8
TUT; SUNDAY OREGOMAN. PORTLAND. JANUARY 2, 1910.
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IN PRIXCTPLE NOT NEW.
The present contest in British poli
ties really is not new, in any princi
ple. It is scarcely new in the inci
dental circumstances. It is a contest
between conservation and radicalism
between the desire to maintain
ideas and principles and purposes
founded in history and experience and
practice, and changes or innovations,
of more or less radical character, pro
posed by "leaders of the advanced
thought"' of the present time. The
like has been going: on in the British
realms for a thousand years and
longer; and this contest is but a
phase of It, arising from somewhat
new conditions of the present day.
Lack of money produces difficulties
In nations as in families. Poverty
brings things to a crisis. Charles I
needed money, and was compelled to
summon his Parliament to get it.
Louis XVI was in sore straits lor
money and was forced to call the
Stites-General to provide it. Revo
lutions, then.
The struggle now on in England
arises also from need of money, to
carry out the necessary purposes of
government, on lines of policy forced
by new conditions and requirements.
The British Parliament has under
taken a scheme of old-age pensions.
The revenue required is immensely
greater than any provision for it. This
might have been expected; for when
you invite a people, or any class of
them, to "lie down on the govern
ment," they will do it, of course, and
you will have more pensioners than
ever had entered into the calculation.
There is another call for money,
even more imperative the call for
money for maintenance of naval de
fense. This requires extraordinary
sums. From what sources Is the
money to be had for these two pur
poses age pensions on the one hand
and naval armament on the other?
The naval armament is conceded by
all parties to be necessary. But it is
not conceded on all hands that it is
the duty of government to support its
poor, inefficient and improvident
members certainly not to the extent
that would reduce them to dependence
on the government.
What the result of the coming elec
tions none can say; but probably there
will he no nronouncerl mainritv. re
solved to pursue one theoretical
course or another. The British peo
ple do not take kindly to theories.
They are a practical people, giving
little attention to abstract ideas. They
know no ' logic" in politics. Burke
was the expounder of the British po
litical mind. His was the philosophy
that confirmed his country in its nat
ural opposition to abstract theories,
and in its natural habit of accommo
dation of measures to the particular
position In which things may stand at
any given moment.
Hence it is that conditions which,
In any other country, would produce
revolution, are adjusted in Britain
without any very great commotion or
real catastrophe. A long period has
elapsed since any clash of arms in the
British realm over disputes in poli
tics. But it was a long and bloody
period that led to this peace.
THE "EVANGELISTIC CAMl'AItiN.
An evangelical campaign carefully
studied and systematized is soon to be
waged by the churches and pastors
representing the Presbyterian body in
this city and its immediate environs.
The object is to increase attendance
upon churches and perhaps to recall
the wandering thought of the age
back to the religious doctrines as
preached, prayed -and sung in the
past. In olden times even within
the last half century workers along
these lines were called "revivalists,"
and the effort itself was known as "a
revival." It is now known or named
an "evangelistic campaign"; its work
era are haled from afar and known
es "evangelists"; Its plans are made
by an "evangelistic committee." and
its presentment of the gospel as de
fined by the Westminster creed (some
what modified) is called carrying the
"evangelistic message."
This is in conformity with the ex
hortation of St. Paul: "Let all things
be done decently and in order." The
bearers of the evangelistic message
are men earnest in the work: the lead
ing chorister in the evangelistic cam
paign, of which music Is a grand
feature, sings faultlessly and with fer
vor "Ninety and Nine" and other im
passioned "hymns from that sweetest
of all gospel singers, whose voice is
now hushed, Ira D. Sankey; and the
prayers are not the less sincere and
eloquent because delivered in modu
lated tones and in grammatical
phrases.
Perhaps the results of the evangel
istic campaign will be as satisfactory
as were those of Its prototype, the old
fashioned revival; perhaps they will
be as lasting. The difference noted Is
that between men and methods be
tween cultured and uncultured
speech between high-pitched, dis
cordant voices singing in concert:
Sinner, hell is deep and yawning. '
Quenchless fires are rar-ag there;
Mot one beam of hope Is aawnlng
On those rtgtons of despair.
and that of the salaried soloist as the
melody rises and falls, sweetly and in
perfect harmony in the words:
Oh. Beulah land, sweet Beulah land.
When shall I reach thy golden strand?
The contrast in methods is not more
marked than the surroundings. The
time chosen for the old-fashioned re
vival was the early Summer. The
reason for this was two-fold. The
meetings could be held out of doors
and those who attended them, being
llml.".' w ...... .. . ... u . . . V 111111
that kilef respite in their labors that
J came between seedtime and harvest.
