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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 4, 1904)
JooraaL PORTLAND, OREGON1 J1E3 MONDAY, JANUARY 4. 1904 ;Fage THE OREGON DAILY AN C I. JACKSON : published every evening (exoapt Bund THE3 JOURNAL'S PLATFORM A Trinity ot Events Which' Would Make of Portland the Mightiest City of the Pacific Coast First Deepen the Columbia river bar. . Second Open the Columbia river to unim . peded navigation at and above The Dalles. Third Dig an Isthmian canaL NOW FOR THE PUBLIC I HERE in no purely local question which begins to equal In. Importance the well being ot our public schools. Every American community owes It to itself and to the country to see that the rising generation Is well educated. It there has a duty to perform of the most vital consequence. Compared with the results to be attained the cost In mere dollars and cents weighs but very little. It Is riot only demanded of every community In Its own behalf, as well as In behalf of the nation Itself, that it provide every child with an education, but that that . education be such in character and so well adapted to the public needs as to beet fit the children tor the duties of the practical life upon which they are so soon to enter. Observers from other sections of the country are forcibly struck with three principal things in our public school sys tem. First, the absence of . kindergartens; second, the ab sense of manual training schools ; and third, that in no com plete sense, 'as is the case elsewhere, does the enrollment embrace all classes and conditions ot the children. When attention is called to our shortcomings in these respects, It is a pitiably Insufficient 'answer to point to the taxroll and ehow that our public schools cost less money than do the public schools of other cities of relatively the same size. In' other cities, within proper limits of course, the Idea is not how 'much they can save by rigidly limiting the course of studies in the public schools, but how much good they can do In better equipping the child in all respects for the practical, work which' Is before him., Here in Portland the public schools are rapidly degenerating into what might be called the poor man's schools. They are supported by general taxation, as , elsewhere, but only those who cannot -afford to taka-advantage-of. the ap parently better facilities ' afforded by the 'private schools even in the lower grades, send their children to the public schools. There are exceptions, of course, but the rule is otherwise. The result cannot fail sooner or later to bring about degeneracy in the whole system. Many men of means, influence and broad Ideas In the community who send their children to private, schools to acquire en educa tion will take only a perfunctory interest in the public school's and everything lost in that way means a distinct and self-evident weakening of the whole public school sys tem. In other communities the interest in the public school - system is intense and deep-seated; it embraces all classes from the wealthiest to the poorest, for all classes rely upon tbet public schools alone to give their .children an education through the grades and most of ' them even through the high school. They believe in this system be cause they believe in republican Institutions and despise the distinctions of caste which otherwise must insidiously grow up. They realize that the boy turned out and trained In the hurly burly of the public schools is better fitted to meet the conditlohs'of practical life, that In every way he has a better conception of what is ahead ot him and, if he Is ambitious, that his powers have been better de veloped in that promiscuous but .stimulating association than under what might be called more genteel auspices in the private schools. For this reason every citizen is a hearty upholder of the public school system. He believes in it on public grounds and on private grounds. Therefore he is intensely Interested in everything that tends to its betterment; he is Jealous of its reputation and proud of Its achievements. This spirit of pridd saturates the whole community and it reacts upon the school authorities. They aim for the best facilities that the country affords, while . the children take such a pride in the very buildings in which they are educated that each class as It is graduated from one room into another leaves behind a little memento LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE A rtreman's Tribute. Portland. Jan. 4. To the Editor of The Journal: Yesterday was a sad day to many firemen, for with aching hearts and tear-dlmmed eyes we parted forever with one who was to, us. dear a a comrade and friend, few outside of the fire department can realise how great is the bond of friendship that exists among firemen, that bond of friendship that is akin to brotherly love, the kind that reaches down through the years and calls memory back to days that are past and gone. ' ' "Jim" Fields was to all who knew jhlm a kind and true friend, his eheerful disposition and good nature won him ; many friends and it can be said with out a doubt he never had