The Nebraska Independent
JANUATiY 24, 1907
Nebraska Mgwg
Senator McKesson's bill to exempt
from taxation that part of the value
of real estate represented by a taxed
mortgage, Introduces a lively question
for debate. Under the law proposed
the tax on a mortgage may be paid in
either of two ways, by the holder of
the mortgage or by the owner of the
land under agreement with the mort
gagee. A farmer who borrows money
and gives a mortgage may agree, pre
sumably in consideration of a lower
interest rate, to pay the mortgage tax;
or he may pay the tax only on the un
mortgaged value of his land while the
owner of the mortgage pays the tax
on the mortgage, presumably protect
ing himself by a higher interest rate.
Such a proceeding, with all its compli
cations amounts in effect to abolish
ing the tax on real estate mortgages,
since the mortgage and the land to
gether would pay tax only on the as
sessed value of the land. By all odds
the logical way to go about the mat
ter would be simply to eliminate the
mortgage tax entirely and save the
troublesome and entirely unprofitable
complications involved in the round
about mortgage tax method. This will
probably not be politic at this time, for
the reason that a great many real
estate holders still cling to the delusion
that there is some way to tax a mort
gage so that the holder of the mort
gage will have to pay the tax. It will
probably take a. few years of such
measures as this to demonstrate to tax
payers that a tax cn mortgages, any
way they can fix It, will ultimately
and on the average be paid by the
mortgaged property, if not in the form
of tax, then In the name of interest.
Bo far as the state courts are con
cerned, the question of the validity of
the railroad commission , amendment
and the status of the railroad commis
sioners .will be settled without delay at
the time when such a question, ought
4o -be settled, bright "at tftcrp? ginning.
By grace of a legal device so eminent
ly sensible as to disarm for the mo
ment the critics of the many inade
quacies of legal procedure, it is made
possible to bring the question to judg
ment without waiting for the oppo
nents of the. measure to choose their
own time and manner of attack. The
right of the state to act through its
railroad commission may ultimately
have to be fought the weary, way'
through all the federal courts, but an
early decision-in the - Nebraska su
preme' court ' will" "cut off "' the
opportunity for gaining a year
"INCURABLE" HEART DISEASE
SOON CURED!
JBy the Great Specialist, in Treating
r ChronTc' 'Disease, FFahldm Miles, i; i
71 ' M- D. Ll. B. 7.
Will Send $2.50 Worth of His Personal
Treatment Free as a Trial.
To demonstrate the unusual curative
powers of his new and complete spe
cial treatments by mail for heart,
lungs, liver, stomach, kidney or ner
vous diseases, short breath, pain in
..the side, oppression in the chest, ir
regular pulse, palpitation, smothering
-spells, Puffing of the ankles, or
dropsy, Dr. Miles will send $2.50 worth
free as a trial, to all who mention
this paper.
His treatments are the result of
twenty-five years of careful study, ex
tensive research, and remarkable ex
perience in treating the various ail
ments of the heart, stomach and
nerves, which so often complicate
each case. So astonishing are the re
sults of his complete, spectaL treat
meets that he doeK not hesitate to
offer all persons a trial free.
Nothing could be more liberal. Few
physicians have such confidence in
their remedies. There is no reason
why all ai71ieid irsons should not
avail themselves of this exceedingly
liberal offer, as they may never have
another such opportunity. No death
comes as suddenly as that from heart
Mr. A. KrtiBi-k. nf tftintinvui, n1 , rur4
flf Ihlrtr I!TI taft laird; Mr. Uira iraUr,
tf Wriuaiui, o.. ftr nT-io; U. Wait,
tha noted a. t.r, firr -' ha) rmtriHl htm
Incttrabtw; Mr, frank i'mlilt f Chin., afwr C
lwai1i" phle an toad tirn bar up: Mr. Julma
Kaioirr, f hiragn, mtiti iro; Mr. It i'trr, mtttt
miwii, UiUi.
A thousand reference to, and tentl-
monialii from U'jhopi, Clergymen, j
Hanker, Farmer and thir wives j
vlll be sent fret upon rrqtient. Send i
a v artful ufKcrtpt'.ott of your rw, and
write for took, valuable advice urn!
treatment ft?e. Ur, ViankUu
MU, M. I, Li. H, IVft, 11, C01 to
11 MkIo 8L. Klkfcart. ltd.
or two of delay in the local courts
before beginning that succession of
battles. The legislature has earned the
thanks of the state for its sane course
in bringing the matter into its present
shape.
