pore In those days, but
now it has gotten down to practical
work.
Two hundred thousand votes were
case in Sacramento. Cal., last Satur-
day. The population of that city
scarcely would seem to warrant such
a large vote without repeating (N. B.
It has been discovered that the votes
were cast for the young ladles who are
running for free trips to the Lewis
und Clark Exposition on the Sacra
mento Union ticket.)
A lady poet with three links in her
name sings thus: "I should like to live
in nomad fashion, with only the moon
and the stars to woo." Most young
women like the moon and stars all
right, but prefer a man to woo under
neath them.
Answers to Inquiries.
Retta No, It is not proper for you
to do the Trail without a chaperone.;
let your beau go along with you.
No. 1136 If time hangs heavy on
your hands during cell hours, get a
copy of Browning and practice "Pippa
Passes," or try your hand at translat
ing Henry James Into English.
Constant Reader No advertisements
are printed in this column unless you
make confidential arrangements with
the editor.
Amateur Cook Prunes may be
served with the bark on, but fried eggs
should be hulled.
Numismatist A Lewis and Clark
souvenir gold dollar is worth 53 cents;
that Is. you pay S- for one.
A 'Tnlce-Told Tale.
Hero is a story that has been told
before, but it savors so deeply of the
essence of true hospitality, good
breeding and sweet womanly gracious-
ness that it Is always new:
When Queen Alexandra of Great
Britain was the Princess of Wales
there came to England on an official
vlst some Oriental potentate, the Ah
koond of Swat or Somethtng-or-Other,
who was not strictly up-to-date In Eng
lish customs; but he was nevertheless
an Invited guest of honor, a person of
dignity and worth In his own land, and
therefore entitled to courtesies. Being
a foreigner, unacquainted with the
English language, he might have suf
fered sad embarrassment had his host
ess, the Princess been a woman of vul
gar mold; but she was every inch
queen, as she proved by her consid
erate treatment of the uncouth Ah-
koond.
There was a grand dinner, at which
the Ahkoond was seated beside Prln
cess Alexandra. There was a menu
card, printed In English. When It was
observed that the Ahkoond was holding
his menu card upside down, there was
a titter from one of the "ladles" pres
ent, who Imagined that she was highly
civilized and the Real Thing; but
Alexandra quickly subdued this
wretciied display of bad breeding by
turning her own menu card upaide
down and holding It In that position
during the rest of the dinner.
Isn't that a pretty story? Isn't It
calculated to make a real gentleman
acknowledge that Alexandra Is
Queen by birth?
. ROBERTUS LOVE.
A Bad Break.
Lipplncott's
During the annual -convention of
certain religious body, not so very
long ago. an Incident occurred which
was not n the programme, and which
completely upset the gravity of the
ministers and brethren assembled. It
n-aa at the closing; session, and the
chairman stated that they were about
on hundred dollars short ot an
amount desired to be raised for a giv
en purpose, and hoped that the sum
could be made up before final adjourn
menu One ot the laymen Jumped up
with the remark:
Tli start the good work with twen
ty-flve dollars."
-1 don't know your name, brother.
said the chairman, "but may God bless
you. and may your business oe aouoiea
dnrintr the rear."
oeh to his astonishment, a burst
of laughter followed from many In th
hall, which was explained when a
nrothej- ud in front stepped to the
-l riff nrm and whisnered:
"Why. that's. Mr. Blank, a promi
nent undertaker ot the town.
pon.
thus rc
1. It.
tion needs
as it Is a m
the very M
2. This Tiearts
of more Important?
armor and
hind the gun" Is the
- The ereat fleatlns
a battleship Is going dot
of relative importance,
torpedo-boat is coming
is this tree that it is already w
assured that the future naval
the United States Trill be the buiU
of few If any more battleships and
construction of a largo number of torpedo-boats
and destroyers. There IsH
also n. TMlKsibnitv thnt tha miVimirlni f
comlnc to tha front that th. fr.'nVi FB-t
have been on thn rlirht trade In. that 1
line, though as to this more light la
needed.
'ow that most ot the facia have
come out, naval men and government
officials, from President Roosevelt
down, are more than ever amazed at
the results attained by the Japanese.
The men of Nippon are now the naval
leaders of the world. The experts of
all countries are sitting at their feet.
Incidentally the American navy is at
fault and liable to severe criticism be
cause it has not sent men to the Far
East to study the action on the sea and
to profit thereby. Some other nations
havo been forehanded In this and have
gained a distinct advantage over the
United States.
Perhaps the most astounding fact in
volved In the war is this: Since the
outbreak of hostilities the Japanese
have neither built nor bought war
ships, yet their fighting line is now
stronger than it was at the beginning
of the war. In other words, they have
taken from their enemy more in ton'
nage. in guns, in actual value, than
they have lost from all causes during
the war. And meanwhile they have
annihilated the naval power of their
enemy. Such an achievement as this
eclipses everything known in naval
annals.
