Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Lexington wheatfield. (Lexington, Or.) 1905-19?? | View Entire Issue (Nov. 22, 1906)
LEXIN6T0N WHEATFIELD S. A. THOMAS, Publbher LEXINGTON OREGON NEWS (FTP WEEK In a Condensed Form for Our Busy Headers. A Returns of the Lass Important but Not Less Interesting Events i of the Past Week. MUCH DAMAGE REPORTED. Idaho people will ask Federal aid to relieve the coal shortage. Governor Magoon, of Cuba, denies that he is dissatisfied with his position A big dock fire at Naplse destroyed property valued at nearly $1,000,000 Mrs. Maud Creffield has been found dead in her cell at Seattle from heart - failuie. Statndard Oil stock has gone dow rapidly on account of the government inquiry. The San Francisco grand jury is still probing into the alleged stealing of re lief funds. Harriman and Gould may be indict' ed by a grand jury at Salt Lake in the coal inquiry. President Penna in his inauguration at Rio Janeiro advocated increased armament for Brazil. Thomas C. Piatt is said to have made out his resignation as United States senator from New York. Citizens of Honolulu have subscribed money to return the Royal Hawaiain band members to their homes. The trial of the sugart rust, charged with accepting rebates, has begun in the United States Circuit court in New York. President Roosevelt is seeing the inacal at its worst, as he desired. A pouring rain has fallen since his arriv al on the isthmus. The government has begun a suit to dissolve the Standard Oil company. a fcan a rancisco grand lury has in dicted Ruef and Schmitz for extortion. A civil war among the Moqui Indiana in New Mexico has been suppressed by cavalry. Both pacrties in Colorado are re solved to work for the repeal of woman suffrage. The" Southern .Pacific will add a third through train between Portland and San Francisco. The high water wrecked the ware house of the Western Idaho Sugar com pany at Nampa. Two were killed and two others are dying as a result of a battle with rob bers in San Francisco. Japanl has just launched a battleship of 19,000 tons. It is equal and perhaps superior to anything afloat. Three Americans and six Mexicans were killed by a premature explosion of dynamite at Douglas, Arizona. Finland authorities have seized about 6,000 rifles and 118,000 cartridges in tended for Russian revolutionists. All railroads in the United States are i ready to give employes a raise of 10 per cent in order to prevent trouble at the present time. President Roosevelt has nearly reached Panama. Floods In Oregon and Washington Destroy Homes and Bridges. Castle Rock. Wash.. Nov. 16. The Cowlitz river has become a raging tor rent, carrying houses, burns, logs and other drift down in the flood. Many families are homeless and have save but few belongings from tlioir ruine homes and are temporarily quartere with friends on higher ground. The Northern Pacific bridge across the Cow litz at Olequa is washed out. The town of Castle Rock is in a state of chaos. Electric lights are out be- cause of the flood. The town marshal has closed the saloons to add to the public safety. The people are meeting the situation in a philosophic way and are not becoming panic stricken. North Yakima, Wash., Nov. 16. After falling slightly the Yakima and Naches rivers are again rising and the damage to property of all kinds growing worse. All communication with the outside bv rail is cut off Every county bridge in the valley under water and the city is isolated from the surrounding country. The fears of the poeple are that the Naches river may change its course and come down the old river bed to the west of the city. If this happens the damage will be inestimable, as the best fruit orchards and some of the hn est homes in the valley lie direct in its course. Wenatehee, Wash., Nov. 16. The flood still rages unabated. Added to the destruction by the rain and water. the wind is blowing. The damage done by the flood between Cashmere and Wenatehee, in the Wenatehee valley cannot be estimated at the present time, but it will be heavy. The We natehee and the Columbia rivers are higher than they have ever been before The former is eight inches higher than its former record. Portland, Nov. 16. Streams through out the state which have been swollen by the recent rain storms and the Chi' nook wind in the mountains are thought to have reached their highest point. Some have commenced to fall and the Willamette was stationary last night, It is probable that the river at Port land will commence to fall today. Ex cept along the lower Columbia, the danger from high water is thought to be over in Oregon. RELIEF FUND IS LOOTED. Witte has returned to Russia and Will visit the czar. Attorney General Moody has ordered a rigid enforcement of the eight-hour law. It is probable a force of 1,000 ma fines will be kept in Cuba for some time. Philadelphia Jews will honor the late John Hay by placing a memorial window in their synagogue. The Chicago city attorney accuses the Pullman company of bribing judges, congressmen and other officials. A desperate battle with knives be tween soldiers at Cheyenne to settle an old fued placed five men in the hospital. The fortieth annual session of the National Grange, held at Denver, de clared