THE SUNDAY OEEGONIAN, PORTLAND, MAY 11, 1902. Mx$ r0mtcm Catered at the Fostoffice at Portland, Oregon, as second-class matter. REVISED SUBSCRIPTION'' BATES. By Mall (postage prepaid. In Advance -Pally, with Sunday, per month.." Dally, Sunday excepted, per year J oo Dally, with Sunday, per year.. J Sunday, per year oo The Weekly, per year. J The "Weekly, 3 months M To City Subscribers , Sally, per week, delivered, Sundays exeepted.l5c Sally, per week, delivered. Sundays lncluded.20o POSTAGE RATES. TJnlted States. Canada and Mexico: 10 to 14-page paper lc 24 to 28-page paper 2c Foreign rates double. News or discussion Intended for publication In The Oregonlan should be addressed invaria bly "Editor The Oregonlan." not to the name of any Individual. Letters relating to adver tlstne. subscriptions or to any business xnatte Should be addreed simply "The Oregonlan." The Oregonlan does not buy poem or utorles Xrom Individuals, and cannot undertake to re turn any manuscripts sent to it -without solici tation. No stamps should 'be inclosed for this purposes Eastern Business Offlce. 43, 44, 45, 47, 48. 40 ttrlbune building. New Tork City: 4C9 "The Rookery," Chicago; the S. C Bcckwlth special gency. Eastern representative. For sale In San Francisco by Xt. E. Lee, Pal ttoe Hotel news stand; Goldsmith Bros.. 230 rter street; F. TV. Pitts. 1003 Market street; K. Cooper Co.. 740 Market street, near the Palace Hotel; Foster & Orear, Ferry news etand. For sale to Los Angeles by B. F. Gardner, S59 So. Spring street, and Oliver & Haines, 305 Co. Spring street. For sale in Sacramento by Sacramento News Co., 429 K street. Sacramento, Cal. . For sale in Chicago .by the P. O. News Co., J217 Dearborn street, and Charles MacDonald, B3 Washington elreet. For sale in Omaha by Barkalow Bros 1612 iSTarnam street For tale in Salt Lake by the Salt LakeTews Co., 77 W. Second South street. , For sale in New Orleans by A. C. Phelps, IJ09 Commercial Alley. For cale in Ogden by C H. Myers. On. ale at Charleston, S. C, in the Oregon ex piblt at the exposition. For sale to Washington, TO. C., by the Ebbett Bouse news stand. For sale In Denver, Colo., by Hamilton & ijKeadriek, 600-912 Seventeenth street; Louthan fsc Jackson Book & Stationery Co., 15th and Lawrence streets; A. Series, 1C53 Champa treet. TODAY'S WEATHER Partly cloudy, with probably an occasional light shower; south to -west winds. YESTERDAY'S WEATHER Maximum tem perature. CO; minimum temperature, 50; pre cipitation, .10 Inch. PORTLAND, SUNDAY, MAY 11, 1002. PERSONAL, AND SO INTENDED. To the voters of Oregon The Orego 3iian would say, as did Mr. Tate in his laddresa at the Young Men's Christian Association Friday evening: Your bal lot is not your own; it belongs to your country. You are the sovereign, people of this state and Nation, and you have sio more right to neglect your duty in 'directing governmental policies at the ballot-box than the President has to neglect his duties in the "White House. jThe vote of a single individual may be of little consequence, but a thousand or ten thousand individuals staying away irom the polls may change an election. It is estimated that nearly 20,000 vot ers will not be registered when the books are closed next Thursday even ing. "When the people thus disregard their own political obligations, what ought they to expect from those who may be elected to represent them in of ficial positions? "Without regard to the political affilia tions of those who are yet unregistered, The Oregonlan would urge again, as it has many times in the past three months, that every voter place his name upon the list of qualified electors. It Is probable that the apparent diffidence of the voters is due largely to the prac tice which has grown up of sending out notaries to visit the farmers at their iomes and make for them certificates of registration. Both political parties Slave followed this plan, and it is quite 4o be expected that farmers will wait Sof the visit of a notary rather than Seave their work to go to the county iat But this should not be the means -of leaving nearly 20 per cent of the vot ers of the state unregistered. To whatever party you claim allegi ance, or if you have no party affilia tion, your country has a right to your ballot It is your duty to study the is sues of the political campaign, to form your opinions carefully and candidly, and then vote your opinions. Only in this way can the will of the majority HOf the people be ascertained. A place at the ballot-box is a post iof honor. The elective franchise is the greatest privilege and safeguard of the U&merican people. To fill that position and to exercise that privilege will carry ftwlth the action a duty which no man fcan honorably avoid. You should go to fethe polls June 2, divest your mind of pevery prejudice, disregard every per gonal interest, and then cast a ballot, Jaot for the purpose of favoring a friend pr punishing an enemy, but as your hon-l-cst judgment tells you is for the best interests of the city, county, state or fcNation. If you can do that you are worthy the sovereignty that was bestowed upon you by Ihe men who framed the Con stitution. If you are derelict In your duty you are unworthy of American citizenship. DIALECTS, HIGH AND LOW. "We had supposed that the Celtic sense of humor would have been sufficient to deter all Hibernians from proposing to rob society of the legended Irish po liceman with a sand-paper wig and scarlet whiskers encircling his visage as with an aureole. Can it really be possible that any one regards this de lightful caricature as the sober ex pression of Intelligent opinion? It is, apparently, for the dispatches say so, just as they said a while ago that Ken tucky women proposed to abolish De gree by Legislative enactment. Now it is said by intelligent Irishmen that they never heard "begorra" and "bedad" till they came to America. "Hoot mon!" is alleged to have been unknown by our