6
THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAX. PORTLAND. DECEMBER 28, 1919.
ESTABLISHED BY HENRY L. PITTOCK.
Published by The Oregonlan Publishing Co..
133 Sixth Street. Portland. Oregon.
O. A- MORDEN. E. B. PIPER.
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that he has made It that much easier
for his successors to make progress
toward the goal. By certain conclu
sions as to what the atom is not, he
and that "the commission shall from
time to time determine the value of
the property in each district and
rate-making group." The commls-
has simplified the field of future In-t slon has almost completed a valua-
vestigration. If he has shown that I tion of railroad property under the
an element having a high atomic
weight can be debased, and that its
debasement involves a tremendous
giving off of energy, he has paved
the way to trapping that energy, and
perhaps has indicated that it may
be reapplied to other substances.
The field of theoretical physics be
comes constantly more interesting,
even to the 'Thirteenth man," who
must be content to stand on the side
lines and await developments, while
it must increasingly stimulate In him
the laudable ambition to be num
bered among the twelve who alone,
according to Professor Einstein, are
capable of comprehending such ab
struse matters.
FOR THE -THIRD PARTY TO DECIDE.
There is not much reason to hope
that the new industrial conference
appointed by President Wilson will
accomplish more towards ending in
dustrial strife than did the first. The
new one represents the public inter
est only, while the first represented
capital and labor as well as the pub
lic. We have had several national
Inquiries Into Industrial conditions,
but nothing has resulted from any of
them except voluminous reports, to
which advocates of all sorts of
economic cures turn for quotations.
The controversy between, employ
ers and workmen has reached a
stage where the public must assert
its rights as superior to those of both
combatants, must make laws to
govern both and must enforce them.
Strikes have attained such magni
tude that the damage suffered by the
whole people far exceeds that suf
fered by the immediate combatants.
That would have been the case if n
general railroad strike had followed
presentation of the brotherhoods' ul
timatum to tho government in 1916.
It has been the case with the steel
and coal strikes now ending. It is
likely to be the result of a general
6trlke in any industry dealing with
the necessaries of life- Both employ
ers and employes in particular indus
tries are so fully organized that the
two might settle their disputes and
make the public pay the additional
cost. That is the evil against which
Dr. Garfield sought to guard us when
he stipulated that any increase in
miners' wages should not be added
to the price of coal, If It were un
restrained, employers and workmen
might continue raising wages and
prices by means of strikes at public
expense until the limit set by foreign
competition was reached. At pres
ent In coal mining and other leading
industries there is no such limit.
The injunction against the coal
strike Is the first Important use of
that weapon in defense of the public
since the Debs strike of 1894. It has
aroused labor unions to frenzy, for
they term it an Instrument of op
pression. Yet the first recorded in
stance of Its use in English history
Is of an injunction obtained by the
commons against tho barons in 13S2
and it might conceivably be used to
restrain employers from some act
that would Injure both labor and the
public. It should be as available
against a lockout to force down
wages as against a strike to force
them up.
Constant assertion by the govern
ment of the paramount rights of the
public, in labor disputes would be
possible if backed by alert and sus
tained public opinion. It might then
prove instrumental In bringing both
parties to settle their quarrels by ar
bitral or judicial methods. Employ
ers would be more ready for collec
tive bargains, workmen to accept the
responsibility which goes with in
corporation, if both were deprived
of their principal weapons the
strike and the lockout. The law
having deprived them of these
weapons, a moral duty would fall on
congress to provide means of just
settlement.
The main cause of strife has been
that, while both employer and work
roan have talked much about striv
ing for justice, both parties cling
to opportunities of securing more
than justice by fighting out their dif
ferences. That is the explanation of
many employers' opposition to
unions and collective bargains, and
of unions' opposition to compulsory
arbitration. Each party wants free
dom to fight for all it can get. The
recent declaration of the presidents
of unions evinces readiness to change
base in holding out for this freedom.
While cost of living rose. It was a
good cause to demand higher wages;
now that it is stabilizing and is likely
to fall, they reject it as "pernicious
and intolerable-" Employers are also
ready to charge all that the markets
will bear, but they do not on that ac
count pay labor more.
It is high time for the third party
the public to step In, act um
pire and enforce its decisions. It
cannot do this through any such
body as the industrial conference,
for it is small, appointive, will serve
only for a brief period and has power
only to deliberate and resolve, not to
act. The only body fully representa
tive of the public is congress. It was
elected to serve all of the people, has
power to act and can enlist all the
forces of the government behind Its
decisions. Its weakness is its prone
ness to yield to the importunity and
threats of small, highly organized
minorities, rather than to the huge,
but unorganized and almost voiceless
Lmajority. If the people unite and
exert their power on congress, they
ran force it to enact laws forbidding
inroad and coal strikes or other
inflicts which paralyze entire in-
listries, and can force the executive
put those laws in operation. Thus
lisarnied, the combatants may get
together on the basis of justice.
SOMETHING DIFFERENT.
Chairman Hays purposes to set
every ambitious young man and
woman in the country at work ham
mering out a platform for the repub
lican national convention. The idea
comes from Mr. Truxtun Beale, once
in the diplomatic service as minister
to Persia, who has $10,000 to spare
for this highly unique, exciting and
laudable project. Undoubtedly the
result will be the greatest outpour
ing of literary masterpieces the world
has seen. Our only fear Is that the
wealth of talent usually devoted to
commencement orations and prize
essays will now be withdrawn, and
that disaster will overtake the an
nual feast of intellect and flow of
genius which marks the graduating
exercises of every well-regulated ed
ucational Institution.
