The Oregon daily journal., April 21, 1915, Page 4, Image 4

THE OREGON DAILY JOURNAL, PORTLAND; WEDNESDAY EVENING, APRIL 21, 1915.
THE JOURNAL
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88-
In all -the affairs of life let
it be your great care not to
hurt your mind, or offend
your judgment. And this rule,
If observed careful y In all
your deportment, 'Will be a
mighty security to you In your
undertakings. Kpictetus.
S3-
PORTLAND'S FIRE LOSS
F
ORTLAND is discussing local
fires.
Fire Marshal Stevens de-
. dared in a public address re-
l . cently that over 50 per cent of the
I fires in Portland are of incendiary
I origin. He Baid that Portland's loss
by fires last year totaled $1,500,-
000, when normally the amount
should not have exceeded $100,000.
t The loss was $6 for each man,
; womitn and child in the city.
Sixteen lives wsre sacrificed.
J Some were destroyed in fire-trap
lodging houses. Three children
. lost their lives as a result of flay-
ing with matches.
The facts make fires a legitimate
theme for local discussion. With
I property burned up at the rate of
$S per capita , in Portland against
the 19 cents per capita loss in Ger-
many, it is time for men's thoughts
"to turn in search of the cause.
When fifty per cent of Portland's
fires are declared by the city fire
' marshal to be incendiary, it is time
p fcr the city commission to unde"r-
take to find "a remedy.
' It is largely better governmental
J regulation that reduces the fire loss
I in Europe to about one-tenth the
proportionate average loss in the
t United States. Another part of, the
I fearful loss in this country is
s caused by the recklessness with
I which otherwise perfectly sane per-
sons throw away lighted matches
and half burned stumps of still
f smoldering cigars and cigarettes.
' Some figure that because insur-
ance is collected on burned prop-
erty that there is no loss. On the
t contrary every loss is so much
i wealth actually obliterated. It Is
property absolutely annihilated, for
the Insurance companies not, only
' collect from the public the whole
amount of the loss but in addition
'v collect good round profits for the
risk and the service.
Indeed, were there less liberality
" In insurance, there would be fewer
fires. If stocks of goods, for in
stance, were assessed on a basis of
i the amount of insurance carried on
f them, there would be fewer fires,'
j. because their owners would be less
reckless and their employes would
be required to be less reckless In
the disposition of inflammables;
i about the premises.
PARDIA TRXPUNCTATA
A'
CCORDING to rose experts the
only way to get rid of the
Pardia Tripunctata is to
crush it between the fingers.
You may spray the rose hushes lf
you will, but this member of the
tortricidae family will cling to it
still. ;
It is not a very pleasant task to
hunt it out in its concealed place
In the bud and crush its life out,
but the use of rubber gloves will
render It less disagreeable. It Is
heroic treatment but it must be re-
sorted to if the roses are to be pre"
served. j
If your rose leaves have holes
eaten in them or are bound to-j
gether by a web you have only to
look to find Pardia Tripunctata at
work: Nothing short of murder
will stop him. i
THE INDEPENDENTS
I
NDEPENDENT newspapers in
New York state are warning
voters against bossism in both
Republican and Democratic part
ties. Party organs have joined in
the protest against continuing 'the
state a prey to partisan politicians.
The Christian Science Monitor says
there Is ground for hope in this ap
peal to Independents: -
The balance of power Jn the coming
' presidential campaign will be in the
- votes of - persons who have no sym
pathy with bossism, or the spoils the4
ory of public Office, or with state aid
to favored Interests. They may be will
ing to see a halt In constructive social
legislation. While the nation adjusts.
- Itself to conditions caused by the war.
But they Will not favor repeal of laws
based on higher standards of con
' duct of business, on effective pro
: tection of women and children that
labor, and on stricter guardianship of
publlo rights in the public domain, j
As the Monitor says, "Revolu
tion do not go backward." The
situation in New York, as reflected
by both independent and partisan
. newspapers, proves It. Protests
"against Republican bossism are not
-Jan: .". Indorsement of Tammanyismi
Republican newspapers arealmost
as critical as Democratic, but they
'do not ask a change from one to
the - other historic party. They
say It is the duty of the s party in
; power to ' represent the people and
not.; the politicians, and they de
clare It the duty of Independents
to insist upon genuinely represents-' administered by one elected by a
tive goyerEment. ; mob intent on death." , - ,
Hope in the future Is possible be-: , Mean while, 7 what of ; the state
fcause ol the Independent voter. As' ment of the trial' judge when he
President Wilaou said In his Jack-. said : - k "Although J I presided daily
son day speech no party should be at the trial, lf don't know. even, now
conunuea in power unless it merit
the Independent rotec's support.
... AT? THE CITY HALL
S
ALEJM is preparing to vote a
third time on commission gov
ernment. '" On two former oc
casions,' commission .charters
have been rejected by Salem voters.
In Portland, there has been, a
new public: atmosphere since the
Installation of commission govern
ment. Everybody has' a new. confi
dence in public administration.
Everybody knows what is going on
at the city hall, .and everybody
knows who's who and what's what.
Up to the present, there has notj
been one breath of political thimble
rigging; No little political bosslets
hang around the corridors of the
city ball and parcel vout jobs. Theyj
don't even try to mix politics with
public business.
