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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 29, 1910)
our M Portland, Or.on. Fostofflce uwuiul ... Invariably in Advenes, BT II1IU rrty. uUt laHKirf. orv, r'-"--SJ ri:r. i.lr Inrlu.:!. trs months.. lJ Dilf. Sjasar rociorted. one oionlA.... J rilr. without SuaJay. Hi months..... ff xai:y, wittout :. u-ree moots... 1.10 J.30 tia4Air. See ysr. ............ CBT CAJIKIEJO re'ty. Itar tnolii4. ! yr. . .... -S? liir. tu4ir la-ladl. on bobi.." MM npm rc-r or p.ronI you local tut nun.pl wi or "7 r. t the wultfi riw. Ulve A1rm la full. locludla county sod J-MMCB 10 to 14 t i. ,Tr,. i ...i.; xi t. o to pas. 4 seal. rori P- 4oib: rate. .-..w. ImM-m Bo-l-r K Tr V.OTII t w Tor, hniualcl oildl- o, Sler buiUlltc- POBTLASD, THIKADAT. DEC. X. TXKirr axo Mir i-kooot. During the. many T" thl the tariff ha been "revised" br the om political party and then by the other, big manufacturing Interests of the ast bare clung to the notion of pro tection of their own "Infant-" Indus trie and low duty on or free trade In raw product of the Wct and bouth. This notion is still live one in tariff talk and probably U destined to laat longer than M-thusolnh. Her are woolgrowers and manu facturers about to hold a meeting in Portland, in dlKiiu this very subject. Never heretofore hae they agreed In thl matter and one wonders how they are coins to reach agreement In our City of Knee. On thla question the Democratic party "went to pieces last time It was In power. The Republican party has Just been "wrecked on the same reefs of discontent. Each one's share of the tariff bounty haa dlt-gxeted the -other fellows" and all the other fel lows hare pooled their dlgust and turned the Republicans out of control of the National House of Representa tives. Now thla question Is bobbing up again and Democrats must face the peril once more. It may be set down as certain that Western and Southern slates will not submit, without resistance, to reduc tion or elimination of tariff on raw products, for the benefit of manufac tured foods. President Cleveland tried to fore this policy on his party, and hla party revolted. Should the policy be attempted again, there will be an ather revolt. Producers of raw prod ucts will insist on having their share f -protection" benefits. IXCRg-W'J I-WMUiKATIO. Secretary Naitel'a prediction that next year may bring us more Immi grants than this one will excite ap prehensions for the country's welfare In many an anxious breast. This sea son brought more than a million from Italy. Hungary and Russia and heaven knows where else. Next year, unless Mr. Nagel guesses aml.-s. more than 1.150.000 will come. 'What shall we do with them all? The United States Is already over-populated. We have more mouths than we can feed and still the mouths keep coming. Our record of crimes surpasses that of any other civilised country, and yet we make no effective effort to withstand the tide of Ignorant foreigners who bring with them their low standard of morals and their dUposltlon to defy the law. Thus the pessimist be wails himself as he peruses the sta tistics of immigration. There are rea sons, however, to believe that his dis tress is deeper than it need be. From one point of view the swarm of Immi grants who seek our shores Is not a menace but a blessing, and since we cannnot keep them out. perhaps It la wiser to look on the bright side. The notion that this country Is over populated Is so far from the truth that It Is amusing. Belgium with some COO people to the square mile Is not an overpopulated territory. At the outside we have no more than fifty or sixty to the square mile, so that la reality our Inhabitants are sparsely distributed over the country. They do not live near enough to one another to co-operate in the activities of clvll xuktton. The vast uninhabited areas In our country districts are among the causae of the dreariness of rural life In America, as well as of the wretched roads and primitive schools In some quarters. It take people to make a ration, reluctant as a few authorities are to confe It. The circumstance to regret about our Immigrants Is that they have the bad habit or collecting In the cltUs Instead of goirg out upon the land. Hut aftT all. they are no worse In this respect than the native om and daughters of the Mayflower. They. too. gather In toans and shun tho flowers and freedom, of the coun try. Perhaps It Is not wise lo blame the simple Immigrants for following the example set thftn by our better educated iltUer.s of lorg descent. If i took ss much pains to make coun try life attractive as the Canadian government, perhaps we should not have the city problem to worry over. t any rate It would not be so Insist ent. Canada providoa tu Immigrants with cheap land, well fh'wn for farms and sold on long time with y payments. The new arrival finds barn, house and Implements as well as attxjc waiting for htm. His work Is as ready to his fcsnd as It Is In the city. Con sequently we do not hoar anything like so much walling over the hpr trophy of clttcs In Canada as e do at home. We cannot expect Immigrants to go to the country when It amounts to much the same thing as going to solitary confinement In the peniten tiary. There is reason In all things. As for crime, the amount of It con tributed by our 'ignorant foreigners" is usually somewhat exaggerated. We have formed a National habit of lay ing everything on their broad backs. Very of'.en we blame them for sins we ourselves commit. The Huns and Itsllans ars a genlle and kindly lot of people, as everybody knows who haa had anything to do with them. Their fault Is meekness, confiding in nocence