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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 25, 1910)
THE OREGON SUNDAY JOURNAL, PORTLAND, SUNDAY HORNING, DECI IS 10. JOURNAL .lCKSON. 111. if sondT i .Si Vu. iwiBdr or. ,'. ' FtfOt unit YffiMU trwt a . ,k, nffl at Porttand. Or., ft ,. iwfk um u e. wpnii-i , uer. . . i'iionks Main. Ti73; fiorfo, ( 1, hT?I ". i inh nwimv Nw loc: iwi v l.ultdlt.r. Chicago. i H"itnuo Trfmi t mull or to ny Mtm U U tatted Slifp. uiiuita r KH' . . . CILY. w . e , ,.1,.S o I One moot. ....... srwur. One fMr ' . 82.50 I On ntotit.;......" "DAH.V AND SUNDAY. . ., on rr- ..17 50 I On montn.. .ox Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep It from themselves. J. M. BarrieV -a MERRY CHRISTMAS, T IS WELL that there was a Prince of Peace. It Is fortunate for the nations that there Is a Christmas day.' It was a hapless world before the Child came out of, Bethlehem with tidings of peace on earth, good will to men. It would be a hapless world still If His birth day and all It means should be taken out .of It. :, : ". i';-. ' ; y's-C'h? ? A seer of old wrote In the Book of books thatthey shall beat their swords Into plowshares, and their spears into pruning ' hooks; nation shall not lift up a sword against na tion, neither shall, they learn war any more. " But they shall sit every man under his vine and fig tree, and none Bhall make them afraid. Christmas Is ft part of our progress i toward a world of peace, with each man unafraid under his own vine and fig tree. It has brought us the American president Instead of Alex ander and his tears for more worlds to conquer. Instead ; of the Charle magnes we have congresses and Con stitutions, and Instead of the Caesars the men of the church militant, In stead of wars of conquest and a rule of fire and sword we are building a temple of peace at The Hague and moving for a court ,of international justice. Instead of Tamerlane and his butchery of helpless men 10,000 pulpiteers are preaching today the tidings of "peace on earth good wijl to men." If there are still episodes tbit mar the picture,, It is because Christmas is yet young, and the full ness of Its mission not yet complete. But, we are in the midst of progres sive 'change with progress gradual toward a world of peaceful life under ; each family vine and fig tree. The Christinas gifts are only the visualized1 omen of the, Christmas iG68 than GOO colleges and universi spirlt. They are token of the ties in the United States there are good will for -which the anniver- oniy 70,000 students.- Of the 16,- sary stands, mey symDonze tnat beautiful period awaited and hoped for by men, when the. swords shall be beaten Into plowshares and the spears into pruning hooks. It Is In ' such a world with its Christmas carols, and yule tide bells that the 20th century lnds us. it is better to.llve now amid this buoy ant life with hope of a beyond than to have cringed as a suppliant before Nero in the days when earth was without a Christmas, it Is a match less privilege to awaken in the cool breath of the Christmas morning and join in the world wide refrain of peace on earth. To its many read ers The Journal voices tne good will of the. season, and rejoices with all in the fact that the world has had its Prince of Peace. i THE JUROR'S DIFFICULT TASK SERVING AS Juror In a criminal case where the evidence Is all circumstantial, ' when this evi dence is strong against the de fendant, and yet there , is room In the conscientious Juror's mind for a "reasonable doubt, Is Hp easy or desirable task. It is, a duty, Im posed on citizens, and most of them perform It, with self -sacrificing and praiseworthy fidelity.; It is easy to criticize a verdict, but would the critics have done any better? ; It Is sometimes argued that com promise verdicts In criminal eases are unjustifiable, that in such a case for example, as that' of Mrs. Kersh, or Ellexson, at Lt Grande, the verdict should be murder Ja the first degree, or acquittal, that the jurors have no legal or moral right to compromise on murder in the sec ond degree" or'! manslaughter: But considering the great expense of such trials, and the wearying, slowness of judicial procedure, compromise ver dicts are excusable, and ; in most cases in conformity . to a Juror's sworn duty, ' In the Ellexson case the jurors ; found, the defendant guilty of miirder in the second de gree, carrying a penalty of life Im prisonment, because they, or some of them, thought he might yet be able to prove his innocence. ; This would seem to : indicate the , existence of such a reasonable doubt as. would call for a' verdict of acquittal;: yet let us not be censorious. It Is one of the most difficult things In the world for a conscientious man to decide, In some cases, ' whether or i.ot be has a reasonable doubt in tho legal sense. The Jurors in thia case ' were -pretty sure that Ellexson killed Perry, and if he did, It "was a Vila murder; yet it appears that the evidence 'was not absolutiply conclu sive; " there watr doubt enough to save his neck from, the. hangman's noose, but not enough to frea him. ir theapenbrtra.' Kcrn,"n.erei wna.detnand for the jury to bring. jn a verdict of murder in the first de-f-ree or acquittal. Yet, . aft-r 73 ! vhs, the jurors returned a verdict lot manslaughter, - It 'was a compro mise in which one juror1 who was lor i acquittal required the eight or nine who orieinallv, favored conviction In": first degree to meet him on coiu- mon ground. It is a ver verdict that may meet the - iirc'innrnTro! nf main Vfnnf hut ftf fpr . " " : ri I i-I'-T."