rv rv
-.1 1
VOL. XIV.
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA, JUNE 5, 1902.
NO. 3.
PEACE AT LAST
The Boer XVmr Ended "For Sure" This Time
The Terms Congressman Stark's
Statement Democrats United
Against Philippine Bill
"Washington, D. C, June 2, 1902.
'(Special Correspondence.)
. EPITOME OF THE PEACE TERMS.
"The burghers'force lay down their
arms and hand over all their rifles,
guns and munitions of war in their
possession or under their control.
"All prisoners are to be brought
back as soon as possible to South
Africa, without loss of liberty or prop
erty. No action to be taken against
prisoners, except where they are guil
ty of breach of the rules of war.
"Dutch is to be taught in the
schools, if desired by the parents, and
used in the courts, if necessary.
"Rifles are allowed for protection.
"Military occupation is to be with
drawn as soon as possible, and self
government substituted.
"There is to be no tax on the Trans
vaal to pay the cost of the war.
"The sum of 3,000,000 is to be pro
vided for restocking the Boers' farms.
"Rebels are liable to trial, according
to the law of the colony to which they
belong. The rank and file will be dis
franchised for life. The death penalty
will not fjfllctecL"
Your Washington correspondent is
glad to report that peace is to be es
tablished in South Africa. At ten
thirty, o'clock on Saturday, May 31,
the signatures of Lord Kitchener, Lord
Alfred Milner attached to a document
bearing the signatures of several of
the Boer generals, closed the most
cruel wars ever waged against whites
by the British empire. The terms have
not yet been transmitted, but it is to
be hoped that the land that gave a
Kruger, a De Wet and a Delarey to
the world, has secured at least some
vestige of liberty from their cruel op
pressors. The news reached London on Sun
day and a small bulletin posted on
the door of the war office contained the
announcement that terms had been
agreed upon. Instantly London was
wild with joy. Bells were rung, wild
crowds paraded the Strand and Pic
cadilly, while ministers of the gospel
ceased their prayers long enough to
read the announcement to their as
sembled congregations. The king
gathered a number of his favorites In
to the palace and the national anthem
could be heard far outside the gates,
portraying the happiness of his ma
jesty at- the c6hclusioifbr hostilities.
The news was received in Washing
ton unofficially at about 10 o'clock
last evening, and immediately the
newspaper men sought out that arch
friend and spokesman of the Boers,
Hon. William L. Stark of Nebraska,
to find out what he thought of the
cessation. In a few well con-"" H
words he expressed himself n Al
lows, and they are contained in j-'rg
black letters on the face of the Times
this morning:
"I am especially glad to hear that
all the Boer efforts have not been in
vain, and that they have at last come
to an agreement with England. They
have made a stubborn fight In a holy
cause against the best of British com
manders, and the embstteled farmers
could have kept up the fight much
longer. To such a race, unsurpassed
throughout the world for its bravery
and determination, England can but
give the very best of terms."
Secretary Hay a few minutes later
could be seen crossing Lafayette
Square, which alone separates his
roans'on from the White house, to un
officially inform the president. No
. word had been received from Ambas
sador Choate, but the dispatch had
such a truthful ring to it that Hay was
; ready to send congratulations to tho
British on their victory. President
Roosevelt refused to do this until offi
cial reports had given the terms to
the world. Congratulations! For
what? For a victory over a people
whose numbers do not exceed the in
habitants of the small city of Wash
' lngton. whose men. women and chil
dren have been huddled In reconcen
' tration camps, whose homes have
- been plundered with all the ravish
ments of a heartless conqueror, whose
land has been reviled for thirty-two
months and all because the people
; craved that God-given right of man
; Freedom. Yes. we ought to congratu
i late them and if Hay had had his way,
a telegram would have announced our
1 joy to Edward. The result would
i have been that his daughter, who is
1 no"w in London, would have been re
: ceived at court again and the true
' opinion of the united American people
would have been perverted to gratify
this Anglomaniac secretary of state.
But speaking of perversions. The
speech of President Roosevelt at Ar
lington on Memorial Day was as sac
; riligeous as the robbing of the dead.