According to official statements made
today in Tokio, the Japanese have lost
since the war began -one battleship,
one cruiser, two gunboats and five tor-
pedo-boats or destroyers. All but
three of these craft, and these small
boats belonging to the torpedo flo
tilla, were lost In the series of block
ades at Port Arthur. Not one was
sunk, destroyed or captured by the
guns of the Russians, unless the three
destroyers lost last Sunday and Mon
day fell before the gun fire ot the foe.
Mines and accidents account for all the
casualties, with the possible exception
of these three. In other words, the
Japanese navy has practically wiped
the Russian navy oft the face of the
waters. The Russian navy, mines ex
cepted, has inflicted mere trivial in
jury and loss upon the Japanese. It
is not surprising that naval experts
the world over sit in amazement when
they , contemplate the achievements of
the Japs.
For the one battleship they have lost
the Japanese have gained from the
Russians two first-class modern bat
tleships, one of them as fine a ship of
the line as there Is afloat. They now
have possession of two coast defense
ships which the Russians were kind
MR. LAWS(WS REMEDY.
Kansas Interested in the Bostonian's
Scheme for Curing: Trust Evils.
Kansas City Journal.
It Is to be feared that a distinct chill of
disappointment will run up and down the
Nation's spinal column when Mr. Thomas
W. Lawson unfolds his scheme to crush
the trusts, or the "system," as he calls
it. to the people of Kansas in July. His
plan, as briefly outlined in the press dis
patches, is to issue a call on a certain
day to the people to withdraw their de
posits from the savings banks. This, he
says, will crush the "system."
How this will crush the system Is
slightly vague and misty to the average
mind. If by the "system" Mr. Lawson
means merely the stock gamblers, all of
them might be crushed today and as
many more would take their places to
morrow. If the system is taken to in
clude the great trusts' which control the
markets of the country and dictate the
price of the necessities of life, the people
may withdraw their money from the
banks, but they cannot avoid paying a
goodly portion of It to the trusts just the
same. The price of beef will not drop an
Inch, though the financial heavens fall.
The water may be squeezed out of stocks
until they are as dry as a bone, and In
dividual stockholders may be ruined
which would doubtless please Mr. Law
son immensely In respect to a few of his
former associates but the country will
till be In the grip of the octopus.
We sadly fear that Mr. Lawson will
have to select a heavier bat If he expects
to "strike oft the fetters that are almost
permanently riveted on American necks."
The remedy he proposes seems at first
glance so wofully inadequate that we
feel like suing him for damages for Tceep
lng us in a raging fever of expectation for
nearly a year, only to dash our hopes to
the ground.
The only thing reasonably certain about
Mr. Lawson's remedy Is that It will offer
& premium to burglars, and It might
bring on a panic that would make all
former financial crises look like three
plugged dimes. But there Is no occasion
as yet to take to the cyclone cellars. The
American people are enthusiastic and full
of fads In many ways, but when It comes
to "Investments" and matters of the
pocketbook. they are sane, sound and
conservative. Mr. Lawson may get an
enthusiastic greeting In Kansas, but he
won't get the Kansans to help him to
wreak vengeance on the stock gamblers
at the risk of ruining themselves. Kan
sas Is too prosperous to be anarchistic
Just now.
Tho Great TJnawcd.
Roseburg Plaindealer.
With the Dally Astdrlan. the Daily
Capital Journal, the Dally Salem States
man, the Dally Eugene Register, the
Plaindealer and a number of Oregon
weeklies determined to see fair play In
the land-fraud trials, the star actors In
Hitchcock's great political drama will no
longer be able to hoodwink the people
through their energetic press agent.
Francis J. Heney.
The Japanese National Anthem.
Translated for the Japan Weekly Mail.
Until this grain ot sand.
Tossed by each wavelet's freak.
Grow to a donG-glrt peak.
Towrlng above- tha land;
Until the dswy flake,
Seading Jhls blossom's gold
Swell to a mighty lake
Age upon age unfold,
Joy. to Joy manifold.
Add for our Sov'relgn-'s sake.
nwr mini w -i-TBi II . i mat- &.r
B3VE!l . .. V.-.. .
''4
they
The awful fatal iv. Ja
ships and ai reduutil
nage of the Russlanl navf C
223.00O. .rgH
Hew havo the "fja jan-5-
while? AeeoraXng.To the
port, at the dutbrqik: c
Japanese had iour iirat-t ; r..:.'-ht.
with a tonnage. of ' 5j .r. n ;hev
tive. with a tonnage, of N
Their two coast dsfei
tonnage of 11,0000. hav --
five, with a tonnage " v
ey have the sam ..' jrw
cruisers, eight.
