48
TIIE SUNDAY OKEGOXIAy. PORTLAND. MAY 13, 1D06.
on
99
o
TP
fT TT TT TT
irm In wfi - AX IltfL ltd a II
iPi n fhjou y Yfluflu7fl
iacir u
Rotatoes,Corn;andBeets
wouldiurnish all our
LiqhtJealandPower.
(Copyright. Itrnfl. hy John Klfreth Watklns.)
w
r ASHING TON, May 8. (Special
Correspondence of The Sunday
Oregonian.) Potatoes, beets, corn
the stalks as well as the grain and
the waslft products of our molasses fac
tories will run our engines, cook our
meals, heat and light our homes It the
Senate passes as the. House has just
done the bill removing the Internal rev
enue tax on alcohol made unfit to drink.
The present tax of $1.10 per gallon on
commercial alcohol renders its use for
power, fuel and light absolutely out of
19 question, although for these pur
poses It can ie manufactured at less
than 10 cents a gallon. At this rate it
can eupplant both gasoline and kerosene,
than, which It is also safer and cleaner.
The only opponents of the bill are the
wood alcohol and Standard Oil Interests,
which would be the losers. Farmers, es
pecially, are clamoring for Its passage.
The white potato can readily heat, light
and furnish power for our Northern
states; the sweet potato, the yam and the
waste from the molasses factory can do
the same for our Southern states, while
In the great west the sugar beet and
Indian corn can turn the wheels of the
factory, farm and conveyance and banish
from the home the chill of Winter or
the blackness of night. Such Is the es
timate of Professor H. W. Wiley, chief
of the Government's bureau of chemistry.
He tells me that sugar and starch, when
fermenting, yield about half their weight
In absolute alcohol. About one-fifth the
weight of potatoes, nearly three-quarters
the weight of corn and almost one-sixth
that of the sugar beet- are these fer
mentable sugars and starches.
Potato Cheupest Source of New Fuel.
The potato will be our chief source of
this undrlnkable commercial alcohol. The
average acre of potatoes 300 bushels
will produce 255 gallons of such fuel for
running automobiles, farm motors and
other engines: for heating, cooking and
lighting. A bushel of potatoes will pro
duce 0.S5 gallon of adcohol. We now
raise potatoes almost exclusively for hu
man food, and we plant only those varie
ties which have the finest flavor for the
table. Independent of their yield per acre.
But there are potatoes yielding many
more bushels per acre than these es
teemed for food. They are such as are
grown for cattle food In parts of the Old
World where corn Is scarce. Secratarv
it
Agrlculture Wilson estimates that
there would be n0 difficulty in obtaining
WO gallons of alcohol per acre from such
a variety. Potatoes can now be grown
here as a commercial crop only within
a short distance from market. It does
not pay to haul them far. But as soon
as it can be used us a source of heat.
ngni ana power, factories will spring up
in country neighborhoods where coal is
now expensive and large areas of potatoes
will be grown for their largest possible
yield of alcohol. The sweet potato and
yam would furnish about the same pro-
ix.riiuns oi ajconoj as the white potato.
Wealth of Alcohol In Cornstalks.
An acre of corn 50 bush61s will fur
nish 130 gallons of absolute alcohol; a
bushel of corn, two and four-fifth gallons.
An acre of potatoes thus produces much
more alcohol than an acre of corn, when
only the grain of the latter is taken into
consideration. But corn stalks, if har
vested before they dry out, contain large
quantities of sugar and starch, enough
to produce 100 gallons of commercial alco
hol per acre, according to the estimate of
Secretary Wilson. In 100,000.000 acres of
Indian corn the making of ten billion
gallons of this alcohol therefore goes to
waste annually. Secretary Wilson pre
dicts that the time is coming when we
will 'utilize this Immense source of en
ergy. According to Dr. Wiley the fer
mentable material in the stalks could be
removed by the presses now used to ex
tract the juices of sugar cane And
peaking of commercial alcohol from corn
it might be of Interest to add an Inter
esting statement which I have from rr
Wiley, that 20 times as much power can
be obtained by burning the alcohol in
corn than by burning the corn itself as
has been done In the West In times of
coal famine. It is also estimated that
the value of the by-products of corn after
the industrial alcohol is extracted, will
pay the cost of distillation.
