The Sunday Oregonian., July 13, 1902, PART TWO, Page 11, Image 11

THE SUKTfAY OREGONIANv PORTLAND,
IT
A RAILROAD COMMISSION
SEXATOR "WAHBUR.TOX", OP T4.G03IA,
IX ITS ADVOCACY.
Compared "With. Other Stnte, Ho
Say, the Railroad Properties In.1
"Washington Tay FewToxei.
TACOMA, Wash.. July 9. To the Edi
tor.) For the past few months I have
been trying? to prepare a hill that will
effort a reform In the assessment of rail
roads throughout the state. When I took
up the subject I knew the railroads were
not paying their just proportion of the
taxes of this county and statoj but I as
sumed that they were paying aa least
somewhere near the proportion of taxes
that they in Justice and equity should pay.
I have been startled at the result of mj
Investigation, and I wish to give the public
as briefly as possible the general result
of It.
I And that the railroads of this state are
not paying on a valuation to exceed ono
tenth of their actual market value.
This is a most astounding statement to
make, and, if untrue, or unsupported by
the facts, should condemn the author
of it to the contempt of all good people.
If this statement Is true, the evil should
be remedied at the first possible moment,
and all good citizens should give all aid
within their power to remedy a wrong
so monstrous in' Its proportions.
I desiro to prove my statements as near
as possible and offer a remedy. Most of
the following statements arc accurate. I
can only approximate tho truth in some
matters,, but in doing so I give tho rail
roads the benefit of tho doubt.
A railway commission, such as proposed,
would havo the power to get all the facts
accurately and make no mistakes.
The laws of the state require all prop
erty to be assessed at "its true ana fair
value in money." This expression is' used
by different states as synonymous with
the words "cash value" or "market yalue."
It will be admitted that ,the great bulk
of the business and residence property in
the City of Tacoma is assessed at its full
market value. We will show that the
railroads and their terminals are not as
sessed at one-tenth of their full market
value. Tho United States Supreme Court
has held in a number of cases that the
way to reach a correct assessment of rail
ways where a state requires property to
bo assessed .at Its full market value Is to
ascertain the value of the road as a unit,
not piecemeal, as by township or county
through which it may run. A railroad ir
value as a whole system, not in two or
three-mile pieces. Tho true way to ascer
tain the market value of a railroad is to
add the bonded indebtedness of the road
per mile (if the bonds aro worth par) to
the market value of the stock per mile,
and you have tho value of the road per
mile. Speaking of this, the Supreme Court
of the United States, in what is known as
the railroad tax cases, 92 U. S., UIZ. says:
It is, therefore, obvious that, when you have
ascertained tho current cash value of the
it hole funded debt, and the current cosh value
of the entire number of shares, you have, by
tho action of those who above all others can
best estimate it, ascertained the truo valuo of
the road, all Its property. Its capital stock
and Its franchises; for those are all represented
by the value of its bonded debt and of the
shares of Its capital 6tock.
The track of the road Is but one track, from
one end of It to the other, -and, except as la
Its uses as one track. It is of little value. In
this track as a -whole, each county through
which It passes has an Interest much more
important than it has in. the. limited part of
It lylnr within Its boundary. Destroy by any
means a few miles of this track within an in
terior county, so as to cut off tho connection
between the two ports thus separated, and. If
It could not be repaired or replaced. Its effect
upon the -value of the remainder of the road la
out of all proportion to the mere local value
of. the part It destroyed. A similar effect on
the talue of the Interior o the road would
fallow the destruction of that end of the road
lj lnp in Chicago, or some other place where its
largest traffic centers. It may well be doubted
whether any bettor modo of determlnlnc the
value of that portion of the track within any
one county has been delsed than to ascertain
the value of the whole road and apportion the
value within tho county by Its relative length
to the whole.
Adopting this rule to ascertain the mar
ket value of a railroad, let us apply it to
the Northern Pacific Railway in this
county.
In 1901 that road' had 5100 miles of road
in Its entire system, which Includes all
branch lines.
It was bonded for $32,244 per mile
It was stocked for 2S.9Q2 per mile
Total 561,146 per mile
It paid 4 per cent interest on its bonds
and 4 per cent dividend on its stock. The
stock was put into the Northern Securities
at $115 per share, par value, ?100 per share.
