WWHP. Ml ' .ifWinwfWMUlNB ?...- , (WRfflam Published Every Thursday by The Herald Publishing Company. T. J. O'KEKFE . J. I). KNIEST . . Editor Associate Editor Subscription, $1.50 per year in advance. Entered at the postoflice at Alliance, Nebraska, for transmission through the mails, as second-class matter. If you forgot that it was April Fool day, you aro Browing old. There is no indication of a scarcity af timber in the prcsidcntal preserves, so far. TI10 fishing season opened yesterday, but it is said that stickers were biting all winter. Wanted, a bright young man who has education enough to read an elect rlc light meter. Onmlia is going to have a corn show, but what will sho do for "corn juice" if the state goes dry next week. The press dispatches announce that 35,000 coal miners will quit work this month. Thank the Lord, spring is near. No more push carts will be allowed on Omaha streets. Well, just so the water wagon is allowed to remain tuero's hope ior the average Omahog. It is said that 15,000 democrats greeted Btyan at Kansas City Monday night. Yes, and the rural district was not heard from cither on this occasion. The Denver Post announces in startling red-headed lines that Colorado is the greatest potato-raising state in the union. Go slow, about that Mr, Post, Nebraska will take a hand in that game too. President Roosevelt announces a special session of congress to revise the tariff. If the special session re ceives no more attention than did need ed legislation at the regular session, it is safe to predict that the money will be spent in vain and the tariff will not be revised in the least. The republican press says (hat the police of Omaha and Council Bluffs are preparing to prot.t Secretary Taft on his arrival to these cities next week. Who ever heard of a police force being called out to protect W. J. Bryan from some imaginary danger ? It's tho old saying, "Conscience makes cowards of us all." Tho Omaha Bee is worried to know why it is not just as proper for Tom Watson to make a second race for the presidency as well as Mr. Bryan's third attempt? Certainly, more than proper. Don't let that worry you, brethren. Worry over the grand niau from our beloved state atid you'll have enough to do till election day. Two bundled and fifty thousand bi tuminous coal miners arc out as a re sult of a disagreement over wages. Vice-President Lewis, who will succeed President John Mitchell to-day, said yesterday that lie would make -no move for several days. The differences are slight, and it is to be hoped that a set tlement will soon be made. The Lincoln Journal charges the Omaha Bee with mailcious intent to steal away the proposed historical state building. Did you ever know of the Bee leaving anything that was not nailed down, Mr. Journal? Lincoln is entitled to everything of an antiquated nature and it is very unbecoming the sister city to show such discourtesy. Reprinting from news items which it had published twenty years ago the Lincoln Journal on last Monday said that the democratic city convention listened to an address by a young at lately coming from Illinois, .and that his address proved that he was to be a leader in city if not in state affairs of his party. The Journal's prophecy has been fulfilled; the young attorney's name is W. J. Bryan. Chester Gillette, the murderer of his sweetheart, Grace Brown, near Big Moose, New York, in igoG, was electro cuted at the Auburn prison last Monday. Of course, like all such characters, when he found there was no further chance of escape, he confessed his guilt and said he was prepared to meet his God. We don't know just what the good Lord is going to do with such fellows as Gillette, who live a life of crime to the last and then suddenly get religion, but there's no doubt a surprise tn store for the lad who goes that route, when he arrives at his final destination. POLICY OMNACTIOfl, Not a Single Public Measure Passed by Congress. DOMINANT PARTY TO BLAME. With Big Majorities In Both Houses Republicans Neglect Legislation. Hostile to President A Foolish Sys tem of Sessions Tnft'a Weakness Before tho People The Appeal of Labor Two-thirds Rule Illogical, By WILLIS J. AnnOT. Tho death of Senator William James Brynn of Florida mnrks what Is per finps the most extraordinary series of deaths In one United Stutcs senate known to recent years. Senators Mor gan and Pettus of Alabama died with in two mouths of each other. Seuator Proctor of Vermont nnd Senator Mnl lory of Florida died very shortly there after. Senator William Plnkney Wuyto of Maryland died only a few days ago. Now comes news of the death of Sen ator Bryan, who came as tho appointed successor to Senator Mallory and who had barely taken his seat In the senate before the attack of typhoid fever which brought him to his end was In curred. His death Is pecullnrly pitiful because of his youth. He