Evening Star Newspaper, August 2, 1895, Page 9

THE EVENING STAR, FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 1895-TWELVE PAGES. 9 IN THE LAND OF POI A Big Feast in Hawaii in the Na- tive Style. RECENT POLITICAL = HAPPENINGS A Notable “Subsidence of Long- Winded Eloquence. BUYING A ROYAL PALACE eet Bpectal © pondence of The Evening Star. HONOLULU, Juty 17, 1895. Judg2 H. A, Widemann, who has suffered much political chagrin of late years, had an agreeable day two weeks ago, He made @ great feast to celebrate the opening of the Oahu railway extension to his planta- tion at Waianae. special train he ear- thither some thirty of hfs children and grandchildren, together with the officers of the road and a crowd of other guests, among whom wer? Chief Justice Judd and Tis ¢ Dr. Joseph C a luau (loo-ow), served in Hawaiian style. A large area is covered over by a sort of Looth, er (ah-ny ucted of posts ar anut leaves. The ground Is covered with rushes. The posts are wreath- ed with mountain foliage, fele, ti, marle and ferns. Instead of tables are long spaces covered with banana and tl (tee) Bt which piates are laid. Profuse supplics are brought on of beef, mutton, pork, fowls, fis, taro, sweet potatoes, all cooked in the native imu (ee-moo), or ground even. The meats are served in the leaves in which they were’ baked. They are lly in small packages of about two pounds, snugly wrapped in the tough, sweet th leaves, which are about thirty inches by six. There is an occasional whole pig—sometimes a deg—baked In the large banana leaves, with red-hot stones insert- ed.in the belly and under the shouider blades, to insure being cooked through, Steam does the cooking, in this way: A bole is excavated in the ground, a hollow herrisphere from five to eight feet in diam- eter. In this is laid up an arch of large Dlocks of vesizular lava, covered by a pile of mall stones. Under tha arch fire is maintained for an kcur or two, until the inner stones are red hot. The pile is then broken down, covering most of the bottom of the pit. Grass is laid upon the hot stones. On that are laid any whole hogs, in their banana leaves; next piled on are the smaller packages of meat and fish. Over them are potatoes and tara, and luau, or bundles of the tender, unopened tara for greens, which give name to the st. The whole pile is then covered deep with grass. Earth ts heaped over it to a thickness of several inches, a hole being left in the top. Into this opening are pour- ed from twenty to sixty gallons of waier, and the earth instantiy closed over. The water reaches the het stones, the interior fills with steam, and cooking proceeds for two ho; or more. If steam escapes any- where it is stopnad with earth. The results are delicious. The sweet Juices of the meats are far better developed than by roasting. I believe “clam bakes” are managed on a similar principle. But I have not named the most essential viand of e@ Iwau feast. This is poi, without which no Hawaiian can make a square meal. Bowls cf this rich and nutritious paste are in front of every guest It is the cooked tara root, thoroughly pounded, softened with a modicum of water to a very stiff paste, and allowed slightly to ferment by standing not over twenty-four hours. To be in style, one must eat with two fingers, dipped into the bewl and dextrously twirl- ed to saved the poi from dropping on the way to the mouth. Of course, you squat on the ground with the rest, Ike Turks. But use a spoon. Probably you will dist 2 slight sourness of the poi at first. To old residents {t has a wonder- ful relish. Doctors prescribe it as diet for fever pati Other Hawaiian viands contribute variety to the feast. Scmething like salted al- rds, Lut coarser, is the inamona, roast- ed Kukui nuts triturated with salt. There is kulolo, a pudding of poi and green cocoa- nut pulp. Served fresh will be many spe- cles cf limu, sea moss ard brook moss. There are sea eggs and shrimps, both of which tay be cooked o- eaten alive. There are opini, or limpets, and raw fish of vari- ous kir Stewart recerds a feast in 1825 where le saw one of the queens seize a live cuttie fish and bite a plece out of its body, while its tentacles clung around her head ni neck! Judge Widemann’s luau had no specialties like that, and probably no ro+=t dog. It was undoubtedly a first- class , With tables and chairs and a gced ly of foreigners’ victuals for those tomed to native ways. Nor is it that any guests went dry for lack ses suited to their varied thirsts. Of cou there were plenty of watermel- ons, with luscious green cocoanuts on tap with their sparkling sweet water. A Big Plantation. Mr. Widemann is chief owner of the Waianae. plantation. Its crop this year has been ) tons of sugar, and is likely to be 3.140 tons rext year. They hope yet to work it up to 5,000 tens, There is un- Umited acreage of richest bottom land within five miles of-the mill, but water for irrigation is lacking. Seventy thousand rs Las been spent in boring artesian all in vain exeept In one locality, where a fine pumping plant is lifting water forty feet to irrigate over 490 acres. About 600 acres more are watered by two moun- section of the Oahu railway niles to the eighteen previous- ching the Ewa mill. Mr. Dillingham expects tc promptly continue the road around the rertiwest point of the island and to Kahuku mill, at the north point, a distance: of thirty-five miles, or sixty-eight from Honelulu. By this extension many important tracts of fertile land will be opened for varied cultivaticn which have hitherto been unavailable. 4irvedy the su- gar mills and the existing trafic of many villages on the route are ample for a well-paying business to the road. On the 2th ultimo I had the pleasure of seeing ‘the last rails laid at Waianae mill. The ne ction runs five miles over a plain of coral, from Ewa mill to the west- ern shore of the island, then three niles between the sea and the low end of Waia- nae mountain. From there it continues due sand | north seven miles, along the heavy aches, where the calm Pacific rolls le ripple of surf. But the sand ord with what thunderous bil- terly gales of winter storm in. to seven miles inland from this ulm shore, beyond low. intervening retches an amphitheater of moun- Occasional sharp ridges, more or less broken, intersect the plains at right angles to the great mountain wall. This Waianae district forms a nearly precise count art to the northeastern district of Koolan, with its similar mountain wall fac- ing nor und simliar transverse broken ridxes leading to the sea. In both cases we seem to have the skeleton vertebrae and which remain after the original dome- ped mountain of piled lava