However, we shall bear the loss as
cheerfully as we may, in view of the
greater compensations to be fur
nished our political literature. There
has been a fixed notion too common
among politicians and those who
frequent state and national conven
tions that anybody can write a politi
cal platform. The result is that the
usual platform is written by nobody
in particular. Somebody from the
back-country, who has had not a
great deal to do but to worry about
the welfare of the country, has
shown up with a platform draft that
"pointed with pride" and "viewed
with alarm" In the orthodox fashion,
and It has been submitted to the
committee and adopted by the con
vention with an enthusiasm greatly
accelerated by its ready recognition
of the old familiar phrases. To be
sure, anxious hours of the night have
often been devoted to consideration
of some particular plank about
which there was a real division of
opinion: but the decision is usually-
reached in the early hours of the
morning, and the convention, after
a decorous wait for the platform
committee to report, takes the offer
ing as it is framed.
But now there is to be a new re
gime. The republican convention is
to have a chance to adopt a genuine
platform not written by the politi
cians but by the schools and colleges.
It will be something different, of
course. It is high time.
law of 1913, which will serve as a
married In the beginning; the rule
does not hold good as the age of re
tirement is approached.
The striking difference between
the kind of dependency calling for
help from the married and from the
unmarried constitutes the difficulty
guide. The railroads will not be per- of arriving at an equitable solution.
mitted to earn revenue on watered The wife, rated as a "dependent"' in
the case of the married man, is often,
as a matter of fact, as the investi
gator points out. and as most persons
will have observed, a helpmate in
the sense that she Is able to make
many economies possible for her
husband which are not true In the
case of the dependents of the unmar
ried. The married man frequently
lives with his dependents, thus ef
fecting many other savings. The un
married who do not live with their
dependents are put to greater ex
pense In being compelled to main
tain more than one domestic estab
lishment. The question Is admittedly com
plex. The Carnegie foundation un
doubtedly has been inspired by de
sire to do the greatest amount of
good possible with the limited funds
at Its command. It does not seem
feasible. In all the circumstances, to
make an invariable rule that will not
work Injustice In some cases. Yet
an incidental fact obtrudes itself that
is almost as Interesting as the main
question, and that is that, while
thirty-eight forty-fourths of men
teachers are married, only seven two-hundred-and-thirty-nlnths
of the
women teachers are so blessed with
normal family ties. Evidently, un
less we accept a mlsogamlst view, the
career of teaching Involves for wo
men a greater social sacrifice than
It does for men. The question arises
whether equal pensions would do
more than atone for the greater sac
rifice thus made.
stock; their rates will be based on
the actual Value of their property as
determined by the Independent au
thority of the commission.
Throughout the bill are precau
tions against watering of stock or
bonds. The section authorizing con
solidation of roads says that bonds
and stock at par "shall not exceed
the value of the consolidated prop
erties as determined by the com
mission, including a reasonable
working capital to be prescribed by
the commission," and value is to be
determined under the law of 1913.
Railroad companies are authorized
to reincorporate under federal law
and may exchange bonds and stock
of the new corporation for those of
the old, but the par value of the
new securities "shall not exceed the
value of the property represented by
the capitalization as determined by
the commission."
The cry about watered stock Is
out of date so far as railroads are
concerned, and It Is kept up by the
Plumb planners for the purpose of
creating prejudice against return of
the roads to their owners. The bill
that is finally enacted will doubtless
be a combination of the Cummins
and Esch bills, but It will certainly
contain the Cummins precautions for
true value as a basis of rates.
Less progress has been made in this
direction, and It ts now the mark of
experience In traveling to be able to
hold onto as many seats as possible
until the last possible moment. But
the great blessings which the Pa
cific railroad brought within the
reach of so many people, chief among
them that of betng able to live on
the Pacific coast, will not be denied
either by the sociologist or the his
torian. It Is well to reflect occasion
ally on the possibility that It may
have been some subconscious vision
of vast benefits bestowed on poster
ity that made the humblest work
man on that great project one of the
most enthusiastic and contented la
borers of modern times.
only of the hardships of the pioneers,
but of the spirit in which they were
endured.
It will be hoped that the proposed
curriculum for education of minis
ters in social service will not omit
BY-PRODI CTS OK THE 1'IMW
la Fanons I nth r Asset or Liability r
A alts "Writer.
"Theodore Roosevelt was perhaps
the greatest all-around American
BUCKWHEAT AND PROHIBITION.
It is important news, from the
viewpoint ofhe economist, that an
overwhelming demand has developed
In urban eating places for sausage
and buckwheat cakes, which some
observers attribute to the coming of
prohibition. Their logic will seem
sound to those familiar with the
ways of drinkers and non-drinkers.
Breakfast has taken its old place
of Importance because men are now
eating it who a few years ago had
no appetite until they had taken a
few drinks, and. as is well known,
buckwheat cakes are at their best
when eaten before 9 A. M. Sausage
naturally "goes with" them, for sci
entific as well as epicurean reasons.
There will be automatic restraint
on consumption of sausage if the
price of pork keeps on mounting, but
there ought to be no difficulty about
meeting the demand for buckwheat.
