Editorial
JpwsaaSv
PORTLAND, OREGON
SATURDAY, MARCH 26, 1904
TH E. OREGON DAILY
r - AN
C & JAC!
Published every evening (except Sunday) and every Sunday morning at The
J streets. Portland. Oregon. '
MACHINE OR VOTER MADE
T
kHE WASCO Republican ..convention did not follow
the example of the Multnomah convention In in-atructlna-
the congressional delegates. On the
contrary It expressly repudiated the doctrine of instruc
1 tlona. The difference is worthy of note. .
The Multnomah delegates are npt representatives. They
' are not even ambassadors to represent the dignity of the
J sovereign machine for they are endowed with no die
i cretion. They have no higher function than 71 messenger
t boys with numbers on their caps. Their voice is the voice
i of the machine, and they exercise as much free choice
. as a cash register. That men of manhood and self-respect
- will submit to be the megaphones of a little clique Is one
- of the strange phenomena of machine politics.
The question of a congressman from the Second district
Is a matter for deliberation and' consultation. The Reptfb-
lican majority In the district makes the Republican choice
' Of supreme Importance, not merely to the Republican
j party, but to the great business Interests of all the people.
Concede that this majority gives the Republicans the right
' to .choose the congressman, It is Important that Repub-
licans should choose hlm-ll the Republicans, and not a
! handful of manipulators. The machine rule obstructs
the free choice of the candidate. Multnomah by Its mem
bers will probably rule the convention, and Multnomah is
ruled, not by the unbiased Judgment of its delegates, but
' bv a still small voice behind the scenes, that baa no other
' v.i rt n rtrtT.ort hTi-1 KnV
rwciiivituivQ v m. - -- - - -
It Is small, j
It would be a triumph of the people over the machine, if
, the other counties In the district would combine to. reject
the program. It would be productive of a present good re
suit, but it would also be a lesson for the future. When
' the Multnomah machine dictates, a revolt becomes a vir
: tue. It Is not merely a question whether Moody or WIN
liamson shall be named, but wnetner a nine roruana ma
chine shall name the candidate that ought to be named by
the whole district. If we must have a Republican con
gressman, he should at least be a man who will owe his
elevation to the untraminMed choice of free voters, and
not one. who will be- under a sole' obligation to a boss or
two, whose purposes relate to their own interests and not
to the public interests. Indeed. It may be staled with ab
..i.. .-.,tv. th.i niill, fha hHdla la worn bv the delegates
. mum """" '
i of this county some of them at least are champing the bit. ,
, " REPUBLICAN SPLIT IN NEW YORK.
i ' v.. !
IT IS NOT ONLY New York Democrats, but New York
Republicans as well, who are engaged in a bitter in
ternal warfare, with the prospect of a serious split In
'the Republican ranks next fall. The president 4s entirely
'cafe, so far as the delegation to the national convention
' Is concerned; in fact, he will apparently have no open p
" position whatever In the convention; but the senile ob
, etlnacy of Senator Piatt and the overbearing and pug
nacious ambition of Governor Odell are likely to lose him
New York's big bunch of electoral votes next November.
: And thia prospect will encourage Democrats In ail possibly
i doubtful states to do their best
That the greatest state In the TJnlon, with pearly eight
million people, should remain for so many years under
the political domlnancy of a mediocre man like Piatt
mere politician, of aa onadmjrable type, and without a
trace of real statesmanship in his makeup, significantly
exhibits the low plane to which practical politics has sunk.
Piatt has been the Republican boss- of New York for about
p. generation, and is serving his third consecutive term In
the aenate, yet be never, so far as the public is Informed,
did anything whatever for the public good, or made the
lightest mark In our national life to the country's, his
party's or his own . credit . His sole aim and business In
politics and in office have been to look out for himself and
his, friends, at the public's expense. It is a standing dis
grace to the Empire State that it should' keep such a
malt, selfish, fairly contemptible figure In the senate for
term after term, when it baa thousands of abler and In all
ways larger men. ' .;''
But Senator Piatt has possessed in an unusual degree
that species of political cunning which, enables a . man to
manipulate political forces successfully, -and so has re
tained the leadership, now sought to be wrested from him
by the. more vigorous Odell, who for future purposes is
determined to keep himself in the public eye. He has had
enough of the governorship, another man Is slated for
the senatorship to succeed Depew, and so Odell demands
that old Senator Piatt shall surrender the boss' baton Into
the governor's hands; and In this he Is likely to have the
XBXSX EMBLEMS.
Origin of the Oreea flag and of the
Shamrock.
From the Chicago News,
. ' Some orators are wont to refer fer
vidly, to the green flag as "the ancient
banner of Ireland." Probably, how
ever. 8t Patrick and his contemporaries
never-saw a green flag in Ireland, nor
did the Irish for about 14 centuries after
him. There la no 'mention of a green
flag In the Irish arfnals previous to 1798.