Tl'O campmeeting was .the medium
j through which the revival worked;
the rude bench in front of the rustic
pulpit was its penitential altar; the
coun'ry was the field of its endeavor,
the source of its supply.
The evangelistic campaign is car
ried on in churches, the largest and
most ornate that the city and its en-
: virons afford; the broad space front
' ing upon the mahogany pulpit and
grand pipe organ is its confessional.
when at the close of the evangelistic
campaign men and women who have
been suitably impressed by its music
and its eloquence are Invited to "Join
the church."
Simplicity characterized the old re
vival; carefully studied methods be
long to the evangelical (as to the po
litical) campaign. The one preached
"Christ and him crucified"; discoursed
upon the "plan of salvation," sang in
strident voice "Turn, sinner, turn;
why will ye die?" and prescribed creed
in Calvlnistic doses to its converts.
The other delivers the "gospel mes
sage," shorn of its sulphurous threat;
ignores creed or touches upon it light
ly, and urges attendance upon church
services and support of the church as
matters of civic pride and duty to the
community. The revival haled sin
ners to the altar, howling for mercy;
the evangelistic campaign is designed
to increase attendance upon church,
r.ew rentals and missionary contribu
tions. The one had and stoutly held
Its place in emotional religion; the
other has and is making systematic
effort to hold a place in the pruden
tial affairs of men. The one repre
sented strenuous, robust Christianity
and the creeds that grew upon it; the
other represents calm religion en
Joined by respectability. Both are re
flections of religious thought set in a
specific environment the one urged
on, the other modified by the condi
tions of its time and place. Nothing
in the realm of thought or growth is
fixed. Hence the change in the tac
tics cf religionists as expressed in the
terms ''revival" and "gospel -campaign."
,
A SOUTHERN DEMOCRAT FOR PRESI
DENT. ,
When Mr. Bryan was in Savannah
recently he was asked by the Morrfing
News of that city who would likely
be tha next nominee of the Demo
cratic party for President. He an
swered that it was too early to talk
about the matter. From Mr. Bryan's
standpoint probably it is. But the
Savannah paper repeats a statement
from a correspondent, who says that
"the Democratic party never will elect
another President until the candidate
Is chosen from the southern half of
our country."
It is a suggestive thought. The
South is really the conservative sec
tion of the country. Various "isms,"
that are assertive and .clamorous in
the North, have no hold at all in the
South no lodgment there. That
"Insurgency" of ail sorts of specu
lative and theoretical notions, so
prevalent at the North, Is unknown at
the South; and the South is not the
home of the great trusts and combi
nations against which the "country
must protect itself.
"If, therefore," says the Savannah
News, "Mr. Bryan is really anxious to
assist in the election of a Democrat to'
th-j Presidency at the next National
election, let him begin at once fo ad
vocate the nomination of a Southern
man in 1912. He would strengthen
himself in the estimation of his party
by doing bo, and at the same time be
come a powerful factor in turning the
control of the Government over to the
Democrats." But would Southern
conservative Democracy suit or satisfy
the Bryan Democracy of the North,
inclined strongly to a semi-socialistic
radicalism ?
ECSAPIA PALLADIXO.
The time is passed when well-informed
people think of trying to ac
count for Eusapia Palladino's phenom
ena on the theory of fraud. She has
been studied with great care by a large
number of the most competent observ
ers in the world, and they are pretty
nearly unanimous in saying that
many of her performances are genu
ine. In other words, she produces
manifestations which none of the ac
cepted canons of science will account
for. No sane person, after reading
1 descriptions of the seances which
Lombroso, Oliver Lodge, Herlward
Carrington and other" highly critical
investigators have held with Eusapia,
can doubt for an instant that she has
raised tables from the floor without
touching them, has diminished her
own weight, caused objects to move
about without physical contact, and
evoked apparitions which seem to be
.the materialized forms of the dead.
All this is proved as conclusively as
anything in this world can be proved.
Mingled with the genuine phenomena
which Eusapia exhibits there is also a
goodly proportion of fraud, as every
body seems to admit, but that is not
of the slightest consequence. Ten
thousand fraudulent manifestations
would not affect the value of the hon
est ones in any degree whatever.
Granting that all but one phenomenon
out of a million can be explained by
fraud, while the millionth one cannot,
it is still our duty to seek an ade
quate explanation of the millionth. - .
