Editorial
Page of
The Journal
i ...
l v
THE JOURNAL
' AM IKDBraKDgNT WTOiHl "
C . JACKSON...
kttekkil
it b4
SU4-
SsixUr imilK, sl Tk Joeraal "
a. rum a4 tmumih ett a. actU. Or,
RiihH at the eoetemee at forties. Or
iran.mUaMa UUse IM SUUS Ba '
TBLIPBOMBiAIIf TITS.
AH eVeartswsts nuM br s ssser,
im aiwiw ttie tpulBaurMrin
Kir FIO ADVERTI8INO 1IFI1MKT1TITI
Vml.n4 BnJibIi Bperlal Adrerttaln
lau atnet. New lack) Xilbaaa aeue-
. aaav I lilraja,. - -
nbarrlpttoa Ttrm ey MO to 7 eddraas
la iu Lut4 atatae. Cnada of MaaMM
. DAILY .-.'.
ft raar ..SB.e I Om Mtk, M
SUNDAY, v
One raar.. ....... a.fO I Oaa axwtk. ,
DAII.I AND SUNDAY , . . .
One rar .'. ..IT. BO I On BMetll f .
The Infinitely greatest good ;
U neglected to eatitfy the sue-'
cess ire lmeasyjeaiLJPiL pujr.jje-.;
eirea pursuing triflew Locke. .
THE, BOY WITH A GUN.
ANOTHER young man hat be-
- come a murderer and a suicide
,s because he had a gun. A
' young woman, just in. the
early springtime of life, for no serious
fault of her own, lies dead among
weeping relatives, ' because a youth,
crazed with so-called love, had a gun
when his passion " had been' self
worked up to the killing point .
Another young man is now jn jail,
and his attorney is trying to make
him out insane; he killed. one man
and nearly kilted another for no of
fense whatever, because when he had
worked up a brainstorm he had a
gun..; y .y f:;y I -.;..',.. iy,,
r These are only two of many re
cent cases of murder or accidental
death - in . consequence of the gun
carrying habit" Many boys, younger
than these, habitually or occasionally
carry a gun. It is not uncommon for
even little children to kill one an
other with gun negligently left where
they caught hold of them. . '.""
The gun habit is entirely too prev
alent We doubt not that if the police
would search all the male youngsters
found on the streets of an evening a
gun would be found on many of them.
They think it is smart, or manly, to
carry" a. gun,' and "asTthey. grow In
toughness and depravity, or in pas
sions unrestrained, they become ac
customed to the thought of. using the
gun. Not only should all young men
and boys be prevented from carrying
a gun, so far as is possible, but boys
ought to be taught from infancy up
to let guns alone, except on the rare
occasions y when they may properly
be used -: ,-' ,1 . ',
; i t
STREET PAVEMENTS V
. ' ewAaBaB
WOODEN PAVEMENTS are
not so much in favor in this
. country as in some Euro
pean cities, particularly in
France,' yet re used quite extensive
ly in some American cities, notably,
in the order named, in Indianapolis,
New York, Minneapolis, Toledo and
Boston. The total amount of wooden
pavement in American cities was es
timated at the end of last year at
1,400,000 square yards. The cost of
suitable woods is givjn as the. main
reason why this pavement is not used
more, but wood in London" and Paris
must be more expensive, it would
seem, than in this country.' The ar
guments in favor of wooden pave
ment are its smoothness, low traction
resistance, minimum noise, and. con
sidering its smoothness, itt compare
tive xion-slipperytfets. Or if too slip
- pery- in-wet- weather -a.- sprinkling -of
sand obviates ' this objection. It is
believed, in some European cities and
in Boston and New York, after quite
prolonged i experience, that . wood
wears well and is not affected as much
by variably temperatures as asphalt
Yet it teems that experiments have
not been 'carried on long enough , to
prove that wood it the best pavement,
and H certainly is a failure unless
the timber is of the right and an
even quality, is properly treated, and
- laid with great care.
Most American cities have depend
ed chiefly on asphalt, and nearly al
ways with more or less disappoint
ing results. No doubt the best grade
of . asphalt, laid in the best manner,
. makes an agreeable and a quite Jura-J
ble pavement, but for some reason,
In too many cases, It' has proved a
failure, and people have . turned to
other paving material, for investiga
tion and trial. Perhaps there will brJ
a revival of wood pavements. . ';'. :
An experimental ;wod pavement
has been lately laid in Minneapolis,
! fTc irnt woods being donated by va
rious lumber companies, and creosote
and treatment being "contributed by
wood pavement manufacturers. The
wooili used were pine, tamarack,
1 i'r, h, larch and fir; the blocks were
4x4 and from 4 to 10 inches long; they
rrr impregnated with creosote, and
I rn a foundation of Portland ce
- - flgW of courses were varied
. t ' rent Jopreet to the line of
n' This pavement was laid oa
a street carrying the city's heaviest
traffic, so at to get results as early
as possjble. , Thus Is wood pavement
being experimented with, although it
has been, in use in London for about
70 yeart.'; ' .--v :,V ;
Portland tried wood 'pavement on
Fourth street once, end wants no
more of that kind and quality. But
possibly there might be a wood pave
ment that would last several times
aa long. But if not wood, what?
