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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 4, 1920)
T THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN. PORTIiAXD. JANUARY 4, 1920. SPOTLIGHT OF PUBLIC SENTIMENT IS CAST UPON ISSUES OF DAY Capital Pnishment Viewed From Various Angles by Interested Correspondents Opinions on Diversified Subjects-Are Expressed. . PARDON CURB RECOMMENDED Reader Would Tate Power Away From Governor. PORTLAND. Jan. 2. (To tie Edi tor.) Every g-ood citizen Is surely anxious for more drastic execution of the law against crime, and indeed it looks very much as though new and much more drastic measures should be taken against the ever-increasing crime wave that is sweeping' the country. Bo we must without delay decide on a prompt and effective, safe and sane. Issue to put before the vot ers at the next election, to deal es pecially with first-degree murderers. We must decide on an issue that by Its extreme nature cannot be turned down by the voter, some offering as a solution the re-enactment of capital punishment. It occurred to me at the time of he Centralia massacre that hanging should by all means be replaced In Oregon, but now when I picture my self going to the polls to vote on it, I have the same feeling that I believe a majorUy of the voters will have If an issue like this is put before them: I do not think we are fr it. but for some other measure that does not seem so barbaric and which could be voted for with a clear conscience by every honest voter In the state. Churchgoers will say that hanging is un-Christian and they will not con sider voting for it, considering that we made a step in the right direction when capital punishment was voted out; others of just as good character will oonslder it likewise. Therefore, the same voters who voted it out will keep it from coming back In force for the same reason that they voted It out. Therefore, with all the efforts that will have been spent to re-establish this antique and barbaric method, wo will after election be as far from the solution as before. I would therefore advocate what nry Judgment tells me is a more sane and reasonable measure, that will be absolutely sure to receive the sanc tion of the majority of voters and which would have practically - the same horrors for the murderer as hanging1 and an issue that the vcter can sanction and vote for with a clear conscience and regardless of his creed or color, and know that by so doing he is doing his bit in reducing and Tuttlng down to a certain degree re currences of such outrages as have recently taken place in Oregon, prob ably partly on account of our lax and lenient methods with criminals. My method to deal with flrst-de gree murderers would be to give them positively life Imprisonment at hard labor, without the remotest possible chance of a pardon. The pardoning power in first-degree murder cases should therefore be taken away from the governor, and under no circumstances, either from Ill-health, old age or good be havior, should a criminal of this type be lot out only to encourage others to commit Just as big crimes with a ten-to-one chance of getting free on the grounds of good behavior or some other pretext. It seems that no matter how hor rible the crime a man commits, after a few years of good behavior in Jail and being constantly reminded and recommended for pardon to those in authority, he is thereby seemingly martyred and tha enormity of his crime Is forgotten and he is often re leased. This should not be. and an Issue such as I suggest would appeal to the voters much more than re enacting capital punishment and would not cnly be humane but practical- and effective as well. This should at least be an alternative to vote on, so that after election the law will not be without effective means with which to overcome this common occurrence tj a degree. Cap ital punishment I do not believe will ever go through. My proposal is to take the pardoning power for first degree murder from the governor, give the murderer absolute confine ment at hard labor, with no degree of leniency. R. M. LANSWORTH, GEER MADE BY PHRASE C. J. Scbnabel Says "Miscellaneous Candidate" Elected Him. PORTLAND. Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) The Oregonian's editorial giv ing the origin of certain phrases was Interesting. Some 20 or 25 years ago Governor Geer coined one which has been used since and quoted all over the country and really. In a way, made him governor of Oregon. At one time Mr. Geer sought the ap pointment of collector of Internal revenue for this district. President McKinley had promised it to another and in lieu thereof offered Mr. Geer an appointment as either register or receiver of the Oregon City land office. This offer was declined by Mr. Geer. with the remark that he was not a "miscellaneous candidate." J.J. Kelly, who was conceded to be the of ficial head of the "ancient order of chair-warmers," made up of demo crats, holding forth in the lobby of the then Holton house, Fifth and Al der streets, predicted that in time this phrase "miscellaneous candidate" would become a by-word In Oregon politics and would land Mr. Geer In the office of governor, and It did. President McKinley, upon hearing ef this phrase, told Geer it would make htm governor, just the same as "McKlnley's bill" made the latter governor of Ohio. By the way, wasn't It Senator George F. Edmunds of Vermont, in stead of Grover Cleveland, who first 'brought out "Innocuous desuetude"? CHARLES J. SCHNABEL. LIBERTY BOXB TAX OPPOSED Subscriber to Second Loan Cannot Afford to Sacrifice. PORTLAND. Jan. 3. (To the Edi tor.) Can any sane person advance any valid .reason why the taxes on the liberty bonds should not be elim- lnated? They were bought largely by people of very limited means. We were asked to buy to our full limit, both present and prospective. I, like thousands of others, did 60. I bought $2000 of the second loan, almost to the full limit of my savings, and now, in these days of high prices, I find I need the money, but I find I will lose $150. which I cannot afford, as I am 60 years Of age. Undoubtedly the tax will be done away with in time, but will it be before the ones (hat came to the aid of the government In Its time of need have lost? - J. PROPERTY'S POWER CITED "Human Mind Bewildered in Pres ence of Own Creation." . PORTLAND. Jan. 2. To the Edl- tor.) Judge Wallace McCamant, who j one who was serving for his seventh Is a cultured and scholarly gentleman. ' murder. Had he paid the penalty must know that the expropriation of j for his first murder the six subse