VOL. XLVI. XO. 14,419.
PORTLAND, OREGON, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY
2?
1907.
PRICE FIVE CENTS.
1
I
IDE II NULLITY
BY AMENDMENT
Mutilated Coffey Bill
Passed by Senate.
GAS LOBBY DOES WORK WELL
Grip of Portland Monopoly
Really Strengthened.
CLAIMS ARE RECOGNIZED
Clause Inserted Compels City to Pay
lor Perpetual Franchises Ke
voked by Kill "Joker" Ac
knowledges Vested Rights.
SALEM. Or.. Feb. 22. (Special.)
Amended to a nullity as to termination
of the perpetual state franchises of the
Portland Gas Company, and containing
a "joker" which acknowledges a vested
right to those franchises In favor of the
company against the public, the Coffey
bill passed the Senate tonight with but
one negative vote that of Hedges of
Clackamas.
The amendment defeating the purpose
of the original bill was forced by the
majority ol the Multnomah Senators
Hodson, Beach Bailey and Sichel. It was
presented this morning by Hodson, after
conference with the Representatives of
the gas company last night.
Yesterday these four Senators declared
that they wanted no amendment, at that
time desiring to defeat passage of the
bill by continuing the delay of the two
weeks that the bill had been in their
hands. In hope of putting It off until
passage would be Impossible. But forced
by Malarkey and Nottingham to consider
the bill, thoy finally brought forth the
amendment this morning.
Lobbyists Pave the Way.
A lobby of the gas company, headed by
J. X. Teal. John C. Tewls and C. F.
Swigert. and aided by S. R. Linthieum
.and Sanderson Reed, was busy last night
and this morning with members of the
Senate,, so that th way was paved for
thir schemes.
The majority report of the Multnomah
delegation, containing the amendment,
was adopted over the minority report of
Malarkey and Nottingham by a vote of
15 to 14. A preceding motion of Notting
ham's to substitute the minority report
for the majority was lost by a tie vote
of 14 to 14. This took place close to the
noon hour, and the bill came up tonight
for paage.
The minority report of Malarkey and
Nottingham contained an amendment to
the bill stipulating that the act should
become effective only In case the City of
Portland, prior to the end of the present
year, should grant or tender a new fran
chise to replace the old one, for not less
than 15 years' nor more than 25 years.
Hodson and his associates contended
that this would give the City Council
power to confiscate vested rights of the
gas company.
Effect of the Amendment.
The majority amendment provides that
the act shall become operative only In
tape the city shall ascertain the value of
each of the franchises affected by the act
in a court of competent jurisdiction and
pay to the holders of the franchises the
value so ascertained. The two other sec
tions of the act repeal each of the per
petual franchises, one granted In lbol and
the. other In 1S74, on the foregoing limi
tations. In another re.iuoct. . tha . -majority
amendment plays directly Into the
hands of the gas company, by virtually
declaring the franchises to be a vest
ed right, which the people must pay
for. If the grants are to be terminated.
Under such an act the gas company
is greatly benefited and comes out
better than before, since the act seems
to create value In the franchises and
thus to contain a huge "Joker," which
can be killed only by refusal of the
House to concur In the amendment, or
by veto of the Governor.
Octopus Plays Clever Game.
The gas company thus gets a big
prize without openly seeking it. by
turning Its own gain through efforts
of Beach, Bailey, Hodson nnd Sichel, a
bill which originally would have di
vested the company of Its perpetual
franchises. It seems impossible to con
ceive of a more clover game In legisla
tion. Should the bill become a law,
it may be doubted If the company ever
afterward can be divested of its fran
chises without large compensation
from the city. "Further, the bill may
net up a precedent In the way of ter
minating Any other perpetual fran
chises. The Hodson amendment reads as fol
lows: Th set hl take trrt. Brut be tn foil
force trom and afmr Dwmb 1, 1907,
provided that before this act Khali tak ef
ot the C.lty of Portland shall effuse the
-talu tt both .n1 mvh of MMd franchises
mnimied In sections 1 and 2 of this act, to
t ascsrtalned hy a court of competent Jur
isdiction and shall pay to the successors. In
int,.-yftt or assigns of i
ar to the successors
t . ald Al Zleber, the -v
fnt.-wt or anaigns of said Henry D. Grftn.
In lnteresrt or assigns
value so ascertained.
As pointed out by Nottingham and
Malarkey, the Hodson amendment
makes a farce of the Coffey bill, since
the seven and one-half months remaln--r
of this year, after the. act shall
become operative 90 days after the end
of the session, will not be sufficient to
determine in the courts the value of
the franchises to be revoked. Besides
the city has no funds available for the
purpose. .
