THE OMAHA SUNDAY WKK: JANUAItV lM. ml.".
9 B
MONEY COST OF WAR
TOLD IOILLIONS
Careful Compilation Shows Expend
itures for Armies Now Reaches
Forty-Fire Million! Daily.
ECONOMIC 10SS NOT YET ADDED
tioi respondenc of the Associated Press.
T1'T3 HAGUE. Jan. 23.-An exhaustive
ai'tly of. the. cost of the European war
I'.Ms Just appeared In the Berlin Vor
waorts, a socialist newspaper.
Th military expenditures of ths Brit
ish empire are given aa about 34,260.MO
per day, or f3T,6O0,00O up to January 1,
The cot ef tha war to Franca up to Pe-
ember 19, 1314, Is given aa ll.2S8.3QO.000.
cr, difference In time considered, more
than twice the amount spent by Great
1'tltitUi.
Tn king the Russian expenditures to No
A ember 15 aa a baeia. It Is shown that the
iu'ian campaign has ao far cost 39,2no,
O"0 per day, or 1,3SO,00,000 up to Janu
ary 1. The expenditures of the Belgian,
Servian an3 Japanese irovernroenta are
lvn as about 11,9000,000 per day, or,
roundly, $240,000,000 up to January 1.
The figures also show that It costs the
allies .2.05 per day to keep a man In the
flfilJ.
AoDir A agree te Ecillmatti.
Ti:e following is given by the Vor
arts as a table of expenditures made
by the governments of tha triple entente
ami their allies:
War Cost Total to
"ounti-y. Per Pav. Jan. 1.
(r ;il I.'ritaln 14 ?50.0.K) t Rn.5cXi.00)
Vrnnrr 9.I2.V0 1,S6.,.(V)
Hiutla ..' s.rwft'O i.ino.o-iii.o)
Their allies 1,600,'XX) 240,000,000
No detailed amounts are given In rela
tion to tha coat of the war to Germany
and Austro-llungary. The statement la
ni1o, however, that the cost for the two
is ?:i.0"0.000 per day, or W.luO.OOO.OOO up to
January 1.
A. Mini? expenditures of alt the nations
nt Mur. tha dally total Is about 4S,S,000,
ami the total up to January 1 6,SM,30O,OO0.
Dednrtlons for France.
1 1 is pointed out by, the Vorwaerts that
from the French total exr Jstures so
far made must be t , eu ) c following
loan: To Belgium, fOO.OOO.OuO; to Bervla,
1.000,000: to Greece. $4,000,000: and to Mon
tenegro. $100,000; or a total of $70,100,000,
!ilclj would make the amount spent by
I tl? French government In military opera
tiunx Jl.tlti.TOO.UOO by the close of 1914.
Fur a year the European war would
on this basis cost the tremendous sum of
Si;,iMt,,!(00. Making an allowance for
the. cost of mobilization, but keeping In
mind that the sending of new troopa into
tho field Is In effect a leaser phase of
mobilization. It will ;stlll be found that
at the nd of a year the powers at war
w juld have spent at least $16,500,000,000.
Other Costa Wot Concluded.
In this sum are not Included tha eco
nomic losses of the countries, nor the
damage done to property in the various
military terrains. The loss to Belgium
from tha destruction of property is esti
mated at $133,000,000, while the damage
'sustained by East Prussia is said to be
roundly $&,000.000. No reliable estimates
on the property losses In Poland, Galicla,
Slavonla, Bervla, Bosnia, Alaace and east
ctif Franca have ao far been obtain,
ab'e, but tha Impression prevai that toi
sctiisr this would bo no less than $1,400,.
oOO.OOO. i
To tha cost of the European war must
la j be added tha mobilisation expendi
tures of Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Nor.
way, Switzerland. Italy, Spain, Portugal,
Itoumanla and Bulgaria; the cost of tha
Turkish operations; tha losses In naval
rrt, deterioration of war materials, and
tha economio losses du to a general dis
turbance of the world's commercial relations.