At the celebrated skirmish known as the
battle of the Boyne the opposing armies
of King- William and his father-in-law,
King James, wore red uniform. In
order to avoid killing one another by
mistake in the confusion of battle Wlll-
, lam's men stuck green leave In their
hats, while those of .lames wore white
paper rosettes, representing the white
rose of York. Thus by strange irony
the Orangemen were the first wearers
of the green In Ireland. The famous
. Irish brigade in the' service of France
wore red uniforms; some of them were
therefore mistaken for English and cut
down by the French cavalry in the
melee when the brigade's charge gained
the -victory at Fontenoy. The Irish .in
surgents of 1798, Catholics and Protes
tants, were the first to adopt green
as the national color of Ireland. It
had been previously proposed as the
"color of hope" by Camilla Desmoullns
to the French revolutionists, but he was
outvoted In favor of the tricolor. The
Wexford insurgents at first used im
partially flags .of vurious colors red,
yellow and green but eventually they
fixed on green, which, with baptism of
heroic blood, was then firmly and per
manently established as the national
color of Ireland. There have been some
fantastic and. wholly unsuccessful at
tempts to introduce a green, white and
yellow "Irish tricolor." ,
Even the antiquity of the shamrock
a an Irish national emblem is assailed.
The learned and painstaking Dr. P. W.
Joyce says: "It Is not easy to deter
mine the origin of the Irish custom of
wearing a bunch of shamrocks In the
hat on St Patrick's day March 17.
According to the popular belief it com
memorates an Incident In the life of
St Patrick that on a Certain occasion
when he-wxplainlng the mystery of
the Trinity to the pagan Irish he took
tip a single shamrock and pointed out
the three leaves growing from one
stem to i Illustrate the doctrine of
the - three persons in one t uoa
INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER
PUBLISHED BY JOURNAL PUBLISHING CO.
OFFICIAL PAPER OP THE CITY OP
NOMINEES?
co-operation of the
Democratic enemy,
New York City campaigns.
NEED
A Marion county
ligently expended,
make no better investment The county is out of debt,
and its rate of taxation la low as compared with that of
some other counties,
well founded. Every
or road improvement
times over. "
But to Insure thia
must be made.. The old-fashioned dirt roads, thrown up
by neighborhood road work, though costing little In cash,
are dear at any price. In thia climate, In particular, road
building must be done on sclentiflo principles, and under
expert superintendence. It takes a good deal of money
to .make good, durable roads lh western Oregon, but they
are a necessity and scarcely anything will do more, to de
velop the localities that provide them.
Tf In fttlll unit that
Good roads directly
produce. They save time, labor, horseflesh, the wear and
tear of wagons) and make his farm at once more val
uable, by a considerable amount.
Clackamas, Washington, Columbia, Clatsop and other
counties, the good
ing agitated more
good roads become the rule Instead of the exceptlop. The
condition of many roads this spring, after so long a pe
riod of rainy weather, should also have an Influence In
prompting greater and more Intelligent efforts In this
good work.
The man In any
good roads thereby furnishes strong evidence that he is
its best and most useful citizen.
IT IS HIGH TIME that the disgraceful old shacks at the
corner of First and Washington streets were torn
down. To aee them being repainted and renovated
la a great disappointment to Portland people who. have
any civic pride, as those old houses have long been an eye
sore and there was
stood that they were
and burned out that end of town.
The, houses are worthless old fire traps, a menace, to all
the decent buildings In their vicinity and It seems a great
pity that there la not some way in which to compel the
owner to remove them,' aa he has not sufficient pride to
be affected by criticism, or ashamed of owning such un
sightly property in the heart of the city.
There are a number of old rattletraps In and around
Portland which are all sure sooner or later to furnish
food for flames and ownera of adjacent properties will be
very lucky to escape without a great deal of damage.
Both the character of the tenants and the old and tindery
character of the buildings are a menace to the town, be
cause the people who rent them are usually careless, here
today and gone tomorrow sort of people with little to lose
in the way of personal property and no regard for the
property of other people. It would seem that profit enough
has been made from all the old rattletrapa about town In
the past to Justify the ownera tearing them down and
putting up decent buildings of some sort, which would
not only be a source of greater profit to themselves, but
advance the price of the property around It
When a man has made hla fortune in a city, has profited
by the contribution of othera to its growth and improve
ment the very least he can do in return la to make aome
Improvements of his own to add to the value and ap
pearance of city' property, but there are so many men of
the genus Sus in Portland who own such buildings that we
are likely to have little improvement until some of their
heirs realize the folly .of keeping them in existence.
