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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (March 19, 1917)
TITE 3IORXIXG OREGONIAN. MONDAY, MARCH 19, 1917. j Si$ (Bmgmnmx rOITLAXD, OREGON. ' z Entered at Portland (Oregon) Postofflce a second-class mall matter. V Subscription ratea Invariably In advance.: . ., (By Mail.) Dally, Sunday Included, one year 18.00 Ially, Sunday Included, six month! 4.25 J". Sunday included, three months. . 2.25 Bally, Sunda Included, one month 7 Bally, without Sunda. one year 0.00 'S Jjailv. without Sunday, three months.. 1.T3 z Jaily. without Sunday, one month 80 - weekly, one year 1.60 Sunday, one year...................... 2.60 - Sunday and Weekly , 8.60 . (By Carrier.) " y" Sunday Included, one year 8.00 ; Xaily, Sunday Included, one month 75 Z How to Remit Send postofflce money '- order, express order or personal check on . your local bank. Stamps, coin or currency are at sender's risk. Give postoftlce ad . crtss in full. Including county and state. - ,-p-MrtaT" Kates 12 to 16 pages, 1 cent; Z, 18 to 82 pages, 2 cents; 84 to 48 pages. '8 cents; 50 to- 60 pages. 4 cents; 62 to 76 pages. 6 cents; 78 to 82 pages. 6 cents. orelgn postage- double rates. f Lastern Business Office Verree & Conk- - 'n Brunswick building, New York; Verree Conklin, Steger building, Chicago; San Francisco representative, K. J. Bldwell. 742 Market street. : rORTLAKD, HONDAI, MAIiCII 19, 1917. SEATTLE'S SHAKY PYRAMID. i Storage of water In Bull Run Lake, ..which is a necessary part of the Daly municipal light project, is .unsafe and uncertain. It was so reported by J. W. - Morris, former City Engineer, at an earlier date. It is confirmed by George z Edmonston, an engineer in Commls- - eioner Clock's department. ' Such Information does not always - count a great 'deal against municipal enterprises fostered as personal po- - lltlcaj investment. It did not in Seat ;" tie, when an ambitious municipal t lighting scheme was under way. " The City of Seattle employed three - hydro-electric engineers at a cost of - $5000 to report on the proposed Cedar River dam. The repoit of these engi neers strongly recommended that test holes be sunk and other Investigations - made to determine whether the north : bank would hold water after the dam had been constructed. The City Coun-1 ell promptly filed the report and let - the contract for completion of the dam without making the recommended tests. The City of Seattle now has as a monument to- political ambition and ' Councllmanlc wastefulness and lndlf- - fcrence an utterly useless dam that cost ,1,700,000. The hydro-electric en gineers were right. The entire drain age of Cedar Lake basin seeps away as fast as it flows in. The remedy is to construct a concrete wall for two or three miles along the north bank of the river. If constructed, its cost will be enormous, it not built, $1,700,000 will have been wasted. Seattle's municipal plant was orig inally installed for the purpose of lighting streets cheaper than under the contract with a private company. Seattle at present Is paying the light ing department $50,000 a year more for street lights than they would cost under contract with the private com pany on basis of rates filed with the Public Service Commission. This high rate for street lights is endured to make up for losses on residence light ing. Residence lighting Is the foot ball of politics. Reductions in rates are made without Justification and usually Just before election, when city municipal ownership Councllmen are seeking return to office. These premature rate reductions and the failure of the Cedar River dam make one of two things Inevitable. The residence rates must be raised or an Increased tax burden be imposed to make up deficits. Moreover, to make Bervice dependable the city faces the necessity of expending $500,000 to in stall an additional unit to the auxil iary steam plant and another $3,000, 000 for an aditional hydro-electric plant. When Seattle Incurs these new obligations It is evident that Seattle cannot hope to pay out unless a 'mo nopoly of the light and power busi ness of the city is obtained. Even with a monopoly there Is reason to believe that service will cost consumers more than If furnished by a private com pany under rates fixed by the Public Service Commission, Seattle's experience with municipal lighting is an amazing commentary on city politics. To get office men have acceded to public clamor based on neither investigation nor busines judg ment. To retain public office they cut the voter's light bills a few cents a month and Pile ud deficits unfl inrl-rit- edness. To gain the favor of otherl voters they order extensions into terri tory where business does not Justify the cost. They pyramid public ap proval on a shaky foundation and leave to successors the Job of salvaging the wreck when the structure crum bles. Optimism of spendthrifts and Indif ference to public welfare of place hunters are ever the handicaps of municipal ownership, to which may be added pride of opinion and the ease with which the saving made the con sumer may be concealed in his tax re ceipt. Portland can profit from the Seattle experience by obtaining expert advice and by heeding that advice when it gets it. SWING OF THE PRICE PENDULUM. According to Professor Irving Fisher, of Tale, high prices are' the re sult of too much money and credit and of the speed with which they circulate, as well as of the quantity of goods in the market. He gives diagrams show ing that during the last few years, in Sweden as in the United States, prices have traveled upward as money in cir culation has Increased. But what in creases the amount of money? The immense excess of exports over Imports, for it has forced Europe to ship to this country more gold than we can well use. Gold has