V1LI, MAUPIN'S WEEKLY
ylLL M. MAUPIN, Editor
F. L. SHOOP, Business Manager
. PublUhed Weekly at ' Lincoln. Nebraska
by tit Manpin-Shoop Publishing Co.
Office 1705 O Street
"EaUrd at feami tUn Matter Fabroary 3. Itl 1, at
Am ot-offic at Lfocob. Nahaaka, aadar tfca Act of
Marc 3. 179."
ONE DOLLAR THE YEAR
t .
A GREAT BIO BOOST FOB
f GRAND YOUNG NEBRASKA.
f WU1 Waupin's Weekly, the
t best single-handed booster Ne- ft
f braska has or ever had, came f
Mi J a ItloWA k frlMPV last 41
week with its "Nebraska In-
dustries Number." Twenty-
four pages carried an immense
amount of highly interesting
matter regarding the resources,
attractions and opportunities of
Nebraska, and also numerous ad-
vertisements of manufacturing
concerns who make good goods
in Nebraska and are not afraid
to let people know it. ;
Will Maupin ought to be put
on the state's payroll for life as
official booster. Omaha Trade
ft Exhibit. ,
- . ;;.
'
- THE MARKET HOUSE PLAN.
.Lincoln should be quick to adopt the
market house plan proposed by the
market gardners of this community.
Under municipal control and property
Tn Q n o rraA it .waiiM )iq , a moaaiiv tt
economy and of health. The experience
in Des Moines and Indianapolis is
evidence enough to prove that - the
market place plan would be a bless
ing to the average citizen; first, be
cause it would " afford him : an " oppor
tunity to buy produce much cheaper
than now, and second, because it would
enable him to buy fresh produce. It
would benefit the produce raiser by af
fording him a better profit, while at
the same time decreasing the price to
the consumer. , The market house could
be made a source of revenue to the
city, while at the same time conserv
ing public health.
THE TRACTION FARE CASE.
, The railway commission has an
nounced that March 18th is the date
whereon it will hear the Traction
company case, which is the company's
request for the abrogation of the six-for-a-quarter
fare and a return to the
straight 5-cent fare. The decision will,
of course, hinge on whether the com
pany can show that the six-for-a-quarter
fare is unremunerative under pres
ent conditions, and whether its con
tinuance will prevent the company
from making extensions and improve
ments. There are several other matters that
will be brought up, but they really
have no bearing. One of them is the
foolish request that the company grant
a 3-cent fare within a three-mile zone.
The commission would be perfectly
justified in throwing that request over
the transom.
The real facts of the Traction case
are these : The commission has said
. that the company may earn not to
exceed 8 per cent on its physical valu
ation. It is not guaranteed 8 per cent,
and has never come within 2 per cent
of earning that much. The amount
of bonds and stock outstanding cuts
no figure insofar as the dividends are
concerned. The return is based wholly
on the physical valuation. A return of
6 per cent on a hazardous investment
is not very enticing. At any time the
company is liable to meet with an ac
cident, destroy a, lot of property and
kill a score of people. That would
mean a deficit instead of a dividend.
Not being as wise as some men,' we
do not know whether the Traction
company can operate profitablytunder
a six-for-a-quarter fare. Maybe it
could do it under a 3-cent fare. We
have three high-salaried experts at the
state house to whom we look for a
just decision. In the meanwhile this
newspaper is thinking a whole lot
more of better service than it is of
either a reduction in fare or a reten
tion of the six-for-a-quarter fare. But
it is only fair to state that street car
fares in Lincoln are lower than in any
other city of its size in America, that
it has more car miles of service than
any other city of its size in America,
and that if we had a little less scrap
ping and more of a solidified senti
ment in favor of public improvement,
we'd be a whole lot better off. . We
shudder to think what kind of a street
car "service we'd have here in Lin
coln if some of the self-constituted
experts on street railway traffic were
to be given complete control.
WHY IS THIS THUS?
"Why is , it that as soon as a man
dons a police star he assumes that
the , common ordinary citizen has no
rights the policeman is bound to re
spect f And why does the average po
liceman imagine that he has a right to
stop a citizen and impudently demand
his business t The action of Plains
clothesman Boegh in arresting a couple
of students because they bluntly told
him that it was none of his business
what they were doing, and charging
them with "sassing an officer", merely
made a laughing stock of the police
and decreases public respect for law
and order. It wasn't any of Boegh 's
business, and' those students would
have been perfectly justified in knock
ing the Boegh block off when he tried
to yank them to the station. Perhaps
it would be a good idea to pay a bit
better salaries to our policemen, then
insist upon policemen having a bit
more gray matter under their helmets.
If the average Nebraskan would
spend as much time and energy in
boosting his city and state as he does
in boosting some candidate into fat
office, he and the city and state would
be a lot better off.
Thirty years ago last Tuesday Albert
Watkinls assumed'; editorial charge of
the -Lincoln; Stat -Democrat. Thirty
years later Lincoln democracy! was
just about the same, only a little less
so.
More than two months ago we pre
dicted that there would be nothing to
it but Champ Clark when the Missouri
convention met. We claim a vindica
tion of our claims to prophetic vision.
A blight has struck the chestnut
trees of Pennsylvania and threatens
their extinction. Would, thai blight
struck the political chestnuts of Penn
sylvania and other states.
Well, now; suppose Thomas Jeffer
son was opposed to the initiative and
referendum. Thomas used a quill pen,
but we're going to keep right on using
this battered old typewriter.
Five years, and the gas ease not yet
settled. Five years, and ground not
yet broken for a new high school build
ing. My, but we are making progress
mighty fast these days !
