M
0
jwrauOTi, iw.
The Commoner
ttiajft"" " ' ' - - -- nurliwnm,n - iw. , .
rCURE6NT
I I 1 1 H li III Ml ' -J!rrnm T TOrtVlkik lv7 r "V WwXIU ALJ
vv, ,,, .,., ff gg-wMgaCjy.'JT ,STW
IN THE COMMONER of July 8, there appeared
an article under the caption "Origin of 'Mo
Too, Piatt.' " This article copied from the Pitta
burg Dispatch credited Miss Olive Elwood of Ot
sego county, New York, with being the author of
"Mo Too Piatt" which has for twenty-three years
been applied to Thoinac C. Piatt or New York.
Mr. S. H. Newman of El Paso, Texas, writes to
say: "I claim whatever credit may attach to
the christening of this New Yorker the title that
has for more than half a generation heen recog
nized as his first, if not his strongest, claim to
fame."
AT THE time Messrs. Conklrng ana Piatt re
signed from the United States senate, Mr.
Newman was the editor of a semi-weekly news
paper published at Las. Cruces, New Mexico, 44
miles north of M Paso.. The name of thl, paper
was "Thirtyrfour." Mr. Newman was engaged
at that time in. a law suit with a fprmer partner
in which the ownership of the paper was In
question. After each issue of the paper, Mr. New
man was enjoined against the use of the .name
that, for the time being, appeared at the head of
the paper, so for several weeks, each successive
issue appeared under a different name. The Is
sue of May 21, 1881, was widely known before
and afterwards by its real name "Thirty-four"
other names being as it has been said, assumed for
each successive issue in order, to evade court In
junctions. IN THE issue of May 21, 1881, the first issue after
the receipt of the .news of the resignations of
Conkling and Piatt, which resignations occurred
May 16, Mr. Newman published in his paper an
editorial under the headline "Abdication of Prince
Roscoe," This editorial concluded as follows:
"There is another man who is acting a kind of
sub-secondary part in this- matter, and his name
is platt. His letter of resignation following that
of his hord and master, Prince Hoscoe, reminds one
of an old woman and little girl who sold huckle
berries in the old Baltimore market. The voice
of the old woman could be heard above the din,
and yards away, calling out: 'Nice fresh huckle
berries, ten cents a quart!' and, on approaching
nearer, the subdued tones of the little girl could
bo just distinguished adding to the announcement
of her companion, and model; tne pitiful, trem
ulous words, 'Me too!'"
MR. NEWMAN sends to the Commoner a copy
of the newspaper referred to-in which the
facts appear a3 stated. He furtner says that the
New York "World and Sun were on his exchange
list and one of these newspapers reproduced the
editorial referred to. Then "Puck" took it up
and came out with a cartoon or Conkling as a
large mastiff with the name "Conkling" inscribed
on his collar and a bit of ribbon tied to his tail
upon which was inscribed the words "Me Too,
Platt." Mr. Newman says: "This seemed to meet
the public sense of the situation. The name stuck
and 'Me Too, Platt' he has been to this day. As but
four days elapsed between the announcement of
the resignation and the issue of my paper, con
taining the article herein referred to, there is
no possibility of my having gotten the idea from
any eastern exchange, even had It been possible
at that time to have received a New York paper
in four days." It seems that Mr. Newman has
fairly established his right to be known as the
author of "Me Too, Platt."
WRITING in the August number of the At
lantic, George W. Alger, draws a contrast
between the American and English methods of
dealing with confidence men who swindle Inves
tors on a large scale. Referring to Mr. Alger's
article, the Chicago Record-Herald says that "It
will at least tend to revive discussion of the
obvious inadequacy of the penalties that are
meted out by our criminal courts." The Record
Herald adds: "In these days when the man who
steals a door mat is" more apt to serve a term in
the penitentiary than the prominent "promoter"
who swindles hundreds In a fraudulent undertak
ing public interest is attracted to any appeal that
may be presented for a more vigorous handling
of modern 'business vampires."
REFERRING to the trust company closely as
sociated with the American Ship Building
swindle Mr Alger further calls attontion to the
fact that the New York sfhto bank oxamlner shows
that the directors of this trust company mado ille
gal and practically unsecured loans of enormous
amounts and permitted the president to use his
position and the money of stockholders and de
positors "to gamble in floating a so-called trust
of the most flagrantly fraudulent character." Mr,
Alger further calls attention to the fact that tho
greatest bank wrecker in Amorican criminal his
tory now lives undisturbed In New York. He never
served a day In jail for defalcation of six million
dollars. If the friends or relatives of a man wh6
steals in this country repay the amount of the
theft it is-quite often tho end of the wholo mat
ter. It is also interesting to learn that whilo
Whittaker Wright, the notorious promoter in
London was sentenced to seven years In prison,
under the New York law the penalty would have
been one year's imprisonment or a ?500 fine.
AS TO tho effort being made to devise some
plan whereby improvements would be ob
tained in tho matter of railway accidents on the
railways of tho United Kingdom, Sir Herbert
Jekyll, chief of the railway department of the
London Board of Trade says that there Is small
promise of results. A writer in the Chicago
Record-Herald makes an ' Interesting comparison
between the railroad accidents In the United
Kingdom and the railroad accidents In this coun
try. This writer says: "During 1903 tho rail
ways of the United Kingdom killed 1,159 people
and injured 6,787. Out of this large number, how
ever, only 34 were killed in tram accidents and
919 injured. Of the killed 25 were passengers and
9 were employes, and of the injured 769 were pas
sengers, and 146 were employes. There was a
total of 235 train accidents, collisions and de
railments on a train mileage of 393,703,000 miles.
