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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (March 2, 1909)
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Foreign postage double rates. Eastern Business Office The 8. C. Beek with Special Agency New York, rooms 48 60 Tribune building. Chicago, rooms 510-612 Tribune building. 1-OKTUM), TUESDAY, MARCH 2. 1800. NOT AN AIXEGORT, NOB A PARABLE; BUT JUST PLAIN NARRATIVE. It may be true, as the Troy (N. X.) Times remarks In a paragraph re printed by The Oregonian today, that Oregron, when It became a. state "had the wisdom" to insert in its Consti tution and statutes features in use In New York. Some things are common in the Constitutions and laws of all our states. Nevertheless, the Consti tution of Oregon, till our "urenic dis pensation" began, was very nearly an exact copy of that of Indiana we mean the second Constitution of In diana, adopted by that state in the year 1851. The first Constitution of Indiana, adopted in 1816, was found later to be a very crude and im perfect affair. It did not sufficiently guard the state against schemes and schemers; it allowed the establish ment of a state bank and branches; It did not make it sufficiently clear that the state was not to lend Its credit for promotion of paternalistic Jobs, and these Jobs constantly mul tiplied, especially in the matter of state aid to transportation projects; the Instrument was weak in Its con trol of taxation and in a multitude of ways left too much discretion of the Legislature. By sad experience In diana had discovered that her promoters and Jobbers had put her In the hole, Just as the same descrip tion of citizens of Oregon now are laboring for what they call "the wel fare of the state," in similar lines. These last are only about three-quarters of a century behind the experi ence of Indiana. It was to get herself out of diffi culties into which the system now proposed in Oregon had plunged her that Indiana made the Constitution which our people in Oregon so close ly followed, but which now we are asked to abandon. Hence Indiana's Constitution of 1S51 established close, exact and even severe constitutional limitations. Oregon, six years later, copied it In all its essential features In most, word for word. But in Ore gon this Instrument Is now called an "old fogy document," which it is declared the state "has outgrown," and" the foundations have been so deeply cut away that any initiative statute, voted on at any time, may abolish or supersede what remains of It. But it is still good enough for Indiana, (which though not "a great state" like Oregon having only about five times our population and ten times our wealth and industry still remains a state of some importance, with rational and well-regulated gov ernment in spite of that "old fogy Constitution," our copy of which this progressive state of Oregon has so nearly obliterated. There is a further tale about Indi ana and Oregon; or, rather, we should Bay the tale already partly told de serves amplification, for our enlight enment and instruction. Observe that Oregon, though she copied Indiana's second Constitution, is now propos ing to return to her first one, from which that state was so glad to es cape.' Some years before Indiana framed her new Constitution she had embarked in an extended system of "internal improvements," of which construction of railroads was the chief feature. The state was to employ Its credit to assist or promote rail roads, and it went In very deep. It sold or guaranteed bonds. Just as Ore gon now Is asked to do. The calam ity was prodigious. Even such of the roads or canals as were finished did not furnish the revenues that had 'been expected. Depend upon it, such undertakings by the state never will. After a struggle of years, during which the state was forced to default Interest, it managed to effect a com promise with creditors, who took the lines over, and the tate was left with a debt of $7,725,262 on account of thi3 business, without any prop erty to represent it. Here was one great cause that made Indiana anx ious to rid herself of a Constitution under which such things were per mitted and to make a new one, under which this sort of business no longer would be possible. Indiana was by no means alone in this experience. Other states had had much of the same kind f "progressive development," which "promoters"- in Oregon now are anx ious our state shall Imitate. But the example of Indiana, when our people were making the Constitution of Ore gon, was Just then a pregnant one, and Chester N. Terry, who had re cently come from Indiana, and was made secretary of our constitutional convention, had chanced to bring with him a copy of Indiana's new Con stitution, which was made the basis. Indeed almost the soTe source, of the Constitution of Oregon. Will it be said that Indiana then was a state far behind the importance of Oregon now? A vast mistake; for Indiana in 1851 had more than one million Inhabitants and was indus trially a great state. It was superior then to Illinois in population and wealth, and its one million of people were concentrated within an area comparatively small, while Oregon now has no more than 600,000, dis persed over an area nearly three times as great as that of the whole state of Indiana. It is "well for people to know what they are talking a'-out. Doubtless we shall be told there were bad financiers In Indiana, and shall be assured that our own Mr. Teal, Mr. U'Rcn, Mr. Wood, Brother Jackson, of the Journal, and the fur ther long list of names which The