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PORTLAND, SUJfDAY, MAY 24,
BECKER Gt'ILTY.
The case against Charles Becker,
the New York Police Lieutenant ac
cused of Instigating the murder of
Herman Rosenthal, was materially
strengthened in the second trial. One
new witness was Mrs. Lillian Rosen
berg, widow of "Lefty Louis," one of
the four principals recently executed
for the murder. Mrs. Rosenberg tes
tified that she had heard Jack Rose
urge the four gunmen to kill Rosen
thal because Becker demanded that
he be put out of the way. Later she
saw the money payment divided
among the four gunmen.
Another new witness was C. B,
Plltt, Jr., Becker's press agent. Plitt
testified that Becker had asked his
assistance In establishing an alibi for
a certain night and had told him he
would know the purpose the next day
It was that night that Rosenthal was
murdered. The evidence of Jack
Rose, Harry Vallon and "Bridgie
Webber, accomplices, was unshaken
in the second trial.
There was weighty circumstantial
evidence against the accused Police
Lieutenant. Rosenthal was murdered
in the early morning hours of Tues
day, July 16, 1912. On the preceding
Saturday he haC supplied to the New
Tork World an affidavit charging
that a police Lieutenant was his part
ner in a gambling house and received
20 per cent of the profits. He named
Becker. This affidavit was published
Sunday morning and on Monday Dis
trict Attorney Whitman made an ap
pointment with Rosenthal to go over
the evidence In his office Tuesday
morning. The District Attorney had
previously announced that he In
tended to use Rosenthal In revealing
graft conditions in the Police Depart
ment. Rosenthal did not keep the appoint
ment. A few hours before it was to
have been held he was called out of
a hotel cafe one hundred feet from
the heart of Broadway and shot down
by four men who fired from an auto
mobile. The police showed a signifi
cant Indifference to the capture of
the murderers. A passerby who
caught the number of the automobile
as It sped away went to police head
quarters to report it but was locked
up and the police blotter was changed
in an apparent effort to conceal the
information given.
Jack Rose, the confessed conspira
tor with Becker, claimed to have been
a graft collector for the Police Lieu
tenant. Investigation by the District
Attorney's office disclosed that Becker
was possessed of a fortune far greater
than that of an ordinary police offi
cer. Bank deposits aggregating $50,
000 were' found In addition to a hand
some newly-built home, real estate
and stocks and bonds.
These facts taken in conjunction
with the direct testimony of confessed
accomplices, men of low morality
though they were, established a re
markably clear case against the Po
lice Lieutenant In the first trial. The
added testimony of a better class of
witnesses In the second trial ought to
be sufficient to sweep aside minor
technical blunders In rulings or in
structions that may have crept in and
which might, if evidence were less con
' elusive, be given consideration by the
Court of Appeals.
The theory presented by the de
fense that Rosenthal was killed as an
outcome of a gamblers' war Is not
even plausible in the light of events
that preceded the murder. But were
there a shadow of suspicion that the
gamblers had acted without consult
ing Becker, it is clear that the murder
was committed because of him. Their
motive was protection of Becker as
well as themselves.
There need be no sympathy for a
man who, chosen to enforce the law,
connives with scoundrels to break It
and thereby promotes graver crime.
It perhaps cannot be held that full
moral responsibility extends In every
case to all beneficiaries of crime, but
the activities of Becker In the realms
of lawlessness with the type of part
ners with which he was surrounded
lead almost inevitably to murder If
the conplrators fall out. Were there
doubt as to Becker's legal guilt there
would be no doubt as to his moral
guilt.
SERVILE SCHOOUNO.
Some of the advocates of vocational
training in Boston carry their doc
trine to a regrettable extreme. One
of them, in a recent report, advises
the school authorities to drop Eng
lish, mathematics, science, French
and German from the high school of
mechanic arts and leave nothing In
the curriculum but business practice,
shop organization and applied citizen
ship, of course with the regular trade
subjects. He would organize the
school workshops on a strictly com
mercial basis and exclude text books
almost entirely.
No doubt a school of this kind
would produce Industrious and capa
ble workmen, but it would not pro
duce good citizens.' Should our public
schools ever gravitate to the condi
tion which this report desires they
would train VP servile class totally
unfit for American institutions. It is
a highly valuable thing for a young
person to be able to practice a trade
skillfully, but it is equally valuable
for him to be able to think soundly.
Schools with a curriculum such as
we have described would not encour
age thought. They would extirpate It.
Educational propagandists are
prone to go to extremes. Very likely
other propagandists have the same
falling, but the extravagances of those
who Influence our schools are excep
tionally harmful. Not many years
ago their Ideal was "the citizen with
an all-round culture." With this
beautiful vision in their imaginations
they despised everything practical and
exalted everythng abstract and "cul
tural." They proclaimed shrlllv at
ail their professional assemblies that
they did not wish to produce "skilled
clerks and mechanics" In the public
schools. What they wanted above all
things was "thoughtful citizens with
a keen sense of morality and beauty."
