43 PAGES PRGES I TO 5 VOL. XXIV KO. 6. POUT LAND, OREGON, SUNDAY MORNING,. FEBRUARY 5, 1905. PRICE FIVE CENTS. HE GIVES IT UP Kuropatkin Relin quishes Command, GENERALS DISAGREE Grippenberg Says Chief Dishonored Him. ARMY READY TO MUTINY Bodyguard of Czar Alone Re mains Loyal. SAILORS ON VERGE OF REVOLT lack Sea Fleet Reeks With Revolu tionary Sentiment, and General Outbreak Seems Imminent in Russia. ST. PETERSBURG, Feb. 5 (2 A. 31.). General Kuroputkln has tendered to the Czar hi resignation of the com mand of the force In the Ear Kant. General Grippenberg: hair been re moved from the command of the Second Mflnehurlan army at hie ovrn reqnest, having: declared that he had been din honored by Kuropatkln's order to re treat at the battle of the Hun River. BERLIN, Feb, 4. German military ex perts familiar -with the Inner conditions of the Russian army declaro that the autoc racy cannot depend on the loyalty o any of the troopa outside o the few regiments serving as bodyguards to the Czar and the Grand Dukec Military men here. In the light of history and tradition, therefore, regard the recent mutiny of soldiers and marines at Sevas tapol as Immeasurably the most danger ous event of all the recent turmoil in Russia. They proclaim their belief that It Is the forerunner of widespread insubordination, fraught with far-reaching consequences. ON VERGE OF MUTINY. Crews of .Baclk Sea Fleet Ready to Rise Against Government. LONDON, Feb. 4. The crews, of the Black Sea fleet are on the verge of mu tiny. Revolutionary literature in great quantities has been found on the ships. The men are in a dangerous frame of mind, and an outbreak Is feared at any moment. - The intense feeling of revolution lk strengthened by the fact that 38 of their comrades are being sentenced to death as ringleaders In the first outbreak. WHY KUROPATKIN RESIGNS. Bitter Quarrel With Grippenberg Ends in Withdrawal. ST. PETERSBURG. Feb. 4 (5 P. M.). tumors of General Kuropatkin handing trover his command to General Llnevitch, commander of the first army, have been current In St. Petersburg since the an nouncement that General Grippenberg had been relieved of his command of tho second army. The Associated Press is un i able to obtain any confirmation of the reports. The War Office declares they are improbable, but Is unable to deny them. A distinguished ' General told the Asso ciated Press that evidently there had been friction between General Kuropatkin and General Grippenberg, and added: "I have heard a great deal of talk about Kuropatkln's asking to be relieved, but nothing can be said on the subject at present." There are two conflicting versions of the Incident. According to one of them. General Grippenberg complained to the Esnpcror that General Kuropatkin had re fused to support his flanking movement, In view of which Grippenberg asked to be relieved. The Emperor, it Is added, then telegraphed to Kuropatkin, asking for an explanation, in reply to which Kuropatkin wired that his health was shattered, arid requested permission to turn over his command to General Linevitch. According to the second and more com monly credited version of the affair, Ku ropatkin complained to the Emperor that Grippenberg undertook the flanking move- J ment In defiance of orders, and- demanded i the General's -dismissal. The hope is generally expressed that the incident will be satisfactorily adjusted, as t Is realized on all sides that Kuropat kln's departure from the front would prove a severe blow to hopes of victory in the near future. Grippenberg's withdrawal has not changed the situation. The Russians con tinue to hold their positions around San depas. WEATHER ENFORCES TRUCE. When It Breaks, Russians Will Either Make Advance or Withdraw. ST. PETERSBURG. Feb. 4 (11:40 P. M.) Interest in the Ill-starred attempt to capture Sandepas is eclipsed by the with drawal of General Grippenberg, and un confirmed reports regarding the retire ment of General Kuropatkin. According to the latest Information re ceived by the War Office, operations on the right flank of the Russian army are ' at a standstill. The extreme fight of the i Russians continues to hold Chlantsanhe- nan, on the Hun River, six miles north- west of Sandepas. Apparently both sides I are unable, to move owing to the terrible , weather. There are 25 