Vi HEPPNER GAZETTE. HEPPNER, OREGON. GEORGE'S LETTED. Discusses tlie Expense of Fortifications. GETTING ON VR FOOTING. Destructive Science Han Already Ad vanced Beyond the Plans, and Ren dered Them Obsolete. Washington, D. C, Jan. 21) Listen ing only to some of the speeches in Con gress in behalf of th8 naval appropri ation bill, the shipping subsidy bill creating a naval reserve, the bill trans ferring the revenue from the treasury to the naval department, the sea coast fortification bill, the Henderson militia bill, and the project to transfer the man agement of the Indians from the inte rior to the war department listening only to some of the speeches in behalf of all those things one might think war imminent and that the immediate build ing up of the naval and military estab lishments was necessar; for the public safety. In repudiation of this rang out the words of Mr. Holman of Indiana during the debute in the House on the naval appropriations bill. "The enormous in crease in the navy which is manifestly in contemplation," hecried, "and which is steadily going on, is only a feature of the remorseless growth of 'extravaganco in our government. Sir, there never w as a day when the peace and safety of this government were so absolutely as sured as they are at the very time when we are appropriating vast millions for this costly glitter of a splendid navy. The idea of feeling alarm when we stand not simply in the front rank of nations, but the first of the nations I The mere declaration of an embargo upon our part against any naval and commercial power would produce a revolution among its people. Providence has made us secure against external force. We have not been in peril during the last 40 years by the unfriendliness of any nation. We are now beyond the point of danger, recognized by the nations as the first, and all this by gift of Providence, intel ligence and courage of our people, and tho conquests and triumphs of liberty and peace." EXPENSE OF THE NEW NAVV. The naval appropriations bill as it passed the House carried the expendi ture' in round numbers of $31,000,01)0, nearly $7,000,000 more than the last pre vious annual appropriation. This extra expense is occasioned by work on ships previously contracted for. The bill also authorized the building of another pro tected cruiser to be of "about 7300 tons displacement at a cost, exclusive of arm ament, not to exceed $2,750,000, and to have a maximum speed of not less than 21 knots." Moreover, the act of March 2, 1HU0, authorizing the construction of an armored steel cruising monitor of not less than 3000 tons displacement, was repealed. The fight arose mainly from these two provisions, ground being taken in the first instance against any further increase in the navy, and in the second place against the condemnation of monitors and the substitution of larger cruisers and sea-going battle ships that "can sail around the world" and "show the Hag in foreign ports" and all thflt sort of thing. This opposition led to some revelations. Mr. Snyers, of TexnB, member of the appropriations committee and a fore most member of the naval committee in the lust congress, alter a careful and de tailed examination of the best informa tion be lias been able to obtain, an nounced that the hull and machinery of the 40 vessels, built or authorized, to construct the "new navy," and the ordnance for 38 of them, would cost not less than $04,810,330. But this did not include armor, so that in his opinion these vessels, if all completed, would entail an expenditure of not less than $75,000,000. Then, too, as he pointed out, the operation of such ships will be verv heavy, as more men, more stores and" more fuel will be required, all of which will grftitly add to the annual ex pense, and, for that matter, provision is made Rfi the appropriation bill for a "naval militia of various Btates under such regulations as the secretary of the navy may prescribe." More than this, such ships must undergo extensive and frequent repairs, so that the expense is enormously augmented. Twenty-one years is the average life ol Bhips like these, but this does not mean that they will remain effective that long. How long they will be etfective no one can say. During the years of 1858, 1859 and 1800, when our population was but 30, 000,000, the naval appropriations aver aged nearly $13,500,000. The war came, and in a few short months, with the in troduction of first the Merrimae and then of the Monitor, the whole system of naval warfare was revolutionized, and the ships on which millions and mil lions had been spent were worthless. In tho short period since then we have seen the single turreted monitor, modeled on Ericsson's plan, superseded by the heavier, double turreted ones, and these "improved" and "improved," only to give way in their turn to enormous sea going iine-of-battle ships armed with terrific giuiB and belted with huge plates of steel armor. What soon may we not expect, so rapid is the march of inven tion, making these new ships of ours obsolete? No less an authority than Ad miral Porter declares that they are now useless because of their lack of sail power, since any injury to the machin ery would completely disable them. FORTIFICATIONS NOT LASTING. And what is said of rapid changes in the navy applies also to fortifications. With the opening of each of our wars we have been constrained to arm anew. This was notable so at the opening of the civil war. Though thirty millions were spent on fortifications just before that event, not only had those fortifica tions to be greatly strengthened or re built, but heavier guns had