The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, December 21, 1904, Page 8

AN FRANCISCO CALL, EDNESDAY THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL saeonsssessesnsssass e ENREICNOR ADDRESS ALL commuflmfi T JOHN McNAUGHT... JOHN D. SPRECKELS......... _THIRD AND MARKET STREETS, SAN FRANCISCO FUBLICATION OFFICE. 04 DECEMBER 21, 19 WEDNESDAY.. cussion. FIXING RAILROAD RATES. HE carefully qualified recommendation of the President that the Interstate Commerce Commission be empowered, in certain cases, to fix railroad rates, has called out a very general dis- None of those who have been in this general debate seem 10 have remembered that the Supreme Court of the United States has furnished light and instruction upon this interesting and im- portant subject. In the early stages of public regulation of railroads, when the matter was in the heat of passion and prejudice, many State Legisla- tures entered upon the business of rate making, with the result that entirely unworkable laws were passed, that caused more oppression to the shipper than they did vexation to the roads. As injury to the railroads was the purpose of the passion in which these laws were passed, that plan was abandoned and the country entered upon the second stage of railroad regulation by the creation of executive commissions for that purpose. Where these were invested with powers beyond rate making they proved useful to the railroads and to the people. Such of them as had visitorial powers to inspect track and structures, build- acilities furnished to shippers proved useful and justified creation. But the fixing of rates by such commissions has roved to be as difficult as the same duty was when it was treated Many attempts were made and many in the Minnesota cases, the right to fix rates was carried into the courts, and the issue went up the line to the Supreme Court of the United States. That bench decided t making rates is dealing with property rights, with the property f t ver and of the corporation, and according to the tion this can be done only by due process of law. t reaffirmed the principle that the only due process of law 1dicial process, and that no matter where rate making starts, gs and fa as a legislative function. . res recorded. Finally, hts « shiy e or a State commission, if protested it must come under judicial his was a wonderfully illuminating decision. It was the first 1l guidance upon the subject that the country has received. It not obsolete the rate making power of the Legislature, nor the delegation of that power to an executive commission, but it erected e right of appeal from either to the courts for the protection of he rights of property. Since then we have had but few attempts at making, and the railroads have enjoyed their independen ir rece: tended to avoid the liability of common carriers, and transfer the srance risk to the shipper, is evidence that independence long oved is subject to abuse, and the President’s recommendation calls to the front the old issue of rate making and public supervision, di- rected at that point where public interests are most affected by rail- road policy An examination of the whgle subject, in a business temper and without prejudice, discloses a few poin® of friction and a few princi- ples of adjustment. No one will dispute that the skill and expe- rience required in rate making and classification are hard to find outside of the freight departments of railroads. The history of public rate making furnishes many examples of injury to one class shippers while trying to conserve the interests of another class. The long war between the long and short haul rate is an instance of this, But when a rate infringes the rights of a shipper, it is his property right that suffers and he must seek judicial protection. Here appears the advantage of the railroad. The individual shipper must challenge it alone in the courts. Against its resources in litigation he must put his, the man against the torporation. From the court of first instance on up the steep and stony path of appeal he must maintain the unequal struggle. As a rule he falls and quits in the court of original jurisdiction, and surrenders the property right involved rather than persist in getting it judicially vindi- cated Now the suggestion of all this is plain. The Congress is em- powered by the constitution to create inferior courts and define and Timit their jurisdiction. The conversion of the Interstate Commerc Commission into such a bench will carry out the President’s recom- mendation and the decision of the Supreme Court in regard to the | due process of law. That commission, clothed with judicial powers, made a court of