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About The Nebraska independent. (Lincoln, Nebraska) 1896-1902 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 7, 1902)
f . : ii Aug. 7,1902 THE ITEBBASKA INDEPENDENT. III: M. 1 PI nil XI 1 u p Pv M 0) filial fll BEST I iDO POUNDS GRANULATED SUGAR FOR ONE DOLLAR! The above number of pounds of best granulated sugar is being offered by an old reliable Mail Order grocery bouse of Lincoln. The offer is good for but 15 days and must be purchased in connection with the following list ... of . articles which consists of nothing but staplesjust the things ' you are .using every day at prices that are way below what your dealer is asking you for the3e goods. Every article warranted. There is an absolute guarantee upon the part of the company offering this very special, inducement that this 'combination will net the purchaser a clean saving of 25 per cent. In ordering remit by draft, express or money order. Write quickly. Read. ' : - 100 lbs best Granulated Sugar for . . . v.. . .... $1 00 6 lc packages best soda, -. .-: .. : . . . . . .. ..503 2 lbs Best Baking Powder . . . . 50& 6 packages Best Corn Starch . -5Qc 4 lbs Best Japan Tea....4.. $2 00 25 bars Laundry Soap.. .... ............ .$1 00 2 lbs purest Pepper.. ...... ...v; 50o 2 gallons Best- Vinegar.- , .-. . ; . .v. ............. . . -50c 6 1 cent packages Gloss Starch .............. 50o 6 lbs Choice Prunes.. -50c 6 lbs Choice Rice ... . . . 50c 4 lbs Choice Raisins. ; . :r. Y. ... . . . . . . ... . 50o 4 lbs Choice Peaches. L . i i ................ .1 .... . 50o 3 packages Rising Sun Stove Polish v. . . . . . . ...... ; ;25o 3 1 cent cans Lye;... . . . ........; .. ....25c 2 lbs Mocha and Java Coffee. . . . ... . . . . .v. ... ; 50o i -"v.; ,. $io oo ( All above packed securely and delivered to depot her for $10.00. " "Write for a new fall price list out soon free. The Farmers Grocery Company- 226-228,230-232t234t236238 aSKW(iHEf 1:' REFERENCE Any bank in Lincoln and this paper. - Small Men In Big Places During the past week the Epworth 'Assembly has been having ita annual outing at Lincoln park. The atten dance has been fairly good and most of the people are having an enjoyable time notwithstanding the incompetent management. It is strange that small men, men incompetent to manage their own business affairs, are so frequent ly chosen as the chief managers and promoters of such enterprises. The best explanation seems to be that af ter they fail in their own undertak ings such men have nothing to do but work overtime wire pulling to secure the position. When chosen they lose sight of the responsibilities connected with the place and immediately de vote their time to studying methods for profit-making for themselves. The public are forced to endure the loss and suffer the incompetency. It is unfortunate that so worthy an or ganization as the Epworth Assembly should be burdened with so monstrcM3 an imposter as L. O. Jones among Us managers. As a clothing dealer he was a total failure. His business is transacted, according to the best in formation obtainable in his wife's name. So far as known he has no property of consequence in his own name except'his pull with the Assem bly people. lir is "impossible to tell what percentage of his profits, from the Assembly encampment are turned over to her. In justice to themselves, the business men of Lincoln should mako some effort to protect visitors' from such parasites as Mr. Jones. It would be well if men with more business in tegrity and less pretended religion were put in charge of such public enterprises. Small Net Earnings The farmer who ' farms his own farm, (not the sort of farming done by J. H. Mickey) as a rule does not know what his net earnings are upon the farm. If at the end of the year he has-$500 or $800 of available cash on hand as the result of his year's work, he calls this his net earnings So it is; but it represents the earn ings of his investment in the farm an the earnings of himself. How much is due to himself and how much is due to the farm, he seldom takes the trou ble to Inquire. -, .. But railroad corporations do not run business that way. If a stock holder does any "work for the road, he demands and gets good pay. George Gould acts as president for a lot of lit tle lines of road in the west (parts of the Missouri Pacific system) and from each and