Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (April 9, 1913)
I) - 10 mm Entered at Portland. Oregoa. PoatogJeo mm e-eoae-claae matter. . . vbecrrBUoa Ir.TarlaWT to Advance: (BT MAIL) Dally. fMadar included, eae Tf -? all-. Sunday incluoca. eia Daily. Bunder lnc.uUL tore raontna.. x.u umi.y, Bunaar n. c. uuru, u - - - Dally, altauut Bocd-ij. on year tei.y. without Sunday, six BomM r-j ' Lal.y. without Sunday, tarea momaa .. if 1ahx. without Sunday, one month Jr W ,. goi year J-f- Bute.,, an year rjT Sunday aad Weakly, ana year.......... (BT CARRIER Dally. Sunday uielmded. ona year...... . Vm:iy. Sunday included, ona mantS.. . . . How to be-Bait tend poeto3.ee money or es r. expr-ae order or sereonal choea on your local bank. Stnmpa, cola or curraaoy are at u. e erode!" rte. OIo poatoffica a44reaa tutl l.-ic.ud;ne coonly aad state. 1-eotKO Itatao Tea la 14 pazea. 1 east. I to i paaoe. 2 cente; SO to eO P; eeou: to la 4o paaea. e an la, iorelgn poitaae. couble rate. u Eastern zMeiaeoa OeTlcaa Verree Conk II d. .rw Yot.x. Brunswick oulfcUng. csi aago. bte.er building. Baa tramrfece) Oulra R. J. EldweU Co.. I. Market elreot. - Karopraa OBlee No. S Rant mtnmm a. W.. Uadjn. OKTIAVD. HEUMDAV. A-PK1L . THE rSBDWOOD TARIFF. The Underwood tariff bill U pro claimed by Its author to aim at the accomplishment of certain purposes, but it Is difficult to conceive how some of ita provisions agree with that aim. lu design Is said to be' reducUon of the coa-t of living by placing necessary food products on the free list; then why is any duty retained on wheat and other grain? The Democrats re jected the difference in cost of pro duction between this and foreign countries as the basis of duties, but this difference is accepted by Mr. Un derwood as a guide in fixing what he calls a competitive tariff. He con demns Imposition of higher duties on Imports from countries which make no reciprocity treaties with us, but he imposes a 10 per cent duty on flour from those countries which have like autles. This Is obviously aimed at Canada, the principal country "which is likely to attempt exportation of flour to the United States. The duty Is clearly retaliatory. Little fault will be found, except by stand pat protectionists. with the slashing of the Iniquitous tariff on manufacture of wool, but as much cannot be said or tne tree wh pro vision. Why should revenue be raised by a duty of 10 cents a bushel on wheat which Incidentally protects the wheat-grower, and not by an equiva lent duty on wool? Both are neces saries of life, but we are exporters of wheat while we are importers of wool. The latter would be a better revenue producer than wheat and would part ly relieve us of the necessity of an Income tax. , We ahed no tears over the troubles of the steel trust, but what consis tency is there between taxed pig iron and free steel rails, barbed wire, hoop iron and band Iron? ' It may be sound poliry to tax luxu ries more heavily than neoesarles. but In lumping together all kinds of cut lery and all kinds of furniture neces saries seem to be confounded with luxuries. The pool man's Jackknife and the rich man's pearl-handled knife: the cheap furniture of the workingman's cottage and the costly furniture of his employer's mansion are equally taxed. Some kind of pocket-knife Is necessary to every man; so Is some furniture to every borne. Surely the principle which Mr. Underwood has laid down requires some distinction between that which Is so cheap as to be a bare necessity nd that which Is so costly as to be a luxury. So far as the principle of high du ties or luxuries is carried out. the Impossibility or avoiding inciuemai protection Is demonstrated. No man can deny that duties of &0 per cent on silk goods. 4 0 per cent on silk handkerchiefs and ribbons, 40 per cent on trimmed hats. 4 5 per cent on cut glass. 50 and S5 per cent on china, ware, are highly protective. The pot tery manufacturers of New Jersey and East Liverpool. O., are well cared for. The Underwood tariff may reduce the cost of living: it may remove some of the iniquities of the existing tariff, but It will leave many a favored in dustry and many a covert for monop oly and sperinl privilege. cn:rci: and wien"TI!.ts. It l really more than remarkable Just how scientists can tell to the min ute the age of fossil remains which they from time to time unearth. Near Calgary. Alberta, one Barnum Brown recently discovered the remains of a giant lizard, called by scientists a sau. rolophus. which had 'remained un derneath a sandstone ledge for J, 000.000 ear." Not about that length of time, but 3. 000. 000 years, no more, no less. In every detail the men of science give the facts of the death of Mr. or Mrs. ?kiUrr'ITpniIS, inc RK-jiaiLiirp laiiiuB t.i give the ex. "Three million years ao. In the cretaceous period," says the discoverer, "when Calgary was in a sub-troploal country, a dying sauro-Ir-phus dragged It several tons of flesh and bor.es cut of a lake near where Calgary now stands, and, shaking Its huge, leathery crest for the last time, stretched out Its webbed feet, and, with a farewell sigh to Its friends and near relatives, which sounded like the exhaust from a locomotive, lay down on the warm rands and died. How truly remarkable that science can thus depict a deathbed scene w hich occurred 1.000.000 years ago on tha 17th day of last March! Note that the saurolophus gave a departing "sigh for Its friends and near rela tives." Notice again that after It "dragged Its several tons of flesh and 'bones out of the lake," It "lay down on the warm sands" and gave up the ghost! When we Inquire of the scientists as to the details of events which oc curred