The Plattsmouth Journal
ITBLISHED WEEKLY AT
PLATTSMOUTH. NEBRASKA.
R. A. BATES, Publish kb.
Bier4 l Hie uotUirtlce at flatlnmoutb, N
hratlia.ki'ccond clam matter.
$1.50 Per Year In Advance.
It is Intimated that tonight the
council wil lend the long agony on
the light question and redeem the
pledge given the people to light
riattscmouth. It is sinrerely to be
hoped that this Is the case. Lights
are needed and that, too, badly.
In yesterday's St. Louis Post- Dis
patch, the western edition of the New
York World, the entire editorial
page Is taken up by a review of the
Roosevelt administration and it Is an
excoriation of the President and his
official acts well worth reading.
Candid, calm and critical It passes in
review the acts which have brought
Mr.. Roosevelt so prominently be
fore the people. Now that he is
stripped of the dignity of his high
office, the big papers feel at liberty
to speak o his shortcomings and hts
many and grievlous fallings and they
do so with a frankness and unre
servedness that Is refreshing. The
article In the Post-Dispatch Is well
worth the perusal of any unbiased
non-partisan mind.
If the report from Lincoln that
certain democratic senators have en
tered Into a combination with their
republican brethren to defeat the
banking guaranty bill, be true then
those same democratic senators had
as well prepare for political astraclsm
and outlawry. The democrats won Ne
braska on the pledge to give the peo
ple a banking guaranty law and this
promise must be kept. No man elect
ed as a democrat can go home and
look his democratic constituents In
the eye if he vote3 against the cardi
nal principles of the last platform.
The democrats of Nebraska are In no
mood to be trifled with by recal
citrants and traitors they demand
that party pledges bo kept that the
will of the people, be obeyed and they
Intend that this shall bo done. No
combination of National bankers and
republican senators should bo al
lowed to control and dictate to this
legislature. The Journal trusts that
the rumor Is not true. It trusts es
pecially that no democratic legisla
tor from this county or section Is a
party to such an Infamous betrayal
of the people and It hopes when the
vote Is taken to bo able to point
with Justified pride to the record of
Its representatives.
Yesterday witnessed another burn
Ing of a negro at the Bouth and we
may expect to hear the usual outcry
agalnBt this terrible method of met
ing out Justice. Yet, after all, when
one has lived among these people he
, , ceases to hold the abhorrence of
"ucn mc8ure when he comes to
know the circumstances under which
the punlshmet Is dealt out. The
people of the south live In a. con-
.., stant state of terror least harm come
'ii,
to their home and their loved ones
from the blackman In their midst
, and they have Just and well founded
grounds for this apprehension. The
negro hna advanced largely toward
civilization and In time lie will be
come fit and capable of citizenship,
but that tlmo Is far away. Ills mor
al naturo Is far from developed and
he cannot absorb the Idea that the
whito man and woman holds that
he is not their equal. This leads
him to the worst of offenses agalnBt
society and the homo and In thrlrdes
peratlon tho southern people rise up
.and make aterrlblo exmple of him.
It is true the example has no ef
fect on tho race and Is foolish, yet
tho white man feels In his soul that
something barbarlous Is needed to
meet the barbarity of the crime.
The project of building the in
tirurban from this city to Kim wood
and Murdock If brought to the at
tention of tho capitalists ran be built
without a doubt If tho predicted
wave of prosperity and Industrial re
vival conies, capital will be looking
for profitable fields lu which to ex
pand nnd there Is no better than
the Inttruiiian field In the thickly
settled portlcn of this state. The
value of land, the value of farm pro
ducts, the Improved method of com
munication furnished by the tele
phone, all combine to make the Inttr
urbaa a necessity. There U no use in
letting this field be taken away from
Plattsmouth by Omaha or any large
city. The construction of thin lin
means to bring the country precincts
Into closer communication with the
city, the movement of their products
into this market and a general revi
val of business here. The duty
the ComemrcialClub ow es the city and
Itself is to Interest capital In the
building of this line. If one rides
over the proposed line of this road
and sees smiling fields on every
hand, rich, handsome farmhouses
the large commodious stables and
granaries, fat, sleek cattle, fine, large
horses and every evidence of the
great wealth which lies at the doors
of Plattsmouth almost untouched by
Its merchants for the lack of a little
push and enterprise. All this will
come Into this city if it Is given an
easy means of Ingress. The lnterur-
ban furnishes the means and the pco
pie of this city should see that the
laterurban Is built. Capital always
Is willing to enlist in a paying cause
and this line means that.
Hanks are peculla-ly subject to In
Jury by thoughtless or malicious gos
sip. Tho strongest bank cannot pay
ail Its depositors at once, and runs
have been started on sound banks by
unfounded rumors of Impending fail
ure. This is one of the risks it has
been thought possible to relieve by
operation of a proper sort of deposit
Insurance. Even If that does not suf
fice, it Is to bo doubted If a special
penalty for slandering a bank, such
as the senate has approved, will have
tho best effect. To the public it is
likely to seem an effort of the bank
ers to suppress all discussion of the
strength of banks, and that would
merely weaken all banks In public
confidence. The public Interest Is so
closely Interwoven with the safety
of the banks that public opinion,
properly informed, would seem to be
the ncBt suppressor of falHe talcs
about them.
