VALENTINE DEMOCRAT.
I. M. RICE , Publisher.
'
VALENTINE NEBRASKA
NEBEASKA NEWS NOTES
Work has commenced on the
Presbyterian church at Craig.
Mabel LSIsson of Beatrice was killed ,
in a street car accident at Chicago.
John Shoff , recently appointed , haa
taken possession of the postoffice at
Grafton. .
George 'W. Palmer of Stockville chas
tised a neighbor and was fined $25 and
costs by the judgs.
D. E. Thompson denies the report
, *
that he Is an aspirant for the appoint *
xnent as minister to Mexico.
The Unitarian church at Ordhas a
new organ , the gift of the Unitarian
church at Omaha.
A bank with $10,000 capital has been
organized at Newport , to be know ?
as the Newport State bank.
* _ _
- - - - i
Owing to scarlet fever in Rev. Wm
J. Scott's family , the Methodist Epis
copal church at Osceola is closed. .
The Home Telephone company of
Gothenburg has been sold to F. H.
Gilchrist , a'business man of Kearney.
Charles Russell , who was sentenced
to prison for life one year ago at aHr-
rison , Sioux county , is having a nevf
trial at Chadron.
Judd Gates , a farmer near Gilmore ,
# had a foot crushed in a hay press.
If Same old trick of crowding the ha >
IfV down with the foot.
* % A. B. Wilcox of Grant , ex-county
clerk , had a foot crushed in a wind
mill while repairing it. Three toes
were almost severed from the foot.
A company has been organized to
put in a telephone system at Valen
tine. It is the intention to ultimately
extend the line to various parts of the
county.
The Nebraska Telephone company
has strung more lines from McCool to
I York and now all McCool subscribers
are connected with the York local ex-
, change.
A stock company is being organized
in Plattsmouth , headed by Mayor
Thomas E. Parmelee , to build a pon
toon bridge across the Missouri river
at that place.
When Mr. and Mrs. Charles Perky
of Wahoo returned from an entertain
ment they were surprised to find a
stranger making himself at home in
the parlor.
The blacksmith and wagon shop of
H. G. Person was robbed of about $60
"worth of machinery and tools , includ
ing a new $30 screw plate , six plow
lays , a bolt cutter a brace.
The Gazette , Herald and Sun , three
Kelson papers , were held up' by the
postmaster last week for advertising
L "grab sale , " which the postmaster
construed to be a lottery.
Ex-Senator J. M. Snyder suffered a
paralytic stroke while in Loup City
last week doing some trading. He was
taken to his home on the farm , six
1 miles south of Loup City.
f *
„
'Several railway employes at Gor
don have been arrested on the charge
f using company coal. Two of them
\vere ffined $17 and costs each and
Warrants are said to be out forvothers.
Tuesday of last week was an unfor
tunate day for H. C. Rincker , a farm ,
er near Crawford. In the morning a
- fire partially destroyed his house and
in the afternoon his horse fell with
him , breaking Rincker's leg.
There is - general complaint in the
range countrj' that the cattle which
are dependent upon winter range are
not doing well. The late rains kept
the grass green until the frost struck
It instead of curing as usual.
Stockholders of the Nebraska City
"
Street Railway cprnpany are debat--
ing the advisability of accepting an
offer of an eastern company which
proposes to take the property and con
vert it into an electric system. At
present * the motive power is mule.
An effort is being made to raise a
company of the National Guard at
Long Pine. Dr. H. P. McKnight is
circulating the petition and has al-
, ready secured enough . signatures of
parties who desire to join to warrant
* muster ing in'of the ( company. ' . f
, t
People along the Union Pacific from t ;
North Platte to Lexington are com- r
Ifiaining that the. new train schedule c :
of the Union Pacific does not1give i :
tliem Sufficient train facilities. * Under c
cc
the new schedule the majority of the c
trains do not stop at mostof the sta u
tions. * " 'J , , V * rt
< V. C. Connelly , a barber at Lindsay , eJP
madean assault .on Andrew Christen-
sen with/a razor and cut him up s.o tla
tld
a
'
'
'badly 'that he ( Connelly ) was .bound d
overto the court on a charge of Das
sault with intent to kill , and is await
n :
ing the result of Christensen's inju
ai
ries before trial.
