10 TIII5 MOKXIXG OREGOXIAX, THURSDAY, JAXTTAHT 11, 1917. rORTlASD, OREOO.N. Entered at Portland (Oregon) FostolTlea a second-claas mall matter. Subscription rales invariably In advance: (By Mail.) ; pally, Sunday Included, one year ...... .S. 00 pally, Sunrtay Included, six montha 4.25 JJally, Sunday included, tnree months ... 2.25 Jmily, bunday included, one month ..... .75 JJally. without Sunday, one year .0 gaily, without Sunday, three months ... 1.73 JaJly. without Sunday, one month .AO Weekly, one year 1.50 Sunday, one year 2.60 fcunday and Weekly 3.50 (By Carrier.) rally, Sunday Included, one year .on ally. Sunday included, one month ..... .75 How to Remit Send postoffice money order, express order or personal check on our local bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at sender's risk, olve postoffice address In full. Including county and state. Postage Rates 12 to IS pages, 1 cent; 18 . to 82 pages, 2 cents; 34 to 43 pages, 8 cents; 60 to 60 pages, 4 cents; 62 to 7 pages, S cents; 78 to e.2 pages, 6 cents. Focign post age double rates Kaatern Brisine Office Verree A Conk lln, Brunswi'.-k building. New York; Verree A Conklln, Steger building, Chicago. San i"rancisco representative, U. J. Uidwell, 742 Market street. PORTLAND. THURSDAY, JAN. 11. 1917. I BEER OUT THE TRUTH. Mr. Lawson's t charges, that confi dential Information leaks from the Government departments and from Congress to Wall Street and i3 there , used in speculation, have not been supported by him with names or with ! proof, but he reiterates them with ranch sound and fury. He makes the flat statement that decisions of the Supreme Court have leaked; that a Cabinet Minister and a Senator have speculated;, that leaks of impending court decisions and impending1 legis lative ) action are common; and that members of Congress habitually use Information obtained in their official capacity for speculative purposes. Similar charges have been made by the mysterious A. Curtis through Rep resentative Wood. Senator Stone, who holds the Important position of chair man of the Senate committee on for eign relations, has admitted that con fidential Information leaks out. These charges are a sequel to Mr. Lawson's "Frenzied Finance." They are the outcome of his craze for the limelight, of his unique advertising methods and of his desire to get even with his enemies In Wall Street. But It will not do, for these reasons, to dismiss him as a "four-flusher," as seems to be the disposition of some Congressmen. He Is on the Inside of the Wall-Street game and has the means of knowing the relations be tween Congressmen and other public officials and the stock market. Hte Is - In a position to pick up all the stories of this, that and the other man's deals which pass current on "the Btreet." His statements dovetail with those which have been made, through Mr. Wood and by Representative Gardner. All of these charges cor roborate a widespread belief that the practice Is common among members of Congress and executive officers of , using for private profit Information which comes to them confidentially In their public capacity. The public believes that from this practice It Is but a step to action In their public capacity for private profit, without regard to the public Interest. In this state of opinion,, the conclusion Is in evitable that, when men In a position to know make so much smote, there Is some fire. There ha been a steady growth of demand among the people for a higher standard of Integrity In their public servants. During the Civil War Con ETessmen did not scruple to act as brokers in obtaining Army contracts for clients and to share the profits, nor to appear as attorneys before the departments In prosecuting claims . against the Government which they were sworn to serve. Laws were passed forbidding Congressmen to serve a private client, and under those laws an Oregon Senator was convicted. When ex-Senator Foraker was found to have served the Standard Oil Com pany as an attorney he was driven from public life. Postal officials who profited by Government contracts were sent to the penitentiary. The people are becoming more exacting In their demand for undivided service from public officers. There may be a legitimate way In which knowledge of public affairs may be used by an official in his private business, but the line is not easily drawn and men are prone. If they follow this prac tice, to permit private gain to Influ ence their official acts. For this rea son the people are coming to the opin ion that a public official should ac cept his salary as full payment for all his time and energy, or at the very least that he should not engage In any personal activity which relates In any way to his public duty. Because this Is the state of public opinion. It Is absurd for Private Sec retary Tumulty or any other official whose name Is mentioned In connec- tlon with the charges to demand an apology from any man who makes them public. If Mr. Wood had not brought the Curtis letter before the House, the statements which it con tains would still have traveled from mouth to mouth; Mr. Tumulty's good name would still have been involved and In such a manner that he would have had no opportunity to clear It. He should welcome that oppor tunity and should not be content with a mere denial; Jie should insist upon a thorough inquiry, that he may be en abled to corroborate his denial and thus to clear his good name. For the same reason, Mr. Iawson should not hesitate to give names to a tribunal endowed with power and