The San Francisco call. [volume], April 29, 1904, Image 8

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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The Heart of 4 Hero.
'PARIS. April 16. — No more dramatic
ceremony has taken place in France In
reoent years than the reception to
the heart of La Tour d'Auvergne,
•"The First Grenadier of France."
which occurred at the Invalides the
other day. This cherished relic of the
heroic soldier, famed In French song
and ctory. has had a history hardly
less strange and romantic than that
of the man who lpft behind him so
inspiring an example of patriotic de
votion to his country. The heart has
figured on many a battlefield as a
stimulus to the courage of the soldiers !
of France. Often it has been lost and 1
miraculously recovered. It has been
the subject of ignoble contests in the j
The Man of War,
Every district, every hamlet is con
tributing its quota of fighting men and
that a great army may be masseS will
be understood when it is said that, in
Japan,- there are. 630,000 men who have
had. actual military training, and are
available for immediate service if it Is
so desired. This number represents
only one In every nine men who
have been drawn by lot, frqm the
physically able, to serve either the one
or three years' enlistment in Japan's
compulsory military service, and there
fore it does not even touch the several
millions of, able-bodied men who are
subject to conscription at a moment's
notice.
The conservative Japanese leaders of
affairs believe. an army of ,300.000 suffi
cient to win success with Russia, and
the enthusiasts say, "If need be, we
will put a million and a half to two
million men 'into (he'field."
From' all the discomforts; suffered In
a train, sullenly: bumping . over the
1 alls on ; flattened wheels, ; and creeping
*rom station to station with prolonged
THE events that are to take place in St. Louis to
morrow, fraught as they are with .significance to
the whole nation, have an especial appeal to the
people of the West, for it is distinctly an epoch in the
history of the West which the Louisiana Purchase Ex
position serves to commemorate, and the display to be
made there by California and the other States that lie
in what was so recently the frontier of the republic is
the element that is to give to the fair its distinctive char
acteristic. To its readers throughout California and the
coast, who have so lively an interest in all that pertains
to the St. Louis f Exposition, The Call will offer in its
Sunday publication a compendium of facts and a budget
of news appertaining to every feature of the exposition
that will be .in every way commensurate with the im
portance of the 'occasion.
Mr. Paul Edwards, our resident correspondent at the
exposition, who has been on the grounds for several
weeks past, will furnish readers with a detailed and lively
account of all the ceremonies that are to mark the open
ing of the great fair. From his pen also there will be an
exhaustive account of the exposition as it is prepared
for the coming of the throngs of visitors to-morrow.
To the California exhibit, both as it is displayed in our
own State building and as segregated into the general
Horticultural, Agricultural and /Mining buildings, our
representative will devote an elaborate and. faithful re
view. The San Francisco exhibit, installed as it is in our
own building, will be given special mention.
Aside from the telegraphic accounts of the immediate
news happenings at St. Louis, The Call's' special exposi
tion edition will portray both pictorially and graphically
the character of the fair, its history' and significance
The momentous ''event that transpired in Napoleon's
office at Versailles one hundred years ago, which the ex
position aims , to commemorate, s will be recited; the gen
eral outlay of the whole grounds will be ; given both: by
a birdseye picture and by text; a condensed guide » to
every part of the great display will be a feature of the
THE CALL'S EXPOSITION SOUVENIR.
Boll-Weevils and Cotton.
Now that it is clear that the boll
weevil can never be esterminate<3 it Is
evident th»t the methods of cotton cul
ture must be radically changed. The
weevil damages the late or main crop.
Henceforth every effort must be made
to set an early crop. Cultivators must
destroy by plowing up, windrowing and
burning all the cotton stalks in the
field as soon as the weevils become so
numerous that practically all the
squares and bolls are being punctured.
Of- greatest advantage is the reducing
for the next year of the number of the
weevils by the destruction of the plants
in the fall. The advantage thus' gained
is followed by bending every effort to
ward procuring an early crop the fol
lowing season. The other measures are
of a general nature^ — early" planting,
thorough tillage, planting the rows far
ther apart, thinning the plants in the
row and a freer use of fertilizers. The
advent of the boll weevil is perhaps the
greatest event in cotton culture since
the Invention of the cotton gin, except
ing, of course, the- Civil War. Like the
Chicago fire, it may prove a blessing in
disguise. — Country Life in America.
