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About The Plaindealer. (Roseburg, Or.) 1870-190? | View Entire Issue (Sept. 3, 1903)
THE Rose burg Plaindealer PnMUhed Mondtyii and Thursdays. PLAINDEALER PUBLISHINQ CO. H. H. BROOKES, Editor. MARY K. BROOKES, Proprietor Entered at the Post Office in Koseburg, Ore., as eecond class mail matter. Subscription $2.00 per Year. Advertising Rates on Application. The Editor of the 1'laIndeilir has no Inten lion ol making a false statement reflecting upon the Ufe or character of any person, officially or otherwise and any statement published in these coloms trill be cheerfully corrected if erroneous and brought to our attention by the aggrieved party or parties. Our Intention is thateTery article published of a personal or political official nat are shall be news matter of general lute est and for the Welfare of the State at large. SEPTEMBER 3, 1903. FOREST RESERVES. The Oregonian of August 31st contained an editorial headed. "THE TRUTH ABOUT RESERVES." A portion of this editorial is good and true and was taken by the Ore gonian in substance from articles written throughout the state on the reserve question. That portion of the editorial is as follows: "The cre ation of reserves has been made the means of giving away vast areas of the best timber lands, and, instead of serving to preserve the forests, the reservations have had an opposite effect. 'Wherever large reserves have been created, large corporations have been permitted to give up their j Talueless lands, taking valuable lands j iytn- ims 13 termed Oregon's blue instead in other parts of the country, t Ribbon State Fair," and if the efforts Thisis a proceeding entirely without j of the officers in charge of the fair defense. This "exchange" of lands J 316 rewarded it will certainly was no more nor less than a giving' be a "Bme Ribbon" event, away of lands, and in every view ofj Hon. W. H. Wehrung, president of the matter it was no worse to give : the State Agricultural Association, the corporations a million dollars j has been untiring in his efforts to worth of land without just return I make the foir a success. He has tra therefor, than it would be to vote a:verse(i tte state from end to end a millions dollars out of the treasurv for the same purpose. It is against such practices as this ' that the people should protest, and carry their protest to the government -in such a manner that there can be j capability of this county. Many of -no mistaking the earnestness of their tne counties have responded with appeal," I splendid exhibits, while nearly all the So far the editorial voices the sen- i counties will hare a showing of no "'tunents of the people as they have ! mean proportions. These exhibits, been repeatedly declared in resolu- j wnile they are of course mostly se tions, on the stump and through thejlected specimens, are nevertheless papers. It is not new or original great educators. People in one coun with the Oregonian, it has been dis- " may be making a great success of cussed all over the state by all the ;a particular grass or cereal, while peop j those in a neighboring county, under " TheedluuiLJ continues: "But so'sinlar conditions are not doing so far as existing reserves are con-,we11- The first neighbor exhibits his cernfidV the wrong has been done and ! products, the second sees them, learns no remedV exists. To throw the re-! their habits and culture, giving in serves open would' turn the remain-. exchange knowledge he possesses of ing timber lands over to corporations ; another product successfully grown and syndicates. It has many times on his farm, both are alike benefited xeen "said that the timber land grab-;and the community in which each bers desire the lands to be kept with-i lives is enriched, in reserves until such times as it suits The live stock features of the com their convenience, when they will be ng state fair are going to be of im pleasedto have the lands thrown , mense importance to the state. There open again, so they may take what ! u be exhibited at Salem during the they wish." ' State Fair some as high grade animals This latter confession must have ! as the world produces. There will be been an oversight on the part of the j draught horses weighing a ton and a Orefronian. KeeD the land within quarter, trotters that are able to turn reserves until such time as it suits j rt .m,;, of KmW UnA orsru fcors: cornorations and svndicates! Where are we drifting if the policy ! of the government is dictated by tim-! berland grabbers, corporations and ! Pirates'? We. of the common i people, have known of this policy for 'goats and all poultry will be up to the years and have tried to prevent it J standard requirements of the most and are still protesting against it. , exacting. The powers at the capital tell us that! The agricultural display made by the reserve is creatd for the pur- the different counties will be the very pose of protecing the water supply, lest product of Oregon arranged in and that they are dispensing blessings ! the most attractive manner, to us with a generous but unseen On all these there will be paid hand. Yet we are forced to believe eral premiums. The railroad trans that what is offered as a blessing will 'ports all exhibits, whether grain, prove a curse. The same editorial ' grass, fruit or live stock, absolute)' would let us believe. "That the proper j free of charge both to the fair and course for the government to pursue . return. now is to maintain existing reserves, The attendance