TIIE MOItXIXO OKEGOXIAX. SATURDAY. SKTTOIBEI. 30, 1911.
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rOITLAXD. UTtTLDAT. atrT. M. 111-
IXDrsTBIAI. L"XlANCS triltLIX
No laaa than Llnttxo state. l ar
to;d by th Outlook, ar at present
considering the question of Industrial
' Insurance, and the Outlook according
lr finds much Interest la a prospective
test In the Wisconsin Supreme Court of
that state's new workmen's compensa
tion act. Tha Outlook. In discussing
various compensation actj and specu
la tine on whether Wisconsin, which led
In the Bght for primary election and
railway regulation, is destined to lead
a nation-wide movement to remedy
"an intolerable industrial situation."
Mini to overtook the Washington
compensation act. The Yshlnston
law has Just been uphrlj by the Su
preme Court of that state. As the law
rf Washington Is nearer the Ideal of
proponent of this Industrial remedy
than any enactment by other Ftatr
pioneering In the movement. It would
seem that If the decision In Wisconsin
H to be Important, that In Washlnirton
Is poch-maklng. The only cloud now
on the horUon la tha possibly adverse
rating of the United States Supreme
Court If the case shall be taken to that
tribunal.
The best classification of compenaa-
tt"n laws for purpose of comparison Is
perhaps that given In tha memoran
dum submitted to the Congressional
commute on employers' liability and
workmen' compensation by certain
law members of tha National Civic
Federation. This memorandum give
tha following classification of tha dif
ferent form of compensation law:
Ttia ar!lrJT tnr-rm sivae tha bvrr4
i'ha a ri M la aOTnaaasatloa la avarr
caaa ftn J Is the eseluawa X all ether
remadlaa
Tria simp's eompalaory farm its the
IM'ra4 V4rlau lae r'sht ta aonpeiM
tla la eary case, eaeapl where the In
ijry ia rtua ar his ewa eartoue mlacoo
a.t. aa4 IMe ta tha ezaJueina of all olhr
rm4lM ur.pt ta caM of In ! " nr r-illln
ffr.m tha matara rtoia mtacAnduct. la
whirs im the reaMdr la tort weuld alas
he allow i.
Tha aupplmaalsl firm mararv snrplania
all lha n.at'nf Uablllllas af the amp lor .f
la fort e aJ'line lharace Uahtmjr fir com.
aanaalloa foe Injuries Sua te trade nafca ete
Tna a.actlve frtm aarmtta tha maalore and
kMntRU la contract artth aaoh other for
tna s'lhetltstloa at tha Uabill'r for am
aaaaatlos la laee af the liability fur tort.
Tha Washington law ta an example
of tha arbitrary law. It provide, to
all Intent and purpose, a compulsory
Indemnity Insurance system understate
supervision. The employer pays to tha
stats a percentage on hi payroll, this
percentage being mora or leas accord
ing to the hazard of hi Industry. Tha
Injured workman la given compensa
tion In every cass according to a
schedule graduated ta meat tha ver
ity of Injuries. The fund ta adminis
tered by a commission which return
ta the classified Industrie any surplus
that may remain In tha fund at tha
end of the fiscal year.
It la reasonable to expect that under
the operations of this law employers
will obtain Indemnity insurance, at
coat; that tha court will be relieved
of a great burden of litigation: that
tha activity of th shyster lawyer In
ona Una of litigation will be eliminat
ed; and that employes will be relieved
of long delays In award for Injuries,
of the uncertainties incident to tha ca
price of Juries, and of th necessity
for paring out a large portion of the
award In attorneys' fees and court
costs. The law. In short, solves all the
problems created by our adaptation of
tha original common law. by treating
Injuries in every case as the Joint fault
of master and servant. Comprnsatlon
thus Is not damages. The losa la di
vided, the employer pays his share In
money and tha employe hi proportion
In Impairment or destruction of sums
physical function.
Wisconsin. Massachusetts, New Jer
sey and New Tork have adopted elec
tive compensation laws. New Tork In
11 also adopted a "supplemental
form of compensation law a a com
panion of th elective act. The sup
plemental law was declared unconsti
tutional by tha New Tork Court of Ap
peal. The State Puprem Court has
declared tha Massachusetts elective
compensation law constitutional. In
the Massachusetts and Wisconsin acts
employers and employes who do not
elect to accept th compensation pro
visions of the act hav recourse to the
law courts. In Massachusetts In set
tling dispute In court as to awards for
Injuries th common law defenses of
assumption of risk, contributory negli
gence and fellow servant's fault are
denied the employer. In Wisconsin
the assumption of risk doctrine la ab
rogated and the fellow servant doctrine
la qualified. The defense, of contribu
tory oegllgenc I not dented. The
New Jersey act Is elective or optional.
