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Eastern Business Office. The S. C. Beck wlth Special Acency New York, rooms 48 HO Tribune building- Chicago, rooms 510-512 Tribune building. rOBTLAXD, THURSDAY. FEB. 17. 1910. tXNCOLVS TBOPHECr' ONCE MORE In the days of wildest popullstlo Journalism "a prophecy," ascribed to Abraham 'Lincoln, was printed and reprinted continually. No use, for a time, to show that It was fictitious and false: that It could not possibly have emanated from Lincoln. No use to challenge production of It from any authorized source of Lin coln's utterances, or to ask when, where, or on what occasion, it was delivered. Orators of the grade of Sockless Jerry stuck to it: and all Populist and not a few Democratic prints, likewise. Finally, however, there was success In fixing attention on the Impossibility of the assump tion that any such utterance could have proceeded from Lincoln and the fabrication was dropped for a time. But it now begins to reappear. Sev eral newspapers that ought to know better among them the Chicago Evening Journal took the opportun ity of Lincoln's latest birthday to set it going again. In former times It was said to have been spoken ' by Mr. Lincoln in November, 1864. Now the Chicago paper says It was uttered by him "Just before Lee surrendered at Appomattox." Some twenty years ago its utterance was declared to have been traced back to a spiritualistic medium, who delivered it about the year 1875. Beyond that, no trace of it ever has been discovered. The "prophecy" runs thus: We may congratulate ourselves that this cruel war is nearlng Its close. It has cost a vast amount in treasure and blood, i'ho best blood of the flower of Amer ican youth has been freely offered upon our country's altar, that the Nation might live. It has been. Indeed, a trying , hour tor the Republic, but I see In the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves pie. and causes me to tremble for the Safety of my country. As a result of the war. corporations have been enthroned, and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money power of the country will endeavor to prolong the reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth Is aggregated in the hands of the few, and the Republic destroyed. I feel at this moment more anxiety for the safety of my country than ever be fore, even in the midst of war. No person accustomed to literary Inquiry and criticism could for a mo ment be misled into a belief or sup position that this screed came from Abraham Lincoln. Its spuriousness appears in every part of it. The first canon of literary inquiry and criti cism is that every genuine literary product, purporting to belong to a particular time, must be in harmony with the general thought, language, events and conditions of that time. Every spurious thing in literature has been betrayed by its own internal evi dences. So of this "alleged prophecy." Every person competent to judge sees that it does not belong to Lincoln's lime. ; First, look at the improbability of the assertion that Lincoln said: "We may congratulate ourselves that this cruel war is nearing its close." He could not, then, have said such a thing. Nobody was in position to say It. The Confederacy resisted with an unflagging energy to the last. Again, Lincoln is made to say, in the midst of war, that he "felt more anxiety for his country than ever before, even In the midst of war." But these are not the chief discrepancies. Note the general language. People then were not talking about the "en thronement of corporations," the "reign of the money power" and the "aggregation of all wealth in the hands of the few." That was the lingo of a much later time. It appeared In the populistic and fiat money era of our political life. There was not a single note of it in Lincoln's time. The country and the President were engrossed with other thoughts. Cor porations had not assumed any part of the importance that they attained In the later growth; nor was any body talking In those days about the aggregation of wealth in the hands of the few. The country was strain ing every nerve and pressing its re sources to exhaustion, in the prosecu tion of the war. The very language, the turns of thought and expression of this so-called prophecy are the rhetorical rubbish of later ..times that is, of the aggressive days of a rising populistic fervor not yet wholly spent. It prohably was the work of a ': woman. Certainly It sounds most like an outburst of the populist femi nine mind of some Mary Ellen Lease, who had the shriek with the lingo, and could even get "spirit rev elations" on demand. Sound criticism always turns to the Internal evidence of a composition to decide its genuineness. If not gen uine it certainly will betray itself by anachronisms of thought and expres sion. Ever since Bentley (1699) cleared the way for this method of criticism and interpretation, it has been followed by all competent schol arship. Through it most of the prin cipal literary impostures of various times'have been cleared up as those in, English of Chatterton, Psalman azar and Macpherson, and of Defoe, most natural, or adroltest, of all. It affords a "method also of inestimable use in Biblical criticism as in exam inatlon of the Pentateuch and. new distribution of its elements; in sep aration of the two parts of Isaiah and assignment of each to its approx imate date; in changing the Judgment of the world as to the date of the Book of Daniel, and of sorting and assigning to their sources the prin cipal materials of the Gospel of John Examination of the syntax of a com position, of Its use of words and particles, of the materials borrowed by the writer, of the conditions as far as