Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (March 18, 1911)
TITi: MORNING OKEGOXIAN, SATURDAY, MARCH 18, 1911. 10 (HirCDmrmttrnt rORTLAXD. ORXGOX. rn-fd at Portland. Cnfob peatefftes ss a rBd-c le Me:tr. Seoecn?uoa lutw Invariably tn A i IBT MAJLi rr. Pt-,t tnclod.4. ma ya.r. VjciIaj Icciuatai. a s monthe.... - t'.r. F-niy lnc:uli. kcree months. S.J3 X.--:7. l-in-iir lsctul4. one saints... lai.ir. w.tnout SurdsT. ar.a year.. ...... SJ lm.:j, lib out Sand?, aix saontna.... X a..-. vt'Etful Sunday, t.-.ree B-.ou'.ha... . t without fc ujad-jr. e awaiA V. -.'. gut yvar. .. -iadajr. ana JT ......... wi aa4 weaslr. ana aa. (I1T CAtlRIERi rarfy. annday Includa. aaa rear...... Su&dar lec.u..!. ose ar.n'b-.... How Urn Rrmli ii4 poaiofflra matter arvir. spr order or paraociai cha?k om yew, local bank. stan-.pa. cw-a or curr-nrT a-a at mm mmwi rus. Oie poetorriea a- f-oa la fu:L laeludLns eonnty and etate. l"-ve ftaire .a to 14 r- I coat-. 1 la at (w(a. casta; MltW (. casta; 40 to 'to pa-aa. 4 casta. rore.a poalaae Souhle rata. Eaotora nalim 0nre Ysire aj Conks''- yra. Hraswlcs, bail dice. Ca o. Sl-r. Dultdlrs- roKiXAxr bvattroat. hi ktii it, ku. wajutovrxEss. Is Southwestern Washington a part of WaahnlgtonT Geographically, the fact la undeniable; but politically and commercially It appears to be bavins soma difficulty In convincing- the sov ereign powers of the state that It Is anything more than a territorial vas sal or dependency to be exploited at will by the suzerains and overlords of Puget Sound. The defeat of the Pa cific highway bill br the dominant In fluences In the Legislature, mainly for the reason that It proposed among other things to build a great thorough fare In the direction of Portland, has excited not a little Indignation In the counties most concerned. They ap pear to think that It is Just as benefi cial to Southwestern Washing-ton to have an ou'Jet through wen-built thoroughfares as It is to Portland to have an Inlet Into another state. The time when one state can build a barrier against the trade of another at Its stats line belongs to the feudal in. The Urn when a city may hold the trade of any territory to Itself by pre venting Its natural and necessary de velopment, and imposing on It a policy of stagnation and starvation, belongs to the same period. A north -andsouth highway through Western Washington would have for Its northern termini the cities of Pus-el Sound and for its southern termi nus the Columbia River, near Port land. Such a road, with Its radiants, would be of unquestionable value to Southwestern Washington. Why should It have been denied on any ground, and especially on the ground that It gives) the people of the southwest an equal opportunity for commerce with Portland and the Puget Sound cltlesT m. rauuxs tounox. Mr. George W. Perkins Is no doubt a portent after a fashion, but not a dangerous one. Like a star he has fled frvm his sphere. Mr. J. P. Mor gan's firm knows him no longer. But he has not fled varv wlldlv nor Is his new orbit likely to lead him on to de structive collisions with other plane tary bodies. While yet in the vigor of his years Mr. Perkins has aban doned the active pursuit of dollars to devote himself to the study of social questions. Its has dollars enough to istisfy any reasonable craving and the vocation of seeking them Is not likely to grow unfashionable. It coulJ stand the loss of a dozen Mr. Per kinses and still remain quits suffi ciently thronged. On the other band, the study of social subjects is like the road to heaven. The path Is narrow and few there be that find it. That Is to say. there be but few of Mr. Perkins ex perience and sanity. Of course) It Is traveled by plenty of cranks. So far are we from deploring Mr. Perkins new plan of life that we should like to see other men of wealth and com manding Intelligence Imitate him. In the field of social study the harvest Is plenteous In the United States and the competent laborers are all too few. In his speech at the Southern Com mercial Congress Mr. Perkins mors than hinted that Americans have be come "mind-bound. " The expression Is the mental correlative of hide bound. A hide-bound animal Is not on to be desired- A mind-bound people must be similarly deficient in charms. If Americans are mind-bound it Is because they have directed their at . tentloa so closely to money-making that they have grown timid at the eight or sound of Ideas. It Is assumed that an Idea is necessarily hostile to business. Mr. Perkins does not think so. lis believes that business must begin to call In Ideas to Its rescue or It will fall a victim to socialism or some other ravenous monster. It might not he a bad plan for our men of commercial prowess to listen to what bo has to say. Hitherto Americans who have suc ceeded In practical affairs have taken far too little part In the conduct of the Government. Perhaps It would be more accurate to say that they have taken too little part openly and candidly. Eubterraneously some of them have been much too busy with Governmental affairs for the common welfare. One of our greatest social cesvls Is the participation of successful men In the open field of politics. We need not fear that they would all be dully conservative. Many men of great prestige in finance are de cljed'y radical. They rend, ponder and draw conclusions. But. sad to say, they keep their conclusions to them selves. A few millionaires coming out frankly as radicals would make radi calism respectable In the United States. Men would then begin to boast as proudly of being radicals as they now do of being conservatives. Both sorts of thinkers are wanted, as every person of decent Intelligence admits. A country where everybody