Dr. SHmsnTi Will
Speak at the First
Methodist Today
It. C. F. Stlmaon, recreation expert,
will speak at First Methodist church,
this morn trig on the subject of "Til
Relation of Publiu Recreation Systems
to Home, School, Church, Business and
Municipal Health." He will glv an
txiorfltlon of the reasons why tha
i.ailon-wld movement for establishing
constructive and preventive welfare and
recreation boards and - systems has tha
burking of the leading authoritative
cxp- ru In Jurisprudence, sctentlfio
charity, education, commerce and indus
try, and religion.
Dr. ftimson, field secretary of the
Playground and "Recreation' association
of America, under a strong local com
mittee and by invitation also of the
City Commissioners and the Board of
Education, . la engaged as consulting
expert in promoting the legislation and
organisation required to place Omaha on
a level with cities of its class in handling
these problems.
lie is at present coverlug these
interests In the cities of 6U Paul, Minn.;
Syracuse, N. Y.; Newark, N. J.; Oreen
Bay. Wis., and assisting in Minneapolis.
Minn.; Dayton, Ohio, and tcranton.
Pa. lie plans to follow up tha Omaha
situation aa adviser ami consultant until
the system is well estsbushed and sus
tained by adequate funds and intelligent
public sentiments, following tha wishes
and purposes of the local citizens
Interested to carry through tha projnets
Involved in an adequate system for
Omaha.
'BENSON TO GO WITH BAND
TO KNOCK ANNEXATION
, The Non-partisan Progressiva club of
henson held en open ma is meeting Fri
day night at Firemen's hall for ta pur
jose of discussing th Howell annexa
tion bllL Notwithstanding th cold
weather, tha hall was packed to its 1
capacity. Th principal speakers were
Attorney Henry Maypby and Mayor
Hoot or of South Omaha and James
, Walsh of Benson, Resolutions of protest
against annexation were passed almost
unanimously. .
A commit ' of six was a'ppolnted to
form a delation of Benson cititena to
Join ths eou h Omaha and Pundt dels
gallons which ar to go to Unoola. with
.band and btmners, and march to - th
slut capllol next Thursday to protest
s gainst forcible annexation. ur wers
a larg number of volunUurs. Th hat
was pussed and a fund raised to pur
clias baanars. etc
Tbs mtlng adjourned to ssxt Tues
day evening at th city nail, bcasog,
when arrangement will be completed.
A Cat Is Dss(ru.
Break 1$ Hw.
Hulls .V.'n-Tar-Uoney is fins for coughs
and aoids. Booths th lungs, loss us th
mucous. Only ac. All druf rtsti A4vr-
The
(Continued from Fsg tflght.)
It had been about tha middle Of tha
morning thst aa express wagon had
fulled up sharply before our apartment.
"Mr. Kennedy live here," asked one of
the expressmen, descending with, hit
helper and approaching our Janitor, Jens
Jensen, a typical Swede, who was com
ing up out of the basement.
Jens growled a surly, "Yes but Mr.
Kannady, he bane out"
"Too bad we've got this large cabinet
he ordered from Grand Rapids. ' We
can't cart It around all day. Can't you
lot ua in so wa can leave it?"
Jensen muttered. "Wall I suras It
bu all right"
They took tha cabinet off tha wagon
and carried it upstairs, , Jensen opened
our door. sUll grumbling, and they placed
the heavy cabinet In tha living room.
"Sign here."
"You fallers bane a nuisance," pro
tested Jens, signing nevertheless.
Scarcely had tha sound of their foot
falls died away In the outside hallway
when the door of the cabinet slowly
opened and a masked face protruded,
gaxlng about tha room.
It was tha Clutching Hand.
From the cabinet ho took a largo pack
age wrapped In newspapers. As he held
It, looking keenly about, his eye rested
on Elaine's picture. A moment he looked
at it then quickly at the fireplace op
posite. An Idea seemed to occur to him. He
took tha package to the fireplace, re
moved tha screen and laid the package
over the andirons with one end pointing
out Into the room.
