East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1915-01-29

its own principles OF government
Now it SO happens that in a govern
ment whore the people rule by the
ballot the intelligence Of the voter il
OF vital Importance The government
cannot rise above the standard os IL
citizenship and the ability TO read
and write in their own language is
very appropriate test to apply to i'm
migrants. II that test should keel
out some people It would be no sigr
that we were unfaithful in our duty
to the world and to humanity, This
United States governed by an intel
ligent citizenship can be OF more use
to the world and can do more fol
the cause of liberty and progress thar
it could do If governed by ,populacs
less informed even though greater nu.
merically.
~~~~S~~>~
II is very natural the members OF
the federal Industrial relations COM
mission find possibill-
They Require ties OF menace in the
Watching. big foundations. A
sum OF several hun
dred million dollars represents a grea,
force that may be used for good or to
the injury Of the republic. 1t may
be granted the donors have been in
spired by good motives but there is no
certainty the money win be rightfully
used even IL the intentions are good
What Rockefeller thinks is good for
the country or what the distributors
o. his money may think may be some .
thing far from the mark. There is
particular danger when the sources
of education or information are tam
pered with. Supposing for instance
a board handling one Of the founda-
tions should decide that one hundred
million dollars should be used sur
reptitiously in buying up a large num-
Der OF leading newspapers or several
big magazine publishing concerns.
supervision such a thing
could be done and secrecy be main
tanned. Think of the harm that could
come from such action even If the
back Of the move were hon.
est. No man or set of men should be
allowed to have such power without
being under the observation OF some
public authority. Even at that there
IS danger as is very evident.
About three years ago, people were
that the federal govern
ment did considerably
safeguarding more for the pigs OF
The Children. the country than IT
did for the children.
That indictment would hardly stand
now. At least. one is led to believe
that it could not after one has read
the second annual report OF the chlel
of the federal children's bureau, who
as nearly everyone knows, is Miss
Julia Lathrop. formerly Of Chicago.
This modest document sets forth
hat the bureau has continued to place
much emphasis on infant morality
and the study Of It. Though It has
been impossible to give close study
thus far TO important factors in the
probable cause OF infant death, such
as the personal habits and character
of parents, the bureau anticipates
that it will be in a position later to
these and other factors, no
ably those connected with the en-
ployment of mothers and with indus
rial diseases, by methods independ-
mt OF family inquiry" THE empha-
lis Of the inquiry" thus far. It seems
has therefore been upon certain OF
he more obvious economic, social
md civic factors which have con-
iitioned the lives>o Of the children Of a
given town. born within a given
year"
There is noted "a growing tendency
IN the part OF the municipality to ac-
,ant rasnonsibilitv for furnishing in