Rocky Ford enterprise., 1909-12-31

For large part of the time 1909
was kept busy celebrating the ami
versaries of men born in ISoo-Lin-
coin, Darwin, Tennyson, Holmes.
Poe, Fitzgerald (translator OF Omar
Khayyam), Gladstone and others, for
1909 was a "year OF great babies"
In 1909 New YORK observed the three
hundredth anniversary of Henry
Hudson's discovery of the river which
bears his name, and also celebrated
the centenary of the first successful
application of steam to navigation,
that of the journey of Fulton's Cler-
mont from New York to Albany. and
the beginning OF its regular trips on
brated the hundredth anniversary Of
the granting of its charter as a viii
lage. and San Francisco marked the
hundred and fortieth year since the
Spanish Portola discovered the bay
on which that cit'- is built.
But 1909 marked out some events
which eooo may find itself compelled
to observe. In several directions the
twelvemonth which has just closed
won the right to be called wonder
year" On Set. the world was
erick A. Cook, saying that, on April
81. 1908, he had discovered the North
Pole. The surprise was increased
when Sept. 6 carried the tidings that
Robert Z. Peary had reached the
Pole on April 6, 1909. Thus a quest
which had lasted for four centuries.
u which millions Of dollars had been
Expended, and which cost thousands
of lives, was brought to successful
close. Here the story OF polar hero
ism and peril which stretched from
90 g
its climax.
The year 1909 saw "On wide-wav-
ing wings expanded bear. the flying
chariot through the air" The French
aviator Bleriot rode in his machine
across the British channel. AT
Rheims, France. where the greatest
OF the worlds acronauts gathered. and
where many wonderful things were
done by the flyin~ men. the aero
plane seemed to be transformed from
a toy into 4 tool OF practical use. The
seemingly unattainablc is about to be
attained. 4 new realm has been
brought into the reach OF man. The
kingdom OF the air as a medium OF
physical transit has become real. Nd
vcrti-cmcnts OF acroplanes are begin
ming to appear III newspapers ana
magazine A few years hence they
NAV be grouped with the indus
trial-" and listed on the New \ ork
Stock Exchange and others OF the
worlds bourscs. Aviation Is begin
ming to be one of the recognized oc-
cupations. The term sky pilot a a
metaphor has become much more spc-
cific than when it was applied to cler-
gymen.
By the Lusi,ania and the Maureta-
mia the ''five-day' Atlantic trip has
been brought to hand. The year has
also brought the twenty-four-hour
trains between New York and ST.
Louis, the twenty-six-hour trains be-
tween Boston and that Western GEN.
Aer. and the four-day transit between
New York and San Francisco.
Nlnt which 1909 brought was the re-
tircmcnt OF Mr.. Roosevelt from the
presidency and the accession of Mr..
Taft. Like Mr.. Mckinley in 1897.
Mr. Taft called an extra session OF
Congress to revise the tariff, and.
early in August, that task was finish
ed. AS in the case of the Dingley act
which it displaced, the Payne. tariff
OF 1909 aided in ending a period OF
business stagnation and helpe dto set
the wheels of trade in motion.
Shortly after the close of the ses-
sion. Mr.. Taft started on one OF the
longest tours which a President has
ever made. extending from Boston
to Seattle, Portland and San Francis
CO, and touching places as remote
from each other on north and south
lines as Minneapolis and New Or.
leans. The most important events of
the trip, which began on Sept. IS.
which ended on the return to WASH
ington on Nov. 10, and which cover
ed almost thirteen thousand miles,
were the meeting of Mr.. Taft with
President Diaz at FL Paso, Tex. and
Juarez. in the Mexican republic, and
his four days journey down the
Mississippi, from St. Louis to New
Orleans, as the guest of the Deep
Waterway Association.
In its foreign relations in 1909 the
United States was fortunate. 1t sue
cessfully asserted claim to share
in the financing of the Hankow-Sze-
chuen Railway, and thus is in a posi-
ton to further aid its citizens in ex-
tending their trade with China. Cas-
tro. the exiled dictator of Venezuela.
remains out. as does Nord Alexis. OF
Hayti. who was expelled in 1908. and
as does Reyes, of Colombia, who de-
parted few months ago. With all
OF those countries our relations are
pMre cordial than formerly. Under
on auspices, Cuba, in January, 1909.