Evening star. [volume], January 22, 1909, Image 1

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THE EVENING STAR _ _ - ' . . _
WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION. /^W
Busineaa Office, 11th 8t. ud Penniylyani* Avenue. A T*7"
The Evening Starj^spaper Company, I |a >4 9 if CclttieT.
European Regent St.. London. EngluxL .^T I I I I I III I I I I I _\ I I
New Tribune Building. I J I H H WT H H H H H H H I I* H I
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; .
bss.a^ i^xsgfc^ga. x?. i-.&>i. Washington, d. o., Friday, January 22. 1909-twenty-two pages. two cents.
KNOX MOT HEARD
Senator Tells Grand Jury of
Canal Negotiations.
INVESTIGATION FOR FRAUD
Assisted Attorney General Russell
Puts Documents in Evidence.
POSTAL EMPLOYE TESTIFIES
Otis Guild Tells of Receipts of Newspapers
Through Mails?Baker
Quizzed by Student.
The Panama canal investigation was
coniinuod before the District of Columbia
grand jury today with the testimony of
Philander C. Knox, senator from Pennsylvania,
and Attorney General at the
time of the purchase o>f the canal.
He is supposed to have reviewed in a
general way the negotiations leading up
t<> the purchase, and to have shown the
grand jury just what degree of vigilance
e exercised in seeing that no advantage
was taken of this government in the
transaction.
Mr. Knox, it is known, during the progress
of the settlement of the canal purchase
made a personal visit to Paris, and
also sent trusted assistants to the French
capital to unearth any "graft," if such
should exist, in the transaction.
The first government documents bearing
on the canal purchase to be laid before
the grand jury were presented today by
Assistant Attorney General Charles W.
Russell, who. when he entered the grand
Jury room, carried a brief bag bulging
w:th papers and pamphlets. On Issuing
from the room he declined to say anything
about the investigation or to identify
the documents which he carried.
Following Mr. Russell, the reading of
the alleged libelous articles from the Indianapolis
News proceeded. The World
articles were not read to the grand jury
today. At 12:40 the grand Jury took a
recess for twenty minutes to await the
arrival of Secretary Root.
Root Has to Wait.
Mr. Root arrived at the city hail five
minutes after the jurors had left for the
rert-.v, ajia was compewea to wan in tne
private office of Mr. Baker for fifteen
minutes. In response to the inquiries of
the press representatives tlie Secretary,
holding out his subpoena, declared that
it was the only paper he had brought
with him. He had nothing further to
say.
At the conclusion of Mr. Root's testimony.
which lasted less than ten minutes,
the grand jury adjourned until
Monday.
Mr. Root stated today that he had not
been within the proc-incts of the c ity hall
since the Guiteau trial in 1884, when he
was a specator. Asked if the had ever
been before a grand jury previously he
answered:
"I used to run a grand jury when I was
a district attorney."
Senator Knox Comes Early.
Senator Knox, accompanied by his private
secretary, C. F. Wilson, reached the
city hall promptly at 11 o'clock and was
ushered Into the district attorney's private
office, where they were closeted with
Mr. Baker for ten minutes. Mr. Baker
then escorted Mr. Knox to the grand jury
r<?om. which is at the extreme end of the
corridor from the office of the I'nited
States attorney.
Twenty minutes were consumed by Mr.
Knox in detailing to the grand jury his
connection with the canal purchase.
When he retired he declined to say anything
concerning his testimony or about
Hie investigation generally.
The subpoena i.-sued to Mr. Knox requested
his attendance at 12:15 o'clock.
His private secertary communicated with
the district attorney s office and suggested
that owing to the senator's engagements
at the Capitol the hour would be
inconvenient.
Mr. Baker then arranged that the testimony
of Mr. Knox should be given at
11 o'clock. He was. therefore, the first
witness to testify today, as the grand
jury convenes at that hour.
The appearance of Mr. Knox in response
to the subpoena, it was learned today, was
purely voluntary. He could not have
been compelled to testify at this time if
he had been unwilling. During the sessions
of Congress its members are exempt
front service of process.