but In the absence of an affirmative act
by either employer or employe to avoid
It ob'gailon the law presumes both
parties to be bound by the compensa
tion feat urea
It fce noted that the committee of the
National Civic Federation Irana toward
the elective compensation law. It
contenJs. however, that the las u e be
tween them la purely on of compara
tive expediency. Thrr la also an ap
parent apprehension In Its memoran
dum that an arbitrary tax on hazard
ous Industries to reiirve the victims of
accl.1er.ta therein may ultimately be
held unconstitutional tn line with the
New Tork d:l-lon heretofore men
tioned. In the majority opinion in the
Now Tork rase tha Court of Appeals
had thla to say:
If ft la rontratont la lirpoae apoa aa am.
m'oyar wlf haa om't'd o lr. 4utv nt
ft .a eomirirtd. ao ' a E'.billtT b .--1
a-.-lv ufl a 1-calai,a Tat trot h'e a.i
aaoa la inharant'.r daft ers.a. II la .wa.
ro-ap-'oftl to -t umi Kim a at . '.at t
f.r to ourprt of hoo;ita'a anl o?hr
charitable tr. at tut lor a lp-a !" Ihr.ira- tf-al
Arr a ' x ! laff-lr 1 ta a.
V .a "f us prtmarilT d . tv h:a aj'n In
Ita f nal ar4 a mp. ene'vala trial ;a ta-r
1o pr--rrt of A and '"'re II l. H and
that casaoc he 3oae eador oar Cenatltutlon.
Put the Ysnine-ton Supreme Court,
of standing equal to that of the New
Tork Court of Appeals, did not follow
this line of reasoning. It hoi J that the
compulsory Insurance plan embraced
In the new law of that state doe not
take pr -pcrty without due process of
law. Other state that are consi l.-rlr.g
the question seem quite generally to
have avol.led the arbitrary form of law.
very likely because of fear of its
validity. The Washington decision
may. Iheri fore, naturally lead to a re
vision of plans, althouath the decision.
In view of The Federal questions In
volved. Is perhaps i"t final. But until
the United Mates J-'upreme Court
speak It Is the only worJ. aside from
th New Tork oplr.fr n. In the matter,
for no other state has a like taw to put
In issue before the court.
optwhi tx ax orr year.
The Seattle rost-Inte.llgencer ta
krs
a ail ever of the National political si
Itu-
atlon and has the courage to describe
i..-ir .n "nniim'ii " It needs to
The occasion of the Srattl paper
great cheerfulness ts tne origni pi
pect that confronts the Republic
os-
an
party. "Cheer up: says ine j'un.
nal-
Isttc Mark Tapley. "Cheer up: Take
a look backward and be of strong
heart- Itecall how often the O. O.
k-. K-.n Heaton to a frazzio befo
election. Ca.l to mind hrw. after
. .,..,. Kernnd identification
and put Inglorioualy out of ocro-
mlsslon. It bobbed up serenely in i
We do not need to go back so far
In
tha past to find sln ana portents
hnn. or of a'.oom. lust as you look
of
it
It. Just take a look at 110. We su
- - -.. hnhh'tpa I'enubilcan Beat:
p-
l
neighbor will find In tha smashing Re
publican disaster of that unhappy year
. , . . , a
a bright rainbow or promise iur ia.
We suppose so. Tour optimist ha to
k, i..e hiin.l That's what makes
hlra an optimist. He' Just the right
man to have around at a funeral.
II,. I let lis eynialn that The Oreg
o-
rfi.t nn nra.llct overwhelming Re
publican defeat In 112. It feared that
result If the radical and conservative
wings of tha party should not get to
mi,., N'ni helnr an optimist at th
wron time. The Oregonlan ts qulta un
Ki. i rnt a Rpnubllcan victory Into
a situation that show a divided He
publican vota and a disorgantied Re
publican party. Obviously the olulloi
for th Republican dimculty I for th.
party to get together.
IXT OSWALT! no FT.
Oovernor Weat has abandoned hi
lr.ter.tlon If he ever had any Inten
tionof calling a special sosalon of the
Legislature to consider good road leg
islation. "I have decided." he aay
mark th -decided" "I have de-
.M.J at.. a tha eettaai nf WftoA road Will
be advanced rather than checked If
highway bills are given to tne initia
tive rather than to the Legislature."
The privilege of enacting laws on good
road for the people th sovereign
Oovernor thus withdraw from th
Legislature and confera upon th peo
ple, Th Oovernor offered the legis
lator a chance to go to Salem and
ratify a programme already thought
fully prepared for them by htm. and
they stupidly refused to surrender
their premgattv or yield their law
making function to him. Now they
may stay at bom.
Tbns th people are themselves to
tak a hand In good road legislation.
What people Th Orange T Th u
tomoblllstsT The machinery houses
Th professional road exprt Hood
River Mason, who know It all? Judge
Webeter. who know a little about ItT
Th state-aid specialist T The county
bonding promoters T Th road super
visors? Th wide-tire outfit 7 Th
and and gravel concerns! Th one-
ii... r.rm.r The beav-v teamsters
Or any other of th hundred pecial
Interest or hobbyist or epeechlfler
or promoter who hava their own Idea
about good ro! and how to pay for
and build themT no r
- n,r,nn or aronn of persons
draw a good road bill that will suit
any othr person or group of persons T
. TnMinra framed tn any
Interest, political, economical. Indus
trial, or otherwise, tnat viii noi om
antagonised by every other Interest T
Who can draw a good road measure
that will not awaken widespread con
troversy, and will not certainly be de
feated Oovernor West thinks ho can.
