The River Press.
Vol. XXXI.
Fort Benton, Montana, Wednesday, May 10, 1911.
No. 29
DIAZ MAY RESIGN.
Mexican Trouble May Be Settled At
Early Date.
Washington , May 8.—Official con
firmation of the Intention of President
Diaz to retire was received today by
the Mexloan ambassador, in the fol*
lowing delayed dispatch dated last
night:
"Tonight or tomorrow a declara
tion of General Diaz will be published
in which he addresses the nation ex
plaining the actual political condition
of the country and the efforts made by
the government to re-establish peace.
The president states there in the rea
sons which prompted him to refuse the
demands of the insurrectos to resign,
conjointly with the vice president.
These reasons are based on considera
tions having in view the welfare of the
nation and the dignity of the govern
ment.
"General Diaz further affrms his
willingness to retire from power as
soon as be is convinced that there is
no fear of the country being plunged
into anarchy by this act. He finishes
by making an earnest appeal to the
whole nation to help toward the restor
ation of peace. This manifesto is in
Inspired by the highest sentiment of
patriotism and sincerity."
A distinct feeling of optimism re
garding the Mexican situation per
vades administration circles today.
The intention of President Diaz to re
tire is believed to be an irresistible
step in the direction of peace.
Postal Bank For Miles City.
Washington , May 7.— Postmaster
General Hichcock today designated 36
additional postoffices as postal savings
depositories which, including those
previously selected, will make a total
ol 129 established since January 1
Among the offices designated are:
Twin Falls, Ida-; Miles City, Mont.;
Logan, Utah, and Sheridan, Wyo.
To Change Inauguration Date.
Washington , Moy 7.—a change of
the date of the inauguration of the
president is assured of ratification by
the sixty-second congress and it is
not improbable similar action will be
taken to change the date of holding
national elections.
The proposed amendment of the con
stitution of the United States changes
the date of the inauguration from
March 4 to the last Thursday in April.
The date of holding national elections
would be changed from the tirât Tues
day in November to the first Tuesday
in April preceding the expiration of
the term of the president and members
of congress.
May Probe Express Companies.
Washington , May 8.—A probe of
the express company trust, which Is
charged with being in collusion with
the railroads to extort unreasonable
rates from the public has been decided
upon by the Interstate commerce com
mission.
Petitions asking for such an inves
tigation have been received from over
100 cities. The basis of the investiga
tion is the claim of shippers that the
express companies have extorted for
tunes from the public without giving
any adequate return.
Hens Puzzle Traffic Men.
Los Angeles , May 8. —Are eggs
laid in transit subject to transporta
tion tariffs? This freight problem has
been agitating the Santa Fe freight
and legal departments.
It was raised by a carload of hens
shipped here from Newton, Kan.
With a calm disregard for their sur
roundings the hens laid. Trainmen
made inroads and lived high, but the
egg supply continued accumulating
and there were three cases on arrival.
It became necessary for a con
scientious official to report the unusual
and unprecedented carrying of freight
without prospect of revenue, and the
tariff department got busy. A charge
was included In the freight bill but the
consignee refused to pay. The legal
department could find no way to force
colleotlon and finally ruled that the
company could not levy freight
charges on a natural increase en
route.
Claims Cottonwood Water.
Helena , May 8.—In the water right
adjudication suit of the Great North«
em Railway company against A. K.
Prescott, the plaintiff today filed in
the district federal court a supple
mental bill of complaint, making de
fendants also Henry H. McCole,
Evelyn McCole, Ellen Hull, Harris
Rehal, George Atkinson, George S.
Green, BertPasteen, William Phillips,
Fred Thielman, John Galehouse and
Mrs. Alex Keith.
The bill sets forth that the plaintiff
is the owner of nine hundred and sixty
miners' Inches of the waters of Cotton
wood creek, near the town of Chester,
that the defendants have thrown
dams across the creek, and diverted
the flow, so that the defendant is
deprived of the use and enjoyment of
the waters it claims to own.
Pending the final hearing of the
action, the court Is asked to issue a
temporary injunction, restraining the
defendants from interfering with
the waters of the stream.
Washington News Notes.
Washington , May 6.—Secretary
Fisher has notified Senator Dixon that
he has settled the long standing
controversy over the use of
Birch creek on the Blackfoot Indian
reservation, by granting permission
to the Conrad Land and W ater com
pany of Great Falls, to supply the
lands of their project from this stream
and providing that the Blaokfoot In
dian lands shall take their water from
Badger creek. The Indians claim ex
clusive right to the water of Birch
creek, but this solution provides water
for both projects.
