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About Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 23, 1918)
TIIE MORNING OREGONIAN, MONDAY, DECEMBER 23, 1018. PORTLAND. OREGON. Sintered at Portland (Oregon) Postofflee as aecond-c!M8 mail matter. , Subscription rates Invariably in advance: (By Mall.) Dully Sunday Included, one year S8 .00 T?ai)y. Sunday included, six months . 4 .-5 THoilf Bun Hoi. innliirfari h . mrtth . 2 . J Iaily, Sunday included, one month T'ailj-, without Sunday, one year 2 o Taiiy, without Sunday, six months 3. -'5 Daily, without Sunday, one month .W "Weekly, one year ...........:....-... I-00 Sunday, one ypar ........ - bunday and 'Weekly 3. GO r (By Carrier.) Ia11y, Punday Included, one year ......$9.00 T?aily, Sunday included, one month...... .1 raily, Sunday Included, three months.... 2. -a lai'y, wittiput Sunday, one year J T'aily, vt hout Sund.i y. t hree months.. .. . J. 05 XaJly, without Sunday, one. month .65 "How to Remit Send postoffice money or Tpr, express or personal check on your local Vmnk. Stamps, coin or currency are at own er's risk. live postof ficeaddres3 in full. In cluding county and state. -Postage Rates 12 to 18 partes. 1 cent: IS In rases, - cents; 34 to -11 pages, 3 cents: IiO to 6tl pages, 4 cents; 2 to 76 pi?es, 5 renta: to pages, 6 cents. Foreign post ai;e, double rates. Eastern Business Office Verree Conk ltn, Urunswii k building. New Tork; Verree Conklin, Ptoser buildinr, Chicago; Verree & f-nnklin. Free Prss building. Ketrolt. Mich.; Saa 1'rancisco representative, 11. J. Cldwell. MEMBER OF TUB ASSOCIATED TRESS. ' The Associated Press is exclusively enti tled to the use for republication of all news cUfcp.ttches credited to it or not otherwise credited to this paper, and also the local news published herein. -All rights of rr publication of special dis patches herein are also reserved. 1DKTLAND, MONDAY, DEC. 23, 1D18. GETTING AT THE TRGTII. "The Oregonian simply has got off wronp. K-obody wu.nt8 to destroy the wooden ship bniltllnff Industry of the Northwest, but a U who are interested in the development of tltis section would like to see It put on a permanent basis. At best It could not long be continued on Govomment subsidies which were only Justified by war. Naturally and justly war contracts are being cancelled everywhere and war-time operations are giv ing way to the activities of peace. The Oregonian's contention that the Government Kiiould continue to build vessels in Portland, paying tfie builders 10 per cent profit on a gross cost that Is quadruple that of nor mal times, has no convincing argument back of It. Salem Capital Journal. The Oregonian proposes to keep alive discussion of wood shipbuilding so long as there is a single uncon vinced citizen or ignorant editor in Oregon, or prejudiced and unenlight ened shipping administration at Wash ington. What .The Oregonian has de manded, and the shipbuilders have a right to expect, and the public will approve, is that the Shipping Board carry out its contracts. The wood shipbuilders of the Co lumbia River were making commer cial vessels, which were practicable and saleable. They were required, over their protest, to make vessels which were not practicable and are, therefore, not saleable. Because of its own gross blunders, the Emergency Fleet Corporation 6ays the wood ship is a failure. The wood ship is not a failure. The typo of wood ship de signed by the Government may be a failure. This Salem paper denounced wood chips as wooden tubs, and talked reck lessly and falsely of waste by the con tractors, and denounced the builders as subsidy-hunters and grafters, and wanted an end put to the whole busi ness of wood shipbuilding. It is hard to have patience with ait attitude so perverse, provincial and little, or with expressions so wantonly and wickedly untrue. They do not at all help the great work of building up Oregon. There is every reason why such communities as Salem should look with favor upon legitimate enterprise In and about Portland. If the build ing of ships out of wood in a country having timber as a principal resource, Is not legitimate industry, we shall have to go back, -doubtless, to the days of real estate exploitation of wild-cat town lots and fruitless orchards, where everybody can get rich at somebody else's expense. If the wood shipbuilders emegTe from this adventure with Government red-tape, inefficiency, indifference, dilatoriness and outright discrimina tion with a cent of profit, 'tlfey will be fortunate. They have invested mil lions at the command of the Govern ment, and they are to have a hard time getting their money back, to say nothing of making anything at all. They will have, besides, to find their own means of readjustment, so that they can build ships which they know will be seaworthy, and remunerative. They deserve help, not hurts, from either the Government at Washington or from anybody at home. Where did the Capital Journal get its. authority for its statement that the cost of wood shipbuilding has quad rupled? It has not, even with much higher wages and the greatly advanced cost of machinery and materials, all under Government regulation. HASTENING THE DAY OF DROUTH. The prediction made only a short while ago, that at the existing rate of withdrawals of alcoholic liquors from the bonded warehouses of the country there would be a million gal lons on hand on July 1 next upon which no revenue tax would ever be paid, now seems likely to be falsified by events. The amount of liquor on hand is only 11S, 000, 000 gallons, according to a recent report of the Internal Revenue Department, and this is being withdrawn at a