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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (April 5, 1909)
is mm I'OKTUMI, OKBXiO. Enl.rl at Portland. Oregon. Postofnc as Be-cnd- lass Matt-r. fcubscriptlon Kates Invariably In Advance. IBj M an. WVW l"" included, on, year IS 00 1"J . 1-jr.day In. luded. Ix month. 4 2.1 t.i ' ""'"' Included, three month. . 2.85 $'. i-uri.lay Included, one month 71 T.I , ' ""-"out Sunday, one year 6 00 r..l m"nut Sunday, six months 3 J 5 ''. ithout Sunday, three month... 1 73 w.iL'i ""hout Sunday, one month o 'V n y'r 150 Sunday and meekly,' one" year! '. '. . . 2 60 3 50 (By Carrier.) lllt'Z' "l ncluded. one year: .O0 Iai!. feunday Included, on month..! .75 dVr .r.m'l S""1 ""-""fee money toL"sV"" .R",,r IO 2 1 PW. t cent; 18 .li; "rates""- 4 For'S" Poata.e wlTnT-.f n"" Offlce The s. C. Beck- T.J? " Agency New York, room s- PORTLAND, 3IOVDAT. APRIL 6, 1909. INCOME TAX IS PROBABLE. It Is reported at Washington that President Taft has In view a plan for taxation of incomes, as a means of bringing; money into the treasury. So much objection Is made to taxation of Inheritances, by the General Govern ment, and so general is the Insistence that this source of revenue be left to the states, that thought is turning to taxation of Incomes: and under direc tion of the President the Attorney General is preparing an income tax bill. The President has no intention of urging it at the present special ses sion of Congress, but will submit his recommendation through his message to Congress at the regular session In December next. It is believed by the President and the Attorney-General that an act can be drawn -which will not be open to the objections on which the Supreme Court set aside the Income tax law of 1894. Not all the questions raised at that time were passed on by the Court; but the points on which the de cision was rendered were these, to-wlt: I . f'.tV "Jl lncome derived from land direct tlx. thoIMelTe. hence a elt.rt ,n lncom derived from in vented personal property is a tax on the personal property Itself. Such a tax Is a l?ul'on" WUh'n ' t t" Con- The Constitution provides that all direct taxes levied under Federal au thority shall be apportioned among the states according to population. The income tax. being a direct tax. Is not constitutional. On the general question the Court was, however, evenly divided, as follows: For the law. Justices Harlan, Brewer, Brown and White; against the law, Chief Justice Fuller, Justices Field. Gray and Shiras. Four to four. The court, however, held unanimously that taxation of incomes from state and municipal bonds was unconstitutional. On the specific ques tion of taxation of Incomes from rent q.f lands the court divided six to two. Chief Justice Fuller, Justices Field, Gray, Brewer, Brown and Shiras stood against the law, on the ground that "taxes on real estate belong to the class of direct taxes, and that the taxes on the rent or Income of real estate, which Is the Incident of its ownership belong to the same class." Justices Harlan and White took the opposite view, and favored affirmation of the law. Several Important questions were presented in the arguments, upon which the court expressed no opin ion. They iwere thus stated by Chief Justice Fuller: rlnt-Whether the ald provision a to rent and Income from real estate invalidate In whol net; Second Whether a to the Income from personal property, as uch. the act Is un constitutional a laying direct taxes Third w hether any part of the tax. It -.f0n. drfd M ,ll'c, tax- ls '"valid for T t uniformity on either of the ground On these questions wide opening might be found for further examina tion of the subject by the court. More over, of the eight Justices who sat in the Income tax case only four now remain on the bench. Of these the Chief Justice is the single one who pronounced against the law. The Su preme Court cannot be expected to re verse the former opinion directly; but approaching the subject from a dif ferent direction, on introduction of new matter. It may, in effect, do so. It is Interesting to recall what Mr. Taft said on this subject in a public speech in Ohio before his election to the Presidency, viz: In time, of groat National need an Income tax would be of ireal assistance In furnish ing means to carry on the Government, and It I not free from doubt how the Supreme I ourt with changed membership would view a new Income-tax law under ui-h conditions The court was nearly evenly divided In the last cu. and during the Civil War great urn were collected by an 1-come tax without Judicial Interference, and it was then u.posed within the Federal power. There is good reason to believe that the inheritance tax recommended by President Taft will fail, because so isany of the states are already employ ing it for suprort of their own reve nues. Needs of the General Govern ment will bring the proposition for an Income tax. therefore, before Con gress, ere long: and the announcement that the President will recommend It signifies also that he -will lay down the outline of an argument upon which he believes It would be sustained. Mr. Taft ls a man of excellent Judgment and Is known. -moreover.as a good law yer. We believe there will be a Fed eral Income tax. with its limitations very strictly defined, under guidance of the arguments ajid decision heretofore presented: for It ls evident that the extreme protectionists will so control the tariff on Imports that no ade quate revenues can be obtained from that most natural and most easy of all sources. , An Irreverent grain broker in' a weekly trade letter, says that "Provi dence and Patten are doing excellent team work In the wheat market with rrovidence pitching and Patten catching." One of the results of Mr. Patten's catching was a $250,000 failure in Chicago Saturday. The firm or its customers had sold to Mr. Patten large quantities of wheat which they did not possess. They were ap- raremly expecting to make their deliveries from those mysterious 1S - 000. 