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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 1904)
THE OMAHA DAILY DEE: THURSDAY. JANUARY 7, 1004. mm Omaha Daily Bee. E. ROBE WATER. EDITOR, PUBLISHED EVERT MORNING. TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION. Pstly Bp (without BundajO, One Year..4.0JJ Dally Bee and Sunday, One Tear J -W , Illustrated Ben, One Yar....... 5 Sunday Bee, One Year ...... Saturday Bee, One Year Twentieth Century Farmer, One Year.. l.og IlEUVEHED BT CARRIER. Dal!y Bee (without Sunday), per copy... 2e lally Bet (wllhout Sunday), per week.. .120 Dally Bee (including Sunday), per week. .170 Sunday Bee, per copy . Evening Bee (without Sunday), per week o Evening Bee (Including Sunday), per yfftf, lC Complalnt''of ' irregularities In Jpllvrv hould be addressed to City Circulation De partment. OFFICES. Onvaha The Bee Building. South Omaha City Hail Building, Twen-ty-flfth and M Streets. Council Bluffs 10 Pearl Street. Chicago 1S40 I'nlty Building. New York 2328 Park How Building. , Washington 6ul Fourteenth Street. CORRESPONDENCE. Communications relating to news and edi torial matter should be addressed: Omaha lies, Editorial Department. REMITTANCES. Remit by draft, express or postal order payable to The Bee Publishing Company. Only t-cent stamps accepted In payment of mall accounts. Personal checks, except on Omaha or eastern exchanges, not accepted. THE BEB PUBLISHING COMPANY. STATEMENT OF CIRCULATION. State of Nebraska, Douglas County, ss ! George B, Tzechuck, secretary of The Bee Publishing Company, being duly sworn, ays that the actual number of full and complete copies of The Dally, Morning, Evening and Sunday Bee printed during the month of December, 1903, was as fol lows: .B0.230 .so.aoo .WMITO .SO,ftS 17 so.bho 1............80,8T0 i.........si.o30 89............TAao .1. .1. nnnnn ao.aio . ? igiimn.8QMO 8 90f OOO He 81tl IO 0.o sew.eewi .80.300 11 .80,400 80400 1J. ...... sr.oto J 4 80 WOO Ms ewe .80. TOO II 81,1 TO Zl... ...81.2TO 23. .80,7X0 .80,tA0 .81,800 tl.... 24. 26.. 28.. M.M... 31,000 ......31.2HO B7e e .20IWJO 28....... :H,7BO 20 80.6A0 30... R3.O10 81. ... -.... 83,490 ' Total 4T.3M .Less unsold and returned copies.... 10,431 Net total sales 030.IKM Net average sales 8O,220 ' GEORGE B. TZ8CHUCK. Subscribed In my presence and sworn to before me this 31st day of December, A. D. l3. , M. B. HUNQATE, 1 (Seal.) Notary Public The Russian bear seems to be giving the Wall street bull much valuable as sistance. 1 1 That Omaha postoffioe plum ought to be ripe enough now to fall soon by its own weight ; Come on with the flouring mill the more the merrier and the better for the grain market 1 ' ''' ' The Irish, It appears, are still a very long way from forgetting that Ireland should be free. i There wag a time when the Chicago theater manager was much envied, but Just at present Ho one begrudges him his Job. , Remaining a,, stiver advocate, ; Colonel Bryan intends , to break ' this present golden silence just as soon as be can touch land again. ' The school board's compliments to the police board, with the Information that it can quickly find use for all the li cense money the latter will release. If any genius has a certain and on failing recipe for removing the wreck hoodoo from railroad tracks he can sell It for a sum that will make Rockefeller's bank account look small. Visiting implement dealers attending their convention here are assured of Omaha's cordial greeting and invited to avail themselves of all the facilities the city affords for entertaining guests. k Contracts for supplies for the county poor farm have' been awarded and the only tiling the commissioners now have to look after is that the county shall get the quantity and quality of supplies ' It pays (or. The Advisory board has been more ornamental than useful from the time It was created by the charter of 1807, and now with less of the power formerly exercised its sessions are likely to be less interesting than ever. Charles M. Schwab has not yet finished telling all he knows about the devious ways of the Shipbuilding trust It' is to be feared, however, that there are several things about that gigantic scheme of plunder he does not want to tell Business failures in 1003 were fewer In number than for several years past but the aggregate liabilities show con siderable Increase. The explanation is easily found In the bigger combinations conducting Industrial enterprises on larger scales than, ever before. The little failures nowadays match the big ones of a decade or two ago. The granting of a new trial to the Ohio murderer, Knapp, who stands self-confessed as the extinguisher of the Uvea of five persons, is another sam ple of miscarried justice that tends to promote mob violence and law defiance. When such a degenerate can prolong LU life by the aid of judicial red tape the effect of our appeals for law ob servance In the face of exasperating crimes is materially weakened. The quarrel between the mayor and council over the appointment of the city electrician, or rather the refusal of the mayor to appoint as city elec trician a man selected by the electric lighting company, should not be allowed to Jeopardise life and property In Omaha. If tbelnayor nominates a man who la not competent or notoriously unfit for the position it is the duty of the council to reject him. If the mayor nominates a competent and reputable win for the position It