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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (June 18, 1915)
8 THE MORNING OREGONIAN. FRIDAY, JUNE IS, "1915. PORTLAND, ORKGON. Entered at Portland. Oregon, poitoffice a ccwod-fllau matter. ubcrlption Kate Invariably In advance: (By Mail.) Daily, Sunday included, on year ....... $S. 00 Xaily, Sunday Included, sis months . .... 4.23 Xatly, Sunday Included, three inontba ... I'aily, Sunday included, one month ..... ,73 J-ally, wlthouc Sunday, one year ........ 6.00 Dally, without Sunday, six months ...... .25 Xsily, wltnout Sunday, three months ... 1.75 Iaily, without Sunday, one montb, ...... .60 Weekly, one year 1.5o unlay, one year 2.50 tunday and Weekly, one year 2.50 (By Carrier. y Dally, Sunday Included, one year ....... S.0O lJaiiy, Sunday Included, one month ..... .73 How to Kemit Send Postoftice money or der, express order or personal check on youf local bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at Bonder's risk. Give postoffice address In full, inoiudlng county and stale. Postage Kates lz to 16 paces. 1 cent; 18 tu Sis pa&efc. cents: H4 to 4s Bases. 6 cents; to to uu pages, 4 cents; HJ to 73 pases, S cents; 7S to U2 pages. i cents. Foreign post. e. doume rates. feaatern Business Of ficea Verree A Conk 11 n. Brunswick building. New York; Verrfee c conklin. fcteger building, Chicago; San Krancisco representative, K. J, iiidweil, 142 jtiaraet. street. rORTIANO, - IRIDil, JUNE 18, 1815. liOOD WOltK. The Multnomah County Commis sioners have performed with fidelity to the public interest tho responsible duty of awarding the paving con tracts authorized to-be made under the $1,250,000 bond Issue. There has been a period of immense agitation by rival contractors and their repre sentatives and friends, and no small pressure has been brought to beai upon the Commissioners to favor this or that style of pavement and this or that particular tidder. But the con clusions reached carry with them no suggestion or suspicion of discrimina tion for or against any one or any thing. It is true that the greater portion f the contracts call for one standard pavement -bitulithic but it is ob vicfus enough why the Commissioners reached their decision. The experi ence of Portland with bitulithic has been satisfactory, and there was no question that, laid under proper con ditions and with ample guarantees, it would meet all expectations. There was. not the same certainty about ce ment, and other types were eliminat ed from consideration by their large cost. Several of the shorter roads, however, will be laid with cement, so that there will be ample opportunity for a demonstration as to its service ability and durability. The example of Multnomah County In ..building hard-surface roads will be watched with great interest by the state at large. It is certain that it will be followed by other progressive counties, for it is realized everywhere that present traffic conditions call for permanent roads and that anything else is a false economy. Multnomah County has always kept pace with the demands of the time in road construction. Tears ago the gravel road was good enough, but Mr. Llghtner, then as now a County Com missioner, began to build macadam roads. Then came the automobile and the auto truck, and Commissioner Llghtner encouraged a policy of paved-road construction. The chief propagandists for hard-surface thor oughfares have been Mr. Benson and Mr. Yeon, who, with other public spirited citizens, have supported the good roads movement, and who have done much to devise and carry into effect a sound road programme, but it is due to Chairman Llghtner and his fellow Commissioners, Mr. Hol man and Mr. llolbrook, to say that without their co-operation nothing much could now have been done. -. The road movement in Oregon Is In "its beginnings. . What Multnomah County has done and is doing is only a fair start. It is matter of congrat ulation all around that the first .great work has been so well done. DRIVING OCT AMERICAN SHIPS. As regards at least the requirement that 75 per cent of a ship's crew must be able to understand orders given in the language of the officers, the seamen's act has not worked out according to the expectations of its advocates, including The Oregonian, or of its framers, chief among whom were the officers of the Seamen's Union. Its effect is to drive American ships from trans-Pacific trade and to hand over that trade to Japan. It does not give Jobs to more American seamen, but deprives of their Jobs those few who have been employed. It has caused the Pacific Mail to an nounce the withdrawal next Novem ber of the only American line which crosses the Pacific. These ships may be tied up, sold, leased or put in some other service where they can comply with the new law without in curring loss! The Pacific Mail having lost money until two years ago and having shown a surplus of only $20,000 in 1913 and $300,000 in 1914, refuses to bear the estimated increase of $620,542 in cost of operation under the new law. The Pacific Mail line employs Asiatic crews at Asiatic wages. Other wlse it could not compete with Japan ese and other ships, which employ Asiatic crews. As Japanese are the only ships employing crews 75 per cent of which understand the lan guage of the officers, they alone can comply with the law. A British ship having officers of its own nationality and an Afxtic crew would, under the new law, be compelled upon arrival at an. American port to discharge nearly all its Asiatics and to seek men who could speak English, paying them American wages. It might find the men, but it could not compete with the ' Japanese, therefore