TTTE SUNDAY OREC.OXTAX. rORTLAXD. DECEMBER 31. 1911.
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0MnX. MIOC.RE.HS) IX TEN" VUI.
A most noteworthy feature of the
detailed census report on the popula
tion of Oregon in the showing of rapid
growth by Portland and the urban
population In general in comparison
with the rural population. In the
decade ending In 110 the population
of the state as a whole Increased 62-7
per cent, but that of Portland in
creased 12.3 per cent, and the entire
urhan population that of cities of
25nn or more increased at the rate
of 113 per cent, while the entire re
mainder of the state increased only
3V1 per cent. In 1910 the urban pop.
ulatl"n was 45. per cent of the whole,
as compared with S2.3 per cent In
1900. The comparative arrow th of ur
ban population t more rapid than in
the whole Cnited States, where the
percentage Increased from 4 0.5 to
4S.I per cent. and. unless the scale
should be turned the other way by
some, new Influence. Oregon will have
a larger proportion of its people living
in cities at the end of the next decade
than the general average of the whole
country.
Though the drift of population to
the cities 1 a Just caue of concern,
there are some circumstances con
nected with the situation of Portland
which should not be overlooked. This
city is the commercial metropolis, not
only of Oregon, but of a large part of
Washington, both east and west of the
Cascades, and of Idaho. A fair com
parison of the population of this city
with Its tributary rural population
should include the whole tributary
country, not Oregon alone. Extension
of railroads and trolley lines and use
of automobile haa also facilitated
transaction of business In the coun
try by men residing In cities who
would formerly have found It neces
sary to live In the country-
A study of the maps showing In
crease and decrease of population by
counties brings Into strong relief the
fact that the largest Increase of popu
lation has come to the Willamette Val
ley and the counties around Portland
and to those counties which have been
newly penetrated by railroads, and to
the counties of Central and Southeast
ern Oregon, where agriculture Is sup
planting grazing. Curry, -which has
no railroad, gained between S and 15
per cent: Wheeler and Union have
gained less than S per cent, and Grant
alone has lost population, showing a
decrease of S.T per cent.
The gain In rural population follows
the general gain with some exceptions.
As might be expected, one of these Is
.Multnomah, where rural population
Increases only between 5 and 15 per
crnt. while the urban population hus
more than doubled. Benton. Jackson
and Josephine show a less rapid, Uma
tilla and Kaker a more rapid, rural
than general growth, and Union shows
a loss of 13 3 per cent In rural pop
ulation as compared with a general
gain of less than 5 per cent.
What abundant room Oregon has
for more people Is shown by the rec
ord of density of population. In this
respect the density Is greatest In Mult
nomah, the smallest county 501.7
persons per square mile And In other
counties has followed the general
course of, increases in numbers. All
of Central and Southeastern Oregon
and Curry have Nti than two persons
per square mile, and Harney has less
than one. Kven the most densely
peopled counties around Multnomah
range only from IS to 45, and other
counties ranire only from two to It
per square mile.
A survev of these figures Impresses
one with the fact that, though Oregon
has mado great stride In the last
decade, settlement and development
have only Jut begun. The census of
110 reflect only the settlement which
tame In anticipation of the new rail
roads into Central -Oregon and the
coast region of the Natron cut-orf. and
of the Irrigation of Crook. Harney.
KlaJuath and Umatilla counties. That
of 1J0 will refWt the settlement fol
lowing upon the completion of these
roads and Irrigation works. alo upon
the construction of prtwpecflve rail
roads, mi. h a the Hill and Harriman
lines through to the southern, bound
ary, across the state from east to west
and to Coo Hay. the extension of the
Oregon Klm-trlc line throughout the
WUlamette Valley and trolley lines
through the Kogue and Umpua Val
leys. It will reflect the vast Immigra
tion from Europe which is sure to fol
low the opening of th Panama Canal.
There can be no reasonable doubt that
the Influx of new settlers will Increase
the population of Oregon to an extent
which I now Impoaa.Oie to estimate,
and will go far to restore the equilib
rium between urban and rural popu
lation.
TltS MACHINE HI BROKEN DOtTX.
The prevalence of lawlessness and
th Inefficiency of our machinery for
detectlrg. trying and punishing crim
inals I now generally recognized
that the time has come for the next
step discovery and adoption of the
best remedy. Let us pass on from the
general to the particular.
We are told that perpetrators of S
per cent of crime are not detected.
What Is the matter with our detec
tive!? We know that mar.y of those
who are detected escape punishment
through Inefficiency or worse short
comings of prosecutor. Why can't
w gat better prosecuting officers and
how can we get them?
We know that many more criminals
ecap punishment because our Jury
s stern Is radically defective In allow
ing the most competent men to escape
jury service, or forbidding them to
aery and encouraging the placing of
meat Incompetent men on Juries.
Where men are guilty acquittals often
result through the unwritten law, class
prejudice or bogus pleas of insanity.