is the duty of the council to confirm him regardless of the Interests or pressure from the Isctrla Ufbt company. AMKR1CA.S 1NTSRBMT9 IZWLVKD. At Tuesday's meeting of the Washing ton cabinet the far eastern situation was considered and while nothing of an official nature was given out, it is understood to be the view in adminis tration circles that this government's relations to the ; controversy tetwecn Russia and Japan are purely commer cial. It Is stated that In the event of war between those nations the United States wouldniake efforts to protect its commerce in the far enst and it is pointed out that this would be a deli cate and difficult task, since both Russia and Japan are on, friendly terms with this country. It cannot be clearly foreseen what effect a war in the far east would have upon our trade In that quarter of the world, ''he general Impression Is that it would mean a audden Increase of business for the Pacific coast In cereal products and for the Mississippi valley in meat products! It is also thought that those lines' of trade In' which of late the United States has been en joying an increase would not be inter rupted and would no doubt continue to Increase. This appears to be the view taken by the exporters directly con cerned In the development of American markets In the Orient They are con fident In asserting that a war between Russia and Japan would not impair the commerce of this country, but on the contrary 1 would stimulate consumption of American Imports, especially In the belligerent countries. It is argued that if Russia is called pon to gather In all her resources and sinews of war it would Imply the withdrawal of a great export competitor In the grain market. Russia would place an embargo upon the export of wheat to European coun tries, and especially Germany, increas ing to this extent the demand . from those countries for the American prod uct There would also necessarily be an Increased demand for our meats. Advancing prices for foodstuffs reflect the expectation of what will be the Immediate effect upon our commercial interests of a far eastern war. As to ultimate results a question is presented which is certainly of great in terest o this country, but in respect of which there can be no definite con clusion The very general opinion seems to bo that if a trial of strength between Russia and Japan were to result in favor of the latter, Russia would be compelled to keep herself within "the bounds observed by other powers hav ing treaties with China, while should the conflict have a different issue, noth ing but the intervention of a power able to cope with Russia- could prevent the extension of her authority at least as for as the Yellow river and a dom ination which would enable her to con trol the commerce of a vast region. That she would do this in her own in terest is of course not to be donbted. The large concern of the United States, in a commercial wajMn the Xar eastern situation seems to be fully un derstood at Washington and the ad ministration can be depended upon to do whatever shall be deemed wise and expedient for the safeguarding of Amer ican rights and interests in the event of war. ' ' PACIFIC COAST EXPECTATIONS. A Pacific coast paper, while udmlttlng the importance of the rauama canul to the United States for military and stra tegic purposes, 'declines to accept the view that it will be the gateway to Aslu for the trade of this country. It re marks that the United Stales fronts on the Pacific ocean directly across from Asia and that no artificial waterways are needed or will be used for the curry ing trade between this country and our neighbor across the water. That trade will be through the American ports which front on the Pacific. The value of the Paqama canal to the United States, it goes on to say, "will not be ita importance from a commercial stand point. It will be of fully as much ad vantage to our commercial rivals as to ourselves. Its real value to this country is as a portion of our nationul defenses, the strategic channel through which our fleets on the one ocean can be reinforced from the other In case of emergency." - Undoubtedly a considerable portion of our commerce with Asia will be done through the ports on the Pacific, but if that trade shall In the years to come amount to what some think it a great deal of it will go through the isthmian canal. That waterway will certainly be very important from a military and strategic point of view, but its commer cial value to this country will also be great raclflo coast expectations in re gard to trade with Asia may proce to be somewhat extravagant. so new trust Legislation. It appears to be understood at Wash ington that no further legislation will be asked for at this session of congress dealing with the trust problem. It is stated that for the present it is deemed best to give a fair trial to the publicity remedy to curb and regulate the corpora tions subject to Investigation by the bureau of corporations. The work al ready done by this bureau is said to be very satisfactory. It has encountered no serious obstacle thus far in Its aim to get all the data needed. The corpora tions of the country have responded to the demands made upon them promptly and unreservedly. In view of this it is stated that the president will not ask congress to add In. anywise to the pres eut law and It is believed to be doubt ful If any of the numerous bills relating to the