Part One Pages 1 to 8. The Omaha Sunday Bee. 2 BUSTER BROWN'S VALEV. TINE-NEXT SUNDAY'S BEE m. ESTABLISHED JUNE 19. 1871. OMAHA, SUNDAY MOKNINO, FEBRUARY 5, 1005 THIRTY-TWO PAGES. SINGLE COPY I'lVE CENTS. DEFEAT IS EXPECTED Members of British Cabinet Intimate Feu of Losing the General Election. STRONG MINORITY PARTY IS DESIRED Speaker Say Liberal Bhould Not Be Giren Too Large Majority. WINSTON CHURCHILL ON THE PREMIER Ridicules tie Zxpressions of Prime Minister in Several Speeches. AUSTRALIAN TALKS OF TRADE AGREEMENT Colonies May Kot II Prepared to Areept Preferential roller oa Plaa Laid Dowa by Chamberlnln. ASPIRATIONS OF JAP" Bara lirrnitii Talk tho Ds A & el I.ONDON, Feb. . (Special Cablegram to The Bee.) Two cabinet ministers, obviously peaking with the idea of an early dissolu tion of Parliament In their minds, expressed the opinion this week that the general elec tion will bring the liberals into power. Mr. Arnold-Foster, the secretary for war, who will be the unionist, candidate for Croydon at the general election, at the Consemttlve club on Thursday said a hard light was li.rvltable at the general election, and even then he was not sure that the conservatives would win. lie waa Inclined rather to take Mr. Chamberlain's view that it would be a swing of the pendulum, and that for a time the present opposition would be In power. He did not think that a reverse at the next general election would do much harm. In fact, he thought it would do some good In the long run, because it would show the amount of faith the present opposition had in tneir cause. I The onr thing that he would Impress upon the electors was that they should make the minority as largo as possible. If they Inquired of any of Kngland's enemies they would find that thfj desire was that the literals should reign. That In Itself was sufficient for them to make the fight as tlcrro us poselhle In order that, if the op position went Into power, their majority should be a small one. Mr. Walter Long, the president of the 1 Hoard of Trade, Is of the same opinion. He said, at Weston-Super Marc, that whether the policy waa popular or unpopular, the conservatives had deliberately committed themselves to the revision of the flsc.il system and to a measure dealing with aliens. It was possible, he said, that the country might temporarily select government from the other side, but, if that were so, only a passing check must be given to the de velopment of those great Imperial ldeaa whirl) he l.elleved Animated the majority of the people. Mr. Parker Smith told his constituents at the Davison club that the general elec tion was not far off. Winston Churchill Talks. house dinner of the Manchester Reform was held this week,' at which Mr. 'Winston 0 Churchill, M. P.. waa the principal guest. Responding to the toast of bis health, Mr. Churchill said the nation had a right to guidance from the prime minister. He was not merely a narty leader; he was the first minister of the crown, and he ought to tell the country - plainly what his opinion was on the grave and tangled controversy that had been raised. His conduct was In comprehensible. When he became prime mini titer he declared that theru should be no change In the policy of the conservative party. When the fiscal question was first raised he said he had no settled convictions. When the cabinet crisis occurred he suc ceeded, by questionable tactics. In getting rid of all free trade ministers and filling their places with protectionists. At Shef field he pronounced for a fundamental re versal of the fiscal traditions. At Edin burgh a year later, when It waa evident that protection waa not going to sweep the country, he explained that ha could never lead a protectionist party. At Southamp ton he declared that all his utterances on the fiscal question arose rroni no settled ) body of doctrine, and only persons wilfully ' blind could misunderstand them; and, lastly, at Glasgow he professed himself a bored with the whole subject It was Intol- J arable that earnest men on either side It should be the sport of such opportunism, ,W - . , U mil ... n If. Ritchie should be driven out of public life, not for the sake of public causes, but for ' the convenience of party worshipers. Had there ever been a government quite like this before? All the men with whose names and recerds the country was fa miliar, who had represented definite prin ciples, had abandoned It The great offices of state were filled by a number of persons unknown before their surprising elevation. Small man dealing with great forces had muddled and meddled. Scarcely any sphere . of politics kid escaped their fertile Inca pacity. The Indictment against the govern ment was three-fold. First, administrative Incompetency, proved by the utter chaos to which, regardless of expense, they had re duced the British army, proved by the costly and purposeless expeditions to ftomatllend und Tibet proved most patently of all by that wonderful sugar convention, by which they were so justly proved. iMrrm of Public Bardeas. Tee second tount in that indictment was profligate finance, proved by the immense Increase of public burdens, by a decline In publlo credit by the confused presentation of national accounts and of the Increasing laxity of financial practice, and proved, most of all, by the suffering end unemploy ment which existed In Great Britain owing to the shrinkage in the consuming power of the people. And the third count In thut In dictment was the gravest count of all. He would call It "constitutional misdemeanor." It was proved by their want of candor and he might almost say want of horn-sty In falling to set before the nation plainly and squarely the fiscal principles on which they were prepared to stand, by repeated at tempts to restrict liberty of debate In the House of Commons, by the Increasing arm gance of the executive toward the repre sentative assembly, and their Increasing servility toward the vested Interests. Of all the pretensions of the government, the most astonishing and. If he might say so, the most linpudrnt. waa that they had re formed the army. The record of the lust four yean, of army administration was a rord of wild extravagance, of flagrant in capacity. He admitted that Mr. Balfour had reformed the army more often and had spent more money In reforming It so often than any other minister England had ever had: but what was the result of nil these srhemesf The mllltla had been "mur dered." That was the word employed by the secretary of stste himself. The volun teersthe great bulwark against ronarrtp-tloao-were broken-hearted. Thousands had LONDON, Feb. 4. (Special Cablegram to The Bee.) Baron Suyematsu, the well known Japanese statesman, In the course of a paper entitled "Chinese Expansion Historically Reviewed," read this week bo fore the Central Asian society, took occa sion to describe the absurdity of the yellow peril bogey. There ad been lately much talk, he sold, about the yellow peril or the possibility of a Pan-Aslatlc. combination. That was nothing more than senseless, mischievous agitation. How could China rise up alone and become a source of peril to the rest of mankind? The very basic principles of Chinese civilization was essen tially pacific. Distant expeditions had come to be regarded by the Chinese a.r. a curse of empire. There were some who accusi-d Japan as the organizer of the Pan-Aslatlc peril. Peace loving as the Japanese were, the characteristics, notions and feelings of the Japanese and Chinese were so different that there was no possibility of their com plete amalgamation In one common cause. Japan aspired, moreover, to elevate her self to the name place and to press onward In the path of civilization as the countries of the west. Could anyone Imagine that Japan would like to organlzo a Pan-Alatle agitation of Its own seeking, In which it must take so many different peoples of Asia Into Its confidence peoples with whom It had no confidence or sympathy, or com munity of thought or feeling? Further more, one would have to realize what Japan would have at stake were It to dure to attempt such an enterprise in the face of the most powerful nations of the earth. Such a union of Interests and strength, even In Europe, where some states were well advanced and some were rather back ward, would bo quite Impossible. How, then, could It be expected that :ho various peoples of the east with their varying de grees of Intelligence, their conflicting in terests, their old standing feuds and Jeal ousies, would have collision to range them selves against the power of the Occident? If they could do so, was it to be imagined that Japan would enter Into so Quixotic an enterprise as to place Itself at the head of so unmanageable a mob? Japan took up the cudgels In the present war with no nthe.' motive than the defense of its own Interests. Whenever it might come to a conclusion It would, as hereto fore, seek to establish peace on sure and sound foundations, lmvlng no object In view which was not consistent with a pacific policy. No matter in what way the present contest might terminate, Japan could hardly expect that circumstances would permit of it entering upon hostilities in other directions. He could positively de clare, In the name of Japan, that when the present struggle reached its conclusion it j would honestly and faithfully pursue a policy or peace DESIRES COMPLETE MAPS British Scientist Says All Countries should Secure Thorough Geo graphical Information. CITY IS UNDERMINED Such Report Excites People of London Who Fear a Catastrophe. ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL IS THREATENED Experts Urgently InEist that an InTestiga tien Should Eoon Be Made. TUNNELS ARE NOW SOURCE OF DANGER Celebrated Loudm: Clay Said te Be Giving Way in Places. LONDON, Feb. 4.-(Speelul Cablegram to The Bee.)-Dr. Hugh Robert Mills, one of the chiefs of the. British Rainfall assocla tion, writing In the current number of the Geographical Journal on the "Present Problems of Geography," says: - . The map of the world ought to be com pleted, and it la the duty und I believe tha nteiest of every country to -"omplote at least that portion which Includes its own territory. An imperial policy which Ignores such an imperial responsibility is a thing of words and not of deeds. Unsurvcyed and unmapped territory la a danger, as well as a disgrace, to the country posses sing it, and it would hatdl bo too much to say that boundary disputes would be unknown If new lands were mapped before their mineral wealth is discovered. The degree of detail required in any lUf.y dends. uren the Importance of the region. The desideratum is not a large scale map of every uninhabited Island, but a map of the whole earth s surface on the same scale, which for the present may be a small one and might very well be that of one-mlllioneth proposed by Prof. Penck and now being carried into effect for the surveyed portions of the land. Such a map, when completed, would form a solid basis for the full discussion of many prob lems