--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 7 number: 8 published: 1904-06 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Events of the Month," *Improvement Era* 7, no. 8 (June 1904): 630–640.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0708unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera0708unse start_page: 630 end_page: 640 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1904-06) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera0708unse publication_year: 1904 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1904, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Events of the Month EVENTS OF THE MONTH. Local. —April, 1904. Passing of a Busy Life. —William Burgess, a pioneer of 1848, died at Huntington, Utah, Monday, March 14. He was born March 1, 1822, in Putnam county. New York, and moved with his parents to Kirtland in 1833, where he was baptized in 1835 by his brother Harrison. Elder Burgess passed through the troublesome times of 1837 to 1846, with the main body of the Church. In 1840 he married Maria Pulsipher, daugh- ter of Zera Pulsipher; and in 1844, he was ordained a Seventy, and a president of Seventies, in 1854. In May, 1849, he and family started west, remaining a short time in Iowa, and in September of that year arrived at Winter Quarters where great sickness prevailed. On the 22nd of September, 1848, he arrived in the Salt Lake valley. The fol- lowing year, when the militia was organized, he was elected captain of the fifth company, first regiment of infantry; and in 1854 he was elected colonel of the second regiment of infantry. In the spring of 1855, he was called and went on a mission to the Salmon river, where he was chosen counselor to President Thomas S. Smith. In June, 1862, he was called to go to Dixie. He settled in Pine valley, where he put up a saw mill, which furnished most of the timber for that part of the country. In 188U, he removed to Thurber, Wayne county; and in 1885, settled in Huntington, where he engaged in carpentry and fruit raising. Sunday Schools. — On the evening of Sunday, 3rd, the annual con- ference of the Sunday Schools was held in the Salt Lake Tabernacle, the building being packed with people. From the report of Secretary George D. Pyper, it appears that there are 10,061 Sunday Schools in the Church, a gain of 21 since the previous report. These schools have held 46,321 sessions and had 16,292 officers and teachers, with an average attend- ance of 67 per cent. The enrollment of pupils showed 56,203 males and 59,478 females, or a total of 115,681, with an average attendance of 57 per cent. Books owned by the Sunday Schools,exclusive of the regular song books. EVENTS OF THE MONTH. 631 numbered 22,357. Of the officers and teachers, 84 per cent observed the ' Word of Wisdom while among the pupils it was observed by 81 per , cent; 93 per cent of the officers and teachers paid tithing. Recently district conventions of officers had been held in Salt Lake, Ogden and Provo, and like conventions will be held throughout the Church, as ar- ranged for at a meeting of the officers in Barratt Hall on the 5th. These conventions are department gatherings having a widely different pro- gram from the regular stake Sunday School conferences. — Change op Mission Name. It was officially announced on Monday, 11th, that the name of the Southwestern States Mission had been changed to Central States Mission. The headquarters will still remain in Kansas City, with Elder James G. Duffin as president. Dr. Brimhall Appointed President. —At Provo, on Saturday, the 16th, the Board of Trustees of the Brigham Young University, at a meeting held in that city, appointed Dr. George H. Brimhall, permanent president of that institution. Since the retirement of the former presi- dent, Elder Benjamin Cluff, Jr., at the beginning of the year. Dr. Brim- hall has acted in the capacity of president. A New Branch of the Church. — On Sunday, 17th, a branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized at Inkom, Idaho, in the Pocatello Stake, with William R. Damron as presiding elder. The Bureau op Information and Church Literature. —This mis- sion was organized in July, 1902, withBenjamin Goddard, chairman, Thomas Hull, secretary and treasurer, Arnold H. Schulthess and Josiah Burrows committee. A small building for the entertainment of strang- ers and the distribution of literature was erected on the Temple Block, Salt Lake City, at a cost of about six hundred dollars. About seventy- five ladies and gentlemen w ere called to spend leisure time in escorting strangers around the Block, and the work was commenced on August 4, 1902. In one year, the registry books indicated that about 150,000 per- sons had been thus entertained. The work has grown so rapidly, and the efforts of these missionary workers