will to make full Inquiry, even though he may Im plicate one higher than a Cabinet Minister. The Oregonian does not give credence to this insinuation, but it would be far better to drag It into the light and either confirm or kill It than to let It be bruited about and lurk in the people's minds to destroy , their confidence in their elected ser vants. Scandal is not killed by sup pression; It can be killed only by dis proof or-, by cutting out the rotten part of the body politic. If It be proved. hame would be brought upon the Nation t if such charges were to be proved, but ten times greater shame would come If they were to be hushed up lest they Implicate one In high office. It Is the more Imperative that our legislative and executive officials be cleared of all suspicion of hase traffic In any event growing out of the war, because of the position which the American Nation has assumed toward the nations that are at war. The President, on behalf of the American people, has undertaken to speak as the champion of humanity, civiliza tion and law in a world where pas sion has caused all to be Bet at naught. The American people have under taken, out of their abundance, to suc cor the hungry, the wounded, the sick, the prisoners and the oppressed In the war zone. If, after taking this exalted stand, the United States were to shirk the most searching Inquiry through fear that some high official might be merely accused of making sordid gain from the President's ef forts for peace, the Nation would be come an object of contumely in the eyes of the world and its Influence for good would be permanently Impaired. r R KS n EXTLI X. BLAKSET. "Ladies said the President In his blandest and most persuasive phrases (we repeat from memory) to the lat est delegation of hopeful feminine bal lot reformers at the White House ladies, I am at heart a convinced suf fragist; but, alas! my party my erring and ignorant party has not yet seen the light. How can I, as leader of my party, do anything for you, however much I may yearn to do it, until I am so Instructed by my dear and loving party? Withal, my party has done more for you, dear ladies, than the wicked and unre generate Republican party. Can you beat it? He said It, when he knew that three out of four states which have given the ballot to women are usually Republican and the fourth part may fairly be classed as doubt ful; while not a single one of the con firmed Democratic states has so ex tended the franchise. He said it in full view of the great Panama tolls reversal, when, having changed his mind on the subject, he required his party to perform a com plete somersault. He said it face to face with the record of repudiation by the Demo cratic party, chiefly under his Inspira tion and direction, of at least six several pledges of the Democratic platform of 1912. Somehow the ladles are skeptical. They Insist upon putting their pickets at the White House and not at the Capitol. THAW AGAIN". The Thaw millions . . . have made the law an instrument for thwarting its own purpose. Without unlimited money no such parody on Justice would have been pos sible. The very law which should have either brought White's slayer to the electrlo chair or should at least have put him where It would be Impossible for him to kill another that law turns Thaw loose, free to kill an other person whenever his Insane rage gains control of hie acta. Prom The Oregonlan July IT, "1915. Inevitably the paronola of the dan gerous and murderous Thaw would manifest itself through some desperate or disgusting act of Sadist eccentricity. It is a shame to American Justice, and it is a scandal to the medical profes sion which produced purchasable "ex perts" to pronounce him sane, that this most notorious pervert should have been freed to pursue his In famous practices. For nine years, un der pressure of the Thaw money, the Thaw degenerate was kept In custody; for a year and a half he has pursued his pleasures. It was certain that he would have to be taken in custody again. The form of sexual perversion and mental degeneracy which finds satis faction in inflicting punishment on young boys, or young girls. Is asso ciated with a homicidal taint. The wonder Is that eighteen months have passed without another murder by Thaw. Once more It Is clear that the mur derer who Is shown to be Insane as well as the murderer who pleads in sanity should, upon determination of his Irresponsibility, be sent to an asy lum for the criminal insane, and kept there. BUSINESS PATRIOTISM. The need for far-sighted patriotism among business men is nowhere better Illustrated than In the present move ment to build up the coal-tar Industry In its vast ramifications. A striking address was made recently before the American Association for the Advance ment of Science by George II. Bruce, In which attention was called to the fact that if this new Industry Is not now put upon a lasting basis, failure will be attributable to the refusal of manufacturers and others to take this broad view. All other conditions are favorable. Mr. Bruce finds that there Is a tendency on the part of some manu facturers to "exact the very last penny for their goods from the purchaser," as a result of which the latter buys as little as possible and lives In hope that he soon will be able to get more goods from abroad. At the same time, he "passes the high cost along," and the ultimate consumer rises In wrath be cause he Is asked to pay more than he believes is fair, even under abnormal conditions. The cumulative effect of It all