ascertainable under which -his work must have been produced, tend to approximation to the time and ex planation of the purpose of the writer. The Italian Ferrero, whose Roman history is the admiration of the literary world of our day, gives with a sure touch the occasion and the date of almost every one of the principal metric compositions of Horace almost as clearly as we know the origin 'of "Paradise Lost" and "In Memoriam." The science of liter ary interpretation enables the mod ern mind to read the past with a sureness and certainty that give his tory a new meaning. STRICTLY rV ACCORD WITH THE DAW Nobody proposes abolition of the primary law. Nobody proposes to disregard it. All must obey it. Nom ination" of all, candidates will be car ried on under the primary law and strictly in accord with its provisions and requirements. The assembly or convention does not disturb it, does not take one Jot or tittle from it. The assembly or convention simply offers candidates for nomination at the primary. It is merely a method a party, or a group of citizens, may employ for agreement among them selves as to candidates whom they sup pose might be suitable and fit for the positions to be filled. If these are con firmed at the primary, then they will be candidates for the election. They may be nominated at the primary, may not; they may win at the general election, may not. This method of convention is wholly different from the old one. The primary then was not under pro tection or sanction of law. Now, it is strictly so. The candidates then were nominated by conventions. Now they can be nominated only at primaries, strictly governed by law. There is no similarity .between the old and the new. The difference goes to the basis of the whole system. No party, no body of citizens, can follow the old system. -The present primary law makes it impossible. It Is useless, therefore, to conjure up the ghost of the old system, for new terror. That is a paltry expedient of politicians who are in mortal fear lest their opponents shall "get to gether" and thereby become able to elect men to important office again. The call for convention or assembly is a proper effort for party organi zation, on a representative system. perfectly In accord with the primary law. Political parties are expressly recognized in the law, and by the law Itself. Possibly the reason why ce.rtain politicians don't mind' the business of their own party lies in their reali zation that their party in Oregon is not Important enough to have any 'business save that of intrusion into the affairs of others. PORTLANIVS GRAIN EXPORTING TRADE If anyone has doubt about the pre eminence of Portland in the grain trade of the Pacific Northwest, It will be dispelled by a glance at the list of firms doing business in this city. The twenty Portland firms signing a call for a special meeting at the Merchants Exchange yesterday, with their Puget Sound branches, have this year handled more than 80 per cent, of the grain sold in Oregon, Washington and Idaho. There are. no wheat exporters on Puget Sound except the firms who have their principal, headquarters in this city. In addition to these ex porters, there -are a dozen firms oper ating in this city which have no of fices on Puget Sound. Nearly one-half of these new firms have, come into the field since the North Bank road was completed to Portland. With the coming of the Central Oregon road there will un doubtedly be many others. AMERICANIZING CANADA. That the so-called American "In vasion" of Canada Is a far more seri ous matter for the British Empire than is generally recognized, is strik ingly set forth in a remarkable article recently published by the Calgary Optimist. Loyalty of 'Alberta and Saskatchewan, two of the greatest provinces in Canada, is openly ques tioned by this bold Canadian writer, who asserts that 'the two provinces "offer a problem In patriotism," and that while there is no thought of dis loyalty to the dominion, it is a ques tion "How far will the prairie West follow the East in her loyalty to the Empire?" The Optimist writer finds a large and increasing number of men who firmly believe that a politic al union of the North American con tinent would create "oncei and for ever the greatest nation of the earth" and the Americans all favor this union. He is quite positive that the American does not lose any of his patriotism by crossing the line. On this point he says: Canada deceives herself when she thinks if she does so think that the American settler, as a unit, has lost his heart to the Dominion as an Integral part of the Empire. He likes Canada. He Is grate ful for the bountiful opportunity she af fords. He will stoutly uphold the virtue of her laws and institutions. But deep in his heart. In the Holy of Holies of his patriotic shrine is the Stars and Stripes. Americans believe in their country. They have a splendid patriotism. Almost any day you can hear an American in Calgary point out his " nation's shortcomings and defects, but If you want to test his patriot ism for his native land, attack it. I know, for 1 have made the test a hundred times without a failure. Much of the credit or discredit for this transplanted patriotism, accord ing to the point from which it is viewed, Is given the. Canadian Pacific which plays it as one of its strong cards in inducing immigration of the American in preference to all other classes. It is pointed out that the railroad company does not care for immigrants from Eastern Canada, for they are already located there and are needed to create business for the eastern divisions of the line. This sagacious transcontinental line which is officered by ex-Americans makes a special effort to secure American farmers