Again the city would be buying not
gas plant and mains, but franchises,
which the state gave away free, and
which the company holds without com
pensating the public. The Hodson
amendment makes no provision for the
city's buying the plant and mains of
the company.
This latter "Joker" aspect was ' not
(.Concluded on Page 15.)
CONTENTS TODAY'S PAPER
The Weather.
TESTER DATS Maximum temperature. 54
deRrpB; minimum, 44.
TODAY'S Rain; southwest winds.
WrtshlnKton Birthday Speechm.
Ex-Pre.idont Cleveland on what to do with
fx-Presidents and decay of patriotism.
Pase 3.
Governor HiKErins, of Rhode Island, rriti-
ciw Washington, and Speaker Burchard
replies. Page a.
PreMdfnt churman f peaks on trusts and
the remedy. Page 2.
Archbishop Ireland opposes restriction of
liberty and opportunity. Paste a.
Foreign.
All survivors of steamer Berlin rescued.
Prince Henry helping:. .Paice 1.
Woman crosses English Channel In balloon
during? snow sturm. PagA 4.
Great storm in Germany causes many
dathp. Pajce 4.
Threats foretell storm when Russian Douma
mrets. Paye 4.
Anti-Jewish outrages in Odessa stopped.
rase 4.
Honduras declares war on Nicaragua. Page
4.
National.
House restricts Hitchcock's power In land
affairs and Cushman denounces his policy.
Page 1.
Heyburn blocks increased appropration for
forest reserves, page 4.
President Roosevelt speaks to Navy League.
Tage .1.
Roosevelt starts on visit to Boston. Page 2.
Politics.
Governor Hughes' critics cannot find any
thing to criticise. Page u-
Balley's final appeal to Texas Legislature.
Page 1".
Domestic. m
Haskin tells of famous men who have sunk
tnto obscurity, page 1.
Mrs. Thaw, exhausted by cross-examination,
prepares for three days' ordeal.
Page 3.
Atlanta Baptist ministers denounce Rockefeller.-
Page 2.
Relatives of Airs. Gal land, of Seattle, will
contest will. Page 3.
"porta.
H. H. Henlman wins Hunt Club paper chase.
Page 10.
Pentathlon meet at Y. M. C. A. Page 5.
Jack O'Brien fouled just a he has Turk
whipped In fifth round. Page 34.
Dallas College basketball team defeats old
Willamette, page 14.
Orrijron jLeglnluture.
Gas lobby destroys purpose of Coffey bill
by amendment before its passage in Pen
ate. Page 1.
Form of official ballot will remain un
changed. Page .
Astoria fishermen's lobby kills closed Sun
day salmon fishing bill. Pane 7.
Bill creating Board of State Tax Commis
sioners falls, page fl.
Portage Railroad extension bill finally killed
Page 6.
Newell'n anti-gambling bill slain In thfc
Senate, rage 17.
Facltic Coast.
Old-time stage hold-up occurs within sight
of Jacksonville. Page 14.
Indian Agent Edwards is under investiga
tion. Page 3.
Idaho House passes employers' liability law.
Page 14.
Commercial and Marine.
last sack of Willamette Valley wool of
llMMi clip is sold. Page 17.
Six hundred feet of docks to be built on
Portland's waterfront. Page 11.
Portland and Vicinity.
Many local pulpits vacant because of illness
and resignations. Page 1 1. '
Big force of men at work repairing damage
done to telephones by recent "silver
thaw." Page TO.
Harriman, motive power officials have
troubles with "equipment" agents. Page
10.
t .7.-- s&xr ; s.dr .-a n.i-,n
fef nits ' ' i
ALL ARE RESCUED
FROM SEA'S GRIP
NoSurvivorsRemainon
Wreck of Berlin.
PRINCE HENRY HELPS TO SAVE
Stolid Dutch Wild With J'oy
When Survivors' Land. -
STORY OF A PASSENGER
Huddled Together In Dock-lloiise,
Kemnnnt of Steamer's Passengers
Heard and Saw Efforts to
Save Them AH Fall.
I.OXDON, Feb. 23 A iliapnteh from
Amnlfrdnra report that the three sur
vivor who were left on the remnant
of the wreck of the Mennter Berlin
were readied early this morning:.
HOOK OF HOLLAND, Feb. 22. Largely
as a result of the courage and deter
mination of Prince Henry,, of the Nether
lands, the Prince Consort, that which last
night appeared to be ah impossible task
has been achieved, and the heroic and
unflinching efforts of the Dutch life-boat
men have succeeded in rescuing alive 11
more of the survivors of the ill-fated
Berlin.
