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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (May 7, 1915)
10 THE 3IORXIXG OH-ECOXIAX. FRIDAY, MAT 7, 1913. rOBIUNU, OREGON, Xntcred at Portland, Oregon. PostoCCica aa ' second-cla?s matter. Subscription Rates Invariably In advance: (By Mail.) Daily. Sunday Included, one year. . . . . Jjailv. Sunday inuluded.. six months. . . ltally. Sunday included, three months. 1'Rlly. smidiy included, one fllontA.... Xia lly, without Sunday, out yu. ...... Jsily, without Sunday, bijl ntotittia. . . -Daily, without Sunday, ttir utonlha.. l-aily, without feuuday, oue month. ... "Weekly, una cnr ,,,,.,, t-unday, one year. ........ fcuuday and WaeUly, oaa year .18.00 .. 4.5 . i o . e.uu . 3.25 . 1.75 . . . 1 fro i-io IBy Carrier.) ra1ly, Sunday Included, on year. ...... W Jt ally. Sunday included, one- month ...... .'is . Iluw to JKcmlt bond poatoato nwoey or. cicr, exprcsa order or Jjersotial check oa ux local bank, Stamps, cola or currency are at sender's risk. Uive poatoffico atddreaa in Jiull, including- county and state. Postage Kates- 12 to J pagea. 1 coat: IS to j.ases, 1 cent; lit to 48 p(a, 3 cents; fill to t0 pages, cents; 6J to 70 paea, 5 cents; TS to rj pagos, o ceota. Foreign post age, double rata. Eastern BuninfM Office Verae Conklln. 'ew York, Brunswick building; Chicago, fctenger building. - tan Krancisco OITice ,11. J. Bid well Com pany, "H- Market street. 1'ORTIAND, ERIDAY, HAY 7, 191S, ISE THE WATER HIGHWAY. Senator Jones' warning at the open ins of the Cclllo (anal that, in order to secure further waterway improve ments from Congress, the people of the North newt must fully use the Co lumbia River as a waterway should be taken to heart and acted upon. The time has gone by when appropriations can be obtained by showing the pos sibilities of traffic on a river when fully improved. Congress inclines more and more to he guided by the actual use made of improvements al ready made. Pork-barrel river and harbor bills have been attacked not only on -the ground that they made appropriations for insignificant creeks which could not possibly be made navigable; at tack Jiaa also been leveled at appro priations for great rivers, which have always been regarded as great ar tciies of traffic. The Minis expended on the Mississippi, Ohio, Missouri, Tennessee, Red River of the South and streams of such magnitude have hern compared with the volume of traffic. It has then been argued that the cost pf improvement per ton of traffic was so high that the results did not justify the expenditure. It bus been shown that while additions were constantly made to these expen ditures the volume of traffic on the benefited rivers decreased. No water way, however great, has been immune from such criticism, and that criticism formed the burden of Senator Bur ton's speeches. Criticism of this kind can be effec tually met in only one way by pro ducing a state of affairs which Is proof against it. Great aa is the ad vancement of navigation resulting from the Cclilo Canal, wc in the Co lumbia batdn regard that structure as the first of a series of improvements which are to make tho Columbia lyivigable clear to its source in British Columbia. "Ve can obtain Govern ment aid in making these further im provement by showing bo large a volume of traffic between tho mouth of tho river and Lewiston as to Justify the improvements already made, and in no other way. Defeat of the last two pork-barrel bills and substitution of lump appropriations to be appor tioned by the United States engineers indicate a. radical change of policy. "We in the Northwest must prepare ourselves for tho new policy by shap ing our course in accordance with it. We have the more reason for so doing because it is to our own interest to make the fullest use of present im provements, irrespective of the effect on further extension of the navigable channel. Modern methods of water transportation and of wharf construc tion and equipment will decrease the cott and should bring it down to a low level. By building solid paved roads from the back country to the river, over which auto trucks can bant heavy loads, we can render the river independent of railroads as feeders. The "Walla Walla people pointed the way when they announced their purpose to build such a road from their city. On its merits the Columbia should be used as the great water highway. If we use it, we shall have the most convincing argument to induce the Government to extend that highway. ALLIES' STKATEUY IN THE WEST. Loss of ground by the allies in the present series of engagements around Yprea raises the question: Where is the new British army which has been landed in France? It cannot yet have been brought to that part of the front, for we are Informed that the allied line was not strong. The presence of French troops iu that quarter conveys a hint of what may- have been go ing on. That fact and the apparent weak ness of the allied line at that point would be consistent with a general re distribution of all the allied forces along the entire western front. The allies, by a series of local attacks since the first battle of Ypres, have been feeling out the German position and gaining here and there points of van tage from which they might launch a vigorous offensive. They may have decided to place the new British troops at such points and to transfer French troops to the Flanders front. This realignment may have been in progress when the Germans, sensing the situation, took the opportunity to launch a sudden offensive at Ypres. It successful, this offensive would cause confusion in the redistribution of the allied troops, relieve the smart