Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

Netos and Vie Ips From All Nations RUSSIAN DUMA MEETS. St Petersburg.—The duma or lower house of the Russian parliament, was formally opened in the Tauride palace in the presence of all the ministers and many high functionaries. No member of the imperial family was present. The first ceremony was a religious service in which the metropolitan of St. etersburg, Antonins, the highest clergy of the diocese, and a full choir participated. M. Goluboff, vice-president of the council of the empire, accompanied by Baron Uexkull de Gyldenbandt, secre tary of the empire, entered the hall after service. The former immediate ly called the lower house to order and in a colorless speech invited the mem bers to sign the oath of allegiance to Emperor Nicholas. The conservatives cheered the mention of the name of the emperor, but the opposition mem bers did not enter the hall until M. Goloboff had finished speaking, when they came in in a body demonstra tively. CATERS TO WORKMEN. (Copyright by Hearst News Service.) Paris. —That France now has a tru ly democratic government which is determined to do everything in Its power to better the conditions of the working classes, while allowing the well-to-do to take care of themselves was never proven more plainly than by the recent trip of M. Viviani, the minister of labor, through the south ern part of the country. Not only did the minister travel in the simplest possible manner, but dur ing the whole trip he did not attend a single reception or banquet, and he ab solutely refused to receive anybody but workingmen, though at Lyons sev eral prominent capitalists did every thing to get a hearing. At Lyons he received hundreds of members of trades unions, who had complaints to make regarding the ap plication of the weekly rest law, and as a result a number of large manu facturers are expecting heavy fines for having forced their factory hands to work longer hours than the law per mits. THE CUBAN SUGAR CROP. Havana — The present sugar crop will prove a financial failure unless the price of sugar advances. Although the weather is good and the abund ance of cane has enabled grinding to be carried on without interruption the cost of production is excessive. The cost of labor is nearly double the average for recent years. The Spanish silver is nearly at par and the railroad rates are high. The planters complain they are working exclusively for the benefit of the railroads which are charging from 25 to 50 cents for hauling a sack of sugar of 325 pounds weight to port. It is alleged that the principal railroad which recently increased its stock 50 cent, did so to hide the high dividends it is earning. These, it is said, are al most entirely due to the high freight rates on sugar. TO ANNEX CUBA. Havana. —The Daily Post says: "No doubt exists as to the growing senti ment among the intelligent and pro gressive Cubans in favor of permanent American control of the island’s af fairs. A protectorate, under which th* American government would ex- ercise a supervision of Cuban matters, is advocated by some, but by far the greater number of conservative think ers believe that absolute annexation of Cuba to the United States is the only genuine solution of the trouble which now faces us. They urge that the destiny of Cuba is coupled with that of Porto Rico, and that the United States ought to proceed along the same lines toward Cuba as is fol lowed in Porto Rico. Such a policy would insure a stable government in Cuba and, under its administration, the island would be developed in a way not possible under any other form of government.” •t AGAINST ANARCHY. (Special Cable Hearst Copyright.) Paris.—To stamp out the curse of anarchism, which is spreading rapidly in all parts of the kingdom in spite of the personal popularity of the young king, the Spanish government has decided to form a new tribunal, before which all cases of anarchist# are to be tried. It has been found that trial by jury is very* unsatisfactory in cases of this kind, because the jury members are intimidated by the threats of anarch ist organizations and invariably acquit the prisoners. From April 1 the government has ordered that in the provinces of Gero na and Barcelona, where anarchists are most plentiful, they shall be tried by a bench of three magistrates, in stead of by a jury. * LARGE PACKING COMPANY. Mexico City, Mex. —Incorporated un der the laws of New Jersey, the Mexi can National Packing Company has been capitalized at $10,000,000 with its securities placed on the London mar ket. The new company has obtained concessions from the Mexican govern ment to found branch offices in the different states for supplying them with meat, and one will be located at Uruapan, state of Michoacan, for the purpose of supplying South America. Also it is expected they will invade and capture some of the European markets. Two other houses, with shops and refrigerators, will also be established in this city within the next year and a half which are to cost 2,000,000 pesos. ASKS ARISTOCRATS TO WORK. Berlin. —A young German nobleman has issued an appeal to his fellow aristocrats to emancipate themselve# from the idea that it is beneath their dignity to embark in commercial occu pations. He points out that they have the example of the kaiser and several German aristocrats. The emperor possesses extensive pottery works on his estate of Cadi nen, in East Prussia, and conducts them himself with great com mercial success. The exquisite productions of the Imperial factory are sold in Berlin by a branch of the business known as the Hohenzollern stores. The emperor, moreover, fre quently seizes suitable opportunities to canvass for orders. STAMPS PAY TELEGRAMS. Paris.