Let him trv it.
TAFT APPEAla TO IU5ASO.
President Taft's Waterloo speech 1
an appeal to reason against th un
reason of these who would us tha
law for tha vindictive pursuit of th
railroads and trust and of those w ho
resent regulation of the railroad and
prosecution of the trust. The ar
th two elements which are mainly re
sponsible for th present Inexcusable
depression of business. Th earth
yield in abundance, but a contlnuou
feud about th division of Its produce)
la kept up. The Insurgents, who falsely
claim an exclusive right to the titl
"progressive," stir up animosity and
propose drastic measure against cap
ital In general because some capital I
unlawfully employed. Th trust pro
moters, whose fortune ar derived
from th sal of seeurltle which rep
resent only th fictitious value of Ille
gal monopoly, refuse to recognize that
competition 1 th only ytetn under
which business can be legally conduct
ed In thl country and predict disaster
If the anti-trust suit are continued.
Railroad managers cry out that they
must hava higher rates because wage
are increased, though their earnings
would spontaneously rise If thetr
brethren of the trusts would cease)
their moaning.
Standing In th ml J ale of th road,
with tha angry shout of th Insur
gents In one ear and the walla of th
financier in the other. Mr. Taft
sounds warning and rebuke. He con
sole the railroads with tha assurance
that he believe no further legislation
In ren-srd to them la necessary except
to limit Issue of stocks and bonds.
This will comfort the operating man
agers of the railroads, but not th
financier, whose profit is made by
capitalizing a franchise survey and Is
suing bonds for the construction of the
road, then selling the stock. He offers
no consolation to the trusts, lie tell
them that competition is the only legal
system, that the Government can draw
no distinction between good and bad
trusts, since the law doe not. and
that "mourning over a condition which
Is Inevitable Is useless." As for th
suggestion that the Government take
part In the management of trusts and
fix prices, as do some foreign govern
ments, the Government might as well
take entire control, which would be
so-lal sm. He prefers to believe that
the trusts wilt yield to the Inevitable
and dissolve cf their own free will.
The two measure to which Mr. Taft
has set his hand and which will occupy
the large part of hi energies during
the remainder cf hi present term ar
tarllf revision acd monetary -reform.
If he can accomplish these, or ven get
them well atarted on th road to ac
complishment, his Administration will
have planted the business of the coun
try on a solid foundation railroads
under control, competition restored,
the tarllf revised on a scientific, mod
erately protective basis and tha cur
rency system made both atabl and
elastic. Th first of these h has ac
complished; th cries of distress from
Wall street indicate approaching suc
cess with th second. The other two
will cause a battle in Congress next
esalon.
While the President shows no re'
i..ti. in hi. Haiarmlnstlon to prevent
capital from wrongful acta such as
exacting exorbitant raiiroau is
'nhlalrlnr extortionate Price for
trust product. ecurlng exceaslva
protective duties ana taxing tm-
c.nt.o. nt HfecfiVS m OH etRTV laWS.
he doe not mine matter In rebu'tlng
those who, under in cioas. 01 ag
gressiveness, obstruct both progress
and prosperity by keeping alive antag
onisms th excuse for which has been
.-t Thla naawAB- In his SDeech
should command the Indorsement of
all men who desire prosperity to com
hand In hand with orderly progress:
We have reached a point ejhare we eaa
rail a ha.t. not In tha proaraaalre move
ment to heap bnalneea free from theaa
abuase. but arbors a a cat. call a halt acalnat
appeals ta a spirit of purs boetllllT to proa
peritr on tha theory that no ona can be
prosperous without belns fllahonaat or a
violator of law la securing the profits of
hla buslaaas.
PRESIDENT raKREIX.
Mr. James D. FarreU, who becomes
president of th Oregon-Washington
Railway A Navigation Company, la a
railroad man who owe hi exceptional
rise to no peculiar caprice of fortune
and to no special Influence. He has
gone ahead because It ha always been
found that when there was work to be
done he was the best man to do it
He ha always been a railroad man,
He knows the operating end, the ad
ministrative end, the traffic end and
the financial end. He has a singularly
forceful peaonailty and a very clear
mind. He Is not dismayed by obsta
etc. He takes the straight course. He
dominates. He gets results. He keeps
hla men loyal to him. He has the
confidence of the people he serves. He
Is a most valuable man alike for rail
road and for lta patron.
There will be natural disappoint
ment in Oregon that Mr. O'Brien waa
not advanced from the vlce-prestdency
to the presidency of the Northwest
system. He la capable and ha I alto
gether deserving. But It may be as
sumed that the arrangement made Is
to his liking. In any event It Is a
matter of congratulation that he will
remain as general manager. .If an
other was to be made president of the
O.-W. It. N, It 1 highly pleasing
that It should be Mr. Farrell.