Oregonian at this moment hasn't space to print, would do a great deal tetter with this business than those dull Hoosiers did. Tet perhaps we would better not be too credulous. We might fall into danger. The Constitu tion of Indiana, which we copied, but now are trying to repudiate, is still the Constitution of Indiana and the key to her vast prosperity, while her old Constitution, which we are now urged to go back o and to adopt for ourselves, is the one which led her to financial ruin and from which she made enormous sacrifice to escape. The Oregonian opposes this whole scheme, on the high ground of the public welfare. It opposes the scheme because it Is the champion of the many against the few. The Teal port age business is exactly a business of this kind. Under cover or profession of regard for the interests of the peo ple It has seduced the state into a partnership through which a few per sons make or expect to make money by taxation of all the rest; that Is, the state furnishes most of the money and the projectors and managers take the profits mind you, always with pro fessions of disinterested - and labor ious service to the public. Of this sort of thing there are as many "ex terior forms and varieties of outward accoutrement" as there are types of "promoters," but never was a state engaged in this sort of business, nor ever will It be, without having to foot the bill. THE PEST OF HAZING. Rigorous formal discipline, strong college traditions and hazing form a triplet which is often seen complete in our institutions of learning. The United States military and naval acad emies enjoy a more inflexible disci pline than any other Schools In the country, and their courses of study have yielded less to the modern elec tive impulse. Moreover, there are no other schools where tradition begins to be as Inexorable as it is at West Point and Annapolis. Accordingly, hazing makes more trouble at these schools than it does anywhere else. Com pared with Harvard, both Yale and Princeton are notably reactionary in spirit. It Is interesting to remark also that they have more hazing. In fact, hazing is one method of keeping tra ditions alive. It breaks in the new student to the old ways. College fac ulties make a great show of disap proving It, but, remembering how it flourishes, one need not take the show too seriously. Faculties In particular which set a high value on tradition and the "good old college spirit" do not in their secret hearts dislike haz ing, and their efforts to stamp it out are at best only half sincere. Scientific schools are not much troubled with the pest. Neither are those state universities where engi neering and sociological studies pre dominate. Ann Arbor has had a good deal of rioting in the course of Its his tory, but not much hazing. It both ered the University of Wisconsin in the early days, but nothing has been heard of it there of late. At the Uni versity of Minnesota it has been al most unknown. These schools are all strongly scientific. They are also lo cated in towns of considerable impor tance, which may have something to do with their immunity from the haz ing scourge. The fact is that students who betake themselves to scientific studies have neither the time nor the inclination to intrude upon the rights of others. The whole spirit of these studies is one of sturdy individual freedom. But when all is said, the only way to break up hazing in colleges where the classical spirit rules, is to break up the class system. As long as any Institution clings to the old-fashioned freshman, sophomore, Junior and senior classes, with one yearly gradu ation day, we may assume without very weighty chance for mistake, that It is not prepared to make much of a sacrifice to get rid of hazing. PORTLAND M.VKING NKW RECORDS. February, the shortest month of the year, makes a remarkably fine show ing In all lines of commercial and in dustrial activity. With but twenty three business days In the month, real estate transfers reached a total of 2,063,338, an average of about 190, 000 per day, while building permits made a new record for the month with a total of more than $1,300,000, the average being nearly $60,000 per day. Bank clearings for the month were more than $3,000,000 in excess of those for February, 1908, although a record-breaking movement of wheat in February, 1908, ran the figures well above normal for that month. Port land has now reached a stage In her development where the ordinary ob stacles which in her youth could re tard progress are no longer effective. The city is being swept on to greatness by a wave of prosperity and develop ment that is reaching the most remote districts of the state. The substantial nature of . this growth is shown to the best possible advantage In the character of the building operationsespecially in resi dence permits. For this class of buildings 111 permits were Issued in February, and the total valuation was $339,525, an average of more than $3,000 each, with the valuations given in every case being much lower than the actual cost of the building. Four permits for reinforced concrete structures, issued at a valuation of $4 45,350, give an excellent idea of the substantial nature of the business structures going up. Portland Is growing more rapidly than ever, be cause the entire territory tributary to this city is growing. No less than three sawmills, whicn will be among the largest on the Pacific Coast, are now under construction or have ef fected all arrangements for building, at points along the Columbia River below Portland. Around these