In Eusapia's case this condition of
things seems to have arrived, though
it is not merely one phenomenon out
of a million that demands explanation,
but rather a whole host of events. It
is folly to spend any more time dis
cussing the genuineness of her mira
cles. It is the plain duty of science
to sit down "and find an explanation of
them, or else confess that it is defi
nitely baffled. Naturally it is much
more agreeable for a professor of
physics or psychology to loll cosily in
his library chair and calmly deny that
anything has happened than it Is to
apply his mind to the problem which
actually confronts him, but the day of
shirking has gone by. Apply his mind
he must. There is some principle In
nature which accounts for Eusapia's
levitations and materializations, and
all her other esoteric caperlngs, and
this principle must be discovered. It
will not -do to squirm and evade any
longer. Science is confronted with a
clear and concisely stated problem to
be solved. The world is impatient to
see its professors apply their vaunted
ability. to the task. The longer they
take refuge in pompous doubts and
vain accusations of fraud the more
they prolong the reign of fakers and
swindlers. The fact that multitudes
of greedy impostors flourish on the
reputation of Eusapia and other genu
ine mediums today is more the fault
of our scientists than . of anybody else.
If these indolent, or cowardly, leaders
of thought had done their duty, the
popular mind would not have been
misled as it has.
What the natural principle may be
which will avail to explain Eusapia' a
phenomena .it is idle to speculate at
present. Hereward Carrington, in his
temperate and informing book upon
this amazing woman's performances,
recounts the different theories which
one - savant after another has pro
pounded, .but none of them amounts
to much. Sir Oliver Lodge seems to
think that Eusapia has the power to
project energy from her body and util
I j it at a distance. Just as she does
in moving the muscles of her arm.
This is an alluring fancy, but it ex
plains nothing. It merely restates
tha problem in language which is
slightly obscuring. If Eusapia moves
objects at a distance, it stands to rea
son that she projects energy, but how
does she do it? What is the appa
ratus employed? Is It a sort of wave
motion? Another savant tries to ac
count for Eusapia's miracles of levi
tation by Imagining that she material
izes an extra arm to work with. There
Is little satisfaction in this theory, be
cause the explanation is ten times as
perplexing as the thing to be ex
plained. If this is the best science can
do, it would better let the subject rest.
We do not want our scientific guides to
beg the question and tell us they have
solved it. We are eager to understand
just how Eusapia goes to work to ma
terialize her extra arm.
The hypothesis that spirits work
Eusapia's wonders Is purely illusory.
To say that spirits do a thing, or that
God does it, is simply an evasion of
the intrinsic difficulty. The trick is
an old one, and pretty well played out.
Even if it is spirits that lift Eusapia's
tables from the floor without hands,
we still want to know how they man
age to do it. It is no less marvelous
for a disembodied ghost to work such
a wonder than it is for a fleshly
woman. The question of ways and
means remains exactly the same, or
perhaps even more puzzling. One may
venture to guess that we shall not un
derstand levitatlon until somebody
first explains gravitation. When we
know what makes objects heavy we
may perhaps come to learn what
makes them light. The two problems
hang together so intimately that it is
hard to see how one of them can be
solved without the other. Perhaps
there is a universal law of negative
gravity waiting for its Newton. At
any rate it is plain enough that we
are on the threshold of wonders such
as have never yet been seen.
THE ANNTJAI, DRUNK.
The celebration of New Year's eve
In Portland was, they say, the wildest
and noisiest and silliest in the history
of the city. The street scenes were
unprecedented for disorder and actual
outrage; the saloons, restaurants and
grillrooms were quieter than usual,
with a few conspicuous exceptions.
Drunkenness was common, though
drunkenness was far less offensive
than some other things. At Erick
son's, for example, where nearly
everybody was drunk, there was less
disorder and less indecency than in
some places of far better reputation.
There was at Erickson's no indiscrim
inate osculation by strange men
with strange women, or vice versa,
and no reckless dancing on tables by
shameless women before shameless
men. The saloon patrons and hangers-on
were merely drunk and very
talkative. Improper behavior in pub
lic and exhibition of things to be seen
at other times nowhere except in the
lowest dives were left for that night to
the so-called respectable classes. The
so-called respectable classes took full
advantage of the exceptional license
and opportunity given them. Today
presumably they are ashamed, though
The Oregonian has no means of know
ing. But who is to blame? A mature
wraan who is willing to offer her fa
vors to anybody, or to expose her al
leged charms to everybody, is already
lost; but how about the young women
and young men? What decent mother
or father that knows about the scenes
on Portland streets and in some Port
land grillrooms on New Tear's eve
would permit the daughter to leave
the family fireside? None. She is
certain to be subjected to insult and
affront from hoodlums, young and old
and of both sexes; she goes home with
the certain feeling that the things she
sees universally done and hears every
where said cannot be wholly wrong
and are perhaps all right, for her own
moral standard is bound to be influ
enced greatly by the behavior and
expressions of others. The fathers
and mothers of Portland, then, are re
sponsible for the consequences, or
most of them, of Portland's annual
New Tear's bacchanal and orgy. If
they would avoid harmful results, let
them keep their sons and daughters at
home.
