Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The morning Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1899-1930 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 1904)
VOLUME LVIV. ASTORIA, OREGON, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1904. NUMBER 38. f 1 W WS J XX M COURT HOUSE IS SUSPENDED Legality of Method of Payiny for Improvement Questioned and Contractor Lays Off . His Force. For Past Two Months General Fund Warrants Had Been Irregularly Issued. BANKS WILL NOT CASH THEM Antl-Progrettlve Element Blamed For j Condition-- Lsoislatur Can Af ford Neoessary Relief at lit Next Session, The people of Clatsop county have hen paying for their fine new court hous out of the wrong pocket In i cud of slipping their finger Into a vent packet and extracting therefrom the funde necessary to the construc tion work, they have gone down Into the big hip pockot whlrh the law an nnclnt law proscribes against So, until such time aa the peopU aforesaid csn angle In the veet pocket referred to and find therein considerable quan titles of national currency, the fine, new court house will remain In an embryonic slate. When the county court determined to build the new structure the pre sumption was entertained that tho people of this community really wanted a new court house, Rome of them kicked at first out of a habit 1M generations and generations and gen erations bad cultivated and curefully reared. But finally, when the pro gressive element the element thnt wants to see Astoria grow rose In Its might, the kickers repaired to the lofty forests, where they sojourned until quite recently. Everybody was glad to ae the court houes rise from the pretty j location which had been defaced for (ft I years by a tumbled-down structural thnt was a disgrace not alone to Clat sop county and the state of Oregon, but as well to the United 8'atea of America. People congratulated them selves, and the spirit of gladness was so prevalent that the wobbly city ac tually undertook to provide a decent headquarters for Itself, As the new court hods assumed proportions, the old decreased In else, until now It In cludes only promiscuous piles of lum ber thnt have been permitted to re tain the shape of -box V wherein the off a Irs of the county are conducted. Used the General Fund. The county court levied a court house tax of 2 mills, For two years collections were made on this levy, about $15,000 being secured. With this sum In Hs vest pocket, the count pro ceeded with the Construction work, under the assurance, It Is reliably stat ed, that county paper for this par ticular Improvement would find ready sale at par. About two months ago the special fund was exhausted. In view of the fact that special funds are de rived by general levy, just an general fund money Is secured, the county court relying upon the self-respect of the people and firmly convinced that they were even more than anxious for the Improvement, continued th work. Issuing In payment warrants drawn on the general fund. There Is an od selete law In the Orego j statutes which limits the Indebtedness of coun ties to, j $500. , The law,, ajso . provides affect the situation. Thi lw provides thnt such Improvement ai'that under way up to noon yesterday must not be paid for by warranto drawn on the MILITARY COUP ON' ISTHMUS MAY LEAD TO MUCH TROUBLE j .... Panama, Nov. .17. The rumored coup d'etat by the mlltary elements, It seems, is more serious than waa at first thought Minister Barrett after a consultation with the Panama government and General Davis, commander of the canal aone, decided, to ask Admiral Goodrich to leave one of the war ships of tha United states nere to prevent pobbidh uioiuruin.. This morning 200, marine from Bmplra camp arrived here. General Huertas, minister of war, announced his Intention of resigning, which will clear tha political atmosphere. Although a disturbance la not feared In the present elrcumstanoes, Panama Is greatly excited. (. ' Tha developments in tn situation in this city and elsewhere on tha Isthmus. Bom watchdog of tht treasury- some obstructionist with a decldeJ aversion, to any dlnplnr of. l)ubllrf'n terprlse took occasion to acquaint himself with th situation. Upraised th question ""of th Illegality of the warrant drawn or th g'neral fund In payment of tha court hous con structionperhaps tVMowd to hove the court deelore th warranta Ir regular and. a monstrous tech nlcallty added Impetua to the back ward leverage which his obstruction lat soul constituted, h waa enabled to apply hla cant-hook of retrogression with marvelous success. Tht bank refused to negotiate the county acrlp and the contractor! were notified that they could no longer xpect money for paper. Work le Stepped. Yesterday an adjourned session of the county court was held. Mr. Dougan. one of the contractors, appeared to ex plain to the court what had bon ex- plulned to him, adding that work on the new structure had been suspended at the noon hour. However, Mr, Dougun said he knew the people would never repudiate the court house debt, and he waa willing to proceed with the work If arrange ments could be made to dUposa of enough warrants to pay freight charges on material and defray the