The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 3, 1904, Page 8

- riably . the pecple He let them march in procession | * through the town until they were ex- hausted; lLe jet them seize a car and THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL Student Troubles in Russia. £pecfal Correspondence . PETERSBURG. July diso! r1ers occur in Russia 15.—When university students are generally responsible, and | wHe fact ha markable thus foment trouble, whereas in other countries the ignorant are almost inva- the culprits. Russian students have grievances of their own, demand- irg reforms which could not be granted cithout shaki “tion to its depths, and knowing that for ‘this reason they have conceesions to M;m for the students turn revolution- ists, prociaim themselves the friends of | and provoke riots regularly _been pointed out as re- every year. The people do not, it ‘Tnust be con-| #e much sympathy with| ments. In Moscow in 1898, when the siudents posted proclamations at they would help the lower to overthrow the Government, some of the “lower classes” came out with knives agai their would-be champions, saving that they were con- tented with the existing regime and would not be interfered h. As for! the rio -mselyes, they become se- ous only when the authorities make the mistake of taking them seriously. in 1 there were iversity riots in sacks, ordered nob in front of the lashing right and left n Cathedra with Cheeks » torn out, arresis were the population was was thought a state of have be proclaimed. signs of effervescence eives at the Kiefl rnor of Kiefl, 1, a hero the and noted as the strategist in Russia, has theories about students’ riots, their open, eves made orized by the score, to of considers mere child’s play and no more | worthy of attention than the pranks of Harvard students stealing barbers poles and shop signs. So when the stu- | dents rose up Dragomiroff dié nothing. | ride around crying “Down with Government” until they were hoarse, and, finally, disgusted by the utter in- Gifference of authorities and populace, | he students dispersed and went home. Meanwhile, however, a jealous subor- dinaté had seen his chance to advise St. Petersburg of an uprising which Drago- “miroff was neglecting, and a telegram soon demanded of the Governor why he had taken no measures to protect the city. Dragomiroff promptly called out two.full regiments and ail the artillery, ‘charged at double speed through the .town, surrounded the university with _dents were expelled. -trivial_ in the extreme. pointed cannon, intrenched his soldiers mund about and telegraphed as follows 10 the Czar: “Have surrounded the enemy’s quar- ters with 2500 soldiers. Enemy retreat- ed and not reappeared.” The absurdity was so evident that| the Czar laughed heartily and counter- | manded the censure which was to hn\'e( been administered to Dragomiroff. But the lesson has not been applied else- where. Sometimes the various universities, notably in 1899, boycott all lectures, | posting pickets to prevent any indi- viduals from attending, or the stu- dents take ill-smelling. chemicals into the lecture rooms. In 18599 the ex- aminations throughout Russia were held under protection of the troops ‘and the leaders of the which had started in St. Petersburg, were sent to Siberia, while 500 stu- This was the first of the great riots, since when they bave broken out at the same period each year. The cause of the 1899 riot was the St. Petersburg Umiversity an- ‘nounced that any one attempting a demonstration on February 8, the an- niversary of the foundation, would be expelled. The students, until this an- nouncement, had no idea of demon- strating, but they resented the rector’s words and promptly organized“some excitement. The police took them seriously and charged, throwing all who resisted over the parapets of a bridge on the frozen Neva. Five stu- dents were killed and fifty wounded in this y. And yet at other times, when no attention is paid, the little effervescence passes away so quickly that the students themselves, finding nothing heroic, forget their pledges 10 one another and return to the calm of university life. Almost without ex- cueption, before every examination at each university, there is a meeting of protest at which the students pledge themselves not to pass the examina- tions. To render leakage impossible they deliver to one of their .number thé certificates, without which they are not admitted before the board, and they deriounce as cowards and traitors those who object. But the next morn- ing they come one by one to the cus- todian of the certificates and by bribes and threats get their papers back, so “that out of each hundred who signed the pledge on an average not more than four abide by it. Students’ outbreaks are pnd.pluua most frequently by discontent at some professor. No effort of the univer- sities to be granted t.e selection of their own faculties has succeeded, and sc Jong as the decision remains in the hands of the government at ©i. Paters. t the enlightened should! the nation’s constitu-| were cut | the | moveément, | The rector of | bury politics are apt to count more in a candidate’s favor than competency. The case is cited of a professor of commercial law at Odesa who, being too lazy to prepare lectures, contented himself with reading without comment passages from a book written by him- | self on the subject, which book was in the possession of all the students. Another story Is told of a general ap- pointed rector of a university who se- verely took to task the librarian be- cause there were gaps here and there in the rows of books. You must keep the library ship-shape,” he ordered. | “Hereafter see that the first student who asks for a book shall take the first from the first shelf and then the | second, and so on, that the rows may | be kept clean.” And he threatened | to send away the librarian fQr foolishly | suggesting that numerical order might | not coincide with the subjects desired. | At some of the provincial universi- | ties there are important chairs with- ! out occupan because the Govern-| ment’s choice feli cn some man with- | out the necessary degree, who is too indifferent or too limited to attain them and onsequently, cannot ake »n. while preventing any competent person from obtaining the hie preseac uvment there is no professor of Roman law | at the Odessa University. At Warsaw | there is no professor of commercial | law. And yet students must get these subjects up and pass examinations on | them before receiving their degrees. | Except at St. Petersburg and Moscow professors of political economy never have any knowiedge of modern events, | their course stopping short a quarter of a century or so back. To this' cause of dissatisfaction |among students is added another, which is connected with it and inten- sifies it. That is, a law forbidding any | from entering a university save | that in the region of the preparatory | school which he attended. The country is divided into ten great regions, each with its university—St. Petersburg, | Moscow, Odessa, Warsaw, Kharkoff, | Kasan, Kieff, Heisingfors, Dorpat and Tomsk. And as at starting school a | | child must decide on his university, | | the result is almost invariably lhal‘ 'he is bound to his local university. The Government has devised this pur- | posely, to prevent a flooding of the two capitals, St. Petersburg and Mos- {cow, where the education to be ob- tained far superior to that of the | other centers. This is considered rank \n.‘jus(he. since the rich, who can af-| ford their entire education from child- hood in the capitals, can form excep- tions for these privileges. These are not the only causes for discontent among Russian university | students. There is also the lack of all rights In the university, each stu- dent being required on entering to ign a paper acknowledging himself to | be mereiy a visitor or guest. Then | there is the exaggerated system of su- pervision by an inspector, who is generally a retired general and who | | holds them responsible for every petty | action, as if they were children. Those | preparing for the university are | watched with such strictness that'they | desire some little liberty when once they have matriculated, and they re- | sent the abuse of authority. Further- | mo; there is the crucial grievance of | la hibition of societies of any de-. scription or even of general meetings. | The direct consequence of this last | measure is that a students’ movement of protest becomes revolutionary from | | the start. Not having any place in which to assemble, they are constrain- |ed to march into the university and | take forcible possession of a hall or| {lecture-room. They lock the doors, hold a meeting,in due form right in| the sacred precincts and pass resolu- | tions. When the superior, warned, pre- sumes to interfere, the students, know- |ing that their action has already put | them beyond the pale of conciliation, | catch him, beat him to avenge all past resentment and end by kicking him {out. The next day the superintendent publishes a notice in the papers say- { 1ing that, owing to a sudden indisposi- | tion, he will be unable to attend to his duties for a brief period, which lasts | until the ringleaders have been im- | prisoned. | A boycott of the university follows' | the meeting; manifestoes are posted in the streets. Notices are sent to the; | other universities and demonstrations break out. Often the trouble is quelled | before this last stage is reached by the arrest of the leaders. Government spies |are in each class, registered as stu- | dents, who participate in the meeting in order to denounce the seditious, It | happens not unfrequently, in virtue jof this system, that the spies de- | nounce, for reasons of personal spite, students who were only passive on lookers, but on whom the onus of | punishment is thus made to fall. Glory Deparlcd Celebrity is so neetlnx a thing nowa- days that probably few people remem- ber who Tunis was. And yet at