WATER Tit VST TWADDLE.
Of course Mr. Pinchot and his big
retinue of bureaucrats and "experts,"
all under big pay, do not think people
In Western States should control
their own water-power streams. So,
to head off state control and make be
lieve that the country would go to
the bow-wows Without them, they
start a yell about "water monopoly."
But the people of Oregon and Wash
ington, where flow the largest water
power streams of America, know full
well that not only Is there no "trust"
here, but too little is doing in the way
of constructing power plants. If tur
bines were being placed on the many
hundreds of fit power sites in this re
gion, then might follow signs of trust
and monopoly, yet perhaps not.
Let Oregon and Washington regu
late their power streams in their own
proper way and the streams will be
conserved; but a number of fat jobs
in Washington will be vacated. Other
jobs, of course, would be created at
Olympia and Salem, but the incum
bents would have their watchful em
ployers near by to see that they did
something useful and exercised their
authority for the progress and pros
perity of the commonwealth. The
State of Washington is managing its
school lands better than the bureau
cracy In the National capital could,
and It would administer Its streams
just as well. There wouldn't toe any
trust and one monopoly of fat jobs at
the capital would be abolished.
If there Is any monopoly of water
powers It ought to exist where most
of the powtr plants are in Eastern
States. Water powers there are all
controlled by state authority, yet we
hear no talk from Pinchot men of ne
cessity for their bureaucratic control
in order to ward off a trust,
Oregon and Washington contain ex
perts who know the public Interest in
water powers here far better than do
academic and theoretical job-holders
in the National capital, who skim this
country in Summer time to gather
stuff for twaddle about conservation
the rest of the year "back East."
j Besides, it Is new doctrine that the
; United States Government shall de
j prive the states of their old-time au
i thority over power streams. Observe
Far Western states. Applied to East
ern states, it would not last until the
next election.
A NEW YEAR'S MEDITATION.
What if most people did break all
the good resolutions they made last
new year? Is that any reason why
they should not make some more this
present New Tear's? There is a great
deal to be said for good reso
lutions, even when they are pretty
certain to vanish like the flower and
wither like the grass. In the first
place, they are better than bad ones.
The mere fact that we think it worth
while to promise ourselves, and per
chance our wives, to forsake our
sins and lead more saintly lives proves
that in our hearts we recognize the
superior worth of virtue and would
really like to experience the beauties
of its flowery walks. It Is the devil
who tempts men to wander from the
paths they know are better for their
feet. We are but feeble and fickle
creatures, make the best of us, and
Satan has not the slightest difficulty
in beguiling us to his heart's content.
At least, he has never had much
difficulty in doing" it, but it seems
as if his task were growing harder
year by year. Though the devil has
incontestably ruled the world with ab
solute power for millions of years,
there are signs that the period of the
monster's reign is at hand.
In the second place, not only is it
better to make good resolutions than
bad ones, but the effect of the good
is cumulative. The fact that a man
failed -last year to live up to his bet
ter nature does not make the battle
harder to win this year. On the con
trary, bygone failures may make vic
tory easier. Peter the Great said if
the Swedes kept on defeating him,
they would, in the end, teach him how
to conquer them, and they did. We
are not equal to Peter in our capacity
for profiting by the lessons of ex
perience, most of us, but we can cer
tainly imitate him to some extent.
There was reason for the failure of
last year. Either we did not truly be
lieve that decency is better than vice
and took the whole subject of im
provement as a jest; or else the weak
places . in our moral fortresses gave
way in spite of stern resistance and
the enemy gained new possession
with his train of hideous little imps.
If a man's failure to keep his good
resolutions resulted from his lack of
faith in the value of righteousness, the
sooner he corrects this error of judg
ment the better for him. Righteous
ness is the one thing of pre-eminent
and unfailing value in this vale of
tears. Sensual pleasure Is good
enough for the moment, but its mo
ment is brief. Die Lust 1st vergangen
ehe noch sie beginnt, says Heine, who
makes a very fair sort of a poet for
New Tear's reading. He had plenty
to repent of and did the job in a work
manlike manner each succeeding year.
