PORTXAXrA ORBOOJI.
Entered at Portland, Oref-on. Fostofrlce
Second-class Hatter .
Subscription Rates Invariably In
ttT MAIL.)
Dal.y. Sct.esv Included, one year "
Dally. Sunda. Included, era mnttae... .
Daily. Sunday Included, thraa montna. .
Dahy. Sunday Included. oni month.. .-
Dally, without Sunday, one year.. Js,
Dally, without Sunday, alx montna....
Dally, without Sunday, three months...
Daily, without Sunday, sna month 'Btt
Weekly, ono year j!so
Sunday, one year. gas
Sunday and Weekly, one year.
(BY CARRIERS
Pally. Sunday Included, one year
Dally. Sunday Included, one month
Wew te Kcmll Bend Postofflee m"BT,r
der. express order or personal chech o
local bank. Stamps, coin or currn-T -
at the sender's risk. OIts postoffles address
In, full. Inrludlna county and state.
J-mtaae Hates 10 to 14 pares, t '7
to S pares. 1 cents. 30 ta 40 paesa. "
40 to 60 taaea. 4 aanta Foreign posiaxe.
double rate. . -w.
Ea.tcrn Boston OITWa Verree
lln New York. Brunswick hulldln. -"'
caxo. bterer buiiainr.
aa Francisco Office B- J. BtdweU ca.
12 Market street. fl
European utiles wo. a. tteaeni -
.. London
PORTLAND. SUNDAY, DEC. 19.
PORTLAND'S L1XE TO" THE ORIENT.
The Hamburg-American" Steamship
Company announces that it will es
tablish a trans-Pacific service with
Portland as Its terminus in the
United States. The Hamburg-American
is among the greatest ocean car
riers. Yreight and passenger, in the
world. It Is, Indeed, probably the
greatest. Its business Is water-transportation.
It has an International
reputation for enterprise, probity,
safety, regularity and prompt dis
patch. It competes successfully on es
tablished maritime routes for the
commerce of great ports and It seeks
constantly new outlets for Its expand
ing service. But it makes no experi
ments not suggested by experience and
sound Judgment; and It Is to be as
sumed that it abandons no route un
til all its possibilities and resources
have been exhausted.
The purpose of the Hamburg-American
to put Its steamers in the Oriental
trade out of Portland is a proposition
of large importance to the city and
the tributary country- It means that
the steamship concern has made a
sytematic Investigation of the local
situation- and is convinced that there
is an opportunity to build. up a sat
isfactory commerce with the Orient.
The fact that other Oriental lines out
of Portland had not been maintained,
and had been withdrawn, was some
thing ti be explained and understood
on a basis favorable to the part. It
was true that there was, and is, ample
cargo here for a regular line of trans
Pacific steamers; but it was also true
that because of irregular and unsat
isfactory service many shippers sought
other steamship lines.. It was also
true that the more direct interest of
one or the other of the successive
Oriental lines in other parts con
tributed to their lack of patronage
here, and was .the occasion for infre
quent sailings.
A direct line from Portland to the
Orient, giving adequate cargo accom
modation and prompt dispatch, has
been the indispensable need of Port
land shippers. Any line that meets
these reasonable and necessary re
ouirements. and rives, besides, as
surance of permanency, will get
the Oriental business of this port,
and will pay. ' These conditions
the shippers here long have
known; the difficulty has been to
convince a responsible steamship line
that they exist.
The Hamburg-American company
inaugurates its trans-Pacific service
from Portland. It will make a thor
ough demonstration," undoubtedly, of
the feasibility of the trade route from
Portland to the Orient via Vancou
ver, B. C and (probably) Puget
Sound ports. It may be admitted
that the plan for the Hamburg-American
steamships to call at Puget Sound
and Vancouver does not meet. with
unqualified approval here. It does
rot appear to give guaranty either of
direct service or unlimited cargo space.
Shippers want to know always that
the Oriental steamships are depend
able. The plan outlined, therefore,
may require readjustment before it
can be made to work satisfactorily, to
the steamship line and its patrons.
The public has been given the as
surance that the Hamburg-American
line will run to Portland. That is a
great thing. It is certain that the
company, having no interest but ocean
transportation, and no port to favor
but the best port, will do all it can
to develop traffic and to make its
project a permanency.
ACSTRIAN ADVANCE BLOCKED.
The expulsion of the Turks from all
except a small corner of their Euro
pean territory and the expansion of
the Balkan states will sound the death
knell of Austria's hopes of expansion
southward. The ability displayed by
the Balkan states to pull together por
tends the formation of a permanent
confederation which, backed by Rus
sia, will be strong enough to block the
historic design of Austria to reach the
Aegean Sea and to control the east
coast of the Adriatic.
The decision of the powers that
Servia shall have a free, neutral port
on the Adriatic and that Albania shall
become independent is but a step
towards the Balkan confederation
Servia does not gain all she desired.
but she makes an advance towards it.
The natural disposition of the other
Balkan states will be to invite inde
pendent Albania to Join their confed
eratlon and to organize a customs
union which would throw open all Al
banian ports to all the other states.