one time he played a great part in the world, and in the telegrams of fourteen or fifteen years ago his name was con- stantly mentioned, for he was the famous black charger on which “le brav General” Boulanger was to have ridden to supreme power in France. The fame of Tunis, like that of his master, was at its zenith on that 14th of July when General Boulanger rode back from the review in- the Bois de poss one Boulogne and passing the llover-dnped‘ statue of Strasburg in the Place de la Concorde was greeted by the fickle crowd with delirious shouts of “Vive Boulanger.” When the general, an ex- ile from France, committed suicide on that grave in Ixelles Cemetery Tunis was old, and passed from hand to hand untit at last he came down to drawing the cart of an old woman who sold vegetables at Passy. Every day,he away —only an old dropped dead.”—London Globe. { before we owned a mile of its shore. | ton. | are. AUGUST 3, 1901. THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL ]OBN D. SPRECKELS, Proprietor « « « o« o oo o Addrcss All Communications to JOHN McNAUGHT, Manager Publle-don Ofmice- vevsesesese cesneesaneao.Third and Market Streets, S. F. \VE])NESDAY ..AUGUST 3, 1904 THE MERCHANT MARINE COMMITTEE. HE joint committee of the Senate and House on Txhe merchant marine arrives in this city to-day, with Senator Gallinger of New Hampshire as its chairman. The revival of our merchant marine has been under discussion for geveral years. The subject was concreted during the first administration of President McKinley, and has since been before Congress in some form, but no decision on methods has been reached. Like too many of our eco~ mic issues, it has impinged upon party politics, and plays have been made for polit- ical advantage rather than for the welfare of the coun- try and the promotion of its commerce. It is an issue of vital importance fo this coast, because, without asking permission of Russia, the position we have asserted in the trade of the Pacific must be maintained for our own development and in the interest of the national honor. When Secretary of Agriculture Wilson made his first visit here he was entertained by a large company of Californians as the guest of Mr. William H. Mills, and in a thoughtful address said that Dewey’s ships in Manila Bay had proclaimed American primacy of the Pacific. The | sentiment was heartily applauded. But it requires more than a declaration and applause to create an actuality. Primacy on deep water can be manifest only under the flag of the primate. Until we so write our title the fact remains only in the form of an ambitious aspiration. How to effect the transformation of that aspiration into fact is the problem before the country awaiting solution. Let us not be understood as saying that this coast is to be the sole beneficiary of a revival of our merchant marine. In proportion to the greater volume of its deep | sea trade the Atlantic seaboard’s interest far transcends our own. What is desirable is to join the two coasts in a unified determination to secure legislation that will put American commerce under the American flag, and keep it there, while still offering hospitality to the mer- chant flags of other nations. At present we are driven out of competition. We are not in the race. We spend hundreds of millions every decade for ocean freights that go to the ships of othér nations. Our flag is not on merchant ships enough to do our transportation for a single fortnight. It is a stranger not only in the sea ports of the world but in our own. All Americans re- cognize this as an evil. For every national evil there | must be a remedy, no matter how smhlil the evil may be. When it is of such magnitude as this the necessity for a remedy is of equal measure. This visiting committee was authorized by Congress to make close inquiry info conditions, to learn the extent of the necessities of both seaboards, and, above all, get the commercial judgment as to what ought to be done. We are entering upon the construction of an American canal, open to the commerce of all nations. We are preparing to expend vast sums upon that enter- But when it is finished shall we see passing through it, triumphantly, the flags of all nations ex- cept our own? At this moment both parties are united in indorsing the construction of the canal, and why? Because it a facility to our commerce. Why can there not be the same unity upon a policy that will carry that commerce under our own flag? This Pacific Coast is a deeply interested section of the country. Our flag once dominated the Pacific Ocean The primitive tribes and the simple Spanish settlers seldom saw any other. The tribes were so impressed by the constant procession of American ships, most of them cleared from Boston, that the common name for a white man in all their dialects from San Diego to Puget Sound was “Bos- ton man,” and to this day in the jargon spoken by most of those who survive, the term for heaven, the Elysian fields of the future, is “Boston illahie,” the