The gallent Dutch life-boat men were
rewarded after more than 30 hours of
hard and dangerous work. Buffeted and
driven back time after time, -they refused
to relax their attempts to rescue the
handful or shipwrecked people, and
finally at 3:30 o'clock this afternoon, the
receding tide and some improvement in
the weather having made the condi
tions easier, their long fight was crowned
with success. Although several of the
persons were in the last stages of ex
haustion, they are on the road to re
covery, and some of them have been able
to tell of their , awful experience.
Two women and a child are still on
board the wreck, but it is feared that
they are dying. Nothing daunted, how
ever, the brave Dutchmen are preparing
to make further desperate efforts to
rescue these unfortunates.
Prince Henry Takes Charge.
Prince Henry arrived here this morn
ing and twice went on a steam pilot
boat as near the wreck as possible. After
his first visit to the wreck, when he
saw there were still some survivors on
board, he declared:
"We don't return to The Hague before
we save them; we must get them some
how." . The lifeboat put out again about noon
with the Prince on board and he helped
to pull at the oars and hoist the survivors
on board.
Ktish to. Greet Survivors.
The news that this determination again
to attempt the rescue bad been fulfilled
reached the waiting crowds this after
noon and there was then a wild rush
of the people to the various points of
LEGISLATORS
TWA OWVA.
:V INTO
vantage overlooking the harbor. It was
well that a special force of police and
soldiers had been brought into the Hook
for the night, as the excited crowd at
one time threatened to become uncon
trollable. Long hours of waiting followed
and the people began to doubt the re
port that any persons had been saved,
and it was not until long after 5 o'clock
that the steam pilot boat heralded its
coming with shrieks of triumphs from
her siren. .
By this time the harbor was black with
thousands of people. The roofs of all
houses and sheds were crowded, while
along the roadway skirting the sea there
raced hundreds of people keeping pace
with the rescue boat. In the meantime
every preparation was being made at the
harbor to take care of the individuals
rescued. Six motor cars, including that
belonging to the Prince Consort, were
drawn up in readiness to convey the sur
vivors to the Amerika Hotel, where a
staff of medical men, especially sum
moned, was waiting to give succor.
How Hescue M as Effected.
The small lifeboat was the "first to reach
the harbor, and Captain Jansen report
ed that two women and a child, who had
: V h- r;S 7
Representative Frank W- Cunhman,
Who Ieadr Attwk on Secretary
Hitchcock's Land Policy.
refused to jump, were still aboard the
wreck. He explained ' that the rescue
had been effected by both boats working
in conjunction. First the smaii boat
managed to .make fast a rope to the
breakwater and by this means the sur
vivors were dragged through the water
to the pilot boat, which suiod a little
way off. .
Captain Janspn had hardly told his
story when the steam pilot boat with
the rescued on board hove In sight. As
she moored, the cheers were succeeded
by a painful hush, as the first of the
survivors was borne ashore on a stretch-
TWO MOKE HTEAMKRS W RECKED.
ED.
LONDON". Feb. 22. Two stoam
wreel
ecks wore reported at a. late hour 2
night by passing vessels. I
One was off Flambornugh Head in
ton I
On
the North Kea and the other oft t
Beachy Head In the Eng-llsh Chan-
nel. The names of the vessels are f
not known, and no details of the dis- J
asters yet have been received. J
The weather is still stormy, espe
cially in the North Sea.
er. The man was swathed in blankets
and made no sign of life. The 11 sur
vivors were removed to the Amerika Ho
tel and, when the Prince .Consort came
ashore, his face was radiant with grate
ful joy. Every Dutchman present for
feited his national reputation for stolid
ity by joining in a roaring cheer.
Many Disappointed Relatives.
The hotel in the meanwhile was so be
sieged by the crowd anxious to catch
a glimpse of the survivors that the po-
(Conclufled on Page 3.y
IN THE CLOSING DAYS OF
t
iL-5?8 owsy . V-3TVL Xli-rM
i laws wuRft-fi
REVOLT OP WEST
QUESTION
: I
Hitchcock's Policy of
Suspicion Scored.
LIMIT PLACED ON HIS POWERS
No Special Agent Unless In
formation of Fraud.
CUSHMAN VOICES ANGER
Assumption That "Whole WestIs Dis
honest Hotly Condemned, and
Bill Amended to Protect Set-
tiers From Charges.
