Jttocitif
UfJLISMM FULL AttOOIATtO frlM RBPOflT
UOVIR THK MORNINQ flKLO ON THB LOWER OOLUMBIAil
VOLUME LXI NO. 322
ASTORIA, OREGON, WEDNE&DAY. DECEMBER 5, 1906
PRICE FIVE CENTS
CLIFTON
DESTROYED
i Swept Out of Existence In
a Terrible Flood.
; MANY LIVES ARE LOST
Concentrator Dam Gives Away
Precipitating tireat flood
on the City.
ALL BUILDINGS DESTROYED
Saloon Washed Away, Currying Sv-
oral Men Into th Torrent and
All Ars Bllvl Hava
Bnd Drowned.
BISBEE, Arta. Dee, 4 One of tho
worst flooda In tha history of Clifton
cam down th Ban Francisco river
nA flume Creek lnt night. The
Chaae creek rune through , the prln
clpal bualneae section of the town,
which waa almost completely ruined.
From eeven to twenty person are re
ported to have lost their Uvea. 'One
woman was caught In falling bulld
Inf and killed. A saloon' which waa
washed awny, carried several men Into
the torrent and they are alt believed
to have been drowned. A woman and
a child In a restaurant were killed,
the restaurant being entirely demol
Irtwd and wanned away. A Urge num
ber of small frame buildings In which
' people were known to be living were
also doatroyed, and It la known that
a number of fnmlllea perished.
A meaange from the operator at
8olomanvlllo, Aria., reporta that eigh
teen are dead, at Clifton, but glvea no
detalla of the property damage which
la believed to be great. One half of
the town la practically deatroyed. Up
to a late , hour tonight nothing con
firmatory of the Clifton dlanetor haa
been received, except private dl:
patohea aent from one friend to an
other, One of theae anld: "Half, of
Clifton la doatroyed. I n mO. , K."
Numerous Inqulrlea have been direct
ed to the acene, but they are unavail
ing. It ,1a believed the dlaaater un
doubtedly occurred.
The latcat moaaago received at Phoe
nix tonight from Tucaon, aays the
town of Clifton la half destroyed.
The report states that between fifty
and alxty Uvea have been lout and
all prevloua reporta have been con
firmed. The concentrator, dnm which
gave way, precipitating the great flood
upon the town waa constructed en
tirely of earth. The dam waa carried
away two years ago aa a result of
awpllen atreama and a number of per
aona were drowned.
FLOOD IN COLON.
Charges River Roaches Highest Point
In History.
COLON, Panama, Dec. 4. TJip to
last night ten Inches of rain haa fall
en In Colon during the pnat twenty
four houra. The Charges rlvor has
reached the highest point ever known
and la atlll rising. One bridge was
carried out and Matachln la under
five feet of water. Communication
with Panama la ahut off and work
on the canal haa been suspended,
COMMITTED SUICIDE.
Two Girls Leave This World by the
Gaa Route.
PORTLAND, (Dec. 4. Ida and Min
nie Hill, sisters, were, found asphyx-
luted In their room hero by Hilda
Hill, another alater, when aha re
turned from work tod The dead
glrle left a note r' cwell, but
did not etate t $fc ,na tor their
act. Hilda ,.dood Samaritan
Hospital, r 'jft '"n hyaterla and
nothlna"'," y ascertained regarding
the f 0 "nr lhan thejr cmc tf0m
the V ybout a month ago and were
plainly In straightened circumstance.
; ' LEE DILLWORTH.
PITTSBURG. Deo. Lee Dill-
worth, GJ yeara of age, a bachelor
member of one of the moat wealthy
famlllea of Plttuburg, committed aul
rid today by ahootlnr. No cauae la
aealgned,
SPECIAL MEETING.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 4. Senator
Clark of Wyoming, chairman, haa
called 4 epeclal meeting of the sen
ate Judiciary committee for tomorrow
to conalder the nomination of Attor
ney Oenoral Mood, recently .' ap
pointed aa aaaoctat Juatlce of the
aupreme court
TOWN WASHED AWAY.
Town of Clifton, Arltona, Swept Out
of Exlsteno.
