LEXIN6T0N WHEATFIELD
' S. A. THOMAS, Publisher
LEXINGTON OREGON
NEWS OFTHE WEEK
In a Condensed Form for Oar
Busy Readers.
A Resume of the Lass Important but
Not Lass Interesting Events
of the Past Weak.
The deadlock between Hungary and
Austria may result in a revolution.
The Baldwin Locomotive works is
building 140 engines for the Harriman
lines.
Leading Hungarians say Germany is
the cause of the present trouble in their
country.
Peace has been restored at Baku, Rus
sia, and. workmen are returning to
their occupations. ,
A white woman of Missouri has been
sent to the penitentiary for ten years
for marrying and living with a negro.
George Maxwell, a wealthy Canadi
an, will sue the United States because
he was denied admission to this coun-
try.
At the Democratic state convention
of Maryland a platform was adopted
declaring in favor of disfranchising ne
groes. Guam, the smallest island possession
of the United States, now has a Su
preme court and a system of wireless
telegraphy.
General Stoessel, who commanded
the Russian forces at Port Arthur, is
suffering from a Btroke of paralysis,
which affects his entire left Bide.
United States Attorney Heney says
he will push the remainder of the Ore
gon land fraud cases and dispose of
them as rapidly as possible, as he has
other work commanding his attention.
Gomez has retired from the fight for
the Cuban presidency.
Norway may have a popular vote on
monarchy or republic.
Secretary Taft and party have re
turned from the Philippines.
A Liberal party has been organized
to control the Russian douma.
France and Germany have completed
their program regarding Morocco.
Riots have occurred between Social
ists and Coalitionists at Buda Pest.
New Orleans is steadily recovering
from the disastrous epidemic of yellow
ever. -
The larger part of General Linie
vitch's army will winter in the field
where they are. v
Independent beef packers have been
summoned to testify against the trust
in the tiial now in progress in Chicago.
The president Will appoint a district
attorney for Oregon as soon as Heney
concludes the land fraud cases now on
hand and goes East.
The government gunboat Leyte was
sunk by the typhoon which swept Ma
nila. The damage to the city is greater
than at first reported.
A passenger train on the Cincinnati,
Hamilton & Dayton road struck a
freight near Connelsville, Ind., and
one man was killed and eight injured.
The yellow fever situation at Na
tchez, Miss., is becoming worse.
Kussia is negotiating in Paris and
Berlin for new loan of $175,000,000.
Finns are petitioning the czar for re
forms which will restore peace in their
country.
Senator Heyburn, of Idaho, continues
to fight President Eoosovelt's forest re
, Berve policy.
Bussian students are holding mass
meetings, demanding greater liberties
than proposed by the czar.
.
A collective note from six powers has
been handed the sultan of Turkey tell
ing him they will manage Macedonia.
Bryan has written a letter to the
president encouraging him in his fight
with congress for a railroad rate law.
The Harriman system has started in
earnest a fight with the Northern Pa
cific to secure certain rightB of way
down the north bank of the Columbia
river.
Curtis Guild, Jr., at present lieuten
ant governor, will be chosen as the Re
publican candidate, for governor of
Massachusetts.
The new treaty of alliance between
Great Britain and Japan has been made
public. It is similar to the original
alliance, but wwith a largely increased
acope.
Rockefeller in a speech to a gathering
of young men of his home town told
them to turn their minds from mere
money-getting and make certain of
contentment and satisfaction in the
later days of their lives.
GUILTY AS CHARGED.
Verdict In the Williamson, Gesner and
Biggs Land Case.
Portland, Sept. 28. "Guilty as
charged in the indictment." s After
three trials, extending over three
months, John Newton . Williamson,
Representative in congress from Ore
gon; Dr. Van Gesner, his partner, and
Marion R. BiggB, their friend and the
United States commissioner for the
general land office at Prineville, have
been declared to be guilty of the crime
of conspiracy to Buborn perjury, and
have been thrown upon the leniency
of the court, by reason of their previ
ous good character.