trusts Introduced since the assem bling of congress will reach the stage of serious consideration. - In his annual message President Roosevelt referred to the legislation of the last congress in regard to corpora tions and the fact that he did not sug gest or recommend "further legislirtlon Implied that he believed what had been doue was sufficient for the present.1 He expressed fuU confidence In the value of the workVo be done by' the new rob bureau and conveyed the Impression that he regarded the policy of publicity as ample under existing conditions and should be given a thorough trial. We think there can be no doubt that this Is in accord with intelligent-public opinion, which is certainly not favorable to a warfare upon corporations that would unsettle and disturb the business of the country. Little Is now Wing heard of Industrial consolidations and those which have been effected appear generally to be pursuing legitimate business methods. All are now subject to a measure of na tional supervision which is being faith fully applied and with evident good effect WHAT VAN WE SHOW FOR OCR 02Tf The records In the county court house show that about $1,800,000 has been contributed by the taxpayers of Douglas county during the past twenty-five years for the construction of roads and bridges. The question that naturally suggests itself is, What have tho tax payers to show for their money ? What proportion of the enormous sum col lected from them for the construction and maintenance of roadways and bridges has been honestly expended, and what proportion has been squandered or stolen? The detailed exhibit compiled for The Bee shows that. the levy for road taxes from 1880 to 1903, inclusive, aggregated $1,154,275. Deducting therefrom 10 per cent for delinquent taxes, we have $1,038,848. Assuming that 20 per cent of that amount is chargeable to the cost of maintenance, there still remains more than $800,000 charged up to the original cost of grading public roads in Douglas county, including the grading done in the cities of Omaha and South Omaha. A liberal estimate of the cost of grad ing done in the cities of Omaha and South Omaha at the county's expense would be $300,00$ which would leave half a million dollars as representing the cost of grading of the county Toads outside of the two cities. This stu pendous sum of money . Is fully five times ns much as all tho work of road grading done In this county could be duplicated for today. To be sure, a large proportion of this grading as done by hand labor, whereas at the present time nearly all the grading Is done by machine. For all that there has been, a waste of rond funds that no one can explain satisfactorily to the great majority of taxpayers. The amount of bridge taxes levied In the past twenty years will exceed $7."0, 000, exclusive of the tax levied to pay Interest upon the Union Pacific bridge bonds, which within Itself would aggre gate half a million dollars. Deducting 10 per cent from the tax levy, the ex penditure for bridges in Douglas county within the past twenty years would ag gregate $075,000. Can anybody explain what we have to show for pur money? Are all the bridges in .Douglas county i,worth half the amount drawn out of tie treasury for their construction? Is It not high time to call a halt' on the excessive levies for roads and bridges? Just now, when every pity is taking extraordinary precautions against con flagrations through defective electric wiring, the refusal of the city council to receive reports or communications from the city electrician de facto, be cause there is no such office on the satute book as an acting city electrician, will scarcely commend Itself to the pub lic in general and the business people of Omaha in particular. If there is no such position as acting city electrician the man in chnrge of the office of city electrician, who during Mr. Schurlg's in cumbency as city electrician was em ployed in the work of inspection of elec tric wiring, is to all Intents and pur poses the ' acting electrician until the council sees fit to confirm the nomina tion for city electrieiun submitted by the mayor for Its approval. If, in the meantime, any loss of life or property by fire generated through Imperfect electric wiring should take pluce the responsibility will rest primarily upon the council. The proposition to procure $1,000 aS cident Insurance policies for members of tho fire department at an average cost to the city merits favorable con sideration. If the surplus in the fire fund would permit policies for $2,500 for each fireman it would not be con sidered an extravagance. In view of the fact, however, that there will be a shortage of the fire fund it would not be inappropriate to require each fireman to take out a $2,500 policy and make him pay one-half of the premium, which would only amount to $1 per month. With every fireman insured for $2,500 periodic appeals for contributions for the relief of families of firemen who have lost their lives in fire fighting would be unnecessary. A Missouri grand Jury is looking into charges of corruption with reference to the selection and sale to the United States of sites for postoffice buildings in a half dozen Missouri towns. There have been persistent rumors of crooked work in connection with the contracts not only for real estate but also for construction by virtue of appropriations for new federal buildings. If the grand jury in Missouri