Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Lexington wheatfield. (Lexington, Or.) 1905-19?? | View Entire Issue (March 29, 1906)
OREGON STATE ITEMS OF INTEREST COMPLAIN OF GRAZING RULE. Oregon Stockmen's Grievances Are Taken Up by Senator Fulton. Washington Senator Fulton baa re ceived many letters of complaint from stockmen of Oregon, who express dis satisfaction with the manner In which the foreBt service Is managing the sum mer range in forest reserves. The eheepmen of Umatilla county feel that they have been unfairly treated in the distribution of range in the Wenaha re serve, and the sheep and cattlemen whose stock is permitted to graze in the Cascade reserve feel that they are paying too much for the privilege. So far as the Cascade reserve is concerned, the sheepmen object to paying 6 cents a head for the grazing privilege when sheep are permitted in other reserves at 4 and 5 cents each. The forest service explains that the grazing season in the Cascade reserve is longer than in the reserves where the fee is smaller. So far as the Wenaha reserve is concerned, the range has been apportioned for the coming sea son, and it is too late to bring about a readjustment. To ascertain all the facts, with the view to laying the mat ter before the forest service in its true light, Mr. Fulton has requested the stockmen of Oregon to furnish him with accurate data, that he may adjust these matters before another grazing season opens. The Dalles to Portage. The Dalles A company of local cap italists, under the name of the Colum bia Transportation company, baa bought the steamer George W. Simons from the D.. P. & B. N. Co. It will be operated between Cascade Locks and the lower terminus of the state portage toad. The boat will leave Cascade Locks at 6 o'clock in the morning and reach The Dalles at 10, making all way landings. It will lie here an hour, then run to the lower terminus of tl e portage, and returning will leave f( r Cascade Locks at 2 o'clock. It ia tl e purpose of the company in buying and operating the boat to afford people along the Columbia opportunity to make The Dalles their trading point. Many Buy Wallowa Timber. Wallowa Locators have been doing much business the past three months on account of a wild rush by local men and outsiders to secure claims in the pine, fir and tamarack forests of Wal lowa county. Sections which sold at $1.25 an acre were bought first, and only those claims remain which are in the $2.50 sections. There are but a few more claims open for location, and it is expected the locating season will be closed wfthin 30 days. Capitalists are buying much of this timber, and from individual holders claims pur chased for less than $500 are Belling at from $1,000 to 1,600 each. These carry from 1,000,000 to 8,000,000 feet to the quarter section. Enterprise Still Capital. Wallowa The Wallowa county com missioners, at their last meeting, ac cepted the offer of F D. McCully, L. Knatfoer and Aaron Wade, to build a wooden structure in Enterprise large enouirh to meet the county's require. ments for a courthouse, and to lease the same to the county for five years at an annual rental of $650. The building is to be completed by August 1. It will be of wood, but compara tively safe, as it will be equipped with a fireproof "ault. The board thus settled further controversy for five years regarding the permanent loca tion of the county seat. Fight for a County Seat. Canyon City The fight for the coun ty seat now being waged between Can yon City, the present capital, and Prairie City, long aspirant for the honor, is waxing red hot, The laws of Oregon provide that a vote must be ordered by the county court if a peti tion, signed by not less than three fifths of the registered voters, is pre sented. The promoters of the removal have organized an improvement asso ciation, and among other things have secured subscriptions amounting to $20,000 for a new courthouse. Lane Fruit is Unharmed. Eugene Dr H. F. McCormick, Lane county fruit inepector, says it is his opinion that the freezing weather of the past few days has done no material demure to the fruit in tnis vicinity. Each thaw has been accompanied by cloudy weather. Had the un shone warm ami bright each morning the crop would have been ruined. Hop Sale at Woodburn. Aurora Ed Herron, the hnpbuyer, this week bought the Joe Kennedy bop ciop of 72 hales at Woodburn. paying better than 9 cents. The hope were shipped direct to London. M. H.Gil bertson, Ulhman Bros.' agent here, went to North Yakima a few days ago to look after several big lots of hops there. CREATED AT LAST. President Sets Aside Blue Mountains for Timber Purposes. Washington President Roosevelt, on recommendation of , the forest service, has signed a proclamation creating the Blue mountain forest reserve in Eastern Oregon, to embrace 2,627,270 acres. The reserve as created follows the gen eral lines of the temporary withdrawal made three years ago, with the excep tion of 200.000 acres in the valley of the Silvies river, which has been elim inated because of the agricultural na ture of the land. Around the edge of the withdrawal small tracts of agricul tura. and school land have been elim inated and the boundaries are so drawn as to exclude all land lying along the border which has passed into private ownership