and submlsivenc rather than disposition to violence. Per haps the superstition that they are treacherous. bloodthirsty brigands comes from third-class novels. At any rate It la not true. Nor is it quite certain that our political morals suf fer. Ths districts In which vote-buying Is most flagrant are not the city slums Inhabited by natnrailxed for eigners, but states like Delaware, Rhode Island and West Virginia, where ths native blond remains un polluted. West Virginia swarms with owns of the Revolution who w ill not vole unless thsy ars paid for it in hard cash. Huns and Russian Jews are not often guilty of this sin what ever else we may lay at their doors. No doubt the roan who sells his vote ezhilbts superior Intelligence to the one who gives it sheepishly to a boss and get no return whatever, but neither is desirable. There Is something; wrong with con ditions when an able-bodied man who Is willing to work Is looked upon as an injury to the' country. If he had an opportunity to use his muscular power he would add to our productive capacity and be an active factor In creating wealth. Every man of mus cle adds some thousands of dollars to our working capital, or he would do so If he had the chance. We think only of his mouth gaping for food and forget all about his bands which can torbig forth food so rapidly. WOT a yrm AIXIASCE. Governor Wood row Wilson's pro posal of an alliance between students of politics and practical statesmen may have surprised his audience at St. Louis, but If It did It was because they were Ignorant of what Is going on In the world. The German government long ago formed an active combination with the savants In its universities, to the huge benefit of both sides. It Is be cause of this union between theory and practice that Germany has solved problems of transportation which still puzzle some other countries. Her growing manufactures, m hlch threaten to capture the markets of the world, owe their vigor to precisely the alli ance which Governor Wilson advo cates. The theories which scientific students "work out in their laboratories are Immediately applied In practice by the great producing firms, and the result is an output which steadily wins renown for technical perfection and moderate price. Some observers go so Tar as to assert that our own Gov ernment would have avoided a blun der now and then if It had been readier to take counsel of men who had studied various economic and po litical subjects. Our banking and currency system, acknowledged to be crude, has been built up by men who frankly admitted that they knew little or nothing about what they were trying to do. Those of France, Germany and Canada, on the other hand, have been constructed by students, theorists if you like, but they compare favorably with ours. Panics like those, which periodically desolate our Industry are almost un known In France and Germany. The students of public questions in the University of Wisconsin have succeed ed In forming a sort of working alli ance with the politicians of that state. When the latter desire to enact a new law on any subject they actually go to the university to learn iwhat others have thought and done about It. The results are said to be salutary upon the whole. The prophylactic value of stupidity and Ignorance Is sometimes overrated. BAKER AfD THI XEW AHYLrM. Baker neod not buy a suit of sack cloth and a pile of ashes to mourn In because a site for Oregon's branch Insane asylum was not chosen at or near the seat of Baker County. That Institution would pot make nor Its absence break Baker. While it must be admitted that all state institutions bring In more or less "outside" money, It may be doubted whether the real advantage to a city Is anywhere near its estimate in the popular mind. As compared with creative, productive enterprise It has small value. Com munities that depend on the profit from the expenditure of public funds are generally weak and unprogresslve. Adventitious aid such as comes from state Institutions often begets and fosters a spirit of dependence out of keeping with Western energy and self-reliance. These build up towns and cities, gttte capitals are not noted for commercial activity. True, there are exceptions like Denver, St. Paul and Indianapolis. Our own state capital has had Its greatest and most prosperous period of growth since It began to look upon the Institutions located there as sec ondary and entered Into competition for homeseekers and enterprises on the merits of its natural resources and opportunities. The other day Baker accepted the challenge of a rival and will under take to prove that her county haa more different resources more -ways of extracting wealth from the earth than any other county In the state. That's something to be proud of, to capitalize with human labor. Let the asvlum go where It will. Baker need only continue to devote every energy m ..