T0HIAL PAGE TMS JyUIiKA!;:,
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a . Acxnox. jjro. f. CatsOU,
AN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER
Sunday, June 12, 1904. ., 9V; '
; V , A FORCE THAT IS HERE TO STAY. . tion of the railroads, an inherjtjmfc tax; a' constitutional in the mountains; if .the fooA is not as good as the home "machines.' ; Senators"' are" not ""cods 'Bosses' cmirht to W"
f ' 1 l amendment allowing the enactment of a graduated income cooking, and the lodging is. inferior to home beds;' if there out in the harvest fields ; The Peoole rule But first thrv ' '
RAFTER EVERYTHING has been said and done, the tax, the abolition of all railroad passes to public officials, are disagreeable neighbors or co-guests, and if all town com- must think..'. And thev are thinking- . J -
f mostgratifying feature of the recent election was the power to be conferred upon the state? railroad commission forts cannot be had yet. the very change itself, these very - Afi mL - Jl' t - i" ' .'
J. -? j.t i. ... i i t .t-t. l I.-5 , r r i j- t .,.. .' '. Alter .mis success the referendum Ieflotiej of Tllinme wnt
v1wuiiuhhv auurucu lur catu one iu nave nis say. iu wx aim cniurcc rcasunauic iranspurcauon cnarges, so lar inconveniences anq aisagTceaDWllies, are resUUIT Decause Ot h Wi'dat.,,. s tono j j 7? 7 -y- ,
Heretofore: every one -has been forced to think alike. If as the same may be subject to state control,', similar power the change thev afford to mind and muscle. -And sea breeze .uhmittiS J2. " . !u secu"d thc Passap f jaw '
he didn't think like the other fellow, he was obliged to hold to be conferred bv concress on the interstate commerce com- and sea hathinc. or mountain-stream .fihinr. and the irm. " r 1 "nff T ine Peop'e hc .question as to whether, they; .
ucai oTiniJaiiij' auii uic ju vuciic iiiau u uicy aa niayeu at nomc, yet me very lact mat xney lrtwW rn!r . Plr nmrc.M v.. iVo i i
ie possible exception of the graduated RO again aid again m long as! they live is proof enough that 3
:tical difficulties of the honest enforce- these trips are on the whole beneficial, v ' ''m 8"' -7 n0i T77' d-Yes, 451,319; no,;,
shown during our civil war to be so The fact is that with the old New York miser the ex- -Ll ' ' . , v ' ' , . 'Y - ' .
Illinois
know it,
inicrsiate commerce com- ana sea Daininir. or mnuniain-arreflmiisninc ana tn tr. - . - --. . .VT..r. , ...ry ,
his peace or put his burning thoughts on . a handbill and mission 'to control transportation charges and to reduce the dom from restraint and conventionality, enW
distribute it about the city, hvery genuine avenue ot pub- same where excessive to a reasonable basis, and it insists are by the average mortal by no means to be despised "amnAtnn- !; '''' wtuus, H .fCI5,,tuuu''
licity was closed to him. Such reports of public meetings that the Republican party by its party platforms has pledged more than repay the cost " v : iJS? second, for strictly local
, and events were made as suited the purposes of those who itself to these reforms, and is therefore bound in honor to '.People of Portland need a summer vacation or outing as ' tltf-'rSl dJfect VOtc bV- PeoPfVor United ',
controlled the newspapers, and those who presumed to enter carry them out. The party of 'sUlwarts in its platform, little as those of any city of its size in the world yet tens 1? .nr a Pi l ortn throughout the state all
mild protest were so bitterly assailed and found them- either by express statement, by necessary implication or by of thousands of them take longer or shorter vacations or -SSSX!;
selves so utterly helpless when they sought a means of significant silence, indicates that it is opposed to the U Fol- trips in the summer, and while probably m iA their support, and a.
