THE GOLD HILL NEWS, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 1932
Paße 2
OREGON STATE NEWS
OF 6ENERAUNTEREST
We A re at War!
By GENERAL JOHN J. PERSHING
Artici« II
ULLED into complacency by prospeiity, our citizens pas-
* aively accepted this poisonous growth with small concern.
?
Now that our complacency is gone, we begin to study
this foul phenomenon more carefully. W e see it eating
more and more deeply into our national life, infecting
politics, extorting tribute from business, threatening our
very homes. From my own study as an individual, I am
convinced that prohibition has largely financed this new
postwar underworld of ours. Vast profits have drawn
multitudes into the bootlegging business, and, once out
side the pale of the law, they do not hesitate to turn to
racketeering and other forms of crime. Thus a criminal army has
been built up which defies the very government itself.
I do not question the sincerity of the prohibitionists, nor their
nobility of purpose. Yet the inability to enforce the law in this
respect has resulted in such tragic consequences that I believe the
time has come to face this question squarely and to work together
toward some other solution which takes more account of the inevi
table traits of human nature.
But neither the repeal nor the modification of the prohibition
laws will altogether abolish crime. The estimated one million or
more men, accustomed to the easy money of the bootleg and speak
easy business and with an utter contempt for law, cannot be thus
converted into virtuous, law-abiding citizens overnight. Many will
turn to other forms of illegitimate ______________________________
activity. Corrupt officials, de card or disregarding regulations con
prived of bootleg tribute, will cerning It should be heavy.
I realize that the Inconvenience of
seek new sources of graft
Our frontier ancestors, when the card Identification system would
burdensome. But It would be con
the criminal element got out of be
siderably less burdensome than the
control, formed themselves into breakdown of our system for appre
vigilance committees, rounded hending criminals. The cards would
up criminals, and strung them up not be a cure-all, but they would be a
on the nearest tree. Every red- great help. No honest mao could ob
to a plan which would materially
blooded man, when he reads of the ject
aid In rounding up criminals
criminal activities of our modern
Just as the depression has finally
racketeers and of their apparent opened our eyes to the magnitude of
immunity from capture and pros our crime problem, so has It brought
ecution, feels a natural impulse to home to ns the very extravagant ac
go out and organize a vigilance tivities of unwise politicians during
our prosperity orgy. While the citi
committee. But action can be tak zens have neglected their public du
en, under the law, only through ties, the politicians have quietly >ut
the constituted authorities. Any enormously Increased the cost of gov
other course would lead to abuses ernment, locally and nationally. Ex
greater than those it might cor penditures of the national government
In 1013 were approximately *700,000,-
rect.
000, exclusively of Interest payments
L
The ability of the underworld to ter
rorize society lies In the fact that It
la thoroughly organized, while society
Is not At present It la more the fan«
against the Individual than otherwise.
Why should we not form neighbor
hood and community committees, so
that the gang will find itself con
fronted with an organized body of men
larger and stronger than Itself? The
more Important his position In the
community, the greater the obligation
of the citizen to Join the committee.
Can Force Action.
Such committees, made up of sub
stantial citizens, who regard citizen
ship as a paramount obligation, could
force action. Suppose a neighbor of
yours gets a kidnaping threat, or a
merchant Is visited by a gangster who
tries to extort tribute from him, or a
section of the town experiences a
series of holdups I f the Individual
citizen goes to the police station or
city hall and falls to get satisfaction
possibly because of an alliance be
tween officials and the underworld he
is powerless
But If the neighborhood committee
stands ready, at the very first threat
of gangster activity within Its bor
ders. to take common action against
the Invasion, the picture changes The
threatened man Immediately summons
all his trusted friends who advise with
the neighborhood committee. Repre
senting the militant citizenship of Its
community. It could demand positive
action by the police and by the city
authorities
Committees of this kind would be
vigilance committees not In the old
sense, but In the sense that they would
be ever vigilant In the protection of
rights and the performance of civic
duties I would consider It an honor
to serve on such a committee myself.
These committees would serve many
other purposes beyond the suppression
of racketeering. They would present
a united front against the grafting of
officials They could hold weekly or
monthly meetings to discuss the prob
lems of government Ruch meetings
would serve to bring out and develop,
as no Institution we now possess does,
new leaders, especially among the
young citizens, in every community.