a century or so ago they seem to be at sea. often failing to agree within a few decades. But when they deal in centuries by the thousand or ten thousand they nt their facts to gether with such a nicety that no man may dispute them. Sometimes when we read suc startling statements as that emanat lrg from Calgary we are reminded of Bret Harte's story of Truthful James about the "Society upon the Stonls low." Tnew Itraea he read a paper and dentoB- t rated there, wraea tneee earae aones aa animal that waa eatreoAe.y rare. It will be remembered that Abner Dow upset these "facts" by showing that the remains of this prehistoric animal were really the remains of mule of recent days. Of course. Bret was trying to cast opprobrium upon the scientists, and by the story they were confounded. But remember they were dealing with contemporaneous times. That was an error. No scientist should deal with the affairs of his day, not even with the days of his father or grandfather. If he does someone who Is not scientifically Inclined may con front him with, facts and confuse and confound him. When, however, - a scientist goes back 3.000.000 years he is safe, aa the Calgary discovery shows. Note what a picture is drawn of the death scene. Observe that the animal was surrounded by friends and relative, that U gave a farewell sigh, then stretched out Its webbed feet and lay down on the hot sands and died! How wonderful is science, but how much more wonderful are the scientists! NOGKEM. The tariff bill ought to make 'mighty lnterestln' readin' for all the citizens of Oregon. It ought to be especially Interesting to all the pro tectionist Republicans who voted for President Wilson on the theory that it was time to change, thus Joining In the general National mandate upon the new Administration to revise and reduce the tariff. The new Sill shows that the President and Congress are interpreting their instructions literally. Wool, flour, fish, lumber and shin gles, laths and pickets and other lum ber products are on the free list. Agricultural products are generally reduced. Apples go from 25 cents to in .n. Knhi and wheat from 25 cents to 10 cents a bushel. We im port little wheat and few apples now, and we are told that these particular tariff changes will make no differ, ence. Is that the reason they are made? Or la It expected that the Im- win infrenae? Tf more aDDles are Imported, for example, the market will be cheapened, ana me cost oi living will go down an Inch or so. That ought to make the Oregon ap plegrower happier. Between the tariff and the hostile cow., Ho rt the Interior Department toward the West Umatilla project, un. doubtedly- the people oi ureguu find added cause for congratulation that we are rid of the reactionary Taft. and are in for four years or more, perhaps of the progressive Wilson and his progressive lieutenants. VN WARRANTED AGITATIOS. Tk. o n. M . nf several excellent Citi- xens are to be found In Mr. Parkison's formidably-named Oregon Higher Educational Institutions .Betterment r ooo-ii.,- nnA thev flurht to be In bet ter business than supporting the per sistent and notorious activities of pro fessional agitation. The Oregonian is opposed to any referendum of any legislative measure except tor me .U.Hri oassins nt nil hi ii- DOllCV '. and it protests against this referendum of the State University appropriation (1175,000), for the motive Is frankly to cripple the university with the ulti mate iMmi nt consolidation with the State Agricultural College. The Ore gon Higher Institutions ueuermeni League will, besides, if It secures suf rioiomt d.nnrnr.a to nrocure1 the refer endum, definitely assume the respon sibility of causing a special election In November at a cost ot bou.vuu to tiAA nun nnri nf nrolectlng upon the public an Issue that might well be deferred for another year. If not whol. ly abandoned. We hear, of course, that the den .i... o.. .ninr in have a referendum. .. and "therefore they are re sponsible for the special election; but doubtless the dentists win say mat D.n.kn TnrkiMon I busv again, and therefore they cannot afford to neg lect the opportunity to nom up a oiu they do not like. "Passing the buck" Is an old game. It seems to Tne uregoman mat ti7p. Ann ie ft reasonable aODroprla- tlon for new buildings at Eugene. It would seem also that a fair adjust ment had been made of the relations of the Agricultural College and the university, ana oi ineir mpei-uc v" sitions before the public, and It ought to stand. MOntRMZIG THE COSSTITCTIOX. Connecticut secures the honor of being the thirty-sixth state to ratify the constitutional amendment provid ing for direct election of United States Senators and thus making It effec tive. Ratification of this amendment l remarkable for the readiness with which the states have acted. Less than a year has elapsed since Con gress submitted the amendment, but within a few days the first state rati fied it. Other states have done ao with eagerness to get rid of the old, dis credited method of Senatorial elec tion. All they needed was the oppor tunity. This Is the climax of over fifty years of agitation, which has been particularly active during the last twenty years. History shows that since the Gov ernment took final shape amen-lment of the Constitution has been possi ble only In times of political convul sion. The first ten amendment were adopted by Congress within two years after the convention of 1787 had sub mitted the Constitution and were nec essary to complete its work. Con gress adopted the eleventh amend ment in 1794 and the twelfth In lsoa. I'd to that date the Constitution was in its formative stage, mat naving passed, no