--- 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: 25 number: 10 published: 1922-08 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Passing Events", *Improvement Era* 25, no. 10 (August 1922): 947–951.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera25010unse 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: improvementera25010unse start_page: 947 end_page: 951 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1922-08) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera25010unse publication_year: 1922 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 1922, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Passing Events '•^...J.'.'S*****™ Tfte vacancy in the Box Elder Stake, caused by the death of Victor E. Madsen, was filled, July 9, by the appointment of William C. Horsely as the new counselor. The international conference at the Hague, for the purpose of dis- cussing European rehabilitation and the Russian problem, began i^s sessions June 15. Samuel Gompers was reelected president of the American Federation of Labor, at the congress of that organization in Cincinnati, Ohio, June 23. This is said to be his 41st term. Fire destroyed the viaduct on Fourth South St., Salt Lake City, of the, Denver and Rio Grande, June 22, causing a damage of at least $150,000. It is believed that the fire was started by sparks from one of the engines in the yards below. Joseph Van Smith, of Provo, died at his home in that city, June 20, fol- lowing a stroke. He was born in Salt Lake City, June 11, 1848. His par- ents were members of the second company to arrive in Salt Lake valley in 1847. He was a Black Hawk Indian war veteran. William Rockefeller died at Tarrytown, N. Y., June 24, of pneumonia, after a week's illness. He was the brother of John D. Rockefeller, the famous oil magnate. He had just completed a $250,000 mausoleum, in the Sleepy Hollow cemetery. He was 81 years old. Dr. Stephen L. Richards, of Salt Lake City, died July 5, at the family residence, after a lingering illness of about a year. He was born in Salt Lake City, July 29, 1853. In 1875 he filled a mission to England, and in 1883 he received his degree as doctor of medicine. He was a man of sterling character, did much good in the world, and was a great friend and help to the poor. Mr. Joe Mitchel Chappie and wife were entertained by President and Mrs. Heber J. Grant, on June 27, when they passed through Salt Lake City from Yellowstone Park. Mr. Chappie is the publisher of the National Magazine, and numerous other popular publications. The Utah Farmer has been purchased by the Deseret News, according to an announcement in the latter paper, June 24. The new editor of The Farmer is Mr. P. V. Cardon, formerly of the branch agricultural college at Cedar City. Mr. J. M. Kirkham continues as its manager. Maximilian Harden was stabbed, July 3, in the Grunewald Villa section of Berlin. Mr. Harden, the editor and publisher of the Zukunft, is one of the best known newspaper men in Europe. He has for years been the object of hatred of the Nationalist agitators. His condition, when taken to the hospital, was declared grave. Field Marshal Sir Henry Hughes Wilson was assassinated near his home in Eaton Place, London, June 22. He was chief of the British Imperial gen eral staff, and military adviser to the Ulster government. The assassins gave their names as James O'Brien and James Connelly. Six men are said to have been implicated in the crime. Dr. Walter Rathenau was assassinated, June 24, as he was leaving his 948 IMPROVEMENT ERA home in Greenswald, a suburb of Berlin. He was German minister of foreign affairs. The American embassy promptly raised the flag half mast, on receipt of the news. It was Rathenau who signed the treaty with Russia at Rapello. He was of Jewish descent. Mrs. Susa Young Gates resigned, June 29, from the position of editor of the Relief Society Magazine, a position she has held with great honor and ability since 1914, when she was appointed to take charge of the pub- lication by the late President Joseph F. Smith. Mrs. Gates, it is an- nounced, intends engaging in another important literary venture. Wu Ting Fang, former Chinese minister in Washington, and late prime minister of the deposed president of the Canton republic, Dr. Sun Yat Sen, died at Canton, June 23. "Wu was regarded as the main leader in the movement for the unification of China. His death was probably hastened by the political conditions of the country and his: worry about the outcome. The International Court of the League of Nations met at The Hague, June 15. Sir Ernest Pollock, the British attorney general, made a speech of well wishes, and Judge Bustamente of) Cuba took