8
THE MORNING OREGONIAN, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1907.
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PORTLAND, SATURDAY, DEC. tU 1807.
i . HOW HARD IT IS TO CLIMB!
Cardinal Newman In his great book,
"The Grammar of Assent," argues
I that the chief proof of the existence of
. God la derived from development of
the moral conscience In man. It is
the greatest of all proofs. It includes
' proof from will or purpose, lying he
hind which is the motive of all things
. in the universe.
In our politics and social life it is
' the same. Man is guided by bis con
sciousness and by his conscience. But
they are feeble lights. It is only
through long experience and many ef
forts and failures that conscience be
gins to cast a clear light. It is so dim
that it leads whole peoples at one time
or another into the ditch. They wish
to do right,' but they see through a
glass darkly. Their fiercest - efforts
are struggles in this darkness.
There has been no political, social
or economic system that has not had
these struggles. To every people
whatever has been or has appeared to
be profitable has seemed to be right.
Admit that conscience was the guide.
But It was not a true conscience. It 1
was darkened by Interest, by environ
ment. Can the people be depended on
In these cases? No. Only the seers;
only those few who have the higher
moral view; only those for whom con
science is the clearer guide. For this
conscience moral intelligence may be
another name.
It is not always granted to the In
tellects that rank highest. Cicero was
among those who thought labor only
St for slaves. Matthew Hale was a
believer in witchcraft and Joined, in
the persecution of witches; Jefferson
Davis was thexhead of a republic
founded on slavery. William J. Bryan
could not see the immoral side (of
course he could not see the error on
the economic side) of the effort to de
base the money standard of the coun
try. ; In Byron's poetry an energetic and
splendid passage ends with, "What
ever fields be sought or lands Jbe
trod, man's conscience is the oracle of
God." This brings usback to Car
' dinal Newman's argument. It is true,
in the ultimate; but It becomes true
only after vast wanderings in error
- and much chastening. Of course the
: people must decide. But what a deal
. of tribulation they must pass through
before their moral and intellectual
and spiritual vision is purged, bo they
; can decide rightly! We read Just
now, in a popular newspaper before
' -us, that it rests with the people, under
our system of general suffrage, to have
what they want just such a system
of finance and banking and Industry
as they want. But what If they don't
know what they want, can't tell what
they want, are in mistake' as to meth
ods of reaching what they want, and
surely will commit blunder on blunder
in reaching what they suppose they
- want, and then find it at last not what
they want ? Who among us knows Just
how to cure the evils of our present
financial system? We have the sys-
, em as it Is; no theory is precisely
applicable to it; what is suitable to
one country is not suitable to an
other; and yet a general principle that
must not be divorced from moral in
telllgence, and should be guided by it,
' rules over alL One thing, however1,
In -finance is settled by the consensus
, of the world the gold standard of
f money. It hB taken many centuries
- of hard experience to settle even this.
; But the banking system of every coun
try must depend very largely on that
country's special conditions. Ger
many cannot have England's; France
cannot have that of England or Ger
many; Italy can have none of them.
Tet a general principle runs through
the. whole that is applicable every
where. We are a people among whom
every one tries to utter and to enforce
his opinion, but nobody has all knowl
edge, and they who have most, have,
as always heretofore in human history,
t the least credit. We have tb.ere.fore
only to grope and blunder along, and
gain more knowledge in the hard
school of experience. It is"seldom the
people can decide what they want,' for
it is seldom they know; They will
find out, after a while, of course. But
it's a hard road to travel. And then
their experience, so hardly gained, will
become part of the common stock of
knowledge, to be applied to new spec
ulations. Win' OUR SHIT PING IS SCANT.
It Is not doubted that American
shipping could be established, to an
extent, by large and steady subsidies.
Our country makes but a poor figure
on the high seas, and Is not likely to
make a better till many conditions
change. But at present, and for years
to come, subsidies would be a most
wasteful way. Economic conditions
axe so much against us, at present.
In the matter of this industry, that
subsidies, if we began to use them,
would really become the main reli
ance. Such subsidies as other coun
tries pay would be too limited to af
ford any real help for our purpose.
The Treasury would be compelled to
carry a mighty burden.
There are many reasons why our
country Is not building and sailing
ships, In proportion to Its other vast
Industries. We can neither build them
so cheaply nor- sail them7 so cheaply;
and under pretense of furthering a
building Industry that is Impossible
under present conditions, our people
are prohibited from buying and sav
ing ships under the American , flag.
Subsidies from the Treasury to cover
the difference of cost and operation
would run into immense sums and be
come a vast NationaJ scandal. The
"rake-offs" would soon be Immense.
In the days of wooden ships we had
advantages In our matchless forests.
