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i .10 oexits for 1O § S Monopol Tobacco Works || Counterfeiters on Trial. P. Oray and J. Horton were placed on trial yesterday before a Jury for the sec- ond time In the United States District Court on a charpe of having: in their pos- session tools for making counterfeit money. The cri!=*> will be presented to tha Jury this morning. Financial experts report the total transactions of the clearing-houses of the United States last year at about $93,300,000,000, or nearly one hundred billions of 'ioiUrs. The biennial expenditures of the Govern ment hardly exceed 1 per cent of it. Whenever the time conies to talk business the other nations have to take a back real and let Uncle Sam do the oratory. Mrs. Man- IV. Kincaid, member of the new Board of Education, is how probably aware that the game of politics contains several points not known to the female mind. It was nothing less than an act of re fined cruelty on the part of Director Mark to regild one of those Gage bricks and hand it to the lady at <he very outset of her official career. «.»::r of the notable things about the recent conven tion of the Teachers' Association at Sacramento was that in ell the discussion concerning the problems of teachers nothing was said about the problem of get ting their salaries after earning them. In her petition for divorce Julia Marlowe con fessed that hrr girlhood's name was Sarah Frances Frort. No rt'onder she changed it when she decideti to y.o o*l the str^c. If there's anything an actor 01 P' If the Gage Board of Health carries out its threats and Tax Collector Sheehan erects a few more barri cades in his ofilcr the record of the first day in New San Francisco v.! 1 ! read like a report from the Boer Probably for the sake of getting relief from the question about the century mark, the New York Post !ils been moved to ask "Is McKinley sure of re-elec tion?" That ought to be an easy one. Do their best, English newspapers cannot keep nndcr the question of the seizure of American flour in Delagoa Bay. That finur is self-rising and bound to assert itseif sooner or Inter. . . It lonics as if Duller had about made up his mind to hold his own at Tugela River and let White do the best he can to hold Ladysmith. Dr. Siererfs Angostura Bitters Is known all over the world as the great regulator of th» digestive organs. AN AMERICAN PACIFIC CABLE. ONE of the most valuable contributions yet made to the discussion of the problem of construct ing a cable telegraph across the Pacific froni the United States to Asia is contained in a paper read at the recent meeting of electrical engineers in New York by Captain George Owen Squier of the United States army. Captain Squier declares there Is no longer any doubt of the practicability of the Pacific cable project from a technical and engineering point of view. A preliminary' survey, he says, between the coast of California and the Hawaiian Islands was completed by the Navy Department in 1892, showing the entire practicability of that part of the route. The United States ship Nero has been engaged since April last in a survey of the bed of the Pacific along the proposed route of the cable from the Hawaiian Islands west ward to the Philippines and Japan. This survey has developed two unusual features along the route by way of Midway Island, one of them being a sub marine mountain rising front the floor of the ocean having a depth of 2200 fathoms to within 82 fathoms of the surface; the other being an abyss of 4900 fathoms, one of the deepest yet discovered in the sea, at a distance of about 500 miles east of Guam. These and other obstacles which may be found Captain Squier says can be avoided in laying the cable by making detours around them. Two routes are discussed for covering the distance between Honolulu and Guam, one by way of Midway Island and the other by way of Wake Island. It is advised that one of those routes be selected as a cable direct from Honolulu to Guam would be about 3650 miles long, including "slack" wire, and that length would ro. reduce the through speed of the cable and so increase the original cost that it would be cheaper to establish and maintain the intermediate station. . . It is estimated that to yield a revenue which will re pay the cost of maintenance and repairs the cable will have to earn $925,000 a year. The cost of transmit ting messages is calculated at about 8 cents a word, and the present commercial rate from Washington to Manila is $2 38 a word.' Captain Squier says: "It is seen that at the present commercial rate to Manila, after allowing for the present land rates to San Fran cisco, the proposed cable is required to operate less than fifty minutes per day in order to earn the income Personally Conducted Excursions in improved wiae-vestlbuled Pullman tourist sleeping cars via Santa Fe Route. Experienced excursion conductors accompany these excur- sions to look after the welfare of passengers! To Chlcaxo and Kansas City every Sunday Wednesday and Friday. To Boston. Montreal and Toronto every Wednesday. To St Louis every Sunday. To St. Paul every Sunday and Friday. Ticket office. fSi \r ?i,». ...... FRAUDS IN FOODSTUFFS. 