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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 1907)
2 THE SraOAY OHEGOJUX POKTXAJTO, APRIL 21, 1907. J&UEMANIS A HUN TEAK;; . i Kipling's Favorite Quad- . . . . - ruPe(k nf Sfrpnnntn Wtit If55 - - I - - 11 - Among Big Logs in a If , ; :7 . a5ar::i;B f ' " V . Mill Yard Near Rangoon, - if. , w : ' ; li '" 77" f . p HoawG-OAr rsa: cwvv " j illlllilll::iBIIP :ill;iillilllllgl r . ifTl - WT ..f.lr BY WILJJAM H. BRILL UNTIL. Kipling wrote The Road to Mandalay" no one knew much of anything about Burma. . To be sure. It was on the maps and the school ge- flOTanhlM mmillnni1 It In an nnilaotila ort of way, but It was practically un known to the great mass of people. But. AlTnntt n,lnlir thwiiitrh fha InfliiAnna nf I these rollicking verses, Burma has be 1 come famous. A lot of ships have always ! gone there, and now the never-ending tide of tourists has found It out, the little 'steamers that ply along the coast making ) Rangoon a stopping place between Slnga I gore and Calcutta, have cut the good old i fashioned staterooms in two, that they ' may pack in mora passengers and Ban jgoon is the proud possessor of a Cook's There tre not many things to see In (Rangoon, but it Is worth visiting Just the , tuu. There are the strange crowded ba ' taars, the botanic gardens, the great gold ) en pagoda and the elephants above all I the elephants. If there were nothing else In Rangoon the elephants would pay one for all the discomfort of a ery unpleas ant trip from Singapore on a little, dirty, 'smelly ship. When you go to the agent at ' Singapore for a ticket he regrets that the ship sailing tomorrow Isn't one of the good ships that make the run, but he will do the best he can for you. He has become so used to telling this story that he really believes It himself. But when you see the elephants you are repaid for it all; when you see the " elephints a-pilln' teak In the sludgy, squdgy creek," you know that your troubles have not been In vain. The. good old days when all the work at the sawmills and the timber yards of pchain around the end ot a massive log. The other end or the chain Is made fast to the great braided band that Is fastened across the elephant's chest. The mahout gives a terrific yell, pounds the elephant's head with his bare heels, waves his iron hook in the air. and the elephant, winking Rangoon was done by elephants have passed away. Modern machinery for the handling of logs and great timbers is rapidly coming Into use and unless you get to Rangoon pretty soon you wIU miss the greatest charm of the place. Btit there are still some of them, and they are enough. There isn't so much work for the great solemn beasts as there used to he, and as a general rule you have to get up early In Hie morning If you want to see them. But that's the tlmo to get up in Rangoon. Peoplo go to work early In the morning md rest in the middle of theday. It was December when I was there and the great red sun beat down with such fierceness at X o'clock in the morning that one really envied the elephants their Inch-thick, hide end the cool mud in which they worked, burled up to their bodies. Getting to See tbe Beasts. There are a dozen or more timber yards In Rangoon and practically all of them use elephants part of the time. But you had better go to the offices In the city and ask the young Englishmen who occupy them If the elephants are at work. Tho guide doesn't know, although he tells you confidently he does, and the information bureau In the hotel never heard of elephants. But after you have trotted around eight or ten of the of fices you will And that in some yard some where out along the river the elephants will be at work for an hour or two early The next morning. Then leave a call for S o'clock, but IX you have an alarm clock you had better use it tor the chances re that the hotel people will forget all about you. Order a guide and a carriage, for you mustn't walk in Rangoon, even at that time In the morning, it is too hot. No matter which way your timber yard lies you will have an enjoyable half hour's drive out along the river until finally you sec a , great expanse of enormous logs lying in the mud on the bank of the river and, plodding slowly around among them, two or three great black blotches. Von have found the elephants, perhaps, you think, the very ones Kipling told about. It Is one great big mud puddle, this timber yard, many acres in extent, with the river on one side and the saw. mills on the other. The logs are float ed down the river from away up In the Interior and are turned to lumber at the mills, but between the river bank and the mills the