a person's home is not what Is-aimed ; quent murders would not have been &t by the alleged radicals; for the ( committed. Another ridiculous as majority of mankind this has already taken plaoe. Let us near an aumonty on tno subject. .... "Since the advent of civilization the 'ywth ' Property has been so Immense, its forms so diversified, its usee so expanding and its manage ment so intelligent in the interests of its owners that it has become, on the part of the people, an unman- i ageable power. The human mind stands bewildered in the presence of its own creation. "The time will come, nevertheless, when human intelligence will rise to the mastery over property and define the relations of the state to the prop erty It protects, as well as the ob ligations and the limits' of the rights of its 'owners. The interests of so ciety are paramount to individual in terests, and the two must be brought into just and harmonious relations. A mere property career is not the final Tiestlny of mankind, if progress is to be the law of the future as it has been of the past. The time which has passed away since civilization' began is but a fragment of the past I duration of man's existence, and but fragment of the ages yet to come. The dissolution of society bids fair I to become the termination of a career of which property Is the end and aim. because such, a career contains the elements of self-destruction. Democ racy in government, brotherhood In society, equality 1n rights and privi leges and universal education fore shadow the next higher plane of so ciety to which experience, Intelligence anl knowledge are steadily tending. It will be a revival In a higher form of the liberty, equality and frater nity of the ancient gentes." Lewis H. Morgan, Ancient Society, pp. 561 and 62. JAMES HISLOP. WILSON DECLARED AUTOCRAT Reasons for Dimming Li g lit Are Presented by Observer. PORTLAND, Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) Some time back Mr. "Wilson came to the front as a world leader, a sort of a Joshua to lead the people out of the wilderness Into Canaan. The people followed him quite gen erally, believing that he would lead them across the Jordan into the land of their dreams a land of big grapes, rich milk and delicious honey. But the procession seemed to halt, the guiding star became dim and grew paler and paler as the days went on. And now there is but a glimmering of a flickering light and the people are still in the wilderness and the land of promise is not In sight. When Mr. Wilson nominated and elected himse.lt a delegate and nomi nated and elected his associates to the Paris conference and boarded the George Washington for Paris, his grip on the American people loosened, for some believed It was Improper for him to go; others that It was un-American, and others that he was seeking the world dictatorship. When he arrived In Paris his sun was very bright; he was hailed as the maker of a new day, a creator of a new world. Old things were to pass away, and behold, all things were to become new. If there was not to be a new heaven there was to be a new earth. But as time went on his shining sun began to dim and toward the end It had become not much more than a glimmer. We may Infer this from a dispatch that came from the French capital to a pro-Wileon local paper from Its regular staff correspondent in which we find these words: "When Mr. Wilson came to Paris he could have been elected king, but now he could not be elected justice of the peace." "What caused his bright star vto lose so much of its luster? I may name three things: 1. His unparalleled "partisanship. Mr. Wilson is a democrat of demo crats; a partisan of partisans. Me and mine will do it. I guess they've done It, all right. 2. His ever visible egotism. Mr. Wilson will not go down into his tory as a man who humbled himself and became exalted. S. His unquenchable ambition for power and glory. It might have been well had he remembered the simple words, "Paths of glory lead but to the grave." Mr. Wilson has been called a diplomat. Whoever heard of a schoolmaster being a diplomat? I have known some of them and they were anything but that. In my Judgment, Mr. Wilson in wardly is an autocrat and outwardly a dictator. When he speaks, people must listen; when he commands, they must obey. He forgets the old saying, that you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. Mr. Wilson led the senate to the trough, as It were, but It wouldn't drink. Now the league of nations and the peace treaty are dead and so is Mr. Wilson, and the people are still In the wilderness and -the land of corn and wine Is not in sight. O. Utopia! Utopia!! Utopia!!! Where art thou? ISAAC PEART. 847- Tamhill street. DEATH PENALTY IS UPHELD VMaudlln Sympathy" for Hardened Criminals Is Opposed. PORTLAND, Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) The subject of capital punish ment and the taking of human life by process of law has ever been regarded as a necessary exercise of the right of self-defense naturally vested in so. ciety. It is an Indispensable means of providing for the security and well being of all Its members, as self preservation is tie first law of nature. Nevertheless, there has arisen in our state, of late, a strong feeling of opposition to the theory and practice of legal retaliation, while, on the other hand, a large majority, realiz ing that a serious mistake was made In 191, desire to have the error rec tified by having, capital punishment restored and strictly enforced. The certainty of punishment 'would be a far greater deterrent to murder than any maudlin sympathy bestowed upon hardened criminals by "Jelly-spined officials." Stringent measures must be adopted to protect life and property In order to prevent paroled, pardoned and escaped convicts from robbing or murdering. Statistics show that fully 80 per cent of crimes are committed by youths under 24 years of age, the majority of whom have either prison or reform school records. All crimi nals are but diseased men of primi tive passions, like wild animals in captivity, looking upon every free person as an enemy responsible for their confinement. The writer had several years of practical experience with criminals as an officer of the Nevada state prison at Carson City, where he had the opportunity of studying the crimi nals under all conditions and becom ing familiar with their ways and habits through dally contact. Amonr the 18 murderers confined, there was sertion is mat ine execution or mur derers has not prevented murder! Will someone elte a single instance where the murderer has expiated his crime, having never committed another? A. W. MILLER. EUROPE AGHAST AT AMERICA Former Portlander Abroad Tells of Treaty Impressions. PORTLAND. Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) I am the recipient of a letter from my brother, Nathan Medofsky, who is in Berne, Switzerland. It con tains many Items of interest, ranging from sport to tragedy, but the in centive that prompts me to write you is the description of the political sit uation with the United States as the leading character, as Is viewed by diplomatic men from Europe. The fol lowing is an excerpt from his letter: "The people abroad stand aghast at the spirit of some of the American statesmen In opposing President Wil son so desperately and refusing to sanction the entry of the United States into the league of nations. They simply can't understand at this end of the globe. I hope that the members of the opposition party will soon come to their senses and give peace and liberty to, the world. Just when America took the lead and was directing the world, a petty partisan spirit shows its head. As viewed from this side of the water, this certainly rs an ugly manifestation. It strips America of the power and dignity which are Justly due her." A host of friends will read with joy of Nathan Medofsky. and also of Mor ris Medofsky. Both are Portland youths, who made this city theifresl denee until 1914, dating back to 1900, when they arrived here with the rest of the family: In 1014 they left for Europe, reaching Palestine a short while before the outbreak of the war in Europe. Both became connected with the Anglo-Palestine banking firm and were there until that insti tution was confiscated by the Turk ish government. Then the times for them were more adventurous, as they became connected with American con sular services one in Jaffa and the other in Jerusalem. Their lot was a strenuous one in view of the fact that attended the duties of seeing Amer icans to safety from the hands of the Turks. After relations were strained be tween the United States, and Turkey all diplomatic men in American serv ice were transferred to Berne, Swit zerland, where both'Me-rls and Na than continued their work. At the opening of the peace conference in Paris Morris was summoned to act as private secretary in the peace confer ence, whre he still is. On . account of his excellent work in that connection he has been urged to accept a position with the American embassy at Ber lin. In being attached to the first embassy after hostilities, he is look ing forth to some very adventurous experiences. Nathan Medofsky"s work in Berne, Switzerland. Is that as head of the reporting bureau, and French translator. Both are looking forward with much anxiety for their return to Portland and their, friends, but their duties are such that at present they must be adhered to. B. M. GOD'S' LAW IS RECALLED "Whoso Sheds Man's Blood, by Man Shall Ills Blood Be Shed." NAHCOTTA. Wash., Jan 2. (To the Editor.) Why should people dis agree as to the scriptural authority for capital punishment? The same God who said "Thou shalt not kill" led the armies of Israel to victory and ordered this people to , slay the murderer. - . This surely teaches that God does not consider war and capital punish ment murder. Cities of refuge were provided wherein the accidental homi cide was protected. Now, a life sen tence should be given If the evidence Is circumstantial. Long before the "Mosaic law was given God commanded that "whoso sheddeth man's blood by man shall his blood be shed." If God is "the same yesterday, today and forever," what right has any people to ena,ct a law that abrogates the death penalty? Capital punishment does not cause people to become revengeful. They are just naturally that way. While Jesus said, "Put up thy sword," he did not tell Peter to throw it away. They had been intimate associates for years, but evidently Jesus had not taught him that it was wrong to carry one. He and his apostles al ways taught their followers to obey civil law. Paul tells us that civil rulers are ordained of God, also that "they are the revengers to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil." In Romans xil:19 he is addressing church people and Christians are not supposed to be criminals. There are churches which claim to be non-resisting, but would anyone look idly on while his loved ones were being murdered? I have never known these non-resisting people to advocate the discontinuance of the police force. Jesus said, "If the good man of the house knew the hour of the 'thief's coming that he would not permit his house to be broken up." It seems to me that the question now Is, how can one be Just or right eous himself and refuse to obey the law, either divine or civil? Therefore, If God's law on capital punishment has not been annulled, there Is but one thing to do obey it as quickly as possible. If one wish to escape pre sumptuous eln In this matter and give the best service to our genera tion, for we can't always follow the line of least resistance and put evil to flight. A. B. M. TIP IS GIVEN AUTO DRIVERS Study of Laws' and Strict Observ ance Held Duty. PORTLAND. Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) On one of our principal west ern railroads, before an engineer can hold the throttle, with many lives and valuable property behind it, he is re quired to pass an examination on the operating rules of 'that company. He Is required to be familiar with all forms of hand signals, automatic, in terlocking, air, and whistle signals; to fully understand train orders; to know how to protect the train by proper flagging when conditions necessitate. An engineer must also be able to distinguish colors: must have good eyesight and hearing; he must know at what speed to reduce when approaching junctions, cross ings, tunnels, trestles and' draw bridges and rounding curves, and when track ahead is not seen to be clear account of fog, trees or other wise. He also must be familiar with the action of his brakes and know ex actly the amount of air to use and how and when to use it and within how many feet the train he Is draw ing will come to a standstill. An air test Is made of the brakes before leaving the initial station and run ning tests are made at prescribed points and also Inspection of the brakes themselves, to see that they are in proper working condition. Now why cannot this same method be applied to drivers of automobiles? A board to hold examinations for automobile drivers and require such drivers to be thoroughly familiar with their state, county and mu nicipal laws, as well as