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The Commoner
VOLUME 10, NUMBER 3J
,y jp irWFWreWf
THE KANSAS CITY Journal prints this hu
man interest story: "The pica of one lono
littlo woman, praying in behalf of horbelf and
her two childron yesterday kept August Miller,
a negro, from getting a saloon license at 1329
,Ea8t Eighteenth street. Mrs. Bertha Walters,
1339 East Eighteenth, told tho board of police
commissioners thoro already were two saloons
In that block ono each corner and she did
not think another would help conditions. Her
husband, A. B. Walters, has a littlo second-hand
store thoro and they live in tho roar, over their
storo. Ho did not appear before tho board. I
havo two childron just growing up,' she told
tho board in brokon English. 'Thoj hoar
enough bad words and seo enough cutting and
fighting around tho other two saloons without
"putting another ono so closo to us. It's pretty
bad out thoro and wo wish, for tho children's
ake, you would not make it any worse.' "
WILLIAM J. GAYNOR, mayor of New York
City, was shot in tho head and seriously
wounded August 9 aa the mayor stood on tho
promonado deck of a stoamshlp preparing to
take a voyage for rest. Tho shot was fired by
James D. Gallagher, a discharged city employe.
Tho nows dispatch sent at the time of the shoot
ing says: "Tho shot was fired at 9:45 o'clock,
fifteen minutes before tho Kaiser Wilholm der
Grosso was duo to leave her pier at Hobokon,
N. J., and tho mayor was receiving godspeed
from a group of friends, preparatory to a vaca
tion trip to Europe. Tho bullet struck him
behind tile right ear and split, one bit of lead
remaining imbedded at the opening of the
wound, tho other ranging downward and be
coming buried in tho lower part of tho mouth.
Tr. Ferdinand C. Wolff, the "hospital house physi
cian, said it was improbable that an operation
would bo porformed. Tho mayor's temperature
is normal, his pulse good, and his mental atti
tude favorable to recovery. Unless blood poison
develops, surgeons are hopeful of the mayor's
recovery. Tho mayor is at St. Mary's hospital,
Hobokon, surrounded by specialists, with
members of his family near. All early reports
from tho hospital were hopeful, and this even
ing six X-ray negatives of the wound were taken
to- facilitate an operation for the removal of
tho bullet. Gallagher, the would-be assassin, is
locked in a coll at Jersey City, hold without
ball. He expresses no remorse." Resolutions
expressing sorrow wore adopted by various offi
cial bodies throughout tho country. Wide
Bpread joy was expressed when it was reportod
that tho mayor would livo.
A PLAN TO CURE tho divorce evil is ad
vanced by Judge J. D. Hinklo of the su
perior court of Spokane County, Washington.
A Spokane dispatch to tho Fort Worth (Toxas)
Record says: "Publicity as a precaution against
fraud in actions for divorce is advocated by
Presiding Judge J. D. Hinklo of the superior
courjt of Spokane county, who announces that
tho rulo permitting thirty days to elapse be
tween tho filing of the suit and the trial of the
case, undoubtedly will be adopted by tho judges
(n Spokane county, going into effect November
1. Judge Hinklo, who has studied the ques
tion for years, also advocates these reforms in
requirements and procedure in divorce cases not
only in this counti but all over tho country: '
Six months or a year between the time of sep
aration and filing of complaint in actions on
grounds of cruelty and non-support. Two years'
residence in the state to enable a former non
resident to sue for divorce. Interlocutory de
cree of divorce not to be made final until six
months or a year after tho trial of tho case.
Requirement that parties may not remarry
Within a year of the granting of the divorce.
'The requirement now is that a suit be filed at
feast five days before the trial,' Judge Hinkle
Bald. 'It used to be that a case would bo start
ed ono day and rushed to trial on the next.
Publicity was dodged and often a year would
pass beforo relatives or friends Of a couple
knew they had been legally separated. The sys
tem followed in several states of granting an
intprJpc,uvtoi;y decr.ee. at the time of trial, which
does not become final except through tho act of
the petitioner, six months or a year later, would
also be an advantage. Many reconciliations
might take place under such conditions which
are prevented now by tho divorco becoming final
immediately after it la granted.' "
AN INTERESTING story from life is told by
tho New York 'World in this way: "While
a score of army officers, soldiers and citizens
looked on helpless for several minutes that
seemed hours, Anna Moran, a girl of twenty,
struggled yesterday afternoon in the waters of
Long Island Sound with a recruit from Fort
Slocum who preferred death to capture after
desertion. Pluck won tho day. Miss Moran's
remarkable efforts were crowned with success
and last night she was receiving the congratula
tions of friends and blushlngly refusing to be
called Tioroino.' The man she saved spent tho
night bound to a cot in a cell in the fort, raving
in delirium. Peter Harvey, aged twenty-one,
had been drafted from the recruiting station in
New York a few days ago to Fort Slocum near
New Rochelle. He evidently tired of army life
quickly, for early yesterday morning, burdened
with full uniform, he swam the three-quarters
of a mile that separates the fort from Glen
Island. He walked around the island until his
clothes had dried and then boarded the ferry
for New Rochelle, forgetting that immediately
upon tho discovery of his absence patrols would
be sent out for his capture. As soon as ho
stepped off the ferry boat at New Rochelle, Har
vey was arrested by Sergeant Gerthereau from
Fort Slocum and put on board the army steamer
General Barry, which was then headed for the
fort."