first instance for use by shippers and railroads, h varrass and exhaust the individual litigant. There should be no change of forum or venue permitted, and none of the other dilatory alities of procedure. The complaint against a rate should be 1 filed as a petition for relief. The answer should be compulsory within | a fixed limit. When it is made the issue should be promptly joined and tried upon the facts, and the entering of the decree should be as | prompt as is consistent with justice. The plaintiff could in his petition impeach the rate that he attacks and declare that which he regards as reasonable and just. The defendant corporation would in rejoinder impeach the rate he proposed and by testimony vindi- cate its own. The decree, then, of necessity, establishes a rate, by judicial process, and fulfills the President’s suggestion, while judi- cially safeguarding the rights of property. 'his removes the objection to putting the.rate question in the s of a political hody like the Interstate Commerce Commission now constituted. The judicial commission would be soon recog- zed as an impartial body, unmoved by prejudice and impervious to passion, seeking to do justice by applying the principles of legal analysis and construction to an issue that affects every article of commerce produced by the people for profit and consumed by the people for the support of life. In such a court the individual suitor could appear fearlessly. The provisions againét the law’s delay would make him equal in right and privilege and power to all the railroads of the country in combination, and it would not be neces- sary for him to lose in the costs of litigation that property he defends by appeal to the law. In our jurisprudence it has come to pass that property rights have largely been consigned to equity for protection, because in a large area covered by those rights the law is inadequate. So it may come to pass that this court will be largely an equity court, and from its decisions there will be few appeals. It should be a bench before which a railroad is just as sure of equity as is an individual. This matter of regulation of railways has gone through its legislative and -executive stages without settlement. It has taken two steps forward from the position in which the Dartmouth College decision planted the rights of property held by public franchise. They have been steps forward in fact, and not merely in number. They were evolutionary, and like the development on judicial lines of all interests in this country, they have intended respect for all rights without unequal advantage to any. To put the issue at the angle of repose one more step has been necessary. The, country could not go on forever with the railroads appealing to the courts as in the Texas cases, from a rate fixed by a Legislature or by an executive commission. Nor could the situation much longer bear the strain of an Interstate Commerce Commission invested only with the power of discovery, and divested of the right of remedy by enforcement of its judgments. A forward movement was essential. The President has defined it. Now let us move forward and put the issue in the hands of equity and settle it by due process of law. Methodist preachers at conference speak of their “appointments and dis- eppointments.” Dr. Crum, of Charleston, thinks that he knows just what they mean.—Atlanta Journal. Bvery time a2 50 to 1 shot comes in at the race track a large number of people feel sure they would have had a bet on if they had only been there.— Washington Star. If we survive the hysteria of finding out what the Simple Life is we will ve strong enough to lead any kind of life.—New York Press, ther in the freight department of a railroad, or in a State Legis- | disclosure of the new bill of lading, by which it is in- i have its procedure so defined that no delay can occur to em- | PORT ARTHURS AMAZON SLAIN The Novy Krai of November 12 con- tains a romantic story of a Russian, Haritent Korotkiewitch, who, although a woman, served with valor in- many 1 fights till death closed her strange ca- reer. The Novy Kral gives numerous details, which render the authenticity of the story undoubted. | Her husband was servi in Port | Arthur, and, endeavoring to hejoin him, | she was stopped at Harbin and not al- lowed to proceed, on the ground that | she was a woman. She thereupon don- | ned masculine attire and reached Port | Arthur shortly before the landing of | | the Japanese. She soon found her hus- | band’s regiment and enlisted in it. She participated in numerous sorties and | helped in the defenses of Corner Hill | Although her sex was soon discovered, her record for bravery and tirelessness, and