because they are recognized as the best type obtainable and If they can only be Induced to cross the line, in the language of the Op timist, "the question of Imperial re sponsibility can go hang." That the American is perfectly free to let this responsibility "go hang," and is even aided in the act by the Western Canadians themselves, is apparent from an incident men tioned by the writer in which two Canadians were discussing the quali fications of a certain man for a cer tain position. "He calls himself an American," said one, "but I believe he is a damn Englishman." The writer In commenting on the Incident states that he never .In the United States heard as much open prejudice against Englishmen as is heard in Canada. "I attribute it," said he, "to the .subject of Canada's alleged Im perial responsibility. Deep in the average Canadian heart exists a re sentment against the British implica tion that Canada .must come through." As further illustration of the feeling of the Canadians against "coming through" wjth ' any contributions to the imperial navy, it is noted that a prominent Canadian publicly de clared, "the West wants box cars, not battleships." This sentiment is again reflected by the Optimist writer, who sums up the situation in the statement that "Canada has a world of landed area to subdue and develop. She has, west of Manitoba, newly discovered room for . the pop ulation . of the .British Isles. She is at work with feverish energy at its development. She is losing Interest in England's brown inheritance in India; losing interest in England's problem. In the deep, absorbing study of her own." This kind of talk would have been regarded as treasonable, a few years ago, but this courageous Canadian goes still further and openly predicts the early birth of an independent Ca nadian nation. He follows this pre diction with the startling question: "What other conclusion can you glean from the drift of the times, from the tacit declination of Parliament to con tribute ships or money to the imperial defense? She could not thus decline and imply acceptance "of continued British protection. She proceeds to build her own defense. Was there ever a declaration of independence that declared more?" This remarkable political condition in Western Canada can hardly fail to have a disquieting effect among the loyal Britons and a correspondingly pleasing effect on the American in vaders", who have certainly been ac tive in spreading the gospel of free dom in their new homes. WHY IS A COMET'S TAIL? As Halley's comet in its fearsome advance draws nearer to the 'earth, timorous interest in its tail grows deeper. Nobody seems to pay much attention to its head. Everybody wants to know what the tail is and whether or not it Is likely to annihil ate the population of the earth. Pro fessor R. K. Duncan, of Kansas Uni versity, has Just published a book which supplies answers to these ques tions. The comet's tail, he says, con sists of sooty dust thrown out by the head, as the sun heats it. The parti cles are very fine, and they are driven away from the sun and made to form a 'tail by the force of light. Most people will shy at this. Light has no impulsive force. If it had any, how could it continue to batter away at the sensitive eye and still cause no pain? Thus the scorner. But he is mis taken. Light, strikes very feebly against things, but it has some force, enough to twist a thin gold leaf hung In a vacuum by a nnewire. On heavy bodies it produces no ef fect The slight impulse is taken up by their mass and lost. But very small bodies, like dust particles, have not much mass, or weight. On the other hand, their surface is relatively large. The smaller a particle be comes the greater grows its surface in comparison with its weight.1" In other words, much light strikes it and' its resistance to the impulsive force is almost nothing. Therefore, like an evil spirit, it flees before the light and the smaller It is the faster it goes. This is why a comet's tail shoots out so rapidly. It is also the reason why it always points away from the sun. That is the direction in which light travels. Finally, it is the reason why the tail of a comet never harmed anybody and never can. BOYS AND GIRLS IN HIGH SCHOOLS. Job Wood, statistician in the office of State Superintendent of Public Ed ucation, of California, has, by careful observation reached the conclusion that boys and girls of our public schools should be segregated in their studies and association. That is to say that there should be high schools for boys and high schools for girls. This segregation is urged strictly in the interest of boys who, as this au thority believes, do not, have a fair show, when at the "awkward age" they are put in competition with girls in study, manners and personal ap pearance "Put boys by themselves," he urges, "and they will work to excel their class mates, in that way bringing out what there is in them." There is something in this, no doubt. We are all familiar with the argu ments on the other side, of how girls tend to refine boys and teach them to be mannerly; how boys, from natural pride, will strive to get higher marks than the girls In their class, etc., etc. But the fact remains that in the larger cities of the country it has been found to be both wise and expedient to seg regate the boys and girls in the high schools not for the good of the boys alone, but for the benefit of the girls, also. The question is a simple and nat ural one that should be considered without prejudice, discussed without heat and decided in accordance with the knowledge of a human nature that Is neither good nor bad, but that at the adolescent stage needs to be taught some things that are not found in