upper Bos- But the marine glories of that day have faded, and exist only as a fossil in philology. Now we own the coast. We have islands in the Pa- cific We have a vigorous and growing trade with Asia. We are only just beginning to exploit the resources which supply the articles of commerce for profitable exchange: with the Orient. We have made a new con- qnest of the Pacific with our navy. Shall we have a merchant marine to hold it. or shall we surrender it> A more pressing question was never presented to a people than this. Shall it be said we have resources to build an American canal on the isthmus, but none to encourage the building of American ships to use it? While the committee is here our commercial commu- nity should frankly and forcibly present its case. It is our day in court and our petition should be full. The committee may rely upon this, that whatever conclusion it reaches as a result of these conferences, backed by its independent investigation, will be supported by Cali- fornia in Congress. We cannot afford to remain as we In these days those who stand still until the pro- sion passes cannot hope to overtake it. We don’t want to be put in that position. The committee will have every facility and every hospitality at its disposal, for our pebple are impressed with the importance of the issue and the advantage which the occasion offers. prise. After a long and inexplicable quiet Venezuela is herself again, nosing her disagreeable presence into another fight. Not satisfied with offending Germany beyond the point of decent endurance, Castro ha¥ scized valuable American property and blusters in the face of threatened and warranted reprisal. Some of these days Uncle Sam will be forced to teach our South American friends that even if they are harmless they can be an- noying, and then the map makers will have a chance to do a little changing in alleged national lines, THE GUARDSMEN AND VACATIONS. ISR B. LAUCK, adjutant general of the National iJ Guard of California, has made recent announce- H e ment of the diffitulties that beset the assembliny of a full complement of the State militia for the com- ing encampment on account of the recalcitrant attitude of the employers alleged by the guardsmen to be in force in the matter of granting vacations. Lauck says that he is daily in receipt of letters from members of the National Guard the State over protesting the inabil- ity of the several writers to obtain from their employ- ers the requisite two weeks) vacation. Either they are refused a leave of absence enprely or the respite is given them without a continuance of salary. 1f the restrictions complained of by the National ! Guard members are indeed as general as the word of Adjutant General- Lauck would have it, the militiamen themselves cannot be blamed if the quota of the com- panies at Atascadero falls below the mark. Many of the members who are men of family, and possibly of no | great means, cannot afford to take two weeks from their earning period at the small pay offered by the regula- tions of the State militia if their employers are unwilling | to give them the time off with full remuneration. Others, who declare that a flat refusal has met their ap- plication for leave to attend the encampment, cannot fly in the face of a matter of daily bread to carry out an wbligation to the State. There should be a more liberal spirit on the part of employers who hesitate to allow th ir employes the time for attendance upon the annual encampment. The an- nual gathering of the State troops for field practice and drill is not designed to be a prolonged lark for those who participate, profiting nothing to State or individual, but it is as important an element in the safeguaraing of the commonwealth as the operations’ of the legislative machinery or the regulation of the finances. A thor- oughly equipped, thoroughly drilled body of State mili- tary is no less a part of the State government than the civil arm of the law. The business man would be the first to feel the effect of a weakened National Guard in time of public danger. From their past record Californians have reason to be proud of the guardsmen and zealous for their future. No State had a brighter record of volunteer service in the Philippines than did ours through the First Califor- nia Regiment. These men were of the National Guard. 