They did not get that kind of citizens
by the grinding of their mill, at least
not always.
Now they have changed their minds
and gone to the other extreme. Cul
ture, the power to think, general in
formation are all of no account
Manual dexterity is everything. The
mind is forgotten and the hand is idol
ized. Surely if we persevere we can
at last strike the wise middle course
between these two ruinous extremes
and' educate youths who will be citi
zens as well as workmen.
CHAMBERLAIN YS. HASLET.
The Oregonlan invites careful at
tention today to the letter of Colonel
C. E. . S. wood, conspicuous Oregon
Democrat and one or more times its
candidate for the United States Senate,
Colonel Wood supports the candidacy
or ivuiiam Hanley (.Progressive) on
the broad ground that he is a real
Democrat, and has been, is, and will
oe a supporter of President Wilson;
and he opposes the candidacy for re
election of Senator Chamberlain be
cause the Senator is in no true sense
a Democrat, and among other things
is not a supporter of President Wilson
In the administration policy of Pana
ma tolls repeal
Let us be fair to Senator Chamber
Iain. He would have stayed by . the
resident in the free tolls and every
other issue if he had not discovered
that he could not Justify himself -to
his constituents and that he could not
be re-elected. Is It' possible that Col
onel Wood thinks Mr. Chamberlain
ought thus have committed political
suicide? Perhaps; but no one else
who knows Chamberlain expected it.
No sacrifice of political principle is
too great for him to make if the re
ward is a political Job.
Colonel Wood demands responsible
party government and unquestioning
support of party policies by Demo
crats without regard to consequences.
But let him cast his eye back over
Democratic history in Oregon for the
past twenty years. He will find, that
Mr. Chamberlain in his various can
didacies has deliberately suppressed
open advocacy of the principles of his
party on the avowed ground that it
did not pay. His only platform was.
to win; his only principle to get the
votes. That Is all.
If Senator Chamberlain is unable
to convince his constituents of the sin
cerity of his recent grandstand play
against the Administration policy of
free tolls repeal, let him find it in his
own political record.
. Meanwhile the old game of side
tracking every other candidate and
subordinating every other effort in the
grand scheme of ' electing George
Chamberlain to office Is to be played
once more in Oregon. Poor C. J.
Smith!
M'RKYNOTLDS' FOOT IX IT.
It is most significant that the most
stalwart defender of Attorney-Gen
eral McReynoIds in his controversy
with Joseph W. Folk is the New
York Sun, which has been most bit
ter in its opposition to those meas
ures of the Administration designed
to break up the concentration of
financial control whereof J. P. Mor
gan in his lifetime was the command-
ng figure. That journal perhaps
dreaded the effect of the revelations
Charles S. Mellen would make re
garding the New Haven deals. It ac
cuses the Senate of exceeding its con
stitutional power in the request to the
Interstate Commerce Commission to
make the Inquiry. The Senate cer
tainly has power to collect informa
tion needed to guide it in legislating
on current affairs. The Commerce
Commission was created for the pur
pose of conducting inquiries relating
to railroads and has all the necessary
machinery. The Senate, therefore.
acted- most properly in seeking infor-
ation about the New. Haven deals
and in asking the commission to ob
tain that Information. Its action is
particularly timely when it is about
to consider legislation dealing with
the issue of railroad securities.
In objecting to Mr. Mellen's telling
the whore story, Mr. McReynoIds has
"put his foot In it" once more. Had
he shown due diligence in prosecut
ing the Mellen indictment the Senate
might have held Its hand. As he has
not, the public interest will be better
served by securing restitution to the
plundered New Haven stockholders
and by securing legislation to prevent
like wrongTdoing than by the punish
ment of a confessed tool of a dead
financier.
FINDING THE SAFE WAT.
The era of extravagance and waste
fulness in public expenditure in Ore
gon began with the adoption of
IXRenism. For ten years state, coun
ty, city and school district have joined
to pile the burdens upon the tax
payer, who must support government
In all its branches. The citizen pays
three times as much in taxes as he
did a decade ago. That Is when the
electorate began to listen to tTRen.
Not all the widened scope of pub
lic activities, and not every costly
public enterprise 13 due to ITRenism,
of course; but URenism has played a
great part in the general trend toward
the higher cost of public living
through all kinds of experimentation
and through the assumption by the
public of every kind of duty. Possi
bly URenLsm was only a symptom of
the general distemper, which has not
been confined to Oregon but has
spread through the Nation. Oregon
has had enough, and more, of XT' It en
Ism. The latest ITRen manifestation is
to abolish the State Senate. He has
got the State Grange to his way of
thinking on that subject. The Grange
thinks that government could be
cheaper and better if we had only
one legislative body.