EL PA80, Dec 4. Prom Informa
tion received hero late tonight, tt la
believed that the town of Clifton,
Arltona, haa been practically waahed
away. The Cooper Queen hotel haa
been awept away by the flood and at
leant fifty peraona have loat their
live
DEMOCRATIC LANDSLIDE.
L08 ANGELES, Dec, 4. Partial re-
turna at midnight Indicate the eleo
tlon of A, C. Harper, Democrat, for
mayor, and the entire Democratic
ticket by S.OOO plurality.
NEW CHIEF OF POLICE
Chief Dinan to Be Removed from
Office in San Francisco.
NEW CHIEF TUBE APPOINTED
8everal Prominent Gentlemen Named
for the Important Poaltlon, to be
Made by Board of Polioe
Commiaalonera.
SAN FKANC1SCO, Deo. 4. The
Chronicle today aays:
Chief of Police Dlnan la elated for
removal from office by the Board of
Police Commissioners at Its meeting
tonight, And It Is not unlikely that
the action of the commission will
amount to absolute and permanent re
moval from office, with the speedy ap
pointment of a new chief at the head
of the department
Among the. men under consideration
for ha Important post are two army
officers, General Woodruff nnd Colonel
Coolldge, both well known residents
of this city for many years,' Captain
John F. Seymour, now head of the de
tective bureau of Wells, Fargo & Co.
Express( who waa former captain of
the detectives In the local police de
partment, la also mentioned as a pos
sibility. If the commissioners go
outsldo of the department to find a
successor to Chief Dlnan, it is under
stood that one of these three will be
chosen, provided the selection la not
prevented by any legal obstacle; ',
President of the Police Commission
W. H. Leahy yesterday morning an
nounced definitely that if the board of
police commissioners could within its
rights remove Chief of Police Dlnan
for the Indictment returned against
him, he would vote for removal. Lea
hy's announcement came with more
significance because of the fact that
he has long been supposed to be one
of Dlnan's chief supporters. . i
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT DELIV
ERS ANNUAL MESSAGE
Opposes Contributions by
Funds to Be Used
FAVORS ABOLISHMENT
Calls Attention of Congress to Southern Lynching for Alleged Crime
of Rape Sometimes an Excuse for Lynch Law for Petty -Misdemeanors
Inciting Mobs to Crimes.
QUESTION OF CAPITAL AND LABOR DISCUSSED AND CONSIDERED
PRE8IDENT FAVORS LAW MAKING EIGHT HOURS A DAY'S LABOR
ON ALL PUBLIC WORKS AND CALLS ATTENTION TO THE
NECESSITY OF A LAW FOR THE PROTECTION OF
CHILDREN EMPLOYED IN FACTORIE8j ALSO
FAVORS EMPLOYERS' LIABILITY LAW.
WASHINGTON, Deo. 4. President
Roosevelt's message occupied the at
tention of the Senate for two houra
'and a half today to the exclusion of
nearly all other bualneas. The mesaage
to m follow:'
To the. Senate and House. of Repro
tentative: .
Aa a nation we atlll continue to en
Joy a literally unprecedented proaper
Ity; and It is probable that only reck
less speculation and disregard of legi
timate business methods on the part of
the buslneaa world can materially mar
this proaperlty.
No Congress In cur time haa done
more good work of Importance than
the present Congress. There were se
veral matters left unfinlahed at your
last session, however, which I most
earnestly hope you will complete be
fore your adjournment
I again recommend a law prohibit
ing all corporations from contributing
to the campaign expenses of any par
ty. Such a bill haa already peat one
Houae of Congresa. Let Individuals
contribute as they dealre; but let us
prohibit In effective fashion all cor
porations , from making contribution
for any political purpose, directly or
Indirectly.
Another bill which haa already past
one Houae of Congress and which It is
urgently necessary should be enacted
into law la that conferring upon the
Government the right of appeal in crlm
lnal cases on questions of law. This
right exists In many of the States; It
exists In the District of Columbia by
act Of the Congress. It la of courae
not proposed that In any case a ver
dict for the defendant on, the merits
should be set aside. Recently In one
district where the Government had In
dicted certain persons for conspiracy
to obtain rebates, the court sustained
the defendant's demurrer; while In
another Jurisdiction an Indictment for
conspiracy to obtain rebates has been
sustained by the court, convictions ob
tained under It, and two defendants
sentenced to Imprisonment. ' .
