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6
elected. In 1902 ho was defeated for the same
office by Governor Pennypackcr, present Incum
bent of tho office. Ho had been mentioned several
times as a possible candidate for president, as well
as for the vice presidency. Ho was a member of
tho Mothodist church and high in its councils."
PRESIDENT SCHURMAN of Cornell university
recently delivered an address in which he
declared that ho could see much that is advan
tageous In organizations under the trust system.
Mr. Schurman further said that he saw great pos
sibility of evil In the power the trusts possess to
inako the public pay exorbitant prices. He does
not, however, believe that the remedy is through
legislation, declaring that the cure could bo safely
ldft to public opinion and to the Influences of po
tential competition which, he says, "are the only
two effective regulators."
MR. SCIIURMAN'S' plan has been followed alto
gether too long. Consumers have been re
quired to depend upon "public opinion" where
they should havo been protected by vigorous en
forcement of law. Commenting upon President
Schurman's statement, the Chicago Record-Herald,
a republican paper, says: "As for potential com
petition, or, in other words, the possibility that
competitors may spring into the field at any
moment, it doubtless plays a great part in tho
control of trusts. But it can not be overlooked
that it is only effective where industrial condi
tions give It free play, and these conditions must
often be established by legislation. Moreover, any
trust which monopolizes natural materials, as tho
anthracite coal trust does now, or as the steel
trust some time conceivably may, would not bo
open to such regulation. As to public opinion,
it would be a queer regulator to depend on if it
did not operato through its power of legislating.
There Is a public opinion of the moujiks In Rus
sia, but it has no means of making itself felt, and
it would be ridiculous to speak of it as exercising
any influence on the industrial development of
the country. In fact, most people will refuse to
call it public opinion at all for the very reason
that it can not enforce its demands. Even tho
kind of public opinion that prescribes for us the
stylo of straw hats wo are wearing, tyrannous
as it seems, would go but a short distance if it
came into sharp conflict with profit and loss ac
counts'. It does not, of course, follow that legisla
tion must forever be resorted to for tho control
of the trusts. Indeed, legislation of this kind is
always experimental and so doubtful in Its'out
como that, in the present state or our wisdom, it
is most often better avoided. But to talk of pub
lic opinion as a regulator, and at tho same time
to exclude tho legislation which is public opinion's
weapon, is like putting idle wisnes at tho helm
instead of will power and expecting it to steer a
straight course."
AN OAKLAND, California, surgeon recently
displayed extraordinary coomess. The Oak
laud correspondent for the Chicago Chronicle,
tells tho story in this way: "Surrounded by
flames that threatened to destroy him and his
patient, Dr. M. Lewis Emerson performed a dan
gerous operation on Mrs. B. Robinson of 831 Har
rison street, and then, with tho help of her nurse,
.Mrs. Alico Collins, carried the unconscious woman
out of the house. Dr. Emerson had administered
ether to Mrs. Robinson and had carried tho
operation to a critical point when his attention
was called to flames spreading quickly along the
.outside of the house. Unable to leave his patient,
he could give no alarm, but worked grimly on,
hoping to finish tho operation and removo her
. before he was prevented by the fire. Meanwhilo
neighbors saw tho blaze and the fire department
was' summoned. Through all the confusion and
threatened by tho oncoming flames and smoke,
. Dr. Emerson worked coolly, but swiftly and dex-
, terously, until at last the operation was done.
Then, aided by Mrs. Collins, who had rushed into
the operating room vhen she learned of the dan
ger, he hastily wrapped Mrs. Robinson, still un
der tho influence of ether, in blankets and carried
her to tho house of a neighbor. Tho house was
set on fire by Mrs. Robinson's children, who were
playingwith matches in an outhouse, which broke
.into flames and spread the blaze to tho rear of
the house. The firemen succeeded in getting the
fire under control and saving the house."
