Historical Society
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VALEN DEMOCRAT.
VOLUME xxn VALENTINE. NEBRASKA. THURSDAY , MARCH 28 , 1907 NUMBER 11
Keep your Eye on this space
Kitchen Plumbing.
Good plumbing in the kitchen is a matter of great importance
because your health depends on the sanitary conditions existing in this
room where all food is prepared. Old fashioned sinks with closed-
in piping are lodging places for vermin , moisture and dirt which bring
about serious illness.
If the plumbing of your kitchen is old , unsightly and unheal
thy , let us quote you a price on installing a snow-white "rttotttdafd"
Porcelain Enameled sink with open plumbing. Our prices are rea
sonable ; our work high class and what you pay for this modern kitchen
equipment may save you money in doctor bills.
RED FRONT MERC. CO
Half Sale !
Clothing , Sides and Pants , Caps , Under
wear , Mittens , Shirts , Sweaters ; Ladies' and
Children's Cloaks , Jackets , Skirts , Shoes.
D. STI CLOTHIER
. Valentine , Nebr.
Durable Chairs § 3.50 set.
Desks § 5.00 fco § 26.00.
Side Boards § 450 up.
Stove Boards lOc up.
Kstablishea in Ya'eijliue since 1885
J
Wagons and Buggies
Lumber and Hardware
Pictures Framed to Order ,
TI N W A RE OILS , ETC.
Lamps , Orockerv , Lime , Coal. Paper.
FURNITURE AD COFFINS.
Enilialmer
in Men's Suits
and Hats.
PHONE 97 ,
T ' " N &
GRANT BOYER ,
. . CARPENTER & BUILDER .
All kinds of wood work done to order. Stock tanks made in all sizes
Valentine , - Nebraska
Read- the Advertisements.
TWO-CENT FARE CONFIS-
CATORY ? NIT !
William B. Ely , chief clerk of
the senate enrolling and engross
ing committee , has written the
following :
To the Editor of the State Journ
al : The opinion seems to be pret
ty general that the radical change
of policy inaugurated by the Ne
braska railroads immediately upon
the taking effect of the "two-cent-
rate" bill was instituted for the
purpose of "making a case" in
the courts against that act , and
that it is their hope , through these
changes , to be able to prove it to
be "confiscatory. "
Leaving out of mind the busi
ness short-sightedness of this new
move , in and of itself , and looking
at the subject in the light of his
tory alone for the two-cent maxi
mum rate is old ; more than half a
century what reasonable hope
the railroad management can dis
cover of overturning the act pas
ses understanding.
Duriog the early forties of the
last century , about ' 42 , the seven
or eight short lines railroad that ,
end to end , connected Albany with
Buffalo and Niagara Falls were
consolidated into a single corpora
tion to be known henceforth as the
"New York Central Eailroad. "
In the charter of that consolidation
was a stipulation that its passen
ger rates should never be higher
that 2 cents a mile , and from that
day to this in unbroken continu
ance , the 2-cent rate has prevailed
though persistent efforts were
made from time to time to get
that stipulation annulled , especial
ly during the civil war.
Now consider New York at the
time that charter was granted.
Its population in 1S40 was only
about 2,400,000 not greatly dif
ferent from Nebraska of today.
But , what is of greater importance
the habit of universal travel had
not then been formed as it is to
day. In those days a ride upon
the railroad was a rare event in
the life of every one but the ex
ceptionally wealthy. Travel was
light ; exceptionally as compared
with this day and age. The cars
were scarcely lager than Concord
stage coaches. Trains of three or
four such cars were about the lim
it. Thirty or forty passengers to
the train scarcely a single coach-
ful a day was good business ,
taking one day with another , and
one train each way a day covered
it all except upon excursion oc-
cisions. The roads would starve
nowadays on such a passenger
business as the old New York Cen
tral grew wealthy upon. And yet ,
light as was the passenger traffic
in those days , the shareholders
of the New York Central were
ready to concede a 2-cent rate.
Surely if a 2-ce.it maximum rate
is confiscatory today under the
conditions that obtain in Nebraska
where everyone is on the go , it
must have been sheer robbery
fifty years ago in New York ,
when the relative cost of moving
a train was greatly higher than
now in spite of the then lower
wages and cost of supplies and re
pairs , and when the minimum rate
all over New England and the
middle states was 3 cents a mile.
At that time and for years after
wards'the New York Central was
the only railroad in the country
that carried passengers at 2 cents
a mile as the regular rate.