Labor cost generally, was lower, be
cause there were not so man chan
nels as now into which labor could be
turned. It was easier, too, therefore, to
obtain men for service at sea. The
iron and steel ships gave great advan
tage to foreign builders; and Lloyd's
discrimination against wooden vessels
operated to drive from the seas ships
Jn the construction of which we once
had the advantage, . Over and above
all, the railroad era opened a vast and
rich continent to enterprise and devel
opment, by which capital and labor
could make greater gains. This era
continues; It has not yet half exhaust
ed or appropriated the possibilities
and opportunities offered by this great
continent. Our people can yet find
more prosperity on the land than on
the sea. Hence they have not pushed
the building and sailing of ships upon
the seas.
And since our capital and labor In
our country find more profit in devel-,
opment of the resources of the Ameri
can continent than in maritime under
takings; and since other nations can
build and sail ships more cheaply than
we can, and are able to carry our
products more cheaply than we could,
why not let them do these things and
content ourselves for the present, and
till conditions change, with the great
er profits we are deriving from our
continental development? Our peo
ple, depend ' upon It, will take to the
sea as soon as sea traffic will pay
them.
- No doubt we could, with subsidies,
build and sail some ships and many,
perhaps. If we should tax o-ir other
Industries for support of this special
one. They grow .oranges, too, and
even bananas, in the Botanical Gar
dens at Washington, under protection
of glass and supply of artificial heat;
but nobody thinks it a sound economic
proposition, or looks to extension of It
for a national supply of tropical fruits.
MORE SLAUGHTER.
It is interesting to note the connec
tion between a certain class of saloons
and such crimes of violence as the'
murder of Policeman Gittlngs. Before
Bradley rushed out to Bhoot his victim
he had been drinking In a saloon.
Blodgett, the murderer of Alice Min-
thorn, had also been drinking on the
morning when he killed the poor
woman jn her bed. The Supreme
Court holds out some hope to Blodgett
that his drunken rage may . perhaps
be interpreted by the law as insanity.
Of course If he was insane because he
was on a spree, so was Bradley. From
this point of view Bradley was very
foolish to flee. Had he been wiser he
would have remained and stood his
trial, pleading that he was insane
when he shot Gittlngs. The chances
are that he would have been acquitted
either in the lower court or upon ap
peal, and then be could have walked
the earth in the pride of his manhood
free and fearless, whereas he must
now lie In hiding. At least he must
hide for a time, until our extraordi
nary sleuths grow tired of searching
for him.
What the connection may be. If
there is any, between the marvelous
tenderness of the courts for savage
murderers and the increasing fre
quency of crime it would be difficult
to say. The notorious, fact is that a
man who shoots another really incurs
but little danger of punishment. If
he can show a history of drunkenness,
passionate 'violence and general "cus
sedness," particularly If he can prove
that he had drunk himself Into a spe
cies of dementia in preparation for his
deed, he will find It comparatively easy
to make good a plea of insanity. Per
sons like Blodgett and Bradley know
this very -vweU and act accordingly.
They almost Invariably go on a spree
before seeking their victims, and sel
dom shoot except in a fit of that sort
of "insanity" which strong drink pro
duces. The only case where the plea
of insanity does not seem available is
that of a' respectable man who has
shot some scoundrel in self-defense.
Such" a man; under our present system
of justice, runs a great risk of being
hanged.
By setting free a man like Blodgett
of course the safety of human life in
the State of Oregon is appreciably di
minished; but no such reflection as
this ever troubles the courts. ' It is the
particular life of the criminal which
seems to them so extremely important,
Bradley shot Policeman Gittlngs so
.soon after Blodgett's escape from the
gallows became known that the mind
Involuntarily connects the two events.
Very likely this unavoidable inference
is wrong; but can there be any doubt
whatever that the notorious leniency
of the courts creates an atmosphere
admirably suited to the growth of
crime? Can there be any doubt that
their so-called humanity is in truth
the cruelest inhumanity to innocent
men, and especially to women and
children?
Suppose there were some connection
between the reprieve of Blodgett and
i the access of murderous courage
which inspired Bradley to hoot .Git
tings. Suppose this depraved young
man said to himself on that morning,
"I see that Blodgett is to beat the rope
after all. Why cannot I get drunk
and kill my enemies the same as he
shot Alice Minthorn?" Would not the
triumph of technical law over justice
be purchased at fearful cost In such
a case? Very likely Bradley never
reasoned the matter out In precisely
that way, but Is it not certain that he
and others like him feel the logic of
the situation instinctively? The cost
of this triumph of technicality and
sentimentality Is not confined to the
loss of grown men like Policemen Git
tlngs. Their families must not be for
gotten in making up the miserable
reckoning. Gittlngs leaves a wife and
three small children, with an unborn
babe soon to come Into the world.
They are left homeless and without
means of livelihood. If they are saved
from dire suffering it must be by char
ity. The essential fact In the case is that
Blodgett committed an atrocious mur
der. His whole life), as well as his
confession, proves him to be of the
worthless, vicious, criminal class. He
committed the murder, unquestion
ably. The jury found him guilty.