steadily increasing rate. There Is, In the ."wet" states, of course, a distinct movement in the direction of hoarding spirituous liquor. Advancing prices do not appear to operate as a check. The dearer the whisky, the more certain people are determined to obtain it. Only a few weeks ago the news dispatches re corded the case of a man in an East Irn city who consulted in Insurance actuary to learn the number of years he might mathematically be expected to live, with a view to laying in a supply based upon his average rate. of consumption. Every once in a while we read of a stock of liquors put by with similar providence. With less than six months to go, and only 118, 000,000 gallons on hand, it begins to look as ir tne real day or drouth for most of the people of the United States would set in before the time ordained by the statutes and the proclamation "of the President. Some of the hoarded liquor, It Is reasonable to suppose, will be tempted out of its hiding places as soon as the public sources of supply have dried up. Fabulous prices will be paid by the bibbers and tipplers who are bound to have their liquor whether they enjoy any of the other conven iences and luxuries of life or not. Judging from experience in "dry" ter ritory, there is practically no limit to the price that a few Individuals will pay for liquor when liquor is scarce. There, will then ensue a period In which we shall be treated to the fa miliar cry that more liquor Is being sold than ever before in the history of the country. "You can get all you want If you only have the price; there is plenty of it," we shall be told. But the fact will remain that it Is not plen- tiful, els the prlc,a would not be In ordinate, and that every drink con sumed from now henceforth brings us that much nearer to the. day of actual drouth. It is absurd to suppose that any moonshining industry that may spring up will be able to satisfy more than an inconsequential fraction of the old demand. It looks at this writing as if the country would be dry for all but a few of the forehanded ones some months before the terms of world peace are finally fixed Ijy the Paris conference. BATES STILL GO tPWABD. Two peculiarities of Government operation of railroads are that every revision of rates Is upward and that all changes in rules are adverse to the shipper. That is the case with the new rates proposed for forest products from the Pacific Coast to the Middle West and East. Already half the mills In this section are closed be cause war business has stopped and peace business has barely begun, yet the Railroad Administration gives the screw another twist. Every turn of the screw raises the cost of living on the Pacific Coast and renders it more difficult to make a living. We must pay more for all we eat or wear or use or put Into buildings, and must be handicapped by high transportation cost in selling our products in competition with dis tricts which are nearer market. Per haps the alternately blizzard-swept and sun-scorched " East thinks we should be compelled to pay for the privilege of living in "God's country." We appreciate the privilege, but we don't want to vegetate. There was a time) the bad old time when the railroads were run by soul less corporations when all rate re visions were downward, and some un grateful citizens may be Incited by the high cost of Government operation to sigh for those days, even at the risk of being called reactionaries. ENLISTED FOB THE WAR. Fpeaklngr of The Oregonian. we have beard some complaint the past year from Repub licans to the effeot tht It flirted too much with the opposition. The reason Is now made apparent.- There isn't any opposition. The ! Oregonian," according to its own confosslon In its issue of the 17th. has no political con victions but is "Independent." r It throws a bouquet at itself, however, "in the same article by saying that It "has usually found itself in accord with Republican principles." Corvallis Uazette-TImea. The opinions of The Oregonian are the product of independent thought and deliberation by The Oregonian, and are not made to order for it by any political organization. The Cor vallis idea of "political convictions" is to wait and see what the Repub lican platform has to say, and then to join the cuckoo chorus. If there is complaint that The Ore gonian has "flirted too much with the opposition" it hasn't reached head quarters. What opposition? The Democratic National Administration? Well, the sovereign American people in their wisdom saw fit to choose a President who was and Is a Democrat. He was the voice of America In the war, and its grand commander; and The Oregonian enlisted for the war. So did everybody and every Institution worth the name American. The .war could not have been won quickly, and perhaps not at all, witl a divided America, We have no regrets, and de serve no reproaches. HLRE AND THERE. Although Oregon copied its referen dum system largely from Switzerland, it does not seem wholly to have ac quired the spirit that pervades the small republic. A few weeks ago the taxpayers of Portland rejected a proposal slightly to increase the salaries of the smaller paid school teachers. The proposal was based on the increased cost of living. At about the same time , there was submitted in Zurich a proposition that the pay of all city and government employes who received less than 5000 francs should be increased .110 per cent. There, also, there was general dis cussion of the high cost of living, but the proposed increases were not In consequential. As already said, they amounted to 110 per cent. The in crease was approved by a large ma jority. There is this to