Austria will surely strive to keep Al-
bania out of the confederation, in fact
to prevent Its formation, but the Al
banians will feel their independence
far safer in an alliance with their
smaller neighbors. The fate of Bos
nia and Herzegovina is a, warning
that absorption would follow an Aus
trian protectorate.
With the command of the Adriatic
and Aegean Seas, with control by
Bulgaria of the west coast of the
Black Sea and with free passage
through the Dardanelles, the Balkan
confederation would become a great
maritime and commercial power.
Closely united by common Interest
and common danger In resistance to
Austrian aggression, it would forever
thwart the realization of Austrian am
bltion. It could say to Austria: "Thus
far and no farther" and could enforce
the edict with the sword.
But the confederation could do
more. Its' ambition being to unite all
of one nationality under one flag, it
would have attractive power to all
kindred people. The aspiration of
the Serb population of the Austrian
provinces of Croatia, Dalroatla, Sla-
vofhia. Bosnia and Herzegovina is to
be. Joined to a greater Servia under a
Servian King. The two last-named
provinces -with only 1,500.000 people
are held in subjection only by an army
as large as that with which England
rules' India's 300,000.000. For the
last century poets and other writers
have been reviving the National spirit
of the Serbs throughout that region,
despite the sternest repressive meas
ures of the dual monarchy. The Serbs
of the border provinces are already.
In spirit, in revolt against Austrian
rule. They will only await the oppor
tune time for an actual revolt, by
which, aided by a free Servia of ".
000.000 people and by the other Bal
kan states, they will hope to achieve
their liberty and their union with their
brethren.
WHY DO Fl'BUC SCHOOLS COST
MONEY
The public schools of the United
States are the most ' valuable lnstltu
tions in the world; yet we find every
where a spirit of criticism and dissat
isfaction over them, and a widespread
inquiry as to whether they are as ef
ficient as they ought to be. The ten
dency to overloacvand cram is marked;
the doubt as to whether the pupil gets
the maximum of service and benefit
Is crrowlnK.
Here in Portland It Is discovered
that in 14 years the cost of maintain
ing the public schools has grown from
$420,879 to 12. 490. 447. But the in
crease is startling only when it is
found that the per capita expense (per
pupil) has Jumped in that period from
J30 to $60. Now we are to have an
investigation by a disinterested com
mittee to learn what is the matter.
If. anything.
It is well enough for any large con
cern to pause once In a while and
take stock. It is well to look into
the schools. It is well enough
to
learn again the things we already
know. lVe know now, for example,
why the schools of Portland have dou
bled In the cost of educating each
pupil in the average pupil's school
life time. The reasons are the enor
mous expansion of the courses' of
study, the necessary enlargement of
the teaching force, higher salaries,
fewer students per room, finer school
houses and more of them, and num
erous playgrounds. If we are to have
all these things, they must be paid
for; yet we are astonished when we
learn that they double the cost of the
public schools.
. The investigating committee will
learn many things of importance, un
doubtedly. But it will devise no sys
tem of reducing expenses noticeably
unless it finds a way to change the
scheme of expansion and overloading
that has been common in the public
schools all over the country. We think
the directors here have but responded
to the general demand for more and
more instruction and more and bet
ter schoolhpuses.
CONVICTION OF THE DYNAMITERS. '
The ordinary violence, so often char,
actertistic of strikes and lock-outs, ;
never yet won a labor victory. That in
the face of this record rioting does
not cease may be ascribed largely to
angry' impulse. In the end sought
the dynamite conspiracy, which has
resulted in the conviction of thirty
eight labor leaders, did not materially
differ from the smaller outrages per
petrated occasionally against life and
property when employers and . em
ployes quarrel; but in spirit it was
cold-blooded, calculating and pre
meditated. How its participants, in
the light of industrial history, could
have hoped to achieve anything but
disaster to themselves Is one of the
mysteries of the episode.
The dynamite campaign, conducted
over a period or rive years, nas re
sulted in one hundred explosions, , the
loss of thousands of dollars of em
ployers' money, and the taking of the
lives of twenty-one men in Los An
geles. This in the main is the score
against the employer. As for the labor
leaders Involved it has scored against
them. In addition - to murder and
arson, the crimes ot perjury, inert.
bribery and attempted murder, the use
for crime of 10,000 to $20,000. and
the expenditure of a half million dol
lars' defense money wrung from law-'
abiding union labor by protestations of
Innocence and charges of capitalistic
conspiracy. As for the strike that in
spired the outrages, it still exists.
There were fifty-five men originally
Indicted by the Government for trans
porting and conspiring to transport
explosives In violation of interstate
commerce laws. Two, the McNamara
brothers, were already In prison and
were not taken to Indianapolis. A
third disappeared and was never ap
prehended; .a fourth changed his plea
to that of "guilty," several were re
leased because of insufficiency of evi
dence, two have been acquitted and
thirty-eight have been found guilty.
The result was inevitable, if the
jurors regarded their oaths. McMani-
gal's connected and unshaken story
was supported by a mass of detailed
evidence, partly In personal testimony
and partly in written documents. Jn
the manv letters submitted the refer
ences to "Jobs" were so clearly iden
tical with time and place of explosions
that the Government interpretation of
them was indisputable. That so wide
spread a campaign could be carried on
with only the financial backing of two
or three men of no personal wealth
was preposterous; the setting aside of
$1000 a month to be expended for
"organization" purposes by John J.