Why shouldn't he hang? It would
seem that no allusion by the District
Attorney to the vicious lives of others
of his class ought to be the reason
why the law in his case should not be
executed.
WHERE ANYBODY MAKFS LAWS.
Judge Cleland's decision In the Port
land bond cases, we may assume. Is
likely to be upheld by the State Su
preme Court. In any event, various
Important 'Public projects are suspend
ed. We are not to have now the new
$3,000,000 water system extension, nor
the $1,000,000 park and boulevard
scheme, nor the new $450,000 Madi
son-street bridge, nor the $600,000
free public docks, nor the additional
$276,000 flreboat. .We ... need these
things, or -some of -them, no doubt.
though we .ought to be able to worry
along for a while longer without
doubling our available water supply,
or adding to our already more or less
attractive parks, or even without a
complete chain of free. docks; and per
haps the present Madison-street bridge
will stand up a while longer. Per
haps, too, we shall be lucky and there
will be no occasion for the. services of
any flreboat.
If these questions shall be submitted
again to the public, it may be hoped
that it will all be in correct legal form,
under the initiative. It may be done,
if we are diligent, and our legislative
doctors can agree en what is correct
procedure through the initiative., The
people in .Oregon have undertaken to
make their, own laws, so that every
body in Oregon is a legislator. Judge
Cleland's decision is a warning to all
City Councils and all other such bod
ies, high or low, not to "monkey"' with
the sovereign people In the act and
process of discharging that solemn
function. Probably the courts, too,
will soon be told to keep hands off.
What are our laws in Oregon going
to be after a while, when the TTRens
and Wagnons and all other such
statesmen get through with them?
GAMBLING IN FUTURES.
Representative Scott, chairman of
the House committee on agriculture,
has introduced a bill to prevent deal
ing in grain futures. It is drafted on
the same lines as the cotton future bill,
Introduced in the Senate by Culberson
of Texas, and is intended to break up
the practice of gambling in futures.
The object sought Is meritorious, but
will be difficult to attain, for reasons
which the language of the bill Itself
makes plain. It proposes to reach and
break up dealing In, futures by prohib
iting telegraph and telephone compa
nies from transmitting messages ''re
lating to Contracts for future delivery,
when it Is not intended that the arti
cle contracted for shall be actually de
livered or received." The limitations
of the-bill are likely to be disclosed
when an attempt is made to prove that
the article contracted for is not in
tended to be delivered or received.
The Chicago Board of Trade and
every other prominent grain exchange
in the country handles an immense
volume of business for legitimate
gralnbuyers and sellers, millers and
warehousemen, and, aside from the
few cash sales that are made, it is all
handled by exactly the same system as
is employed in handling the buying
and selling of futures for men who are
gamblers pure and simple, and have
no intention of receiving or delivering
any wheat. There is not the slight
est vestige of illegitimacy In the Dur
chase on a margin by a miller of 100,
000 bushels of wheat for delivery six
months hence. He can make all ar
rangements for grinding that wheat at
delivery time, with the full assurance
that it will be available, or in lieu
thereof the -seller will be obliged to
make good any loss. If, in the mean
time, flour orders which had been re
lied on are canceled, the miller can
transfer this "certificate of demand"
for 100,000 bushels of wheat to some
other buyer who may need the wheat
at that time. '
These are perfectly legitimate busi
ness transactions, the "margin" being
a deposit to bind the bargain. The
most serious problem that will con
front those who attempt to enforce the
law, in case the bill is passed, will be
in making a distinction between the
business that Is legitimate and that
which is not. Grain exchanges. If
properly conducted, perform a very
useful function in gathering ami dis
tributing information of Importance
and value to the trade and in facili
tating the buying and selling of the
crop. It may be questionable whether
these legitimate functions can be sup
pressed in order that the misuse of
the exchange's market quotations can
be prevented. Gambling In futures
should be suppressed, but legitimate
business should not be interfered with.
MAKING HIS WAT IN THE WORLD.
There Is the right kind of stuff in
the young man who decides that the
world owes him a living providing he
gets out and rustles for it. Such a
youngster may prefer to qualify him
self for a profession and make his
plans In pursuance of that object, but
if thwarted by lack or through loss of
money, he does not disdain to engage
in the next best thing that offers. An
example of this determination to do
something and do it at oncosts cited In
the case of a young student, late of
Portland, who, because his money was
tied up in a broken bank, was unable
to pursue his medical studies, but
without loss of time enlisted In the
United States Marine Corps.
- Success to- George Waldemar Pel-
man, aged 22. He may not realize his
early ambition and become a physician
of renown, but he will not be a sniv
eller at the heels of circumstance,
nor waste time and opportunity in,
girding at fate. There will be a place
for him in the world for the simple
reason that he) will make one.
Dr. F. E. Moore, of Baker City, the
osteopath member of the State Board
or Medical Examiners, complains that
the board forms a "jackpot" of the
fees and makes an equal distribution.