Scottish citizens on their native heath, and it Is cer tain that the familiar caricature of the Hebrew clothing merchant or pawn broker is as gross an exaggeration as our Irish friends complain of in the wig and red whiskers. Usually there is enough cosmopolitanism in all of us to laugh at these extravagances, without malice either in performer or observer. Usually there Is discernment enough and if not, there ought to be to teach us that no nationality is free from its ' peculiarities. Irish brogue or Scotch accent has nothing more ridiculous than the dialects of our owa "mountain whites" or the patois of our American street arabs. French immorality has nothing more shameful than the almost promiscuous intercourse -which obtains in some Isolated and degraded sections of our own country. There is- another side to this matter of "accent," and that is the foolish pride that hases itself on certain provincial mannerisms. If the Irish brogue or the Scotch accent is to be smiled at, so is the Boston Intonation and the soft Southern, "a" or "r." English is Eng lish. There is a standard pf pronuncia tion as well as of spelling, and In "Web ster it tells you how to form your vow els, consonants and dlphthonga It is said that the finest English is spoken in Dublin, and the finest French at The Hague. Perhaps this is true. Certalnl Parisian French and London English leave something to be desired. In Ger many every little district has its own pronunciation, which it will fight for as the only correct one. Each, of course, is equally wrong. The vocabulary and the pronunciation that ore irreproach able are those without geographical pe culiarities. Sir Henry Irving and the Dublin purist and President Eliot speak alike. They who exploit peculiarities of speech only advertise their own prd-vlnclallsm. CRANKS, 31IXUS TITO MICROSCOPE. They who saw Minnie Maddern twenty years ago or less singing in short dresses the "Blue Alsatian Moun tains' and "Little Fisher Maiden" in the fresh youth of both singer and those melodious ballads will take a pleasur able pride in the appearance of Mrs. Flske in the International Monthly for May as the author of a paper on the modem drama. No synopsis could do justice to her admirable essay Its ap preciation of Shakespeare, its strictures on "problem" plays from Ibsen to "Ca mille," Its loyalty to the traditions of the old school of faithful actors, Its dep recation of didacticism and coarseness alike, its freshening breeze of optimism and health. But there is one passage in it which Is apt to st the .newspaper maker and newspaper-reader to think ing. "We refer to her clever thrust at the critics who forever insist that the play shall preach a sermon or point a moral. Mrs. Flske says that there 1b a con siderable body of current opinion which scouts the conception of the theater as a fllace of amusement, rest or recrea tion. But she also says that this noise is made by a very few persona. They are always In evidence in the news papers, but they make a showing high ly disproportionate to their numbers. They aro almost lost In the rank and file of theater-goers. Most of them never go to the theater. The few that do go are generally deadheads. No manager need cut out his course with a view to their support- A very little re flection will convince the most casual observer that Mrs. Flske is right. Peo ple who spend money for theater tick ets do so out of a desire to enjoy them selves. They are not looking for mental and moral Improvement. If they want sermons there Is the preacher. If they want to study venery or neurology there are the professor and the hospital. This discovery of the numerical value of the theatrical moralist affords a hint for the overworked interpreter of pub lic opinion that may be utilized 4n other fields. The Oregonlan has printed in the past five years a great many let ters on the adoption of blmetallsm by the Republican party and the prosper ity which therefrom resulted. The un initiated reader may have formed the Impression that this Is a widespread popular conviction; but, come to think of It, these letters all came from the same source, under the various expres sions of "S. Pennoyer," "X.," "Citizen," "Fair Play," etc. There is a man in Portland who must have married injudiciously, for when ever matrimony Is up for discussion he writes a letter In tremendous derogation of womankind. There is a good woman on the East Side who always comes to the front when prohibition is attacked. There is a man in South Portland who writes an anonymous letter to The Ore gonlan whenever the Portland Savings Bank is remotely referred to. Two or three "common-point" fiends can make more noise than a whole stateful of farmers, and our devoted band of so cialists would fill the paper up every day with public opinion on their own lines if they were permitted. Let us then be reassured. If any have wondered why the theatrical man ager has dared to defy the strident public sentiment that demands ortho doxy from the leading man and repent ant homilies from the "heavy," they can find it In Mrs. Flake's assurance that this same public sentiment occupies about one seat by the manager's cour tesy on the second night. If any have been momentarily perturbed by the loud call for abolition of everything existing and the establishment of all things un known and untried, let them reflect that the true reformer, eccentric and irrec oncilable, has to be multiplied to about 1000 diameters to deserve any numerical recognition. Perhaps this is one reason why the reformer permits himself such latitude. He knows hlo radical proposals have no chance of adoption. Otherwise, as a rea soning being, he would desist and tread the road as steadily as the rest of us. Be charitable, therefore, with the crank, He feels called upon, to diversify the landscape, and would doubtless depre cate it ruefully as any one if he were to be taken seriously. If there were no