every one of them he draws a salary. Some of these lines are in Nebraska and are held up by the rail road "tax: bureau .as examples of roacl3 being" operated at a loss for the ?ake of the people of Nebraska. If these high-salaried artists would forego their f IOjOOO a year salaries, perhaps there pouJd be no. loss. " At present the railroads are mak ing the greatest gross earnings In their lilstojfy, , and as soon as the present bumper crops begin , td move, these earnings will increase still more. '- The tax' agitation has made them wary, ing their , accounts that th& net. earn ings will be less than last year. This is done by making vast improvements and charging vthe cost to "operating expenses." It the old farmer should build a house or barn and insist that it was part of his "operating ex pense" for that year, every mullet head in the state would join in .tha cry that he Is crazy. But railroads do do just such illogical tricks and their managers get credit for being finan ciers. The following from the Brook lyn Eagle's - Wall street ..column touches upon this phase of the rail road question: "Developments, of note during the week have been the announcement of the sale of the Chicago & Eastern Illi nois and the Rock Island readjustment plan. Although there have been vari ous rumors that the Rock Island would control the enlarged St. Louis & San Francisco system, there have been almost as many reports that th deal named has been undertaken with the view of eventual control by the Southern Railway. Official denials rf this project have been plentiful, but are regarded as technical. This would be a most important addition to the Southern Railway, which ihas recently extended its system through the joint control of the Chicago, Indianapolis & St. Louis with the Louisville & Nashville; the latter important sys tem being also.; controlled ' by tho financiers dominant in Southern Rail way. Considerable , stress Is laid, in some circles on ' the decreasing ratio of railroad earnings for. the month" of June. On the whole, however, the railroad Industry shows unparalleled prosperity and in tlie large majority of systems the gross earnings are well over last year's, while the smallness of the net Increases and the few losses are largely traceable to the expendi ture of profits for improvement and betterment." Error An exceedingly annoying error crpt into our article last week comparing the assessment of 1876 with 1901; It occurs in the third line -(column one, page 7) of the paragraph beginning "The grand assessment roll for 1876," etc. The line reads "1,115.467 miles railroad at," and should read"'ll,625, 763.44 acres . at $3.49, $40,589,284.99." It was an error of correcting proof and was not discovered until too many papers had been run to justify mak ing a new matrix. Our readers should pray for the editor it is greatly feared that he said some naughty words when he discovered the error, i J. C. L. Wisely, editor of the New Era, at Sargent, seems to be about all that is worth mentioning in the so cialist party out in western Nebraska,! He has called a Sixth district con-t gressional convention for Broken Bow, August 30, to put up a man to assist Moses Kinkaid in the, campaign against General Barry, besides calling a senatorial, a representative, and county socialist convention, Without entering into any discussion : of th merits of , the socialism. .Mr. Wisely contends for, it is evident that in prac tlial politics . he expects to help the republicans by alienating a few pop ulists who would otherwise, .vote , the jvTuiHrtiieV " ' ': '.----. -' - -i. SOME COMPARISONS A Little Schdol 'District In X,anatr County Vhtr th Railroad Tmjm Nearly Half the Taxes, Yet Shirks to Beat ', - . 