THE OREGON i DAILY JOURNAL, . PORTLAND, TUESDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 9, 1915.
T"lI C t r IDMAI "H than Png that coat. The traf
'1 Pi CL JU UiAlNnL. ficls mainly from coastwise steam-
' as independent nkwspapeb
C 8. JACKSON .
pnbthr
" , fery Sunday morning -t Th loarnai Boiirt-
- iuv BW.J..r an Y.sr.m Mi. Partus Or.
-' VZSmVJX itri V".eWnd
' mitttt, ,
m uuiiwwi ravv. WMitnv i.winf mflafTi iuu .
tT?& 'ffayS.l'"
OKKIGN ADVERTISING SEP. BSKNTATI V
Bnmtn Keotnor Co., BrUDwlck BM.,
.2 Flftfc ae Naw York. 1218 People
Uif BWg., tbli'sgo. -
Subscription terms jj mill or to any
elreas In tbe United MiM or Mexico:
. DAILY .
On year $5.00 ' ou month 00
i SUNDAY , ,-
One Jf.......$2JiO i On mouth
DAILY AND SUNDAY . .
On year $7.&0 I Ou month
18-
.".A man who gives his chil
dren habits of Industry pro
vides for them better than by
giving them a fortune. Arch
bishop Whately.
SENATORIAL I. W. W.'ISM
K
0 MINORITY has a right to
rule. By lung work, a mi
nority is now attempting to
rule the majority in the sen-
v ate. It is a desperado endeavor
't"o defeat the ship purchase bill, the
1 passage of which has been pro
grammed by the majority, a ma
jority regularly commissioned by
the people to enact leigslation.
The ship purchase measure is
an effort by the administration to
: give the United States a partially
- rehabilitated merchant marine, and
to afford American farmers, lum-
bermen and otner manuiacurers,
shipping and reasonable freight
rates in a great world crisis when
a large portion of the ocean com-
pierce Is paralyzed by war and
wnen tne rest 01 u is aimosi para.--Tlysed
by extortionate freight rates.
- The ships in the foreign trade
' of the world are a great trust. -The
: Washington government is in pos
;' session of facts indicating that
A there are ' at least 80 steamship
.- agreements ana conrerence arrange
ments covering the foreign trade
routes of the globe. All these
agreements show one unmistakable
i miTrtna-thc rnntml of EomDeti-
" tion between the lines in the agree
. ment and to prevent competition
t from lines outside the -agreement.
- .The agreements and understandings
? affect the rates charged, apportion
Kthe traffic by restricting the num-
ber of sailings by each line, limit
the voliime of freight wh:r:h cer
: tain lines may carry, and pooling
' the freight money from all or a
V portion of the cargo.
' It is the same situation that once
obtained among America., rail
. . . t i z i.
i roaus, in me. penuu uciuj o
-" regulation and when they entered
Into gentlemen's agreements for
fixing rates, dividing up territory,
f making rebates and doing the other
. things that a generation of Ameri-
can lire inaictea Dy esiaDiisning
the 'Interstate Commerce Commis
sion for regulation of the railroads
as a defense of the people.
The Senate has always been the
. "refuge of the interests. The sev
enteenth amendment has not yet
been in effect long enough" to
purge the body of reaction. The
spectacle of so-called dignified sen
atnra hnrancnilner in an emntv cham
ber -'-alf night in an effort to beat
. a vroal Tn ofl en ra nf HpHvpranm for
s the American producer is stand
natism in a last desperate stand.
It is mob rule and senatorial I.
W. W.'ism at a most inopportune
time. A
ANOTHER BRANCH BANK
1 LEVEN employes of a big
U New York bank sailed Sat-
I nrlaw fnr T? A f Tanpirn to
..establish a second branch
American hank in South America,
the first of the kind to be founded
in Brazil. Trade follows the bank.
At least, wherever a nation's banks
go, at that place there is always
trade; for that nation. One great
agency by which German and
British trade has been built up
. with South America was the pres-
cute in ouuiu i-iiuci nt ui vxcruiciii
and iiritish bankers.
to the new program of establishing
American banks in South America.
-One is' the new currency and bank
ing law. The other is the higher
confidence of financiers in the
.prospect of a successful business
" with; South American nations due
to . the kindlier relation and greater
rotlfidenr rf tVinc nat innc . n Ha
umiea oiaies as a result ot fresi-
dent Wilson's foreign policy.
STATUS OP THE CANAL
J
OSEPH B. BISHOP, former sec
retary of the Isthmian Canal
Commission, says nobody should
gain the Impression that the
Panama canal is out of commis-
y slon. . Slides have made a naval
parade Impossible in March, but
the big waterway is doing business
I " ; J . "A." - '
rignt aiong.
What Mr. Bishop says is inter-
esting. The canal was opened to
jj traffic August 15, last, and up to
January l a total of 365 com
'. mercial vessels used it, paying tolls
. Of $1,543,100. Receipts increased
:. from . 184.401 for two weeks in
August to $411,895 for December.
,"With only brief interruptions, the
canal has been open since August
- 15, and It is open today, the num-
; - ber of vessels passing through
" ranging from three to. five daily.