saw mills will spring up small colonies and towns, and these, like other colonies and towns, will all be tributary to Portland. On the Peninsula, Just beyond the city limits of Portland, the largest packing plant west of the Rooky Mountains is under construction, and around It are going up hundreds of buildings which do not figure in Port land's city statistics, but which will be the homes of people who will earn and spend their money in Portland. This city and the -ast region which has made it great have always been in possession of great natural re sources and abundant opportunities for capital and labor. It is only quite re cently that either of these two most potential factors in development has been favoring us In keeping with our position. Throughout the Winter new set tlers have been coming into the state and city In increasing numbers, and with the coming of Spring and the In auguration of low colonist rates from the East, there will be a wonderful in crease In the volume of this travel. Portland and Oregon have been alow tite Monyiyo in gathering headway in this move ment toward commercial greatness, but we have at last attained a momentum which nothing short of a world-wide commercial cataclysm can check.1 In no previous season in the history of the city has the outlook been so bright as In the Spring of 1909. HOW THE COLUMBIA IS "rOSINO." Ten years ago, in February, 1899, the steamer fleet entering the Colum bia River consisted of nine vessels of 9611 tons net register. Five years ngo, for the same month, the arrivals were 22 vessels of 19,703 tons. In Febru ary, 1909, the arrivals were 55 steam ers of 51,387 tons net register, and with a carrying capacity of more than 100,000 tons. The greatest part of this growth has been In the coasting trade, but there have been substantial gains in the foreign business. It Is by these official figures that we note the tremendous loss of ship plng'of which our Astoria friends com plain. THE SIXTIETH CONGRESS. Like the interesting young woman In the poem. Congress "must go to Its rest with Its work undone." Not that the session Just about to close has been wholly fruitless. Al though spending money without much thought where it is to come from has been the principal occupation of our Representatives and Senators, still they have managed to squeeze in a little useful work between whiles. Nobody will find fault with the ap propriation of $800,000 for the Ital ian earthquake sufferers, and yet the sum Is so immoderately large that It looks spectacular and suggests a play to the gallery ratner than genuine charity. If a considerable fraction of this splendid gift could be employed In buying out the absentee landlords who in the long run do more harm than earthquakes in Southern Italy and Sicily, one would regard the mat ter with more complacency. Congress has also done well In hampering the interstate rum traffic though the hampering Is not likely to prove very severe. The shipment of liquor into prohibition districts in C. O. D. ex press parcels has been a nuisance for years, and has in some localities com pletely thwarted the will of the peo ple. Congress has provided that these parcels must be plainly marked with the contents and the consignee's name. This does not seem to be a very rig orous provision, but It will in fact re strict the traffic which thrives upon secrecy. Among the negative virtues of the Congress Just closing must bo in cluded its possible failure to pass the notorious ship subsidy bill, which maintained a serpentine existence in committee, and out of it from the beginning of each session to the end. It is a curious circumstance that both Mr. Roosevelt and his successor favor this measure, which is one of unadul terated' iniquity, and has no reason for passage except the greed of a few millionaires. We may learn from this that nobody is infallible, and that even the most well-meaning public servant may be deceived sometimes. History proves clearly enough that ship subsidies never have promoted shipbuilding or ocean trade, but our statesmen still think that they will do miracles for our merchant marine. The experience of mankind elsewhere has no lessons for us. In the way of one who seeks diligently to find some thing else good to say about the de parted Congress the billion dollar ap propriations stand like a lion. Still, while this is in truth a large sum to spend, and the returns for it are not Impressive, one has to admit that governments everywhere have grown to be most expensive luxuries, and ours Is no worse than the rest of them. The world over taxes ere eat ing up the substance of the popula tions and nobody seems to see any way to relief. With us there is the same story to tell in state, county and city. Our rulers of every degree demand more and more money. The question where it la to come from begins to be really Interesting. We used to think that the benighted pop ulations of Europe must forever envy us our freedom from a military estab lishment. Not havlpg very many sol diers to support our Government would always be Inexpensive. Thus we dreamed in our deluded fore casts. Now we realize, to our grief, that we omitted to take account of pensions when we wove our fond visions of light taxes. Some day, perhaps, a great genius will arise who will devise a method of governing which will actually ac complish what It sets out to do, and which will leave a little something to the taxpayer. Until some such bene factor arises we must in all likeli hood reconcile ourselves to see the expenses of Government growing heavier and