Its .market value was $115 per hare, at
least. So tho value of tho road per mile
for purposes of taxation was, in accord
ance with a ruling approved by the Ignited
States Supreme Court, at least $6300 per
mile. It was assessed throughout this
county and state on an average of less
than 55GOO a mile, or less than one-eleventh
of its actual value. To put the fact cor
rectly, in 1901 the ordinary citizen In the
city paid taxes on tho full market value
of his property while the railroad paid on
less than one-eleventh of the market value
of the road. In this county, the. Northern
Pacific Railroad owns about 115 miles of
main track and 74 miles of side track,
worth at least $S500. It has terminals
which it claims it has improved at a cost
of from $6,000,000 to $10,000,000. The land
unimproved is worth an immense sum.
Only a commission of experts could fairly
determine its actual value. But we are
safe In saying that the value of tho im
provements and the land Is in excess of
$10,000,000. Its car shops are worth at least
$2,000,000 more. Its whole property within
this county is worth more than $20,000,000,
not including timber and farm lands, etc.
The value of these holdings, excluding
timber, farm lands, etc., is equal to that of
all other real estate. Improved and unim
proved, in Tacoma. Yet last year the
Donnelly Hotel paid one-twentieth as
much" taxes into the county treasury of
Pierce County as the Northern Pacific
Railroad paid on its 115 miles of railroad
track, right-of-way, 74 miles of sidetracks,
its terminals, water front, car shops and
headquarters building, or on at least $20,
000.000 worth of property. The Jones block,
one-twenty-second as much; the Califor
nia block, one-tw elf th as much. Mr. WH
keson's corner, on Pacific avenue and
Eleventh street, one-twelfth as much; the
National Bank of Commerce and bank,
one-eighth as much; the Fidelity Build
ing and bank, one-sixth as much; the
Provident Trust Company, about one-half
as much, the Tacoma Land Company, as
much; the property facing on Pacific ave
nue, between Tenth and Thirteenth streets
(I approximate) paid more taxes than the
Northern Pacific Railroad, yet the im
provements on that property did not cost
as much as the car shops alone. The rail
road paid about 24 mills on the actual
value of its holdings, while the citizen
paid 35 mills.
The truth Is that the Northern Pacific
Railroad, on Its main track and side track
and right-of-way and Improvements on
right of way, did not pay on a valuation
equal to the cash value of Its steel rails
piled up at the foot of "Pacific avenue.
This statement Is true of all the railroads
in the state in every county In the state.
The Northern Pacific Railway Company,
the Great Northern and the O. R. & N.
own about 2500 miles of road In the whole
state. The combined value of these roads,
including their terminals and excluding
rolling stock, cannot be worth less than
$175,000,000. Yet the whole property of
these roads In the state, excluding trolling
stork, is assessed at a. valuation of $15.
S4S.24S, or about one-twelfth of the esti
mated value of the roads. As 1 said above,
this amount would not purchase the steel
rails used by the road on the combined
trackage of 2500 mllefc. Is It any wonder
that taxes on othor property In the state
is so lafge and so difficult to pay? Can
any one doubt that if the railroads of
this county paid taxes on one-half the
valuation of their property the rate of
.taxes could be reduced more than 25 per
cent.
Tho depot grounds, commencing at Fif
teenth street, running to Twentieth street,
and between Dock street and Pacific ave
nue, contain 15 blocks of land. The prop
erty immediately around this block of
land is assessed on an average of about
$4000 a lot. If this land was stripped of all
railway Improvements upon It and held
by private individuals, it would be as
sessed at about $720,000. It would pay
about $25,000 in taxes a year. As it lays
today, with the sidetracks and improve
ments upon; it. It fiays $450 a year taxes,
not one-fiftieth of what it would pay If
entirely unimproved and held by prlvato
individuals. The Great Northern owns a
block of land in tho southern part of
Seattle, on which it has constructed a
brick building extending from street to
street, and covering, I am told, Jialf the
block. This building Is divided into store
rooms or warehouses, and returns a
monthly rental of approximately $2000 a
month. Last year tjiat property was as
sessed as "sidetrack," by tho mile, and
upon the whole block of land and build
ing the company paid taxes of $3. In
stances of this kind might be multiplied
both in Tacoma and Seattle, and in every
city where a railway has Its terminals,
ana In every county through which a
railway runs.
The Northern Pacific Railway Company
is a better-paying road than the New
York. New Haven & Hartford road. We
will Bhow the gross receipts and operat
ing expenses, fixed charges, surplus and
taxes per mile of each road. It will be
remembered that the New York, New
Haven & Hartford runs through a, llttlo
of New York, Connecticut and Massachu
setts, where the probable rate of taxes is
not one-half of what it is -in. this state.