is the reverse of a lively Interest In the development of a home market. All except the manufacturer are im patient for the return of pre-war con ditions, when, they promise them selves, they will return to their orig inal sources of supply as soon as pos sible. It Is pointed out that one of the chief needs of the United States Is a campaign of education to show the manufacturer that he is serving not only his own interests but those of the whole country by foregoing now a possible opportunity to make an ex ceptional profit. For one thing, by doing so he stimulates consumption, which under abnormal conditions has been reduced to the minimum. He also enables others to get a foothold in business, and he increases the pros perity of the country as a whole. It would seem to be a truism that what ever makes for general well-being is also In the Interests of the individual. Removal of the feeling of dependency upon the foreign market is partly practical and partly psychological. It is, however, an essential factor In the continuance of a home market after foreign competition has been restored. Those who are looking to the future are urging that such a business policy be adopted that "Made In America" shall have an exceedingly deep root. Real preparedness in a business sense will Include organization for the standardization of prices not with a view to exacting the largest possible profit but in the other direction, that of profit upon such a basis as will de velop trade. It is such a patriotic spirit that distinguishes a nation from a mere people and that in the end makes for the greater prosperity of all concerned, including the individual who foregoes for the time being the last Item of profit that he might exact under present temporary market con ditions. The railroad brotherhoods are dis covering the evil consequences of per mitting their relations with their em ployers to become the subject of legis lation and litigation. Until they con sented to the establishment of the basic eight-hour system by act of Con gress they were free to make their own bargains with the railroads. From the moment when they accepted from Congress that which they had been unable to obtain from their employers their action became subject to the re strictions which Congress might place upon their liberty by law and which the courts might impose In construing the law. The brotherhood men's eyes are open, and they are growing so angry that there are mutterings of a strike, either for enforcement of the Adamson law or for acceptance of the terms which they demanded before the law was passed. If they should strike, they would probably come In conflict with any law which may be passed to supplement the Adamson law, or with the courts, or with both. Their position has been made that much worse by the law which they extorted from Congress under a time limit. OLD stuff. From our highly respectable and re spected contemporary, the Brooklyn Kagle, we take a paragraph in an interesting account of the bimonthly meeting or uie united Retail Grocers' Association: Prohibition Is an attack upon American liberties. Our right to eat and drink when and what we please should never be en croached upon. Those In favor of no-llcense ctalm that, because some 'abuse drink It should be abolished. The correct Idea is that they should be punished. Simply be cause a man commit murder, all agencies wh.ch may be employed to commit the leiony need not. of necessity, be abolished. These are the overfamillar words of the president of the association, who had moved a resolution against pro hibition, and It was unanimously adopted. Our Interest In the matter lies chief ly In the disclosure of the kind of argument used in Mew Tnrt ,nit the advance of prohibition. It is an invasion or our American liberties. That plea did veomnn cn-in. n every state now sobered, or sought to io Booerea. tnrougft prohibition. It makes no imnprwaUn i, . - . . mo ii nu 4 j i u - hlbltionlst. He is unable to distin guish between the right to drink ad libitum and the right to get drunk. iei. us give a rrlendly tip to the Brooklyn crocers. nn ,i. - ""bbco, - J tl. L they devise some new stuff. HALF DOLLARS AyD OTlIFR COEVS. The new coins have mrl thir r. pearance and hnvn mot t-ha criticism that they are not so attract ive as uie old coinage. But it is prob ably true that familiarity, which com monly breeds contempt, has in this Instance lnsDlre.d Any figure on a twenty-dollar gold piece, for example. Is rlenno the man or woman who Is not . pri vileged to see it too often. So with other coins. It Is to be fintrl firrf ii. legend, "In God We Trust," has its tubioraary place of honor, though a recent President who Is nn r,w great statesman and arbiter elegantar- lum in an art concerns brushed It off by his mere fiat. Tet there it is, to the lasting honor "tof the rmr.Hr. wnion thinks more of faith than of strict consistency in a free' republican gov ernment nomina.ll v r I ligion. The new ten-dollnr nii ttTiiti peared a vear new pTfitoi aeun ka cause of the St. Gaudens eagle with the breeches. He reappears in the new rirty-cent piece ("half dollar" is the Inscription) and with his spread ing wings he has overcome the bad impression of his nether covering and looks like the magnificent bird he Is. Compare him with th spread-eagle on the old coins and the cnange is certain to please. One may not be able to understand the reason for the old Roman fasces tounaie or sticks) on the ten-cent pieces, unless It. Is in old lesson that In uninn the- - strength. The