of the defeats at Neuve Chapelle and St. Elol, incidentally influence Italy against intervention and break the way through to the coast. The initial success of the Germans and the des perate fighting necessary on the part of the allies in order to regain a part of the lost ground indicate that; they calculated shrewdly. But where is the new British array? Is it being secretly moved to some point on the French front? It may toe. designed to break the German line north of Porthes and Beausejour in the Champagne with a view to cap ture the railroad from Challerange to Bazancourt, over which the Germans move troops and supplies. It may be intended to attack the angle near N'oyon, where the line, which has run southward from the coast, turns east ward north of the Aisne River. An effort may be made to regain the ground lost by the French at Solssons or to drive back the Germans out of range of Rhelms. Or a determined effort may be made to relieve Verdun of the menace of investment by con tinuing the work of tho French south east of that fortress. The French have materially narrowed the German wedge extending westward to St. ili- hiel by capturing the heights of Eparges on the north and the wood of Ailly on the south. If the allies could cut off that wedge, they might bag many prisoners, and by clearing the southern Woevre district of the enemy, they could capture the rail road extending from Thiancourt to Metz and might endanger Metz itself. While the task particularly under taken by the British is the recovery of Belgium from the Germans, that end may be served as well by aiding the French on the southern front as by .confining their efforts to the Bel gian fnont. An attack which rolled up the German forces toward the north might serve the purposes of British as well as French strategy. Hence we may expect the appearance of the new British forces at any point along the western front. ACADEMIC FREEDOM. President, Lowell, of Harvard, sets forth clearly the doctrine of aca demic freedom in his reply to the ex asperated German professor, Kuno Meyer, who objected to a poem writ ten by a Harvard (student in response to an offer of a prize by the student bodj-. The matter, says President "Lowell, is one "with which the author ities of the university can hardly in terfere." ,He continues: This policy of freedom of speech we shall continue to pursue, for wa believe It to be the only one which accords with the principle of academic freedom. 1 hope the time -will come when you and your colleagues in Ger many will recosrnijte that this course is the only rift-tit one. and that It la essential to the cause of universal scholarship and human progress that acholara should associate to gether again on friendly terms without re gard to national conflicts that have oc curred. It is to be recalled that Professor Hugo Muns-terberg and Professor Kuno- Franke, both of Harvard, have mado that great seat of learning the base of many pro-German letters, and have not been in any way restrained by the hand of discipline, or even of admonition. It may be recalled, too, that some pseudo-millionaire, who said he intended to bequeath $10,- 000,000 to Harvard, announced that he would change his will unless Frofessor Munsterberg was dismissed. That illustrious German protagonist, with rare good feeling toward" his American associates, thereupon of fered to resign, but, to the glory of Harvard, the resignation was not accepted. Harvard valued principle above gold. While the United States is and will remain neutral, its citizens have their opinions on the great war, and will express themt and it Is well that they should. What would have happened, in this country of free speech, if re pressive measures had been taken by- Government to guide or control public sentiment? A TRIUMPHANT WEEK. The celebration of tho opening of the Cclilo Canal, which reached its climax in Portland yesterday, has been remarkable in the display of in terest manifested by the people of the great Inland Kmpire. Kvery man, woman and child in the vast territory tributary to the Columbia thinks in deed knows that an open river means something to him. All day Sunday, for example, as the steamer Undino climbed the lower rapids of the Snake, it was found that people from a wide area had jour neyed to the river banks to watch the arrival of the herald of a new era. At Lewiston the event was regarded as the "greatest in Lewiston's his tory." H was. On Tuesday, 'as the Undine de scended the Snake, she was greeted at every ferry landing and farmhouse by groups of farmers. At Pasco and Kennewick many thousands were on hand. At Wallula was a wonderful sight. Crowded on the beach, in the hot sun, were fully 5000 people, most of whom had enmo by train and automobile from Walla Walla, thirty miles away. At Umatilla was a great crowd, and farmers end even Indians in automo biles were noticed. Pendleton, Echo, Hermiston, Stanfleld, Pilot Rock and other thriving places were repre sented. At Maryhill there was a large throng from Goldendale, with autos io take the travelers to that lively town. At Big Eddy, on the Celilo Caaial, was a mighty gathering brought by train, steamer and other vehicles. At The Dalles was a magnificent outpouring. The city was profusely decorated and was crowded with vis itors. At Vancouver was a reception befit ting the occasion. In Portland, yesterday immense numbers of people turned out to watch the pageant. Down the river, today' and tomor row, the continuous celebration takes its way to Kalama and ends a trium phant week at Astoria. The consummation of many years' efforts for an open river is a signal event, of vast significance to all the. Pacific