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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (June 17, 1915)
8 TIIE MORNING OREGONIAX. TnUESDAT, JUNE 17, 1915. PORTLAND. OREGON. Entered at Portland, Oregon. Postofflce ms i second-class matter, subscription Kates Invariably In advance: '". (By Mall.) Ttell-, Sunday Included, one year ...... -S.0O Ijaliy, Sunday included, six months ..... 4.5 lJaily, Sunday lncluoed, three months ... i.5 Jilly, Sunday Included, one month -75 Uiilly, without Sunday, one year ........ 6.00 XJtuly. without Sunday, six months ...... 3.25 IHy. without Sunday, tiiree months ... 1.75 Tly. without Sunday, one month ...... .60 "Weekly, one year 1.50 Sunday, one year 2.50 fepnday and Weekly, one year 3.50 (Br Carrier.) nnl!y. Sunday Included, one year 9.00 XUly. Sunday inciuaed. one month ..... .75 How to Bemlt Send postof flee money or dr. expre&s order 6r personal check on your l?al bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at (Oder's risk. Give postof f ice address La full, ldciudin? county and state. Postage Kate 12 to 18 pages, 1 cent; 18 32 paces. 2 cents; 34 to i pagss, 3 cents: fcs- to lio pages, 4 cents; SJ to 76 pases, fi centsr 7S to VI paces, 6 cents. Forelsrn post age, double rates. .sCaxteni BiuineM Offices Verree & Conic -lm, Brunswick building, New York; Verree a-Conkliu. Steser bulletins. Chicago: San J-Vsncisco repreattutsxive, K. J. .Bldweil. H2 Market street. PORTLAND, THURSDAY, JOTS 17, 11S. , COXDi'Q TO OUR SENSES. I The Nation is gradually being brought to look in the face the facts tearing on National defense. We abhor war as much as ever, but we afe coming to realize that it may not xtst with us to decide whether we shall have war. An old saying is that it ; takes two to make a quarrel; it . also takes two to keep peace; and ifi one ia determined to have war, the other must have it, however un willingly, or submit to Whatever terms the warlike nation chooses to dic tate. ' But, say opponents of military preparedness, if we organize a strong atrny and navy, we shall be more likely to fight, even to seek a fight, w'hile if we do not prepare, we shall fee less likely to engage in war. Neith er assertion is true. If the possession of a strong army and navy incites us to; war, then the possession of a fire department promotes fires, that of a police department provokes crime, that of a health department causes epi demics of disease. Militarism is not the result of arming a nation, but of the spirit which animates that na tion, of the supremacy of the military over the civil authority and of the purpose behind armament. This Na tion could not become militarist be cause the military arm is subordinate to civil authority, because public opin ion is firmly set against armed ag gression and because the most ardent advocates of National defense would oppose armament on the scale neces sary, for aggression. But it does not follow that, because we were unprepared, we should be less likely to become involved in war. If armed strength makes a nation more likely to fight, then the state ment applies to other nations already armed. Whom would such a nation fight? Surely one that was rich and unarmed, like the United States. If we cannot trust ourselves to be strong, lest we become quarrelsome, 'much less can we trust other nations, many of which are now giving evidence of pugnacity, lest they quarrel with us. We must take one risk or the other either the risk of fighting because we are strong or that of being at tacked because we are' weak. Surely iwe can better trust our own good intentions not to abuse -our" strength than the good intentions of other na tions not to abuse their strength by attacking us. We have in our own history an ex ample of a war prevented by our strength. Writing in Collier's Weekly, Julian Street tells of a conversation In the presence of an American army officer between a young French .of ficer and a French General who had served in Mexico in 1864-5. ..The young man asked the General why the French army got out of Mexico in such, a hurry- The General pointed to the American officer and replied: "Because there were then in the United States more than a million men wearing that uniform you see there, and trained through the Civil War, and they told us to get out." Had the United States not had Uicse million trained soldiers, France might have resisted us and a war for the maintenance of the Monroe Doctrine would have resulted. This is a conclusive answer to those who, "in dread of war, exclaim: "I didn't raise my boy to be a sob dier." There ;ire other answers to be found in American history. The peo ple in the revolutionary time did not raise their boys to be soldiers. Con sequently when they were called upon to fight for independence, they sent untrained militia to fight, and Wash ington continually complained that they were unreliable, untrained, some times cowardly and deserted in hordes. Though nearly 400,000 men were en listed, Washington could never mus ter more than 17,000 men for battle The total British force was 150,000 The war was prolonged for seven years because, although we employed two and one-half times as large a force, we could not until the close bring a sufficient force to bear at any point against the British. In short, the horrors of war were aggrevated by unreadiness, which prompted Wash lngton to write: If we desire to avoid Insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, It must be known we are at all times ready for war. v American school histories tell how the United States beat Britain in 1812 but they dwell