men with long hair .or women with Derbys, how could we appreciate the delights i of civilization at their true value? . PURITY FOR MEN. A very suggestive remark was made by an evangelist In Portland last week In the course of his addresses to young men. "There are no brothels In any city," he said, "until iirst there are brothels in the hearts of men." Truer wmd was never Bpokep, and it is worth while to commend the public teacher who so far departs from the beaten path of professional reformers as to recognize that reformation lies in the heart rather than In punitive pressure upon the establishments that minister to unrestrained appetites of the various kinds represented in vice. If there were no evil-minded men, there would be no fallen women. And if all the fallen women on the face of the earth could be swept away In an instant as by a Martinique upheaval, man's unregen erate heart would quickly' people the TVhltechapels of every city with fresh victims of his force or cunning. The nature of man tprovides an ex planation for his abuse- of womankind, but no Justification. The proof that purity is within masculine as well as feminine reach Is afforded in the lives of countless men, brave, virile and vig orous as any, but dominated by the power of conscience or an inborn love of goodness ark truth. He who has not known such men In every walk of life has employed hl3 gregarious capac ity to poor purpose. He has lived in a far more dark and sullied world than the natural one In which every man is -permitted to dwell.. Such examples of pureyet robust manhood as come within the view of every life should be cultivated by all, especially by the young. A man's character ia largely forme.d by his acquaintances. He molds his- destiny when he selects his friends. The blessing he picks out for himself when he seeks the society of the great and good is Inestimable; and when he permits his leisure hours to be domi nated by men whom he knows, how ever gifted and winning they are, to be unworthy a. pure woman's love and re spect, he starts on a downward path whose end is lost In deepening shadows of an endless night. Humanity, let us say, is an experi ment. "What Buckle and Spencer, Gibbon and Draper have, written on the power of climatic and racial forces is largely incontrovertible. Yet equally true and of vastly more compelling meaning to the soul are the Infinite vis tas of choice opened, up before the Human "Will. . The destiny of humanity, whether upward to the stars or down ward by retracing steps again to the beast, is in the keeping of the individ ual consciences" of the multitudinous units of the race. w It is an inauspicious token that so nfany men of brains and force of character are disposed to look with lenience upon the submerging of the higher nature under whelming waves of self-lndulgenco. "Whatever a man's heredity, whatever his early nnd late environment, an obligation is laid upon him to lift his better nature up and keep his passions down. On each there rests, accordingly, a measure of responsibility for the outcome of crea tion, and in the surrender of the noble to the false In any life there Is a dis tinct betrayal of the eternal plan which made the world so beautiful and created man In the image of his Maker. The man whose baser passions are not dis ciplined xInto perfect control may be wise and great and otherwise good, but there is a blemish on his character which extends to other Uvea The mis ery of the half-world lies at the door of men who ought to be pure. EARTHQUAKES, OLD AND NEW. In the history of disaster involving the loss of human life, earthquake ac companied by volcanic action takes the lead as an element of destruction. Briefly stated, 13,000,000 of people have perished from this cause during the period covered by authentic data, while the loss in property for" all practical purposes exceeds computation. Going back to the first century of the Chris tian era we find the people of the an cient City of Pompeii arrested in the full flow of a wickedness that was dis torted Into the guise of pleasure by this greatest of calamities. The city was slowly but surely invested with a gray shroud of ashes, in preparation for a burial that was accomplished when Vesuvius disembogued lava In a fiery stream, overwhelming and obliterating it. The neighboring cities of Hercula neum and Stablae shared with Pom peii the fate of extinction as cities of the living through this great convulsion of Nature, which was literally the open ing of a valve through which the con tending elements of fire, water and air vented their power and their wrath. The number of lives destroyed by the burial of these cities can only be con jectured. It is sufficient to know that they numbered many thousands. All along the track of history we find records of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions coming suddenly, causing helpless consternation and leaving death in their wake. Superstition In past ages found In them a terrible" ex pression of the wrath of God, or of the displeasure of the gods, and puny hu man hands and terrified human voices Were lifted In supplication In the des perate pious hope that thereby this ex pression of offended Deity might be turned aside. One of the most notable of the relatively modern earthquakes was that of Lisbon in 1775, which took into the awful maw of earth and sea 60,000 human beings. Japan has In later years and at various times been in the throes of this prodigious power by which she herself was projected out of the sea, and her people by hundreds of thousands have been swallowed up by the yawning earth and engulfing waters. South America has been fre quently the scene of disastrous earth quakes, that of Caracas in 1S22 being familiar to the students of geography half a century and more ago, illus trated as It was by pictures, purely Imaginary, yet sufficiently graphic, of yawning fissures Into which reeling