an enemy. He was charitable to a fault, his big heart ever responded to the appeal of the un fortunate and needy. Twenty-one years of active- service in the line of duty, few can realize how great the sacrifice. To his grlef-strickan family, to whom ha was a loving husband and father, we extend our most heartfelt sympathies, and to him who has left us, we will . ever cherish in our hearts tender recol lections of the past Dear friend and comrade, farewell. Only a fireman, that is all. Ever ready for duty's call; lark night or stormy weather, A clang of the gong and they're all to gether. Vp the ladders, steep and tall, ,v mistering flames or tottering walls, Nothing daunts where duty calls; Honor nor' fame they do not crave, Theirs to rescue, theirs to save. ED. 0. FANNING. sobs, shoot nr WASHnroTOir. From the New York World.- Mrs. need Smoot, who has but recently Joiiitfd her husband, the senator from I'tah, at the Kalaitth, and who chatted pleasantly' for a few moments in the parlor of that hostelry, 1s about as happy ' Iti lookw, as bright of speech and. as pleased with her lot in life as any wo man In this broad union. - . , She is youthful looking, attractive, frlfiidly patureit. and was modestly but flfnntly gowned. "I wanted to see Washington very much," she said, "and am greatly enjoying my Drat glimpse of lie capital. I do not think, though, t f-iiall ever reel ns completely at home in t',e lviwt as In my native .West. My Oilier was a ptoneer In Utah,' and X was i-orn and grew up in Bait Lake City. I . . my husband from IhUdhood, and INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER . . PUBLISHED BY JOURNAL PUBLISHING CO. 7) at The Journal Building, Fifth and OFFICIAL, PAPER OF THE CITY OP in the shape of an of the room itself ideals, r- - -t, It is this spirit SCHOOLS. tain line of action that 34 bills were of them pf sufficient between our families there was always the closest friendship. "Though I take a keen interest in poli tics, and have been president of the Woman's Republican club at my home, In Provo, I find my greatest happiness in domestic life and in the rearing of my three boys and their three sisters," . .... " i"1 1 r " XXPEBBXYB COLLEOB XTTSOXB. From Collier's Weekly. The impressive totals of university funds invested" in - athletic equipment during the present year make the outlay for developing the "sound body" rival the endowment of classical chairs and foundations. The University of Penn sylvania is completing an athletlo field and a gymnasium in one magnificent quadrangle at' a cost -f nearly half a million dollars. Harvard ( has Just thrown open : a new field called . the "Stadium" at a cost Of 1250,000. A movement is under way at the Uni versity of Chicago to endow athletics In order to remove certain objectionable features of an admlsslon-fee system to struggles for college honors, and a halt million dollars is the amount needed to provide sufficient capital to maintain the varied sporting Interests of the in stitution. Columbia has recently pur chased real estate valued at $2,000,000, a part of which will be used for an ath letic field, according to present plana. Princeton is building a gymnasium which will rival In cost and elaborate equipment any of her collegiate halls. There are several preparatory schools whose gymnasiums and , fields added within the last three years represent an outlay of $50,000 each. . WOXJUJKT DISCUSS THAT. Washington Correspondence New York World. It so happened that a man whose busi ness takes him to see Senator Flatt of Connecticut occasionally with no . good results was thrown by fate into a street car next to the sage of Merlden yester day afternoon. Senator Piatt was med itating, but the man who was next to him thought there must be some sort of conversation and he aald: , "How is Senator Hawley these days 7" "t haven't heard from him in some time," rumbled Senator Piatt. "I understand he is quite ill," said the man. ' ' "Do you?" Inquired Piatt. ' "Yes," and then, to bridge over the af fair as beat be could ha commented: "He Is pretty old to be In the senate, anyhow." . ' , ' Senator Piatt gazed straight ahead. "Wall." h said, "as I am, several years older than he la I won't discuss that with you." ' Whereupon the conversation lan guished and died. JOURNAL JNO. P. CARROLL Yarn hill streets,' Portland, , Oregon. PORTLAND art object which adds to the attractions while it tends to the cultivation higher ' - -1 1 "" r"' which seems to be lacking in Portland and it is to the cultivation of this spirit, for the good which will flow from it, that every one in a position to in f luence publlo opinion should address himself. There is no- reason why the public schools of Portland should not be able to furnish the very best education that can be ac quired. But the system needs -readjustment, broadening and stimulation. Whatever it costs to place the schools In the very foremost rank on this coast should be cheerfully spent; no other investment will pay better. But nothing should be done along makeshift lines. The purpose should be to build for -permanency, therefore to build for the future as well as for the