The long and tiresome third trial of
the case has passed into history, but
unlike the first and second, it has been
productive of a decisive result. Once
more the cause of the government and
the indefatigable energy of United
States District Attorney Heney have
been triumphant, and conviction has
come from the hands cf a jury selected
and sworn to try the guilt or innocence
of the defendants upon the law and the
evidence.
But it was not a question easily de
cided or quick of settlement, for the
jury wrestled with the decision from
5:20 in the afternoon until li at night,
and it was eight minutes later before
the sealed envelope containing the fate
of the three men was handed to Judge
Hunt lor his perusal. For many bal
lots the jury stood 11 for conviction
and 1 for acquittal.
Aa soon as the verdict had been read
Judge Hunt arose and thanked the jury
for their patient attention and uncom
plaining service throughout the trial.
He then dismissed them.
Turning then to the defendants and
their attorney, Judge Hunt asked if
there were any motions to be made,
and Mr. Bennett, shaking off the spell
which seemed to wrap him round,
asked to be allowed on behalf of all
the defendants to file notice of a motion
for a new trial. Judge Hunt stated
that he would like to have the motion
filed as soon as possible, as he desired
to leave the city within two weeks, but
he allowed ten flays in which to com
plete the written transcript of the mo
tion and place it before the court.
The court announced that pending
the filing of the motion the defendants
would be allowed to go on the same
bonds under which they are now rest
ing. Then the court adjourned, and
without speaking the defendants filed
silently from the room and into the
night. They had no statements to
make, they said. It was not their
time to talk. .
FIRE SCOTCHES COLON.
Two Blocks Are Cleared and Govern
ment Records Destroyed.
Colon, Sept. 29. By sheer good luck
the city of Colon was saved from com
plete destruction by fire last night.
The fire broke out in a building next
to the residence of the Spanish consul,
and Boon destroyed the Phoenix hotel,
an American-owned building, and two
other hotels, several liquor saloons and
several tenement buildings. Rowe's
building, containing the postoffice, the
offices of the municipality, of Governor
Melendez, the port inspectors, the ju
diciary and other offices, together with
the treasuy building, were also burned.
A fire brigade from Panama bringing
engines and . equipment arrived at 1
o'clock, but by that time the fire was
under control. '
, Nearly all the records and documents
of the government were destroyed. The
burned region comprises two blocks.
The American residential quarter was
not touched.
The sanitary authorities are erecting
tents in the fire zone to shelter the
homeless.
During the fire many harrowiong
scenes were witnessed. Among these
was the removal, of the body of a 15
year old child. The child had died a
few minutes before the fire started.
, 'No Submarines Aided In Victory.
San Francisco, Sept. 29. F. T. Ca
ble, representing the Holland Subma
rine Torpedo Boat company, arrived to
day on the liner Corea from Japan.
He went to Japan some months ago to
superintend the work of placing seven
submarines in working order and com
pleted the taBk at the navy yard of Yo
koBha, near Yokohama, the latter part
of June. Mr. Cable reports that none
of these vessels were engaged in the
battle oHhe sea of Japan. They would
probably have been, he Bays, had the
conflict been delayed a month.
Cannot Suppress Boycott.
Seattle, Wash., Sept. 29. Chinese
merchants in Seattle state that they
have mail advices from Canton which
declare the viceroy of that province has
acknowledged his inability to put down
the boycott. . The viceroy insists that
the merchants and people will buy as
they see fit. He adds, though, that
the sentiment is being resisted, and
that some gains have been made by the
government's efforts to suppress the
boycott '
,
GIVE THEM LIMIT
Secretary Hitchcock's Views on
Land Fraud Cases. ;
THEY, LED HONEST MEN ASTRAY
Secretary Says they Would Have Been
Tried Repeatedly Till Verdict
Was Reached.
