THE MOTINING OREGOMAX, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 22, 1903.
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rOKTLAND, WEDNESDAY. JAN. M. 1908.
HUUHES AND TAFT IN NEW YORK.
The story that comes from New
York, that the demonstrations In fa
vor of Hughes at public meetings In
that city are the work of clacquers
drummed up by orders from Harri
man and paid for by Wall street,
bears every appearance of being itself
a .product of spurious manufacture.
Kvery effort Is being made' to throt
tle all expression for Hughes, and
this, manifestly, is a part of the game.
The Administration has set Itself to
the-work of forcing the nomination of
O'aft. The work is being, done with
the President's customary energy and
Intrepidity; for the office-holders and
other Administration forces under
stand that they have the President's
Function, as well as his example, for
the "thorough" method. .Their con
duct and behavior at public meetings,
to prevent all except men who speak
for Taft from being heard, and espe
cially to "howl down" and "throw
out" all who would speak for Hughes,
Is a disgrace. The people are unwill
ing to have a candidate forced on
them by the official powers. . Such
methods will cause many votes to be
withheld from Taft in the election,
should he get the nomination; espe
cially in New York; whose electoral
vote is vital to Republican success.
Hughes has the confidence of the
people of New York. He alone was
successful on the Republican ticket.
In the latest general election. The
effort to suppress him and his friends
will. If persisted in, make a first-class
row among the Republicans of New
York. Organization for Hughes la
being pushed In all parts of the state;
"first," as the Brooklyn Eagle says,
"by those who like him, and have
confidence in him; secondly, by those
who don't like sundry others who are
being" forced on them and toward
them, and, thirdly, by still others who
believe that the party can more easily
control necessary states with his
name than with that of any other
Republican at this time."
Nothing could be more shabby than
this story that his active supporters
lire men in the pay of Harrlman and
the Wall-street gang. Hughes has
made a record for independence of
this Influence which others have not
yet had opportunity to make; and he
would be much more likely to carry
the State of New York than Taft
would be. Besides, It is extremely
disagreeable to many persons to find
the Administration trying to force the
nomination of a candidate.
THE FUTURE OF CANADA.
What is it to be? The inquiry is
made in no patronizing way, because
Canada is great enough to command
her own future. She is growing into
the Importance of a great nation, and
is virtually independent. Her allegi
ance to the British Empire is but
nominal In its terms, but it is Arm lu
nil realities; for England now makes
no such mistakes in dealing with her
colonies as she made in her dealing
with us before our assertion of Inde
pendence. It has been learned that
no bond between a mother country
and Its colonial children is so strong
as that of affection, voluntary and
unconstrained. It Is a bond that may
be quickly broken by the Interference
of coercive laws.. The more coercion
the weaker the allegiance. All the
great British colonies now are virtu
ally independent. Yet nothing could
be further from them than any dispo
sition to assert it. It Is a family af
fection, supported by a patriotic pride
in the British Empire.
Mr. Harold Blgbie, writing in the
London Chronicle, believes that while
Panada never will seek admission
into the United States, she will in
time become an American Canada
that is to say. less a British Canada
than now. This, indeed, will be a
consequence of the very nature of
things. Her strength, through devel
opment, will become ao great that she
will take on more and more the dis
tinctive character of her position ana
greatness. Attending it will be nearer
approximation than heretofore to the
spirit of the United States. But
there is no likelihood that this chaVige
will conflict with the conditions or
requirements of allegiance to Great
Britain. You may, indeed, see Brit
ish and Old World customs more
plainly in Canada than in the United
States; yet everywhere in Canada
there are signs of conformity and ap
proximation. Geographical position,
physical conditions, and growing in
tercourse are largely responsible for
this; and there is now a community
of feeling and spirit between the
United States and Canada which was
not possible fifty years ago.
Truth is, Canada is developing into
a great separate nation. Independent
as to her material Interests of Great
Britain; yet held by ties of allegiance
of the firmest kind all the firmer
because merely sentlmerttal. The de
velopment of Canada has but Just be
gun; and the Dominion by the end of
the present century will probably
have a larger population than Eng
land, Scotland and Ireland. The
destiny of Canada is one of the most
interesting of all subjects of forecast
and speculation. We may take for
light upon it the remarkable saying of
Coleridge, a century ago, that "the
destiny of the United States of Amer
ica, as a nation of one hundred mil
lions of freemen, stretching from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, living under
the laws of Alfred and speaking the
language of Shakespeare and Milton,
was an august conception." We shall
soon have exceeded our one hundred
millions of people, and persons now
living will see thirty millions in Can
ada. By the close of the twentieth
century there will be two hundred
millions in America, virtually the
same people, to support and extend
and fulfill Coleridge's "august concep
tion." OPINION AND CUSTOM.
