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The Commoner.
Vol. a, No. 28.
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Current Topics.
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AN INTERESTING GAME OF CHESS BY
mail Is now In progress. S. Knisor, a resident Of
Canton, 0., and II. Bloch, of Warsaw, Russia, are
tho contestants. Fourteen days are required for atN
letter to pass between tho players and it Is esti
mated that tho gamo will last for three years. Tho
purso Is $5,000, three-fourths of which goes to tho
winner.
ALFONSO, THE YOUNG KING OF SPAIN,
has had tho honor of signing a docreo establish
ing within his kingdom tho eight-hour law. This
docreo limits to eight hours tho working day for
womon and children. Tho real credit for this good
measure, to bo suro, belongs to the ministry, but
tho young king's name is associated with tho plan
and many good things are now being said of
young Alfonso by tho working classes of his
country.
AN INTERESTING EXPERIMENT HAS
been made in tho vicinity of an Orange, N. J.,
hospital. Tho Btroots surrounding this institu-.
tion were sprinkled with oil and it is .announced
that tho dust was laid and tho atmosphere cooled
more effectively than could possibly bo accom
plished by tho uso of water. It is not probable,
however, that tho Orange plan will bo generally
adopted, because of the high price of oil.
'
THE HEALTH AUTHORITIES OF OHIO
aro dealing with an opldomic of scarlet fovor
which, according to tholr idea, originated in a
peculiar way. It is reported that upon investiga
tion tho authorities concluded that tho contagion
was sproad by tamo pigeons and croves which car
ried tho germs from one placo to another. This
theory i3 based upon tho fact that the fever spread
under strict quarantine from a house on tho roof
of which there was a large pigeon coto. Tho only
living thing about tho house not quarantined were
tho pigeons, and tho health authorities have, como
to tho conclusion that they have correctly located
tho cause for tho spread of tho disease.
THE GERMAN RAILWAY AUTHORITIES
have opened a war upon tho kiss. A Berlin cable
gram to the New York World says that these
authorities aro maintaining that tho kiss is not
only an indecent practice, but often tends to im
pede traffic, as kissers stand in the way of officials
and passengers and crowds gather to witness tho
-whole process of osculation. Tho World's corre
spondent says: The German is a virtuoso in
ldssing. He has a particular kiss for every func
tion whore one is required, and that imparted on
the departure of a feminine friend is the longest.
Driven to desperation by this prolonged kiss the
railway authorities at Augsburg, Bavaria, ar
rested a man for making a nuisance of himself
by this act and sentenced him to five days' im
prisonment. The unhappy man was a husband
and was bidding his wife good-bye. Ho has ap
pealed to tho superior court against this extra
ordinary sentence.
THE FALLING OF THE CAMPANILE OF
St. Mark's has produced tho suggestion that there
Is a general decay of tho foundations of tho city
of Venice. A writer in tho Boston Herald, com
menting upon this suggestion, says: These foun
dations are not those of nature, but aro the crea
tion of man; and it would appear inevitable that,
being such, they must at some time yield to the
incursions of time. Confidence in them has como
from tho fact that they have stood for centuries,
but now there aro people who are saying that the
subsoil of the city has deteriorated, and that the
piles and pillars on which the buildings'of Venice
rest are rotting away. Much depends upon tho
intelligence, as regards scientific information, of
tho men who send out these statements. It is a
remarkable fact that this square of St. Mark's,
which is thus built over water upon artificial
foundations, is the handsomest in Europe. The
point that has given out in it is that where pre
sumably tho greatest pressure has been applied.
LINCOLN'S PRESCRIPTION IS SAID TO BE
a favorite one among the descendants of an Illi
nois family whoso head once appealed to Mr. Lin
coln to advise him what to do In order to recover
health. Mr. 'Lincoln replied with a prescription
that might, with advantago, bo used by people
generally. This was Mr. Lincoln's road to health:
Do not worry. Eat threo square meals a day. Say
your prayers. Think of your wife. Be courteous
to your creditors. Keep your digestion good.
