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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 21, 1916)
THE MORNING OKEGOXIAN, FRIDAY, JANUARY 21, 1916. 8 M$ B&$(nxan PORTLAND, OREGON. Xntered at Portland (Oregon) Fostntflea as srcond-clmss muur. Subscription Bates Invariably In advance: (BT MU. Daily. Sunday Included, one year. IS.TO Dally, fcunuay Included, six months.... Lill y, Sunday Included, tnrea months. Daily, Sunday Included, ona monLtL. . . Daily, without bunday. ona year...... 4.ZJ .75 6.00 Z.2 ' i . . i .' . . . ....... inrM months... X. ; Sally! without Sunday, on month. . . Weekly, ona year 'i" Sunday. on year. . 2.30 fcuaday and weekly, ona year. 3.3U (By Carrier.) Pally. Sunday Included, ona "year. "-JO Ijaily, Sunday Included, ona mouth.. 3 How to Remit bend poslofflc money or der, express order or personal check on your local bank. bLampa, coin or currency are at antler's rlk- Give poatollice addreaaea la lull. Including county and elate. Postage Kates 12 to 16 pages. 1 cent; 19 to -J paces. 2 cents; 84 to i pages. 3 cents. 60 tu ou paSes. 4 eenta; 92 to lo pages. cents: Tit to 3 paces, cents, foreign poau ace. double rates. East era Baslneaa Office Verrea Conk Iln. Brunswick building. New York; Verree a: Conklln. Sieger building. Chicago: ban Francisco representative, H. J. Bldwell. 71- slarket street. POBIXAXD. FRIDAY, JAN. SU 1916. TRIE VIBTUE STANDS DEFIANT. The vice committee of the Illinois Senate, In its final report, still adheres - to the theory which has been kept : to the front throughout its Inquiry ' that woman's fall from virtue Is chief ly a matter of money, for the finding which the committee most strongly emphasizes is that poverty is the prin cipal cause of immorality. That theory is as false today as it was when The Oregonian denounced it three years ago. To assert that a woman's choice be tween virtue and vice is decided by the amount of her earnings Is to deny her virtue, for virtue which is preserved only by a wage above a certain mini mum is no virtue at all. A woman's instinct is to remain chaste. That Instinct can be developed and strength ened by training in childhood and youth until it becomes so strong an ' Influence that poverty, even death. Is " preferred to shame. Until recent years at least there were few people so poor as the Irish peasants, but no women are more chaste than their daughters. The Armenians of Turkey have been kept in grinding poverty and oppres sion, but reports of the recent mas sacres and deportations contain many Instances of women and girls who committed suicide In order to escape indignities from the Turkish soldiers or slavery in Turkish harems. The women of both Ireland and Armenia are no exception to the rule; they are governed by a desire to keep their honor unsullied which is common to all normal women and which is broken down only by parental neg lect, vicious teaching and evil as sociations. Given the right training and the requisite strength of char acter, the American woman will pre serve her virtue with as firm deter mination as the Irish or Armenian woman. Poverty is not the cause of vice; vice is the cause of poverty. Vice leads parents to neglect the training of their children, to destroy the na tive instinct for purity by indifference to it, to indulge themselves and to en courage by their example self-indulgence among their children. Thrift Js impossible to such people, and thus their vices lead to poverty and escape from poverty is sought through more vice. The daughter of such a family has the way to prostitution made easy and if she remain pure she does so in spite of her parents" influence. Un fhastlty is by no means the only vice which leads to poverty. Others are Indulgence, of which the worst form is drunkenness, while other forms are sloth, which avoids the disagreeable duty of restraining children and a sentimental softness which permits the young to go their own way. Van ity also causes parents to envy and Imitate those who are better circum stanced and causes children to do likewise. By saving that more women of the underworld fall into dishonor from domestic employment than from any work, the committed contradicts the theory that poverty is the chief cause of vice. Women in domestic service are assured a home and food and usu ally have enough wages to clothe themselves well and to save money, if they will practice thrift. The tempta tion of poverty and starvation is ab sent In their case. If they go astray, the cause is lack of proper early train ing, combined with craving for pleas tire and excitement. Domestics are welcome at the T. W. C. A. and other like institutions; at uch places at least there is no discrimination against them. The committee says that domestics are afflicted with "absence of definite social status and lack of creative op portunities." These are doubtless fruitful sources of discontent among domestics in a democracy which is founded on the theory of political equality. They confuse political with social equality, forgetting that our in stitutions merely assure the oppor tunity to reach the highest social po sition. That position can be attained only by Industry, thrift antl self denial. Early training and association have developed qualities of the pre cisely opposite character in too many girls In domestic employment. They chafe at their inferior social status, but are unwilling to comply with the conditions governing their elevation in social position. They take such fleeting pleasure as they can get by not practicing industry, thrift . and self-denial. They have ambition ovith out the energy to gratify it. They de sire to rise, but will not make the ef fort to do