And. how is it to be obtained and
laid at reasonable cost, with the cer
tainty of its being a durable, profit
able pavement, and without constant
remonstrance and litigation? We
must have good, 'durable pavements,
but how we are to get them at fair
cost and so that they will stick in
the courts as well aa on the ground
ia a perplexing problem.
RECIPROCITY.-
A BULLETIN of the American
Reciprocal Tariff league states
that although congress did
' hot take any action on the
subject of reciprocity, and the presi
dent sent in no message advising
action, people should not be swift to
censure either department of the gov
eminent for "the negotiation of trade
treaties or " commercial agreements
with leading nations is a matter of
vast Importance, and arrangements
covering contravened points cannot
be consummated in haste." The na
tion with whom we are most con
cerned in this respect is Germany, to
which country the president some
time ago appointed commissioners,
who were to confer with the govern
ment at Berlin as to a basis for ad
jutting (the disturbed butinets rela
tions between the two nations. What
tort of a bargain these commissioners
arranged is known ' as yet only to
the government, but the Reciprocal
Tariff league believes that "good
progress is being made in arriving
at an understanding which should
prove " decidedly advantageous to
both countries, and especially, to the
agricultural west." The present truce
in the tariff war with Germany .ex
plres on July,l, and if nothing better
is done this may be extended for a
while. The bulletin eoes on to say:
" Tha if ricultura.1 wast Is very deep
ly eonecrna4 In tha pandlna; negotia
tions. It la tha opportunity of a gen
eration . to euro tha removal 'of un
fair regulations whereby tha Oermana
exclude moat o our feodlot products.
The officers of - the America. Recip
rocal Tariff league are 1 doing every-
mini in ineir liuwir to imurvaa 11 1 1
fact upon themliilatratlonTha-lThe
mlaalon of live cattle and meats to the
German market would of course prore
a great boon v to tha farmers of the
middle west and to all who are oper
ating In cattle on the western ranges.
The president the aecretary Of state
and the secretary of agriculture real
ise' fully the magnitude of the. trade
that might bo built up la theao prod
ucta under suitable reciprocal arrange
ments, and It la hoped and believed
that when the negotlatlona shall be
finally terminated an agreement
which ahould command tbe active, ag
greealvs support of our agricultural In
terests, , will have been reached.
' This reads quite well, but we do
not expect any largely beneficial sys
tem of reciprocity, put into operation
at long at the high protective, tariff
tystem is maintained. : The two are
antagonistic, and nothing more than
alight piecemeal reciprocity will be
had at long as the protected interests
are allowed to dictate our tariff laws.
An administration that has nothing
to" say against the iniquities of the
present tariff cannot be expected to
do very much in the way of genuine
reciprocity. ' .
u ill it 'I --':
SUFFRAGE IN FINLAND. I
Y N THE recent election in Finland,
I eyumcny ior the firtTirnelnPie
history of Europe, were given
; the right of suffrage and made
eligible to membership in the diet
It seems strange that this should
happen in one part of the czar's do
mains, while throughout the rest of
his. vast empire not only women have
no political rights but the. masses of
the people, including both sexes, are
struggling for the - first elements of
political liberty. Finland, however.
has been a peculiar part of Russia,
and is now" in- a large degree inde
pendent When the war with Japan
came on Russia gave up its attempt
to force certain laws npon Finland,
and it hat more of self-government
than ever, though not altogether free
from th Russian yoke. -
Nowhere else in Ruttia are the
people, including the women, so ca
pable of self-government as in Fin
land, where they have long taken an
active interest iiv education. While
outside of. Finland, Russia is the
most 1 illiterate country" -of Europe,
in that province the percentage of il-
iteracy is one of the lowest in Eu
rope. . Nearly everybody in this far
northern land can read, and write,
and there are several creditable in
stitutions of higher learning. , Girls
are taught equally with boy t, as, in
this country, and take an active part
in many affairs, to that the -Finnish
women are well qualified to become
electors, and perhaps legislators.
Woman tuffragittt, or "tuffrag
ettes" in England will no doubt point
to Finland aa a country that hat tet
a good example, though this is not
likely to have, much influence on the
phlesrmatic British statesman. This
movement in Finland and the oroir
ress generally of that country will be
watched with interest throughout the
world. It has in a large measure de
fied Russianization ao far, and has
made a respectable name for itself in
the world of nations. ' ' ' . . "
RURAL MAIL SERVICE.