have been so appreciated by the traveling public, that it was recently deemed necessary to erect a more commodious building. Plans submitted by Dallas and Hedges, architects, were accepted and bids called for. The new Bureau Building is located near the south gates, and has been completed at a cost of nearly nine thousand dollars. The footing walls are of temple granite, and the walls are of buff brick, with white stone trimmings. The building is thirty by forty feet, and is well arranged for the purpose of entertain- ing visitors. The furniture is of oak and upholstered with leather. In addition to the main hall, small reception rooms and toilets are pro- vided. A number of corner niches contain relics and curios which are of much interest to all classes. The new building was formally dedicated on Saturday, March 26, 1904. Presidents Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, A. H. Lund, Patriarch John Smith, Presiding Bishop W. B. Pres- ton, Elders Rudger Clawson, Geo. A. Smith, Jos. W. McMurrin and others were present. Daring the evening the chairman of the Bureau commit- tee reported the work accomplished since the organization. Over four hundred thousand pamphlets had been published at a cost of two thou- sand dollars. A large quantity "^f Church works, also, had been sold and circulated. The dedicatory prayer was offered by President John R. Winder, and addresses were delivered by Presidents Joseph F. Smith, Anthon H. Lund, John R. Winder, Elder Rudger Clawson, and others. Snowstorm. —On Wednesday night, 20th, a heavy snowstorm visited Salt Lake, with over an inch of precipitation, leaving wet, heavy snow in depth from nine to twelve inches. The storm was general over north- ern Utah, and did some damage in breaking limbs of trees, telephone wires and telegraph poles, but the clearing occurred without serious frost, so that generally fruit was not damaged. Utah Boys Win. — An oratorical contest was held between the Utah University and the Colorado College, on the 22nd. It was the first Col- legiate debate between the institutions, and the Utah boys won the very interesting contest. Governor Wells announced the subject of the de- bate: "Resolved, that the adjudication of disputes between employer and employee should be made a part of the regular administration of justice. "Granted, that courts with appropriate rules of procedure may be established if desirable. "Granted, that labor unions may be made to incorporate if nec- essary ." The judges were E. M. Allison, Fisher S. Harris and Rev. Elmer I. Goshen. The Colorado team consisted of W. L. Hogg, M. A. Strange, and M. E. Keys; while tha Salt Lake victors, who took the affirmative, were T. J. Howells, F. E. Holman, and W. H. Soule. Division of a Ward. —At a meeting held at Monroe, Sevier Co., 24th, that place was divided into two wards, termed the north and south wards, the following officers being sustained: South Ward, Heber Swin- — EVENTS OF THE MONTH. 633 die, bishop, Orson Hutchinson and Cyrus W. Winget, counselors; North Ward, Jos. H. Hensen, bishop, August W. Bahman, and Jas. R. Ware, counselors. The Coal Strike. — It was feared for a time in the latter part of April that the coal strike would be renewed. "Mother Jones, "an eastern woman agitator, broke quarantine, went to Price, and for a time seemed to stir up trouble among the miners. Word was sent to Governor Wells that there was danger at the mines of another uprising. General John Q. Cannon and Dr. Beattie were thereupon sent to Carbon County to ascer- tain whether there was need for troops to keep order. Upon their re- porting, the governor was convinced that there was no present need for soldiers, but that the local officers could keep the peace without involv- ing the aid of the state. On the 27th, the Executive Board of United Mine Workers met in Indianapolis, Ind., and called off the coal strike in Dist. No. 15, embracing Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and southern Wyoming. This means that the Union will no longer sustain the strikers. It means that the strikers must leave, and that the strike which has cost Colorado untold thousands, and the state of Utah $30,000, is at an end. "Mother Jones" addressed the State Labor Convention in Salt Lake on the 3rd of May, and was later recalled to Indianapolis by President John Mitchell of the United Mine Workers Association. — Seedless Apples. A company has been incorporated in Provo, to propagate the seedless apple produced by John F. Spencer, of Grand Junction, Colorado. Its articles of incorporation were filed on the 28th. William M. Roy lance is manager of the local company, and will super- vise the planting of 50,000 seedling trees in a plat of ground in Pleas- ant View, which trees will be budded with the seedless fruit next fall. James Meldrum will have