Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About Hemingford herald. (Hemingford, Box Butte County, Neb.) 1895-190? | View Entire Issue (March 18, 1898)
J V x V 1 n l F . M V t Va pt l i m u 1 r THE VICTORY OF HON. CH AS. A. TOWNE In tho Arena. At Heraclca, with the Romans In tu multuous retreat before him, I'yrrhus the Eplrot took counsel of his prophetic oul and dreaded the repetition of such a victory. Things ore not, necessarily, what they seem. Fnblus, falling back again and again as his enemy ndvanccd, was regarded by the camp followers of his pursuer as not only defeated, but disgraced. Subsequent observers huve reached a dlfercnt conclusion. To his routed soldiers fleeing before the Im petuous onset of Charles XII, Peter the Great admln!Ftr-d the consolation that the victorious Swede was but teaching them how to conquer him. The political campaign of 1896 tesult d In the upparcnt success of the gold standard. Its forces Immediately en tered upon an armed occupation of the country and began carrying out an elab orate program fpr making the conquest Mcure and permanent. They nre multi plying and provisioning their strategic utposts, and their comninndiug officers display all the swagger and Insolence of conquerors. In the latest operation uccessfully concluded by their arms the great state of Ohio surrcndeied at discretion, and the victorious satrap who had conducted the siege returned, flushed wlthrrlde nnd swollen with offi cial plunder, in more than Homan tri umph to the capital. But the end is not yet. Those who are not blinded by spectacle and pa geantry or deafened by tho obedient shouts of hired retainers; those who have studied the motives of the com batants, the origin of the dispute, and the fundamental nature of the contro versy, know full well that these dem onstrations In the gold-standard camp are at least premature. A great cause is rarely won In a sin gle engagement. The final and decisive cattle comes only after a long campaign of strategy and maneuvers, In the course of which many skirmishes be tween detachments of the main armies, and even some partial collisions of the latter themselves, will occur, and with varying fortune. Meantime, If one of the forces be composed of seasoned vet ran troops, thoroughly disciplined, well appointed and provisioned, com manded by experienced tacticians, pos sessing unlimited resources, and oper ating on interior lines; while the other consists In large degree of raw levies, undrilled, supplied but poorly with ac coutrements and commissary, under Ulcers not bred to arms, with nearly empty war-chest, and attacking from scattered bases of operation; It may be well that for the former every conflict that ends short of the complete de moralization of their foe is a defeat, while for the latter every skirmish or collision that tries their valor, adds to their confidence, Improves their disci pline, and teaches them mutual reli ance, Is a victory. The campaign of 1896 was not a final engagement. It was but the greatest of the scries of preliminary tests of strength and courage that precede the death grapple. And yet It was a stu pendous battle. It was a magnificent struggle. Little wonder that the sup porters of the gold standard, who, an ticipating an easy encounter with far Inferior forces, found, when the conflict was over, that they had gained a de cision over an army stronger by almost a million men (Mr. Bryan received 6,502,923 votes. The largest popular vote for president ever before given to fc...!date was Mr. Cleveland's In 1892, viz., 6,650,918.) than any that had ever before gathered under the banner of a cause at an election, should at first mag nify the importance of the event and regard the result as conclusive. But they are beginning to realize that error. After Innumerable Interments of the "dead cause of silver," and after ten thousand obituaries upon Its splendid leader In that contest, an Increasing number of the principal gold-and-mo-nopoly organs are wnrnlng their par tisans against over-confidence, advising them that neither bimetallism nor Bry an Is dead after all, and adjuring them to prepare for the last great clash of arms that Is to determine the fate of the country. Before 1S9G the line of battle between the cause of an appreciating money measure and its allied evils i one hand, and that of the general wellare of the masses of mankind on the other, had not been plainly drawn. An approxi mately clear definition of that line Is the first and greatest victory for the people growing out of that campaign. For many years the cunning of those who have beon planning to subdue the republican party Into an obedient In strument of the purposes of the selfish Interests of the world was able effectu ally to disguise both Its ulterior de signs and the gradual steps by which the party was being led Into a practical championship of them For a long time the language of Its platforms was per mitted to breathe fidelity to principles which its actual administration of the government was constantly discredit ing. For example, in 18S8 that party in Its national platform ranged itself on the side of the people In the two fol lowing pronouncements, the one for bi metallism, and the other against the trusts: "The republican party Is In favor of the use of