THE 0MAF1A DAILY BEE! SUNDAY, APRIL 3. 1004.
PUBLIC SCHOOL FINANCE:,
Baport ef Discnwioo BoTore th Omaha
Board of Education.
PEARSE TAKES BACK CHARGE OF FRAUD
taller Ilereljrt. frum Fine fthowa to
B In So Way (hr(bU to
laterceptlon 'or Mis
j J proarlatlosu
At th meeting of the Board of Educa
tion last Monday availing the member wtre
addressed, on the subject of school board
finances by Edward Rosewater, editor of
The Bee, to who remarka reiponae was
mada by Superintendent rarse, with re
Jolndera by both of tham. The stenographic
raport of the dlacuaalon follows:
Mr. Rosewater: Borne weak ago an
address was deiiveiad before tha umaha
iteal batata exchange by your tnen
superintendent. Mr. hearse. In re-ponea
to, and perhaps defense of, criticism
that appeared in Tha Omaha Eee rela
Ja to tha rata ot taxation Imposed
pon tha city In tha pieacnt year,
particularly 3 mill levy fur school purl
oaea. riils respons to the editorial was
Jot confined to certain diction or correc
tion of tha editorial, which had no refer
ence to the gentleman who delivered the
address but another aubject was touched
iR"nLw.hlch 1 d8 Proper to brln before
this body and set that matter at reat, now
and forever. Among the thlnga said by
Mr. pearae waa thla:
-'!A."?.0,t "r,ou 'lng off In school rev.
,rm .th'r " haa taken place
fines Drodurwd fnt rka Kf 5 . .v.
10.000.- U6.U and a. high "a
Ji... rur namoer or years bark
these revenues have been nearly dried up.
running from M0 to 2,H0 or W.oSo per year.
During most of tha Mm for many years
the machinery by which police court fines
are produced, If produced at ail, has been
In control of the editor of the paper re-
-. . ui uouurai aaaoclatee. ir
i?f."?. p?ntlrmn ha really felt the tender
nllfltude for th pocket of the senernl
public which the articles referred to would
appear to Indicate, they might nave saved
to tha public noclcer yearly a very large
ahare of the fca.Dia 'Increased levy unac
counted for" In Uie preceding pages of this
atatement."
Ckargee I'swairaatrd and Baseless.
Thla is, by lnuendo, a charge that money
that belonged to tha school fund of Omaha
has In Home manner been abstracted or ap
propriated by the editor of the paper re
ferred to. The Omaha Bee. or his political
associates and friends, and that a lurgo
urn of this money is constantly being
withheld from the public treasury, and
therefore a deficit has been created that
has to be supplied by additional taxation.
I thought I would be purmltled to correct
the gentleman. If he had not known that
this lnuendo was absolutely baseless, and
I challenge him, when I am through to
produce a scluUlla of Information that
would Justify IL It Is not merely a scur
rilous ana unwarranted attack, but It Is
a dissemination ef mis information, which
I feel sure haa found thousands of credu
lous believers in the community, who
actually think that a condition has existed
for years and sUU exists that enables
some persona to ebtaln and procure money
through the machinery of the police court
that properly should be placed Into the
school fund.
The polloe machinery of Omaha, Ilka
tha police machinery of every other city.
10 cieaiea uy law, aou m executive om
oer created under the law are presumed
to handle the funds that come to them In
pursuance of law. Tor a long period be
fore that gentloman landed In Omaha, a
large sum of money, amounting to some
thing like JL'O.OiO per annum, waa being
gathered In through the police machinery
of Omaha by fines, collocted from the
keepers and Inmates of the proscribed dis
trict, but In 1896, before this gentleman
reached here, a crusade waa started, as
you all know who are old residents here,
by Rev. Frank Crane, which had for
Its object the abolition of those lines. Pe
titions and remonstrances were addressed
not only to the city council, but the legis
lature of tha state. After the legislature
of 1k6 had adjourned the fine system was
abolished and has never since been re
instated, except partially, during the ex
position period of 198. It will be remem
bered, that If anybody had Influence
enough to control the police machinery In
lw. UN or lSa7. It certainly was not the
editor of The Dee. I do not think I con
trolled the action of Judge Gordon, who
had charge of the police court, any more
than I control the action of the present
police Judge. If there was a falling off of
receipts from fines. It was by reason of
the discontinuance of the system. In order
to make that fact more speclflo and more
clear, I .will read the figures given m
by the city treasurer.