THE WORK OF compiling the thirteenth
census will be completed some time during
October. The work of the census bureau is
enormous. Tho Washington correspondent for
the Forth Worth (Toxas) Record says: "Some
people think that Director Durand practically
knows now the exact number of the population,
but he declares, 'really and truly,' that he does
not. sIf so disposed, however, he could ascer
tain approximately the number of people some
what in advance of his announcement to the
public. This could bo done by means of tho
preliminary count of the schedules which is
made necessary for the payment of the enu
merators for their services. The enumerating
districts for each supervisor's area are num
bered, and it is intended that each of them
should contain one hundred names. As soon
as these are received they are turned over to
counters and a virtually accurate statement is
thus made possible. Up to date the names in
more than 68,000 of the 70,000 districts have
been counted. The process Is moving forward
rapidly and when it is completed the popula
tion of the United States could be easily arrived
at by footing up the total. Mr. Durand, how
ever, Js not having the figures totaled and he
says that it is his purpose not to do so. He is
not curious as to the outcome of his work. Nor
will he make any prediction as to what the
result will show. It is known, however, that
the census officials generally fall in with tho
popular idea that there are about 90,000,00,0
people In the United States. Between the cen
sus of 1890 and that of 1900 there was an
Increase of about 13,000,000 and only a slightly
larger Increase would now be necessary to bring
the figure tip to the ninety million mark. This
result la arrived at by a purely arithmetical
calculation and not "by any compilation of the
figures recently taken. About throe hundred
nimble fingered young men and women are
engaged night and day In determining the fig
ures which, when the final computation is
made, will show the total population. All told
there are some 1,800 clerks employed in the
census office in the compilation of all the facts
gathered by the field agents in connection with
tho recent censusj but, while tho greatest ac
tivity is directed toward the ascertainment of
tho population, there is still much doing in
other directions. Indeed, a large number of
those at work in the population division are
engaged in classifying the facts relative to tho
sex, ago, race and other conditions in connec
tion with the people. Also there aro many
employed in tho manufacturing, agricultural
and mining branches. The first announcement,
however, will cover only enumeration figures',
and these will continue for the next two months
and a half. The sociological and industrial fig
ures will come later, and will be announced as
a rule in special bulletins prepared by tho
bureau itself."
UP TO DATE, population figures have been
given on two states only, Rhode Island
and Oklahoma, vbut many announcements have
been made for cities, towns and counties in
various parts of the country. s All the returns
so far given to the public have been prepared
to meet the especial demands of the localities
affected. In Rhode Island, for instance, there
is to be a reapportionment for legislative pur
poses, and in Oklahoma' the franchise is in
volved. Texas has state laws affecting county
administration, and has made a special demand
upon the bureau. There also have been somo
exactions of a legal nature from vaTious cities
in Illinois, as from some other states. From
tills time forward, however, those requests will
receive comparatively little attention, and as a
consequence the regular work of the bureau will
proceed more rapidly. The Record's correspon
dent adds: "The director's intention is first
to tabulate the population of the large cities,
and after the announcements for those centers
of population shall have been made tho figures
for the states will be given out as they are as
certained. The returns for all the counties of
each state will be announced at the same time
that the state figures are made public. Many
of the announcements are liable to be delayed
beyond the time when they may be expected
by the public. This delay, if it occurs, will bo
due to the necessity for careful scrutiny of all
the schedules. All of the enumeration sheets
are counted from three to four times, and if
there is any error, or even if there Ib any cir
cumstance indicating a possibility of an error,
an investigation is ordered, and if necessary a
correction is made. In two cities evidence of
fraud has been discovered, and in one, Great
Falls, Mont,, a prosecution has been undertaken
for fraudulent enumeration. In Massachusetts
all of the figures have been withheld to accom
modate that state in some of its own statistical
work. Contrary to the general opinion all the
counting of the people is done by hand. The
tabulating machines, of which" several hundred
are employed in the office are used only in
classification as to race, sex and other condi
tions. The census office is a busy place. The
present force of clerks will be increased eventu
ally to about 2,000. There are two shifts of
them, one working from 9 o'clock in the morn
ing until 4:30, the other taking up the work at
the latter hour and going forward until 11'
o'clock at night. Counting enumerators, special
agents and supervisors, no fewer than 80,000
people will have been employed in the work of
the thirteenth census by the time it is completed.
So far about $6,000,000 have been expended
upon it, and it is probable that the total cost
will be about $15,000,000. Of this sum $12,
000,000 already has been appropriated by.
congress."
REFERRING TO THE democratic convention
recently held in Nebraska, Louis F. Post,
writing in The Public, of Chicago, says: "All
who may think that William J. Bryan's influ
ence in American politics has been killed again
this time by his own party and in his homo
state had better hold their jubilating energy
in reserve until the election returns come in
from Nebraska. If they have reason to use
this energy then, they may possibly use it to
some purpose; if they have no use for it then,
they may be glad that they did not rejoice over
a welcome political death following so speedily
by an exasperating political resurrection. Tha
truth appears to be that It is not so much a
defeat for Bryan in his own party in Nebraska
tha't haB taken place, as a victory in that parts;
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