charge of the orchard. Died. —In Provo, Monday, 11th, James C. Wagstaff, second coun- selor to Bishop Storrs, of the second ward. —In Spanish Fork, on Wednesday, 13th, the funeral services over the remains of George H. Jex, were held.He was born December 28, 1864. He was a student of the Brigham Young Academy at Provo, in 1885-86, and in 1889 and 90, labored as a missionary in the Southern States. —In Moroni, Thursday, 14th, Martha Mallinson, born Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, September, 1853, and came to Utah in 1855 with her parents. In — Moroni, Sevier county, on Friday, 15th, the funeral over the remains of Emeline H. Jensen, an active worker in the Relief Society, was held. In Sanford, Conejos county, Colorado, 18th, William F. Reynolds. He crossed the plains in early days, and before moving to Colorado was a counselor in the bishopric of the Mount Pleasant ward. In Farming-— ton, Monday, 18th, Virginia F. Major, an active worker in the Relief Society. She was born in Scotland, July 9, 1850, being baptized when eight years of age, and coming to Utah with her parents in 1853. In — Los Angeles, Monday, 18th, Fannie Stenhouse, wife of T. B. H. Sten- house, and author of An English Woman in Utah, born in 182y, emi- grated to Utah in 1859. — In Farmington, Thursday, 19th, Ann Elizabeth Everett White, who was a pioneer of 1847, born August 30, 1832, and was with the Church through the trials of Missouri and Illinois. —In Toquerville, Friday, 20th, Charles Stappley, a pioneer of Dixie, born England in 1824, came to Utah from California in 1858, settling in Toquer- ville. In Salt Lake City, on the hills east of City Creek, the body of Alfred R. Petersen was found, Sunday, 24th. He was a student of the Latter-day Saints' University, and had wandered away on February 29, and was overcome by a blinding snowstorm. His home was in West Jordan. —In Provo, Sunday, 24th, Christina Jeppeson, aged 97 years. InLehi, 24th Hannah Webb, born May 9, 1831, in Bedfordshire, England. She received the gospel in her native land, and came to Utah in 1854. In Hyrum, Monday, 25th, Lars Christensen, a High Priest in the Hyrum stake of Zion. —In Salina, Tuesday, 26th, George Fenn, Sr., born Bed- fordshire, England, May 8, 1830, baptized December, 1848, and emi- grated to Utah in 1851, returning as a missionary the following year. In Santaquin, Utah county, 27th, Peter Nelson Anderson, born 1829 in Sweden, joined the Church in 1855, emigrated to Utah in 1861. —In Cedar City, 28th, William Unthank, born England, in 1828, joined the Church in Australia, and came to America 1855. — In Salem, Oregon, Wednesday, 27th, Alonzo Valkenberg, pioneer of 1849, born Stueben county, New York, January 19, 1837. In 1847 he returned to the Mis- souri river to assist the emigrating Saints. In 1897 he removed from Sanpete county, where his home had been for many years, to Salem Ore- , gon. —In Driggs, Idaho, Friday, 29th, Bishop H. 0. Crandall, born Spring- ville, Utah, 1858. In 1877 he went to Huntington, Emery county, and was first counselor in the bishopric. He later removed to Ashley, then to Arizona, and finally to Driggs, where he was ordained Bishop. May, 1904. New Y. M. C. A. Building. — On Sunday, the first, the corner stone of the new building of the Y. M. C. A. was laid. The splendid structure will be erected on the corner of First South and First East streets, Salt Lake City. Appropriate ceremonies for the auspicious occasion were EVENTS OF THE MONTH. 635 held in the Theater, where an inspiring speech was given by Rev. Elmer I. Goshen, on "The Needs of Young Men." There were a large num- ber of officers of the association and leading citizens who are interested in the undertaking, and notwithstanding the rain which fell, the occasion was heartily enjoyed. Death of Hon. James Sharp. — On the early morning of the 7th, Hon. James Sharp, one of the state's prominent business men, ex-mayor of Salt Lake, and a staunch Church worker, died at his home in Salt Lake City. He was a son of the late Bishop John Sharp, who is well known as the Utah railroad king, and was born November 18, 1843, at Talkirk, Stirlington, Scotland. His parents emigrated to America in 1848, remaining in St. Louis until the spring of 1850, when they began their journey to Salt Lake, arriving in this valley in August of that year. James Sharp's first public service was an emigration trip to the Missouri river when he was only 18 years of age. He was called by President Lincoln in 1862 to join Lot Smith's command for the pur- pose of suppressing Indian troubles extending from Fort Bridger to the headwaters of the Snake river. The military expedition, which was one of the most celebrated expeditions of early days, resulted in pacifying the red men, but it was beset with many difficulties and privations. James