10
THE
MORNING OREGONIAN, SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 1923
rmu0 (Drcipmtart
TAU1A11ED fik HK.NKY I- TITTOCK.
ublihvj by Th uresonlan Publlhln Co,
133 oLxtn ytrel, i'urtiand, Oregon.
A. JbluRDKN. - E.. B. PIPER.
Manager. Editor.
Th Oreroaian la a member of tha AaaiA
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WANTED, NEW SENATE LEADERS.
Death as the culmination of the
g illness of Senator Penrose only
cuses attention of republicans "on
e need which has long existed of
rong leadership in the senate
ebleness in this regard has come
a. juncture when acute distress of
e agricultural industry has caused
any western senators to take inde
ndent action for its relief. The
trty threatens to split Into three
irts the regulars, the moderates
d the farmers' bloc, all for want of
few strong men to whom all ele
ents" will look for leadership In
ilting on a policy for the entire
:rty.
One influence In bringing about
is situation is the disappearance of
ost of the strong men from New,
.lgland and other eastern states
ijo, formerly directed legislation by
rtue of acknowledged ability as
11 as readiness to act together,
ie survivors of this group have
own old and are losing the vigor
at is necessary to manage men and
lead them in political combat. No
hers of equal quality have risen in
elr section, but able men have
me to the front in the middle and
r west. Such are Kmoot among
e regulars, McCormlck and Len
ot among the moderates, Kenyon,
pper and McNary among the
rmers bloc, while Rorah might
eld more influence if he did not
rsue an erratic course. If the
rty is to get together, it must seek
irters in the young blood of the
st, and the east must acknowledg
at its supremacy is gone for lack o
an capable of preserving it
Until the party can get together
hind a man in the senate who can
ite and hold it together in support
a programme on which all ele-
ents agree, it is essential to the
ccess of President Harding's ad-
nistratlon that he take charge of
fairs. It Is for him to bring the
itjority party in the senate Into
reement on the measures that are
be carried through, also on the
en with whom he shall consult as
presenting the whole, not fractions,
the majority. Events may be
isted to bring the right men for-
ard, if they have not already done
but until that happens the presl-
nt should effect the needed com-
omises on legislation directly with
e members.
This does not by any means Imply
at Mr. Harding should play the
ss. His temperament forbids, as
es the temper of the times. No
e expects him to wield the lash of
rty discipline or official displeas-
e as Wilson did, and the attempt
ould only cause revolt. But this
sition as head of the government
d of his party and the respect in
hich he is held personally should
able him to act well the part of
ider, to whose judgment men will
fer and to whom men of differing
ews will yield something in order
at together they may make prog-
ss when by remaining at outs they
juld stand still. There will natur-
ly be a residue of senators who
nnot be induced to act with their
rty on any subject, who are repub-
ans in name only. It would be
jajrte of effort to endeavor to bring
l-ollette into line, and probably
9 same is true of Borah and John-
The only safe course is to
unt them with the opposition, but
should be possible to combine
her republicans into a working
ajority.
HERE THE INTERIOR PATS TOLLS.
The Chicago Tribune never
aaries of condemning the proposal
revive exemption of coastwise
ips from Panama canal tolls. One
Its favorite arguments is that the
terior states would derive no bene-
but would be taxed for the bene
of the seaboard states to the
nount of the tolls that would not
paid. What has it to say to the
t that the steamship Hattie Luck-
bach is scheduled to sail from gulf
rts from Portland on January 16,
d to the following statement re
rding her in the news columns of
e Oregonian:
board thm Hattie I.uckeiihach Is a
pment of agricultural machinery eent
n Chicago by the International Har-
ler company which. In addition to
rig the lai-geM shipment of Us kind
er received here, will be the first 1m
rtant shipment of freight to renrh Port
id via the barge lines of the Miaalssippl
. er.
The barge lines on the Mississippi
ver are open to all manufacturers
id merchants of Chicago and of the
itire Mississippi valley to carry
ods to New Orleans, whence ships'
rry them through the canal to Pa
flc ports. The tolls are a burden
l this commerce as on that .between
tcific and Atlantic ports, and atf
rt the price of all goods thus
ipped, also that of all goods
ipped by the same route from the
icific coast to Chicago and the
iddle states. They are a tax on the
terior as well as the seaboaTrt, and
emption would be a relief in one
se as in the other.
As the canal was built with money
ilected by taxation on all the
mercan people, they should-not in
iiiity be required to pay for its use
their domestic commerce the same
lis as are leviPd on the ships of
hor nations which did not contrib
e a dollar. Germany and Great
rltaln may ship agricultural lmple-
evnts to Portland in .competition
i tli those of Chicago and use the
canal on the same terms as manufac
turers in that city, who helped to
pay for the canal. '
Will not the Tribune again study
Article 3 of the Hay-Pauncefote
treaty and consider the meaning of
all the six rules governing the canal
which "the United States adopts"
not merely the first rule, on which it
has hitherto concentrated its atten
tion? It has maintained that the
first rule; requiring "terms of equity"
for vessels "of all nations" Includes
the United States among all nations.
If that be true, the other five rules
also apply to this nation. Those per
sons who hold that exemption of
coastwise ships would violate rule I
should consider in what position" the
United States would be, since the
other five also would apply. Then
let them consider whether Theodore
Itoosevelt and Johy Hay were cap
able of tying down this country with
such restrictions.