present. ' " There should be free and general discuBBlon of all thee questions so that by the time the school meeting its held such conclusions shall have been reached that the various matters at issue may be taken up with Intelligence and receive the serious attention which they so well deserve. THE SECOND CONTRACT ON THE JETTY N THE THEORY of taking time by the forelock. II The Journal once again reverts to the question of , the Jetty at the mouth of the Columbia. Its third investigation into the conditions, a report of which will be found elsewhere, demonstrates clearly enough that the rock so far furnished comes up to the specifications neither in the matter of size nor, quality; In the matter of quality it will fall short, too, but that will be something for com pleter demonstration in the second and larger .contract, the filling of which is to be undertaken at the easiest pos sible moment in the spring. tm The requirements of this contract , are much greater than in the first and accepted contract.; 1 In the first con tract the rock was Intended for the shore end of the Jetty and therefore more latitude was allowed and permissible than will or can be in the, ocean end of the Jetty which must withstand the lashing fury of . the winter storms. In that part of the work the quantity, quality and size of the rock will naturally come in for the most rigid scrutiny and the details of the specifications will be demanded to the letter. The enormously bulky class A rock must then be delivered,, for, without its tremendous weight the Jetty cannot be maintained, The. whole.: matter jiow, therefore, assumes its really (Critical aspect and it is up to the" con tractors either to fish or cut bait. So far as The Journal's campaign on this BUbject goes it has demonstrated the truth of its position from start to finish and the justice of what it has demonstrated will soon be apparent to everybody. ALL THE VINDICATiON HE REQUIRES. rTAHE SAPIENT Forget Grove Times alludes'to what It " I is pleased to call the foolishness of the effort to . . pledge legislative 'members in advance to a cer and gleefully calls attention to the fact passed at the recent special session, nil importance to receive the subsequent approval of Jhe governor. It overlooks the main thing 'involved, which was a short and inexpensive session. The session lasted three days and cost the state about $7,500. Does the Times be lieve that the session would have been thus limited if, through the governor's plain demand for a session devoted to a consideration of the tax question, aided by newspaper support, there had not been created a powerful public sentiment which would have resented any unnecessary and extravagant waste of time? t The governor was wise in his day and generation. He accomplished what, he was after and what the people wanted and when it seemed advisable to pick up the slack on some other legislative odds and ends he was ready to do that, like any other broad gauged executive would have been. t But the three daysf session is all the vindication which the governor will ever require for the bold stand which he took in behalf of the taxpayers of the etate when in their name he wanted to know where the members of the legis lature stood. i ' ' MJmxM sxds or datibpoet. ' ' From the January Outing. The reading publlo knows the car toonist as a man whose pen uncovers hypocrisy and puts the knife of ridi cule into political bombast; but there is another side quite as interesting. . It is his personal side;, his home side; the side his outdoor, sportsman nature finds expression" in at Morris Plains, at his little ranch,; among his' horses, his cat tle, his sheep, his pheasants, bis water fowl. . ' At Morris Plains Farmer Davenport expresses himself. There he has com bined the beautiful with the practical, and mad the little valley farm of 40 acres, on the Orange hills, the home of rare birds and thoroughbred stock. . " Davenport is blunt, to the point, and what he wants in life be goes- after. When he was a boy, out in Oregon on his father's farm, he "ached" to draw, and draw he did. He used to lie on his stomach all day, and make sketches of animals on the farm floor. His father, nAttVel vino, . ila tul.rt aaa.., 1. 1 i board, four feet high by IS feet long, covering tne side or a room In the farm house, and supplying him with plenti ful chalk, let him "go It" to his heart's content. The first opportunity came when, his father having secured him a position on the Portland Oregonian, he left the farm at Silverton. "When I left home that time," said Davenport, "I was escorted to the sta tion by a brass band. 'He's too big for this place, the neighbors said, so 1 went away in a cloud of glory. Well, I was on the Oregonian Just one day it took them only 24 hours to find out and tell me that I couldn't draw.'