8
THE SUNDAY OREGONIAX, PORTLAND, JANUARY 23, 1910.
POKTLANK, OREGON.
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PORTIAXD, StJKBAT, JAN. 23, 1910.
THE MEAT BOYCOTT.
It Is not probable that the eschewal
of meat diet, the boycott of meat deal
ers, the resolves of multitudes, how
ever grreat, to quit eating butchers'
meats till prices fall, or. In apostolic
language, that the command from any
quarter to "abstain from meats," will
have much actual br any permanent
effect on meat prices. People will eat
"what they want when or bo long as
they have money to buy. To quit
steaks and chops and roaste and cut
lets and meat stews is something moro
difficult for a whole people than it Is
for the fragment of our citizenship
who climb on the water wagon on New
Tear's -day to hold their seats there;
and the end Is even more sure. For
even a greater proportion will stick to
the (water wagon than will abstain
from meats for any length of time.
The same general causes that have
carried up prices of other commodi
ties have carried up the prices of
meats. The rise of prices of meats is
all along the line, from the farm to
the retailer's . block. The corn, oats,
hay all the products of the farm on
which the livestock Is fed are higher;
and so Is the labor which the farmer
must employ. Hence higher prices at
the farm or on the range for cattle,
hogs, sheep and horses. The buyer,
the wholesale butcher and packer, the,
retail butcher, must raise their prices
also. But the farmer and rancher do
not get the whole increase, of course.
The wholesale buyer must have larger
margins, because of the rise not only
of meat prices, but of all prices; the
retailer the same." The present rapid
system of doing business costs more.
All dealers have heavier expenses than
formerly. The equipment of a retail
butcher's shop, "for orders and" delivery,
is large and expensive. Orders are
sent in by telephone. Consumers for
merly took in their orders in person,
and most of them carried their pur
chases home.
Customers now are more fastidious
than formerly about the manner in
which animals are butchered and the
meats prepared, cooled and handled.
Hence animals are shipped in to the
great centers and meats shipped back
again even to the districts of produc
tion. The country butcher thus is
put out of business, even for his home
trade. But whose fault is It? Tn
former times the farmer slaughtered
his own stock and sold the carcass.
This wasn't satisfactory, and the
country butcher who had more skill
took up the industry. Later it began
to pass to the great packing houses
and now is almost wholly In their
hands. The reason Is they are pre
pared to do the business in the way
the market approves.
Combinations to control markets
undoubtedly have much to do- with en
hancement of meat prices; but no
more perhaps than In many other
lines. ' Railroad rates are no higher,
but lower on the Whole than before
meat prices so largely advanced. The
cp.uses of the advance in the prices
of meats unquestionably are of the
same character as those which have
caused advance in prices in all or
nearly all other commodities.
It Is not paradoxical, but quite
within reason to say that the stability
of the money standard, with large and
steady increase of the production of
gold, the establishment of credit on a
breadth hitherto unknown, renewal of
the speculative spirit on an Immense
scale, advance in property values both
in city.arnd country, and an unusual
industrial and general activity result
ing from these causes have given us
this era of high prices. It goes by
the name of prosperity. Such indeed
is its true definition to most. Shall
we not say to all? For who would
have a general condition of industrial
depression and low prices in exchange
for it? .
It is observable that the farmers
and ranchmen and. herders and
drovers are coming forward with their
statements and protests. They say
that boycott of meats and reduction of
prices will mean nothing less than re
duction of the supply of livestock; and
.this ere long will raise prices again.
probably higher than ever. The
leather and shoe men might say the
v same thing as to goods in their lines.
Trade must, indeed, regulate itself, on
supply and demand. This law cannot
be much interfered with by those who
may resolve not to eat meat or buy
shoes.
There is . much protest against
monopolistic combinations and tali
about the duty of government to sup
press them. But nobody yet arises
who can tell the government how to
do It: Actual' restraint by law i3
practically Impossible, as the experi
ence of mankind along the whole
highway of history attests. Restrain!
by competition Is the one effective
way most effective when seconded by
the turn of the tide of speculation, by
arrest of the progress and then the
decline of values, by loss of credit and
by hard times In general. The tide
of this sea rises and falls. It Is th-?
hour of high tide now; when the ebb
sets in, or after it has run a while,
we shall all try to find some policy or
some party to blame for low prices.
If exact conditions surrounding the
present garbage crematory were gen
erally known there would be a storm
of protest over the delay that has
attached to a new plant. During the
cold weather which has prevailed the
past two months there have been no
odors from the constantly increasing
piles of unconsumed garbage, but
when spring opens the situation will
be very bad. Lack of an adequate In
cinerating plant is an ever present
menace to public health. That an
epidemic' has not been created is a
matter of good fortune, not municipal I
vigilance. Further the delay will be
criminal negligence. Mayor Simon in
tends that there shall be no such de
lay. SENATOR CARTER'S BILL.