at the Fair will be sell the marketable timber at its 'very large, and every effort will be actual value and no less, and avoid ' made to entertain visitors. the" abuses of the past in creating new reserves. The land has been with drawn from entry and no more pri vate claims can attach." The nat ural inference then is that the lands are withdrawn for the purpose of preventing the attaching of private claims. And the further inference is that the private claims are prevented in order that "timber land grabbers, corporations and syndicates may have such time as it suits their conven lence to have the lands thrown open again." It has always been our con tention that these forest reserves were very largley a fake in their in ception, a fraud in operation and a robbery in their ultimate results. The true solution to the reserve problem is to open all reserves for actual settlement. Repeal all scrip laws in connection with reserves. Allow neither the scripping of reserve lands opened to settlement, or the use of reserve lands as base for scripping other lands. Abolish the infamous scrip laws and the reserve question (If there is any question) will very soon settle itself. Such lands as are suitable for settlement will soon be taken and that which is unsuitable will be ample for all the reserves purposes for the next 10,000 years in Western Oregon. THE STATB FAIR. Oregon's State Fair opens at Salem I on the 14th of the present' month, and continues through Saturday the visiting local organizations and county boards urging upon them the necessity of SetinS together an exhibit that would creditably display their products and show to visiting strangers the the mile in 2:10, the thoroughbred in all his regal glory. There will be cattle of the beef breeds, short-horns, red polls and herefords, the peers of any living. In the dairy breeds there will be jerseys' holsteines and others without superiors. Hogs, sheep, The importance of the State Fair is being more generally understood and the Fair is coming into .greater favor each vear. Local Land Office not a Party. In justice to the officers of the local land office, it is our duty to state that the disclosures published in the Plai.vdealeu of August 24th in re gard to "Questionable Methods" in the land department can in nowise be charged to the Roseburg land office. The U. S. Commissioner, before whom the proceedings were had, is not an attachee of the Land Office at this place, but is a U. S. Court Com missioner, appointed by the Federal Judge for the District of Oregon. These Commissioners, of whom there are a great number in the state, are authorized by law to take final proofs. These proofs are sent in and passed upon by the register and receiver of the local land office. The case in question however had not been reach ed in its regular order by the local office, so there was no reason for the register and receiver to know any thing about it's regularity. The fraud was discovered by the merest accident at that time by the special agent in examining the wit nesses on another case. The fraud was so apparent that it is impossible that it would have escaped the eye of the officers, as it consisted in part of! unsigned testimony. This explanation is made for the purpose of dissipating i any impression made by the former article that might reflect on the reg ister or receiver. Trouble over a Dam-Sight. In regard to the article in the Re view of Aug. 27th and 2Sth entitled 'The Dam War is On", I wish to cor rect a few mistakes or rather misrep resentations under which the Editor is undoubtedly laboring, in regard to the blowing out of the dam belonging to the Potts Bros., Lumber Co., South Myrtle Creek, Ore. For the benefit of the public wc wish to make a few statements; I have been operating a saw mill and box factorv on South Myrtle for the last six years, five years belore the Johnson Lumber Co. was heard of; have floated logs for the same length of time I have run the mill. Dunns that time 1 ! have maintained three dams, one of which was washed away last winter a year ago. and was known as the Lally Creek Flood Dam, and was three! miles above my mill and has never ! been rebuilt. The other two which Mr. Johnson states was put at his ex ! pense last year, were in reality put in I between eight and nine years ago, by Jackson Bros., as the old mossy timbers will testify to any one that will take the trouble to look. Said dams were bought by me, together with a small portion of the mill, we now run. One of these dams is locat ed directly at my mill, the other one fourth mile above, the one that was blown out being located about 20 feet from the mill. Before spiking the gates in the said dam I went to Mr. Johnson and asked him if he wanted to make any agreeable arrangements so we could work to advantages. I ! told him that I was willing to make it all right all around but could not al low him to ruin my business entirely, but he would do nothing. I never tried to prevent him from opening the gate previous to this time to let the logs pass through, but what I object ed to, was him using my dam and water to float his logs below, when there was not a log in the pond be longing to him above my dam. Every time they were opened it shut me down from 24 to 40 hours, and as this was done about twice a week you can imagine how much I could get done between times. It also states that after the dams were spiked bodily harm was threatened to Johnson or any of his servants who attempted to open it. The facts arejthat