was con servative would be about the most stagnant place under heaven, while If everybody was radical it would be too exciting for ordinary nerves. The two types are needed for mutual check and stimulation. Mr. Perkins Intends to preach the evangel cf co-operation for the rent of his days, be they m.iny or few. To h'.s mind co-operation Is the key to the problem of the big corporation which moves toward monopoly. lb not be so foolish as to try to disrupt these monsters, he says. They are the out growth of evolutionary forces. Our age tends toward concentration. Mod- t era means cf communication have made all men Bear neighbors. For merly they had to govern through representatives because they had no , way of acting la concert. ow they J can all know In the afternoon what J everybody waa thinking la the morn- Ins- and there Is nothing to hinder col lectlve action. So the prestige of the representative wanes and direct gov ernment grows in lavor. jjireci gov ernment means the elimination of po litical machinery. It tends toward rnnrntratlnn Af mftnrt Mr. Perkins beholds with approval the same tendency acting In business. The evacuation of useless men and de vices proceeds apace. The Independent business unit Is compelled to merge Itself in wholes which dally grow vaster. The homogeneous assemblage of our old commercial life has become heterogeneous. Regrouping Is under wsgr. The parts are integrating into larger and larger aggregates. Mr. Perkins does not borrow these ex pressions' of Herbert Spencer's. Per haps he never heard of them. Inas much as he Is a devout churchman. But he does borrow the Ideas. It Is useless to kick against this process. It Is founded In the nature of things and nothing can stop It. All we can do Is to direct the energy of the mam moth combinations for the common weal. That task has thus far, Mr. Perkins thinks, been neglected. The law has tried to destroy the trusts, but hss not tried to control them. The consequence Is a great movement toward government ownership. He adopts ths view that the corporations are essentially publlo agencies and holds, therefore, that their activities must be known to the public and completely regulated by law. One consequence of this perfectly sound opinion seems to have escaped Mr. Perkins attention. If the cor porations are public agencies. It fol lows pretty clearly that their officers are publlo officers. When the voters once get this fact Into their heads, how long will It be before they will want to elect these public officers? Ths prospect might give Mr. Perkins pause were he led to consider It. Every office which the voters have really wanted to make elective has bowed to their will soont.-r or later. There Is absolutely no way of resisting them. We perceive, tnererore, tnu Mr. Perkins' solution of the trust problem, attractive as It undoubtedly Is. nevertheless involves some unpleas ant possibilities. INDECENT ART. Dubious reflections upon the educa tion of the clergy arise as one reads of their attitude toward art In Boston. Naturally expect the Boston clergy to be about the most cultured In the country. If ministers appreciate the beautiful anywhere surely they will do It In Boston. And yet a thunderous clamor has burst forth among these luminaries over the nude statues In the Museum of Flnt) Arts. The Museum has asked for a hum ble little appropriation of $1000 and the ministers are up In arms against It because some of the busts and other figures do not wear clothes. These works are "Immodest. Indecent, abom inable." say the Boston clergy. Is not this an Interesting frame of mind? When the early Christians got control of old Rome one of ths first things they did was to pull down the statues In public places. Every work of beauty which they could get their hands on they destroyed or buried so that centuries afterward the exhuma tion of antique relics became a profit able Industry In the city. When the Lutheran reformers, "who had become Anabaptists by thst time, got control of things In Holland they proceeded to wreck the churches. The pictures on the walls, the decorations of the altnrs, the Imago on tombs, were ruined- Today the traveler sees In the huge churches at Rotterdam. Haarlam. wherever he goes In Hol land, nothing but vast bare walls, cold, cheerless and forlorn. The beauty which they destroyed, the Anabaptists believed to be offensive to the Almighty. Puritanism with Its hatred of the beautiful finally lost Its hold on Latin Christianity and In Italy the love of art ultimately resumed Its ancient sway, but In northern lands conditions seem to be much the sama now as In Luther's century. The gsy. the Joy ous, the natural, the beautiful is sin ful. To please the higher powers we must make ourselves as hideous and lugubrious as possible. Bishop Mal lalleu. of Boston, must know perfectly well that ths nude Is not necessarily Indecent. It U possible to make a draped status far more licentious In Its suggestion than any lack of cloth ing can be. Not long ago there was a clnd picture of Jeffries, the prize fighter, shown In some Portlsnd shop windows, which outdid In lewd Intent all the statues In the Boston Museum of the Pine Arts, and no clergyman, so far as we ever learned, had a iword to say about It. THE KATX-DEC1SIOX FRHTOHXT. The stock market, which suffered a bad attack of hysterics when the re cent decision In the railroad rate case was announced, has fully recovered its former buoyancy and there seems to a fairly good demand for the new Issues of securities put out by some of the roads. The failure of the Inter state Commerce Commission to permit an advance in rates has undoubtedly forced the railroads to retrench In manv ways which might have