would shun our ports. French, German and other ships would have dlfficultyin finding enough sailors - of their nationality. The Government, in order to enforce the law, would find necessary the em ployment at each port of a staff of linguists to examine sailors in nauti cal . terms expressed In various languages. It is doubtful whether so great a shipping nation as Britain could re tain its present share of the world's carrying trade if it attempted to en force such a law. The United States has increased by 50 per cent the pro portion of its foreign trade carried under its own flag, but this propor tion is still only 12.64 per cent. How much less than Britain could we re tain our trade, when we have so slender- a hold! Yet -we are attempting to lay down the law for ships of all nations visiting our ports and we do so 'Jn disregard of our commercial treaties. Notice has been given of the- abrogation of those clauses of treaties which conflict with our new law; forbidding imprisonment of sail ors" for desertion, but a commercial treaty is a bargain, in which ono or more concessions are given in ex change for others. Foreign nations are apt to declare that our action abro gates the whole treaty. Our shipping laws have been mud dled more than ever by the dema gogic readiness of Congress to grant the demands of the seamen without giving proper consideration to the ef fect on our shipowners, our commerce and our treaties. The whoe subject of shipping and seamen's laws should be taken up and threshed out by statesmen and economists. SOB BY NE CTRAI.IT Y. The invertebrate journalism which is at the same time trying to uphold tho President and to applaud Mr. Bryan is contemptible. It is to the credit of American newspapers without regard to pol itics that they have united, with hardly an exception, in support of President Wilson and in ' condemna. tion of Mr. Bryan. Yet there are a few papers which are feebly calling upon the peopfe to stand by the Pres ident and are piously eulogizing Mr. Bryan, who has refused to stand by the President. It is the same old game of hunting with the hounds and running with the hares. They are for Wilson and for Bryan, just as they are for America and for Germany in the Lusltanla affair. It is a fearful thing when a news paper Is so worried by the sight of a waning circulation list that it palters with -the truth and evades duty. Thus it invites the contempt of all sides. Neutrality is a sordid thing in an is sue involving the National safety and honor. A man, or a public journal, cannot then be both, a neutral and a patriot. let us IN. TOO. Secretary of the Interior Lane has undertaken a most necessary propa ganda in the cause of "Freeing Alaska From.. Red Tape," that being the title of an article he has contributed to the North American Review. He adopts President "Wilson's description of Alaska as a storehouse and of the Alaskan railroad as "thrusting in the key and throwing back the lock and opening the door." When we do so, the "resources must be opened to use, the lands must be -opened to settle ment." This requires that there be "such administration of the laws as will give to honest settlers prompt and ready assistance, unhampered by red tape and unnecessary delays, while protecting fully the rights of the Nation against monopoly, fraud and waste." Decentralization for Alaska is pro posed by Mr. Lane through the es tablishment of a development board under the Interior Department, which shall have charge of all Alaskan af fairs. That means local centraliza tion, under which Alaskan officials could do all the work now dohe by the various agents and would have authority to act. If this be good for Alaska, why is it riot good for the West in general? Bureaucratic ignorance, procrastina tion and red tape have tied up the West only less completely than they have tied up Alaska. At the same time that Mr. Lane proposes to relieve Alaska from these evils,, he proposes to aggravate them in the West through his conservation policy. The same arguments which he advances in favor of local control for Alaska are sound as applying to state control of water power in the West. Just as Mr. Lane's Alaska Development Board is preferable to the multifarious agents through whom Uncle Sam now governs Alaska at long range, so would state control of Western re sources, be preferable to the agents through whom he would administer the resources of the West at a" range not quite as long. What is good for Alaska is good for the West. A DANGEROrS OMISSION. , The short line railways have a good case against non-regulation of automo bile competitors. The common car rier that Operates over steel rails on its own right of way must provide reasonably adequate service and equipment find charge reasonable rates; it is unlawful for it to discrim inate against localities, to offer re bates or to grant passes to other than employes; it must publish its tariffs and is forbidden to charge more or less, or to change its rates without giving notice, and is regulated . for the protection of the publio in other particulars. - ' . The common carrier that operates over the public highways is unreg ulated. It may without molestation provide Inadequate service and equip ment, charge all the traffic will bear. grant rebates, carry its favorites free, and need not publish or conform to fixed tariffs. The auto carrier of freight and pas sengers for hire is one of the ele ments that make hard-surfaced roads necessary. It is one' of the causes of the. higher cost Of permanent road construction. The rail carrier not only must compete with this unregu lated competitor, but must pay a por tion of the taxes which go