Otis Guild, employed in the mailing division
of the city post office, followed Senator
Knox on the witness stand. Through
him. it is thought, the grand jury was
advised of the receipt through the mails
'>f the eoples of the two publications containing
the alleged libel for distribution
In this District.
Assistant Attorney General Russell, who
was under the then Attorney General
Knox, closely identified with the canal
purchase settlement, next testified. He is
presumed to have shown documentary
evidence to the grand jury tending to
establish the fact that the transaction
was above suspicion.
Mr. Root Has to Wait.
Jocularly remarking that lie brought
his subpoena and his conscience with
im, Sec retary Root appeared at the courthouse
at 12:15 o'clock. He immediately
conferred with District Attorney Baker,
the grand jury having just previous to his
arrival taken a recess until 1 o'clock.
Mr. Root was the last witness. He was
in the grand jury room only a short
w hile.
Law Student Quizzes Baker.
An incident occurred a few nights ago,
it is said, at a local law school, which
is considered an attempt to h-.eak the
sphinx-like silence observed throughout
this inquir) by I'nited States Attorney
Baker, who is a lecturer there. During
tlie course of the lecture, which was on
real estate law. one of the audience,
supposedly a law student, plied the pro
mi" m criminal I! Del
law.
Mr. I taker squel heii the questioner with
th? remark that he was lecturing on real
state law. which was far removed from
the law of criminal libel. Several students
ai said to have taken umbrage at the
inquisitor and threatened to eject him.
Supreme Court, Century Ago,
Quashed Federal Libel Suit
1'lTTSBl'RG. January 'S2.?That action
for libel cannot be brought in federal
courts against the publishers of new.sl?-l?ers
containing the alleged libelous!
matter eoncerning the purchase by the
l iiit'd States of the Panama t'anal Company.
and that the examination conducted
by the grand jury in the I'nited States
district court at New York must, if any
(Continued on Eleventh Pag^j
r
PASSED BY THE HOUSE
Commitee's Provision for Two
Battleships Adopted.
VOTE WAS 160 TO 80
i
Chairman Tawney Leads in Opposition
to the Vessels.
HOLDS THEY ARE NOT NEEDED
???
Hepburn Ridicules the Contention.
Proposition for One Battleship
Defeated, 108 to 158.
"I am tired of these annual wars with
Japan, which always occur simultaneous'
ly with the consideration of the naval apj
propriation bill by Congress," declared
| Chairman Tawney of the appropriations
committee, in opposing the battleship pro!
vision of the naval bill in the House toi
day. "All the rest of the time our relations
with Japan are friendly, but as \
soon as we begin to consider the naval
appropriation bill then we learn from <
the press and other sources that war is j
imminent." j
When the House resumed consideration
of the naval bill the members were primed j
for the usual fight over the. increase in i
i
the naval establishment. A long wrangle j
over the amount of time which should
be devoted to debate on the battleship i
provision followed the taking up of the
measure.
Mr. Foss (111.), in charge of the bill, j
sought to limit the consideration of this
feature to one hour, but Mr. Griggs (Ga.) j
objected. An agreement finally was
reached by which two hours were alloted. |
The Finley amendment to the bill striking
out the battleship provision, was ,
defeated by a vote of'W) to 160.
Deems Provision Unnecessary.
O 1_! A. ?.
in suppori 01 an amendment |
by Mr. Finley (S. C.), striking out the bat- ,
tleship provision, Mr. Barthoidt (Mo.) declared
that if there ever was a time when
such an appropriation was unwise and unnecessary
it was now.
"It is unnecessary," he said, "because
we are at peace with all the world, and,
what is more, we have wisely managed to
safeguard our peace as it has never been
safeguarded before.''
Representative Hardy of Texas, who followed
Mr. Barthoidt, declared that when
nations or peoples armed themselves they
armed for war and not for peace. He
asserted that in former t|avs when pretty
I nearly everybody in his state carried a
gun tiiere was bloodshed, battle, murder
j and sudden death. But now. when the
carrying of weapons is prohibited by law,
peace prevails everywhere within the borders
of Texas.
Tawney Opposes Battleship Program.