Elements of Life.
Ten years ago the injection of salt
water as a restorative to patients dying
from loss of blood aroused general In
terest. The discovery of this quality of
salt water probably suggested to the
French savant, M. Quinton, a long and
patient research concerning sea water,
the conclusion of which- throws unex
pected light on and adds support to
the Darwinian theory of evolution.
M. Quinton maintains that sea water
Is the natural source from which, as
Professor Haeckel believes,* elementary
bodies rise which develop into all the
species, including the human. The en
vironment wherein the anatomical ele
ments of living creatures exist is neith
er more or less than a^ marine one. Our
tissue and cells continue to "exert their
functions in a. fluid where the composi
tion bears the closest resemblance to
that of sea prater.
Hitherto the number of elements en
tering Into the composition of the living
body was considered about fifteen. M.
Quinton has shown the existence Of
traces of at least fourteen others, which
are also . found in sea water, such as
copper, lead, silver and gold. Further,
if an animal Is bled to the point of ex
haustion and the place of the blood
supplied with sea water the animal re
gains its strength in one day, and there
is complete recovery in ftve days. M.
Quinton injected into animals a quan
tity of sea water greater than their
own body weight without toxic effect.
Th# injection of pure water rapidly
causes death. Thus sea water appears
to be the true nutrient fluid for ani
mals — in 'fact, their ' natural plasma.—
New York Sun.
LET us not deceive ourselves. The Hearst boom is
booming. When Rhodope took a dip in the Nile
and left her to©i on the bank an eagle swiped one
of her shoes and flying away dropped it before the King
of Egypt. The King picked it up and declared that the
lady whose foot fitted it should be his tootsy-wootsy and
his queen. He went forth, shoe in hand, and when he
found her Rhodope got her shoe back and also a new
Easter crown. Just now the American eagle is flying
around with Lincoln's boots to find the man who fits
them. Mr. Hearst has announced that he is the man and
exhibits his feet to prove it. Does any one suppose that
such a mixture of Rhodope and Cinderella in. politics can
,bc beaten? May the thought go away and die of stomach
trouble.
The latest dispatches announce that he has carried
Kittitas County, Washington. As goes Kittitas so goes
the Union. True, his enemies have New York and Mass
achusetts. But he has Kittitas. Scheming and sinister
Tom Taggart of Indiana has taken that State away, and
from Michigan City to Logootee it is prostrate before
Wall street. But Hearst has carried Kittitas.;
In Iowa Johnny Walsh is driven to the extreme of or
ganizing a bolting convention, because the regulars are
against Hearst and the regular, convention is lusting for
the flesh pots that are boiling in the kitchen of David B.
Hill at Wolfcrt's Roost. Let Hill have the flesh pots.
Hearst has Kittitas.
New Hampshire, shameless as her granite hills, with
blood as thin as her sterile soil, goes against Hearst
with Yankee stubbornness and self-will. But he carries
Kittitas*. , ¦ '-• ' * :
In Wisconsin the heathen rage against him and Usher
and . Vilas and Mitchell imagine a vain thing 1 and : refuse
the State to Hearst. But his boom goeth forth Jocund,
for he has the delegation from Kittitas.
'California, honored as the> State, of his nativity, is in
revolt. From Trinity to Los Angeles the Democrats re
fuse to know Israel and sit up nights to smite Hearst,
and he is withstood from'^Plumas to Petaluma, from
Mono to Milpitas. But he has Kittitas.
When John C. Breckenridge became a . candidate for
¦United States Senator from Kentucky two events were*
concurrent: a son was born to him' and. he carried his
first county. It. was Breathitt County, and he imme
diately named the* boy VBreathitt. After ' that every
county '¦'. went . for •' him and he was elected. The day.