To pervert the sanctity of the dead by
using the only day in the year that is
' consecrated in their honor, to pollti
' cal purposes is the lowest of political
tricks and unworthy for ven the ward
heeler of the slums. Yet Theodore
Roosevelt, president of the United
States (by accident), used the whole
time at hi3 disposal to make a scath
ing denunciation of those who opposed
the policies forced upon the Philip
pines by the administration of which
he Is the accidental head. He excused
the atrocities in the islands by waving
aloft the bloody-shirt of lynchings.
with all the strenuosity of which he
Is a master, and declaiming bitterly
against the land of its birth. It is
the old cry of the republican party
about the south again that they have
used "with so much effectivenesswhen
ever occasion arose. Whenever charg
es so black that even Cerebrus would
i seem sunlit, were to be aired by their
opponents; .whenever Augean stables
needed cleaning and the democratic
party advocated it, the republicans
waved aloft the bloody shirt and the
invading forces were driven back.
Now, when the filthiest of charges are
proven by "government witnesses,"
the president has sounded the battle
cry, and lynchings at home are to be
made an issue. Whenever you are told
that Philippine atrocities must cease,
the cry in return will be, "Stop lynch
ings." But lynchings were not his whole
theme of speech. . He said that those
who condemned the atrocities in the
islands and I know of no better word
than atrocities were the same people
who condemned Grant and, Lincoln.
Let the president read the speech of
Sibley, the editorials of ex-Postmaster
General Smith and see whether or no
It is the same people who condemned
both. But what is the difference if
they are the same people. We have
It absolutely from witnesses for the
"government" that these uncivilized
methods of warfare have been com
mitted and no matter whosoever pro
claims them in no way justifies their
commission. And, in closing, Roose
velt cried, "Shame!" (Dietrich's fav
orite expression), to those who op
posed them first and thrice shame to
those who were not willing to let all
go by without condemnation.
If Memorial Day Is to be used for
such purposes if the only use of the
day is to be the making of political
diatribes by some soulless howler,
then by all means let the day be abol
ished. If the hallowed memories of
those who fought and died , that we
may live, Is to be the political stamp
ing ground of such men as Roosevelt
showed himself to be, then by all
means let's stop the day. Let us go
to the graves of those whose memor
ies we hold dear, and silently lay our
tribute, but never use their day the
only one in the year and their home,
the bivouac of the dead, for such
ghoulish purposes as did the president.
The senate has been chiefly . con
cerned with the Philippine civil gov
ernment bill, and many speeches have
been made both pro and con while the
bill was under consideration. The
speech of Senators Spooner for the
republicans and Carmack for the dem
ocrats were of course the most notable.
Spooner was the most mild-mannered
of those who have favored the adop-
tlon of the bill. He Is thoroughly op
posed to the taking of outside terri
tory, and was opposed to the taking
of the Philippines for the same rea
sons that he ' opposed the taking of
Hawaii. But he said that now we are
in the islands and, of course, we had
to stay. He did . net -use the old cry
about the army with much enthusiasm
and taking the whole speech and read
ing it the second time, it can be said
to have been carefully prepared. It
was ambiguous in its Important parts
and readily left a hole for him, when
the time came, to lead the . way out.
Dolliver some time ago also spoke in
the same vein. He said that maybe it
would be just as well if we were not
in the islands and perhaps " better.
Such statements give us to understand
the party which had once indorsed the
sayings of Beveridge was beating a
hasty retreat. The day used to be
when the republicans would cry,
"There's money, in it," but now those
men who had opposed the annexation
of Hawaii, and had bitterly opposed
the taking of the Philippines, as had
Spooner, are being pushed forward
to bear the brunt of the argument.
Carmack's1 speech was as usual, a bril
liant one. It was disconnected, but
that was because it was an unprepared
answer to Spooner, who delivered his
speech but two hours before. He char
acterized the speech of old man Mor
gan the renegade ' democrat as fool
ish, and said that his lines were such
"that any ' fool could utter and any
parrot be taught to repeat." He re
piled to Beveridge telling him that
the republican party always , used the
technicalities to get out of tight holes,
but that today he was unwilling to
have them plead the statue of frauds
to avoid the question. He spoke of
Beveridge as being "imperfectly sup
pressed" and a few minutes later per-'
fectly suppressed him, by waiting un
til he had finished a speech that he
has delivered for the three hundred
and twenty-ninth time during the
course of this debate, and then com
pletely Ignoring him. It was a reply
to Spooner, as I said before, and com
pletely covered the speech.
