4
THE OMAHA' DAILY BEE? MONDAY, JANUARY 7, 1007.
jTtre Omaha Daily Dee
PUNDED BT EDWARD ROSE WATER.
VICTOtt ROSEWATRR. EDITOR.
Fintered at Omaha poetofrle as second-
a matter.
TERMS OV SUBSCRIPTION.
ally Be (without Bunday) on year
lly Hee and Sunday, one year
jindsy Be, one year
L turds y Be, one year
. o
. I M
. 1.60
I DELIVERED BT CARRIER.
ily Pee (Ineludlhg Bunday). per week.. ISO
ally H (without Sunday, per week...loo
evening Bee (without Sunday), per week, so
yenln Bee twlth Bunday). per week.. .10
Address pfsrrplatnt of Irregularities In fla
ttery to Clly Circulating Department
OmCEB.
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CORRESPONDENCE.
Communications relating to newa and edl
lirlal matter ahould be addressed: Omaha
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Inly 2-cent stamps received In payment of
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THE BEB PUBLISHING COMPANY.
STATEMENT OF" CIRCULATION.
ate of N'rhnikL Donvlaa County, as:
Charles C. Rose water, general manager
t The Bee Publishing' company, being uuij
worn, aaya that the sctual number of full
ed tnmnlfti mnlH nt Tha Dsllv. Morning,
tvenlng and Sunday Pee printed during the
ponin or December, iws, was a muuw..
p , 1,870
1 .;M.o
t 81.S10
4 x,no
I 4 l,TOO
tl.StO
t 1,880
l n,M0
t 10,630
0 81.780
l . ta.iso
., 33,060
1 si.ss
4 Sl.SSO
1 82,170
30,400
17 -. ... 38,870
II 3X.T60
II -.. 31,760
to 38,670
II 31,680
2 31,800
II 00,660
14.
25.
16.
27.
21.
it
JO.
31,710
31,600
38,180
31,770
31,610
31,680
30,800
11 31,810
ToUL.
868,380
jeea unaold and returned copies., 8,841
Nat total 673,148
Jally average 31,391
CHARLES C. ROBkWATER,
General Manager.
Subscribed In my presence and aworn to
serore ma mis Jlst uay or uecemoer, isuo.
teoJ.) M. a. HLNUAir,,
i y Notary Public
wHE.i out br TOW!.
Subscribers leaving tha city tem
porarily should hare Tho Bee
mailed to them. Addroaa will ba
chanced as ftn as requested.
Th lawmaker who keeps himself
sbove euBptclon at Lincoln will have
uo explaining to do when he comes
borne.
It the French people are to settle the
luestlon of. church and state at the
allot box the royalists will perhaps be
lorry they forced the issue.
After perusal of the state press.
former Governor Mickey may be moved
M apply for a pardon for his over-
ndulgence of the pardoning' power.
That Philadelphia' bomb "throwing
aplsode Is an Indication that Iowa is
making "physical force" politicians as
well as those who depend on their lung
power.
The lawyers have gone to Chicago
o take some more depositions in the
water works purchase litigation. The
taxpayers of Omaha will continue to
Soot the bills.
Oovernor Sheldon's inaugural mes
sage has struck a popular chord. What
Is more, the people have every confi
dence that he will make good or know
the reason why.
Reports from the winter wheat fields
of Nebraska Indicate that the old Idea
that heavy snow is essential to success
has joined the notion that Nebraska
soil cannot raise fruit.'
The report that Ralspuir has taken to
the mountains may be accepted as evi
dence that he thinks a live bandit is
better than a dead patriot It he knows
anything of patriotism.
la Its new rule to curb the demands
of lawyers" upon estates In litigation,
the Nebraska' supreme court has taken
another long step In the direction of
reducing the slie of Its docket.
The complaint of the British Im
perialists that the Boers are to gain
by the ballot what they lost by the
bullet might be a valuable tip to the
Filipinos who have a desire to take to
the warpath.
Senator Bailey will perhaps find more
work In Texas than .la Washington
during the present session of congress,
but Senator Tillman can uphold the
reputation ot the fire-eating combina
tion during that time. ,
It would be ungentlemanly to suspect
cause and effect between the Interstate
Commerce commission's investigation
and Mr. Harrlman's illness, but the
bulletins from both places will bear
watching for comparison.
If Mr. Harrlman's-Illness prevents
bin from testifying before the 'Inter
state Commerce commission long
enough the commission, may get all
the facts about the Harrlman octopus
without his .aid: or consent.
The popocratlc World-Herald is al
ready speculating on how much re
form will come out of the present Ne
braska legislature. The World-Herald
is ia Its. usual position of asking for
something lt.'bopes It will not get.
It must not be forgotten that there
are several "acred of politics to the
square inch over in Iowa, as well as
in Nebraska,'-. Just at this particular
Urn. Each ,of the Iowa . statesmen
seems to have difficulty to determine
whether he wants to be a Vnlted States
senator, a cabinet officer or merely a
president.
