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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 1909)
TITE 3I0RXING OREGOXIAX, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1909. . PORTLAND, OREGON. ' Entered at Portland. Oregon, Postoffice as Becond-Clasa Matter. Babaoriptlon Rote InrmrUbly In Advanco. (Br MaiL) Dally, Pufirtar includrd. dm year I8 J? Laily, Funday Included, alx monthi. ... 4.2 ally. Kunday Included. three, monthi.-. 2 fl Dally, guaday Included, one month 75 Daily, without Sunday. on year 6 i' Pally, without Sunday, sis month!.... 3 45 Dally, without Sunday, three montha. .. Daily, without Sunday, one month Weekly, one year .' Sunday, one year - 0 Sunday and weekly, one year 5 . (By Carrier.) Dally, Sunday Included, one year 9 W Iaflv. Sundav Included, oue month - How to Remit Send postofttce money order, lexprees order or personal check on your local hank. Slampa, coin or currency re at the sender's risk. Olve postofnee ad dress In full. Including county and atate. pontage Rate ID to 14 pages, t cent: 18 to paaea. 2 cents; no to 40 psices. 3 cents; 40 to i0 pages. 4 cents. Foreign postage dmihle rate. Eastern Bantneoa Office The S. C. Beck wlih Spe.-lal Agency New York, rooms 4S f.0 Tribune building. Chicago, rooms jlu-513 Tribune building x . FORTLANB, THTRHDAY, NOV. 1. I909- BAIXIXGEK AND PTSCHOT. .All who know Secretary Ballinger have confidence In his Integrity, and therefore stand by him. His purpose Is protection o( the public t interests. But there are various parties striving for advantages, and he is attacked first by one. then by another. Mr. Ballinger knows the law and he knows the. usage and practical appli cation of the law. He -knows' the theory of the so-called conservation, too; and he stands for It and upon It as far as practicable. Mr. Finchot Is a theorist, merely; and his view of con servation is that of an enthusiast. He has. studied foreign methods of forestry, and he desires to transplant them to the United States. Since the public lands that remain are the prop erty of the United "States, he would have the Government hold them as landlord and proprietor, for its own use; and the water powers also. He would make a revolutionary change in the policy of the country, on this subject. It would apply only to the newer states and their mountain dis tricts, for In the older states the re sources were appropriated, and passed into private hands, long ago. Herein the contest, as so often ex plained by The Oregonlan, is between state or local interests and the policy of central administration. We of the newer states desire the development and use of the waiter powers and other natural resources. The Pinchot scheme would hamper it, delay it, block it." The Government of the United States can't do the- work, but will sit down at the waterfalls, and ask the melo dious birds, sing their madrigals to them. ' What should be done? Extinguish ment of the proprietorship of the United States over these lands and waters Is the first necessity. The lands, carrying riparian rights, should be old, as always heretofore,- to prior applicants. Then the states, each for itself, can deal wijh the water prob-' lems with the .irrigation and power problems. We a're drifting off, indeed, In the other direction; but the irrlga-. tlon schemes of the General' Govern ment are but poor recompense for confiscation of the resources of a state for promotion of schemes outside of It. The resources that lie within the State of Oregon should be controlled .by the state, for its own development and use, under local law; or the states should be abolished alt gether. and all administration centered at Washington. Are the water powers of the states and the industries based on them -to be controlled by state or by. National legislation? Put It up to Oregon, and what will Oregon say? If the states are to be suppressed and abolished, so be it. But if they are still to exist, the policy heretofore pursued should be adhered to; and the General Government should -not be -permitted to undertake the administration- of the water powers of the country and of the lands around them. Every state can take care of this busi ness for itself. Oregon already has a stringent law. So have the other, newer states. Conflict of laws be tween the states and the National Government on this subject will be Intolerable. One or the other must get out of the field. The Pinchot policy proposes revolutionary shift of the dividing line between state and Federal authority. Ballinger yields' In so far as he Is directed so to do by law, but no farther. The present Issue between them is on this line. If it be true, as reported, that Pin chot has written the President, re questing a decision by the executive between Ballinger and Pinchot, the controversy soon will be simplified. But it will not be closed; for It is not the business of the United States td administer the water powers of a state. r Or WDXlfVtT Viliue tiicj na,c i-itc United States should sell them. The states then may subject them to regu lation and to taxation. This Forestry Bureau, is becoming an immense machine; and it enlarges and swells and grows. It has a mul titude of officials, at Washington and in the various states, and it is becom ing one of the completest types of our officialdom. It is costing now, we are told, no less than 14,000,000 a year; and its expenditures are in a way to absorb from the Treasury more than the value of all the resources it pre tends to conserve. The United States should get out of this business, and leave it to the states-, which desire the development and whose knowledge of the conditions will lead the way to fracfical and -useful results. In the unorganized territory of Alaska the laws of the United States may properly run, for that region possesses no sem blance of sovereignty, nor scarcely of autonomy. But the several states are capable of caring for these interests, if they are capable of anything. If not, wipe .them out altogether. Sir Thomas Lipton expresses a de sire to make anotrier try for the America's cup in 1911. The purveyor of tea to His Royal Majesty Edward VII is desirous, however, that there be a change in the rules. He states that under the present rules he would stand no chance to win. In view of the past performances of the numer ous Shamrocks that have advertised ' Lipton's tea in this country, no one will be disposed to doubt the truth of this statement. 