The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, June 12, 1904, Page 32

32 THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, JUNE 12, 1904 ' | | ! _—_— London’s Stage World. Epecial Correspondence. HEADQUARTERS OF THE CALL, 5 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN, LONDON, May 20.—Un- doubtedly the reception accorded to “The Prince of Pilsen"—presented here for the first time the other evening— has been fully described in the tele- graphic dispatches. Reports from the U'nited States, however, maks it evident that the latest experiment with Ameri- can musical comedy in London is belng awaited with considerable curiosity at home, =0 it may not be out of place to go somewhat Into detalls regarding the situation. It will be remembered that this is the beginning of an at- tempt to provide London with the beat musical plays that the United States can produce. George Musgrove, the maneger of the Shaftesbury, where “The Prince of Pilsen” is now runuing, ennounced recently that he had made & start by _securing three pieces that had enjoyed favor in the United States —the present production, “The Yankee Consul,” and “Peggy From Paris,” and that if the opening attraction failed to do business it would be shelved in favor of the second, and so on until he found a winner.. Americans in Lon- waiged for the outcome with par- r interest, for it is, of course. a that since “The Belle of New no American musical play found luck in London. It also true that mnot one of playse sent over had been 1 success at home. Judging from t that it had ryn mearly two n the United States, it was felt, however, that “The Prince of Pilsen™ should afford a fairer test. Well, “The Prince” has been presented, and, it must be confessed, has fared uncom- mop badly at the hands of the review- ers. They find it less well mouated than the plays of this kind presented by George Edwardes, of uncommon feebleness in liberetto, more meritori- ous so far as music is concerned, but— not so very funny! John W. Ransome, on arriving in London, was asked by an interviewer if he would not anglicise his part a little, so as to make it more understandable by Britishers. The re- ply was “I won't change a single line. Present indications are that this was a mistake, for on the first night the comedian’s famous ‘“catch-phrase” fell rather flat. “Vas you ever in Cincin- nati?”"—the constant inquiry of the American brewer in the play—tickled audiences at home; here it is just as funny as it would be in the United States if an Englishman asked ““Were you ever ¥n Birmingham?” The much heralded “Song of the Cities” also proved rather mystifying to London- ers, and this might have been ex- pected. What significance could it be supposed to have, for instance, if the band played “Maryland” to announce the arrival of the Baltimore girl, when 4his tune is absolutely unknown to an English audience? In such respects “The Prince of Pilsen” may prove too American to succeed in London, in others it is voted not American enough. The scene in Nice—there 1s little, if any, American local color; nothing quaint to English eyes, as there proved to be in “Dahomey.” So it is being asked why it was worth while to bring all this distance a play so much like the home-made article? However, it is for the public to say whether the next item on Mr. Musgrove's list shall, or shall net, be long delayed. 550 [ y— vears . Ethel Barrymore's beauty, grace and vivacity captured the critics, official and unofficial, at the first performance in London of Hubert Henry Davles’ “Cyuthia,” although the poor girl was so mervous and overwrought that she “disccvered” on the verge of tears cach time the curtafn went up in re- e to the enthusiastic calls of the dience between the acts and at the d of the play. There were indica- tions that she was going to have a zood, comfortable cry after the ordeal was over. It was rather a severe or- deal, too, for the play did not appeal as much to the British taste as it had to American taste. The chief question that seems to present itself to the Brit- ish mindis whether or not the average \merican girl is as extravagant and as guorant of the value of money as Cymthia. Max Freeman and Joseph Wheelcck Jr., who were impcrted for the production, were varticularly well received, and Gerald du Maurier, one of the most intelligent of the younger English actors, did all that could be ‘ome wi”~ *he rather empty role of vnthia’s husband. . . ] S SR 3 the music hall's feature, which he thinks will be exceedingly bright. Chevalier has been making a long tour ‘ of the United Kingdom and has been ! struck especially by the immense pat- | ronage which the “halls” in the large | cities receive apd by the immensely im- | proved tone of the performance given asicompared with the kind of thing in | vogue when he first entered the busi- ness. “I foresee a time,” he said to an .in- terviewer, “when distinguished drama- tists like Mr. Pinero will be glad. to write little one-act plays for the halls, and some of the finest actors of the day will give character impersonations there which will be perfect works of art. The modern music hall is only a youth yet, but he shows signs that promise a fine maturity, and I have every confidence in him. I belleve that he will brighten and elevate the lives of the people in a way that the stage could not, because it could not reach them, and at the same time it will prove a boon to the stage itself.” Anent the Archbishop. Epecial Correspondence. HEADQUARTERS OF THE CALL, 5 HENRIETTA STREET, COVENT GARDEN, LONDON, May 21.