was tho youngest senator of the United States, not yet thirty-two years of age. In his home state he hud impressed himself upon the people as a man of force and ability. At the capltol ho had not had any opportuulty to make his mnrk. It was only on the Oth of January that ho took his seat, and It wns three weeks ago that lie was sent to the hospital where he died. That Florida should be thus In one session of congress twice deprived of Its representation In the senate seems n cruel stroke of fate. It Is hardly likely that the governor will , make an appointment to fill the seat In tenson to make tho successor useful to tho Democratic minority in the sen ate. However, as the Republican side of the senate possesses now a two thlrdB majority, It Is Just as well that It should be permitted to accept com- j plcto responsibility for all legislation to be enacted this year. Tho Date of Adjournment. Tho Indications are now that con gress will adjourn about the 2."th of May. The statesmen, and particularly those In the house of representatives, have matters of political and personal Interest to attend to in their own dis tricts. But so far the matters of pub lie and national Interest which they nro supposed to attend to at tho capital have not been done. One-half of the first bossIoii of the Sixtieth congress Is over, and not one single mensure of a , public nature has been passed by the two houses nnd sent to the president ' for his approval. This Is not because of any factious opposition on the part of the minority party. There has been no filibustering nor even any attempt ( at lr. tiid senate nns its two-inirus Republican majority, tho house a ma jority proportionately as great, but absolutely nothing so far has been done. It's true that this congress Is hostile to the president. The distin guished Republicans there gathered are Inclined to believe that he has too much of an Inclination to dictate what tho legislative branch of tho govern ment should do. Perhaps to that ex tent they nro right, but It may at least be said that a president has the right to nsk that congress shall do some thing. This congress has done nothing so far. Not even the committees have to the present time reported the really necessary measures. In the house of representatives there are VS men, each of whom draws In sa'ary and allow ances practically $10,000 a yexr. i'he salary and the allowances go on twelve months out of the year, but tho average work does not amount to four months annually. A foolish system prescrllH'd by lnw, which enn bo changed only by law, divides congress Into short and long sessions. Tho short session Is too short for any legislation; the long session always precedes cither u congressional or a presidential elec tion, and the politicians therefore arold doing anything which might u fleet the result. Thut hns been particularly true In the last eighteen months, when the last session of the Fifty-ninth congress went out In Impotence, nnd the first session of the Sixtieth congress is hnlf ended without any legislation for pub lic purposes hnvlng been enacted. The Anonymous Political Bureau. One of the Interesting fentures of politics In Washington during a presi dential campaign Is the anonymous news bureau. Both the Republican aud the Democratic parties suffer from these concerns. I had an Illustration of one the other dny, when In n sealed envelope, bearing no return address, I received two pages of typewritten matter attacking the claims of Secre tary Taft's manager, Mr. Frank Hitch cock. The writer of this matter did not sign his name. No newspaper man with any sense of responsibility would care to accept statements coming thus anonymously. For whom the writer may be arguing or working does not appear, but It Is perfectly apparent that he Is employed by somebody antago nistic to Taft. He asserts that the plan of the antl-Taft forces is to tight for dolegatlons from now on, having allowed Tuft to hold his conventions In states which were likely to bo for him In any event. He also predicts that Delaware, Massachusetts, Ten nessee nnd Nevndn will within thirty dnys elect nuti-Tnft delegations and that In the end tho nntl-Tnft forces will be within 1-10 votes of controlling the convention on tho first bnllot, with "many soft spots" In the Tuft legions thut may be successfully attacked. It would appear that the Republican party Is likely to suffer In the same way that some undemocratic Demo crats wish to tnnkc the Democratic party suffer It Is perfectly apparent to any observer of politics tlint a ma jority of the Republicans of tho na tion desire Secretary Taft's nomina tion that Is, a majority desires it If President Roosevelt himself shall re main out of the running. A combina tion of favorite sons, made only In or der to defeat the secretary's nomina tion, Is likely to have tho effect of de feating