'Sir Thomas' does not specify what changes he wishes to have made in the rules, but it is .be lieved that, if the rules would permit him to have a flying start of a few miles, or would compel the American yacht to tow an oyster dredge around the course, Sir Thomas would be will ing to take a chance. Sir Thomas is a game sportsman, but-even his reputa tion In that line Is mild and easy com pared with that which he enjoy; as an THE SPOKANE "MARTVfW." I Conditions in Spokane resulting from a clash between labor agitators with anarchistic tendencies and speech and the local officers of the- law are to be deplored. These conditions repre sent extremes in opinion and action that admit of no compromise. They must literally be fought out. While the ultimate result can readily be fore seen, the triumph of the forces of the law will be one merely of outward seeming: the defeat or the lawbreak ers will be to the faction they repre sent, unfortunately large, ' a sort of armed submission,- combining the es sence of martyrdom with defiance. Kxtremes beget extremes. In this h mon who went to Jail In a flaunting spirit of heroism as disturb ers of the peace ana inciters iu "" ..tA tr. mkc ft sDectacular play. with themselves in the role of grand champions of the right or rree t"-k- . !,,r,a have been burdened with the stories of self-inflicted star vation. . ... v nrinMnlA Involving the legiti mate rights of the workingman is in volved in the contention. It Is in conceivable that men who proceed in an orderly, self-respecting manner to earn their livelihood by the work for which they have fitted themselves, or work which they have cnosen ana o . nmiiri find themselves in the wretched plight of these vaunting advocates of the rights of labor. It can hardly be doubted that two-thirda of the entire number involved would, if not swayed by evil counsels, De will ing workers and orderly citizens. ". A TRIE'PHIlulSTHROFIST. fhorioa x- Crittenton. who -died in San Francisco Tuesday, was a mijlion aire and a philanthropist. He was not the kind of millionaire vho piled up his millions by legalized robbery and jobbery, nor the kind of a philanthro pist who with great-ostentation makes indiscriminate gifts of libraries of ..i.ir,-a hie value, or Dlaces immense sums at the disposal of scientific or educational institutions, vveosicr uc a iv ,i-nrH n hi lan thropist as "one who loves mankind and seeks to 'pro mote the .good of others." Mr. Crit tenton measured up well to this standard. Among all other American millionaires it Is doubtful if there are anv oth'er two, or perhaps ten, who ... - I 114-.. have accomplisnea as muca m iwc in. 9i miserv as has been accom plished through his efforts. The millions of Mr. Crittenton were uh in hnMrMnir homes for. unfortu nate girls. They were also used In sending agents out into tne nignas back from the jaws of hell hundreds and thousands of girls who had Incautiously arntea tried border into the land leading to despair and death. t-v. n.- .--i.T-C near In hrinerinsr these poor girls back where they could lead clean, wholesome lives, ana again Decome useful members of society. Free libraries planted broadcast are excellent vehicles for the display of wealth and the enormous college en dowments of some 'of our trust-made millionaires are in their way Denenciau But for real, tangible relief for hearts that are breaking, and for the -saving of young girls not yet steepea in sin, rniKantnnhnmfl Is worth more to humanity than all of the Carnegie li braries that could he duiii ana en dowed. ' THE SUGAR SCANDAL The millions of consumers who for years have paid heavy tribute to tne tniat hvA iindoubtedlv thougtit that the -prices were sufficiently exor- bltant to satlsry tne rapacity ui mat tariff-protected octopus. Developments now coming to light in the sugar scan dal In New York show quite clearly that t,he trust's long arm of graft has for more than' twenty years been lift j fmm thn TTnlted States 1 11 ft iiiuin.j . . . . . .. Treasury. No trick that would add to the wealth of the trust was too smaii or shady' and rio thieving scheme too big. It will probably be an impossi bility to determine the full amount stolen from the Government, but from the length of time the dishonest work has been going on and the tremendous volume of business handled It is be lieved that the total will approximate J30.000.000. Washington dispatches state that twenty-two weighers in -the New York Custom-House are under suspicion of being implicated in the colossal frauds. But the scheme was too big and the sum involved" too great to be handled by twenty-two weighers, or many times that number. There were "higher-ups" in that case, without whose aid the sugar trust, the great est thief 'of the age. coold not have systematically robbed the Treasury for so many years. The principal method of stealing was simple In the extreme. Cargoes were weighed and under weighed. Refusal of the ocean car riers to stand in on the graft forced the trust to pay freight on the actual weight, but the duty was paid always on the under weight. By this method the trust stole from 5 per cent to' 10 per cent of the duty on every cargo. . The rapidity with which these steal ings ran into vast sums can be under stood when it Is' stated that on a sin gle steamer entering from Java, near the close of the Cleveland Administra tion, 1130,000 In duties was stolen, and on freight alone on the cargo the trust