Our grandfathers valued this grain
almost as much for its beneficial ef
fect on the land as for its caloric
content, about which they did not
much concern themselves. It was a
prime "loosener" of tight soils, and a
sovereign restorer of wornout acres.
We produced 17,672,000 bushels Of
buckwheat in 1859, and only 19,573,
000 bushels In 1918, an Increase by
no means corresponding to the in
crease in population, which more
than trebled in the same period. It
would require about 60,000,000 bush
els Instead of less than 20,000,000 to
feed the people at the rate of con
sumption formerly prevailing.
A NEW COMPLAINT.
The Oregonlan finds Itself so
greatly surprised and flabbergasted
at the newest complaint from up
state against Portland and the Port
land papers that It gives space to Its
full text. This from the Lebanon
Criterion:
According to the Portland dallies the
city of Portland must be situated In a
most favored comer of the Willamette
valley. In Vancouver, Oregon City and
other nearby towns, during the recent cold
spell, the mercury fell to 10 and 12 below
zero, while in Portland it got no lower
than 12 above. A warm town we would
say. The rest of the valley experienced
a fall in tempcratura as low as 15 below,
also such streams as the Willamette do not
freeze over at 12 above. Verily, tho
writers of fiction are not confined to the
small towns. The Portland press has stu
diously misrepresented western Oregon in
Its climatic and other conditions, until at
the present the people In the middle west
believe nothing they hear or send about
the state. It is very evident that a coun
try where mercury will fall to 15 below it
not In the torrid zone, yet the press Is
trying to impress the country that Port
land is In the belt of perpetual summer.
This kind of talk deceives no one. but re
flects discredit upon the valley at large,
all to the purpose that Portland may
profit thereby.
If there is a person in Portland
who does not know that the pros
perity of the city cannot be secured
at the expense of the Willamette val
ley and the state at large, let him be
taken to some Institution for the
feeble-minded, where he belongs. It
is a strange thing that the notion still
persists in some Oregon towns that
there is a studious aiyi most diaboli
cal purpose in Portland to hold the
valley and the stale back. Why and
how?
There is no ideal climate. Just
now New York is suffering from the
severest Christmas snow storm In a
generation; yet people persist In
staying there by the millions. We
have a notion that If a climatic
Utopia were to be found It would
attract the Adullamites of a restless
world, and would become intolerable.
People stay where .hey have a
chance to prosper. They know that
every country has Its storm and
other meteorological troubles. The
fact that there were some thermomet-
rlcal variations in Oregon during
the recent little flurry Is of no mo
ment whatever to any sensible per
son. They will not keep anyone
away from Lebanon and at Portland.
Let us whisper to our Lebanon
neighbor, for Its greater satisfaction,
that It was lower than 12 above In
Portland. The mercury registered
1 above, and the Portland papers
all duly reported It, with much
prominence. Let us recommend to
the Criterion that It read the Port
land newspapers, so that It may cor
rectly report what they say. Or does
It care t report them correctly?
We are not surprised by the state
ment that Professor Ernest Ruther-
Vfbrd did not lay claim to having dla
fcovered the secret of the transmuta
tion of metals; that this was the work
Of over-enthuslastlc friends. The so-dp-lled
friends of scientists have been
flinty of similar performances before
aad are likely to be again. But there
little doubt that Rutherford ha
PLUMB PLAN PROPAGANDA.
A fair sample of the mendacious
propaganda which is put out in sup
port of the Plumb plan for soviet
operation of railroads under govern
ment ownership is contained in an
article In Tho Dalles Chronicle. The
substance of it is In this paragraph:
The bill provides that the government of
the United States must guarantee an an
nual Interest of G per cent to those roads
after they are taken over. The valuation
Placed on the roads by the Cummins bill Is
$20,000,000,000. The actual value of the
roads as shown by government reports is
between S12.000.000.000 and f lo.OOO.OOO.OOO.
The guaranty Is not permanent and
is not 6 per cent. It is temporary,
and is an extension of the rates of
compensation paid by the govern
ment during the war until new rates
have been approved by the Inter
state Commerce commission under
the Cummins bill.
The provision for income subse
quent to the period of guaranty is
not, strictly speaking, a guaranty.
It is that the commission shall ad-
Just rates so that the roads of each
district "shall earn an aggregate an
nual net railway operating income
equal, as near aa may be, to 5 per
cent upon the aggregate value, as
determined in accordance with the
provisions hereof, of the railway
property." The commission "'may In
its discretion" add one-half of 1 per
cent to make provision for "non
productive Improvements, better
ments or equipment," but such ex
penditures "shall not be capitalized
or used in any way as a basis for in
creased rates." The government is
not required to make good any deficit
on 5 per cent, but the railroads
are to be given the opportunity to
earn that rate and then must earn
it in order to get it.
The bill does not place on the
roads a valuation of twenty billion
dollars or any other sum. The esti
mate of twelve or thirteen billions
as the actual value was made by an
advocate of the Plumb plan at a
hearing beforea house committee.
Whatever may be the present cap
italization or whether It is excessive
is Immaterial, for the Cummins bill
provides that rates shall be based
upon the aggregate value" of the
RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE UNMAR
RIED. The common supposition that mar
ried persons have a greater number
of dependents than the unmarried
receives a partial setback from the
result of a survey recently conducted
in several eastern educational Insti
tutions by an Investigator who was
inspired by desire to ascertain
whether a system of age retirement
pensions which discriminated against
the unmarried was founded on
equity. Tho occasion for the investi
gation was the announcement by the
Carnegie Foundation for the Ad
vancement of Teaching that for the
unmarried teacher or the teacher
whose wife Is not living it had adopt
ed a retiring allowance of two-thirds
of that paid to the married teacher.