which at present can only be touched upon In a detached and unsatisfactory man ner. When a man of the whole surface of the earth on this scale Is completed we may consider the residual problems as solved. The ultimate problem of geography may perhaps be taken as the determination of the influence of the surface forms of thu earth on the mental processes of Its In habitants. But a host of minor problems must be solved In cutting the steps by which that culmination may be reached Let us first find, If possible, what Is the true relation between the elevation, slope and exposure of land and climate; then the exact influence of elevation, slope, soil ex posure and climate on vegetation; then the relation between all these and agriculture, mining, manufactures, trade, transport, the sites of towns, the political associations of peonies and the prosperity of nations. After that we may consider whother it Is fosalhle to reduce to a formula, or even o a proposition, the relation between the poetry or the religion of a people and their physical surroundings. ARBITRATORS ARE DEFIED New Kenlnnd Miners Refuse in Abide by Derision of the Court. BYDNKT, N. S. W., Feb. 8. (Special Ca blegram to The Bee.) Another illustration of the anomalous position to which state arbitration has been reduced U afforded by the present situation at the Newcastle collieries. New South Wales, where 4,000 men are Idle through a strike of coal wheelers. The New South Wales arbitration court lam week ordered all men affected by the previous award of "the court to return to work. The order has been defied, and the attorney gene-.l obtained leave from tha arbitration court to prosecute those who disobeyed the order. Later the Employes' Federation of tha Northern Collieries obtnlned In chambers a rule nisi, prohibiting the arbitration court from enforcing its order to the men to return to work. The applicants" contention was that the order referred only to skilled miners. If a rule absolute Is granted, nnmnnlnn n ui. , ,.., niiu-ii. s i itujr raie, says the leader of the strike, "they cannot put the whole countryside In Jill." (Continued on Second Pag,) FOOTPADS BUSY IN SPAIN La rare Bam la Secured by Bnadlts Who Rob aa Andaloataa Slaa-e. MADRID, Feb. 4. (Special Cablegram te The Bee.) The diligence running between the railway station at Marchena, In Anda lusia, and the village of Parsdas was held up by armed brigands this week snd ths passenger robbed. As the diligence was pssslng along a lonely part of the road six armed men sprang mil and called upon the driver to stand. They then ordered out the pas sengers, four In number, and mode them He on their faces on the road until the baggage was overhauled. A sum of 5rt was secured by the brigands, who than mads off. MANY HOUSES ARl UEING PROTECTED Bunk f Knxliuil Building nnrt Other Large Strnolnrrs Have Recently Been Fnrther Secured by I ndrrplniilnH. LONDON. Feb. 4. . Mim-.IkI Cablegram to The r.ce.)-Mu.h alarm was spread throughout the rlt- tills wee); by a re port that I-on.loii Is belns slowly under mined and that thero Is danger of a fright ful catastrophe. Alarm'ng f tatctmnU have been mode fre quentlv about the conditions of St. Paul cathedral. These have a frequently been denied by the catheurj- authorities, but tho experts remain insistenl. Now. It is declared, the danger !. b.-cme serious and urgently culls for Investigation. The foundations arc said to be sinking; as a natural and Iiua liable consequence of the puniMlns which accompanies the work ol drlvlri-; l!a various tunnels that have been constructed and others which ure still in prom-ess In the immediate vicinity- . . , The experts go further still. This in cessant tunnellns which Is proceeding In all parts of 1mdon is undermining the metropolis. The Bank of England and sev eral other biilldlnr have had to be sup ported by underpinning. From time to time since the first of the tunneling of the last year or so waa un dertaken ominous Assures have been dis covered in the fabric of St. Faul's. These are especially noticeable in the stone work of the southern transcept, where one wall in particular has receded some Inches from the perpendicular. That far greater danger Is imminent la evident In the deliberate opinion of ex perts who have conducted an examina tion within the last few days. The cross and ball which surmount the dome are now stated to be three feet out of the perpendlculur. This Is the conclusion ar rived ut by Mr. Frederick Hovenden, sec retary of the London institution, after spending two years in finding a plumb line among tho adjacent buildings in or der to gauge the deviation. Taking the west wing of the Herald's college In Queen Victoria street as a plumb line, he pointed out thnt the line of the side or the college building, cut straight through the center of the top of the ca thedral clock tower and exactly through the figure IS on the clock face, whereas tho same plumb line showed that the ball and ciosi'were lilted away toward - the east or northeast. ' ' " Much is Out of Plumb. Using the sldo of the civil service stores, of the side of the Messrs. Fletcher's prem ises as a plumb line, the cross and ball appear Just as much out of plumb. From tho southern end of Blackfriars' railway bridge the towers appear relatively quite vertical; but the stone work and Its gilded burden on the top of the dome appear distinctly out of the perpendicular. Mr. Hovenden asserts that the cross and ball must be at least three feet out of plumb. "If the Nelson