amendment was adopted by Cohgress until the reconstruction era, though more than 400 were pro posed. The three then adopted and ratified became possible only through civil war and the temporary disfran chisement of rebellious states. The series of amendments which has begun with tha adoption of the income tax and direct Senatorial elec. ttons is the fruit of a pacific revolu tion which began with the secret bal lot, continued with the direct primary for nominations and advanced by- great strides with direct election of delegates to National conventions ana Presidential preference primaries. Oregon gave an object lesson In the advantages of its plan of direct elec tion of Senators, which made the elec tlon by the Legislature a mere per functory ratification of the popular choice. The spectacle- of the Oregon Legislature going about its proper business of making laws, while such states as Illinois, Colorado and Pela ware had deadlocks, bribery scandals and obstructed legislation, acted aa powerful argument in favor of the new system. Congress having become more re sponsive to public opinion under the direct primary system, and that sys tem having given public opinion the opportunity of free expression, we may expect that tha new series of amendments will be continued. Re vival of tha third-term issue at the last election and the vote in the Ben ate and the Democratic declaration In favor of a single term for the Presi dent Justify belief that this subject will be dealt with next. In connec tion with It will eome the lengthen- ing of the Presidential term. Direct THE 3IOKXIXG OREGpyiAN, WEDNESDAY. election of President and Vice-Presi dent without the Intervention of Pres idential electors may be proposed. Spread of woman suffrage and the aggressive policy of the suffragists will not let the subject of a National woman suffrage amendment rest. The Constitution Is a splendid In stitution, and we shall not tear it down. But, preserving its substantial framework, we shall modernize It as occasion may demand that it may continue to be of the greatest utility ,to the American people. BYE BREAD AKO SKIM MII-K. Professor Charles Kruger's solution of the "cost of living problem" may not be the most attractive in the world, but It is complete. By limiting bis diet to skim milk and rye bread he has brought its cost down to t cents a day. The Beef Trust baa no terrors for Professor Kruger. The tobacco and whisky trusts do not dis turb his serenity of soul. At the cof fee trust he derisively snaps his fin gers and he bites his thumb satirically at the minions of the sugar trust. Free and Independent of all monopo lies. Professor Kruger shines in the admiring eyes of the Berkeley stu dents like a light set on a hill which cannot be hid. Rye bread, if it is properly mixed and baked, contains pretty nearly all the Ingredients that a human being needs for his nutrition and the few which It lacks exist In skim milk. So Professor Krueger has lighted upon a complete diet, a bal anced ration, as it were, cheap and nutritious. The only trouble with It Is that very few people like rye bread and nobody likes skim milk. Even as most reforms do when they are pushed to their logical conclusion, Professor Kruger's great dietetic revo. lutlon issues In an offense to human nature. A life of unrelieved virtue would be unendurable both to the per. son who lived It and especially so to the spectators. By the same token. Professor Kruger's perfect food regi men nauseates by Its very image. Who wants to devour rye bread morn ing, noon and night for sixty or sev enty years, washed down by a 'pallid rivulet of skim milk? Life demands color and variety as well as moral per fection, and the stomach cannot be satisfied for long with the mere chem ical elements needed for nutrition. It must have sapidity as well as sub stance. Art has an indispensable place at the table as well as in church and state. The effort to elim inate it and reduce eating to a bald utilitarian rite will always fail. Pro fessor Kruger's dietetic practice is a revival of skin and bone Puritanism. It is one of those dreadful old attempts to solve the problem of life by "going without." A person can always make such an attempt succeed if he has enough grit and determination. He can make it succeed not only In -his diet but In his religion, his love and his entertainment; but what is life worth on the skin and bone basis? PROLIFIC UJFIT"E88. A great deal of harm has been done in the world by the kind of reckless thinking in which Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Indulged when she wrote that God makes new Adams every day. Ignorance of the laws of heredity was so common when she wrote this fool ish sentence that we must no doubt excuse her for It, but such nonsense would now be unpardonable from the pen of the flightiest "lady novelist." God does not make new Adams every day. Each child born into the world starts life with the capacities and de fects which its parents Impart and It has nothing else to begin with. If both parents lack a certain quality there is no conceivable way for the child to acquire it. By good luck he may In herit a gift which only one parent possesses, but if neither of them has it a place must remain forever blank In his mental or physical makeup. The point is that every child's equipment for life must come from its parents. If they are poorly provided with what Is needed, their offspring will neces sarily be defective and may be Im becile. The world must abandon the Illu sory hope that in some mysterious wav the children of defectives stand a chance of coming Into life with a full mental and bodily equipment. This