houses and despairing human beings were sinking. The United States has been relatively exempt from disastrous 'earthquakes, though not entirely so. Early in the century in 1811-12 prolonged seismic disturbances occurred near the head of the Mississippi Delta. This was known as the New Madrid earthquake, and the series of shocks extended over a period of about two years, but owing to the sparse populatipn of the area affected, no loss of life occurred as the result of the protracted' disturbances. Minor shocks have occurred from time to time In California, and tremors of very brief duration have extended along the coast to Alaska, but' there have been no vio lent or destructive shocks in this region In recent years. The earthquake of Charleston, S. C.; in 1886 is the only destructive earthquake that has taken place within the United States. The In cidents of this event are still fresh In the public mind. These were of terror, apprehension and loss of property rath er than of Joss of life. The prqperty loss amounted to between $8,000,000 and $10,000,000, while the loss of life was less than three-score. Ranking with the terrible calamities of Lisbon and Caracas, and. approaching in fatality those of ancient Pompeii and of modern Japan, is the calamity that a few days ago befell St Pierre, on the French Island of Martinique. Accounts tell us that the earth and sea In the vicinity were for a time obscured by vapor and ashes; that following a ter rific explosion the scene was lighted suddenly by a livid glare as a volume of molten lava rolled from the open crater of Mount Pelee to the sea, bury ing the city of 25,000 people so that as far as known not one escaped; laying waste the neighboring country with a fiery rain, and causing the death all told Of at least 40,000 people. The Imagina tion of a Dante would halt In the at tempt to describe such a scene, and from such description as Is possible horror-stricken humanity turns shudder- Ingly away. A calamity against which human power, either of strength or forethought or flight, can offer no de fense1; of the causes of which even sci ence refuses to speak with its accus tomed positlvenes3; dreadful In anticipa tion, terrible beyond words, in its real ization the world can only hear with wonder and pity the dictates of this old new catastrophe that adds 40,000 human lives to the long casualty list of violence. The Salvation Army In this country has planted three colonies In pursuance of Its plan to elevate the people of the Blums In cities by giving them a chance to work in the country. These are lo cated at Fort Amity, Colo.; Fort Romle, Cal., and Fort Herrlck, O. Together they contain nearly 400 people, who were utterly destitute when taken from the city slums. These people have greatly Improved In condition and morals, are comfortably housed and clad, and well fed. This they compass for themselves, being simply given the opportunity. They have paid back to the army near ly $13,000 of the money advanced to them In the beginning, and want noth ing, except la the way of a loan, that they cannot earn. The idea is not to make them subjects of charity, but to give them a chance to support them selves and encourage them In habits of thrift and Independence. This Is In di rect line with Intelligent charitable ef fort here and elsewhere. Mr. Thomas Strong set this principle out in strong la'nguage in these columns recently, and people who are genuinely, "sorry for the poor" will do well to follow the sug gestion that the City Board of Chari ties be allowed to dispense their alms. If the Northern Securities Company does not control the parallel transcon tinental, Great Northern and Northern Pacific, as the answer in the "anti merger" suit Implies, how does the ex istence of that "trust" have any bear ing on the situation of the Burlington? And would Mr. Harrlman, who said con trol of the Burlington by the Northern lines a year ago produced a situation unendurable for the Union Pacific, be pacified by an arrangement that leaves him no voice In the affairs of the Bur lltfgton? Harrlman Interests are ade quately represented on the board, of the Northern Securities, and In that manner only Is the Union Pacific protected from the Northern combination. But if the Northern combination is not dominated by Northern Securities, where, is Mr. Harflman's protection? In that case the Union Pacific Is In an "unendur able situation"; but It doesn't seem to be suffering. The serenity of the Har rlman people Is a strong argument that the Northern Securities Is doing Just what it was organized to do, and that It does govern the Northwestern rail road field and reduces the competition therein. ' The names of a number of men notable In the various walks of pub lic life have been added to the list of the dead within the past week. Among these is that of Amos J. Cummlnga, member of Congress from New York; Admiral Sampson, of the United States Navy; Archbishop Corrlgan, of the Roman Catholic Diocese of New York; Bret Harte, the American author, whose tales of the mining camp formed a dis tinctive feature of the early literature of 'the Pacific Coast; Paul Leicester Ford, a etory-writer of recent fame, and Potter Palmer, of Chicago, prominent in the world of finance. For a time it looked as though the name of "Wil helmina. the ygung Queen of Holland, would be added to this list, but the dan ger that threatened her life seems to have passed. Death came to each of these men suddenly, to one tragically, and all have been borne to the grave with eulogy, and some with pomp and circumstance. The record Is a remark able one as covering the mortuary events of a single week. There Is a bill before Congress pro viding for the payment of an annuity of $5000 to Miss Clara Barton. Miss Barton's services in behalf of humanity In stress of war, pestilence or famine are well known. Their value Is above all computation, and they have been given often