thus become cheap in relation to other commodi ties, so that a man gets more of it for a bushel of wheat than he got for merly. The great release of credit by the Federal reserve law has also made credit cheap by making it more abun dant, thus contributing to the enhance ment of rrices. At the same time the foreign de mand -for our goods has given labor employment at advanced wages. Ex port of these goods causes Imports of gold which reduce ' the purchasing power of the higher wages, but the working people, not at first realizing this, have increased their purchases, thus adding to the upward movement. But the high wages paid in factories ' have drawn labor away from agricul ture at precisely the time when nature has given us short crops. Decreased production of food is the consequence. This comes when other nations have had short crops and are making un usual demands on our supply. Hence we are "playing both ends against the middle," one end being diminished production, the other increased con sumption, while the middle Is the world's stock. Retail prices of food advanced 30 per cent between January IS, 1913, and the same date in 1917. If other factors in the cost of living have advanced at the same rate, the workingman whose wages are now 30 per cent higher Is no better off than he was four years ago, while the man of fixed income is 30 per cent worse off, and the man whose income has increased more than 30 per cent and who is spending-more In pro portion has contributed to the troubles of these, two classes. t When money becomes dearer, the munition' boom dies, wages fall and la bor drifts back to the farm, prices will fall and we shall, all be just about as well off as we were before, all except those who have made fortunes out of "war babies." WHES SECRF.CY PLEASES PACIFISTS. It is impossible to please the paci fists, or those persons who hide dis loyalty to American interests under a cloak of pacifism. They have con stantly asserted that wars are the re sult of secret diplomacy and that open dealings between nations would give the people an opportunity to express their opinion and would prevent diplo mats from getting two nations into a position from which there was no escape except war. The diplomatic correspondence with Germany, in regard to submarines has been conducted in the open. Every note which has passed "has been- pub lished as soon as it was sent. 4 When the President called upon Congress to authorize the arming of ships, the peo ple were fully Informed, for the many notes which had passed had been the subject of animated discussion for two years. When the Zimmermann note Inviting Mexico and Japan ' to ally themselves with Germany against the United States came into Government possession it was published. But many of the same men who had been crying out against secret diplo macy protested that this note had been published for the purpose of in fluencing public opinion. It was of the utmost importance that the peo ple and their representatives in Con gress should know, in formulating their policy toward Germany, that Germany was plotting the partition of the United States. If the President had concealed the Zimmermann note, he would have practiced Becret diplo macy of the worst kind, for he would have concealed the secret of an enemy and would have kept the American people In the dark about designs for the destruction of this Nation. The man who was loudest in protest was Senator Stone. He was angry with the President for putting before the people a document which was an unanswerable argument In favor of the policy to which ' the Senator was opposed. He was determined, if pos sible, to thwart the efforts of the President to protect this Nation against the country which was plot ting against It and in his eyes publicity was reprehensible when used to put him to confusion. Yet the Senate, in blind devotion to its absurd seniority rule, retains him at the head of the foreign relations committee, which should be the chief support of the President In upholding our rights and interests abroad. THE BACK-YARD GARDEN AGAIN. After a Winter of buying vegetables at prices worthy of precious stones. It Is to be expected that people will turn with a will this Spring to the back-yard garden, whose season for planting is close at hand. Without at tempting to apply facts and figures, it is safe to assume that had all the vacant acreage In Portland been util ized in growing vegetables instead of weeds last season the potato would have been a drug -on the market all Winter instead of a priceless luxury, and we could have had onions to throw at the actors. Hundreds of acres In back yards and vacant lots He Idle. People who lack the energy to plant something in the Spring find themselves put to the necessity of harvesting a bountiful crop of weeds before the Summer is far advanced. The alternative is po lice prosecution under the anti-weed ordinance. Any contention that the land is not fertile enough for garden purposes Is destroyed by the lusty growth of weeds. Land that will grow a tangle of weeds six or seven feet high would nourish a fine crop of vegetables with a little- preliminary treatment and pains. No one will know until trial Is made how much can be grown in the aver age back yard of a city such as Port land. By using Intensive methods a great deal more can be raised than on a corresponding space in the farm garden. A few dollars expended in seed, fertilizer and the necessary im plements is the only outlay required for commencement. Thereafter a few minutes a day will keep the garden in trim. It must be watered and kept clear of weeds, and the more thor oughly these tasks are performed the more bountiful the ensuing crop. Many amateur gardeners find both profit and recreation in their back yard plot. They find the