ft t
! < I
TOPICS OF THE TIMES.
A CHOICE SELECTION OF INTER
ESTING ITEMS.
Comments and Criticising Based Upon
the Happenings of the Day Histori
cal and News Notes.
Some temptations come to the indus
trious , but all temptations come to the
idle.
Admiral Dewey's great difficulty
when he comes home will be to find
enough of himself to go round.
One way of looking at it , that § 20 ,
000,000 given to Spain merely shows
America that it pays to lick the other
fellow.
While the mignonette is the national
flower of Spain , there would not be In-
appropriateuess now in displacing it
for mourning glories.
New York has a Chinese base-ball
club. Hiting the sphere is better than
hitting the pipe , and the exercise may
be good for their joints.
Talking of our absorbing Cuba , the
people of that island selling "fake" war
relics to American visitors shows they
are disposed to also take us in.
A recent decision says a husband
may whip his wife under strong provo
cation. For that matter a good hus
band beats a bad wife every day In the
week.
Many of the things you do not un-
understand may seem clear when you
reflect that the people of the United
States eat 4,000,000 bottles of pickles
every week.
Wireless telegraphy having been
found practicable for military use , the
tide of battle will probably be more
than ever turned by sudden Ikishes of
magnetic genius.
A valued contemporary reports that
a boy fell from a third story window ,
lit on a man's head and wns saved by
the high hat. This is what is known as
a stove-pipe story.
To Mr. Kipling's distrust of the peace
manifesto because it comes from Russia
Edwin D. Mead makes this happy re
ply : "A bear dressed up and acting the
part of a man is a pleasanter spectacle
than a man acting the part of a bear. "
Turkey has paid the last installment
of its war indemnity to Russia growing
out of the war of 1S77-7S. Uncle Sam
should now remind the Sultan of that
"little bill" against the Sublime Porte
which has waited so long for settle
ment.
It is now announced that the Prince
of Turin , nephew of King Humbert ,
who visited this country some time ago ,
is about to marry an American heiress.
Why should the poor noblemen have
all the luck ? A prince scantily endow
ed with this world's goods is as deserv
ing of pity and sympathy as any other
person of i-auk who has not the where
withal.
c
Brambles continue to beset the path An
of the kodak fiend. One of him was n
"took. " a little while ago , while trying tlci
( o "take" the fiyiug Filipinos , and bare
ly managed to escape with his life , but C
without his camera. Another one un D
dertook .to snap a dynamite explosion 01
in Pennsylvania the other day and got ir
mixed up with the Hying fragments. is
Up to date no one has attempted to bi
press the button on a thirteen-iiich shell irsi
coining toward him. He will probably sibi
try it some day aad the shell can un biw
doubtedly be depended upon to do the w
rest. 01m
01ei
' A member of a Canadian school mis ei
appropriated a bottle of ink. The city Inw
clerk of the municipality where the w
wrong-doing occurred lately received in
5 cents from Chicago in payment for oipi
the property thus converted to the pu pi
pil's use. Repentance and restoration incl
may find a full illustration , even cl
though the value represented is only ta
a trifle. There is no moral law which ccul
declares that sins against honesty do ul
not count unless the sum involved is AAPJ
over one dollar. TQhe stealing of a PJ
penny disturbs the ethical equilibrium reui
as surely the that ui
as stealing opens uiai
prison doors to the reckless thief. aiD
i- D
A pauper woman in France lias been a ;
tried and convicted of having had her sc
child baptized fourteen times as a a
Catholic and twelve times as a Protest c.i
ant for the purpsse of securing 5 francs re
tli
and a dress each time. This is doing
be
slightly better than the American cus
tom of getting married every day on ccm
m
an excursion steamer or on the stage
thai
of a traveling show for the sake of a
ai
bonus aixl incidentally to draw money-
pending crowds. Those who take advantage
It
vantage of these incitements to mockery
ir
ery of sacred observances are perhaps ti
less culpable than those who offer the tith
prizes.