Nor has there been the slightest
suspicion of anything crooked In
city affairs. Nobody suspects the
honesty or Intentions of the five
men who conduct the cify govern
ment. There never was in any
municipal government a more gen
eral air of cleanliness and con
science. '
These conditions alone should be,
and doubtless are, a source of
great pride to all Portlanders.
They,; alone, are a splendid com
pensation for the trouble and pains
of preparing a charter and passing
under the new form of government.
They, alone, are a sufficient reform
to make the change a most wel
come transition. It is a status of
great value in the clean repute it
gives government at home and in
the example it sets for clean gov
ernment elsewhere.
It is an especially desirable
status in tha fact that it gives the
young people who are coming on
the thought that government is not
hopeless and purity in public af
fairs not an irridescent dream.
A SILENT WITNESS
N
EW YORK has erected a monu
ment to Isador Straus and I
his wife, who lost their lives
in the Titanic, disaster. It
was unveiled last week, and one of
the New York papers says:
We do not know of any public raon- j
ument in this city more worthy of i
mis generauun oc liiuro inspiring .
nrnhlinfr t r ftiturA nnea than thia f
will be.
"Worthy of this generation and
ennobling to future ones" is a fit
ting description of such a monu
ment. It will stand as silent wit
ness of appreciation of real devo
tion to humankind, of lives lived
and snuffed out while thinking of
others.' Mr. Straus was a philan
thropist of "the human type. He
was a business man, but he was
never too busy to think of and to
work for human welfare.
When the Titanic was sinking
he calmly aided women and chil
dren to' find places in the lifeboats,
accepting certain death for himself
unquestionably. And when the
final choice had to be made Mrs.
Straus decided that death should
not part them. Isador . and Ida
Straus were last seen, standing to
gether, hand in hand, waiting for
the rising waters to engulf them.
There was no hysteria, only calm
resignation.
New York honors the memory
of Mr. and Mrs. Straus because
they lived outside themselves.
Their lives formed a fitting set
ting for their death. It is such
people who furnish the world with
its greatest inspiration.
THE FRANK CASE
T
HE United States Sum-eme
.Court has refused to interfere
with the sentence of death
Imposed upon Leo M. Frank.
Its; decision is that the Georgia
Supreme Court's ruling is final,
that all forms of law were complied
with and that federal authority
cannot be invoked against a state
tribunal in this case.
Justices Holmes nd Hughes dis
sented. They gave little heed to
the contention that Frank's ab
sence from court when the Jury's
verdict was rendered was a viola
tion of his constitutional rights.
But on the question of the trial
cotirt having lost jurisdiction be
cause of "mob domination" Jus
tice Holmes went to the root of the
matter.
Frank was not in court when the
verdict was rendered because o
fear that an acquittal would"esuIt
in a lynching. The people had
been worked into a frenzy against
him. There is reason to believe
that the Jury was influenced by
public sentiment, that the verdict
was as much the result of public
clamor as' of testimony submitted
at the trial.
Frank never should have been
tried in Atlanta. He should have
had a .change of venue to some
other Georgia city where sentiment
was neutral. But this was not
done, and now the United States
Supreme court says the Georgia
court was right In refusing to take
cognizance of facts other than as
they appear in the record. It may
be good law, but many people not
learned in the law will; think that
Justice Holmes had a higher con
ception of justice than the majority
court. ,.'.-; :
: ; He said it was the' duty of the
federal court to declare lynch law
as little valid "when practiced by
a regularly drawn jury as when
or
guilty!'.'-
HUNTING i EASY MONEY
RECENT suit Jn Multnomah
conty was for damages total
ing $159,381.
' - It was brought against a
railroad company by a young
woman. As ground for action, she
alleged certain injuries , sustained
in a fall at Union, Oregon. When
only three of her witnesses had
been examined, the suit was dis
missed on motion of her attorneys.
Yet the original demand was
for '$159,381. The fact that such'
heavy damages were asked and
that the claim was voluntarily
abandoned before 'the suit had
fairly advanced to a hearing Is a
clear indication of the unfair char
acter of the proceeding;
The number of these flimsy
suits is very great. They are
brought on the slightest pretext
and On almost no pretext at all.
Mostly, they are an effort to get
easy money. They are easy money
for the plaintiffs and easy money
for the lawyers.
The reference here, of course, Is
to the unjustifiable suits, those
without reason and without sub
stantial grounds. Many suits for
damages are legitimate and the
damages deserved. Often the
maimed and marred victims of acci
dent get less than they deserve,
and often nothing at all.
But the shoe-string suits, brought
because there is a remote chance
that a " jury will vote damages
against a "soulless" corporation
are a buccaneer business. They
rely on popular prejudice against!
corporations for a verdict. In
short, it is , always, in the shoe
string suits, an attempt to capital
ize human prejudices against rail
roads and kindred activities into
easy-money dividends, and in the
main it is the lawyers who are re
sponsible. The Journal holds no brief for
railroads. It knows that the roads
do many things they ought not
to do.
But they are entitled to justice.
They ought not to be preyed upon.