courtesies, be fore being permitted to sit at the wheel of an automobile of any power? Does the average driver realize that he or she is also handling lives, whether there be passengers in the machine or not? Through his negli gence he can take some other person's life even though that person were en tirely In the right. The pedestrian is not wholly to blame. Where there are traffic of ficers many drivers fail to Watch the officer for his signal to proceed or stop, and In many cases are over the white line, going against a stop sig nal, and all conflicting traffic must come to a standstill until this law breaker determines what he is going to do. And more than likely when he gets into this predicament, he Is eith- I er allowed to proceed or stand still, instead of moving back into the clear, out of the way of pedestrians. And many times he is not even admon ished or told to report. If this violator knew the traffic rules he would not have found him self in such a position. There are drivers who deliberately reverse their car, with no Indication of their intention to do so, at danger to both pedestrians and other ve hicles. Why do some persist in mov ing forward again as soon as a street car has stopped, without allowing the alighting passenger time to seek safety? And also, why do most drivers Insist upon crowding up as close to the rear end of a s-treet car as pos sible? Many times the car has to be reversed a few feet. And there-are violations of speed in rounding cor ners, and where view is obstructed by buildings, trees, hills, or It is foggy or smoky. The same condition pre vails when approaching curves, cov ered bridges or intersecting roads. They should always figure that pos sibly the other man is standing there, aid must be prepared to bring his machine to a stop before hitting. Another thing I believe would ma terially reduce accidents at railroad crossings. Let the driver stop his car, the motor too, and then look and listen, and if there is no approaching train, proceed. A little touch on the self starter or even the crank, and a few seconds lost Is much better than knowing that your wife, mother or sweetheart is lying somewhere be neath the debris, just because you thought you could save 10 or 20 sec onds. I hope that we shall never have to require automobile drivers to be ex amined as before recommended, but unless they take the tip and acquaint themselves with the laws and observe them, this Is what Is going to happen with them. J. C. G. WHALE STORY PROOF ASKED Writer Wants to"Knov How Chl cagoan Can Refute Bible. HUNTSVILLE, Wash.. Jan. 2. (To the Editor.) I note that Dr.- Moul-k ton of the University of Chicago says "the story of Jonah and the whale is utterly devoid of truth." I am won dering upon what grounds the doctor makes so bold a statement. Has he discovered some new evidence that demonstrates the falsity of the rec ord? Or does he simply assume it as a personal opinion? If the assumption is based on new and demonstrated evidence then he owes it to the scholarship of the Christian world to let it be known. If he simply assumes it on his per sonal opinion, then be It known that the intelligence and Indulgence In the right of knowing for oneself Is so universal that the world Is demand ing the why. It appears to the .av erage thinker that it In' rather late In the day to call in question a section of history that has gone through the crucible of centuries of the most thor ough investigation as to Its reliability and stands at this time unscathed by all the darts of its foes. To illustrate: There have been about 21 translations and revisions of the sacred text in which the dif ferent books of the Bible have passed under a most critical review as to their reliability by the most learned and at the same time the most devout men of three centuries, and it would be strange if at this time some one man should discover that Jonah never was and that the fish did not exist. It is cruel, it is unfair, for some man of supposed learning to attack the reliability of any part of the ea cred text by an assumption, hoping to gain credence on the basis of his scholarship, real or professed. Let it be said that if the state ments of the learned gentleman are correct he has with one mighty stroke or nis declarations destroyed the ground of faith in the entire scrip tures, for Christ put his divine seal on the story of Jonah and the fish in saying "For as Jonah was three days and three night's In the whale's belly, so shall the son of man be three days and three nights in the heart ot the earth." Mat. xlt40. But the saying of the Christ settles the fact that Jonah and the whale were and did the things accredited to them. Lastly, the rivers of human blood that have flowed in the last five years because the world has discarded the thought of divine authority being found in the Bible ought to make men careful as to what they assume. If the book Is false we are at sea. J. S. RHOAD 3. RAZORS ISSUED 40 YEARS AGO Writer Describes Toilet Kits Given to Soldiers In Old Days. PORTLAND. Jan. . (To the Edi tor.) In an entertaining article on razors In the Sunday Oregonlan we read: "This is the first time In his tory a razor has been part a sol dier's equipment." Over 40 years ago the undersigned was "served out" with a kit. Among other things was a linen affair, pat terned after a "housewife" and known as a "hold-all." This had a pocket at one end. and a number of loops for the reception of small arti cles. These were case knife, fork. spoon, razor, button stick (for hold ing buttons in order to polish them), comb, pocket knife and shaving brush. With the things in place the hold all was rolled and secured by strings attached to one end. This outfit was seldom used as there were kit inspec tions from time to time, and they were not heralded with a brass band. At such times everything had to be clean and placed exactly in its ap pointed position, hence it was custo mary for a man to keep one set for inspection and another as working tools. These he. carried where most convenient. The orders were "shave or let 'em grow.". Shaving one day and neglect ing to do so another day, would not work. No soap or hot water was served so we frequently used cold water alone, or In an emergency had a dry shave. Hair cutting, among mounted troops, was done by the rough-rider. As he had experience In trimming horses' heels he was per haps the best man for the job. A peculiarity of the kits of those days was thar" dismounted man had one pair of shoes and one pair of boots; the mounted man had one pair of shoes, one pair boots for dis mounted duty