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in tlio United States could read tho facts pre
sented by tho Kansas City Journal.
In another column an extract from the Jour
nal's article is reproduced. It will ho seen from
theso figures that while tomo increase in tho
prlco of moat to tho consumer might ho justified
on tho ground of tho increased prico of corn and
of cattle, tho fact is that whilo tho prico of heef
steers, for instance, has increased from $1.40. to
$1.G0 por 100 pounds, tho beef trust has' raised tho
prico of beef $4.00 por 100 pounds. It Is alno
shown that asido from this, tho trust is talcing
advantage of tho fact that its refrigerators are
stored- with a largo supply of meat purchased at
last year's prices, which meat it is now bringing
forth and selling at tho extraordinary prices whhh
it has fixed for this year. It is further
shown that tho profits of tho trust aro not fairly
represented ovon by tho enormous increase tho
trust has made in tho prico of dressed meat,
because, as tho writer in tho lansas City Jour
nal shows, tho packers "aro able to utilize every
part of tho ar.1 aril." Asido from its enormous
profits on dressed beef, the trust is enabled to
Increase its profits by tho sale and tho use of
other parts of tho animal.
Tho consumers of this country are not anx
ious that ono party may be ablo to obtain politi
cal advantage over another party by reason of
tho failure of tho dominant party to give the peo
ple rolief. Tho peoplo are anxious for relief; in
fact relief from tho exactions of tho beef trust
is an actual necessity to tho consumers of this
country. It would bo well if the administration
would move against tho beef trust in a determined
way. It Is true that tho news dispatches repovt
that orders havo been given for some sort' of an
investigation. Large Investigation is not neces
Bary. Tho trutL. is patent to every intelli2 .t
man. Tho authority vested in thq officers of
the- law is -complete, and it Mr. Roosoveltls ad
ministration is really sincere in its effort to crush,
tho beef trust, tho beef trust will be crushed.
Let us hope that whatever entanglements tho
present administration may havo with other
trusts, in this instance it will rise to tho
importance of tho occasion and give the people
relief.
JJJ
Mayor Mulvihill.
Bridgeport, Connecticut, has a democratic
mayor who is attracting considerable attention. Ho
has learned by experience what it Is to "earn his
broad in tho sweat of his faco" for, up to the time
of Ills nomination for mayor, he was a day laborer.
A few years ago ho was elected to tho city coun
cil and so impressed tlio public with his honesty
and official independence .uat he wa3 elect d may
by a largo majority. Knowing that ho was a poor
man and unablo to provide a sufficient campaign
fund, a numbor of prominent domocrats sent him
money to defray his expenses. Among these was
Mr. Archibald McNeil, ono of tho well-to-do dem
ocrats of Connecticut, a man who was not afraid to
stand by democratic principles in the trying times
of 1896.
"When tho eloction -was over Mr. Mulvihill
wrote a letter to each of tho contributors, return
ing the amount sent and explaining that ho
thought it best to take from his own purse his
necessary expenses.
Tho election of Mr, Mulvihill was quite a
shock to some of tho supersensitive citizens of
Bridgeport who thought that it was necessary
for a mayor to belong to tho four hundred and
move in aristocratic society. But his straight
forward methods and his conscientious perfor
mance of duty aro not only strengthening him in
public esteem; but aro reflecting honor upon tho
working people of whom he is so creditable a
representative.
He is demonstrating a fact which ouehf f
i to have needed demonstration at this time, name-
The Commoner.
ly, that what we most need are honesty and a
right appreciation of a public office. It is much
easier to find men who aro smart enough to hold
office than it is to find men who will regard of
fico as a public trust and employ their abilities
for tho welfare of the public rather than for per
sonal advantage.
Mr. 5churman's Unbiased View
Jacob Schurman; at ono time president of the
Philippino commission, has written an interesting
article for the April numbor of Gunton's Magazine.
In this artfelo Mr. Schurman says that tho United
.States' assertion of sovereignty is supported only
by tho federal party. Ho declares that "the fed
eral party is held together by tho cohesive force
of public office, and worst of all is animated by
the delusion that tho Philippino islands will h'3
admitted first as a territory and then as a state
into tho American Union."
Mr. Schurman says:
The civilized and Christianized democ
racy of Luzon and the Viscayas desire indepen
dence. They are fairly entitled to it, -and,
united as they now are, I think they might
very soon be safely intrusted with it. In
their educated men, as thorough gentlemen
as one meets in Europe and America, this
democracy of 6,500,000 Christians has its fore
ordained leaders.
The Chicago Record-Herald, commenting on
this article, says that tho testimony - of most of
tho American officers, military and civilian, who
havo had anything to do with the islands, is ar
rayed against Mr. Schurman's present attitude and
the Record-Herald adds that Mr. Schurman's at
titude is "hardly in strict accord with the reports
of the commission of which ho was the head."
Mr. Schurman's statements as to the character
of the Filipinos are not radically different from
those of General Ma'dArthur, for instance. It is
true, however, that since Mr. Schurman retired
from the Philippine commission he has said things .
'not exactly consistent with the things he said
prior to that retirement.