Sharp succeeded his father as director of the Union Pacific, and with him was associated in the construction of the Utah Central, Utah Southern, and Utah Southern Extension railroads from Ogden to the south- ern part of the state. He was a member of the Legislature in 1876, and thereafter served several terms in both the upper and lower houses, being elected speaker of the lower house in 1884. That year he was elected mayor of Salt Lake City, in which capacity he served until 1886, with marked ability and to the entire satisfaction of the people. For many years he was a member of the Board of Regents of the Uni- versity of Utah, and was president of that body when he died. He was also a member of the Church Board of Education. In business circles he stood very prominent, being interested in the Deseret National Bank, the Deseret Savings Bank, of which he was one of the founders, Clark, Eldredge & Co., Cunnington Co., Sharp Grocery & Supply Co., at Bex- burg, the Oregon Lumber Co., Ogden SavingsBank,and until lately the First National Bank of Ogden City, and was prominently identified with all the principal business enterprises of this region. As a Church worker, he was very prominent, having filled two missions to Great Britain, one in 1850 and another in 1875, laboring on his first mission principally in Scotland, where he was president of the Edinburgh conference. On his second , mission he labored in Liverpool, and traveled over the entire continent of Europe. For eleven years he has been an active worker in the Salt Lake Temple, and was a prominent worker in the 20th ward, where he has lived for many years. His funeral was held on the 10th, in the Salt Lake Assembly Hall, and was largely attended by the leading citi- zens of all denominations residing in Salt Lake City and surrounding 'settlements. New Forest Reserve. — By proclamation of President Roosevelt the Grantsville Forest Reservation was established, May 7, covering four townships in the Stansbury range, Tooele Co., about forty miles west of Salt Lake City. This makes seven reserves in Utah. On the 2nd, by a presidential proclamation, the Fish Lake Forest Re- serve, which was established February 10, 1899, was considerably changed and enlarged. — Miscellaneous Events. Fred C. Loofbourow has been chosen chairman of the Salt Lake City Republican Committee, in place of the late D. C. Eichnor, deceased. — On the 9th the directors of the San Pete Valley Railroad elected John W. Young president and general manager, in place of the late Theodore Bruback, deceased, Mr. Young was also made president of the Sterling Coal and Coke Co. — On the 12th it was announced that Gus S. Holmes has sold a controlling interest in the hotel Angelus, Los Angeles, and will return to Salt Lake to devote his time to the Knutsford. —The directors of the Daly- West Mining Co. have decided to reduce their monthly dividends from 65 to 40 cents per share, making the monthly dividend $72,000 instead of $117,000.— On Friday, 13th, sixty Utah representatives of the press left over the Rio Grande for the St. Louis Exposition, to be gone two weeks. Died. — In Faust, Tooele Co., 2nd, Margaret Vandybarker, born Eng- land, November 22, 1840, joined the Church in 1872, and came to Utah in 1882. —In Provo, 5th, Francis Peay, born England, Sep. 23, 1825, and came to Utah in 1853. —In Coalville, 7th, Margaret Cowie Walker, born Ayershire, Scotland, March 17, 1820; baptized in 1847, and came to Utah in 1874. —In Salt Lake City, llth, Esther Mendenhall Bunnell, born North Carolina, December 11, 1814, joined the Church in 1843, and came to Utah in 1855. She was the mother of Dr. Romania B. Pratt. Domestic. —April, 1904. The Hero Fund. —This is a fund established by Andrew Carnegie about the 16th, for the "dependents of those losing their lives in heroic EVENTS OF THE MONTH. 637 effort to save their fellow men, or for the heroes themselves if injured only." It was suggested by the heroism of Selwyn M. Taylor, a mining engineer, who was killed while leading a rescue party in the Harwick coal mine disaster, and by a man named Lyle, who lost his life trying to save his imprisoned associates. Mr. Carnegie gave five million dollars to a commission of twenty-one residents of Pittsburg, for this fund, and the field embraced is Canada and the United States and the waters thereof. Wherever heroism is displayed by man or woman in saving human life, the fund applies. Every year the awards must be printed in at least one newspaper in thirteen cities named in the field, embracing Denver and San Francisco. The Smoot Case. —The Committee on Privileges and Elections con- tinued the investigation into the case of Senator Smoot on the 20th. Hons. Brigham H. Roberts and Angus M. Cannon, Judge 0. W. Powers, and Hon. Moses Thatcher testified, the testimony being