THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAX, PORTLAND, JANUARY 1. 1922
ESTABLISH EI H HENRY I.. PITTOCK.
publlia-"1 by The uregonian Publishing Co.,
13o Sixth hHrel. Portland. OreKon.
C. A. SIUBDKX, B. B. PIPER.
Maiuccr. Editor.
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THE 1S-U ISSUE.
Validity of the exposition meas
ures, as they have come from the
special session of the legislature, may
well intrigue the historian and the
follower of congressional procedure.
The precise issue has perhaps never
been earnestly raised in Oregon be
fore, though we doubt not that many
bill's received a majority of 1 living
members in the past but without
comment were held to have failed
because they did not have approval
of a majority of the full membership
To recite again the situation: The
membership of the Oregon senate is
fixed by law at 30. It is provided
in the constitution that bills shall
have passed when approved by a ma
jority of the elected members of each
house. ' When the senate convened
there was a vacancy due to the death
of one member. The exposition
measures after having been passed
by the house were passed by the
senate by a vote of 15 to 14. The
question is whether 29 or 30 consti
tute the elected membership of the
senate In such circumstances. If 29,
the measures passed; if 30, they did
not.
If it be true that 15 out of 29 liv
ing members cannot enact legislation
then we have a condition rarely, if
ever, possible under parliamentary
procedure wherein a majority can
block any act. And if the rule which
thus applies to' majorities applies
also to quorums, then 11 members of
the senate by resigning can wholly
block the functioning of the legisla
ture. In other words, 'a quorum
would then be 20, and if only 19
members were left there would be
nothing doing. A bloc of 11 senators
could hold the threat of resignation
over the majority and virtually have
the majority at the mercy of the
bloc.
On th other hand, if a constitu
tional majority is a majority of the
members who have not died or re
signed, and if 27 resigned, the three
left could logically transact business,
for two would be a quorum and two
a majority. Or the membership
might even be reduced to one man
and this one man would have a voice
In legislation equal to that of the 60
members of the lower house.
Whatever theory be adopted there
is opportunity for extravagant specu
lation, but as a matter of fact the
illustrations given are not so extrava
gant as they may seem, in view of
what Oregon legislative history ac
tually reveals.
It has been indicated herein that
the rule generally observed has prob-
. ably been that a constitutional ma
jority is a majority of the full mem
bership. Specifically the legislature
in the past . has assumed that a
quorum is two-thirds of the full
membership of house or senate, as
distinguished from two-thirds of the
members living and In good standing.
The legislative session of 1868 was
a bitter partisan affair in Oregon. It
Is not necessary now to relate the
details of differences that arose, ex
cept to say that after the session had
been prolonged to 43 days- the gen
eral appropriation bill had not been
passed, but it appears was withheld
by the democratic majority to force
acceptance of a plan to re-canvass
the vote by which Governor Woods
had been elected In 1868. On the
forty-third day 12 republicans re
signed from the house. Three others
submitted their resignations but they
were not. accepted by the governor
and were- withdrawn. The house,
however, expunged the names of the
last three from the rolls and bodily
ejected one of the three when he
sought to answer the roll. As the
full membership of the house in
those days was 44, the resignation
of 12 and the virtual expulsion of
three more left less than two-thirds
of the members on the roll. It -was
assumed that there was no quorum,
the members -went home and there
was no money for conducting state
business for two years.
It Is ait Interesting phase that the
Oregon senate, which then conceded
that it was helpless to transact busi
ness, reached this conclusion only a
few years after a similar issue had
arisen in congress where It was de
cided in a wholly different way. In
cident' to the civil war congress lost
numerous members by withdrawal
and by secession of the southern
states. The national constitution re
lating to the quorum of house and
senate is similar in wording to the
provision in the Oregon constitution,
except only that the national consti
tution fixes a quorum at a majority
of each house whereas in Oregon it
is two-thirds of each house.
While a majority of both house
and senate apportionments were
elected and sworn, the reduced mem
bership soon made it necessary to de
termine what number constituted a
quorum. In both houses it was ruled
that a quorum was not a majority of
the apportionment but a majority of
the members elected and sworn.
Congress apparently transacted busi
ness on that theory but the rule was
not so definitely promulgated as to
'cover all circumstances until 1890.
Since then the rule in the house has
been that a quorum after the house
is once organized "consists of those
members chosen, sworn and living
whose membership has not been ter
minated by resignation or by action
of the house." The senate rule Is
virtually the same.
Had the Oregon house in 1868 fol
lowed the precedent set by const ess
under a similarly worded constitu
tion, the 29 members left after the
resignations and expulsions could
have continued in session and even
by the stricter interpretation of a
constitutional majority they could
have passed the appropriation bill by
the affirmative votes of 23 of them.
It may be suspected that the legisla
ture in that year, however, 'was not
looking for precedents or loopholes.
The big- idea of each party, after 43
days of conflict, seem to have been
to invoke a calamity on the state
and blame the other party for it.
Unlike the s'a'e constitution the
aUonaI constitution does not define
i me majority necessary to pass laws
Only from the provision which em-
powers the vice-president to cast the
deciding vote in case of a senate tie,
and those provisions requiring a two
thirds vote in special instances, si:h
as on impeachment,' may it be In
ferred that only a simple majority is
required to pass bills. And in a de
cision of the supreme court, sus
taining a ruling by Speaker Reed,
the court uses this language: "And
here the general rule of all parlia
mentary bodies is that when a quor
um is present, the act of a majority
of the quorum is the act of the body
itself."