The vote upon the bill will be taken
on Tuesday and the remaining days
will be used in fifteen-minute talks
by senators upon both sides of the
house. Spooner closed the debate for
the republicans and Carmack ended
the democratic opposition.
On Wednesday, Congressman Shal
lenberger of the state of Nebraska de
livered a notable speech in opposition
to the Hill coinage bill. There was a
good attendance upon both sides of
the house and his remarks were re
ceived with marked attention.
After the speech, which was deliv
ered in the oratorical, many of both
parties warmly congratulated him and
called him a worthy reminder of the
great Bryan. Nebraska is certainly
well represented in Shallenberger. He
is constantly in attendance upon the
floor and already is one of Its most
conspicuous members. All thi3 dur
ing a first term, is something remarkable.
The senate committee refused to re
port the Spooner bill favorably. ' This
provides that the president shall
choose between the Nlcaraguan and
the Panama routes. The house passed
the Hill subsidiary coinage bill and
the Shattuc immigration, bill, while
the conferees upon th omnibus pub
lic building bill agreed upon a report
as did tfc conferees upon the river and
harbor bill.
The program of the senate and
(Continued jjn Page 3.) . m . ,
"AN ELASTIC CURRENCY"
Farther Comment on the Fowler Bill by
Mr. Be Hart Good Populist Doctrine
on the Money Question
Next to "maintaining the gold
standard," Mr. Fowler proposes to
"provide an elastic currency." (We
gather this from the title of his bill.)
He proposes to accomplish it by , al
lowing the national banks to Issue
notes, to circulate as money, to the
extent of their capital. The amount
of their capital is more than six hun
dred millions, and the amount of notes
in circulation Is more than three hun
dred millions, and the currency is to
be made elastic by allowing the banks,
to issue not only more notes, but notes
of a different kind. At present they
cannot issue notes without filing
United States bonds of an equal
amount with the treasurer of the
United States. This limits the amount
of notes to the amount of bonds the
banks own and it secures the notes and
makes them good. The only difficulty
with the present system is, that it al
lows the banks, instead of Uncle Sam,
ta have the profit of issuing circulat
ing notes as money, and it also gives
the banks, instead of the government,
control as to the quantity of circulat
ing medium, which is a great power.
It ought to be left to the government
(a commission or department of ex
perts) to say how much or little pa
per money should be issued instead
of allowing the banks to do this. If
the government exercises this power,
it will be done in the general interest
and for the good of all alike; but if
the banks have this power they will
use It In their own interest alone; and
will probably issue more money than
they ought to issue, because the more
they issue, the more will their profits
be. If there should be no profits then
the banks would not issue any notes
at all and there would be no money,
so far as the banks are concerned. The
banks are claiming that there are no
profits now in issuing notes. If this is
so, then the banks will not issue any
more notes and will retire what they
have out. Mr. Fowler thinks that
there is no profit in issuing bank
notes and he presents figures for show
ing it, but his figures do not prove
what he asserts. He also says that
there is no profit to the government in
Issuing notes and he offers figures to
prove it, but the figures do not prove
what he asserts. Anybody can see
that there must be a profit in issuing
the notes, because they cost nothing
but the printing or engraving. Any
body can see that Uncle Sanvhas made
or Saved money by lssu!ng,-and keep
ing $346,000,000 of greenbacks in cir
culation. If the greenbacks had been
paid off at the close of the war the
government would have had to issue
bonds and borrow money to pay In
terest on the bonds. We have saved
Interest on $346,000,000 of debt ever
since the civil war by keeping the
greenbacks out.
If Mr. Fowler's bill goes into oper
ation, it will allow the banks to about
double the amount of notes they now
have in circulation without being
obliged to own any United States
bonds. They can do this without in
creasing the amount of their present
capital, and as they increase their
capital from time to time, they can In
crease the amount of their notes. The
only other limitation upon the amount
of notes will be the amount of gold in
the country. The banks, according to
Mr. Fowler, are to be obliged to re
deem their notes with gold coin, when
ever demanded. This will be a limi
tation upon the amount of notes they
can issue, but a very indefinite limi
tation. No one can say how much
gold there will be in the country at
any future time. If the balance of
trade should be in our favor and we
should be able to hold our own gold
and draw gold from abroad, then there
will be a large amount of gold in the
country and the banks can issue a
large amount of notes. Under Mr.