A
STATEMENT recently issued
- by the pqstoffice department
- shows that there .are' now
, 37,000 rural delivery routes in
the United States. Illinois has the
largest number, 2755. Following are
Ohio with 2,492, Iowa with 2,303, and
Indiana with 2,130. Pennsylvania is
the only other state with, .over .2,000,
while Nw York-has less than that
number. It seems the great prairie
states have been deemed best adapted
to the development of this service.
. Taking the country throughout, the
average number of pieces of V mail
handled on a rural route per month
is 4,425, a 'gab of 20 per cent over
the showing Made a year, ago, when
the number was 3,688. And the gain
is general, a falling-off bejng rare.
In the number of money orders is
sued by carriers, the gain has been 25
per cent, the average being 685, at
against 548 a year ago. This feature
of. the service gives it an added im
portance and usefulness, the farmer
being able to pay at his own home
bills due at a distance.
The report says, what everybody
has observed them knows, that the
carrieri are worked to the limit of
their ability. The last congress, -we
believe, granted some increase of pay
to these hard-worked "and faithful
public servants, but they are not being
spoiled as yet by Uncle Sam's lib
erality. Thit hat become a very pop
ular form, of governmental rtervice
and the people will insist upon its
gjradual extension. And the pay
should also be gradually increased
to that carriers who devote many
years to the service could have some
thing Jaid by, to show, for ft and to
sustain themselves with when old,
To attempt to tell the benefits this
service haa been to the . country in
many waya would be a long ttory,
bdt'Vgoofl 'one. Some of them are
greater, intelligence, better acquaint
ance, and , an v awakening of the
spirit of progress, among the people.
I m c . m. , ,
benefitsnnot-well-be-mae-
ured in figures after a dollar mark,
The men who got this service started
did a .mighty good work for the coun
try. , Tom Watson of Georgia was
the most conspicuous champion. And
the granges exerted a powerful influ
ence.':'"; . ; ' - 1
The country will never complain
about the increasing cost of this serv
ice, so long as there is no graft m i.
The people can't help it if congrett
allows the railroadt to graft a good
many millions a year in carrying the
mailt, but the people will demand
liberal . appropriations for the rural
delivery service. -
The Pendleton Tribune says that
"when congress turned the ship tub
tidy graft down, It" "the Tribune,
"commended the act very warmly
praised congress for doing a good
act" . "Congress", did not "turn the
ship subsidy graft down." The bill
was passed by the house, wholly by
republican votes, and aa only two
republican senator would have voted
against the bill it would have 'passed
the senate except for the brief time
before adjournment which gave the
democrat! time to filibuster against
it . The ..Tribune should commend
these democrats, not "congress." ;
Not Defending the Legislature. .
' ' From the Pendleton Tribune. " 1
Editor Hofer Is still dally harping on
Ms claim that the Tribune la "defending
the legislature.'' It haa recently added
Editor Klncald of the Eugene Journal
to Ita list of recalcitrant who are ''de
fending the legislature. " But once
again the Tribune wishes to remind Edi
tor. Hofer that It has never "defended
the legislature." It kas criticised" It
often and In various ways. Tha Capital
Journal once printed an entire editorial
taken from thla paper and added Its own
black-faced type to glre it special prom
inence, ana printed It as an editorial,
though dulr credited, because It aevere
ly ctitlcleed that body for many things
It was doing. But the Tribune haa re
fused to beqpmea.hOwllnaV-shouting,
hysterical and generally . considered
nulpanoe In ita accusations of looting,
grafting and unreetralned, unexampled
depravity on the part of a body of men
who atand aa well In their respective
communities as doea Editor Hofer or
any other editor' In the state. There I
a difference between Intelligent criti
cism and hydrophobic hyeterlca.
V - A Biting ' Jeat.- v "
At one time the bailiff In charge of
a jury was 'sworn to -keep them "with
out meat, drink or fire." It was Mr.
Justice Maul ..who gave the claealo
reply to the . bailiff who Inquired
whether, be might grant a Juryman's
requeat for a glass of water: "Well. It
Is not mat and I should not call It
drink. Yes. you may." Nearly all
Maule'a good sayings had a strong
touch of irony. "May God strike me
dead, my lud. If T am guilty!" exclaimed
a prlaoner when the Jury found him
giillfy. Mr. Justice , Maule welted a
few minutes, and , thn said: "Frls
oner at the bar, as providence has not
seen fit to Interfere, the sentencs of
Lbs court is"." Bellmaa,
Letters From the
People
Fisb Stories in Season.
Portland. March to. To the Editor Of
The Journal The following llnea were
published In the Atlanta Constitution in
the eariySOs. I think It appropriate to
a number of the disciple of Isaak Wal
ton la Portland: y . ,
' Spring la haret We see her smile; ,
8un and stars serenely shine,
'And the poet strings hi lyre,
And the liar suinrs bis Una
WM. F. JAMES.