so. Their way upward blocked by their own limitations, their moral perceptions dulled by bad early training and vicious early surround ings, many of them seek solace from discontent in vicious pleasure and be come easy prey to the seducer and the white slaver. . Most of the remedies proposed by the Illinois committee are good as far as they go, but they are mere palliatives, or are capable only of curing the disease after it has been contracted; they would not prevent the evil. ' The social evil Is a case for preventive medicine If It is to be successfully attacked. Without 1 such prevention the measures pro posed would not perceptibly dimin ish the endless procession of men and women which falls Into the mire of prostitution and dissolute living; it would only pick them up and cleanse them or some of them after they had fallen. Effective prevention consists In training the young in such manner as to give them moral strength to stand "up and resist. This training should begin at home, where parents should inculcate clean thoughts, which are promoted by rightly imparted knowl edge of sex. not by ignorance that is miscalled Innocence. Parents should Instill industry and thrift by example as well as precept - They should keep down desire for vicious pleasure by providing harmless enjoyment. This training should be continued and ex panded In school until when the young; man and woman go Into the woria they will be forearmed 'because fore warned "and will know evil but to shun it. There is abundant scope for the work of social betterment and regen eraUon in this direction. That work may well be followed up by provision against wages which crowd the mini. mum of subsistence, for better condi tions of domestic service and for re demption of the fallen. Care should be taken that the moral strength of the young is not unduly tried, but we should bear in mind that virtue which consists in absence of temptation is of but poor quality compared with that which has encountered and over come evil. The prowess of St. George was proved by doing; battle with and slaying the dragon, not by avoiding it. So must the young prove the robust ness of their moral character. EXCITEMENT OX THE HIGH SEAS. The Oregonian has received from an anonymous correspondent, by way of the United States mails, a clipping taken from the front page of a Ger man newspaper (made in America) and containing an extraordinary ac count of an Incident on the high seaa, said to have developed between a British and an American warship. The inquiry is made as to why The Ore gonian and other American newspa pers have not noticed this exciting and significant occurrence. It is made public, it appears, on authority of the American independent, a San Fran cisco Journal (described as a "pro- American paper for American patriots, official organ of the American Inde pendence Union"). The story 13 told in a report said by the Independent to have been made to the Secretary of the Navy, as follows: To the Honorable tho Secretary of tha Navy sir: 1 have the Honor to report here with au Incident which occurred, as lol lows: At 8:20 o'clock on tha moraine of Octo ber 24, while under full steam for Hampton Koads, we received a wirelesa from tha British warship Vancouver, which was ac companied by a British torpedo-boat. Th measaae induired as to our destination and full partlcularr of our complement. Our reDlv vi, worded as follows: "Why tho hell ahoukl wo give yon In formation. Can't you seo our flag?" ThereuDon we were commanded to halt. to which I replied by ordering all decks stripped for action. WItnin IS minutes from tho time I was commanded to halt, mv itki were striDDed for action, my men were at their posts, and. without further action, they proceeded on their way. Hoping that I have acted wisely in the fulfillment ot my duty, i remain jouis obediently. JOHN HOOD. Commander IT. S. Battleship Texas. It Is a most thrilling narrative, cal culated to stir up the lagging patriotic spirit of the whole American people. We hope, for the Bake of historical ac curacy and the reputation for veracity of our San Francisco contemporary, that it is true. The Oregonian, which does not enjoy an Intimate acquaint ance with the Secretary of the Navy, would doubtless never have heard of this great naval adventure, except for the enterprise of the Independent, and it does not hesitate to express its gratitude. Meanwhile, we should like to hear from the Secretary of the Navy his reasons for suppressing the Hood let ter, if there Is such a letter; and we shall hope he will have something to say on the subject, if he did not re ceive it. GREEDY INSURANCE AGENTS. Of course, it is quite impossible for anyone to collect 4U.uou insurance on a tin cup and a wornout fireman's helmet destroyed by fire. Probably the Fire Marshal made his Investiga tion of insurance methods as spec tacular as possible in order better to draw attention to actual carelessness on the part of many agents and the encouragement therein to arson. The standard form of insurance pol icy declares the instrument void if it be obtained by fraud or misrepresen tation. Furthermore, It requires proof of loss and is a promise to pay only the actual value of the goods de stroyed, no matter what may be the face of the policy. So it is next to impossible to collect insurance money when nothing of value has been burned. But the ease with which Insurance may be obtained on nothing certainly indicates that over-Insurance may be obtained on something with equal ease. While it is not possible to collect the former it may be possible to collect the latter, even though the terms of the policy attempt to guard against it. Thus the temptation