But this story must be an in
vention of recent times, for we find no
mention of it in any of the old lives
of the saint Neither ' are we able to
say that the custom Itself la of any
higher antiquity; for, though it is now
observed by the Irish all over the world,
and though it la mentioned by a few
writers of the last 200 or 800 years
as, for instance, by Thomas Dlnely in
1675, who describes how the Irish wore
crosses and shamrocks on St Patrick's
day yet we find no allusion to It in an
cient Irish writings."
As to the emblems to be frequently
seen on Irish banners and regalia, the
round tower and the wolf dog are cer
tainly suggestive and symbolic of an
cient Erin. So also are the harp, once
the. national musical Instrument the
famous, almost sacred, harp that in
Tara's halls the soul of muslo shed. A
crownless harp was a favorite emblem
of Fenianlsm. ' But , it was an English
king Henry VIII who first adopted
the harp and put it on his flag as the
arms of Ireland, or rather of the Eng
lish colony in Ireland, and there it re
mains to the present day, a golden harp
on a blue ground, in one of the quarters
of the British royal standard. The Red
Branch ; Knights of ulster had on their
banner a crltneon lion, which was after
ward adopted as the flag of the Irish
colony in Scotland, later as the flag of
all Scotland, and as such this Irish
Scotch red lionjjOn a yellow ground now
appears on tmOBxttieh standard, diag
onally opposite! the j Irish harp. The
English portion of the standard, by the
way. consisted of King Edward's three
leopards, now changed Into lions. But
for ages England had no distinctive na
tional flag.
To Mayor Williams.
J. L. Stockton In Chlca Record-Herald.
No people should make any truce with
crime. '
He who commits it should be taught to
know '
That swift as arrows from Ulysses
bow, , '.
His punishment will come to him each
time.
And nations all must' learn this solemn
thing, .
Though it were only learned in blood
. ' and tears ;; :? . .
No commonwealth' can bear the test of
years, '
And crucify the law. ; Law must be
king.
JO URNAt,
JNO. P. CARROLL
Journal Building, Fifth and' Yamhill
- .
PORTLAND
president, in which case Senator Piatt
will exercise his. declining power against his enemies
within the Republican party, - rather than against the
as he has repeatedly done before la
OP GOOD ROADS.
FAR MORE Interest is being taken In Oregon in the
subject of good roads than ever before. This is
a good sign. It shows that people of the towns
and rural communities are awakening to the importance
of good roads. In many localities meetings of farmers
and others have been held, and thia matter discussed, in a
spirit Indicating' a. determination to secure more good
highways.
paper last week made complaint about
increased taxes, made necessary by the demand for im
proved roads, but If the money la Judiciously and intel
the taxpayers of that rich county can
so that auch a complaint .seems not
dollar well expended In road, making
will be returned In a few years many
result really good and durable roads
enhance the. value of all the farmers'
Not only in Marion, but In Polk, Benton, Linn, Lane,
roads question is a live one, and is be
and more, rs It deserves to be, until
community who helps most to secure
REMOVE THE SHACKS!
n t
general rejoicing when it was under
at last to go before they caught fire
tsx soa or vxa botebbzostb.
By H. R. R. Herzberg.
I've been a lawyer. In a way,
(A scarcelv trodden wnv tha
And practised patience, day for day,
wen ratner more than other practice.
Of course, I followed In the rut
Laid out for youthful lawyers e'er
Became a politician . . . But
I've never been a millionaire!
At teaching later on I tried
My hand. I didn't And it handy.
The salary, I soon espied,
Would hardly keep my girl In candy.
Thereafter, with a learned strut
A, deep and philosophic air.
I sought the lecture platform . . ,
But
' I've never been a millionaire!
My brief career upon the stage,
Gad! to this day I hear the hisses!-
Did not establish me "the rage'1
Among the matlneelng misses.' .
Then, when I took to painting, shut
Remained the gates of glory, there,
AUho' I did "impressions" ., . , But
, I've never been a millionaire! i
The violin I played a while,
A very little wee while only.
XI trust, and hope, and feel that I'll
Be nevermore so shunned and lonely!)
My next appearance was as "Knut
The Kannibal from Kln-Koo-Kalr,"
Within a nickel sideshow . , But
I've never been a millionaire!
As motorman aloft the "L,"
As sandwtchman along the highway,
As man with "novelties" to sell.
For thirty years I've thus. In my way,
A figure in the city cut: v
There is but. one thing left I'd care
To try. I've been amany . , But
I've. never been a millionaire! ? ,
Bussle's BTaval Coal BUI.
The coat bill of. the Russian Pacific
squadron, at anchor, Is said to be IL
030,000 a year. One Ironclad uses 12
tons of coal dally for electric lighting.
