cwpf'? wjs&mw!y-!$rvgQ7
&
The Commoner.
TOLUME 13, NUMBER 3
tcA
w
fc
The Commoner.
ISSUED WEEKLY
ICntored at tho PoBto'fflco at Lincoln, Nobranka,
on nccond-cInflH matter.
Wiixiam J. llllVAN
Killlnrnnil 1'rnprlfitor
JticiiAJii) L. Mi'rcAi.KK
Aioclnti- rdllor
Ciiaiii.wi W. JIItYAK
I'titilMicr
Kdltnrlnl Itootn mill JJiiHlnciw
Olllrc. JM-3J0 Huulli 12th Htrcnt
Oho Ycnr 91.00
Mix Mouth no
In Clubn of Flvo or
more, por year, , ,7f
Three Month B
KImkIc Copy B
Hainplo CoplcB Free.
Foreign Post, r2c Extra.
NIJIINCHII'TIONS can bo ncnt direct to Tho Com
moner. Thoy can also he Hent through nownpapera
which have atlvortlacd a clubbing' rate, or through
local agentn, where Btib-agontH liavo been ap
pointed. All renilttanceH should bo Hent by post
ofneo money order, oxpresB order, or by bank draft
on Now York or Chicago. Do not send Individual
thockH, stamps or money.
OilANCJM oir AUIJHICSS Subftcrlbcrfl rcqueHtlng
a change of addreaw niH.st give old an well an now
MldreHB.
ADVlCltTlSlNt Rntt-B will bo furnished upon
application.
AddrcsB nil communications to
THE COMMONER, Lincoln. Neb.
half holiday (Sundays In addition) for workers
in factories and stows, seats for salesgirls, good
ventilation, sarely elevators and guarded ma
chinery; no night work for women or young
people, no employment of boys or girls without
pay, cash payment of wages, etc. Sweat shops
liavo been practically abolished by thorough in
spection, labeling of goods, prohibition of night
work, lines for every violation, etc.
25). Jt alms to abolish the contractor system
in public works and substitutes direct employ
ment undor co-oporativo conditions, whereby
wages have been increased, quality of work im
proved, coHt of construction diminished and in
dustry and character developed.
HO. It purchases estates in or near the cities
and towns, divides them up for workers' homes
and makes advances to the workmen to help
thorn build their homes, aiming to destroy the
Blums and tenements, which still exist to some
ox tent.
31. It has turned back tho tide of population
from the cities to the country and aims to do
ao still more.
32. Annuities are eivnn to tho nsod poor,
so they can live at homo in their declining years
secure from want. Justice is given instead of
charity. Political corruption is almost unknown
now.
33. The government leases land for 5 per
Tnlln i,a ,vn!uo ycarly t0 settlers and loans
$350 to each family that want to start farms.
34. All land improvements are exempt
Mortgages are deducted in estimating taxes and
assessed to the lender. Estates less than $2 500
arc exempt. The old, widows and orphans who
receive less than $1,000 yearly are exempt The
graduated land tax begins when the improved
value roaches $25,000. Absentee owners pay
20 per cent moro. Government has the right
to buy any property at owner's assessed value
35. The graduated income tax begins with
those making over $1,700 yearly (with $250
allowed for insurance premiums. It has
chocked monopoly, decreased desire for large
fortunes and created a far moro Christian spirit
among the people. There are no great million
aires and no paupers in New Zealand now There
is also a graduated inheritance tax and man?
other reforms too numerous to mention
bonenVdS 1S C0UClU8iV Vid0nCe of
United
n ,, States
Per capita circulation $ 34 59
Per capita bank deposits. . 4523
Averago deposit account.. 40044
New
Zealand
$ 4S.G3
133. OS
497.73
,. i "ii.,: . u.nt
vuiiiut WUUIlll l.SlO.nn 1 firrr- nn
ino above is taken largely from "Th o
of New Zealand," published by D?C pVi"?
1520 Chestnut street, Philadelphia. ' TayIor
It Is not necessary to say moro
Philadelphia aLLIAM 'ARD.
00$)00000
fS fiiilicnfilinita mi.- n
commenced with tho first issue of tho ffl
paper should renew their subscriptions a
iwy to avoid tlio possibility of missing
an issue of tho paper. " x
0000
A LEADER UNAFRAID
. Following is a special dispatch to the New
York World: Trenton, N. J Jan I5- "eB1
dent-elect Wilson said today with reference to
his recent speeches: i
"I stand pat," adding later, "I have given
no consideration to the reports of Wall street
dissatisfaction with my remarks."
There was a good deal of panic talk about
the state house during the day that might be
characterized as "amused comment."
Senator-elect Ollio James of Kentucky and
Senator Thomas P. Gore of Oklahoma don t
think there is going to he any panic. But if
there is, Mr. James thinks he knows what will
happen. Directly after he had conferred with
the governor, though he made it plain that he
was not divulging what had been discussed, he
nnnounced flatly that in the case of panic the
democrats in congress would appoint an investi
gating committee which would learn who was
responsible and deal with that individual.
Ever since the governor made his speech in
Chicago letters and telegrams have been pour
ing in upon him. A great number of these
have contained denunciations, while scores have
counselled less outspoken utterances.
There were no fewer than 3,000 letters await
ing Governor Wilson on his return from Chicago.
He has not seen all of these and there is no
way of knowing how many of them referred to
tho speech, either in laudatory or other terms.
After the Trenton speech last Monday another
extremely large batch of mail was received.
John W. Williams of New York City is not
personally known to Governor Wilson, so far
as the governor can recall. Nevertheless Mr.
Williams took it upon himself to send the
governor the following telegram:
"Don't bo such a fool. Use your brains and
keep your mouth shut. Don't be a silly ass and
make the whole country ashamed of you."