for parcels post and national good roads. A desperate negro at Asheville, N. C, shot and killed four men in a suc cessful attempt to escape arrest. Arm ed men are searching for him. Secretary Metcalf has expressed the opinion that the treaty between the United States and Japan guarantees education to Japanese children in our public schools without discrimination. Cuban liberals are divided on ac count of friendship with America. A new plague baa caused 12 deaths in a small Texas town, and doctors are unable to control it. It is reported that King Alfonso cf Spain has been assassinated, bat the repjrt cannot be verified. Money Sent Mayor Schmitz Is Not Accounted For. San Francisco, Nov. 16. The Chron icle says today: A new investigation is progressing in the course of developments in the local graft scandal. It now appears that many sums of money, large and small, that were sent from different states to San Francisco for the relief of the suf ferers from the calamity never reached the relief committee. Some of these amounts, which aggregated a large i, were mailed to the care of Mayor Schmitz. F. J. Heney, Detective Wil liam Bums and about 100 government agents have been making an investiga tion, rresiaent itooseveit is the mov ing spirit behind the inquiry, and he declares that no man guilty of diverting the relief funds shall escape justice. The cases come within the jurisdic tion of the Federal authorities because of the interstate character of the postal service, which, it is alleged, was crim inally tampered with. A considerable sum of money was al so sens mrougn uie express companies and Wells-Fargo, which companies are now investigating the disappearance of $10,580 sent in one package from the citizens of Searchlight, Nev., which the relief committee says it never received, and which the company says was deliv? ered to the representative of the com mittee to whom it was addressed. The crime of forgery is said to be included in the offense of the raiders of the re lief contributions. It is said that in the aggregate the stealings will amount to $1,000,000. New Zealand Favors Canada. Ottawa, Ont., Nov. 16. The Canadi an commission reports that substantial preferences are given to Canadian goods over those of the United States in the new tariff adopted by New Zealand. On many classes the tariff on United btates goods will be 20 or 30 per cent above that on Canadian goods. On bi cycles, gas and oil engines, gum boots, printing paper, railways and tramways, sail cloth, canvas, surgical and dental instruments United States products will be taxed a duty of 20 per cent while the Canadian products will enter free. v Total Wealth of United States. Washington, Nov. 16. The total wealth of the country in 1904 was $106,881,415,000, according to figures issued by the census bureau today. In 1890 the total wealth was $65,037,091, 197 j in 1900, $88,528,348,798. DAMAGE ENORMOU Loss From Flood On Puget Sound Over $1,000,000. CROPS IN GROUND ARE RUINED Railroads Lose Most Heavily and th Farmers Come Next Lumber men Lose Logs and Bolts. Seattle, Wash., Nov. 17. The floods in the great, river valleys south of Seat tie, at their height yesterday morning, are today subsiding. In the central part of the White River country about the towns of Kent and Auburn, dry land is appearing and the people, driv en to the surrounding high land for refuge, are returning to their homes The outpouring waters maintain a higl level, at the mouth of the Duwamish on the north and the mouth of the Puy anup on the south where they are backed up by the tido. The property loss will be heavy probably exceeding $1,000,000. The destruction of the Northern Pacific rail way grades and trackage involves a loss of $300,000. The Interurban elec tric road between Seattle and Tacoma will have to spend $100,000 for re pairs, arid the individual losses of farm era and dairymen. make up the remain der. The loss of live stock is not as heavy as at first feared, being probably within $50,000. The loss on crops still in ground and in cellars and barns is about $300,000. Hundreds of houses and barns were swept from their foundations, but com paratively few were actually broken up or carried any great distance. The damage to furnishings in homes and merchandise in stores by the water formed the heaviest item of loss. Floods in the White, Green and Stuck River valleys are subsiding rap idly, but the Duwamish river, whose waters empty into Puget sound at this place, is a mighty lake, four miles wide by ' 12 in length, backed up and held in leash by the tide from the sound. When that goes out late to night, great havoc is looked for from the pent-up waters. , A similar condi tion exists at the mouth of the Puyal lup at Tacoma. The floods found the city already short of coal and temporarily cut off from access to all ' sources of supply, The great water power plants of the company providing electric power and light were flooded out of use, and the street car and lighting service of the city depends on the meager supply of coal in the local bins of the big companies. So far as known, but five deaths di rectly attributable to the floods have occurred north of the Stuck river. These were F. W. Kallmer, a logger of Auburn, Pat Clance and