< , Janves Barry , . night , operator - at
friend'had . ah expVriance during the
cold spell which he does : not care to re
peat. The signal light on top of the la
depot refused to burn and Barry , took
a ladder and went up to see what was
the matter. The wind blew the lad- --w ,
der do"wh " 'and . Barry vainly < tried to'
attract he attention of someone who cc
ivould .help him out of his pre ica- RTV.
rieaVf'rozen that TV.
ment until he was so
He decided to take his chances sliding
, Dff the xopfj He'struck. the-platform
Airrlgjit aadf bi/gh severely b'ruised al
fvas not dangerously hijured. _ ra
ROOT SAYS
RETAIN ARMY.
Secretary of War Claims Soldiers Preence
Is Necessary In Philippines.
Industry Said to B at a Standstill
While Immorality Thrives Unner a
i
16 th Century Government.
"Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) Secre
tary'Root gave an interesting exposi
tion" of the condition of affairs in the
Philippines , together with the outlook
for terminating military by civil rule
in the court of a hearing before the
house committee on military affairs in
connection with the army appropria
tion bill. The meeting was behind clos
ed doors and no exact statement' of
Mr. Root's remarks was given out , al
though the following Is said to em
body the more essential features :
The discussion of the Philippines
condition was brought out by a ques
tion of Mr. Hay of Virginia as to
whether civil government could be
maintained in the islands without the
presence of the army. In reply Mr.
Root stated that the army was neces
sary as a moral force to maintain the
civil administration now established.
One of the main causes , he said , why
there had not been more progress in
the Philippines wastthat the Spoonei
amendment passed by congress last
year and restricting the grant of fran
chises , had the effect of preventing the
investment of capital and the conse
quent employment of labor. , Many
people were idle .and many of these
became conspirators simply because
they were idle.
INDUSTRY AT A STANDSTILL , .
The secretary instanced'the fact that
although rice was one of the main
products of the Philippines , yet about
$5,000,000 worth of rice had to be im
ported last year. In this an many
other branches of industries the wheels
of industry were not moving , the peo
ple out of employment were encour
aged -viciousness and as a result it
was necessary to keep 40,000 troops in
the islands. In some instances a very
satisfactory civil administration had
been set up.
But Mr. Root pointed out that even
in provinces where civil government
had bee'n a success there were men
conspiring to assist in the agitation
and warfare carried on in neighbor
ing provinces.
On the whols , however , the secre
tary expressed the belief that if con
gress enacted the bill proposed by
Senator Lodge , or that of Representa
tive Cooper providing systems of law
for the Philippines , it would be possi
ble soon thereafter to gradually re
duce the military establishment inthe
Philippines. He did not believe it
would be a rapid or complete termi
nation of military rule , as the condi
tions among the natives were firmly
fixed and -would take considerable
time to bring about the new order of
"
things. .
Mr. Root said that better. progress
had been made in the last year than
had been expected and he expressed
the opinion that civilization , ultimate
ly , would be extended to the people ! of
the islands. To illustrate this point ,
he said the Philippine people had been
in effect living under a sixteenth cen
tury government and the United States
wanted to give them a twentieth cen
tury government.
The situation in Cuba was-discussed
only briefly , as Mr. Root remarked
thatwe were simply * trustees there. 1
whereas uur interest in the Philippines
was much more definite and extended ,
particularly over the large sweep of
public lands. Mr. Root also stated
during the hearing that it was the ex
pectation of the war department to
do away with the army transport ser
vice , so hat the transportation of
troops thereafter would be carried on
by .private concerns. Some rquestions
had been raised > by members of the
committee a sto the propriety of an ,
item in the bill of $1.000,000 for emer
gency expenses " 6t the war department.
The secretary said this amount was :
unnecessary and had been estimated
through oversight , so that the com
mittee will doubtless omit this emer
gency fund from the bill. e
1c 1e [ :
TRAFFIC MANAGERS VIOLATE LAW , c
t !
iChicago , 111. ( Special. ) A startling-
"
uriv was"given to the examination of a.
he traffic managers of various rail-
oads before the interstate commerce
ommission Vesterday , when they free-
y acknowledged , that theyhave been
lontinually Vic-fating' the " inter ? tatb ,
lommerce" law against rebates in their
iealings rwith the packers.
