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SEPTEMBER 11, 1003.
roport Officersavailing themselves of leaves of
absence must beaHn mind that -while the govern
ment grants a privilege it expects in return full
and accurate military returns of the country and
a test of the officers' ability to preparo such in
formation if called upon. That the country
passjd over has been previously reported upon
and mapped willnot relieve officers from making
the necessary maps and reports from original
sources of information and observations. If tho
report Is not satisfactory in this respect the limit
ing leave will bo counted as ordinary leave of
absence."
THE PRACTICE OF ARMY OFFICERS
bringing Filipno and Chinese servants into
the United States on army transports is to be
put a stop to by the war department! It is said
that nearly every transport returning from Ma
nila has brought from throa to half a dozen na
tives as servants of army officers or their wives.
Officers serving in Cuba and Porto Rico have
abused the privilege that has been theirs for somo
time in this respect and they will now be re
quired to returjx the servants they brought with
them from these quarters at their own personal
expense. Tho Brooklyn Eagle's Washington cor
respondent tells tho story of this new rule of the
government and in speaking of the order, gives
that part of it referring to natives from the
(Philippines as follows: "These "native sorvanta
must invariably be sent back to the Philippines
and this office has no authority to furnish trans
portation on any army transport for. female ser
vants unless accompanying a mother with an in
fant in arms. It is therefore desired that, great
consideration bo given by authorities in Manila
to any applications of transportation on the army
transports for male or female native Filipinos,
Japanese, Chinese or other foreign servants, from
the Philippines, or Nagasaki, Japan, to the United
States."
A NOVEL MEANS OF CORRECTING ABUSES
in the matter of transferring clerks and
otner employes in the postal service has recently
Taeen undertaken by the postal authorities at
Washington. The Washington correspondent of
the Chicago Inter-Ocean says: "A special inspec
' tor has been sent out, with Instructions from tho
commission' to viBit postmasters in a number of
'central states; coach them in the civil service reg
ulations, and warn them against the "practices
'Which were disclosed by the recent postofflce de
partment investigation. Not the least remarkable
feature of the new methods of correcting abuses
of the civil service rules is the fact that the in
spector in this case is a young woman, Miss
Caroline I. Grlesheim, "who has been connected
with the civil service commission's office for many
years. Her tour embraces the states of Ohio, Ind
iana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. She will
confer with postmasters and local civil service
boards and explain to them the recent modifica
tions of the rules whereby it is intended to pre
vent the transfer of clerks from interior offices to
the departments in, Washington, and to avoid the
employment of employes and clerks in positions
outside of the grades to which they are legally
appointed. The occurrence of a number of irreg
ularities in Ohio gives especial importance to Miss
Griesheim's work in that state. Since the revela
tions made in the course of the postofflce investi
gation there have been cases of violations of the
civil service rules brought to light In the post
offices of Ohio, and it will- be a part of the im
portant civil service inspector's business to re
port on these." ,
IT IS WELL KNOWN THAT MANY PEOPLE
find employment in this, country in making
statues and figures designed to represent the gods
of heathen lands and that these figures are then
sent to those countries where such practices of
worship are in vogue. A writer in the New York
Tribune says that the city of Philadelphia is ex
tensively engaged in this peculiar trade and adds:
"The chief market for Philadelphia made gods is
India, where the demand is for Buddhas and Gane--sas.
lhe most expensive ones are marble Bud
dhas two fbt high, which cost ?50. The models
must be accurate, for the devotee of India must
liave all details traditionally exact, as every band,
every color, every little decoration has some sym
bolic meaning The Buddhas are made after an
exact copy of a Siamese Buddha reputed to bo
the best imege of the god extant. The god Gane
sa, with his four arms and elephant's head, is no
less costly. Plain and undecorated Ganesas can
he had for $C0. If the divine dignity be height
ened by ornament, the god may 'fetch as much as
$75. A bit of "color slightly inaccurate in shade or
The Commoner.
an ornarlft fntroperly placed, may ronder the
most pirtuiesquely hideous Ganesa or Buddha Ab
solutely worthless to a Hindoo."