his oath of office. Dr. Loder of Holland presided, John Bassett More was the representative of the United States. The court, after a brief session, adjourned until June 27. General Chen Chinny-Ming, tvas reported murdered June 29. He was the man who, by a successful coup d'etat, drove Sun Yat Sen, president of the southern China republic, from Canton and then notified Li Yuan Hung, the president of the Pekin government, that he was ready to join him in the fight for a united Chinese republic. His proposition was to give each province autonomy similar to that enjoyed by each state of the American Union. The Irish rebels surrendered, June 30, to the Free State troops. The Four Courts building, Dublin, which was their main stronghold, was de- stroyed by fire. More than thirty of the regular soldiers lost their lives in an explosion which followed the outbreak of fire. On July 5 the scat- tered rebel forces, who were making a stand behind barracks, surrendered, and the siege of these strongholds was raised. Eamonn de Valera was re- ported wounded and captured by Free State Troops. A labor defense council will be established in Washington, if the pro- gram adopted by the American Federation of Labor in its conference at Cincinnati, June 22, is carried out. The purpose of the council will be to defend the labor unions against all so-called "legal attacks." The pror gram, further, includes constitutional amendments providing for a con- gressional veto of Supreme Court decision, the guarantee to laborers of the right to strike, and easier methods than the present for amending the constitution. Representative scientists met in convention, June 22, at the University of Utah, that being the 6th annual session of the Pacific division of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Among those present were Barton Warren Evermann, president; C. E. Grunsky, vice president, and W. W. Sargeant, secretary-treasurer, all residents of San Francisco; Dr. David Starr Jordan, chancellor of Leland Stanford, Jr., university and Dr. E. O. Howard, for thirty years secretary of the na- tional association and a former president. Jonathan C. Cutler, of Snouwille, Utah, died at his home June 22, of typhoid-pneumonia, at the age of 58 years. For the past sixteen years he has presided in Snowville, first as bishop of Snowville ward for nine years and then as president of the Curlew stake for seven years. He was born and raised in Brigham City and was loved and respected by friends PASSING EVENTS 949 in all parts of northern Utah and southern Idaho. The funeral services and all arrangements were under the direction of President Jos. J. Larkin. The congregation of six hundred and sixty-seven was the largest ever gath- ered in Snowville, it is said. Heber Scowcroft, Sr., died June 29, at the family residence, Ogden, after an illness of several months. He was born in Southampton, Lan- castershire, England, the son of John and Mary Scowcroft. When he was 12 years of age the family moved to Utah and made their home in Ogden, where the father established a store. This store was the foundation for the wholesale business later established by him under the name of John Scowcroft & Sons company. Heber was always an active and faithful Church member and worker, and was a member of the Church Auditing Committee at the time of his death. Troops were dispatched to Carbon county June 15 by Governor Mabey and martial law was declared in the strike area, following the killing of a deputy sheriff and wounding of a mine official by men who shot at a train the day previous near Castlegate. Two hundred and seventy-five guardsmen were sent to assume the responsibility of maintaining order in the vicinities of Cameron, Helper, Scofield, Winterquarters, Castlegate, Kenilworth, and the Spring Canyon region. Major Elmer Johnson was in command, and he was given authority to "close all mines in the district if necessary for the restoration of law and order." A banquet in honor of George A. Smith was given at Hotel Utah, Salt Lake City, June 14, by the Utah Society of the Sons of the American Revo- lution, in recognition of the distinction conferred upon him by his elec- tion, May 17, at Springville, Mass., to the office of vice president general of the national organization. As vice president general Mr. Smith has charge of the Sons of the American Revolution societies in the territory embraced by the eight western states, Alaska, the Philippine and Hawaiian islands. A membership of 2,000 is enrolled in that territory. It is the first time that the honor has gone to a member of the Utah society. Dr. George E. Hyde passed away June 22, at a hospital in Salt Lake City, following an operation