is out of the question. Water cannot be drawn from an empty well. The parents cannot give what they do not possess. It Is as certain as any thing can be that the children pro duced by congenital defectives will themselves be defective. This law is deduced by sound reason from the nature of things and it is confirmed by experience. Social students have records of imbecile and criminal fam ilies running back through a half dozen generations and In every In stance It comes to light that heredi tary defects remain hereditary. The offspring repeat with hopeless fidel ity the delinquencies and offenses of their progenitors. Another fact in this connection which ought to be insisted upon la that the defective classes are more prolific than those that are nor mal. Not only do they procreate witn utter recklessness, but nature seems actually to have made them fertile in proportion to their unfitness. On the other hand the normal members of society have few children nnd the tendency is to have still fewer. It Is an obvious consequence that unless the fertility of the unfit is checked In some way their descend ants will presently possess the earth. It is vain to Imagine that hereditary deficiencies can be cured by educa tion. Good schools and teachers can do a great deal for the young, but they cannot fill blanks In the mind nor supply missing organs to the body. The Scripture text that as the tree falls so It must He applies with terrific rigor to children. As they are born so, in the large sense, they must go through life. Education can do wonders with the faculties they possess, but It cannot give what is utterly lacking, to aepena upon uie schooi or the church to rectify a bad heredity Is to lean on the frailest of reeds. Hope of this kind Is delusive through and through. We must not expect impossibilities from any hu man agency whatever. The peril to tha world from the multiplication of congenital criminals and defectives is certain to go on increasing unless it Is checked by positive measures which take all the facts Into account. How real this peril is history shows us again and again. Greece and Rome fell because their gifted classes perished and the unfit took their places. War exterminated many of tha highly-endowed element, but other causes assisted In the miser able process. As soon as the plutoc racy had developed, tha fools and criminals among Us membership in termarried In order to keep their property together ana thus the pro ductive power of both nations went to support the most unworthy part of the social body. What els but ruin could have been expected from such conduct? Spain affords another in stance. At the beginning oi ine six teenth century her best intelligence of both sexes practiced celibacy. Thus the promising heredity of the nation was extinguished and only the inferior element produced children. What happened to Spain In consequence we all know. The same fate threatens the most progressive of the modern na tions. The birth rate of the intelli gent classes is sinking and that . of the fools and thieves is rising. What can be done about It? A writer in the April Forum com pares the efficacy of segregation and sterilization. The undesirable classes can be kept from propagating their kind either by shutting them up for life or by surgical operation. Perpetual imprisonment is expensive and may sometimes be inhuman. A person who can earn his living in the open market ought to be permitted to do so if his dangerous parental proclivi ties can be baffled without too much cruelty. Modern science has found a way to effect this purpose by an oper ation both simple and painless. Sen timentality seems to be almost the sole obstacle m the way of applying it to persons whose offspring are sure tn hpinnr in ihp undesirable class. To overcome the spirit of mistaken sym-H pathy we must rely upon eaucauon. It is important to develop In the world a deep-seated repugnance to bad heredity. Mankind must learn to loathe unsocial marriages as it does Incest and unnatural crimes. This feeling can be developed in time, put the process will probably be a little tedious and meanwhile -we must dis pose as best we can of the ever-Increasing army of the unfit who prey and wheedle and whine their way through life. The City Council has before it for action today an ordinance imposing a heavy license upon transient "mer chants," or salesmen of Eastern and other concerns, who come here to sell goods from their temporary salesrooms at a hotel or other convenient head quarters. The ordinance ought by all means to pass as a measure of pro tection to the public on the one hand and to the local merchants on the other. These come-and-go fellows pay no taxes, have no local investment, contribute nothing to the public wel fare and are concerned only In get ting something without making any adequate return. They are crafty, plausible and often unscrupulous: and their business is not fair nor legit imate competition. If the Imposition of a heavy license shall put an end to it, the public will be the -better off. That professor at Berkeley who is living on rye bread and skim milk at a cost of 9 cents a day is not setting an example to anybody. Those .who can not afford more will be ashamed of such a diet and those who can buy anything they want "will do so and eat it. If Montenegro's war on Albania Is a war of conquest what else was the long war of the Turks on Monte negro? Scutari has long been dis puted territory, held by the strongest, who were -the Montenegrins until the powers threw their weight Into the scales. . , Response to the latest call of the Controller shows the deposits in Na tional banks of Portland