Polio Court Flaca.
im
1M 4.K6.7S
1837 I.47 li6
18H l,k6 W
IfM t.W
18U0 I.W9.1D
1901
jS.ua S.K'id.liO
18uJ 10.3S4.uO
Thla represents the total collected and
turned Into the city treasury by the polios
court, of which about one-half haa been
credited to the school fund.
So you will note In the year 1901 there waa
more than double the amount collected than
the aggregate collected In the police court
to 1), and even In 11. I realise that tha
periodical reference to tha alleged absorp
tion of police court fines haa been made to
blacken men's characters and to make tha
men and women of Omaha who like decency
and public honor look with contempt upon
the nieu alleged to be connected with this
matter. When some of these "well-dufined
rumors, " as they were called, were circu
lated some time ago 1 took uhout as much
pains as anybody to ascertain whether
there was any foundation for them;
whether anybody In the community was
paying blackmail, or anybody was being
protected for money In vice or crime. 1
made a searching Inquiry and so did tha
grand Jury called later, ana I thought when
the ihiIIcu commission rains Into the hands
of men who were politically at war with
those smirched by that report they, with
the police and detectives and all the ma
chinery of the police In this city, would dis
cover something If there were any actual
fact behind it. But they have failed, and it
Seems to me that the mouth of every hon
orable man ahauld be sealed m regard to
that matter.
RlBt Crltlelsas.
As a newspaper Tha Omaha Be has tha
' right to find fault. Possibly It may be
wrong. Nobody chilms Inlalllbillty. I have
even heard a president say he did not be
lieve he waa Infallible. If I have made mis
takes In the criticism of publlo schools. It
haa been under an erroneous conception of
conditions. But 1 want to say to this school
poem niai HOD.K1A in tjniuna nas oeen a
more persistent and conalstent friend of the
ubllo schools tnan I have been. I waa the
ather of the board of education law. I out
the law through the legislature as a mem
ber therer, when there were two school
bcarda fighting In Omaha, and they had two
treasurers, when they hail a high school
regenta beard and a common school board
suing each other In the courts, it was to
fight out ths Issue presented In the rnttnea
tlon of tha law by the people The Omaha
Bee was founded. Kvery one of my five
children was educated In the public schools
of Omaha, and one of my grandchildren Is
now In the public school. I have contrib
uted my full share of the publlo expense
for maintaining the publlo schools and have
endeavored to have the schools conducted
for the best Interest ef the masses, accord
ing to my best understanding. I may have
had a misunderstanding. I may nut have
understood clearly. No living man ran al
ways have a correct understanding of every
'sue. If t have beea mislnfertr.ed th ool
Hiins of the paper are open and have ai
rfare been open for correction, and 1 am
M M.ly to inako corr- lion whenever a
proper exWanntlon Is made.
Ihese cliaiges, maue and circulated
through a newspaper In Omaha and pri
vately, aa well, were entirely uncalied-for
and should not have been circulated by any
man. let alone a public servant, whose duty
It a as to serve the city of Omaha, and the
school board. Is merely a representative
or one branch of the city government, an
employe of the municipal corporation, who
has no more right to assail any of the tax-
r .. . n.'niiuiirin n IlllllllClfStl COT -
IKiratloni than tha employe of a big stock
an.,,, nuuiu nae me rigni lo assail
one of its stockholders. While the gentle
man Is no longer associated with the
schools, 1 am here to face him, so far as
Uiia matter la Concerned.
Polities la th gebools.
Before I attempted to get a hearing I
collected some uuta and statistics with re
gard to the public schools In the dinerrnt
cities. 1 whs laid up yesterday, In fact,
had a doctor to my house, and I am un
able to place my hand on them at this
tune, but at some future time 1 will en
deavor to put before you a comparaUve
statement, showing that a great deal of
economy run be exercised, and the schools
remain as efficient as they have been,
probulily. As conducted at the present
tune, sums of money are wasted. In my
opinion. The board mny be of the other
opinion and think present expenditures all
absolutely essential. I do not say that
because a man differs In view with m
about any of these economic questions he
has not a right to his opinion aa well as
I to mine, but I want to put a stop to
those false stories that have been promul
gated from this building, and that Is why
i have si en fit to come before you.
I would like to have the gentleman who,
Incidentally. Intimated In the same speech,
that it was all because of politics and po
litical fueling', tell whether he knows of a
single Instance where I bave asked him
to uppoint. promote or discharge any
teacher; whether I have Interfered in any
shape or mariner or sought to Interfere
with the government of the public schools
within th time that he has been here.
