Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1908-12-17

one state. The only alternative Is TO
admit them as two, and II trust this
will be done without delay.
l call the attention of the congress to
| he Importance of the problem of tn
fisheries in the interstate waters. On
the Great Lakes we are now, under the
very wise treaty of April II of this year.
end eavoring to come to an interna-
tional agreement for the preservation
these waters, which cannot otherwise be
achieved.
But the problem is quite as pressing
in the interstate waters of the United
States. The salmon fisheries of the
Columbia river are now but fraction
of what they were rs years ago and
what they would be now If the United
states government had taken complete
charge of them by intervening between
oregon and Washington. During these
% years the fishermen of each state
have naturally tried to take all they
could get and the two legislatures
have never been able to agree on joint
action of any kind adequate in degree
for the protection of the fisheries. Al
the moment the fishing on the Oregon
side is practically closed, while there is
no limit on the Washington side of any
kind, and no one can tell what the
courts will decide as to the very stat
utes under which this action and nom
action result. Meanwhile very few sal
mon reach the spawning grounds, and
probably four years hence the fisheries
will amount to nothing: and this comes
from struggle between the associated,
or gill-net fishermen on the one hand
and the owners of the fishing wheels
up the river.
The federal statute regulating inter-
state traffic in game should be extended
to include fish. New federal fish hatch
cries should be established The ad-
ministratiOn of the Ala ska fur seal serv-
ice should be vested in the bureau of
fisheries.
This nations foreign policy is based
on the theory that right must be done
| b,t hat
individuals, and in our actions for the
last 10 years we have in this matter
proven our faith by our deeds We
have behaved, and are behaving, toward
other nations as in private life an hon
orable man would behave toward his
fellows
The work on the Panama canal is be-
ing done with a speed efficiency and
entire devotion to duty, which makes
it model for all work of the kind. No
task of such ma agnitude has ever be-
fore been undertaken by any nation, and
no task of the kind has ever before been
better performed. The men on the 18TH
mus, from Colonel Goethals and his tel-
| low commissioners through the entire
list of employees who are faithfully do
ing their duty. have won their right to
he ungrudging respect and gratitude OF
the Am eriCan people
/ again recommend the extension of
the ocean mail act of 1891 SO that salts
factory American ocean mail lines to
south Africa, Asia, the philippines and
e.
creation of such st am ship lines should
be the natural corollary of the voyage
of the battle fleet. 1t should precede
the opening of the Panama canal. Even
under Favorable conditions several years
must elapse before such lines can be
put into operation Accordingly l urge
! that the congress act promptly where
foresight already shows that action
sooner or later will b. inevitable.
| call particular attention to the ter
ritory of Hawaii. The Importance of
ic thn nap
| of improving their condition and deNel-
| oping their resources is urgent. In re-
cent years industrial conditions upon
the islands have radically changed. The
! importation of COOlie labor has praC
tically ceased and there is now devei-
oping such a diversity in agricultural
| products to make possible a change
in tn land conditions of the territory.
so that an opportunity may be given to
the small land owner similar to that on
the mainland. TO aid these changes,
| the national government must provide
| the necessary harbor improvements on
each island, SO that the agricultural
products can be carried to the markets
of the world. The coastwse shipping
| laws should be amended to meet the
special needs of the islands, and the
alien contract labor law should be so
modified in it's application to Hawaii AS
to enable American and European labor
to be brought thither.
Real progress toward self-government
is ing made in the Philippine islands.
|
body and Philippine assembly marks
process absolutely new in Asia, not only
| as regards AslatiC coloneieS of Euro
! pean powers, but as regards AsiatiC
! possessions of other Asiatic powers;
! and, ind ed. always excepting the Strik-
| ing and wonderful example Offered by
the. great empire of Japan, it opens an
entirely new departure when compared
with anything which has happen d
| among Asiatic powers which are their
own mas -ers. Hitherto this Philippine
/ l.. f.1t
and self-restraint, and has seemed in
practical fashion to realize the eternal
truth that there must always be gov
ernmenJ, ana that the only way in
which any body of individuals can es-
cape the necessity of being governed
| by outsiders is to show that they are
able to restrain themselves, to keep
| down Wrongdoing and disorder The
| Filipino people, through their officials,
are therefore making rral steps il the
direc ion Of lf-government.
| gain recommend that American cit
izenship be conferred upon the people Of
| Porto Rico.
In Cuba our occupancy will case in
about two months time. The Cubans
have in orderly manner elected their
own governmental authorities, and the
island will be turned over to them. our
occupation on this occasion has lasted
a littlh over two years, and Cuba has
thriVen and rrOSpered under it. our
earnest hope and one desire is that the
people of the island shall now govern
and order may be secure. We viii glad |
lY help them to this end: but | Wou d !
SOlemnly warn them to remember the |
great truth that the only way peOute |
can permanen ly avoid being governed !
from without is to show that they both ,
can and will govern themselves from
within.
The japanese government has post |
pOned until 1917 the date of the great |
international exposition, the action be- |
ing taken so as to insure ample time in |
which to prepare to make the cXpoSi ion |
al that it should be made. The mari-
can commissioners have visited japan |
and the postponement will merely give |
ampler opportunity for America to be
representa- at the exposition.
AS regards the army. | cal attention
to the fact that while our junior officers
and enlisted men stand very high, the
present sys EN- of promotion by seniority
results in bringing into the higher
grades many men Of mediocre capacity
SaVe but a short time to serve.
TIE cavalry arm should be reOrgan-
lied upon modern lines. This is arm
in Which it is peculiarly necessary that
rthsyfield Officers should not be old. The
Ieavalrv is much more difficult to form
tiau infantry. and it should be kept up
3osthe maximum both in efficiency and
hurry. At present both infantry and
artillery are too few in number for our
needs. ESD attention should be
paid to development Of the machine gun.
\ general service corps should be estab-
IiShed. As things are now the average
soldier has far 90 much labor of a non
military character to pGrfOTn