both gold and silver as mon ey, and condemns the policy of the democratic administration In Its efforts to demonetize silver." "We declare our opposition to all combinations of capital, organized In trusts or otherwise, to control arbitrar ily the condition of trade among our cit izens; and we recommend to congres" and the state legislatures, In their re spective jurisdictions, such legislation as will prevent the execution of all schemes to oppress the people by undue charges on their supplies, or by unjust rates for thp transportation of their products to market." Again, In Its platform of 1892, It reit erates these positions: "The American people, from tradition and Interest, favor bimetallism, and the republican party demands the use of both gold and silver as standard money. "We reaffirm our opposition, declared tn the republican platform of 18S8, to all combinations of capital, organized in trusts or otherwise, to control arbitrar ily the condition of trade among our Citizens. We heartily endorse the ac tion already taken upon this subject, and ask for such further legislation ns may be required to remedy any defects In existing laws and to render their en forcement more complete and effective." Meantime the clutch of special inter ests upon the party and upon the gov ernment, and that, too, regardless of what party was In power, was becom ing tighter and more relentless. By plain administrative usurpation a pre tended construction of the law was made whereby the government surren dered its option to pay Its demand ob ligations in either gold or silver, and rave to the holders the right of com pelling payment In gold; and In every conceivable way the attempt was made to eke out by the Interpretation and vi olation of statutes whatever the law lacked of having put us absolutely upon THE VANQUISHED. the gold Btnudard. At the same time, under the it petus of declining prices and reduced consumption resulting from the appteclattoti of gold, and with the encouragement and favor of gov ernment, the Uusts nnd monopolies continued to giow In numbers und in power. When the republican national con vention met In 1896, the gold-and-mo-nopoly Interests thought themselves sufficiently strong to take a gieat step forward In the ussertlon of their pur poses. It was not deemed quite mifu to go at one bound from the direct and positive promises of bimetallism of 1SSS and 1S92 clear over to unadulterated gold monomntulllsm. The process must be a little more gradunl thun that. A sort of half-way resting place was need ed, and this was found In a weak and transparently dishonest declaration for an international agreement for the free coinage of silver, Intended to quiet the BUspicious but predisposed-to-be-dclu 1 ed bimetallism, followed by an emphat ic and unambiguous assertion In favor of the gold standard, designed ns an as surance to the creditor Interest of tho woild. Here Is the famlllnr plank: "The republican party Is unreserved ly for sound money. It caused the en actment of the law providing for tho resumption of specie payments In 1879, and since then every dollar has been as good as gold. We are unalterably opposed to every measure calculated to debase our currency or impair the cred it of our country. We are therefore (sic I) opposed to the free coinage of sil ver except by international agreement with the leading commercial nations of the world, which we pledge ourselves to promote; and until such agreement can be obtained the existing gold standard must be preserved. All our silver and paper curnGtcy must be maintained at parity with gold, and we favor all meas ures designed to maintain Inviolably the obligations of the United States and all our money, whether coin or paper, at the present standard, the standard of the most enlightened nations of the earth." It cannot be regarded ns a mere co Incidence that this platform which hus signalized the capture of the repub licans by the British money stand ard, should have had never a word to say on the subject of trusts nnd mo nopolies, which nre the offspring and adjunct of that standard. It Is wholly appropriate, nnd, Indeed, Inevitable, that a party that had ceased to "de mand the use of both gold nnd silver as standard meney," should also cease Its "opposition to combinations or capital, organized In trusts and otherwise, to control arbitrarily the condition of trade among our citizens." And It was also natural that. In the campaign that followed, all the trusts, monopolies and unrighteous combinations of capital In the country should rally, ns they did, to the support of the party that had be come their vassal, and should place at its command their uncounted millions of money and thelre unparalleled co ercive terrors. The disreputable methods by which the contest of 1S96 was notoriously won, the vast and Infinite detail of Intimida tion and corruption with which the per fect organization of the republican par ty covered the entire country as with a fine-meshed net; the contemptuous frankness with which the large finan cial concerns, tho gold brokers, the le viathan bankers, and the oppressive combinations of wealth allied them selves everywhere with the republican propaganda; the general mendacity and brutality of the metropolitan gold press; these and many other similar