And I want the membere of th board. It
any of them know of any Instance that 1
have sought to degrade Uie schools by
bringing them Into politics, to say so. I
am prepared to fac them. There are gen
tlemen here who have been associated with
me In some political movemens, but I do
not think any of them can say that I have
asked them to drngoon the teachers or em
ployes to do this or that In a primary
election. Years ogo I endoavored to get
the schools on what might be considered
a strictly nonpartisan basis, and at various
times supported movements having for
their object the election of a nonpartisan
school board. I even voted for women
candidates for the school board, but found
that the women teachers preferred men
and elected men over the women when the
women were nominated. The conditions
of the community seem to tolerate
and demand that politics be Injected
more or less into tne scnooi ooarn,
but It Is not by my desire. I do not rare
any more what a man believes In politics
than I do what he believes In religion.
I would like both of these things to remain
out of the school house so far as it cat)
be done with decency and good government.
and I trust that anybody that has any Tact
contradictory to that assertion will state
it rlsrht he-a and we will print it.
I thank you for the courtesy you hare
shown me and trust that this will be all
amicable, and If you have any questions
to ask, 1 will answer them.
Pears Ucts Personal.
Mr. Pearse aaid: I knew It has been a
great pleasure to all members of the
board, as It certainly has been to me. to
listen to these remarks by Mr. Rosewater
this evening. It haa certainly been a great
pleasure to me, as It must have been to
you, to listen to nis recital or ms many
services In the Interest or publlo educa
tion. We sometimes forget these things.
Mr. Rosewater. I know, haa a strong affec
tion for the public schools, he having been,
aa ke haa told us. one of tha founders In
this cltv of th system we new have; and
although he has sometimes reminded us
of that passage In the scriptures which
says, "Whom the Father loveth He ckas
teneth," and although It haa aeemed to
us sometime that he leaned to that form
of discipline more than to the other, yet
i Know tnat we nave an oeeu giaa o
hear what he haa had to say tonight with
reference to th schools, aa well as these
other matters.
I should have been perfectly willing to
have Mr. Rosewater bring up any statis
tics he had relating to the school system
of Omaha, as compared with those of other
cltlea It haa been a part or my business,
as superintendent of the Omaha schools,
to know something about school finances
In Omaha and elsewhere. The financial
problem In the Omaha schools sine 1&,
when I was first elected superintendent,
has been a very pressing one. There has
been hardly a year in which the question
of how much money to raise and how beat
to expend It haa not been presented to tha
members of th Board of Education; first,
from their own desire to do the best thing
possible for the schools, and then because
there have been cltlxena, and also writers
In th publlo press, who have thought
proper to criticise the cours which tha
Board of Education has taken. For these
reasons I should have been glad to have
Mr. Rosewater present any figures he
might have obtained, I should have no
rear or the result.
aools Coaao Hick 1st Omaha,
Omaha la a somewhat scattered city. It
costs mora to light Omaha; It coat more
t pave, te curb and gutter and clean th
s tree la f Omaha than It would cost if tha
same number of people lived on one-half
tha area. It also costs more to maintain
the public achaola of Omaha than It would
If the cltlwns lived oompactly together.
Instead of being scattered over ao great a
number of square miles. But In sslt of
that fact, my friend uoen mv left will
find, and the membere of the board who
care to Investigate will find, that th ex-
pens or oonaucting tne acnoola or Omaha,
or maintaining mem irom year to year is
not greatly different from th coat In
other cities of Omaha's clr-ss. In soma
cities tne cost is less, snd In others mora;
in some cities It Is a good deal lea, and In
ethers very much more; but Omaha la not
far from th nermal average of school
expense. The members of this hoard ean
have the satisfaction of knowing that their
srnoois save oeen maintainea at about ths
normal coat or conducting publlo schools
throughout th country, In spit of our
somewhat scattered population.
Now. to talc up the little paragraph
jniw irom in lew remaraa wnicn J
mad before the Real Estate exchange
upon an Invitation from the officers ef that
body, 'at tha time they had under consid
eration the Question of city and school
finances. I regret that It haa keen thought
improper. By same persons, ror m to
have appeared befor the Real Estate -x-
ch angs In this matter. Th chairman of
the finance committee of the Board of
Education waa Invited to fce areaent; alsa
the chairman ef th finance cemmltte of
th city council, and the city attorney; and
I. ss superintendent or achoala. waa la
oluded In th Invitation. Throe of those
gentlemen who were abl to be present
compiled with th Invitation and spoke
upon matters under discussion. These
things which I had to say concerning th
schoel system, I thought best (sine I
know that aometlmea our friends are eensl
live as to what we say about them) t
hav reduced to writing; and, In arder that
the gentlemen present might net forget,
whan they had gene away from th meet
ing, what It was that I had aaid, I had
struck upon the mimeograph enough
copies, I thought, to supply one to each
member of the Real Ketat exohange likely
to be present. I also supplied tha re
porters who were there with cosies.