Next he took from .the cabinet a couple
of storage batteries and a coll of wire.
Deftly and quickly he fixed them on the
Package. ,
Meanwhile, before an alleyway across
the street and further down tha long
block the express wagon had stopped.
The driver and his helper clambered out
and for a moment stood talking In low
tones, with covert glances at our apart
ment. They moved into the alley and the
driver drew out a battered pair of opera
glasses, leveled that at our windows.
Having completed futpg the batteries
and wires, Clutching Hand ran the wires
along the moulding on tha wall overhead
from the flreplaca ut.til ho wa directly
over Elaine's picture. Skillfully he man
aged to fix the wires, using them In place
of tha picture wires to support tha
framed photograph. Then he carefully
moved the photograph until it hung very
noticeably askew on the wall.
The last wire Joined, he looks! about
the room, then, noiselessly movd to the
window and raised tha shade.
Quickly Jhe raised his hsnd and brought
the fingers slowly together. It was the
sign.
Off m tha alley the express driver and
his helper were still gasing up through
the opera glass.
"What d'ye see. BlllT" ha asked, hand
ing over tha glass.
The other took It and looked. "Jfs him
the Hand, Jack," whispered tha helper,
handing the glasses back.
tjulekly they Jumped into tha woman
and away it rattled.
Jensen waa smoking placidly as the
wagon pulled op the aecond time.
"Sorry." said tha driver aheeptahly.
"but we delivered tha cabinet to the
wrong Mr. Kennedy."
He pulled out the inevitable book to
prove it J ,
"Wall, you bane fine fallers." growled
Jensen, puffing like a furnace, la his
fury. "You cannot go up agane."
"We'll get fired for the mistake."
pleaded the helper.
"Just this once," urgad the driver, as
ha rattled soma loose change in his
pockat "Hare-thsra goes a whole days
tips."
Ha handed Jens a dollar
change.
n small
Still, grumpy, but mollified by the
silver, Jens let them go up and open tha
door to our rooms again. There stood
tha cabinet, as outwardly Innocent as
when it came in.
lugging and tugging they managed to
get tha heavy piece of furniture out and
downstairs again, loading It on the
E3SPL0T.' of EL'DKIS
..with..,
THE .CLUTCHING' HAND
PRESENTED BY PATHE EXCHANGE, Inc.
. See the Pictures at the Following Theatres
Hesse Theatre ulNO Theatre
SOUTH OMAHA 16th and Binnoy
Every Wednesday , Every Thursday
Episodo No. 4 Jan. 27 Eplsodo No; 3 Jan. 28
Favorite Theatre etm Theatre
1716 Vinton St. 1258 So. 13th St.
Every Tuesday Episode Ro. 2 Today Jan. 24th
Eplsodo No. 4 Jan. 26 Best Projection in City
Theatre orj,7ltEsATRE
14th and Douglas tm"ni" '
Every Tuesday 9IAM2DaK.FATRE
Eplsodo No. 1 Feb. 2 Every Tuesday Episode Ko, 2 Jan. 26
ROYAL THEATRE LOTH ROP Thoatro
Fullerton, Web. 3212 No. 24th St.
Every Friday Episode Wo. I Feb. 1! Episodo Wa. 1 VToday Jan. 24tb
FOR COOKINGS: w WnE.x5K
! VVHII.WI OMAHA; ' ' ,r'f:DnA8KA
Exploits of Elaine
waon. Then thy drove off with It, ac
companied by a partlrg volloy from
Jenaen.
In an unfrequented street, ptrhaps
half a mile away, th wagon stopped.
With a keen glance around, the driver
and his helper made sure that no one
was about
"Such a shaking up as you've given
me!" growled a voice as the cabinet door
Opened. "But I've got him this time!"
' It was the Clutching Hand. '
"There, men. you man leave me here,"
ha ordered.
