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About The Maupin times. (Maupin, Or.) 1914-1930 | View Entire Issue (April 1, 1921)
A LD HAPPENI OF CURRENT Brief Resume Most Important Daily News Items. ' COMPILED FOR YOU Events of Noted People, Governments and Pacific Northwest, and Other . Things Worth Knowing. Washington Gardner of Albion, Mich., was given a recess appointment as commissioner of pensions. He Is a former member of congress and a civil war veteran. Two cases of typhus fever were re ported to the state health department from Galveston, It was announced Tuesday. This makes seven cases re ported In Texas since January 1. The new Greek offensive against the Turks In Asia Minor, planned for the end of March, has been abandoned, at least for the present, according to dispatches to the French foreign of fice. Major-General Leonard Wood will retire from active service In the army to become the head of Pennsylvania university after he returns from the Philippines It was learned at the war department. Total sales of the Western Electric company during 1920 were 1206,112,000, as compared with 1135,722,000 for 1919. The annual report shows net earnings amounted to J8.277.414, while those of 1919 were $5,652,089. Charges that the Pennsylvania rail road was fighting for the open shop and that the joad maintained a spy system before the war were subjects of heated discussion before the rail road labor board Tuesday in Chicago. Opening of a fight to curb the trafflo of an International drug ring, said to be headed by business men of Germany, Jupan and England, was an nounced in New York Tuesday by Dr. Carleton Simon, special deputy police commissioner. A Bpecial dispatch fTom Bremen re ports that the captain of the American steamship Deranot was shot and killed by Second Officer Gowan In an alter , cation. Gowan asserted that the trouble arose through the captain's abusive conduct Gowan Is in custody. CuBtoms officials have found what they believe to be part of the Russian Imperial treasures, including a frag ment of the late czar's crown, in the baggage of the Russian commercial delegation to Italy, held In the railway station In Rome pending examination. Thousands of pushcart Ice peddlers and milk wagon drivers "4n New York, astute in sensing trade tor spirituous stimulants among their housewife cus tomers, have developed this potential bootleg market Into wholesale propor tions, federal prohibition enforcement agents have revealed. The German reparations bill, Impos ing a levy of 50 per cent of the value of all German Imports to be used to ward the payment of reparations, Tues day passed all the remaining stages In the house of lords without discus sion. The measure needs only the king's assent to become a law. The Russian soviet government has appealed to President Harding and the American government to resume trade relations with Russia, says a wireless message from Moscow. The sovlot government proposes to Bend a delegation to the United States to negotiate a trade agreement, the mes sage said. Governor Hart of Washington has slgnod the poll tax bill passed by the last legislature. The bill became ef fective at once and under It every man and woman In the state botwoen the ages of 21 and 50 years must pay a poll tax of $5 before May 1 of each year. The first year's tax Is due be . .fore May 1 next Publication of the pamphlet report of the United States Steol corpora tion for 1920 disclosed total earnings ot $185,895,359, a gain over 1919 or $32,804,720; balance ot earnings a(tor payment ot Interest on bonds and mortgages ot $176,686,894, a net In crease of $33,097,855, and not Income ot $130,002,634, Increased $31,959,398. A formal call for an extra session of congress, to meet April 11 and re ceive legislative recommendations from the new administration, was Is sued Tuesday by President Harding. None ot the speciflo problems were named In the proclamation, the presi dent merely declaring an extraordinary occasion required that congress con vene "to receive such communications at may be made by the executive.'' GS WEEK U. S. TRADE DENIED SOVIET Big Changes In Economic System and Safety of Life Demanded. Washington, D. C The American government notified the soviet auth orities in Russia Saturday that re sumption of trade between Russia and the United States could not be con sidered until fundamental changes had been made in the economic system underlying the soviet regime. - Safety of human life, guaranty of property rights, free labor and ob servance of the sanctity of contracts were among the requirements laid down in a note by Secretary Hughes as essential if trade relations are to be renewed. The communication added that "con vincing evidence of the consummation of such changes" must be furnished before this government cared even to discuss the subject. The communication was made pub lic at the state department in the form of a statement by Secretary Hughes with the notation that a copy of it should be sent to the American consul at Reval, Esthonla, to be hand ed' to Litvinoff, soviet representative there. The note was In reply to the appeal recently addressed by the soviet re gime to