THE MORNING OREGONIAN. FRIDAY, JANUARY 3. 1908.
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PORTLAND. FRIDAY. JANUARY S. 1908.
WRECKING A RAILROAD.
A Federal judge holding court in
Mr. Ryan's . private car at 2 o'clock
In the morning on the way from Dan
ville to Richmond, enveloped In a
host of Ryan and Harriman lawyers,
presents a suggestive and edifying
spectacle. If the Harriman and
Ryan crowd had not got their receiver
for the miserable Seaboard Railroad
appointed with this situation in their
favor, it would have been surprising
indeed. There is no record that the
stockholders of the road were repre
sented in this strange judicial pro
ceeding, and very likely It would do
them no good if they had been. The
whole affair seems to have been care
fully cut and dried, and this session
of the court, held in transit, looks
like a maneuver to carry the plan
through without their interruption.
The next step will be to throw the
road Into bankruptcy, sell the prop-
jerty of the shareholders to the Har-
riman crowd for a quarter of its
' value, use. the proceeds to pay off flc-
titious debts, and leave the Investors
to howl to the moon for their money.
Us 1st eine alte Geschichte, as the too
satirical Heine would say. 'Tis an
old, old story, and one that has been
told so often that it is a little sicken
ing. The receivership for the Seaboard
Railroad is the culminating move In a
game of high finance wMch Mr. Ryan
and his gang began some five years
ago. The road was at that time un
der the management of a Southern
business man of inflexible Integrity
who had a hereditary interest in its
welfare. The shares were owned
then, as now, by people in Virginia
- and Baltimore who had sought them
as an investment. By well-known
tricks of his thieving trade Mr. Ryan
.got a hold on the property which he
used to beat down the price of its
shares, destroy its business and Anally
wreck it. The game was played with
his customary skill and somewhat
more than his customary defiance of
law and honor. In alliance with him
were Harriman and the plundering
j: Standard Oil interests which are Just
i now assailing high heaven with their
' shrieks of injured innocence on ac
count of Judge Landls' fine. What a
pity they could not have spirited
Judge Landis away in one of their
sumptuous private cars while he was
deliberating upon his decision. Per
haps then it would all have turned
out so differently.
This new act of high-handed piracy
is one of the most infamous in the
long series of Ryan and Standard Oil
infamies. For cold-blooded villainy it
exceeds anything In the scandalous
- history of the New York street rail
t. roads. Doubtless when the tale is
'.'finished, when the robbery of the
j shareholders has been consummated,
then Ryan, Harriman and their pals
f will issue another appeal to the public
,v for more confidence ir them and their
methods. Doubtless their organs in
i New York will begin another cam-
palgn of slander against the President
7;- to cover their Infamy and smother the
?. scent of their foulness. They know
t well how to play the trick.
t Nobody expects this crowd to ab-
stain from robbery so long as there is
(. anything or anybody to rob; but one
would Imagine that the courts, after
all that has been said and done, would
cease to lend them the cloak of le
gallty' for their thefts. . What can a
judge be thinking of who permits
himself to be spirited away at
; o'clock In the morning by a gang of
corporation lawyers intent upon
wrecking a railroad? This same
judge lately enjoined the State of
Virginia from enforcing its laws osten
. lbly to prevent the confiscation of
'corporation property; will he be as
alert to prevent the confiscation if the
property of the shareholders In the
harri-sd and beleaguered Seaboard
Railway?
IT IS HARMLESS BLUSTER.
Repeated and continuous state
ments come that Japan is preparing to
assert and to maintain her mastery
over the Pacific Ocean, and that her
people regard the United States as
their principal rival. This kind of
thing Is well enough, all in a peace
ful way, you know; but when the Jap
anese talk of guns and drums and
villainous gunpowder, in- connection
with It, why, then, belike there may
be a different thought about It.
Japan has her Jingo party. It keeps
up a lot of rhodomontade. It is for
home consumption, mostly. In our
country we should say It was stuff for
Buncombe County. Behind It Is much
Ignorance; and yet there Is lntellij
gence enough In Japan to preserve
her from the last danger of making
fool of herself and invoking her
fate.
Japan has resources for a defensive
position, but not for an aggressive ca
reer. With China her Influence may
be considerable, and over Corea and
Manchuria It will be great. Yet any
excess may forfeit It. Japan has not
the physical or material resources
necessary for an aggressive career.
She was really at the last gasp when
fortune gave her peace with Russia.
It Is preposterous to Imagine that she
will seek war with the United States;
for the first consequence would be re
newal of the purpose and effort of
Russia to absorb Corea and Man
churia. The United- States would
meet Japan at sea and Russia would
meet her on land. Her resources
wouldn't last a year. '
But we want to let the Island em
pire of the Orient alone. It has Its
own place In the world and Its own
work to do. Nor shall we mind a lit
tle harmless swagger on the part of
the Japanese. Let the bully boy, who
has just found out that he is alive.
have room to bustle In. He feels good
over It, and who can begrudge him?