A better way than that of having
the "public -utility lands" administered
from' Washington- would be to cede
them to the states, in accord with the
provisions of Senator Carter's bill
the states to retain peVpetual owner
ship, with authority to lease them fr
development and use. The act would
apply to public lands chiefly valuable
for water power. It might also well
be extended to timber lands in moun
tainous districts. We believe, how
ever, that in Oregon there are few ac
cessible timber tracts and few water
powers that are not already in private
hands. The mountain reserves con
sist mostly of tracts now practically
inaccessible.
The states could take care of thes-j
resources and direct their administra
tion by law to much better advantage
than the General Government can.
Washington is too distant; bureau ad
ministration there never could, be. so
responsive to the true interest of the
respective states as administration
under their own direct legislative au
thority. An awakened public spirit in
each state would see to it that the" best
attainable results were had from the
system, and the income would be em
ployed in local development, not used
to support an immense officialdom,
nor pooled with the mass of revenues
of the General Government.
With these resources In possession
of the state there would be some
chance for their use and development.
It -would be relief, moreover, to see
such changes in the whole system as
would deliver the poor settler, who has
tried to comply with the law, from the
visits of Inspectors and Irlformers sent
from Washington who try to increase
their own importance by putting the
settler in doubt as to his tenure, and
starting plans for his ejection.
, BOIEE3UA.
The Oregonian has received from a
correspondent a copy of a rhapsody
on "Bohemia" with an inquiry for
the name of its author. The piece
has been floating vaguely round the
world for many years but nobody
seems to have claimed it. There has
been no contest for the glory of its
composition as there was for Beauti
ful Snow, a literary masterpiece
which has been attributed to almost
every writer under heaven from Ella
Wheeler Wilcox to Shakespeare. In
the booming times when Ignatius
Donnelly was first exploiting his
Shakespearian cryptograms, a news
paper in Milwaukee produced the fol
lowing from Hamlet by a strict appli
cation of his principles, "I am the
author of Beautiful Snow." This is
the most definite and satisfactory re
sult of the Ignatian analysis that has
ever appeared. It Is also beautifully
Bohemian, Inasmuch as it is com
pletely at variance with fact. Bohemia
is the land of illusions, most of them
puerile and many of them sordid. Our
correspondent's literary flotsam is
printed today in another column
where anybody who. wishes to divert
himself with hysterical chimeras may
peruse it. '
One may venture a guess that the
origin of the piece is to be discovered
in Ed. M. Arndt's famous poem, Was
ist des Deutschen. Vaterland ? What
is the German's Fatherland? The an
swer is that it lies neither in Prussia,
nor in -Saxony nor even in Austria, but
in the hearts of 'faithful Teutons. It
is the same with Bohemia, according
to our fugitive bit of folly. "It exists
in the hearts of its denizens, in the
lives of them that love it." If Bohemia
were anything like the kingdom of
heaven, we might see here a mild
theft from the New Testament where
it is said that "the kingdom of heaven
is within you." The truth it seeks to
express is that human happiness is a
great deal more dependent on the
state of our own souls than upon
outer conditions, and that those who
wish to escape from the miseries of
life must first experience a new birth
of the heart. For example, people
who try to make municipal govern
ment honest by altering its form are
like the market woman wlio white
washed her addled eggs. The taste
remains the same. Still, it is not to
be ignored that outer conditions ex
ercise an influence upon the-inner
man. In the last analysis all that wa
are is the product of our, environment,
so that by altering the environment
for the better, things are helped along
toward perfection more or less rapidly.
In Bohemia everybody-is young and
nobody is avaricious. There is no
greed, no illness, no treachery of
friends, no worry over the future.
This happy country is depicted in
Trilby with more powerful charm than
in any other recent book, though mojt
men of genius have wandered long
ingly through its confines. In Trilby
love was devoted and friends were
true up to a certain moment, but the
"shams of society" and the edicts of
Mrs. Grundy finally forced themselves
in and the sweet illusion faded like
frost on the window pane. Dr. Samuel
Johnson passed some years of his life
In the Bohemia of his day. He and
Savage were close companions in the
enjoyment of its delights, but neither
of them seems to have loved it par
ticularly. Johnson was not in the
least reluctant to accept the pension
which forever exiled him from Bohe
mia, and Savage seldom failed to
grasp at any method of escape which
presented itself. .The principal charms
of the enchanted realm in their day
were booze, dirt and starvation. ' So
far as outsiders can judge, there has
not been much alteration since. We
are favored with, the acquaintance of
certain Bohemians 'and the most no
ticeable of their characteristics are a
dislike for soap and a predisposition
to borrow twenty-five cents. We have
never observed much "kindly sym
pathy" in them, nor any marked exhi
bition of "kindred intellect." The
Bohemians we have met in the course
J of our earthly pilgrimage have been
as c6ld and calculating as they were
dirty. Their main purpose in life was
to live and drink without work, and
they cared very little how they ac
complished it.
