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THE NEBRASKA INDEPENDENT
March 13, 1902
He
adacne
kills, not necessarily suddenly,
but surely. It preys upon the
intellectual powers more than
we realize. It consumes the
vitality faster than nature can
replenish it, and we cannot tell
just what moment a temporary
or complete aberration of the
mind will result. Headache and
-pain should be promptly re
moved but properly. Many
pain cures are more harmful
than the pain. Beware. If
you would be safe, take
M?,reS- Pain Pills.
"As a result of neuralgia I lost the
sight of my right eye, and the p.iin I
have suffered is incomprehensible, be
ing obliged to take opiates almost con
tinually. A friend gave me one of Dr.
Miles' Pain Pills and it promptly re
lieved me. I then purchased a box and
now my trouble is gone. They have
also cured my daughter of nervous
headache, and I heartily recommend
them to others." W. J. Corley. Bre
raond, Texas.
Sold by Druggists. 25 Doses, 25c.
Dr. Miles Medical Co., Elkhart, Ind.
A WEALTHY YOUNGSTER
Tha Richest Raby In the World, mid Mr.
Skandrew's Remark Thereon
One day last November Associated
press dispatches announced the birth
of a boy to Mr. and Mrs. A. G. Van
derbilt, and, as if in excuse for tele
graphing throughout the country such
an every-day occurrence as the birth
of a child is, added that he was the
richest baby in the world. As this
baby's grandfather was reputed to be
.the, owner of 60 millions of United
.States bonds, it is plain to be seen
.that if the grandson Inherits these
only, his annual income from this
source will, at two per cent, amount
to $1,200,000, which, let it be ob
served, is equivalent to the enti:3
wages of say 2,000 men at $2 per day.
Or, expressed in another way, 2,000 of
.his fellow citizens work every day,
hand over their wages to young Van
derbilt, and support themselves by
working after hours, But this boy's
Income is not due to the possession
of government bonds only.
We, the people, in our ignorance ani
stupidity permit the Vanderbilt family
.to claim" as their private property a
great highway stretching from New
York to Chicago, and on this highway
the Vanderbilts, aided by their para
sites, the Depews, Webbs et al., col
lect toll from every traveller and
shipper far more effectively and with
surer profit and mucL less risk than
Dick Turpin ever took from travellers
across Hounslow Heath. Dick used to
say that travellers did not have to
carry watches and purses across
Hounslow Heath. Dick was a joker.
So was the elder Vanderbilt. Who
does not remember his side-splitting
joke, "The public be.damned!"
Now some people and their number
is growing do not relish this state of
affairs.. They are beginning to object
to the power exercised by those who
have monopolized the highways, are
beginning to scent danger in the overgrown-
fortunes which such monopoly
produces, and are casting about for a
remedy for conditions that are fast
becoming intolerable. So far, the rem
edy oftenest proposed is government
ownership and operation. But there
is a better one. It should not be for
gotten that the highway, or land on
which the railroad is built, belongs to
the community, and everyone has an
equal right to Its use, while the rails,
the ties, the stations, the rolling stock,
etc., belong to individuals, to use or
not use, to hold, to sell, to give away
as they choose.
Now let the community take what
beloners to the community, leaving to
individuals what belongs to them. Let
the Individuals who have laid rails on
the public highway be notified to re
move them, or let the community buy
these rails at what it would cost" to
replace them. Then let the railed
highway be thrown open, subject to
.the same proper regulations that all
other kinds of highways are.
In brief, treat railed highways in
the same way that all other kinds of
highways are treated, and by thus
opening the business of transportation
by rail to free and unlimited competi
tion, the present monopoly power of
such people as the Vanderbilts. the
Morgans, the Stanfords, the Hunting
tons, the Goulds, the Hills, et al ,
would be wholly and completely de
stroyed. Any investment then made in the
transportation business would be ex
actly of the same character as the in
vestments now made in horses and
wagons by men whom we call team
sters or expressmen. These men un
der free competition make money, but
they give an equivalent in service
They do not get something for noth
ing, as all do now, In some degree,
who receive any profits from mon
opoly any dividends, for example,
from railroad corporations.
I have written this for the double
purpose of, first, pointing out what :
believe to be a correct solution of the
railway problem a solution which is
in harmony with the law of equal free
dom, which avoids on the one hand
the dangers of the present system and
on the other hand the dangers of so
cialism and, secondly, to lead up to
an objection made by the editor of The
Independent to a former article of
mine which related to a piece of land
rUUklfli J6 eta. per yeu . 4 months
trial 10 eta. Sample Irte. t4-page practical
owe i rem w fmmzij uinviiwi
in Pennsylvania, owned by the Queen
of Spain. In that article I urged the
adoption of theMsingle-'tax, not hecause
the single tax ' alone" would strike at
all unearned incomes, but because it
would stop the robbery Involved In
landlordism, and because the single
tax is a fundamental reform which
must be adopted before any other re
form Is possible.