Among * these who * , vestified < to this
fL'ect are Paul Morton , second viOe
c-esident of the Santa Fe ; A. C. Bird ,
hird vice president of the' St.pPnuH u
' m
nd J. M. Johnson , third Vice piesi- ti-
ent of the Rock Island. . „ tt
It is the expressed intention of the la
th
lembers of the commission to procepd t-
-
t once against the packers for their ttli
cceptance of the discriminating rates. Uc
Diplomatic Dinner at White" House.
Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) The
irgest banquet ever given at the
Wiite house will be held this evening. er
L'is the annual diplomatic dinner , and ca
ill outshine and outnumber any th
! - < rf
re'nt of * the kind .in the * history of the tu
juntry. * It is expected"that ninety- . Sti
VQ guests will sit around the great sti
iiite. . board' in the east room , the er
partment never before used for ban- of
net purposes. Workmen awere-.bus"y an
.1 day transferring.JpWnts and * deco- .
Lting the room. lie 5
CHINESE EMPEROR IS SECOND IN RANK ,
Pekin. ( Special. ) AllJ evidences in
dicate that the emperor of China is
now more completely under the dom
ination of the dowager empress than
he was before the Chinese court went
into exile.
Several high officials were granted ,
audiences today , during which the em
peror filled the role of a figurehead.
The empress dowager sat on his ma
jesty's left and conducted the conver
sations. According to the accounts of
two of the officials who were received
today , the dowager empress ignored
the emperor and the latter did not at
tempt to take any part in the affair.
These officials said his majesty ap.-
peared melancholy and listless. The
principal topic of conversation during
these audiences was the presence in
Pekin of the foreign garrisons. The
dowager empress seemed impressed
with the necessity of a conciliatory
policy. f
Evidence accumulates pointing to
the tim'dity of the "dowager empress
about coming back to Pekin. Her first
remark upon alighting at the Machia-
pu station was : "Where are the for
eign soldiers ? "
Upon seeing a number of newspaper
correspondents at the station the em
press bowed to them obsequiously.
The dowager empress proposes to
decorate the American and Japanese
officers who guarded the imperial pal
ace during the court's absence. She
wil lalso confer the decorations upon
the officers and engineers who had
charge of the imperial train during
the railroad journey from Pao Ting
Fu.
Fu.The
The dowager empress has signed an
edict ordering the decapitation of Gen
eral Tung Fuh Siang , the notorious
anti-foreigner. A tartar general in
Kan Su province has been ordered to
carry out this sentence.
RAILROAD FOR THE B6 ! HORN BASIN ,
Cody , Wyo. ( Special. ) It is report
ed from Garland , a station noith of
Cody on the Qody-Toluca line , that
grading outfitters have stored their
machinery there with the understand
ing that the road will be extended on
to the coal field near Meeeteet'se , own
ed by Senator Clark of Montana. The
line has been surveyed andit is un
derstood that work will'be commenced
on the grade early in the spring. The
distance from Cody to the coal fields is
about thirty-five miles.
It is also reported that Colonel Cody
and his associates have a grant of
200,000 acres of land in the Big Horn
basin which they will lose in another
year unless they get water on it. It
will cost upward of $1,000,000 to water
the tract , but when the canals are
constructed the land will be worth $10
per acre. Without railroads it is diffi
cult to get farmers to settle in the ba
sin country , and Cody and his associ
ates are working to have a number of
branches of the Burlington built , in
cluding the line to the coal fields , to
tap the large agricultural section.
It is said that the coining year will
witness great activity in the Big Horn
basin country. The Burlington rail
road , which owns thousands of acres
of valuable coal lands there , is inter
ested in the development of the coun
try and will construct .numerous
tranches thatill open up sections
now remote from railroad communica
tion.
MAINTAIN THE PARITY OF MONEY ,
Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) The
first financial measure of importance
to be reported to the house is that
agreed upon by the committee on coin-
Lige , weights and measures providing
tor the maintenance of the legal ten-
Jer silver.dollar at a parity with gold
and for an increase 01" the subsidiary
silver coinage. The measure was in
troduced by Representative Hill of
Connecticut. It was consfdered last
year in * congress and attracted wide
spread attention among bankeis and
ihnncial authorities.