Were it not for a provision found
In the Oregon constitution, which is
absent from the federal constitution,
there could hardly be doubt as to
the validity of the exposition bills, in
view of the rule recognized by both.
congress and the United States su
preme court. The Oregon section in
question is: "A majority of all the
members elected to each house shall
be necessary to pass every bill or
joint resolution ..." If that
provision means that a majority of
the senate necessary to pass a bill or
Joint resolution is 16, no matter how
many members have died or resigned,
and if the congressional rule as to
what constitutes a quorum Is safe
guidance, then in this state senate
membership might be reduced to 15
by death or resignation, and 15 or
even two-thirds of them could meet
but could not transact any impor
tant business for lack of the 3 6 votes
necessary to pass bills. But the con
stitution is to be literally construed.
If it presents incongruities, it is sub
ject to easy amendment if we do not
like them. This discussion, in any
event, is not intended to support or
combat the validity of the exposition
measures, but to submit a few mat
ters of historical interest to these
who like to mull over unsettled
Issues.
A NEW ORDER OF MERIT.
In bestowing upon Georges Carpen-
tier the Order of Physical Kducation,
the French government on January 1
will do more than recognire a boxer
who has proved his merit in the
pugilistic ring. The honor goes to
him also because he has created a
new interest in the subject of ath
letics in general. It is said that this
has already made a noticeable im
pression upon the health of the
French.
It Is a mistake to suppose that the
body can be neglected with impunity.
even on the theory that more time
ought to be devoted to the develop
ment of the soul. The inclusion of
physical training in the curricula of
elementary and secondary schools of
Oregon, which has been prescribed
by law since 1919, marked a step in
advance for education as a whole,
and no state in which the method
has been tried would surrender the
advantages thus gained. They are
stated with great fullness in the
Oregon law. "This course of in
struction," says the statute, "shall
consist of such activities as will pro
mote correct physical posture and
bearing, mental and physical alert
ness, self-control, disciplined initia
tive, sense of patriotic duty and
spirit of co-operation under leader
ship." The fact of importance as to
physical training is that it not only
benefits those who participate in it.
but also the whole people. Our
instinctive admiration for physical
prowess, which we manifest in a
thousand ways, is based on a sound
principle. We know that th - adage,
"mena sana in corpore sano," con
tains an eternal truth,
France will yet have occasion to
rejoice that the new order has been
established. If it stimulated interest
only in professional athletics, not so
much could be said for it, but the
announcement of the forthcoming
decoration of France's physical idol
says that it is expected also to result
in a revival of outdoor sports of
every kind. The nation which pos
sesses a robust and healthy citizenry
is equipped to solve the problems of
peace as well as those of war.
MODERN ALCHEMY.
Professor Irving Fisher of Yale,
whom the news dispatches' report to
be on his way from London to Berlin
to investigate a rumor that a Ger
man chemist has discovered a
method of making gold synthetically,
is undoubtedly aware of the exist
ence of a vast volume of literature
dealing with the general subject of
the philosopher's stone. Of all the
pursuits of scientists, empirical and
philosophic, none has more deeply
engaged them than the romantic ad
venture which seemed to promise
something for nothing which only
goes to show that scientists are but
human beings, after all.
"Modern chemistry," says an en
cyclopedia writer, "places metals in
the list of elements, and denies the
possibility of changing an Inferior
metal into gold." But even as the
words are written, new authorities
assert that the possibilities in this
direction have not been exhausted,
and that perhaps synthetic gold is
only a matter of time although
they are careful not to say how
much time. The great physicists are
doing a good deal to resolve what
were formerly regarded as the orig
inal elements into still new elements,
and under their researches and ex
periments science becomes, if not
more satisfying, at least less dog
matic than it used to be. We are
co longer content with the old for
mula for air and we discover strange
and previously unthought-of ingredi
ents in gases and in the spectrum of
the sun. There is no finality about
science nowadays, so that Professor
Fisher does well, if he has time to
spare, to look into that exceedingly
interesting tale from Berlin.
Quite beside the alchemy of the
problem, and beyond it, is the hu
man equation involved. The motiva
ting idea of the seeker of a synthetic
process for making gold out of dross
of course, Is that he will thereby
vastly add, first to his own wealth,
perhaps afterward to that of the
world. But the curious anomaly is
created that if he does succeed, he
will defeat his own purpose, unless
he is able to guard his secret from
the rest of the world and unless he
exercises a self-repression wholly ab
normal and not at all to be expected
from men of his type. For a flood
of cheap, easily made gold would be
.the reverse of a boon to the world
just now, and it might be the one
thing needed to force us to take
refuge in the new economic doctrines
of Henry Ford.
It is hiore credible, however, that
even if the chemist has explored a
new field in synthetic chemistry he
has discovered nothing of practical
value, because all profit is likely to
be absorbed in the cost of extraction.
This was so with the extraction of
gold -from sea water, which was,
demonstrated to be theoretically
practical a quarter of a century ago.
and more recently in diamond syn
thesis and that of "pearls. There are
gold mines today in which the metal
exists in its native state but which
o not pay for the working. It is a
violent assumption that gold will be
nianufdeured more cheaply than it is
mined an assumption that in view
of the catastrophe which the discov
ery would invite we shall hesitate to
make.