to provide its competitor with suitable highways over which to operate. But regulation is required not wholly as a matter of justice to the railroads. The public has an impor tant interest in seeing that one ship per shall not pay less than another similarly situated for the transporta tion of his goods. ' The patrons are entitled to a service governed by con siderations higher than the whim or selfishness - of the carriers. Growth and prosperity of the community are not so dependent upon fairly conduct ed auto transportation as they were upon the good will and honest admin istration of the railroads when the pass and rebate abuses were prevalent, but it Is a growing institution and there is no reason to expect that, un regulated, it will be long bound by stricter business morals than were the railways. Neglect to close the way to abuses may mean disaster to many business and industrial enterprises. THE NEW CITIZENS FOURTH. The Americanization day plan for the Fourth of July this year, by which its advocates hope to have the country fairly, ring with patriotic addresses, from leaders and laymen alike, has aroused a healthy analytical interest. The Americanization day campaign Intends to make the Fourth of July a day for appealing in every eloquent way to the patriotism of the United States and its people. To the immigrant just arrived in America, largely ignorant of Ameri can customs and language, the fire cracker on the Fourth of July no doubt gave him a clearer understand ing of Americanism than long patrio tic speeches in a tongue which he could hardly understand. The quick reverberating message of the cracker was intelligible. But this is not intended to .be a plea for the old form of Fourth, cele- bratlon. The -Safe and Sane has been proved a, vfcst improvement. Yet, while the Fourth of July plans are being shaped, and the Americaniza tion idea is thriving, let us look to the new citizen who doesn't under stand our oratory; .who doesn't quite conceive of our inherent patriotism. Let us make our patriotism sane yet plain to him. In fact the Nation cannot allow to escape an opportunity which the day offers for letting him know how "we feel about the basic principles underlying our institutions. Some have chosen to call it an op portunity for offsetting the menace of the hyphen. The Americanization day commit tee purposes to have speakers who can best tell the immigrant these basic principles do the Fourth of July speaking this year in all communities where arrangements can be made. Frank Trumbull, chairman of the Americanization day propaganda, will send out from a special bureau in his Washington office information to fur nish as many communities as can be interested in the campaign. It will give assistance also in getting speak ers, speakers who can tell the immi grant the advantages of citizenship and of learning the "English language, of the fundamentals of civil govern ment and of the opportunities for fuller' participation in American life. There- is work to do not alone for Presidents and Governors and Mayors, and other officials. There is patriotic work for us all to do while we are celebrating this year. ' , TIIE CENTENNIAL, OK WATERLOO. The Battle or Waterloo began at half-past 11 o'clock on the morning of Sunday, June 18." 1815, and ended at nightfall with Napoleon's defeat and the destruction of his army. It was one of the few decisive battles of the world. On the field of Waterloo Napoleon's ambition was quenched forever. French aggression was definitely ended for half a cen tury and in the interval the nations of Europe enjoyed an opportunity for normal development. No such tre mendous issue was decided at Water loo as at Tours, where -in 732 Charles Martel checked the victorious ad vance of the Saracens and .saved Eu ropean Christianity from extinction. No doubt the defeat of Hannibal's brother Hasdrubal on the river Me- taurus was, upon the whole, a more momentous event, since it was the turning point in the long struggle for supremacy between Rome and Carthage. Had Hasdrubal been able to Join forces with his indomitable brother it is pretty likely that our civilization would today be of the Phoenician rather than the Greco Latin type and we might trace back the genesis of our principal divinity ,o Moloch instead of Jehovah. Nor can the consequences of Waterloo be compared in weight to those of Sa lamis and Plataea, where the Persian hosts were overthrown and Europe saved from the blight of oriental despotism. The Battle of Waterloo was fought between nations of the same religion and the same historical traditions. It Was like a family quarrel rather than a struggle for existence with an in vading host from an alien civilization and nothing more fundamental de pended on its outcome than tire dis tribution of power among the Euro pean nations. Had Napoleon been victorious it is quite likely that Ger many and Austria would have joined his standard, leaving Russia and England to carry on war alone, with little hope of success. After an nihilating Wellington and Blucher, he might possibly have invaded England and - would perhaps have given the throne of Great Britain to one of his favorite marshals. France would have dominated Europe for the next ten or fifteen years and then some new alignment of forces would have intro duced new wars and a new hegemony. There Is not the slightest likelihood that Napoleon, had he been ever so victorious at Waterloo, could have founded an enduring empire similar to Charlemagne's. The conditions of the. world did not admit of any such achievement then and they are still less favorable to it now. The campaign of Waterloo was com pressed within