I have specifically In view a recent
decision by a district Judge leaving
railway employees without remedy for
violation of a certain so-called labor
statue. It seems an absurdity to per
mit a single district Judge, againBt
what may be the judgment of the Im
mense majority of his colleagues on
the bench, to declare n law solemnly
enacted by the Congress to be "un
constitutional," and then to deny to the
Government the right to have the Su
preme Court definitely decide the ques
tion. 1
It Is well to recollect that the real
efficiency of the law often depends not
upon the passage of acts aa to which
there la a great public excitement, but
upon the passage of acts of this nature
aa to which there la not much public
Corporations to Campaign
in National Elections.
OF LABOR INJUNCTIONS
excitement, because there la little pub
lic understanding of their Importance,
while the Interested parties are keenly
' alive to the desirability of defeating
them. The Importance of enacting ln-
( to law the particular bill In question
j la further Increased by the fact that
j the Government haa now definitely be
gun a policy of resorting to the crlml
s nal law In thoae trust and Interstate
i commerce cases where such a course
i offers a reasonable chance of success.
In my last message I suggested the
enactment of a law in connection with
the Issuance of Injunctions, attention
having been sharply drawn to the mat
ter by the demand that the right of
applying Injunctions In labor cases
should be wholly abolished. It Is at
least doubtful whether a law abolish
ing altogether the use of Injunctions
In such cases would stand the test ot
the courts; In which case of course the
legislation would be Ineffective. More'
over, I believe it would be wrong al
together to prohibit the use of Injunc
tlons. It la criminal to permit sym
pathy for criminals to weaken our
hands In upholding the law; and if
men seek to destroy life or property
by mob violence there should be no lm
palrment of the power of the courts to
deal with them In the most summary
and effective way possible. But so far
as possible. the abuse of the power
should be provided against by some
such law as I advocated last year.
In this matter of Injunctions there
Is lodged In 'the hands of the Judicary
a necessary power which Is neverthe
less subject to the possibility of grave
abuse. It is a power that should be
exercised with extreme care and should
be subject to the Jealous scrutiny of
all men, and condemnation should be
moted out as much to the judge who
fails to use It boldly when necessary
as to the Judge who uses It wantonly
or oppressively. Of course a Judge
strong enough to be fit for his office
will enjoin any resort to violence or in
timidation, especially by conspiracy,
no matter what his opinion may be of
the rights of the original quarrel.
There must be no hesitation in dealing
with disorder. But there must like
wise be no such abuse of the injunc
tive power as Is implied In forbidding
laboring men to strive for their own
betterment In peaceful and lawful
ways; nor must the Injunction be used
merely to aid some big corporation In
In carrying out schemes for Us Own
aggrandizement. It must be remem
bered that a preliminary Injunction In
a labor case, If granted without ade
quate proof (even, when authority can
be found to support the conclusions
of law on which It Is founded), may of
ten settle the dispute between the par
ties; and therefore If Improperly gran
ted may do Irreparable wrong. Yet
there are many judges who assume a
matter-of-course granting of a preli
minary injunction to be the ordinary
and proper judicial disposition of such
cases; and there have undoubtedly
been flagrant wrong committed by
Judges In connection with labor dis
putes even within the last few year,
altho I think much leas often than in
former year. Such Judge' by their
unwise action Immensely 'strengthen
the hands of thoae who are striving
entirely to. do away with the power of
Injunction; and therefore such, care
less use of the Injunctive) process tends
to threaten its very existence, for If
the American people ever become con
vinced that this process la habitually
abused, whether in, matters affecting
labor or In matter affecting corpora
tions, It will be well-nigh Impossible
to prevent its abolition. " T
In connection with the delays of the
law, I call your attention and the at
tention of the Nation to the prevalence
of crime among us and above all to the
epidemic of lynching and mob violence
that springs up, now In one part of our
country, now In another. Each sec
tion, North, South, East, or West has
its own faults; no section can with
wisdom spend Its time jeering at the
faults of another section; tt should be
busy trying to mend its own short
comings, To deal with the prime of
corruption it Is necessary to have an
awakened public conscience, and to
supplement this by whatever legisla
tlon will add speed and certainty in the
execution of the law. When we deal
with lynching even more Is necessary.