But the facts do not bear out the
argument. No candid Investigation of
legislative history in Oregon will fail
to disclose that the Senate is the con
servative body. In 1909, for example,
the State Senate killed Jl. 000. 000 in
appropriation bills passed by the
House.
The way out of the bog of waste
and prodigality In the public service
is not to be forever abolishing some
thing or other, according to the TTRen
plan. It Is to put good men on guard.
No system Is better than the men be
hind it. The tTRen theory is that
when one system fails, or is ineffici
ent, another system must be substi
tuted.
Oregon does not so much need new
systems as strong and capable men in
public place. We are in a fair way to
get them. Look at the men nomi
nated for the Legislature throughout
Oresron.' If Wf Inr hnv crrrr o-nir.
eminent through them, we never will
have it through tTRen.
NO MORE FREE SEEDS.
The Senate has plucked up courage
to cut the free seed distribution out
of the agricultural appropriation bill
and unless it relents when the bill is
reported or goes to conference we
shall have to buy our own lettuce,
onion and radish seeds instead of re
ceiving them from our Congressman.
That is the second streak of. econ
omy seen in the proceedings of this
Congress. Senator ' Thomas said he
had been trying to find the right
place to practice economy, but it had
been impossible to place it anywhere
except the barbershop and the bath
rooms. Senator Warren informed him
the Senate had already commenced,
saying in bitter tones which the Con
gressional Record leaves to our imag
inations: We no longer are. to have nailbrushes,
hairbrushes, or pure water for our com
mittee rooms, or sufficient towels and sun
dry Items' In the barber shoo, or the little
Items of supply such as medicines, reme
dies, and appliances for first aid to the
sick ana injured as we used to have. Think
of the great saving, the great economy,
effected In this way.
Good old Dr. Galllnger and Farmer
Martlne of New Jersey told of the
great good done by free seeds, but
Senator Kenyan of Iowa could see no
merit in what he called "political
seeds." He summed up their effects
on the recipients in this satirical lan
guage: If they get those and do not plant them
before the primary or before the election,
the man who has sent out the seeds has a
great advantage over bis opponent. If they
plant them, however, and they grow before
election, he Is at no advantage over his
opponent. The Government might Just as
well appropriate money to send out cheap
cigars to the electors of this country; the
principle would be Just the same.
' By endorsing such views the Senate
Is becoming positively radical. It has
set the broom of economy in motion.
and has swept out the nailbrushes,
hairbrushes and medical remedies for
use when Senator Warren stubs his
dear old toe. Now away go the free
seeds. Which of our idols will be
smashed next in this iconoclastic age?
DB COOK'S LATEST.
In his effort to keep himself before
the public. Dr. F. A. Cook, the pre
tended discoverer of the North Pole,
has Induced Senator Polndexter to of
fer a resolution thanking him for the
discovery and voting him a medal.
In a pamphlet sent out by the Cook
exploiters an attempt is made to
prove that Admiral Peary has not
been recognized as the discoverer of
the Pole by any official or scientific
body except the National Geographic
Society, yet an attempt is also
made to prove that Peary's evidence
corroborates Cook's claim. If Peary's
evidence Is so weak that Congress
and various foreign geographical so
cieties have evaded recognizing him
as the discoverer, of what value is
that evidence in support of Cook's
pretensions?
As usual with a man In Dr. Cook's
position, he has become involved in a
maze of his own making. Had he been
a straightforward man he would have
seen the folly of -'discrediting. Peary
and of afterwards using Peary as a
witness on his behalf. He has per
mitted his venom against Peary to
blind him to his own interest and to
deprive him of the benefit of an in
genious device for corroborating his
story.
Having destroyed" his reputation for
veracity by his Mt. McKinley fake.
Dr. Cook cannot re-establish It by any
quantity of evidence as to his North
Pole fake. The most he can accom
plish is to raise doubt as to the genu
ineness of Peary's discovery and to
cause people to place both men in the
same category. If they continue their
mudsllnglng debate, we shall be
tempted to doubt whether there is a
North Pole.
. FITTCRE OF THE THIRD PARTY.
Should Colonel Roosevelt persist in
maintaining the Progressive party in
the field, he will lead a sadly shrunk
en army to the polls next November.
The vote it polled for him In 1912
was its- high-water mark. Ever since
that year it has shown a vast diminu
tion at almost every election, and the
exceptions serve only to emphasize
the rule. In Massachusetts the Pro
gressive candidate for Governor made
a slight gain on the Roosevelt vote
and the Republicans sustained a loss
on the Taft vote, but exceptional cir
cumstances rendered that election de
ceptive as to the relative strength of
the two parties. In Louisville the
Progressives held their own at the
municipal election, but party lines
are slightly regarded In municipal af
fairs. In every other election the
Progressives have lost strength enor
mously and in some cases their forces
have almost vanished.
