Wednesday, January 2, 1901
THE SUMPTER (MINER
WHAT ONE
MAN THINKS.
School of Mines, the Senator
ship and Oregon Hoodoo.
The two mm were seated at a table in
one of Sumpter's popular resort Saturday
evening, discussing the West Point haz
ing investigation, the South African war,
the situation in the Phillipiues, Hauua's
ship subsidy steal, local mining matters
and other subjects of present popular In
terest. One is a recent arrival from a
neighboring mining state, who is here in
the interest of a syndicate looking for a
property for his people. He was toying
with a stack of chips, shuffling them will)
one hand, displaying a skill that could
have been acquired only by long practice
and Intimate familiarity with these clear
ing house ci r ideates. The other has
been a resident of eastern Oregon for (en
or a dozen yrars. He was llsllesslv, re.
peatedly dealing out four poker hands,
discarding from and drawing to each, but
apparently was making no very accurate
scientific calculation as to the chance of
"helping." They were not trying to do
business, to reach an agrremeut on the
price and terms of any group of claims,
but were merely aiding each other to pass
away the long evening.
"That was rather a clever editorial In
THE MINER this week on the subject of a
state school of mines," said the expert
chip manipulator, as a representative of
this paper approached, evidently throw Ing
this boquet for the purpose of making an
opening for further remarks. But he
didn't make them. The man with a
dozen years residence in Oregon to his
credit threw down the deck f cards, re
marking: "I beg leave to differ from you
in that opinion. It was far from being
clever, because it displayed an absolute Ig
noranceof the Oregon type of political
hog. They think they can fool all the
people all the time, and my observation is
that they are themselves rarely deceived
on this point. Of course nothing w ill re
suit from all this talk about state division,
and no one is more positive on this point
than the machine politicians around Port
land and Salrm. This 'peace talk,' as
THE MINER expressed it, which you see
In the papers published over that way, is
merely for the purpose of jollying the rep
resentatives from eastern Oregon, so that
they will be more approachable w hen Cor
bet's squarers start in to do business with
them on their arrival at the capital. 1 he
senatorial question is the only issue In
volved they are not scared a little bit
about state division, nor concerned in the
least because all the state institutions are
grouped In trading distance of Portland.
"The only possible chance of ever get
ting an appropriation for a state school of
mines, to be located In eastern Oregon,
would be for the representatives from this
section to demand It as their price for aid
ing In the election of Corbet to the United
States senate. My opinion is that he w ill
control the legislature and is going to se
cure that long coveted senatorial seat. It
will belong to him when he gets it, too;
for he will have paid for It and ought to
demand a properly executed bill of sale.
"Even if the situation should be such
that this deal could be worked, and this
additional if that our representatives
should break all records and secure some
thing for this section of the state Instead
of for themselves, the thing Is sure to be
'balled up' some way, so that if would be
a characteristic state failure.
"I can see a half dozen schemes where
by this result could be accomplished.
First, the legality of the appropriation
would be tested in the courts, and if the
push wanted to kill off the school, the
Supreme court would be found to be ac
commodating. But if the provisions of
the measure should le executed, and the
school established, you can bet your l.i't
bean on the proposition that It would be
controlled from Portl.uul. The trustees
would all have strings on them.
"This would be the result. Some jay
from the Willamette valley who h.id
grown tired ot digging potatoes, or had
tailed In the ilothlng business, who
couldn't distinguish between a piece of I
mineralized rock and i petillird buffalo I
ihip, would be placed at the head ul the i
institution. I hen some native daughter
who wanted to take a rest It out th-job
of organizing 'Cabins,' would be ap
pointed secret uy of the taculty, or col
lector of specimens, or prolcssor of hy
draulics, or something or other to which a
salarv atd a ur.ift would be attached.
And so the thing would go and thus it
would I e a failure.
"I tell you, there is a tangible reason
for the undent lole fact that with the name
nt Oregon thne Is associated in the pub
lic mind the Ideas conveyed nv the words
mossback, wt-oloot, H.iivey Scott a
tripple hoodoo alliance hard to beat.
"The gold fields of eastern Oregon con
stitute the must favorable mining region
on the continent and I know what I am
talking about rut we will have to work
out our own salvation, handicapped by
the conditions I have mentioned. I'lleie
Is no use In looking to Portland for as
sistance. Ten dollars ot Baker county
mouev have been spent around that town
bv men who have gone there seeking
financial aid to develop mines, for everv
dollar that has been srcuied. And that is
what the town wants; til it is the svstem
It plays. Oulv two or thiee weeks since
there was published in one of the dally
papers there a story to the effect that some
mining camp in the southern portion of
the state In Portland's hack yard (hat
was very hopeful of early aciUitv, be
cause some gentleman tioin Spokane had
become interested in properties (here.
"Thanks to Spokane, Rowland, Den
ver, Boston, Salt Lake and even Seattle
enterprise, eastern Oregon mines are now
being rapidly developed and soon we will
be in sucli position and condition that we
will not feel this irritation over Portland's
Idiotic attitude except when we are re
rniud-d that freight rates compel us to
trade there."
Division Agitation 25 Yean Ago.
Slatting in some Utile paper in eastern
Oregon, a demand for the divion of that
state at the Cascades is being agitated,
and newspaper comment all over the
Northwest on the question has become
general. In view of this desire on the
part of eastern Oregon, or at least some
parts of eastern Oregon, to breakaway
from the dominion ot Portland, It may be
highly Interesting at this time to recall
that about twenty-live years ago Walla
Walla was agitating the question of
breaking away from the domination of the
Sound country and attaching herself to
Oregon. The files of the Statesman fjr
1875-6 are filled with opinions along this
Hue. Many petitions were circulated in
Walla Walla, Waitsburg, Dayton and
other portions of the Walla Walla coun
trylor all that south of the Snake was
so called asking congress to annex this
portion of Washington to Oregon. On
December 13, 1875, Mr. Kelley, member
of congress from Oregon, introduced a
bill changing the boundary lines of Ore
gon so as to include all that portion of
Washington territory south of the Snake
river. As soon as a copy of that bill
reached Walla Walla numerous petitions
were circulated and generally signed,
asking congress to pass the Kelly bill.
The county commissioners of Walla
Walla county forwarded a petition, as did
many of the Granges of this section, for
at that time the Granges were numerous
ar.d of considerable strength. It seemed
to be the general concensus of opinion that
this change would be beneficial to this
section of the country. Walla Walla
Statesman.
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OREGON
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