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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 12, 1902)
Dec. 12, 190a. 3 M jS .) '& refl ,OUl& ito aV' ivm n had it not been for the-old proverb that is golden, while speech is only 'silver) mtment of the Indian question, irriga iral delivery, Alaskan legislation and safety ;es for cars can also be commended. JJJ v t lTlUH3ClUU.fi JLSCUUl. Kansas City papers are discussing the new ject and deploring the fact that the vari- ads have thus far failed to agree upon a lans for a joint building. Kansas City characteristic enterprise might build a ot herself and not only solve the problem n advantage, but set an example to other hy should .she permit a conflict of inter- e part of the railroads to delay a long provement? It is even suggested tliat U13 roads may build separate depots in dlC-, ts of the city and thus tax commerce to Several buildings instead of one. are many advantages that would accrue y depot. It could be located at a cou nt and the tracks for ingress and egress nflned to a certain territory and ralso 1 do crossings. New railroads could bo i& v lit TPmsffi. nee to the city on even terms with 'the pC thing impossible' under the present iifgEhe city could not only collect a reason- iiffijjfiyiicE mmsE 1 for such a building, but the new depot tly enhance the value of property near e city could by condemning a suiiicieus of land in that vicinity erect the build- e increase in the price of the condemned I. ScPFSjESj KfflBfttf m IP':." itffriu..;" 'VVWV ' '. ' S. ' who have visited Chicago with her depots and St. Louis with her central w how, much more favorable one is inl ine greater convenience of travel latter. There is no reason why Kan- hould not still further enhance her by leading the movement toward city ITd control of union terminals for the fction of the railroads and the public, fas for the protection of the city. . JJJ Betting on Football. I v&Kf press dispatch from Boston reports that a men lost aoout $&u,uuu on the rootban ecentlv won bv Yale. It is a well-known tfatfPSat thousands of dollars change hands oh the or eacn important game ana the demorallza- ulting Liust be considered in measuring Ruenceof football as a collage game. It is hat the friends of athletics were entering a t against the sporting features of college con- time that the collage officials were attempt- uultivate a public opinion that will dis e wagers and bets on the players. The ling spirit is destructive of sound morality rality based upon equivalent exchanges. To ate the. habit of getting something for noth- iinflts a man for the real and serious work ife and puts him in training for the bucket and the stock market Football will be tho r for the elimination of betting. JJJ Thomas B. Reed is Dead. The sudden death of Thdmas B. Reed re- ' 'm&vea from the arena of politics one of the most Prominent figures in the republican party. No frublican of the present generation has surpassed wllm ir KtWlH GYintr An ivi Vi f vt.sir..l An 1. ..3. mux in uiujwuj, jm, iu iuo iixiyi caoiuu utj uiuuu upon contemporaneous history. As a leader of men he was not the equal of Blaine or McKinley, but as a complete master of those immediately associated with him ho was their superior. In an extended and logical discussion there were many republicans more able and more Impressive. But in short, sharp, epigrammatic and incisive state ment he could not be surpassed. "Reed's Rules," as they are commonly called, changed the house from a deliberative body into'a machine for tho '"execution of the will of a few if Mr mm Sty ,!& H i U .XV ?. . :&3f I - "jH The Commoner. party leaders, and it Is too soon yet to fully estimate the influence of this chango upon tho house of representatives and tho country. Tho first effect has been to increase tho relative Im portance of tho senate by making it the scene of legislative debate on important questions, and un til the senate is elected directly by the people the change is likely to militate against popular government Tho purpose of counting a quorum was not to enable a majority to rule, because a majority could alwayt rule without counting a quorum; but it was t enable a minority to pass laws in spite of a still smaller minority. Whenover a majority of the total membership of congress voted for a bill the bill could bo passed in spite of the silence of the minority, but by counting a quorum less than a majority, with tho aid of a few silent members, could, according to Reed's rules, legislate on all questions. In 189G Mr. Reed was a candidate for the presi dency, but was defeated by the joint influence of Mr. McKinley's popularity and Mark Hanna's man agement When the question of imperialism camo up for discussion, Mr. Reed differed from his party, and rather than lead a fight against the administration, retired from public life. Some thought that the sudden abandonment of his long cherished ambition to be president embittered him, but ho bore his disappointment much more gracefully than some of the great party leaders In the past have done. Since his retirement from office his law practice and literary work have occupied his time and are supposed to have yielded a considerable income.' Of the great republicans who have opposed their party's policy on imperialism he is the third to die Sherman and Harrison having preceded him. He was an ultra-protectionist, and was a de fender rather than a prosecutor of the trusts. His recent article in the North American Review was a skillful and ingenious argument against radical action for the extermination of private mo nopoly, and was at the same time a plea for the maintenance of a high tariff JJJ The Hill Bill. Strange to say, the gold papers in discussing the recent fall in silver do not seem to consider the effect of the Hill bill in depressing the bullion value of tho white metal. 