.WASHINGTON. Feb. 22. The House
In committee of the whole placed itself
squarely on record today in favor of
limiting the power of special agents of
the Department of the Interior by a rote
restricting the use of the appropriation
of $230,000 covered by the soundry civil
appropriation bill to pay the salaries of
such agents. By a vote of 104 to 170 the
committee adopted an amendment offered
by Mondell (Wyoming) and debated for
two hours by Cushman (Washington), La
cey (Iowa), Mann (Illinois). Bnrke (South
Dakota), Reeder (Kansas), Bonynge (Col
orado), Gronna (North Dakota), Steener
son (Minnesota), Gaines (Tennessee) and
Smith (Iowa).
During the debate the work of the spe
cial agents was severely condemned and
orders of the President regarding final
proof on homesteads criticized as work
ing unnecessary hardships upon settlers.
Cost of Philippine Government.
Clark (Florida), offered a resolution
calling upon the Secretary of War for a
statement as to the cost of the Philip
pines since their acquirement by the
United States, but it was defeated by a
vote of lfiS to 105.
The House, while In committee of the
whole, passed 360 private pension bllU
in 30 minutes.
The sundry, civil bill was still in the
process of reading when the House ad
journed at 6:45 P. M... and the considera
tion of . the bill will be concluded to
morrow. Puts Cheek on Special Agents.
Mondell's amendment provides that no
part of the appropriation of J2.i0.000 for
the pay and traveling expenses of special
agents under the Department of the In
terior, to protect the public lands from
illegal and fraudulent entry shall be
available for the examination of the land
embraced in any entry upon whtch final
proof has been made, unless the Depart
ment has information' furnishing good
grounds to suspect fraud.
Mondell insisted that the activity of
special agents was known to every honest
settler on the public domain.
Laeey. chaiman of the public lands
committee, believed the President was
sincere in his efforts to enforce the land
laws and protect the honest settler from
the land speculator. He also declared
THE SESSION
tt'''.
that we never had a more honest Secre
tary or the Interior.
All Northwest Protests.
"Nor one who was more universally
mistaken," answered Cushman.
. Lacey continued his defense of
the Secretary of the Interior,
who, he said, had been greatly
maligned ' and much misunder
stood. "He has endeavored to enforce
the law and he has caught some pretty
big fish," aid Lacey. It was in the
Interest of honest settlers that Inspec
tors should not be hampered in their
work,
Gronna told of the hardships occa
sioned by the two now famous orders
of the President suspending final proof
on homesteads until expert examina
tion can be mnde.
Steenerson of Minnesota thought the
President could not have known the
hardships that would follow his order
of December 13, 1906. otherwise he did
not believe it would have been Issued.
He made the assertion that Mr. Pinchot
had Inspired the drastic, order "which
was as arbitrary as any ukase issued
by the Czar of Russia."
"It is time Congress provided that
the stealing of land by rich men away
from the poor stall be as much pun
ished as any other theft," said Mann of
Illinois. The purpose in investigating
the frauds had been to save to the poor
man the public domain and prevent its
being taken by the rich man for pas
ture land and otherwise, he said.
Hitchcock Honest, hut Suspicious.
Cushman, in championing the Mon
dell amendment, said he regarded the
Secretary of the Interior "as an honor
able, honest and high-minded man and
well-intentioned." but added:
"I do believe he Is suffering from a
very severe case of suspicion regarding
the integrity of the people of the
West." He declared there had been
nothing in the record or these land of
fice investigations to justify the con
tinuous "cry of calumny that has been
set forth regarding the land frauds."
It was true that there have been isolat
ed and individual cases of fraud in the
land business, but there had also been
instances of fraud in the grocery busi
ness and fraud in the banking business
and fraud in all other business and in
all avenues of trade.
"The only difference between the
two," he declared, "Is that the present
Secretary of the Interior has adver
tised and given currency to a great de
gree to. these few lonesome instances
of fraud that have occurred, until he
has saturated the public mind with the
belief that men who reside on the pub
lic domain are thieves and looters."
He declared the progress of the West
depends on the ownership of the land
by Individuals and denounced the pres
ent policy as opposed to that interest.
He continued:
Assumes AVhole West Dishonest.
"It seems to me. that the Secretary of
the Interior Is proceeding1 in theso mat
ters on the basis that all men on the
Western domains are dishonest unless
the contrary is proved and this Is
known to he untrue. There is no rea
son why the people of the West should
be watched by a herd of private de
tectives. 1 would like to ask the gen
tleman from Illinois (Mann), who
seems to think it Is necessary to have
these special agents watching the men
from Minnesota in order that they may
perpetuate no dishonest act, who is to
guarantee the honesty of the special
agent?"
Cushman said thait when a special
agent starts out from the office of the
Secretary of the Interior, he is saturat
ed before he starts with the Idea of
fraud. The very existence of his Job
depends upon his finding fraud, and if
he does not find fraud, the necessity
for his official existence ceases."