- "1 an it 13 & veraici ana a consciuuuu ! effort by: 'jury to do its duty. As long as men are only mortals, justice by Muries , may have Its occasional elance back into history are we not i an giau ioai we ijve in a umw wueu trials are by juries and Jurors? FOR PRACTICAL TRAINING I N HIS ADDRESS before the Port land meeting of Oregon, teachers, L. R. Alderman, who has been elected state superintendent of public Instruction, advocated: the es tablishment of vocational ' schools, the Improvement; of rural schools, and the elimination of a great many theoretical studies from the public schools. He urged the country teach ers to strive to make rural living more enjoyable.by arranging social functions and deplored , the tendency of country 'people to become city dwellers, blaming the inadequacy of the rural school for assisting in the development ot the movement, A poet has 6ald that "We can find tongues In the trees, Bermons In the stones and books In running brooks." The, country teacher - should know j that everything in nature has a voice. It was William Cullen Bryant who said, "to him who In the love ot na ture, hold3 communion with her vis ible forms she speaks a various lan guage." . ' , . .When the country teacher can in terpret this language and teach the children In country life to understand it, an Influence will be set' up to keep the boys and girls on the farm, Every flower has its story, every leaf its tale, and every bud its poem. There is history In the woods, and romance n the meadows. ,' It Is all a more beautiful story than the trun dle of the street cars In the city," the clatter of the Bteairi hammers or the hoofbeat on the pavement. "Sit. Alderman is apparently for a practlcalized education, and if so, it is weH ; Such is his evident mean ing in his demand for elimination of theoretical subjects.. . Many critics of the schools have taken the same po sition, Insisting, that the whole sys tem of American education is framed as a preparation for the college and university, and therefore lacking in utilitarian "value. ,; To moot the ob jection, . there have been established In Chicago, high school courses of only two years and so fashioned as to give the pupil the best possible preparation for entering the active work of life. . x In the collegiate courses In the , 000,000 pupils In the elementary schools In the country above 90 per eent never pass beyond the eighth grade. ' Here is complete evidence of the value of llr. Alderman's Idea that so far as possible .the limited training we give to the many should be stripped of all possible theory and be made as sternly utilitarian as pos sible. , There Is no doubt of the rapidly Increasing effectiveness of our com mon schools. That the system should have faults and weaknesses is . nat ural. Everything in life is as yet Imperfect, ; and , everything ' In the midst of corrective and perfecting change.'. The ; schools , are , neces sarily commanded and their destinies and policies chiefly directed by pro fessional teachers whose enmusiasm for education can easily lead them Into forgetfulness of the practical requirements and $tern necessities of the workaday world. A leadership that seeks to direct the school .work Into utilitarian channels and o fit Instruction to the needs of this time and this life is desirable, and by his address before the Oregon teachers, Mr. Alderman can apparently be so catalogued. , , It was - Mr. Alderman who, as county ; superintendent in - Yamhill, led the movement for county school fairs, an activity etlll In vogue in that county, and attended with great success. . It Is a movement for teach ing school pupils to grow agricul tural products and by that training to wed them as far as possible to the soil and country life. It, was effort to teach them the language of nature, to help them read .the Ber mons In the stones, the books In the running brooks and the story, of the trees and flowers. , , ; SUGGESTION , TO ' AIRES MILLION- I' NCLUDING HIS . recent . gift of J10.000.000 to Chicago ' univer sity, Mr. .Rockefeller has given ra all $35,000,000 to that insti tution. The list of his benefactions in this and other activities now totals more than $100,000,000. . . . More bountiful ,. as a giver,' Mr. Carnegie's gifts now reach an aggre gate of unore than $160, 00v, 000. t ; The list of millionaires and their benefactions is now great In length, and the total of their philanthropies a stupendous sum. Their wealth is literally pouring out in streams upon varied plana for the, benefit of their country and countrymen. ? Educa tion, prevention of disease, hospitals, I libraries and a long Use. of humani tarian projects are ine recipients or their bounty. , But, .ast