the compass of a week. Napoleon began operations by ad vancing into Belgium and taking up a position at Charleroi on the Brus sels road. This placed him between Blucher, whose base was at Liege, and Wellington, who had to look to Ant werp and Ostend for supplies. Napo leon hoped to prevent their Junction and defeat them In detail. His initial movements were as successful as he could have wished. On Friday, June 16, he put Blucher and his Germans to rout, but made the mistake of not pursuing vigorously. Blucher was thus allowed to march northward to Wavre on a line parallel with the Brussels' road and come' in at' the critical moment of Sunday's fight for Napoleon's ruin. The conqueror him self turned his attention to Welling ton. The British troops were stationed at- scattering points along the Brus sels road. Napoleon planned to drive them in a defeated mob from his path way, intercept their communication with Antwerp and Ostend and finally capture the whole force. Leading the movement against the British in per son, Napoleon came by Saturday night to Belle Alliance Inn, still on the Brussels road, some three or four miles south of Waterloo. Here he put up for the night, with Welling ton's hastily concentrated army facing him. It rained all Saturday night and for some hours after dawn on Sunday, so that the earth was too soft to manipu late the cannon upon which Napoleon relied to devastate the enemy before his troops should charge. But by half past eleven the sky had cleared and the ground seemed to be in fair ly good condition. He then began the attack. Wellington's .army faced ' to the south, away from Brussels, its east flank guarded by the strong chateau of Hougomont, its left resting on the village of La Haye. Hetween these points ran the Brussels road, along which Napoleon expected to drive his routed foe.. His' first at tempt was on Hougomont Chateau, which made an obstinate resistance and cost him heavily in troops. The next assault was on the village of La Haye on Wellington's left. This place was finally captured by Ney, who tnight have made a flanking move ment from it and greatly embarrassed Wellington, but he did nothing of the sort. He merely stayed there. Na poleon's third move in the bloody game was a charge on the British center along the Brussels road. This was driven back. It was now about 1 o'clock. For some timo troops had been dimly discerned approaching from tho east. Napoleon, deluded by hope, supposed they were Grouchy's men. He ' had . sent Grouchy to keep Blucher busy and naturally Imagined that his subordi nate had woji a victory and was now coming to his assistance. Grouchy had really spent the afternoon in a pointless attack on Wavre, where he finally ensconced himself and left his commander without reinforcement. Blucher thus had a free hand. It was the Germans whom Napoleon saw advancing at the moment of his dire need. To keep Blucher from taking up a position lnthe rear of his right flank Napoleon left the . front and directed the movement- against him. In this way he spent three hours, leaving the main battle to the guidance of his sub ordinates. During those three hours the French cavalry charged Welling ton a front thirteen times and each time they were beaten back. Their losses were made more frightful by a sunken road which they had to cross Here riders and horses were piled up in a sodden mass until those who fol lowed could ride over on a level path way. When Napoleon reached the front again he ordered a general charge, which was as fruitless as all his other efforts on that day of doom. As his troops were retiring from Wei-, lington's immovable ranks Blucher arrived to complete their rout. That night Napoleon, bereft of his army and his power, was a fugitive on the road to Paris and the specter of his dominion vanished from the earth. t Robert E. Hicks deserves a parole if ever a man did. Convicted twelve years ago of robbing the mails, he es caped and fled. But subsequently he was converted at the Bowery mission In New York and consecrated himself to saving souls. His work was rich in -results, but his conscience troubled him and he has now voluntarily gone to prison for his obsolete crime. Few will deny that Mr. Hicks would be more useful preaching to New York sinners,than pining in a dungeon. We hope to hear soon that he has been paroled, or even pardoned. One reason for Baker's prominence on the world map is the team work of its officials and pitlzens. A few nights ago a man just drunk enough to be mean used insulting language in a saloon e.nd was getting what was due when an officer took him away. At his trial next day the man who did the beating testified the other did not get enough. "They pulled me off him too soon. Judge," he said, and" the magistrate must have thought so, for he made it $20 and ten days in jail. It turns out that the "war baby" stories from England were hoaxes. There is said to be about the usual number of illegitimate infants there this year, no more and no less. Bishop Ingram calls the tale "a big bubble' and sternly tvers that if there is any thing in it, "it" was the girls' fault." The giddy things led the soldiers astray and "made mischief" here and there. "The woman tempted me, and so on. But it looks as if the bub ble had some 'Substance after all. Commissioner Davis, of New York who is a woman, felicitates herself that she has never met with a delin quent among college women. Why should she? -College women are the flower of their sex as far as ability, op portunity and character are con- cerned. Delinquency is not to be ex pected among such people. It is pov erty, bad heredity and evil environ ment that foster