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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 25, 1913)
TIIE 3IORNIX6 OREGONIAN, TUESDAY. FEBRUARY 25, 1913. PflRTUm OREGON. Entered at Portland. Oregon, Fortomet as second -class matter. Subscription Katee Invariably In Advance. (BY MAIU Pally. Sunday Included, on year..... lelly. Sunday Included. six months. . lal!y. Funday Included, three months. lnly. unday Included, one month... Ia:y. without Sunday, ana year..... Da.ly. without Sunday, aim months... Tally, without Sunday, three montns. lai:jr. without Sunday, one moutn...- Weekly. oo year -k Buadsy, one year. ...... ........- Sunday aad Weekly, one Tear. ........ S-00 , .7 , Coo , 1.TS .60 l.tK) 1.60 S.M (BT CARRIER.) Din. Fondey Included, one year...... Dally. Sunday Included, one month.. Mow Remit Send Poetofflce money - unnn. 1 hCk OB I I.OO .75 or. i your the aender-a risk. Give poetofflce address ion. Including county ana ei ,. Poetaie Bata Tea to 1 Pa"a, J ."a to is paaea. X cents; SO to 0 P rente; 1 to eO pagea. 4 cents. Foreign pomade, double rate. .-w Eastern Bnlom offices Verree ft Cona- - v i .. . ..i. h.illrilna. CHI Cairo. Strrer building Aao t'riiuWei Office H. J. BldweU Co Market sireet. European Office So. S Regent atreet W.. London - & J-ORTLAND. TUESDAY. FEB. 88. MIS. HIERTA UNDER SUSPICION. The Huerta government of Mexico is under eurDlclon of resorting; murder in order to b rid of Madero and Suarez. This suspicion rests upon the notorious practice of killing' prls- oners on the pretext that they were attempting to escape; on the fact that Gustavo Madero was killed in this manner only a few days ago; on the manner In which Francisco Madero and Suarez were being- conveyed to the penitentiary, and on the story told by - the government itself of the manner -, In which they were killed. The fact that the two men were re moved at nearly midnight proves that 6ecrecy was considered necessary, but th attemnted resuce. if there was such an attempt, proves that the gov ernment's plans had become known, How? Did Huerta connive at this betrayal of the secret In order that an attempted rescue, real or pretended, might furnish an excuse for killing the prisoners? If the escort was en gaged In a fight with the rescuers, would Madero and Suarez have been foolish enough to Jump from the au tomobile into the midst of the fight, knowing that this would be the wel come signal for the escort to shoot them down and that they might be hot by some of their friends? Had the escort been attempting in good faith to guard them, would not the prisoners, surrounded by thirty armed men. have been safer In the automobile and would they not have realized this fact? The bodies of the prisoners having remained in pos. session of the guard, the rescuers must have been defeated. Then why were they not pursued and enough of them taken prisoners to prove that there was some foundation for the govern ment's version of the affair? Why in a twenty-minute engagement were 1 two non-combatants killed and only i two combatants killed and two wound ' ed? Somebody appears to bave taken better aim when shooting at Madero and Suarez than when shooting at his 1 antagonists In the fight. The world will suspect that either I the attempted rescue was a fake or f that Huerta deliberately allowed his . plans to leak in the hope that a rescue would be attempted by Madero's friends and would furnish a pretext for the murders. It would be in ac cordance with Mexican custom if the escort forced the prisoners to leave the automobile and run the gauntlet under the notorious fugitive law, then cooked up the story of the attempted escape, perhaps of the attempted res cue also, in order to cover their crime. Were this the case, all possibility of disproving the story has been removed by the death of Madero and Suarez. Ambassador Wilson and the other diplomatic representatives at Mexico City may well decline to partake of luncheon with men on whom this sua piclon rests until those men have proved their Innocence. They do not relish the society of assassins, nor will the civilized powers be ready to recog nize a government which establishes . -vlts power by such methods. HEAL CRIMES AND IAW-MADE CRIMES. Always unwilling to admit that an offense against the anti-trust law Is a crime because the law declares it so, the New Tork Times attempts to destroy the moral effect of the prison sentences passed on the cash register officials by contending that the Jury convicted them because their practices were crimes in the Jury's opinion, ir respective of the Sherman law. After briefly reciting the vicious acts of which the cash register men were found guilty, the Times says: By any Jury of merchant or business man tbeae practicea would be denounced as dishonest and wrong. They violate the usages of honeat tradesmen. It la be cause the ciimea charged were really Crimea n the Judgment of the Jury that the Gov eminent succeeded In getting a verdict of eal!ty In thla case, while la ao many other criminal proaecutlona under the Sherman law It haa failed. What a lawyer or a court would call reet.'aint of trade might appear to a Jury of business men aa betas neither criminal nor wrongful. In drawing this distinction between crimes which are really crimes and statute-made crimes under the Sher man law, the Times overlooks a few facts. Juries have for several years been convicting trust officials of statute-made crimes, though they could not bave known that the Judge would not impose prison sentences. The Jury In the cash register case could not have known that Judge Hollister would send the accused to prison. There has been squeamishness on the part of Judges in branding as convicts "magnates," "prominent citizens," "big business men," as trust officials ire variously