That expression "jackpot" Is evidently
a local term understood in Eastern
Oregon, but down here in the western
part of the state we don't know what
it means. That it is of nautical ori
gin might be surmised from the use
of the word jack, but the remainder
of the expression indicates that it was
created irf the kitchen. The use of
the word by a doctor might give the
impression that it is peculiar to the
practice of medicine, but all the Fort
land doctors who have been asked say
they know nothing of such a term.
For Information, the question might
be referred to the lawyers,- particular
ly of Eastern Oregon. Can Bennett,
Johns, Fee or White tell us what a
jackpot is?
The tomb of the Bernadottes has
closed upon the venerable body of one
of the most beloved of the royal house
of Sweden, King Oscar IX A man of
peace, of culture, of devotion to his
country and to his people's Interests,
the late King stood for royalty in its
most exalted sense, and, dying, left a
nation In tears. The weather on the
day of the funeral was keen with, the
bitter cold of the far Northland, yet
thousands of Sweden's hardy sons and
weeping daughters stood with heads
reverently bared or bowed for hours
on the streets of Stockholm waiting to
catch a last glimpse of the casket that
held the body of their late King. Loy
alty and devotion thus symbolized are
doubly expressive when a man is
mourned as well as a King a friend
as well as a ruler. ;
The turbine engine is still winning
laurels for unprecedented speed on the
water. The British torpedo-boat de
stroyer Tartar on her trial trip at
Southampton a few days ago broke all
kinds of records by steaming for six
hours at an average speed of thirty
nine miles per hour, which is several
miles per hour faster than the aver
age speed of any transcontinental train
In the United States. During por
tion' of her official trial the little craft
was' speeded up to more than forty
three miles per hour. The success of
the new engine was so pronounced In
the case of the Tartar that It will un
doubtedly take "the place of the valve
engines in most of the new vessels
built for very high speed.
After careful charting, official infor
mation comes that Uncle Sam has
2600 islands in the Philippines instead
of 1200 ,as supposed when we acquired
them nine years ago. This news re
calls a real estate transaction In a
suburb of Tacoma Involving exchange
of a lot for a ' Jersey cow. Recount
ing the "swap" to a friend, the new
owner of the cow said: "The man I
traded with couldn't read nor write;
so when I made out the deed I rang in
two lots on him and he won't know
the difference till he comes to pay the
taxes.". .
It Is authoritatively stated that next
Tiif.srlnv at n nMlal mAatlno.
Fcouncll, a fender will be selected for
the streetcars operating in this city.
If a "fender that fends" is chosen and
its adoption by the streetcar compa
nies Is made obligatory in the shortest
possible space of time, the result will
be the bestowal upon the people of
this city of a Christmas gift of inesti
mable value and of unquestionable
humanity and good will.
The steamship Cambrian Is helpless
In mid-Atlantic with a broken shaft.
She will be towed to port by a vessel
that picked her up soon after the acci
dent happened. The fact that this
news is in possession of those who
have .friends on the -overdue ship Is
one. of the greatest triumphs of wire
less telegraphy. Many a "ship which
never returned" In the old days would
have been saved had Marconi lived a
half century earlier.
Is there a bicycle in Portland that
has a lamp or a bell? Is there a po
liceman who pays the slightest atten
tion to the reckless manner In which
many bicyclists, mostly messenger
boys, ride through the streets, striking
down citizens, such as the venerable
Jacob Kamm, who happen to get in
their way? Isn't It about time some
thing was done to make these boys
have some slight regard for the lives
and limbs of others?
The hilarious Joy with which Japan
is prepared to greet the American
squadron is characteristic of the hon
orable Nippon nation. The congratu
lations that are becoming so warm
that the insulation on the trans-Pacific
cables is endangered should be
received by the American Government
in the spirit In which they are sent.
We should put our faith In Japan and
at the same time keep our powder dry.
Perhaps the people of Tillamook
County will Instruct their next repre
sentatives in the State Legislature to
work for the repeal or amendment of
the parole law. They do not seem to
be satisfied with the way it Is working,
particularly in the Hembree case.
No; The Oregonlan Isn't worrying
over the fact that Mr. Roosevelt will
not remain continuously in the Presi
dential office till MaAch 4, 1913. If
will be sufficient if he resumes the of
fice at that date for another term.
The Western Federation miners say
they mean no violence, but they want
those soldiers withdrawn from Gold
field. Why? They are not hurting
anybody, especially anybody . who ' is
not hurting anybody else.
Japan wants the American fleet to
make a visit there. If Admiral Evans
goes, he ought to go, extend the glad
hand and remember the Maine.
At the next election, perhaps, Port
land won't vote millions with the same
eagerness that was manifest last
June.
John Sharp Williams is doing his
best to make the vocation of Tom
Sharkey and Joe Gans respectable..
