8
Bt (OrirtRmtmt
PORTLAND. OREGON.
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PORTLAND. SATURDAY, NOV. IS.
BALLINGER AND HIS ASSAILANTS.
It is probable that not many persons
have actually read the studied pre
. sentation by L. H. Glavis (published in
Collier's Weekly and many other jour
nals), of his "charges" against Secre
tary Balllnger. Those who have read
them find in the flood of matter only
an elaboration of his former insinua
tions, which were rebuked by Presi
dent Taft.
In substance it is asserted that Mr.
Ballinger. when Commissioner of the
General Land Office, ordered patents
to issue for coal lands in Alaska, when
he must have known such order was
improper: that, on leaving the Land
Office. Mr. Ballinger became attorney
for claimants of these lands and for
other claimants; and that soon after he
became Secretary of the Interior he
rendered a decision which would have
validated all these claims but for the
interposition of the Attorney-General,
obtained by Mr. Glavis, on presenta
tion of the law and the facts.
Are these charges fortified by the
records? If they are, they would be
serious, indeed. Ballinger was Com
missioner of the General Land Office.
After his retirement from that position
he did act as attorney for certain par
ties among these land claimants. All
the remainder of the matter, all the
Intermediate particulars, seem to have
been filled up by the Imagination of
Mr. Glavis. There need be no im
peachment of the honesty of his intent.
But his suspicions- and conclusions
are not facts.
The statement by Mr. Glavis is as
much an answer to President Taft as
an attack on Secretary Ballinger. A
passage in the President's letter of
September last, addressed to Secretary
Ballinger, authorizing him to dismiss
Mr. Glavis "for filing a disingenuous
statement unjustly Impeaching the in
tegrity of his superior officer," covers
the charges fully, and seems to con
stitute sufficient answer to them. The
President said:
The Inference which Mr. Glavle aeeka
to have drawn to your discredit In this
connection If that you, while Commissioner
of the General Land Office. came Into
possession of facta concerning- the so-called
tunnlnxham group of coal land claims
which made It improper for you to use such
farts after your resignation In the course
of securing patents. 1 And the tact to b
tl-at as Commissioner you acquired no
knowledge In respect to the claims except
that of the most formal character, and
nothing which was not properly known to
your clients when they consulted you. The
evidence In respect to which you were con
sulted professionally waa not secured by Mr.
Glavis until after your resignation as Com
missioner of the General Land Office.
For the service to which Mr. Taft
alludes, it has been shown that Mr.
Ballinger was paid J250. It was serv
ice such as any lawyer might render,
cs was perfectly proper. Is a lawyer
to be forbidden to do a legitimate
business because he once was a public
officer? But Mr. Taft found, -after
his investigation, that, as Secretary of
the Interior, "Mr. Ballinger studiously
declined to have any connection with
the Cunningham claims, or to exercise
any control over the course of the
claims"; and that "the charge to the
contrary is not sustained by any evi
dence." Of course, no President, is
willing to keep any corrupt man in
office; least of all as a member of his
Cabinet.
On another point it is as well to
quote from the President's statement;
for the facts should not be submerged
and lost in the flood of repeated ac
cusation. An article appeared In The
Independent (New York), September
16. headed. "The Seizure or the Peo
ple's Water Power." In this article the
charge was repeated that Mr. Ballinger
was the tool of the Water Power Trust
a trust that exists only in Mr. Pin
chot's Imagination, since others never
have heard of it. The charge was that
Ballinger had thrown open to specula
tors water power sites of immense
value that had been withdrawn by the
Roosevelt Administration. On this sub
ject President Taft said:
H upbears from a report of the Director
of the Geological Survey that the order of
withdrawal of January, 109. waa hastily
made by townships and by reference to in
adequate maps; that it included, large areas
not within miles of any river or stream,
and that It failed to Include many valu
able water power sites In the Immediate
vicinity. From the same reliable source It
Is learned that under the withdrawals made
by your department from time to time,
beginning In May last, there are now with
held from settlement awaiting the action of
Congress 50 per cent more water power
sites than under previous withdrawals, and
that thla has been effected by a withdrawal
from settlement of only, one-fifth of the
amount of the land.
No other or fuller answer is neces
sary. The facts, as to power sites on
the Owyhee, Yakima and other
streams, have been fully published,
with maps and diagrams which prove
the accuracy of the President's state
ments. There will be further rebuke
of, this wholesale lying presently; and
more officials, dismissed as Glavis has
been, will seek what consolation they
can in posthumous statements. No
man who knows Secretary Ballinger
believes for one moment these asper
sions upon his official and personal In
tegrity. But there is a lot of men who
depend on their suspicions for their
facts; and their suspicions are the
product of their own natures.
The Territorial board of Immigra
tion of Honolulu having met with in
different success In solving the labor
problem by the importation of Span
iards. Portuguese. Porto Ricans, South
Sea Islanders, Chinese and other na
tionalities, is now making an effort to
secure labor from Russia. About fifty
Russian families are already on the
way to Honolulu, and. If they prove
satisfactory, more will be Imported.