be said In contrast: Portland is in the midst of seeming! abundance. There are cheap substi tutes for what have been considered the necessities of life. It is not a pleasant thought that the public be lieves that teachers should manage to exist with cheaper food and cheaper clothing than others, and probably that was not the inspiration of the vote. Apparent abundance . simply clouded the understanding of the seri ousness of the underpaid teacher's liv ing problem. In Switzerland there Is a grave shortage of food. Butter is rationed at the rate of one pound per person Lthe month. The sugar ration is also one pound. The oil or rat ration is slightly less. Cereals are unobtainable. Therefore the living problem of the salaried individual was plain. The food supply was sufficient for bare exist ence. There was no leeway in quan tity or quality. If the pay was not sufficient to procure the rations essen tial to life, life would cease. There was no room for prejudice or parsimony. Deprivation often begets sympathy and understanding. Probably most of those who voted In the negative 'in Portland do not know the meaning of deprivation. FREEDOM OF THE SEAS. If another name were given to the principle likely there would be less misconception of the meaning of "free dom of the seas" and less misuse of .he term. In our own land of freedom there is not complete unanimity of under standing of freedom of speech or free dom of the press. Some individuals hold that the constitutional guarantee permits them to write or speak that which may incalculably Injure the great majority, that freedom of speech and press is license to advocate an archy, lawlessness or immorality. Germany put a similar construction upon freedom of the seas. It insisted upon its freedom at sea to commit lawlessness and inhumanity. In the guise of freedom of the seas It pro moted anarchy of the seas. The thing to be striven for Is a law of the seas that shall insure the high est welfare of all nations. When It is said that freedom of the seas does not exist in fact it is meant that there is no law of the seas in fact. There are certain customs that have attained the term "international law," but there is no enforcing power, no international jurisdiction. Violation of international law at sea is left to the will or ability of the injured nation to punish, or prevent recurrence. If formation of an. ideal League of Nations, is successful, the league will perform, as one function, administra- tion of clearly defined laws of the sea. There will then be no "freedom" of the sea In the sense that belligerents will, as In the past, establish by might the superiority of their Interests over the Interests of neutrals. Nor In time of peace will the right to sail the seas and enter any port in pursuit of any lawful commerce be at the sufferance of any one nation. There will be equality on the seas, definitely de fined and fully enforced by tho com bined power of the natons. This, if the ideal is attained. That there are practical obstacles to for mation of such a league which may or may no be overcome, no man can deny. The goal may be given many different terms. One may call it "equality on the seas," or "interna tional sea protectorate," . or "demo cratic Jurisdiction ' over the seas," or something else. There will be free dom of the seas under any name, if one understands that freedom is not license or anarchy. DEN5IAN IS JCSTLFUED. That was a forcible argument which William Dcnman, ex-chairman of the Shipping Board; made In justification of the policy which he advocated of building wood ships' to meet the war emergency, while General Goethals," seized with an Illusion of grandeur, tried to force through his Hog Island steel plan regardless of expense and to limit wood ship construction to the very minimum. The new Shipping Board headed by Edward N. Hurley has not been too friendly to the wood ship, as Its re cent action proves, but over half of the tonnage which it has produced is of wood, excluding requisitioned ves sels of both wood and steel. While the despised wood vessels have been going regularly into the water and carrying cargoes across the sea. Hog Island has been devouring millions of dollars, is not yet finished and has completed only one ship. Events are justifying Mr. Denman's opposition to the Goethals policy. The Hog Island experience proves the utter incapacity of the Government to put through a big enterprise eco nomically and quickly. Waste and In efficiency are the inevitable conse quence of spending other people's money when there Is no close super vision, and the 100.000,000 Americads whose money is going Into Hog Island cannot possibly keep a close watch on the job. That experience also In dicates that there is a point beyond which an enterprise cannot expand and still produce greater economy and good, quick work. The limitations are those of any one man's capacity to keep nls eye on everything In his care. Possibly Hog Island may be launch ing large numbers of ships about the time when the Peace Congress ad journs. It Is the most monumental failure of the war, a match for the aircraft programme. ATHLETICS OVEBSEAA. Plans afoot In France for a big series of athletic meets, modeled some what after the Olympic games, prom ise a revival In athletics which will far more than offset the loss to com petitive sport brought by the war. General Pershing, it Is said, has given his approval to the proposed games in the Army which, aided by the ath letic organizations of the Young Men's Christian Associaton, Knights of Co lumbus and kindred bodies, will com bine the accepted athletic events with the more military