column were as much out of perpendicular," he says, "It would soon be In the. street, and, for that matter, I view with dread the tunnellngs which are Incessantly going on around It." How do the various burrowing cause these subsidences and consequent danger to London buildings? In the -case of St. Paul's, which Is built upon a foundation of pot earth, under ! which is a bed of water-bearing gravel and sand and beneath which, again, is the Lon i don clay, the danger has been caused by the gravel bed sinking, owing to Its mois ture being withdrawn. The moisture In the gravel bed has been drawn off by pumping for the various tun nels which run In the vicinity and also by perculatlon through the brick work of the large sewer which runs about thirty yards on the south side of the cathedral. But all over London, Mr. Hovenden as serts, the water In the gravel bed on the top of the London clay Is being- drawn off.' The hitherto Impervious London clay, dis turbed by the sinking of shafts and tunnel ling, has been "rotted" and large quantities of water have fallen from the gravel-sand strata beside the Iron tubes to a lower level. In the building of these underground Unes pumping has had to be kept up night and day to enable the work to proceed uninter ruptedly. Water Courses Inder City. Lower water courses have been formed In every direction In which tube railways pen etrate, the water sinking through the rot ten clay beside the vertical shafts and run ning alongside the tubes themselves at a depth of eighty to 100 feet. At one or twe points the .water finds an outlet Into the poms bed at the bottom of the London clay and at other points runs Into the porus bed underneath the Thames. The engineers have tried to seal the tubes to the clay hermetically by pumping thin Portland cement through holea in the iron left for the purpose, but this has been un availing because the cement had to be mixed so thin In order to pump It that It was precipitated and left all the water at the surface. The clay Itself Is liable te a process which geologists call "eroding." When disturbed it Is soluable In water, and consequently In parts even the London clay is sinking. London Is therefor in reality being un dermined In every part whether near a tube or not for the thousands of tons of water which, falling upon the northern and southern heights, formerly flowed Into th gravel bed upon the London clay, must find a lower level, and la doing so ever)' day, with the consequence that there was never so much underpinning ef buildings In the metropolis as Is now necessitated In all directions. The Bank of England was recently under pinned, and the front of a larg building In the city road at the comer of Cowper street, which was erected four years ago, was found to be aa inch out of plumb twe years later. This also had te be under, pinned. Further proof that' this water has with drawn Ilea in the fact that numerous shal low wells which studded the city a few years ago have now run dry. On of these was In a building at th bottom of Cheapslde, another at th northeast corner of the Batik of England, which was In use up to four years ago; another In Old street and still another In Flnsuiuy square. VOTERS IDENTIFY BALLOTS Teatlsnoay la t'olorade Klertloa Case Cast Doubts Exactness of F.rldrnee Of Kxperts. DENVER, Feb. 4. In the Penbody-Adams gubernatorial contest today a number of witnesses, both democrats and republicans, today Identified as their ballots those which experts had declared o be fraudulent At torney p. J. E. Roblnsi.n identtnd Ms bal lot among forty republican ballots wlilcii an txpirt had declared were wrlttfli Ly the im nu person He also identified his initials under the number on I he ballot And de clared they were all l.a'lots which w.rc east in his precinct on election (J ty. "Then." said Attorney John A. Rush, -when Expert Fleury says thesa forty repibl'ciui ballots are In one handwriting he Is ."onitwliat of a failure as an xpcrt?" "Absolutely," mid the witness. The witness dtclared that it was Impos sible that these ballots had been switched. In examining the list of fifty democratic and forty republican names corresponding to the ballots which the expert declared were In one handwriting, the witness de clared that lie was personally aciiualntcd with forty-five i f tho democrats and thirty five of the republicans and knew that they voted. The other ten he trstltled were le gally registered, but he did not know tliera personally. Depositions of voters whoo bait jts -have ben dechued illegal by the experts wire fallen before twelve notaries public. At least Sin deposition have been secured. Mrs. Ksb? Iiofrnn stated that although a democrat shu had acted as a ripabltcati watcher In the Fourteenth prrelnet of tho Sixth ward. In that precinct Expert W. B. I'foits had testified eighty-thrtt demo cratic and twenty-two republican wtes were In the same handwriting. Mrs. Hogan statrd that when she read of charges of fraud In her precinct she made a personal canvass and out of the 35a peo;j'.e who voted, she chocked up SIT. Tho others she could not find, and she understood they had moved. The names of the alleged fraudulent Voters were read to Mrs. Hojfan, end with one exception she stated they were bona flde residents and Voters. Thirteen witnesses In all were examined today with a view of having them Identify their ballots from among those which tho committee considered prima facie fraudu lent on the reports of the expert3. In ever' case tho witness was to able to Iden tify his ballot and In some cases his wife's ballot as well. The committee will resume Its hearings on Monday afternoon. FLOODS IN THE SOUTHWEST No Trains In or Oat of Los Aasrele or Phoenix Yesterday Damace Is Heavy. LOS ANGELES, Cal., Feb. 4. Although the rain had ceased In Los Angeles early today, reports from other points In south ern California shjw & continued downpour and further damage from. the floods. All railroads out of Los Angeles are tied up and there . were no trains on either of the transcontinental lines in or out of the city today. The damage to the streets of the city by the floods wilt reach about S20,00(K PHOENIX. Arts.,- -Feb. -4.