The San Francisco call. [volume], August 05, 1912, Image 6

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

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
MONDAY
COMMENT AND OPINION
PHIL FRANCIS
IT seems likely that the anti-capital punishment measure will fail
of signatures sufficient to put it on the ballot.
This measure has been campaigned for vigorously by workers
who have its success very much at heart, and it would seem that
the difficulty in obtaining the few thousand necessary signatures to
the initiative petition shows pretty conclusively that a large majority
of aiucnvwt in favor of the death penalty for murder in its worst
forms.
The technicalities of legal practice and the natural repugnance
of juries to bring in a capital verdict make it tjuite certain that none
but the most atrocious murders will be punished by death. And in
such cases as those of the McNamaras or that of the hideous and
awful wild beast George Figueroa every instinct of human nature
demands the lives of the criminals, both as a punishment due them
and as a measure of safety to society.
GOVERNOR JOHNSON is specifically charged with doing, and
directing to be done, and consenting to the doing of precisely
the same kind of machine, politics which he pledged himself
that he would eradicate if we elected him.
The charges are not vague generalities. They are specific and
clean cut. He is charged with aiding and abetting the use of the
state harbor front by the notorious Tom Finn, thus repeating in all
its worst phases the same shameful politics done on the front
for years.
He is charged with consenting to Al McCabe's tactics in Contra
a. Tulare and Shasta counties whereby votes were comman
deered by threats and promises that the state highway routes would
be altered to suit the result of the polling; and it doesn't make a bit
of difference whether the highway commission knew what was going
on or not. since the threats and promises were, made: and the voters
so compelled or cajoled were led to believe that the highway com
mission would "deliver the goods" according to program.
He is charged.with putting as his personal representative on
the state board of control an incompetent man of no business expe
rience and placing at his arbitrary disposal the immense affairs of
this great corporation, the state of California, and he did this to
pay his political debts to the San Francisco Bulletin—a sheet which
openly advocates the doctrine of anarchy, entertains Emma Goldman,
defends the cowardly murderers who killed over twenty innocent
persons in Los Angeles and has on its staff convicts out of and in the
penitentiary.
He is charged with having previous knowledge of and with
giving consent to the collection of money from the employes of the
state in the state printing office, in the capitol, in the state asylums
and on the state harbor front —one of the very extortions of "ring"
days which he was loudest in denouncing when he was making his
campaign for governor.
He is charged with rewarding members of the legislature for
voting to pass the unfair redistricting bill by giving them, immedi
ately after adjournment, appointments to sinecure position—attor
neyships for different boards and commissions—ii which salaries
ranging from $3,600 to $4,000 a year are paid for work that any law
firm would do for a fourth of the money.
He is charged with making his special adviser and boon political
companion, Al McCabe, whose name m connection with pure politics
sets even saloon loafers on the grin, and who "plays the game" now
exactly as he always did.
He is charged with keeping in line and in service, either by
patronage or promises, some of the most notorious of the old
political hack newspapers—such as the Oakland Enquirer, the Berke
ley Gazette, the San Ouentin Bulletin, the Riverside Press, the Fresno
Republican and a long list of others—all of which, up to the time
the new pie wagon hove in sight, were always ready to boost for Mt.
Herrin's hand picked candidates—and which are just as ready now
to desert Johnson when he loses.
He is charged with so conducting the business affairs of the
state, by his deputies and subordinates, that instead of economy and!
saving he promised when a candidate, the cost of the government'
has actually increased and the tax payers will have more to pay
than they ever did.
He is charged with repeated and continual neglect of his official
duties, in order to run about this state and others making speeches
and doing politics for himself and for his candidacy as vice presi
dent —a performance so unbecoming that no other governor ever
dreamed of it, no matter how ambitious of self-aggrandizement.
These charges are either true or not true. If they are not true
they can easily be shown to be false. But it does not answer them
to shriek "liar" or "boss led." The only answer which will convince
reasonable persons is a specific, straightforward answer. And if
Mr. Johnson or his newspaper pack do not so answer, it is submitted
to fair minded persons that the reason must be that the charges are
true and can not be successfully denied.
