s w ' . THE SC1UNT0N TRIBUNE-WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1902, - -THE PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE. IContlliltod from 1'iiffo 3.1 s the deadliest bnttevy, nnd to hpihI It uno.it with it nivv crew, no mailer how bravo Ihcy wtrc Individually, would be to Insure disaster If a toe of average capacity were encountered. Neither ships nor men run bo Impro vised when war hits begun, "We need it thousand nddltlonnl of ficers In order to properly man Hie ships now provided for nnd under con struction. Tho classes nt the navnl rcltool nt Annapolis should bo greatly enlarged. At the name time that we thus uild the oIllccrH when- we nerd tlietn, we should facilitate the retlie ment of thosp tit the head of the list whoso usefulness has become Impaired. 1'roniotlon must bo fostered If the scr vlcc is to be kept eDIcleut. Tho lamentuble scarcity of officer, nnd the large number of recruits nnd of unskilled men neccsiailly put aboard the now vessels as they have been commissioned, has thrown upon our officer", and especially on the lieu tenants and junior pi ados, unusual lobor and fatigue and has gravely strained their powers of endurance. Nor Is there sign of any Immediate let-up In this attain. It must continue for some time longer, until more offi cers tire graduated from Annnpolls, nnd until the recruits become trained and skillful In their duties. In those difficulties Incident upon tho develop ment of our war licet tho conduct of nil our officers has been creditable to the service, and the lieutenants nnd junior grades' In particular have dis played an ability and a steadfast cheei fulness which entitles them to tho ungrudging thanks of all who realize the disheartening trials and fatigue- to which they aie of necessity subjected. There is not a cloud on the horizon nt piesent. There seems not the slightest chance of trouble with a foreign power. We most earnestly hope that this state of things may continue; and the way to insure its continuance is to provide for a thoroughly efficient navy. The le fusal to maintain such a navy would invite trouble, and if tiouble came would insure disaster. Fatuous self complacency or vanity, or short sightedness in refusing to prepare for danger, is both foolish and wick ed in such a nation as ours; and past experience has shown that such fatuily iu refusing to recognize or piopaie for nny crisis in advance is usually succeeded by a mad panic of hysterical fear once the crisis has actually arrived. Postal Progress The striking increase in the revenues of the postotllce department shows clearly the prosperity of our people nnd the increasing activity of the busi ness of the country. The receipts1 of the postoftlee depai t ment for' the fiscal year ending June UO .last amounted to $121,848,017.26, an irnfrease of .$10,21ti,S33.87 over the pre- vcedlng year, the laige&t increase known In the history of the postal service. The magnitude of this in crease will best appear from the fact tnat the entire postal xecelpts for the year I860 amounted to but $S,51S.0G7. Rural fiee-dellvery service In no longer in the experimental stage; It has become a llod policy. The results lollowlng Its lntioductlou have fully justified the congress in the large ap pioprlalions made lor its establish ment and extension. The aeiage yearly Increase In post-o(hee lecelpts In the i in al districts of the country Is about two per cent. W aie now able, by uciuiil results, to show that whtie luial frec-dellveiy set vice has been established to such an extent as to en able us to make comparisons the yeai Iv Increase bus been upward ol ten pei ceul. On November 1, 1!HL', ll.twU iur.il ftio-rtellvoij routes had been estab lished and weie In operation, coveting about one-thltd ot the territory of the United States i.al!able lor im.il ftec dellvery '-ei vice. There ure now awaiting the action ot the department petitions .Mid application-, lor tho es tablishment ol 10.74S additional loutes. Thi.J shuns (onclnshely th" want which tho establishment ot tho -et-lce bus met and the need of lurther rxttiidlng it us tiipldly tis po-slldo. it i.. Justified both be the financial results unci b the pineilcal benollls to our l aral population; ii bilngs the ineti who live on the soil Into close rela 1lous with lite active luisliu ss woild; It keeps the fatinei in dally touch with iho. markets; It Is u potential educa tional foYce; It enhances tho viluo of farm pioperty, mnkes fnim llfo far pleasanter and los Isolated, and will do much to chock the unde.