! FBOBX.ZM nr SHozvssEBxtra. From London Spare Moments. A Scotchman who had been employed nearly ail his life In the building of railways In the Highlands of RnntionM went to the United States in his later years and settled in a new section on the plains Of he fat West, Soon after his arrival a project came up in his new home for the ; cnnatrnrtln, n railway through the district, and the ooicnman was appuea to as a man of experience in such matters. "Hoot, mon." said he to the spokes man of the scheme, "ye canna build a railway across the country." - "Why not, Mr, ; Ferguson T" Why r.otr. he repeated, with art air of effectually settling the .whole matter. ''Why not? Dae ye no see the country's as flat as a floor, and ye dlnna hae ony placo whatever to run your tunnels through?" Oenerai Reyes, doubts Ijls ability to keep the Colombians -from Haying Uncle Sam alive. News, Gossip and Speculation From the National Capital Washington Bureiu of The Journal. Washington, D. C, Dec. 80. Kepre sentative Mondell of Wyoming, in re eponSe to inquiries, gives the following opinions relative to the recent appoint ment of a public land commission and for. the necessity for the muchitalked of repeal of the land laws of the coun try.. -V , . The appointment of a commission tor the purpose of inauiring into the land laws and their administration naturally presupposes the existence of conditions surrounding the administration of the laws as they now stand and the dis posal of public lands under them, which renders it important or expedient that investigation should be made and in quiry had with the view of Preventing abuses or Irregularities or the passing of the public lands into private owner ship in a manner not in keeping with our time-honored policy ot encouraging individual holdings of the smallest tracts upon which a family can be reas onably supported. And while there never has been a time and never will be so long as our land laws are gener ally applicable to so vast an extent of territory with such widely differing con ditions of "soil, climate and topography, wnen there are -not abuses pf land laws and It is therefore entirely proper and uno.ouDted.iy productive or good results to have an occasional review of the pub lic lands situation made by an .impar tial commission, thus assisting and sup plementing the labors and investigations of the public land committees of the two houses of congress; yet' I think it can be scarcely maintained after full and thorough investigation of the subject in detail that there is any crying need of radical changes In the land laws at this time. It's true that there seems to have been In certain quarters very unusual agita tion of this subject for the past few years. It is equally true that for the first time in our history we have had presented to us the spectacle of an active and well-organized lobby supported al most entirely by contributions of great corporate land-scrip owners who have been industriously and persistently mag nifying every Irregularity and local buse of our land laws and sending oroaacast the most grossly misleading and untruthful statements as to the vol ume ana enect or the transfer of gov ernment lands Into the hands of private individuals under the various land laws. The most persistent of these misreD- resentatlons is that with regard to the disposition of the public lands tinder the timner ana stone act the desert land act, and the commutation clause of the homestead act The acreage of lands dis posed of under these acts the past few years has beetr groBslyexareeratedv-lTi the past five years, 1899 to 1903, the gov ernment has parted title to 8,683,990 acres of land under these laws. While in the period of five yearB, from 1887 to 1891, we disposed of 9,241,862 ' acres, under the same laws, or over halt a mil lion acres more disposed of between 1887 and 1891 than between 1899 and 1903. The corporation renea! bureaus have been careful to make their com parisons, not with land disposition dur ing the first period of good times, prior to 1899, but with the period of depression and hard times during which the public land business suffered a reduction of volume, as did all classes of business, to-wlti The years between 1894 and 1898. Another Una of appeal of the lobbyists who, in the interest of large corporate holders of land and scrip, are desirous of having most of the public land laws repealed, Is on the ground that the pres ent alleged rapid disposal of publlo lands will interfere with irrigation reclama tion and particularly with the operations of the national irrigation act. This, plea rather loses its force In view of the facts, first, that one of the laws which Is attacked, namely, the desert land act la the. only public land act on the stat ute books compelling irrigation, t And it Is admitted,, even by those who favor re peal, that under it more lands have been Irrigated than under all the other land laws combined. Seconds that inasmuch as lands taken under the timber . and stone act must be, under the provisions of the act, unfit for agriculture, there remains only the lands commuted under the homestead law within the arid re gion as the , area which, .accepting the most extreme statements of the repeal ers, passes from public into private own ership without being reclaimed. 