The new method of electing a United
States senator is so much in advance
of the old corrupt scramble that cul
minated in the scandals of 1901 that
the state will never willingly go back
to the old system. The next advance
will be the substitution of the primary
for convention nominations. That will
be as far as the state can go until a
federal constitutional amendment per
mits popular elections. As the country
is now moving, that wholesome reform
cannot be more than half a dozen years
In the future.
A curious gap in the laws protecting
minors from liquor and tobacco came
to light in the trial of Louie Kasdorf
for "bootlegging" in York the other
day. The evidence against Kasdorf
seemed to show that he had given
away whisky to minors, an offense fin
able to the amount of $25 when com
mitted by a licensed liquor dealer. The
defendant in this case was operating
without a license, however, and a
search of the statutes 'failed to find
anything to forbid ..an unlicensed liquor
purveyor from giving away liquor to
minors. The defendant was according
ly discharged. The law on this point
touching tobacco forbids any "person,
firm, or association" to furnish tobacco
in any way to minors under eighteen
years of age, but only licensed dealers
are forbidden to furnish liquor to
minors. The York Republican, which
reports the case, thinks that if one of
York county's representatives in the
legislature "drafts the proper bill to
remedy this glaring inconsistency on
the statute, by making it at least as
much of an offense to give booze to a
minor as it now is to give tobacco to a
jo 90djd XmaoAvasj-BJd XjdA v Mouiu
legislation would certainly be enacted."
nprrfi' W. "Fierce does the state a
service by devoting a part of the last
Issue fit the independent under ms
management to the question of ter
minal, taxation. An effort was made by
certain democratic politicians last cam
paign to make the people of the. state
believe that terminal taxation meant
taking a certain portion of the rail
road taxes' away from the country and
giving it to the towns. The statement
was so plainly false as to throw just
doubts upon the sincerity of any per
sons acquainted with the facts who
made such assertions. Mr. Rerfre's
statement of the matter, coming from
a prominent member of the party
which has not favored terminal taxa
tion should set at rest any ill informed
minds that may still suspept. a, ., scheme
IcCtake .something" from the country
and give It to the cities.
He says: "Terminal taxation means
that the plan of assessment for county,
school and state nurnoses shall
disturbed but that in the cities for city
purposes aione tne railroads shall be
assesed on all the property actually
in the cities. In dolner this it win nnt
increase the taxes of people in the
western counties one cent. It will
simply make the railroads
taxes in the cities and villages."
This explains the vigorous opposition
of the railroads to terminal taxation
an opposition which must have
seemed strange to those who sup
posed the matter to be merely a
question of the distribution of rail
road tax money between citv and
country. Terminal taxation is kmply
this: As everybody knows, the entire
value of railroad property, including
expensive improvements in tbe towns,
13 supposed to be distributed for tox
nj I on purposes over the entire line,
cities and towns are compelled to levy
filial city taxes for paving, fire pro
ection, policing nnd auch things, tho
benefits of which accruo to the rail,
road property within the town exactly
as to any other pTty. ynucr n;
present method, this extra city levy
falls, not upon the value of the rail
road property within the cities but
upon only that small proportion of the
valu of the property that th mileage
within the -Hi" a team to the total mil
of th lend. Th country doea
nor gain what the el'Ie la hr. Th
rti.trr.ad mm It by escaping their
hr of the taxot which go to pro.
uct and lmrra tho alu of thHr
i 4r,rr.rtJr Th cnttT na ho fl.
nancUl Interest In the question cf tr
riuiat taxation, but It ha a mnral n.
U rest h! locliic ,h town, r,.e,Mve
JuH:e in :M, matter at the hand of
the railroad.
Vtt !c.hol may nw h lud on
. U,.n tnnrKrtN fer .-iv rn n
l H, I Jit, rn U- Wti.r M,r psagr ,-.f
th.. frre iOfvbot bill i n Itttlr J
Mian h dtlr. It I riM r.tv t.-
ipbUn In Aim ! why th w.l ttn,
htl Interval Mbld iirtWnai tho hilt
Since the admission of Nebraska into
the union in 1867, this state has been
represented by fourteen different men
in the United States senate. Mr. Brown
is the fifteenth Nebraskan selected for
this post. That this office carries with
it pressing responsibilities as well as
honor may be gleaned gfrom a study
of the political history of his prede
cessors. "When the state was admitted
two senators were chosen. Genera!
Thayer, who drew the long fractional
term of four years, and T. W. Tipton,
who drew the short term of two years.