There was a time, when artists and
literary people were supposed to live
Bohemian lives by preference, perhaps
almost by necessity. The booze and
general disreputableness of " it were
supposed to kindle genius to a -brighter
flame. Common sense does not war
rant any such opinion. The greatest
works in all domains of intellectual
production have been done by men of
regular habits. The people of Koen
Igsberg used to set their clocks by
Kant's daily walk. Vergil was a quiet
student. Milton was a saint. Goethe
was an apostle of the simple life. Sir
Isaac Newton was an exemplary office
holder. The best newspaper work I
done by men of family whose habits
are guided by the statutes of Mrs.
Grundy. Bohemia has sent out some
admirable work, but it never has risen
above the second or third rank. "
Michelangelo and Raphael were
virtual contemporaries. The former
lived a regular life for his day. The
latter caught his death in a brothel
from immoderate debauchery. Michel
angelo's art reached the supreme
height of excellence.. Raphael's dis
plays the weakness of his character.
Hearts beat just as high in ordered
and respectable life as they do in
Bohemia and there is no more envy,
malice and uncharitableness in pluto
cratic society than there Is in under
ground beer shops where impover
ished genius consoles itself with groa.
Any person who desires to obtain a
correct idea of Bohemia without visit
ing its precincts may begin by reading
the first chapters of Les Miserables
and follow them up with Ibsen's
-Ghosts. The chances are that he will
not care to migrate to the enchanted
realm when he knows exactly what
it is like.
RENAMING THE STREETS.
Whatever may be the attitude of the
City Council toward Engineer Mor
ris' proposition to change the names of.
more than half the streets of Port
land, the reform is certain to meet
emphatic popular disapproval. To
the suggestion that street numbers
should run 100 to the block no such
protest is likely to be heard, though a
majority of citizens will regard twenty
numbers sufficient. We have only a
few blocks containing more tnan four
lots facing one street. At the present
time, under the 100-to-the-Jfolock- sys
tem, numbers would reach 7700.
However, the convenience to strangers
is apparent.
But how about the northeast, south
west, etc., sections. Simply confus
ing. Portland does not lend itself to"
a plan of districting that serves well
fof Washington, D. C, whose streets
and avenues were laid out with special
reference1 to a center and to future
radiation. If Portland occupied an
unbroken plane, the scheme would
have advantages, but the bend in th3
Willamette River below the Steel
Bridge offers an insuperable objection.
You can't ignore natural boundaries.
Chicago, somewhat larger than Port
land, has its North, West and South
sides. The river fixes two of them.
Take the Postoffice or the Court
house for a center. Will any resident
of the West Side consider Swift's stock
yards as being in the northwest sec
tion? In the public mind they are on
the East Side. Just so with St. John,
which some day will be annexed. No
one carries a mental picture of that
suburb being In the same direction aj
Linnton on the opposite side of the
river.
On sentimental and historical
grounds probably a majority of cit
izens will oppose surrendering pioneer
names 'attached to streets. Indeed, it
ought not to be thought of. The
alphabetical arrangement of the
streets serves admirably. On the
West Bide the area Is so limited that
other streets are easily learned. On
the East Side the plats of the Ladd
tract, the new Laurelhurst additibn
and Rose City Park with Its several
adjacent neighbors break up any sys
tem of numbered streets and num
bered avenues that could be devised.
And it is to be remembered that
Portland hasn't stopped growing; on
the contrary, the big population is yet
to come. Adults now living are likely
to see the city stretch to the Sandy
River. When rolling and hilly country
is converted into city and suburban
residential districts topography will
govern; streets at right angles will not
be the fixed rule. City Engineer Mor
ris" plan is arbitrary and unnatural. It
should be turned down unanimously.
ACTOMOBILES."
Since the automobile is as yet mainly
an instrument of pleasure, it is proper
that the frivolous French should have
first lead. In its manufacture, but the
credit of inventing It belongs to the
English. When locomotives had been
made to draw a train of cars on iron
rails. It seemed perfectly natural t.
expect that the feat might be repeated
on the macadamized coach roads of
England. The experiment was attrac
tive for financial reasons, since the
railroads quickly put the ancient stage
coaches out of use, and a vast capital
locked up in inns and roadhouses was
imperiled. Various engineers exerted
their Ingenuity to construct a prac
ticable self-propelling road vehicle,
and more than one succeeded. A fair
share of the principles which are used
in the modern automobile were in
vented one after the other in experi
menting with these early steam mo
tors. Even the difficult problem of
generating high-pressure' steam in
large quantities from a compact boiler
was solved by Hancock. He obtained
18 effective horsepower from a steam
generator inclosed in a space of 30
inches by 20 by 32.
Between' the years 1820 and 1846
steam-motors became common on the
English roads, and a flourishing busi
ness in carrying passengers sprang up.