the returns In practical benefit continue to be somewhat exig uous. Find as much fault as we may, however the worst grumbler among us must confess that without the Gov ernment, in spite of its faults and failures, he would be a great deal worse off financially and In every other way than he Is now. Hence our growls at the big appropriations of Congress have their Pickwickian as pect after all. But if the Government continues to ask more and more from us every year it ougnt in all fairness to provide a little reasonable stim ulus and help to our instinct of econ omy. It ought to provide us with postal savings banks and a sensible currency system. Congress has enacted a feebly pal liative currency measure, but for postal savings banks it has done noth ing. If we wish to save our wages we do It at our own risk and by our own devices, so far as Congress Is concerned. Perhaps, though, this view of the case is too discouraging. We know that !t always takes Con gress a long time to do even the sim plest things, but in the end It manages usually to accomplish part of what it ought. It Is a timid body, trembling at every leaf that stirs, and its re luctance to enact progressive meas ures must be attributed more to lack of courage than to depravity. Your average Congressman would like to do a great deal for the public, but in the first place he does not know how to go about it, and in the second place he soon discovers reasons to be afraid of certain looming monsters in the Speaker's chair, the commit tee rooms and elsewhere. Perhaps the wonder Is that Congress gets as much work out of the way as It does. The new employers' liability law Is a creditable achievement. If it steers clear of the constitutional objections to the old one; but for a National child labor law we must watch and pray yet a little longer, while neither the corporations nor the labor unions have obtained any relaxation of the oregomtan, Tuesday, rigor of the Sherman anrl-tmat low The- best we can say of the sixtieth Congress is that It adopted Mr. Roose velt's recommendations In part; the worst Is that it neglected some of the most important of them. "Lucky" Baldwin Is dead. The fa mous plunger and turfman, leaving a vast fortune, yesterday morning passed on to the land where luck does not figure in the final returns. Details of tho disposal of this fortune will not be known until the will is read but If "Lucky" distributed It on the plans followed during life, t is questionable about its doing any great amount of good to mankind. The late Mr. Bald win was a "racetrack gambler, who made occasional sorties Into the field of legitimate speculation and Invest ment, and in those fields, as on the racetrack, fortune seemed to favor him to an unusual degree. The good done by- Mr. Baldwin is a debatable quantity. The evil is more easily dis cernible. Every small salaried clerk and racetrack follower who saw the enormous winnings made by Baldwin was encouraged to bet his own money, as long as it lasted and then his em ployer's, with the usual result. It Is not apparent that the world Is much better for Lucky Baldwin's having lived In it. Thomas W. Lawson has partly for given the ingratitude of the "gelatine spirted shrimps" and the "saffron blooded apes" who failed to follow his Infallible scheme for sending Rocke feller. Morgan, Rogers and all the rest of that piratical crowd to the alms house. He has ceased to bellow threats and Imprecations at the plain people, whom he so graphically de scribed, and is now entreating them to follow his tips on steel, copper and a number of other specialties of which he is certain that he knows more than any other living man. Eastern papers are again carrying big ads in the pic turesque Lawsonlan style and from the wording thereof, artful Tommy has at last got a otrangle-hold on the "sys tem" and is exceedingly anxious that the public should be with him when he finally brings It to the mat. At the recent primary elections In the City of Chicago less than 20 per cent of the registered voters of the city felt interest enough to go and vote. The New York Times, an inde pendent paper of Democratic party tendencies, which has always favored the direct primary, commenting on the assumption that "we get an ex pression of conscience and intelli gence" by this method Bays: "The truth is that the direct primary does not stand its tests. It does not come up to specifications. It doea not meet the expectations or make good the prophecies and promises of those who are its advocates." So it 13 every where. This fact Is what leads so able and consistent a reformer as Gov ernor Hughes, of New York to propose modifications of the general plan hith erto employed, with such poor results. They say now at Eugene that young Bristol showed signs of mental weakness before the brutal outrage upon him by fellow students; so the "hazing" couldn't have made him In sane. Quite like the verdict of a Coroner's Jury. "The Colonel" had shot hi man, who died a few days afterward. But the Jury was friendly to the Colonel and quite Indifferent to the surgeon who had treated the victim, so It brought in a verdict that thi death of the man was not due to the pistol shot, but to the doctor's malpractice. There is more than one person puz zled to know by what constitutional or equitable right the State of Oregon can Justify itself for going Into part nership with the Teal Transportation Company. Nice thing for members of the Teal Company, since the state supplies most of the capital and pays the losses; but is the state keeping iwlthln Its