1)1
be
This illustrates how frequently good
on.
men go wrong and how easy it is for li.
wise men to be mistaken. The price li.th
paid for Alaska was $7,200,000. The li (
area acquired was 309.529,000 acres , so ar
that it was about 2 cents an acre. The es
Alaska fur companies have already to
taken over $33,000,000 worth of seal toP
skins , and they have paid into the P
treasury over $0,000,000 as royalties ,
with $1.340,533 still unsettled. The fish at
product of Alaska in 1897 was valued dc ;
at $2,977,019. During the last fifteen pc
years it has exceeded $30,000,000. The en
Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries af
in a letter to Congress estimated the Sc
-value of the Alaska fisheries , excluding CO
whales and seals , at $07,890,000 , or nine bj
-and one-half times the cost of purchase.
The gold output has exceeded $15,000- I [ :
000 already. The Treadwell injne alone ac
up to 1897 had paid $6,025,945 as divi-
.to its stockholders , .and. claims but
to have several millions In sight. In
that year alone the output of the mine
was $2,439,000 , and in 1897 it was near
ly twice as much. When Mr. Seward
was asked what he considered the most
important event in his career he re
plied : "The purchase of Alaska ; but it
will take the people a generation to
find it out"
The great propelling force in human
progress is that which initiates and
stimulates an ever-increasing diversifi
cation of social tastes , and this is the
function of art. It refines and expands
the old and introduces the new. The
taste stimulated by the introduction
of the new and more beautiful is the
germ of a social force which is destined
to develop an economic interest which
sets the world in action. The desire for
a more attractive form of anything
habitually entering into the social life
of a people creates a demand for its
production , which sets the economic
machinery in motion to supply it. At
first it Is produced at an enormous
cost , only for the very rich , but , by the
force of imitation and contact , what
the rich have the less rich desire , and
its domain widens from the monarch
or aristocracy to larger social groups ,
until It reaches the masses and be
comes the market basis for profitable
capitalistic production.
The little planet discovered last Au
gust by Witt of Berlin has at last been
duly christened by the name of Bros ,
the mischievous boy of Venus-Aphro
dite. It has also received the number
433 in the list of asteroids ; rather
against the will of the discoverer , > wko
contends that because Eros comes so
much nearer to tiie earth thaa any
other planet , it cannot fairly be cotint-
ed in the asteroid.il family. It vroe , of
course , expected that some of the him-
drecls of photographic plates laad * in
previous years would show impressions
of the planet , but for a long tirno every
search failed. At last , howorer , late
in December , Mrs. Fleming o * the Har
vard College Observatory , gnldcd by
the calculations of Doctor Chandler ,
detected a faint image of it upon one
or two plates made at Caiut&ridga ia
1S9G. By the hell ) of th w- Doctor
Chandler was able , in turn , to roAke
his computation so much more accur
ate that traces of the plawut w re im
mediately found on a eoojBidera.ble
number of other plates mn(5 both at
Cambridge and Arequipa , in 1894 as
well as 1S90. From theae photograph
ic observations , combined with t3 > e ob
servations made since the < 5i eoTcry ,
the orbit of the planet is BOTT deter
mined with an exactness Trkich otiier-
wise would have demanded years , and
there will not be the slightest difficulty
n finding it at its next approach in
1901. It is a beautiful instance of the
manner in which the methods of the
old and new astronomy can be made
to aid and supplement each othar , and
puts a tall feather in tjie cap $ > f Amer
ican astronomy. 1 (
While Americans are harassed and
perplexed by the necessity for decision
in assuming and defining the nation's
future relations to its new depeoden-
cies : , there are difficult problems to be
worked out in other countries. Each
nation has its own burden * . In Fsance si
there is a struggle between military and siCf
civil authority. A cabal of army offi
cers ( has been a law unto itself in the SIw
SIki
Dreyfus case. Justice and national hon ki
or require a revision of a inilitjkry judg ti
ment based on tainted evidenco. Min tr
isters , legislators and intrlsuaw have tr
been playing with the question of bring >
ing the army under the control of the
supreme law of the State. There has
beea a lack of civic courage in ch * &ng
with it , and irresolution and delay have
j
only served to increase public esci.te-
ment , Military dictatorship cannot be
endured by a. free state. England ateo
has a question , of supreme importance
which the governing ; classes ace
ing to take up. This is the sepao&t&on
church and state. It is forced upon
public attention by lie conflict of oppos
ing schools of thought in the English
church. So long as the church is es-1
tablished by law , there must be state
courts for enforcing obedience aad reg
ulating religious doctrine and practice.