and another pair of boots for mounted work. E. C. WHITE. POWERS OF MONEY DIFFER Falsity or Belief in Benefits of Higher Wages Asserted. CORVALLIS, Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) What do we mean by and what determines the value of money? By value of money I mean the purchas ing power of money as expressed by money prices of other things. Often you hear persons speak of the gen eral purchasing power of money, which is ridiculous because money has a large number of different pur chasing powers. For example, wheat may be 82 a bushel. Then one value ef money will be the wheat value, which is a bushel for 12. Still again, beefsteak . may be three pounds for $1- Then another value of money Is the beefsteak value or three pounds a dollar. We can't blend these two and many other commodities into one idea and call them general for they are all varying widely and along no general scheme. Let us consider the changes in the various purchasing powers of money. These may be widespread and gen oral or they may be confined to the purchasing powers of only a few com modities. In speaking of -purchasing powers of commodities let us keep In mind that we mean the values of money which those commodities de termine. Suppose a new invention would decrease the price of some one commodity. This would be a strictly local change In value. Sometimes, however, there are price fluctuations which affect practically all commod ities. These f luctuations may be either up or down. The question naturally arises as to what causes these fluctuations or changes In the value of money? Most persons will answer It by say ing that It Is simply a case of supply and demand. But Is that really so? It Is not so simple as that. If we assume that prices of all commodities have gone up then does it seem logical to assume as a reason for such a change, that supply is small and the demand Is large? We must remem ber that we, are speaking of all com modities now. I was recently talking with a ship yard employe. I was telling him about a certain union striking for a six-and one-Hour day and 848 a week wage. He said. "Yes, and I hope they get it." I asked him if he had thought about how their Increase would cause living to go up still higher and how those who did not get such a fat rise would have to pay for the prosperity of the strikers. He replied that ho had not thought about it in that way. The average laborer thinks that the pay check- he receives each week or month is worth something in itself. He doesn't understand very clearly that It Is simply a medium of exchange. To illustrate, let us assume that wheat at $2 a bushel Is now $4 a bushel and that beefsteak at three pounds for $1 is now three pounds for $2. In other Words, all commodities have the same exchange relations. This is not true with money, however. Under such an Increase in prices the various values have diminished by one-half. As a means for- obtaining other things money has only half Its former value. The shipyard worker I spoke of Is not to blame for his lack of Infor mation. He has been at the same old game of making a living (probably a scant one) year In and year out. He has come to the conclusion piobably that he is a machine and is being overworked for the good of one who gets the benefit of his efforts with out appreciating them. Perhaps that Is true. With all due respect to the shipyard worker's viewpoint he has the wrong idea as to rise in wages. I think that raising the wages Is solving the problem only one-half. As long as wages are raised and food prices or cost of living 'is not held down the latter will rise propor tionately If not more so than the wages. Therefore, we see that prices and cost of living must first be held down or regulated before a rise in wages will gain anything. Q. E. SPAIN. CAPITAL PUNISHMENT UPHELD Former Peace Officer Criticises - Present Oregon System. HEPPNER. Or., Jan. S. (To the Ed itor.) As an old peace officer of the state of Oregon and a man who has had to make a close-up study of crime and criminals for many years, I want to contribute my bit toward crystallzing public sentiment In favor of restoring capital punishment for Oregon irlurderers. I am gtatlfied to see the pendulum swing once again In the direction of common sense and common Justice. I fought hard against the repeal of this law In the first place, predict ing at that time exactly what has happened periodical epidemics of cold-blooded murders and a general cheapening of human life. The re peal of the capital punishment law was a great victory, not only for the zealous agitators, the well-meaning but woefully misguided sentimental ists. bit particularly " for the low browed fellow who has had a real or fancied grievance against his neigh bor; also the fellow who wants to enter the hold-up game. Had the hangman's noose been on the Job these. man killers would have sought some milder form of wreaking ven geance on their enemies. I have per sonally discussed capital punishment with several murderers and to a man they have been vigorously opposed to the law. The fear of certain physical punish ment Is the greatest deterrent of crime, and Is about the only argu ment that will get under the thick skin of degenerate criminals. While the whlpplng-post law was on the statute books a few years ago the Morrow county Jail had two wife beat ers as leading candidates for the cat-o'-nlne-talls honors. One dreaded the coming whipping so much that he at tempted suicide. The other dug his way out of jail one night and Is per haps running yet. A mere Jail sen tence or a fine they would have laughed at. I am a strong advocate of prepared ness as the best means of prevention. Had the authorities at Centralis, I Seattle and throughout the state of Washington generally taken hold sev eral months or a year ago of the I. W. W. situation with the same vigorous determination to stamp It out that has been so admirably dis played by our own Mayor Baker, , Governor Olcott and District Attorney I Evans, I am here to say that our glorious northwest would not have been called upon to suffer the un savory advertising she has received as the hotbed of American bolshev lsm, and the precious lives of our heroic soldiers would not have been sacrificed. Too much temporizing and not enough of the big stick. I think that the indeterminate sen tence law is a Joke. It invites con tinual trouble for the parole board and has too strong a tendency to popularize crime. Just as soon as the minimum sentence has been served Mr. Convict and his friends start a red hot campaign for pardon and they are much incensed