lightly on the facts that, while we were doing that, Brit ain. was beating Napoleon; that we employed 527.652 men in that war against Britain's 55,000, but that the great majority of our men were militia; that Hull was forced to re tire from Canada because his militia mutinied; that he surrendered De troit without fighting; and that 3500 British, only a small part of whom were actually engaged, routed 6500 -Americans, took Washington and burned the Capitol, because only 1000 of our men were trained soldiers. At the first battle of Bull Run the Union army consisted of 28,000 militia and volunteers and 800 regulars. Had all been trained soldiers, says Richard Stockton, Jr., in "Peace Insurance," "Bull Run would have been the end of-the Civil War, not the beginning." All the awful slaughter and misery ofthe succeeding four years was the consequence of the lack of trained soldiers. Tet so slow are the American peo ple to take to heart the plain teach ings of their own experience that Mr. Street tells of a farmer who said recently to a cavalry officer, "This country don't need soldiers," and when the officer suggested the possibility of invasion, the farmer said: Xo furrln nation will ever land " on our sU. Whv, there'd r-e a million farmers ' vaitln; for 'em with shotguns. Let 'em just try it once. 'The farmers with shotguns would be as useless as the militia In the Revolutionary War, in the War of 1812. and in the Civil "War. They would be routed as were the militia then and they would be slaughtered with long-range rifles and field-guns before they came within .shotgun range of the invaders. If we do. not make ' soldiers not militiamen but trained soldiers of our boys, the time will come when they will be sent to face an enemy as half-trained .militia and volunteers and will be slaughtered in thousands and routed, and the country will be at the mercy of an enemy. The way to save our boys from this fate is to make enough of them into soldiers to defend the country. The way to save the country from the horrors of war Is to prepare to fight. National defense is peace insurance Just as truly as fire departments insure against fire and police departments against crime Trained men in those services do not absolutely prevent fires or crime, but they largely prevent and mitigate those evils. Just so would sufficient trained and well equipped soldiers and sailors prevent or mitigate the evils of war. BOOH IX SHXPBUXLDEXG. There is a veritable boom in Ameri can shipyards. They have all the work they can handle for five years. Con tracts for thirty-six vessels have been made since December and others are offered for forty more, ranging from 4000 to 18,000 tons burden and requir ing an aggregate of 175,000 tons of steel plates. One great company which is doing the largest business in war supplies is building its own ship yard. . The cause Is not only the shortage of vessels due to the war, but the reversal of conditions as to cost, which has caused Europe to build ships in the United States. Plate steel costs $40 a ton in England against $25 in Pittsburg, which means a saving of $75,000 on a 5000-ton ship. Europe is competing with the United States for the product of American ship yards. The time is most propitious for rapid expansion of the American mer chant marine, for Americans can now build ships cheaper In this country than in Europe and can make high profits at present rates. Were our shipping laws such that ships could be operated under the American flag as cheaply as under flags of other nations and were there no threat of Government competition, much capi tal would g-o Into the shipping busi ness and new shipyards would be opened to supply the increased de mand. The best stimulus which the President and Congress could give to the merchant marine would, be to drop the ship-purchase bill, to revise the shipping laws and to amend the sea men's law in those respects where it militates against ships under the American flag. MOUNTAIN 3 OFTvNKD TO PEOPLE. Opportunity Is afforded by a new law relating to National forests for the people really to enjoy the beauties and healthgiving powers of the mountains. Hitherto the public has been permitted to travel through these forests and to camp there, but it has been impossible to obtain the exclu sive right to occupy a particular site for any extended period of time. The pleasures and benefits of mountain life thus have been denied the large number of people who do not care for camp life but who wish to enjoy the comforts of civilization while in the wilds. By permitting the lease for 30 years of sites not exceeding five acres in the National forests, the new law opens the way for erection of substantial Summer homes and hotels, where tourists . and holiday-makers may go In large numbers. If the Forest Serv ice sells to lessees of these sites timber and other building material in the vicinity, substantial rustic hotels and bungalows can-be erected in the moun tains of the West. The Forest Serv ice, in conjunction with the states, is building roads and trails and is thus making the West's natural beauties accessible to the people. There is no reason why the states from the Rocky Mountains west should not become as popular a resort for tourists as Switzerland and the Tyrol. They excel those countries in natural beauty and grandeur, though they are lacking in comforts and conveniences and in historical associations. The former can be supplied and, as the latter are chiefly connected with war and tyranny, we can well dispense with them. The chief source of in come to the Swiss and Tyrolese is