Just powers when, it taxes the body of Its people to support such a partnership for emolument of pri vate individuals? Those enthusiastic Seattle boosters are advertising their Exposition as the only "World's Fair that ever opened on time." The point, of course, lies In the "world's" fair. The Portland Exposition, from the Seattle point of view, was only a dinky little show. However, it will be something worth Seattle's while not only to open its fair on time, as Portland did. but to close it amid universal acclaim, as Portland also did. Rev. W. G. Eliot warns us not to worry about the possibility of the world's destruction 14 years after knowledge of the approaching calam ity becomes certain. Chaos would re sult from the very knowledge, he says. It would. So would chaos of mind come in all probability to anyone from knowledge of what Is going to happen to him in the ensuing 14 years. . It would be an unfortunate occur rence indeed, but it is quite clear that if some law-abiding citizen, peacefully reposing in bed with his lawful mate, should be aroused from his slumbers by the moral squad, and in the excite ment he should pull his pistol from under his pillow and shoot some one, there would be great difficulty about a conviction. Even if all claims of "reduction of freight rates" are true but they are not true, because the comparisons are Juggled why should the taxpayers of Oregon be forced to put up money in order that wheatgrowers and others in the neighbor states of Washington and Idaho may get higher prices? Only two more days of strenuous life and Roosevelt, after twenty years' service as public man, will take the honorable title of American citizen at large. It is reasonably certain that, for the remainder of this year, there will be small friction between the offices of Governor and Secretary of State. Queer, but Just at this moment Our George Is out of a "political" Job. But cheer up. March 4 will soon be here, and George will soon be" there. Mr. Patten would make good a Just claim to being the universal friend of everybody if he would become a bear on the flour market. In the end . the Southern Pacific would be money in pocket if it actu ally gave Its Oregon lands to bona fide settlers. A more appropriate name for Mayor Lane's hyper-officious plain-clothes men would be the Peeping Tom squad. 3rAi?cir 2, moo. FOLLY OF WATE 07EHSH1P. View )f a Neighbor oa Oregon'n Great Railroad Scheme. Spokane Review. Oregon's constitution may be defective, but It contains one Round bulwark that need-s to be. defended against demolition namely, that forbidding use of the Mate s credit to bull! or aid the building of rail roads. It la proposed by ill-informed, reckless or adventurous spirits to cut away this section of the constitution, with a view to putting the state at the work of build ing needed railroads which Harrlman ap parently will not construct. If needs be. Oregon would "better bear those ills it has than fly to others that it knows not of." National ownership of railroads has been measurably a success -In Europe, but ventures of that nature ty undeveloped states, of the Union stand practically as an unbroken array of fail ure and disaster. The Spokesman-Review believes that there la no exception to this record where states have attempted to project railroad into new and undevel oped territory. The undertaking would be rash and recklees. even though there were posi tive knowledge that no new railroads would be built by private capital in Ore gon within the next quarter of a century. But railroad development cannot much longer be retarded In Eastern and Cen tral Oregon. Hirrtman cannot maintain forever his dog-ln-the-mangcr policy to ward that broad and inviting empire. II must build railroads In there, and that soon, or rivals will do it. He has no right of pre-emption. The Kill interests are now on the edge of that undeveloped region;- the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul is not distant; the Northwestern system will soon be cross ing the Rocky Mountains, and the Influx of Immigration and capital into the coun try north of the Columbia will surely push settlement and development south Into Eastern and Central Oregon. The miracles that have been wrought with the desert lands of Wenatchee. North Yakima, Lewlston and around Boise City are to be repeated in the arid and seml-arld eeotlons of Oregon. The possibilities are too vast, the rewards are too enticing, much longer to be over looked or neglected. It is not probable that the voters of Oregon, on sober reflection, will plunge into the folly of tondlng their state to build railroads into a sparsely settled empire, under the delusion that it would punish Harriman. The end of that busi ness would be Harrlman picking up some state-owned railroads from the bargain counter. CX. GAR Dt TT OF A JiEW'SPAPEH. Not Only to Print tt. bat to Expose Wrongdoing. From an Opinion by Justice Guy, of New York. The law Jealously guards the good repute of all persons In their private character and in their business or profession, unless by their general private conduct or by the character of the business or profession In which they are engaged they have them selves forfeited such good repute. But the law is not engaged in the rehabil itation of reputations, or in throwing the mantle of respectability and good repute around those who deliberately engage In practices In violation of law and follow pursuits which are subversive of decency and good mor als. The defendant was engaged in the publication of a newspaper not merely for the