1 mj FFORTS made in New York to obtain the par dop of two men sent to prison in that State * — * for violating the oleomargarine law by remov ing from the packages the marks by which it could be distinguished from butter have had the effect of re viving the "discussion there concerning the extent to which the food laws are violated, and as a result some very interesting figures are made public. It appears that during the past year the State Com missioner of Agriculture reported to the Attorney General for prosecution no less than 731 cases of vio lation of the agricultural law. That of course covers only such frauds in foodstuffs as affect those which are produced by the agriculturists of New York. It affords, however, a basis upon which to found esti mates of the frequency of such offenses. When so large a number of offenders are detected in a single year in a single State it is clear that such practices in the country at large are of portentous frequency. The argument of those who are seeking the par don of the men who were passing off oleomargarine for butter is the familiar one that the product they offered was in every respect as good as butter; that no harm was done to the consumers. Such an argu ment, however, is really worse than none. It has been put forward in defense of almost all kinds of adul terated or sophisticated foods. The answer to it is plain. If the concoctions of various kinds with which the market is flooded be as good as pure foods they should be sold under their right title and the pur chaser given the choice to take them or reject them. It is unfair to permit spurious food to be palmed off under the title of pure food. The law which forbids such practices is just, and so long as violations of it are so frequent there should be no pardon for those who are convicted. The efforts of the States to put an end to the mis representation of foodstuffs have proven unavailing. It will require a national statute to adequately deal with the subject, and such a law, it is to be hoped, will be enacted by Congress this winter. A stringent label law is what is desired, and ample provision should be made for enforcing it. If there were nearly a thousand offenses against the New York law in one year it is safe to say the national law would be vio lated so frequently for a while at least that a strong body of officers would be needed to maintain it. A year or so of vigilance and firmness, however, would put an end to the greater part of such practices, and then the makers of pure foods would no longer be exposed to the ruinous competition of unscrupulous dealers in fraudulent articles. If Corrigan continues to combine his ideas of what social ethics and horse-racing ought to be visitors to Tanforan will have to include Gatling guns as neces sary adjuncts of the game. Big Cargo of Opium. The tramp steamer Algoa brought Into port last Sunday 21,361 pound 3 of Chinese opium, the duty on which Is $125,16S an<t the value of which, duty paid, is $341,775. Special information supplied dally to business houses and public men by tha Press Clipping Bureau (Allen's). 510 Mont- gomery street. Telephone Main 1042. • Out of fifty-four Senators invited to dine with Sena tor Quay only fifteen accepted the invitation, so it is evident the prestige of the Pennsylvania man is not anything like as big as it used to be. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. THE CENTURY DISCUSSION-O. M an old subscriber. City. The century ques tion was discussed at length in the issue of The Call on- Sunday, January 7, page ID. CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK-Bona Fide Voter. City. Work on the laying out of Central Park, New York, was com menced in 1857, at. the time that Fernando Wood was Mayor of that city. BOER— G. P., City. Boer Is Dutch for farmer. It is applied to any one of the population of Dutch descent in the South African district. The first Boers immi grated from Java in 1652 and were rein forced by Huguenots in 1657. AN OLD PAPER— I. W. D., Pleasanton. Cal. An old copy of "Wide West," pub lished in San Francisco In 1556. has no particular market value. It is worth either what the Dossessor wants for it, or what any one desiring such would be willing to pay. TWO COINS— A. C, Ceres. Cal. There is no premium on quarters and half-dol lars of 1553 except they are of the issue that have not two arrow points at ihe date nor rays around the eagle. Neither Is a premium offered by coin collectors for a half-dollar of 1556. A TELEPHONE MESSAGE— L. M. C. City. The fact that a "young lady calls up a gentleman by telephone and wlsnes him a merry Christmas" does not make it obligatory on the gentleman to send th<» lady a present anymore than if she should meet him on the street and express a stm ilar wish. CITT CIVIL SERVICE— OId Subscriber. City. If this correspondent and all others who are interested