colon mum than would have been justified by the weight on which duty was paid. Before this system of stealing had been perfected into the fine art it seemed to be, when the first disclosures were made, the trust had made frequent attempts to de fraud the carriers by claiming a shrinkage of 2 to 3 per cent. They were so far successful that, after icon siderable squabbling, the carriers agreed to a discount of 1 per cent, an amount much In excess, of the actual loss suffered. ... This graft w-as all worked at the port of New York, and it Is easy to understand the impossibility of. the In dependent refineries at Bostojt or Philadelphia, or in fact in any other port, meeting competition of this na ture. Prior to the beginning of these frauds Philadelphia was receiving U per cent of the sugar entering 'the United States, but duripg the past eleven years, when the trust has prof ited most by the frauds, Philadelphia has secured but 19 per cent of the business, the trust naturally routing all of its imports through New York. Inmagnitude nothing approaching this scandal has been unearthed in the Government service in many years, and the affair has gained such promi nence and caused such widespread In dignation that the arrest and punish ment of a few weighers will not sat isfy the people any more than the in significant H35.000"fine satisfied them. TWO YEARS OF DOUUR WHEAT. Have the days of cheap wheat (and of course, cheap- bread), paseed for ever? This query is suggested by the tenacity with which the premier cereal hovers above the dollar mark. For more than two years wheat in the Chicago market has been selling at more than $1 per bushel. At times some of,- the distant options would show a decline to a few cents under that magic figure, which was so promi nently mentioned when the Bryan campaigners of 1896 sought to hitch wheat and silver to the same cart. But there has been no period in the past two years when $1 per bushel, or bet ter, has not been quoted for either the cash article or some of the options. Perhaps the most singular feature of this extraordinary market is the continued strength of the December option In the Chicago market, th price ranging from 2 to 3 cents higher than for the May option, which should naturally, be higher to the ex tent of the carrying charges of 2 or 3 cents per bushel. Inability of bujiers to secure enough wheat for Decem ber delivery at J1.06 to J1.07 per busehl is tvidence either that farmers are holding back stocks to a greater extent than ever before, or that the 1909 crop, Uke that of 1908, was greatly overestimated. The shadow of the Argentine crop is already on the European market, "and with harvesting to begin In the northern' portion of that country within the next' thirty days, the possible dimensions of the. crop must be pretty well known in the foreign markets. Yet neither reCtord-breaking Russian shipments nor the promise of a good yield in the Argentine nor a big crop in Australia seems to depress the Eu ropean -market so long as Chicago maintains prices. This would indicate that our chief competitors in the wheatgrowing business had not yet reached a point where they could sup ply Europe with all wheat required, and until tne American aemanu shrinks sufficiently to reduce prices in Chicago, there is not much likelihood of lower prices elsewhere in the world. BIBLICAL CRITICISM. The letter published in The Orego- nian by the Reverend William Hiram Foulkes on November 16 contains a passage which, in the interest of truth and fairness, we shall reprint, for the sake of a little comment. SpeaJting of Gypsy. Smith Dr. Foulkes says: It he Is guilty of clinging to the historic ity of the B-nnnela. he only shares with his brethren in a bundled thousand pulpits and a hundred theological chairs, tne conviction that while modern criticism, may have emasculated the gospel to its own present satisfaction. 4t Is able neither to present a coherent or a flnal theory as to how much Is historical, nor to give any better ex- . i..inn tnf th ,iuinil rffrriHi than the evangelical one. Modem erlticlsm . needs to, toe reminded that Reimarus with nls cry of fraud gave way to Paulus, with his easy going rationalism; mat r-auiua leu oux on fore Strauss, with his mxthicaJ theory; that Baur and his Tubingen school set at naught Strauss; and that each new critic has eaten Up his predecessor, while 'the historic gos pel Is still being effectually preached and universally believed. -In these remarks -Dr. Foulkes ex hibits, without apparent hesitation, that contempt for scholarship which is one of the worst faults of the Amer ican pulpit . and one of the prime causes of its weakness. Contented ignorance is the state of mind which he displays and praises. -He rejoices in the thought that scholars have not yet settled what parts of the gospels are truth and what fiction. Evidently he must suppose that error is Just as effective for "salvatfcm" as a truth. If he did not he would delight in the efforts of scholars to sift the fiction from the fact In the New Testament, fnstead of deriding their labors and misrepresenting their results. The charge we made against the illiterate peripatetic evangelists that they scorn the facts of history and the truths of science migh,t be extended to Dr. Foulkes himself, without much injus tice, if one may judge from the spirit of this letter. Modern criticism has not' "emascu lated" the ' gospel or tried to do so, unless it Is "emasculation" to winnow out spurious passages like the last nine verses of Mark. Does it neces sarily weaken the message of sajva tion to free it from sectarian glosses and 'obtain it in the form given by Jesus? Scholarly investigation seeks te go behind Interpolations, mistrans lations, wrong dates and false tradi tions, and discover' what Jesus really said and did. It strives to tear away the hedge of myth and ignorant inven tion which has too long obscured the personality of the Son of Man. Much more loyally than any illiterate ranter, modern criticism obeys the mandate "Back to Jesus," b'ut it seeks the real Jesus, not the spurious and incredible figment , of the churchly imagination. The "historicity"- of the gospels, or at any rate of the synoptics, is not ques tioned by any scholar of standing. The fanciful matter, such as the ac counts of miracles, does not impair the credit of what Is really historical any more In the gospels than It does in LIvy.