criminal propensi ties. The Saturday Evening Post makes light of the big -figures which assume to express the increase of our Na tional wealth. The figures give it as ten billion dollars a year. The Post says this is imaginary insofar as it stands for inflated land values. The land is no more productive than it was ten years ago, but the value has often doubled. From this airy source comes a good part of the ten billions. There will be excitement in the Browning clubs over the news that the master recited one of his poema into a talking machine. The record has been preserved and may be repro duced. This gives us all a chance sooner or later to hear Browning speak with his. own voice, or with something resembling it. When the Mayor of Chicago locked the doors and kept the streetcar offi cials and employes together until they agreed on arbitration, he shovvea himself a man who does things. When they agreed on him as the third arbitrator, they recognized him as such a man and as one who does things on the square. Many are overlooking the real cause of early settlement of the Chicago strike and its freedom from violence and turbulence. - Farley, notorious strikebreaker, is dead, and his detest able methods passed with him. What has become of the old-fashioned Liberty car in the Fourth of July parade, with little girls repre senting the states and the prettiest young woman in town as the Goddess of Liberty? The difficulty about bringing the Mexican leaders Into agreement is that only the under dog is willing The upper dog prefers to finish the under dog.- That is the trouble with Car ranza. The New York. Times' book re view for June 13 with characteristic enterprise prints Magna Charta en tire in English. The Latin original is in the archives of Lincoln Cathe dral. The armies may yet be clothed In armor plate so heavy that the men must be hauled to the trenches in au tomobiles and dropped into their places with derricks. There is one comfort for the crew of the steamer Walkeno when they meditate on the possibility that its cargo may explode their death would be painless. When a furniture man marries there is no problem of getting things together to begin housekeeping. The war has done more for the American beetgrower than any tariff ever did. Maybe Bryan would take a bet of 16 to 1 that preparedness provokes The place that has not arranged to celebrate the Fourth has got to hurry. General Goethals has earned right to apply for retirement. the Who better can defend timber than Colonel Wood? ... Tag day has reached the limit. A Red Muckraker. By James Barton Adam. On a rock beside the river. Where the warm sun rays were dancing On the clear breeze-wrinkled waters. Sat Star-Eyes, the Indian maiden. Chewing at a piece of buckskin, 'Cause her gum was all exhausted. Sat she there a lovely picture. Silhouetted 'gainst the mountain She was using for a background. She had served a term at Carlisle, In the State of Pennsylvania, And returned unto her people Educated to the limit. And of such superior polish That her nasal prong was carried At an elevated angle When she strolled about the village On the Dog Creek reservation. From the bushes strode a warrior. Clad in unbleached muslin breechcloth And a few red scars of battle. And but little else to speak of. In a husky voice that quivered 'Neath the promptings of emotion. Like a bowl of calf's foot jelly. He proceeded to address her: "Ah! you scorn me. haughty maiden. Maiden of the twinkling star eyes. Hand to me the icy eyeballs. Shun me as you would the cur dog Bearing fleas that were contagious. Ere you yet had- quit the village For the paleface lodge of learning All your wiles on me were focused. For your smiles I was the target. Then you were a native squawlet. Ate of dog meat as your sisters. Chewed boilod tripe with redskin relish, Took a bath but on your birthdays. Or when caught out in a rain storm; Wore a skirt of army blanket, Gunnybagging were your leggin's, 'Stead of open Work limb casings Showing through the Interstices The material you're made of. And your nut-brown ears were laden But with decorative tinware; And: "But with a haughty gesture. Rising from her squat position On the rock beside the river. She his speech-How interrupted. Cut it off close to its fountain. Saying in a -voice that chilled him From the scalplock to the toenails: "Cut it out, you red muckraker!" Then wth dimpled chin uplifted Strode the maid toward the village, ' While the warrior stood and wondered What in thunder 'twas she'd called him. FIRE INSPECTOR'S WAY ANNOYS Voter Incensed at Attitude of Inquisitor Who Invades Hume's Privacy. PORTLAND, June 17. (To the Edi tor.) An assistant fire Inspector visit ed us th3 other day and uoked his In quisitive nose Into the attic and from thence down into the basement; passed around our dwelling place and told us to clean the moss from the. north side of the roof, and took his blue-uniformed self away. The lord of the house was home that day and sent a boy to that roof with a close-toothed rake, and said boy applied his energy toward uprooting the particles of said moss. There wasn't much of it, and we thought he did a good Job. Three days later Mr. Blue Uniform came again and after greetings, this dialogue took place: ' "I see you haven't done anything with the roof." 