February 22 was George Washing
ton's birthday. George was the man
who could not tell a lie, which fact de
prives him of all credit for never hav
ing told one.
The fellow who has an ulterior po
litical motive is usually the fellow
who exercises the profoundest rever
ence for the "wisdom of the fathers."
The trouble , with Superintendent
Carson of the Anti-Saloon League is
not that he knows so little, but that
he knows so much that isn't so.
We regret to note that the esteemed
World-Herald is experiencing difficulty
in keeping its support of Dr. Victor
Rosewater on straight.
"We hereby enter the name of Plain
clothesman Hans Boegh in the
esteemed Journal's "influential men"
game. ...... ,
The supreme court of the United
States has just decided that a state
working under the initiative and refer-
Choice of
ARMSTRONG CLOTHING GO.
GOOD CLOTHES MERCHANTS
L : . 7 2
endum still has a republican, form of
government. Our respect for the court
is somewhat increased. For a time
we feared the court would hold such
a state to be in the attitude of seces
sion, guilty of mayhem against the
constitution and chargeable with trea
son against the "fathers." r
Having had his'n Senator Alen is
accused by former friends of not car
ing a durn what happens. now. .
THE OAS CASE .
There is no use trying to disguise
the fact that the supreme court, in re
manding the "dollar gas" case for
further information, virtually gave
the gas company a .verdict. , The su
preme tribunal let Judge Munger
down easily and gracefully, but just
the same the gas company's contention
is virtually upheld. It must be re
membered that present conditions will
cut no figure in future consideration
of this particular case by the supreme
court. What the gas company may be
able to do. now to do business profit
ably under a dollar rate will not be
considered. Could the gas company
do business profitably at a dollar rate
at the time the ordinance was enacted ?
That's the question. The supreme
court's action, indicates that so far
the city has failed utterly to show that
the dollar rate was not confiscatory at
the time of its enactment by the coun
cil. , ' ;
The mere matter of enlarging the
indemnity bond will not worry the gas
company & minute. It can furnish the
bond all right, and will. If it were as
easy for the city to show that the dol
lar rate was not confiscatory as it is
for the company to put an indemnity
bond, we'd have a settlement of this
vexed question in a very few days.
About the only result of the supreme
court's action will be the increase in
the sentiment favorable to public own
ership. But a public ownership prop
aganda will be bitterly opposed by cer
tain v influences. The indications are
Suits & O'Coats $14.75
Take your choice of any of our Men's
Fall and Winter weight Suits and
Oyercoats for $14.75. These suits
and overcoats at the price are the
strongest values ever offered in men's
.clothes. There are upwards of 1500
suits involved, all of which sold regular
ly at $20:00, $22.50, $25, $27.50
and $30.00 and you are privileged to
pick the garment you like best at 1 4. 7 5
that we' will have to submit to a lot of
litigation and annoyance before we
reach a settlement of a question that
common sense and a willingness to
play fair -would have settled long ago.-
WORDS RING TETJE.
The address delivered by, Paul P.
Clark before the Young . Men's Re
publican League at its recent banquet,
is being circulated in pamphlet form,
and is in effect Mr. Clark's platform
in his campaign for the republican
nomination 'for congress in this dis
trict. Mr. Clark claims to be a pro
gressive republican, and a careful read
ing of his address will prove his right
to that designation. He does not
mince his words, but comes out flat
footed for those things in which he
believes and for which he will fight.
He takes the people into his confidence,
and his whole life in Nebraska is an
evidence that he means what he says
and will do what he promises. , -
A dozen years ago it would have
been party treason for a republican
to make such a speech, just as it would
have been party treason for a demo
crat to stand up and declare for those
things that most democrats now hold
to be party doctrine.i The hidebound
partisan is becoming less in evidence
every day. In a few years he will be
as extinct as the dodo. Men who seek
public office these days must utter
words that ring true, that deal fairly -and
honestly with public questions, and
that do not deal with glittering gener
alities. Mr. Clark's address is that
of a man who is abreast of the times, '
who is progressive, and who is not
afraid to tell just where he stands.
LET'S THINK IT OVER.
There is a lot of talk that isn't true
going the rounds about the unfair dis
tribution of the wealth produced in
this, country. It isn't fairly dis
tributed, of course. Too many are
getting . without producing, and too
many are producing without getting.
But it isn't as bad as some people claim.
It might easilv be much worse. Not
' long since we heard a gentleman orat
ing, and he declared that if the wealth
produced in this country each year
were equally distributed, 'it . would ;
mean $5,000 for each family. .. It is ''
mighty easy to make such statement,
and equally easy to prove their falsity.
In 1910 this republic . produced ' '
wealth from her fields and mines ad;
factories amounting to $25,0OQf00OJC
in round numbers. ' Estimating t tb$ v ',
population at 91,000,000,' and 4ve ig ? '-r,
the family, that means ,. that in IQ1Q -
we produced wealth amounting to ap- ,;r ?;
proximately $1,4QQ per family. , ' '
. Of course' a few families got VMtly' ;"
more than that ,and a vast majority
ot families got far less.' "
And, of course, it would be better
if more families got nearer $L4O0 jj1 -year
j and fewer families got more item : '- (
that. But we - are not ; solving ths
problem : by making rash assertions.
We've solved the problem of produe-
ing enough, but we haven't made evej -V
a fail. 4 A-1 i. .
equitably distributing the wealth, we"-
r v. iuUI! gbb untiury ana
lot more thoughtful study would help
some.
TUT? ennfinn cimn
Sooner do your Printing 1
than not Sooner not do
it than not do it right
Sooner do it sooner than
not soon enough. See '
r.Iaupb-Shoop Prbthj Cq
QUALITY PRINTERS ' '
17G5 0SL Asto 3743 '''