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The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, December 10, 1912, Image 6

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TUESDAY
MORE THAN MONEY IS
AT STAKE IN OIL SUIT
THE amount at issue in the oil land suit of the federal govern
ment against the Southern Pacific company, computed at
51,000.000.000. baffles the imagination, as did the huge fine
imposed upon the Standard Oil company. In the Standard Oil case
the public was appalled at the idea that any corporation could com
mit a penal offense measured in millions. Xow the public is stunned
by the possibility that one corporation could illegally hold property
to the value of $1,000,000,000. The national debt of the Cnited States
is approximately that sum.
This great area of land in California is claimed by the United j
States on the ground that when the railroad 'company was granted
land by congress as a bounty the corporation was not to take mineral
bearing land, but violated that restriction. The government, in the
good natured way of forty years ago, let the railroad select its own
land, the department of the interior making no examination of the
acres appropriated. There was a clause in the permit specifically
excluding all mineral lands, except iron and coal land, that might be
included in the terms of the grant.
Xow the United States government is aroused to the fact that
mineral land was secured by the Southern Pacific, and the suit is to
be prosecuted to recover from the company the sections illegally
held. The theory upon which the government will present its case
is that mineral lands located by the Southern Pacific could never
have been patented, could never have left the possession of the
United States.
To add $1,000,000,000 worth of oil bearing land to the public
domain would be a stupendous act, but there is something at stake
more important than the mere value of the land, and that is the expo
sition of the principle that the United States is sovereign; that its
right to honest treatment from corporations and individuals is para
mount ; that the people of the United States have decreed a .new
order in this land—a reign of law for the benefit of all the people.
It is a vindication of modern governmental methods that the
action against the railroad corporation is to be brought. It means
that in Washington the political bromide that "a public office is a
public trust" is being given the acid test.
Mayor Rolph Brings Reassurance
Regarding Hetch Hetchy Permit
SAN FRANCISCO welcomes Mayor Rolph home again and
rejoices in the expression of his confidence that the city will
secure from the federal government a permit to use the waters
of the Hetch Hetchy watershed for its municipal supply.
The mayor has not hazarded a guess on what Secretary Fisher's
decision will be, but he is not reluctant to express his confidence in
the fairness of the secretary of the interior and his belief that San
Francisco's claim to the Hetch Hetchy is a substantial one.
It is not the purpose of The Call to arouse false hopes as to the
outcome of San Francisco's fight, but the facts, as presented at the
Washington hearing and as informally reported by Mayor Rolph in
interviews, promise a favorable decision. The course of the city's
executive in declaring the fairness of Secretary Fisher's investiga
tion is reassuring.
The secretary's position that San Francisco should first secure
the Spring yalley plant before it gets the Hetch Hetchy permit is in
keeping with the expressed intention of the city, but San Francisco
does not intend to stand for Spring Valley extortion, and Secretary
Fisher has repeatedly stated that he will not permit the city to be
"held up." Any advantage in the negotiations, he has held, should
be with the city. That is all the city can expect. In embarking upon
public service enterprises the municipality must assume the attitude
of a business corporation, with the advantage that it is the city itself
that through the efforts of its population has created the great value
of public service corporation property, and that the municipality
must not be unduly penalized for creating that value. The advan
tage of all negotiations must lie with the city.
That the city must secure Spring Valley does not mean that
after this plant is secured it is not to have Hetch Hetchy. Our need
for Hetch Hetchy's waters is as great with Spring Valley as without
it. for Spring Valley's system alone can not supply San Francisco
with an adequate amount of pure water.
"Syndicate Baseball" a Menace to the
Game on the Pacific Coast
THE disturbance in the affairs of the Oakland Baseball club
between E. N, Walter, who has resigned as president, and Cal
Ewing, who has not resigned as anything, may be personal in
its origin, as Ewing declares. But whatever is responsible for Wal
ter leaving the club, the criticism he has to make of Ewing's anom
alous position in the Pacific Coast league is unanswerable.