. There is ample depth of water for
all ships of commerce, the only
. doubt about depth being in the
. case of large naval Vessels.
Mr. Bishop makes the statement
that according to official estimates
- of cost of operation, the canal is
at the present rate of use more
lamps, -which are therefore paying
lthe cost of operation.
The figures are reassuring. If
J with a world war driving merchant
; 8Mpg fnm panama
canal id paying running expenses,
i much more can be expected of It
j possible that the canal has greater
vuieiiuai value to me nation iua.u
the most I sanguine ever hoped for.
THE BINGHAM BILL
S
ENATOR BINGHAM ought to
withdraw his compensation
bill. It cannot pass the
House. What, then, is the
use of considering it in the Sen
ate, especially when but ten days
more of the session remain?
i The present system of compensa
tion has been in use but six
months. More people directly in
terested. In. the system approve it
now than approved it in the begin
ning. The only loud call for a
change comes from the casualty
companies, and their desire for a
change Is to get themselves in po
sition to make a profit out of the
accidents to workmen.
The issue that Senator Bing
ham's bill draws is this: Is legis
lation to be for the casualty com
panies or for the workers and em
ployers? Are the casualty com
panies the. state of Oregon or are
there other Important interests
that are part of the state of Ore
gon? FEBRUARY
0
NE of the most Interesting
tbings about the present
month of February is that
there will be no full moon.
The calendar shows only three
phases instead of the usual four.
Not since 1902 has February had
only three phases of the moon.
In that year there was no last
quarter.' Not since 1846 has Feb
ruary failed to have a full' moon.
Although the present month will
have no full moon it will yet be
an interesting month. There Is
St. Valentine's Day and the anni
versaries of the birth of Lincoln
and Washington.
Once there was no February, not
even in the Roman calendar. Un
der Romulus there were but ten
months in the year, but Numa
Pompilius decided there ought to
be more so he began tho year with
January, relegating February to
last place. Three centuries later
the decemvirs moved February up
to second place. It was then
found that the calendar was out of
joint and February was selected as
the goat on which to operate. An
intercalary month was inserted
every second year between the
twenty-third and twenty-fourth
day. Julius Caesar abolished this
nuisance and gavo February 29
days except every fourth year when
it had 30 days. When Augustus
Caesar came into power he kicked
because his month, August, was
shorter than July so he took a day
off of February and added it to
August.
Ever since that time February
has been shy, occasionally, on full
moons.
With the Romans February was
the month of purification.
Poets sing of the leafy month of
June and the merry month of
May but in an old book is found
this description of February:
February comes in like a sturdy
country maiden With a tinge of red
on her healthy cheeks and as she
strives against the wind, wraps her
russet colored cloak well around her,
while with bent head, she keeps
throwing back th long hair that
blows about her face, and though at
times half blinded by the sleet and
snow, still continues her coarse cour
ageously. FEWER, BUT BETTER LAWS
T
HE review of the results ac
complished by the legislature
to date, as published in The
Journal Sunday, suggests the
observation that the average mem
ber of the legislature is impressed
with the conviction that the value'
of ills services , depends on the
number of bills he can introduce.
He yearns to Strike a great blow at
the evils whiph burden the state.
As Dooloy says he wants to "deal
the greatest blow since the. great
wind in Ireland."
If all the bills introduced in the
Oregon legislature the past five
sessions were put together there
would be laws enough to govern
twenty States, if they were good
laws; crimes enough to send every
body to prison, "If the laws could
be enforced, and volumes enough
to pave all ' the highways in .the
state. - J
There are'a few legislators,
though, who have an opposite view,
but they are very few in number.
They work on,-the principle that
they ought to pasa fewer but bet
ter laws.
A prominent citizen of Portland
who is a frequent visitor at the
legislature, hazards the opinion
that the volume of .legislation"
could be reduced by the establish
ment of a system of ethics similar
to that obtaining In judicial life.
A conscientious judge will not
hear a cause j la which he has a
personalf interest or one in which
he was employed as an attorney!
before ; his elevation to the bench.
If the same ethics were in vogue
in legislative life a legislator would
not Introduce or vote on a bill in
which he had a personal Interest
It is plainly obvious that this
would operate to reduce the num
ber of 'bills introduced.
While; the Idqa is a novel one
it is worth considering.
If the personal element were
I taken out of legislation we jcer
talnly would have fewer but Ibeti
ter laws. v" . 'i
I
THE LUSITANIA INCIDENT
fHE world marvels at tne j use
I ; of the American flag by ; the
I British steamer Lnsitanla as
a means of avoiding peril
from German submarines, j
It was, of course, an Improper
use of the stars and stripes, and
is to be condemned. Still, if you
were captain of a great ocean liner
crowded with passengers; and If
you realized as the average British
captain does, the deadly effective-
jness of a German submarine; and
if you were convinced that Gtrman
submarines with their magical tor
pedoes were in your immediate vi
cinity, what would you do? Do
you not think, as you reflect, that
as you looked out oyer the decks
of your vessel and saw the great
array of human lives gathered
there, you would be mightily, In
clined to hoist some kind of a
flag that the Germans were not
hunting for?