-ui-inr Industrious men to culti vate the soil, open up the mines and multiply the herds upon a inousana hills. A statement at the head of a prospectus that Baker was the seat of an Insane asylum would not help one whit to make such energy productive of the larger and truer results. imi ini'.VL. rc BUnrt r.rroKT. Oregon looks forward to 1111 as the banner year of material progress. No obstacles lie In its way. New ter ritory is being opened up by new rail roads whose publicity departments are alive to their duties and responsi bilities. The Oregon Development League, whose membership includes most of the best blood of towns and cities. Is preparing for a vigorous campaign not one big whirlwind stunt, but steady, continuous, rational effort to Invite homeseekers In large numbers to the land of opportunity. Kach separate community Is or will be provided with facts attractively set forth by commercial organizations. Their chief problem Is to get these facta Into the hands of persons "back East" who are looking for largest re turns for a given amount of labor. It Is the duty of every Individual inter ested In Oregon to furnish names and address-e of prospective homeseekers. In any general publicity work much literature is wasted. One booklet de voted to Oregon apple orchards which falLs under the eye of a distant horti culturist looking for a new location is more effective than a hundred pamphlets mailed indiscriminately. The main endeavor should be to pre sent the various profitable fields of labor that Oregon offers to those who are specially interested in that par ticular field, ir this plan Is followed the percentage of direct Inquiries con cerning the opportunity each locality offers will be large. In Oregon where there Is so much unoccupied land, res ident farmers can aid In settling up tho country and bettering their own conditions by Inducing old neighbors and friend "back home" to Join them out here. There la no danger of over doing this DUbllcitr work. It will be THE MORXTXO OltEGOXTAX, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1910. mnmv vMn before farmers, dairymen and orchardists are crowding one another. Send names and addresses to your nearest' commercial organization. Its secretary or manager will do the rest. Hearty co-operation exists between the Portland Commercial Club and each member of the Oregon Develop ment League as well as the South western Washington League. All are working together for a common end. Let Individuals outside of the commer cial bodies furnish names of friends and acquaintances who are not satis fied with hard conditions In less favored states. If thla is generally done, the present tide of Immigration can be swelled, to volume unprece dented ly strong. B II VAN'S roUTICAL CHAIUTT Our old friend Bryan, the one -who "also ran" for President thrice, calls Woodrow Wilson bolter. He has mis givings, too, about Harmon, the Ohio Governor, who was a member of the Cabinet of the unmentionable Presi dent Cleveland. Still, the "Peerless One" "mentions" both not, however, until he has put In front of them Brethren Folk and Gaynor. who voted for the Xebraskan all three times, as fitter aspirants for the White House. Harmon spoiled himself by falling to vote In 18 and by following the lead of the "Wall-street President." Wllson made a political pariah of himself1 that year by voting for Palmer and Buckner. Still the Peer less proves his magnanimity by nam ing them after Folk and Gaynor, as available "next time." But "next time" makes the rub. Brother Bryan knows, or should know, that Messrs. Folk and Gaynor are not regarded as occupying the front pew at the worship of the Demo cratic shrine. Harmon is probably the biggest Democrat before the country today. Gaynor is a conspicuous fig ure, but is rather relegated by his own expressions of unwillingness. Bryan, however, knows nothing of unwilling ness, and therefore shoves him to the fore. The matter of Immediate Interest Is the charity of Mr. Bryan toward those who didn't "stand in" In 1898 to elect him and to throw the country on the silver coinage basis. His charity is so tempered, however, that those who didn't stand in are third and fourth rate eligible. THE DEAF SITE SCHOOL. According to the estimates of Su perintendent Tllllnghast, of the State School for Deaf Mutes, an appropria tion of 171.200 will be required for the maintenance and betterment of that Institution for the next two years. The rumber of inmates under training In this school Is not given, but, few or many, special equipment for their In struction Is required, together with such buildings and sanitary provisions as are common to all schools where pupils live, as well as work. The defective class under training at the Deaf Mute School responds quickly and intelligently to teaching and training In industrial pursuits suited to their limitations. The prop erly educated deaf mute is very gen erally able to take care of himself In the world and Is commonly a good and capable citizen. That Is to say, he represents a class that. It pays In an economic sense to give, at the ex pense of the state, the special Instruc tion necessary to self-support. The sum asked for this purpose, $35,600 a year, represents a considerable amount to the taxpayers of the state and may be In excess of the legitimate demands of the school. That Is a question for the Legislature to investigate and pass upon. It Is. moreover, a ques tion, the economic basis of which ex tends far into the future, and should be decided In a spirit neither of par simony nor sentimental generosity, but with prudence, based uvon a clear understanding of the purposes and requirements of the school. THE CTKE FOR PARTISANSHIP. "Extreme partisanship," observes the Pilot Rock (Or.) Record, "tends to befog the minds of the people and permits prejudice to take the place of reason." But It offers the consoling reflection that "U'Ren will probably offer a remedy," for "a law can be adopted by the state forbidding any party name to be used by any organ ization of men for a period longer than four years In succession." Thus we see manifest the certain tendency toward the break-up of par ties through the fusion and commin gling of their units and the disappear ance" of party lines. The great mind of ITRen, we hear. Is giving what time it can spare from contemplation of the beauties of the single tax to solution of the obvious problem of double elec tions under