'Che Conservative *
Inter must have universal acceptance
and application.
But , before I sit down , you may ex
pect mo to say a few words about the
state law and the constitution amend
ment that the people of New York
adopted by a majority of more than
80,000 , and which sets the competitive
system in our organic law , we hope ,
forever.
There wo have the true safeguard of
civil service reform , For years its
friends in New York btate were timor
ous , afraid to take such aggressive ac
tion as was necessary to compel our
public officials to give the law a fair
chance afraid of Governor Hill , afraid
of Governor Flower , afraid of the legis
lature , afraid of the common councils.
They found in the executive chamber at
Albany only a grudging obedience to the
law , and a settled disposition not merely
to prevent its extension , but to cut down
and limit its operation. The manifes
tation of this temper in the executive
finally became a public scandal. Besides
this , and because of some constitutional
provisions that stood in the way , the
civil service statute could not be applied
to the great departments of the canals
and state prisons ; and , therefore , they
remained the strongholds of patronage.
But now wo feel the solid groxind of the
constitution under our feet , and sooner
or later its mandate must bo obeyed.
The courts , to their high honor be it
said , have always been with us. It' exe
cutive officers will not be faithful , if
legislatures will sometimes ignore both
dignity and duty and trail after a false
or a foolish executive leader with ser
vile obedience , wo still have the consti
tution , and back of the constitution the
people.
Gentlemen , how often have the
friends of civil service reform had to
assure themselves that the cause to
which they were devoted would succeed
because it was founded in truth , and ,
therefore could not fail ? Every day it
becomes more and more plain that it
lies at the bottom of every effort to
give the country a purer suffrage , better
official service , higher regard for law , a
more conscientious observance of the
duties of citizenship , parties divided
upon principle , not plunder ; leaders ,
not "bosses. "
FOKTV YKARS AGO.
pleasure of meet
ing in this city yesterday , Secretary
Morton of Nebraska , late acting gover
nor of Nebraska Territory. Mr. Morton
is on his way east and leaves by the
Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad this
morning. Ho proved himself a faithful ,
fearless and incorruptible officer and
possesses in a high degree the confidence
of the people of Nebraska Territory.
Secretary Morton is a very young man
and his acknowledged abilities and past
successes entitle him to look forward tea
a life of distinction. St. Joseph Gazette ,
May 21 , 1859.
Nebraska City
.
HACK AGAIN.
history is taught
in the Nebraska City public schools. At
least there is considerable activity at
present among certain bright-eyed
young persons , of ton years old and up
wards , to learn what their older friends
can tell them on this subject , for the
fulfilment of some task set them by their
teachers ; whoso course in this regard
THE CONSERVATIVE most heartily ap
plauds. In how many towns in the
United States has this idea occurred to
the school-teachers ? It would be inter
esting to know.
These young people are curious con
cerning old buildings , to loam where
they stood and why they were built in
such peculiar ways ; and learning that
the first white men who came here and
built cabins among the Indians , are still
walking the streets daily , they become
desirous of knowing where all the others
came from , why they left their former
places and what they came here to do.
This train of thought leads them back
to the consideration that they themselves
had grandfathers , and the doings of
those venerable gentlemen are apt to ac
quire a sudden interest in their eyes.
And it is held by some that it is the
study of grandfathers , and not the cata
log of wars made by one monarch on
another , that is the true province of his
tory.
The last generation were not educated
in this doctrine. They began history at
the other end ; the beginnings of the
Greeks , Jews and Romans wore laid before -
fore them , and the doings of those in
teresting , but hopelessly foreign , races
were taught them in considerable detail.
As to their own stock , little was said ;
even in United States history , much
more was told concerning a certain Ital
ian who sailed about Central American
waters in the 15th century , than con
cerning the English men and women
who came to United States territory in
the 17th. In fact , the first introduction
of the school-children of twenty years
ago to the Germanic race to which they
belonged , was when they were shown
two branches of it , one which had halted
in its endless migration on an island
northwest from Europe , and another
which had pushed on to the Atlantic
seaboard of America , engaged in war
fare with each other. The natural re
sult of this system was to give young
Americans the idea that it was the Span
ish and Italians who were the kind , wise
and desirable people , whereas the "Brid-
dish" wore onljT to bo licked. And the
dissemination of this idea did its best to
retard the development of mankind in
its natural channel for upwards of a
century.
The question is asked with always in
creasing frequency , why it is that wo
take our ideas on one class of subjects
from the Greeks and Romans , and on
another from the Hebrews , and continue
teaching our children so , to the entire
exclusion of the ideas our own forefath
ers entertained on those subjects. And
the more this question is asked , the
greater becomes the probability that
there will some day bo an overturning
in that regard. The origin of the sys
tem is easily discovered : learning was
brought into Britain by the monks , and
they , firm in their traditional beliefs ,
taught our rude fathers , greedy for
knowledge for the sake of its power , and
superstitiously docile to the possessor of
it , that they were extremely unfortun
ate , if not blame-worthy in being Ger
mans instead of belonging to some of
these thrice-blessed peoples inhabiting
the shores of the Mediterranean ; and the
children of those poor barbarians have
been industrioiTsly striving to change
their spots , or take a cubit off their stat
ure , over since. Its further continuance
at this day is , however , less easy to ex
plain. Wo do not at present discover
any inclination on the part of Americans
to secure adoption into the ranks of the
Greeks , Italians or Israelites , all of
whom are amply represented among us ;
nor do we even seek the leadership of
any of those peoples in our public or
private affairs. Why , then , should wo
take such pains to have our children
well-informed in their chronicles , while
we leave them so sadly in the dark as to
the personalities of the men , Roundhead ,
Cavalier , Saxon , Dane and Celt , whose
blood runs in their own veins and whoso
venturesome deeds tingle , unexplained ,
in their own finger-tips ?
The Express-Ga-
v , , , _ . . . . . .
STATISTICS. ssetle ( Cincinnati )
has collected data
concerning the operations of train-rob
bers during the last year. The effect of
federal jurisdiction upon train-robberies
is evidenced in Mexico. During the
past year there was not oven an attempt
at train-robbery in that republic. The
crime is punishable there with instant
death. Following is the record of train-
robberies in the United States :
1890 12
18111 II !
1892 Ill
181'8 ' 83
1894. . 84
1895 49
1890 28
1897 30
1898 28
Totnl number of trains "hold-up" in nine
voars . . 240
Total number of people killed 88
Total number of people injured ( Hhot ) 77
THE KKCOHl ) KOU 1898.
Number of train hold-ups 28
Number of stage robberies 7
Number of passengers and trainmen killed 5
Number of passengers and trainmen shot . 4
Number of robbers killed 5
Number of robbers shot 0
Old-Line Democrat. "I want to see
the party succeed and all that , but I
can't swallow the 16-to-l platform. "
The Tempter "Good Heavens , man !
I don't ask you to swallow it. All I
want you to do is to stand on it. "Chi
cage Tribune.
