The Plattsmouth Journal
Published Semi-Weekly
IV. A.. HATKS, 1 .illllier
Entered at the Tostoffice at Plattsmouth, Nebraska as second-clas3 matter
$,?0 PER YEAR IN ADVANCE nr
The 'i' of Ihc road drag is
needed just now wiiim' than any
other i:plenient llial we know of. I
Some of Hit' roads arc very rough
in place leading south of town.
Get out your drags and use them.
:o :
"Vho would have imagined ten
or fiteen years ago that the rail
roads would ever be hustling to
get themselves wholly under the
jurisdiction of the interstate
commerce commission?
:o:
Corn planting was the latest
this year than it lias been since
1892. With, the heaviest crop of
alfalfa in years, and cut before
corn planting is completed, we
foresee busy times ahead for the
farmers. Then the wheat harvest
is coming on apace and probably i
one of the largest wheat crops
ever grown in Cass county will
be garnered.
:o;
Contributions for the Gettys
burg soldiers" are not coming in
very swiftly, and it is hard to say
whether there will be funds suf
ficient to convey the old vets to
and from th" celebration on the
battlefield on the Fourth or not.
The $4,000 appropriated by the
legislature don't seem to be more
than half enough to pay the ex
pense of the trip. ,
-:o:-
Senalor John Sharp Williams
of Mississippi has demanded
prompter act ion of t he president
in appointing democrats to olllce.
The demand has not been made
f the president in person, how
ever, the senalor rrom Mississippi
being too solicitous , for the
friends he wants to have appoint
ed to endanger their chances by
.antagonizing a president who has
been a schoolmaster long enough
to know how In use the roil on
boys who o fiend him. "Don't
push, boys, don't push I" Some
.one might get hurt.
;o;-
A town is no place to foster
jealousies and nourish conten
tions. All should learn to know
that whatever will conduce to the
welfare of a town cannot injure
her citizens. The disposition
made manifest by her citizens
point to her downfall or rise. The
character of the people make the
town, not her structures, tower
ing houses, domes and monu
incnts, and when people lose in
terest in the promotion of their
town they need not hope to thrive.
Harmony among the people of a
community is indicative of its
progress. Farmers cannot be at
variance with one another,
churches cannot, nor can any
similar organization or community.
1 MR. HENRY PECK AND HIS FAMILY AFFAIRS - - By Gross
. . . , 1
7 '
; - , '
at Plattsmouth, Neb.:
Hilly Sunday bears about t tie
.same relation , lo theology that
the bill poster does to a theater.
:o :
A Lincoln attorney wants Gov
enmr Morehead to call a special
session of the legislature to im
peach the railway commission
for giving the ''phone company
the right to raise rates, since
they bought competing lines. He
claims the company agreed to
reduce the rates Instead of an in
crease. And that is just the way
the people understood it.
:o:
Occasionally you hear a pro
tectionist abuse the democratic
congress for placing a few ar
ticles on the free list. Evidently
they don't know that today there
are hundreds of articles on the
free list placed there by a repub
lican congress. Is it worse for a
democratic congress to place a
few articles on the free list than
it was for a republican congress
to place hundreds of articles on
the free list? Well, I guess not!
:o:
Congressman Sioan was in
Lincoln the oilier day, and de
clared, "President Wilson is a
lobbyist." Sloan was simply
"talking through his hat," as it
were. They are not used to such
a president as Wood row Wilson
in Washington, but he is giving
the congressmen, senators and
all ol tiers o uiidersland that he
is not only president in name, but
president in ihe performance of
his duties. Ami one of those
duties is to clear Ihe senate of
the hireling lobbyists of the
trusts and he is .succeeding ad
mirably, too.
Japan's reply to the answer
made by the United States to her
protest against the alien land law
of California, while courteous
and nut belligerent, practically
demands the impossible. It
raises the question of race dis
tinction, which is something
deeper than laws. Japan quite
properly refuses to become a
parly to a suit at law in our
courts to prevent what she con
siders a violation of Ihe treaty.
She looks to the government, the
parly with whom the treaty was
made, for observance of its con
ditions. That altitude is correct,
bill the real question is whether
the treaty is violated at all. The
United Slates la&cs the ground
that it is not, while Ihe Japanese
assert that it is in spirit, because
race distinction creates an in
equality as between the subjects
of Japan and those of oilier
countries in the I'niled Slates, an
inequality, however, which is
racial and md national.
The llie are a little late coin
ing, lint ou can haw niir swat
ter ready jut the same.
:o:
A bumper wheal crop is the
government forecast, and experts
estimate the crop will be a
record-breaker.
