The Conservative.
The second sea-
CONGRESS. . . . . . .
sioii of the fifty-
sixth congress convened Tuesday of
this week. A number of important bills
have already been considered in the
committee and await definite action by
congress at this session. Among them
are the Nicaragua Canal , Army Reorgan
ization , Rivers and Harbors , Steamship
Subsidy , Philippine Civil government ,
and amendments to war revenue bills.
If scandals and extravagant appropria
tions are to be prevented the last-named
proposition should be given immediate
consideration. A surplus is accumula
ting under the war revenue act that is
apt to seriously impair the standing of
many distinguished congressmen for
economy. To keep the expenses of
government down its revenues must also
be kept down. Congress should reduce
the revenues to meet the legitimate
needs of government. In addition to
abolishing the tax on insurance policies ,
as pointed out elsewhere , the stamp
upon checks and other banking instru
ments of everyday use should be re
moved. They are very troublesome and
annoying to business men , in addition to
the burden of the tax.
The Nicaragua canal is Senator Mor
gan's pet project. If this bill is only
permitted to be-
Nicaragua Cannl. , ,
come a law he
will feel that his fame is secure. For
years he has advocated the construction
of an Isthmian canal and in nearly
every session of congress , since he be
came a member , Morgan's canal bill has
had a place upon the calendar. Thus
far he has only succeeded in securing
honorable mention for his waterway in
that thrillingly sensational and highly
entertaining publication known as the
Congressional Record. It is quite improb
able that he will succeed better this
time. Congress is not yet agreed either
upon the expediency of constructing the
canal or upon the regulation and con
trol of it afterwards. Quite a large
contingent are in favor of fortifying the
canal while another coterie are vigor
ously opposed to this idea. That these
widely divergent opinions will be recon
ciled at this session is hardly to be ex
pected.
The Steamship Subsidy bill , which
was pretty thoroughly discussed and
condemned by the
Subsidy Bill.
newspapers during
the last session could with perfect pro
priety be indefinitely postponed again.
This proposition when first suggested
was very unpopular and for this reason
action was deferred until the present
session. Public opinion , in the mean
time , has not grown more friendly and
there would be no great grief , aside from
that of the shipbuilders interested , if
the bill was defeated.
The most important action to be taken
by congress is that in regard to the Phil-
. . . . , ippines. We must
The Philippines. f . i. . . . .
establish a civil
government for the Filipinos and con-
gress should not delay in making the
needful regulations. It is high time
some authoritative declaration was made
to the Filipinos of our intentions and
purposes. Congress , the only body com
petent to speak for the American people
ple , should without unnecessary delay
inform the Filipinos just what we con
template doing , and the kind of govern
ment we intend to give them. In the
formation of this government let con
gress be guided by a broad , generous ,
patriotic spirit and give to the Filipinos
the largest possible local freedom con
sistent with their own welfare. Let
the well-being and future happiness of
the brown people have a part in the
deliberations of the American congress.
This might prove an effective way of
terminating the unpleasant relations
now existing.
, The manner in
10 TO 1. . . . ,
which some alleged
economists and some pretended states
men regain consciousness after the
avalanche of November 6 , 1900 , which
buried all their financial fallacies and
other vagaries , and solemnly declare
that they are still for "the unlimited
coinage of silver at the sacred ratio of
sixteen to one without the consent of
any other nation , " reminds THE CON
SERVATIVE of Benjamin Disraeli's picture
of a populist leader :
"Mr. Kremlin himself was dis
tinguished for ignorance , for he had only
one idea , and that was wrong. "
Mr. Kremlin could have achieved re
nown in the campaigns of 1896 and 1900
by having become a candidate for the
presidency of the United States. Men ,
having only one idea , and that wrong ,
have made records , secured great follow
ing and illustrated the value of verbiage
over thoughtage in this age.
° f
ABOLISH .
INSURANCE TAX.hfe , insurance poll-
cies in old line
companies are making a strong effort
with congress for the repeal of the life
insurance tax. Life insurance is not a
luxury but a necessity. To make pro
vision for the support of dependent ones
is the duty of every man. Most life in
surance companies are great cooperative
institutions in which the policy holders
are at the same time stockholders or
members of the company and sharers in
all ; ts profits and losses. Unwarranted
taxation merely means additional ex
pense to the company and increases the
cost of insurance to every individual
member of the company. Then too , the
tax is not equitably levied. The man
who takes out a cheap form of policy for
$1000 with a premium of about $20 00
pays the same tax as the man who ap
plies for a more expensive policy with a
premium of $50.00 or $100.00. As the
revenues of the government are now
larger than necessary the tax on life in
surance should be abolished.
TBEE PLANTING.
PLANTING.ers of Nebraska
should be alert and ready for their work
in early spring. The exhaustion of the
lumber resources of the United States
will have been completed before the
twentieth century shall have reached
middle life. The owner of each farm ,
big or little , should plant trees for the
sake of self and posterity.
T h"
QUITE CORBECT. _
Demosthenes , who
used occasionally to stir up Athens with
his tongue was also a forecaster as to
the oratory of the present time which
was to him then a very distant future.
He evidently had fore-knowledge of the
spellbinder buncombe which is so lavish
ly distributed during political campaigns
by men who mistake talk for thought.
And so Demosthenes wickedly wrote :
"As a vessel is known by the sound ,
whether it be cracked or not ; so men are
proved , by their speeches , whether they
be wise or foolish. "
Very recently a latter-day Demos
thenes said :
"If the election came off tomorrow
we should win. But the republicans
are getting together vast sums of money.
They can buy. Our folks can sell. "
And again :
"I see wan-faced women on the street
who have never been to the seaside.
But if I am elected all shall visit water
ing places all shall get delightful vaca
tions when the plain people shall have
elected the president. "
CABNEGIE. .
terview Andrew
Carnegie gave out some interesting sug
gestions upon the subject of giving. He
believes in rational giving as distin
guished from indiscriminate charity.
Among his most notable benefactions
he places what he has induced others to
give.
"Money is frequently given by men,1- '
he says , "without thought , simply to
ease their conscience. Money given in
that way , nine times out of ten , does no
good. There is no use of helping any
body up a ladder unless he does some
climbing himself. As long as yon boost ,
the man will stay up , but as soon as you
let go he falls , and the last state of that
man is worse than the first. A man
came to mo recently and congratnlatde
me upon having given millions to a tech
nical institution in Pittsburg. I said :
'No , but if you congratulate me upon
having induced Pittsburg to give a large
sum for a public library , shako. ' I wish
to have on my tombstone not what I
have given , but the names of those
whom I have induced to give. "
"What is a communist ? One who has
yearnings
For equal division of unequal earnings. "