Whatever may have been done in the :
past , it is evident that a Parliament
representing every form of belief
unbelief cannot revise a prayer book
md a free church be left to govern it th
self. In Italy , where Cavoura idea of
free church in a free state has been ,
f
carried out , there is also a disturbing
religious question. The Qulrinal and
the Vatican are rival centers of power
between which there is an unending
conflict. The state is struggling to
hi
maintain its independent position , anxl
the Vatican is seeking to regain its St
ancient privileges. The religious question th
tion , in its relations to the future of in
Italy , to-day divides the nation inio two th
irreconcilable parties. Men give atten
tion to their own { iffairs , and conclude
that their personal and national per
plexities surpass those of their neigh
bors. Yet the work of civilization goes ve
. We may be sure there is an estab of
lished order of moral government in
po
the world. Here hope rests , in the be tic
lief that by it out of the complications jei
and apparent confusion of human inter do
ests man's highest development is yet tic
come. vi.
President's : Characteristic Reply.
Not long ago President McKinley wes
addressing a great audience in Phila-
lelphia. At the close of the affair the . ?
people were closely crowded about the 1S ; :
jntrance , held back by the police until is ;
ifter the President should hare left.
Some one , mindful of the PreskJant's ca
convenience , suggested that he leav ati
a rear door. ea
"No , I will leave by the ro.nt < } oor. saW
never retrace my steeps , " waa the ohar- W
icterisUc reply of the Pcesident.
' pa
Woman may be. the weaker vessel ,
man Is often Jtfoke. '
THE NEXT PANIC.
It Is not a pleasant task to sound a
note l of alarm , but it is necessary in this
case. When the end comes it will be
a bitter one. The crash will , we are
afraid , equal any that has ever preced
ed it in this country. The panic of 1893
was of tremendous magnitude , but we
question If that was as terrible an
event . as that which will be produced
by the present trust movement When
,
that much-to-be-dreaded day comes it
will be necessary to look to other agen
cies than Congress to initiate restorative
,
tive measures. We do not , in fact , see
how it is going to be possible to pro
duce a change for the better until the
panic Las run a long course. By the
time the crash arrives there will be
several billions ( par value ) of "water"
judging from present appearances
to be squeezed out It will be impossible
to save it Of course , as we said last
week , all the common stock of trusts
so far authorized has not yet been is
sued ; but it will be very largely work
ed off in the course of the next few
years , and will be found eventually in
the liauds of "innocent holders ; " that
is , in the hands of persons Avlio paid
good mouej for it.
Now those people have got to stand
for a terrible loss , and the number of
them will be so great that the suffer
ing will be widespread throughout the
country. The next panic will work in
two ways , at least. It will destroy
credit at the start , and well-conducted
enterprises will accordingly suffer for
a time along with the general run of
misguided trusts , and will wipe out
hundreds of millions of property in the
possession of the owners of trust
contribute its money and its influence
to elect the Republican candidate. Will
tiiat fact satisfy the people that the
Republican party is the party responsi
ble for trusts ? Why should every trust
in the United States be Republican ,
froin the gold combination down to the
manufacturers of matches ? If the
American people are not stark mad
they will have no difficulty in finding
out which party is responsible for the
trusts , and if they are really opposed
to the trusts they will vote for the oth
er side. Unless the majority of the
American people vote as the trusts
vote , the Republican candidate will
stand no show whatever of winning in
1900.