trespass I notices were posted and they were told that they would be prosecuted by law if they disregarded them. It is entirely false that threats were made after the dam was spiked. The state ments that defendants helped con struct the gatvis in the dam, are also false. The fact is thatone of the defendants, C. R. Potts, at the time that the gates were constructed, some time the last of November or the first of December, 1902, instead of July, as the Review states, had been confined to his bed in the good Samaritan Hospital, Portland, for some five months, he going there June lGth, 1902, before Mr. Johnson ever come to this place: and being there con fined to his bed almost constantly till June 16th, 1903. He was sick there all the time while this work was going on unbeknown to him, except from June 16th this year. At the time according to the Review's statement, instead of constructing Hood gates I was in the hospital fight ing a hard battle for life. On the Sth day of Nov., 1902. I was on the operating table for three hours, and not constructing flood gates as stated. If any one doubts this statement they can inquire of Dr. George Wilson, of Portland, or Dr. Houck of Roseburg, and am under the care of the latter at this dite. In regard to other state ments I do not think it is necessarv to About Prescriptions The best of medicines 3jcir t0jC;s t ie kest j vurpment are the prominent features of our prescription department. J! r, Colgate it Co.'s Bat'i s un U a ii.iitr. Don't .'ail to come to our store and see our fine line I of Toilet Reouisites. Fitilerton - Richardson Phone 451. ROSEBURG, ORE. Near Depot. say anymore. I would not stop to malign Mr. Johnson in any way, but ( he is not at all particular as to the statements and affirmations he makes ' to say the least. I am only giving facts as they are, and defy Mr. John son or any one else to prove other-; wise, and am willing to face him in I them at any time As to the state- j ment that Sheriff Parrott ordered thei blowing out of the gate, we heard no . such orders, Sheriff Parrott was there at the time it was done, he being there to serve the injunction. And after he had done his duty that he merely stood on the bank and watched the proceedings. We think that Sheriff Parrott knows his business too well to order a man to blow up a man's property with dynamite before there had been any inquiry or trial of any kind and without any order from the Court. Potts Bros., Lumber Co. THE PRESIDENT IN DANQER. From page and. is one of three boys. Ho has two sisters. The family is respectable and is held in general esteem. Weilbrenner several years ago had a nervous attack, which rendered him mentally helpless for a day or two, but his family supposed that he had been quite restored by medical treat ment. Since then he had manifested no symptoms of mental aberration. He had no socialistic or anarchistic tendencies, so far as known, never having been interested in questions of that kind. He was employed daily on his father's farm. The initial step toward the presen tation to Sir Thomas Lipton of a memento from the American people, probably in the form of a silver ser vice, was taken Thursdav when the following resolution was adopted at a meeting held at the Waldorf-Astoria; The committee named to arrange for Sir Thomas feel assured they repre sent the universal sentiment of ap preciation among all classes of Ameri cans who love sport and admire a true sportsman, and acting upon that assurance they suggest to the general public a popular subscription to meet the foregoing view. The remains of Lord Salisbury were interred Monday. Avtz. 31st. beside those of his wife, in th burial grounds of the Cecils, at Hatfield. The ar rangements were of the most private and simple character. AH the chil ; dren of the deceased were present, as were also Premier Balfou1". Lord Sel borne and a few intimate neighbors. Otherwise the mourners were made ' up of the dead stateman3 tenants, re tainers and inhabitants of Hatfield . The coffin was carried to and from the parish church by the old retainers. are none too good for materials and thorough j A dispatch frum San Francisco, of recent date says: The transport ThomHS, which will sail tomorrow noon for . the Philippines will carry 5,000,000 in Philippine silver cer tificates, accompanied by a guard of 25 enlisted men of the fourteenth calvary. Oscar Warren's Ball Reduced. Upon a habeas corpus proceeding before Jndge Hamilton, the bail of Oscar Warren was reduced from $2000 to 500. This is the case where a bar keeper at the Cruiser saloon, some weeks ago, beat a man almost to death. the alleged cause being a demi mode, who was a frequenter of the saloon. His victim George Brown has sufficient ly recovered to resume his position as one of the drivers on the Roseburg-Coos my fctage line. The Matter Satisfactory Arranged. In our last issue we had occasion to note what we then termed, "A Military Wedding." An investigation before Justice Buch anan on Tuesdny, disclosed, that aside 'rem the minority of the young people, there was nothing in the wav of a mire honorablo marriage. Through the good oincers of a friend of both families the consent of the parents was secured, and we wish the young couple all prosperity. A lot of trouble and unenviable notoriety would have lwen avoided, if the parents had exercised as muchdiscreation before as they did after the matter becamo public. Oregon City will have a free street fair and carnival to run from Sep tember Sth to the Sth, inclusive.