Steor clear of biliousness. Exercise. Go slow and
go easy. Maybe thore aro other things that your
special case requires to make you nappy, but, my
dear friend, these, I reckon, will glvo you a good
lift.
OWING TO A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE
partnors of a book binding firm In Now York city,
Justice O'Gorman was called upon to choose a re
ceiver, and to tho surpriso of many people, ho
named a woman. Mrs. Jennie M. Packer was tho
ono chosen for this important task, and she has,
according to all reports, discharged hor duty in an
admirable way. At the timo of her appointment
as receiver, Mrs. Packer was bookkeeper for the
concorn. She has under hor control a factory em
ploying forty people, and a business that under
tho receivership appears to bo growing. It is said
that under Mrs. Packer's management the warring
partners have actually mado more money than
they mado prior to tho receivership. Mrs. Packer,
howovor, does not believe that tho work of a re
ceiver would bo gonerally agreeablo to women.
From her own oxperience, she says she would, not
adviso other women to assume such a burden.
SOME IDEA OF THE IMMENSE BURDEN
wo have assumed in our policy of imperialism may
bo obtained by an investigation of the record of
appropriations. The appropriations made for tho
army and navy at tho last session of congress
amounted to $170,208,821. Tho appropriations
mado for tho army and navy in 1897, the year im
mediately preceding tho Spanish-American war;
amounted to $53,841,002, an increase, in five years,
represented by tho sum of $110,367,759. Thus it
will be seen that wo aro required to appropriate
for our army and navy $104,999,861 more than for
our agricultural department. Wo are required to
appropriate for our army and navy $31,792,223
more than is necessary for the operation of tho
postofflces and postal system of the government.
It is alBO worthy of note that the appropriations
for the army and navy are something more than
$8,000,000 in excess of the appropriations neces
sary for tho agricultural department, tne post
offlces and the postal system, for the diplomatic
and consular service, for fortifications, for Ind
ians, for rivers and harbors, for the operation of
congress, for the United States courts and the en
tire judicial system', for the executive department,
and for the preliminary expense of the isthmian
canal.
THE IMPORTANT PART PLAYED BY THE
agriculturists in tho affairs of this country of
ours is shown by a bulletin recently issued by
the census bureau, giving the condition of agri
culture in tho United States for tho year 1900. This
bulletin shows that during the year 1900 there
woro 5,739,657 farms in tho entire country, which
-were valued at $16,674,694,247. Of this amount
$3,560,198,191, or over 21 per cent, represented the
value of buildings, and $13,114,492,056, or over 78
per cent, represented tho value of lands and im
provements other than buildings. The value of
farm implements and machinery was $761,261,550,
and- of live stock $3,078,050,011. These values,
added to the value of the farms, gives a total
value of farm property amounting to $20,514,001,-838.
IN THE SAME CENSUS BULLETIN IT IS
shown that the total value of farm products for
the year 1899 amounted to $4,739,118,752, of which
amount $1,718,990,221 was for animal products,
including live stock, poultry, and bee products.
The bulletin places tho average size of farms in
the United States at 146 acres, and it is stated that
49 per cent of the farm land is improved. Tho
total acreage for the entire contry was $841,201,
546. The number of farms in the United States
has Increased in every decade for the last fifty
years, and so rapidly that in 1900 there were near
ly four times as many farms as in 1850, and 25
per cent more than in 1890. The total acreage
of farm land also has increased, but up to 1880
less rapidly than the number of farms, thus In
volving a steady decrease in tho average size of
farms. Sinco 1880, however, tho total acreage has
increased more rapidly than the number of farms,
so that the average size of farms has increased.
Tho total area of improved land has increased In
every decade since 1850.
JOHN W. MACICAY DIED WHILE -EN-gagod
in one of the greatest enterprises of his
onterprising career. It will bo romembered that
a bill was before congress providing for the con
struction of a Pacific cable- to connect San Fran--cisco
with Manila, tho cable to be owned by the
government. Mr. Mackay proposed to construct
this cable without subsidy, and at a cost of not
less than $20,000,000. He also promised that tho
government could fix its own rates for official
business, giving such business preference in trans
mission and further agreed that the government
might control tho cable's operation in case of war
or other public necessity, and finally agreed to
sell to tho government" at tho government's Op
tion, tho value to bo determined by appraisal.