in the civil service ex aminations under the new charter will on ly watch the local columns of The Call they will be informed as to what the com mission is doing and when the examina tions will take place. A LEAKY HOUSE— If an Individual rents a house "just as it is." without ob taining from the landlord or agent an na surance that it is In good condition and free from leaks, he would not have any redress, but If the landlord gave him the assurance that It was waterproof the ten- Mayor Phelan has been charged with having made ante-election promises contrary to the statutes. He j to:i:ised — to get support — that his Commissioners would appoint Esola Chief of Police. He violated the purity law in that. He promised the political man n^er-s of the Fire Department, in return for their support, that he would not dismember that depart- n;«-m. Almost at the same time he promised, also foi support at the polls, that he would cause the ap- ;¦¦:::. -nt of Joseph C. Gorman to the place of Max uwcll. In addition to bein? violations of the purity of elections law, the*e promises were preliminary to ; ledge breaking, at which the Mayor docs not seem to scruple. With that phase of the matter, however, it s not ibe province of the District Attorney to in terfere. His sworn duty cails upon him to take official notice of ofTenscs against the purity law and compels him to proceed; against the offenders. The language •;>tute is. plain, and there is no chance to mis e its meaning. It fays violators shall be punished Sircrts how. It does not say that there is one Law For ihe rich and one for the poor, as some politi cal J'i^trirt Attorneys are wont to imagine. It does not provide escape for the wealthy offender and pen- alty for the pauper. It docs not point out a loophole for Mayor Phelan and a prison cell for Sternberg. It demands retribution for infractions of any of its pro visions. Mr. Byington Knows this as well as anybody clac, and he knows now, if he did not before, that Mayor Phclatn stands charged as an offender against the law. Mr. Jlyington's duty is clear. He should prosecute his mo c t powerful political friend. Mayor Phelan. BYINGTON'S PLAIN DUTY. DISTRICT ATTORNEY BYINGTON at the very outset of his new political career is met with a demand to do his duty. The charter he lias sworn to uphold has been violated and is threat ened with more violence. The purity of elections law, offenders against which he is called upon to pjosccutc, has been outraged. The chief offender is Mayor Phclzn, in the one instance by his newly ap ;»<*ii:tc'l Commissioners, in several others in his own ant would have recourse against the land lord, and he would probably be Justified in withholding the rent until the house was put in good condition. HE MUST HANG— A Subscriber. City. When a man is convicted of the enna of murder and the penalty Is death, the court directs the Sheriff of the county to hang the criminal. If by some chance' th.» rope as the body is dropped through tna trap breaks, that does not relieve th<» Sheriff of the responsibility of carrying r>ut the court's order to hanc the prisoner. In such a case he would have to secure the individual, return him to the scaffold and drOD h.!m n. *connfl rim** MESSENGER SERVICE— A. O. S., Oak land, Cal. If you should, request tho Sun set Telephone Company to connect you with some one In San Francisco, the com pany should inform you that the line was out of order, and should ask you if you wished a messenger across the bay to de liver the message, and you should an swer yes, that would amount to an en gagement of service that you would hay» to pay for. It would not make any differ ence because tho messenger could not find the party in at the San Francisco ad dress. CITIZEXSHrP— A Subscriber. City. Ar.v alien of the age of 21 years and upward who has resided in the United States three years next preceding his arriving at that age, and who has continued to reside therein up to tho time he makes applica tion to be admitted to citizenship, may. after he arrives at the age of 21 and after he has resided five years within tho United States, including the three years of his minority, be admitted to citizen ship, but he must make a declaration on cath and prove to the satisfaction of the court that for two years next precodlns It had been his bona fide intention to bo come a citizen. it automatically folds bade against the head, and in so doirstr moves' a safety catch into nucli a position as to prevent tho striker in the point of the torp<"do moving. In this position it may be struck or handled with impunity, but it Is claimed that the moment it is towed through the water it becomes onca more a deadly peril to any ship that may graze It. The Lege torpedo is constructed of Delta metal, which, while being as strong as st?el, la not liable to rust and corro sion from immersion In water. The charge »3 ot cylindrical shape and Is easily inserted and removed from the head of tho torpedo, so that the apparatus can be stored •with perfect safety ready to