The conclusion reached by the In
vestigator Is that the responsibilities
of tho unmarried teacher are far
greater than they have been assumed
to be. The Inquiry proves interest
ing, without reference to whether it
is conclusive for the unmarried in
all grades. It Is deprived of some
of its value as a basis for generali
zation by the circumstance that It
Involves an abnormal proportion of
unmarried women. Of 283 teachers
Included In the survey, only forty
four were men, and thirty-eight of
these were married; and 289 were
women, of whom 232 were unmar
ried. Data as to this group probably
have special rather than general
significance. Yet they possess value
even then; the problem of equitable
provision for teachers In their old
age is admittedly an Important fac
tor In solution of the entire question
of teachers' compensation.
The problem is not altogether one
of statistics. The almost obvious
conclusion that the married have
"dependents" In greater proportion
than the unmarried la not always
supported by investigation into In
dividual cases. The children of the
married, for Illustration, are In the
dependent class nearly always In the
earlier life of the parents. As the
latter approach retirement age, re
sponsibilities lessen; the children
grow up, become self-supporting,
and even give material assistance to
their parents. The character of re
sponsibility assumed by the unmar
ried Is different. This may consist
of an invalid member of the family,
a constantly increasing Durden, or
of parents or other dependents who
cannot be expected, as in the case
of those of married teachers, to make
later return for the financial tnpport
iffc'lo i omc Droareas tov.aid discov-i
etjig the u&lui e oX llie &tumt and I royerti t oot upon its capitalization
BUn.DINO A GREAT RAILROAD.
Edward L. Sabin, who writes the
story' of the "Building of the Pacific
Railroad," describing an event the
semi-centenary of which was cele
brated last May, observes that one
of the striking facts connected with
that great enterprise, which deserved
to be called the "eightn wonder of
the world." was that the labor which
made It possible was then "100 per
cent efficient." There was far less
machinery in use then than there is
now. The steaapi shovel had not been
invented: the fiction dredge was un
known: the eight-hour day was not
the basis of calculation of the rate
of wages.
It will be granted that the meth
ods which have been perfected In
the half century since the historic
golden spike was driven, some fifty
miles west of Ogden, Utah, have
been altogether desirable, but the
picture which the author draws of
the attitude of the wqrkers on the
Pacific railroad will be particularly
interesting to those who like to
moralize. A leading railroad official,
speaking at the semi-centennial cele
bration, attributed the present de
crease In human efficiency to de
velopment of and dependence upon
machinery almost exclusively. But
Mr. Sabln, himself a close student of
social affairs, ascribes the greater
relative accomplishment of the men
then to the fact that they were more
contented, and he attributes their
greater contentment to the fact that
they were deeply Interested In what
they were doing. The workmen
were not all Chinese coolies, al
though the latter were employed to
the number of some thousands. But
even these were not without a cer
tain enthusiasm over the magnitude
of their task, and realized that they
were taking part .in an epochal
movement. It was something to fire
the imagination to know that when
the work was completed, people
could "cross the continent comfort
ably in six days. Instead of spending
thirty days on the ocean, with ah
the discomforts of such a voyage."
This sense of sharing In a great
achievement made It possible to ac
complish feats that seem amazing
even now. Tho last three years, when
the two building companies were
racing to meet each other, were full
of thrills, and remind one of the
spirit in which engineer companies
entered Into patriotic competition
during the war, and ship-bulldlng
crews were inspired by the spirit of
friendly rivalry. In thirteen months,
approximately 1100 miles of track
were laid, which was at the rate of
about three miles a day and would
look well bestde a track-laying per
formance In 1919. To the Individual
worker on the Pacific road the pres
ent generation owes more than it
appreciates. The road might have
been a failure If it had not been com
pleted within the time allowed by
congress There were a good many
skeptics In those times, and the poli
ticians in the east were ready enough
to throw cold water on the scheme.
When the workmen showed that It
could be done, it was easier to get
backing for other railroads. Plans
for the Northern Pacific received a
hospitable reception because the first
railroad had been built. It and other
railroads launched under govern
ment patronage within two or three
years after 1869 probably would
have been Indefinitely postponed If
the Pacific railroad had been per
mitted to drag along.
It took thirty years to Overcome
the opposition that the first sugges
tion of a transcontinental railroad
aroused. Some of this undoubtedly
was due to Its being too far in ad
vance of the times. It is plain now
that in 1832 the time was not ripe.
Asa Whitney, who was one of the first
manufacturers of machinery In the
United States, suggested It again In
1845, but was ridiculed. He wasted
a fortune on tho idea. Senator Rusk
called the scheme the "Colossus of
Rhodes," which someone turned to
advantage into "Colossus of rail
roads." General William Tecumseh
Sherman said that he would hate to
buy a ticket over the road for his
grandchildren. But General Sher
man was particularly pleased when
the work was finished. He saw at
once that troops could be trans
ported at the rate of 600 miles a day,
and he foresaw an early end of In
dian wars. The Indian question was
destined to stimulate, however, the
building of other railroads before it
finally was solved.