been overlooked had the public been will ing to pay the bill. This phase of the matter has developed a new feature In ths problem which Just at present Is . i nmA imBninMui for organized cnuaiiis "" - lsbor. The railroads for many years were working up such a full and com plete line of public hostility that even organized, labor would throw up Its hat and yell with glee whenever a blow was landed on the railroads or other Industries representing a large aggre gation of capital. Mr. Thomas L. Lewis, president of the United Mineworkers of America, sees In the decision of the Commission the establishment of a dangerous pre cedent which will ultimately lead to -a commission empowered to prevent the worklngmen of the country from demanding Increased pay." Even In this the great American public, which pays alike the dividends of the cor porations and the wages of the em ployes, will fail to see anything par ticularly unfair. Labor was demand ing higher wages from the railroads and the railroads were trying to "pass the buck" to the shippers who raid the freight, and who in turn would pass It on to the consumer. Between this tightening strain of the colls of organ ized labor and organized capital the unorganised public seemed to be in for a squeeze that -would have been far from pleasant. The steel trust, which for yesrs has robbed the peorl snd the railroads, may now be obliged to reduce the price and assist In the readjustment made necessary by the failure of the Interstate Commerce Commission to permit an increase In rates. Eventu al, tive people who foot ths bills will see but little difference between a labor trust and a capital trust. Artifi cial conditions created through the close workings of these two great fac tors tn the economic system must of necessity now be replaced by natural conditions. The precedent established by the Interstate Commerce Commis sion may not be, as termed by Mr. Lewis, a "dangerous" one. but It Is a precedent which may force the Com mission to recognize and regulate the elements that ar of vital necessity In the fixing of a reasonable freight rate. J, P PROPRIA TX AJ-POINTM EXT S T Governor West has appointed two new Pilot Commissioners. The Pilot Commission as It now stands is made up of James Monks, a Portland boiler maker; John Kopp. a retired brewer of Astoria, and Frank J. Taylor, an Astoria lawyer, all estimable men and mostly good Democrats. The duties of the Pilot Commissioners are to ex amine applicants for licenses, and. when the applicants show by exam ination that they are qualified for the work and there is need of their serv ices, the Commission Is to grant li censes to them. These pilots, river and bar. handled more than 1.000.000 tons of shipping last year. It is there fore Important that none but men well qualified for the work should be given licenses. Mr. Monks, being a boiler maker, and steamships having boilers, and pilots being engaged In 'guiding steamships Into port. It Is easy to un derstand the line of reasoning which makes this gentleman eligible to the position. Nor can the appointment of Mr. Kopp be regarded as wholly Inap propriate, as that gentleman -was for years engaged In the manufacture of cargo for "schooners" which were piloted over many a "bar." Mr. Taylor, the third Commissioner, is a holdover from the Chamberlain administration, and has for many years been a member of the bar on which pilots are net engaged. Gov ernor West having displayed such re markable skill In selecting men adapt ed for the place on the Pilot Commis sion, would undoubtedly find in Cap tains Flavel. Spencer. Veysey. Crowe. Hoben. Shaver or any of a dozen other prominent maritime experts admirable qualifications for a place on an Insur ance, land or sgrtcultural commission. PROTECTING TUE rVWAfiV. George H. Monroe, of New York, who stands near the head of his class of promoters of get-rich-quick schemes, was convicted last Thursday and sentenced to three years in ths Federal Penitentiary at Atlanta. As Mr. Monroe and his fellow crooks are said to have secured something like 1500.000 from victims In various parts of the country, the punishment would hardly seem to fit the crime. There Is something hopeful, however. In the fact that even one of these metropoli tan highwaymen has been convicted of using the malls In connection with fraudulent stock operations. The methods used by ths Monroes to separ ate the credulous public from its money possessed no new features. When one kind of fake stock failed to Interest the victim, another was tried. t. ... ...ikln tn f the. monev. The testimony Introduced at the trial dis closed a wide circle ot victims wp mads investments ranging all ths way from a few dollars to thousands. The persuasive literature of the Monroes seemed to strike a responsive chord In all classes of people, for among those buncoed who appeared at the trial were a Tennessee preacher, an Arizona widow, an Illinois capltal .. mn Connecticut Yankees. These had all bought stock in a wire less telegraphy company ana nu . - , V. Ht- mnnev without re- W4LCU ...IM J celvlng snythlng but promises In re turn. Ths lamo-uke iuodiisiuu . -. . i t.i,ln. onv action until venieu iuei fc " a Postmaster-General Hitchcock began a campaign against ins nroti .v.- .i-iu, hnnra artists. The num ber of victims and the ease with which they parted with their money in tms eaaa riamnnttrntM the futility of trying to InoTuce people to make use of ordi nary common sense ana protect mtm- i - n-Kio hninv Imnracticable or perhaps impossible. It becomes In a measure the duty or me uovernmcui to protect them from their own folly. Perhaps the worst feature of this kind of swindling lies In the fact that . .f v. . victims tnt noor neoDle unfamiliar with the tricks by which highwaymen or the Monroe type gei their money. The accumulation of a few dollars by people of this class Is a i n . . 