features, such as target shooting and grenade throwing. The advices from France say that the proposed contests will not be con fined to the American Army, but will conclude, after the various company, regimental, divisional and ' Army championships have been decided, in a great inter-allied military Olympic meet, aescnuea as the "most extensive series of athletic contests ever held." The news from overseas indicates that the games will be reallv a sub stitute for the accepted Olympic games wmcn in the regular course of events will be held next in 1920. They will be limited to members of the Ameri can. French, British, Italian and Bel gian armies, and will not, in tho strict sense of the modern Olympiads, be open to all comers. It is more than likely that the war win do much to modernize the time honored Olympic games which date back to prehistoric times, Strabo at tributing their origin to the Hera kleidae after their conquest of the Peloponnesus. But the first glimpse of anything approaching historic fact in connection with .the games is their so-called revival by Iphitos, King of Elis, with the assistance of the Spar tan lawgiver, Lycurgus, about 884 B. C. At first, It is conjectured, only Peloponesians participated In the Olympic games, but gradually the other Greek states were attracted to them and the festival became Pan hellenic. Originally and -for a long time none were allowed to contend except those of pure Hellenic blood; but after the conquest of Greece by the Romans the latter sought and ob tained this honor and both Tiberius and Nero figure in the list of Roman victors. With the decline of Greece the Olympic games were discontinued and only in recent years have the historic contests been revived. American ath letes have, for the last 20 years, fig ured prominently in the games which only once, at St. Louis in 1904, have been held in this country. In 1898 the games were first revived at Athens, where a few American ath letes took part. In 1900 the games were held at Paris, where Americans showed Europe their prowess on the track and fifld, and In 1906 Athens again held the games. In 1908 at London and in 1912 at Stockholm, Americans made a clean sweep of many of the events. The contests were to have been held in Berlin in 1916, but the war intervened, and It is fairly safe to assume that the con tests which the schedule calls for in 1920 will not be held at tne Prussian capital. Portland and Oregon take a peculiar interest in these games because of the great array of athletes from this sec tion who have won honors against the best in the world. In 1906 one athlete from the Pacific Northwest competed at Athens Bert Kerrigan, of the Mult nomah Club of Portland. Despite an injury received in a tidal wave before reaching Gibraltar. the Portland jumper returned with a medal, having taken third place. At London in 190S a great trio of athletes from Oregon won far greater honors and blazed Oregon's name high on the record of things athletic. These three were Dan Kelly, who took second place in the broad jump; Forest Smithson, who broke all world's rec ords in winning the high hurdle race, and A. C. Gilbert, who came home a first prize winner in the pole vault. There were only three entries from Oregon and the Pacific Northwest, but each did his part to bring honor to his home state. Again, in 1913 at Stockholm, ath letes from Oregon showed that the victories of the previous Olympiad were not accidents, but were real products of a great country where great athletes are developed. Martin Hawkins, of Portland, won third prize in the high hurdle events, losing only to Americans, while Sam Bellah. vaul- ter, and Walter McClure. distance run ner, defeated all foreign competitors and lost only to Americans in the finals. Portland, therefore, may be par doned If It looks on the Olympic games with a certain amount of pride, as there it has been able to show to the world just what it can produce. Now, in the reorganization of the games which war will doubtless bring about, Oregon is again ready to vie with the world, as Oregon's best are now in France and these boys have become as well versed in things military as they formerly were in things athletic. The Olympic games have had. as a prominent feature, centuries ago and again In the modernized games, events based on the wars of old. The discus throw, apparently, is a relic of a long forgotten weapon, although history does not make its origin clear, and it is possible the disc may have been purely a toy as is our modern quoit. The Javelin throw is purely milltiary in character, but It is based on a form of weapon now obsolete in warfare. The marathon race, the gruelling run ning event of 26 miles 385 yards, is histories and commemorative of the victory of the Greeks over the Per sians in the battle of Marathon in about 480 B. C. Its incorporation in the games apparently began soon after that period. That the war Just closing will leave its traces on athletic endeavor already seems assured. The established events will probably remain, but they will be called upon to accept as competing features contests which are based on modern warfare. Grenade throwing seems likely to play an important part in future competition. Already the Americans have shown their prowess at this. The Yanks, refusing to ac cept the British and French style of stiff-arm throwing and used to hurl ing baseballs, showed their teachers In short order that tho method em ployed by them from childhood on the baseball diamonds of the United States was far superior, and they proved their right to scoff at the European method of grenade tossing by shattering dis tance and