Sugar Beets and Waste Molasses
Rich Sources.
An acre of sugar beeta will produce 23
gallons of alcohol. Dr. Wiley tells me
Ou,r vast irrigation projects in the Southl
west are watering lands which will soon
produce sugar beets more profitably per
haps, than any other crops, and the mo
lasses from these crops can readily be
turned into alcohol. A waste product of
the cane sugar mill, known as "base mo.
lasses," would be another available
source of our commercial alcohol supply
aiillions of gallons of this produced In
all of the Central and South American
countries and the West Indies are now
largely burr.ed. fed to animals or de
stroyed, although a portion is dumped
on our shores at almost any price above
freight. At New Orleans. Boston and
Brooklyn it is telng worked up into in
ferior liquors. The ttlcohol made from it
has a disagreeable odor and taster But
it repulsive matter must be addeSJto it
to make It -undrlnkable and tax-free un
der the new bill. It will serve as we'll as
any other alcohol thus manufactured for
power, heat and light. Already in Cuba
such alcohol from this "base molasses"
is being made at 10 cents per gallon. The
base molasses itself can be had at New
York at 3 cents a gallon. A similar grade
of base molasses Is turned out as a by
product ot our beet sugar factories. Ten
factories of Michigan send tholr product
to a distillery in that state and produce
from It about 500.000 gallons of absolute
alcohol. But this by-product of our beet
sugar factories generally goes to waste
in other states4 Yet we sit by and be
moan the decreasing supply and increas
ing price of coal, the diminishing supply
of wood, wonder where we shall turn
next for power, heat and light whether
we shall harness the moon with tide mo
tors or the sun with solar engines! More
over, the production of Eastern petroleum
is falling off, and practically no gasoline
is being found in the petroleum of Texas
and the West. And yet, according to Dr.
Wiley, our farmers can grow any amount
r.f starch and sugar that may be wanted
for any purpose in the world and not a
pound of it would take one element of fer
tility from the soil.
That tlie farmers In all corn-growing;
I . j r : L ' S:X .i
mm . c
inrr-iiiriiriritnfniii-iiitiMir--M r-iat.i , rriirmMi ii -niiiiii m x
sections of the country should establish
co-operative distilleries for the sole pur
pose of producing this "denatured" indus
trial alcohol is the proposition of Nahura
Bachelder, master of the National Grange,
who is here pressing the bill in the in
terest of the 800.000 farmers of his or
ganization. These co-operative distilleries
would be under close Government super
vision, and the alcohol would be rendered
unlit for beverage purposes before leaving
the distillery warehouse. In this way the
cost to the farmers of this material for
lighting, heating, cooking and motor fuel
purposes could be kept at the lowest
point.
Europe has already done just what the
farmers and other victims of expensive
fuel and oil are clamoring for our Con
gress to do. In Great Britain alcohol
made undrlnkable by the addition of &
per cent of wood alcohol and a much
smaller proportion of mineral naphtha is
now sold freely without tax. Since 1887
Germany also had untaxed alcohol for in
dustrial purposes. France, Switzerland,
Holland, Belgium, Italy, Russia, Sweden.
Norway. Austria-Hungary, Portugal and
six Latin-American republics exact no
tax on this "denatured" alcohol, already
regarded as one of the necessities of agri
culture, manufacture and -general Indus
try. In these "free-alcohol . countries"
there are being used many varieties of
alcohol engines, alcohol automobiles, ..al
cohol motor boats, alcohol, farm motors,
alcohol lamps and alcohol stoves. . .
Germany has far surpassed" in all of
these Inventions, which ; were largely
mothered by necessity, for the fatherland
has no natural gas or petroleum. But Its
broad sandy, plains produce cheap and
abundant crops of potatoes, from which
every farmer. . can manufacture a vast
quantity of raw alcohol. Inventors and
CRACK ORGANIZATION OFO.N.G.
in unltmbering the guns and placing them
Into position for action and their perfect
understanding of their" duties ?come of
long, unremitting and arduous practice.
The men hasten to obeyi the-, orders of
their superiors with an alacrity and swift
ness of movement that makes a lasting
impression-' upon the onlooker. ' There is
absolutely no confusion, the elimination
of which is due to the proper usage of
intelligence and hard work, such as drill
ing. ..