One great aid to crime In America
Is the veil of anonymity which covers
the Individual. In any army, every
man Is accounted for. Ills name. rank,
regiment, and whereabouts are known.
I f he Is wanted, we know where to
find him.
In America we have
no Identification. Men can move from
city to city, changing their names as
they would their coats. They can reg
Ister as they please nt any hotel, with
no questions asked. It Is a pleasant
easy-going custom, hut it puts an In
stiperahle barrier In the way of the
police In the detection of crime. The
time has come when we must abandon
the right to anonymity, ns enlightened
European countries have done.
Every resident of our country should
have an Identification card, a small
passport with photograph attached
Change o f |>ermanent residence should
be reported to the police. The card
should be shown. If necessnry. upon
registration at any hotel, or on an?
other occasion when demanded by the
police. The penalties for forging s
on the public debt. In 1031 they had
Increased to approximately »2,000,000,-
000, exclusive of Interest payments on
the public debt and expenses Incident
to the World war. The cost of ad
ministration of local governments
throughout the country Increased from
*1.844.000.000 In 1913 to »7,126.000,000
In 1929. The budget of one of our
cities. New York, for 1932, Is greater
than the expenditures of the entire
national government for 1903. Some
of these Increases, unquestionably,
have been necessary for expansion and
for coping with the more complex
problems of today. But an alarming
portion of them have been with an eye
to Jobs for the politicians' frlenda
Unnecessary offices, boards, commis
sions, have been profligately multi
plied.
And now, when our national rev
enues shrink, there Is little done
toward applying the logical remedy of
reducing expenses.
Instead, legisla
tors resort to the vicious policy of In
creasing taxes, both direct and Indi
rect Thus the citizen finds himself
burdened with the staggering load.
But can he, with clear conscience,
complain? He cannot.
He elected
these legislators, he saw them pile up
lavish appropriations, and he elected
them again. During the boom days
the citizen was too busy In specula
tion himself to worry about the na
tional debt or the local debt
So with municipal affairs. During
prosperity the citizens cheerfully
looked on while the politicians multi
plied unnecessary offices, gave ex
travagant contracts to their friends
for public Improvements, passed laws
favoring special Interests, and loaded
the public with Invisible taxes in the
form of graft.
Now many of our
great cities are threatened with In
solvency. Their depreciating securi
ties Imperil the solvency of banks
where the citizen has his money. The
citizen again discovers that he Is the
victim. But Is he not the victim of
his own neglect of the plainest duties
of citizenship?
In the situation that now confronts
him, the citizen Is groping. What can
he do now? What practical action can
be take?
He Is told to go to the polls and
cast his vote, which Is an old story to
him, but by Itself It will not remedy
the situation, for too often the candl
dates of each party are Incompetent or
corrupt.
There Is a great deal more to polit
ical duty than going to the polls to
vote. A body of uninformed citizens
flocking to the polls, prompted only
by good Intentions Is about as effec
tive as an army made up of untrained
men marching to battle.
Year after year, under universal
suffrage, there has grown a wider dl
vergence between theory and practice
In our political economy.
To perform his civic duties effec
lively It Is no longer enough for the
citizen to understand the theory of
politics. He must study Its practice
That means time, trouble and hard
work He must study the political forces
at work In his own neighborhood, his
own ward his own district. He must
go to political meetings, associate with
politicians, find out who are the pollt
leal leaders behind the scenes, drop In
McCully Mountain school district,
Bear Lyons, Linn county, will main
tain a school this year although there
ere only (wo pupils. This number will
be Increased when the teacher arrives.
She has (our children.
Principal Events of the Week
Assembled for Information
of Our Readers.
High school bus lines In to the
Orants Paas high school will be operat
ed this year until th* Christmas holi
day* by the school district After that
date the operation will ba by sonlract
direct with tha parents.
T H U M A R K 1T 1
Portland
Wheat — Big Bend bluestem. herd
wheat. 89c; soft whits and wsstsra
white, 64e; hard winter, northers
aprtng and western red, 63c.
Hay—Buying price*, f. o. b. Port
land; Alfalfa, Yakima, *11.110.
B u t t e r f a t 18© 17c.
Egga— Ranch, 1 1 0 22c.