Necessity for a new train etiquette
arose from completion of the Pacific
railroad. Mr. "Sabin notes that one
bit of counsel published at the time
was: "Prejudice against sleeping
cars must be conquered at the start.
They are a necessity of our long
American travel." Nowadays preju
dice Is confined chiefly to upper
berths, and this has been overcome
to a large extent by a price differ
ential. "It Is not customary. It Is
not polite," was another exhortation,
"for a lady to occupy one whole sent
with her I'lounce." and herself, and
another with her satchel, parasol, big
A PIONEER TYPE.
"All kinds of labor," wrote the
Rev. Ezra Fisher, in a letter dated at
Oregon City, on January 8, 1850,
"are richly rewarded except that of
preachers and teachers," which re
minds us that the problem of com
pensation for these professions Is by
no means a new one. Nor is that of
high prices, for In the same letter
Mr. Fisher tells how "flour is worth
$25 per barrel, potatoes $4 per
bushel, and all other provisions pro
portionately high." Lumber was
$100 a thousand feet. Carpenters'
wages ranged from $8. to $12 a day.
In these conditions this pioneer Bap
tist missionary to Oregon laid his
plans to further not only the inter
ests of the church but. In general.
the cause of public education. "We
Intend," he declared, with confi
dence, "to make vigorous efforts the
coming summer to erect a good
wooden school house, perhaps with
two apartments and a boarding
house, notwithstanding the enor
mous price of materials and labor."
Although he had then dwelt In Ore
gon only since the latter part of 1845.
a little more than four years, he had
seen the vision of a greater Oregon
country, requiring not only mate
rial aid, but also culture. "I have a
rather promising school," he wrote.
How long it may remain so is with
the all wlso to disclose. He con
tinued:
appropriate chapters from the lives ..... rjr. piin,,. ttn.n ( p
', of the early workers in me t-'regon
vineyard. There are especially in
terestlng letters written In 1849, In
which year Oregon suffered with the
California gold fever, and the Rev.
Mr. Fisher Joined In the rush to the
mines. "I went to the mines," he
says, "principally to give my family
the bare comforts of life, hoping,
however, that I might In some meas
ure unite bodily labor with the du
ties of the ministerial office. God
has mercifully blessed me with about
$1000 worth of gold." A consider
able portion of this fund went to
further plans "to secure If possible
a site for a literary institution," and
was expended in purchase of a claim
which was donated as a site for a
Baptist college.
Faith in Oregon, in mankind, in
the ultimate triumph of civilization,
and culture, and all that goes to
make life worth while, is exhibited
throughout this truly remarkable
volumo of letters, written long ago
with no thought of publication. They
would be less Impressive, however. If
they were the letters of a wholly ex
ceptional man. It Is not disparaging
Ezra Fisher to say that he was a
type. He and others like him made
not only Oregon, but America, the
land they are today. The moral.
which Is nowhere obtruded in the
simple annals themselves, will be ob
vious to thoughtful men.
ple'a Magazine for December. "T. R.
of the large heart and strong hand
had a son. Theodore Roosevelt. Jr..
whose shadow already is beginning to
cast across the realm of things politi
cal. "Will that shadow reach far? Ia
Theodore Roosevelt like his father,
the ex-presldent? Is his inheritance
an asset, or liability? Will It help
or hinder him?
" 'Young Teddy already has paid
his inheritance tax. He remitted the
initial installment at the first Platts
burg training camp and the rest of it
overseas with the A. E. F. The re
ceipts are sealed with three gold
service stripes and two wound chev
rons and attested by numerous thou
sand men and officers of the first di
vision In general and the twenty-sixth
infantry in particular.
"Did I tefl you,' wrote the old
colonel at home to the young colonel
in France, "that Peter Dunne met me
the other day, grinned and remarked:
'Well! the first thing you know your
four sons will put the name of Roose
velt on the map'?
"Can't you see the famous grin as
Mr. Dooley himself chaffed the 'best
known man In the world," and the
twinkle in his eye as he penned those
lines to young Theodore?"
Who has not felt your lure, brave
stripling gay?
As, heedless of your forbears, old
and dead. .
You come with promise new, as If to
; say
What they have failed In. you will
do instead;
You rouse with sudden warmth swift
impulse bold;
We grasp ambition's broom afresh
to sweep
From mental ceilings cobwebs gray
ana cola.
That o'er our faded dreams have
seemed to creep.
thus given. The burden of depeu
d&ucy oX wUitus ia rea'i ugou tka , boj UtUe box, bauauox ud buadie.
We shall much need classical books, such
as are In use In our best schools In the
states, among which we must have a few
L.atln nnfl ".reek grammars, lexicons and
such preparatory books as are required In
fitting for college In the old states. Also
Romsn and Greek antiquities and classi
cal dictionaries. We hope to make such
arrangements as we can to order such
books as we shntl need. But should you
find any liberal friend of education In
Oregon. I hope you will do something for
us by way of securing a few books of the
above description.