Northwest. The success of the week's ceremonies proves that people know it. - SPI.ITTINO HAIRS. The Bay City correspondent whose letter todav . disDutes the statement fthat true single tax Is confiscatory apparently has not read his "Progress and Poverty" with understanding. We are aware that Mr. George denies advocacy of land confiscation. It is needless, he says. It is better, or more opportune, to maintain a pleasant little fiction in private land titles: x "Let the individuals who now hold it still retain, if they want to, possession of what they are pleased to term their land. Let them con tinue to call It their land. Let them buy and sell and bequeath and devise it. We may safely leave them the shell, if we take the kernel." He elucidates further: "When the common right to land la ao far appreciated that all taxes are abolished save those which fall upon rent there la no dan ger of much more than Is necessary to In duce them to collect the public revenues being: left to the individual landholders. In other words exact adherents to the Henry George idea would reduce the landowner to the status of real estate broker. He could retain the land in his own name If he had pride in shadow of title, but all he would get out of his ownership would be an agent's commission for collecting what the Government demanded as taxes. To call this other than confis cation of land is to resort to sheerest technicality of expression. Our correspondent's impression that single tax "will only take into the pub. lio treasury the annual rental earning or such portion of it as is necessary for all Government expenditures," does not coincide with Henry George's i'Jeas. In highly developed communi ties, according to the founder of the single-tax cult, the aggregate rent of land is more than sufficient to pay the expenses of government. He asserts that "it will not be enough to merely place all taxes upon the value of land": the amount demanded in taxa tion must be Increased until it has practically absorbed the full rental In come. He would not 6top when mere necessities of Government were pro vided. The approximate rental Income is the thing. That must be absorbed. The exact attitude of Henry George is set forth in this pronouncement in "Progress and Poverty": We s'.iould Batlsfjr the law of justice, we should meet all economic requirements, by at one stroke abolishing all private titles, declaring: all land public property, and let ting it out to the highest bidders. In lots to suit, under, such conditions as would sacredly guard private right to improve ments. Such a plan, he said, would be per fectly feasible, but not the best. The substitute he offered was single tax, w-hich differs in form, not substance. In fact, the head and front of the sin gle tax propaganda in pregon would not even maintain the private owner ship fiction advocated by Mr. George. The proposed U'Ren amendment de clares for absorption by taxes of all ground rent. The enacting part of the measure falls down, it is true, in put ting the pronouncement into effect, but the declaration is significant of the U'Ren attitude. He would not leave to the owner even an agent's commission as a buying and selling basis, or as an inducement to be the Government's rent .collector. Henry George would avoid socialism by a hair's breadth. Mr. U'Ren would take it to his bosom. CRJAUETTES AND DRCliS. We noticed the other day a group of boys about 13 or 14 years old going with their paraphernalia to have a game of ball. The boy who was ob viously their pitcher was smoking a cigarette in the approved manner, drawing the smoke luxuriously into his lungs and exhaling it in long, sy baritic puffs. We remarked in pass ing, "He will not be a pitcher long." The chances are heavy that he- will end as a drug fiend. Dr. Charles B. Town, who knows more about drug habits than anybody else in the country, says that observa tion has convinced him that "every male drug user gets his start with cigarettes." The drug habit is grow ing upon , us as a people and legisla tion checks it but slightly. Dr. Town believes that nothing will help a great deal as long as tho drug business is left in private hands and carried on for profit. He would make the sale of opium, morphine, 'cocaine and simi lar poisons a Federal monopoly. His purpose is good, but wo hesitate to ac cept his method. We cannot avoid the recollection that the sale of vodka was made a Russian government mo nopoly with tho consequence that its consumption doubled and trebled. Governments are not less eager for profit than private persons and they are even less likely to be restrained by considerations of humanity. We wish Dr. Town would give a little more thought to the drug prob lem and see if he cannot figure out some better plan for solving it than a Federal monopoly. Cannot the schools and churches do something about it? Are all their influences, commonly supposed to be so po tent, powerless before thlS menacing specter? THE COMING Sr,AV. Russia and the plavic race gro-w more and more interesting to the world. They are so big with possibil ities. Tho Slavs far outnumber the Germans, their power Is on the in crease in spite of 'setbacks, and they have already demonstrated genius of the highest order in many different fields. "What if they are destined to rule the world ? The Saturday Evening' Post doesn't care much if they are. It "likes to think that the Slav has up his sleeve a finer civilization than lias yet been seen." The country that has given us Dostoievsky. Turgenieff, Tolstoi and Mandeleef in the green tree is likely to show us wonders in the dry. The older civilizations are all liable to sudden