ONE HTNDRED AND TWENTY YEARS
OLD.
Death,' when it comes to the very
aged, is merely the coming of a mes
senger long delayed. Its arrival
causes, or should cause, neither sor
row nor regret. The person who lives
on and on, bereft by the years of sight
and hearing; the friends and compan
ions of whose youth, middle life and
even ordinary old age, have all passed
beyond call; whose round of days is
made up of eating without the zest of
appetite, sleeping without being re
freshed and moving about with the
help of others, may be said in all
kindness and sympathy to linger su
perfluous upon the stage. Reverence
due to age is mingled with pity for the
man or woman who simply folds his
or her limp hands and waits the tardy
summons of Nature. It is thus that
those who have for years heard with
emotions of reverence and tenderness
that Mrs. Mary Ramsey Wood a cen
tenarian still lived at her home in
Washington County alert and bright
'for her age," but blind and deaf and
infirm of body learned with thank
fulness that she died New Year's day.
Life at last, after long tarrying with
this feeble, outworn body, stole gently
away without even the frying formal
ity of a last "good night" but in the
dawn of the new year "in some hap
pier clime bade her good morning."
The work of "Grandma Wood had
long been done. The record of the
years shows that it was well done ac
cording to the measure of her strength
and opportunity. Prodigal time gave
her one hundred and twenty years of
his store. Being enough and more
than enough, who shall grieve that
his largess was withdrawn?
A GREAT MISTAKE.
Reports from Washington con"rm
the rumor that Congress will do noth
ing at this session toward establishing
postal savings banks and a parcels
post. In this matter It seems to be
making the blunder so often made be
fore of preferring the interest of a
small and noisy class to that of the
country at large. The express trust
has egged on the country storekeepers
to oppose -these immensely beneficial
measures, and together they .have
frightened Congress into inaction.
The parcels post and the postal sav
ings banks must wait until after the
Presidential election, if not forever.
Of course a two-fold fear stifles the
flaming zeal of our legislators for the
public good. Were the express com
panies offended, campaign contribu
tions would be more or less endan
gered. Were the country merchants
offended a certain number of votes
might be sacrificed. But in this con
nectlon there are two considerations
which cannot be wholly suppressed
One of them is that campaign contri
butions cannot Insure party success
without popular approval. The air is
swarming with signs that the Amerl
can voter hangs to his party by a
frightfully slender thread. The de
feat or indefinite postponement of a
measure so much desired by the peo
ple as the postal savings banks, for
example, will inevitably change thou
sands of votes. It will tend to con
firm the complaint, now so often
heard, that the Republican party fa.
vors the special interests Instead of
the common people. In periods when
party enthusiasm Is strong leaders
can often afford to trifle with popular
wishes; but in times like this such a
course is suicidal and the error cannot
be retrieved by amassing of campaign
contributions, however generous. -
We must not forget, either, the
growing disposition of the people to
vote for those who favor their meas
urea and against those who oppose
them. Congress, by its Inaction, ad
mits that the country merchants will
probably cast their votes according to
their interests, without regard to
party ties. Will not the farmers do
the same? Will not the multitude
who desire postal savings banks do
the same? Very likely the politicians
count upon the inability of the farm
ers and their sympathizers xto act as
compactly as the country merchants
can, but in all likelihood they are
making a mistake. Things have al
tered greatly in this particular within
a few years. To a Congressman who
has failed to support the parcels post
the farmers are only too likely to say,
"Your action in Congress has been not
for us, but for the express trust and
the country merchants. Now let
them re-elect you if they can. We
shall vote for somebody that will fa
vor our interests."
It seems almost certain that the
policy of inaction which has para
lyzed Congress is a fatal error. There
are mahy things which the country
eagerly desires o see done. The
knowledge that their legislators are
simply dallying with the public inter
est to pass away the time until the
election is over will please only a few
pe;ople, while it will offend thousands.
The .country as a. whole no longer sets
partisan success above plain economic
advantage. The party which receives
the votes, of the intelligent electors
must earn them by valuable service.
POPULATION OF" WASHINGTON.
Mr. Sam Nichols, Secretary of State
for Washington, has again placed in
jeopardy his reputation for economy,
political acumen and diplomacy. In
the annual "Booster Book," which is
issued from his office, appear among
other statistics figures giving the es
timated population of the state by cit
ies and counties. Advance sheets for
the 1908 issue have been received, and
there is trouble ahead for Sam. Ac
cording to his estimates, the popula
tion of the entire state is 1,158.998
and only about one-fourth of the
number is credited to Seattle, the
modest estimate for -that city being
240,000. This was apparently the
"directory , census" figure. If Sam
had followed that system throughout
the state,, he would have saved consid
erable money that was wasted in se
curing figures elsewhere, and In addi
tion would have had the satisfaction
of knowing that he lived in a state
with a population running from
2,000,000 to 3,000,000 people.