4 And this amounted in the fiscal year of 1903 to but 431,161 acres, including the states of Washington and Oregon, where a large portion of the lands commuted was undoubtedly lands that could not be re claimed, and which, in fact did not re quire .irrigation to produce a crop. Third, that there is at the present time reserved from entry under the national irrigation act approximately 26,000.000 acres ot land, none of which can be entered under the laws in : question, and the further fact that In view of the undertaking by the reclamation service of the Salt river Irrigation enterprise, covering land en tirely in private ownership, as one Of the two first enterprises Inaugurated, it appears that those In charge of work Under the national irrigation act do not consider that the passing of land into private ownership seriously . interferes with undertakings under the act In fact, a statement to that effect was recently made by Mr. Newell, chief of the recla mation service, 'i'i-''v: ',,:'- The fact is that the three laws lv question furnish ; nearly four-fifths of the entire reclamation fund, and that their , repeal would amount to a repeal of the national irrigation act law, after sixteen millions, now in the treasury, was exhausted. The desert : land act, properly administered, to the best land law, on ' the statute books. The final entries under it amounting to only 264, 91 aores ; in the last year out of an estimated 60,000,000 acres of irrigable lands1 -on the publlo domain. There can be no doubt but .What in some localities the law has been abused; but this is a matter for administrative not for legis lative action. . The commutation clause of the home stead law is utilized to but a limited extent , in the strictly arid portions of the country. Its principal employment seems to have been in the semi-arid region, where a constant effort Is being made to make more productive lands which in their natural state are Of but little value and which, by reason of lack of water supply, cannot be irrigated. No law on the statute books has done more to encourage pioneers and home builders than this law. . . .. . In my opinion, the important question for consideration in connection with the timber and atone act Is whether or not the government is receiving a fair price for these lands. In the intermountaln states, where timber lands are of small value this law is of great benefit to the settler and the ranchmen while enabling the government to dispose of the lands of small value at a good price. Oh the coast Whre timber land is much, more valuable It would undoubtedly be wise to have the law amended no as to obtain a better price tor these lands. - Much interest attaches to the advent in Washington official society of the new senators and their families, and especial Interest centers this year 1 Western members. ' . No more Interesting-woman '.will be Introduced to the senatorial-circle this winter than the wife of the new senator from Utah, Hon. Heed , Smoot She is one of the: youngest of the senatorial women despite the fact that ehe Is the mother of a large family She is a "club woman" and an active one. too; is a great reader .and. keeps well in xormea on current events. . e&e was a graduate from the University of Utah. formerly called the University of Des eret where the senator was . also a student although he was' graduated from the Brlgham Young academy. Mrs. Smoot is a musician of more than ord inary ability, She is also aa excellent housewoman. - Mrs. Fulton, wife of the new senator from Oregon, is del tghtf ully located in the sew apartment house "The High lands,", she and Senator Fulton having come early enough to get settled for the winter before the extra session began. Mrs. Fulton was formerly Miss Ada M. Hobson of Astoria, Or., and was edu cated in St Helen's hall. Portland. She is cultivated in muslo anu painting and very fond, 'like all western women, of outdoor sport. They have one eon, Fred Fulton, at school in Pasadena, Cat , Mrs. Heyburn, wife of the new Idaho senator, is an unusually bright and in teresting woman, ene . is small, nas a well-molded , figure, very bright blue eyes ana a xair complexion. She is a gifted artist and has many interesting and cleverly-executed portraits from her own brush of people well known to the publlo. Among them is a splendid like ness of. Thomas F. Bayard, formerly secretary of state. Mrs. Heyburn is quite skillful in her flesh tints, and her paintings have both strength and vigor. She also , has a beautiful and . valuable collection of Indian relics and trophies, which are souvenirs of her trip through the West and Northwest These are conspicuous ornaments in the apart ments of the senator and Mrs. Hey burn at the Normandy, where they will spend the winter. Mr 8. Heyburn has a nephew, young Mr. Battings, visiting them previous to his departure to Lron don, where he is in business. Mrs. Levi Ankeny, wife of the senator from the state of Washington, is an Oregon girL She was formerly Miss Jennie Nesmlth, eldest . daughter' of former United States Senator James W. Nesmlth of that state. These two states are closely connected in tne lives of Senator and Mrs. Ankeny. The former was also raised and educated in Oregon and la now 5 the president ot seven banks in Oregon and Washington. He