in fluences served to solidify the forces that fought for popular rights, to en courage them with proofs of the Justice of their contention, and to inspire them with that high moral conviction with out whose sanction no groat cause was ever yet victorious. Events that have succeeded the elec tion have only emphasized these results. The conduct of the administration has thoroughly unmasked the attitude of those republicans who denounced that platform as a disguised gold-standard device, nnd left the party because of It. I am aware of the fact that Senator Wolcott recently, In that speech In the senate toward which persons of all classes of opinion look to with so much anticipation, to which they listened with so much disappointment, and which they recall with so much regret, was careful to the verge of painful so licitude to show that, at every step in the unsuccessful negotiations of the In ternational monetary commission, It had enjoyed the support of the presi dent of the United States. But the same speech that praises the president exco riates his secretary of the treasury. The senator. In specifying certain ob stacles that hnd Interfered v.ith his ne gotiations In Europe, referred to "pre tended statements In letters and Inter views from the secretary of the treas ury, to the effect that there was no chance for International or other bi metallism, and favoring the permanent adoption of the gold standard." But In his catalogue of embarrass ments he studiously refrains from list ing what everybody of common infor mation knov s to have been the most eerlous embarrassment of all, namely, the special message of President Mc Klnley of June 24, 1897, wherein he dis tinctly endoises the proposed plan of the so-called Indianapolis sound-money convention, which thnt convention It self, In January preceding, had formally declared would embraced three funda mental fentures: 1. The permanent es tablishment of the gold standard; 2. The retirement of the greenbacks and treasury notes; 3. The erection of a huge system of banks of issue. Why be at pains to mention a long list of petty Interferences with the pro gress of negotiations, while keeping si lence as to the th.ng which, even If It had stood alone, must effectually have damned every proposition of the Wol cott commission? What could have been the estimate of our sincerity formed by the great European cabinets, when, in the very midst and at the most crucial point of negotiations for an Interna tional agreement for the free coinage of sliver, entered upon at our Instance, the cable Hashed across the ocean the text of the president's astounding spe cial message to congress In emphatic recommendation of the gold standard ' Is it to be wondered at that the "state ments of representatives of New York bankers In England," of which the Ben-t ator complains, should have been be lieved when, as he says, they ascribed to the president views favorable to the gold standard? Senator Wolcott also, and very prop erly, reprobates the statement of Sec retary Gage before the banking and! currency committee of the house, that the first object of his currency plan Is to "commlte the country more thor oughly to the gold standard," a plan which, the senator carefully observes, "the president's message specifically does not endorse." It would be more accurate to say that the message "does not specifically endorse" the secretary bill; for, aside from tho fact that the secretary Is the administration's flnnnco ofilccr, even tho president's annual mes sage, despite Its halting and evasive method, carried, In effect, a recommen dation not materially different from the secretary's. But, for one, I wish to record my ex cessive weariness of this carefully prac ticed policy of distinguishing between the president nnd his chosen and sworn olllclat subordinates. It Is not only dis crediting to the chief mnglHtiate to as sume that he is not In control of his own administration, but It Is an Insult to the intelligence nnd common sense of the country to attempt to make It appear that on the overshadowing question of the hour the president en tertains one conviction nnd his Hocie tary of the treasury a diametrically op posite one. This Is especially true when It Is remembered thnt the very ques tion of their respective views on the subjects of coinage nnd currency has recently been made the theme of criti cism nnd of acrimonious controversy In congress nnd In the public press; and that the secretary's resignation, laid before the president because of this very criticism, wns not accepted. The sec retary's views ate the piesldent's views. If this hnd not been the case he would never have entered the cabinet. If not the case today he would have been al lowedyes, he would have been request edto get out of It. Mr. Gage's opin ions were no secret before his appoint ment, nnd he hns not disguised them since. He lias the courage of his con victions. Moreover, he is a nuin of too much personal Independence and too much self-respect to occupy his high olllclal position, nnd one of such closj confidential relations to the president, under false pretenses. If Lyman J. Gnge were not In nccord with his chief's policy on a question deemed by himself to be of dominating Importance, ho could not be kept In olllce. He Is In harmony