As years roll by; Oregon may learn
how to make leeal laws under the Ini
tiative. . ,
PICTURES REAL EASTERN OREGON
Bishop Seaddlngr Say a Tills State la
Strategic Field for the Church.
NEW YORK, Dec. 14. (To the Edi
tor.) The average Easterner geta, his
conception of Oregon from Wild West
shows, and for the" past three months
I have been on a campaign of educa
tion trying to correct the impressions.
The new Bishop for Eastern Oregon
Is a remarkably capable man, was
brought up on the Pacific Coast, and
will be a great acquisition to Oregon.'
Ignorance on the part of some Eastern,
people concerning conditions in distant
places of his diocese has given an op
portunity to some New York writers to
give startling headlines to stories
which give false impressions of Ore
gon. I have a letter in this morning's
New York Tribune which I wish re
printed in The Oregonian as soon as
possible? CHARLES SCADDING.
Bishop of Oregon.
The letter referred to follows:
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Having just seen a copy of your
Issue of Sunday. December 8, containing an
article on "A Bishop With No Fixed Abode,"
I desire to correct a false Impression which
some paragraphs may convey.
You present a very spectacular picture of
Mr. Paddock, the new bishop of Eastern
Oregon, but it is imaginary, and based on
Ignorance of the conditions of which the
new bishop is to become a part. Eastern
Oregon is not like the wildest wilds of
Wyoming. It Is neither populated by foreign
Immigrants, who form the "tenement prob
lem" of our great cities, nor by cowboys
who carry bowle knives In their teeth and
six-shooters In their hip pockets. It is rap
idly settling- with sturdy, stalwart Ameri
can citizens, who have the courage to leave
the East and Middle West and come to a
state which has the greatest undeveloped
resources In the Union.
The rollicking, drinking, shoot-on-slght
cowboy exists only in Bowery melodrama.
Bis place has been taken very largely by
the college graduate who now works &
ranch on sclentlfio principles.
The new bishop will not be required "to
dress like a cowboy," but will need his eve
ning clothes and most immaculate linen in
his wardrobe, for he will find the men as
well dressed and the women as well gowned
as most of the men and women with whom
he is accustomed to associate. The bishop
will find a far lower average of vice and
sin and crime in his new diocese than In
New York. Oregon stands third among the
states for the small number of Illiterate
persons in proportion to tne population,
while New York ranks forty-third.
Twenty thousand homeeeekers came into
Oregon during the last few months, for the
most part a fine class of young people at
tracted by the equable and salubrious cli
mate, the fertile soil and the fact that the
profit this year on Oregon apples was $800
an acre, on cherries $500 an acre and on
prunes $200 an acre, and by many similar
facts.
The problem for the bishops and clergy of
Oregon today is not that which is supposed
to belong to a "wild and woolly West." but
the problem of trying to make the Chris
tian religion and good citizenship keep pace
with the remarkable commercial develop
ments. I believe Oregon Is today the strat
egic field for the church and Chat now Is
the psychological moment to advance.-
Earn Meeker Visits Consrresa.
Washington (D. C) Herald.
Ezra Meeker, the man who made the
trip, from Oregon to Washington, D.
C, in a prairie schooner, was a visitor
on the floor of the House, and, owing
to the fact that he closely resembles
the popular conception of Santa Claus,
In the matter of hair and beard, he
attracted much attention. Many of
the members did not know who he was,
and Jim Watson, the whip of the
House, .undertook to find out for a
visitor. ..
"Say, Pete," he remarked, to "Uncle"
Peter Hepburn, one of the old-timers in
the House, "la that old man back there
a one-time colleague of yours?"
"KTnt- that i know of." reDlied the
man from Iowa, who declined to admit
that he served in the House with John
Adams, as was insinuated by the man
from Indiana.
Colliding: Antoa Can't KUI Him.
New York World.
The experience . of being hit by a
speeding . auto has grown tame and
monotonous to Horace Dowd, a farmer of
Richfield, N. J. Five times within the
last year Dowd has been struck, but each
time has escaped unscathed, save for
wreckage of clothing and humiliation of
Spirit. ' .
He was crossing tne .raierson iura
pike on his way to church recently when
his trained eye noted the rapid approach
of a formidable high-power car.
"Not this time," chirped Dowd" with a
knowing wink as he Jumped back.
He did not see a second car. Its blunt
nose struck Dowd in the back and tossed
him headlong over a fence. But there
was the earns old monotonous finish. Not
a bone broken nor a Joint sprained.
The Reason la -Sound. -N
Harney County News.
Those who have watched the trend
of political action- In Oregon for the
twelve 'years past will recognize the
justice and force of The Oregonian's
recent announcement of its determina
tion to stand aloof and renounce alle
giance to the Republican cause in this
state until the party membership can
get together and exhibit some regard
for party principle and party loyalty.