-PhoenIx and the surroundltig- im.y arty again excited by the flood conditions. Today the Bait river was very high and fears are being expressed for the safety of the Gila river bridge on the Maricopa L Phoenix railroad. The flood waters today swept across the country from a point where the Cavo creek mouth Is lost In the desert by Glendale, across Irrigation canals as It did in the flood three weeks ago, ever farms, leaving the water three feet deep In some houses and across Capitol addition In tho west end of Phoenix. Many residents there have been forced to leave tents and temporary abiding places. Water surrounds the ter ritorial capltol building a few Inches in depth. A Santa Fe train started out today, but got only a few miles and had to re turn, a the cross-desert flood runs against Its grade, which forms a dam that turns the water toward Phoenix. News from Globe says that the Gila valley, Globe it Northern railroad near Bowie Is badly washed out. FATAL FIGHT IN MISSOURI Row Following; School Exhibition at HantsTiUe Results la Death of Two Men. HTjNTSVILLE, Mo.. Feb. 4.-J. B. Stamper of College Mound shot and killed Deed Mlohaet and mortally wounded Wlb Michael at a school exhibition In Charlton township of Randolph county last night. John Murray, a IS-year-old boy, who was present but not In the trouble, also died this morning as the result of two wounds he received. The directors of the school had asked Mr. Stamper, who was a deputy sheriff of Macon county for many years, to be present and keep order, as there are some disorderly persons in the neighborhood. During the exhibition the two Michaels and a cousin named Bill Acrey raised a disturbance and Stamper went to them and asksd them to keep quiet After the entertainment the three boys started after Stamper, announcing their Intentions of killing him. Acrey had a dangerous knife open and approached him from the front and the two Michaels on either side. As Deed grabbed for Stamper the latter shot him through the heart and he fell dead. Stamper then turned and shot Wlb twice, ono in the head and once In the body. Stamper waa cut through the coat and a checkbook In his pocket was cut almost two. He came here and surrendered to the sheriff and Is now out on 10,000 bond. CHICAGO MEN ARE INDICTED President of Toaael Casapaay mm Ferntar City OCBetala Charged ' with Ferwcry. CHICAGO. Feb 4,-Albert O. Wheeler, president of the Illinois Tunnel company; former City Clerk William Loeffler and Assistant City Clerk Edward Erhorn were today Indicted by the grand Jury on a charge of forgery in connection with th franchise for the underground railroad sys tem In this city. Alderman Edward Novak and John Hlg. Bins, a printer, wr indicted In th same connection on charges of perjury a well as forrery. i Among the 'witnesses heard by the grand Jury were Ernest McGaffee, secretary to Mayor Harrison and reading clerk for th aouncil; City Clerk Fred C. Bender. J. C Hutchins and E. J. Judd. The Indictments covjt 200 typewritten pages and embrace. It Is said, tne story of th granting of the tunnel ordinance by th city. The charge of forgery is baaed on the alleged p hanging of a council report as to the sis of th tunnels and the accusation of perjury grow out of testimony given at th preliminary hearing in a Justice ouur a tun aguv . ONLY THING TO DO Oenernl Stoeosel Defends His Course in Surrendering Pert Arthur. GARRISON AND AMMUNITION EXHAUSTED Further Resistance Would Hay Only Re sulted is Useless Loss of Lift. DENIES PEKING CORRESPONDENT'S STORY Subordinate Officer Indignantly Repudiates that Msn Were in Tightiig Trim. FURTHER FIGHTING AT THE FRONT Japanese Report I lie Krpulse of Two Russian Attacks nr the (enter Friday Morn Inn Kouropat kin May 1 Relieved. COLOMBO, Cejlon, Keli. 4. Ceneral btocssul, tha forme.- commander of Port Arthur, and the Uus.ilan olhcer and others accompanying htm, arrived here today from Japan by way of Shanghai, on bourd the French line steamer Auslralien. Iu an Interview with the correspondent of the Associated Press the general denied the statements published to the effect that Port Arthur aw. surrendered prematurely. He was (.'Specially indignant at the state ments made by a London newspaper Jan uary 15 in u dispatch from Peking that there were at the lime ot the surrender 35,000 able- bodied mill In Port Arthur capable of making a sortie, hundreds of officers, ull well nourished, plenty of ammunition, tho largest magazine being untouched and full to the roof, and thut there was an amplu supply of food for three months, even If no frh supplies were received. The gei. eral characterised these statements as up jUAiiilcd ur.d not supported by fuels. Colonel Keiss, wiio was among the nego tiators of the surrender of the fortress, said: The garrison could not have held out & moment longer. It would have been mur