McNamara, but not to be accounted
for in the union publications, was all
too significant; the testimony of a
bookkeeper that two accounts were
kept, one for the eyes of the executive
committee and the other for the pe
rusal of the rank and file, gave
strength to the Government's case.
Added to these factors was direct per
sonal testimony fixing the presence of
some of the defendants at or near
places at or near the time when ex
plosions occurred.
It would be idle to say that the
cause of union labor has not suffered
from the crimes of these leaders. Nor
is It" wholly to be exonerated for their
misdeeds. It . cannot be gainsaid that
in the rank ' and file union labor is
peaceful and law-abiding. It sincerely
deplores violence; it will not lend its
countenance intentionally to illegal
methods. But it is too easily swayed
by the smooth tongue of the agitator;
too ready to contribute to any labor
"cause" at the solicitation of the slick
organizer; too prone to. accept exag
iterations by demagogues as to the en.
mity; heartlessness and criminality of
employers.
Its fault is much like that of the
Indifferent, Indulgent, uncorrectlve or
gullible parent for the sins of the child
who goes wrong.
How many Portland citizens, church
members or not, who approve of a
decent, sane New Tear's eve celebra
tion, will contribute a few pennies or
a few dollars to th fund that Is being
raised for this purpose? The Rotary
THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAX. PORTLAND, DECEMBER 29, 1913.
Club, one of the city's, public-spirited
organizations, has taKen cnarge or tne
arrangements. It needs JaOO to com
plete the fund. Donations may De
given to any member of the Rotary
Club or the Security Savings and Trust
Company Bank, which has agreed to
act as treasurer of this fund.
TURNING A NEW LEAF.
Swearing off time has crept around
once more. A lot of people already are
contemplating the changes they will
effect in their lives at that precise mo
ment when outgoing and incoming
years converge. In the meantime they
will Indulge their ancient vice to . the
utmost.. If It happens to be tobacco
they will add an extra half-dozen ci
gars to the daily allowance. If It is
liquor, half a dozen more drinks are
added to the daily allotment. A few
days of indulgence, they argue, do not
matter, for the despised habits are
then to be renounced forever.
These New Year resolutions, do not
come spontaneously. They are the
certain product of cumulative remorse.
Through the year, many times, the
detrimental effects of bad or vicious
habits hive been, all too evident to
I the slave of them. Often there has
come the appeal from within to escnew
these untoward tastes and always the
answer has been that with the dying
of the year a new page shall be turned.
Such Is the custom. The old page, be
ing blotted and soiled, is beyond hope,
these slaves of habit argue.
It 1s needless to remark that these
annual resolutions seldom come to
anything. The victim is the creature
of fixed , habit. Even swearing on
has become a yearly custom. If he
had the strength of will or stability of
character to rid himself of detrimental
little vices, he wouldn't put . off the
beginning' until some more isvortu
time. So the new page is invariably
soiled in a few hours, or at most a
few days, after it is turned, all ac
cording to the relative staying quali
ties of the reformed one. Some fall
before the first cravings that are
prompted by fixed habit. Others fight
stubbornly for a few days, only to
find that they have essayed the con
quest of a sort of Frankenstein mon
ster. They collapse in the end and re
turn to their habits with renewed
zest.
Fixed habits are not to be thrown
off at will. It takes will power, moral
character, purpose, determination,
staying qualities, and unlimited
powers for assimilating punishment.
Habit is relentless in Its efforts to re
claim a fleeing slave, and only the
man with a long determined fight in
him can hope to win.
FAMOUS DEAD OF 19IS.
During 1912 the human race has
continued to be born and to die about
the same as in former years. The rate
each way is something like one every
second. Perhaps in the twelvemonth
Just passing Death has chosen an un
usual number of shining marks, but
nrobablv not. We are prone at the
end of each year to imagine that its
events of all sorts are the most im
portant that ever happened, but as we
recede into a tetter perspective they
are seen to average pretty well with
the rest. Time flows serenely along at
the same Imperturbable level. Still
the dead of the past year include
among them a great many distin
guished persons, so many that it gives
one a chance to wonder how the world
will manage without them. But it
will. There were losses Just as seri
ous in other years, and still the course
of events moved on. Nobody is indis
pensable. Scarcely any man Is really
missed when it comes time for him to
fold Oils tent and vanish from the
world. Some person slips into the va
cant place if there, is one and all is as
if nothing had happened. More often
than not no vacant place is left by a
man's death. The rule is for us grad
ually to let go of affairs and retire into
nooks and corners long berore tne
lights go out, so that when the messen
ger comes to the door we leave a full
house behind us.
Poets of the melancholy sort com
plain because earth does not stop all
her business and spend a year or two
In tears at each of our departures, but
we ought to be thankful that she has
something better to do. Life has still
to be lived, no matter how many die
nor how great. We may well mourn
for those who have to forsake tne
feast, for it grows richer all the time
and the music from the choirs round
about the hall takes on deeper har
monies, but then there is supposed to
be music in heaven and a tree bearing
all manner of fruit to feast on, so "per
haps our tears may as well be spared.
