Che Conservative
I
VOL. IV.NO. . 28. NEBRASKA CITY , NEBRASKA , JANUARY 16. 1902. SINfiLE COPIES , 5 C
KM
PUBLISHED WEEKLY.
OFFICES : OVERLAND THEATRE BLOCK.
J. STERLING MORTON , EDITOR.
A JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE DISCUSSION
OF POLITICAL , ECONOMIC AND SOCIOLOGICAL
QUESTIONS.
CIRCULATION THIS WEEK , 13,983 COPIES.
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One dollar and a half per year in advance ,
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Address , THE CONSERVATIVE , Nebraska
City , Nebraska.
Advertising rates made known upon appli
cation.
Entered at the postofflce at Nebraska City ,
Neb. , as Second Class matter , July 29 , 1898.
The recent convo-
THE SCHOOL cation in Lincoln of
TRUST. more than a thou
sand Nebraska school
teachers is another reminder of the
growing tyranny of the public school
trust. The alleged commercial trusts
are localized , and differentiated from
opposing interests and forces ; but the
influences and the empire of the school
trust are omnipresent from sea to sea ,
and from gulf to British border. This
vast organization has ostensibly a bene
ficent and largely unselfish object , and
it represents an institution which is
beneficent when confined to a proper
scope. This sentimental and philan
thropic aspect of the public school sys
tem has served to veil its faults from
public insight. The great importance
of a good primary education for their
children and the difficulty of providing
it filled the early settlers of our still new
country with a spirit of solicitude and
self-sacrifice in that behalf as ardent as
that which animated the crusaders to
the holy land or stirred the emotions of
the religious devotee in those days
when the belief was held that religions
faith was efficacious and essential to
'pave from the fires of a literal hell. And
so the mission of the public school and
the public school teacher has been
idealized , while they have gradually
become organized into an aggressive ,
oppressive commercial trust. , Broader
fields and more public money to enable
us to exploit theories is their motto.
The obtrusive feature of the present
public school system is extravagance
in expense and in the amount and scope
of work forced upon the pupils. The
school trust is in a state of selfish ag
gressive commercial expansion. In the
cities there is universal groaning under
the increasing burdens of taxation im
posed by extravagant and commonly
corrupt school boards ; but the clamor
of the school cult is ever for more.
But financial extravagance is not as
hurtful as the extravagant amount and
variety of work imposed upon the
pupils. Teachers in each department
have their particular fads and are con
vinced of the paramount importance of
their particular line of instruction ; BO
that in the round-up of these contend
ing ambitions the courses of study in
the public schools of today are expanded
and stuffed until they exceed in dimen
sion and detail the college courses of
not many years ago , and mere children
are forced with this pabulum , digestible
only by mature minds. As a result ,
before they have become young men
and women , pupils become old , nervous
and worn , and fitter for that land where
the wicked teachers cease from trou
bling and weary children are at rest from
them , than for the strenuous struggles
and healthy enjoyments of this present
life.
life.Our
Our imperfect social organism moves
by the rule of action and reaction , and
a reaction against the headlong course
of the school system is now due. The
Conservative at this opportune time
throws out these not extravagant hints
in the hope that the settiug-in of the
reaction may be thereby expedited.
Ninety - seven
LEWIS AND years ago this
CLARK. week , Captains
* * " Lewis and Clark
and their little band were still visiting
the "gentlemanly" Mandans on the
banks of the Missouri river , in what is
now North Dakota. They were occupy
ing themselves with hunting , and ob
serving the customs of the natives.
On Monday , the 14th , "One of the
men sent out .on Thursday returned ,
with information that one of his com
panions had his feet so badly frost
bitten that he could not walk home.
In their excursion they had killed a
buffalo , a wolf , two porcupines and a
white hare. The weather was more
moderate today , the mercury being at
sixteen degrees below zero. "
On Tuesday , the 15th , "The morning
is much warmer than yesterday , and
the snow begins to melt. Between 12
and 8 o'clock a. m. there , was a total
eclipse of the moon , from which we
obtained a part of the observation necessary -
cossary for ascertaining the longitude.
We were visited by four of the most
distinguished men of the Minnetarpps ,
to whom we showed markpd attentions ,
as we know they had been taught to
entertain strong prejudices against us ;
these wo succeeded in removing. "
On Wednesday , the Ifith , ' 'About
thirty Mandans , among whom six were
chiefft , came to see us ; the Minnetare-
reproached them with their falsehoods ,
declaring that they were bad men and
ought to hide themselves. They h 'd
told the Miuuetareos that we would k 11
them if they came to the fort , yet < n
the contrary they had spent a night
there , and been treated with kindne-s
by the whites , who had smoked wi h
them and danced for their amns meit. )
Kagohami visited us and brought us a
little corn ; and soon afterwards one f
the first war chiefs of the Minnetarees
came , accompanied by his squaw. He
favored us with a most acceptable pres
ent , a draft of the Missouri in his man
ner , and informed us of his intention to
go to war in the spring against the
J3nake Indians ; we advised him to re
flect seriously before he committed the
peace of his nat/.on to- the hazards of
war ; to look back upon the numerous
nations whom war has destroyed ; that
if he wished his nation to be happy , he
should cultivate peace and intercourse
with all his neighbors , by which means
they would procure more horses , and
increase in numbers ; and that if he
went to war , he would displease his
Great Father , the President , and for
feit his protection. We added , that we
had spoken thus to all the tribes whom
we had met , that they had all opened
their ears , and that the President would
compel those who did not voluntarily
listen to his advice. Although a young
man of only twenty-six years of aee.
this discourse seemed to strike him. He
observed , that if it would be displeasing
to us he would not go to war , since he
had horses enough , and that he would
advise all the nation to remain at home ,
until he had seen the Snake Indians ,
and discovered whether their intentions
were pacific. "
At Cleveland ,
RROFOUNDLY Ohio , very re
SAD. cently , the popu
list candidate for
the presidency said : ' ' Sad will be
the day , fallen will be the star of our