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SEPTEMBER 28, 190
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old, would pass for a much younger man Ho
has a kindly face and rides about the city with
out a guard. A more ambitious monarch would
have met Norway's demand with armed resist
ance, but ho, recognizing that the holding of
Norway against the will of the people would in
volve his country in perpetual strife, advocated
a peaceful separation provided the people of
Norway asked for it in unmistakable terms.
For thirty years he had been the sovereign
of both, and in his old age he could not bear to
see the two countries engaged in a bloody con
flict. He is just now criticised by some who
did not become sanguinary until all prospect of
war was past, but he has the consolation of
knowing that his critics are not only alive but
have no dead relatives to mourn. Had he
plunged his country into war, his critics could
remind him of vacant chairs at the fireside.
King Oscar has in. a most practical way
proved himself to be a promoter of peace and as
such deserves the prize provided by that great
Swedish chemist, Alfred Nobel. By giving con
spicuous approval to his course, the trustees of
the Nobel fund may be able to encourage other
sovereigns to imitate him.
Copyright.
A DOUGLAS PREDICTION
Judge J. H. Broady of Lincoln, Neb., recently
received a letter from Charles Neoly of St. Paul,
Minn., from which letter this interesting bit of
unwritten history is taken: "The pioneers of
Illinois were accustomed to meet once a year in
Chicago for a good visit and incidentally they
would drift into political discussions. In 1861
the following named distinguished men met by
agreement at the Tremont House in Chicago:
'Judge Stephen A. Douglas, General John A. Logan,
'Long John" Wentworth, William H. Gilman,
Alexander Neely and Dr. R. S. Molony. When
they were about to separate and return to their
respective homes they were in the parlor of the
hotel and I was present with my father. Judge
Douglas said: Wow that you are going I want
to make a prediction. This government is fast
drifting away from the masses and will soon be
come a money power. That power will be located
at Washington and Wall street, and it will soon
control the votes of. our country. Some of you
gentlemen may not live to see this come true,
but this young man (referring to me) may do
so.' General Logan replied: 'Judge Douglas, I
fear what you say is too true.' All the gentle
men present have since passed away, and I am
the only living witness."
JJJ
"AND WITHOUT RESERVE" '
Mr. Bryan says the way to sustain Presl-
dent Roosevelt is to elect democratic senators
and representatives. The republican hand
book says the way to sustain the president Is
to elect republican senators and representa
tives. At any rate, it appears that the presi
dent is to be sustained no matter what par
ticular direction, the political cat takes when
It gets ready to jump. Lincoln (Neb.) Star
(Rep.).
But of what value is that sort of sup
port given, say by Senators Foraker and Dick,
I of Ohio, who were endorsed "and without re
serve" in spite of the fact that they nave bitterly
M antagonized Mr. Roosevelt's reform measures?
The election of a repuoncan nouse means
that Mr. Roosevelt is to be sustained whenever
L he moves in behalf of the ship subsidy or kindred
measures; but the election of a democratic houso
rineanS'that Mr. Roosevelt will be sustained when-
ir he moves along reform lines or upon any
.action which seeks to protect the public In-
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JJJ
ITOLERABLE AND INDEFENSIBLE
Ml hearing at Omaha before Interstate Com-
wnmissioner Prouty, where testimony in
Pacific coal case was being tanen, tne
tof the local "exchange" gave testimony
fearly that that exchange nxes tne price
tlocal coal dealers sen. uouDtiess a
mim avisia in fivfirv other city. Gen-
ETdealers say that their "exchange" is
for tha mirnose of protecting the
hnd nredits. but It Is safe to say
ifrestigation will disclose that these ex-
e really conspiracies in restraint or
re prices are fixed and competition
case in the coal trade, so doubtless
The Commoner.
mJB truo of the Ico trado nd tho lumber trado.
The bad example sot by powerful men who havo
conspired on a largo scale to violate the law has
beon followed on a similar-scalo in all soctions
of the country. The system has grown to such
proportions that It is strange that any political
party dares ignore the plain duty of moving ef
fectively against the system.
Theso private monopolies are not to bo rogu
latod. They aro indefensible and intolerable and
ought to be destroyed. This does not mean tho
destruction of legitimate trado; it does not mean
the destruction of tho ice business, the coal busi
ness, the lumber business, or any other legiti
mate commercial affair. It does mean, however,
tho faithful maintenance of tho laws against con
spiracies in restraint of trado. It means an hon
est and determined effort on the part of the au
thoritles to restore and maintain an honest sys
tem of competition. It means the placarding of
tho highways and byways, In order that he who
runs may read, with the solemn notice that men
who conspire in restraint of trade, who organize
and participate In trusts, who prey upon tho ne
cessities of the people, do so at their peril, and
invite for themselves, not tho money-fine which
they may pay without inconvenience, but tho
prison sentence and tho convict's stripes.
JJJ
PLATT AMENDMENT AND TELLER RESOLU
TION The Milwaukee Sentinel, a republican paper,
says: "The Spanish war to abate tho Cuban
nuisance was not fought for nothing, and tho
Piatt amendment was a better piece of states
manship than the Teller resolution."
The Piatt amendment was intended as a
string to hold the island of Cuba In line for ex
ploitation. The Teller resolution was a chart Intended
for the guidance of the American ship of state,
according to the bearings of the fathers.
The one was born in a commercial spirit
and the other was prompted by lofty patriotism.