The year 1912 had more than its share
of sudden deaths. The Titanic earned
down a number of men who were
known all over the world. . Aviation
has occasioned a great many fatal ac
cidents. Some eminent men have been
assassinated. Those who keep account
of such matters tell us, as-the reader
will find elsewhere in today's Orego-
nian, that 260 persons of the first rank
have died during the past year. Koyai
ty, which claims precedence even in the
halls of death, lost a dozen names that
never would have been remembered at
all if it had not been for their decora
tions, but Prince Luitpold of Bavaria
was something more than a mere lay
figure covered with gilt. He had a
mind and a heart, and, in his way, set
an example for other royalties to fol
low. Frederick VIII of Denmark was
a good King, while the Emperor Mut
suhito, of Japan, belongs in the class
of truly great men. It was his deter
mined liberalism that brought Japan
Into the front rank of nations and set
her feet in the march of progress.
The business world has lost John
Jacob Astor, who went down with the
Titanic; Joseph Arbuckle, the coffee
king and sugar magnate; Samuel H.
Cramp, the shipbuilder, and a host of
others, but business stands losses Qf
this kind better tnan financial reverses.
We may fairly assume that the supply
of rantains of Industry is unfailing. In
this domain, our strength has. always
kept pace with our needs. Army "cir
cles have commented on the tragic
departure of General Nogi, who com
mitted suicide when Mutsuhito died.
America has lost General Frederick D.
Grant, who was something more than
a mere military figure. His activity
for temperance and good morals In
general was distinguished. Archibald
W. Butt perished in the Titanic
wreck and the Navy still mourns the
death of Admiral Evans. Among
statesmen and their humble imitators,
the politicians, the Reaper has been
even busier than among the warriors.
Premier Canalejas, of Spain, went out
through the door of assassination.
Many other notables were struck at in
the dark, but most of, them escaped.
Secret murder even entered the house,
hold of the Czar, but it seems that the
fell purpose was thwarted, at least
partially. In the ordinary, course of
dissolution this country has lost Vice-
President Sherman, who was a cheer
ful if 'not a very important figure in
our - public life. General James B.
Weaver, of Populist fame, has also
gone with a company of others whom
the public does not Know quite so m
miliarlyv but who were all significant
to their own communities.
Th mnci notable churchman to die
in 1912 was the Abbe Charles Loysan,
known everywhere as Pere Hyacinth.
He stood for the forward movement in
ecclesiastical affairs and for democ;
racy in the church. The famous Prin
cipal Falrbarn, of Oxford, also closed
his account this year, and the United
States has lost Robert Collyer, a great
preacher and a good man. ciara dm.
ton, the founder of the Red Cross, is
on the debit side of the world's ledger.
General Booth, one of the greatest re
ligious' organizers of all time, went
with her to the other shore. The head
of the Salvation Army has a place in
history beside Bernard of Clairvaux
and Francis of Asslsi. Nobody can
r,rirt .wht win be the final lnnuence
of his militant religionists . upon the
hiirph and the world. D. K. Pear-
'sons, another philanthropist of the first
rank, has also left us. tie taugnt pro
found lessons of common sense in giv
ing money to colleges. Perhaps he did
more than any other person to check
the tide of useless generosity ana wacn
miiiinnairps how to bestow their
wealth without doing harm to the
cause of education. The most iamous
scientific man 'to pass away in 1912
wa iha uvenrhman Poincaire. who
ranks with Leibnitz and Archimedes,
but many others have gone witn mm.
In this country we shall remember
Wilbur Wright, who perished of ty
phoid fever in tne prime or me. weai
Britain feels Lister's loss perhaps more
than any other. ' From the newspaper
world Homer Davenport Is gone, as
-oii -.- w . T St pari who went down
on the Titanic, and the great Russian
Suvorin. But one literary star ui me
first magnitude has perished, Auguste
Strindberg. Andrew Lang belonged
with the lesser lights, but he win not
be soon forgotten. Music has lost
Massenet. The world of "cranks de
plores the death of Johann Schleyer,
who Invented Volapufe, one of the ex
tinct universal languages.
OLD MAIDS NOT TO BE DESERTED.
rnr the nest few months The Oresonlan's
communication page haa been apeckled with
letters from old maids, bachelors, divorced
people, those who are married and those
who want to be, discussing the old. old, old
story of love and marriage. If there re
mains a neraon In .Portland who hasn't
aired his or her views on the matter, he or
she should do to at once, so Tne yregonian
an tnrn over a new leal ror ivit.
Nugget.
The only way we can account for
this cruel thrust is to assume that the
Chehalis Nugget is happily married
and Is the proud progenitor of a num
ber of little nuggets. Some people are
so complacent in their own good wel
fare that they have no sympathy tor
those who ate in sad despairs,
As for The Oregonian, it has been
rather proud of the interest shown in
the old maid Question. It may be re
called that the discussion was started
by a writer who signed the name
Janet." This correspondent . was
pained by the slights and slurs "cast
upon her by the fortunate fellows who
were married and by the also fortunate-
acquaintances whose youth gave
them hoDe. It was a heartfelt protest
against the ignominy of the old maid"B
lot
That there were hundreds of per
sons in Oregon who were willing to
comfort "Janet" by relating experi
ences to indicate that the lot of the old
maid could be made bright and cheer
ful, that marriage was not always true
ground for pride, that the wedded life
was the only one, ana tnat every douj,
res-ardless of age, had a chance, and
by similar well-meaning reflections, is
really cause ror congratmaiiun.