UDGE PARKER was recently quoted as saying
that he did not propose to bo photogranhed
jy snanshot men and that ho wna onHnn
l.dom from such attentions. This statement brought
.. to Judge Parker an interesting letter from Miss
i
The Commoner
Abbigail Robertson of Rochester, N. Y. Several
years ago Miss Robertson brougnt suit against
a milling company for damages for publishing her
likeness on ono of their advertisements. Her
prayer for relief was denied by the court of appeals
of which Judge Parker is chief judge. The Roch
ester correspondent for the Chicago Tribune says:
"Miss Robertson has sent a letter to Judge Parker
in which sho quotes his statement, made a few
days ago, that promiscuous photographing of him
self and family must stop because, as ho said:
"I reserve the right toput my hands in, my pockets
and assume comfortable attitudes wtthout being
everlastingly afraid that I shall be snapped by
some fellow with a camera.' Commenting on this
she says: 'I take this opportunity to j remind you
that you havo no such right as that 'which you
assert. I have high authority for my statement,
being nothing less than a decision of the court
of appeals of this state, wherein you wrote tho
prevailing opinion. The action was one. in which
I was the plaintiff. You may recollect that the
facts in that case were undisputed,, and that it
was admitted that the dofendants, without my
knowledge or consent, and knowing that they had
no right or authority so tq do, had Secured my
photograph, and, having caused it to be enlarged
and lithographed in life size, had circulated about
25,000 copies thereof as an advertisement of the
commodities in which ono of jthe defendants dealt."
MISS ROBERTSON continues her epistle in this
way: "You referred to my cause of action as
a 'so-called' right of privacy and admitted that
such publicity' which some find agreeable is to
plaintiff distasteful, and that I suffered mental
distress, 'when others would nave appreciated
the compliment to their beauty,' and in an opinion
sixteen pages long you arrived at the conclusion
that I had no rights that could be protected
by your tribunal. To be perfectly fair to you, I
ought to say that you expressly excepted from tho
effect of your decision any publication under sim
ilar circumstances which was in its nature li
belous. It necessarily follows, therefore, when
you now say that you reserve the 'right not to
be photographed with your hands in your pockets
or in other comfortable attitudes, either that you
are asserting a right for yourself and your family
which you are unwilling to accord, to litigants
before your court, or else that there is something
in the attitude suggested of such a nature that a
reproduction of it with photographic exactness
would be necessarily libelous. Your likeness in
the attitude suggested could not be libelous as
long as you kept your hands in your own pockets."
RUSSIA has again been called to account by
Great Britain because of seizures in tho Red
sea. The British steamer "Knight Commander"
was seized and sunk by Russian cruisers off Japan,
on the ground that the vessel was loaded with
contraband. The British authorities claim that
the Russians had no right to sink the vessel
without proper legal inquiry to establish whether
she was in law a prize. British authorities have
demanded reparation and it is announced that
they will require Russia to make suitable apology,
to salute the British flag and also to pay in
demnity. THE Russians also seized tho cargo or the
"Arabia," which was loaded with American
goods and captured by tho Vladivostok squadron.
It was announced in Washington dispatches that
Secretary Hay will demand reparation and con
siderable uneasiness resulted in this country but
later dispatches say that the American state de
partment will "make some very moderate repre
senations to the Russian government and these
may be strengthened later, if expedient." A St
Petersburg dispatch says that the Russian govern
ment is prepared to make all necessary repara
tion if the facts warrant it, and so the difficulty
may blow over without serious results.
MINISTER of the Interior von Plehve of Rus
sia, was assassinated at St. Petersburg on
the morning of July 28. The minister was driving
to the Baltic station for the purpose or going on
a visit to the eniperor,at Peterhoff palace As
sociated Press dispatches say a bomb was thrown
under the minister's carriage, completely shat
tering t. M. von Plehve was terribly mangled
The crime was committed at 10 o'clock Tim
coachman was killed" and the wounded and mad
dened horses dashed wildly away with the front
wheels of the carriage, the only portion of ?hn
vehicle remaining intact. Iminediay the?e en
sued a scene of tho wildest confusion. Police and
gendarmes hurried up from every direct on S
VOLUME 4, NUMBER 30,
vast crowds gathered about tho spot ww ,
mangled body of the minister lay weUertn
his bldod. TJae assassination is beS "S in
the outcome of a wide-spread plot th bo
of which has been suspected for several ,eflncc
Numerous arrests havo already been mnrin i ry?'
