TALKING OF -MEN AND THINGS
A good precedent once established is a
good thing to follow. The precedent of
promoting a man from the police judge
ship of Lincoln to be judge of Lancaster
county was set a number of years ago,
and it has always proved satisfactory to
the people. Now that Police Judge
George Kisser has nimouncd his can
didacy for county judge, there is plenty
of reason for following the precedent.
Judge Kisser has made good as police
magistrate, and in doing so has evidenced
his ability to lill a higher judicial place.
The death of "Si'' Alexander removes
another Nebraska pioneer from the scene
of action. Mr. Alexander belonged to
the old school of men who came to Ne
braska in pioneer days, and as Ceasar
said in finishing his commentaries, so Mr.
Alexander could say in reviewing the pro
gress of Lincoln and Nebraska during the
thirty or more years in which he lived
here: "All of these things I saw, a part
of them I was." As secretary of state for
two terms, as a business man, as a pro
gressive citizen, and as a good friend and
neighbor, "Si" Alexander stod prominent
among men. The news coming from
Denver that he had passed away caused a
feeling of genuine sadness to pervade
thousands of Nebraska hearts.
Governor Aldrich has appointed as
members of the advisory board of par
dons John O. Yeiser of Omaha, E. G.
Maggi of Lincoln and Rev. Mr. Butler of
Superior. Under the constitution the
governor only is capable of issuing par
dons, but with a view to relieving the gov
ernor of this burden the legislature creat
ed this advisory board. The board will
listen to and examine all applications for
pardon and parole and report findings to
the governor. Then the- governor will do
as he pleases. As Governor Aldrich has
announced hat he will personally ex
amine all applications the advisory board
will be something of a fifth wheel. But
no matter, the chief executive has ap
pointed a board that will do its duty.
It will strike a great many people that
if the "erectors" asociation has such a
clear case against J. J. McNamara as it
claims, there was very little necessity of
railroading McNamara out of Indiana.
When a big politician accused of a das
tardly murder sought refuge in Indiana it
was impossible to secure his extradition.
But when a labor leader is accused he is
extradited in such a hurry that he is not
allowed even to consult an attorney or
notify his friends. If McNamara and
his associates are guilty of the crimes
charged against them they ought to be
given the limit of the law. No true union
man will condone crime. But union
men, while deprecating violence, will see
to it that their comrade gets a "square
deal." That is about all that organized
labor is fighting for, anyhow and that's
what it is going to get.
The firemen's superannuated pension
act is constitutional, and Lincoln will
have to pay John Haberlan a pension of
$20 a month for the rest of his natural
life. He will get a neat lump sum of
$1,G90 as a starter, and the $20 a month
hereafter. And no one acquainted with
the dangerous occupation of the fireman
will begrudge him the pension he has so
well earned.
The Mexican revolution is considerable
of a joke, of course, but it is serious busi
ness to the Mexicans. Left alone the
Mexicans insurgents wouldn't get very
far, but there are enough adventurous
Americans going over and getting into
the game to make it lively for Diaz.
We've heard so much about the benevo
lent administration of Diaz through the
agency of subsidized organs of the "big
interests" grabbing off all the good things
in Mexico that Diaz has come to be
looked upon as a really benevolent old
gentleman. The truth is that he is about
as crooked and as autocratic as they
make 'em these days. Mexico is a re
public in name only. Misery stalks
throughout the land, and a few favored
ones roll in luxury. Peonage worse than
African slavery ever was, exists every
where down there. Ignorance is fostered
by the Diaz crowd because education
would be fatal to the Diaz dynasty. If
the Mexican insurgents have any power
at all they should refuse any terms of
peace short of the absolute retirement of
Diaz, the rooting out of every one of his
tools, and the broadening of the franchise
until Mexico is really a republic.
t
It is evident that the people of Omaha
arid Lincoln, and especially Lincoln, are
becoming wise to the evils of the pool hall.
The determination of the Lincoln coun
cil to issue no more pool hall licenses is
a good one and should be 'rigidly adhered
to.' In Omaha a protest is going up
against a proposed ordinance licensing
pool, halls because it does not regulate
them strictly enough. Pool and billiards
are" games all right in their way. But
the average pool hall is little else than a
loafing place and usually a recruiting
place for juvenile delinquency. If Will
Maupin's Weekly were compelled to take
choice which, thank heaven, it is not
between the regulated saloon and the av
verage pool hall, it would choose the reg
ulated saloon, for there, at least, the boys
are excluded. There are a few well con
ducted pool halls in Lincoln and Omaha,
but a majority of them in both cities are
doing a tremendous amount of damage to
the morals of the future men of this section.
The Kern presidential boom has been
launched in Indiana. Mr. Kern, who
was Mr. Bryan's running mate three
years ago, is scarcely a presidential pos
sibility. But Governor Marshall is, and
the Kern boom seems to be merely a "play
for position." There is no love lost be
tween Kern and Marshall, and if Kern
captures the Indiana delegation it will
eliminate Marshall from the equation.
That is about all there is to the Kern
boom.
Nebraska's forward progress in mat
ters of legislation has been so regular,
though rapid, that a large proportion of
the population is seemingly unaware of
the fact that Nebraska stands to day in
the forefront of the progressive states.
No state has more comprehensive laws
looking to the regulation of public serv
ice corporations, nor better machinery
for exercising that' control. Six years
ago the real progress was begun, and it
has been steadily going on ever since. To
day Nebraska, once corporation ridden
to the limit, is freer from the control
than practically any other state. The
end is not yet, but it is in sight. With
the initiative and referendum engrafted
upon the state's constiution the people
will be in absolute control. Now that all
this has been accomplished it is high time
that Nebraskans begin the good work of
making all the facts about Nebraska
known to the world. It would be useless
to undertake the work of making the
facts known all at once, for they are too
many and too great. Nor would it be
wise, even if we could, for the truth told
about Nebraska all at once would sound
too much like fiction. It is not necessary
to exaggerate in telling about Nebraska's
good points. The great trouble will . be
to persuade people to believe the absolute
truth. -
The trouble with most social refermers
is that they lose interest in the job too
quickly, or fail to stand by those who lend
them the most valuable assistance. Mayor
Fawcett of Tacoma was elected on a re
form ticket. No sooner was he in office
than he proceeded to put the reforms into
effect. Among others was an anti-treat-ing
ordinance, and Mayor Fawcett en
forced it to the letter. Of course the op
position sought his scalp under the recall
-and they got it, too. Why? Because
the reform forces didn't get out and vote.
There were enough women voters in Ta
coma to prevent the recall of Fawcett had
they taken interest enough in the matter
to vote, but they didn't. And a reform
mayor has been ousted because he actual
ly enforced the reforms demanded by the
people. Our reformers should stay on
the job more regularly.
The state railway commission has de
cided that "free interchange of service be
tween telephone companies in Nebraska
where no reciprocal benefits will result,
but where the apparent object is to de
stroy the toll business of a competing
company, is manifestly unjust and will
not be permitted." Let's see if we under-