'the Band , , ' ,f,"" The' 'steenth bulletin "issued - under authority of .the railroads of Nebras ka" makes a showing of the assessed valuation of Lancaster county in 1893 and 1900, and gives as "horrible ex amples" certain school districts where in , the railroad valuation runs from .45 to 60 per cent of the total assess ment roll. The tax bureau' and Col onel Brown rub their hands delight edly and say, "Haven't we fixed 'em? That ought to stop their, noise." Suppose the railroads do pay 50 per cent of the taxes in a certain school district what does that prove? Noth ing, except that they pay half the taxes. That is fully as wise an argu ment as the republican demand for a dollar containing a hundred cents. Suppose the railroads do pay half the taxes paid in a certain school dis trictwhat of it? It might happen that they ought to pay 60 or 75 per cent instead of 50. Let us investigate. School district No. 53 Is a little dis trict lying just east . of Havelock, in North Bluff precinct, Lancaster coun ty, Nebraska. Its entire area, inclu sive of railroad right of way, is 3,120 acres. Of this, 2,480 acres are deeded lands and taxed as such, and 640 are state lands (saline and common school) under contracts of sale ant lease, the holders of which are as sessed as having "investments in real estate,! the same thing counted as personalty. The B.- & M. rallroaj ("main line" of the C, B. & Q. system in Nebraska) runs through the dis trict, having 1.03 (one and three-hun-dredths) miles assessed for taxation ir. the district This line is the highest assessed piece of railroad In Nebraska, and any comparison of taxes where It runs will be giving the railroads ev ery advantage. Our calculations will be made . for the year 1901, because the railroad tax bureau has kindly furnished a pub lished statement of railroad earnings for that year. The assessment roll of district No. 53 for 1901 is as follows: ASSESSMENT ROLL 1901. 2,480 acres at $4.15.. ....$10,282.50 Personal property . . . . ... . . . 1.130.C0 1.03 miles B. & M. railroad ' . u at $10,580. .............. . .-. 10,897.40 Total $22,309.90 The B. 1& M. property amounts to 48.8 per cent and all other property 51.2 per cent. .. . J' ;v - The tax levy for 1901 was 7.5 mills for state purposes; 16.6 for county ; and 12 for school, making a total of 36.1 mills on the dollar valuation, .or $3.61 to ' each $100. The entire taxes charged against the district are as fol lows: TAX LEVY 1901. ' Railroad $393.40 Lands , . 371.21 Personalty , .............. r ., . .; 40.80 Total charged against prop . $805.41 Labor tax, 10 at $3...v. 30.00 Total taxes. ..$835.41 ; Now, the tables given by the rail road tax bureau show that the B. & M. extends from Plattsmouth to Kear ney, a distance of 191.61 miles a trifle less than 192. Their sworn statements show earnings as follows: B.-& M. EARNINGS 1901. Gross earnings $3,985,355.93 Operating expenses 1,487,049.56 Net earnings 2,498,306.37. A simple problem in long division (using 191.61 for divisor) will give the earnings per mile as follows: ; EARNINGS PER MILE 1901. Gross earnings $20,799.31 Operating expenses 7,760.81 Net earnings 13,038.50 And another little problem in mul tiplication (using 1.03 for multiplier) will show the following earnings for the ,1.03 miles of road in district No. 53 EARNINGS IN DISTRICT 531901. Gross earnings .$21,423.28 Net earnings 13,429.66 Now, it will be observed that the B. & M. wa3 charged with a total of $393.40 taxes In district No. 53. Ac cordingly, the road was taxed 1.8 (one and eight-tenths) per cent of its gross earnings, or 2.9 (two and nine-tenths) per cent of its net earnings for taxes. How does thi3 compare with the taxe-9 paid by other taxpayers In the dis trict? We are now coming to the real question. Catherine A. McDevitt, the largest land owner in the district, has 440 acres assessed in her name, the total valuation being $1,580, or at the rate of $3.59 per acre; just half of the acre age is improved and this was valued at $4.41 per acre, the unimproved be ing assessed at $2.77 an acre. 220 acres were in corn, 130 in meadow and 90 in waste land and pasture in 1901. She was charged with taxes as fol lows: State ...$11.85 County ....26.23 School 18.96 Total J'. ......... ..'.$57.04 Accordingly, if her taxes had been 1.8 per cent of the gross earnings of her land, she must have received $3, 168.88 all told from the 440 acrea about $7.20 from each acre. But, as she did not operate the farm herself, suppose she rented it at $3 an acre, or $1,320 for the 440 acres. Call that $1,320 the net earnings from her land. Now, she was charged with $57.04 taxes; and that, amounts to 4.3 per cent of her net earnings, while , the railroad paid only 2.9 of its net earn ings for taxes. Suppose the railroad did pay nearly half the taxes In the district what of it? Catherine Mc Devitt paid a half more taxes, accord ing to the earning capacity of her property, than did the' railroad com pany. : -' - Hon. R. E. Moore of Lincoln former lieutenant 'governor,, owns 