There is little doubt that, invention
would have progressed steadily and
that the road motor would have kept
pace with the railroad locomotive If
hostile legislation had not interfered.
The devilish contrivance brought con
fusion into the rural nooks of Britain.
It disturbed the meditations of both
men and horses on the highways, and
finally an act of Parliament so re
stricted its use that it became unprofit
able and almost disappeared. We read
accounts, however, of Isolated steam
motors cautiously pervading the roads
of Britain up to the time when the ex
plosive engine revolutionized every
thing. The steam road vehicle never
aimed much at pleasure. It seems to
have been strictly an affair of busi
ness, ugly, heavy, not very speedy and
extremely hideous. No wonder the
cultured steeds of England shied at it.
The principle of the explosive engine
permits enormous power to be gener
ated in a small motor. It is this more
than anything else that has made it
possible to develop the automobile
Into a contrivance of grace asd beauty.
In theory it is simplicity itself. In
practice the automobile is one of the
most complicated of machines. The
facility with which young men acquire
the ability to handle it is one of tho
wonders of the age. Very likely the
next generation will be as easily fa
miliar with the automobile as farmers'
boys were with horses a. half century
ago. Its common use will inevitably
make mankind mechanically minded
and help in the great work of .elim
inating superstitious faith in the oc
cult. It is extremely significant to no
tice rne attractiveness of the automo
bile for women. Hitherto the gentler
sex has not cared particularly about
mechanical contrivances, and its con
fidence in the supernatural has been
correspondingly firm. It will be Inter
esting to observe, two or three gener
ations from now, how the use of road
motors has affected the proportion of
female church members.
Persons who have studied the sub
ject seem to agree that, so far as
pleasure vehicles are concerned, there
are no more worlds to conquer. The
automobile is about as speed', strong,
controllable and graceful as It ever
will be. Invention is now likely to
exert itself along the direction of slow
and efficient traction engines for use
on the farm and for drayage In towns.
Admiracly serviceable trucks have al
ready been made for use in cities. The
best ones are said to afford advantages
of economy and safety over horse ve
hicles. There are also explosion mo
tors available for farmers, but they are
not yet near perfection. What is
wanted is an engine and truck which
will be not much heavier than a good
team of horses and which will go at
any' required speed from a mile ati
hour up to a mile a minute, or less. It
must be a great deal simpler than any
automobile now in existence, and it
must be Completely controllable by
some device which cannot get out of
order. Farmers as a rule love to use
machinery, but they cannot take tare
of it. The least complexity in an im
plement baffles them. They will not
use oil unless the law makes its neg
lect a hanging matter. They prefer to
run a machine when all the nuts are
loose and the bolts rattling, and it is
generally deemed sinful in rural neigh
borhoods to put an implement under
shelter. The requirements of a farm
motor are therefore seen to be some
what exacting, but the progress which
Invention has already made encourages
us to hope that it is not out of the
question. The disuse of horses for
motive power is to be desired on many
grounds. For one thing, they are far
too expensive in these days of hign
prices, but it Is for humanity's sake
that one chiefly hopes to see them
emancipated from the wagon, the plow
and the city truck. When a horse is
young and strong his lot may not be so
very sad, but when he grows old and
his bones begin to show themselves, he
is only too likely to be sold to some
brutal huckster who will work him to
death. as fast as possible to save feed.
Mankind will develop the gentler
graces much more rapidly than now
wijen It ceases to profit by the en
slavement of the horse. "
MORE CONSTITUTION TINKERING.
Constitution tinkering will resume
activity in" the next Oregon election
and a crop of fads and fancies will be
foisted on the voters again. Already
four amendments to the constitution
a.re slated for the election submitted
by the Legislature for referendum and
others will show themselves in duo
time, by grace of the Initiative, pro
posing prohibition, -woman suffrage
single tax and other things. None of
these changes is needed by the com
monwealth, nearly all of them menace
constitutional stability, and the public
would be no better off with the best,
of them.
Chief of the dangerous changes will
be the amendment authorizing the
state to build and operate railroads.
There will be two amendments, carry
ing out the "new idea" of assessment
and taxation, in spite of the obvious
truth that there can be no better basis
of taxation than that now prescribed
in the constitution for equal and uni
form taxation of actual values. Least
objectionable of the proposed "im
provements" is the one substituting
the district representation method of
electing members of the Legislature in
counties that have more than one
member In either house, for the eleo-tlon-at-large
method heretofore in use.
From one point of view the Legisla-.
ture should be commended, perhaps,
for limiting to that small number the
"progressive Ideas" that are clamor
ing for place in the c6nstitution. The
initiative, however. Is still wide open.