1t was therein that they learned the practices of war and it was to join that body again that most of them returned as veterans. While we have a body of Stafe troops of so high a morale and so efficient a potentiality we should unite to further its interests and support its every need. A Russian newspaper, evidently yellow in its tenden- ‘_______—-—-————_———————-i TALK OI' THE TOWN Judge Fritz’s Hoax. When Police Judge Fritz is on the bench he is dignity per!onmed. ‘When off he is as fond of a practical joke as any man. One of his jokes recent- ly caused no end of excitement for some hours at the Hall of Justice. Colonel Cronin of the property clerk’s office had bought a turkey for his Sunday dinner. He took it to the of- fice and placed it at an open window near the corridor. The Judge hap- pened to visit the office and when leaving he espled Cronin’s turkey. He quietly seized it unobserved and car- ried it to his chambers. He tele- phoned to Captain Martin that some one had stolen a turkey from the property clerk’s office and Detective Dinan was detailed on the case. Meantime Attorney Shortall had seen the turkey in the Judge's cham- bers and thinking it belonged to the Judge he carried it to the bond and warrant clerk’s office and hid it. The Judge had noticed 'him and soon had the gobbler back in his chambers. He rang for a messenger boy and sent him with the turkey to Otto Heyne- mann, stenographer in the Chief’s of- fice. A note accompanied the turkey, purporting to come from Johnnie Kreiss, saloon-keeper, and wishing cies or having designs upon some of the bigwigs of |Heynemann the compliments of the empire, has made the startling suggestion that a |the season. Heynemann called Kreiss (Zabinct n.f responsible Ministers' be create_d for the :v’i'ful!?y’ D:&?;ed'and_m;:‘x:;; lm;n‘"y‘ Czar. It is safe to assume that if the appointment of |thanks” Kreiss replied, not knowing such officers involves any more serious responsibility |exactly what he meant: “That's all than that assumed by the late Von Plehwe the recom- |right.” mendation will be rejected with contemptuous emphasis. Official position in Russia at the present time is_some- what uncertain in tenure. OREGONIANS GETTING TOGETHER. URING the present week the Portland Commer- D cial Club will consult, in Portland, with repre- sentatives of Oregon cities and towns in promo- tion of its idea for the formation of a State development league. The Portland Commercial Club is confposed of leading citizens. Its aim is patriotic and sensible and success ought to attend its efforts. If Oregon is assisted to grow greater by any means our northern neighbor will have the good will of California. The interests of the Pacific Coast States of the Union are largely in com- mon. What adds to the prominence of any serves to bring recognition to all. Prior to the holding of the conference at Portland the Portland Commercial Club has sent out letters ad- dressed to the Mayors of Oregon cities soliciting an ex- pression of opinion regarding probable results and also concerning the feasibility of inducing Oregonians to pull together for the common good. sponses are interesting and significant. Mayor Dimick of Oregon City answers that Clackamas County has undeveloped territory, mineral resources, large timber belts and wonderful water power that can be developed in the mountain streams, with a fine mar- ket at home for its products. To make these known must result in enhancing their value. Mayor Hayter of Dallas hits the nail squarely on the head in writing that “Oregon needs advertising in the Eastern States and now is the time to advertise.” He seces no reason why the interior and Portland should not work together har- moniously to promote the development of every part of the State of Oregon. Much will be gained if nothing more is accomplished than the general understanding and good feeling that a conference induces where all interests and all sections are represented. With the advantages in view Mayor Dimick also perceives that care in the selection of the officers of a State develop- ment body is of great importance. “Its promoters must take care that the offices do not fall into the hands of broken-down politicians or broken-down grafters, of which every city and town in Oregon has its full share.” Mayor Waters of Salem finds that there can be no ar- gument against advertising the State of Oregon. Mayor Talmage of Tillamook, Mayor Moore of Moro, Mayor | Sengstacken of Marshfield and Mayor Ross of St. Helens coincide in this view. The success that has attended the efforts of California to secure the proper ad- vertising in the East through the agencies of the Califor- nia State Board of Trade and the California Promotion Committee may have stimulated the Oregonians to make a move for publicity. = The preliminary expressions would seem to indicate that there is no doubt that Ore- gon will soon have a State Development League and that substantial benefits may be derived therefrom. The President of Hayti has exploded into wrathful protest against a 600 per cent exchange maintained by foreigners in the dusky republic as a reasonable meas- ure of protection to themselves. When Hayti is able to take care of itself President Nord may expect outsiders to display some confidence other than that involved in their own ability to look after their own interests. It might be well also for Nord to remember that the world has little confidence in the financial credit of Hayti it has less in its boasts of reprisal. —_— Whatever may be the effect upon our temporary or permanent commercial prosperity of the decision of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company