der. Only U roubles remained In the mili tary -.reus in out of 1.6W.00O at 'he com mencement of the siege. Four hundred men wero dying daily at the hospitals, principally from wou and scurvy. Gen eral Kondratanko the hero of the siege. Colonel Relss further declared that tho Japanese were "admirable soldiers, but poor in the use of the bayonet, compared with the Russians and French." General Sioesael and others of his parly will tranship at Port Said for Odessa. Report front the Front. TOKIO, Feb. 4. (1 p. m.) Manchurlan headquarters, telegraphing under date of February 3, says: On Thursday, February 2, the enemy's artillery bomharded from several points our right wing. Otherwise the situation Is un changed. In the direction of our center at 12:30 Friday morning,. February Z. one com pany of the enemy's Infantry attacked our outposts from the Mukden rqad, and later another section was attacked in the neigh borhood of Wanchlayuantantsu. Both at tacks were repulsed. la the direction of our left the enemy has been aliacalng In the nelghborhoodi of Liutlaokou since the morning of February 2. Tho force, which consisted of the First and Fifth Rifle brigades, was driven back toward Changtan. The enemy's losses sre estimated at TuO. We witnessed the removal of over J0O dead. The Rusalnn dead al ready Interred after the battle ot Holkoutal. In the neighborhood of Bumpao alone, num uer WO. Koaropatkla Resorts. ST. PET ERS BURG. Feb. 4. General Kouropatkln, telegraph'ng under date of February 8, to Emperor Nicholas, said: The village of Chautanhenau has been Completely occupied by our troops after a fight at 6 o'clock, this morning. We re con not tered the villages of Faagshen and Poudsova, occupied by the enemy, and after several volleys the sharpshooters en tered Fanshan and shot snd bayonetted many Japanese. The latter were rein forced and attacked the snarpshooters, who retired, carrying off their dead and WOnnour' right flank the Japanese left 100 corpses, of which number we burled eighty-seven. Kouropatkln May Quit. 5 p. m. Rumors of General Kouropatkln handing over his command to General Llnevltch (commander of the First army) have been current In St. Petersburg since the announcement that Ooneral , Grlppen berg had been relieved of bis command of the Second army. Tho Associated Press is unable to obtain any confirmation of the reports. The War office declares they are Improbable, but is unable to deny them. A distinguished general told the Asso ciated Press that evidently there had been friction between General Kouropatkln and General Grlppenberg. and added: "I have heard a great deal of talk about Kouropatkln's asking to bs relieved, but nothing positive can be said on the sub ject at present.' There are two conflicting versions of the Incident. According to one of them, Gen eral Grlppenberg complained to the emperor that General Kouropatkln hod refused to support his flanking movement, In view of which Grlppenberg asked to be relieved. The emperor, It is added, then telegraphed to Kouropatkln asking- for an explanation. In reply to which Kouropatkln wired that his health was shattered and requested per mission to turn over his command to Gen eral . Llnevltch. According V the second and more com monly credited version of the affair, Kouro patkln complained to the emperor that Grlppenberg undertook the flanking move ment In defiance of orders and demanded the general's dismissal. The hope Is generally expressed that the Incident will be satisfactorily adjusted, as It Is realised on all sides that Kouropatkln's departure from the front would proe a severe blow to hopes of victory In ths near future. Ortppenberff's withdrawal has net changed the situation. The Russians con tinue to hold their positions around San depas. Denies Story of a Conference. LONDON, Feb. 4. The Foreign office de clares there Is no foundation for the report that conferences have taken place at Berlin between Chancellor von Buelow and the British ambassador, Sir Frank Laacha, with the object of bringing about peace between Russia and Japan. The officials here know nothing of any proposals from either Germany, Great Britain or else where suggesting sn effirt, Joint or other wise, to stop the war. - BERLIN, Feb. 4. The Ixindon report that Emperor William considers this an op portune moment for Great Britain snd Germany to Join In an (Tort for peace In the far east Is treated by the Foreign office litre as being merely a variation of an old phantasy, quite without semblance of foundation. Russia has given no intima tion that le desires peace and it la deemed here Impossible that Germany should ad. vise or suggest peace without an Invitation from both belligerents. The realities of the situation now preclude the European powers from oftsiing to medial as they did In th case of President .Rooaevult two nuuilus &v. THE BEE BULLETIN. Forecast for ehraka -saew day and Probably Monday. F.W, 9K TIO 1 British Olil rf Ktnerte Defeat. f it) of Irfin-tnn Is I ndermlned. ftoessel Defends fnrreader. Dolnaa of the Legislators. X President fpprotri school Plan. Vnusunl Weather Conditions. 8 ews from All Paris hf Nebraska. rrnHrgt Will "Inn Rosebud Bill. I Large iot en Fare of the Sen. V. M. C. I. -Hah ins BniMlna Plans. (imu Tank Kiplodes, Wrerka t'oaeh B Corn Rate la nl a standstill. I.oral Poor Ilelna Wll Cared For. A Past Week In Oiniha Aoelrty. Woman In t lob mid Charily. Rosebud Settlers Let More Time. T Council niufTa and Iowa ews. H Control of the llalli-oade. EDITOIIIAI. KCTIO l .eeds of Omaha Fire Department. 