1 There is nevertheless a good rea
son for continuing the work that the
ancient alchemists began. It is not
to be forgotten that practically all
that we know about chemistry, with
its many ramifications in every hu
man field, is the result of the labor
of these old-time empiricists. It is
not possible to overestimate the good
that may be done as the by-product
of continued search. It is to these
side issues, indeed, that we shall look
for whatever good that comes out of I
the effort as a whole.
WHAT PEOPLE READ.
There is a good deal of significance
In the result of a recent "referen
dum" conducted by the Outlook to
ascertain the taste of the average
American in reading. Rudyard Kip
ling stands well at the head, with
Booth Tarkington second, and H. G.
Wells (doubtless in part because of
the vogue of his "Outline of His
tory") third. Among the first twenty
five there are few that would be
classed by an impartial jury as not
worth while, Harold Bell Wright, be
ing among the few, and there is a dis
tinct refutation of the widely ac
cepted idea that readers of the pres
ent day strongly incline toward the
morbid and curious or eternal tri
angle and the psychology of sex.
Henry Van Dyke, for example, Is
close behind Wells, and Joseph C.
Lincoln, Mary .Roberts Rinehart and
W. J. Locke are well up on the list.
We can hardly find fault with a
ballot that ranks Joseph Conrad a
high as eleventh, and surely not with
one that accords Abe Martin only a
single vote. John' Galsworthy,
George Bernard Shaw, Winston
Churchill and Edith Wharton, to
mention others among the first fif
teen, are sane and wholesome and
corrupting neither of morals not
good taste.
There is nevertheless a good deal
more to be said concerning taste in
reading than is revealed by a mere
list of dominating preferences, as
R. D. Townsend, author of the
article in the Outlook, points out.
"The scattering vote was amazing,"
he says, and givesaparticulars. In
addition to sixty-four authors who
scored more than twenty points each.
no fewer than 228 received some
votes, making 292 "favorite authors"
in all. The force of the figures will
be more apparent from the fact that
the voters numbered but a thousand.
Among the millions of buyers of
books and patrons of libraries in the
whole country, the total of favorites
must be truly amazing. It is not
probable that a list of a thousand is
even fairly representative, nor is It
claimed that It is, although it prob
ably .is reasonably indicative of cer
tain things, as for example, that the
minority, too, have good taste and
that an excellent list might be made
up of those who failed to attain high
points in the competitive score.
Among these are Leonard Merrick,
William McFee, St. John Ervine,
John Drinkwater, Alice Brown, G. A.
Birmingham, Arthur Benson, George
K. Woodberry, Kate Douglas Wiggin,
W. K. Thayer, Romain Rolland and
Eden Phillpotts.
It-is curiously illustrative, too, of
the fact that readers really care less
for the personality of the author
than they do for his work as they
know it that in a referendum which
was supposed to have been confined
to "living authors" a considerable
number who are no longer living re
ceived votes. Tolstoy was among
them, and so were Henry James,
Mrs. Humphry Ward, John Fdx,
Edward DeMorgan and E. P. Roe.
To their readers these authors evi
dently still live, which is perhaps as
sincere a compliment as could be
paid them, while there is-something
to be said as to Conan Doyle's ca?
pacity for vivifying his characters
when "Sherlock Holmes" appears as
the favorite "living author" of one
of the Outlook's electors.
With 292 favorites among only a
thousand readers, as indicated by the
test in question, one is able to
glimpse the difficulties that librarians
face In meeting the demands of a
public even less aristocratic in its
predilections. The problem of giving
intelligent service without resorting
to offensive censorship is enormously
increased by the multiplicity of
books, only a portion of which can
be procured within the average
library's means, and even the list in
the Outlook, encouraging as it is on
the whole, leaves something to be
desired. What shall be said, for
illustration, of the vogue of Harold
Bell Wright, with total sales of
7,250,000 volumes to his credit, when
there are so many others to choose
from? It is a situation that obviously
caanot be ignored by librarians, how
ever they might wish that it were
otherwise, and so many "campaigns
of education" in matters of reading
have failed that the bravest may well
despair.
It is interesting to note that the
Oregon state library, though earn
estly seeking to supply the wants of
a wide variety of lovers of reading,
has taken a stand upon this very
issue, and that it usessthe works of
Wright, which are only typical of a
considerable class, as the test for a
recent explanation of its policy of
restriction in certain insrances. Some
time ago Owen Wister wrote in the
Atlantic an article on "Kuack Novels
and Democracy," an extract from
which the library now finds pecu
liarly applicable to present-day con
ditions: i
Speaking of the author's poor Kngllsh,
he quotes: "He doesn't like for anyone to
see the picture"; "I like for people to hear
my music":. "I would be very glad for such
an engagement": "Neither Mr. King nor
Mr. I.elirange are at home"; " 'Ti not
s .r. from ) r w?ihr.
"Ihe. tits oC the World."
. "The Eytes J
of the World" Bathers Into Its 464 pages. I
think, ail the elements of the quack novel;
one element appearing rather more con
spicuously than in any of Mr. Wright's
preceding stories. This is the sen&isnus
suggestion, the carnal preoccupation, the
somewhat frequent (but scrupulously
pious) reference to illicit sexual relations,
Such is the typical quack novel: staler-distorted
a sham, a puddle of words. . . .