They have the same number of cruisers
above 6000 tons, 11.
They have lost one small cruiser.
They have gained three torpedo-boat
destroyers to add to the 19 they originally
had and they have lost four torpedo
boats. The grand totals are: At the beginning
of the war Japanese fighting ships num
bered HI, with tonnage of 220,753, while
now they have 143 fighting ships (not
counting the 11 submarines which they
have built during the war), with tonnage
of 232,661. In other words, this war so far
has reduced the Russian fighting strength
on the sua. about 50 per cent in tonnage,
while the Japanese strength has increased
in tonnage about 16 per cent through cap
ture from the enemy.
Doubt no longer exists as to the impor
tant part played by torpedo-boats in the
famous battle. Official dispatches show
that at least one Russian battleship and
two armored cruisers were disposed of by
the hornet fleet of the Japanese. In ad
dition to this actual loss inflicted upon
the enemy, it is now certain that the tor
pedo flotilla plunged the Russian crews
into a state of panic The latest news is
that the Russian- officers and men were to
a large extent runing madly about the
decks of their ships, unable to work the
guns with any effectiveness or to handle
the ships in an effective fashion. Two
things had occurred to throw them Into
this sad state ot demoralization the accu
racy and effectiveness of the Japanese
gun fire and the operations of the dreaded
torpedo-boats.
The moral is plain to American naval
experts: The man on the bridge and in
the gun turret la the first thing; the high
power, long range gun which expert gun
ners can shoot at great distances is the
second thing, and the third is the torpedo
boat, small of cost. In great numbers,
officered and manned by intrepid, dashing
men who glory in taking their lives in
their hands, and who may swarm about
an enemy's fleet and smother it and strike
1 terror into the hearts of its crews.
SECRETARY HITCHCOCK'S WORK
Washington Post.
The United States Supreme Court has
removed another barrier -which the al
leged ringleaders of the public land
conspiracy erected In order to escape
trial. Frederick A. Hyde and Henry P.
Dlmond, both .of San Francisco, ap
pealed from the decision of the Circuit
Court ot California directing their re
moval to the District of Columbia for
trial and denying them writs of habeas
corpus. The Supreme Court has af
firmed the decision of the Circuit Court,
and Hyde and Dimond must come to
Washington, in common with John A.
Benson, and face the evidence that has
been accumulated by Secretary Hitch
cock. It was a portion of this evidence
which led the Federal grand jury of
this district to Indict Hyde, Dlmond
and Benson. The accused used every
device that money would procure in the
effort to prove that the law does not
justify removal from a judicial district
In a state to the District of Columbia
and that no offense was committed In
this district. The Supreme Court In or
dering the removal of the accused to
Washington holds' that It is an excep
tional case and that the indictment in
this district was justified. As to the
contention of Hyde and Benson that
they were within the letter of the law
In their land operations, the Supreme
Court declares that the whole scheme
was fraudulent.
Frederick A. Hyde, the leading spirit
In these immense, operations, is a man
of wealth and remarkable ability. It is
probably true that his acts were In
most Instances within the letter of the
law. He boasted that if the United
States enacted laws which enabled
shrewd men to gobble the public do
main by wholesale, he had no scruples
In- taking advantage of the situation.
The greed of the land ring, however,
led It to commit violations of the law
outright, in addition to acquiring large
bodies of land by frauds upon the
states, if not upon the United States.
The extent and boldness of the ring's
operations finally led to Its undoing.
If the Secretary of the Interior had
been a man less stern and unconpro
mising than Ethan Allen Hitchcock,
there Is no telling where the frauds
would have stopped.. The ring was In
trenched within the General Land Of
fice, under the very nose of the Secre
tary of the Interior, yet so skillful was
Its work that It was not detected for
several years. After detection, relent
less vigor was necessary in order to
secure the evidence required to make
the proof of fraud conclusive and to
entrap the ringleaders. This work has
engrossed the attention ot Secretary
Hitchcock for three years. With a grlm
ness and singleness of purpose that
knew no turning, he stuck to his task
until he had laid bare the greatest
fraud that has been perpetrated upon
the United States In recent times. If, in
deed, it has ever been equaled.
The millionaire Hyde and his assist
ants are now face to face with the Issue
In the District ot Columbia, where they
are assured of a fair trial and no fa
vors. If they are guilty, there Is no es
cape from a punishment that will make
public landv stealing an exceedingly
unprofitable business while Secretary
Hitchcock Is In office.
Royalty Blows a Flute.
The Duke- of Oporto, brother of the
King of Portugal, Is one of the finest
fluteplayers In the world.
ably more. , t
Includes only '
lost. I
s '-ud
ne OfBcfcL
war