ministering- to the wants and pleasures of tourists. Though It Is not desirable that this be the case in the West, it Is desirable that our scenic attractions be made a source of both revenue and pleasure to the people. But one objection can be raised to the leasing of home-sites in the Na tional forests. It may become the thin end of the wedge for general adoption of the leasing system on the public domain and for permanent ex emption of public land from state taxation. When Summer homes and hotels are established In the forests the states will be called upon to pre serve order, to punish crime and to administer estates, but will derive no revenue from the forests except that which is specifically applied to roads and schools only. This is unjust to the states and Is contrary to the spirit of the several enabling acts under which they were admitted to the Union. Western Representatives in Congress are as loyal as those of the East and South to the policy of for est conservation and may therefore be reluctant to ask that sites be pat ented, but they should certainly ask that a proportion of forest, revenue be paid to the states in lieu of taxes. ' "DUM DUM" XING US If. The art of snobbery and envy, of showing class distinction, of "cutting" and "withering" a social foe, no doubt are accepted elements of the social code of today and yesterday. Retorts courteous have their highly respected place. Each is a part of the scheme of things that makes life interesting and diverting, shedding its little hap pinesses here and scattering Its little woes along the way. But a new school seems to have sprung up. Debutantes are found studying sharp, acrid answers to conventional questions; study ing expressions of temper in the name of temperament. The daugh ters of fine ladies and ; fine ladies themselves " we find resorting to "dum dum" answers, so to speak; answers that leave scars, and not an swers like the old-fashioned subtle ones, which left only Irritation and caused the growth of a thrifty wit. The thing is, like everything else, the long-used clever bits of social con versation seem to have fallen Into disregard in the mad search for some- thing better and more tempting. The search has been rather misdirected. Some, spurred on by the effect of keen, really harmless retorts courte ous, have started out in search of ex pressions that go one further. They have, to be sure, found no worthy sub stitute, and the spirit of the age seems only reflected in their hard, harsh, wound-inflicting use of the English language. Such expressions have no breeding In them; no culture nor wlt. It is plainly an evidence of overdoing. If a . soft answer turneth away wrath, then a harsh one must cer tainly kindle it. Perhaps the studied usage of "dam dum" English is only a fad; perhaps it is only an expression of the' new freedom of impulses and temper. The woman whose tongue is clever and whose wit is fleet is always a fa vorite. Men find a particular fascina tion in rhetorical sparring with her. But how quickly uninteresting is she whose tongue Is brutal and vulgar and whose wit is club-footed. PATRIOTS. No one recalls the names of the peace-at-any-price evangelists of the days of '76. The Bryans of that day are forg-otten and only George Wash ington, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jef ferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Ad ams, James Otis and all that Immortal group are remembered. They are re membered for their militant patriot ism and their willingness to sacrifice their lives for their liberties. No one remembers with gratitude the names of the peace-at-any-price apostles of sixty years ago. Only Ab raham Lincoln, Ulysses S. Grant, Will iam H. Seward, Hannibal Hamlin, John A. Logan, Edward S. Baker and others like them for the-Union cause are remembered, and the memories of Robert E. Lee, "Stonewall" Jackson, Alexander Stephens and ' their com patriots are cherished. Let us quote from the second In augural address of President Wash ington: The United States ouirht not to indulge a persuasion that, contrary to the order of human events, they will forever keep at a distance those painful appeals to arms with which the history of every other nation abounds. There is a rank due the United States among; nations which will be with held, if not absolutely lost, by the reputa tion of weakness. If we dasire to avoid Insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful Instruments of our rising pros perity, it must be known that we are at all times ready for war. The highest expression of patriot ism is defense of one's country. Were Washington nnd Lincoln wrong? Is only. Bryan rjght? A SMALL WORLD AWRY. When a great steamship like the Northern Pacific twists a rudder or slips a cog in some remote part of its vast machinery and is put out of com mission for a single run, the resultant consequences seem almost endless. An entire world veritably goes awry. The plans of some 600 or 800 persons are directly twisted; financial prepara tions are shunted out of joint - for many, and directly or indirectly hun dreds, yes almost .thousands, are af fected. But it is refreshing to see two rival industrial corporations, such as the Great Northern Pacific Steamship Company" and the Southern Pacific Company, come to quick co-operation In relieving the pressure at a time as when the Northern Pacific disabled her rudder while crossing into Flavel Tuesday. She was unable to sail yesterday. All night long the officials of the two rival companies worked laying- plans for handling this small army of travelers booked to sail. It was a big