FILFILLINO ITS DUTY.
Here is an up-state view of the
Portland exposition and the method
of Us promotion with which The
Oregonian has no disposition to dis
agree. It is from the Bend Bulletin:
Some -weeks ago. when Portlanders who
favored the 1925 fair project were tryin?
to find reasons for it that would Justify
statewide participation in tho expense in
volved, the editor of The Oregonian wa
quoted as saying In substance that holding
the exposition would accomplish great ma
terial benefit to Oregon If It only rosults
In uniting all the elements of the state In
building towards an objective in which
they had confidence and towards which
they can build with enthusiasm. Assuming
that The Oregonian editor was correctly
quoted, it Is very easy to agree with him.
If the exposition results In uniting all the
elements of the state It will be a good
thing. No one will deny this, but If it does
not. what thenT If Instead of uniting It
pulls apart, if discord and controversies
are created, if the anti-Portland feud ia
renewed, will it be a good thjng?
It is not a good thing that dissen
sion has grown out of the original
fair plan. It will not be a good thinsr
if the new plan, when devised, shall
not be received with satisfaction and
approval. It will be, if the newer
and better understanding1 of the
state's temper, as expressed at the
state-wide meeting Thursday, is re
flected In the action of the executive
committee of the fair, to which was
delegated the authority and duty to
frame a new measure.
The Oregonian thinks the state at
large may have confidence that the
executive committee, recognizing its
opportunity and responsibility to
perform a ervic worth white, will
set about in all earnestness and good
faith to do it.
PASSING OF THE INDIAN WAR
VETERANS.
The death of another Oregon vet
eran of the Indian wars of 1855-6 is
suggestive of the relatively brief
period in which the west has been
claimed from its aboriginal inhabi
tants. It is a reminder too of the ad
vance we have made in the same time
In our method of dealing with the
Indians. It will always be a fruitful
theme for speculation whether, if wc
had been governed seventy or eighty
years ago by the more enlightened
policies which now prevail, the tur
moil and bloodshed which marked
the thirty-one years between the
breaking out of the Cayuse war In
1847 and the Bannack uprising in
1878 might not have been avoided.
It was inevitable that the Indian
should retire before the march of
civilization, but war may not have
been indispensable to the change. Of
ficial red tape was the cause of most
of the conflicts that arose in the
early times. The government made
treaties with the tribes. In the mis
taken notion that thev were bindin"
upon all members, and the settlers
proceeded to regard them as binding
from the moment that they were
signed, when as a matter of fact the
Indian bureau could not make pay
ments under them until they had
been ratified by congress, which was
apt to be fcng afterward. 'An im
portant sheaf of treaties entered
into with members of the tribes in
Oregon and the then territory of
Washington in 1853 were not ratified
until some time after the close of
General Wright's memorable cam
paign in 1858. Meanwhile the In
dians had not received promised pay
ments for their lands, although an
irruption of white settlers had oc
curred immediately upon the signa
ture of the compacts in the field.
Advertisements were printed in the
newspapers of the territories in the
winter of 1853-4 advising immi
grants that the- region east of the
Cascades was "open to settlement,"
while the Indians were still in the
dark as to the ultimate intentions of
the "great white father" at Wash
ington. With these matters of technical in
terpretation, however, the young
men who fought in the war had no
concern. They knew only that their
homes and families were In peril.
and they responded in great num
bers, in proportion to- the sparse
population, to the call for volunteers.
Between the lure of the gold mines
In California and the Indian out
break in 1855, the region was al
most depopulated of its able-bodied
men. More than half the men in
Oregon and. Washington able to bear
arms served some time in the field.
The cost to the territories was enor
mous, ana ine ieaerai governments
delay In paying for supplies it pur
chased and in recompensing the local
governments for their Outlay created
financial situation bordering on
ruin. Not only the fighting men but J
civilians and the women and chil
dren at home bore a heavy burden.
Indeed, in loss of life the civil popu
lation suffered vastly more than the
soldiers did. There is a still-remembered
time in Oregon history when
it was mathematically safer to be in
the army than out of it.
Hindsight is always better than
foresight and it is now plain that
most of the woe caused by Indian
wars could have beenaverted. The
stumbling block to progress then was
vacillation; for about five years the
authorities neither moved to wage a
vigorous campaign nor were willing
to commit the matter entirely to tha
hands of the settlers, who were im
patient for a war of extermination,
A by product of the wars was pro
found ill-feeling between the people
of the west and the military repre
sentatives of the federal government,
which only Intensified the difficulty.
It took Washington a long - while to
learn that war once begun ought to
be waged with all possible vigor. The
soft method was misinterpreted as
fear by the enemy and the struggle
was definitely prolonged. The ease
with which the business might have
been settled if stern measures had
prevailed from the outset was shown
by the campaign of 1858, which
brought the savages to their knees
without the loss of a single soldier.
Thereafter the Indian wars in Ore
gon, were 'more or less desultory un-
til the Modoc uprising of 1876, which
also was th"e result of vacillation
which no Indian ought to have been
expected to comprehend. '
EXPANDING THE USE OF WIRELESS.