The Hawaiian labor problem, as well
as that of the Pacific Coast, will be
much easier solved when the Panama
Canal is completed." Regular steam
ship lines operating through the canal
from the old world ports will bring t
the shores of the Pacific great numbers
of foreign laborers who, at the present
time, will not make the long overland
trip from the Atlantic Coast ports,
where they are dumped by the ship
load, to Increase the congestion in the
over-populated labor centers of the
East
IN NEW VORK AND IN OREGON.
Republicans of Oregon do not pur
pose to set aside the primary law. No
body in Oregon does. But there is a
desire and there is a purpose so to use
and so to administer the primary law as
to prevent fraudulent intrusion of one
party Into the affairs of another; so to
guide party action by assembly or con
vention, under the primary law, as to
get results in conformity with the will
and Intent of the people who consti
tute parties, and to repudiate the Jug
gle and fraud known as "statement
one."
There is a peculiar fight in the State
of New York, over the primary law.
Many politicians of either ' party are
opposing the plan of Governor Hughes,
who insists that nominations shall be
made by direct vote In the primaries,
but that party committees or assem
blies may suggest candidates. This is
the Republican plan In Oregon. But
the opponents of Governor Hughes
contend against direct nominations.
They would limit the primary to se
lection of delegates to party conven
tions. And the party conventions
would make the nominations.
When, therefore, it is asserted that
Governor Hughes is contending for
the primary that Democrats and
"statement" Republicans insist on In
Oregon, nothing could be more false.
Hughes Is contending for the sort of
primary that Republicans of Oregon
want and mean to conduct; and they
will conduct It. moreover, strictly In
accordance with the law, as It stands.
GENTLEMAN JACK AGAIN.
It is clear that "Gentleman Jack" is
abroad In this city with a faithful
coadjutor at his side. The command
"atanH nnH deliver" at a residence In
f North Irvington Thursday night, could
have been made, and the details of the
search of persons and house which fol
lowed, could have been conducted only
by gentlemen born to and bred In the
gentlemanly calling which these house
breakers have made their own.
Putting persona to bed in the danc
ing firelight of their own hospitable
hearth, having first brought a bed
down from the chamber above, and
set It up for that purpose, binding
them securely, but not painfully, to
their couch, gagging them gently, but
sufficiently to prevent outer', and lead
ing them to enjoy their imposed rest
while their house was systematically
and thoroughly searched, are certainly
new adjuncts in the ancient art of
robbery.
Nor was this all. These courteous
robbers of this Isolated bungalow de
clined to take the watches and jewelry
of the householders, who were for the
time being their prisoners, leaving
these things for "sentimental" reasons.
Finally, before taking their departure
with all the money about the house,
they gave conclusive evidence of their
gentlemanly instincts by offering to
bring a glass of water to the wife of
their involuntary host, fearing the con
ditions were such that her throat
might hav. become parched.
Possibly the revolvers carried by
these gentlemanly and considerate
burglars were loaded with soft, fluffy
antiseptic cotton; or, if It had become
necessary to subdue their host by
drowning him in the bath tub, they
would have made it a point of con
science to see that the water was
warmed at least to blood heat so that
an unpleasant shock might not have
followed his submergence.
Really, these house agents are too
gentlemanly to be at large. Extraor
dinary efforts should be made to cap
ture them. Such rare specimens
should be caught and caged as curios
ities. Otherwise they are likely, some
fine evening, to attempt to put the
wrong man to bed, having first rifled
hU pockets, while they proceed to
search his house. In this event, dis
aster would fpllowwhich would cause
the sudden extinction of a new species
of house-breakers a rara avis in the
professional world.
EAST TRIES WESTERN METHODS.
It is somewhat surprising to learn
that the thrifty East is adopting to
great advantage some of the ways of
the wasteful West. The experimental
farm, which is a distinctly Western
innovation, has appeared on Long
Island Sound, and, it seems to be meet
ing with all of the success that was
scored In the West. In 1905 the Long
Island Railroad Company secured 17
acres of what had always been re
garded as worthless land and began
improving it. A year later the road
secured 70 acres of similar waste land
which the oldest settlers and best
farmers on the Island declared was
absolutely worthless for farming. But
the railroad placed the farms in the
hands of men who had made a science
of farming, and by application of
modern scientific principles the ex
perimental farms were made to pro
duce enormously, and at the Riverhead
fair trie railroad farm secured more
than forty first and a large number
of second prizes.
The farm Is no longer an experi
ment, for it proved such a success
from the start that large areas of
similar land have been brought under
cultivation, and there is a great rivalry
between the farmers to see who can
turn off the best crops from lands
which for generations had been re
garded as worthless. Naturally the
Long Island Railroad did not take up
farming with any intention of making
it a part of the railroad business, but
its efforts along ' these lines have
brought large indirect returns In the
shape of more traffic and a more
prosperous people along the line of
road. Even' the old farms already in
cultivation were improved by follow
ing the railroad's "book farmin' "
methods.