accuracy records. Rifle shooting, too, will he one of the prominent features of the forth coming competitions. In 1908 at Lon don, it may be recalled, Americans de feated all comers with the rifle, but it cannot be taken for granted that the Yanks will have as easy a time in the 'future. WorttiV competition will likely be furnished by our allies., who for the last four years have been sleeping with their rifles at their sides, eating with the weapons at one hand and daily engaging in rifle combat with the boche where there was far more than a gold medal for the prize. The Austrians might have foreseen that they would be defeated when they saw that archdukes were put in command of their armies. Only one Austrian archduke won important bat tles Charles of Napoleon's time and he won his victories in Europe while the .little corporal was in Egypt. The other archdukes won their victories In the fleldof matrimony and diplomacy. The 84,284 Jobs secured for soldiers by, the Federal Employment Service do not include the Jobs that were wait ing for the men when they came back, and the two together will go far toward laying the bugaboo of unem ployment. It is not yet demonstrated that there will not be a labor shortage, rather than a surplus, in the recon struction times. Snubuta, Miss., gets on the roll of dishonor by lynching two men and two women negroes accused of murder. When the thousands of negro soldiers get back into civil life, much "white trash" is going to revise its conduct. There is no room to boast of progress In conservation, when children die in the New York schools for lack of food. Conservation should begin with human life and health, leaving birds, game and trees for later consideration. The number of under officers in the Army Is not at hand, but it is large, and if one falls from grace occasion ally the percentage is not alarming to the welfare of the Nation. The appeal of Mr. Bill Strandborg for moe nuts for the kids' Christmas should be heeded. If every "nut" In the city were to send a pound he would sleep better this week. That Polish editor who says the Jew Is an agitator is a long way off. The Jew has been a persuader and lately became a fighter, but agitator With probability of snow at the end of the week, the siVxll boy who reads the papers will figure on a sled in his stocking Christmas morn. That murder from ambush in Baker County will not long be a mystery. Bootleg whisky will loosen the tongue of the murderer. If a woman could stick a few pin feathers in a fish and stuff It as she would a turkey, It might be a fine sub stituteT ' ' Your guest on the $1.50 slipped to a hotel man never will know who did it, but he will have a great opinion of you. v That alleged murderer at Muskegon, Mich., pleaded guilty Saturday night by hanging himself. Oregon is not lagging in the Red Cross call; it's her usual gait, with a slam-bang finish. Davis, the bank robber, will be home for Christmas, but what a home coming! Mrs. Spencer has returned to tell us to eat mora fish. Mrs. Spencer talks sense. you do not find it advertised this year, it's not made and for sale. Get a Red Cross button today and become a "dollar-a-year" man. War-ime inflation has got Into Christmas expectations. A five-day week does not help the cook or housewife any. Any gift is "Ideal" if there is good wlU with it, . . DISPOSITION OF TROOPS GIVES Table and Article la Sunday Oregoalan Answer II amy Inquiries. In the Sunday Oregonian, December 22 (page 21. first section), was pub lished a table showing; the assignments to divisions of various infantry and other units. Also there was therein given latest available information as to disposition of numerous military or ganizations In France, and those des ignated for early return were indi cated. Readers of The Oregonian who are Interested In soldiers in France are urged to consult the information men tioned. The data aforementioned answer ful ly the queries of these correspondents: Mrs. J. M. Barker, Portland. A Friend. Mrs. Kister, Portland. Subscriber, Ilwaco. Wash. C. I. Williams, Banks. Or. Mrs. Freda Ross, Hoqulara, Wash. Soldier's Sister, Portland. Interested. Corvallis, Or. A Subscriber. Goble, Or. Anxious Mother, Montesano, "Wash. An Anxious Mother. Portland. Soldier's Mother. Portland. A Reader, Salem. Or. A Slater. Centralis, Wash. H. I. S., Portland. Mrs. II. E. Smith, Oalvin. Wash. Constant Reader. Hammond. Or. Mrs. W. T. Beverldge. Grldly, CaL Mrs. O. W. O.. Portland. A Subscriber. Portland. Mrs. K L. Mead. Bend. Or. A Soldier's Sister. Portland. M. E. S.. Heppner. Or. Mm. J. G. V'.. Pe Ell. Wash. H, II. II.. Aberdeen. Wash. Anxious Sister, Tillamook. Or. Anxious Wife. Independence, Or. V. S. O.. Portland. Mrs. O. J., Metolius. Or. Soldier's Wife. Dryad, Wash. M. J. H.. Portland. Once Member Battery B, Clata kanie. Or. The same data answer so far as pos sible: Subscriber. Washoural. Wash. Fathers of 91st Division Boys. Port land. Mrs. D. Churchill. Eagle Creek. Or. Mrs. M. D.. Dallas, Or. Information Is not available that an swers these correspondents: H. B.. Portland. Mrs. R. L. Schaller. Portland. Soldier's Sister. Portland. A Mother, Toledo, Or. Mrs. A. M., Dundee, Or., A Soldier's Wife, Eatacada, Or., Mrs. H. C. E, Prlnevlllo. Or. Anxious Mother, Woodburn, Or, Anxious Mother. Tillamook. Or. Service Star. Front Lake, Wash. A Reader, Portland. LET RED CROSS HAVE WAR FLEET Writer Wonld Tarn German Ships Over to Society to Be Scrapped. PORTLAND. Or, Dec. 22. (To the Editor.) Under date of December 18. from Paris, appeared an article where in it was recounted that the American Peace Delegation would take its stand tor the sinking of the