the direct primary sys tem. The Oregon City lawgiver Is grievously disappointed in the results of the direct primary, which was the the pet child of his teeming and fer tile brain. Just why Is not obvious, and perhaps It doesn't matter. He Is working on a scheme of preferential voting, by which, without previous nominations or assemblies or pri maries, the sovereign voter will decide between dawn and dark of a single day Just whom he wants In office. This scheme will, of course, com plete the wreck of all ' parties, and forever wipe out the direct primary. It would appear to be the logical and Inevitable goal of a state headed along the CRonlc way. But the state may some time decide to change Its course. A few single tat excursions will effect a radical cure. THE UnUSTMAS-TRrB CANDLE. Next to the toy pistol and giant cracker devised for the children's pleasure on the Fourth of July, the Christmas-tree candle Is the most de structive agent of holiday Joy. While thousands of merry-makers escape the penalty that Is attached to these dar ing adjuncts of holiday festivals, the severe visitation of this penalty upon the occasional merry-maker children or Improvised Santa Claus Is suffi ciently terrible to make all prudent people shun, them for the sake of themselves as well as for their chil dren's sake. A few years ago a tragedy was en acted at Sliver Lake, Lake County, of this state, of which a gorgeously decked Christmas tree was an adjunct a tragedy In which a score or more Christmas merrymakers lost their lives or were cruelly crushed and burned. The Incident sent a thrill of horror throughout the community, and even now, though fifteen years or more have passed, the coming of Christmas brings sadness and not Joy to many households that were stricken by that holiday holocaust. Prudent people generally have eschewed the pretty little candles that formerly were used In lighting the home Christmas tree, making shift with electric lights or even hanging or wall lamps to make them attractive to the wondering and delighted eyes of childhood. Still the trees are in many Instances lighted with pretty colored candles in their quaint hold ers, bobbing up and down on fragrant, resinous branches, and the miracle of safety is still enacted in a vast major ity of cases where this risk is taken. But the exception to this rule still occurs each year, with results that are shocking, not only to the Innocent revelers who witness the tragedy, but to the community In which It Is enacted. Such a tragedy took plape In Portland last Christmas eve, re sulting In the death of a most esti mable woman who, clad in highly in flammable garments, was playing the role of Santa Claus by detaching pres ents from a candle-lighted Christmas tree. The occurrence was most de plorable. Its duplication can only be fully insured against by eschewing entirely the use of candles in lighting Christmas trees. Just as fatallitles due to the toy pistol can be stopped by tnterdlotion of the murderous little toys. The case in either instance is one wherein the prudent man fore seeth the evil and hldeth himself while the simple pass on and are punished. A suggestive, almost a pathetic fea ture of the report of Superintendent James, of the state prison, is ths statement that the majority of the prisoners there "doing time" are be tween 20 and 25 years of age. Could a stronger plea than this be made in support of the growing Idea that It pays the community to look out for Its boys? That it pays not only from an economic standpoint as generally considered, but from that of good citi zenship, which Includes personal re sponsibility as it finds expression in home-bulldlng and respect for and obedience to law? There can be but one answer to this question. Take care of the boys and the men will take care of themselves. Sixteen fortune-telling fakers were arrested for plying their vocation in New York recently. The legal fight that is being made upon these fakers Is in the Interest of working girls. Justly dissatisfied with their lot, who are hoping for better things, and who pay hard-earned money for such veri fication of thla hope as the mystical drivel of the fortune-teller furnishes. Were these girls able, financially, to go direct from one of these fakers to another until a dozen or more had been consulted, the futures disclosed and the fortunes promised would be so conflicting that the delusion that caused ' them to seek counsel from this source would without doubt be dispelled. One thing always apparent, but sometimes lost sight of In the desire to combine grandeur with usefulness In public buildings, was duly empha sized by the bids for the new Lincoln High School building which were sub mitted to the School Board by vari ous architects, builders and furnishers and opened last Saturday morning. The public, like the Individual, can have anything In this day of abound ing activity in the Industrial, commer cial and financial world, providing It is willing to pay the cost. But It can not have school buildings of steel and concrete at the cost of buildings con structed mainly of wood. As in other things, "we pay our money and take our choice." The Chicago scientific men are again Insisting upon the danger to children from playing with cats and dogs. Animals carry germs of diph theria and tuberculosis and communi cate them to children. This fact has been published over and over again, but It makes little or no impression upon the ldolator of pets. He prefers his dog to his child, or he acts as If he did. The cat has not even the excuse of being "affectionate," like the dog. The Federal Government Is getting to be quite uppish with the