A telegraphic dispatch - from Mil
waukee, Wis., printed today, tells us
that there are 13.S17.426 Roman
Catholics in the United States. Add
those of our islands in the Pacific and
Atlantic, the number is 22,018,898. Of
the whole population this is nearly
one-fourth. The remaining three
fourths doubtless would be called
Protestants.
It is very likely that if you should
enumerate all the population, by fam
ilies, some of whose members are
Catholics, you might get the twenty
two milions. And if you should enu
merate all the remaining population,
by families, some of whose members
are Protestants, you might get seventy-five
millions more. But this cal
culation wouldn't, prove that the
numbers thus found were Catholics
and Protestants. You would have
only the conventional and ecclesias
tical way of stating it. The great
majority acknowledge Christianity,
but do not accept the theological and
ecclesiastical dogmas offered by one
denomination or another.
Opinion here is not aggressive; but
acquiescence should not be mistaken
for positive opinion. It is. easy to
conform, when no harm can come of
it; much easier than to combat- "Al
most every opinion we have," says
the pious Scarron, "we have but by
authority; we judge, act, live and die
on trust, as common custom teaches
us; and rightly, for we are too weak
to decide and choose of ourselves. But
the wise do not act thus." When Lu
ther exclaimed "O doxa, doxa! quara
es communis noxa!" ("O, opinion,
doxa, dogma, how common an evil
you are!"), he stated the fundamental
principle of Protestantism. As an
other German writer puts it, "An
ounce of custom outweighs a ton of
reason." No one can separate hlra
self from the thought and custom
that lie about him. In seasons of po
litical and social revolution there
arises a struggle between the resisting
force of ancient habits and the conta
gious sympathy of new modes of feel
ing and thought. In one portion of
society the inveterate influence of
custom prevails over the contagion
of example; in others the contagion
of example prevails over the conserv
ative force of antiquity and habit.
Which of these conditions is the
prevalent one now, each person will
judge for himself. But obviously the
disposition is not to adhere witiout
question to old and customary opin
ion. We may be going too fast; but
as to the movement there Is noques-
tion. And yet opinion, especially on
matters of religion, is the most con
servative thing in the world. It is
shocked by the change of a term or
phrase or custom, or by suggestion of
such change. The revised translation
of the Scriptures, though more accu
rate than preceding ones, disturbed
pious minds.
Habits of thinking, feeling and act
ing are the most potent forces 'in the
world, in all ages; and this without
much regard to their truth or er
rancy. WOMEX AND SALOONS.
It would not be quite true to say
that a woman can have no decent
purpose in visiting a saloon. The
women of the Salvation Army some
times Invade drlnklng-places with an
excellent purpose. Occasionally we
hear of an exasperated wife entering
the doors and haling her besotted
husband home, to his great benefit;
but as a rule it is safe to conclude
that a woman who visits a saloon
goes there for a purpose which were
better unfulfilled. The ordinary drink-ing-place
is bad enough as a resort
for men. For women It is not to be
thought of. If they visit it, their
ruin is only a matter of a short time.
In fact, a woman who finds the saloon
attractive is already ruined in all es
sentials. The final climax is a mere
detail. .
An ordinance forbidding women to
visit saloons ought to be more accept
able to barkeepers than to anybody
else, since it would relieve them of a
great deal of trouble and suspicion.
The belief that saloons are places
where women are led into vice and
men encouraged in crime has' done
much to create hostility to public
drinking shops. If the practices con
tinue which have caused the suspi
cion, there is no reason to expect that
the hostility will diminish. It is much
more likely to increase until the
American saloon is swept out of exist
ence. '
Many saloon men who believe that
their business is legitimate do their
best to avoid the practices which
bring odium upon it; but their efforts
are thwarted by the practices of oth
ers who regard neither law nor de
cency. It Is the latter class of liquor-
sellers who give the saloon its evil
reputation and endanger its existence.
The people will not always tolerate an
institution which they believe to be
a cause of vice, crime and poverty.
Decent liquor-dealers are therefore
more interested than anybody else to
eliminate the objectionable features
from their business and rid it of those
men and those practices which give
it a bad name. No saloon which
women visit can fail to be a hotbed of
Indecency. Women who visit saloons
must inevitably fall to the level of its
worst habitues. On every ground the
law should do its utmost to keep them
away.
