The Corvallis times. (Corvallis, Or.) 1888-1909, 1903-04-08
SURE THING GAME.
HOW THOSE WHO PLAY IT In
ORAToRICAL CONTESTS WIN
THE BIG PRIZE.

ORATORICAL CONTESTS WIN
THE BIG PRIZE.
Orator Smith Censursd, his College
i Under the ban and Oratory
Besmirched-An Original
Poem-At Phi.omath
Other Local News,
Orator Smith, who carried away
first honors and a big gold medal
at the late oratorical contest at
Eugene is under a shadow now and
oratorical contests in Oregon are
in as bad repute as are senatorial
elections in Delaware. It has been
discovered either that Orator Smith
stole a lot of his oration from S.na-
tor Vance of North Carolina, or
that Senator Vance stole his lee
ture from Orator Smith, and as
he delivered his speech first, not
much suspicion attaches to the
senator. The executive committee
of the ora.orical association has
censured Smith, and has debarred
McMinn=ille c ,llege, which he rep
resented, from participation in next
years oratorical contest. The lat
ter fact, coupled with that wild
burst of pride on the evening Of the
Eugene contest, when the McMinn.
vile delegation leaped to the plat
form and bore the victorious Smith
eff in triumph on their shoulders,
is about as great contrast in situ-
atiens as it is possible to imagine.
The mau who married the widows
daughter and then eloped with the
widow herself made no more of a
sensation or put the climaxes of
joy and shame in more complete
juxtaposition. Everybody proba-
bly, feels sorry for Smith, for he is
said to be a hardworking, good
fellow; but then there is his offsnse,
which only differs from that of the
man who gets in Jail in that he
steals bread while Smith stole his
speech.
The address from which the Nc
Minnville orator got his material is
a lecture entitled "The Scattered
Nation," to be found in volume six
Of Modern Eloquence, sentences
bodily or with little change of
phrase, thoughts clothed In the ex-
act words of Senator Vance, and
whole paragraphs, more or less
abridged appear in Smiths "The
Homeless Nation" just as they did
in the original. The plan of the
Two speeches are identical. The
comparison suggests the idea that
fmore time had been allowed the Nc
orator for delivery he
would have swiped the North Caro-
inian's speech bodily.
A most interesting feature Of the
discovery is that if Smiths theft
hadn't won out at the contest, the
representative of Newberg college
would have been winner, for she
ito ID second. The fact is made
hrilling' by the incident that for
IN exactly similar theft by the
1ewberg College orator two years
Igo. the McMinnville orator would |
lave taken firstplace. The Newberg
literary pirate then was Elwood |
dinchin, who delivered at Corval- |
is an oration entitled "WendelI
Philips the Agitator," taking first
lonors over J. Sherman Wallace,
he McMinnville representative,
Who stood second. The next day
.fter the oration was printed, Jo-
eph Underwood of Corvallis,
,rought out of his library a book |
ntitled wendell Phillips, the
gitator", and it was found, as in
he present instance, not only many
f the sentences b b,dily, but all Of
he Newberg mans grafton. The
,ook turned out to be worse agi-
ator then Wendell Phillips ever
Jared to be. though in that instan-
70, the executive committee did not
Michin, as it now does
Smith.
So it has been between these two
chools that she piracy has been
'racticed, and in each instance, the
hickens have come home to roost.
The Newberg girl Of this year ought
o have, Smiths medal and honors,
md the McMinnville orator OF two
ears ago, ought to have the medal
nd honors that were bestowed on
he Newberg representative of that
'ear. There is no doubt that the
allure to properly punish the of
ense of two years ago, is respon-
iple for that of this year.