styled, but there has been little aucb sentiment on the part of juries. Judges have been disposed to let off the guilty with fines, often ri diculously Inadequate in amount. The chief significance of the prison sen tences in the Cincinnati case is that they show the Influence of an aroused public opinion upon the Judges. The Times is greatly displeased with the anti-trust laws recently passed In New Jersey at the Instigation of Gov ernor Wilson, which have been named "the Seven Sisters." and questions whether Juries would convict under them. It says one of the laws "would prevent the forming of a partnership by two men who had previously been competitors." That is to assume that the Judges would construe the law In conflict with common sense. It questions whether business men would call it a crime "if two manufacturers, finding the market much overstocked, should decide. In pursuance of an un derstanding, temporarily to reduce the output of their mills?" With normal competitive conditions restored, the two manufacturers in such a case , would naturally reduce their output without any understanding. If they did not, the weaker would soon go to the wall. But doing business under trust methods has become second na ture to the Times and those for whom it speaks. We are gradually advancing to the point where crimes against the anti trust law will be regarded universally as real crimes and will be treated ae cordingly. Probably the last stage in this process will be the reconstruc- tion of the business ethics govern ing the conduct of trust officials and their sponsors In the press, but the public opinion of the Nation at large will not suffer defiance by a com paratively few men, no matter what financial power they may wield. PROGRESSIVES AND THEIR PABTV. Among other meritorious measures which Governor West is to have an opportunity to veto is the act con ferrlng upon the Progressive party the right to have a primary of its own In Oregon and making its provisions er- fectlve at once. If the Governor ap proves, we shall have the first Pro gressive primary In the coming Port land city campaign; which means that we shall have candidates for Mayor and for all other elective city offices named by the Progressives without the aid of any machine, whether engi neered by Statesman Kellaher or by Boss Coe. All this Is highly encouraging to persons who wish to see politics put on an honest basis. If there la to be a Progressive party, there surely ought to he a Progressive primary; ana u there is to be a Progressive primary, mm hut Progressives should take part therein. We may look now for a ringing ap peal from Progressive headquarters to go to the Courthouse and register as Progressives, or to withdraw their reg istration as Republicans, if they can. and re-register under their proper des ignation. If the Progressive Head quarters will issue no call, the Pro gressives ought to go anyway. The Oregon Ian gives the Progres sives the benefit of the announcement that there l a party and a primary for them now, and suggests that they ought to make a better showing In the registration than they have so far made. Only one-tenth, or less, of the men and women now enrolling them selves in Multnomah County are Pro gressives. FRIGHTENED BT BOGIES. PORTLAND, Feb. 24. (To the Editor.) In an answer to P. O. Butterly'a queation regarding the operation of the sterilisation bilL The Oreconlan Bays: -Under the law. hlgh-rollera will not be dragged from autoa nor hoboea be picked up oa the streets to he hustled to the operating table." But the queation remalna: Will people be picked up oft the atreet. Bent to the Insane asylum. and from there rushed to the operating ta ble? Tou know that anybody from the United Statea President down to the last rewer-dlgger, from the white-haired lady of 90 down to the baby In the cradle, can be declared" Insane and be aent to tne asy lum. Where la the dividing line between sane and Insane 7 ita.ji. Here is another man whom the gob lins are sure to get if he does not keep away from soap-box orators and avoid dark alleys. The law does not make mere insanity cause for sterilization, But It authorizes sterilization of habit ual criminals, moral degenerates and sexual perverts, sane or Insane, who bave been confined after due legal process In one of the state institutions Degeneracy and sexual perversion are readily defined and recognized. The harmless crank Is Just as safe as he ever was. If our alarmed correspondent believes somebody is likely, be cause this law has been passed, to be. come the innocent victim. of conspir acy and bribery or other corruption of public officials, he may as well lapse nto a perpetual state of shuddering fear. The operation under such cir cumstances would be no less criminal now than before the enactment of the law, and there are other atrocities that are Just as threatening. The surgeons at the insane asylum have always had authority to amputate a patient's hand, or arm, or leg, if such amputa tion be necessary to save him from fatal blood poisoning. When all our courts are composed of villains, and our institutions gov erned by scoundrels, it will probably be possible to turn sane, worthy men into maimed and doddering wrecks, While the sensible will not be ' dis mayed by this remote possibility, the person who Is silly enough to hunt for and be frightened by them will find the world is full of bogies. TRUSTS NOT FACTOR IN MEXICAN CASE. Some of The Oregonian's valued friends have obtained somewhere the false Idea that if intervention in Mex ico Is finally accomplished by the United States it will be solely In the property Interests of American trusts and moneyed corporations. Two, in letters published today, reveal that opinion. As a matter of fact, in 1900 there were 15,285 Americans In