with the president, and it Is no violation of confidence to say that he has so stated. It Is certainly a gain of very large di mensions that the campaign of 1896 and the developments that have followed It, have clearly defined the Issue that must be decided by the electors of the country before the unrestricted nnd legalized reign of gold-and-monopoly can begin. The republican mnnagcts declared In their campaign text-book of 1892 thnt "nine-tenths of the people are blmetalllsts." It was undoubtedly true then, and It Is true today. No man of Information doubts that In 1896 a plain and honest declaration for the gold standard would have met the Indignant rebuke of an overwhelming majority of the voters of tho United States. Upon such a declaration the republican party Willi be driven to make Uh fight In 1900, with the open, and probably avowed and defended, alliance of the trusts and combines. Then no subterfuge will avail them. The people will see clearly and will strike unerringly. The decisive battle will be joined In 1900, and we shall win It. The elections of 1897 proved how valu able to the opponents of the gold stand ard had been the lessons and discipline of 1S96. Despite the facts that business conditions had somewhat Improved, to a small extent as the result of the stim ulus to certain Industries afforded by a tariff which they wore permitted o dictate, and to a much greater extent due to a demand for our staple exports caused by the Indian famine nnd the unprecedented shortage of all food-product crops In Europe; that the whole claque of subservient newspapers wore constantly engaged In bolstering confi dence with glowing pictures of prosper ity; that the republlcnn managers con centrated In a few states the large rem nant of the millions of unspent cam paign funds of the preceding contest, together with the other means and methods that made the campaign of 1896 so Infamously memorable; that the administration massed Its place hcldcrs In the critical localities and employed Its prodigious patronage with unexam pled skill as an Instrument of "prac tical politics" yet the opposition to the rule of gold and monopoly had more than held Its own. In Iowa n plurality of G5.552 for Mc Klnley in 1896 fell to 29,987 for the re publican candidate for governor in 1897. In Maryland the conespondlng repub lican pluralities were 32,224 and 7,109; In Massachusetts, 173,265 and S3, 543; In Ohio 47,947 and 2S.165, while the legis lature stands as follows: Senate, 17 republicans, 19 opposition; house, 62 re publicans, 47 opposition. In Virginia the Chicago platform received a plu rality of 19,341 in 1896, while In 1S97 the plurality of the democratic candidate for governor was 52,815. In New York McKlnley's prodigious plurality of 263, 469 was changed Into one of 60,889 for the democratic candidate for chief Jus tice. Kentucky, which, after a cam paign of tremendous tension wherein the full power of the republican na tional committee wns supplemented by that of a friendly state government and the aid of the Watterson-Cai lisle de mocracy, had given McKlnley a plural ity of 281 In 1896, came back to the op position, as Mr. Wattcrson himself now avows, with the emphasis of 17,804 plu rality. In Nebraska, where every char acteristic machination of the enemy was employed In the desperate hope of deal ing a fatal blow at the prestige of Mr. Bryan, the fusion plurality of 13,576 In 1896 was more than maintained, the fig ures rising to 13,819 notwithstanding a falling off of thirty thousand In the total vote as compared with the presi dential election. These results, every thing considered, were most encourag ing. Since the campaign whose result was to seat Mr. McKlnley In the White House, no political contest has been waged In the country whose outcome wns watched with so much interest as that wherein Marcus A. Hanna was struggling to secure his return to tho United States senate from the state of of Ohio. The significance of this con test lies not so much in Mr. Hanna, al though he Is a remarkable study him self, as in what he represents In our civilization and politics. So far as I know It has never yet been contended that he possesses any special ability be yond what Is rather vaguely Implied by the designation of "successful business man," which may mean a great many things, some of which, admirable and common as others may be, would be thought very slight qualifications for senatorshlp. He has no professional training, no learning, no legislative ex perience, unless the assiduous pursulc of ranchlses nnd special privileges through municipal councils nnd state and nations! legislatures can be salt, to have furbished It. He la simply a man of coarse and strong fibre, mas terful, ruthless, not given to fine hu manitarian distinctions, who has fully comprehended, not by mental process, but by natural sympathy, the material Ideal of end-of-the-- century success, and has pursled It until he has grasped It and made It his own. In this pursuit he seems to have become thoroughly familiar with the "business methods" of our era: tho power and eloquenco of money, and how to make It work and talk; the resistless force of combination to destroy competition, absorb markets and wring profits from necessity; the unhappy weaknesses of human