task, but apparently it was well met and capably handled. Comparatively few of the travelers were seriously handicapped in their plans; some may have been slightly disappointed. But the exigencies of planning are always subject to the natural order of things. The Northern Pacific- couldn't sail with absolute safety; at least the company would not take the chance thaf the rudder was seriously disabled. It shows a fine spirit that "the vessel's owners chose to cancel a sailing and sacrifice an appreciable sum of money, rather than be anything but sure of the ves sel's absolute perfection of condition. In these days when competition Is so keen between large industrial cor porations it is reassuring to witness so quick a co-ordination of facilities for the accommodation of the public. MAGNA CHARTA. The seven hundredth anniversary of the signing of Magna Chart a. would not bring unmingled joy to that ven erable document if it were capable of human feelings. It is receiving a great deal of indiscrlminating praise, as it always has, but mingled with. the praise are many drops of bitter criti cism. Much of the modern fetish worship of Magna Charta harks back to Coke, ' the great lawyer whose enmity overthrew Lord Bacon. Coke makes it the source of trial by Jury and most of our other fundamental rights and his view Is copied without investigation by Burke. But there is very little ground for it. Coke knew the technicalities of the common law extremely well but he knew nothing else and Burke should have had more sense than to follow him blindly. Pro fessor Jenks calls Magna Charta "a reactionary document." In his opin ion it retarded the advance of popu lar rights instead of helping them forward. In his own words It was "a nuisance and stumbling block to the next generation." InN King John's time, when Magna Charta was signed, the mass of lowly born Englishmen were "villeins." They had some legal rights but not many. Magna Charta did not guar antee them a jury trial. The famous clause that "no freeman shall be Im prisoned save by the lawful judg ment of his peers," merely secures to the nobles exemptlen from trial by the common law judges. It also gives the clergy the right to be tried In their own courts, a right that King John had contested. King John was a great deal more of a progressive than commonplace historians concede His fight was with the nobles and the ecclesiastics and he necessarily, there fore, stood in a certain sense for pop ular rights. Magna Charta was ex torted from him by the -rebellious nobles who cared for nothing but their own- privileges and the traditional ex emptions of the clergy. It embodies a' victory of the papacy and the no bility over the British Crown rather than any guarantees of popular rights From the union of the Crown with the common people came first the destruction of the feudal nobles in the Wars of the Roses and then the development of despotism under the Tudors and Stuarts. This despotism ultimately fell before the assaults of the Commons because there was no intrenched aristocracy to bolster it up. The aristocracy existed, of course, in Cromwell's time but its feudal power had mostly been pruned away. It stood by the Stuart despotism faith fully enough but its help was not suf ficient to perpetuate the abomination. The history of the British aristocracy is like that of the French. At first its rebellious power drove the mon arch to unite with - the people and make himself absolute. The nobles then became the fawning creatures of the court but the Commons liked tyranny as little in the King as in the Feudal barons. Hence they con tinued their struggle for liberty and finally brougjit the throne to terms. The French ended the long contest by abolishing the crown. The English reduced it to a phantom. Each method seems to be uniquely adapted to the people who have put it in practice. The wealth of the United States Is said to double once in ten years. A contemporary, rejoicing over this won derful fact, pauses to ask if our knowledge, wisdom, fraternity and re ligion are increasing at the same rate. If they are not we may find ourselves some day In the predicament of the man who bullded new barns for his harvest only to hear when they were done, "Thou fool, this night shall thy soul be required of thee." What, in deed, shall it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul? . There is a chance for the farmers to sell old. Dobbin and the wife's gray mare for service in Europe if they wish. The average life of a horse at the front Is three days. So Miss De Graff tells us. The three days are apt to be enlivened with shell wounds that tear out eyes, rip open' bodies and crush legs. It shows but faint grati tude to the horse that has werked hard on the farm for ten years to sell him Into torment, but gratitude sel dom holds its own against dollars. The woman ticket agent is indeed an innovation and will demonstrate her adaptability in a trying Job. The experienced traveler will delight In paying the money, but the inex perienced, may be scared off. Where as now he approaches the men who are given these positions because they are the most courteous gentlemen to be found, in the case of the other sex he will not be able to tell whether he Is going to Skamokawa or Skanea telu; from pure stage fright. President Faunce, of Brown Uni versity, says New England has enough colleges. The same may be said of the AVillamette "Valley. What we need now is to strengthen the colleges we have, not to found new ones. There is a place in Oregon for the small col lege and the small college must pre pare to fill