IVr Capita Jaggllag.
Now, I think my friend dee net deny
tho truth of th first part of th para
graph In question, which he haa read, and
to which I wish to call your attention:
"The roost serious falling eft In school
revenues, from other sources than taxa
tion, hua taken place in police court fines."
lie himself very kindly showed that. I
wont through the figures myself some lit
tle time ago, ending with July, 1S01, and It
might Interest the members of th board,
and perhaps the rltlzens. to know that In
the year ending with July, 1S90, there waa
'Ived from police court fines for each
ohlld la attendance In th schools (It!;
In ths year ending In 1S91. for tha
aar ending wnn uie summer of l&A II M;
for the year l.v3, 1.101, for the year imh.
1.W, lur tne year isni, A cents per child,
in 18V), which marked the end oi the first
year 1 spent In Omaha, m cents per cliild,
m 1, 11 cents per child; in 1S:, the year
of the eKposuion, U cents ir child; In
ln, u cents per cnua. ana in iyu, a nine
leaa than I cents or, to bo exact, i -10
cents per chiid. In 1901 the receipts
amounted to Is cents per child for the
year. 1 have not been able to compile
figures for the later yeais. The receipts
have Increased a little since trial time, oik
I have not had urn to get the exact
amounts.
Bo much for the statement tnat tne po
lice court fines have aerloualy diminished,
greatiy diminished.
Now. permit me to say In taking up th
remaining part of the paragraph, Oial our
friend who has appeared here tonight re
minds me of a woman who is constantly
awverallng that she Is a "pfjfect lauy,"
but whom some man Is always Insulting.
1 do not see why It Is neceysiry to pro
test s much. I do not believe that one
should be fo sensitive Hbout a little matter
of this sort. There are some of us who
have taken all that came our way nere
In Omaha, sometimes in the press i.nd
a,-imeiime nmliv We haven't soueiled
seriously; we haven't felt that our honor
was assailed; we haven't felt that It was
necessary to defend ourselves. We hav
felt that a good reputation throush a
quarter of a century should enable on to
stand without such deiense. ,
No Corruption Is Charged.
all
with
for
with
of
It an ordeal which
women approach
indescribable fear,
nothing compares
the Dain and horror
r riilI.KIrtV. H.iL.,,.1..
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bt...i.j r"-r"' syncm lor xam coming event
-cs, aum ouier Uli
comforts of this period.
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ll.oo per bottle. Book
containing valuable information free,
ft. tWdUld Regulator U., AOsata, Ga.
use
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PJ3TXIEIRP
FRffECJlW
But to go on with the discussion of Uie
paragraph. You will mid if you will read
l Ilia uaiaKTaun uareiuny tuai mere is
nothing In It, absolutely notnlng wliicti lu
any way Implies tnat any gentleman In
Omaha is or ever haa been in any way
corruptly receiving money which should
go into toe scnooi lunu. mere is not a
line, hot a word In thla which Implies that
any money haa been, as tha genueman
seemed to Infer, abstracted Irom th
school fund, or that as a consequence of
suoii abstraction a oencit exists. A oe
flctt exists, but It did not come about in
that way.
w tiat this paragrapn attempted to say
naa thla: There haa bena a keen solici
tude, and perbapa properly ao, tor many
years that Uie people of Omaha should be
saved from paying as much money as they
did pay for school taxes. It appears to
me mat ix mere is any responaioiuiy mai
If there Is anyone who could, through his
Influence upon his associates or in any
other way, assist In producing revenues for
the schools, and If fie has not done It, It
la a little Inconsistent to b so anxious, so
over-earnest about the matter of school
taxation.
Now, as to the fact of responsibility, per
haps thrt is sll 1 should say. That is all
that waa Implied, all that was cold; and
anyone who reads anything else Into the
statements here reads In something through
lnuendo and over-sensitiveness. Thla says:
"During most of the time, for many
years, the machinery by which police court
fines are produced, If produced at all (and
s a matter of fact during a good deal of
this time they have hardly been produced
it all), has heen In control of the editor of
the paper referred to, and of hla political
associates." I speak hut the common re
port when I say that I bellev this gentle
man has Influence, and that his wish la
nf:en potent with his political associates.