Concerning Ewing's dual activity in the baseball field Wal
ter said:
I have always been against syndicate baseball, and it is well known
that J. Cal Ewing holds a big interest in the Oaks and also controls the
stock of the San Franci-sco club with Frank Ish. Syndicate baseball is
one of the most harmful things that can happen to our national pastime.
With one man owning two or more clubs, it does away to a marked
degree with the that should result when baseball teams of
rival.towns clash on the diamond.
Whatever Ewrag may say of Walter's motives, the fact remains
ihat Ewing controls the San Francisco and the Oakland Baseball
clubs, that he has formed a combination in restraint of good baseball
and hostile to the interests of the sport on this coast. The sorry
showing of the San Francisco club last season proved the pernicious
influence of the Ewing combination. Ewing and the other leaders
of Pacific coast baseball must know that the public doesn't have to
attend baseball games, and won't unless it is assured good, fair sport-
Judge Archbald was a justice of the king's bench—old King
Coal's.
Constantinople May Finally Be Restored
To the Greeks
THE hand of Russia is distinctly visible, to tliose "in the know,*'
in the unexpected attitude of Greece in the matter of the peace
negotiations now in progress between Turkey and the other
Balkan allies. This attitude is shown by the refusal of Greece to
participate in the negotiations and her continuance of the war on
her own hook.
The explanation is found by examining the relations between
Russia and Greece. Russia favors Greece, not only because the
queen of Greece is a Russian Romanoff, but because Russia and
Greece have religious sympathies, and, what is of paramount impor
tance, Russia, knowing that the rest of Europe, particularly England,
will never permit her to possess Constantinople, wants that key to
the Mediterranean in the /fcands of a friendly power.
The indications are that Russia favors the restoration of Con
EDITORIAL PAGE OF THE CALL
stantinople to Greece, the nation to which both the city and the
contiguous territory belonged centuries ago. The most interesting
feature of this proposition is that the other allies do not seem to
object to it at all. Even Bulgaria, whose armies have swept down
almost to the gates of Constantinople, seems to acquiesce. That
something of the sort has been long premeditated is suggested by
the fact that to Greece, the only one of the allies possessing a navy
at the present time, was given the task of advancing along the sea
coast and taking the seaport of Salonica. From there to Constanti
nople, reducing the fortifications of tfie Dardanelles, would be the
natural sequence of the early campaign.
Still further, it is to be remembered that Bulgaria has more
than once made it known, at least tacitly, that she does not want
Constantinople, but would be willing to have that city left to the
Turk. Of course, this seems most magnanimous, until the scheme
of Jetting Greece have Constantinople is proposed. The scheme, as
now appears, is to let Greece have Constantinople, if she can get it,
the other allies meanwhile keeping their hands off and Greece not
entering into the peace negotiations until she has at least had a try
at the city's capture.
Greece really has more right to Constantinople than any of the
other allies, for it was originally hers. It was the seat of the Greek
empire and the birthplace of the Greek Catholic religion, the national
religion not only of Greece, but of Russia at the present day.
History is being made rapidly in the Levant at this time, and
some of it is being remade. The Greek flag flying from the Dolma-
Bagtche palace would be but right and natural; at least, so the
Russians think, and even, perhaps, the other allies.
Lesson for San Francisco in New York's
Harbor Predicament
NEW YORK CITY, the greatest harbor in the western world in
magnitude of commerce, finds itself in a curious position of
peril. Its harbor basin is not wide enough to handle its ship
ping; the commerce carriers have outgrown the New York docks,
and extension of the piers into the Hudson river to accommodate
the great 1,000 foot Atlantic liners has been refused by the secretary
of war. The objection to the extension was that it would interfere
with navigation on the river.
The secretary of war furthermore refused to permit New York
city to make temporary extensions, taking the ground that the time
had come for putting an end to temporary makeshifts; that if New
York city desired to retain its commercial position it must make
permanent provision for the accommodation of the great liners,
which are an important part of its shipping.