if their demands are not immediately granted. A parole board doesn't usually have much backbone anyway, and many a hard ened criminal, who should bu locked up permanently for society's good Is turned loose to take up his deviltry where he left off a few months be fore. Since life Imprisonment In Oregon means an actual confinement of less than ten years. I would recommend taking the pardoning power entirely out of the hands of the parole board and the governor In cases of first degree or premeditated murder. The man killer well knows that life sen tence doesn't mean life sentence by a long shot. Mighty little encourage ment for sheriffs and district attor neys to round up and convict murder ers and other criminals only to have a farce made of their efforts. I personally would like to see the Rooseveltian Idea of swift and cer tain Justice supplant the present cus sometlmes civil cases, to drag through torn of allowing murder cases, and the courts for years until everyone Is tired out and disgusted. The crim inal often escapes justice as a conse quence of this delay, and reverence for law is materially weakened. When a criminal Is clearly guilty and his interests have been decently safe guarded he should be speedily pun ished. If he is not guilty, he should be Just as speedily turned loose. Listen to this refreshing compari son, related to me by a Morrow coun ty citizen -who recently -spent a few weeks In Alberta. Canada: While there a cold-blooded murder was com mitted one of the very few that ever happens In that law-enforced region. The culprit was arrested, tried, con victed and hanged by the neck until dead within Just seven days from the time the killing took place. That's what doesn't look good to the fel low who has murder in bis heart. A little of that kind of swift, deter mined Justice In Oregon would cer tainly, minimize the number of shock ing, bloody murders, and would incul cate into the minds of all our citi zenry a greater and more wholesome reverence for the laws of the land. The trouble wtih us western Ameri cans heretofore has been that our actions were governed too much by impulse, and often by maudlin senti ment, and not enough by calm, delib erate judgment and the enforcement of established law. We have seldom done Just what we should have done until goaded on by some horrible tragedy. The sentimentalists and visionary boys have had their fnnlnrs. Now is the time for the permanent advent or 100 per cent Americanism. as advocated by our brave soldier boys, which should Include the iall lng or hanging of all L W. W.'s and bolshevlsts and a thorough weeding out oi crime ana criminals. B. M. SHUTT. TRUTH OF PROVERB PROVED "Whom the- Gods Would Destroy Thy First Make Mad." ALBANT. Or., Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) Four of the world's great em piresGermany, Austria, Russia and Turkey have been by the late war practically destroyed, or rendered powerless for many years. The Au trlan empire, while not the most pow erful, is. historically speaking, the most Interesting. It became the successor of the Holy Roman empire of the middle ages. It was by the agreed legal fiction of Charlemagne and Pope Leo III con sidered as the heir of the mighty uaesars or tne great Julius and Au gustus. It was similar to the Roman empire In Its diversity of 'peoples, but dissimilar in Its military power. It neither won nor held Its authority by the sword. The Hapsburgs were snrewd men and extended their em pire by prudent marriages. They were not soldiers, and while always beaten in battle, yet they were usually diplomatic enough to make peace without any substantial loss of territory. However, a century and a half ago Frederick the Great commenced to undermine the Austrian empire. Fifty years later Napoleon so crippled It that it took all of Metternlch's diplo macy to save it, and less than three score years ago Bismarck conquered It, but spared It for his own purposes. Now It has come to an end by being made a tool by Germany in declaring war against a Weak neighbor, result ing In a new map of Europe. Truly It has been proved that there is much truth In the olfi saying that "those whom the gods would destroy they first make mad." Austria will now be a small buffer state, while Hungary will lose much of her terri tory to Rumania, Serbia and Czecho slovakia. It appears that the two capitals Vienna and Budapest are destined to decline. With the exception of Paris, Rome and Venice, there Is no other city In Europe, so charged with historical and artistic association, so charming and lovable as Vienna. No other Eu ropean city is so like Paris in Its architecture as Vienna. Both were originally Roman settlements. In each a Caesar has resided, the Em peror Julian living in theTne and Marcus Aurellus dying in the other. Here Maria Theresa gave her daugh ter. Marie Antoinette, to become the most ill-fated of French queens. I had the pleasure when at the great Columbian exposition of viewing many , pictures of the wonderful structures of Vienna, such as the Maximilian Plata, the Volksgarten and Theseum. house of parliament, museums, and statue of Maria The resa, the Graben and many others. GEORGE W. WRIGHT. JOHN BARLEYCORN TOASTED "May 12 0 Bring- Closer Your Fi nal Disposition," Says Reader. PORTLAND, Jan. 2. fTo the Edi tor.) Here's to the fluid that is charged with the mischief of a thou sand ages, the liquid essence of spon tanlety In giving and the final seducer of charity, the dissembler who raises the poor devotee to a pedestal of Imaginary greatness and dashes the rich from the pinnacle of opulence, the provocative that fills the mind to overflowing with supreme eloquence or hurls intelligence into a pit of gibbering idiocy, the medium that comes in the guise of kindness and love and gathers its fellowship from the social incongruity " of the four quarters of the earth and swirls them in a maelstrom of irresponsibility, and then departs with the ashes of broken hearts and crumbling souls. Here's to that exhilarating demon who no longer lives in his ancient form, but who Is nevertheless woe fully present in the spirit, who was seized by the minions of constituted authority, was condemned and exe cuted amid the cheers of a host of lesser demons, and has been lying in state awaiting consignment to that Inglorious state from which forms and beings of lesser guilt do not return, and to which It was hoped this arch enemy of sane conduct would be rele gated to the influence of declining favor. Here's to you, John Barleycorn, knight of a billion fortunes, and wrecker of ten billion homes. Here's hoping