On this, particular point, Mr. Nich
ols should be censured for wasting
state funds to secure information
which the directory people or the lo
cal push clubs could have given him
on demand. The Jolt which his repu
tation for diplomacy will receive will
be even more severe. As an example,
we find Pullman, Wash., credited with
3000, and Colfax, its nearest neighbor,
given 3600 population. This will be
hilariously pleasing to Statesman Mar
tin Maloney, who runs the hotel and
Is trying to convert Colffcx into a
Democratic municipality, but- how
about Perry Lawrence, the Whitman
County Republican -warhorse from
Pullman? The answer will be forth
coming as soon as Perry can whisper
in Sam's ear. Then "keep your eye
on" Pasco" when her citizens learn
that her population is placed at 1200,
compared with 1500 for that of Ken
newlck. When Sam goes east of the
mountains" to replace some of- the
fallen props In his political fence,
what excuse can he offer to the citi
zens of Cheney (pop. 1500) for the
appearance In the, "Booster Book" of
Sprague with 1700 population?
Or, coming down along the North
ern Pacific, where the "southwest
combine" has a strangle hold on state
politics, what will the free and en
lightened voters of Chehalls (pop.
6000) say when they read: Centralia
(pop. 6000)? Then there Is Winloclt
(pop. 1200), lying close to Castle
Rock (pop. 1400). Naturally a wall
will sweep down from Spokane (pop.
80,000) when the citizens of the in
land burg take note that it is Tacoma
(pop. 90,000).
And yet, laying aside these little
differences of local opinion, it may be
that Secretary Nichols is entitled to
praise. Seattle ought to be satisfied.
and It Is extremely doubtful if search
warrants and microscopes could re
veal the presence in the Evergreen
State of more than 1,158,998 popula
tion. Even at that, carping critics
will hint that the figures were attained
by the system mentioned by a rhym-
ster as "counting noses twice, and
even numbering rats and mice."
BILLIONS FROM THE CONSUMER.
The Department of Agriculture has
Issued the final figures on the crops
for 1907, and they show quite clearly
that the farmers of the country this
year have made more millions than
ever before. The value of the wheat
crop alone was more than $550,000.
000. Corn leads all other products
with a valuation of $1,340,000,000
while oats, barley, potatoes, rice and
other necessities bring the total value
of farm products up to $3,408,000,000
which is approximately $500,000,000
more than the value of the output
last year. It is, of course, gratifying
to note the wholesale prosperity that
has settled over the farming commu
nity, but it is through superficial no
tice of these figures that we have been
led to believe that there are invinci
ble safeguards against financial trou
ble in this country.
Unfortunately for those who are not
farmers, the greater part of this added
$500,000,000 in value must be paid by
our own consumers, who also buy an
overwhelming proportion of all the
products we grow. Wheat is one of
our largest exports, and yet the for
eigners this year will pay us for wheat
and flour little, if any, more than
$150,000,000, leaving a balance of
$400,000,000 to be collected from the
American consumer. Our exports of
corn are comparatively small, and
pork products, which might be termed
corn in a condensed state, are also
consumed at home in quantities sev
eral times as large as those which are
exported. And so on through the list.
The big crops and high prices have
benefited thousands of farmers and
the added burden has fallen on mil
Hons of ' consumers. A shortage in
the wheat crop in foreign countries
is responsible for the high prices in
this country, but,, having forced the
price up, the foreigner only buys
about one-fourth of our crop, and our
wn consumers must pay the increased
price for the remaining three-fourths.
It Is in these years of high prices
for farm products that the unfortu
nate consumer can appreciate to the
fullest extent the beneficent workings
of our tariff system. If we were
working under a reciprocal policy
which would enable our consumers
ot take advantage-of the rare bargains
in clothing and other necessities of
life that are cheap in foreign coun
tries and high in this country, they
would be in -a better position to stand
the burden of high prices for wheat,
corn, pork, etc. The foreigner not
only gets our farm products at the
same prices we pay, less the freight.
but he can buy hundreds of American
manufactured' articles for much less
money than our protected "trusts" de
mand from the American consumer.
A revision of the tariff would have lit
tle If any effect on the price of farm
products, but it would enable the con
sumers of the country to save millions,
on other necessaries of life, thus eas
ing the burden of high-priced farm
products. Incidentally it would pre
vent the wholesale looting of - the
American people by the Carnegles,
Havemeyers and other beneficiaries of
the present reprehensible system.
Mrs. Cooke, wife of the recreant
clergyman who eloped from Hamp-
stead, L. I., with a young girl of his
flock last Spring, takes a rather un
usual view ofTfer own position. "My
husband's crime is not against me,"
she is (reported to have said, "but
against the girl, the church and God."
In the usual accounting in such a case
the deserted wife has suffered some
wrong. The irresistible conclusion is
that a wife who views the matter as
doe3 Mrs. Cooke considers herself for
tunate In being rid of an incubus
without effort on her part.
