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MARCH 8, 1912
The Commoner.
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A Prayer
Lord, teach mo how to walk thy
ways
Through all my days, como joy or
grief;
Help me to frame -songs in Thy
praise
And give new strength to my
helief.
I ask not gifts of tongues that I
May yet be heard above earth's
strife;
But let me aid some passerby,
And smoother make his path of
life.
Lord, teach me how to live each day
So that when I behold the sun
Far down where slopes the western
way,
I can look back on duty done.
I ask not power to sway the throng
With fiery zeal and stirring voice;
But let me with some humble son&
Make just one fellow man rejoice.
Lord, teach me how to work Thy
will
In humble lot where I am cast;
Give strength each duty to fulfill,
And hold me faithful to the last.
I ask not place of pomp or power,
But well content with humble
part
If I can for one passing hour
Make light some brother's heavy
heart.
Lord, for the tasks so near at hand
That need be done, let me enroll;
The lesser things that total grand
When all men seek Thy promised
goal.
I ask not strength for wondrous task
That, having done, men would ac
claim; But give me grace, dear Lord, I ask,
To help some brother in Thy
name. Amen!
From the "Grayhaired Boys"
A couple of weeks ago the Archi
tect said he would like to know how
some of the "grayhaired boys" spent
their winter evenings. He remarked
that he would like to hear from
them, because their contributions
would enable him to .devote a little
more time to bobbing for bullheads
and the bullhead season is almost
here. That the "grayhaired boys"
are readers of this department is
evidenced by the responses that are
coming in. The Architect already
sees several future days when in
stead of grinding out copy he can
take these communications from the
pigeonhole, drop in a few commas,
semi-colons and quotations marks,
send them over to the printer and
then hie away to the resort of the
elusive bullhead.
Here is how one of the "boys" has
been putting in thejong winter even
ings. It is a mighty interesting let
ter, and some of these days the
Architect hdpes to "just drop in"
upon the man who wrote it and go
through some pf those old scrap
books: Humboldt, Kan., Feb. 20. To the
Architect: So you want to know
how your "comrades of the gray
hairs and easjr chairs" have been
passing their winter evenings. Well,
as my children have all gone I have
spent my evenings at home with
"that old sweetheart of mine," and
being a lover of poetry, I have com
mitted many to memory among
them this one:
"I am not old; I can not be old,
Though three score years and ten
Have wasted away llko a tale that
U told
The lives of other men.
I am not old though my friends and
foes
Alike have gone to their graves,
And left me alone with my joys and
woes
Like a wreck in the midst of
waves."
I have also committed to memory
Riley's poem, "An old sweetheart of
mine," to which I have added a few
lines of my own:
"She has been my wife for forty
years,
And in coming down the line
I have thanked my God ten thousand
times
For that old sweetheart of mine."
For years and years I have been
cutting out pieces from newspapers
and magazines and pasting them in
scrap books, and as I have a goodly
supply on hand I have spent a part
of my time during the evenings in
pasting. For year I have been writ
ing down in another book "great
truths in short sentences," or "wise
sayings of other men," and this has
served to pass away an hour. In my
book I read such crisp sentences as
these:
"Secret sins do not have secret
consequences."
"God has yoked to Guilt her pale
tormenter, Misery."
"You will find something each
day you live to pity, and to perhaps
forgive."
"Make yourself useful to the
world, and the world will give you
"bread."
"I have lived to -thank God that
all my prayers were not answered."
"From all life's grapes I press
sweet wine."
"It is hard to tell who makes the
most trouble, the friend with the
best intentions or the enemy with
the worst."
"Fast living makes fast links in
the devil's chain."
I have written thousands of these
truths down in my book, and often
during the long winter evenings I
read them over; and although she
has "silver threads among the gold,"
if you were to look into our room
most any evening you would see me
at some time holding the hand of
"that old sweetheart of mine."
"And again I feel the pressure of
her slender little hand
As we used to talk together of the
future we had planned."
she'd do it by sitting on the back
porch, sunbonneted, and bossing mo
while I officiated as nursemaid to
thoso infant apple trees. I know,
'cause I have some young apple
trees already growing in the ha-k
yard. Mrs. S. also submits a couple
of questions, one of which I must
decline to discuss, as politics is
barred from this department. As to
the difference in altitude between
Alliance and Denver I am unable to
givo any information. However, I
think investigation would disclose
that there Is very little difference
between the two, Denver being the
greater.
Easy Enough
Irene Jones of Greenwood, Neb.,
who is thirteen years old and in the
eighth grade, kindly writes and tells
mo how to work that problem in
arithmetic. Sho says it may servo
to save some of Dad's sweat and be
plainer to the kiddie. You hot it
will, my little friend! But if you
are going to come to Dad's rescue
every time one of his kiddies springs
something on him, you're in for a
mighty strenuous time. I thank you
heartily for your solution, and so
does the Biggest Girl. Greenwood is
only a little distance from Lincoln,
Irene. Suppose you come over some
day next summer and you and I and
the Biggest Girl and her sisters will
hike around to all the interesting
places in Lincoln the state pris'on,
insane asylum, orthopedic hospital,
university museum, state farm, rail
road shops, and such like places. Dad
and the kiddies know where they
sell the whoppin'est big ice cream
sodas a fellow ever stuck his face
into.