The department of justice today
made a favorable report on Senator
Dixon's bill authorizing the appoint
ment of an additional federal judge
for Montana. Acting on this recom
mendation the senator will urge the
judiciary committee to report his bill
favorably to the senate.
Senator Warren today invited
President Taft to attend the Cheyenne
frontier celebration late in August or
early in September. The president
said he would much like to attend, but
his plans for the summer are still in
definite, and he cannot make positive
engagements at this time.
TALK OF INTERVENTION.
Military Authorities Excited Over
Mexican Trouble.
Washington , May 6.—Reports re
ceived today that General Leonard
Wood, chief of the staff of the army,
at an informal gathering of members
of the house committee on military af
fairs. expressed the opinion that in
tervention In Mexico will be inevita
ble and that it would take 200,000 Am
erican troops to patrol the troubled
republic brought no little chagrin to
adminlstratiou circles.
Official denials were Issued from
several sources and care was taken to
express anew the administration's po
sition that intervention is a most re
mote possibility.
One of President Taft's callers to
day went so far as to quote him as
saying that "blood would have to be
so deep in Mexico that a man could
wade through It" before the American
army would cross the border.
This was reported to have been the
president's position throughout the
Mexican troubles and again was gen
erally accepted as such. Members of
congress were inclined to the belief
that the reported utterances of Gen
eral Wood were to be taken as that
officer's personal view.
General Wood himself and Secre
tary of War Dickinson have been
particularly bitter in denouncing the
circulation of stories of intervention
at this time, saying they considered
them calculated to work infinite mis
chief and endanger the lives of Am
ericans in Mexico by Inflaming the
natives and even to plunge the two
countries into war.
Women Want to Vote.
New York , May 6.— Gray-haired
women suffrage pioneers, styled "the
girls of '60;" dimpled, laughing babies
of 1910, not yet out of their first long
dresses; girls and women of all ages
between, swept down Fifth avenue
from Forty-seventh street to Union
square this afternoon In organized
protest against denial to their sex of
the ballot.
Four brass bands, dozens of elabo
rate floats and fluttering pennants by
the hundreds, and here and there a
banner bearing epigrams, lengthened
the line of 2,000 marchers. The ranks
were separated Into seven divisions
and more than half the marchers were
laden with camp stools, besides the
banners which they carried. These
camp stools, an innovation In New
York parades, had served as seats for
the feminine army preceding the
formation. Having answered their
purpose, they were folded up, tucked
under arms and oarrled along. Every
one marched with the exception of the
veterans and the babies.
Chester Signal: The Maria9 Far
mers' association will hold a regular
May meeting on Saturday, the 13th,
in their hall over the Signal office.
Prof. Thomas Shaw haB written the
secretary that he will be present to
address the farmers on some subject
that will be of interest to them, and it
is expected that at least one other good
speaker will be in attendance.
WILL REDUCE^ REVENUE.
Congressman Says Free List Bill Is
Loosely Drawn.
Washington , May 4.—Not since
the republican guns were unlimbered
against the democratic free list bill by
Minority Leader Mann more than a
week ago has the debate In the house
developed such an attack on the meas
ure as was made today by Represent
ative Hill of Connecticut, a republican
member of the ways and means com
mittee and one of the leading repub
lican advocates of the Canadian reci
procity bill.
Mr. Hill asserted that the bill de
vised by the democratic leaders romov
ing the tariff duties from many food
products and manufactured articles
was so crudely drawn and so indefinite
in its terms that no estimate could be
made for the revenues it would cut
off or of the effect it would have on
business and commerce. He said that,
Instead of 910,000,000 reduotlon in reve
nue as the democrats expected, it
might be made a reduction of 950 ,000,
000, and that the effect on business
would be to transfer many flourishing
industries to Europe.
Mr. Hill explained that the Interna
tional Harvester company, the large
sewing machine companies and other
manufacturers would be able, under
the democratic bill, to manufacture
parts of their machines cheaper abroad
and bring them to this country to be
assembled by cheap labor here. Me
chanics and skilled labor would suffer
loss of employement, he said.
He declared that the democratic bill
was so general In terms as to admit
almost anything free of duty. Woolen
goods, all kinds of wire, all sorts of
fabrics, zinc, leadjand pig iron were
among the things he mentioned.