John Viele, ranchers of Orillia, and two loggers whose names are unknown. None of the bodies have yet been recovered. From Tacoma come rumors of several deaths near the mouth of the Puyallup, but the reports are so far unverified. GRABBING UP OIL LAND. Federal Authorities Take Cognizance of Action of Standard OH San Francisco, Nov. 14. The Call today says: It became known in Fed eral circles yesterday that recent loca tions of land in Kern county by agents of tho Standard Oil company have been made the subject of investigation by government officials. As a result it is assorted indictments will follow. The land was taken up by the petroleum combine, ostensibly for the gypsum do posits, but in reality for oil purposes That the character of the land had been carefully studied is shown by the fact that a flowing oil well has already been developed. The inquiry is being made throng! ihe ofiice of United States Attorney Devlin, of San Francisco. Federal agents have been at work for several weeks in Kern county. From thei preliminary reports it is beileved that the manner in which the land was se cured will warrant indictments on the part of the Federal grand jury. The information secured by these agents will be placed in the hands United States Attorney Robert T. Dev lin, who in turn will forward it to Washington to the attorney general of SELL NO MORE ALASKA COAL. Government Stops Sale Pending Ac tion on Leasing Bill, Washington, Nov. 14. The secretary of the interior today issued a general order withdrawing from entry all pub he coal lands in Alaska. How much land it affected no one knows ; indeed, no specific tracts could be withdrawn, as Alaska is still unsurveyed and the extent of its coal deposits unknown. But this general order will shut off all entries of land known to contain coal n is issued in line with the policy re- ceently adopted in the states, and will prevent wealthy corporations from cor nering Alaska's coal resources. It is probable that further efforts will be made to secure legislation re pealing the coal land law and substi tuting a law which authorizes the gov eminent to lease its coal lands. A tract of 1,700 acres north of Val- dez, Alaska, lying on the glacial flats below the Valdez glacier, has been set apart as a rifle range for the use of troops at Fort Liscum. " PLANTERS SHORT OF LABOR, to FINISH SOUTH JETTY. Chief Engineer Mackenzie Recom mends Continuing Contract. Washington, Nov. 17. In his esti mates submitted to the secretary of Avar, General Mackenzie, chief of en gineers, asks for an appropriation of $1,000,000 for the Columbia river jetty his annual report, however, he points out the necessity for continuous work on the jetty until it is completed, He says that, in addition to the $1, 000,000 appropriated, congress should authorize a continuing contract to the extent of $1,450,000 additional. He estimates that $2,000,000 will com plete the south jetty. " If General Mackenzie s recommenda tion is carried out. $1,000,000 will be inserted in the river and harbor bill this winter and the remaining $1,450, 000 will be carried in the Bundry civil bill passed at the first session of the next congress. ' ' Send Immigrants South. Washington. Nov. 17. The recent arrival at Charleston, S. C, of an im igrant ship carrying more than 1,000 immigratnts, marks a new era for the whole South. The labor problem has been a very serious one in the South, and the attention of the people of that section has been for some time directed toward inducing immigration. Not alone as laborers are immigrants want ed; hundreds of thousands of tillable acres have been left uncultivated that make one of the richest agricultural sections of the world. Terrorists Rob Railroad Safe. Warsaw, Nov; 17. A band of terror ists attacked the Vistula railroad depot at Suchedniow this morning, killed a gendarme, blew open the safe and es caped with a small sum of money, marching off in military order. Cos sacks are pursuing them. ' Cuban Sugar Men Ask Maeoon Aid Immigration. Havana, Nov. 14. Certain members of the Agrarian league, which is com posed of prominent planters, accom panied by a number of steamship agents, held a conference with Gover nor Magoon today on the question of the probable scarcity of labor in the handling of the maturing sugar crop. The planters urged the necessitv of making use of the $1,000,000 appro priated by the late Cuban congress for the stimulation of immigration, and pointed out that Cuba was suffering severely Irom the competition of other nations seeking immigration and the importation of labor to Panama. The next sugar crop promises to be very large, and the planters expressed grave tears that the present labor sup ply would be insufficient to handle it, The governor arranged to hold fur ther conferences with the planters. FLOODS NORTH White, Stuck and Green Rivers Drive Farmers From Homes. SMALLER TOWNS UNDER WATER Northern Pacific and Great Northern Railroads Tied Up Three Lives Are Lost. Seattle, Nov. 15. Floods in the White, Stuck and Green rivers, which began Tuesday night, have swept away miles of railroad trackage, inundated all the valley towns, rendered hundreds of farmers homeless and cost three lives up to date. Until the Western Union last night