it. The day of slipshod education i3 over and gone, but the small college can give an education as esound as the big one, and often sounder. , Next September there is to be an other election to the Hall of Fame. From 200- candidates a primary has sifted all but seventeen and from these five will be chosen for Immor tality. Most of the candidates are from New England. Parkman, the historian; is among them. So is Alex ander Hamilton. Roger Williams, the great American protagonist for religious liberty, was rejected at the primary. Maddened by hunger a man sought yesterday to kill wife and child and self. There are others in like straits, too independent and too proud to ap ply for organized charity. They seek the little Jobs that one is disposed to do for himself in leisure time. The next time a man applies to mow the lawn or put in the wood, suppose he be given it. y The pay might be a trifle, but it may save a soul. The use of liquid fire in the fight ing in Western Russia reminds one of old times. It was used by the Greeks to defend Constantinople from a Rus sian fleet in the tenth century. They shot it from guns as we do common balls. Liquid fire went out of use as powder came in, but the exigencies of the present war have brought it back. It is nonsense to speak of the late city election as an example of minor ity rule. The majority stayed at home, but they did so by their own choice, and thus implicitly said, "We agree with the side that wins." Any citizen who does not ostensibly vote actually votes with the winning side, whether he likes it or not. Protest against air raids will avail Great Britain little. What she needs Is to do some raiding herself. That she is unprepared is her misfortune. So it might be to other nations slum bering in long-continued dreams of peace and Invulnerability. The London Mail is waking- up Britain to the value of the machine gun as shown by the Germans. There is hope for the Briton, but little for the Russian with his iron bar. "Men, women and children are daily dying of starvation" in Mexico, says a dispatch. Our aversion for the hor rors of war has produced these hor rors. Is the Nebraskan already forgotten or have they discovered who hit her and, like the case of the Maine of years ago, would investigate further? With Mrs. Frank Leslie's million and a half in her purse, Mrs. Carrie Chapman Catt should be able to sweep the degenerate Eastern states. A statistician at the National Capi tol proves the cost of living just now is higher than ever. Why tell what every housewife knows? The Turk is sicker than ever, but fear of German vengeance will pre vent him listening to British proposals for separate peace. Many of the boxes of berries on the market are not holding up to the standard of fullness required by the new law. Some day it may not sound like' a dream when trans-continental trains go thundering through Frineville and Burns. Summer is here, -for the seashore schedules have been arranged, regard less of pessimistic mercury. Is the cement merger a result of the recent pro-trust decisions in the courts? - Vancouver, B. C.,. needs the Sunday game to keep off the financial rocks. General Arbitration is lii the saddle at Chicago and he Is a good old scout. European War Primer i By National Geo graphical Society. G ALICIA'S great battlefield along the course of the River San is de scribed In today's war primer of the National Geographic Society. The broken banks of the River Sarj have taken their place among the world's greatest battlefields of all times through the determined Russian investment and capture of Przemysl, and, more especially, through the re cent continuous days of battle between the Austro-German armies, headed toward Lcmberg. and the Russian armies, bound for the open plains of the dual monarchy beyond the Car pathians. On the banks, of the San hundreds of thousands of men have been fighting bitterly back and forth; and the little stream, of such slight peace importance as to have escaped notice of all the leading works of English reference, henceforward will live in history's annals as long: as the memory of the names of the fields of Waterloo and Gettysburg. The San, a right bank tributary of 'the Vistula River, is about 800 miles long. It rises in the East Beskldes, flowing first through a very narrow valley, full of wildest mountain scen ery. The river becomes navigable at Przemysl. From the point of this famous Austrian stronghold, shallow draft boats and poled scows carry for est and agricultural produce to the Vistula, Behind Przemysl. the river Is a mountain stream, and one of the most attractive in Northern Europe. About 20 miles north of Przemysl, the San, at Jaroslaw, reaches the open plain. From this point the river turns more northwest, joining the Vis tula on the borders of Gallcia and Russian Poland. Between Jaroslaw, south, to Przemysl, where the heaviest fighting of the past weeks has been taking place, the country ia rough, often sharply broken at the river, and offering many opportunities for mili tary defense. Beyond Przemysl, to ward the river's source, the San zig zags from a point about 30 miles to the west, whence It comes from the south and southeast. During the Spring freshets, and again, during rainy Autumn seasons, the lower valley of the San often suffers from severe floods. The San is joined by a num ber of small mountain tributaries, which add to the intricate markings of the jrreat battlefield. Lake Garda, the blue pearl of the southern Alps, set in a gilded frame of clif fs,borders one of the paths, that of the Adige Valley, by which the