He motioned to then to drive off and,
ta they did so, pulled off his mask and
dived Into narrow street leading up to
a thoroughfare... . '
. Craig gated Into pur living room cau
tiously. . . ' '
"I can't s anything wrong." he said
to ma as I stood Just beside him. "Miss
Dodge." ha added, "will you and tha
rest excuse me It I ask you to wait Just
a moment longer 7" '
Elaine watched him, fascinated. Ha
crossed the room.' and then went Into
each of our other rooms. Apparently
nothing was wrong and a minute later he
reappeared, at the doorway.
I gbsea it's all right," be said. . "Per
haps It wsa only Jensen, the janitor.'
Elaine, Aunt Josephine and Susie Mar
tin entered. Craig placed chairs for them,
bur still I could sea that he was uneasy.
From tlm to time, while they were ad
miring one of our treasures after another,
he glanced about suspiciously. Finally
he moved over to a closet and flung the
door open, ready for anything. No one
was tn the closet and ha closed It hastily.
"What Is th trouble, do you think?"
asked Elaine wonderingly, noticing his
manner. ,
"I I ean't Just say," answered Craig,
trying to appear, easy.
Sh had risen and with keen Interest
was looking at tha books, tho pictures,
the queer collection of weapons and odds
and ends from tha underworld tht Craig
had amassed in his adventures.
At last her eye wandered across th
room. She caught sight of her own pic
ture, occupying a place of honor, but
hanging askew. -:
"Isn't that Just like a man!" eh ex
claimed. "6uoh housekeepers as you ar
-uch carelessness!"
the had taken a step or two across tho
room to straighten tha picture.
' ,"Mlsa Dodge!" almost shouted Kennedy,
bis faoo fairly blanched. "Stop!"
, She turned her stunning eyes filled with
amassment at his suddenness. Never
theless she moved quickly to one side,
a ho waved his arms, unable to speak
quickly enough.
Kennedy stood quite still, gaslng at
tho picture, askew, with suspicion.
"That wasn't that way when wa left
was it, Walterr he asked.
"It certainly was not" I answered
positively. "There was more time spent
In getting that picture Just right Jhan I
ever saw you spend on all tha rest of th
room."
1 Craig frowned.
As for tnyself J did not know what to
mak of it
"I'm afraid I shall have to ask you to
step into this back room." said Craig at
length to the ladles. "I'm sorry but we
can't b too careful with this intruder,
whoever ha was."
They rose,, surprised, but. as ha con
tinued to urge them, they moved into my
room.
Elaine, however, stopped at the door.
For a moment Kennedy appeared to be
considering. Then his eye fell on a fish
ing rod that stood in a comer. He took
It and moved toward th picture.
On his hands and -knees, to one side,
down as close as h could get to the floor,
with the rod extended at amVe length,
he motioned to me to do the same, be
hind him.
Elain. unable to repress her rfiUratt,
took a half step forward, breathless, from
th doorway, whlje SusI Martin and
Aunt Josephine stood close behind her, ,
Carefully Kennedy reached out with
the pole and; straightened the picture.
'As ha did so ther was a flash, a loud,
deafening report and a great puff of
smoke from the fireplace.
The fire, screen an riddled and over
turned. A cliarva of buykhhot shattered
the precious pliotogrsrh of l:lalno.
Wo had dropped flat on the flour at tle
report I looked about. Kennedy waa
unharmed and so were th rest.
With a bound li was at the fireplace,
followed by Klaino ami tha rest of u.
There, In what remained of a vackagn
dono up roughly Jn newspaper, was a
shotgun wllh Its barrel nawed orf about
Six Incites from tho link, (listened to a
block of .wood and nmnei led to s series
of springs on the trigKer, released by a
little electromagnetic arrangement actu
ated by two batteries and leading by
wires up along the moulding to the lo
tur wher th slightest touch would com
plete tha circuit.
,Th newspapers which were, wrapped
about the deadly thing were burning, and
Kennedy quickly tore them off, throwing
them Into the fireplace.