is orrerea to insure heavily and thereafter set a match to one's belongings. It may be argued that inspection or every small risk would make neces sary an Increase In the rates on resi dences and house contents. ve douot that it would. Some agents now do make inspections, as the failure to capture a few of them in the net in dicates. And they seem to be able to continue doing business In compe tition with those who take without question every nickle that is offered across the counter. We imagine, too, that a rough ap praisal when the premises" or contents are in existence would lessen adjust ment costs when they have been con sumed. It is hard to escape the thought that the public generally is paying in higher rates for over-insurance due to agents' indifference and some householders" dishonesty. If the Fire Marshal's little trap leads to the enactment of a law which will require the revocation of an agent's license for issuing insurance without Inspecting the premises, his efforts will have been worth while. EXERCISING MADE EAST. Persons of sedentary habits who suffer constantly from that neglect to which they subject their bodies should find joy in the recent perfec tion of a pleasant innovation in the realm of electrotherapy. The prospect is In the air that the fat and flabby business or professional man will lose both his fatness and his flabbiness. Victims of these afflictions of seden tary life invariably promise themselves that they will take care of themselves before they wreck themselves com pletely. Just a few dollars more and then they will take an hour or two off every day for exercise. The prom ise is seldom kept. The busy man finds that neglect of self is a habit which cannot be broken readily after long years of practice. The lazy tis sues send in protests Nto the brain, which are promptly heeded. But now the advent of an automatic exercise system. By use of a sinusoi dal current violent muscular contrac tion Is induced. Any set of muscles may be exercised effectively and thor oughly by application of electrodes. Furthermore, the process is both pain less and shockless. The patient bare ly realizes that he is receiving much the same sort of exercise that might I be gained in wielding a pick and shovel for several hours. Thus the tired business man who must bolt his breakfast and rush away to his office at an early hour of the morning, saving all his energy for his swivel chair activities, need only press a button and receive his full measure of exercise at the same time that he is dictating to his stenogra pher or opening the morning's mail. No more gymnasiums. The body need not be given another thought once this plan is brought into general practice- Press the button and become an ath lete. How fine It would be if the principle might be applied to some device for making people exercise their minds; THE TENDERFOOTS PLAINT. The Medford Sun, replying to com- plaining tenderfeet who think it should not snow in Oregon, and that the newspapers say too much about it when the rule Is broken and there is a heavy snowfall, most sensibly re marks: There Is no mora reason for Oregon news papers misrepresenting thee climato of tho state than any other asset, ii tne ex- perience of recent years haa taught any thing. It Is the folly of trying to lure set tlers to this state, or any other state, by representing conditions other than they are. This is not only bad ethics it Is bad busi ness. A worthy citizen troubled himself to write a long letter to The Orego nian the other day, full of censure for the prominence given to the late snow storm, and Insisting that much harm was being done to city and state. Tou will find that the California pa pers do nothing of the kind," he de clared, "though they have freezing rains, occasional snows, blighting winds, devastating sand storms, kill ing frosts, blistering heat, and every known meteorological plague in that unhappy country." If the California newspapers are remiss in their plain duty to their readers, all other American newspa pers are just now doing a pretty good job for them in describing the terrors of the Southern California floods. But we venture the guess that all the de tails of wreck and horror will be found fully set forth In the Los An geles and San Francisco dailies. The only California subject which is really taboo in California is earthquakes. The weather is a universal topic. Every known part of the geographical world has weather of some sort all the time. The Ideal climate has never been found. The state of Oregon has a good average everyday work ing climate or several kinds of cli mate better than most others and inferior to none. An occasional snow storm is probably intended as a visi tation of providence for our sins, or for some good reason, no doubt. It would not be a public service to suppress or withhold any Interesting or pertinent fact about Oregon. Bo sides, it cannot be done. We have a notion that the current apprehension about California earthquakes is far worse than the facts warrant. It would be better for the papers there to record the whole truth. Perhaps they do. We merely hear that they do not. It rains in Western Oregon, but the average annual rainfall is about the same as in the states of the Middle West. It snows, but rarely; perhaps once in two years. It freezes at times, but only once has the thermometer gone down to zero. The wind blows, but hurricanes and tornadoes are un known. Once In a long time there is lightning and thunder, but it is a great novelty, being noisy, but harm less. Then we have the blessed Chi nook the soft and cleansing wind from the southwest, which cures all our ills and makes life worth