THE STATE UNIVERSITY.
The report of the president of the
Board of Regents shows that tfle in
come of the State University of Ore
gon will exceed 159,000 this year by
only a few dollars. This sum is piti
ful. It is not enough to. pay the sal
aries of the professors and keep the
machinery of the Institution running.
In fact, though the 'teachers have
served some three months virtually
without salary, there will be a deficit
of $16,000 this year unless some bet
ter provision is made. The president
of the board recommends that all
contracts be made terminable with
the current year, which conveys
something like an intimation of dis
solution. . The plain truth is that it would be
much more to the credit of the state
to discontinue the university than to
support it upon a basis of continual
starvation. Either a state university
is desirable or it Is not. If it is not
desirable, let it be abandoned and the
funds applied to some more useful
purpose. If It is desirable, then it
ought ' to be supported liberally
enough to be efficient ami to meet its
increasing needs. Other states have
found, without exception, that a state
university is an investment which
pays from every point of view. Mich
igan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, refuse
nothing that their great universities
ask for in the way of support, and
nobody complains. It is believed in
our most progressive states that the
higher 'education is just as essential
to the welfare of a community as the
primary schools. Experience shows
that. primary education seldom flour
ishes unless It is inspired and stimu
lated from above.
Unless we support our state univer
sity, Oregon must dependfor higher
education upon the meager dole of
charitable millionaires. A self-respecting
commonwealth, like a self
respecting individual, prefers to pro
vide for Its own wants instead of de
pending upon donations. Moreover,
it is better that there should be one
advanced Institution in every state
which depends upon the great demo
cratic public for support. Such an
Institution will teach economics, poli
tics, history and social science with
a very different trend from that which
prevails under the Influence of Stand
ard Oil. The perpetuity of free insti
tutions depends upon the intelligence
of the people. As we become more
democratic we must become more in
telligent or shipwreck is not far off.
Oregon Is one of the states which is
traveling swiftly toward pure democ
racy. Unless she travels fully as
swiftly toward knowledge and wis
dom her democracy will end in bank
ruptcy.. On the perilous sea where
we' have chosen to voyage It would
be Insane to discard chart and com
pass; but that is precisely what we
should do were we to hamper the
higher education. The people of this
state need all the lessons that the ex
perience of mankind can teach. They
should take the state university to
their affections. They should foster
and cherish It. It will return In wise
counsel, guidance and leadership far
more than the value which It can
possibly receive. Between the state
university and the people there
should be intimate sympathy, hearty
co-operation, thorough understand
ing. The suspicion should be put
away that there is anything aristo
cratic in the higher education. It is
the most 'democratic thing In the
world. Ignorance is the friend of
priestcraft, despotism, oppression.
The pure intellect is now, as it has
always been, the friend and savior of
the common man. Prometheus still
brings fire from heaven and kindles
the hearth in every cottage from it.
PANAMA RAILROAD TRAFFIC
Secretary Taft on Monday submit
ted to the Senate committee on inter
oceanlc canals the report of J. L.
Brlstow, who was sent by the War
Department to investigate the rela
tions existing between the Panama
Railroad Company and the steamship
lines operating on the Pacific Coast.
The object of this investigation was
to ascertain whether the Government
ought to engage In the steamship
business on the Panama route. Mr.
Brlstow made the startling discovery
that the business at the Pacific ter
minal of the road had been reduced
one-half since the Government took
charge, there being but 16,000 tons of
freight transported from Panama to
Colon last year. Quite naturally, all
of the blame for this decrease in busi
ness Is placed against the Pacific Mail,
which was refused an exclusive con
tract for the business of the road.
While there is no love lost between
Mr. Harriman and the Administration
at Washington, anything which the
Pacific Mail might or might not have
done would have had little or no ef
fect In holding the business at Pan
ama; in fact, Mr. Harriman is un
doubtedly congratulating himself that
his offer was refused. The establish
ment by the Government of a steam
ship line on the Pacific Coast will fail
to win back the traffic that is lost,
and the experiment would be costly.