reply that they usually gave up the attempt in disgust to lettc Republicans on every one of these points. Upon them back tired and clad to ret home, and with a lighter burse !?" . tn. wc.re 0?il,ed'; .5. ha
win and bear what thev found thev couldn't heln. all the Outlook in in heartv svmnathv 'Jth the I.a FoUette than if thev had tnvH ot hom. v-t th .r 47 fl,-t Mf" ww auyjimieu in iNOvemDer, XJ, Wltn tne 101-
'But things have chanced in Portland, and chanced micht- Republicans, with th
i ily, for the better. Public opinion is no longer bullied and income tax, the pract
dom of expression. Independence in thought and expres- great that we doubt the possibility of overcoming them, penditurc.is the only real consideration. . His niottotor ''' 'lhvs direct f1 $S IfJ11 i cueify'r?me t Pa8S,n
ion, independence of machine domination, independence As we read the 'political history of Wisconsin, an over- himself and for everybody else, is "Never spend a cent that ? a "tl!,ifind J' Uncle Shelby Cullom dotin't I
' even of party trammels when they would fly in the face whelming majority of the people are in sympathy with the you can possibly avoid spending," His god is money, and uucolV !Hfi:1vt.riV';?:',:;:;'','.
' of the voter's conscience, prostitute his ballot and turn it platform of the La Follette Republicans. They appear to this god he has worshiped with the fervor of a devotee ever As to the celebrated Mueller law that for the ownership
. against his own best interest and the best interests of the us to be in the main those of what we may call Roosevelt since his infantile hands clasped his first own penny. No street raihvays in the city pf Chicago; the second vote
public, is no longer limited to casual and inconsequential Republicanism. The opposition to them, whether in Wis- charity ; only money. No pleasure, except in getting money. on it last February was as follows: Yes, 152,434 ; no; 30,-
protest, but finds its vivid and potential expression not consin or elsewhere, comes largely from a wealthy, influen- No thought of anything on earth, or about anything in the 404. ' On the question, "Shall the Chicago board of educa
' alone in the public prints, but in the ballot-box. In the tial and conservative majority, and especially from favored heavens above or in the seas beneath,' except money. ,No ton DC elected by the people?!', the vote was?; Yes, 115,58;,
past campaign there was something more involved than corporations." ' love for family -or kindred,. no patriotism
the mere question of the material well being of the people. "", , mercy, no faith, no hope, no action in, any direction that This is only a brief and imperfect summary, of the pfogr
?There were involved deeper and more significant moral issues, A CASE FOR THE MAYOR. ' in any wise or in the least degree interferes with the get- ress toward the People's instead of. the Politicians'1 rule in
which aroused deep sympathetic interest not alone in the . ting of money and no matter how. This is this fine old Illinois., The movement is spreading. ; It has already
j.: breasts "of ... what a, plain-spoken contemporary has called "TAIIE CHARGES made against .the civil-service com- philosopher's creed. -l - --y'- strong roots, and even branches above ground, in Oregon.";,
''the bigoted church people,'' but in that class which, while I mission by B. L. Stowell, its late clerk, are positive, It is well, doubtless, that such men live. Verily, they We are going to have what is called Direct Legislation'
owning no church affiliations, clings tenaciously to those straightforward and circumstantial. They are so must have their uses. But let us be thankful that they and more of it Tne' Initiative and Referendum amendment
things which the world regards as right and decent. The grave in their character that Mayor Williams, in justice to are few and far between. ' to the constitution of Oregon is not an ephemeral fad. Nei
result was not alone a protest against. machine domination himself,, his administration and the public service, cannot Meanwhile, take a Vacation, if you can, and enjoy your- ther is the direct primary nomination law.' They will stick
and the"Mailed Fist in.heretofore irresponsible journalism, afford to ignore them. . selves. . You won't leave as much money as this old miser, an(j grow. The People have been too much imposed upon
, but it was a. Vigorous protest against the outrageous part- Succinctly stated, Mr. Stowell charges that he was re- maybe ; but you will have more fun, and a million chances to by legislators and politicians most of them shams. 1
jiership ! which exists between the city government and moyed because he would not violate the law; that the his one of getting into heaven. Tht People are going to govern themselves more and
those forces of disorder which in defiance of the law are commissioners are not only constantly violating its spirit, more ' . . . . , lf .