nature, ind its stops which circumstance puts under the hand of the unscrupulous "to sound what note he pleases," the ad vantages of a vicarious corporate re sponsibility; the convenience and sulll jlenoy of a huslncis conscience. By tho nature of his Interests and the charnc- i ter of his methods he Is distinctly a personification of the gold Rtnndaid nnd its concomitants, the trust and monop olies. When Mr. llnntia beenry chairman of the republlcnn national committee nnd took luminal charge of the cam- pnlgn of 1890, It wns his boast that ho urougiit "buKlncfn methods" Into poli tics. He unquestionably spoke by tho card. The conduct of nffalrs speedly exhibited the fact. The colossnl ma chinery thnt wns at once erected, not more vast In Its extent than minute In Its detail, perfect tn Its ndjustment, und noiseless In Its operation; the Immense amount of money jalsed, beyond tho "wealth of Oimus or of Ind," nnd ut terly out of commit Ison with any pre vious campaign fund, tho eompiehen slvo organization thnt attended to tho manufacture of news nnd tho circula tion of llternture, tho Instlgntlou and manngetnent of spontaneous excursions of clamorous pnttlots to Canton, the ex ercise of bland persuasions by tho banks, the gentle methods by which necessitous wuikmeu were cajoled or coerced and mortgaged farmers con vinced or compelled; these nnd u thou sand slmllnr things weie the marks of a "bimlncss enmpnlgn" without nn np pronch to a patnllel In all our previous history, nnd destined to have but few successors If tho republic Is to endure. The popular Imagination, quickly and powerfully Impressed with the unlqus personality that seemed to bo respon sible for these phenomena, has epitom ized them In a name fated to a melan choly Immortullty. Let me be the first to write It as a common noun: hanna ism. And so hannnlsm was at stake In tho Ohio benntorlal election. It Is not yet time nor Is this the place to write the full history of thnt election. With a re publican mnjorlty In tho legislature of 15 on joint ballot, Mr. Hanna was cho sen by a vote of 73, exactly a majority of the membership of 145. A loss of one vote would have beaten him. This nar row escape was duo to a revolt among the republicans against hannnlsm, and the election has resulted In fastening upon that party for seven long years more the Increasing burden of that ter rible IncubUB. In the nbsence of tho power to choose a member of the son .to whoso vote and Inllucnco would have been against the present policies of the republlcnn party, It Is tantamount to a victory for their oponcnts to be nblq to point to tho now senator from Ohio ns a "terilble example" nnd evolution of those policies In operation. That no fitting clrcumstnnce might be wanting to the ceremonial of so om inous an Installation, fate ordained thnt It should be preceded by an in fnmy and followed by a sacrilege. Dur ing the session of the house on the dny of, nnd JUHt before, the meeting of the Joint assembly to ballot for sonotor, a member of the house of representa tives arose in his place, and, rofoirlng to well known nnd circumstantial charges of bribery In the Interest of Mr. Hanna'B candidacy, charges made by the member himself, demanded that those accusations be Investigated be fore proceeding to the election of a senator. Said he, in part: "Mr. Speaker: I rise to a question of privilege, a question both affecting my character as a legislator and related to the proper performance by this Lody of Its duty In the election of a United States senator. "I am aware, Blr, that the house yps terday refused to pasp a resolution t suspend the rlues nnd proceed to in vestigate certain charges preferred by self against a leudlng candidate for this great office. But, sir, I made those charges upon my honor as a man, and In response to my duty ns a representa tive. If they are false I ought to be ex pelled from this body. If they are ttue, that candidate ought to withdraw from this contest. Either I am not fit to be a member of this house, or he Is not fit to be a senator of tho United States. He must himself admit this. He, no well :.s I, ought to demand a vindication. How can he refuse to submit himself to the same test as I Invoke? One of us Is guilty; which Is It? or my own honor and reputation, I demand that you as certain and declaic the tiuth. Why does not he nlsd demand It?" He then offered a resolution of In vestigation. What ensued Is told In the following extract from the report of tl" proceedings In a Columbus gold stand ard newspaper. Note the unconscious humor of the sentence I have capital ized: "On a motion to suspend the rules for Immediate consideration of the resolu tion, the vote stand 52 nyes, 56 nays. On the motion being lost there were cheers on the republican side and In the galleries. The vote wns precisely the same ns all the votes yesterday and the two ballots for tho short and long terms for senator. There are 109 members of the house. THE E6 HANNA MEN AL WAYS VOTED SOLIDLY." This wns the Infamy. Now note the sacrilege. When the bribery charges had been contemptu ously brushed away nnd the destined goal scnntllj won, the beneficiary of the event Bent the following telegram: "Columbus, O., Jan. 2. Hon. William McKlnley, President, Washington: God reigns and the republican pnrty