The
. Plattsmouth - Journal
Published Semi-Weekly at Plattsmouth, Nebraska i
R. A. BATES, Publisher.
Entered at the Postoffice at Plattsmouth, Nebraska, as second-class
matter.
$1.50 PER YEAR IN ADVANCE
Colder weather Is In the forecast.
The climate during the last few days
has been almot too good to be true.
:o: .
Shoes are to be so much higher
that It Is suspected the shoe manu
facturers Imagine the public Intends
to go wading. .
;o:
If the Eiffel tower is undermined
and topples over it will be the hardest
tumble Paris has had since the fall
of the Bastile.
:o:
De Rake's comet Is now more or
loss visible, but the press agents for
Hallcy's comet warn all star gazers
to wait for the big show.
:o:
Nor is there any comfort in the
knowledge that, no matter how much
cold weather there has been this win
ter, there's some more coming,
:o:-
Those who hope to see Jeffries win
on July 4, will be glad to note that
Jack Johnson la still engaged In buy
ing champagne In New York.
:o:
Mr. Morse and Mr. Walsh now have
nothing left to remind them of their
long careers in the banking business
except the ornamental grating at their
windows.
: o:
Thanks are due the attorney gen
eral for bringing proceedings against
the beef trust. Hut after the beef trust
Is Investigated and tried and found
guilty then what?
L;0; -
Detroit, Mich., anil Windsor, Out.,
are but a bU tie's throw apart. But
Detroit Ik In the United Stutes and
Windsor Is in Canada, the two cities
being only spperateil only by the St
flair river, and therefore It costs 25
per cent more to live in Del roil than
in Windsor. The Detroit housewife
who pays liti cents a pound for but
ter nnd 42 cents a dozen for eggs
could walk ac ross the bridge and get
the sumo rjuant y articles in Windsor
T'.r 28 cents and 34 cents, but as she
would havo to pay a tariff tax on
them before she would be permitted
to bring the Canadian products Into
this country, she would profit nothing
by the transaction. In Detroit the
cheapest cuts of beef cost 10 cents
a pound, but the same are sold for
cents In Windsor; mess pork
-osts 20 cents in Detroit, 13 cents In
Windsor; bncon Is 24 cents In De
troit, but only 18 cents In Windsor.
What a blessed thing the tariff Is
but not for the housewife, nor the
family.
:o:
Another bill has been introduced In
the house of representatives having
for its object the raising of the wreck
of the battleship Maine, which for 12
years has been rotting, and its cargo
of human bones bleaching., In the
waters of Havana harbor. It Is a na
tlonal disgrace that all these years
principle Is as old as the party itself,
for Jefferson Included It among the
fundamentals. The Nebraska Demo
cracy reiterated Its belief In the home
rule principle in its 1907 platform,
declaring for local self government
In Omaha and South'Omaha, the elec
tion of local assessors and placing a
check on the arbitrary power of the
state board of equalization.
For years the Republican legisla
tures busied themselves to enact laws
empowering Republican governors to
appoint fire and police boards of the
two Omahas. The purpose was plain
to give the Republics party,
through the governor, the right to
control for partisan purposes the fire
and police commissions of two cities
that are normally Democratic. The
Republican city of Lincoln was always
permitted to elect its own fire and po
litre board. This was some special
legislation In Its worst form un
Democratic, and in violation of the
first principles of our government.
The Democratic legislature of 1909
did Its full duty by the two Omahas.
It gave to those cities the rights en
Joyed by other cities in the state,
namely, to elect their own boards of
fire and police commissioners. The
party was pledged to this, and the
party redeemed the pledge in letter
and In spirit. Certain selfish inter
ests sought to Invoke the doctrine of
home rule against all forms of re
gulatory legislation. The liquor in
tensts and the railroad Interest
sought to Invoke the home rule doc
trine to prevent needed regulatory
laws. But the Democratic principle
of home rule, or local Bolf-govern-
inent. lu this the Democratic party
aland on solid ground. It believes In
treating all cities in the state alike.