that 1920 may bring us a long step nearer to your final disposition, for our hearts become fraught with misgivings when we note the epitaph which is being prepared for your tombstone and which reads: "Not dead, but sleeping." J. A. CLEJ1EXSON. WAGE SCHEDULE PARALYZES Pertinent Questions Propounded by Inquirer Hailing From Missouri. PORTLAND, Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) The wage schedule, published In The Oregonlan a few days since. agreed npon by the building con tractors and the building trades council was a paralyzer. It was pre sumably the ukase of the trades council, for the contractors can eas ily pass the added burden on to the poor devil who has a home to build and Is willing to see It done. The public as usual gets It in the neck. "One dollar an hour and over and $2 an hour and over for overtime." Will you allow a Mlssourian, who always has to be shown, to ask a few questions? What was the real origin of this wage profiteering craze? Did it not start when the late war made it so easy to take advan tage of the necessities of Uncle Sam and "cinch" him to the limit in the shipyards and munitions plants and other war enterprises while the boys continually working overtime on the western front were facing the enemy at $1 (not per hour) but per' day? When these men at home could exact wages such as were never heard of before for similar service, in the whole history of the world. Is it any wonder that the practice soon de veloped Into a mad national craze? The high cost of living followed as a natural and inevitable result. With every wage raise the price of meat and bread and butter and e?G3 and clothjng and every other commodity of food and clothing kept pace. Is It any wonder that building ma terial Is out of sight when 75 or 80 per cent of the cost of lumber is in the cost of the labor that produces it, and this labor cost goes up 100 per cent? Pile on top of that the wage scale of the trades council and is it any wonder that we have a serious "housing problem" and that people are scurrying to the apartment houses content to live in three rooms rather than be burdened with the cost of a real home? Did we have any of this 8 or 10 years ago when wages were within reason and houses were springing up on every hand by the thousand? Were we bothered with a housing problem then? Was there then any plea that carpenters were Idle one quarter of their time? Is this prob lem of housing the people confined solely to the trades council and the contractors? Why is It? that in pre paring this wage schedule the home builders are not consulted, but sim ply notified? What is there in the apology of fered for the exorbitant scale that carpenters and other tradesmen are Idle one-quarter of the time? If there is a surplus of carpenters why do they not respond to urgent demands for their service In other lines? Why should a home builder be compelled to support them during the three months they are Idle? If this wage scale Increases non-employment and diminishes building, as it certainly has and will, until carpenters and others are idle six months instead of t'hree months yearly, must the home builder support them in idleness for this six months? If three months why not six months? Looking at it simply as a financial problem, why should any landlord, or any private home builder, who has sense enough to figure Interest on his Investment, and taxes and depreciation and re pairs and insurance and other items of expense spend a dollar in' building? Why not let George do it? Finally as a general proposition how can there be by any possibility a reduction In the hlgb. cost of living so long as present wage scales con tinue? In doubltng wages you are practically halving the value of the dollar and In the final analysis the wage earner himself will suffer by reason of the certain Increase of non-employment, while the revenue from the savings of the old and de pendent, and the hundreds of mil lions Invested in Insurance policies, and the pensions of the widows and soldiers and industrial cripples, will fall to 50 cents on the dollar, and the jobless man can have his choice of suicide or committing a crime grave enough to give him a home In the penitentiary. A profiteering wage earner is no better than a profiteer ing employer. They both need at tention. INQUIRER. WOMAN IS HONORED ON STAMP Reader Recalls World's Columbian Exposition Issue. PORTLAND, Jan. 2. (To the Edi tor.) In the column of "By-products of the Press." you state that the pic ture of President Wilson is about to appear on a postage stamp In Uru guay, and you mention that "this is the first instance of a living Ameri can being so honored." Terhnii-ally ynu are right, as usual; otherwise, off! In 1893 there was i.ssued by art of congress a sp-ial postase stamp to advertise the World's Columbian ex position at Chicago, and a special pos tal card also, the latter bearing the picture of a most beautiful face, that of a typical American woman. Mrs. Potter Palmer, chief of the woman's department of the great fair. I was a guest at the Palmer House (of which her husband was the owner) and when I paid my room rent for the week (850) I was given a type written receipt on the back of suld postal card and mailed It to my wife. By the way, when I was there the Infanta Eulalle, princess of Spain, was In attendance at the world's fair, and when someone suggested that she meet Mrs. Palmer, she Indignantly replied that she "could not receive the Innkeeper's wife!" Mrs. Palmer laughed and planned a trip to Spain next season, during which she had her press agent write up her wonderful grace and beauty, as well as her multi-millions, made mostly in '93. The Infanta Eulalle concluded that It would be nice to entertain the most beautiful, as well as one of the richest ladies in the world. Accordingly she made it known that she was expect ing a visit from the famous wealthy tourist; but Lady Palmer remembered a thing or two and, tossing her pretty head, she said: "I cannot meet this bibulous representative of a degener ate monarchy" and then she went to Paris. . PHILATELEST. TRIBUTE PAID MR. FINLET Dismissal From Commission Is Re gretted by Correspondent. GARDEN HOME. Jan. 2. (To the Editor.) Are we treating fairly Ore gon's celebrated ornithologist? Can the state afford to do without his services? Will it be easy to replace him? Are we so satisfied with our wealth of creative minds that we are ready to treat as an ordinary man Oregon's noted naturalist and one of the best-knoVn men of science in America? Who does not Tecalf that on one of Theodore Roosevelt's few trips