More than a year ago, when the
American-Hawaiian Steamship Com
pany signed a ten-year contract with
the Tehuantepec Railroad Company
for the handling of traffic between the
two oceans, it was pointed out in
these columns that the new route
would absorb practically all of the
business that had been crossing the
Isthmus of Panama. The extent to
which the new route has succeeded
is shown in the Government's own
statement that the traffic from Pan
ama last . year was but 15,000 tons,
while single steamers of the American-Hawaiian
line operating a fort
nightly service delivered at the Pa
cific Coast terminus of the Tehuante
pec route for shipment to Atlantic
ports 12.500 tons. Not only has the
Tehuantepec "route practically elimi
nated the Panama route from the
traffic situation, but the inroads it is
making on the transcontinental rail
road business are limited only by the
capacity of its already large fleet of
steamers. As for the Pacific Mall, its
local business between Panama and
San Francisco has been cut to pieces
by the German and French lines,
which have more frequent sailings
and carry freight for much lower
rates than the old line has been
charging. Under" such conditions the
operation of a steamship . line by the
Government would be about as absurd
an undertaking as could well be imag
ined. The opening of the Tehuante
pec route has afforded a trade high
way between the oceans that cannot
be successfully competed with until
the completion of the Panama Canal.
France is struggling with a phase of
the tipping system with which Amer
ica has some trouble, though in a dif
ferent manner. It seems that in Paris
it is the custom for the servant girl
who does the family marketing to re
ceive a sou for each franc's worth of
goods purchased. That amounts to a
commission of 5 cents on the dollar.
The commission is, of course, added to
the price of the goods, and the house
holder not only pays that, but also
suffers from excessive purchases the
servant girl is tempted to make and
the wastefulness encouraged in all de
partments of household affairs.. In
France the system is an open and pub
lic one. In this country the -purchasing
agents of large corporations some
times get a commission upon the pur
chases they make for their employers,
and the commission is undoubtedly
made a part of the purchase price.
Sometimes, too, public servants get a
rakeoff on the purchases they make
for their employers.' While this has
not come to be recognized as an es
tablished practice, it may soon have
the approval of our courts and become
a legitimate feature of public business.
The graft decision in San Francisco is
plainly a tendency in that direction,
and no surprise need be felt at any de
cision the courts may make as to the
legality of rakeoffs secured by pub
lic servants on the deals they make
for the public by which they are em
ployed. The Chicago Health Department's
report for the midwinter week clos
ing January 13 showed a total of
650,000 cases of persons suffering
from an aggravated type of influenza
or grip. Not since the epidemic sea
son of 1898-99, says the bulletin, has
influenza played such an Important
part in the mortality of the city, as
during the week covered. The death
rate of the week was 17.48 the high
est January rate since 1899. Elder
ly people and those debilitated from
any cause are the readiest subjects of
the malady, and those most likely to
succumb to its prostrating weakness.
Warmth, rest, fresh air, nourishing
food and gentle stimulants cover the
treatment enjoined for the comfort
and possible recovery of the patient.
It is the one disease in which the de
termination "to keep up and fight it
off" is condemned as worse than use
less. The patient who yields to the
inclination so pronounced in the early
stages of the attack, to go to. bed ad
stay there, is the one whose recovery
is the most speedy and permanent
In another year that is, about
April or May, 1909, the United States
will relinquish the provisional gov
ernment of Cuba. The census of the
Island will be completed in two or
three months, the local elections will
be held in June, and the presidential
election next December. The eco
nomic conditions of Cuba, according
to the report of Charles E. Magoon,
Provisional Governor, lately filed in
the War Department at Washington,
are excellent. The manufactories are
rapidly expanding in capacity and
output; new deposits of iron have
been discovered and are being devel
oped, and foreign and domestic com
merce and trade for the past year
show a gratifying increase over previ
ous years. So much for supplanting
the destructive, centuries-old policy of
Spain in the government of the island
by a policy that encouraged the de
velopment 6f the natural resources of
Cuba and taught the people the essen
tial elements of prosperity, self-control'
and the. basic principles of en
lightened self-government.
f The Port of Portland referendum
petitions are now in circulation, and
every taxpayer In the city should
make it a personal matter to get the
lists completed as soon as possible.
The practically unanimous desire of
the people to hasten the needed re
form in our shipping business is
shown by the fact that two solicitors
yesterday forenoon secured 250 sig
natures and met with but one re
fusal, and in that lone case the per
son refusing was unable to offer any
reason for his refusal. Do not wait
for the solicitor to hunt you up, but
sign the list unsolicited.
The most persistent hammering of
the bear element in the wheat mar
ket, aided by the enormous ship
ments from both coasts of the United
States, has proved insufficient to force
wheat down to tl per bushel in Chi--
cago. - There has been a decline of
several cents per bushel from the
highest point reached, but the price is
still hovering around far above the
average in "previous years, and prom
ises to hold at good figures until the
entire surplus is marketed.
Mr. Bryan in his speech in Ken
tucky yesterday said, "it was wrong
for Democrats to refuse to support
men just because they did not want
them." But this is what Republicans
have been doing -in Oregon, with
Democratic applause.
