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1.
REFORMING THE SALOON.
At least one unmistakable lesson
can be drawn from the plan proposed
by the Oregon Home Rule Association
for the. regulation of the saloon and
Its favorable reception by the public
.at the meeting- In the Armory where
it was read. The lesson Is that the
saloon la Its present condition finds
few. If any. defenders. AU reasonable
people are profoundly convinced that
radical changes In Us character are
necessary. Unless these changes are
made. It U Idle to expect that the
fight against the saloons will ever
cease. Instead of ceasing It will be
come more bitter every year. and.
moreover. It is likely to win to the
prohibition side a larger and larger
proportion of the decent element of
the population. Once convince right
thinking men and women that the sa
loon cannot be regulated so as to re
duce its evils to a minimum and they
will never rest until It has been ex
tirpated, no matter what the process
may cost. The items of the plan pro
posed by the Home Rule Association
are unexceptionable, though It might
be remarked, perhaps, that some of
them add little or nothing to the law
as It stands.
. The sale of liquor to minors Is al
ready prohibited and In many cities
It Is illegal to furnish drink to habitual
drunkards. The taw of the State of
Washington Includes stringent penal
ties for that unpardonable offence. It
la usual also to fix proper hours for
closing saloons and few places can
be found In this country where It Is
not Illegal to keep them open on Sun
day or to permit gambling within
them. Commonly also the presence
of abandoned women Is forbidden.
Hence In these respects all that the
"plan of the Home Rule Association
does Is to resume the provisions of
the law as It stands, with perhaps
greater emphasis than one usually
sees upon the matter of enforcement.
Indeed were the laws as they stand
strictly enforced. It 1 highly probable
that the agitation against the saloon
woutd lose much of its virulence be
cause the occasion for It would dis
appear. The complaint that rational
reformers make Is not so much that
we lack laws against the saloon as
that It la Impossible to enforce them.
Here Is where the alliance between the
saloon and evil politics shows its hand.
This fact emphasizes the Import
ance of the demand by the Home Rule
Association that the saloon shall "be
forever divorced from politics."' Were
this separation once accomplished
there would be little difficulty in car
rying out the other excellent measures
which the association speaks for.
Among these the limitation of the
number of licenses) to one In each 1009
of population, making the purchaser
of drink equally guilty with the seller
when the law Is violated and Investing
the power to grant licenses In some
other body than the City Council are
all unquestionably wise and they might
be adopted without much delay If the
saloon and the low politician could
b divorced forever. Until they are
divorced the saloon will continue to
be a stench In the nostrils of respect
able dtlsens and its shameless viola
tions of law and decency will continue.
The spectacle which is presented to
the Portland citizen by the sties of
debauchery on Burnslde street are
enough In themselves to account for
the prohibition movement and In some
measure to excuse It. Good men have
tried and tried in vain for many year
. i.an f h. nf fnnalveneaa of these
dens of trie by appealing to the law.
What has the result been? So far
ss actual results go the law has proved
to be powerless and the reason for Its
powerlessness lies In the alliance be
tween the dives and debased politics.
The Home Rule Association seem
to believe that the dlvorre between the
saloon and politics will be effected
br conferring the licensing power
upon courts of record. The applica
tion for a license Is to be tried In legal
form and protestants against It are
to be heard even If there are no more
than three or four of them. This
looks all right, but naturally It will
not be adopted without serious con
sideration of proa and con. Perhaps
after reflection the association may
come to the conclusion that a special
commission to devote Its whole atten
tion to the saloons and their behavior,
thelrllrensee and the duty of revoking
them would be better than to thrust
this probably unwelcome business
upon the Judges. License commission
composed of eminent citizens have
been f excellent servic In Sweden
and England. No doubt we should
find them adapted to our conditions
also. This, bowever. Is a detail which
must be decided later.
The main point Just at present Is to
recognize unreservedly the fact that
the Intelligent public demands a
change In the conduct of the saloons.
The change must be something deeper
and better than a mere temporary
"pandering to the moral element." It
must go to the root of the confessed
evils which now beset the traffic in
strong drink and radically cure them.
Unless It character changes prompt
ly and completely It Is safe to predict
that the war against Its existence will
go on until It has been extirpated so
far as legal extirpation is possible.
Tet the mistake of attempting state
wide prohibition. Impossible to en
force, and certain to encourage and
footer worse evil even than the sa
loon, must not be made.
Work on the Nehalem Jetty I pro
gressing rapidly, and it Is expected that
with the funds available It will be pos
sible to secure a depth of twenty feet
on the bar. If these hopes are resi
tted, H will be but a short time until
the little tw at the mouth of the
Men Nehalem Valley will blossom into
an lmDortant seaport. There Is trib-
utarv to the Kehalem River an Im
mense body of the finest amber in vne
country. The valley also contains a
considerable area of wonderfully rich
bottom lands on which phenomenal
crops of all kinds are grown. Along
the rich bottom lands, a In all the
coast region, grass grow green
throughout the year. When Nehalem
gets her 10-foot channel and the rail
roads connect with Portland, there
will be great possibilities for extensive
immigration and rapid filling up of
the country.
llELPO'O FLAT THE GAME.