Cattle— Steore, good, *4 60 0 6.00.
Hogs—Good to choice, *104.86.
Lambs—Quod to choice, *404.60.
Seattle
Wheat — Soft w hit* and western
white, CSlic; hard winter, western red
and northern spring, 63%c; hluestcm,
80c,
Butterfat—19c.
Eggs—Ranch, 23c.
Hogs—Good to choice, *4 5005.
Cattle—Choice steers, »505.76.
Sheep— Spring lambe, *3.6004.35.
Spokane
Cattle— Steers, good, 14.50 0 5.25.
Hogs— Good to cholco, *4.3804.35.
Lambs—Medium to good, *3.5003.75.
C. A. Hunter, prominent cattla man
and rancher ot Wallowa, received *
vary painful Injury when a hay net
fell, striking him In tha face and
breaking hls chaek bona. Ha was
taken to the Wallowa hospital.
a
Only 13 strawberries from the
George Thompson ranch, southwest of
Redmond, can ba put In a box. Thuy
are the largest berries reported, but
ot an unlucky alia. Borne of the berries
are two Inches In circumference,
Tho large barn and adjoining milk-
house of M. V. Vites, about two mlh-a
north of Croswell, burned to tha
ground with a loss between *6000 and
*6000. Loss Included 180 tons ot hay.
Mr. Vlles Is a dairyman with a herd
of 70 milking cowa, which wore saved.
Prohibition tinea and forfeitures col
lected In Lane county since 1923 total
*107,293. The receipts have shown
a steady decline since 1936, which was
tho peak year. Thia decline Is attri
buted to a tendency ot violators to
eorvo Jail sontencss rather than pay
fines.
A walnut treo 100 feet tall. 35 years
Growers on Rauvles Island have pro old, pride of the Thomas Wlthycombe
posed to the Astoria Chamber of Com
orchard at Silver Kills, near Gaston,
merce to exchange peaches (or sal w ill boar 400 pounds ot walnuts this
mon.
year, It was estimated. The tree stands
Two or more men robbed the Mau apart from the rest of the orchard and
pin postotflce ot *75 In cash. The rear Is Impressive by reasou of Its enor
door of the poetofflce wae forced and mous stse.
money taken from tha cash box.
Prune growers of Douglas county are
being contacted by the Cltlsens Co-
Operative association and are asked
to permit the unemployed members of
the organization to harvest the crop
on shares or on any fair basis. Many
The West Scio station of the South
growers are not expecting to pick, on
ern Pacific railroad waa closed 8ep-
j tember 1st. C. W. Bragg has been account of the low price.
Jefferson county farmers declared
agent at that place for more than 15
that the Jefferson county rodeo w ill
years.
Gordon Moe,'8. son of Mr. and Mrs. accept wheat for admission. Many
M. O. Moo ot Eugene, was fatally In wheat farmers have moro wheat than
One
jured whon he was crushod between money Just at harvest time.
a motor truck and the woodshed al farmer said 30 years ago wheat wae
used In the place of money at the
hla home.
grocery etoree In Prineville.
Agricultural leader* ot Lane county
Frank Krop, living near Harrisburg,
have Indorsed tho campaign for a
greater use of homo products that Is I* demonstrating that Irrigation in the
being conducted by Lane County Po W illamette valley Is a success. On a
4H-acre tract of Irrigated land ha pas
mona grange.
tured 60 heed of eheep. 14 hogs, four
The Hermiston Cooperative cannery
horses and six cows from May 16 to
has canned 36,000 quarts of vegetables,
July 1. Bines July he has been grow
fruits and meats to date and experts
ing a seed crop of Ladlno clover.
to can over 50,000 before the season
Checks amounting to *30.403, repre
ends, In October.
senting a dividend ot 10 per cent on
Tho Seaside Chamber of Commerce
commercial and 30 per cant on savings
w ill ask the state highway commission
deposits, have been mailed to deposi
to make Seaside the base of operations
tors of the defunct Bank of South
for construction work on the west and
western Oregon, at Marshfield. Thus
of the Wolf Creek road.
far 40 per cent has been paid on com
Japanese who have leased 30 acres mercial accounts and 60 per cant on
of land near M yrtle Creek, Douglas savings.
county, will stand on their legal rlghta
Motorists with cars temporarily In
and will farm the land despite objec
storage will be able to secure their
tions ot white residents.
