THE 8EMI.WEEKLV TRIBUNE. NORTH PLATTE. NEBRASKA.
MTU
Ik,
JAPAN'S LEADING FINANCIER
' HI71MT
,7T 'Prmr rVrnW. . , .
NY weakling can niado resolutlonB.
It needs a strong man -to keep
thorn. That Is perhaps why Now
Year resolutions aro so often
futllo. Tho strong do not wait for
high days and holy days to amend
their conductor carry out their re
solves. They obey Goetho's dictum:
"Seize this very inlnuto,
Ooldnoss has genius, power and
ningic in It."
And so It happons that tho large at my of peo
plo who wait for tho Now Year beforo effecting
a reformation In their Ilvos aro seldom success
ful In carrying out their Intentions. Thoy nro
not possessed of tho spirit of energy am; rcsolu
tlon necessary to achievement. It may bo
argued that It Is better to make good resolutions,
oven hough they aro not carried out, than not
to make them at all. Thlr is open to question,
to rwbn'T T 18 atao,uto determined
u!2?mf?i ".0t t0 ma, ,,rom,8C8 t0 a"
J 1 ' resolves continually repeated, tend to
lCa' " o clmrnctor. and to reduce one's faith
in oneself, just as resolutions put Into practice
Very Httlo tends to overbalance tho resolutions
of tho average person. ; fact, many pcop o S
come any oxcuso to exonerate them from "ho
carrying out of their resolves. One Individual
determines let us say, never to lose 11
Ilo comos down on Now Year's morning wU
so smile on h e face. Alas! It is shorMivcd
'The whole world seems In conspiracy to drac
him back to 1.1s former frame of mind. Tho 5
feu Is co d. tho letters which look so ilL
prove to bo chiefly bills and begging onlst Z u ,
fails over the doorstop as ho leaves tho lo'u o
All these minor annoyances, which, if r S
mot, would have helped him to con.,uor his S
ness servo but .to throw him back Into I, is
original fctato. and before evening ho is as lad
as over ho has boon.
n ...i -.. . -
wu uuuuiu- vory goneral Now Years
resolution, that of getting up at a certain tlmo
In tho morning. When tho day dawns, any rea
son whatovcr Is grasped at to ovado this. Tho
wcathor Is too cold, tho alarm was not loud enough,
ho Is suro his watch Is fast, ho doesn't really
fool well enough to risk getting up earlier than
usual, and, after all. ho asks himself, is thoro
any real reason why ho should? A thousand-ami-ono
oxcuses tho avcrago Individual will mako to
hlmsolf rathor than perform what ho hab designed
to do. Tho world Is full of wobblers of this kind,
and tho moro thoy wobble tho weaker thoy bo-
CO1I10.
Anothor reason perhaps why tho avorago reso-lutlon-makors
so seldom achlovo their purposo is
that thoy attempt too much. Thoy mako two,
threo, somotimea six resolutions at onco, whereas
10 carry uirougn ono resolution succosBfully
quite an admlrablo font.
As Thomas n Kompls says:
is
I v THE FRENCH FOREIGN LEGION I
I 1
"If every year wo could rout nut nno vi wo
would sooner becomo perfect men." Impatience
IS at thO root Of niailV (leffintn If la mmlmnnrv
nowadays to sneer at tho virtue for which tho
nnmo of Job is synonymous, but thoso who say
that patlenco Is tho vlrtuo of an ass or a beggar's
virtue aro not so wlso as tho Spanish proverb
maker, who said:
"Patlenco! and shuttle tho enrdn Mnsfc nponln
shuffle tho cards eagerly -nough, but tho patlenco
is lacking. Sooking to grasp tho Btars at a bound
thoy fall back to tho earth.
And so, If people at ;ho commencement of a
Now Year ndjusted their desires In accordance
with their abilities, and instead of sighing for tho
umuuiuiuuie mauo tno rory most of tho oppor
tunities vouchsafed to them, ono would hear less
of broken resolutions and wasted lives.