000 bushels which the Govern ment found in farmers' hands March 1. The shorts, who are being squeezed, continue) their cry of manipulation. and yet the price of cash wheat con tinues at such a high premium over the options that the evidence of I manipulation is untraceable. In pre vious attempts to corner the market, increasing prices brought out the wheat. This season, as the price ad vances, the stocks of wheat dwindle. WEDNESDAY'S "ASSESTBlVx-." An effort is making to get an "ad visory assembly" on Wednesday, in the name of the Republican party, "to adopt a platform and resolutions, and to recommend to the favorable consideration of the Republican elect ors of the City of Portland the name of the best qualified and suitable Re publican for each elective office to be voted for at the primary nominating election to be held on the eighth day of May." The names of some five hundred citizens have been suggested, who are asked to attend this meeting. Nothing can be done. In any direc tion, without organization and con cert: and this seems an entirely legiti mate effort. The primary law has nullified party action, after the old and customary manner; yet men may sti(l associate. In the name of party. If they desire. Everything, however, will depend on recognition of the fit ness of candidates whom a meeting like this may recommend. The party name will have no tallsmanic effect at this time, as heretofore. But It's all right to hold a meeting Ilka this, for consultation, for debate and for con sideration. Men may be suggested (who will stand the ordeal of the pri mary and then of the general election some of them at least. We shall see. Good government for the city, or the best we can get; is the object of all citizens alike. We don't know that the name of the Republican party or of any other party should have any thing to do with It; yet neither the name of party, nor Its motive, can be quite eliminated, for each party will still use its name for all it can be worth, and, perhaps, for more than it is worth. These movements will pro duce a shake-up anyway, and that ls better than stagnation. Citizens can do nothing in these matters without co-operation, and to try to do things ls better than to show no civic spirit. THE MEN WHO OWN THE GROUND. The men who own the ground in Portland are here to stay. They differ in this particular from the people who merely occupy the ground. The man who uses ground as a tenant can, if he desires, make a change of base. He can, if his inclination or his inter ests move him to do so, get up and move away. The man who owns the ground, on the contrary, is a fixture. It is up to him to co-operate with every move ment tending to make his holdings more desirable for the use and occupa tion of those who augment his reve nues in the way of rentals and leases. He is concerned, directly, in all un dertakings looking toward the expan sion of the population and the further ance of enterprise that make Portland a good place to live In. Portland, with its swift growth, the extraordinary development of its commercial importance and its phe nomenal acquirement of -the comforts and conveniences of living, has been mighty good to the men who own the ground. Is there any reason why these benefits should be all on one side? Can any plea showing equity, sound municipal policy, or even self-interest, be produced to prove that the men who own the ground should not be as good to Portland as Portland has been to them ? These remarks are taken from the Kansas City Star the only change be ing the substitution of the name of Portland for that of Kansas City. They are as pertinent here as there. They who own the ground stand in their own light if they oppose or obstruct improvement of the streets, additional water supply, the necessary bridge connections between the two divisions of the city, or the effort to deepen the channel to the sea. The main part of the problem is "up to" the people who own the ground. WHERE BILLION'S ARB NEEDED. When James J. Hill two years ago made the astonishing statement that the railroads of the country would require $1,000,000,000 new capital every year for the next five years, it was regarded as one of those fanciful flights like his estimate of the biscuit eating ability of the Orientals. Mr. Hill's statement was supplemented last Fall by1 one from B. F. Yoakum, who said that to build the railroads actually needed, buy equipment and improve existing railroads within the next ten years, would require the enprmous sum of $6,000,000,000 new capital. Even this figure, a reduction from $1,000,000,000 to $600,000,000 per year, was regarded as slightly overdrawn. In view of some carefully compiled statistics just completed by the New York Journal of Commerce, the figures appear quite reasonable. Theso records show that the capital actually needed for refunding railroad bonds and short-time notes due in 1909 and 1910 is something In excess of $600,000,000. The same authority also places the amount of new notes, stocks and bonds issued by the rail roads last year at $990,715,376, an amount nearly equal to the maximum estimate of Mr. Hill for all purposes. Not all of this stock, bond and note issue was sold for cash, as much of It was used in refunding former Issues; but the amount involved was so vast that It ls easy to understand how a billion a year can be put into rail roads without making much of a showing. The details of these matur ing notes that must be paid this year and next show what enormous sums are absorbed by the roads already built, thus demonstrating the modesty of the estimates of both Mr. Hill and Mr. Yoakum. For example, among the short-rime notes due in 1910 is the sum of $60, 000,000 from the Pennsylvania, $25. 