A PLAN "TO RAISE THE PRICE OF WHEAT
throughout tho world is on foot, nccording to
the London correspondent of tho Chicago Tribune.
This correspondent says that the Daily Mail, a
newspaper of London, is authority for a statement
from Warsaw to the effect that an American as
sociation, stated to numbor 38,000 farmers, hna
asked tho Russian ministers of finance and agri
culture for their assistance In raising tho current
prices of agricultural products, especially wheat.
It is said tho association proposes to establish a
grand union of wheat growers, embracing agri
cultural organizations in tho United States, Rus
sia, Argentina, Austria-Hungary, Roumania, Can
ada, -and British India, which will annually fix
tho minimum selling price. Tho Mail's corre
spondent adds that in view of tho apparent ab
horrence of trusts on tho part of M. Do Wltto,
the Russian minister of finance, It Is doubtful if
he will accede to the request of tho American
association.
AN INSTITUTION KNOWN AS CHILD'S LON
don bank, the principal proprietor of which
is Lord Jersey, has some quaint rules. Accord
ing to a writer in tho Chicago Chronicle, one of
these rules is that one partner of the bank must
always sleep on the premises. Tho Chronicle
writer adds: "In addition to this a head clerk
is constantly on duty 'keeping offlcership,' as it
is termed, and several Junior clerks also live and
sleep in tho house. Anoftier quaint relic of past
days is the habit of calling tho front of the bank
'the shop' and Its back premises tho counting
house.' Much is written of the modern business
woman, but she existed as a social factor nearly
a century ago. From 1806 till 1867 Sarah, countess
of Jersey, ruled Child's bank as head partner and
signed the firm's books and shared profits until
the day of her death." 4
ACCORDING TO EARLY TRADITION,
historical statement and general belief tho
famous pirate, Blackbeard, buried untold treas
ure somewhere along tho Atlantic coast of our
country and the people of Chester, Pa., havo bo
come convinced that some of this treasure was
burled in the vicinity of theb city. Recently this
belief was revived by tho finding of a number of
strange coins along Tllghman Creek street. The
Chester correspondent of tho Chicago Record
Herald says: "That a large amount of the gold of
Blackbeard lies burled along tho river in tho west
ern part of Chester is common belief. For this
reason the construction of every sower, digging
of every cellar or any work that disturbs the
earth for a few feet beneath the surface Is closely
Watched. Where Second and Tllghman streets In
tersect there was once a landing for ships, and
this adds to tho plausibility of the notion that
some of Blackboard's revels were held there and
some day his gold will be unearthed."
AN INNOVATION HAS BEEN INTRODUCED
in the discipline of thr state prison in
Charlestown, Mass. The Boston, Mass., corre
spondent for the New York World tells the story
in this way: "As a relaxation from cell life and
'as a reward of good conduct, baseball games aro
being tried with satisfactory results by Warden
Bridges at tho state prison in Charlestown. Th9
game gives tho prisoners a beneficial change from
the routine of prison discipline, diversion and fresh
air. The innovation has been followed by an Im
provement in the 'Iscipllne. The warden says
the prisoners act as if permission to play ball
or to see a game is tho greatest Loon that can bo
conferred upon them next to a pardon or tho
expiration of a sentence. The Inmates have two
nines, called the Resolutes and the Hustlers, and
they play every fair-weather Saturday. There Is
room enough for 200 spectators, all prisoners, in
the yard."
JO C
THE SOLUTION OF THE NEGRO PROBLEM
seems to be one of the' great questions of the
day. In connection therewith, much interest is
being manifested in an organized effort by tho
Rev. J. Henry Duckrey of Cambridge, Mass., seek
ing the emigration of 500,000 negroes from the
south to points in the state of Massachusetts with
in the next three years. Rev. D .ckrey is acting
as the head of an organization which is said to
have unlimited money at its command and which
claims to include in its membership many promi
nent men and women of that section of the coun
try. Many of the negroes thus being sent to tho
north aro skilled laborora and somo aro .women,
put all sook omploymont Rev. Duckrey claims
that ho is recolvlng much encouragement not only
from citizens of Massachusetts, but from other
nnn ern no,nt8 and hellovea that ho can get 10,
000 persons out of tho south by November 1 of
this year.