1 have taken yu wading through this
mess of mildewed pap, because unless you
touched It, smelt It, tasted It yourselves,
how could you know the flavor . . . ?
So it is possible, it eems, since not
all the books that are published can
be purchased out of a limited fund,
to guide the popular taste somewhat,
even though such a policy runs
counter to the "best-seller" idea.
There are other reasons for restrict
ing buying, all of "them wise. The
book that deals with the sins and
vices of the idle rich, for ilKistra
tlon, is demoralizing, not alone be
cause it panders to a taste for vice,
but also because it creates unworthy
emulations and fosters a wrong sense
of proportion; the stories that make
heroes of .criminals are obviously
unfit, even as studies of "life as it is."
means of Justifying books that pic
ture life as it never was and prob
ably never will be. The recurrence
of Wright's name among lists of
"favorite authors" would doubtless
an excuse much overworked as the
be less observable if a similar rule
were followed more generally, and
the result would be attained less by
suppression than by the offering of
worthier author In its place.
A SEW MKXXOMTE INVASION.
The 'advance guard of a great
Mennonite immigration from Can
ada to the southern states, which
has just'arrived in Alabama, brings
with it a new problem for the public
schools. The peculiarities of the
sect are not objectionable on the
whole, although the strong pacifism
of its members and their supposed
leaning toward Germany made a
good deal of trouble for them in
Canada during the war, but there is
a prospect that sooner or later they
will come in conflict with the estab
lished customs of their new home.
For ' "non-conformity with the
world" is one of the cardinal doc
trines of the particular branch
which is now overflowing the bor
der and thee are extremes to
which, even in a free country, non
conformity cannot profitably go.
Menno Simon, who founded the
sect, was born in the year that Co
lumbus discovered America, and thei
vitality of his teachings is shown by
the circumstance that the church
has so long survived its beginning,
more than four centuries ago. But
it will be wondered whether not a
little of this has not been due to
thrift and industry which, along
with adult baptism and other the
ological matters, are part of the
Mennonite creed. The Mennonites,
wherever they have settled, have
proved hard workers, excellent
farmers and honest folk who pay
their debts. But on the other hand
tHey are clannish in unusual degree
they contribute little or nothing to
the social development of the com
munities in which they reside and
they not infrequently incur the hos
tility of local authorities because of
their opposition to "man - made
laws."
These newcomers originally
planned to settle in Mexico, where a
large tract of land was bought for
the purpose, but they seem to have
changed their minds in favor of the
United States. In view of their clash
not long ago with the Canadian au
thorities because of their insistence
on conducting their schools "with
out molestation or restriction," it
will be wondered whether there was
not a careful design in their selec
tion of a home in the region which
pays least attention to education t
any state in the I nited States. But
even here the immigrants are likely
to encounter the campaign for the
Americanization of aliens. They are
bound to be included in the sphere
of influence of the American school.
and it is pretty well established that
the plan and scope of our schools
will be dictated by the American
people themselves.
LO AND THE AUTOMOBILE.
We get a glimpse of the rapidity
with which the Indian is being as
similated, after the many years in
which we almost despaired of civil
izing him, from a paragraph in the
report of the United. States board of
Indian commissioners for the fiscal
year 1921. The point under discus
sion is the propriety of freeing Lo
from all government restrictions in
the management of his property, and
the question arises whether he will
be prudent, thrifty and sagacious if
left to his own devices. As to this.
the report says:
The automobile has intruded lta compel
ling allurements Into the scheme of sen.
aratlng the new citizen of Indian blood from
his property. It seems to possess the same
irresistible fascination for the Indian as It
has for his white neighbors. To own oni
seems to be the particular desire of a ma
jority of the tribesmen who have been
placed in possession of the lands . and
money which had been held in trust for
mem py tne government. i-ormeriy tne
craving for alcoholic stimulants and love
of gambling were regarded as dominating
causes In the impoverishment of Indians.
But evidently In these days gasoline to a
large degree has usurped bad whisky,
pneumatic tlrea have displaced the gal
loping hoofs of racing ponies and a book
of road maps has been substituted for the
poker deck as the active elements In the
process of transferring the ownership of
the broad acres and bank accounts . of
newly citlzenized Indians to their white
neighbors.
In this respect it will be seen that
the Indian does not differ vastly
from the white. A good deal of
thrift literature has been written
and mostly wasted at one time or
another in efforts to persuade white
men to buy necessities first, then put
a nest-egg in the savings bank, and
postpone the acquisition of luxuries
until after those matters have been
attended to. On the whole nothing
much has come of it. Consequently,
although the Indian bureau has de
veloped a wide difference of opinion
among its field agents upon the issue
whether Lo is ripe for the experi
ment in self-determination, we have
a strong leaning toward the viws of
thi minority, who say that "they are
in favor of releasing from govern
ment supervision some of the young,
capable .Indians, now spending their
time in idleness, on the ground that
it such Indians lose their land and
money they will be compelled to go
to work, and will thus be forced to
begin a new life which may lead to
self-supporting Independence." The
fact of Importance is not that the In
dian sells his land and buys a high
powered automobile with the pro
ceeds, but that in no other way can
he acquire the independence and ini
tiative that are so necessary to his
ultimate spiritual and material sal
vation. Separated from land and
cash, but retaining youth and health.
the young buck will be no worse off
after his gasoline Mskthan many a
wniie wan nas ueen who Has ma- I
tured into a thrifty and useful citi
zen. There is,' however, a pleasant me
dium between the policy Impetuously
put in practice about 1917, which
i carried to its logical conclusion
would have freed all Indians from
government supervision, and that
which would Veep them perpetually
under the governments,! thumb.