Verily, indeed, the British ship
master ought not to have run up
the American flag or any other
neutral flag, and the practice of
doing so, If It is to become a
practice. Is certain to encounter
protest from this nation. But, af
ter all. isn't it rather difficult to
censure the British captain, if the
act meant the difference beween
safety and a sunken ship and
drowning people?
- Incidentally, why did not this
captain run up the" flag of some
other neutral nation? Why . the
American flag?
Have we not been solemnly as
sured that the "Wilson foreign pol
icy has made this country the
laughing stock of Europe?"
The serious phase of the epi
sode is that the act may some day
result In an American ship being
harmed through mistake, a fact
that would involve us in grave In
ternational complications. It is
a misuse of the stars and stripes
that might be followed by melan
cholly consequences to the Ameri
can people.
CORN MEAL
THE fast advancing cost of
wheat flour and bread has
no terrors for the people of
the Southern States. Corn
bread, corn cake, corn pone, egg
bread, ash cake, johnny cake, hoe
cake, to say nothing of musa with
milk for supper and fried for
breakfast, are still plentiful there.
Wheat flour is the aristocrat in
the bread kingdom but those who
are fond of the more plebian corn
meal claim that they get more
real nourishment out of the latter.
It must be ground, though, by a
water mill If its full toothsome
ness is brought out.
If the folks down south are wor
rying about the price of cotton
the price of wheat is not bothering
them.
POSTAL BANK SAVINGS
CONFIDENCE in Uncle Sam as
a banker is shown by the
gain in postal bank savings.
For forty-three months these
savings accumulated at the rate of
about $1,000,000 a month. But
when the Eun9p"ean war broke out,
withdrawals fell offaod thousands
of new accounts were opened.
In August there was a net gain
in depcrgits of $4,000,000 four
times the average gain. Septem
ber and October showed gains of
$3,5Qt),000 each, and in spite of the
holiday season, November and De
cember deposits were more than
twice the normal- receipts.
The postofflce department ' re
ports that 191Sopened' with $59,-
200,000 on deposit in postal banks,
to the credit of 4y,UUU persons,
an average of $119 per depositor.
Secretary Burleson has asked
congress to remove the restriction
limiting to $100 the deposits which
may be made in a single month by
one person and to increase the
maximum single interest-bearing
deposit from $500 - to $1000. He
says these changes would result
in a Still larger increase in deposits,
and that the money would come
from sources not tapped by the
banks-from old stockings and un
seens places.
:
iTHE TERRIBLE COST
E'-tlROPE is destroying its ac
cumulated savings at a rate
unprecedented in the world's
history. The cos, of ; six
months' war Is estimated by Yvet
Guyot, -eminent French economist,
at an average of $40,000,000 a
day, or more than $7,000,000,000
up to February l. Roger, W. Bab
son's estimate is $280,000,000 a
week at the present time. Another
authority -says Europe is spending
$350,000,000 a week, or $50,000,
000 a day.
Official figures show that in the
first;1; four months- France epent
$855,000,000. or more than; $7,
000,000 a day. Germany Issued
one ' loan of $800,000,000 rand
treasury bills for. $375,000,000
more, making $1,175,000,000, dur
ing the 4 first Hve months -nearly
$8,000,000 a day. But the Local
Anzeiger bf Berlin says Germany'!
expenses are now less than they
were in the first months of war,
as the service Is better organized.
Russia's expenses are said to be
less ; than Germany's but more
than France's. The official esti
mate of Lloyd-George, British
'chancellor - of the exchequer, is
$42,500,000 a week.. Belgium,
Servia, Roumania, Greece and Hol
land are all borrowing -from Great
Britain. Italy has already .issued
a war loan ot $200,000,000, al
though she is not at war. The
Dutch- have . borrowed $11(T,000,
000 and Canada $100,000,000, with
a second loan of like amount an
nounced. . .
Putting all the figures, official
and unofficial, together, It Is a
practical certainty that, war bills
actually paid, during the past six
months averaged at least $1,000,
000,000 a month. It is safe to
say they are piling up" at a rate
of $48,000,000 a dayrbr $2,000,
000 an hour, day and night,
Sundays and holidays.
This is the cost in dollars, to be
paid by future generations. ,The
measureless human suffering and
bloodshed cannot be estimated In
figures. It is only on - the ma
terial side that losses can" beeven
approximately stated, and tthese
are staggering. , . " ,
President John C. Hibben of
Princeton University is opposed to
paid coaches in college sports. . He
says their elimination "would lib
erate intercollegiate sport front- the
abnormal incubus of a superim
posed system which tends to make
puppets of the players, limiting
spontaneity and free play of their
natural Initiative." At last the
trouble with " college sports has
been discovered. Everybody knew
something was wrong but the cause
could never be stated before.
SECRETARY LANE'S
CONSERVATION PLANS
From Collier's Weekly.
nArmc!!? .1 . . .
0WX' IKJUXMDZU UJCIU MIC tfc &VJVL 111 O. I i
pcoplo in the United States who
Their financial or personal Interests in
one way or another, directly or Indi
rectly, are affected adversely by It.
But conservation has come to stay.
