The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1906-05-24

do With their money WRsfkeen at '.BoHn-
dafy Castle" one cfsnt,iF last week
b. Henderson. formerly d tsHited states
senator from Missouri 1T Is beauti.
ful place, a magnificent place. the house
standing castlelike on the top OF the
hill which IL cut down to the street.
1t IL filled with works de art. and ele-
gantly furnished. II has q vino cell
lar. They de say that In the United
States there are no timer old wines to-
day than were In the Henderson wine
cellar last week. There Was over $1,000
worth OF those wines. 10 put it mildly.
For three years the cellar has not been
opened. Three years ago Mr.. and Mrs.
Henderson, who arei both rather frail,
and who have to be careful about eat
ing. decided that 1t was wicked TO
They are rich enough to do az they
please, mind you. They are vegetari-
ans, no-breakfast cranks OF the very
first water. Well. they invited a lot
OF their Tent Of Rechabitcs out 60 Il
kind OF reception, and the receptions
at Boundary Castle are things to remem-
Der. let me tell you, ana Mrs. Hender-
cellar. What shall + DO with them ?"
she queried. az must not sell them: I
do not think that I should give them
to a hospital for up.to-date hospitals
do not use liquors any more and I an,
at loss what disposal to make of
them"
Then up spake brave Horatius, for
he must have been brave who suggest
ed it, Bring the stuff up and pour IL
I'm the gutter" And they did. All the
rare old wines, dusty, cob-webby and
rich. were brought out OF the cellar and
the bottles smashed and the contents
trickled into the cutters. In india
there is sect which believes it right
to burn upon the funeral pyres of the
husbands the child widows. That does
not make 1t right. IL 1t were not that
Mrs. Henderson is we'll known for her
charities and her benevolence I'm every
direction. one would think-well, they
might think a lot OF things. The fanat-
icism that would destroy as much val
liable medicine as went to waste I'm that
Indian funeral pyre. The negroes in
the vicinity got wind of the perform
ance and they had one glorious old
drunk on the gutter contents.
I. Is said that the President is much
incensed at the Committee on Inter-
oceanic Canals because it chose TO re-
port in favor Of O sea-levei canal in
stead Of a lock canal, which he favors.
public, recites the reason for the sea-
level choice to be earthquakes, pure
and simple.
1.-The recent calamity that over
whelmed one Of our great cities has
caused many forebodings." says the re-
port. ''The assertion that any particu-
lar spot in the tropics Is exempt from
all danger from such commissions Of
nature as recently visited California Or
wrought great havoc near Charleston.
S. c., In 1885, or changed the face Of
nature In southeastern Missouri near
the beginning of this century, would not
be hazarded by any wise man. That the
Isthmus OF Panama Is not exempt con-
clusively appears, and we can have
no guaranty that the Canal Zone will in
the future be exempt from such disas-
ter. i"lf
1.-THE canal structures that would be
most exposed to injury by the passing
of an earth wave Or violent movement
of the earth's surface are the locks
proposed by the minority, whose walls.
many hundreds of feet. or even 1000
feet long at Gatun. would. at least some
of them. be more than IS feet high
and entirely unsupported on one side
save for part Of the height by water.
If these walls should be moved at all,
the natural and probable result would
be In their leaning, and SO prevent the
closing of the gates, AN injury for which
a suggestion of extra gates on hand
would be useless. for no one could
guess the extent of the movement. RGt
the most likely effect of such shock
would be the fracture Of these locks,
in repairing Of which much time -
months or years-might be required.
and thus cause interruption Of traffic Or
the abandonment Of the canal.
The report, which is quite long and
which studiousIy confines itself to-
statement of evident facts to support
the theories Of the majority OF the
carefully recites a long list
OF reasons, but chief among them seems
to be the earthquake theory, and which
must have seemed to be a kind of God
sent to the majority members, who
have now to buck up against the Pres
idents wishes in the matter, but are
able to show that while man proposes
God disposes.
Capt. Hyland Kirk. we'll known to
National Tribune readers through his
poems and sketches, appeared before the
on Patents the other day with
a novel plea. He made an argument for
patents for the protection Of origina-
tors Of horticultural products. Mr.. Kirk
commended that new variety Of horti-
ton, not only in the work Of the origi-
nator and the results obtained, but in
the character Of the materials. Every
seed. he said, was a mechanism.
After explaining the character Of the
work of Investigators along this line,
Mr.. Kirk argued that a measure such
as he advocated. would encourage such
Investigations. and 1.-The men who are
endeavoring to solve and to throw light
upon the higher problems of biology"
Horticultural science. he said, becomes
clearly defined as legitimate and def
mite field for the opertions of the pat
ent law.
Senator Dubois Of Idaho is quite Ill,
suffering, it is thought, from ptomaine
poisoning.
Representative ketcham. the father
of the House" now. and q very old man,
Is quite Ill. Gen. ketcham has a splen-
did military record, serving in the
150th N. Y. He was made a Briga der
General for gallant services and served
to the end OF the war. resigning to en-
ter Congress. He has had a service in
Congress of "a years, but not consec-
utively. He failed of election for three
or four Congresses. and then served
several Congresses. finally declining re-
al ar tn