A case of surprising ignorance re-,
garding the right of suffrage and the
rightful exercise of it appears at Seat
tle. At the latest election there the
soldiers at Fort Lawton were permit
ted to vote. It is supposed their votes
elected the present Mayor, Moore,
who, upon the count, had fifteen ma
jority. Friends of the Mayor have been
counting on a big vote for him at the
next election, which will be held . In
March prox. But now the City Attor
ney Is reported to -have made the dis
covery that the soldiers at the mili
tary post have no right to vote, nor
ever had. But, he says, "they may
vote in a National election" we sup
pose he means for electors of Presi
dent and Vice-President. In fact.
they have no right to vote in any elec
tion, unless at the place where they
lived before enlistment. The laws of
each'sta"te control the suffrage, subject
only to the restriction provided by the
fifteenth amendment. We think the
laws of the State of Washington do
not allow to soldiers of the United
States the right to vote, when they
may happen to be in garrison in that
state: ,
The Bank of England rate was low
ered from 7 per cent to 6 per cent yes
terday, this action being-the strongest
evidence that has yet appeared to con
firm the improvement in the financial
situation. The rate was advanced to
the abnormal figure for the purpose
of checking gold exports, but It now
seems quite clear that even the record-breaking
quantities in which the
yellow met,al came to this country
were insufficient to disarrange finances
in the Old World to any appreciable
extent, and the return of confidence
on this side of the ocean appeared
before the danger point was reached
in "England. The reduction in the
bank rate came at an opportune time.
as it served to offset the temporary
weakness caused by the news of the
Seaboard" line's difficulties. This
country is rapidly getting into a posi
tion where all of the ranting and confidence-destroying
talk that can be in
dulged in will not stay the return of
prosperity.
Count Bonl de Castellane and his
cousin. Prince Hello de Sagan, two
'birds of .a feather," engaged in a
street brawl in Paris yesterday, in the
course of which they landed in the
gutter, bruised and bleeding. The
gutter was, of course, the most appro
priate place for them in the absence
of any convenient opening to a sewer,
but they were rescued by the police
and It is announced that a duel will be
fought. There is still hope, If the. ru
mor of the duel is not unfounded, for
there might be possibility of their
killing each other. If the affair has
such a pleasing termination the two
gutter snipes should die happy in the
knowledge that at last they had done
something worth while for their
country.
Later accounts of the Japanese riot
at Vancouver state that the firemen
who were stabbed had, previous to the
encounter, offered to pay the Japanese
for 'the damage which they had in
flicted on the building. This may be
used at the trial as an extenuating
circumstance for the Japanese. It
was such an unusual proceeding that
the brown men were perhaps shocked
into a state ""of temporary insanity.
On the whole, however, the situation
may be best as it is, for had the fire
men merely broken the window and
fled, it would have necessitated the
application of diplomatic splints and
arnica to the wounded pride of swag
gering Japan.
The "unwritten law" of today was
written ten centuries before the Chris
tian era by a man known in the liter
ary and religious world as Solomon.
In the latter part of the sixth chapter
of Proverbs he said:
Men do not despise a thief If he steal to
satisfy his soul when he la hungry; but if he
be found he shall restore sevenfold; he shall
give all the substance of his house. '
But who committeth adultery with a woman
lacketh understanding; he that doeth. it de
stroyeth his own eouL
. A wound and dishonor shall be get; and his
reproach shall not be wiped away.
For Jealousy is the rage of a man; there
fore he will not spare in the day of ven
geance. He will not regard any ransom; neither will
he rest content though thou glvest many gifts.
The Assessor has found $233,000,
000 worth of taxable property in
Multnomah " County. He could win
the lasting gratitude of a large num
ber of taxpayers if he would find
buyers for the property at the figure
at which he has assessed much of the
real estate. The figures, however, go
well with the directory census, and
give every man, woman and child in
the . city directory census something
more than $1000 each.
Shades of the mighty Earp family.
Dan Quinn, the old cattleman, not to
mention Mr. Bat Masterson et al..
Colorado has closed up her gambling
games and even refused to permit a
New Year's day prizefight to be pulled
off. Here is- an opening for some
twentieth century Mother Shipton to
get In and predict the end of the
world, with a good prospect for find
ing some people who would believe it.
A prominent Broadway restaurant
in New York has introduced the prac
tice of permitting women to smoke
in its dining-rooms. As New York
women have for years been permitted
to get drunk in public restaurants, the
additional freedom is not so great a
concession to vice as might at first b9
suspected.
At this distance it would seem that
Thomas F. Ryan has not increased his
popularity by financing the Seaboard
Air Line.
No one has yet suggested that a
new City Jail and a. garbage crema
tory could be combined on one site.
Governor Hughes' views on reform
ing New York's banking laws may be
applied also to Oregon.
The new twentydollar pieces won't
"stack up." They ' never make that
mistake with "chips." s
CAN BRYAN CARRY NEW YORK?