- But in conceding a sub stratum of verifiable truth in the gos pels, scholars do not accept the In crustatlons of fable which have sur rounded and often concealed It. To say, as Dr. Foulkes does, that "each new critic has eaten up his predeces sor" is to employ tho gross language of defiant illiteracy. Critics differ among themselves because their thought is free to .follow 'all the lead ings of every clew to truth, and nat urally some clews are deceptive, but, after all, the crilics do not clash more harshly than the sects. . ) Far from eating one another up, they have established a great, struc ture "of Impregnable knowledge about the man Jesus and the New Testa ment, which would not be concealed from the" public if the pulpit were more enlightened, or more candid. For example it has been proved that the three synoptic gospels are derived in large part from a common source which has disappeared completely. It was not written either in Greek or pure Hebrew, but in the Aramaic dia lect, which Jesus spoke. In all likeli hood it was a terse compilation of his sayings. . Not one of the synoptic gospels is the account of an eye-witness, and certainly the first two were not written by the men whose names they bear. These points and hundreds more of similar - tenor are perfectly well known in literate circles. They have been established by criticism and no scholar dreams of disputing them; but how much is ever heard about them from the pulpit? Evan gelists, nd others, argue that If the truth were told about these matters faith would be unsettled. The un settling ensues because the tnuth is not toid. The modern church-goer does not depend entirely upon the pul pit for his information. He reads books, and the contrast between the book and the sermon is so vivid .that oftentimes his faith does not survive the shock. - , What Is a faith worth which is built upon- misinformation? Its only safe guard is a resolute hatred of knowl edge. It sees its worst enemy in In vestigation nd trembles in the face of every new truth that comes to light. In sober fact fajth of that kind can riot hold Its own in the modern world and is rapidly being eliminated. Evan gelists like Gypsy Smith who possess singular powers of persuasion may oc casionally fan the dying ernbera to. a transient flame, but jiot for long. Dr. Foulkes errs in saying that the historic gospel is still being'effectually preached and universally believed." The historic gospel -is very seldom preached. It is replaeed by a sad col lection of UDhistorlc myths, themost prominent' being the fall of man and the blood atonement. How effectual the preaching of these vain figments Is may be gathered by listening to the endless wall from the pulpit that the multitude has ceased going to church. Construction of an electric railway from Oregon City to Silverton through the fertile Molalla Valley Is said to be assured within a reasonable length of time. This railway line will traverse a section of varied beauty and re sources. Its development has been- retarded by lack of adequate transpor tation facilities. It has been long set tled, but its 'resources are, relatively speaking, undeveloped and practlcally unknown. The good roads movement has never reached It, and. being with out railway facilities, large areas of this region have been isolated even in a neighborly sense for several months' each year. An electric line connect ing it with the larger centers of pop ulation cannot fall to be the immedi ate forerunner of the substantial and profitable development of the districts of Clackamas and Marion Counties, through which it'is now seeking right of way. Portland's trade with Coos Bay doubled and trebled within a year af ter the steamer Alliance began mak ing regular trips, and It has been steadily increasing since that time. two statements now finding profitable employment on the route. Similar esults would follow the establishment of steamship service between this port and Bandon. An effort is now being made to bring the rich country along the Coquille River into direct commu nication with this city by means of a steamer line. The entire Coast regian Is so rich in naturai resources that the establishment of even an imperfect transportation service is always fol lowed by remarkable development. This is a matter which should and un doubtedly wjll have the united support of the Portland business interests. The excellent recommendation of character given CrqOk Richardson by Detectives Day and Carpenter failed to save that worfhy (bunco) man from a sixty days' sentence on the rockpile, although' he Is not serving it. The incident, however, displayed the tender-hearted solicitude which some of our detectives have for the outlaws who drift into Portland for the pur pose of tearing off a few easy tricks. Perhaps if Harvey Dale and some of, his friends who have temporarily dis carded their striped clothes had in duced Mr. Richardson's . detective friends to go to the front for themk they would not have been obliged to leave the city for the city's good. Occasionally poetic justice is ren dered in this wicHed world. In West Virginia the other day a mule was its humr,in medium, but the result was as satisfactory as if it had been a Hon or a steam roller. The mule kicked to death a man. who w-as so mean his wife could not live with hirn All the proprieties of the case seem to have been fully met. , It was a great idea, to be sure-,- to allow those notorious crooks