permitted openly to ply. their vocations. , , but its very letter, where it is necessary to secure some SOME FACTS ABOUT DIRECT LEGISLATION. . ' ,;:'V..r
':'..;There is no 'greater'' mistake than to believe" that this is partisan advantage. He charges, that not only have the . PRIVATE WORK FOR CLEAN STREETS ' '
but a temporary amalgamation of those' forces which, mo- standards of efficiency been disregarded to get a favorite FTllE "direct legislation" policy, now being tried in sev- ' , - -
mentarily aroused, accomplish an immediate purpose and on the eligible list, but that the marks given in examina- I eral directions in Oregon, under the "initiative and rcpATPTwr: f rUan ' mrm' nA r.,;.:.i '
-then 'fall; apart. Happily, for Portland, they are a force tions have actually been changed an order to make those A referendum" amendment to the constitution, adopted 'Tj vWmi all
hereafter to be reckoned with. Men of like general ideais who failed eligible, He gives particular instances and last year.Ms not altogether a new or untried thing. In lTjf,
have now found a way to make themselves effective; They names, and he specifies days and dates. If what he says May, 1901, the Illinois legislature enacted a law "providing 'A rl"v 1 f vlrin,,. ritt.rl' tot th.
have rubbed elbows with men of like way of thinking, and is true, these are serious offenses under the law, and are for an expression of opinion by electors on questions of fn ,any :n
j t .u. l.il-u! .1.-11 :-u.ki. u ,i . iL.. .A i .i.:!. i:M. n nand, jn one way or another, ana are making more or
ineynna mcmscivcs in nrst uaiuc nuiuiiig inc uai- puuuiiu: uu iiiipiisuuiiicuu puunc puiicy at ny general or special ciccuun, Minuar iu -ffrfiiat ffArt r armmnli'eh what th n!,ti7'il hnea
ance of power, if not actual masters of the situation. All No law, however good in itself, is of any consequence our new portion of the Oregon constitution. But this was " TIit!.
this does not necessarily mean anything radical; it does unless it is enforced. The best of good laws may fail of only a statute, and the petition or "initiative" required 25 Tl t" i" i' i,"
. lL.. i rj aJL... . ; .t.. .u..-. .v,.u u-X..u v.. r i i j t-.u.j .u neglect to do. In Some cities women are taking not only
TIOl mean Uiat UIC tiiy IS IU UC IIUUCU wpay-lUlVJ, or inai yuiyvo uiiuugu ouiuimsuaiiuii ui uuuujju oci pel VClll OI VUC tegai VOLCrs, a,ll(l llllllicu lUC qucailOIlS' lO UC an acti'vV Kn g InVincr nart in thia i?nrlr 9tA
they will seek to put in operation irrational and half-baked purpose to defeat their aims. If the civil-service law is submitted at any one time to three. Notwithstanding these rJi;IISr Jj?- 5 i:SSk ' VCX
plans. , But it does mean that the city has ."a governor," not honestly administered, the machine in this respect is restrictions, which to the writer seem fair, a referendum I ,"SV" VnS wfii h .Hir
that the knell of raw. flacrant and accressive vice has just as absolutely in control as it ever was. If men who league was immediately formed in Chicago' (for "'the law K - c?Pccie win De, sporadic. .v . . .
sAimH. that nm thTnr whirh hav hrrn tnUntA fail to enforce th law or who ooenlv violate it are im- annlir tn ritiV nf it. rl9M.'wll a the tate nnH rer. ln cagO ine commercial ana mercnaniS CIUDS nave
in the. past will no longer be tolerated, and that every pub- mune, it they are held to no accountability by the executive tain questions were
lice officer will hereafter be made to feel adegree of per-, authority which is over them, then the law is worse than the people of that city,
sonal responsibility to the people such as hertofore he has a larce. . r or ownership by
felt to nothing but the political machines Tt means that The Journal does not propose to prejudge this case, but roads within that ci
4Vi Mure f .if.rv mih1 rtffi-Ja1 mirtll m trinr ' timw1tf at the same time it will nnt attemnt tn underrate it imnnr. nnA 1-tnV 1,'rrVif ntonte. on A finallv (rr th nnmintmn OI ineir private purses lOr
watched than" ever, before, that his success in office' will tance. The mayot has a plain and unmistakable duty to of all candidates for city offices by direct vote of the voters aon. , .1-or doubUess there, as in most cities, a large pro
be measured, not by. the fidelity with which he serves a perform in the premises, and no man could be better quali- at primary elections to be held for that purpose. poruon or-xnc money paia in raxes jor tnis .purpose, is
'machine, but the courage, honesty and uprightness with fied to discover what that.duty is and how best to perform The first two measures mentioned are not in, point here tq"a"?ered n ?eiP!n8 ATmy. , ?encnmen in good humor,
.which he serves'the public, i It will mean that.no man, of it. It is therefore up to the mayor, to act . now, though they may be before long. ;The third we itt'..-ese two ;picagomxatidns. seem deteminedtp.. .