Only the other day the Interna
tiona! Conference on Safety at Sea
voted that the most Important event
of the century with relation to the
purpose of its convention was the In
vention of wireless telegraphy, by
which - vessels may be earned of
peril in some instances and help
summoned in others where ships
have met disaster. More receruJ-y a
violin solo played into the receiver
of a wireless telephone at Wichita,
Kansas, was heard off the coast of
Scotland by a representative of the
American Radio league. The lis
tener also heard a piano solo, played
somewhere in America, he does not
know precisely where, and "listened
in" on message sent by twenty-five
radio stations, one of which1 was at
least 3600 mllfs away.
It seems but a day since a mes
sage was transmitted by wireless
from Arlington to Honolulu" and. It
is literally only a few days since
President Harding's message to the
nation was sent from Rocky Point,
Long Island, to New Zealand, -more
than 10,000 miles distant. The hope
that some day we shall be able to
communicate by wireless with Mars
or the moon would seem to be
founded on the rapidity of the prog
ress we are making, if not on any
actual performance reaching beyond
the sphere on which we live.
The incident of the violin solo
which was heard in Scotland derives
its high importance from the fact
that the listener was seeking to de
termine the'potency of short waves
such as are used by amateurs, and
that many of the wireless messages
that he intercepted came from in
struments set up and used by nov
ices. The approaching untTersalitS
of the radio, set free from the ne
cessity for expensive high-powered
equipment, which is thus indicated,
is a challenge to the Imaginations of
men.
IIEARST'S FABRIC OF FALSEHOOD.
In' pretended zeal to "save (our
America" Hearst's newspapers state
what is false, assume it to be true,
and then follow a line of reasoning
to the foregone conclusion that the
work of the Washington conference
is evil in that It binds the United
States, by treaties which the other
powers would break, to become de
fenseless and to obf-erve rules which
they would not observe. The first
false assumption is:
All treaties defining tho lawa of war and
limiting the aggression of belligerents
ALWAYS become scraps of paper as soon
aa war Degins.
Though German violation of the
laws ofwar drove the allies to re
prisals in kind, the allies continued
to observe those laws In many other
particulars. By adopting the Ger
man theory of military necessity
they might have retaliated for in
vasion of Belgium by Invading Hol
land, but they refrained. Great Brit
ain declared war in defense of "the
Belgian neutrality treaty, the United
States in defense of its own neutral
rlghts.vbut the Hearst papers class
all as trealy-breakerj along with
Germany.
After saying that Germany vio
lated the neutrality of Belgium, the
Hearst papers continue:
The British signalized their entrance
Into the 'war by making scrap of paper of
both Taw Hague treaties and the declara
tion of London.
By their own terms the Hague
treaties do not bind any belligerent
Lnation if any of the belligerents are
not parties to them. Several of the
belligerents had not ratified them
when war broke out, therefore there
was no violation of the treaties in
their non-observance.
The declaration of London had
formally been rejected by Great
Britain before the war and it had
been ratified by only one govern
ment, that of the United States.
Therefore it did not bind any bel
ligerent. '
Of the United States it is said that
we did not "observe good faith, even
while nominally neutral." It is al
leged that "we made a scrap of paper
of the Hague agreements," though,
as already shown, they were not in
effect. The United States is charged
with having violated the old Prus
sian treaty securing to Germans the
right to dispose of their property and
to leave this country. That treaty
had already been made void by nu
merous violations on the part of Ger
many seizure of American property
and detention of American citizens
in Germany, murder of Americans at
sea, and finally orders to American
ships to keep off the sea except
where Germany permitted. These
grosa violations by Germany cer
tainly released the United States
frani its obligations. Further:
We seized the merchant ships of neutral
Holland lying in our ports, and aided the
British in blockading neutral ports, though
both acta were a gross violation of signed
treaty agreements aa well as of the law
of nations.
Dutch ships were seized under the
right of angary, which, had been ex
ercised for many years, though re
cently falling into disfavor and dis
use. It required compensation to be
paid, and the United States, paid.
Lawrence in "Principles JT Interna
tional Law" says:
The claim (to right of angary) refers to
such property when temporarily within
the belligerent's control, the usual case
being that of neutral merchantmen Toand
in a belligerent's own ports or ports under
his military occupation.
The Dutch ships were not "tem
porarily" within our ports; they had
taken permanent refuge there rather
than face the risks of being sunk.
Germany's object being to deprive
the allies of the service of ships,,
either belligerent or neutral, 'the
idleness of these ships constituted
aid to Germany. Then our right to
sei5)e them was stronger than if they
had been in our ports in the course
of commerce.
This mass of . fiction is used by the
Hearst presa to support, this mon
strous statement as "the clearest les
son of history":
Most nations respect treaty agreements
wftile they are at peace and no nation re
spects any treaty agreement in time of
war If these agreements stand in the way
of her military and naval attacks upon
the enemy.
From that It is but a step to de
nunciation of limitation on both the
use and number of submarines as
"simply nonsense" and an "idiotic
programme," exposing the United
States to invasion by Great Britain
and Japan. In order to fortify its
argument the Hearst press assumes
that the Anglo-Japanese alliance,
which fS annulled by the Pacific
treaty, will continue to live, that
consequently our navy will be re
duced to "two-thirds that of an An
glo-Japanese alliance," that our
coasts will be undefended and that
we might as well haul down our
'flag and surrender In advance when
ever Kngland and. Japan demand it."