Particularly, they should not be
preyed upon when the process is
teaching people to make Immoral
anfi miinst demands, and rmildlrie
nn
an industry in flimsy damage
proceedings that is corruptng in
its influences.
Lawyers should discourage dam
age suits in which there are no
reasonable grounds for action.
They owe that much to a profes
sion that in its true sphere is one
of the honorable callings of society.
ONLY DETAIL LACKING
S
ENATOR BORAH of Idaho an
nounces that he will not be
a candidate for the Repub
lican nomination for president
in 1916.
Commenting on the gossip con-
necting Borah with the presiden-
tial nomination the New York Eve
ning Post says it has been discov
ered that the senator from Idaho
resembles Lincoln not physically
but . mentally, morally and geo
graphically. He hails from a re
gion which has many points in
common with the Illinois of the
later fifties and from a capital
which bears about the same rela
tion to the frontier that Spring
field bore when Lincoln made it
famous.
If it were a mere physfl re
semblance, though, he would stand
no chance whatever. There has
been a long list of men who out
wardly recalled the martyred presi
dent, but none of them" ever
reached the White House. Not
ably among them was the late Sen
ator Cullom of Illinois.
The Evening Post suggests that
the only detail lacking to make a
nomination certain is evidently for
uBorah to have a joint debate with
some Democrat who looks like
Douglas.
A SUGGESTION
c
OUNTY COMMISSIONER HOL-
MAN calls attention to a sub
ject that is entitled to serious
consideration. It Is the des
ecration of nature along the Colum
bia Highway and other beauty
spots which people frequent. Ferns
are pulled up by the roots, shrub
bery destroyed and trees stripped
of their blossoms and foliage. It
is all the work of "man, false
man, smiling, destructive man."
If, no checto is placed upon It it
will only be a short time until
the " underbrush along the world's
greatest highway is gone and the
ground as barren as a California
hillside. .
A great deal of it is the result
of thoughtlessness and the natural
destructive instinct of humanity. "
It ought not be necessary to
provide police protection to curb
the practice, but. this is probably
what will have to be done unless
public sentiment frowns upon "the
destruction that wasteth at noon
day." ) . .
The last will and testament of the
late William R. Nelson, proprietor of
the Kansas City Star, is ill keeping
with the principles that controlled
his ; life. It is provided that bis
large estate shall be kept intact
for a fund to be used for the pub
lic benefit after the family shall
have enjoyed the income from It,
It is a hopeful sign for- the future
that rich men are realizing that
wnemer rani w , innocent
their; wealth came from the .public
and - that they are, under obligation
to give something back. ' , ; f
Governor Withycombe has des
ignated theweek of May, 4 to. 11
as clean-up and paint-up week. It
is a plan backed by the new Port
land Chamber of Commerce to put
Oregon in her best robes. It de
serves universal and enthusiastic
cooperation. .! . '
Slowly but .surely, the uncof
fined victims of the F-4 are being
brought with their house of trag
edy from the bottom of the sea.
Before long, some of the long
awaited secrets of the disaster will
be revealed.
ABSENTEE
LANDLORDISM
I. H. DILLABD IN THE PUBLIC
GOOI story is told of Charles A.
A Dana giving Instructions to a
young reporter. "Young man,"
said the great editor, "if you see a
dog running down Broadway at -top
speed with a tin can tied to his tail,
and everyody laughing at the 'sight,
that is not worth reporting. But if
you see a dog with a tin cart at
tached to his tall walking leisurely
downi Broadway, with nobody paying
attention to him, that is the stuff
for a good story." That the dsr
should run at full speed vhen he has
such I an attachment is. the common
thing'. Perhaps it is because absentee
landlordism is such a common thing
that newspapers pay so little atten
tion to the subject.
Whatever the reason, Ihe papers
paid very little attention to a re
markable committee report which was
made at the meetii-g of governors
held in Madison, Wisconsin, on No-ve-nber
10. This report of the com
mittee on rural credits,) of which
Governor Emmet O'Neal of Alabama,
was chairman, contained the follow
ing sentence:' "Absentee landlordism
is annually becoming more and more
a - menace to our agricultural prog
ress and gradually sapping the foun
dations of . rural ' prosperity." The
report went on to say that there has
been an alarming increase of tenant
farmers during the last decade of 15.3
per cent. .
Now when we consider the impor
tance that is attached to the question
of rural betterment, when we consider
how much has been said in recent
years about the unfortunate trend
from country to citiea, when vre con
sider that this whole problem was
considered so vital that we had a
few years ago a national commission
on country life, is it-not surprising,
in spite of the Dana story, that so
little attention has been given to this
report that was made by governors of
states to governors of states?
"A few years ago 1 drove in a bugy
about a dozen miles through a county
in Governor O'Neal's state, and was
informed that 1 had seen only three
people's land, and that these three
people lived in cities. It is so in
other states. I am somewhat familiar
with conditions In Louisiana, and was
about to make a statement In regard
to that state which might sound
rash. But I wish some investigating
commission would find out and tell
how much of Louisiana Is owned on
Prytania street in New Orleans. I
will venture to make this assertion,
and run the risk of rashness, that
Ireland In her worst days never suf
fered from absentee landlordism more
than the southern states are suffering
today. I do not know so much about
the east and west, and I am not writ
ing from statistics, but from personal
observation. I know that the regen
eration of the rural life of the south,
in any healthy way, 'depends - upon
taking measures which will check
thi growth of this fundamental j evil
of absentee landlordism. The farm
ing lands of the south have Increased
enormously in value and will con
tinue to Increase. The assessments
have by no means -kept pace with the
increased value. Owners and Investors
know these facts. Hence the results
which Governor O'Neal and his com
mittee deplore.