dissemination of news, but with the additional purpose of up holding a high standard of public de cency and morals in the community, and it was not merely Its right, but Its duty. In connection with a public and official proceeding of the kind in ques tion, to publish truthfully so much of the facts aa with decency It could publish, so that even if the machinery of the criminal law proved Inadequate to reach malefactors of this class, who traffic for gain in human life and health and seek to promote Immoral practices, they might be held up to public scorn and contempt. While newspapers should be held to strict and severe accountability for unjustifiable and untruthful assaults upon private character, or upon busi ness standing and credit, they deserve not punishment and rebuke, but pub lic approval and commendation where, as in this Instance, they truthfully, and in strict conformity to the facts, call public attention to those who are engaged In nefarious practices, injur ious to the public welfare. Hold .Mi rroni "Win Trro FMicht. New York World. Ambrose Brose. of Montelalr. N. J., set out a dish of barlev as food for English sparrows. Half a dozen spar rows began to cat, when two black birds came and tried to eat out of the same dish. Urose says that the spar rows withdrew, and after a long con ference returned and attacked the blackbirds with vigor. The fight last ed five minutes, according to Brose, and ended in victory for the sparrows. The blackbirds flew away, but soon re turned reinforced by three more of "heir tribe. The five blarkbirds attacked the or iginal six (sparrows, and the battle lasted, by Brose'a watch. 16 minutes. Once again the sparrows won, and ulti mately the blackbirds retired. Brose says It all goes to show that birds think as well as eat. Oregon's Half Centensvy. Troy (N. T.) Times. It is a period of seml-centennlals as well as centenaries. Probably many persons will be surprised at the fact that the state of Oregon is B0 years old, for youthfulness Is commonly .as sociated with most Western common wealths. Yet Oregon was admitted to the Union under a law passed by Con gress February 14, 1859. It would not be Inappropriate to call Oregon the Valentine State. At least the Both anniversary of the creation of that state has been celebrated with fitting ceremonies. The 14th coming on Sun day the exercises took place Saturday. New York should feel a particular in terest in Oregon, for that progressive and prosperous state had the wisdom to copy much of Its constitution and many of its statutes from those in ef fect here. "On the Verge of Going: !Vnty.' Baker Herald. The big stick will not suffice In Oregon. It Is not severe enough. What this state needs is a huge thorny -prod held in the hand of a big man of muscle, whose soul Is clean and whose heart is honest. And with a stick let him separate the sheep from the goats. Let him corral a num ber of plnheaded reformers who pay no taxes to the state until the sub stantial element of Oregon can be heard. This state is on the verge of going "nutty" when It even thinks of launching into building and operating railroads. And that's no lie. Two lave on 96 'Cents Prr Week. New York World. An aged man and wife are living near Windsor. England, on 98 cents a week. j WW T! DESERT BR TAX f NEVER f Judore Jewell Heady to Be Realm Tnree TtniM More. GRANTS PASS. Or.. March 1. (To the Editor.) The Oregonian of Feb ruary 26 contains an article' from a gentleman who signs himself "Jeffer sotiian." In which he bewails the pres ent condition of the Democratic party. He seems to think that If we could get rid of W". J. Bryan the world would become brighter. Well, perhaps it would to those who believe that all I men have a right to vote the Repub- j ,lican ticket, but thus far no further. Jeffersonlan tells us that he has j voted for sir. Bryan three times; once ' enthusiastically, once willingly, and ' once reluctantly, but vows that he , will never do so again. This is the way that men generally backslide. We like to let ourselves down easy. I. too, have voted for Mr. Bryan three times. The first time enthusiastically, the second time enthusiastically, and the third time enthusiastically, and I am willing to no so three times more en thusiastically, and then again if neces sary. I support Mr. Bryan because of his superior statesmanship, and not be cause of his oratory. In point of ex ecutive ability, he stands far above the outgoing and Incoming presiden tial Incumbents. But his peculiar fit ness Is his unwavering stand for civic righteousness. Ho was right In 1S96 h, r5 ho "tood UD and defied the com bined forces of corruption throughout the world: he was right In 1900 when he r it ,1 i l . h i . . . . in. American i doctrine that governments derive ineir just powers from the consent of the governed: and ho was right In 190S when he solved the bank question and came to the rescue of those who were being denied their Constitutional right of trial by Jury. He has saved the Democratic party, and In time the Democratic party Is going to save this Nation from corporation greed, and make It in reality "the home of the brave and the land of the free." I deny that the people have wllllnsr-ly- rejected Mr. Bryan three times. We know full well that thousands voted for Mr. Taft last Fall because money lords were threatening to give us a panic If Mr. Bryan should be elected. In the large manufacturing renters starvation threats were heard on every hand. But the records show that 6.000.000 of true Americans stood for the right In spite of these threats; and