The faithful URen has devised,
through his accommodating and more
or less mythical People's Power
League, a project for the creation of
three "People's Inspectors of Govern
ment" who shall conduct a state
newspaper ("Official Gazette") and
shall exercise certain arbitrary powers
over the entire state administration.
Observe how admirably this novel,
project co-ordinates wltfl the Bourne
& Chamberlain game, and furthers
the mutual Interest of the Bourne &
Chamberlain partnership. The three
inspectors can be. and undoubtedly
will be. organized Into a potent politi
cal machine of which all the state
officer from Governor down to state
house Janitor Via be the obedient and
serviceable Instruments. The inspec
tors will hold the Big Stick. What
official or employe will dare to invoke
its vengeful wrath?
But these Inspectors are to be ed
itors, too. They will Issue a "gazette
authorized to publish "letter and In
formation concerning the National
Government and lawmaking and the
acts of our Representatives and Sena
tors In Congress; the result of many
experiments and developments in the
science of government by other na
tion, states, counties and cities, and
other mutters that they believe will
promote the general welfare."
And so on. What a compendium
of Bourne literature the ready space
writers and prolific literary hacks of
the Bourne-Chamberlain press bureau
will be able to produce In this official
Gazette, for which the state (not
Bourne) is to pay. The burden of
maintaining a staff of personal ed
itors and typewriters, and paying the
printer and buying postage, has be
come heavy. Naturally Bourne would
prefer to have the people foot the
bills. He will do the rest, with the
help of West.
NO MOX5CENT XKEDEn.
At Grand Rapids, certain citizens
are seriously taking up the matter of
a monument for Stanley Ketchel. His
claim . for remembrance by posterity
rests on the fact that he once was the
middleweight champion prizefighter.
He lived the life of a "tough." burned
his candle at both ends, enjoyed the
adulation of saloon bum and cigar
store loafers., became a hero on the
sporting page of a great many news
papers, squandered the fortunes won
by his fists and was on the down
grade when a murderer's bullet ended
his career.
For a sane people, certain Ameri
cans do many foolish things. Among
them is the worshiping of prtzerlng
pugs, black and white, foreign and
domestic: but up to this time It has
never been thought necessary to be
queath to future age a memorial in
marble and bronze for a man who
devoted his life to an unlawful, de
grading, demoralizing, beastly voca
tion. There is no objection to, mark
ing the grave of Ketchel with a stone,
but he doesn't deserve a monument.
PORTLAND A IMSTIUBCTrXO CtSTER.
The steamship Aztec la due in Port
land today with a full cargo of mer
chandise from New York. While
Portland bss for a considerable period
been enjoying water transportation
facilities by way of the Panama and
Tehuantepec, this, with the exception
of the cargo of the Beaver, is the first
full cargo to come through from the
Atlantic seaboard by the all-water
route for many years. Maintenance
of a service of this nature Is of much
Importance to Portland. The new
line should be given the best possible
support. The cargo on board the
Aztec Is brought here by Portland
firms for distribution in Portland ter
ritory. If it had not been brought
here on the Aztec. It would have ar
rived either by the American-Hawaiian
line, the Panama line, or by
rail.
A great deal of cheap clap-trap has
been Indulged In by the public dock
promoters to the effect that Portland
was to lose a large amount of business
both before and after the completion
of the Panama canal unless the city
pent many millions In providing a
public dock system In opposition to
the ample private dock facilities al
ready here. We are asked to believe
that unless Portland relieves the ship
owners and Jobbers of the actual le
gitimate expense which 1 necessary
in handling cargo In port, this dis
tributive business that now goes into
the great Columbia basin over a water
level haul from Portland will be di
verted to Puget Sound or San Fran
cisco. Could anything be more, absurd?
By accepting this theory, we muct as
sume that the railroads will haul this
freight from ISO to 400 miles farther
over mountain grade than would be
necessary In distributing It from
Puget Sound or San Francisco. One
cent per ton per mile is regarded as
a very low rail rate so that our al
leged dock "handicap'' would have
to be from II. SO to ft per ton in order
to divert this business from Portland
to ports north or south of Portland.
But there- will be no dlverslon'of this
business. Ships hare been coming to
Portland for more than sixty year
because there was a derannd here for
the cargoes they brought, and there
was awaiting them outward cargoes
of products which are still available
In almost unlimited quantity.
Ships in early days dumped their
cargoes along the mud banks of the
future city and loaded their outward
cargoes there. A the traffic in
creased better facilities were provided
and fnr more than thirty years these
facilities have been well In advance of
the demands that were made on them.