240 acres In the district excellent land . as sessed "at $5. an acre,. or $1,200 for the three "eighties." He paid $43.32 taxus on this land. If this $43.32 taxes had been just 2.9 per cent of the net earn ings of his land, the net earnings must have been $1,459.31. If . the whole tract j, o dhnxeTtPdp t $Jln?cxs4hisjet income would have been only $1,440. Suppose the B. & M. did pay nearly half of the taxes in district No. 53 what of it? Three dollars an v acre 1 the outside figure Mr. Moore could rent his land for, and that would mean a net Income of $720 for, the 240 acres. Accordingly he paid at least 6' per cent of .his net earnings as taxes, while the B. & M. paid less .than 3 per cent. ' David Blume of Havelock 'owns a quarter section In the district.; It c was assessed at $660. He had in 90 acres of corn, 6 of potatoes, 60 in meadow, and 4 in waste land. His personalty was assessed as ; follows: 3 ; horsss, $20; I cow, $5; 2 carriages and wagon, $5; agricultural tools, $5; household goods, $5. His taxes on lands and personalty amounted to $25.27 and "la-p bor tax" $3 the .latter being a pun ishment to Mr. Blume for being a man instead of a soulless corporation. Nine other men in the district were similar ly punished, but the B &. M., having no soul, was not called upon to pay "labor tax." Mr. Blume'paid all toll $28.27 taxes. , If. he and the B. & M. had been taxed equitably, his gross earnings must have been $1,570.55. Ev ery : acre of his land should ' have brought . him In nearly $10. Did it do It? If his taxes had amounted to 2.9 per cent of the net earnings , of his property, then Mr. Blume must have had clear, after paying all his farm labor and everything, except taxes and interest on his mortgage (if he has one), Including reasonable wages for his own labor he must have had. as net earnings $974.83: Did he have it? Let him answer. He did well If he had half the amount and kept out nothing as pay for his own labor. At the least calculation Mr. Blume paid out 6 per cent of .his net earnings in taxes the Burlington paid less thau 3. Suppose the B; & M. did pay. nearly half . the taxes in district No. 53 what of it? The' fact Js, it should havo paid at least fifty per cent more than it did. 5 - But, urges the special pleader for the railroads, duf state constitution requires a tax by valuation not on earnings. Dear friend, ihe capacity to produce income is the basis of value in nearly every taxable, thing. This U especially so in the district under con sideration. Land values are boomin:; because prices of farm crops are good; but nine-tenths of the recent, rise Is speculative counting on - bumper crops and drouth , prices. Suppose; however, we do make a comparison on "values." What is the B, & M. worth? We cannot count the cost of right-of-way and rails and ties, because If we do that we must count the cost of the farms, and some of these were home steaded. The 1.03 miles earned $13,--429.66 in the year 1901. That is a 5 per cent return on .$268,593.20. . Tha t piece of road, then., was worth, in 1901 the sum of $268,593.20.' Now, let us place an extravagant valuation on all the other property: ; ; 3,120 acres at $60VV. . M ...... $187,000 52 horses at $100;:;;?..:....V - 5,200 2 mule3 at $100; ; 200 103-cattle-at$5fl..i;........v 5.150 70 hogs at , $20 ... .. ,-usci U - 1,400 20 wagons at.50 , a. . . .1,003 8 sets agri- tools a20, . . . , , 1.600 8 sets household igooas at $200. , - z.iw 1 organ at. . . . .v. v. . .. 75 Total V? ; a. $204,225 . Even at these (exaggerated 'values of farm property in the .'district, the as sessed valuation ii; nearly 5.6 per cent of the true value,; while the railroad assessment is almost exactly 4 per cent of its true value. Lands in Lancaster county rent on the average at not more than $2.50 a:i acre; $3 is considered a top price, ex cept for small areas near town, used for gardening. Little, more than half of the lands in district No. 53 are im proved, but let us give the owners $3 an acre for the whole 3,120 acres. That would b6 $9,360 net earnings for the lands. Allow a 5 per cent return on the $17,225 of personal property $861.25. A comparison of net earnings-would show as follows: Railroad . ...... . . .$13,429.66 AH other property.......... 10,221.25 Railroad taxes... All other taxes............. .$393.40 ,. 