President Harding and con gress asking that trade relations be tween the United States and Russia be restored and proposing to send a delegation to the United States to negotiate. Prior to making a final decision, the Russian trade question was dis cussed by President Harding and his cabinet In a statement after the note had been made public, Secretary Hoover declared the conclusion reached "shows the complete agreement of the views of the whole administration." Unlike previous official pronounce ments of the American government's attitude toward the soviet regime, Sec retary Hughes' note dealt solely with the economic aspects of the problem, and made no attempt to discuss the political shortcomings of the unrecog nized bolshevist government. It set forth in a few words the reason why the United States considers it poor business to trade wiht Russia under existing conditions, but making no In dictment against bolshevlsm as a poli tical system. Service Men Are First. Washington, D. C Promise that he would observe the spirit as well as the letter of the law giving preference to former service men in the postal service was given by Postmaster-General Hays Saturday to a committee of the American Legion. The legion com mittee, consisting of Theodore Roose velt, assistant secretary of the navy; Thomas W. Miller, alien property cus todian, and F. John Markey of Fred erick, Md., laid before the postmaster general several specific cases of alleg ed discrimination against former serv ice men. Mr. Hays promised to have the cases investigated immediately and assured the committee he was in full sympathy with the law directing officials of the postal service to con sider' time spent by employes in the military service on their postal records. State Wants New Name. Mitchell, S. D. Directors of the Mitchell chamber ot commerce Sat urday voted for the appointment of a committee of three to begin a state wide campaign for a constitutional amendment changing the name of South Dakota to Roosevelt. The name was chosen because the late Theodore Roosevelt spent part ot his early man hood in Dakota. Among reasons as signed for the campaign to change the state's name is that more than 30 bank failures In North Dakota have been attributed to South Dakota. "Adipose" Bit Alcoholic. San Francisco. "Nobody loves a tat man," least ot all customs officers here, who received orders Sunday from Colonel J. 8. Irby, surveyor of cus toms, to pay particular attention to corpulent persons coming ashore at this port Customs officials discover ed that Daniel Fairfax, quartermaster on the Pacific Mall steamer Ecuador, who aspired to embonpoint, had pad ded himself with a hot water bottle filled with Scotch whisky. Egg-Rolling Returned. Washington, D. C After a lapse ot tour years, Easter egg-rolling was per mitted on the White House grounds Sunday, and Washington youngsters roamed at will over the Immense lawn. The annual frolic was discontinued by President Wilson In 1917 after was was declared. Winnipeg Hat 10 Below. Winnipeg, Man. Below xero temper alure with a strong wind prevailed hore Sunday. Ten degreet below tero wat registered in the morning. WOMEN I Large Easter Mass Meeting Is Held at Capital. BORAH IN AGREEMENT Senator Proposes United States, Great Britain and Japan Take Lead. Conference Is Proposed. Washington, D. C A resolution re questing President Harding "to call a conference of the nations on world disarmament" and asking that Increas ed appropriations ot congress for arm aments be postponed pending such a conference, was adopted Sunday at an Easter mass meeting held under auspices of the women's disarmament committee. Senator Borah ot Idaho again ad vocated an agreement between the United States, Great Britain and Ja pan to reduce naval armament and charged authors of the program for Increased armaments with being "sedu lous patrons of bolshevlsm, painstak ing and industrious gardeners of un rest and misery." "The ties which bind peoples to their governments are snapping be cause of the great burden of arma ments," he said. The meeting, it was announced, was held simultaneously with others in 15 states. Mrs. Florence Kelley, of New York, who presided, said the meetings "mark the spontaneous uprising of women on the first Easter on which -they have power." .Edward F. Grady of the American Federation of Labor said the federa tion joins in demanding that the statesmen do something at once to bring about a definite program for world disarmament. "We, however, clearly recognize," he added, "that we cannot disarm while other nations are armed. But we want disarmament, the reduction to be gradual and by general agree ment" Among telegrams read was one from W. J. Bryan saying he was "heartily In favor of disarmament for an agreement with other nations if possible, by our example If neces sary." "There Is no way to bring about disarmament except through agree ment with the other naval powers," Senator Borah said. "It should never be our purpose to leave our country insecure, but It should be our deter mined purpose to bring about such an agreement as will bring security without bringing bankruptcy. "Great Britain has again taken up the