Even when a criminal is brought be
fore the court there are endless delays
In empaneling a Jury and completing
the trial. When he Is convicted, sen
tences are annulled on appeal on all
manner of technical and absurd pre
texts. What Is the matter with our
Judges?
When a criminal Is finally landed In
the penitentiary a Governor sets him
free on parole or on honor after he
has served but a fraction of hi sen
tence. What is the matter with our
Governors? Finally, what Is the mat
ter with our people, that they elect
such officials and allow them to con
tinue In office after their unfitness is
proved ?
We all recognize that the machine
for the detection and punishment of
crime has broken down. It is time to
cease bewailing the fact. We must
either repair the old or build a new
one.
M HOOI. BOABD HELM ITSELF.
The purpose of an annual school
meeting under the law Is to give form
and expression to the will of the tax
payers. The function of the annual
school meeting under present custom
is to fix things In the way the School
Board wants them fixed. 'The school
meeting Is of course a farce, and worse.
It does not reflect the desires or de
signs of the voters. It merely regis
ters the prearranged schemes of the
school directors.
The Portland School Board fixed the
annual school levy for 1912 at 6 mills.
The annual meeting Friday night rat
ified the 6-mill flat In due form. That
Is what it was expected to lo and that
Is what It did.
Now-, w e hear renew ed talk of abol
ishing the annual school meeting and.
perhaps, recalling the several czars on
the School Board, or doing something
else heroic and drastic. But school
board 5re much alike, as annual
meetings are alike. The tax levy
would have been mills if the school
meeting of one hunftred and fifty or
sixty tax payers out of 18.000 had not
been held.
The mischief lies In. the arbitrary
power of the School Board to levy any
tax. It has to all Intents the same ul
timate privilege as to taxation as any
other tuxmnklng body. The C ity Coun
cil, the County Commissioners, the
Port of Portland, aad the School Di
rectors all decide how much money
they want or need, and then help
themselves.
There should be. a central tax-reviewing
authority. Tax levies then
might be placed on a safe and sane
basis. t
WHO KNOWS THE LAW?
Carl Snyder, an Interesting and ac
curate writer, contributes to a current
periodical an article on 'The Scandals
of the Law." Former articles by the
samo writer treated successively of
The Encouragement to Kill" and
"The Breakdown of the Criminal Law"
and the Indictment which they pre
sented against our boobylsh methods
of handling crime and criminals was
terribly severe. In the current ar
ticle Mr. Snyder presents an array
of facts -which In his opinion prove
two ominous conclusions. The first
Is that a man cannot go to a
lawyer In an ordinary case and obtain
an honest and reliable opinion as to
what the law Is. Secondly, a man
cannot go Into court and obtain Jus
tice without undue delay and ruinous
cost. The common, judgment of the
country will be that Mr. Snyder is
right upon both these points. It is
difficult to find a plain man anywhere
who believes that the ordinary lawyer
knows what the law Is or will always
Impart his knowledge without reserva
tions and subtle evasions. It Is still
more difficult to find a man who re
gards It as anything less than a ca
lamity to go Into court either as plain
tiff or defendant no matter how Just
his cause may be.
Mr. Snyder adopts an effective form
or method of presenting his case
against the courts and lawyers. He of
fers the counts of his indictment In the
form of questions which he proceeds to
answer by heaping up evidence. His
first question Is. "Do the lawyers know
the, law?" To prove that they do not
he presents the Instance of twenty-five
lawvers of mammoth reputation who
combined to offer a certain opinion to
the United States Supreme Court. The
Court decided against the valiant
twenty-five and slew them Intellectu
ally In an opinion of ten lines. At
least a doxen of these lawyers were
themselves of Supreme Court magni
tude. Everett P. Wheeler was one of
them. Frederic R. Coudert was an
other. When such men as these In
the most solemn manner say what
they think the law Is and turn out to
be utterly mistaken, shall we say that
the lawyers know the law or not? It
Is a common remark at lawyers ban
quets where no foreign devils are
supposed to b listening that "nobody
knows what the law Is on any given
subject." In fact, the law la the most
elusive thing In the world. It exists
only In the decrees of some 150 differ
ent appellate courts, each of which
ay differ from all the others and
from Itself day by day. It Is the most
common thing under the sun for a
court to reverse Itself. A brilliant
example of It was the late trust de
cision of the Supreme Court, which
not only flew squarely In the face of
Mr. Taffs published opinion, but un
hesitatingly turned down previous de
cisions. This Is heroic. If It promotes
right and Justice, but think of the
mess it makes of the law. . The search
for the Jinn who became successively
a soldier, a cock, a fish and a pome
granate seed was an easy task com
pared with It. No wonder the lawyers
do not know the law. There Is no
Jaw to know.