established the First Nation! bank in the last-named state. Their home has been for many years in Walla Walla. Mrs. Ankeny will come to Washington early in January. Her two daughters are too young for society, and the three sons , will remain at n their home in Walla Walla, Wash., where they are en gaged in business. Mrs. Ankeny is a typical western woman. Bhe la inde pendent in thought and action, is fond of all outdoor sports and s a fearless rider and driver. She waa educated In College Hill, Cincinnati, Ohio, and , will prove to be one of the moBt progressive spirits in the new senatorial set Sen ator Ankeny has apartments in the Ar lington hotel. - - The department of commerce and la bor has made publlo the details of the past 11 months' commerce of the coun try. They show an increase ' in prac tically,, all of the great groups . into which ' the department divides the ex ports and in all of the groups into which it divides tne ' imports. Agricultural products, as a whole, ehow an increase of 174.000,000; products of the forests, 810,000,000; products of the mines, 88.- 000,000; manufactures, 15,000,000, and miscellaneous articles, 82,000,000. In the single group, fisheries, is shown a decrease of a little more than 81,000,000. For the 11 months ending with Novem ber, the total exports of iron and steel manufactures are $89,685,201 in value, against $90,136,124 in the corresponding months of 1902, and 194,112,782 in the corresponding months of 1901.- Not withstanding the slight decrease in ex ports of iron and steel, the total of all manufactures exported v during the 11 months ending , with November, 1903. is 8383,768,127, against 8377,757.576 in the corresponding months of last year. For the 11 months ending with November, articles wholly or partially manufact ured for use In manufacturing, show an Increase of $18,000,000 over the corres ponding months of last year, while ar ticles in a crude condition for use in manufacturing show an increase of $11,- 000,000, in 1903, as compared with the corresponding months of 1902. The figures of the commerce of the 11 months would indicate that the total commerce of the United States during the year about to end will be greater than in any preceding year, but that the total exports will fall a few millions below those of 1900 and be about equal to those of 1901, but materially 4n ex cess of those of 1902, while the total Imports will exceed those of any preced ing year, and combined with the exports will make the grand ; total of com merce 1 more than in any, earlier year. An officer of the quartermaster's de partment who has just returned from Manila- , tells this story of General Chaffee. In the Chinese campaign a field hospital building had been put up and the medical corps had it pretty well filled up with typhoid and other pa tients. General Chaffee came in one morning to Inspect conditions and as he passed along the row of bunks a tall, lank soldier arose with apparent weak ness from his bed and as the general approached stood at "attention."- "How are you feeling, my man?" said the general, in a kindly lone, V , . "A little better this morning, sir," said the patient with a tinge of sickness in his voice. "What? has been your trouble?" asked the general, still more kindly. "Kicked by a mule, sir." "Oh, h 1, you'll- recover," said the general shortly, as he walked away. Frank Bond, formerly editor of the Cheyenne Tribune, , and now chief draughtsman of the general land office, has the 1903 map ot the United States about ready for the lithographers. He hae placed on the new map the recently determined boundary line between the United States and British . possessions, and has included all of the islands which have come ' to this country in recent years. But he is holding the map back in order to include on it the route of the Isthmian canal as ? finally determined. The map should go to the printer dur ing the calendar year, but Mr.Bond will hold it back a few days and pos sibly several weka after congress re assembles, so that the canal route may be placed on the map should the Pan ama treaty be, ratified and the Panama route assured,; Fifteen thousand copies of the' new -map, will be printed for distribution. Early in 1904 work will b commenced on the map for that year, and it will be completed and the maps printed beforp the expiration of the year. In addition to the United States map, Mr. Bond Is getting out-maps of New Mexico and Arizona, for' which there has been a great demand since the agitation of the statehood question commenced. A little group ot western senators, Hansbrough of North Dakota, Fulton of Oregon, Burton of Kansas, and Warren of Wyoming, lingered around the table after luncheon in the senate restaurant the other day and were discussing thi vry live Question of -land law repeal. While, they, were talking Senator Hoar came in and ordered hl noonday meal. 1 i WAKE UP! 03 TEEKU -L 'el ' ' " The foregoing very clever cartoon originally appeared in the Denver Post It is the work of Warren Gilbert, an Oregon boy, who has made a fine 'reputation as a cartoonist . His father is a well known and highly respected