The Outlook, commenting on the situation, says: "New York
merchants will not retain for the city her commercial supremacy
unless they succeed in keeping her abreast of the commercial prog
ress of the age and it ought not be impossible for an
efficient city administration so to put the necessity of action before
the people as to turn apathy and indifference into interest and
purpose." ,
It has been proposed by a committee of the board of aldermen
of New York that eight docks, each 1,000 feet long, be built on the
Hudson, cutting inshore as far as needed. "This," it is indicated by
the Outlook, "would be enormously expensive, but the committee
believes that the importance of the undertaking to the city would
justify the cost.' .
In New York's predicament San Francisco can find a lesson.
This city's harbor, under state control, has been developed, not to
anticipate commerce's requirements, but sluggishly, keeping ever
behind the procession. Our hour of commercial development is at
hand—if we are prepared for it. Can we expect the best efforts from
a state legislature, where coalitions may be formed against this port
and in the interest of other independent ports of the state? There
is little hope for intelligent altruism and co-operation.
However the harbor is developed to meet the canal commerce,
it must be improved with an eye on the future, not on the past; and
the only quick, responsive agency that can handle the situation that
is upon us is the city itself, through local control of the harbor.
If the commercial supremacy of New York city is threatened by
inadequate dockage facilities, what will be the prospects for San
Francisco's commercial supremacy when an entirely new commerce,
the canal trade, is coming to the Pacific coast to find a haven and
will surely seek the best opportunities for dockage obtainable?
Unless San Francisco can supply wharfage facilities all the value of
our splendid harbor goes for naught.
SOME VITAL ONES
"FATHER" RILES
"BOYISH" AGENT
Fresno Incident Starts War
Between Rival Rail
Travelers
J. D. McGill, traveling freight agent
of the Rock Island, thinks he has
ground for a suit for damages against
Ed Harrison, traveling freight agent
of the Burlington. Both have just re
turned from a trip through the San
Joaquin valley and McGill has brought
back a peevish disposition because of
an incident in Fresno.
Although the locks of both McGill
and Harrison are touched, with silver,
each insists that he is one of the
youngest men on the road. While they
were making the territory around
Fresno, they usually had breakfast at
the same time in order to catch the
morning trains out of town. One day
last week, however, McGill did not
have to get out so early, so he slum
bered late.
Harrison casually remarked to the
waitress that his father was getting so
feeble that he would not be down till
later. This was the first inkling that
the waitress had of the relationship
claimed by Harrison. When McGill
came down an hour afterward the girl
said his son had been in for breakfast
at the usual time and expressed her
regrets that lie was getting so feeble.
The differences between McGill and
Harrison are now of such importance
that they may be referrel to The Hague
tribunal for settlement.
With the issuance of supplement 38
to its tariff 1218 the Chicago, Mil
waukee and Puget Sound railway has
canceled the tariff entirely. The sup
plement shows that on and after De
cember 16 the rates as shown in trans
continental east bound tariffs will
carry the rates. Shippers in California
are peculiarly favored from the fact
that their rates both east and west
bound are carried In vitually two tar
iffs and the western classification, while
other districts in the United States
have from 5 to 20 tariffs to consult.
The Santa Fe has stolen a march on
its competitors. It is the only line
that has not published a tariff for
storage or reconsignment on team
tracffs in Chicago. As a result it is
handling nearly all the California
oranges for reconsignment.
The west hound summer tourist and
convention fares next year to San
Francisco, Oakland, Lios Angeles and
San Diego will be the same as last
summer. The convention tickets are
to be sold in the east June 30 to
July 7, inclusive, with a return limit
of August 31. These tickets will be
on account of the Christian Endeavor
convention in Los Angeles and the let
ter carriers' convention in San Fran
cisco.
* # *
Fred F. Conner has been appointed
assistant freight manager of the Pa
cific Mail Steamship company.
* * *
S. F. Booth of the Union Pacific de
parted last night on a business trip
down the San Joaquin valley.
* * *
Allen Abbott, city passenger agrent
of the Chicago and Northwestern, de
parted for Indianapolis yesterday to
testify as a witness in the dynamite
cases.
THE BUSINESS TITL.E
"Have you noticed how many playe
have business titles?" "I have."