whosoever they may finally unite on In the event that he nlmself shall not be nominated. That Taft would be a strong candidate before the people nobody In Washington ex cept the administration circle believes. The hostility of organized labor and the bitterness of the negroes In the north against him will do more than Is needed to overcome the strength that may bo lent him by the Roosevelt nnd administration support. Appeal of the Federation of Labor. Hends of the affiliated unions In the Federation of Labor Issued from Wash ington recently an appeal to tho work Ingmen of the country for united po litical action. They ask that candidates for the presidency, for congress or for other offices bo requested to specifically declare their positions on such mnttcrs ns the abuse of the power of Injunc tion, the eight hour law, the employ ers' liability law nnd other legislation directly affecting working people. The appeal has been handled by many newspapers as though it Indicated a purpose on tho part of the Federation of Labor to organize a distinctly labor party. As a matter of fact It only ex presses n purposo to tnke such action as Is eminently proper for nny such great organization to adopt. That a candldnto for office, seeking the votes of worklngmen, should hesltnte for a moment In nnswcrlng questions ns to policies that vitally affect the rights of laboring classes would unfit him f6r office. Here in the United States we have not developed as we really should have the methods of free debate In po litical campaigns that they have In England. There are only a few men In our public life who Invito questions frpm their auditors In a public meeting. The man who has most successfully adopt ed this method Is Mnyor Tom L. John son of Cleveland. A speech by Tom Johnson Is nn Inspiration to any one who believes In a really frank discus sion of public questions. Nothing de l'ghts him more than to abandon the platform for the middle aisle and nsk any one who may be dissatisfied with his argument to question him frankly and to receive a frank, response, I have watched him time and agalu.jn action nnd sincerely believe that his readiness to enter .upon discussions' rof this sort Is one of his grentest sources of strength In his campaigns. Of course it may not always be nec essary, particularly on the part of can didates for national office, to repeated ly answer the same questions. But I am unable to see why the Federation of Labor should not at the beginning or a campaign nsk the aspirants for otllco for an explicit statement of their views on pertinent nintters and then act accordingly. Tho Two-thirds Rule. In nil probability an effort will be made at the next Democratic national convention to modify or to abrogate the two-thirds rule. This will not be attempted before the nomination, for no wisp mnn would care to become a candidate before the Democratic voters with the record of having secured his nomination by overturning established Democratic practice, however unwise that practice may be. That It is un wise Is coming now to be generally ad mitted. Democracy means the rule of tho majority, and one more than half constitutes a majority. One more than half of tho members of the committee on resolutions can send to the full con vention tho platform by which the party Is to be guided, nnd n bnre ma jority of tho convention can adopt that platform. Tho Insistence thut two thirds of the convention must unite In order to nominate a candidate Is made Illogical and ridiculous when the ability of a mere majority to fix Its principles Is borne In mlud. Moreover, under tho unit rule tho vote of ot.e mnn might determine how the seventy-eight votes of New York or the sl.ty-elght of Pennsylvania might bo determined. Just now the two-thirds rule Is being strenuously appealed to by a group of utterly undemocratic politicians who hope to utilize It, not for the nomina tion of any particular candidate, for they have none, but for the defeat of the one candidate whom the great ma jority of Demouatlo voters desire to see nominated. It is a practical denial of the principle of mnjorlty rule, which Is a fundamental of Democracy. Washington, D. C. Beyond Control. The courtroom hns Its fun as well ns Its tragedy. Sometimes the humor Is not as appreciable to the principal ac tors as to an outsider, as In the caso cited by tho Philadelphia Ledger. Tho scene took place In a New Jersey court, where n case for slander was being tried. The principal witness was an Impetuous old German woman. She tnlked so fast that the Judge was un able to follow her testimony, especially ns It was delivered In broken Eugllsb. In vain he attempted to stop her. "Stop, stop!" he cried, rapping sharp ly on his desk. But the torrent of words went on. "Old woman, hush up!" he shouted In exasperation. But It was useless, At last he threw down his pen exhausted