—As all sorts of rumors have been fiying about in the past weeks regarding the possi- bility of a visit of the Archbishop. of Canterbury to the United States, I ventured to address a letter to the Archbishop, and have received the fol- | lowing reply from his private secre- tary: Lambeth Palace, S. E., May 19, 1904. Dear Sir: The Archbishop of Canter- bury desires me to say in reply to your letter of the 12th inst. that there is really nothing more to add at present upon the subject of your letter than that his Grace has received a very cordial invitation to attend the con- vention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in America next October, and that he is giving the invitation his very careful consideration. Everything depends upon the Archbishop's public duties in England during the summer | and autumn. Yours truly, ARTHUR SHEPPARD, Private Secretary. Doctors at Panana. | Not only the engineers, but also the doctors, will have much work to do in! connection with the construction of the | | Panama canal. The health conditions |in the vicinity are very bad—it would | | be difficult to find worse. The Chagres | fever, which is peculiar to this region—! being named, indeed, after the river of | that name—prevails constantly and is a ' | very serious menace to the lives of men | from the north. I am confident that it can be stamped out, but this will be a difficult task, well worthy of the efforts | of the best medical ability in this coun- | ry. The climate itself is not unfavorable | to health. The danger lles Iin the| swamps on the coast and in the abso- | lute lack of sanitation in the towns.| | The swamps will have to be drained and a civilized sanitary system put into operation. This work must be put un- | der the direction of a medical man of firmness, sound ideas and strong ex-| | ecutive ability. Though the manual la- | | bor on the canal will be done by accli- | | mated natives, a large number of men | from the United States will be em-| | ployed as superintendents and for other work requiring skill and education. Many young American civil and| mechanical engineers are looking to| Panama for opportunities, and there | will be places for a considerable propor- | tion of those who want them. The lives | of these men are too valuable to be! sacrificed to unhealthful conditions that | can be remedied. Some of the first and | most important undertakings In the | mn%umry must be prosecuted by | physf€ians.—Success. A Patriot. “I reckon, my friends,” began a somewhat moss-grown, but eminent- ly astute candidate for the Arkansas Legislature, addressing an outpouring of the toiling masses of Izard County, “that everything that was worth say- | in’—and copsiderable more, too— about the tariff and silver and. the inickertous trusts, and all such as| that, was said before I broke into the | poiitical areny, so I'll just remark that | if I am elected I'll be too busy at- tendin’ to my duties to do more than | come back here after a spell and make | vou-all a sort of speech of thanks; but if T ain’t elected I'll have plenty. of | time to make you two long speethes, and mebby more, and kiss all the babies, and otherwise prepare the way for being elected the next time. That is all I've got to say at n’ruentl.ex- cept that T am in your hands from | this time forth, and the keg is over | vonder in Plunk Sagg's barn right| |now. A word to the wise Is, or ort to be, sufficient.” It is almost redund- jant to add that this broad-minded patriot was at election time rushed into the office he craved with all the whoop and eclat of a cattle ‘stam. pede.