, Lease of the McGinn quarter block
at Seventh and Washington is one
fact to prove that real estate values
in Pprtland have not been adversely
affected by the October panic.
In view of the coming of Eastern
folk by the thousand, taking advan
tage of the colonist rates, every pub
licity agency in Oregon should imme
diately get busy.
Press reports from Rio Janeiro are
singularly silent on- the subject of
profanity in connection with Admiral
Eyans' game leg.
Probably Lawyer Delmas Is more
Interested than any other reader of
the reports of the Thaw murder trial.
Has any one noticed that the recent
financial flurry has had the effect of
reducing the price of farm products?
So far from scaring us with the
bogy man's yam about blowing up
the fleet, it did not even amuse us.
WASHIXGTOS'S ROYAL BLOOD.
Discovery That He Wan of the Stock,
of Ensllah Kings.
Boston Transcript.
That George Washington, the first Presi
dent of the United States, was a lineal
descendant of King Edward I is the an
nouncement of an English genealogist
who, for several months past has been
investigating the ancestry of the Wash
ington family In a branch about which
hitherto little or nothing has been known.
The Rev. Frederick W. Ragg, a univer
sity graduate and a fellow of the Royal
Historical Society, undertook the Investi
gation of a branch of the Washington
ancestry purely out of antiquarian inter
est. That the line of genealogy ascended
to royalty was as great a surprise to
him as It Is to the two nations interested.
That the liberator of the American colo
nies should have sprung from an English
monarch carries the serpent's tooth Into
the third and fourth generations.
Mr. Ragg has been for several years
interested in the restoration of the little
parish church at St. Leonard, at Acton-le-Walls.
in Northamptonshire. But his
Interest Included other items as" well,
notably the crumbling tombstones of the
Washingtons In the churchyard and the
parish register In which the births,
deaths and marriages of the family were
recorded for generations. The genealogy
of the male Washingtons, father to son
to grandson, has long been known. It
had hitherto occurred to no one to trace
the ancestry of a certain Margaret But
ler, the wife of Laurence Washington, of
Sulgrave. who died in 1616. the same
year as Shakespeare. Margaret Butler
was the great-great-great-grandmother
of General George Washington. She was
the great granddaughter of Sir John Sut
ton, of Dudley, owner of Aston-le-Walls.
From the father of Sir John Sutton, who
died In 1487, the line of ancestry is clear
through the Tlptofts and Cnarltons, np
to Thomas Holland, Earl of Kent, and
his grandfather, izy-.crl of Woodstock,
AEarl of Kent, the son of Ktiward I, King
of England, and Margaret, daughter of
Philip III of France.
One reason why this thread of the
Washington ancestry has never before
been known is probably the circumstance
of there having been two Margaret But
lers livtng in Aston-le-Walls at about
the same period. An entry In the Aston-le-Walls
parish register reads:
"Anno Reglne Elizabeth Tricesimo Nup
tie facte sunt inter Laurencium Washing
ton genl et Margaretam Butler terclo
die Augustlj 'anno predicto."
The date of his marriage was 1588. The
confusion between this Margaret Butler
(if. Indeed, it was known that there were
two persons of that name) led to a
neglect of this branch of the family,
with the result that some centuries have
passed since the decease of the first
President of the United States before the
discovery that he came of royal lineage.
Mr. Ragg, with whom res:s the credit
of this surprising discovery, is a man of
scholarly tastes with an enthusiasm for
the architecture of the English parish
churches. In order to repair the nave
and choir of a church In the south of
England, of which he was rector, he
learned the mason's trade and stone
cutting and set about the work himself.
When he moved to Aston-le-Walls he
was instantly struck by - the fine archi
tecture of the little church, which was
being allowed to go to ruin. The parish
enrolls only 170 persons.vand as most of
these are tenant farmers and laborers,
no funds could be raised for repairs. He
regarded the church as especially wor
thy of preservation on account of its
Identification with the Washingtons. A
more sophisticated man would perhaps
have appealed to America. Mr. Ragg
was in the habit of doing things himself.
And yet while busily occupied In endea
voring to raise funds for -the repairs, in
venting a new kind of mortar and super
intending the construction work as fast
as it could go forward, he found time to
go into the neglected branch of . the
Washington genealogy, of which he
writes to friends on this side as follows:
"I hunted up the descent of these an
cestors (of the Washingtons) and the re
sult will, I think, be surprising. It ought
to delight all Americans."