Tho British report states that tho number of pas
sengers killed was at the ratio of ono In every
47,793,320 passenger journeys, and the passengers
injured were at the ratio of ono in every 1,540,745
passenger journeys. This was exclusive of jour
neys made by season" ticket holders. Like tho
American roads, the British roads made a worse
record in 1903 than in 1902, for during the latter
year they killed at the ratio of one passenger
in every 198,036,454 passenger Journeys and in
jured one in every 1,623,250."
AS A MORE satisfactory basis for comparison
with accidents on American railroads, the
Record-Herald suggests tho ratio of killed and In
jured to tho number of passengers carried one
mile, and adds: "During the year ended Juno 30,
1903, tho American railways killed 164 passengers
in train accidents and injured 4,424. The number
of employes killed in train accidents was 895
and the injured were 6,440, making the total killed
in train accidents 1,059 and the total injured 10,
864. Taking the basis of passenger journeys for
comparison and the results are not in favor of the
American railways. During the year mentioned
the railroads here carried a total of 649,878,505 pas
sengers, and the number killed, therefore, was at
the ratio of one in every 4,000,000 passenger jour
neys, approximately. The number injured was at
the ratio of one in every 100,000 passenger jour
noys, approximately. Comparisons, however, will
not assist either the managements of railroads
here or in the United Kingdom to make Improve
ments in operating methods. It may be true that
so long as excessively fast schedules are main
tained and the density of traffic constantly In
creases the British record represents, approxi
mately, perfection in train operation. It is to
bo hoped, however, that such is not the fact, and,
at any rate, American managements agree that
there is ample room for improvement here."
WILLIAM PITT KELLOGG, well known as an
old-time republican politician, suggests that
there is some resemblance between the presidential
situation in 1904 and that of 1892, so far as con
cerns the republican candidate. Mr. Kellogg ex
plains: "You will remember that Harrison se
cured the nomination in opposition to the com
bined efforts of the leaders of his party. President
Rooscvolt has nominated himself, contrary to
tho desires of all of tho old guard who havo
struggled in season and out to build up tho
party organization. In addition to President
Roosovolt'a unpopularity with tho party leaders,
thcro is much uncertainty about tho policy ho
is restless under his administration of public af
wlll pursue in case of re-election. The country
fairs, and conservative business Interests would
welcome a chango such as they believe would come
with tho election of Judgo Parker."
THE tune "DIxio" Is popular everywhere and
this fact was explained recently by a south
erner, who, speaking to a roportor for tho New
York World, said: "There's something about that
bundle of notes different from any tuno that was
over written in tho history of music. An English
man applauds 'God Savo tho King;' a Frenchman
goes wild over tho 'Marsollaiso;' tho Germans re
spond to 'Dio Wacht Am Rholn,' and tho good
American of all parts of tho country cheors Tho
Star Spangled Banner.' But ovorybody applauds
Dixie.' Half of them, too, when thoy don't know
anything about it being southern. No, it Is some
thing infectious, this tuno; thero is in Jt that
mystic something that sets tho blood tingling
and makes you.danco in spite of yourself. Let a
restaurant full of people bo as dull as a Quaker
meotlng, and when tho band strikes up 'Dixie'
they're off. Tho tuno makes people applaud, and
thoy don't do It to make others think thoy are
southerners, either. It's tho tune, that's all."
A RADIUM clock, which is expected to keep
time indefinitely, has been constructed by
liurrison Martindale of England, ana is described
by the Scientific American.. This clock, accord
ing to the American, comprises a small tube
in which is placed a minuto quantity of radium
supported in an exhausted glass vessel by a
quartz rod. To tho lower end of this wonderful
little tube which is colored violet with tho action
of tho radium, an olectroscope formed by two
long leaves or strips of silver is attached. A
charge of olectrlclty in which thoro are no beta
rays is transmitted through tho activity of the
radium Into the leaves, and tho latter thereby
expand until they touch tho sides of tho vessel,
connected to earth by wires, which instantly con
duct the electric charge, and tho leaves fall to
gether. This very simple operation is repeated
incessantly every two minutes until the radium
is exhausted, which in this instance it Is com
puted will occupy thirty thousand years.
ROBERT E. PATTISON, who died at his homo
in Philadelphia, August 1, was a delegate at
largo to tho national democratic convention at
St. Louis, where ho served as a member of tho
resolutions committee. Governor Pattlson's friends
say that tho strain of the week's work told upon
him and that his death was due to acute pneu
monia complicated by an affection of the heart.
A Philadelphia correspondent says: "Governor
Pattlson was born at Quantico, Somerset county,
Md., Dec. 8, 1850. His father was a Methodist
preacher who held prominent pastorates in Phil
adelphia many years. His mother was a grand
daughter of Colonel Thomas "Woolford, of a fa
mous revolutionary lino. Mr. Pattlson was grad
uated in the law in 1872, and three years later en
tered politics as a candidate for clerk of tho
courts in Philadelphia. He was defeated, and two
years later, in 1877, was defeated for auditor gen
eral of the state. Tho same year, however, he was
elected comptroller of Philadelphia, and made so
good an impression In the reform of a hitherto
corruptly administered office that in 1882 he was
made his party's candidate for the offlco ot gov
ernor, to which" ho was elected on his record. At
the end of his term the constitution not permitting
tho chief executive to succeed himself, he retired
to become president of the Chestnut Street Na
tional bank, declining the office of auditor of the
treasury, offered him by President Cleveland. Soon
thereafter he accepted the position of commis
sioner of the Pacific railroads, and In course "of
that service wrote one of the strongest papers ex
tant concerning the relations of the railways to
tho government In 1890 Governor Pattlson was
nominated for governor the second time, and again
-i
t
11