we are going to continue the good fight until political corruption Is driven from places of authority. It Is worth noth ing to say that Mr. Bryan has not been elected. Neither has Jesus Christ ever received a majority vote, though he has been a candidate for nearly two thousand years. Jesus Christ was right when the ignorant mob were putting him to death; and W. 3. Bryan Is right In his heroic defense of hu man liberty. Any man Is right who stands for right principles, regardless of popularity. STEPHEN JEWELL. TATCS OF PROPOSED CHARTER. Will Be Submitted to the Voters at the Itegnlnr Jnne Election. PORTIAND, March 1. (To the Edi tor.) Will you please explain the exact status of the proposed charter, submitted to the City Council recently by the Char ter Board of 15 taxpayers? Will It be possible for the electors to vote upon its adoption, and If ao. when and how? A VOTER. The proposed charter was submitted to the City Council over two weeks ago. at which time City Attornoy Kavanaueh sent In an ordinance providing for the submission of a new charter under a single ballot title, and providing that It and other amendments to the present charter might be submltteu at a special election, to be held prior to the primaries. This ordinance was subsequently passed, but without an emergency clause, and It must therefore He 30 days from Its pas sage, as the law requires this Interval in order that the referendum may be applied, should any one desire to Invoke it. At the expiration of the SO days, the ordinance, if not vetoed by the Mayor, will become effective. After the ordinance takes effect, the Council must still pass a resolution, formally submitting the proposed char ter to the electors, and aa matter now stand, there seems no doubt this will be done, and the vote will be taken at the regular election. In June. It will be nec essary to change the clause which speci fies the time whiu the charter, if adopt ed, shall become operative. It will be fixed by the City Council, and Indications are that It will be set at either six months or a year from July 1, 1909. It will be later necessary to have a special election, if the proposed charter is adopted In June, as it calls for an en tirely different set of officers from the present one. That the proposed charter will be sub mitted to the electors, there Is sen rely any doubt, as a majority vote Is all that Is required to adopt a .resolution. Only five members of the Council object to placing it tefo e the electors, which leaves ten who favor submitting It, Telephone Hello" Is Barred." Montelalr (N. J.) Dispatch to the New York I'ress. Stern prohibition of the time-honored word "Hello" has been received by the telephone girls in the employ of the Western Union Telegraph Com pany. An officer of the corporation in formed the young women they must not use that word In answering tele phone calls. He said they must say "Western Union" in response to every buzz of the bell, no matter how much mental effort It might cost them to do so. And the officer is a man so high in the councils of the company that what he says goes, or the subordinate who disobeys hint does. It is taken for granted the telephone girls will bear his injunction in mind without a flngle Blip. Cnnnt Sustains Three Broken Ribs. Philadelphia Record. David Mackey. of West Middlesex. Pa., thtnkit g to test the courage of his brother. William, played ghost and was attacked by his brother, the result be ing three of the ghost's ribs were broken and he was sent to a hospital for repairs. Do Leavta After Master's Fnorral. Kansas City Star. When John Behagg died at Evans ville. Ind.. the other day. his dog was by his bedside when he passed away. The animal attended the funeral, looked at the face of his master In the coffin and after the burial he disappeared from his old home. Auto Ride Bounces False Teeth. Camden. (N. J.) Dispatch. Because he was jolted so severely while riding In an auto over the rough streets of New Brunswick. N. J., that his false teeth were bounced out of his head, an incensed citizen Bays he will sue the ton n. Frw I.Ike Her, Nowadays. London Cor. Chicago Inter Ocean. Susan O'Hagan. who was born In 1802. has Just died at Lisburn. For 97 years she had been In the employment of the same family, having served with four generations. Life's SunnySide "Whenever 1 see the name o? Sen ator Tillman In print." said an old newspaper man. "I am reminded of a little incident that occurred several years ago when I was city editor of a little paper In a Southern city. 1'l.ate one night a i'outh Carolina correspondent wired that he bad failed to get a desired Interview be cause the Senator had taken a train for Washington, but that we might catch hint ourselves when the train passed through our city. Hastlly searching a time table. I found that the train mentioned was due In a few minutes. There being no other re porter at hand, I seised 'Hud' l.unkly. a raw reporter fresh from the country, told him to meet this train at the sta tion and get some sort of expression from the Senator on a subject then of much importance. "Some time later Bud strolled calm ly In and Informed me that after a personal search of every car on the train he had failed to find Senator Tillman. "'Do you mean that you looked lntr all the sleeping car berths. Bud?' said I. ""Yep. that' what I done.' said Bud. " 'But. Bud." 1 exclaimed in conster nation. wern't a good many of these berths occupied by ladles?' " "Sure.' said Bud. " 'But what did you do wh7i you found a lady that had retired?