Formerly the squadron consumed annually-60.000
tons of Cardiff at Port .Ar
thur, and, besides, 30,000 tons of Japan
ese coal. Cardiff coal costs. 817.61 per
ton. Three or four years ago it was
$27.19 per ton. - Japanese coal coSta 16
to $8 per ton. Nearly (0,000 tons now
come to Vladivostok ' yearly. Nearly
10,000 tons came - wlth,ln one week In
two British ships. '
idelights
Baker City Is to have a new Catholic
church, to cost $60,000.
Clatskanle is not so backwoodsy; It
has a girls basketball team.
The first school In Pendleton was
opened Just 85 years ago,, with 27 pu
pile, . - '
Medfnrd rafiiaaa tn anil itm . ntnr
plant, believing that in this case public
ownership, Is best '
Ashland . la in Hava a aawar avatam
tocost 110,000, but it will not have any
uanner-creek sewer. . .
Fruit prospects in Lane county are
good, and the same report is made from
other parts of the state. .
Rainier Gazette: Storey has been a
good sheriff, andNt is bad to see him
turned down for an untried neophite,
hall wnrtr. aav tK pntmtrv nan.,f ISii!
they will make up for the delay when
iney set a cnance.
North Yamhill Record: Four or five
feet of new snow has fallen during the
last few days on the i summit of the
mountains', which makes total, depth
near 20 feet ;
Scappoose correspondence . of the
Rainier Gazette: Qua Skuzie was in
Portland laat week. He came back with
a broad smile, and a three-gallon demi
john under hla arm.
An Inspector, who did not believe so
until he made a personal Investigation,
has concluded that-tha-mailrbetween
North Yamhill and Tillamook cannot be
put through until there is a big thaw,.
and then, high water will make it dim
cult. Eugene citizens are considering a
Carnegie library proposition. Some In
fluential men urge acceptance, while
others are disposed to follow the ex
ample of several eastern cities that re
fused to accept one of Mr. Carnegie's
gifts, on his somewhat onerous terms.
Work Is being pushed on the Pilot
Butte canal, water having been turned
through the flume satisfactorily. Two
ditch crews are working near Bend,' and
will be Increased soon in force. Tele
phone poles are being delivered along
the line, and 27 miles of wire has been
ordered.
A local rural telephone company !s
belnguorganlzed at CorvalUs for the ru
ral business around that city. A big
meeting of farmers was held in connec
tion with the business, and officers were
elected. A similar movement is on foot
in the vicinity of Albany, and elsewhere
up the valley. The country people ant
determined to have "hello" privileges.
With 40 employes and a payroll of
875 a day, times are lively these days
with the Davidson Fruit company of
Hood River. The box factory is con
stantly buzzing away, turning out 1,500
crates a day. There are now over 25,000
completed crates stored in differett
warehouses. . Hood River people are pre
paring for a greater output of fruit
than ever, and expect to add this year
to the already wide and well-deserved
fame of that highly favored locality.
P. A Sammons, a La Grande lumber
man, has entirely lost the use of hla
voice. He was poisoned in a saloon at
Cle Elum and in. the course of the treat
ment employed by the doctors to saw
his life the vocal cords were injured so
that he la unable to speak above a whis
per. A companion who Was with Mr
Sammons was also poisoned and was
found dead in a room three days after
ward. They only drank a glass of beer
each, but it proved an expensive drink.
In Coos county R. D. Hume, the
financial magnate of that region, desires
the nomination for joint senator for
Coos and. Curry, while 8. B. Hermann,
son of Representative Hermann, is out
for the same place. Both were in the
lower house of the last legislature. The
Marshfleld Mall says that young Her
mann's candidacy is likely to Injure his
father's chances for renomination. aftO
warns him to yield to Mr. Hume, who
Is popular as well as rich and influen
tial. A resident of Eola reports that it hai
taken sudden boom, which, for its size.
eclipses anything of the kind ever oc
curring H any city in Oregon. There
is at present not an empty nouse in tne
xitv m- anhnVha which run he utilized
as a residence, and the "people are busy
repairing Ola awejnngs ana reaninsiiiia
them. This week 40 immigrants arrived
from Tennessee and settled in and
around Eola. They are all relatives of
old residents, or of people who came
a year ago, and were induced to seek
new homes in balmy Oregon by the num
erous letters written by Oregon rela
tives, telling of the delightful climate
and productive soil.
mom abb szbtbubtfitem
HBMHBIS
Official Peculation Are Having a Bad
r '1 u. - jj. in Aioanjr tiomutiai.
Not for many years, in my opinion,
has there existed as great a degree of
political chaos as can now be observed.