chiefiy intended to show the influence of the Church in politics. One witness,Angus M.Cannon, Jr., was heard at the last moment before adjournment, it being intended by his evidence to impeach the testimony of President Smith about no polygamous marriages having taken place since 1896, by consent or sanc- tion of the Church. When the witness was put on the stand, however, he acknowledged that what he had said he knew about this matter was said under the influence of liquor, and was "hot air." They will continue the investigation, it is said, by a personal visit to Utah during the ad- journment of Congress. Nothing will be done in the matter, it is thought, until after election in November. Panama Canal Transferred. —The United States now holds an un- incumbered title to all the rights and property of the Panama Canal company. On the 22nd, in Paris, the contract of sale was signed by President Bo and Director Richman for the company, and by Assistant Attorney-Generals Day and Russel for the United States, which action the stockholders ratified on the day following. The deeds were later ap- proved by Attorney-General Knox, and payment of the $40,000,000 pur- chase price was made through the banking house of J. Pierpont Morgan & Co. There is much to be done before work on a large scale can be under- taken, as the French plant has no real value. It will require a vigorous enforcement of sanitary regulations before Colon and Panama can be made healthful places of residence. When the Louisiana purchase was made in 1803, the power to govern that territory was vested in Pres- ident Jefl'erson, and so the 58th Congress thought it best to provide that, in this case for the present, "all the military, civil and judicial powers exercised by the existing government of the territory granted by treaty shall be vested in such person or persons, and shall be exercised in such manner as the President of the United States shall direct." Congress Closes. — The first regular session of the 58th Congress end- ed on the 28th, at 2 p.m. It was the shortest "long" session in forty years, the average length being till the beginning of July. Appro- priations for the aetual expenses for the year (1904-5) were $698,- 272,786, and it is estimated that the revenue will be $704,000,000. There was much political talk during the last week, designed for country use. The Record is full of campaign speeches designed for local con- sumption in the various states. The bitterest and most abusive debate was between Mr. Bourke Cochran and Mr. Dalzell, the former a Demo- crat and the latter a Republican. The Panama Canal legislation was perhaps the most important, and the President is given full power for the government of the canal zone. Among the important bills not passed are these: For the protection of the President; the Philippine bill, in- cluding an appropriation for help to build railroads in the islands; the bill creating two new states out of Arizona and New Mexico and Okla- " homa and Indian Territory, and the bill giving citizens of Alaska a larger measure of self-government; an anti-injunction and an eight-hour bill. There were 1400 bills passed, all of which were personal, except 150 which were of a general public nature. The Louisiana Purchase Exposition. —The great St. Louis fair celebrates one of the four most striking incidents in the history of the New World, two of which previously have been celebrated by fairs, viz., the discovery of America by Columbus, celebrated at Chicago in 1893; the Declaration of Independence, at Philadelphia, in 1876; the surrender of Lee at Appomattox, which will, perhaps, receive attention when time shall have healed the wounds of the civil war; and now the Louisiana Purchase, by which this country secured from France an empire, and control of the whole Mississippi valley. The Era has heretofore given a review of this great incident, on the occasion of the dedication of the grounds a year ago. The exposition was officially opened on Saturday, April 30. Secretary of War Taft represented the President who touched an electric button at the White House to start the machinery and the cascades. Governor Wells and many Utah people were present, and it is needless to say, believe that the exposition will prove worthy of the event which it commemorates. These fairs are milestones in the progress of our country. from the Centennial that we date the It was use of the telephone, an instrument which has revolutionized the world's EVENTS OF THE MONTH. 