000,000 from the New York Central and another $25,000,000 from the Michigan Central & Lake Shore, with numerous other old established lines showing obligations due to the extent of $5,000,000 to $15,000,000 each. On all the roads mentioned, the addi tional capital for which these notes were Issued was for the purpose of making betterments and Improving equipment. These roads engaged In but little new construction, but their demands for capital were so heavy that they account for some of the difficulty experienced in securing funds for new construction in portions of the country less favorably known than the territory traversed by these lines. Fortunately - for us. the farmers last year turned off about $ S, 000, 000,- THE JIORmG 000 worth of Drodnets. iul fnr tkot reason, money Is so easy that almost any legitimate railroad proposition can be financed on satisfactory terms. THE COST OK JJVTNU. . There ls ground for satirical com ment on the fact that the very same persons and classes of persons who a few years ago were crying for silver, on their assumption that the gold standard would make ruinously low prices, are now shouting in like man ner against high prices, and conse quent cost of living. But who are they to whom are prices excessively high? Not the pro ducers, but the consumers. People have rushed into the towns and cities. There are not enough producers in the country. Wheat and bacon and hom iny and wool go soaring. Nearly one half our population is in the cities to day. Do they expect to get their eggs and butter and beef and potatoes as cheap as when an immensely greater proportion of our people were working in the country? The changes have altered the rela tions of money value and prices of foodstuffs. And the "cost of living" will go higher still. The change re acts In Its effects on nearly all lines of goods. Professor Johnson, of the University of the City of New. York, presents an analysis of this subject, from which this is extracted, viz.: Men will not stop to consider the fact that the value af money has changed. To the business man a dollar is a dollar: ha measures h.1 prosperity in dollars; if the number of dollar Into which he can con vert hi stock ls increasing he take It for granted that hi wealth la irowlng at the same pace. As n resiil-t- . , . tendency of prices, and of the consequent Increase of what may be called the "moner wealth, and "money profits," of business and industry, men in business are cafer to extend their operations. Newcomers rush Into business rrom the professional and other fields. All this rush is accompanied by a strong; demand for capital, and bankers, who are usually affected by the contagion of the time. And they can expend their credit to the utmost limit at an unusually high rate or Interest. In other words, the Increase In money profits brought about by the mal adjustment of prices arouses an artificial demand for capital and so lifts the rate of interest above Its normal level or that which It would have held had prices not been dis turbed. This activity also withdraws men from the ordinary fields of labor. They are unwilling to plod away their lives in the country, producing food. A man living in Portland complained not long ago that he had a body of land possessing highest possible value for growth of onions, but couldn't get men to till It, even for a large share of the crop. A group of men to whom he vainly appealed asked him why he didn't go at it himself, and have all the crop. Till activity in the numerous lines of exploitation In which men in great numbers may get good and steady w-ages,- :s over returning workers to the soil the cost of living, measured in money, will continue high and, such ls the tendency of the time, will be higher yet before it is lower. OPEN THE DESCHUTES CANYON. While not officially confirmed, it is regarded as, a certainty that the re port of the Federal engineering ex perts on the Deschutes railroad project will be adverse to the Harri man Interests. As these interests, in this particular case, are also the in terests of Portland and of a vast re gion In the Central and Southeastern part of the state, the matter ls one that can hardly fall to cause vigorous protest. The greatest possible bene fits that can be reaped from the ob structing reclamation dam, or from the numerous private power schemes in the Deschutes canyon, are so insig nificant in comparison with the bene fits which will follow construction of a railroad into Central Oregon that no difficulty should be experienced in brushing them aside and opening the way for immediate construction of' the water-level line to the Interior. Twenty years ago, when economies of railroad construction and operation were given only mild consideration, refusal by the Government to permit a railroad to enter a new territory by the only water-level route available, would have been less seriously regard ed than at the present time. Freight rates were higher, money for building was more plentiful, and every branch of the business, from financing and Construction to onernflnw tree ducted by haphazard methods that i are no longer possible. A line into Central Oregon can be built by ex tending the Corvallis & Eastern oyer the terrific mountain grades that make the Santiam river a raging torrent the year round. It could also be built by extending that line of grades and curves, the, Columbia Southern, over more miles of devious and expensive wanderings. Extension of either of these lines, however, or the building into Central Oregon by any other route than the water-level grade of the Deschutes, would mean the plac ing of a freight-charge handicap on every ton of freight moved