There seems to be a general feeling of
a let rust toward our law makers and ex
ecutive officers, from president and con
gress down to our most humble consta
ble and. town council . There are rea
sons in great abunaance for this dis
trust yln fact our whole political sys
tem aeems to be honeycombed with po
litical dishonesty. When nearly one-half
of our congressmen are accused of pec
ulation, our senators, some of them, sub
jected to criminal prosecution, and exec
utive officers, sworn to execute the Jaw,
setting law aside at will, the people have
just reason for distrust. So it, therefore,
is a matter of no surprise that even the
common people are becoming less law
abiding than formerly, with such exam
ples set before them.
A ftirther reason for distrust of our
law makers is the rapid increase of
taxation. At the present rate of increase
It will be but a short time until tax
ation will absorb the entire earning
power of property. Our grain farmers
are now required to pay more than one
half of their net income for taxes.
Is It a matter of surprise that men do
not make true returns of- their proper
ties - to the assessor? No matter who
we select to represent Us in the legisla
ture the extravagances appropriations
till go on. Even a member from this
county, selected particularly to represent
the farmers at our last session, I believe
voted for every graft that the majority
party demanded,
- Is (there any remedy tn sight to eurb
this ' official extravagance? Our only
hope now Is the Initiative land referen
dum. While it may be troublesome and
of some trouble to bring' about it must
be Invoked upon every appropriation in
the future not strictly necessary for the
maintenance of our, state, county .and
city governments. Another remedy is a
just and equitable assessment of prop
erty for purposes of .taxation. It Is a
notorious, fact that railroads, telegraphs,
telephones, timber holdings, etc., are not
assessed In proportion to their value, as
are our farmerr , , , .
- . . .
BREWEIVS OPINION TO GUIDE.
Washington Correspondence of the Chi
cago Journal. !..,;.-:,: ',,:. :,',
The attorney-general has-been study
ing the opinion which a to be bis guide
In future prosecutions, and it may be
said that he finds it narrower In Its
scope than the first announcements by
the press would lead the public to be
lieve. . r. i'-. :. '.; . ... ::.r ; , ,'; '
For purposes of prosieutlon the anti
trust law la not the so-called majority
opinion rendered by Mr. Justice Harlan,
but is the short opinion of Mr. Justice
Brewer, who,; while voting, with the ma
jority of "the court disagreed with the
other four justices in his method of ar
riving at, that result, and who took a
much narrower view as to the scope of
tho law and the powers of the ' federal
government to deal with combinations
In restraint of trade.
The "reasonableness," or otherwise, of
restraints put on competition and trade,
Is made the test of illegality by Justice
Brewer.;? The " other f out5 "Justices of
the majority took the ground that con
gress nas the right under the constitu
tion to name any restraints which it
deems offensive to Interstate trade, and
to order the removal of such restraints.
Justice Harlan specifically stated that
they might be reasonable or unreason
able; that the power of congress was
plenary. By the' Brewer interpretation, ,
each case must stand On Its own merits,
and the-court reserves the right to say
mat ine limitations attempted by con
gress are unreasonable and in ' conflict
with , the spirit and letter cf the consti
tution. ... , ;" . .
The "' language of Justice Brewer la
Worth .quoting. After reviewing pre
vious decisions of the court on this sub-
ject he said: . . .
instead of hoiaifig that the anti-trust
act included all contracts, reasonable or
unreasonable, in restraint, of Interstate
trade, the ruling should have been that
the contracts there presented were, la
themselves unreasonable restraint of In
terstate trade, and therefore within, the
scope of the act.
Congress did not Intend bv that act to
reach and destroy those minor contracts
in partial restraint Of trade which the
long course of decisions at common law
had affirmed were reasonable and ought
to oe upneia. , , i
The purpose rather was to add a stat
utory prohibition, which prescribed pen
alties and remedies to nullify these con
tracts which were In direct restraint of
trade, unreasonable, and against oubllo
policy. ,
While aareelna with hla viata in..
tlces of the majority that tne combina
tion of these two railroads was such
unreasonable restraint a a tha it.tnt.
aimed at. he made clear his conviction
mat me mere ownership or stock by a
private individual could not be regarded
as an unreasonable restraint on trade,
and that the law could not prevent an
Individual owning as much of anything
aa he mlarht ba nhla in sett 11 r at auaft
though such ownership resulted in the
consolidation or competing roads or the
obliteration of other minor competitive
conditions. J
In OthF words, tha rfo-hia n n.l.t.
property (including the freedom of con
tract) and the test of reasonableness,
must ba eonaldnrad aa Hmitntin..
the powers of the federal government
o euro in Dig comoinations of capi
tal. The restraints must be reasonable,
and they must be directed to corporate
comoinaiions; not against individual
ownersoip. - -
And the facts and surroundings ' 6f
each case will be considered in deter
mining; whether the corporation against
which prosecution la directed, is In fact
Indulging in such suppression of com
petition as la in violation of the letter
and spirit of tha anti-trust act.