By such flimsy structure of fal
lacy founded on falsehood and but
tressed by plain denial of facts do
the Hearst journals sow distrust and
enmity for nations which show their
trust in the United States by agree
ing to reduce their navies to strictly
defensive strength and to break the
alliance which is regarded as a po
tential menace. The war was fought
to vindicate the sanctity of treaties,
but the facts are reversed by the
Hearst organs to make the defenders
of that principle appear its assail'
ants. Since the war ended, the na
tions have struggled to establish ne
relations of good faith and good will
on that principle, in order that they
may discard arms, but the would-be
wrecker of the Washington confer
ence will not have it so. He per
sists In singing a revised version of
the Hymn -of Hate as the guide to
Intercourse among nations.
THE DOLLAR WATCH. -
The financial misfortunes of a
concern which came into prominence
through making a watch to sell for a
dollar will be regretted by those who
have a spark of sentiment. In its
way, the dollar watch was something
more than a mere timepiece which
did not always keep time it was the
symbol of American efficiency in
quantity production at a time when
both efficiency and quantity produc
tion were attaining the importance
of national slogans. It was in its
way .a demonstration that the im
possible can be done by Americans.
The Swiss, long ' regarded as the
greatest watch and clock makers in
the world, scoffed at the thing as im
possible, even in the face of a flood
of dollar watches that inundated
every part of the United States.
But the event has demonstrated,
too, that the people demand change.
The wrist watch came in, for no par
ticular reason than that people had
not worn watchf5s on their wrists be
fore, and it did its bit toward de
stroying the market for the well-
known pioneer brand. - Curiously, it
is charged by some business eco
nomists that price-cutting also In
fluenced the result, by destroying the
popularity of the staple among the
middlemen without whom business
cannot move nowadays. But per
haps the chief reason for the dollar
watch's decline was that while it
fostered the watch-carrying habit, it
also created desire for something
better, as ownership of a flivver
makes every man hope to possess a
more luxurious car. We talk a good
deal about thrift and economy, but
deep down In his heart every Ameri
can is content with nothing less than
the best.
Millions of Americans now possess
watches who twenty years ago did
not care whether the hour happened
to be A M. or P. M. It would be in
teresting to know just what the re
sult material, moral and spiritual
has been. Has it Stimulated punc
tuality, which is one of the hand
maidens of indHHtry, or has it fas
tened more firmly on us the de
vastating habit of "watching the
clock"?
People who have not visited Cor-
vallis of late years would do well to
secure a copy of the 32-page "An
nual" of the Gazette-Times, issued
last Sunday, and get a line on the
growth of the city and Benton
ceunty. Everybody knows, of course
of the college; but everybody Is not
familiar with the details of city and
county as told In signed articles.
therefore authentic. Illustrations
themselves tell good stories and the
text "does even better. The Gazette
Times Is one of the few papers of
Oregon that lead their communities
not sliding in the current. This is
due to the triumvirate that controls
and runs it, thorough newspapermen
all.
A valuable aid in increasing the
trade of Portland with Japan will
be the special import and export edi
tion of the Oregon News, a news
paper published in Japanese at Port
land by T. Abe. This edition, com
piled bv A. Levy, includes articles on
Portland by the leading shipping
men and representatives of Japanese
firms established in tLis port. An
edition of 7500' copies is being dis
tributed among the chambers of
commerce of Japan, spreading in
forrrwtion .about . the port, among
business men of the mikado's em
pire. The objection of the southern lum
ber interests to Clyde B. Aitchison as
Interstate commerce commtssioner
appears to be based mainly on the
fact that he won't do any log rolling
for them. 1
A Detroit man was given ninety
days and $100 fin for stealing a
dime from a newsboy. Some day a
fellow here will get as much for
passing bad money on blind news
boys. .Theagreement of the powers rela
tive to China contains nine articles.
They're not taking any chances on
objections by the United States sen
ate to another Article X.
The price of eggs is approaching
the cost of poultry feed. The down
ward tendency comes too early in the
year to be due to the usual cau
spring production.
The future must be considered In
locating a site for the Roosevelt
statue. Remember when the Skid
more fountain was in the busiest
part of the city?
Mad rabbits at Tasco are putting
dqgs and coyotes to flight. Instinct
makes those animals avoid a crea
ture with rabies, absurd as It may
seem.
These fellows who try to kill their
wives and themselves never consider
the orphans they would Jeave to the
charity of a cold world.
Burch must be crazy. He tried to
leap over the rail of the jail corridor.
A sane man would take chances on a
jury in California.
The San Francisco federal land of
fice is "officered" by women, but
they have men chief iclerks to run It.
Coupfes numbering 2375 were
married last year in Vancouver.
"Unhitching" data are, not available.
The announcement that a new
Orpheum theater is to be built here
is a compliment to the-city's growth.
The grrt-age fellows who substitute
a Doorer grade of oil are becoming
scared and plead guilty.
BOYCOTT IS PA.VCEROIS WEAPON
Those Who Talk of Punishing; pair
Opponents Are Warned.
PORTLAXb. Jan. 6. (To the Edi
tor.) This writer has from time to
time been edified and frequently
amused by the letters appearing in
the Portland papers. I have won
dered if some of the writers can be in
earnest in giving their views on mat
ters they write about. Just now I
have in mind the letter appearing in
The Oregonian under the caption
i"Now There's Talk of Boycott," and
signed "Fair Play." The Oregonlan's
comment on this letter is all right as
far as it goes, but in the opinion of
this writer it does not go far enough.