same Joy in watching and caring for the sprout ing stalks that others find in chasing a tiny white ball over several hundred acres every afternoon. After having been taught for sev eral years in the Portland schools, home gardening Is less a dark art, and children provide the Inspiration and enthusiasm for scores of garden plots. High cost of vegetables, based on scarcity and Juggling of supply, should lend Impulse to the movement so that the vacant acreage will be re duced to a minimum this Summer in Portland. THE HOUSE OP TORTURE. . ' Any doubt which may have lingered In the minds of some citizens of Ore gon as to the Imperative necessity of erecting a new penitentiary should be removed by reading the description of the present building by one of the convicts, which wan published In The Sunday Oregonian. The present build ing is not merely out of date and over crowded; it is unsanitary and is a place of physical and moral torture. not through the acts of the men having custody of the prisoners but through the neglect of the state. Men are confined in cells from which every ray of sunlight is shut out, so small that there is only room to turn, so insanitary that the guards resign from ill health, and sickness is rife among the inmates. There is no proper ventilation aud the men suffer extremes of heat in Summer and of cold in Winter, Some of, the buildings are of wood, which is dry as tinder or rotting with moisture. There Is ma terial for a conflagration which might take hundreds of lives. Men are com pelled to work In confined spaces, without proper light or ventilation and so damp that many of them suffer from rheumatism. The hospital would disgrace the brutal government which has just passed away in Russia. It is of wood, has not enough air or light and Is so small that isolation of in fectious or contagious diseases is im possible. It seems to be a place for spreading rather than curing disease. The state maintains a board of health to propagate and enforce the rules of sanitation, but itself violates all those rules by confining its charges in buildings where th-?y are set at defi ance. It shuts hundreds of men and women in a building which the coun cil of any well-governed city would condemn as a firetrap. It supports many humanitarian institutions, but it maintains what is In Effect a house of torture. It is the duty of the state to confine offenders against its laws in a proper place for their punish ment, discipline and reform, but the constitution -forbids their treatment "with unnecessary rigor" and it re quires that "laws for the punishment of crime shall be founded on the prin ciples of reformation and not of vin dictive justice." The punishment in flicted by confining men and women In such a place as the present peniten tiary is characterized by unnecessary rigor, conforms to the principles of vindictive Justice and tends in a direction the very opposite of reform. Though not Intended, these are the effects. , For the good name of Oregon it is necessary that the proposed tax for the erection -of a new penitentiary be voted In June. The purpose of the people in imprisoning wrongdoers Is not to wreck their health, break their spirits, confirm them in crime or de base them into brutes who war on society. It is to seclude them from their fellow-citizens in order that they may be convinced of their errors, may gain that moral strength of character which they have been found to lack and may learn to make a living at an honest trade. That object can be at tained only by total abandonment of the present buildings and by erection of modern buildings, adapted to dis cipline and reform and where the health of the prisoners will be pre served and improved. This is a duty which cannot be shirked on any plea of economy. , FIGHTING JOE LANE. Two or three writers in the news papers have discovered a sort of similarity between the attitude of Senator Harry Lane in the present Na tional crisis and that of his grand father. Senator Joseph Lane imme diately prior a the Civil War. These letters have started a train of his torical reminiscences and historical citations, one of which, written by Robert H. Down, is published in The Oregonian today. We think that there can be no doubt as to the sympathies of Senator Joseph Lane during the American conflict. He was born in North Carolina and his leanings were strongly toward the Southern cause. But In comparing grandfather and grandson there are more points of contrast than similarity. Joseph Lane was a soldier and an illustrious one. If he had an opinion on a National or international issue and he generally had he had a rea son for It that was not expressed in mushy platitudes. He never held the theory that those who ventured into dangerous places where they had a right to go and there had their "toes stepped on" had no call on justice or Goverrunent. One of the first acts of Joseph Lane, after becoming Governor of Oregon, was to go into the Cayuse country, ac companied only by an interpreter and Dr. Newell, not to discover an excuse for massacre, but to demand the sur render of the murderers of Marcus Whitman. The threat held over the Cayuse chief was not one of armed neutrality. He offered no Bryanic pabulum. The Indian was given a choice of peace or war and the chief chose peace by surrendering five In dians implicated in the massacre. Joseph Lane was one of the most distinguished officers of the Mexican War. He was a member of the Indi ana Legislature at the time of the out break, but it Is not recorded that he advocated or supported peace-at-any-prlce memorials or attempted to blame upon their own heads the fate of those Americans who had been murdered or outraged on the Mexican border. He resigned and took the field. He was made a Brigadier-General, was men tioned for