-RAiLmiA i -a rrrwt;B t.w afkt
The commerce commission'! Investl-
gatlon, caused by multiplying frightful
train wrecks, has proceeded far enough
to show the unreliability of existing
precautionary signal systems as they
are operated by the railroads, but not
far enough to Indicate clearly what Is
the safest practicable system. For this
reason the commission Is compelled to
ask a special appropriation to provide
for the tests necessary to disclose, the
devices with which the carrier com
panies should be required to equip
their lines for the public safety. Ac
cordingly much delay Is to be expected
before substantial Improvement can be
realised.
Corporate Influence Is certain to re
sist legislative remedy In this respect.
as It first resisted enactment of the ;
law requiring automatlo car couplers
and then long delayed its enforcement.
The expense of such equipment is
notoriously more conspicuous- In the
minds of coupon-clipping and dividend
absorbing, interests than humanitarian
consideration or regard for obligations
to the public. And, confessedly, the
cost of a high type of safety signals,
whether automatic, or manual or a
combination of, both, would be far
greater than that of the Improved car
couplers.
This Investigation, like other Investi
gations of various phases of transporta
tion, throws into prominence the fact
that carrier corporation management,
concentrating Its energies for selfish
ness, neglects ' public duties. There
could be no higher public duty than
to protect the public In transit, but
the methods of protection, while there
has been some progress, have, been
subordinated to Immediate selfish ends,
and. Indeed, through over-reaching
greed have fallen tar short even of that
limit.
The increase of expense for efficient
safety equipment will be the real
ground of hostility to the appropriation
called for and the legislation aimed at,
yet the roads for a series of years,
when. the,y bad abundant funds for
such equipment without legal compul
sion, have been distributing excessive
dividends on enormously watered cap
italisations. And their present attitude
makes It clear that they will oppose
to the bitter end lawful remedy, now
that the baleful results of their disre
gard of public safety are so startllngly
manifest.
UNRELIEVED MOXBT 8TB1XQKKCY.
Ordinarily crop realization would now
be returning funds to the east In suffi
cient volume to relieve materially the
severe nioney stringency, but circum
stances, somewhat similar to those of
the corresponding period a year ago,
are notably retarding such a move
ment, although It has begun. It Is ad
mitted that . never before has ' traffic
congestion so seriously postponed the
marketing' of ' western " crops, Which '
have called for heavy amounts ot cur
rency from the east, the local elevators
throughout the west being full , and
barring the way to grain in farmers'
hands, while the big elevators on the
lakes are two-thirds empty. The
transportation situation is such as to
make certain a very slow handling ot
crops for many weeks, correspondingly
delaying currency recovery In New
York.
Moreover, It Is becoming apparent
that no small amount of the currency
absorbed by the Interior was required
for financing high prices, and as In
dustrial and trade affairs throughout
the country are at full tide, with an
extraordinary amount of new construc
tion under plan, much of the funds
that usually are hastened to New York,
will be held back.
There is, therefore, no such easing
of the eastern money market as was
expected to occur with the turn of the
new year, nor Is it likely soon to occur.
Though funds from the interior will
flow back with accelerating current
later, there are two Important counter
vailing factors which have not here
tofore been sufficiently reckoned. By
the terms on which the treasury made
deposits of surplus, the banks will
have to return $12,500,000 between
January 20 and February 1, and $30,
000,000 more within a few weeks after
February 1. On top of this, it is prac
tically certain that as importation is
coming In from $30,000,000 to $35,'
000,000 will be withdrawn to the
treasury through the custom house as
excess revenue between now and June.
With slow returns from the west, re
payment of treasury deposits and the
impounding of cash, there would be Im
portant restriction of the money' mar
ket, even if it had not. to bear the
brunt of the extraordinary speculative
and Industrial demand which Is not
likely to slacken.
PVBL1CITT FVH ISDORSEtlKST.
The precedent set by Governor
Hughes by giving publicity to the In
dorsement on which, he made his first
important appolritment Is not - only
a Btriklng novelty In political patrpn
age, but suggestive of the New York
governor's purpose in dealing with it.
It is noteworthy, la, this case, in whioh
a vacancy in the office of county Judge
waa filled, that the official statement
accompanying the announcement of the
appointment gives the names of the
chief Indorse rs for the appointee, who
with a single exception are judges of
the higher courts of state-wide reputa
tion. This method ia in direct contrast
with the boss and machine system by
which appointive offices have been so
notoriously dictated In the Empire and
so many other states.
11 the Implications of the Innova
tion, too, are favorable and welcome.
Candor, and regard for the public aerr
vice are to be fairly inferred from it,
barring back-door cabals and under
hand manipulations so favorable to
special and corporation Interests.
Moreover, the-certainty that Indorse
ment for Important office would be ex
posed to public knowledge and Judg
ment might tend materially to enforce
upon all a sense of responsibility.
KEKD OF A CUUXTT AUDITOR
At the last legislature a bill to
create the office of county auditor for
Douglas county fell by the wayside ow
ing to complications In the final stages
of Its enactment. - This bill should be
resurrected and revised and 'presented
anew tor the consideration ot the law
makers this winter.