If these cap tains of great wealth were out of touch with real human life, no great gift for the practical benefit of' the poorarSCbraajleT: Yet it seems strange that some of these men with many millions and' charitable dispositions have not done something toward at least tho relief of the poverty, of the blame less poor in our great cities.t On this Christmas day there are many thousands of such in New York, Chi cago and other, centers. They can earn barely enough to support a mis erable existence; . they toil ceaseless ly, never having a vacation; .they can never save anything for a "rainy day''; many of them women and children, are hollow-eyed, always ! hungry, often cold, insufficiently clad, tied down to drudgery and un remuneratlve toil. What a mockery Christmas is to such as these. To many of them" Santa Claus never comes. The problem with them, ever pressing, and especially In the win ter time is not what to buy or give for Christmas presents ,but whether on this happiest of days to the well-to-do they can have a dinner of real meat, whether' the hungry children can be supplied with enough at beef trust prices to satisfy their hunger; whether there is enough money to provide a fire to keep warm, this Christmas day, ( , . ' . ' Why don'jt the multimillionaires do something practical to Tielp such peo pie? We speak only of deserving ones, those without bad faults, of the ignorant, squalid, hopeless," tolling poor. It is a large and - difficult problem, but surely something could be done with many millions of money to relieve this' sad situation. - Not In direct gifts of money, perhaps; but in help that would leave the benefic iaries their self respect and stimu late independence of .character. Mr. Rockefeller's or Mr. Carnegie's millions would buy hundreds of thou sands of acres of land, for instance, which would support a family on each 20 or 10 acres. This land could be sold on' credit at cost, and with It a few head of, livestock, some Implements, furniture end : passage money advanced, all ta be paid in 1 0 years in annual 'Installments. Properly selected, nearly : all such families . would pay the donor, ''with moderate Interest. ' ; And what a change It would be for them from the squalid, murky, microbe-laden homes In the great city to the bright, broad,' beautiful out-doors and health and wealth producing soil of the country. ' , ITS FUTURE A CRY IS GOING up from east ern Oregon, Washington and Idaho for more dairy farmers. The section imports $14,000, 000 worth of dairy products annual ly from other 1 states," and ; wants dairymen to come and produce here the commodities that are imported. , In time, the dairy farmers will be here. A; movement to hurry their coming Is not amiss. But, under the laws of natural adjustment, they wlfj ultimately find the northwest, and give us at least enough dairy pro ducts for home consumption. , In this region, dairy farmers who know their business and attend to it, are-highly prosperous. ' They have beautiful farms, " excellent. Improve ments and money in the bank. Such men as the " Schulmerichs of Wash ington county and, the dairymen of Tillamook are blazing the way to a dairy Industry that will later save Oregon from the, humiliation of Im porting butter, and. cheese from Illi nois, Wisconsin, Minnesota and other Btates less adapted than our own to dairy production. " The handicaps of the business1 In Oregon are of temporary character and will later be removed. Farm help, now scarce and exceedingly ex pensive, will - have its solution. A dairying race, to which "dairy pro cesses are not hateful as they are to many American farm hands, will ul timately hear of the requirements In Oregon and come here to pursue an industry that languishes now for lack of laborers. 1 .This, with gradual progress In producing suitable foods and the im provement : of the herds will ulti mately solve the dairy problems and build up here a dairy Industry , of splendid "effectiveness. ;; 'X' 'V'- In. the meantime, any movement will be of great value that carries abroad the tidings of opportunities for dairying in the northwest and the rewards- that; come to the dairy business here when properly pursued. MONEY VALUE IN PARKS AND BOULEVARDS AMONG RECENT, developments of municipal duties may be in cluded the provision of parka and boulevards for every pros perous and growing city. That such Improvements are desirable, no one doubts. When the question is faced, shall the -city pay for them, by gen eral taxation, and If so to what ex tent then murmurs are heard, t V; ;" . To justify this open,; or behind the scenes, opposition three reasons are suggested. . The first objection refers to the city charter. He finds there' no clause directly referring to parks and boulevards but various specific; directions Justifying outlay for the health of, the inhabitants, or providing public facilities to be turned to private profit. So, says the" objector, there's no legal war rant for the expenditure: , Nor Is there, if legal warrant needs expres- ctlnn In rllrnct wnrda . DnA tan r 1. . . a. j' .'