to refuse freight for Japanese ports, nothing can discount the restoration of prace of mind to prospective travelers to the Orient. The ominous phantom of a predatory fleet of warships is certainly not conducive to a pleasant voyage even to the most unconcerned of ocean passengers. ———— Managers of Berlin music halls have made a plea for public patronage by introducing pantomime instead of music in their orchestras, the players fiddling, but giving no sound to charm either the savage or the gentle breast. The innovation is strikingly worthy. As a substitute for most of what we receive in our restaurants and music halls it suggests itself as excellent to all that love the human species domiciled in San Francisco. C— ~ Paris, always nervously eager in her espousal of the bizarre, is translating the words of coon songs into French. Let us congratulate our trans-Atlantic friends upon the fact that this new freak of their fancy is at least temporary insanity and harmless. We have tried to translate these alleged songs into English and happily have recovered. ) The Armenians have b:come strenuous again and have attacked the Turks at Mush. If these opera-bouffe revolutionists had any sense of the fitness of things and seriously thought of exciting our sympathies rather than our sense of the ludicrous Mush would have been the last place on earth to begin a sentimental campaign. ~ Some of the re~I The Judge then telephoned to Mar- tin that he thought Heynemann had stolen Cronin’s turkey. Dinan and Cronin rushed into the Chief's office and Cronin grabbed hold of the tur- key. “What are $ou doing?” yelled Heynemann. “Let go my turkey.” Cronin and Heynemann hung to the turkey, each vociferating it belonged to him. Dinan asked Heynemann Where he got it and Heynemann re- plied, “From Johnnie Kreiss.” Dinan called Kreiss up by phone and Kreiss answered that he knew nothing about Heynemann's turkey. Heynemann collapsed and Cronin marched proud- ly away with his recovered treasure. The Singing of the Song. | Of what avail—the singing of your song, E'en though it echo the wide world along? Its truth—its trust—its love-endearing tone? ‘When the song dies, the singer dies alone! The world forgets The springtime violets— The new sun rises when the old sun sets! Of what avall—your passion and your pain— The sacrificial cups your lips may drain? Your burden, in the blatkness of the night, ‘When Love made lilies of remembered light? The world forgets Lilies and violets— The new sun rises when the old sun sets! Of what avail? ¢ * Yet sing! until the sod Sends the song ringing to the gates of God! And if it never have the wings to rise, 'Twill add but one sigh to a world of sighs! The world forgets Love and the violets— The new sun rises when the old sun sets! Bacteria in Gums. The beneficial effects of bacteria are no less interesting than the part they play in the propagation of disease, and a recent discovery is that the vegeta- ble gums found on trees, such as gum arabic, are the results of their activity. Previous to some investigations by Dr. S. Greig Smith of New South Wales, it was believed that vegetable gums were the result of the unhealthy or pat] logical conditions of the trees on w! they were formed, but the entire ject was one about which comparative- ly little was known. Dr. Smith, believ- ing that bacteria produced the gum, examined two trees from which it ex- uded, and obtained two varleties of bacteria, of which he made cultures. Under ordinary conditions of culture the formation of gum was only sug- gested, but when tannin, a constituent of bark, was added to the culture me- dium, a thick slime was produced in considerable quantities. This slime was made up of gum, as well as bacterial cells and albumenolds, and by a simple chemical process a clear, transparent and brittle gum was obtained similar to the arabin derived from gum arabie, and resembling in its essential proper- ties the patural substance. Dr. Smith's conclusion was that the arabin gums derived from trees are bacterial and not higher plant products, and that certain constituents of the sap, under the action of bacteria, are changed into gum, which exudes from cracks or wounds in the bark, or else is carried by the sap to the fruit.—Harper's Weekly. The World’s Oldest City. Udnunki, the ancient Adab, perhaps the oldest city in the world, has been discovered by the university of Chi- cago's excavating expedition in Baby- lonia. This city has for many years been the object of -earch by oriental- jsts. It is mentioned in the code Hammurabi, an early King of Baby- lonia, which document was translated recently by Professor Robert F. Har- per, director of the expedition. He has just received news in a cablegram from Professor E. J. Banks, field di- rector of the expedition, who since leaving this country last winter for Bismaya, in Babylonia, has announced many important discoveries. The un- ,covering of ancient Adab is one of the most important archaeological achievements in recent