'Inat bill has already passed the house, and will probably pass the sen ate at this session. It authorizes' the secretary of the treasury to recoin silver dollars Into subsid iary coin at his discretion. The effect of this bill will be two-fold: First, it will take the United States out of the market as a purchaser of silver bullion, for we have enough sliver dollars on hand to furnish subsidiary coinage for a century to come. The effect of this will, of course, be felt on the price of silver bullion. Every European na tion buys more or less bullion for subsidiary coin age, but when the Hill bill becomes a law this na tion, the greatest producer of silver, will cease to be a purchaser. The second effect cf the bill will be to permit the secretary of tho treasury to recoin all the legal tender silver dollars into subsidiary coin, which is only a limited legal tender. This enables the financiers, acting thro- rh their agent in the treasury department, to reduce the volume of real money and thus more easily control the money market Circumstances will determine just how fast the financiers will push their money schemes, but it is certain .that they will go as far and as fast as they think the country will permit The man ner in which they pass a law or secure an admin istrative order and then pause until the indig nation dies out, reminds one of the story told of a physician. He was called to visit a child. At last the child's life was despaired of, and the physi cian told the mother that it was not worth while to punish it with more medicine; that she might give it a llttlo water If it became restless, but that it cuu lot live long. She watched It anx idusly through tho 'iglu, and in tho morning thought she saw signs of Improvement; sho watched it through tno day, and still thought it was better; sho watched it through another night and when the doctor camo the second morning to Inquire why ho had not been notified of the child's death, the motner Informed him that sho bellevod tho child was gaining. Ho examined It; felt Its plilse, looked at its tongue, and loft hor with the assurance that if tho child continued to im prove for thirty-six hours more as it had during the past thirty-six hours it would bo strong enough to take somo more medicine. Just as soon -as tho patient public is strong enough to take another financial dose It will re ceive It, for the gold standard will not bo com plete until gold is the only legal tender and bank notes tho only credit money, and these notes will be issued on assets rather than on bonds, and the banking system will bq In tho hands of a cen tral bank and its branches. These things are all parts of a well-prepared plan, and the public will be notified of each Btep either after the step has been taken or so shortly before that no protest will be possible. The only way to prevent the carrying out of theso schorno3 is to defeat the republican party, for It Is today tho tool of tho financiers. JJJ ' The "Country" Press. During the campaigns of 189C and 1900, and tho lesser campaigns slnco tho former date, tho ' democratic party hi s found Its chief newspaper support among the loyal democratic newspaper so often designated as "tho country press." With a few notable exceptions the metropolitan newa papers classed as democratic deserted the demo cratic standard and lent their aid to the republl- " can party. But the desertions ,from the rankif of "tho country r-ess" were so few that they were not noticeable. With a loyalty that could not be swerved and an ability "that challenged the admir ation of tho opposition, "tho country press" ral lied to the democratic standard and performed prodigies of valor. "The country press" has ever been loyal, and because of this every democratic newspaper that is embraced iii this designation deserves and should have the hearty support of democrats In its community. A well edited local' newspaper exorcises an important influence, not always visible to the casual observer, but always apparent when the test comes. Hundreds of sura democratic weeklies and small dallies reach Tne Commoner's exchange table regularly, and they are a constant source of inspiration. Let democrats show by their actions that they appreciate the un swerving loyalty and tireless energy of the demo cratic newspapers that have stood up for the party ami its principles in tho face of influences that have corrupted so many metropolitan dallies. ' The local democratic newspapers deserve a great deal more than they usually get. Now let demo crats see that their local organs get all they dc- serve. JJJ The Wheat Supply. According to the chief of the bureau of treas ury statistics the wheat crop of the United States amounted in 1901 to 748,000,000 bushels and this lacked only 181,000,000 bushels of being as much as was produced that year by the five rivals of the United States, namely, Australia, with 57, 000,000; Argentina, with 2,u00,000; Canada, with 92,000,000; India, with 240,000,0oa, vid Russia, with 403,000,000. France is a lare producer of wheat, but is omitted from the list of competitors because she never raises enough for home con sumption. During the past ten years, according to the treasury official, the wheat product of the Unitcl States increased 232,000,000, while the product of all her rivals only increased 191,000,000. fcAdM