The advantages of this kind of work
on the part of a railroad company are
exceptionally well understood in the
Pacific Northwest, where for many
years the O. R. & X. Company con
ducted an experimental farm for the
purpose of demonstrating that many
thousand acres of dry land east of
the Cascade Mountains could be made
to yield good crops. The success of
these experimental farms was pro
nounced and complete, and the com
pany further improved its traffic field
by bringing into the state some choice
blooded livestock which is gradually
replacing the inferior grades which
formerly covered the ranges. The ex.
perimental' farm and the railroad com
! pany's demonstration trains have both
been of inestimable value in improving
the agricultural situation in the Pacific
Northwest.
TO SUPPRESS THE FRAUD.
The candidate who "accepts state
ment one" plays a double part. He Is
deceiving men of one party or of an
other, or trying to deceive all. It is a
fraud in its inception and in its con
sequences. But it's fine for the
minority party.
Republicans of Oregon intend to
repudiate it- They intend to suggest.
In assembly or convention, candidates
for the primary, and will put the knife
into each and all who declare for
"statement one." And if men of this
class, by the aid of the Democratic
vote, based on perjured registration,
shoul obtain nominations, every effort
will be made to defeat every ono of
them.
This fraud is to be eliminated. Re
publicans of Oregon are going to have
something like honest and straight
alignment In politics. Or there will
be no Republican party. Nor should
there be. We all can stand the straight
Democratic party, If we must; but
away with those who, for their own
purposes, play one party against the
other, through "statement one." No
fraud in politics ever -equalled it.
WELCOME TO EU9APL.
The arrival of Eusapla Palladino in
New York is an event which nobody
ought to overlook in the pressure and
hurry of commonplace affairs. With
out marvels to cheer and refresh us,
what would the world be worth? Not
very much. A new wonder is a boon
Inestimable, and Eusapia is a wonder
if there ever was one. She cannot do
all the miracles which recently hap
pened in Portland, but she can do
some of them, and the beauty of her
art Is that she has it under command.
The spirits come when she doth call
for them and do her weird bidding in
the light of day, or at least in a twi
light. In Italy, her native land, Eu
sapia convinced many men of Lom
broso's caliber that her phenomena
were beyond ordinary explanation. In
the United States she is to be observed
by James, Jastrow, Munsterberg and
other psychologists of unimpeachable
standing. If they say her miracles are
genuine, we may all rest assured that
no mistake has been made.
Whatever the outcome of Eusapia's
seances may be. It is agreeable to see
men of science at last mustering up
courage to investigate these subjects.
For many years it was Impossible to
get a man who. had a reputation to
lose to venture into the samo town
with a. medium. No matter who re
ported a seance, he could obtain no
hearing. His facts were laughed at,
his Inferences were scorned. The
change of opinion which permits sa
vants to test such people afe Eusapla
without losing their good namej is
much to be welcomed. In some meas
ure it has been forced upon the scien
tific world by those discoveries in ra
diant matter which make It difficult
to say Just where the occult begins.
But partly, also, we may trust, the new
spirit has grown from a stronger love
of truth. Incredulity is a wholesome
state of mind, but It may go too far.
There Is nothing to be rained by
stupidly denying facts which w,e know
are true. Better stop denying' and use
the mental energy we save by It In
explaining them.
I -RECOMMENDING
QUACK NOSTRUMS.
' Agitation of the ship subsidy ques
tion has reached a point in the East
where the staid and eminently business-like
New York Chamber of Com
merce has taken it up. As yet no
recommendations are forthcoming, for
the discussion at a special meeting
last week developed radically different
views as to the kind of nostrums that
should be administered to our puny
Infant industry.. Senator Chauncey
Depew came out of obscurity and
argued at length for a ship subsidy,
expressing the view that nothing else
could accomplish the desired result.
As Mr. Depew has spent a long life
In the service of corporations that have
waxed great on special privileges, he
was probably reasoning from analogy.
Lewis Nixon, who has had consider
able experience in shipping and ship
building trusts, veered away from the
subsidy plan, and advocated restora
tion of the ancient policy of dis
criminatng tonnage rates and dis
criminating duties. Both, of these
arguments, it will be noted, have In
view a direct tax either for subsidies
or in the shape of. discriminating
duties, which must be paid by millions
of producers and consumers for the
benefit of a few wealthy shipowners
and shipbuilders.
Neither of the plans mentioned
would have any effect of consequence
in increasing our transportation facili
ties. This problem can never be
satisfactorily settled until it is settled
on plain business principles. We must
be permitted to engage in the ocean
carrylig trade on even terms with our
competitors, who are now carrying
our freight to market much cheaper
than we can carry it ourselves. Until
we make a trial of this common-sense
and businesslike method of securing
and operating a merchant marine with
the cheapest ships obtainable any
where In the world, regardless of what
flag they were built under, we cannot
determine whether pr not we care to
engage in the business.
If removal of the antiquated restric
tions which now hamper American
shipping, and granting the right to
Americans to buy ships where they
can buy them the cheapest, fall to
wrest the carrying trade away from
our neighbors, no subsidy will accom
plish the end sought. In connection
with the New York meeting, it is some
what surprising to find that great
champion of the people, Mr. Hearst,
advocating Mr. Nixon's plan for mak
ing the producers and consumers pay
the tribute. That the editor of Mr.