while. Is any other state so favored? X LITERARY ATROCITIES. It has been said that a poem is the product in the poet's mind of some thing that happens. He must exercise his will not in making it happen, but In recording it accurately and com pletely when it has happened. Hence when the poet undertakes to exploit a popular state of mind sheer trash may be the sole result. Spontaneous inspiration may lead to poems of wondrous beauty. The. poet may ex press not only a mood of nature, but he may lay bare the soul of a people. yet he may not do these things through the exercise of his will. De liberate poetry can hardly be relied upon to rise above the comic jingle or the soap-advertising stage. Such is the widely accepted theory and tho theory IS assuredly a conven ient one in explaining British war poetry. It is a fine example of what poetry should not be, this "patriotical ly willed" poetry of the English versi fiers who have set out to serve art and their country at once. Being un able or unwilling .to go Into the trenches, these poets seem to have formed the idea that they can do their full share at their typewriters. But we suspect that the sorry showing of the British land forces Jn the war is altogether secondary to the sorry spectacle of English poetry as turned out by the present-day successors to Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Keats and Browning. Possibly the worst of them all is one that must have been designed as an epic. Surely Stephen pniiups- Armageddon is conceived along the most lofty lines. - It has atmosphere and finery, but the substance is ut terly lacking. It is not poetry. It lacks merit even if classified as topi cal verse. And if Mr. Phillips failed so utterly how can the others hope to carve immortality out of the same substance British dislike of Ger many? One almost feels conscious of the poet's mental processes as he set out to write of "Armageddon." He must have been in the mood of the after dinner speaker who has - been called upon to say something on some par ticular topic in which all are vitally interested. Burn the Germans up. That was his theme and, in the In terest of breadth, he brought in the whole system of war for a sound ver bal thrashing. The play opens in hell. The devil-in-chief and members of his staff are found discussing plans for a nice little prank to play on Eu rope. They decide on a great war, which fact brings great joy to such choice aides of Satan as Moloch and Belial. The latter at once proceeds to have a brilliant idea, an idea which had been worked overtime even be fore Mr. Phillips reached it. Said Belial: With deference I propoo that I convey To earth my swollen bilious Burean To glose defeat, or magnify success. Doling to each land, its particular lie. Drivel, even though penned by a poet of parts, calculated to cause the reader unpleasant feelings in tho re gion of his sense of good taste. But this is tame compared with what hap pens once the war has been launched and the scene shifts from hell to the f.eld headquarters of a German gen eral officer. The General sits at his kable which is strewn with champagt.e gluses and empty bottles, when a scratch is heard at the door. This dia logue between the General, and his order'y is then recorded: Sir. shall I open tha door? I hear a dog scratching on it. No. 'tis my servant. He must not Knock: he merely scratches like a dog. Give him this paper. I never speak to servants. (Me spits on paper before handing It to orderly.) If this isn't the highest order of puerility then the word has no place in the English language. Such assaults on the Germans are absurdly drawn and can make no lasting impression even in London, where the Germans are said to be somewhat unpopular in the present hour. The effort smacks too deeply of making up with abuse what is lacked in wit. The whole af fair, taken Jn conjunction with other British war rhymes, leads to a belief that. In the interest of contemporary literature, a censorship ought to be placed upon English verse. FIGHTING FOB PEACE. Another disruption in the Ford peace camp. Another mutiny in the fold. When orders were issued that delegates proceed to Stockholm, one was willing to obey and another was not. This is merely another of a score of such incidents. Discontent, disaffec tion and dissension have been the out standing features of the whole affair from the time this greatest of wild goose chases set sail from America many weeks ago. Suppose that the same spirit, the same utter lack of discipline and ef ficiency had laid hold of those who have led the march of human progress through the centuries. Where would we be? Doubtless there would be- no great modern war for the reason that man would still be living in clan and village groups, while his modernity might not have passed beyond the spear stage. This little group of dreamers, ideal ists and egotists, gone forth to attempt a great miracle, should begin the work of pacification on a smaller scale. They should engage individually and collectively in that conquest of self which is held by the philosophers as a necessary first step for him to take who would conquer worlds. If the world, should follow the example of these Ford reformers the human "family would be plunged in an an archy far more hopeless than mere war. The King of Greece's appeal to a reporter for publicity of his denunci ation of the allies suggests that a com mission of newspapermen may yet mediate between the belligerents. Why not? They have heard all sides of the quarrel and are as unbiased as anybody that can be found. President Wilson may be able to convince the wholly uninformed that his defense programme is sound. But no