. Our county board hcs Improvised a
pretense of a position known as county
auditor, who, however, ' has no legal
standing and no authority , which he
can enforce. He Is simply an em
ploye of the board to check up reports
made to them and advise them as to
the correctness of claims and vouchers.
He has no Independence whatever of
the county board and holds his place
subject to their pleasure or dis
pleasure.
Every one knows that no effective
control of public accounts can be ac
complished except by an auditor who
is Independent of those who incur the
bills and appropriate the money to pay
them, as well as of the administrative
officers In the different departments of
the county government. This princi
ple has been recognized In the office
of comptroller for the city of Omaha,
which Is a charter office entirely inde
pendent of the council on. one side and
ot the elective and appointive officers
on the other, and for which' the law
not only fixes the salary and the term,
but also prescribes qualifications de
signed to insure competency.
But while the office of county audi
tor should be created to meet the re
qulrements of the situation, the legis
lature should at the same time merge
into it the office of city comptroller on
the same plan as was followed two
years ago In the merger of the city
and county treasuries and of the city
tax commissioner and county assessor;
One auditing department can easily
take care of all the accounts and rec
ords of both city and county with
greater economy and higher efficiency,
The county auditor when elected
should therefore be ex-offlclo city
comptroller and an arrangement
should be perfected for distributing
the cost of his office force equitably
between the county and city. What
ever Is to be done, moreover, in this
direction should be outlined and
started early so that the ill fate which
befell the previous movement may be
avoided this time.
The fact that a large number of let
ters received by Senator Burkett pro
testing against the bill to limit the
hours of railway employes are all writ
ten on the same kind of paper and
mailed in uniform envelopes has
aroused the suspicion. . that these . let
ters all emanate from the same source,
presumably closeto railroad beadquar;
ters. "When the last effort ofthe rail
road publicity agents to manufacture
sentiment among railway employes
against the rate bill was exposed by
The Bee with its peculiar mixup of
'the two Mr: Clancys" it was assumed
that the work next time would not be
so coarse. The railroad ready letter
writers, must be bourbons who never
learn anything and never forget any
thing.
The suggestion that because Robert
Cowell did not take the oath of office
as .state railway commissioner at the
same time as his colleagues, he has
forfeited his claim to the office and
must be appointed to the position If
he Is to hold it, will not strike laymen
as good law. Suppose an officer-elect
were detained out of the state or were
too ill to take the oath of office at the
designated time, that would not de
prive him ot his' rights, especially U it
would at the same time deprive the
people of their right to have repre
sentation in such office. The thing
for Mr. Cowell to do. however, is to
qualify without further delay before
some one authorised to administer
oaths.
Colonel Bryan will be out of the
state for a month or more. By the
time he returns affairs should have so
shaped themselves at the state capital
that he will be in position to read the
minority members of the legislature a
timely lecture and' point out to them
the way they may conduct themselves
so as to manufacture the greatest possi
ble amount of political capital for the
next democratic campaign.
Senator Dietrich pays his compli
ments to Colonel Mosby In character
istic style and incidentally at the same
time to Senator Millard, Embezzler
Bartley and former District Attorney
W. 8. Summers, all In a bunch. Some
people will be Inclined to view the
Mosby interview as simply a good foil
for Senator Dietrich to hit the other
fellows over his shoulder.
Speaker Nettleton ' promises severs
surprise parties when his list of com
mittee assignments Js made public.
The surprise should be upon the mem
bers with corporation strings attached
who have been scheming to smuggle
themselves Into Important committee
places for the sole purpose of deliver
lng the goods to the corporations at
the other end of the wire.
The admission xf a block signal oper
a tor that signals are habitually ignored
makes Imperative a derailing device to
accompany each red light. Forced to
Choose between stopping bis train and
taking a "header," the engineer would
no doubt choose the former.
Ex-Governor Mickey's final message
to the legislature Is straight up and
down on the railroad Issue. It Is
series ot sledge hammer blows aimed
at these corporations, after .tbejzhave
gotten beyond the reach 6f the' polit
ical pugilist's arm. . Dirt : when -they
were really at his mercy he "tapped
them gently with a feather duster.
Membera of the democratic city
council have been having trouble In
figuring out the apportionment ot the
funds at their disposal to correspond
with one another. The charter should
be amended so as to require among
other qualifications for the council a
civil service test of proficiency In arith
metic.
Governor- Sheldon 18 said to be be
sieged by office seekers.- The place
hunters must have forgotten that Oov
ernor Sheldon volunteered for service
In the war with Spain and prepared
himself then to stand a elege, which
the early ending of that conflict ap
parently deferred until now.
The failure of a Ooldfleld trust com
pany, which has been actively floating
mining shares, proves either that the
"suckers" are not biting as well as
usual or that the promoters have made
enough money to satisfy them for a
while.
Former Governor Mickey declares
that he Is experiencing a feeling of re
lief. It Is nothing, however, to the
feeling of relief which all the other
citizens of Nebraska are experiencing.
Overdoing; tha Young; Mas.
Indianapolis News.