It may seem strange that one Justice,
a member of a bench made up of nine.
THE PENSION GRAB.
. From the Baltimore News.
The act of the pension bureau Is a
flagrant usurpation of Dower, and vio
lates the first principles of constltu
tlonal government For this violation,
the president of the United States must
of . course bear the primary responsl-,
blllty. If the Democratic party were In
a condition to nut iin an ipmiIvh
fight in the coming campaign, this act;
comDinipg, as it does, economlo profli
gacy with disregard of fundamental oon-
stltutlonal restraints, would make one
ments, one of the strongest counts in
tne indictment against Mr. 'Roosevelt.
The president's record in the pension
question has altogether been anything
but creditable. Commissioner Evans,
who had remained at the head of the
bureau, under a galling Are from the
Grand Army people, all through Mr. Mc
Klnley'a occupancy of the White House,
was promoted out of the way by his
strenuous successor In the presidency.
This was a victory for the pension
sharks, and they have naturally not been
on this account less persistent in their
efforts to get "more, more' There has
been a determined endeavor to get a
service nenslon bill thrnnrh Mnmu
and it waa said from the start that Mr.
Kooseveu woum not stand in the way.
In spite of this, however, it seemed to
be recognized that the bill would have
a poor chance to get Itself enacted. Now
comes the president and obligee the
Grand Army by letting his good-natured
successor to Commissioner Evans give
"the boys" what they want without
going through the tedious and doubtful
task of getting their bill through con
gress. It is not an edfying record.
From the New York Evening Post
No service-pension bill will be passed
by congress this is the official an
nouncement from Washington this morn
ing. But this does not mean that a
courageous and high-minded president
has resolutely thrown down the gauntlet
to the Grand Army mendicants and to
those truckling politicians of his own
party who would once more buy the
votes of the ieterans at the outset of
a presidential' campaign. On the con
trary, it 'denotes a pitiful, not to say
a shameful, surrender to the "old sol
dier" and ' his political friends. The
"necessity" for a service-pension bill has
been averted, the Tribune's report reads,
"by a change in the administration of
existing law." In other words, both
congress and the country having shown
plainly enough that they did not care to
have further .pension laws placed upon'
the statute books, the same end has been
attained by an unexampled perversion
'The Bemocratle jrustloes.
From the Philadelphia Record.
- The Democratic justices, joined by
Justice Holmes of Massachusetts, are
not on the side of the corporation, but
they are opposed to the ' extension of
the federal power involved In the ap
plication by a majority of the court of
the Sherman law to the particular case
under consideration. To affirm the right
of congress to interfere with the owner
ship of property because thet property
Is an instrument In commerce Is an ex
tension, of the power of tho federal gov
ernment, which Ave .Republican Justices
support and three Tjemocratic Justices
and( one Republican deny. , '
should deliver an oplnloa In which none
of the othei" eight agrees, and yet which
must be taken by the attorney-general
ana tne country at large as tne law
But that auch Is the case wlU.be xeadlly
seen when it Is remembered that the
court is evenly divided, and that this
one Justice holds the balance Of power
so to speak the determining vote.
. It was " Justice Brewer's alignment
with Harlan, Day, Brown and McKenna
that turned the acale against the North
ern Securities company, and the reason
he alligned himself with those four was
not that he believed in the radical enun
ciation, of Justice Harlan, but because
he beieved that the particular railroad
combination on trial was an unreason
able combination auch as the Sherman
anti-trust statute sought to prevent.
If Justice Brewer had not regarded
the merger of the Great Northern and
Northern Pacific, by means of the "hold
ing" company, as unreasonable, he would
have voted with the dissenting Justices-
White, Fuller, Peckham and Holmes
and the decision would have been ad
verse to the government ;
It la evident therefore, that In all
future prosecutions of trusts under the
Sherman act the government authori
ties roust keep in mind the opinion of
Justice Brewer and be prepared to con
vince him that the combination assailed
is one which Is unreasonable within the
Intention of the f raroere of the anti
trust statute. For it goes without saying
that any case of this sort will be fought
up through the lower courts and will
have to, stand the test of final Judg
ment by the nine justices of the .United
States supreme bench;' '.. :
-Antr if the attorney-general falls to
convince Mr. Justice Brewer that the
combination IB unreasonable, he will give
nu judgment m the negative and I will
be supported by the four Justices who,
for different reasons, are unwilling to re
gard the Sherman statute as valid, In
which event the prosecution would fall.
It may be stated with some empha
sis that Attorney-General Knox has lit
tle doubt in his own mind aa to the il
legality of a' number ot great combine
tlona and conspiracies' In restraint of
trade now in existence, and does not
hesitate to believe , that Judged by the
conservative test prescribed by Mr. 'Jus
tice Brewer, they will be found In viola
tion of the Sherman anti-trust act But,
even in the most flagrant cases. It Is
necessary to be very careful, la the
preparation of proof.