As a piece of statesmanship there is no com
parison between the two, and the superiority of
the one over the other is shown by the fact
that the spirit of the Teller resolution hovers
even at this moment over the Piatt amendment,
and serves as a restraint upon those who might
be tempted to look with covetous eyes upon the
Island whose people we helped to liberty and
whose successful struggle for independence pro
vides for this great government of ours one of
the brightest and purest chapters of Its history.
JJJ
FACTS ARE FACTS
A dispatch to the Chicago Tribune under
date of Concordia, Kan., September 14, says that
the Concordia Empire, a republican paper, prints
the following editorial: "We have been invited
to send a dollar contribution to tho republican
campaign fund that is being raised by popular
subscription and to which President Roosevelt
recently subscribed. We would like to have our
dollar in such select company, all right, but we've
done all the contributing we intend to this year.
We recently have completed building a house
at a cost of something over $4,000, and for every
foot of lumber, every pane of glaBS, every sack
of cement, every pound of nails and in fact for
nearly every bit of material that went Into it
we made a good, liberal contribution through tho
trusts that control them, and we guess we have
done our share. It may be treason for a repub
lican newspaper to talk this way, but facts are
facts, and it sort of relieves our conscience to
tell the truth about the trusts once in a while.
We'll just let the several trusts to which we
have had to pay unwilling tribute in the past
year pay our dollar for us. We need it and they
don't." '
Show this to your republican neighbors.
JJJ
A GOOD FIGHT
New Hampshire is not only a rock-ribbed
republican state, but also a dependency of the
.Boston & Maine railroad. For a generation the
Boston & Maine railroad has owned the state,
politically and commercially especially politK
cally. Winston Churchill, the novelist, made a
gallant fight for the gubernatorial nomination at
the hands of the republicans, basing bis claims
on his opposition to railroad domination. He was
defeated, but he made such a good showing that
opponents of railroad control are encouraged to
keep right on fighting. Starting in, without an
organization, and rglying wholly on the people,
ho. camo within loss than ono hundred votes of
securing the nomination although tho railroad
cohorts worked tho old "favbrito son" trick in
various counties to divide his strength. Tho re
sult in Now Hampshire, while showing that tho
Boston & Malno railroad still controls, discloses
the fact that there is a vory healthy and promis
ing reaction against its political machinery.
JJJ
ALDRICH IS PLEASED
Tho Forakor-Dick victory In the Ohio repub
lican convention and tho fearfully and wondorfully
mado resolutions adopted by that convention,
aro not at all pleasing to republicans generally.
Tho New York Press, which has lately spoken
very plainly upon public matters, says: "Senator
Aldrich s own homo organ, tho Providence Tribuno,
is highly elated ovor tho victory of Foraker and
Dick, 'who havo rendered Invaluable sorvlco to
tho republican organization' Just how is not
stated. Especially does tho Aldrich organ oxtdl
the two senators for 'not always sneezing when
tho president took snuff In regard to a re
publican victory In Ohio, it does not seem so
sanguine as it might and rather 'shies' at tho
platform adopted at tho convention. But theso
things it treats as minor matters. Tho principal
thing is that Foraker and Dick have triumphed,
and therefore Aldrich Is Jubilant. Tho party?
Oh, bother the party! What's tho party between
Aldrich, Foraker and Dick?"
JJJ
MIGHT HAVE HELPED OTHER8
A newspaper writer prints an interesting
story relating to Andrew Carnegie's "Thirty
Young Partners." These are Mr. Carnoglo's busi
ness lieutenants, every ono of whom, so wo aro .
told, is a millionaire or well along that pathway. '
Wo aro told by this newspaper writer that Car
negie "always chooses tho poor lad to push to
the front." Then follows an interesting descrip
tion of the great progress mado by Mr. Carnegie's
"faithful lieutenants."
But what about the faithful men In the rank
and file in the Carnegie mills? What about the
"poor lads" who havo mado possible some portion
of the Carnegie fortune? While tho ironmaster
was making millionaires out of "thirty lieuten
ants," might ho not havo provided better pay
for tho men who toll with their hands? MIgHt
ho not have avoided the tears and the bloodshed
at Homestead, and built for himsolf In tho hearts
of his employes a monument that would enduro
when the Carnegie libraries havo fflen to decay?
JJJ
POOR OLD G. O. P.
. If, as claimed in a Washington dispatch to
the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, the democrats
would have carried Maine by 20,000 majority but
for Mr. Bryan's Madison Square spoech, then tho
republican cause is weak, indeed, and the "stand
by Roosevelt" plea is a futile ono.
If even Maine may bo counted upon for 20,000 .
democratic majority when Judgment is to bo
passed upon the republican party's record, it will
bo pretty nearly unanimous by the time all the
returns are In the only hope of the g. o. p's.
salvation being that some democratic orator may
say something with which all men do not agree.
Poor old republican party!
JJJ
CAN'T AGREE THAT WAY
In a spoech at Pleasant Hill, Missouri, Sec
retary Shaw said that the objection he had to
tho democrats Is "they can't agree." Evidently
Mr. Shaw likes the brand of harmony offered
by the Ohio republican state convention. Con
fronted with tho problem how to endorse Mr.'
Roosevelt without repudiating the Ohio sena
tors who had opposed his policies tho Ohio con
vention endorsed senators and president and in
order that there might be no misunderstanding
endorsed the senators "without reserve." It must
be admitted that it would be difficult for demo
crats In this day to agree on tho Ohio plan.
JJJ
A LIVING FORCE
The New York World Is again distressed
over its' own question, "shall the demo6ratic
party die?" If the party depended for existence
upon the support of the World, it would long
ago have closed its career. But the party is
neither dead nor dying. On the contrary It Is
entering upon the most important period of it
career.
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