The men who clothe themselves with
the party label only to betray It at the
most Important times cannot expect
men of ability and self-respect to waste
their energies in maintaining ma
chinery for such uses. The Oregonian
is right. Until we have a united party
there is no sense in fighting for it.
It Takes Longest.
New York Evening Mall.
A' Yale sophomore says it takes
longer to learn the conjugation of a
Greek verb than it does for any other
one thing- In life. Our experience is
that it takes an eternity to learn how
to keep a bowling score and then
we're not sure of it, when the Btrlkes
are bunched.
Row Is Julia on Splitting; Woodt
Fossil Journal.
Miss Julia Chapman won a set of silver
knives, forks and spoons in a board-sawing
contest given toy a medicine show In
Steiwer Hall Wednesday evening. She
went through her board before any of her
competitors 'had got well started.
Horrible Thought!
Baker City Herald.
Borne of the Republicans who seek to
attend the National Convention as dele
gates will probably change their minds
when the thought presents itself that
there will be no passes this year.
- The Presents of Yesteryear.
New York Sun.
Again we try as we tried before
To give each person a thing to prise.
Again we plan as we planned of yore
For sweet remembrance of friendship's
ties.
Our purses then were of goodly size.
We gave and took with a heart of cheer;
But times have altered; who may sur
mise Where are the presents of yesteryear?
That thingumbob that we never wore
Safe wrapped in the bureau drawer it
lies.
If passed to Kate It will fix her score.
And Mabel's gift to Biisa flies;
Its use would certainly stump the wise.
But on it goes with never a fear.
The list grows shorter; who may sur
mise -
Where are the presents of yesteryear?
Fresh as the day that It left the store
The Joneses' gift to the Browns ap
plies; We send the stud from the folks nex
door
To gladden our aunt's far distant eyes.
The r.eed of Grace to the heavens cries,
Jess fills- the gap and our list Is clear.
May never they meet beneath the skies!
Where are the presents of yesteryear?
Kris Kringle, ride In your merry guise
To scatter our tokens far and near.
And do not blab should the question rise:
Woex are tixa xtreseata at jraabacxMt,
MORE PLAK9 FOR MIL ROOSEVELT.
What He la to JOo After Retirement
as President.
Washington Special, December 13.
What to Mo with our ex-Presidents will
not trouble the American people as far
as Theodore Roosevelt is concerned,- at
least for a number of years.
The President has a number of plans
that will occupy his time when he re
tires from office. One of these he made
known to the German Ambassador to
the United States, Baron Speck von
Sternberg, in a recent talk. The Pres
ident and the Baron are close friends
and comrades, and . the conversation
was entirely Informal.
"When I am through here," Mr.
Roosevelt said, "I am going to Ger
many for the express purpose of meet
ing your Emperor. I have long ad
mired him and I want to know him per
sonally." The Incident occurred at a White
House luncheon about a week ago, and
in making the remark the President
gave to Von Sternberg the first out
spoken hint of the plan that has been
running through his head ever since
he definitely decided to retire at the
end of his present term.
Standing upon his - Irrevocable de
cision not to be a candidate for re
nomination, Mr. Roosevelt will retire
from office a year from next March,
and thereafter, for a time at least, will
be free to follow his natural bent.
These are the plans he has under con
sideration: A history of his administration to be
written.
A big game hunt in Africa and India
to be indulged in.
A tour of the world, with incidental
visits to the rulers of the great states.
It may be said with the utmost cer
tainty that the President will not be
a candidate for election to the Senate
to succeed Thomas C. Piatt.
That the tour of the world offers
great attraction to the President is
well known to his friends.
On the question of the big game hunt,
his imagination has been aroused. Mr.
Roosevelt has recently -almost drained
the Congressional Library of books
dealing with big game hunting In Alas
ka, as well as other parts of the world.
ASHLAXD GOES DRY.
Now Ashland -Will Try to Make Jack
son County Go the Same Way.
Medford Daily Tribune.
Ashland has voted for prohibition
and will be dry for the next year.
This is a matter that concerns Ash
land only, and no one outside of Ash
land cares. But Ashland, not content
with regulating its own affairs, will
try and regulate those' of all other
county communities. Having voted
herself dry, Ashland will try to vote
lackson County dry.
It is an unfortunate feature of Ore
gon's local option law that it is so one
sided that any district can go "wet,"
and yet if the county goes dry, the dis
trict must also go dry, irrespective of
its vote and wishes.
There are many reasons why Ash
land should vote for prohibition. It is
a school town and not a' business town,
and has no. ambition to be. Perhaps
no sthonger argument could be used
than that put forth in the circulars is
sued by the Prohibitionists, which
state:
"What advantages oes Ashland of
fer? We may as well be absolutely
candid. Ashland Is not a commercial
city; she has no large factories no ex
tensive mines. The railroad has a good
payroll, but no prospect of its employ
ing a largely Increased force. Ashland
does not appeal to the laborer, but the
homeseeker and the fruitgrower."