elephants hold sway. They do the work, patiently, plodding ly, hut with a skill and intelligence that sots you wondering. Up clor.e to the mills the logs are laid In straight rows, close together, in perfect order, but down by the bank tttey are In confusion jubt as they have been snaked cut nf the water. It is down there that the elephants are working. Tou have a hundred yards to walk over the closely piled logs great trunks of trees 40 feet long and twice the diameter of your body. It's easy at first although the logs are muddy and slippery, but when you get "past the closely 'packed rows to where they are further apart, be careful. A misstep is likely to send you into the mud. and then you will need an elephant to pull you out. The Dative In charge of the yard ac companies you with a smiling hospitality you half believe he Is smiling at you, elephants and logs are the commonest things in" the world to him. But when you reach the end of the rows of logs and can go no further he calls the great animals up to you with a kindly toler ance for. your childlike curiosity. Slowly and sedately the great beasts come squdgtng up through the mud, the mahouts yelling at them and pounding them with their bare heels, while the beasts pay no attention to either, but look at you with an expression in their eyes which conveys to you as plainly as words their message: "We don't mind all this noise and both er. Those foolish black men are only showing off before strangers. They know it, and they know we know it, and now you know it." Great, wrinkled, rough-coated beasts, covered with mud, they still possess a force and dignity which one must respect. They stand there quietly while you exam ine them, and daintily condescend to pluck a banana out of your hand. If you have been thoughtful enough to bring such re freshment. But withal you see in their eyes something of disgust. Who are you, you puny little thing, that you should come here disturbing their labors and de laying the work which must be done? They even stand for you to photograph them after you hive waited to give the gray-bearded old native on tho biggest one time to retle his turban. The old natlVe strikes a pose as all men the world over do when they see a camera pointed at them but the elephant is above that. He simply looks at you out of the corner of his eye and wonders why you make so much trouble. And then the mahouts put the great beasts through their paces. A young na. tive clad in a gorgeously striped under shirtand little else leaps lightly across the mud hummocks and deftly hooks t-?OlsVG- 77S1 l,OG- 6V7V JZl.C dramatic efforts, lurches forward, sinks in the mud to his body, pulls his legs out of the mud one after another with a loud sucking sound, and goes squdging across the yard, dragging the great log after him as If It were a toothpick. He drags It along until he reaches the solid rows of logs across the yard, and then, as the young fellow In the striped at you as if to call attention to the man's undershirt deftly throws off the chain, the great beast solemnly walks around to the other end of the log, raises it between his tusks, throws his weight' against it, and shoves If neatly and snugly Into Its place. The camera has been clicking rapidly throughout the process, and the old native with the white beard and the newly tied turban has been striking effec tive poses on his unsteady seat, paying no attention at all to his mount. As the great beast plows back through the. mud he smiles at you and winks distinctly as If to say: "What did I tell you about that old fraud on my back? Tou see, I do It all without any help from him." The next log the native in charge picks out is the largest one In the yard, it has probably been saved .until there should be admiring visitors there to see It moved. Thechain is deftly fastened around the end of the timber, the trunk of a great tree 60 feet long and five feet In diameter. The great elephant throws his weight against the breast strap and sinks deep into the mud, the mahout yelling and kicking and waving his Iron hook, but never taking his eyes off the camera. But the stlckey clay holds fast, the log does not move. Again and again he strains, but It Is- useless. Then the elephant stops and no yells or kicks can make him move. He knows what Is go ing to happen, so what's the use wasting his breath. Another elephant Is sum moned from another part of the yard. He goes straight to the other end of the log he also knows what is going to happen raises the end a bit with his tusks and gives It a tremendous shove at the same instant that the elephant in front heaves away again. The mud shakes, but the log doesn't