.r' 'ii'. '. . - . j w uerw cusp 00 iuuuu. cu me iraenas 1 01 me measure nave 10 ' ran bact I on the elasticity of the general obli gation to care for the . welfare of the city and its inhabitants in epirlt, nnnl. and bndv. Thla Vinvlnw hsAn I ' ' -. " I I U iiv-1, ; done is nearly all the rising cities ot thv nation;"; custom ; and precedent have gained .the force, if not the form, of law. v -j ; A second objector finds that parks an'6rjb'ouTevaras"are expensive luxur ies, and mean raised taxes for pro viding them, and an "army of offi cials" a favorite bugbear to main tain , them. .And , yet. docs not the provision of wide space around tho dwelling, of grass and flowers, of neatly kept sldewalxs and paths, in dicate a3 nothing else fioes the pros perity of the owner? Is not health subserved? Do not tho children thrive the better for open air play grounds and abundant space? Is It not s,p common a desire as to indi cate a real need to sit, every one, under his own vine and fig tree? Is not the city interested, as much as any citizen, that lack of means shall not exclude young and old from the open spaces that only the cjty can provide? .' But some one suggests that the benefits of park and boulevard are not evenly : distributed since every such Improvement carries with it a large percentage of extra value on neighboring property. In Kansas City, Missouri, this objection has found expression.! It has been met by the "benefit-district" ; system, meaning that the cost has been as sessed against all property in a lim ited district that has been benefited' by the Improvement.- "Real estate men' reports the landscape architect for the board, "discovered years ago that frontage on boulevards -easily doubles the market price ot lots on streets two or more blocks distant" SEEKING FOR OIL ALL THE REST of the people of , Oregon' are Indebted to the oil seekers, even though the latter are doing the boring with little thought of, being public benefactors. Oil Is being sought 14 several widely separated localities 1 In Oregon In Malheur, Wasco, Polk, Clatsop, Coos, and perhaps some : other counties. The greatest outlay In this work has been made near Vale," where several companies have drilled quite deep j wells, and there are. frequent reports of "encouraging prospects." On the contrary a government 'alleged ex pert was reported' recently as saying that the attempts to strike oil In that locality were doomed to failure. He may be right,, but men are hot likely to spend several hundred thou sand djllars without having opinions of experts as well qualified to guess as Is this government employe. . The long time that has ;elajsed in the work there without ; results Beems discouraging,; yet, so far, the wells have not been bored deep enough to ascertain whether or 'not oil is to be found. It Is never found near, the surface, and Is usually struck at a greater depth than has ; yet been reached In Malheur county, i ! ; j," Near Dufur it la reported that oil has actually been reached,, and is In use as fuel. In carrying on the work of drilling deeper, and if Jhla report Is ' true It is certainly encouraging, for where there is a little real oil there Is likely to be, far greater quantities lower down. One sup posed expert maintains that the country all the way from Dufur to Vale and Ontario is underlaid with oil, but' this may be only an opti mistic , guess. In other localities hope is still bright, and efforts will be continued. - ' ' - ' The Kearch tnr ttl 1i a ne-m reMm is very, largely, a gamble, . and for tnai very reason appeals ail the more strongly to adventurous men. It Is well for Oregon that there are such men, for the striking of great oil deposits would be a 'mightily Im portant event' ELECTION AMENITIES IN ENGLAND fHAS BEEN tb fashion lately I to hold up English examples for Amencan- imitation, such as speedy trials, quick ' procedure, inevrcaDie punisnment. so far so good. But when It comes to good manners at electron time! ; - We fancied that campaigns of abuse were our Bpeclal property. Not so. The old country has gone, and Is still going far ahead of our poor efforts. - .. t, , ; This from .an English paper Just arrived : ; 'At . Liverpool Sir Edward Carson,'' an ex-attorney; general "ironically regretted that he was hot a cabinet minister paid 5000 a year to, spit out dirt 'by the yard Next day at Buruley Mr. F.'E. Smith" - a proDaDie attorney general, ir the Unionists had won "described the chancellor of the excheq,uer, W. Lloyd-George, as racing .all - over England In pursuit ot his own vul garlties and a specialist in offal In more senses than one. . So again Sir Edward Carson dwells on the gov ernment's Intention of Bending three or four hundred scabs or blacklegs Into the house; of lords o do the d Irty work "of the Liberal party?" The newspapers use the same tricks. "The prime minister (s a 'mock mahdi sflrrounded by dervish lieutenants,"' writes the editor of the "Observer," "The chancellor of the exchequer,.' the writer proceeds,V'Is the mile end mob monger ; the . mummer ?of j Lelne house. The same editor writes of the "mature Gorgonzola of Mr. Lloyd George's rhetoric" the English par allel, of our Hmburger cheese. He habitually