The marksmanship of the gunners of
Battery A is nothing short of splendid.
The large guns can be fired with great
accuracy and the marksmanship is such
that in case "of- actual " warfare there Is
no doubt that great havoc could be
brought by Battery A. The officers and
men are also crack shots with either the
revolver or the rifle, particularly the for
mer arm. Artillerymen are equipped with
revolvers, and practically all of the mem
bers of Battery A are expert shots. With
rifles they can also make a good showing.
On Boy Who Was "Gun Shy."
Among the members of the battery are
several men of the humorous type. They
can tell stories of army life that are as
highly interesting as some of those heard
among the veterans in the regular Army.
Many of them are for the most part the
products of highly imaginative brains.
but In practically all of them is a grain
ot truth around which the story has been
woven, and Incidentally elaborated uponJ
'Do you know that there is such a
thing as a gun-shy man? said one of
them the other day. Of course you have
heard of gun-shy dogs, as they are com
mon, but few persons outside of those
connected with the army or other mili
tary organizations have ever had the
pleasure of seeing a gun-shy man. In a
way it is laughable and ridiculous, and
again it is rather pitiful.
'I have never seen but one, but I will
never forget it as long as I live. A poor
little chap, who should have remained by
the side of his mother for a year or more
longer than he did, enlisted with Battery
JV. He was nothing more than a mere
boy. and had been almost compelled to
eniist. It seems that his father was a
member of the G. A. R-. and that age had
had no effect upon his warlike instincts.
He Insisted that the boy Join the Guard
and become a real soldier like his father
bad been.
Well, that boy was with us once when
we went out fv our annual practice. He
had never seen a cannon fired before and
was about as green as they make them.
When the first cannon was fired ' he
scientists have been busy with improve
ments in farm distilleries, motors, lamps,
cooking and heating apparatus. . Their
"spirit motors" are being turned out in
all forms upright and horizontal, sta
tionary, portable and locomotive.
Alcohol locomotives pull trains of a
dozen cars on large farms, sugar planta
tions and engineering works. They are
of the "vertical cylinder" type, and carry
a flywheel to balance and regulate the
motion of the engine. The army has had
built ten horse power alcohol "engineers'
wagons," each with a speed of ten miles
an hour, carrying tools and apparatus for
a regiment of sappers and miners in field
service.
The army has "also a 12-horsepower
self-propelled field-lighting wagon, in
which an alcohol motor generates elec
tricity for lighting camps, headquarters
or Hospitals. Then there are alcohol mo
tor wagons, coupes and runabouts. Alco
hol stationary engines work rotary
pumps, circular and band saws, corn
mills, creameries, threshing machines and
all sorts of apparatus for farm work and
small manufactories where less than 20
horsepower engines . are needed. At the
same time ipternal-combustion engines
using 'gasoline are coming into, general
use on the farms in all parts of our
country to compensate for the scarcity of
labor. Our farmers are adopting tlem
for baling hay. shelling corn, sawing wdod,
threshing, churning, spraying fruit trees,
pumping water and .various other pur
poses. One of our largest agricultural
Implement manufacturing companies is
arranging to place -on the market farm
traction-engines operated with these gaso
line motors for mowing, reaping and oth
er field work. But gasoline has been go
ing up' In price and decreasing .in supply.
Moreover, the farmer, small manufaetur- '
Continued From Page Thirty-Eight.
Jumped about 16 feet into the: air and
let out a howl that would "have done
credit to the yellowest canine you ever
saw. "-When he hit the ground after his
ascension into the atmosphere his legs
were working, and he slid over the
ground with; impetus like "that of a sled
when' It conies down an' icy hill. :
' "I don't believe a whole regiment could
have stopped that- kid before he' became
exhausted. He ran like a deer with a
pack of hounds at its heels. Everybody
thought that he had gone crazy, and the
officer in command detailed a couple of
men to follow him. About three miles
away from the scene of action they found
him. He was 'all in,' and the only, reason
he didn't run. home to mamma was -that
the muscles of his legs had become con
tracted because, of the tremendous strain
and he was doubled up like a jackknife,
making a noise that was not' unlike that
of a -howling Dervish.,
"It took an hour or more to get that
kid straightened out and persuaded to re
turn. When the three came in sight of
the guns the kid once more made a break
for the meadows, but the other two
grabbed him. They made the kid touch
the guns the same ' as .gun-shy dogs are
treated.