The "Correspondence of the Rever
end Ezra Fisher," consisting of his
letters to the American Baptist Home
Mission society, covering a period
beginning September 22. 1832, and
Including March 31, 1857. has been
printed In larger part In the Quar
terly of the Oregon Historial society,
and now Is published by his
descendants In a volume which is
an Interesting and Important con
tribution to the memorabilia of pio
neer times. It Is nearly contempor
aneous with the history of the Bap
tist Home Mission society itself up
to the time of Mr. Flshers death,
the society having been organized in
April, 1832. and it sheds much light
on the state of the church In those
days. Beginning with his pastorate
in Indianapolis, Ind.. then a frontier,
the letters depict a chaotic condition
of affairs that makes us have a
deeper respect for the organizers
who have brought about the present
relatively high efficiency of church
work. Tho church at Indianapolis
consisted In considerable part of
members who were opposed to the
support of the ministry. "Baptists
from the several parts of the union
have met In this place and brought
with them all their prejudices. At
first our feelings revolted at the
thought of uniting with a church of
this description." But the policy
modernly known as "boring from
within" prevails. "Upon more ma
ture reflection we think the most ef
fectual way of doing them good Is
to conform to the present state of
things as far as practicable, hoping
that the constant exhibitions of the
humiliating doctrines of the Cross
will melt their stubborn hearts and
mould them into the likeness of their
divine master." There are eight or
ten brethren who "have tolerably
correct views respecting the support
of the gospel, but they have never re
duced their principles to practice.'
But "these are mostly poor." A suf
ficiently optimistic comparison might
be made between the state of the
church then and the hopeful frame
of mind In which Its leaders now
plan a "drive" having millions as its
goal.
There waa further preparation for
the missionary's labors In Oregon in
his subsequent sojourn In other fields
in the Mississippi valley. None of
his charges can be said to have been
liberal in treatment of their minis
ters. The constant allusions made
to money matters are graphic In the
emphasis laid on small sums. His
salary from the Home Mission so
ciety on his appointment to the Ore
gon field was fixed at $300 per an
num, with an allowance of $50 for
an outfit. "Destitution" was a word
to bo employed only In describing
spiritual poverty. He was willing to
serve gladly In "some destitute part
of the great valley." Later he was
to find destitution farther west. He
taught school, and did It cheerfully
to make up for deficiencies In salary
and In one quarter (ending Decem
ber 10, 1841) traveled 750 miles, a
good part of the distance on foot
though horses could bo hired at 50
cents a day. In April, 1847, being
then at Astoria, he found that "our
whole country Is oppressed by an
excessive monopoly OI our mer
chants, so that most of the people
are unable to meet the pressing
wants of their families."
If they could sit down at night as they
eome In from their dally labor, take up
a religious periodical and read to their
half-clad families some of the Interesting
triumphs of graces over depravity, instead
of meditating and teaching the principle
of revenge, how would the family circle
b cheered and the lowering cloud of our
western sellttioe be dlsslpateal The qu
tion Is settled that Oregon Is destined to
bs numbered among the states of our
great American republlo; the scenes of
our early privations and sufferings will
soon be known only as they are engraved
on the memory or the eurrerers, or re
corded on the pages of history.
Contributions of clothing were
sought. "You can have no concep
tion." he wrote, "of the manner In
which we are clad In our ordinary
business. We are still wearing old
clothes which we had laid aside as
unfit for use in tho western states
. . We still prefer to practice
this kind of self-denial to the aban
donment of our enterprise. .
We wish not to make the gospel an
item of merchandise. Wo trust we
shall soon have regular mails at least
quarterly from this to the states.
And "our eTeatest embarrassment 1
that we are doing so little
Phrases like these, abounding in the
HOW TO END A FEW TROUBLES.
A few facts were stated to the
senate by Senator Jones a few days
ago which are very much to the
point at this time, when the threat of
a coal famine has Just been lifted
and when sawmills are closed or
running part time for lack of cars.
For ten years development of wa
terpower on government land and on
navigable streams has been practi
cally prohibited by restrictive laws.
In consequence only about 5.000,000
horsepower have been developed in
the United States, when the total
might easily have been 20.000.000.
Actual projects await legislation
which would develop 2.122.000
horsepower on navigable streams
and would Improve 1160 miles of In
land waterway.
On non-navigable streams over 2,
000,000 horsepower would be devel
oped In California. Oregon, Wash
ington. Idaho, Nevada, Montana,
Utah, Colorado and Arkansas.
In 1913 the United States con
sumed 570,000,000 tons of coal.
which required for mining and trans
portation 1.500.000 men, 1,000.000
cars and 40,000 locomotives. Each
water horsepower wasted by non
use represents consumption of five
ind a half tons of coal a year. Each
fifty water horsepower releases the
labor of one man. and each 150
water horsepower releases one
freight car.
Development of the 61.678.000 wa
ter horsepower in the United States
would bo equivalent to consumption
of nearly 780,000,000 tons o coal a
year.
Owing to the deficient supply of
print paper legislation is proposed to
limit the size of newspapers. Tho
pulpwood timber of the eastern and
middle suites Is approaching exhaus
tion, and Canada has forbiddejaex-
port of pulpwood. The paper indus
try Is fast being transferred to
Canada.
There are west of the Rocky
mountains and In Alaska 244.000.
000,000 feet of pulpwood timber.
That In tho United States proper is
adjacent to 36,088,000 water horsepower.
These facts prove that our troubles
in, regard to coal, car shortage, water
ways and paper supply are of our
own making. Release of waterpower
for development would save our In
dustries from being prostrated by
miners' strikes, would give the rail
roads an increased supply of cars
without building more, would open
waterways to cheap transportation,
would stop the emigration of the
aper Industry to Canada and would
save many country newspapers from
extinction.