criminal trust magnates. If it keeps on gain ing In. self-confidence we shall by and by hear It talking quite rudely even to the Beef Trust. The benign old man In Webster's spelling book began by tossing tufts of grass at the bad boy In his apple tree, buj he ended by throwing stones. Uncle Sam may fol low hla excellent example If we give him time. Nat Goodwin's $17,000,000 Is a tidy sum to have accumulated by acting. If this amusing genius had been as good to his wives as to his audiences no doubt fortune would have favored him still more and he might have been rich by this time. To be truly prosperous a man must begin by being virtuous. A Minneapolis cooking school has made, and Is promulgating, "the dis covery that carrots cunningly devised may be made to do duty for eggs. A valuable and timely discovery, truly! Bring on your carrots and help us to throw off our vassalage to the cold storage barons. The colony of Jackrabblts doing damage to orchards In Polk County may be a band of Belgian hares turned loose by disgusted fanciers. It Is about time to get that kind of news of the fad that swept over the state a few years ago. The Governor. Secretary of State elect, Governor-elect and State Printer of Oregon are all In California gather ing strength for the onset of the Leg islature next month. May each return fully equipped with strength for the fray. If a man put $2000'ln bank as the net profit on twelve acres of vege tables near Ogden this year, what could he not do working in the richer soil of Oregon ? While it is a bit early to begin a list of New Tear's resolutions, here Is one suggestion: Resolve, never again to buy Christmas presents you are un able to pay for. On the face of things It looks bad for the Council committee to Ignore the adverse police report on a lot of saloonkeepers who want their licenses renewed. A concrete view of the Increased size of Portland's family Is had from the statement that our housekeeping expenses next year will be 88.600.000. Now Is a good time to take stock on the high cost of Christmas. MESSINA HOl'SED IX WOODEN HUTS Life Once More Beeosnlng Active l Strlrkea City and Wages High. Daily Consular Report. A painful commentary on the com pleteness of the disaster wrought by the earthquake Is to note In the cur rent commercial directory of Sicily only three thinly printed pages de voted to Messina, which the year be fore commanded so large a bulk. There is but a scattering of the leading com mercial enterprises, housed as is the returned population in ephemeral wooden shanties. Still an active life on a great scale again animates the place. It Is estimated that there are not less than 50.000 people in the vi cinity. The ruins have not yet been largely excavated, owing to unsolved difficulties, such as the right of real property, the unearthing of valuables and corpses, and even the decision as to the proper site and types of new buildings. The definite official return gives 27,623 as the number of bodies recovered, and 32,477 as the number of those still remaining beneath the ruins, the total number of victims being 77, 283. Thousands of the more well-to-do class go In and out by train every day. having established their abode in the less damaged villages and towns, and some even conduct their business from as far away as Palermo. There is a great outcropping of small Industries. The demand for labor Is so active that hands enough can hardly be secured; wages have about doubled; those who once received 50 cents a day now easily command 31.20 to $1.40. In the new military quarter alone $400,000 is be ing expended. The rebuilding in per manent form has barely commenced: when it Is really under way it may have an influence on the emigration problem. Along the Calabrian coast from Regglo to Palml drainage works have been undertaken to combat the prevailing malaria, and on these thou sands of women are employed. Women snd even children who were once paid 15 to 18 cents a day now receive 60 to 80 cents. WALTZING MOUSE ENDS HER LIFE Terpslehorean Dissipation Fatal to Rodent Who Couldnt Reverse. New York Herald. Susie, the waltzing mouse, who made her social debut a few seasons ago, waltzed herself to death in the mouse house at Bronx Zoological Park. Her death was not entirely unexpected, as her whirlwind finish was predicted months ago, when it became known that she had lost control of her tegs. She was ex tremely popular with her neighbors, and most of the animals go about with their tails at half mast. The absence of a brain lobe was re sponsible for Susie's terpslehorean dissi pation. This mental defect threw her body to one side, and to keep from cap sizing she found It necessary to move iu circles. Mr. Ditmars, the curator, saw the possibilities of turning her apparent affliction into an accomplishment, and soon he had her waltzing perfectly. The minute he puckered up she was describ ing graceful circles about the floor. Women and children were her greatest admirers, and Susie was never happier than when tripping the light fantastic for their benefit. During the last few weeks she had been gathering speed at every revolution. When she was told that it might prove fatal, she gave a saucy squeal, gathered up her tall to keep It from dragging and was off again at a greater rate than before. A small boy and a harmonica hastened her end. He stopped in front of her flat and blew out the strains of a swinging melody. Before any one could stop her Susie was going round like a top. She dropped dead a few sec onds later. "In a way I feel responsible for her death." said Mr. Ditmars. "If I had taught her to reverse she would still be alive." Wanted Fifty Words. New