Three-quarters of a century of of
ficial misunderstanHing of Indian
character has created an obligation
which the white man's government
is still bound to respect, and to turn
some Indians loose to shift for them
selves would be a plain act of in
humanity. But with the next gener
ation it ought to be different, for. as
the board points out, "the solution
lies in the education of the Indian
children."
Here is a tangible policy, and one
that ought, in thirty years or less, to
effect a final separation of the
tribesmen from government control.
About twenty-five Indian children of
school age are now not attending
school, largely for lack of facilities,
as the report makes plain. The want
of foresight which congress shows in
failing to make provision for more
Indian schools is indicated by the
following:
It seems obvious that real economy will
be found in the use of larger appropria
tions now for Indian .education, because
more money means more school facilities
for more children and the greater the num
ber of children of the present generation
we can put in the Indian and other schools
the sooner the day will come when there
will be no supervised Indians, and. conse
quently, no bureau of Indian affairs.
If the Indian bureau half a cen
tury ago had exhibited a .small part
of the wisdom here compressed into
a sentence, there would be no Indian
problem today.
. EARLY GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES.
Twenty-five years ago, as was re
corded in The Oregonian at the
time, an effort was initiated by cer
tain residents of Douglas county to
change the name of Cow creek, sub
stituting therefor the more melli
fluous appellation "Azalea," in
honor of a beautiful wild flower in
digenous to that region. It is sug
gestive of the great difficulty with
which people are induced to re
linquish names that are fraught
with early though sometimes for
gotten associations that the name
Cow creek persists to this day, al
though the post-office in that lo
cality, which is named Azalea, still
stands as a partial triumph for their
cause. But we are reminded also
that Cow creek this particular one
of many Cow creeks in Oregon has
meanwhile almost lost its identity
through confusion of local geo
graphy by people less familiar with
the contour of the country than the
old-timers were. The so-called Cow
creek canyon, as a well-marked de
file on the Pacific highway is called
is not Cow creek canyon at all, but
Canyon creek. The Cow creek
valley through which the highway
leads has a wide and pleasant vista,
which the automobilist leaves when
he passes the site df old Galesville.
The real Cow creek canyon begins in
the vicinity of Riddle and ends near
Glendale, and used to be famous as
a terror to railroad men. Twenty
five years of intermittent effort
have failed to change the name of
the creek or the canyon and there is
no brighter prospect or success
today.
Only occasionally did the old
timers, engrossed in the serious
business of making a living under
dificultles, give much thought to the
cultural or even the historic aspects
of a name. There are as a matter
of fact at least seven Cow creeks in
Oregon, each named, as we may
suppose, after some local incident in
which livestock was involved. There
are at least four Antelope creeks in
the state, half a dozen each of
Camp, and Mill, and Pine, and Dry
and Cottonwood and Elk creeks.
Standard atlases list sir or seven
Bear and Beaver creeks as well, but
counting them all, little and big,
there is probably at least one in
each of two-thirds of the counties
of the state. Not much originality
was displayed in the early nonien
clature. The names of animals are
apt to predominate in the regions
where hunting was good in pioneer
times. Antelope, Big Sheep, Deer,
Rabbit and Wolf creeks, abound.
Eagle, Fish, Goose and Grouse
creeks testify to" the prevailing want
of imagination of the folks who
named them. There may be the
material for a story in the naming
of Mule creek, but if so it has been
lost to history. Rattlesnake creeks
meandering across the landscape
here and there tell of no uncommon
phenomena, for there is a Rattle
snake craek in almost every county
of every western state.
The legends out of which these
names arose are quite commonly for
gotten. There was an interesting dis
pute some years ago over the origin
of the name of Three Lynx creek.
one party to the controversy con
tending that it grew out of the loss
by a surveyor of three links from a
chain. The other held that an early
settler had so named it because he
had come upon three wild cats while
hunting there one day. A board of
savants gave the matter weighty
consideration and decided the dual
issue of orthography and geography
in favor of "lynx." The true sig
nificance of "Skookum" creek is ap
prehended by few. "Skookum," in
the Indian tongue, commonly means
strong" or "stout," in the sense of
the physical attribute which the In
dians most admired, but it also was
applied to powerful spirits from the
other world, and it is to the fancied
presence, particularly at night, of
these skookums or wraiths, that
our Skookum creeks and lakes in
all probability owe their designa
tions. There are two Lookingglass
creeks in Oregon, the names of I
r ...... ...
which in all likelihood nave widely
different origins. The one on the
divide between Umatilla and- Union
counties undoubtedly was called
after the famous Indian chieftain of
that name; but we may suppose that
the Lookingglass creek in Douglas
county originated in some , story
about a mirror, for the fame of the
celebrated Nez Perces warrior had
no association with southern Ore
gon.