The return of the two hundred
thousand Pennsylvania Progressives
to the Republican party, even to the
support of Colonel Roosevelt's pet
aversion. Senator Penrose, Is but the
last of a long series of events having
the same complexion. Maine, Michi
gan, Maryland, New Tork, South Da
kota, Oregon and several Congres
sional bye-elections tell the same sto
ry. Registration In other states re
veals a wholesale return of Repub
licans to their old party. Men who
led in the bolt have also abandoned
the new party, such as Munsey, Han
na, Fllnn, Prendergast, Wellington,
Bristow. The Colonel's political staff
Is reduced to such stalwarts as Per
kins, Beverldge, Pinchot and John
son. There are two ways of interpreting
this Progressive slump. The most ob
vious is that the men who left the
Republican party recognize that their
chief causes of revolt have been re
moved, that the party is now under
control of its advanced members, and
that the old party offers the best
means of- putting their political con
victions into effect. Progressive lead
ers, however, reply that a slump was
to be expected after the excitement
of 1912 had died down, that the vote
they polled at recent elections is rock
bottom and that they will build up
on that as a solid foundation. They
also say that registration figures are
deceptive as to the present Progres
sive strength, a poll of enrolled Re
publicans in California having shown
that more than 50 per cent intend to
vote for re-election of Governor John
son. There Is another cause outside of
either the Republican or Progressive
parties which prompts voters to de
sert the latter for the former. This
is practical experience of Democratic
rule as a result of Republican divi
sion". A revenue tariff, trade depres
sion, sacrifice of the most essential
benefits of the Panama Canal, mud
dling in Mexico and apology to Co
lombia are .bitter pills for patriotic
citizens to take as medicine to heal
their wounds, but they are- having
their curative effect. Progressives are
having impressed on their minds how
small are their differences with " Re
publicans by comparison wlth their
differences with the Democratic party.
The most conclusive test of the
rock-bottom strength of the Progres
sive party may come In Pennsylvania.
Hosts of men who voted for Colonel
Roosevelt in J912 are now for Senator
Penrose. The Senator was named by
the Colonel as one of -the chief causes
of his bolt and the Colonel's out-and-out
adherents are likely to vote for his
lieutenant, Glfford Pinchot. If Mr.
Penrose Is still as obnoxious as he
was two years ago. Progressives who
are registered as Republicans will
again bolt the Republican ticket.
They must choose between Mr. Pin
chot and Mr. Palmer, the Democrat.
They may be joined by some anti-machine
men who voted for Mr. Dlm
mlck. Colonel Roosevelt will doubt
less throw himself into the fight -with
his old-time ardor, fired by his grudge
against Mr. Penrose, his devotion to
Mr. Pinchot and his desire to rally
his admirers to the Bull Moose stand
ard. The one weak point about the Re
publican party is that its advanced
wing has developed no one outstandr
Ing character as a leader to whom all
factions will rally and who can win
back the remainder of the Progres
sive party. The Progressives have the
advantage of Colonel Roosevelt's
strong personality and of the disposi
tion of many Republicans to forgive.
In their search for a leader, the harsh
things he has said about their party
and to make terms with them. These
Republicans are unwilling to abandon
their historic party name or to adopt
some of his new ideas, but they would
probably smooth the way for his re
turn without loss of "face."
SWEDENBORG FOR THE MASSES.
John C. Ager has compiled a book
of extracts from Swedenborg's writ
ings which gives a connected account
of that great man's religious opin
ions. The book is called "The Path
of Life." Its contents are taken from
nineteen different works, including
"Heaven and Hell," "The Last Judg
ment," "Universal Theology" and
"Angelic Wisdom." Swedenborg was
perfectly qualified to Impart angelic
wisdom to the .rest of mankind be
cause from his 65th year to the day
of his death, when he was 84, he was
in constant communication with the
realm of spirits. One of his frequent
phrases is, "I have talked with the
angels," and learned thus and so from
them in the same way as Moses
talked with the Lord himself in Bible
times. According to Swedenborg's
views, every living person is attended
by two or more ange's through whom
he obtains vitality from on high.
Should these spirit mlnistrants desert
him he would perish speedily, since
the channel through which life flows
Into him would be cut off.
In Swedenborg there was no con
flict whatever between science and
religion. He began his marvelous
researches in both realms of knowl
edge when he was still a boy and
kept them up during the whole of his
long life. Up to the age of 5 5 he
seems to have groped in more or less
spiritual darkness. He had published
books on mining, chemistry, dock
embankments, navigation and other
erudite subjects, but he had not mas
tered the mysteries of the inner life.
