* < '
.
Conservative.
I
At tlio first
HONESTY AIDS glance.it would seein
RASCALITY. that the laws giv-
iug special protec
tion against loss to lumber dealers for
materials , and mechanics for labor ,
employed in the construction of a
building , were passed solely in the
interest of the artisans and merchants
who extend the credit ; but a second
and closer inspection of the matter
will show that it is the debtor , not
the creditor , who is the beneficiary.
Thousands of dwellings and business
blocks have been erected in Nebraska ,
the individual credit of whose owners
would not have purchased the ma
terials and labor necessary for their
construction , the law providing for
the filing of a mechanics' lieu alone
enabling them to secure a welcome
from the artisans and tradespeople , and
erect homes which would have other
wise been denied them , in many
cases , and in others the price would
be raised to cover the risk. It is the
debtor who receives the principal
benefit from legislation of this sort ;
that cannot be contradicted. So with
the legislation ostensibly in favor of
the security holder. The more safe
guards that can be thrown around the
real estate loan transactions , the
easier it will be for the mortgagor to
secure money at reasonable terms.
Eliminating the element of risk from
the business pounds down interest
rates , makes it easier to obtain large
loans , and secures to the debtor a re
newal at any time he desires. In a
word , the easier it is to collect loans ,
the easier it will be to borrow. It is
a well known fact that it is impossi
ble to convict a farmer of selling
mortgaged personal property , if the
case is tried before a jury of farmers.
There is always at least one on the
jury who looks upon the banks as fair
game for any hunter , and refuses to
declare the accused person guilty , no
matter how conclusive the evidence
may be. The juryman does not pause
to consider that before parting with
his good money the banker must con
sider all the chances , figure all the
risks and fix upon a rate of interest
which will in the long run make him
a profit upon all of the money loaned.
To do this he must allow for a certain
amount of loss through skullduggery ,
with no protection in the courts of
justice , and what the faithless cred
itor steals , the man who pays his
notes must make good. Such condi
tions fatten the rascal , at the expense
of the honest man , yet leaves the
bank no worse off than it would be if
all borrowers paid their debts cheer
fully. So it is really the paying
creditors , not the bloated "money
sharks' ' who are ultimately benefited
by the rigid enforcement of the mort
gage laws , as it is the latter who are
the beneficiaries when an especially
drastic collection law is passed. The
banker may be depended upon to take
good care of himself in any case , but
thoughtless representatives in state
legislatures , and the overly sympa
thetic jurors seem inclined to place a
premium upon rascality , which
honesty is called upon to pay.
General Lord
MUTUAL Methuen and his
FORBEARANCE , army ore com
plimented by Lord
Kitchener , who praises them for having
"kept up the traditions of the British
army. " As the doughty general and
his baud surrendered in a body and as
that seems to be strictly in line with the
traditions of the South African army ,
there is a general approval of Lord
Kitchener's verdict. There is also a dis
position upon the part of Americans to
believe that so long as a handful of rag
ged peasants defy the British South
African commanders , English politicians
and journalists are in no position to
sneer at the accomplishments of Uncle
Sam's boys in the Philippines , neither
is their advice upon colonial affairs re
ceived with any marked expressions of
appreciation. In other words , if Eng
land will have the politeness to overlook
our brawl in the Philippines , we will
with equal courtesy refrain from pass
ing disagreeable comments upon the
duel between the Lion and the Boer.
Let us cease twitting one another and in
future be jolly , good comrades in mis
ery.
Gribski , the Rus-
NAUGHTY sian general who
NICHOLAS. lately murdered 6,000
Chinamen by driving
them into the Amur river at Blag-
ovestohensk , has been dismissed from
the army and will probably not be rein
stated within the year. In other words ,
the punishment of one day off duty for
each fourteen Chinamen killed , seems
entirely just to Russia , whose ruler ,
however , has great sympathy with the
Boers , the Filipinos and under dogs
everywhere excepting where the Slav
has charge , or assumes control , of the
police arrangements. But as each power
is engaged in playing the bully on
some section of the globe , Russian gen
erals may murder a few thousand Chi
namen , at a cost to themselves of the
loss of a trifle less than an hour's pay
per Chinaman , and no other ruler can
point to the blood-stain upon the Czar's
hand without exhibiting a similar dis
coloration upon his own index finger ,
consequently the only thing for the
virtuous potentates to do is to tuck their
hands into their pockets , close their
eyes , hold their tongues and , in the lan
guage of Peck's Bad Boy , "look pious. "
The Czar has countenanced/murder
and should be stoned out of the civi
lized circle ; "let him who is innocent
cast the first stone. "
The United States Su-
ADVERSE. preme Court has handed
down a decision that af
fects several large cities which have in
operation , or in prospect , laws providing
for a 3-cent car fore. The test case was
brought by the city of Detroit , which
originally allowed the companies to
charge 5 cents , and the court holds that
the former ordinance was in the nature
of a contract , and that the companies
are entitled to charge a nice , smooth
nickel so long as their franchises lost.
Proceeding by ex-
ONE LEFT. elusion , and Cleve
land , Hill , Jones ,
Dewey , Miles and Sohley having al
ready been excluded , it is apparent that
when the eventful year of 1904 arrives
there will be but one man qualified to ] f-
carry the tattered banner of popooraoy
on to a glorious and spectacular defeat.
Who could do it so well as the peerless
orator , versatile and picturesque states
man and judiciously advertised publicist
whose political preceptorship , like his
professional career , is only marred by a
most lamentable and inexplicable short
age of clients ?
W. E. Riohey , an
CORONADO. archeologist of Harvey-
ville , Kan. , has discov
ered a sword blade which has engraved
upon it the name of "Juan Galli-
go , " supposably the same who accom
panied Ooronado in his famous explora
tions. A careful examination of the
blade indicates that it was manufac
tured in Toledo , Spain , in the six
teenth century , and was probably car
ried in the Coronado expedition , though
the locality in which it was found Gray
county is quite a distance off the route
formerly supposed to have been followed
by the explorers. It may be well to wait
for additional evidence before assuming
that a new Coronado route has been es
tablished by this find , for the mere sup
position that the blade belonged to a
member of the expedition , even if well
founded , does not prove that it was left
by its original owner , where it was
found by Mr. Richey. The blade may
have been moved a dozen times since
1534 , and the fact that it was found in
the stump of a tree , rather indicates that
it was not placed there by its rightful
owner , as he would certainly have little
cause to hide his own sword in that
manner especially as a Spanish cava
lier's blade is relinquished only with , his
life , and there is no reason to believe
that Captain Galligo died in the vicinity ref
of the spot where the cache was uncov- j
ered. However , further research may
prove the find of value , and Mr. Richey
has certainly earned the gratitude of all
who feel interested in establishing the
facts and circumstances in connection
with the fruitless journey of Corouado
and his army.