We note an occasional variation in
the regions first explored by miners.
as, ior example, uoos ana turry
counties. Euchre creek, not far
from Sisters rocks, has a peculiarly
mining flavor, and so docs Pistol
river. There probably is a tale be
hind the naming of Calamity creek.
which historians have failed to set
down. An effort was made about
half a century ,ago, if memory
serves, to change the name of Stink-
ngwater creek, on esthetic grounds.
but it failed in Oregon, although
Montana once succeeded in substl-
tutlng ivuoy as me name oi a turn-
ilarly sulphufbusly evil - smelling
stream. In our researches into the
origin of the appellations of our
creeks and rivers, we look to the ,
Indians in vain for aid, for the In- j
dian had no names for streams as
such. Aboriginal fancy, usually ac- '
t!'n onAiiffii uMAma tn ti-.iva hAPn tin. !
equal to that particular task.
A curious mystery attends the
early name of the peaceful stream
now called Mary's river, which Cor
vallls has made famous. Its mod
ern name is explicable enough, but
this in all probability dates back no
farther than the early forties. Trior
to that time the fur trappers and.
first settlers had given names to
many of the Important streams, ai
they did to the Pudding river, which
dates back more than a century, and
to Long Tom, which was the Lum
tum of three-quarters of a century
or more ago. Somewhere In the
broad valley of the Willamette, as
Duflot de Mofras, the French ex-
piorer, ana Joel Palmer, the pio
neer, have recorded, a Mouse river
was known to the early residents.
If, as some suppose, this was the
stream now known as Mary's river,
it appears to present one of the fevi
instances in which the name of a
stream has been successfully
changed and the record of that
change has been lost.
Lord Riddell, the British journal
ist who has been attending the dis
armament conference, returns home,
he says, under the impression that,
the Americans are in a fair way to
become the politest people on earth,
thus affording a pleasing variation
fforn the old practice of foreign vis
itors of mentioning only the things
they find fault with and wholly
overlooking the pleasanter phases of
American life. Yet a little reflec
tion convinces us that Lord Rid
dell's praise is probably wholly sin
cere and founded on close observa
tion. There Is quite as much real
politeness, we think, in America as
in any other country on the globe, if
by politeness we mean willingness
to be of service to others and not
only the superficial graces in which
a pioneering people have been too
busy to perfect themselves. But
this opens the entire question of
what politeness consists of, as to
which there are many opinions.
Lord Riddell evidently alludes to
the spirit rather than to the out
ward semblance, and with his con
ception we are content.-
The demand- for a further three
years' restriction of alien immigra
tion seems far more than reason
able, in the light of the statement of
the commissioner of immigration
that more than 800,000 aliens en
tered the country in the twelve
months preceding the enactment of
the present law, and in view of the
figures showing that immigration
reached a total of more than 400,
000 in the calendar year of 1920.
The largely mythical character of
the "melting pot" was revealed
under the scrutiny of war conditions
and it is clear that we have many
problems to solve before compli
cating them further, as unrestricted
immigration- would be sure to do.
We-ought at least to have time to
put the machinery of Americaniza
tion in working order, to assimilate
all the elements now in the country
and to complete the plans now on
foot for eliminating illiteracy among
the native born. The American Le
gion, which champions the three-
year movement, would do well to
make it thirty years instead.
The new revenue law contains
1404 sections, the most impressive
of which to the average man will be
those extending the exemption to
folks with small incomes and re
pealing the so-called "nuisance
taxes."
The purchasing power of the
dollar is increasing in one respect at
least. According to the news from
Moscow it will now buy 145,000
rubles, by comparison with a little
over two roubles five years ago.
Sooner or later everybody but a
train robber is sure to like the ma
rines. Senator Pomerene finds that
Haiti is well satisfied with their rule
and that everything Is serene In
Santo Domingo.
Before bemoaning the evils of
overproduction, as some folks are
already beginning to do, wouldn't it
be well to find out whether it Isn't
really under-production that Is trou
bling us?
The astrologers are now predict
ing that the world will be "shaken
to its foundations". In 1926. What
do they call the ordeal through which
the world has only recently passed?
The ruling that an income tax
payer may ueauct nis Pad uebts
from his return to the government
is hardly a satisfactory substitute
for a creditor who pays his bills.
Lloyd George says that Great
Britain has gone absolutely the limit
in the Irish peace treaty, which
seems to be exactly the objection
that Ulster makes to the treaty.
Professor Lambert's assurance
that the poles have never been more
than sixty feet out of position con
firms Mr. Browning's statement that
all's right with the world.
The Eskimos have learned to
make whisky from potatoes, and it
won't be long before we are hearing
of the great potato-growing possi
bilities of the Arctic zone.
Poland's purchase of several
thousand American auto trucks
makes it look as if that country ex
pected to raise something before
long to transport.
Of course resolutions are in order
on New Year's day. Including a spe
cial resolution to keep some of those
which usually are broken about the
second day.
Life is just one paradox after an
other in Russia. People are said to
be fleeing to Siberia, where they
used to be sent for' punishment.
The idea seems to be to put the
battleships into a sinking fund out
of which the obligations of the
world may be redeemed.
The latest warship to be launched
is named the Concord a peculiarly
appropriate nan.e for a war vessel
in times like these.
It isn't as hard to swear off as it
used to be, with really good liquor
bringing around $10 the quart.
The Listening Post.
By I-Wltt Harry.