Governor Wilson himself made this telegram
public and in doing so he said:
"I want this made public because I want tho
country to know that I get that sort of criti
cism from New York and I want the country to
know that the telegram was transmitted by the
Postal Telegraph company."
At the time this was all the governor would
say except, "I stand pat." When asked later
in tho day about tho effect his recent speeches
have had, he said: "I have given no considera
Hoti to tho matter."
But Joseph Tumulty, the governor's secretary,
made a statement early in the day which re
flected tho governor's views, for Mr. Tumulty
showed it to him before issuing it for publica
tion. The statement read:
"Attempts are being made to make an issue
of Governor Wilson's speech at Chicago. This
is nothing less than amusing. Governor Wil
son's attitude on business and its relation to
the government, as expressed in his several
speeches since election, is, as any well informed
person in the country would testify, exactly the
same as his attitude before IiIb nomination and
before his election.
"Every word that Gove.rnor Wilson has.
uttered is in complete harmony with the prin
ciples to which he has strictly adhered through
out his public career.
"If there is any surprise at this attitude it
can be manifested only by those who fail to
realize that the country had elected to the
presidency an honest and fearless man who
means exactly what he says."
The president-elect had three callers of na
tional Importance today. They were Senator
elect James. Senator Gore and Senator Stone of
Missouri. Senator Stone, whp is known for
the information he does not disclose, was with
the governor about fifteen minutes. The others
talked to him about ninety minutes each.
LIMITING SHIPMENTS OP LIQUOR
Tho Shepard-Kenyon bill, now pending in
congress, having for its purpose the discontinu
ance of shipments of liquor from "wet" Sto
"dry" states, will have a merry time hefnii h
gteonto the statute books, if It evretfthere
in&
constitutionality of the unde'rta ktaj" lUM
to ho tested, even if the proponents of tht
measure should win a victory Th? h?Le
A. Ule,reaaon is obvious. They call it no
triotic. The people must have liquor tw
can never get along without it nl hey
and distillers say J, attat sWwK
Those who cherish the
same ideals and labor for a
common cause are bound
together by ties that are
stronger than ties of blood.
question. It is not that they care to serve the
people, nay verily. They would rather not, but
the public craving is such that it must he satis
fied to ward off universal madness. Further
more, to stop interstate shipments of liquor,
from "wet" into "dry" territory, would be an
other hindrance, and render the falsity of the
statement the more palpable, that there is more
liquor consumed and more drunkenness in com
munities where the saloon is not, than in com
munities where it is.
Three types of people are opposing the passage
of the bill, viz., the brewers, distillers and tho
politicians who depend upon the brewers and
distillers, and their distributaries, the saloons,
for electoral support. The saloonists are main
ly interested for the reason that, should a "dry"
wave hit their community, they might want to
run a "blind-tiger" and without a' source of
supply, that might be rather inconvenient.
Saloonists are always anxious., when out of
business, to have as much liquor consumed, and
as much drunkenness as possible, so they can
have it to point to in evidence 6f prohibition's
failure.
If the democrats in congress have any sense
of moral justice, they will do their best to pass
the Shepard-Kenyon bill. Their philosophy of
state rights, and encouragement to the largest
possible measure of local self-government, im
poses upon them the duty of securing to those
rights, and such government the largest pos
sible measure of protection from imposition
from other states. And the progressives in
congress, adherents of the "new nationalism,"
have an equally bounden duty to perform in
the same direction. If it is the duty of the
brotherhood of states to Interfere where state
inertia or local self-government is "inefficient, it
is equally bounden to protect state activity, and
local self-government, in every degree of effi
ciency attained.
The democrats and progressives in congress
can convert the Shepard-Kenyon bill into law
if they will. There are enough of them there
on the ground. The failure of the undertaking
will be theirs. It defies the moral sensibilities
of any man to give good reasons why a com
munity, striving to get rid of an evil; an evil
that is evil only, and evil continually, should
be hampered in the attempt by the laxity of an
interstate commerce law, affording to other
states the right of imposition. South Bend
(Ind.) Enquirer.
NO MONEY TRUST; BUT
There is no money trust in Wall street; but
The First National bank, whose president,
George F. Baker, testified before the Pujo com
mittee, had a capital stock of $500,000 when, he
took hold of it in 1874.
inAnJL caPital stock was increased to
?l 0,00 0,0 00 by the simple process of declaring
a stock dividend of $9,500,000. In addition
there remained a surplus of $3,415,000.
In 1902 the bank paid 20 per cent dividends
on thi3 new capitalization; in 1903 it paid 20
lel CntoU? 1904 U paId 20 Per cent; In 1905
it paid 26 per cent; in 1906 it paid 26 per
cent; in 1907 it paid 32 per cent; in 1908, tho
year following the Roosevelt panic, it paid 12 G
Rer Cf?t;oin 1909 H Paid 28 Per cent; in 1910
it paid 28 per cent; in 1911 it paid 38 per
cent; in 1912 1 it .paid 33 per cent.
Between 1902 and 1911 the total dividends
amounted to $22,600,000, or more than i double
the capital stock which in turn is twenty times
tho original capital stock.
w'iBak0Pi.iBin? believer in publicity, and
SSi ! muf lnformation which a congres
fi omm.lttee Beems Powerless to demand
mi IS eminent gentlemen who make millions
th ?Tnub2?1?ng charters granted to them by
en? in tateB Boyemment. Therefore, tho
country will never know in detail how the
SKEffi- f thQ FirSt Natioa
BonMhL,8TnS miDey trU8t' but what testimony
? ?e,orf eloquent than these figures of
?SaXSl0l0d 1div,idends declared by the bank
SnPfJlia!ly the representative f Wall
street and trust methods?- New York World.
V