I do him the credit of thinking It Is and
everybody In Omaha does him that credit.
As to whether r not that lnmienei has
been consistent, I hav taken a llttl pslns
to look the matter up, nnd I thing the peo
ple of the community perhar understand
pretty well how police court fines are pro
duced. I do not care, and I hlnk that no
one connected with the school cares to go
Into the question of whether or tint the
practice formerly existing should be con
tinued. I am not here to say, and I hive
never said, that the practice of 1nlmt th1?
gamblers every month, nnd of fining the
unfortunate women of the town every
month, should be continued. There has
been no disposition on my part to say that,
and T have never felt that anyone con
nected with the schools ought to say it. I
have merely made the statement of fart
that n money. In any appreciable amount,
comes ts th school fund from pellce court
fines.
llxeuaes for J ads Gordon. ,
Now, as to whether they might or might
not come, as formerly, it is well known
that police court fines, if produced at all.
as this paragraph stated, come through the
co-operation ot certain agencies: first,
the fire end police commission, headed by
the mayor of the city. That commission
ts one of tha agencies; it haa control of tha
police force. Policemen as a rule loilow
the Instructions of their superiors, in a
general way. If the policy of the commis
sion were to collect those lines as formerly,
the policemen would proceed to do their
part of the work. After they have arrested
the offenders th offenders are taken to
Jail and are charged with whatever offenses
they are supposed to have committed, and
their cases come up for trial for prosecu
tion by tne city prosecutor, rnty are tnen,
If he thinks proper to prosecute them upon
the charges, taken before tne ponce judge,
Ths co-operation or an or mesa wire agen
cies Is necessary to produoe police court
fines.
There Is no question but that all the
police court fines collected are paid Into
the school fund. Here nre the three links
In the chain: the police force, the city
prosecutor and the police Judge. These
are the three agencies through which fines
are produced.
It haa been the fashion during much of
the Mm to attribute all this falling off In
follce court fines t th Judge who sat upon
he polio bench. New, I am not here to
state how much of th falling off has been
due to th police Judge or to his laxity.
It is not Impossible that tha police Judge,
seeing brought to him a very small propor
tion ef tha ffenders whom he knew to he
going about, and who ought to be arrested
and brought before him, might feci that
he did not car to do a very heavy business.
If such a condition existed, th police Judge
might not car to fine those he did see.
On th other hand. If the cltv prosecutor
does not car to prosecut the offenders
who are arrested by th pellce. th Jail
might be full f offenders, and If the prose
cutor doe net bring them befor th Judge
there are no fines Imposed and none col
lected. Then, too. If th police do not ar
rest th offenders, they cannot come into
th hands of th city prosecutor nor befor
th pollc Judge.
Caaaot fix Blaas a Aay Oat.
Ther is no question but that for a fair
part of th Urn for aeveral yeara back
uv. or six, or seven years ths police fore
haa been In tha hands of th aaociatee of
tlie gentleman referred to. There Is no
question at ail but that for a number ot
years tne city prosecutor has beeu an ap
point of this gentleman's political asso
ciates. It Is nut necessary t give any
nauiea; It is not necessary to attach any
biam to any person. Th point is merely
to establish responsibility. The tact Is
that for many years pollc court fines
could uot b imposed or collected without
th consent and influence of this gentle
man and his political anseclates. It might
be through uuu lliiiigneoa of ilia city pros,
cutor or through unwillingness of th pollc
fore or Ui police Judge; I am not here te
aliampt to locat the responsibility, but I
am her to point out th fact that for at
least aix r aeven years tha city prosecutor
has been one of th political aasoclaios of
the gentleman referred to.
Now, In closing, 1 want to aay tha only
thing that la suggested her and th people
ot Omaha very well know Its truth U that
there has been Utile income for the school
fund irom this source In recent vaara.
Whether there ought to be is not lor me to
say, nor for you gentlemen to auy. Tha
fact is that for uiany years a considerable
number of yeara if any one of these link
has been weakened, then the chain haa been
no alreuger than It weakest link. Aa a
result police court fines could not be pro
duced, and If not produced they could nut
be collected.