Representative Tawney of Minnesota,
chairman of the House committee on
appropriation, made the strongest speech
of the day In opposition to the battleship
program, and in support of the
amendment. He declared that action by '
the House in opposition to the recommendation
of the naval committee would
not necessarily mean that Congress has
changed its plans with respect to a naval
program, but simply that it was not
j thought advisable to authorize at tills
; time toe expenditure of $114,000,000 for
two of the greatest vessels that were
ever planned. He did not believe that
the 1'nited States should pat.ern its
naval policy on the naval policy of other
nations.
He did not believe that because some
other nation had authorized several battleships
bigger than anything heretofore j
contemplated the United States must im- ,
mediately provide for two battleships bigger
even than those.
To Gratify National Vanity.
"This is merely," cried Mr. Tawney, "to
gratify our ambition to lead the entire
world in the matter of naval shipbuilding."
It was ambition, Mr. Tawney said, that j
first prompted the I "nit -d States to an am- i
| bitious naval policy, and that had kept ;
that policy alive fur the last four or five j
years. He deplored tlie fact. that the
naval committee's justification for these ;
two great ships was based on the naval ;
policy of other nations.
The geographical isolation of the United j
States, he thought, constituted a better |
defense than all the combined navies of
the world would be.
As to apprehension of war with Japan,
he declared, there was no more danger of
! war between Japan and the I'nited Stutes
! than between tlie United States and Great
Britain. Japan, he said, could not impose
another penny of taxes upon her people
without revolution resulting. But even
more important than this Japan could
not conduct naval operations against the
United States without a naval base in the
Pacific. Hawaii was the only island that
could serve as a base of naval operations
i in the Pacific and when the fortifications
! now under construction at Pearl harbor
| and Honolulu by this government were
: completed the island would be as impieg1
nable as the Rock Of Gibral'er.
Mr. Tawney also called attention to the
I recently ratilied agreement between the
i United States and Japan, which, he
j thought, would result in perpetual peace.
Nor was there the slightest danger to he
feared from any European nation. In
view of all these facts, and considering
i there would be a deficit of $12T?.0<>0.0OO at
1 the end of this fiscal year, and probably
$1 -I'l.tXMUHto at the end of the next year,
j lie thought that there was no excuse for
i appropriating fcMJXXM'Ob for two battle- j
I ships, particularly as there was no money j
; in u?e Treasury today for permanent'
I works, such as river and harbor nroiects i
Hepburn Ridicules T^wney's Position 1
Representative Hepburn of Iowa fol- j
i lowed Mr. Tawney in support of the battleship
program. In his well known style
I lie tnade a merciless attack on the chair- i
j man of the appropriation committee who!
j had just preceded him. lie held Mr.'
j Tawney up to ridicule- as professing to,
' know more than any one else about ques- ,
i lions of war and of peace. He thought, i
'moreover, thai in making the statement ;
that the naval committee's program was a !
result of ambition that the United States
should have bigger ships than any other
nation, he had deliberately insulted the
American people. He denounced Mr.
Tawney's argument as the most trivial
he had heard against the item carried by
! the naval bill for two battleships.
Mr. Hepburn said lie intended to speak ;
nanKiy. rie oaiteu trie attention of his
col leagues to the fact that iti less than a
hundred years the I'nitod States ha<l been j
I engaged in four ears. Every generation |
j had had its war. ami he saw no reason
i for believing tliat each generation would
j (Continued on Eleventh Page.) i
A SUGGESTION
WASH MCTO M
EAR LV 8IRD^
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DEATH OF VETERAN PUBLISHER
ANDREW J. AIKENS OF MILWAUKEE
DIES OF PARALYSIS.
With Wisconsin Paper for FiftyFive
Years?Originator of
"Patent Insidea."
MILWAUKEE. Wis.. January 22-Andrew
J. A i kens, aged eighty, general
manager and part owner of the Evening
Wisconsin of tills city, died today, the result
of a paralytic stroke which he suffered
several days ago. lie had been in
feeble health for many months.
He had been a newspaper man for
almut sixty-five years, and connected
with the Evening Wisconsin of this city I
about fifty-five years.