to be sup plied. Said Secretary Stanton in December, 1862: "In consequence of the introduction into naval warfare of iron-clad vessels, comparatively safe from the effects of such batteries as had hitherto been sufficient to guard effect ually against the passage of hostile ves sels it became necessary to provide heavier and more powerfal ordnance. The whole system of such armament was rarel!y revised and amended by a board of the" most experienced and com petent officers, and measures have been taken to carry their recommen dations into effect." "Such waB the im provement in guns, howe'ver, that only three or four years after that it was deemed necessary to strengthen the sea coast works, in" 1873 it was estimated that the number of guns of all kinds re quired to arm our forts, as far as yet de- terminea, amounts to i,ioi. Though experiments as to new and more power j ful guns wero made, there was no effort I to re-arm, save that later on some ten i inch smooth bore Hodman guns, w hich but a few years before had been the most powenui guns maae. were converteo, uy the Pnlliser process of lining w ith a steel lube, iuto eight-inch rilles. Supposing the fortifications had been fully armed with the improved guns of that day, what would such guna now be worth? And yet, in the face of such facts, Sec retary Proctor says that a '"modern land battery, when once constructed and armed, needs few repairs and few re newals !" PRESENT PLAN OF FORTIFICATIONS. It may be worth while examining what the present plan of seaeoast fortifi cation is. The fortification bill which has passed the House of Representatives carries only a little over four mil lion dollars of expenditure for heavy ordnance, the enlargement of the gun factory at Watervloet, N. Y., etc, but the Hoard of Fortifications and Board of Engi-eerB, in expectation that it soon will be needed, have drawn up a plan of fortification, the main feature of which are: 1st. Armaments of the heaviest rifled guns, which, while widely dis persed, can concentrate their re on the enemy's vessels; 2nd. Submarine mines planted in the channels and roadways, "for the purpose of holding the vesselB of the enemy under the fire of our guns and preventing their running the bat teries and reaching the harbors and cities;" 3rd. The protection of those mined areas from countermining, and removal by batteries of rapid-tiring guns of small caliber and wide range. The gun defense provides for live classes of works mounting the heaviest rifled ord nance: 1st, mortar batteries, with or without scarp walls and Hank defences; 2nd, barbette batteries armed with guns mounted on disappearing cartridges; 3d, barbette batteries armed with guns mounted on vertical lift carriages; 4lh, caseniated batteries; Oth, iron or steel turrets. WHAT it will ciwt. There is no estimate of what all 'ttiis would cost, though partial estimates are given. It is proposed to expend on bat teries, caseniateB and turrets alone, and exclusive of armament ami gun plat forms, carriages and plants for the man ipulation of the armament, at lioston, $7,057,882; at New York, $10,200,400; at Hampton Roads, $3,300,802; at San Francisco (not complete), $3,135,000; at Washington, D. C, $520,000. Twenty seven ports are said to "urgently re quire" such fortifications or other de fenses. The cost of gunsand mortars is esti mated to be as follow s : 8TEEI. Ol'NS. Cultljer. Wd,;lit. 10 Inches 3D tons U Inches IW tons H inches.. S- limy Iti Inches 1-1' t"hS 20 inches Mi tons Muin Alts. Caliber. Weight Cast iron 12 inches 11. -fi tens Steel 12 inches 13.uu tuna Est. Cost I :ti,ooo (iO.OIK) 1IHI.000 lso.ooo 800,000 Est. Co. t -.0.)0 15,000 The cost of disappearing, barbette and casemate gun carriages is from $27,000, for a 10-inch gun, to $40,000 for al4-inch gun. The 10 and 20-inch guns would he mounted in turrets. The estiinated'cost of a turret for two 10-inch guns is $700,- 000. Even the coat of firing theso guna is immense, as the following official figures will show : KTHEL (H NS. h'stilimied cost oi pi-ujectile, steel. .... 27 SO TiOO 00 7110 00 1.1H5 (III 2,:tl5 00 Wcljrht of powder charge" .$ri9 12 118 SO 189 00 280 00 6-18 00 Cultljer. 10 inches. 12 " MOI'.TAKS. Kstimutert cost ol' proiectilc, sleet (2S0 00 Weight of powder charge. 27 00 Culiber, 12 inehe But there is still another cost in firing these immense guns, which is based on the injury they sustain from "crystaliza tinn" of the metal at each discharge. Tho average Hie of 10-inch rifles iB 250 round; ol 12-inch ritles, 2oO rounds; ol 14 and 10-inch rifles, 200 rounds, and it is calculated that a 20-inch ritle would last but 150 rounds. After such dis- harges these guns are absolutely unfit for service and have to be "relined." The lease of life of the English Arm strong gun is even shorter. The 45 ton, 12-inch eun will lire 150 rounds ; me o ton, 13i-inch gun will fire 127 rounds, and the 110 ton, lG-inch gun will fire but 95 ordinary rounds. WHAT HAVE YOU TO SHOW? Add to all this the cost of submarine mines, batteries of rapid firing guns and the augmented garrisons that must come in consequence, and no one dare esti mate how enormous the expenditure will be. And for all these millions spent, what in a short while would there be to show ? According to the best calcu lations it would take from 12 to 15 years to make simply the guns necessary to "arm the coasts." Yet 12 years hence what will these guns be worth? Im provement and invention have in much shorter time made utterly worthless what had been deemed invincible arms. Even now it is announced that Krupp, the German gun maker, is experiment ing with ore