distinguished bravery, and he acquired the title of "The Marion of the Mexican War." He was wound ed at the battle of Buena Vista- and it is said of him that "when the grape and musket shot flew as thick as hail over our volunteers their brave Gen eral, though wounded in the left shoulder by a musket ball, could be seen fifty yards in advance of his lines. waving his sword and encouraging his men by his Impetuous bravery." General Lane brought the same Im petuous bravery to Oregon, upon his appointment as Governor of the terri tory. One incident of his career has herein been mentioned. On another occasion, in 1850. with only fifteen men, he entered the country of war ring Rogue River Indians. At a peace conference he was confronted by the hostile attitude of several hundred In dians. But with sheer bravado he quelled the sudden rising and person ally disarmed the leaders among the red men. In 1853, at the head of a smajl body of volunteers raised to quell another Rogue River uprising, he was wounded again in the left shoul der. The mere fact of his presence aa commander of the volunteers, when it became known to the Indians, caused them to propose a peaceful settlement. There followed the famous conference between General Lane and Chief Jo seph at Table Rock, one of the most remarkable occurrences that ever took place In Southern Oregon. The obscurity and poverty in which Joseph Lane lived during his later life may be ascribed in part to the irre pressible misfortunes of Internecine conflict in which birth and habits of thought, led him to the side not ap proved by the majority of his fellow- citizens of Oregon. But after lapse of more than half a century, during which old animosities have been cured, the public thought, in considering General Lane, will weigh all his activi ties in passing Judgment. Senator Harry Lane did not Inherit mud-turtle qualities either from his grandfather or his great-grandfather. who enlisted in the Revolutionary War at the age of 17. By all the laws of heredity he ought to be a fighter, a red-blooded loyalist. His forbears eer tainly knew which he does not that the world Is made of both land and water, that National rights extend to the sea as well as to the soil, and that Invasion does not consist wholly of set ting foot by another on one's own chunk of dirt. We dispute that he in herited his quibbled from fighting Joe Lane. The Pacific Coast is quite willing to act upon Secretary Houston's sugges tion and use its forests and water power in making paper for the East ern states, if Congress will push Gif- ford .Pinchot off the track, so that it can get to the power sites. Until this is done, the West will derive a certain grim satisfaction from the thought that the East also suffers from the embargo on the West's development, for the obstructionist derives his chief support from the East. . . COMMERCE CONTINUES TO GROW. The last month before the beginning of Germany's unrestricted submarine war was marked by an enormous In crease in American exports, the bulk of which went through the barred zone. The total for January was $613,555,693, as compared with $330, 036,410 in January, 1916, an increase of $283,619,283. Of this increase 1192.033,724, or more than two-thirds, was m exports to the allied countries of Europe, while the Increase to all the allied countries and their posses sions was $235,330,374, or nearly five sixths of the total. Although the de struction of ships was much greater In January than In the same month of last year and though much of the goods Included in the total was de stroyed, the risk was not sufficient to deter shipments or sailings. On the other hand, reports of for eign trade bear convincing witness to the increased effectiveness of the blockade against the central empires. Exports to' Germany in January were nothing, though in January, 1916, they were $48,642. The two voyages of the merchant submarine Deutsch land doubtless explain the Increase for the seven months ending January from $272,981 to $2,196,174. Austria has Imported nothing from this coun try In the seven months, and In the corresponding period ending January, 1916, it Imported only $145,862. . Increase in total exports for the seven months has been prodigious from $2,182,898,752 to $3,614,173,688. Imports have grown also, but the In crease has been only $251,000,000 as compared with $1,266,000,000 in ex ports. Europe has taken more than $1,000,000,000 of the latter Increase. Trade with South America shows a healthy growth, exports having in creased from $97,000,000 to $143,000. 000 and imports from $207,000,000 to $270,000,000. Asia's purchases have more than doubled, namely, from $101,000,000 to $211,000,000, while Its sales 'to us have swollen from $210, 000,000 to $307,000,000. Growth of the shipbuilding Industry promises to be greatly accelerated by the demand of the Government for wooden ships to be UBed as anti-submarine scouts, as transports for the Army and Navy and to carry our commerce. The Pacific Coast has un excelled material for this type of ship, and the Columbia and Willamette riv ers are not surpassed by ' any other section of the Coast in this respect. The demand for the type of ship which we can build is practically un limited, and can absorb twice or three times the capacity of the present yards on these rivers. Every ship that is launched should, and doubtless will, take a first cargo of lumber or some other Pacific Coast product to the Atlantic Coast or to Europe. Every such cargo will be a blow at the ar gument by which the rate decision is sustained. But it will not be suffi cient only to Bend first cargoes out: in order to establish water traffic completely, ships must come back with westbound cargoes and must ply regularly both ways. When that is done, Portland will have a clear