streams was slowly weathered away by the long beat- ing of storms from the sea through hun- dreds ef thousands of years. Numberless waterfalls through the ages ate at the heart of the mountain with their mighty erosions of thousands of feet of vertical plunge, while nearer the foot of the dome, by t a, the less height of waterfall caused comparatively feeble erosion and left considerable masses remaining of the lower slopes along the shore. It affords an interesting geological study. A Royal Pensio: The pension of $4,900 to Kaiulan! has elicited quite an earnest opposition gen- erally from the more radical class. A large majority of th senate favor the grant. It rem: 9 be seen what the final vote will be in the two houses; but the prevailing sentiment appears to favor the pension. Older and more influential residents gen- erally feel that great respect is due to the defunct monarchy on account of its former great services to the country, and tiat its surviving representatives should hon- orably provided for, Ss » been. Th should not be left nee. No doubt a comfortable pro- vision will be made for the ex-queen war ever it is percelved that she has c be a center of intrigue and a source of danger to the republic: Possibly that con- dition of things may be near at hand. We in Hawaii are getting to take very little stock In the various rumors at the coast of filibustering expeditions sailing thence to restore the queen, Certain exiles there, particularly the Ashfords, find some sort of satisfaction in supporting such rumors for our annoyance. They have succeeded thereby in deterring a few tour- ists from spending a few weeks here, vis- iting the voleano, &c., all of which would contribute a little money. The tourists who have come are giad they had the good sense not io be frightened by cranks. As I think I have pointed out before, it would require nothing less than nearly a thou- sand veteran troops, with artillery, to have any chance of seizing our government buildings. But no force of half that size could escape arrest before sailing. Nor is there any one sufficiently interested and able to supply the large funds necessary to enlist, equip and transport such a force. The alleged force of one hundred filibusters coming here would be handled by us with very little effort. They would get no help from royalists here. who have no stomach for any farther irsurrections and next to nethirg to gain thereby, except the grati- fication of a sentiment. The change in the tone of the newspapers issued by royalists is significant. There has never been a time since Blount arrived when those papers have exhibited so little violence and venora. They appear to have practically given up the battle for a lost cause. They evidently feel what all must feel, that the republic is well established and has come to stay, and whatever ef- fort is de for political ends must be made within the lines of this republican gsovernment and system. ‘This applies to the English papers. There are two or three scurvy litue natiye sheets, which continue to froth out royalist absurdity, trusting fo the semi-idiocy of their readers. tive Eloquence Subsiding. Among other improvements under the re- public is a conspicuous advance in the tane of the native members of the legislature. This relates to the lower house, nearly half of whom are natives. In the. senate there is only one pure native, who speaks Eng- lsh, and is vice president—a man of great elevation of character. In the other house the services of the interpreter are required, just as in former sessions. This interpreter is a man of great aptitude and humor, and a thorough master of Hawaiion, with’ per- fect art in the free, expressive, yet suffi- ciently close rendering of good transfer- ence of thought between tongues so utterly diverse In structure and expression as Eng- lish and Hawaiian. He states that in the present house there is none of the long- winded, senseless declamation which char- acterized a majority of the native speeches in former sessions. Those vox et praeterea nihil outpourings were a serious tax upon the patience of the gifted interpreter, as well as of the white members. Now’ the native members talk somewhat to the point, and with reasonable brevity and good sense. This {fs partly because they are of a more select class of natives, ex- eluding the windy demagogues, and not less becaus® all are sensible that the re- public means business and not mere talk. In former sessions I have often heard this interpreter, after listening for fully five minutes to the vociferations of a legisla- tive orator, when he paused for breath, render the entire substance of his remarks in fifty or a hundred words. Mr. Kana ould ask, “Why don’t you tell all T saic That was all you said; go on.” ‘The Poly nesian Cicero would good-humoredly sub- mit, and go on mouthing for five minutes more. “Now interpret.” “He repeated ex- actly the same he said before. That !s all. Go on.” And the interpreter was doing full justice to the speaker. No one con- tested that fact, although there were many members of the house familiar with both languages. I think there is no native ora- tor at all of that class now in the hou: Very likely no such characters will elected hereafter, although when the mass of the natives taken the oath and reg- istered they will not unlikely choose some scuryy charac It used to be quite a treat to listen to this interpreter, especially if one under- stood native. His gesticulations had all the animation and grotesqueness of the Ha- waiian. Whenever an amusing or forcible Mustration came in he showed a quiet en- joyment in bringing it out in such conver- sion of form as would make its application intelligible to the other class of inteilects. He has necessarily learned yn instinctive sympathy with Hawailan ways of looking at things, and has acquired a touch of their easy-going temper, so that their slackness of thought and action are less irksome to him than to many others. The Hawalian has a special gift for in- terminable talk, Any Hawaiian can spread out speech indefinitely around and about any topic whatever. It is only in coming to the point that he fails. A teacher can stand up almost any ordinary youth in his school and tell him to make a speech on any familiar assigned topic, and the boy will show no backwardness or difficulty in mouthing away. He will really say nothing of any account; his words are little more than norsensical trayesties of statemen and reasoning, with frequent “therefo: and “becauses,” which are totally irrel vant and non-secretive. It Is all a parrot- ish mimicry of such talking or preaching as he has heard. Much of the oratory