lapses into barbarism. As far as we can see they are built on shift ing sand. If the Slavs think they can build better, why not let them try? WAK BABIES. England Is embarrassed by thou sands of "war babies'.' which have un mistakably announced their early ap peararfee. The troops who have been encamped for training at various places have not always paid as much attention to the moral law as to mili tary regulations and the consequences are now disagreeably manifest. In one city it is reported that 2000 young woman are about to bear infants of whoso fathers nothing is known ex cept that they were soldiers. In an other place 500 girls are similarly sit uated and so the story runs wherever the men have been stationed. What to do with these babies when they arrive is a delicately important question. The natural impulse of the puritanical and conservative British mind is to blush at- the mention of their existence and forget all about them as quickly as possible. That is an ancient and highly respectable British way to dispose of embarrass ing subjects. But in this instance it does not promise to work well. The women of England have developed a solidarity which does not tolerate the barbarous inhumanity to unmarried mothers and illegitimate children that was once the rule. This is one reason why the war babies have become a burning issue. Another is the new feeling in England that a baby is itself a valuable asset to the country quite irrespective of the ceremonial which may or may not have accompanied its origin. Meas ures have been taken to hasten the marriage of vigorous young men about to go to the front on the ground that the country needs their offspring. A soldier who attends to this matter on his account without help from the authorities is said by some to be on about the same moral level as his more regular comrades and it seems to be commonly admitted that his child may be as valuable to the na tion. Necessity, w-hich knows no law, bids fair to mitigate certain venerable prejudices which "have clustered about this subject and it' may be that the war babies and their mothers' will receive fairly decent treatment from the Britlslv public and government. Such treatment, if it is granted them, will almost certainly form a precedent which can never be totally forgotten. The chances are that the "illegitimate child" will not be quite so much of an outcast in England as he has been, even when the war is over. Various projects have been ad vanced for the care of the war ba bies.' Some suggest pensions for the mothers. Others would establish great public nurseries, somewhat after the dream of Mrs. Charlotte Perkins Gilman, where, the little things can be looked after properly at the charge of the country. There are many other schemes incubating in the public mind and out of the multitude of them some beneficial. action is almost certain to hatch. Of course there are mossbacks who con tend sturdily that British morality demands the outlawry, of the babies and their mothers after the good old style. Some of these mossbacks are women. Violet Markham, for exam ple, blandly declares that the war baby agitation is "idle talk and hys terical exaggeration," and that "it casts an unmerited slur on the girl hood and manhood and womanhood of the country as a whole." We dare say the intelligent British public will not allow undue weight to such opinions as Violet Markham ex presses. The terrible truth is too ob trusive to be ignored and the national sense of justice "will move English womanhood to bear whatever slur the facts convey. It will do- this rather than commit an unpardonable wrong to a group of girls whose technical innocence has been sacrificed to their helpless ignorance and to thousands of babies whose only crime is the omis sion of a legal ceremony by their mothers. COST OK THE WAR. The estimates given by Lloyd George of the cost of the war to Great Britain are so stupendous as to stagger the imagination. During the persent fiscal year the cost is expect ed to be $5,682,170,000. Britain is not only payuig her own expenses, but ex pects to lend 11,000,000,000 to her allies. Judging by the amounts of the loans raised by Germany, her expenses v. ill equal those of Britain. A year's expense for these two powers alone would bo about $11,000,000,000 and for all the belligerents this total would easily be doubled. War constantly grows more costly. All the important wars from 1790 to I860 cost J9. 243. 225. 000, but for the period from 1861 to 1913 the cost was $16,880,321,240. a total for the two periods of $26,12346,240. If the present war should extend far into next year, its cost will far exceed the total cost of all the wars of the pre ceding 123 years. - Herbert Quick has found a new name for the drift from country to city. He calls it a farmer's strike and thinks better schooling for country lads and lasses the only way to break it. One thing more is needed, and that Is modern marketing processes, which are beyond the power of ordi nary farmers to secure as individuals. Practical schools and co-operation will break the farmers' strike. Noth ing else can or should. It seems hardly necessary to attack the high schools in order to prove that tho "Christian coilcgcs" are needed in the world. " Professor Van Osdcll might have improved his argument oy paying a little closer attention to facts. The denominational colleges are doing an indispensable ec-rvk-e to society, but so aro the -high schools. There is one light of the moon and another of the stars. Speculatiove minds are busy again selecting a world language. Some of these incline to tlx on Russian because there are so many million Slavs. "Why