Mr. Hill particularly attacked the
bill for making many manufactured
products free of duty, like shoes, har
ness and saddlery, while leaving a
duty against the raw material that
American manufacturers have to im
port. He said also that in attempting
to make free of duty the bagging used
to wrap cotton bales the democratic
bill would let in free the bagging used
by the fertilizer trust, by the cement
mills of the United States and by other
monopolies, which would make no cor
responding reduction in prices to con
sumers.
Bryan Favors Free Wool.
Lincoln , May 5.—W. J. Bryan has
authorized this statement on free
wool:
"Press dispatches say that some of
the democrats in the south are In
sisting on leaving a tariff on wool.
If there is any such protection in the
sentiment among the democrats, the
sooner it is brought to light and com
batted, the better. If the democratic
party can be scared by a few sheep
growers, it might as well renounce its
advocacy of tariff reduction and make
an alliance with the republican party.
"Protection is no protection, no
matter whether it is asked for the ben
efit of manufacturers, or for the bene
fit of farmers, and a roan who be
lieves in protection is worse than
worthless as a tariff reformer. If his
heart is met on protecting somebody,
he will soon learn that protectionists
must stand together and then he is
afraid to touch the tariff anywhere."
Indict Dynamite Suspects.
Los Angeles , May 5.— The 19 in
dictments voted by the Lo9 Angeles
county grand jury against John J.
McNamara and his brother, James B.
McNamara, charging them with the
murder of 21 men who lost their lives
October 1, last, in tbe explosion which
destroyed the Times office, were filed
in Judge Bordwell's court today. The
evidence upon which the indictments
are based will be held secret.
Three indictments against Ortle Mc
Manigal,alleged confessed dynamiter,
charging him with having dynamited
the Llewellyn Iron Works in this city,
last Christmas day, also were filed.
It is understood that they charge the
McNamaras with complicity with the
Llewellyn affair.
Object To Canadian Coal.
Seattle , May 4. — Private eable
advices received from Cordova, Alas
ka, say that a mob has boarded an
Alaska steamship company's vessel
that just arrived there with a cargo of
Canadian coal, and began dumping it
overboard. The action of the mob is
said to be the result of agitation
against the importation of foreign
fuel in Alaska. It is asserted that the
steamship company has appealed to
President Taft to send troops to sup
press tbe rioting.
Several days ago agitators are re
ported to have begun tbe formation
of a mob to emulate the "Boston tea
party
of Colonial days and throw
the Canadian coal into the sea. The
coal is owned by the Alaskan Steam
ship company, which buys it from
Columbia mines and In addition to
belog sold for domestic use, is used
in operating tbe steamships between
Seattle and Alaska, and the trains on
the Copper river and Northwestern
railroad.
The Colorado Senatorial Deadlock.
Denver , May 6.—At 10:15 o'clock
tonight the joint assembly of the Col
orado legislature, balloting to elect a
successor to the late United States Sen
ator Charles J. Hughes jr., was form
ally dissolved, leaving unbroken the
deadlock which ha9 existed since Jan.
12. As a result Colorado, with a
practically complete democratic state
administration and with an overwhelm
ing democratic majority in tbe legisla
ture, will be represented the United
States senate for the next two years by
a solitary republican, Simon Guggen
heim.
A personal fight waged against
Mayor Robert W. Speer of Denver, the
leading candidate whose flna lstrength
of 33 votes in tonight's balloting was
exactly one half of tbe democratic ma
jority in the legislature, is held re
sponsible for the failure to elect i
senator.
Probing Alleged Census Frauds.
Helena , May 1.—It developed today
that the three towns whose census re
turns will bu- investigated by the fed
eral grand jury are Missoula,Billings
and Havre. There are a number of
witnesses in Helena from the three
cities, experts from the census bureau
at Washington and a special assistant
to the attorney general detailed on the
cases.
About 50 witnesses have been subpe
nead from the three towns, a number
of them being the landladies of lodg
ing bouses from which five to ten
times the actual number of roomers
are alleged to have been returned to
the census.
At the last session of the grand
jury three enumerators were indicted
and pleaded guilty. The present in
vestigation, it is said, involves not
only the enumerators who are alleged
to have made fraudulent returns, but
also the "higher ups" in tbe persons
of too enthusiastic population boosters
in the various cities. As far as could
be learned today, only the three towns
mentioned will be subjected to the
probe at this time.
Charged With Smuggling.
San Francisco May 5.— Chris
topher Snyder, who claims to be a
wealthy mining man of Dillon, Mont.,
was arrested on board the steamship
Manchuria today by a deputy United
States marshal, on a warrant charging
him with smuggling opium.