speaks. of the ; Irish as Molly Magulres, ' calls Mr. Redmond the. Dollar Dictator; and the Buffalo bagman. '.He states that the Dollar Dictator has wiped his boots on the government of grovel, and will on the British flag. ... ,' All this from the high life, house of lords, hereditary peerage party. And the Liberals, if less abusive, are no less bitter. Surely' Gladstone and Desraeli must be turning In their graves, at the degradation of the great art of oratory at which their parliamentary successors have arrived. . ' MyatlpnJjacljed from end - to end. Doubtless It will survive the : issues of this contest But the quiet voters and non-voters of the Unionist party are well nigh in,, despair. . Listen to one of them, who writes to an Oregon friend: "Jf this government comes in again England 'is doomed. William, will come over In a few years to look u up and take care of us. Irish Home Rule will just place a good many thousand men at their disposal to arm against us. Our1 glorious con stitution wich its' second chamber will be a thing of the past, and Eng land will no logner be the great na tion she has been." ' . - . ' One ,thing Is sure. History ts being made at a great rate in the British Islands, for the old forms of king, lords and commons have gone for good. The old constitution, based on precedent, tested by centuries of slow growth, and adapted to the "spe cial needs of every emergency In the nation's life, Is in the melting pot, and that polls very hot Just now.-j OLD ORCHARDS IN OREGON HE SATURDAY POST of Decem . ber.24 has a long and inter esting article on the renovation of old and seemingly worn but apple orchards In Connecticut The hero of the story is George Drew, a graduate of the Massachusetts Agrl- cultufal ; college. Being chosen by E. C. Converse of Greenwich, Con necticut, to take charge of his, farms there, the young orchardlst under took, on his own motion, to convert the overgrown, moss covered, scale" Infested family orchards of each farm Into money producing orchards of this new era.1 According' to the story, and its illustrating' pictures, he has absolutely succeeded. .What are' his secrets? First of all he! saws and cuts -the straggly, overgrown trees severely back, study ing to bring every ancient limb and new shoot into easy spraying reach, and to ' let light and - air Into the tree's heart, Then he sprays and sprays In the fall with soluble oil, In tho spring with lime and sulphur. In the summer with self .boiled lime and sulphur, and arsenate of lead. Next comes clean cultivation with shallow plowing or cutting harrow. Lastly, that which is new doctrine to most of ub in Oregon, George Drew Insists on beginning with free use of fertilizers. For the three .essen tial elements for renovating, growth and health are, be says, potash, phos phoric acid and nitrogen. And these three he gives to, his old orchards In 100 pounds to the acre of nitrate of potash," sulphate of potash 250 pounds and basic slag;. 500 pounds. After that heavy dosing this reviver of, old ; trees relies for further sup plies of nitrates on seeding the or chard, with ? clover, vetch, or soy beans.. Is this labor and money spending Justified by the results?. If the fig ures can be believed it is. " For in two years, Mr. Drew reports, that In a badly neglected orchard of 200 trees, fully 30 years old, a crop of GOO barrels of choice, hand picked, fruit was harvested. And the apples sold at from $3.50 to $5 a barrel. Next, an old orchard where scale and canker had run riot,, was taken in hand. In two years the 75 old vet erans returned an average of nine barrels of choice fruit to the tree. And so on. . What bearing has all .this on us in Oregon, is It asked? This first That many, very many, of our old, overgrown and mosshung orchards, may be reclaimed instead of cut down as lumberers of the ground. Next, that some of the advice ten dered to the new comers to avoid orcharding unless they can afford to wait bIx years for their returns must be revised, If the ancient or- Decernler J25 in HJrtory-Cnrwtmas Day " Today is Christmas day-the most holy, yet the most 'happy, of all days of the year. . The question of whether December 25 is really the anniversary of the birth of Christ was for a long time a mooted one. In the earliest pe riods of which we have any, record we find this feast was observed at various periods, the first and sixth of January being the dates on which a portion of the Christians celebrated it; ' others doing so on March 29. the time of the "Jewish Passover," while yet others se lected September 19, that r being ; the "Feast of the Tabernacles." r 1 , V ; There were those also who observed it on April 20, while an authority writ ing on the subject states) that -in Egypt Christ was believed to have been . born on i January ' 6. For a long time the Greeks celebrated our Lord's birth on the Feast of Epiphany. In a sermon preached by 8t Chrysostom. at Antioch on December - 25, In 386,' he aays : it Is not 10 years since this day (Christ mas, December 28) was clearly known to us; but It, has been . familiar from the beginning to those who -dwell In the west . The