The Conservative (Nebraska City, Neb.) 1898-1902, April 17, 1902, Image 1

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VOL. IV. NO. 41. NEBRASKA CITY , NEBRASKA , APRIL 17 , 1902. SINGLE COPIES , 5 CENTS
PUBLISHED WEEKLY. |
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OFFICES ; OVERLAND THEATER BLOCK.
J. STERLING MORTON , EDITOR.
A JOUBNAIj DEVOTED TO THE DIEOU88ION
OF POLITICAL , ECONOMIC AND. SOCIOLOGICAL
QUESTIONS.
TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION.
One dollar and a half per year in advance ,
postpaid to any part of the United States or
Canada. Remittances made payable to The
Morton Printing Company.
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. Julv 29. 1898.
There are bright
IN ABOUT men in America ;
FOUR YEARS , lots of them ! Some
of them propose to
aid the Boers by having the president
sign his name to 5,000,000 checks ,
which will be sold at $1.00 each , and
the proceeds presented to the bewhiskered -
whiskered heroes of the veldt. The
idea is certainly brilliant , though
a perplexing obstacle is found in the
fact that Mr. Roosevelt , who would
no doubt be only too glad to violate
international etiquette by plunging
into a quarrel in which his govern
ment is in no manner concerned , is
unfortunately engaged in overseeing
the foreign and domestic affairs of
a great and populous country , and it
takes a good part of his time to
do it. However , if he could sign 500
checks per hour , and spare two
hours each day to the work , allowing
the usual 300 working days per year ,
he would get it finished in about six
teen years and eight months , but the
last four million might have to be
disposed of at a cut rate , as an ex-
president's signature is not worth
quite so much on the market. But
out of sympathy for the Boers , and
respect for the committee making the
request , Mr. Roosevelt may decide
to engage a substitute to occupy the
presidential chair , and give his
whole time and attention to the
Boor cause , in which case by work
ing full eight hours a day lie can
finish the" thank-yon" job in a few
months after his successor has boon
inaugurated.
N. B. No allowance is made for a
second term , as the Boers will not
have a vote in this country , and the
American might be unreasonable
enough to feel slighted , and turn
Mr. Roosevelt down.
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The Conservative
TRUSTS AND is called upon to
DISTRUSTS , give its opiu n of
trusts. We rolort by
asking the euq'uirer for his opinion
of men. Are they good or bad ?
Do they aid or hinder a country ?
Are they constitutionally honest ,
sincere , industrious , liberal , or are
they lazy , deceitful , unscrupulous
and miserly ? To anticipate the
answer , there is a difference in men.
Some possess all the elements of good
citizenship , others disgrace human
ity ; some contribute immensely to
the upbuilding of the country , others
do nothing but tear down and de
stroy ; some deal fairly with the pub
lic , and ask no special protections or
privileges , others surround their call
ings with legal fortifications , and
from their intrenched positions grasp
all that comes within reach. This
will be his answer to The Conserva
tive , and in it will be found The Con
servative's answer to him.
The man who wails in anguish at
the extortions and oppressions of
evil trusts , at the same time failing
to appreciate the good work done
by other powerful combinations of
capital , is foolish indeed , but per
haps no more so than his more liberal
fellow who favors the blind policy
of coddling and nursing the greedy
giants who gorge and gorge , yet
never are appeased. Neither men
nor trusts can be condemned collec
tively , though there are imitation
statesmen who have spent nearly a
decaae in campaigning against all
trusts , without , however , speaking
one sentence that would cause a fair-
minded man to suspect that they
knew what they were talking about ,
or had even a dim shadow of an idea
how to set about it to remedy the
evil. As well hustle all men off to
the penitentiary in a body , for the
crime of one or more of them ; or ,
on the other hand , inscribe the name
of every male citizen upon the roll of
fame , as an appreciation of the glor
ious work George Dewey did at
Manila , or Wainwright accomplished
at Santiago. "With a man or a trust ,
his future must bo judged by his
past , and his character may only be
determined by analyzing his acts.
"By their fruits ye shall know
them ! " /7/ '
Mr. Skin Flint lives
ISOLATION , in a tall house on a
high hill , and th °
path which leads from the pike to
his door is little used , and over-run
by weeds. The Flint family just
lives there ; that is all. None of the
neighbors invites a Flint out , and no
one seeks to intrude upon their
privacy. Since moving into the
neighborhood years ago they have re
sented all attempts at familiarity.
They do not even "swap help" at
harvest time , and their farm is not
included in the itinerary of the local
threshing gang. Neighbors passing
along the pike glance dubiously at
the narrow , shuttered windows , the
weed-grown walks and the generally
forbidding aspect of the farm which
seemed so cozy and hospitable before
it fell into the hands of its present
morose , inhospitable , selfish and un
reasonably suspicious occupants.
There are men who would make of
America , a nation of Flints. It is
a great and growing family , and
when a member of another great
family calls to pay his respects ,
members of onrs sulk in dark closets ,
and skulk in the shrubbery outside ,
growling out their hatred for the
visitor , and the people he represents.
Even a casual visitor is received with
suspicion , and finds it necessary to
reiterate the statement that America
is a great country and that he is en
joying the visit to the utmost , even
tually taking his departure with a
very bad taste in his mouth , having
utterly failed to establish friendly
relations between the two families ,
and lay the foundation of a lasting
friendship. In hours of trouble
proffered aid is spurned , and the
motives of the would-be friends mis
construed. In a time of peace and
plenty those who come to buy and
sell are greeted with an exhibition
of selfishness and unfairness.
How long think you before , like
the Flint family , a country so conducted - ,
ducted , so peopled , will bo socia y
ostracised , and commercially boy
cotted ? Must we live in a tall ,
gloomy house , on a high bleak hill ,
the shuttered windows , weed-grown
walks , high fences , barred gates , and
surly , boorish inhabitants discourag
ing friendly callers , and well-nigh
forbidding those who come to trade ?