DOWX in the old Indian territory government revenue officers
have captured a mule bootlegging all alone. With a mule
carrying whisky on both shoulders and a bull moose carrying
water on all four and his horns beside, the menagerie men are in
no imminent danger of running out of show curiosities.
IT doesn't follow that we need to be discouraged because the state
administration, which you elected to do business, has given all
its time to doing politics. It is indeed a disappointment. It is
indeed too bad that all our enthusiasm and hopefulness and hard
work for good government have ended in Al McCabe, Tom Finn,
Stetson. Neylan and politicians of that type and in extravagance
which has raised the cost of the state's government a million and a
half higher than it ever was. But don't be cast down. We can and
we will have good government yet.
There is nothing for it but to begin all over again, to forget
our failure and to join hands in turning out the new ring just as
we turned out the old and to keep on enforcing this lesson until we
at last drive it into the heads of those we elect that we want them
to abandon their personal ambitions and the miserable squabble of
petty politics and attend to the state's real business interests with
fidelity.
It would be a mighty good experiment next time to drop the
whole outfit of ex-lawyers, ex-politicians, ex-ward heelers, ex
newspaper grafters and fill every office, from that of governor down,
with business men and farmers, and let the men who produce and
trade and pay the taxes see what they can do in the way of spending
their own money.
THIS, from the Criminals' Delight, is simply delicious:
The Bulletin lias always stood for law as against any form of anarchy.
Within these last ninety days the Bulletin has, on its editorial
page, defended and lauded anarchy as an admirable institution;
has printed approvingly Emma Goldman's description of Czolgolz,
the assassin of the beloved McKinley. and pictured him as a. victim
driven mad by the "plots and horrors of the law"; has entertained
Emma Goldman and her male companion, Reitman, through members
of its editorial staff; has attempted to get the infamous McNamaras
clear of punishment for their awful murcjers; has denounced the
officers prosecuting these assassins as "wolves of the law"; has
EDITORIAL PAGE OF THE CALL
featured day by day in its pages the attacks of thieves and convicts
upon the institutions of society and used all its influence to apolo
gize for and to glorify the basest criminals—not barring those traitor
ous villains who openly insult and spit at the flag of our country
and proclaim, at every opportunity, their purpose to destroy prop
erty and life when they can do so.
Oh, yes, yes, yes; the Bulletin has always stood for law as
against anarchy in any form. Oh, certainly, certainly, neighbors.
It must be so. The Bulletin say's it's so.
MR. HEARST is evidently training - again for the quadrennial
hurdle event. Up to date he holds the monthly, semiannual,
annual and biennial championships and his trial heats make
him a prohibitive favorite in the .national sweepstakes. When it
comes to getting over political fences, backward and forward and
both hands down the middle, William also is the one bright particu
lar morning %tar of the acrobatic skies.
NOTHING could more certainly forecast the smallness of the
figure Mr. Roosevelt will cut in the November election than
the complete indifference with which the assembling of his
hand-picked and cut-and-dried convention is regarded everywhere.
In all the great populous states of the east the third term can
didate has begun to be looked upon as a joke, about as important
as Mr. Hearst's once celebrated doodle-dee sideshow. In Chicago
the bull moose convention does not even disturb for a moment the
consideration of the far more important question as to whether the
Cubs can still catch the Giants.
WHILE we are having our quadrennial row, the big new
republic across the Pacific is going ahead establishing its
institutions on foundations that will endure. The Chinese
are providing the world with a spectacle of patience, loyalty and
devotion to the mother land which throws a new light upon their
national character and augurs well for the peace and prosperity of
the time, not far distant, when the most powerful people in the
world will be grouped under the flag which Sun Vat Sen first
unfurled.
THE retirement of the eminent Mr. Jack Johnson from those
refined circles which he has so long adorned and embellished
with his lovely brunette beauty is to be regretted. Pfevious
to that announcement there was always a hope that he might run
up against a real fighter some day and be reduced to a satisfactory
red, black and yellow pulp.