York Sun. "These night letters are great some times and sometimes not," said a man whose wife Is out of town. "I thought It would be fine to send my wife a 50 word telegram each night; so much easier than writing a letter, and It makes one seem so much more de voted, too. "The first night I wrote everything I could think of In 20 words. The answer by mall was .frosty. It be gan. Too bad you couldn't think of 50 words to say to your wife. "Try as I may, I haven't been able to write 50 words without telling about the weather and the cat's health. Just try to Write 60 words to your wife about things that are not too trivial to put on the wire." Pension Reforms. PORTLAND, Dec. 27. (To the Editor,) I note In The Oregonian a suggestion that perhaps some time the President " hi refnrmins- hand urton "the slovenly pension department." Isn't this trilling Wlin ssicreu mine?,- -" Senators and even the press usually take all that Is offered or asked for in the name of "penaions" without objection, in deed with loud shouts and gestures of enthusiasm. Nobody of sense wishes to be Illiberal with real soldiers, but how can the country stand a cost of $160,000,000 a year, with a recently proposed addition to .invA9 Whv enn't the Dension list AW.Vw,n--v . be published? The pensioners . who are entitled to ineir piucte wo Jured. and the humbugs will be exposed, snd lots of It la humbug." "E. a" Offerings Made to Earthquake Devil. London Leader. - An hjiiiob """" - tlon Is reported from Rihal, near Qross- wardeln. Hungary, xne piace nas never i n ..rthniull, hilt Deiore wpeijriitru .... . . recently a series of violent shocks shook the neighborhood, some being so violent that the church belto rang. The villagers ... 1 J n . . t .r. an were greatly waraieu .uum.w - old woman quack of the place, who de clared that the shocks were the groans m .u - nhn anffnred r.oM and hun- II L L'.c wo.. - -- V ger. Thereupon the peasants threw a number of calves ana soi imu . vimui - -1 -1 - . V. 41lBln n annMJU tllA H PV'i 1 ' aUWIQB .iiiooa . hunger and set fire to the bishop's forest in the nelgnDornooa o proviuo tout uu warmth. The quack and several peasants have been arrested. - la Doubt. Toledo Blade. "Darn these automobiles!" said the Kansas farmer. "Bother you muoh?" asked the tour- "I sh'd say so. Wen a feller sees a tunnel shaped cloud comln' down the pike, he don't know whether to run fer a gun or a cyclone cellar." . No Classes Here. i Leslie's. The danger of the Old World Is the existence of a vast "middle class." The safety of the United States is that we have no "classes. The thrifty work Ingman of today may be the millionaire of the future. He knows it and he governs himself accordingly. Geod Government. Louisville Courier-Journal. "What's the trouble in Plunkvllle?" "We've tried a Mayor and we've tried a commission." "Well?" "Now we're thinking of offering the management of our city to some good magazine." NO 13 A. M. PORTLAND. Or., Dec- 28. (To the Edi tor.) Is It correct to say 12 A. M-, or Is there any such thing as 12 A. M. ? Kindly answer through The Oregonian. INQUIRER. WHAT OF OPINION OF POSTERITY! As In Case of Webster, Contemporary Attacks May Be Forgotten. PORTLAND, Dec. 28. (To the Ed itor.) September last George Harvey began the leading article in the North American Review, thus: "The great--4 est Senator of his time or of any time In the history of this Republic rose slowly and somewhat heavily to his feet and addressed the presiding offi cer. Not a chair upon the floor was vacant. The gallery Was filled, etc." Then follows four pages of selections from Daniel Webster's speech on the "Value of Credit," so that we of today may profit by the wisdom and warning of Webster, whose words are applic able to the unrest of our own day. Judging from the above, what we of today know of the future. Its thoughts and conclusions, on this man and that event, is hardly worth the paper our opinions are written on. Nearly 60 years ago Horace Mann in the National House of Representatives described "The greatest Senator of his time or any other time" in language that would blister the tongue of a new Nationalist. Webster's speech on "The Constitution and the Union," the cause of the then contemporary hysteria. Is regarded today as truly consistent with his attitude and viewpoint. Speaking of this speech, Mann de claims: "It was then that he (Web ster) sunk his beaming forehead in the dust, never again, I fear, to be lifted up. It was then he tore from his brow the glorious diadem of fame, and cast its clustered stars away a dia dem richer than ever blazed upon the brow of royalty, for its gems were not gathered from rock or mine, but from the - more precious treasures of wis dom and eloquence. Then thousands of hearts were wrung with anguish as, cold, relentless and blaspheming, those apostate doctrines fell from his lips." Then follows a poetic cremation from the "Poet of Humanity," the last two verses, to wit: All else is zona. From these great eyes The soul Is fled. When faith la lost, whsn honor d1. The wnn la dead! Then, pay the reverence of old days To hla dead fame; "Walk backward, with averted saxe. And hide his shame! Can you beat It? The two Colonels should take courage when Oyster Bay and the banks of the Platte look gloomy. It's a toss-up with posterity, with odds against the present. Nay, both may yet in the far-off time rise heavily on their feet and address some body on something for future genera tions to harken unto. J. H. M. READING-ROOM BOON TO WORKERS Stranger Finds Much to Commend In People's Institute Establishment. PORTLAND, Or., Dec. 27. (To the Editor.) The People's Institute reading