attention to the wounded, won her | permission to remain in the ranks. Her husband fell wounded while fight- !ing by her side. She nursed him | through the critical moments of his iliness and then returned to the front, | where she became a messenger to Cap- tain Gouzakofsky, of the Thirteenth Regiment, riding fearlessly to and from the various positions, unaffected by the din and danger of battle. On Ottober 16, when visiting the trenches with dispatches, a huge shell struck and destroyed the earthworks, kililng her and eight others. They were buried in one grave, with a flag around her body. The Novy Krai concludes by saying that she had won the respect and ad- miration not only of the soldiers, but also of the higher officers, and had shown all how to die nobly.—London iFTERVARD 1 walked myself upright, alone, | Nor asked of any aught of aid; Before me straight my course was laid, I knew each corner stone. But, ah! Love took my hand one day, A moment stayed, then left again; I started on, but, strange, :ince then I cannot find my way —Town Topics. | | Had Heard of It. Young Professor (who has taken her | down te dinner)—By the way, Miss | Gaswell, have y6u ever seen the nebula of Andromeda? Miss Gaswell—No; T was abroad with papa and mamma when that was, played. But I've heard that it drew | crowded houses.—Chicago Tribune, His Conclusions. “I'm afraid, Johnny,” said the Sun- | day-school teacher, rather sadly, * that | I shall never meet you in the better land.” “Wh now? ? What tave you been doin’ Pick Me Up. Italy and Spain have fewer houses in proportion to their population than any other country in the world. The :Argemine Republic apd JUruguay Qave | the most. | guests in which the 3 i to forfeit a Kiss to her captor. TRES £ WOMAY | WHOSE EUSBAND | NEBRKISD BB | NKISSED at the age of 70 years, Eli Richardson went to his grave last week, says the Martin (Tenn.) U correspondent of the Philadelphia North American. It had been Richardson’s boast through life that he had never put his lips to a woman’s, although he mar; ried for love and “lived happily ever afterward.” His disdain for osculation hung on a pin. An incident at a social held in the South before the Civil War led him to eschew the joys of woman’s lips for life. A game was being played by the pung women had Young Richardson’s timidity being known, a plot was laid to get him to kiss a girl." She placed a pin In her mouth, and when Eii's bashful lips were to press hers she was to prick his | 1lips with the pin. The fateful moment came. murred, but was prevaiied yield to temptation. He started to implant the kiss, but his eye caught the gleam of the pin and he refused. From that day until Eli de- upon to lhin death he never kissed a woman. DECEMBER 21, 1904. S THERE LIFE ON THE MOON? It has been sald that carbonic acid gas may be vomited from the moon’s craters, besides water vapor. So slight is the attraction of the moon for other | bodies that oxygen must escape from its surface with much the same rapid- ity as hydrogen escapes from the earth. By reason of its heaviness car- I bonic acid gas, however, must cling to the moon with great temacity—a circumstance that is of the utmost im- portance to the astronomers who have given us the new moon. Carbonic acid gas is the food of plants on the earth. Is it possible that it may nurture vege- tation on the moon? It happens that at times there may be observed on the moon areas what Professor Pickering—by whom they have been most closely studied—has termed “variable spots,” because they darken very rapidly after sugrise and gradually disappear toward sunset. They cannot be caused by shadows; for shadows would be at least visible when the sun is directly overhead. They appear most quickly at the equa- tor and invade the higher altitudes after a lapse of a few days. In the polar regions they have never been seen. What are they? Organic life resembling vegetation, answer Profes- sor Pickering and his adherents— vegetation that flourishes lusuriantly while the sun shines and withers when night falls. the temperature probably never rises above the melting point of ice, on which water vapor and carbonic acid gas are discharged by volcanoes, is there anything in the nature of things why vegetation should not exist? It has been pointed out that certain where the temperature never rises above the freezling point. The intense cold of the moon is therefore not a con- clusive objection against the flourish- ing plant life. A single day, it may be urged, Is not sufficiently long for the development and decay of vegetation; tie more than half an hour on the earth; a day lasts half a month, and may well be regarded as a