He was the uriginatof of "patent in- j
sides" in lfltt.!. and afterward founded!
newspaper unions for the printing of j
"patent insides" at Chicago. New York,
Cincinnati, Nashville, Atlanta and Memphis.
Mr. Aikens had been a member of tbe
Associated Press for upward of forty
years.
DISASTER IN GOLD MINE.
1
?
Ten White Men and 150 Natives
Perish in Flood.
JOHANNESBURG, Transvaal, January
22.?Ten white men and 150 natives were
drowned today in the Witwatersrand gold
mine which became flooded by the bursting
of Knights dam. Heavy rains caused
the dam to give way.
The water from the dam flooded also
the lower sections of the town of Elsburg.
A number of houses were swept away
and thirteen persons were drowned.
ATLANTA MAN PLEADS GUILTY.
With Others Practiced Fraud Among
Negroes to Amount of $5,000.
ATLANTA. Ga., January 22.?J. J.
Weaver, wiio was indicted jointly with
three others on a charge of counterfeiting
certificates of t lie Columbus Clearing
House Association, entered a plea of
guilty in the superior court <?f Fulton
county.
Pending the outcome of the trial of his
alleged confederates, C. E. Davis, an attorney
of Rome, Ga.; W. O. Bowden of
Columbus and T. W. Ezzard of Fulton
county, Judge Roan did not pronounce
sentence upon Weaver. The plea of guilty
by Weaver was conditioned upon the
jury accompanying its verdict with a
recommendation that t lie offense be
treated as a misdemeanor, which was
done.
It is charged that the four men during
the U?<)7 panic printed bogus clearing
bouse certificates and circulated them
among negroes to the amount of about
$5,O0M.
HOBOES IN CONVENTION.
"EN i'of "MnfiAttQ 1 Mcatinn. TT?,
X llOl AiailVUHl Ui Ut ill
ployed at St. Louis.
ST. I.Ol'IS, January 2_.?The first national
convention of the unemployed convened
here today under the auspices of
James Kads How. the millionaire sponsor
of the hoboes. Many delegates arrived
during lite night on freight trains and
blind baggage.
The convention w ill consider I lie elimination
of labor employment bureaus and
in their place the .establishment of bureaus
which will furnish work without
charge. No set program has been arranged.
Several noted men have been invited
to speak to the delegates.
REASONS FOR HER SUICIDE.
Chicago Victim Leaves Remarkable
Letter Explaining Her Act.
OH-ICAOO. January 2J.?A remarkable
letter rnts left by Miss Alice I.aw, aged
twenty-six, an editor employed by a local
publishing firm, who committed suicide
'oday by asphyxiation. The letter follows:
"To all whom it does rot concern: 1
am ending my life because I am seized
with an acute disinrllnatIon to live, and 1
believe I have an absolute right to end my
iife if I wish. The struggle Is too hard.
There is too much work, too much monotony,
too much weariness and not enough
art, music, recreation and rest."
FOG FANCIES.
DISCORD JIER NAVIES
Serious Differences Deadlock
International Conference.
I
"
MAY DEFEAT AGREEMENT
' - - _ ,
i fl i * m
American Delegates atana firm ior
"Continuous Voyages.''
THEY HAVE CONCEDED MUCH
Great Britain Anxious to Heal
Breach and Arrive at Mutual
Understanding.
LONDON. January 22.?'Tliere is a grow,
ing impression here that the powers will
not he able to reconcile their differences,
and that the international naval conference.
which opened here last month, is
doomed to failure.
Great Britain is working desperately to
prevent this. She put off the evil day by
canceling the meeting called for this
morning, after arranging that the committee
shall take up the discussion of j
technical subjects only.
These committee meetings will be continued
until the delegates, whose insistence
that the views of their governments
shall prevail, brought about the deadlock,
have received more definite Instructions.
America is included in this group.
Americans Will Not Yield.
The American delegates, acting on instructions
from Washington, refused particularly
to concede anything on the question
of "continuous voyages." This question
is regarded as vital by the United
States.
Having made concessions to the other
powers on points regarded by them to be
vital she is now looking for a little reciprocity.
Up to the present this has not
been forthcoming.