Let us hope that more publicity
will In time be given to this report
Why not? Do we not all profess
to be concerned for the improvement
of country life? Have we not heard
the repeated cries of "Back to the
land?" Why not go into details a little
more fully and ask about the re
muneration for the toil" and the hold
ership of the soil? When Charles
Lamb's physician advised him to walk
a mile on an empty stomach. Lamb
said. Whose? When a man is tilling
the soil It is a quite important ques
tion. Whose?
What Right to fcomplaln?
From the American Lumberman.
We hear in this country of ours com
plaint of business depression, of the
high cost of living, of disappointment
and loss in business enterprise. We
hear the rich bemoaning the "loss" ef
profits they had hoped to make, and
the poor, with more reason, lamenting
an income inadequate to their needs or
desires. : . ,
Hut what right have we to complain?
We bemoan the effects of the war
on .our comfort and our 'ambitions. Sit
ting i safe, far away from the awful
realities (of the war, we hold up our
hands InTiorror; but perhaps are more
really concerned with our own disap
pointments and inconveniences.
But what right have we to - com
plain? Some of our plans for business or
pleasure we have had to abandon.
Some things we cannot make and sell
In the quantities we would like. ,
But what right have we to com
plain? Look to Europe for a moment and
consider. ; - i
Ten million "men turned from pro
duction to destruction f . A mil! ion killed
outright and" other millions doomed to
be cripples for life! Three hundred
and fifty million people living directly
under the horrible shadow of war! . A
hundred thousand square miles; of the
fairest-country in the world absolutely
devastated, with its hamlets, villages,
cities, factories, churches, schools, mu
seumsthe stored wealth of civiliza
tion destroyed; the land unculti
vated and the works of men and their
hopes swallowed by the Dragon! !
By what right do Americans com
plain? While In those stricken countries
land is uncultivated or is to be inade
quately cultivated by the labor of wo
men and children and old men rein
forcing the men who are left, we have
our undisturbed agriculture, promising
bountiful harvests and absolutely as
suring all the people of the United
States of food. Millions starving
abroad and a surplus of food here. ,
While there factories are idle' or pro!,
duclng for the support of war, rather
than for the needs of peaceful civilisa
tion, hre mines and forests,, forge and
factory contribute to the prdgress and
upbuilding of . our people.
There, women serving war instead
of the home, abandoning the duties of
motnerhood for the work that men
should perform; here sheltered, secure
and happy.
There children leaving the i schools
for the fields, with the light and prom
ise of childhood shut out. Here stead
ily going on to a broader and happier
ruture. -
And yet we complain we whose
lives are safe and untroubled In any
vital way! We of this America which
is not only to be blessed but already is
blessed by a kind Providence In peace
and all the essentials of prosperity.
Let our prayer be that we be not
punished for our ingratitude, our fool
ish complaints, our 'impatience and our
lack of faith, by being somehow drawn
into this fiery whirlwind that ie sweep
ing over so much of the earth today.
A, FEW SMILES
"I've taken the
most important
step toward building
a fashionable apart
ment house."
"Let the contract,
have you?"
"No. I've select
ed a fancy name
for the building."
Judge.
A popular sea captain had died and
his fellow townsmen thought he should
have a suitable headstone with an
epitaph. The four
leading men of the
hamlet were selected
to write a poem, and
it was decided that
each should write
one line. 3?he first
found it very simple
and wrote his easily.
The second looked at
the first line and puzzled a little, then
wrote his. The third examined the
other two Ifnes and at length wrote
his. The fourth contemplated the
three lines and sat and chewed his pen
cil a long time. At last he. wrote his
line. The townspeople wm consider
ably 'surprised when tlxiy. saw the
headstone. The verse feadj''
"Here lies the captain of the sea.
Here, lies htm, here lies he,
Hallelujah, halleluee.
A. B. C. D. K. F. O."
Harper's Magazine.
A young officer rather new to his
work was drilling a squad of re
cruits' and gave the word of command.
'Lift the right leg."
One of the soldiers
by mistake raised his
left leg, so that it
joined closely to the
right leg of his
neighbor.
"Good gracious,"
exclaimed the aston
ished officer, "that
fool has lifted both legs!'
The Ragtime Muse
Sure Sign.
I was perturbed by Europe's state;
There guns are booming early, late.
And armies marching up and down
And shells are wrecking tower and
town.
The war is such a horrid thing
I can't go there vacationing.
I was put out and worried, so
I sought for some place else io go;
I knew I dared not cross the sea.
Of floating mines thoughts came to
me;
So while I pondered In despair
Someone suggested: "There's a fair."
Then I was presently employed "
To find if folk the fair enjoyed.