head of Liberty, on the onverse, is. However, most noble. Withal, the Lincoln head on the recent DfinnV in inpnmnnpahl, a elmnlA - I - - . . . gimtiic, mi nified and impressive conception. In ocotiana, tney say, the penny was Invented SO t ri A Rr-nteb m4i charity; in America, undoubtedly, it ia to preserve in a wonderrul design the National idea of its greatest man. RURAL CHILD WKI.FARF., The common impression that be cause they do not live In the r-nnpPtoH districts of cities the people of the rural aistrlcts, particularly the chil dren, are beyond the need of measures for health imnrnvflmpni la utmnffiv controverted by the children's bureau or the .federal Department of lAhnr which finds by examination of the census figures and from its own In vestigations that the number of deaths among country babies and country motners is largely In excess of whnt it ought reasonably to be. It Is shown as a matter of fact that the mortality rate among Infants In the country is higher than In the districts of the cities which have been studied, and that there is a markedly high death rate In the same rural dis tricts among mothers, from ri-avnt- able maternal causes. The amaztrjr snowing is made that 16,000 women aie in ine united states each year from conditions Incident to matprnltv and that the country districts have more man their full share of this number. It is a erood slim that th of the farminer districts "h n vn thorn. selves evinced keen interest in the movement for the betterment of tbi situation. The problem of the coun try is rouno to De rar different from that of the city. In the congested districts of the latter onen on- position often Is encountered; not all, but many, of the people view with suspicion any effort made to help them and to educate them. This is particularly true of the regions In which newly arrived forele-nera ern gregate. In the country, on the other hand, resistance to the movement for betterment of mothers and their chil dren is practically unknown. Recent experimental health conferences have shown this. Parents have brought their children to these conferences for examination and advice about their dally care, although not for medical diagnosis or treatment, and have been willing to travel long distances, often over bad roads and at a sacrifice of the work of the farm. Argument for better care of rural childhood is based on reports of state hoards of health all mu. , . t showing a high percentage of physical aeiects. it is round that there is "room for great permanent improve ment In maternal and child welfare In the rural districts." The movement derives added Importance from the fact that the Illness or death of a mother inevitably lessens the chance of her baby for life and health. The question therefore Is of the highest public interests-ranking at least with the effort to Improve conditions In the crowded cities. We must 'preserve our rural population if people In the cities are to continue to live. The "simple life of the country" is healthful only in degree. It is true that grownups often develop robust ness from the nature of their work, which gives plenty of exercise and Is much of it out of doors. There Is, on the other hand, the factor of neg lect of simple matters of hygiene, such as care of the teeth, due to re moteness from physicians and dentists, and there are many defects In the diet of the growing child In the "one crop" communities. It Is the purpose of the rural welfare movement to con duct a campaign of education to cor rect present defects, so that every dweller in the country shall be as healthy as he ought to be. - - A HINT AT CEBMAXTS FLANS, Discovery by British raiders that three lines of German trenches near Arras had been practically abandoned dees not speak well for the efficiency of British scouting, though the air In Winter is so thick as to render air scouting difficult and at times impos sible. The Germans may have cal culated that the attack was only a raid, to be followed by quick retire ment, that the evacuated trenches would not be tenable by the British and that It would be economy of men to withdraw temporarily rather than lose men In a fight. But the Incident suggests other pos sibilities. The Germans may have made their western line extremely thin by withdrawing troops for-the Rou manian campaign. Recent reports of peace terms which Germany is dis posed to offer imply that the Kaiser has abandoned all hope "of territorial acquisitions In the west, and that he would yield much In that quarter In order to gain much In Eastern Europe and Asiatic Turkey. If he were volun tarily to withdraw his troops from France and Belgium, either In antici pation of the allied onslaught in the Spring or soon after the attack began, he would surrender the coal and iron resources of that section, but he would much shorten his line. More than that, he would deprive France and Britain of a large part of their cause for" continuing the war, would strengthen the peace party In those countries and would influence neutral opinion in his favor. If France and Britain were still to continue the war, they would expose themselves to the charge that they did so In order to aid Russia In recovering lost territory and In annexing part of Turkey, also In order to crush Germany and Aus tria. Germany would then be fur nished with plausiblerround for say ing that her enemies were engaged In a war of conquest, not of emancipa tion. Skillful maneuvers, both military and diplomatic may be executed by Germany In order to put Itself in