In Fair Play's second paragraph he
says: "Personally the writer is not
crazy about the exposition, but I like
fair play, and it is apparent that these
sage-brush personages know not thfij
meaning of that common term. Now
I would like to have Fair Play get a
viewpoint from the angle of those In
easternOregon who opposed the fair
tax measures. The "sage brush per
sonages" have as keen a sense of fair
play as most other personages any
where, and like most other person
ages with an eye to what Is fair to
themselves. The said "sage brush
personages" who have so greatly
roiled Fair Play and others are most
ly wheat farmers and stockmen, and
the merchants and tradesmen who
depend upon them for a livelihood.
The wheat farms of Umatilla county
would, under the property tax, have
had to pay from Ja to $500, depend
ing on the size and value of each
farm, and naturally the owners can
not see anyfair play" in being made
to pay these taxes for a proposition
they feel will not benefit them to the
extent of a eingle penny.
I am wondering if Fair Play.v upon
reading his letter in print, does not
regret his unjust and rather childish
proposal of a boycott of the Round
up because the East Oregonian so
strenuously opposed real estate being
taxed any further. I would like U
ask Fair Play how much the Pendle
ton Round-up hasjjost him in taxes.
He surely knows the promoters of the
Round-up never get a dollar from
state, county, or city government. It
any one feels too sore to occupy a
seat at the next Round-up, some one
no doubt will occupy it from "away
back east." Any one who doesn't feel
as though he got his money's worth
seeing the Pendleton show has wasted
his money. Personally I have never
seen anyone who has seen the Bound
up who didn't feel that he had full
measure, heaped up and running over.
It Is likely the 1S2S fair will be held,
but, since the proposed tax measures
have failed, will be financed perhaps
In the manner the Lewis and Clark
fair was financed, and if Fair Play,
and those who feel as he does, will
play fair, those "sage brush person
ages" will spend as freely coming to
the 1925 fair as they dia at tne wwn
and Clark fair and believe me they
are some spenders,
The "sage brushers nave aiso
spent a few dimes from year to year
in Portland Rose Festivals. A lot of
this spending would cease if anything
so boomerangiBh as a boycott were
thrown at them. A RUPPF..
WHY A HOLIDAY ON JANUARY It
Real Historic or Sentimental Interest
In Old Pagan Kite Is Gone.
PENDLETON. Or., Jan. 5. (To the
Editor.) Would not the legislature
perform al public service by amend
ing the holiday statute, eliminating
tho observance of New Year's day?
The fact that it is retained pays
higher tribute to eur conservatism
than our good sense.
Oregon law declares the following
to be legal holidays, namely: Every
Sunday. January 1. February 22, May
30. July 4. the first Monday In Sep
tember, December '25, election days
and such- other Uays as may be ap
pointed by the governor, or the pres
ident of the United States. Colum
bus day Is a public. holiday.
All these exc&pt the first day of
January possess some historic or sen
timental public interest. For their
existence there is good reason. New
Year's day comes laden with pagan
notions and has degenerated into an
orgy of drunkenness and too often
gross immorality. The Roman
legend gives to Numa the credit of
adopting January 1 as the beginning
of the new year, and the -day was
then sacred to Janus Bifrons. When
Christianity emerged from the cata
combs to assume control of the Rom
an world, the festival was continued,
but the early fathers prohibited the
pagan rites and directed that the year
open with prayer and fasting. Un
fortunately there were too many
nominal Christians and the directions
of the church leaders were never gen
erally obeyed. The result is that we
have inherited the bacchanalia and
retain a festival of no public value
but of deleterious influence.
This holiday comes so near to
Christmas tha't it is a nuisance to
business, to schools, to commerce, to
courts and to the financial operations
of tho world. It ought to be abol
ished evej-ywhere. Probably If Ore
goni wouwl set the example most of
the states would soon follow and then
the other nations using the Gregorian
calendar.
The church observance of the pass
ing of the old year and the birth of
the new is fit indeed, but a holiday
is not necessary for that purpose.
The Roman Catholic recognition of
the day as the feast of the circum
cision is to be commended, but that
church require no legal holiday for
its ceremonies.
There are too many legal holidays,
and the passing of, the first day of
January from the category is assur
edly desirable.
STEPHEN A LOWELL.
Mho Struck Down Other Three f
VANCOUVER, Wash., Jan. 5. (To
the Editor.) The Ontario correspond
ent whose very Interesting l.tt.r
appears in The Oregonian attributes
tne illness or Woodrow Wilson at
the time he was stricken while b
was president to the handlwnrk ,i
God. He (God) struck him down
a means of punishment.
Very well for such deductions on
the part of the writer. But It miirht
be just as well stated, that three of
the leading figures in recent Ameri
can politics who fought Mr. Wilson
and his ideals are now dead while
Woodrow Wilson is today in ap
parently good health. I am referring
to senators Knox and Penroee an
the late Theodore Roosevelt
As far as I am concerned, I see
no connection with the hand of God
In these distressing events but If the
writer wishes to argue it out in this
way we';. re perfectly willing to fur-
nisn tne data.
, OBSERVER.
Inscription In Violin.
GRANTS PASS. Or., Jan4. (To the
Editor.) I have an old violin with
the following words printed inside:
"Jacobus Stainer in Absam, propl,
Oenicontuin 1675." Will you kindly
tell me what this means?
JULIA ABEL.