program ot building. Japan is adding to her progrim. And we are still to have the greatest navy In the world. So the race Is on." T0KI0 IS SWEPT BY GREAT FIRE Toklo. Fire,' which for a time Im periled the entire city of Toklo, Sun day night destroyed a thousand houses in the northwest part, injured 133 per sons, made thousands homeless and caused a loss estimated at about $12, 500,000. Included In the property destroyed were three hospitals, a bank and sev eral large business houses. For four hours a violent wind drove the flames toward the heart of the city, causing a panic. Four thousand troops aided the firemen, but it was only when the wind let down that their efforts succeeded. Scenes of terror were witnessed in many sections, Streets were choked with despairing refugees from the districts stricken, accompanied by carts loaded with furn iture, the confusion being Increased by slghtseors. The imperial gardens were opened to the sufferers. The fire burned so fiercely and with such brightness that the skies were Illuminated by a fiery halo. The. diet adjourned when the fire's threatening nature was reported. . The fire, which occurred in the Yotsura district, wat the worst that Toklo has experienced In a decade. Allotments Go Direct. Washington, D. C Legislation provl ding that all sums allowed to disabled soldier for support ot their depend ents be paid directly to the deslgnat ed dependents Instead ot to the sol dlers will be recommended to congress, the federal board for vocational edu cation decided Saturday. Enactment ot such legislation, board oftictalt said, would obviate any possible misuse of allowance funds at it now pos sible. ID 1 I VTA--s-te.. .Tfi JI 3 I i Copyright. AH Bights Reserved BEULAH AND JIM. Synopsis. Dissatisfied because of. the' seemingly barren outlook of bis position as a school teacher In a Canadian town, John Harris deter mines to leave It, take up land in Manitoba and become a "home steader." Mary, the girl whom he loves, declares she will accompany him. They are married and set out for the unknown country. Alec McCrae, pioneer settler and ad viser of newcomers, proves an in valuable friend. Leaving his wife with the family of a fellow settler, Fred Arthurs, Harris and McCrae Journey over the prairie and select a homestead. Mary insists on ac companying him when he takes possession, and they . begin their life work of making the prairie fer tile farm land. Returning from selling his first crop, Ha.-ris finds his wife despondent almost to In sanity from loneliness, and with the immediate expectation of be coming a mother. A son is born to them, to whom they give the name of Allan. CHAPTER IV. 6 In the Spell of the Mirage. A quarter of a century is a short time as world history goes, but It Is a considerable era in the life of the Canadian west. More things momen tous things than can be hinted at In this narrative occurred In the 25 years following the great inrush of 1882. The boundless prairie reaches of Manitoba were now comparatively well settled, and the tide of immigration, which, after a dozen years' stagnation, had set In again In greater flood than ever, was now sweeping over the newer lands still farther west. The vast sweep of the horizon, once undeflled by any work of man, was pierced and broken with elevators, villages, and farm buildings, and the whiff of coal smoke was blown down the air which had so lately known only the breath of the prairies. Mary Harris hurried about her ca pacious kitchen, deep In preparation of the evening meal. The years had taken toll of the freshness of her young beauty; the shoulders, In mute testimony to much hnrd labor of the hand, had drooped forward over the deepening chest; the hair was thin ner, and farther back above the fore head, and streaked with gray at the temples; the mouth lacked the rosj' sensuousness of youth, and sat now In ajnold, half of resolution, half sub mission. Yet her foot had lost little of Its sprlghtliness, end the sympathy in her fine eyes seemed to have deep ened with the years. A moist but appetizing steam rose from the vegetable pots on the range, and when she threw back the iron door to feed more coal the hot glow from within danced In reflection along the bright row of utensils hanging from the wall, and even sought out the brass plate on the cream separa tor at the far end of the big room. Through the screen door came the mo notonously redundant cllc a clank of the windmill, and a keen enr might have caught the light splash of water as it fell In the wood en horse troughs from the Iron nozzle of the pump. Mary stuck a fork In a potato to as certain If the "bone" was all gone, meanwhile shielding her face from the steam with the pot lid, held aloft In an aproned hand. . Having satlsfled herself that the meal was making sat isfactory progress, she stepped to the door and sent a quick look across the fields, to where a streak of black smoke was scrawled along the sky. "Beulah," she called, turning to ward the Interior pnrt of the house. "Come, Beulah, set the table. They're coming from the field." In a moment a girl of twenty, plain ly attired In a neat calico dress, en tered the kitchen. She wns