whatever party, will hereafter: be beyond . the reach of the - ' ' ' ' ... ., , ' ;1 ( . Oregon are about to .tiy; under the law passed by the peo-. on this refor . Thev-have raised a fund'of .$20,000.
public's long arm. f' With the initiative and referendum and RUSSELL SAGE AND VACATIONS. pie last Monday, By the way, that sounds wejl, and js as abeginn;ng and under the supervision of an expert the
the direct primary they have it in their power not only to well-a law passed by the people. And now the people, not work 19 t0.tbe done in such a svsteiriatic and viprous man-
inaugurate reforms; butlthey are able to reach over the TVTEARLY ALL Jtbe papers of the country have com- a clique. are going to select their candidatesJor office. - ner aS Wlll esUblish a precedent of much value to other
heads of the party bosses and nominate men .who, when I J mented most of them facetiously; but some seri- In Chicago it took 104,000 petitioners fo get these proposi- Cltlzen and,e.vfn ttie f1 othciais. lhis value, a Chi
elected, will faithfully serve the public's interests. : ' x ou sly upon Mr. Russell Sage's recently expressed tions before the people. This took seven months' earnest' pap thinks, camiot be over-estimated. It should go
Taken as a whole, the result of the last election in this opinion adverse to vacations. He said in substance, it will work, but in January, 1902, the petition contained 109,428 lar toward relieving Uiicago of the stigma of the dirtiest ,
county may be accepted as' evidence that, the people are be remembered, that when he was a boy nobody took va- Chicago names. The newspapers generally ignored or ftrce m the worId' and. m0"' should arouse the officials i..
comingback into their; own. It is therefore both signifi- cations; that he never as a boy was allowed one," and had sneered at the movement. But the petition was a fact that t0 leen" "n.sc 0. tneir obligations to the public.,
cant and gratifyirigTand the people of this community who never taken one since that; they were injurious rather than could not be ignored, and the People got a chance at last he 6treet cleaning problem is one not peculiar to u
believe in better public service and better things have every beneficial, tiresome instead of restful ; and that, finally and to vote, and this is how they voted J For ownership ty the go; tt presents itself .constantly in many large cities, and
reason to rejoice. , 0 . . , . - chiefly, in Mr. Sage's eyes they were a source of needless city of railroads Yes, 142,826; no, 27,998. For ownership -fa not been very successfully solved as yet in .Portland.
, J ! . , , . .. expenditureof the waste and loss of money, and opportuni- of gas and electric lights Yes, 139,990 ; no, 21,364. For the Whatever efforts of citizens, men and women, can rea-
- WHY LA FOLLETTE WON. ties to get money. , nomination of all candidates for city offices by direct vote of s onMy be made to improve thej present system, or to
,. - . Mr. Sage is half right, about vacations being often more -the people at primaries Yes, 140; no,17,654. aid and. add to the..workof.the department, will be put
A S THERE IS great interest in the split in the Repub- tiresome and exhaustive than ordinary work at home, or It will be observed that a great many.. voters did not vote' forth- ura; good, cause.- Jbe example of a 'few, even, in
A lican party in Wisconsin and the causes leading, so it seems. -But this is only a surface view; it does not either way, but it may be assumed that if all had voted the active ; efforts along this line would be followed by others,
thereto we publish herewith a brief review of the take into account the resultant behefits of the change, the proportion would have been about the same. "Silence gives after awh,le P,ubllC sentiment in favor of a continuously
situation as given in the Outlook of Tune 4 :'v.-jil'-break-away from the monotonous treadmill, the getting tired consent,"- and we might even assume that those not voting dean city, or as clean as possible under existing conditions
'The split in the Republican party in Wisconsin "is of in another way; of the change, too, in scene and air, and the favored these propositions. . : v. rand als ? vw of : bettering those conditions would