"Do tho duty which lies nearest to thoo which
thou knowest tc bo a duty,' said Carlyle. "Thy
second duty will already have becomo clearer."
and a marching column of ani.iinr ..:0ll.rl ?.?' And whcn drums roll
his shoulders and steps out with a tonmonsrcd I11V0l""t"' throws back
And as with civilians, so with soldiers. Tho onllnnry regiment t)(,nnmB
once or tho crack regiment. Tho crack regiment Itaol "L f SmSfna mr . t7 tary tho prea
detachment of troops of heroic, almost legendary, Z o, such as iTvScZioSZ proxhnlty
The Legionaries handle campaigns of their own, am JrobaWy no body of '
constant and arduous campaigning. Hut Franco over and over nfiiTh?uV!? Tr dono 8Uch
among other troops. They stiffen (ho mass, and men eniulato their actfons a,B 08 'Cavcn
Tho Legion was sent out to tho Crimea and got no special credit for m'vnMn ,, , .
that had boon expected of It, but did rolled great credit on tho Judgment S lt.B0,,I w th B,ory' 1,8
to holp to Inspire n wholo army. Judgment of thoso who had sent It out
Tho queen of Spain 80 years aso was In a hard fix with Pivii ,- i i , .
whom she was fighting, wore just as good soldiers as hoVow f u l ' hana' Tl! Cnr,,3ta'
generals had an Inspiration of genius. If thoy couW Zy K0't tl ,o innrh ii "i01"' -T'T tho Qun'8
army thoy felt the shade of advantage would nmvo over to tlmir do S ho mm V
Legion from the then king of Franco, and for four years the Tog in belonged to Spain " Fr'En
In tho present war, part of tho French Legion has boon sont to thn trnnni.? " '
and Alsaco and to tho Dardanelles. Part of It roiSlns in Aft a. It i,t ? aml F'an',0r8
vigorous campaigning in tho Moroccan part of FncS JinJIrSi no w A tr cn'i omjii r o 80raoi'
Tho Americans and othor foreigners who aro enrollod as volunteers In fi, i.vJ
contact with tho Legionaries, and this, while giving hem 8Co ,ro put ,n
them an opportunity for genuine campaigning, Is tho is Tea Z JXltim,irla,S
SSnSr nBa,,,8t f,,8h raBhn088' "S W0H "8 RM bi"8 ltoTrawT Solr'lSd ! SltS
..ndCSSre'lrtnr Sfft roern'andU'Sfcr.rtlle10 T"'
port knowledge of tho technique of his trade makes t J Leg Senary a Si the I T "u ' X'
of his taBk In finished fashion. gionary and tho Bklppor each acquit himself
Officially tho Forolgn Legion Ib composed of olght thousand mnn I.. pnu . , . .
nearly doublo that number, and tho Legion bocomL read 5 o So ar mv cnL l' ,nd10r8t01,( 1 hns
somo of Franco's colonial troops. y NWl0lQ n,,n cori,a' wlth tUo addition of
Franco for hundreds of years had regiments of Gorman PupiIbIi t-iai. c. . t .
othor foreigners enrolled In hor armies, but tho proso.3 FoS 1 Ll'T SVfS' Un,,nns nnd
from 1831. Ono brief rule In Its constitution says t ,n V U,o cSst S colo, of hL'ZT nS daUns
though he does not present a birth cortlflcnto or ld3ntlflcatlo, imnora " m"n Von
English and American Loglonarles havo been Smith. Uro Sn and Ks- ! 1 , Tml ,f th
and Weiss; of tho Italians, Rossi and Groasl; of tho Frond 1 oil TT u"op' s,cllMrt
The recruiting ollicor reads tho candidate a wmta0 whatThoTl0 T
monsieur? Surely there Is something better you can do. Severn nZtAAMa oXte
a sou a day, or a fow sous as you begin to advance, Is no bod of roses. You 1 a 1 be Lr t ,ib
a day or two. No? You already are aware? Vory well, mon cher enfant" n?d i i . r
ho now .pert, as a colonel to his soldier: "There b a glorious career down'thore & 1 tl o rlrt It S H
you are a good and faithful soldier you may go far. Good luck!" ght klnd' "
The recruiting colonel tan generally toll at a glanco what army the candidate li nnrv,. i.. " .