He held a royal appointment in the
department of mines in Sweden and
was in active correspondence with
European learned societies.- He was
also a great traveler and had seen
whatever was worth seeing In many
lands. Still he was dissatisfied. From
his boyhood he had been peering Into
the depths of human nature seeking
for the soul. At the age of 65 he
found it and from that time he de
voted his genius to writing books on
religion. His first work was in eight
large volumes upon the, "Internal
sense of Genesis and Exodus." He
was too mucn of a scientific man to
take these poetical books of the Bible
literally, so he sought for an esoteric
meaning and supposed he had found
it. The eight volumes of his mam
moth commentary were published at
his own expense and sent all over the
civilized world. His next publication
was "Heaven and Heli," probably the
most popular of his many writings.
It has been translated from the orig
inal Latin into scores of languages,
including Japanese. Its circulation in
English runs up into the hundreds of
thousands.
The essential point in "Swedenborg's
religious faith was his mysticism. He
put no confidence whatever in formal
professions of belief, but based every
thing . on immediate illumination by
the inner light and upon deeds as the
expression of the soul. "All religion,"
he wrote, "Is a matter of life, and the
life of religion is doing good." Again
he tells us that "where there is no
goodness of life there Is no religion."
This is in direct opposition to the for
malists, who make the essence of re
ligion consist in the profession of cer
tain beliefs and the performance of
certain rites. Like most of the mys
tics, of whom Swedenborg was by all
odds the greatest, he made much of
performance and very little of creed.
To him the spiritual world was as real
as the physical and he perceived oc
cult truths with the same immediate
certainty as ordinary men perceive
bricks and dollars.
His theory -of evil is Ingenious but
unsatisfactory. It stands on the same
shaky basis as every other that at
tempts to give God credit for the good
in the world and exempt him from
responsibility for the bad. He says,
for example, that "God did not create
evil, but evil was Introduced by man
himself." It would be interesting to
hear Swedenborg or anybody -else ex
plain how man managed to intro
duce earthquakes, cold Winters and
drouths. . But that is a comparatively
trifling point. The gist of the matter
lies in the fact that when the Al
mighty created man he created all
that man is and does. The , possibil
ity of It all must necessarily have lain
In the original creature. Otherwise
there . was a part of him created by
some other being than God, which is
contrary to our hypothesis. Sweden
borg. says that "man- is continually
turning into evil the good that flows
in from God" and hence he is alone
responsible for it. But this is an
obvious evasion. We may Justly ask
who it was that created in man the
disposition and power to turn good
into evil. Man cannot rightfully be
blamed for acting as he was created
to act. Indeed it would be difficult
to see how he could act otherwise.
There are some observations on this
in Fitzgerald's Omar which Sweden
borg might have profited by if he had
been privileged to read them.
But the problem of evil is a rock
on which many another ship besides
Swedenborg's has gone to wreck. His
bad logic in this particular does not
affect the validity of his general
scheme of religion and the moral gov
ernment of the world. He explains
the flourishing condition of wicked
men convincingly enough. The Lord
does not approve of their sins, but
his government is one of "uses," and
since wicked men are often gifted
with shining abilities he is willing to
employ them. The truly good love
service for its ovn sake, but not so
the wicked. They serve for the sake
of power, riches, glory. "Thus the
Lord governs the impious In heart
who are In high places by the glory
of their name and incites them to
serve their fellow men by the gain
they will get from it." This may not
be orthodox theology, but it is. excel
lent economy. Perhaps some theo
logians might improve their views of
the Almighty a little if they would
attribute more common sense to him
after Swedenborg's example.
INCITING MEXICAN ENMITY.
The worst Incentive to anti-American
feeling In Mexico and other Latin
American countries Is such predic
tions" as that of Representative Wlngo
in Congress that "those hearing me
now will live to sit in a Congress that
will see the Mexican border pushed to
the Panama - Canal." Neither Presi
dent Wilson nor the great body of the
American people have any such de
sire, and if the time ever comes when
this prediction will be fulfilled, . the
American people will act reluctantly,
choosing the less of two evils. The
severest criticism aimed at Mr. Wil
son's Mexican policy is that it -has
created a danger that the! United
States would be compelled to occupy
Mexico for an indefinite time in order
to avoid a worse evil.
Mr. Wlngo's prediction was unwise,
not only -because its fulfillment is im
probable and contrary to the National
desire, but because It will intensify
the enmity of Mexicans and the sus
picion of other Latin-Americans
toward this country. It is likely to
be transmitted to Mexico and to be
republished there as a true- indication
of our aggressive aims. It is apt to
inflame Mexicans to the point where
they will murder some hapless Amer
ican. It is likely to hamper us in
dealing with Latin America in gen
eral. Though Mr. Wingo held this
opinion, he should not have ex
pressed It.
The greatest vice of our National
legislators is their disposition to let
their tongues wag. They seem to
imagine that they are elected to talk.
They are not; they are elected to
make laws.
STEW LIGHT OX KEATS.
The new poems by Keats and the
letters touching upon his later life
which Sir Sidney Colvin has pub
lished in the London Times add little
to our knowledge of the poet and
nothing to his fame. One of the
poems is a somewhat trifling song in
which Apollo invites the Graces to
ride with him tacross the gold Au
tumn s whole kingdom of corn."