one who knows anything about the subject, inside or out his own party, is going to accept the Wilson-Garrison programme, which is costly and wholly Impracticable. A Bulgarian officer tore down the American flag which a patrietic citi zen had raised to protect him. Wilson diplomacy has brought foreign up starts to realize that insulting the American flag and baiting American citizens is a safe pastime. After a few. flurries of indignation. the Americans who were murdered in Mexico because they were Americans have been forgotten along with the scores of other American victims of watchful waiting and spineless diplo macy. Tf tha nrohibition law had come intn nnpmtinn the Januarv after in stead of the January before election, ould Sheriff Hodee have shown tne same eneTgy in raiding millionaires' wine cellars.' we wonder. Not long ago The Oregonian pre dicted that the Manchus would be launching a revolution shortly for res toration of the old dynasty. The revo lution has followed within the week. It is three score and ten years since the Mexican learned first to know the 'Gringo." and he has died or forgot ten. A new lesson is needed, but, alas, not this year can it be taught. Carranza can easily produce some dead Mexicans to prove that he has run down the Santa Ysabel murderers, but how are we to know they are tne right Mexicans? Tt is necRisarv to know that toma toes and other truck grow all the year round at San Diego to appreciate tne disaster to crops by the floods. Lord Derby says his recruiting plans assure the Germans of a "good lick ing." Probably beginning May 1, as Kitchener would say. Dr. Brougher will be as welcome as the rains when he brings a new solu tion of the marriage riddle, whatever that is. Villa having been declared an out law, any loyal Mexican can kill him, provided Villa does not see him first. Holland sees just now so much of the foreigner that she declines in ad vance any relief on account of floods. Some Seattle men are good pro viders. Think of the one who had $3000 worth in his cellar! What if the world was made up of Ford peace propagandists? Life would be one continual fight In deciding to fight on, Montenegro acts true to form. The little country never was a quitter. Hammerstein in the poorhouse can at least enjoy the recollection of hav ing handled millions. By withholding its wood pulp, Swe den can drive a bargain with Great Britain. Throw away the cough medicine. The great panacea is falling. By and by it may be Portland can hear the barkers at Coney. Greece is fearful of having it changed to Grease. Repeating history, the backbone of Winter is broken. Anyway, we're glad we don't live In floody California. What dirty streets the melting snows reveal! And some people "kick" on rain. Ob, slush! How to Keep Well By Dr. W. A. Evans. Questions pertinent so nygiene. ... and prevention of disease, if matters of gen- enu wierv, - -. ut . ..WW. umn. Where space wUl not permit or tne subject is not suitable 1 letters will be per sonally answered, subject to proper limita tions UU WUO.W BlUU.CU, -J ' " veiope is uiciwku. . n. an, win diagnosis or prescribe for individual dis eases. itequvBui buuu twwmti --' " . (Copyright, 1916. by Dr. W. A. ITvans. Published by arrangement with Chicago Tribune.) Tloiir. for the? Lean. A most hopeful message for the lean and hungry kind is contained in a re cent article in the Ivew York Medical Journal by Dr. Henry Rose, of New York City. He says without reserva tion that any thin person can be fat tened provided he has no organic dis ease. The women need not feel that they are left out of it, as he includes them in his positive promise. The method employed by Dr. Rose Is simple enough. It is a matter of diet and exercise. In fact, his advice would be more extensively heeded were he to concoct some fanciful dishes and give them some fanciful names. As it is, his plan is so simple that most people can work It out for themselves. Certainly any physician could employ it, though I have no doubt that Dr. Rose is ex ceptionally successful in adapting the diet to individual cases. There is some advantage in being of approximately normal weight and some disadvantage in being thin and cadav erous. Thin people are prone to tuber culosis. Insurance companies have found that people below weight axe be low average risks when ic comes to consumption. Speaking generally, thin people do not stand excessive strain so well as people who are of normal weight for age and height. If from illness or overwork a person does not take enough food to maintain strength and life he burns enough tissue to supply the decrease. If he burns fat he is harmed less than if he burns lean mus cle. In the first place, when it comes to making heat and energy, one pound of fat is equal to two and a quarter pounds of lean. In the second place, when he burns muscle he burns a need ed tissues When he burns fat he burns a relatively useless, needless tissue. But the principal reason why people want to put on fat is to improve looks, and that is reason enough. Why waste time on the other 56? The first step to be taken when one starts to put on flesh is to find out how much underweight he is. He should weigh himself accurately, measure his height and then turn to one of the tables and find what is the average weight for a male of his age and height. If his bones are large or his body is long he should add five pounds to the average as given in the list, if his bones are small and his body short he should subtract five pounds. Tables giving weights and heights are easily had. Books on personal hy giene always contain such tables. Lite insurance companies sometimes furnish such tables to their insured