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About Will Maupin's weekly. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1911-1912 | View Entire Issue (April 14, 1911)
reverse. Law and order are based upon justice. Without justice neither can be long maintained. Will Maupin's Weekly greatly fears that there are some people who will never be satisfied until the legislature in solemn session puts an enacting clause on the Ten Commandments and supplies every sheriff and constable with John Doe and Richard Roe warrants and subpoenas. The new democratic house of the national con gress has started of well. Here's hoping that it keeps up its record. About its first official act was to pry a job lot of soft-snap holders from the government payroll. The 1 3-year old daugh ter of a doorkeeper; will no longer draw $1 ,300 a year as "clerk to the doorkeeper." During the Spanish-American war somebody started the rumor of a plot to dynamite the capital. Thirty eight extra "capital policemen" were immediately sworn in. They have been on the payroll ever since at an annual expense of $39,000. They have been pried loose. Two telegraph operators drawing $1,400 a year each for working a wire discontinued ten years ago have been discharged. Sixteen years ago the "clerks document room" was abolished, but Uncle Sam has been paying $6,000 a year in salaries to three or four em ployes whose duty it was to take care of the room. These grafters will now have to go to work for a living. Many years ago the government library was removed from the capital, but that did not pre vent $6,000 a year being paid to "library attend ants" in the capital building. These "attend ants" are also among the job hunters now. All told grafters filching $187,000 a year from the public treasury have been amputated from the pay roll, and henceforth will either have to steal in some other way or else earn honest livings. It's a mighty good start. Not being a partisan newspaper Will Maupin's Weekly can afford to enjoy a quiet little chuckle over Governor Aldrich's veto of Senator Tanner's bill compelling the publication of constitutional amendments in two newspapers of opposite politi cal faith in each county. We'd go a long ways to do something for "Doc" Tanner, who is a prince of good fellows and a friend to be de pended upon in time of stress. But really the governor's veto is a good joke on the senator, and we know it will be appreciated by the South Om aha statesman just as soon as he recovers. The' thirty-second session of the Nebraska leg islature adjourned at 2:50 p. m., last Tuesday, April 6. But you say that last Tuesday was April 1 1 . That's where you are mistaken. Last Tuesday was April 6. If you do not believe it, consult the legislative records and the records in the executive office. Some people are queerly constituted. They think it is all right to be everlastingly condemning and abusing others, but when the one abused or condemned strikes back t hey are sur prised and quite sure the striker-back in unpa riotic, narrowminded, prejudiced, partisan and generally unfit. We are moved to this observa tion by divers and sundry abuses hurled at the head of Governor Aldrich by Omaha parties and the wriggling and contortion ensuing when Gov ernor Aldrich, being a fallible man like the rest of us, strikes back. It is asking too much of any man to insist that he forever turn the other cheek. Being firmly of the opinion that the Good Book is the best rule of procedure, the editor of Will Maupin's Weekly is willing to turn the right cheek when smitten upon the left. But if the right cheek is also smitten there's going to be hellapoppin in the immediate vicinity. It seems that Governor Aldrich holds somewhat to similar views, which may explain in a measure why he has struck back after having had both cheeks smitten by certain interests located some fifty miles to the north and east of the capital city. As long as there are those who own more land than they can use, or there are those who own land and refuse either to use it or let it h-: ued, while still others who want to use land and cm not have the oportunityjust so long as that con dition exists there will be poverty and distress and crime rampant in the world. No man should be allowed to withhold land from cultivation for speculative purposes unless he pays enough for the privilege to compensate in a measure for what he is depriving others of by so doing. Life :s wholly dependent upon three things earth, air and water. He who has control of either has control over human life to the extent thai he exercises that control. If some man should devise a method of monopolizing the air and proceeded to do it, he would be lynched. Same with water. But our tax laws are framed, seemingly, with a view to making possible a land monopoly that is quite as vicious as a monopoly of air or water. The opening of the lake carrier season means a resumption of the seamen's strike. The strike is easily explained, and