Romans have from, the earliest days celebrated Christmas on December 25, and thus from ..ancient tradition transmitted the, knowledge to us." f'v .' :';; i;; .j.v The- Klrehenlerikon," i an aocepted and . undoubted- authority, says , that "The special feast In honor "of the sa vior's birth was introduced In the year 854 under Pope Llberlus, and soon after in Constantinople in 878; but previous to" this the feast was, celebrated upon Epiphany. Chambers names Pope Julius as having introduced the feast In the church ritual; but if 854, the . year named by the "Klrchenlexikon," Is cor rect, Julius could pot have promulgated the office, for' he died in 352. and Ll berlus was chosen as his successor. The name given by the ancient Goths' and Saxons o the festival of the Win ter Solstice was Jal. or Yule, the latter term forming to; the present day the designation In ' the Scottish dialect pf Christmas and preserved " also , In the name of the Yule log. Perhaps the etymology of ho term has excited any greater discussion among antiquarians. The most , probable derivation of the word is . from the Gothio ''gigful," or "hiul," the origin of the modern word wheel," And bearing the tame signifi cance. According to this very probable explanation, the Yule festival received its name from being the turning points of the year, or tne period at which the f lory orb of day made a revolution in ttffTiTrmw!"ereiil4.tMI -enter hfcmorth-f em Journey. A confirmation of this view Is afforded by the-, circumstance that In the old Clog' almanacs a wheel ts the device employed for marking the season at . Yulotide.: . . ' At present Christmas day, If some--, . . -,. .. , , -.1 1 , chard can in two years and no more be made a cash asset to its owner. And, third and last, that the doc trines that are proved good for Con necticut are no less good for Oregon. No Real War Scare. From he Baltimore Star. ' TJnpreparedness to resist an invader has become a perennial war scare, which pretty generally persuades a re luctant congress to make large appro priations for army and navy. It has bobbed up agaio in the report of Sec retary Dickinson, which the house, after Ha custom of not receiving confidential communications,, did not read. Unim portant net changes among the active leaders In the stock market is the best Indication obtainable that the country doe not take an alarmist view of Sec retary Dickinson's attitude. Nothing In the country la more sensitive In record ing fluctuations of public sentiment, real or forced, than the New York stock exchange, which always keeps both ears strained f6r the whirr of rumor's wings. , There will probably be a more or less acrimonious debate over appropriations for the army, which will not be soothed by' a few Jingo utterances from the s co lons of the Pacific slope, where preach ing fear of the Japanese has become the chief asset of some embryo statesmen. But neither the fervid utterances of Mr. Hobson of Alabama nor the cry of ter ror raised by . far western congressmen will of themselves prevail. Congress will settle down to a careful survey of the field of military preparedness, and then make up Its mind how . much to spend upon this branch of. the armed service. But the United States is not going to be cheered or scared Into fran tic preparations for a war that Is not Coming. It will hot present to the world a spectacle like that of England and Germany In their exhausting and de moralizing race for naval supremacy. A solid American sense of humor will not permit such a state of affairs. y Organize Without Factions. . From the Salem Journal ' The" attempt . to Inject a factional fight, Into, the organization of the leg islature Is a political mistake. . r ' The selection of Ben Selling for presi dent of the senftfe and Henry McKlnney s speaker of the house would, be fair and right and would eliminate any fac tional fight J Mr. Selling is a leader of the progres sive policies inaugurated by the people of Oregon-i-the direct primary law and the direct election of United States ators.-"'..",;-.;--:'.ife. v.;. 7,. Mr. McKinney'was an assembly nom inee in1 his county, but is a clean antl machlne young Republican, who comes off the farm, where he makes an hon est living, and not out of politics. 1 The time has come for', the prof es sonals to let go and allow them who an willing to recognise the. powers, of the people to determine matters, and who Will play politics squarely., . . ; . ; The Capital Journal believes that an organization of the legislature with such men presiding over both houses would save the taxpayers $500,0(10. ' ; -; Those who imagine they can play politics on the old lines are mistaken, just as they were mistaken In "putting the party in the. attitude of opposing popular reforms. v .. An old fashioned grafting legislature la an abomination, , ' - , . - - ' Anvil Sparks.' prom the Christian Herald. . A- religion that is good enough for the week day will do for Sunday. . The heart Is not a fit place tcTput grudges in; they belong to the rubbish pile. ' ..'' A smile never wears out If It Is worn pleasantly, and It is always In good tyle. , , To have done one's best Is the source of greater joy than to have obtained the best f m A living! that costs no sweat is too costly,' for It costs the privilege of a great deal of life's sweetness. :; When an achievement exhausts all our resource In its accomplishment it will exhaust our capacity to contain the joy Aa Annoying Mistake. 