N. Y.. N. H. & H. R. R. Co..
gross receipts $40,132,211
N. P. Ry. Co., groGs receipts.... 32.560.9S3
N. Y.. N. H. & H. R R. Co..
operating expenses 28,048,479
N. P. Ry. Co., operating ex
penses 16,640.143
N. Y., N. H. & H. R R. Co.,
net receipts t 9,716,137
N. P. Ry. Co., net receipts 15,000,48S
N. Y.. N. H. & H. R R Co.,
fixed charges 5,057,909
N. P. Ry.,Co., fixed charges 7,797,870
N. Y.. N. H. & H. R R. Co.,
surplus 4.658.2SS
N. P. Ry. Co., surplus 7,202,618
N. Y., N. H. & H. R R. Co.,
taxes per mile of road 1,163
N. P. Ry. Co., taxes per mile of
road 1M
Can the railroads afford to pay their
share of taxes? If they did so, would It
even reduce their dividends?
In the first place, property Is required
to bo assessed in this state at Its money
value, regardless of whether the owner
cm afford to pay It or not. But as a
matter of fact, if the Northern Pacific
Railway Company wero assessed at. six
times the present amount (or about one
half of the value of tho road), it would
not even cause a reduction of dividends.
-In 1S99 the Northern Pacific Railway
Company paid dividends on stock of"$34,
450 per mile In addition to paying Interest
on its bonds to the amount of $35,503 per
mile, besides Its operating expenses and
purchase of new rolling stock, $2,000,000 set
aside for betterments, its taxes, and in
addition to all this, reduced Its stock and
paid off bonds to the amount of $2221 per
mile. It did the same In 1900, besides re
ducing its stock and paying off bonds to
the amount of $1642 per mile. The same
was done in 1901, with a reduction of its
stock and bonds of $4946 per mile. If the
road had paid in each of those years six
times the amount of taxes' it paid on Its'
roadbed, right of way, sidetracks and. ter
minals, and on every mile of road from
Duluth to Portland, it still could havo
paid interest on its bonds and dividends
on Its stock to the amount of $G5,000 a
mile, and In 1S99 reduced Its Indebtedness
$1400 per mile; In 1900 $500 per mile, and in
1901 $4100 per mile.
When the roajd was reorganized In De
cember, 1S96, the common stock was tak
en, as I' am informed, on the basis of $15
per share. The holders then are very
largely the holders now. Tho last two
years the stockholders have received 25
per cent per annum on that valuation. In
addition to that, the stock has risen in
value from $15 to $115 per share. The
stockholders have made by this rise $S0.
000,000 on their stock, on an Investment
of $12,000,000.
The Remedy,
I believe that this state should follow
tho plan of assessing railroads adopted
by the'State of Indiana in 1S9L Take tho
assessment of roads and their terminals
entirely out of the hands of County As
sessors and County Boards of Equaliza
tion. Have the railroad property and
terminals assessed by a railway commis
sion. Make the Railway Commission tho
taxing power of the railways and tho
terminals throughout the entire state.
Also make the Railway Commission a
part of the State Board of Equalization,
with full power to equalize all the as
sessable property In the state. Then ap
portion to each county its full share of
railroad property in that county. It would
be the first duty of such a commission to
ascertain the actual value of the rail
roads. It must do this before it can at
tempt to adjust and fix rates. The work
for the one purpose would servo both pur
poses. This method has numerous advan
tages over the present system.
First You could get men who are ex
perts on the question of the value of rail
roads and their terminals.
Second The responsibility would then
bo on the Railway Cpmmisslon alone, and
not as now, divided among as many men
as there are County Assessors and Coun
ay Boards of Equalization none of whom
have expert knowledge on the subject.
Third Each railroad would then be as
sessed as a unit in tho state, not piece
meal. Fourth The Railway Commission would
havo the power to go to the books of
tho company and get the necessary data
and properly determine the value of the
railroads.
Fifth In case the railroads should con
test the collection of the fnrM th crnt
would have expert evidence with which'
to support its case.
Sixth The state would defend all such
suits. Instead of tho rmmdu on a
county would be permitted to compro
mise sucn a suit, xne Attorney-General
of the state would havo charge of such
cases.
Seventh There would bo uniformity of
taxation pi ranroaos tnroughout the
state.
Eighth The railways would not play
one county against another. In order to
secure a low assessment.
Ninth The railroads could not frighten
the citizens of one cltv bv thrt.ninw
to injure the city If a lair assessment
was mace Dy favoring another city where
they had secured or could secure a "low
assessment, such as they can do under
the present law.
Tenth The railways would then pay
just as many dollars a mile on a rail
road in one county as another.