have In creased J 3,000,000 in sixty days, which must grieve those croakers and pessi mists who made dire predictions fol lowing the election. That college professor who Is living on 9 cents a day may have solved the high cost of living problem. But his diet Is one calculated to bring him ahnrtiv In tnup.h with the hleh cost of dying and the advanced price of In terment. Keen use the District Attorney could nnt flrir! time to nrosecute him. a man held at Astoria seven months await- ine- tfini has cone insane. Instances of this nature show the merit of the law requiring an attorney for eacn county. v.a.i. nn.ii9ir tho lmmifirrnts into Canada last year were from the United States. Tne star oi empire nttvius gone the limit westward, they simply had to turn north in their Irresistible migration. what phani-jt has a. lawver to work un the sensibilities of a lurv to the acquitting point if -he is to be Inter rupted as Judge Landis interrupted Mr. Robinson at the r rost trial : Tho spectacle of a woman In blue velvet gown and suede shoes working as "scrub lady" is not inspiring, but her determination to earn money by honest labor is commendable. Mayor Rushlight's new woman sec retary has not registered and an nounces that she has no interest In politics. But will the Mayor permit that vote to go to -waste? Th "Rrnnnli n Kid." famous as a K,,mov man Rfli-S tVl A loVA Of his VOUnCT wife keeps him straight. As the wife has Just inherited iu,uuu, nis aevo tion is remarkable. A we read of the unhappy Ameri can suffragette - in an English prison we are convinced that she should be given treatment In a sanitarium in stead. Prosperous Condon, in the wheat belt, announces what It calls a "hard times ball" for the delectation of Its blase capitalists. An Astoria man went insane while awaiting trial. Perhaps ha will re. cover his reason if a verdict of acquit, tal is secured. California Is not backing down on the alien land act Just trimming it a bit with a string on the citizenship problem. ' A shipment of cheap beef from Aus tralia is being held up by San Fran cisco officials. Has Ruef a successor? The principal danger Is that Europe, with Its hair-trigger nervous system, will go off half cocked. Americans gazing across the border at battles of Mexicans need to be armor-clad A sign of Spring: The weather roan's prediction of "winds shifting to westerly." Michigan is on record again as be ing against equal suffrage. Is' shaving a luxury, that so high a duty is put on razors? A new Japanese scare is tuning up. APRIL 9, 1913. CtTT0G TARIFF DELICATE TASK. Operatiwm Should Be Performed by Two eyed Committee, Says Writer. GOLD HILL, April 7. To the Edi tor.) The Oregonian touches a vital question in the editorial "Some Old Party Caucus." We have government by party bias. The Republican party, with a tendency somewhat overdone to carry the political pendulum towards "protection," and the Democratic party with opposite ideals, overdoing the ef fort to swing the pendulum in the op posite direction, keep the business of the country in a state oi areaa. The writer Is a moderate protec tionist, but is favorably Impressed with the economic philosophy of Underwood, who would strike at the extravagant administration of business by remov ing the protective support upon which it feeds. Economy is the child of necessity. That the Nation Is low In "efficiency" compared with some older ones Is due doubtless. In part, to overpractlce of business. Extravagance and waste will disappear only In the face of necessity. The railroads have been denied their demands for greater protection in the guise of advanced rates by the counter demand of the Government that they stop waste and improve efficiency. Efficiency might be defined as the economy of labor and the best sign In the business world today Is this slo gan. This is and is to be an Import ant factor in the solution of the vexed question: "What industry needs pro tection, and in what degree?" We are surrounded by older nations, most of whom have reached the limit of population, and are therefore In a constant swarming stage, as between seas of different level, currents are set up, ever seeking to establish equil ibrium, not alone in population, but in every economic condition. We are expending untold millions on education and many other exalted altruistic ideals of modern civilization, while the ideal of vast multitudes of Asiatics could be well expressed in the word "bread." Here is another and still more Im portant factor In the solution of the vexed question of tariff revision, now before the committee of a political fac tion whose bias toward free trade nas been accented by the abuses of protec tion. There is no politics in the cry "keep them out." But if they remain at home in the land of low Ideals or no ideals and share our markets, without pay ing even a peddler's license, what is to become of our ideals of civilization? The city merchant Is protected from the peddler, for the good and suffi cient reason that he shares the city's burden of expense. An object viewed with one eye does not have the same apparent place when viewed with the other. Yes, revision should be done by a both-eyed committee. OBSERVER. GREAT POWERS HELD RAPACIOUS Their Attitude Toward Placky Monte negro Termed An Outrage. PORTLAND, April 7. (To the Edi- . Aa American T wish tO VOiC8 my protests against the cowardly at titude OI tne nuropeaii uiiwc. .. toward the plucky little kingdom of Montenegro. For 12 years I lived in England, and T learned to love the English people, and to admire their ideals of fair play and a square deal to everybody. ino laoi uu co j hoo enmohn-or chansred Great Britain. The English people seem to be no long er the quiet, stoical, sport-loving na- . . ne ..l-, H.ir ih,v have become UUU V. o.w , ... hysterical, loud-voiced, untrue to their best Ideals. What has caused this change in the English people remains a mystery as yet. But the fact that a decided change has taken place In the temperament ot im jnsuoa vevvi" none can gainsay or deny. Britain's ...it-Kito tnM.