among native legislators partakes of sim- rhetcrical qualities. Such 1s the inborn structure of the Hawaiian intellect. I have known a high school teacher to assign ninute orations to a dozen members of a graduating class, with stringent orders not to exceed the time. Every essay hand- ed in would range from twenty to thirty minutes in length, filled with preambles, perorations and digressions of ambitious anaka rhetoric foreign to the topic. Handed back to be boiled down three- fourths, the speeches would return still twice the due dimensions, and the teacher would tedlously cut out various pet corus- cations and frrelevancies,-to the profound chagrin of the ambitious pupils, who felt like the unhappy guests of Procrustes. The Public Debt. The 10th irstant in the senate Finance Minister Damon presented a statement comparing the financial condition of the government of July 1, 1895, with that of one year previous. The bonced and interest-bearing debt of July 1, 1895, was.. = $3,738,000 The bended and interest-bearing debt of July 1, 1894, w, Showing Increase in one year of. This sum of $212,000 had been expended upon publie works, as authorized. Besides this remunerative increase of the public debt by $2 }, the finances had fallen behind in one year $167,W0, as fol- lo July 1, 1891, cash on hand. .$230,000 July 1, 1505. cash on hand.. 121,000 Reduction of balance in one year..$109,000 1, 189%, floating debts..$117,000 July 1, 1834, floating debts... 59,400 Increase floating debt in one year.. 58,000 Total falling off in one year........$167,000 The public credit continues excellent, and no diflleclty is experienced in selling at par in Honolulu all government bonds at 6 per cent as fast as required. The diminution of $167,000 has been in consequence of special expenses of the in- surrection, and increased military outlay, also, in part, to loss of revenue in January owing to general suspension of business. This statement of Minister Damon has ven general satisfaction, as removing all Gbeeurity from the financial situation, and showing that it fs sound. To Be Used as a School. The government have just concluded the purchase of valuable property near the heart of the city for the use of a high scrool. It is the mansion which was built fifteen years ago at great cost by the bulky Princess Ruth Keelikolanl, who had Inherited all the great estates of the Kamehamehas. She soon after died. Her heir wag her cousin, the very lovely and nchle half-white Princess Bernice Panabi Bishop. At Mrs. Bishop's death the Kame- hameha estates were devised by her will to establish the grand Kamehameha schools for manual training of native youth. Her husband, the ba c R. Bishop, has now sold the “palac $30,000 to the board of education. The sum paid hardly equals the value of the ex- tersive grounds for mere building pur- peses. The house needs little alteration to fit it for the uses of a large high school. Mr. Bishop, who now resides in San Francisco, is deeply interested in edu- cational matters here, and has himself added largely to the’ equipment of the Kamehameha schools. besides building and furnishing the splendid Bishop museum on chich is chiefly devoted Polynesian antiquities. of the museum collec tion consisted of royal valuables inherited hy Keelikolani and stored in her new man- sicn. Mr. Bishop has no children, and now, ap- proaching the end of life, is wisely’ and beneficently administering his own estate ij largely for public uses. Like nearly all of our worthier citizens, he is one of our warmest supporters of the revolution and the republic. Allied by marriage to the very noble ancient Hawaiian royalty of the Kamehamehas, Mr. Bishop, as well as his wife, became’ deeply disgusted with the parvenue royalty of Kalakaua and his sister, with their arbitrary and capricious administration, He fully recognized the obvious fact that native monarchial govern- ment had come to its natural end and that it only remained to bury it as decently as was possible. KAMEHAMEHA. Set PENSION DECISIONS. Involuntary Service in Confederate Ranks No Bar to Pensions. In a recent pension case Assistant Sec- retary Reynolds of the Interior Department decides where there is record of service in the confederate army, and it fails to show whether the service was voluntary or in- voluntary, it will be presumed that it was voluntary, but such presumption may be rebutted, the burden of proof be:ng on the claimant. Where the service was volun- tary the claimant fs not entitled to a pen- sicn, but where the service was wholly comrulsory he may be. The sufficiency of the evidence to rebut the presumption of voluntary service must depend on the cir- cumstances of each case. In another case the assistant secretary holds that when a soldier was discharge to re-cnlist, and did then and there re-en- list as a veteran volunteer, and thereafter deserted from the service and never ree turned to or was harged from said service, he is not pensionable under any law for any disabilit ted under the enlistment from w yas discharged er that from which he deserted, reason that there was no during which he was regularly and legally released or separated from the service. Mr. Reynolds holds that an insane claim- ant, under the dependent pension act, may file'a Valld declaration for pension by a competent person, as next friend, but be- fore payment a guardian or committee must be appointed. a a get NEW LIGHT HOUSES. Those at Lower Cedar Point Smith's Paint to Be Built. Capt. John Millis, engineer secretary of the light house board, is authority for the statement that work on the new light houses at Lower Cedar Point and at Smith's Point will begin this fall, and with no further delay than is absolutely neces sary for the preparation of the plans and specifications and other necessary prelimi- naries. The plans for the light at Lower Cedar Point have been prepared by Capt. Bergman, engineer in charge of this di trict, sand will be acted upon by the bo: in a few days. ‘That officer also pra tically completed the preparation of the plans for the new light house at tn’ Point. Both projects will soon he in shap for the making of the necessary contracts, Congress limited the cost of the light Srl Point to $80,000, and made the s: 3 and ame amou: ted for use of the light at Lower C the present fiscal for that light is $7 . - s that the work on both light houses wiil be prosecuted as rapidly as the circumstances will premit. r Po dur dar P iT The limit of co: Uses of Aluminum. The forthcoming review by the geological survey of the mineral resources of the country will show that the production of aluminum in the United States in 1804 was 550,000 pounds. The