442.01 In district No. 53 the B. & M. paid 2.9 per cent of Its net earnings in taxes; the other . taxpayers paid- at least 4.3 per cent of their net earnings in taxes. Suppose the B. & M. did pay nearly half the taxes in district No. 53 what of it? Does any sane man believe it paid more than its share? Does any sane man believe It paid a3 much as it ought? ' ' CHARLES Q. DE FRANCE. Tax Shirking a Fine Art You no doubt have noticed during the past six weeks the articles we have been publishing regarding ' railroad taxation, which are marked "issued under authority of Nebraska rail roads" and which is paid for as ad vertising by said railroads. They are running the same article in from one to three newspapers in every county in the state at a cost of something like $1,000 per week. The purpose of these articles Is to convince the people of the state that the railroads are, . and always have been paying their just proportion as compared with other property. This may be true as regards the larger cities of the state, where tax shirking Is considered a fine art, but it is different when you come to the farmer and citizens of the small er towns. The farmer cannot have his property listed at one-tenth of its act ual value as the railroads and people in the 1 larger cities do. The people generally do not ask for anything but justice from the. railroads, and when that is accorded them,-it will not be necessary for the railroads .to spend thousands of dollars in explaining it. Tribune, Imperial. Rough on the. Reorganizes. Giving aid and comfort to the enemy is treason, according to the constitu tion of the United- States, and treason was never committed except for a con sideration either In sight or promised. Attacking the principles of the party to which you profess allegiance is certainly giving aid and comfort to the enemy, and everybody knows that this is ; not done for strictly ! sanitary rfOBs.-Xenla (O.) Herald. Fellow Sevrant Lav Editor Independent: What is' tho fellow servant law what is denounced in the democratic platform? WILL FERGUSON. Hartington, Neb. (This is "court-made" law governing the relations of master and servant a i vexed question when applied to a corporation, where every human being connected with it is In a certain sense a servant. Even the president of the road is employed. Hence, who is mas ter and who is servant depends con siderably upon their relations to each other in the line of their employment For example, the Irakeman on a train is undoubtedly a servant to the con ductor, and the latter is the "master' (that Is, represents the master the soulless corporation) so far as the two are . concerned. But the conductor is obliged to obey the orders of the su perintendent; and as between these two the conductor is servant and su perintendent the master. ' Now, the courts hold that every per son assumes the risks Incident to his employment, and that unless the In jury complained of is shown to be too result of negligence on the part of the "master," and without "contributory negligence" on the part of the injured person, there can.be no recovery. For example, some courts hold the con ductor to be the "master" of his train; and the brakeman, fireman, and en gineer are all servants of his,- and, consequently, all "fellow" servants. Accordingly, if Brakeman Doe is in jured because of the carelessness of Engineer Roe, say, by a sudden, and uncalled , for quick shunt of the en gine In making a coupling, Doe cannot recover damages from the company because the injury was caused by the negligence of a "fellow servant" and not by the negligence of the "master." The populist and democratic planks differ in language, but mean substan tially 'the same: That where an em ploye engaged in the operation of "dangerous machinery" or "hazardous pursuits'! is, through no fault of his own, injured because of the careless ness or... negligence of another em ploye, he may recover damages. The distinction is to be abolished between those injuries which are caused by negligence of the ''master" and those which are caused by the negligence cf a fellow, servant. There really is no master , to be negligent, because the master is a corporation; and every employe is. a servant, although to a greater or less extent representing and impersonating the master. And who are "fellow servants" and who are not has been a mooted point with courts for years."