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Mrs. Thomas M. Patterson, wife of Senator
Patterson of Colorado, died in Denver, July 16.
In his great bereavement Sena
tor Patterson will have the ten
der sympathy of a very large
number of people who have
como to know him and to re
spect him W his ability and fidelity to duty.
Senator
Patterson's
Loss.
. Investigate
' , These.
. . Things..
Mayor Low of New York lias" made an ap
peal for funds to be used in the erection of a
f monument in Manila to Doctor
.Better Rizal, the Filipino patriot
Than Rizal, it will be remembered,
Granite. sacrificed his life in the cause of
Filipino liberty. It will occur to
a great many people that a Philippine republic
would be a better monument to this patriot than,
any block of granite that could bo carved by
the hand of man.
Senator Thomas C. Piatt of New York is
fluoted as saying: "We can elect a yellow dog
for governor this year," There
Tlmo Is such a thing as being alto-
to, gether too sanguine, and while
Think. the republican politician has
learned that in the past repub
licans have voted their ticket without question,
and without reason, the rank and file of the party
.may take a notion to do a little thinking on its
own account "When a party leader publicly boasts
that his party could "elect a yellow dog" to the
office of governor of New York, it would seem
that it was about time for the thinking to begin.
.During the Spanish-American war the govern
ment paid $660,000 for the transport Grant. Re
cently it was decided to dispose
of the vessel, and when the bids
were opened, it was discovered
that $51,000 was the highest bid
filed. The wear and tear repre
sented by more than $600,000, during a period Of
four years, might indicate that this particular
transport did valiant service; or the difference
In the sum paid for this vessel by the govern
ment and the sum offered for it by the highest
bidder might suggest that a bit of official investi
gation concerning the purchase of vessels in the
year 1898 would not le out of place.
Governor Odell of New York does not agree
with Senator Piatt on the "yellow dog" proposi
tion. The governor says that
Odell no election is a certainty, and
on that the republicans cannot af-
"Yellow Dogs." ford to be careless about their
nominees. The governor adds:
"I am one of those who believe that it should be
the policy of parties which expect to win to namo
no man for any office who has not the confidence
of the people, and who will not pledge himself to
carry out policies in which the public has faith."
It is safe to say that among intelligent men Gov
ernor Odell will appear to have the better side of
the discussion.
Hon. Bourke Cockran in his Fourth of July
oration took occasion to refute the oft-asserted
power of government to create
wealth. He said: "Govern
ment of itself can create noth
ing. There is but one source of
property, and that is the labor
of human hands exercised directly on the bosom
of the earth or on the products of the earth. Sinco
government cannot create anything, it has noth
ing of its own to bestow. If, therefore, it under
takes to enrich one man, the thing which it gives
him it must take from some other man. Where it
has a favorite it must have a victim, and obvious
ly that, government only ,is just and truly benev
olentv which has neither .favorites . nor. rvictims."
The Power
of
Government.
The Commoner.
Mr. Cockran is right. When the government bo
stows favors upon a few It does so at tho ex
pense of tho many tho "forgotten men," sb one
writer has expressed it But while tho govern
ment cannot create wealth it can encourage tho
production of wealth by insuring to tho producer
tho enjoyment of the results of his work. When
tho government guarantees to the laborer a fair
share of the proceeds of his toil It offers tho high
est and best inducement to great and porsistont
effort
In a speech delivered recently at Joplin, Mo.,
Senator Burton of Kansas said: "I want every
republican paper, every ropub
lican speaker, every republican
voter to know that there Is ab
solutely no difference in tho
party between tho president and
tho senate." The Kansas City Journal, republi
can, commenting upon this statement, declares:
"The Kansas senator knows how to express him
self intelligibly and unmistakably when ho wants
to. Did President Roosevelt agree privately that
tho bill for relief of Cuba should fall or did ho
not?" The public will await Senator Burton's
reply with considerable Interest In the parlance
of tho street, it's "up to" Senator Burton.
"Vp to
Senator
Burton."
Then Why
Condemn
Him?
The court-martial sentenced Gen. Jacob H.
Smith to be "admonished" by the reviewing au
thority. Secretary Root In com
menting upon the decision, said
that the conviction was just
He also said that General
Smith's verbal orders If followed
"would have brought everlasting disgrace on the
military service of the United States." Then the
secretary proceed to cite certain Instances in. tho
career of Washington and In that of General W.