Senator Tipton was re-elected. The
succession in the two lines from Thay
er and Tipton respectively, is as
follows:
Tipton 1867-69
Tipton 1869-75
Paddock ......1875-81
VanWyck ....1881-87
Paddock 1887-93
Allen 1893-99
Hayward 199-99
Allen 1899-01
Dietrich 19!K-0G
JJurkett 1905
Thayer .........1867-71
Hitchcock 1871-77
Saunders ......1877-83
Manderson ....1883-89
Manderson ....1889-95
Thurston 1895-01
Millard 1901-07
Brown 1907
It will be seen that but two of these
senators were their own immediate
successors, Tipton and Manderson.
Paddock, who was defeated by Van
Wyck in 1881 succeded in turning the
tables on the victor six year:-! later
The name of Allen appears twice on
the list, the second time by appoint
ment for the short period between the
death of Senator Hayward and the
election by the next legislature. Man
derson, by reason of his ability and
prestige both at home and ' at Wash
ington and because of the quiet transi
tion stage of Nebraska politics in 1889,
was able to achieve a re-election with
out even coming home to ask for it.
But even this senator did not consider
it wise to ask for a third term, al
though his party was in power when
his successor was chosen.
The fate that has attached Itself to
the office of senator in Nebraska may
be ascribed to several causes un
wisdom in the use of patronage, the
unsettled eocial condition of a young
state, the warfare between the Union
Pacific and the Burlington railroads,
the struggle between the public and all
of the corporations, and the vicissitudes
of politics generally. The most im
pressive fact to a newly elected sena
tor must be the shortness of the polit
ical life of the average senator from
this state aiut the depth of the
oblivion into. which one may fall from
this high station.
Norris Brown is .the. second Nebraska
senator to be chosen by a method that
approaches a popular election. He too
will go to Washington without owing
allegiance to any corporation, newspa
per or faction. He will be in a posi
tion to represent not this or that rail
road or banking interest, but the whole
people. With the exception of Sen
ator Burkett, no. senator has gone to
Washington from this state in recent
years with the possibility of greater
freedom and usefulness.
V.'His greatest danger pre bably lies In
the matter of hi?: private finances- As
he is a public man, entrusted with the
highest honors a itate can bestow, it
must not be counted in bad taste to
discuss this matter frankly. His ele
vation to high office is due to his own
courage and ability. He is not a man
of means. He will be thrown with his
family into a city where the salary of
a senator means poverty, particularly
since many favors and privileges here
tofore enjoyed are now withdrawn.
Senator Norris Brown Is about to en
ter a fiery furnace that will show in
a short time whether he is made of
gold or a material that will fall to
pieces under the social trial he Is about
to undergo. No Nebraska senator ever
had greater opportunities. Probably
none ever needed so many Spartan vir
tues to withstand the lure of the pres
ent extravagant social life of the na
tional capital. It Is unnecessary to add
that his friends are confident that he
will endure the test.
The house of representatives has
recommended for passage a bill per
mitting "any veterinary surgeon who
has ben a successful practitioner for
five years" to use the title of veterinary
surgeon. Thh Is In fact a bill to dis
courage the study of science- anions?
men aspiring to practice as voterinn
rlaiiM, Any man who treat. his rwn
dniestlc animals and those of his
neighbor In a desultory way for five
year will bo nM t. Jffei proof that
he lm bef-n In ''fl.ttvtastul practice"
for the required time, aid will thtn
be able m put out ua tign as a "vet
erinary Minfuov with a much an
mirnnw a !w .ere a graJuat of a
nehooj r had Intern th "'K,:lar ?ate
i-xarnlnat.'on. If thl olll 1 parsed,
tin mtlre tauu ;ocnlnir thH ub
Jrt mirht aa well rrn ritn It.
In truth, the exlstlnjr lw la extreme
ly libra I In th nutter ot t..lwwln
amteur hor doctori to practk nnd
to ryitf inonv fr thHr rvlce.
"Nothing in tM" act. lh law read.
? "shsUl prevent nnv prop practicing
veterinary nirdUin. veterinary rur-ir-ry
or vettrlnarv dmthtry In thU
I Mute, prxvl'l. t, n.M hrwtrt klwtll not
I aMirt if u thu tuK it veterinarian
er KiuUyou tHI, or that of any
gree or part thereof conferred by any
recognized veterinary college or uni
versity." Under this law the sign "Veterinary
surgeon" means that the man showing
it has some knowledge of the' science.