Eleventh The roads would be permit-
tea to contest an assessment until it had
paid into the county treasury tho
amount of the taxes assessed.
Twelfth The time in which a contest
could be begun on an assessment of
taxes should be limited to six months
after tho levy was made and equalized.
Thirteenth In the event of a court de
claring an assessment void. It would be
made the duty of the court to mnv n
finding of what was tho market value of
tne property ior we purpose of assess
ment. Fourteenth In case a lew nf tnvA
was declared Illegal, it would be tho duty
of the Railway Commissioners and State
Board of Equalization to Immediately re
assess the nroncrtv for such vjr nava.
ble Immediately after the reassessment
was mauc. ,
The law of Indiana has been tested In
the courts and sustained. It hnn hn
In successful operation for 10 years. We
will show how It has worked further on.
The faults of our present law in rela
tion to the assessments of railroads n
numerous. There never will be an Im
provement upon them until some such
svstem as that sumrested is adnnted. w
j are safe in saying that there never was
an Assessor elected In the State of
Washington that had the technical knowl
edge of railroads sufficient to enable him
to make a correct valuation of railroads
for the purpose of assessment. What
County Assessor knows the value of the
rolling stock of a railroad, the valuo
of an engine, a coach, or a freight car?
How much it deteriorates a year by U3e.
etc.? What proportion of tho entire roll
ing stock "-of the railroad is assossible in
his own county? It is Impocslble to get
such information except by a commis
sion empowered to take testimony, with
power to' look Into tho books of tho rail
way company. " "
Again, under tho present system,- caph
county is compelled to defend the assess
ment of railways in that county. Many
of the counties are not able financially
to cope with tho railroads In such litiga
tion. The cpst of getting expert evidence
in many counties would be as muoh as
the taxes for a given year. If a County
Assessor makes a fair assessment, the
County Board of Equalization may re
duce It, as it has done in many In
stances. Pierce County cannot assess tho
railroads at $35,000 a mile, and Ring
Counts' and the balance of the counties
In the state at $52S0 a mllo. If Pierce
County did so, and had tho power tc do
so, tho-railroads would at once discrim
inate or threaten to discriminate against
Pierce County.
It is frequently charged that tho low
taxation of 'railroads in our state Is se
cured by the corruption of our County
Assessors and County Boards of Equal
ization. I do not believe that this Is
true. At least. It Is. a very small part
of the trouble, and, aa I have said, tho
trouble is in our system of taxing them
and the lack of tho necessary technical
knowledge of this subject-matter by those
whoso duty it is to assess and equalize
them.
Result of the System in Indiana.
I have before mo the result of tho law
in Indiana for the year 1901, 10 years af
ter the law went Into effect.
There is not a road that runs through
that state that In 1901 showed as good re
turns on the valuo as we have shown,
throughout the whole system, as the
Northern Pacific Railroad did. Tho fol
lowing roads paid on the following as
sessed valuo per mile:
Main. Side
track. track
The 31.. C. R. R. Co $33,000 $350.)
The L. S. & M. S 40.000 4000
The Panhandle 45.000 4500
The P. H. W. Co 59.000 5000
Not 'one of the above. roads Is a better
paying road than the Northern Pacific,
yet the assessed valuation is from six
to 10 times as much under the Indiana
law as the Northern Pacific is under our
law.
Tho Indianapolis Union is evidently a
passenger terminal. It is 92-lOOths of a
mile long, less than a mile of double
track. It has 2S miles of sidetrack. It
has a depot assessed at $500,000, and no
freight depot. In fact. It has no freight
business. It has no rolling stock. Tho
roada that use It furnish their own roll
ing stock, yet that les3 than one mllo of
double track, 2 miles of sidetrack and
depot, is assessed at $2,642,700. The as
sessed valuation of all the railroads In
this county, of 151 miles of main track
and 74 miles of sidetrack, including im
provements on right of way. Is $1,131,869.
(See report State Board of Equalization,
page 27.) The Indianapolis Union, with
less than a mile of double track and 2
miles of sidetrack. Is assessed at almost
2V-t times as much as 154 miles of main
track and 74 miles of sidetrack in this
county,- Its assessed valuation 4s almost
as much as tho combined assessed valua
tion of all" the railroads in King and
Pierce counties, there being 273 miles of
main track and 90 miles of sidetrack in
King County and 154 miles of main track
and 74 miles of sidetrack in Pierce Coun
ty, making a total of 427 miles of main
track and 161 miles of sidetrack in both
counties, tho combined assessed value of
all the railroads in King and Pierce
counties ' amounting to $2,799,155, against
$2,64S,700 of the Indianapolis Unload of
less than ono mile In length.