He Can,, if Any Reactionary Shall Be
Nominated Against Him.
New York Press, Rep.
Our judgment of the public's temper
regarding the progressive movement
begun by Mr. Roosevelt and the reac
tionary attitude of those elements that
are bitterly opposed, quite impartially,
to Mr. Roosevelt and to Mr. Bryan
alike, is that there is not the slightest
doubt that next year the Commoner
could carry New York against a Knox,
a Fairbanks or a Cortelyou. He could
A .kl. 4 . 1 . ....... . ! !
- 1110, ij. wc uilueiDiauu buj liiiiis "
all about the sentiments of the people
of New York and of the United States,
because they know that he represents
their views and their purposes vastly
better than any of the other" three
whom we Iraye mentioned. The voters
of the country do not, by any manner
of means, indicate that they believe
Bryan has the capacity to do for them
the things they are determined to have
done before they relinquish their pres
ent mission of making political revolu
tions. But they' know that Bryan at
least, is in sympathy with them, and
nothing could convince them that a
Knox, a Fairbanks or a Cortelyou
would dream of fulfilling the resolve
of the people or of serving their in
terests before the special interests.
And the American voters, without the
slightest hesitation, will choose the
man who is for them, though he may
lack the gifts to perform their pro
gramme, over any candidate who is
known or merely suspected to be
against the fulfillment of their will.
Nothing could be more foolish for
the Republican party and more stupid
for anybody than to Ignore this vivid
truth that Bryan will carry New York
and the country against any repre
sentative of the reactionaries, whoever
he may be. On the other hand, a Re
publican committed by both word and
deed to the progressive programme of
the American people and of a proved
capacity to get actual results, the right
results, that they are resolved to ob
tain, will beat Mr. Bryan in New York
and in the Nation just as surely as the
sun will rise and set on election day.
And in considering such a man the
minds of the voters so naturally ex
clude all others today that it is super
fluous to give a further description of
him than the mere mention of the
name of Charles Evans Hughes, Gov
ernor of New York.
IOWA'S
OUT-DATED
SENATOR
Allison's Been There Long, and Wants
to Star Longer.
Harper's Weekly.
A man who has been a Senator for
nearly 40 years, or who can be if he be
only re-elected once more, would bo a
poor sort of a man, as politicians go, if
ne aidn t even want to Keep on. The
delight of the ghost on seeing onitg
substance's tombstone, "Forty years in
tne united States Senate," may be im
agined, but no ghost has ever enjoyed
the chance to feel it. William B. Alli
son wants to be the man, and some
Republican aspirants of Iowa, Cum
mins, perhaps, want him to take a well
earned rest in his very old days. They
are willing to do his work for him. They
don t know him. He never asked any
body to do his job for him, and he is Just
as squarely built and Just as stocky
as ever. He can still walk oft briskly
from his house on Vermont avenue to a
dinner party or a committee meeting. He
still knows more about appropriation bills
than all the Senate put together, plus the
House and its speaker. He harks back a
long time. Her married a daughter of
Senator Grimes, who outraged Ben
Butler and pleased Justitla by voting
against the conviction of Andrew John
son, knowing full well that Ben Butler
could turn him out of public life that is
the way virtue was rewarded In recon
struction days, but - that Justitla could
only smile at him and make him self-
satisfied. Back in 1S70 he Joined Garfield
In thinking that; the country ought to
begin to work toward free trade, but
stand-patting became more profitable,
and he is too ancient to go back to his
old stand with Cummins. He is on his
way to go on so, but what Is that?
Englishmen and Germans keep on going
as long as that, and Americans can, also,
in private life. It's only when they are
useful to the country ana to colleges mat
they are taken out of the harness In the
midst of their journey. Besides, Iowans
outrht to remember and to appreciate the
boon that Allison has been, to Washing
ton society for generations. vvnen-
"bud" gets out of French or German
talk, she can bet the diplomat a pair of
gloves that he can't get a direct answer
from "old Allison" to any question he
may ask.
The Jndlclous George Washington.
New York Trlbunte.
There are those who see awful portents
in the signs of the times, tq whom the
world, and perhaps especially this Nation,
seems going along the paths of covetous
ness, luxury, profligacy and dissipation to
Irretrievable ruin, and who bitterly la
ment the passing away of the good ojd
davs'of soberness, industry ana tnriit.
Yet 129 years ago today, in the time of
the primitive and sturdy virtues of our
ancestors, so Judicious an observer as
George Washington wrote to his friend
Benjamin Harrison:
If I was called upon to draw a picture of
the time and of men, from what I have seen
and heard and In part known, I should in. one
word eav that idleness.- dissipation and ex
travagance seems to have laid hold of most
of them; that speculation, peculation ana
an Insatiable thirst for riches seems to have
got the better of every other consideration
and almost every order of men. I need not
repeat to you that I am alarmed and wish
to see my countrymen roused.