Another reproaches a chaste maiden
for loving him less warmly than he
thinks suitable. Her hand "no soft
squeeze for squeeze returneth," which
neglect throws the poet into agonies.
The newly published verses seem all
to belong to Keats' earlier period
when his poetry gave little promise of
greatness. His first volume, which
appeared when he was 22 years old.
contained very poor stuff upon the
whole and deserved all the severe
things that were said about it. His
second volume contained "Endymion."
This appeared one year after the first.
It was upon "Endymion" that Black
woods Magazine made those scandal
ous strictures which were said by
some sentimental people to have has
tened the poet's death. Keats was
more or less annoyed by the black
guardly review, but it did not affect
his-health.
At that time he had fallen in love
with the charming Mary Brawne and
his passion for her drove every other
consideration into the background of
his mind. Keats' disposition was
rather heavy. His intellectual ma
chinery moved with a good deal of
friction and his feelings did not read
ily kindle Into flame, but once set
blazing they made a lively conflagra
tion. His letters to Mary Brawne are
as ardent as the most romantic
reader could wish for. Up to the day
of his untimely death Keats never
outgrew a certain boyishness which
caused him to magnify his troubles.
His inclination to whine is unpleas
antly marked In circumstances where
a more robust person would have
sworn. But mere personal singular
ities of this sort do not affect the
quality of his poetry. "Endymion" is
a work not without great merits, but
upon the whole, as Shelley said of It,
the poem is unreadable. Or at any
rate the task of reading it through
has seldom been accomplished. It is
overweighted with all sorts of vagrant
mythological fancies which obstruct
the narrative, and when the ancient
story has been finally puzzled out
there is very little of new worth in
it. Keats lived more In Greece than
In modern Europe. His best poetry
transforms ancient mythology into
something eternally vital, but his
-worst is terribly dull.
Pretty nearly everything .that Keats
produced of lasting value was pub
lished In his third volume, which ap
peared in 1820, the year before he
died. In this collection were the Im
perishable odes, besides "Hyperion,"
"Lamia," some dramatic pieces and
"The Eve of St. Agnes." Keats pos
sessed a certain dramatic gift which
would have given him respectable
rank among the minor playwrights'
had he cultivated it assiduously. The
specimens he has left are said by the
critics to be fully as good as Byron's
closest dramas and not worse than
some of Shelley's efforts. This Is faint
praise, but probably as warm as the
circumstances warrant, "Lamia,"
which is a narrative poem full of
classical reminiscences, contains bril
liant wit, lines of surpassing poetical
beauty, and is, upon the whole, "one
of the most glorious Jewels' in the
crown of English poetry," to quote a
generous critic. "Love in a huf with
water and a crust," the poet reflects
In "Lamia," "Is, love forgive us, cin
ders, ashes, dust," which Is a tran
scription of the old proverb that
when poverty comes in at the door
love flies out at the window. The
poem glitters from beginning to end
with faultless gems of thought and
fancy.
"Hyperion" is another classical
construction, but more In the Mil
tonic vein than "Lamia." The lan
guage soars ambitiously and ' the
thought is consistently sublime, but
before it was finished Keats felt his
genius unequal to the task he had
attempted and dropped the work in
the middle. Milton did the same
thing with his fragmentary "Ode on
the Nativity," confessing that the sub
ject was too ambitious for his years
when he began upon it. Had Keats
lived out the full measure of his days
he would have .climbed to Milton's
level and perhaps even higher. He
developed rapidly after his boyish
failures and no critic likes to set a
limit to N the powers which death un
happily blighted before their prime.
Keats' odes are the finest in the
language, perhaps the finest in any
language if we -consider only pure
beauty. Swinburne says of the odes
"To Autumn" and "On a Grecian
Urn" that "they reach the triumphant
achievement of the very utmost beau
ty possible to human words," while
the ode "To a Nightingale" is almost
supernaturally "radiant, fervent and
musical." Phrases of this sort are
mere extravagance of language to
readers who do not love poetry. For
such persons Keats' finest produc
tions are almost meaningless. Just as
some eyes see nothing worth while in
Raphael's pictures. It pro&ably re
quires a keener artistic sense to ap
preciate the poetry of Shelley or
iveats than to see the greatness of
most other works of literary genius.