"There's a play called 'Paid for and
Delivered, , another entitled 'Receipted
In Full,' and co on." "Yes, indeed. I
am looking daily for a play entitled
'If You Don't Like It, Money Back.' "—
Pittsburg Post.
THOSE SERIOUS VOWS j
Even if it didn't mean always being
broke marriage would still be a more
or less serious thing.—New York Press.
ISN'T THERE?
Another reason for gratitude—there I
is no buckwheat cake trust.—Baltimore I
Sun. 1
1912
______
By THE POET PHILOSOPHER
Poor old year! He's marked for
slaughter, 'neath his load his shoulders
bend, and we sadly watch him totter
feebly to his destined end. Soon, ah
soon, he will be skiting where Time's
sextons dig and delve; he is near there
at this writing—poor old weary Nine
teen Twelve! Recently so strong and
burly, now we see him weak, decayed,
while we do our shopping early in the
busy haunts of trade. Soon Time's
funeral director this old hoary year
will shelve, and he'll be as dead as
Hector—poor old crippled Nineteen
Twelve! And it brings us somewhat
nearer to our own appointed end; and
we see now. somewhat clearer, shad
ows of the dusk descend; and our locks,
once bright and curly, now begin to
thin and fade, as we do our shopping
early In the clanging marts of trade.
Now our eyes are somewhat dimmer,
and we long to wear a wig, arid our
legs are somewhat slimmer, while our
waists are twice as big, and our briny
tears are dropping as we view our
double chins, while we wisely do our
shopping ere the Christmas rush be
gins. Let us therefore live correctly,
being fair and Just to all. doing all
things circumspectly, ready for the
final call; for we may fly off the sur
face as an ax flies from its helve and
be planted where the turf is like the
old year Nineteen Twelve.
PERSONALS
CHARLES H. TREAT, secretary of the Midway
View Oil company, is at the Stewart, regis
tered from Los Angeles. R. R. Snodgrass, a
draftsman of Los Angeles; C. T. Cearloy, a
business man of Fresno, and S. H. Jbnes of
Washington also are at the Stewert.
* * *
J. G. ROBSON, a timber man of Westminster,
B. C. Is at the St. Francis with his family.
Robson says he came to California on a pleas
ure trip. He gays that the timber men of
British Columbia are looking forward to a
prosperous year.
* * #
DR. G. X. BROWN of Los Angeles. S. R. Board
man ami Stella J. Boardman of Chicago, R. B.
Lafferty and M. B. McKay of Portland and C.
P. Zoerb, a dealer in leather goods at Stock
ton, make up a group of yesterday's arrivals
at the Manx.
* * *
W. 3. HARRIS, proprietor of the Sequoia hotel
at Fresno; Rufus S. Maddox and Mrs. Maddox
and Mr. and Mrs. H. H. fireenmayre of Qulncy
are guests at the Stewart. Maddox and Green
mayre are in the United States forestry serrice.
* * *
CHARLES P. PLATT, who is interested In the
automatic telephone machines used by the
Home Telephone company, is spending a few
days at the St. Francis. He makes his home
in New York.
WILLIAM BAYLY, a Los Angelea capitalist; J.
Nelson Neylns of Pasadena and Lrwin Reed, a
dealer In automobile tires In Los Angeles, are
among yesterday's arrirals at the St. Francis.
L. V. SHEARER, J. V. Ljle, Lewie A. Merrill,
J. H. Garrett and Charles A. Walker make np
a group of Salt Lake business men now stay
ing at the St. Francis.
CHARLES GRAY, a business man of New Zea
land. Iβ at the St. Francis with his family.
They are on their way home after a tour ef
the continent.
A. 8. THEBERGE. superintendent of the Metro
politan Life Insurance company In Loe An
geles, la at the Palace with W, OL Shaw, a
local agent.
# # »
MR. AND MRS. GEORGE H. COLEMAN of 8t
Louis registered at the Union Square. Cole
man Is connected with a car manufacturing
concern.
J. A. HUGHES, who Is interested In the Ameri
can druggists' syndicate, is at the Palace with
Mrs. Hughes, registered from Bakersfleld.