The Play
Charles B. Hanford I naturally in
clined to oratory, which may be on of
the reasons he , has remained so loyal
to the, elasslo roles of Shakespeare. In
delivering an oration his effort Is cer
tainly mora satisfactory ad the effect
la more striking than In a strained or
difficult; pleeepfcJdDg,
As Mara Antony In "Julius Caesar,"
which was presented at the Helllg last
night Mr. Hanford made a profound
Impression. His effort In the famous
Antony oration was far better than any
thing else In the performance and was
warmly applauded.
Miss Drofnah was an Ideal Roman
matron, giving an excellent portrayal
of tha character of Portia. Other part
were fairly well sustained. '
The performance of "Julius Caesar"
concluded the engagement of Mr. Han
ford. HI visit this year Included the
performances of "Cymbellne" and "Julius
Caesar." There was a good audience at
the Helllg last night , to witness ths
performance. - t
Women and Gambling. -From
tha New Tork World -
."Do women gamble? Tbta time It Is
not a social censor who asks the ques
tion: tha facta In the case of the raid
of a feminine poker party In Harlem
raise It Change the number of the
street add a patrol wagon, and the de
tails of the police descent on the women
players fit Tenderloin episodes of an
o'er-famlllar kind the participants In
whloh hitherto have been men only.
I it to thl that bridge I leading?
Was the Harlem poker party exceptional
and unique, or are similar games going
on about town under dlscreeter condi
tions, with no woman's ahrlek summon
ing th police T One swallow does not
make a summer, but a single glimpse
of women In .feverish excitement about
a table strewn with Ivory chip must
rouse suspicion aa to the length to
which th gambling spirit la leading the
aex. It la hot a feminine trait to flock
by one's self. i
Why Is the afternoon tea forsaken T
Why ar call out of fashion among
women? Brldg haa become responsi
ble for. many breaches In th old social
code. And from bridge parties with a
eostly prise at very tabl to bridge
club play for a cash pool, and from that
to gambling pure and simple at pokers
easy Is the descent To withdraw and
reform -under the eontemptdoua disap
proval of the rest of th club that I
th difficult thing.
Bridge has been charged with exer
cising' subtle snd pernicious influence
on the feminine moral chsrscter. It ap
pealed to a latent love of risk and ex
citement such a no other: game of
cards haddone. What woman now plays
duplicate whist? If bridge baa created
aa appetite for poker It Is only aa a
natural reault '
But at any rate, women to play poker
successfully must conform to th rule
of tha gam as men play it Chip must
ba oald for when purchased. , It was
ao unwls extension of credit ' which
caused all th trouble in On Hundred
and Eleventh street. 1
To Grover Cleveland. j
By W. J. Lampton 1n New Tork World.
Note Mr. cieveiana a sevenuem
birthday wse very generally celebrated.
Ah. there, Grover!
Tou'r getting over i .
Th limit; but. ssy, "
Th sort of clay ' '
In your make-up is sound.
And youll be around
For a loni time yet: - r -
And the older you get
The firmer you'll stand
In th confidence of th whole land.
There was a time, Grover. '
When . you - weren't tn clover,
Bo to apeak, and your aid
Didn't point at you with pride;
But say . j
You war In tbe straight way.
And you stood there -
For fair: . .5
And you had th sand , .
In your craw to hand '
Out th stuff .
That would beat any' bluff. ..
Tou wer not mad
To be afratd. .
And. by thunder! ' ,
Thjnanhst;dnljtsndfromundr
oot
What
Was p. d. hot
Tou paved th w"
For th square deal , of today. -
And you're getting you shar
From, everywhere.
Tour birthday was truly gay. :
They whooped It up In every atat,
They flew th flag all ovr.
And everybody, amalland great' ' ;
Turned out to honor Grover.
The past Is past what was 1 not
And now knee-deep in clover'-
His seventy year a burden light--
Wades well-contsnted Grovr.
"Old Hundred" Over 300 Years Old.
' From th Musical Million. '.
"Old Hundred" haa been- variously
ascribed to Martin Luther, Dr. John
Dowland and William Franck. Dr.
Iowell Maeon wrote quit a treatls on
the old tun In 1SBJ, saying emphat
ically that It vii written by Outllaume
(William) Franck In 1641. But later
musical historians and antiquarians
Who havi Investigated moire closely say
It was composed by Louie Bourgeois,
bora about 1S00 and died about 1ST2
aome say In the massacre of St Barth
olomew, In 15B1-62.
' Bitter Cry From North Dakota. 1
rrom th Litchvllle (N. D.) Bulletin.
Th sooner soma very email potatoes
masquerading as statesmen down at
Washington get after thla coal trust the
easier .they will feel next eleotlon day.