-liable cur lont from louiitiy to city. Jt is to be hoped that tho congress will make llbeial appropriations for tho runtluuunco of the seivito nliendy es tablished and lor Its futher extension, Irrigation of Arid Lands Few subjects of more linpoiuuice have been taken up by tho congrtts in recent enrs than tho'lnnuguartlon of tho system ot nationally-aided irri gation for the uild teglons of the fur West, A good beginning theieln has ljfen made. Now that this policy of na tional Ii ligation nan been adopted, the need of thoiough and scientific forest ptotcctlon will grow moio rapldlythan ever throughout the publle-land states. Legislation should bo provided lor tho protection of the game, nnd tho wild cieatures generally, on tho forest reserves. Tho senseless slaughter of game, vvhlclr can by judicious piolec tlon bo permanently preserved on our natlouul reserves for tho people as a whole, should bo stopped at once. It Is, tor Instance, a serious count against our nutloiul (food senso to penult, the present practice of butchering off such a stately and beautiful creatine us tho elk for Its antlers or tusks, Ko far as they uto uvnllublo for agri culture, and lo whatever extent they may be teelaimed under the national Irrigation law, tho remaining public lands should bo held rigidly for tho homo builder, the settler who lives on his land, and lor no ono else. In their nctual use the desert-laud law, the timber and stone law, and tho rommutatlon clause of tho homestead law have been so pot verted from tho intention with which they wero en urled as to penult the acquisition of luigti ureas of tho public domain for other than actual bettlcrs nnd tho 1,000 Yards Guaranteed Black Taffeta Silk At 59c a yard You'll find the maker's guarantee on this silk. This is an 'important bargain. V (S SILK LJ SALE t 4 ? n w SILK SILK SENSATIONAL Sensational Silk Sale Of HighGrade Handsome Dress and Waist Silks The choicest, newest and best Silks made, at prices that average one-third to one-half of regular worth. This is one of those important Silk Sales that never fail to arouse the' quickest interest, and it will be the most remarkable Silk Sale that Scranton has ever known. The entire Dress and Silk Departments will be devoted to it. Everywhere you'll see Silks at prices you never dreamed of. You can't help but buy. You'll no doubt lay in Silks enough to last you for months to come, This sale abounds in rich, beautiful and rare Silks. The bulk of it is of staple and moderate designs; also plain fabrics. Every yard is perfect in weave and texture, and at Prices One-third and One-fourth Less Than Regular 18-inch Taffeta Full line of colors, including black and white. Sale Price, 42c 19-inch Taffeta Full line of colors; also black and white. Sale Price, 69c 24-inch Peau De Levant All the staple colors, includ ing evening shades. Sale Price, 89c Fancy Waist Silks and a Large Variety of Plaid Silks 8Qc Not a yard less than $1.25 up to $1.39. Go on sale this week at, a yard ...... Choice colorings, exquisite ' designs, suitable for all oc-casions. Black Moire Velour 27 inches wide; this is a very choice number; regulary worth $1.33. This sale 98c Bljck Peau de Soie Silks The 19-inch kind, worth Q7 r regularly $1.25. On sale at "' The 27-inch kind; worth regularly, $1.65. ( f C This sale Pl.-firtJ The 2-5-inch kind; -- regularly worth $1.35. fc f J Ou sale at P I t I A The 23-inch kind; much heavier; worth regularly $1.60. C 1 "2f l a j This sale , 89c Pongee Silks kL 50c Grenadines White, pink and blue; regularly worth $1.25. This sale ....... 89c - 19-inch Black Taffeta, 55c "in r kind. This sale, a yard OW 20-inch Black Taffeta, 80c AQrr kind. This sale, a yard VlWi" 19-inch Black Taffeta, 75c cOr kind. This sale, a yard OVC 23-inch Black Taffeta, $1.00 7 "r kind. This sale, a yard J Ok i-33 26-inch Black Taffeta, t ff 3 kind. This sale, a yard.. P VU Black Fancy Brocade Silks 20-inch kind; regularly worth A Or 85c. This sale, yard uy 22-incli kind; regularly worth "J -2f yov- -- -., - j-..-. iixtra hue quality: usua brings $1.33. This sale Hy 97C JONAS LONG'S SONS. m 20-inch Moire Many desirable colors; extra fine value; usually 90c. Sale Price, 65c Changeable Taffeta A splendid assortment; all shades. Sale Price, 69c 21-inch Plain Jap Silk Every known shade; usual ly 45c kind. For this sale, Per yard, 31c 23-inch China Silks A large variety of colors. Priced for this Sale At 39c ll-g n i Special Black Satin v,,,,, 20-inch wide, worth 75c. Sale Price, 40c 24-inch wide, extra fine lustre, worth regulary $1.00. Sale Price, 65c Black Moire Antique, 21 inches wide, $1.65 kind. Sale Price, $1.25 u JONAS LONG'S SONS. JONAS LONG'S SONS. consequent prevention of settlement. jroieovL-r, the aiun caching exhaustion or th vuhllc lansos has of IiiIp led to much dlhi'Uslon hh to the bent man not ol uslnj,' the.ie public lands in the AVesfl whlj-li ure sultuble chlelly fcir grazing. The .sound and steady de velopment of tho AVest depends upon the building up of homes therein. .Much of our pioipeilty n a nation has been due to tho opei.atlou of the homestead law. Ou tho other hand, wo phould U'cognlie the fact that In tho grazing region Uio man who cor responds to tho liomustoudet' may be unuble to bettlo peununently If only allowed to use tho hamo amount of pusmue hind that hlb hi other, the liomesleader, Is allowed to use of uia blo land. Ono hundred and Plxty acres nl ikh nnrt well-wateied soil, or a much pmaller uinount of i'llsatcd laud, may Keep a family In plenty, whereas no ono could get a living fiom one hundied nnd sixty attes of ilty pasture land capablo of support ing at tho ouside only one head of cattle to every ten acies. In tho past great tracts of tho public) domain have been