THE GOVERNMENT OWNERSHIP BILL
was vigorously pushed by Congressman Corliss
of Michigan. Mr. Corliss challenged tho good faith
of Mackay and insisted that ho had done nothing
to show his serious intentions. Mr. Mackay's
representatives produced certificates from the con
struction company showing that 1,100 miles o
the cable had already been completed, and that
tho work whs progressing at tho rate of 26 miloa.
per day. This showing resulted in tho defeat of
the Corliss bill by a vote of 116 to 88. It is an
nounced by representatives of the Mackay com
pany that Mr. Mackay's death will not interfere
with tho completion of the work. The Washing
ton correspondent of the New "York World quotes
a representative of he company as saying that tho
cable will be in operation by July 1, 1903, pro
vided the government will permit the Mackay,
company to use the navy department's soundings,
which soundings were made several years ago by,
a government steamer for a route from San Fran
cisco to Hawaii, and thence via the Midway isl
ands and Guam to Luzon. This cable will cover
a distance of 8,000 miles and it is said will cost
not less than $20,000,000.
THERE SEEMS TO BE SOME DIFFICULTY
concerning the delivery of these soundings to the
Mackay company. Admiral Bradford, to whom
the matter was first referred, recommended that
the company's request be granted. The matter
was considered at a cabinet meeting and finally
referred to the attorney general for an opinion.'
The attorney general has not yet acted. The ,
World's Washington correspondent says that the
last cablegram ever sent by Mr. Mackay was ono
in regard to tho proposed Pacific cable. This ca
blegram was transmitted from London to New
York only a few minutes before Mr. Mackay was
prostrated. The cablegram was as follows: "Cook,
New York. I have read your cablegram to Ward
relating to the soundings. The facts aro these:
.The bid guaranteeing to. manufacture and lay tho
cable from Honolulu to Manila, touching at Mid
way and Guam, by June next provided "we ;can
furnish the necessary soundings expires on tho
21st irist., namely, on Monday next. Our desire
has been to complete the cable as early as possi
ble. We supposed the work could not be carried
out before the end of next year, but as the con
tractors are able to handle the shipments of tho
cable quicker than we expected it is possible to
complete it by next June. It is inexplicable to us
why these soundings are withheld when the gov
ernment and the whole country are crying out
for the cable. The soundings taken by the Al
batross in 1891 by act of congress to determine tho
practicability of laying a cable between Califor
nia and Honolulu were freely distributed by the.
navy department. They were given out to any ono
who applied for them, and I certainly expected
this slight assistance from the government after
I. personally explained our plans to the president
last October. We shall of course go on with the
manufacture of the cable, but I can get no guar
antee from the contractors as to time of comple
tion unless the Neros soundings aro forthcoming,
as it will be absolutely necessary to send a ship
to ascertain a practicable route for the cable De
fore it can be laid, and it certainly must be of
importance to the government to have communi
cation established as early as possible. It cer
tainly is to the Commercial Pacific company."
THE MUCH HERALDED POLICY OF
magnanimity adopted by the British ministry
with relation to the Boers does not appear to be
as popular in the Transvaal as it is in the col
umns of London newspapers. Two ex-officials of
the South African republic sought to return to
their homes, but the privilege has been denied
them by the British colonial office. Mr. Cham
berlain has decreed that Lord Milner must pass
upon all these applications and without his sanc
tion the desired privilege will be denied. Two
facts may be accepted as somewhat significant.
One is that the colonial office is determined to
keep out of South Africa any of the former Boor
leaders who might bo suspected of a desire to yet
win independence for their people. The other is
that Boer leaders generally are exerting every
effort to discourage their people from accepting
invitations to emigrate to other countries. Judge
Hertzog, a former official of the Orange Free
State, delivered a speech recently in Cape Town,
wherein he announced that the Boer leaders had
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