books. ' IMMIGRATION PROBLEMS. Indiscriminate immigration has cost this country unnumbered mil lions through the lawlessness, worth lessness and "general cussedness" of large numbers of that horde of ignor ant and vicious aliens who have poured into this country under our present rather loose laws. The an nual report of Commissioner-General Keefe, a synopsis of which appeared in The Oregonian yesterday, urges the adoption of more stringent meas ures for shutting out undesirables. Incidentally, the Commissioner sug gests a method for shutting out also some desirables who might be ex pected to compete with labor already here. He is In favor of "permitting the Importation of alien skilled labor ers if labor Of like kind unemployed cannot be found here." To admit this class of labor, however, it is provided that the consent of the Secretary of Commerce and Labor should be ob tained in advance. Any one at all fa miliar with labor union methods in this country can readily understand that there will be no positions availa ble that home talent cannot fill. Mr. Keefe makes an excellent sug gestion in the proposal that all male aliens between the ages of 16 and 50 be required to pass a physical exam ination equal to that observed by Army requirements. We cannot al ways determine the moral disabilities which make undesirables out of. many of the low-browed foreigners entering our ports, but the physically unfit can be rejected without much difficulty. Another striking economic feature of the report lies in the figures on naturalization certificates Issued last year. The principal part of this work was transacted in New York, Penn sylvania, Illinois and Massachusetts, the sections In which immigration Is less needed or . desired .than any where else in the United States. It would be impossible to determine how far the newcomers are affected for good or bad by the unfortunate environment in which they land in this country. Certain it is, there can be nothing very attractive or encour aging for an incoming alien, flushed with the hopes of picking up some of the "easy money" which all Euro peans expect to find here, to land In such congested labor centers as can be found nowhere In this country ex cept in the state's mentioned. If some system could be perfected for distrib uting this labor, throughout the West it would be advantageous alike to the West, which needs the labor; to the East, which does not need it, and to the laborer himself, who needs employment. .Venerable Claus Spreckels, stern and unforgiving, went to his grave with hatred, in his heart for his own flesh and blood. All of the millions which were piled up -by . the sugar king and his sons were Insufficient to keep the family skeletons from dancing out of the closet and 'parad ing before the public. But now the courts have decided that the man of millions, so far as it had a finan cial bearing on his family, could not carry his hatred beyond the grave. The mighty fortune he built up must be divided equally between the sons he favored and those he cast off. The widow of the dead millionaire and the mother of the warring chil dren passed from earth on the day the court rendered the decision which set aside the will. For at least two of the family, the possession of so many millions is no longer a source of trouble and scandal. "Vanity of vanities," etc. Out of the mass of fool wagers by which men are expected to break rec ords in walking, riding, eating, drink ing, talking, etc., shines "like a good deed in a naughty world," that of wealthy Mr. Van Fleet of Elmira, N. T. Mr. Van Fleet wagered $10,000 that he could work for two years as a common laborer and save $400. He won the bet and had $59 margin to spare. The best Job he had during the two years was driving a milk wagon at $40 a month. As a demon strator of the world-old fact that thrift and industry still bring their rewards, Mr. Van Fleet is a public benefactor. If some skeptical student of political economy is desirous of learning how many men there are in Portland who do not care to save $400 in two years by hard work, all that is necessary is for him to attempt to hire some of the street corner Jaw smiths with $40 a month as the best job offered. The extent to which the electric line is encroaching on the preserves of the steam road is shown in a statement in yesterday's news dispatches relat ing the experience of a man who trav eled from Syracuse, N. Y., to St. Louis by a roundabout route through sev eral states, in which he used electric lines for a distance of 1689 miles out of a total of 1749 miles traveled. His return trip is to be made over electric lines, and will cover 1009 miles. The electric road, especially in the West, has always proved an excellent devel oper of new traffic, and it is not im probable that a greater portion of the vast network of lines in the East are supported by new business that they have encouraged. Eventually, how ever, the trolley, with its economy of operation and general utility in local work, will make serious inroads on the revenues of the steam roads. While Clatsop and Tillamook Coun ties are preparing to spend unusually large amounts for road work during the coming season, in order that travel and traffic may be expedited, Yamhill County is reported to have leased twelve miles of the Sheridan road lead, ing to the Tillamook County line to persons who will operate -it as a toll road. The tollroad has never been a popular institution in this country, and, while there are isolated cases where the enterprise of the private citizen in building a Voad through a bad stretch of country should be re warded with the privilege of taking toll from travelers, it seems hardly proper that a County Court should