Mexico, and it is estimated that after the enumer ation of that year the number more than doubled and remained at the higher figure until conditions became nsettled throughout the country. It estimated that even now in Mexico City there are fully 15,000 Americans. These citizens are in -all walks of life, but even -were they employed by the Morgan or Guggenheim interests. our moral duty to protect 'them and their property would be Just as strong as if they were engaged in independent endeavor. Moreover. If we desire to maintain the force of the Monroe Doctrine, it is our duty to protect other foreign residents in Mexico against anarchy. One correspondent. Mr. Leeper, would tretch the Monroe Doctrine to per mit other nations to preserve by tem porary force the lives and property of heir own citizens. Tet the combined French, British. German and Italian population of Mexico does not equal the American population. It would be cheaper, but not a great source of pride for America, having greater Interests than all these ations combined, to stand aloof and let them restore order If foreign in tervention becomes necessary. If we are to take rank with China, Spain, Guatemala and Cuba, which also have material representation In Mexico, in protecting citizens abroad, we are in sorry company. But we do not believe that America will ever sacrifice duty and patriotism to the trust issue. The Daily Astorian (printed at As toria) permits Itself to get excited over letter sent to The Oregonian by a Mr. Werthelmer. and not printed. A great many letters are sent to The Oregonian, and not all of them are, or can be, printed. Mr. Werthelmer rote a letter offensively imputing to The Oregonian improper motives in paying so little attention to an ad- ress by Mr. Joseph N. Teal on the Columbia River. The Werthelmer let. ter was ignored for that reason, and for that reason only. We had had no complaint about the matter from Mr. Teal; nor have we observed that there la any discrimination on the part o any Portland newspaper against the literary or forensic output of that gen tleman. We suppose that the reason that the Astorian has sought to make a great deal out of a very little matter Is that the Astorlan cannot help it. being guided by a very little mind AX UNPROMISING INVENTION. We do not expect to see the new in vention which the Swiss have Just per. fee ted become very popular. It con fists of a pair of little bicycles about eighteen Inches high. One machine is strapped to' each foot of a pedestrian and he is thus enabled to go about the country at amazing speed. The con- trivance is so artfully made that the mere shifting of the user's weight from one foot to the other propels it. Still, even this is too much exertion. What man has always sought is not way to make his own strength more effective, but to compel the strength of somebody or something else to serve him. The great man has always been the one who laid plans and forced somebody else to execute them. In the beginning of civilization mankln could not produce food enough to feed the whole population comfortably. The shrewd therefore compelled the stupid to cultivate the ground and turn over the product to them. Thus began that condition of a landed aristocracy luxuriating in plenty while the tolling peasantry starved, which runs through all history. Even now, though science haa enabled the race to produce all the food It needs, the old habits persist and the fortunate few still compel the stupid many to work for them. Per haps they always will. The Inventions which are likely to become popular are those which make some natural force work for man, either to carry him across the country or through the air or to plow his land and weave his cloth. Evolution plain ly tends toward a condition where the human species will be emancipated from physical toll and thus be free to devote all its energies to art, litera ture and politics. What will become of the stupid who have not wit enough to do anything but muscular work' in that blessed time we do not undertake to predict, but certainly the era of physical work Is passing. The slavery of nature to man pro gresses visibly. Every year brings some new invention to harness another source of natural energy and set free new group of human tollers. The only drawback to the process seems to be that in attaining their freedom they usually starve. But what is starvation to the Joys of liberty and Idleness? If the Swiss want to make their for tunes, let them invent some way of walking without legs. THE VOCATION OF MOTHERHOOD. The ordinary baby show is an affair of sentiment, gush and flunkeylsm. If the banker's baby is exhibited, it takes the prize, no matter if it is spav ined in both legs, crook-kneed and blind in both eyes. The minister's offspring la sure of secqnd mention at least, although the Judges are morally certain that the poor little thing will grow up to be hanged. The lead ing politician's- hope and Joy, born three months before the show opened Invariably carries off the third premi um. If not the first. Such shows are evidently of no great efficacy for the betterment of the human breed. At an exhibition of pigs the mother's tears and winsome witcheries have no in fluence upon the Judges' decision. The prize goes to the piglet best fitted to ly on the maximum of fat from the minimum of feed. At a cow show the prize goes to the producer of the most and richest milk. Politics, reli gion and maternal sobs cut no figure In the verdict. In Iowa not long ago It occurred to two remarkable women to conduct a baby show on the same tines as the stock shows at the county fair. The babies were marked, not according to the wealth and social standing of their parents and aunts. but by their actual physical makeup. They were weighed and measured, their