at great Inconvenience, suffering and expanse to herself. In view of these facts she Is much more Justly entitled to an annuity from the Gov ernment than is any wealthy woman of ease whose sole claim to such consid eration is that she married a man who in the course of years became Presi dent The public, however, of whom Congress is supposed to be the echo, does not view the matter in this way, andf bound by precedentl'contlnues to favor women whom circumstances have favored, and leave those who have worked their way to distinction through heroic deeds or deeds of mercy to work their way still. This Is the way of the world, whereof it is useless to complain, and against which it is Vain to strive with words. It is said that within the past six months 4000 Immigrants who have land ed In Canada, hoping to cross over Into the United States, have been stranded there, as our immigration Inspectors would not permit them to pass. A great many of these people are suffering from Infectious diseases which are the direct result of filthy and unsanitary habits and conditions, hence our Inspectors would not accept them. Of course, Can ada does not want them, but, having effected a landing within her borders, she finds It difficult or Impossible to dis place them. The remedy, if there is to be one for this state of affairs, lies in holding steamship companies to a stricter accountability in the matter of allowing the destitute and defective to be "assisted" to America over their lines. The public is to be congratulated upon the settlement that has been am icably, effected between sawmill-owners and their employes in this city. "We are now at the beginning of a building season of great activity and wide Influ ence In the labor world. A check upon this activity at this time would be dis astrous, and its ill effects would extend far beyond the present time. All con cerned, including the general public, are fortunate In this reasonable adjustment of differences. Cable dispatches have beenNrecelved at "Vienna stating that the Dowager Empress of China is insane. The story should not be doubted. The cunning of Insanity has been noticeable in Tel An's actions for many years. But she man ages to keep the throne for herself against all comers; notwithstanding this fact. Nothing less than? death will dis place her. Insanity in her case does not count THE LAST- DAYS OF POMPEII. From Bulwer Lyt ton's. Celebrated Novel. The cloud, which had scattered so deep a murkiness over the day, had now settled into a solid and Impenetrable mass. It re sembled less even the thickest gloom of a night In the open air than the close and blind darkness of some narrow room. But In proportion as the blackness gath ered, did the lightnings around "Vesuvius increase in their vivid, and scorching glare. Nor was their horrible beauty con fined to the usual hues of fire; no rainbow ever rivaled their varying and prodigal dyes. Now brightly blue as the most azure depth of a Southern sky now of a livid snake-like green, darting restlessly to and fro os the folds of an enormous serpent now of a lurid and Intolerable crimson, gushing forth through the col umns of smoke, far and wide, and light ing up the whole city from arch to arch then suddenly dying Into a sickly pale ness, like the ghost of their own life: In the pauses of the showers, you heard the rumbling of the earth beneath, and the groaning waves of the tortured sea; or, lower still, and audible but to the watch of lntensest fear, the grinding and hissing murmur of the escaping gases through the chasms of the distant moun tain. Sometimes the cloud appeared to break from Its solid mass, and, by the lightning, to assume quaint and vast mimicries of human or of monster shapes, striding across the gloom, hurtling one upon the other, and vanishing swiftly Into the turbulent abyss of shade; so that, to the eyes and fancies of the affrighted wan derers, the unsubstantial vapors were as the bodily forms of gigantic foes the agents of terror and of death. The ashes in many places were already knee-deep; and the boiling showers which came from the steaming breath of the vol cano forced their way Into the houses, bearing with them a strong and suffocat ing vapor. In some places, immense frag ments of rock, hurled upon the house roofs, bore down along-the streets masses of confused ruin, which yet more and more, with every hour, obstructed the way; and as the day advanced, the mo tion of the earth was more sensibly felt the footing seemed to slide and creep nor could chariot or litter be kept steady, even on the most level ground. Sometimes the huger stones, striking against each other as they fell, broke Into countless fragments, emitting sparks of fixe, which caught whatever was combus tible within their reach; and along the plains beyond the city the darkness was now terribly relieved; for several houses, and even vineyards, had been set on flames; and at various Intervals, the fires rose sullenly and fiercely against the solid gloom. To add to this partial relief of the darkness, the citizens had, here and there, in the more public places, such as. tho porticos of temples and the entrances to the Forum, endeavored to place rows of torches; but these rarely continued long: the showers and the winds extinguished them, and the sudden darkness into which their fitful light was converted had some thing in It doubly terrible and doubly Im pressive on the Impotence of human hopes, the lesson of despair. Frequently, by the momentary light of these torches, parties of fugitives en countered each other, some hurrying to ward the eea, others flying from the sea. back to the land; for the ocean had re treated rapidly from the shore on utter darkness lay over it, and upon Its groaning and tossing waves, the storm of cinders and rocks fell without the protection which the streets and roofs afforded to the land. "Wild haggard ghastly, with supernatural fears, these