Mr. Snyder ask In the sYtcond place
whether the lawyers can know the
law. and of course In view of the facts
we have cited already he Is obliged to
answer that they cannot. Nobody
short of an omniscient being with all
embracing powers of prophecy could
possibly know the law aa It ebbs and
flows In the United Staes. That part
of It which has a delusive semblance
of stability Is comprised In a surging
flood of reports, statutes and codes so
Immense In volume, that It surpasses
human power even to peruse them, to
say nothing of remembering their
contents. To bring this within the
range of possibility It Is necessary to
compress the swollen monstrosity Into
d.gests which by their comparative
brevity diminish the difficulty. But
1f anybody thinks the difficulty Is
abated by the abridgment he has only
to be told that the Encyclopedia of
Pleading and Practice, a little pocket
manual for the busy lawyer. U a work
In twentv-thr volumes, each volume
having 1100 Immense page, so that
this, pigmy condensation of the law on
a single aubjeot contains 15.000 pages. ,
Taking the two other parts of the
great "abridgment" which a man must
have to go with his "Pleading and
Practice" there are altogether 81.000
pages In this handy little pocket guide
to the labyrinths of the law. When
Gibbon came to write his famous
chapter on the codification of the
Roman law by Justinian, he reveled
in witticisms about the absurd multi
tude of the volumes which the com
mittee had to wade through. But their
task was child's play compared with
that of any man who seeks to delve
Into the fathomless abysses of Amer
ican law. The Chaos and Old Xlght
through which Satan pursued his fatal
voyage to Eden was a well-ordered
realm beside It.
Mr. Snyder makes his climax by
asking. "Do the Judges know the
law?" He replies .that they do1 not,
and gives a convincing reason for his
opinion. The Judges do not know the
law because "The law is what any
Judge happens to think at the moment
when he makes his decision." and no
two Judges are apt to think alike. How
can any single Judge know what two
or three hundred others are going to
say about three or four thousand dif
ferent subjects between now and to
morrow night? Like other blessings.
the law is something which we are
always going to get but never actually
getting. It Is an ever-riowlng tide
which must take the Judges as well
as the rest of the world by surprise
the greater part of the time. Finally
Mr. Snyder tells us that the courts
make the law for us. and Inasmuch as
each one of them goes Its own wild
way. and is completely irresponsible, it
naturally follows that our law is a
chaos as well as a chimera. The law
Is anything which any judge at any
moment says it is. It Is not difficult
to deduce from Mr. Snyder's facts
that this Nation is about as completely
ruled by the arbitrary whims of ir
responsible Individuals as any that
ever existed.
HONDKRITL GROWTH.
In another part of The Oregonian
today will be found Mr. Bennett's sec
ond article on the stockyards and
packing Industries of this city. The sta
tistics given of the North Portland
postoffice. situated In the office build
ing of the stockyards, will show better
than almost anything else the remark
able advancement made at that place.
An Independent city Is being built up
there, a little city with all of the Im
provements and advantages of a me
tropolis, with Its hotel, its bank, its
water and electric light systems. Its
every convenience.
Three years ago the place was a bar
ren waste of sand nnd water. Only
two years ago on September 15 the
yards were opened for business. The
Swift plant was not In operation until
many months later. Recall these facts
and then look ahead a few years until
there are several packing plants there,
until many Industries to consume the
by-products are there in operation
to the time when the receipts of live
stock will bo doubted and trebled, as
they 'will be almost before we are
aware of It.
What these industries mean to Port
land Is no guess work. We have but
to look to other cities with not a tithe
of our advnntages where such Indus
tries have been established to see that
North Portland will In the near fu
ture be a par: and portion of Portland
one of our most populous and pros
perous suburbs.
BY CONTRAST.
Rural development due to, or con
tingent upon, the building of electric
railroads in the Willamette Valley,
with Portland as the terminal point,
will be extensive and Intensive during
the next few years. Already substan
tial improvements on the line between
Portland and Salem and thence on to
Eugene are In progress; Forest Grove
and Its promising environments are
already on 'the line of quick transit
and substantial service: McMinnville
Is looking confidently forward, to like
connection with the metropolis during
the year that will be ushered in with
the ringing of Joy bells next Monday
mornlng. while the ultimate construc
tion of the railway to Tillamook har
bor is among the certainties of the
not distant future.
There is in all of this a promise for
the early occupation and development
of rich sections of the Valley that axe
big with unguessed results. The very
essence of .growth Is In it. as the es
sence of stagnation was In the old era
of slow and tedious Journeyings from
place to place with heavily-laden
wagons during the Summer and Fall
of a past era of isolation, and a com
plete cessation of travel during the
Winter and early Spring months of
the same period.