more than local interest. If the difference between the escape from the routine of home as well as of business life Now, Chicago, with all its faults, is a typical American become so strong that greatly beneficial results would ap-
two factions were Simply as to wmcn OI tnem snouia con- wiai a vacauun uorus. , . cuy. xviorc, pcrnapa, inan nuy uiuw xmiicivi y.i.j, tt. r -
trol the organization and hold the offices, we should give inat sucn cnanges, aitnougn otten pnysicany wearisome, is seeking tor. tne best metnoas o: seu-governmcni, oi rignt
. fthniif triA fool' nf tyi Lrt n cr ni Imr) rr thA erfAt a aTaam
selected to petition for and refer toTv' "uw , . V . V i.t l
naiTl Cl V T avsb bvuuiuuMuiijf aim niiug t.iii9 oiivws A
- . - rS i rr A terra off tfivij ntrnrief) it ie fA enenafj4
the city of Chicago of all street rail- ".'.V w . j ..Xv""fc.,V " w Tv "
ty: for ownership by the city of w??'!- t,re Pf WinS out
wnai mey pay taxes to naye
Everything possible for a clean city in 1905 should be
Jam. : I V. m . a n vMr...AMAnv thr 1.11 rrnritl t T-i . 1
tO the Controversy Scant attention. XUl ll IS Cicari jruiu c utuuun-cijr utuuiui .u uic avtiagc uivi uu iv incus fiu uvcniiucui pewpic. vuiu uis n,vn. v.iv.v. a..v " , PV-. .r--"T---
the platforms of the two conventions, as well as from Gov- extended argument or long citation of instances to prove, to govern not a governor, not a legislature, not a conven- help along, f
ernor La Toilette's address, that these two factions repre-'''Even work of a different kind for a little while may be a tion, not a president, not a party the People an increas- . '
sent antagonistic political orincioles. The La Follette Re- comparative rest. So, even if a journey is tiresome, there ingly intelligent and responsible people. The boycott is not only un-American, but experience has
publicans demand the direct primary, the ad .valorem taxa-, are discomforts attendant upon a stay at the seashore or So it will be here. So it will be elsewhere. Smash the shown that it iS loaded with boomerangish tendencies.
THE CHURCH BELL WRITTEN FROM A VILLAGE IN KENT By LADY HENRY SOMERSET
: a-- I i i i 111 i ii i "" ....... ' ' Tt , " :, - . V . , -v . ,
Copjrright, 1904, by W. B. Hearst.)
m -FEW TEARS ago the curfew itill
f rang in eur village, till Borne modern
JLjL person who liked new ways and den
pined the old convinced the village
that the practice was abBurd. But the bell,
though it no longer ring to tell u to cover
auf lights, rings to tell us more Important
things.
Kyerymornlng-the old ringer comes from
tils little red-roofed cottage among the fields,
to see If the bell must be' rung; every even
ing he comes on the same errand. The vll.
lage It a amall one, lying high up in the hills,
surrounded by green fields and pine woods,
nJ bathed in clear fresh air. So the bell is
rot often needed. Only about once in the
month we hear Its loud sonorous voice, tell
ing us that another soul has gone home to
God.
-.t know nothing more solemn than the'
sound J)f that ball, nothing more beautiful
than thVldea .that calls for its ringing. Th
modern man who laughed at our curfew
told us that the passing bell was rung orig
inally to scare devils away, perhaps like tho
Chinese custom to scare the dead man's soul
from the village. Well, why not: why not
try to scare all horror and fear from a lonely
soul, going out Into the unknown? Why not
scare the soul away from material things out
into the great peace beyond? ;
But even If the modern man were right,
we, too, here' In the village, are right In lov
ing the bell, for if it was once a symbol of
our selfish horror of death, by and by it be
came a symbol of our reverence and pity
for the flead. , .
The village 1 so old, bo unspoilt by mod
ern notions, that still, as In bygone days,
the sound of the' passing bell brings the folk
to their doors. . -
Some one has gone; who Is It? The ques
tion is asked in awestruck tones and an
! nwered quietly. Generally It is some Old
body that has died, some one who hat seen
his three-score years and ten, and, tired now,
is glad to rest. It Is of him the people
think, "Pool old soul, he has gone."