Washington, Sept. 30. "The jury
which returned the verdict against
Representative Williamson, Dr. Gesner
and Marion Biggs, at Portland, com
mended the defendants to the mercy of
the court. This is not a case where
any mercy should be shown. I am
firmly of the opinion that the extreme
penalty should be imposed."
This waa Secretary Hitchcock's com
ment on the news from Portland.
"I do not know what disposition the
court will make of this case," added
the secretary', "nor is it for me to sug
gest, but I hope the full measure of
justice will be meted out to those who
have been found guilty. I hope they
will be given the limit of the law.
Whenever some petty criminal, hungry
and in need, is convicted, in court, no
mercy is shown. There is all the more
reason why no mercy should be shown
in this case. The defendants knew the
law and violated it knowingly and "wil
fully. One of them, a public official,
waB sworn to protect and uphold the
law, yet he used his influence to induce
a lot of poor, ignorant fellows to commit
a rank'crime. Such men don't deserve
mercy at the hands of the court. I
think no leniency should be shown
them.
"Reports have been circulated,"
continued the secretary, "to the effect
that the government would have
dropped its case against Williamson
and the others, had this third trial re
sulted in a disagreement. That is not
so. The government is in earnest in
this matter, and we would have asked
for a fourth, a fifth, a sixth trial, and
so on to the end of the chapter. I am
not surprised, however, that this jury
should have agreed as it did. From
the evidence in the case no other ver
dict could justly have been returned.
This jury has done its full duty to the
people of Oregon and the people of the
entire country.
"This is not the end of the land
fraud pronecutions," said the secretary.
"We are only beginning our war on
this class of criminals. Our agents are
working and investigation ia going for
ward in many states. We have a lot of
cases in Idaho soon to be taken up and
others in New Mexico. I have reason
to believe that the extent of this offend
ing has been very great and we intend
to follow the investigation"
LET DOWN THE BARS.
Free Admission of Products of Phil
ippines Seems Likely.
San Francisco, Sept. 30. William J.
Johnston, of New York,, publisher "of
the American Exporter, who, as a
member of Secretary Taft'B party, made
the trip to the Orient to investigate tKe
commercial conditions and the opportu
nities for extending the sale of Ameri
can manufactures in the Philippines,
Japan and China, today saidj
"While one cannot always" accurately
forecast the action of congress, the in
dications are that Philippine sugar and
tobacco will be admitted into the Unit
ed States free of duty, as hemp now is.
If so, congress will probably think that
as a matter of reciprocity American
machinery and appliances for develop
ing the industries of the islands should
go to the Philippines free. In case,
however, that goods from this country
shall not be admitted free at once, on
the ground that the revenues will be
asked for a time to meet the expenses
of the insular government, there is lit
tle doubt that at the latest this will
come at the time that the ' agreement
with Spain as to equal tariff privileges
in the Philippines shall expire in about
three years." - s '
Land Receipts Decline. 1
Washington, Sept. 30. Because of
the marked decrease in public land re
ceipts during the past fiscal year, Ore
gon contributed less to the Reclamation
fund than in any year since the passage
of the Reclamation act, and fell from
first to second place in extent of public
land receipts. It is estimated that Ore
gon during the year ending June 30
last, contributed $675,325 to the Re
clamation fund. Washington contrib
uted $522,203, and Idaho $370,272.
This decline is attributed to the land
fraud investigation and prosecutions.
Morgan Still Sore on Panama.
Birmingham, Ala., Sept. 80. Senat
or John T. Morgan, of Alabama, has
written a letter to Chairman T. P.
Shonts, of the Panama Canal commis
sion, declining the invitation to accom
pany the commission. k when it leaves
New York for Panama, i The Benator
thinks nothing will be accomplished by
the trip. .
DRIFTING INTO REBELLION.
Hatred of Hungarian People for Fran
x els Joseph Grows.