succeeded in getting a wire to Portland, Seattle was entirely cut off from tho outside world by either railroad or telegraph lines. The tele phone company kept up two lines, but this was the only means of communica tion Seattlo has had. The three men lost in the floods were drowned while fighting to break up log jams that threatened ruilroad and coun ty bridges. It will be two weeks before tho Northern Pacific is able to resume reg ular train operations. The Great Northern is tied up for a shorter per iod, for trouble on that road is duo to an avalanche of mud that swept out a portion of track. Auburn, Kent. O'Brien. Renton. Oriellia and half a dozen smaller towns in the valleys of three rivers are under water. Residents of O'Brien were compelled to abandon their homos and flee to the hills. At Kent a raging tor rent is running through the town un.l Auburn will suffer extensive damages unless the waters recede immediatelv. The 50 employes of the D( ton Clay works plant at Renton were cut off by the flood and had to remain cooped up in the warehouse Could be rescued by boats. FOR RIVERS AND HARBORS. Nearly Twenty Missing. La Porte, Ind., Nov. 14. Coroner Carson has rceeived no complete list of the dead and missing in the wreck of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad. The lits contains 30 names, and it is believ ed nearly 20 are yet to be obtained. It will be several days before the coroner can return a verdict. The freight crew insists that the first section carried nc lights, but the train sheet of the oper- . A CI 1 . ... awr ai ouman indicates that green lights were displayed. As the charred bodies are taken from the wreck thev are being labeled and sent to the under takers. . Allows No Silver Exports. Lima, Peru, Nov. 14. Although there exists no law to the contrary, the government today refused to allow a local firm of bankers to ship 12,000 sil ver sols (about $60,000) to London. Furthermore, the authorities are search ing the baggage of passengers leaving tne country, and all silver coin in ex cess of 10 sols is being seized. The price of silver in Peru is advancing. and the ministry of finance has been in conference with local bankers, finan ciers, merchants and members of con gress to discuss action in the premises. More Beers on Warpath. Cape Town, Nov. 14. According to the latest information received here, the colony has been invaded bv two new parties of Boer freebooters in addi tion to the men operating under Fer reira. The police have had an ineffect ual brush with the Ferrerai party. Great National Agitation to lmnMu. Waterways Everywhere. A sational congress of American i. mercial bodies interested in the dnvi-l- opment of internal waterways and har bor improvements will meet in Wash ington on the sixth and seventh of n- cember. Oregon will be by a delegation from tho Port.hin.l chamber of commerce. The purpose of the congress in mum. ly to prevail upon the United Ktut authorities to pass a , measure calling for an appropriation of fiftv millions annually for river and harbor improve ment. Even should such a measure pass it would still be but a fraction nf what other great nations are expending annually upon their waterways. The movement is a national expression nf the knowledge that water competition is the one great cheapener of railroad freight rates railways that compete with rivers for traffic do not nav ex travagant dividends upon watered stock. In those sections of the country wherein the railroads are compelled to carry freight in competition with river craft the rates are from one-third to-one-sixth of those ruling where water competition is not a factor. It is told of a cotton section in Texas that the canalizing of a very insignificant stream so as to be available for flat bottomed canal boats, lowered the freight rates so radically as to make a saving to a small community of three .million dol lars annually. As a matter of fact, th. canalized stream carried but a small percentage of the traffic upon which this large saving was effected, but the fact that the stream was available for- traffic compelled the railways to meet the water competition. Ihe Rivers and Harbors com?, will discuss the improvement of the Oregon and Washington waterways and the removal of obstructing bars at the entrances of the harbors and will seek to impress upon the congress of the na tion the importance of these improve ments to the farming and mercantiln- population. Commend Teaching System. New York, Nov. 15. After two dn vs" inspection, the English teachers whrv came here to study United States mt,h- ods of education have discovered several good ideas which they intend to sug gest to the authorities in England They like our system of medical inspec tion, our law which requires children between the ages of 14 and 15 attend evening schools if they work in the daytime, our discipline, which ihv all describe as "easv." and cm-tnin features of our kindergarten work. More teachers will arrive this week. General William G. Ely. Norwich, Conn.. Nov. 1 fi. TJpTiPrn 1 William G. Ely died suddenly at his home here last night of heart trouble. He commanded the Eighteenth Connec ticut volunteers in the Civil war, and was brevetted brigadier general at ita viose.