imports were ued at $4,110. Bauxite, which is an oxide of aluminum, has been found in sufficient quantities to be commercially valuable in enly three localitics in the United St These are in New Mexico, Arkan: the Coosa valley of Georgia and Alab Aluminum, the review will has found the position in the arts 5 it, and the demand is increasing. lurgical use has than was expected. — -e- A New jon Liaw Wanted. The “honest election conference,” called by ex-Senator Wm. Mahone, representing the republican party, and Mr. Haskins Hob- son, representing the people's party, met in Library Hall at Petersburg, Va., last night, Mr. P. Buford, commcenrwealth’s attorney of Brunswick coun ed chairman, Speeches condemning the Walton law were made by S. T. Brown Allen, auditor of the state under the “readjuster” regime, and Mr. Ho who is the chairman of the populist € committee. to loud calls, Gen. Mahone and substantially along the which Mr. Hobson pursued. committee then appointed to form- late a non-partisan election law, which will be submitted to the conference. eo land Prohibition Ticket. The prohibition state convention of Mary- land at Giyndon Park yesterday placed this ticket in the field: For governor, Joshua Levering of Baltimore; for controle Dr. J. L. Nicodemus of Frederick county; for at- torney general, W. Frank Tucker of Dalti- more. OW licted for lts metal- proved moxe valuable three counti he entire state ented, and the d unanimous in their choice of M as the standard bearer of the Levering p Bs against ting that it was impossible head the ticket, but he could not stem the ude, and iS Name was presented and re- celved with cheers and the most enthusi- astic applause. es Coxey’s Bond Scheme In “Gen."J.S. Coxey made a speech yesterday afternoon to the Ohio populist convention at Columbus, and he also addre: open-air meeting at night. He talke ly on his non-interest bond scheme. committee on resolutions finally ind the Coxey bond scheme, There were sey : other planks of th platform are about the same as those of the Omaha platform. n ee Naval Movements. 2 ‘The flagship Baltimore sailed from Yoxo- homa today for Nagasaki. The Changed Rubies. From the Boston . There seems to be no end to the curlous stories about jewels lost and stolen. One of the latest is that of Mrs. A—, who re- cently took a pair of large ruby solitaires to be reset at ——'s, where they had been purehzsed. The morning after the maid brought her the card of the firm, saying a gentleman wished to see her, and on going down to the drawing room she found one of the clerks, who told her that the stores, Which were apparently of er were in reality false and worthle y much agitated over the intelligence sserted that the jewels had 1 left her possession since’ their pure! and claimed that the fraud must have been perpetrated before she received them. This, of course, the firm denied, but the feeling on the subfect hecame very bitter on both sides and detectives were employed by beth to ferret out the mystery. When a former butler of Mrs. A— was proved to be a dis- charged clerk of the well-known jewelers the infere’ s obvious, although no preof again: the man has been found and the jewels have never been recovered. 2o+—___ A Telephone That Whistles. From the Cincinnat! Tribune. Manager Fowler of the telephone ex- change, Ashland, Ky., has devised an in- gerious attachment for telephones, to be used in factories and shops where the amcunt of noise makes It almost impossible to hear the cail bell of the instrument. It consists of a steam whistle, which is turned on by means of a lever operated by magnetism. When the instrument is called from the exchange the bell rings as usual, and by the electric current pass- ing through a magnet a weight is released which pulls the lever to the whistle. Once started the whistle keéps up its shrill note until some one answers the call and turns off the steam, which is done by simply re- placing the weight. One of these attach- ments is being placed at the local steel plant, another at the tannery and several more’ will probably be instalied in saw mills and* similar establishments. ee No lover of good stories should miss read- ing the $2,000 prize detective story, “The Long Arm,” by Miss Mary ©. Wilkins, the first installment of which will be published in The Star of Saturday, August 3, ILLICIT WHISKY The Hidden Still and the Devious Methods Employed. MOONSHINE CPERATIONS AND PROFITS Recollections of the Bristow Raid on the Rings. EFFECT OF THE LAW “It is stated,” sold Mr. James J. Brooks, for many years connected with the secret service of the treasury to a Star reporter, “that the forthcoming annual report of the commissicner of internal revenue will show the seizure of 2,000 illicit stills during the past fiscal year. Seeing that the tax is now $1.10 upon every proof gailon of wh , these extensive seizures need ni excite surprise, but rather they that the grain distiileries, bonded to the government, have not been se- riously involved in this trouble. That they are not is creditable alike to them and the officers authorized to enfofee ihe necessarily onerous laws for the col- lection of the tax on whisky. The fact that our public debt is increasing so rapidly, and all attempts to furnish quate revenues for meeting the current of the government having thus and intelligent, well-meaning rmed) men are adyocating a on the manufacture of , L see a good reason at this june- alling many of the facts, err gat a con century allel in ame ful, tion of things a quarter of a > the like of which has no par- of taxa to the sof all hon- 2 r should be put forth. “T believe the conditions ave rip sthe crisis is impendi ag thrust on the nation, unless the vo g nee has weight with our law-me rhe exigencies of a fratricidal war led the taxation of all professions, lings ard occupations. In one form or every article of luxury and ty was taxed. Whisky bore first of twenty-five cents per proof gal- s afterward raised to sixty to $1.50, and fina wi during this time on this subject was I: ly experimental. Europe could few precedents, so we had, feel our w mad sit wi hence many mistakes were period of less than three years from June, 1831, to March, 1887, our internal venue laws were thoroughly revised pw Easy It Is. s of distillation from mola P scrapings of sugar ships was of the character, end an outfit inex; his class of stills was the real iHic nd was run ‘by jaborers in our large ; it recognized no law, was run in lars, kite stah and out-of-the- places; paid no tax and depended on ty of physical force rather tha reey for succ cost of material nom- inal; of labor nothing; product trom 50 to Nens ef spirits each