Under the bill as recommended for
passage in the, house it will mean
nothing. But it will be a grand thing
for the livery stable "Doc."
Once in a while we get a bit-Impa
tient , with our Nebraska winds. Th&
smoky city has 'lately been giving an
exhibition ofhow much more "might we
be impatient over a lack of wind.
Pittsburg nearly smothered in its own
smoke last week. Day and night were
as one, all because ofx want of wind
to carry away the fog and smoke of
a spell of muggy weather.
As forecasted before the legislature
met, the question of the formV-f euro
food law to be enacted in Nebraska
Is to be largely a question of who shall
have the pleasure cf administering' the
law. In general, whatever lav is
passed seems destined to follow closely
the national pure food act which went
into effect at the begrcnlng of the
year. But. the proper enforcement of
a pure food law requires special of
ficers. Enforcement of the Joke which
now passes for a pure food law in
Nebraska. J? provided 'or by making
the governor state food commissioner,'
and giving him authority to apoolr,t a
deputy commissioner to r?Io hi;; lime
to the duties incident to the ttit'orce
ment of the act. Senate file No. 4, in-,
troduced by Senator Burns, is a pure
food bill modeled after the federal law
and continuing this system 3f enforce
ment, the deputy commissioner to re
ceive a salary of St.8t a 'year. A sen
ate bill Introduced by D". Wilson turns
the enforcement of the Law over to the
doctors by having the secretaries of
the state board of health appoint an
inspector of food and drugs who "shall
be a graduated physician of practical
skill and experience." It is not clear
whether osteopaths are eligible to thi
plum, which involves a salary of $2,500
a year, but it is evident that Christian
scientists are not. Thus far the gro
cers and the undertakers, ". both of
whom have a direct interest in the
matter, do not seem to have applied
for the privilege of enforcing the pure
food law, but the session is yet young.
People with no particular axe to grind
would generally like to see the en
forcement of the act turned over to the
state university, through its agricul
tural department, as is done in Ken
tucky where a pure food law is operat
ing with marked .benefit to the public.
Lieutenant , .Governor Hopewell does
not regard precedent, although he Is
a lawyer and a jurist. lie arose in the
sacred precincts of the senate in com
mittee of the whole yesterday and said
if there were no objections he ' would
like to be heard on the bill under con
sideration. No one voiced an objection
and he made an eloquent speech in fa
vor of preventing the shooting of
squirrels at any time of the year. The
senate had not recovered from its sur
prise until he had made an effective
plea against a bill under considera
tion. The bill affected nothing but tho -squirrels
and hundreds of people In
Nebraska who feei a sentiment in fa
vor of the graceful little "beasts" as
their friend, Senator Gibson of f
Douglas, who was in the chair, called
them, will applaud him. Hundreds of
other citizens who regard the. graceful
little beasts as legitimate game for the
hunter, under restrictions of a game
law, and who take the testimony of
ornithologists that squirrels are rob
bers of birds, the protector of crops
from insects, will charge that the lieut
enant governor had no more authority
to make a speech before the .senate
than any other outsider who is not a
member of that body.
Those bills by Representative K. P.
Brown that won favor in tho house
against the withes of most of the law-
The idivest Life
On January 22, 1907, the Midwest
LUe of Lincoln. Neb, filed its first an
nual report with the state insurance
department. According to this report
the company had in force 42ti policies,
aggregating $55.00o r Insurance. Am
the company did not commence writ
ing buslnm until May It did in the
eight remaining months of the year an
iii'Klegate of JTO.OOa it month, of the
4'.U policies In forte, I'rtt w .r,- u pay.
inent Lire 68 were Ordinary Life, fi
wen J" Payment Life, 41 Were lo Pay.
inent Life, 3i were Lndouinent nnd "7
Wife Term Pullcle, The .oj-it av.
mined 11.312 In amount. The averuKe
premium uaa $36.14 nnd th.. av.iiiif.
uge 32 yearn.
The report further utiuw th.it the
Midrt Life ban admitted ai of
$lir..2!SI and that It tut liability to
Hi poiUboldr li 12,437.03. Of tiu-,.,,
ihm-h of the company till. 2U are in
Hr( teal estlute inottK ngvA niu $lfl,!,p
of then.. Hfr deposited Uh the nUt
Hu.Ut.r for Ihe wecurity of tt polity-hol-Hr-
.No deathn are Mmvvn.
The Mldttft Life h the onlv Ne.
br.;-h- Company which op raten
wholly on the mmtnl dlvhVnd plan.