Wide areas and prosperous and
rapidly-growing communities ae al
ready served by the rural electric lines
In the Willamette Valley that -relatively
a few years ago were without
the "human touch" or the touch of
co-ordinate business and trade Inter
ests beyond the narrow horizon of
their own boundary lines. Less than
forty years ago, for example. It re
quired ten hours of laborious travel to
convey the weekly mall from Portland
to Forest Grove in a lurching vehicle
drawn by a pair of straining, mud-bespattered
horses, and an entire day
while yet the roads were good In the
Fall to draw a load of wheat to mar
ket over the same road. The ease and
swiftness with which this Journey Is
accomplished now Is striking by con
trast. It Is recalled further that the
news of Oregon's admission into the
federation of states In February, 18,
reached Salem then as now the cap
italon horseback, the second day
after the lumbering old steamer AJax
brought papers and letters containing
the announcement to Portland from
San Francisco.
The early settlers of Oregon Irked
for many years over their Isolation
and the slow growth that was due to
the stinted facllties for travel through
out their own domain. Many of them,
however, became reconciled lo these
conditions and settled down Into an
apathetic contentment that won for
them the title of "mossbacks" an
attainder that clings to them to this
day. Others, however, and the ma
jority, including the meager yearly,
accessions to our population, encour
aged the get-together spirit upon
which substantial development de
pends, but the processes of time were
tedious In this direction and growth
was correspondingly slow. But the
embargo of isolation has at last been
broken and year after year we are
able, partly by contrast, partly by the
satisfaction that It engenders, to note
advancement in Industry. In trade and
In social development that is due to
the human touch In the relations and
activities: of life. Of all these agencies
the building of railway lines, whether
suburban, rural. Interstate or conti
nental, has been the most active. The
main arteries of travel completed, it
now behooves us as a progressive and
growing state to encourage, by every
means possible, the building of rural
railway lines. In the construction and
completion of these lies the open road
to continued progress and prosperity.
This statement does not in the least
disparage the greater enterprises 'of
transcontinental or coastwise railroad
building, or of waterway transit. It
Is auxiliary and supplemental, to these
greater feats of engineering skill and
corporate energy and investment.
Without such supplemental energies
these great enterprises would not be
able to realize to the full the benefits
that can only accrue from the devel
opment of natural resources. Corre
spondingly this development comes
only with cheap and easy transporta
tion facilities that feed, and support
the main arteries of travel. It is the
local "Bet-together" system . that is
able to accomplish that of which iso
lation dreams but is unable to realize.
THE FARMER'S PROBLEM.
"Those who sit in high places, far
removed from the sweat and toll of the
fields," , says the Philadelphia Farm
Journal, have suddenly had a fore
warning of what may happen "should
the hand of the husbandman be
stayed." Men" who speak with the
voice of authority; men who In their
boyhood worked upon farms; men
who like James J. Hill, came up from
the furrow to the management of
great business interests sound the
voice of warning saying: "Unless we
produce more we shall not long be able
to eat." Because of this we are told
the population of the cities is facing
not alone the reality of the high cost
of living but many, at least face the
fear of not being able to live at all.
Federal and state governments and
railway and steamship lines have
harkened to this cry of apprehension
and have set about to answer it. The
farmers' mail Is heavy with bulletins
and circulars of advice and prognosis.
Demonstration trains flit hither and
thither carrying lessons in successful
farming, dairying, poultry raising and
horticulture. Free and exhaustive
lectures are given wherever these
trains halt and farmers in throngs
hie themselves thither and eagerly
listen to the presentments made.
All of these aids, however, as cited
by the Journal quoted, have to do en
tirely with the problem of produc
tion; the burden of this advice pertains
to how to grow more to the acre "in
order that thos3 who live in the cities
may not starve." The farmer is con
fronted by a far different problem.
What he wants to know most of all Is
how to get a living and in time secure
a competence from the proceeds of his
toil. To be sure greater yields per
acre cheapen the cost of production:
but it so happens that the big crop
lowers the price of the commodity and
only the consumer is benefited. "There
fore." says this exponent of agricul
tural Interests, "while the farmer wel
comes all outside suggestions intend
ed to increase his crops and lighten his
labors, he is more vitally concerned
with getting his share of the dollars."
MONOPOLY AND PRICE.
It Is probably worth while to make
some comment upon the letter from
A. B. R. Smith, which is printed In The
Oregonian today. Mr. Smith thinks
he will be sustained by the average
consumer's opinion when he expresses
his belief that "were all the trusts and
combinations of today dissolved and
the factors thereof put upon a com
petitive basis the price to the con
sumer of articles In common use
would be affected but very little. Not
in these days can the price of any
article in common use be kept up arti
ficially for very long." We have cut
down the language of the letter a lit
tle, but the meaning Is not altered.
Mr. Smith knows very little about
the opinions of the average consumer
or he would not venture to make the
statements he does. The ordinary
purchaser of the necessaries of life
understands very well that most of
the food prices ho has to pay are held
up by the trusts. The price of steel
products is higher here tan In Can
ada or England because our trust has
a practical monopoly. It has been
selling to the Canadians for 322 a ton
the same rails which It sells at home
for $28. The price of coal is steadily
advanced by the coal trust as Winter
progresses. In Portland there is a
combination of plumbers which fixes
prices to suit Its own sweet will, and
there is another combination which
keeps the price of wood "at an arti
ficial figure." In the face of facts
like these it Is nonsense to quote the
outworn maxims of a dead and gone
political economy.