succeeds In getting a lien on the graft It should be followed up all over the United States and traced down to the fountain head, which Is probably In the vicinity of one of the departments at Washington with ramifi cations reaching " into the legislative halls in the capltol. Senator Piatt of New York gives as surance that there is neither factional nor personal disturbances in the Em pire state congressional delegation to embarrass or impede Its work, and be Intimates In words scarcely less mls takable that there is neither factional nor personal disturbances in New York to prevent President Roosevelt having the undivided and cordial support of his own state for re nomination. As a politician Senator Tlatt has always had the reputation of heeding the voice of the party majority find there is no chance for blin to go wrong as to what the rank and file of New York repub licans want this time. Kansas republicans want to be the first In tendering President Roosevelt a substantial block of votes for tho presidential nomination by holding their state convention to select national delegates on March 9 next This is a laudable ambition on the part of Kan sas, but we apprehend Nebraska repub licans will be able to go Kansas ono better by holding Its convention ahead of the date set In the Sunflower state and instructing Nebraska's delegates for Roosevelt in no uncertain tone. Before the democrats decide where they will bold their national convention they should ninke sure that the hall to be placed at their disposal Is equipiwd with an asbestos curtahi as a protec tion against fire from the friction be tween the reorganizcrs and the disor ganizes. Will Bryan Approve. Washington Post. All that now remains Is for Mr. Bryan to approve the declaration of general amnesty to gold democrats, issued 1 1 Omaha, by his lieutenant. Representative Do Armond. Genesis of a Dream. Baltimore American. General Weyler Is to publish a book In which he will explain why he did not Invade the United States. The world has long been curious to know his reasons for falling to do so when the prospect was so encouraging. Bright Side of the Picture. Chicago Tribune. Out of Chicago's calamity there has al ready sprung a universal demand for ab solute safety In theater construction and management, and nothing short of that will be tolerated hereafter. This Is the only bright side to the picture. Political Hot Air. Philadelphia Press. The talk about taking the republican national convention from Chicago be cause hotels rates are to be high is prob ably not very serious. Such talk Is heard every four years, but It never really amounts to anything not even scaring the hotels. Can Coarts Stop Courting? ' Chicago Post , Speaking of government by injunction, what could be worse than the mandamus and Injunction proceedings planned by Ne braskan authorities to .orevent the gentle schoolmaTm from wedding the elusive farmer of her choice before the school term expires or his ardor dies out? Epldemjc of Disasters. . New York Tribune. The railroad wreck microbe is certainly abroad In the land. The railroad managers should And some .antitoxin to stay his ravages. He attacks' the brains of engineers and makes them misread dis patches and eats out the supports of cars and tumbles their loads In front of express trains. Just now the disease is epidemic and special precautions are" in order. Great Graft In Text Books. " v ' Boston Transcript. One of the statements made In connection with the school scandals in New York Is that 70 per cent of the millions expended for school supplies goes for text books and that the average life of a book does not exceed two years. In such circum stances it Is not strange that every Boston and Chicago text book house has a New York office ahd that every publishing Arm In the country Is offering inducements to accomplished hacks to turn cut new books as fast as they Can dictate. Meantime the public pays tho printer. Bryan and Ills Porelsn Halo. Indianapolis Journal. The Bryan democrats of Lincoln, Neb., preface their silly Invitation to the faith ful to attend a banquet there by calling attention to the honors conferred on Mr. Bryan abroad, evidently construing the at tentions as an indorsement of his principles. They were nothing of the kind. Mr Bryan would have received no honors abroad but for American officials, all republicans, who treated him politely because he had been twice a candidate for president and was a stranger In a strange land. When Mr. Bryan went abroad he very wisely left his principles behind him. Contracts Made Inder Duress. Philadelphia Press. The decision of Judge Atcheson of the United States district court at Pittsburg to the effect that railroads , cannot shield themselves by any printed conditions from liability to pay In full for goods lost or destroyed in transit Is an Important one. The Individual who ships his goods Is con fronted with a similar situation whatever road he may seek to patronize, and he must either submit to the printed condi tions on the waybill or not ship. This makes his submission to the conditions practically "under duress," or compulsory, which fact plays an important part from the legal standpoint. No shipper submits to those conditions from choice, and the contract Is thereby seriously weakened, It not totally invalidated. PROSPERITY AKD TRUSTS. Stoppage of Balloon I-'laanelerlnsr Pats Business on Sound Basis. Philadelphia