Hearst -carried Kittitas his son was born.v May we ven
ture, to suggest to 'Mr. Hearst that his fate is in his own
hands? Honor: KUtitas as Breckenridge. did 'Breathitt and
all things may be added unto him.) \ Kittitas Hearst has
a fetching sound. - It* is better than Hoke Smith, or. Dink
Jones.or Spued Calvcrt, all of which are on the census
roll. W|Mi#i^^
HEARST VICTORIES.
ThcJoy.
The joy is in the doing,
Not the deed that's done:
The swift and glad pursuing,
Not the goal that's won
The joy is in the seeing.
Not in what we see;
The ecstasy of vision.
Far and clear and free!
The joy is in the singing,
Whether hear<5 or no;
The poet's wild, sweet rapture.
And sonar's divines t flow!
The joy is In the being —
Joy of life and tireath;
Joy of a »oul triumphant,
Conqueror of death!
Is f hef e » flaw In the narble?
Sculptor, do your best;
Th« Joy is in the endeavor-—
Leave to Go<3 the rest!
¦ — Smart Set.
'Ansiucrs to Queries.
WEIGHT— S., City. A troy ounce
weighs 4S0 grains and an avoirdupois
ounce 437% grains.
AMBER— L. F. K., City. Amber is
slightly brittle, emits an agreeable
odor when rubbed and. melts at 530 de
grees Fahrenheit. It burns with a
bright flame and emits a pleasant
smell.
BALLOON— E. C. H., Woodland, Cal.
Hydrogen gas i» that which is used to
inflate balloons, as it is fourteen and
one-half times lighter than atmos
fherlc air. Coal gas is sometimes used,
but it is only two and one-half times
lighter than Air.
WHEAT-r-E. I. D. L., City. Callfor.
nia wheat does not as «. rule require
wheat from foreign States to mix with
it in order to make good flour. | Tfcere
have been times when the wheat crop
was short that wheat has been import
ed from other States.
RAILROAD SURVEY— A. S.. City.
Some time agt> there was a survey for
a railroad from Oakland to Hay ward.*.
thence to Dublin, thence to Livennofe,
thence through the Altamont Moun
tains to the San Joaquin Valley, thence
to Stockton, but there is no such lint
contemplated at this time.
DIPLOMATIC QUESTION'S— E. J.
L., Fresno, Cal. The questions asXed
about Russia, Japan and China are
such that the greatest diplomats of the
present day have been unable to satis
factorily answer and there has been a
resort to war to maintain the superior*
ity of right. In view of this The Call's
Query Column cannot set up ita judg
ment against that of the great men. of
the nations named.
THE BAD LANDS— Subscriber, San
Jose. Cal. The Bad Lands, or "Alau
valses Terres," are an extensive barren
tract in Dakota. Wyoming and North
western Nebraskjj, between the north
fork of the River Ptotte and" th« "south
fork of the Cheyenne River"— west,
south and southeast of the Black Hills.
Geologically speaking they belong to
the mlocene period. The surface mate
rials are for the most part white, yel
lowish and Indurated clays. Water and
grass In the Bad Lands aS» very
scanty.
Townsend's California Glace fruits and
choice candles. In artistic flre-etched
boxes.' A nice present for Eastern friends.
715 'Market street. 1 above Call building. •
Special information supplied dally to
business houses and public men J>y th«
rress Clipping Bureau (Allen's). 23» Cal
ifornia street. Telephone Main 10 IS.".*
r A Doubtful License.
"I have had some queer experiences
during my incumbency of this office,"
said Marriage License Clerk Danforth
as he patiently awaited the appearance
of the next applicant for matrimonial
fetters. "The one, however, that struck
me as the most peculiar happened in
the case of a man who came in here
recently looking for information. He
was a solemn looking sort of an indi
vidual and the last man In the world
that looked as though he wanted to get
married. And he didn't, for he had al
ready been wedded, as the sequel will
show In the following colloquy: *
"'Is this the marriage license office?*
asked the man as he came forward.
" 'It certainly is,' I replied.
" 'Well, what I mean is, do you issue
marriage licenses here?'
" 'Of course I do; why do you ask?*
" 'Well, I got one here two months
ago, and you must have made a mis
take and given me a dog license, for to
tell you the truth, I have been leading
a dog's life ever since.' "
The Isle of Unrest.