A Fatal Disorder.
Sherman was forced out of the Cabi
net "on accountof ill health. " Vice Pres
ident Hobart is to retire from politics
"on account of ill health. " J. Addison
Porter , McKiuley's private secretary ,
has gone to Atlantic City , and it is re
ported that he will soon be out of a job
"on account of ill health. " It is really
remarkable how service for Hauna's
administration is conducive to ill health
except for buzzards like Alger , to
whom such carrion as "embalmed
beef" is as dainty as "angel fosd. "
Meanwhile Uncle Sam is bearing up
under many alilictions , and the people
must rescue him in 1900 from a pro
longed siege of "ill health , " for the
Haiina kind of "ill health" appears to
be infectious and contagious. Mans
field Shield.
They "Will Live to Abolish Hnmiaiam.
There are plenty of newspapers in
the country who are declaring that
Bryan and Bryanism are dead , and yet
OUR EXPENSIVE AND EXPANSIVE MILITARISM.
. I
-Chicago Chronicle.
iharea property represented by certifi-
ates which should never have been is-
iued. It may be asked when ail this
vil happen. That , of course , no one
: nows. The lean period will come In
ime. We have in previous articles
raced the causes that will wreck the
rusts. Competition will eventuaHy
rore too much for them. By competi-
ion we mean the adverse conditions to
vhlch they will be subjected by the
rganization of new companies with
Bgltimate capitalizations and the lat-
st improvements. United States In-
restor.
A Verdict in 190O.
President McKinley , in his zeal to de-
end the beef trust , who were reward-
d with fat contracts in consideration
f paat and future favors , has gone too
ar. The soldiers represent all of the
itates and all shades of politics. They
rent into the service of their country
s patriotic Americans , and they real-
ze that the nation opened its heart and
s purse and ordered that they should
ave the best the nation afforded. It
rill be difficult for Mr. McKinley and
is defenders to explain the disgraceful
ouduct of the War Department in a
atisfactory manner to the soldiers and
heir friends.
Mr. McKiuley may , through the aid
.
tiie beef trust and the other trusts ,
ecure the Republican nomination in
DOOV but the disgraceful conduct of his
dminlstration in the matter of caring
or our soldiers in the field will cause
1m to lose thousands of votes in every
tate in the nation. The final jury on
tie beef Inquiry will render their verdict
the election of 1000 , and it will be on
ae side of the soldiers and not on the
ide of the beef trust. National Watch-
lan.
Tlie Trust
The tvrlsting , squirming and maneti-
erlng of politicians to avoid the odium
trusts and take advantage of the un-
opularity of the enormous combiua-
.ons recently formed furnish a sub
set for serious thought. There is no
oubt that all parties in the next na-
oual campaign will adopt platforms
iolently . against trusts. The Republi-
an party will be so vindictive in its
mguage against those institutions
jat no other party can exceed Us vio-
nt abuse. The question to be solved
: Will the people ever find out who
responsible for trusts ? The gold
Landard is the father of all trusts be-
iu e gold standard contraction cre-
tes falling prices which make It nec-
ssary : for business men to combine to
we theniselv S from bankruptcy.
fho is responsible for the gold stand-
rd tl > e party led by McKinley or the
arty led by Bryan ? Every trust or-
in-lzation ia the United States "will
$
i those same papers are devoting a great
deal of space to both the man and the
ism. This is a singular state of affairs.