The Indianapolis Belt Line, as its name
implies, is a railroad circling that city,
and acts in the nature of jbl. clearing
house for railroads entering there. It
is -rooTe valuable than the ordinary rail
road, and is -assessed at $120,000!rper mile
of main track and $26,000 per mile of side
track. I gather from tho report that tho
following are exclusively bridge compa
nies which the different companies uso in
crossing the Ohio River and are Inde
pendent corporations, and are valuable
in showing how clearly a body of ex
pert commissioners could ascertain the
'valuo of the different railroad properties
which the ordinary Assessor would en
tirely overlook. The Kentucky & In
dianapolis Bridge Company Is assessed at
$250,000 a mile. The Louisville & Jeffer
sonville Bridge Company Is assessed at
$125,000 per mile; the Louisville Brldgo
Company at $2,000,000 a mile. Every ex
press company- operating through Indiana
pays a tax. So far as I havo been able
to ascertain, the Northern Pacific Ex
press Company does not pay a dollar's
tax In this state. The Great Northern
Express Company pays no taxes. No
express company operating in this stato
pays any tax. In Indiana the Pullman
Car Company pays a heavy tax. It op
erates in this state, and does not pay
any tax. The Standard Oil Company's
tank line pays tax In Indiana, but It doos
not pay any In this state. Tho same Is
true of Armour & Co.'a line of meat cars,
and the Cudahy packing system of cars.
In fact, thero are 41 systems of sleeping
cars, express companies, etc., that pay
taxes in Indiana that do not pay any
taxes here, the aggregate amounting to
almost $3,000,000.
If will readily bo oeen that no County
Assessor or County Board of Equalization
is competent to assess this class of prop
erty. The correct value Is difficult to de
termine and only a commission containing
railway experts could correctly ascertain
it.
In the foregoing we have not touched
upon the question of taxation of the roll
ing stock of the different railroads in this
state. It is impossible for any one to
say what the value of tho rolling stock of
the railroads in the State of Washington
is. I have 'tried in vain to reach a con
clusion satisfactory to myself, but'have
not been able to do so. I can only ap
proximate It, and In doing so I take the
results reached In Indiana as my guide.
It will be seen by examining the report
of tho State Board of Equalization that
the rolling stock of the railroads in the
State of Washington Is assesssed at $3,401,
943. I am confident that the railway com
mission would fix tho valuation of the
rolling stock of the different roads In this,
.state at from $3,000,000 to $12,000,000. I have
no doubt that the rolling stock of the dif
ferent roads In the State of .Washington
is worth In money over $S,000.000, but it is
a problem that no can can solve satisfac
tory to himself, unless ho had had experi
ence in railway matters and plenty of
time, power and opportunity to go Into
tho matter thoroughly.
It has been suggested that a railway
commission would be too expensive and
would not produce results sufficient to
pay the expenses of the commission. I
am safe in saying that the railway com
mission. If created as prdposed, with the
powers suggested, would pay for itself
three times over In compelling tho ex-,
press companies and sleeping-car compa
nies, etc. to pay their Just proportion
of the taxes, who now escape taxation en
tirely. In addition to this, such a com
mission would add to the value of taxa
ble property in this stato on rolling stock,
right of way, improvements on right of
way, terminals and Improvements on ter
minals, from $70,000,000 to $100,000,000. It
could not be less than this and assess
the roads at one-half of their value In
money.
It has been suggested that tho railroads
would corrupt the commission. I have no
fear that they would. We would get a
superior class of men on such a commis
sion if we pay them a salary sufficient to
obtain men of high character, ability and
expert knowledge. No one who knows
Governor McBrde and his high ideal of
what a public servant should be would
suggest that he would appoint anything
but an honest and competent railway com-
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mission. Any one who knows Governor
McBrJdo will agree with me that If a
commission which he appointed failed to
discharge its duties honestly and faith
fully, would live officially no longer than
it would take Governor McBride to write
an order of discharge. Henry McBride
will remain our Governor for at least two
years longer. A commission appointed by
him would, long prior to the time of the
completion of his term of office, have
fixed the value of the-property of the
railroad for tho purpose of taxation, as
suggested. No subsequent commission
would dare to materially reduce tho value
so determined.