George Washington was'the richest man
of America, in his day. His estate when
he died was the greatest in America. He
left some record also as a tax-dodger.
Better not apotheosize even George Wash
ington though he was a pretty good man
for his day.
When Prices) Were "High."
Buffalo Commercial.
The Rochester Democrat and Chroni
cle notes that 45 years ago today "sur
prise was - expressed that high prices for
good poultry were maintained. In view
of its abundance. Turkeys sold for 9 to
10 cents, chickens at 8 cents per pound,
geese 5 shillings each, and ducks 50 cents
per pair." Those were days in the very
darkest period of the Civil war, ana
they called those "high" prices.
Autolst Gets) Surprise of His) Life.
Trenton (N. J.) Dispatch.
Dr. J. S. Halsey, whose motor car
killed a big rooster belonging to a
farmer living near Vineland, N. J., was
just pulling out his money to pay for
the bird when the farmer's wife came
out and said: "I was Just looking
for my husband to kill that rooster.
Call tomorrow and have some potpie."
Where He Practices Law.
Harney County News.
Judge Lionel R. Webster, now serving
as County Judge, of Multnomah County,
is much talked of as the possible ap
pointee for United States District At
torney to' succeed Mr. Bristol. Judge
Webster has many friends in Harney
County who wish him success.
Walking; the Floor with Crying- Baby.
Chicago Dispatch.
Judge Tuthill, of Chicago, decided
that it is as much the duty of a
father as a mother to walk the floor
with a crying baby and warm the in
fant's milk bottle at night.
OREGON REPUBLICANS. -
Bat There la No Republican Party In
Oregon.
Dalles Optimist.
There has been a discussion going on in
various papers of the state for some time
on the question, "Is there a Republican
party In Oregon ?'" and the Pendleton Tri
bune in showing that there is such a
party here goes on to enumerate rhe of
fice holders of the state and shows that
the Republicans elect something like 90
per- cent of them.
But The Optimist begs to take Issue
with the Tribune, and we say most em
phatically that there Is no Republican
'party in this state, but there are about
70,000 Republican voters residing in Ore
gon, ' and by exercising their franchise
they usually elect the most of the offi
cials. But the present meaning of ' the word
"party" is something beyond a mass of
voters, no matter how numerous they
may be or how loyal they may be to their
beliefs; and they may belong to one of
the great parties of the Nation, and vote
for tliem. But all of that does not prove
that we have such a party In Oregon.
There can be no party without leaders.
There can be no party without articles of
faith, usually called a platform. There
can be no party without an organization,
and if there Is an organization of Repub
licans in this state, that is a state organi
zation, we would be pleased to have It
pointed out to us.
When the Republicans of this state go
into a campaign they do not go into it
with any concert of action. They do not
know what the party stands for on state
questions, they do not know who to rely
upon for leadership, there Is no one in
authority to Issue printed matter to ex
plain to the voters what the issues are,
and every fellow Is fighting for the man
or men he chooses. In his own way, re
gardless of what the standlHg of his
choice may be.
No, there is no Republican party In tne
state of Oregon, and never will be as long
as we have the present laws in force.
Mr. Geer very well knows this but he
wants an office. He wants to be Con
gressman, Governor, Senator or any old
thing that has got a good salary hitched
to It. He Is not particular whether the
people want him to be a candidate or not,
and probably if we had a party and a
party organization we might say to (Mr.
Geer that we are tired of annual, peren
nial and eternal candidates. But Mr.
Geer knows there is no organization, and
he knows that the rag-tag and bobtail
element which is dominating the political
atmosphere of Oregoif-at present like to
be told that they are "It," and that they
are a part and parcel of the great Re
publican party, while as a matter at fact
they are doing all they can to bury the
party which they have already killed.
And we say once more, without fear of
contradiction, - "There is no Republican
party In Oregon."
WHERE THERE IS ROOM. '
Here la a Table Pull of Great Informa
tion.
London Chronicle.
Another volume (the thirtv-third num
ber) of the Statistical Abstract, issuod by
tne coara or Trade, and Just published,
contains a wealth of detail concerning
the populations, trade, Industries, ship
ping, means of communication, etc, of
most foreign countries.
As a mere sample of Its contents, the
following figures, showing the relative
density of population of various countries
per square mile, may be quoted. The
figures are based on the last census taken
In each case, that of the United Kingdom,
for example, being In 1901 and that of
Germany in 1905; the area In square miles
Is given for each country to afford some
opportunity for comparison:
Area TJens'y
sq. sq.
miles, mfie.
J2,fl73 750.4
11.370 6S8.7
12.S90 40D.4
521,371 341.6
147.476 316.9
110.65O 213.5
208.47O 290.4
115.802 225.8
15.46!l 214-3
204.321 190.7
2.0ri2.4IM) 51.3
3.571,41)2 21.4
Population.