It can be an unreasonable and unwise
conservation, or it can be a sane and
reasonable conservation. If might as
well be admitted that conservation as
now practiced is a serious detriment to
the development of the west, and has
led to the locking up of land, and to
other conditions which are utterly
without excuse. These conditions are!
oured by two bills In tho present con
gress which are fathered by the sec
retary of the interior. Franklin Lano.
One, the water power bill, permits pri
vate interests to get. possession of wa
ter power sites for 60 years on given
terms;, the other, known as the western
development bill, unlocks the enormous
areas of land now tied up and permits
their exploitation on a leasing basis.
This latter bill sets aside a group of
archaio laws under which litigation
and illegal practices have thrived. If
these bills are passed, the tleup of
western development, which has ex
isted since the conservation idea first
took hold eight or nine years' ago, will
be released and the western states will
begin an era of long deferred pros
perity. Secretary Lane, personally, is
back of these bills. The people of the
whole country could not ask a better
O. K. than his. On the one hand. Sec
retary Lane has an intelligent and
sympathetic understanding of the new
Idea about the public resources; on
the other hand, he is a western man
with sympathies equally keen about
the need for western development.
Fifteen years ago it was universally
held that the most virtuous thing that
could be done with a piece of land
owned by the government was to get It
into the hands of a private owner as
rapidly as possible. This had been the
theory from the beginning. AH kinds
of devices and Inducements were used
to persuade settlers, prospectors, and
exploiters of every kind to take the
land off the government's hands. All
of a sudden, over night, so to speak,
the publio attitude changed. Oifford
Plnchot, Mr. Roosevelt, and a few oth
ers pointed out with a note of alarm
that under the old system the amount
of land owned by the federal govern
ment was rapidly dwindling, and also
that the natural resources In the way
of water power sites, timber, and the
like were passing Into the hands of
monopolies. With somewhat dazing
suddenness there was a complete re
versal of attitude. A man trying to
get a piece of land from the United
States government, instead of being
welcomed and aided and treated as a
patriot, was regarded at best as a pub
lic enemy at tho worst, as a swindler,
and. was thwarted In every way pos
sible. Because of this swift reversal
of attitude a good many painful things
happened to men who could not adjust
their minds as quickly as the govern
ment at Washington and tho public
generally did. A few such men have
not yet changed their minds. They
still think the old plana was best.
Ballinger was one of these men, and
when such a man happened to be, as
Ballinger was, in an official position,
able to affect the manner of disposing
of public lands, he became the storm
center of excited emotions, and un
pleasant things happened to him. We
are not sure but that some of these
things were, under the circumstances,
unnecessarily cruel. Obscure Individ
uals who were caught in the middle, so
to speak, of procuring a piece of land
were subjected' to unpardonable treat
ment. - If a man 'had begun to acquire
a piece of land under the old system
and the old atmosphere, and had not
completed his title before the change
came on, be was held up and tiarassed
In ways that might reasonably have
led to a publio rebellion If the men
affected had been compact and organ
ised. Public opinion la this nation has
overwhelmingly crystallised on tho
point that government owned land upon
which there are Important natural re
sources, like water power sites, shall
never again b alienated outright to
pri rat owners. ;
t
The one reasonable objection to the
two conservation bill now pending in
the senate im the theory that these pub
lic lands in the western statewhich
ere iow owned by tho federal govern
ment ought to be owned by the states.
Those who support this theory con
sider that It.: is an injustice for the
federal government to continue Indefi
nitely to town as mncb as a third of
the land, and a third of tho natural re
sources in the western states, depriv
ing the state -of the benefits of taxation
and other obvious advantages. This Is
a fair subject for debate. It is natural
enough for a state not to want a third
of its territory owned and regulated by
an absentee landlord who administers
Its affairs from Washington, 2000
miles away. If these public lands were
turned over to the western states to be
treated by them In their own way, they
would undoubtedly be handled on much
the same basis as is now proposed by
the federal government.
Letters From the People
(Communications cent to The Journal for
publication in tiOa department should be writ,
ten on only one side of the paper, should not
exceed 3O0 words In length and 'must be ac
companied by the name and address of the
sender. If the writer doea not desire to
tare the name published, he should so state.)
"Discussion Is the greatest of all reformers.
It rationalises CTerrthlng it touches. It robs
principles of all false sanctity and throws them
back on their reasonableness. If tbey bare
no reasonableness, it ruthlessly crushes them
out of existence rand ets up its own conclusions
In their stead." Woodrow Wilson.
The Home Tailor's Rights.
Portland. Feb. 6. To the Editor of
The Journal I wish to congratulate
The Journal upon its editorial, "Dyna
miting Portland," in Friday evening's
issue, setting forth a condition that
has existed In Portland for years,
namely many of our well-to-do. Influ
ential business men, members of our
leading organizations, who solicit
funds from our tailors and merchants
to carry on "work supposedly for i the
good of Oregon, persisting season after
season in purchasing their suits from
San Francisco and eastern tailors.
don't mean to be narrow minded in
this affair, aac regardless of my get
ting any of the $50,000 or more of tai
loring uusintss going out of Portland
each year, I tay with emphatic tones,
your editorial surely hit the matter
squarely on the head. Let every one
of the 200 or more gentlemen who each
year put chase four or five suits from
non-reaident tailors ask themselves
this question: "Is it right that I should
ignore our own tailors, who purchase
woolens from the same cloth houses
and employ equally as capable labor,
when I have made my money right
here in Portland and in many instances
have tailors paying me rent each
month." Let them think it "over.