Hearst's Journal has a somewhat hazy
Idea of the size of our merchant ma
rine as it now exists is apparent from
his inquiry, "How can a Senator of
the United States fail to feel the
necessity for vigorous or even daring
action in face of the fact that our
country has not more than 800,000
tons of carrying capacity on all the
seas lyings between Canada and port to
port in the United States, both on the
Great Lakes and in the coastwise trade.
while England has 18.320,000 and
Germany 4,110,000 tons?"
For information for this late addi
tion to the ranks of the treasury raid
ers, it might be said that Lloyds
latest register of the world's shipping
credits Great Britain with 18,826,000
tons, the United States 4,953,813 tons,
Germany 4,266,713 tons. This includes
about 2,000,000 tons of lake shipping
In this country, but our sea-going
merchant marine totals 2,791,282 tons,
which is nearly 1,000,000 tons in ex
cess of that of the heavily subsidized
French merchant marine, 800,000 tons
In excess of Norway's, and 1,600,000
tons In excess of the heavily subsidized
Japanese merchant marine. Consider
ing that the United States has the
world to draw on for ocean carriers,
we do not seem to be suffering from
lack of ships.
The Broadway car service- is unde
niably bad. So also is that of the Irv
ington line. If there Is any difference
between the two, it is in degree, not in
kind. If the freely spoken word of
the numerous patrons of these lines is
to be taken literally, the service upon
each is worse than that upon the
other. The district which these lines
are supposed to serve is one of the
finest resident districts in the city. Re
lief could no doubt be had by vigorous
protest, properly placed. One thing Is
certain; To get relief in a matter of
this kind it is necessary to go to head
quarters with duly attested facts ani
figures. It is no use to make the lives
of the company's servants Ta burden to
them. They are running the cars on a
schedule fixed up in the office, and
which, as far as they are concerned, is
unchangeable. Here are the facts:
The run Is a long one; the service Is
exceedingly Irregular; there Is not a
waiting-room or shelter of any kind
along the lines for waiting passengers;
the population In thesdistrict that Is
ostensibly served by these two lines
has more than doubled, in the past two
years. Yet the car schedule remains
the same, with increasing irregulari
ties because of the more frequent
stops. For these conditions it should
not be impossible to secure relief.
The fight waged on Collector Loeb,
of New York,' is not due to any
one specific grievance. It is rather
the culmination of a series of
abuses and indignities that have
grown out of an effort, to check
other abuses. Collector Loeb has
broken up some extensive smuggling
schemes since he beca,me Collector of
the Port of New York, but the New
York papers seem to think this might
have been accomplished without the
necessity of having thousands of inno
cent American tourists of both sexes
"man-handled" and insulted by cus
toms inspectors. It would probably be
a matter of mild indifference to New
York how these people were treated
were it not for the fact that the un
warranted severity of the New York
customs officials had already diverted
travel to other ports of entry. Bos
ton in particular has profited by the in
dignities which tourists entering at
New York must stand, and large addi
tions to the steamship service have
been made necesary within the past
six months. The sight of a dollar be
ing diverted to some other port will
make "Little old New York" sit up and
take notice wHh indescribable alacrity.
The annual dinner of the Balaklava
veterans, the survivors of the famous
"Six Hundred," was held in London
last month, and, although fifty-five
years have passed since the Light
Brigade made the . immortal charge
that will live through all history, there
were still eleven of the troopers pres
ent who had followed Cardigan "into
the jaws of death, into the mouth of
hell." This- charge of the Light
Brigade has proved a famous theme
in song and story, but it was, at Its
worst or best, a great military blunder,
with a needless sacrifice of life. In
the new world, the carnage has been
greater in some historic battles. There
were no survivors of the Alamo, and
no white witnesses to the last stand
of Custer and his brave followers,
while out of 673 men who were In
the fight at Balaklava 11 3. were killed
and 134 wounded, leaving enough to
hold an annual reunion for more than
half a century after the great battle
was fought.
The Central American imbroglio
seems to be growing more serious. Ac
cording to Washington advices, the
Nicaraguans may be unable to keep
the conflict within their own territorial
bounds. Honduras Is said to be ex
hibiting unwarranted friendliness for
the cause of President Zelaya, but
Costa Rica remains neutral, although
Invasion by Nicaraguan troops may
draw that country into the fight. In
response to a protest from the United
States, a gasoline launch, pressed into
service by the revolutionists, and after
wards seized by the government of
Honduras, has been released. . There
will be a disposition In this country to
permit the contestants to settle their
own difficulties so long as they do not
interfere with the rights of American
citizens. If anything of this nature
should happen, the United States
would promptly give an exhibition of
bringing a war to a sudden end.
Lawbreakers In the penitentiary at
Salem, who are serving long terms
and others who may be sentenced to
imprisonment, had before their eyes
yesterday the spectacle of a man who
would have been glad to be in their
place. Men's ways of looking at for
tune and misfortune are largely rela
tive. Dr. Woods Hutchinson says that
ultimately the world will pay higher
wages to the father that the mother
may devote more time to the care of
the infant. This idea certainly de
serves consideration. To some people
it may seem novel.