pedigrees were Impartially esti mated, their appearance was consid ered from the point of view of com ing efficiency and on that basis the prizes were awarded. The two women who ventured upon this innovation in baby shows were Mrs. Mary T. Watts and Dr. Margaret Vaupel Clark. The former is a lead ing member of the Iowa Mothers' Con gress. The latter Is a practicing phy sician and we should guess that she must stand at the very head o her profession. If she does not, she cer tainly ought. In Judging the babies some "general data" were first set down, as we learn from The Woman's Home Companion for March. For ex ample, whether its parents lived in town or country, whether it was fed at the breast or artificially, what kind of food it had and whether it was robust at birth. These essential facts ascertained, the Judge were in a sit uation to know whether the baby was growing up properly or not. They then proceeded to mark the Infant ac cording to a fixed standard. Just as the students at Corvallls mark calves and colts. For Instance, the perfect baby Is 20 Inches -high at birth. If a given specimen was only 15 inches high when that important event oc curred,' it is marked far down the scale. Its weight at one year old ought to be 21 pounds. If it tips the balance at 14 and no more, it gets a low mark on this point. Thus the Judgment proceeds, taking Into ac count "circumference of abdomen, symmetry of figure, quality of muscles, strength of hand grip, shape, size and position of ears, shape, size and condi tion of teeth, disposition, facial ex pression," and so on through a long list. The perfect baby obtained the maximum grade on every point, but most of the poor little things fell far below perfection. In fact, the Iowa babies ran ao frightfully far below the mark that their parents) formed a he roic resolve to begin paying as much attention to human stock as they had been paying to pigs and cattle. Dr. Margaret Clark and Mrs. Watts achieved a brilliant triumph and the crusade for making motherhood a vo cation Instead of a game with death and the penitentiary Is well on In Iowa. If the famous Dr. Felix Adler can have his way It will soon be on every where. In a fearless Interview pub lished In the Eastern papers he comes out boldly for "the vocation of mother hood." This -means nothing more or less than that we must train women to be mothers as we have been train ing men to be carpenters and lawyers. The old idea that nature teaches every woman the essential points of motherhood has been shown to be false. It is so terribly false that it causes the deaths of millions of chil dren. Many mothers do not know how to clothe their infants, to feed them. to teach them the elements of morals, or to train them in their native tongue. Every physician knows how utterly foolish the ordinary mother Is about feeding her baby. What their folly can do in the way of clothing Is dem onstrated when one sees a miserable child paraded on the street In a stiff high hat and bare legs. Half the deaths of little children are due to the folly of their mothers. The one bit of knowledge they get direct from nature is how to love their darlings, but their love is often so densely ignorant and foolish that it kills its unhappy object. Dr. Felix Adler believes that all mothers should take a special course of training in the hygiene of baby hood. They ought to study the psy chology of infants in order to give th first lessons in morality and language properly. They ought to understand the machinery of the body as a chauf feur does hia automobile, so as to keep it in good working order. Half the miseries of life come from inattention to the machine we all carry aroun with us from . birth to death. The mother should be able to start her baby right in this all-Important mat ter.' It is to be taken into considera tion also that Nature does not intend by any means that every woman should be a mother.. There are some who are especially adapted to this profession and others who are not. Those who are adapted to it ought to choose motherhood for their vocation and train themselves for it as they would for any other business. It Is time for. a revolution in the old meth ods of ignorance and superstition by which young humanity is so often marred and even slain. But there Is another point which must not be overlooked. . The mother may be never so well trained In her vocation, she cannot nurture her chil dren well unless she has the means to do It with. Her knowledge of the per. feet baby food Is useless if she has not the money to buy it. It is of no avail for her to understand perfectly the art and science of clothing her child If she Is too poor to buy what it needs. The best stock breeder in the world must let his animals deteriorate if he has not the capital to provide for them. Human stock Is like all the rest In this particular. If the state and nation want perfect human beings bred up by mothers, they must take care that mothers have the means to do it. Students of modern conditions tell us that the political cartoon has- lost a good deal of Its old-time rancor. It is still pointed, but it aims to cause a kindly smile rather than to poison a man's mind. In war time popular cartoons went to all lengths of malig nity. They often used outright false hood to gain their purpose. The mod era cartoonist must stand firmly on facts. He may exaggerate, but he must not falsify. His abundant humor and sunny Jests teach many a useful lesson, but they leave no wounds that will not heal. Canada's inland waterway system Is in far better condition than ours, The United States made the mistake of neglecting rivers and canals when railroad building began. ' Canada was wiser. She has continued to dig new canals and improve her navigable riv ers without a pause. The system has