In company with several petty of
ficers of the Manchuria, Snyder was
Indicted by the federal grand jury of
Honolulu. The steamship officials
were arrested at Honolulu before the
departure of the vessel from the port,
but Snyder was not apprehended until
the Manchuria came to quarantine to
day.
Snyder said he was on a tour of the
world, and denied participation in the
alleged smuggling plot. No informa
tion has been received as to the value
of the drug which was seized on board
the Manchuria at Honolulu.
Census Men Indicted.
Helena , May 4. —The United States
grand jury, now in session at the fed
eral building, yesterday returned in
dictments against eight census enum
erators, charged with "padding" the
returns. The names of the men in
dicted were not made public, but it is
understood that fonr of them are
charged with manipulating the Bil
lings census, two with making false
entries on the Missoula census, and
two with unlawfully Increasing the
population of Havre. When tbe in
dictments were returned Judge Deit
rich ordered that warrants issue and
fixed bonds in each case at SI, 000.
Alleging violation of the 28-hour
law on a shipment of stock last April
from North Dakota to Elliston, Mont.,
suit was brought against the Northern
Pacific today by District Attorney
Freeman on behalf of the government.
Judgment is asked for the sum of
$500.
The naturalization of Leon Marks,
convicted at Livingston of horse steal
ing, was canceled in a decree by Judge
Dietrich today.
Helena , May 5.— George R. Wood
ward and Luthur N. Allen, both of
Missoula, two of tbe eight men in
dicted Wednesday by the federal grand
jury in Helena, for alleged padding of
the census returns, were arrested to
day, but were released on furnishing
bonds in the sum of $1,000 each.
SUSPECT INDIA N GRAFT.
Affairs On Montana Reservations May
Be Probed.
Washington , May 2. — Indian
affairs in Montana and other western
states are to be probed by the house
committee on expenditures in the in
terior department, it being the belief
of members of the committee, and par
ticularly of Chairman Graham, that
there has been improper use made of
Indian lands and Indian moneys in
recent years.
It is probable that officials of the In
dian service, serving on reservations
in Montana, will be summoned to
Washington to testify before the com
mittee, and that other Montana per
sons, including Indians will be
brought here as witnesses.
Chairman Graham is suspicious that
the appropriation of 1500,000 in the
last Indian bill for the irrigation of
Flathead lands was not legislation in
the interest of the Flathead Indians,
but in the interest of speculators, who,
he has been advised, have bought up
Flathead Indian lands.
Graham thinks there may be some
thing which ought to be uncovered in
connection with this work, and he in
tends to find out whether his sus
picions are well founded.
The Crow reservatlen will also be
investigated. According to Informa
coming from Graham's committee,
it Is charged that hundreds of thous
ands of dollars appropriated to this
reservation, ostensibly to Improve
property of the Indians, was actually
used to improve lands that have fal
len into tbe bands of land grabbers,
with the result that the government
has lost the money, the Indians have
lost the lands and manipulators are
getting the benefit.
May Reopen Lorimer Case.
Washington , May 3.— Renewal of
the Lorimer investigation was provid
ed today by the senate committee on
contingent expenses wbicb approved
a resolution covering the expenses of
such an inquiry. The report will come
up in the senate tomorrow and a fight
is expected.
The report was unanimous but there
was a spécifié understanding that it
should not be construed as an indica
tion of the committee's views on tbe
merits of the case. So particular were
some members on this point that they
insisted on a written statement that
the action indicated only that if an
other investigation should be under
taken provision would be made for
the expense.
Frost Threatens Fruit^Crop,
Washington , May 3.— Almost the
entire eastern half of the country was
shivering today in the coldest weather
with one or two exceptions, ever felt
at this time of the year. A cold wave
began to move eastward last Saturday
and by last night had spread over the
lake region, middle Atlantic states
and New England. Tonight it is pre
dicted that frosts will continue in these
regions and extend far south as
northern North Carolina und Mem
phis, Tenn.
Will Build Big Bridge.
Portland , May 3. —Material is now
on the way to Oregon for the building
of the railroad bridge across the
Crooked river, which will be the
greatest feat ever attempted in tbo
history of western railroad construc
tion. The bridge will consist of a
single cantilever arch, spanning the
Big Box canyon of Crooked river and
the railroad track will be 325 feet
above the water. The gorge is 340
feet across.
Texans Oppose Free Wool.
San Antonio , May 3. — Politics
have been submerged by Texans in
the effort to prevent free wool, either
by Canadian rec.iprooity or revision
of existing tariff schedules.