The law is said to prohibit sale of
milk that contains more than 400,000
germs to the cubic centimeter. If the
law permits that many, what is im
pure milk in the meaning of the law?
Warriner, the "Big Four" treasurer
who is short two-thirds of a million,
is said to be a physical wreck. A
disclosure of that nature would natur
ally superinduce nervousness.
A local plaintiff has been granted
a divorce because he went home and
found his wife sitting in another man's
lap. The other man was not a dentist,
either.
Frequenters of gentlemen's gambling
clubs are again under the ban of the'
Police Court. The clubs should move
to more fashionable quarters; .
It is among the questions yet un
answered as to whether it feels better
to be held hp and robbed by a refined
or an unrefined thug.
Turkeys are said to be plentiful this
year and even the poor man can get
one if he knows where it roosts.
There was once said to be a short
age of rain, but when?
SELF-ANSWERING UESTION6.
Criticism of Municipal Government in
the United Stales.
VANCOUVER, Wash., Nov. 10. (To
the Editor.) It seems to be the general
consensus of opinioif of writers that city
government In the United States has been
a failure. It is said that the' business of
our great cities is usually done In an
unintelligent and inefficient way, and
often dishonestly; that streets and
bridges are badly maintained,' that the
police force is often so. badly maintained
and ill disciplined as to become the ally
of vice and the corrupter instead of the
protector of society, that pay rolls are
padded. Inspectors unfaithful, exaggerat
ed prices are paid for city supplies, un
reasonable wages are given for badly-done
work, and that valuable long-term fran
chises are given to corporations without
adequate compensation to the cities.
There are other evils cited, too numerous
to mention here.
This may be true of Eastern cities, but
is it the case in cities of the Northwest?
Can such conditions exist under the pres
ent city charter of Portland? Is a uni
form system of bookkeeping required in
this city? Should the affairs of a city
be managed just as those of a large busi
ness corporation? Would a commission
system of government, modeled after the
Des Moines plan, remedy these evils? Is
It not better men that we need rather
than any radical changes in our munici
pal government? Personally, I do. not
think that the Des Moines plan fulfills Its
purpose, but would like the opinion In
The Oregonian. FRANCES STONE.
The picture which this correspondent
paints in the opening paragraph may
apply to Seatt'le, Los Angeles, San Fran
cisco and other wicked cities, but not tot
Portland. This city is free from the
enumerated faults and crimes almost.
A proposition to govern the City of
Portland after the Des Moines plan (with
a fet modifications) was submitted to
the voters last June and rejected.
GAVNOR TAKES IT ALL BACK.
Serve as Mayor of New Yorkf Of
Course He Will.
New York Tribune.
In an interview in the New York World
Mayor-elect Gaynor charged the newspa
pers with Inventing the assertion that he
would not serve unless his associates on
the ticket were elected to the Board of
Estimate and Apportionment. He said:
"They (the newspapers) put things in
my mouth that I never said, and dis
torted and even forged what I did say,
so as to carry a wrong impression. I
see today they are still using the false
hood of their own Invention that I said
that if my two associates, Moore and
Galvin, were not elected I would resign.
Let them go right on falsifying.' The
community Is now fully alive to the con
spiracy of distortion and falsification
which this campaign has witnessed."
But the newspapers which were support
ing him represented him as making that
threat in a speech last week. The New
York Press in its report of his speech of
Thursday night quotes him as saying
after an appeal in behalf of Messrs.
Moore and Galvin:
, "Do not think of electing me and then
surrounding me with a hostile Board of
Estimate. Why, you'd fret me to death.
I couldn't stay there, and I wouldn't' stay
there."
The World quotes him thus:
"Just think of electing me, if you will,
and surrounding me with a hostile Board
of Estimate. Why, you would fret me
to death.- I could not stay there, and I
would not stay there."
Yet he now denounces that statement as
a falsehood of newspaper invention and
part of "a conspiracy of distortion and
falsification." Perhaps the candidate was
under such excitement that he did not
know what he was saying when he was
on the stump. That is a charitable ex
planation of some of his extravagances
of speech and a plausible one of his be
lieving that what he subsequently saw in
print as utterances were the forgeries of
a conspiracy.
REGULAR ARMY IN CIVIL, WAR
Record for Desertions Is Bad, Says This
Correspondent.
PORTLAND, Nov. 11. (To the Editor.)
"Regular Army," in The Oregonian of
this date, says one thing that naturally
makes a volunteer in the Union Army dur
ing the Civil War rise up and stare.
Here it is: "It would be interesting to
inquire what proportion of those ork the
pension list saw the real thing, even in
the Civil War, but!" Now, every vol
unteer soldier "within the range of my
voice" implores and beseeches "Regular
Army" not to expose him. The humilia
tion would be depressing, for not every
member of the Grand Army of the Re
public fought, bled, died and almost suf
fered like "Regular Army" did, no doubt.