case for asking the Interstate Commerce Commisison to restore competitive rates on the railroads. Indeed, as water traffic grows, it will become more to the Interest of the railroads than of the shippers to move in that direction, for by using the water route he shippers will have water com petitive rates and the railroads must either reduce their rates or perma nently lose a large proportion of their through ' traffic. With water running to waste, the revenues of the bureau would not be affected if water were given free for the vacant lot gardens where it could be obtained. Irrigati n-increases crops wonderfully. It used to be that a man who owned a piece of land could erect any kind of building he desired, if it was not to be a nuisance. Now he properly must conform to the public's Ideas of civic beauty. Grand Duke Michael regards the Job of Czar as the hot end of a poker and hesitates to take hold. . He thinks it may cool, if he waits till the Russian people Insist on his taking it. When the fireboats deflect a river into a conflagration, the old debating society question of the more powerful element Is settled. The wets have It. When a young woman, a house serv ant, commits suicide, there is a cause, and in the latest case, at Seattle, the cause should not be hard to find. The Zeppelin raids on London and Compeigne were probably designed to honor the memory or pacify the soul of the old Count. The mother whose children contract the measles has her worries, but they do not equal her relief in knowing they have had them. This is not a good time to beat swords into plowshares, but It Is Just right to turn breweries into condenser lea. The brotherhoods' men who went out on time Saturday night can go back on the same schedule. What is there about the Capitol at Olympia that causes Insane men to mistake It for the asylum? Now for a long, strong pull to lift Oregon out of the mud to the solid, paved road of progress. When the U. S. of Russia Is doing business, Mr. "Bill" Galvani can re turn, but not to stay. "The United States of Russia" has a dreamy sound, but occasionally dreams come true. Nicholas ought to move to America, take out first papers and give his son a chance. Bootleggers who check baggage to little way stations deserve what they gret. New Spring shoes are In sight and the skirts cannot begin to touch them. Sveaborg will feel very lonesome when it hears from the rest of Russia. There Is something wrong with Dub lin. St. Patrick's day was quiet there. "Time to begin to worry about the "June rise," which seldom comes. v It must be settled today one way or another. How to Keep Well. - By Dr. W. A. Evans. Questions pertinent to hygiene, sanitation and prevention of disease. If matters of gen eral interest, will be answered In this col umn. Where space wlil not permit or the subject Is not suitable letters will be per sonally answered, subject to proper limita tions and where stamped addressed envelope is inclosed. Dr. Evans will not make diagnosis or prescribe for Individual diseases. Re quests for such services cannot be answered. (Copyright. 1816. by Dr. W. A. Evans. Published by arrangement with the Chicago Tribune.) W 1 1 1 : X YELLOW FEVER. IS BAN ISHED. "I CANNOT understand why you say, grandpa, that life is safer than It was. We have diphtheria, scar let fever, and consumption everywhere. We cannot do as we please oftlmes for fear of catching some disease." "You think conditions are bad. Hen ry, because you have not seen what I have seen. I lived in Memphis In 1879. I saw the people stampede in a wild flight when yellow fever came. There were less than 10,000 left in the city, and they stayed only because they could not get away. "I have seen shotgun quarantines. I have seen .guards shoot down refugees trying to escape the plague-stricken city. I have seen wagons, stacked high with the bodies of victims, driven to the eemetery. I have, seen bodies of yellow fever victims buried in- long trenches, hundreds at a time. I have known times when there were not physicians enough to attend the sick or nurses enough to serve them or grave diggers enough to bury the dead; when there were no trains and no business, and hungry men and women went into abandoned stores and took what they needed. And all of this in the latter half of the last century. And It hap pened not once, but almost every year in a city not far from my home." "Yellow fever must have been a fear ful scourge; Has it disappeared for ever?" Imagine this as a conversation be tween a child and his grandparent oc curring In 1930. The indications are that in that year yellow fever, the greatest scourge of the latter half of the nineteenth century, will have be come legendary. The International Health Commission has voted to at tempt to wipe yellow fever from the face of the earth. I have no doubt as to their success. The natural habitat of yellow fever Is the Gulf of Mexico. From this home It spread north as far as Halifax, south as far as Argentina, and east as far as Europe and Africa. A hundred years ago it was -a scourge at times in New York, Philadelphia, and even Boston. The disease was beaten back gradually until no United States ports were sub ject to it except those on the Gulf of Mexico. Then it was permanently ban ished from the United States. In the meantime it was being beaten back from the south in South America. More than 10 years ago it disappeared from Cuba, and then from Panama, Vera Cruz, and Tamplco.