Fowler's system the bank notes will
expand when the gold expands, where
as the bank notes ought to contract
when the gold expands and the notes
should expand when the gold con
tracts. The public Interest requires a
currency that expands gradually as
population and business Increase, but
this is the reverse of what we shall
have, under the operation of Mr. Fow
ler's bill.
The best way to provide an elastic
currency is to allow Uncle Sam to is
sue his own legal tender notes, pay
able on demand without interest, for
paper money. The mints ought to be
closed to free coinage of gold and If
any gold coin is wanted for money, the
government ought to buy the gold bul
lion at the lowest price possible and
coin it on government account, as we
coin fractional silver pieces. This
would give Uncle Sam control over
the volume of money so far as coin
Is concerned. The paper money, is
sued by the government, ought not to
be redeemed with coin, or redeemed
in any way except by receiving it for
taxes and all government dues. If
there is too much paper money In cir
culation it ought to be reduced by is
suing interest-bearing bonds In ex
change therefor. If there is not enough
in circulation, the amount can be in
creased by Issuing more in exchange
for bonds. This will produce a cur
rency sufficiently elastic. It will not
expand so much as to cause the price
level to rise nor contract so much as
to cause the price level to fall. It will
produce a money of uniform value and
be a good measure or unit of value.
The interest-bearing national debt
is about a thousand millions. It is
supposed by experts that the volume
of money can be increased about fifty
millions annually, without .disturbing
the level of prices. If this is so and
John Sherman thought it was so
Uncle Sam can issue fifty millions of
new paper money annually in pay
ment of an equal amount of interest-
bearing national bonds, and if he
should continue this for twenty years,
the whole national dht could be paid
off without taxfng thft people a single
dollar. This shows that there is a
profit in .issuing paper money and
why ; the batiks want to issue their
own notes for money. It is a power
ful argument for allowing the govern
ment to issue all the paper money In
stead of allowing the banks to do it.
It is, however, not the strongest argu
ment, because it is more important
that Uncle Sam ; should have control
over the volume ;. of money than : to
make a thousand million dollars or
any other sum by issuing his promis
sory notes for paper money. Who
ever controls the ; volume or quality
of money controls the business of the
country. JNO S. DE HART.
Jersey City, N. J.
VILEST. ACT ON RECORD
The todaje Committee Refuses to Hear the
Filipino Side of the Case and Denies
- Them Their Day In Court
There never was a viler act com
mitted by any government on earth
than when the senate Philippine com
mittee refused to ailow "the Filipinos
to have their day in court and pro
ceeded with the investigation- of a
case in which only one side was al
liwed to appear. Senator Carmack,
after protesting' in vain "against" such
injustice, evolved a plan to get the
Filipino side. of. the. case at least par-'
tially before the American people.
Sixto Lopez is --a highly educated and
wealthy Filipino and, is now in this
country. His ,nroperty in the islands
has been confiscated his brothers
made prisoners and sent into exile and
himself and- all his family reduced to
want and poverty. Yet he has never
borne arms against the United States
or aided or abetted the war that the
insurgents have carried on.
An exceedingly i important contribu
tion to the Philippine controversy has
been obtained by Senator Carmack,
who has propounded to Sixto Lopez a
series of questions such as would have
been asked him had he been permitted
to appear before the senate commit
tee on the Philippines. ' The . ques
tions chiefly bear upon the political
aspirations of the Filipinos and the
probable . result of - the withdrawal of
American troops from the archipelago.
Lopez offers severe strictures by .. Im
plication . upon congress, and suggests
the names of many soldiers, ; profes
sional men and merchants who ought
to be called ' by the committee before
any legislation ii'inflicted upon the
Philippines-" He' denies, the state
ment that chaos and misrule would en
sue upon the withdrawal of American
control. This, he says, -"is not a rea
son, but an excuse,- for a continuance
of foreign rule. . . . All statements
are prophecies as to what may accur
in the future are of small value com
pared to what has really happened in
the past. . . During the entire 300
years of Spanish ocupation there has
not been a single case of tribal war or
feud." This was true notwithstand
ing that "Spain's control was too fee
ble" to have prevented such conflicts.
