The morning call., 1892-08-04

Among the items Of news from Honolulu
is one little straw In the wind that the
British cruiser Champion has returned to
Hawaiian waters, after formally annexing,
In the name Of the British crown, Johnston
Island. There fingers in some minds the
idea that this is United States property, but
the evidence does not support that idea
Americans have been there and have car
rled on trade, but there is no evidence that
the United States flag as a proprietary en-
blem ever was uniurled over this group Of
at0llS. Great Britain wants the island for
q coal station or telegraphic purposes i'm
connection with Australia. 1t might have
been ours had we cared to pursue q policy
of exterior ACKNOWLEDGEMENT but that has
never been the policy OF the United States
We have all the land we want without 60
ing elsewhere in search OF slice, and that
explains our apathy in regard to Johnston
Island. We have no purpose in view 10
utilize its annexation. The British have.
For cable purposes it is stepping stone to
the Antarctic.
Were Columbus in the flesh to-day, with
what other feelings than those of 400 years
ago would be view the celebration Of his
departure for the west from Palos on his
great undertaking Of discovery. Then he
was regarded as almost a lunatic by intelli-
gent Europe. Now he is raised to eminence
by intellectual and order-loving mankind.
All nations to-day join in doing him honor.
When he set sail on his first memorable
voyage he was looked upon as wrapping
his shrOud around him for burial at sea-
and even when he returned after sight of
the fringe OF the golden hope he was by no
means arblter of his own ambitions, and
had much disappointment TO swallow as
bitter pill. People who delight in contrasts
may occupy their gifts in Comparisons be-
tween the tiny caravel, Santa Maria
al nf x-bi ri trfsa tad
occasion, and the steam vessels of modern
days, 10000 10 1900 tons dis placement, and
coursing through the water at 90 knots
an hour. Less than week is now the time
needed TO cross the Atlantic. And speech
crosses the Atlantic in less than second.
All Marco POlo's tracks can be followed up
in five minutes. Numbers Of sciences have
come into line in the usefulness OF genuine
knowledge since the time Of Columbus, and
| probably were he alive to-day he would, in
| the spirit of humility, ask to be allowed 20
| years more schooling before building an
| other carayel to convert human doubt into
certainty.
The City OF Paris retains her record for a
voyage giving the fastest time between
Queenstown and New York. but the Teu-
tonic has beaten the City Of Paris consider
| ably on one days run. On one day during
her latest voyage the Teutonc made 52S
| knots-by far the highest speed ever at
| tanned in ocean steaming. But for fog the
Teutonic might have beaten the ocean
record and resumed her place as the crack
liner of the Atlantic. 1t is better, however,
| TO be safe than TO be brilliant when there
| are thousand passengers whose lives are
| at stake, and not one-twentieth of them
| care straw whether a steamer is day
! ahead or a day behind. But such are the
! exgence5 Of competition that we may ex-
| pect the captain of the Teutonic to make the
most vigorous efforts to attain again the
first place for his vessel, even il the ad-
| vantage should only be half second. 1t is
| amazing how many passengers feel CON-
| Portable when they are on the steamer
which has the reputation OF greatest speed.
The marriage bond is not just so easily
| broken in the United States as some people
| of foreign birth and prejudices suppose. In
| Chicago Judge has refused to grant di-
| vorce to Mrs. Carrie ID. Felch. The stage
name of this lady is Miss Demar She
! welded Mr.. Felch years ago, and Mr.. Fech
| seems to have considered himself supyemely
happy. But soon after marriage Mr.. Felch
| received letter from another and earlier
| sweetheart, who had been a resident in
| Australia. What is called the old love re-
turned, and Hr. Felcn wanted to convince
! the Judge of the fact. But the Judge un-
TelentlDgiy saw no reason TO separate Miss
Demar from Mr. Felch, although be recog-
| nized the pathos of the sad story. Pathos
| is nothing against a contract.
A good amount OF freight by clipper
lines is now arriving in San Fran
| cisco from New York and In New York
| from San Francisco. The Southern Pa
| cific Company does not like this asser-
! ton of independence. but it has to submit,
| and 1t will have TO submit TO more before il
| is puIged OF it's pride and arrogance. 1t is
| actually easier for San Francisco and Kan sas
| City to reach each other with freight round
! the Horn than by direct rail communication
| The fact is disgracefnl commentary upon
| railroad greed, but il also points to the
| blessing of the possibilities OF sea compe-
| tltion. BY sea freight there is actually a
saving of $40 ton between Kansas City
and this coast as compared with railroad
| freight. The lesson Is obvious that in every
way possible the free openness of communi-
cation by sea should be supported. 1t is
| only by competition that traders can get the
better of the INSCRIPTIONS monopoly which
has ground the life out Of business on this
coast for SO many years.
An Orland fruit-grower has succeeded In
producing species of orange no larger