- Soon after Havana became free. Rio Janeiro was cleared of the disease. Now there remains no trace of yellow fever anywhere except in a narrow band of coast territory along the north and northwest coasts of South Amer ica a narrow strip of Infected terri tory not broader than a two hours' trip by automobile nor longer than a short ride on a limited train. Since yellow fever Is a disease of towns and not of the country, a better way to put it is that a few cities on the lowland shores of the northern coast of South America now constitute the only home of yellow fever, unless there are a few Infected ports in South Africa. The International Health Commission proposes to rid those few porta of yellow fever by the Bame means that were employed to get rid of yellow fever in Havana, Colou and Panama. When they do, the seed will be destroyed. Yellow fever mosquitoes will still be found widely distributed in the United States and elsewhere, but none of them will b infected, and the wherewithal to Infect them will have passed from the earth. Yellow fever will have be come a subject of legend, and perhaps in time it may become a myth. Twilight Sleep. Mrs. W. E. B. writes:- "I would like your opinion In regard to 'twilight sleep' for expectant mothers. (1) What is it and how is It given? (2) What ef fect aoes 11 nave on tne motnerr taj Its after effect? (4) Will it have any bad effect on the child?. (5) Would the age of the mother and its being the first child make any difference REPLY. 1. "Twilight sleep" la produced by giving morphine and scopolamine, or hyoscln, hypo dermlcatly. - J. It renders the mother unconscloua. The unconsciousnesss relates to ability to suffer pain rather than to general consciousness. The mother in "twilight sleep" knows what la going on but she Is indifferent to it. 8. There Is no particular after effect. The mother recovers from the drug and doea not suffer as much exhauatn as whea no drug was used. 4. . The child is born narcotized, but It re covers rather speedily. - 5. Not more than it would with labor upder other conditions. "Twilight sleep" la bor is somewhat more dangerous than other labor. When it la given In a good hos pital with properly trained attendanta it Is not any mora dangerous than labor other wise conducted. Go to a Physician. G. D. D. writes: "I -have something like a fever. It comes on about 3 o'clock In the afternoon. I get hot all over, but my head' gets hotter than my body. Sometimes I bathe my head in cold water and it helps. What causes this?" REPLY. Probably you have consumption. If you have only had it a few days it may be typhoid. Then there la malaria. But why continue guessing T Have a physician ex amine you carefully and make the neces sary laboratory testa. Wheat Bran for Constipation. L. A G writes: "What kind of bran is it that you recommend for persons who suffer with constipation?" REPLY. "Wheat bras. Can be made into muffins, baked into breard. or eaten aa a cereal. The) Spring; Garden. When Winter thrusts her cloak aside. When houses need no heat inside. When sleighs and cutters cease to slide. I think about my garden. When sky grows blue and clouds dis band. When by warm winds my face is fanned. In mud and slush I firmly stand. And think about my garden. My radishes will go Jn there, For lima beans that place bids fair. My squash oh, that grows anywhere; I can't wait for my garden. My hands are itching for the dirt, (They hate kid gloves so neat and pert), I want to start right In and worn In that old garden. Concluding this mellifluous bard -Against food prices I shall guard By digging up my whole backyard And planting there a garden. E. H, Hotels and Summer, Omaha (Neb.) News. "This Is the hotel for us. I positively won't go to any other." "My dear, if wo are going to spend the Summer we should consider well. There are much better hotels in that neighborhood." "But not one of them advertise such Idyllio moonlight nights." GEN. LANE IN CIVIL WAR CRISIS Senator's Grandfather Southern Sym pathiser, but Above Pacifists. PORTLAND. March 17. (To the Edi tor.) In the Portland Journal there ap peared a letter by a "Member of Gen eral Lane's Family," taking exceptions to statements contained In the letter of "Reader." which appeared in The Ore gonian March 8. This member of Joseph Lane's family goes to great length to make it appear that the General was always a loyal citizen of the United States. In answer to the challenge made for the authorities. I quote Bancroft, His tory of Oregon, Vol. 2, page. 465: Slowly, reluctantly, regretfully came horns the truth to the people of Oregon that Joseph Lane was a secessionist; that he had offered his services and those of his sons to fight in battle against his Govern ment and against bs late friends in Ore gon. The news of the fall of Fort Sumpter did not reach Oregon till the 30th ot April. 1861. By the same steamer that brought back 'the thrilling Intelligence of actual war came Lane back to his .home In Oregon. What a pitiful home-coming! Hatred and Insult greeted him from the moment he came In sight of these Pacific shores. At San Francisco it waa so. and when he reached Portland, and a few personal friends wished to give a salute in his honor, they were assured that auch a demonstration would not be permitted in that town. Even the owner bf a cart refused to transport his luggage to the house of his son-in-law. It consisted of t.wo or three stout boxes in wlilch were cbnveyed to Southern Oregon arms for the equipment of the army of the Paclflo re publlol But thia fact waa not known to the eartman or It might have fared worse with the ex-Senator. Proceeding south stfter few daya with theae arma In a stout wagon, but unsuspected, he waa met at vari ous parta of the route by demonstrations of disrespect. At Dallas he waa hanged In effigy. A fortunate accident arrested him tn the perpetration of the contemplated folly and treachery and consigned him to a Ufa ot retirement from which he never emerged. This "fortunate accident" consisted of a wound Lane received in the arm from an accidentia! discharge of a pis tol, btaylng at the house of Jesse Ap plegate, "Lane revealed . . the nature of his schemes concerning Oregon . . ." See Bancroft, History of Oregon, Vol. 2. page 456, note 27. Joseph' Lane, with Senator Gwln. ot California, and a man named Tllden in Washington Territory, were backers and instigators of a movement to "steal the Pacific Coast from the Federal Gov ernment and hold it for the South." They worked through the traitorous or ganization known as the Ivnigrhts of the Uolden CUcle. See Vol. 4. Ore. Hist. Quarterly, pages 89 and 106. They had councils, or circles as they are termed, at Sclo, Albany, Jacksonville, in Yam hill County, two at Salem and two at Portland. (Ore. Hist. Quart.. Vol. 13. page 22.) Through the vigilance of Adjutant General C. C. Reed, and foresight of Governor Addison C. Glbbs, Oregon was snatched from the very mawi-of the Confederacy. That It was saved to the Union and cast its vote for Lincoln and not for Joseph Lane, the nominee for Vice-President on the southern slave holders' ticket, was due in large mea sure to the loyal newspapers of Oregon. The Oregonian, the Argus and the Peo ple s Press. The last two were new publications, and to The Oregonian must be given the credit of turning the tide in one of the stormiest periods in our national history. I do not make these statements to cast any reflections upon the memory of General Lane. Lest history be per verted let the facts be submitted again to the forgetful public. History repeats itself. Harry Lane now sits in the seat of his grandfather in the United States Senate. While the copperheads of that day of civil war might excuse them selves on the slavery question, they were not of the contemptible type of pacifist that today gloats over the Na tion's unpreparedness, taking their opinions from the sickly German propa ganda and the mutterlngs of a few dis contented Irishmen who would sacrifice the honor of the United States to vent their spite against England. ROBT H. DOWN. FOR AMERICA ABOVE ALL OTHERS Foreign Born Cltlsen Declares) for One Country nnd One Only. PORTLAND, March 18. (To the Edi tor.) Your editorials are at all times a source of inspiration to me. They are so plain and easy to understand that a wayfaring man, though he be a fool. need not err therein to read, mark and inwardly digest the same to his edification. I am an alien by birth with years beyond matured manbiod prior to my severing myself from my native land the South of Ireland. I had no fault to find with my mother country. Neither have I any fault to find with my adopted country. There the same as here I was subservient to law and or der. For several years I served under the reign of the good and gracious Queen Victoria. I was at the bombardment of Alex andria, Egypt, in 1882; also took an ac tive p'art at the battle of Tel-el-Kebir and know from actual experience what it means and how it feels to be wounded on the battlefield and on the scorching sands of Egypt, At this 'time, however, I feel like a seasoned soldier yes, up in the bit with grit and perhaps some grace at the President's call. I deem It an honor and privilege to have such a man aa leader to succor in word, deed and thought, the Joshua of the land. When I became a citizen of this Re public many, many years since. I im parted into my life the essence and spirit of this God-given land. When I was a foreigner I spoke as a foreigner. I understood as a foreigner, thought as a foreigner. But when I became an American I put away foreign things. I am loyal to the flag. It's Impossible to hold, allegiance- to two nations or two masters for either I will hate the one and love the other or else I will hold to one and despise the other. I have no prefix. I am an American only. x LOYALTY Aaaesament of Taxes. PORTLAND, March 17. (To the Edi tor.) Please advise for what period personal taxes are assessed, whether from March 1 to March 1, or" from January 1 to January 1. A. W. G. From March 1 to March i. The Beavers' Opening; Game By Jamea Barton Adams. Back from the fair Hawaiian land our ball assaulters come, their faces beautifully tanned, their muscles firm and plumb; their eyes are bright, their hearts are light and in their cranial knobs the fire is burning for the fight with rival bally cl,ubs. They rounded out in classy form where grows the spreading palm, where every whisper ing breeze Is warm and flush with pleasing balm; they put it over pigtail blokes in a way that was a shame and taught Una Sammy's soldier smokes the fine points of the game. The tinkling ukulele they played between their practice spurts, and mayhap In the gloaming strayed with Honolulan skirts. The eager demonstrative fan is storing in his nog the things he'll call the umpire whan his Judgment slips a cog, and fair fanette with closed eye lids lies In her couch and dreams of how she'll spank her dainty kids until she busts the seams when fav'rlte home team laddie lands upon the pellet's hide and drives It through the fielder's hands and makes a safety slide. Soon will the tradesman leave his store, the barber shut up shop, the office man will lock his door, the smith his tools will drop, and all with one accord will prance on eager, hurrying feet to press the - fullness of the pants upon the bleacher seat. The yells of son of toil will blend with yells of millionaire un til they into tatters rend the echoes in the air. War news at which we long have stared will now be classed as tame, for, prithee, what Is war com pared with the Beavers' opening game? In Other Days: Twenty-five Years Ago. From The Oregonian. March 18, 1893. Astoria. The libel case of the State of Oregon vs. O. W. Dunbar, of Town Talk, has resulted In the conviction of Dunbar. The sentence was to one year. ine article concerned -Samuel Elmore. Christine Kilsson's return to her na tive country of Sweden as the wife of the Spanish