When I took up this; subject a few
months ago, I had not the slightest Idea
of the vast disproportion of the taxes that
the railways in this state wero paying;
nor did I then think of connecting the re
form with the railway commission. This
was suggested to me by the law of Indi
ana. The law of Indiana furnishes a full
and complete remedy and I believe It
should bo copied Into our law, word for
word, as nearly as possible. That this sys
tem is fair and Just to tho railroads, I
have no doubt. In fact, I have the unani
mous opinion of several of the Supreme
Courts that such a system Is best adapted
to obtain a fair taxation of the railroads.
The United States Supreme Court, In
speaking of this system, says:
The statute of Illinois and the rule adopted
by the Board qf Equalization, under tho power
conferred by the clause we havo Just recited,
may not be the wisest mode of doing complete
justice In this difficult matter; but wo confess
we have, on th whole, seen no scheme which
Is better adapted to effect this purpose, so far
as railroad corporations are concerned, of tax
ing at once all their property, and of making
the tax Just and equal in its relation to other
taxable property of the state.
It Is, therefore, obvious that, when you have
ascertained the current cash value of the en
tire number of shares, you have, by the action
of those who. above all others, -can best esti
mate It, ascertained, the true value of the road,
all Us property. Its capital stock and Its fran
chises; for thMe are all represented by the
value of Its boitded debt and of the shares of
Its capital stock,
The Supreme Court of Indiana, In speak
ing of the law of Indiana, says:
The method rrescrlbed would seem to haije
In lew the fixing of the value on property by
persons and boards best calculated to know the
valtfe of the property required to be valued by
them, and with a view of arrtlng at a Just
and equal valuation of all the property within
the state subject'to taxation, providing county
boards of review to correct errors of local as
sessors', and then a state board to fix1 'the value
of the property of railroad companies extend
ing through the state, and to equalize the af
uatlons ahd assessments of property through
out the state. That the method prescribed In
the acts Is one calculated to secure a lust and
equal valuation and assessment of property
throughout the state cannot be reasonably
questioned, and Js one which the Legislature
had the right tu adopt.
Cleveland Railway Co. v. Backus, 133 Ind.,
813.
Eee also 133 Ind.. 013.
Also 133 Ind C25.
The Supreme Court of Illinois, speaking
of a similar sjstem of taxation, says:
In deHermlnlnf- the value of such property,
the question is neither one of original nor of
Intrinsic valuo of the various items of which
the road and Its equipment are composed,
taken separately, but what It Is worth with
all Its capabilities and facilities as a railroad.
The .franchise extends to the entire corporate
property, and It Is not possible that It can be
divided. It must. If assessed at all, be as
sessed as an entirety, and this, as we have
already shown, may be In connection with the
property to which It is attached.
Porter v. Railway Co., 7C III., 601.
I am certain that no legislation can be
enacted at the session of the next Legis
lature at Olympla that would be of more
benefit to the state, or as much, as a
railway commission with the powers sug
gested. Let each voter see to It that the
candidate which he supports for the next
Legislature Is pledged to support Buch a
measure.
I shall be glad to answer personally any
Inquiries along the line of this article.
STANTON WARBURTON.
Efforts to Pacify Colombia.
PANAMA, July 12. General Salazar, in
an Interview with the representative of
the Associated Press, said:
"The government Is making powerful
efforts to pacify the republic. In order
that Congress may meet and reach a
decision in the matter of the canal bill,
which is the most Important question In
Colombia today. The national govern
ment has Issued generous decrees offer
ing guarantees to the revolutionists, pro
viding they surrender.
"The revolutionary army only exists on
tho lsthmu3t because of tho help given I
We Gain Friends and Patronage by Giving Low Prices on High-Grade Goods.
Temporary Store: Corner Fifth and Yamhill Streets
Summer
We never carry goods over from one season to another, but start
.each season with a fresh, new stock. In order to close out all
Summer goods this month we have made extraordinary reduc
. tions in prices.
WASH SILKS About 500 yards of imported wash silks
large assortment of styles and colors, worth fir.
50c yard, reduced to L Ju
STORM SERGE All-wool storm serge, in black and
navy blue, 40 inches wide., worth GOc yard, re- yjCp
duced to T'Ju
MUSLINS 36-inch bleached muslin, soft fine "71 .