But the citizen volunteer in that drjadful
conflict did stay by his gun, and didn't
desert at any rate, like the "Regulars"
did.
If "Regular Army" will consult the Adjutant-General's
report at the close of the
Civil War, he may discover, to his abid
ing comfort, that every fourth man of
the regular Army deserted from the field.
Think of it 250 deserters (nearly) out of
1000 men. Nothing equals it, unless it la
desertions from the regulars the last de
cade. From the volunteer regiments dur
ing the Civil War less than 69 to the
1CO0 deserted. In some of the states
Maine, for instance only four men de
serted out of 100.
Great was the "regular Army" during
the Civil War. What few of them, espe
cially among the officers, that didn't go
with the secessionists? Grant, Sherman,
Sheridan, Hancock, Thomas, Schofield,
Howard and a host of other great and
good leaders were regular Army men, but
of the regular Army as such I will like
wise refrain charitably, and hubh. ,
OLD COFFEE COOLER.
Anthor of "O. K.'
With much asperity, the Army and Navy
Journal resents the assertion that the
phrase "O. K." originated in the igno
rant spelling of "All correct," as "Oil
korrkt," by Zachary Taylor while in
Mexico, or some other officer of the
Army "General Taylor," says the Army
and Navy Journal, "was not a man of
'liberal education' in the ordinary sense,
but neither he nor any other officer of
the Army that we have ever heard of
was so ignorant as this. According to
Edwards' 'Words, Facts and Phrases,' the
use of 'O. K.' originated with John Jacob
Astor. the millionaire, who, being the son
of a butcher of Waldorf, Germany, might
be excused for a deficient knowledge of
English." Edwards says: "If a note of
Inquiry as to any particular trader's posi
tion came, the answer to which he in
tended to be satisfactory he was accus
tomed to write- across the note the let
ters 'O. K.' and return it to the writer.
The letters 'O. K.' he supposed to be the
Initials of 'All correct,' and in this sense
they are now universally current in the
States."
-Revenue From "Ad" Cylinders.
PORTLAND, Nov. 12. (To the Editor.)
In Journeying from Naples to London,
the traveler will note the billboard nui
sance. In Europe the use of these un
sightly abominations seems to be for
bidden, and their places are taken by hol
low cylinders about four feet in diameter,
which are placed on street corners and
other convenient localities. The right to
place advertisements upon the outer sur
face of these cylinders is given in vari
ous cities for a reasonable consideration.
This would seem to be a good source of
revenue and an "innocent - municipal
graft." T. M. ANDERSON.
True Happiness.
New York Sun.
"What is your Idea of true happiness?"
he asked.
"To have a husband who could afford
to buy all the hair I wanted without
making it necessary for either of us to
deny ourselves anything else."
NEW LEADERS IN BOTH PARTIES. '
A Look Ahead Into the Presidential
Campaign of 1912.
Kansas City Times. f
This is not the time to press the discus-
sion of Presidents! possibilities for 1912. I
Chairman Mack, of the Democratic Na- j
tional committee, is wise In advising that
personal speculation be left to the future,
although he mentions Governor Har
mon, of Ohio, and Governor Marshall,
of Indiana, as men who might com
mand large followings in the next few
years.
It has been many years since a new
Presidential administration has begun
under conditions so favorable to the de
velopment of new leaders in both par
ties. Evepy other question, including
the very active issue of real tariff re-
vision, is merged into the conflict now
on between the: progressives and the
reactionaries' for the control of the two
parties. That the people have made up
their minds to continue this conflict
until they win a triumph over the spe
cial interests Oiat have controlled
Congress and exploited them is mani
fest in the scope and intensity of the
movement under way. Progressive
sentiment is more general and is
stronger In the West than In the East,
but it is growing everywhere. It is
not sectional.
On the Republican side new leaders
have already defined themselves. They
made themselves conspicuous In ttsir
contentions for the people in the tariff
session. They are gaining in popularity
and Influence. They are neither In
timidated nor embarrassed by the at
tacks and the scoffs of those who de
nounce them as renegades. They know
that they are in line with party senti
ment, party pledges and party action, and
that they are "Irregular" only in defy
ing the special interest organization
in Congress. These men, and those
who will Join them in the fight for the
square deal, will bring forth the new
leaders for the Republican party by the
time the progressives gain control of
Congress.
A similar opportunity presents itself
to the Democratic progressives. The
Democratic party must align itself
with the people. It must disown those
of its representatives who joined hands
with Aldnich and Cannon to defeat the
expressed will of both parties. Sys
tematic plans will be. laid by the cor
porations and trusts to gain control
of the Democratic party in view of
their loosening grip on the Republican
organization. The relative position of
the Democracy will depend very much
on its ability to "withstand the tempta
tions placed in its way.
There is plenty of time to make con
jectures for 1912. The people are In
a big National fight, and the future will
develop the qualities of those who shall
lead for the people against the special
interests.
CIVIL WAR FOUGHT BY MERE BOYS
No Wonder Then That Nearly All Gen
eral Officers No Longer Survive. -
New York Evening Post.