In watching them, my mind has slipped
back a few hundred years, and in Imagina
tion, I have seen the forebears of these kind
ly neighbors, Just the aarne sort of people,
with tha aame interests and occupations,
called to their doors by the passing bell,
make the sign of the cross, and whisper
piously, "May the souls of the faithful de-
parted, through the mercy of God, rest in
peace;"
This was surely the Christian use of the
bell. It Bounded through the village and
across the fields, and up the elopes of the '
neighboring hills, to tell us that a soul had
gone home to God. A poor old soul, perhaps,
a sout that had tolled and labored, loved and
prayed, one who had been among ua In the
harvest fields or by the winter Are, but now
he had gone out ajone. " '
Perhaps In those yean he had don many
things to be ashamed of, many thing to
make him dread Ua Journey. How could he
help but fear? Bo the bell rant, to tell us
all to atop our work for a moment, stop our
laughter and play and pray for the old neigh
bor, gone with all his faults and failures to
stand before God'a great white throne. How
tragic that bell can be, how good for us to
be reminded of life's great tragedy.
The other day, as I was going over the
hill, I met the little' servant from a farm on
the outskirts of the parish running .down
to the village with a white, scared face. Be
fore I got to the top of the hill I heard what '
had been her message. Across fields from
the- square gray tower below came the slow,
solemn voice ot the bell. It seemed to fill
the little valley, and I knew, as I stood there,
that the vUlage people were coming to their
doors to ask who had gone; I knew, tooV
. that over there ln the farm, behind me, a
woman was sitting desolate 'by the little
white body of her dead child. . ' . 3
. The bell had a new tone that day, It did
not call us to pray. '; The little child soul that
had gone could haver no fear. The bell wa
entreating us to pray for the mother, left be
hind,-who now, at this moment, while the sky
waa blue and the sun shdne on green fields,
was alone in that dark agony,, .wi.en God'a
face is hid for a season. When the body has
gone home, the bell rings a second time. It"
marks the day of a funeral by tolling early ln '
the morning, and again at funeral time.
: Often, as I have watched a little funeral
procession going. sobeTly through the quiet
street, "I have been half In love with easnful
death." i There Is none of that ugly horror of
.sable trappings which we still see in clMes.
Here all Is simple' and quiet The bell rings
slowly, and slowly the little handful of peo
ple carry their dead through the quiet street
to the old gray church.' .' ,' '
s Last week the village rangman died. Old
and cross, a baggier at a bargain, not many
people1 ' were sorry to see him 'go. I was
. passing byas they carried his old body
through the lych gate, and saw tile rector,
with head uncovered, lead the way across
the cobbled path to the church door. The.
rector has a clear, strong voice. Across the
churchyard and across the village square
td where I stood I heard the words! . v-
"I am the Resurrection and the Life," salth
the Lord. 7 ."He that believeth in Me. though
he were dead, yet shall h' live, 'and who
soever liyeth and believeth in Me shall never t
die." The little procession was pitifully
small. The old ragman had few friends, and
these were old as he, just a handful of bent
men in their Sunday clothes following the
coffin. T know that my Redeemer llveth." '
The words came clear over the still, spring :
air. My heart cried out In gratitude to God
that a cross-grained old ragman could share
ln that promise, and a few moments later the i
voice of the great bell rang out Amen. v
WHAT IS THE SECRET OF THE SOUTH? j. By GARRETT P. , SERVISS
f (Oprrlsht, 1904. tr Vf, '" B. Er,t Great
Britain RlgbW Bewrtcd.)
'U one of Edgar Allan Foe's extra
ordinary tales,, whose qualities t
pure imagination have never been
annittarhad " bv inv of his ' Imita
tors, the reader is thrltfed ' with a e-
rles . of dramatic Incidents and vivid
. pictures relating to the AntarcMe contt-
nnt.' For the majority or people, per
haps, that continent la simply a part of
the country : of dreams. ' .They -have
.never eeriouely thought of It as constl
1 tilting a real end extenalve subdivision
' ct !lh land area, of .the, globe.
