WILL MAUPM'S W
i EKL Y
A Weekly Journal of Cheerful Comment whose mission it is to reflect sunshine
and pilot people around and behind the dark clouds. It believes in the Ultimate
Good and strives for it Until it runs out of Good Words to say about men
and women it will say no Harsh Wordsand there is so much of Good to be
said that Will Maupin's Weekly expects to be Very Busy on the Good End of
the job for many years to come. May we have your company along the way?
BOOSTING NEBRASKA ALWAYS
That is one of the best things we do and thepleasantest Just say "Nebraska"
to us and you've got us going. Nebraska is inspiration for song and symphony,
for oratory and optimism. Will you join our Grand Chorus of Nebraska Boost
ers, instructed and conducted . by Will Maupin's Weekly? Initiation fee and
one year's dues, One Dollar the more dollars we get the better we sing.
TfflSIS A GOOD TIME FOR SINGING LESSONS
I MEN AND I
MATTERS
The niggardly methods pursued by
Nebraska in remunerating her public
servants has again been emphasized.
James W. Crab tree, elected state su
perintendent, is soon to leave to accept
a position as principal of one of the
"Wisconsin normal schools. Mr. Crab
tree's salary in the new position is
practically double that of Nebraska's
state superintendent of public instruc
tion. We ask a man to manage the
entire educational interests of the
great state of Nebraska, and pay him
$2,000 a year. At the same time Lin
coln and Omaha pay their city superin
tendents from $500 to 1,000 a year
more, and a dozen or more other Ne
braska cities pay their superintendents
as much as the state pays the state
superintendent.
Again, Nebraska pays her governor
$2,500 a year, then gets around the
constitution by a subterfuge that
would be distinctly dishonest if prac
ticed by an individual. By furnishing
an "executive mansion" and making a
small appropriation for maintenance,
the state manages to pay the smvernor
about $3,500 a year. And there are a
doaten managers of departments in Ne
braska retail department stores wh
get that much or more.
And again. Nebraska asks a man to
assume the fearful responsibility of
handling and investing millions of dol
lars of state funds every year, and for
this responsible work pays him $2,500
a year. A score of bank cashiers with
far less responsibility and work receive
more than that.
Si" Barton is not worrying because
he was not invited to the Hastings
4&nquet in President Taft's honor,
while his opponent for the republican
congressional nomination in the Fifth,
.W. A. Prince, was. The Fifth is a hot
bed of insurgency; the Taft banquet
IB
was managed by stand-patters; Bar
ton was not invited and Prince was.
If you fail to understand why Barton
is not kicking over his failure to re
ceive an invitation you 'are indeed
dense.
J. A. Andrews of Holdrege is think
ing of shying his caster into the Fifth
district congressional race. The chief
claim upon recognition possessed by
J. A. Andrews is that he is a brother
of the Mr. Andrews who was cured of,
what ailed him by liberal and repeated
doses of Peruna. The Peruna-cured
statesman has often thought of getting
into the race himself, but every time
he looked the field over he concluded
that a United States treasury job in
hand was worth a whole basketful of
congressional nominations in the bush.
It remains to be seen whether Brother
J. A. will dare to rush in where
Brother W. D. has feared to tread.
J. R. A. Black of Hastings is also
considering the matter of getting out
and making a try for the place now
occupied by George W. Norris. We
recall Black as the gentleman who
once tried to secure the nomination for
governor and failed. Also as the man
who arose at the Taft banquet in East
ings to speak and seemingly labored
under the impression that he was
slated for the main address of the
evening. Mr. Black, despite his often
mistaken judgment, is a man of parts.
If faithful party service is to be re
warded then Col. Black is entitled to
about anything he wants at the hands
of the republican organization.
The State Journal seeks to convey
the idea that Tom Hall is much better
qualified than Clarence Harman for
the job of railway commissioner. Fail
ing to offer anything more than its
mere statement as proof it would be
well for the voter to seek further
light. Mr. Hall is a lawyer and pos
sessing some means which enables him
to be independent of any lack of re
turns upon whatever legal ability he
possesses. Mr. Harman is a traveling
salesman whose ability is evidenced by
the fact that he is so succesful and so
dependable that he has been with the
same house for many years, and has
covered the same territory year after
year. He, too, has some means. But
may it not be possible that his wider
acquaintance with Nebraskans, and his
personal experiences as a traveling
man covering a large territory, better
fit him for the position than the ac
quaintance and experience of Mr.
Hall?
The state railway commission says
that 7 per cent is a fair return for the
Traction Co. to make on its actual
physical valuation. Judge Munger
says that 5.2 per cent is enough for
the Gas Co. to make on & physical
valuation fixed by himself. The city
says the Gas Co. should also pay an
occupation tax of 3 per eent on its
earnings, thus reducing its returns to
4.5 per cent. Judge Munger says that
dollar gas is all right, and certain of
the city fathers seek to make capital
of the faet that the Gas Co. refuses
to pay it and ask the courts for relief.