Press. The stoppage In the work of organising trusts during 19oJ helps greatly in putting the business of the country on a thor ough sound basis. The men who have suffered the most sought to get others to Invest In the Inflated stocks of wind-blown corporations and failed. To some extent they did succeed, but to a much larger ex tent they were disappointed. Their stacks, founded principally on wind, have declined enormously and in many cases have been wiped out altogether. Fortunately, those who lost for the most part had the money to lose. Business suf ered some, but It was merely the Subsidence of a "boom." There has been no such de cline In trade as has distinguished Ger many and Great Britain in the last two years. Germany is contending with a growing deficit, which has to be met In part by Increasing the debt. In fact. Great Britain and about all of the European countries have been Inceeasng their indebt edness. But the opposite has been the case In the United States. Prices have been recovering somewhat of late In Iron ana steel, which suffered more than any other Industry. But prices have not been low enough to take away all profit, while In other Industries there has been a fair degree of prosperity. That promises now to increase. The high price of cotton and of farm products In general Is cheer ing to the' farmers and helps all other lines of trade. The new year starts out well and there la the great fcatisfactlon of know ing that no other nation is etqually pros perous. . THE OMAHA PROGRAM. Rome Comment on the Yolces Raised at the Jarksoalan Feast. Philadelphia Record (dem). 'Not much light on the course of the dem ocratic party can be obtained from ' the speeches of Senator Newlands and Repre sentative De Armond at the Jacksonlan dlnnef In Omaha. The speech of the latter Is of some Importance as evidence hardly necessary that the sllverites recognise sll verism as dead. Mr. De Armond was as earnest a devotee of the white metal as any and he does not wish anything disre spectful to sliver to be Said now, but he recognises that the less said In favor of it the better. He wishes the party to assert nothing offensively and to apologise for nothing, but "if It shall repudiate Its past Its recent past," or If It shall drive away elements "which left It In Its recent past-, we shall go down to defeat." All this Is well enough, but If the party can do no better than to keep still about Its recent past Its lapse Into populism end give the Impression that It Is keeping still merely from prudence and rot because the popullstlc elements have lost their power to do the party harm Just at the present moment, the country will not turn the fed eral government over to It. We do not Insist that sllverism shall be specifically condemned- and populism repu diated by name; we have much sympathy for good democrats who have gone astray. But the party will have to make It en tirely clear that It Is now firmly commit ted to sound money and It will have to show an aggressive polloy In other directions or the country will hardly turn to It for relief. The principal other direction Is the tariff. On that subject Senator Newlands predicts that It will be an Issue this year, but he says It must not be any such issue as Mr. Cleveland raised In 1SS8. The senator de sires a protective tariff, but It must not be more protective than Its beneficiaries need, and especially the tariff must be high enough to give assurance of maintain ing high wages. This Is a pretty good republican speech; It does not sound much like a democratic speech. The tariff does not maintain high wages, because high wages do not Increase the cost of production. If they did we could not pay high wages and scare the manufacturers of every country In the world by our growing power of competi tion. The American manufacturer pays high wages, gets the most efficient labor In the world and his lnbor cost is generally lower than that .of European manufac turers. Senator Newlands desires the tariff reduced where It is to be reduced at all on a sliding scale, a few per cent annually. If tho duty be too high even according to Air. .Newlands' protective standards th excess might as well be taken off all at once as to be pared off during a series of years. If the democratic party shall put forward this sort of doctrine the country will not take the government out of the hands of senator Hanna and his associates. If the manufacturers of this country need any protection it Is very little and that a di minishing quantity. The beneficiaries of a tariff always say that Its removal will aestroy them and It never does. A con slderable tariff will have to be levied to provide a revenue and a tariff so levied will afford all the protection from foreign competition that 'any manufacturers need ana more than most of them need. It Is true that the democratic party was beaten in 1888. The republican party was beaten in 1866, but it tried the contest again on the same Issues In I860 and won. The republican party passed the McKlnley tariff and was defeated in 1890 and 189S and It wouia proDamy have been defeated again in isau ir me aemocratlo party had not adopted sllverism, populism and Bryan. OSWAHD AKD UPWARD. Strides of the tutted States Shown by Comparative Figures. Philadelphia Ledger. National progress and prosperity are striking:y epitomised in the statement of the new Department of Commerce and Labor for 1903. The estimated population