"Well, the second time a gun was fired
he made another ascension, and he slid
over distance once more, but- as before
he was brought back. The third time he
was held by a couple of men, but he. acted
in such a crazy manner that we all could
see him on board the next train for Sa
lem, with several of us as a bodyguard.
But we gave him several such courses of
treatment, and In time he got over it.
But for several days a couple of men had
to hold him whenever a gun was fired."
Others were questioned about this ap
parent phenomenon, but they only laughed
and said that there was no truth In it.
They spoke very lightly about the veracity
of their fellow Soldier and said that he
was accustomed to "stringing," as. they
described it.
The Commandery.
Battery A is one of the oldest batteries
of field artillery of the National militia.
It was organized February 4. 186S, with
F. C. Paine as Captain. The records were
not preserved from that time until May,
1873, when Thomaa Mountain was Captain
and commanded the battery until June.
1880. He was succeeded by Thomas Adams,
who held the place until May, 1835. W.
J. Riley was the next Captain until May,
1SS9. Thomas Adams again took com
mand until June, 1S30. Ward S. Stevens
er or automobile owner who keeps gaso
line on hand for these compact engines
must pay a high rate of Insurance for the
privilege. Alcohol, on the other hand,
vaporizes so much more than gasoline that
it is not a dangerous explosive mixture
in the open air. If alcohol catches fire
It can readily be extinguished by water,
which only spreads the fire when played
upon gasoline. "The danger of using gas
oline is so great that it is practically a
prohibition." says Dr. Wiley. "Such an
inflammable thing as a farmer's barn
ought not to be subjected to such a dan
ger." The odor of the gasoline motor
which has led the gentle skunk to despair
ingly ask, "What's the use?" needs no
commentary. The alcohol motor, for au
tomobiles or farm work near dwellings,
has the superiority of being absolutely
odorless and clean. We all know how
free from soot and smoke was our grand
mother's spirit lamp. And this commer
cial alcohol which is making the wheels
go round in Germany and other free alco
hol countries is costing only 13H cents a
gallon. Experts questioned by the com
mittees of Congress estimate the cost of
production in this country at less than
10 cents.
Alcohol stoves for cooking and beating
are also being adopted all-over. Germany.
At the recent exposition in Berlin there
was exhibited a large alcohol kitchen sup
plying a public restaurant. The Germans
are using In. their houses novel alcohol
lamps, products of the recent discovery
that alcohol vapor burned in a lamp hood
ed with a Welsbach mantel produces an
incandescent light of intense power. As
a result of, this discovery alcohol for
lighting has already outdistaned petroleum
In Germany and commenced to make rap
id . gains on electricity. Lamps -portable
was then elected Captain, and commanded
until his death In August, 1891.
- He was succeeded b E. L,. Anderson,
who was dismissed in June, 1892. First
Lieutenant W. R. Iliff was in command
until October, 1892, when George H.
Thing was elected Captain. He was re
lieved from duty in April, 1893, and First
Lieutenant Edward Unrath was In com
mand until June, 1893, -when R. 8. Green
leaf was elected Captain, who remained
in command until the outbreak of the
Spanish-American War. He. was commis
sioned Captain of U. S. Volunteers, and
commanded the battery while it was in
the country's service. On being mus
tered out of the United States service
and again becoming part of the Oregon
National Guard in 1S98. H. U. Welch was
chosen Captain, and has since been In
command.
. - In Camp. .
The first encampment at which the Bat
tery was represented was In 1891, at Camp
Gibbon, St. Helens. In 1892 a section
was at Camp Beebe, Long Beach, "vfash.
In 1893 the whole battery was at Camp
Compson, Gladstone Park. At all of these
camps they were without horses.
The year 1895 was a busy one, as the
battery was at Camp Lawler, in Oregon
City, for a few days in June, and again in
August a platoon was . at Camp Gearheart,
Gearhart Park. In 1896 they also had
two tours of camp duty, the one at As
toria during the fishermen's strike, and
the other . at Camp Jackson, near Hood
River. At the latter camp the battery
was fully mounted. Quoting from a cor
respondent in the Oregonian regarding
the fishermen's strike: "Last night one
of the Gatling guns from Battery A was
mounted on the steamer Dwyer, which
patroled the rjver from Flavel to Tongue
Point. The militia deserves great
credit for the way they have conducted
themselves on this expedition. The
character of the guard duty la excellent,
and the men betiave "themselves remark
ably well, there having not been the least
trouble since leaving the Armory."