Mr. Hill u/ged immediate action in
> rder that the bill might be brought
Before the house at an early day. This
vas apposed by.the democratic mein-
jers , who weie against the bill on its
nents and protested against what
licy alk-ged to be undue haste. Mr. "
jharoth of Coloiado sought to ahev
he vote deferied one week in oruar
hat Alexanuer Delmar , u wiiter on
iconomic siiujects , might be heaid. :
"his was voted down , as were all oth-
r motions to defer action , and the
lommittee , by a heaityotvi , ordeied .
he bill icpoted.
It authorizes the coinage of subsidi-
.ry silver coin without legavd to limit
nd as the public necessity may re-
uire. The most important feature of'
he bill for tne p'arity .of gold and
Liver dollars is as follows :
'The secretary of the treasury is i a
erefcy ciifccUa to maintain u.c all i n
lines a pcuitjitn sou tne legal teu- ti
er siler aoilars remaining outstanil- tis
ijr , ana 10 tuut enu'n ; it > nen.u. < _ - s
r-jte Qto exchange gold for legal tsn-
tr silver doiiaisnfcii presentea vo n
ie trtabary in the sum of $5 or any a
mltipie tneieoi" , aiia : iil provisions
le law ror the use ot maintenance ot d
ie reserve rund in the treasury re g ;
tting to United States notes as in u ;
ie ai&cietion ot the secretaiy 01 ! ths
easury nereby made applicable to vt
ie exchange of legal tenaer silver t
OJ
Raise salaries or Officers.
Salt Lake , Utah. ( Special. ) The '
ate supreme court has issued a pertc |
nptory wiite of mandate in the test pi
tse involving the constitutionality of J f
ie lavpassed by the recent legisla- !
ire raiing the salaries of the various ai
ate officials , declaring the law con- aiN
itutional. By this decision the gov- cl
nor will receive an annual increase in
$2,000 ; the secretary of state , $1,500 ; b :
iditor , treasurer and--attorney gen-
al $500 and superintendent of pub-
instruction $300.- ' fv-,4 *
THE CANAL
BILL PASSES ,
Hepburn's'Nicaragua ! ! Measure Almost Un-
nanimously Adopted in House ,
Aggregate Cost of Canal Is Fixed at
One Hundred and Eighty Mill-
' ion Dollars. '
Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) The
Hepburn canal bill passed the house
by practically a unanimous vote. Only
two members out of 310 voted against
it. Messrs. Fletcher ( rep. ) of Minne
sota and Lassiter ( dem. ) of Virginia
were the two voting in the negative.
The opposition to committing the
government to the Nicaraguan route
attempted to secure amendments to
lodge with the president the discre
tionary power to purchase and com
plete the Panama canal , if it could be
purchased for $40,000,000.
The test came on the first vote ,
when the advocates of an alternative * ,
route polled 102 against 170 votes. At
each succeeding vote their strength
dwindled until Mr. Cannon of Illinois ,
under whose leadership the fight was
made , was unable to get the ayes and
noes on a motion to recommit.
The debate which preceded the tak
ing of the final vote was made mem
orable by a clash between Mr. Hep
burn , the author of the bill , and Mr.
Cannon , chairman of the appropriation
committee. On several previous occa
sions they have measured swords'over
canal legislation.
Two years ago a similar bill was
passed by a vote of 224 to 36.
The bill as passed authorized the
president to.secure . from the states of
Costa'Rica ' and Nicaragua , in behalf
of the United States , such portion of
the territory belonging to said states
as may be desirable and necessary to
excavate , construct and prospect a ca
nal suitable to the wants of modern
navigation and commerce , an dappro-
priates such a sum as is made neces
sary to secure the control of said ter
ritory.
Section 2 authorizes the president ,
after securing control of the needed
territory , to authorise the secretary of
war to construct such canal from the
Caribbean sea at a point near Grey-
town , to a point in the Pacific ocean
near Brito , and also to construct pro
per harbors atthe termini ! of said ca
nal and to make necessary provisions
for the defense of the canal and har
bors.