resident of Salem. ( - , , He listened attentively ' to the, discus sion, and finally said; ' "It has been my opinion that it would be well for the country If the big ranches of the West could be broken up Into small farms. But I am free to confess," . he added, "that , I don't know anything about the matter, and I am willing, whenever the mem bers of the senate from the western states agree upon any ; land or irriga tion policy, to support what they ask for, and I believe if all of the eastern senators would do the same thing you would soon have western matters in good shape." ' , - Senator Burton of Kansas, is of the opinion that the next irrigation con gress, which la to-meet at El Paso, Tex., Immediately after the presidential election next November, will be ;: the most important meeting of that body that haaijeetrheld. Therewiu-ne a gen eral agitation of the subject of water control and water reservation,, so that the floods of the southern states may be prevented by the conservation of t the waters at the headwaters of the streams in the Northwest. Engineers have ridiculed Senator Burton's theory, but In the face of this he .stoutly main tains the correctness of his position and says he has entered upon a campaign which Will lead to the adoption of his plans for the, prevention or eontrol of the destructive floods of the Mississippi, and he intends at the next irrigation congress to exploit his theories to the delegates Interested in the subject, who will attend from all the southern and western states. - ... gO&tS KSSBEBT S FENCES STOBXES. Mr. George lies, in a personal article on Herbert Spencer In The Outlook, tells there characteristic anecdotes: When the philosopher visited America in 1882, he was in his Bixty-thlrd year. His fair,' ruddy complexion gave little token of delicate health, or of the sleep lessness which had afflicted him since 1$55, when he completed the "Principles of Psychology." In frame he was rather tall and spare. To casual acquaintances his manners were cold and formal, to his friends he was cordial, and on occasions he could be downright Jovial, telling and listening to humorous stories with un bounded glee. From his habit of dictat ing to an amanuensis he had come to talking "like a book;" most of his sen tences might ; Well have been printed just as they fell from his lips. Once in my hearing a friend who had not seen him for years congratulated him on his good health, as evidenced by his rosy cheeks. , "Do not" said he, ' "confuse complete with incomplete relation. Be cause some healthy people are ruddy, all ruddy people are considered healthy; whereas a red complexion may denote a flabby vascular system." A fair speci men, this, of how 'he might at any mo ment drop into generalization. When he was in the . critical mood, the school master in his blood came out plainly, his long, bony hand raised in 'objurga tion seemed ready to wield a ferule, whereat I ever rejoiced that I had learned my, rule-of-three under other auspices. . He waa a very "set" man. At Mon treal I told him that the view from the summit .of Mount Royal , commands superb stretches of the St Lawrence and Ottawa valleys. , But the view from half-way up the acclivity contented Mr, Spencer. He had found views thus re stricted more pleasing than wider vistas, and not one step further would he budge, although twice invited. Not far away a costly mansion was being finished for a multi-millionaire, whose -fortune had been won with little-scruple. .When it Was suggested that his carriage should pass this mansion, he was indignant "It is largely," ha said, v "the admiring the ostentation of such men that makes them possible. Baron Grant, the fraudu lent speculator, sent me an invitation for the inaugural of Leicester . Square, his gift to l.ondon. Before a party of friends I tore the card in pieces. Such men as Grant try to compensate for rob bing Foter by giving Paul what they do not owe him." SPOBT WITH BXBfXB XX IT. From the Illustrated Sporting News. It is a gorgeous story that, comes from the links of Cairo. After a drive, a tfefro player watched the ball roll over the distant turf, when to his. Hor rified amazement a crow swooped down and carried it aloft. The golfer and the caddie put off in chase, the caddie curs ing in fluid Arabic. Then, to the de light of the golfer," the crow dropped the ball on the green, and he holed out in two strokes, which put Colonel Bogey Lout of commission. , The opponent was threatened with apoplexy. As in the case of the' Indian , football trick' of btlcklng the ball under his Jersey,, there was every-kind of rule in the book ex cept one to cover the unexpected, and the golfer's record had to stand.' Many years ago in England, before a rule waa ' maae : to nt a similar emergency in cricket, it is related that a batsman knocked -a ball into a tall tree, where it lodged in the crotch of a limb, There was no climbing the tree, and ' the nea rest ax was a half . mile away. .Before it could be obtained and the tree chopped down the man with the hat made- more than 700 runs. lie stopped scoring then only because ha ran himself out of breath and fell , on the turf, still feebly trying to pile up another' run. with one weary eye cocked on the tree and all the opposing side frantically trying to chop at once. EE NOTHING IEFT (f YOU Advice to the Lovelorn . BY BSAXKIOX f AKrAX. Dear Miss Fairfax: Kindly advise me In' this matter. Is it a young lady's piece to recognize a young man first or hot? I I think it 1b a girl's place to speak first. ANXIOUS. It certainly is the girl's place to speak first . 