There are other unearned incomes
derived from sources which a tax on
land values would not touch. I have
mentioned two of them in this letter.
The way to cut off such incomes and
stop the robbery involved in them is
simply to abolish the laws which sus
tain them. They are privileges grant
ed by the state to individuals enabl
ing those possessing them to tax oth
ers. Such laws are in violation of
Jefferson's motto, "Equal rights to all,
special privileges to none," and In my
opinion cannot be abrogated too soon.
C. F. SHANDREW.
Germantown, Pa.
(Mr. Shandrew presents some oTd
straw which was thoroughly thrashed
out a good many years ago, namely,
the proposition to have public owner
ship of the roadbed and permit any
body to use the road. The impractica
bility of such a system must be appar
ent to anyone who will study the mat
ter carefully. Probably the best an
swer is a quotation from the testi
mony of Prof. Frank Parsons before
the industrial commission:
"Q. (Bv Mr. Tompkins) Did you
ever consider the proposition of hav
ing the public own the roadbeds and
the corporations or individuals do the
transportation business in competi
tion, the same as is done by boats on
rivers? It is the roadbed that is the
monopoly. A. Yes. I have considered
that a little: but it does not appeal to
me because it does not eliminate the
element of antagonism of interest
which I think lies at the bottom of the
whole thing, and I do not believe either
in the possibility of runnine the rail
roads on the principle of competition
with good results. Competition means
th buildinr hd of gre?t cities, and of
nHvste individuals. rd the svstem nf
discrimination would be kept up if
private parties owned the business, no
matter who owned the roadbed: and I
not believe we r-onld solve the pro
blem in that way in its most vital ele
ments. Moreover, the practical diffi
culties of the sort of competition you
sppaV of Mve been foud to be insu
perable. Tht fs the theory of rail
way service in th early davs, but it
wrs fouid to be impracticable. Two
Mnes of bots can pass each other on
the river, but two companies cannot
operato trains on the same traeVs: so
that- if f.wo coTrrinies y"e to o'prh,
between New York apd Wshineton
onrh pomppny must have it5 track?
ard ihnf cause 1 wapfcfnl dnollcnt'on.
v,rp?ks up the hn'ess. weens ach
company, and peither service- is as
"ood as it ou-rht to be. ad finllv the
two companies Jet tired of flehting
anr combine, and you lose even pom
t tU've rntes and have to piv divi
dends on a double capitalization.")
An Announcement
The Theo. Noel Co. of Chicago. 111.,
makes a special offer on paere 7 of this
issue under the heading "Personal to
Subscribers," which should be of in
terest to every reader of this paper
who is ailing or has a relative or
friend who is in poor health. This
company is the proprietor of the fam
ous Vitae Ore, a natural mineral
medicine, discovered by Theo. Noel, a
geologist and the president of the
company, many years aso while pros
pecting in the southwest. This com
pany offers to send a full $1.00 pack
age of this mineral medicine on trial
0 every subscriber or reader of The
Independent who will write them, giv
ing the nature of their ailments, prom
ising to use the medicine for a month's
time and to pay if benefited. The
company is reliable, will do just as
they aeree to do, and expect no pay for
the medicine unless the patient has
improved by using It.
SOUTH AFRICAN SLAVERY
ft?
poultry
beok
fn ngweTT, 1 fral&foYtf 'las
The Mine Owners for whom the liritUh
Fight and the Taxpayer Want the
Right te Flog; Workmen
One of the humane and civilized
South African mine managers, on
whose acount Great Britain is waging
a costly war against the Boer repub
lics, writes as follows to last week's
issue of the New York Engineering
and Mining Journal, under the cap
tion of "Present Mining Conditions
in the Transvaal:"
"The compound managers and oth
ers are rather excited over the proc
lamation recently issued by Lord
Milner, making it a crime to hit or
flog a native, and requiring every
compound manager to have a license,
which will be taken away If seen fit.
If a Kaffir does a misdeed on the mlnet
the law Is to call in a labor inspector,
who has the power to fix a fine as high
as 5 pounds ($25) or order the Kaffir
to have six months' holiday; that is.
imprisonment for that time. Some
compound managers have been con
victed already of breaking the law,
but the companies pay the fines, with
out any objection, and this Is one
reason why the Kaffirs from Portu
guese territory are in greatest de
mand. They know nothing about this
law, and if they do wrong take the
flogging as a matter of course. The
Basutos and Zulus, however, are much
wiser, being told by missionaries and
others of this glorious proclamation,
and if you raise your voice- to them
be careful you are not 'run in' for
cruelty. When martial law expires,
and we have representative govern
ment here, I believe flogging will be
reinstated, as the only effectual way
of punishing Kaffirs."