fenced In by persons having no title thereto, in direct detiauco of the law forbidding the maintenance or construction of nny such unlawful in closmo of public land. For vat Ions reasons there hns been little Interfer ence with buch Inclnsuies In the past, but ninplo notice lias now boon given tho tiespasseis, and all tho le.souiccs ut tho command of the government will heieafter bo used to put a stop to such ttespasslng. In view of tho capital importance of hebo matters, I commend litem to tho eainebt consideration of tho con gress, and If tho congress finds dim culty Itr dealing with them from lack iif thorough knowledge of tho subject, I recommend that provision be made for a commlbslon of experts bpeclally to Investigate and report upon the complicated questions' involved. Legislation for Alaska I especially urge upon tho cougtcss the need of wlbo legislation for Alaska, It Is not to our ctertlt us a nation that Alaska, which hah been ours lor thirty-live years- should still have as poor u s-ystctn ot luwa us Is the case. No country has a mote valuable pn.s beslou In mineral wealth, In fisheries, Iui.j, foie.tb, and also in land avail able for certain kliulb of farming and stoikgt owing. Jt Is a territory of great bUo and vailed resources, vull (Hud to support a laige permanent population. AlabKa needs a good laud law and suili piovMons for home steads und pre-emptions as will en courage permanent .settlement. "Wo should shape legislation with a view not to the exploiting ami abandoning of tho territory, but to the building up of homes therein, The laud laws bltould be liberal In type, so as to hold out Inducements to the actual settler; whom we most desire to see tako possession of the country, rhio foiests of Alaska should bo protected, and, us a secondary but still important matter, the game also, and at the .santf) time It Is Imperative that the bottlers should be allowed to cut tim ber, under proper regulations, for their own uso. I..aws should bo enacted to protect the Alaskan salmon llsherlen against the greed which would destroy them. They should be preserved as a permanent Industry and food supply. Their management nnd control should be turned over to tho commission of fish and fisheries. Alaska should have a delegate iir.tlro congress. It would be well If a congressional committee could Visit Alaska and investigate Its needs on tho ground. The Indian Problem , In dealing with tho Indtunu our aim should be their ultimate absorption Into tho body of our people. Hut in many caseH this ubsorptlon muit and should lie very slow. In portions of the Indian Territory tho mixture of blood has goire ou at the same time with progress In wealth nnd educa tion, to that there ure plenty of men with Mirylng degrees of purity qf In dian blood who are ab.solutely Indis tinguishable In 4,'olnt of buclul, poli tical, and economic ability from their white associates.. There are other tribes which June as jet made no perceptible udwntce toward such equality. To Iry to toico such lilbcs ton 1'asu Is to pruvent their going for ward nt all. Moreover, the tribes lle under widely different conditions. Where a tribe has made considerable ,'dvance and Ihes on fertile farming soil It is jioslblf to, allot the member .1 lands In bc entity much as is tho case with white seltlets. On the arid prairie lands tho citort should be to Induce the Indians to lead pastoral rather than agricultural Ihos, and to penult them to settle lit villages rather than to lorcc them Into Isola tion. ' .The largo Indian bdrools situated re mote from any Indian reservation do a special and peculiar work of great Importance. Hut, excellent though these are, an Immense amount of ad ditional woik must be done oir tho reservations themselves among the old, and above all umoug the young, In dians. The (list and most Impoitulit step Inward the absorption of tho Indian Is to teach him to earn his living; yet It In not necessarily to be assumed tint la each community all Indians must beeoino either tillers of the soil or stock ralseis. Their Industries may properly be diversified, and lhoo who show bpeelal Uivlro or adaptability for Industrial or even commenial put suits should be encouraged so far ns prac ticable to follow out each his own bent. l.very elfoit should be mado to develop (he Indian along tho lines- of natural aptitude, and to encourage the existing native industries peculiar to certain tribes, such as tho various kinds of basket weaving, canoe build ing, smith work, and blanket work. Above all, tho Indian boys and girls should be given conlldont command of colloquial Kuglish. and should ordin arily be prepared for a vigorous strug gle with the conditions under which their people live, rather than for Im mediate absorption Into some more highly developed community. The officials who represent the gov ernment in dealing with the Indians work under hard conditions, and also under conditions which tender It easy lo do wrong atrd very dltllcult to.de tect wrong, t'onseqtrently they should be amply paid on the one hand, and on the- other hand a particularly high standard of conduct should be demand ed from