If the Gas Co. pays on $1.20 gas, and
the supreme court decides for dollar
gas. where will the Gas Co. be? And
if the court declares that 5.2 per cent
is sufficient return on actual invest
ment, what will the railway commis
sion do about its decision that 7 per
eent is a fair return for the Traction
Co?
Honestly now, if you were in the
business of serving the public with a
commodity and the public would in
sist that you sell that commodity for
a dollar and at the same time soak
yon with an occupation tax based on
$1.20 would you pay it without a mur
mur? And talking about watered
stocks remember bow the automatic
telephone company was floated? Sold
bonds at 90 cents on the dollar, and
gave one dollar of stock with every
dollar of bonds sold. That is, for 90
cents the investor got a dollar bond
and a dollar stock certificate. The
bonds bear 6 per cent interest, and
the stock pays dividends, about 8 per
cent according to current reports.
There you have a 14 per eent return
on the investment. But to date we
haven't heard anybody howling like
coyotes about the water in the auto
matic telephone stocks, nor its big re
turns on the investment, nor about a
decrease in rates. If we remember
rightly as the automatic telephone
stoek increased in value the rate per
phone went up.
Will Maupin's Weekly isn't worry
ing about the status of the dollar gas
ordinance. It believes, and hopes,
that the supreme court will sustain
Judge Munger. It believes that in
time the Gas Co. will have to come
across on that big bond and refund
the exeess it has been charging above
the rate fixed by ordinance. . But at
the same time this little newspaper
wants to be fair, and it frankly admits
that it doesn't blame the Gas Co. a bit
for fighting the case to the last ditch,
nor for opposing the payment of that
occupation tax. "We'd fight under
similar circumstances. So would yon.
So. why blame the Doherty people
for doing the very thing you'd do
Judge Munger decided that the
physical valuation the valuation upon
which it might earn dividends of the
Gas Co. is $566,073.59. This does not
take into account the electric lighting
part. Upon that valuation he said 5.2
per cent was a "fair return." Wonld
you consider it a fair return on your
money invested in a property constant
ly depreciating and demanding renew
al, subjeet to the whim of favor-seeking
politicians and the target for
abuse? Ask yourself the question and
then answer it honestly. We couldn't.
We'd rather invest it in real estate
mortgages bearing 6 per cent, involv
ing no risk, and permitting us to tell
the favor-seeking politicians to go
plum to Hades. We believe the Gas
Co. plant is worth more than the
amount fixed by Judge Munger. We
believe it is entitled to better than a
5.2 per cent return on the actual in
vestment. And we believe that dollar
gas would enable it to earn more than
it can earn nnder present conditions
at $1.20. But we are perfectly willing
to let. the eourts decide the matter.
That's what we dig up taxes for to
paf for the courts.
JOHN MARSHALL HARLAN.
;A just judge is gone.
John Marshall Harlan was the type
of jurist who made the supreme bench
of the United States dreaded by great
malefactors and respected by the
people. He was fearless and resolnte.
lie dared to stand alone. When all
his colleagues of the greatest tribunal
en earth disagreed with him he still
had the absolute courage of his con
victions, even to the point of criticis
ing their conclusions harshly and pub
licly. No man respected the supreme court
more than John M. Harlan. It was
the abiding passion of his life, and
his fondest hope, unhappily disap
pointed, was to serve as its chief be
fore death should come to claim him
Yet with all his devoted regard for
the exalted body of whieh he was so
illustrious a member he condemned its
reasoning and its verdicts, at times,
more savagely and mercilessly than
most any other man of his time.
He was a man f deep convictions
and perhaps it might be added f in
tense prejudices. He was honest to
the uttermost with hinself, his duties
and the world. The people loved and
trusted him and "heard him gladly."
In this latter regard it will be difficult
indeed to find his successor.
President Taft has already been
called on to appoint four members f
the supreme eonrt Justices Husrs
Tandevanter, Lnrton and Lamar. He
will now soon name a fifth member,
which will mat a majority of the
tribunal.
When we consider how gravely im
portant are the duties which the su
preme court has to perform, how vi
tally its decisions bear on the pres
ent and the future of the republic, and
consider also that one president has,
during a single term of See, been
privileged to name a clear majority of
its members, the tremendous power of
the presidential office becomes more
clearly apparent. Indeed it is prob
able than by and througa his appoint
nents to the supreme court President
Taft will influence the industrial, so
cial and political history of the coun
. try of the country long years after
his vetoes and his defeated treaties
have bean forgotten. Omaha World-