license pletee at the three-quarter
8teps ore being taken at Albany to yearly rate on end after Tuesday. Sep
restrict Itinerant photographers by tember 31. Secretary of State Hors
barring out those whose workmanship advised sheriffs and other peace of
and materials are Inferior. A city ficers throughout the state that tbs re
ordinance la being prepared.
duced rate would become effective on
The Clackamas county court has that data.
adopted the policy of requiring pay
E F. Brodie, rancher In the Norway
ment In labor for relief supplies. The district, for many years a shingle saw
delivery of supplies from house to yer In tho mills ot Coos county, has
house will be discontinued.
leased the Banders sawmill proper.y
Fire destroyed the barn and two
allot on the farm of Frank Hlnea, near
North Howell. About 1400 buahels ot
grain and farm machinery were lost.
’ » W T IIY should we not
y y munity committees,
form neighborhood and com-
so that the gang will find it
self confronted with an organized body of men
larger and stronger than itself? . . . Suppose a neighbor of
yours gets a kidnaping threat, or a merchant is visited by
a gangster who tries to extort tribute from him, or a sec
tion of the town experiences a series of holdups. If the in
dividual citizen goes to the police station or city hall and
fails to get satisfaction, he is powerless. But if the neigh
borhood committee stands ready, at the very first threat of
gangster activity within its borders, to take common action
against the invasion, the picture changes. . . . Representing
the militant citizenship of thia community, it could de
mand positive action by the police and by the city author
ities.
“Committees of this kind would be vigilance commit
tees, not in the old sense, bat in the sense that they would
be ever vigilant in the protection of rights and the per
formance of civic duties.
“/ would consider it an honor to serve on tuch a com
m ittee myself I”
at the political clubs, look Into the
records and alliances of candidates for
office
Even this Is not enough, unless
there is some organization of non
political citizens to work with unlte-1
force Here again the neighborhood
committees which I suggested earlier
would have their usee Such com
mittees could conqtel the respect of the
political leader and hold him to an
accounting. They could bold meetings
and ask candidates to appear before
them, address them, and submit to
questioning.
Moreover, they could
and should keep track of the political
and financial administration of local
and national affairs.
It might be Inferred from what 1
say here that I think there are no
good men In politics. On the con
trary, we all know many fine men.
honest men. able men In politics But
there are not enough of them.
One of our problems Is to attract
men of higher caliber Into public life
Certainly the profession of government
Is as Important as any calling In our
nation. Yet It Is not even taught In
our schools and colleges. We teach
political science, yes. but that Is a far
cry from practical politics. There Is
no alternative for the aspiring polltl
clans but to learn their high art and
profession at the knee of the district
leader or ward captain— too often with
undesirable results.
Corporations for the conduct of busl
ness education, and charity have mul
tiplied In number and Importance In
recent years. Service In hundreds of
corporations Is affording a new dis
clpllne for thousandt In managing and
directing people, and this In turn
should be of the highest value toward
supporting progress and durability In
governmental affairs.
But business
men too often forget that the govern
nient Is the most Important corpora
tlon of all. They passively permit men
to occupy public offices to whom they
would deny Jobs In their own com
panics. They fall to apply on elec
tlon day. the elementary rules they
hnve learned In their business.
No Tims for Shirking.
Business men say that politics Is
"unpleasant."
Bn Is service In the
trenches unpleasant, but our citizens
do not shirk It when duty calls.
t'a re I ess ness. neglect, and Ignorance
In the conduct of the affairs of gov
ernment have exactly the same results
as they would have In any army facing
the enemy on the field of battle. The
obligations of the Individual citizen
as a part of this government are quite
as binding as those of each soldier
coui|s>slng an army. Thorough training
and a high sense of duty are as Im
portant In one case as In the other
The preparation of an army for serv
Ice with any hope of success demands
something more than writing out the
details of organization and the Issu
ance of orders. It requires the train
lug of each Individual of the army In
the particular pnrt he Is to play al
the front. It Is the same In the sue
cessful conduct of the government
Each citizen must be trained In his
duties and be Inspired by a high sense
of obligation In carrying them out.