"San Domingo, thoretically a re
public," writes William Thorp in the
May World's Work, "covers two
thirds of the largest and richest isl
and in the West Indies, except Cuba.
Its population can only be guessed at,
for the official ¦ figures are untrust
worthy. There are, probably, 500,
000 negroes and mulattoes scattered
over the 18,000 square miles. They
are often half-starved and always liv
ing from hand to mouth, for there is
little incentive to honest industry
when a party of soldiers may come
along at any moment and eat up the
fruit of a man's labor. The country
could easily support 5,000,000 people
in prosperity and comfort. But It has
been at war, with hardly any consid
erable intermission, for about a hun
dred years. There Is no other country
in the world, not even Venezuela, with
such a record. . . - .
"The disparity In numbers between
women and men is even greater in the
country villages than in the cities, for
the men are apt to flock to the towns
or to be marched off to fight by one
of the numerous guerrilla bands.
Pojygamy results in the country dis
tricts. A peasant usually has four or
five wives, who live in common and
work for him and the children. Yet
the population does not increase. That
is the most striking testimony ' to the
condition of the country. The men
are steadily thinned down by the
wars, and three-fourths of the chil
dren die in infancy, owing to the ig
norance of their mothers and the lack
of medical care. I have seen babies
a few months old given raw plantain
to eat when they cried. I have known
babies, too, to be Wiled by Government
soldiers, before the eyes of their
mothers, because their fathers were
fighting in the ranks of the revolu
tionists. Fifteen women and children
were slain in cold blood in the town
of San Pedro de Macoris, an import
ant seaport. In 1900, with the deliber
ate purpose of deterring other men
from joining the. revolutionists."
"* Primitive Books.
The oldest books in existence ar»
doubtless those of the Babylonians,
but the great permanency of these is
explained by the material of which they
are composed, and it does not neces
sarily follow that they were the. first
books to be made. We know that. the
Egyptians employed a papyrus roll
from the earliest historical periods,
and that the Hindoos made their palm
leaf books at a very early day. In
short; every civilized nation is discov
ered at the very dawn of its history in
full possession of a system of book
making.
It ia Impossible, to decide the ques
tion as to whether one nation borrowed
from another in developing- the idea of
bookmaking.
Limiting oar view strictly to the his
toric period, we find, as has been said,
the five types of books in general use.
We have now to consider briefly the
distinguishing characteristics of each
of these types before going on to note
the steDs of development through
which the modern book was evolved.
First let us give attention to the papy
rus roll of the Egyptians. As has been
said, this type of book was employed
in Egrpt from the earliest day of the
historical period. As is •well known,
payprus is a species of primitive paper
—the word "paper" being. Indeed, a
derivative of "papyrus"— which was
made of strips of the papyrus plant
placed together to form two thin
layers, the fibers of one crossing those
of the other and the whole made into a
thin, firm sheet with the aid of glue
and mechanical pressure. The strips of
papyrus were usually from eight to
fourteen inches in width, and from a
few feet to several yards in length.
This scroll was not used, as might per
haps have been expected, for the inser
tion of a single /continuous column of
writing. A moment's consideration will
make It clear that such a method would
have created difficulties both for the
scribe and for the reader, therefore the
.much more convenient method was *
adopted of writing lines a few inches
in length, so placed as to form trans
verse columns, which followed one an
other in regular sequence from the be
ginning to the end of the scroll.— Henry
Smith Williams. LL.D., in Harper's
Magazine for May. ' TO
Another Fagin.
HEADQUARTERS OF THE CALL,
5 HENRIETTA STREET. CO VENT
OARDEN.. LONDON. April 17.— In sen
ter.cir.s Edward Everitt. a house-paint
er of EnXjrld, to six years' penal servi
tude for inciting to crime ar.d receiv
ing stolen property, the Magistrates of
the Jliu&Qpex Sessions have cut short
a career oX infamy which, while recall
ing Pit-fcrtss* story cf Fagin and his Ju
venCe thieves' school, in some respects
leveals "greater moral depravity than
¦was shovrn by that fictitious villain.