B.7S4.405
6. 602,548
5.104,137
41.4.1S.721
Effvnt oroDer
Belgium
Holland
U. Kingdom .
Japan
H. 7:12,3X8
S2.475.2.r3
Italy
Germany 60.641.278
Austria 26.150.708
Switzerland ... 3.315,443
France 38.1)61.1145
Russia- (Eu.) ..105.3116,634
United States . . 76,303,387
The United States area Includes Alaska
and Hawaii. The JaDanese fieiires
based on the civil registers, no census of
population having been yet taken in that
country.
In addition, estimates have been made
or tne population of some of the coun
tries in 1906, from which some idea may
be obtained of recent increases. That
tor tne united Kingdom is given at 43
659,000, United States 84.164.000. the Oer.
man Empire 61,102,000, Japan 48,304,000 and
i-Tance w,2uu,iim.
Senator Bourne's Taste In Cigars.
Washington, D. C. Cor. Omaha Bee.
Senator Jonathan Bourne, who gave the
tamous o,uw,uuu conspiracy dinner, is
connoisseur In cigars and cigarettes. He
buys the best brands of both that enn he
found, and in addition has aevernl IrmHa C
of a private make that are furnished on
his personal order.' He has them of all
shapes, sizes and degrees of strength.
In the upper left-hand pocket of his vest
he always carries half a dozen long,
slender cigars of the very finest grade
of Havana tobacco. They are as mild
and soothing as an afternoon siesta. The
other pocket is loaded with heavy, dark
cigars of the brand that delights "Uncle
Joe" Cannon, whose standing order Is
"Let me have 'em as strong as you've
got 'em."
Then, in his gold and silver cigarette
case Senator Bourne carries the cutest
little cigars that look as though they
were made for "mollycoddles." They are
exactly two and a half inches in length,
with both ends smoothed down to a nice
point, and make just about two good stiff
puffs. In the other compartment of the
case the Senator carries- a mild brand
of cigarettes, each one bearing his mono
gram. Senator Bourne Is' very liberal with his
choice cigars and hands them out on
every occasion. Naturally he Is popular.
Many a constituent has stood patiently
for ten or more minutes, feeling sure that
the inevitable cigar would be proffered
in the end, and that it would repay him
for his wasted time.
Print the Letter and the Reply.
The Dalles Optimist.
Our delegates In Congress say that only
those who have stood by the party can
hope for office in Oregon: Just what that
means we have written Mr. Bourne to
find out. How Jonathan has stood by
the party, close to the' party, close
enough to run a knife Into Its gizzard,
we all know. But now he la the very
apostle of loyalty!
Honor to a Brave Man.
Irrlgon Irrigator.
Every Oregonlan, and every man who
believes that merit should be rewarded,
hopes that the movement to advance
Colonel Jackson to the rank of Brigadier
General will be successful. This would
be but tardy justice to a brave, noble
and patriotic man, to whom Oregon and
the country owe more than can ever be
repaid.
Salem Statesman's Annual.
The New Year number of one of the
oldest papers in Oregon consists of 32
pages in four sections, three of which
are printed on book paper and are
full of illustrations of people and
places in and about the Capital City.
The subject-matter is well written, and
typographically the issue is a work of
art.
And It's From Kentucky.
Lexington (Ky.) Herald.
The old query, "What Is whisky?" is
going the rounds again. It is to be
hoped somebody will find out before
everything goes prohibition. '
BOOI6
Literature pays of you go high enough.
Grover Cleveland and the late John Hay
frequently got $1000 for 1000-word articles.
Barrle's "Little Minister'-' has paid him
at the rate of $1 for each of its 120.000
words. Among poets much larger rates
have prevailed. Tennyson's "The Thros
tle" cost Its publisher $10 a word, and
Kipling got $1000 for a short poem on the
Russo-Japanese War.
see'
An East Side business man bought a
book for one of his sons as a Christinas
present, and the son performed the same
kindly office for "Dad," but neither knew
the books chosen. - Each donor secretly
thought that he had caught the other's
literary taste. Christmas morninar
dawned, and when the coverings of both
books were unwrapped It was iliscoverrd
that father and son had each bought Fir
Gilbert Parker's new -novel, "The
Weavers." .
see
Professor Theodore Aufrecht, of Bonn,
who died recently, has left a library,
which Is especially rich In works on
Sanskrit and Indlc philology. A rough
catalogue of perhaps 2300 numbers has
been issued, and may be had or Professor
Hermann Jacobl, 59 - Niebuhr-strasse,
Bonn.