to every well informed and humane man is justifiable. The Lake Car riers Association is dominated by the Pittsburg Steamship Co., which is the steel trust ore fleet. Pursuing its usual course of disregarding human rights and human welfare in its struggle for still greater wealth, the steel trust is striving to break up the seamen's union in order that lower wages may be paid for more hours of work per day. The nub of the whole controversy is this: "Shall the seamen who sail the great lakes be per mitted to earn enough wages and to work under conditions that will enable them to support fam ilies?" The arogant and conscienceless steel trust, acting through the Lake Carriers' Associa tion, says "no!". The Seamen's union says "yes!" It will not take a justice-loving and humane people long to decide, and decision once rendered should be given the force of a judicial decree. The opponents of the eight-hour law for wo men in California told Governor Johnson that his approval of the law would ruin business. Fronted by the necessity of making choice be tween denaturizing California womanhood and injuring California business, Governor Johnson, being a man of parts, did not hesitate a minute. He signed the bill. Slowly, O, so slowly, we are coming to realize that the interests of human ity transcend business interests. It is good to see the governor of the great state of California line up on the side of humanity. If any California judge dare line up on the side of business inter ess, disregarding human rights and future mother hood, let the mother-loving, wife-loving, daughter loving men of California get that judicial scalp un der the recall system, and without losing a single valuable minute of time. . When the union printers of Chicago, unwisely and without regard for their fellows, sought to violate a solemn contract, their international or ganization compelled them to "gig back" and stand by the contract. This was the proper thing to do and just what might have been ex pected of the great International Typographical Union. We mention it merely to give basis for asking a question. What big anti-union organ ization ever compelled its members to live up to a contract with a labor union? NEVER FEAZED US The city of Lincoln breathed easier when the enacting clause of the capital bill was stricken out of the bill. It was all a piece of political bun combe, but Lincoln was half scared to death at one time. Fremont Herald. The esteemed Herald is right in saying that the capital removal bill was all a piece of political buncombe. It is wholly wrong in saying that Lincoln was "half scared to death at one time." At no time did the threat of capital removal cause a single Lincolnite to lose a wink of sleep or ex hibit an accelerated pulse. Bailey of Buffalo introduced the bill in good faith, but it was pushed by a lot of people who are always "prating of local self-government" and "personal liberty" but who wanted to punish Lincoln because Lincoln's ices did not square with their ideas. Lincoln's, position may or may not be correct, but this much is sure: Whenever the people. of Lincoln decide that a certain course is for their best interests, phy sically, mentally and morally, they will neither be bribed, cajoled or browbeaten into backing down on it by threats of putting the state house on wheels and hauling it elsewhere. Will Maupn's Weekly authorizes any one to say on behalf of Lincoln citizens that the threat of capital removal never even feazed us. It was a merry jest that 'enlivened many an evening around Lincoln firesides. A WISE VETO When Governor Aldrich vetoed the garnishee bill he prevented an injustice being done to thou sands of workers. The opponents of this "meas ure had no thought of protecting "dead beats," they merely opposed singling out wage earners and making them the prey of "collection sharks" and others of that calibre. The veto simply put the man with a bit of wages coming to him on an equality with the man who has personal prop erty amounting in value to less than $500. If a law is proposed making every man having money or property in excess of $500 subject to garnishee, the wage earners of the state will not vigorously oppose it. They will, however, op pose any bill that strikes at them and exempts others. Governor Aldrich is entitled to thanks for interposing his veto. WE'RE ALWAYS BOOSTING Hay Springs, Neb., April 7. To the Editor of Will Maupin's Weekly: I received a few days ago your paper under date of March 31, and wish to thank you for the very nice write-up of Sheridan county. This is very fine and we appreciate any such efforts that are made by men such as you, knowing your interest is only . the interest of a public spirited man, as you have no fiancial interest only as the bigger you make Nebraska the more it will help every citizen in it. I am enclosing you $2 for which please send me the Weekly for one year, and as many copies of the issue of March 31 as you can for the money. JAMES K. REID.