-The Gordlan knot can to cut by holding the corporation respon sible in damages for all injuries occa sioned by the negligence of. any em ploye (other than the Injured himself), whether, he be "master" or "fellow servant." Ed. Ind.) The Mullet Head Idea The news ihat the Argo starch fac tory at Nebraska City Is to be closed down, probably f qr. good, has increased the' feeling against the trusts in the bosoms of the plain people. The clos ing of this factory has been threatened several times in the past, but when J. Sterling Morton was alive he always ridiculed rumors of the kind, and as sisted in restoring public confidence. His influence probably had something to do with staving off the calamity, but he is here no longer. The west r dotted with decaying factories which were once great helps to the towns In which they were located, and which were closed by the trusts. Beatrice has a big 'stately building which was once a starch factory, doing a big business, employing many men, and turning out starch which was celebrated for its ex cellence. The trust closed it. In the same town there was a prosperous oat meal mill, which appeared to have a glorious future. But the oatmeal trust bought it up and locked the doors. If the packing houses combine, as they threaten, it will mean disaster to many towns which now owe much of th?r prosperity to the presence of packing houses.' These big combines usually mean the abandonment of the smaller plants, and that means hard luck to the towns In which they are located. There is much discussion of the trusts by the peerless leaders and little giants of politics, but it will be a long time before relief comes from that di rection. Some day an infuriated peo ple will rise as one man and settle the trust question; possibly by means of the ballot; possibly by more stren uous means; but when the people are thoroughly aroused, there is no doubt that it will be settled some way. Walt Mason in Lincoln Evening New3 (rep.). The peerless leaders and the little giants are at least offering what they believe to be a solution to the trust problem. They tell the story of trust wronged cities and people in no strong er language than does Mr. Mason; but they offer a remedy. They do not bit back and suggest that the people may some day settle the trust question by a bloody revolution, because they still have faith to believe that the Ameri can people are wise enough to settle the trust' problem by legislation in stead of assassination. Perhaps Mr. Mason is a better prophet than the gentlemen he sneers at; perhaps he knows that the percentage of mullet heads is so large that nothing but absolute starvation will Induce them to act and then any one can predict what a mob of hungry people will do Railroad discrimination is the back bone of such trusts as the corn prod ucts company. With freight rates the same to the little manufacturer of starch as to the corn products com pany, the people of Nebraska City might start another factory, and suc cessfully compete with the trust. But it would be little short of insanity to attempt it now the corn products company could haul corn to the At lantic coast from Nebraska, make it into starch, ship the starch back to Nebraska and drive the Nebraska City people out of the market In every town in the state fifty miles distant, not be cause of supposed "economies" in Irust production of starch, but because .the trust would get a freight rate that the local company could not possibly se cure." ,;.;;".-.",.. The tariff helps many of the trusts. but railroad discrimination helps ail of them. There can be no satisfactory solution : without public ownership of the railroads. ' . Nebraska Horticulturists The summer meeting of the Nebras ka State Horticultural society was held in Tecumseh, Neb., July 29 and 30. Many of, the citizens of Johnson county had come "together to attend a Chautauqua association in their beau tiful park on the edge of the town. The Tuesday afternoon session was held .in Chautauqua park that all might have the pleasure of--listening to the very interesting "rhemorial address on the life and" character of J. Sterling Morton by ex-Governor Robert W. Furnas of Brownville, Neb. -. Governor Furnas related many . in teresting Incidents of their lifelong friendship and work in the upbuilding of the 8tate.In 1856 "J. S. Morton started a democratic paper at Nebras ka City and a year later Governor