In his new satire, "The Abounding
American," T. W. H. Crosland says of
the American In London: "All you see of
him is a somewhat undersized, loosely
built human biped, with a fat Jowl,
straight hair, a nobby suit, a little round
white or brown felt hat and a guide
book." The poor English, who were dis
covered by Mr. Crosland to have been
overrun, by the unspeakable Scot, now
find themselves the victims of a still
more unspeakable American Invasion:
"No class of society knows whose turn
will come next." Passing to this coun
try, Mr. Crosland makes these aecusa-tlons-'against
us: "(1) We are ruled by
millionaires; (2) the yellow cress: (31 no
other nation exports its finVst women;
(4) having stolen a beautiful language,
we distort it by bad spelling; (5) of -1
Presidents, three have been murdered:
(6) President Koosevelt Is handicapped by
a spectacular gang of undesirable citi
zens' : (7) no function is complete with
out a reporter and a photographer; (S)
diet Is reducing us to primordial proto
plasms: (9 noise is rated above every
thing except dollars: (10) sport is made
a business; (11) Americans sink their in
dividuality into hog and by-products."
Mr. Morgan is summed up as "the purse-
proud money-snatcher" : Mr. Rockefeller
and Mr. Carnegie as "the charity-proud."
the colleges of the one being a by-word
and a mockery In America, just as the
"free libraries" of the other are a by
word and a nuisance in England.
A change has been made in the title of
Ellen Glasgow's new novel which will he
issued January 15. "?'he Beaten Road"
was its preliminary name, but in order to
avoid confusion with A. E. W. Mason's
latest story, "The Broken Road," it will
be known Instead as "The Ancient Law."
This is the era of political novels, and
a novel that is at once a story and a
keen discussion of contemporary public
affairs may be expected In "God Save
the Commonwealth," by Gamaliel Brad
ford, Jr.
The article on "Bernard Quaritch and
Others" In the current number of the Pall
Mall Magazine, might provide inspiration
for some forthcoming romance of old
bookshops and old booksellers. Quaritch
was a German, and he came to England
and served under Bohn, after an sp
prentlceship In his native country. When
he decided to set up for himself, Bohn
said: "I like your impudence; I'd have
you know that I'm the first bookseller
in England." "Yes, but I'm going to be
the first bookseller In Europe," said
Quaritch, and he fulfilled his prophecy.
He started with practically no capital,
but soon became "the boldest wolf in the
pack." He let nothing go by him, and no
sum seemed too large for him to dis
burse. He spent $55,000 at one sale, and
priced one of his Mazarine Bibles at
$20,000. The story of his publishing for
FltzGerald the- first edition of the Ru
baiyat is to the effect that the
book at , first had a poor sale.
FltzGerald brought the remainder
of his stock of - copies to Quaritch,
who put them into his outside box at a
penny a copy. It Is said that Rossetti
found one copy, read It to a select com
pany of Swinbifrne and- their friends,
and in this way a day or two served to
disperse a couple of hundred unconsid
ered trifles that are now worth almost
their weight in gold.
Michael Williams has sailed from New
York for Bermuda on the steamship Ber
mudlan. Before he sailed he told his
friends that he was going to Bermuda to
join Upton Sinclair, author of "The Jun
gle," who has been there a little more
than a week, and that between them they
hoped to formulate plans for the estab
lishment of a new Helicon Hall colony
to succeed the one blotted out last Spring
by the fire destroying the house occupied
by the colony in Englewood, N. J. Mr.
Williams was accompanied by Mrs. Wil
liams and their three children, all of
whom lived at the Englewood Helicon
Hall before the fire occurred. Mr. Sin
clair sailed from New York on the same
steamer that bereaved these shores of
"Mr. Williams.
In summing up, thj events of the Au
tumn publishing season in London, a
critic says that the most Important
books next, of course, to "Queen Vic
toria's Letters" have been Conrad's
"The Secret Agent," Edmund Gosse's
autobiographical volume, and Arthur
Symons' critical work on Blake.
. .
Miss Birnie Philip, legatee of Whistler,
has several hundred letters of the artist
which she. Is preparing to publish. She
will be glad to have the use of any fur
ther letters. Her address Is care of Wat
kin Williams, Steel & Hart. 54 New
Broad street, London, England.
.
If children are eager to testify In Miss
.Alcott's favor, their elders are yet more
eager to praise Mrs. Florence Hobart
Perln's "The Optimist's Good Morning."
the little day book lately published.
Nearly 40 clergymen, representing the
more Important denominations, have sent
her letters of cordial approval.
A retired wine merchant, Richard Bad
ger, has just died, leaving in his will
$15000 to the Shakespeare Memorial Com
mittee for the erection of a memorial to
the poet in London. .
Since the publication of his "Officers'
Manual," Captain Moss - has scored
equally well with his new book on "The
Santiago Campaign."
Diaappolnted In Bryan.
New York Times.'
William Jennings Bryan. prides him
self on the fact that-he can completely
differentiate his religious and Young
Men's Christian Association addresses
from his political speeches. The public
had Identified Mr. Bryan with politics so
long, however, that frequently members
of his audience find only disappointment
It was thus with a farmer from Maryland
who came into Washington to hear the
Nebraskan speak. Afterward the far
mer met him and said:
"Mr. Bryan, I came In 20 miles to hear
you talk. I heard you was goin to speak
on The Price of Peas," and you never said
a word about the price of anything.
The address delivered was "The Prince
of Peace "