A SACRAMENTO reader of The Call asks how the nickname
"bull moose" originated.
The day he ordered his .followers to bolt the convention
the colonel was asked how he felt and replied: "Like a bull moose."
As the third term party belongs to the colonel and does
nothing without his orders, it was quite in harmony with the fitness
of things that he should both name it and nickname it.
Letters From the People
RF.COGXIZE THE REPUBLIC
Editor Call: For a century past
America has been sending missionaries
multitudinous —medical, military, com
mercial, political, religious—to China.
Under their tutelage the Chinese have
received lesions in modernity. These
lessons, unwillingly received but per
sistently repeated, have at last born*
fruit.
China has become a republic China
naturally anticipated our entire ap
proval and encouragement in taking
such a momentous step. Why, then, is
this delay in our expression of this
I approval by recognizing this newest of
republics, born of the oldest of civiliza
tions?
Will not The Call use its influence to
further the cause of republicanism in
the world by a warm advocacy of
official recognition by the United States
government of our sister republic of
Cblna? EDWARD BERWICK.
VALIDITY OF THE RENO DIVORCE
Editor Call —Sir: If the United States
supreme court has decreed that, where
citizenship was the sine qua non in
volved in any action in any state court,
both parties tp the action must be
necessarily citizens of the state where
the decree ie made, or such decree is
void, wherein lies the validity of a
Reno divorce, with its timelock citizen
ship requirement, a.nd but one party to
the action appearing, the other party
never having stepped within the boun
dary line of the state of Nevada, and
never likely or wanting to? If the
above surmise be correct, why, per cc,
is the one-party-appearing-dlvorce
case not turned into a judicial farce?
A trouble breeder for posterity! Does
a decision of the United States supreme
court carry any weight or not? Youre
very truly, CLAUS CASTADORA-
Point Loma, Cal., July 2S.
The Tug of War
Answers to Queries
MATO AND BACHELOR—W. T. K. City. At
what age rfeee a woman become an eld maid and
what age does a man become a bachelor? Should
either marry on becoming such?
It wm formerly considered that a
woman becomes an "old maid" at 35
and a man was a "confirmed bach
elor" at 40, but at that age neither is
•old ,, «nd each is fitted to enter the
matrimonial field, provided that each is
healthy, intelligent and conscientious.
Not long since a writer of periodical
literature had th e following on this
subject: The expression 'old maid' has
passed with years, now that women
have discovered that men are no longer
necessary to their happiness, many pre
ferring to wait until the man they
judge the right one comes along, or to
continue in their active business life."
♦ # ♦
A WAR TOKEN—lnquirer. Hare a piece
about the *ise of a cent, having on one side an
Indian c head surrounded by 13 »tars. On the
other eld* there Iβ a wreath ineloelog the words
'•our na»y." What la It?
It is one of the many tokens that
were issued by tradesmen during the
•arly days of the civil war. when small
change was scarce, and each token
was redeemed in trade by the one is
suing it. They are of little value.
Dealers in old coins will sell 100 differ
ent issues for about $3.
* * ♦
MARRIAGE UCTXSE—H. E. H. Iβ It neces
sary to have a Herns* to marry In M«rin county ?
If so where must application for such t* made?
Persons desiring to marry In any
county must obtain a license from the
county clerk of the county. In Marin
county application must be made to the
county clerk in Ban Rafael.
* # ♦
SENATORS—R. 8.. City. Name the senators
from Illinois neated lo Coconut July 24?
There was but on* on that date, 8.
M.McCullom of Springfield, » Williwn
Lorimer waa unseated.
GEORGE FITCH
Author of "At Goad Old Sl«a*h"
A MILLIONAIRE! Is a man who has
enough money to live 100 years
on $10,000 a year.
Very few millionaires do this, how
erer. Some of them live 10 years on
$100,000 a year and some 50 years on
$500 a year.
Moreover some millionaires work
themselves to death in three years
while trying to get enough money
to live 1,000 years at $100,000 a year.