the right and its enemies in the wrong" In the eyes of neutrals, and In order to encourage the growth of a peace party In the entente countries which will force an end of the war, while Germany can still point to evidence that she has come out victor. With the crushing of Roumanla, the internal turmoil In Russia, the Ger man bids for peace, the agitation for withdrawal of the allied army from Salonikl and the preparations for more vigorous proseeutlon of the war In the west, the great conflict Is about to enter upon a new phase. The de velopments of that phase in the course of this year promise to be a valuable guide to correct conclusions as to the terms of settlement. It may be the beginning of the end. An out-of-the-way illustration of the way the war has affected remote industries Is found In the new boom that the "wild silk" Industry of Japan Is now undergoing. This silk is called habutal and derives its wildness not from the appearance of the finished product upon the wearer but from the fact that It is made from the cocoons of the wild silkworm, which flourish in many parts of the Islands but which did not come conspicuously into public notice until 1907, when there was a preliminary boom, fol lowing the depression that had fol lowed the Russo-Japanese War. Ex ports of silk in general, meanwhile, have Increased to an amazing extent, the amount for the first nine months of 1916 having been $92. 077,000, as compared with $48,832,000. an in crease of $43,245,000 for the period. The Increase Is due In part to In creased quantities of th 6ut also to much higher prices paid Dy me people or the United States and France, the latter country still being a heavy buver. desnitn wm- ditions. There la fine mental the public schoolchildren ins the price of a loaf American money on the exercise for in calculat or bread in basis of the the British pounds of how many loaf cost 7 price fixed for wheat by food controller. If 604 wheat cost 60 shillings, cents would a two-pound A colored man has been appointed member of ths Rom-rt r rr New Tork, and If he Is not qualified v wuuiu not. nave Deen aone. A com petent Afro-American nt . i - O ICbWUl" tion; it is the Incompetents, after llt- hh ymjiicm jops. wno are turned down. There may be pain and mental an guish In the fracture of an artificial leg; there may be hair on the ht of a eawhorse; there may be sweat on me Drow or an ivory dome; but unbelievers must be shown to realize the phenomena. A law to retrulatA n. rmtntr at,mi committee might give that body some standing, but cannot give it any jjuwer. xo do sure, it can nil a va cancy, but who ever resitms a. nomi nation. A small brother Is killed -and a mother is seriously wnnnnpil hu hn,.a who did not know the guns were loaaea. Whose business is it to know? Wealthy scions of foreign nobility have an unpleasant habit of proving poverty-stricken swindlers r,f miiihi. American tuft-hunters. Frogs that croak and pussy willows that bloom in January are not signs of Spring. They Indicate a foolish freak of nature. This Is not seasonal weather and numerous deaths from oneumonia. are warning to people to guard their neaitn. Express agents will be the "lucky men" if an emererflnrv Iaw taVnti wlth a lot of undelivered packages on nana. Bid anyone note the humor In the rollcall on the vote in the Senate to make the Capital "dry"? - If there Is anything In a name. Lord Shaughnessy is the man to settle the Irish question. The chicken show during opening week of the session is the real article. Leading question Just now: "Have you used your right?" Harry Thaw should be kept In next time they get him. Stars and Starmakers By Leone Cass Ban, I've broken all my 1917 resolutions already, but it hasn't shattered my nerve, for the made-over models are mora to. the liking than the originals. "There's something; so sad about the dying" of the old year." said Maxlne Elliott In an interview when she land ed t'other day In New Tork. Nothing sad about It that I can see, except paying Its funeral bills. "For Heaven's Sake. TJee a Little Seme," Is the title of a new vaudeville sketch now on the boards in the East. Personally I commend the title to those nobody-homes who sit behind me, or beside me, and prattle about having read "the book" and point out wherein the stage version and the reading; ver sion do not agree. Actor rushes Into print with chatter about a Christina present he received from his wife 3000 years 'old the pres ent, not the wife. I didn't know they made cigars or neckties that far bmok. See where Henry Miller Is going to put on a big all-star revival of ."The Great Divide" In New Tork. My Idea of the great divide of today is fifty-fifty. See where an actress expresses as her last wish permission to be .burled alongside all of her six husbands. Well, It's a quaint Idea. And com mendable. But how can It be done? And besides', what's the Idea? Wants to keep them from Quarreling, I reckon. When I was home for the Christmas holidays my paw read In Dr. Evans' health . colyum that refd noses are caused by tight clothing, collars, cor sets, belts, dresses and garters and that one must remove the cause. "That may be all right In your city of roses," ses my paw, "but it's a bit chilly in Billings, Montana, to follow such advice Just now." Just read wjiere an actor has re fused a legacy of several thousand dol lars from his mother-in-law. Now, that's carrying prejudice Just a little too far, I think. "Dreary season Tor Vaudeville Jokes" headlines an article. Yeh, but Just think of the Jokester's