This Is, of course, the day of the young
man, but judging from the way railroad
wrecks are charged against the mistakes
of youthful telegraphers It would seem
possible that enterprising and economical
captains of Industry may be catching
them too young.
Is It an Era of Whiskers
Chicago Record-Herald.
James McCrea, the new president of the
Pennsylvania railroad, and Charles E.
Hughes, the new governor of New York,
both wear full, bushy beards. Also another
man with whiskers has been added to the
president's cabinet. Has the reaction
against the smooth-faced man begun?
Tom Johnson's Strennona Life.
Minneapolis Journal.
By laying tracks at midnight, tearing
others up by moonlight, being enjoined
at I a. m., and playing the corporation
game to the limit. Mayor Tom Johnson
hag finally reduced street car fares In
Cleveland to SH cents. If Mayor Johnson
were doing this for himself lntc f for
the people he would be sent to tl,, nlted
States senate.
Dentnl of Jnnttoe.
St. Taul Pioneer-Press.
Another glaring Instance of the manner
In which the present methods of Judicial
procedure are used ' to foster delays and
effect a practical denial of Justice Is found
in the cases growing out of the Iroquois
theater fire. That firs caused a loss of 800
lives. Three persons were Indicted for man
slaughter and two for malfeasance In of
fice, while 200 suits for dttm&ges were com
menced. But' not a-eingle4 one of these
cases, civil or criminal, hs jet, after three,
years, been brought .q yial.
' 'The Ralkroair-ray 'Roll. '
San Francisco Chronicle.
It t estimated that' Aay-roHs Of: ttm
railroads of the United plates for the year
1907 will aggregate fully tl (000,000.000. ' To
be able to pay this enormtftfs Sum the roads
of the country will have to earn at least
12,500,000,000, an Increase over the gross in
come of 1909 of 'fully "$200,000,000. Present
appearances Indicate that-the business of
the country will be adequate to provide all
the funds needed to meet .the gowlng de
mands of those who furnish the capital and
of the people who operate our railroads.
8UC1UB AMD U1VI.M2 LAW.
Voluntary Self-Mnrder n. Coward's
Desertion of Life's Duties.
Cardinal Gibbons in the Century.
Voluntary self-murder is not only a vio
lation of the divine law, but is also a crime
against society. Wo are social beings.
We owe a duty to the commonwealth as
well as to ourselves. We mutually depend
on one another like the members of our
physical body. "For none of us llveth to
himself, and no man. dleth to himself."
Humane society may bi compared to a g and
aiM.y, every member of which has a spe
cial place and mission assigned to him by
his sovereign commander.' To abandon the
post of duty intrusted to a sentinel Is re
garded oy me military code as a most
cowardly act, which Is ptintshed with ex
treme rigor. What less does the suicide
do than basely abandon tha situation as
signed to him In the 'welfare of life?
And there Is no vice more contagious
than cowardly desertion.' - It is often fol
lowed by a general mutiny. The same Is
true of suiolde. 'When a few deeds of self
murder are widely circulated by the press,
they are not Infrequently followed by
numerous voluntary slaughters. A suicidal
wave rolls over the land.
MAKISU BLOCK Blti.NALS SAFE,
ne Way of Enforelngr Obedience In
Train Operation.
Chicago Tribune.
In a secret effort to put to proof the
carelessness and efficiency of Its engineers
and train crews, the Northwestern railway
last year made a series of "surprise tests,"
resulting . In the main agreeably to the
best expectations. It was demonstrated
that out of 1,626 tests of faithfulness In
obeying the block signals there was not a
single Instance of failure :o comply with
the regulations. With respect to l.t&l tests
of other descriptions there were only six
teen esses where the rules were not ab
solutely obeyed, a failure of only 1 per
cent. As a result of these failures ten
engineers were summarily discharged and
the other offenders were severely repri
manded. They were told In plain language
that it was no fault of theirs thst an ac
cident had not occurred, and that they
had done everything In their power to
contribute to such accident. This rigorous
Inspection and the certainty of swift pun
ishment have not failed to bring the em
ployes to an appreciation of their duty and
to reduce to a maximum the chances of a
railway horror.
The point of this demonstration, apart
from its application to one system. Is that
what haa been accomplished by tha North
western may be as easily brought about
by any railway In the country. It shows
with sufficient clearness that a rigorous
and effective discipline is all that ia neces
sary to the elimination of a too frequent
cause of peril, and that It Ilea within tha
power of railway officials to make the
block systsm a safeguard against- terrible
disasters such as have so recently shocked
the country. The example set by the
Northwestern is commended to othsr roads
as on worthy to follow. Tha sooner em
ployes leara that rules are made to be ob
served, and that the failure of such ob
servance has direct and disagreeable per
sonal consequences, the sooner will come
tha public assurance that tha roads sre
doing everything In their power to securs
the safety of Uie traveler.
THB PETTICOAT II POLITICS,
Activities f American Women
In
America Fufcllr Mr.
Leslie's Weekly.