Aside from a brief reference to the ob
stacles and delays which beset the stu
dent of genealogy, this is the only men
tion of the chart of the ancestral descent
which Involved weeks of patient research
and investigation.
It seems only fair to this modest and
diligent scholar that; in view of his in
teresting .contribution to our knowledge
of Washington's family, he should re
ceive some assistance from this side in
his sturdy effort to preserve the church
which bears such an interesting connec
tion with our national history. He Is not
the less entitled to assistance from
Americans because he has made no ap
peal for It. S
Pennsylvania's Exhibit In Graft.
Boston Transcript
Slnce indictments were found against 14
men for being concerned in the Capitol
building and furnishing graft at Harris
burg, Pa., the public has not heard much
about the matter, but interest in it Is
likely to be revived by the trial of these
cases which is scheduled to begin Janu
ary 27. Recently some fresh indictments
have been found against several men in
the defendant list, fraud in measurement
being the basis of the charge against
them. ' The architect of the building is
already under W0.C00 bail In 30 charges of
conspiracy, while Sanderson, the contrac
tor, who showed such a genius for mak
ing, bills, and Cassel, president of the
Pennsylvania Construction Company, who
supplied the metallic furniture, have each
15 charges hanging over them besides be
ing Involved in the new one of false pre
tense. Proceedings agatnst them have
progressed to the entire satisfaction of
the publio up to date. The Governor re
deemed his pledge by instituting a vigor
ous investigation. The probing committee
showed that it was on no whitewashing
mission, and the Attorney-Oeneral pushed
to its logical conclusion the evidence that
was placed before him. The scandal has
been large enough to attract National at
EMBARRASSING
J:
JAPAN'S TROUBLES OF HKR OWS.
Corea la Still Rebellion and British
in India Show Distrust.
Boston Transcript.
Several of the foreign newspapers
which have been discussing our relations
with Japan appear to have been Inspired
by the belief that If the Tokio Govern
ment were disposed to strike at the
United States it would have a perfectly
free hand to do so. They have spoken
as if Japan had no domestic questions
that would check a disposition to enter
upon a belligerent policy, and they have
dwelt upon the promptness with which,
anticipating events, her fleets and armies
were set in motion against Russia before
any declaration of war was issued. After
the manner of the strategists of the study
they have speculated as to what might,
coUld, would or should happen If Japan
were to aim a blow at us while our
fleet is midway the east coast of South
America on its voyage to the Pacific
Corea refuses to be readily assimilated.
In fact the Coreans are fighting assimila
tion with all the weapons which their im
perfect development leaves at their dis
posal. When th Corean army was dis
banded or dispersed by the Japanese sev
eral months ago a popular resistance
sprung up, of .which dispatches have made
but brief and occasional mention. Private
letters received in this country from per
sons who -have special opportunities to
observe the situation and no conceivable
motives for misrepresenting It are to the
effect that the Japanese troops In Corea
have all they can do to make head
against the "insurrection." The Insur
gents belnA "unable to make a stand In
the open field in regular military order
against the Japanese troops, have- re
sorted to guerilla warfare.
While Japan has this Corean Insurrec
tion on her hands, she is still further em
barrassed by the evident mistrust of the
British in India of the ability of the
Tokio government to curb the "Asia-for-the-Asiatlc"
propaganda which the bellig
erent Japanese have - been preaching.'
Count Okuma may have ibeen misreported,
as he asserts. He may have Intended to
advise a merely commercial competition
in India, but ft will take many disavow
als to soothe the sensibilities of the Brit
ish officials. They noted with suspicions
that they did not dissemble the display
of moving pictures of Japanese victories
over the Russians which was so conspicu
ous a feature of the Hindu nationalist
agitation of last Summer. These pictures
were accompanied by Inscriptions to the
effect that they illustrated the mi.itary
triumphs of an "Asiatic" army over
Europeans, and by an adjuration that
sounded very much like 'Go thou and do
likewise."
WORLD'S OLDEST NEWSPAPER.
In a Modern Sense, .Said to Be the Cars.
Ins of Germany, Dated 1600.
Professor Adolph Koch of the Uni
versity -of Heidelberg has been deliv
ering at that seat of learning a course
of lectures on "Public Opinion. Jour
nalism and the Press," and Nathan
Straus, brother of the Secretary of
Commerce and Labor, has been listen
ing to them. He has kindly sent to
us a facsimile of what is said to be
the oldest extant specimen of a news
paper In the modern sense of the term,
copies of which were distributed by
Professor Koch among his audience. It
bears date of 1609 and was issued weekly.