as long as the road should be in existence. Central Oregon desires a railroad. It is wanted more than anything else ever will be wanted in that region. For that reason, the producers in that isolated part of the state, like those along the Columbia Southern a year ago, or along the Condon branch four or five years ago. are willing to pay almost any freight rate that could be asked in order to secure the needed facilities. But with the Increasing traffic that will follow construction of the railroad will come a demand for lower rates and eventually these rates must be based on the cost of service. That ls the situation that Is confront ing all railroads in the country. It was this gradually appearing change that caused Mr. Hill to build a $50, 000,000 railroad down the north bank of the Columbia in order that he might be In a position to meet tb orm tion of the opposing forces that al ready had such a line. For the same reason, Mr. Harriman has been spend ing more than the original cost of the road in straightening curves and eliminating grades on the line between Portland and The Dalles. If Mr. Harriman, or any other railroad builder, shall be permitted to build through the Deschutes canyon in accordance with the present sur veys, it will be possible for a car to run from Bend to the Columbia River, a distance of about 140 miles, without encountering the slightest grade re sistence. If this traffic, which within a few years will amount to millions of tons annually, must bear the expense of heavy grades up . and down - the mountains, or of climbing over every dam site that can be butlt in the Des chutes canyon, the effect will be an onerous and lasting toll levied against the resources of the great empire that awaits communication with the world's markets. Considering Portland's interests OREGONIAX, MONDAY, alone hi this matter, the greatest dan ger for this city. In case we shall b uarrea rrom entering Central Oregon by a water-level route, lies in the strong probability that the traffic will be drained out to California by routes that, are much more economical than any except the Deschutes route. Tbe question with which we are now con fronted is: Shall the interests of thousands of people, in a rich region susceptible of supporting millions, to gether with the interests of the City of Portland, situated at the foot of a down-hill haul from that region, be set asfde in order to favor an insig nificant reclamation scheme of prob lematic value and a few power sites having only a speculative value? It is up to Portland to make every effort to have this matter presented to the Washington authorities In its proper light- It is too early to give full credence, to the ugly rumors that have been heard regarding the at tempted hold-up of the railroad, but it is not too early to begin a campaign which will show the overwhelming extent to which the people most af fected by either railroad, reclamation or dam-site schemes, are in favor of the railroad. The grain-growers and hop men of the Pacific Coast, who for years have been protesting against the excessive duty levied on Jute bags and Jute cloth from India, are receiving some support at Washington from the cot ton planters of the South. Repre sentative Hardwick of Georgia has announced that he will offer an amendment placing Jute bagging on the free list- The present tariff on this article, according to Mr. Hard wick. costs the Southern farmers $1,000,000 per year. In Oregon and Washington alone the annual duties paid on grain bags will undoubtedly approximate $250,000. In recent years, the Calcutta bag trust has had the market so thoroughly under control that we might not get all of the reduc tion in case the tariff were removed, although some of it would probably be in evidence in lower-priced bags. Water competition ls not always a brake on railroad greed. For exam ple, there is Astoria, on the finest waterway in the land, where one might suppose its fuel supply that could not be procured at home would be floated to its' very doors at trifling expense. Yet this Is a commercial world of contraries. For years the Astoria Railroad has charged 75 cents a cord for hauling fuel from Rainier, with a minimum of twelve cords, which made $9 per car. But Mr. Hill, the new owner, found it was losing money, so the rates were raised a month ago to $1.30 a cord, with a minimum load of fourteen cords on the same twelve-cord cars, which is a little more than double the previous tariff. So Astoria invokes the State Railroad Commission to help It out. Secretary Francis .: of the Trans Mississippi Commercial Congress, has Just Issued a call for the twentieth an nual meeting of the organization, to be held In Denver, August 16 to 21. The meeting this year will have exceptional attractions by reason of the presence of President Taft, who has always been in hearty accord with the work of the congress. This organization is one of the few bodies of a public na ture that has increased in power and prestige since its Inception. Its ef forts in aid of Irrigation and river im provement have had an important bearing on much favorable legislation affecting both of these great Interests, and the attendance at the coming meeting Is expected to be larger and more enthusiastic than at any previous gathering of the organization. The Polk Directory people give Seattle a population of 276,482, and Portland a population only of 255,371. Why this discrimination? The Polk Directory people shouldn't publish in one town the population of another; or It should reverse the figures, when publishing for one town or for the other. Portland, it is clear, ought to boycott the Polk Directory- Next year, however, we shall get the census of toth towns; and then we shall know a lot that some don't know now. Los Angeles now will forbid the