Shipowners who are In the business
for the money they can make out of
It would like to have free docks or
falling In that would like to have the
taxpayers shoulder some of the bur
den. Jobbers who handle these car
goes would like to Increase their
profits by the same method at the ex
pense of the taxpayers. Both of these
Interested parties will Join hands with
the purveyors of dock sites and Insist
that present facilities are Inadequate
and expensive.
They cannot explain, however.
where the traffic Is coming from to
pay even a small fraction on the fixed
charge against even the "opening
wedge," a $2,600,000 expenditure. It
will be many years before a Portland
public dock could secure enough busi
ness to pay even the operating ex
penses at present rates. To meet the
deficit, the taxpayers would be
obliged to pay at least $250,000 a year
to Increase the profits of the ship
owners and Jobbers. Meanwhile more
than nine-tenths of the traffic which
has made the port great would still
be handled over the private docks as
a business proposition standing on Its
merits.
DEMOCRACY'S rREDICAMENT.
Governor Pennoyer is a name for
Democrats of Oregon to conjure with.
When Pennoyer was a power in Dem
ocratic affairs, there was a Demo
cratic party. He was first elected
Governor in 1886. There was elected
with him a Democratic State Treas
urer (Webb) and the State Admlns
tration was, therefore. Democratic,
since these two officais made a ma
jority of the state boards.
There was no complaint under
Pennoyer of one-man domination.
The Democratic party then stood for
a principle, or a code of principles.
It was a powerful, aggressive, numer
ous, and harmonious body.
Then came Chamberlain. Who can
observe the wretched history of the
Democratic party under the leader
ship and guidance of Chamberlain
and fall to hold him accountable for
its loss of principle, decay of prestige
and entire absence of self-respect?
The Democracy has been sacrificed to
the selfish ambitions of Chamberlain.
Its most sacred traditions have been
trifled with to promote the Interest
and welfare of the one-man machine.
Every other Democrat, except the
favored creatures of Chamberlain,
who have been willing to subordinate
their aspirations to his sifpreme ego
tism, has been sacrificed and ignored.
Tet all was wall until Chamberlain
attempted to commit the remnant of
the party to the fortune of a rene
gade Republican. That was going
the limit, and -then some. Che Democ
racy would not" stand for It, It re
volted. Chamberlain Is having trou
ble delivering the goods. The Dem
ocratic uprising extends to West. It
might be all right for West to be a
Chamberlain protege; but to be a
Bourne-Chamberlain creature was too
much.
What Is the Democracy going to
do In Its predicament? It has Bourne
and West on its hands, besides Cham
berlain. What will have been done
for party rehabilitation If It shall elect
West?- Nothing.
CLASS LEGISLATION.
The initiative cannot and will not
long endure a a principle of govern
ment In this or any other state if,
under it workings, one class that
happens to have a great numerical
strength is permitted to submerge the
equally important rights of another
class beneath Its own purposes and
desires. For Illustration and without
intending to impugn the motives of
the framers of the bill, attention Is
called to that measure in which it Is
attempted to define again, the safety
appliances that shall be provided by
employing builders and manufacturers
and to apply a new measure for em
ployers liability In the event of In
Jury to employes.
Tbls bill was drafted by an organi
zation of workers, the State Federa
tion of Labor, which in accordance
with all tendencies of human nature
Is bound to view its own needs from
a selfish standpoint. ' It Is equally
true that the employers could not be
expected to draft a law on the same
subject that would grant every right
to the employe to which he Is entitled.
At the polls in the general election
the vote of the worklngman engaged
In hazardous employment will count
Just a much as the vote of his em
ployer. No one suggests or desires
that It be otherwise. But the em
ployes outnumber many times the em
ployers, and If the men directly con
cerned are left largely to approve or
reject the bill Its fate Is now deter
mined. Outnumbering both together
la the general voting population of
Oregon, and this voting population, so
Jealous of Its power to Initiate and
make law, is showing an apathy on
this and many' other measures of im
portance. Thousands of men, unless
Interest Is somehow aroused, will ex
press neither approval nor disapproval
of the employers' liability bill. Yet It
Is one that by Its character may have
an influence in the further Invest
ment of capital in Oregon and affect
thereby every allied and unallled in
terest. No one but a lawyer would dare
venture an honest opinion, after com
paring the proposed bill with the fac
tory law of 107 and the amendments
of 1909, concerning what parts of the
existing factory laws would remain in
force after the adoption of the new
employers' liability bill, and perhaps
his opinion would not be sustained by
a test In court.
The proposal of such a bill in such
a manner is one of the results of an
unbridled Initiative. The ordinary
voter must let it alone, vote his
prejudices or toss up a coin, unless he
adopts this advice: Use common
sense and If then in doubt vote "no."