USE RIVER AND LAKE.
Sections 3 and 4 authorize the presi
dent to make such surveys and to em
ploy such persons in constructing the
canal as to him may seem necessary
and directs that in the construction
of the canal the river San Juan and
Lake Nicaragua shall be used as far
as they are available.
Section 5 authorizes the president to
guarantee to the states of Costa Rica
and Nicaragua the use of the canal
and harbors upon terms to be agree l
upon for all vessels owned by said
states and by citizens thereof.
The last section makes a present ap
propriation of $10,000,000 to carry on
this work and authorizes the secretary
of war to enter into proper contracts
for material and work as may be
deemed necessary therefor , such work
andnaterial to be paid for as appro--
priations may be made from time to
time. The section fixes the aggregate
cost at $180,000,000 , to be drawn from
the treasury on warrants of the pres
ident.
FAVOR SENATOR NELSON'S BILL ,
Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) The
senate committee has authorized a fa
vorable report on Senator Nelson's bill
for the creation of an executive de
partment of government be known as
the department of commerce , with a
new cabinet member in charge.
Besides providing for an additional
member known as secretary of com
merce , the bill provides for an assist-
int secretary and a complement of
jfficers. Under the new department
shall be the following officers and bu- a
" *
eaus :
Life saving service , lighthouse board >
ind , , lighthouse service , marine hospi- d
.al service , steamboat inspection ser tl
vice , bureau of navigation and Unit- tlo ;
id States shipping commissioners , bu- J
eau of immigration , bureau of statis Jb Jb
ts , the United State ? coast and geo- b
letic survey , the commissioner of rail- n
oads , the patent office , * the depart- b
nent of labor , commissioner of fish
ind fisheries , bureau of foregn com-
nerce , now in the state department ,
o be consolidated with the bureau of n
tatics. o ;
TITere is also established a bureau of ai
aiE
namifactures and a .bureau of min s E
.nd mining.The new department is c ;
designed to promote commerce and la
ather and furnish all information tl
pon commerce and industries. It also ai
rill relieve the other departments , no- ot
otTl
ably the treasury' , of a great amount Tl
f work now performed there. :
Postmasters' .
'Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) Sena-
jr Millard says he will settle the B ;
ostoffice fight at Creighton within a ar
sw days. A. A. Logan , editor of the sp
reif hton Courier , and an old soldier be
re the aspirants for the position. The in
ieligh fight has been settled by the fo
fom
tioice of Charles Wille. The follow- m ;
ig postmasters have been appointed <
y Senator Millard : Palmer , N. M. m :
urlingamej Wisner , J. L. Rowey ; St. ty ;
aulR. . C. Perkins ; Sargent , H. P. Gc
a.vage. - - co
FUNSTON IS BACK FROM ISLANDS ,
San Francisco , Cal. ( Special. )
Brigadier General Frederick Funston
arrived here from Manila on the
transport Warren. "While his condition
has greatly improved since leaving
Manila , he has not yet entirely re
covered.
On arrival here General Funston im-
me'diately went to Oakland to greet hia
family. He stated that he would re
main here about two weeks and then
visit his old home and friends In
Kansas for a few days , after which
he would go to Washington on impor
tant business , the nature of which he
would not divulge.
General Funston said his leave of
absence was for two months. He
thought he would have it extended and
it was possible that he would not re
turn at all. General Funston had as
a fellow passenger Brigadier General
Robert Hughes , who has been on duty
in the Philippines for a long period.
"Regarding the progress of the war
in the Philippines , " said General Fun
ston , "there is little that can be added
to the news that has been sent out
from Manila by telegraph. In Batan-
gas our troops are making good pro
gress and in Leyte the situation is
very promising. Samar is a puzzle.
The island is being raked from side to
side by columns of scouts , but it is
very difficult to locate the insurgents.
The navy blockade is very effective ,
however.and we may be able to starve
the insurgents out and compel a sur
render of the armed forces there ,
which number about 3,500 men , in a
few months. The army and navy are
co-operating in an effort to force the
rebels to come in and give up their
arms , and good results may be looked
for soon.