under any public land laws. The original Blue mountain with drawal embraced more than 3,000,000 acres. About 500,000 acres have been left out, so . as to make the reserve a compact body of forest land. Long Winter in Wallowa. Wallowa Snow covers the entire Wallowa valley and county, varying in depth from five inches on the Imnaba and Grand Ronde river bottoms, to 17 inches on the foothills of the Joseph mountains. Stockmen are somewhat anxious concerning feed. The unusual long season will necessitate using much more hay than is customary in average winters. Though this ia a hay produc ing county, and though great crops of hay were put away last season, and much old hay was left over, it ia ex pected that there will be no surplus. Columbia County Breaks Record. Salem Columbia county breaks the record in the matter of payment of state taxes this year. State Treasurer Moore received a draft last week for $6,360, the amount of general state and school tax, and $265, the amount due for the support of the Agricultural college, from Columbia county, for the year 1906. Only half of thia amount waa due. The rest m ed not have been paid until December 31. Luckiamute Mohair Pool. Independence The Luckiamute mo hair pool has been organized at Arlie and has the following officers: Presi dent, A. C. Staats; secretary, Maurice Fowle; I. M. Simpson, A. C. Staats and Maurice Fowle were elected a board of managers. The new associ ation already has a membership of 35, representing 3,093 fleeces. It. is prob able 15 more names are to be' added to the membership soon. Cattle Bring Higher Price. Pendleton Three cars of cattle were shipped to Seattle from Pendleton a few days ago, bringing $4.50 per hun dred pounds. This ia about 1 cent a pound higher than the last shipment made. PORTLAND MARKETS. Wheat Club, 68c; bluestem, 69c; red, 66c; valley, 69c. Oats No. 1 white feed, $27.50; gray, $27 per ton. Barley Feed, $23.5024 per ton; brewing, $2424.50; rolled, $24.50 25.50. . . Buckwheat $2.25 per cental. Hay Eastern Oregon timothy, $17 18 per ton; valley timothy, $8 9; clover, $7.508; cheat, $67; grain hay, $78. ApploB $1.502.75 por box. Vegetables Asparagus, 8)9cper pound: cabbage, lJQlc per pound; cauliflower, 422. 25 per crate; celery, 7590c per dozen ;' rhubarb, $1.50 per box; sprouts, t)(310c per pound; turnips, $11 25 per sack; carrots, 657oc per sacK; beets, 8oc$l per sack. Onions No. 1, 7590c per Back; No. 2, nominal. Potatoes Fancy gradsd Burbanks, 5055c per hundred; ordinary, nomi nal; sweet potatoes, 2424C per pound. q Butter Fancy creamery, 2730c per pound. Ezgs Uregon rancn, lbc per dozen Poultry Average old hens, 1414)a per pound; mixed chickens, 1313)c broilers, 2829c; young roosters, 13 13c; old roosters, 11c dressed chickens, 1516c; turkeys live, 1617c; turkeys, dressed, cuoice, 1820c; geese, live, 89c; geese, dressfid, 10llc; ducks, 1618c. Hops Oregon, 1905, choice, 10 10c per pound; prime, 89)c; medium, 78c; olds 57c. Wool Eastern Oregon average best, 162lc per pound; valley, 2426c; mohair, choice, 2528c. Veal Drecsed, 368c per pound. Beef Dressed bulls, 23c per pound: cowb, Z 4)c; country steers, 45c. Mutton Dressed, fancy, 89c pe,r pound; ordinary, 45c; lambs, 8 Pork Dressed, 66c per pound. CUT AWAY THE RED TAPE. Purpose of Bill Regulating National Reclamation Work. Washington, March 20. In its gen eral operation, the National reclama tion law has proven quite as effective as its framera expected; indeed, the gen eral work of national irrigation ia pro gressing satisfactorily. In the admin istration of the Reclamation service, however, there has been aome slight friction which baa resulted in delays that have been bothersome, if nothing more. No one can realize thia more than the chief of the Reclamation service, Mr. Newell, and the director of the ! Geological survey, Mr. Walcott. To obviate theae ' delays, the reclamation authoritiea have explained the situa tion to the president and he has ap proved their recommendations and at the joint request of these officials a bill has been introduced in congress which will, if enacted, prove of very material benefit to the Reclamation service. Most of the friction and delay com plained of ia the result of red tape that exists between the Reclamation office and the Interior department proper. Their dealings are not direct, and in the roundabout course they follow many delays are likely to occur. The bill that baa been laid before the bouse by Representative Cooper does away with thia red tape by providing a more direct meana of communication, at the same time giving the Reclamation ser vice more leeway. The director of the geological survey ia made the director of the Reclamation service and be goes ahead with his plana, merely submit ting them to the secretary for approval and not for reveiw. Another important change is made by the bill in the matter of apportion ing and expending money for reclama tion worka. At present this money ia entirely under the control of the secre tary. At thia time there is a very strong sentiment in congress against allowing cabinet officers to handle such funds in a free manner; and the ten dency is to restrict lump appropriations and stipulate the various purposes for which the money is to be used. The Cooper bill permits the Reclamation service to send to congress