Great Britain is partly responsible for
this situation. Having suffered during the
Russo-Japanese war from the enforcement
of a principle which she always had
upheld, and in which America agreed with
her, she has now been partly converted to
the continental view.
The American delegates continue to
maintain reticence. It has been learned
thgt they have held from the start that
America was ready to make reasonable
concessions which did not mean a too
great impairment of her interests and
which were not wholly in conflict with her
laws and policies.
With regard to the deadlock it was suggested
today that such condition might
be brought about as much by one party
as the other.
Last week the conference was proceeding
smoothly. Delegates were predicting
that an agreement would be reached February
1, and a code of laws drawn up and
signed by the middle of the month.
They are far less optimistic today.
While they believe it still possible to
reach agreement they do not think it
nrobable even on such technical quesi
lions as what shall be considered contra|
band, a matter with which the committee
I ic <1a>i liner
IIO IJU? Ul-??
On this question the powers hold widely
[ divergent views. To many delegates the
| difliviilties appear insurmountable.
Proposed Naval Code.
The international naval conference was
ailed by Great Britain to frame a code
ol' laws' for naval warfare and to establish
the international prize court, as
recommended by The Hague peace conference.
The conference was to determine as
many definite principles of maritime international
law as possible. The United
i States. Great Britain. France, Germany,
Italy, Austria-Hungary. Russia. Spain,
Holland and Japan are represented.
The Americal delegates are Rear Admiral
Charles H. Stockton and Prof.
George Grafton Wilson of Brown University.
Commander John H. Gibbons,
American naval attache at Condon, has
! been acting as aid.
11 'W
I . "
Korean Emperor to Tour Empire.
SEOUL. January 22.?The emperor. ac|
i-ompanied by I'rinee Ito. the Japanese
(resident general in Korea, will start on a
lour of ihe northern portion of the empire
January 27. Tin- emperor will visit all I
Lthe principal cities anJ towns in that part}
I of Korea. > I
9 "
?loN. ^
1^55 '
P^L
|l ^><^>^>
MOROCCAN TOWNS WIPED OUT
TORRENTIAL RAIN FOR HOURS
CAUSES GREAT LOSS OF LIFE.
Some Damage at Ceuta, Near Where
Several American Naval
Vessels Lie.
CEUTA, Morocco. January 22.?A "terrible
tempest, accompanied by a torrential
downpour of rain, raged for five hours
last night over the northernmost section
of Morocco.
There were no casualties in Ceuta. but
reports brought in by native runners from
the Rhmara territory, a mountainous dls- i
trict fifty miles to the south, declare that
several small villages have been overwhelmed
and many persons killed or injured.
Several American colliers and supply
ships are anchored in Xegro bay, between
Ceiita and Tetuan. awaiting the arrival
of the American battleships. No damage
to these vessels has been reported.
It is impossible to ascertain whether the
landslides to the south are due to an
earthquake or to the Inundation.
The lower portion of the town of Ceuta
was inundated. The fires in the electric
light plant were extinguished and the
town consequently plunged into darkness.
There were several local landslips, but no
casualties.
The foregoing dispatch corroborates to
some extent a message received last night
from Tetuan. saying a severe earth shock
in the region south of Tetuan had wiped
out several villages and that hundreds of
people were reported killed or injured.
Ceuta and Tetuan are on the Moroccan
coast directly south of Gibraltar. They
are about twenty miles apart, one to the
north and the other to the south of Xegro
bay. where the American battleships now
in the Mediterranean are to rendezvous
February 1 prior to sailing for Hampton
roads on the last lap of their round-theworld
cruise.
FLOAT SMASHES FERRYBOAT.
Pierpont Badly Damaged and Passengers
Thrown Into Panic.
Special Dispatch to The Star.
XEW YORK, January 22.?In the heavy
fog that hung over the harbor today the
terryDoat rierponi erasnea into an empty
oar float.
The ferryboat was badly damaged above
the water line. Her starboard cabin was
partly ripped away. The 300 passengers
and teams on board were thrown into a
panic. No one was badly hurt.
The Pierpont had left her slip in Brooklyn
and was proceeding to the Manhattan
side. She was opposite Governor's Island
when the huge car float, in tow of a
tug, loomed up out of the mist.