A great many white men are lynched.
but the crime is peculiarly frequent In
respect to black men. The greatest
existing cause of lynching la the per
petratlon, especially by black men, of
the hideous crime of rape the most
abominable In ail the category tof
crimes, even worse than murder. Mobs
frequently avenge the commission of
this crime by themselves torturing to
death the man committing it; thus
(Continued on Page 8.)
COMMITTEE WILL ACT
Interstate Commerce Commission
to Investigate Car Shortage.
HAS COMMISSION AUTHORITY
Can Exercise No Direct Power to Com
pel Interstate Carriers to Furnish
Adequate ' Equipment foif
' Shippers.
WASHINGTON, Deo. 4. The In
tentions and attitude of the Interstate
Commerce Commission respecting the
car shortage In the Northwest are
made clear in a letter, addressed to
Senator Hansbrough by Chairman
knapp, which said: "The inability of
shippers to secure cars ror the move
ment of their traffic Is reported from
various parts of the country and
amounts In some sections to almost
a calamity. The matter . has given
the commission special concern, al
though we appear to be without ade'
quate authority to deal with the sit
uation. We can exercise no ' direct
power to compel the Interstate car
riers to furnish " adequate equipment,
nor are we prepared at the present
time to recommend specific legisla
tion on tho subject" .
Chairman Knapp said the commis
sion could probably award damages
resulting from the failure to supply
sufficient cars, but the power to do
this Is not altogether certain, and
he says: "It would be rather more
suitable and efficient for the aggrieved
Bbippera to bring their suits In the
courts of first Instance. We have,
however, ordered an Investigation of
the matter of the car shortage and
will prosecute it with the utmost dis
patch. Already one or more agents
have been sent to the Northwest and
it is expected that hearings will take
place in that region within the next
two weeks."
GUILTY OF
MURDER
C. Gillette Found Guilty of
Murder By Jury.
SENTENCED THURSDAY
Murdered His Sweetheart Grace
Brown at Big Moose Lake
July II.
ONLY TWO BALLOTS TAKEN
Immediately After the Jury Had Bean
Polled He Wrote a Telegram to
His Father Announcing the
Verdict
HERKIMER, Dec. 4. The Jury In
the trial of Chester Gillette, accused
of murdering his sweetheart Grace
Brown, at Big Moose Lake, on July
11th of this year, tonight returned
a verdict of guilty of murder In the,
first degree. Sentence will be pro
nounced on young Gillette next Thurs
day morning, to which time the court
adjourned after the Jury had report
ed. , -. '
young Gillette sat motionless In his
chair as the jury was polled and when
the twelfth man had responded, the
stolid Indifference of the boy waa ex
hibited as never before. : Leaning over
a nearby table, he drew toward him a
bit of white paper and taking a pen
cil from his pocket wrote this mes
sage: . '
, "Father, I am convicted. Chester."
This is one of the earliest dispatches
carrying the news of Gillette's doom
beyond the walls of the court house.
It went to his father In Denver.
After the jury had been polled, the
case went over until Thursday when
Gillette will be sentenced. The Jury
stood eleven for conviction and one
for acquittal until the sixth ballot
The attorneys for Gillette will make
a motion for a new trial, preliminary
to taking an appeal to the supreme)
court, for alleged erros of law oc
curring during the trial. This will not
interfere with the sentence which will
be Imposed by the court
CONGRESS IN SESSION.
Most of the Day Devoted to the Pres
ident's Message.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 4. The read
ing of the President's message con
sumed two houra and twenty-five min
utes in the house today and was fol
lowed closely by a large number of
members, while the crowded galleries
gave close consideration. Here and
there the reading of the document
was punctuated with applause and
hearty hand-clapping from Democrats
as well as Republicans followed Ha
conclusion. During the mapor portion
of reading the message, Representa
tive Lacey of Iowa acted as speaker
pro tern, being the first of the de
feated ."standpatters" to be recog-'
nlzed by Speaker Cannon. While the
house waited on the secretary to the
President to appear with the message,
Speaker Cannon appointed Robert G.
Cousins of Iowa, chairman of the for
eign affairs committee, to succeed the '
late Representative Hltt He also
appointed Frank O. Louden to a place
on the same committee to fill HItt's
vacancy. After the customary, res
olutions relative to printing the
President's message the : house ad
journed until tomorrow.