groups encoun tered each other, but without the leisure to speak, to consult, to advise; for tho showers fell now frequently, though not continuously, extinguishing the lights, which showed to each band the deathlike faces of the other, and hurrying all to seek refuge beneath the nearest shelter. The whole elements of civilization were broken up. Ever and anon, by the flick ering lights, you saw the thief hastening by the most solemn authorities of the law. laden with, and fearfully chuckling over, the produce of his sudden gains. If in the darkness wife was separated from hus band, or parent from child, vain was the hope of reunion. Each hurried blindly and confusedly on. Nothing In all the va rious and complicated machinery of so cial life was left save the primal law of self-preservation I Advancing, as men grope for escape In a dungeon, lone and her lover continued their uncertain way. At the moments when the volcanic lightnings lingered over the streets, they were enabled, by that awful light to steer and guide their prog ress; yet, little did the view it presented to them cheer or encourace their path. In parts, where tho ashes lay dry and uncommlxed with the boiling torrents, cast upward from the mountain at capri cious Intervals, the surface of the earth presented a leprous and ghastly white. In other places, cinder and rock lay mat ted In heaps, from beneath which emerged the half-hid limbs of some. crushed and mangled fugitive. The groans of the dy ing were broken by wild shrieks of wom en's terror now near, now distant which, when heard in the utter darkness, were rendered doubly appalling by the crushing sense of helplessness and uncer- talnty of the perils around: and clear and distinct through all were the mighty and various noises from the fatal mountain; its rushing winds; its whirling torrents; and, from time to time, the burst and Toar of some more fiery and fierce explosion. And ever as the winds swept howling along the street they bore sharp streams of burning dust, and such sickening and poisonous vapors as took away, for the Instant, breath and consciousness, .fol lowed by a rapid revulsion of the arrested blood, and a tingling sensation of 'agony trembling through overy nerve and fiber of the frame. Suddenly, as he spoke, the place became lighted with an intense and lurid glow. Bright and gigantic through the dark ness, which closed around it like the walls of hell, the mountain shone a pile of fire! Its summit seemed riven In two: or rather, above its surface there seemed to rise two monster shapes, each confronting each, as demons contending for a world. These were of one deep, blood-red hue of fire, which lighted up the whole atmosphere far and wide; but below, the nether part of the mountain was still dark and shroud ed, save in three places, adown which flowed, serpentine, and irregular, rivers of molten lava. Darkly red through the profound gloom of their banks, they flowed slowly on as toward the devoted city. Over the broadest there seemed to spring a fcragged and stupendous arch, from which, as from, the Jaws of hell, gushed tho sources of the sudden Phlegethon. And through the stilled air was heard the rat tling of the fragments of rock, hurtling one upon another as they were borne down the fiery cataracts darkening, for one Instant, the spot where they fell, and suf fused the next In the burnished hues of the flood along which they floated! And meekly, softly, beautifully, dawned at last the light over the trembling deep! the winds were sinking Into rest the foam died from the glowing azure of that delicious sea. Around the east, thin mists caught gradually the rosy hues that her alded the morning; Light was about to resume her reign. Yet still, dark and massive in the distance, lay the broken fragments of the destroying cloud, from which red streaks, burning' dlmlier and more dim, betrayed the yet rolling fires of the mountain of the "Scorched Fields." The white walls and gleaming columns that had adorned the lovely coasts were no more. Sullen and dull were the shores so lately crested by the cities of Hercu lnneum and Pompeii.' The darlings of the deep were snatched from her embrace! Century after century shall the mighty Mother stretch forth her azure arms, and know them not moaning round the sep ulchres of the Lost! MUSINGS BY THE WAYSIDE. How many people, I wonder, who did not know him, except through his stories, feel a personal loss In the death of Bret Harte? After winning high and per manent place in American literature, he went into congenial exile across the waters and. It may be assumed, found amongv another English-speaking people full content He tried it, but he did noth ing notable In a foreign country. His fame rests on his California stories and some exceptionally clever verse. The foundation Is secure. And though he chose to forsake his native land, he left us the best that wa3 In him. What a charitable man he was! "Where Is there another writer who puts Into the hearts and minds of social outcasts the manly and womanly attributes which are tho priceless heritage of mankind? It Is very evident that Harte believed that accident as often as intent made gamblers and Magdalens out of those who, under other circumstances and in other environment could have led honorable lives. He never excused crime nor put rainbow tint3 on immorality: he did not make preachments, but throughout his whole writings he taught that no man or woman Is entirely Iost; that the divinity in the human be ing can not bo killed. Harte delighted to tell by indirection the beauty of sacrifice; he created real heroes. True, they did not carry swords, nor look forward to stars on their shoul derstraps, and their pictures on the front: page of every newspaper between two oceans, but the stuff out of which real heroes aro made was in them. And his heroes were always modest, seeing their duty and doing it without the aid and