-arA Mnntenezra is in keep ing with the Britain of the last three years. I was not surprised wnen i reao that England was one of the leaders in the demonstration against Monte negro. It is not against poor, oiunoenns, cttimiH -R nasi a that the blows' of the jaw artists should fall, but against such nations as Germany, Britain and Austria, who have not Deen true to men ideals or best instincts. When Russia 1 , V. nf the hllllv. hOW hitter became our press toward, her. We scored her, we oemtiea. ner, t scolded her unmercifully. Can we do to.. .hai nations nf markedly hi&rher ideals prostitute their better Instincts for a lesser causer ausuh vcociyco the contempt oi this great, tree re- kii. o hor tflesnir.ahle attitude toward a people who were fighting for their very Ireeaom. Ana nas mm - celved this contempt? No. Our news nno.. hnva heen vfrv busv making excuses for Austria's conduct there during the past six months, ana yet we owe nothing to Austria, tne wunu uwc little to her, she has been a blot (how often!) upon the civilization of Europe. If Britain or Austria or Germany or Italy robs Montenegro of her hard-won victories, then the press of these United .i.Aiit thunder forth their rro- tests. Our American ideals of fair play demand this. Part English as I am. and with oo.,o..oi relatives serviner the cause of Britain in the army, I am heartily and unreservedly against tne present, puutj of the Empire. In the interests of i.,.tio iinii The Oreeonian I have always found on the right side) you should voice your oibbubi t im of the five "great" powers. A. K. BUTTERFIELD. LAND HELD BACK PROM USAGE. Tygh Valley Man Criticises Despotic Land Office jneiaoas. TYGH VALLEY, Or., April 6. (To the Editor.) Your editorial in The . .. o 'Pha noennttn tiregOJllH.lt j.oiciu.1 - - - ' -- Land Office" is perfectly true, and is unaerstooa iy mo eoui the parts of the country where the public lands are situated. The oivil service clerks who decide the questions mat cume uoiwm v- i i oo. aHnmlhUF o n ft An lust SS iBUum jo-.- a - . they please, and the injured party has no appet c a i . t jj m wivmoi hl.hu. un -ReslHlne- nn his it.lt u-m-5 ' r - land and cultivating It In good faltn avails tne nomeaiettqer numni i. clerk sees fit to turn him down- I know thousands qf acres on the eastern slope of the Cascade Forest Re serve, mostly covered with brush, scrub oak and a few old scrub pines, that people would like to take and make into homes. It would bs worth the . J 1 mnr, n olair It anH mika S leuu ' i ...... .v. home of it. But as the department Is now managea, nuiiiotBH.uoi-o .-o i . , An, mho. the rr.ll t flOVem- ment of the United States can possibly want OI ineae uta kiuu jimw tp . 1 Mtra.-o-.iAo o 1 tho a a.o VI MIC tllju.v. .t-n w. o If you can hammer on this question till LonitreBa win yeL - J - i . ... .Vio To., H.nflrlmpiil Biransiihei wwv ... o " t the homesteader will owe you debt a a rt oi grautuuB. Respectfully Declined. PORTLAND. ADrll 6. (To the Edl tor.) I am a chiropodist, having had 24 years' experience, and have never rendered my services ta the City of Portland unless I have been compen sated for it, but at this time I would be glad to show my appreciation by announcing that I will trim the pert lion's nails free of charge, providing that you will hold the lion. DR. OLIVER O. FLETCHER. Slgras ot m Future Novelist. London Sketch. Arold Who glv yer yer black eye, Jimroie? i. . vn nn T was lnnlcfn tnro1 a knot-hole In the fence at a football matcn, a St I, auuvui"- XEEDS OK OCR AGRICULTURISTS Expert Advisers aad Co-Ope rat ion Will Yield Bis Keturua. VMrs'xviLLE. Or.. April . (To the Editor.) I have Just read with much interest vour editorial on the County Agriculturist. There are two Impor tant things tnat too u"lJ - should be which you failed to mention. He should be able to teach the farmers how to prepare their products for the market an d then when and where to sell at the best advantage. vve nave Deen nantticuppeu m by the lack of good roads, and by poor markets for many of our products. n-t.il. 1. Tlllnnia ctllH V1T1 CT lOuntTV life conditions there last Summer, Mr. Clar ence A Shamel, eaitor oi tne umusc 1.11 Covmov m,rl. tha 1-en-IArlt to me that the greatest forward movement of improvement in rarm me ui m ent generation was the County Agrl- 0..11...0I tr-.no. T asked him whv he considered the expert more beneficial than a county experiment irm wuwi be, and he replied that the expert would go to the farmer, while the farmer would have to go to the experiment farm. This, then, would be the secret oi tile C Li U l- CH3 " I I.IO uiwvo.uv... . . ty agriculturists, that we be wise enough to select men who have the ability to show the farmer right on his on.n .rAitnil what he needs tn da to increase the productiveness of his farm. to show nim now ana wnen m nii-b-o. hi. nrniinit and. most imDortant of all, men whom the farmers would trust. In order that the county expert majr have proper support from the general public we should pass a law similar to Iowas, that tne county Assessor viicii he makes the assessment each year shall gather the statistics from tne farmer by his sworn statement of what crops he raised the year before, an-d. what ha sola. we snouia emy usoi .ho onmmnnltv