German fleet which has been surrendered. If this be "space filler." well and good; but, on the contrary, if there Is any truth therein, and such an idea is about to take shape and form, in the name of God and suffering humanity, let us pause before an act of foolishness, to say nothing of lasting regret, is com mitted. Are the allies no better than the Huns from whom this fleet was taken, that we, too, must ruthlessly destroy millions of dollars' worth of value? Is the economic condition of the world, notwithstanding the vast expenditures of this greatest of wars, still so ple thoric as to necessitate this additional "bleeding?" Let us get away from the days of superstition and witchcraft with their ideas that the inanimate In struments used to commit the wrong which are contaminated and accursed, and must therefore be destroyed. There is value in this fleet, big value Why destroy that which -could be so advantageously used in relieving hu man suffering? Is the wonderful work of the Red Cross, especially during the past four years, to count for nothing with us, and not bespeak our considera tion? Turn the German fleet over to the Red Cross, with the understanding that it Is to be "scrapped." but that the avails are to be administered by that society. In our fight for world freedom and democracy this fleet was acquired. Let the world have the bene fit of the value there is in it through the efficient management of the Red Cross. AMERICAN. S'EGtECT IX CASUALTY REPORTS Wife of Wonnded Soldier Sees Gross In efficiency Somewhere. PORTLAND, Dec. 22. (To the Edi tor.) I have received the official an nouncement that my husband "was wounded in action, degree undeter mined, about October 6." The end of the letter reads: "Any further Information received by the War Department will be transmitted to you promptly." It certainly is not with great relief and assurance I have read the last statement when two and one-half months passed before I received the first report. This is the second Instance of neg lect of the War Department that has happened in our family, the other being a cousin's death on September 28. The only notification received was the land ing of his personal belongings at his mother's door. The women of America give willingly their men for service, but we expect efficiency from the men that stay at home to protect our interests and theirs to the best of their ability. They have evidently fallen down In one of the most Important parts of the department and I feel that It la the right and duty of every American citi zen to Investigate the reason of the neglect. I have registered my complaint in Washington, and I hope that every person who has suffeed from any neg lect will issue complaint that we may be able to have a Government to up hold the principle that our Constitu tion stands for. Let us make it the duty of every American citizen to find men who will have principle enough within themselves to see that that prin ciple Is carried out. WIFE OF A SOLDIER. REMEMBER. When you say, "I'm glad to meet you," As a friend comes up to greet you. Make your smile as sweet as honey in a clover bloom at dawn; Put some heart-throb in the greeting. For the one that ypu are meeting May be hungry for such message and 'twill help him when you're gone. There's a world of help and cheering In a handclasp that's endearing; That is quick and warm and hearty, though no word is ever said; 'Tlsn't Just the touch that lingers. Just a clasp of palm and fingers. But the glow of sincere spirit that lives on when years have fled. Life is not a path enduring. Filled with episodes alluring. But a rugged trail, hard-trodden, through a wilderness of woe; But each soul has charm and power To produce some tender flower That shall yield a little fragrance as along that trail we go. GRACE E. HALL. 607 East Forty-ninth street North. Address of Soldier. NORTH BEND. Or., Dec. 20. (To the Editor.) Can I learn the home address of a soldier of the 162d Infantry, by writing the auxiliary of Company C, 162d. His home is in Portland some where. ' CONSTANT HEADER. The auxiliary officers could no doubt furnish or obtain the address. PARADOX 8EE.V IJT SHIP-SINKING Men Who Plan Lea rue of Peace Fear to Attempt Minor Adjustment. PORTLAND, Or.. Dec 22. (To the Editor.) Can it be possible that the press dispatches are correct in stating the peace commissioners are seriously considering sinking the German fleet "for fear that It could not be divided among the allies without causing trouble?" It surely seems that there must be some mistake. These same commissioners are also reported to be about to form a league of nations to prevent future wars. They can have but little confidence In their own ability along that line if the only way they can find to avoid serious trouble among themselves in such a comparatively small matter as this is by destroying- property that belongs to their countries collectively property that has been bought and paid for with the blood of millions of the best men of their countries. While it is true, as far as our com missioners are concerned, that we did not enter the war for the purpose of acquiring this, or any other kind of property, it has come to us as a result of the war. just as the Philippine Islands were thrust on us as a result of the Spanish-American war. We did not want them but we did not side step the responsibility when It came. To destroy those ships would be simi lar to blowing up our Interstate bridge if there should be a disagreement be tween Clarke and Multnomah Counties over the tolls. It reminds a person of two children who own a toy jointly and cannot agree as to the time each