, . ssBSjasssiaaesJ a- '
The department of commerce and la
bor, acting through lta bureau ot cor
porations, , will continue the work in
which it has been engaged for a num
ber of months, collecting data and evi
dence to be submitted to the president
and the department of Justice; and when
it appears to the .lawyers of the tatter
department that a good case can be
made, suits will be started. , In no case
will prosecutions be commenced With
out adequate evidence; for the president
and attorney-general feel that" It would
have a most unfortunate effect if any
such prosecution were to fall.
It is perfectly, apparent from what
has been said that no wholesale prosecu
tions are to follow aa a result of this
decision. The "minor contracts in par
tial restraint of trade" aa tney are
termed by Justice Brewer, are certainly
not In danger of interference by gov
ernment officials; for they are not re
garded aa unreasonable. On the other
hand, the larger contracts and conspir
acies which stamp out competition, and
monopolize trade, will feel the full force
of the law Just as rapidly as evidence
of a character to convict can bo gath
ered Into the possession of the gov
ernment officials.
Aa to what particular trust or trusts
will come next nobody knows; not even
Attorney-General Knox or President
Roosevelt
tOf the exlstinor nnnalnn niloa Th.
I ident, through his commissioner, has
presumed 10 reao into them a construc
tion which congress never Intended to
mnow, ana tnus ( is enabled lo announce
that hereafter every veteran over 63
years of age will be pensioned. , . .
Considered in any aspect the true
friends of President Roosevelt who has
done so much for the honor, of the civil
service since entering the White House,
must deeply regret that the crowning
act In a long serlea of pension outrages
will forever remain credited to hla ad
ministration and be coincident with his
open efforts for a renomination and elec
tion. ' .
From the New York World.
' Thia subsidized patriotism is an Insult
to American love of country. It Im
plies that of all the nations of the world
ours is the only one whose people will
not fight for It except on a cash basis.
While Japan la displaying an example
of self-sacrificing patriotism we are of
fering the spectacle of a patriotism
measured by the payroll.
Our pension Zystem is distinctly So
cialistic It is oaiy a step from old-age
pensions for everybody. When the sup
ply of old soldiers is exhausted, does
anybody suppose that the demand for
pensions will ceaaeT They are now talk
ing of pensioning the teamsters, and as
long as there fere politicians like Roose
velt to barter the public welfare for
votea there will always be new, and
ever new. claasee of pensioners to go on
the subsidy roll. ' ..
- If Andrew Johnson had committed a
breach of the constitution one-tenth ss
flagrant as that just perpetrated by hla
successor In the accidental occupancy of
the White House' In his mad hunt for
delegates, his Impeachment would never
have failed by one vote in the aenate.
From the New York Tlmea.
. It la to be borne in mind that congress
has not only omitted to enact but haa
distinctly refused to enact the service
pension law which these officials assume
to enact by executive proclamation,
President Cleveland's message, vetoing a
service-pension act, though that act was
guarded and conservative compared with
this wild performance, was so. cogent
that it put a quietus upon that project
for IT years. The question whether the
author of that message is or la not a
fitter man for president than the man
who attempts to do by Indirection what
could not be done directly Is brought
sharply up by this amaslng proclama
tion. How can an executive action
which combines, as this does, dema
gogy, trickery and usurpation, be, polit
ically, anything but a boomerangtl
- Traveling Ken's Bxpenses Greater.
From the Louisville Courier-Journal.
The change In the method of operat
ing hotels from the American - to the
European plan haa increased the ex
penses of traveling men 82ft per cent
"I have made the test, and I know that
such is the case," remarked a man who
is at the head of a large number of
traveling men. . '.'The Increase is start
ling. Anyone will notice It If he stops
to think. Traveling men pay as much
for their rooms alone ss they' formerly
paid for thetr'rooms and meals. In many
instances, and the charge is Invariably
higher just 22ft per cent according
to actual test' - r , ..
Small Change
Can enough first-class Democrats be
found to sacrifice themselvest . ,
It Is a wonder the blrda do not hnfd
an Indignation emigration meeting. .
Easter will arrive on time Just the
same, If it should find winter still here.
If Port Arthur is as long getting up
again as it la tn falling, it will be a long
time down.
Judge Carey believea In quitting while
hla credit la good and he can do so with
flying colora
Apparently Sheriff Storey has cooled
off somewhat or else he is keeping his
wrath under better control.
If people will be patient they may be
rewarded with some news of. importance
from Port Arthur after a while, v -
This county, city and state would be
better off if the two principal political
parties were more evenly matched. .
" The Iflood prophet has pretty, good
ground to stand on this time or at
least some big pilea of snow to point to.