'Jacob Stainer was a noted German
violin maker. Absam is the name of
his birthplace. The inscription indi
cates that your violin follows the
Stainer pattern.
Pronunciation of . Word.
ONTARIO, Or.. Jan. 4. (To the Edi
tor.) Kindly publish the right pro
nunciation of "The Four -Horsemen of
Apocalypse."
CONSTANT READER.
A-iock-a-lips, accent on. "pock."
Those Who Come and Go.
Tales of Folks at the Hotels.
Appraiser for the federal land bank
at Spokane, M. Fitzmaurice, for 12
years mayor of Condon and long the
editor of the Condon Times, is in the
city. Mr. Fitzmaurice, like many an
other successful citizen of that sec
tion, went there years ago with a
paok on his back and herded sheep
for a time. Some of these pack
burdened newcomers developed Into
sheep kings, but Mr. Fitzmaurice pre
ferred the newspaper business. He
was long active in politics and was
republican county chairman for Gil
liam counw, in which capacity he had
to introduce the spellbinder sent out
by the Btate committee, see that the
flag was draped in the hall, that
there were lights and heat and that
handbills announcing the meeting
were scattered over the country side.
It is now the duty of Mr. Fitzmaurice
to make appraisals where loans are
wanted by farmers. Loans are based
on 50 per'cont of the land value and
20 per cent of the Insured improve
ments. The maximum loan a farmer
can secure is JlO.OnO. The interest
is Ti per cent, of which 1 per cent is
set aside to retire the loan and at
this ratio a loan is liquidated in 33
years. Borrowers, however, can pay
up after five years. In Baker county
recently Mr. Fitzmaurice has ap
praised lands for loans aggregating
about $140,000 and about half that
sum in Union county. There are
loans to make in Sherman, Gilliam
and Morrow counties as soon as the
snow goes off and the land can be
seen.
"Horses were about the only com
modity which kept at a dead level
during the war and later. Everything
else went up. The year after the war
was the year oi big prices, yet horses
remained' the same." observes Dr.
W. H. Lytle of Salem, state veter
inarian. "Why this should be I do
not know, unless the automobiles had
something to do with it. However,
when in eastern Oregon a few days
ago I saw more- old buggies and
wagons than I have observed in that
section for a long while. Apparently,
the owners hav disposed of thnir
automobiles and are resurrecting the
ancient buggies from the barns.
There is plenty of hay and it might
be a good thing for all concerned
if the winter were more severe so
th hav could be diSDosed of. While
there are three or four inches of
snow hanging on In Baker, La Grande,
the Snake river country and along
there, the roads are dusty in the in
terior. Of late there-has been a de
cidedly improved condition in the
sheep industry. The peaks in the
sheep business are supposed to come
every seven years, according to the
charts, and every ten years with cat
tle. The sheep peak was reached
about three years ago. so now hav
ing reached the bottom it Is on the
ascent."
i'Lumbfr is being shipped out of
Siuslaw harbor, but we need more
water in the harbor," explained I. B
Cushman, chairman of the port of
Siuslaw commission, at the Imperial.
"There is more water on the bar
than there is inside, so 1 have come
to Portland to see what can be done
about having some dredging. The
government recommended the dredg
ing in 1917. but the war upset all
plans and nothing hits been done
since. Boats are now going out with
a cargo of more than 400, Ono feet, and
this business can be increased when
a couple of shoals in the harbor are
wiped out."
Probably more souvenir postcards
are mailed at Seaside than In any
other town In Oregon outside of Port
land. This is hecause of the thou
sands of visitors who go to the beach
for a day or a month during the sum
mer season and the visitors send doz
ens of cards to their friends at home
saying: "Wish you were with us."
F. H. Laighton, the postmaster of
Seaside, is registered at the Hotel
Oregon.
Business In Portland must be pretty
Wgood. A salesman from Montana yes
terday said, at the MUltnoman. mat
he had sold $60,000 worth of Montana
flour in this city. The representative
of a silverware factory is delighted
with Portland as he declares he sold
$48,000 worth of silverware here in
four days, while in Los Angeles he
sold but $10,000 worth and a similar
amount in San Francisco. ' !
"TTiey tell me." said George I
Thompson, dean of clerks at the. Per
kins, "that in Victoria, B. C. the Chi
nese are payls $22.60 for every $20
gold piece they can get. The nold Is
sent to China. However, I don't sup-i
pose the Chinese are buying many o(
the double-eagle coins as I haven't
seen a gold coin since some time dur
ing the war. I wish roal money would
come back, for I haven't got accus
tomed to currency."
J A McEachern, who used to have
a shipyard in Astoria during the war
days when Uncle Sam was planning
to build a bridge of ships across the
Atlantic ocean, Is registered at the
Hotel Oregon from Seattle. With him
is J. F. Gilpin of Astoria, who con
structed the highway bridge across
Young's bay, the most expensive
structure that the highway depart
ment has had to build to date.
Two weeks ago Mat H. Webb of
Walla Walla. Wash., made the first
sale of his' 1921 wheat crop. Hi still
has about half of it left. Mr. Webb,
who arrived in Portland yesterday,
says that the ground around Walla
Walla has been white for the past
three weeks, which indicates a great
crop of grain this year.