Furnas started a republican, paper at brownville. ' Party feeling ran very high in those days, each paper abused the other. After about a year of thla the two editors" happened to meet at a public meeting, were v mutually at tracted each 'to the other, and agreed that then and there all' personalities should in future be left'out;of their respective- papers. .Thus commenced a warm ,and enduring .friendship. These two gentlemen had an important part in the development of the agri cultural and horticultural interests, in the state of Nebraska. Ex-Governor Furnas .address twas filled with, apt stories illustrating the , private and public life, of his friend, Mr. Morton. R. A. Emerson of Lincoln, professor of horticulture in the state univer sity, discussed., the .'renovation of tbe orchard; T. E. Snodgrass of Johnson about small trees and illustrated with trees in hand Ills idea of the proper method of pruning the orchard. That is, , to commence while the tree was quite young and so shaping the tree and guiding -its growth that heavy pruning would not be needed. ; Mrs. E. G. Jury of Tecumseh rejd an excellent paper on the adornment of the farm home. Mrs. O. A. Corbln of Tecumseh a Very interesting and . care fully prepared paper on small fruits for profit arid home table. v Dr. Hun gate of Weeping - Water gave his ex perience with one thousand strawberry plants and stated that strawberries could be grown at the rate and value of $500 per acre. The veteran nort; culturist, Rev. C. S. Harrison of York, was present and gave much exact in formation in regard to growing ever greens from seed. , :. "r: ' ". ' Prof, Lawrenee Bruner of Lincoln discussed the . ravages of insect t ene mies and the very. great value of our friends, the birds. Among other fig ures .by. Prof. Bruner he mentioned that we have 100 different "insect ene mies to the strawberry, 400 insect ene mies to the orchard, 150 different in sects work on corn and 30 or 40 on wa termellons. Each i femalev grasshop per deposits ;an ayerage.iof 100 eggs. Plant lice, not only .lay t .eggs, but in addition produce their,, young alive. He gave some very surprising figures regarding the increase of many of our insect enemies indicating.' what might happen in case they were not kept in check by our friends, the birds.1 The birds eat weed seed in the winter and prey on insects 'in Bummer. A robin eats ten quarts of cut. worms, in-iv sear son. A robin will eat as many canker worms a3 would be sufficient to de stroy all the foliage, and fruit of threa apple trees. It has been ascertained that one' chickadee liquid eat 1,000 canker worms eggs in one day, also it has been ; found -to ' eat 100 female canker worms in a day.1-Prof. Bruner urged the value of feeding the birds with millet seed - or grain at time when other foods were scarce. On ai average each bird eats 25 insects daily. Reckoning 120,000 insects to the busi el the birds of Nebraska eat more than 16,000, bushels of insects daily more than two million bushels of insects are eaten in one season. An Increase of double the number of birds would enable our feathered friends to be ver much more effective in holding our"Tn sect enemies in check. , A bird can de stroy more insects than a man, the man using only his hands and feet. Teach children to recognize i birds as friends. Prof. Bruner mentioned his mother's influence; that she had taught him that he had no more right to kill a bird than a playmate. Tho birds have as much right to life lis we. He suggested that birds often eat fruit for want of water. Place water within reach and save a portion of th fruit Birds in large numbers, mean! insects would be present in small num bers. Mr. Dunlap made inquiry re garding the parasites on1 grasshop pers. Prof. Bruner made answer that a certain fly lays eggs on the grass hoppers, these hatch and the grub de stroys the grasshopper. These grub3 then leave the body of the grasshop per, enter the ground and In 6 or 8 days emerge as a fly and again prey on the grasshoppers. Prof. Bruner mentioned the work of grasshoppers in South America where the Argen tine confederacy offering a bounty has secured the destruction of 30,000 tons of grasshoppers and 9,000 tons of grasshopper eggs. Mention was made of one farmer at Lebanon, Neb., who using a hoppodozer destroyed 80 bush els of grasshoppers on 80 acres. In further discussion of the