1 1 ir .'niff nroceKS. T hp V graSD ;iuiuuv ' " ' t at the alluring offers of the swindlers with an eagerness that Is almost plti ...i t-w .--r. u a iffrht sentence for a criminal of the Monroe type, but the apparent ease witn wnicn tne govern ment sent this unaesiraDie ciiticu . .v.. will have a tendency uini i'" to check the operations of other crooks who are engaged in tne same um oi business. JTOT THUS OREGOJl SYSTKM. m., initiative, and referendum In Washington, If approved by the people at the next general election, will un- oubtful differ in its pracucaj word ings from the Oregon system. Throo factors will probably comoine In Washington to hold down the num ber of measures suomittea at suoso ........ -irinna. is the higher ner- centage of ths total vote required on Initiative and referenaum petitions; another Is equal suffrage, which will ...v..- inoraau the number of names necessary on a petition, and the third is the failure of the proposed amend ment to permit the application of the initiative to constitutional amend ments. i A.ann tne number of names necessary on an Initiative petition must equal or exceed 8 per cent oi tne toiai itn cast for Supreme juage in ine ay aisctinn. In Washington i'l - - the number must equal or exceed 10 per cent of the total vote cast tor uov- emor. If the wasnington percentage d basis were applied m Oregon, iiu- .t-i. notitiona next Tear would re quire approximately 4000 more names than under the existing Oregon plan. The difference would be made up by the higher percentage ana tne greater imber of votes cast ior uornor. But in Washington it Is estimated that If women vote generally in tne next election there will be close to 400,000 votes cast in the state. Ten per cent of this number Is 40.000. In Oregon approximately 8000 Voters, or one-fifth the number required in Washington, may Initiate a measure. tt v. n i t romombered that Initia tive measures do not spring spontane ously from the reople. but must be fostered and financed by Individuals or ih. nhstarlM in the wsv of Inl. (L I " " K . " listing laws In the neighboring stats become apparent, reuuon solicitors are usually paid ror eacn name rrora o to 10 cents. At the larger figure some one would have to contribute S4000 in Washington for the purpose of submlt tlg a measure to the people, while $800 would do tt In Oregon. The strictly lo cal measure will thus have hard sled ding, even in the petition period. Attempts to legislate through the adoption of self-enacting amendments to the constitution will also be barred. It will not be possible to foist on the people by deception any undeslred measure, like the Oregon single-tax Joker, for example, which the Legis lature cannot correct by repeal or amendment. The Washington Legislature has presented to ths voters an Initiative and referendum amendment consider ably more conservative than the plan In use In Oregon. But a difference in the communities of the two states exists. There is a greater number of large cities in Washington than in Oregon, for one thing. It even would be possible, were cities and country opposed on some Important measure, for four of the largest cities to con trol the election. So, if adopted, the plan will supply interesting testimony as to the virtues of modified systems and of tha application of the main principle in differently constituted communities. A general strike order has been is sued to the drivers and helpers of the New York express companies and 10, 000 coalminers have been ordered out In the Tuscarawa and Pittsburg dis tricts In West Virginia and Pennsyl vania. At a number of other points In the United States smaller strikes are in progress. These Industrial disturb ances indicate that the wave of pros perity on which the country has been riding for the past three years has not yet subsided. It is only In times of great prosperity that strikes are fre quent or serious in this country. Whenever there is a surplus of labor and positions are difficult to secure, la bor, both organized and unorganized, sticks pretty close to Its task and takes no chances on lost time by strikes. These conditions sometimes react, however, and If the strikers are nu merous enough and stay out long enough, their Idleness and loss of wages will have an effect on the gen eral trade situation. . Twenty fire chiefs from various cities of ths United States visited New York this week for the purpose of witnessing the tests of the first in the great city's new $11,000 automobile fire engines. These engines are gasoline-driven, but pump by steam, as do horse-drawn vehicles. They weigh 16,000 pounds each and are expected to show a speed of from thirty to forty miles an hour. Just what benefit cities less opulent than the great me tropolis can expect to gain by sending their Are chiefs to witness the grand spurt made by this first automobile engine In New York Is not apparent. It Is like calling the owner of a farm wagon drawn by plowhorses, the best means of traction that he can afford, to witness a speed contest between high-power automobiles. AH he can do Is to look on in wonder which may or may not be mingled with envy. The discovery of the germ of Infan tile paralysis is reported by the State Health Department of Pennsylvania. That la to say, certain micro-organisms, hitherto unknown, have been discovered in the blood of children suffering from this disease and In that of monkeys that have been Inoculated with It, A number of tests have been made In different laboratories with similar results, giving