There is therefore one resolution
that The Oregonian will not make on
New Year's. It will continue to give
space to the discussion in the hope
that the lot of everybody may .become
as happy and care-free as that of the
Chehalis Nugget Moreover, The Ore
gonian has on hand a whole drawer
full of letters on the old maid promem.
all of which cannot be given space be-
foi9 the old year ends.
FORMER GOVERNORS.
The gracious purpose of Governor
West and Mrs. West to '-have a New
Year's reception at which the former
Governors of Oregon and their wives,
I n ..... shall ho tVlA 0-llps.tS
Or ineil v iu u .1 n, '." e
of honorC calls attention to the inter
esting fact that the group or. aisun
nlchri Oree-on citizens who will be
eligible to accept the special West in
vitation is large. It includes: mra.
Stephen F. Chadwick, Salem; Mrs.
William P. Lord, Salem; Mrs. Louisa
Woods, Portland; Mrs. Lafayette
Grover, Portland; Mrs. A. C. Gibbs,
Por-tinnil: Mr. and Mrs. Z.-F. Moody,
Salem; Mr. and Mrs, T. T. Geer, Port
land; United States Senator ana mrs.
George E. Chamberlain, now in
woahrrnrton. D. C. : Mrs. tranK w.
Benson, Salem; Mr. and Mrs. Jay
Bowerman, Portland.
Tt i a coincidence that Just a few
days ago the widow of a notable Or
egon Governor died at .cugene, in mo
person of Mrs. Whiteaker. The name
wviitenlrer annears frequently
throughout a long chapter' of Oregon
history, for he was among the con
spicuous pioneers of Oregon and was
a trusted and honored citizen alb his
life. Not enough residents or uregon
now know who John Whiteaker was
nnri what he did. It may be well to
sketch briefly his career.
John Whiteaker was the rirst gov
ernor of Oregon under the state con
stitution. He was elected in June,
1858, and was inaugurated on July 8,
of the same year, it being believed In
Oregon that the bill for the admission
of Oregon as a state had passed Con
gress. There was no railroad or tele
graphic communication with Wash
ington, and after a time it was ascer
tained that the bill for the admission
of Oregon had not passed Congress,
and it did not pass until February 14.
1859. As soon, however, as official
Information was received of the ad
mission of Oregon, Governor White
aker assumed the duties of his office,
and continued to perform them until
the inauguration of his successor,
Governor Addison C. Gibbs, on Sep
tember 10, 1862.
John Whiteaker was born in Dear
born County, Indiana, May 4, 1820. He
passed his early youth on a farm in
Indiana, and then removed to Mis
souri, where he .was married in 1847.
Attracted by the mines in California,
in 1849 he went thither and remained
until 1851, when he returned to Mis
souri. Jn 1852 he started west with
his family for Oregon, and perma
nently settled In Lane County early in
the following Spring.
Mr. Whiteaker was a staunch Dem
ocrat politically and at once allied
himself with the dominant political
party of that day in Oregon Territory.
He was In due time elected to the fol
lowing offices: County Judge, Lane
County, in 1856; member of the Ter
ritorial Legislature, in 1857; Governor,
in 1858; member of the State Legis
lature, in 1866, and 1868, and was
Speaker of the House during the last
term; was again in the Legislature in
1870, serving one term, and in 1874
was elected State Senator from Lane
County, and served four years, and
was president of that body both terms.
In 1878 he was electd Congressman,
and served in the Forty-sixth Con
gress. Then he retired to private life
until . 1885, when he was appointed
Collector of Internal Revenue by
President Cleveland in his first ad
ministration. At the end of his term
he retired to private life in Eugene,
and died October 2, 1,902.
A most picturesque incident of
Whiteaker's later life was "White
aker's ride," in 1879, when he was
called suddenly to Washington by the
dominant Democratic majority in
Congress so as- to aid in the election
of Charles F. Crisp to be Speaker. He
hurried overland to California, and
taking a special train, was rushed
across the continent at record speed,
and arrived at Washington in time to
cast his vote for Crisp.
Governor Whiteaker was a sturdy
citizen of the old-fashioned type. He
will not soon be forgotten by those
who knew him.
OREGON'S PROVISIONAL GOVERN
MENT. "
EVoriortclr V Holman's "Brief His
tory of the Oregon Provisional Gov
ernment and the Causes Which Led to
Tt. TTormation." nubllshed in the June
number of the Quarterly of the Oregon
Historical society, presents in a con
densed and lucid form the principal
facts of that remarkable achievement.