The All-Forgiving Love.
St. Louis Post. PixpRtlh.
"If my daughter wants to come
back home, she can do bo," Bald
State Senator Peck of Westboro, Mo.,
when told that Nellie Peck had been
found In Omaha, repentant. "As a
father, I can and will forgive her. Un
til I hear her story I cannot pass
Judgment, and, no mattter what the
story Is, she Is my daughter and I will
stand by her."
Senator Peck has the warrant of
Holy Writ for this attitude on his
part; In the parable of tho Prodigal
Son, tho father, seeing his returning
son from a far off, went out and met
him and fell upon his neck and kiss
ed him and killed the fatted calf In
Joy at his home-coming. Why not an
oven greater Joy and for
giveness for tho returning daughter,
whoso noed for forgiveness and shel
tering care Is so lnfllnltely greater?
Senator Peck Is right. The girl is
his daughter, and she never needed
his love and forgiveness and fatherly
protection so sorely as now.
Construing Legislation.
A member of tho Colorado legisla
te e moved that a bill u:.li
consideration should be submitted to
the supreme court for ndvko as to
Its constitutionality.
Supposing that practice should be-
come general: that the court should
decide on tho constitutionality of a
law before It Is passed, and while the
legislature that wants to pass It Is
still In session. Instead of after It Is
passed and the legislature has gone
out of office. Wouldn't It possibly
snvo some trouble? Surely It would
remedy tho Inequality now existing
whereby the poor man Is obliged to
take It for granted that every law
passed Is valid, whereas tho rich cor
porations with Its 1100,000 lawyers
can afford to go ahead and violate
the law, Its eminent counsel perceiv
ing the technical flaw In the enact
ment which will nullfy It when It fin-
ally gets through the supremo court
of tho state. Surely also It would put
a slop to the well known trick o ft ho
lohhxists who lead legislators intom-
tutliu? laws that nro Imperfect In
form, the canny lohbjlht knowing
that the law will Ili-is bo nullified
Biscuit
Buyers'
Luck
long after the legislature has dis
banded and cannot re-enact It.
. We don't want legislatures com
posed chiefly of lawyers. Even If
they were so composed, that wouldn't
Insure constitutional laws; for law
yers disagree. There appears to be
a conspicuous glimmering of sense In
the Idea of applying the prophylactic
method In the treatment of unconsti
tutional laws, especially since there
is no cure. World Herald.
A Treuty of Peace.
Adam God, the religious fanatic,
now held in tho county Jail on a
charge of murder In tho first degree
Is preparing another treaty of
peace which he will submit to the
criminal 'court. Adam offered a
month ago to let bygones be by
gones, but his magnanimity went
unrewarded. Undismayed, he has
concluded to make another offer.
This time he will quit preaching en
tirely and If the Judge Insists ho will
apologize to tho police, with whom
ho fought. In tho caso of the
two policeman killed In tho riot near
the city hall, ho will offer up prayers
to their memory. These plans
Adam divulged this morning.
"I was In tho dark when I drew
nrms," said Adam. "Now I Bland In
the light and I cannot condone my
action. I am willing to acknow
ledge my faults."
Adam still has the faith, which ho
recovered after his appearance at his
preliminary trial. Kansas City Star.
Municipal Ownership of (lie Water
limit.
Attncka on tho Omaha water board
may bo expected to come thick and
fnst, between now and May 1, in or
der to defeat, if possible, municipal
ownership of tho water works. Every
effort will be made, too, to mlnlmlz"
tho value of tho water plant. Tho
peoplo of Omaha will bo asked to be
lieve that tho plant Is little hotter
than a pllo of old Iron and scraps
and that tho city will bo shamefully
victimized If It buys tho plant, either
at the appraised value, or at a rrlce
to be ngreen on by tho water com
pany and the water board.
. ''j Sold only in
Moisture Troof
Packages k
Buying soda crackers that are
not Uneeda Biscuit is buying by
guess-work and trusting to luck. To
be sure of good luck and good
baking, buy no soda crackers but
NATIONAL BISCUIT COMPANY
These attacks, lnuendoes, lamenta
tions, all have but one purpose ro
defeat municipal ownership.
There are less than a dozen cities
In the entire country as argo a
Omaha that do not own their own
water plants. The reason is that
private ownership has everywhere
shown a long, discouraging and dis
graceful record of bad service, high
rates, loot and gouging profits. A
private company runs a water plant
for profits. A municipality runs Its
own water plant for the good of the
city. A private company gives the
poorest and cheapest Bervico possi
ble at the highest rates obtainable.
A municipality gives the best and
completest service possible at the
lowest rates practicable. This is the
difference, In a nutshell, between
private and public ownership.