The new scheme of organization In
the great railroads commonly known
aa the Hanimui system contemplates
the formation of large units, each
highly organized, and each operating
to the fullest practicable extent inde
pendently of the others, though In har
mony with all the others. Th presi
dent will hav more authority. He
will determine local policies. He will
ettle Important question for himself
without referring them to Ban Fran
cisco or New Tork. He will not be
embarrassed by detailed Instruction.
II will develop the property and con
serve it. as condition require. It Is a
return to approximately the condition
or some of them that prevailed be
fore the 0.-W. R. a N. Company be-:
cam part of a great transcontinental
system. It 1 a good thing for Oregon
and th Northwest.
SCUtACTJ WHBAT.
Pastor Russell doe not think that
tt a pound ! a "vary high price for
th seed of Miracle Wheat." He ha
heard of ordinary seed selling for SO
cent a pound, and thla Including it
miraculous properties, cost only twipe
a much. If all that Is claimed for It
Is true. Miracle wheat must be worth
several thousand dollars a pound. In
deed, It I beyond all price. Think of
those men In Washington, pious mem
bers of Brother Russell' flock and
therefore certainly no liars, who har
vested 222 pounds from one pound of
seed. The man In the parable who
sowed his grain on the very best
ground there was got no more than
an hundred-fold for his return, while
these devout farmers think nothing of
obtaining more than two hundred-fold.
A miracle of thla sort I worth while.
It means money. It means money for
the men who buy and sow the grain,
but more emphatically does it mean
money for Pastor Russell's great and
good cause. For the latter It means
money gained, but one cannot feel so
certain that It will be quite that way
for the farmers. Marvelous discov
eries of this sort have more frequently
meant money lost for them.
We are loath to speak of Pastor
Russell's brilliant scientific, discovery
a a fraud. In fact. It may not be a
fraud, nor la It demonstrably true as
yet that the demand for hi miracle
wheat I a "craze." And yet there
have been many discoveries of the
same nature which were frauds and In
course of time the men who had put
their money Into them were convinced
that they had been crazy when they
did so. In reading of the recurrent
discoveries of seed grain which yields
miraculous returns, one Involuntarily
thinks of th famous tulip mania
which one spread through Holland
and stopped over Into the whole of
Europe.
Tulip bulb sold for price running
up to 130,000 when the rage was at its
height. Murders were committed to
gain possession of miraculous bulbs
and political battle were fought over
the culture of the lovely flowera But
after a while the erase died out. When
It waa over nobody could tell exactly
why It originated. Certainly there Is
nothing tn the color or form of a tulip
to bereave people of their wits. It
seems, however, as If the ordinary
Individual had auch a slender hold on
hi wits that almost anything which
happens along would shake It loose.
Think of the facility with which men
turn over their hard-earned cash to
"get rich quick" schemers whom they
never saw before and whom they know
nothing whatever about except that
they axe probably rascals
Th M'rad Wheat which Pastor
Russell 1 promoting by his prayers
and tales may not be the same thing
as th "Alaska wheat" which was her
alded under less sacred auspices some
years ago. but the resemblance la re
markably close. The Judicious reader
will remember that Alaska wheat
yielded something like returna of 200
per rent. All that was necessary was
to sow a thimble full and you reaped
a carload. Suckers nabbed the bait by
the hundred. For a time It looked as
If honest farming In the Northwest
would be abandoned for th miraou- J
lous loaves which wer to be produced
from this wonderful seed already
baked. Or was it the brains of the
purchasers which were baked? They
certainly were done to a turn, whether
it was by baking or boiling.
We recall a miracle of this kind
which was wrought some thirty years
ago by pious men like Pastor Russell.
The subject of this divine Intervention
was called "Russian Oats." The seed
yielded as much as Miracle wheat or
even more, and It -was offered exclu
sively to church members. What the
precise reason for this favor Was we
do not know. Whether the promoters
supposed that church members were
deficient In Intelligence we cannot say.
At any rate the Russian Oats in all
their splendor were offered to the
pious and sold In vast quantities at
from 110 a bushel upwards. The
price was astonlishlngly low. We
wonder at the modest advantage the
promoters took of their opportunity.
They might Just as well have obtained
$100 a bushel. When a farmer has
made up his mind to be a fool, money
la no object to him. He Is ready to
pay the last cent he has for the Indul
gence. Russian Oats turned out to be
ordinary grain bleached a little and
carefully looked over to pick out the
big kernels. The yield was really
somewhat larger than one could ob
tain from common mongrel seed. The
faintest spark of Intelligence In select
ing seed always shows In the yield.
The value of the Iowa corn crop has
been almost doubled In late years by
paying a little attention to pedigree
seed. Of course the same or more
could be done with wheat.
Prince Kropotkln has shown that
the ordinary wheat crop can be multi
plied a dozen times over by planting
In rows, sowing thinly and cultivating
the individual plant. Pastor Russell's
scheme has vestiges of common sense
when it urges thin sowing. No doubt
what other value it has comes' from
selection of seed. It might be worth
a hundred dollars a head to the farm
ers of the country to learn the value
of choosing the best grain for planting.