room on Burnside street Is certainly a haven of rest for the tired stranger, especially the workingman. As a rule, in the larger cities, the stranger (the tourist, the floater), the man who spends his money when he comes to town, is compelled to closet himself in his room or seek refuge in a saloon. At Yuletide and on all other celebratlve occasions, overcrowded con ditions exist as I find at present in Portland. Inclemency of the weather often prohibits one from making a tour of the city, and as a last resort one is compelled to loaf In the saloons. While some prefer such a place of ref uge, others have a more moral and sen sitive Inclination to take refuge under a shelter of greater respectability. Therefore, I say, "Thank you, Mr. Portland, for your kindness In furnish ing us with the People's Institute read ing room. Could you not duplicate the same in other parts of the city to ac commodate all the hungry souls who certainly appreciate such comforts that are the Initiative steps in the moral up lift of mankind? The laborer "the work ing stiff" as he is more commonly known comes Into the city with the earnings of one to six months from his labor. The only place open to him to cash his checks and take refuge Is the saloon. He gets a few drinks and un der the influences which follow he be comes a helpless creature who is cap able of no greater offense or defense than to part with his money in a short time. Provide more such places as the rest room on Burnside street and on a still more elaborate and comfortable style if possible; make a man feel at home In your city; then. If he fails to appre ciate your efforts in behalf of his wel fare; brand him as unworthy of further consideration and class him under the much misapplied appellation of "hobo" and treat him accordingly. A STRANGER IN YOUR CITY. Extremes in Tipping;. New York Sun. "Tipping has taken a strangulation hold on New York," said the man from Chi cago. "Out In our town we also tip ev erybody, but we still have grit enough to refrain from apologizing when we haven't money enough left to tip with. But grit haa deserted the New Yorker; he apolo gizes. The other day I lunched with a man who grew mighty uneaey near the end of the meal. Just before we left the table he summoned the waiter and ex plained that he was minus a bill which he had believed to be in his pocketbook and would have to be excused from tip ping. The waiter received his apology with the air of a bank president listening to the whine of a beggar. No doubt that man will eat there again in a few days and give a double tip to make up for past defection.' The Wasp as m Drinker. Harper's Weekly. That drunkenness and its consequences are not peculiar to human beings Is evi dent from the fact that wasps greedily attack certain fruits when they are over ripehat Is o say, when he sugar which they contain has decomposed Into alco hol. , . On such fruits, particularly grapes and plums, wasps may be seen pushing and fighting In numbers much larger than can be accommodated, and they will be seen to grow very drunk and to crawl away In a semi-somnolent condition to repose in the grass for some time till they get over the "bout," when they are ready to go at It again. One investigator, who was stung by a drunken wasp Buffered severely from symptoms of nerve poisoning for several days. Real Kentucky Happiness. Washington Corr. New York World. The giant Representative, Ollie James, of Kentucky, was leaving Champ Clark's office. He was grin ning broadly. Representative Kinkeaa, New Jersey, stopped him. "What makes you so happy, Ollie?' he asked. Mr. James thrust out one hand. It contained a bottle of bourbon. He thrust out the other. It held a box of cigars. "And I've got a new gun on my hip. said James. "Ain't a bottle of whisky, a box of cigars and a brandnew gun enough to make any Kentuckian hap py?" t Treasure Trove Under Ice. Norway (Me.) Advertiser. Never In the history of Lake Pennes. seewassee was there better skating. The Ice Is so clear that objects can be distinctly seen on the bottom of the pond and those who navigate motor boats are locating the rocks and shoals. Walter Pride lost a gold watch chain In the water last Summer and the first of the week he saw it on the pond's bottom, cut through 10 Inches of solid ice and fished up the chain none the worse for its watery sojourn. WHAT IS SEATTLE'S POPULATION! Flsnrea For the Enumeration of 1920 Already Published. Baltimore Evening Sun. Seattle groana In torment and beats her breast in despair, for Director Dana A. Durand, of the Census Bureau, after arbitrarily cutting down her population return from 248,382 to 237,194, now re fuses to restore the excised 11,188 and gives open warning that no further ar gument, however eloquent, will move hira from his determination. Nine tenths of the Seattleans think that even 248.382 was too low. The Times newspaper, for example, figures by one method that the population of the town Is really 262,223, by another method 269,170, and by still another method that it Is "fully 275,000." In 1920, says the Times. Seattle will have 695.350 people and will rank ninth among American cities. Instead of twenty-first, as it does today. By 1930 Its popula tion will be 2,044,329 and only New York, Chicago and Philadeluhla will stand ahead of it. In these progrostl cations the Times Is supported by Man ager Peter Lynch, of the Sunset Tele phone Company, an eminent mathema tician of these parts, who figures that the population will reach 750,000 at 10.34.26 A. M., Pacific time of April 17, 1922. All of this calculating and cater wauling seems absurd enough, but be hind it there is a fighting spirit