taken from the Canadian Sudbury nickel and copper mines, ex pecting to obtain a gun metal, which for strength and durability will also ' as far Burpasa the metal now used as steel surpasses pig iron. And it is a matter of public know ledge that Dr. Justin of New York has invented a shell from which he can fire dynamite from an or dinary, old style gun. Furthermore, new processes have made aluminum cheaper than copper. Who can predict what momentous changes these things will work? As to this irresistable ten dency of conditions to change, General Benet hiuiBelf, chief of the bureau of or dinance, gave testimony in his most re cent report in these clear terms : The casualties natural to a period of human life extending more than forty years have changed the entire personnel of the department since my graduation, and the sreat lights of the past have in the course of nature given way to their more youthful successors. Smoothbores have yielded to rifles, and 500 yards ramre and uncertain accuracy to the un erring bull's eye far beyond the unaided reach of human vision ; and the brittle- ness of caat-iron spheres have been superseded by the marvelous perforating ot steel armor Dy eiongateu projectiles. Gunpowder, with Hodman's marked nn nrovement in size and burning and con seauent reduced pressures, seems to be yielding to a smokeless compound not yet penectiy ueveiopeo, anu to me de structive power of the titanic explosives of the day. Great are the inventions for the destruction oi human life and public and private property, which, supple mented by the new chemical and me chanical processes, governed and guided bv electricity as the motor, mokes this era in the military history of the world a marvel. THE SIJIS-KIJISON TORPEIJO. But without looking to the future for revolutionizing inventions it is more than doubtful that all this battle-ship building and sea coast arming is already rendered useless. There has now been perfected the Sims-Edison controlable lOrpeuo mai IB mure lerriuic man ncavj ordnance. Againsi u guns uu aouui are of no avail, and with the utmost pre cision, it can strike a blow that will send the strongest iron clad to the bot tom. It is propelled, directed and ex ploded by electricity from the shore, has a range of four miles, carries a charge of 500 pounds of Emmens's nigh explosive, iB invulnerable to fire, runs at the rate of 25 miles an hour, cuts through or au tomatically dives under obstructions and strikes a blow below water line and armor that will tear a ship's side out. This torpedo, which has sus tained the most crucial tests of the great torpedo expert. General Abbot, at the U. S. School of Applica tion, Willet's Point, N. Y., can be made very cheaply, and the wholeeoast lined at an infiuitesmal fraction of the millions to be expended on enormous battle-ships and sea coast fortifications. If extraordinary circumstances at any time made it necessary to adopt further measures for defence, there would be time. Common sense and experience confirm what Ex-Secretary Chandler once said: "With our isolated position and traditional peace policy, war is a re mote contingency. Any difference that would involve us in a conflict with one of the ereat powers should be thocrowth u" '."" i'i 6' uat preparation. - , . THE NATIONAL GUAM). But we have not yet considered all this business of getting on a war footing. Mr. Henderson of Iowa has intro duced a bill into the House, which while ostensibly repealing obso lete provisions in the present militia law which comes down from 1702, really makes the militia a reserve of the regular army. It provideB that the militia of the state shall be divided into two classes, to be known as the National Guard and the Reserved Mili tia, respectively, prescribes conditions as to time and manner of enlistment and provides for regular reports to the secre tary of war. "The National Guard shall be trained in accordance with the same system of drill and tactics that may from time to time be Drescribed for k'heflrniv and "evprv iiHici.r mid tan- listed man ot tlio National Gunrd called into the service of tne United States shall be held to lie in such service, and any officer or enlisted man who shall refuse or fail to obey such call shall be subject to trial by court-martial." "Each State or Territory furnished with stores and supplies under the pro visions of this act shall require every organization in its National Guard, not excused by the governor of such State or Territory, to go into camp of instruction or to be quartered at a United States fort for instruction in heavy artillery, as hereinafter provided, at least five con secutive dayB in each year, and to assem ble for drill and instruction not less than 12 times in each year, and shall also re quire an annual inspection of each or- J ganization in its National Gunrd to be made by an officer or officers thoroof." The secretary of war is authorized to de tail an officer of the army to make in spection of the National Guard, and the appropriation for furnishing the States with arms and equipments for the mil itia is increased lroui $400,000, which it has hitherto been, to $1,000,000. DIMINISH THE ARMY. Instead of increasing the army we should diminish it, if for no other reason than that the institution begets in offi cers that insufferable arrogance which leads to all manner of outrage and dis order and to war itself, and which was fittingly described by Joseph La Fleehe, chief of the Omaha nation, when he said the soldiers acted "just as if they were the only human beingB." Old John U. Rives, partner with Francis P. Blair in the publication of