to re main in town, if they would promise "to do no work." Pleasant thing to have a gang of well-known "strong mf men etnnrlin? nrniind the streets with their hands in their own pockets. - . . . . . .i j i .i i . Belt or course tneir nanus uiuu t Vong there, and didn't stay. The old reproach "more ornamental than useful" does not apply to Port land's detectives. Their usefulness is about-as small as It could possibly be, but they te , still less ornamental. When an object possesses neither use nor beauty it is hard to find a good reason for retaining it particularly if it is expensive. People.who think mankind has out grown all its. fojlles may chasten their pride by remembering that there is a magazine of Astrology published in Portland and that it has subscribers. About the hardest thing in the world to kill is a good, old-fashioned "super stition which has not a single fact to stand on. - .. New England is the latest region to discover that it can raise apples "almost as good" as the Hood River product. .When New England fruit brings Hood River prices in Boston the point will be settled. Until that timn finvprnor Draper's boast may be -suspected of carrying more or less water. - . A dirigible balloon voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, following the route of Columbus, is planned in Germany. Of course the Spanish win have nothing to do with it. They have found more than enough trouble from helr dis covery of the New World, already. Captain Amundsen, polar explorer, has come to America to get a supply, of pemmlcan like Cook's. It is not credible, however, that the Captain is going to follow Cook's course in quest of another polar dispute. 1 Bourne, they say, is preparing a statement to show that the Govern ment is spending from 150,000,000 to $100,000,000 needlessly, every year. Doubtless true- including the salary of Senator Bourne. This is the annual occasion for law yers to assure the public by display of "ethics" how good they are. The Bar Association should meet, oftener than once a year. Gus Lowit has been released on bond. Trust Gus to keep out of jail. He never was held there yet. At last Defective Joe Day .has reached a point where his profanity is not conclusive evidence. TUB "BCTI'TIX FROM BLBA," An Intereatlna; Sumnpary of Recent Conjectural Politics. Springfield XMass.) Republican. Tntprv pw A. radical. thorouKh-going Roosevelt man; almost invariably comes f the declaration that tbe ex-Fresldent win be back in 1912. He expresses disappoint ment in Mr. Taft, thinks his Tour a frost, finds his speeches dull and his actsvhalf the time controlled by the "interests." If tt'Vere not .for Giffprd Pinchot, the Government Forester, "my policies" would be in Jericho awaiting the trump of doom. Reaction menaces the Nation, and its only salvation will be the early return -of Mr. Roosevelt to power. These sentiments may often be drawn from the average iRoosevelter one casually meeta. The country over, they make a body of opin ion that disturbs the political atmosphere, gives fresh encouragemcnteto the Repub-. lican "insurgent" movement in the West against Aklrich and Cannon, inspires fresh attacks upon Secretary Ballinger and opens a new trail for the muck-raking magazines. Frantic anti-Roosevelt papers like the New York Sun see the tendency and begin to shell the woods, the Sun, by the way, using Herbert Par sons and the sugar trust, of which bis father Is counsel, as the first target. A "Back From Elba" Club- has been dis covered already organized among the last President's intimates, the nucleus being apparently the defunct tennis cabinet, whose members for the most part are of ficially out of work. "Back from Elba" has a meaning that speaks for Itself like an electric sign., To be sure, the "100 days" ended at Waterloo, as the anti Roosevelters are quick to say;' but. In this case, we are. to understand that a new meaning is to be read into history. The "100 days" would last at least eight years. The New York Tribune, now selling for 1 cent, asserts on the authority of its excellent Washington bureau, that on a certain evening early this week six mem bers of the Taft LaDlnet met ai ins house of Attorney-General Wickersham to discuss the political situation. They were impressed, it is said, by the circum stantial evidence showing "the evistence of a concerted movement to procure the nomination- of Theodore Rosevelt in 1912." and are prepared to place before the, President the facts which have come to their notice. It is the belief of the Cabinet that the various attacks emanat ing from Republican sources upon several members of the Administration are really directed at the President, In the expec tation of discrediting him and his meth ods, although '.'none of President Taft'a friends entertains for a moment the idea that the chief fadtor in what they be lieved to be a concerted movement, Theo. dore Roosevelt, is party to it, or at this time would sanction the movement.-' The ground is being prepared for the triumph al return of the hero that is all. If a situation can be created that will compel, Mr. Roosevelt to assume the party lead ership again, the plot succeeds, what ever may be his personal feeling toward his chosen successor, for we cannot for get that Mr. Roosevelt carries the spear that knows -no brother. Pursuing the subject, the Tribune pro ia.a tta nTV,rfl an fan into the future as to suggest -a party struggle in 1912 not unlike that In 18S0. which followed Gen- 1 ,-q'd tMi rf thA world- An in teresting forecast, perhaps, but prema ture. We are not far enougn aown ine pike. Mr. Taft has been President only iv,4- mAntha Tho number- of things which may happen to disconcert the "Back From Elba" unit) staggers me im agination. It is not difficult to see how Mr. Taft may turn the situation to his own advantage with remarkable effect and secure extraordinary results from the, next two or three sessions of Congress, if he will only recall the method by which Mr. Roosevelt controlled the last Repub lican convention, and forced the nomina tion of Mr. Taft. "If you don't take Taft, you'll take me," was the threat constantly uttered By tne last occupant of the White House in the Spring, of 1908. It clinched the argument, and theo was nothing more to be said. The steam roller left nothln of the "allies." and even Mr. Fairbanks is now somewhere In i ,n..nnr, riHnt lrwr. to the world. 