miniature season. The absence of storms on the moon and the fact that a branch | would be urged upward with but one- sixth the effort required on the earth, are inestimable advantages of this mooted lunar vegetation over ter- restrial plant life—Waldemar B. Kaempffert, In the December Book- lovers' Magazine. | Not Purely Vegetable. “Yes,” said the long-naired man, munching his apple, “I'm a strict veg- ' etarian.” “You mean you think you are,” re- plied the observant man. “What do you mean by that?” “I mean that I noticed a worm in that bit of apple vou just swallowed.” —Catholic Standard. accidents in Spain is ascribed to the rapacity of the companies, which, in | their eagerness to declare large divi- | dends, neglect improvements and re- | pairs. ) BY HE stranger stopped and cour- | teou lifted his hat. { “Can you direct me—"" he be- ! gan, then broke off to remark: “You're in trouble. Can I help you?” Th | girl dabbed hastily at her eyes, 0, no, no!” And then, an arch | 100k sparkling up at him from under the rainbow of her wet lashes, “Un- less you can prevent my stepmother from taking boarders!” A quizzical responsiveness flashed into his keen eves. He put down his suit case and wiped his hot fore- head. The grassy bank by the road- side where the girl sat looked rest- fully tempting. “I've never been'called upon to ex- ercise my powers of persuasion or intimidation in that particular re- spect,” he assured her gravely. ot < might try, though. Do you mind if 1 sit down a few moments while you state the case in its entirety?” She knew he was laughing at her, !and she laughed too. She switched ’hvr pink dimity skirts closer, which is a woman's way of giving permis. | sion. He tossed his Panama hat on the bank and sat down beside her. He looked long and lithe. His features were irregular, and there was a tinge of red in his straight brown hair. But his gray eyes were handsome, and had laughter-loving lines about them. | 3 | BEYONE Thit Do T KATE M. CLEAKY. reaved,” she replied truthfully. “I'm afraid he considers me frivolous. dear departed was not frivolous. From his confidences 1 infer that she was inggy Industrious.” She looked down at the slim, pink fingers idly swayving the sunbonnet, and again shook her head. “But the others?” he prompted. “Oh, two of them are very far gone twitch suspiciously. “You seem to have diagnosed their “And why does this presumably estimable woman insist on taking boarders? And what kind of boarders honor her establishment? And—why do you object?” “One question at a time, if you please,” she ordained demurély. “Well, why does she take board- ers?” “In the hope that some one of them will marry Harriet.” “And who is Harriet?" “Her daughter.” £ “Oh! And do none of the—the in. dividuals honored by such a hope re- ciprocate her ambition?"” His companion wistfully contem- plated 'the tip of her shoe. “No,” #he sighed. ‘“Not one, so far.” “And why?” he asked.. “Because,” she confessed, “they fall in love with me! “All of them?” he exclaimed. She flashed on him a battery of dusk brilliant eves, “Why not?’ she counter-qunestioned. “Ah, very true!" acknowledged the young man. “They couldn’t help themselves, I'm sure. Poor devils!” “Don’t waste any pity on them,” she advised coolly. “I don’t, really. I'm thinking of the next victim. You see In the midst of life we are—or are apt to be—in love!" She laughed, swinging her pink sun- bonnet by the strings. “But you haven't told me,” he went on, “what kind the boarders are.” She made a comical little grimace and shook her head. ‘“Assorted ages, sizes, professiGns— what dry goods men call a job lot. But they're all distinctly eligible. Mrs. Macreath wouldn't take any other.” An odd smile crept around his mouth. “And how many are there at the house now?” he persisted. “Four,” she answered. “And each of the four in love your' . Ehe hesitated eonscientiously. “I'm not quite sure about The Be- forlornly, b with cases pretty plainly,” grimly. She disclaimed credit with an aliry wave of the hands. ““Oh, that's nothing when you're used to lx.;dfl;‘e declared. - & ow about Mi: rriet?” he demanded. G “You’ve never seen Frarriet, or you wouldn’t ask. Oh! Here she comes! Bhe is looking for me. I won't go in and can cherries thig glorious day!” She was on her feet and in a flash had scrambled up the bank and had taken refuge behind a clump of wild plum bushes. The stranger saw a very fat girl coming down the path. She waddled l.long‘guue breathle: . Her ln-xen1 round face was an ocher' mono-~ tone in hue. Her tow-colored hair was piled up under a lace-draped baby hat, suitablé only to faces the most piquant, it gave to her countenance the ludicrous sug- gestiveness of a frilled cheese. Uncom- fortably tight appeared her gown of foulard silk that constrained her ample :I'h.