ABOUT a week ago C. B William"
' of Seattle started something by
writing In and asklnsr for words to
the- song starting "Frog went a
courtin', he did ride sword and a
pistol by his side." Since publica
tion of the request a flood of answers
have poured in, the words of the old
song recalling nursery rhymes of
olden days, the fond mother as she
sang to her child, an old negro
mammy crooning to her pickaninny,
homesteads in Ihe sunny south, the
chanting of the field workers tho
pictures ere legion.
That "Frog went a courtin'" should
take rank , as a favorite nursery
rhyme now nearly forgotten, and that
i- originated in the south, seems to
be the preponderance of opinion. It
is seldom heard these days, but it
bears the stamp, in ready response,
of having been very popular a gen
eration or more back. How many
men and women of today have been
crooned to sleep by its plaintive mel
ody? Mr. Krog went a courtin".
He did ride.
I'h huh! (ilko a frog croaks).
With sword and pistol
By his side.
L'h huh! Uh huh!
This seems to be the accepted ver
sion, each couplet of the song having
its accompanying croak of Mr. Frog
for a refrain. And then the song con
tinues, the regular croaking after
each two lines, about as follows:
Me rode till he came
To Mine Mousie's side.
Showed his sword and pUtol
With artlul pride.
He took Miss Mouse
I'pon his knee.
And said, "Mi's Mouse,
Will you marry me?"
"Without Uncle Rat's
Consent '
I would not marry
The president."
Away tliey went to
Uncle Itat.
To see what ho would say
To that.
Uncle Rat he laughe'd
Till he shook his oldes
To think that hia niece would
Be a bride.
"Bless you," he said.
"You'va my consent."
"Miss Mouse cost me too
Many a cent."
Oh. Wnere shall the wedding;
Supper be?
Down in the grove
In the hollow tree.
What shall the wedding
Supper be?
A slice of cheese and
A cup of tea.
This Is the end of
The story book.
So we will Ieav them
In their nook.
The book lies on
The kitchen nhelf
If you want any mora
Just help yourself.
But this is a happy version, and i
doesn t agree by a long ways with
several others that refuse to allow
Mr. and Mrs. Frog (nee Mouse), to
"live happily ever after." They nearly
all agree that Miss Mouse was prop
erly. wooed, "sat on his knee," bu
thence on we find quite a few dif
ferences of opinion. One answer says
that the lady asked "What are you
going to maintain me upon?" and Mr
Frog answered Three green pease
and a grain of corn." The final verse
has the tale end this way:
As Frog was awimmjn' across de lake,
Tuh-a-huh !
He was swallowed by a. moccasin snake.'
Tum-ahuh! Haah!
Different kind of frog evidently,
for the tone of his song teems more
resonant and there is no explanation
as to why the coward did not use hia
"sword and pistol." s
One of the "Constant Readers'
writing from Reedville, says that "the
kitten and the cat were wedding
guests, and -the cat caught the rat
and the kitten caught the mouse,
while the frog went gallopln' to his
own house." Forrest L. Maus, an Ore
gonian carrier, seemed to have the
best information and sent in two most
excellent versions, and Mrs. C. E. Hoak
says there may be yet other verses,
One "Subscriber" has the cat and
all in his recollections and also the
man at the end and says that he is
certain that it was a kindergarten
eons. An answer from Salem has a
bumble bee mixed up in the story
who "'uned a banjo on hi knee." Mrs,
Beldelman of Portland las the frog's
end as the act of a milk-white duck
that "gobbled him up as he was
crossing a brook. Sir. Mc.Minnville in
jects a trace of sadness Into his song
by telling how an old gray cat ate
Miss Mouse soon after her wedding
and Mr. Frog was left a widower
who mourned but a few minutes untlj
he also met an untimely end at the
hands of the big black snake.
Some of the aftermaths of Christ
mas: Detectives searching for bad
check operators who took advantagu
of the holiday shopping rush to shov
fheir paper. Secret service operators
picking up a flood of $10 and $20
bills passed by counterfeiters. Re
ports of most all agencies and police
departments reveal that bad checks
nd phony bills are certain at this
season.
And the change in the makeup of
the newspapers. Now for the stiff
pull of winter's hardships In a period
of depression and unemployment. The
help wanted columns have shrunk to
few Inches while hundreds are
seeking situations through the want
ad. The yearly shopping rush is ovei
and the display ads start sale cam
paigns. The seeKer alter gilts now
can buy far below the prices of a few
days ago. But the gripping fact about
the advertising pages is the number,
both men and women, who beg for
work, "odd jobs," "anything" they
say.
Whether it's good spirits or care
essness is a difficult matter, but the
lost and found columns arc also
prospering. Everything seems to
have been lost from "a gray hair
switch" to a "rosary." - Much cur
rency is wanted, even to single bills,
many of these ads bearing an under
current of hard luck. As usual the
proportion of founds to losts is ten
or more to one.
There is always a pleasant surprise
in the arrival of the belated Christ
mas present, l'ostof flee reports show
that the "mail-early" campaigns
seem to bear fruit in Increasing ratio.
It's admitted to be an excellent plan
to mail presents early for the reason
that they may not be expected and
their arrival a few days before gives
the recipient a chauce to com back.
Futility of Words.
Ily Crsre K. Ilnll.
Dear lnve of long; hko, how oft Indoe.i
I've said you were as nothing now
to inc.