But no sane person wants to anal
yze the trusts into their elements and
put business back "upon a competitive
basis." That is, nobody wants to go
from the waste and extortion of the
trusts to the worse waste of petty com
petition In great industry- What sen
sible people want Is. not the destruc
tion of the trusts, but the destruction
of private monopoly, which, according
to every just thinker in the world, is
Intolerable.
XCODLEO.
The Pendleton East Oregonian is a
singularly stupid newspaper. It is in
a queer muddle over the lively ques
tion of Governor West's parole and
honor policy. A few days ago the
Pendleton, paper had this:
The Orogonian baa had iurh to pay about
two MrxL-an. whom It claaacd aa "hooor
nn" and who wera raarra.tad at Saj Dl.so.
fal.. nut Ions tea But it cornea to Itsht
that tha M.xlcaoa wera not honor man at
alL Th.y wera serving- indeterminate aenten
coe and wera released under tha regular
oparatlona of tha law.
The Oregonian haa not said any
where or at any time that the Mexi
cans vera honor men. It Is characteris
tic of the Pendleton paper not only to
misquote and misrepresent The Ore
gonian, but to contradict and traverse
its own statements, so as to suit any
occasion or emergency. For illustra
tion, look at thi now from the East
Oregonian:
Aa to tha prisoners over whom Tha Ore
gonian fa ao sanctimoniously stirred it la
Immaterial whether they were "paroled"
prlsonera or "honor men." A more Import
ant point In the story Is the fact that tha
two Mexicans had been liberated by a former
Governor and not by Governor West at alL
Tha Eaat Oregonian objected because tha
Portland Oregoolaa was trying to discredit
Governor Wast when Jt should have taken
after hla predecessor if after anyone. Wa
quoted Ralph Watson in a statement that
the Mexicans had been paroled several years
ao by Gov.rnor Chamberlain.
Nevertheless The Oregonian Is frank
to say that it regards the distinction
between honor men and parole men as
the difference between tweedledum
and tweedledee. Papers like the East
Oregonian have worked themselves
into a great fever of pretended excite
ment because some people and some
newspapers have not realized how ex
emplary the honor men are and how
wicked the paroled convicts, or some
of them, are.
Private Secretary Watson will be
amazed to learn that any newspaper
has quoted him as saying that those
itinerant convicts iwho levanted to
Mexico had been "paroled several
years ago by Governor Chamberlain."
Mr. Watson said nothing of the kind;
nor was The Oregonian mistaken
when it reported that they had been
paroled by Governor West, or prom
ised by West a subsequent full pardon
if they went to Mexico. ,
The officers of the Pendleton
Round-Up ought to provide a special
exhibit for prize asses at their next
show. The East Oregonian. has a
world-winning entry that will distance
all comers.
THE UNEMPLOYED.
The problem of the unemployed
has, in the main, so far as this city is
concerned been a question of hearsay
one that our people have only been
called upon to solve theoretically or
to marvel at. as having a real or seri
ous aspect, only through more or less
imaginary recital. "The poor ye have
always with you" has. it is true, been
a recognized statement of" fact, but the
term "poor" was an expression of pov
erty limited to those who had been
overtaken by sickness or had wasted
their time and what substance had
come through spasmodic and grudged
endeavor in the world of work, in
drink or in the various small ways of
unthrtft. For the relief of need thus
Induced enough has come through
the ordinary channels of benevolence
and charity to Insure temporary help,
and opportunity for self-help later on.
Singularly favored In this respect, we
have heard as from afar tales of indi
vidual and family destitution and per
haps given little thought to them.
This season, however, and to a less
extent for several Reasons past, the
problem of -the unemployed has
pressed upon us as a reality, demand
ing immediate solution. And lately, so
insistent has it become, some sort of
temporary solution became necessary.
Hence the spectacle presented for the
first time in the history of Portland
of a line of willing, competent, sober
men standing In line In the gray dawn
of December mornings in the corri
dors of the City Hall asking not alms
but work whereby to keep themselves
and those dependent upon them from
starving. The city and county au
thorities have responded to this plea
with, so far as possible, due regard 'to
the rights of the taxpaying public and
the more pressing needs of the suppli
cants. The story is before us. These
custodians of the "public weal could
do no less than they have done to re
lieve the distress that has been pressed
upon their attentionl Thus far it is
difficult to see how they could have
done more and still have remained
faithful stewards of the public funds.
