The Commoner
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THE COMMONER, Lincoln, Nob.
MR. BRYAN ABROAD
Mr; Bryan, accompanied by Mrs. Bryan, Wil
liam J., Jr., and their younger daughter, Grace,
left Lincoln September 21 for a tour around the
world. They took passage on the Pacific Mail
steamship Manchuria, which sailed from San
Francisco September 27.
They go to Japan via Honolulu. After a few
weeks in Japan they will proceed to China, the
Philippine Islands, India, Australia, New Zea
land, Egypt, Palestine, Greece, Turkey, Italy,
Spain, Switzerland, Germany, France, Norway,
Sweden, Denmark, Russia, Holland and the Brit-'
ish Isles.
The trip will occupy about one year, and the
readers of The Commoner will be able to follow
Mr. Bryan from the letters which will be pub
lished in The Commoner from time to time.
In the meantime, push the primary pledge
and organize.
It is believed that Iling Corn has passed the
wire a good winner over Jack Frost.
There are no violators of the criminal clause
of the Sherman anti-trust law in jail yet.
Perhaps Mr. Rockefeller invested in a wig
because he believed there was room at the top.
Chairman Shonts shows signs of a desire to
wrest the cussing championship from Admiral
Evans.
The canal commission is spending $650,000
a month and is not digging that many spoonfuls
of dirt.
The beef trust is not yet ready for trial.
It must have located-a few dollars it has not yet
secured.
The pass may not be a bribe but- well the
republican officials In Nebraska are returning
theirs anyhow.
The Fairbanks presidential boom has moved
again. It has shoved over to make room for the
summer straw hat.
Some of these splendid defenders of "national
honor" in 1896 should have reserved a little de
fense for personal use. They need it.
If the democratic party takes good care that
it shall deserve to win in 1908 the matter of a
candidate is one that will settle Itself.
The Equitable is not quite so lonesome as
It was a few months ago. There is plenty of
company for it in the prisoner's dock now.
The beef trust says it will be ready for trial
'soon." That is when Mr. Hyde will return and
when the republicans will revise the tariff,
The isthmian canal commission gives signs
it exhausting all of its money and all of the
country's patience in its amusement enterprises.
The Commoner.
The canal commission might lend a little
encouragement by throwing an occasional shovel
ful of dirt between decisions for new hotels and
pleasure resorts.
The Standard Oil company lias just raised
the price of refined oil a half cent per gallon,
which should be good news to Dr. Harper of
Chicago University.
It may be true that no man can serve two
masters, but Mr. Perkins has given a splendid
imitation of a man who does it well enough to
draw two fat salaries.
It cost the government $40,000,000 last year
to have the mails transported by the railroads.
Now perhaps you can see why the railroads take
such an interest in politics.
The American board of foreign missions has
decided to table all resolutions against "tainted
money." Mr. Rockefeller is exceedingly dense
if he fails to take the hint.
The insurance scandal calls renewed atten
tion to the fact that there is a vast difference
between drawing a salary of $75,000 a year and
earning a salary of $75,003 a year.
Congressman Brownlow is working to make
the highways good, and President Roosevelt is
working to make the railroads good and up to
date both movements have made equal progress.
Senator Lodge says he wants it understood
that he does not reflect the president's views
when he advocates a ship subsidy. Neither does
he reflect the views of 99.99 per cent of the peo
ple of the country.
Every day's testimony in the insurance com
pany investigation reveals another reason why
the insurance grafters so roundly denounced Law
son as a humbug and an adventurer when he first
began his story of "Amalgamated."
Get out your atlas and look up Baku. Trouble
over there means trouble here, for Baku fur
nishes half the world's supply of crude petroleum
and you know what that means just as soon as
Mr. Rockefeller gets ready to move.
Mr. Morton of the Equitable says he wants
his agents to get business, but not by rate cut
ting and high-risk methods. Does he mean this
as an intimation that they can work the rebate
game that Mr. Morton worked while with the
Santa Fe?
Lawson's
Charges Were
Mild
When Thomas W. Lawson began his revela
tions in the gigantic game of loot and graft he
inumatea tnat there was some
thing radically wrong with the
big insurance companies. Im
mediately the mjfrtnfrpre i
these companies charged Law
son with seeking to precipitate a panic, and de
clared that he was an adventurer, or worse. In
addition they declared with renewed energy their
own honesty. Mr. Lawson reiterated his charges
and presented enough evidence to warrant an in
vestigation. The .investigation is hardly begun
and already developments reveal that Mr. Law
son not only had ample warrant for his charges,
but that he did not give even a hint of the cor
ruption that prevails. Now that the investigation
a started let it be thorough and complete, and
J??,m fV,0 haV,e. gambled an speculated in
trust funds be brought to book.