take so much troubje? English is al ready a world language, and will prob ably continue to hold its place. If the spelling were simplitied a little, no other tongue would stand the ghost of a show in competition with it. German submarine attacks have the mtiit of impartiality. All neutrals suffer alike. What if all neutrals should unite to put a stop to the nuisance? Meekness is an admirable virtue and, turning the other cheek is a sure way to gain Paradise. But who ever heard of a nation going to Para dise? "Where do good nations go when they die? - Candy soaked with grog is probably the advance agent of a thousand com ing evasions of the prohibition law. If tiie authorities trap them all they will do more than we have any right to expect. The adversary is notorious for his tricks. Mere human Ingenuity is scarcely eual to checkmating them. Good things come to Oregon in bunches the Celilo Canal open, the Willamette locks toll free and the Grants Pass Railroad. If we keep up this pace, we shall revive prosperity in spite of the' tariff. Whatever may be Oregon's opinion of others, she has confidence in herself. The British do well to frown on or ganizations for the perpetuation ot war hatreds after the war is over Hatred injures him who nourishes It as much as him against whom it is directed, for it wastes mental and physical energy which might be prof itably employed. The law signed yesterday by the Governor of Florida makes the sale of liquor in less than half-pint quantities illegal and will lead to development of more "thirst" than a mere half pint can quench. Snow on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains yesterday and heavy frosts last night will affect the fruit in a large section. Oregon growers who spray will find a good market there. Denial from Luebeck that German export trade is dead suggests that many goods reach foreign markets with Swedish and Danish instead of "Made in Germany" labels. Though indications may or may not point to a smaller apple crop than last year in the Oregon country, there is opportunity to make It first class. The number of captured Russians has grown to 50,000 In a few days. This is simple change of -environment for the man in the Russian ranks. "With the Wilhelmina as a precedent other Americans are likely to ship goods to Germany in the hope of sell ing them to Britain at war prices. If plants have all the traits of hu man beings, according to Professor Walters, of Langhorne University, the skunk cabbage is in a bad fix. Candy that contains alcohol has an alluring taste and the habit is formed before a youth is aware. Going on strike comes easy to the school children of Butte. The Boy Scouts are useful as well as ornamental. Children on parade touch the hearts of the people. improving; the national guard Former Member of Militia Suggnts Wa- to Better Service. PORTLAND, May 6. (To the Edi itor.) Much has Deen said within the last year concerning the National Guard as a first line of defense, and expert authorities on that subject claim that they would not only act as a first aid, too, but would have to act as the regular army themselves. That being- the case some more practical method will have to be devised by the Government itself in order to put that branch of our military service on a sound and substantial basis where it will be looked upon with respect and dig'nity rather than it is now by a great many who do not understand its purpose and who do not appreciate the time and'patience devoted by its mem bers at a loss financially. In the first place, the National Guard should be taken over by 'the Government and its members be placed subject to Govern ment control, as are all other branches of our military service. They should be made to feel that they are of some benefit to the Government direct and not simply an instrument in' state pol itics, or that they are .merely persons thrown into uniform to quell riots and inarch "up and down the streets at rose shows and carnivals. Now as a matter of fact the National Guard as a state organization has not by any means been a huge success. The difficulties which have hampered the efforts of those who have tried to pro mote the interests of the guards have increased of late years because of our Internal industrial troubles where in many cases the civil authorities called upon the National Guard for assistance, and as a result a bitter feeling has ex isted among a certain class against the guards and the,v have been looked upon with contempt by a great many mem bers of tho different labor organiza tions. - This feeling lias also reached a few outside of the labor uiions, as was tlte case at the big downtown fire on Sunday, April IS. where the services of the guards was offered by their of ficers as they were returning from the rifle range. In one instance a guards man attempted to stop an automobile from passing over ar street where lines of hose were laid, as be was Instructed to do. and the occupant of the machine started ahead faster and said: "Oh, to h 1 with you fellows." A fistic clash followed, and a very un pleasant circumstance afterward, which could have been avoided had the oc cupant of the machine, who happened to be an officer, showed bis star and not his contempt for the man in an olive-drab uniform. Actions like those of the Oregon Guard officials in advertising a trip to the fair and ot the baby-like tactics of the Government and railroad officials in throwing cold water on the proposed trip did more to injure the rause of the guards in Oregon than any other at tempted move in their behalf. The Gov ernment certainly showed no spirit to ward the guards at all In that case. The