They give us the spirit of poetry
with few traces of a body Such
flesh-and-blood as Keats vouchsafes
to his readers is dug from Grecian
graves and it is not always complete
ly vitalized. His "Ode on a Grecian
Urn" contains the famous lines:
Beauty ts truth, truth beauty, that Is all
Ye know on earth and all ye need to know.
a sentiment which appeals more
strongly to one whose bread and but
ter are securethan to the common
mass of toilers. Keats' most popular
poem is "The Eve of St. Agnes,"
which is a study in colors painted on
a block of ice. Nothing can surpass
the loveliness of the poem and noth
ing can equal Its chill.-
The Springfield Republican, an in
dependent newspaper, thus disposes of
an unpleasant canard sent out from
Brazil about Colonel Roosevelt:
The canard that Colonel Roosevelt on his
visit to Rio de Janeiro last Autumn de
manded and received large payment for de
livering an address before the Brazilian
Geographical and Historical Institute Is
finally and categorically denied by the in
stitute itself, and it is to be hoped that this
will be the end of It. Those who aim to
Judge the Colonel fairly and to criticise him
only when the facts warrant are under
continual handicap from those whose In
temperate hatred ieads them to give credit
to and circulate indeed, to manufacture
all sorts of tales reflecting upon him.
The truth about Colonel Roosevelt
ought to be enough for both his
enemies and his friends.
The Oklahoma minister who wishes
to sell the church building where he
has been preaching for the last year
seems to be well within his rights.
His congregation has paid him only
J 16 since last November. . What
worthy use that kind of people ex
pect to make of a church is a mys
tery. Evidently they nev.er pray or
they would not be so stingy, and
preaching does them no good. It
would be a great improvement over
Itheir mock worship to use the build
ing for a barn or a saloon.
Nordica evidently had little faith
in banks and investments of the or
dinary kind.- She preferred to invest
her savings In jewels. There is an
old saw which says they are about
the safest of all property. Their great
value in small bulk is an advantage
to a woman like Nordica who trav
eled constantly. Their price does not
vary much from year to year and
there is always a market for them.
Probably her heirs are better off than
if she had bought bonds instead of
gems.
Now, now is the time of the yelp
ing cur. He sleeps all day and rests
his voice. At sunset he eats a hearty
meal and just about the hour when
weary humans Want to go to sleep he
tunes up. Now he emits a continuous
torrent of piercing yelps. Now he
pauses, in order to strike more fierce
ly on his victim's nerves. Meanwhile
his loving mistress sits on the front
stoop and encourages him. As she sees
it, the world was made for her dog.
Those Americans who remained in
Mexico City in spite of the situation
are at present able to. laugh at their
more timid countrymen who rushed
out leaving everything behind.
Mellen Bays he shielded Morgan.
However, is is quite likely that Morgan
Is now reaping the fujll reward , for
any delinquencies he may have in
dulged in.
According to Mr. Marshall, Mexico's
crying need is a Vice-President.
Huerta is one, however, if you put the
proper construction on the "vice."
Girls are smarter than "boys, says
a noted educator. Everyone who has
ever attended a co-educational insti
tute has long known it.
Bulgarian milk fcacilli are said to
promote amiability. We know a
number of. Individuals who ought to
take large doses.
Villa is growing a bit more popular
in the United States. Recent reports
indicate that he has hired an Amer
ican press agent.
A new Venus has been unearthed.
Inasmuch as her head is missing, as
well as her arms, De Mllo has nothing
to worry about.
But if Congress adjourns in July
the members "will be kept too busy
mending their political fences to get
a rest.
i It is well that the weather should
get all the moisture out lof its system
before the Festival.
Good coffee is reported very rare.
Restaurant patrons have long sus
pected as much.
Why doesn't Doc Cook lay claim to
original discovery of that river in
Brazil ?
Teddy makes it clear that he in
tends to mill around and get nowhere.
Our Vice-Consul at Saltlllo is safe.
Thanks to British efforts.
Nature is rapidly setting the stage
for the Rose Festival,
1 We haven't had a Mexican crisis
now for over a week.
.. Becker convicted again. Tammany
has lost his grip.
About time for another White
House wedding.
Watchful waiting Is again firmly en
trenched. Just rain enough for the rose hav-vest.
If you love your dog muzzle him.
COL. WOOD OX TRCE DEMOCRACY
Wfcjr He Supports Mr. Hauler and Op
pose. Mr. Chamberlain.
PORTLAND, May 23. (To the Edi
tor.) I am "dee-lighted" to receive
free advertising as a "millionaire," an
"anarchist" and Bill Hanley's "cow
partner" and In order to keep the ball
rolling will you permit me to say I
think The Oregonlan Is making a great
mistake In not educating the people on
-the Importance of Democrats support
ing President Wilson In the repeal of
free tolls, the Mexican peace policy
and all other administration policies.
Some day, if ever the G. O. P. returns
to power. The Oregonlan. If still glad
dening the morn in that remote pe
riod, will want to Invoke this princi
ple of Responsible Government which
Wilson Is now seeking to make a part
of our unwritten constitution.
What would England, regardless of
party, think of a member of the House
of Commons attached to the "govern
ment" party, who refused to support
the Prime Minister and Cabtnet on a
bill put forward by the government?