'Indeed, yes the boy was up there an hour or so." "Why, you haven't touched it." Angry surprise on the part of the lady. When her heart started its normal thump, thump again, she took up the cudgels with Mr. Blue Uniform. She showed him the moss lying on the ground, and, seeing the evidence with his own optics, was throwing the lie back into his face. But even then, if he breathed an apol ogy it never escaped -his chest. "Must get a fine-wire rake," quoth he, and took his blue self away. Later in the day he called up the lord of the house and told him to do some more raking. We compiled with the command by taking a fine comb to the covering of the house. We have lived here 15 years and this is the first time our home has had strange eyes, in uniform, desecrating its privacy. On Williams avenue I notice many houses with a thick coating of moss clinging lovingly to the shingles there of, and, by the color, it must have been there many years. Why i not commence such a crusade nearer the city? It seems unnecessary to commence away out here in a country suburb. where fire protection is not: and I as sure you, we would much rather have the mechanical apparatus; we con sider it much safer and more agree able. Mr. Uniform told me his office was created about two months aeo. Uid they also create the other in spectors that have been in this berg? U.MS VOTER. CiOOO SPELLERS ARE FEWER NOW Linotype Operator Observes Decline In Orthography in Recent Yenrs. SALEM. Or., June 17. -(To the Edi tor.) Editorially, The Oregroniar Sun day refers to a "Spellin' Match" re cently held in Ohio, and conciudes with the ironical remark that "the remark able victories won by the Ohio youths assure their future wealth and honor. Who could possibly fail, etc?" it the writer or the irony were com pelled (for his daily ham and eggs) to sit at a linotype and edit, punctuate. and, in a great number of cases, almost re-write copy which comes to the ma chines, even from presumably able sources, he would readily grasp my de fense of "spellin' and clpherin' matches" from the little deestrict schools to the bigger institutions of learning. This writer has noted a tailing off in the orthography of the average per son for the past 20 years. Up to 5 or SO yearslago a public school week was not considered complete without its spellin' match or "cipherin' match," and I wish to impress the fact that in those days (and the same thing would be true today) those matches were looked forward to as one of the bright est parts of the school work. The eternal human desire to "beat some body else to it" caused we "young uns" to perk up and put our hearts and minds into our work in those good old day, when, every Friday after noon, we Would choose up and spell down." I concede that life and death ao not depend upon whether or not one can spell a certain word correctly, but I take isue with him when he leaves the sarcastic inference that it doesn't mat ter. There is a right and several wrong ways to do a thing or spell a word, and while we are paying out perfectly good money in support of public schools. 1 ask. Why shall not the words be spelled correctly, as well as to have the correct ingredients in a cake, or the proper stroke be used in deliver ing (or serving) a tennis ball? W. I. ZMIKR Keep Yonr Tax Receipts. SWEET GRASS, Montana, June 15. (To the Editor.) In 1907 1 bought property in Hermiston, Oregon. In 190a I sold one lot, ana soia ine bal ance in 1914. One month ago I re ceived a. letter from the man I sold the one lot to in 1909, enclosing a tax receipt for 1908. The letter stated he had received notice that his lot would be sold unless the taxes for 1308 were paid. He paid the taxes and sent re ceipt to me and asked me to pay them, but I had kept the receipts, which I sent to him, and he got his, money re funded. They said it must be a mis take. How can tbose mistakes occur? There is sufficient formula attached to taxes to remind any official if they were naid or hot paid. Others may be in the same boat as I, but not so fortunate. B. ,F. BOYCE. , NEW CLIB NEEDED BY DEMOCRATS Judge Murphy Wonld Back President With Virile Men of Party. PORTLAND. June IT. (To the Edi tor.) In the current Coliier's Julian Street states this self-evident truth: As d nation we ar sentimental to the point of sloppiness. This failing- is reflected in our literature, our art, our popular songs ("I Didn't Kalso My Boy to Be a Soldier!"), our courts, our politics, our demagogues and tho fact that we listen to them, our well intentioned but loose-thinking "pacifiman iacs," end In countless other products of our peaceful, prosperous National life. More than any other one thinr, perhaps, the sen timental school history is to blama for our absurd, unfounded military confidence. - To bring the matter home reference is made to the following reference to an address delivered in this city June 16 and printed on the first page of one of our newspapers: "There are only two plates where men have to march," she said. "One Is the army and the otler la the penitentiary. We are not raisins our children for either " Some people who assume to lecture others on how to raise children would do well first to learn how to raise themselves, and if this speaker is a sample of the finished product of eman cipated feminity, we do not have to go abroad to find a hoax. Comparing the officers and men of the United States Armf to convicts in a penitentiary is an insult to the flag that they are called upon to defend, the honor of their country personified in their uni- pforms and to the revered dust in count less graves immortalized by Abraham Lincoln in his famous speech: That from these honored dead we take Increased devotion to that cause to which they gave the last full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this Nation, under God. shall have a new birth of free dom: and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. Reference is also made to the day when the recreancy of Bryan was an nounced in tho press. Not a reputed leader