Ambassador, the Count de la Casa Miranda, rounds out well her romance of real life. She was a farm er's child on the hills when her gift or song was discovered, and after a most fortunate life as queen of song on two continents, she returns as a member of the Swedish court. Pattl Rosa in "Dolly Varden." at the Park Theater last night scored a tre mendous hit in her winking song, "Over the High Brick wall." Joe Cawtborne as a comedian was a hit from the start. The Elks Lodge presented Mme. Rosa with a banjo wrought in red and white roses. A letter from Lorlng. Alaska, says W. W. Waud, of Portland, was drowned March 9 in Tongas Narrows. Mrs. Lionel Stagge has written to The Oregonian an interesting letter of news events from Washington. She says that Robert N. La Follette. of Wis consin, who was the youngest member of the ways and means committee, is missed this season. Mrs. J. H. Olds, of Lafayette, who has been In St. Vincent's Hospital here sev eral months since an accident on an electric car, has been taken to her home. Henry Hallam will sing "Then Tou'll Remember Me" in the production of "The Bohemian Girl" soon to be at the Park. Half a Century Ago. From The Oregonian. March 10, 186T. New York. Skating has been the great sensation of the Winter. For four weeks and a day all the city has been on a bender, with Tom and Jerry and Flint. Sleighing Is the best -In 20 years. What a popular pastime In spite of frosts, for aU the belles and all the beaux. To squeeze each ether's hands beneath the buffaloes. Messrs. Grlmshaw & Co. have opened a matrimonial bureau at 139 East Eighth street. New York. Their ad vertisement says: "Here the names of ' all respectable parties matrimonially disposed are registered and references and introductions exchanged and ef fected." The agency is to be on the European plan. Caleb Lyons, late Governor and ex officio superintendent of all the Idaho ans, the Bolseans, the Owyheeans, the Lewtstonians and Shoshones, Is In Washington City petitioning the Sen ate for a bill of relief, authorizing the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to credit him with $45,660, "money dis bursed without vouchers." Mr. Lyons lost the money December last, being robbed apparently while In a sleeping car between New York and Washing ton. Anson Dart, formerly superintendent of Indian affairs In Oregon, has writ ten a letter to the New York Herald opposing the transfer of the Indian Bureau to the War Department. Dr. Charles Blach and Miss Leben baum, of this city, were married Sun day. March 17. - Long years of happi ness, doctor, to you and yours. VERSIONS OF GETTYSBURG SPEECH Lincoln Claaale aa He Rewrote It Con tain Word Some Others Omit. LA GRANDE, Or., March 16. (To the Editor.) Kindly Inform us whether or not, as delivered by Mr. Lincoln, the word "poor" appeared In the Gettys burg speech In the, following sentence: "The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here have consecrated it, far above our (poor) power to add or detract-In attempting to decide this question we find that a number of standard works in which the speech appears, do not agree. For example: The word "poor" does appear in the speech as It is printed In Modern Eloquence, Vol. 8, page 774: World's Famous Orations, edited by W. J. Bryan. Vol. 9. page 254; editorial appearing In The Oregonian, November 30, 1913, entitled "A World's Treasure," which contains an excerpt from the address of Lord Curzon, de livered at Edinburgh University, pay ing tribute to Mr. Lincoln. On the other hand, the word "poor" does not appear In the speech as it is printed in Warner's Library of World's Best Literature. Vol. 16. page 9074; History of American Nation (Jack-man). Vol. 8. page 1923, and Biography of Lincoln, by Charles Wallace French (American Reformers, published by Funk & Wagnalls). ROBERT S. EAKIN.. There are slightly varying versions of Mr. Lincoln's Gettysburg address. After the dedication at which It was delivered Mr. Lincoln wrote It out for a - fair given In Baltimore.' The word "poor" appears therein. Play tn -BOO.- PORTLA'ND, March 17. (To the Edi tor.) Kindly explain the following in the game of "500": . When is a heart a diamond, and a diamond a heart? Diamonds are trumps. Partner leads with small dia mond, adversary follow with 10 of hearts, and I place the ace of diamonds. I thought to take the trick, but my ad versary took the trick." Why or how? A BEGINNER. The Jack of diamonds Is played as a heart when hearts are trumps; and the Jack of hearts is played as a diamond when diamonds are .trumps. There are no other suit changes. Your adversary was not entitled to the trick If the play has been correctly stated. When Purchase Is Defective. PORTLAND. March 18. (To the Edi tor.) About two months ago I bought from a large department store in this city-a waist for 3.$9. I wore It twice, for about a few hours, to go to town. The second time after I had worn it I noticed that the silk was all coming apart, making it useless to wear. Do you think it would be right for me to ask thji oredltman of the store to give me creSlt for the waist? Would It be useless to call for the reason that I kept the waist too long? MRS. M. C An adjustment oould hardly be ex pected after so long a delay In report ing the defect Key of Bastille. LACOarB, Or., March 1. (To the Editor.) Can you tell me the where abouts of the key of the bastille, the key that Lafayette sent to Washington after the fall of the bastille? IRA G. 6OULE. It is preserved in a glass casket hanging in the main hall at Mount Vernon, former home of George Wash ington. Information on Coos Bay. GRESHAM. Or., March 17. (To the Editor.) Please Inform me where I could get information concerning the Coos Bay country. MRS. J. E. Write to Chamber of Commerce at Marshfield or North Bend.