Constitutions and laws do not ot
themselves guarantee either the effi
clency or the permanence of govern
ment In a government by the people
the responsibility of the Individual
must be conscientiously fulfilled, or
failure will be the result
Make no mistake about It: Our na
tlon Is confronted by a crisis as serl
ous as the crisis of the war. We are
at war against depression and crime
And. Just as to that earlier crlsle, we
cotne unprepared.
Our unprepared
ness In the war cost us untold billion*
In money and the lives of some of out
finest men. Our unpreparednesa fot
this battle of peace has also cost na
dear.
But In the war, once we were
aroused, we made effort which aston
ished the world. Just so today the
American citizen, once he Is aroused
to the dangers that menace hla coun
try, will, I devoutly hope and believe,
gloriously redeem his Indifference ot
the past.
© . l i l t . R ail S v ndlcst«.— W N U S a rv tM .
French Penal Code
France does not send all person*
who commit crimes to the French
penal colony on the Isle de Saint, ofl
the const of French Guiana. The typ*
of prisoners sent Is that, generally
speaking, of the undesirable habitual
criminal whom the French governmenl
does not who ! to return to France
In sentencing the criminal to the col
onles the type of criminal rnther than
the type of crime committed I*
stressed, such ns undesirable politics'
prisoners, as well as vicious habitus
criminals
Fire of undetermined origin de
stroyed the Inland Auto company
building at Prineville recently. Loss
was estimated between 112,000 and
*15,000, with *6000 Insurance.
The three-acre Eureka cornfield of
Crla Naegli of Deer Island will aver
age 20 to 26 tons of corn harvested for
allage. The average height of the
stalks ranges from 14 to 18 feet.
The Rockaway beaches experienced
the greatest throng of the season over
the Labor Day week end with an esti
mated 10,000 people on hand. Benches
to tha south also reported largo
crowds.
Members of the Oregon Humane so
ciety have protested to Governor Meier
against the advertised "bull fight,”
scheduled to be held nightly during
the state fair, which opons In Salem
late this month.
and purchased the shingle mill from
the same owner. The sawmill Is work
ing on a large contract for tomato and
peach boxes, and the shingle mill w ill
be operated after these orders are
(Hied.
Many startling tales have been told
by fisherman at Medford this season,
but the prize yarn, which eclipses
them all, Is true— usys Dick Isaacs and
H. Pringle. The two Medford men
fished the Iloguo tho first of last week,
and tho latter hooked a polecat. Jnct
as he wr.s casting the animal started
acrocs the river. Tho hook caught In
Its throat and Prlr.kle landed the cot.
The animal waa killed wlih n polo,
whon Isaacs camo to hls partner’s aid.
The price war In Salem between
cleaning and pressing establishments,
which has resulted in a price of 26
cents for pressing pants, has extended
to Oregon City. Salem pressers say
reduced rates will continue In effect
until some agreement Is reached with
an Oregon City concern that Is solicit
ing business In Salem.
A total of 32 tons of peas hnve been
shipped from Coquille from the Twny,
Ford and Runs ranches to the Ray-
Mating plant at Hillsboro, which com
pany has contracted for the entire
crop of the Coquille valley. The peak
of the picking senson la expected to he
reached thia weok. About 140 to 160
pickers havo been engaged ao far In
harvesting tho crop. The price Is 85
cents a hundrod pounds, with a 10-
cent bonus per 100 to those who stay
for tho season.
Dee Wright, packer of the forest
service, reports four Inches of snow
on the Skyline trail. An early snow,
ha says, means a late fall. Another
sign of a late fall Is that doer and elk
are still remaining in the high moun
tains.
The walnut growers of Yamhill
county are erecting a big sign on the
highway at Rex H ill calling attention
of motorists to the Importance of the
vicinity as a walnut-growing center.
The sign la to be 10 feet h'.^h by 24
feet long.
Fire destroyed tho Casino danco-
hall nt Reedsport last week. A beauty
parlor and a building formerly occu
pied by a garage was also destroyed.
A dance hnd been given In the hr.ll
tho ovenlng before the fire by the
local firemen.
In a pear-packing contest at Med
ford. Frank McTaguo won first prize.
He packed three boxos in 6 minutes and
25 seconds. Fuzz Summers was soo-
ond In 5 minutes and 60 seconds. Loti
James took third place In 6 minutes
and 25 tt.ouds.
A