rise to ths hope that the germ responsible for this dire and dread disease has been discovered. Further experiments will be awaited with Interest and anxiety. Chicago weather people can assail the groundhog, but faith in the wood chuck will remain unshaken . among people who know him. Since the day the King appointed the Jackass official forecaster there have been many In the service. Wives of bankers are suspicious characters in the New York Custom House. One was compelled to remove her clothing yesterday in the search for smuggled diamonds. Being poor is one advantage in traveling. with but Htrle more than one fourth of the dirt dug on the big canal, there ought to be opportunity for tide land Investment down that way. Ordinary family" Jars pale when one considers the Pennsylvanlan who, re married, must pay his former wife I1S.000 alimony annually. A school of tanning Is to be estab lished in Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. Pratt Institute Is not a normal training school, however. Eight more killed In what is called a "hot" engagement in Mexico yes terday. That Is almost as bad as a sunstroke. Nude in art seems to shock Bishop Mallalleu. The worthy gentleman evidently does not take the fashion pa pers, The Oregon man who paid $1000 for a Guernsey sow at Oconomowoc knew how to place his money for invest ment. China accedes to all of Russia's de mands and some high officials must commit suicide for falling to "save the face," Publication of the fact that Le Gal lienne makes $3000 a year writing poetry will stimulate the Spring crop. Now they talk of an iron famine in thirty years, but that will be in the next generation, so why worry? Probability of a big strike of miners must mean a large unsold stock. It Is easy work to start a strike. Every city man or suburbanite who owns an apple tree should hear Pro fessor Lewis tonight, Irrigation up the Valley is progress ing. Salem is to have a new brewery. Among the colonists yesterday were eight cars of Nebraska hogs. - - - - '- - - Keep your eye on Pasco" and see her lay cement walks. Nobody will censure the Colonel for saying "dam" today. The Oregon hen will lay off if eggs got much cheaper. Russia seems to be holding a few maneuvers, too. It waa a great day for the orphans. FEAR OF THE PORTLAJTD BTJGB1BOO Real Motive Behind Defeat of Pacific Ills b. way Flam. Aberdeen World. Senator Metcalf, of Ptsrce. thinks there Is room tor honest difference of opinion on the merits of the two road plans as presented by the House and the Senate of the last Legislature, but he ts of the opinion that the .plan evolved under the "brilliant" leadership of NlcitoU of King had Its advantages over that evolved through the careful study ' of McXeeley of Pierce. In the House, Every highway In the state, says Metcalf.-would have converged at Seattle and Tacoma . under the Senate plan. "And what will particularly in terest Tacoma . . . the south road runs from Tacoma up our mountain road to Elbe." be added. Well, who cares? Why should we be asked to build a mountain road for Tacomaf The Paclfio highway plan, so-called, girdles the state. It provides a north and south connection from Vancouver, B. C to the state line on the south. It was not designed to carry people' and trade to Portland, but was designed to be a part ot a great Coast highway from Canada to the Mexican line. It was not a "Portland funnel plan," as the Senator from Pierce designates It, but a broad, comprehensive scheme worthy of serious consideration and all support. It did not. for one thing, plaoe Southwestern Washington on a branch line, or make wis section of the state subsidiary either to the Sound I or to Portland. It left us free to go where we please. And that. In the end. Is what we will do. We cannot be driven, you know, either to Tacoma or Seattle or Portland. This section of the state, like the rest of the state, askeu for and expected to get a state hlghw.y plan, not a Tacoma or Seattle boulevard. The statesmanship God save the mark! of Metcalf can be gauged by his eetlmr.te of Nichols of King as "sincere, conscientious and reasonable," and by his declaration that the elimina tion of a road along the north bank of the Columbia River la "vital" since only so can trade and travel be taken away from Portland. Any man who knows Nichols knows that the description given of him as "impossible- as a legislator" Is exact. He is a man of small ability and a busy tongue. He has been noted dur ing his term In the Senate simply by his capacity to play the fool on any and all occasions. The Senate that would follow his leadership deserves the lowest kind of rating. If trade and travel can not be di verted from Portland except by fall- . ure to build roads where roads are ' needed, then this state is Indeed in a bad way. For we shall never be able to build a fence around Portland, and never able to patrol the border lest a citizen of Washington should go across the line and buy goods in Port land. Metcalf says that the construc tion of a north-and-south highway would have formed a "vast funnel through which the trade and wealth of the state would flow." To make the picture truthful, 6eattle and Taooma must feel themselves on slippery ground as competitors of Portland. If Seattle and Tacoma want the trade of this state, they can get it by being loyal to all the state. They can get it by furnishing the best goods at the most reasonable prices. They cannot get It Dy trying to drive the state Into their stores and warehouses, nor can ther aet it. by saying that this and j that section of the state shall not be I developed. Trade follows sentiment, as well as the line of least resistance; ' but It never follows ill-will. ROAD