practice of wearing uniforms on the street when off duty should also lie avoided by members of the guards. But as I have said. It seems to me the most needed change In the guards is that of taking them otit of politics and state control and relieving them from police duty. FORMKR GUAKbSMAN. I KAVliS HIST FALL, I will not strive to hold thee, dear, i-ince thou hast set thy heart to rove. Nor seek to stay one hour the love That's reached the Autumn of its year. For leaves must fall and trees be bare When once the chilling frosts have come. And hearts grow cold and lips be dumb When love departs for skies more fair. Nay. do not weep, but dry thine eyes; Thy Winter brings no angry blasts: Go seek thy new love while It lasts. Such fleeting warmth thy soul should priae. Yea, dry thine eyes, love waits -without; Come, laugh thou and be gay: Thou would'st not promised bliss de lay, Nor thus his fond affection flout? I do not care? Ah. care is dead; My heart is atone, my blood la ice; I saw him kiss thee once, aye, twice, And lay his false hand on thy head! I saw thee look up in his face And give thy lips to him again! I came away and left thee then; I knew 'twas not my rightful place. Ah, do not strive to hold me, dear. Since thou hast set thy heart to rove; Nor seek the shelter of a love That'3 reached its Autumn leafage sere. For leaves must fall when Summer's through. And once the chilling frosts have come, And hearts grow cold and lips be dumb When faith departs for skies more true. MARY H. FORCE. Hillsdale, Or. Laker Elena Klrst. JI1LLKRS, Or., May 2. (To tho Edi tor.) Suppose a property is mortgaged, and while men, who have not been paid off, are still wprking a lien should be placed against the property, which would the owner pay first,, the mort gage or the men? This is supposing the property is a ranch, a mine or a mill. . Also, suppose a man Is working for $3.50 a day, paying $1 a day for board, working 30 days a month, and he lays off a day, paying hoard just the same. Would he be out $3.50 or $4.50? MORMON BASIN. In the first case the labor lien would be paid first. f In the second case the man would be out $4.50. literally speaking, because he would be out the $3.50 ho wuuld earn if he had worked and would also be out the $1 he would have to pay for his board that day, providing he ate and slept. Psclfle Highway.. HOOD RIVliR, Or., May 4 (To the Editor.) I have lot ked through a num ber of papers and magazines for in formation of the Pacific Highway with out much success. Will you kindly answer the following questions for me? 1. What is the route proposed for the Highway? 2. Who is building it? 3. How much Is It to cost? v (MISS) BEATRICE BOYCE. 1. See map and data in automobile section of the Oregonian, Sunday, May 2. 2. No central authority is building the Pacific Highway, although there Is a central association which serves as an advisory body. Each county is ex pected to- improve the roads within its borders. 3. No definite tost has been de termined, as the work is being done piecemeal. Meaning: of Sound. AM BOY, Wash., May 5. (To the Edi tor.) A says if a tree should fall and there was no one there to bear it the sound would be there Just the same. B claims it wouldn't. A READER. The word "sound" may mean either auditory name sensation caused by vi bratorial energy or the vibratorial en ergy Itself. The latter would exist when a tree fell even though no one wag there to receive the sensation. AS OM tO.VSTRl ES SI.SGLK TAX Disciple Does Net Believe Its Applica tion "Would Coaflacate Eaaa. BAY CITY, Or.. May 5. (To the Ed itor.) In your editorial May 3 on the subject of single tax you make it very plain that you are either not well in formed what true single tax as taught by Henry George is, or knowing what it Is, are misrepresenting it and seek ing to confuse the uninformed. You say single tax will confiscate the land into the hands of the Government What will happen now under our pres ent system if one does not pay his taxes? Will it not be sold for taxes? As far as the owner is concerned it might as well be the Government as a private individual who confiscates it. But single tax will not confiscate the land, it will only take into the public treasury the annual rental earn ing or such portion of it as is neces sary for all Government necessities. This will make It necessary for the land monopolist in whatever degree to either, put his holdings to their full use in order to raise the annual rental with which the community has em powered, or else rustle up a tenant to operate It for him. Instead of men hunting jobs the land monopolists will be bidding for men to operate the land, whether agriculturally or as a manu facturer. This will encourage capital to come out and get to work. Any old resident of the Pacific states well remembers when the country was thinly settled, that the return to both labor and capital was large. When rent began to enter and increase wasea and interest correspondingly fell. You say the land monopolists, will sit back and pay high taxes for a while with the belief -that the people will subse quently abandon single tax. The Idea that a considerable number of them will lo so is to smile. The few who might try it will find It unprofitable. They will find their neighbor capital ists taking the wiser course and either using the land themselves or letting tenants use it. Demetrius, the sil veremitli, of whom we read in the testament, did not like it that Christianity should bo preached, lie had been getting great wealth in making Images of the goddess Diana of the Ephesians. To him the apostles wore Interfering with his "vested rights." Those who know what sin gle tax is and oppose it. do so because they do not like to be deprived of special privilege. C. A. M'LEMOUli. FARMER HIT BY CITY WOOl).ltl i L mrmpleyanent Relief May Irle Trade Klumiere, Maya Writer. II A n RISBL'RG, Or., May 5. To the Editor.) 