We've th hard csah ta buy coal enough
to heat Gehenna 100 degrees hotter than
th thermometer now registera, ' and
we've grain enough to run all the flour
mills from Androecna-gln to Tuba Dam.
W want coal! W want flour! W
want ears to ship our wheat outt ,
How Machinery Pays for Itself.'
It IS estimated by the department of
agriculture that last year'a erop was (.re
duced and garnered at a saving of twos,,
ono.ono over what would have been th
cost of raising an equal crop M years
ago. Thla saving wss accomplished by
the na of modern agricultural tin pi a-
Subject of Tainted
Money;
By Rv. Thomae B. Gregory. -'
I have been requested by an Ameri
can reader to give my humble opinion
upon .the much-talked-of subject of
'Tainted Money.'
Ts begin with, it : will readily be
seen that literally speaking, there Is
no such thing a tainted money In th
sense In which th term Is used in th
heated discussion that Is now going on.
Money of and within Itself I neither
good nor bad. and, so far a- th money
part of It goes, on dollar. If it only be
a dollar, 1 quit aa good aa any other
dollar. The dollar that la robbed or
stolen Is, aa a dollar, fully equal. In
every commercial sane of th word, to
th dollas that la made honestly.
Th "taint" is not in th money, but
In th way th money Is made, and In
this sens there I plenty of tainted
money la the world.
But to com to th gist of th mat
ter. Is it wrong for any man or insti
tution, claiming to be honest and re-
specUblaLtO-Sccapt. as-a-means- of
furthering Its work, money tnai was
wrongfully made?
It seems to m that therein be but
one answer to th question, and that
answer la beat given In th cogent
work of Thomas W. Phillips.
Says Mr. Phillips: '"Any church or
moral Institution receiving money ob
tained In a criminal or Immoral way,
and knowing th fact must necessarily
become partlcepa erlmlnla, and will
naturally be considered as persona) re
ceiving stolen goods."- - N
I see not how It Is possible to get
away from Mr. Phillips' conclusion.
, If a man of fere me money that I
know h haa obtained by fraud or fore,
or In some other way that was Illegiti
mate, and I accept th money, I se no
cap from th conclusion that I am
a party to th erltn and that morally
peaking. I am every bit aa bad aa h la.
Legally. I may be able to clear my
skirts, but In th eye of th moral
law I am a criminal, guilty of ualng th
money which I know has been wrongly
taken from other.
Of course. If w ar ready to say
that there' la no auch thing aa a moral
law that there Is no right and no wrong,
no Justice and no Injustice; that the
only thing 1 to gat what you can and
to get It in any way that present Itself
If w ar-prepared to take such ground,
than the talk about tainted money - Is
all nonsense, and w can accept any
money that cornea our way, regardleaa
of th method by which It was mad.
Jf th only trinity' worth thinking
about la Selfishness, Fraud and Fore;
If there ar no auch things in th
world aa Truth, Honor, Humanity and
Justice, then tha money that Is made
by vllllanoua methods, by lying and
deceit by oppression and cruelty, at
th expense of th teara and groans
and blood of mlllons of our fellow
human beings. Is all right
Otherwise it is all wrong, deeply,
damnably, monstrously wrong, and the
moral or religions msn or Institution
that knowingly accept aucn money
will never. In th long run. do much
good with It
Th progress that la mad over the
fallen, mangled bodies of our fellow
human beings Is such progress aa no
right-thinking, right-feeling person can
contemplate without horror and regret;
and It is that kind of progrea only that
la being mad by th "moral" and "re
ligious" institutions that are using tha
nainted money.' .. "
Tha Deathles Flower. '
I beard on mourning. "Old Romance,"
he aald.
"Romance, th flowar of our 'life,' 1
: dead! - ' ,
Th men, of Iron who in teon daya
Did deeds of daring they hav. gone
their waya,
And In their stead behold a wooden
breed
Whose highest good Is Gold, whose god
la Greed!
Old Earth, exhausted, has her ; labor
pain
But her last children show hr labor
vain. ' '
Where are tha knightly warriors ef
irora. v
Whose hearts were stouter 1 than ' th
mall thev wore? v
Where ar th courtly damss that lOved
o true.
And whir th mighty kings for whom
thev draw? - ' .
Gone are tho knights and kings, their
eiorv fled:
And Chivalry and Romance they ar
dead!
Th flower," he grieved,
"Of aweet Romance dry-leaved:
And Flnl wrtttn to a wrought-out
atory!"
So he intoned'hl melancholy plaint:
And I. who listened with but ill re
straint. ' .
Mad answer thus: "Ths flower of Ro-
- manca ' -
Haa never died, nor win by any
hance
Bnt live for aver on. . Th flower
thriva .
Deep-rooted In man's Ufa, not. In men's
-. Uvea.