State Senator Hudspeth, a dyed-in
the wool democrat, left last night for
Washington to argue against free
wool. In a few days he will be joined
by Captain B. Trouob, a dyed-in-the
wool republican. The envoys of the
sheep and wool manufacturers will
carry a great mass of data to Wash
ington with them.
Saw Seamy Side of Life.
New York , May 4. —Edwin A.
Brown, of Denver, famed as tbe
"mllllonare tramp," because of his
excursions in search of information
as to bow the other half lives, is in
New York today at the end of bis last
excursion in overalls. He is through
seeing the seamy side of life from tbe
inside, he says, and henceforth will
carry on by other means his work of
impressing upon cities the necessity of
providing for worthy people.
Mr. Brown has seen the inside of
prison walls in every section of the
country, always on the sole charge of
not having money enough to buy food
or a bed. The need of municipal
lodging houses and similar institu
tions is the same everywhere, he says.
His final trip, just completed, was
through the southern cities.
Planning Octopus Hunt.
Washington , May 3.— Tbe inves
tigation trend of congress took a wide
range today. Inquiries Into the af
fairs of tbe United States Steel Cor*
poration, tbe American Sugar Refin
ing company and the Amerioan Wool
en company, were placed on the pro*
gram of the democratic house; the
shoe industry was under fire and a
senate committee on expenses opened
tbe way for a re-invastigation of tbe
charges against Senator Lorlmer of
Illinois.
The declaration that a "trust" grips
the entire shoe manufacturing indus
try of the United States was made to
day before the senate committee on
finance, which began hearings on the
Canadian reciprocity bill. Manufac
turers from tbe middle west told the
committee they were practically at the
merch of the United Shoe Machinery
company of Boston. It was suggested
that a report of the hearings be trans
mitted to tbe attorney general.
President Pardons Convicts.
Washington , May 4.— President
Taft extended executive clemency to
eight men convicted of federal offenses.
John Lee Brown of St. Louis went to
Chicago four years agofand was sooa
convicted of counterfeiting. Having
served three years of a five years sen
tence in Leavenworth penitentiary, his
sentence has been commuted to expire
at once.
Henry O. T. Lee of Helena, Mont.,
now serving fifteen months Imprison
ment in Leavenworth for complicity in
counterfeiting, will be released at once
because of his youth.
MUST SUPPRESS CRIME.
Roosevelt Discusses Features of Big
Dynamite Case.
New York , May 4.—Ex-President
Theodore Roosevelt will have a signed
article entitled "Murder Is Murder"
in the Outlook this week dealing with
the dynamiting of the Los Angeles
Times and the arrests recently made
by Detective Burns. Mr. Roosevelt
says:
"No worse service can be rendered
by labor union leaders to the cause of
unionism than that which they render
when they seek to identify tbe cause
of unionism with the cause of any man
guilty of a murderous attack of this
nature. I have no idea whether tbe
men arrested on Mr. Burns' statement
are or are not guilty;]the labor lead
ers in question have no idea whether
or not they are.
"They are entitled to an absolutely
fair trial. If they 4 have no money to
provide counsel for themselves, then
it would be entirely proper for any
body of men to furnish them the re
quisite funds, simply as an incident
in securing them a fair trial. But it
is grossly improper to try to create
a public opinion in favor of the ac
cused men simply because the crime
of which they are accused is commit
ted against a capitalist or a corpora
tion and because the men who are
charged with committing it are mem
bers of a labor union.
"This is an iniquity as gross as it
would have been if when three years
ago, tbe sugarjtrust was indicted for
swindling operations in the New York
custom bouse, tbe*forces of organized
capital had been behind the indicted
men on tbe ground that the attack on
capitalists guilty of crime meant an
attack on all'capltal."
Pay More Than Million.
Washington , May 3.—The govern
ment today accepted $1,180,000 in com
promise of the suits against Duveen
Bros., tbe New York art firm, accused
of coustoms frauds. The books and
papers of the firm will be retained for
evidence in the criminal action. The
settlement involved the largest sum
collected in any custom case except
the sugar frauds.
Want No More Territory.
Baltimore , May 3.— Mr. Taft, in
his speech at the opening of the third
national peace conference here today,
said the United States would keep
hands off and not seek to extend its
domain or to acquire foreign terri
tory.
He made no mention of Mexico, but
to those who heard him it was evident
the trouble there and the suspicion in
the south American republics as to the
intention of this country in regard to
its southern neighbors had inspired
him.