1 see in The Oregonian that your City Commissioners are having trouble selling th cordwood which the city had cut last Winter. This Is at it should be. Your city had no business to enter tho cordwood business in op position to the farmers and men who make their living through that busi ness. An individual has a fat charn-e lo compete with a corporation like Portland. Then, too, your merchants who largely uupport your city corpor ation expect us farmers and land clear ors to patronize them and those who buy from them. Kach year for the past 15, I have added a little cleared land to my farm expecting to sell the cordwood that I cut partially to pay for the i-iearing. and this past season I found it harder to get men to work than in pat years. All I can afford to pay is $1 per cord for cutting cordwood. The men would stay a few days and light out for Portland, where they could be near tho white lights and saloons. Your City Com missioners supplied the men with di version to make it possible for them to floclt to Portland. The members of our grange aro asking our merchants to buy in San Francisco and elsewhere until jour city stops competing with our products. You cannot expe.ct us to buy from you and you not buy from us. Why can't the City Commissioners you - haviC) listen to Police chief Clark and atop coddling the idle who leave work to go to Portland to be fed? His idea of making them move on is the only way to handle the problem. There la plenty of work in this country. Win ter and Summer, and cities like Port land are doing a whole lot to shut oft f-arm development by supplying roost ing places for men who can find farm work to do in the Winter months but who do not want to do that kind of work and would rather beg and live off someone else. OTCO SCHM ALE. Nothing to "Wear. Frances Frear in Leslie's. There are women who live to dress, and the more frequent and radical the changes are the better they lika it. If their pocketbooks can sta,nd it,.no great harm la done. But the great majority of women can't afford to keep up with this pace. The result is that some stay at home because their clothes are not in the latest style, many are made un happy, and others keep up with the pvoces'sion it matters not w hat may be the cost. If a man can wear the same dresa suit for eight or ten years and not look like a freak, why is it not pos sible to design an evening gown for women that will be in good style as long as it may be worn? it Is aosurcj to hear a woman, say. "I haven't a thing to wear." when she may have a half dozen gowns all in good condition. Mail for Convict. GRKSHAM. Or.. May-8. (To the Ed itor.) :Kindly tell nie if it would be possible to obtain a named list of those in the State Penitentiary In Salem, and, if so, where such list might he ob tained. Do prisoners receive mail and are they allowed to reply? FLORENCE M. HONEY. There is no list of Penitentiary in mates printed for distribution. One would have to go to the books of the institution. Prisoners may receive mail of proper character. Married men may reply to. personal letters once a week; single men once a month. It an inmate is endeavoring to educate him self by taking a correspondence course he is not restricted in that particular Data oa Alaska. PORTLAND, May 4. (To the Ed itor.) Could you please tell me through the columns of The Oregonian where I could get information about the climate, size and labor conditions of Alaska, Sitka, Juneau and Fairbanks in particular? A SUBSCRIBER. Write to Charles E. Davidson, Sec retary of the Territory of Alaska, at Juneau; or to the Census Bureau, at Washington, explaining clearly what you want, and bulletins Issued by the Department concerning Alaska will be sent to you. Value of .Stamps. FORT CANBY, W'ash., May 4. (To the Editor.) I have a Franklin stamp dated 1706. I would like to know if it has any value.. J. LAWRENCE TEN BROOK. Write to Scott Stamp & Coin Com pany, New Y'ork. Yea. PORTLAND, Maj 6. (To the Ed itor.) I beg to inquire If the inter marriage of first cousins is prohibited in this state. HANS HANSEN. Every Man to His Trade. Judire. A bank should be cleaned out by the jani tor, not by the cashier. A hen can't lay the dupt any more than a wnterins- cart can lay an ery. - No boy can hphi a web like a spider, but a spider can't spin a top lika 'a boy. A dentist rnn't draw a picture any better than nn artist can draw a tooth. Any one can pick a quarr-t. but it re quires a certain amount ot skill to pick u lock. Some men ati bandy with their hands, and some with their feet. ome are knock ers and gome are kickerj. Twenty-Five Year Ago From The Oregonlun May 7, 1?0. I.oniuo Pointe. Quebec. A long line of quaint towers is all one now see of Longue Pointe lunatic asylum, lo miles from Montreal. anl 2u0 perished. The Canadian Pacific K.illroad la sending out a parly of surveyors to locate a line from Mc-L.m1. Alberta. throuKh Crow's Nest 1'ass, thence lo the Pacific Coast. Through Representative Hermann postal facilities are to bo established in Hlo rich vallc-y from Canyon City to Stewart and Paulina. An cini. e hai been established at Homer with W. W. Stone postmaster, and one at lscr with Carlos Bonham postmaster. A tri weekly service between Stewart and Canyon City will start July 1. Hon. J. I . Roberts has secured th right of way to build and operate a street railway within tho corporate limits of Myrtle Point. Or. William A. Pohl, Dcmooratio