the daily and of the Congressional Globe here, used to Eay that it would be cheapest to board all the Indians at first class hotels than to keep an army to keep them in order. The extraordinary number of desertions of seamen from the navy has its parallel in the army, and, in truth, the amount of running away from the latter has at last become so acandalous that extreme preventative measures have been adopt ed and a general order (No. 145) has been issued, increasing from $30 to $00 the reward for the return of deserters. It is not the officer who runs away. It is always the common soldier and the common sailor. Writing from Philadelphia in 1799 to Elbridge Gerry, of Massachusetts, Thomas Jefferson used theBe imperish able words: "lam not for transferring all the powers ol tne states to tne gener al government, and all those of that gov ernment to tne executive Drancn. i am for a government rigorously frugal and simple, applying all the possible savings of the public revenue to the discharge of the national debt; and not for a multi plication of officers and salaries merely to make partisans, and lor increasing, bv every device, the public debt, on the Frinciple ot its being a public blessing, am for relying for international de fense on our militia solely, till actual invasion ; and for such a naval force only as may protect our coasts and harb ors from such depredations as we have experienced; and not from a standing army in time of peace, which may over awe the public sentiment; nor" for a navy which, by its own expense and the eternal wars in which it will implicate us, will grind us with public burdens and sinu us under tnem. i am lor iree com merce with all nations; political con nections with none; and little or no diplomatic establishment." It there ever was a time of peace when we should have been armed, it was at the time when Jefferson wrote when we were a weakly little nation, making Dut a moutntui tne more" as lie de scribed it, to either England or to France in her interminable warring. If, then. when this was but a puny nation Jeffer son had such a horror of the "ruinous folly of a navy," what terrible words of condemnation would he visit upon those who are today trying to surround the greatest and strongest nation on the face of the earth with fleets of iron clads and steel forts and rifled cannon, and at tempting to build up within its borders a large, permanent military establish ment! Henby Geohoe, Jh. A PASTORAL CALL Leads to Unpleasant Charges Being Made Against a Minister. Springfield, Ohio, Feb. 6 Great ex citement prevails here in the Wiley Methodist Episcopal church over the formal filing of charges of grOBS immor ality against their pastor, Rev. Henry W. Simmons, by J. W. Haines, on com plaint of his wife, who said that during a pastoral call Simmons attempted improper liberties with her. Presiding Elder K. W. Hammond will begin an investigation Tuesday. The trustees have tried to have Sim mons fired, but he boldly holds his ground. At one meeting Simmons was present and occupied the pulpit. One of the trustees, filled with indignation that the pastor should sit in the pulpit w bile under a cloud, pulled him down from the rostrum. He arose and at tempted to explain his position, address ing his remarks to Mrs. John Wilbur, and calling her sister. She arose and indignantly exclaimed: "Don't you call me sister." Simmons denies the charges. Hon ornwera of Kent have organized a banfc wxtn capital stock 01 $10,000. THE WIZARD'S WAl. Jay Gould Accomplish ing His Purpose A TRANSCONTINENTAL LINE Consolidating With the Northern Paci fic a Line of Greater Mileage Than Any Other System. Philadelphia, . Feb. () When Jnv Gould returns from his southern tour of railroad inspection with John C. Mann and other officials of the Richmond ter minal and Louisville & Southern com panies, plans for a big railroad deal will be completed and the wand of the "Little Wizard" will bo made more effective. Three years aga it was shown that Gould was endeavoring to obtain control of the Atchison, Richmond Terminal, Baltimore & Ohio and Reading, to gether with the New Jersey Central and possibly the Lackawanna. Since then he has accomplished part of his purpose and the Atchison and Richmond Ter minal are in his possession. With these lines, linked with the Missouri and Northern Pacific, one of which he own, and having a big pull with the others Gould will have practically a transcon tinental line with greater mileage than that of any system. but there are certain connecting mat ters to be worked up. This is the object of Gould's present trip. The eastern terminus of the Richmond Terminal is t entirely favorable aa a point of ex port, and that road practically pays tribute to the Pennsylvania in the shape of reshipments. The Baltimore & Ohio is a factor in the situation, and it is re ported that Gould has dickered with its management so successfully, and with the Reading & New Jersey Central, that now he is assured of a traffic agreement that will cut out the Pennsylvania on northbound freight. Another blow at the same interests will be, if effectual, a deal between Gould and the Louisville & Nashville, by which the latter's freight is to be di verted from the Pennsylvania road. ALASKAN GOVERNMENT. Bill Reported to the House Willi Im portant Changes. Washington, D. C, Feb. 5 The House committee on Territories today favorably reported a substitute for Rep resentative Carter's bill providing for a Territorial ' form of government for Alaska. The.kchanges are important. No delegate in Congress is provided (or, but the governor is authorized to estab