of the country Is now 80.S72.0lX). nearl teen times greator than It was In 1SC0. Without repeating the bewildering figures representing me present wealth of the na tion, It Is sufflrlent to say that if this wealth were equally distributed every in habitant would possess M.235 the per capita wealth-07-in 60, a four fold Increase. The Improved condition of the population Is illustrated further by the per capita indebtedness of the country, in 1870 It was 160.46. The country was then carrying the enormous debt of the civil war. The recovery has teen such that at the close of 1903 the per canlta Indebted.. was only $11.61. The per capita Interest on ine pudiic aeDt In 1870 was $1.08. It Is now reduced to the trinins- sum of us nan Tsi Th country is abundantly supplied with the circulating medium. In I860 the per capita circulation was $U.8G. It now stands at $30.21. The Increased prosperity of the people Is reflected furthermore in the de. posits or tne savings banks, the chief de positories of the wage earners. Since mn these deposits have increased more than nve-roll. i be precise flaures are: mi $2,936,204,815; 1870, $550,000,000. The mmber of saving bank deoosltors In lx 7.86.2:8. In other words, one-eleventh of the population are savings bank depositors, and are therefore, in some sense, capi talists, without taking into consideration tne depositors In other financial Institu tions. This Is a remarkable showing, an unerring Index of the general crosnerltv nr the American people. PERSONAL KOTOS. It is Impossible to account for the fact that 1903 was the wettest of the lest fifty years In Great Britain by saying that King Edward feigned every day of It. A scientist now tells us that there Is fungus In sugar; another, that there la a good deal of arsenlo In every egg. And yet the only thing that keeps us from eating eggs is the price. Ezra S. Brudno, a Russian Jew, now residing In Cleveland, will shortly pub lish a book describing Russian Jewish life and the massacre at Kleff, which was the forerunner of the Klshlneff affair. Daniel J. Sully, the New York cotton king, who has violated tradition by staying In a bull market for months and making $8,000,000 to $10,000,000 profits, has decided to become a banker In a general way In 1904. Ex-United States Senator Murphy on New Year's day retired from business, selling all his Interests In his brewing company at Troy, N. Y. He has had a half Interest In the business for fifty years. Lewis P. Abbott, for thirty years a mem ber of the Boston Fire department, a part of that time holding the office of district chief, retired on a pension of $1,000 yearly on New Year's day. He has missed but four fires in his district during his term of service. As earl marshall and premier peer of Great Britain, the duke of Norfolk will be entitled to an escort of cavalry on the occasion of his forthcoming marriage. This Is his light for all state ceremonies, and for any other occasion which be may desire so to honor. Colonel Jacob Kline, in command of the Twenty-first United States Infantry at Fort Snelllng, Minn., is to retire from the army within a few days. Colonel Kline's friends are endeavoring to secure his promotion ti a brigadier generalship previous to the date of his retirement. He entered the army as a private and has risen to his present rank solely through merit. ROIKD ABOl'T REW YORK. Ripples on the Current of Life In the Metropolis. . Twenty-two hundred men with shovel were employed Saturday afternoon and night and Sunday breaking the snow blockade In New York City. This was the official number of extra employes. -Fully as many mote, regularly employed by the street cleaning department, were turned loose on the drifts and by Monday morning all traces of a ten-Inch snowfall had van Ished from the business streets. The Jots cost the city treasury $75,000. A still larger army "of shovelera, comprising the genus hobo of the Bowery, were marshaled by Salvation Army officers In clearing side walks. They went abroad In parties of two and three and many of them netted Individually over $5. The average New York householder regards It as a sacred duty to have his sidewalk cleared of snow. The price here for a twenty-five-foot front Is 60 cents and corners with a 100-foot ex posure call for an expenditure of $1X0. New Yorkers make an awful fuss over gas bill and telephone tolls, but they are glad to pay out these sums for a sidewalk clean Ing. A remark by one of his hearers caused John D. Rockefeller, Jr., to dismiss the young men's Bible class of the Fifth Ave nue Baptist church Inst Sunday without ceremony. Rockefeller had Just finished talking about charitable giving when man arose and said: "Mr. Rockefeller, Just one word" "I beg your pardon, sir," said Rock feller, "we are very late now and we won't have time for any discussion." "Just one word. Mr. Rockefeller," and every eye was fixed upon the tall man with long locks and drooping mustache; "I Just want to oay that perhaps as soon as some of us cease taking from others we can give with better grace." Mr. Rockefeller turned to the orchestra and said: "We'll have the music omitted today; we're late. We will now hear the announcements for the week by the secre tary. ' Refnhardt Zollinhoffer unwound himself from a lamp post at the corner of Baxter street and Chatham square and thrust $961 into the hands of Policeman Jerry Sullivan. "Have nuzzer drink." he ureed. rencl'ns up to