"The work of the civil commission is
progressing satisfactorily , but military'
rule must be preserved in those prov
inces where stubborn and influential
leaders hold the ignorant and blood
thirsty natives in the palm of their
hands and mold their opinion at will. "
CALEB POWERS ASKS FOR HELP ,
Indianapolis , Ind. ( Special. ) Wil-
liam S. Taylor of Kentucky held a
conference with Mayor Bookwalter and
other leading republicans here with a
view to starting a movement in aid
of Caleb Powers , former secretary of
? tate of Kentucky , Avho is now under
conviction for complicity in the mur
der of Governor William Goebel and
is trying to get into the supreme
couit on an appeal.
Powers wrote a pathetic letter to
Taylor , in which he states that his
two trials in the courts of' Kentucky
for a crime of which he knows noth
ing have stripped him of every cent he
has in the world and that money fur
nished by his friends has also been
spent in his defense. He says it will
be necessary for him to have money
before he can prosecute his appeal to
the1 supreme court , and he asks that
republicans be appealed to for assist
ance.
Nearly all the members of the con
ference expressed a willingness to
help the condemned man. Taylor was
requested to ascertain how much
money Powers will need.
PHILIPPINE CiVIL GOVERNMENT BILL ,
AVashington , D. C. ( Special. ) Rep
resentative Cooper of the house com
mittee on insular affairs has drawn up
his bill for civil government in the
Philippines. The nouse bill provides
that the government shall consist of
an upper house of five native Fili
pinos and a lower body of thirty mem
bers elected by the people.
Voting is confined to those who can
read or write Spanish or English , an-1
who own property. They must be
over 21 years of age. Two delegates
to congress are to be elected at the
tirst session of th'e legislature. The
government goes into effect January 1 ,
1904.
1904.The i
The provisions on citizenship , fran-
:
hises , mining and land regulations
ind homesteads are practically the
anie as those in the Lodge bill.
c
To Fix the Responsibility. o
San Francisco , Cal. ( Special. ) Xo-
:
hing has been heard from the missing
f
ictimbs of the Walla Walla disaster
ind it is feared that they all went
own. , The statement of Lookout
ohnson , made to the coroner's jury
t Eureka , that he saw the lights on
he bark Max and warned the officers
n the" bridge of the Walla Walla , is
enie dby them. Other members of n
he crew of the aWlla Walla corrobtl
rate Johnson's assertion that the tl
ights on the French bark were visi0 (
le. The conflicting statements will
ie investigated by the United States
narine authorities and the responsi tl
tlbi
bility for the disaster fixed. bi
biPI
PI
Believes He Is Able to Fly. le
Kingston.Ont. ( Special. ) At a meet-
ig of Free Methodists at Verona , one pl
f the brethren declared he could fly j si ;
nd proceeded to demonstrate his skill. [
re launched into space and his head | tjj
'
ame in contact with a large coal oil
g
imp. iThe lamp fell to the floor and j
ie oil ignited. At onetime five men ( 53 ;
nd three women were on fire and five
co '
it of the eight were'seriously burned.
he flames spread and caused a panic.
any were injured in the stampede. $7 ;
Trusts Decrease Marriages
New York. ( Special. ) Rev. Albert
ruchlaus , pastor of Hop echapel , in
i interview said thatvtrusts are re- j de
onsible for the decrease in the num- I
po
jr of marriages ; that they make it Sfl
ipossible for young men who work
ye
ir salaries to keep" up with the $
arch and support wives. "Young wojgj
en are forced-to give up the idea of
an
arriage "and turn their attention to .
pewriting and professional trades , i
d made the family and the financial jn'
mbinations ait destroying it. " " *
cs
--I-1
CODNTS DP
THE LOSS ,
Great Brilian Reviews the Cost of Opera
tions In Soth Africa ,
Forces Are Reduced During the Year
by 18,320 Men in Killed Woun
ded and Captured.
London. ( Special. ) A published re
view of operations in South Africa
during the past year , based upon offi
cial report , gives an interesting com
parison of Boer and British losses.