It believes In equal rights to all, spec-
Hi privileges to none, It Is opposed
to sectional nnd special legislation.
In another way the Democratic
party redeemed a platform pladge
when It passed the local assessor law.
Tho Republican party had deprived
the people of the right to elect by
euactlng a law that prohibited the
voters from voting; for the men who
actually assessed the property.
The Democratic legislature of 1909
changed this, Invoking the Jefferson-
Ian doctrine of self-government, and
giving back to the people a right that
never should have been taken from
them
The Democratic legislature of 1909
went even further. It took away from
the state board of equalization the
arbitrary power thnt It had been ex
ercising In reassessing the property
of the state under guise of "equal!
nation." The revenue laws passed by
Republican legislatures gave five men
sitting as a board of equalization
the power to arbitrarily reassess the
property of the citizens of the state
have gone by without an attempt at WttB whigioui, undemocratic ami
anv genuine Investigation of the unamerlcan. The board could raise
wreck of the Maine, or the recovery tn assessment of any county as It
ing them to appear and show tause
why the assessment should not be
raised. By this simple provision the
Democratic party took from the board
of equalization an arbitrary power
vested therein by a Republican legis
lature. The Democratic party so fram
ed legislation as to give the people
I something to say as to who should
assess their property. Under the Dem
ocratic plan the property Is assessed
after actual view by an officer chosen
by the people themselves. It took
the power of assessing out of the
hands of an arbitrary board and ap
pointed assessors, and placed it where
it belongs in the hands of the peo
ple. The Republican party now, as
in the past, disapproves of allowing
the people to have full voice In their
own governmental affairs.
Recently we called attention to the
fact that the Republican secretary of
the state banking board was demand
ing and receiving an increased salary
under the provisions of a law that
had been declared Invalid. Under the
old law the secretary received a sal
ary of $2,000 a year. The bank
guarantee law provided for a salary
of $3,000 a year. Secretary Royce
said the new law was bad and re
fused to let go when Governor Shal
lenberger undertook to appoint a sue
ccBsor. Judge Munger then decided
that the bank guarantee alw was in
valid. Secretary Royce then held to
his Job as provided by the old law.
But he Insists and receives the
salary provided for by the law which
was knocked out. But this Is nothing
strange, for Republican office hold
ers, ror several years tne statutes
provided a salary of $1,500 for de
puty state officers. But Republican
legislatures went right along appro
priating $1,800 each, and Republican
auditors allowed the claims, each one
$25,00 a month above the legally
fixed salary. Now one Republican of
fice holder Is being paid an extra
$1,800 a year under the provisions of
a law tnat has oeen declared invalid
on motion of Republican bankers and
politicians by a Republican federal
udge appointed by a Republican pres
ident at the urgent solicitation of two
Republican United States senators.
et we have been hearing an awful
owl from g. o. p. organs about "Dem
ocratic pie-biters" and Democratic
salary grabbers.
A recent civil service order places
fourth class postpiasters under the
rules of the civil service, and the
o. p. organs give their full ap
proval. The need of civil service in
the management of state institutions
is recognized by all. But if this re
form should be Instituted now, when
tho Institutions are being economical
ly and efficiently managed by Demo-
rats, the g. o. p. organs would howl
themselves hoarse to show how aw-
ully vicious and depraved the Demo-
rats are to take advantage of the
time and opportunity.
:o;; .
anchor to this rock of fact: Plain j
living nere hurt man or nation. The
frugal repast Is the most satisfactory,
if garnished with hunger's sauce. As
a nation we are lavish and wasteful
In our food bill.
If we would fool the predatory
meat man, we have the remedy al
ways at hand. We can quit eating
his high-priced meats. Let the whole
country do that for a while, and the
price would Boon come down, what
ever else might happen
As to doing It well, that is an
other story.