To learn if it was new and nice
In short, if it was worth the price;
But with the answers friends supplied
I was not wholly satisfied.
I said to one man; "Prove It, please."
"I'll do it with the greatest ease."
He answered. "You need only, look
In each returned friend's pocketbook."
They all were broke. And so I know
The fair's a splendid place. to got
Beauty and 3oy.
From Collier's Weekly.
A part of our" regular reading 1 the
weekly Emporia Gazette. Every Is
sue starts off with a passage from the
Bible, and the second thing In the pa
per bef ora us is a two-stanza poem, of
which the second reads: .
Come home where Kansas lies under
the stars
Twinkling back beauty and joy;
Come and let homely love poultice your
scars,
Leave off your restless employ.
Come home where summer winds . bil
low the wheat.
Where golden tides cover the sands;
Come let your hearts' longing hasten
your feet
And home love unfetter your hands.
Come where the . sunflower eagerly
bends
A tawny frank face to the light;
So do our hearts seek the Joy of old
friends
Come home tonight.
, W. A. W.
It's a -fine thing for a man to think
this way about the place that Is his
home. Why aren't there more editors
who love their communities the way
Will White loves his? Why don"t
more young men take up this extreme
ly attractive career, the smalt town
editor? If experience u any guidt ,
some time during the next three or
four months no fewer than 60 or CO
young men will come into our office
with letters of Introduction from col
lege presidents, all of them , seeking
work on a city newspaper. If ach
of those young men would go to a
smaller city to become, not a reporter,
but a country newspaper man, and ac
quire an affection for his community,
he would do much better by himself
and by the universe. - (l
" ' Character.
From the Ohio State JournaL
We are so apt to omit the character
of a man in our estimates of his fit
ness for some important duty, and to
regard his skill or knowledge in some!
special line of work as the test of his
efficiency. This won't work. -Character
is the first thing to be consid
ered, Proficiency in any direction will
not supplant the actual need of , the
inmost truth of a man's life, his make
up, his personality, his trend, his tone,
his lmoulse. These constitute the '
PERTI N ENT COM M ENT
SHALL CHANGE
A man who is pound foolish mas not
be penny wise. - . ,; 1
. .
It's a good brand of fertilizer that
will raise a mortgage.
'
And many a corporation has -been
sunk by its floating debt. "
Some" people borrow , trouble-for the
purpose of giving It to others.
"Pleased to meet you" is one thing a
man never says to a sight draft.
.
The world seems all the brighter to
lovers when the gas is turned low.
-.! -
Perhaps pin money -Is so called be
cause most wives stick -their husband
for it.
Some people seem to think you
should pay rent for the place you
occupy in their thoughts. ,
.
Marriage is a lottery"'- in which a
blank is a man whose wife has to take
in washing to support him.
Isn't it disappointing to go to a
show and then find that it isn't as
bad as you were afraid it would be?
A prominent citizen is one who can
talk 20 seconds without having every
body else in the crowd interrupt him;
It' enough to disgust a hypocrite
when he discovers that the man he
has ben posing for is no better than
himself.
Some men would rather go bare
footed while waiting for a dead man's
shoes than fget out and earn sufficient
money to Buy a new pair.
'
In order to encourage him to go
ahead and buy the license, why don't
you tell him that none of your people
lived to be more than a hundred?
A SUBMARINE WIRELESS
Cleveland ?Moffett in. American Maga
j zine.
In one corner of the factory. In a
fenced-off space, we came to the new
born oscillator, a smallish metal affair
no bigger than a sewing-machine, with
many copper parts for the electrical
connections and . a drumhead of solid
steel. 22 Inches In diameter and five
eights of an inch thick, that vibrates
astonishingly under the electric current
and gives forth a sound of terrifying
loudness. ' ' '
"Would you like to hear It?" asked
the professor. Then, turning to an as
sistant, "Are you ready?" -
He switched on a buzzing generator,
adjusted a rheostat, pressed a black
key, whereupon "Whoo-oop!" the thing
barked at us suddenly like an angry
calliope, and. the tone persisted as long
as the key was held down. A ishaft
of the rheostat handle brought a cur
rent of greater frequency and the tone
rose to a piercing shriek. Another turn
and the shriek "Was deafening. ", Louder
and shriller screamed the quivering
drumhead as the scientist manipulated
the rheostat handle in the manner of
a motorman speeding up his trolley
car. The whole factory resounded. I
covered rfiy ears'and waved for mercy.
"But it will be unendurable on a
ship, a thing like that, sounding all the
time," I said.
The inventor shook his head. "When
you hear the oscillator sounding on a
vessel you will scarcely notice it. Here
we- are right at the source of sound,
but on a ship the oscillator is - deep
down in the hold and is submerged
in water. You will see."
Professor Fessenden then showed me
a gray steel tank like a big bathtub,
with ends made of steel plates, such
as are used In battleships. Experiments
have been made with this tank filled
with water and the oscillator- welded
to one end, so that the vibrations pass
through the liquid.