And yet we put men in insane asy
lums for auch trifles as trying to chase
pink mice on the celling.
Millionaires have no distinguishing
features, and it is very difficult to de
tect them, especially during the open
season for assessments. Some million
aires are proud of their money and
advertise it by touring cars, fancy
wives and large, shapely residences
with "Private. Keep out" on the front
gate. Others are ashamed of their
money and keep it locked tightly in a
large steel safe so that It can not get
out and annoy the poor.
Some millionaires can be detected by
the faces they make when they have
to smoke a cheap 25 cent cigar. On the
other hand, some millionaires can be
detected by the roar which they put
up when the newsboy on the corner
tries to hold out a penny on them.
Millionaires make themselves prin
cipally In two ways—by saving money
and by making it impossible for any
one else to save any. The latter is by
far the more popular. By lunching on
an ayple. wearing the same suit of
clothes 25 years, and borrowing his
neighbor's lawn mower a man may
possibly become a millionaire in time
to write a will disposing of it to the
lawyers. On the other hand, if a man
(Copyright, 1912, by Gterge Matthew Adams)
PERSONS IN THE NEWS
tAXTJIX HTLL, former president of the Wash
ington Good Road* association, arrived from
the north yesterday by auto accompanied by
C. H. Babeoek and C. P. Chamberlln. Hill
Is vice president of the National Good Roads
association and also vice president ef toe
international association. He is here to attend
the third annual convention of the Pacific
Highway association, which begins a three
d«y»' lewion at the St. Francla today.
» ♦ »
AJfTOW RAJLDEH.. chief clerk «f the Fairmont
hotel, returned from a trip to the Canadian
Rockies yesterday. While In the north he
took occasion t» visit a number of old friends
In the hotel business. Harder has been as
sociated with the Palace hotel company for
a cumber of years.
•« * *
DOTXOLAB WHITE, a railroad man associated
with the San Pedro, Loe Angeles end Salt
Lake road, Mrs. White, J. B. Treadwell of
Los Angeles, Charles E. Whlton of Astoria
and (ieofg* W. Conner* of Eureka make up
a group of recent arrival* at the Suttcr.
• * *
DAYXB XIETK ANT> THOMAB XEARNB. min
ing men of Salt Lake art guests at the St.
Fraocin. They spent last month touring
through Alaska and returned yesterday by
boat to this city. Mrs. Kleth. accompanies
them.
W. C. GIIXMOEE of Willows, D. D. McKee and
jfrs. McKee of Merced, F. M. Wood and Mrs.
Wood o< Red Bluff and Dr. George A. Conte
and Mrs. Coatc of Los Angeles are guests at
the Manx.
HERBERT KAXJTJCAJf, author of heart to heart
talks on personal efficiency, and a magazine
writer, is staying at the St. Francis. He
haw come here at the Invitation of the ezpo-
ettlon directors.
# * *
C, P. McTARLAKD. tlcc president of the J. K.
Cook Mercantile company of Loa Angeles, is
at the Palace. He has been spending the
summer in the northwest.
♦ * ♦
gAinrZL T. FARWHAK of Boston Iβ at the
Fairmont with bis family. They hare been
touring the state on a summer vacation, trip.
w * #
D. PEREZ, mayar of Guatemala City and repre
sentative of the Pacific Mail at that port,
is at the Stewart with his family.
* # ♦
JOHN HERKAif, who recently waa appointed
manager of the hotel Del Coronado, is stay
ing at the A. Francis.
w * *
•WAXTXK n, reVXIVS, Mra. Jenkins aad
Herbert Darlington of Chicago ace staying at
the St. Francis.
• • f
V. A. XTOSK. a Jeweler of r<oe Angeles, is
•pending a few days at the St. Francis.
♦ * #
0. f. BH»DEX>L, asaistant U. S. attorney of
Seattle. U staying at the Untou Square.
♦ • ♦
eyOMS H. TAYLOR, an attorney of Chicago,
U speeding a few day* a* the Palace.