For. this, degenerate modern Fagin
1 hose i.6r\ his pupil his own 14-year
old son Alfred, trained him to be
«.-nm« an expert burglar.
Die •occasional jobs of house painting
v hJch Everitt did afforded him excel
lent opportunities for discovering the
"aib**"that cuuIJ be easiest "cracked"
e.nd what booty they contained. He
had painfr-d the vicarajre at Wichmore
Hill anri Selected that for his Bon's ini
tial exploit at house-breaking. With a
knife and. two pieces of » oqA he had
previously instructed him how to pry
open «i window catch without making
»njr noss-e.
"3*ou will fmd the drawing-room win
dow the easiest to open that way." this
jnodel father said. "When you get in
5=:d£ take your boots off, pick up all the
silver you can lay your hands on, and
be mighty careful you don't make any
noise abcut it. Then, when yjou think
it is past* 6 o'clock in the morning come
out and when you get into the street
walk quickly as if you vere going to
'vprk, fcut come straight home."
The parent did not propose to run
any risks himself that could be avoid
ed. Tht-^role he set himself was simply
that of instructor and apprcpriator of
the swag." But the boy had the making
in c him of a .first-class burglar. One
Sunday night he climbed over the vic
arage ,pate. ensconced himself in a
Ehed lat the rear, of the house" and there
remained until about 5 o'clock on Mon
day morning. Then he entered the
drawing-room, opening the window by
the methods his father had stiown him.
"I fQund in the sideboard drawer,"
ke'eaid in his evidence, "a carving
knife and fork, a catch knife^ a sugar
6ifter, twb silver-plated knife rests, one
pair of silver salad servers, one silver
skewer, two silver-plated dish bottoms
an' four shillings in money*— the latter
in a pSirse, which I left behind. I put
the stuff in a bag, left tfee house and
wenf straight home with it. When I
pot there I whistled and father threw
the key out of the window to me and
1 let myself in. As soon as I entered
cur room— we all live and sleep in the
fame room — father said. : 'Don't make
the stuff rattle or the people down
ht&irs will hear you.' "
A fev days later young Everitt's
father set him another house-breaking
job. As before the boy made his en
trance at nipht and this time hid him
self in an empty chlcki^a coop. So sea
soned hjd he become to crime in this
brief period that he actually slept there
until past 5 o'clock. Then he entered
the h->use by Jhe drawing-room win
dow. Her«* he found three 6ilver boxes
and twelve silver spoons. He next
tackk J the kitchen window and appro
priated the plum puddliyfthat he found
In the larder. Hungry though he was.
he tc*k the plum pudding home with
him in a eack with the rest of what he
had stolen. "^
Less than a fortnight after this ex
ploit the little lad was started on an
other burglarious enterprise. .As on
the two previous occasions the house
chosen was one in which the father
had worked. He had ascertained that
thcrt w*^s no dog kept there and that
the kitchen contained mtfut of the
household silver. That night the boy
slept in.a. shed In the.rear ofthe prem
ises, effected an entrance through the
scullery window next inorning and
looteu th£ culinary of th»
silver he could find. c But while obey
ing his father's instructions to walk'off
quickly *s though he' was hurrying, to
work he w«s stopped by an inquisitive
policeman, who insisted on examining
the contents of the c .s^ck. And then
the secret of the mysterious burglaries
that had alarmed and puzzled Enfleld
was so<8i out. But the-boy. with a loy
alty to his fisther wfcich htf was far
fro^n deserving, did not betray his
complicity in the crimes until he had
led the police a long wild goose chase
Jn search of a s£zppo!>Ittoug individual
who he said had intrusted the sack to
him.
. In sentencing the father the chair
man of the Board of Magistrates said
he hoped that the Imposition of a se
vere sentence would j? deter "other
brutes of fathers" from following his
example. The boy was sent to & re
formatory for four years tx> undo, if
possible, his father's teaching.
waits, one gains the positive knowledge
that an army Is moving In the land of
the Mikado. Every station seems to
be giving up Its fathers and sons.