It was too late to prevent collision. The
pilot of the ferryboat threw the wheel
hard over, with the result that the Pierpont
struck the float a glancing blow.The
impact was terrific. Passengers
were dumped from their seats in the cabin.
Horses standing in the runway were
knocked off their feet.
The smash put the starboard paddle of
tlie Pierpont out of business. She drifted
helpless with the tide.
The skipper finally managed to effect a
landing alongside a dock at the foot of
Main street, in Brooklyn, where the passengers
disembarked.
WARSHIPS AT ALGIERS.
Officers of the Wisconsin and French
Officials Exchange Visits.
ALGIERS, January 23?Mr. Arago. representing
the French government, this
morning returned Admiral W. L). Potter's
visit on board the battleship Wisconsin.
after which the admiral and the
members of his staff came ashore and
paid a round of official visits on tiie governor
general, the pit feet. Gen. Baillouti.
commander of the 19th Army Corps; the
mayor of Algiers and the other civil au
thorltles.
M. Arago Monday will give a luncheon j
in honor of Admiral Potter and the of- j
fleers of the American battleships.
New Departure in Arkansas.
LITL.E HOCK, Ark., January 22.?The
state senate has adopted a joint resolu- ;
tion providing for the initiative and referendum
as a part of the constitution of
Arkansas. The resolution provides for
the submission of the question to the voters
of the stale at the next general election.
- ^
^ I
I
CALLS SECOND PANEL::
Court Gives Order in Carmack I
Murder Trial.
WILL NOT ACCEPT EXCUSES
!
Five Hundred Additional Talesmen !
to Report Monday.
STATE SPRINGS A SURPRISE!
Prosecution Attacks Competency of !
One of the Six Men Chosen
for the Jury.
V
NASHVILLE. Tenn.. January 22 ?
Wearied by the monotony of the examination
of talesmen, the throng which was
on hand during tlie tirst two days of the j
trial of the three men accused of the mui - j
der of ex-Senator Carmack was absent J
when court opened today. There was the (
usual rush forward of men summoned for '
jury duty to offer excuses, but Judge )
Hart remarked that he would accept no .
excuses except those fixed by law.
When the six selected jurors were j
brought in one of them. J. M. Whitworth.
said to Judge Hart:
"Judge. I've been used to my morning ,
toddy for a good many years, and I miss
it powerfully this morning. Can't I get
one, just one, every morning?"
"The Constitution prohibits unusual or
cruel punishments." the court remarked,
judicially. "Mr. Officer, see that those
gentlemen who are wont to have a toddy
get their toddy hereafter."
Relatives of Defendants Appear.
Judge Allison of the chancery court,
who was killed by Juror Whit worth's
brother a few years ago, was the fatherin-law
of Attorney General McOarn. who
is prosecuting this case. Juror Whitworth
stands very high in the community and is
regarded as one of the best men yet selected.
Mrs. John D. Sbarpe was the only relative
of any of the defendants in court this
morning when the proceedings began.
Later Col. Cooper's daughter and nieces
arrived and greeted their kinsman on trial
affectionately.
Col. Cooper made a place for his daughter
at his side and put ids arm gently
around her.
Hay Play Cards and Dice.
A little later the attorneys asked time
for conference and were granted forty
! minutes. Judge Hart then suggested that
thew jurors retire to their room, where
they could be more comfortable.
"Can they play cards?" the deputy
asked.
"Yes, and roll dice on the floor if tuey
want to," said the court.
When the conference was ended the
first surprise of the trial came. Affidavits
were filed by the state attacking the competency
of one of the six jurors chosen.
The document was offered by Attorney
General McCarn, who said that J. S.
lyeigb, the second man chosen, was drunk
the day he was selected, and was tliere,
fore disqualified by law.
Judge Anderson, for t no defense, objectI
ed and was granted time 10 examine the
affidavit.
The court ordered the examination of
talesmen to proceed, pending a decision
as to the competency of Juror Leigh.
State Grows Cautious.