But tt U his duty to vote.
KXTTXCTION OF ETDOXIIKJ.'iXJTY.
The death at Bangor. Maine, last
week of W. G. Dillingham, formerly
a well-known purser running out of
Portland, recalls not only the golden
age of steamboatlng on the Columbia
River but It also brings to mind the
remarkable change that ha taken
place In the relation existing between
corporations and the people they
serve. The Oregon Steam Navigation
Co, forerunner of the Oregon Rail
road Navigation Co., was easily the
greatest corporation in the North
west when Dillingham began steam
boating. Here was a monopoly that
had such a grip on the transportation
business of Oregon. Washington and
Northern Idaho that for year it
crushed all competition by the sheer
weight of its speedily accumulated
wealth.
From a small beginning it grew into
a great system of steamboat and rail
line which made millionaire out of
half a dozen men who had started
operations with insignificant capital.
And yet through all the years in
which this corporation was piling up
Immense fortunes for the stockhold
ers and was crushing all competition.
Its relations with the public were al
ways most cordial and pleasant. This
friendship and confidence of the pub
lic was an asset that was lost in the
shuffle about the time the Oregon
Railway & Navigation Co. succeeded
the Oregon Steam Navigation Co., and
it has never since been found' It is
an asset that will never again figure
In the valuation of corporation prop
erty, for the individuality of the em
ploye who represented the company
In the old days, was a power In the
cultivation and maintenance of
friendly relations with the public
Dillingham and Dan O'Nell and at
an earlier date, Knaggs, Ingalls and
other O. S. N. pursers, were not repri
manded, fined or discharged for giv
ing a free passage to a broken-down
old soldier or tramp or for extending
credit to some farmer who had lost or
forgotten his pockotbook. They settled
dispute and ordinary claim in the
purser's office and the most carefully
observed rule was that which insisted
that no patron should be permitted
to leave the boat dissatisfied with the
treatment he had received.. By these
methods, the patrons were made to
feet a personal interest and a personal
acquaintance with the corporation
that was getting their money. Anti
corporation sentiment was small In
deed. It Is offered In excuse for the
system which has made the purser
and all other employes of big corpor
ations mere cogs In the machine that
the present great transportation cor
porations employing thousands of
men could not delegate to these men
the authority to act that was conferred
on the men who in an earlier period
so materially aided In maintaining
pleasant and profitable relations with
the public.
Modern method have made Impos
sible a return to the old conditions and
customs, but so long as there linger
those who lived In the old days, re
gret will be felt over the economio
change that made the new system a
necessity.
The world's wheat statistics yester
day were -all against the grower. With
four months of the new season ended,
the American visible showed an in
crease of 2,142,000 bushels, and now
stand more than 13,000,000 bushels
In excess of last year's figures. Quan
tities, on passage were nearly 11,000,
000 bushels greater, than last year,
while world's shipments for the week
ending Saturday were 4,000.000 bush
els in excess of those for a correspond
ing date a year ago. In the face of
this array of bearishness, it was not
surprising that there was a sharp de
cline in prices. It is a noticeable pe
culiarity of the wheat market that
whenever prices are firm and advanc
ing farmers will not sell, but on a de
clining market offerings are always
large. This singular economic fact
was noticeable Saturday, when heavy
selling was in progress at a number
of points in the interior, some of the
wheat sold changing hands at 10 to IS
cents per bushel less than could have
been secured earlier in the season.
Desertions from the Army during
the post year are reported to show a
decrease of 50 per cent as compared
with the preceding year. General
Maus recommends that "the marked
excellence of officers for command be
made a matter of closer Individual
record and credit." Decrease in de
sertions Is due In large measure to
the treatment of the men by the .offi
cers. The soldier, like the sailor, is,
after all, a human being, and as a rule
Is susceptible to the same influences
that affect other people. It is in the
power of officers to make life bo un
pleasant for the enlisted men that
they are frequently willing to take a
chance on desertion with all of the
disgrace that goes with It, rather than
submit to the imperious discipline
which In many cases comes very close
to nagging and bullying. The officer
who is popular with his men never
ha many deserters to account for.
Samuel Hill, the good roads enthu
siast, has been attending a good roads
convention at Boise, Idaho, and there,
a elsewhere, advocated the employ
ment of convict labor for roadbulldlng.
The State of Washington, which Is
working a large number of Peniten
tiary convicts on state roadbulldlng,
has had such good success with the
work that the merit of the policy ha
been effectually demonstrated. Not
only are the roads built by the con
victs of great value to the state, but
the convicts themselves are kept
much healthier physically, as well as
mentally and morally, than they
would be at indoor employment or
idleness.
The man who was thrown off a
Montavilla car and considerably
bruised was a victim of too much
prosperity that puts everybody at
work and crowds the cars. Some cars
on that line built to seat thirty peo
ple frequently carry nearly three times
that number, as Indicated by the reg
ister of fares. Open draws and work
on the line cause congestion of cars
and everybody ia determined to board
the first, with the result that many
risks of injury are taken.