thorn, and where misconduct can be proved the punishment should bo exemplaiy. Science's Aid to Farming Irr no department of government work in recent years has there been greater success than In that of giving scientific aid to the farming popula tion, thereby showing them how most efficiently to help themselves. There is no rreed of insisting upon Its Im portance, for the welfare of the fanner Is fundamentally necasbary to the wel fare of the Itepublle as a whole. In adlfltion to srlch work as quarantine against animal and vegetable plagues, and warring against them when here Introduced, much efficient hoh has been rendered to tho farmer by the introduction of new plants specially fitted for cultivation uirclir the peculiar conditions existing Itr different por tions of the country, Xow ceieals have been established In the semi-arid West. For Instance, the ptactlcnblllty of producing tho best types of inacti on! wheats In regions of an annua! rainfall of only ten Inches or there abouts has beerr conclusively demon strated. Through tho introduction of new rices In Louisiana and Texan the production of rice In this country has been made to about equal the homo demand. In the Southwest the possl blllty or regrasslng over-stocked range lands lias been demonstrated; In the North many new f 01 ago crops havn been Introduced, while In the nast it has been shown that some of our choicest fruits can bo btuied nnd Bhlp pend in bucir a way as to find a profit able markot abroad. The National Museum I again recommend to the favorable consideration of the congress tho plans of the Smithsonian Institution for making the museum under Its charge worthy of the nation, and for preserv ing at the national capital not only records of tho vanishing races of men but of the animals of this continent which, like the buffalo, will s-oon be come extinct unless specimens ttoni which their rcprcbentatlves may be ia newed arc bought in their native re gions and maintained there In safety. District of Columbia The District of Columbia Is the only patt of our territory in which the Na tional government exetclses local or municipal functions, and where In con sequence the government has a nee hand In reference to ceitnlu types of social and economic legislation which must be essentially local or municipal In their character. The government should see to It, for Instance, that tho hygienic and sanitary legislation af fecting Washington Is of a high char acter. The evils ot slum dwellings, whether in tire shape of crowded and congested tenement-house districts or of the back-alley type, hhouldriever bo permitted to grow up In Washington, Tho city should be n model in every respect for all the cities of the coun try. Tho charitable and coiiectlouul bystema of tho district should receive consideration at the hands of tire con gress to the end that they may embody tho results of the most advanced thought in these fields, Moreover, while Washington Is not a great in dustrial city, theio is some Industrial ism lieie, und our labor legislation, while it would not be important in It self, might be mado a model for the rest of tho nation. Wo should pass, for Instance, a wlso employer'b-llabll-Ity act for the District of Columbia, and we need such an act in pur navy yards. Ituihoad companies In the dis trict ouglt to bo required by law to block their frogs. To Protect Railwau Men The safcty-appllurreu law, for the better protection ol the lives and limbs of railway employes, which was passed In lb!U, went Intii full elrect 011 August 1, 1001. It has resulted in averting thousands ot casualties. Kxperleme, shows, however, the necessity of addi tional legislation to perfect this law. A bill to provtdo for this passed th senate at the last session, It Is to he hoped that some Mich measure may now bo enacted Into law, ; k Too Much Printing There Is a growing tendency to pio lde lor the publication of mabses of documents) tor which there Is no public demand and for tho printing of which there is no real necessity. Large, num bers of volumes are turned nut by the government printing presses ipr which there is no Justification. . Nothing should bo in luted by nny of the de partments unless It contains something of permanent value, and the congiess could with advantage cut down veiy rnirtet hilly 011 all the printing which It has now become customary to pro vide. Tho excessive cost of govern ment piliiling Is a siioug argument against tho po-dilou of thofo who tiro Inclined on abstrnct grounds to advo cate the government's doing any woi,k which can with propriety be (eft in private hands, The Merit System Uratltylug progress Iras been madt iluiing tho year In the extonsion ot the merit system of making appoint ments in tho government service, It should be extended by law' to the- Dis trict of Columbia, it Is much to bo desired that our consular syste,nr bo established by law oir a basis provid ing for nppohrtment nnd promotion only In consequence of proved fitness. White House Repairs Through a wise provision of the con gress at its last besslon tiro White House, which had become disfigured Continued on Page 9 J i .4 ..