1 1 1 nil -ii ,i ..j .......... - Admitting that there is grave danger of Mr. Roosevelt coming hacK in it. n exceedingly clear that- President Taft may now use the fear of "restoration" to force i nnA,.,f,tli,A -o.-lnr nf his DartV to fol- I LUG 1.1'IH - 1 . .. . . Llow his own leadership in questions of ---- ' - - of progressive lawmaking for Congress . nt An Ha nun a I vv uiuKiainiiio to consider, mucti or which is and the, better part of which should be enacted into law. Mr. Taft ;eeks to ad vance by legal and constitutional meth ods, hence he needs the immediate aid of Congress In making new laws and modi fying old ones. The question of coal and . V, niinlin lanrlfl is RTl water poweis '" !"- i- - Illustration; for the land laws must be amended to enable the Federal govern ment to preserve those resources of the Nation from monopolization by private interests. When obstructive or reaction- .cnattre onH Rpnr esen tatl ve s come to him and say they cannot support his programme, let Mr. Tart mump tne u"o and say: "If you don't give me this, you'll get Roosevelt as sure as fate, in 1912." ' And that will surely fetch them. The railroads, the corporations, the "in terests" generally, will feel the force of their turn comes to support or- oppose the Taft -proirramme. Let Mr. Taft Keep munipiug and saying: "You'll get Roosevelt," and his success with Congress in the next three years may be wonderful- to behold. The "back from Elba" movement, therefore, need not fill us with serious dread, provided that Mr. Taft thumps the table enough. It Is, however, necessary for him to abandon somewhat his method of dealing with Congress.'as illustrated in the making of the Payne-Aldrlch tariff, and work upon the fears of that body. Mr. Taft has the future In his own keeping. - .. Reflection of a Bachelor. TJew York Press. It Isn't so much that we love life; it's that wa hate death A red-headed widow is a very lucky thing for her first husband. A pretty girl can have the use of all the wisdom she needs in tho men she can canture. If we put into doing something for our friends half the time we put into trying to get even, with our enemies this would be a grand world. A. man takes chances in business, the stock market, horse races, going to the theater at night in his office, running for office and dodging bis taxes; all a woman's chances are on the one thing, matrimony. Pointed Pnrnsrraphri. . - Chicago News. Some men succeed in spite of them selves. ' It is usually costly to follow cheap ad- The more talk It takes to run things tbe slower they move. The bravest dentist isn't anxious to look into the jaws of death. A woman would rather suspect her hus band than distrust her preacher. If a man snores he has a good excuse for remaining away from church The Editor'. Humble Request. . Logan (W. Va.) Democrat. We have this request to make; When we die we don't want any of the insur ance money spent for a crayon portrait of the deceased. There are plenty of other ways to squander the money. Iiove'a Educational Aspect. Leslie's Weekly. To love a crood woman is a liberal edu cation. ' To love a lady of fashion -is. a commercial education. MEASLY LOT OF INIQUITOUS REPROBATES BV, ' ' " 'T-'.-. - r Republican, "of Oreajo. Are Not Entitled to e RiWhra Attaching to Erery Other Organisation in Every Otker Country on Earth.' Some Comparison. Bearing on the Matter of A.cmbly for Conaultatlon. PORTLAND, Nov. 17. (To the Edi tor.) What a measly lot of bad men, indeed, must be those Republicans who in the past have taken an active part in the affairs of their party. What un told Injury to the best interests of the people -would certainly follow any gathering of them in one body,, the re sult of which should be an expression of their preference for the different candidates for state offices! Bad, Irre sponsible, designing and iniquitous reprobates! For proof of this proba bility. Indeed, certainty, read any Democratic paper In the state. Recently we have been favored wltn a public' expression by one of our local men of prominence, and authority on this subject from a ueraocratic stana point, in which he kindly grants the privilege to Republicans from all parts of the state assembling since "any at- tack on this general political night will fall, and ought to fail, because no man who cares for his freedom of thought and act will approve an as sault oh the right of assembly." Having made this concession even to those whom he calls the "bosses" of the Republican party, he proceeds to add that such an assembly "may properly meet to decide on a course of political action and recommend the same tothelr fellow citizens, but any attempt to pass beyond mere ' voluntary assemblage and recommedation and usurp the power of the voters to nominate, or any attempt to browbeat the voters with a ready-made slate, should be re sented by those of Independent minds.' But listen to this other statement: "Certain of the Democrats have met (as men properly may) and made rec ommendations or urged members of the party to become candidates for Demo cratic nominations, but they have never pretended to act as delegates or repre sentatives of others in the. name of the Democratis party." , Here, finally, we have the comprehen sive analysis of the hitherto compli cated difference 'twixt tweedledum and tweedledeo. When Republicans gather from different sections of the state to "discuss political actions and ideas" it is necessarily a concocted scheme to as sail the