It is disinctly recalled that in a speech de
livered at Lincoln, Neb., October 29, 1900, Mr.
Schurman said:
The fact is that all this talk about imper
ialism is the veriest moonshine. It has no
basis in reality, it is a product of unbridled
imagination. To liberty loving Americans
who are not informed of Philippine conditions
no policy is more seductive than that of turn
ing over tho Philippines to the Filipinos. Yet
no policy could in lact be more fantastic.
Who are the Filipinos? They are not a single
nation; they are an aggregate of some four
score peoples or tribes, speaking different lan
guages, and representing all stages of civiliza
tion and barbarism. Among all the tribes
the great majority of the people of education
and property welcome the sovereignty of the
United States. And how could you, without
everlasting shame and dishonor, leave tho
Filipinos, who havo trusted you, to the ruth
less butcheries of the avenging Tagalogs. To
Filipinos in all parts of the archipelago, who
welcomed our armies, you are bound by tho
ties of honor and of good faith, which no
other consideration would permit you to
break. No, we cannot get out of the archipel
ago. Wo cannot turn over tho Philippine is
lands to tho Filipino people because there is
no Filipino people, but only a medley of dif
ferent races and tribes. The work of pacifi
cation has gone on much more rapidly than I
had anticipated when I visited these islands
about a year ago. And when you have re
elected President McKinloy, as you will re-
elect him in November, General MacArthur,
who has done so brilliantly, will make still
more progress. TLe Philippine " insurgents,
who are fed on most outrageous lies, aro
kept active by assertions that Mr. Bryan is '
their friend, and they drink Mr. Bryan's
health with that of Aguinaldo. If you bury
Mr. Bryan with your votes, General Mac
Arthur will, I believe, soon coffin the remains
of tho Tagalog insurrection."
It is somewhat significant that when Mr.
Volume a, No. 14.
jSchurman talked as he did at Lincoln, republi
can papers- like the Record-Herald said that these
being tho statements of an experienced and ob
serving man, they should have the greatest weight
with the American people. But now that Mr.
Schurman has said things not entirely In "keeping
with the administration's policy, the Record-Htr
aid does not place so high a value upon Mr. Schur
man's opinion. To be sure, the Record-Herald ad-
mits that these opinions aro "still a valuable con-
tribution to tho discussion of a collection of ox-i
treme views on the other side" and' the Records
Herald adds, "They teach us at least that we mu-'t
deal with the Filipinos as rational human beings,
and effect tho problem of home rule even if in
dependence is not to be granted."
It will be qbserved that before he went out
of office and before his eyes were opened ' Mr.
Schurman did not favor independence for tho
Filipinos. Then he was of tho opinion that tho
great majority of the peoplo of education and prop
erty welcomed the sovereignty of the United
States. Now he says that the only people who
support that sovereignty are members of the fed- '
eral party. Then he warned the American people
not to leave the Filipinos to the "ruthless butch
eries of the avenging Tagalogs," but after his eyes
were opened, he insists that tho Filipinos are
fairly entitled to independence, and he thinks that
they may soon be safe'y entrusted with it; and he
refers to that hated people as "this democracy oC
6,500,000 Christians."
This extract from Mr. Schurman's Lincoln
speech is reproduced simply to show that the
opinion of the gentleman in 1900 heralded by tho
republican press as that of perhaps the best quali
fied man to speak on this subject has undergone
radical changes; and if Mr. Schurman's 1900 opin
ion was entitled to unusual weight, may we not
insist upon some respectful consideration for his
1902 opinion, an opinion which has had ,the ..ad
vantage in its -formation of at least two years of
time?
JJJ
A Great Scheme.
In an article-that will appear in the forthcoun
ing American Review of Reviews, William x.
Stead reveals an interesting scheme suggested by
the late Cecil Rhodes. This suggestion was em
bodied in a letter written in 1890 by Mr. Rhode3
to Mr. Stead.
In this letter Mr. Rhodes declared his great
interest in tho development of the English speak
ing race, and to further the object to which he
declared his devotion, he proposed the organization
of a secret society. Mr. Rhodes said:
What an awful thought it is that if even
now we could arrange with tho present mem
bers of the United States assembly and our house
of commons the peace of the world would
be secured for all eternity. We could hold a
federal parliament five years in Washington
and five in London. The only thing feasible
to carry out this idea is a secret society grad
. ually absorbing the wealth of the world to be
devoted to such an object.
Tho cablegram relating to this remarkabla
suggestion then says:
But toward this millennium Mr. Rhodes
believed the most powerful factor would bo
a secret society, organized like Loyola, sup
ported by tho accumulated wealth of those
whose aspirations is a desire to do something "
and who are spared the "hideous annoyance"
daily created by the thought as to which "of
the r incompetent relations" they shall leave
their fortune. Theso wealthy people, Mr.
Rhodes thought, would thus bo greatly relieved
and be able to turn "their ill-gotten or inher
ited gains to some advantage."
Since Mr. Rhodes' death, his name has been
the subject of many eulogies because of the soma
what remarkable will, in which he provided cer
tain scholarships for tho United States and Ger
many; and this latest revelation of Mr. Rhodes'
character, if indeed it may be called a revelation,
v
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