each year a statement of the expenditures which it proposes to make during the following 12 months, so that congress shall spe cifically authorize the various expendi tures. Thus, while the Reclamation service will retain the right to say how the funds shall be apportioned, their findings are always subject to the ap proval of congress. Notwithstanding this bill ia approved in its entirity by Presidnet Roosevelt and by the bouse leaders. Repreeenta tive Mondell, of Wyoming, chairman of the irrigation committee, saya it is faulty and baa asked permission to make certain amendments. GREAT TRADE WITH EUROPE. Our Exports Passed the Billion-Dollar Mark in 1905. Washington, March 20. Europe takes two-thirds of the exports of the United States and supplies practically one-half of the imports, says a bulletin issued by the Department of Com merce and Labor. Of the $1,021,000,' 000 worth of merchandise Bent to Eu rope in 1905, $Z39,uuu,uuo was manu factures, the other $782,000,000 worth being largely foodstuffs and manufac turers' material. In 1900 the exports to Europe crossed the $1,000,000,000 line, and since then have averaged about $1,050, uuu,uuu per annum, in lauu the ex ports to all sections oi the world other than Europe were $354,000,000 in value; in 1905 they were $498, 000, 000, the. growth since 1900 in epxorts to the non-European countries having been proportionately greater than to Europe. Prior to 1890,fthe share of the im ports drawn from Europe averaged about 55 per cent; in 1905, it was 48 4 per cent. This reduction, the bulletin says, ia apparently accounted for by the growing demand in the United States for tropical and subtropical pro ducts, which are supplied almost ex clusively by the other grand divisions of the world. The value of these pro ducts into the United States in 1905 was $508,000,000, against $303,000, 000 in 1895. Crushed With Iron Hand. Sukhum, Transcaucasia, March 20. The manner in which General Ali kanboff has crushed the revolution in the government of Kutaia by razing towns, executing ringleadera of the movement and driving sympathizers with it to the mountains, has produced such resentment that acts of terror and the throwing of bomba at the troops are frequent. General Alikanhoff has proclaimed and is enforcing martial law with terrible vigor and revolution aries and other pesrons caught with arms are immediately shot. Pest In Eastern Persia. Askabad, Russia, March 20. News received here from Beistan, in Eastern Persia, Bays that a pest is spreading, that the populace is becoming panic stricken and that many persons are fleeing. GIFTS ARE ILLEGAL Opinion of Judge In New York Insurance Investigation. JEROME ASKS FOR WARRANTS If Intent Was to Defraud. Perkins Committed Larceny, Says the District Attorney. New York,'LMarch 24. If the grand jury wnicn ia investigating some of the conditiona developed by the recent. legislative investigation reaches the conclusion that contributions of in- rance company funds to political campaign committeea were made with intent to defraud the true owner of this property, it must find that larceny has been committed. This opinion was expressed today by Justice O'Sul livan in the Court of GeneraUSessiona, in answer to a presentment on the sub ject submitted to him by the grand jury. Judge O'Sullivan added that it is not within the province of the court to say whether or not there was such intent. That is a question which the jurors must determine for themselves from all the facta and circumstances in the case. He charged the jury to make a thorough investigation into all the facta and to place the responsibility for such crimes, if theyfind that crimes were committed. Mr. Jerome waa in court today and, when Judge O'Sullivan bad delivered his opinion, the district attorney asked the jury to remain, aa he desired to ad dress it upon the subject in question. He declared that Judge O'Sullivan had misconceived the subject which he had considered, and that, if the court held to its opinion, it would be the duty of the grand jury to return indictments against George W. Perkins, ex-vice president of the New York Life Insur ance company, for larceny, and against George B. Cortelyou, chairman, and Cornelius N. Bliss, treasurer, of the Republican National committee, aa re ceivers of stolen goods. GOVERNMENT MAY APPEAL. Wants to Punish Officers of the Beef Trust with Corporations. Washington, March 24. President Roosevelt held an extended conference today with Attorney General Moody, Secretary Taft and James R Garfield, commissioner of corporations, concern ing the adverse decision rendered ii Chicago by Judge Humphreys in the beef packers' case. ' No details of the conference were obtainable at the white bouse, but it is certain the at torney general proposes to look care fully into the law bearing upon the matter, with a view of ascertaining whether an appeal from the decision of Juige Humphrey by the government will He. Despite the decision relieving the individual officers of the packing cor porations prosecution will continue, of course, but it was the desire of the government to place responsibility for the violations of the law upon offi cials of the corporationa where they are found to be guilty of such viola tions. In such efforts as may be made by the attorney general