The merger decision does not seem to
have hit anybody or anything a knock
iaiuflo
out blow. The big trusts are doing busi
ness Just as usual. ,
The solid south will follow' New
rork s . lead If jNew - York Democrats
can-get togethersufficiently to lead
anywhere, which is doubtful.
The president has hi a. ttnnA.
points. One of them that will strengthen
nun in tne west is me nearty and ef
fectual aid to tha federal achama of ir
rigation. , ,
Attnrnav.rianaral Vnnv haa
discovered, on clnsa auminafinn nt k
recent anti-merger decision, that it does
not mean so mucn as it was it first
feared It did.
The benefits Of the money paid by the
gamblers Into the city treasury for vio
lating tne law are not visible in the
streets or other places where Improve
ment la necessary.
Republicans are. beginning to talk
again about carrying Missouri, which ia
about aa likely aa that the Democrats
will carry Massachusetts. Yet the
turning-down of Prosecuting Attorney
Folk seems to Justify this sort of pro-
roat on in parv ox uoneai JUissoun dem
ocrats.
New York Democrats will have a very
lively fight among themselves in decid
ing whom to support for the Democratic
nomination for president, and not to be
out of fashion Multnomah county Dem
ocrats will pull off a little scrap them
selves when that crowd of 260 gets to
gether. It ia the oroner time of vear tn ra-
rainl boys that.lt is not only unlawful
to kill songbirds", but also to touch them ;
that tho birds . are very useful in or
chards snd gardens and should be re
garded as friends and treated according
ly. If a disposition to kill something must
be gratified, let the boys turn their at
tention to rats.
It Is possible that the demand in con
gress for an economical showing will
result In the demise of the very worthy
bill to increase the pay of rural mall
carriers. It is supposed they will vote
right,. anyway. But the bill is so manl-
through. The people don't want the
sort of economy represented by opposi
tion to this bill.
The Salem Journal announces editori
ally that "Its publishers are not candi
dates for any office tn the gift of the
people, and will not accept nominations
for the legislature or any other office.!
Good resolution. 'What does a success
ful newspaper man want of an office.
anyway T He should be free to watch
the fellows who are In office and com
ment on their doings Independently.
...... .u V . "
This la a presidential year, and ap
propriations by congress will be kept
down to a minimum. In the river and
harbor bill no appropriations for new
work will be made, and The Dalles-Ce-Ulo
canal Is so considered, says The
Dalles Chronicle. Yes, millions can be
squandered in indirect vote-buying and
in making spectacular show in the high
places of officialdom, but great works
of improvement, especially in a "safe"
and dutiful state like Oregon, can wait
. ',. . H002rB"lS7BAT.
A Demooratio Paper Hints Thai Bis
friends Hay Basest X.
From the Baker City Democrat.
Now that Malcolm A. Moody has been
declared beaten for congress, even before
the holding of the state convention be
cause the Mitchell representatives In
the primaries of Multnomah county won
out has called for a few. remarks by
some leading Democrats as well as Re
publicans. It was stated yesterday by a staunch
Republican who was talking; with a
good Democrat that ft la by no means
certain that Moody ia beaten for con
gress In the second district If be should
decide to rurf and he has not said that
he is not going to run. '
"It may be like the boomerang which
elected . A. B.' Combs county clerk ' of
Baker ' county . two years ago on the
immnnniLin z iimsst m ansa t h 'm nr iifri's
opposition and a conceded majority for
that office against him. A local Republi
can paper shortly before election day
published a soreed calling attention to
the natural physloal deformities of Mr.
Combs. There was an Immediate re
vulsion ' of feeling on the part of ' all
voters In all parties and Republicans at
the polls put Mr. Combs, into office. So
with the recent uncalled for and false
charge against Mr. Moody and his pub
lic prosecution for a crime never com
mltted, trivial In Itself and at the ln-at
stance of the ,'gang working against
him politically. That action will not
be forgotten at the polls, and it is freely
asserted here that If Moody doe not run
for the office a good strong Democrat
will be nominated and will have a' good
chance of succeeding Williamson."
The above interview expresses the
opinion of many in both political parties
in Baker county.
QTXXfTXOX OT 1X7X0X08.
From the Catholic Sentinel. '
We were astonished to note that The
Journal In its initial Sunday issue edi
torially defended the practice of suicide.
It la dangerous teaching thua to contra
vene one of the most powerful precepts
of the natural moral law, The notion
of suicide must ever be repugnant to the
believer in God. The right to life car
ries with the duty to live.
The moral intelligence ot the world
has ilwivi rairardad tha aaie murdarAt
s a deserter from the post of duty.
This sentiment is aptly phrased In the
lines ascribed to the poet Martial:
When all the blandishments of life are
gone.
Tho coward sneaks to death, the brave
lives on."