coming of persons afflicted with tuber culosis. It will be pretty' hard to maintain that quarantine. Besides, it is as a resort and attraction for weak lungs that Los Angeles "got her start" and has grown to be what she is. Nevertheless, Los Angeles has now de veloped many municipal orators, with very powerful lungs. Minneapolis and St. Paul will not easily "get together" as one munici pality; though their growth towards each other has made them almost con fluent now. But though permission of the union has been granted by legisla tive enactment, the two can't yet agree on the necessary details, and may not for a long time. Best development of the country depends on best routes of transporta tion routes that follow water courses and avoid mountainous grades, loops, and curves. The Deschutes line, there fore, ls the best one for development of Middle Oregon best for that region and best for the Portland terminal. Once Mr. Roosevelt is In East Africa, there will be -very little of his doings in the news columns. The two-dollar-a-word rate will then be gin. The people can't choose their weather by the initiative and referen dum or Statement One, but they know that whatever - kind comes is good for them. It is reported that Mayor Lane once thought of resigning, after the Way mlre outrage. But courage and virtue triumphed, and now it is nearly elec tion time again. If Roosevelt chasing game shall break down some farmer's fence, or tread out his corn, or shoot his cow, be will give the farmer, of course, the square deal. Harriman ls exasperatlngly slow, even though Oregon approaches nearer and nearer -the time of going into the railroad business by itself. After the ballots shall be counted, the candidates for Mayor will see that their boosters didn't vote as often as they talked. . Sid part of the whole business is that even after the election the can didates may not, see Che Joke. APRIL 5, 1909. LIPE I!f THE OHEGOS COUNTRY J The Amende Honorable. Condon Times. By some miscalculation we presented w. F. Allen with a boy in our last issue, when it should have been a girl. The doctor In attendance was to blame and we sincerely hope he will make sure next time. Ten to the Bushel. Toledo (Or.) Leader. . A six-pound potato grew on the ranch of Jack Early about seven miles above Waldport. Big potatoes are nothing unusual on this ranch, but this one is shaped like a Teddy bear. One Hotel Where Cooklna; la Too Good. White Salmon Enterprise. Four girls who have recently cooked' at the Colburn Hotel have been mar ried, To cap the climax, the last one was married the day after she was engaged for the position. To secure a position at this famous hostelry is recommendation enough. Sotucht Trouble and Found It. Toledo Leader. Last Friday evening Harry Wilson went to the home of his father-in-law. Dave William, four miles northwest of town, kloked up a row, shot a few times at members of the family, got licked by Mr. Williams, was arrested, and Is now waiting In Jail at Corvallis for the action of the errand Jury. It seems family trouble was the cause of the ruction. nnke Story From Snake River. Baiter City Herald. While the grading outfit was working along the bluffs by the Snake River re cently, they had occasion to blast out a small cave. When the smoke had cleared away, the men were greatly sur prised to find that the cave had been a den for rattlesnakes and scores of dead and wounded creepers were ound scattered about. Several live one were making thmselvej noticeable and the men took clubs and killed them. When the fray was over and all the victims had been counted they totaled ISO. Who Can Identify This Monster. Florence West. Yesterday Luther Munroe found on the beach an inhabitant of the watery ele ment which some pronounce a small oc topus or devil fish. It is only about four Inches long and has eight tentacles or feelers which are about the same length as Its boiV. On this coast this species of fish sometimes measures 16 feet In length. The body resembles a sack in appearance, the tentacles separating from it in a group near the top of the sack and the eyes, which are quite large, are placed one on each side near the opening of the sack. The Financier anil His Dor. Echo Register. When City Marshal William Hoggard hired a small boy to catch stray dogs for him the first of the week he little dreamed what he was up against. He promised to pay the small boy 60 cents for each dog caught, but did not know that the same boy was the owner of a dog, and that he was 50 cents short In the amount of a dog tag. The Marshal was somewhat surprised then to find that the boy had caught his own dog, and thrown him into the pound, demanding 50 cents for doing so. The Marshal paid the fee demanded, the boy dug up 60 cents more, hied himself to the office of the City Recorder, where he bought a tag and secured the release of his canine. Jumt a Plain Thief; That' All. Albany Democrat. Some one this week told the writer about a college student in an adjoining town with a fine new depot, helping himself to one of the expensive brass spittoons like those in the Albany depot, hiding it under his overcoat, and remark ing that it was needed up at his. frat house, and skipping out with it; and it was not the first one taken. He thought he had done something smart and his fellow students probably laughed over his cuteness; but he was as mean, low lived a thief as if he had robbed a bank A college student has no more right to commit a crime than any one else, and It ls time such an example was set in the college towns against the business that students will take notice The Mysterious straager Took 30O0. St. Louis Cor. Gervais Star Last, week Henry Wiiiquet picked up a man between Gervais and Brooks and hired him to work for him on the Felix Gregolre place. The first Job