Miraculous claims like Pastor Rus
sell's appeal with singular force to the
Ignorant. Since his Miracle Wheat is
selling hotly among his own flock we
conclude that he has not gathered his
lambs from the most Intelligent classes.
Ignorance and superstition are twin
sisters and a hideous pair they make.
The Miracle Wheat rage is one among
many evidences that the world is ex
periencing a revival of credulity which
may later pass Into a witchcraft ma
nia. Of course what Pastor Russell
really means, though he does not ven
ture to say so, I that hi seed wheat
Is bewitched. Formerly women be
witched their cream In the churn to
make the butter "come." Children
were bewitched to cure their diseases.
Armlea were bewitched to make them
victorious. Most of the world has out
grown these foolish fancies, but there
Is a remnant which has not and that
remnant is buying Miracle Wheat at
a dollar a pound.
The argument of ex-Secretary Bal
Ilnger In favor of state Instead of Fed
eral control of the public lands will
appeal to every Western man who has
seen the wrongs and abuses perpe
trated through control by bureau offi
cial Ignorant of Western condition.
We hav seen the evil "wrought under
Plnchofs control of the Forestry Bu
reau. Alaska Is still paralyzed by It
We have seen that bureaucratic con
servation means stagnation. We have
endured the evil of control by a dis
tant, slow-moving. 111-lnforroed organ
ization and Imbued with the idea that
It knows better than the people what
Is good for them. Mr. Balllnger names
the right alternative In state control,
under which Oregon would manage
Oregon land for Oregon's good and
Alaska's land would be administered
by men on the ground In trust for the
futur states which will be formed out
of Alaska.
The threat of Italian Socialists to
strike against the war with Tur
key Is in line with Socialist policy
In other European countries. They
have agitated against war In France
and Germany when It threatened be
tween those two countries and may
be the mean of tying the hands of
those two countries. Their theory is
that the producers of all nations have
iniMMti in eommnn and that for them
to take part In war would be fratricide;
they dream of an ideal in wnicn an
nations will be federated In a Socialist
alliance. Their dream Is made of the
same stuff as other dreams, but If It
serves to prevent war. It will have
served a good purpose.
The proverb. "A fool and his money
are soon parted" should be revised. In
the .case of Jack Johnson to read: "A
brute and his money are, soon parted."
He has squandered not only his money,
but his health and after the Inevitable
knockout may be expected to settle
down with other "has-beens" to the
-oinnn tuiainMi iir the training of oth
er fighters. A pugilist Is a splendid an
imal, but the animal part or mm soon
destroys the splendor.
T '
If the founders of the city had only
known that the time would come when
Portland would need an auditorium
largcg than 200x200 feet, how much
trouble they would have saved. They
had foresight enough to see that Port
land would be a city, but not enough
to see that a block 200x200 feet would
some day be called a "toy block."
Following the example of Mr.
Rockefeller, let all who would become
wealthy and powerful harken to the
advice of the humble porter, excepting,
of course, htm of the late Mr. Pulman.
Test of the domestic science work of
the Oregon City High School girls will
be return of the tramps to steal more
cakea and pastry.
The Vice Commission, to get a
proper start, needs a transcript of tes
timony taken by a Federal grand Jury,
The Coast League season should be
extended. The day of the last game
come all too soon.
Hops are selling higher north and
south, but the Oregon hop Is not los
ing by delay
These foreign wars are necessary
every few years to send people to the
atlases.
Unable to control Its work, the Gov
ernor says there will be no extra ses
sion. The order to strike will bear hard on
the old employe.
Keep an eye on Russia when real
trouble begins.
Gleanings of the Day
The Grand Trust Company of Phila
delphia has been In existence since 1836,
and has only once missed paying a half
yearly dividend. It has paid a total of
19,000,000 In dividends.
There are many small villages in the
world that have only one street; but
Lerwick, In Shetland, besides having
only a single street possesses only one
tree, and it is not a very tall one, either.
There are no birds there, not even a
sparrow; but the seagulls are plentiful.
The Inhabitants of Shetland are very
proud of their tree and very kind to the
gulls, of whom the children make pets.
Children who are brought for the first
time to see the wonders of one streeted
Lerwick are always shown, as a great
curiosity, "the only tree In Shetland."
The seagulls are the sparrows of Ler
wick; and as such they have a greater
share In the town's life than the spar
rows of London. In the morning you
will note that a seagull sits on every
chimney pot. Seagulls swoop and hover
over every roof In town. The air is full
of their strange, high, plaintive, haunt
ing cries. Every house ba Its own fa
miliar seagull and every street it own
band cf them. But, according to the
Fruit Magazine, they never mix. The
children In each house have a pet name
for their own particular seagulls; and,
having called them by those names,
they feed them every day.