BILL'S DEFEAT RESENTED Southwest Washington ot Satisfied With Explanation. CHEHALIS. Wash, March 14. (To the Editor.) The explanation of State Senator Ralph Metcalf, of Pierce County, of the defeat of highway legis lation at the recent session of the Washington Legislature, which ap peared In a Tacoma dally of March 3, does not explain In this section of the state. Neither does It satisfy In Pa cific and Chehalis Counties, according to reports' that have been received from those sections. The Paclfio Coast highway project was especially the one thing desired In Southwest Washing ton and Its defeat Is keenly resented. The argument that such a highway would divert trade to Portland is re garded as the sheerest nonsense. Think of the farmers of this section of the state hitching up old Dobbin and driv ing to Portland with their eggs and buying their calico and making other purchases. It is preposterous. The Pacific highway project, coupled with the plans for the other roads In cluded In the general road budget, would have bisected Western Wash ington, the most populous portion of the state, and would have permitted connection with the Willapa and Grays Harbor cities of Raymond, South Bend. Aberdeen, Hoquiam, Montesano and others. Such a road would have made it possible for citizens of Wash ington to reach North Beach, In Pa cific County, and the various popular beaches In Chehalis County, the most popular on the North Pacific Coast. - Instead of diverting business to Ore gon, the construction of the north and south Pacific Coast highway would have resulted In thousands of Oregon people coming by automobile up through Washington, thence across via Raymond and South Bend to North Beach, one of our beaches best known to Oregon people. It would have brought many non-residents of the state up this way. But aside from the local benefit the action of those responsible for defeat of the good roads legislation and the Paclfio Coast highway is regarded as a narrow, selfish position. Here was a great project that would have united the three most populous states In the Pacific Coast section. The pro posed route traverses the most popu lous portion of each. A north and south highway will be the carrying out of a broad-minded plan to unite three states, and the majority of the citizens ot each will benefit very much when it wins, as it will In the end. D. W. B. As American Painter's Work. New York Herald. There is an admirable exhibition of the works of Carl 'Melchers, an American painter of largely foreign sub jects, now on view In the Montrose Gal leries. Detroit was the birthplace of Mr. Mel chers and Holland has been his kind stepmother. His .first canvas which at tracted the attention of the world of art was "The Communion," a gigantic composition containing 15 life-size fig ures, which now occupies an entire panel in the room in which it is displayed. The work Is highly realistic and the artist Is In accord with the aspirations and the Ideals of the simple Dutch peasants, whom be represents with al most photographic fidelity as they are gathered at the table In a little village church In Holland. On this work Mr. Melchers received the grand gold medal from the Paris Salon 22 years ago. The work was exhibited at the world's fair in Chicago in 1SS. It has recently been purchased from the artist by General Rush C Hawkins, who will present It to Corns Univartlt'. PROPER CARS) FOR THH BABIES. Humble Home Better Than Poor Insti tution, Says Nurse. PORTLAND, March 16. (To the Edl tor. It Is no disgrace to be a "grand mother," nor Is it a disgrace to be a "graduate nurse." However, being a nurse interested In sick babies for many years is most likely to put the role of grandmother out of the question. No woman who has loved babies well enough to give the best years of her life to the care of other people's chil dren has laid aside her possible crown of motherhood and grandmotherhood without a sigh, even though in so do ing she become the foster mother to many babies. The Oregonlan says truthfully that "milk Is not all. care is not all," and that good parentage Is most necessary to healthy babyhood. - To that the nurses of the world will say amen. If The Oregonlan and the Baby's Home management will engage In a crusade for better parentage every nurse In the Held of action and every grand mother out of it. ought to be with them heart and soul. The mothers and the fathers of the world surely need to be taught 'intelli gence, responsibility and Industry." When this "triune force" exists in them, there will be a model baby home In every family, and few orphans will need public shelter. Meantime "love of humanity and the race" should prompt every Interested woman to work by every means available for better con ditions in the Portland Baby Home. Of course some babies must die. No doubt, those employed at the home do their best. A matron cannot give per sonal care to the babies. Her task is t as great as her powers of endurance if she keep the bouse warm, ana tne clothes washed, and the milk supplied out of the money allowed her for that purpose. It Is not necessary for the Home to have all graduate nurses, but it is necessary for them to have one at the head of the Institution and an assist ant well tralnid In the care of children. Then bring- in the young assistants and teach them to care for children properly. A publio shelter must have a large proportion of tainted babyhood. It is not a crime but rather a mercy when these little suffering waifs are severed from fleshly bonds and allowed to go on soul clean. The crime comes In allowing Ignorance or overwork to make it possible that the heretofore healthy babes be smitten with contami nation and