KTiirit. like Wisconsin, so that if a firm wants to buy a car of a certain breed of cattle, or a variety of apples or potatoes, by looking over ithe State Agricultural report he can Una tne place, vv e snuuiu ujiuuiu hands of the Oregon Manufacturers' Ao.ool.tlnn in its effort tO establish the motto, "Oregon Products First." I find that tne greatest orawoacn. m Oregon is the demand for California ..oo-otohio- and fruits, when we can beat quality, flavor and price right here at home. Believing that Oregon Is primarily an agricultural state, I think we should kill off by kind words, or some other system, the chronic knocker with which the majority of our small towns is m- . . j . .... in ...n onvnmiinitv tO tesieu, uiiu n J -" J inject a spirit of friendly rivalry with other places in ine stats w o -.mwu one may be known first to the outside .oo.iri as the nlann which is better than any other for some one thing. Just as Hood River Is Known ior its jmjjij. for its hoDS. why shouldn't Amity, for Instance, be known for a certain breed of dairy cattle. Lebanon as the place where tne most hom.rifi.i farm homes are found and other places for something else. Surely it does not cost any more "vjs sneak a good word for the place we Uve in. E. B. BARBER, Member Oregon Country Life Commis sion. SELF-TAtfcHT MEN ARE DEFENDED School of Experience Held to Be One of Great Value. DtTNSMTTIR, Cal.. April 6. (To the Editor.) Your correspondent from Mc Minnville takes it upon himself to judge hundreds of self-taught men by the few who sent In erroneous answers to the problem of finding the board-feet in a certain piece of timber. Now It seems to me that he should know (being a teacher) that the public schools do not- turn out what he is pleased to call the "finished product, and that there are men by the hun dreds who could have solved the prob lem had they thought it worthy of con sideration. ... v. But for him to condemn all those wno never attended the public schools im- . i v. v.o..o a-o nn nlhnr TT1 AO IT H O f piles Liis.- uiciw ' " . , acquiring information (for that is all one can acquire at scnoon. aim inti mation Is not education. Yet I do not wish to be understood as opposing the public schools,' but I do most strenu ously oppose his suggestion to "license young people as being "finished prod ucts." - This would give Mr. Vincent what he seems to desire above all things the closed shop for teachers. The doctors have already attained this privilege for it is only a privilege which the people would do well to re voke without delay. Not long ago a certain high school graduate told me she had "went all through English, but just detested al gebra." She was what Mr. Vincent would most probably call a "finished product." Yet I have not the hardihood to judge all high school graduates by this one instance and I could mention several more whose speech betrayed the "information" they had acquired and the "education" they had missed. However, I am not so uncharitable as to condemn the whole for the mistakes In conclusion. I would say -that my work involves problems of a nature which no public school touches upon so far as I know and which. If I fol lowed the rules laid down in the text books on the subject, would involve serious consequences to myself and my employers. ,., The rules are correct, theoretically, but I know that if allowances are not made for expansion and contraction of the material (for instance) the "fin ished product" would be something dif ferent from what I intended. I could not have learned this in a public school even if I had ever attended one. This knowledge is acquired at a certain school, but the school in question Is not presided over by Mr. Vincent and his Ilk I mean the great school of ex perience. CHAS. E. LEE. MR. WILSON IS A GOOD SLEEPER It la m Matte ol Power With the Sfeee Prexldent of tho United state. New York Evening Sun. President Wilson is one of those men who can always 6leep. Be has no trouble at all In winning slumber to his pillow. In fact, It need not even he a Dillow: he has the sand man trained to come at beck and call to a Morris chair or a seat in a train. President Wilson's penchant for sleep reminds one of ex-President Roosevelt's faeulty for dropping off to the Land of Nod at random. And it IS no mean vir tue, either, for men In public life, espe cially for those who hear the burdens of the Government and whose leisure is for the most part taken up in mak ing speeches or receiving visitors. Nine hours' sleep is what the Presi dent requires to keep himself in first class trim for peace, war or riding the bicycle his favorite recreation. At any rate he so declared himself a few months ago. and President Wilson is a great stickler for putting his maxims into practice. Besides this regular al lotment, the President has a knack of dropping off for a pap between times when the ship of public business la running smoothly and no one is look ing. During the campaign he used to take an occasional few minutes' doze be tween stations. He Is a light sleeper and can eontrol the time ef his awaken ing. He awakes frera one of his naps perfectly refreshed and ready for the business ef the occasion. Immediately following the wear and tear of the campaign, the President was known to have yielded to the somnifer ous influence of his labors for 13 or 14 hours at a stretch. But this of course is no regular custom. To go to bed at the restful ljour ef 10:30 is his rule when possible. Patient's Rude Awakenlag. . London Opinion, Mrs. Garge -Garge, waken up; the doctor's sent yer sleeping draught! Ballad of the Hobos By Dean Collins. A couple of hobos were hitting the ties Up north with the coming of Spring; They rambled with groans and they rambled with sighs. For they had not eaten a thing For two days or more, as they pounded the track; Their appetites cried and their belt bands were slack. And they plodded morosely and sul lenly "cussed," And yearned tor a sandwich, or even a crust. They rested awhile in the shade of a tank. And pondered oh good things to eat. And. borne on a passing breeze, flut tered and sank A bit of newspaper sheet. "Oh, breeze." sighed the 'boes, "You are mighty unkind. Dispensing not grub, but mere food for the mind."