Congress has been quarreling for
ten years about how to do it. The
house has agreed on Its plan, and
Senator Jones will call on the senate
to act after the railroad bill Is
passed. Inaction should end before
January ends.
Palestine may regain its ancient
fertility and wealth, if favorable ac
tion is taken on a project suggested
by Albert Hiorth. a Norwegian civil
engineer. Mr. Hiorth suggests the
construction of a subterranean can.nl.
37 miles long, running east and west,
and conveying water from the Medi
terranean to the Dead Sea. The dif
ference In level between the two seas
would be sufficient to carry the water
on its long Journey. At different
points, pipe lines and pumping sta
tions would be used to obtain irriga
tion and electrical power.
If Palestino should retain its old
fertility, it would probably soon at
tract a large population The people
of the Jewish race would especially
be likely to colonize in Jerusalem
under which the canal-tunnel would
pass. Moreover, with electric power
available. Industrial enterprises might
be undertaken. Including the exploita
tion of asphalt deposits on th' plains
of Sodom and Gomorrah. Agriculture
would, however, probably bo the most
important Industry In Palestine, as
successful system of Irrigation would
make available a large area of for
tile land.
Turning the Joke back on the othe
fellow was a great stunt for Barnum
the circus king, and recalls an episode
of his tour of England.
One day he met a man named An
dersen, who was a magician and billed
himself as "Tho Wizard of the North."
Anderson lured Barnum to a dinner
at which both were stranger, and
thinking tohave a little fun. Intro
duced Barnum to the assemblage as
"The Wizard of the North."
Not the least taken aback. Barnum
gracefully acknowledged the Intro
duction, and bowing to the assem
blage, said:
"Ladies and gentlemen, . as you
ki.ow. 'The Wizard of the North' gives
hla first tshow Monday night, and as
: ou are now all my friends. 1 would
iKe to nave you accept pesses to see
the opening performance." and he be
gan writing passes as fast as he
could.
Anderson stood It as long as he
could, but. finally, with visions or
having to do his first show to a dead
head audier.ee. he weakened and confessed.
New Year.
By Grace E. Hall.
You
lad-
virile
are a sprightly
youtn;
None look with dread upon your fu
ture reign.
Nor doubt your glowing promise or
its truth
To waken new endeavor in man's
brain;
None pause to ruminate that yester
years
Were Just as debonair, perhaps, as
you:
None ask to see the cup of human
tears
That you may see quite filled, ere
you are through.
What of your pater, recently passed
on?
How did he keep the pledges made
to man?
Let each recall that other New Year's
dawn.
With earnest leal behind each new
made plan;
No broken vows the year Itself has
brought
The days, full-measured, have been
born on time:
The sun has yielded warmth: the sea
sons wrought
Their miracles in growth, through
force divine.
The dreams that faded, like the leaves
that fall.
Enrich where'er they lie; we know
each one
Makes stronger, sweeter, truer, after
all.
Those mystio things of life, when
once begun:
l-'or dreams are tender thoughts that
make a trail
Through many a gloomy labyrinth
of the brain.
And though perhaps In action they
shall fail.
Their sacred memory ia a moral
gain.
New Year, we know full well the
things you boast;
Know, too, the brevity that marks
your stay.
And so we welcome you with ardent
toa'st.
That you be started brightly on
your way:
We drop a silver bead upon the bier
Of your departed sire, who served
us well.
For tears and smiles co-mingle every
year
When we must voice both greeting
and farewell. 1
GRACE E. HALL.
England is solving the housemaid
problem by employing returned sol
diers as "men of all work," and with
the discovery that they are more
efficient than the housemaids used to
be the feminist movement is likely
to take a decidedly surprising turn.
The bolshevik! who are predicting
that the end of 1920 will "see the
end of bourgeoisie rule on earth"
should remember what has Just hap
pened to the reputation of Professor
Porta as a prophet.
With a record of $8,711,937 ex
pended for relief of families of sol
diers since February 1, 1918, the
Red Cross again invites attention to
Its record for functioning In peace
as well as In war.
Inasmuch as Bermuda has prohib
ited Introduction of automobiles. It
is proaably the safest place In the
world to send that surplus stock of
70,000,000 gallons of whisky.
Will the champions of vested rights
Insist that those liquor cure estab
lishments ruined by prohibition
ought to bo recompensed by the government?
It Is getting to tho point where it
Is more blessed to have refused a
naval war medal than to have re
ceived one.
In calculating the high cost of liv
ing, don't forget that the high cost
of strikes has to be figured in some
where.
The habitual early shopper already
has his pair of automobile plates
ready for January 1, of course.
Just think of the trouble D'Annun-
zlo might make If he had adopted
Amy Lowell's style of verse!
No one will blame Lady Astor's
little son John for not wanting to
be known as Jack.
Anyway there Is one thing we don't
need to swear off on this coming
New Year's day.
France evidently has a high re
spect for the staying qualities of
cojeresjgondeucet sua alviMueut cieuiaaeeau, . . .