It la not necessary to say or t Infer,
nor Is It necessary for anyn even to think
that anyone a sollticaJ associates are of the
class of people from whom pollc court
fines are produced, and that If they were
not taken Into police court no police court
fine would be collected. It la not necessary
to think any such thing aa that But the
fact remains that fines have nut been as
sessed, and this money haa not been pro
duced. A chain la no stronger than Its
weakest link, and if any of these links has
been unwilling that police court fines
should b produced they could not be pro
duced. I have not sought an opportunity to say
these things, but it appears to me that
when a question la brought to our attention
In Uila way we have to meet It. I can only
add that 1 do not think It worth while to
be ao sensitive about these things; It does
not seem to ma that the occasion requires
It, nor does It seem to me that the gentle
man haa put a fair Interpretation upon
words which are certainly very plaiu.
Hespoaslblllty for Police.
Mr. Rosewater I would Ilk to be per
mitted a few words In reply. I am gad
tha gentleman haa given th Interpret.,, on
he has to his remarka. but ha does not
seem lo be oblivious of th fact that thei
la a vary Intense sentiment In this Com
munity against collecting what Is c.lKd
"blood money" for th benefit of th pub lo
schools and for that reason the old tin
system could not b reinstated. I am
amaxed that tie should have gone nut of I la
way to point backward years beyond the
period or his residence In Omaha and b
oblivious to th fact, that tha police com
mission, which had th control and man
agement of th police, barring alone the
mayor, four out of five, appointed by O v
err.or Savage, were not very close asso
ciates of min. snd th appointees of the
present governor have never been Idet.UtUd
l b m politically.
Be aleo ia oblivious, of tha fact that tha
pjbllc proaecutor. tip to a recent period,
was fac a number of years a niambrr of
this Board of Education, t refer to Mr.
Thomas. 8ursly he would not impute to
him any Intimation to rob the public school
fund by falling to prosecute rnmina.a. But.
the gentleman eeeme very mucn chagrined
that myself and my political associates
have not done something to increase the
revenues that come Into the school fund
through the pollc court. I am very sorry
that we have not been able to go out ani
g-t drunk and smash plate glass windows,
or rnlse t'aln generally so as to b conveyed
by the police patrol and made to contribute
to the police fund. I hope that any of my
friends, should they get Into that condition,
will be credited for the amount tht they
pay into the school fund. I have never had
anv such credit.
I" am sorry that this whole matter came
up It la not an agreeable thing. It la no
spirit of sensltlvenesa at all that Impelled
me. If this had been a charge of political
ma"tpulaMon. or anvthlng of that sort, I
would ignore It. but here Is a grave charge
so specific, and It seemed to be aa p ain aa
ro ild be to read between the lines, thst by
some means mvself snd my nssrlates hav
rurtalled the lnrome of the schoo's d-rlved
from police court fines. The charge la ab
solutely baseless. For the past few years
the police court fines have heen growing.
The truth Is, the former police Judge was
In tho habit of making political friends by
omitting to fins people arrested by the po
lice, or make such light fines that they
amounted to nothing, nnd by that policy
he made himself very popular and could
not be dislodged for years and years. That
fact anvbodv who will Investigate can as
certain without much trouble.
It seem a to me thst the ouestlin of th
finances of the public schools should have
heen rtWussed free from personal aspersion
and without seeking to throw odium upon
myself or other men.
f'earse's l'artlag Words.
Mr. Pear, replying: Ths gentleman par
ham did not understand m when I aaid
that never have I, or any member of thla
board, advocated tn collection or dioou
money. Th gentleman himself acknowl
edges that thla waa done, for a limited
Mine, during the expoeltlon. 6o far aa
appears, ther is nothing in the law which
tireventa It belnir done: hut 1 do not ad
vocate It, nor do 1 think any member of
this board advocates it. 1 do not think
that the great maas of th people of Omaha
advocate It. Neither do I think that th
great mass of the people of Omaha ar
crying out In misery under the tax laid
for the support of the public achoola.
I do say 1 said It in the beginning and
I aay it n gain that for a man who, with
hla political assoclatea, might have pro
duced a considerable revenue In this way
referred to during a considerable part of
this time that for a man so placed to be
ao exceedingly anxious over the levy of
taxes fur school purposes, appears to me
to be a little Inconsistent.
I wish to repeat what I said before, and
what, as 1 Judge from the gentleman's re
marks, he must have misunderstood, thnt
here has been no aspersion cast upon any
gentleman In Omaha, nor anv charge of dis
honesty or of corruptly receiving funds
belonging to the schools, nor of conniving
or conspiring to defraud tne scnooi tuna.
The fact has been stated that the money
did not ntnir: that Is nil.