If this matter could be adjusted we
would shortly find in Portland three or
four of our exclusive tailors employ
ing 25 or more men, each; wiiereas,
at -present, not over 15 men are .em
ployed by any first class tailor in
Portland.
HERBERT GREENLAND.
Merohant Tailor.
Opposing 8. B. No. 168 and
H. B. No. 448.
Portland, Or, Feb. 6. To the Editor
of The Journal Conspicuous on my
book shelves sits a complete copy of
Longf eJlow"s works, won for the best
essay, open to all, in one of our larger
colleglates. It is kept here in front
more for the lesson it teaches than for
its intrinsic value. It was indeed an
hour of happiness when I was pre
sented, before 600 assembled pupils
and parents, as the essayist of the
year. I could hardly wait for the vaca
tion period to end to obtain from the
headmaster my precious manuscript.
You can therefore well Imagine my
feelings when I at last found Mr. Lit
tle at home and received back my
"prize winner," still enclosed in' the
original wrappings, Mr. Little in
formed me he had. not opened it. as no
other essays had been submitted. Many
times since I have glanced at this out
burst of oratory, only to burn with
shame and wonder that so many half
baked ideas could be propagated In the
gray matter of a human being. I would
I could pass the lesson on to others,
particularly to our would be statesmen
and legislators.
At the present time we are endeavor
ing to build up a rural and farming
country, to fill up the thousands of
empty and unproducing acres of the
Willamette vairey, and other sections
of the Oregon country. Our commer
cial bodies ring with oratory, and
everywhere one hears of the "back to
the farm" movement. In a wet climate
with few roads, and Impassable roads
at that, with railroad rights of way
granted in many cases free, legislation
such as proposed in senate bill No.
168 by Senator Hawley and house bill
No. 448 by Wentworth, surely is far
ahead of . the times. Why should
farmers and owners of suburban acre
age who, in most cases, gave the right
of way free, be compelled to travel
miles around impassable roads to
reach the station all but abutting their
property. The time will come when
roads will lead to the different sta
tions, so that the use of the railroad
right of way will not be necessary;
but the closing of them today is Im
mature. .
The rural districts have enough to
contend with now lack of church life,
inefficiency of the schools, no social
life, limited financial credits and bank
ing facilities, few and Impassable
country and private roads, ad infini
tum. I hold, therefore, that now, while
we are all endeavoring to build pass
able roads and taxing ourselves to the
limit to pay for them, it is a mistaken
policy to place barriers in the way of
populating and occupying the waste
land of the state.
Your influence is urged to the end
that these bills may be laid over to
some future time, when the conditions
are more suitable for such advanced
legislation. MACDONALD POTTS.
Discussing Titles to Job.
Portland, Feb. 1. To the Editor of
The Journal-! notice a Mr. A J. Ham
ilton indorses Commissioner Daly's
policy In regard to giving work to
native wags earners. Why not make
it city wage earners as well? -. Would
it , not be a wise idea to enforce tho
laws the -eity already has? The city
charter states that any person, who op
plies for a position p the city, through
civil service, , must, be a resident of
the city. And in an old issue of a city
paper there was an article as follows:
"Got To Live Here. Perhaps some
city employes are In danger of their
Jobs because of the freak rule of the
civil service commission that all who
eak a living through serving the city
must live strictly within the city
limits. The commission has had rea
sons to doubt that some are-residents
and is conducting an Investigation."
One of the men . over whom - the
question had arisen lived in St. Johns
and worked in the Water department
There was nothing said about anyone
PERTINENT COMMENT
SMALL CHANGE
Most good talkers are poor quitters.
A' leader is a great man who knows
when to sideBtep.
Many a callow youth has been hard
hit by a soft glance.
A first class lawyer can break any
will excepting his wife's.
Better not try it on the dog unless
you are sure of your dog.
Most people are too polite to speak
the truth on all occasions.
Don't be in a hurry to accept a bald
head as an official badge of wisdom.
And one little taste of success
makes a man long for all he can swal
low. Many a man imagines f he's the
whole circus who hasn't the- ghost of
a show.
Occasionally a man makes a great
hit by doing the wrong thing at the
right time.
Tet none of the saloons ever went
out of business on account of New
Year's resolutions.
Somebody who knows nothing ubout
it says that the happiest day in :t
married man's life is the day before
the wedding.
If a man takes a woman's arm to
assist her over a cigarette paper that
someone has dropned on the sidewalk,
it is a sign they are not married.
It is sometimes the case that when
daughter marries, father has a chance
to see for himself whether two can
live as cheaply as one.
If a woman can't think of some
thing bad to say about the rich neigh
bor who fails to call on her, she makes
it a rule to say nothing at all.
WILL THE WAR MAKE
By John M. Oskison.
There is no general agreernent that
the European war, by destroying tre
mendous stores of capital, and draining
millions of men from productive indus
try, will have the effect of making
capital dearer. Some experts who cite
precedent see quite another outcome.