hand, while the charges are placed out of harm's war in a magazine. Other advantages claimed for it are those of automatically adjusting Itself to the depth required, and on encountering th-5 defensive nets of an Ironclad, of assuming a vertical position, diving beneath them and striking the hull with Its point as soon as it is clear. The great point in favor of the new -weapon would appear to be its simplicity, but on the other hand it does not seem impossible for an enemy to so damage or destroy th» endless chain as to stop Us motion, when the whole set of tor pedoes would at once become Innocuous. Nor, for that mat ter, does it seem very improbable that Its working might ba affected by the explosion of one of Its own torpedoes. EXTREMELY flshlike is the new towing torpedo, the "Lego," the weapon recently Invented by a Frenchman. Though it can be used much in tho same way as the old Harvey torpedo, with which some of the British ships were equipped before the advent of the Whitehead, by being towed at an angle under an enemy's ship, provided she allowed the operator to approach near enough to do so, its principal function Is the defense of ports and harbors. It differs from the Brennan, which to all intents and pur poses is an automobile weapon, but at the same time it is much simpler and probably much less expensive, though special ar rangements have to be made for its use, says the London Dally Graphic, as will be seen by reference to the accompanying sketch. An endless chain is stretched round four horizontal wheels or pulleys so as to cover the portion to be guarded, and is eet In motion by means of a second chain driven by an en gine on shore. To the first mentioned chain a series of Lege torpedoes are attached at intervals, and the Idea is that as the chain moves round on its rollers the channel Is constantly patrolled, as it were, by two lines of traveling mines moving in opposite directions, so that it would bo practically impossi ble for a ship to pass through this guarded zone unscathed. Immediately the chain is stopped the torpedoes become harmless, for on the strain belns taken off the towing lever THE SHEEHAN OUTRAGE. SHEEHAN'S determination to keep out of the office of Tax Collector the man whom the peo ple elected to fill the position has brought about a fight which disgraces the city and came near cost ing the life of at least one man. Sheehan's only ex cuse for this display of violence and brutality is that he deems the election of Mr. Scott to the office to have been invalid. In that belief he has taken it upon himself to usurp the authority of the courts, pro nounce judgment in his own favor, and to resist by force the attempt of^Mr. Scott to enter upon the duties and take possession of the office to which he has been elected. Such offenses as that of which Sheehan has been guilty have been committed in Chicago, but, we be lieve, in no other American city. Even in Chicago they have been rare, for it requires a very unscrupu lous and very bold office-holder indeed to attempt to retain the position in defiance of the law after the ex piration of the legal term. San Francisco has had to bear the stain and disgrace of many political scandals, but such a thing as a fight with clubs and pistols for the possession of office has never until this time black ened her record. The story of the fight will of course be reported far and wide, and the good repute of the city will be in jured. The new era in municipal government, which in other respects has opened auspiciously enough, has in this regard been marred by an outrage worse than any known to the past. It is due to fortune only that we have not to record the affray as one resulting in death as well as in bloodshed, for it was evidently the intention of Sheehan to hold to his office at all haz ards, whatever might be the consequences to others and to the community. In Spanish-American politics an election is always followed by a fight. When the people have cast their ballots in favor of a new set of officials the members of the old regime barricade themselves and refuse to surrender the offices. That is the style of politics Sheehan would like to introduce here. He has made the attempt, and the result has been the most dis graceful political outrage in our annals. The offense of Sheehan is the more gross because the question of Scott's eligibility to the office is now before the courts for adjudication. Sheehan's deter mination to pass judgment on the issue himself- is therefore something in the nature of contempt of court as well as a violation of law and of public de cency. It was his duty to leave the decision of the matter to the court, where his rights would have ample protection, and in undertaking to assert his claim by force he has disgraced himself and the city without in the least strengthening his position in law. It is to be hoped there will be found adequate means cf punishing offenses of this kind. We cannot tolerate here the Spanish-American practice of accompanying each election with a free