Pity 1t la that President Roosevelt's name
was coupled with tha Bellamy Storcr-Vstl-
ran-cardinalate Intrigue, but his name
having become mixed In It through tha
vsnlty and folly of tha meddlers In publish.
lag their meddlesomeness to the world, the
country Is glnd that lie exposed the culprits
In. a thorough and crushing fashion. The
United Slates .has had some Aspaslas. who.
by persogal fssclpatlon. ability, or Best. I
have rendered a service to husbands, I
tamers, or friends which, remotely at leat.
recauea ma aw wnicn me Milesian woman
gave Pericles. In many cases, however,
American -Women's active mixing In prac
tical politics has been a' hindrance rather
than a help to the persons they tried to
serve.
Dolly Madison, as mistress of the White
Housn during the eight years when her
husband was secretary of state under the
widower Jefferson, and through the suc
ceeding eight years when her husband was
president, was personally, acquainted with
more great men than any other woman
whom America has seen. And her tact
and her beneficent Influence In politics'
social (and In. many Instances in its politi
cal) side has become a tradition. . The
White House has had several other popular
mistresses, notably Harriet Lane aud Mrs
Cleveland, but the Utter s activity was In
social matters solely. Harriet Lane, who
was 'the bachelor President- Buchanan's
niece, made friends for that personally un
popular executive, and disarmed many
enemies. Slie was as pure as she was tact
ful, but some of Buchanan's enemies In
sinuated that she had as rrrtich sway In the
selection or rejection of msny applicants
for office as Madame de Pompadour had
over Louis XV. A striking tribute to Har
riet Lan's charm of manner was rendered
by Edward VII., who, as Prlncs of Wales,
was entertained at the White House on his
visit to the United 8tates in 1S60, and who,
on his coronation as king more than forty
years later, put her name at the head of
the list of Invitations to that function
which he sent out.
Stephen A. Douglas' second wife, the
daughter of James Madison Cutts, actively
promoted her husband's ambition In his
race for the White House, but fate ordered
things otherwise. Kate Chase Sprague's
electioneering for her father, Salmon P.
Chase, to advance his presidential aspira
tions, was as persistent and as brilliant as
was the duchess of Devonshire's campaign
ing for Fox, but destiny was against her.
Many there were In thoae days who.
though not enamored of Chase, would bavt
been glad to see him president, so that
another figure could be placed on the
pedestal beside Dolly Madison's when tho
notsDiy great mistress of the executive
mansion were written or talked about.
Probably when Jackson called his friend,
General John H. Eaton, who had Just mar
ried the fascinating Mrs. Tlmberlake
("Peggy" O'Nell), into his cabinet, he did
not realise that he was handling dynamite.
Qoeslp had busied Itself with Mrs. Tlm
berlake's name, and the wives of the mem
bers of Jackson's court circle refused to
recognise her. With his accustomed chiv
alry and Impetuosity, Jackson rushed to her
rescue, made her recognition a test of loy
alty to his administration and to the dem
ocratic party, but was defeated for the
first time and only time of his life. The
"Peggy O'Nell war." however, excited more
popular Interest throughout the country
than Jackson's Creek War In Florida did a
decade and a half earlier. It destroyed the
chances of Calhoun (whose wife, boycotted
Mrs Eaton) for .ever reaching the presi
dency. It placed Van Buren (who, as a wtd
ower, was treelo extend his. attention -te
Mrs. "Eaton) lnlhe line of succession to' the
White House, It smashed Jackson's cabinet
It. sent many democrats Into the opposi
tion, It aided . In establishing the Whig
party, and It had a profound Influence on
the politics of the time.
The Storer Irruption lacks the serio-comic
tumultuousness of the Mrs. Eaton episode.
incidentally, however, it shows that the
Intrigante in American politics Is an ex
cellent person for public men to shun
IVllSAXCES OP ADVERTISING.
Railroad Stations Take High Rank In
the Classification.
Sylvester Baxter in the Century.
It Is remarkable how certain railway
managements, in the face of their manifest
appreciation of the value of beautiful en
vlronments, actually league themselves with
the enemy by letting the use of their prem
ises for advertising purposes. For Instance,
one great company employs expert garden
era and owns nurseries and greenhouses
for the embellishment of its property. Its
vice president says: "There Is no question
that a neat and attractive station and ad
Jacent premises suitably decorated with
plants, grass, etc., serve as an attraction
Inducing patronage to the road, the in
fluence of which must have its effect.'
But the same company very shortsightedly
consents to the use of its station walls for
advertising purposes. In one of the largest
cities of the United States this railway has
a terminal station of notable architectural
character, erected at great cost. Yet the
station Interior ia frantic with advertising
of the most shrieking character, masking
the better portion of the architectural de
tails. Many railway companies, however,
prohibit all advertising on their premises,
whether stations or fences. Certain com
panies even forbid the careless potting of
their own circulars, orders, etc., and require
these to be neatly framed.
Railway self-advertising of the desirable
kind comes with the reputation that a com
pany gains When it builds artistic stations.