It is strange that these editors should
take so much pains and so much appar
ent delight in kicking a corpse. If
Bryan and what he stands for are
dead , let them rest in peace. There ia
nothing gained by contending against
them. But the fact is they are not deader
or dying. They arc the two most alive z
propositions to-day before the country. s
They stand for pretty much everything 0
that Ilanna and Haunaisin do not 0t 0s
stand for. Cleveland Recorder. t
Q
Committee's New Head.
J. G. Johnson , who has been placed
at the head of the Democratic National o
Committee during the absence in Europe -
rope of Senator Jones , is the Kansas
member of the committee , and is a
warm friend of William Jennings Bry-
silver at the Chicago platform ratio. a
Mr. Johnson has been active in politics
iu. a long time and is accounted one of q
the strong members of the National q
Committee. He divides his time chiefly l
between his practice of law and the
affairs of the Order of Modern WoodJl
v\
+ /
t (
cidi
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fo
01 :
01M
the
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of
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ra
alEi
Ei
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dc
.1. i , . JUUXSOX. hi
SO' ;
men , of which he is the head. This
leads him to visit Itockford often ,
for that city is the headquarters of the
Woodmen. The temporary head of the lee
Democracy was born in Brooklyn , and fr
early removed to Peoria , 111. , and frye
thence to Peabody , Kan. , where he re * at
sides. au
Naval Officer * Too Chatty.
It has been suggested that among
of the United
the other improvements th :
States Naval Academy which are ncvw an
being made and are in caatemplatlon ,
the establishment of a chair of reti
cence would be advisable. Atlanta ex
Constitution. ' su :
SSu.
FACTS ABOUT BARNACLES.
Commodore Webster , U. S. N. , "Writes
of ° Fonl Bottoms. "
The United States cruiser Benning-
ton was for some time in the harbor
of La Union , in Guatemala , and in six
ty-three days there was a great growth
of barnacles. These growths , as a
matter of fact , comprise several varie
ties of shell fish , prominent among
which comes the edible oyster. In the
case in point , when the Benningtou
was placed in the dry dock at Mare
Island Navy Yard , it was found that
oysters large enough for the table were
of frequent occurrence.
These growths must be removed
while the ship is in dry dock. If re
moved while the ship is afloat , by div
ers , the protecting paint comes off with
the barnacle and leaves the metal of
the hull unprotected. The regulations
of the Navy Department prohibit this
being done except in cases of great
emergency.
The barnacle grows to a length of
three and four inches , conical in shape ,
and from the partially closed apex of
the cone project a pair of strong mandi
bles always in motion , in search of
food. These fish are not difficult of re
moval when in dock , for they soon die
out of water. Many of the barnacles
are pink in color , some are black , and
many are white , being specimens of
different families. They not only
gather and grow on the ship's bottom ,
but even on the propeller and rudder.E
From experience in the tropics it would
seem that the water is full of "spat , ' '
or embryo shell fish , incessantly in
search of a resting place.
Various paints and mixtures which
hare been applied to ships' bottoms
with the object of preventing these
growths have not been very successful.
When a ship has been a short time ID
tropical waters the bottom presents the
apearunce of having been sprinkled
with sand , the marine life is so evenly
distributed. But the tropics are not
the only part of the world where ships'p
bottoms get foul. In the waters of
Alaska and even further north , animal
and vegetable growths interfere with
the speed of our ships to an extent lit
tle dreamed of before the advent of
steel or iron for ship-building.
Beside the animal growths of barna
cles , oysters and kindred life , a large
and rich vegetable gixnvth causes almost -
most aa much trouble. This "grass , "
as it is technically called , is swept
away in large measure when the ship
steams at full speed , which is not the
case with the animal life.
Ordinarily , a short run in fresh water
will kill all of the adhering growths ,
when the vegetable matter will dropv
off , but the shells of dead barnacles reit
main to be scraped off in dock. Many
of our ships have had their speed real
ducecl one-half by these growths. p
The remedy for all this expense and P
trouble is to sheathe the bottom with I
wood , and then copper that sheathing ,
as with the old-fashioned wooden ship.