degrees of frost, accompan- i led by wind, but in view of the sudden j fluctuations in temperature at this time of the year, tho frost may suddenly de crease and the Russians would then be confronted with the alternative of with drawing in order to avoid being Inter cepted by a Japanese column from Shill khe or of undertaking a general advance. The latter view finds some confirmation in a dispatch to the Associated Press from Tslnkhetchen, reporting a reconnaissance by General RennenkampfTs force on the Russian left, w..iun perhaps is prelimin ary to an advance. The military authori ties here are encouraged by the report showing that the Russians are able to repeat the plan of reaching the enemy's line of communication. WILL NOT TAKE A RISK. German Military Expert Finds Cause of Kuropatkln's Failure. .BERLIN, Feb. 4. Colonel Gaedke, for the first time since his return from the Far Bast, where he was war correspond ent for the Tageblatt. writes his opinion of General Kuropatkin. "Although a through-and-through hon orable man. benevolent, personally brave, admirable In the quiet of his workroom, elmple In his tastes and an excellent ad ministrator, Kuropatkin lacks," says Colo nel Gaedke. "that glance that penetrates the darkness of a situation, quick decis ion, Immediate correlation of means and, before all, the unsympathetic will that alone triumphs In war, that -without com passion uses tho bodies and souls of his men In taking their last and best to com pass victory. Such men as Kuropatkin are not few in the Russian Army, and their qualities attach, the soldier to his flag, but they do not win victories. Kuro patkin at Llao Yang burdened his mind with placing individual regiments, bat talions and batteries, and lost thereby the conception of the whole." Colonel Gaedke regards Kuropatkin as overcautious and concludes: "No leader is so bad as he who will not take a rlskJ RUSSIANS TAKE A VILLAGE. But They Are Repulsed in Attacks on Two Others. ST. PETERSBURG, Feb. 4.-GeneraI Kuropatkin, telegraphing under date ot. February 3 to Emperor Nicholas, said: "The village of Chautandhenau has been completely occupied by our troops after a fight at 5 o'olock this morning. We reconnoitered the villages of Sanshen and Pudzova, occupied by the enemy, and after several volleys the sharpshooters entered Fanshen and shot and bayoneted many Japanese. The latter were rein forced and attacked the sharpshooters, who retired, carrying off their dead and wounded. "On our right flank the Japanese left 100 corpses, of which number we burled S7." A later dispatch from Goneral Kuro patkin, dated February 3, says: "No reports of further encounters have been received. "One of our patrols blew, up the rail way eight miler south of Elao Tang. Jan uary 31 and February 2." ARGUING ABOUT THE LOSS. Russians Say Japanese -Suffered Most In Battle of Heikoutai. MUKDEN, Feb. 4. Though there is a momentary pause in the operations, Rus sian activity on the Shakhe River has not ended. Two hundred Japanese prisoners were brought in today. They were badly dressed and suffering from cold. The Japanese report that 00 Russians were taken prisoners during the Sandepas operations is untrue and the Japanese losses greatly exceed tho Toklo estimates of the Russian losses, because In their advance over the frozen ground It was impossible for the Japanese to entrench. The report that General Kuropatkin re ceived orders from St. Petersburg to ad- tConcluded on Second Page.) ;WIL SUCCEED TO GOVERNORSHIP OF WISCONSIN jj" -IIJBflBjjjj JAXKS O. DAVIDSON. Lieutenant-Governor James O. Davidson will succeed Governor La. Follette a Governor of Wisconsin when the latter becomes United States Senator. In March. Mr. Davidson is known throughout Wisconsin as "Sunny Jim." He was born !n Norway, came to this country as a youth, followed farming and then became very successful storekeeper at Soldiers' Grove. He has been a member of the Wis consin Legislature, and is serving his second term as Lieutenant-Governor. PRIVATE OR NOT? As to Hermann's Burned Letters, the Question. MAY CAUSE NEW CHARGE Government Collecting Evi dence on Subject IS DILEMMA FOR HERMANN If Really Private, He ls( Liable to Fines Aggregating Million's for Abuse of Frank Clerks Say They Were Public. OREGONIAN NEWS BUREAU, Wash ington, Feb. 4. It