Italians are invading the Trentino. Lake Garda crosses the Austrian fron tier, cutting well Into Trentino in the direction of Riva, a city but a short distance back from its northern shore. Garda Is Italy's largest lake, being some 1S9 square miles in area. It is 34 miles long and varies between three and 11 miles in breadth. It is sur passed in size only by Geneva and Constance of all the lakes in the Alpine region. The lake is very deep, measur ing in parts nearly zuuu leet. The shores of Garda in the south are flat and low, sloping easily back from the water into a sunbaked coun try. However, as the lake narrows toward the north, first Alpine hills and Uran higher spurs of the Alps fold in upon it, often spinning up in sheer walls from the water sheet. The small Austrian part of the lake, a narrow, northernmost finger, is a break Into the Tyrol heights. All along the shores of Garda are Idyllic villages, small, quiet communi ties of white dwellings, convents sheltered by lemon and olive groves, and the ruins of old castles, rich .in historical associations. Also there are the mushroom growths of recent years, the tourist and health resorts, these latter n'estled into the midst of some of the more striking features of the beautiful lake s scenery. From the mountain evergreen, through the forests of oak, to the southern groves of lemon and olives, the vege tation is as rich and as varied as are rfle numberless moods in which the superb lake gives itself. Its northern most extremity is high in Tyrol, while its southern shore, at Peshiera, is 16 miles west of Verona and 77 miles east of Milan. The chief tributary of tne ia Ke is tne sarca from trie griaciers of Adamello; its only outlet is Mincio a tributary of the Po. Many fashionable vacation resorts border Garda, one of the chief of which is Riva.-near the northern shore. with its grood hotels and many fine attentions to the comfort and whims of the tourist. The little place boasts, moreover, interesting ruins and an al most perfect climate. Gardone-Riviera is the most fashionable resort around the lake, while Sirmione-on-the-prom ontory, with its ruins of Roman baths, its villa of Catullus and its wonderful views, is the most fascinat ing. The lake owes its name to the beautiful village of Garda, upon its eastern shore. Nowhere are there scenes on this queen of southern lakes that are fitting for the setting of stern war drama. Garda is a lyric and a pastoral. Noxious Weeds on I-'armn. CLATSKANIE, Or., Juno 14. (To the Editor.) Is there any officer in this state with power to compel persons holding unused lands to cut obnoxious weeds, such as thistles? SWAMP ANGEL. The road supervisor in each district is required to notify the owner or oc cupant of premises, used or unused, on which noxious weeds are growing, to remove them. If the owner or occu pant fails to do so the road supervisor is authorized to remove the weeds, the cost thereof becoming a lien against the property. Owners or custodians of property who knowingly permit nox ious weeds to stand thereon until the seeds begin to form are subject to fine and are liable for damages to other property. The weeds mentioned in the statute are Canada thistle or Chinese thistle. "Jim Hill mustard," dagger cocklebur and "silver salt bush." Removal of President. HILLSDALE. Or., June 14. (To the Editor.) 1. Can a President of the United States be recalled by the peo ple? 2. Can he-be removed from office by Congress .' 3. Can he resign? 4. Has ever a President been re called or removed or has one ever re signed? 5. Would there be a special election if lie were recalled or removed or should resigrn? H. SULZER. : (1) No. (li) He may be removed from office on impeachment for and conviction of treason, bribery or other high crimes and misdemeanors. , The Senate has sole power to try all impeachments, (3) Tea. (4) No. (5) No. The Vice-President would succeed him. " Engineers Employment Agencies. PULLMAN, Wash., June 14. (To the Editor.) Can you give me the address of any engineering employment agency located in the West? ' F. W. B. There is no regular employment agency for engineers this side of Den ver. The larger Y. M. C. A. employ ment branches do what they can for their members. In Portland the Oregon Society of Engineers has a small agency for its own members.. In Portland also the firm of Barthold-Barg Co. (engi neers' supplies, 127 Fourth street) has a sort of informal agency for local en gineers, for .which no feea are charged. LET GOVERNMENT BE GUARANTOR Mr. Clillcott Sees) Merit In Senator Lane's) BUI to Aid Shipping. PORTLAND, June 13. (To the Edi tor.) Your advertance to the remarks of the Philadelphia Eveninff Ledger, Friday last, with reference to five es sential undertakings for the Republi can party, are particularly pertinent at this time. If the people can be stimulated into a study and careful analysis of each and all the questions submitted, the next Republican plat form will thereby be constructed and the campaign brought to successful issue on intelligent lines. All of the sections quoted have a bearing in one direction, namely, ex pansion of American commerce, there fore this article will dwell only upon the second section, reading: "A con structive programme for the quick re habilitation of the merchant marine." The bill offered by Senator Lane at the last sesison of Congress was for mulated with this exact purpose in view, but to gain for it tho considera tion of Congress will require a force greater than the dominant will of the Executive, which means the universal demand of the press of the country. Can we obtain