BRUCE L. DRAY, a leading attorney of Los
Angeles. Is at the Bellevue with Mrs. Dray.
Mrs. Dray is a sister of, Governor Johnson.
* * #
JAMES FARRAHER, a Yreka attorney, is at
the Palace. He is attending the convention of
the California Miner*' association.
JAMES C. COLGATE, Craig Colgate and Henry
C. Townsend, a patent attorney of New York,
hare apartments at the Palace.
SRISTOPHER MURPHY, an Iron and eteel
manufacturer. Is at the Palace, registered
from Chicago.
E. W. CAMP, a solicitor of the Santa Fe rail
road, is staying at the Palace, registered from
Loe Angeles.
3. R. WALKER, a banker and merchant of Salt
l.akr City, Is spending a few da.vs at the
Palace.
W. C. AVER, a business man of New York. Iβ
among the recent arrivals at the St. Francis.
# # ■»
DR. E. C. SMITH and R. T. O'Connor of St.
Paul have apartments at the St. Francis.
* * *
R. C. MOODY, a dealer in boots and shoes in
Santa Eosa, is registered at the Argonaut.
♦ * »
DR. 0. L. BARTON, a physician of Loomle, and
Mrs. Barton are guests at the Argonaut.
OSCAR. C. MUELLER, a Los Angeles attorney,
is at the Palace with Mrs. Mueller.
0. H. RODGERB ami Charles A. Gibson, oil men
of Visalia, are at the Union Square.
C, HOAG, a retired real estate man of Oak
land, Is a guest at the Hareourt.
J, A. WICKLEH, a Sacramento Insurance man,
is stopping at the Stanford.
* * *
A. J. LOWELL, a. merchant of West Port, is
registered at the Stanford.
* * #
FRANK DILLON of Washington is among the
recent arrivals at the Dale.
CUTLER POLLARD, a theatrical man of Chi
cago, Is at tho Bellevue.
M. H. LEEGETT, a I'orterville merchant, is
staying at the Sutter.
* * *
FRANCIS STEWART of Stockton is at the
Sutter.
» * *
MAY JUGERS of Los Angeles Is staying at the
Columbia.
ABE MARTIN
O* all th' bath tub mysteries how
some folks git by in society is th'
worst. Bβ courteous t , th' feller
that comes In jlst f look around.
Hβ wants t , buy somethin', but he's
afraid.
DECEMBEK 10, lf»12
Ferry Tales
IN a ferry tale
published Octo
ber 2 reference
svas made to a we.'l
known commuter as jj
i "sad faced Indi
vidual." Having
him that, it
did not seem fair, in this land of sun
shine, to identify him more particularly;
so his name was omitted. Even in a
land of sunshine a description so gen
eral could hardly be called an identi
fication tag. particularly as the indi
vidual himself is anything but a sad
soul.
The description, however, seems to
have been too apt. Commuters who
travel with him failed to penetrate the
disguise. An Alameda girl, however,
temporarily sojourning in American
Samoa, who read that ferry talf* h
month or so late, knew exactly where
to find the head that fitted the gloomy
cap. «•
"Dear father," she wrote, "I lucloee
a clipping from the 'Ferry Tales" thu
I cut from The Call of October 2. 1W
just screamed about it. for we kn<?V
that the 'sad faced individual* could be
nobody but you."
The letter, I almost forgot to say,
was addressed to Jim Searle, and was
signed by one of his daughters.
Jim Searle, who has been an inter
ested spectator of the pranks of the
afterdeck squad for a number of years,
decided the other day that he would
try his hand at a practical Joke. He is
not, as I said before, nearly as somber
as he sometimes appears. Hβ has.
withal, a sense of humor, which told
him that this very air of sadness would
be of inestimable value in proving an
alibi, for the joke turned out seriously,
as practical jokes sometimes do.
It was the afternoon on which Harry
Crawford was cruising around the sky
line in his biplane. The commuters,
hastening to the ferry, had halted sev
eral times to watch the airship as it
crossed and recrossed the line of Mar
ket street, and on the ferry bouts
aviation was the general topic.