lish precincts wherever required, each precinct to have one justice of the pence and one constable, who are to serve two years under theprivileges and emolu ments of the Oregon law. Ihe inhab itants will be allowed to take timber from the public lands for industrial and domestic puroSCfuii the payment of a reasonable pfnCCVfor etumpago! In this connection the secretary or the interior will make rules to prevent permanent injury to the interests of Alaska, and to prevent the removal of timber out side of Alaska. In its report the committee savs the substitute is safe and convenient, and intended to protect the people from local disorders. There are now only four jus tices of the peace and constables to con duct the affairs of 400 towns and villages, and in an area of 680,000 square miles, containing a population of 35,000 people, (500 ot whom are white, in the summer the population is increased by 2500 tour ists. The committee then say that the ter ritory's exports amount to $10,000,000 annually, and that it has added $2,000, 000 to the gold supply of the world ; that its salmon fisheries bring $4,000,000 a year, while more than that amount is permanently invested in the business. and that the cod fisheries, yet in their infancy, are worth $500,000. The census bureau will soon issue a bulletin upon the subject of the popula tion of Southern Alaska. The total pop ulation is given as 10,929, as far as ascer tained. Full returns will, however, probably increase the number for the whole torritory to aDout 28,000. ihe total number of males who would be en titled to vote, should Alaska be granted a representative government, is 909, of whom Oil are among the transients. LEGISLATURE. What was Done at the State Capital Today. Olvmpia, Feb. 0 The House met this morning at 10 o'clock with alarger num ber of men promptly on hand than might have been expected, in view of the ball of last night. The committee on railroads reported back Fellow's bill with a recommenda tion that it pass, with a few unimportant amendments. Anderson, of Mason, and Tyler, of Pierce, will make a minority report. Both are railroad men. the former being sole owner of a small line in his section. Anderson made a vigorous speech against the majority report. Miller, of Whatcom, gave vent to some anti-corporation remarks, which brought forth applause. Several others made some talk pro and con, and further consideration of the bill was finally postponed until next Thurs day, The nine jury bill was next taken up, and after discussion that lasted until the hour of adjournment, this matter was also postponed until Tuesday. FARMERS GETTING BACK. They Advocate a Sort of Back-Handed protection. Washington, I). C, Feb. 0 The coun cil of the Farmers' Alliance and Indus trial Union had under discussion this afternoon a resolution looking to the betterment of the agricultural and com mercial industries of the country, and after quite a lively exchange of views the following resolution was adopted : Whereas, Of the three great indus tries of the United States, agricultural, commercial and manufacturing, the first two are in tho most depressed state, with a view to the betterment of their condition, be it Resolved, That the legislative com mittee of the National Farmers' Alli ance and Industrial Union be jeqneBted to prepare a bill for presentation to the present or following congress, contain ing a provision that all vessels built, owned and manned by citizens of the United States that carry full outgoing cargoes, two-thirds of which, at least, consist of home agricultural products, shall be allowed to enter and discharge their returning cargoes, provided said cargoes shall consist of manufactured products, at any port of the United States, free of all custom duties. We are persuaded that such a measure, properly carried out in detail, will not only build up the shipping interests of ; I1UL tne country, nut will result in creating 1 a foreign market for the surplus agri" cultural products ot the United States. A resolution was adopted urging con gress to enact a law in accordance with the Ocla memorial in opposition to the Louisiana State Lottery. The report of the committee on plans was submitted. In addition to the var ious Alliance organizations already in existence, it recommends among other things the formation of congressional district alliances in each state and terri tory, each district to have a lecturer. A resolution was passed instructing the president of the council to appoint a national legislative sub-committee of three memliers to formulate bills to be presented in congress in accordance with the demands of the Oola meeting. These demands include the sub-treasurv land loan, t he free coinage and the anti lottery bills. ANTI-TRUST BILL. A Stringent Measure Passe the In diana Senate. Indianapolis, Feb. 0 The senate to day passed the most sweeping measure that waa ever aimed against trusts in this state. The bill provides that all trusts, pool contracts, combinations, arrangements or corporations, which attempt to do crease the output, or control prices, or limit production, shall be considered conspiracies to defraud the people, and any person being a member of such or ganization shall be subject to a fine of Irom $1000 to $5000 and imprisonment in the state prison Irom two to five years. The provision is made to apply to anv stockholder or agent, or person inter- ted in any way in the management or tin- profits of a pool, contract, combina tion, agreement or corporation. In cases where the .onipany is orga nized under the Indiana hue a the charter is to be forfeited in addition to the