is learned on ex cellent authority that the Government attaches great importance to the fact that Binger Hermann, before retiring from the General Land Office, caused to be destroyed 36 letter-books con taining copies of letters he had written while Commissioner, an average of ten letters a day for his entire term. Her mann contends that these letters were of a private nature. The Government has secured the testimony of one or more clerks who saw the letters In question which shows that many of them were in reply to letters which Hermann received ' making inquiry about public land business of one sort or another. This fact will be held out by the Government to establish its contention that the letters were of a public na ture and that the books destroyed con tained Government records, but it has further been learned that all the let- . ters which the Commissioner copied in his private books wero sent throtigh the malls under the Government frank. Clerks and messengers who mailed let ters did not place stamps on them, yet each envelope containing one of thoso alleged "private" letters bore on Its face notice that there was. a. penalty of $300 If used for private purposes. If Mr. Hermann's contention is true, the Government -will show that he vio lated the postal laws and laid himself liable to a fine of $300 for every pri vate letter sent under his frank, and, if all his letters were private, the max imum penalty should be Imposed, which will never be done, of course. Mr. Her mann would be fined $5,000,000, for each letter-book contained approxi mately 500 letters. But. if the Government presses the case against Mr. Hermann for Illegally using the Government's frank on pri vate correspondence, that charge will have to be brought in the District of Columbia, where the letters were mailed. This letter-book Incident, which for a time was set aside, now promises to play an important part in against ex- KLAMATH BILL IS PASSED. President's Approval Alone Needed to Execution of Irrigation Scheme. OREGONIAN NEWS BUREAU. Wash ington. Feb. 4. The Klamath irrigation bill now lacks only the signature of the President to make it a law. The Senate accepted the House amendments, which are entirely satisfactory to the reclama tion service. As finally enacted the bill reads: That the Secretary of the Interior Is here by authorized, in carrying out any Irriga tion project that may be undertaken by him under the terms and conditions of the National reclamation act and which may In volve the changing ot the levels of Lower or Little Klamath Lake, Tule or Rhet Lake and Goose Lake, or any river or other body of water connected therewith. In Oregon and California, to raise or lower the level of said lakes, as may be necessary, and to dispose of any lands which may come Into the possession of the United States as the result thereof by cession of any state or otherwise, under the terms and conditions of the National reclamation act. Had it not been for Senator Fulton's Insistence, Chairman Mondell, of the House irrigation committee, would not have withdrawn his objection to this bill and it would not have passed. TO STUDY RECLAMATION WORK Irrigation Committees of Congress to Tour Arid-Land States. OREGONIAN NEWS BUREAU, Wash ington, Feb. 4. The committees on irriga tion of the Senate and House will make a trip through the various arid-land states of the West during the coming Summer to familiarize themselves with the actual conditions and to see what the Govern ment is doing on the different projects. The expenses of the trip will be borne by the members of the committees. Report of Land Commission. OREGONIAN NEWS BUREAU, Wash ington. Feb. 4. The Public Lands Commission, appointed by the Presi dent a year ngo to Investigate the land laws and ascertain needed changes, will submit Its second report to the President within" a week or ten daysr This will ot bo the final re port, but will cover the observations so far made. The Commission wants its service laid before the public for discussion. It will continue investiga tions and submit a final report to the President next Winter. Earthquake in Oaxaca. MEXICO Cm', Feb. 4. Several shocks of earthquake have been felt in the State of Oaxaca, CONTENTS OF TODAY'S PAPEB The Weather. TODAT'S-Falr. followed by increasing cloudi ness andthreatening weather during the afternoon or night? brisk "jaisterly winds. YESTERDAY'S Maximum . temi-eratuo;. i deg.; minimum, 34. pVeJjpltatiojj. none. War la the I"ar East.