audience. If he has one. At least the Jokesmlth gets paid for his part of the dreariness. Just read where some fool actress Is writing a book on the essential dif ferences between cobbing out loud and sobbing Inside in emotional dramatics. Now, isn't that going to bo the sweet little cheery comfort book to snuggle up by the fireside and read one of these evenings? - Ruth Gates, of the Alcazar Players, rise to observe that if folk keep on they're going to make tennis a regly sport one of these days. "It's getting human now," she says. "I see they're playing It on ice courts." Nat Goodwin says that most drinks improve with age. I had one at Christ mas that hadn't been helped any with growing old gracefully. It was egg nogg. Actress in Milwaukee (Wis., not Or.) was robbed of $10,000 worth of real Jewelry and some cash while she was -laundering her hair In the bath tub. That dame will get no sympathy from hairdressers. a Culminating a romance of three years, Juliette Llppe, the actress, and Dr. Guetav Kolischer, of Chicago, were married in Mt Vernon the day after Christmas. Broadway learned recently. The pair had met out in Chicago when Miss Llppe was playing a vaudeville engagement there In 1913. Miss Llppe was seen on Broadway this season as a member of the "Flora Bella" company. wltbLlna Abarbanell, and started out on tour with the or ganization a few weeks ago. The week after her marriage the production was booked in Newark, and Mies Llppe was prevailed on to continue in her part until another actress could be obtained to replace her. They will make their home In Chi cago. Miss Llppe has decided not to return to the stage. Patricia Colllnge has been requested by the Saturday Evening Post to write an article on "Why Irish Are Irish." She was born In Tuam, Ireland, but she declined the offer. Here Is a line from her letter: "I don't know why I was. But 1 couldn't help it. I don't know why they are, but they are, aren't they? If Mr. Lorimer. or whoever It Is that asked me this question, had been born in Tuam, as I was, he wouldn't have asked the question, would he? Any way, I'm glad that I don't have to write the article." About this time ot year certain phe nomena take place Just as surely as the months roll around.' The leavea turn crimson and fall; the days grow shorter and nights colder and the birds fly south. Just bo certain are vaude ville patrons that about this time Cressy and Dayne will appear. And, true to the stage barometer, Cressy and Dayne will be at the Orpheum next week. Delving Into a ecraphook shows that Cressy and ' Dayne made their first vaudeville appearance at the Union Square Theater In New Tork City Jan uary 19, 1900. Their first vehicle was a New Hampshire episode called "Grasping the Opportunity." It must have been good, for friends of the couple who knew vaudeville conditions said to them: "Tou are fixed for life; you Can play that act as long as you live." "All right." replied Cressy. "next year I will be fixed for two lives, for I have another playlet Just as. good" Up to that time anyone who got a successful vaudeville offering never changed It, so probably we are be holden to Cressy and Dayne for prompting some vaudevlllians to change their acts every season or two. During the season of 1908-9 there were 128 one-act plays being played In the vaudeville theaters In the United States and of these 86 carried the name of Cressy as author. "A City Case." Cressy's very latest one-act play, which is his Orpheum vehicle this sea sen. Is his 142d vaudeville production. An interesting engagement was made yesterday for "Dance and Grow Thin" at the Century's Cocoanut Grove, when Gertrude Hoffman signed a Dilllng-ham-ZIegfleld contract. It has been nearly four years since Miss Hoffman has appeared outside of vaudeville. GOOD WORDS FOR THE OREGONLAN Lnnnal la Praised by OoateWporartes la Orearon and 'Washington. Castle Rock rvrash.) Independent. . The New Year special edition of The Dregonlan Is certainly a hummer. It s the very heat iilitti..n..i v- Coast that anyone could send East and wo wouia urge everybody to get at least two copies and send to friends or relatives. New Enterprises Attracted. Tillamook Headlight. The New Year's Issue of The Ore gonlan Is another splendid booster's edition that will help to bring new settlers and new enterprises into Ore gom "We must all take our hats off to The Oregonlan when It comes to boosting the state. Great Benefit ta Entire State. St. Helens Mist. The New Year edition of The Orego nlan was a credit to that great news paper and excelled all previous efforts. The Information contained aa to Ore gon and her resources was clearly and truthfully set forth and will sooner or later be of great benefit to the entire state. The Oregonlan is to be con gratulated. Annual la Work of Art. Rarrisburg Bulletin. The Oregonlan annual is a work of art-t . you have a copy that you don't care to file away as a keepsake. Just send It to some friend In the East. Page after page of Oregon wonders and Oregon progress are displayed In picture form, speaking stronger than words of the magnificent state we live in. Oregonlan Annual a "Hummer." Goldendale (Wash.) Sentinel. The Portland Oregonlan issued the regular- annual Industrial edition on New Year's day and readers cannot make criticism of the excellence of that Issue, Profusely Illustrated, brimming with Industrial articles from the penj of able writers, this leading Oregon newspaper Is living up to the standard established years ago. when their first annual was Issued. Orreon's