—Puck. All Dead. A correspondent of the London News sends extracts from letters recelved in Blantyre from some of the British Cen- tral African natives ‘at work in the Johannesburg mines, One of these Evidently Beerbohm Tree has an eye missives, written on the officlal note- on’ the patronage of the many Ameri- | Paper of the East Rand Proprietary cans who soon will be in London, One | Mines, limited, is interesting as show- thinks so from the fact that he is to ing that the laborers do not like the tollow “The Darling of the Gogds,” | Work, and that they are warning their which will be played for the last time |fellows not to leave home for the South. on May 30, with three Chakespearean | The writer says: : revivals. Sir Henry Irving’s last few spring revivals at the old Lyceum were supported almost entirely by Ameri- cars, and there should be much patron- age for the younger actor-manager fror the same quarter, for the three pleces which he means ‘o revive, “Julius Caesar,” “Twelfth Night” and “A Midsummer Night's Dream,” are been talking the subjeot of “Please, Alamu, do not come here. It is dreadful. We are all dead. Here there is not much money. If you.re- ceive 30 shillings it only equals 10, and that js all its value here.” - To a younger brother he writes: “But, Achimwone, I say this to you, please, | my brother, if you see a white man | who is coming here, and if he says to you ‘Come, let us go to Johannesburg,’ you must not consent on any account. It is dreadful here. We people are all In view of the permission given to re- cruit further natives from Central Af- rica, these letters are instructive, . THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL IO“D.SPRECIELS.PNM(M.......... Address All Communications to JOHN McNAUGHT, Manager “eiie:......Third and Market Streets, S. F. STATE AND CHURCH AND LAW. HE Mormon question in Utah and the disturbance T in the mining districts of Colorado bring the West to the center of the stage. The mining troubles that so long disturbed the Coeur d’Alene district inldaho, and after suppression there by the same means now em- ployed by Governor Peabody, were transferred to Colo- rado, are recognized at once as Molly Maguireism in an aggravated form. Y . The Molly Maguires in the coal region of Pefinsyl- vania were for years a terror. They committed hun- dreds of murders. If a mine foreman became obnoxious he was soon found dead. If a mine owner incurred the wrath of the inner council he was assassinated. 1f a fel- low-workman was disagreeable or refused to yield to some exaction his corpse was found in the mine. Fi- nally detectives joined the Mollies and patiently gath- ered evidence. It was found that sheriffs and even judges on the bench were Mollies, and that they had participated in murders and had acquitted their accom- plices when brought before them. When the evidence was gathered, the legal hanging began and in about two years the Mollies had *expiated their crimes on the gal- lows, or were in’prison or exile. The system was undoubtedly transferred from Penn- sylvania to Idaho. The only difference was the more open commission of its crimes. Local officers were en- tirely controlled by it, and a hundred murders and vast destruction of property occurred, with no attempt to check or punish the perpetrators. The Governor of Idaho, whase honorable fame will increase with years, at last called for Federal troops and cleared out the criminals. The local officials were deposed and since his work was finished the district has been peaceful and prosperous. The State of Colorado lost nearly $25,000,000 by the domestication of the Idaho refugees in her mining region, and Governor Peabody is now taking the same measures that were necessary in Idaho, except that the State militia has proved itself trust- worthy and Federal troops are not necessary. When the Eastern people point to these events in two Western has .mining States, and profess great concern about them, it is only necessary to remind them of the Molly Maguires in the old State of Pennsylvania. % It is the duty of the State to enforce the law, and when the local officers are in the combination of its violators they must be deprived of their functions. The fact that life and property are made unsafe by a society or organ- ization whose members destrpy both does not sanctify the crime. Take the case of the Mormon church as an illustration. Tt is fixed in our constitutional policy that the state must not interfere with religion. To do so would be an invasion of that liberty of comscience which is essential to free government. When such interference takes place civil liberty is at an end. But if a religious society have a policy that is necessarily destructive of civil liberty it cannot plead its religious character in avoidance of punishment by the state. Government de- fends itself in defending the rights of person :mfli prop- erty, and ir enforcing the law against those who defy it, be they secular or religicus societies. 