London, Sept. 27. The correspond
ent of the Morning Post at Buda Pest
says:
The situation here grows worse daily.
The Radical element threatens to
Bwamp the moderate party and to hur
ry the country into irreparable action.
Public references to the dynasty are
made in a tone which it is impossible
to reproduce. The principal newspa
pers urge the formation of one great
party under Francis Kossuth. This is
supported by Kossuth, Count Apponyi
and Baron Banff y.
The Daily Telegraph's Buda Pest
correspondent says that great excite
ment prevails, accompanied by a de
termination to keep up the struggle to
the bitter end. The correspondent con
tinues :
The Independent party is believed to
have secured new adherents, while the
old Liberal party has broken up. The
partisans of Kossuth have also obtained
the upper hand in quarters which for
merly were dominated by the Social
ists. The coalition 'leaders have issued a
proclamation stating that they are de
termined to eschew all revolutionary
methods. Kossuth is quoted as saying
he believed that the king-emperor
would yet change his mind and grant
concessions to Hungary.
Both in Buda Pest and Vienna it is
realized that much depends on the out
come of the great meeting of all the
coalition parties to be held at Buda
Pest October 20, at which, it is under
stood, a plan for legislation will be
formulated.
The wildest rumors are afloat in
Buda Pest. One paper publishes a
statement that the king-emperor in
tends to resign the crown of Hungary
in favor of Prince Francis Ferdinand,
and other Bimilar unauthenticated
statements are made.
According to the concensus of the re
ports, the king-emperor has determined
to appoint a cabinet with Count Johann
Zichy at its head.
RUINS FILL MANILA.
Terrible Typhoon Sweeps Capital of
Philippine Islands.
Manila, Sept. 27. Ten thousand of
Manila's inhabitants are homeless,
more than 200 injured and six known
dead from the terrible effects of a ty
phoon which swept over the Philippine
capital late yesterday afternoon.
When the great storm struck the city
the streets were plunged into darkness.
Thousands of electric wires were blown
down and short circuited. The known
dead were killed by these live wires.
Hundreds of stone dwellings were
blown down, and two churches and
hotel unroofed. The greatest damage
occurred in the native quarters.
Traffic is suspended and the streets
are deserted. The police stations are
making an effort to feed and shelter
the homeless.
It ia believed that shipping in the
bay had warning of the approaching
storm and got out of ita course, but
there are grave fears for the safety of
many vessels.
The typhoon came to an end at 7 :30
P. M. Gangs of men are clearing the
streets and the impression prevails that
many dead will be found in the ruins
of the dwellings.
REVOLVER AND MACHETE.
Means Gomez Advocates to Followers
to Win Cuban Presidency.
Havana, Sept. 27. Judging from the
present outlook, Cuba is facing a seri
ous political disturbance, compared to
which the recent troubles will be insig
nificant. Miguel Gomez,, the Liberal party's
presidential candidate, admitting the
defeat of his party by the outcome of
Saturday's election, advises all Liberals
to abandon the political battle, saying
the, United States is backing President
Palma and the Moderates, and that the
fight is useless. The only hope for the
Liberals, he Bays, lies through the use
of the revolver and machete. -
The private secretary of Gomez has
been arrested on a charge of conspiracy
to overthrow the government.
Calls Peace Conference.
St. Petersburg, Sept. 27. It is an
nounced that the Russian representa
tives abroad were instructed on Sep
tember 21 to communicate to the gov
ernments to which they were accred
ited an invitation to a second peace
conference at The Hague. They were
further directed, in the event of accept
ance, to announce that tho Russian
government's proposal would be strict
ly practical, and that the conference
would especially and exclusively deal
with the serious questions arising out
of the late war.
Starving Cattle In Montana.
Great Falls, Mont., Sept. 27. Word
comes from the Mariads river district,
in Teton county, that there are fully
800 head of cattle in that section. They
have been out on the range since June
and have eaten everything from grass
to all kinds of brush and trees. .