birds as a friend to horticulturists Honi Silas Wilson of Atlantic, ex-lleutenant gov ernor of Iowa and a prominent hortl culturist of that state, gave his ex perience. He plants Russian mulber ry for the birds; they ripen during tnt cherry season. He provides water He would, teach horticulture and love for the birds in the public schools. Hon. R. W. Furnas mentioned that the snakes and toads were among the greatest insect-destroyers we have. In France toads are grown for sale to gardeners. ' ;i ; i" Prof. Emerson discussed ridge versus hill culture of sweet potatoes, show ing that at the state farm they had found that on dry land level culture gave the best percentage of crop. t They had tested high ground ridged ana level, lower land ridged and level, also by cultivation, by mulching and by Irrigation! f The subject of organization for mar keting fruit was .assigned to E. F. Stephens of Crete. This gentleman had during the present summer traveled some 4,000 miles investigating meth ods in use in other districts. TJiat In districts where "fruit growers were thoroughly organized they secured much better facilities and much lower freight rates In -marketing their prod ucts. In the course of the discussion Mr. G. S. Christy of ' Johnson! ? men tioned that there would be more than SCO carloads of apples in Johnson coun ty and that freight rates was a mat ter In which they were much Inter ested. At the close of the meeting such members as desired were driven to the orchards about Tecumseh. Th association was .invited to hold their next annual meeting on the state farm near Lincoln. . E. F. STEPHENS. Crete, Neb. i , Mr. J. F. Ericson of West Lincoln, one of the organizers of the populist party and for twenty-nine years a resident of . Lancaster county, died at his home in West Lincoln July 29, of pneumonia. Mr. Ericson was 66 yeais of age and leaves a wife and son to mourn his loss. The populists of Lan caster county will feel the loss, as Mr. Fricson was ever prominent in the party councils, and a good friend nvl neighbor. , HEADACHE At all 5rwg stores. 25 Doses 2Sc ; r Two Rare Farm Bargains. Best and cheapest alfalfa, cattlo ranch in the Republican River Valley 851- acres, highly improved 110 iu alfalfa. Price only $17.50 per acre. This is the chance or a lifetime. , Highly improved 1 240-acre upland grain and stock rancn. Timber and water. Price only $12.50 per acre. Both must be sold this month. Ad dress at once, JAMES HUNTER. . Republican City, Neb. Grave Monuments If you are looking ' for the best workmanship and most durable ma terial for a grave monument and prices that are reasonable write to Kimball Bros., Lincoln, Neb., for il lustrated catalogue of tomb stones and monuments. ,A11 their work is llrat class and their terms are easy. Men tion, The Independent. , COLLARS sHGVTHM 0 Oft Dealer to BEFORE. YOU BUY. 4ANUFACTURCD BY HARPHAM BR05.C0. Lincoln. Neb. FARM FOR SALE 280 ACRES OF LAND.... 130 acre i under plow, ret good pasture; all under fence. Good buildings, three-fourtha mile from good school, tro miles from good town. Will give possession at once. Price $10 Per Acre Cash. For further information ad dress J. E. EVANS, Sargent, Neb. (Mention this paper.) We Are for Women BEST ON EARTH LII1C0L.II STEEL RANGE Made of Rocky Mountain Steel and lined with As bestos. MoHt Economical of Fuel. Best baker and cooker, largest oren of any range. Top polished like a looking glass. Grease will not stick to it. No blacking required. Always polished. Can be delivered anywhere ia United States. Write for price and what the peo ple say about them. . AMERICAN RANGE AND HARDWARE CO. . LINCOLN, NEBRASKA. LlYfl Stock CATTLE SHEEP Commission Nye & Buchanan Go., SOUTH OMAHA, NEBRASKA. Beat possible service in all depart ments. Write, or wire us for market3 or other information. Long distance Telephone 2305 f 31 FAT Too fat "eopi Reducto' Reduea roar WelghtWith Reduce your fat and be refined, lteflne roar fat and be reduced. "Reducto" Is a perfectly harmless vegetable compound endorsed by thousands of physicians and peopls who hate tried It. We send rou the Formula, rou make "Reducto" at home if you desire, ou know full well the ingredients and thereror need have no fear of evil effects. . Send fj.00 for re ceipt and Instruction everything mailed in plain envelope. Address - Ginseng Chemical Co,, 3701 8. Jefferson A v.. St. Xouls, Mo