Lopez also bitterly denounces the leg
islation enacted by the Philippine com
mission and the political terrorism
now- prevailing in the Philippines. Far
from being "greatly exaggerated," he
declares that the tortures and im
prisonments already heard of are not
more than a suggestion of what is yet
to be found out The Filipinos, he
says, are from the highest to the low
est in faVor of independence either
immediate of ultimate. They do not
desire American rule. Another set of
questions has been furnished to Lopez
by Mr. Carmack in order that fuller
information may be furnished.
Their Answer
The republican imperialists are
banking very heavy upon assistance
from the democratic south and the
patronage of the president has been
used with stint to encourage it. The
Washington correspondents are con
tinually writing to their papers that
the southern democratic senators ara
lukewarm in attacking the republican
policy of holding the Philippines by
force and even go so far as to say
that some of them favor the republi
can policy. The first authentic in
formation on that subject comes from
South" Carolina, where, after pitch
ing McLaurin over the transom, they
passed the following resolution:
"The benevolent assimilation of tho
Filipinos has proved to be the benev
olence of murder and the assimilation
of robbery.' We denounce it as an
outrage upon the consciences of liberty-loving
Americans. Our free insti
tutions v cannot long survive the ' de
struction of those principles upon
which they rest, and the spectacle of
subject peoples fbeing held down by .the
bayonet and Tobbed by the carpet
baggers but foreshadows the fate of
our country unless the people are
aroused to our danger. " The. unjust
and cruel war of subjugation now be
ing carried on In the Philippines
should be ended at once, with definite
and specific declarations to "the natives
as, to the intentions of this country
to aid them in the establishment of a
free protectorate by the United
States." ' ; ' - '. .
That is the answer of the party to
the - efforts of the administration,
through Senator McLaurin, to bring it
over into the Imperialist camp.
One of the things that Mark Han
na's Ohio legislature did was to re
peal the law authorizing the supreme
court of 'the state to review the deci
sion of the lower courts. The thing
has;tnade such a row, that there is a
universal demand for an extra session
of the legislature.: The. corporations
"bit oft. more than they could cliew"
that time. i : - '.. ' V ;c'".'r.
THAT INVASION
Americanization of Canada Going on Des
pite Discriminating Tariffs.
The increase of exports from the
United States to Canada goes right
along, although after April, 1897, a
2Vz per cent discrimination in tariff
duties was made in favor of the
"mother" country; and after July,
1900, it was Increased to 33 1-3 per
cent. Some rather curious changes
have taken place since 1897. Exports
of agricultural implements, wheat,
cotton, fruits and nuts, seeds, and lum
ber have increased greatly; and ex
ports of cotton cloths, wheat flour, and
cycles, have decreased, showing that
the Canadians are doing some manu
facturing on their own account.
The following table shows the prin
cipal exports from the United States to
British North America during the nine
months ending with March, 1897 and
1902, respectively, manufactured .ar
ticles being grouped separately.
Manufactured Articles
: Nine months ending March
1897 1902
Agricultural imp.$ 243,466 $2,075,609
Books, maps, etc. 470.358 988,195
Carriages & cars. 80,065 913,513
Copper Ingots.... 31.583 198,438
Cotton cloths 1,499,769 385,086
Cotton mfrs, other 983,661 1,634,642
Cycles, & parts of 839.563 98,476
Builders' h'dware 377.549 735,165
Sewing machines. 69,756 182,710
Other machinery. 1,222,708 894,330
Oils, refined, min. 602,250 931,629
Other Articles
Cattle 58,534 544,928
Sheep ........... 63,406 325,782
Horses not stated 997,741
Corn 1,770,531 1,468,390
Wheat .......... 2.548,778 3,769,577
Wheat flour 2,415,519 638,361
Coal 6,987.856 5,473,177
Cotton 2,626,679 4,509,205
Fruits and nuts.. 566,584 1,345,260
Furs & fur skins 195,534 667,164
Cotton seed oil.. 47,069 261.6S8
Beef, salt'd.pickl'd 208,195 240,978
Bacon ....... 365,419 557,827
Hams . . . 188,116 218,995
Pork 476,613 579,851
Butter 194,220 106,227
Seeds . . U.. ... .". 454,986 1,363,485
Tobacco 1,034,612 921,807
Tobacco mfrs..... 42,741 66,783
Timber .......... 465,243 560,288
Lumber 528,183 .1.178,199
Total exports,
including art
icles not enu
merated in the
above list. . .$46,75958 $80,999,004
IS THE DEBT BEING PAID?