for appendicitis. Since September, 1916, he has been superintendent of the mental hospital, Provo. He was born in Manchester, England. He received his early education in his native coun- try and came to the United States when 17 years of age, first settling in Ogden. For more than ten years he was the private secretary to the super- intendent of the Z. C. M. I. at Ogden. He was married to Rosabell Fan- in Ogden in November, 1886. Later Mr. Hyde went to the University of California. He was graduated from that institution with an M. D. degree in 1896. Former U. S. Senator Cornelius Cole, a hundred years old, of Cal- ifornia, visited the Senate in Washington and paid his respects to President Harding, June 26. He was a member of the Senate from 1867 to 1873 — too far back for any of the present senators to remember him, but he was soon surrounded by a congratulating throng. He was a close friend of Lincoln and heard the famous Gettysburg address. He was born in Lodi, N. Y., September 17, 1822; came to California in 1849, in the "gold rush," and, shortly afterwards, entered politics. He was, as the dispatches have it, "rounding out a long career of public service when Uncle Joe Cannon was in his legislative swaddling clothes." A nationwide railroad strike went into effect, July 1, when 400,000 men, or more, laid down their tools in the various shops. One thousand men in Salt Lake City obeyed the order to strike. B. M. Jewell, president of the railway department of the American Federation of Labor, who refused to appear at a federal inquiry into the strike call, maintained that the only 950 IMPROVEMENT ERA basis for a settlement was for the roads to agree not to put into effect wage decreases recently ordered for the shopment by the labor board. These wage reductions totaling $135,000,000 annually went into effect on the railroads of the country July 1. There are approximately 1,425,000 rail- way workers in the service, but probably not more than 1,000,000 of these will feel the cut in their pay envelopes. Mrs. Anna O. Oleson was nominated for the U. S. Senate, according to returns from the primary elections, June 19, of the Democrats of Minnesota. This is said to be the first time in the history of the country that a woman has been nominated for that position, by one of the large political parties. She was born in Le Sueur county, Minnesota, thirty-six years ago. Her grandparents made Minnesota their home in 1856 and both her grand- fathers were Civil war veterans. Raised on a farm, where she lived until she was married, she traveled three miles each day to leach the high school at Waterville, Minn., for her early education. Housework, Mrs. Olesen declares, does not have to be neglected by the woman in politics, any more than a woman in club work need have her kitchen sink constantly piled high with dishes. Mrs. Edna L. Smith was honorably released, June 26, as president of the women of the Salt Lake Temple, after faithful temple work since 1872. President Heber J. Grant, President George F. Richards of the temple, Elder George Albert Smith, Elder Richard R. Lyman, Bi hop David A. Smith, Alvin Smith, Albert Davis, Elder Snow and many others paid glowing tribute to the work of Mrs. Smith and her long and faith- ful services. The Temple quartet sang several numbers, as well as t>o- los, and Professor William C. Clive rendered a violin selection. About 200 were present at the meeting held in her honor, consisting of nearly all the temple workers, Church authorities, and friends and relatives. Mrs. Smith was presented with a beautiful rocking chair and a set of Church works. Utah iron and coal deposits have been acquired by a western corpora- tion with a capital of $15,000,000, according to an announcement in San Francisco, by Mr. Wiggington E. Creed, president of the Pacific Gas & Electric company and of the Columbia Steel company. The new concern to be known as the Columbia Steel corporation, controls, besides the coal properties of the Utah Coal & Coke Co. in Carbon county, and vast iron deposits in Iron county, the Portland, Ore., steel foundry and the Pittsburg, California steel foundry and rolling mill of the Columbia Steel company. Associated with Mr. Creed in the development of this project are Utah men as W. W. Armstrong president of the National Copper bank; L. F. Rains, president of the Carbon Fuel company; Attorney Adrian C. Ellis, Jr., E. J. Raddatz, president of the Tintic Standard Mining company, and Duncan MacVichie, an engineer of long experience. The Irish Free State constitution was made public in London, June 15. It provides for dominion home rule, while preserving allegiance to the British crown; it guarantees civic and