The tendency is to make the new terminals
designed for great cities examples of mon
umental architecture, even adorned with
sculpture In certain Instances. In soma of
these terminals an admirable idea for ad
vertising railway Journeys is that of paint
ing In appropriate places on the Interior
walls big maps of the company's lines and
their connections. In the same way the
charms of travel might be set forth by
mural paintings of landscape, designed in
decorative style. Easel paintings of land
scape by eminent artists might to advan-i
tage also be hung at the stations. In waiting-rooms,
restaurants, etc. Excellent pho
tographs of scenery along railway lines
have very commonly been displayed in
railway stations to admirable advantage,
both decoratlvely and a advertising Instru
mentalities. Most of the great natural fea
tures of American scenery have been made
familiar to the public by such exhibition of
fine photographs made for the railway com
panies, and by thslr being also shown In
hotels, handsomely bound in volumes, as
well ss reproduced In circulars and in per
iodical publications.
Social Bnrdena in Wnshlngton.
Cleveland Plain .Dealer.
Apropos of the recent discussion In con
gress of the proposition to increase the sal
aries of the national legislators and the
members of the president's cabinet Secre
tary Taft waa quoted as bewailing the fact
that he waa compelled to give so much time
and attention to social matters. It was
further stated that members of the cabinet
are almost never allowed an evening to
themselves. To many public men such con
ditions are very irksome. They often need
the extra time for Important work or if they
do not feel that work Is necessary they
naturally desire a few hours of rest. The
routine of social affairs la certainly not
restful. Moreover, It Is very expensive.
NHKRV'I MAY PARDOKS.
Madison Chronicle: 4 Oovernor Mickey has
eertalnly established an ehvlable reputa
tion among the ex-convlets and their
friends.
Aurora Sun: Oovernor Mickey Is putting
In his best licks during the last few days
cf his administration, .liberating about all
of the worst thugs thst are left In our
penitentiary. He should throw the doors
open and not show partiality.
Crofton Journal: The latest stunt of The
Bee Is to show up twelve pardons and slx-
,y.nve commuted sentences granted by the
governor to penitentiary convicts during
hts four ypar, 1n office, and some of the
..... . ,mv h.mi nuts too.
Ruahville Recorder: Oovernor Mickey has
pardoned more criminals than any former
governor of Nebraska, and the Recorder.
while believing he haa made a good gov
ernor in most respects, we do not believe
he has exercised the executive clemency
always with good Judgment.
Crete Democrat: With Mickey as gover
nor a few more years. Nebraska would not
need a penitentiary. Mickey Is a haa been
and the people may be glad of It. His
favorites for ' executive clemency are the
murderers. It Is about time tha pardoning
power was taken out of the hands ot gov
ernors and placed with a board of pardons.
Kearney Hub: TJovernor Mickey la being
criticised at the eloae of his two terms for
pardoning- and paroling so many prisoners
from the state penitentiary. Twelve par-
rdond - ,l'-nve terms commuted and a
large number of paroled makes It appear
as If there was little use for the people
to spend money for - difficult convictions
when punishment is so easily evsded.
Bloomlhgton Advocate: Oovernor Mickey
paroled about eighty convicts during his
term of ofTlce, and It is not a very good
record, either. This wholesale paroling of
convicts ws little less than granting them
a pardon, and It does not seem to the rea
sonable man that the courts of this state
would make that many errors. Two of the
convicts pardoned were the Landreth broth
ers sent up from this county for stealing
hogs.
Chappell Register: Such abuse of the
pardoning power ss has been practiced by
Governor Mickey Is a strong incentive to
mob law. When any county of the state
has gone to the expense of prosecuting
criminal and secured his conviction, the
criminal, aa a general proposition, should
serve out his sentence. If It becomes evi
dent to the people that criminals, . and
especially murderers sentenced for a term
of years, are to be pardoned after serving
on'y a small portion of their sentenoe. they
are more apt to deal out Justice Instanter
and In their own peculiar manner,
Loup City Northwestern: Governor
Mickey haa broken all former recordo or
Nebraska executives In his leniency toward
criminals. His total pardons In four years
have been fifteen In number, four of which
were for murder; haa commuted the sen
tences of sixty-five inmates of the peniten
tiary and paroled a large number of lesser
criminals. Is it any wonder crime Is on
the Increase, when governors will undo
the work of the courts and turn criminals
loose about as fast as the courts convict
and sentence! The record made by Gov
ernor Mickey In this respect may be all
right, but to a very large body of law-
abiding cltlsens it looks In the nature of
bid for Increased lawlessness.
Ashland Gasette: One of the most ser
ious mistakes made by Governor Mickey,
In our way of thinking, was the pardon of
Nick Gentleman, the murderer of young
Oleson at Columbus. Our reason for this
opinion Is the fact that there was never
a. particle of question as to his guilt. In
a drunken freniy he walked Into the place
of business ot a perfectly . well disposed.