The effort made to Induce people
to believe municipal ownership will
mean higher taxes Is too allly to fool
any intellgent man. Omaha could
take tho water plant at the apprais
ed value, charge lower rates than the
company Is charging, make liberal
extentlons, give better service, and
still, In the lifetime of a single gener
ation, pay the whole cost of the
plant out of the profits. Those pro
fits are earned under private owner
ship. Put under privat e owner
ship they go to enrich tho stock
holders. Under municipal owner
ship they go to benefit the city and
every consumer of water.
The World-Herald does not believe
the people of Omaha will allow them
selves to be deceived. Tho hands of
the selfish Interests are not sufficient
disguised. It Is too easy to see tho
exploiters pulling the strings the
financiers w ho are opposed to tho city
owning the plant because they want
to own It themselves. World Herald.
There la a whole lot of the above
editorial which applies In a largo
measure to conditions In Platts
mouth. Some of the advantages of
a municipal plant could bo made cf
f'Vtlvo hero by tho exercise of good
Judgement on tho part of tho munici
pal officers In charge. The editorial
Is reprinted for tho benefit of thlso
w ho caro to study tho question.
if-" XAy Ir 1
7D 0 n
Lack of Leadership.
The Democratic party is entitled
to leaders In sympathy with the
voters of the party. Some one has
defined a leader as one who Is going
In the same direction as the people,
but a little bit ahead, and surely one
cannot wisely, courageously and suc
cessfully lead, who is going In an op
posite direction from those whom
he leads. The men, who fight and
die In the trenches are entitled to
leaders whose hearts are in the fight
and who believe that the success of
the party will bo good for the coun
try. The Democratic party has been
very much handicapped for twelve
years, first, by a lack of newspapers
in the Eastern states. Few of the
large dailies have supported the dem
ocratic party and tho large dallies
that have supported the ticket have,
almost without exception, repudiated
tho platform either in the campaign
or Immediately afterwards. In like
manner many of tho men, who have
been at the head of tho organization
in the East, have promptly repudiat
ed the platform as soon as the cam
paign was over, and have, between
campaigns, lent their Influence to
those who have condemned the Dem
ocratic position on public questions.
Most of them have not gone as far as
Senator McCarren, and yet their In
fluence has been cast against the
party rather than for It. In the
face of these continual assaults up
on the policy of the party It Is aston
ishing that the party has polled as
long a vote as It has. It Is evid
ence of the incorruptibility of the
Democratic masses that they continue
to fight for Democratic principles la
spite of those who control organiza
tion. A permanent Democratic club
ought to be organized in every
county of the United States a dub
committed unqualifiedly not merely
to tho n a mo but to the policies of tho
party. Such a club Is needed more
In the Past than In tho West, but
there ought to such a club In each
county, even In the West. Its mem
bers oilRht to devote themselves to
1
the propagation of Democratic doc
trine; they to establish in every
county a local paper that will preach
Democratic doctrine all the time
and In every primary contest they
ought to labor to put the Democratic
organization in the hands of those
who will make the fight with earnest
ness and with a confidence in final
victory. The Democratic party has
been a "house divided against It
self" and this has been and Is its
greatest weakness. The Commoner.
Unequaled as a Cure for Croup.
"Besides being an excellent rem
edy for colds and throat troubles,
Chamberlaln'B Cough Remedy is un
equaled as a cure for croup," says
Harry Wilson of Waynetown, Ind.
When given as soon as tho croupy
cough appears, this remedy will pre
vent the attack. It Is used success
fully In many thousands of homes.
For sale by F. O. Frlcke & Co.
I. M. Ward of Elmwood came In
this morning from Omaha, having
been looking after business at that
point. While here he paid the Jour
nal office a visit to look over the real
modern methods of producing the
news. His visit was a pleasant one
and much appreciated. Mr. Ward
is one of the representative citizens
and business men of Elmwood and a
man who la thoroughly allvo on any
real good business proposition
As
In the case with all good men. Mr
Ward was a welcome visitor and the
Journal hopes ho will come again and
often.
P. T. Becker drove In this morn
ing from their home west of the city,
and were passengers on the early
train for Omaha where they will
spend tho day.
JVOTICK TO c itF.Drroii
In County t'ourt.
n Count v Court.
In the matter of the estate of John
it. MclNlngcr. iliM'PHSPil.
Notice In hereby given tlmt the cred
itors of ,,n,j pHtate will meet the
executors of eal.l eMnte. before me,
J ounty Judge of Cnwt County. Nebras
ka, at the County Court room In l'latts
nionth, In unlit Countv, on the 2th dnv
of March, 1909, nn,t on the 29th day of
September, 11109. lit 10 o'clock a. m..
em h diiy for the purpose of present
ing their clnlms for examination, ad
justment nnd allowance.
Six months are allowed fur tho cred
itor, f ,,i ,,.ceiiS,,, t present their
cliilms. nnd one year for the executors
to net Mo mild estate, from tho 2!tli day
of Murch, l!tn.
Witness my bnnd nnd scnl of snld
oun'y t'ourt. nt rinttsmnuth. NebiHs
K.i. this 11 duy of March, 1909.
(Sen I.)
Allen .T. rteeson.
County Judge.
n. M. Dwyrr.
Attorney for estate.
,
t