twenty-four hink of the amount of cl. of grain required ve mi and being too bulky to opera this class of distilleries paid s clal tax and 1 1 to the gove ment before as given to di Surveys of w city were fixed yernment, so the quantity of should be pr ht for ;the of the cing. a A of spirit ard nothing i stat t whether sor grain, eight nis would cover it, Contemplate for a mom: upon an article éleven Umes the cost of its production. tempiation. “The clo: of profit™ practi othe w rT than What a terrible by es had amassed fortunes, These lured by the prospects of an e. to procure wealth than ly hor leavor, left industwial pursuics plunged into the vortex of frand, extensive and glaring petrated that one officer made 180 seizures of unlicensed distieries stolen wh Bonded distilleries of grain, each in charge of several commis- med officers of the government, of law and regulations, w five time acity fixed by the govern- ment, jowever, reporting their ed on capacity, and clan- removing the other four-fifths, which thus ped taxation. The Large Distillers. “It was frequently cemonstrated that large n distilleries defrauded the government of $3,000 per day on their actual produc- tion. Every report made to the govern- ment of grain purchased and used and of spirits distilled and sold was made under the solemnity of an oath. It is appalling to contemplate such wholesale perjury. “Antecedent to the tax period there were and and so is per- a at single year few distillers and these continued their business until undersold by, fraud they were forced to quit business or join the mighty phalanx of revenue robbers, and many virtually closed, awaiting better times. Many were the devices put in op- eration for the collection of the tax. Sten- were at first large! employed for ing packages ‘tax paid,’ but immedi- on their appearance each distiller an ounterfeit made for his es- pecial use when stock taken prece- dent to a cha of tax, and the ofc branded it as being manufactured prior toa given date. Thereafter and for months subsequent to the date on which ihe in- 1 rate of tax went into effect the to a man, furnished with a brand, under which they put stolen daily on the m: tock, These tricks w peated with every change of t long Later a shrewd Yan which the ment adopted ve affair, running into thou rs and compelled the distiller to buy and have the same attached to the tailpiece of each con- derser, They protested, but vainly, and their places were closed until the meters were attached. There was mourning for a time, but soon experts were traveling the country and teaching how the meter could he made to register any amount to suit the distiller, and all was again serene for him. After a fair trial the instrument was cast out as worthless.’ Extent of the Fraud, he commissioner gave figures showing that 60 per cent of thé amount of spirits reported made and waxehoused was after- ward stolen under color of law. Add to ‘ths of the whisky made, which reported or warehoused, and n is paralyzed. It was mainly forts of Mr. Rollins that the act of July 20,/iisus, was passed reduc- ing the tax on sifritd to fifty cents the proof gallon. This gave promise of restor- irg distillation to an honest basis, and, in furtherance of thig purpose, another re- vision of internal révenue law and methods tcok place. With this new order of things a new set of oftices s created. The United States were divided into twenty- five districts, a supervisor and a revenue detective being assigned to each district. The requirements precedent to running a distillery under the new jaw were so num- crous and involved so many and radical changes in the machinery of a distiliery that they were closed for a tlie to elfsct them. “Following on these changes came the use of engraved stamps for the protection of spirit in all its manipulations from fraud. Beer, ¢ tobacco and proprie- tary stamps had been in use for some time. Surely with a low spirit tax and so many imaginat through the e ch and gr thrown around the and t with ing © Imost s in enforcing law—surely ast dawned. Yet as ning: opera- to be felt, old the time tions, old int ror faces showed nd it soon be- came evident that, having taken largely of the forbidden froit, also being ses- sion of the plants for producing the fruit, and_a knowledge how to obtain the most profitable results, the distillers, in fact, were anxious to experiment under the new regime. Hitherto it had seemed as though €ach distiller operated Independently of the other—no concerted action—but_now began to appear local whisky rings. Each city of prominence had one, and subordinated to its mandates the small distilleries in out- lying districts adjoining. Period of Rings. “Each ring kept itself aloof from the other, and as time went on it was evident that the influences which had formerly cor- rupted the service had again gained the ascendency, and the whole business was soon honeycombed with fraud. The system of stamps was a good one, but its misuse by collusion left the government, as_be- fere, entirely at the mercy of the distiller and rectifier, for under the rectifiers’ stamp of ten cents per barrel the greater buik of stolen whisky was safely put on the mar- ket. “After a year of operation under the new regime the conservative Publle Ledger of Philadelphia, in an editorial in its issue of September 5, 1869, remarked as follows: ‘It has been well known for iwo or three years past that the combination styled the “whisky ring’ has been too powerful for the ordinary appliances of the Jaw, too strong for the courts, too potent for the government. “There can be no doubt that through Its dhe government has been de- f nore than $160,000,000—perhaps the icit in the frauded $200,000,050—and ail of reve y made up by cnero ductive labor. mous fr. crime upon cri Threats, assault y, perjury and a h have come to 1 $ Many others w bri- amons ht, and there h time will shown it- committed. y self all potent in who commit ¢ pervading in and agents everywhere, f 3 3 to the courts of justice. “Yo render resuits less uncertain and to obtain accurate information of movements to be made against it, the ring had its nformed, by touch with high ofil- i who, all unsuspicious f the friendimess, un- and guve information to ent of the service. Secret frequently known to the the officer reached the destined tion. ‘Thus year by year the great crime ‘went on. The Bristow Raid. “Benjamin H. Bristow was in 1875 Secre- tery of the Treasury, John W. Douglass comreissioner of internal revenue and Blu- ford H. Wilson solicitor of the treasury. ‘To these three officers belong the credit of planning the campaign of that year, which laid out the