Inoffensive citizen, and, without cause or
provocation, shot him, Possibly .--this-was
all the effect or liquor, uentieman may De
In character tha same as In name when
he Is sober, but that ought not to relieve
him from responsibility for his act. The
responsibility began when the act leading
to the drunkenness began. To make mat
ters still worse. Gentleman was paroled
last summer and while out on parole, be
came drunk, a fact that was well known
and recognised by Governor Mickey when
he Issued the pardon. Such a man turned
loose in society Is a perpetual menace to
the lives of Its citizens. Any time when he
gets drunk he is liable to commit a similar
crime. Gentleman has farad better than
he deserved all through the term of his
Imprisonment. He was given a clerical po
sition In which he had but light work and
some of the time none at all. He was
treated as a trusty and permitted to go all
over Lincoln. And now,' In a few months,
Tie will be turned loose. We consider It a
serious mistake. The effect will be bad
upon evil disposed men. Life Imprison
ment at hard labor would have been none
too severe punishment, considering the ser
iousness of his crime. Governor Mickey's
greatest mistake has been In the exercise
of too great leniency toward criminals.
O'Neill Frontier:' It Is to be hoped that
the probing given the wholesale pardoning
and paroling of prisoners of the pnltentlary
ty The Omaha Bee will result In a more
careful use of the executive's pardoiUng
powers In the future. Regardless of what
may have been his mothvs In extending
executive clemency. Governor Mickey s
sympathies were worked upon to an un
usual degree, and to him Is credited the
longest list of paroled or pardoned pris
oners In the state's history. The strange
part of It Is that many of these are hard
ened criminals who got out of prison only
to take up with their old criminal pur
suits. Except In isolated cases, the practice
of paroling or pardoning convicts Is an
Imposition on the public and a crime against
Justice. It Is a heavy expense on the
taxpayers to maintain courts for keeping
crime in check and to protect society, and
it Is exaeperatlng in the extreme to have
tha chief executive override the Judgment
ot Juries and courts, lawyers and laymen,
by turning some scoundrel loose. To feel
the throb of human sympathy for the un
fortunate or oppressed is commendable,
but there Is too much of tha false sym
pathy that seeks to release the criminal
from punishment his dark and desperate
deeds deserve. The main cause of the
present prevalence of crime Is tha laxity
with which the perpetrators of crime are
punished. Silly sentimentallsm Is doing
more to foster crime than anything else.
Soft-hearted women raise their hands la
horror at the spectacle of a felon behind
prison bars and rush to the' governor's
office with a petition for his pardon. The
crime of which he may have been con
victed, no matter how revolting. Is not
thought of, nor thoae who have been made
to suffer on account ot It The stability
of our criminal laws and the welfare of
society demand that stata executives use
the pardoning power with extreme caution.
Lemon for American Oarsmen.
Chicago Chronicle.
In view of the fact, demonstrated time
and again, that the Englishman Is the hard
est, meanest loser in the world. It is sur
prising that American college oarsman
should have anything to do with the Henley
regatta. The Insolence of the Henley
stewsrds In assuming to declare all of our
college sav Princeton, Tale and Harvard
beyond tha pal of pur amateurism ought
to be resented by. the refusal of all th col
leges to send representatlvea. ' Indeed, th
tees we bsve to do with England In th
matter of athletics the better off w shall
be, sine the bold Briton Invariably pleads
the baby act when he la beaten and puffs
himself up beyond all enduranc when be
win
EFFECTIVE PENALTIES NEEDED. .
K. Aden.ate P.nl.hme.t for Tt.Hr..
SlanafcteVe. I- '..".
Indianapolis .New. - -- . .
Thirty-three people were killed on the
Rock Island road Wednesday. It waa tha
old story of an operator who failed to per
form his duty. He waa Instructed to Mold
one train till another had passed. He did
not do It. As usual, the trains met on a
sharp curve." and tbe--narvest of death
followed. There Is nothing to say about
this "accident" thst 'has not been aald
time and again. Only the other day score
of people were killed or- Injured In a col
lision near Washington. Here tha enV
glneer of the following train ran by a sig
nal in the fog. The whole business Is
disgraceful. Something must be done soon
by somebody to stop this wanton slaughter
of people. It seems to us that here is a
chance to regulate Interstate commerce-
The safe carrying of passenger from one
state to another Is certainly a matter, of
Interstate commerce. We think congress
haa the power to compel all Interstate rail?
roads to double their tracks. Tha block -system
It ran, of course, provide for. Much
progress has been made' 'In this reform.
But congress has not, w think, exhausted
Its powers. The truth Is that our railroads
have been for many year doing a business
far In excess of their capacity. This la ad
mitted by many of tha officials of the roads.
They ought to be compelled to develop
their facilities as their business develop.
It was estimated at first that forty-nine
peopla were killed Wednesday on the Rock
Island. But the officers of the road now
Insist that only thirty were killed. It does
not matter. Either Is bad enough. Thirty
three people killed through the failure of
an employe to do his duty such Is th
shameful record. The people have a right
to demand that they be safely carried, that
the machinery and organisation of the
roads shall act properly,' and generally that
the risk be reduced to the minimum, 'the
"accident" of Wednesday Was not an acci
dent. It was a killing. ',
personal Notes.