As Mr. Hoiman points out, the settlers
who lived in Oregon at that time were
by no means a unit on the. question of
the necessity for an organized govern
ment. - Commodore Wilkes declared in
his narrative that those favoring the
movement "were. In fact, a smaa mi
nority of the settlers." While this was
not true; as the outcome provea, sua
the balance swung pretty evenly for
and against. Wilkes himself did not
like the notion of forming a provi
sional government and did all he could
against It, both by his report to the
General Government and by his influ
ence among the settlers. He was on
friendly terms with Father Blanchet,
and probably derived some of his opin
ions from that unmenaiy source, ah
a close ally of Dr. McLoughlin and the
Hiirtaon's Rav Comnanv Father Blan
chet was naturally and properly in the
British interest.
Mr. Hoiman quotes the following
from Wilkes' narrative regarding. Fa
ther Blanchefs views: "He spoke to
me much about the system of laws the
mainritv of the settlers were desirous
of establishing, but which he had ob
jected to and advised his people to
refuse to co-operate in." Blanchet,
who seems to have been something of
a philosopher, saw no' necessity for a
code of laws in a community where
everybody was prosperous and happy
and where there was ; virtually no
crime. Wilkes was more than a phil
osopher. He was an out-and-out an
archist, if we may draw conclusions
from his enlargement upon Blanchefs
text. He declared that "there was no
necesslty.for laws by the settlers' own
account, -' and," moreover, "that any
laws they might establish would be a
poor substitute for the moral code
they all now followed." He adds that
the adoption of a government and for
mal laws would produce an unfavor
.m. "imnrMiinn at home." People
aui . u
would say the missionaries had made
a failure of their enterprise, since me
nnmmiinttv hrnneht toeether by them
selves had not enough of moral force
to control it and prevent crime. iiow
sincere Wilkes was in setting forth
these idyllic reasons against a pro
visional government it is, of course,
Impossible to say." The truth seems to
be that he was a sad formalist who
cared more for the orderly processes
of established law thati be did for the
welfare of. the community. Since es
tohit.hAi law nffordpd no ODenins: for
the new government just then, he op
posed it.
Wilkes was not amnitious, we aare
ov tn fls-nre in history as the pre
cursor of Nietzsche and Tolstoi. He
simply stated facts: All writers wno
have treated us to descriptions of
primitive conditions in Oregon agree
more or less closely with what he had
to say about the inutility of laws at
that time. Hoiman declares that "to
these settlers In the Willamette Valley
the conditions must have been almost
ideal." "The French Canadians were
nr ho nimintlv adds, "becoming
so from age ,and by reason of hard
ships suffered. Their gentle apposi
tions caused them to take kindly to re
tirement and an easy way of living.
They were under the protection of the
Hudson's Bay Company and of Dr.
John McLoughlin, whom to obey was a
pleasant duty." Tne ruling monopoly
provided a safe and lucrative market
for their easily-grown produce. Game
and fish were plenty. They paid no
taxes. "The Indians were peaceaDie
and not to be feared. They were not
troubled by letters or newspapers,
what more could they wish?" ex
claims Mr. Hoiman, with a lawyer's
love of poetic serenity and rural bliss.
It was certainly a case of a modern
Paradise from which, exit seemea to
promise little benefit and much harm.
To the other settlers, who were of a
bolder and less docile type, existing
conditions offered as great 'attractions
as they did to the Frenchmen. .No
body tried to rule them, and, as it ap
pears, they needed no ruling. Alter
the hardships of their adenturous lives
in the wilderness, the pensive quiet of
Oregon life was welcome to them.
"They lived in an easy and careless
f..hiM Mr Hoiman records, "with
their Indian wives and their halfbreed
children, without care and without
need for laws, but always respectful of
the rights of others."
It is not difficult to sympathize with
those who believed that politics, with
its .ti-ifo liwn and iails. would be an
Impudent intrusion Into this primitive
Eden. Nevertheless, tne settlers oi
Amarirnn feelinEr were not content.
Very likely there were emissaries of
dissatisfaction among tnem. jawing
Young must have been such a man.
vr. iTnimnri tells us that Youne finally
became ' the wealthiest person In the
community, but he had risen tnrougn
exasperating . tribulation. Dr. Mc
Loughlin at one time believed that
Young was a horsethief and scorned
him accordingly. This made him a
Kittor .nmv of British influence. No
doubt he used his tongue freely in fa
vor of union with the unitea states.
The movement for the provisional gov.
ernment, as Mr. Hoiman points out,
was based largely on sentiment, per
haps on patriotic Bentiment. The
.ttu oaiiM hive had few if anv sub
stantial grounds of complaint against
the Hudson's Bay company as it was
represented by Dr. McLoughlin. and
yet a grumbling spirit grew up among
them which at times became bitter.
Mr. Hoiman reminds us that not all
the mission people favored the move
ment. Even Jason Lee oDjectea to it.
We must believe, however, that his
hostilltv referred rather to some inci
dental circumstances than to the prln-
inio invoivprl since all his economic
interests were flatly opposed to the
British monopoly. Mr. Hoimans ais
cussion of the incidents which led up
to th Rdontion of the rovisional gov
ernment is notably unbiased. He Is
as willing to consider the Brltisn as
the American side, being free - from
that . specious partisanship which
deems a falsehood in favor of either
side desirable. " "History," he remarks,
"should deal in facts. Let us, while
we may, establish Oregon history on a
proper and accurate basis. The facts
of history outweigh more than a thou
sand fold the romances of -unreality."