la bor Item. He said be thought $7000 or $8000 In ready cash would be suffl- I dent for tha purposes mentioned. One of the Remedies. The deplorable condition can be righted at the next session of the legislature, when a bill bonding the county for, say, $200,000, for carrying out the court bouse Improvement could easily be enacted. The legisla ture, knowing the true sentiment of the people of Clatsop county, would utterly Ignore any such protest aa Ight utterly Ignore any protest aa might be made by the obstructionist element To make the thing unanimous, the leg islature might, at the request of the! progressive element, pass another act bonding the county for another $100, 000 for good roads. Then the obstruc tionists would have something to think about ' , Hut there la still another way out of the mutter two ways. In fact The county court may permit the obstruc tionists to carry the case Into the courts, where a real bright attorney say some young fellow with auburn locks might fight the case for several years to come, by which time the court house would be completed and the warrants taken up. The people may buy warrants enough to permit prose cution of the work and merrily laugh at the warnings or the legal proceed ings of the mossback element. This last-named plan Is perhaps the most feasible. ; What Mr. Allen Says. District Attorney Harrison Allen was seen by a newspaper representa tive yesterday and asked aa to the legal status of the matter. Mr. Allen said: "The difficulty with reference to the court house construction Is news to me, as 1 had no Intimation of It until my return from trying a case In the United States court last week, and my knowledge at present Is limited to what I have read and heard. I have never been requested by the county court to give my opinion as to the le gality of the warrants In question, and have never advised the court that war rants for the construction of the court house could legally be drawn upon the general fund. "I learned by Inquiring at the coun ty clerk's office that the county court first ordered warrants drawn on the general fund about two months ago. The legal advice for this step certain ly did not emanate from my office. The only opinion which I ever delivered to the county court affecting a question of this kind was delivered to the late Judge Gray, and was In writing. It was with reference to the right of the ' (Continued on Page 8.) srs peine awaueu wm wwin STOESSEL DECLARES THAT PORT ARTHUR WILL RESIST ATTACKS OF JAPANESE Not One of the Main Forts Has been Taken and the Garrison Has Been Recently Supplied. Nogi's Nine-Day Siege Has Not Been Successful and Confidence Is Expressed That Garrison Will Hold Out Until Arrival of Fleet Stoessel is Wounded, but Will Not Be Compelled to Relinquish His Command. Th Jspanes army south of Muk den Is reported to be concentrating en the left and center, presumably with the Intention of attacking, and a re newal of the fighting la expected to lay. The ststemente given out at 8t Petersburg regarding the situstion at Port Arthur are more hopeful and rep resent that th garrison is expected to hold out until th arrive! of Rojest vensky's squsdron. The report that Stoettsl Is wounded is confirmed, but it is ssid thst th injury is not suffi cient to prevent him from directing the defense of th fortress. 8T0E88EL WILL HOLD OUT. Russian Commander Is Woundsd, But , Remarkably Optimistic fit Petersburg, Nov. 17. Rejoicing over the undaunted spirit displayed by the Stoessel In hla telegram of con gratulation to Emperor Nicholas on the anniversary of ' his accession to the throne and officially announcing the failure of General Nogl's nine-day at tempt to present Port Arthur to the mikado aa a birthday gift Is tempered by private Information that the gal lant commander of the garrison has been wounded. Stoeisel was struck on the head by a splinter from a shell while personally' directing the repulse of a desperate assault but fortunately the wound Is not serious and Stoessel will not be obliged to relinquish the command, The other Information sent by Stoes sel, which Is not divulged for strategic reasons, Is said by the war office to be by no means unfavorable. While the garrison Is now hemmed In In the citadel Itself not one of the main fort has been taken. The gar rison has been provisioned, fresh am munition haa arrived and Stoessel ex pressed confidence that the defense will be successfully maintained until the arrival of Rojestvensky's squadron. The report that the cruiser Grom obolwas damaged at Vladivostok la confirmed. The vessel grounded a she was returning to the harbor from a trial trip, but the admiralty states that the damage la slight. FORT WAS NOT BLOWN UP. Reported Loss of Port Arthur's D fens Is Contradicted. Chefoo, Nov. 17. A Russian, who has Just arrived from Port Arthur, re ports that the fortress is holding out well, despite three months of almost continuous bombardment. The report that the Japanese blew up fort No. , the Associated Press' Informant says. Is Incorrect The crew of the Ratsorophny has been taken aboard the Chinese cruiser Hal Tung and th small arms taken from them. They will be kept on board the Hal Tung In order that the Chinese