Mr. Warren Inquires if Our Fourteen Bil
lions of Foreign Debt is Being Paid
(This is another installment of the
series of articles from the pen of Hon.
Marvin . Warren, Falrbury, Neb. Ed.
Ind.)
THE SITUATION.
Is the Debt Being Paid? -
Republicans tell us that the great
debt abroad is being paid off by the
great excess of our exports over our
imports. But let us see just how this
is. According to the treasury depart
ment tables, the greatest excess of
our exports of merchandise and money
over imports of the same that ever ac
crued in any fiscal year was $680,111,
630, in the fiscal year ending June 30,
1901. The accruings of the tribute that
year against this country and in favor
of foreigners, was for interest on the
great debt abroad fully stated in round
numbers $540,000,000; for cost of our
foreign freight carrying, as per Presi
dent McKinley's statement, over $165,
000,000, for profits to foreigners on
their investments in this country $260,
000,000, because this was the last year
of the eight years wherein this item
of tribute has an estimated gain as
hereinbefore stated, and for expenses
of Americans traveling abroad, $25,
000,000, making a total accruing tri
bute against this country for that, year
$990,000,000 at least. ;
Now, can any person wonder that
nothing was ever received back to
this country for that $680,111,630 ex
cess of our exports over Imports that
year? Of course, it was met and li
quidated by that much of that year's
tribute against this country. And then,
after this liquidation, there was still
a balance of the tribute against us of
$309,888,370. - What became of that
balance? How was it settled? It is
the most important part of the whole
business to thoroughly consider and
perfectly understand the right an
swers to these questions, because here
in lies the secret process whereby the
foreign debt and foreign ownership
of. American property have been In
creasing every year since the great
currency contraction was thoroughly
set on " foot in 1865. There has not
been a single year in all this thirty
six years wherein the accruing tribute
against the United States did not ex
ceed the excess of our exports of mer
chandise and money over imports of
the same, and for this excess of tri
bute, notes, bonds, mortgages, certi
ficates of railroad stocks and other
stocks, have been sent by our debtor
people here to their foreign creditors
to their acceptance, and the sending
has usually been by mail, quietly, un
seen and unheard of except by the per
sons sending and those sent to and
their agents in this country. And this
increase of foreign debt and foreign
ownership amongst us will be kept up
as long as the so-called gold standard
is kept up.
ALL THIS IS REPUBLICAN PROS
PERITY. The loss of all our merchant marine
is republican prosperity. -
The ownership : by foreigners of
most of our 'railroad property Is re-,
publican prosperity. It is so nice to
have foreigners thus Intermeddling
with our domestic affairs.
A great foreign debt of fourteen, bil
lion dollars, and still fast growing, Is
republican prosperity.
A vast tribute by the toilers of this
nation to foreigners already amount
ing to a billion dollars yearly and
fast growing, is republican prosper
ity. ., -f .:
The holding by British capitalists
abroad of bonds and mortgages for
all the gold and silver money there Is
in this country, and six and a halt
times as much more. Is republican
prosperity, and makes this a creditor
nation in republican estimation.
The fact that four-fifths of all stock
market quotations In the London
board of trade' as reported, are upon
investments in .. the United States
showing that we, in this country, are
habitually owned, bought and sold
and traded in the English shambles,
is republican ; prosperity.
The fact that no stock market quo
tations in the New. York board of trade
as reported are upon any Investments
except those in the United States
showing that . our : capitalists do not
habitually own, buy, sell or trade In
any investments abroad, outside of
the United States, is a mark of re
publican prosperity.
The fact that British capitalists
have great advantage over our Amerl-:
cans in making investments every
where, even in our own country, be
cause they use their own money, while
Americans , have no money to use ex
cept such as is in some way, directly
or indirectly, burdened with British
usury, is republican prosperity.