‘rl:. She peered from side to side “Maureen,” she called. “You" His | depressingly proper and most madden- : indeed!” she replied briskly. “And Harlow's coming.” | He saw the corners of her lips wanted. Ma wants you. When she had disappeared there was the glimmer of a pink gown. Maureen | ran down into the path. “I must go home, I suppose. There's ! the new man’s room to put in order. | My stepmother has no need to take boarders. Papa left her well off. But | she thinks it’s the only way to get Har- riet married.” | The traveler sprang up and lifted his | suit case. “She’d have a better chance that,” {he averred positively, “if she’d do something else first.” “What's that?” They were walking along the tree-embowered way to- gether. ““Exile—banish—annihilate you!" She laughed gayly. “Oh, I'm not really formidable in that respect. For {1 don’t intend to get married.” “Not ever?” he queried, leaning for- ward that he might look into the small, serious face. “Oh, perhaps, when I'm very old— twenty-nine or thirty; not before!" she ;’fecid'e‘d resolutely. “And only then “Well? | _ “He's sc adorable I can't help myself! I live here. Good-by. You go on to Mr. Brown's, I suppose. They are expect- ing a cousin. It's the second house to the right.” The young man laid his arm across the gate post barring her way. ‘“Wait a minute. you had to cry about to-day,” he re- marked irrelevantly. Eyes, dimples and smiles all daz- zled him. ‘I don’t know either,” she admitted. “Why—what—are you coming in here ?” .hzar he was keeping right on by her “I certainly am. I'm the new who took an earlier train than ITA.n'd intended. My name is Cedric Farrell. And I'm going to stay here, too,” concluded stubbornly, “until reconsidered your rash decision. Her delicate face ‘was on fire. —my what decision?” she faltered. ‘‘Not to be married for a long, long time.” “And do you think you will suc- ceed?” she asked tremulously. < E‘!- fl\;ing \;p his heuli with the vie- orious air of a man c "“01 b}:‘ttle. 8oing confidently “I think I will,” he answered quiet- 1y, TR hard enough. Don'g you think it’s possible, Maureen?” “All things are possible,” murmured a little laughter shaken voice from the depths of the pink “But—but you mustn!’ reen yet.” “I won't,” promised this audacious young man promptly. prefer not, darling' “Well, I never!” she panted. “Of course you never!" he cried joyously. “I knew you had never, or you wouldn’t be so—" There was a swirl of arisp gmue. e er, an: ept on laughing. (Copyright, 1904, by Kate M. Cleary.) ———— . No Runaways in Rassia. Runaway hur-u_ are unknown in Russia. No one drives there without having a thin cord, with a \runnln' noose, around the neck of the animal. ‘When an animal starts the cord is pulled and the horse stops as soon as it feels the pressure on the wind- Given a planet on which ' lichens grow in regions of the earth! but sixteen hours on the moon are lit- | The great number of recent railway | i 3 1 Mau-ree-in!" | I don’t see what | “My | sunbonnet. | jt call me Mau- | “I won't if you | ink skirts as she fled by him lntunthe He laughed as he followed The tea given yesterday by Mrs. Jo- seph Anderson Chanslor and Mrs. Fredericgk Wilson Kimball was one of | the most enjoyable of the season. By | reason of its originality the affair was | exceedingly entertaining. The affair had an atmosphere of jollity and good | cheer. The air of Christmas pervaded. Mistletoe and berries were in luxuriant evidence, and there was a Christmas tree majestically scintillating with pretty colored lights. In halls, drawing-room and dining- room great masses of poinsettias lent their brilliant coloring. and the home fairly radiated hospitality. greetings were exchanged with the pouring of tea and the happy event was attended by several hundred call- ers. Receiving with Mrs. Chanslor and | Mrs. Kimball were Miss Daisy Van | Ness, Miss Elsie Kimball, Mrs. Latham McMullin, Mrs. Norris Davis, Mrs. | Ashton Potter, Mrs. James Follis, Mrs. W. H. Taylor Jr., Mrs. Augustus Tay- {lor, Mrs. W. 8. Porter, Mrs. William | Thomas, Mrs, Frederick Jacobs, Mrs. | B. ¥. Thomas, Mrs. Frank Bates, Mrs. Hopps. i | | Mrs. Wakefleld Baker's home on Pa- ! cific avenue was the scene of a happy gathering of young folk yesterday. Mrs. Baker's niece, Miss Helen Thomas, en- | tertained at luncheon and gave the fol- lowing merry guests a delightful after- noon: Miss Carol Moore, Miss Malsie Lang- horne, Miss Ursula Stone, Miss Mar- | garet Hyde-Smith, Miss Edna Davis, | Miss Helene Irwin, Miss Sybil Hodges, ! Miss Helen Baker. Red carnations were abundantly