:o:
Saturday, June 1 i, is Flag day.
He sure and display "Old Glory"
in accordance with the sugges
tion of Governor Morehead.
' :o:
Don't hold post modems over
your misfortunes. There is an
old saying that mills will never
grind 'with the waters that have
passed.
:o:
The Fuglish language is taught
in the schools of Japan., Also all
over the Philippines, thanks to
Uncle Sam. It is the greatest
gift in sight for the Orient.
:o:
Congress can't please all the
people in dealing with the tariff,
and there is no use trying, and
the best way to do is pass the en
tire bill just as it is, and let
them take what they like and
lump what they don't want. That's
:o:
If a child passing along the
streets gets bit by a dog, that dog
should be immediately killed by
the chief of police, before some
one else gets bit. We have too
many useless dogs in this man's
town, anyway.
:o: .
The republicans who are now
in office are, of course, in favor
of civil service, because there is
a chance for them to stay in un
der a democratic administration.
It makes a heap of difference with
them "whose ox gels gored" just
now.
The panic starters might just
as well lay down. The wrong man
is at the head of this government
for them to start anything funny.
And then, again, the crop pros
pects in the west are too flatter
ing for them to scare the West
ern farmers.
:o:-
rt is the duty of the consumer
when he receives stale eggs from
bis grocer to report the same to
the one from whom he buys them.
And it is the duly of the merchant
to keep tab on the farmer from
whom he purchases such eggs
and report the same to the food
commissioner. And the food com
missioner will allcml to the rest.
:o:
Any man with good common
sense should have known that, the
sum of .Si, (too would not have
been enough to convey I he 'old
soldiers to Gettysburg. There
should hae been appropriated at
least s hl.oou. There are per
haps more soldiers who were in
the battle of Gettysburg now
residents of Nebraska than any
other stale west of the Missis
sippi, and 4,000 is only "a drop
in the bucket" towards paying
their expenses to and from the
battlefield on Ihe Fourth of July.
The way to be magnanimous is
to lie magnanimous.
Mr. Carnegie says the Ameri
can banking !sleio is the worst
in the world, and yet it is identi
fied willi the period in which the
Fniteit Stales became the
wealthiest of nations.
:o:
The Iowa papers are hoisting
that the soft pedal ought to be j
put down on Ihe weather. Kvery
time a wind storm visits that
state Ihe papers dilate upon the
damage. Fvery snow slorm in
winter is 'manufactured into a
blizzard. The California papers
pick up all these accounts and
dwell on them, while they are very
careful not to say anything about
their own climatic troubles. A
freeze that destroyed the orange
crop is chronicled as only a
slight frost, while a rain storm
which produces a destructive tor
rent is treated editorially as a
refreshing shower that insures a
bountiful crop. There is much
sense in this idea. The climate
of the Mississippi valley always
produces bountiful crops of all
the cereals. A man can get rich
quicker here than he can follow-!
ing any legitimate business in
California. The great fortunes in
California have been made in real
estate out of the tenderfeet who
buy small strips of land and
enormous sections of sunshine.
:o:
RAILWAY COMMERCE.
Hy the United State's supreme
court's decision. Nebraska, Mis
souri, Kansas and the other
slates can regulate railroad com
merce within their respective
borders, subject to the rule that
in each individual case the
regulation must no be confiscat
ory. Hy the statement of the court,
however, this assert ion of state's
rights has an . important
string lo it. The states can
regulate, each on its own hook,
until congress decides lo assume
the whole business of railroad
rale regulation both within
each stale and between the slates.
This part of Justice Hughes'
opinion was md a part of Ihc im-m-'diale
judgment, hut it has all
the ell'ecf of a delinile judgment
because it afforded Ihe reasoning
on which the judgment was
founded and it showed bow the
court would rule if the specific
case came before it. Congress
had not exercised its right to
regulation of commerce within
the slate, said the opinion, and
therefore each-state can act. The
commission is necessarily im
plied, if it is not expressly stated,
that when congress wishes to
monopolize tlx Held it may.
II lluis seems that Ihe several
stales are given every right and
power to make good in rale
regulation. Then if I hey fail, if
confusion results and the people
desire a completely national con
trol of railroad business through
out the country, congress can
take over the whole railroad rate
business.
"Slate's rights with the new
nationalism in the background"
seems lo epitomize the situation
as outlined by a unanimous court.
Down in Texas they are light
ing grash.ipprrs which are a
good deal larger than chinch bugsi
and mostly appetite. !