But there is no necessary opposition
between .what Is called sensual pleas
ure and righteousness. The senses
are just as much a gift of God as the
mind and soul are, and no doubt he
intended that they should be exercised
and enjoyed. The sin comes In when
we let ourselves degenerate into mere
beasts, living for the senses only and
ignoring the other parts of our na
ture. This is one-half of unrighteous
ness, doing injustice to ourselves. The
other half consists in doing injustice
to others. The true and whole man
does injustice to nobody. He lives in
such a way that all his powers, both
bodily and Intellectual, are duly ex
ercised,, but he is careful not to en
croach upon the similar privilege of
his fellow men. He does not wrong
his body by excess of any kind, on the
one hand nor does he starve and be
little It by rabid asceticism on the
other. Much less will he permit his
intelligence to slumber in sloth and
ignorance, because he would thus lose
half the pleasure of rational life, and
that the better half. All this amounts
to saying that a righteous man will
not wrong himself either by breaking
down his powers through excess or
suppressing them through mistaken
asceticism or letting them lie fallow.
He will live as completely as he can,
and he will .fully admit the. right of
others to do the same.
The golden rule is the most often
misunderstood text In the Bible. It Is
usually interpreted to mean that we
ought to shower little gifts upon other
people and bespatter them with kind
words in the hope that they will favor
us in the same way. This Is well
enough as far as it goes, but it is not
the best part of the significance of the
golden rule. To discover what Jesus
meant when he said, "Do unto others
as ye would have them do unto you,"
we must ask ourselves what the great
est possible kindness is that our fel
low men can show us. In nine cases
out of ten the unhesitating answer will
be "To let us alone." The consummate
perfection of Christian conduct is to
let people alone, to refrain from wor
rying them, stealing from them, pois
oning them and enslaving them. A
moment's consideration will show how
very far we are from applying this
blessed precept thoroughly, but we
do It better now than we did last
year and the time is hastening on
when we shall do it better still. Com
plete righteousness is a highly posi
tive quality. We cannot let people
alone without the most strenuous and
vigilant effort. The majority are so
Invitingly simple that it requires bit
ter and Incessant struggle to refrain
from profiting by their folly, but it
must be done if a man would be a true
Christian. Nobody who steals even
from fools can really expect to stand
on the right hand at the Day of Judg
ment. It requires almost as much
militant grace to keep from doing
wrong to other people as it does to be
righteous toward ourselves, but not
quite so much.
The hardest task a man has is still
to rule over himself. It is harder than
to take a city by storm, just as it used
to be in the days of prophets. But
every new set of good resolutions a
man has made helps him on to the
final victory, if he ociy takes the
trouble to analyze the reasons why
he broke them and makes up his mind
to act more cautiously and shrewdly
next time. The main thing is not
merely to keep on trying, but to try
more and more sensibly. It does no
good to repeat the same stupid old
blunders year after year. The bulwark
of reformation Is a slow accumulation
of wisdom gained through sad exper
ience. In the course of time this be
comes solid enough to- hold character
erect, but after all, nobody ever knows
when he may fall from the serenest
heights of virtue and again become as
one of the wicked. Ne'er think the
victory won, nor lay. thine armor
down; the work of faith will not be
done till thou hast gained thy crown.
MORE ABOUT REMINGTON'S LIFE AND
ART.
Perhaps., after all, appendicitis is
not such a trifling ailment as some
persons suppose. The doctors speak
of it as a slight indisposition which is
curable without danger and almost
without Inconvenience by a minor op
eration, but now and then it manages
to carry off a victim, as it did Fred
eric Remington on December 26, in
spite of the best they could do.
Mr. Remington's lamentable death
in the prime of his years is all the
more surprising from the fact that he
was of a vigorous habit. The hard,
manly, outdoor life which he depict
ed with brush and chisel was the one
he liked to live. There are few artists
who know their subjects as well as
Mr. Remington knew the cowboys and
soldiers of the rough West, for he had
spent years among them. His art be
longs to the sternly realistic school.
He does not Idealize men, horses or
scenery. Everything is drawn Just as
it appears, harsh, angular and with
out intentional illusion'. But for all
that the desert range in Mr. Reming
ton's pictures is by no means a for
lorn and repellent waste. The light
upon It comes from the sun of ro
mance which never sets In the human
heart. The gaunt ponies in his pic
tures are as proud of spirit -as the
haughty steeds ridden by the knights
in the "Fairy Queene," and ho plumed
heads, or crowned ones, either, were
ever held higher than those of his. gak
lant cowboys.
Remington's plainsmen, cowboys
and soldiers are a glorious breed of
men. Their eyes are keen, their mus
cles of steel and their hearts un
waveringly true. Very likely they are
doomed to disappear; but it 'Is a pity.
.
ZEALOUS EFFORT.
The student mission met in quad
rennial convention in Rochester, N. T.,
Thursday with 5000 delegates, ihat
tendance from all parts of the Chris
tian world. The object of the mission
is to consider and discuss the prob
lems of evangelization at home and
abroad, with the special view to ex
tending the work of the Christian
church into foreign missionary fields.
