East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1909-12-24
CALIFORNIA CITIES
WAR FOR EXPOSITION
BOTH SAN FRANCISCO AND
SAN DIEGO WANT 1915 FAIR
Each Has Representative in Congress
Who Seeks to Gain Federal Recog-
nition-Smith for San Diego Tries
TO Seal a March-Kahn for Frisco
Introduces Complete Bill.

Washington.-A drawn battle be-
tween San Francisco and San Diego,
California, is one of the biggest things
in congressional shows on the boards
for this winter.
The arena is at present in neutral
ground somewhere between the COM
mittees on expositions and foreign af-
fairs, but it appears now that before
the issue is decided the forces of the
two cities may have to meet some-
where on the Mojave desert and fight
il out.
The question is whether there shall
be an international exposition in 1915
at San Francisco or San Diego.
The proposition thus to celebrate the
opening of the Panama canal started
out on the Pacific coast last summer
when the gate receipts at the Seattle
exposition began to pile up in such
gratifying quantity. There is still
some dispute as TO which city first
broached the idea, but both are rep
resented here in numbers trying to get
Federal recognition. Representative
Smith, who halls from the San Diego
district and Representative Kahn, of
San Francisco, are going to be the star
performers.
| Smith is known as the "getter" of
the California delegation He has gone
about securing the exposition in a typi-
cally Smith way-a process of stealing
up a back alley into the dooryard be-
fore one knows he's around, and then
walking away with the goods. His
bill is a simple little thing. 1t is mere
| ly resolution authorizing the Presi-
| dent to invite the nations Of the Pa
cific to an international exposition AT
San Diego in 1915, when the executive
| is satisfied that the citizens of San
| Diego have raised a million dollars
1t doesn't ask for any money from
Uncle Sam. Smith doesn't intend to
do that-yet. Quite harmless look
ing little measure, but if Smith can
get it through it will amount to feder-
al recognition of the claims of San
Diego. And then, some fine after
noon, we will get our fingers into the
Treasury" Smith confides to his
| friends.
1Ht DIOpOStu ldlI Is " Dt CdIlGut
under the Smith bill. the Panama
California Exposition. Smith got
| President Taft's promise that the ca
nal would be finished by 1915 before
he put in his bill.
San Francisco's claims to the right
to celebrate the completion of the big
! ditch are being urged by Julius Kahn.
With shaggy gray locks and a flowing
Winchester tie, Kahn looks like an
actor. AS a matter of fact, he used
10 be one before he broke into the
statesman business, and he still talks
like one.
! !Sshhri went at it this way. His bill
calls for a celebration of the Opening
of the Panama canal and also the four
hundredth anniversary of the discov-
cry of the Pacific ocean by Vasco An
nez Balboa, by holding an internau-
onal exhibition of arts, industries
manufactures and the products of soil
mine. forest and sea-" Good schem,
that Balboa ideal The San Diego peo.
pie are still gnashing their teeth be-
cause Kahn beat them to it.
julius Kahn calls his show the Po
nama-Pacific Exposition. He wants
the paltry sum of five millions from
Uncle Sam, but not before his new
exposition company raises a like am
cunt The bill is about five feet lone
and provides everything from the ap
pointment of a commission, to regu
lations for the feeding of the troops
that will be there and the appoint
ment of a board of LADY managers.
Kahn even has it figured out to le
galize the importation of the exhibit
and the establishment of a bank OIL
the exposition grounds. His bill /
50 complete that you could close YOU
eyes after reading it and see th'
throngs streaming in at the gate.
AS a sort of sop to San Diego, Kahi
provides that the combined fleet o
the world shall attend and that IN,
President shall invite them to assembl
in san Diego harbor.
Other members of the Californi
delegation are not at present linin
up with either city, and most Of tn
members of congress say they can
for a minute consent to grant an ex
position to a Pacific coast city unles
La, to tUbfph Cit