They stand huddled on the short plat
forms of the smaller stations, In wide
sleeved and padded klmonas, each with
his bundle of clothes wrapped loosely
in a knotted cloth and suspended upon
his back. Their slant-eyed faces liter
ally beam with satisfaction, as they
smilingly or solemnly Indulge in end
less highly automatic genuflections
from the hips, to one another and to
their surrounding friends, the aspect
of the visage and the number of bows
being apparently determined by the
rank of the person addressed or the
size of the compliment which has been
uttered.— William Dinwiddie in Har
per's Weekly.
THE local steamship companies that transact busi
ness on the line between Seattle and Alaska are of
fering objections to having soldiers shipped to
Alaska by army transports from San Francisco. The
Seattle newspapers are taking up the cudgel in favor of
Seattle. The arguments that are made agiinst the trans
port 6ervice in this connection are summed up by _ the
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, which alleges that the quar
termaster's department seems inclined to favor San Fran
cisco at the expense of Puget Sound.
The question will naturally be asked by the disinter
ested citizen: "What is the transport service for if it be
not to move- soldiers?" And if the Government finds it
advantageous to have the service established at San
- Francisco, the great port of the Pacific Coast, where the
largest population and the greatest number of facilities
for carrying on business are centered, the military au
thorities will not be diverted from an appreciation of
such advantages' by any local fault finding on Puget
Sound or elsewhere.
' It would be difficult for the Post-Intelligencer and the
people of Seattle to show that it is wrong to use .the
Government transports to take soldiers to Alaska if it
is right to so use them on the line to the Philippine Isl
ands. If it is both right and expedient,. then the Seattle
newspapers will have a hard time trying to convince the
Government that its transportation policy, as applied to
the movement of troops, is hriproper or unwise.
Unfortunately, the Seattle Post-Intclligenccr betrays
something more than the judicial spirit when, in this con
nection, it goes out of its way to attack San Francisco
as a commercial port, alleging that "San Francisco can
not pretend to compete I commercially with Seattle in
Alaska business." Also it is alleged that "this is flat and
inexcusable discrimination in favor of one city and
against another, done with a deliberate disregard of the
Government's financial interests." In this frame of
mind the Post-Intelligencer demands an investigation.
In addition to the fact that the Government is the best
judge of its own business, and generally acts. in accord
therewith, it should appear to the Seattle people that the
military policy of largely concentrating troops at San
Francisco and in much less degree in the military de
partment to the north has long been established and for
obvious reasons. Climate is one leading consideration.
Convenience is another. - /
The transportation of troops to and fro between the
United States and the Philippines in private vessels
was discontinued just as soon as the Government ac
quired a fleet of troopships adequate to all present de
mands. If Seattle dreams there is any discrimination in
not handing over the moving of troops to the Seattle
transportation companies it must see that a rule has been'
established here and elsewhere and presumably after a
full consideration of all the facts.
It is hardly good policy for Seattle to abuse the quar
termaster's department. That department is in the ad
ministration of men of ability and fairness, whose first
duty is to the Government that they serve.
SEATTLE OPPOSES TRANSPORT SERVICE.
A pawnbroker was arrested the "other day because he
had entered into an agreement with thieves to purchase
stolen goods. While it would be absurd to question the
morality of the arrest, it is safe to doubt its policy. If
we know that thieves have an emporium for their ill
gotten property we may communicate the fact to the :
police and perhaps .secure the return of. what is our
own. In this way even the police might be assisted in
capturing the' malefactors.
THE River Convention, to be held' on May 23, will
have under consideration a matter of very great in
terest to the whole State. River islands and delta
and bottom lands are everywhere the most fertile. In
this State such lands are of peculiar value because of the
friendly climate and the constant succession and variety
of*crops. In the Mississippi Valley, on its lower reaches,
such lands are of so much importance and their crops of
cane and rice are so valuable that they supply to the
Federal Government its motive for the large expendi
tures made necessary to protect them from annual
flooding. Nature made some provision in the many bay
ous on the west side of the river, which assist in the
drainage.