:o:
such control of commerce and indus
try, fcr such influence with the fed-
The many good ideas which George
B. Irving advanced to the people of
eral eoverunieut. as would enable i Plattsmouth on Thursday evening
them to fix their own prices on the I should be put Into execution without
delay. He suggested certain indust
ries which the city has at its doors
undeveloped. The material in itself
WHAT'S THE JOKE.
In Indiana the veracious dis
patches tell us a woman tried to tell
a funny story to her friend, but be
fore she had well begun, burst Into
laughter, broke a blood vessel, and
died. This is sad, but unsatisfactory.
What was the story? Why did not
the correspondent tell us as much of
the story as the friend knew, so that
we might a pede Herculem recon
struct It after our own fashion? This
is another lost story The world Is
full of them. Since the careless Mile
tus lost bis tales the world has been
tantalized with fragments and hints
of promised recitals never finished.
Like the song sung by the sirens we
shall never know what these good
stories were.
We restore old paintings, temples,
and statuary, and thus glimpse some
thing of what the cretor's original
conception must have been, but the
stories remain untold, like that of
Antonio. " 'Twas a dark and stormy
night ' and the brigands were seated
around their campflre. And the bri
gand chief, turning fco his lieutenant,
said: 'Antonio, tell us a story.' And
Antonla said: "'Twas a dark and
stormy night and the brigands were
seated around their camflre ,
of the remains of the men who went
down In that Ill-fated vessel, that
they might be given decent burial.
Congressman Sul.er of New York,
made a vigorous but unsuccessful ef
fort to accomplish something In that
respect. It Is to be hoped that the
present movement will bear better
fruit. To this day It la unsettled
whether tho Maine wag wrecked by
an internal explosion cr by and out
tddo mine. What other civilized nation
would bavo tolerated such secrecy
nnd Indifference? Public sentiment
should unite In demanding the rals
Ing of the Maine, In a tone so loud
as to reach tho rnl oused ears of con
gress.
:o:
DivMocriATHJ legislation.
saw fit and could do It without notice
or appeal. In many Instances the
-. t
board did so, raising the assessment
from 10 to 100 per cent and with
out notice to the county' officials.
The Democratic legislature of 1909
- - , i
changed the law. It gave the board
the right to equalize the value of
property by giving It the right to
raise one county and lower another
for tho purpose of making the as
Bcssmcut uniform, but It provided
that U the board undertook to In
crease the aggregato assessment of
the statu above tho amount returned
by the various county assessors, no
tlco must be served on the countlei
affected. Tho law now provides the
beforo the aggregate assessment of
tho Htate tan be Increased by the
board of equalization or nssessnicn
notice must bo nerved on tho county
(Special Correspondence).
Lincoln, Neb., January. Hone
nil.) has ti) vcayi been' a cardinal prln-M. -omity assessor and th
clulo of the Democratic party. The, chairman of tliu "ounty board, requlr
and so the childish rigmarole goes
on in an unending circle. We never
known Antonio's story.
And Just so on tho stage. The
doors in the center back open in act
II, and a crowd of men enter laugh
ing heartily. Their mirth is unccn
trollable. The story must have been
a gem We get ready to hear It. But
some Inconsequential actors begin a
dialogue and we never know what
the laughter was about Do the novo
llsts and dramlstlsts give us credit
for too much Imagination, or do they
themselves lack it? Chicago Tribune.
BOYCOTTS OH BALLOTS?
The best thing about a good man
Is that he never knows how good ho
is.
-:o:
There is only one test the true
church can apply to any man, and
that Is, "Do you need?"
:o: :
There are persons In this commun
ity who have become so Indifferent
to matters of public Interest that they
don't care a last year's straw hat
whether Prof. Jim jeffrles gets Into
condition to fight Prof. Jack Johnson
or not
:o: , ...
Some patrons of one of the elevat
ed roads in Chicago are much dls
pleased because the company has put
Into force a rule against smoking
The gentlemen should recognlzo that
smoking on, cars Is something In the
nature of a favor and. not a right
Street car companies are In the busl
ness of carrying passengers, not of
providing smoking rooms for patrons
The patrons of the Chicago elevated
road havo enjoyed the prlvllego of
smoking many years. They should
bo grateful for past Indulgence In
stend of vindictive If smoking now
Interferes with the comfort of other
passengers nnd with tho business o
tho company.
