6r The Conservative *
OBITUARY.
David Brown.
One by one the pioneers of the state do-
depart for another unknown country.
Those who camb to unknown Nebraska
in the decade from 1850 to I860 may
now bo counted in as little time as it
took to count the cabins of Otoo coun
ty in 1855.
Among the best typo of the earliest
settlers of this state was David Brown
of Nebraska City , a citizen , a teacher
and an exemplar of the homely and
substantial value of truth , honesty and
a blameless life. Among us ho lived
more than forty years without doing an
intentional wrong to any fellow mortal.
Ho was temperate , industrious and
prosperous without being fanatical ,
exacting or proud. Ho worked because
ho joyed in work , and the results it gave
in satisfactions for himself , his family ,
his friends and the community.
His death , which came on Wednesday ,
March 6th , 1901 , was an irreparable loss
to family , friends , city , county , and
state , for ho labored well and loyally for
all of them with an intensity of purpose
which continued to his dying breath.
His lost minutes confirmed his courage
and consecrated the end of his useful
life as a lesson , in bravely and
tranquilly meeting inevitable death.
Business affairs , letters to friends ,
solacing words to wife and sou and
brother , were calmly attended to and
with wonderful lucidity of mind. Min
utes , in which is given a lesson so solemn
ly and sweetly inculcated and so iu-
offaceably registered on the memory , are
counted as equal , in wisdom and sin
cerity , to entire years of ordinary life.
"For the tongues of dying men
Enforce attention like deep harmony. "
The. following letter is taken from the
Omaha Bee and State Journal of March
11.1901 :
SYRACUSE , Nob. , March 10. To the
Editor of The Bee : A large contingent
of the Nebraska legislature maroliiug
through the falling raindrops to the
home of their colleague , the late Hon.
David Brown , and laying him away
under the sod , covered by the falling
snow , is typical of the purity of their
late comrade's life. A more beautiful
portrayal of the character and of the
life that has just gone , out could not be
portrayed than by a letter written by
David Brown , while in the legislature ,
to his friend , J. Sterling Morton , upon
the recent death of his son , Carl , which ,
thanks to Mrs. David Brown and Joy
Morton , I am permitted to present to
the public , feeling that the people are
entitled to this glimpse of the sterling
character of our late representative. The
following is the letter :
LINCOLN , Jan. 8 , 1901. J. Ster
P ling Morton : My Dear Sir I do not
I
know what to say , but cannot keep
silent. I beg you do not lot this over
whelm you not to give up ; there is
much yet for you to do for which no
one is so well fitted as you. The other
boys will draw oven nearer to you ; your
friends and neighbors with a new ten
derness will hold up your hands. Can
not you spare him , her baby to his
mother , when you still have three ?
Even now , with one gone , who is so
blessed in his children as you ?
Other children have trampled their
parents' hearts , wasted their substances ,
remorselessly dragged in the dust their
honored names. Yours have kept close
to you in honor and love and through
the training they have received and the
heritage of excellent qualities trans
mitted to them have added to your
lustrous fame. In the companionship
of the three dear sons who remain and
the grateful memory of the precious one
who has penetrated the mysteries of that
eternity wo are uearing can you not find
consolation and renewed courage ?
"With tears in my eyes and grief for
you in my heart , I ask if you are not
wonderfully blessed , even though terri
bly bereaved ? And over us all is the
pitying eye of the Great Ruler. May
He comfort and strengthen you is the
ever earnest prayer of your sincere
friend , DAVID BROWN.
Theron Nye.
An eminent and useful pioneer of
Dodge county has just passed away.
Of him the Fremont Tribune says :
"The death of Theron Nye removes
from the citizenship of Fremont a man
who was for many years a conspicuous
figure. Mr. Nye was one of the earliest
settlers of the town and county. In the
pioneer days and for many years there
after he was prominently identified with
the material , political and social in
terests of the community. He did much
to build up all of them. To such hardy
and sturdy pioneers much is due for the
substantial foundations laid for what
has grown into a thriving , intelligent ,
progressive little city , one of the best in
the state and the west. He did his part
well and the world is better for his
having lived. "
The builders are going out from among
the temples of peace and plenty of which
they were the architects and founders.
THE DEVELOPMENT OP RAILROAD
POLICY.
[ Prom The Railway and Engineering Re
view , Chicago , March 2. 1001. ]
Elsewhere in this issue will be found
extracts from an address delivered by
Mr. Paul Morton , vice-president Santa
Fe system , before the Los Angeles , Cal. ,
chamber of commerce at a banquet
given by that organization on Washing
ton's birthday. As a declaration of
railroad principles and as an exposition
of the progress made in .the policy of
those organizations , the address is one
of the best that has been yet given. Mr.
Morton's theory and it is only fair to
say that ho holds it in common with the
most advanced managers of railway
properties is that the interests of the
community are the interests of the rail
road ; that the best way to increase the
earnings of a railroad is to build up the
community in all that tends to make it
prosperous. It will bo noticed that he
suggests channels of industry which will
materially lessen the tonnage of the rail
road , although it will add to the wealth
of the community. In former days it
was a very general policy to take as
much possible of the raw material out of
a country in order that the greatest
amount of finished product might be
hauled in. This naturally resulted in
an increased burden upon the people ,
but that was a matter to which railroads
were or seemed to be comparatively in
different. The newer policy , and the
more correct one , is to foster the consoli
dation of products , which , while it re
sults in a somewhat reduced tonnage ,
so far as particular commodities are con
cerned , has the effect of increasing the
capacity of the community in the direction -
tion of larger outlays and thereby creat
ing a traffic which would be otherwise
lacking.
Mr. Morton sees no particular danger
to the people through the rapid consoli
dation of railways which has been going
on for the past two years. On the con
trary , he inclines to the opinion that
through the economies thereby effected
transportation charges will be reduced
and a direct benefit to the people result
therefrom. He refutes the very preva
lent idea that it is only the direct ship
pers that are interested in railway rates.
The cost of transportation is a tax
which , under our present civilization , is
paid by every one. None can escape it.
The last consumer must , of necessity ,
bear his portion of the burden , and it
follows , therefore , that whatever tends
to lighten this load directly benefits the
entire people.
The consolidation of railways will in
evitably result in reduction of charges
and at the same time , as Mr. Morton
points out , as inevitably abolish unequal
and discriminative charges. No one
thing can more thoroughly demoralize
commerce than a fluctuating and unequal -
equal scale of rates , and anything that
tends to bring about a reform in this
particular will result in a direct benefit
to the entire commercial interests of the
country.
It may be a question whether , as com
pared with pooling , the unification of
railroad interests will best accomplish
this result. Many students of the ques
tion will disagree with Mr. Morton in
this particular. It is a very general no
tion that the interests of the country
and of the American people will be beat
conserved by the maintenance of a large
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