punishment Drescribed in the net..,! section of the bill. In another section it is provided that any person who is injured by the oper ations of the trust or pool may sue and recover damages in double the sum of injury winch his business has siillered. SALMRON DEFEATED. Growing Republican Discontent Mani fested at Barcelona. Baucklona, Feb. 6 Senor Salmron, the Republican candidate for election to the Chamber of Deputies, has been de feated by the Conservative candidate, according to the returns as announced. Senor Puig, the Conservativ3 candidate, received 6874 votes, and Salmron 5285 votes. The Republicans are intensely exasperated at the result of the election and assert there has been official tam pering with the ballots. They also in sist that Salmron is duly elected. The popular discontent, which has been smouldering for a long time, has been fanned bv the Conservatives' victory, and is now being made generally evi dent. An explosion of two petards ill a prominent thoroughfare last evening tended to increase the anxiety and the government is making elaborate prepar ations to crush a possibleiuprising. it is understood that in the event of an at tempt at a revolutionary movement the ministry are determined to put it down at whatever cost. ACCUSERS ASTONISHED. Church Members Fail to Discipline One Of Their Number. Boston, Feb, 0 The good brethren and sisters of the South Congregational church of West Roxbury, were called together Wednesday evening by their standing committee to consider a caae of discipline which assumed astounding proportions. Harry W. French, a well known traveler and lecturer, was accused and the accuser was S. D. Smith, presi dent of the Smith Organ and Piano com pany. The standing committee had in vestigated the charges and found a ver dict of guilty and the meeting was called for the purpose of suspending French. Ihe latter put in an appearance, to the great astonishment of all, and made an eloquent avowal of his love for Smith's daughter Fanny, and of his suit for her hand, stating that he had sent the young lady to Europe, adding cer tain details which are here omitted. French then asked that his name be stricken from the roll of members. The meeting was so surprised by the avowal that it was dissolved without taking any action. Miss Smith's hand has been promised to an Englishman whom she dislikes. Conlllctlng Reports of a Collision. Little Rock, Ark., Feb. (i News of serious wreck on the Cotton Belt Rail road, six miles south of Clarendon, Ark., has just reached here. The north bound passenger train which left Pine bluff at 2 :20 n. m. vesterdav was wrecked. One report says that nine people were killed Another says only three, and still another, from a railroad man, that only a fireman was killed and several others Injured. There is no telegraph station near the place, i ull particulars are ex pected shortly. Pullman Car Works Burned. St. Louis, Mo., Fob. (1 Fire has des troyed the Pullman Car shops and other property to the amount of $250,000. The fire started at 1 :15 o'clock in the Pull man shops, end spread so rapidly that it was necessary to send in a general alarm and put the entire department at work. At 1 o'clock this morning the fire was still burning fiercely but was under con trol. The shops are entirely destroyed, with their contents, as were also 11 cars in various staires of completion, and about $50,000 worth of tools and machin ery. The Pullman row of small dwell ings occupied by employees, was also destroyed. There were several narrow escapes but no loss of lives. A Returned Thief Arrested. Nkw York, F'eb. 0 Charles Knothc, a young clerk in the employ of Horace Ghardy & Co., jewellers, at No. 30 Maiden Lane, who disappeared suddenly with $50)0 worth of diamond, was traced to Sun Francisco, where all track of him was lost. Knothe returned to this city today and wus arrested on landing from a Jersey City ferry bout. In this pock ets were found pawn tickets for $2500 worth of jewelry, which he had stolen from the lirm anu wnicii will ne recov ered. Ho was locked up at police head quarters. Columbus Shooting Festival. Purlin, Feb. (i Genoa proposes to hold a grand shooting festival in honor of the Columbus Centenary. France, Spain and Switzerland will attend. THE GREEN-EYED MONSTER. flow Han Franciscan! Like Algers Proposition. San Francisco, Feb. 7 The Examiner says : The announcement in a telegram from Chicago that General Alger, Gen- i , ... . . eral arKaon anu oulera nau organized " .v lu "o"i rugei oounu country at the expense of San Francisco's commerce by establishing a line of steamers from the Sound to China, is received with a good deal of incredulity by local financiers and railroad people. When it comes to diverting the com merce of the Orient from this port, Gen eral Alger and his syndicate will run plump up against the Southern Pacific and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa F'e railroad, and on the northern side they will meet a decided obstacle in the Can adian Pacific. The Canadian Pacific, as is well known, already has a line of steamers from Vancouver to China. Three new vessels have just been built on the Clyde with special adaptations to speed, to knock out competition in the China trade. The Canadian Pacific does not want a rival, and the lines doing freight busi ness out of San Francisco does not want tho business to go north or anywhere else. General Alger has extensive interests in the Northwest timber interests mostly and the scheme w hich he pro poses is not altogether impracticable, but he will find himself in a hard row of stumps, in the opinion of the