The incident appeared to make the
state's attorneys more cautious, and they
began to question prospective jurois so
closely that {he defense objected to
"argument with witnesses." ,
Capt. Fitzhugh, for the prosecution, ieplled
hotly that he must learn the disposition
of the witness before lie couldv
judge whether or not to accept him. La. n
man. thereafter, too, was asked whether
or not lie drank and whether or not lie
i got drunk.
| This feature was considered significant
in view of the charges against Leigh.
Admits Drinking Often.
One man suid he drank often, but got
drunk only when he had nothing to do.
tie declared his last celebration was fully
six weeks ago. He was rejected by the
state.
At noon the *hst venire of ."Vim men had
been exhausted an.1 the second ota> were
ordered summoned to app-ar Monday.
Then the court gave the attorneys for the
defense until !> a.m. tomorrow to answer
the affidavits against Juror Leigh and adjournment
was taaen until that time.
NATIVES KILL EXPLORER.
English Geographer Meets Death in
Wilds of Thibet.
LOS ANGELES, Cal.. January iLC-J. |
H. Brooke, an English explorer, well
known here, has met death at the lianas
of the natives of Thibet.
His party, of whom he was the only j
white man. consisted of a band of Hindu!
guides, a number of pack carriers and a. |
few mule drivers..
A dispatch received from Maj. F. It. I
Burnham of Pasadena, who is now in
New York says:
"Cables confirm ihe killing by natives of
J. II. Brooke, leading an exploration
party into Thibet."
Brooke was a member of t He Koyal
Geographical Society of London.
|
SPERRY AT VILLEFRANCHE. !
American Admiral Accorded a Cordial
Greeting at French Port.
VlLLEl'RANCHE, France. January
? All the ships in the harbor, including
the Danish cruiser Heiiudal and tiie Knglisli
battleship Km hantress and many pri- j
| vate yachts, were gayly dressed with j
flags and bunting today in honor j
ot the arrival of Rear Admiral Sperry,
commander of the Atlantic battleship ,
fleet, who reached here at S;:?u oh lock
this morning aboard the Connecticut. Tils
salute was answered, gun for gun. j
by tiie batteries of the old citadel and i;
by the guns of the Heiiudal.
The crews of the Minnesota, the Kan- i i
sas and tiie Vermont manned tire sides ; i
ol' their respective ships, while the band
struck up uie national anincm or uie j,
1'nited States as the Connecticut passed
in to her moorings. '
, 1
Fortifications Bill Cut Down.
Cutting down the estimates nearly:5
$10,000,000, the House committee on ap- f
propriations today agreed to report the (
fortifications bill carrying only $7.9:10,- j
111 for the next flst-al year. The largest k
item carried is that of $1,000,000 for sea- |'
coast batteries in the Philippine Islands, j t
STRAUS MS PROOF
Insists That Fewer Japanese
Are Coming Here.
TALKED OVER BY CABINET
President Satisfied With Outlook in
California Affair
SERIOUS PROBLEM FOR FUTURE
Senator Flint Expresses Opinion.
That Trouble Is Over for the Pre?ent?Californians
Call.
There was less Japanese talk aroumf
the White House today tiian at any tint?
in the last few days.
The most watlike man around the building
was. Secretary Straus. He is not satisfied
with the suspicions of the California
people that the tigures of his immigration
department as to Japanese decreasing in
this country in the last six months ara
incorrect.
"I stand by my figures." he asserts.
"They are absolutely right, and I can
prove that they are by any commission
the California people will send here."
"Away with the figures. * said Californians.
"We know what the facts
are. We don't see any decrease and w?
don't believe there is any."
Secretary Straus again repeated to tit?
President at the cabinet meeting today
his confidence in the accuracy of the immigration
figures. He says that it is impossible
for many Japanese to get across
the Canadian or Mexican borders, and he
is further satisfied that the immigration
officers at the ports are not hood winked
sufficiently to let any of them In.
The President seemed satisfied today
that the outlook is l?etter all around. The
cabinet gave little consideration to the
subject, at least not as a whole. Members
of the cabinet began departing from
the executive offices earlier in the day than
in the past few weeks. If there was any
serious talk It was with Secretary Root,
who left about Itit.'jO o'clock, going to
the District grand jury room to testify
in the Panama libel suit.