and cried out to tho lawyer: 'There. Mr. Hunter! You set her going; now stop her!" 11 WORKERS FORCED OUT PENDING NEW CONTRACTS. COAL FIELDS OF COUNTRY IDLE Open Winter and Industrial Depres sion Left Large Stock of Coal on Hand Agreement Expected In the Southwest. Indianapolis, April 1. Two hundred and fifty thousand picks dropped from the hands of as many bituminous coal miners of tho United States last even ing, not to bo usedv again until a wage settlement has been reached and a scale adopted between tho members of tho United Mine Workers of Amer ica nnd tho coal operators of tho vari ous fields. This morning 250,000 men arc Idle and thousands of coal mines of tho country deserted. The situa tion, however, does not Indicate a pro longed strike. An open winter and industrial depression havo left a largo stock of coal on hand and tho differ ences between tho miners nnd tho op erators aro very slight. It is prac tically agreed that the present scalo will bo continued, but some local dlf fonences between operators and min ers have resulted in temporary sus pension from work until a new wago scale is agreed to either by districts or individual mines. Agreement Is Expected. Kansas City, April 1. That a shut down of tho coal mines of the south west may bo avoided by an agreement between the Southwestern Interstate Coal Operators' association and tho astern mine workers was announced when James Elliott, president of the operators association, stated that a meoting would' bo hold with represent atives of tho miners. Tho time of the meeting has not been announced. At Richmond, Mo., 700 men quit work. At Topekn, Kan., the statement was made at tho office of the labor com missioner that 10,000 Kansas miners quit work. At Bovler, Mo., 4,000 men quit work. ALLEGED SLAYER ARRESTED William Carr Charged With Murder of Express Messenger Bailey. Newton, Kan., April 1. William T. Carr was arrested here, charged with the murder of Oscar A. Bailey, the ex press messenger who was killed in his car between Florence and Newton last Sunday, and tho robbery of tho express car. Carr was taken to Ma rlon and lodged In Jail, It being thought unsafe to keep him here on account of the feeling against him. A pair of blood bespattered trousers which Carr lelt at a local cleaner's led to his arrest. Following the arrest a search was made of tho billiard hall In which Carr was employed. An overcoat spattered with blood was found, nnd In tho pocket3 of this gar ment were many pieces of vnluablo jewelry. Representatives of the ex press company havo Identified this jewelry as having been taken from tho express car. Carr was employed by tho express company for three years, and was a fellow employe of Bailey. MOURNERS GOJIEAVILY ARMED Funeral of Charles Wyckliffe, Indian Outlaw, Held at Muskogee. Muskogee, Okla., April 1. Tho fu neral of Charles Wyckllffo, tho notori ous Indian outlaw long sought by tho authorities and who was shot aud killed by his brother, Thomas, In a family quarrel, was held at tho Wyck HfTo home, twenty miles east of Pryor creek. ThomaB and John Wyckliffe, brothers, attended tho funeral, as did many friends of tho family. Tho three outlaws havo been sought for three years by tho Oklahoma offi cers for murders and other crimes, and their whereabouts were only learned when tho murder of Charles became known. Tho mourners were heavily armed, but tho officers made no attempt to Interfere. Finnish Senate to Resign. Holslngfors, April 1. In conse quence of tho vote of lack of confi dence In it, the Finnish senate has decided to resign. This vote passed tho diet by 71 to 47 and' wns the work of tho socialists. They formally cen sured tho Finnish administration for the delivery of Russian terrorists and political agitators to tho Russian au thorities. Brewery Strike Settled. St. Louis, April 1. Representatives of twenty-four breweries In St. IjouIs and vicinity and of tho brewery work ers' unions signed now contracts, end ing tho strike of 3,500 brewery work ers, which has been on for more than three weeks. It Is planned to rein stato tho strikers within a week. Roads to Put Men to Work. Chicago, April 1. The Record-Herald says that In the next sixty days 1 the railroads of tho United States will havo to find between 250,000 and 300,'. ! 