Offering to Xtnfonier. Monmouth Herald. " The New Year's number of The Ore gonlan is calculated to make people who live In the state proud of Oregon. It is not as spectacular as California, but It is more practical. Oregon offers to the newcomer more than any other state In the Union. It has more un develojJed land that is better worth the labor of the settler than any other state in the West. Although an old state. Oregon has been neglected by capital. Development reached the est Coast In the south and north and has bent with the coast, finding a meet ing ground in Oregon. Railroads are projected in Eastern Oregon that will bring thousands of people into the state. The Oregonlan has the develop ment of the state well pictured out and makes the best sort of missionary lit erature to send back to the home com munity. WHY SMOKING AIDS TniXKIXG Four of Fire Physical Senaes Closed Against Outer Distraction. VANCOUVER, Wash, Jan. 10. (To luo r.auor.j lnrough an editorial r cently you gave Lady Nicotine deserved recognition. There Is, however, some thin- C ... .B ... juur mucie wnicn leads one to infer that the worthy editor has never surrendered unconditionally to aiT u'""u,anraen or this enchantress. txiiuw one possessed or less fortitude to confess to having been held under the spell of the bewitching siren for oumo inree score years. Further per mit him to admit being addicted to the reading habit." While reading trash, one can smoke, but so soon as we turn to innii,, ik demands thorough concentration ot thought, our pipe dies out. Now, while years of experience and observation have proved to mo that this statement la correct.- I am willing to admit that the editor Is warranted in uis suspicion tnat connection exist between smoking and Intcllli-cnt rco.i lng. However, the connection does not cxisi wmte we read. It begins only after we have put the boolc nH sit down to smoke. Mentally, man Is a ruminant. Reading Is but partial mastication of mental nutrients. In order that the greatest percentage of meniai nutrition be derived from that which we read, we are compelled to ruminate and thoroughly masticate this mental lood; otherwise it would be In digestiblo and of little worth. Now, when wo undertake to rami. nate. it is absolutely necessary to free wio mina or an distracting influence. Mental distraction is noasihin rri through one or more of the five physi- 1 cuaiTd. ii 1 1 smoKinrr. we Deirulle four of these senses. We feel. see. taste and smell the smoke. This leavea nnlv the sense of hearing undiverted. If our reading den be thoughtfully located, this sense will cause no annoyance. When all five senses, through elim ination of distracting influence, are re duced to their lowest degree of action, the activity of the conclous mind ceases in proportion and a state of semi-coma follows. While the mind Is In thin eon- dltlon. we think clearly, thought does noi wanaer; tnerefore, we can direct its undivided force In a given channel. Let us not imagine that we have un earthed a new thought. The seers of Lalednnla beguiled their senses through strumming some monotonous rune on a harp. The seers of Beandinavia saw their visions through the Influence of winds from the North Sea blowing Into conch shells; the seers of the ancient Hebrews through the mesmeric influ ence of the gems which adorned the breastplate of the high priest. OLD - MORTALITY. Kate of Mexican Refugees. BOISE. Idaho, Jan. 8. (To the Edi tor.) What has become of some 5000 Mexicans soldiers, old men, women and children who fled from Villa at OJInaira pome three years ago across the Rio Grande and were Interned at EI Paso and later sent to Fort Win gate. New Mexico? J. K. NEAL. All the Mexicans referred to, who were temporarily cared for by the United States Government at El Taso and Fort Wingate long ago returned to Mexico or scattered about this country, as they pleased. They received temporary re lief arid support and then were turned loose to do as they Individually desired. Delaved Naturalization of Citizen. EST ACAD A Or.. Jan. 9. (To the Ed itor.) A man came to this country be fore 190 and took out his first papers In 1910. He failed to make application ror final papers with the time limit provided. What steps will he have to take to get his final papers now? SUBSCRIBER. He must take out his first naturaliz ation papers again and wait two years before filing for his final papers. Owen Wller's Address. LEXINGTON, Or.. Jan. 9. (To the Editor.) I would like to know the ad dress of the writer known as Owen Wlster. H. L. M'ALISTER. Home address, Butler Place. Logan Station. Philadelphia; offce. West Lai Trust Building. Philadelphia. Life of Gene Stratton Porter. PORTLAND. Jan. 10. (To the Edi tor.) "Sincere Reader" will find an In teresting article by Gene Stratton Porter, her life and her books, in the September number (1916) of The Ladies' Home Journal. FANNIE L. BAKER. In Other Days Half a Century Ajta. From The Oregonlan January 11. 