"Che Conservative.
President Harrison , upon the endorse
ment of Justice Brewer.
No active opposition to the nomina
tion of Mr. Bryan or the endorsement of
the Chicago platform developed at the
meeting , but the date decided upon of
holding the national convention may
have a purpose , not yet fully apprecia
ted , that may mean disaster to the Ne-
braskan. Mr. Bryan and his friends
were in favor of holding the convention
prior to the meeting of the populists seas
as to avoid any embarrassments that
might result from a nomination at the
hands of the populists before he had
been named by the democrats. The
committee , however , notwithstanding
the expressed wish of Mr. Bryan , deci
ded upon July 4th as the time for the
convention , nearly two months after
the meeting of the populists.
If the populists should nominate
Bryan , as it is expected they will do , it
is apt to complicate the situation quite
materialy. Mr. Bryan could not afford
to endanger his standing with the pop
ulists by declining the nomination. On
the other hand , it would be equally im
politic for him to accept , thereby becom
ing a populist and discrediting himself
as a democrat. The situation is ex
tremely delicate and the query naturally
arises , was there not method on the part
of the committee in placing Mr. Bryan
in a box from which , apparently , it will
be quite difficult for him to extricate
himself ? Had the committee been so
disposed , would it not have been as easy
to have acceded to his wish in the mat
ter of time as it was in regard to the
place ? In the event of a populist nomi
nation , it is quite probable that Mr.
Bryan will attempt to postpone an ac
ceptance until after the democratic con
vention.
When interviewed in regard to the
action of the committee , Mr. Bryan is
reported to have said :
"I do not think that the location of
the convention is of great importance
from a party standpoint. It is more a
matter of convenience to the delegates
and visitors than of party advantage ,
although , of course , there is little ad
vantage in the enthusiasm aroused in
the immediate neighborhood of the con
vention. "
It is quite significant that he main
tained a profound silence in regard to
the time of holding the convention and
commented only on the noise and place.
Governor Boose-
KOOSEVELT. . . . . ,
velt has just ap
pointed Hugh McRoberts as quarantine
commissioner. McRoberts achieved no
little notoriety while treasurer of Richmond
mend county from 1878 to 1876. Ac
cording to the records of the board of
supervisors , he was a defaulter to the
extent of $72,000. The governor is the
object of a great deal of criticism be
cause of this appointment alleged to
have been made at the dictation of the
machine in spite of the protest of the
respectable element of his party. Peo-
) ie are wondering if the governor is not ,
ike many other highrninded men who
lave entered political life with lofty
deals , falling from grace and serving
; he interests he so violently opposed but
a little over a year ago. Can it bo that
lis aspirations for 1904 are causing him
; o now attend to the preliminaries ?
FREIGHT KATES.
KATES.of the federal
lourt , has issued a restraining order pre
venting the state board of transportation
from putting in force the reduction of
rates contemplated until a hearing of
the case by the court. The United
States supreme court perpetually en
joined the state board of transportation
and the railroads from enforcing the
rates tinder the Newberry Bill of 1893 ,
on the ground that the rates fixed by
the law did not yield the companies a
reasonable return on their investments.
It was also stipulated that the rates
could not be changed in the future with
out first making a showing to the court
that the conditions justified a reduction
and that the companies would be able
to realize a fair return. The board made
the reduction and sought to enforce it
without first having obtained from the
federal court a modification of the de
cree. It was upon this ground that the
restraining order was issued.
Serious opposi-
NICARAGUAN tm to the H
CANAL. _ . . , /
Pauncefote treaty ,
negotiated with Great Britain to permit
the construction of the Nicaraguan
canal , has developed in congress and on
the part of the press of the country.
The principle points involved in the
treaty are , that Great Britain guaran
tees the right of constructing the canal
and the United States the neutrality of
it and in case of war guarantees not to
fortify it.
It has aroused a storm of criticism on
the part of newspapers , heretofore
friendly to the administration , notable
among them , the New York Sun and
Times-Herald. It is opposed on the
ground that it is a revival of the most
obnoxious feature of the Clayton-Bul-
wer treaty , viz. : the concession to Great
Britain of the right to interfere in
American affairs. This is held to be a
violation of the Monroe Doctrine. By
inviting foreign nations to assist in es
tablishing the neutrality of the canal it
is urged that we invite them to a partic
ipation in American affairs , which also
violates the Monroe Doctrine. The ar
gument is also advanced that if we build
the canal we should reserve to ourselves
the right of protecting it as we would
any other property.
The friends of the treaty , in speaking
of the neutrality provision , declare thai
no other policy is warranted in the pres
ent advanced state of civilization 5xnd
commerce among nations , and look upon
t as a way of promoting international
unity and amity. They also declare
; hat the neutrality of waterways is
what the United States has always in
sisted upon ; that it was what we de
manded in the case of the strait of Gib-
raltor and the entrance to the Baltic
Sea , and have made a similar announce
ment relative to the Yukon river. It is
quite probable , because of the determ
ined opposition apparent in the senate ,
that the treaty will be amended before
being reported.
Wu Ting Fang ,
AMERICAN
CONSULS. the Chinese minis
ter , in an address
delivered at the University of Pennsyl
vania , in commemoration of Washing
ton's birthday , made some observations
relative to the American consular sys
tem , that are timely and worthy of
consideration. He said :
"One of the first requisites toward
maintaining proper relations with the
orientals is to understand their ideas
and to judge them , not by your stand
ard , but by theirs. This is as much
applicable to commercial and social
intercourse as to diplomatic and inter
national affairs. I must acknowledge
that your diplomatic and consular offi
cers in China have thus far acquitted
themselves well , considering the dis
advantageous position in which they are
placed. Most of the European govern
ments send young men to the east to
learn the language and study the cus
toms of the couutay ; after a residence
of two or three years , when they prove
themselves proficient , after passing a
strict examination , they are then placed
in responsible positions as student in
terpreters , consular assistants , etc.
Merit is rewarded by promotion. Thus
those governments have competent men
specially fitted for service in the orient.
It may not be unwise for your govern
ment to adopt a similar system. "
How long before
HOW LONG ?
the manufacturers
of oleomargarine assemble in national
convention and demand legislation from
congress to protect their wholesome
product against fraudulent imitation by
bad country butter ?
Much nasty , rancid , worked-over and
chemically "fixed" butter is on the mar
ket. It might be sold as oleomargarine.
In the name and for the fame of the fat
American steer , from whose tallow
oleomargarine is evolved , legislation is
demanded by the oleomargarine makers.
When will they convene and command
congress as the butter-makers did ?
The Supreme Court of Missouri has
just declared the anti-department store
law , passed at the last session of the
legislature , to be unconstitutional. The
law was intended to operate against the
large department stores and applied only
to cities of over 50,000.