whisky ring of that epoch, but so fearful of betrayal were they that not » than three or four others (ard these were they who were to secretly collect the evidence by which the ring was to receive s Ss) Ww taken into their confi- dence until the time of the gathering in of the law breakers arrived. Fcr two months the secret agents worked night and day almost un rgly, always on the street watching receipts of material in distilleries and disposition of whisky taken therefrom. “Phe evidence obtained,though voluminous and complete in each case reported, showing m ve frauds, did not embrace amore than two-thirds of the establishments under su ion, for rumors began to float ns gave evidence the ring a the government Bristow ordered a which was made In aneously in three cities of portions on the 1ith day of 1 of fifty distilleries, ree- liquor houses ‘wer= hose who of the secret agents ught under the law 5 of the first parties ar- res who received immunity from im- pr ent therefor. The second batch of criminals taken served a jatl sentence of a few m« The ultimate settlement of all these cx rehives of the intern indreds of thousands of doNars of property values ized which should have been can- ‘9 the United States, but I fear of the ring secured attorn s nts with the govern- dethroned Infamous able to hold on to much it had nd which it feared it was about to result obtained, the Its power broken it soon became a wretchel example. I re- pest, if 2,000 fllicit stills have been captured during the past f r what may we not expect if the tax on spirits is in- creazed” ee The Zero of Temperature. From the go Interior, plorer has yet been able to hang on the north pole, nor has the t in his laboratory yet succeeded in ing what may be called the north pole researches, namely, the zero of tem- perature, or the temperature of celestial space. This zero has been defined as that point of te which gas particles would give no. pre: and have no vol- ume, a condition which, it is said, would take place at a temperature of 274 degre2s below the freezing point of water. Unlike the uretic explorers, however, who have a umber of roads open by which to approach e pole, the chemist has only one route by hich to reach the chilly -destination: he seeks, and that is py the liquefaction of all the ga: This, the text books state, has ready been accomplished, but the chemist a of the zero of temperature knows r, Though compressed hydrogen when expanded yields a mist, the Victory over ilting element has tot been achieved, e experiments in this direction are and costly it seems probable that the explorers will reach the north pole, by balloon or oti ng before the chem- ists reach their z: temperature of cele temperature, the ace, One practi- 1 result the chemist names as a reason for his researches after the zero tempera- ture is that should it ever be re hed we could then+ completel mechanical power, W succeed in g so converted, form heat into at present we tng only about 10 per cent on <es= Renped tho Advantage of Being Dead. From the Hartford Courant. A well-known Italian peet hit on a neat plan for securing the distinction that comes from death without the pains. He pub- Nshed a striking volume of lyrics, affixed sn unknown Pame to it, and, In a lauda- tory preface, told of the bard’s wretched and early, untimely taking off, even ing out for the benefit of admirers the position of his temb in a certain cemetery. ‘The book had all the flavor of senius per- ished in its ycung promise, and seenred a ale, a deluge of sentimental tears being ed by countiess Gamsels over the dead And when the deceased unknown ecure in his posthumous reputation, and had raked in shekels enough to make the publication a geod thing on the busi- ness side, the well-known poet came out with the confession that no such young writer had ever ed; the name was a ben name adopted by himself; the bogus death was a device he had invented. The suecess of his peculiar log-roing caused a sensation, arousing indignation or amuse- ment, as it happened, but, on the whoie, vastly helping his own selling powers. see --- The Cost of Patriotism. From the New York Times. Did it ever occur to any of you as you atch the flags floating over the various buildings in the city—those where they are kept waving from the flagstaff all of the time—that it costs a good deal of money to keep Old ry streaming constantly in the air? Although the flags are made of strong material, their constant whipping in the wind wea them out very fast. Over In- dependence Hall, in Philadelphia, the stars | and siripes are expected to be always waving, and to do this from six to eight flags are used up every year. They are antly mended, and there is a storm- ay flag and a fair-day flag and one for jal occasions, but even with all this care they wear out very fast. The hanmisomest flag, which is used on holidays, is 50 feet long and costs $36; the storm-day flag is only 20 fest long and $17 buys it, while the usual pleasant-day flag measures 4y feet and costs $30. see Not Too Sweet to Be Safe. From the New York World, Mrs. Dills—‘My dear, if I should waik down Broadway before dark, would there be any danger from masher: Old” Dills—"No. There might Gark, though. They then, you know. be after couldn't see so well SOME NEW RULES The President’s Interest in Pardon and Pension Cases. PERSONAL GXANINATICN OF PAPERS Only His Indorsement to Be Given to the Public. THE SHEA CASE RECALLED President mcre att Cleveland probably devotes tion to the minor details of public business than did any of his pre- decessors. This characteristle is specially roticeable in the consideration of pension cases, and applications for executive clem- ency in criminal cases, In these classes of cases bis predecessors almost invariably acted in accordance with the recommenda~ tions of the head of the department to which the case pertained, whose special business it was to study each case pre- ted and pass his best judgment as to the proper line of action. ‘This has been the un- broken rule in all ordinary pension and par- don cases, and none of the chief magis- trates befor: Mr. Cleveland’s incumbency de a personal study and investigation of es of this character except where they were of great importance in themselves, because of the character of the persons in- volved or because some grave question of policy or principle was at stake. During President Cleveland’s first ad- ministration he devoted considerable per- sonal attention to pension legislation, and he broke the record in the matter of ve- toes. There has been decidedly less legis- lation of this kind during his present ad- ministration, and he has had more time to