By sounding with sound waves in
stead of a steel cable, a Frenchman
has been able to-determlne the depth
of the ocean In a few- seconds where
the ordinary proeem requires minutes
or hours. In contrast to the usual
equipment of cable, reels and donkey
engine, he equips himself simply with
a quantity of high explosive, a micro-
Phone and a chronometer. Detonating
a charge uf explosives in the wake of
hla moving vessel, he hears In his 1
microphone both the nolso of detona
tion and the echo produced by re
flection from the bottom. Reading
the time interval from the. ehronom
etor and knowing the speed of sound
in water, he is able to calculate the
ccean's depth at that point. Tusts
have shown that the method yields
sufficiently accurate results for prac
tical purposes. Popular-Mechanles.
The bird with the longest tall comes
from Japan Some of them have tails
as much as 12 feet long. When they
go for a walk In the open air they
are accompanied by special train bear
ers who keep the tall from touching
the ground. It la a variety of the
barn-door fowl. In the same way
that pouters and fantall pigeons have
been developed from the common pig
eon In Europe, the long-tailed cocks
are carefully reared In Shlnowara, a
village of the island of Skikoku.
m
Lord H ug s staff car is not to be a
companion to Napoleon's Waterloo
coach at Madame Tuasaud's. after all.
It waa bought for 3600 guineas by Mr.
W. S. Luton, who announces that he
Intends to use It to travel around va
rious confectionery stores. Manches
ter Guardian.
Aa Wells Would Do It.
Our "Jack and Jill." that simple tale,
How Mother Goose did slight ltl
Ah. how her careless lines would pale
If H. G. Wells should write It!
First, take the hour when Jack was
born,
How mucus papa waited;
Describe that age with bitter scorn;
Tell bow Jack's parents mated.
Then analyze Jack's Infant bean.
Recount hla careful schooling:
Sketch Jill's arrival on the scene,
And paint their childish fooling.
State how the buckets were procured;
(Describe a bucket shop);
See hew the Ill-starred pair were
lured '
To tempt the fatal drop.
Give all the croaklngs ere the spill:
The w-orda of faithful granny.
Depict the aspect of that hill
With every coign and cranny.
Tell how thev clambered up the slope.
Observing all the strata.
And canvassed England's future hope
With economic data.
Say how the first misstep waa Jill's;
Fcor Jack fell down like Adm:
They 1 it the road beneath the hill
(The pavement was macadam).
E-eith Ftcatuu in "Types of Pan."
TONY'S (ir.H-MlCIDE.
l.eesten meester. If you please,
.Me I splkka fine Inglees.
Hy my splkka no can see
I cooin fromina Italee.
Me I'm smart Italian.
Reada mooch American.
Keada once fly take de feet
(rrabba boog up In de street.
Roog ees vera, vera small.
Heem you see no not at all.
l-'ly pack tousand boogs alone,
Put heem on de macarone.
Hoog ambish set queek buses
Italse tremenda famllee.
You eat mac maybe all night;
Next day maybe wanna bite,
Maka rough house right away.
You die maybe nexta day.
Me de leetle boog don't trust.
Make heem vera dtssagust.
Disappoint and vera blue.
No ambish can nothing do.
Vera soon he faint and die.
Meester boog iss gooda bye.
.Me I feexa heem allrlght.
Million boors me no exclta.
Fata mac a blgga pan
Kata moocha as I can.
Kata garlic wanna hlte:
Meester boog say "Gooda night."
WILLIAM VAN GROOS.
why hocld i mm
Why should I weep for Guinlvere?
Why should I weep? She la not here.
Phe trails the night, the stars, the sea.
She is not here to walk with me.
Why should I wait forevermore
Her dainty footstep at the door?
Why should I reach to find the place
Where she abldeth yet In apace?
Why should I stand Irresolute.
As if that broken, silent flute,
Her voice, could speak from out the
air.
Enpalpltant, here, everywhere?
But yet. but yet, I see her etlll.
In wreaths of radiance on the hill.
In trees afleck with Christmas snow.
Or roses flushed with summer glow.
Reminders all I hear her alng
In every birdnote of the spring:
She laughs, behold that gladsome
smile
Of her whom I had missed a while.
No perfect thing Is lost, and here
Still lives and loves my Guinlvere;
Her shining self from out the sod
Speaks in the sunlit smile of God.
EVA EMEKY Oil.
CANT.
Did ever some little thing haunt you
And come, O so often, to daunt you?
Tho you cried In despair tins thing is
unfair.
Undismayed It lingered to taunt you?
One small, hateful word has stayed
ncur me
And managed so often to queer ma;
Affixed is one latter that makes It a
fetter.
If that could ba banlahed 'twould
cheer me.
llttla
word. It Is
Now this mean
"can't."
Its last letter gives It the slant.
The first three are great and oft de
cide fata,
But all four together mean sha'n't.
JANETTE MARTIN.
HAPPY' XEW YEAR,
Ring the bells now loud and clear;
Ring out tho old and tlr:d year.
Time with acythe and hourglaaa.
Let him exit, let him pass.
Taking with him all that's bad
Disappointing, mean and sad;
Leave In memory behind
All that's pleasant, good and kind.
Yesterday died pain and sorrow,
Joy and hope ara born tomorrow.
Time, whose form Is bent, alas!
Let him exit, let him paas.
With the gladsome nolsa and din
Little cherub enter in.
Ring the bella now loud and clear,
Fsher In the glad New Year.
RUTH FLEISCHER.
Seattle.
Seems Like Old Tinea.
Louisville Courier-Journal.
"1 hope you will pardon me for
shooting af you. I didn't mean "
"No apologlea necessary, stranger."
declared the guide. "It aeemed Ilka
old time la the Arsouue."