If Lo,has been a sergeant or nn officer. In the latter caso ho Is discreetly est lone, on thni. , ? n1
It la Bugpfstcd. for his own benellt. that ho conlldentlally Inform his coVnTS
tralnlng.quarters In Africa. One who has been an o.llcor In a .European army is usual J taken Into ho
corporals' class and nay bo advanced within a couplo of years to bo a aorgeant of tho !!eeton
The Turning of New Leaves.
Good resolutions hnvo ulmost gono out of fash
Ion. On tho lant night of tho year wo no longer
sit down to review our past lives and resolvo tc
bo "better and wisor" than wo havo been In tho
past. "It is of ne us jnnking resolutions, I nevei
can keep thorn," is tho plea that Is usually prof
fered. Thla Is a mistake, however, It is com
mcndnblo to resolve (an alarm clock helping ono)
to get up hair an hour earlier than usual in tho
morning, oven though it results as, alas! It toe
often does In ono getting up half an hour Inter
It is what ono asplros to bo that counts.
If pcoplo could live moro In tho present It
would help thom enormously In tho keeping ol
good resolutions. So many pcoplo persist In be
Ing Just a littlo ahead all tho tlmo.
"Tomorrow," thoy say, "wo will rororni," but
tho tomorrow of their Imaginings novor dawns.
Ancient and modern philosophers hnvo ngreod
ns to tho dangers of procrastination. Such wide
ly divcrso pcoplo as Hornco, tho Latin poot who
llourlBhod In C5 13. C.. and pushful persons who
flourish (exceedingly) at tho present day. Join
Issue in this particular.
"Who boglns. possesses half tho doed." sovs
Horace
"Daro to bo wlso; mako a commencement."
"Do It now," Is tho curt command of tho mod
ern apostle or "Hustlo." Again, Horaco says. "If
you nro Ignornn'. how to llvo aright, gtvo place
to thoso who havo learn irt tho losson."
"Get on or got out," says a manikin, following
In moro concentrated. If ess courteous language
tho snmo lino of thought on n somewhat lower
piano. Tho ono was concerned with tho things
of tho soul nnd tho spirit; tho othor with worldly
ndvancoment. Thoro nro somo who contend that
tho two cannot go together, but If (as has boon
contended by ninny men of wisdom) what a man
Is Is of moro Importanco than what ho has it is
well to mako spiritual advancement as tho 'years
go by. If wo have not mndo progress, wo havo
gono back. Tho soul novor stands still. Tlmo hni
no torror for thoso who hnvo loarnod wisdom.
Pass thou, wild heart.
Wild heart of youth that still
Hust half n mind to stay.
1 grow too old a comrade;
Lot us part,
Pass thou away.
Somo pooplo drag tho follies and Immaturities
of youth Into old ago. Thoro Is wisdom In ad
Justing oneself to tlmo. to profit by past xncrl.
enccii. nnd to acquire that sonso of proportion
which refuses to magnify trifles Into tragedies
nnd to wurry ovor tua Inevitable. '
Tho "foremost business man of
Japan," Baron El-Ichl Shlhusawn, to
whom moro than to nny othor his na
tion owes lief commercial nnd Indus
trial transformation, hator of Jingoes,
friend of penco and of America, has
boon malting another visit to tho
United States.
A stocky little man, hroadshoul
dqrod, round faco-1, fow gray hairs on
his largo, well formed headj although
ho Is only n trlflo short of sovonty-slx
years; small eyes, that. twlnklo In con
versation; frequent smiles, revealing
much gold dentistry such is tho
baron.
Forty-two years ago, when Japan
was emerging from feudalism and irre
sponsible govcrnmont into tho world'H
light, El-Ichi Shibusawa throw away
his braco of swords, all privilege and
high ofllco to stand for business hon
esty. Holding n prominent ofllco in
Mm (tinnoimtf win tl. ......
feovornment at Tokyo, ho found that secret and medieval methods still pre
vailed in national finance. His soul became Insurgent. In a bold manl
rosto m 1S73 ho denounced the irresponsible nnd antiquated methods ol
bookkeeping and of handling tho public money.