should have it to Play with. What parent would say that the only way to settle the dispute was to destroy the toy? Another question: If the 'proposed "League of Nations" is formed will not the result necessarily be to docreaao the number of future wars, but at the same time to Increase the magnitude of those we do have? INQUIRER. Open Lands for Soldiers. TILLAMOOK. Or.. Dec. 21. (To the Editor.') (J) To whom should one write for Information concerning Oregon Government lands that may be filed on by the soldiers that will be home after peace Is finally assured? (2) Is the 55th Arnunltlon Train, C. A. C-. listed to return soon? INTERESTED READER. (1) There has been no special land settlement legislation passed in behalf of soldiers of the present war, although Congress has plans under considera tion. Soldiers, of course, now have the usual homestead rights, but to locate themselves requires personal Inquiry and investigation of open Government lands. Township maps can be obtained at the various United States land of fices in Oregon Burns, La Grande, Lake View, Portland. Roseburg. The Dalle. Vale but official literature de scriptive of soil characteristics and desirability of any particular quarter section is not available. (2) Yes. Three Principles Muirt Stand. PORTLAND. Dec 20. (To the Edl tor.) It is to be hoped that at the final signing of the "league of na tions" the following in some form will be incorporated: Nothing herein shall be construed as to require the United States of America to depart from its traditional policy of protective tariff, enforcement of the Monroe Doctrine or the exclusion of undesirable Asiatic immigration. If an abrogation of these principles or any one of them shall come out of their doings, it cannot and will not stand; nor is there any power on earth. singly or combined, able to cram such goody-goody agreement down the throat of the American people. This Mr. Wilson and his advisers should clearly understand. C E. CLIN E. lie Looked Like One. PORTLAND. Dec 20. (To the Edi tor.) I read your article Sunday, De cember 16. In which you discredit the reading of character or adaptation to professions by the appearance. I beg leave to disagree, and for the following reason: I was sitting this morning in the Union depot at Portland. I had Just learned that the train for Medford would not reach there until 11 o'clock tonight. I was feeling disappointed, when a man approached me and said: "Are you the man accompanying a dead body from Everett?" "No," I said. "Beg your pardon," said he; "you look like him." Now I know I should have been an undertaker. GRANVILLE LOUTH ER. Warships Worth Salvage. GRESHAM. Or.. Dec. 21. (To the Editor.) Why sink the German war ships? When millions of human beings are sending forth the agonizing cries for food and clothing. When the Red Cross and kindred organizations are earnestly appealing to the public for funds with which to carry on their maganimous work; when .the taxpayers of all the war-ridden countries are being bur dened to the verge of bankruptcy to meet the enormous expense incurred by war conditions; is it not the height of prodigality to send these ships to the bottom of the sea? Why not scrap them and sell to the highest bidder and give the proceeds to the Red Cross. G. N. SAGER. Population of the World. PORTLAND, Dec 22. (To the Edi tor.) (1) To settle a dispute will you please give the world's population? (2) Also, what nation has the most people per square mile? CHAS. B. WILSON. (1) About 1.691,751,000. (2) Before the war Belgium was the most densely peopled nation, as such, unless one except the principality of Monaco, which is In fact a city. It Is doubtless true that there are other areas of extent equal to that of Belgium with as great or larger population, but they do not constitute nations in themselves. When President Left fnited States. PORTLAND, Or.. Dec. 22. (To the Editor.) Please advise whether at any time during his time In office any one of our Presidents left United States solL EDGAR A. NOVAG. In November, 1906. President Roose velt, while visiting the Panama Canal Zone, also visited the cities of Panama and Colon, neither of which was in United States territory or under the American flag. This Government, at the time, exercised control over the two cities for certain sanitary purposes. Relief From Naval Duty. FOREST GROVE. Or., Dec 21. (To the Editor.) To whom should a person apply to get a son discharged from the Navy, who enlisted on account of the war for four yearn, but is now needed at home. OLD SUBSCRIBER. The son makes application through bis commanding officer for extended furlough. Send him affidavits setting forth the need for him at home. Identity of CSth Infant it. AURORA. Or.. Dec. 21. (To the Edi tor.) I have a brother in France who writes his address. "5Sth Inf." Does that mean 68th regiment or 68th divi sion? If 68th regiment, what division would he be In? Is it ordered home? ANXIOUS SISTER. Fifty-eighth Infantry regiment. It is a part of the Fourth Division, in the Army of occupation. In Other Day. Twenry-nv Years Aa. From Tiie Oreronlaa of December 2S. Ib9S. Pernimbuco Startling rumors have reached here that the Insurgent fleet at Rio Janeiro after two days of desul tory fighting made a determined attack In force and captured the city. Plttaburg. A caveln disaster 1n the new addition of the Carnegie mine has occurred at Homestead. Fourteen or fifteen are known to be dead and many more are injured. Portland is inaugurating a big char ity campaign. A free Christmas dinner Is being arranged and. in addition, firms of the city axe donating huge quantities of food supplies, such as po tatoes, bread and cakes. The Fall terra of the University of Oregon closed today. Graduates of the rlas of '94 are the Misses Mellissa Hill. The Dalles; Amy Powell. .Astoria; Em ma Wold, Marw Collier and Carrie Friendly, Eugene, and L M. Glenn, Seat tle; J. A. Laurie, Anacortes; G. F. Welch. Astoria: P. L Brsttaln. Pals ley; E. M. Underwood, McMinnvllle, and O. W. Jones. Salem. - Fifty Years Asm. Frorn Trie Orcnlan ef Tecemrer 3. 