And no one has ever tried to
declare the rate confiscatory for
the old "Central" in all the years
preceding the civil war. That it
was remunerative then is. proven
by its rapid growth in wealth and
by the investigation into that
road's affairs in 1863-04 when the
bill was before the New York as
sembly to remove the restriction
from its charter. True , thanks to
unlimited use of money , the bill
Easter
ft * *
/
Comes March 31 , and is considered the formal ft
opening of spring' . This is the time of year when
people are looking for something new. We have a
nice , new line of dependable merchandise for spring
and summer , including new patterns in Lawns and
Batistes and a nice showing in the popular plaid ef
fect goods.
Men's Neckwear
Everything new in Men's Neckwear for Easter.
' ft
Buy one 'of this season's four-in-hands. They are
novel and up to date. We sell Arrow Collars.
went through both branches of the
legislature , but it met the fate it
so abundantly deserved in Gov.
Rubin E. Fenton's veto. That
veto message ougbt to make mighty
interesting reading for the rail
road managers of Nebraska nowa
days.
days.With
With this bit of railroad bistory
before tbeir minds and every
railroad official must be familiar
with it together witb the ac
knowledged fact that for .years
past here in Nebraska where towns
are so far apart and in much of
its territory the population is
widely scattered , the" average rate
actually paid has been less than 2
cents a mile l.S cents , tobe ex
act it seems not a little strange
that the railroad managers should
entertain a hope of discrediting
the " 2-cent rate" bill by adopting
a line of policy that abandods by
far the most profitable branch of
tbe passenger business low-rate
excursions and limited tickets
and putting all passenger carriage
upon a flat. 2-cent rate regardless
of competing points. The adop
tion of sucb a policy is explicable
only upon the hypothesis tbat long
years of unrestricted political pow
er has so blinded the eyes of tbeir
understanding that they have come
to look upon tbe wbole population
as a pack of fools , and upon the
tbe judicial bench as a pliant tool
ready to their bidding.
The people of Nebraska have no
desire to see the railroads do busi
ness without legitimate profit.
This act was tbe product of cool
deliberation. There was neither
emotion nor sentiment nor passion
behind it. The belief tbat two
cents a mile is ample pay for pas
senger carriage amounts to a con
viction and the bill will never be
repealed till it is proven beyond
reasonable doubt that tbe rate it
establishes is too lo < v. And the
courts will never set aside upon
any evidence produced by this
deliberate abandonment of the
simplest of business principles.
But if , under the same enterpris
ing business methods that have so
built up the Nebraska railroad
system in times past the 2-cent
rate prove unremunerative , the
people will cheerfully so amend
the act as to permit renuraerative
rates to be charged , but never till
then , and the sooner the railroad
magnates get out of their dumps
and attend to business the less
money tbey will lose by their
childish pouting in tbe corner ov
er tbeir lost political prestige.
William B. Ely in State Journal.
A woman hung her arms around
her husband's neck and begged
him to buy her an E Z washing
machine , sold by J. P. Heelan ,
Arabia , Nebr. 7 5
We are through invoicing and have odds and
ends of different lines to close out at a bargain.
We have got a lot of shoes and shirts which
we will sell below cost. Come and .see.
OROOKSTON NEBRASKA. , MAX E VIERTEL
DEALER IN EVERYTHING.
S WE BUY e
what you have to sell.
WE SELL YOU
what you want to buy ,
Call and see us. Phone 23
W. A. PETTYCREW , GENERAL NIDSE.
Chartered as a State Bank Charter d as a Rational Bank
Juno 1 , 1884. August 12 , 1002 ,
The
Valentine , Nebraska.
( Successor to )
of
CAPITAL PAID IN A General Banking
OOO Exchange and.
i\J\l\l.
Collection Business.
G. H. CORNELL , President. J. T. MAY , Vice-President.
M. V , NICHOLSON , Cashier.
CONFECTIONERY
Tobaccos and Cigars.
Canned Goods Lunch Counter.
Phone Home Bakery.
MJtEll *
lml -Jg iivA'nV M vA
F/RESH / FRUIT AND GAME I
IN THEIR SEASON. $
90909
First class line of Steaks , Roasts ,
Dry Salt Meats Smoked
Breakfast Bacon.
Highest MarkM Price Paid for Hogs.
AT THIS
PPTWTTWP
F KILN 1 liNVjr OFFICE *
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