1 A gentleman of Arizona once hanged himself to the bedpost by his suspend ers. The verdict of the Coroner's Jury was: . "Deceaaed came to his death by com, ing home full and mistaking himself for his pants." j what shorn of its ancient glories and unmarked by that boisterous Jollity and exuberance of animal spirits which dis tinguished it lrt the time of our an cestors, is, nevertheless, the holiday In which of all others throughout the year all classes of society, most generally participate. Partaking - of a religious character,, the forenoon of the day Is usually passed In church, after which, either at noon or even time, the . re United members of the family assemble round the Christmas board. Separated, as many of these are, during the rest of the-year, they will make an effort to meet together around the Christmas hearth. , The hallowed feelings of do mestic love and attachment the pleas ing remembrance of the past and the Joyous anticipations of the future, all cluster round . these family gatherings a1! 1Lthe 8aored associations- with which they are Intertwined and the act. Ive deeds of kindness and benevolence which they .tend, to call forth, a reason may .almost be found of the angello messaged to Oieshepherda of Bethle henW'Glory to God la the highest and on earth, peace and good will toward Ajnid so many popular custom" at Christmas, full of so much sweet and .simple, poetry, there Is perhaps none more charming than that of the Christ mas carols, which celebrate in joyous and yet devout strains the nativity of the savior... The term is believed to be derived from the Latin "cantara," to sing and rola! an Interjection expres sive of Joy. 'The practice appears to be as ancient as the celebration of Christmas. ;,",.. . .. W , - v.. ' The decking of churchev houses and shops with .evergreens at Christmas springs from a period far anterior to the revelation of .Christianity, and seems proximately to be derived from the custom prevalent during the Satur nalia of the inhabitants of Rome orna menting their 4emples and dwellings with green boughs. ;it Is evident that the use of flowers and green boughs as a means of decoration is almost in stinctive In human nature: and we ac cordingly find scarcely any nation, civ ilized or savage, with which it has not become more or less familiar. . , December 25, in 1119, occurred the battle of Trenton; in 1779, Nashville, Tenn., was founded; in 1788, Shays' Re bellion broke out; and In 1803 occurred the wedding of Jerome Benaparte and Miss Elizabeth Patterson. Today is the birthday- or Bir Isaac Newton (1642); Clara Barton, active in the Red Cross Bod y- 1 8 8 1 t nd WtHlsm Col Hn, the English poet (1720). It is the death day of Per9lus. satiric poet68 A. D.)j Rev. Janes Hervey, noted English au thor : (1758); ' and Samuel. Champlain (K31). It is the date of the crowniDg of William I in o. a J News Forecast of . Coning Week Washington, Dec. 24. Beginning with , the celebration of Christmas and ending with the festivities accompanying the. birth of the New Year, the week will be ' truly a holiday period.' To- a great ex--tent all public and private affairs will ; be permitted to come tor a standstill,' while the people devote themselves to pleaeire. : - Jdai'iy public men of note will attend the banquet of tne Illinois Society of the. War of 1812, to be lield in Chicago Thursday evening, at which plans for the building of a great memorial for".' Commander Perry at Put-In-Bay will be discussed, .- Football and other branches of college athletics will come up for critical c6n-' slderation at the fifth annual meeting of the Intercollegiate Athletic associa tion, which is to be held in New York) city Thursday. The association has a widespread influence In Intercollegiate sport and has an active membership of 68 leading universities and college. , The . Iroquois Memorial Emergency hospital, erected In memory' of the 600 victims of the Iroquois theatre fire, will be formally -turned ovor to the city of Chicago next Friday, which will be the seventh anniversary of the dreadful , holocaust ' , " , . "' 1 The , first of the - large ' automobile shows of the season will be opened Sat urday in the Grand Central Palace, New York. wThe exhibition will be that of the ' so called Independent automobile manufacturers and the announcement !' made that it Is expected to exceed all of Its predecessors in the number and' variety of Its exhibits. The annual meetings of many educa tional associations and learned societies, will be held during the week. Among the meetings of general Interest will be. those of the Southern. Educational asso- ; elation at Chattanooga, -the American, Association for the Advancement of: Science at Minneapolis; the American n Historical association and allied socle-. ties at Indianapolis; the American Phil- . osophlcal