fight. Our laws are sufficient for the protection of the right of every citizen and of every office-holder, and nothing can justify such ac tions as that of which Sheehan has been guilty. If the Weather Bureau will pay attention to the public mind at this juncture it will notice marked signs of a demand for dry weather. the past. They merely see at a distance things which are underfoot, but unseen. More than this, they af fect to see at a distance things which are not there, but are near by, though unseen by them. This is a mirage effect on minds debauched by misuse, prosti tuted by the habit of putting what they wish to be for what is. The actual reality near at hand, though invisible, appears in the distance like those phantom scenes on the desert, in which clods become houses and spears of dry weed wave the inviting foliage of a forest. The most defiant imperialist in California is General Otis, who sometimes crosses the Rubicon and sometimes edits the Los Angeles Times. He is fiercely pro-British in the South African contest and raves at ail Americans who will not worship with him st the feet of British power. He recently denounced the name and title, "United States of South Africa," particularly because it was of American origin and "the invention of charlatans and sensationalists, designed to work upon the prejudices oi those who do not take the trouble to look beneath the surface of great questions." The general then proceeds to look beneath the surface of great ques tions to this effect: "Even if Kruger and his coterie of absolutists were willing to have the provinces of South Africa united under a republican form of gov ernment, similar to that of the United States, it would be necessary before such a thing could be done to se cure the co-operation of the people of South Africa, since a republican government must of necessity, if it is to be stable, rest upon the consent of the governed. To obtain such consent would be impossible, for the reason that interests, opinions and affiliations are so diverse. Homogeneity of race, of aims, of purposes and of opinions, is wanting, and without it concert and harmony of action would be impossible. The United States of South Africa would be a house di- vided against itself and foredoomed to go down in the red ruin of revolution and anarchy, if left to its Therefore, he argues, Great Britain must be per mitted to take and govern those people as she sees fit. But Great Britain is not a republic. In England, Scotland and Wales that Government is a constitu tional monarchy. In Ireland, India and Guiana it is an absolute despotism. Such it will be in South Africa if its arms prevail, for such conquests must be held only by unrelenting force and vigilance, pre pared always to kill in restraint of the repressed as piration of men to be free. The United States of America is a republic, a Gov ernment all of whose powers are delegated to it by the constitution. General Otis declares homogeneity of race, aspirations, opinions and purpose and consent of the governed to be necessary to the stability of a republic. He sees this clearly and correctly while looking to far Africa. Why does he not see it while looking at home? He is fiercely intolerant of oppo sition to American imperialism. That policy means bringing under our flag and jurisdiction probably twenty millions of people, alien to us in race, opinions and purposes. They are A be brought in mainly against their wish. The majority of them will never forget when they see the flag that it is the emblem of their conquest, the banner of a master and not the TUESDAY JANUARY 9. I9*> JOHN D. SrRECKELS, Proprietor. Acdrets Alt Ccn-,rouniC«ticn» to W. S. LEAKE, Manager Pt«LICATIO\ OFFICE. .Marlrrt and Third, 8. F. Ttlrpliune Main 1868. miTORIAL ROOMS 217 to 221 Si»vcn«nn St. : • i. -iihoti«- Main 1874. Dellrered V' Currier*. IS Onta Per Week. ••illicit- Copies, 5 Crnti, Terms n> Mall. Including I'miaen DAILY CALL, ".•¦ludltu «andnj-). one yenr. .fift.OO DAJL.Y CALL, (lncludlne Sunday*. •{ mouths. . 3.00 :.' \!) . CALL (lnclndlns: Sunday). 3 months.. IJJO UAILV CALL Ur Single Month Gso ft'XDAY ( ALL One Year , XJVO IVEEKLT CALL Oue Year 1.00. ill iMiatcnaatcTN are authorized to receive subscriptions. «¦.![..;.;•- copies will be forwarded vrhen requested OAUI.AMJ OFFICE ©OS Broadwray C. GCOIICC KHOGXES9, '•...finp. r Foreign Ad vertlolncr. Slarqnette Dolld- InjC. ' Mi-uLu. M"\V I'OQK COnRESPOSTDdfTi C. C. CAUUO.V Herald Square lEW YORK lICI'IIESKXTATIVE: !';.ii;t> I,[|U:M» .])'. 2!* Tribune Jltitldlnc CHICAGO NEW! STAJTDSi Mir-rrnen Ifoui<«*i I*. «). \rir« Co.| Great North era Hotel | Fremont House; Auditorium Hotel. !*n\V YORK M:\VS STAJTDSi Waldorf- \fttorlft Hotel; A- Ilrentuno. .11 Union ¦« Hare t .Hurray Hill Hotel. \VASHI.\(;toS <O. C.I OFFlCE.. Wellington Hotel J. P. BXGIjISH, Currfipondriit. lilt%\CH OFFICES 527 Montgomery, corner of • lay. open unfit Dl3o o'clock. :;«><» Haven, opea ur.tll »::tu oVloelc tr.v.t McAllister, open until !».:;<• o'clock. 016 Lurkin, opc-n until Di3O o'clock. 