The expense of clocking and painting m
a ship of 10,000 tons is about § 1,500. As alus
a safe average the cost of docking our usv
ships , which , as has been said , must \v
take place twice a year , will not be cl
far from $1,000 for each docking , or Bil
$2,000 a year. At the present time there pi
are seventy-five ships fit for cruising , in
and requiring this semi-annual docku *
ing. A brief calculation shows that
these insignificant little barnacles cost
the Treasury Department the tidy sum
of not far from loO,00 each year. se
Philadelphia Evening Telegraph. °
* 3\
Gladstone at Church. ti
A writer in the London Church Ga tim tiG
zette tells this stoiT about Mr. Glad m
stone : "I happened be in a church pc
one Sunday morning when Mr. Glad ar
stone came in ; it was a church he at It
tended very rarely , so he was quite un nt
expected. He had much difficulty In
finding a seat , for it was a free and tic
open church and apt to crowd up in
dreadfully. A curate deacon , whom we CO
all loved , Dut whose forte was not is
preaching , happened to be in the pul da
pit , and aaught sight of the Prime
Minister as he hurried in and looked ev
around for a chair. It was almost his isafl
first sermon , and , nervous before , this afl
quite upset him. This Mr. Gladstone tir :
quickly perceived , and. picking up his de
hat and umbrella , he scurried to the of
top of the church , and , finding a seat
among the children , sat through the
whole of a long sermon with his hand : al
his ear , paying the most marked at
tention to- every word. This gave the
curate I am sorry to say he is since ca :
dead inoie courage , but after the be
tie
service Mr. Gladstone took an opportu
nity ! of thanking him. " we
za ;
Bees in Warfare. foi
Two instances are recorded in which foi
Ln-es have been used as weapons of de- ise
L'onse in war. When the Roman Geu- wi
ral Luculius was warring against
Mithridates , and sent a force against
city of Themiscyra , the besieged
hrow down on the invaders myriads evi
swarm ? of bees. These at once bean - wl
an an attack which resulted in the by >
of the siege. The insects were tei :
ilso once used with equal success in we
England. Chester ha
was besieged by
Danes and Norwegian , but its Saxon UK
lefeuders threw down on them the bee- rec
lives of the town and the siege was enWi
eon ' raised. Wi
offer
Consumption Did Xot Claim Him. for
Victor Baillot , who fought at Water Ita
, and was subsequently discharged bai
from the French army at the age of 22 bai
years as a consumptive , died recently
0
La Roche-sur-Yon , aged 105 years oil
md 10 months.
.
Chapel on Execution Grounds. mi
A Catholic chapel has been built on ich
spot where Maximilian , Miramon , to
Mejia were executed at Queretaro. prwli
rho
A poet and a stove form a practical wa
sxample of the manufacturer and con the
iumer. eel
The Issue of Paper Money.
Every honest man insists on the Gov
ernment carrying out all of its pecuni
ary contracts. There is some difference-
In opinion as to repaying some of the
war loans made by the Government , in-
paper or in coin ; but this is not the sil
ver question. It is impossible to drive-
the idea out of the heads of some people-
that paper money is the only common ,
sense money and that metallic inoney-
made of the precious metals , is a relic- u
of barbarism. If it is barbaric to be
lieve in this kind of metallic money , I
have inherited the belief from my bar
baric ancestors and hold them respon
sible. A post-mortem examination of"
my brain may possibly show why thisv
belief sticks to me so tenaciously. I ,
want to see the restoration of silver to
its old place , as an agent of valuation ,
at its existing coinage ratio of sixteen *
parts of silver to one of gold. For the
convenience of the people we sound :
monej bimetallists advocate the issuer
and use of abundant paper represeuta-t
lives , but always redeemable in coin {
by the Government at the option of the ?
people ; but we insist that the Goveru-f
rnent should always be allowed to exercise - ;
cise the commanding option of a debtor ?
and decide as to the kind of coin , goldj
or silver , they must use for redemption. .