There is considerable Interest being
displayed in the prospective oil fields
pf Alaska. The oil situation In the
vicinity of Kodiak is considered of
particular Impm tance. J. W. McCord,
one of the factors in the Kodlak de
velopment, is at the Hotel Portland
with Mrs. McCord. , '
J. VT. T. Duffy of Bend, judge of
the 18th Judicial district, is registered
at the Imperial. The Judge, one of
the few democratic circuit Judges In
Oregon there are five to be exact
will see his present term expire De
cember 31 of this year.
W. E. Pierce of Boise, who is at
the Hotel Portland, has tho biKgest
office .building in the state of Idaho.
He also promoted the street railway
system in that town and is considered
one of the most successful financiers
of Boise.
W. J. Edwards, one of the commis
sioners of Gilliam county. Is in the
city on grain business. Commissioner
Edwards is a democrat whose present
term expires one year hence. His
home is at Mayvllle.
Mrs. M. Morgan of Chanticleer Inn
Is registered at the. Hotel Portland.
Mrs. Morgan was in the bus which
overturned a few days ago and sus
tained injury to her nose.
Edward Dekum, secretary of the
Advertiser Publishing company of
Honolulu, and a member of the pio
neer Dekum family, is in Portland for
a Wsit with relatives.
T. S. Lane and J. A. Ford are mem
bers of the delegation from the Spo
kane Chamber of Commerce who are
in the city. They areregistered at
the Benson. , ,
Christmas business was very good
for R W. Skallerud, merchant of
Astoria, registered at the Hotel Portland.
Burroughs Nature Club.
Copyright, Houghton-Mifflin Co.
Cnn Yoa Answer These Questions f
1. Is pral a rock or an animal or a
plant?
2. Is there a simple remedy to de
fend woolen goods from moths?
S. We are told chimney swifts make
nests of twigs like half a saucer
stuck to the side of the chimney. How
can they shape twigs that way?
Answers in tomorrow's nature notes.
Answers to Previous Qnrstlons.
1. What is the color of a king
snake, and is its bite poisonous?
There are so many varieties of king
make that definite reply is difficult.
Many have red or yellow narrow
band9 running around the dark or
black body. The common king snake,
also called chain and thunder snake,
Is generally black with narrow yel
low or white cross bands, widening
at the sides like a Y, and connecting
with one another chain fashion. Not
poisonous.
2. Can you tell me when the blue
Jay nests and hatches Its young? Also
what It eats in winter?
From mid-April to mid-May. for
the latitude of Minnesota, whence
comes this question. The nest is
commonly in trees, and may be in
orchard trees near human habita
tions. Winter diet Is nuts, waste
grain left in fields and acorns. In
the far west pine seeds are favorites
for winter.
3. How do typhoid germs get into
oysters and clams?
These 'shellfishes breathe through
gills, through which water is con
stantly flowing, to bring new oxy
gen. In this water are bits of marine
plants eaten by these molluscs. They
lodge in'the gills, are coated with
mucous, and passed into the mouth
and digestive system. If typhoid
germs are emptied by sewerage into
the sea, they are likely to lode on
the marine plants, and thus be swal
lowed by the feeding oysters and
clams.
WHKRE IS THAT RATH DKCISIO. f
Anxious but Patient Sulisorilier Won
. drrs About Telephone Came.
PORTLAND, Jan. 5. (To the Edi
tor.) I write to inquire if The Ore
gonian can possibly give to a watch
fully waiting and long suffering pub
1 i n any information as to when we
may expect to hear a report from our
worthy public service commission for
the prevention of cruelty to public
utilities, on the telephone rate case,
the hearing of which was conducted
with much labor and expense by the
city and state and was terminated
several months aeo.
Many of us who are paylne $3.50
per month for a residence phone and
seldom have occasion to use it mdre
than 35 times In one month, -feoj that
we can ill afford to pay 10 cents each
time we use tho phone. We have been
patiently waiting to ce if the price
would be reduced to a point where
we could afford to retain it. If not,
we would have to give it up. But. as
the decision of our energetic commis
sion is so long In reaching the public
I em afraid the most of us will be
broke before we know it.
However, there arc always two
sides to a question, a dark and a
bright one, and we all like to look on
the bright side. Who knows but
what our commission has the laud
able ambition and public spirit to
finance the great 1925 fair through
the telephone company as the reason
of our high-prh'd phones. If that
should prove a practical way of se
curing our fair we would not mind
10 cents a clip for the use of the
phone.
L' N G - S I" F F E K I N '. S U B ijC It 1 B E R .
The public service commission lias
not confided to us the date on which
It will give its decision. There Is a
report in circulation that it will be
filed this month.
Ilirnrre of on-!lCNidcnt.
PORTLAND, Jan. 6. (To the Edi
tor.) Some years ago I, or rather my
wife, secured divorce in outside coun
ty, although we were residents of tiis
county. I have since been married
(ten years). What effect does the
governor's vet on the marriage bill
have on my case, as well as on the
cases of hundreds of other persons in
the same box?
AN CTLD SUBSCRIBER.
Final determination of the validity
of such divorces awaits decision by
the supreme court. The vetoed bill
was designed to cure an uncertainty
raised by a decisiori in the lower
court
Wear Pearls and Woo Forgetfulness
It must de-end on how hard you wish' to and what ynu hnve to
forget, and how many pearls you can afford. But anyway that's the
theory and certainly it's a strange one. Betty Vim Benthuyscn
discusses it in the Sunday mupaine section, where there is a larpe
illustration in colors of Mile. Godonowa, who wore ;o rminy pearls
that she had them replaced by synthetic ones. Why? They made
her forget any number of things she wanted ever so much to
remember. Betty makes the most of this weird assumption, you may
be sure, and rites abundant instances to prove that folks who have
a peari necklace are near to nirvana wherever that is.