authorities may completely govern them. FIGHTING PROBABLE TODAY. Expected at Mukden That Battl Thar Will Be Returned. Mukden, Nov. 17. Everything was continued quiet up to the present mo ment, but It Is confidently believed the fighting will be resumed on Friday. The report of Kurokl's death per sists, but the Chinese deny It HITCH NOT SERIOUS ONE. Russia and England Can Not Agree n Convention Detail, Paris, Nov, 17. Official advice from St. ' Petersburg show that th hitch which occurred In th .Anglo-Russlan convention ton arbitration f th North sea Incident la not regarded as serious. The main Issue ar not affected, the Russians desiring modification of cer tain point of detail. Unofficial lnfor matlon confirms the statements that the modification desired relates to the question of punishment of th officers. JAPS ARE PERSISTENT. Relentlessly Continue Their Attocks on Belesgured Fortress. Chefoo, Nov. 17. Fighting at Port Arthur has taken place nightly since the Japanese began their general as sault on October 20, according to Capt Ronberg, a pilot, who was a passenger on the Russian torpedoboat destroyer Rastoropny. The Japanese trenches, the captain says, are closer to the forts on Rlh lung and Kekwan Mountains, and to other forts of the northeastern group, The sharpshooters of both sides oc cupying the pits converse with each other and frequently make Individual truces in order to borrow cigarettes or to relieve their cramped limbs. Tha Japanese are displaying great energy In the construction of trenches and the mounting of guns. All the railroad steamers belonging to the Russians except the steel screw transport Amur, have been sunk by Japanese sheila The hospital ship Angara, formerly a transport, has been sunk In shallow water. The patients are still on board the ship, and are comfortable. The Japanese shells directed against the harbor are fired with remarkable accuracy. Recently a silk-clad Chinaman who waa seen traveling In a sampan, -was watched by the Russians, who observed that following the discharge of each shell he placed a handkerchief to his nose and then Into his left pocket, oc caaionally varying the movements, ap parently thus signaling the landing place of the sheila The shells fell be hind obstructions, which fact prevent ed the Japanese obtaining a direct view of their effect Th Chinaman waa hanged. One day last week a hospital ship moved too near the battleships In the harbor, whereupon the Japanese drop ped small sheila around her with the obvious purpose of warning her away, The ship took the hint and when she was outside the sone of daflger large shells began falling near the battle ship. WOUNDED IN THE HEAD. General 8toessel Reports That His In jury Is Slight. St Petersburg, Nov. , 17. General Stoessel, In his dispatches to Emperor Nicholas, reports the repulse of" a Japanese attock October 2(, on th north front of Port Arthur. The Rus sian losses were 480 killed or wounded. All the attacks of November 3, the day of the anniversary of the emper or's ascension to the throne waa cele brated, were repulsed. General Stoes sel waa slightly wounded In the head during one of the latest assaults on Port Arthur. ; General Kuropatkln reports that In an ambuscade November 15, near Sin chlnrm. 32 Japanese dragoons were killed or wounded. The text of Gen eral Stoessel' dispatch , of October 28 Is aa follows: . "We have the honor to report to your majesty that the Japanese bom barded very vigorously October 26, our forts and entrenchments north and northeast The following day they also attacked one of th fort on th north side, but our heavy artillery and shrap nel fire dispersed their reserves and the assault was repulsed. Our losses were one officer, and. about 70 men killed and 400 wounded..... . "Engineer Captain Sbakharoff, for- merly governor of Port Dalny, died October 27, of typhoid fever. "It is difficult to single out individ ual for especial mention among the heroic defenders." . GIVES CREDIT TO THAYER. Historisn Says He Caused Oregon to Be Admitted. Salem, Nov. 17. On Franklin P. Rice, of Worcester, Mass, Is writing the biography of Hon. Ell Thayer, ex congressman of that state, and he would like to learn some of bis history In connection with that of the state of Oregon. Mr. Rice, In a letter to State Librarian James Putnam, gives the de ceased subject of his sketch credit for Oregon having been admitted to the union, and states that notwithstanding ills early and valuable service to her In her hour of dire need, not once can he find Thayer's name mentioned In the archives of Oregon. He states that had It not been for Mr. Thayer It Is almost certain that Oregon would not have been admitted to statehood so early as she was. It Is claimed by Mr. Rice that In 1859, when Mr. Thayer was a member of congress, he and Horace 'Greeley were appointed and served as dele gates from Oregon at the Republican national convention. In the Republic an caucus Greeley was opposed to the admission of Oregon, while Thayer favored it The caucus elected to re fuse her admission, when Thayer bolt ed and took 14 men with him. They Joined the Democratic ranks In con gress and carried the day for Oregon. The credit for Oregon's admission Is