PLAIN' LIVING.
Putting extremes aside, we may
articles they have for sale and which
the American people must buy.
The trusts and monopolies are
I merely putting on the screws which
you, dear boycotter, voted Into their
hands, when you cast your ballot
Taft and the 'Republican party.
How silly of you, then, to boycott
the beef trust! Suppose you get the
price of meat reduced to a point
where the trust realizes only a rea
sonable profit over and above what
It pays for beef on the hoof. What
is to prevent the trust from raising
the price again day by day and
month by month, once the boycott
Is declared off? Are you going to
declare a permanent boycott on the
meat? .
And, If you do, what about the
other trusts, that are Just as merci
less and Just as burdensome?
Are you going to boycott salt and
sugar and lumber and oil and steel
and copper and hats and hoisery and
gloves and boots and shoes andcoats
and trousers and calico wrappers and
underwear and earthenware and
stoves and glassware and furniture
and carpets and everything else a
civilized man requires for himself
and family? Are you going to try to
beat the trusts by abandoning civili
zation and going out Into the woods
to live on nuts and wild berries and
roots and slippery elm bark?
Why not do your boycott at the
polls, instead?
Why not boycott the party that
stands for the whole rotten system;
for high tariff and subsidies; for
monopolies immune from the law;
for federal incorporation and a cen
tral bank; for government by money
Instead of government by men?
,If the American people have to
seek relief In boycotts at the expense
of their own backs and bellies; if
they are unable and unwilling to
cure at the polls the evils that afflict
them, then they might as well ad
mit that popular government Is a
failure and turn things over outright
o the oligarchy of wealth with Mr.
Morgan as King Plerpont -. World
Herald.
:o:
A strong pull together and un
is sufficient capitalization to secure
funds on. Let the commercial club
and the moneyed men of the town
take hold of the project to which he
called attention and push It to a fin
ish. It Is the commencement of a
great enterprise If It Is but hurried
up. '
-i :o:
George B. Irving recommends that
there Is a "knockers club" formed li
the city to take care of the fellowi
who are always kicking on the town.
The Idea Is an excellent one and
should be put Into Immediate prac
tice. The man who sees nothing good
In the city can only see the Ills which
afflict St, is not a good citizen and
the quicker he moves the better it
will be for all concerned. Live men
see the ills but they do not waste
their time In walling over them. They
prefer to remedy them and build up
not pessimistically tear down. Let
us have a knockers club to knock
the knockers.
:o:
As was pointed out sometime ago
In the Journal, any postal savings
bank bill which will be passed by
this congress, is a step In the direc
tion. of an axuiary system to the
great central bank scheme of Senator
Aldrich. Any postal bank bill is sub-
ect to a wide division of sentiment
but this bill seems to be bo absolute
ly iniquitous that even the staunch-
est friend of the postal bank will
have to oppose It. It proposes delib
erately the loot of the west and the
south for the benefit of Wall street
and the stock gamblers and nothing
else, and the government is to be a
party to the deal.
:o:
"STUNG." '
Blunt old Senator Tillman, in his
comment on the meat boycott, hits
the nail on the head In a very few
words. "Any man who pinches his
ovn belly because he does not know
how to vote has no ' sympathy of
mine," he said. And he added that
the excitement over the boycott "dis
gusts a man who knows that there
Is a remedy In the Elklns and Sher
man laws if they only were enfor
ed."
What is the use, after voting for
the candidates whom the trusts sup
port, to organize a boycott against
a single trust when they have all
got what they wanted and what you
voted to them?
Why were the trusts, the big rail
road systems, the giant monopolies,
the masters of finance why were
they all for Taft and against Bryan?
Were their reasons selfish or unsel
fish. Mercenary or patriotic? Why
did they contribute so freely to the
Taft-Aldrlch-Cannon campaign fund?
