The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1903-01-30


opposite end, and any one wishing to g
through, footman or rider, should cal
out to know if the way Is clear. A heat
on collision meant trouble, as each ami
NAL of one train or the other WoulG
have to be backed out, as it was i'm
/ possible to turn Or pass on Passing
this point we came to the worst muS
hole that ever saw. There were mule
and mules and mules stuck in this bog
hole, some freshly immersed to theil
ears, and some in the process OF being
swallowed up. Putrefying carcassel
filed tine humid air with a fearfu
stencil. Whenever a. mule once go
stuck in this awful place every effor1
was made to save his pack, but the pool
brute was abandoned to his fate. There
was no avoiding it, and pack animals
would 60 lunging through it, literally
over the bodies OF sunken animals.
heard man tell our party that he haC
/ actually walked across this villainoul
bog on the heads OF dead mules.
| We reached the walled city of Pan
| anna in time for dinner, and the same
afternoon my mother and I were taker
out to the propeller California, an OLD
warship that had been converted into
a passenger boat. On account of the
failure of our baggage to arrive, my
brothers had to remain until the next
sailing day, or about three days. The
second day out / was taken with Pan
anna fever and narrowly missed being
planted in the depths of the sea; was
Just able to stand OIL my feet as We
steamed into San Francisco harbor
We also had a close call from ship
wreck, as we struck heavily three times
on the bar; the breakers making q
clean breach over the ship.
| San Francisco was not great city
then; a few streets with great sand
hills around the town. We remained
there until the arrival of the next
steamer from Panama. when wealI
boarded the little propeller Fremont fol
Portland. The trip was rough and
stormy, and our ship at times seemed
to hesitate whether to right up or roll
clear over; but we reached Portland in
safety. Father was there to meet us,
and the ''indans lever hurt us.
Observations by Verdant.
Hood River, Oregon, January n, 1903.
Editor Glacier: pStraws show which
way the wind blows" The inaugural
address or messageof the newly installed
mayor to the newly organized city coun-
Gil is a document Of high rank and
much above that class OF documents
usually sent in in cities of this size. II
contains sentiment from start to finish
Of economy, prudence, improvement and
democratic government. Suggesting
and recommending a policy in harmony
with the central idea OF the issue upon
which he was elected, majority rule, 2
a referendum OF important matters back
to vote of the people--developing a
very marked contrast with subsequent
acts Of the newly installed members OF
the council at the same session.
He very properly admonishes the
council to carefully guard the inter-
ests Of the city when contracting with
epublic corporations" for services to
the citizens or public Of Hood River. |
presume his honor meant "private cor
porations" /" operating public utilities,
furnishing water, electric light, power
or gas, which are always on the alert
seeking franchises to serve the public,
and then deal with the members of the
city council in the style that the Trac-
ton companies dealt with the Saint
Louis city council, not SO much in the
interest OF the people as to make busi-
ness for the courts. And possibly neees-
state the creating commissions to in
vestigate the actions Of private corpora
tions, similar to the one now inquiring
into the conduct OF the coal companies
in the Eastern and Middle states.
Among the first business to come be-
fore the newly organized council was a
monster octopus with tentacles reaching
out fifty years ahead. Strange as it may
appear, a gentleman who is a leader in
his party in the valley, county, and
we'll up in the councils i'll the state, a
leader in his business and generally a
good all-round fellow and citizen, elect
ed on a majority rule platform and who
bids fair to be leader in the legislative
councils OF the city, was the gentleman
who moved that the ordinance be passed
to its first reading without reference or
amendment as to whether the people OF
the city prefer granting franchise to a
private corporation for fifty years or for
the city to put in and own and operate a
water works system and furnish the
service to the people at cost, the same
as they get public school service.
Observation and experience of towns
less favorably situated than Hood River
shows that better service can be had
for less than half the prices paid at
present for very poor service, anarchy
or no anarchy" People do not object
to paying taxes if they get public i'm
provements in return, good water sys-
tenn, good school system, good streets,
walks and roads. What they do object
to is being taxed to boom some private
corporation that never, or seldom ever
furnishes the promised improvement.
Paying usual charges where private
corporations operate public utility is
not taxation, it is usually what the coal
companies are charged with, robbery.
Granting franchises to private corpora
tions to operate public utilities are back
numbers, and no up-to-date towns or
cities are doing it-even in some instan-
ces operating street railways, have no
fears of jobs being put up on our city II
it puts in a water system with referen-
dun majority rule system in operation,
with such men as our present mayor at
the head of the city government. The
whole people are decidedly safer to trust
in these matters than politicians and in
terested parties. :"
The right thing to do is to at once
take steps TO get from the legislature
an enabling act for the city to put in a
water system, and take no mo chances
of being held up periodically and in sus-
pense all the time. Ii ssofne railroad
would come along with scheme to get
the city bonded for forty or fifty thous-
and dollars the people would at once
clamor for it, and perhaps have it, an
archy or no anarchy, NERDANT.
Advertised letter List.
January %, 1908.
Brown, Tom Butler, Clifton w.
Fields, Chas. L. Laren, G. E.
Malone, Thomas Wentworth. +. A.