nomi- i nee for Recorder at Astoria, has re signed, and J. K. iliggins, late deputy collector of customs, lias been put on the ticket in Ins place. Mrs. J. W. Sears, of KVLley. Curry County, received a terrible, scare Iar-t week while, during the absence of her husband, she had taken her dog and gone out to feed her cow. After feed ing the cow she ,a.t down lo real, but noticing that the dog acted very queer she looked up in tho tree jUMt over her and saw a large panther looking down on her and iu the attitude of preparing to spring. The. animal es caped, and when men were found the panlhcr had disappeared. Lieutenants C. C. llealey aud T. C. Kane, of the Chicago poli'-c depart ment, have come alter W. E. Johnson, the colored Portland hotel bellboy, who Is wanted on a harco ot having par. liii;tted in the murder of Jcjinlc Jlc Garvio in Chicago March IS. The Oregon Land Company at tha Portland Hotel will begin i ho sale of Port Angeles lots Wednesday. Tle third number of The Sludent, edited by Bit Ho W ells and d'svoted to the interest of education iu urnei-itl and Portland B'-lioola in particular, has made its appearance in a new drcas. The Clinton & McCoy srrounda In Kast l'orlliiuil will be used by the Portland Icasuc, base'hall team this season. Portland is at the hotlotii of Ihe league htaiidniKs. Spokane Falls and Seattle leading Willi .t6 each. I'Mi-l"KlilHti III'. POUT I Pll i :i.u College Authorities Reply to I rltielam of Ka-pcrlincntM by Roy. COKVAI.LIS. Or.. .May i. (To the Editor.) Harold Peterson's pig-fecd-ing report as published In The Orego nian or April 15 aud criticised by Mar tin Rickets, of Wlnlock, Wash., In the issue of April 20, followed exactly the ligures of the original report. The suggestion that the figures "may need correction by a colic-go expert" is not feasible, since any change In them would have been an Injustice to the boy and bis parents and would have rendered the account worthless, TBS credibility of the report was estab lished by reliable evidence and is also sustained by Professor E. L- Potter, head of tho animal husbandry depart ment, who say.; "The story was In no wise a report of experimental work carried on by the. college, but report of work done by a boy in one of the Industrial clubs. The boy's wn report is quoted cor rectly in tho article. I pop checking his ligures, however, wc tin J that his average daily feed is somewhat in error. This errur lias led Mr. Rickets to make some few errors In hi article. I take it. however, that the essential point of Mr. Rickets' criticism Is that Ibis boy reports making one pound of pork on 1.7 pounds of grain with an addition of 5.34 pounds of skim milk, whereas Mr. Rlcki-t.t finds that in his experience it requires from 4 to i pounds of grain, or Ita equivalent, to produce one pound of pork. Mr. Rickets evidently fails to attach sufficient im portance to the amount of milk used. Thia milk would be equivalent to about two pounds of grain, so that the entire ration would be equivalent to about 3.7 pounds of grain per pound of gain. "When we further consider that the pig in question was not carried t' the full market weight, that ho had tome pasture in addition to the grain and milk, and that he was doubt lea an exceptionally good Individual, it would not aniiear that there was any material discrepancy between the re sults obtained by this hoy and thoco obtained by Mr. Rickets. In tho ex perimental work of the Agricultural College lit fattening bogs uu grain alone our results are about the same as those given by Mr. Rickets, but in feeding young plus with an abundance of skim milk we often, although not usually, get results quite similar to those obtained by Mr. Peterson. "Mr. Rickets further questions Ihe statement that Mr. Peterson 'started with a pig one month and one week old, weight 2t'i pounds.' This excep tional weight is explained by Mr. Peter, son's statement tht the sow had only one pig and it wan an exceptionally good one. "While It is true that boys' pig feed ing experiments, like men's, may be either prolitable or unprofitable, it Is entirely true that the pt-uct ice afforded in judalng, feeding, manasing and marketing swine, and in keeping exact records of feeds and methods, is the chief value nnd a value that is gained by all tfcc boys who cnuase in the aroject." C. J. M'INTOSIl. Editor College Press Bulletin. Apbia at Seashore. SEAVIEW. Wash., -May 5. (To the. Editor.! The spru'-e trees In this vi cinity are badly Infested with aphis. Many are dead and it Is only a tiueation of a few days that they will he Kone beyond recovery. Those having Sum mer homes here, if they care for their trees, had better take steps to save. them without delay. Kerosene, emul sion sprayed on them im effectual for trees that can be readied (about 15 feet). II. FREEBOROUGU. "Xante of Land Owners. FA1RVIEW. Or.. May 6. (To the. Editor.) Please tell me how to find the names and addresses of persons who own a tract of brush land, R. II. CURTIS. Inquire' of the Assessor In the coun ty In which the land Is located. Reach the People With Your Story . Mr. Manufacturer, if you want to get your story before the people you must use the media people read. And st the head of the list are the daily newspapers. They afe necessities of everyday life. All who can read, read them. The new-spa per-iitt rod in-ed adver-ti-er comes with a certain local prestige. Newspaper advertising reaches the people when they are in, a mood to buy snd secures tho co-operation of the locul dealer. cated 10 which with many lives was consumed by flames yesterday. During the lire maniacs gleefully laughed and danced amid the devouring flames. Nearly