Perennial, immortal. Cornea each day
Tha miracle of Dawn. Th planet play
Ia their appointed orbit
their appointed orbits see, wn
ere
shin
Th lights thst looked on Bethlehem's
dlvln
Forthbringing. . Men atin,. yearning to
th stir, : .,-
Heed, aa of. yore, Ita beck'nlng beam
- afar. -'
Th trinity" of Faith, Hope, Lov. aur-
vlve.
And heroism dwells In modern lives."
E'en as I spoke, . ,.,.
Th moon, cloud-veiled, forth broke
And bathed th nlghted world in golden
glory.
1 '' Today in Hiatory.
IMS Royal Society of England char
tered. 1791 Count Mlrsbeau, "th grandest
flgurc"T-th-Frnch revolution." died.
172 United States mint eetsbllshed.
1801 British fleet under Nelaon bom
barded Copenhagen! J-
1806 Hans Christian Andersen bom.
Died August 4, 1S7B.
1811 James Monro of Virginia bcam
secretary of state.
1S19 Th American Farmer, first agri
cultural paper. Issued at Baltimore.
1844 Th Fleet prison In London abol
ished. '
1447 Alvarado, Mexico, surrendered to
the Americans. , --' ....
tIMR Battle at Sal ma, Alabama.
1S7S Victory of British at Futtshabad,
Afghanistan.
, ISSe Frog lake massacre.
, Bridget's Influence on Manners.
"Th women of my acquaintance,"
wrltee Josepbln Daskam Bacon In ths
American Magaslne, "are more consider
ate ' In their manner ta their servant
than to their relatives and friends, snd
for the beat of reesons-"-thy sr mors
likely to lose the first-mentioned through
Inadvertence than th last, and It is
practically, of far more Importance to
eeaault their Idloiyncrsslea'' -
Railroad Mismanagement Caused the
Wall Street Panic " '
From Collier's (March X.
Ths panto which some prophets had
been predicting for year struck Wall
street in good earneet on th 13th and
14th of March. Price had been sagging
for months, and during ths preceding
week Bad taken a sharp lurch down
ward. On th 13th th collapM cam.
Th whole list gav way, and the slump
wss helped by salea and panicky rumors
from London and Berlin. Th Hill and
Harriraan atocka were especial sufferers.
Great Northern closing wltir a net loss
of KM points for . th day. Northern
Paclflo 10. and Union Paotfio US- Read
ing, which had also had the benefit of
association with Mr. Harrlman'a name,
waa another victim with a decline of
10T4. 'The bargains exposed attracted
few buyers, and th market closed in
gloom with th lowest price of th day.
. The gloom waa Justified.- for tha next
morning th crash of JWllapaln;: stocks
was louder than vr. Union Pacific
dropped SOU points further, - Chicago,
Milwaukee St Paul 1SK. and Reading
to. Tbe average decline on IT active
Blocks was points for that on day.
Call money waa U par cent on th 13th
and IS per cent on th 14th. By th
close of th day Northern Paclflo had
declined 71 points sine th beginning of
th year. Great Northern preferred 7.
Union Pacific 0U. Reading 44Mk and
Amalgamated Copper U. .
,.' r e e e . '. ; , "
Aa far aa th stock market waa con
cerned, this panlo ranked with the
greatest crises of our history. In The
decline of quoted prices It exceeded not
only th Northern Pacific corner of 1901,
but th great pan lea of 1871 arid -1891,
while th bllllon-dollar ahrinkag of
paper values urpaased anything ever
known In an equal length of time. But
there la aa yet nothing to show that It
represented such a real financial disaster
as th country suffered In 1871, and again
10 years later. Not a single New Tork
bank or stock exchsnge house failed a
fact that In Itself would give th panlo
of 1907 a unique distinction. - Few smalt
speculators aeera to hav bees wiped out
for few of them- appear to hav been In
the market. Call for more margin were
almost universally met It was common
ly said that tha sufferers wer rich man
who could afford to loss.' But tha de
clines of JO, 10, and 40 points In two daya,
sometimes at th rat of i point in as
many minutes, wer a solemn warning
to th gambler who speculate on t and I
point margtns. By th end of th second
day th bargain-hunters made their ap
pearance and th brokers' offices wer
filled with buying order for larg and
small lota. Europe took a hand In th
buying; th London market roe on the
l&th far a hove tho New Tork parity, and
prices In Wall street bounded up again,
aettllng down afterwards In th usual
post-panto, weakness.
. .. ' r- ,.',
When Wall street began to ti up Ita
wounda and assign tha blame for the
damage, there was a general agreement
that President Roosevelt wss at th bot
tom of it As President Ripley of the
Santa F expreased It Mr. Roosevelt
had started a brush fir that had become
a conflagration. In Europe It was felt
that th American pinch, waa only a
symptom of a worldwide trouble, due
principally to tha fact that th activity!
or business everywhere had outrun the
supply of available capital, and aggra
vated In thla country by an Imperfect
fiscal aystem. and by tbe distrust caused
by th revelation of unscrupulous cor
porate financiering. But that .explana
tion could oot satisfy American railroad
men. who saw ferocious - Rooeevelts
gnashing their teeth behind every tree.