In this State the problem is practically confined to the
Sacramento. That river carries the greatest flow. The
Tuolumne is second. Its floods, however, come in June,
and by adding to the flow of the San Joaquin tax its
carrying capacity. But the Tuolumne floods are in the
future to be controlled very largely by the diversion of
the June flood at La Grange for use in the new irriga
tion districts of Modesto and Turlock. So, it may be
safely said that when the Sacramento is rectified the
flood damage will be reduced to a minimum.
We discuss the subject without pretense of expert
knowledge, but for the purpose of inciting those inter
ested and the experts to an examination that will put
prabtical plans before the convention to the end that its
deliberations may issue in a plan that will work. There
are two general plans. One is to let the floods reach the
region of Sacramento and Take care of- them by increas
ing the carrying capacity of the river below that point of
concentration. The other is to divert the surplus water
above Sacramento, take it out of the channel and carry it
to Suisun Bay. A bill to effect this. diversion has been
proposed in the Legislature and was favorably reported
by the committee, but was not^acted on.'
The plan, proposed by an engineer, is to construct a
waste weir two thousand feet long, about two miles
above Butte City, to spill the floods into Yolo Basin!
There the water is to be confined by embankments two
thousand feet apart, and through this, canal to conduct
the flood to the baj\ The fall is ninety-five feet in the
hundred miles from weir to bay. The only obstacle is a
low ridge, about two feet above grade, at Knights Land
ing.. But its excavation is easy. The embankments will
be substantial and. broad enough for an ordinary, high
way or a bed for an electric road, thus furnishing a
transportation facility and means of communication.
The canal would also intercept all the drainage from
the west side and carry it off without reaching the river.
It will be seen that this is, in effect, the creation of an
artificial bayou to relieve the river as the natural bayous
relieve the lower Mississippi. It will also be a reclama
tion proposition, for it will protect from overflow many
thousand acres of bottom land now not used at all or
subject to destruction of crops by flood.
We do not know whether the fall is sufficient for the
purpose or whether a waste weir can be constructed so
as to withstand flood pressure. The plan presents no
estimate of the cost, but proposes that bonds be issued
under State guarantee, and that they be taken up by a
sinking fund derived from a tax levied on the lands that
are protected from overflow. The proceeds of this tax
are to go into the State treasury as a bond fund to take
up the issue. As the Modesto and Turlock districts
stand a first cost for irrigation of $10 per acre and the
delta and bottom lands of the Sacramento and San Joa
quin a cost for levees of $15 to $25 per acre, it is probable
the acreage relieved by this artificial bayou could bear '%
bond tax sufficient to do the work.
It is claimed that such a diversion of the floods, by
leaving the Sacramento River only its banks full of wa
ter, would maintain its scouring current and deepen its
channel to the improvement of its navigability and gen
eral usefulness. This seems reasonable, as when the \ra
ter overflows the banks and spreads over the country the
currents are not confined to the channel, and instead of
scouring it receives the silt, which precipitates as the
water, the carrying medium, runs more slowly. If the
proposed canal keep the floods from spreading over the
Yolo Basin all that land this side of Sacramento, which
is covered with water every spring for months at a time,
would be reclaimed, and it is very fertile and valuable.
We have no doubt that if the plan is feasible private
enterprise could raise the capital, buy all the region to
be protected, put in the canal and make a handsome
profit by selling the reclaimed 'lands. This implies, 'of
course, the willingness of present holders to sell at a
figure that would- justify the investment.
Was It Dynamite?
One drink of Scotch whisky did it all.
* When the liner's officer said "Say
when," the visiting landlubber .who
held the 'glass mistook 'the gurgling
fluid for white wine. The glass was
of the high-elded, round-bellied kind,
one of the largest member* of the
tumbler family, and the sort in which
John Bull prefers to have his "Scotch"
served.
He withheld his "when"' until the
fluid- almost reached the tumbler's
brim. With a cheery "here's how" he
downed the draught
"Gee whillikins! that's scorching
white wine."
"Yes," said his host, dryly, "it's im
ported."
The visitor from shore had boarded
the liner Gaelic from a newspaper
launch. His friends of the pre»s had
invited him out to take a look at Prince
Pu Lun. An introduction to the ship's
officers had been followed by the In
vitation to "say when."