public weal, but ..Democrats may do the same thing "make recom mendations and urge members of the party to. become candidates for Demo cratic nomination" without in any manner or to any degree departing from the political straight and narrow path. ' And they do it. In fact, they seldom do it in any other way. Few Democrats other than those rec ommended to the rank and file of the party as the most fitting men for given positions by a small assembly of their party associates have ever presumed to go before the .Democratic primaries, The Democratic conception of an "as sembly" Is that one composed . of self-chosen Democratic representa tlves may recommend candidates for Democratic nominations, and even "urge" them upon the voters, remain ing the while unquestionably within the charmed precincts of the poli tical saints, but if a gathering of Republicans should presume to do pre cisely the same thing, they thereby enter Into a domain occupied only by those having dark designs upon good government and a chronic hatred or public morals! But it Is recalled that 2000 years ago there were those who gathered their skirts about themselves and thanked God they were not as others were. The rule laid down by this modern sect of specialists Is that all men of all creeds and beliefs In the social, re ligious, political and fraternal ' world may meet freely and discuss, recom mend, nay, even "urge" selected men this Is sometimes denominated a slate when done by Republicans to become candidates for positions, but the line is drawn at Republicans availing them selves of this blessed privilege. A few dozen Democrats in the state have decided that the Republicans may properly meet in an assembly, for the right of peacable assemblage Is guar anteed by the Constitution, but beyond conducting an. old-fashioned Quaker meeting their definite action must not go. They must not talk, save in a whisper, and their whispers must not take the form of "urging members of the party to become candidates foj Republican nominations." Any step in that direc tion, would be "an assault on the pri mary law," 'twduld be a "slate," a sort of snap Judgment by the bosses, but the Democrats may gather in similar as semblies and in the name of Thomas Jefferson "urge" 'men they have se lected to become candidates for Demo cratic nominations. But that's different. . - The plain fact is that no organization, no matter what its purpose, could long survive if governed under the Interpre tation of our primary law given by the Democrats of Oregon when applying it to the Republican party. No organiza tion since the beginning of time has even tried it. Suppose, for instance, the Ma sonic, traterriity should undertake the task of pushing the objects of its order by taking the individual votes of its members in the different localities of the state and adding up the sum total at the headquarters of its grand master? Under the Democratic construction of the pro visions of the primary law it is "actually unlawful for the Republicans to assem ble anywhere and even express an opin ion that might gather general cirpula tlon and reach the voters who had re mained at home! They may gather but the public must not be permitted to know what they said, or thought. Bad, bad men. '" But suppose the Masons should never meet anywhere for any purpose? How far would they get In the realization of the purposes -of their great order if they never held a grand lodge where Its lead ers could consult, exchange ideas, make suggestions and. indeed, lay out proposed fields for new work? Under the Demo cratic Interpretation of our primary law the Masonic order would have been in its grave thousands of years ago if it had been compelled to work under its pro visions. Suppose the "assembly" system should not prevail in the government of the Methodist Church and its life-giving red-hot and enthusiastic general confer ences should be strictly prohibited? Sup pose.' Its bishops and presiding elders should never get together on the business of church government and church work? Indeed, suppose it had no bishops, pre siding elders, that is. "bosses," and everything was left to the votes of the lay members all over the state, without conference, consultation or guidance or any kind? Suppose that great denomi nation had for 50- years In Oregon been deprived of the assemblles" in which Priver, Hines, ' Roberts, Parrlsh, Leslie, Waller, Lee and their brethren planned and excuted the magnificent work It -has accomplished. Or, coming nearer to present day matters, imagine no confer ences where the caustic tongue of Brother Cline had Invaded some cobweb some where or the more tactful True Wilson had injected a left-handed adjective sugar-coated with an alleviating word of euphomy? But the Methodists believe in an assembly. So do the Grangers. So do the Masons and Oddfellows. So do the Socialists. Likewise the labor organ izations. In this connection it may he properly added that so do the Demo crats of Oregon, as to themselve.s, thf only exception being in the case of then opponents, the Republicans, who ate such very bad men that a rule, must be ap plied to them which is inoperative as t" every other organization In every other country on earth. But In .this cae "there's a Democratic reason." Under present conditions the Republi can organization in Oregon Is rapidly becoming a mere rope of sand, without cohesive ingredients or vital strength successfully to withstand any. serious test. On account of its lack of opportu nity for 'consultation in any way what ever it is fast becoming a plaything in the hands of a handful of Democrats who are still endeavoring to supply lis rules and regulations, the formulation uf its by-laws and constitution. If the Democrats succeed in further running the Republican party of Oregon and dictating its course of management, within ten years there will not even be a semblance of its autonomy. Its "aura" will have been