It has an elaborately engraved border to
its front page title, representing David
and Goliath glaring at one another from
opposite sides of the sheet, and three
chubby angels, symbolic of Hope, Faith
and Charity at its foot.
The set of numbers for the year forms
a quarto volume of 115 pages, and con
tains correspondence from 17 towns,
among them Rome, Vienna, Cracow, Am
sterdam and several German cities. - The
publisher of the paper was Johann Caro
lus, and his place of business was Stras
burg, where he conducted this enterprise
until 1634, when the name of his brother
and successor appeared. This paper was
probably continued throughout the seven
teenth century, and it was an up-to-date
journal for its time. It might even be
said to have initiated the "scoop," since
through Its columns the practical demon
stration of Galileo's great invention, the
telescope, was announced to the world in
May, 1609.
As a record of the communicable
world's doings at that time It Is a relic of
large public interest and historical value.
The Venetian gazettes of the previous
century 'were tentative essays into the
field of journalism, but they fell under
papal displeasure and were discontinued.
Italy was the parent of the daily news
paper in a way. since the Acta 131 urn a
of ancient Rome was a part of the daily
public archives. It had, however, a too
restricted circulation to be put in the
journalistic class. The oldest dally Jour
nal still being published Is, perhaps, the
Tchlng-Pao of Pekin, whioh was started
In the eighth century and Is yet running
But its spirit is still about as ancient
as when the first number was issued.
The Carolus newspaper makes a plausible
bid. In the modern sense, for the distinc
tion of being the pioneer of the "fourth
estate."
She Was "Getting Even."
Youth's Campanlon.
It was close on midnight, and the pro
fessional guest felt it was high time for
him to stop playing.
"Perhaps I'd better not play any more
tonight." he said, wearily. "I see you
have near neighbors, and they might be
annoyed."
"You needn't mind them for a minute,"
said his hostess, earnestly. "We are
perfectly sure they poisoned our cat, and
if they did, nothing is too bad for them."
A Simple Situation.
Washington Post, Ind.
The political situation on the Demo
cratic side of the hedge is marvelously
simple and hopeless. The two wings
have flapped together after a fashion.
More than 3,000.000 Democrats would
rather go to defeat with Bryan thanto
victory with any other candidate. At
least 2,000,000 are willing that Mr. Bryan
shall be nominated in order that a third
defeat may rid the party of Its old man
of the sea.
Prom the Milwaukee Sentinel.
LIBEL RULING OF JUDGE HA XX A.
One of Putnam's Lam-yen Say It Was
Wrong; but Quite Honest.
GRANTS PASS, Or.. Jan. 20. (To the
Editor.) The press of the state has com
mented very extensively upon the convic
tion of Mr. Putnam upon an indictment
for libel before Judge H. K. Hanna at
Jacksonville last week. The criticisms of
the trial Judge have in some Instances
been so unjust that I can not forbear
offering a wod of expianation. I was
one of Mr. Putnam's attorneys and am
also a stockholder In the Medford Pub
lishing Company that owns and publishes
the Dally Tribune in which the alleged
libel was published and. am in a posltior.
to know whereof I speak. Upon the trial
of the case the defendant was treated as
fairly as could be desired by any man.
With the other attorneys for the defend
ant I presented a motion asking the court
not to permit the Sheriff of Jackson
County to summon the jurors for the
trial of the case but to appoint an elisor
for that purpose. When the motion was
presented A. E. Reames prosecuting at
torney said he would not oppose, and that
he did not wish any one whom the de
fendant suspicloned of being prejudiced
against him to have any part in selecting
the Jurors. At my susgestion the court
appointed R. B. Dow as elisor. At the
beginning of the trial the prosecuting at
torney took the position that the defense
would not be permitted to go Into the
question of the assault charged to have
been committed by Barnum upon J. F.
Reddy or into the manner of conducting
the investigation by the grand Jury of
such assault. He cited some judicial
precedents to sustain his contention which
I did not consider very strong or applica
ble In view of our statute on the subject.
The court concurred In this view, and
even went a little further and stated that
he did not think that we could question
the rightfulness of the grand jury's ac
tion. This view was a surprise to tlus
defendant's attorneys, as mey relied on
the words of the statute, but we were
not prepared to offer any legal authori
ties to sustain Our position under any
similar statute. In the town of Jack
sonville there did not happen to be text
books on the subject of libel and the
libraries at hand were not very extensive.