or to pros pects. Assuming that a man finds himself under weight and seriously wishes to fatten up, he should go to a physician to discover whether he has any organic disease. For instance, if he has a di lated stomach or Bright's disease he should modify the standard methods laid down by Rose in some particular. His thyroid may also be a factor in the case. When there is an excess of thy roid secretion about 25 per cent excess of food is required to maintain a given weight. When there is too little thy roid secretion the amount of food re quired is 25 per cent below the normal. The condition of the thyroid then may materially alter the amount of food required. The next step to determine is the probable amount of food required. This means that an estimate of the amount of muscle and brain work done must be made. A man doing hard muscle work requires twice as much food as one lying quietly in bed. A nervous, fidgety man requires an excess of food as compared with a quiet man. A poor sleeper or a worrier must eat more than a quiet sleeper or a philosophical, complacent man. Fairly Efficacious. C. K. writes: "Would you kindly ad vise what you think of the various drink cures advertised? My brother is inclined to drink rather heavily at cer tain times (pay days), which last for several days, and if the advertised cures weTe really cures would attempt to try them. REPLY. -1. Generally speaking, the drink cures given in Institutions are good up to a cer tain point. They clean a man up and es tablish his nervous poise. None of them will cure a man who is indifferent to cure. They are at least efficacious with persons who drink periodically, going without liquor between drunks. Nothing good can be said of the alip-it-ln-his-coffee cures. Neutral Bntha Best. J. T. R. writes: "I am a man of 86 years, in good health, do a variety of things at home and go to business every day by a 40-mile round trip. Some time ago I was troubled with in termittent heart action, but have had none of that for the last two or three years. Now I am cautioned against baths whose temperature is above 100 degrees; and occasionally I see that some person, who seems to be familiar with water, dies in a Datntun. iunaiy enlighten us about bath temperature for old fellows. BEPlr. Tou have been correctly Informed. Old people must beware of hot baths and hot bathrooms. They aro liable to faint and drown. They should also beware of bath rooms heated by gas stoves. Old people should take neutral baths. The temperature of a neutral bath is 92 to 95. WHEN YOTJ WRITE YOUR LETTERS. Paste the loganberry stickers on your letters to the East; Tell your friends we're free from liquors or the sale of them at least. Tell them of Columbia ' Highway, streets well paved from curb to curb Many miles in all directions and our climate so superb. Tell them of our schools and churches, of our playgrounds, parks and streams: Of our lofty, snow-capped mountains, fairer than their fairest dreams. Tell them of our lakes and forests and our lovely waterfalls. Of our gardens full of roses and our , famed Rose Festivals. Tell them of our pure soft water flow ing down from old Mount Hood, Of our wonderful health record, with our milk supply so good. Tell them they will love our Portland, they will love her charm, her lure; Tell them we will give them welcome bid them come next Summer, sure. C. E. B. 120 East Fifteenth street. Temperatures. rr,rTr.A-VT Jan.. 20 fTo the Edi tor.) If available please publish offi cial temperatures lor monaay, January 17, and Tuesday. January 18, at 7 A. M. PORTLAND TERMINAL RT. POST OFFICE. Monday, 7 A. M-, 25 degrees; Tues day, 7 A. M., 26 degrees'. Prices Paid for Coins. CORVALLIS, Or.. Jan. 19. (To the Kditor.) I have a half dollar made in 1817, in good condition, and want to know if there is any value on it. A. C. We know ot no dealers' premium on it. THOUGHTS TURN BACK TO T. R. Note-Writing; Administration Makes) Writer Long; for Colonel Again. MONMOUTH. Or.. Jan. 19. (To the Editor.) President Wilson said in his Columbus address in reiterating his Mexican policy the following: "The Mexicans may not know what to do with their government, but that is none of our business, and, so long as I have the power to prevent it, nobody shall -"butt in' to alter It for them." I. Mr. Common Voter, note this: Our Nation's bead is Inconsistent. We did "butt in" in Mexico's affairs, and we did some pretty strenuous butting while we were about it We brought about a state of war, and cap tured Vera Cruz with much loss of Mexican life and with the loss of some 20 bluejackets. We did attempt to alter the Mexican government by giv ing comfort and even moral and physi cal support to the opponents of the Huerta government. And. oh! what an inane course our worthy President did pursue tripping up desperadoes to hobnob with bandits. Yes, we have with us murdering, pilfering Mexico, with respect for neither American rights nor lives; then we have going on Teutonic as saults. Indirectly, upon our citizens on the high seas; and, finally, we have old Jqhq Bull eating one of the units of our snm merchant marine for break fast each day, although how he can keep from choking I cannot under stand. He knows that he is violating, grossly, our international rights. There is this about it. He is content with the "easy picking." as is Germany and also Mexico. It's a great three-ringed circus, but this idea of America be ing made the sawdust is getting tire some. Meantime, choice, palavering, rhe torical bombs come from Washington products from the mighty mind which once guided the girls of classic old Bryn Mawr Seminary through the In tricacies of political