That almost all the Confederate and
Union generals have now disappeared
from the scene Is perhaps not so sur
prising as that many of them survived
for so many years after the great strug
gle in which they won their honors. But
the Civil War, It must be remembered,
was fought by boys. It !s related of Gen
eral John Sedgwick, who was killed at
50. that two years before he was famil
iarly known as "Old Uncle John." be
cause of his extreme age. His oldest
staff officer, a lieutenant-colonel, was
but 27; the ages of the rest varied from
25 to 18. General Howard himself was
30 at the outbreak of the war and Sickles
36. General Wesley Merritt, after Sickles
the most distinguished Civil' War veteran
on the retired list of the Army, was only
25 In 1861. Sheridan was 30 and General
Miles 22 when he went to the front as a
captain. In striking contrast is the rapid
disappearance of the prominent figures
of the Spanish War, a phenomenon re
called by the death last week of Major
General Elwell S. Otis. General W. R.
Shatter, Fitz Hugh Lee, Joseph Wheeler,
Guy V. Henry, Henry C. Corbln, Wil
liam Ludlow and Henry W. Lawton have
gone, in addition to Captain Philip, Rear
Admirals Sampson and Taylor in the
Navy, and the commander-in-chief, Wil
liam McKinley. The war with Spain was
fought by men well on In years, and was
so brief that only a few younger men
like Theodore Roosevelt, Leonard Wood
and Frederick Funston could come to the
front. How rapidly the old Army of 1861
1864 is now disappearing appears, too.
from the pension figures. 45.000 Civil War
veterans dying in the last fiscal year.
NEW STORY OP THE CHICAGO FIRE.
Remarkable Revelation After Many
Years of Misinformation.
Cincinnati Commercial Tribune.
Thirty-seven years ago today Mrs. Mo
riarity's cow kicked over the lamp that
set fire to Chicago. Before the fire had
been checked more than 18,000 houses had
been destroyed, entailing a loss of over
JSM.OOO.OOO and causing more than 100
fatalities.
With those on the inside, it has been
an open secret for many years that the
fire was the result of terrible error in
judgment on the part of the authorities.
The fire started in West Canal street, in
what was then the most lawless part of
the city. The houses, which were old,
were connected by underground passages
and other means of communication un
known as to their details to the police.
When a criminal was so fortunate as to
gain the refuge of one of these houses
he could rest In comparative security.
When the fire started it seemed too
good an opportunity to let pass and the
word was quietly passed to the firemen to
make a bluff fight until the dive district
was wiped out. Unfortunitely a fierce
wind arose, the water supply failed and
the fire got beyond control. It burned
for more than three days before It was
finally conquered.
There can be no question but that tne
authorities did wrong when they allowed
the fire to burn, although they were do
ing what they thought would be for the
best interests of the city. It was their
duty to extinguish the fire as soon as
possible. They had no right, moral or
legal, to pursue, the course they did. Yet
it is an every-day event in the lives of
most people to be cognizant of some
wrongful act being performed that good
may result. And it never works out well
in the end.
Keep the House Air Moist.
La Follette's Magazine.
There is such a thing as having a house,
or its air at least, too dry. The effect of
very dry air is to take moisture too rap
idly from skin and mucous membranes.
This has two bad results. It produces a
feeling of chilliness, making rooms that
are really too hot seem too cold, and it
injures the throat and air passages. As
yet, no satisfactory Bcheme has been de
vised for keeping the air in a house
properly moist in the Winter time. Wa
ter in furnace pans or in dishes set on
radiators supplies only a fraction of the
moisture needed. And yet these attempts
should not be abandoned; they are far
better than nothing. Use pans or dishes
of generous size, remembering that the
larger the surface of the water, the more
rapidly it evaporates.
Her Money's Worth.
Harper's Magazine.
A Buffalo preacher tells a story of a
woman who, after hearing him preach,
informed a friend that she did not like
the services at all. The seat was hard,
she said, the singing was not good, and
the preaching was poor. Her little girl,
who overheard her remarks and who was
present with her at church, said:
"But. mamma, what can you expect for
a penny!"
Life's SunnySide
At a recent luncheon In New York Dr
Henry A. Morse, the well-known Luther
an delegate from Manchester, recounted
a number of amusing pulpit experiences.
"I know a young divine," he said,
"who. wishingto impress upon his con
gregation the beauty of a child's up
turned face, said: 'Ah, dear friends,
what is more beautiful than the face ol
an upturned child?'
"Another divine illustrated the absurd
ity of talking in prayer, instead of hum
bly and reverently beseeching, when lie
said, 'Paradoxical, O Lord, as It may
seem to thee, it is nevertheless truo that,'
and so on.
"A third dhjine. in a funeral oiatlor,
over a young girl, had his audience
bathed in tears. In conclusion lie suid:
'Finally, brethren, may the bereaved
father find consolation for the untimely
death of his only daughter.' and here,
remembering there were other daughters,
the fruits of a second marriage, he add
ed, hastily: 'I mean, of course, by hi!
first wife.' " Louisville Times.