ONLY NEEDS PER
Soil ol Boise and Payette Valleys
In Idaho Is Very Rich.
PART NOW UNDER CULTIVATION
Proposed Government Irrigation Pro
ject Will Increase the Arable
Acreage Four-Fold.
.Boise, Idaho, Sept. 28. October 1ft
a board of consulting engineers of .the
Reclamation service will meet here to
determine whether construction shall
be ordered upon what 1b known as the
Boise Payette project. It is confidently
expected construction will be recom
mended, as all the preliminaries have
been completed and it U known the
service is anxioua to go on with the
work.
This is one of the most important as
well aa one of the most complicated re
clamation projects under consideration.
It is of great importance because of the
large amount of land it is proposed to
reclaim, because of the fact that the
supply of water for landa which have
not a sufficient amount available for
their use ia to be re-enforced, because
of the value of the landB when supplied
with water, and because of the marked
effect it will have upon the future of
this section of the state. It is compli
cated, not so much because of engineer
ing problems, though these are inter
esting, but because of the private inter
ests that are woven through the project
in nearly all ita parts.
In the Boise and Payette valleys,
there is now irrigated about 100, 00
acres of land ; under the proposed gov
ernment system there will be nearly
400,000 acres producing crops. These
valleys are now regarded as among the
most valuable and attractive of the
West. Tbey support a large popula
tion and yield enormous crops of all
farm products, together with large- ,
quantities of fruit. The apples grown,
here are regarded aa being the equal of
those of any other section, while the
prunes stand abreast of those' of Cali
fornia and Oregon.
All fruits flourish that can be grown
in a temperate climate, and this sec
tion is looked upon as one of the most
promising orchard regions of the West.
Under these conditions the lands, whea
given water, command high prices and
yield large returns in money. It is, ,
therefore, of great importance that the
unwatered lands shall be reclaimed,
and for this reason the project has been
regarded by the reclamation officials aa
one of the most attractive that has beea
called to their attention.
FIRE AT SPOKANE.
Half a Block of Brick Buildings in
Wholesale District Burned.
Spokane, Wash., Sept. 28. A disas
trous, fire broke out in the heart of the
wholesale and shipping section of the
city at 2:35 o'clock this morning, which
completely gutted three brick build-
ings. The total fire loss will approxi
mate $250,000. V
The cause of the fire is unknown. It
broke out in the Cudaby building, '
which was filled with soap and lard,
and spread wnn great rapidity to t tie
Weeks buildings on the east. Later
the BoothefcClintock building, on
the . west corner of the block, caught
fire. The four-story brick building on
the east corner, occupied by the Spo
kane Drug company, was saved by a
fire wall.
All of the building owners who suf
fered losses in the fire, which destroyed
half a block of buildings and their con
tents, have announced their intention
of rebuilding at once, and will erect
larger and more complete structures.
Hundreds of people had personal prop
erty stored in the Pacific Transfer com
pany's building at owners' risk, and
their total losses are estimated various
ly from $5,000 to $20,000.
Work for Heney.
Washington, Sept. 28. Secretary
Hitchcock, in an , interview, said :
"After, the land-fraud cases in Oregon
have been wound up, United States At
torney Heney, who has been conducting
them, will come to Washington and
will look after the California cases in
which Hyde, Dimond and others have
been indicted. Later on there will
probably be other indictments in other
states. The, lose to the government
through these frauds has aggregated
millions of acres of land and millions
more of dollars."
Mail Service on tha Yukon.
Washington, Sept. 28. Arrange- '
mfintfl similar t.n t.hnf)A In nnorafinn i
1 i i i i '
kaav j vat uaw niuu uocu Uiauo Uc-
tween the, Postoffice department of the j
United States and Canada for the die-
inouuon or maiiB in tne Yukon dis- ;
trict. The 'contract nrovidps for a. t.ri.
weekly distribution during the closed '
kooortn - . ...... ..-