The Jay Driver
By the POET PHILOSOPHER
HE drives his apoplectic steed with
voice and reins and goad; no regu
lations does he heed, no laws that
rule the road. Of all his faculties be
reft, he is a trying wight; he never
fails to take the left, when he should
take the right. He swings his ancient
caravan across the street or lane, and
the anathemas of man full on his head
in vain. He stops to talk with neigh
bor Zinn, another hopeless jay; they
hold their teams and argue In the
middle of the way; they prove the gov
ernment is wrong, ami roast the idlp
rich, and travelers who come along roust
pass thajftl in t!ie diuii. Along the vil
lage street he reels, the heedless jay.
by heck, and breaks off 67* wheels and
makes 10 rigs a wreck. From left to
right and back he pulls, and takes up
far more space than would a herd of
Durham bulls if they were in a race.
In all the country out of doors the jay
Is causing grief; of all the grievous
rubes and bores he's easily the chief,
and yet our statesmen rant and rave
until the welkin busts, and weapons
of destruction wave before the harm
less trusts. And what our country
needs, I say, Is less of this turmoil;
the law should gather In the jay and
have him boiled in oil.
.ftwHtM. WB. by_
Raising His Bluff
She (reading a list of names In a
national subscription^—Anonymous, five
francs; we'll make people believe that'e
us.
He—Oh, no, let's rhoose this one;
anonymous. 100 francs.
She—That's too much. •
He—Nothing is too much, madame, in
a national cause.—Pele Mele.
"This is the third time you have been
here for food," said the woman at the
Kitchen door to the tramp. "Are you
always out of work?"
"Yes"m," replied the itinerant. "I
gruess I was born under a lucky star." —
Yonkers Statesman.
Millionaires
"When the newsboy tries to hold out
a penny"
invents a little trust he may become a
millionaire over night by putting up
the price of ice owing to the scarcity
of Christmas trees.
New York city has 10/300 million
aires and 1.000,000 who are trying to
be. There may be other things the
matter with New York, but they are
trifles compared with this.
Millionaires, when caught young, can
be trained to do a great deal of good,
but the millionaire who tries to eat
and drink up an income of $50,000 a
year with only occasional help, not
only acquires indigestion but a tearless
tomb.
We should all strive to become mil
lionaires, but not as earnestly as we
should strive to keep our taxes paid
and our elbows out of other people's
ribs.
A. J. BHIMP, a capitalist of Ilockford, 111., is
at the Palace with Mrs. Shinjp. They have
been spending tbe summer in California and
have Just returned from a week in Vosemite.
Shlmp is prominent In polities in Illinois. He
makes his city home in Chicago, but because
of his large land Interests in the Interior
usually registers from Rock ford.
* * *
W. K. DOCKHEIX, who controls the stevedoring
business In Vancouver, is at the St. Francie
on a business trip. Mrs. Dockrell accompanies
him. Ttiey came from the north yesterday
on the steamship Governor, the skipper o?
which. Captain K. E. Cousine, is an old
frleud.
* * *
BE. W. K. STOES of San Bernardino, Dr. L. R.
Tarkwood of Presno and Robert Rteht and
G. W. Eddy of Los Angeles were among yes
terday's arrival* at the Stewart.
EDWAItD DE ST, HATJEICE,*. court stenogra
pher of Redding. Is among the recent arrivals
at the Union Square. •
* »' *
WILLIAM J. HtTNSAKER, en attorney of Loe
Anfieles, is registered at the Palace.
* * *
KZKMAW JANBB, a r«I estate operator of Loe
Angeles, is registered at the Palace.
* * *
A. M. BaOWM JK., an attorney of Baltimore Is
staying at the I'nion Square.
* * #
TOYT COTHRIN, an attorney of Sacramento l>
stayiug at the Palace.
Abe Martin
You kin git a purty fair idea o*
some fellers by ther wives' expression
Some folks eeem v git clean thro' life
on a technicality.
AUaUSTS^JIQ^j
Ferry Tales
TALKING
about the
"Afterde c k
squad's" -quest for
the oldest com
muter, a claim for
that distinction
has been put in
for Captain H. H. Watson, the veteran
marine surveyor.