Specifically, it Is the convention of
what Is known as the student volun
teer movement for foreign missions,
and its delegates are men trained in
strict accordance with the missionary
idea as applied to the evangelization
of the Chinese and other so-called
heathen peoples.
A nucleus of this educational and
evangelical effort has been formed In
the province of Hunan, a thousand
miles up the Tangtse River by found
ing what is. called "New Tale," a
school conducted mainly by graduates
of Tale, with the purpose of educat
ing young Chinese of the higher class
for teachers among their own people.
The effort may be likened to the
throwing of a missile at the moon in
the expectation of striking and awak
ening that planet from the dead and
investing It with new life. While the
results are not likely to compensate
the energy and effort represented by
the undertaking, it would be churlish
to withhold admiration from those
who are making this strong and sys
tematic effort to change the current
of ages-old thought, belief and cus
toms In China.
FADS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
The expansion of the ideals, pur
poses and pretentions of the public
school system in this country is not
the least wonderful feature of the im
pulse that we call progress as evolved
from a restless, out-reaching, transi
tion period. That it represents a
bubble blown up by the lusty lungs of
professional pedagogues is boldly
charged in some quarters and insist
ently denied in others. That the ma
chinery required to run the system,
or employed for this purpose, grows
more intricate and cumbersome every
year is certain, while the knowledge
gained, as judged from the simple
standard of usefulness, each year
shows unmistakable deterioration.
That a halt must be called in certain
lines is evident if tho plain principle
of a useful education upon which the
public schools were founded is not
to be subverted by fads, and the
money of taxpayers and the efforts
of the teaching body are not to be
squandered upon nonessentials.
A blind following of textbooks; a
rapid passing over the prescribed
course of study; the presentment in
outline of important subjects in a
hurried and consequently an imper
fect manner; lack of drill in the fund
amental principles which form the
basis of education represent some of
the defects of the operation of the
system as at present organized. The
tendency of all -of this is to push pu
pils on into, the high schools who are
unprepared to take up advanced work
in English, mathematics, history or
languages, a lowering of the standard
of scholarship and a general lack of
useful knowledge that Is found in the
graduates both of the grammar and
high schools.
The study of geography in connec
tion with the public school course,
for example, does not comprehend
any knowledge of the theme of which
it is worth while to speak. If any
patron of the public schools doubts
this let him ask the high school girl
or boy of his own- household to follow
the Columbia or Willamette River
from its mouth to its source, name its
principal tributaries and describe the
character of the lands through which
it flows. Or, reaching farther since
the tendency is to neglect as of small
moment the things closest at hand
to name the principal capes on the
Atlantic Coast and give the number
and capitals of the New England
States. Or, turning to another theme,
ask any teacher of Latin or German
in the high schools if the greatest
difficulty that he or she encounters
In grounding"pupils in the grammar
of these languages does not arise,
from the fact that these pupils have
little or no knowledge of the simple
principles of English grammar as sup
posed to be taught in the grammar
grades.
When in addition to the facts sug
gested by this almost universal ignor
ance of these and other themes that
form the ground work of education
In the schools, we observe the tend
ency to pile high and still higher the
themes and schemes of pedagogues
upon the top of an already top-heavy
system of public education, we may
be absolved by common sense if we
look apprehensively at the growing
structure, half expecting to see it fall
by its own weight.
The very rapid increase in the num
ber of private schools throughout the
country in recent years indicates the
protest of many Intelligent people
against the methods and tendencies of
the public school system. This 'in
crease may be due to some extent to
the prosperity of the working classes,
or to the growth of undemocratic
principles among the well-to-do. Buf
the criticisms heard upon every hand
in regard to the substitution of fads
and non-essentials for the simpler
themes that are the basis of practi
cal education are of serious portent
to the public school system with its
heavy weight of expense and general
lack of practical results. These are
disagreeable facts, but they are facts
that it is not wise to ignore, since
only through facing them can the
public hope to restore to their schools
the earnestness and simplicity of their
original purpose that of providing
the masses with the substantial basis
of a practical, useful education, which
the beneficiaries can build .upon fur
ther and with confidence if they so
elect, or use without additional ad
vancement In book-knowledge, ac
cordlngto their individual conditions
and needs.
The friends of the Oklahoma bank
ing law are making an effort to keep
that law on the statute books . by
amending it at a special session of the
Legislature, which may be called
within a few weeks. To consider the
matter Governor Haskell last Thurs
day held a meeting with the state
bankers. The actual workings of the
bank guaranty law have not been suffi
ciently successful to warrant very
much praise for its sponsors, so the
bankers confined their efforts to a vote
of confidence in the Bank Commis
sioners, and to a resolution that the
affairs of the defunct Columbia Bank
& Trust Company had been "well ad
ministered" since the bank failed.