- "'When I busted the curtains open and looked In and a woman Jumped up and screamed. I took oft my hat and says: That's all right lady, you ain't the man I'm looking for.'" Phil adelphia Ix-dger. Mlsa Harriet Evans, an elderly spin ster on whom an inquest was held at Hackney recently, was said to have been a confirmed man-hater. "She was so much against men that she would not have a coin with the King's head on it." her landlady said. "If one was given her she would throw It into the fire. She would only deal In money having Queen Vic toria's head." Miss Evans went to the office of a local newspaper some time ago. but refused to enter It until a woman was sent to transact business with her. An advertisement for apartments which she published stipulated that there should be no man in the house. She even declined to receive letters because the stamps bor the King's head. Fall Mall Gazette. Dr. Walter C. Smith. the Scotch preacher, once tried to explain to an old lady the meaning of the scriptural expression. "Tske up thy bed and walk." He said the bed was simply a mat or rug. easily taken up and car ried away. "No. no." replied the lady. "I carina believe that. The bed was a regular four-poster. There would be no mir acle In walking awny wi' a bit o' mat or rug on your back." Exchange. Admiral Robley Evans had a Con gressman for a guest, and having run out of his favorite brand of whisky, 'made up with some he round not guar antee. Ho explained this, and added: "Here, however, is some brandy that Tve kept untouched for a good deal more than ;o years." "Hand me over the whiskey decanter." was the re joinder. -Why?" asked the Admiral. "What's the matter with the brandv?" -That's what I want to know. Bob " said the guest; "hut if you have had It untouched in your possession for more than 20 years, there must be some thing pretty bad the matter with It." Exchange. An official of the Department of Commerce and Labor, who had been directed by his chief to draw up a summary of conclusions of certain distinguished authorities In enclneer Ing, met with disaster when he had occasion to refer to certain statements of A. R. Colquhoun. the British en gineer. The official had been told that after Mr. Colquhoun's name should be placed the letters "Me I. c. E." (Mem ber of the Institute of Civil Engin eers'). "That's easy to remember." the official had sold, adopting an easy sys tem of mnemonics. "11. I. C E' spells 'mice.- " This memory system was of little avail, however, for when the official handed in his summary the letters af ter Mr. Colquhoun's name were "R. A. T. S." Llpplncotfs. "Could you give me." Inquired the poor woman, "a oastoff dress of your little girl s or a pair of your little boy's shoes for my little boy?" 'T have no little girl." replied the rich woman kindly, "nor anv little boy; but i Mn ,,v you n OI(j Bheath skirt and some puffs." Puck. "Physical culture, father, is perfect ly lovely." exclaimed an enthusiastic young miss just homo from college "Look! To develop the arms I grasp this rod by one end and move it slow ly from right to left." "Well, well!" Exclaimed the father. what won't science discover. It that rod had straw at the other end you might be sweeping." Success Maga zine. Mrs. T'nderdunk I yeans 'em srv. SiMnh Toots, dat j-n' po- slck husband am powful bad off. Has de doctah given him up? Mrs Boots. Well-uh. no'm. Slstah 1 nderdnnk. But It do' pear like he's done given him everything els Ex change. .Mr,':., 8cr-"Pnerton Tomorrow Is the 14th anniversary of our wedding. Mr. Scrapplngton. Well, vou needn't taunt me with It. Puck. She Lived In Three Centuries. Btida Pesth Cor. Chicntro Inter Ocean. Born In 1791. a women named Anne Farkas has just (!ld at Koronez. in the County of Gyor. Hungary. The last of her relatives died when she was 97. since when she has been a pauper. She enjoyed good health until the end and without using eyeglasses, read the daily newspapers. SOVT-; ITBSONAL OCERVAT10.8. BY J. HENNESPT MVRFHT Reform rannot re ahove Its source. "Well. (iTrc hs mora of a Taft front than Jonathan has Dick Montague's rnM rmt Is th only oasljs In that I. leak and iwndy. what-d've- cal!-it? He that es.-aped the big stick can now Sharpen 1:1s wila for The heavy foot. Th Hon. John R Ryan has his reward in liia reminiscences. The danger in throwing open swell churchea to the tin :a:ui-i.-red and weary !lrj in stirrlnK up a crop of poems to a i?prir. Louse. What does the peas-nod mind think of the new charter? li i:ilnka a wise man's thoughts shouldn't '.rr.talo his throat. So that morn! Kijusd ra.jed the civil service examinall.m ? Ye.-: Haw. Haw. Haw. Haw. a l.nu and Immoderate Haw. Haw. And they are po!njj to idle tne cross ot reform on trt the broad nr.d manly shoul ders of Judce Van Zanle. but tt will to packed back arain to tne license committee of the Common Council w'.th a wreath cf steaming leial maxims frHli from a Dutch, bake oven what fell baa reform to do with law. anyway? Colonel Tom Ouirean for Mayor! That's the calomel! Hack to the spirit of the ante bellum days, the chlvn'.rU- inieii. the in etfubie po?(. Here Is a prut.iroTiit to warm up to. a philosoi-hcr, a phi.olocist and a fear less muniolpalotrit ; a purp.iMve for cutle and a purit'.er lor naturi! ns; a resiure that dist- patos doubts and rru;-s wim one felt fwlpe: a voice coollr-.K the hot air pump? and honorary (lffirftt, an oracular dtnd-shot fioorlnc Innovator, an orator ar -gulc.our llberrlts out of reformer?, by trad, sir. yea. air. What conduces more to peace, civic manners and social amenities than a rentleman and a arlnk? 1