The case was being tried on Saturday
which had to be the last day of court as
the Judge had to hold court at Grants
Pass on Monday. The attorneys asked
for no time to present authorities but
concluded to take exceptions to the rul
ing of the court, make their record and
appeal. The rest of the trial was some
what perfunctory. If there was any
feeling or prejudice manifested by the
trial judge I did not observe It. In
truth he was liberal and courteous to the
defense. All the defense can complain
of. Is his view of the law. I believe the
court was In error, but I know it was an
honest mistake. Had the trial Judge not
believed that law to be as he announced
it, he certainly would not have Instructed
the Jury as he did, for he knew the
case would be appealed, and it would oe
unreasonable to accuse him of Intention
ally committing an error that would cause
the Supreme Court to reverse the case.
To my knowledge there was nothing
done by the trial judge in this rase, to
call down upon his head the criticisms
of the press of this state. He should no
more be subject to criticism In this case,
than any other Judge In any other case
who makes a ruling that Is against the
law, but which he honestly believes to
be correct. As I said in the beginning
I am interested in seeing the ruling of
Judge Hanna set aside by the Supreme
Court, and 'believe It will be, but even
though the whole state of Oregon be
lieved so. that would not justify the crui
cisms which haye Imputed either lack of
knowledge or unfairness to him. I have
little patience with the homage usually
paid to judges of our courts. I have never
believed that a fallible lawyer 'became an
infallible Judge as soon as he was ele
vated to me bench. I believe they are
Just objects of criticism, and In Oregon
have been criticised too little, but mis
representation is not criticism. And in
this matter iue press of the state is not
giving Judge Hanna a square deal, be
cause it proceeded on the L.eory that he
was trying to be unfair to the defendant,
and this supposition is both unreasonable
and untrue. ROBERT G. SMITH.
The Oregonian does not feel called upon
to assume responsibility for what the
"Press of the State" may have said about
Judge Hanna's remarkable decision. For
itself, it -has not Imputed to Judge Hanna
a deliberate purpose to deny Euitor Put
nam his rights before the law. But that
Putnam was denied hiB rights, it has as
serted, and its assertion Is. we think,
fully supported by this letter attempting
to defend the Judge. The Oregonian said,
following the decision that "there has
been here a most surprising invasion of
liberty of the press and an unjustifiable
denial of Putnam's elementary rights be
fore the law as a citizen. Tills decision
means that a newspaper has no right to
criticise a grand Jury or the court. Tliat
is absurd and cannot stand any test of
history, or experience or Judicial prece-.
dent."
This criticism, The Oregonian thinks,
was and Is entirely warranted. Putnam
had made a harsh attack upon the Dis
trict Attorney and grand Jury of Jackson
County for their failure to indict a man
named Barnum accused of murderous as
sault. The grand Jury and District At
torney caused Putnam to be prosecuted
for criminal libel. When he attempted
to support his statements by Introducing
testimony as to the facts and circum
stances upon which they were based, the
Judge peremptorily excluded testimony of
that kind saying that the libel had noth
ing to do with the Barnum assault. This
ruling, In the opinion of The Oregonian,
is in plain violation of common justice
and of. the Oregon law, which happen hi
thl Instance to be the same thing.
We gather from Mr. Smith's letter the
chief reason why Putnam was convicted
was the weakness of his defense by his
lawyers. Judge Hanna, too, we think,
needs a more effictentr advocate. The
Oregonian renews its expression, made
some days since, of a desire to hear from
the Judge, that it may be corrected If its
understanding of his decision is wrong.
It has tried several times to get a full
text of Judge Hanna's- Instructions, but
It has failed.
A Bet With' the Government.
Harper's Weekly.
An Irishman wishing to possess a
homestead, and not knowing how to go
about it, sought information from a
friend. "Tim." he said, "you've taken a
homestead, an" I thought, maybe, ye
could tell me the law consarnin' how to
go about It." i
"Well, Patrick," says Tim, "I don't
Just remember the exact wordln' uv the
law, but I kin give ye the meanin' of It.
The meanin' of It is this: The Govern
ment Is willln' to bet ye 160 acres uv land
again fl4 that ye can't live on it fer la
years without starvin' to death."
Economy.
Cleveland Leader. .
' A recent benedict sends tlia foltowingr
verses, showing haw soon a man learns new
wisdom, one he's fslrly caught:
I used to set my dinners
At restaurants and turn:
The check the waiter brouffht mo
Was usually this much
"$2.80."
But now. since I've discovered
The joys of wedded blifcs,
Matilda sets the dinners.
The cost for two is this
0.63.
- However, there's a icas range
That ornaments 'my flat;
The Way Matilda runs it
Jiriii monthly bills like that
J13.20."