There Is this to be said: I do not need to
say that my friend here has referred to
Judge Gordon has characterixed Judge
Gordon's course and Imputed motives to
Judge Gordon. I will not retaliate by say
ing that the gentleman's political associates,
in control of the police department, neg
lected to send Judge Oordon any great
number of offenders while he was In the
police court. I do not say thla waa true
at all. I do not care to cast aspersions
upon the gentleman's associates connocted
with the police force and department. I
hardly think It Is fair, however, to go Into
that phase of Judge Gordon's record with
out presenting some other matters for com
parison.
There Is nothing In all thla thnt charges
this gentleman or his associates with cor
ruption, or with mlsgathering or misappro
priating public funds. But I want to say
ita n now. with reference to the gantle
man's disposition to read between the lines.
that If some of us had read btween the
lines In some of the newspapers or Omaha
we might have read ourselves Into almost
any attitude or almost any place of confine
ment. To read between the lines some
thing which Is not stated, hardly seems to
be required.
OCT OF THE ORDINARY.
A little girl of 9 years skipped ths rops
200 times in Pittsburg. Pa., in competition
with other children, and died soon after of
heart disease.
"Old Friendship," th Are engln that
Georgo Washington helped to pull through
the streets of Alexandria, Va., when he
was a young man, will be shown at tha
bt. J-aiuis orld s lair.
The loss of life from accidents and dis
asters In the United States last year were:
Fires, i.toz; drowning, x.4i; explosions, i;
falling buildings, etc., T4; steam railways
4,0!H); electrlu railways, o.if; tiectncity, jwj
mines, 788; cyclones and norms, 4S7; light
ning, 1S9.
A kitten was lately brought up on an
I exclusively vegetable diet by a London
ram lv or vegetarians, inn result ia tnat
It will not touch animal food, and pays
no attention to rats or mice that are pur
posely permitted to wander across its rang
or vision.
Barbora Honora Venus Brown-Ryan,
Boston character for many yars past, was
arrested for vagrancy Uie other day, and
upon being searched ro.tw was round oon
oealed In her clothing. She was permitted
to depart rrom in court room in peace,
but with a warning to keep off the streets.
Chicago rDorts a new freak In th con
flagratlon Una. A chicken coop took fir
In some way. Bom of th chickens, with
feathers aflame, ran Into their owner's
horn and set the woodwork afire. Five
hundred dollars' damage was eon to th
nous.
A man In Ohio who had three sweet
heart willed 110,000 to each on hla death,
lie would have married any of ths trio,
but was afraid of breach of promla suits
from ths two deserted. Bo he married
none, but shared hla money equally among
all. Bo tender and Just a heart ought to
be preserved In alcohol.
In Nagasaki. Japan, ther is a fireworks
maker who manufactures pyrotechnlo birds
of great size that, when exploded, sail Id a
lifelike manner through the air and per
form many movementa exactly like those
of living birds. The secret ot making these
wonderful thing has been In possession
of the eldest child of the family of each
generation for mor than 400 years,
Mrs. Sophia Heilman Davis, aged 100,
whose descendants number eighty-four per
sons, snd who waa on of Uie oldest resi
dents of Somerset county, Pennsylvania,
died recently of ailment due t old age at
th horn of her son-in-law, Amos Kurtz,
at Addlaon, Somerset county. Among her
surviving rclaUvea ar two sisters, both of
whom passed th oantury mark ssvsrel
years ag.
Soma congressmen were talking of queer
tilings seen on tombstone. Mr. Johnson
of Bouth Carolina saw Uils in a village
graveyard In his state: "Kreoted to tn
memory ef John Dawson, who was acci
dentally ahot aa a mark of atfeotlon by
hla brother." This reminded Mr. Gregg
of Texas of an Inscription ha aaw In an
Arkansas graveyard: ' fills atone la aakred
to th memry of William Hardy who comes
to hie death by fooling with (Jolt revolver,
on of th old kind brass mounted, and
of such Is th Kingdom of heaven."
Dr. W. E. Young of New York City
sounds a not of warning agalnet th all
out universal practice or anaaing nanaa.
"A small parasite," says Dr. Young, ' at
tacks the palm of the hand and readily
communicatee Itself to the handshaker.
Tha parasite carries his family with him
and ha la most difficult to dislodge." Th
doctor says that th Itching palm Is epi
demic on the upper east side of. New York
and Is most prevalent among those whose
business or social duties call for frequent
rontacta. Bo far thirty cases have been
f 'laced under observation, and in all of
hem th paraalt was found present.