Gevote to the consideration of criminal ‘don cases. There are always a great many of such cases to be disposed of, and the President has shown a deep interest in them, so much so that all the papers in such cuses are now sent direct to him, without being first referred to the Attoraey General for report, as was the invariable rule with his predecessors. New Rules in Pardon Case. Just befcre his departure for Gray Ga- bles Mr. Cleveland had a consultation with Attcrney General Harmon on the subject, the result of which was the promulgation of a series of rules to govern the consider- ation of all applications for pardons. These rules were prepared by the President him- self and have been applied to all recent cases, Including that of Thomas J. Taylor, the wife murderer, whose death sentence was cemmuted to imprisonment for life. That was the first case, however, in which their enforcement was brought to the at- tention of the public, by reason of the re- fusal of the authorities to permit the newspaper men to see any of th@ papers in the case except that bearing the Prest- dent's indorsement showing his action. The prohibition was specially directed to the reports of the trial judge and the prosecuting attorney. The reasons given at the Department of Justice for the at- tempted suppression of the character of these reports was that the President did not always act in accordance therewith and there was no good purpose served in advertising that fact. The Notorious Shea Case. Although it was not so stated at the de- partment it was recalled in other quarters that the President had been severely criti- cised for having previously pardoned Shea in spite of the strongly adverse reports the trial judge and the district His experience in that notorious «ase may or may not have had some ef- fect In the promulgation of the new rules, but it Is a fact that the President's action in that case would have been decidedly less unpopular ¢ it had not become known that the two officials best informed In re- gard to the case had protested vigorously against the granting of the application, Such material facts as these are apt to be published, however, in spite of the rules, as was shown in The Star’s report of the President's action in the Taylor case. If the pardon clerk, who had charge of the papers, could have controlled the matter, the readers of The Star would not have seen in its columns the information that Judge Cole and District Attorney Birney had indorsed the cit}zens’ applica- tion for a commutation of Taylor's sen- tence. Applications for Pardon. Under the new rules all applications for pardon must be signed by two or more credible perscns. They should be address- ed to the President, in care of the Attorney General. The applicaticns must state the name of the convict, bis age, nativity and previous * ccecupation, together with the crime for which he was convicted, the United States district, circuit or territorial court in which he was convicted, at what term of covrt, for how lorg and to what prison he was sentenced, and the grounds upon which his pardon is asked. As soon as received the applications, with the accompanying papers, are forwarded to the United States district attorney for the district where the trial took place, with the request that he make a report thereon and obthin, if possible, the opinion of the judge before whem the convict was tried. When They Go to the President. Except in capital cases, if the report made by both the district attorney and the trial judge is adverse to the granting of the pardon, the papers are not sent to the President for his consideration; but in all cases where the district attorney and judge do not agree as to the expediency of ex- tending executive clemency the papers are forwarded to the President for his action. Applications made merely for restoration to citizenship will not be considered by the President prior to the expiration of the sentence. After the ccrvict has been re- leased for a considerable period, and his good conduct is certitied to by the people among whom he lives, the President then will consider the arplication. ‘i Confidential Reports, Reports upon applications for pardon made to the President by United States dis- trict attorneys and judges are confidential in their nature, and are not open to inspec- tion by the applicant or any other person, except with the written aesent of the at- torney or judge making the report, nor, if such assent be given, unless it be shown that the ends of justice so require. All papers, with the exception of the re- ports made to the President by the trial judge and United States district attorney and the pardon attorney, are open for the inspection of Senstors, Congressmen, the applicant for executive clemency and his attorney. Notification of Action, When the case is decided the applicant for executive clemency or his attorney is notified of the fact. If pardon is granted a warrant fs forwarded at once to the ap- plicant, either through the United States marshal or the warden of the jail where the convict is ecniined. If the pardon is denied the indorsement made by the Presi- dent upon the papers denying the applica- tion is forwarded to the applicant or his attorney. These rules apply to applications for par- @on before conviction, so far as praotica- ble, and uso to epplications for restoration to rights of citizenshi; ~ ooo She Didn't Know Them. From the Tammany Times, « Miss Esmerelda Longecffin has not joyed the advantage of a good education. Not long since Gus De Smith came to her breathlessly at a social gathering: “My dear Esmerelda, I've been hunting for you all over the grounds. i asked where you were, and { was sent from Pc tius to Pilate and from Pilate to Pontin: until I found you. “Jam not personal, either of the geatlemes il be pleased to take al like if, they replied TROOPS AT JACKSON’S HOLE Progress of the Infantry Probably to Be Stopped. Indians Said to Be Returning to Their Reservations—Subsidence of the Scare, MARKET LAKE, Idaho, Augvst 2—The cavalry reached Jackson's Hole today. The indications are that the infantry will be stopped en route, and not go into the Hole, as there are no Indians in sight. The scare exists along the route which the Indians are taking in returning to the reservations. ° Notwithstanding the threats made against the life of Agent Teter and his chief clerk, Ravanel McBeth, they have gone ahead of the troops into Jackson's to warn the settlers not to attack the In- dians, and to obtain the names of all the persons concerned In the recent massacre of the Indians. Captain Jim, chief of the Shoshones, will ask all the Indians to go back to their