Before I refer to their arguments,
let me point out onoe more the fact
that is undeniable: Just now, capital
is not cheap. Investments made with
discretion now will bring exceptional
rettirns.
Men who argue that the war will
be followed, not by an Increase in
the price of capital, but by a lowering
of interest rates, point for illustration
to the years between 1861 and 1873 In
the United States. They say that a
year after the first shot was fired in
our Civil war a period of constantly
increasing stimulation of industry and
commerce began; it lasted until eight
years arter the close of the war.
"During that interval," say a one
writer, "the Union Pacific and Central
Pacific railways were built, the At
working for the street cleaning depart
ment who lived in St. Johns and was
not a taxpayer or legal voter. There
are plenty of men living in the city
limits who are taxpayers tand need
work. Why not patronize home Indus
try? If we are to have civil service,
why not have it? F. W. CLARK.
.The Competitive Jitney.
Portland. Feb. 6. To the Editor of
The Journal- Since' when did the Port
land Railway, Light & Power company
take over our Btreets and laws to regu
late the same. If they have the
authority it must have been gained on
the quiet, as I haven't read anything
in The Journal about their being de
clared superior to our city "dads," ex
cept the time Mr. Daly tried to force
them to give us six rides for a quar
ter. They.no doubt will carry the Jit
ney service to a court that will satisfy
them
Now the Jitney bus has come to stay
so the street railway people and the
city officials might as well make up
their minds that the publio are tne
ones to say whether they want Jitneys
or not. If the public don't want them
they will not ride in them, and there
fore they will not be able to exist and
we won't be bothered with them, but
so far it is plainly visible that the
public welcomes competition in trans
portation as well as in other lines of
business, and the Jitney surely will
give the street car company a run for
its money and the public will be the
winner, as Twe will get good service
from both sides. There is enough busi
ness for two telephone companies, two
telegraph companies, two electric light
companies and many more double ana
triple corporations that are doing a
nice business for their stockholders, so
why can't the Jitney and the street car
people gather enough business to sup
port street car company stockholders,
who are mostly in New York, while
the Jitney will suport automobile own
ers and our local grocery men, auto re
pair men and many other local indus
tries. All the nickels the Jitney takes
from the street car company will be
well earned, as they can't make as
much per day as the street car com
pany can per day, in comparison of
size of vehicles.
The idea of trying to make the Jit
ney run on streets that "the street car
people do not want to run on is' all
bosh. The Jitney has as much right
on a car tracked street as any other
kind of wheeled apparatus, and the
public will see .that they get fair play
or we will have an election that will
open the eyes of the street car com
pany and make them listen to the
pleas of the public hereafter.
BELIEVER IN COMPETITION.
Chickens at. Large.
Milwaukie, Or., Feb. 6. To the Edi
tor of The Journal Is there any state
law (we are outside the city) which
would protect us from being overrun
by a neighbor's chickens. They will
not keep them at home, and it is an
old grievance. Others are interested
also. We will be thankful If you can
give, or direct us where to get, any
necessary Information. Please answer
in Tb Journal. A READER.
This question, referred to the office
of the? district attorney of Multnomah
county, elicits this information and
opinion: The statutes of Oregon con
tain no prohibition regarding the run
ning at large of chickens; hence the
remedy of one aggrieved would be
found in a civil action for damages,
or possibly in an action under the stat
ute against nuisances -
The Auditorium Question..
Portland,; Or., Feb. 6. To 'the Editor
of The Journal The cry is still loud
and the air is moist with the tears of
the needy and the unemployed in Port
land. And I now ask what has be
cosie of the $600,000 voted by the city
for an" auditorium? Cannot the su
preme court consider the wants of. the
hungry and needy? Why is it this
question is not settled? 'Why should
not this $600,000 be now expended for
the relief of the needy in this city
and for needy workmen? Why? , .
.J..B, DILLEY. :
AND NEWS IN BRIEF
OREGON SIDELIGHTS
That man who wanted to ! trade
Ms mining location a week or so ago
for a cord of wood." says the Redmond
Spokesman, "has now changed his
"""u n woman t trade or sell at any
District Attornv flnvno 'nf Till. '
mook county has put the ban on card
playing and dice shaking in the coun
ty and has issued orders to the muni'
cipal officers of the various towns to
that effect. .'
The Baker Commercial club has de
cided; to make an effort to hold a coun
ty fair in Baker-nut fall, despite re
fusal of the county court to appro
priate S2000 for this purpose. A pub
lic subscription is relied upon to af
ford the needed funds.
Burns News: With this issue of the
News C. A. Byrd assumes full and
complete ownership and control. There
will be no change in policy. Just for
Harney county. Burns, Central Ore
gon and a full expeditious develop
ment of the resources that's all.
Although it has been but a short
time since the Elks of Klamath Falls
decided to float a $40,400 building
bond issue among the members: of the
lodge, there is very little of the issue
that is not taken, the Herald says,
and the sale of the rest is a certainty.
Grants Pass Courier: A. Aubery has
completed the two boats in which he
is to transport freight down the Rogue.
and, the mining machinery and sup-'
pnes Having arrived, he expects to
start on the first trip down with one
of the boats today. He will then re
turn with his crew of men and take
the second one down.