used ! with candelabra shades of the same hue, The young hostess, Miss Thomas, oc- cupies the novel position | without having become a debutante, i though she frequently is seen with the young set and at their affairs. } . Covers for sixswill be laid this eve- ning by Mr. and Mrs. Adolphus Graup- ner, who will entertain Miss Mary Bell, Miss Lalla Wenzelburger, Charles Aiken, Henry Morse Stephens. ,Great expectations are forerunning the Greenway dance, which will take place on Friday night at the Palace | Hotel. In costume our many beautiful | women and winsome debutantes will | accentuate their attractiveness, for the | garb of other days and other charac- Holiday | of flancee | THE SMART SET BY SALLY SHARP. ters lends piquancy to natural charms. "Twill be a pretty sight and an occa- sion for merriment. . Miss Elinor Croudace entertained a number of callers last Sunday at tea, in her home, 1831 Vallejo street. The affair was in homor of Miss Michaelitschke, who has just completed a tour of the world and has resided for some years in Dresden. PR Five tables of bridge were provided yesterday afternoon by Mrs. Edward Pond for the guests whom she charm- ingly entertained at her home on Gough street. Decorations of greens and ber- ries were in generous quantities, ex- haling a holiday atmosphere. i Miss Marie Voorhies was the guest of honor among a dozen young friends whom Miss Phelan entertained yester- day at luncheon. Pink was used exclusively for table decoration, bridesmaid roses being the special feature. . The holidays will be made very mer- ry and attractive for the young friends of Mrs. Hattle Crocker Alexander. She has ovened her cottage at Tuxedo and will entertain hospitably. All the win- ter sports will be indulged in unstint- edly and the young folks will revel in skating and sleighriding. &5 ¢ . Mrs. Charles H. Glenn of Jacinto, with her sister, Miss Gertrude Bates, is at the Lick. Mr. and Mrs. W. R. Wheeler are at the Hotel Cecil, having just returned from San Diego. . Among those who will entertain din- ner guests this evening preceding the charity ball are Mr. and Mrs. Frede- rick KohlL Dr. and Mrs. George Franklin Shiels bhave taken apartments at the West- minster, New York. . Miss Charlotte Wilson will be guest of honor at a luncheon given to-day by Mrs. Hyde-Smith. . Carolan will entertain Miss ea to-day. B Miss Natalie Coffin at t . “at = Miss Annle Ffances Briggs was home” yesterday in her pretty n studio, 639 Kearny street, and will re- ceive again to-day. “ | waist. is Serviceable only in the county in which issued. POPULATION—Subscriber, Oakland, Cal. The census in 1850 showed that the population of California in that year was 92597, the census of 1900 showed 1,485,053. MUSSEL ROCK—A. O. 8., City. The south of the Cliff House, are the work of nature, and not of man, so savs one of the oldest residents of that section of the country. LEGAL RIGHTS—A., Vallejo. Cal The question as to what you can do with certain property and what rights, if any, your children would have in the same, is one that calls for a legal opin- fon, and not ane of the class answered in this department. You would better submit the same to a first-class attor- | mey. GOVERNMENT POSITIONS—O. H. M., City. Positions in the United States Revenue , Mint and Post- office are obtained under civil service tules. Application blanks may be se- large openings in what is known as | “Mussel Rock” on the beach, nine miles | T"MIRROR OF DAME FASHION. . - | } | A Chic Little Two-Piece Frock of Gray and Red Checked | Wool Cloth, Trimmed With Red Taffeta Silk and Gray Bone Buttons. It Is Worn With a White Flonnel Shirr- | i RNSWERS TO QUERIES. MARRIAGE LICENSE — Inauirer, § cured at the department for which a A marriage license issued in California | person wants to be examined. Al de- the clerk of the local PICTURE HANGING—W. B. A City. Picture hanging is a matter of taste with the owner of the same. Pic- tures should always be placed in a room with the idea of producing th. best possible effect. Oftentimes the height of a room has much to do with the hanging of pictures, high or low, therefore it depends upon conditions. A person having many pictures to place upon the walls of his home should con- sult either an artist or a professional picture-hanger, if he is not himseif pos- sessed of artistic taste. —_—— Time to send Townsend's Glace Frul by Express for - sired information will be furnished by board. R — Townsend's California Glace fruits In and Wakelee's Drug Itm"‘ M" —— ‘This week best gold eyeglasses, specs. 20c to 50c (sold in store $3-34), at 79 4th, front of celebrated Oyster Restaurant. * ————— information supplied dally to Spectal