fresh and beautiful as her mother had been that first summer In the sod house on the bench, and something In her appear ance suggested that with her mother's beauty and line sensibility she had In herited the Indomitable spirit which had made John Harris one of the most prosperous fanners In the district. She moved In an easy, unconscious-grace of self-reliance a rellnnce that must be Just a-little Irritating to men of old-fnshloned notions concerning wom nn't dependence on the sterner sex drew the long wooden table, with Its covering of white oil cloth. Into the center of the kitchen, and began plac ing the dishes In position. The scraping of heavy boots on the plovr share nailed to the block at the door, aud John Harris, followed by Allan and the hired man, Jim, walked Into the kitchen. The farmer's frame w as heavier than In his younger days, and his hiilr, too, was streaked with gray, but every muscle In hit great body seemed to bulge with strength. His face was brown with the prairie sun and wind of 25 summers, and tines of worry and care hnd cnt their tracings aoout the mouth and eyes. Beside him stood Allan, his only son, stralghter and llther of fieure, but al most equally powerful. The younger man was. Indeed, a replica of the old er, and although they had their dis agreements, constant association had developed a fine comradeship, and, on Author of J The Cow RmcherfltCL, Illurtrcitiom by Irwin Myen the part of the son, a loyalty equal to any strain. The hired man, Jim, was lighter and finer of feature, and his white teeth gleamed against the nut brown of his face In a quiet smile that refused to be displaced in any emergency, and at times left the be holder in considerable doubt as to the real emotions working behind. The men all wore blue overalls, dark blue or gray shirts, and heavy boots. They were guiltless of coat or vest, and tossed their light straw hats on the water bench as they passed. There was a quick splashing of greasy hands at the wash basin, followed by a more effectual rubbing on a towel made from a worn-out grain sack. The hired man paused to change the water and wash his face, but the others pro ceeded at once to the table, where no time was lost In ceremony. Harris helped himself generously to meat and vegetables and having done so, passed the platters to his son, and in tills way they were circulated about the table. There was no talk for the first few minutes, only the sound of knife and fork plied vigorously and Interchangeably by father and son, and with some regard for convention by the other members of the family. John Harris had long ago recognized the truth that the destiny of food was the mouth, and whether conveyed on knife or fork made little difference. Mary, too, had found a carelessness of little details both of manner and speech coming over her, as her occasional "ain't" betrayed, but since Jim had Joined their table she had been on her guard. Jim seldom said anything, but always that quiet smile lay like a mask over his real emotions. - When the first insistent demands of appetite had been appeased,, Harris? resting both elbows on the table, with "Don't Be Cross, Dad," 6he Whispered. knife and fork trained on opposite corners of the celling, straightened himself somewhat and remarked : "Allan an' nie's goln' to town to night ; anything you want from Seinp ter's store, Mary?" "That lets me In for the cows," said Beulah. "You were In town night be fore Inst, too, and It was 9:30 before I got through milking." "Oh, well, Jim was away that night," said Allan. "Jim has enough to do, without milk ing cows after hours," returned the girl. "Whnt do you want to go to town for again tonight anyway?" . "Got to get more coal," said Harris. "We'll take two teams, an' It'll be lute when we get back." "I think It's all nonsense, this dny-an'-nlght work," persisted Beulah. "Is there never going to be any let-up on It?" "Boulah, you forget yourself," said her father. "If you'd more to do you'd have less time to fret about it Your mother did more work In one summer than you have In all your life, an' she's doln' more yet." "Oh, Beulah't a good help," inter posed Mary. "I hope she never has to work like I did." "I guess the work never hurt ns," said Harris, helping himself to pre served strawberries. "Just the same, I'm glad to see you gettln' It a bit easier. But, this younger generation It beats me what we'rs comln' . to. Thlnkln' about nothln' but fun and gaddln' to town every night or two. And clo'es Beulnh there's got more clo'es than there were In tile whole Plalnvllle settlement the first two or three years." . "I got more neighbors, too," Inter jected the girl. Then springing np, she stood behind her father's chair and put her arm around his neck. "Don't be cross. Dad." she whis pered. "Your heart's In the right place but a long way In." He disengaged her. gently enongh. At Beulnh said, hit heart was all right but a long way In. Twenty-live years of pitched battle with circumstances sometimes in victory, sometimes in de- feat, but never In despair; alwayt wifh a load of expense about him, al ways with 'he problem of income and outlay to be solved had made of Har ris a