move. On the second trial It moves a little and on the third it slips out of its bed and the ofd elephant snakes It easily across the yards and pushes it Into place as he did the .first one. Working With Intelligence. "Three or four logs are . moved across and theit the native in charge, with a few short words changes the programme. A log 40 feet long and perhaps three feet in diameter lies in the way of the ele phant who has been told to go to the one beyond. It must be moved over before the one designated can be reached. The animal, flaps his little ears In token that he understands the order, " gets around at right angles to the log at. one end, places his tusks under It and. his trunk over U and gradually lifts the end up until It rests on the end of the next log. They tell a good story of the formation of the Elephant Timber Movers' Union In Burma and the way In which nonunion elephants were punished and forced to take out working cards. - I do not vouch for he story, but half a dozen men In Burma whom I asked about it expressed their belief In It. There are very extensive timber yards over at Moulmein, across the bay from Rangoon; where, in the shade of the old pagoda. Kipling's Burma girl waits for the soldier who comes not back. Most ot the work of these yards Is done by ele phants. The yards were originally ewhed by white men, but some years ago they were purchased by a company composed of Parsees. ' Now these Parsees, being followers of Zoroaster, saw no reason why they should lose considerable time by closing down the yards on Sunday, as had been the habit with the former own ers. So when the first Sunday cam around preparations were made to go on with the work as on other days. But they had counted without the elephants. They refused to leave their stables and no amount of coaxing or beating would induce them o move. On Monday they went to work as usual and worked throughout the week without a murmur, but when Sunday came again they again refused to move. Three or four times the manager of the yards tried to get the elephants out on Sunday, but was finally obliged to give.it up. The ele phants had never before worked on Sun day and they refused to do It now. The union had won. About this time the Indian army decided to give up the elephant batteries which had for long been one of its most pictur esque features, and a number of well trained elephants were therefore la the market. Several of them were purchased by the managers of the Moulmein timber-' yards andv put to work. The old ele phants fraternized with them and assist ed them in mastering the details of their, new work. When the (Irst Sunday came the new elephants went out to work as usual, for they had never had Sundays off in the army. But the old elephants again refused to go out to the yards. ' While the new elephants were at work a meeting ot the union was held and a plan decided upon. When the nonunion elephants returned to the stables they were promptly set up on by the old ele phants and roundly beaten. Not until . they were properly chastised could the union elephants be stopped. The next day all went on as usual and continued as usual all the week. The elephants, both old and new, worked together in ho yards as before. But when Sunday came not one of the new elephants could be Induced to leave the stables. They had learned their lesson and they had Joined the union. And not to this day can the Moulmein timber yards he worked on Sunday. ' HOW WITH THE, AID OF AN UNIM PEESS IOHABLE PLUTOCKAT -THIS EX-MISSICNAFc-Y WITHSTOOD THE TE,MPXATION OP - - UNCLEAN MONEY - - BY ELLIS PARKER BUTLER. PETER WIMBLE was the richest man In Hartsock, and some said he was the richest man in Iowa, but for all that he was a simple man, with a large foot, and one minute after Eliph' Hewlltt entered Peter Wimble's office with a sample copy of Jarby's "Encyclopedia of Knowledge and Com pendium of Literature, Science and Art" under his arm the door opened and Ellph' Hewlltt stepped out hur riedly. The richest man In Hartsock did not wish to buy a copy of the greatest book on earth. He had said so. He had said it with his mouth and with his hands, and when he began to say It with his foot Eliph" Hewlltt came away. The little book agent stood a minute on the walk before the office and looked up and down Main street doubt fully. Then he coughed a gentle apol ogy for Mr. Wimble, smoothed his sandy side whiskers, tucked his oil cloth covered parcel firmly under his left arm and stepped briskly away. If you cannot get the richest man in town to head your list of subscribers the rule of the game Is to get the min ister's name. As a rule, too, it is safer