-' General Kuropatkin resigns command, after quarrel with Grippenberg, who also resigns. Page 1. Skirmishes continue with varying success, rage L Insubordination throughout Ruasian army and navy; mutiny threatened In Black Sea fleet. Page 1. Foreign. Poles flee from Russian rule Into Germany. Page 2. Whole working population of Poland on strike. Page 2. Britain and Italy plan to break Austro-Kus- slan control of Macedonia. Page 3. Insurrection In Argentine. Page 3. National. Hermann on horns of dilemma regarding let ters he destroyed In I.snd Office. Page 1. Senate committee will report in Smoot's favor. Page 1, . Taft recommends revision of Philippine tariff. Page 14. Railroad presidents declare for new rate law. Page 3. President Roosevelt tells about Indian trust funda. Page 14. Domestic. Atlantic coast ports blocked with Ice and navi gation stopped. Page 1 Weather moderating In Middle States. . Page 1. Great flre threatens to destroy Birmingham. Ala. Page 3. Sports. Strong baseball' team selected to fly Portland pennant during coming season. Page 14. W. R. Condon wins the Burns handicap at Oakland. Page 14. Pacific Coast. ; Old Oregon law provides imprisonment for lobbyists. Page 6. Fishermen race with dog carrying lighted dyna mite charge. Page 7. Governor Chamberlain decides that referendum does not apply to local acts of Legislature. Page 7. Commercial and Marine. Hop buyers complain of poor picking lc Oregon. Page 13. Chicago wheat market closes higher and Arm. Page 13. Profit-taking weakens New Tork stock list. Page 15 Pilot Snow, of Geo. W. Elder, exonerated of blame for wreck. Page 0.. Portlasd and Vicinity. Impressive ceremony marks the turning of the first spadeful of earth on the site of the Washington building at the Lewis and Clark Exposition. Page 12. 1 Annual report of Library Association-contains ! Important recommendations from President ! Dolph. Page 30. i Many indictments In land-frauds Investigation held up temporarily by lack of complete J evidence. Page 11. ) Legislative committee returns from Invemiga I Hon of portage road, and report finding con ; ' dttlons as expected. Page 10. Circuit Court quashes indictment of county , gTand Jury In case of property-owner whose ! testimony waa used against blm. Page 12. J Man steps from draw of Burns'.de-itrect bridge ; and is drowned, page 11. Order excluding women from .combination ; saloons is being generally observed. -""Page. lo. ' Governor Brady says Alaska will have bigger exhibit at Portland than at St. Louis, j Parge 13. -Feature aad Department. ! Editorial. Page 4. I Classified advertisements. Pages 25-29. Vanderbllts. the best-known railroad fam ily in tho world. Pages 32-33. Damming the. Colorado River. Page 36. Along the headlands of Southern Oregon. Page 30. When- Roosevelt dines In Little Hungary. Page 34. Seeking men to man the American Navy. Page 33. . . The Russo-Japanese war In . a nutshell. Page 35. , t . Oregon In Its earliest days. Page" 43.. Dramatic Pages 18-19. ' J) ' Musical. Page" 25. Household and fashions. Psges 3S-39. . . Youth's-department. PagjiriiiJ - the Government's case Commissioner Hermann. I ID POUTS Blockade in Harbors of Atlantic. SHIPS ARE FROZEN IN Navigation Stopped by Huge Fioes Off Long Island. WARMER IN MIDDLE WEST Frost- Keeps His Grip on Atlantic Coast, but' Weather Moderates in Interior. From Great Lakes to the Southward. NEW YORK. Feb. 4. More than a score of Sound steamers, tugs and other steam craft bound for this city, which were caught in the Ice pack off White stone. L. I., last night and held fast for many hours, effected their release this afternoon and all reached their destina tion uninjured. Pilots of many years' experience said today that there was more Ice In New York Harbor today than at' any previous tlmo during the last ten years. In many portions of the bay the water was com pletely frozen over. The Narrows were full of immense ice cakes and most of the bay on the Jersey side below Liberty Island was frozen over completely. Both the North and East Rivers were full of heavy floating ice. At one time today nine Sound steamboats, a dozen tugs, several