Vale Enterprise: Many districts in
Our arid regions under the stimulus
of irrigation will soon be feeding thou
sands of bushels of corn' to thousands
of hogs. The railroads will soon be
hauling our surplus to the coast rath
er than to Nebraska and our county
will fill the stockyards of- Portland
with prospective hams and bacon.
CAPITAL CHEAPER?
lantic cable became a commercial
agency, and despite the waste of the
Franco-Prussian war In 1870, Ameri
can and European prosperity was fol
lowed by advancing prices for land.
securities, and almost everything that
humanity had use for."
If the present orgy of capital de
struction in Europe is followed by a
period of greater activity in earning
and closer economy in spending fac
tories running double shift, and the.
nations practicing the same sort of
thrift as France practiced, after the
defeat of 1870 the experts say that
we may reasonably look for a devel
opment similar to that in the I United
States during and after the Civil war.
It is a logical view granted that
the European countries are left In a
condition to begin with hope and con
f idence to discharge the : tremendous
debts they owe and are adding' to.
If you mortgage your home and use
the money to go on a protracted spree
somewhat as the fighting nations
are doing now what would be your
financial experiences when you under
took to recover your home?
A FEW SMILES
It is nice to know In these days of
V. lst reputations that
y," 'Li i I oriental hospitality.
at any rate, i shows
no sign of decadence.
A correspondent has
come across the fol
lowing announcement
irv a tailor's shop .in
"W M t
Respectable ladles and aeOtlemen
may come here to have fits." j
Wilson Barrett, the. celebrated actor,
used to tell an amusing story against
himself. At a time when he had a lot
of workmen redeco
rating his private
residence, thinking to
give them a treat, he
asked if. after work
one evening, they
would like to have
seats to go and see
him play in "The
Lights o' London," at tne "Princess the
atre.. They said they didn't mtad if
they aid, and, being complimentary
tickets, all went on a Saturday night
w see meir employers performance.
At the end of the week Barret's eye
caugnt signt or this item against each
workman's name on the pay sheet
"Saturday night. . Four hours' . over
time at Princess theatre, $ shillings."
Rankin Beanbrough has i bought
nimseir a 5000. rac
ing car. , !-.''.
P h y 1 e But be
couldn't afford - one
worth half that.
Rankin ,T h a t's
why he bought It. He
wants someth'ng that
to keep , away from the collectors.
Puck. j
The Ragtime f Muse
Surface Effect.
A vision all in blue she sits
And smiles demurely while she knits.
Her pose Is full of grace. I
I love to watch her fingers whits
As they direct her needles-bright,
I love to watch her face. . i -
An artist would hot miss the chance
To paint that arch and winning glance.
That throat of classic line: i
She's most phenomenally tail
Her glowing cheeks, her snnny hair,
Her eyes so large and fine, i
I talked of many things today,!
Her one reply was, VI should say"-
To each remark I made." j i
To look at she has not a flaw,
She is the best I ever saw 1 4
But what, if she should fadet
She did not guess my wicked thought.
But ever at her task she wrought. 7
Contented quite to charm. -f .
Her surface Is all rose and snow, i
But when I think of what's below
I view her with alarm. ,
So Bus Monopoly, i ,
From the. New York World. .
The argument against the restric
tion of any bus route to the vehicles of
the present operating company; which
was made before the board of estimate
by counsel for the companies applying
for new motor bus franchises, is sound
and should receive the board's serious
consideration. . , : .
Why should any bus line have the
monopoly of a particular street or
avenue any more than a taxi cab line
or hack line? - Vehicular traffic of
this kind differs essentially from trol
ley car .traffic, as it requires no tracks.
It is an elastic traffic In the sense
that it "utilizes any part of the street
and adds only incidentally to the con
gestion. - j
Whatever the conditions exacted
from ther petitioning companies, they
should not inelude a purely arbitrary
limitation of their routes. - The publio
has shown its liking tor bus transpor
tation by its increased patronag of the
existing line at a double fare. It would
welcome other lines, but not it the
cost of a transit monopoly. .
r
TV Jg
"IH CAaLT DATS"
By Fred Locklsy. Special Stiff Writer of
. The Journal.
- tvaiHuii in. cnming pi ivupei l, itiano,
is visiting his son-in-law, N. U. Car
penter, president of the Citizens bank
here in Portland. Mr. Shilling is one
of the old-time westerners and spent
his young manhood on the frontier.. He
was born on April 24, 1840, in Stark
county, Ohio. 'Although President
McKlnley and myself were born in the.,
same county," said Mr. Shilling, "I
never saw him until I met him at
Winchester. lie was an officer with
the Ohio troops." I was a private in
Company M of the First Michigan cav
alry. I was born in Ohio but I moved
to Michigan when I was 12 years old.
I enlisted in the Civil war in August,
1861, when T was 21 years old. Our
colonel, T. F. Broadhead, was a West
Pointer, and our brigade commander
Was General George A. Custer. Our
brigade consisted of four regiments of
Michigan cavalry. Later on other reg
iments were added to the brigade. I
was taken prisoner at Gettysburg, so
I was out of the fight for a while.