disease. Such contamina tion and death, or Invalidism which is worse, resulting from it, lie at the door of the management that makes such things possible. What Is the reason that when babies are really 111, and a doctor who Is a specialist with children, wishes record sheets kept for certain cases he is re fused them point blank? Why cannot the Board afford them? Because they say "It Is not necessary." Is it any wonder, that the doctor says. "Then neither is It necessary that 1 waste my time with these babies if I cannot work Intelligently." The Baby Home can afford to have the necessary things with which to care for the babies or It cannot afford to exist. Facts are stub born things and cannot be explained away. These babies would be far better off if cared for in the homes of the most humble people, than if cared for at wholesale, having a mortality to corre spond. Just now they may be getting on some way, but wait until the warm weather comes and see or hear If you can. of the little ones that lose out In the struggle for life. It Is not a question of theories, it Is a question of results. A competent nurse would be an . expense, and a legitimate expense. If saving babies Is the object of the home rt will pay to have the best nurse available to man age the sick and ailing babies. It will also pay to give her record sheets, and absorbent cotton, and new nipples and other necessities with which to do her work well. I am glad to see that the truth strikes home. So let the milk question take a back seat, and let life and the source of life and the main tenance of Ufo be considered at their true value. Let not "the best that can be done under the circumstances" hin der the circumstances being so changed that the best can be done for the babies. The doctors and the nurses and the public know that there are many nurses well fitted for the care of these little ones who would be glad to un dertake the task if they could be al lowed, with the dootors" help, to do their best. The public will be and Is more Interested In saving the babies than In bulding a fine Institution. A NURSE. Indian Frnlt-Cnekoo's Strategy Harper's Weekly. The Indian fruit cuckoo, which, like all members of the cuckoo family, lays Its eggs in the nests of other birds and thus avoids the trouble of hatching them, is said to exhibit a -great deal of strategy in dealing with crows. Its nat ural enemy. Whereas the hen, an Inconspicuoua speckled gray bird, conceals herself In the foliage, the cock, remarkable for his brilliant black plumage and crim son eyes, places himself on a perch near a crow's neat and sets up a great racket. The crows Immediately rush out to attack him, and he takes to flight with them in pursuit. The hen meanwhile slips Into the nest and de posits an egg. Sometimes the crows return before the egg Is laid and then the Intruder gets a trouncing. Down Comes a Dog Statue. New York Herald. The Borough Council of Battersea, England, has decreed that the famous "brown dog" statue be destroyed. The "brown dog" statue was erected several years ago In Battersea Park to commemorate the sufferings of a little dog used for months in vivisection ex periments in a Londan hospital. It was the cause of scores of demon strations on the part of medical stu dents, and finally was removed by order of the Borough Council. The donor of the statue, however, recently brought suit to compel the Council to restore It. More About the Mormons. SPRINGFIELD, Or., March 14. (To the Editor.) I was surprised to find In The Oregonlan the two editorials which I inclose and would suggest that the author of them read the article on Mormonism by Alfred Henry Lewis in the March and April number of the Cosmopolitan and inform himself on a subject of which he seems vastly ig norant. CORA C. McBEE. If the writer of any article In the discussion of any subject were to be so sadly deficient in good sense as to accept the views or opinions of Alfred Henry Lewis, he would speedily find himself wandering far afield. A "Tip In Current Polities." Detroit Free Press. "Pa, what is a statesman?" "A statesman, my boy, is a politician elected to office who, when he finds that he can't please both sides to an important issue, refuses to vote." The Winter Fire, ilary Howitt. A lire's a good, companionable friend, A comfortable friend, who meats your face With welcome glad, and makes the poorest As pleasant as a I Are too eoldt He warms you. Weary T He refreshes you. Are you in darkness? He gives lisht to yon. In a strange land? He ears a face that is Familiar from your childhood. Are you poor? What matters it to him? H knows no difference Between an emperor and tne poorest beg gar! . Where is the friend that bears tfia asms of man Will do as much for yon? COLONISTS AND TUB GLAD HAND What Chamber of Commerce Is Dolus; Is Told by Secretary. PORTLAND. March 17. (To the Ed ltor.)T-In The Oregonlan today Is an editorial based upon Mr. McMurray's statement that the "glad hand" should be extended to colonists. The editorial also states that there should be a competent Information bureau for the newcomer who has not yet made up his mind as to location. I would like to answer briefly these two statements. First The Chamber of Commerce placed two men at the depot, with cards, directing colonists to the Infor mation bureau of the Chamber of Commerce. The move was entirely un successful for the reason that the aver age man. after riding two or three days on a train, with his family in one hand and baggage In the other, does not wteh to stop at the depot gate and discuss locations, or even where to go to discuss locations. The first thing he wishes to do is to go to a hotel, clean up and then walk out and