years. Dr. Banks informed Professor Harper that he had fo.nd bricks bearing the sylla- bles Ud-nun-ki at the lowest level of the ruins. He is certain that these bricks identify the city as Adab. With a force of 1200 men he excavated the ruins at Bismaya, and found the re- mains of four temples, built one above the other, which he named according h | to the Kings who built them. The dates became earlier, until finally the bricks identifying Udnunki were found. Among other articles which Dr. Banks found are marble statues, onyx and sandstone lamps and many bronze objects. The Singing Rails. In an article in the current Railway Magazine, Robert Weatherburn makes some interesting remarks as to the sounds emitted by the wheels and the rails on our railways. A composite wheel, in company with a rail any- thing more than eighty-flve or ninety pounds to the yard, will yield a semi- tone of such persistency as to become the bete noire of the neurotic. A cast steel wheel, on the other hand, relieves itself by a bad interpretation of “The Village Blacksmith.” Every railway, owing to the differences of track and equipment, has its own particular method of expression when carefully noted. Were it possible to take an old and well-seasoned railway traveler, one witi. faculties of time and tune mod- erately developed, and place him blindfolded on one of the long-distance railways of the country over which he had been in the habit of traveling. he would sub-consciously be led to deter- mine, by the peculiarities of the sound emitted and the involuntary associa- tion of their rappel with some old tune, or melody, on which railway he was Jjourneying. On our California rails who has not been kept awake half the night by that iterant golden promise, “Sacramento, Sacramento—you bet—you bet?” Toads. Valuable The wonderful insect-killing ca- pacity of the toad is known in a gen- eral way to the enlightened few, says Country Life in America. An imported colony of toads may be the salvation of a flower garden. We now have some interesting figures, which show that every toad in the garden may be worth $20 or more. Many gardeners give.their children a cent apiece for every cutworm destroyed, considering this a low estimate of the damage caused by these insects. From May 1 to August 1 a toad may destroy 2160 cutworms, which it would cost $21 60 to destroy by hand. English garden- ers are said to pay as much as $25 per hundred for toads for colonizing purposes. Answers te Queries. “WE ARE SEVEN" — Constant Reader, City. The poem entitled “We Are Seven” was written by William Wordsworth. TEN YEARS—H. S, City. The sen- tence imposed on Arthur Phillips for burglary by Judge Lawlor in the Supe- rior Court of San Francisco some time since was ten years. CROSSED EYES — Subsecriber, City. ‘What are termed crossed eyes are the result of some muscle or the optic nerve being defective. It is said that - such an affliction is not hereditary. IRRIGATION — Constant Reader, City. For such figures as you desire in regard to appropriations for irrigation, address a letter of inquiry to the Con- gressman of the district in which you reside. S OINTMENT—S. R., City. The ques- tion asked in regard to what is required to make an ointment of equal strength of a tobacco wash, depends upon the exact conditions, and cannot be an- swered in a general way. Perique to- bacco would make a much stronger wash than mild Turkish. The question should be submitted to a chemist, who will give you an exact answer, and charge so much for his services. TEMPLARS — Subscriber, City. Al- bert G. Mackey, in, his dictionary of Masonry, one of the standard works. has a long dissertation on the subject of “Is the plural of Knight Templar Knights Templars or Knights Tem- plar?” In conclusion he says: “All the American and British writers, Masonic and unmasonic, except some recent American ones, use the plural of Tem- plar to designate more than one Kaight. 1 have in a few instances found Knight Templars, but never Knights Templar. The very recent American use of that plural is derived from the authority of the present constitution of the Grand Encampment of the United States and therefore the very point in controversy. ‘The former constitution used as the plurh‘xnmm: Templars. I am satis- i fied on.the whole that the expression | Knights Templar is a violation of both the grammatical laws of our language and the usage of the best writers on both sides of the Atlantic and should. therefore, 1 think, be abandoned.” The State textbook that uses Knights Tem- plars is correct according to the most ancient writers and the modern dic- tionaries, as well as the older ones. The commanderies in using on their letter heads Knights Templar are right, be- cause that is the name of the order as laid down In the constitution. Under the constitution in a fraternal society the society cannot have one name and then adopt another. Townsend's California Glace fruits in artistic fire-etched hoves. 715 Market st.* —_—————— Ml Informat supplied anny