There Is war between the lovers of
the oysters of Maryland and Louisiana
not red war. Just black war. The
New Orleans Times-Democrat aroused
th Ire of the Baltimore Evening Sun
by contending that the Louisiana bi
valve was the equal. If not the superior,
of what the Sun calls "the superb and
Incomparable mollusk of the Chesa
peake Bay and by asking:
When Baltimore eats her own oysters
tata prlda must make her do thataoes
aha not hava to resort to Louisiana tsbaaco
to render them even mildly palatablaT
To this the Sun retorts:
In answer to this we roar "No!" a "Not"
upon the contrabass tuba, fortissimo ccn
fuoco a "No!" whose last faint echoes will
ba coming; back from the AUeKheny peaks
nezt Tuesday morning. Tabasco upon a
Chesapeake oyster? lmazlne It! As well
talk of mayonnaise upon aauerkraut, or
vinegar upon a lollypop!
We admit, of oourse, that tha thing may
ba done that , It la physically possible
even that It Is recorded In tha chronicle.
It Is common knowledge. Indeed, that ta
basco la to ba had. on written requeat. In
soma of our humbler oyster housea. But
the sacrilege of pouring It upon tha ex
quisite mollusk Is never committed by those
who understand and revere the oyster
never. In brief, by Baltlmoreans. We leave
such debaucheries to Ignorant strangers
to shoe drummers from Massachusetts, to
visiting Pittsburghers, to Ruthenions lately
arrived at L.ocust foini.
The native Bultimorean knows too well
that tha oyster abhora all auch caustics. Ha
eats the dear reptile au natural or per
haps with a microscopic dash of horse
radish. It needs no salt. It needs no pep
per. It needs no catsup. As for tabasco, it
revolts and squirms, as pathetically as a
vivisected dachshund, beneath that L.oui
slanan. that awful stuff.
If the controversy Is to be oontlnued
The Oregonlan respectfully enters as a
contestant for highest honors the little
Olympla oyster with a flavor all its
own.
.
Th education system of the Philip
pines Is pronounced one of the tri
umphs of America in the Orient by
Dr. Shepardson and Dr. Goode, who
were sent by the University of Chicago
to Manila to conduct educational
courses at the vacation assembly last
Summer. They found that the school
system has developed until now it
reaches Into every town and nearly
every village of the Island, and last
year Instructed more than a half-million
boys and girls, and the Philippine
government spent over three and a
quarter million dollars of local revenue
for education. The services of over
9000 American and Filipino teachers
are employed in the various schools
tt the Islands as supervisors and class
room teacher of th academic and
teohnlcal subjects of the courses of
study. One of the professors says:
I have seen many gatherings of adula
tors, but none which average higher than
this one. Tha reason no doubt Is that no
where else oould such a company ba found
of man and women who are doing pioneer
work, who hava tha spirit of tha pioneer,
and whose earnestness la pursuing Ideals
la reflected In conversation and conference
talk. Tha company In attendance at the
Assembly has Impressed ma with a feeling
of prlda In the quality ox manhood and
womanhood In tha service of tba bureau.
They are clean-cut. straightworward, earnest
people, tha stuff pioneers are made of. As
1 came to know them personally and to hear
of their work In all parts of tha Islands, tbe
problems they are meeting and solving snd
tba auccesa with which they are carrying
tha "message to Oarcla" In tha service of
education. 1 felt proud that I am an Amer
ican, and that the generous-American aim
of helping these people to help themselves
is being realised In tha splendid service of
tha director and his co-workers in tha Bu
reau of Education.
Tha Government will hold an exam
ination for positions in fhe Philippine
schools on December 27 and 28, work
to begin next Spring, and the Bureau
of Insular Affairs at Washington has
the affair In charge.
Coal is unable to bold its own with
fuel oil In Oregon, according to E. W.
Parker, of the United States Geologi
cal Survey. The production of coal
In Oregon decreased from 87,276 short
tons In 1909 to 63,241 tons in 1810, a
loss of 24.03S tons, or 27.64 per cent.
The value decreased 810,996, or 4.68
per cent, from 1235,085 In 1909 to 3224,
119 in 1910. Only two mines,, the New
port and the Beaver Hill, both in Coos
County, ship coal In large quantity,
the shipments being made almost en
tirely by sea to San Francisco. This
decrease In output Is attributed di
rectly to the great Increase In produo
tlon of petroleum In California and Its
use as fuel for domestic as well as
railroad and manufacturing purposes.
The statement of July earnings and
ax pens a a of tha three prlnolpal systems
of railroad which reaoh the Northwest
shows that the Northern Pacific and
Southern Pacific have suffered serious
decreases in 1911 as compared with
1910, and that the Great Northern has
only been able to show an increase by
severely holding down Its expenditures
for maintenance and equipment. The
figure for the net earnings of the
three systems are:
Expenditures for maintenance and
equipment, which are Included in op
erating expenses, have greatly de
creased. The decrease for the Great
Northern Is from 31,243.232 to 3960,420
In maintenance, and from 3659,134 to
$641,009 In equipment; for the North-.
ern Pacific from 31.002.989 to 3245,417
in maintenance, and from 3729.659 to
8716.666 In equipment. The Southern
Pacific increased its maintenance ex
penses from 31.326.739 to 31,447.091,
but decresed its equipment expenses j
Xrm 31.345,155 to 3L226.24-4. J
FORF.IGX ISSUES TJJiDESIKABLE.