This year the Cascade Locks were
opened and a section went to The Dalles
to. join In the celebration there. They
went on the first boat that ever passed
through the locks from Portland to The
Dalles.
In 1885-, during the anti-Chinese riots,
the battery saw active duty, and was of
great value at that time.
In 1898, when the call for volunteers was
made for the Spanish-American War, the
battery offered its services and was mus
tered into the United States service, but
and fixed indeed Illuminators for all pur
poses have resulted from the discovery.
There are alcohol celling lamps, very like
our arc lights In appearance, quite as im
pervious to wind and weather, and giving
an S5-candlepower light at a cost of
of a cent per hour. Our usual electric in
candescent light, by the way. Is but 16
candle-power. There are also 530 candle
power alcohol street lamps, operated at 66
per cent of the cost of electricity. All of
these alcohol lamps give a far better light
than kerosene at a lower cost for candle
power. They are free from all disagree
able odors, require no cleaning of lamp
chimneys, trimming or renewing of wicks.
They are smokeless, give out much less
heat than the kerosene lamps and are
absolutely safe, there being no way by
which their flames can communicate with
the alcohol. Their light, moreover, is
brilliant, white and steady, and more rest
ful to the eyes of the student than the
yellow, flickering kerosene light. Even
with alcohol at twice the cost of kero
sene the alcohol lamp would be more eco
ndmical. After trying everywhere In the
United States to get an alcohol lamp to
show the committees of Congress, Dr.
Wiley has made one for himself by tak
ing an ordinary kerosene lamp and fit
ting it with a Welsbach mantel. So well
is he Dleased with it that he uses it in
his study when It is not serving as an
exhibit.
Ajs denatured alcohol would thus be
cleaner and much safer than gasoline, it
would probably be substituted for the
latter in the 800.000 gasoline stoves and
heaters which are now in use in this
country, according to the National board
of trade underwriters. Moreover, many
people who now do not use lamps to
make their tea on the table because the
price of alcohol is so high could, under
the proposed law, do so to their heart's
content, according to Dr. Wiley, who add
ed that "there is nothing so nice In cook
ing as to make your dish right before
you on the table, and that would come
into general use if we had an agent which
would not smell so badly and which
would be cheap."
Solid alcohol, a novelty which Dr. Wiley
has imported from Belgium, is most con
venient to carry in your waistcoat pocket
and to burn under a portable pot or cup
when you wish to make a cup of tea or
coffee while out upon a Jaunt. It comes
In little cubes about the size of ordinary
dice, and, although gummy Is 93 per cent
alcohol, the solid body being nitrate of
cotton and a little "amyl acetate," which
takes up a large quantity of alcohol and
keeps it ready for combustion. It is per
fectly safe, nonexplosive and very cheap
to manufacture in a free alcohol country.
Three pounds of gun cotton will make a
hundred pounds of it, and Dr. Wiley re-
did not see active duty, being sent to
Vancouver Barracks, remaining there un
til the close of the war.
In 1899. on the return of the First
Washington United States Volunteers
from the Philippines, the battery went
to Seattle by invitation of Its citizens and
took part in the three days' celebration
held In honor of the volunteers. .
-Practice Marches..
In 1900, after the reorganization, a prac
tice march was had to Camp Geer, Salem,
returning by boat. '
In 1901, another practice march was had
to Camp Whiting, on the Sandy River.
Here target practice was had with the
new three-two. field guns, for the first
time, and it was most satisfactory. 'This
year a section went to Salem and fired a
salute of 21 guns in honor of the presen
tation of the battleship Oregon s "home
wardrbound".' pennant to the state.
In 1902 the battery was at Camp Will
iams, Albany, and' here the Twenty-sixth
Regular Battery camped for a few days.
giving the First Battery valuable instruc
tion. - ' .