Perhaps after a few more assessments
are levied on the good bankers to pay
up the losses caused by the wildcatters
the law will be changed so that a good
"administration" will be required be
fore the bank falls and levies unwar
ranted tribute on the safe, conservative
bankers.
The loose financial methods of State
Treasurer Steel were signaled again
Friday by payment to the state of
$225,000 by the bonding company
which bound itself as surety for state
funds deposited by Steel in the wild
cat bank of his political friend, Thor
burn Ross. Immediately on becom
ing State Treasurer Steel poured
state school money into the high
finance bank of Ross and Ross in turn
poured the money Into his numerous
graft companies. For this unlawful
use of school money Ross has been
convicted and sentenced to the Peni
tentiary, but has not yet begun serv
ing sentence. The surety company
doubtless has heard that Steel desires
re-election and "vindication" this
year. Tet what surety company
would ifesire his re-election?
"We do not elect effective men of
affairs to office," says fn"e San Fran
cisco Chronicle. "They would not ac
cept. They could not be elected. If
nominated. If elected, they would
not b6 allowed to Impart the effec
tiveness of private enterprise. And
whether we elect good men or bad
men, we rarely elect them over again.
As soon as they have become famil
iar with their duties we discharge
them." This means only that popu
lar government is a failure; but we
must have it.
Testerday morning The Oregonian
printed 90,100 copies. It soon over
sold this edition, and to meet large
orders it has been obliged to put the
plates on the presses again and print
10,000 more. There has been no such
demand for The Oregonian hereto
fore. But all orders now can be filled.
The country Is growing; the annual
review is wanted, and the demand for
Saturday's Issue seems a sufficient
sign' that the paper had special merit.
Now of course there is something to
be said in defense of those "ladies"
in the restaurants "New Tear's eve who
wandered from table to table kissing
everybody in sight. No sane man,
duly sober, could ever be Induced to
join them in that pleasure.
The police did their duty Friday
night, since they did all they could.
But they couldn't do much. It was
evident that the whole visible popu
lation was crazy, and the police had
to let it go at that. They couldn't
put everybody In Jail.
It hurt some persons yesterday who
felt obliged to respond "Same to you,"
and were too grouchy to say "Happy
New Tear" first, but didn't damage
them any.
A local probation officer's elo
quence has persuaded a bad boy to
give up his evil ways. That is a novel
change from the club and strap.
The aurora borealis is said to be a
product of gas. Polar explorers who
view the mystery hereafter will think
of "Cook with gas."
There is a bond of sympathy be
tween Diaz- and Zelaya, for a fact.
Strange that Taft and Knox did not
think of It.
The discovery of white girls in a
Chinese den in Chicago is nauseating,
but anything goes in that "jungle."
Inhuman cruelties to inmates of a
prison in Georgia Is no new story.
They began It at Andersonville.
It was easy to smile and say
"Happy New Tear" yesterday, but the
rest of the year is not a holiday.
If a" Democrat were Speaker in
Washington, Democrats would not be
petting up "insurgents."
A rich 'strike close to Nome, with a
paystreak five feet wide, is too early
in the season.
Santa, Claus is the person who
brought the gifts but didn't pay the
bills.
We suppose that Peary and Cok
wished each other a happier New
Tear.
It is a happy new year to Woodburn,
with the advent of a trolley car.
The New Tear resolutions may have
helped a little, anyway.
MT11F.D1K ON CAKKOS.
The Point of View of the New Cea
grfiNsiaB From "iV anhinjc to-m.
Aberdeen (Wash.) World.
Congressman McCredie is convinced
now that Speaker Cannon "A Num
ber One, a strong character, honorable
and decidedly frank," a man whose
"name will shine on the pages of his
tory In the coming ages," while those
of "his opponents will repose in the
dark archives of oblivion." What 11019
will do to a name is' not easy to guess.
Some there are exalted in life that
sink to their right level at death.