Mr. J. Plerpont Morgan had seen th
president shortly before, and had asked
whether he would not be willing to talk
over tha situation with certain represen
tative beads of American railroad sys
tems, naming President Mcllen of th
New Haven, President McCrea of the
Pennsylvania. President Newman of th
New Tork Central, and President Hugh
Itt of th Northwestern. Mr. Roosevelt
said he would be delighted, and then
Mr. Morgan glided unobtrusively across
th Atlantic leaving hi friend to bell
th whit hous cat alone. They waited
for a apeclat'tnvltatlon, but Don cam.
President Roosevelt' position waa that
If the railroad men had anything to say
to him he was perfectly willing to hear
It. They felt-a delicacy about -volunteering
to represent other railroad heads,
whose views might be different . from
their own. Finally the Joint deputation
wa abandoned, and Mr. Mellen went to
Washington alone, preceded by Mr. B.
F. Toakum, chairman of th Rock Isl
and board of director, who had been
known as a believer In oordial coopera
tion between th government and th
rallroada. .
'. "".'. e ;-.': :'r
Tha apprehenalona for th safety of
railroad property In thla country ar
' Small Cnange
- a-sjsaassm
"W have' begun t See the presi
dent's point" say Mr. Harriman. And
feel it too, h? ,
V . ' e e i
If a Boston man's agotlsm had
weight h would weigh about a ton
less-Just after death than Juat before.
' " ' ....
Are there no duplicates of Honey and
Burna In th country, that municipal
boodllng can only be exposed by them?
" ,' n
It was doubtless ths father of sev.
aral well grown, daua-htera vhn mm.A
th report that plctur hat wer full
or roicropes. . -,
...-. ' "' . " e e' Vu ;- .' . - .
Tt will orohahlv be AmIAmA that ti
is capable of advising hi attorneys.
uui wnemer mey are capaDl or advis
ing him Is another matter.
' ' . - e e .,.... ...
- Th editor ef an Idaho country newa-
nanel la "tha tmthmr ,f II .kiM... -it
living, and at home." Who aay the
country editor can't-: prosper?
- e - e .
The "clrculse Inssnltv" altiM i.
the Thsw trtsl does not refer to the
madneaa that people hav on ftndlna-
thetr front porches littered with fir.
culars. . -
. ! '..';.,'.., , ;
On reachlna his seventieth fcirthj...
th 1st T. B. Aldrleh remarked to a
reporter: "I don't approve of it- 1
haven't . any etnuse to - make, but I
promts never to allow It to happen
agsin." ,
' , ; e
Mr. T. B. Aldrlch'a "Bshy Bell" was
successively declined by several msga
sines, snd whether they. or the people
who thought It fin poetry were right
esnnot be determined. - It Is all a mat
ter of. taat. r
e '
."Grafting at.Harrlsbura" Is the title
of sn editorial la the Indlaaapolla Star.
Incredible. Impossible. One could im
agine grafting, almost - anywhere else,
but In the capital of Pennsylvania, with
Ita new atatehousa, never! '
charaeterlatlo of a transition stag of
development American railroad men
hav been brought up in the tradition
of absolut anarohy. This tradition
was not seriously challenged by th
publle until a generation ago.- when th
if
"Granger law" In th western state
attempted 'to subject tbe road te some
sort of publlo control.' In 1887 congress
too a a nana wua uie inuwi com
mere -law, and statutes of steadily In
creasing stringency hav succeeded
each other since. Meanwhile th rail- '
roaa men nav oeen gigniing aeapvr&iv-
1., fnm fhul, nl a Al mm Ih.W
plea and "the public b d -d. At ,
laat th realisation has corns to them
with a shock that they ar beaten, that '
th publlo, through Its government,
state and national, has definitely es- '
tablished its control, and that corpora-1,
lions Bvrvatier roust m iamiuwwrea in
obedience to th law. They ar be- '
wlideredrlliey do not ret know.how . to "i
find their way about In these atrang """
surroundings, and they ar afraid that
thla uew, many-headed tyrant, th peo. .
pie, will use hi irresisWbl power for '
their destruction. - . ,
' , .. e " e - " - ' ,..-v
Their feara'ar not entirely ground-' y
lea. , In th first exuberance of an on
familiar strength many state hav
gone to extreme. Alabama haa not
only - reduced passenger rates to two
and a half cent a mil, but h' has '
fixed many freight rates, which l a ' .