Correspondent Urges Sobmlsslow of a
Straight Commission Charter.
PORTLAND, Sept, 2S. (To the Ed
itor). That the people are ready and
anxious to register their approval of
the commission form of government Is
certain. The nearer the administration
of the city's affairs approaches that of
the properly organized and properly
conducted business Institution the bet
ter satisfied they will be and the great
er the results. They want results and
an elimination of political considera
tions. The predominance of politics
constitutes the fundamental evil In our
present form of municipal government.
It serves as an agency for graft, pro
crastination and Inefficiency in our mu
nicipal affairs.
The commission form of government
is popular, not as a fad, but by reason
of its demonstrated worth; It Is grow
ing more popular every day, and there
is a demand on the part of all pro
gressive citizens that it become an es
tablished institution In municipal gov
ernment. That Its popularity should be
used as an asset for the enacting into
law of certain legislation not germane
to the question at Issue by so-called
political doctrinaires, la to be regretted.
6uch questions as proportional repre
sentation, preferential voting, single
tax, woman's suffrage, municipal own
ership, etc., are separate and distinct
Issues, concerning the merits of which
opinions are diversified. Are you going
to ask those voters who may he op
posed to some of these political prln
ciples to desert their convictions and
support tho commission form of gov.
eminent, or allow them to vote against
this form of government because they
cannot reconolle themselves to a sup
port of these principles, when it Is pos
sible to eliminate these principles as
a part of the amended charter and sub
mit them Independently?
We know the commission form of
government In numerous cities with
those political principles excluded, has
proved eminently successful. These
principles, while they may be conducive
to an improvement of conditions, are
not as well established and their worth
and utility so well recognized as the
commission form of government. There
are those who still believe in the old
form of government, the convention
Instead of the primaries, oppose the
Initiative and referendum, the recall
and other innovations in our political
system, and honestly oppose them.
Would we not regard It as . absurd to
include In some such popular measure
as commission government provisions
for their repeal? It Is therefore the
act of wisdom for the charter com
mission to permit the people to con
sider these Issues separately and not
expose the charter to certain defeat
by incorporating them In it. There Is
too great a tendency nowadays on the
part of certain vociferous "cure all"
reformers to take advantage of well
defined, practical and popular measures
by tacking onto them amendments
containing their pet political dogmas.
The people should be permitted to vote
on an out-and-out commission form
of government and not on a charter
that includes a multitude of amend
ments which cover subjects that should
be treated separately and which have
no direct relation to the question at
18 The utility and value of the com
mission. form of government Is not
merely a theoretical delusion, but a
practical, sane and rational applica
tion of business-like methods to the
science of government. The past ex
perience of municipalities having this
form of government has proved that
It is meritorious. Insuring greater effi
ciency, more substantial and progres
sive growth, with a decrease In taxa
tion owing to Increased efficiency in
conducting municipal affairs. Instilling
more civio pride and an elimination
of graft and logrolling In all Its forma
The administration of the city on a
more businesslike basis is benefllclal
both to the people and those seeking
special privileges on account of Its
fairness. Under the present system
of "give and take"' both are being un
justly Injured. the city's Interests
neglected and the so-called "interests"
exposed to the prejudices of Council
men who are seeking only their own
political aggrandizement or meroenary
gain.
What we lack, not only In municipal
government, but In National, state and
county as well, is simplicity In its
conduct. The less the opportunity to
play politics the greater the efficiency.
The pernicious Influence of petty poli
tics in the affairs of Government Is
like a cancer,- In that It spreads and
extends Its perverting influence until
Its Iniquitous effects have polluted the
whole body politic.
There are those who are prone to
argue that the personnel of the com
mission will be no improvement upon
that of the ordinary City Council. This
Is true. However, constant applica
tion to city business, undivided atten
tion, adequate remuneration and the
fact that greater publicity Is concen
trated upon the conduct and activities
of the commission will serve to make
the commission more efficient and the
commissioners less susceptible to cor
rupt Influences.
The death knell of commission gov
ernment will also be sounded unless
there Is an amalgamation of the two
charter revision oommlttees and a
mutual understanding arrived at- The
submission of two charters will divide
those favorable to the commission form
of government, while those opposed
will maintain a solid front. Those
having In hand a revision of the charter
should at aU times bear in mind the
fact that the people are desirous of
adopting the commission form of gov
ernment and want the charter so re
vised that the Interest of the public,
as well as that of capital, may be
amply protected, and desire a more
expeditious administration of muni
cipal affairs
The commission form of government
bids fair to undergo rough sledding If
outside and foreign Issues are Injected
Into the charter providing for its adop
tion, for the many who favor it will not
consent to support It with these is
sues Included, many of which they
ooDOse. GEORGE L. MYERS.
From the Oregonlan, Sept. 30, 1861.