1f the Mofmon church defy the law of the land in its practices, it be- comes liable to exactly the same treatment dealt out to the Molly Maguires in Idaho and Colorado. Without any desire to inject partisanship into this dis- cussion, we may note the evidence that the influence of both secular and religious law-breakers is apparent in one of the great parties in the States named. The Democratic convention of Idaho refused to send as a | delegate to the National Convention the great Democrat who as Governor enforced the law and punished and banished the Molly Maguires. The refusal was upon the express ground that he did enforce the law. The | State convention of the same party in Utah, under the influence of the religious society that breaks the law, refused to make any expression on the subject of po- | lygamy. These incidents only serve to disclose the perils of the state when secular or religious societies array themselves against the law. Where suffrage is universal the ballot, which was intended to preserve the rights of person and property and to maintain the law, becomes the instrument to destroy what it was intended to de- fend. It is conceivable that in Utah the same measures may some day have to be taken against the Mormon church that have been: taken against the Molly Maguires in Idaho and Colorado. Of course such measures cause many pitiful jncidents. No person 'is more pitiable than one who suffers the penalty of contumacy that originates in a perverted conscience. The miscreants who dynamited to death nearly a score of men in Colcrado recently felt no conscientious scruples. Their Molly Maguire oath had come to be the only binding obligation they felt. They know no state, no govern- ment, except their own murderous instincts. So, too, when about the same time President Smith of the Mormon church in his address to the young peo- ple of his church declared that he would continue to defy the law by living with his five wives there was ex- pressed a religious conscience and the obligation of a secret cath, all superior to any civil obligation. He knows no state and no government. The perverted ! practices of his religion are the sole guides of his con- duct. These things center the struggle for law and gov- ernment in the West. As both have prevailed over their secular -enemics so they will over those who defy them in_the name of religion, though every Mormon have to e banished from the country. —_— Our heaith officials haye made the startling report that much of the milk sold in this city is more dangerous than an equal quantity of sewage. If this be not an exaggeration, the continuance of agitation in reference to the matter is an absurdity. The criminal law of California covers the offense of murder by poison, and action should be taken at once. iy —_— WAR AND MATRIMONY. ° EPORTS from Washfigton concerning the pro- R .ceedings of the War Department in dealing with the charges made/ against Colonel Pitcher of the Twenty-eighth - Infantry for failure to marry are rapidly infusing the public mind with a fear that the department is about to make itself ridiculous. We are told that the officials of - the department are solemnly pondering whether or no to command the colonel to appear and answer. the charges befqa a court-martial, and naturally enough the whole tribe of American humorists, ever eager for a new absurdity on the part of dignitaries, are praying that the court may be held. It will be “nuts” Breach of .promise cases never impress the American people as being very dign.ified, even when tried before civil courts that are accustomed to them, and a breach of | promise court-martial gvould be almost certain to strike the popular mind in about the same way as a novelty stunt at a vaudeville show. The War Department is sup- posed to be better fitted for directing the stratagems and - the armaments of Mars than for regulating the pranks of Cupid, and the absurdity of the thing would overcome the gravity of even those who were most fully conscious of the real seriousness of the issue. As a matter of fact the issue is a serious one. It is not too much to say that neariy the whole prosperity of the private lives of men and women is made or marred by marri#ge. if there be anything in which in- ; dividual responsibility should be left free to the dictates of personal love and honor, surely it is that of the choice of a partner for life. Of course where wrong has been done there should be a means of righting it, but in such cases as the one under review, where no dishonor is alleged, the individual has a right to claim immunity from supervision and dictation by any governmental au- thority whatever. However, it is not at all likely the public will see in the issue anything more than the absurdity involved in the appearance of the War Department in the role of a marriage bureau. Tt will seem much like a revival of the “Courts of Love” that used to be held in the ro- mantic days of old, when knights and troubadours were summoned to answer before the pink téa dames of those times for any alleged failure of doing their “devoirs” to beauty. Doubtless there has been some personal animosity back of the force that has been pressing this case to an issue, but the officials of the War Depart- ment should not permit even that force to impel them to commit the absurdity of commanding\an officer to come before a court-martial and explain Why he does not marry a girl whom he does not wish to marry. Turkey has agreed, it is reported, to permit the Black | Sea fleet of Russia to pass the Dardanelles on the single condition that it never