A telegram from Pittsburg says the
Panama Canal gates are the largest
In the world. We Imagine that San
Francisco to a man will dispute this
claim with the assertion that this dis
tinction belongs exclusively to the
Golden Gate.
Two "white -slavers were sentenced
to the rockplle yesterday and before
they are done with the Federal au
thorities may give them more fitting
punishment. They certainly should
be made examples, for it Is seldom one
Is caught.
1' h ; time .we are promised within
three weeks the Hawthorne bridge,
which was to have been fllnshed. sure,
by November 1. No need for a special
celebration; Just throw in the general
rejoicing with Thanksgiving festivi
ties. '
AH these aviation records will yet
have to be printed in a double-column
table so the man who simply walks
can understand them.
For at least four days this week
San Francisco and Los Angeles will be
Important news centers until the last
half of the ninth inning.
Since Portland leads In prosperity,
what matter a few thousand more or
less people?
Old-time Apache fighters are needed
in the Philippines to pacify rebellious
natives, but the stock is exhausted.
Vote no on every proposed measure
that you don't understand.
North Idaho "sooners" had a joyous
halloween last night.
SCUTTLING THE DIRECT PRIMARY
Logical Statement of the Donrao
Charaberlaln Warfare,
PORTLAND. Oct. 11. (To the Edi
tor.) It used to be so that public
speakers went Into the the field after
the nominations were made and dis
cussed Issues that divided the parties.
Matters upon which the parties di
vided were considered, questions of
great Importance were analyzed and
the campaign In most respects partook
of an Intellectual contest which was
helpful and uplifting. This has all
been changed, however, by the aban
donment of the Democratic party by
the leaders of that party in the inter
est of a so-called "non-partisan" effort
to pose as men who. to use one of
their own pet phrases, "believe in
country before party." This neces
sarily brings about a kind of guerrilla
warfare In which principles are thrown
to the wind and the Oregon campaign
has descended- into a petty scramble
for office, the basis of which is a
mere pretense on the part of the Demo
cratle machine of ''non-partisanship
for the purposes of misleading the
average voter Into drifting Into its
support.
The result of all this Is that a cam
paign speaker is compelled to accept
the situation, and. while the contest is
ostensibly based upon lines of party
division, in reality party principles find
no room for consideration.
Indeed, one of the Bhams of the
Democratic, party of Oregon consists of
the claim that there is no difference
between the parties now that is worth
considering and. anyway, every voter
should think more of country than
party, thus endeavoring to induce as
many Republicans as possible to aban
don their party nominees and support
Democratic candidates, though Demo
cratic voters themselves are supposed
to show their Independence by stay
ing by their own candidates. It is al
ways noticeable that no Democratic
voter is expected to abandon his party
nominees In order to show his loyalty
to country over his party affiliation.
And the wonder of tt is that hereto
fore thousands of Republicans have
been fooled by this shell game and have
lent their aid to the one-man Demo
cratic machine which has never ren
dered anything in return.
So, let us for a little while examine
some of the sophistries with which
these schemers are- trying to fool the
Republican voters of the state. A tre
mendous effort Is being made to secure
the election of Os West to the execu
tive office of the state, a Democrat
who is so anxious to succeed that he
nowhere assumes to be the Democratic
candidate, but poses sometimes as an
"anti-assembly" candidate, at other
times as a Statement Number One can
didate, and other kinds of a candidate,
but never as the Democratic candi
date. Now, why Is this so? Everybody
knows there is but one reason. On a
party vote Oregon is Republican by at
least 20.000 majority, and if Mr. West
should appear before the people as
strictly a Democratic candidate he
would lose the state by that figure.
Therefore, it will be seen at once that
at least 10,000 Republicans must be
fooled into the belief that Mr. West
la not a Democratic candidate other
wise, of course, he would announce
himself as the nominee of the Demo
cratic party as publicly and as frankly
as Mr. Bowerman declares himself as
the Republican candidate. Since the
entire Chamberlain policy is based on
deception It Is necessary for a lot of
Republicans to be fooled by the aban
donment of Mr. West's party name.
My appeal to the Republicans In this
campaign is an appeal for the life of
the direct primary law that it may be
vindicated through the united support
for Mr. Bowerman as, the direct pri
mary nominee of their party. If. In
deed, the people are to rule, it Is in
cumbent upon every voter who has
registered as a Republican and who
declares himself a believer In the pri
mary law and In heeding the voice of
the people to show his faith by his
works. There is a general disposition
In this campaign to do so, but the
Chamberlaln-Bourne-West machine,
evidently reading the handwriting on
the wall. Is trying to move heaven and
earth In an effort to frighten the
timid voter into believing that be
cause Mr. Bowerman was first sug
gested as a "capable and trustworthy
man for Governor, his selection by the
people at the polls at the primary eleo
tlon should be disregarded. The only
defense of this preposterous proposi
tion must have for its foundation the
astonishingly brazen claim that the In
dividual is above the voice of the peo
ple, as expressed at the primary elec
tion, a position which Is precisely that
of the old political boss, and whose
dethronement was the first purpose of
the direct primary law Itself.