prospered in competition with the rail roads and is now In a situation to dispose of a fair share of inland traf fic. We may profitably, if a little sadly, contemplate the example of our northern neighbor. Dealers are predicting a light crop of Oregon potatoes this year, based probably on the heavy crop yet unsold and the swing of the pendulum that governs production. There is, however, a view that should not be overlooked If 1913 proves to be a dry year, al ways a possibility, the grower who takes the long chance will be well re paid. Those who would abolish the Leg islature and let the people make the laws must remember the people named and chose the members of the Legis lature, and a stream cannot rise above its head. The people are ruling. Instead of putting the axe to ap propriations asked for the National parks, Secretary Fisher should leave that to the Democrats. Economy is their forte, except when .voting pen sions and buildings. There must be great relief among the men who wrote those love letters to Mrs. Lyons, which have been seized by the police, and how extremely po lite those men will be to Captain Mooney. The movement of General Carter and the United States Army is be ginning to attract almost as much at tention as General Rosalie Jones and the suffragist army. It would seem that there is going to be quite a scrap made over send ing the big naval scrapper Oregon to the scrap-heap. There is an opportunity for a few members of the proletariat in that school district near Chico, Cal., where the school may be closed for lack of pupils. The Ironworkers will put themselves in better standing with their fellows In organized labor by not re-electing officers under sentence and out on bail. Of course. If they were sure his dis appearance would be permanent, the legislators might reconcile themselves to the Governor's absence. Crooks who started to operate un der a detective bureau neglected to take into consideration, the officer on the beat. The sum of 13,427,000 was spent in postage stamps the past year. Au thors and lovers are mainly responsi ble. "Hits man who holds him up with revolver," says a headline. Puzzle: Who held the revolver? Turks and Balkan allies cannot get on the front page, while affairs are stirring near home. Medieval court intrigue Is out stripped in barbaric finesse by the Mexican variety. 'Aye, tear her tattered ensign down." Only the Oregon's ensign never got tattered. The Mexican, . like all off-colored people, is half child and wholly bar barian. And Ralph Watson, the- seoretary; oh, where is he? Porflrio the Great would better look up sailing dates. This weather makes the fan rest less. HOW TO COMBAT COST OP LIVING Writer Telia How He Gained Compe tences em 10 a Month. ' PORTLAND, Feb. 28. (To the Edi tor.) Dissipation of time and money by the laboring people and the middle classes, in my Judgment, causes more suffering, through high cost of living. than all the food trusts in existence The corrupt elements of combinations are responsible to a degree, but the di rect cause is with the consumer the masses that create and Indulge the very conditions enabling business In terests to combine for greater profits. Starvation wages are one direct cause. but worst of all are the insufferable passions of vanity, lust for luxuries. desire to make a living without wora, excessive buying -on credit, incessant spending of time and money in frivo lous and riotous living. Tbeae are tbe combinations of evil more vicious for inducing high cost of living than all the trusts would be if combined into one. The trusts know the weakness of the people, but the people do not know the weakness of the trusts. The trusts understand the art of inducing the masses to part with their money, but the masses have yet to learn the art of saving and Investing their earnings to good use. The people have tbe pow er to break or at least to regulate the combinations in SO days, those con trolling the necessities of life espe cially. They also have the power to reduce the cost of living to a reason able figure in less time than it will take to break the trusts, but they will not exert those powers for the obvious reason that it would involve, first of all, correction of faults at their own door to a greater extent than they are willing to admit or disposed to remedy How long would a trust or combi nation exist or be effective if people simply refused to buy any article re stricted In supply or raised in price above a reasonable figure? How long would merchants be selling contract goods If their patrons flatly refused to buy any article wholesaled under a contract to sell at a certain price? It Is one thing to preach and another to practice what we preach. The writer worked for wages for years, beginning at $5 per week, later on receiving $100 per month. The higher my salary, the less I saved, though never indulg ing In excessive dissipation. One day I chanced to meet a good woman a girl who had worked In an office for years for $5 to J10 per week. She pointed the way. Marriage resulted. Ag a beginning, she Invested her sav ings In part payment of a home and my salary of 7 per month was our liv ing, we solved at the start of our mar ried life to live right and within our means. To live well; to enjoy some pleasures and luxuries, but to provid for a rainy day. We bought nothing on credit except by way of Investments in real estate. We pay. cash now or go without. No solicitor Is asked to call for orders and no merchant is put to the trouble and expense of deliver ing goods not too heavy or large for my wife or me to carry home. We give our mite to the church and charity as In duty bound. We live well and are happy. Our rating today, in spite of the high cost of living, is in the five figures. I do not mean to be egotistical, but