A man In Salesburgh. CaL. found his
.1 U- anrlnlflArl it wi th BtrVCh-
nine and the next morning he found
lying with it an eagle, a wildcat, two
cows and a skunk
Robert Mills, now in Oregon City,
says that there are now about 1000
miners on the South Clearwater, mak
ing from 35 to 310 a day.
The Carrie Ladd made an extra trip
on Saturday to bring down a large
number of emigrants.
Senator Nesmith Is expected to
reach this city tomorrow evening. He
will proceed to Washington in the
next steamer.
Thara Is a larsre orooortion of girls
among the lnoomlng emigrants. Cap
ital investment this ior uregon.
It has been noticed that, when an
. . nA.i.na . nUv o- 1
emirrttui .- - j
some impressible young man of our
city Is soon seen wending his way to
it with a basket of apples. This is all
right. .
We notice stock of various kinds
on the way to the fair. Some beauti
ful elk were in this city yesterday on
the way to that point.
Half a Century Ago j
N. Nitts on the Peace Dove
By Dean Collins.
Nescius Nitts, the new Socrates
Of Punkindorf Station, lolled back at
his ease.
Bit off some tobacco and crossing his
knees
Turned loose a few notions about the
increase
Of war in the world and of taH about
peace.
"I hear a hew' war cloud has bust In
the sljy.
O'er African borders about Tripoli,
And Italyuns and Turs Is preparln' to
git
Together and claw one another a hit,
Dlsturbln' the earth with the noise of
their fight.
Just now when the Peace Dove was
plantain' to light.
The folks of the world plants the
green olive sprout.
And watches around for the leaves to
come out.
Rejoicin' and tellin' each one to tha
others
The time ain't fur off till all men shall
be brothers
And Just as the olive's beglnnln' to
shoot.
They hops In and pulls the thing up
by the root.
"I'm minded how we formed an organi
sation Fer world-wide amnesty, in Punkindorf
Station,
And planned in the future fer Jlnln' of
hands
With similar clubs, formed In all for
eign lands.
We 'lected fer chairman Cyaxeres
Sprague,
And hoped to send delegates 'cross to
The Hague.
"But In the fust meetln' our "tentlon
was bent
On the serious subject of disarmament;
And Sprague stood for armed peace,
' and finally somehow
The meetin' divided and broke In a
ron
Some eyes and some noses was busted,
and Sprague
Said he would be darned If he'd go to
The Hague.
"The old Dove of Peace has been
stlckin' 'round here
O'er the face of the Earth fer six thou
sand odd year,
A-tryin' to brood and to settle and rest.
But we can't keep from scarin' her
clean off the nest.
And I 'low she'll set on this sphere
quite a bit
'Fore she'll hatch mlllenlum chickens
from it."
Portland. September 29.
Country Town Sayings by Ed Howe
Tou can make a mystery out of any
thing that happens after 12 o'clock at
night. .a
When you have a headache, you
usually know where you got it.
In this fat country, a man who can,
eat more than he can earn, ought to go
hungry.
If you have fished a good deal, and
never caught any fish, look, for other
amusement.
The young men say that the poor
girls are more affectionate than tha
rich onea
When visitors cant say a baby la
handsome, they say it has a fine head.
The people object to natural laws;
they want special laws.
No man can do anything "against the
grain" with good grace. Women can
do it, but men can't.
People seem to disagree on every
statement except that the oost of living;
Is too high.
I know plenty of women who dont
belong to tbe "weaker sex," and so da
you.
Altogether the funniest thing I know
about is the woman who tells of a man
who has been begging her several years
to marry her.
No wonder the Irish are said to be
witty; every good etory 1 credited to
them.
W, J, Bryan, Onion Grower,
Washington (D. C.) Herald.
W. J. Bryan, who Vas made 325,000
on his Bermuda onion crop on his Rio
Grande ranch, can wijlil afford to ba
indifferent whether his friends bet on
him or not.
GEORGE ADE'S
Latest Slang Fables
and
SIR A. CO NAN DOYLE'S
Greatest Mystery Tales
in
THE SUNDAY
OREGONIAN
Tables la Slang The 1911 fa
ble of the undecided bachelors
and the parting of the ways, the
best Ade fable yet.
The Adventure of the Gloria
Scott The famous Sherlock
Holmes brings his keenest facul
ties into play in this rare tale of
mystery and adventure.
Ferreting Out Forest Fires A
timely and important illustrated
article on a new and eff eotive
method of discovering and pre
venting destructive forest fires.
Queens of Charity European
Queens no longer maintain courts
of folly as of old. Half a page
is devoted to the good work of
worthy noblewomen.
American Women in Politics
A record of the work of living
American women in bringing
about social and political re
forms. The Man Down Cellar A'
clever short story about a tangle
in a honeymoon trip.
Funny French Artists An il
ustrated.half page on French car
toonists, their jokes and methods.
The Funny Men: Two colmuns
from the best humorists of the
American press.
The Widow Wise has a boat
ing adventure, Mr. Twee Deedle
has another adventure, Sambo
takes a cannon voyage.
MANY OTHER FEATURES