to call on the minister. "I think." said the minister softly, when Eliph' Hewlltt had opened the conversation, "I think if you called on Peter Wimble . He Is our richest man, and his name at the head of your list would be more influenzal than mine. My salary Is so small, and he has such great wealth " "Peter Wimble, did you say the name was?" asked Ellph' Hewlitt. "Wimble, the millionaire? Ain't his wealth tainted? I can't let myself take money from any of these millionaires that have the tainted kind of wealth, Mr. Parsley. I know you mean wen by recommending me to him, a.nd I know he would be eager and anxious to buy a copy of this book. but. I ask, la his wealth tainted? And I say, it it is it can't buy a copy of this book, not at no price. Not If he was John D. himself and was to offer me millions for It." The minister hesitated, and Ellph' Hewlltt smiled and shook his head. "No. sir," he said. "If he was John D. and had all John D.'s money he couldn't buy It. and I wouldn't ask him' to. It wouldn't be for sale to him. If he was to come to me on his knees and say, 'Ellph' Hewlltt, here Is $250, 000,000 I Intended to give away, but I ask you to. take it and sell me one copy of that book, wlthouU which no man can be sure he has all the knowl edge in the world In one volume, and which I consider cheap at the price you offer," I would speak to him kind ly, but I would -say: 'No, no, John D to you I will not sell it. Tainted your money may be, or tainted It may not be, but Ellph' Hewlltt takes no chances. Go and get rid of your soiled millions seme other way." . ' That Is what I would say to him, Mr. Parsley." "Tou speak strongly," said the mild Mr. Parsley. "Yes. sir," admitted Ellph' Hewlltt. "and so would you if you had been a tainted millionaire the way I was, and had had the experience I have had with money that was soiled in spots and getting too strong to keep. If you had you wouldn't want to take any chances of getting any more of it, from John D. or from Peter Wim ble or from any one else. You wouldn't want to trade a copy of Jarby's 'En cyclopedia ot Knowledge and Com pendium of Literature, Science and Art,' a book that the best people are glad to get, for a lot of money that you couldn't get rid of even if you fumigated it first." "But general Booth says that the use to which tainted money Is put. if it is a good use. removes the taint," suggested Mr. Parsley, whose salary was often in arrears. "So I take notice," said Eliph' Hew litt, " and if a beefsteak gets too ripe I suppose it makes it fresh again If you make a present of it to a widow with six children. I suppose if the widow had 14 children It would make the beefsteak so fresh she would have to hang it up a day or two until it got fit to eat." "But some very worthy institutions ac cept money from from men like Peter Wimble."' said the minister. They accept itgladly." "They grab for It and holler for more," said Eltph' HewHtt. "And when more don't come right away they get in line and coax for it. All money looks alike to them and tastes alike. Every one of them has some kind of an education plant or other, and they make fertilizer ot the strong smelling cash and spread It on the roots ot their education plant, and don't care whether the money was tainted or sainted, so long as the plant grows. I wish there had been, some of the same kind ot willing accepters when I was crowded to earth with my load of musty money. I would be a younger man to day." "You seem to have got rid ot It," said the minister, with just the slightest, and not unkindly, accent on the "seem." "Yes. sir," said Eliph" Hewlitt; "'I got rid of it. I built an oil factory and put all my soiled money Into it. Any time you have any tainted millions and don't know how to get rid of them do that. Put your money Into an oil factory and it will not trouble you very long. John D. will have the money and the factory and the taint and the whole thing before you know the roof Is on, and before you know he has It he will have passed it along to some education plant and will have bis name in the paper. But it was a long time before I thought of that. I was an amateur giver in those days.