The mine manager doubtless uses
the term "representative government"
advisedly. Under the Boer govern
ment it was against the law to log
Kaffirs. But the compound managers
did so, as a rule, the government be
ing kept in ignorance of the violation
and the Kaffirs in ignorance of their
rights. It was ignorance right and
left with this civilizing element, char
acterized by bath tubs, late dinners
and plenty of wine. , Flushed with th
latter, it started the Jameson raid Irk
January, 1896, which ended disas
trously to the raiders and emphasized
the differences which three years later
question an ignorant supply from
Portuguese South Africa is thus bra
zenly referred to in the article under
note. It says: -
"I have mentioned in a previous let
ter the negotiations between ;he
Portuguese and British authorities re
garding the supply of Kaffir labor for
the Rand. Had the Portuguese offi
cials been bribed, the thing would have
been settled long ago, but our side was
determined to be perfectly square in
the matter, and so, after a long wait,
the papers were at last sighed in Dela
goa Bay last week. One of the groat
obstacles to the success of the nego
tiations was the little recognition that
Delagoa Bay has received of late as a
shipping center. The Portuguese have
themselves to blame for the small
freight traffic for the Transvaal, as
they charge nearly as much per ton
to carry goods from the port to Ro
sina Garcia, the boundary station, as
it costs to get freight up from Durban
or Capetown."
Here are choice relics of barbarism,
ignorance, flogging and bribery, each
and all admitted to be prime requis
ites to the success of British gold
mining in the Rand. No wonder the
civilized world, regardless of commer
cialism, has expressed sympathy with
the cause of the Boer republics, which
have not stood for ignorance, flogging
and bribery in dealing with labor.
Denver News.
CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION
Should Populists Favor Calling: One? Com
ment on Some Needed Amendments
The populists of Nebraska have a
duty to perform between now and the
holding of a state convention. Every
plank of the platform upon which its
candidates are to stand should be dis
cussed in advance and framed with
the greatest care. It is unreasonable
to expect a committee on resolutions
to draw up a wholly acceptable plat
form in an hour or two, and equally
unreasonable to expect the convention
to make no mistakes in adopting what
the committee has framed. At the
convention of 1900 an insurance plank
was adopted and afterward rescinded,
and to this day those who voted for
its adoption and afterwars for its re
scission have given no valid reasons
for their actions. It may be that the
plank was a good one and ought to
have been retained: but a great many
of the delegates did not fully under
stand it, and they wisely preferred
to have no plank on the subject rather
than one the meaning of which was
not clear. Had this plank been thor
oughly discussed prior to the conven
tion, no such wavering would have
been indulged in.
Omitting the usual reaffirmance of
the populist national platforms, it
seems to The Independent that the
question of first importance in state
matters is whether or not the popul
ists of Nebraska favor the holding of
a constitutional convention. The pres
ent constitutional provision on this
subject (section 2, article XV.) is as
follows:
"When three-fifths of the members
elected to each branch of the legisla
ture deem it necessary to call a con
vention to revise, amend, or change
this constitution, they shall recom
mend to the electors to vote at the
next election of members of the legis
lature, for or against a convention,
and if a majority voting at said elec
tion vote for a convention, the legis
lature shall, at its next session, pro
vide by law for calling the same. The
convention shall consist of as many
members as the house of representa
tives, who shall be chosen in the same
manner, and shall meet within three
months after their election, for the
purpose aforesaid. No amendment or
change of this constitution, agreed
upon by such convention, shall take
effect until the same has been sub
mitted to the electors of the state, and
adopted by a majority of those voting
for and against the same."
Unless Governor Savage should call
an extra session of the present legis
lature, which is not at all likely, the
time required to amend the constitu
tion would be about as follows: The
legislature of 1903 (to be elected this
fall) could, by resolution, submit the
question to the people, to be voted on
at the election of 1904: if carried, the
legislature of 1905 would provide by
law for calling the constitutional con
vention. There is nothing to prevent
holding a special election for mem
bers of the convention, and it could
be held in May or June, 1905; and, if
the convention should meet without
delay, its work ought to be accom
plished by the 1st of October at the
latest; and submission of the consti
tution framed by it could be made at
the general election in November.
1905. Two years time could be saved
if Governor Savage would call a spe
cial session now for the purpose of
submitting the question at the election
this fall but it Is safe to say that
he will not do it.