The fact; above stated is the very
reason why our. Americans lost their
merchant . marine under republican
rule, and why Americans cannot now
compete with the British in building
and running another merchant marine
establishment, and it is also the rea
son why . many or all -republicans in
congress are now claiming that it Is
necessary to raise a great interna
tional subsidy to enable some Ameri
can capitalists to do this. '
All this confims my proof of tho ex
istence of the great foreign debt. And
It confirms another thing. On Feb
ruary 8, 1869, I made a speech in the
lower house of the Ohio legislature,
and the last sentence of that speech
is in the following exact words:
"On the one side of .this issue lies
good faith, national credit and na
tional freedom. On the other side, is
repudiation, national bankruptcy and
national slavery."
That prediction is strictly fulfilled.
The "national bankruptcy ; and na
tional slavery" spoken of are both now
here with xis in all their completeness,
covering the United States, growing
in magnitude and power and will grow
as t long as" the republican party rules
the country. ; MARVIN WARREN.
Falrbury, Neb.
Post Check Currency
The gentlemen in charge of the Post
check currency bureau are certainly
entitled to great credit for the vigor
ous campaign they are waging for a
rational system of fractional currency
and larger bills which ' may be con
verted into drafts on the treasury de
partment ; by simply writing in the
name of a payee and affixing a post
age stamp and cancelling same.
The Independent's position regard
ing this matter is well known. It Is
heartily in favor of -the plan, but has
no hope that, it will become a law. It
is idle to expect bankers to voluntar
ily throw away any advantage they
may have, no matter whether that be
large or small; and although it may
be urged that the drawing of small
drafts Is troublesome, yet It Is a fair
ly remunerative "trouble," quite on a
par with the collection of bills against
local merchants. A republican con
gress of bankers and bankers' attor
neys will not give the people what
the Post check currency plan calls for
at least, that is the way The Inde
pendent feels about it. ,
Last week we quoted an Associated
press dispatch regarding the action of
the board of experts, and it turns out
to be a false report. The Post check
currency bureau writes The Indepen
dent as follows:
; "A number of false reports have
been sent out to the press. It is not
true that the joint committee as a
whole has made a report against the
post check measure. There will be a
majority and minority report both of
which will be sent you as soon as
made public. Please suspend judg
ment. You. can depend upon this bu
reau for the exact facts in detail. The
postal currency system will ultimate
ly obtain in our opinion. Invalid ob
jections and misunderstandings have
to be met and. cleared away.
"It Is not amiss to again say that
this whole work : is carried on pro
bono publico, and without ' personal
gain. Voluntary subscriptions of mon
ey, have been offered by many publish
ers and business houses, but the ex
pense of the organization has thus far
been borne by a retired business man.
"His support has made possible a
complete organization. No ulterior
purpose Is behind or under this move
ment. The principal supporter is not
a builder of libraries or monuments.
His public work lies In the direction
indicated. V
"It is known that a tremendous
quantity of letters has been received
by members of congress from-farmers,
as well as all classes of citizens,
demanding that - they vote for post
check currency."
, Some anti-imperialist republicans
have progressed so far as to say:
"Nothing-will be so beneficial to the
republican party and so surely enable
it to recover Its sanity as a thorough
beating at the polls this fall.'! "
- -
The Boers fought 300,000 troops for
three years and then made tho English
pay them a- war Indemnity! of $15,
000,000, besides forcing them to furnish
capital without interest to begin busi
ness again. ' ' The London Hooligans
call that a great British. vijtory,
MEMORIAL DAY
President Roosevelt's Partisan Speech nf
Arlington Congressman Snellen
bergeronthe Hill Bill
Washington, D. C, May 31, 1902.-
(Special Correspondence.) The writer
mingled with a crowd of 30,000 peo
ple yesterday at the national cemetery
at Arlington. This burial plot is one
of the most enchanting spots in th
country and it is safe to say that
out of every 100 persons who visit ;t
would prefer it to entomb their re
mains. Nearly 20,000 soldiers are her
burled, grading from the rommanucr-in-chief
to the lowest private in Uh
ranks. Not one was forgotten yester
day. A small American flag fluttered
above the coffined ashes of every man
who, for a great cause, has given tfco
last full measure of devotion." Thp
broad acres of the cemetery yesterday
were a wilderness of flowers; today
withering and dying, but the mcmorv
of their fragrance lingering still. Th
30,000 did all that loving hands could
do and fond memories cherish for
those who in the supreme hour of
national peril were equal to the emerg
ency and by sacrificial faith in the re
public prevented its disruption.