- I hadn't learned about the proper channel. I had Just graduated, from the pirate business." "The pirate business?" " Inquired the minister. "It was a good business, too," said Ellph' Hewlltt. "Lots of money In it. and I run It on strictly moral lines, never thinking that folks would say It was a bad business; like being a trust or a rail road king. I had prayers regular every day, and gave receipts In full for all the money I took away from people, and allowed them 2 per cent oft for cash. I hadn't no more idea my money was tainted than a child has. It all come to me In the regular pirate way Just as the best pirates had got theirs for centuries before. It was the highest class stealing that was on record, and all done accord ing to the best authorities, and yet when I got so much money I was bothered to take care of it and wanted to get rid of what was a nuisance and et up as a philanthropist and get my name in the papers, and associate with professors and such, they turned on me and said the money was tainted." "You might have founded a home for disabled pirates," said Mr. Parsley. "I done it," said Eliph' Hewlitt, "but the trouble is that each pirate thinks he Is the only honest one and that all the others are thieves, and nobody would come to live In the pirates home that I started. I didn't have no trouble In start ing things, but the trouble was to make them expensive after they were started. When a man has money in heaps, like me and John D., it takes a lot of- get ting rid of it to Just keep the surplus down, and it don't do no .good to give it away in small lots. While a man is looking around for a place to get rid ot one hundred thousand tainted dollars seven or eight hundred thousand other tainted dollars are piling up on him. I seen that what I would have to do was to give away by the million, and I set out to do it. I sat at my desk all day writing out million dollar checks and sending them out to college presidents, and the next day the mall man would come In and dump a bushel basket of letters on my desk, and every letter was from a college president sending back my checks, with 'tainted' wrote across the face. - I used to go to some college president that I had met at a dinner, and I used to say: 'Please, please take forty-eight millions and I'll be your Dutch uncle for life,' and he would sigh and sniff his nose at the money and say: 'No, Ellph' Hewlitt. I need the money, but I can't take it. My - college is wearing its last year's suit and its shoes are worn out, but my con science won't let roe take tainted money.' "It went on in that way," continued Ellph' Hewlltt, "till I got so that I was ashamed to look a college presi dent In the face, and they got so that whenever they saw me coming they knew I had a check for thirty-two or one hundred millions in my hand ready to stick in their pockets when they were not looking and they would dodge around corners or up an alley. And I was only one of a hundred poor money tired millionaires that was car rying around tainted millions on a plate trying to get rid of them. My wife used to say to me: 'Eliph, Why don't you give away some millions to day? You Just sit here by the fire smoking your pipe. Why don't you brace up and go out and hunt up a place where you can get rid of some money? Surely there is some charity somewhere that will take a few mil lions if you put on your good clothes and tell the boss how the whole fami ly Is suffering.' Then I would go out and try, I would walk tbe streets all day looking for a willing taker and at night I would ' go home, and there would be my wife, standing In the door with a smile on her face and hope in her heart, and I could hardly dare tell her that another day had passed and no millions given away. But she was a good wife and she stood by me bravely in my misfortune, and all she would ever say was: 'Well,- perhaps tomorrow you can find a place, where you can give a million or so. "I looked in the' columns of the newspapers day after day, among the want advertisements,", continued Eliph' Hewlitt, "and I saw hundreds of ad vertisements of colleges and charities that needed a good giver with mill ions, but they all said, 'No tainted millions need apply,' or 'Money must be absolutely clean.' One day I found an advertisement that brought hope to my heart. 'Seven hundred millions wanted immediately; a university In the West needs the donation of the above amount; might accept more from the right party as a favor; taint no objection. Call at 794 Wall street, Tuesday morning, before breakfast.' I ran all the way from my palace in Fifth avenue to the address given and burst into the room; but I was not the first. There were 60 or 70 other millionaires ahead of me, and all had their checkbooks open in their hands. They were standing In line awaiting their turn, and at last I worked my way up to the desk. 'Your name?' said the man at the desk. 'Ellph' Hew lltt.' I answered. 'How much do you want to give away?' he asked. 'Two hundred and fifty millions,' I answered. "Very well,' he said. We have no re cipient open today, but we may have soon. I will enter your name." It was then I knew that this was but an other of the employment bureaus that are the curse . of the man who has millions to give away. They promise freely, but they never perform. 