Btlll lives M. A. HANNA." How a man who had Just passed through the sort of campaign by which he had been successful, pursued by memories of lockcd-ln nnd guarded leg islators and their harried and persecut ed wives, of spies and Informers, of devious and shadowy proceedings that were Boon to shrink behind the coun selled sllenc of unwilling witnesses In a bribery Investigation, could affect to think Deity chargeable with any part of the responsibility, or that his election tended to establish tno fact, doubtful, supposedly, till then, of the existence of the Almighty, Is a question I leave to causlsts and philosophers. It Is be yond me. One can, however, under stand how the senator, after so long having his vnnity fed by the sycophants who do his bidding nnd accept his bounty, and who constantly ascribe to him the entire vitality of the repub lican organization, should have reached a condition where the distinction be tween himself and the party was not quite clear, nnd In w hlch his own elec tion would seem like a demonstration (hat the party was not dead. But this Is not the measure of the senator's egotism. His Ineffable pre sumption allowed him to recall, and by a petty paraphrase subject to his own Ignoble use. that magnificent burst of Inspired oratory In which Garfield, who could sometimes storm the very heights of eloquence, calmed nnd subdued the angry mob which. In the surprise and horror following the announcement of President Lincoln's assassination, was about to attack and destroy the office, of one of the great newspapers of New York: "Fellow citizens," cried he who was destined to follow the great martyr In both his high office and his martyrdom, "clouds and darkness are round about Him! His pavilion Is dark waters and thick clouds of the skies! Justice and Judgment are the establishment of the throncl Mercy nd truth shall go be fori Ills facet Fellow citizens! Gud reigns, and the government at Wash ington still Uveal" Ho who, with Impious hand, would hno torn this resplendent Jowel front the crown of Lincoln nnd set It Jauntily among his own blurred und bniren tto phlcs, Is a fit typlflciitluu of that de cadence which has changed tho repub licanism of 1860 Into the rcpubllcnnlr ti of 1898. Such a demonstration Is Itself a victory, or who, ennobled by tho memory of Lincoln, will long coiiBent to wear tho servile livery of llunim? Nnvnl Offloo on n Cnookorbonrd. By a little checkerboard with mlnln turc warships as the chcckeis, naval games by the big bugs of the Ameri can navy have been played nt tho naval war college at Newport, H. I., during the past three years, on a vast scale. Every naval campnlgn which It Is pos sible to conceive tho United States might bo culled upon to undertake, has been anticipated on this little board. These plans hnve actually been work ed up by what Is known umong Amer Icnn officers ns tho "nnvnl gnino." Tho greatest seciecy has nttnehed to nil de ductions made, from these games, fr on the outcome hns depended tho pol icy to bo followed by the iinval author ities In Important operations. Many of tho most distinguished offi cers of the Amerlcnn nnvy here partici pate In theso war games, and conspicu ous on ninny occasions hnve been Cnp tnln Alfred T. Malum nnd the present commander of the battle ship Indiana, Captain Henry Taylor. In the work nt tho Newport Naval col lego a large chnrt, allowing the actual theatre of war, Is spread upon a table. Presiding over the game are three Judges officers of ripe experience. On one Bide the United Suites fleet Is as signed to tho keeping of nn ofilccr, say a lieutenant commnudcr. A hostile fleet icpresented by yellow colois (the colors of Spain) Is placed In chnrgu of a sec ond officer. Each officer Is assigned a Bpcclllc duty. In the ense of the I'nlted StntcH force the object alined ut Is the destruction, say, of the port of Havana, to be followed by the effectual blockad ing of Cuban ports. The jellow fleet Is found at the outset on the coast of Spain. It Is composed of a stipulated number of battle Bhlpfl, ar mored cruisers, torpedo deBtroyers and gun vessels. Curiously enough, the make-up of the "yellow lleet" tnlllos with tho exact composition of the pres ent naval force of Spain. The "yellow fleet" Is charged with seizing the wntcrs of Cuba nnd with clearing those waters of an enemy. The accomplishment of the object mention ed Is deemed equivalent to opening all Cuban ports to Intercourse with tho out side world. From now on the gnmo Is conducted on war principles. Tho "yellow fleet" enn steam n certain distance nt u cer tain rate of speed on the supply of conl carried In the bumpps. The officer hnndllng that fleet must not move his force with a rapidity beyond practical limitations. In the workings of the game a day Is set down ns one minute. It Is contemplated thnt ten days will be required to steam the "yellow fleet" to Cuban waters, and still cnnblc It to arrive with sufficient conl to enter ac tion, so ten minutes must elnpse In tho making of the move. During this ten minutes Interval the Amerlcnn fleet has been permitted to execute what Is pos sible in ten days of work. Several ports have been bombarded, troops have been brought up from Florida and landed, and Btlll other Important operations consummated. On the approach of