barges and many craft of other descriptions, making In all about 30 vessels, carrying between them probably more than 1000 persons, were held up for hours by the ice floes opposite White stone. MILDER IN PITTSBURG. Gas Mains Restored and Factories Resume Operations. PITTSBURG, Feb. 4. Milder weather Is being experienced- here today, the mercury rising 22 degrees to 15 above. The broken gas main in West Virginia hs beerf repaired, and "mills and ma'nu factories which were compelled to close down for Jack of gas have resumed oper ations. Winnipeg Is the Coldest. ST. PAUL. Feb. 4. The cold weather has about disappeared from the North west, except at Winnipeg, where the ther mometer registered 34 degrees below zero today. In St. Paul it registered 11.5 below at Its lowest, but Is gradually going higher. Vineyard Haven Frozen Over. WOODS' HOLE. Mass.. Feb. 4. Vine yard Sound Is entirely frozen over for the first time within tho memory of the resi- NEW SENATOR FRANK PUTNAM FLINT. Frank Putnam Flint, of Los. Angeles, the newly elected Senator from California, was born In North Reading, Mass.. July 15. 1S62. In 18K, the parents of Mr. Flint settled at San Francisco. The boy entered the public schools and secured a gram-roar-echool education. He removed to Orange, Cal., In 1SSQ, and In 1S0O located In Los Angeles, where he was appointed clerk In the United States Marshal's office. Later he began, the study of law, and In 1S92 was appointed United States Assistant Attorney. In 1SJ7. he was appointed United States Attorney for the Southern Dis trict of California, serving four years, later returning to the practice of law and nerving -.for several years In the law department of the Southern Pacific Railroad. dents of this section. Ice has filled the harbor at Vineyard .Haven, the great shel tered port of the island of Martha's Vine yard, for a number of days and today a .solid sheet of Ice stretches for miles from the island. Temperature Rising in Kansas. TOPEKA; Kan.. Feb. 4 Following a .temperature of . IT degrees below zero last night, today has been near zero, with two Inches of snow. It is below zero again tonight. William Jeffries, a farmer near Abi lene, was so badly frozen he cannot re cover. There are now seven Inches of snow on the Kansas wheat fields. This places the cereal in excellent condition to with stand the Winter. Grip of Frost-King Broken. SUPERIOR, Wis., Feb. 4. The back bone of the cold wave, which held the head of the lakes In a relentless grip for 60 hours, appears to have been broken. The temperature remained stationary at 5 below zero throughout the night, and today the local fore caster announced that the rise in .the mercury would continue during the next 24 hours. Moderating in the Southwest. KANSAS CITY, Mo., Feb. 4. The weather today In Missouri and Kansas had moderated, while lower tempera tures were recorded in Oklahoma, In dian Territory, Arkansas and Texas. While the temperature at Kansas City was 8 degrees below zero and at Cpn cordia, Kan., 12 below early today, it had risen several degrees by noon. Cold Abates in Nebraska. OMAHA, Feb. 4. The severe cold of tho last few days in Nebraska shows little sign of abatement today. Six teen degrees below Is the official reud lng at the Weather Bureau this morn ing. At Norfolk, In the central part of the state, 27 degrees below zero Is re ported. Navigation Stops at Providence. PROVIDENCE. R. I.. Feb. 4. Provi dence harbor and Narragansett Bay were today practically Impassable to all sailing craft and only the ocean steamers and large tugs could make their way up against the Ice. The embargo has been forming for about two weeks. Maine Coast Icebound. PORTLAND, Mc, Feb. 4. The Maine coast as far cast as Mount Desert Island Is completely ice-bound today except an occasional passageway available only for steamerst Newport Harbor Full of Ice. NEWPORT, R. I.. Feb. 4. Ice In the harbor was so thick today that naviga tion was practically suspended. TO BET KS. DUKE FEEE. District Attorney Objects to Cost of Prosecuting Her.