he had him do was grub an old crab apple tree that stood in the garden and Henry went out into the field to plow, telling the stranger if anybody came there to see him to let him know as he expected a hop buyer. After the man grubbed a short while he struck an old buried treasure of $3000 that had been hidden there by Felix's first wife. It seems gen erally known here by old settlers that she planted It there somewhere. The stranger left with the boodle without leaving his name or address, but leaving a suit of clothes. Omar Khayyam. John Hay, addressing the Omar Khayyam Club in London. Wherever the English speech is spoken or read the "Rubalyat" have taken their place as a classic. There is not a hill post In India, nor a village in England where there is not a coterie to whom Omar Khayyam is a familiar friend and a bond of union. In America he has ar. equal following in many regions and con ditions. In the Eastern States hts adepts form an esoteric sect- . . . in the cities of the West you will find the quatrains one of the most thorouehlv read Horn,- i- any club library. I heard them quo'ed once in one of the most lonely and deso late spots in the high Rockies. Bnt he will hold a place forever among the limited number, who, like Lucretius and Epicurus without range or deflanso. even without unbecoming mirth, look deeo into the tangled mysteries of things; refuse credence to the absurd and allegiance to a7f,nf.,aUthorlty; u"lciently conscious of fallibility to be tolerant of all opin ions; ,wlth a faith too wide for doctrine and a benevolence untrammeled by creed -too wise to be wholly poets, and yet too urely poets to be Implacably wise. Doabtlnn; Thomas. Prinevllle Review. The Deschutes canyon has been there for a long time. In fact, we have rea sons for believing it was there long before the yellow pines south of Bend began to take root in the sand. Its importance as an artery of commerce may be glimpsed by publicity of the fact that, In spite of all the splendid grades of the lower 100 miles of the canyon, its unsurpassed climate and excellent weather conditions all the year round, and in spite of another fact, also, that there ls a Jerkwater railroad on the upland on either side. In the canyon has been built not more than ten miles of even wagon road, and of thi one-half may be set aside as crossing! What hope has a rail line In a place where a wagon road has never been thought of? CmrriK A. Nation Tackles) Blar Job. Topeka (Kan.) Journal. Carrie A. Nation, home from Eng land, has cut out quite a Job for her self. She is going to make all of the United States as good as Kansas is. Another Premium on Divorce. Topeka. Kan., Dispatch. A second-hand dealer in Coffeyville, Kan., reverses the matrimonial ad vice and advertises: "Get a divorce -we'U buy your furniture. " CONTRAST ON GARBAGE QUESTION Writer Consider Benefits of Private Contract and Municipal Ownership. PORTLAND. April S To the Ed itor.) As I am a property-owner and taxpayer. I should like to ask why the City Council is doing so much wrangling over the crematory question why did the Council ask for bids and then Ignore them? 'Was it because the Council was considering the taxpayers' Interests, or was it because of person al Interest? Let me state briefly what is the proposition. I understand that among bids submitted ls one providing that the price for collecting the aarbr will not be raised, and everyone will ! -s"ree that the present prices are rea sonable. The bidder further agrees to pay the city 25 cents per ton for the garoago; to pay an inspector to see that the collecting ls done according to agreement; to destroy the S0.000 tons of garbage that the city officials have allowed to accumulate at the crema tory, and without one cent of cost to tne city, within one year. This latter 1 item alone is one of serious concern. ! The bidder also agrees to build addi- ' uonai crematories if required, and. at the expiration of the contract, to give the-crematories to the city free of cost, The bidder also agrees to pay $2400 per year rent for the crematory. Now let me see what the wise Coun cilman want to do which. In their way of arguing, will be a benefit and a decided advantage to the dear tax payers: First, Issue bonds to the amount of $150,000 to build a crema tory; $10,000 for ground on which to build the crematory; $25,000 for gar bage wagons, which must be made of iron and water-tight, and It will take at least 60 of these, and they cannot be bought for less than $500 eaoh; $36,000 for 100 horses; $10,000 for barns for horses; $5000 for a disinfecting plant to scald and make the wagons sanitary; 50 teamsters at $4 per day to hancUe the garbage, another Item of $70,000 per year; another item of feeding and taking care of 100 horses, at least 75 cents a day. or $27,000 per year; and four or five inspectors at $1000 per year each to go around and see that the garbage ls collected. In the Mayor's annual report for 1908 a small item of $17,000 appears for operating expenses of the crema tory. This required eight men and fuel, which made the small amount of $1.50 per ton cost of destroying gar bage. Now. Mr. Taxpayer, don't get fooled by the idea that Issuing $150,000 bonds ror building a crematory includes all these Items, because It does not. Any man. who will have to pay part of these items can see at a glance which of these proposition is best for his own pocket-book. The contract system gives the city $18,000. and allows the city to save $17,000, an item of $35,000 per year; while the municipal ownership means more taxes and an Increase in the price of collecting. But how about the Councilmen, those broad-minded, liberal-hearted, benevolent beings who fearlessly neglect their own business and undertake to carry the bdrdens of the taxpayers, and all at a measly