religious rights and provides for recognition of the Irish language as well as the English. Legislative initiative is vested in the people, and the Free State is exempt from taking part in any war in the interest of England, except by consent of its own parlia- ment. On June 21 it was announced that, as a result of an election of members to the Free State parliament, the Valera republicans were de- feated in many important election districts and the pro-treaty party re- ceived a big majority. The radicals then took possession of the Four Courts building in Dublin and a mniiature civil war was fought for the possession of that point of vantage. Among the victims of this conflict were Colonel Moundeville and Captain Vaughton, of the Free State, who PASSING EVENTS 951 were ambushed. Many women were reported fighting for the insurgents. Countess Markiewicz was made commander of the irregular forces at head- quarters in George's Street. Mt. Everest cannot be climbed by man. That is the conclusion reached after the "glorious failure" of the expedition of Brigadier General C. G. Bruce to reach the top of the highest peak. On May 21, three members of the party, Mr. Mallory, Mr. Somerwell, and Major Norton, attained a height of 26,800 feet, but there was still a height of 2,200 feet to be scaled, and this proved impossible in the condition in which the members of the party found themselves, suffering from frost bites. The Duke of Abruzzi, in July, 1909, reached a height of 24,583, on Bride Peak, in the Karakoram range. The British expedition under Colonel Howard Bury, in 1921, reached only 20,000 feet, or 9,000 feet below the summit. No peak in the world has presented such difficulties to mountain climbers as Mt. Everest. Only in recent years has it been possible to approach Mt. Everest from the Tibetan 6ide, the deep-seated objection of the people of Tibet to foreigners passing through their country making it impossible for any expedition to take advantage of the easiest route, which is through Tibet. The Bury expe- dtion, however, discovered what was regarded as the easiest way to the summit before it had to turn back. Forty-jour persons were killed in the mine disorders at Herrin, 111., according to a statement, June 22, by an official of the Illinois district organization of the United Mine Workers of America. Five thousand union miners attacked the Lester strip mine, operated by imported workers. When the massacre was over, bodies, many of them mutilated, lay along the roads or were strung from trees, men wounded and dying were seen in the fields, without human assistance Joseph O'Rourke, of Chicago, com- missary clerk at the mine, is reported to have said that he did not blame the miners for murdering the non-union men, because "we were unknow- igly being used as dupes to keep them from their jobs." An investiga- tion into the matter was started June 23, but the state's attorney expressed doubt that any definite results would be obtained, saying that it was virtually impossible to obtain evidence. A coroner's jury, June 25, named C. K. McDowell, superintendent of the "strip" mine and a victim of the assassins, as responsible for the murderous attack. The allegation is that he killed George Henderson, one of two union miners who lost their lives, June 21, when they visited the mine to make an investigation. The golden wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. A. W. McCune was observed, July 1, by a host of friends, in the palatial residence built by Mr. McCune about eighteen years ago and later donated to the Church. The following committee appointed by President Heber J. Grant, had charge of the function: Mrs. Augusta W. Grant, Mrs. Elizabeth Snow Ivins, Mrs. Alice Kimball Smith, Mrs. Ann D. Groesbeck, Mrs. Susa Young Gates. Five hundred invitations had been issued. The grounds of the McCune home were made brilliant by multicolored electric lights and the interior of the house was lavishly decorated with roses and other flowers of the season. A band was stationed in the ballroom throughout the evening, dancing was enjoyed by those who desired it. Teachers of the L. D. S. School of Music kept their studios opened during the evening and everyone of the instructors contributed something to the program. President Grant entertained twentyhfive members of the McCune family and the members of the reception committee at a 1 o'clock luncheon at the Hotel Utah. All of the children of Mr. and Mrs. McCune except Mrs. Eliza- beth Trower were present at the luncheon and the reception. Mr. McCune was married at Nephi July 1, 1872, to Miss Elizabeth Ann Claridge of that city. They are the parents of nine children of whom seven are living.