it? The bill in question provides that a corporation can be formed for the construction or purchase and opera tion or ships for use in the foreign trade of the United States, tho cost of which can be met by a bond issue, the principal and interest of which shall be guaranteed by the United States. Every possible safeguard that the author , of the bill could think of has been incorporated- therein to se- cure the Government against loss, and no matter whether the bill is perfect or not, it Is the best suggestion on the subject that is before the public today. Its consideration and discus sion may bring: something forward of greater advantage. As this suggested measure was framed prior to the European war. when steamships could have been bought cheaply, the conditions in that direction being now entirely differ ent, and vessels would now have to be built in the United States, it might be worthy of consideration to place new shipbuilding- yards on the same plans as the ships and have tho Gov ernment guarantee bonds on new yards specifically engaged in this de scription of work, that of building vessels for use in foreign trade. With the Government as a guaran tor on bonds in this direction, millions of money would be brought into cir culation that otherwise is not likely to see the light of day. If we are to obtain any substantial Increase in South and Central Amer ican commerce now is the time to act. RICHARD CHILCOTT. SERVICES AT OLD WILLAMETTE Strong: Baccalaureate Sermon Delivered by Dr. Short, of Spokane. PORTLAND, June 14. (To the Ed itor.) May I have room in The Ore gonian to speak of the baccalaureate service of Willamette University, which I attended yesterday at Salem? The day was ideal, with a genial company present from different parts of the Coast to hear the sermon by Rev. F. Short, D. D., of Spokane, which was timely, original and rugged. The music was of unusual character, while the Invocation by Rev. Dr. H. J. Talbott, president of the Theological School, was comprehensive and impres sive. The class graduated this year, some thing less than 40 In number a fine bunch indeed, the school and state will in due time hear from. Plainly this pioneer school, now a part of the history of the state, with its splendid endowment and reorgan ized faculty, has entered upon a now and enlarged career. C. E. Ci-INli.. Fishing? on Private Shore. SANDY, Or., June 13. (To the Edi tor.) Can the property holder prohibit anyone from fishing in a creek which flows through his land if he has same fenced, under the state law of Oregon? A SUBSCRIBER? Presuming: it is your own land which is inclosed and upon which there is posted in three conspicuous places no tices warning trespassers not to enter and that through this land there runs a creek, then parties cannot fish in it at the portion of the creek that runs through your land without your per mission. If they do they are liable in both criminal and civil action for trespass. You cannot, however, pre vent them from fishing In the creek above or below the boundary and in closures of your land. Holding Personal Property. PORTLAND, June 15 (To the Edi tor.) t-Can kitchen furniture not in use left in a house by owner ba held by law for past due rent of said house? CONSTANT READER. This property could not be hVld without resort to legal action unless party desiring to hold were a hotel, inn or boarding-house keeper. If legal action were resorted to and this was household furniture used or kept for actual use by family of party owning same and it were valued at $300, or less, it would be exempt except under certain conditions. Royal Family of Greece. DUFUR, Or.. June 12. (To the Edi tor.) What degree of relationship ex ists between the royal families of Italy and Greece? What between those of Germany and Greece? READER. Queen Sophie, of Greece, is a slstei cf the German Emperor. Sheep Dip for Ants. PORTLAND, June 15. (To the Edi tor.) Please tell me how to rid a house of ants. J. N. O. It is said that a line drawn with a brush saturated with sheep dip across the ants' place of entrance will keep them out. It Is Public Property. PORTLAND, June 15. (To the Ed itor.) To settle a dispute, please ad vise who ownssXIie space underneath the sidewalks, which is used quite fre quently by owners of large buildings. Does this space belong to the city or to the owner of the land abutting the street? SUBSCRIBER. Price Paid for Coins. ALBANY, Or.. June 12. (To the Edi tor.) Please give me the name or names of someone whom I can consult in regard to the value of old coins. W. FRANK VAN NUYS.. Write to Scott Stamp & Coin Com pany, New York. Married Women nnd Homesteads. PORTLAND. June 15. (To the Edi tor.) Can a married woman rile on a homestead in Oregon? READER. No, unless she has been deserted by her husband. Her Sorrow, Tit-Bits. "Does your wife show any interest in the war"'" "Yes. indeed. She talks about it." "What docs she, say?" "Yby. she suvs that she wishes 1 j could go." Twenty-Five Years Ago From The Oregoman, June 17, 1890. The Oregon delegation have agreed on M. T. Nolan for postmaster at The Dalles. There has been a lively con test on for the appointment Brussels Stanley, the great ex plorer, has been tendered and has ac cepted the Governor-Generalship of the Congo Free State. He will not enter upon the duties until the beginning of 189i unless called upon by King Leo-i pold before that time. After his mar riage Mr. Stanley will go to the United States for a visit. Spokane Falls Nelson W. Durham, editor of the Review, was on trial all day yesterday on a charge of contempt of court, brought by