11141 Mission, open until 1O o'clock* •_"_.! Marked corner Sixteenth, open until !» o'clock. 1000 Valencia, open unlit !i <.•«•»<, eU.. 1«m; Klew-nth. open until 9 o'clock. \\V. corner Ti\ '-iiti -second and Kentucky, cijMii until i> o'clock. AMUSEMENTS. '"a"? n.\a.-~ "The Prirxesa *.n3 the Butterfly." Orj h' urn— Vau«!evli:«. Btttfa — "The CSrtgtiaa.** Tlvo'.!— ' -Little 80-Pe*;)." «Jra;;i O;»!:r»-Lou6fc — "iSlnbai." AI' »zar— "l'yeierlGUe Mr. I3uc'*-" Aihamtra. — "Aa Affair of Honor." Cbut«-». 'JLfj ic3 Theater — Vaudeville every afternoon and «v;;;.i!i|J. Olrmpla. corner Mason axA Ellis street* — Specialties. tun litttle cf Manila Bay, Market street, near (Veateni Turf A.«soo'.ati on— Races today. The arguments upon the advantages to be derived from the cable need not be repeated, as they are fa miliar to all. Our rapidly expanding commerce with the Orient renders it highly desirable that our mer chants should have direct and speedy communication with all oriental ports. The proposed American cable would of course be connected with the Japanese and Chinese cables and land telegraphs and would put us in direct relations with those lines, so that from San Francisco it would be easy to communicate at once with any part of the Pacific coast of Asia. The project of constructing such a cable has long been under consideration in Congress and will be brought forward at the present session. Whether the enterprise will be favored will depend of course upon the nature of the measures proposed to carry it out. If they be wisely devised the great project may soon be under way with the general approval of the public. AROUND THE CORRIDORS Captain F. W. Wise is registered at the Grand from Victoria. H. W. Adams, a well-known railroad man of Los Angeles, is at the Lick. Dr. Edward G. Parker, U. S. N.. is among the arrivals at the Occidental. A. Ekman, the Orovllle capitalist, is among the recent arrivals at the Grand. Dr. M. J. Davis, a popular physician of Golconda, Nev.. is registered at the Pal ace. George H. Stewart, a Los Angeles mer chant of prominence, Is at the Grand for a few days. D. D. Wlshom, a well-known land owner of Vlsalia, is registered for a short stay at the Grand. Mr. and Mrs. H. G. Stevenson have come up from their home In Menlo Park and are at the Palace. Dr. W. A- Hendry, one of the leading medical men of Los Angeles, is at the Oc cidental, accompanied by his wife. D. T. Hughes, one of the prominent busi ness men of San Jose, is at the Lick while on a short pleasure trip to this city. Dr. G. G. Baar. a distinguished Vienna specialist. Is at the Occidental. He ar-. Quillet's Ice Cream ana Cakes. 303 Larkin St.; tel. East 193. • Cal. glace fruit 50c per tb at Townaend's.* The Fastest Train Across the Conti- nent. The California Limited, Santa F* Route. Con- necting train leaves 5 p. m., Monday. Wednes- day, Friday and Saturday. Finest equipiw.l train and best track of any line to the East. Ticket office. 623 Market street. CALIFORNIANS IN WASHINGTON WASHINGTON, Jan. S.— D. F. Oliver of Oakland Is at the Riggs House; S. M. Little of San Francisco is at the Arling ton; Ambrose Bierce of San Francisco is at the Ebbitt House; John P. Irish of San Francisco is at the Johnson. Surveyor General Dustin and Collector of Customs Ivey of Alaska have arrived In Washing ton. ensign of freedom. They are to be denied voice in the Government by which we will rule and repress them. What sort of republican government will such government be? If General Otis attempt to run away from the ob vious answer that it will be despotic government — that the United States will be a constitutional repub lic at home and an absolute monarchy in the new possessions*, called by the ever accursed name, "colo nies" — he must then admit that these twenty millions of tropical aliens are to be incorporated into our body politic, to have our franchise, and lacking that homogeneity, the absence of which he so deplores in South Africa, their presence will foredoom the re public to go down in the red ruin of anarchy and revolution. It is remarkable that such men as Otis are republicans only for the purposes of tyranny and despotism. They hold the true Tory idea that the many must be ruled by the few lest the many make mistakes in ruling themselves. It is the same argu ment that was made against our forefathers. General Otis takes the same position against the Dutch and against all peoples who long for the light of liberty and are struggling toward it with arms in their hands and are dying with its sheen in their dazed eyes. CALIFORNIANS IN NEW YORK. NEW YORK. Jan. S.