In 1903 the battery was at Camp Flnzer,
Seasides and here-'target practice was also
had with the three-twos, and it was a
marked improvement over the former
practice. - Quoting' from " the Inspector
General's report - on this encampment:
"The picket line for the battery horses
was in rear of the line of nifeA's tents and
was kept well' policed. Stables were held
night and morning, and the horses kept
well groomed. . - . '. The sea beach, at
low tide, afforded an excellent drill
ground for the battery, and also for tar
get practice, the target being placed at
Tillamook Head, across a curve of the
bay. Any range can be had here from
1000 to 6000 yards with perfect safety, the
'head' making an excellent backstop. Pis
tol practice was had, against' an abrupt
hill to the right'and front of the camp.
Some good shooting was done with the 3.2
rifles, and also with the revolvers. The
drill and target practice was all that
could be desired." . . . Colonel James
Jackson, retired, of the Regular Army,
was the Inspector-General. ,
In'l9M the battery attended the joint
manuevers at American Lake. They did
not take any of, their equipment except
side arms. One platoon was assigned to
the Eighth and one -to the Twenty-sixth
regular batteries. Quoting from the Inspector-General's
report on this encamp
ment: "The officers and men of this com
mand were assigned to the Eighth and
Twenty-sixth batteries. United States
Field Artillery, for instruction, and I
was Informed by the commanding offi
cers of those organizations that both of
ficers and men exhibited commendable
zeal in the performance of their duties."
.
This battery has had the honor of nar-
ading and firing salutes for four Presi
dents of the United States and one Vice-
Gasoline and Kerosene
would be replaced at
onccand Coal ultimately.
i' SZ. -HfiiFf: jX
jtl' ' mU ' j f X i-.-:..' J V j )
mmmmxi "
'H i
gards it as a very effective form Into
which alcohol may be denatured for
many purposes. Some of the cubes are
colored brown and others green, the
coloring being "merely for show." Be
sides being burned it is. used in Eu
rope for cleaning textile fabrics.
The cost of converting this denatured
or undrlnkable) alcohol back Into its .orig-.
inal condition would be much more than
for making pure alcohol anew." according
to Dr. Wiley. He thinks the best meth
od of making it undrlnkable would be the
addition of 10 per cent wood alcohol and
1 per cent of "pyridine." According to
the bill as it passed the House the de
naturing ingredients are left to the dis
cretion of the internal revenue officials.
They must be "suitable to the use for
which the alcohol is withdrawn, but. must
destroy-its character as a beverage and
render it unfit for Piquid medicinal t pur
poses." If these substances are added ,"in
the presence and under the . direction . of
an authorized Government officer" the" al
cohol may be withdrawn from bond with
out the payment of the Internal revenue
tax. "
The only active opponents of the- free
alcohol bill are the wood alcohol Interests,
President for President Grant in 1S83, for
President Hayes In - 1879, for President
Harrison in 1891. for President Roosevelt
in 1903. and for Vice-President Fairbanks
in 1905. They were chosen to fire the
Centennial salute of 100 guns at the open
ing of the Lewis and Clark Centennial
Exposition. -For
three seasons the battery has taken
part in the indoor baseball games, and
two out of the three they won the cham
pionship trophy, and the other season
they -had second place. .
i
New Equipment Soon.
The battery was meagerly equipped, and
Its members poorly clad In the early days
of its existence. Only half-hearted sup
port was-received, from the Federal and
state governments, and from this very
cause ' interest - was often at -a low ebb
among the members themselves. Grad
ually the authorities became more gen
erous in their support, and appropriated
new and better arms and personal accou
trements. With the new' equipment, the
possibilities for better work were ampli
fied, which were zealously seized by those
affiliated with it. ' -
When the battery was first organized
the only equipment consisted of two
smooth-bore brass cannons, called "Na
poleons." They had seen service for
many years before they were turned over
to the battery, and have since been rele
gated to do honorary duty as sentries
before the state building at Salem. Two
Gatling guns were afterwards provided,
which are still In use. At subsequent
dates numerous other acquisitions were
made, and the battery now has among its
possessions two steel 3.2-inch rifles and
a good supply of wagons, forges, saddles
and blankets.
Both officers and privates of the battery
are much gratified with the assurance
that within a few weeks they are to re
ceive from the Government a sufficient
supply of additional equipment to meet
every present need of the battery. The
articles have already been purchased at
a cost of $56,000, and will reach Portland
some time In June. There will be a com
plete field outfit of four three-Inch guns,
six caissons, battery wagon and forge, 36
sets of harness and 120 revolvers of the
standard United States Army pattern.