W hat would become of responsible gov
ernment? The only way we will ever gret re
sponsible government In this country
Is by recognizing the President and his
Cabinet as the responsible party leaders
and of popular opinion compelling the
legislators to support them.
Of course under our system It Is dif
ficult to compel a local man (and our
Senators are local) to support the re
sponsible government head If the local
man thinks It will defeat his re-election;
and I have no doubt Senator
Chamberlain has sized up Oregon Just
as The Oregonlan has and believes the
repeal of the free tolls will be unpopu
lar In this state. But if Hanley thinks
free tolls wrong in principle and be
lieves the President ought to be sup
ported, ho ought not to suppress his
beliefs to get votes.
Waving the point that the clear terms
of the treaty and our National honor
require no discrimination, waving the
point that the free tolls are but a sub
sidy added to an already existing mo
nopoly, the vital thing to Democrats,
and as I think to all citizens who look
further than playing short-lived party
politics, is to establish the principle
in this country that the President as
leader of the party In power must be
supported in the carefully considered
policies of the Government,
Everybody knows I Intend to support
William Hanley. Not because he is my
life-long- friend, but because in Its larg
est sense he Is the best and biggest
Democrat I know. He Is for the plain
people always. He refused to be an
elector on the standpat Taft ticket and
openly came out for Wilson. He now
publicly and In print says he is proud -of
it and If elected or not elected will
support Wilson in his broad enlight
ened policies. He believes now that
the way to give shippers lower rates
is not to add a subsidy to the American
coastwise monopoly (New York and
Boston to Honolulu and Manila being
"coastwise"), but to repeal the mo
nopoly and give Portland and Seattle
the same chance as Victoria and Van
couver, B. C, at the open competition
of the ships of the world. If this Is to
defeat him. I know he will meet it
with the Hanley smile. He 'will re
spect himself that he has been honest
and candid and has not pussyfooted :
for votes. I think William Hanley the
most picturesque and commanding fig
ure in the state. He knows Its general
needs better than any man I know, and
will command attention wherever he
may be placed. C. E. S. WOOD.
UTIGAXT STANDS FOR HIS RIGHTS
Reluctant Man WliihnB to Support Wife
If Proceedings Are Regular.
ChicaKo Inter-Ocean.
"I stand on my constitutional rights."
said James Phillips, charged with fail
ing to support his wife, Mrs. Mabel E.
Phillips, and their children, to Munici
pal Judge Uhlir in the court of do
mestic relations.
"I stand on my constitutional rights
and I refuse to answer any questions
because I have no lawyer."
Judge Uhlir appointed Charles S.
Wharton, former Congressman from
the Fourth Congressional District, as
Phillips counsel.
"I admit my client's guilt," said Mr.
Wharton Immediately.
"Sure!" his client echoed.
"I ought to have ?5 a week," ven
tured Mrs. Phillips.
. "My man can afford to pay J10 a
week," Mr. Wharton declared.
"You bet," his man affirmed happily.
The order was entered.
THE TALE OF THE MOTH.
0 the glimmering lights of city nights!
How the little devils call!
From the light that lies in woman's
eyes.
Home love, home comforts and all.
1 am led by their blinking and wanton
winking
To answer the call of the street.
And I follow the crowd with laughter
loud
. To a place where good fellows meet.
Then It's give me the lass that likes
her glass
And give me the ragtime song.
For the gentle jag and the merry rag
They help a fellow along.
So give me the cup to keep me up.
And give me my friends to treat.
For the company gay on the Great
White Way
I tell you are hard to beat.
But when a fellow is old and mellow
And his eyes are dim and his hair is
gray.
Where- will the friends be he toasted
so merrily.
Those friends of a gayer day?
They'll be where the light is. enjoying
their gin fizz,
At the same old make-believe game;
And if one came to say that a friend
died that day.
They'd but flutter more close to the
flame.
And when the long night without any
light
Had closed in over his clay,
They'd drink highballs In gilded halls.
And this is what they'd say:
"Oh, It's many a dinner I've had with
that sinner
And many a bottle, too.
And now he's dead just pass me the
red,
I declare, I'm feeling blue.
"But don't you think, really, he spent
too freely?
He died all alone, so they say.
The friends all deserted with whom he
had flirted.
And stole back to the Great White
Way."
MART H. FORCE.
Portland. May 14, 1914.
God's Gallery.
Though I am poor, and cannot buy
The rare, time-mellowed things of art,
God keeps an open gallery
Of glories for the poor In heart.
Whose walls are hung with grander
show
Of color than old Titian knew.
With outines Mlchaelangelo
Wronged in the best cartoons he drew!
All "this Is mine to have and hold;
Nor fire may burn, nor years may soil,
With ruthless trace of gathering
mould.
These wonders of the Master's toll;
Nor can some ruthless child of fate.
Some darkly gifted Corsican,
By red successes decorate
His Louvre from my Vatican.
Maurice Thompson.
XT