The captain Uvea in Oakland and hae
been a commuter for 40 years. Like
most commuteri, the captain hae a
pet grievance. During all the time he
has been a regular patron of the
transbay ferries he has never crossed
the bay on Sunday. The coupon* at
tached to a commutation ticket are
good only for the dates stamped there
on and if the commuter does not ride
on a Sunday the coupon for that date
loses its value as a passage ticket as
soon as that particular Sunday reaches
the yesterday mark.
Captain Watson figures that by rea
son of his observance of the Sabbath
as a day of rest he has paid for 2,080
round trips that he never took. On
a basis of~cummuted rates he figures
that the Southern Pacific company
owes him 1208. He has never asked
for the money and never will. The
grievance is worth, more than the
amount of the claim particularly as
it grows every Sunday he stays at
home and can be made to look quite
impressive when figured in terms of
miles.
* * »
The distance from Oakland, where
the captain starts bis Journey, to the
San Francisco ferry depot, is about 10
miles. The captain likes to multiply
that distance by 4.160 and then, on a
visionary globe, to map out the
jo-urneys he could take on that unused
transportation.
* ♦ *
The commuter's grievance Iβ the
great unsolved riddle of the trans
portation world. There is probably no
answer.
Take the troubles of Belvedere.
Belvedere is one of the garden spots
of the earth and there is not an "un
desirable citizen" on the island. I want
to get that in the record right now.
Belvedere is not a large place and
has a comparatively small population.
Part of that population has enlisted
the aid of the state railroad commis
sion in its fight for a direct and more
frequent ferry service. It seems like v
a reasonable demand. And yet. if that
demand is granted, the concession will
be regarded as a calamity by not a
small percentage of the island's popu
lation.
* * »
"We want a direct service and fre
quent boats," one resident of the
island will tell you.
You meet another Belvederean and
express sympathy with their fight and
venture a hope that they will win out.
He looks at you in horror.
Lucky
"Wβ don't want a better service."
he tells you with some heat. "The
service is altogether too frequent as
It is. "Wβ do not wish to make it
any easier than it is now to reach
Belvedere. If we get that service the
first thing we know the place will be
overrun with picnickers. Seclusion.
not service is what we want.
* ♦ * -s „
And there you are.
* * •
To go back to the oldest commuteri
E. B. Lovejoy, a resident of Alameda,
has been a commuter for 85 years. In
stead of cultivating a grievance, Love
joy has been riding a hobby. Hie hobby
is the collection of coupons for the
last ride on the last day of the month.
He has this fag end of every com
mutation book he has bought since he
became a commuter. When the last
day of the month fall* on Sunday his
hobby is an inexpensive fad but if
the month ends on any other day he
saves the last ticket just the same and
pays his fare like an ordinary carpet
bagger, as I once heard a commuter
call a casual traveler who had taken W
the commuter's pet seat.
* ♦ *
When the little old San Rafael
contributed the ferry service to the
Marin shore there was a general de
mand for a larger boat. When the
larger boat appeared there were roars
of disapproval from tne conservatives,
each of whom had his own roost in
some particular part of the old ferry
boat. On occasions when the larger
boat was laid up the San Rafael was
put on the run again and these same
conservatives led the chorus of protest.
As it was then it is now and will be
forever.
* * *
He was taking a pretty Berkeley girl
to task for not having registered.
"I would," she protested, "but I feel
that I don't know enough about politics
to vote intelligently."
"My dear girl! Let me make a con
fession. You know just as much as
most of the men who So vote."
"Perhaps!" she admitted. "But when
I Vote I want to know something about
the candidates. I want to vote for the
best men."
"I'll tell you what to d 0 ,,, he said.
"Look down the list of candidates. If
there are any there you know and
want to vote for, mark them first. Then
take the others. Pick out all the
names. If you need any more to make
up the full- number, take the German
names. You may not get the best men
that way, but you can bet there'll be
something doing if the returns come
out your way." CL X* $»