After the drink the gentleman who
didn't know whisky wandered Into the
officer's messroom, where dinner was
awaiting the navigators. Picking a
half chicken from a platter the native
started for the hurricane deck.
"Prinsch P'lun mushbe hungry." he
volunteered as he set forth.
Unable to find the Prince, he bal
anced himself against a stanchion and
attempted to build a cigarette. To
have both hands free he placed the
chicken between, his knees. His hands
had lost their cunning, however, and
struggle as he would he only tore cig
arette papers and scattered tobacco in
all directions but. the right one. As his
hands strove with the cigarette his
knees squeezed the chicken, the grease
from w Rich trickled' indelible ruination
down the legs of his Sunday best.
If he found Prince Pu Lun he has no
recollection of ,the meeting. When he
came to himself he was standing at
Third and Market streets gazing at the
dome of the Claus Spreckels building.
It was dark and the street was desert
ed. In one hand he held - a crumpled
mass of torn cigarette papers, in the
other, a chicken bone. He stood in
bewilderment, trying to gather together
his wits. He remembered. As he start
ed for home the policeman on the cor
ner; heard him say:
"White wine be damned. It was dy
namite."
law courts. And How at last it finds
a fit abiding place among the honored
memorials of the Marshals of France.
La Tour was born at Carhaix, in
Auvergne, in 1743 and died as he
wished to die. fighting gallantly for his
country at Oberhausen in 1800. But
the heart, "le coeur du heros," as it is
proudly called, instead of being burled
with the body, was sealed up in a
leaden case, which the quartermaster
of the famous regiment, the Forty
sixth, carried wherever the command
went, always close to the flag. Napo
leon subsequently ordered it brought
to the chancellery. But under the
Bourbon regime it was no longer re
garded as a prized memento and for
several years was lost track of, like
Richelieu's head. After that, when it
had been found and identified; family
litigation for its possession continued
for a long period. In 1S40 M. du
Pentavice de Heussey secured the urn
and preserved it in his castle of La
Have, near Carhaix, the hero's birth
place. Thus it came into the pos*
session of SI.' du Pentavice's grand
son. Colonel du Pentavice de Heussey,
who offered it to France. The body
was removed from its original burial
place in 1S89 and interred in the Pan
theon.
Standing in the doorway of the
famous soldier's home, in front of
Napoleon's tomb. President Loubet re
ceived the solemn procession -which
escorted the four grenadiers from La
Tour's regiment who bore "Le Coeur
du Hero." It has been placed in the
"Tombeau des Gouverneurs," the
burial place of all the Governors of the
Invalides, whence in a few days it will
be removed to the chapel, which is to
be permanent resting place.
Although most of the surviving; vet
erans of La Tour's regiment are
spending their last days in the Iit
valides, whenever the command as
sembles, the roll call officer, who
knows the famous grenadier only
through hlstpry, calls his name. In
stantly another soldier replies, "Dead
on the field of fame."
edition. Added to* this a full page allegorical drawing,
representing the genius of the fair, and .photographs of
the California and San Francisco buildings as they stand
to-day will serve to round out a souvenir of the exposi
tion's opening as artistic as it is enlightening. .
RECTIFYING THE RIVERS.
THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL"/ FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 190*.
THE SAN FRANGISCO GAL^
JOHN d: SPRECKELS, Proprietor ; . . . . . . : . . v Acdrra ; &^
Publication Office ;... .._... <!^§§^> ••• Third and Market Streets, S. F.'
FRIDAY.................................... ................ ........... ;;.....:.\..-....;.;;_;: ...APRIL -29, 1904
Queen's English.
The following Bpecimen of Babu Eng
lish, extracted from the report of a
Punjab'civil service employe, is going
the rounds of the press: "The sab
postmaster reports that last evening 'a
mice dame out from behind the office
door, and. after walking* a little, stam
mered and breathed its last in the
presence of the sub-postmaster there.
As these are the prognostics of plague,
I beg you will kindly arrange to have
the office disinfected at an early date."
8
MEN AND MATTERS IN
THE FORE AS THE WORLD
MOVES
TALK OF THE TOWN
AND TOPICS OF THE
TIMES