Among the matters which require
attention, section 9 of article 8 (relat
ing to the investment of the school
funds) stands well to the front. This
section should be so framed that the
board of educational lands and funds
may have a wider field for securing In
vestments, yet having in mind the
safety of the funds. There is no good
reason for excluding school district
bonds and city bonds. Prior to 1875.
when our present constitution was
adopted, the permanent school fund
was loaned to individuals on real es
tate security; but a series of unfor
tunate investments, resulting in a loss
of some $17,000, doubtless had its ef
fect upon the constitutional conven
tion and that body restricted invest
ments to "United States or state secur
ities, or registered county bonds of
this state." At that time this provi
sion was ample, but today it is so nar
row that within a few years from now
the question of securing investment?
for these trust funds will be one of the
biggest problems the state has to deal
with A large portion of the invest
ments today consists of general fund
warrants which run from eighteen to
twenty-two months; but under a prop
er system of taxation the general fund
should be on a cash basis and this
will reduce the opportunities for In
vesting the funds. Not many county
bonds are being issued at present and
it is not probable that many more
will be issued: and the state now holds
practically all the county bonds out-
,J Wft.. afeJWt:
were quoted the other day at 108; at
that rate the state would get no in
come for over four years. New fours
at 139 would permit the state to wait
nearly ten years before realizing any
return. And old fours at 112 would be
far from profitable. It is likely that
some good plan could be devised for
Investing these funds in first mortgage
bonds on Nebraska real estate, for ex
ample allowing each county to man
age the investment of its proportion
ate share and holding the county re
sponsible for both interest and prin
cipal. The question of an increase in the
number of supreme judges, perhaps of
an elective ' railroad commissioner or
commission, of a better system of tax
ation, and a number of others are de
pendent upon a new constitution or an
amendment of the present one. Our
experience with separate amendments
is such that The Independent favors
the idea of a constitutional convention
as preferable.
A Compromise.
Out in Los Angeles they are experi
menting with selling franchises to the
highest bidder, instead of giving them
away as Lincoln people do. At last
reports the franchise auction had not
closed, but one of two millionaires
who are bidumg against each other
for permission to build and operate
a street railroad system had offered
$500,000 for the privilege. Comment
ing on this, the Buffalo Times, Nor
man E. Mack's paper, says:
'- "Such a course might prove a hyp
py medium between municipal owner
ship and the methods in vogue In most
cities. The practice of giving to fa
vored corporations the property which
of right belongs to the taxpayers
should cease; in fact, Its cessation has
already commenced; the public has at
last awakened, in many communities,
to a realization of the fact that they
have allowed franchises worth mil
lions of dolla'rs to slip through their
fingers without receiving any return
save the privilege of paying for the
facilities offered by the ones to whom
the presentation has been made. Mu
nicipal ownership has been suggeste-2
as a remedy for this condition, and It
has been tried in some places, with
greater or less success. Like every
other project, it has its advocates and
its opponents, and it must be admitted
that, in the majority, of cases, there
is much to be said on each side. The
Los Angeles method would . seem to
offer a solution of the problem which
should prove satisfactory to all con
cerned. As , an experiment, its pro
gress and its outcome will be awaited
with interest."
A Power to Tax.
"It used to take 1950 days labor
(including making of iron and all
work) to build an average mile of rail
road. There are some roads now cap
italized at $148,000 a mile, and that
would allow about $75 for a day's la
bor." S. P. Gibson, Page, 'Neb.
Mr. Gibson falls Into the error of
thinking that the labor cost of pro
ducing a railroad determines its val
ue. That scarcely enters into the cal
culation at all. It is the power to tax
the people for services rendered that
makes a railroad valuable. And that
capitalization is none too high if the
stock and bonds remain at par, because
it shows that the net earnings of that
road (the gross earnings after deduct
ing the operating expenses) pay a fair
rate of interest on $148,000 per rtvile
But the difference between what k
would actually cost to duplicate that
road deducted from $148,000 will show
the amount presented by the foolish
people in the form of a franchise to
the railroad company. $25,000 per mile
is a good, round figure for the cost of
the average railroad; but the power
to collect "all the traffic will bear"
makes the value jump up toward th-s
hundred thousand mark without much
trouble.
CANCER OF THE BREAST.
So many people are dying of this
terrible disease. The disease Is In
creasing with wonderful rapidity.
Mrs. B. F. Southard, of Buffalo, Mo.,
has recently recovered from a most
advanced stage of this disease by th
Oil treatment of Dr. Bye, of Kansas
City, Mo. Mrs. Nancy F. Billings wf
West Bridgewater, Mass., was cure,!
by home treatment. Persons afflicteJ
should write Dr. Bye for 112 page illus
trated book on the treatment of cau
cer in its various forms. Address Dr.
W. O. Bye, Kansas City, Mo.
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TAGS AND FLORODORA'BANDS ARE OF EQUAL
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Our New Illustrated
CATALOGUE OF PRESENTS
FOR 1902
includes many articles not shown here. It contains the most attractive
List of Presents ever offered for Tags, and will be sent by nail oa receipt of
postage two cents.
Our offer of Presents, for Tags will expire Nov, 30th, 1903.
CONTINSNTAX. TOBACCO CO.
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