local railroad men, when he throws his ener gies against a trinity of railways united to defeat hiin. The whole affair is probably a part of the timber and land scheme which was published in the Examiner last week. Two of the men mentioned in this ar ticle as having negotiated with the Southern 1'acilic for the purchase of $500,000 worth of timber land are from General Alger's part of the country and have been interested with him in big timber deals, and this story coming from Chicago is a mistaken interpretation of what the Examiner has already pub lished. The scheme is not to develop the northwest by the establishment of a steamship line to China, but by devel oping the timber country and working up the lumber trade with the countries lieyond the Pacific. Very little of that business is done through San Francisco no to SALMON MARKET. A San Franlij4co papt.r Comments on T"e Combines. San Francisco, Feb. A ioctti com. morcial paper reviews the salmon mar ket as follows. Considerable buBjnc99 has been reported this year, but noting of special interest lias transpired since last week. Some inquiry is reported for Columbia river for future delivery. The combination made by eight canning companies drawing fish from Karluk, in reference to catching fish next season is likely to prove advantageous to the par ties interested as it will considerably re duce the expenses of conducting busi ness. Under this arrangement one gang of fishermen will be allowed to each cannery and the catch distributed pro rata on the basis of the pack of 1800. Expenses are to be divided. ReflideB this advantage arrangement will all'ord better protection to salmon, as it is in tended to let the fish run up stream on stated days eack week, instead of killing them indiscriminately without regard to their future propagation. It is under stood that a similar combination has been made by canners operating at Chil cat, and that others are under negotia tion by those at Bristol Bay, Chinig Bay and Cook's Inlet. Our correspondent sends the follow ing: Liverpool, Jan. 17th, 1801 There has lieen a good deal of activity during the last few days experienced by distribu tors, as retailers have commenced to re plenish their stocks, and were it not for thd very severe weuther we should have had an advance in values, but holders are adverse to advancing values at pres ent, as ttiey do not wish to induce tur- ther shipments Irom your markets. But the situation is strong and a general firmness of tone prevails throughout the market. DKMl'SEY ON THE COAST. B Tells a Little About His Plans to Reporter. San Francisco, Feb. 8 Jack Hemp- sey, wife and child arrived from the east this morning. With tho utmost difficulty Jack was induced to speak to reporters. As soon as he reached the city ho went to his hotel and tried to evade interviews. When finally cornered he spoke very little, contenting himself with saying of his eastern trip thut he was outclassed in the light with l-'itzsimmoiiH. He looks vory much crestfallen. He leaves for tho north this evening where he will attend strictly to business. Ileexpects to return in time to train Mitchell for the hitler's fight with Litlllauche, the "Marino" and may challenge the winuor. After Mo tullne's Scalp. Nnw York, Feb. 7 Jack Smith, of Harlem, a hard hitting but unscienced pugilist, believes he cm whip Joe Mc Aulill'e in 10 rounds. He issued a chal lenge at the "Police Gazette" olfico to day in which he stated that he is eager for a try at the "Mission Hoy" and will box him five or ten rounds in Brooklyn or iloboken for gate receipts. Billy Oliver is anxious to hot considerable money that Smith can defeat McAuliffe. A MEXICAN VICE-PRKSIDKNT. Talk of Selecting a Man to Hull Tilings Win-n Diaz Gets Tired. Citv okMkxico, Feb. 7 During tho past month the leaders of the Lilieral party have been considering the advisa bility of changing the law of succession to the presidency. The law provides that in case of vacancy in the presidency the President of tho Senate during ses sions, and the President of the Perma nent Congress committee during a re cess, shall succeed. This has given rise to numerous idle rumors concerning the intention or President Diaz to retire or at least go to Europo for a year or two. It is rumored also that Ex-l'rcsident Gonzales will bo chosen Vice-President to take charge during the absence of Diaz. The best information obtainable is to the ell'ect that a vice president is decided upon, but thut his name is not agreed ii lion. The names nf both Gonzales and of Secretary of the Treasury Dublau are mentioned. Intimate friends of Diaz declare that he will not go to Europe or elsewhere during his incumbency, no matter who may be chosen vice presi dent. They furthermore assert that Diaz will serve another term should he be chosen without much opposition Buying Armor I'lates. Washington, Feb. 7 Tho navy de partment is about to enter into u con tract with Carnegie, Phipps & Co. of Pittsburg, for 0000 tons of armor plate of various thicknesses for armored vessels now in course of construction. The de tails of contract have not yet been ar ranged, but it is understood that the prices are to be about the same as those in the contract made with Bethlehem Iron Works in 1887 by Secretary Whit ney, and that the total amount will be about $350,000. The contract with Car negie, Phipps & Co., was made necessary by unforeseen delays encountered by the Bethlehem Co. in putting in their plant which has prevented them from making any plates for delivery. A GOOD MOVE. Abolition of a Feutlal System of Justice. Lonoon, Feb. 7 Charles Seale Hayne, Liberal