Making; Cheap Gaa From Straw.
Winnipeg (Manitoba) dispatch in New
York Times.
The process recently Invented and
patented by J. Russel Couts, of Cleve
land, O., for turning ordinary wheat and
oat straw Into Illuminating and fuel
gas threatens to revolutionize the Can
adian Northwest, and already several
plants are under construction.
Experts say the process is as cheap
as that used in getting gas from coal
and oil, but by the new patent waste
material is made use of Instead of coal
costing some $5 or $8 a ton. Every ton
of straw yields over 15,000 feet of gas,
while the best Pennsylvania coal, cost
ing here at the present time from $11 to
$12 a ton, yields but 10,000 feet'of gas
a ton.
The quality of the gas produced
equals the best coal gas, and can be
delivered at less than half the cost. In
Western Canada each year thousands
of tons of straw are burned for the
purpose of getting it out of the way,
so the cost of material for the gas
producing plants being built by the
company will be comparatively noth
ing in addition tp the price of hauling.
Sellin' a Sheep.
Scottish American.
Two Highland farmers met on their
way to church. "Man," said Donald,
"I was wonderin' what you "will be
askin' for yon bit sheep over at your
steadin'?" '
"Man," replied Dougal, "I was think
in' I wad be wantln' 60 shullin's for
that sheep."
"I will tak' It at that," said Donald;
"but, och, man, Dougal, I am awful sur
prised at you doin' business on the
Sawbath."
"Business!" exclaimed Dougal. "Man,
sellin' a sheep like that for 50 shullin's
is not business at all; it's Just charity!"
Doubtful About His
Cun
.Philadelphia Ledger.
A short time ago an old negro was
up before a judge in Dawson City,
charged with some trivial offense.
"Haven't you a lawyer, old man?"
inquired the Judge.
"No, sah."
"Can't you get one?"
"No, sah."
"Don't you want me to appoint one
to defend you?"
"No, sah. I jes' tho't I'd leab de case
to de lgn'ance ob de co't."
Good TbJng-j posh It Along:.
Corvallis Times.
A new design In postal cards has struck
town, and it promises to bankrupt the
place. It is a reproduction of a cartoon
that appeared in the Portland Sunday
Oregonian, touching the Northwest foot
ball championship. The work was done
by W. G. Emery of Vancouver, and Is,
of course, good. The cards go at 10
cents eacfa, or three for 25 cents, and are
going like hot cakes.
Telephone Courtship Brings Wedding.
Baltimore News.
Lee Graff and Miss Sara H. Robeson,
unknown by sight to each other, courted
for weeks over a 300-mile telephone wire
between ,Temple, Pa., and Pittsburg.
They finally met and a wedding followed.
Great Britain's Drunks and Gamblers.
New York Press.'
John Burns, member of Parliament and
leader of the Labor party In 'England,
says the cost of drinking and gambling,
directly or indirectly, in Great Britain
is $1,070,000,000 a year.
"Magnetic" Love.
v Providence Journal
'The experiences of some "magnetic"
candidates in the past make the ques
tion of the magnetism of Governor
Hughes one chiefly for academic dis
cussion, .
One Kind of Finance.
1 Eugene Guard.
Some men are so much afraid to turn
loose their money that they have quit
-paying; .their debts.
Boors
ysr" DMIRERS and critics a!ike of "
J Henry James, the American nov-
elist who prefers to live in Eng
land, are astonished to read his an
nouncement Just issued that he is to re
write his early novels so as to bring them
into harmony with what he calls hi
"later manner."
Mr. James is 64 years old. and has
written about 23 books in the 3 years
of his literary activity. It is natural
that Mr. James wishes now to clothe
In more mature style his earlier stories,
and to blot out and otherwise alter many
phrases of those early days, just as
Fitzgerald afterward spent rime in pol
ishing his "Rubalyat," only to find many
people whose favorable opinion he craved
preferred the first edition to the third.
Mr. James' enemies, and there are a
few, complain that his present literary
style is so involved and obscure that , in
reading his newer novels, they do not
"know where they are at." Persons
owning early editions of "Roderick Hud
son," or "Daisy Miller" should preserve
these as curiosities. Mr. James retorts
that the public demands a uniform and
definite edition of his books. The Scrib
ners are about to publish the first of the
rewritten series "Roderick Hudson," and
it Is noteworthy that this story was first
published about 32 years ago, after it
serially appeared In the Atlantic Month
ly. Do you remember the old saying that
has passed into a proverb: "Don't tam
per with a classic?"
e
Francis Thompson, the English poet
whose death is announced, had a tragic
life story almost equaling for bitterness
that of Chatterton. His father was a
well-to-do physician in Manchester, and
designed his son for the same profession,
but the youth rebelled, misunderstandings
arose, and he left home to be a waif on
the streets, selling matches, and running
messages to add to his means of liveli
hood. Among others of his poems, he
had written with some verses an essay
on the relations of the soul to the body,
and had submitted the manuscript to the
editor of the Catholic magazine, Merrie
England. But the papers were pigeon
holed, while the poet slowly starved.