the hostile fleet It Is met by tho henvy vessels of tho Unit ed States Bquadron. At this Juncture a clnjrt looking very much like a great checkerboard Is spread out upon "the table. The squares represent 100 ynrds In distance, nnd assuming that the ships move at n flfteen-knot speed, the time necessary for crossing these squares must be adhered to. On this great checkerboaid the two fleet com manders maneuver their ships the same as In real action From time to time the Judges rule out this vessel or that vessel, which, according to their Judg ment, has been long enough under fire to warrant the assumption thnt It has been placed out of action. Should one commander In the course of his maneuvers expose a ship within torpedo striking dlstnnce the chances are that the Judges will quickly notice this point and declare the vessel to bo torpedoed. That means that the ship must be nt once removed from the ta ble, or else left prone upon the board. Again, In the process of mnneuverlng, the enemy's fleet may be found sudden ly scattered. The opposing fleet com mnnder hnf his ships well In hand, nnd launching them In close echelon formation, he executes a veritable cav alry charge upon the checkerboard. The effect of this charge Is left to the Judgment of those presiding. A Judgo may rule that the enemy's fleet hns, ns a result of the charge, been effect ually broken up, and without a dis senting voice tho victory may be passed over to the defending fleet. Some of these operations may be fun damental In application. On.'y actual service can bring out Important points and make clear the actual capabilities of ships and men. The German urmy maneuvers only serve to apply the prin ciples laid down in the war plans of the great general staff, and at New port what tho great geenral staff does for tho German army the Naval War College Is doing for the navy of the United States. The following Incident took !nce In Bering sea, where "Fighting Bob Evans" was making a vigorous effort to stop poaching on the part of Cana dian sealers. He was in command of the Yorktown at the time when a par ticularly active and elusive little Ca nadian sloop had given the big cruiser a long chase in the foggy weather, and was finally overhauled. As the big Yorktown steamed up alongside of the sloop phe sent a shot across the bow of the sloop, whose skipper was seen upon the forward deck, wrapped In the Canadian flag, and gesticulating vio lently. Commander Evans started to go aboard the Bloop, and as he got within ear shot the skipper could be heard denouncing the United States government and blnckguardlng every Yankee that ever drew the breath of life. The commander of the Yorktown stepped aboard the sloop, approached the owner and demanded an explana tion. The little red whiskered Cana dian, with the British colors wrapped around him, continued to hurl vitu perative epithets at the United States. Every effort on the part of "Fighting Bob" to make his voice heard above the clamor of the grotesque nnd de clamatory skipper was fruitless. He howled back at the Canndlan until he was hoarse, and then, suddenly stoop ing over, picked up from the deck a piece of blubber of the consistency and pastiness of a jelly fish, and swung It around sharply, landing It plump upon the whiskered face of the defiant Ca nadian, knocking him, his enthusiasm and his flag clean over the bulwarks Into the sea. When the Canadian cai. to the surface he was fished out by the sailors and landed on deck. He had lost his flag and swallowed a great deal of salt water, while all his defi ance of the United States had disappeared. A FIQHTINQ BOAT. There Is n steel Ash floating tn th Rnrltnn d: dock nt Perth Amboy, ex pected to shoot destruction into th Spanish hoot tn caso of war. It is scarcely us large as a Btcamboat boiler. It Is but 53 feet long by 10 feet 3 Inchea In dlnmcut, with a displacement of 73 tons. Yet this porpulsc-llke mass of metal, barely able to show lto nose above wmei, Is a monster of terror. It hns a revolving tall nnd whirling fins. In uctlon it is filled with dynamite en gines of win. It shoots torpedoes for nnd aft. . lien fired the torpedo gun pushes the bunt back Into tho water and out ot sight as It belches forth de strcutlon Ukulnst tho enemy. Experts calm that this marine de stroyer win revolutionize naval war fnie. It Is tlulmcd that this little boat, Blngle-hatiticJ, can protect New York hui nor nnitiiidt any licet of war vessels. It dives lu.u a fish, can remain under water for ncveral hours, going down to a depth ot .u feet, If necessary. A few days n go the bout loft tho shipyards of Low Is Nixon, at Ellzabethpoit, osten sibly for u irlp down tho Kills. Th Spanish w at ship was anchored off Sta tun Ibinnd, und the Spanish spies who swnrmed i.,o water front nnxlouBljr watched tno maneuvers of the steel fish. The little fellow slid Into tho Btrcam, but showing no more of Its baclc thun you nee of u Florida alligator, when BWlnu.iing down a river. Tho bom twis simply bound for deep water below Perth Amboy for experi mental piuciico. But had it been In full war paint, with Its guns loaded with dynamite. It could not have created moie excltci lent. Spectators along tho quays declined that the little monster threw Its tu.l Into tho air, disappeared in the flood, und