The problem of the unemployed thus
brought close to our doors is not one
that it is pleasant to contemplate. It
It not, however, one that a responsi
ble community can shirk. Its chief
difficulty arises In the segregation of
the worthy from the unworthy and de
vising means whereby to relieve the
former without encouraging the latter
in the pernicious idea of the hobo that
"the world owes him a living." In
point cf fact the world owes nothing
to any intelligent, alle-bodied man
thaKhe cannot wrest from it by his
endeavor. It is true that many worthy
men have found themselves at times
In straits Induced by circumstances.
Illness, mistaken judgment, unfortu
nate Investment, the failure or even
carefully considered plans may and not
Infrequently do contribute to con
ditions that bring distress upon worthy
men and women, and most pitiful of
all, upon little children. As a pros
perous, opulent, humane community
we cannot afford to Ignore the claims
that these people have upon us, to the
extent at least" of giving them work
whereby to live. Nor is it wise or kind
to Inquire more closely into the cause
of which this temporary destitution is
the effect than is necessary to show
that the distress for the relief of which
application for work Is made to the
city and county authorities Is genuine
and that the work supplied will be
honestly performed. This much the
public has a right to demand. The
rest consists in giving the work where
the need is the more urgent.
A RESOUTIOX FOB THE NEW TEAR.
When Benjamin Franklin was a boy
he went down cellar with his father
one day to fish a piece of salt pork
out of the barrel for supper. While
watching the emergence of the viand
from the brine a happy thought oc
curred to the boy. His father was In
the habit of asking a blessing over the
slices of fried pork which appeared
on the table at each separate meal.
Why not abridge the process and esk a
blessing once for all over the barrel in
the cellar? The elder Franklin did
not adopt his eon's suggestion and we
rather incline to think that It was not
altogether wise. If we carried out his
idea to Its logical conclusion, we
should ask In childhood for all tha
blessings we expect to need in the
course of our lives and then drop the
subject forever. Perhaps a tribe of
blessing-mongers would grow up who,
for a consideration, would provide
each human infant with a complete
list of the favors he ought to ask from
the Almighty. This list the- child
could read aloud on his knees with
the proper formalities and make this
exercise his first and last communica
tion with the powers above.
But even If all the blessings thus
petitioned for should be vouchsafed,
we do not believe that anything
would be trained. The rigorous disci
ple of efficiency will reply at once
that the petitioner by wholesale would
save time. "Think of the hours con
sumed by the ordinary individual," he"
will argue, "In saying his prayers.
Ten mintues a day Is a moderate esti
mate, and in a j'ear this comes to
sixty-one golden hours, or more than
five complete days of twelve hours
each. An employe of the steel trust,
for example, would accordingly sacri
fice $7.50 every year by saying his
prayers in tidbits. How much better
off he would be if he had the whole
business over and done with on New
Year' day. He could rise a little ear
lier on that morning and get his
wholesale devotions finished before
breakfast. Thus his relations with
the Almighty would be kept In proper
order without a moment's actual loss
either to the workman himself or to
the trust."
Lucidly fascinating as this reason
ing may appear, still it does not con
vince us. To our minds the attempt
o get one's full quota of blessings
from above without spending the time .
1 necessary to ask for them in due and
proper form savors of fraud. It looks
too much like a get-rich-quick scheme.
We concede that a man who should
devote only ten minutes once a year
to petitioning the Almighty would
stand in a better light than he who
never remembers the giver at all. but
for all that his sacrifice looks poor
and mean- There is something in the
old-fashioned practice of daily family
worship which strikes one as sincerely
honest. The head of the family be
lieves that all the good he enjoys
comes day by day from a benevolent
being who watches over his steps, feels
for his sorrow and smiles to see him
happy. To the man of intelligent faith
God Is not a distant monarch ruling
the universe from an unapproachable
elevation, but a comrade who Is closer
than a brother and always ready to
help in time of trouble.
. He looks upon prayer not as a dis
agreeable exaction wrung from him by
a hard taskmaster, but as interchange
of mind with his best friend. The
song which speaks of the Lord as one
always near and dear, helping to bear
"all our griefs and woes," is not to him
a mere ecclesiastical formula, but a
rich mine of truth. "To carry every
thing to God in prayer" Is the sweetest
privilege life offers him, and he would
find his days desolate without it. Nor
is his prayer a.mere petition for what
are crudely called "blessings"; that is.
for money, firewood, rain and Christ
mas turkey. What he cares for more
than these things Is the "companion
ship of the Holy Spirit," as some de
vout people call It. They really mean
by this phrase to signify that feeling
of comfort and security which comes
to those who confide in the ever-pres
ent love of God. Without his love we
are helpless children astray in a wii
derness whose paths lead nowhere.
With it we are "traveling home,
though" passing through a vale of
tears."
