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About The independent. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 18, 1902)
8 THE NEBRASKA INDEPENDENT. DECEMBER 18, 1902. News of the Week United States steel stock, common, went down to 31 5-8 the other day and the papers say that it Rockefel ler, Gould and the Vanderbilts had not come to the rescue there would have been a general smash up. Very I re quently of late, the same sort of a tale has been told and the question is how many more times will the big millionaires come to the rescue of the stock market and prevent a panic? If the small fellows have formed a pool to squeeze the Vanderbilts, Goulds and Rockefellers and put them in such a fix that every week or two they have to put up a few millions to prevent a panic, perhaps the day may come when this trio will not have the mil lions handy to do it. What then? The holders of stocks and bonds pay Ing annual, -semi-annual or quarterly dividends will be looking for their money on the first day of January. What will Wall street do then? The United States treasury has been cleaned of its last cent that can be thrown on the street to prevent a pan ic. There Is an immense amount of "liquidation" going on just at present to enable the banks to get the money that will be needed on that day. The universal scarcity of coal is causing surprise in every quarter. Why should there be a scarcity at all? It is true that the mining of anthra cite was suspended for some months, but President Baer has testified that the hard coal miners could not find a market for more than 60 per cent of the full output and the soft coal mines have been running with full force all the time. Besides that, winter was very late and not half the usual amount of coal was used during Sep tember, October and November. Why then is there a scarcity all over the country? The reports in the papers say that some factories and many schools had to close last week in the eastern states for the want of coal. There was danger last week of the great packing houses at Omaha having to close for the same cause. If the daily press would give their reporters orders to write up something else than divorces, murders and burglaries, they might be of some use. They could find out the cause of all this shortage. The state of Michigan has increased the taxation of the railroads in that state more than one million and a quarter of dollars. The mullet heads of Nebraska decided that they did not want the railroads in this state to pay their fair share of the taxes, each on? of the fellows with patches on his pants voting against it in the hope that he might some day get a pass. Meantime he will pay the taxes for the railroads out of his own pocket. proportion treating on economics and sociology,.; Several attack the trusts and one of them, "Esshek," was with drawn by the publisher and after ward issued by another. It appears that the study of economics and so ciology has just begun among the mass of the people. The old pops of this state who were so reviled a few years ago, would now be received in most of the eastern states as most wise and learned. . Many a speech which this writer has heard delivered by the reform farmers of this state in years gone by is now worked up into a 300-page volume and sold for $1.50 in aristocratic book stalls. The slimy trust has reached out itr. tentacles and wound them around the Christmas tree. A toy trust has been organized taking in 95 per cent of the manufacturers of this country and is "capitalized" at $7,000,000. Everv one has in some way to make his contribu tions to the trusts for they must make prices that will pay dividends on stock watered from 100 to 400 per cent. Now the trusts have laid their heavy hands on the wee little tots and they. too. must become contributors. Teddy says thajt there are good trusts and bad trusts. Is this toy trust one of the good ones? There is a consensus of public opin ion, ' generally expressed in all the papers of the United States that' are known to ever have, any opinions of their own, that the assault by two great . empires upon the republic of Venezuela is cowardly and brutal, while all seem to doubt that the great expense ;tfiat Germany and England have gone to is simply-for the col lection of some bad debts. The Denver News says: "Just what is behind the sudden raid against President. Castro's government is a puzzle. The total amount said to be due to Great Britain and Germany is about $70.000 a sum hardly large enough to warrant the employment of two squadrons as col lecting agents. Everybody knows that a revolution has been raging in Venezuela; that the government of the country is embarrassed and that it is practically without funds. Why do the two European nations choose this particular time to jump on the little country, sink its petty flept and seize its principal custom house?" There has never been such a flood of new books thrown on the market since the world began as during the last few weeks. An enormous amount of space in the dailies is taken up in advertis ing them. Among them is an unusual There was a great recipr6city con vention held in Detroit and Governor Cummins was there to -uphold the "Iowa idea." One argument which it seems would have forced itself upon them all was not mentioned at all, although most of the time was given up to advocating reciprocity with Can ada. Here are 45 states and there is absolute free trade among them all Any man who would advocate the es tablishment of a tariff between them would be considered insane.- The "home market," that is, the traffic be tween the states, is so enormous that no man can compute it and it is the foundation of all our great manufac turing interests. The wealth that is created is such as the world never saw before. A tariff between the states would greatly reduce that production. Canada for the most part is separated by only an imaginary line. Would not the extension of free trade to Canada have the same beneficent effect that it has in these states? If not, why not? The New York papers announce that Secretary Shaw will do nothing to re lieve the present money stringency on Wall street. Very good reason why he will not There is no more money in the treasury which he can hand over to the banks. The "working bal ance" of the treasury fell below $50, 000,000 one day last week. Mrs. U. S. Grant, wife of General Grant, died at Washington last Sun day at the age of 76. She was one of the old-fashioned wives, caring every thing for her husband and children and nothing for the frivolities of mod ern society. Her death, more than that of any other, ma'rks the line be tween the generation that fought the civil war and those who will take their onward swing of the