reservations without fighting. If they will not go ke will assist the soldiers in remov- ing them, and will call upon his tribe to assist. LANDER, Wyo., August two weeks the mountains with Indians. hiding. Sharp Nose, chief of the Arapahoes, has been interviewed in regard to the Araphoes leaving the reservation and joining a band of fifty Sioux at the headwaters of the Lit- tle Popogaic river. He admitted he knew the Sioux had gone to the place mentioned, but it was to mect the Utes, and they were to “visit.” When asked if he thought it was right for so many Indians to be off their reservations at once, hunting “nd 7ill- ing game, he replied: “The reservation is only a home for the Indian, where the white man has no right to come by law; but he does come and pasture his stock there. Now, the game is Indian's meat, and he will have it. The white man can make no law that will stop him.” This, from the head chief of the Arapa- hoes, is evidence of their sympathy with the Bannacks on this question. For the last ave been alive Now they all seem to be in Indians Going Home. The latest news from Gen. Coppinger re- ceived from his headquarters at Omaha at the War Department is reassuring. A dis- patch dated Omaha yesterday Is as follows: “Report was received from Market Lake this morning which Indicates that the In- dians were returning from Jackson’s Hole by a straight line to the reservation. To test its correctness the Union Pacific rall- way office was asked to telegraph for in- formation to stations along the Oregon short line from Soda Springs westward. The following reply is from the division superin‘endent at Pocatello: ‘Stage driver just reached Soda Springs; says just left Carrabo this morning. He came through Pray’s lake and Blackfoot river country. Reports 24) Bannacks at Grave lake on their way from Jackson's Hole to reserva- tion. They said that there had been no fighting and no desire to fight on theit part. The scare secms to be over, and sete Uers understand they are trying to make their way back to the reservation to avoid troops. Information theroughly reliable.’ * The Indian bureau received dispatches tocay from two agencies in the neighbore hecd of the Jackson Hole country, stating? tkat there was no cause for alarm among the settlers in their vicirity. Major Rand- lett of the Uintah and Ouray agency, Fort Dushane, Idaho, wired: “Indians reported by Governor Richards are not from this agency,” and Agent Wilson, in charge of the Shoshones at Fort Washakie, Wyo., sent this dispatch: “No Indians are ab- sent withcut leave. There is no fear of trouble. Both of these agents had been instructed by Commissioner Browning to recall all easy away from the reservation without leave. es OPPOSED TO ANNEXATION. Congressman Hilborn Talks of What He Saw in Hawa SAN FRANCISCO, August 2.—Conzress- man Hilbern, who returned from Hawaii today, has placed himself on record as op- pceed to the annexation of the island by the United States. In discussing the ques- tion he said: “I can freely say that I do not believe it would be a wise thing for this country to undertake, or at ieast not while the present conditions prevail. The popula- tion consists chiefly of Japanese,.Chinese and Portuguese, with a small proportion of American or English-speaking people. The present illiteracy is greater among the whites than among the Kanakas. The present government is not satisfactory to a majority of the people there, 2specially the natives. It is practically an oligarchy, and the idea of a republic on such lines ts laughed at. It is not popular, and its safety is menaced as it stands. The great mess have no voice except in the election of the lower house. The senate is elected by the property holders, who represent but a few thousand of the people, and many of them are more illiterate than the natives. Mucn respect is shown to Presi- dent Dole. He is considered able and conscientious’ at.d is generally liked. “The Japancse are the most aggressive ard most to be feared. They quickly learn the ways and take every advantage. They have driven many Portuguese traders out of business, and are much like Chinese here. They import everything from Japan and spend little on the islands. “The wisest thing this country could do regarding the isiands would be to form some close reciprocity treaty which would give them the same advantages as our states, and insure their markets for us, They would, of course, be required to put a tax on all imports from other countries which came into competition with our products. If this is done, and we extend a protectorate over the islands, both coun- tries would derive the advantage of annex- ation, while they would be allowed to gov- ern themselves as they saw fit. But as things are going now,I believe the queen wil! be restored to her throne before iong.” On the question of a Pacific cable Mr. Hilborn said: “If there is a cable laid at any time in the near future it will have to be built by this country. It would not pay any pri- vate party to build it. I believe, though, it would pay.this covernment. The Pacitic will in some emergency be the rend for the navies of the world, and teleg! communication with Honolulu will great saving to us in handling our Tkere would be considerable sides, and I would vote favorably on the proposition.” —_ WESTERN 5 VER MEN. Organizations in Colorndo Agree to Conselics:) DENVER, Col., August 2. ence betw the representatives of the three principal silver organizations In this state, which have been in progress here several day agreed upon consolidation vpon a non-partisan basis. The new body will be known as the Colorado Silver League, ard includes the Bimetallic Union, republican; the Colorado State League, pop- ulist, and the Coicrado delegation to the Memphis conyention, representing the dem- ocratic party. An executive committee was selected as foilows: A. W. Rucker, W. N. Byers, Dennis Sheedy, George G. Merrick, |. Steven: er, T. B. Buchan- an, Bradford snd Julius Thompson. The advisory board includes James B. N. P. Hill, T. M, Patierson, Sureck, John Mrs. EB. bury, Rhodes. August 2. ocratic primaries to select de’ n county convention, tos to the silver conve elect delez be held at Pertle Springs next ‘Tuesday, the city wards have chosen solid fer sil \er delegations. The returns from county je the eity will be brought day. out in during thi Mrs. Berry's Loss. Mrs.iXitty Thornpson-Berry’s many friends wiil he pained tu learn of the death yester- day her only child, Madeline May, o bright four-year-old Wttle girl Death re- i from an attack of spinal meningitis, hich the little one had been suffering eral days. Funeral services were sis afternoon, iy