Attorneys Grif titts & Graves, counsel for Harry Baer, the slayer of H. McCrossln. The trial resulted as almost everybody ex pected, in a complete vindication for Mr. Durham. In their zeal the' attor neys for the plaintiff by mistake riled as supplemental information and addi tional grounds for the charge of con tempt of court a long editorial on ar tesian wells. This remarkable docu ment is now a part of the record of the Superior Court. Sacramento Governor Waterman, of California, has adressed a letter to Attorney-General Johnson, in which he seeks to take some action tending to put a stop to prizefights and boxing exhibitions in the state. The Oregon & Transcontinental Railway Company Stockholders met yesterday and elected directors as fol lows: Henry Villard, E. H. Abbott, Charles L. Colby, Joseph S. Decker, Colgate Hoyt, Charles H. Ropes. C. A. Spofford, Hector H. Tyndale, T. H. Tyndale, George H. Williams, Rufus Mallory, C. B. Bellinger, C. A. Dolph. Joseph Simon. C. II. . Prescott, Paul Schultze. S. G. Fulton. The new di rectors are: Messrs. Dolph, Williams and T. H. Tyndale, who succeed M. G. Hall, A. D. Charlton and T. H. Bartlett. A brilliant reception in honor of John Bain. chairman of tho Young Men's Christian Association, was given last nijrht at the association parlors, 212 H First street. E. May, of the American Dressed Meat Company, who has been buying fat cattle In California for some weeks, returned yesterday. George II. Thomas, manager of the Western Union office in this city, has tendered his resignation, to take effect July 1. He will be succeeded by C. F. Patterson, formerly chief operator at Omaha and lately manager at San Diego. Mr. Thomas will go into the real estate business. He has been con nected with the Western Union since 1878 and has been manager for one year. Colonel Fred Crocker, vice-president of the Southern Pacific Company, ar rived overland from San Francisco yes terday. The genial countenance of Judge F. S. Moore, of St. Helens, who so ably performed tho duties of secretary of the Republican state central commit tee during the past campaign, was seen at the St. Charles yesterday. The Republicans made a clean sweep in the Portland and East Portland city elections yesterduy. The successful candidates were: Portland: Treasurer. Frank Hach eney; Councilmen. First Ward, G. Cas tendieck; Second Ward, C. M. Forbes; Third Ward, William Fliedner. East Portland: Recorder, J. E. Mayo; Marshal, A. M. Cox, Treasurer, W. A. Buffington; Assessor. John Shaver; Councilmen. First Ward, IT. Witten berg. D. A. Morris: Second Ward, W. 15. Showers; Third Ward. A. H. McEwan; Fourth Ward. W. W. Ferry. Alblna: First Ward. John Golden; Second Ward. William Dolan; Third Ward, J. R. Truman, I. R. Irwin. Frcm Tho Oregonian, June 17, 1S65. Thomas S. Townsend, of New York, commenced at the beginning of the war to collate, arrange, classify. Jour nalize and index every scrap of infor mation obtainable respecting it. By laboring assiduously, sometimes as long as nine hours a day, he has com pleted the work down to the surrender of Lee's army, in 53 massive volumes, which form by far the most comprehen sive cyclopedia of the great Rebellion in existence. Mr. Lincoln's grandfather, also named Abruham Lincoln, was murdered by an Indian in 1744 while at work oil his farm near the Kentucky River. He left three sons, the eldest of whom. Thomas, was the father of the Presi dent. On May 10 tho President issued a proclamation which put in operation the suspended functions of the National Government in the Stp.te of Virginia. It is understood that the plan adopted was in accordance with the views Mr. Lincoln held on the subject. Virginia is not recognized as ever having gone out of the Union; the functions of the United States Government are consid ered to have been merely suspended within her borders; the rebel state gov ernment is wholly disregarded and Governor Pierpont and the loyal ls isuature are considered the legally con stituted authorities of the state. In this manner treason does not receive the slightest recognition. The rebel government is regarded as having been nothing more than an usurpation, with no authority to act for the people. By having taken this course the Govern ment will not be thought by Southern people to have conquered them, but rather to have delivered them from the rule of an usurping and unscrupulous dynasty. Our triumph is in no sense their subjugation. Today is the anniversary of the fa mous battle of Bunker Hill. Messrs. A C. Gibbs & Co., of the Oregon Iron Works, are manufacturing the Wheeler & Randall amalgamators and" cylinders for working- quartz rock and they propose putting one up in the foundry for demonstration purposes. HattleKhip (ire con Here in 101'J. PORTLAND, June 15. (To the. Edi tor.) Plea.e state if the battleship Oregon ever was in Portland Harbor and, if so, state date and place she was anchored. H. D. The battleship Oregon was at Tort land during- the National convention of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, July 7 to 13, 1S12. The vessel was anchored below the site of the Broadway bridge, toward the East Side. Travel by Anticipation Tt is great fun to travel by antici pation, to send for literature and read about the various piaces. It is a liberal education as well as a certainty that you will make the most of your vacation when it comes. Plan your vacation now if you have not done so. Look over the hotel and travel advertisements hi this issue. Send for the booklets and other literature do a little inexpensive traveling by anticipation. HUf a Century Ago