association, at Princeton unl- verslty; the Archaeological institute of. America, and the American Philological society, at Brown university,, and the Society of American Bacteriologists, at Cornell university. ' Colonel Ilofer's Advice to Taft "-' From the Salem Journal (Rep.) The old political machine at Portland seems determined to send Oregon over Into the permanent Democratic column. They are now trying to have PresW dent Taft reappoint P. S. Malcolm col-, lector of customs. ; Mr. Malcolm Is a man of highest, character, but he Js not worth 15 cents -to the Republican-party In a campaign. . x The principal federal appointments In ' Oregon are frittered away on the purely, ornamental, bangle wearing brigade, who do not even vote the Republican ticket - , '. ,: I- ,.,'. President Taft makes a serious mis-" take' when he appoints men who mak; war on progressive Republican policies. Warfare on the direct primary law,, on direct election of senators, is all.. that men llke'Malcolin and Colwell rep resent r'i';-'vv;..-.;-, .... .!. .-xJ -;y'- , t :- That Is all their backers represent, and then President Taft la apt to won-, der why Oregon goes Democratic - Because of this stddled program, of the standpatters to put the party In an attitude of hostility to the people,' you frequently hear the etatement that neither Taft nor Roosevelt can carry : Oregon for the Republican party In 1812. . - . - ' ..I The serious need of the Republican) party in Oregon is to take a look ahead, If It wants t get ahead. - . -The rank and file will not surrender -the political weapons that enable them to fight down special Interests. ; When the party is used ; to reward t men who want to rob the people of those weapons the people revolt , The people of Oregon have only the kindest.' feelings personally toward President Taft but. theyswU not.sur-. render basio principles of program in publle affairs. If he wants to have a look-in for re nominatlon, onto carry Oregon for the Republican machine in 1913 he must stop rewarding the enemies ot popular government . , , , ' , - .-I ,i n ;,;.;oy Electing U. 8. Senators. . , j From the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. . The subcommittee of the senate com-' mlttee on Judiciary has decided to au-, thorlze a favorable report upon the pro posed amendment to the constitution of. the United States, requiring the election t of; United States senators hereafter by popular vota Whether the full commit tee will accept this report and thus " bring the matter before the, senate re mains to be seen.';:; ". In a large number of the states air, ready the election of senators la by popular vote. The constitutional Intent has been disregarded, precisely as It has been so long disregarded In the matter Of the election of president, that the great majority of the people of the coun try ho longer realize tnat tho frame rs of the constitution attempted to take the. choice of president entirely out of the hands of the electors and vest it In a body of selected citizens, to exercise an unrestricted choice. ' It would probably be Just as well to , have direct constitutional warrant for the election of senators by popular vote, for in any event with the certain exten sion of the direct primary, the people are going to exercise that right In sub stantially all of the statea, ; In roost of the states where the direct primary system 1s In force,. the nominees of each party for United States senator , receive the legislative vote as a matter of course. ,; In this state the action of the legislature In electing ; a United Btates senator Is as purely perfunctory as the action of t,he electoral college In electing a president has been for the past 60 years, ' v. The passing ' of a constitutional, amendment now would be hardly more ( than a recognition and expansion of an existing condition. ; The people propose to elect senators by - their own votes. They are doing It In many of the states now, and they will do It in all, constl-, tutlonal amendment or 110 constitutional, amendment,' ' " " " .; The Professors Raising Fruit From the Christian Herald. .While it seems to be granted that the , far westefn portions of our country are leading, in new and advanced methods', of producing and marketing fruit crops,? tho older states give evidence of tholr latent possibilities. Here labor manual labor is considered an honorable occu pation; and In many parts Is furnished exclusively by white men and women, of fine' Intelligence, who find It agreeable and remunerative at the same time. Among these are university graduates doctors, ministers, journalists, who fol low horticulture as their only pursuit.- The value of -applied Intelligence over against haphazard and easy going meth ods is 'exemplifll by striking facts.. How otherwise la it 4o be accounted for that out of a restricted area In one statu, xouglily-a5".mliBs..t'y-i4,iiUl4'a,aUere,.la,.. shipped and crfhimercially disposed of more fine peach fruit than from 20,006,- 000 .of peach trees in, another state of no, , mean proportions, nnd more apples from the same section tnan from three other pple growing Btates? V