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10 Conservative.
The Beatrice
I1KEF \ * - - . . ,
iiUTTEK.Express is worried
about the butter
rankers being dethroned by oleomar
garine makers , and editorially declares :
"The creamery men deserve protec-
toction and should have popular sup
port because they are doing a great
deal for Nebraska by encouraging in
telligent dairying. Whenever you find
a dairying community you find a pros
perous community. Nebraska has
great possibilities in this line , and there
is nothing that will more quickly re
deem the waste places , lift the mort
gages and make independent the farm
ers. "
Are the creamery men "because they
are doing a great deal for Nebraska by
encouraging intelligent dairying , "
more entitled to popular support than
the sugar men , the starch men and the
mill men , who are encouraging intelli
gent manufacturing ?
And what about the men who import
and breed fine stock and produce be
sides milk , surplus beef and pork ?
In 1899 the animals slaughtered and
sold for slaughter in Kansas brought
more than fifty millions of dollars. But
all the wool and all the dairy and poul
try products of that state the same year
sold for less than , eleven millions of
dollars. And in Nebraska the relative
cash values of the meat output and the
dairy output are no doubt in about the
same proportion.
The legislation in Nebraska against
the manufacture and sale of oleomar
garine drove out more capital and more
labor than the dairy industry will bring
in. It was short-sighted , unjust and
inimical to the farmers of Nebraska
whose hogq and cattle for lard , bacon ,
tallow and beef bring in four times as
much cash every year as the creameries
cau bring in in two years. The domestica
tion of tariff taxes of protection , is
not a good thing for Nebraska. The
sooner law-makers learn that the power
to tax was vested in governments for
public purposes only the better for the
commonwealth. The let alone policy
is good enough. Wholesome oleomar
garine is as good as wholesome butter.
By existing law it is a penal offense to
sell it under a false name. But bad
butter may be sold and is sold as oleo
margarine without penalty being in
curred.
Why protect cow fat against steer
fat ? The latter brings into Nebraska
dollars where the former brings dimes.
In contemplating
THE GRKAT
FIRST CAUSE. the present atti
tude of America
and England , I am reminded of a little
incident in my foreign experience.
I was reading one day a book from a
Munich circulating library concerning
life in that interesting old town. The
book was written by a young English
girl , a daughter of William and Mary
Hewitt , who was at the time a pupil of
Kaulbach and disposed to see things
from an artistic point of view. One
day , when she was sitting alone in a
retired spot in the park.she was surprised
by the offer of a small bunch of wild
flowers from a ragged boy who suddenly
appeared upon the scene. She took the
flowers with thanks , and soon ho came
back with another bunch , whereupon
the English stranger was profoundly
impressed by the love of the beautiful
displayed by the German child , and , in
her record of the incident , devoted
many eloquent sentences to the benefi
cent influences of an early familiarity
with natural scenery and objects of art
upon the infant mind. But some ir
reverent reader of this outburst had
written upon the margin of the page :
"He Wanted Kreuzers ! " and doubtless
a desire for remuneration in the small
coin of the realm was the secret of the
boy's gallantry. That short sentence ,
written with a very black lead pencil ,
comes often to my mind as I note the
progress of affairs in my own and other
lands.
"He Wanted Kreuzers , " is the real
motive of John Bull's invasion of the
Transvaal , his envious eyes having long
been riveted upon that prosperous land ,
the desire of possession growing stronger
with every new discovery of its mineral
wealth.
"He Wanted Kreuzers , " was Mo-
Kiuley's reason for defying honor and
justice in turning against the Filipinos ,
after using them as allies against Spain.
An army of speculators and "Bosses"
and "Jingos" and "Trust" capitalists
saw profit in the annexation of the
islands , the bribe offered to the ambitious
president being reelection to office , and
the prospect of going down to posterity
as the "Napoleonic" creator of an em
pire out of a republic.
If we cannot do anything to help the
right or hinder the wrong in these mat
ters , it is at least some consolation to
know the cause of the evil , so that we
may no longer waste our time in trying
to understand the puzzling contradic
tions so glaringly displayed in the pro
gress of "Christian Civilization , " and in
vain efforts to reconcile what an English
writer calls "God's Cruel Work , " with
our innate and developed sense of jus
tice. There is no need of going outside
of this world , either up or down , to
account for such phenomena : "He
Wanted Kreuzers , " points out the origin
of the iniquities which selfish men are
trying to father upon "God. "
ELIZABETH E. EVANS.
THE MUTUAL MFB INSURANCE COM
PANY'S BUSINESS IN 1800.
The annual report of The Mutual
Life Insurance Company , of New York ,
are successive records of great achieve
ments. Year after year a rapid growth
is indicated ; year after year its bene
ficial progress is made manifest estab
lishing this institution as being not only
the largest but the most progressive life
insurance company in the world.
The report for 1899 shows that during
the year the assets were increased $24-
827,212 , and the total sum now held by
this institution for the security of its
policy holders is $301,844,587.52.
The receipts for the year were $58-
890,077.21. The Mutual Life after plac
ing $251,711,988 to the credit of the re
serve fund and other liabilities in ac
cordance with the requirements of the
New York Insurance Department has a
contingent guarantee fund of $47,952-
548 , in addition to the dividends to be
apportioned this year.
In 1899 the claims paid arising from
the death of policy holders amounted
to $15,629,979 , and in addition to this
the company paid during the twelve
months $10,789,057 on account of en
dowments , dividends , etc. The gen
eral business of The Mutual Life in
1899 , when compared with the results
during the previous year , is highly sat
isfactory. The insurance in force De
cember 81 , 1899 , amounted to $971,711-
997. On December 81 , 1899 , the busi
ness in force aggregated in amount
$1,052,665,211. Since its organization ,
in 1848 , The Mutual Life Insurance
Company , of New York , has paid to its
policy holders $514,117,946.
The editor of THE CONSERVATIVE has
been insured in the Mutual Life since865
and having twenty-six thousand dollars
of its policies commends the company
for fair dealing and absolute security.
IU th ° 0hl ° °
TRUST . _ , _ _ . _ . _ aS
Record W. E. Cur
tis remarks :
"Senator Allen of Nebraska has intro
duced a most effective method of promo
ting legislation , which , however , is not
available to every member of congress
because few are blessed with his powers
of endurance and voluminous vocabu
lary. When any amendment he offers
to a pending bill meets with opposition
he simply notifies the senator in charge
that he will talk the bill to death unless
his wishes are complied with , and they
all know his illimitable powers of speech.
Hence Mr. Allen generally gets what he
wants in the way of legislation. "
This is a distinct intimation of a talk
trust which forces small retail talkers to
consent to legislation. As an oratorical
octopus William Vincent Allen not
withstanding "the periodical diversions"
to which W. E. Curtis made malignant
allusion , a week or two since has force ,
cunning , craft and puissance. The
money-power may be submerged by the
mouth-power if the vast verbiage
factories of Allen and Bryan con
solidate.