of the local Domocracy, as shown by the press interviews, met the crisis with intelligent courage. Their velvet lips puled pusillanimous apologetics for the apostate American who had desert ed his chief and his country in a crucial hour and at a time when the whole Na tion, regardless of political affiliations, demanded self-sacrifice and unstinted patriotism. Some of them are now con doning the dastardly conduct of the most accomplished faddist and self-sufficient demogogue in the history of American political life. I have no inclination to censure Bryan -now ; I was one of those who censured him when he controlled the pie checks. Let those who fattened by his bounty, now that it is certain that the overwhelming majority of all par ties uphold the statesmanship of Wood row Wilson, condemn him with their valedictories as the peerless Democrat, to borrow a thought from Carlyle, who can tell the most damnable lies beau tifully. What Portland needs, and from all reports will get, is a "Woodrow Wilson Club," composed of Democrats who know the history and traditions of the party. We have had enough of men maids and sentimental girlies. Let us have a "Woodrow Wilson Club," com posed of genuine Democrats, and then we will have peace and also a piece of the good old days when Democrats didn't have to suck lozenges at a pink tea rally, J. HENNESSY MURPHY. DEALERS NOT ALWAYS TO BLAME. Berry Theft From Full Boxes Wit nessed! by lurket Visitor. PORTLAND, June 17. (To the Edl tor.) Anent the short paragraph in The Oregonian regarding some of the boxes of fruit on the market not com ing up to the new requirements for fullness, I think I have something to relate that may be of interest. The other day as I stepped up to a stall to purchase some berries two women were selecting berries at the same stall, and while the Jap was stooping down to get a bag Into which to put Ihe three boxes already selected, one of the women deliberately picked three or four of the finest, largest berries off of each of several sur rounding boxes and placed them onto the boxes she had set aside for herself. By actual count this woman stole no less- than 12 berries the largest at that from boxes that would later be sold to someone else, perhaps even ye editor. Such petty thievery should be stop ped even though it necessitated arrest ing tho culprit; in fact had I been able to locate the market master at the time I would have reported her with out delay. . DR. V. II, SUCKLE. Descent of Property. " PORTLAND, June 17. (To the Edi tor.) I am the owner of two pieces of real estate in Oregon, holding a war rantee deed for one and a quit-claim deed, from my husband, for the other. 1. ' In case of my death, there being no will and no children, to whom would the property revert? 2. What portion of said property could I legally will to my relatives? 3. Under what circumstances could my husband's relatives claim any part of the property? SUBSCRIBER. ' 1. All to the husband if still living; if the husband is dead the property would go to your parents; if they are not living, then in equal parts to your brothers and sisters and to the issue of any deceased brother or sister. 2. All if husband is dead; if he Is living all but his curtesy, constituting a life interest in the proceeds from one half the estate. 3. Under no circumstances unless de vised to them by you. Of course, if the property descended to your husband It would descend, after his death, to his relatives, unless he devised it oth erwise. Use of Nentral Flag in War. MILTON, Or., June 16. (To the Ed itor.) Has on English vessel any legal right, by either common or interna tional law, to fly the American flag to prevent an enemy from attacking the vessel ? T. H. MOSGROVE. Hoisting of a neutral flag by a bel ligerent ship is recognized as a legiti mate ruse" of war. An enemy's warship has tho right to stop and search the ship to determine whether its national ity is the same as that of the flag it flies. Write to Land Offices. PORTLAND, June 15. (To the Ed itor.) Can you give me any informa tion as to the location of land offices and tracts now- open or about to be opened for homesteads. . J. H. S. For this information apply to the United States Land offices at any of the following places: Portland. Hose burs, The Dalles, La Grande, Burns or Vale. Oreton Land to Be Opened. KALAMA, Wash., June 15. (To the Editor.) Please advise me where I may obtain information on the homestead land to be opened in Morrow, Crook and Gilliam counties in Oregon. ALEX ZACIC Write to the Register and Receiver, United States Land Office, at The Dalles, Or., and at La Grande, Or. Yes. ASTORIA. Or., June 17. (To the Edi tor.) A man and wife come to the United States and the man does not take out papers of citizenship. A son is born to them soon after arriving in this country; at the time of the son's maturity will he bo considered a citizen of this country without tak- ng out any additionnl papers? J. H. AND J. B. Twenty-Five Years Ago From .The Oregonian of Juno 18. 