Ho founded tho first national bank of Japan, established commercial
S ?'"g 8f ? B' osanteed tho Tokyo chamber of commerce, and also alms
houses and philanthropic Institutions. He served his generation as director
fhrnhman, t,lc1orSaV,zat,on8 which ho had started. In a thousand ways,
through a day and night activity of ovor forty years, ho hafclafaorcd to
ably unselfish h'S honornble' public sPirld easurv
In Japan ho re-created tho wholo social situation. Today tho merchant
manufacturer and shipper hold tho place they deserve. J .Rantt
cz:
"WB"inr" "1mbmvI "BBBaBMKahMcn BmfMammi
l'ver hear of a junk expert? Up
to tho time that William Jacobus, tho
scrap-metal expert, Bteppcd Into the
limelight by showing how Uncle Sam
could savo millions on the scrap usu
ally sold as "Junk," very fow people, if
any, Know that ono could specialize on
junk and become a metal expert.
In 1911 Mr. JacolTis, who probably
knows moro about tho scrapping and
Junk business than any ono elso, went
to the "powers that bo" In Washington
and placing his linger cn a leak said:
"Hero's where millions of dollars go
every year because nobody knows any
thing about tho business of selling tho
government's Junk to tho best ad
vantage." At that time thoro was what was
known as tho junkmon's gentlemen's
agreement. Simply explained, tho
agreement amounted to this: A clique
of Junkmen agreed that they1 would
pay a curtain prico for the lunk nf.
creu uy tno government at tho next sale. There being no Junk expert in
he employ of the government at that period, tho junkmen, as planned, got
Li n'fu 4,Thy carcfu"y ass'rted it, and resold it to metal
dealers dividing ho proHt among tho clique. Through-MrJaccbus' instru
mentality tho saving of tho navy department was conservatively put at two
million dollars.
i i
DIAMONDS HIS TOYS
In a busy office on Broadway, Now
York, there aita, day by day, a man
who plays with diamonds. Ho toys
with tho radiant gems as n Bdentlst
might beguilo himself with somo now
theory, as a child might extract Joy
from tho possession of an abnormal
array of wonderful paper dolls. They
nro playthings.
Thirty full sots of gems, worth.
?1,000,000, mako up tho glittering, daz
zling, bewildering treasure store. For
tho most part, they aro hidden in tho
gloomy, chilly, steol cave of a neigh
boring vault. Thither they aro brought
under gunrd for tho inspection of their
mastor.
Each night ho selects ono set, and,
bedecked with tho scintillating jewels,
ho salllea forth to permit hla play
things to pick up tho incandescent
rays of tho brilliant whito way and to
dart thom back, transformed into won-
fracted vibrations, through tho gatherings of the gay. Tho man who thua
plays with firi tho flro of first-water gems is James Buchanan Bradv
Broadway knows him ns "Diamond Jim."
"Diamond .Tim" goes about among his fellows with freedom. Ho know
that ho is an Institution and that any "regular guy" among tho local crooka
would as soon think of stealing tho torch' from tho statue of Liberty and
hocking" it na old bronzo, or of taking Horaco Greeloy'a bronzo shoo from
its park pedestal, ns of dimming the luster of an essential part of Now
York's exterior decorativo effect. - inuw
EARLY BIRD LINDBERGH
It is dark In Washington. Not
oven tho rnttlo of tho first milk wagon
has been heard on Capitol hill and it
still lacks two hours boforo tho gold
room of tho congressional library will
reflect tho morning sun.
Tho measured beat of hcol tap3 on
tho wooden cover of tho marble steps
loading to tho honso ofllco building
can bo heard ns tho aolltary figuro of
a man, tall, gaunt, and dressed in
black, mounts tho iaclino.
It is Congressman Charlos A.
Llndborgh of Minnesota cn hla way to
work.
Lindbergh, besides being a million
nlro, Ib tho early bird of tho Sixty
fourth congrcsa. Ho goos to work
between four and Ave o'clock ovcry
morning.
Lindbergh Is a strong bollovor in
tho romovnl of prlvato interests from
tho opportunity to Influence congres
sional action. His first resolution linn
for its object prevention of tho appointment of members nf nnn-nna w'
mlttees where they might have personal Inter cbX cttaSE SuJ
Interest He was voted down, but won on his secoresoluUen ScJ was
aimed at tho secret meetings of the banking and currency comn ttoe
I