'quality: regular price 10c yard, reduced to.... I2u
SATEEN Fine quality, fast black sateen, 28-inch
wide, bright luster finish, worth 12c yard, re- On
duced to... ub
DIMITIES 25 pieces fine-grade dimities, colors per
fectly fast, dainty figures 'and stripes, reduced n
INDIA LINON 20 pieces extra fine quality white
lawns, 31-inch wide, regular price 15c, re- M n
duced to 1 lb
SILKOLINES About 1000 yards of silkoline, in hand
some patterns and colorings, worth 8c yard,
reduced to vi
LACE CURTAINS Fine Nottingham lace curtains,
2b yards long by 48 Inches wide, worth 1 1 K
$1 50 pair, reduced to .. 1 1 I J
BEDSPREADS Full size honeycomb bedspreads, Mar
seilles patterns, very heavy quality, worth QQa
?1 25, reduced to d Ob
SHEETS Full size, ready-made sheets', made from
good quality, bleached cotton, worth GOc pair, enn
reduced to Juu
PILLOW CASES About 100 dozen good quality
bleached cotton pillow cases, size 36x45-inch. i (Ia
regular price 12c, reduced to 1 Ub
BATH TOWELS Big lot of unbleached Turkish
towels, extra heavy quality, large size, worth ni
16 2-3c, reduced to I 20
TABLE LINEN 60-Inch bleached table damask, all
pure linen, handsome patterns, regular 60c 7
quality, reduced to "Tib
TABLE COVERS Tapestry table covers, iy2 yards
' square, pretty overshot weaves, choice colors, a n n
worth $1 40 each, reduced to 1 1 U U
TOWELS 100 dozen large-size cotton towels, heavy,
firm quality, with fringe, very cheap at 12&c Q1n
each reduced to 0 3b
PILLOWS 50 feather pillows that weigh full three
pounds, good grade of ticking, worth 75c, re- en
duced to .; UOb
WRAPPERS Ladles' flannelette and dark percale
wrappers, in all sizes, all up-to-date styles, best QQn
colorings, worth ?1 25, reduced to Uub
WAISTS About 35 dozen percale shirt waists, all
good colors and patterns, worth 40c and 50c, re- Re
duced, to . A ZOb
WAISTS All our regular 65c and 75c percale and
dimity shirtwaists, In all sizes, good styles, flQn
reduced to fub
WAISTS White lawn, dimities, percales and fancy
waists, worth from 1 00 to ?1 75, at greatly reduced
prices.
DRESS SKIRTS All-wool Cheviot serge flounce skirt,
trimmed with satin straps, best lining and j nr
binding, worth ?5 50, reduced fo f"i LO
WALKING SKIRTS Melton cloth flounce walking
skirts, handsomely stitched in all colors, n nr
worth 3 90, reduced to Ziau
SUN BONNETS Ladies' and misses sun bonnets, in
plain and fancy colors, correct styles worth '-QQn
25c and 35c, reduced to ZZb
CORSETS R. & G., Warner's and American Lady
corsets and girdles, In pink, blue, drab and COn
white, best made for -.Jub
PETTICOATS Black mercerized sateen petticoats,
made with ruffle, flounce and corded, worth j nn
$1 50, reduced to j t ZU
LACES 3000 yards of fine and heavy thread Torchon
lace, from 2 to 5 Inches wide, worth to 10c c
yard, reduced to 3b
BUTTONS 200 gross of pearl buttons, In; all sizes,
made with 2 and 4 holes, worth 10c dozen, ni
reduced to . 2b
STOCKINGS Children's fine and heavy ribbed fast
black cotton stockings, in all sizes, usual price i )!
15c, reduced to 1 2b
STOCKINGS Ladies' fine quality Imported stockings,
lace and drop-stitched, with fancy stripes, reg- QQn
ular price 50c, reduced to dolj
UNDERWEAR Ladles' sleeveless lace vests, in pink,
blue and white, silk taped, worth 25c, reduced rft
to : loc
GOLF SHIRTS Men's percale and Madras golf shirts,
detachable cuffs to match, 85c kind, reduced QCn
to : 00C
UNDERWEAR Men's Summer-weight ribbed nr.
shirts and drawers, worth 40c each, reduced to.. ZOb
HATS Men's straw and Fedora shape crash hats, QCn
all sizes, worth 35c and 40c, reduced to, ZOb
SUSPENDERS 50 dozen -fine-grade suspenders, Im
ported webbing, lisle ends, best buckles, worth op.
35c and 4oc, reduced to ZOb
NECKWEAR Men's 50c Teck ties, all silk, satin nr.
lined, hest of patterns, reduced to ZOb
PANTS Men's dressy worsted pants, perfect q nr
fitting, worth ?4 50, reduced to UiZO
SUITS Immense stock of boys' and youths' suits, at
prices much reduced.