1(1 Kt'ttorlal. 13 financial and Commercial. 14 Condition of Omnhn's Trade. a HALF-TOMS SEt THIS 1 Stories Told of Men of Note. Portraits of Omaha Railroad Men. Proarca In the electrical Field. Nome Tersely Tnli Tales. J. .V H. Putrlek, the rioneer. 2 Plays, l'lajers and Playhouses. MoKlenl Xcws and Notes. I Features of IJfe In Mexico. 4 (old Flies In Omaha's History. Ruins of Last Sunday's Hl Rinse. 5 (illnipces uf Mebreska Lealslatora. ii In the Dnmnln of Womna 7 portln Review of the Week. M Problems of War Depnrtmeut, COLOR SF.tTION 1 Raster Brown, it Odd Work for Women. From Kar and Near. .'I Comic Opern In Krai Life. 4 Cupid's Alil-st Ally. A Flllpleo Pocahontas. 5 Hons on tlif Poller 1 orce. How Foreign Women Toll. 0 Museum of Human Passions. T Top o the Mornln'. K Career of 4 holly Cashvaller. Alice's ToboiCKiin Mlrte. B A Jealous Wife. Romance of a Picture Postal. lO Bcvj of Htaae Reauty. Temperature nt Omnhn Yesterday Hour. ! n. Hour. Ilea. B a. ui I It 1 p. m 1 a. m ill 2 p. m O 7 a. m lit a p. nt 1 (4 a. in 10 4 p. tn O 9i,m lit S p. in O IO o. m 14 t p. m O ltn.ni. ...., t 7 p. in 1 12 m 4 SUMMARY OF WAR SITUATION Quiet Again Relarns Within the Zone of Hostilities In Man churia. Quiet reigns in the cone of hostilities In Manchuria, with the extreme right ot tho Russians holding Chiantsunhensan, six lies northwest ot Sandepas, and neither side apparently Is ablo to move on account of tho severity of the weather. The Rus sians .have brought in. 200 Japanese pris oners who were poorly clothed and suffer ing from the cold."- ---;-".- - The reported Intention of General Kouro patkln to hand over his command to General Llnevltch Is not confirmed. No disorders arising from the strikes wore reported in Russia yesterday. At Moscow the assembly of nobles voted to send two addresses to .the emperor on the subject of political freedom for the people. GRAIN RATES CUT IN TWO Great Western Announces that It Will Carry Cora to ew Torse for Thirteen Cents, CHICAGO, Feb. 4. The Chicago Great Western today announced the lowest freight rates ever made from Omaha to the Atlantic seaboard. The new tariff Is 11H cents to Baltimore and 13 cents to New York. - When the war began between the lines leading from Omaha to the Gulf of Mexico and the lines from Omaha to the. Atlantic seaboard via Chicago, the rates were 34 cents to Baltimore and 25 cents to New. York. During the fortnight that the roads have been fighting over the export traffic in corn from the west, rates have thus decreased 50 per cent. There is no sign of a weakening on either side,' and further reductions are expected early next week. ALLEGED FORGER ARRESTED Man Traveling for Omnhn Concern Is Taken by Kansas City Detectives. KANSAS CITT, Feb. .-(Special Tele gram.) George Thomas, a traveling sales man in the employ of the Western Mer cantile Manufacturing company of Omaha, waa arrested by Detectives O'Hare, and Sullivan at the Century hotel on complaint ef John Letton, manager of the Metropoli tan hotel, who charges Thomas with pass ing a forged draft for S2S. Thomas tried to escape In a crowd at Twelfth and Main streets. He ran south on Main street to Tenth street and then turned east. The detectives and Mr. Let ton followed him and yelled to several men on the street to catch the fugitive, but none obeyed. Ietton overtook Thomas at Tenth and Walnut streets and held him until the officers arrived. BOY SETS FIRE TO HOTEL Discharged Kiuploye Confesses that He Bet Flro to It. Louis Hostelry. ST. LOUIS, rb. 4GHbert Rets, 17 years old, today confessed to Assistant Chief of Detectives Keeley that he set fire to the Kpworth hotel tn January, en dangering the live of 100 persons and causing damage estimated at $2,000. Bets told the chief that he had been dis charged' by the hotel management, and In a desire to get even had climbed Into the attlo and piled papers In two places, which he set on Are. As the Kpworth bote! Is located In St. Louis county Bets wag turned over to the county authorities. DEBATE PAROLE BILL Jackson and Windham Pitted Against Each Other on tha Measure. SECOND CONTEST ON THIS SUBJECf Committee of the Whole Yotea Against Makiag Favorable Report. SAVED FROM UNTIMELY DEATH BY BURNS Progress to Be Reported ana Committee tc) oasider it Again. FEW MEMBERS ATTEND THE SESSION) Only Fifty-Three Members Vote OS tho Uuestloa, Many Havlasj Gone Home and Others oa Junketing Trips. (From a Staff Correspondent.) LINCOLN. Feb. 4. (Special Telegram.)- After devoting the forenoon to a spirited debate on Jackson's bill to parole first and second degree murderers serving life terms In the penitentiary at the expiration, of! ten years, the house at 12:10 adjourned tin til 1 a. m. Monday. The senate held nil Saturday sosslou, as usual, having ad joiirued for the week Friday. The attend ance In the house was small, many mem-, bers being off on Junketing trips and others) having gone to their homes. Boon alter convening, at 10 o'clock, tho j house went Into committee of the whole ; and took up H. R. tZ, the Jackson bill. I Warner of Lancaster was In the chair. I After a prolonged debate Jackson made tho motion that when the committee arlso It report the bill back for passage with one Immaterial amendment tacked on. This motion waa voted down, 21 to 82. Under or dinary circumstances an opponent of the bill would have moved that it then bo rec ommended for Indefinite postponement, but this was lost sight of In the rush and anxloty to adjourn, together with tho ex