-
Mike Murphy, the University of Penn
sylvania's famous trainer, said of a Penn
sylvania player:
"He has the self-sacrifice and the in
ventiveness, minus t the deceit, of a man
at a Philadelphia game last year. When
the crowd was entering thickest at
Franklin Field one afternoon this man
shouted to .the ticket-taker from down
the line:
" 'It's all right. I've got the tickets.
There's 12 of us. Count 'em as they
go in.'
"Eleven men were counted. They en
tered the field and mingled at once with
the crowd.
"Then the ticket-taker turned to the
12th man but he had disappeared."-
Washington Star.
s
The dinner had not gone at all well.
The waiter was slow, the food was cold
and the cooking was bad. The guest in
the German restaurant was of a natur
ally peevish disposition anyhow, and he
complained vigorously to the head waiter,
and especially complained of the waiter
at his table. As he "was leaving the
waiter said humbly:
"If you only knew vat a hardt time us
raiters hat, you would nicht be so hardt."
"But," said the guest, "why be a
waiter?"
"Vot else couldt I do?" asked the
waiter.
"Well," said the guest, "up at the Met
ropolitan Opera House they pay a man
5 a night to play the oboe. You might
try that."
"Budt," said the waiter, "I don't know
how to blay dot oboe."
"What Is the difference?" observed the
guest, as he turned away, leaving a
much mystified waiter. "You don't know
how to watt, either; you might scatter
your incompetence." Cosmopolitan.
A shrewd old Vermont farmer came
Into a lawyer's office the other day and
proceeded to relate the circumstances in
a matter about which he thought it
would be profitable to "go to law."
"You think I hev a good case?" he
finally asked.
"Very good, indeed!" the lawyer as
sured him. "You should certainly bring
suit."
"What would your fee be fer the whole
thing?" the old farmer asked.
"Fifty dollars," wag the prompt re
sponse. The client pulled out an old wallet, ex
tracted a roll of bills and counted out tso.
"Now," he said, "you hev got all you
would get out of this case anyhow: so
8' pose you tell me honestly just what
you think my chances of winnin' a suit
are?" The Green Bag.
The 4-year-old son of a Presbyterian
minister here in town had done some
thing to get in wrong with his father and
mother and the latter asked him If he
didn't think he'd better get down on his
knees and ask God to forgive him for
what he'd done and ask divine aid to
keep from erring similarly in future.
"Aw, rats!" retorted the minister's son.
"let's give God a rest for a while and
quit pesterln' him about every little thing
that happens." Cleveland Plain Dealer.
MANY DRINK 4 O'CLOCK COFFEE.
New Yorkers Now Go In for What Used
to Be a Way of Foreigners.
New York Sun.
When he first got back from a. trip
abroad, the young man felt strongly the
need of his afternoon coffee and cake,
when 4 o'clock came around. This was
not only custom but a bit of medical ad
vice, because the doctor at Carlsbad had
told him that Americans didn't eat
enough and that was a reason why they
were so nervous.
The young man expected when he went
into one of the small lunch places down
town that his request for coffee and caka
might be looked upon as something odd,
as typically foreign. It was to his sur
prise, then, that he found that he waa
not by any means the only person in the,
lunch place who was there with such, an
object.
There was a fair crowd, each man tak
ing his coffee and cake. Some of the
men appeared to be clerks and others
were just office boys. So the young man
spoke to one of the men behind the
counter. -
"Oh, yes," replied he, "there Is always
a good crowd In here at this hour. I
think you will find the same thing in
other food places. People seem to come
In here just naturally for that midafter
noon food, and with these fellows it isn't
a case of a deferred luncheon, either.
They do it because they are hungry and
they don't want too much. The habit has
come up very strongly in the last few
years."
Wattersoa on the Ferrer Case.
From Henry Watterson's Letter from
Tours, France, to the Louisville Courier
Journal. At worst Ferrer was a Catalonian Bob
Ingersoll. He seems to have been a cross
between Fra Elbertus and William T.
Stead. It was worse than wicked, a
blunder of the first magnitude, to take
his life. It Is out of such follies that sys
tems topple. I wonder that a great man
like Merry del Val. himself half a Span
lard, did not interpose before it was too
late.
A Bit Mixed.
Louisville Courier-Journal.
An English Journalist, somewhat mixed
as to personalities in America, says Dana
Gibson founded the New York Sun. Of
course. Richard Harding Davis was the
President of the Confederacy and Booker
T. Washington the Father of His Coun
try. The Man Who Likes Ills Job.
Springfield (Mass.) Republican.
Professor Brander Matthews has said
something that is worth passing along to
the rising generation: "The man who Is
in love with his job gets more content
ment out of life than any other."
v Good Cooking- Coming;.
St. Louis Republic.
It's 'possum and sweet 'taterg in Mis
souri and Georgia, but just wait until
Creole gumbo Is served by Creole cooks
in New Orleans sassafras leaves and
crab meat and things like that: (
vhy Governors Were Changed.
Chicago Tribune.
Perhaps- Cleveland had grown tired of
being called the best-governed city in the
Unltd States. Hence its recent change
in Governors
V