Inspiration of the flag and brass bands. He makes "Mother Shlpton," the tough est woman of Poker Flat, starve herself to death In order to furnish food for an innocent girl. For atale of life-long devotion, read "MIggles." Alwaj-s to be consistent Harte never' holds out hope of reward. There Is only the sweetness of sacrifice. Bret Harte, notes in the rude life of every California mining camp a deference to pure woman, which amounts to rever ence. They are always under protection. That Interesting old fraud. Colonel Star bottle, whose worship of the weaker sex Is stamped with Southern chivalry, is not more courteous than the driver of the Slumgulllon stage. Mr. John Oakhurst gambler, though he never presumes to address folk outside his own craft de velops a knowledge of proprieties equal to that of Mr. "Van Bibber, gentleman. Fifth avenue, New York. Bret Harte was 'the prince of story tellers; the master of the short story. Professor Brander Matthews, In "Pen and Ink," has a chapter on the philosophy of the Short-story. He defines It thus: "Tho difference between a Novel and a Novelette Is one of length only; a Nov elette Is a brief Novel. But the difference between a Novel and a Short-story Is a difference of kind. A true Short-story is something other and something more than a mere story which is short. A true Short-story differs from the Novel chief ly In Its essential unity of Impression. In a far more exact and precise use of the word, a Short-story has unity as a novel cannot have It A Short-story deals with a single character, a single event, a single emotion or a series of emotions called forth by a -single situation. ... I have written Short-story with a capital S and a hyphen because I wished to emphasize the distinction between the Short-story and the story which Is merely short The Short-story is a high and difficult depart ment of fiction." In a little corner of my own mental gal lery of authors, very close to Thackeray, I hang a picture of my favorite Short story writer. Edward Everett Hale was there first, and I have often wished he would write another story half so good as "The Man "Without a Country." Aft erward Bret Harte occupied the place of honor. He was never removed, but for several years Kipling hung to the left of him. Perhaps if Richard Harding Davl3 had conceived another story equal o "Her First Appearance," he, too, would have had a nlace. A few years later, when I finished "Domsle," "A Doctor of the Old School" and "Drumsheugh's Love Story,' I took down Kipling and hung Ian Maclaren. Measured by the pleasure I have received, I put Bret Harte first of all, and I wish to record my sense of personal loss In his death. "When an Insane brother murdered Paul Leicester Ford last Thursday, American literature was robbed of a creative gen ius. There Is no telling what he might have done. Ford was young. In his early 30's" he wrote "The Honorable Peter Stir ling," the best American novel of recent years. Best? Without question. Per haps some reader of the clever and some times fascinating "historical" novels with which we have been deluged the past four years will "prove" by the number of tons sold that "The Honorable Peter Stirling" holds only the eleventh or twelfth place. Borrowing his argument I retort that the New York Journal or the World sells 10 tlme3 as many copies as the New York Evening Post; yet the Post for ability and character, is easily the best dally newspaper in New York. Who Is to succeed Sol Smith Russell? He was sul generis. He never reminded you of any one else, and no one else could remind you of him. Off the stage as on, he was quaint simple, affectionate, hope ful, patient, with strong love for chil dren and a reservoir of humot as large as the world. "While his speech lacked wofully the musical quality, I cannot re call a more charming voice not one that pleased the ear, but some way or other, stirred the latent emotions and put you on better terms with yourself. And his funny legs. They were so long and so slcnier and so eloquent in their awkward ness. He did not use them acrobatically, like Tom Seabrooke, but like an over grown boy, who did not know exactly what to do with them. I always think of Russell as a loving uncle of adopted or phans, who in stress made a brave fight and got his just reward. Now that Admiral Sampson Is dead, the American people may safely begin to make their final and permanent estimate of him. They could not do this so long as he was alive. They did not do It with Lincoln or with Grant Now they will collect and weigh the evidence, and they will listen to the opinions of naval ex perts of other nations, and a few years hence will bring In their verdict Some future Captain Mahan will put the facts and the findings into a bound record. Temperamental failings which hl3 con temporaries observed with regret will not be known to the rising generation. In the course of time Admiral Schley will pass away and present acerbities will vanish, and it will be written that Sampson was the greatest all 'round man in the Amer ican Navy. L. SLINGS AND ARROWS. To a. Dollar. Bright disc, whose strange and unaccustomed weight I feel but lightly In my welcoming hand. Thou talisman of weal or woe. what fate Has placed thy services at my command? To Rockefeller thou tiouldst seem a thing In many million, worth no thought, alone. But 1 consider of the Joy3 thou'lt bring. And deem thee wealth that I am proud to own. I've seen the time when thou wouldat look to bo Tho size and value of a dented dime; I've seen the time when thou wouldst seem to me Far larger than the moon in harvest time. That hatchet- isaged goddess holds the key To food and drink, and whiffs o .grateful smoke, A rich reward of princely luxury Well earned by weary days of living broke. I shall not speculate upon tne ways Which thou wilt take to leave my company. Enough that I may gratify my gaze. While thou art" still sojourning here