"When we sound the oscillator in
this way," he said, "the water in the
tank is thrown into a state of extra
ordinary agitation, so much so that if
you dipped your hand in during the ex
periment it would be hurled out vio
lently and painfully. I scarcely know
whether this shock Is physical or elec
trical. It Is due tojthe fact that under
the rapid and powerful Impact' of the
vibrating end-plate the mass of liquid
is literally squeezed together, about
a thousandth of an Inch for each
vibration, and then torn apart. One
thousandth of an inch is an enormous
amount when 'you reflect that water
Is practically incompressible. It is
almost as if the atomic structure of
REBUILDING RAILROAD FROM EARNINGS
By John M. Oskison.
"Since 1901," said a recent report,
"the Erie has expended for additions
and betterments more than $100,000,
000, or over 60 per cent, in excess of
the average total annual Income of the
company for the last three years.
This road, the notable prey of
stock market jugglers of the last
generation, is now an oui
tracked along Its whole length from
Chicago to New York; Its grades are
low; and Its equipment ls being
brought to a point where as a freight
carrier It can compete with the best
Erie stock, meanwhile, has paid.
ho dividends. For years the roaas
owners have receivea noimns.
road's credit has been shaky and
. mnnav ho been borrowea.
nine i .
the management, after pay Ing the in-
terest on its oquu uc-, -
. - . -rw construction
votea - of. work
that most roads pay for by borrowing
"ThTreport.on the ErieT have men-
tIO"oefiy8aaSpractlcal railroad man
can appreciate fully the. magnitude of
?his improvement work, whlcn .
eiven the Erie for long distances as
fine a roadbed and track facil ties as
are enjoyed by any railroad in ythe-
character of a man something far
above his special qualifications.
In fact, a man may be aVperson of
no character at all and at the same
time be proficient In whatever duty is
assigned him: but his character goes
with - his work and in the end will
show exactly what it Is. ' In the final
analysis a man's, work will not rise
above his character.- Elect a man to
office who Is an able and skillful man,
but whose character is below par, and
the whole community will feel the de
pression of his character, and that de
pression will last for years. And bo
everywhere. In business. In school, "in
church, in politics, the first thing to
consider in the selection of a man for
duty. Is his character, his personality.
... i i i i '
Strictly Cash Hasis.
; '' v' - From Judge.
Shortly after the reconstruction
period began, an old southern planter
met one of his negroes whom he had
not seen since the latter's liberation.
"Well, well!" said the planter. "What
are you doing now. Uncle Josh?"
"I's a-preachin'."
"What! You preaching V '
"Yessah, marster, I'se a-preachin'."
"Well, well! Do you use notes?"
!"Nos8uh. At the fust I use notes,
but now I de-mands de cash.'
AN D NEWS IN BRI EF
OREGON SIDELIGHTS
The Weston Leader- is among those
boosting for good roads by the Multno
mah county method. This issue in
Umatilla" bounty is in the paramount
class. j j -
. I
"Building operations of "the past 10
months,"-1 says the Eugene Register,
"totaled toearUr a half million dollars.
Come what may. Eugene goes right on
growing." j ,
The Baker Democrat's North Powder
correspondent reports the bringing in
of the nineteenth flowing well within
the corporate limits .of the town. Ev
ery attempt has been a success.
v, . : - ,r '
Molalla iFIoneer: Assessor Jack was
in Molalla Monday checking up the
real estate assessments Inside the cor
porate limits. He stated that the bus
iness lots; were not assessed anywhere
near that! of other places with prop
erty of similar values. The rapid
trrowth of the town and the new con
ditions made it necessary that the
matter be gone over carefully.
' - I ' -
Ashland Tidings: The ladies In
charge ofi the city beautiful plans are
busy all of the time and effects are
beRinningi to show. Some big improve
ments are under way on the motor
depot grounds. The work which the
ladies have set out to do cannot be
accomplished in a few weeks, but will
take a year before really big changes
are apparent and still longer before
the plans tare carried out..
l I "
Continuing upon the topic of south
ern Oregon's mineral resources. the
Grants lss Courier says: VI f word
should be brought down from the
north that discoveries had been made
of gold and of copper as rich as some
of the discoveries in southern Oregon,
or of deposits of coal such a those
found here, there would be crowded
ships fori Alankan porta for days to
come. Here these thingiare taken an
a matter of fact, and Create hardly a
ripple of excitement"
the water ; had been twisted , or .dis
torted." i
It is simply a matter 4 making ih
oscillatorf toot out dots and dashes
according to the code. Now you see
the importance of these oscillators in
naval warfare, for . a battleship
equipped ;i with such instruments can
talk to its own submarines while they
are ' miles away and submerged, and
can actually direct their movements
against ah enemy's vessels,
The submarines need not come, up
until just before launching their tor
pedoes, say at a distance of a thou
sand yard a from the vessel they wish
to attack! i Then they will only show
their periscopes for a few seconds
while they make final observations
The professor went Into another
room," and I recited "Mary had a little
lamb" to lithe oscillator and then count
ed slowl ' up to nine. Whereupon I
heard the inventor's voice issuing dis
tinctly from the disk of steel and re
peating word for word what 1 had
said., ' Standing in the next room he
had heard my. remarks to the steel
diaphragm through a telephone con
nectlon, and had spoken back to me by
this telephone. In other words, the
minute vibrations of my voice and of
his voice had been sufficient to set
that thitk metal plate quivering so
that aUtllble words were transmitted
through It in either direction.
j '
Not less startling In its bearing on
the present war is the theory advanced
conyijMrigly by!the Submarine Signal
compaiVy that 'the German raid on the
east co??t of England in December
could necr have taken place lf-Brltinh
dreadnoughts and superdrcadnoughts
had been equipped with listening
oscillators. It is generally believed
that I thi British i naval authorities,
fearing the destruction of their proud
est and rhost powerful ships, withdrew
these from the triple blockading line?
that had previously guarded closely
the North sea waters off Helgoland
and the I German naval base at Kiel.