Later the verses were discovered to pos
sess sterling merit and were published,
and payment was forwarded to tho au
thor at the address he had given,
"Francis Thompson, P. O. Charing
Cross." But he was nowhere to be
found. Now comes the peculiar part of
the story.
Yielding to despair, Thompson had
gone to a dark corner in Covent Garden
Market, and he tells what follows: "I
was about to take poison when I saw
one whom I recognized as Chatterton
forbidding me to drink it, and memory
told me that a letter which would save
me was waiting. So I lived." Thompson
latterly suffered partial mental eclipse.
Here Is his "Vision of the Eternal":
I dimly guess what Time in mists confounds;
Yet ever and anon a trumpet sounds
From the hid battlements of eternity;
Those shaken mists a space unsettle, then
Round the half-glimptfed turrets slowly wab
again;
But not ere him who summoneth
I first have seen, enwound
With . glooming robes purpureal, cypress
crowned ;
His name I know, and what his trumpet
salth.
e
General E. P. Alexander's "Military
Memoirs of a Confederate: A Critica!
Narrative," is a striking study of the Civil
War, from the viewpoint of what tha
author calls "an unprejudiced Southern
participator."
e
Myrtle Reed's "The Love Affairs of
Literary Men" contains romances ot
Swift and his Stella and Venessa,
Pope and Lady Montagu, Samuel John
son and his widow, and the sentimental
experiences of Keats. Sterne, Cowper
and our own Edgar Allen Poe.
-
In the new and revised editlfm of
William -Dean Howell's "Venetian Life-,"
he says in his preface that the book is
what he first meant It to-be, "a picture
of Venice in the last days of the Aus
trian rule." Hp also remarks that he
Is sorry that so many readers miscall
his book "Days," instead of "Life."
. In the two sumptuous volumes, "The
White Houee," Esther Singleton lias
artistically grouped the social life,
relics and traditions of that storied
building from the days of John and
Abigail Smith Adams to those of Presi
dent Roosevelt.
Elizabeth Luther Cary's "The Art
of William Blake: His Water Colors.
Painted Books and Sketch Book." Is
finely illustrated, there being many re
productions from the drawings In the
well-known Blake "Manuscript Book."
which was sold for about $2.60 to Ro
settl when he was a lad, by a British
Museum attendant.
The fourth volume of Timothy Cole's
"Old Spanish Masters," with engrav
ings by him, is monumental. The pic
ture is first photographed upon the
block, and Mr. Cole has done his en
graving work in each Instance in the
presence of the original, being fortu
nate to catch those subtleties which
escape the photograph. Besides repre
sentations of Velasquez, the book con
tains' reproductions of Morales, El
Greco, Zurburan, Cano, Robera, Murillo
and Goya
Charlotte Eaton was once a member
of the little Summer colony at Point
Pleasant, N. J., where one of the
guests at that time was Robert Louis
Stevenson, and she tells this story of
her experiences In the current number
of the Crafteman: One afternoon, in
the midst of an Intellectual tak, some
body suddenly said, -Egg-nog!"a bev
erage of which Stevenson was very
fond, and all entered with delight into
the preparation for the decoction; one
brought eggs, another the sugar-bowl,
while our host. Mr. Sanborn, went down
to the cellar for the wherewithal to add
the final touches. Unhappily, at this
point, I coughed. It was the year of
the influenza plague and the epidemic
had posseeslon of me.
"What! a cold?" asked Stevenson.
"Influenza yeB," I answered.
"You will not mind, then," Bald he,
kindly, "if I ask you to keep a respect
ful distance. I always take a coid if
any one in the same room has one."
"How near, within safety, can I eit?"
I asked, feeling myself martyrized on
the spot.
"Just as far away as possible," said
he. "I am only now recovered from a
bad cold caught from a waiter who
served me at a hotel I am peculiarly
susceptible, you know," he urged.
I hovered upon the threshold reluct
antly, yet rather than Imperil that frail
and Joyoue life by even the shadow of
a breath I resolved that I would do
better.
"I will go out on the lawn," said I, "If
you will make amends."
"I'll send the egg-nog out to you
when it's ready." ,
"Oh, not that," and I repeated my re
quest with emphasis. "If you will
make amends"
"Speak, and it shall be granted you,"
said he, laughing.
"An autograph," and I flew to my
room for my birthday book.
I then went out and sat under an
old apple-tree on the lawn, where the
voices and sounds of merry-making
floated out to me, together with the
perfume of the roses that twined about
the windows. '
They brought me a glass of egg-nog
out under the gloom of the apple tree.
L,hated the stuff but his hands had
made It, so I held it to my Hps and
.drank a silent toast.