which the people of the Eastern cities might do well to Imitate. The Seattleans, in brief, take the whole business of count ing noses with the utmost seriousness. It is to them a matter of the first consequence, for the struggle for popu lation among the Pacific Coast towns is unendingly fierce, and the import ance of each town is frankly measured by the number of people it can show, and by that showing alone. More than a year aga the trade bodifs of Seattle organized a Civic Census Bureau, with a complete outfit of enumerators, and when the official enumerators began work In the Spring these volunteers offered their aid. After some hesitation ' It was accepted and at once it began to appear that Seattle was fairly bulg ing with people. A hundred deep-sea sailors, dispersed from Bering Straits to the Horn, were returned as residing on one of the city docks. Halibut fishermen at work off Cape Flattery and prospectors lost in the Alaskan wilds were set down as good Seat tleans. The population of the town, which had been 80,671 in 1900, jumped to 248,382. Then came Monsieur Durand and his little ax. At one fell swoop he cut off 11,188 Seattleans sailors, fishermen, prospectors, missionaries In Fiji, ex plorers In Tibet, guests of the Govern ment at Atlanta and Moundsville, fugi tives from Justice, men with two names, homeseekers bound westward from New Hampshire, Bulgaria and . Armenia, but not yet arrived. Seattle howled and is still howling. But there is consolation, after all, in the situation, for it must be apparent that the Civic Census Bureau, despite M. Durand's unsentimental attack, did good work. Had it not gone through Seattle with a fine-tooth comb, drag ging forth every possible and impossi ble inhabitant, the population of the town, instead of coming out In the end as 237,194, might have come out as 215,000, or' even 200,000, and so the gratifying jumping of Richmond, Qrand Rapids, Portland, Omaha and New Haven and 22 other towns might have been postponed until 1920. The Parcels Post and the Farm Puck. If the people who are crying "Back to the Land! Back to the Land!" will turn their attention and energies to the parcels post, they will do real rather than haphazard service for the cause they espouse. There is, it is true, a tremendous amount of unworked farm land In the United States, some of it "abandoned," but very little of this land would be In such a melancholy state if it paid to farm it. Give a man a fighting chance to make a living out of a farm, and he won't abandon it. Give the men now on the farms, the dairy and produce farms In particular the boon of a parcels post, and some kinds of farming will pay, and pay well. Small farms especially will pros per, because their owners will be able to ship fruit, fresh vegetables, eggs and butter to city consumers direct. Transportation charges and the charges of the middlemen are what now put mortgages on countless farms, and a mortgage or two, plus a bad year or two mean all too often a deserted house by the roadside and out-build-lngs falling to decay. The parcels post Is no experiment. It Is a working real ity in almost every civilized country but the United States, and It will be a working reality In this country, too, once public Interests Instead of private become paramount at Washington. "Back to the Land" is a stirring slogan, and the parcels post at least will help to make the land worth going back to. First Jury women. Caroline I. Reilly in New York Sun. The newspaper reports of a jury of women trying a case in the State of Washington refer to it as being the first time women have served in that capacity in this country. Permit me to call attention to the fact that in the days prior to 1887, when women had the franchise in Washington Territory, it was not un usual for them to serve on Juries. The history of that period tells us that "Mrs. Julia Hawley, of Kirkland served on a grand Jury for three weeks and on the petit jury for seven weeks, and was complimented by judges for her wisdom and fairness." There are many cases on record of women having done jury duty. "Dithering." London Chronicle. There are many portmanteau words about that have eluded the dictionary. The other evening an intelligent wom an was trying to describe the conver sation of a man she liked well enough. With a wrinkle of the brow she said that he was a dear old man, but he was "dithering." We all knew, of course, what she meant. The word was a com pound of blithering, doddering and darli-ng. And there wasn't the least doubt as to the meaning of the new word. "Dithering" ought to go into the courteous dictionary provided by the young for the old. Disaster In Kansas. Florence Bulletin. Our Cedar Point correspondent Is re covering from a stroke of paralysis, the editor's office was burned, and the Bulletin's head reporter is about to write up her own wedding. It Is what you might call tough luck all around. Kentucky Fearlessness. Jackson Times. Hereafter we "propose to report the proceedings of the police court, wheth er you appreciate it or not. Be good If you can't be good, be careful. The Courage That Failed. S E Kleer, in Chicago Record Herald. . HE. If I were cast away with you Out on the wide, wide sea. The last dear bite of bread we had. you should receive, and I'd be glad It you but smiled on roe. SHE. If you and I were cast away. And but one drink remained, Ah. would you still ett back and mlli. Content to see me strengthened while The precious flask was drained? L'ENVOI. Then sadly from her side he strayefc Hie last hope done to death: To gain the couraire he desired He'd talcen more than he required. And "he had smelled his breath, ; .