Preachers of political fads, profes
sors of what they call political science,
apostles of multifarious reforms all
think Oregon the most progressive
state in the Union. So far as this
state allows them to "monkey" with
the organic laws and lifts the lid that
other states hold down on cranks and
enthusiasts, they have the right idea
of Oregon's progressiveness. There
will be something doing again in con
stitution tinkering next November, and
the electorate will receive another vijit
from the innovating pest.
EXTRAVAGANT CONSERVATION.
It was a loud and long-drawn howl
of denunciation which greeted the re
port that Secretary Ballinger had actu
ally employed a nephew in one of the
departments at Washington. The
muckrakers shouted in glee at the aw
ful disclosure, which, of course, was
regarded as highly important corrob
orative evidence of the many crimes
they had already laid at his door. The
yellow press also drew on the reserves
of large type In order properly to her
ald the news to the world. The Pin
chot partisans were in their glory, and
it was really awful the way the bold,
bad Ballinger man from the West had
w-asted Government funds in the em
ployment of that nephew. Yet Mr.
Ballinger violated no law and in no
manner departed from the customs
and regulations of the department.
Quite different is the report regard
ing the easy, breezy manner In which
Mr. Plnchot has been wasting Govern
ment funds. When Solicitor McCabe,
of the Department of Agriculture, suc
ceeded Mr. Plnchot, he discovered that
about 200 of Mr. Pinchot's forest
rangers were attending universities
and colleges in the West for short
courses In forestry, costing the Gov
ernment between $15,000 and J20.000
per month, "being assured their Gov
ernment salaries and their traveling
expenses Would be paid meanwhile."
The matter was immediately referred
to the Controller of the Treasury, who
declared there was nothing in the law
or appropriation for the Forest Service
that warranted any such expenditure.
This, of course, was only one of the
many violations of the law which Mr.
Plnchot found it necessary to Indulge
in that he might carry out his own pe
culiar ideas and methods regarding
the Forestry Service. To be sure, a
little bagatelle of $15,000 to $20,000 a
month spent unlawfully in indulgence
in a fad is not to be condemned when
Mr. Plnchot Is the guilty person, but
employment of a nephew by Secretary
Ballinger at an insignificant salary is a
very serious offense. Apparently con-
I :
servaton of resources and conservation
of cash have nothing In common.
Now that the Zelaya dynasty is a
heap of ruins, the feeling of resent
ment against the slayers of two Amer
ican' citizens Is becoming stronger.
General Medina, who took a prominent
part in the execution of the young
men, has fled the country to escape
arrest, and President Madriz has de
manded that action be taken against
all Implicated in the- affair. As yet
no evidence has been presented to
refute Zelaya's statement that the two
Americans were fighting against the
Nicaraguan government, which at
that time was recognized by the
United States as having the right to
maintain order within the boundaries
of the republic. . It is plesant t know
that the long arm of Uncle Sam can
reach out and demand punishment for
any and all who molest American cit
izens, but, if we carry the doctrine
too far, we may establish a bad prece
dent. There are always soldiers of
fortune who dearly love a fight and,
with the danger of losing their lives
removed, some of them might involve
this country in serious trouble.
Now, of course. If we are to drop
all the historical names of Portland's
streets, as the City Engineer proposes,
we shall next have under way a move
ment to rename the schoolhouses.
Why should the memories of our great
American names like Lincoln, Wash
ington and Jefferson, or of our local
pioneers, like Ladd and Atkinson and
Couch and Thompson and Shattuck be
preserved in this foolish way? It
would be easier and clearer of course
to employ the alphabet for them, and
let them be School A, School B and
so on. If we should run shy on let
ters then let us begin again with
School AA, School BB, down to ZZ.
This Is a practical day and age where
in historical sentiment has no place.
Or we shall be obliged to assume tbit
it has no place if this remarkable
scheme of the City Engineer prospers.
There ought to be hearty public re
sponse to Mr. Wemme's practical
movement for a Mount Hood road
fund. At his own expense he has
bought an aeroplane and shipped It
to Portland. It will be on exhibition
this week at the automobile show.
Mr. Wemme's plan is to charge 25
cents to see it, under his pledge that
every dollar received for admission
shall go without a "rake off" to the
fund for the proposed road. As shows
go nowadays, the fee is reasonable.
If an aeroplane Is not an attractive
novelty, what is?
Judge Webster was altogether and
firmly right In his refusal to allow
members of the bar to be present
when the names were drawn'to com
pose the jury lists. The demand was
an imputation on the honor of the
County Court, which is charged by
law with a duty which the committee
of the bar desired, to superintend in
its performance. The language of
peremptory denial used by Judge
Wrebster was as proper as necessary.
It speaks well for the progressive
spirit of the Young Women's Chris
tian Association that a branch is soon
to be opened in a convenient and
pleasant location on the East Side.
That it will have ample support goes
without saying.
When the grasshopper begged the
ant In midwinter for food the ant
unfeelingly replied: "Since you sans
all Summer you can dance all Winter."