did not como to the. surfaco moui than twice during Us fif teen mile tup down the river. In fact, It was not iHlble to nny extent until it shot up from the depths In front of Perth Amboy. Heporis went flying dur ing Its dlfluppeuinnee that it had gone to blow up ihc Spunlsh war ship VU cnyn. So Important Is the chnracter of this boat that tno United States has Its plans und experts uro watching every development in Its workings nnd tests. It may be aid to bo practically In the control of t.ie navy department. John P. Holland, the distinguished In ventor of tho torpedo boat, Is a con servative, ciircful engineer, who will not allow his boat to make serious cruises under water until all her machinery Is working perfectly. There has been trouble with the exhaust valve leading from the gnB engine Into the sea; also with tho electric stornge accumulators The lnvcntoi b aim Is to obtain tho max imum capacity for storing electricity with the minimum weight. The batter ies were found insufficient for the power required. But this Is not surprising. Nearly everything of a mechanical na ture required for the torpedo boat Is a new Invention of Itself. The ordinary machines of commerce nre not udapted morat In view, or Blmply to learn Just to the bowels of the wonderful steel fish. Every Joint, vnlve. socket, bear ingIn fact, every part of the boat must bo made to perfect lino. A devia tion In weight of the smallest apoth ecary scule or In breadth the width of a hair might prevent the perfect work ing of this little world of submarine mechanism. A watchmaker could not bring more patience and Ingenuity lno his work than han Mr. Holland In his years of experience In perfecting his navy nnnlhllator. Tho Fato of Cuba. If the present crlBls between tho United States and Spnln results In war nnd this country Is victorious, what will become of Cuba? General John W. Noble, ex-secretary of the Interior, said: "Tho question Is entirely novel, aa our history offers no direct precedents for our guidance. It has been our policy to refUBe to become Involved with other nations In disputes about territory, that does not adjoin our own except to pre vent encroachments on our Monroe doc trine. Wc, therefore, have never had occasion to formulate a policy to apply to a country which was separated from us by Bea and whose stutus wc stood In a position to fix and regulate, as In this Instance. "However, Cuba will either bo made free and Independent or nnnoxed to this country. If she Is given her Inde pendence, tho United States will prob ably stand us her protector. An ade quate reason why this government can take a position so novel will be found In tho Monroe doctrine. Cuba will be very weak many years nfter peace be gins to reign in her borders and the strong arm of the American republic will be necessary to her support. If left to bear her own burdens, the chances are that she would be torn asunder by revolution and seized by some Euro pean power. The Monroe doctrine, which, while not a part of the constitu tion, 1b almost as well established, can be Invoked to defend the United States In the adoption of a policy which will guard against such an emergency. "If Cuba is annexed to the United States she probably will be governed by the same system of laws by which we resulate the affairs of our ten -torles. The coses of California, Texas, and Louisiana are In point. California was ceded to the United States by Mex ico In March, 184S, nnd governed by territorial law until 1850, when Us peo ple adopted a constitution, under which It was admitted as a state. Louisiana was purchased from France In 1803, and, ns the Territory of Orleans, was gov erned under territorial law until 1812. when it was admitted Into the Union as a stnte under a constitution which had been adopted by Its citizens. The his tory of the admission of Texas as a state Is similar to that of California and Louisiana, except that It was received by treaty. "If Cuba Is annexed It will be dealt with In accordance with these prece dents. It will be properly cared for. Yankee ingenuity and statesmanship have never yet failed to acquit them selves with honor and credit In hand ling the most difficult questions of na tional life and they will give a good ac count of themselves In making a dis position of Cuba." "How much Ink Is used In Kansas City every day?" was asked of a promi nent stationer. "I enn't tell you with out figuring a little," he replied. "Our firm sells an average of thirty casks ot Ink every year, and as each cask holds forty gallons, It makes a total of 1,200 gallons. Taking this for granted. It follows that it takes nearly fifteen gal lons to carry on business tn Kansas City one day. A peculiar thing that Is not generally known about Ink Is that only about 10 per cent of the Ink bought by consumers Is used. The reason of this Is thnt It evaporates bo very asly and quickly. A traveling man for one of the largest Ink manufacturing concerns in this country was In my store this morning," continued the dealer, "and told me that In the City of M6xlco last week he sold to one dealer alone fifty casks of French copying ink. His total eales In that city amounted fiv car loads. I could hardly believe It until he convinced me by showing me hln order book. ( vmvl'iit&wmVit, r&&JOt -9e.