Probably the youngest state legislator In
the ' country is Guy 8- CVT, a member! of
the Maine assembly, who Is not yet B yeans
old. : ,
General Leonard Wood Is booked by arm
opinion In Washington for th pot at
Governor's Island, th most desirable in
the service, upon the retirement ot Major
General Wade. . ;
Secretary Cortelyotj is a master In this
art of listening. An admirer says that "n
could give th sphinx plx easy lessons' by
mail that would make that somewhat sllnt
creation think herself hitherto a phono
graph." The value of the estate of tha lata Presi
dent Caasatt of the Pennsylvania company
is between $&,000,(M and 110,000,000, said. t
have been accumulated In seventeen year.
Old Opportunity didn't have to knock, at
the door. He was yanked at sight. : '
Carrie Nation threw.. her hatchet at tha
cat the other day and eased her mind' by
remarking that the Women' Christian
Temperance union Is composed of "work
ers. Jerkers and shirkers." Carrie's vocal
apparatus haa lost none of its edge.
Senator Spooner of Wisconsin take niost
pride In the fact that ha has never taken
part In a congressional Junket of any kind,
and next to that, that he ha never bean
shaved In the senate barber shop, which
la maintained at Uncle Sam's expense. :
Don Louis M. Laflnur, tha newly ap
pointed minister of Uruguay to the United
States, has arrived In Washington. He Is
about 60 years of age and Is one ot th
most prominent politicians f hi oouatry.
This Is, however, his first diplomatic ap
pointment. He Is accompanied to, this coun
try by hi wife and two- sister.
' William" E. Qutnby'Tias "relinquished th
editorial management of the Detroit Free
Press. H was one of th pioneer of mod
ern Journalism, having associated himself
with tho "Fre Press" . In 1861. . During
President Cleveland's second ' administra
tion he was appointed envoy extraordinary
and minister plenipotentiary to The Hague.
Senator Knox, one of th roost successful
men in the countiy, man whose high
mark as a successful lawyer, successful
cabinet officer and on of th most influen
tial members of th senate ought .to, put
him far above the region of the blues, con
fesses that there are times when' he yields
to that malady. "At such time," he one
Informed a friend, "I feel as melancholy
as the fellow who has lost a good Job and
does not know where he con find another,"
PLEASANTLY POINTED.
'Bo vou thoucht you would take a chanc
In the stock market?"
"Yes, answered the aisappointeo citisen;
I thought so. I didn't know it was against
the rules to allow an outsider Ilk m la
have a chance. 'Washington Btar,
Stella A crowd is always good-natured.
Bella Not whan It Is composed of three-
New York Sun.
Hswker I am going to take a vacation
now for two weeks.
Walker Is that aoT isn't It aueer mat
your employer should let you go now. Just
at the busiest season of the yearT
Hawker Oh. well, mey ve goi anomer
man In my place. They told ma I needn't
come back. Bomervill Journal.
'My dear, I'm sure that problem novel
you are reading Is an Immoral book.
wny, no, it isn I mamma, i an I you rn
that It wo written by a manT" Cleveland
Leader.
Mr. Chugwater (disturbed by the rscket)
Fay, can't you quiet that grandson of
yours? He mokes a nols liks a pig with
its nose under a gate.
Mrs. Chuawater I will when he hss fin
ished. He's trying to tell ma whst he thinks
of his grandfather. Chicago Tribune.
"I suppose :he genius of the ag will
sometime really evolve a mechanical serv
ant girl." ,
it cannot oe.
"Why not?"
"Because no matter how Ingenuity tries
a servant girl can never be more than on
handmaid. Baltimore American. , ..
"Pop, how do bears hurt people?" '
"Generally by hugging them, my ' Son. J
Why do you ask?"
"Because I heard Sissay to Joblots In th
parlor the other night when they wouldn't
let me in, 'Oh. George, you are such a bear,
you hurt me! " Philadelphia Press.
"I want you to write mi something with
a scream In every paragraph."
"I'm your man. Looking far something
comlo or a melodrama?" Philadelphia
Ledger.
Ruffon Wrats The Idee of your elatmin'
to be overworked, ye durnod old hobo I
Tuffold Knutt I am overworked, b'goshl
Fifty times a day I hey to explain how it I
that I don't git no employment when th
country la Jlst runnln' over wit' prosperity.
Chicago .Tribune.
Cl'TTISU UOW.1 EXPENSES.
Philadelphia Ledger;
The railway magnate pondered,
Then to his pals he aald:
"We've got to cut expenses.
Or dividends are duod. , -
So Just as a beginning
We'll stop our daily ads, . ' .
, For in the course of tlma they've
Cost us many scads.
We will not print our tables
In papers any more:
' The publia will not like this, '
But let the public roar.
Then we ran save some money r
If we don't dot our I's;
The coot of Ink Is costisg me .
A deep and pained surprls.
Make every clerk in service . . .
Put on a rubber sole,
So floors will lost the longer
And carpets will stay whole.
Then we can spend a billion
To build a station One: t
And here and there a million --.
To please some friends of mine."
This sounded pretty good, they thought
And all approved the plan:
Wliile petrous cursed them Joudlsy .
. Jr'iotn BeersheUi uiito Dj - . '.