T. Sherman as "precedents of the highest author
ity that fully sustain General Smith's written an,d
printed orders," and finally the president directs
that General Smith be relieved from .the active
list If there is ample precedent for Smith's con
duct, precedent which the secretary of war feels
justified In citing, then why should Smith be con
demned by the same authority that cites this pre
cedent? A cablegram from Manila under date of July
16 says that "cholera is still spreading in the
provinces. The provincial totals
are 14,567 cases and 10,937
deaths. Manila averages forty
cases daily." Will some imper
ialist be good enough to explain
what advantage the people of the United States
are to gain by this policy of imperialism, or ex
pansion, as you please? .Millions upon millions
of dollars are to be expended each year and in the
expenditure we are to confront ourselves with
strange problems not only with respect to the gov
ernment of people, but also as to the public
health; and where shall wo find recompense? Wo
shall not find It In our conscience, for conscience
revolts at the policy we are pursuing. We shall
not find it In commerce, for as Andrew Carnegie
said, "the fatal fact of distance Is against us."
We shall not find it in the ordinary considera
tions of profit because it is all loss and no profit
'iWhere
the
Recompense?
which figures are at hand. Hero are tho items:
Agricultural implements, $1,100; flour, $5,250; car
riages, $5,371; clocks and watohes, $5,302; lum
ber, $1,700; builders' hardware, $5,192; sewing
machines, $2,274; petroleum, $780; furniture, $1,
359; total, $27,328. Tho World vory proporly con
cludes: "In tho trado which 'follows tho flag'
to our new Pacific possessions tho number of sol
'.dlors' coffins is to tho quantity of ordinary mer
chandise In pathetic disproportion."
The army transport Kilpatrlck recently car
ried to Manila four thousand coffins to be used
in burying American soldiers
Coffins who have died of fevers, chol-
Follow era, and other diseases incident
the Flag. to tropical warfare. The New
York World estimates the coat
of each coffin to be $8, and thus places the value
of $32,000 on this coffin shipment The World
points oub that this exceeds In. value our 'total
exports to the Philippines in nine great classifl- ,
catlons'durlng. th month- of May, the:lsstfor.'
WVN
A Washington dispatch to the Chicago. Record-Herald
says: " 'WantedMon to eat food;
liberal salary.' Such an adver-
Vcry tlsemont may bo published in
Strange tho nowspapers in a few days by
" Advertisements, the department of agriculture.
Under authority of congress, Dr.
Wiley, chief chemist of tho department, is soon
to commence a sories of experiments to ascertain
tho offect upon tho human system of various food
products supposed to contain' Injurious Ingredients.
He will employ healthy men, upon whoso robust
constitution will bo tried adulterated compounds,
as well as a puro, wholesome food, and the effect
of various articles will be closely noted, tho re
sult to be reported to congress for Its guidance in
framing puro food legislation." If the trust sys
tem is permitted to continue undisturbed, it may
become quite common for advertisements to appear
In tho newspapers something on this order:
"WantedFood for men to cat"
While at La Crosse, Wis., recently the editor
of The Commoner took occasion to examine tho
henting plant which is in opera
La Crosse tion In that city. It is a pro
Heating nounced success. The hot wa
Pfant. ter is forced through large
mains through the city, and. a
largo number of private residences aro connected
with these mains. Tho houses are thus heated
without tho care and annoyance occasioned by a
separate plant and at less expense. There is no
reason why citizens should not secure their heat
frpm a central plant, as well as their light and
their water, and it is only a question of time when
cities, largo and small, will avail themselves of
this economy. Tho La Crosso plant is a private
Institution and the objections made to the private
ownership of gas and water plants can be mado
to tho private ownership of a heating plant Why
should not tho city sell heat to its citizens as
most cities now do water, and as many now fur
nish light? It is a coming reform; the enterpris
ing and public-spirited city government that in
troduces the heating plant will win popularity.
A Manila dispatch under date of July 16 says:
"A hundred Ladrones armed with rifles and bolos
attacked and defeated eight of
Now It Is tho constabulary near San Ma
"the leo, Manila province, Tuesday.
Constabulary." The losses of tho constabulary
were one man wounded and five
men missing. The constabulary have asked for
reinforcements of a hundred men to pursue the
Ladrones." This is ono of the early Indications
that after all the war is not over. To be sure,
this dispatch refers to tho "constabulary," but
that in fact means American soldiers. In order to
sustain the policy of deceit, that Js necessary un
der the pretense that there is no longer war in the
Philippines, we will hear In the future very much
concerning the "constabulary." As a matter of
fact, the American people have in the past been
kept in the dark concerning Philippine affairs, and
in order to suit the purposes of the administra
tion, It will be necessary to deceive them in tho
future. Perhaps the people like to bo deceived.
But we think It safe to say that some time in the
not distant future there will be a day of reckon
ing and the more deception. employed by the re
publican leaders today, the greater will be the
v debt 'which tLe republican party, must liquidate lav
' 'the future.
il
HI
im.