This gave swift cruisers of the Ger
man fleet their chance to steam
through (the weakened and attenuated
barrier and come out Into the North
sea, and! they took the chance.
Hssd the British dreadnoughts felt
themselves safe aKalnst submarine, as
tbey would have been safe with elec
trical ears to warn thenii. they would
never have left their original positions;
thev would have maintainea an im
penetrable blockade outside of Kiel,
and the) enemy's ships would "never
have broken throuKh this blockade and
shelled Scarborough. '
world. Prosecuted intelligently and
persistently for more tnan a aoien
years past. It has tried the patlenoe
of the preferred stockholders, who
have gorfe without dividends roost of
the time.''
H is reasonable to suppose that
when this reconstructed j wreck -of a
road does begin to pay dividends on
its stock i they will be earned.
What the Erie has been doing is the
sort of job that a few j other roads
have already tackled, and which more
will have to tackle. There has been
much disappointment over returns on
borrowed; money spent -jon railroad
construction and improvement in the
last ten ears. As a consequence the
credit (borrowing apaiiiy ox
roads has suffered.
It has come to a point where the
Investor swho wants a fair assurance
of income can not afford to buy railroad-stocks;
and the railroad bonds
he puts his money In must be carefully
chosen, j . '
Holders of railroad stocks ought to
watch with care the growth of bended
indebtedness which is being piled up
against their roads. At a certain
point they are sure to stop paying
dividendsi and adopt the Erie policy
of using earnings to pay for Improve
ments, j I j
fetters From the; People
I
. , ;
f Coniraunfratlons tout to Tb Journal for
PHbllfatioii iln this dep,rtnMnt nlxuild be writ
ten on iinlfi one sld- of tli pir, should not
exceed Kj:worl Ju length aud inunt l ac
companied ir tha -Mm and addrmta of b
render. If ;tti writer doe not. delrs to bave
the Dim pubuabed. bs abould so state.)
Dl'cnmdtn is the srestest ct all reformers.
It ratloniiiDtes eTerythina- it touches. It robs
principles t all fslee aefity sod throws them
hack ou their reasonableness, i If tber base
no reasonableness, it ruthlessly crosbes tueia
out of existence and sets up Its own conclusions
iu tbelr stead." W'-Odrow Wilson. .
I
-Aboard the Great Northern.' -Vancouver
Wash., April 19.-To the
Edi'tor of The Journal. Kindly let roe
know through The Journal What . was
the fare dn -the Great Northern steam
ship from her eastern -, port to San
Francisco! on her maiden trip.
j A SUBSCRIBER.
The charge depended Vpon the char
acter of stateroom, but the minimum
was 0.$ - - ; .,,'':.
Unfortunate Doubt:. ,
From the Milwaukee Journal.
One could express himself more
clearly about these, nice little spring
hats if he really, felt sure of the dif
ference between a casserole and a
ramekin.
afl
F?r:nv rnttMTRV
"IX tXRLT DAT!"
.By Tt4 tookley. Special Staff Writs f
' Ths Journal.
Recently while in Walla Walla I
took the elevator to the seventh floor
of the Baker-Boyer building to visit
x-trovernor Miles C. Moore. "How long;
have you ,4een in Walla Walla, gov
ernor?" I asked. "More than 60 years,"
repiieq Mr. Moore. He stepped to the'
window and said: "Right over the
la where I camped the first night 1
spent in Walla- Walla. At that time
there was a grove of fir trees there.
We started out in the fall of 180J
from Alder Gulch for Portland. We
missed our trail and got to Willi
Walla in place of I.ewiston. where we
had planned to take the boat for Port
land. At that time Walla Walla had
about 600 permanent residents and sev
eral hundred miners and jun kers w.o
wintered here and helped make the
town a very lively place. We struck
tewn about dusk, and while tha others
took care of the horoes, 1 went down-
town to buy some tlilnRs for supper.
I saw a sign in a hakery, 'Ureud, ti
loaves for a quarter." I went In and
asked for two loaves of bread. I laid
down a 25 cent shlnplaster. The
baker shoVed it back scornfully and
said: 'What do you call thatr I mild,
'That Is money In a civilized country.'
He said: 'Well, it is no good hero.
Haven't you any dust?' I koI out my
poke and ho weighed out two bits in
dust. He had a woolen blanket under
the scales, and when he -blew out tli
black sand I am Inclined to think norr..
of the finer gold was blown out cn
the blanket. The merchant UHed to
burn the blanket-) under the gold nctile-i
and make a Rood cleanup from the
spilled gold dust. When the old sa
loons were moved from the tiiHt.n street
here they panned the dirt under the
floor and had rich dlsliK, cspf-cl-tlly
under the bur, where the gold dtMt
would spill on the floor and sift
through the cracks. Yes, that baker
borrowed money from me some years
later, and but that Is past history.