have a Just pride and every good rea son for gratitude. The trusts and low wages are nothing in comparison to tbe vices of the people for inoreasing the cost of living. There is peace and plenty for the frugal man and woman. There is misery and ruin for the vain and dissipated. HAPPY MAN AND WIFE. Monroe Doctrine and Mexico. PORTLAND, Feb. 24. (To the Edi tor.) Why not "start something?" Why not advocate an amendment to the Monroe Doctrine, which, by the way, was not an original idea of President Monroe? It was suggested by the Prime Minister of England, Channing, and Monroe knew a good thing when he saw it and promptly adopted the sug gestion. I favor an amendment to the Mon roe Doctrine by inserting a clause that will permit European nations tempor arily to take possession of territory on the Western Hemisphere for the purpose of maintaining order and the collection of debts only. It would be cheaper than if we do it, and would save us lots of trouble. I don't favor intervention In Mexico for the sole purpose of protecting a few capitalists who went there to make money with their eyes wide open to the dangers of engaging in business where law and order is not maintained. If they went to Mexico on the assur ance that their interests would be protected and have got into trouble, let them look to that country for re dress, and not ask the United States to pull their chestnuts out of the fire. With the Philippines and our other re cent acquisitions we have about all the trouble we can attend to. I am one of the victims of a mis placed confidence in Mexican stability, but I have no kick coming and am go ing to take my medicine. W. M. LEEPER. In Cleveland's Administration I British fleet seized the customs-house at Corinto, Nicaragua, and enforced the collection of a debt without pro test from the United States. Descent of Property, DORRIS, Cal., Feb. 18. (To the Ed It or.) (1) If a woman has a deed to a piece of land in her name and wishes to sell same, can she give a clear deed without her husband signing it? (2) If a husband dies without making will and. there are children, does his wife fall heir to ail the property or do his relatives come in for a part? A SUBSCRIBER. (1) In Oregon, no. In California, yes, if the property came to the wife by descent or was owned by her prior to marriage or was purchased with her own money; otherwise, no. (2) In Oregon the wife gets all. In California, all the property acquired during marriage goes to the widow. If the propety was acquired by the hus band prior to marriage or came to him by gift or devise during marriage, part goes to widow and part to husband's relatives. Andersonville Prison, SUPLEB. Or., Feb. 23. (To the Edi tor.) Please state where the book on Horror of Andersonvllle Prison" can be bad. J. H. QULNN. One of the best books on the subject "The Tragedy of Andersonvllle," the trial of Captain Henry Wlra, the prison keeper, written by General N. P. Chip- man, Judge Advocate of Military Court, price 2, and published by N. P. Chip man and George W. Ficks. Sacramento, Cal. Tbe book is dated 1911, contains 532 pages, and can be consulted at the Portland Public Library. Ne "National" Holiday. PORTLAND, Feb. 24. (To the Edi tor.) Kindly state if there are any ationat holidays in tbe Unltec States. If July 4 Is celebrated by the Nation, why Is it only a legal holiday? T. R. There Is no National holiday because Congress has never appointed any day to be observed as such by the Nation. Observance of the Fourth of July Is nation-wide because every state by in dependent enactemnt has declared it a gal holiday. A Three-Year Omtlng Trip. Indianapolis News. Aigot Lange, of New York, has start ed on a three-year exploring trip along the upper waters of the Amazon River. AFTER CAIN ARRIVED IN OREGON Remarkable Doings of Family Related by Student of Archaeology. PORTLAND, Feb. 23. (To the Ed itor.) Professor Charles Hal lock claims that his geological investigation proves that Cain, after killing his brother, Abel, migrated to the land of Nod, and that the land of Nod is identical with that part of the State of Oregon in and about Klamath Falls. Professor Hallock'g conclusions are, in the main, correct; but, getting them from the source he does, la bound to leave the whole question in more or less doubt. The way to get at the foundation of anything Is to get after the facts, real, hard-headed facts. I have been a Bible student during my life; have made a study of the Bible history of Cain and other prominent and illustrious men of that time, and have acquired all of the traditions of the Cain family, handed down from father to son during the misty gen erations immediately following the assassination of Abel by his elder brother. Tradition teaches us that Cain, with his family, or some of his family at least, crossed the plains and settled in Southern Oregon. Tradition is a little shy on dates, but I am sure it was the same year that Shakespeare lived In Kansas. Cain was traveling under an alias after reaching Oregon, probably from fear that extradition papers might be sent out from back home. He was at that time known as "Scar faced Charlie." by reason of his having a large. Irregular scar in his forehead. About the same date the two eldest sons of Cain located at or near Goose Lake. At all events I know Goose Lake to have been their P. O. address, and as proof of their Identity they both wore petticoats made of sheep skins with the wool on. In the neigh borhood in which they lived they were known under the euphonious cognomen of Herr Most and Snake-eyed Pete re spectfully, and, coming from a long line of pastoral ancestors, naturally dropped Into the cattle business. They invented a curious piece of iron mongering, which, when well heated and applied to the bodies of their neighbors' stock, acted