come back. The con- dition appears to be altogether unnecessary if we ac- cept recefit events in the oriental war as precedents. The fighting sailors of the Mixado appear to have con- scientious scruples against allowing any of the Russian ships to get away. l—I partment of Commerce and Labor for the in- spection of the Alaskan salmon fisheries, has embodied in his report for the year 1903, which is now published by the department, an intelligent review of the operation of the fishing laws in Alaskan waters and some strongly emphasized advice upon the perpetuation ot the salmon supply ‘!hrough hatcheries. He warmly seconds the recommendation made by the special Fish Commission last summer that the Government under- take the work of propagation. “Artificial propagation—these two words,” says Kutchin, “to my mind embody the solution of the vexed question of the perpetuation of the Alaska salmon fish- erics, and it may be stated with equal brevity that the attempt of the Government to exact that this work be done by the packers of the salmon has been, and must continue to be, a failure. Suffice it to say that out of about forty companies and individuals engaged in the packing business only a single one—the Alaska Packers’ Association—has gone into hatchery effort with any- thing like earnest purpose and thorough business-like method, and even this concern by no means covers the territory in which it operates nor produces an approxi- mate percentage of the ratio called for by the hatchery regulation.” 3 The scarcity of fish has begun to make itself manifest in the season’s total output. In his statistical report Mr. Kutchin shows that, whereas the output of r1goz from all the concerns aggregated 2,631,320 cases, that of the last season amounted to only 2,361,782 cases, a fall- ing off of 269,538 cases, representing a loss of 12% per cent. In the Central Alaskan region about the Cooks Inlet and Prince William Sound waters the salmon runs have been noticeably short. Some of the more rare and . THE ALASKA FISHERIES. OWARD M. KUTCHIN, special agent of the De- extent of an enforced suspension of packing in those brands. Not to the decreasing numbers of the fish alone is due the threatened shortage in supply, but also to the frequent vioiation of the fish laws in force along Alaskan waters. Though the special agent declares in his re- port that the laws are obeyed in the main with about as great an observance as any law commands, he cites frequent and flagrant violatien of the measure which prohibits the seining of more than -one-third of a stream’s waterway. Some unscrupulous which, in the absence of the inspectors, fence in an entire stream with wire netting, do much to destroy the fish supply. ~ From the reading of the special agent’s report and a consideration of the report made by the special Fith Commission appointed to investigate the methods of the canneries in Alaska last summer it appears that if the wealth of the Alaska canneries is to continue un- impaired, the fish packers themselves must see to it that every regulation made by the Government is stringently enforced. If they are prodigal with their supply now they can blame nobody but themselves should the ex- haustion of the salmon force suspension of business in the future. The harvest of the racetrack is being gathered these days in the police courts. Clerk after clerk, made dis- honest by the fascination of track gambling, is paying the penalty in shame and accusation. The peniten- tiaries are before many, and the State is at the expense of prosecution. Some of these déys we may learn that the cost of this luxury is meore than the community can bear, and then there will be an exodus of evil spirits | and a clearing of the social and- moral’ atmosphere. Preparations are now being made at Washington for the unveiling of the statue of Frederick the Great, pre- sented by Emperor William. The time has come, therefore, for a revival of the nonsense of petty politi- cians and the yellow press. who see in an act of cour- teous friendship assaults upon the traditions and the constitution of the country. : A ~ Texas is ‘gog over another desperate crime committed as the culminating outrage in a long series of offenses necessary to the conduct of a bitter family feud. We have had enough of these bloody incidents lately to for- tify a suspicion that the possession of honor and of life at the same time is antagonistic to the peculiar institu- tions of ‘t‘hu South U 4 ined species of the fish are being diminished to the ! canneries, ' TALK OF THE i Lincoln and the Children. Senator Dubols dellvered an address ! at-the Soldiers’ Home in Boise, Idaho, | recently, in which he related some per- sonal reminiscences of Lincoln, which throw a strong light upon the lovable character of the martyred President. “In my boyhood,” said Senator Du- bois “my family lived almost directly { across the street from Mr. Lincoln. He had two soms, William