The men who are now begging for
something to eat wasted their Summer
opportunities.
If Uncle Sam would only permit
such a test it would be interesting
and Instructive to have the census
enumerators of Oregon next April ask
republicans, not Democrats, whether
they approve or disapprove the As
sembly plan.
Has it occurred to the gifted Mr.
Pinchot that there is a great opening
for him in Africa, where there are
resources ready for anybody and
everybody to conserve, and no ques
tions asked?
In such weather as this when you
see strong, healthy eyes popping out
of the rose bushes you can't help won
dering whether it would be safe to
plant new varieties now for June
blooming.
As a matter of public economy and
undoubted reform, it is more practical
to kill masked murderers than to sup
port them at the State's expense in
penitentiaries.
t .
A good way of course to save money
on meat is not to eat meat. But some
people are stubborn in their gluttony
and will eat what they like and pay
what they can.
The last of this year's Hood River
apple crop being on the way to New
York, Oregonians must depend on
Yamhill for their first-class fruit.
At first glance it seems to be the
most effective method for all hands
in Oregon who produce things worth
exhibiting to join in- one big show.
Now if the police will just manage
to kill two or three hold-up .men in
the street another form of the out
law Industry will get a quietus.
The man who created a riot at lone
has gone Into retirement at Salem.
He was a success, as all the "witnesses
were shot in the back.
Two masked thugs shot dead by
Portland policemen within a month
just as they gave the "hands up"
command. Next!
Suppose we shut down on flour, but
ter and beans. They're awful high!
W"e have known people to live with
out any of them.
Labor unions would like to have
their way in settling the water main
trouble. Its members are like a lot of
other citizens.
If that comet brings all our woes,
how about the woes that are present
when the comet is absent.
A masked, murderous robber is
never a menace to life or property
after he has been killed.
Sentiment against the Assembly plan
for Oregon is unanimous among
Democrats.
The Oregon songbird is married and
the agony is over.
ROMANCE OK OGDEVS DAUGHTER.
Her Mother an Oregon Pocahontas and
Her Sire a Farmed Explorer.
- Common-law marriage Is not so
widely recognized as It used to be, be
cause it affords no certain record for
defense of the parties against fraud and
deception. But in the early days of the
fur trade in the West, w.hen religious
solemnization was impossible, common-
law marriage was frequent, especially i
to the white men and Indian women, t
And be it said, to the honor of the men
they rarely disavowed the tie.
This subject is brought to present at- j
of the Oregon Historical Sdciety, nar
rating the marriage, in 1840 at Fort
Vancouver, of Arthur McKinlay, clerk
to the Hudson's Bay Company, and
Sarah Julia Ogden, 15-year-old daugh
ter of Peter Skene Ogden, the famous
man in whose honor members of the
Historical Society lately have made
historical researches. The occasion of
this investigation was especially the
renewal of the history of the Whitman
massacre, near Walla Walla, and of the
debt of the Americans to Ogden for
his rescue of the survivors of that
calami ty.
The certificate of the marriage of
Ogden's daughter (her mother came of
the Flathead tribe) and McKinlay 13
still intact and a facsimile of It
is printed in the Quarterly, In connec
tion with an article written by T. C.
Elliott. The paper bears the signatures
of the contracting parties and also of
Chief Factor John McLoughlin, Archi
bald McDonald and Alex C. Anderson,
as witnesses. The certificate reads as
follows: i
In the presence of the undersigned wit
nesses, I. Archibald McKinlay. a clerk in
the service ot the Honorable Hudson's Bay
Company, lata of Scotland and now resid
ing at Fort Vancouver, Columbia River, do
voluntarily of my own free will and accord
take Sarah Julia Ogden. daughter of reter
Skene Ogden, to be my lawful wife, and
tho said Sarah Julia Ogden also voluntarily
and of her own free will and accord takes
tho said Archibald McKinlay to bo my law
ful husband.
SARAH Jt"LIA OGDEN.
ARCH. M'KINLAY.
Witnesses:
ARCH M'DOVALD.
ALEX C. ANDERSON.
Fort Vancouver,. Columbia Rlvr, June,
1S40.
JOHN M'LOUGHLIX.
C. F. (Chief Factor) H. B. Co.
Sarah and her mother Julia hold a
lasting place In Western annals, for
the mother was a sort of Pocahontas,
who is said to have participated in the
rescue of Ogden from death at the
hands of a Spokane chief in 1824-5: at
any rate, the chief spared Ogden's life,
after the hero had "bared his breast
to the gun point and the wrath of the
chief. Then, unlike the Smith story,
the dusky Indian princess was wed to
the man whose life was spared. .
Ogden was a scion of distinguished
family in New York and the province
of Quebec, whose middle name Skene,
was said to have come down from
Scottish ancestors, one of whom in King
Maldolm's time had saved the life of
His Majesty by slaying a wolf with a
dagger, or "Skene."