his hatband, where yellow bills wers miuering piume-llke above his head. He forced the policeman to accept $200 more. Policeman Sullivan led him to the Oak street station. There the sergeant and Sul llvan pulled bills from Zolllnhuffer's Tnnt. tonholes and removed two wsda nf nni from his coat collar. There was Just $1,30 in all." "Just keep It and rush the can," directed Zollinhoffer. who went meeklv to n mil and slept like a baby until morning, when ne was arraigned before Magistrate Ormen In the Tombs court. "How much money did you have?" arked me magistrate. "Just $1,300." said Zollinhoffer. That amount was counted out before tffa court. "Do you mean to sav ha wnlked un nnt down the Bowery for four hours with all that money showing and didn't lose a cent?" asked the astonished magistrate. He was 'assured that not only did Zollin hoffer keen all of his m rvnn v hut ha .a drinks Innumerable without having to pay a cent. "The Bowery bartenders were so utterly astounded when he stood before them fringed with $100 blllathat they didn't coiiect. He couldn't even get them to ac cert yellow bills as Dresenta. Zolllnhoffer's adventure he run dlrriv after 'he drew $1,800 from the banking nouse or Knauth. Nachod & Kuhne He rarmer or rvew jersey and he cam to town to Collect a les-acv from rUnn.nv The magistrate discharged him and he went oaca io jersey witn his $1,800. New York's meanest man has appeared again. Me is an Individual who has cap tured the dog of Scharlean Ehrraan, a blind musician. Depending on the. dog in every way ror protection and guidance, the poor man Is now confined to his modest little home, spending his time ll-teninr for a knock on the door that may bring news or nis iosi mend. A few days ago he thought he had found his little guide wnen he received a letter in- reply to an advertisement, saying that the dog had Deen round. He hastened to reDlv. and r celved an answer that he large sum of money to tho man who has tne aog. The blind musician Is now trying to raise the money to recover his missing pilot, without which he cannot mV. . living. "I have been on duty at theaters a good deal," said a New York policeman in dis cussing the Chicago fire', ''and as to vio lating the law regarding filling up the aisles and so forth, that is done every night. When the captain of the precinct has all the free seats for himself and his friends that he wants, It Is the wise cop wno snuts his eyes to these little matters. If he does not and insists on the laws being obeyed, all the theater manager has to do Is to call up the captain and tell him the cop is getting fresh and to send another man. The cop is called off and has to toe the mark so long that he becomes too wise to meddle the next time he sees the laws walked over. "As easy as lying" has become an ex pressive simile, and It Is nowhere more significant than in the druj; shops of New York. Ready money and a plausible tale are all that is needed to secure the most deadly drugs. There are many druggists on the east side who subsist wholly on that unfortunate band who are addicted to the use of opium, morphine, bromide of potassium, cocaine and all the- deadly Juices which give temporary surcease of pain and haunting memories. Not all, In fact, less than one-half of the canes which reach Bellevue are diagnosed as "drug cases," for the victims seem to know that an admission of the use of drugs means treat ment which only the hardiest can with, stand. They will eagerly admit that they are victims of alcohol, but they fear the drug ward as they fear death. It Is cus tomary to treat drug patients with a series of cold baths. Many of the victims emerge from the tub only to And their way to a slab in the morgue. A PAH.U INSTITlTIO. Ingenuity of tho American People fleeted In the Patent Onlee. Collier's Weekly. Among all of Uncle Sam's projects there Is no department which is, proportionately, as gieit a source of Income as the patent office, and yet, at the same time, no branch of the government ows Its origin to a more beneftotnt purpose. In the earliest dsys of the colonies the now proverbial Yankee proclivity for Invention was recog nised as a possibly Important factor In the Improvement of conditions in the new world, and when the colonists had secured the right to enact liws for their own gov. ernment this question was one of the first to be considered. President Washington, In his first address to congress, 1790, cilled attention to the matUr and urged the ex pediency of giving effectual encouragement to the exertions of skill and genius In the production of new and useful inventions, nl from this sugges Ion came the present American patent system, which, as one writer ou international law has said, "Is generally recognised by the most profound students of our institutions, both st home and abroad, to have contributed more than any other one thing to the pre-emlne-y' of tills country In the Industrial arj-snd In manufactures." It Is only within the archives of the patent office that one Is able to obtiln anything like a correct Idea of the wide rungs of the Inventive Ingenuity of the American people; for up to the pres ent time nearly 700.00 patents have been Issued, while the receipts of the department are so much greater than Its expenditures that the balance In the treasury on ac count of the patent fund now exceeds $6,0(0,000. RAILWAY PR K SI HE NTS' SALARIES. Generous Sums Paid to tho Men at tho Head