Books Loaned Piecemeal Through the Mails You desire a look.
You wish with all the earnestness at your command that you might
open its pages and plunge therein-. But the book is, let us say, 342
miles away and your address is the last box on a mountain rural
free delivery route. What book? Any book. And you get it, too,
which is avery practical conclusion to any wish. In the Sunday
magazine section, with illustrations, De Witt Harry tolls of much
traveled books which circulate from the state library to every
cranny in Oregon.
O. Henry's Dearest Romance Smashes He had a way with him,
that chap O. Henry, a way of flipping his characters out of the most
sorrowful predicaments straight into the arms of bliss. And when
his daughter married he hoped, with the intensity of one who knows
what a happy ending means, tha' her love story would ripple
smoothly to the last chapter. Today it is a tragedy of the divorce
courts. Told in the Sunday magazine section, with illustrations.
Provided For An altogether unusual and unusually good short
story, from the, pen of Edith Barnard Delano, which recited the
strange "case of the house of plenty, in which the wife and children ,
mysteriously were denied the luxuries for which they longed.
Hitherfo unpublished, and one of The Sunday OTegonian's series of
fine fiction by well known writers.
How to Dance the "Conversation" Here, good folk, is a story of
the dance the latest fantasy of Terpsichore, as narrr.ted by Arthur
Murray, from an interview with himself. He is "the" Professor
Murray, you know. The most talked of new steps, he asserts, origi
nated with college students, who can at will be either clever or
scandalous. Jilustrated.
Mystery of Our Missing Girls Being another chapter in that
most astounding serial of shameful fact, Mrs. Grace Humiston's
discussion of the girls Vho leave -home. To read it is a public duty,
of a sort, and certainly a parental obligation. Appearing in the
Sunday issue.
All the News of All the World
THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN
Just Five Cents
More Truth Than' Poetry.
By James J. Montague.
TOO MICH IlEFOnjI,
From the time the United States sen
ate was fpundi'd
(We'll have to admit we've for
gotten the date)
From the floors to the rafters the
chamber resounded
With a free and unlimited flow of
debate.
Wherever a senator casually stated
That he had, he bolieved. Just a few
words to say, '
His colleagues were usually highly
elated '
It he wasn't still talking the fol
lowing day.
If critical solons advanced a sug
gestion That the statesman who chanced to
be holding the floor
Should endeavor to speak rather
nearer tho question.
Tho speaker spoke further away
than be fort1.
He sounded the depth of all civilized
knowledge.
Referred to skim milk and the
smelting of lead.
Plsctiss.'rf the decline of the classical
college.
And evi'i ytlilns .clso that camo Into
his head.
It did us no harm, did this Innocent
prattle
As a matter of facl as a rule we
enjoyed
TJie average fierce oratorical battle,
Vpon which our statesmen were
'mostly employed.
They gave us Ideas on various topics.
As we sat In the gallery hearing
them spout.
We learned of crude oil, and the heat
In the tropics.
Though we seldom knew what they
Wire talking about.
But now romes one Junos with a
mean disposition,
A ma who by nature seems narrow
and Munil,
And Insists that a statesman accept
the condition
That he speak to tho subject or
not sinak at all.
No more .sliall tho visitors' gallery
wit s
As often it has, our absorbed eager
face.
If straight talk Is the tost of a sena
tor's ftness
The chamber won't seem like the
same ihar old place!
One After Another.
Between war fare and tar fare the
poor taxpayer never gets a chance to
catch up.
Already Informed.
Modern novels teach tis that youth
is taking charge of tilings l the
world. Tin y teach us grown-ups.
that is. Youth has known It right
along.
Just n Prediction.
It looks like big St. Patrick's
day.
In Other Days.
Twenty-five Yenrs Ago.
Krnni The Or. i;,nlan, .liiiiniiry 7. 1SH7.
Tlio final volume of Herbert
Silencer's "Principles of Sociology"
has Just npponrei.-
The trial of Mrs. Jennie Melcher. on
a charge of fhiin.slaugli.ter. was begun
in Judge Stephens' court yesterday.
W. S. James, former proprietor of
tho Columbia business college, com
mitted suicide yesterday by .shooting
himself through the heart.
T.ondon. The drafts of the PHClflo
cable commission were signed thli
afternoon on behalf of the British,
Australian and -anadian govern- .
nients. The cable, will cost about
$10,0ll0,l0.
Trn nmt WnlKInu; Heforrin.
YIGAKP Or.. .Ian. 5 (To the Edi
tor.) 1. Why are we told In making
tea to take fresh vnt'r? Is water for
tea Injured by r-peatd boiling? If so.
how? 2. Did Kdward Payson Weston
walk from New York to Chicago ;it an
average of 1"0 miles eV' ry 21 hours?
C. W. IVEb'T,
1. Boiled water has a flat taste
which epicure believe Ihey can de
tect in tea made of it.
2. We have no pcdesirian record
for Weston between New York ami
Chicago. In llinT he walked from
Portland, Mi, to Chicago. 1112(1 nillewr
in a little less than 23 days, or at the
rate f about fill miles a day. Ills
longest single day's distance was 93.3