centuries. Only 5 Won Buyi ig D&ys 'CHI Christmas The prettiest store decorations with the scores of Red Bells made so beau tiful attractive by scores of electric lights, superb holiday stocks through out the entire hnusa. The clisteninc of the Cut Glass room and exhibit of rich vasea and fine chinaware, make a com bination unexcelled by any store in the entire west. Such is the verdict of the thousands wh6 daily throng this Progressive Store. Sensible Suggestions for Sensible Gifts Xmas Kid Glove Headquarters The United States Investor declares that the predictions The Independent made months ago concerning the in flation of bank credits have been ful filled. In speaking of the "liquida tion" which has been going on for the last two or three weeks, the Investor eays: "Last Saturday's bank state ment was merely another of those in dications, of which the financial world lias had so many of late, that the banks are finding that it is much eas ier to create an uncomfortable situa tion than to remedy it. The long and short of the matter is that our great promoters and ' the banks that are back of them have gone so far in their inflation schemes that they are ob liged to go even farther." Another instance exactly parallel to that of the collectors' trust now oper ating in Venezuela was when England, Spain and France formed such a com bination to collect debts in Mexico. They sent their fleets there and the French stayed, 'undertook to take pos session of the country and installed Maximilan as emperor. - These govern ments made exactly the same profes sions that Germany and England now make.: France . .baa, larger claims against Venezuela than Germany and England comibued, but has made an arrange ment for arbitration and. settlement with the guarantee that the custom du ties shall be applied to the payment of the award. Now if Gerniny and England seize the custom houses and take all the revenue, France will be left to hold the sack and out of that situation another complication may arise. The Springfield (Mass,) Republican describes the coal famine in that city as follows: "The situation in this city and in all the cities of the state and this section of the country in respect to fuel is entirely unprecedented. The like of it has never been known in the history of the country, whether within the period of the use of coal as a domestic fuel or back of that when all dependence was upon wood. Prob ably two-thirds of the people of this town, in the midst of about as severe weather as a New England winter ever brings, are being driven to the most Kid Gloves purchased for Xmas gifts will be fitted free of charge after the holidays and exchanged for cor rect sizes if returned in perfect con dition. Women's fine French Lambskin Kid Gloves in 2 clasp over-seam glace and suede, and 2-clasp heavy Mocha, pair .$1 00 First quality fine French Lambskin Kid Gloves in 3-clasp overseamand 2-clasp pique, also 2-clasp heavy mannish gloves, pair $1 25 First quality fine French Kid Gloves in 3-clasp overseam suede or glace, 2-clasp genuine Arabian Mocha, 2- clasp genuine Cape Goat, per pair.... $1 50 Finer Gloves a pair 1.75 and $2 00 Handkerchiefs for Xmas Gifts. Thousands of Initial Handkerchiefs Women's initial handkerchiefs, pure linen,' hemstitched, embroidered initials. .5c Women's sheer linen, hemstitched with small embroidered initials, each 10c Women's very fine Irish linen, hand embroidered initials, unlaundered, each.J7c Men's Japonette silk hemstitched handkerchiefs, large silk initials, each.. . . -10c Men's pure linen handkerchiefs, hemstitched, embroidered initial -12C Men's fine Irish linen initial handkerchiefs 25c Men's silk handkerchiefs, embroidered initials , 25c rger size and heavier quanty silk ; 49c HOLIDAY LEATHER GOODS A mammoth showing of holiday leather goods of every description, and two special lots of stylish wrist bags, chatelaine bags, combination pocket boks and card cases, purses, music rolls, card case, and shopping bags in real seal, walrus, morocco and cape goat; your choice of this lot only 49c and 25c Fine pocket books in genuine seal, walrus, cape goat, combination pocket books and card cases, calf faced and lined, block boUoms, best frames, all new shapes and col ors, each .......... 75c to $8 00 Fine chatelaine bags in genuine seal and walrus leather, plain and fancy frames, each. . .-. . . .75c to $4 00 Have You Visited Our Cut Glass and Vase Room Yet? Located in former Ladies' Pattern Hat room, 2d floor, a room of beauty and well worth a visit. $4,50 Lamps for $3.00 ft 50 of the elegant, genuine Kopp Cerese Red Lamps, absolutely fast colors, central draft success burner, 100 candle power, lift out fonute, gold plated trimmings, a lamp retail ing in Chicago for $4.50, our Xmas sale price each $3 00 Special line of fine Mustache Cups and saucers, 12 different styles, regular price 65c, 75c, 85c and 11.00 5QC Special lot of German China after dinner coffee cups and saucers, including 10 dozen Haviland China A. D. coffees, worth 50c, '25c 10 doz Bohemian glass gold decorated Water Sets with jug, 6 glasses and tray, worth $1.35, complete, as cut 95 c desperate expedients to keep their houses warm, and often to keep only one or two rooms in the house, toler able. Some of them have a little hard coal which must be used sparingly. Others are relying upon wood; others upon charcoal, soft coal, even engine sparks and boards. Gas heaters and oil heaters come into anxious, requisi tion, shade trees and fruit trees have been sacrificed and oil-soaked bricks are resorted to." Can any man give a satisfactory1 reason for this shortage of fuel? The Independent surmises that it is the effect of a secret trust movement and that congress would do a good thing by appointing a com mittee to investigate it. The Retort Courteous One Gust Berg, a denizen of Omaha following an ancient, but fallacious custom, "advertised his wife" in the World-Herald some days ago," stating that, "whereas," etc., he would' "not be responsible for debts contracted by his wife, Tennie Berg." It seems that Tennie was equal to the emergency and she wrote the World-Herald that Gust had not paid any of her debts for the last ten years, "unless she gave him money that she had worked for herself." Gust's advertisement was on a par with the; gold standard argu ments advanced by the man whosz trousers are sadly in need of repairs It doesn't take much to move the political teeter board down in Saline county, but this year they have to pay $1,250.34 for listening to the siren voice that caused them to beat Billy Thompson 390 plurality. The smallest December school apportionment war rant ever issued by the fusionists to Saline county was $5,579.55; this year the republicans give $4,329.25.