much more serious tnstter for tha rsll-
roads. Arkanaae has passed a two-cent
passenger bill and a reciprocal demur
rag law, and haa authorised her rail
road commission to regulate freight '
mtea. Delaware haa doubled railroad
taxation. Indiana haa adopted two-cent
fares and enforced many new require
ment In th detail of operation. -Iowa -ba
passed a two-cent far law, a re
ciprocal demurrage law. and a law com
pelllng road to roov freight ' train
at least S miles a tUT. Kansas haa
ordered a borlsontal reduction ef It per
cent In freight rates, and a valuation -of
railroads aa a basis for further rat
regulation. 8h has also demanded
passenger mileage book at two cents
a mil. Missouri has reduced both pas
senger and freight rates and threatened
corporations that take suits from th
state to th federal court with th lo
of their licenses. Montana baa Intrusted ,
to a railroad commission the power to
regulat paasanger, freight and Pull
man rates, aa . wall as equipment and
train service. - North Dakota baa pro
vided for two-cent mileage book and
reciprocal demurrage. Nevada ha re
duced passenger and freight rates.
North Carolina haa dona tha same, Ne
braska has reduced paaaenger rates to
two cents a mile. Oregon ha given
control of rates of all kinds to a rail
road commission and haa subjected ths .
roads to dally penalties for failure' to
furnish cars. South Dakota has llm-.
Ited passenger rates to two and. a half .'
cent a mil and authorised a ' valua- '
tlon of railway properties. Texas haa
required all roads to be equipped with
electrto headlights, and ha a bristling .
array of other anti-railroad legislation
on her calendars, Washington ha
passed a reciprocal1 demurrage law and
given full power over rates of all kinds .
to th railroad commission. Score of .
other bill vitally; affecting rattroad 1n-
terests have been passed or ar pending"
In these and other, ststes. r '".
I
In th minds of many politicians, and
probably of th majority of railroad '
men, ths relations between th publle.
and the companies ar those of war.
Railroad legislation mesne antl-rallroad
legislation. But thl 1 th mark of a '
transition period. In Europe those gov-'
ernments that do not own tha rallroada "
regulat them aa a matter of course.
It does not occur to th road to fight '
th governments, or to consider regula
tion a sign of an unfriendly 'spirit Tha
rulea that must ba obeyed go into the
moat minute detail. In thla country a '
new generation of railroad man la grow- ,
Ing up, willing . to substitute legalised
order for the anarchical rule . of the
strongest These men realise that whan
th relations between th corporations
and th people become settled on the '
new basis thy will be mors settled and
mor satisfactory than tha old. They
see that when th principle of corporate
subordination to law Is fully . accepted
lt,wlll be poeslSt to ask eongres for'Z"
favorable law, such as aa act per
mitting agreement for th distribution
of traffic which It would now be hope
less to expect.
Wb.11, th fr of hostn legislation '
may have affected the Insiders In Wall
street there esn be no doubt that the
thing that kept th publlo out of th
market and o allowed atocka ta rail .
with auch an unmerciful Jolt waa th '
disclosure of th methods by which th
Insiders had enriched themselves at the
expense of th corporation they wer
supposed to guard. . . . '
Oregon Sidelights
There hss nt dun m..v. m i
ordrly' man seen on th Irrlgon street
v. luur nivnins. .
- ''' .
Sine January lit, 1107. th volume,
of business handled at th Toledo depot .
haa increased over 20 percent
A Glendal man killed a Wolf that
weighed 110 pound, stood ll Inch In
height wii ty, feet from tip to tip, and
measured II lnche scross th ears. .
. V ..; - ; e . e ' '.-'''
Th crying need of Baker City and
eounty, says th Democrat la roads,
street pavements, electrto railroads,
electrto street Una, diagonal railroad
from Baker to the copper belt extension '
of th Sumpter Valley road Into Harney
and then a few other roads.
. - e '
A -Salem man says r "Beyond a doubt
mere is more money and more atir In
me cnicaen industry her than thei
naa oeeti xor year. Thar la a great
demand for chlckena and eggs at pres
ent In fact the production of poultry
and egga will not meet tha demand for
the next five yea re.",- .. ,
v
Three years as A the editor ' of th
Irrigator could stick his rifle out of the
window at any hour of th dsy and
shoot a rabbit! That ia. he could shoot
at one! As a matter of fact h could
not hit a flock of rabbits with a how
User. And now If one, wants to shoot
even one messly rabbit he must Journey
thre or four mile to th south.
.,' . ? '
Toledo Reporter: Less than It ysars
sgo th splendid grove of young fir
that ar aoattered over these hills had
no commercial valu. Timber cruise-
were of th opinion thst It would take
year of growth before ther would
be a demand for that clas of timber.
Today there I a competitive demand'
for every-tre that can b delivered at
tidewater or at a railroad station, . The
smaller treea ar needed for plUng and '
ties,- .-;. ,