That nevermore could heart of mine
frrsli- bleed
Because of w hat can never, never be.
But Just today I saw a sturdy boy
Who has your eyes tho c!f-san-.
merry eyes:
One glance and they had killed mi"
present joy.
And now 1 know my words were
lies were lies!
TIIK I ItVKTAI. KOMKM'r.
When the chinnnk blows above tm
Some two thousand feet or more.
Atifl I lie cooler low winds shove us.
And play round us all. iralore;
Down Hie little mist of raindrops
Kail from tip the warmer air
To t'l colder, lower stratum.
Here to freeze on branches hare.
Then the winds leniti to quieUrn,
And the wood. n longer free.
As the gleaming llnlncs thicken.
Weave a silver fil.Kiee ,
boon wo have a crystal forest.
As tile trees of every strain .
Sway utitl i'1-i-iik ah if in protest.
Thoush their protest be in vain.
Every tree is clothed in crystal.
Every plant a gbiss house takes;
Chilling winds through branches
whistle,
. While the lee Is on the bikes.
Woods Hro bound In ley fetters.
Both tlie green tree and the gray;
Now we have our "spell of weather,"
Though it lasts us but a tiny.
'ouglis are drooping, bending, break
ing. Wbilo the sea-wind skyward flies;
Rattling branches to the wayside
Irop their loads of forest e ;
Twigs are tipped with shining silver,
Icy sheaths each tree and bough;
Tubes and pipes of purest crystal
Crush beneath our feet e'en now.
Let not winter's visit mar us;
We can bear his reign a while;
Woods (if ice or crystal forest.
When King Sleet sels up in style.
Old Jack Frost must have bis inning.
Making havoc of our fun.
And for once we see him winning
Ere we put hiui on the run.
JE.SrilE M. M. MARTIN.
JUST MILLING ABOUND.
We're milling around in this restleas
word.
But always going to bat;
Though we've wasted time in doing
this
When we should have been doing;
that.
Wo curse the heat in Biimmcr time
And later on the snow.
And in between we yearn for botB
Or cither and so we go!
John and Bill were country boys
And knew the farming trick:
They both could plow and sow- and
re a p.
Knew t lie shovel and the pick.
John chose to slay upon the farm,
Dame Nature'd be his chum.
He'd raise his sheep and cows and
bogs,
lie d never starve, by gum!
But William said he'd try the law,
It looked a belter way,
He'd gather in the tempting fees
"Let John go pitch the hay!"
But later on lie saw the farm
In quite a different light, ,
And yearned for pigs and cows and
hogs
As a source of sheer delight.
But John saw William there In town.
As In his office chair he sat.
With polished shoes upon the desk.
All dignified and fat.
And wished he'd never seen a farm
With lis endless life of endless
trudge
He should have gone into tho law
He'd have made a splendid judge.
So we're milling around in ceaseless
whirl.
Each pushing each to get above.
Thousands who can't love what they
have.
And others can't have what they
love. T. T. GEEH.
MV VESTAL OF THE SNOWS.
The frost with her pale fingers drapce
A curtain on my window pane;
Of flowers in strange and mystlo
shapes.
I search for on the earth in vain.
Along a ghostly border path.
Are plumy ferns, all dazzling white;
Some Icy harvest harvest's aftermath
Are sheaves Of wheat, aglow with
light.
And near the edges of the brook.
She hangs a fringe of purest pearl;
In every secret woodlund nook
A thousand snowy fronds unfurl.
And when the savage north wind
blows,
And drives his shaft of eleety hail;
I see my Vestal of the Snows
Walking alone, all wanly pale..
Over the trees she throwa a Khroud,
And binds each bud in a crystal cell.
And sifts the snow from a passing
cloud.
And wraps the world in mystlo
pell.
Nor for crushing grief, nor weary
care,
Nor Joy of love she knows;
With star frost in her floating hair.
My Vestal of the Snows!
MARY ALETHE.V WOODWARD.
SOLITUDE.
I am standing on a barren beach.
A level, vast expanse.
I am alone.
In the sky a palo sun pours a light
On aands as wan and white
A frosty gleam.
And a tired tide eddies at my feet.
Its fretful ripples bear
The myriad sound
Of an empty wish, unspoken thought.
The sighs and songs of men.
And peace and strite.
I am standing on a barren beach
And looking past the tide.
am alone,
n the sea a mighty current takes
Its way, forever on
Relentless stream.
With a surging movement gathers in
"he petty, whispering tide.
Then casts it forth.
On the margin of tho sea 1 stand
The merest speck and watch.
am aione.
KATHRYN EASTHAM.
A HAUNI'KD not si:.
spent one night In a haunted housa
With scorn for all ghost stories
Alas! for every boasttul man
W ho in bis courage glories.
Tli" hour of 12 had barely struck
When sounds so weird and ghoulish
Began to fill those empty rooms:
1 screamed, then thought how
foolish.
For none could come to comfort me
Alone 1 was and frightened.
And so remained hour afler hour
Till dawn my chamber brightened,
Then with the day, steps fled away
Those strange shrieks which we
scare at.
I searched the bouse to find a clew
From cellar up to garret.
My soap was gone, my bread and meat
,1'was thieves Instead or spirit.
For 1 found three dozen rats and
more.
Tes. rea'.lv, fifty's near It.
ALlCii MAba L'ALXIAIORE.