I look upon paper representative money1
simply as an evidence of debt. It is-
. ,
indispensable and fi'ls ' an exceedingly ;
. ,
important position in civilized life.
The issue of paper money is one off
the most commanding and powerful *
functions of a civilized government. .It.
should be most strenuously held by the-
Government alone. The Government :
has the taxing power to obtain coiiit
when necessary for redemption ; thisi
"
power will never surrender to any cor-
poratiou. Surrendering the issue of |
paper money to partially private corporations -
porations would , in my estimation , be-
one of the most pernicious of economic'
blunders. A powerful organization , ,
backed up by almost unlimited means-
and the most influential of the metro
politan press , is in existence for the-
purpose of depriving the Government
of this duty and giving it over to our
lenders of money. The dangers that
seem < to menace this nation from this-
cause are probably now as great as the-
dangers that threatened us for other
reasons in 1SJO. ( In 1SG5 our people
knew : more than they did in 1SUO. They
were taught by sad experience. In 1SW ) >
it was easier to fight than to think. It.
seems to me that the Almighty par
alyzed the brains of the American people
ple ] in 1SGO for some inscrutable pur
pose. < Is there not a terrible mental
paralysis evident to-day ? The choice-
oi gold alone in 1S73 rather than silver-
as the sole mouej- standard is aa im
material question. The choice of silver"
alone rather than gold would have put V
in a similar financial position and-
would probably have been just as mis
chievous. We must , for stability and1
safety , stand on both metals as debt-
paying standards. Civilized society
must have money or its representatives
u abundance , and the real center ofr
battle to-day is the effort to take away
the power to issue this representative
inonoy from the people or our repre
sentatives , the Government , and hand
over this powerful agent to a smallr
select class of people whose sole func
tion < in to loan monej * . To drive tho-
Government < out of the banking busi-
DCSS , as they falsely describe it , is the-
potent force actuating the single stand
ard leaders , who advocate gold alone.
is the gold standard question in a-
nut shell.
The average bimetallist has no objec
tion whatever to the Government issu
ing bonds , if necessary , in order to get
oin to liquidate coin obligations ; but to-
issue ; bonds to purchase gold to llqui-
Jate coin obligations is most emphat-
cally condemned. One of the strongest
jvldences of a want of statesmanship-
the condition of our national fiscaL
iffairs and the low prices and hard
imes among the people. Neglecting to-
leprive the Secretary of the Treasury
the privilege of borrowing gold ,
vhich privilege he has so notoriously
ibused , is an evidence of national rnen-
paralysis , such as afflicted our na-
ion in I860. We have millions of coined
md uncoined silver in our vaults which
an legally be used , and should have-
een used , to liquidate any coin obliga-
ion against the United States. Must
wait until 1900 to awake to a reali-
ation of our situation ? is the question
our statesmen to investigate , and'
the plain people to decide. Let us-
every reasonable effort to reach a-
vise conclusion. John A. Grier.
A Paying Business.
An exchange remarks : "Did you-
iver give the national statements-
rhich are published semi-occasionally
the United States Treasury any at-
ention ? " Weil , yes , we have. audE
find that the banks of this country
tave about five or six times as niucb >
uoney loaned oirt on which they are-
eceiving interest , as there is in exist-
nce < in the country , and this is not all. ,
find further that the greater part-
the real money in them and which ,
onus the base of their "working ctp-
, " belongs to their depositors. This-
ank business is a great "graft" for the-
ankers.
The idea that the trusts and monop-
lies are a useful object lesson to-
.wake the people and hurry up the
ailleanium , may be all very well for"
reformers who are not compelled :
worry orer the bread and butter
irobleim , but what of the poor fellows -
lose employment and must face
rant ? This is a very serious side of"
problem , and one that should re
elve prompt attention. Toledo N