generally conceded to ex-Congressman Thomas H. Benton. In view of all of these claims, It seems strange that Thayer's name is not mentioned In Oregon history, and Mr. Rice desires information as to how and under what circumstances It trans pired that Mr. Thayer was appointed to represent Oregon's Interests and fought for her so valiantly and sue cessfully, when there is nothing to show upon the records that he had ever visited the territory. MELDRUM FOUND GUILTY. The Jury Convicts Him on Twenty On Counts for Fraud. Portland, Nov. 17. Henry Meldram, former United States surveyor, was today found guilty of forgery on 21 counts by a Jury in thi United States district court. The first conviction in the so-called land fraud cases Is now pending before Judge Bellinger. Meldrum is accused of having forged the names of 18 persons to applica tions for surveys of land In Harney county, Ore., west and southwest of Harney lake. The contract for ur veylng the land was awarded to Rufus 8. Moore, Meldrum's nephew, for $3500, t FOUR PERSONS KILLED. Toronto Street Car Accident Attended With Frightful Results. Toronto, Nov. 17. A street car, with a trailer attached, got beyond control of the motorman and crashed through the guard gates at the Queen street crossing of the Grand Trunk railway tonight. A freight train struck the for ward car, grinding it to splinters, Every passenger on the street car was Injured and four were killed. One of the dead, a 1-year-old baby, was thrown from Its mother's arms and both Its legs were cut off. RECEIPTS WERE ENORMOUS. Stanford-California Football Gam Netted More Than 82900. Stanford University, Cat, Nov. 17. The financial report of the Stanford California football gome has Just been rendered and shows an Increase over the receipts of any preceding game. The gross receipts were $30,308, an Increase of $6000 over those of last year. The expenses were $1000. ATTORNEY-GENERALSHIP HAS BEEN OFFERED TO MR. BLACK ; New Tork, Nov. 17. The World tomorrow will say: Ex-Governor F. & Black will be tendered the offer of the attorney generalship In President Roosevelt's cabinet ' While the president haa not formally Invited Black to become a member of the cabinet the tender of the attorney generalship, ha been mad in a way that carries with It th assurance that th president would like to have New York's ex-governor la the cabinet , ,It Is the view of ex-Governor Black' friends that h will not accept because It would mean the sacrificing of hi law practice, which. It la said, net him $100,000 a year, and which, hi friend say, be could retain If elect ed to th senate. CHOSEN FOR NEXT YEAR'S GATHERING National Irrigation Congress Se lects Portland as the Place for the Annual Conven tion in 1905. Boise Was the Only Competitor, but Must Content Itself With a Bid for 1906. PARDEE WILL BE PRESIDENT Governor of California Recommended by Committee E. L. 8mith, of Hood River, One of th Vic Presidents. ; ' , . . - '. 1 El Paso, Nov. 17. The national ir rigation congress tonight selected Port land as the place for the next session and received the report of the commit tee on permanent organization, which recommended a list of officers for ths following year. The third day of the congress was marked by the reading of a number of interesting papers by delegates from various sections of the country at the morning meeting; by a reception In the afternoon by Governor Enrique Creel, of Chihuahua, In the sister city of Juarex; by the witnessing of a bull fight at Jaurex, and by the adoption to night of many important resolutions. During the day Senator Newlands and William E. Smythe, of California, withdrew from the race for the presi dency in favor of Governor Pardee, of California. -Tonight the committee on permanent organization recommended that the fololwing officers be chosen for the ensuing year: President Governor George C. Par dee. First Vice President I M. Shur lifle, of Utah. Second Vice President Congressman J. H. Stephenson. Third Vice President Hon. E. L. Smith, of Hood River, Ore. Portland waa selected as the place for the next meeting after two hour of speechmaklng. Boise, Idaho, waa the only competitor. Boise and Los Angeles gave notice that they would ask for the convention next year. Texas, Mexico and New Mexico oc cupied the attention of the delegate today in the fight over the dam fop storing the flood waters of the Rio Grande. REFERRED TO COMMITTEE. Chicago Federation Fight Before th National Federation. San Francisco, Nov. 17. The Chi cago federation fight was threshed out on the floor of the convention at this afternoon's , session of the American Federation of Labor, but after a hot debate the matter was finally referred to the committee on local and federat ed bodies, with instructions that a re port be rendered at the earliest pos sible moment Proceeding Ar Squashed. New York, Nov. 17. All action against Henry T. Scott of the Hyde Windlass Company, of Bath, Me, and the Union Iron Works of San Fran cisco, in the famous litigation Insti tuted by John A. Morris and five other minority stockholders against Charles M. Schwab and other, waa discon tinued today through an order signed by Judge Lacombe in the United States circuit court