So here was Ogden married to a sav
age princess, in the far-wilds whither
John Jacob Astor sent-hlm In 1813 on
the vessel that was to reinforce Astor's
trading post at the mouth of the Co
lumbia The vessel was wrecked off
the Sandwich Islands, but as Ogden
was destined to sleep In a more honored
place on the high bluff overlooking
Oregon City 40 years later, he was
washed ashore, lashed to drifting spars.
Such was the fortune that had fetched
this son of the Chief Justice of Mont
real to his savage bride in the wilder
ness. Sarah Julia first opened her
eyes on the world January 1, 1826,
according to the family record.
Peter Skene, the story runs as told
by Joe Meek, shortly afterward, was
leading a fur trapping party In South
ern Idaho, on Snake River. Ogden was
accompanied by the mother of Sarah.
A party of Americans was encountered,
who stampeded Ogden's horses. Lashed
to one of the saddles was a board and
strapped to the board was the pappoose,
Sarah. Did the mother waste time in
lamentation? Not she. Straight into
the American camp she ran. up Into
the precious saddle she sprang and
away she dashed from the amazed
Americans. "Shoot that d squaw,"
yelled one of them, but not a shot
pursued her, for the Americans were
too full of admiration; at least in the
tale of Joe Meek. On her dash, the
mother took in tow a horse laden
with furs, which she convoyed tri
umphantly back to Ogden's camp.
That there was such an episode, there
can be little doubt, but it hardly fits
with the records in this case. It was
the year before the advent of Sarah
that Ogden was despoiled by the Amer
icans; moreover, Ogden's Journal bears
no evidence of the event. But It is a
good story and fit to tell of Julia and
her baby, Sarah. And along 'with it,
since Sarah's career, like her father's,
was to meet with tempests, may be
mentioned the entry In Ogden's jour
nal, the day that Sarah came to earth,
January 1, 1826.
Wo had more fasting than feasting. This
Is the first .New Year's day since I came
to the fur country that my men were with
out food. Our horses can scarcely crawl
for want of grass; but march thev must or
we starve. In the evening Tom McKay and
men arrived without seeing the track of an
animal, so this blasts my hope. What will
become of usT So many are starving in
camp that they start before daylight to
steal beaver out of their neighbor's traps.
Had the laconic pleasure of sein: a raven
watching us today. The wolves follow our
camp. Two horses killed for tho kettle.
Ogden was then In the Blue Mountains,
Eastern Oregon, between the headwaters
of John Day and Burnt rivers. He had
traversed the region where Hill and Har
riman have just been striving for mas
tery. Ogden makes . no mention of the
presence of Julia or Sarah. They were
probably at Fort Vancouver. But had
Sarah arrived amid this stress and star
vation, there would have jjeen precedent
for her coming. Fifteen years before,
December 30, 1S10, In the very same
mountains, near the site of La Grande,
amid similar chill and starvation and
exhaustion, the Indian wife of a French
man, Pierre Dorion, increased the per
sonnel of Hunt's Astor party, which was
caught by Winter on the route to the
mouth of the Columbia. Washington
Irving's "Astoria" has this mention of the
event:
As the fortltudo and good conduct of th.3
poor woman gained for ner the good-will
of the party, her situation caused concern
and perplexity. Pierre, however, troated
the matter as an occurrence that could sonn
be arranged and need cause no dolav. He
remained by his wife in the camp, with his
other children and his horse, and promised
soon to rejoin the main body, who pro
ceeded on their march. ... In the
course of the following morning the Iorin
family made Its reappearance. Pierre came
trudging in the advance, followed by his
valued, though skeleton steed, on which was
mounted his squaw, with the new-born in
fant In. her arms, and her boy of 2 years
old wrapped in a blanket and slung at her
side. The mother looked as uneon-rned
as if nothing had happened to her; so easy
is nature in her operations in the 'wilder
ness, when free from the -enfeebling re
finements of luxury and the tamperings and
refinements of art.
But, getting back to Sarah, it may be
cited that her marriage to McKinlay was
life-long, and that their daughter, the
wife of A. B. Ferguson, lives at Savona
Ferry, Lake Kamloops, British Colum
bia. Their graves are in sight of the
Canadian Pacific Railway, on Thompson
River. Peter Skene Ogden's name will
live in Western history as one of the
most distinguished, and some facile nar
rator may yet place those of Julia and
Sarah alongside his in tales of Western
eijploii.
TOPICAL VERSE
The Sweetest Music.
I love to hear the singer who can warbli
like a bird,
The lady who pulls down two thousand
per;
When I hear the voice of Melba I am
most profoundly stirred,
I am better, nobler, after hearing her.
I like to hear the jingle of hard monej
in the till.
I like to heur the clang of distant bel!a
I like to hear the ripple of the unpolluted
rill,
I am gladdened bv the songsters in the.
dells.