All reports reaching the President are
to the. effect that Gov. Gillett has squatted
heavily on the leaders in the legislature
seeking to put through hostile legislation.
With the. legislature putting asldo
all enactments bearing on the question
and postponing further consideration for
two years, it is now hoped that agitation
of all kinds will likewise be suspended.
Californians Talk to President.
California citizens who saw the President
today were ex-Mayor James D. Phelan.
Dr. A. H. Giannlni, chairman of the
board of supervisors of San Francisco;
Mnrsden Manson, another city official,
and J. D. Galloway, civil engineer. Their
( all was personal, but quite naturally the
Japanese situation was discussed, the
President earnestly presenting his views.
"The Presiden" told us." said Mr. Phelan,
"that everything is being done by the
1'nited States and Japan to restrict the
immigration of Japanese, and that he believed
the decrease if this immigration
would finally solve the problem if legislation
should he left alone for awhile. Th?
President said that lie fully understood
the nature of the opposition to the Japanese
and the desire to resdrict the ownership
of lands in that state by certain
aliens, but lie refused to consider the
Japanese in a class by themselves and insisted
that any legislation In this respect
should be directed against all aliens
alike.
"He reiterated his opinion that the time
is inopportune and premature to pass
state laws, especially until a fair trial
has been given to the question of whether
the Japanese are coming here in larger
numbers than they are going away. He
desired to see the Japanese here treated
with the consideration their standing under
agreement warranted."
"What is your view of the matter, Mr.
Phelan?"
"1 have no authority to speak for any
one except my&elf, hut the fact is that the
California people cannot we that there
has been any decrease in the number of
.1 nanest, and I am afraid the situation
will continue to be an aggravating one.
Tiie Japanese are crowding out the white
mail on the Pacific coast, pressing him
to the wall by a system of low living
that the white man can not get down to.
and deteriorating civilization as a whole.
We are inviting immigration of a good
class of white people. We can't expect
to have it under the circumstances, tha
facts of which are not appreciated in tha
east or where the Japanese are not present
in large numbers. It is simply impossible
for the two races to continue to
live together and the question will have
to be settled sooner or later."
Grave Question for the Future.
"Is the situation in California as serious
as would appear from the puhlishc4
dispatches and the activity of the administration
in endeavoring to suppress tlia
anti-Japanese legislation?" Senator Flint
of California was asked today.
"Ye*;, and no," replied Senator Flint,
reflectively. "I don't think there is any
danger of a break with Japan at the present
time. Neither do I think that anv
hostile legislation will be passed now by
our legislature, but the question is one
that will have to be dealt with in the future.
There is 110 doubt that Japanese
are still coming to this country in large
numbers. I know that many people are
mir f ifiivaic t<? nrncA thn ennirorv
but the Japs are there, and their number
is growing."
Senator Knox, who is to be Secretary
of State in Mr. Taft's eabinet, is concerning
himself with the Japanese situation
with a view to becoming thoroughly
conversant with the subject. He has
consulted with Senators Perkins and
Flint, and has also considered the question
in conference with members- of the
committee on foreign relations. < He regards
the question as one of great moment.
requiring infinite delicacy and tact
in approaching a settlement. He considers
the question one that cannot be
disposed of at this time, ami one that is
liable to come to the surface again
and again as Japanese labor comes into
conflict with American labor on the Pacific
cqast.
BUSINESS MEN PROTEST.
Urge Legislators Not to Exact AntiJapanese
Legislation.
SAX FRANCISCO. January ? A
strong protest against anti-Japanese leg
islation lias been sent to the president of
the senate, the speaker of the house and
the members of both houses by the San
Francisco business men who recently re
turned from an extended visit to Japan at
the invitation of various Japanese commercial
organizations.
"During our visit to Japan." the protest
>ays. "we paid particular attention to the
question of Japanese immigration, and
'rom what we arc -rtainod we are strongly
>f the opinion that ttoe emperor ami Use
government of Japan are acting in absoute
good faith regarding the restriction
>f Japanese immigration to tlie L* til ted
states.
"We lirmly helieve thai an> action by
lie legislature which is directed at (fcii
I