1 Dear Miss Fairfax: I am one of the many "children" who ask you for some motherly advice, and hope you will ad vise me as well as I have read your ad vice to other. , This fall T ha .. lad v. and not nr hi ring at the time. I promised to give it to her for Christmas. 1 originally Intended getting a diamond ring for about 825 or $30, but now I cannot pay more than $10 for it I intended getting a ring with her birth stone in it Instead of a diamond. I spoke to a personal friend in regard to the ring and he says an engagement ring must be a diamond ring. Now, would you advise me to keep my promise to her and give her a ring with her birth stone in it for Christmas, or wait until I can afford to buy a diamond ring? Is It proper that an engagement ring should have a diamond In ltt Should I present It to her In the presence of her folks, or watt until we are alone? Should I have our initials engraved in it? ' ONES IN DOUBT. An engagement ring le not necessarily of diamonds. Any stone wilt do. Do not spend more money on it than you can " afford, for if the girl really loves you she will not care a rap whether she has a . ring or not; Of course a girl always loves her engagement ring on account of the sentiment involved, but it would be foolish to go in debt over it Far better save your money so you can marry the sooner. I would give it to ber when you are by yourselves if I were you. . Dear Miss Fairfax: I am a young man 24 years of age, and am deeply In love With a young lady about three years nr Junior, on whom I have been calling regu- sany tor tne past six months, ; She has always acted polite to me, but she never gave me any encouragement ? Last week I was unable to call on her, and did not have time to let her know beforehand. The next day she appeared very distant. and said she did not care whether I called ' or not. wnat would you advise me to do. as 1 would not like to give the young lady lip? IN DOUBT. I would advise you te call once mv if you really care about the glrL And If sne is not more encouraging leave her alone. , Then if Bhe cares ehe will find some way of showing you ehe does. It was your fault the last time, you see, so you must do your part. " JAPAB-BXTSSZA OOBTSOYEKSY. T. Philip Terry in January Outing. - Seoul the capital of Cho-aen. u hmi amidst a network of hills 18 miles from the sea. It is an ancient walled city, fortified in the strongest way by smells that , would ., drive any but an ' Aelatio army, forth with Unto the ocean. It Is poor ur appearance, but rich in fleas. On autumn nights tigers frequently con test thS right of way with belated pe destrians, and this is the chief reason why one has the entire street to oneself Wa moonlight strpli after 8 o'clock. Metaphorically, one can scarcely see 'the town for the bald, bulbous and bullet headed Buddhist priests who fatten on the superstition of the populace, and lead licentious lives in the adjacent mon asteries. ; , Barring an occasional court function marked by street processions, 8eoul Is 'triumphantly devoid of sights interesting to a traveler, The streets lack entirely those , picturesque charac- v m ninese or Japanese thor oughfare, and a vista across the Korean housetops is one of appalling monotony. One seeks in vain f op attractive souve nirs. In the small shops of Seoul, Jap anese beer, matches, cigarettes, and cheap crockery form the chief stock in trade, while long-stemmed Korean pipes and 1 metal-banded Korean knives are offered In the more pretentious shops. Here, likewise, can be had the really unique Korean fans, made of silk or paper, 'finished in oil and covered with ' curious, native designs. These fans are dipped in water before they are used, and the little breeze produced by them is astonishingly coel. BEITAIB'S "BOBLB" BVXdBBf . - i ;:'v.:'Vv:,. ,IMI . --... l : Although Great Britain has now nearly universal suffrage, the nation la still ruled by the aristocracy. The recon structed "government" of Mr, Balfour ia composed of fifty-eight men. Of these twenty-five are peers and seven are the sons of peers. The cabinet, which really rules, is composed of eighteen men, olf whom seven are peers and six either sons of peers or ot landed erantrv. Thrni Lwaalthy commoners alone represent ths vam unuuea majority or tne islands. - , The reason is, of eourse,', that none" but wealthy, men can afford to-enter po litical life in Great .Britain, where mem. bers of Parliament receive rn salaries; and , wealthy men wh are busily en gaged in trade or manufacture are less apt to have time for politics than "younger sons" of ducal houses who have nothing in the world to do exoept draw their allowances, and to whom statesmanship is a tradition. 1