science. However, these do not seem to get us anywnere. Oh! suffering wrist watches! One T. Roosevelt, with one E. Root as Secretary of State, would not be so bad now. I vow. I believe I could stand four years of himself after this nightmare of the "fish age." What do you say? A VOTER. CZAR LAZAR ONE OF ANCESTORS Corvallls Has Direct Descendant of Serbian Royalty. CORVALLIS, Or., Jan. 19. (To the Editor.) In your editorial January 18, entitled "The Tragedy of Montenegro," you mention the Battle of Kosova, and, thinking that a little family history which I am fortunate enough to pos sess might prove of interest, I write of my cherished possessions. I have before me a copy of my father's claim and title to the old Im perial House of Belgrade, Serbia. My fatner was a direct descendant of Czar Lasar, who, with his brother-in-law, Milosh Obilitch, slew Murad II at the Battle of Kosova, June 15, 13S9. I have a sworn statement of every baptism in direct line from that date down to my own. I also am in possession of records of the massacre of the entire royal family of Serbia, with the exception of one member, by the '.'urks in 1704, as well as a large collection of true tales of bloodshed by my noble ancestors, the brave Serbs. Czar Lazar, whose true name was Greblianovich von Lazar. was a lineal descendant of Stephen, who was called Provochanl. which means In lllyrian "first crowned" (crowned and blessed by the nope). Czar Lazar was executed after the Battle of Kosova along with Milosh Obilitch. whose last words on earth were: "Let me. I pray you, be buried at the feet of Czar Lazar. Ilia true knight was I in this world, his true vassal will I be in the world to come. The history of our people has been one of bloodshed from time to time, all through its annals, and who shall say that the same noble spirit that lurked in the breast of Czar Lazar, for whom the Kords rang till little Serbia gave up the ghost, existed not in her soldiers, both royal and peasant born? 14. u. vun ij. Cold Car on Frosfy Morning. prmTT.AND. .Tun. 20. (To the Edi tor.) The angel of death took a crack at me on several successive mornings lately. The monster came at me in the form of a medieval streetcar still oper ated by the Portland Railway, Light & Power Company. It is one of those traps with a compartment fore and aft and one in the middle. It must have been designed by some old sailor, for only one up to the minute in capturing all possible air currents and multiply ing them by infinity could have in vented this cyclone breeder. It not only had no heat in it, but it is as innocent of heating facilities as a refrigerator. It captured me, several mornings lately, in the cold of the gray dawn, at the end of the Dekum-avenue line. After riding in it I wondered that the Union Meat Company, or some other packing concern, did not freeze unto this cold storage plant and make money out of it. I presume the P. R.. L. & P. Co. still keeps it. and will keep it. because I know that to lay your hand nn it. is t.n freeze unto it. An amusing thing happened the other morning. We had boarded this car ana men were giving vent to their opinions of the management that would send out such a car, when the conductor walked in and solemnly handed each shivering passenger a copy of s'Watts Watt," in which the management, desirous of im proving the service, asked for sugges tions. The effect was electrical. The men warmed up at once. Some even got hot. S. D. ROBINSON. Oregon's DeleBation in Congress. Dnrm wn Tor, On Tn t Vi a TiMi. tor.) (1) How many Representatives has Oregon and what are their names? (2) How many has New York? (3) How many votes are required for each Representative? t) Are uiessrs. uogaii, Clarke and Caldwell the Civil Service Board of Portland? R. M. Oregon has three Representatives and two Senators in Congress. The Representatives are W. C. Hawley, N. J. Sinnott and C. N. McArthur. The Sena tors are George E. Chamberlain and Harry Lane. New York has 43 Repre sentatives and two Senators. The apportionment of Congressional Representation based on the 1910 cen sus was 211,877 for each representa tive. The Portland Civil Service Board members are George W. Caldwell, chairman; John F. Logan and R. H. Thomas. Idea Worth Patenting. PORTLAND. Jan. 20. (To the Edi tor.) Mr. McAdo is quoted as saying "that the proposed tax on autos Is to be assessed to the manufacturers and not the owners." That is a bright idea and certainly should be patented. Some one might steal it. Of course the manufacturers will cheerfully pay it themselves and not Dass it on. They are built that way. H. Every Other Afternoon. Buffalo (N. Y.) Express, irk. uM T nnT the RrranBTAnf lulr One afternoon I win at bridge and the .i,rnnnn I lose." The Mr. That's easy. Just play every other afternoon. I'll t u re Brother-ln-Law. Life. "Congratulate me, Freddy. Last night your sister promised to marry me. Small Boy Oh, she promised mother she'll marry, you Ions aso. In Other Days. Twenty-Five Yenrs) As. From The Oregonian of January 21. 