Eight years ago yesterday, Wm. J.
Bryan, then a member of congress
delivered an address there, free from
partisanship and political reference,
that will be quoted as a model of lofty
patriotism and noble pathos for gen
erations to come.
How different from ypsterday's pro
ceedings! Yesterday President Iioosr
velt was the orator of the day, and
but for the pathetic figure of gomn
woman -weeping over the grave of her
dead it had seemed as if the country
was once more in the throes of an ex
citing political campaign. Five min
utes were devoted by the president to
the heroic dead and their comrade,
among the living the remaining time
of an hour's speech was consumed in
a bitterly-partisan tirade of abuse and
apology that savored of the lowest or
der of ward politics.
Never before has a president so of
fended good ta.;te. His auditors of
yesterday and the country at larpp
never before were subjected to such
flagrant Insult and It Is to be hoped
they will not be compelled to asaln
undergo a like experience.
The day is set apart by an alto
gether fitting custom to commemor
ate the achievements and memorialize
the virtues of the slain. Those who
attended yesterday's exercises ex
pected the president to voice the sen
timents uppermost in every grateful
and patriotic heart. Instead, of that,
were compelled to listen to a re
publican campaign speech, filled with
laudation of his own military achieve
ments and delivered with the uwagser
ing braggadocio of a Funston. It were
not enough that he wholesalely de
nounced every opponent of a colonial
policy in the Philippines, but he sousht
to justify the orders of Butcher Smith
and others by declaring that they were
no worse than those committed by
the southern people in defense of the
chastity and the honor of her woman
hood! Every man who has given up fcla
life in freedom's cause was not a re
publican; every man who has helppd
to perpetuate a republican form of
government was not a thlck-and-tMa
administrationist; and it is high time
that a stop was put to the practice of
using the American flag as a campaign
device only and prostituting every na
tional holiday to the base use of a
rallying time for the g. o. p.
There ar.e' many brave men. many
loyal citizens of the republic who nev
er voted the republican ticket: who
never waved the "bloody shirt" , for
the sake of political expediency; wbo
never "yelled for the old flag and an
appropriation" with the strongest
lung power accentuating the latter:
who never shot a fleeing, unarmed
Spaniard in the back and wrote a boo
afterward telling of his glorious
achievement: who never denounced as
"traitors and copperheads" all thof
with whom they disagreed on mat
ters of public policy; and who, finally,
never insulted the memory of the
dead or Imposed upon the charity of
the living by delivering a politic2l
harangue on Decoration Day In the
shadows of the tombs of the nation's
loved and lost.
Democrats and populists have for
years contended that the overcapitali
zation of trusts . and combines wa3
largely responsible for the hardship
imposed upon the people. Stocks in
the corporations are sold upon the
promise and expectation of so much,
return in dividends, and unless the
dividends are realized the stocks are
worthless and cannot be placed upon
the markets. To realize the3 divi
dends, the. people must pay tribute in
the increased cost of that which they
buy from the trust concern. The num
erous concerns built up under republi
can policies have all but created a
panic even at this early date, and tho
Bankers' Magazine, not to be accused
of unfriendliness thereto, sounds a
note of warning:
"The financial outlook, so far as it
relates to the stock market. Is not so
clear. The wealth of the country is
growing at an enormous rate, but" the
output of new securities has been "so
lavish during the past two or three
years that the market is surfeited. As
a rule bank loans are at the maximum
ever reported, and this expansion !s
no doubt duev in part to the large
amount of securities being carried, by
syndicates, awaiting the favorable op
portunity to distribute them to In
vestors." The "favorable opportunity" that, is
awaited by the syndicates prob&bly
will not be more favorable to those
who are inveigled Into giving support
and counsel to those who have sur
feited the market than it is to those
who have been ueluded Into the be
lief that they could add to their-own
n