stipend of less than $30 per month? Well, In the contract system they don't get a chance to help, but under munici pal ownership they all get a chance to help. r Mr. "Voter, paste this In your hat, and don't forget that for which you are voting next June. S. BENSON. GOLDEN Rl'LB POUND TOO GOOD Cleveland (O.) Experiment Porgrlvlnn; "Drunks)" Brings Increased Crime. Milwaukee (Wis.) Sentinel. We regret to report that County Prose cutor Cline and County Clerk Salen. of Cuyahoga County, have shaken the faith in the celebrated "golden rule" experiment or cnier ol Police Kohler, of Cleveland. Moral suasion and Chesterfleldlan cour tesy by patrolmen toward persons usually "run In" without ado doesn't seem to work well, altogether. The Kohler '"golden rule" idea was lhat patrolmen, instead of takinic these char acters to the station, Bhouid deal with them gently and persuasively, labor with them prayerfully about the error of their ways and escort them home. That was doing as one would be done by. The Chief reported a great and encour aging diminution of police arrests as a re sult of this policy, which really does not seem to amount to much as a demonstra tion, since not to make arrests where they ordinarily would be made was the key note of the scheme. But the county authorities are up In arms with a statement that disorder la on the Increase in Cleveland, and that the result of the "golden' rule" treatment Is that police work and arrests have been shifted on the constables. How many pret ty Ideas come to wreck on the rock of ex perience ! Human Activity at Its Best. Louisville Courier-Journal. Before the present Congress was a week old a Texas Representative had introduced 128 bills, covering the greater part of the known fields of human activity and nearly everything a Congress might dare or do. Next thing he knows the Outlook may be suing him for Infringement of copy right. Stained-Glass Case a Dodger. Kansas City Star. Delegate Dale, of the Missouri Leg islature, has Introduced a bill against drugstore proprietors maintaining a colored or stained-glass prescription case, obscuring the rear part of the store. The bill is violently opposed by 'men who go into the drugstores to hide from their wives. No Such Word in HI Lexicon. Milwaukee Sentinel. "Go to bed" is better, the Commoner thinks, than "retire." In the bright lex Icon of W. J. B. there's no such word as "retire." MISS OREGON. SusBsted by cartoon In The Oregonian April 8.) BT BEN A. CHILDESS. "With Merry Widow hat so high. Its towering plume roach to the ky. The dainty lass. Mis Oregon. Sweeps ever proudly, on and on, rMepensIng- smiles through storm and rain, t'pon each loving;, loyal swain. And bringing to each heart good cheer. For fruitage of each passing year Aloft whore every one can see The giant firs atand. bold and free And typify the wealth they hold When sent abroad for foreign gold. Close by la wool, an ornament Which through the land in cloth ls sent To bring returns from day to day We know that wool will always pay And swell the puffy revenue That to Miss Oregon 1 due. A beautious ornament of gold Show, daintily, on lower fold. And any one can aee. by that. Is added beauty to the hat. Then note the apples, red and rare Their fame extending everywhere Which add a beauty all their own Wh'ereer Miss Oregon ls known. Close by the apples see the grain. An added source of wealth, 'tis plain That brings to honest toli each year The gladness of success to cheer The man who follows plow and team Vntll. at last, he finds his dream Of wealth materialized, and then Ilca.rd8 hi plow, to mix with men. To smoke, to read, to tak hi ease; To thank Miss Oregon for these. The blessings that from heaven were nt To end his life In sweet content. ITpon the hat Is seen th head Of blooded cow & thorough-bred That adds her cuota-rich in cream To make that hat a poet's dream. King Salmon In the list appears His story reaches through the years And the auriferous stream that tlows From this one source, the Nation knows. Of all the dainty hats. I ween. Not one more fancy has been seen By woman'a eyes in all thi land. And men admire, and say: "Tis grand!" FVr thy its mysteries- can see As plainly a thy ahow to m. MR. DOOLEY ON THE BURNING ISSUE. , BT P P. DUJTNtt. . . . . "wliV.90' bT H' H Meoiure- A Co.) "eu- Hinnissy." said Mr. Doolev, what ar-re s e re views on th' great ques ?. ow be'ire th' American people?" d'5 mean?" asked Mr. Hennes sy. "Th' tariff?" JUl'S""''" Cried Mr- Dooley. "Th' tariff Unt befur, th- American people. Thlm that th' tariff takes care lv will take care iv th' tariff. No. sir. Ye don't see annything In th' pa-apers about th' i'u. may tn,re' but don"t see Th on y burnln' question befure th' American people today is will th" fore m" American emerge tr'm th' retire S,f. v.Thlch ho "ly wlnt afther bustin th map lv th' base pretinder Mun- . roe an restore the supremacv iv th' W VL.T r Wl" ke lpve ,he lerls rist w Jrow lv ,h' Sinn-Rambyans an' let th Cowcasyan sink slowly back ontil we become again hewers lv wood an' fv nS. iV ,Wat,h?r an" chambermaids iv Pullman sleepin' cars? "No wondher th' counthry is acavtated. Business waits on th' decision. There can be no return lv prosperity till it is settled wan way or th' other. In lvry place where men gather th' great Issue is discussed. All DettV fnttnn.l .. - - - . m icuws are x rgot In th face lv this appalling disaster, not to a nation but to a race. A pettyshun signed be such inflooinchal names as WU- ' -""i. t-naries Eliot. Mary Ba ker Eddy, Andhrew Carnaygle. Richard Watsnn niu ir - . . rrau juason. Woodrow Wilson. Hinnery Cabin Lodgean' Everett raie nas been slnt to th' Greatest American askln' him f'r th' hon or iv civilisation to abandon th' comfort lv private life an' desthroy th' coon. A bet lv ten thousand dollars at