M. P. for Aahburton, has pre pared a bill providing that Justices of the Peace shall hereafter be elected instead of appointed by the government. The tenth of March is set down for the second reading of the bill, which will be opposed by the government but receive general supiort of the Liberals. The bill embodies an entire revolution in the minor administration of justice in En gland. Justices of the Peace now are nearly all well-to-do Tory sutures who have their own way in dealing with the poor people brought before them and who not infrequently come into court booted and spurred and whip in hand. Their decisions are almost always ad verse to the Liberal cause, and for this reason Mr. Ferness, the mem ber elected from Hartlepool, has refused to submit to the magistrates certain charges of intimidation in the recent election be cause he fears they would not do justice. It is desired to sweep away this oli garchic system of justice and have all the minor magistrates elected by the people. Sir William Harcourt has pro nounced in favor of the reform and will support it. HEART DISEASE DID IT. Intended to Go Around the World, But Is Prevented. London, Fjb. 7 The steamer Em press of India left Liverpool today for a circuit of the globe as far as Vancouver, via Asia. The passengers were from all parts of the world, but included a large number of Canadians interested in the new steamship line to connect with the Canadian Pacific. Among the intend ing passengers was Mr. Ilouliston, a lawyer, of Three Rivers, Quebec. He came to Great Britain for the express purpose of taking the trip on the Em press of India. He went to meet a friend in Edinburgh, and while in an office there suddenly died of heart dis ease. After Eight Uuurs In Germany. lei,, 8 A manifesto has been issued by the democrats which Asserts that the pi'inuri ruadon8 fur postponement of the la'ior "emonstra tion until the first Sunday in Ainy, are the long period during the present ter in which workmen have been with out employment and the gravity of the economic crisis, which has thrown thousands of wage earners out of em ployment and subjected them to the ar bitrary actions of their employers. The manifesto says the present crisis consti tutes a reason for an imposing demon stration, mass meetings and workmen's excursions in advocacy of a law which will provide lor a working day ot eight hours. Large Soda Works Burned. Brooklyn, N. Y., Feb. 8 Church & Co.'s. soda works, which covers 43 lots . in Greenpoint, was burnod early this morning. The loss is about $200,000 and the insurance $30,000. There was about 300 men employed in the works and the night force of 120 were at work when the fire broke out. Twelve boilers in the works were to be inspected today. A watchman said he visited the place w hen the fire first made its appearance, 10 minutes before, and saw no indica tion of it. Horses and trucks were saved by workmen, and bookkeepers suc ceeded in saving the books. There was a large quantity of barrels and boxes in the packing department which burned rapidly when the flames reached them. In the Legislature. . Olympia, Wash,, Feb. 7 The House convened this morning at 10. Smith of Okanogan, presented a petition from citizens of that county praying that in view of the alarm felt concerning the hostility of Indians they should be au thorized to form and equip a cavalry company. A petition was presented signed by 2000 persons praying for the creation of the county of Sherman out of the south ern part of Spokane and the northern part of Whitman counties. Considerable discussion was indulged in when the Sachs investigating com mittee asked leave to go to Port Town- send. Sharpstein of Walla Wulla, sec onded by Tiffany of Whatcom, led the opposition to move, but the House sus tained the committee's proposals. Chilian Legislators Hiding. Gai.vbston, Feb. 7 The latost pas sengers from Valparaiso state thut those members of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies who are not imprisoned are in hiding. Valparaiso has been blockaded since January 16th by the Blanco, iln calaza and Obigino, which are about 5 miles from shore. Revolutionists have taken three steamers belonging to a Chilian company, also a new cruiser. Caprlvl Batted. Berlin, F'eb. 8 In the reicliBtag today Chancellor Von Caprivl warmly repudiates the Liberal charges that the government has neglected to protect German interests abroad, and that it has been especially remiss in defending those interests against English aggres sion. Stole a Gunboat. Paris, Feb. 7 After long and patient waiting the police have succeeded in ar resting at Mayence the once noted Til- gen who, in 1873, headed a band of raid ers who stole a captured F'rench gun boat lying at Coblontz and sold the voa sei to Holland. A Long Tramp on Stilts. London, Feb. 0 The latest eccentric character to bid for the curious gaze of Western Europe is a Frenchman namod Dornan, who hails from Landes in Gas cony. Dornan has laid a wager that ho will walk on stilts from the Russian frontier to Paris in 30 days. The result of the feat will be awaited with much interest. Dornan is an expert on stilts and a good many other wagers haveleen laid on his attempt. Mrs. Diets's Father Missing. San Francisco, Feb. 8 Alarm is felt by the friends of the Dieti family over the non-arrival of Mrs. Dietz's father. When she was killed by her husband her father telegraphed lie would start from Chicago at once to remove the body and the little child to his home in the east. He is now three days over Iita. The bodv of Mrs. Dietz was taken from Fort Alcatraz to the undertakers and embalmed. H