BALKAN LEAGCE PEACE TERMS.
The terms of peace offered by the
Balkan allies to Turkey may be taken
as the utmost limit of their present
desires. The allies have left ample
scope for the . bargaining which Ori
entals love. They cannot really ex
pect to secure a foothold on the Sea
of Marmora which would cut off com
munication by land between Constan
tinople and the Dardanelles and
which would place them In a position
to attack Constantinople and the Dar
danelle forts from both the land and
wgl Sirica In some future War. Nor
can they expect Turkey to surrender
the islands which Italy resiorea uy
treaty, though not in fact; or the
three besieged towns of Adrianople,
Scutari and Janina, unless they yield
an equivalent elsewhere.
Greece has good cause for claiming
the cession of the Islands of MItylene
and Ch)os, since' she has conquered
them, and . Turkey may be willing to
give them up in order to nave terri
tory on the mainland. But these
Islands have great strategic import
ance, for they would place Greece In
good position to attack Smyrna, the
chief port of Asia Minor, and Adri
miti. The latter town lies at the head
of the Gulf of Adrlmltl, the moutn of
which Is commanded by MItylene.
The plan of the great powers for
autonomy of Albania under Turkish
suzerainty would postpone the con
troversy over that province until
some future time and make It a fruit
ful source of intrigue between Aus
tria on the one hand, Servia, Monte
negro and Greece on the other.
The long struggle for supremacy
between Slav and Teuton has thus en
tered on a new phase. - Austria has
i . .viiniinir tho dominion of the
Germanic over the Slav race with
each advance she has made soutn
eastward. Germany has purposely
..o -ori Austrian development In
that direction, both that she might
itimaioiv nhsorb the Germanic prov
inces of Austria and convert that
country into a purely Slav empire
and that Austria might check the ex-
Russia nnrl Russian influ-
jjaiioivu -..
ence southward. Slav emancipation
from Turkish rule has until this year
thA work of Russia, wnicn- nau
to throw a sop to Austria in 1878.
tu nrawnt war marks an epoch in
hicinr. hpr-nuse the Balkan peoples
are for the first time fighting and
winning their own Datties, unaiucu,
o least hv Russia. The ac
quisitions of territory they will make
from Turkey will enaDie tnem wj be
come a permanent barrier to tne aus
trian advance.
General Wood says the country
spent more money on auto tires than
on the Navy during the past year.
He should not lose sight of the fact
that it costs more to keep an auto in
tires than to maintain a "battleship.
A Portland wifebeater says he beats
his wife because he loves her. There
are those observers 'of human nature
who will argue that he adopts the
surest way of maintaining reciprocity.
What to say and when to say it is
the subject of a neatly bound volume
that has Just come to nana, une on
what not to say and when not to say
it would prove of more value.
crvin, no lonirer is listed as a
r T piprnont Morean. No
pa-i iuga 1.1 -
doubt he has shown' too much bad
judgment lately to be Kept in tne
firm.
New York snow pliers have quit
work. Wouldn't it be fearful if Port
land rose culturista should also strike
right at this season? '
LeaD-year weddings were 2000 more
numerous than during the preceding
year. Obviously women are a marked
success at proposing.
Conviction of the dynamiters broke
up thirty families. But think how
many the dynamiters broke up before
their conviction.
received at his birth
place on his birthday with great Joy.
At least once Deiore tne same uuus
occurred there.
stm onca atrain Portland leads in
the week's bank clearings. And it's
a habit we are not going to swear off
on January 1.
D..nmai, lamn rtoats are to be abol-
UtXU T L J I
ished. The man of unsteady gait has
no further neea oi mem iumu
of the taxicab.
., fltv flaunts the. hnast that
jvSJima . -"
her daughters have the smallest feet.
Chicago will sidestep any discussion
of the topic.
a uonncvivnnla town has a Rauber
Hotel. So has most every town, but
the proprietors aren t always 50 open
about it. '
It begins to appear as If Teal might
h on of the courses at the Wilson
Cabinet feast In March.
The vice board finds that evil Is
licensed. The license tag should be
numbered 23.
Adrianople Is now said to have been
saved by Turkish Bpirlt. Spirits fru
mentl? '
: Many will swear off holding public
office Tuesday. Not voluntarily, how
ever. ' 'm
Mistletoe shortage is reported. Still,
the klsslng-bug crop is large.
Old maids will do well to hasten.
Only two days left of leap year.
General Rosalie Jones "bids fair to
take rank with General Coxey.
Scraps and Jingles
Leoae Caaa Baer.
Christmas and New Year cards are
advertisements of existence sent to
enemies and friends alike.
e e
Young damsel writes to ask how she
can win back the affections" of a
man who has Jilted her. "A simple
look is all I crave," she ends ner letter.
I'd advise her to consult a mirror.
e s
A nan rlH ma nt InvltinsT a lOt of
friends to a game dinner on Christmas
and all he got of the bird was the
bill.
sea
Man asked a girl to wed and she
said she was agreeable. Later events
proved she wasn't.
see'
That proverb "No man ever got rich
fighting other peoples' battles" wasn't
written of the lawyer.
see
Headline says "Messenger boy's feel
ings cut to the quick." H-m-m. I didn't
know a messenger boy had any quick.
ess
"Duke and His American Wife Fell
Out of Motor," yells a headline. Usu
ally their, falling out takes place in
the papers.