lease any of the highways already built for exploitation by private Indi viduals. The tollroad to Tillamook will hardly prove popular. After repeated postponements, the celebrated Southern Pacific-Union Pacific merger case is at last on trial in New York. If it should be estab lished by the testimony that these two roads, for the greater part of their length, several hundred miles apart, should be dissolved from common ownership, there may be a chance to break up some of the merged roads in the East, which are located within, a mile or two of each other. Mr. Wehrung, it is said, since quit ting the Oregon exhibit at Seattle and the Livestock show at Portland, will start a bank. In that business he ought to get all that's coming his way. The claim of the United Stiates to regulate the construction and opera tion of bridges wholly within a state goes too far. It makes a very trouble some situation at Portland. Mr. Glavls thinks a tremendous public responsibility rests on his shoulders. It makes a big man of him, and the lesser responsibility of husband' does not count. Democrats can get back from the Jeffries-Johnson prizefight next July in full time to keep close watch on the Republican assembly. Appointment of Peary as Rear-Admiral would bring the1 polar contro versy home to a lot of resentful Navy officers. With Dr. Cook reported in the Southern Hemisphere, the quest for the South Pole becomes alarming. No oldest inhabitants have come forth to tell about the Winter of Hal ley's comet's preceding visit. EAST SIDE'S POPriATIO.V. j Some Psrts Which Bear en Proposed Location of Auditorium. PORTLAND, Feb. 16. To the Edi tor.) In your issue of this morning B. S. Josselyn, In discussing a loca tion for the proposed auditorium says: "The auditorium should be located so that it will have the benefit of the greatest possible proportion of the city's car service. For that reason the Lewis and Clark Fair grounds are admirably suited. The auditorium should ndt be located on the East Side because of the difficulty of getting" large numbers of persons across the bridges." In saying these things It Is evident that Mr. Josselyn is speaking not so much for the people of Portland, as for the Portland, Railway, Light & Power Co.. whose faithful servant he Is. For at least four-fifths of the peo ple of Portland the location proposed would be one of the most Inconvenient that could be named. To reach It every body would have to contribute to the Portland Railway, Light & Power Co. Does Mr. Josselyn realize where the people of Portland live? noes he real ize that even llolladay Park, an East Side park, lies west of a line drawn north and Bouth through the middle of Portland? Does he realize that at least 36,000 more people live on the East Side than on the West Side? Does he not know that for the last two or three years for every residence permit issued for the West Side there have been ten issued for the East Side? Does he realize that even at the present rate (and the percentage is certain to be increased), that there will be soon at least 100.000 more people on the East Side than on the West? What will be the situation in ten years, or In 20 years? Why then does he say: "the auditorium should not be ' located on the East Side because of the difficulty of getting large numbers of persons across the bridges?" The "large numbers" are on the East Side. Even ignoring the main weak ness of his suggestion, bridges of the proposed width and height of the new Steel and Broadway bridges will offer absolutely no obstruction to car traf fic and practically no obstruction to river traffic. Our friends of the West Side should begin to realize that the East Side Is no longer the tall of the dog. The greatest number of the finest homes In Portland are to be, not in her western suburb, but In the main city, on the East Side, in Holladay and Irvlngton and Alameda Park and Rose City and Laurelhurst and stretching all the way from Walnut Park aiv? Piedmont to Eastmoreland on the south. The pe.ople who are to fill your auditorium are to come largely from these homes, and among them Mr. Josselyn's proposition that they buy buttons for an auditorium at Linnton, or the Lewis and Clark Fair grounds, will not, as he suggests, "run like wild fire" by any manner of means. CHARLES B. MOORES. Oregon Trust Bank Affairs. PORTLAND, Feb. lfl. (To the Editor.) Noticing the great credit the German-Amer ican Bank and its officials seem to assume for the manner in which they have met their liabilities as connected with their assumption of the assets and liabilities of the Oregon Trust & Savings Bank. I would like to ask Mr. Willis why? Numerous vie tlms of that late Institution, who, in ac cordance with the assurance held out to them that by' subscribing to and taking telephone bonds they would enahle the bank to pay out dollar for dollar, and' further, by the advice of Receiver Devlin and oth ers In the German-American Bank were prompted to take Home Telephone bonds of Omaha, have not been Included In thlB deal and received equal recognition .with the de positors, who not only stood back, but even constantly annoying and obstructing the means put forth for their protection. It seems like gross injustice at this time, especially when, according to your columns of recent date, the Bankers' Association of this city was willing to negotiate this loan, providing those who had subscribed for bonds and helped Mr. Willis and the German-American, Bank to settle these affairs, were protected also, that this proposition was turned down by Mr. Willis and his associates. SUBSCRIBER. Mr. Willis refused to make any state ment last night in regard to the above letter, saying that he knew nothing about the matter. "The