When the army was mustered out at
the end of the Civil war the Michigan
brigade was retained in the service
and was sent to Fort Leavenworth and
from there into the Indian country to
fight Indians. Our brigade was broken
up, some of the troops being sent to
Fort Collins In Colorado, some to"
Fort Brtdger and the rest to, Fort
Douglas at Salt Lake City. After par
ticipating in two or three Indian
skirmishes I was mustered out in No-'"
vember, 1865. . i
"During the Oivil war I learn r-d
telegraphy. The 'spring of. 1866 found
me telegraph operator on the overland
stage line at Central City, Colo. From '
there I was sent to take charge of a
stage station at Cooper Creek, Wyo.
In '67 I was promoted, being sent tt ,
Salt Lake. City and from there I was
sent to Virginia City, Mont. I helped
install the telegraph line from Virginia.
City to Helena. In those days there
was no Butte, Mont. In fact, about the
only towns of any consequence in Mon
tana in the sixties were Virginia City,
Helena and Bannock." The fall of
1867 fpund me In Helena ss telegraph
operator. While there I became ac
quainted with a young miner, v. A.
Clark, who later became a millionaire
mine owner and senator from Montana.
I also met Sam Houser .nd many
other young men later destined to be
come famous In Montana history.
From Helena I went to Ruddy station,
in Idaho, and from there to Bear River
station in Utah.
"When the Union racifio was about
to be completed,, I was detailed to
help . build the telegraph lino from
Ogden to Promontory to meet the line
from the west arid have It rady for
the driving of the golden spike. Gov
ernor Stanford drove the golden spike
with a stiver hammer. One end of
the telegraph wire was attached to the
spike and the other end to the hammery
so that when Governor .Stanford struck t
the spike the circuit was closed and
the announcement was mode to the
world that the rails had been Joined,
the gap closed and there was a trans
continental railroad. W. E. Fredericks
was the Western Union operator who .
had charge of the ' telegraph wire at
the driving of the golden spike.
"Upon the completion of the Union
Pacific I was placed In chargo of the
Western Union office at Ogdin. In "
those days, a ten-word eommerrlnl
message to any of the principle ext
ern 'Stations cost $2.50. From Ogflen
I went to Echo, where I took charse
of the telegraph office and from Echo
I went to Malad. At Malad I ran -across
a young teamster named 'Lee
Mantle,. who was driving a bull team
for B. V. White of the firm of White
& Stump. He was hauling salt from
the salt works at the Salt Springs In
eastern Idaho to -the mines in Mon
tana. The salt was used for reducing
are. During the winter the teamsters
were laid off and Lee Mantle -with hi
mother, brother and sister wintered i,
at Malad. Inrthose days there was t
good deal of trouble about keeping the
wires up,,o I suggested to Lee Mun
tle that if he would keep the line re
paired I would teach. him to be a tele
graph operator so he could get a Job
on the Western Union in the spring.
Lee's brother, Ephralm Mantle, was
murdered while repairing the telegraph
line. H$ also had a brother, Joe, and f,
a sinter who married a man named M.
A. Berger. B. F. White,' who later be
came governor of, Montana, was very
much aggrieved when he found I was
teaching Lee Mantle to become a tela'
graph operator. He said that Mantle
was one of his best bull whackers and
he didn't like the Idea of rny stealing
him. Next spring Lee Mantle was. ap
pointed operator it Pleasant Valley,
Idaho, near the Montana line. As you
undoubtedly know, Mr. Mantle in 1881
founded a newspaper called the Butte
Intermountaln, st Butte, Montana, lie
became well to do from mining opera
tions at Butte and -later was elected
United States senator from Montana.
He spends his time now between Butt
and Los Angeles.
"While I was operator and stage
agent at Black Rock in Portheuf can- -yon
in Idaho, not. far from where the
town of Pocatello "was afterwards
built, the stage which ran from Cor
rtnne, Utah, to Helena, Montana, was
held up. In the body of the stage
there were a number of army officers ,
on their way to Fort Shaw and on the
seat with the driver was Joe Fink ham,
the United States marshal for Idaho.
Six miles east of my station two roal
agents tried to hold the stage up. They
shot the driver through the body. Pink- i
ham took the lines, plied the whip, and i
drove on. The stage driver died In t
my bed shortly after reaching my sta
tion." . ' -
Dangers of tho Spade.
Front the Manchester Guardian.
The late British general. Sir William
Butler, in a military magazine nearly
40 years ago, spoke his mind about
the use of trenches in time of war:
"The spade may be nearly as danger
ous to the army that uses it as to the
one that neglects it. If the Infantry
soldier gets thoroughly convinced that
In the sheltered trench lies Ms hopes
of safety, he will doubtless be a hard
man to drive out of those trenches.
But it may also be a difficult matter
to drive him on from them to the
front. Digging may save a battle from
being lost but it has never won a de
cisive victory, and it probably never
will." . -
The Sunday Journal
Tbt Great Home Newspaper,
consists, of
Four new sections replete with
' .- , illustrated 'features.
Illaitrated magazine of quality.
Woman's pages 'of rare merit.
Pictorial news supplement.
Superb comic section.
5 Cents the Copy