As for himself, he would rather ac
cept the statements of the settlers than
those of the agent who had been ap
pointed perhaps Trom the suburbs of
(Concluded on Page. 2.)
H AW . Vt)i)t.
E
Proctor Knott Humor
ist Against Will.
CANNOT BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY
Senator Turpie in Retirement
Among Books.
ROGER Q. MILLS ON FARM
Author of Famous Tariff Bill Never
Heads Newspapers Man Who
First Recognized Washing
ton's Military Genius.
FAMED
IN
n
OBSCUR TY
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN
WASHINGTON. Feb. 17. (Specla
Correspondence.) Three mfti whose
names were at one time In the mouths
of almost every American and who are
spending their remaining days in se
clusion are David Turpie. of Indiana;
J. Proctor Knott, of Kentucy, and
Roger Q. Mills, of Texas. Their names
are rarely seen in print nowadays, yet
they are enjoying life among their
books In their several homes. Mr. Tur
pie and Mr. Knott were Democrats In
the Senate and House in the days when
the Civil War had reduced that party
until It had so few members that it
could not demand a roll-call. Mills
came In soon after and then served as
chairman of the ways and means com
mittee when the Democrats returned to"
power.
Troctor Knott is one of the most pic
turesque men In the country. He won
fame tn Congrrers as a humorist and
that fact has embittered bis life. He
liked to be funny, but he was also seri
ous. A screamingly funny speech he
made In 1S70 on the question of paving
Pennsylvania avenue ranked him as a
professional humorist. Protest as he
would, every time he got up to speak
the House would begin to laugh and it
was no use to be anything but frivo
lous. A year later he discovered Pu
luth. Minnesota, iuluth was then an
Imaginary spot on an Imaginary ratt
road. In speaking against the proposed
subsidy for this railroad. Knott em
ployed an unparalleled flow of sarcas
tic oratory and described Duluth as the
center of the universe. Thirty-six years
have passed and Duluth, large thanks
to Proctor Knott's advertising. Is one
of the greatest lake ports in the world.
Ninetj-rive Cents at 95 Pounds.
Proctor Knott was born in Kentucky,
in 1829, and, after being admitted to
the bar, went to Missouri to make his
fortune. He had the sum of one dollar
when he arrived at his destination. He
sat on. a stump a while and was lone
some. Then lie went into a country
store and bought five cents' worth of
chewing tobacco. He ' stepped on the
scales to weigh himself and tipped the
beam at 95 pounds. He likes to tell
how he began life with 95 cents and
95 pounds. In his long political career
Proctor Knott held many positions of
honor. He was in the Missouri Legis
lature and later served as Attorney
General of that state. Kentucky sent
him to Congress again and again and
also elected him Governor. After teach
ing law In Center College, he retired to
Lebanon.
When his old friends drop in there to
see him, they can always hear a good
story and have a hearty laugh, but he
prefers his seclusion mourning that a
world with a funny-bone would not
permit a good joker to be serious when
he wanted to be. Duluth is proud of
him and has entertained him as the
guest of the city. There was a great
race horse named Proctor Knott; there
are hundreds of boys named for him;
and in the after-dinner speeches of the
time there are innumerable mavericks
born of the wit of the old man who is
now laughing over his books in Leba
non. Turpie Devoted to Books.
David Turpie probably would have been
in the Senate today had the Democrats
held Indiana. Beverldge succeeded him.
Mr. Turpie is in his seventy-eighth year
and since his retirement from public llf
has devoted himself to his books. H
has written a charming story of Indiana
life, calfed "Sketches of My Own Times."
He fist went to the Senate in 1S63 as
the successor of Jesse D. Bright, who
was expelled for disloyalty to the Union.
Of all those who were in the Senate
then, but one other survives, and he is
John B. Henderson, of Missouri. In 18X7
Mr. Turpie went to the Senate for th
second time and remained twelve years.
He was a colleague of the mighty Dan
Voorhees and is known as the most
scholarly of Hoosiers. He was the last
Democrat to represent his commonwealth
In the upper House of Congress.
Mills Enriched by Oil.
Roger Q. Mills lives alone at Corsicana
He is nearly four score and has permit
ted the world to wag on far ahead of
him. He does not answer letters that
seek to drag from him expressions on
timely political events. It is said he
does not even read the newspapers and
takes no interest In current affairs. He
went to Congress in 1873, when James G.
Blaine was Speaker. He served under
two other Republican Speakers. Keifer
(.Concluded on Pa 1XJ