New Year's day Is the accepted time
for resolutions, and it Is natural to
want to make the very best ones we
can. It is desirable to make those
Which, if we keep them, will bring the
utmost happiness into our lives and
promote most richly the well-being of
those around us. But to make a great
many miscellaneous resolutions is fu
tile. Some of them will be forgotten
in a few days. Others will be broken
at the first onset of temptation. In
fact. New Year's resolutions have be
come a Joke. There are men who
make them in order to boast that they
have broken them, which is a pity, for
the best time to make a new start in
life is at the beginning of the year,
when the whole world is getting ready
to spring into new birth. . Why not fix
on one supreme resolution -which will
include all lesser ones and fill the
whole coming year with good if it is
carried out?
There is one such, supremely good,
supremely beautiful, supremely potent
over evil. It is the resolve to spend a
little time every day In communion
with the power that rules the universe.
He does not care by what name he is
addressed, nor for the ceremonials by
which he is approached. All he asks
for Is the contrite heart and the open
mind which will permit his power to
flow In and take possession. With his
power comes peace, the peace that
passeth understanding, because it Is
Infinite, and with his peace he gives
all the other blessings of life. God
has money, power, learning, happiness
in store for every human being. Each
can get his share by opening his heart
to the inflowing rivers of Almighty
love.
"The plaint of the dying year." that
was voiced in a lesson in a school read
er of the long ago contained (we quote
from memory) this passage from the
address of the Old Year to his "twelve
fair children": "You my poor Decem
ber, dark in your complexion and cold
in your temper, greatly resemble my
first born. January, with this differ
ence that he was more given to antic
ipation you to reflection." As the
shadows of December darken and go
out in the night Just at hand may all
who have been oppressed by the
gloom that is reflected from the cold
temper of the last of "the twelve fair
children" of old 1911 take new cour
age and in supplanting reflection with
anticipation greet the first born of
1912 with new hope and courage.
A big city seems inevitably to out
grow its water supply and its fire alarm
system. Portland has met and tempo
rarily, at least, surmounted the first
difficulty. With the second it has not
yot been called upon to grapple. Let us
hopo that it may be wise enough to
forestall the seemingly inevitable in
this case and thus escape the peril that
is now menacing Brooklyn that of a
fire of which the department will not
be notified until it becomes a conflagra
tion that practically defies control.
The Progress Edition of the Corval
lis Gazette-Times is a book of twenty
six pages, printed on heavy paper that
serves to bring out the fine lines of its
many illustrations, which, with the
letter press, tells of the year's prosper
ity of that city and Benton County.
There is no particular boosting Just
facts about "The Heart of the Wil
lamette Valley." The work, literary
and typographically, is what was to be
expected.
Efforts of the Municipal Association
to abate the smoke nuisance are to be
commended. Let these enthusiasts
abolish anything less than a ten-center.
Colonel Hofer. stormy petrel of Ore
gon politics, is seeking enough birds
of a feather to place the Big Colonel
on the primary ballot.
Statistics show Massachusetts has
.v,a rrroa f dtjf nprcentasre of lunatics.
perhaps she has the best means of
caring for them.
The New Year will have a dismal
beginning for English textile workers,
with 250.000 idle.
A combine of Coast brewers to pro
cure cheaper buying cannot affect the
Oregon hop, which is a world product.
Why not let the attorneys In inter
est settle it in a six-foot ring?
After twelve years' trial Success
Magazine finds it is misnamed.
Grand Juries everywhere are much
given to pernicious activity.
Blizzards in the East, while de
cidedly seasonable here.
Many are indicted, but few- don
stripes.
There was a sound of revelry at
nisnL.
WHERE AMERICAN TYPE IS FOUND.
rltrr Believes Gravitating: Point la
West of Allegkanle.
El'GEXE. Or., Dec. 30. (To the Ed
itor.) Anent recent comment regard
Ins; the part of the country which rep
resents more, nearly the American
type, it may bo portient to Inquire
what are the. elements which constitute
the said American type. One opinion
was thd mid-Wexst was the, type: anoth
er the, South; some, think the West.
As to the South, there are elements
which formerly at least were regarded
as Anti-American, viz.. the, spirit of
feudalism or aristocracy fostered by
the slavery system. Tills spirit llngej-s
there larcely yet. Also the caste or
class influence ffirst family ideas),
bound up with it. which on fuller view
surely would render doubtful the typ
ical aspect of the South.
As to the West. we. are too new yet,
laying aside many important elements
and characteristics, to have really
founded a type, though there are good
reasons for beltevinir we are more near
ly typical than some other sections.
The Kast is beromlnp: more a type
by itself in one way largely also adopt
ing elements from a post or ulira cul
tural basis, thoush It has many good
phases on the mental and educationul
side. Yet it ran hardly now approach
the typical. It is too cosmopolitan.
As to Mid-West, that repion between
the Mississippi and the AUegrhanies, is
getting: largely "Atlantic," to coin the
phrase, in sentiment or trend, though
retaining much good Americanism of
the bold, utilitarian type. The real
flowing volatile Americanism would
seem to be largely west of the Allepha-nie-s.
with perhaps the valley of the
Missouri as its center or irravitatinir
point. Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and
Kansas. I think few would question on
full consideration as more typlcally
American than any other part of the
country. Then they are sturdy, of an
inquiring disposition, yet not too much
given to dilettanteism, nor yet givem
to the reckless innovation of new com
munities. The question is. of course, largely a
matter of Individual opinion, yet Is It
not natural that tho type would be
found somewhere near the geofrraphio
center of the country.