- But nevertheless. In despite of their blues. They picked up the fragment to gather the news. They read ot the riots in England pro voked; Of suffratrists hustled to Jail; They read of the way that the victuals were poked Or. poured down their throats with a pall. "Oh rash, rabid women," In 'masement cried they, "To hunger strike thus." Then they rose right away. And headed for England. As swiftly they paced, I met them and asked them the cause of their haste. They paused not, but answered as for ward they sped; "We're going to London, you bet, Where one is locked up and is forcibly fed, If he be a fierce suffragette. Oh pork chops, oh sausage, pickles and beans! We'll go and smash windows In small smithereens. And this Is the reason to London we're speeding We want to get in on that forcible feeding." Half a Century A50 From Tha Oregonian of April 8. 1S63. Auburn. March 28. Some 200 mounted hunters of Indians crossed Snake River a few days since to scour the country this side, believing large bands of Indians to be located on the Owyhee River and that much stolen stock was there. The Snakes, too, have changed their field of operations to this side and drove off 60 head of animals from the lower part of Burnt River. Auburn, March 28. A fatal affray occurred at Boise. George Reed, from Santiam, Or., was shot by Isaac War rick, formerly of Crescent City, and died In consequence. The difficulty oc curred about a mining claim and the Coroner's Jury returned a verdict of willful murder. There is no doubt a desperate set of ruffians at Boise. The Oregon Statesman says that Richard Williams will not accept the appointment of United States Attorney for the new territory of Idaho. Providence, R. I., April 2. The Re publicans swept the state yesterday. Cincinnati, April 2. Accounts of the battle of Somerset say the rebels num bered 2600 and were overtaken live miles north of Somerset. After live hours' fighting the rebels fled, pursued by our cavalry to the river. Washington, April 3. The public lands to be sold during the Summer in. elude 3,000,000 acres in Washington Territory. Certain parties went to San Fran oisco a short time since and bought a large quantity of old and spoiled bacon for almost nothing and brought it up to this city. Here it was washed and smoked, put in old gunnies and a lot shipped to Victoria by last steamer for fresh Oregon bacon. We warn the merchants of Victoria against this imposition. The annual meeting of the stock holders of the Oregon Telegraph Com pany was held at the Pioneer Hotel last evening. The line is- expected to be completed by September 1 or sooner. Tho Trinity Episcopal school for boys, located on Fifth, between Ash and Pine streets, will hold a reception tomorrow afternoon. Rev. P. E. Hyland Is principal and Charles Dusenberry assistant teacher. Twenty-five Years Ago From The Oregonian of April 8, 188. Workmen excavating tor the sower in Lincoln street found at a depth of about a dozen feet, at the intersec tion of Third street, huge logs and stumps, which greatly" impeded their work. An old resident said there used to be a deep gulch there. "There were' several deep ravines between here and Salmon stret," said he. "In the vicinity of Lincoln and First streets were three quite deep ones. Another crossed First street near Hall and It is only a few years since there was a great chasm there with a pond t the bottom, where hosts ot frogs used to sing on Spring evenings." There are more patients at Good Samaritan Hospital now than at any previous time. Plans are now betng prepared for an addition 30x100 feet and two stories high. Articles were "Hied Saturday In corporating the G. Shindler Furniture Company, to engage in tha manufacture and sale pf furniture. Miss Ella C. Sabin, late principal of one of tha Portland public schools, has been appointed to the professorship in the state university now held by Mrs. M. P- Spiller, who has resigned. New Park The Harrison & Rodgers Company will arrive here this morning and will open tonight in "The Pay master." The Btock pf the Industrial Fair As sociation is being taken up rapidly. Up to Saturday evening over $50,000 of the stock had been subscribed. What Do the Colore Say? Ohio State Journal. This little poem was written by James Reagan, who is T years old: I love tha name of Washington, I love my country, too. I love the flag, the dear old flag, Of re and whlta and blue, What do the colore eav Red saye " Be brave." White ease "Be pure," Blue eay "Be true." That little boy had been rightly in structed. He will go out lntq life with tha true meaning of tha flag. To him the flag does pot stand for boasting and sentiment, It Illustrates three vir-tUeB-courage, purity, fidelity. That is the lesson of the flair which everybody should Jearn, so as to put Into their lives the virtues It proclaims. The flag stands, not enly for battle and the roar of war, but for those clvio qualities that adorn peace. "What do the colors gay?" They say that a person who aineerely loves the flag must b brave, purs and true; and a man doesn't love It who isn't all these.