Present Officers.
Although the organization is most com
monly known as Battery A. this name is
not officially recognized at present. Port
land Flying Artillery was the name first
applied after its formation. Since that
time It has been known at different pe
riods as Portland Light Battery, Battery
A, and Light Battery A.
Captain Hiram Uriah Welch, who is at
the head of the battery, has been con
nected with it since January 2, 1894. He
began his career as a private, and has
risen by rapid promotions to the Captain
whose industry would greatly suffer. Ac
cording to medical evidence produced 'be
fore the committee the fumes of wood
alcohol are irritating and cause In
flammation of the mucous membrane;
Inflammation of the eyes and a ten
dency to deep-seated degeneration of
sight as "well as catarrhal conditions
of the nose, throat and bronchial mem
branes and even tuberculosis. Organi
zations of - laborers who must n'ow
work in the .fumes of wood alchhol, be
cause"1, it is cheaper -than ' "grain alco
hol." have petitioned for the passageof
the bill. There has been slight!' opposi
tion by certain alleged temperance agi
tators who professed to believe that the
bill would lead to-the drinking of th
denatured - alcohol.---Inasmuch-' as the
concoction would be pofsohous, hew-1
ever," it could only ! affect the temper
ance problem-by the elimination of a.
few fool drunkards, which would 'be
'economy to. the race. It has been hinted
at the hearings before . th6 Congres
sional committees that back: of these
alleged temperance people are th
Standard Oil interests, which in the
face of the popular camor for the bill
nave not Jared to attack it In the open.
.-JOHN ELFRETH W ATKINS.
cy, which he has held since 1898. He has
at all times proved himself an officer, of
exceptional ability, 'and. possesses the
complete confidence of bis men. The other
officers are: Captain Walter B. Carll,
surgeon; Lieutenants, Lee M. Clark, first;
Fred H. Burns, first, and Frank; I.
Randall, second; ' Sergeants, John P.
Krupke, William P. Mulchay, Ole Moe.
George B. Hall, Herman Grimm, George-
B. - Otterstedt. ' Roy-O. 'Datson. George
Krupke and Edward T.. Hail; Corporals.
Fred A. Routledge, Alec F.Gordon, Fred
ZaniUo, Charles H. 01ston, -V. H. How
latson. Charles E. Hlvely."1 Fred E. Man
gold, C. W. Lyman, Fred S. McCarl, Ancel
C. Neer and Bert Clayton. :
Golf Causes Deafness.
Chicago Chronicle.
The observant-cannot have failed t
notice during the .last few years a re
markable Increase in the use by persons
of all ages and classes of ear -trumpets
and other contrivances to assist the sense
of hearing. To what can this modern,
ailment of half deafness be due?
An elderly practicloner, speaking from
a lengthy experience, declared that the
frequent use of the telephone was a
prolific cause of unequal hearing. Ninety-nine
persons out of 100 listen wltti
the left ear to the telephone receiver.
The left ear thus gradually becomes mors
sensitive and acute: the right, does not
actually lose power of sensitiveness, but
it falls behind its more used mate.
Another physician attributed semi-deafness
to failing to protect the ear while
driving or riding horseback.
One medical man adduced a strange
cause for deafness In stating that the
game of hockey produced this abnorm
ality. This was entirely due to the
nervous reflex action upon the compli
cated nerve plexus around the ear, re
sulting from, the one-sided effort put
forth in dealing the stroke.' .
Moving Day.
E. D. Kir in Chicago nernrd-Herald.
I do not ask for mllUons,
I do not "it and ym
For monpy In such wad as
To have' the same to burn.
I do not ask for greatness, , ' .
I do not vainiy sigh , .
To Je the largest figure
Before the public eye.
-T do not proudly hanker
For love I may not claim;
I am not wildly vearnins
For glory or for fame.
I crave no public office,
I'd not be Prettdent;
I'm willing to continue
To work to pay my rent.
I 'do not ask that other
Hhall smooth the path I tread.
Nor do I sit regretting
The life that I have led."
But. oh. I hope whoever
Invented moving day
Is roasting well in hades
And sharing my dismay