gathered to Its fathers, so to speak, and every Democrat in the state will be an enthusiastic attendant upon the funeral wake. By that time. there being no assemblage of Republi cans anywhere or at any time, those of Jackson County, which lies next to Cali- ' fornla, will be as complete strangers to those of Baker or Malheur as though they lived in Skowhegan, Me. By that time, under the present programme of enforc ing an injunction against two Republi cans being seen together unlesa they re frain from referring to matters of party wishes or purposes, a Republican of Co. lumbla County, if there should be such, will be as innocent of acquaintance with his party brother of Klamath, indeed, of Lane, if such should then be survivlns, as if he were sojourning on ' the sunny uplands of the Ozafks. And yet, it may be that the Republi cans of Oregon are now quite ready to decline any further acquiescence in the proposition that It may not and should not exercise the one privilege which Is the fundamental principle of every or ganization on earth which hopes to ac complish results and to be a power in the field which it pretends to occupy. . Boiled down, the only objection urged against an "assembly" is .that its work would be harmful to the public good. StiU further clarified of fustian and hot air, it is equivalent to saying that the leaders of, or prominent men in, -the Re publican party of Oregon are such a lot of schemers, plunderers and incompetents that the party can only succeed by keep ing them segregated by the enactment and enforcement of a barbed-wire statute which would say, in substance, that "the Republican party is all right if its prom inent men are kept permanently apart lii such manner that no conference on politi cal matters may ever be had." It is presumed that an assembly f representative Oregon Republicans might be held at which gathering the five points of Calvinism or the Origin of Species could be discussed without arous ing the hysterical opposition of the Dem ocrats this might possibly be done but any reference to the reasons why they belong to the Republican party, to the best course for strengthening the organi zation or effort to consider the merits of the different aspirants for state and county offices would be direct evidence of treason to the state and a covert as sault upon, our cherished institutions. And wouldn't you -think a man who claims to be a Republican would be es pecially proud of being a member of a political organization -whose welfare can only be guaranteed by erecting a legis lative' wall around each of its leaders so high that communion, either close or free, shall be permanently barred? But that Is the game if the Democrats are permitted to control the affairs of their opponents and there may be Re publicans who will consent to It. y T. T. GEER. HAKE CHAUFFEURS GIVE BONOS. One Remedy SuKireated Which My Curb Rccklcaa Drivlns;. PORTLAND, Nov. 17. (To the Editor.) There haa been fearful destruction of human life recently in this community by reckless drivers of aufoniohllc.8, who are wholly Irresponsible morally, finan cially and in every way. There has been a good deal of complaint against the roadhouses for furnishing liquors to the Joy-riders, but in my opinion most of the whisky and other strong drink is pro cured in the down-town saloons by thesa people before they start on their mad drives A man who drinks or who gets drunk Is certainly not fit to drive or han dle an automobile on the public roads and The important question now before the public is how to prevent the recurrence of these accidents. I have talked with members of the License Board and they tell me that many of these auto drivers will swear to almost anything to get the risht to drive an automobile. I wish to suggest to you what I regard as a simple and effective remedy, as fol lows: Let every man who drives an automobile, whether he owns U or not. give a bond in the sum of at least $300 to secure his compliance with the laws and ordinances governing the running of auto mobiles. , M I have talked with a number ef the most influential men In tho city, who own autos and they aro all in favor of such a law. I am told by these men that they are afraid to go on the streets with their machines because of the risk of being smashed up by reckless automobile drivers. ' , CITIZEN OF PORTLAND SINCh, 163. Taft Merely Himself. New York Sun. No one can tejl at this time what the effect of the grand tour will be upon Mr. Taft's policies and fortunes. If he has said the obvious thing on many occasions it has been said with the. utmost good nature and without the least affectation. He has certainly tried hard to he as so ciable as his predecessor, and has suc ceeded in being more genial and sympa thetic. In Mr. Taft's appearance and ad dress there is nothing acsresslvo and bumptious, nothing that rasps, .provokes and aggravates. . He seems to have made a hit by being himself. As .his journey ends he owns that he is weary, and he is of no mind to set off for Panama during the Winter perhaps he "will send the Secretary of War, who is hard as nails himself, and who also has a heart for any fate. Virginia Belle'. Wit. De Leon's "Belles and Beaux." Two examples of Miss Ould's quickness I can personally vouch for. Shortly be fore her marriage she was at a dinner In Richmond with several lawyers, one of whom was a noted Munchausen; he was also a desperate drinker and held long sessions. He was boasting of one case in which he had earned a Wl fee and then spent It on a single spre.. Her table neighbor asked Miss Ould if she credited the fctory. Her answer was prompt"! might doubt the. storied earn, hut he's all right for tnat animated bust!" Would Be Tatcn C'nre Of. Louisville Courier-Journal. "I fear I am not worthy of you." "Never mind about that." responded the young lady with the square jaw. "Be tween mother and myself. I imagine we can effect the necessary improvements."