But the return of the German Antarc
tic expedition, following -that of the
Xrlttsh expedltlory which visited a dif
ferent coMt of the mysterious conti
iSiaat of the south, serves to fix atten-
tion upon that quarter of the world as
it has not been fixed since the days of
Captain Wilkes and his exciting discov
eries. ' V
.' These new explorations, may. be said
to have re-established . the Antarctic
continent ln the consciousness of man
kind, from which It had, to a great de
gree, faded in the past half -century
like a seldom-told tale of olden times.
But now we are made to see it looming
before the mind's eye,-more Impressive
than httyt:i;!h,t:;.:'
The Antarctic continent is s, living
picture of the great age 4f Ice, whlclt
once reigned over what are now . the
richest , and most populous lands of the
United ' States. It la . undoubtedly, say
the German explorers,, the most exten
sive area of glacial desolation at pres
ent existing on the earth. Greenland
would ; form only a peninsula for the
vast Ice-covered continent which sur
rounds the southern pole ot our planet.
Given a genial climate and a productive
soil, such as It may once have had
for the same .indications of former trop
ical conditions that the far north pre
sents are found there, too and It would
support hundreds of millions of Inhabi
tants and furnish -room for the growth
of a great empire. ?
' The . Ideas at present prevalent con
cerning the polar, regions give no con
ception of the state of affairs which
paleontologtcal evidence indicates once
existed In those parts of the earth. 'If
there was an Arctic continent, it has
sunk beneath the waves, for the North,
Polar ocean, as N onsen proved, occu-
pies a deep basin. Not so with the
Antarctic end of the axis. ' There the
continent still exUUs, with mountain
chains as )ofty as the Alps, and with
volcanoes as mighty as the Etna or Co
topaxl, some of which are still active.
Showing the continued play of Subter
ranean energies.
The recent explorers tell of the steep
descent of the coast of Uils ancient
southern land Into a deep surrounding
sea, of large marine mammals inhabit-
Insr the watfin. anA nt flnnfra nt
birds haunting the repulsive shores.
mven tne microscopic oacterla 'Which
flourish there have not escaped the ob
servations of the enthUSlAStlo flnrman
scientists. . t
: Ther are fnitlraTtana thaf h
ent isolation of the Antarctic continent
did not always exist. There was a time
when broad tongues of land connected
It with the equatorial belt of the world.
With, the advance of , the Influences
which turned it . Into a' glacial waste
we may imagine some, at least, cf the
former inhabitants making their escape
to what are now South. America, Africa
and Australia. . . ' -
But the period when those migrations
occurred is so. remote that, even though
a race of intellectual beings were con
cerned. , hardly . the shadow ' of - a' tra
dition Bbout them could have survived;
for consider now . faint and uncertain
are the . legends handed - down : to us
from the immediate ancestors of - the
present races of mankind, who dwelt in
Europe and 'Asia but a 'few thousand
years ago. '
Human memory is a mirror quiokly
tarnished,-, even - when backed with the
apparently Imperishable ' amalgam of
rock-cut inscriptions, labored . parch
ments and printed pages. .
One significant, item which speaks of
a possible change in the future condi
tion of the Antarctic continent, appears
in the report of the German explorers.
Immense as Is the present extent of the
glaciers,-' they say. . the marks on .the
mountain - sides show, that formerly
they were still more extensive.- In other
words, - the icet seems- at . the present
time to be slowly receding. -
Who would not wish" to. v look upon
that land "when it has become uncov-r
ered ? wi..-,''.' i Mrs! -i !.-3t--if.vf. ''';'
Whose imagination is not stirred with
the thought of what secrets of the an
cient life history of our globs may lie
V"' Vs ,
hidden- beneath that glittering crystal "
meek, whose broken edges flash' back
the sunbeams of the long Antarctio day,
or glimmer shortly across the frosen )
sea when, during the equally long Ant" J
arctlo night, the full moon fides high
over the teeming . pampas of South 1
America, and attracts superstitious h
eyes from the hut-doted plateaus of ?.
Central Africa? , -
;?c ' 1 '' 1 i "'' 'S'fcj-
. trndenrUads Vv. -
Frofe the New Orleans Times-Democrat -.
One morning I heard - a wife lay a-J
score or more of injunctions upon her
husband as he left for town the pur
chase of thread, dress goods, arocerlet), '
etc.' And then I understood what ss
meant by the abuse of the power of in- i
junction as X had never- understood be
fore, i ' - . - . . i
'Mi
t.