with me. For though It Is thy -wont to come and go As bidden back and forth by other men. To me thou art a stranger, and I know I ne'er may look upon thy like again. It Didn't Work. "Portia,' said Brutus, as he bade her a fond farewell, "I may return home late this evening. Assassination Is rife, and I have been urged to attend a meeting which has for Its purpose the murder of our old friend, Mr. Caesar. "We meet to decide on the weapons." "Nonsense!" answered his spouse, indig nantly. "You are going out for a time, and you are just Inventing an excuse. Whenever you want to embark on a spree lately you tell me you are merely going to assassinate somebody, or dynamite the Coliseum, or hang Marc Anthony. I know very well that no such Innocent object would take you from the house at this time of night" And with a feeling of one unjustly ac cused, but nevertheless up against it, Brutus went forth on his purely harmless 'and gentle errand. A Job-Like Gardener. There 13 no Joy which fitly can compare "With delving In the bosom of the earth. Constructing pansy beds and trenches for The radiantly blossoming sweet pea. Besmearing tracts of ground with unslaked lime, That eats Insidiously at your shoes. And is In turn devoured greedily By that sly. slimy insect called the slug, To poison which you spread it on your beds. v I've planted popples, peonies and peas, Nasturtiums and verbenas in my time. And compassed them about with lime and sand; Besprinkled.' them with soot and other things Inevitably fatal to the slug; And seen the slugs grow sleek as aldermen. Establish homes adjacent to the lime; And, heeding what the Scripture strict enjoins, Hear families of most colossal size; And tv hen the lime and flowers both were gone Sit hungrily upon their nether limbs And clamor that I furnish them with more. I've watched with eager eyes the tender shoots Put forth above the surface of the ground. Rejoicing In their rapid, healthy growth. And picturing ecstatically the time Whn all my ard should blossom as the rose. With flowers like my mother used to grow. I've seen tho dews of evening kiss the beds Ana gioriea in tne promise mat tney gavo; j And when the sun Illumed the Eastern skies I've seen the guilty cutworms hie them homo Distended far beyond their normal size With all the goodly increase of my plants. There are. I know, upon this smiling earth Verbenas, popples, peonies and pease, And fair nasturtiums, too, that sprout and grow. And blossom In their due, appointed time, Molested not by slugs, and cutworm shunned. But I suspect, as seasons come around. And never blade of greeii of mine appears Abovo the earth that Is not seized upon And borne away to feed some slug's foul brood. That those who have such gardens must em ploy Policemen, to patrol their beds all night. Equipped with Mauser rifles, who will shoot Tho first base slug who dares to show his head. As such a force to guard one's plants comes high, I still continue, as the Springtime comes. To plant the seeds, contented if they reach In sprouting to the surface of the ground. And making garden simply for the Joy One finds In delving In the fragrant earth. The Statesmen of the South. From tho Pike County Incendiary. The South Is letting the rest of the coun try know that It Is on earth. In the Sen ate chamber yesterday Senator Tiller chal lenged any man from Massachusetts of twice his weight to meet him in front of the president's desk, and when no one took him up, he blacked the eyes of both, just to let them know he wasn't afraid of them. We breed statesmen In this coun try. From the Alabama Alligator. Our distinguished .senior Senator Is mak ing a record for himself in Washington. When approached by a correspondent yes terday for soma information, he thrashed the fellow within an inch of his life. This Is statesmanship of a k'nd that counts. From the Mississippi Boomerang. The quality of Southern statesmen is not strained. Senator Cash rebuked a street car conductor who questioned his right to ride without paying his fare by slicing tho upstart's hand Into ribbons. Perhaps after awhile the riff-raff around "Washing ton will dlsrnver that the Southern gentle men who have been sent to Washington J are there to transact the Nation's business, and not to pay street-car fare. From the Carolina Moccasin. Again has the superior ability and grasp of National, affairs of our Senators been vindicated. While Senator McLaurie was in a hotel a day or two ago he was ac costed by a person who presumed to criti cise some of his recent utterances. A short-arm jab soon laid the ruffian low, and no further test will be required to prove that our Senators know how the country should be run. "While we do not agree with our Senator In politics, we are fully In accord with his methods, and feel convinced that he is imbued with the true Southern spirit. " . From the Georgia Cracker. Our representatives in Washington may not be long on popularity at the White House, but they certainly know what measures are best for the country, and to their presence the Nation owes a large measure of its prosperity. There Is not one among them that can be given the lie with Impunity, and should any occasion arise for a mix-up they will be found right 1n the shuffle. "While such a stand ard' of statesmanship is maintained there Is hope for the country. A Rise. There's a flash like the glint of silver On tho riffles that foam below, And a thrill is sent down the rod that's beat In a slender, tapering- bow; There's a wild and sudden mingling , Of the voices of stream and pine With the Joyous peal of the singing reel, As it yields to the vibrant line. And the hand grow firm and steady, And the eyes can only see Where the waters close o'er the thread that goes To the prize that Is to be. A gleam in the golden sunshine. And you know that the fish Is fast. Now skill meets-sklll, and will meets will. For the battle s on at last! J. J. MONTAGUE.