Stockmen deny Hie accuracy
of Ihe Department of Agriculture
figures us to the decrease in the
number of beef cattle in the Unit
ed States the past five years, but
they do not 'deny the fact of a
large decrease, which is the vital
thing. There are millions less
cattle, and millions more mouths
demanding meal. The combina
tion is not one which promises
much cheaper living very soon.
:n ;
The council had a time in
selecting a street commissioner
Monday night, there being quite
a number of applicants. The
street commissioner is one who
receives more kicks than any man
in town and gets more cussing.
When they get one who can
please everybody we want to ex
hibit him as a great curiosity.
One thing certain, he has too
many bosses and its "be dammed
if you do and be dammed if you
don't" all around. A man in this
position wants to do his duty the
best he knows how, irrespective
of the kickers. "What is every
body's business is nobody's busi
ness." Remember that.
The fact that the citizens of
Lincoln are offering to reimburse
the slate to the extent, possibly
of $300,000, if the university re
mains right where it is, should
not prejudice the people of Ne
braska, even to the extent of one
vote in favor. of its removal. It
is not in the least a selfish notion
on the part of the people of Lin
coln to have it remain where it
is. Hut it does look like a very
selfish interest on the part of a
few land speculators to have it
removed to a site in close proxi
mity to where there is "big money
in if for these speculators, who
have bought up all Ihe available
lots in anticipation of its re-
moval. That is Ihe situation in
a 'nutshell."
:o :
When a newspaper of any pre
tension makes false- statements
in order to recall the- 20,00 ap
propriated for an armory at Ne
braska City by the state legis
lature, it is certainty in very poor
business. The proposition was
pending several wvfks before a
vole was taken by the house and
senate. It is most eertainly an
insult to members the legis
lature to have the Columbus Tele
gram state "that it was accomp
lished under a cloak, of mystery,"
and that "no member of the legis
lature seems to know just how it
happened." Kv idenl ly, Edgar
Howard has a very poor opinion
of Ihe last legislature. The
armory bill came up in regular
order and was voted on in ori.-n
session, the same as other bills.
Now, what's the use of kicking up
a muss after Ihe measure has
passed ajid the money ap
propriated? The amount of $20,
000 is not going to hurt the state
in the least; so let it go.
There will be no celebration in
Plait sihouih on the Fourth of
July, but we propo.-e to have
.-on id hing that will prove more
entertaining and last longer be
fore fall weather comes on '
enough for frost. Mark that!
"THE PEOPLE'S LOBBYIST."
Concerning Senator Townsend's
charge that President Wilson is
himself the chief tariff lobbyist,
with implication that he should
be investigated and suppressed,
the Washington correspondent of
Ihe Chicago Record-Herald, a re
publican newspaper, says:
"What President Wilson has
done has been to remind demo
crats that it is their duty to vote
to carry out the party platform
pledges. He regards himself as
the accredited representative of
the voters who wanted certain
things done. Complaint has been
made that the 'people' have no
representatives in the lobby that
infests the national capital; that
it is the 'interests' which selfish
ly are affected that maintain
bureaus and such for the iri
fluencing of legislation. Per
haps President Wilson may re
gard himself as the 'people's lob
byist' and when you come to
think of it in the light suggested
by the term last quoted, the peo
ple are not so all-fired badly off
for a lobby agent after all.
"If the people, or a great part
of the people, approve things the
president is trying to accomplish,
they ought to understand by the
signs to date that they have a
very effective worker. For the
signs point to the accomplishment
of the executive program as far
as it has been outlined."
This hits ofT the situation ad
mirably. If any farther light is
required it lias been furnished by
President Wilson himself in his
work on "Constitutional Govern
ment." published before he had
entered political life. In the
chapter on "The President" Prof.
Wilson wrote:
"The president can dominate
his party by being spokesman for
the real sentiment and purpose of
the country, by giving direction
to opinion, by giving the country
at (nice the information and the
statements of policy which will
enable it to form its judgments
alike of parties and of men.
His is the only nation
al voice of affairs.
He is the representative of no
constituency, but of the whole
people. When he speaks in his
true character he speaks for no
special interest. If he rightly
interpret the national thought
and boldly insist upon it, he is
irresistible."
Under his own view the presi
dent is now the people's lobbyist.
He "speaks for no special in
terest" but as the representative
of I lie w hole people. The lobby
ist that is objectionable is the onn
who. speaking for a special in
terest, seeks lo sway the people's
representatives against their
own judgment and against the
people's will and welfare. Aside
from those vvifh a special in
terest tinder tire there is no one,
we judge, who will object lo the
kind of "lobbying" that, simply
uses the power of publicity and
of public opinion to hold the peo
ple's representatives true to Ihe
people's interests and lo their
own pladges and the pledges of
I heir party. World-Herald.