000 men to mend their tracks and roadbeds and another large army to go into their shops and repair their cars and their locomotives. Flora Whlston Indicted for Perjury. I New York, April 1. Flora Whiston, ono of tho girls who testified In tho recent case against Raymond Hitch cock, tho comedian, was Indicted by a grand jury on a charge of perjury, al lore J to havo been committed In her testimony In the Hitchcock caso. m 1 . , iiiii MINE FIRE IS FATAI TERRIBLE CATASTROPHE IN NO. 1 SHAFT AT HANNA, WYO. Nineteen Men In the Shaft Were En- Oagcd In Fighting the Flames Sec end Explosion Occurs and State Mine Inspector and Rescuers Perish. Hnnna, Wyo., March 30. A careful ly prepared list of the mlbslng as a result of the two explosions in mine No. 1 of the Union Pacific Coal com pany contains fifty-eight names and of this number, flvo doad bodies have been iccoverod. Before further at tempt nt rescuing the dead can be made, the tiro In the tenth level, which wns tne direct cause of the two explosions, must be extinguished. Work to this end consumed the entire day, efforts being directed especially to close the west slope, which, it is hoped, will eventually smother the raging flames. The known dead are: Robert War burton, Peter Munson, Alexander Ten nant, Mntt Huhtala, Benjamin Perry. Tho missing are: Davis Ellas, stato mlno inspector; Alexander Brlggs. mine superintendent; Joseph Burton, Alfred Dodds, James Knox. Gus Ramie, P. A. Boyd, G. Lahti, John Yakonon, Emlle Selfrust. Thomas Flint, John Evans, Robert Herron, Harry Lyons, Jacob Rlmmer, William Poscoe, Richard Wilson, Frank Col lins, Peter Travis. J. Dodds, Charles Hughes, Alfred Holllday, Samuel Mc Cormlck, L. Conty, John Norkoll, Will iam Johnson, Albert Riley, Bert Fink, Grant Routt, F. FrantI, Isaac Wimero, Andrew BIrcheral, Henry H. BIrcheral, James M. Hoy, Andrew Hoy, Harry Foster, John Tnto, James Smeaton, James Burns, A. Madden, Charles Har ris, jo.m .rthurs, Isaac Penn, John Cookson, William Joki, John Tully, Chris Ferguson, Robert Armstrong, Samuel Cundy, Victor Cundy, Thomas Cundy, Samuel Jacobs. Details of the Disaster. It was while Superintendent Brlggs and eighteen companions were fight ing the fire at the tenth level that tho first explosion of gas occurred. But one man is known to have escaped death wno was with this party. This was Charles Harris, colored. After going to his home to notify his fam ily of his escape, Harris returned to the mlno with tho rescuing party or ganized by State Mine Inspector Ellas to recover the bodies of tho uufortu nates who mot death In tho first ex plosion. Harris' name appears In tho list resulting from tho second explo sion. According to the story of Camp boll, who reached tho entrance of the mlno with tho bodies of Warburton, Munson and Perry, killed In the first explosion, and thereby escaped death himself, inspector Ellas scattered the members of tho rescue party through tho entrance for a distance of 1,500 feet, removing wreckage and making temporary repairs of damage caused by the first explosion. The flro at the tenth level was raging furiously and Inspector Ellas and several others with him discussed the wisdom of bratticlng No. 8 entrance. It was decided that this would be suicidal, as the gas would be forced' back Into the fire at the tenth level and would probably cause an explosion more ter rific and direful than the ono which had already snuffed out the lives of nearly a scoie of their comrades. Tho party continued to work their way slowly toward the fire, abandoning the idea of closing No. 8 entrance way. Second Explosion Occurs. It is thought, however, that some of the stragglers In the rear, struck with the same idea of cutting off the spread of tho gas by closing the entrance, im mediately put the plan Into effect, with tho result as reasoned out by In spector Ellas and his immediate fol lowers. Be that as It may, the second explosion occurred, and although It Is known practically that fifty-eight per sons met death In the two explosions, preparations aro being made to care for more than this number of dead bodies should it become necessary. Already seventy coffins have been de livered here. Tho reason that no definite estimate can be made of the number In the mlno when the second explosion occurred Is that the rescue party was made up hurriedly nnd many who entored the mine went in after tho hurriedly organized squad had been Inside the mine several min utes. It was not until daylight that tho bodies of Alexander Tennant and Matt Huhtala wore found and they were found lying on tho prairie somo dis tance from the east slope. Tennant's head and one arm was blown off, anu' Huhtal.i's body was horribly mangled also, Tennant's head haa not been found yet. The dismembered arm was found quite a distance from where the rest of the body was picked up. This evidence of tho terrific force of the second explosion makes certain that none can possibly havo lived through It. That no one hosltated in responding to the call for volunteers In their res cuo of their fellow workmen after tho first explosion Is shown in the fact that not a working official of the three mines of the Union Pacific Coal com pany in this camp or a miners' union official !s left. Tho disaster brings the number of victims of the explosions In No. l dur ing the twenty years of Its operation to the neighborhood of 300. The great est previous loss of life occurred on Juno 30, 1903, when 169 men fell vic tims