1S00. Sincel early Monday morning every train has brought its quota of pio neers coming to the 18th annual re union of pioneers which is being held here. Tho Oregonian this morning devotes three columns on the front page to a rehearsal of the proceedings and incidents of the day, together with several engravings of some of tho leaders, including J. L. Parrish, who came in 1840; Captain M. Crawford, who came in 1842. and John Minto, who came in 1844. An additional four columns are devoted to the proceed ings and annual address by II. W. Scott. A grand ball last night con cluded the day's . festivities. There were several hundred pioneers in at tendance. . Olympyt Governor Kerry has made it known he is in dead earnest about the investigation into the alleged at tempted bribery of the Board of Edu cation, and inasmuch as the Board it self has not taken any definite action the Governor ha3 taken hold. The principals are all out of the state now it is Believed, but Governor Ferry wants a thorough airing of tho pro ceedings. London Germany and England have come to an agreement on African pos sessions, it is announced. England ha., ceded certain territory to Germany, re taining the Congo Free State, while Germany gets the territory along Lake Nyanza West, The 26th annual session of tlie Ore gon Lodge of Oood Templars is now in session at Salem. The officers in clude J. E. Knox, of Albany; John Knight, of Salem; Mrs. E. J. Robinson, of The Dalles; G. Simpson, of The Dalles; W. S. James, of Portland, and Mrs. E. M. Vandervert. of West Salem. Rudvard Kiollns-. tho 24-vpar-old youngster who writes stories and poems which are all the rage in Eng land now. comes to the front and in a magazine article asks what England, when fhe adopts socialism, will do with India. That ono question smashed English socialism. MrH. C. B. Kan, one of tho owners of the townslte of Hoquiam, saw a railroad for the first time a lew days ago In Tacoma when she was on her way to Tortland. She was born near Spokane S3 years ago. The pupils and teachers of the Fourih Presbyterian Sunday School and their friends, numbering in all 275. were treated to a picnic last Sat urday by Mr. P. F. Morey on his beau tiful place on the Willamette above Oswego. A special boat took tho party to the scene and brought them home. The entire cherry crop on the place was reserved for the party. Mrs. Van B. DeLashmutt and her son Ivan left yesterday for Paris and A general tour of Europe. Mr. Ernest DeLashmult has been in Europe the last two years. Mayor DeLashmutt probably will go to Europe to bring them home in about six months. London Mary Anderson, the talent ed and now famous actress, was mar ried here yesterday to Antonio Navarro in the Roman Catholic Church. The ceremony was flrictly private. Mary Anderson was born in 1S59 in Sacra mento, Cal. MR. I.OCKWOOD VIKWKU AS FIT Richard I. Kulisch Snys tunciidjitc for School Director Is Itinlit Man, PORTLAND, June 16. (To the Edi tor.) If there is one man who i.s lit to fill the office of school director, it is Samuel P. Lock wood. I know and there arc hundreds who Know that ho has the ability, with application, perse verance and industry to fill with credit the office to which lie aspires. There are those who will oppose him, in ignorance, superstition ana fear. But the eager voters, the tax payers want a man who can and will devote all the time required by the office so that to the end. the people at large, the good citizens, who have the welfare of their children at heart, the future generation, will know they have a man in office, who above all and irrespective of politics and regardless of monetary considerations, seeks justice first. Modern American educa tion always for the American children. Eliminating all superstitions, is what we want. RICHARD P. KULISCH. 635 Savier street. Quick Foreclosing of Mortgage. BUTLER. Wash., June 15. (To the Editor.) Cal you answer the following for me? A buys 'JO acres from B. pay ing $1350 cash, and leaving $650 at S per cent for five years. The land is in Washington. A pays interest regular ly and also pays off $150 of principal, leaving $500. Two days before the end of the fifth year B tells A that. If he does not pay up principal and interest, ho (B) will foreclose. The next day A pays interest but not principal. Can B foreclose immediately, or when? And. if so, what will it cost A over and above the $500 principal? P. T. If B had the mortgage he could fore close, and you would have one year after the Issuance of Sheriffs certifi cate In which to redeem. If the land were not farming lund you would have to leave premises immediately, other wise not. If bought under contract it would depend entirely upon the nature of the contract. Costs would have to be regulated by the attorney handling the matter. It would be wise to consult your attorney on this. Our Foreign Commerce. U. S. S. ANNAPOLIS, Corinto. Nicara gua. May SO. (To the Editor.) (1) What was the value of the exports of the United States for tbs year preceding the present war? (") What was the value of the imports for the same time? (3; What were the values of the five largest items on our export list? (4 1 What were the values of the exports of those nations that exceeded the United States in the value of exports? J. T. HIGGINS. (1 and 2) Fiscal year ending June SO, 1914 exports, $2,364,579,148; imports, $1,893,925,657. (3) Raw cotton, $610, 475,301; iron and steel manufactures, including machinery. Si",!, 180,677; meat and dairy products'. $146. 227. 780; cop per, $146, 222, 556; refined mineral oil, $145,361,384. 4 Great Britain, calen dar year 1912, $2,371,073,000, alone ex celled the United States in exports. Ger many in the same year fell below the United States with $2.131.718,000. Meeting in the Home It is Inside the American home that the prosperity of the country is made or unmade. It is around the fireside or over the table that purchases are dis cussed and the buying impulse formed. It is the advertisement that reaches the family circle at the psychological moment that inakea the sale. And it is these multiplying sales radiating out from the home circle that make prosperity. Newspaper advertising Is resultful because the newspaper is ever in tho home. It is as much a part of the family circlo as tho purring cat on tho hearthstone.