The modern school boy's qualifica
tions to hold down a Job in odd hours
is an ability to do bead work and clay
modelling.
. s e
Locksmith named Smith was arrested
for vagrancy, so the officers were
forced to lock Smith up, as it were.
"Ostrich" Is merely a nom de plume
for most modern feathers.
Woman I know whines because her
husband writes so illegibly she can't
tell whether it Is ten thousand or
merely one thousand kisses he sent at
the end of his letter.
see
The man who made the wild sugges
tion that every time a married man
makes a little extra money he should
give his wife a new hat turns out to
be a male milliner.
see
Most women would rather dye than
let a single grey hair show.
e e e
Great dish for the Greeks and Bul
garians this year. Turkey stuffed with
promises.
e e s
Under a book sale advertisement line
reading "Just Out" is "Blanks Electric
Light."
see
(Apologies to Ma Goose.)
Ride on the steam cars to Salem with
us
And see little Oswald who's making a
fuss
With bills on his fingers and bills on
his toes
He's a reg'lar nuisance wherever he
goes.
see
Height of gentility living in the
hall bedroom of fbe top floor in an
('exclusive" hotel.
ess
"Among other things" I got a cum
bersome volume called "Guide to
Knowledge" and the inscription on the
fly leaf says the donor hopes I will
"find It useful in raising my position."
It do. I stand on it to see if tny skirts
Bag in the back.
sea
Miss Calamity Step-and-fetch-lt the
cultured and charming near-poet of the
Willamette Valley has come out of her
retirement and dashed off this merry
mess about culinary art. She calls 1'
"Owed to Cook's" (not tourist).
I.
Every paper I pick up I read
Where some lady or gent In-suing,
To be let out of wedded bondage
Repenting of a hurried wooing
And most of these horrors wouldn't a
been
If girls would only learn cuisine.
II.
I've noticed wives who know the art
And manufacture classy dishes
Get their hubby's feoat, also his heart.
And bend him to their crajcleat witilies.
So slstern we can't overrate '
A gold-framed cook's certificate.
III.
An ever changing bill o' fare
Is like a household antiseptic
And sooth js the temper of your Bear
When he growls and feels dyspeptic,
But wedded Joys fall into grief
If every meal you serve cornbeef.
IV.
These passioned lines of mine should '
move.
Unmarried slstern from repining;
All of the swellest things about love
Fall dead beside the art of dining.
For of wedded bliss this is the root
A maxim old Just "feed the brute."
SURGICAL ACTIVITY TOO GREAT
Dallas Man Thinks Operating la BelnaT
Greatly Overdone.
n n.T.i fi rir nn 24 iTn the. Edi
tor.) The article December 19, signed
A. C.Panlon, I read with much inter
est. The doctor seemed to be much
peeved the way the publication "Life"
goes after the medical and surgical
practitioners. I do not think that
"Life" criticises surgery as a science
or the good men who are practicing it
conscientiously. From all appearances
tkl. 1 .i.pwln.1 onri vnn must be
operated on for every little ache and
pain the human Doay is neir 10. x nvo
in sTnait town nf nhout 2500 inhabi
tants, where the hospital seems to be
always well tinea witn -cui-up i.
tlents. Not only Is It true of this town,
!... T hava visited AS Well.
and when one sees tbeBe young prac
titioners riding arouna in mir
autos, keeping up fine homes, appear
ances and offices, we can't help but
think something Is being badly over
worked. I for one am glad to see tne stana
t airj.a in thpRA matters. An
other point I wish to bring out In A.
C. Panton's article Is about Jenner's
famous discovery of vaccine, which wo
have to use Just about as often as the
doctor dictates. He writes also that in
1857 150.000 Mandan Indians died of
small pox and that the canal zone, by
the use or airierent serums, nas
made habitable. Rot! Our doctor-
. j - tn 01va nn prprilr whAtaO-
ever to the engineers who made the
canal zone ana tne country in wnicn
we live possible. The Mandan Indians
were a filthy set, as are most the
tribes. Why shouldn't they die like
rotten sheep when small pox got among
. i - Ka I. ! . a .1 thA mnmill I til
mem, a .. ..... ... ,
caused cholera and yellow fever among
the French in tne canai zone:
your serums that made this country
3 On . ..... (. Dimh flno nlnrea in which
to live? Never! Our sanitary experts
must get tnat creaiu
A, Y. SMITH.
"Rural" Notions of Cooking.
Pittsburg Gazette.
Dr. Harvey W. Wiley, apropos ot
pure foods, said the other day in Chi
cago: ,
"I know a woman fresh from tne
country, who complained to her cook
during the holidays:
" "Our cider Is watery, the turkey has
no flavor. I can't find any meat In the
mincemeat, and back home they'd hard
ly give to the pigs such a mess of
adulteration as that tinned plum pud
ding we had for yesterday's dinner.'
"The cook smiled tolerantly.
"You'll get over them rural notions
after a while,' the said."