Little Johnnie
Little Johnnie remained quiet an
unusually long time while mamma
was entertaining her visitor, but
finally he had to speak.
"Where does your husband keep
his airship, Mrs. Goldrocks?"
"Be still, Johnnie," warned his
mother.
"But I want to know," insisted
Johnnie.
"Why, Johnnie; Mr. Goldrocks
hasn't any airship. What made you
think he had?"
"O, 'cause I heard papa say yes
terday that Mr. Goldrocks was a
mighty high flier."
Information and Quories
Mrs. F. M. S. of Alliance, Neb.,
sends some interesting information
about the old "sopsyvine" apple
mentioned in this department at
various times. She says It Is the
"Saxon," and advises mo to get a
fow young ones and plant them, in
timating that the Little Woman
would cultivate them and bring them
to maturity. I know how she would
"Kiddies Six"
That's the little book of verses
the Architect of this department
published last November. There are
just 225 'copies of this volume left
to sell. When they are gone the
edition will be exhausted. If you
want one of them you'll have to
hurry. The price is one dollar, post
age prepaid. The book contains 200
pages and is bound in cloth. The
Architect has included in this
volume the verses that he has writ
ten for The Commoner during the
past ten years or some of them
picking out those he likes best and
which seem to have been most popu
lar. I want to sell the balance of
this edition, turn the money over to
the Little Woman, and forget the
book business for a while. Come on
with your orders and the dollars.
WORDS OF GRANT, WASHINGTON
AND JEFFERSON ON THE
THIRD TERM
Theodore Roosevelt's announco
announccment of his candidacy for
a third term recalls the contest in
1880 when General Grant, after four
years absence from the White house,
was an unsuccessful candidate for
tho nomination for a third term.
In reply to a resolution adopted by
the Pennsylvania state convention In
May, 1875, President Grant, who
then serving his second term, wrote
to General Harry White, who pre
sided over the convention and in his
letter he said:
"Now, for the third term, I do not
want It, any more than I did tho
first."
General Washington, in his fare
well address, which is looked upon
as the foundation stono or the anti-third-term
rule, said:
"I beg you at tho same timo to do
me the justice to be assured that
this resolution has not been taken
without a strict regard to all the
considerations appertaining to tho
relation which binds a dutiful citizen
to his country and that in withdraw
ing the tender of service, which
silence in my situation might imply,
I am influenced by no diminution of
zeal for your future interests, no
deficiency of respect for your past
kindness, but am suported by a full
conviction that tho step Is compati
ble with both.
"Every day the Increasing weight
of years admonishes me more and
more that the shade of retirement is
as necessary to mo as it will bo wel
come. Satisfied that if any circum
stances have given peculiar value to
my services they were temporary, I
have the consolation to believe that
while choice and prudence Invite mo
to quit the political scene patriotism
does not forbid it."
Before the beginning of his second
term in the White house President
Jefferson on January 6, 1804, said:
"General Washington set the ex
ample of voluntary retirement after
eight years. I shall follow it, and
a few more precedents will oppose
the obstacle of habit to anyone, after
a while, who shall endeavor to ex
tend his term." St. Louis Republic.
manager
Not Fitted
The great dramatic
gasped.
"You can not smoke cigarettes?"
"I can not," replied the applicant
for a role.
"And you never utter an oath?"
"I never swear, sir."
"And yon don't even know how to
hiss through your teeth?"
"I do not."
"And yet you ask me to cast you
for the role of villain in my great
drama! I believe you are a mere
hireling of one of my jealous rivals,
sent here to ruin my production if
you can. Get out!"
Prepared
We are now prepared to see water
running up hill in an open ditch
And pigs flying through tho air
And fish walking on land
For, behold, is not Teddy stead
fastly refusing to be interviewed?
Brain Leaks
A lot of fellows who th.ink they
aro Iconoclasts are merely hammer
wielders. The widow's mito was not enough
to found a library, but the gift will
be remembered long after somo
present day libraries have crumbled
into dust.
THE INITIATIVE DECISION
Chief Justice White in the opinion
holding tho initiative and referen
dum valid (not only in .Oregon, but
in Missouri and in all the states and
in tho United States, wherever tho
people have provided it or may pro
vide it) makes a distinction between
popular or legislative acts "addressed
to the framework and political char
acter of tho government" and acts
which are "justiciable" In their na
ture. According to the distinction, it Is
a political act to provide the initia
tive or to provide a state commis
sion government instead of a gover
nor and legislature, etc. It Is justici
able to regulate commerce, to impose
a tax, etc. Of cases within the first
division the judiciary must keep
hands off, even though the constitu
tion has been violated. Only con
gress could determine that such an
act was unconstitutional and could
take such steps as it might deem
necessary to correct the political
wrong. And if congress did nothing,
nothing would be done. But of the
second sort of cases, those affecting
the rights of individuals, or groups
like rights of property, liberty, etc.
tho judiciary Is the interpreter of
the constitution.
The Income tax law was justici
able. The Hepburn rate law and the
state two-cent faro laws are justici
able. The chief justice expresses surprise
that the distinction was not obvious.
But there are many who set the line
of division between political and jus
ticiable functions at a different
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