and other offi cials of the department of Justice to secure an appeal from the decision of Judge Humphrey, this point will be kept to the front. It could not be . de cided at the conference today whether an appeal from the decision would lie, but that question will be gone over carefully, and if, in the opinion of the law officers of the government, a foun dation for an appeal can be made, it will be taken. States Should Interfere. Chicago, March 24. The committee appointed in Chicago last February at the conference of governors, attorney generals and insurance commissioners, with instructions to prepare a form of laws for better regulation of life insur ance companies, with a view to their ultimate adoption in several states, concluded its deliberations tonight and adjourned after declaring itself in favor of interference by the Btates in the in ternal affairs of the insurance com panies and in favor of a standard form of policy. Test of Battleship New Jersey. Quincy, Mass., March 24. The bat tleship New Jersey, constructed for the government by the Fore River Ship building company", left today for an unofficial test of ber engines. The official trip will be held on March 28 or 29, when she will be required to make 19 knots an hour. HAS NOT THE POWER Congrees Cannot Control Life Insurance Affairs. OPINION OF HOUSE COMMITTEE Are Unanimous That the Decisions of the Supreme Court Are Against Federal Control. Washington, March 22. That there is no constitutional authority for Fed eral control of insurance or other state corporationa other than railroads ia to be the conclusion reported to the house by the judiciary committee. The re port has been drafted by Chairman Jenkins, of the committee, and is now in the hands of members of the com mittee for their perusal. An unofficial poll of the members indicates that with practically no exceptions they concur in the correctness of this conclusion. The report collates all the important court decisions on the matter involved, treats each exhaustively and reduces the whole problem to these two prin ciples: First The Supreme court of the United States has declared and has never been shaken or weakened in maintaining, first, that insurance ia not commerce, and second, that congress cannot impair the police powera of the states. Second The advocates of Federal regulation concede, according to the re port, that insurance is not commerce. The report sets forth s set ion 8 of ar ticle 1 of the constitution aa conferring the only power possessed by congress to regulate commerce. PACKERS ESCAPE LAW. Judge Gives Immunity to Individuals But Not Corporations. Chicago, March 22. All of the pack- era who were indicted by the federal grand jury last summer upon chargea of being in conspiracy in restraint of trade and commerce were today granted immunity from criminal prosecution under the indictment. While the in dividuals are to go free, the indict ments found against the corporations, of which some of the indicted indi viduals are Members and others are employes, are to stand. The decision to the above effect was handed down thia afternoon by Judge J. Otis Humphrey, in the United States District Court. Immediately following the dismissal of the jury, District Attorney Morrison raised the question of the date for the trial of the corporations. He asked that the case be Bet for trial and that it commence within two weeks.' Thia met with a storm of protest from the attorneys for the packers, who insisted that they would be unable to prepare for the case before the fall of thia year, pleading the number of witnesses whom it would be necessary to bring to Chi cago, the strain of the present trial, and various other reasons. After some discussion, Judge Humphrey directed that the lawyers agree among them selves upon a date and notify him of their decision next week. BUY OUT GREAT LAND OWNERS. Kutler Proposes to Divide the Land Among Peasant Proprietors. St. Petersburg, March 22. M. Kut ler, ex- minister of agiiculture and now candidate of the Constitutional Demo crats for election to the lower house of the national parliament, today began publication of an interesting series of articles on the agrarian question. He says the only solution of the problem, which ia a most crying issue before Russia, ia the expropriation of the land of the big proprietors for the ben efit of the peasants, who, he contends, have a moral right to the land, much of which was stolen from their ances tors by the Boyars when the latter re duced them to slavery. Pattison's Case Serious. Columbus, O.,' March 22. Governor Pattison's illness took a serious turn today, and his physicians were at his bedside until midnight Dr. Wilson said that the governor was quite ill to day, after having spent a very bad night, but that he was resting more comfortably tonight. There had been an increase .of pain, which had raised trTe patient's fever to 103 degrees. Dr. Wilson declared that there was no dan ger when he left the governor's bed side, although the governor ia a very sick man. Gross Earnings Tax Invalid. Austin, Tex., March 22. The Court of Appeals ot this, the Third district, today declared unconstitutional the law passed at the last regular session of the Texaa legisslature assessing a special 2 per cent tax on the gross earnings of all railroads.