— J. X. Hackett of San Francisco Is at the Marlborough. A R. Bufflngton and wife, C. R. Buffington, Miss May Bufflngton, of San Francisco, are at the Westminster. A PLEA FOR ENGLAND IN THE TRANSVAAL The Call floes not hold Itself responsible for the opinions published in this column, but presents them for whatever value they may have as communications of general interest. Editor The Call: I hope you will give a little space In your columns to- a word for the English rights in the present struggle with the Boers. The columns of all the large dailies are open to the sentimental trash br«_-d by prejudice, envy, traditional hatred and ignorance, and it is only oc casionally that any paper seems willing to publish even a small part of the truth regarding the causes which brought about the present war. In the first place, the Boers are the only Christian nation on the face of the earth to-day that are slave owners and that adopt the most merciless practices In se curing their slaves. History tells us that their first quarrel with England was In their deliance of her ant: =.c.ye laws. They left Capo Colony betau? j .hey would not give up their slaves and went north, but have never been outside of territory over which England claimed to have suze- Neither did the Mormons, when they left Illinois because they were not allowed to have their peculiar institutions in that State, leave United States territory, al though they went to Utah, where the root of a white man had never been before and hewed out of the wilderness a paradise. We claimed them as subjects and de stroyed their religion in so far as it did not agree with the laws established for the whole people; and It was right. How much more would it be right if they had appealed to us to save them from annihi lation by the red men, as England has had to save the Boers from the blacks? How much more would it have been right if Brigham Young had sent com missioners to the Eastern States asking for men and money to help them develop the resources of Utah and when they ar rived had violated every promise made? But leave the question of England's suze rainty out of the discussion entirely. Eng lish subjects were in the Transvaal doing business under promises made by l^esi dent Kruger, and those promises were ig nored to that extent that their property was fast becoming coniiscated without any future hope of redress. It had simply become impossible to secure citi zenship there. I ask you what could they do? There wa3 only two ways out of the dilticulty — local revolution or an appeal to the mother country. Jameson's raid dem onstrated that local revolution was a fail ure, and the home Government was ap pealed to. , What would have English colonies have done if England had said we will not help you? What- would the foreign nations have said If England had Ignored the prayer of her people? And England said it must be remedied. Diplomacy was adopted until even Eng land was taunted with being afraid, and the result was that President Kruger felt that he was master of the situation. He refused to do what he had promised to do and he was cunning enough to take advantage of the situation. He heard the clamor of the nations who were envious of England and saw that she would be blamed for trying to oppress his people for commercial reasons, and he knew that if in a war he was successful his people would be the gainers of billions of wealth from English owners, and If he lost he would be in the game position as any English colony. There is no wonder that he declared war. If England had made any concession In the face of that declara tion she would have deserved the con tempt of the world, but she has not and dare not. If England was the tyrant some of our Imported citizens wish to make her, what position would her colo nies take to-day? Certainly not the one they are taking in furnishing her with men and money, and their action is the best refutation of the mean, cowardly at tacks made on her. In the foregoing I have not gone into details, which would greatly emphasize her right, but have only stated what is known to the world, without bias or prejudice. I am an Amer ican-born citizen, and since I can remem ber anything I have always honored Eng land for her care for her subjects, and that Is her only crime In this war. A. ROBINSON. Benlcia, Jan. 7, 1900. rived In the city yesterday on the Japan ese steamer from the Orient. Lieutenant Romanoff, an officer of the Russian army, la at the Palace. He ar rived yesterday from Vladivostok and 13 on his way to Europe. B. Mano, professor of mechanical en gineering at the Imperial University of Tokio; J. Kono and S. Tsukapuchi. two wealthy cotton merchants of Osaka, and K. Kubota, a banker of Tokio. are at the Occidental, where they arrived yesterday from the Orient. They are visiting the United States on business. NEW FRENCH TORPEDO FOR HARBOR DEFENSE. Weapon Called the "Lege," Recently Invented, Is Designed to Be Towed in Series on Endless Chain Across Entrance to a Port. of $925,000 per annum. If the rate per code word of an average of eight letters is .placed at 50 cents, then upon the above estimates the cable need operate daily less than four hours to put the enterprise upon a sound financial basis." MATERIAL FOR REPUBLICS. THE imperialists are affected with that visual in firmity called "far sight" This does not mean that they see into the future nor backward to THE SAX FRAXCISCO CALL, TUESDAY, JAXTJABY 9, 1900. 6