as a conveyance of title. During the primary stages of their business career they did splendidly, but some selfish and Ignorant cowboys living near them took advantage of their innocence and crude knowledge of the country and Induced them to attempt the' unique feat of breaking ropes with their necks, the attempt proving a disastrous failure. Agree able to all established precedents in such cases, the ropes held. They are still located somewhere in Cioose Lake country, but no man knoweth where the sepulchre is even unto this day. Traditions are some what foggy as to the residue of the Cain family, but I have a dim recol lection that Cain's wife divorced him for some trivial reason, such as talk ing too freely while Intoxicated or for staying out too late at his "club." DR. E. A. MAKER. M'CLELLAN AND THE UNION CAUSE Writer Recalls Further Evidence of Grnrral's Lack of Enthusiasm. NEWBERG, Or.. Feb. 24. (To the Editor.) The statement made In an editorial printed in The Oregonian, Sunday that Halleck ordered Pope East to supplant McClellan as commander of the Army of the Potomac during the uivii war is an error. Pope took com mand of the Army of Virginia June 28 lsez, and Halleck was not appointed commander-in-chief until July 11 fol lowing. In fact It was through Pope's Influence that halleck was called to Washington. The Army of Virginia consisted of three corps commanded, respectively, by l-remont. itanKs and McDowell. It was at that date northwest of Richmond and the design was- to have it operate In conjunction with the Army of the Potomac then on the James River. When Pope took command of the 88,000 men composing the Army of Virginia he at once wrote to McClellan express ing an earnest desire to co-operate with him. To this the latter made no reply and when he was ordered by Halleck to remove his army back to the Potomac In order to connect with Pope when it became evident that Lee's entire force would fall upon Pope he was 11 days in commencing that movement. - He had no Intention to aid this man who had come out of the West. On the contrary he said: "If Pope has got himself into a fix let him get himself out of It." But Pope had not got himself Into a fix. He obeyed orders In taking com mand of the Army of Virginia expect ing that McClellan. would do his share of the fighting. He certainly had no reason to expect that he was to fight, with 38,000, the army of Confederates that McClellan had confronted a few months before with a force of 240,234 men after six months of drilling and organizing. One of McCIellan's ardent friends, General Franklin, said that McClellan fought the battle of Antietam with a halter" around his neck and that If he had failed there he would have been cashiered, the assumption being that he was Illegally In command of the Army of the Potomac. The fact Is he was not relieved of that command previous to the Antietam battle. In his report of that engagement General Halleck says: "Lee pushed his main army across the Potomac for a raid Into Maryland and McClellan was directed to pursue him with all his troops which were not required for the defense of Washington." You are fully warranted In the criti cisms In the editorial referred tp of McCIellan's lack of enthusiasm In the Union cause. His nomination for the Presidency In 1864 by the Democratic party excited great interest in the South. C. C. Clay, writing from Canada to the Confederate Secretary of War, Benjamin, Just after the conven tion was held, said: "Most of our true friends from the Chicago convention whom I saw thought It would be very unwise in the South to do anything tending to the defeat of McClellan. They argued thus: Peace may be made with him on terms you will accept. At all events he is com mitted by the platform to cease hostili ties and try negotiations. The plat form means peace unconditionally. Val landlgham and Weller framed it. Horatio or T. H. Seymour is to be Sec retary of State; Valandlgham, Secretary of War. McClellan is privately pledged to make peace even at the expense of separation if the South cannot be in duced to reconstruct any common gov ernment. J. T. BELL." Lone Fir As Memorial Park. PORTLAND, Feb. 24. (To the Edi tor.) Permit me to take this method of calling the attention of the people of Portland to the unselfish and beau tiful sentiment expressed in the com munication in The Oregonian of this date by "Home-Owner Near By," under the head, "Future of Lone Fir Ceme tery." It is an article that should have weight in the final settlement of tbe future of this cemetery. wny snouid a cold selfish public have no respect for the resting place of the forefathers of our beautiful city? Why not the city take over this burial place, as a memorial park, prevent further burials therein, open the roadways and alleys closed1- up by a few of the lot owners styling themselves "Lot Owners' Association," thus leaving it in park shape, and not a plot sown with graves as would appear by the amended plat now on record? Let us respect the memory of our -departed lying within its confines by making the places a beautiful spot to visit; to read old familiar names; to hear the birds sing; to see the roses bud and bloom, and to those Inclined, to reflect upon the trials and tribulations of life and the mysteries beyond the grave. R. B. CURRY. The Annual Folly By Deal Collins. I woke today and saw the aun And felt the red corpuscles run . About my system, whispering: 1 "This Is the first day of the Spring." I took the tip and then and there I donned my Summer underwear. I scoffed the Winter's woolen wear And kicked It underneath a chair; "Avaunt!" I cried. "No more for me Shall your raw strands annoying be. I'm done with all that sort of thing. There is no doubt that it is Spring." I wandered out upon the lea. And life was Joyful unto me; I watched the crowds of strollers pass, I rolled upon the springing grass; "This climate is tile best," I cried; "For early here come fair Springtide." And in the dusk I rambled home. With prldeful thoughts within my dome; Thinking: "Forsooth, I truly wot, I'm always Johnny-on-the-Spot. When Spring enlivens field and grange, To be there with the garment change." "Hail, the fair leaf buds on the trees " My speech here ended in a sneeze. Oh, Spring is here Indeed, but still I think I'll take a quinine pill. And drag from underneath the chair Once more my woolen underwear. Portland, February 24. Twenty-five Years Ago From The Oregonian of February 33. 