So a superhuman effort is being
made to establish a huge specter to be
known as "assemblyism," and to point to
it as a monster of the most hateful
mien, though George E. Chamberlain
Is Its creator. Its sponsor and its first
beneficiary. But there Is no assem
blyism in this campaign nor any as
semblylsts, as everybody knows. There
was a full list of men suggested to
the people by the Republican assembly
and It was submitted to the voters at
the primary election for approval or
rejection. Some of them.were declared
to be "capable and trustworthy," to
use Chamberlain's words, and others
were rejected. The Republicans them
selves, while in their election booths,
acting under the provisions of the di
rect primary law, decided who their
nominees should be, and from that day,
accepting the voice of the people as
final there has been no assemblylte
candidate In Oregon for any office.
There couldn't be if the people are to
rule instead of a few "non-partisan"
bosses, who are trying to perpetuate
themselves in public place, even though
they are forced to advise the scuttling
of tne primary law itself to
accomplish their purposes.
T. T. GEE It.
Pointed Paragraphs.
Chicago News.
There may be such a thing as a
man of very few words but who ever
heard of a woman like that?
A fussy old bachelor says that eat
ing onions will often prevent a mus
tache from coming on a woman's Hp.
Probably most of us would be more
thankful for the things we have. If
there were not so many other things we
want. . .
It's easier for some men to paint
word pictures than ,lt Is for them to
tell the plain unvarnished truth.
Some men enjoy a dry smoke, but you
never see one with the corlatof a bottle
between his lips pulling aMy at it.
When a woman hears that a man who
once made love to her has done some
thing bad she says: "I don't believe
it-" , ,
Even if there is no marriage in
heaven, a woman will probably feel
queer, if she sees her former husband
flying around with some other lady
angel. .
Merely That,
Chicago Tribune.
"Papa," asked Professor McGoozle's
little boy, "what does it mean when a
fellow says he's going to get another
fellow's goat?"
"There is nothing neccessarily ob
scure about that, my son." said Profes
sor MoGoozle. "It Is almply the col
loquial way of conveying the idea that
by some means or In some manner not
clearly indicated tte Intends to acquire
possession of a horned ruminane quad
ruped, genus Capra, species not des
ignated, at present or for the time be
ing, to use an idiomatic phrase, belong
ing to or being the property of the
other preson participating In the sup
posed colloquy."
INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM MEASURES
Bill Requiring F-roteettoni for Persons Enjcaire In Hnanrdoue Employments,
ad DrfluinK and Extending; Liability of Kmployeral It Conflict. With Ex
isting Lawa and Cannot Be Construed by a Layman t Bill. Prepared by fcm
ployera, for Creating a Commission tj Prepare a Measure to Be Submitted
to the Legislature.
Article Xo. It.
- A bill for a law requiring protection for
parsons engaged In hazardous employments,
defining and extending UabUlty of em
ployers and providing that contributory
negligence shall not be a defense.
S30 Yea
JS1 No.
A bill for an act creating- a board of
commissioners of nine members to examine
the subject of employes' indemnity for in
juries sustained In the coarse of their em
ployment, and to prepare a measure to be
presented to the Legislature governing the
same, and report to the Governor of the
state on or before the 1st day ot February,
Mil, and appropriating 11000 for the pur
poses of the mot.
346 Tes.
i7 So.
It Is not reasonable to expect employ
ers alone, or employes alone, to frame
a law governing employers' liability for
personal injuries to employes that will
strike an exact balance between the
rights of both.
Yet we have it that the employes, as
represented by the State Federation of
Labor, have drafted a bill and have pre
sented it to the voters by initiative and.
naturally, the Employers' Association is
found conducting an active campaign In
opposition to its approval.
The voters will also find on the ballot
the title of a bill prepared by the Em
ployers' Association which the State
Federation of Labor is opposing.
Of the two, the employers' bill is the
less objectionable, for the reason that
In Itself it does not seek to settle the
questions of Indemnity to injured em
ployes or the liability of employers
therefor. It provides for the crea
tion of a commission to examine
the subject and draft a blU, but
ties It In its report to the preparation
of an act specifying a schedule of in
demnities for injuries that shall be ex
tended to the employes or to persons
legally dependent upon them in the
event of death resulting from such in
juries. Reports of such commissions are often
disregarded by Legislative Assemblies,
and it is questionable whether any good
would be accomplished by the approval
of the bllL However, the appropriation
of HO00 la not large and no material
harm can arise from enactment of the
measure.