to deadly gas. Milton to Succeed Senator Bryan. Tallahassee. Fla., March 28. Gov errnor Broward' appointed Hill Milton of Mariana to succeed the late Sen ator Bryan of Florida In the United States senate. Anti-Saloon League. Continued from Page G Last Sunday at the Plielan opera house, Hon. J. L. McBrien, state su perintendent of public instruction, de livered a very interesting, and in some respects, the' most telling address that has been given in Alliance on the tem perance question. Mr. McBrien is a man of fine oratorical ability, and from the great interest which his auditors gavo it was evident that ho drove his arguments home with convincing power. Among other things ho said: "THE SALOON MUST GO. "Our fathers declared in the Declar ation of Independence, tho bravest political document ever given to the world, that whenever any form of gov ernment becomes destructive to the three inalicnabh rights of man life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness it becomes the right and the duty of the people to throw off such form of government and to institute new policies aud guards for their future safety. The history of tho saloon business is the history of a long train of abuses under which life has be,en taken, virtue se duced aud happiness crucified. "You have seven saloons in Alliance. Every saloon means ten steady drink ers. Seven saloons seventy confirmed drunkardsl 'Some ask: 'How about our schools if we vote out the saloons? We get $700.00 for our public schools from each saloon $4900.00. How can we pay our teachers if we vote out the sa loons?' My reply is that the increased assessment on the railroad terminals will be at least $400,000.00. Take one-fifth of this, the amount on which you may levy the 25 mills, and you have $2,000.00 of the $4900.00. Then the increased values of all other taxable property will give at least $2,000.00 more under the 25 mills levy. You will receive $350.00 from the state under the act of the last legislature ap propriating $50,000.00 for normal train ing in the high schools of Nebraska. Then it is safe to say that under the the new free high school law you will receive at least $500.00 more tuition next year than you received from non resident pupils this year. So you can abolish the saloon without any injury to your public schools. MLet me' call your attention to the schools in no license cities: Aurora has had no saloons for eight years. When she abolished the saloon she had a floating debt of nearly ten thousand dollars. Since that time she lias paid the debt, increased salaries of her teachers and will lay the corner stone of a new $45,000.00 high school build ing this week. "York never had a saloon. It is the only city in the state with a five-year high school course of study. It pays its .superintendent $2,000.00, while Hastings, a license town with a half larger system of schools, pays its su perintendent $t,8co. 00. "Now, if you people of Alliance ex pect a permanent state nonpal here in the near future, let me advise you to abolish the saloon this year and keep it out forever. You are entitled to a state normal in Northwestern Nebraska. In my opinion Alliance is the logical place for it. You have here this pan handle of the state, comprising the counties of Sioux, Dawes, Sheridan, Box Butte, Duel, Scottsbluff, Banner, Cheyenne, Kimball, besides Gratit, Thomas and Hooker in good railroad connection. A greater number of teachers is required in Alliance terri tory than for the entire state of Wyoming. Fathers and mothers are slow to send their daughters to a saloon town for an education. I havo found it hard to secure full co-operation from neighboring counties in the work of the Junior Normal for the reason that Al liance is a saloon town. Therefore, from the standpoint of enlightened selfishness, if for no better reasons, you ought to vote the saloons out of Alliance." Broken Bow, Nebr., March 30, 1908. To whom it may concern: I desire to. say that I have passed through experiences incident to the closing of the saloons in the village of Ansley and in this city and that I am well pleased with the results in a busi ness way. In both cases many of our best men, who did not indulge in the use of in toxicating liquors as a beverage at all, or at most to a very small extent, were opposed to closing the saloons for the reason that they believed it would be injurious to their business; but now, after an actual experience of doing business for several years in a dry town, every one of these men, so far as I can recall, are strongly opposed to saloons in their towns and their opposi tion thereto is their honest belief that saloons are detrimental to the best business interests of their communities. This is very annarent frnm i. :.,,-.. ed vote agamst saloons from year to year. Respectfully. J. A. ARMOUR, Ex-County Judge of Custer County. A t,'