"We put our two pack mules and
our saddle horses up in the livery
stable. A man named JarnoH Fruit
asked me what I would tako fnr the
mules. He offered us $300. We ac
cepted. He wa? a Southern sympathiz
er, so when he paid for the mules he
said: 'You are Republicans, ore you
not? You are for the north'." We said
'Yes.' UU rlKht,' ha responded, "Til
pay you In northern money, and he
started to pay us in greenbacks.' We
refused to accept them at more than!
60 cents on the dollar. o he finally!
paid us in gold coin. My nll School,
teacher, Professor Yocum, liked Walhi'
Walla, ar.d decided, to remain .an.!,
establish u private nchool. A day or
two later while I wns walking-downi
the street with Sam Buchanan, who!
had come with us, we were accosted byj
a man who said his name was .Captain;
Mullen. He asked us If we were tint,
strangers In town, mid where we cam
from, and various other questions. il
told us lie II ved Just south, of town, and,
Invited us to come out to his Iiouhu
for Sunday dinner. We hd a fine din j
ner at his home, and after dinner' 1m
asked us what our plans Were. W
told him we were eoIiir to the Wll
lamette valley, lie inadn no comment
except to tell uh an Incident that mad.
us change our plans.
"'In the winter 6f 18B2," he sitd.
was dining with a, party of t.'ntholh
priests at Coeur d'AIene. The dlscov
cry of gold at Pierce City wan rihferre.
to and I said: 'You. have been in In
country many years; IP seems strautc
that you have never discovered gold1
One of the priests ')ld: 'We did, man-,
years ago. He stopped mid 'looked ai
Father De Smet to sea lf he had sai.
too much. Father 1 Strict nodded t.
him and said: 'Go ahead if you wlxli
The pileFt said: 'In the lut fortie
at St. Ignatius mission on the Pen.
d'Orellle Father JleVos and Father Ac
coltl discovered gold. Tiro Indians
the mission were digging a ditch whci
they came acme a lar quantity r
fine gold. They showed it to -th'!
priests,, who told them It was of n
value, aiul -had them fill the ultch m;
so no wandPring whito tnan would si
lt. We were there to s.ive houim; no
to work gold mines, nnd we knew tha
lf we let the news of the dJxoovery ge
abroad our wovk among the Indian
would be over. ,
"Captain Mullen asked ,us not t
bran the- a word of what he . had Ju
told us, -and asked us IT we cared t
cn alonir and rediscover this gold. V.
eajrerly absented. Wo tnde our plan
to meet at Silcott's ferry, on thn Hnak
river. Just below the mouth of th
Palouso. Our party conaiated of Cap
lain Mullen and hif brother-in-law
Mr. Williamson. Charles Addis an
Tom Beall, now living at Lewlstot
Mr. Silcott, Sam Buchanan snd my
self. Odr party stayed at Antoln
Plant's ferry while Captain Mullci
wept to visit the prlet who had tol
him about it. Captain Mullen cfltn
hack with a carefully drsfwn rnai "
the old miaslon, which showed h
location of the dlt'h where the R:
had been found, and also the pia:
where the old roothouae was wr.er
frold had also been found. Antoln.
J'lant went with us as guide and In
terpreter. From what the priest ha (
told Captain Mullen, the gold was vr.l
abundant; and we knew there was n
ihaice of our not making a ri-.i
f;trlke.
We went throug-h a benutlful coun
try, that gradually chansed from th
roiling bunchgrass covered bins i
a country or -aireams ami imkem, o
which were thousands of wild kcm
We secured a boat from the Indians an
crossed to the old mission. The fil'
barn was still there, but the othf
buildines were conn. Captain Mullo
paid to me: 'While the others art
getting- supper, you and I will loo j
about a bit and see If w can loiaf
the old roothouse.' .Wefound It ate
got a pan of dirt. I panned it, bu
there wasn't a color to be seen in tM
black sand. It ww about dark, so w
didn't say anything to the others - abnu t
our lack of success. Next niornlnJ
brieht and eftrly our whole party .-j
cated the old ditch, and we got bun
with our shovels and pans. About tv. j
feet from the surface we struck a bl !
deposit of mica, or 'fool's KOld,' as lj
la called. This was the big, gold- del
posit the priests had covered .'up. The f
were sincere In their belief that thet
had found go!d, but we had mude
water haul and werea very much dip
gusted party. We prospected froi
there to Lewiston, finding some go!
on ' the Palouse, but not ' sufficient!.!
rich to work. Vhen I got back t
Walla Walla, still Intending to go c
to Portland, I found that my ol
teacher, J'rofewsor Yocum,. had borj
rowed the 20Q I had left with hit,
end had' bought furniture and books t-i
start a private school. This left rn
broke, so I stayed in Walla Walla, an
have been here ever since." -
Too Much for I It-r.
From the Yale Record.
He They say after marrlnzn th"
husband and wife grow to look Ilk
each other, I
She Then consider my refueal flna
TV I
A-