The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1879-01-31
OUR ALAMEDA LETTER.

EDITOR GAZETTE: Perhaps few lines
from this part of the world may not be un'
acceptable to you and some of our readers.
First, let me congratulate the GAZETTE on
its becoming full grown newspaper. and
let me contribute my mite towards its fu-
ture success i'll the; way Of another years
subscription, which I herewith enclose
Secondly, let me say word about my self.
At prese ut am under cloud, and there
appears to be fatality attending me. I
was preparing for a voyage to the South
Pacific in search of Pearls and Pearl Shells,
when met with an accident in the way Of
a fracture of the knee joint. However,
time'and good attendance brought me out;
after ten weeks was ready again to renew
my effort, and began making arrangements
for voyage. But on my very first attempt
to do anything in that direction l was Wis
tied with a second fracture, and thus again
prevented from going And now am half
inclined to believe this was all necessary,
and / am almost converted to the doctrine
of Fatalisla, for it seems that plan and ar
range as we may we are yet all actors in tbs
great drama of life, and it would seem that
our parts are all prepared for us and at the
proper time we will be in the proper place
to perform our part; and the question is can
we help it? But while | am performing
the character of invalid, l have plenty OF
time to glance around me and think.
Eirct he +o,,;o al,
all express an opinion" the weather. u
We are passing through season such as
California has never known, and it is to be
hoped may never know another. l think
it may be fairly expressed California' S
glory and Californ ;a's rain Here we are
within day Or two of midwinter and only
three inches Of rain. One continuous and
monotonous succession Of clear sunshiny
days. The finest day that you ever saw in
Oregon in mid summer could not surpass
this day while I a,r writing But it brings
anything but sunshine to the people gener-
ally. First, it brings sickness and death to
many home next it brings the promise
of failure of crops, which means poverty
and want to many more homes; and to sum
it all up, and admit the truth, California is
not prosperous. You people in Oregon may
be thankful that among your misfortunes
you have not TO enumerate the one curse OF
too much fine weather. lave said before,
reluctantly, what 1 am willing to say now
freely and candidly, that Oregon is far the
best and safest country for poor men to set
tie in.
The next gloomy cloud that comes up for
California is one that unfortunately threat
ems Oregon, also Like the little cloud that
appears in the horizon, and grows darker
and rises higher until it obscures the san,
and foretells Enthusiastically of the coming
storm so this cloud, "Chinese emigration, y
is looming up, and the person must be blind
indeed who cannot read .'the hand writing
on the wall" Must be deaf indeed, who
can not hear the mnttering of the mighty
hidden forces that are svon to break loose.
The press of the State is only beginning to
give utterance to public opinion, and already
its tones are ominous, not merely. limiting at
a resort to arms, but openly declaring the
fact Now will it come to this? For my
self will say that l have always been op-
posed to lnob-violence and brute-force in
every way. But [ can not shut my eyes
to plain facts, and candidiy believe that
this Chinese question viii end in blood. It
is cancer that has taken root so firmly and
deeply that the knife is the only remedy
that will bring about cure. do not say
that favor this as being the best plan, but
to me it seems inevitable. My reasons for
so are, that congress will not take
hold of the matter until some terrible out
break occurs. The people of the older
States (the Eastern particularly are educat-
ed in the great doctrine Of the 6 Universal
brotherhood of man" The great idea that
America is the asylum for the poor and op-
pressed Of all nations. And You cannot un-
educate them, or eradicate this idea very
readily. Perhaps not until they arc brought
face to face with the fact that the people of
the Pacific States have risen with arms in
their hands resolved to throttle the monster
that threatens their very existence. Then
perhaps the cars may come across the conti-
nent freighted with soldiers to crush down
these people, and California and Oregon may
feel the power of Federal bayonets ; may be
literally tramped under foot. But | have a
hope and belief that such will not be the
case. For by that time it is possible that
our Eastern brethren may have learned the
true nature of the contest. They may dis
cover that it is struggle on the part OF the
people of this coast for their very existence
They may discover more than that, may DIS
cover that California and Oregon are but
great breakwaters trying to roll back the
monster wave of heather emigration that
threatens to overflow all our fair land, and
when they see the question narrowed down
to a bloody contest between American CIV
iIization and Asiatic barbarism, they will
not be long in deci!ing which side to take.
We have Constitutional Convention In
session which has taken very decided
grounds on this important question but
it is thought by many that the new Constr
tuition will be loaded down with so many
Objectionable features that it will be deiea'-
ed by the people. A result, no doubt, de-
sired by many of the menlbers.1 However
all our minor dangers and troubles may o.
overshadowed and absorbed in the great
coming combustion predicted by sProfe 'sol