telephone bonds were not re deemed at the bank," he said, "for the simple reason that the German-American bank had nothing to do with them. That is an entirely different matter. I know nothing about it, so I cannot express any opinion regarding It." Mr. Willis was asked if he knew of any agreement that Mr. Devlin had made or considered, and replied: "I know nothing about Mr. Devlin's affairs." Not Lincoln, But Barnum. Letter in London Spectator, January 29. Sir In your article on "The Elections So Far," in last week's Spectator, you refer to "Abraham Lincoln's great prin ciple that though you may fool some of the people all the time, and all the people some of the time, you can not fool all the people all the time." In the Interests of accuracy, it may be worth- while to point out that there is no ground what ever for the popular attribution of this maxim to Lincoln. Its authorship was in vestigated a few years ago by Mr. Spof ford, the assistant librarian of Congress, who could find no trace of it in any of the great. President's speeches, papers, letters, or recorded sayings. Neither Mr. Hay nor Mr. Nicolay, the Joint authors of the standard biography of Lincoln, knew anything about it. Mr. Spofford's inquiries led him to the conclusion that the originator of this much-quoted sen tence was Mr. Phineas T. Barnum whose qualifications for generalizing on such a subject every one must recognize. I am, sir, etc. I HERBERT W. HORWILL. What Investigations Conceal. Boston Traveler. The more Investigations they have in Congress of Ballinger, beef trusts, boost ers of prices, conservation conspiracies, railroad rates and all the things agitating the public the better the Congressmen will like It. for . then nobody will have time to monkey with the tariff or Con gressional extravagance or the th'rgs that count. The situation is parallel tr that of a man sick unto death; everybody is anxious to know the cause of his Ill ness; bacteriologists analyze the water of the house; sanitary engineers examiut the plumbing; this one does this and that one does that; and by the time the name and origin of the sickness are identified the patient is dead and the undertaker has a Job. Great are Investigations. Very Simple Reception for X. R. Indianapolis Star. Mr. Roosevelt Is said to have consented to accept a reception on his. return home provided It takes place on the day of his arrival and Is a simple affair. The sim plicity of It Is already Indicated by the expectation that every boat of every sort about the harbor or within a hundred miles of it, except the ferryboats, will Insist on Joining the water craft proces sion that will go out to meet his ship. As for the land parade, that may be simple, too, If numbers do not count. Will Not Imitate Roosevelt. Baltimore Sun. At any rate, there need be no fear that T. R-, on landing In New York, will follow the example of a former promi nent home-comer and put his foot in his mouth as soon as he opens it. The Optimist. Tit-Bits. Small Boy Pa, what is an optimist? Pa An optimist, my son, is a man who doesn't care a rap what happens so that it doesn't happen to him. CLEAR REVIEW OF THE HERMANN TRIAL Exact Statement of the Charges and Analysis of the Testimony for and Against the Defendant Value of and Importance of the Meldrum Story. This summary of the Hermann trial was written for the rallas Observer by a lawyer who was & spectator In the Federal Court during many days of the proceedings. It is so clean and impartial as to be worthy of reproduction In The Oregonian. PORTLAND, Feb. 14. The great Her mann trial is ended, as far as' the first trial is concerned, with a hung jury. The charge, divested of its legal verbiage, was that in 1901 Blnger Her mann, F. P. Mays and others conspired to purchase a lot of state land in the Blue Mountains, then create a forest re serve and thus, having their land taken from them, get scrip In Its place worth about $S an acre. The plan as claimed by the Govern ment was that Mays would purchase a large lot of state land at $1.25 an acre, pay one-third down, get a reserve creat ed out of their land, thus entitling them to the scrip. It was within the espe cial jurisdiction of Mr. Hermann, as Commissioner of the General Land Of fice, to create forest reserves. Mr. Heney claimed that Hermann was ambitious to become United States Sen ator from Oregon; that he was very anxious to secure the political support of Mr. Mays; that this could be secured by placng Mays under personal obliga tion to him; that to do so, Hermann must be inattentive to the Government Interests by doing a lawful thing for an unjust or wrongful purpose. In other words, that it was perfectly lawful for Mr. Hermann to create a forest reserve, but that It was evidently a "stand in" to create one In the exact spot where Mr. Mays had accidentally (?) pur chased a large lot of state land, worth but little In the market and of still less value for private holding, but very valuable when it became represented by scrip that could be used In securing from the Government an equal number of acres of valuable land elsewhere and used by the holder in securing title to such land. The Government did not claim that Hermann was to benefit financially, but rather, incidentally, in furthering his political ambition. It appeared from the testimony of Henry Meldrum that Hermann entered Into the arrangement with Mays. The defense claimed in this connection that Hermann had published in The Ore gonian an interview In which he took strong ground against the creation of any more forest reserves, and also had in evidence the reports of Mr. Hermann to Congress against the creation of re serves. Mr. Heney asked the jury to consider this question: "'If Mays and others believed Hermann sincere, or. In other words. If they did not know what Her mann would do, would they have spent large sums of money in purchasing land that the evidence showed was not worth 50 cents an acre?" The Government attorney contended strenuously for the truth of Meldrum's testimony; in fact, this testimony was the storm center of the case. The de fense sought to attack It by various means. One witness was very positive that no conversation was had by her and Meldrum, except she said: "I ap plied once for a position in Meldrum's office. I never talked with him but once, and all of the conversation was simply asking him if he had a place for me. He said no. I told him good-day and never called again." The prosecu tion had proved some very damaging things as having been said by this wit ness to Meldrum. and the witness was confronted with letters written by Her mann in which he referred to her let ters to him about having called twice to see Meldrum and about a lengthy conversation she reported to Hermann as having had with Meldrum. All through the case, to every little conversation and every little contradic tion, apparent or real, the respective attorneys directed their argument. Nothing escaped either side. Much amusement was created by some of Hermann's letters to Brownell, Loomis and Ormsby, in which he asked their support for Senator. " Mr. Hermann's cross - examination weakened him quite materially not in any one thing he said, but In his seem ing lack of frankness. If Innocent. Heney made much of this. The defense SAW THE HALLEY COMET IX 1S5. Portland Veteran Gives) Hla Impressions of the Celestial Visitor. PORTLAND, Feb. 14. (To the Edit or.) Having noticed from time to time many comments on the Halley comet, I had the good fortune to gaze upon Its passage for many evenings as It traversed the heavens in 1835. I was living at that time in the village of Williamsburg. 12 miles south of Dayton, Ohio, and there was no appreciable disturbance . noticed to either man, beast or fowl. Some peo ple I think lost a few hens from the night gazers, but I think this loss could not be attributed to the comet. Now as-to what may happen at this time I am not competent to Judge, but those who. are fortunate to view the comet's appearance this year will have something to store In their memories for all time, as its magnificent grand eur was simply indescribable on its former appearance. If the comet car ries out its former programme when the earth passes through the tail of the comet, there may be a brilliant display of what may seem falling stars, but as far as my memory serves me I recall no disaster of any kind. WILLIAM MORTON. Steering; Boats By Wireless. According to the Frankfort Gazette, some successful experiments were recent ly carried on at Nuremberg by the Arm of Wlrth. Beck & Knauss in steering a motorboat by means) of wireless teleg raphy. At the lighthouse on the lake they erected the antennae and on the bridge they installed the transmitting ap paratus. On the boat the wire was stretched between two masts, 13 feet in height and IS feet apart. The receiving apparatus was fitted In the forepart of the boat, and In the stern were the switch and electric steering gear. In the course of the trials the boat was made to describe curves to the right or left and to turn sharply In either direction. The object of the tests was to prove that it was possible to transmit signals to an Intermediate point, and thence, as di rected by a shore station, to control the steering gear on board a vessel. Quaker Meditation. Philadelphia Record. The hardest thing to beat in this world is your way through life. The trouble with self-confidence is that it isn't always backed up by ability. Just because a man's sympathies are enlisted is no reason why he should draw a pension. Our castles In the air frequently take the form of the top floor of a 16-story apartment-house. Some people are such sticklers for form that they wouldn't even go to work with out an engraved invitation. When a fellow who has sand proposes to a girl who Is as sweet as sugar. It ought to make a successful mixture.. By this time the average man has broken all the resolutions he made at New Year's, and a few he didn't make. Heartless Woman. Houston Post There are some very heartless women in this world. A New York woman prose cuted a man who kissed her, even after he explained that he was attracted not only by her beauty but By her hat, which was the prettiest he ever saw. devoted niuch attention to Meldrum and bitterly assailed his testimony aa that of one still having two Indictments hanging over him. The defense had many of the leading men of Oregon testify as to Hermann's good reputation for honesty, and it also pressed home with effect the evident Intent of two of the Government wit nesses to force Mr. Hermann . out of public life. One witness, who was very damaging In his testimony, if believed. was shown to have been in the employ of Hyde and Benson, land-fraud men. while holding a confidential nosition in the Land Office under Hermann. This man -was clearly shown up to be a scoundrel, not only by his own confes sion, but by documentary evidence. Much was made by the prosecution concerning Hermann's political letters, but this was answered by the. defense by citing the fact that it is no unusual thing for a candidate for off.ee to hold out Inducements In the way of implied promises of friendship to his support ers. A large number of persons in the courtroom, who had heard all of the testimony, expressed a confidence in Hermann's acquittal. In his charge to the jury. Judge Wolverton said it was not necessary that there should have been an express understanding