get. a little fresh air. I would say that the only way to cover this phaee of the matter would be by the railroad people placing a man on board the train who would hand to every colonist a card telling him where to go in the city to get correct Information, and as a railroad official has made the com ment, I make this suggestion to him as the only way to remedy the situa tion if a remedy is necessary. I have heard of no" complaints from colonists. The question of meeting people at a depot by committees In a city would probably meet with the same reception as did the representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, and I would say Is Impracticable except In small towns. Now, to the other question as to In formation, the Chamber of Commerce maintains, and has maintained, a bu reau of Information where there are four people thoroughly informed on the state in every particular, where there is literature on every section of the state, where there are complete publi cations on the question of public lands, where there Is an exhibit of products from every part of the State of Ore gon and part of the State of Wash ington tributary to Portland, and no man need come to Portland and go to Tillamook to grow wheat, or to Cen tral Oregon for dairying purposea The directions for reaching this bureau are printed on a large card and put up in every hotel and railroad of fice and department store in the city, and there la a large brass sign In the Union Depot directing the colonists to this bureau. A large amount of money Is epent for this purpose, and, as above stated, competent men are on band at all times to give information. Also routes, rates, time tables and other details, as mentioned in your editorial, are absolutely at the finger tips of a branch of the Chamber. Further, a large number of the col onists come here every day during the season, and, with the exception of the placing of a man on board of the train before they arrive In the city to give them explicit directions where to come, nothing le left undone in this line by Portland. This bureau of information and ex hibit is maintained at a large expense by our public-spirited citizens. Criti cism of this branch of the work of our commercial organizations ts unwar ranted,, and statements that people are Invited to Oregon and not looked after are Incorrect. This organization alone spent 17000 last year In establishing an exhibit and Information bureau, and le as well equipped In this line as any city on the Pacific Coast only except ing Los Angeles. E. C GILTNER. Secretary Chamber of Commerce. Half a Century Ago From The Oreeonlan March 18. 1891. Yesterday was St Patrick's day and a general display of bunting marked the event. This evening the Hibernian Benevolent Society's ball comes off. It ought to be remembered that this festive occasion takes place but once In ii zronthet Olympia, March . 13. Captain DeLacy. G. C. Blankenshlp and William Pack wood left yesterday to explore the route through the Nisqually pasa south of Mt. Rainier, to the east side of the moun tains. It is proposed to open the road should the route prove practicable. - The bald elevation at the southern ex tremity of town is the only place where a Fortlander can get a lookout upon the surrounding country. Although the adjacent mountain ranges present acerea of rugged sublimity that far exceil '.he much-vaunted beauties of the towering A1P9 and almost approach the Andes in height, yet, unless we undergo the fatigue of clambering up Mount Robhi ton, we are debarred the privilege of seeing all this by our lofty-forest trees. On Friday evening last the members of the Regatta Club held their first rjeeting and organized. Twelve gentle men have Joined the eoclety. Messrs. R. Plttock & Co. have manu factured two and one-half tons of navy bread, which will be sent to Honolulu by the Mary Ellen. With flour as cheap as ll is likely to be here, and wood so abundant, we should be able to mono polize the custom of the whaling fleet. The Oregon wool clip for I860 is esti mated by Mr. Pratt, agent of the Wil lamette Woolen Manufacturing Company, at 202,688 pounds. a l Flavor of Wisconsin Politics. Milwaukee Free Press. Former Governor Hoard Is credited With the following comment on Wis consin politics by Dr. Harry A. Favill. of Chicago, in a recent talk before the Milwaukee Country Medical Society. Some time ago Mr. Hoard was ad vised to take the mud baths. When he was immersed In the slimy ooze Mr. Hoard leaned back and breathed a sigh of content. "Ah," he said, "now I feel at home." "To must have been here befoah,' boss," said the old negro attendant, "No, I have never been here before." "Then yo must have taken the baths in Europe?" was the next question. "No, I have never taken the baths in Europe." "Then how Is It that yo feel at home in these yere mud maths?" "I spent a few years In Wisconsin politics." Advising Her Daddy. Harper's Bazar. "Mary!" Father's voice rolled down the stairs and into the dim and silent parlor. "Yes, papa, dear." "Ask that young man if he has the time." A moment of silence. "Yes, George has his watch with him." "Then ask him what is the time. "He says it is 11:48, papa" "Then ask him if he doesn't think it about bedtime." Another moment of silence. "He says, papa," the silvery voice announced. Impersonally, "he says that he rarely goes to bed before 1, but It seems to him -that It Is a matter of personal preference merely, and that If he were In your place he would go now if he felt sleepy!" Babstltntion. Chlcaco Tribune. Old Mother Hubbard She went to the cupboard. Xs always had been her habit. "I can't afford beef." She murmured with grief: fio she mads her poor doc a welsh rabbit.