and Thomas, nicknamed ‘Tad,’ who were about the same age as my brother, Dr. Jesse K., | and myself. We, with the other boys of | the: neighborhood, used to gather on | Lincoln's corner in the summer even- {ings and play the usual games of boys | until bedtime. Often Mr. Lincoin would | romp with us, and we were perfectly ! safe in playing jokes on Rnim. ‘There ! was one prank which never failed to | be great sport for us. E | “The front fence of Mr. Lincoln’s | Springfield home, then and now, was ! about three feet high and stood om & | brick wall, ‘which was about five feet high. Almost directly in front of the | steps leading up from the sidewalk to | the house was a tree planted by Mr. | Lincoln himself, which still stands | there. At that time it was about 18 or 1 20 feet high. “Mr. Lincoln, as 1 recall, invariably wore a high hat, commonly called a ‘plug’ hat. During the time of his | great debates with Douglas and just preceding and after his nomination for the Presidency, Mr. Lincoln was much preoccupied in mind.. When at home he usually went up to the State House after his evening meal to consult with his party associates. He was quite regular in his habits and usually came ! back about 8:30 in the evening. His habits were so well fixed that the boys | could calculate on his movements, and | we tied a string from the tree to the fence at just such a height as to strike Mr. Lincoln's plug hat about the cen- ter. We hid ourselves behind the fence in the adjoining yard, behind the wall + | around the corner, and in various | places. 4 | “When Mr. Lincoln, with his arms | folded behind his back and evidently !in deep thought, would be suddenly aroused by having his hat knocked off 1 by some unseen power we would raise a mighty yell, rush out from our hiding plgces, grab hold of him wherever we ,could find a place and shout for joy. All his serious thoughts would vanish instantly and he would laugh and romp { with us, and not unfrequently march up the street with all the boys cling- ing around him until he could find a place to buy us some nuts or fruit. | “When a boy 10 years of’age I was | one of the great crowd of his neighbors |and friends who assembled at the | Wabash depot in Springfield in Febru- | ary, 1861, and heard him bid farewell | to his neighbors and friends in a speech | tinged with sadness, but with Christian { hope.” The River of Tears. | Are you sighing, my dear, in the depths ©" the years, At the shadowy brink of the River of » Tears? Of the River that runs through all lives, and that seems To weave in its gray mists the ghosts of our dreams? Behold! O'er the desolate, flowerless sod, The bend of the beautiful rainbows of God! Are you sighing. my dear, for a face that is missed— For lips that you loved so—the lips that issed? rink_from the Silence—the echoless Night, With never a gleam of lost tresses of light? Behold!s Though the Silence and Dark- H ness be long, ! Out of the Silence God maketh a song! . . Be this. dear, your solace, for all the dim years: God stands with us all at the River of Tears! | And the crosses and losses—the grféf Shall be Light where his lilies eternally bioom! and the gloom, And we'll rest where the stars in Love's crown shall be seven, In the glory that is not of the earth but of h eave \ Atlanta Constitution. Mukden, the Sacred City. In the eyes of the Manchurians there is but one Holy City in the {world. It is Mukden, where are the ineffably venerated tombs of the ancestors of thé imperial family of China. . Among Chinese, Japanese and Koreans the most sacred objects are the family graves; their most cher- ished persenal possessions are the me- morial tablets on which are inseribed the names of those buried in these sepulchers. The worship of their fathers’ fathers is at the bottom of their souls the one fundamental and | abiding religion. East and north of the city of Muk- den .lie the imperial tombs, among them those of the father and grand- father of the first Manchu .Emperor of ‘China and of others who have sat on the great dragon throne. It was about the middle of the sev- enteenth century that the Manchu Prince of Mukden swooped down on the north of China and in a decisive and sanguinary battle at Shanhai- kwan overthrew the power of the last of the Emperors of the Ming dynasty, placing his own line upon the throne of the “Middle Kingdom.” For the | greater part of the period covered by the reigns of the Ming sovereigns Mukden was a small, unimpertant town; it rose into prominence after the Manchus had made it their capi- | tal, and though the victors soon aban- | doned it for Peking it steadily in- creased in size and population. Sur- vivals of its former state as an impe- rial place of residence are still fo be seen in the ruinous ancient palace, a miniature of that at Peking, which stands near the center of the city, and in the iemples of Heaven and where sacrifices are offered the name of the Emperor. To-day the