1SST. On November 6 the Union Pacific Railroad was completed to a point T0 miles distant from Omaha. Tbo road is located to a point 800 miles west of Omaha. The author of "Ecce Homo" has at last been found, it is said, in the per son of Professor Seeley, of the Uni versity College, London. The funeral Service of Sherry Ross will be held at the Methodist Church at 2 o'clock this afternoon. The Tanner troupe of minstrels wen ted by a tolerable house last night. They will appear again tomorrow night. The "Quintessence of Old Virginia dance by O'Neil Is the biggest thing in Its way ever seen here. General Hennlngsen. a soldier of for tune, who fought on the losing side of four wars the Carlist War in Spain, the Hungarian War. the Nlcaraguan War and the Civil War has now en tered the whisky business In Richmond. Twentr-flTB Years Aaro. From The Oreironlan January 11. Ig12 San Francisco. San Jose won the championship and pennant, defeating Portland yesterday. The series was a tlo after the morning game, but Port land forfeited the decisive game after Glenalvin called his men from the field as the result of a row. Buffalo Bill la making the hair of the canny Scots stand on end with hor rified delight at the daring feats of his cowboys. The-school children of Glas gow have In turn startled William by singing. "Yankee Doodle." The majority of the delegates that met Saturday at the Marquam Grand Theater and organized the Deraocratto Society of Oregon, returned homo yes terday. ReT- E. A Telfer, of London, will lec ture at St. Paul's Methodist Church. Sixth and Hall streets, this evening. London, Jan. 10. Alarm has been caused in royal circles by the serious Illness of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, eldest son of the Prince of Wales. The steamer O. W. Shaver made a trip down where the Telephone la fat yesterday, taking 100 steamboat men and their friends. Pacquet & Co, who have the contract for raising the Tele phone, have things almost ready to commence operations. CTTT DWELLERS SUFFER MOST Movement for Eeonomr Should Not Stop With. States. PORTLAND, Jan. 10. (To the Edl-tor- The letter of Senator A M. La Follett appearing In The Oregonlan. January 6 Is timely and pioneers the way for the agitation of a question that Is going to receive more attentl. ,. Bad as conditions are for -i-sldents outside the corporate limits of the city of Portlandv they do not know what high taxes are or impositions by hoards of city inspectors. Taxes have been mounting higher and higher each succeeding year. Every ordinance framed and adopted seems to run against the Interest of the prop erty owner. Ho has absolutely no rights to be considered or voice in the management of our city affairs. The officials inform him what his taxes shall be, what improvements shall be constructed, and what price he shall pay therefor. If he protests and is ob durate ho is cited to ordinance number 14766S40. which covers U case, and that the ordinance must bo complied with forthwith. On the high cost of living it Is neces sary to cut the hours of labor and In crease the wage. The less revenue from property, the more depressing times are, the more improvements forced and the higher comes the ex penses. It is time the property owners In this city should wake up and stand as a unit against unnecessary taxes and un necessary improvements. By reason of this situation Portland property to day has almost no marketable value. No candidate seeking political prefer ment within ,the city should bo elected without first pledging himself to the strictest economy and to give some consideration to those who have the bills to pay. CB. LA FOLLETT. CONTRIBUTOR HIS SEEN SNAKES Tsey Were Resl Ones, bat Habits and Origin Not Inveatlgsted. MAPLE LANE, Or, Jan. 7. (To the Editor.) I see numerous persons are troubled with snakes. In childhood 1 believed horsehairs would turn to snakes; saw thin wrigglers which were supposed to be such phenomena. Like many other things, never experimented to find out if true. Just believed. When it comes to tho Joint snake, I can verify the "animal." It is a slender reptile tapering to a sharp pointed talL When struck with a stick near the middle It will break in two. The tall will perform antics like a hen with the head off. while the head will scarcely move. But I never ascertained by ex periment If these two parts would unite. Once I killed one that had lost about three Inches of tail. These snakes are apparently harm; less, as they try to escape In haste, and perhaps tho swiftest moving snake 1 ever saw, the body being smoother than many other varieties seen. Stripes run the full length of the body. I think, and. If memory serves mo right, are of black and white with a slight greenish tinge. But as It is perhaps 10 years since I saw any I may be In error as to color. Do not know what they are called In tho textbooks, I saw them in the Sliddle West, but not many specimens. As to hoopsnakes. I give way to some other story teller. JOHN F. STARK. THE WEAVING MILL OF TIME. Alone by the fireside dreaming, I sat one New Year's evo. While the dying embers pictured that time does not reprieve! My past life came before me, of virtue and of sin Life's thread was In the bobbin that the loom of time did spin! Could the past years be Tecovered Td But the shuttle. Time, has woven the skeins 1 did release! Each soul must wear the garment that's tailored from life's thread. It may be white and silken; It may be shoddy and red! Watch close the thread you're spinning for vain are our regrets. And God Is surely writing the deeds the world forgets! Lest thorns of conscience prick you when twilight sun doth shine. Waste not a precious moment In the weaving mill of time! HARVEY HOWARD DICKEY. Junction City. Or. WKneaaes to Mortgage Deed. NEWBURO. Or.. Jan. 9. (To the Edi tor.) Do the laws of California re-' quire the names of witnesses to a mort gage deed, to make It valid? They did not some years ago, only the name of giver of mortgage and attestation of notary publlo to the giver's nignature being necessary. , R. F. G. Names of witnesses are not required. A