BIG SHOE VALUES
Women's patent leather, ox blood and black vici kid
lace shoes, hand welt and hand turned soles, all new
Spring 1902 styles, stock tips, good wearers, I) Pr
our regular $3 50 lines, cut to ZiOO
Women's kid and box calf, lace and button styles, stock
and patent tips, light and'medium weight, all leather
soles, up-to-date styles, our regular ?2 00 1 7Q
lines, cut to. ... 1 1 1 u
Women's black vici kid Oxford ties, heavy" hand-turned
soles, stitched imitation tips, velvet Inserted tops,
very stylish, our regular 2 50 lines, cut 0 flfj
Women's kid Oxford ties, medium weight, all leather
soles, patent tips, good style, our ?1 35 grades i n r
cutto 1,Z0
Misses' kangaroo calf, lace shoes, all leather, medium
weight soles, just the shoes for coast or mountains
Our $1 35 grade sizes, 12 to 2, cut to ?1 10
Childs' sizes, 8 to 11, cut to -. 95c
Childs' sizes, 5 to 8, cut to 80c
Boys' canvas shoes, all sizes, from 12 to 5&, just the
shoes for Summer wear, cool and comfortable, nn
price hUU
It by President Zolaja. o Nicaragua,
who has violated all the rules of Inter
national law."
Generals Zerlgo Camargo, Carlos Ar
turo, Torres and Emanuel Joseangarlta
are other prominent Liberal or revolu
tionary leaders who have Issued a mani
festo addressed to their followers, urg
ing them to lay down their arms In or
der that the nation may reach a decis
ion on the canal bill.' This declaration
shows that both political parties In Co
lombia aro In favor of. the proposed pro
ject. Holguln Retnrim to Colon.
NEW YORK. July 12. The Spanish
steamship Montserrat. "from Havana, has
arrived at Colon, with General Holguin,
ex-illnlster of "War, on board, cables
the Panama correspondent of the Herald.
General Holguin was exiled about ono
year ago, along with General Pedro del
Osplna and several other prominent mem
bers of the Conservative party. General
Holguin left Thursday evening for Bar
ranqullla, en route. It l3 supposed, to
Bogota.
Thoma3 Nast, tho United States Consul
to Guayaquil, who arrived in Colon re2
cently from New York, came over to
Panama Thursday. Ho will leave Mon
day for his post. "Wnlle at Colon he vis
ited the Unlte'd States gunboat Machlas,
and on leaving the vessel a salute was
nred in his honor.
II ' II
you wonder why
I 'J wis il iMb Ji si 1 PTssT!
Prlmary,SecondttryorTertlar7 iSj-phllitlcBIoodPoI?on
permanently cured In 15 to 15 cUyg. Yon con be treated
at home for tho same price under came guaranty. It
yon prefertocomehere we wlllccntract to pay rail
road fare and hotel blll, and no charjro IT no fall to
care. If yoa haTe taken merertrr, iodido potash,
and stUI qato aches and pains, Mucous Patches la
month, soro throat, pimples, copper colored
Boots, ulcers on any lart of tho body, hair
or ejebrotv falling out, It .Is this Secondary
BLOOD POISON that ire guarantee to
enre. We solicit tho tnoat obstinate cases and
challenge tho -world for a enso ire cannot
cure. IhtadUease has always baffled tho skill
of the most eminent physicians. S500,O0O
capital behind our unconditional guaranty.
Absolnto proofs and lOO-pago book sent
sealed. No branch offices. Uso full addreis as follows:
COOK REMEDY COMPANY,
1589 Masonic Temple, CHICAGO, ILL.
A $20 Beit for $5
The Dr. Moores Elec
tric Belt (with Sus
penvry). for ladles or
fjers: guaranteed to
posrefs all curatlvo
properties, strong- cur
rent, neat In appear
ance, well made and
durable as the Mts
sold at higher prices.
Sent by mall on re-
v celpt of price.
ENTERPRISE ELECTRIC WORKS
100 N. 3rd St., Portland, On
we don't make such extravagant statements regarding the
bargains we offer as do some of the cheap concerns here
abouts. Fact is, we couldn't substantiate such statements
ijny more than they do, and they know it.
we don t give goods away
nor try to make you believe we do, "but we do
offer to sell them at such
reasonable reductions
as will induce you to buy during the dull sea
son and thus keep our force of Portland tailors busy.
When you realize that we pay more for the making alone
of our garments than some concerns offer the finished
article for, you can imagine the conditions under which
our goods are manufactured.
rSef-835.5.'0. . $20, $25, $30
$6, $7, $8 Trousers gT
IU U1UC1 ........ "f
SPECIAL PRICES ON FULL DRESS SUITS
7
108 THIRD STREET