"Time is a honest fellow," runs an old
Italian proverb and time does soma
unexpected things. It is just as easy
to say that Cannon's name will net
"shine on the pages of history." He Is
more apt to be merely an interesting
incident, one phase in the growth and
development of this Nation. He be
longs more to a bygone day than he
does to- the present age. New Con
gressmen are apt to be impressed with
less distinguished ability than Can
non's. Cannon, Is not entitled either to all
praise or all criticism. Some of the
censure that has been heaped upon
him he doubtless deserves. Denuncia
tion of the power he exercises Is not
proper. He is only a creature of the
majority of the House, and whenever
the majority of the House is so minded.
it can depose him and elevate another
In his -stead. There la no rule In tha
House, and none can ever be devised.
so long as this Nation remains a re- r
public, that can prevent change in
Speakers. No Speaker is to be blamed
for the exercise of the power conferred
upon him to the end that public busi
ness may be dispatched wit'h due
promptness. He is to be blamed when
he exercises that power to his own
personal aggrandizement. That is the
charge against Cannon. Whether or
not it is sustained examination of the
record might disclose.
McCredie does better in discussing
the rules than he oes in attempting
to fix Cannon's place in history if,
indeed, the Speaker shall be accorded
any place. The Congressman finds that
these rules are the result of a century
of experience, and that they are de
signed to carry out the wishes of the
majority. "I never heard of a rule,"
says McCredie, "that the minority
must rule." Nor will he ever hear of
It, except, possibly. In Oregon, where
the minority party manages to capture
all the good offices. But even there
minority could not have its way save
by the silly consent of the majority.
When the "insurgents" grow so strong
in the House that they become the ma
jority, doubtless the rules will be
changed. More likely, not. For this
Is a government by majorities. And
if the rules confer power to rule on
the majority, as in all conscience they
should, why, then criticism of the
rules falls flat. But if the rules can
be so manipulated that the Speaker
becomes a greater than his creator,
then criticism Is justified. Perhaps an
other letter later from McCredie, when
he shall have found several of his pet
bills pocketed by the Speaker, or when
he shall have been denied the privilege
of working off a cherished speech, will
be intensely interesting.
INCREASED COST OB" LIVING.
Its Chief Factors An Personal Indnl
gence and KitrnvBRaut Desires,
Spokane Spokesman-Review.
Some part of the Increased cost of liv
ing is due to higher prices of necea Bar
ries, but personal Indulgence and extrav
agant desires are the chief factors.
Not all of us are qualified to express a
really valuable opinion on this question
of increased cost of living, for compara
tively few keep systematic household ac
counts or have kept them long enough for
comparisons. It is easy to lay our in
creased expenditures upon high prices,
and it helps to allay that little inward
monitor called conscience.
Standards of town and city life have
changed amazingly since people now mid
dle aged were young. We must have tel
ephones, and there goes $1.50 to J2.50 per
month. Our wives and daughters must
cook with gas, and there is another
charge against the family income. We
must have electric lights, notwithstand
ing they cost three or four times as much
as it cost once to light our homes witl
kerosene. We want a furnace-heated
house, and that means a bigger fuel bill,
and we desire finer furniture, beautiful
lawns. better fittlre. more expensive
plumbing and a score or more of other
conveniences and luxuries that most of
us at one time or another were without,
and, strange as it may seem, we were
happy, too.
Of course, the girls must have pianos
and music lessons, and as for getting
along without amusement, why, one
would almost rather go without bread or
meat, and theater tickets do cost money.
All these useful and pleasant things
are desirable, and with them others that
the Individual reader could enumerate
with no great effort, and it is good to
have them if we can afford It. But if
we must have them, let us consider the
reckoning and not jumble up the cost
with the comparatively slight increase In
the cost of living that results from tha
higher prices that we pay for bread,
meat, milk and butter.
ONE WAY TO SAY IT.
O Doctor, Doctor Brougher!
We hear you're going to quit
This land of fruit and flower
For a town where you'll be IT!
In seeking for salvation.
Some may pronounce it Brougher;
With words of condemnation.
Just put them on "the skewer.
O Doctor, Doctor Brougher!
We're not glad to see you go there.
Though they'll need you every hour;
For things go mighty slow there.
Those people may get mixed up
And call you Doctor Brougher;
But once you get things fixed up
They'll find you are no bluffer.
O .Doctor, Doctor Brougher!
Old Sin will put on mourning
When you begin to knock her
Where she is then sojourning.
And if one day there's some lack
Of shekels in the coffer.
Just pack your grip and come back
O Doctor, Doctor Brougher!
W. J. C.
Woodpile Marks Woman's Death.
Baltimore News.
In a shed at South Bethel, Me., there
Is a pile of wood which was placed there
by a woman who died about 40 years ago.
The members of the family wish to pre
serve the pile as 1 the work of their
mother's hands, and it will not be dis
turbed. Protection Begins at Home.
New Orleans Times-Democrat.
Senator Borah has introduced a bill
to bar corporation lawyers from seats i
In Congress. Some heartless cynic will 1
probably arise to ask the name of the !
corporation lawyer who aspires to Sen
ator Borah's seat