'If anything turns up,' said the employ ment may. 'we will let you know. Our fee is $6,000,000. At that he handed me the fee $6,000,000 in tainted mon ey. It was the old game, decoying the poor millionaire by means of a clev erly worded advertisement, and then, Instead of tailing his millions, giving him more." "I don't think Peter Wimble would have started that kind of an employ ment bureau," said Mr. Parsley, grave ly. "Mr. Wimble is. as the world goes, an honest man, but he has never both ered any college presidents by trying to force his wealth on them. And I do not think his wealth is badly taint ed. It may be slightly stale around the edges, but it does not pollute the atmosphere. I think you could safely accept a small sum from him. You might stipulate that it be taken from the cleaner portion." "No," said Eliph' Hewlitt. "No, thank you. I shall not sell Peter Wimble a copy of this book. I shall not take even the small sum that is the price of this book, which is $5, $1 down and $1 a month until paid, from Mr. Wimble. If he comes to me and asks me to sell him a copy of this book I shall say: "No. Mr. Wimble: I cannot take your money. Give, If you will, to the church of which Mr. Parsley Is the worthy pastor, a liberal sum. No better use can be made of the cleaner portion of your wealth than that, for I know Mr. Parsley, who has bought a copy of "Jarby's Encyclopedia of Knowledge and Compendium of Litera ture Science and Art," and who recom mends it. to be a man of no ordinary mind. He saw at a glance the wonderful value of this book to all who seek to be abreast of the knowledge of the day, and he paid down $1 of clean money for it. . But your money I cannot accept, for it is tainted. It pains me, Mr. Wim ble,' -I will say. "to deprive you of the solace and pleasure to be derived from the pages of this book and to deprive your wife' "' The little book agent paused and a light seemed to dawn on his face. "Mr. Parsley," he said, "I need not de prive Mr. Wimble of the benefits of this book. I need not shut him out from con tact with the priceless gems, of wit and wisdom It contains. I need not prevent him from finding in its pages the lessons that will make another man of him. His money I may not take, Mr. Parsley, but with your name at the head of my list, an. with t.tu. I .1 .. . l .-. r ou to Mrs. Wimble, I may yet rejoice in putting upon his parlor table this book, with the beautiful and uplifting senti ments it contains. His money my non science forbids tne to take, but Mrs. Wim ble's money is not tainted. I will not re fuse to sell her a copy, either bound in cloth at $6 or In half morocco at $7.60. Here Is the place you sign your name. Mr. Parsley. I can take your dollar now or when the volume is delivered to you." Mr. Parsley hesitated. "Of course," he said, "I feel that I have honestly earned all the money I receive, but how It was earned be fore it was put in the contribution box I cannot" say. If you have any doubt as to how it originated, per haps you would not want mo to buy ' Ellph' Hewlltt reached for the dol- lar that the minister held in his hand. He took it and folded It and put It in his vest pocket. "For your sake, Mr. Parsley," he said. "I will take the risk." Disproportionate) Lives. Catholic Standard and Times. "See here," cried the cat, "are you really determined to drown me?" "I am." replied the man. "You killed our canary, and I believe in 'a lite for a life.'" "But you're bent on taking nine Uvea for a life." Tbe Amateur Gardeaer. Denver Republican. A fool there waa. and he made his elult (Even as you and I!) At a hoe and a rake, and a shovel rough Later he called himself nimu enoush). But he thought bis garden would bloom with stuff (Even as you and I!) Oh, the seeds we waste and the sweat we taste. And the blisters on each soft hand That are suyed by the men who did net know (And of gardening they never could know) And could not understand. A fool there was, and his hoe h. broks - y- (Even as you and 1!) And the garden was left with weeds to - choke. And his back is the kind they call aear broke. But he is unable to see the jokt, (Even as you and I!) Oh, the beans w lost nd the means' we lost. And the cucumbers we hsd planned; They're brought by the huckster, who did not know why, ,(And we know he never knew why) We should ever disturb the land. And it Isn't the shame, and it isn't the blame That stings like a red-hot brand; For the seeds that we plant by two and two Shall rail to come up by one and on x mix m eJi understand.