eight to five has been made be Lyman Abbott that Johnson won t last twlnty rounds, weigh in at 8 o'clock, give or take ten pounds. Th' short end was taken be a glntleman who doesn't want his name mlntloned fr business reason, but is un dherstud to be prom'nent In lie and phil anthropy clrcules. "All I can say to me fellow-counthrv-men In this gr-reat crisis ls to be ca'm an patient. Thrue. this ls wan iv thlm times that thries men's souls. But th' more mominchous th' issue th' greater th' need lv self-restraint. "It Is not nictss'ry as yet f'r th' Prisi dint to proclaim a day iv gin'ral fasting an numllyatlon. Let us go soberly about our daily Jootles thrustin' to th' destiny that has guided th' white race- so long An' above all let us imitate th' example lv our peerless leader. James J Jeffries, an" highly resolve not to fight John John son ontil we are ready. I, f'r wan, Hin nissy, will do my part." " 'Tis a brutal spoort, prlie-fightin,' " said Mr. Hennessy. "Well." said Mr. Dooley. "there ain't annything very ennoblin' to th' spectator In anny form Iv human employmint. If ye think I am Improved in me mind an' morals be seeln'ye pushin'a wheelbarrow up a gangway on a hot Summer afther noon. ye ought to see ye'ereelf doin' it. that's all. I lnjye th' spectacle, but it don't ilivate me none at all. Sure, th' prize-fighter's life looks to me to bo a fairly happy wan. If he's anny good at all, he don't fight more than wanst a month, an' thin half th' time he don't fight. If anny wan offered ye fifty thou sand dollars to let Jim Jefries hit ye wanst. ye'd put the money where th' fam'ly cud use it in case iv y'er decease an' preelnt ye'er face. F'r ten thousand added money ye'd give him leave to use an' Indyan club. What cud be a safer or more hon'rable profissyon f'r a yotmjr man to enter? In th' old days, 'twas dif ferent. Thin a prize-fighter had to wur ruk f'r a livin', an' a poor llvin' it was. He was called Jem, he was pathrunized be a lOOk An hR vlnt Int. V. ' ... .. ...w .1. 1111.. iv H Choosdah momin' an' nlver come out till Saturdah nir-ht tta hntrh) ...i.i. - - c -' " ' O ' 1 " 1111 USH thin on his hands, an' whin he got mruusii, in on y way ye cud tell he had a face at all was be obsarvln' that it was opposite to th' back lv his head. In his decllnln' years he kept a tavern that th" Jook give him. They were th' gr-reat boys In thlm days. An' be hivens. I, too. Hin nissy, I too, as Hogan says, have lived among Joynts. Think iv thlm grand old heroes iv our time; Sayers that fought Johnny Heenan with a broken arm all through an afthernoon, an' Jim Mace, th' Gipsy an' Tom Allen an" John Morrls sey that was a turror In his day but didn't keep In good condition an' become a Congressman. An' thin, th' best lv thlm all, Jawn L. Sullivan. That great warryor ls with us still, I'm glad to say. There was a fighter, Hinnissy. He didn't care who he licked. He licked ivrybodv, fr'm th" barber that shaved him th' wrong way to th" Oregon Joynt, that slew oxen with wan punch. Ye nlver heerd lv Jawn L. wondhrin" whether he was in condi tion or how much money there was In it. He nlver was in condition or out iv it. His on'y recorded sayln' was: "Lemme at him.' Me heart nlver beat so high with pride as th' day th' Mayor iv Boston pre sinted him with th' dlmon belt nor sunk so low in me bosom as th' night James J. Corbett presinted him with a belt In th' Jaw. "In Jawn L. Sullivan's day a challenge to fight with him was followed be a crashing noise, an' that was all there was to It. In thlm times there was no hard feelln' exclpt a desire to slay each other between fighters. Nowadays, be hivens, th' cham pee n are such Inlmies that they seldom meet. Tt takes as long to arrange a fight as It does to get up a European war. First there is a challenge, thin a year's engagement sktppln' th' rope an' makin faces at a lookin' glass in a va riety theayter; thin th' challenge is ae cipted an' th' chamneens go on th' road f'r another engagement; thin a number lv our leadin' bankers are called in to finance th' encounter. This takes another year: arrangements thin have to be made f'r th' cinnymittygraft. an' ftn'lly, whin both old gintlemen can no longer dhraw aujiences to th' theayters they meet, paw each other till wan lv thlm gets a slap In th' face an lies down on his back f'r ten seconds, an' starts a saloon." "Aren't ye ashamed to be readin' about prize-fightin', whin there's so manny more important things to be thinkin' about?" said Mr. Hennessy. "I'll tell ye what I'll do," eaid Mr. Doo ley. "I'll bet ye that at this minyit that Willum Haitch Taft can name more cham peen prize-fighters thin he can Vice-Prlsi-dlnts lv th' United States. An' I'll lave It to him." Father of IS Children In 12 Year. Townsend. Del.. Dispatch. Ex-Constable Harry S. Wllley has been the proud father of 16 children In 12 years. He ls 38 years of age. During the first three years of married life five children were born twins first, then triplets. In the following nine years five sets of twins arrived, and a child came alone. Wllley's old schoolmates have sent a petition to ex-President Roosevelt asking for a medal tor Willey. Fire Blotted Out With "Stage Wine." Indianapolis. Ind., Dispatch.' In Washington. Ind.. during a per formance of "Three of Us." a paper caught fire which threatened to spread until one of the actors seized a decanter of "stage wine" and dashed the liquid on the flames, going on with his lines as though nothing had happened. The work was done so naturally that many in the audience thought the incident a part of the play. Farmer Wives and n . Hut. Leavenworth. Kan., Dispatch. A milliner In Salina, Kan., thought she would create a sensation hy put ting a $95 hat on exhibit, but the farmers' wive look at. It languidly and inquire if that's the beat the haa.