to Portland he expressed as his first and onlv wih: "T wish to see William L. Finley." This was years ago, yet William Finley is still a young man, who has dally grown in the wisdom of his un lucrative calling, the wisdom so many eminent men are eager to counsel with. John Burroughs once said to a rela tive of mine: "If only I had the frift to write like your Finley of Ore gon!" ' Therefore, let each honest Orego nlan give a little sober thought to the subject of Mr. Flnleys usefulness. He and he alone saved to the nation the combined ancient and modern breed ing places of water fowl In southern Oregon, thus preserving for future generations the all but perished beauty o the snowy egret, and sav ing as well from extermination many less rare varieties. Yet a man must live by bread and will starve If he give himself wholly to the pursuit of bettering the lives of feathered creatures, though along with It he add to man's enjoyment an Intelligent appreciation of the Jeweled beauties of the air. No one can deny that through the years Mr. Finley has poured out his wealth of knowledge and the beauty of his poetic Imagery for the delight of the people of this state and the nation He has Instilled eagerness to protect the greatest of natural bene fits; has fostered tenderness In chil dren for all living creatures; has riven his valuable hours freely to lec tures, schools and libraries, and spent his energy in hard work to Increase his own knowledge and be better able to transmit it to an appreciative young public. And the state whose debt to him it can never repay re fuses him a seat In its Inner coun cils! Does the state and its people believe there la any way that coin or salaried place can express what It owes him? Some day monuments will stand proudly to honor his memory. Today we refuse him a place among the commission on game, birds and fish, and all the creatures he loves and knows more about in "an hour than the mess gleans n a lifetime. Perhaps he has not a cunning politi cal head or a suitable eye to merce nary profit. We know not. But we know he is a poet and a gentleman and a leader of men. The reader who has never delighted over his "American Birds" has a feast Indeed before him. The gift to di vulge the gospel of nature as he does has been given to few. Let us be thankful he chose our loved state to Invlsh upon the wealth and power of his insight and genius. As a state let us honor him while he lives, as we honor few; let us also respect his Idiosyncrasies If he has any as It Is believed all geniuses have. But measure not his work in dollars or in results of today. Only the future shall appreciate the Im perishable treasure of his worth. ELIZABETH LAMBERT WOOD. QUOTATION HELD ERRONEOUS Statement Attacked by J. J. Ingalls While in Senate Qualified. CORVALLIS, Or.. Jan 2. (To the Editor.) Some days ago The Orego nlan had a very Interesting editorial in reference to slogans and catch phrases in which you quoted John J. Ingalls one-time senator from Kan sas, with "the purification of politics Is an Iridescent dream." And there you stopped. And that is the way the quotation Is generally given. I heard the Rev. Mr. Pence of Portland gave the same quotation not long ago as a shining example of something that ought not to have been said. It Is done frequently, when, as a matter of fact. Senator Ingalls actu ally said almost the opposite. The accusation is a pat illustration of the inability of limping truth to oatch up with fleet-footed falsehood. On Jan uary 14, 1891, Mr. Ingalls himself un dertook to squelch the lie forever by a speech in the senate, but he seems to have had no success, nor do I ex pect to. In that speech he said: "Two portentous perils threaten the safety. If they do not endanger the existence, of the republic "The first of these Is Ignorant, de based, degraded, spurious and unso phisticated suffrage; suffrage con taminated by the feculent sewage of decaying nations, suffrage Intimidat ed and suppressed in the south: suf frage impure and corrupt, apathetic and indifferent In the north. "In a newspaper interview a few months ago, in which I commented on these conditions and alluded to the efforts of the bacilli doctors of poli tics, the bacteriologists of our sys tem, who endeavor to cure the Ills under which we suffer by their hypo dermic "injections of the lymph of nonpartisan, independent politics and the Brown-Sequard elixir of civil service reform. I said that 'the puri fication of politics' by such methods as these, was 'an Iridescent dream.' It seems superfluous to explain. Mr. President, that In those utterances I was not Inculcating a doctrine, but describing a condition. My statement was a statement of facts, not. the an nouncement of an article of faith. But many reverend and eminent di vines, many disinterested editors, many ingenuous orators, perverted these utterances into the personal ad vocacy of Impurity In politics. "I do not complain. Mr. President. It was. as the world goes, legitimate political warfare; but It la an illus tration of the truth that there ought to be a purification of our politics and that the Golden Rule and the Decalogue ought to hare a place In political campaigns." So there it Is what the senator actually said, as a part of tne official records of this government; but It Is not to be presumed that there are enough people who ever read the of ficial records to find out the truth and place them In the majority. C. E. INGALLS. BAR. ON IMMIGRANTS URGED "You Can't Loose Cooties by Kill ing Few Big Ones," Says 'Buddie.' CORVALLIS, Or., .Jan. 2. (To the Editor.) Many of our own soldier boys are without work. Why admit a lot of cheap labor the scum of Europe? If they haven't backbone enough to stand by their own country In this time of reconstruction, do you think for one minute they will stand by us? Who Is at fault In this? It seems to me this would be of vital Interest to the American Region, and every true American. All our trouble has been from the foreign lower class and fanatics Europe has been glad to get rid of. and. we, like fools, have taken In. Their standards of living are not like ours, and the American workingman will never sink to the level of the for eigner. If there Is unrestricted Im migration we will have one. of the worst times America ha,s ever seen. Immigration should be restricted for ten years, then only those Who pass a rigid examination should be ad mitted. Buddies, you know you can't get rid of cooties by killing a few big ones, so why deport a few big ones nd let thousands come in? American I.evion, get busy. "BUDDIE." 'I 107.5v j '