I love to hear the crooning of a mothei
who is young,
I love to hear the wind blow througU
the pines;
I em gladdened when I listen to a sweet
love lyric sung.
I'm exalted by the poet's lilting lines.
But If one wisli might be granted th
one wish to me most dear
Fd wish to wake tomorrow, just at
dawn.
With a June breeze blowing o'er me a
I cocked my head to hear
The rattle of the mower on the lawn.
9. H. Kieer in Chicago Record-Herald.
Petty.
Pet names he used to call her.
And well, he does it yet;
But they're married now, and be it far
From us to tell what names they are.
When she is in a pet.
St. Louis Republict
Ye Playful Maid.
She played with me In childhood, and
she played with me in youth.
I much regret to say it, but it Is th
simple truth,
That, though I've grown to manhood
with my heart upon her set.
This maid of whom I sing my song is
"playing with me" yet! Exchange.
Not Perfect.
Her hair is dark, with glossy glint
And sheen.
Except where puffs, of lighter tint.
Are eeen.
Her skin is soft, 'tis snowy, too,
And nice.
Save where the freckles glimmer through
the rice.
;
She does not claim to be a bello
Or boast;
And after all, she looks as well
As most.
Kansas City Journal.
Paradoxical.
Our language very qur-er appears;
Some phrases cause us doubt,
When men a race have started on,
"They're off!" the people shout.
Then as the runners forge ahead.
We hear above the din
This cry: He's losing all the rest;
I'll bet that he will win."
Next morning in the press we read:
"His victory was sweet;
He walked away from all his foes.
And ran them off- their feet."
Detroit Free Press.
I n Grateful Appreciation.
Dear Strangel, whom I saw today
When ail he sky was dull and gray,
When I was blue and sour and glum.
When all my soul within was numb
And I could not coax up a smile
I thank you for that Joyous while,
i
I saw you walking down the 6treet,
As proud a man as one could meet;
Tou whistled gayly as you went
A lively tune of merriment -And
O, I hated you for that!
You wore a high and glossy hat.
I could not help contrasting us.
I grieved that fate had made us thus.
That you should stride along so glad
While I went moping, sore and sad.
The tune you whistled struck my ear
With any but a sound of cheer.
But, suddenly, O etranper Man.
While you received my baleful scan.
You stepped upon f icy place
And lost your air of ease and grace;
And joy of joys! You tried to clutch
The air, and slipped to beat the Dutch!
You slid, you twisted and you jumped
And then the frozen walk you thumped
And bounced and turned face down and
slid
Against a fence that's what you did!
And you arose, with hat a wreck
And snow and ice adown your neck.
Dear Stranger, since that moment I
Have walked beneath an azure sky.
Have heard the little birds a-trlll
In melodies all sweetly shrill
And all the world has worn a hue
Of gold and rose, because of you!
Chicago Post.
The Insufierables.
These Winter nights Bill Jones comes up
an' sets aroun' the store.
Bill is a goose-bone prophet. He kin
prove by three or tour
His neighbors that he went aroun" an'
warned 'em we would get
About the coldest Winter as has been ex-
per'enced yet.
"Tol" you bo," says Bill, an' blows
Hisself out like to bust his clothes
Hooks his thumbs back in hie vest
An' tweedledums upon his ohest.
An' after bit Jim Dabbs comes in an'
thaws his ears an' toes.
Jim is a weather prophet, too, an' haa
his Eskimos
To prove he said as we would have a
Winter we would feel
Because he kilt a. coon last Fall with
fur on like a seal.
"Knowed it all the 'time." says Jim
Wasn't no su'prlse to him.
Rolls a bar'l out fer his feet.
And sets an' stews in his conceit.
An' bye-an'-hye the Squire blows in. He
called the turn three ways
On caterpillars goln' south, muskrats an"
Injun maize.
He's got his proofs in good shipshape,
with witnesses an' notes,
An' there ain't a night but he comes in
an' sets aroun' an' gloats.
"What'd I tell ye?" says the Squire,
Hitchin' closer to the fire.
With his coon-cap tilted up.
An' swellin' like a poisoned pup.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Where, Oh, Where, Is Hohcraia?
SALRM, Or., Jan. 22. (To the Editor
Many years ago I memorized tho follow
ing piece, which, oddly enough, was
printed on a theatrical programme but
had no bearing on the play. Can you tell
me anything of its author, or is It Just
a stray bunch of words?
"Bohemia Where is Bohemia? Any
where! Everywhere! Nowhere! It ex
ists In the hearts of its denizens. In the
lives of those who love it. It is the land
of staunch companionship, of kindly
sympathy and of kindred intellect; where
heart? beat high and hands grasp firm;
where poverty is no disgrace and charity
does not chill. It ia the land where the
primitive virtues have fled 'for refuge
from the shams of society and where
Mrs. Grundy holds no sway."
R.M. P.