639 business and comfort; from the Columbian fair we learned much of European art, decorative architecture, and sculpture, from which our cities, homes and parks have been made vastly more beautiful. Doubt- less the St. Louis exposition, the greatest and most complete ever held on either continent, will teach its lesson. It is the greatest in size and cost of any yet held — in fact, any heretofore held could be multiplied by three in these respects, and then not equal the present display. It is marvelous when we realize that only a hundred years ago the fourteen states and territories now comprised in the purchased territory were almost wholly unknown and unthought of. Fiftean million people now dwell in this area which France turned over to us a century ago, con- taining herds of buffalo, wild animals and prairie dogs as inhabitants. It will be worth while for every westerner to see and study this great display, for it will give him many, many pleasant memories, and fill his mind with useful knowledge. On the day of opening 237,000 people entered the gates. Foreign.— April, 1904. The Palace at Seoul Burned.— On the 14th, the palace of the em- peror of Korea was burned, at a loss of one million dollars, besides the national archives. The emperor took refuge in the library of the Euro- pean building, where he will stay until the palace is rebuilt. The fire started, it is supposed, from defective heating apparatus. May, 1904. — The Japs Cross the Yalu. The first important land battle of the present Russo-Japanese war took place May 1, on the Yalu. The Russians were routed by the Japs under General Kuroki, and lost 1300 men killed and wounded, twenty officers and twenty-eight guns captured. The Japanese report 223 killed and wounded. There were 5,000 Russians engaged, and 30,000 Japs with 142 guns. The Russians burned Autung, and retreated inland to Fen Wen Cheng. Later, they destroyed Dalny, blowing up the wharf, which cost them over six million dollars to build. The engagement is justly considered a very important one by the Japa- nese, but the Russians claim that they had no intention of holding the Yalu. The Japs, after three months of war, are practically masters of the sea, and the battle of the Yalu gives them great advantage in the struggle for supremacy on land. On the morning of the 15th, the Jap- anese ship Hatsuse struck a Russian mine and went down, 300 of her crew of 'r41 being saved; the cruiser Yashino with 300 men was sunk also. Explorer Stanley Dead. — Henry M. Stanley, the African explorer, died in London, England, May 10, 1904. It is said he was born in 1840; he came to America at the age of thirteen, as a cabin boy, and was adopted by a New Orleans merchant named Stanley, whose name he took, though his real name is said to have been Rowlands. Being left to shift for himself at the death of his parents, he joined the Confederates in the war of the Rebellion. In 1868, he accompanied the British expedi- tion to Abyssinia, and the following year was ordered, while in Spain, to find Livingston, by James Goi'don Bennett, of the New York Herald. This was his greatest triumph, and is a familiar story to all. In 1874 the Herald and London Telegraph sent him on an expedition to Central Africa where he explored the Victoria and Albert Nyanza,and descended the Congo river to its mouth. He returned in 1879; lectured in the United States in 1886, and returned to Africa to rescue Emin Pasha in 1887, resulting in a long controversy. He returned to England in 1890, where he was the hero of the hour, and received ovations everywhere. He married a famous beauty, Dorothy Tennant, and was elected to Par- liament in 1892, after his return from a lecture tour in America in 1891, during which he spoke in Salt Lake City. As a parliamentarian he was little thought of; as an explorer, he stands at the front rank of the world's famous men. He is a great example of what a boy with de- termination, pluck and energy may achieve; from obscure birth to Westminster Abbey, is a long stride! The War Situation. —The recent loss of two battleships by Japan, and one reverse on land, has raised the hopes of Russia; with the arriv- al of the Baltic fleet, Russia hopes to gain her sea prestige in the east, but Harper's Weekly argues: "Nor is it certain that the arrival of the Baltic fleet will put a very different complexion on affairs. To begin with, the journey to the Far East presents immense difficulties. Within a few weeks the June monsoon will break over the Indian Ocean, turning it into mountain ranges of rain-drenched waves, the passage through which for battle-ships and torpedo boats will be enough to make even tough old salts hesitate. Coaling in the wild and whirling ocean will be a feat of extreme danger; and nothing awaits the fleet on its arrival in the East but a combination of hurricanes and Japanese torpedos. It cannot be said that the prospect is one which would tempt any experienced and wise commander. Port Arthur may of course hold out until relieved both by sea and by land, but revolutionary changes will have to come over the Russian conduct of affairs before this is thinkable."