188J. Spokane Falls, W. T., Feb. 24. Patsle Clark, the manager of the Poorraan, has Just received a report from the Denver Reduction Works on the first 100 of the 600 tons 6f ore uhlpped from the Poorman. It averages (73.75 per ton. Salem, Or., Feb. 24. The steamboat Wm. M. Hoag made the run from Portland to Salem today In eight hours and 40 minutes, making 11 landings. This is claimed to be tho fastest time ever made on the river. Jacksonville, Feb. 24. As the snows of last Winter in the mountuins adja cent to Mount Pitt melted, the car casses of about 60 deer came to sight, lacking hides, showing that the deer must have been slaughtered for that reason. District Attorney Colvig has caused the arrest of four of the deer skinners. Judge Catlin made an order yester day that Henry Falling and tieorge 11. Flanders and all persons Interested in the estate of George V. James, insane, should appear before him M;irch 27 and show cause why a licenso to sell cer tain real estate should not be granted to Llllie A. James, wife of George V. Harry Smiley, acknowledged to be the very best and most successful trot ting horse driver and conditioner in the Northwest, ' has been engaged by R. M. Wilber, of the Grand stable. The East Side. Yesterday the Eighth grade of the Central High School gave a Washington memorial exercise. The programme was opened with an excellent paper by Susie Mor gan on "Washington's ancestors and Birth." This was followed by papers from May Glass, Ada Mercer, Jennie Cathey and Ira Bell. I hereby appoint the following named gentlemen a committee to organize at least one Democratic club in each voting precinct In Multnomah County, to wit: Zera Snow, Rush Mendenhall, M. G. Munly, E. D. McKee, S. Julius Mayer, M. Koshland, B. M. Mantelll, of Portland; J. H. Steffin, of Albina; C. Taylor, of East Portland, and J. P. Zirnglebel, of Sellwood. Aaron E. Walt, chairman. Half a Century Ago From The Oregonian of February 35, 186S. Cairo, Feb. 11. We have news from Vlckaburg to February 7. The ram. Queen of the West, had returned from below. Her trip down the river was most successful. She met three steam ers with provisions for the rebels at Vlcksburg and succeeded In destroying all of them. Washington, Feb. 11. The Senate yesterday passed a bill remodeling the entire postal system. It provides for the appointment of all postmasters with salaries of over $1000 a year by the President; thoBe with salaries un der that amount are to be appointed by the Pustmaster-Ueneral. All per quisites are abolished. Dropped let ters are to be charged z cents and car riers paid a salary from the revenue Instead of receiving a cent on each letter. Chicago, Feb. 16. The Illinois Leg islature adjourned on Saturday. The resolutions demanding an armistice and convention, which passed the House some days since, failed In the Senate. Similar resolutions are still under con sideration in the Indiana, New Jersey and Ohio Legislatures. The Paris Pays says: The Govern ment of the Emperor has addressed a communication to the Washington Government proposing a means of ar rangement between the belligerent, which would fully protect the dignity of the Americans. Dozens of new edifices have been erected during the Winter and others are in progress of erection, besides other Improvements in the way of ad ditions, repairs, etc. Portland Is fast growing into a city of magnitude and commercial Importance. Monopoly's Interest In Mexico. PORTLAND. Feb. 24. (To the Edi tor.) I notice that much interest Is expressed by some of the managers of our National Guard about sending our boys to Mexico. From the stand point of a man who has had four years of experience in active service, starting in as a private in the ranks, passing through the grades to the command of a regiment of cavalry, I wish to express my opinion. The United Statea Government has no moral right to call out the National Guard to invade Mexico. If the Stand ard Oil Company, the Guggenheims and other corporations wish to invest their money in Mexico, let them take their chances. When they invested their money In mines and oil lands, thev knew what the Mexicans were. If the Mexicans want to get in and kill each other, that is none of our business. Let them fight it out. Not one of our boys shall go there with my consent. Should the time cotne that foreign foes invade our country, then every young man will respond to the first call of the President. They will main tain the honor of Old Glory every time. But not one of our sons must be made to suffer the horrors of war on the account of any moneyed monop olies. CICERO NEWELL. WHY PE SADf Why bo sad when all around us nature sings out with delight? Why be sad because the daytime doesn't last on through the nignt Why be sad because the weather doesn't suit our own desire? Why be sad because some fair one finds another to admire: Why bo sad because world's fortunes do not to our pockets come? -Why be sad because another beats us out in life's long run? Why be sad when sadness only Is to all but mental show? Why be sad when there's no such thing but the thinking makes It so? St. Johns. O. ELLSWORTH.