There-is a trace, of direct conflict be
tween the two bills: The one submitted
by the employers provides that the com
mission shall prepare a bill fixing the
Indemnity to be extended to persons
"legally dependent upon such employes
In the event of death resulting from
such injuries."
The labor bill does not restrict the
right of heirs to recover for the death
of an employe to those dependent upon
him. The labor bill fixes no indemnity
schedule, but 1 gives the person injured,
or the widow of a person killed, his
lineal heirs or adopted children, or the
MTL WEST'S LITTLES MILEAGE BILL
Democratic Farmers of Linn Are Not
Pleased Over It.
LEBANON, Or., Oct. SO. (To the Edi
tor.) If the change of sentiment which
has taken place In Linn County within
the past week as to the merits of Mr.
West as the Democratic candidate for
Governor is any Indication of what is
experienced elsewhere, Mr. Bowerman
will be elected by a very large majority.
The more that is seen of Mr. West as
he praises himself and his caliber as a
man generally Is made known to the
people by his little speeches, the more
It is felt that his claim on any Repub
lican support is not Justified. And his
coalition with the Bourne forces, which
has been fully established in the minds
of the people. Is proof that the. primary
law has no friends among that element
unless It helps It Into office. Mr. Bower
man, on the other hand, Impresses the
people as a man of good judgment, and
as he is the nominee of the Republicans
under the primary law and has promised
to oppose every effort which the Legis
lature might make to change In any way
any of the laws passed by the people
we feel that he is the man to support
As against him Mr. West appears to be
a mere adventurer who Is trying to de
ceive the Republicans into voting for a
Democratic candidate for Governor who
has no claims at all upon their support
Besides, that little affidavit of bis that
his address was "Washington, D. C,"
made for the purpose of getting hold of
a few hundred dollars that didn't be
long to him or to the State of Oregon,
acquired for the expense of returning
to Washington when he did not do so,
has settled the business for him among
the farmers generally. At least It Is so
in this part of the country. For the
first time since the opening of the cam
paign here many Democrats are shak
ing their heads when asked their opinion
of that aflldavit as to the expenses of
returning to Washington City and the
taking of the money, admitted by Mr.
West, of course, for making the second
trip to Washington, when, instead of
making it, he went to Salem, and admits
it altogether spoils the halo which Mr.
West paints around himself in his
speeches.
Especially has It cooked Mr. West s
chances when It is remembered that the
state paid his expenses for the trip and
his pay as Railroad Commissioner was
going on all the time. Then, to collect
money from the Government for going
back to Washington again, when he
didn't go, and didn't Intend to go at the
time the affidavit was made, as he says
he had "attended to all the things he
went to see about" the people begin to
feel that Mr. West Is a very, fit candi
date for the Bourne-Chamberlain com
bination. Mr. Bowerman will get the
full Republican vote in Linn County and
some Democrats who don't like the
game that is being played upon them
with Mr. Bourne as Mr. West s chief
hacker Tours for the direct primary
law; A REPUBLICAN.
Xetv York Ccunnalgn Sandwiches.
New lork. Sun.
The Anti-Food Trust Campaigners
who are putting out a pamphlet called
"The Voice of the Kitchen." have sent
sandwich men to work on the East
Side bearing legends like these:
"The more voties for Stlmson the
more money for food."
"On November 9 Mr. Roosevelt will
blame 731.910 of his 'undesirable do
zens' for the defeat of his candidate."
"Mr. Roosevelt: Who are the Wall
street crooks? Name them, lease."
"Everybody who differs with Roose
velt seems to be a crook. Gee whiz,
the state seems to be all crooked!" -
"When YouajVote Remember the High
Cost of Living."
"When You Vote Remember the
Roosevelt Panic."
MrKi nicy's Vote la Multnomah.
ASTORIA, Or., Oct 29. (To the Editor.)
To decide a bet will you kindly state
through the columns of The Oregonlan
what McKinley s majority was In Mult
nomah County in 1806, and oblige.
The Oregonlan does not decide bets,
but It cheerfully publishes Information.
The vote ot Multnomah County In No
vember, 1S96, was: McKlnley. 11.824;
Bryan. Palmer (gold Dem.), 116,
Levering (Pro.), 129.
husband, mother or father, as the case
may be, the right of recovery at law of
any amount of damages that may be
awarded. If such person shall be in
jured or killed by reason of the neglects
or failures or violations of the provis
ions of the act by the employer.
Under existing laws of Oregon, the
father or mother of a person who is of
age and is killed as the result of viola
tions of the factory act may sue only
In behalf of the estate of deceased and
may recover not to exceed $7500. The
parents would share In the amount re
covered to the extent prescribed . by the
Inheritance laws of the state. If the
person killed is under age there is also
the right of recovery by the father or
mother, of the value of the deceased's
services up to the time of his becoming
of age.