How
Great Steal
is Worked
The scandal in the government printing office
calls renewed attention to the immense waste of
ijuuiic money m that institu
tion. Thousands of tons of
useless publications are issued
from that office every year, and
lucumy purpose tney seem to
serve is to increase Hhe remuneration the rail
roads receive for carrying the malls. Every time
the mails are weighed for the purpose of fur
nishing a basis from which to figure what th
railroads shall receive for transporting them he
mail cars are loaded down with "Pub. Doc's "'that
are weighed and re-weighed all along the line
Tons of such matter are carried during the'
weighing season, and then the government nav?
n mt ba,8i2 f?r the ensuin& twTorTur yePars
Mil ions of dollars are wasted in printing these
useless books, and other millions are worfe than
wasted-actually stolen-by mailing S out
during the mail weighing season andhenTayng
.VOLUME 5, NUMBER
the railroads for them every day in the ,, ,
years to come. The purchase of the tvnSm0r
machines is not the only crooked deal in i 5
under cover of the government printing bfflce
The syndicates working inside of the hi i
surance companies is only another phase X
a n ga?e so lons wo"led by 2
Old Game railroads under guise of JS
Under a New freight" lines. A number'
Name directors of an insurance com.
. pany organize a "syndicate"
and purchase bonds of other syndicates ThZ
bonds are then sold at a big profit to the insur.
ance companies as an "investment" for the benefit
of the policyholders. The same game is worked
differently by the railroad companies. Railroad
officials organize a "fast freight line" and re
name a lot of cars belonging to the company
These cars are then loaded as specials and the
railroad pays car mileage on its own cars to tho
"fast freight line." In this way earnings to tho
general stockholders are kept down, an excuse
offered for the maintenance of exorbitant rates
and a few men on the inside pocket the proceeds!
CO-OPERATION
Annual subscriptions have been sent in by
Commoner readers in number as follows: W. A.
Crowe, Minnesota, Minn., 9; L. Brunner, Charity,
Mo., 6; G. W. Hamlin, Rochelle, 111., 5; Richard
Allen, Oakland, 111, 6; J. L. Aull, Belleville, 111.,
6; Daniel W. Singer, Goshen, Ind., 5; Nathan
Groves, Drexel, Mo., 6; A. G. Ray, Butte, Mont.,
10; J. W. Pickett, Kellis Store, Miss., 5; W. W.
Chesley, Schaller, Iowa, 5; E. A. Watson, Long,
view, Texas, 5; S. M. Redfield, Maryville, Mo., 7;
M. R. Hemphill, Valhalla, Mo., 7; George
Knowles, Brooklyn, Mich., 6; E. W. Merz, Belle
ville, 111., 5; W. T. Barnett, Terre Haute, Ind., 5;
Thomas Harmeson, Clarks Hill, Ind., 5; Eugeno
Karst, St. Louis, Mo., 5; P. J. Noonan, Big Run,
Pa., 5; George M. Shaffer, Independent, W. Va.,
5; N. C. Crockett, Danner, Tex., 5; T. E. Glynn,
So. La Grange, Me., 10; J. R. Couley, Carterville,
111., 6; F. A. Smith, Cedar Point, Kan., 5; E. E.
Brossard, Columbus, Wis., 5; Dr. J. E. Hall, Pond
Creek, Okla., 5; L. H. Read, Palmers Springs,
Va., 5; W. D. Barnes, Seymour, Ind., 8; W. J.
Cochran, Charleston, W. Va., 5; J. S. McSweeney,
Oelwein, Iowa, 5; John S. McColley, Tipton, Ind.,
5; A. T. Perry, Hamilton, Iowa, 5; E. D. Tull,
Windsor, 111., 6; Willis Walters, Mansfield, Ohio,
10; J. S. Bradley, Higbee, Mo., 5; A. F. Madison,
Grand Forks, N. 'D., 5; D. B. Harris & Co., East
Leake, Va., 6; N. F. Hilton, Oil City, Pa., 5; S. J.
Isaack, Midland, Texas, 5; T. W. Everett, Guyan
dotte, W. Va., 5; A. J. Glenn, Macon, Mo., 6; P.
M. Wilson, Utica, Pa.,. 6.
Every one who approves . of the work Tho
Commoner is doing is invited to co-operate along
the lines of the special subscription offer. Ac
cording to the terms of this offer cards each good
for one year's subscription to The Commoner,
will be furnished in lots of five, at the rate of
$3 per lot. This places the yearly subscription
rate at 60 cents.
Any one ordering these cards may sell them
for $1 each, thus earning- a commission of ?2
on each lot sold, or he may dell them at the cost
price and find compensation in the fact that ho
has contributed to the educational campaign.
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or they may be ordered and remittance made
after they have been sold. A coupon is printed
below for the convenience of those who desire
to participate in this effort to increase The Com
moner's circulation:
THE COMMONER'S SPECIAL OFFER
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It to THE COMMONER.. Lincoln. No.
14U&r
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