population of Mukden is considerably above a quarter of a million and the city itself, which is largely modeled, though on a smaller scale, on Peking, presents a fine and even imposing appearance. It com- TOWN { J : pares more than favorably with the majority of Eastern cities. The station on the Chinese' Eastern Rallway, the Harbin-Port Arthur branch of the Trans-Asian eor Trans-Siberian Rail- | way, is rather more than a mile fr the city, and on alighting from train the splendid sixty-feet-h brick walls which surround the In town immediately strike the eye. T inner town is in the form of a square a mile wide and entrance into it is gained by eight noble gates surmount- ed by watch towers and batteries. The suburbs extend for‘a mile on all sides of the walls and are inclosed within a rampart of earth. The headquarters of the Russian military resident are situated to south of the old palace and here this moment probably, Admiral Al ieff sits and ponders the ruin he ha wrought, with the sound of the Jap- In anese advance ever in his ears. the northeastern suburb are the R sian church, school and post and tele- graph offices; in the immediate neigh- borhood are the Russian military headquarters and all around are the camps of the Russian soldiers. Mukden has alse a Chinese garri- son with' a Tartar general in com- mand. Reports have recently ap- peared in the press stating that the Russians have brought pressure to bear on the Chinese soldiers to with- draw from the place, but the latter, fearing the wrath of Peking if they abandoned the city of the imperial tombs, have stubbornly refused to leave. And now Mukden has suddenly and dramatically leaped into the eye of the world. A series of interesting firing trials re cently was undertaken by the Swedish Government. The purpose of these ex- periments was to examine the effect of shooting against pastepoard. The trials were conducted on the wharves of the Swedish navy in Karlskrons, and the target used was a prepared one of mill- board, against which fire from revolv- ers, rifles, carbines and machine guns was directed. The pastevoard, which was three inches thick, resisted com- pletely the bullets fired from the small arms, but was perforated by the pro- "e(‘! les from the machine guns. The experiments may be said to have given very interesting results. Bullets from the carbines used are able to penetrate wooden planks five inches in thickness, but they could not penetrate the paste- board, which was only three inches thick.—New York Tribune. «" _ Going a Few. Students at Berkeley and Stanford who suffer from the peculiar malady known as “repeating” may comfort themselves thgt Christian Busch was a student of chemistry at the Univer- sity of Geissen for sixty-six semes- ters, but never passed. He could not remember his lessons because of an injury to the head received in a duel. He died recently. dAnswers to Queries POLL TAX—C. F. F., Truckee, Cal. The law of California does not men- tion soldiers of the United States ‘army who are on furlough as amens those who are exempt from the oper- ation of poll tax. ARMY CHAPLAIN—M. D, City. The Federal law says that an appli- cant for appointment as chaplain in the United States army must be a regularly ordained minister of some religious denomination in good stand- ing at the time of his appointment and he must be recommended for such appointment by seme ecclesiastical body or by not less than five ministers of the same denomipation. A later law says: “No person shall be ap- pointed a chaplain in the regular army who shall have passed the age of 40, nor until he has established his fit- ness as required by existing laws.” And still another law says that this latter provision shall not apply to such as served as chaplain in the volunteer service if at the time of appointment In such volunteer service the appointee was under 42 years of age. PLACER CLAIMS—C. L., Latrobe, Cal. Claims usually called “placer,” embracing all forms of deposit ex- cepting veins of quartz or other rock in place, are subject to entry and patent under like circumstances and conditions and upon similar proceed- ings as are provided for vein or lode claims, but where the lands have been previously surveyed by the United States the entry in its exterior limits shall conform to the lggal conditions as to public lands. But one discovery of mineral is-required to support a placer location, whether it be of ten acres by one individual or of 160 or less by an association of persons. No claims “shall exceed 160 acres. The taking up of placer claims is governed by Land Office regulations. A party desiring- to take up a placer claim should apply to the nearest United States Land Office. ————— Townsend's California Glace fruits la artistic fire-etched boxes. 715 Market st.* —_——— Special information supplied daily to business houses and public -’a the Press Clipping Bureau (Allen's), Cal- ifornia street. Telephone Main 1043 *