Why did they threaten panic and
starvation If Bryan should be elect
ed? '
It Is worth thinking about.
Any roan who has a right to be
outside a lunatic asylum knows why
They were working them to secure
what now from day to day they are
obtaining.
They were working for the Aldrich
tariff. .
They were working for "security'
and "peace," and Immunity.
They were working for federal
charters which they will get If th
next congress Is Republican. One
they have got them they will become
legalized highwaymen Instead of out
law highwaymen. . .
They were working for a central
bank and they will get that, too,
if the next congress Is Republican.
They were Working, In a word, for
ited front, and Plattsmouth will step
to the front .as the best city In Ne
braska.
:o:
There Is a proverb which says "A
tradesman who gets not, loseth." Let
lattsmouth merchants remember this
in advertising.
:o:
Now Is the time to get busy. Take
time by the forelock and proceed to
make Plattsmouth succeed. Do a lit
tle boosting on your own hook.
:o:
Astronomers regard the new and
unauthorized comet with much the
same disapproval that the Taft ad
ministration contemplates Judge Lan
dls.
:o:
Governor Shallenberger has settled
tho extra session question for good
and all. He says there will be none
unless the supreme court passes upon
the bank guaranty law and this is
not within the life of this legislature
in all probability. Therefore this ques
tion will be one for tne next legisla
ture to tussle with.
:o:
Speaking of absentee Ownership
last Thursday night George B. Jrv
Ing said that Plattsmouth should give
them a wire berth and that they
should move to Plattsmouth or dis
pose of their holdings. The Platts
mouth Journal Is a shining exampl
of ownership held in this city and
it Is proud of the fact. If every other
concern in Plattsmouth stood In the
same position, the city would be muc
better off than It now is.
:o:
The postal bank bill lias been
brought In and from all parts of the
country there comes a cry from the
country bankers who see themselves
being swallowed up In the bank and
the money which they now have on
deposit finding its way to the cast.
It will be remembered that last fall
many, If not a great majority of these
bankers were for Taft unci his pro
gram. Now have they a right to kick
over what they deliberately voted
for?
Under this caption A. P. Keliy, edi
tor of the North Platte Telegraph,
gives some information gathered on
the spot with reference to one of the
Burkett "meetings" held, by allega
tion, last Thursday:
It is the rule of newspapers, when
gathering local information for the 1
general public to rely largely upon
Information gathered from people
who are in daily touch with the busi
ness world, and more specifically that
of a public official.
'It Is not the Intent of the Tele
graph to mis-quote or elaborate upon
visionary proposition, and the bunch
handed to this paper yesterday by Re
ceiver "Bill" Woodhurst has reacted
in an unpleasant and unfair manner.
"We refer to the news item con
cerning club organization, and the
very words printed was taken from
the Hps of this government official
and believed to be true.
"After sifting the facts of the said
Burkett boom down to solid ground
we . find that Woodhurst looked
through peculiar glasses and instead
of a great harmonious gathering of
60 rank and file Republicans at the
said meeting there was less than 3,
and the signers to the paper, were
gathered through soliclatltlon of
parties who still love to suck
the public tit.
"As before stated, the Telegraph
is not tied to any ilk or party, or.
man, and if such false publication
as was handed us regarding the Bur
kett boom Is continued, and sanction
ed by the senator, then, both be and
his cohorts should be made to take
more bitter than the sweet.
"Have Mr. Burkett's followers in
North Platte gotten Into such a strait
that they have got to commence ly
ing and mis-quoting facts to boost his
boom? The question is what has Bur
kett done since he has been in Wash
ington? Has his record been such
that his followers have to resort to
lies and mlatatements to secure any
thing that would resemble a boom for
this gentleman? As we look, at the
matter from an unbiased standpoint,
Senator Burkett Is not the choice of
the people of this vicinity. How
would Senator Norrls sound?" Lin-
:o:
Otto Puis and John West from west
of Murray were in tho city looking
after somo business matters. While
here Otto made the Journal office a
brief call.