- HOUSTON, Tex., Feb. 4. District At torney Imboden, of Nacogdoches, states that he- today wrote to District Attor ney Jerome, of New York, suggesting that Mrs. Alice Webb-Duke be dis charged from custody, she being held on Indictments against her in Texas. Mr. Imboden says he has decided on this course because of the delays in cident to securing extradition papers and the expense of bringing Mrs. Duke to Texas and for which Mr. Imboden does not. feel inclined to stand person ally responsible. FROM CALIFORNIA MOOT WILL WIN Utah Senator Will Re tain Seat. FORECAST OF ACTION Majority of Committee Is in His Favor, v WILL SCORE MORONISM May Propose Amendment Pro hibiting Polygamy. NO BLAME ATTACHED ig HIM Want Decision This Session-'-Whether Two-Thirds or. Majority Vote Is Needed, Smoot Will Hold Fast. OREGONIAN NEWS BUREAU, Wash lngton. Feb. 4. Chairman Burrows, of the Senate committee on privileges and elections, is confident that he can se cure a vote on the Smoot case before March 4. From this time forward all his efforts will be bent In that direc tion. The attorneys in the case, both for and against Smoot. have completed their arguments and filed their briefs; the case is now ready for action by the committee. The evidence and the arguments will probably be considered by the committee In executive session, as the deliberations aro similar to those taken by the Senate while It sits behind closed doors; It probably will be well towards the end of. Feb ruary before a report is made. Majority for Smoot. It is known in advance that there will be two reports, a majority report, probably in favor of Smoot; a minority report recommending that he be de prived of his seat. In the nature of things, it ha3 been impossible to learn Just how the members of the commit tee stand, but persons who have close ly followed the -investigations and who have intelligently observed the ques tions put by various members, bellevo that Senators McComas, Foraker, De pew, Beverldge, Dillingham, HopWns, JCnox and Bailey will sign the majority report In favor of Smoot. and that Du bois, Pettus, Overman, Clark ani prob ably Chairman Burrows .will sign tha minority report agulnst him. Chairman Burrows ha3 been very ag gressive in pressing- the investigation, and his questions have puzzled tho me" who have endeavored to find how he stands Some are confident .he will sign the majority report; others arc satis fied he will oppose Smoot. The latter seem to be in the majority, and soma of them are so confident that they pre dict that Mr. Burrows will make a strong argument against Smoot on the floor of the Senate. Will Condemn Mormon Church. No matter how Burrows votes In committee, there seems to be little doubt that the majority report, -while favoring Smoot, will 'scathingly criti cise the Mormon Church, both Cor: countenancing polygamy and for Its manifest Interference In politics. It Is quite probable that the report will go further and recommend a constitution al amendment prohibiting the practice of polygamy. The right of a Senator to his seat involves a question of highest privi lege and. once the committee reports, there will be no difficulty in calling up the Smoot case In the Senate, notwith standing the pressure for time. Chair man Burrows has worked hard to close this troublesome case, and will not have It go over If he can help It. He believes that a vote can be had before adjournment, and he is going to find out. Majority or Two-Thirds Vote? A fine point must be determined, by tha Senate before It votes on the case, name ly, whether it will take a majority or a two-thirds vote to unseat the Senator from Utah. It had been supposed, up to a few days ago, that a two-thirds vote, would be necessary, because the constitu tion provides that no Senator shall.be de prived of. his eeat except by a two-thirds vote of the Senate. Special Attorney Tay ler, who conducted the case against Smoot. maintains that a majority- vote will unseat him. Tayler argues that . Smoot Is disqualified because of acts com mltted prior to the time he was- sworn in as a Senator; that these acts are such as disqualify him from holding a seat in the Senate, and, by reason of having been committed prior to his entering the Sen ate, made out a case which should have prevented his taking the oath two years ago. It Is Tayler'a contention that the two-thirds vote is only necessary In the cases of, and was only Intended to apply to. Senators charged with having commit ted some offense after they became mem bers of the Senate. In other words, he (Concluded on Page Six.)