man very different from the young Idealist of '82, During the first years of struggle for a bare existence in some way the flame of idealism still burned, but with the dawn of the "bet ter times" there came a gradual shift ing of standards and a new conception of essentials. The crops of the early years were unprofitable on account of the great distance to market ; later, when the railway came to their doors, the crops were still unprofitable, owing to falling prices and diminishing yields -j due to poor cultivation. Then came a decade during which those who stayed In the country stayed because they could not get out, and if became a cur rent saying that the more land a man farmed the deeper he got in debt.t Then came the swing of the pendu lum. No one knows Just whnt started it prosperltywnrds. Some sold it wnt thut the furmers, disheartened with wheat growing, were applying them selves to stock, and certain It Is that In "mixed farming" the community eventually found Its salvation ; others attributed the change to Improved ag ricultural implements, to Improved ) methods of farming, to grater knowl edge of prairie conditions, to reduc- tions In the cost of transportation and enlarged facilities for marketing, or to Increasing world demand and higher world prices for the product of the farm. But whatever the causes ond no doubt all of the above contributed the fact gradually dawned upon the settlers that lund their land was worth money. It was the farmers from the United Stales, scouting for cheaper lands than were available in their own communi ties, who first drove the conviction home. They came with money in their wallets; they were actually prepnred to exchange real monev for land. Such a thing had never before been heard of in Plalnvllle district. But a few transactions took place; lands were sold at five dollars, six dol lars, eight dollars an acre. The farm ers began to realize that land repre sented wealth that It was an asset, not a liability and there was a rush for the cheap railway lands that had so long gone a-begglng. Harris was among the first to sense the change In the times, and a beuutlful section of rnilway hind that lay next to his homestead he bought at four dollars nn acre. The first crop more than paid for the lund, and Harris sudden ly found himself on the way to riches. The Joy that ame with the realiza tion that fortune had knocked at his door and he had heard was the con trolling emotion of his heart for a year or more. But gradually, like a fog blown across a moonlit night, came a sense of chill and disappointment. If only he had bought two sections ! If at least he had proved up on his pre emption, which he might have hnd for nothing! He saw nelKhhors about him adding quarter to quartej-. None of them had done better than himself, but some had don as well. And in some way the old sense of oneness, the old community Interest which had held the little band of pioneers to gether amid their privations and their poverty, began to weaken and dis solve, and in Its place came an Indi vidualism and a materialism that measured progress only in dollars and cents. Harris did not know that his gods had fallen, that his Ideals had been swept away; even as he sat at supper this summer evening, with his daughter's arm about his neck, he felt that he was still bravely, persistently, pressing on toward the goal, all un aware that years ago he hnd left that goal like a lighthouse on a rocky shore, and wns now sweeping along with the turbulent tide of Mummon- ism. He still saw the light ahead, hut It was now a phantom of the imagina tion. He said, "When I am worth ten thousand I will have reached It;" when he was worth ten thousand he found the faithless light had moved on to twenty-live thousand. He snld, "When I am worth twenty-five thou sand I will have reached It ;" when he was worth twenty-five thousand he saw the glow still ahead, beckoning him on to fifty thousand. To stop now might menn losing sight of his goal, and John Harris held nothing In heaven or earth so great as Its attain ment. ' So. gently enough, he disengaged his daughter's arm and finished Ills sup per In silence. As soon as It was ended the men started for the barn, and In a few minutes two wagons rat tled noisily down the trail. Beulah helped with the supper dish es, and then came out with the milk palls to the corral where the cows, puffing and chewing, complacently awaited her arrival. But she hnd not reached the gate when the hired man was at her side and had slipped one of the palls from her ann. "Now, Jim, I don't think that's fair at all," she said; and there was a tremor In her voice that vexed her. "Here you're slaving all day with coal and water, and I think that's enough, without milking cowt at night." But Jim only smiled and stirred . cow into position. There was a tuneful song of the tin palls as the white str artis rattled on their bottoms. t v "H.r. I've slaved and saved until I'm aa old woman." tTU Bti CONTINUED.) Turned Out to te Serious. "What became of that girl Masher ton was flirting with last summer?" "You mean the girl that Masherton thought he was flirting with? So married him." Loudoc Opinion. V