On the Alameda run that nigbt was
the Yerba Buena, the prohibition
steamer borrowed by the S. P. from t'i'"
Key Route. The boat was crowded,
and when Searle, just as the boat
started, remarked to a friend, "Watch
me have some fun," and then, pointlner
skyward, through the forward doors of
the lower deck cabin, said: "Ixtok! The
airship!", there was a forward rush
that almost carried him off his fa t.
Out through the doors went .the
crowd. In a few seconds the forward
apron was crowded. The rush at
tracted the attention of those who lun'i
not heard Searle's remark, and in Ipss
time than it takes to tell it the littl<
old Terba Buena's nose was so deep
in the water that its rudder, at the
other end, was up in the air*
The steamer refused to steer. Deck
hand* tried to drive the crowd
and so trim the boat. ->7
"Now see what you've done," sai<!
Searle's friend. "I believe you'd like
to rock the boat next."
"They bit all right," Searle profvitnl.
gazing triumphantly at the confusion
he had inspired.
But it wasn't a joke, after all. for
just then the airship did come skim
ming right ahead of the Yerba Buemi.
and Searle's consequent dejection wa«
made deeper when a commuter stepped
up to him a few minutes later and said:
"Much obliged, Mr. Searle, for calling
my attention to it. That's the fust
time I ever saw an airship."
Talking about the Yerba Buena.
fact that Key Route steamers fly the
blue ribbon flag is not the only <1»
ficiency discovered by the 8. P. com
muters who have been traveling on th«
borrowed water wagon. One of them
has written me a letter about it, and
the burden of his complaint is that lie
couldn't get fried ham on the Yerba
Buena. He had read in the paper. h»'
says, that fried ham was the basis of
a newly discovered anti-fat diet. He
had been fasting, and it came hard.
He rejoiced when he read the frier! Uμni
item, and decided that he would fill \ip
on it during the trip across thf> hay.
He liked fried ham; fasting did not
suit him. The discovery that he could
still the appeal of his stomach with a
diet that pleasantly tickled his palate
and at the same time be sure of re
ducing his weight appealed to him us
the most alluring thing hf had rpad
since the bull moose platform wh
given out for publication.
"We cook entirely by steam," the
steward had told him, "and serve noth
ing fried or broiled."
"What do you think," he writes, "ol
a boat that doesn't serve fried hnniV"
• • »
Personally, I am not interested in
antWfat diets, and if I thought tlin>
was anything in the fried ham theoJ
fried ham and I would be strangers v
hereafter. W. R. Alberger, executi» A
head of the Key Route, reads this col
umn, and as I know that he is alway?
looking for a chance to improve every
department of the Key Route service,
it is not unlikely that he will install
an electric grill in the galleys of the
yellow steamers.
If he was sure of the efficacy of the
fried ham diet, I know he would do it.
It would pay for itself. There is
enough power going to waste on these
boats to generate enough electricity to
broil enough ham to give every com
muter a daily treatment, and if the
diet is really effective, the elimination
of the fat commuter would materially
increase the carrying capacity of the
boats. We'll put it up to Alberger that
way. LINDSAY CAMPBELL.
REFLECTION'S OP A BACHELOR
There's no water wagon Joy riding.
You can't insult a man by calling him
a liar unless he Is.
When a fat woman cuts out potatoes
she calls it eating no more than a
bird.
What makes a girl afraid to be in
the dark with a man is if he's the
wrong one.
When a man can write bfg check 3
it never worries him not to be able to
write poetry.—New York Press.
ONE HAPPY HOME
"John, I'm so happy." "Are you,
dear? Im glad to hear that. You
ought to be happy. You have every
thing to make you so." "Mrs. Wilkin
son was here this afternoon and she
said the baby looked so much like me
that no one would believe you were
any relation to it."—Chicago Record-
Herald.
«
HARD LUCK m
"Did youse git anything?" whispered
the burglar on guard, as his p a i
emerged from the window.
"Naw, de bloke wot lives here Is a
lawyer," replied the other In disgust.
"Dats hard luck," said the first; "did -'
youse lose anything?"— Ohio State Join*
naX

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