Orchard & Wilhelm earpet So.
Invite yo2t to look through their store this zcreh.
All the interesting productions for spring house
furnishings are on exhibit. Special attention will
be given to the showing of the new goods.
Special
showin
k Lace (Surtains
for
Spring
New spring ideas in Lace Curtains. A distinctiveness if you secure the proper kind,
those that are newest in fashion's favor. We show all the pood things the modern
spring '04 kind. Our buying iu large quantities has placed us in position to becuro
some extraordinary values which we offer t) those in need of lace curtains.
Ruflled Swiss Curtains, extra fine
quality, stripes only, 39 inches wide by 3
yards long, special, per pair, C3c.
Hemstitched Swiss Curains, 100 styles
to choose from, extra quality, very spe
cial, per pair, $1.25.
liuftled Net Washable Curtains fine
quality, priced special, per pair, $1.50.
Kuffled Net Curtains, extra flue French
goods. A curtain that is usually sold for
much more than the price we are asking
for this lot, special, per pair, $2.1)5.
Brussels Curtains Heal Cluny, Irish
Point, Battenberg, Point de'Calias, very
special priced; we ask for a fair compari
son and you will note the saving spe
cial, per pair, $3.95.
Heal Arabian Curtains, hand made
French Cluny with wide insertion and
edge all linen imported new designs in
Brussels and Irish Point rind Bonne
Ferunie. Goods bought iuthe ordinary
way would be sold for much more, these
are very special, at, per pair, $5.75.
At $7.50 we place on sale a line of
Brussels, Irish Point, linen Cluny, hand
made Arabian and Battenburg goods
that have sold from $10 to $12.50 per pair,
but a fortunate purchase has enabled us
to offer these at $7.50 per pair.
Cluny Curtains, with 4-inch insertion,
2-inch edge, 3$ yards long, 50 inches
w ide Arabian Curtains, hand made, 50
styles in the new spring goods. Extra
heavy, double net, Brussels Curtains, any
of these you will find considerable under
priced for the quality of goods and in
this spring opening sale, at, pair $9.50.
25 stylos of Arabian Curtains, hajnd
made. Duchess Curtains, our own im
portation, also imported hand drawn
madras curtains by importing these
direct we are enabled to offer you $17.50
to $22 values at, special, jwiir, $13.75.
A very special showing of Baxony
Brussels Curtains with sash curtains to
match Battenburg Curtains, 9-inch in
sertion hand made Arabian with, extra
heavy curtains. These are goods that
you have been asked a much higher price
for iu the past, but for our spring open
ing sale we have them specially priced,
at, per pair, $17.50.
CIJRTHIN SWISS
3G inches wide, special, per yard, 8Jc
30 inches wide, extra quality, special,
per yard, 12 Jc.
42 inches wide, special, per yard, 22c.
48 inches wide, extra quality, special,
per yard, 45c.
French madras, 4S inches wide, spe
cial, per yard, 45c.
Madras, stained glass effects, 48 inches
wide, special, per yard, 85c.
WINDOW SHADES
Odd lot made from best hand made
opaque and duplex "cloth", special, each,
while they last, 37$c.
Hand mode opaque shades, made to
crcler, any size, in lots of not less than
15, for any private residence, during
this week, at, each, C5c.
"Bottled Ooodnaaf
In oil 'tU aoM saolity."
QoaUry talk aboali b backsd by "th
goed." BUa Brewery was iooadoa is th
early rortasa. Blalg aaalilr is almost
traduioaaL Every bottle it f all of quality
argumtuL 1 h "Biatg" characteristics
are all rounded op ia tha "Wiener."
Aak tor it down Iowa. Send a cat noma.
Omaha Branch 141! Douglas Rt. Tel. lOal.
irrx
Settlers' Rates
To
MINNESOTA, NORTH AND SOUTH DAKOTA,
WYOMING AND CANADIAN POINTS
March 1, 8,15,22 and April 5, 12, 19 and 26
Via
S CENTRAL
Particulars at City Tletcot Offic. 1402 Farnam St.. or writ
W. H. BRILL, Dist. Pass. Agt., Omaha, Neb.
ILLINOI
Horsewomen and "Whips"
of the "Smart Set"
A seasonable description of the hunt
ing clubs in and around New York
Illustrated with photographs from life
In the April number of the
Metropolitan Magazine
R. H. M PuLEahtf . New York
A 35-cent Magazine for 1 5 cents All Newsdealers
(E67)
Read The Bee the Best Newspaper.
i