The new bill materially alters the ex
isting statutes governing the right of
recovery. Under Its terms the parents
might sue in their own right for dam
ages for the death of a son killed
through negligence of the employer and
recovery up to any amount that might be
awarded. 1
There is doubtful Justice in a pro
vision which permits the father or
mother who is not dependable on a son
or daughter for support, to recovery
without limitation for the death of such
person. He who may believe that the
employer should be punished by the In
fliction of money damages for negligence
that results in the death of an employe
will find In a preceding section a means
of punishing by either line or imprison
ment, or both, the employer who does
not comply with the provisions of the
act The bill thus Imposes excessive
penalties on the delinquent employer,
one of which may be oppressive and
tending to assuage the greed and not
the grief of relations.
Oregon has a factory Inspection act
and a Labor Commissioner duly author
ized to Inspect dangerous appliances and
compel their proper safeguarding. The
new labor bill contains no reference to
existing statutes other than a general
repeal of parts In conflict with the pro
posed new law. The lay mind is In
capable of construing the proposed law
and the existing statutes together in,
many particulars. Initiative measures
of such import should be written so that
the ordinary voter will not have to con
sult a lawyer to determine what would
be their effect.
Because of the undesirable feature
mentioned, and because of what must
be an Indefinite text to the average per
son the labor organization bill should be
defeated. The Oregonlan makes no rec
ommendation concerning the employes'
Indemnity commission bill presented by,
the Employers' Association. '
TOPMOST STEEPLEJACK'S TRICK
Hangs by His Toes on Blew York Build
ing, 674 Feet Above Sidewalk.
New York Sun.
People coming out of the City Hall
exit from the subway walked into a
crowd that spread north and south for;
many blocks from a point opposite the
Postof flee, and that was Interested in-i
George C. Nealy. -.
Mr. Nealy is a steeplegeorga. After,
arising from bed yesterday morning i
the steeplegeorga continued to do so;
until he had arrived at his work., which,
was to scrape the paint off the flag
pole on iop of the Singer building,
from ball to socket and then paint the
pole. By means of a boa'n's seat which
permits one with the inclination to
reach the ball by sliding the foot strap
up the pole until it chocks, while the
climber sits on the seat strap, and then
slides and chocks the seat strap while
standing on the foot strap, next in
creasing the height by shoving higher
the foot strap while sitting on the seat
strap, which in turn la followed by
sliding the seat strap upward while
standing on the foot strap In brief,
George the steeplegeorge had reached
the ball, which is 674 feet above the
Broadway sidewalk.
When George had got up to the ball
by lifting himself by his own seat strap
he hooked the toes of his shoes around
the upper surface of the foot strap and
hung head downward from the top of
the pole, -prompted so to do by a trait
In his character which his friends say
amounts almost to an obsessive love
for all that Is bizarre.
A number of ctizens stopped to watch
the painter hanging head downward.
When George had hung by. his toes
for many minutes he seemed suddenly
to remember that he wasn't up on top
of the flagpole for pleasure alone.
Whereupon he drew - himself up to
where his feet were and began to
scrape the paint off the pole.
The crowd below, which now reached
from Grace Church on the north to the
kitchen windows of the officers' homes
on Governor's Island, breathed easier
when they saw that George had stopped
his foolishness and had -resumed a nor
mal position.
Oddities m New' York Betting.
New York Sun.
There have been a number of freak
bets registered. One of the causes for
oddities has been the Inability of Dlx
backers to get straight wagers on a
win or lose proposition. A Tammany
man made a bet yesterday which has
ten clauses, even money on each of the
following propositions:
1 Dix to win.
2 The whole Democratic state ticket
to win.
3 The Democrats to carry the State
Senate.
4 The Democrats to carry the Assem
bly. 6 The Democrats to win a majority
of the next Congress.
t I1X to have a plurality of 150.000.
7 Dix to have a plurality of 100,000.
g Hearst to receive 75,0,00 votes for
Lieutenant-Governor.
j) Not one Republican Congressman
to be elected in New York County.
10Not one Republican Congressman
to be elected in Kings County.
The man who took the Democratic
end of the wager was willing to make
concessions because he figured oa M
Democratic, landslide.
Reflections of a Bachelor.
New York Press.
It takes brains not to atrow off be
cause of them.
Economizing is a theory; squander
ing a fact .
In a flirting competition a girl can
do more with her eyes than a man
with his brain. .
No doubt blessings are awarded right
up In heaven, but they get awfully
mixed up In the distribution down here.
A man wouldn't make much of a
show of himself over being engaged,
the way he does now. If it came after
marriage.
Half Pints.
Philadelphia Telegraph.
Sing a song of sixpence.
Pocket full of rye
That's the way to carry it
Where the town is dry. .