1Q. From the Vienna Fremdenblatt: In the groat republic on the other side of the ocean, Ulysses Grant, the fortu nate GoniTnl who put down tho obsti nate resistance of the rebellious South ern states, has Just been chosen Presi dent. We find this fijmlflcent of tho fact that owing to the healthy national life of the American people and the. etrong innate qualities of the Anglo Saxon race, the Idea of a future Caesar never occurs, and no serious politician holds It possible that Ulysses Grant could some day by a sudden coup d'etat put Into his pocket the Constitution which he had sworn to protect. Victoria. The steamer Continental, from San Francisco, has been put Ini quarantine for smallpox. The schoon er Elizabeth Kimball is still In quar antine at Tort Townsend with several cases of smallpox aboard. Prospects for a gay evening at the Washington Guard's armory are flat tering. Turkeys are considered "out of reach" as good-sized fat turkeys are selling as high as i apiece. OLD ACADEMY DAYS RECALLED Death of Donarlns W. Taylor Reminds Claaamate of Time's Inroads. SAN FRANCISCO. Dec. 19. (To the Hditor.) The death of Douglas W. Taylor, following closely the passing of J. M. (Jim) Blossom, forcibly re-' minds me that but few of the old Port land Academy boys now remain to pay tribute to the memory of their de parted schoolmates. "Doug" Taylor was conscientious and painstaking as a student. His sub sequent success in the business world demonstrating the fact that Professor Galch's rigid but sympathetic training and his own invincible determination had equipped him well for life's strug gle. "Doug" excelled most of his school comrades in mathematics, and as a boy developed much talent as a speaker. His rendition one Friday afternoon of "Glory," the lines of which ran some thing like this: "The crumbling tomb stone, the gorgeous mausoleum, the sculptured marble and the venerable cathedral, all bear witness to the fn stinctive desire within us to be re membered by coming generations," I h.tve never forgotten. Ills delivery was clear, his voice earnest and eloquent, and the intervening years have never rased the impression then formed of his oratorical ability. Supreme Judge Harry Benson, Judge J. C. Moreland. Fred and Thomas Strong, Ben Selling. W. S. Chapman. K. V. Holman, Charlie Griswold. Dr. Theodore Humphries and perhaps Will Larid (though I think he was in a younger set), and the writer, are the only living male members of the Acad emy students of the '60s I am now abls to recall. Among the girls of those days who were trained by Miss York and Miss Rohb. a few.. I think, are liv inr. among the.-e being Mrs. W. Carey Johnson (Miss Josie DeVore). Mrs. Cof fin (Miss Irene Quivey). Mrs. Batch elder (Miss Sallle Campbell , the Robb sisters (Misses Mary and Sarah, whose, married names have escaped me), and Mrs. Edward Hall (Miss Nellie Thomp son ). "Doug" Taylor never shirked his duty and his death is dl.tlnctly a loss to the community in which his life was spent. EUGENE SHELBY. THE REDEEMED MAN. A vicious savage, rude and selfish he; Ilia wit and strength made him the king of beasts: And in the Jungles, where he held his feasts, Whate'er his belly craved or eye could sea And lusted for, hft power made him feel free To take. He rled, "The hills their cattle yield. Mine are the fruits of forest and ot field: Aye, all is mine and all was made for me." For ages this bold King prolonged the strife. But to a subtle force he bowed at last; His feet were shackled and his hands were bound. About his neck a baby's arms were wound. And love's unyielding fetters held him fast Safe moored unto the mother child and wife. F. W. PARKER. Oregon City. 77th la Action. SANDY, Or, Dec 21. (To the Edi tor.) Can you Inform me whether Company L. 305th Infantry. 77th Divi sion, was In attlon between October 30 and November 11; also If they are listed to come home? ANXIOUS. General Pershing's report indicates that the 77th Division made no ad vances and did little or no fighting after November 6. It was In serious fighting the first days of November. The division is not listed for return. Live to Be lOO Years. Thrift Magaxlne. Every man should strive to live at least 100 years and die all hitched up In working harness. Many a man feels that he would like to retire at about 60 and spend the rest of his years with nothing to do but lead a gold-headed cane around by the hand. It Is thrifty to stay on the Job Just as long as pos sible. Every man should make the century plant his favorite flower and the undertaker his worst enemy. Kallo Bid In 80O. . PORTLAND. Dec. 20 (To the Ed itor.) Please give me the correct way of playing nullo in 600. Can a bid of double nullo be made with all four playing? C. E. N. The bidder's partner does not play in either single or double nullo. In dou ble nullo the "widow" is left face down on the table. In single nullo the bidder traws the "widow" and discards. Assignment of 307th Infantry. DAYTON. Or.. Dec 19. (To the Ed itor.) Please Inform me whether a sol dier of the 159th Infantry. 40th Di. vision, who was transferred to the J07th Infantry, Company F. would still be in the 40th Division. L B. The 307th Infantry is in the 77th Division. N 1 "