—A plan to allow the public to pay for telegrams with regular postage stamps is now being consider ed by M. Simyan, the deputy minister of posts and telegraphs. THE WEEKLY JEFFERSONIAN. WOMAN IS A BANKRUPT. Geneva. The Princess Olden burg, of St. Petersburg, has arrived here on her way to the Riviera, where she will stay until her affairs are put in order. She owes y,OOO,000 roubles to the Russian State bank and the Northern Bank of Russia, and has in structed her business manager that she is unable to meet her obligations and wishes to be declared a bankrupt. The princess declares that the enor mous expenses of continually attend ing the Russian court and her numer ous charities are the cause of her bankruptcy. She is accompanied by one maid and is staying at a second class hotel. n APPROVED BY CHINA. Victoria, B.C. —Advices were received yesterday by the steamer Empress of China from Toklo that a conference of elder statesmen and cabinet mem bers was held on February 16 to dis cuss the amended immigration bill projected by United States. The pro test against the will was withdrawn in appreciation of President Roose velt’s efforts to bring about a happy settlement of the differences between the United States and Japan. A de cision was reached at the meeting that no labor passport would be issu ed to immigrants for the United States. TO DIVIDE TURKISH EMPIRE. Berlin—An Anglo- French- Italian scheme for the partial partition of the Ottoman empire is revealed by the newspaper Welt. It asserts that the project is to be carried out upon the death of Sultan Abdul Hamid, which is expected soon to occur. A part of the plan is to exclude Germany from participation. The scheme is for England to seize the western portion of Arabia from the Mediterranean to tne Indian ocean, converting the Red Sea into an English preserve. France is to take Syria and Palestine and the other parts of Asia Minor, and Tripoli and Albania are to be Italy’s share. It is said that Russia and Austria have been urged to act with the powers mentioned in order to exclude Ger many. AGAINST PERSECUTION. Tokio. —The Nichi Nichi protest# against the persistent determination of the people of California to perse cute and exclude the Japanese from that state. In the proposed law limit -ing aliens to a five-years’ ownership of land, the Nichi Nichi can discern but one intention —to deny the land owning right to Japanese. The paper advises the government to take steps “to counteract such an outrage against the Japanese,” and expresses the be lief that an efficient solution may be reached by the removal of the disa bility of Japanese to attain naturaliza tion in the United Statse. It AGRICULTURAL SCHOOLS. The first installment of the state’# appropriation to the maintenance of the recently established agricultural college is being mailed from the state treasurer’s office Wednesday in checks of $2,000 each to the eleven schools in the congressional districts. The fund from which the appropriar tion is made is that arising from the department of fertilizer inspection. The annual amount of the appropria tion is contingent upon the income of this department. Other payments will be made during the year.—Atlanta Journal. n GERMANY CANNOT FIGHT. London. —A dispatch to the Express from Berlin states that Germany dare not even think of fighting a naval war before 1920, according to the verdict of a high German naval expert, who condemns many of the battle ships as unseaworthy and obsolete, refers to several of them as floating coffins, the use of which in war would mean the sacrifice of their crews, and says that the construction of new battle ships is proceeding so slowly that thirteen years will pass before Germany has an efficient navy. * THE KAISER IS ILL. (Copyright by Hearst News Service.) Berlin. —Alarming rumor# concern ing the kaiser’s state of health are again afloat, and although no mention has been made in the press so far, it is said that another operation on hi# throat may be necessary to save his voice, which has grown perceptibly weaker during the last six months, a fact which was very noticeable when he made his two recent speeches in the reichstag and at Kiel, when the naval recruit# were sworn. PARIS HAS THE GRIP. (Copyright by Hearst News Service.) Paris. —La Grippe has Paris in its iron grasp. It has been estimated that more than 20 per cent of the entire population of Paris is suffering from it. The social life, as well as the po litical, is disturbed by it, as dinners have to be postponed on account of the illness of the hostess, while affair# at the Tribunal are practically at a standstill. W WARSHIPS FOR RUSSIA. St. Petersburg—General Batyanott, formerly an officer in the navy, is try ing to persuade the emperor that Rus sula should have a squadron in far eastern waters at the earliest possi ble moment, and is recommending that the projected warships be built in th# United States and not in Eu rope. The general declares that the American shipbuilding yards could turn out in two years as many ships a# European yards could in five years. BARONESS COMING HERE. Budapest—America will shortly re ceive Baroness Schonberger, the beau tiful Hungarian who made herself no torious by spying on the Emperor Francis Joseph, and caused the fall of Minister of Justice Polonyl. She has been expelled from Budapest and told to leave. She is wealthy, and pro poses to write a book exposing politi cal intrigue in Austria. AUSTRIA AIDS VATICAN. Rome. —Austria is actively assisting the Vatican in the contest with France. The Austrian ambassador to Pari# has telegraphed here for a de tailed list of the documents alleged to have been seized by French officials from the papal nuncio when he was dismissed from France. It 1# likely that the Vatican will make a proteat to the powers. 3