of Their Class. New York Evening Post. Discnmilon was started in financial and railroad Circles this week by a published statement that the new executive head of the Rock Island would be the highest salaried railroad official In the country. The management of the Rock Island has naturally refused to discuss the subject of the salary to be paid President Lores. The different amounts mentioned during the week ranged between $75,000 and $100,000. They were made thus large because of tho Importance of the position given up as the executive head of the Baltimore ft Ohio and the belief that a high sum must hava been named to "bid away" Such an officer. One very well-informed railroad officer said this week that the new Rock Island president probaWy got $20,000 as vice presi dent of the Pennsylvania lines, $35,000 as president of the Baltimore A Ohio, and was offered $50,000 and a stock bonus to go with the Rock Island system. The only other railroad president known to have re ceived such a bonus was F. D. Underwood, to whom $50,000 salary and a stock bonus was offered to accept the management of the Erie. It Is commonly said that A. J. Csssatt of the Pennsylvania and James J. Hill of the Northern Securities each receive $76,000 a year for assuming the responsibility of the roads managed, although in well-informed quarters It Is thought that payment of that sum for a president Is limited to the Pennsylvania. The regular salary paid to presidents by such roads as the Erie, the Lackawanna ft Western, the St. Paul, the Northwestern, th$ Atchison, the 'Frisco, anj the Southern Is $50,000. Smaller eys terns pay anywhere between $20,000 and $40,000. LAl'GHlNd l.ivr. : ir a . . . A u ,nlT"r,sr"'iu' 1 S'mPy must ns, that silk ball gown. Mr. Spenders Now, my dear. you promised to economize. Mrs. Spenders-6o 1 will. I'll have this one cut lower, so I won't need so much silk.-Philudelphla Press. "If you were offered three wishes, George, dear, what would they be?" --Money, money, money." "Why, George, I thought you'd wish to have- me." 'Oh. I'd act von fast ennus-h If T ho.l the money.' Brooklyn Press. "Pedigree In a dog makes him Taluable, doesn't It?" "Certainly." "Funny, Isn't It?" "What's funny?" "Why, It's my experience that pedigree makes a man pretty darn near worth less." Chicago Poet. . - One broiling July day Uncle Zeke, an aged "cullud gemman," who was pushing, a barrow of bricks, paused to dash the sweat from his dusky lirow; then, shaking his (1st at the sun, he apostrophised It thus: "Fo' the Lnwd's sake, war wus yo' last Janooary 7" New York Times. Jack You'.ve heard about the escaping criminal who stepped on a slot machine and got a weigh? Mack Yes; that's old. Jack Weil, even the bloodhounds couldn't get his cent Yale Record. Hewitt I understand that the foreign noblemen are beginning to get worried. Jewett Over what? Hewitt The way these United States senators are marrying all the American women. Town Topics. , "We had known each other slightly," said Miss Evvy Waite. "but never to spesk to until one day while out skating I fell down quite near him, and" "Ah! yes," replied Miss Pepprey, "that broke the Ice, of. course." Philadelphia Press. "There!" said Mr. Jenks,' stopping sud denly. "I was going to get that piece of silk for my wife, and I forgot all about It until now. Never mind," he continued, starting on again. '-'I'll a-et It when I get home, all right." Somerville Journal. 'Mr. Trucker I think I shall eive un m business, my dear. I might as well have some good out of my money. ' Mrs. Trucker Oh, not yet, Samuel. But wnen one or us aies i snail give up house keeping snd see a little of the world. Town and Country. ai. j, " ' . I . l . , 1 Vilnius,, B,u lIW genteel beggar. "I've got plenty of confi dence In myself If I could only get a start." "You've got an unusual amount of confi dence In yourself If you think you can per suade me to alve you the start." said the hard-headed man.-rPhlladelphla Press. THE FAMILY MAN AS A POET. My poetlo fancy wanders Into thoughts of measured rhyme And I are my songs go marching down ward thro' the halls of time. In an ecstacv of vision I sit down and try to write. While my thoughts gn soaring upward in a frenzy of delight, But before I get them marshaled comes baby's pleading cry, "Papa, take me; I'm so sleepy." And I taae ner witn a sign. Presently she's soundly sleeping and I lay her rentlv down: Then I turn to my forsaken paper, forcing bsck a frown. While I thrust my nervous fingers Into my disheveled hair. Vainly honing that I'll And my soattsred thoughts regathered there. When I quiet down to thinking and I turn a sain to write. Comes a childish voice and . whispers. - t-apa, kiss me now gooa nignt. All are sleeping now. The room's deserted and I fondly count That I'm now at peace; so truant Pegasus 'again I mount. Now my fancy lingers, coming slowly, then returns again, And the words begin to muster at the bld- ding of my pen. But before a line Is written comes another nervous khnrlr. And a voice rails sweetlv downward. uon c lorget to wina ine cioca.- J. SCHUYLER LONG. Council Bluffs, la. Individuality. They are the only line -of woman's ready-to-wear shoes on which the price remains the same the year round. Boroals are worth $6.00 aad sail for $150 always. Bom shoes are worth $$.60 and sell for mors part of the time. Sorosis Shoe Store 203 5. 1 5th St Frank Wilcox, Manager. Write for the, late catalogue.. t