1891. Washington, Jan. 20. Senator Mitch ell today offered his proposed amend ment to the sundry civil bill, appro priating $60,000 for river, light and fog signal station on the Coquille River, Oregon, and $300,000 for repairs to tha Yaquina Bay light, 1'aquina Bay, Ore gon. The Astoria National bank last week elected the following men as directors: D. K. Warren, John Hobson, C. S. Wright, H. C. Thompson and A B. Edea. The Third Regiment military band has received money from the state for the purchase of new uniforms. The question of a free bridge is being discussed on all sides, and the general opinion seems to be divided between those who would like to see the free dom of the present bridges purchased and those who want another bridge built which shall be free. Manager Patterson, of the Western Union Telegraph Company, yesterday afternoon caused the arrest of three employes in the Portland office on charges of grand larceny. The motion for a change of venue filed by the defendant in the case of the State vs. Charles, alias "Sandy" Olds, came on to be heard before Judge Stearns yesterday afternoon. The motion was allowed In part and the trial will be held before Judge Frank Taylor in Washington County. NO MORE TRICKS IN POLITICS t Mr. Wilson Entitled by Custom to Use Platform for Kldina Only. EUGENE, Or., Jan. 19. (To the Ed itor.) I read your recent editorial on President Wilson with real sorrow. You seem to deny him the right to use tho tricks of the political trade. You seem to think that he should not have laid claim to great frankness and then have locked up for three years his let ter to Representative Palmer, in which he condemns the single-terra plank ot the Democratic platform. You seem to forget the old conundrum about the po litical platform and the railroad car platform, "things to get In on but not to stand on." Of course President Wilson had to stand on the platform while he waa getting in. Of course he had to notify Congress promptly or they might have pasaea me anisic-term uiii. inuii tvucio would his second term have Deon. i should like to know? Of course there are some folk so matter of fact that you can't rush things on them. You have got to prepare them for the change, and President Wilson has not been a college professor and studied and taught psychology for nothing. No, indeed. But I can do him fuller Justice in verse. TO PALMER. FROM WOODBO (V. Tou must put away my lettor. Palmer, Put It under lock ana Key. Tou must keep It very safe, dear Palmer At the right time flash it out lor me. I'm so very, very frank, dear Palmer, That I cannot silent be. Here I tell my whole thought. Palmer Keep tt, keop It, under lock and key! Let. O let not Congress pass It, Palmer, Pass that awful one-term bill! I must have another term, dear Palmer For tho present, keep it, koep it still! 'Tis so soon, so very soon, doar Palmer, Since the platform I indorsed. That were I to mash the tliinir now. Palmer, I, myself, perhaps, might be untiorsed! But th-e. world is finite forgetful. Palmer. Let my get-in accents die, Then this letter that I send, dear Palmer, Blaze it, blaze it to the very sky. But my heart has one great fear, ck-sr Palmer, There's a firm, unyielding will. No. I do not mean' the God abova us, Palmer, But a fellow from Nebraska Bill! HANNAH SMITH. WHAT ONE AGENT THINKS OF IT City Marshal Seta Bad Example In His Sleuthing Tactics. . PORTLAND. Jan. 20. (To the Edi tor.) I am not sure that the fire de partment officials are quite as smart as they think they are In laying a trap for insurance agents. Fire Captain Groce came into my office and deliber ately lied when he said his name was Charjes Dober, and that ho owned cer tain furniture, describing it. at 896 East Harrison. He wanted to take the pol icy then, but I was suspicious of him, and told him tve would let him have It later. In the meantime the writer went to view tho property and concluded that there was fraud in the proposition and refused to write the policy, and so wrote "Charles Dober." . I question whether It is a good thing for city officials to train men under them to visit decent business men and deliberately lie to them with a view of trapping them. Are not such men liable some time in the future to con clude that If they were taught to pre varicate along one line of endeavor, they will be justitted in doing the same thing to their superior officers under whom they work? I cannot see how any genuine firebug would be benefited if he.did get 140,000 worth of insurance on $10 worth of property. Insurance companies are not in the habit of paying such losses, as far as I know. I think there is a good deal of buncombe being issued by cer tain officials to cover up some of their own faults. INSURANCE AGENT. Wheat Not Sons-Bird Food. ROSEBURG, Or., Jan. 19. (To the Editor.) Please allow me to offer a few remarks through the medium of The Oregonian about the feeding of birds. I read reports from various places about great quantities ot grain being distributed for this purpose. Now, the fact is, there art but few of our com mon birds that will eat whole wheat at all. The purple finch will some times devour a considerable quantity of oats, and would probably not stop at wheat in a pinch, but the robins and juncocs will hardly touch it whole, although they will eat it readily enough when cruhed. The same is true of most other kinds of grain. Of course the quails will take to It aa readily as would a barn-yard fowl, and so will the Jays for that matter. but the quails are pretty capable of taking care of themselves, and as every man's hand is against the Jay, he can look out for himself also. This being the case, it would be well to crush the large grains before gKMng tbem to birds, or, where It is available, millet, or other small seed Is good. A FRIEND TO THE BIRDS. The Druggist a Merchant Once a druggist was a mere dis penser of medicines. Today he is a merchant doing 76 per cent of his business on articles only remotely concerned with the mortar and pestle. He Is an alert, enterprising mer chant, too a fact frequently evi denced by his support of newspaper advertised products. He knows that 'when a soap, a perfume or something else he car ries is advertised in the dally news paper he will feel the demand at his counter. So he shows the goods and proves his own ability as a merchandiser.