AS REGARDS THE CHANCES OF SECURING
employment for theso negroes, .tho Troy, N.
Y., correspondent of tho Now York World, who
tolls tho story of this now organization, also says
that "a manufacturer of paper boxes at Cambridge,
Mass., has agreed to employ 100 of tho colored
women nnd arrangements aro now being pcrfocted
whereby sevornl thousand colorod persons of both
sexes will find work. A larjjo number will re
main in northern cities, while somo will be sont
to tho farming districts. Many persons bollcvo
that tho coming of so many negroes to this sec
tion will fill tho poor houses nnd cause wild
descents to bo mado upon the charity organiza
tions. Many others believe that tho worklngrnoa
here today will be cut out of employment ' On the
other hand, the members of tho. emigration society
assert that they aro perfectly ablo to take caro of
every colored man and woman coming hero, and
each will bo provided with employment. Mr.
Duckrey has letters from business mon who offer
to furnish employ mont to the colored people Im
mediately." WU TING-FANG WILL BE REMEMBERED
as tho Chinese minister to the United Statoa
WHO was not only popular In this country among
all classes of people, but wts regarded as a man
of extraordinary ability. A dispatch to the Chi
cago Chronicle from Washington says that Min
ister Conger of Peking has Informed tho state
department that Wu Ting-Fang has been appointed
second assistant In tho corps of under-sccrctarlea.
"While," says Mr. Conger, "this gives Mr. Wu
nominally only a clerical place, yet it makes an
opportunity for utilizing his foreign knowledgo
and experience If tho foreign offico so desires."
Minister Conger reports also that Lion Fang has
been promoted to tho position of first secretary,
or director, of tho board of foreign affairs, , vlco
Na t'Ung, transferred to the presidency of tho
board of revenue, and that Ku PI Ilsln has been
appointed second secretary, or director, of tho
board of foreign affairs.
'fi ft '
THESE ARE BAD DAYS FOR REPUBLICS.
That which has been known as tho tiniest
republic in tho world has recently been destroyed.
Tho Berlin correspondent for the New York
World says: "Altenberg, or Moresnet, the neutral
district covering barely a square mile and a
half and having a population of 2,500, has passed
to tho control of Belgium, Prussia having sur
rendered her claim for a each consideration not
disclosed. This nook, where Holland, Belgium,
and Prussia meet, following the Napoleonic set
tlement, was claimed by both Belgium and Prus
sia. These two countries agreed In 1816 to let the
inhabitants rule themselves, and since then Mores
net has been practically a republic governed by
an elected mayor and ten councilmen, the statutes
being the Code Napoleon. Trade was absolutely
freo and the people were exempt from military
service. Tho republic got along very well until
a few months ego, when gamblers from Liege
obtained the councilmen'g consent to erect a gam
ing pavilion in Moresnet, designed to rival Monte
Carlo. The concessionaires agreed to build elec
tric railroads to neighboring towns, to main
tain parks and various Institutions, an to share
in this way tho profits of the roulette tables with
every inhabitant A casino was opened last week,
and the German and Belgian press contained re
ports of the distinguished persons surrounding
the tables, especially rich youths from Cologne.
This publicity has now resulted in Prussia selling
her claim to Belgium."
STAMP COLLECTORS AND OTHER PERSONS
Interested In the stamp system of tho world
may be interested in an article that recently ap
peared in tho Kansas City Journal which relates
to that subject It is claimed that the stamps of
Hong Kong', which remain unchanged since tho
first issue, are the oldest in the world. All other
stamps have been changed in the forty odd years,
but the head of Queen Victoria on the Hong Kong
stamp has never been altered. Now, however, it
appears that a new set of stamps is to be used
with the head of King Edward, and when tho
change has taken place tho oldest stamp will be
the Russian, with the double headed eagle and th
shield of St George, which was issued in 1864.
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