ultatlou of those against the bill, and Bums of lncasier, who had spoken for the measure, got In a motion that when th committee arise It report progress on tho bill and uk leave to sit again. This mo tion carried before Windham, who had made such an effective fight to kill the bill, realized what had been done. Jackson, therefore, may be ablo to save his pet measure Rfter all, for It Is possible that w!.h a larger attendance greater favor may bo shown for tho bill. Features of the BUI. The essential features of this bill are) that whenever any criminal convloted of murder In the first or second degree and sent to the penitentiary for life shall have served ten years of his time he shall be subject to parole at the hands of tho governor, but It does not make his parole mandatory. The present law fixes this limit at twenty-five years. This Is tl-.e second notable Oght In tha house on this bill. On both occasion Jackson has insisted that he was actuated by humane motives In drawing tip' and In troducing thi hll U This morning ho took occasion emphatically to deny that tha bill was In the Interest of any . person now serving a life sentence In the peni tentiary. It hud been charged that It sought to benefit George Washington Davis, the Rock Island train wrecker. Wlndhtim urged the members that thin was a bill on which every man should vote as his conscience approved and not one on which nny trading should be dona, Thla led Jackson to remark that he had not asked for or solicited the vote of a single member on this bill. Windham hastened to assure his colleague that he meant to; convey no such Impression. Burns and Burgess of Lancaster, bl speaking for the bill, brought up the LIlllo case and avowed their faith in the inno oence of the woman convicted and sen tenced for life for the murder of her hus band. They thought In such cases) tho Jackson bill would be a good one. These bills were Introduced in the housei H. R. 212, by Warner of Lincoln An act to IncrrasH the salary of the secretory iif the statu Board of Equalization from (l.SUO to $1,W0 a year. H. R. 219. by Burgess of J-anranter An act to create a warehouse Hen law. Re quires tiling of contract with county cleric and provides for foreclosing under a chattel mortgage. H. R. 220. by Fltle of Douglas An set defining property in news and providing for its protection by equitable relief and also by suit ut law. H. R. 221. by Mtixen of Douglas Relating to the welfare of infants. Puts luylng-in hospitals under supervision of tha local board of health. H. R. 222, by Clarke of Douglas An act to amend section 8D7. title xxlx. of the code of civil procedure of tho compiled statutes of Nebraska and to repeal said scot Ion and to provide for the proof of qualification ot sureties on undertakings, bonds and recognl-. sauces. H. R. 223. by Perry of Furnas, an act to enable the husband or wife to sell Joint property where one or the other Is Insane. H. R. 224, by Penbody of Nemaha An act for the organization and government of drainage districts; for the reclamation and protection of swamps, overflowed or sub merged lands; to provide for the acquire ment of right-of-way and oil other property necessary to carry out the purposes or this) act; to prescribe a penalty for the wlltull and malicious Injury, obstruction or inter ference with the rights, ditches or property! of said districts; to provide for said drain age districts, to Issue bonds for the pur poses of construction. H. R.22R, by Windham of Cass An act ta sllow district Judges sitting In chambers to hear and determine mo'ions and demurrer. H. R. 22(1. by Hogrefo of Richardson An act defining "bucket shops," and prohibiting the keeping, maintaining and operating oc the same. H. it. 227, by Baron of Dawson An act determining the location of government sec tion and half section corners,, and making; the record of the county surveyor conclu sive as to such location. H. H. 22S. by Burgess of Irfin canter A Lin coln charter bill, approved by the city aba torney and other city official. H. R. 229. by Parker of Otoe An act to) rirohiblt a county board from grunting a Icenne for the sale of liquors within 400 feet of a public school. H. U. 2nd, by Parker of Otoe An set pro hlbltlng city suthorlties from granting tho sums sort of license. PIJCNTY OF WORK FOR THIS EATE1 1 .111 POLISH TOWN IN A PANIC Inhabitants of Caestoehowa Barri cade Their Honsee Aajalast th strikers. WARSAW. Feb. 4,-Hspurts from Oaesto crowa, Russlsn Poland, say thst city Is In a state of panic The Inhabitants ar barricading their doors and windows In cobseqtMnue ot the attitude uf the strikers. Large Number of llllls on (he Gen) eral File. (From a Staff Correspondent.) LINCOLN, Neb., Feb. 4.-Speolal.)-Wheii the senate convenes Monday afternoon II i will have on general file twenty-seven bills. By holding only morning sessions the sen at committees have had an opportunity do considerable work und this opportunll has been taken advantage of. This mornln th various committees hud nine bill! ready to report back to the general file. Some objections have been made to trie action of the senate holding only morning sessions and for adjourning yesterday until Monday, by some members of the house, who seem to think that their work will be finished and then the senate will have nothing to do but kill house bills. Tn thla connection It should be borne In mind that the senate has just aa many committees fa look sfter aa the house, while at the earn time It has Just one-third as many ina to