The review says that the total re
duction of the Boer forces In killed ,
wounded , taken prisoners and surren
dered , amounts to 18,320 men. Out or
this total only 7,993 rifles were secur
ed. The capture of Boer ammunition
amounts to 2,300,000 caitridges. Brit
ish columns are supposed to have ta
ken all the Boer artillery , amounting
to twenty-seven guns , exclusive of the
two captured by General Dewjet at
Zeefonteln.
The capture of Boer stock has' been
enormous , considering the greathauls
made during the earlier years oJf the
war. During the last year a tofal of
29,882 horses were captured , Avhile of
other stock , such as cattle , oxen and
sheep , 366,821 head were captured.
LOSSES BY BRITISH.
The British casualties from actual
fighting amount to only half of those
sustained by the Boers , namely 9,1113
men , of whom 1,513 were taken pris
oners and have since been released.
During the last year 4,090 men died of
disease , fifteen officers and 342 men
were accidentally killed and 25,800 men
were invalided home.
Lord Kitchener , telegraphing from
Johannesburg , reports the occurrence
of a number of skirmishes in various
parts of the field. The most serious
were at Amersfoot , January 3 and1 ,
when Major W. E. Plomer and Colonel-
J. Spens were in contact with Com
mandant Opperman's commands. They
drove the Boers'from their positions
after considerable fighting , during
which the Somerset Light infantry
suffered severely.
TWENTY-SEVEN KILLED.
MajorVallentin and eighteen men
were killed and five officers and twen
ty-eight men were wounded. The Boers
left nine men dead on the field. Col
onel Colenbrander surprised Field Cor
net Louw's laagdr at Watervale Jan
uary 5 , killing five men and capturing
twenty-nine.
General French reports that the Bo
ers in Cape Colony are so reduced in
numbers as to require only an elab
orate police system to keep them In
check. The week's totals of Boer cas
ualties are thirty-six men killed , nine
wounded , 261 made prisoners and sev
enty-two surrendered.
KNOX REVIEWS * THE SCHLEVCASE.
Washington , D. C. Special. ) The
Post says :
The case of Rear Admiral Schley is
now being considered by the attorney
general for the puruose of discovering
whether there was an illegality in
connection with the court of inquiry.
It is understood that at the recenc
conference and Rear Admiral Schley
the latter pointed out some alleged vi
olations of the law in regard to the
court and these matters' have been
deemed , worthy of examination.
The attorney general is not to pass
upon the merits of the case , but will
leal solely with its legal phase. K
tie shall find that the court was pro
perly constituted , that the precept was
egally drawn and that the rules of
aw were followed , as to the evidence ,
t will then be within the province ot
he president to consider the case on
ts merits. If the attorney general de-
ides that there weie illegalities
, as
rlaimed by Admiral Schley , the verdict
f the court would be vitiated.
It is understood that the future
ourse of Admiral Schley
concerning a
ormal appeal in writing to the pres-
dent will depend largely on the deci-
ion of the attorney general.
IIHERAL PRODUCTS OF UNITED STATES ;
Washington , D. C. ( Special. ) The
eport of the geological survey sho'ws
hat the value of mineral products in
tie United States in 1SOO exceeds $1-
30,000,000 , a gain of. nearly $100000000
verJS99. :
Iron and coal alone yielded more
lan half the grand total , their conf
ined value being § 556,000,000. In-the
reduction of coal the United States
ads the world.
Teh most important
gains in gohl
reduction were in the Seward penin-
la of Alaska , in the Cripple Creek
strict and in Arizona. The yield for
ie year was valued at
? 79i9iooo a
lin of $8,117,600 over 1899.
The coining value of silver was $73-
3,495 , against'$70,505,626 in 1899. ' fh'e
'pper output was 605,117,166 pounds a
Lin of 6.59 per cent.
The value of crude
petroleumwas
5,752,691 , against 64.403,900 in 1S99.
Cuban Customs. 4
Washington. Z > . C.-Special. ) The
sular affairs department
of the war
partment has just
completed
its
re-
rt on Cuban customs for
1901. It
ows that the
collections
during th-
ar were $14,355,000 , compared with
1,565,202 for 1900 and $13,378,557 for
)9. Buring 1500 the export duties
nounted to $893,703. During1901
ese duties were abolishedbut for
e three months :
Jhat the law was
operation the collections amounted
$67,440.