ing that of the assassin, a young man who h??"
lieved to bo a Finn of tho name of iSto and Jf"
is now in a hospital, perhaps fatally injured K
the explosion of his own bomb. An accomniw ,
Legio, also apparently a Finn, but whose name i
unknown, has been arrested. He had in his nn
session a bomb, which he. tried to throw hut
was overpowered by the police just in 'time to
prevent great loss of life.
REFERRING to the" minister, tne St. Petersburg
correspondent for the Associated Press says
VSenator yon Plehve was appointed minister oi
the interior April 18, 1902, succeeding M Siph
iaguine, who was assassinated April 16, 1902, by a
student named Balschaneff. He had formerly been
director of the department of police, which posi
tion he practically assumed of his own accord
when in charge 'Of the department of political
prosecutions, owing to ' the incompetency of the
official in charge of the police when Emperor Alex
ander II vas killed, March 1$, 1881. M. Plehve
conducted tno prosecution of tne regicides and
afterwards reorganized the police. His power be
came only second in importance to that of the
emperor. Several plots to assassinate the minis
ter have, according to reports, been discovered
during the last two years, which period has been
marked by strong political rivalry between the in
terior minister and the former minister of finance,
M. Witte, now president of the committee of
ministers. M. Plehve was not a scholar, but he
had been in his youth. He was brought up in
official, circles, and he slowly but surely pushed
himself ahead. At the time of his death he was
about G6 years af age. The educated youths of
Russia are said to have been bitterly opposed to
M. Plehve owing, 'It- has been claimed, to his
turning on his own people, and to the drastic
changes which he inaugurated or advocated. He
is said to have regarded the common people as
either dangerous criminals to be repressed or as
innocents to be ignored. Von Plehve was largely
of Polish blood. He was regarded as in many
ways being the power behind the, throne, and was
dreaded on. account of his control of the third
(secret) section of police, and also owing to the
fact that he controlled the press of Russia through
the censors, who, it has been understood did Mr.
Plehve's bidding, without question. The deceased
minister was laborious in the extreme."
THE packing house strikers on Monday, July 25,
were re-inforced by a large number of the
members of the allied trades. The strike was
therefore renewed with greater intensity and rep
resentatives of each side declare that they will
not yield. The packers arc undertaking to operate
their plants with more or less success. At Omaha,
Federal Judge Munger, after saying that the
radical order he had issued against the strikers
did not deprive them of any of their lawful rights,
went on his vacation, and Federal Judge Carland
of S'outh Dakota was summoned to interpret the
Munger order,. At tho request of the members or
the packers issued citations against a large num
ber of strikers, calling upon them to show why
they should not be committed for contempt or
court. The strikers are now seeking to have tne
freight handlers' union join them and refuse to
handle packing house products. Lawrence J. our
ran, president of the freight handlers' union, is
sued an order to that effect on the evening oi
July 28; but subsequently recalled it for tne
purpose of consulting with others as to the course
that should bo pursued. The strikers claim tna
Mr. Curran will again issue the order, it sum
an order is Issued, the situation will be consid
erably aggravated. , ,
MANY democrats and populists in Nebraska
will remember Richard. Dol0"' W, ue
came famous as an orator during the 1891 sess
of the Nebraska legislature. A dispatch to ij
Omaha World-Herald, under date of Sutton, jncu.,
July 20, says: "pick Dobson died at . lm aom
in Fillmore county July 19 of quinsy. Dr. do"
served three terms in tho Nebraska les18,aiJn.
as a 'populist. He leaves a wife and several en
dren. His funeral will take place Thursday ioi
noon at Grafton. Tho Masons of Sutton wm
tend in a body. Mr. Dobson was 58 years '
was born in England and came to America
15 vears' of aire, and settled on a honiesteau
, w wI i
Fillmore county in -ibyi."
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