R. J. LONG WORTH.
BILL HVNLKY'S FAME GROWING.
Big; Orrgon Ranchman Attracts Atten
tion on necent Tour.
Washington (D. C.) Post.
"Those who did not see 'Plain Bill
Hanley when he was here with tha
Western Governors," remarked 1 W.
Williams, a lawyer and former Legis
lator, of Williams. Ariz., at the New
Kbbitt. "missed meeting one of the
wonderful characters of the West.
"Hanley operates one of the biggest
ranches In that country. He owns hun
dreds of thousands of cattle, and has
the distinction of being able to drive
for 80 miles over his own ranch. Han
ley is the counterpart of William - J.
Bryan, and, seen separately, it is al
most impossible to tell one from the
other. Besides owning and operating
a ranch greater in extent and impor
tance than the famous Kins ranch in
Texas. Mr. Hanley Is much Interested
in the development of the West in gen
eral. He is famous for his rude epi
grams. "When the conservation movement
started in the East, he uttered one that
went everywhere. Ha said: 'They have
used up thelr'u and now they want
our'n.' Perhaps his most famous epi
gram he sent West when on a visit to
New York City. Some of his friends
wanted him to return West at once to
close a business deal. He sent back
word: 'I've Just struck the Great
White Way. I've staked out on Broad
way. New York Is going to be the horns
ranch for the next 10 days." And it
was.
"One of the wisest of "Plain Bill's'
sayings, in my opinion, was his observ
ation about college men. It ran some
thing like this: 'There are too many
college graduates running around help
less. They're so polished it's Impos
sible to fasten a hook on 'em and make
use of 'em.' "
One Way to Get Trade.
Baltimore American.
In one of the rural cities of Franct
lived a physician who was in the habit
of employing an ingenious artifice.
When he came to a neighboring town
where he was not known he pretended
to have lost his dog, and ordered the
public crier to offer, with beat of drum,
a reward of 25 louls to whoever should
bring it to him. The crier took care
to mention all the titles and academio
honors of the doctor as well as his
place of residence. Ho soon became tha
talk of the town. "Do you know." says
one, "that a famous physician has
come here, a very clever fellow? Ha
must be very rich, for he offers 25
louis for finding his dog." Tha dog was
not found, but patients were.
Kleetlona to Kill Vacancies.
PORTLAND, Dec. 28. (To the Ed
ltor.) will you kindly inform me
whether the Secretary of State, to be
elected next year to fill a vacancy, will
serve for two or four years? I have
been urged to become a candidate for
the office, but will not seriously con
sider it until I understand just what
the term of office will be. I contend
that at the next election a Secretary of
State will be elected for the unexpired
term of two years, but one prominent
lawyer advises me that it wiU ba for a
full terra of four years.
E. E. SHARON.
He will be elected for two years, as
the election will be to fill the remainder
of an unexpired term.
A Case of Marksmanaha).
London Telegraph.
jn f,iignaiuiia.i - ......
by a New Yorker to accompany him on
: , T . 1 . .
a nunirng trip ox wig io.auu.
(1Y n emnll wram?' 1 Q I fTI f ra 1 1 V
uaia vi o.i.a.i e,t . ........... . . .
asked the Briton, who had hunted in
every qparter ot ma gwua
"You do not expect to find lions and
tigers on Long .Island, do you?" que
ried the New Yorker.
,.u.l., ...nnnHol tha other, with
a laugh: "but I like a spice of danger
in my hunting."
"If that s tno case, answereo w
. .,.. 1 ' I ' ,i vnur man.
all right. The last time I went out I
shot my orotner-in-iaw in ma jbbi
The One Charm of Venice.
Kansas City Star.
A voung woman who had returned
from a tour throusrh Italy with her
father informed a friend that he liked
all the Italian cities, but most of all
he loved Venice. "Ah, Venice, to be
sure!" said the friend. "I readily un
derstand that your father would like
Venice, with the gondolas and St.
Mark's and Michelangelos." Oh, no."
she Interrupted, "it wasn't that. He
liked It because he could sit in the
hotel and fish from the window."
Elements of Wool and "Water.
Housekeeper.
Smith and Jones were speaking about
the fine points of their respective sons.
"That boy of mine." remarked Smith
extravagantly, "is the genuine article.
He's all wool, you can bet-"
"Shouldn't wonder." commented Jones.
"I notice that he shrinks from wash
ing." A Tearful Pair on Exhibit.
Puck.
"I'm the saddest thing there Is the
ghost of a lost love."
"Huh! I'm worst than that! I'm
the ehost of a vanished bank account;"