among Mays, Hermann and others to constitute a conspiracy, but that If there was a tacit under standing tiiat Hermann would do cer tain things for his part in the further ance of the common purpose, that would be sufficient evidence of a con spiracy. In many ways the case against Mr. Hermann is a sad one. For nearly 50 years the defendant has been a. well known public man. He came to Oregon when a boy, worked on a farm, taught school, and educated himself for a law yer. He was made Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue, a State Senator. Re ceiver of the LanA Office at Riwehursr and a Congressman from Oregon for 12 years. He was appointed Commissioner of the General Land Office by President McKinley. Resigning this office, he re turned to Oregon and was elected to fill out the unexpired term of the man who had defeated him for Congress in 1896.' Was again elected to Congress, but before his term expired was in dicted by the United States grand jury on a charge of conspiring to defraud the state and Government. For fivo years this indictment hung over him," and, after a trial of five weeks, he must undergo the ordeal again. During all the years of his endeavor no one has ever charged that Hermann was not honest in all his financial deal ings. No one has ever claimed that lie used his various offices to make money out of them, except what belonged to him by right. While men Joked about his suave manners and Jolly handshake, while others questioned the sincerity of his friendship, his real Innate honesty was never Questioned. Sad indeed it wns for one, not even a political sup porter, to listen to the terrible arraign ment as the Government attorneys sought to weave around him a chain of circumstances indicating, as tiiey claimed, his guilt. Vet it was a relief to know that these attorneys disclaimed any purpose of Mr. Hermann to gain money by what they asserted was a plan on his part to sleep at his post of duty while his political friends put dis honest dollars in their pockets. Sad, Indeed. It was! A man, nearly 70 years of age. surrounded by his wife and children, sitting in the courtroom while the attorneys for the Government charged him with betrayal of his trust to gain political Influence. How rapt his attention to every word! Again, turn to watch him as his attorneys went over the testimony, building up their theory that all he did was for the public good, showing np the motives of those who sought his ruin. What could have been his thoughts as the Jury filed out of the courtroom, and he knew that in the hands of these 12 men rested his fate. Would it be McNeill's Island ami disgrace, or would It be freedom and his home in Roseburg? Guilty, Binger Hermann's punishment has been great.' Innocent, the. wrong done him can never be righted. HE WORKS AT 7tt WITHOUT MEAT W. E. Pridgen Haas Been a Vegetarian Twenty Years and Labored Uaily. Kansas City Star. I have not eaten ten pounds of meat In all my life. I soon will be 76 years old and I can do as heavy work as any man half my age. 1 believe the average American working-man would live longer and be happier certainly he would be healthier if he would eat less meat. A grizzly bearded man gave the fore going advice. He is a wagon maker and his fellow workmen say W. B. Fridgen can do as much work as any of them In spite of his gray hair and brow wrinkled with age. And Pridgen says it's all be cause he hasn't eaten meat. Mr. Pridgen lives at 916 East Four teenth street. He is employed at the Pa ul ham Wagon Works at Fifteenth street and Garfield avenue. "I have been a vegetarian all my life," he said. "It has been no hobby or fad. Meat In any form never has appealed to me, so I simply wouldn't eat it. 1 was born on & farm In Illinois. We used to have meat on the table three times a day but I would never touch it, even when a child. Thanksgiving I would eat all the 'trimmins' and let the other folks get rid of the turkey. They said I was 'queer.' Perhaps I was, but I have out lived all my brothers. "When I served through the Civil War with the Ninety-first Illinois I would trade my bacon for sugar or coffee or 'hard tack.' Once or twice I had to eat meat because I could get nothing else, but I know I have not eaten more than 10 pounds of meat of any kind in my en tire life. The last time I touched it was 20 years ago, on my 56th birthday an niversary. Some friends persuaded ma to eat a dish of breakfast bacon. It looked crisp and smelled nice, but I didn't like it. Your sizzling steaks have no charm for me. "What do I eat? Any vegetable, there are plenty of them more appetizing than meat. And biscuits. The number of bis cuits I have eaten In my life would be almost as remarkable as the small amount of meat. My advice to working men would be, 'Fiat less meat. If you can't do without it altogether, cut down on the amount- You will live longer and be happier.' " ' I. oaf Bread a Modern Food. London Chronicle. It Is perhaps worth recalling that fas art of baking loaves'came to Europe quite late in history. Flat cakes were baked even in the earliest times, but as late as the beginning of the 19th century lotf bread was comparatively unknown la. many parts of the Continent. In 1S12, for instance, when an English captain ordered loaves to the value of 1 in Goth enburg the baker stipulated for payment in advance, on the ground that he woiId never be able to sell them In the city : they were left on his hands. The Punishment for the Crime. The Spectator (Portland). Blnger Hermann seems to be on trial for having an ambition to go to the United States Senate. If all our cit izens similarly minded were found guilty of that offense we should have to close- our hotels and build more penitentiaries.