A startled cry from Klalne caused us
to turn.
She. was standing directly before her
shattered rleture. where it hung awry on
the wall. Tho heavy charge of buckshot
had knocked away largo pieces of. paper
and plaster under It.
"Craig!" she gasped.
II was at her sldo In a second.
She laid one hand on his arm as she
faced him. With the other she traced an
Imaginary line In the air from th level
of the buckshot to Ms head and then
straight to the Internal thing that had
lain In the fireplace.
"And to think," she shuddered, "thst It
was through me that ho tried to kill
your
"Never mind,", laughed Craig easily, as
Ihey gased into each other's eyes, drawn
together by their mutual peril. "Clutchlmr
Hand will have to be clevorer than this
to get either of us Elaine!"
(To Be Continued Next Sunday.)
If Kidneys and
ladder Bother
Take a glass of Balls to Muah out
your Kidneys and neutralize;
Irritating- suids. i
-4
Kidny and Bladder, weakness result
from urlo acid, says a noted 'authority.
Th kidney filter this acid from the.blood
and pass It on to the bladder, whero it,
often remains to irrltato and Inflame,
causing a burning, scalding sensation, or
setting up an Irritation at the neck of
the bladder, obliging you to seek relief
two or throe times during the night. Tho
sufferer Is In constant dread tho water
passes sometimes with a scalding sensa
tion and Is very profuse; again, ther is
difficulty In avoiding it
Bladder weakness, most folks call It
because they can't control urination.
While it is extremely annoying and some
times very painful, this Is really one of
th most simple ailments to overcome.
Get about four ounces of Jad Salts from
your pharmacist and take a tablospoon
ful In a glass of water before breakfast
continue this for two or throe days. This
will neutralize the acids In the urlno so
It no longer Is a source of Irritation to
the bladder and Urinary organs which
then act normally again. ,
Jad Salta Is Inexpensive, harmless, and
Is mads from the acid of grapes and lem
on Juice, combined with llthla. and Is used
by thousands of folks who ara subject tojtal'sed at tXS.QuO par mil, In Franc at
urinary disorders caused by uric acia ir-1
rltation. Jaq oaais is spienuia lor moneys i
and causes no bad effects whatever. j
Mere you nv a picneani. riir,,c.m.p,r mue. in new of this rcmsrkabla
llthla-water drink, which quickly relieves
bladder trouble. Advertisement
-Whiskey
' lad TOBACCO
HABITS Treated swssfully wUhut
hock, without restraint and NO I LB
UNLESS CUHt. LI. Home or oamuiriuiu
Tnatment. "Ask OUT Patient.
CEDARCROFT SANITARIUM
DR. POWER GRIBBLE.upt. )
Bta,a Box 10. Nasbvill,Tna, TeL stain 183
RAILROADS IN NEBRASKA
LOSING THOUSANDS
.1, .
PAY MILLIONS TO PEOPLE IN WAGES
TAXES AND FOR SUPPLIES
EVERY YEAR
It Is a strain; frl, hut nevertheless
true, that In ttmei pant the Hop of the
average state have not regarded their
railroads aa an ''Industry" and yet, next
to agriculture, there Is nut a single, cen
tral or western state In which the rail
rosds do not puy out liiom nionoy for
labor and supplies than does any other
j slnglo nntrrnrle. however large. Wo brag
about our fertile farm landa and rojolce
that our cities are filled with tig fac
tories with big pay roils which create a
market for faim products but w forget
that more worklngmen's families depend
tfpon th railroads for a living than upon
any other one Industry In either th aver
age stat or th nation and that their
welfare Is therfor olosy linked to that
of the farmer and tha merchant net
meraly bcaus they furnish hlmi rrwlght
and paasengcr service, but because th
millions they dtsburs In one way and an
other contribute tremendously to" ths
prosperity of th stat In which w llv.
Thus, for exampl, th railroads ar th
largest taxpayer In the stat of Ne
braska, their taxes for the calendar year
of 111$ having amounted to over $?.K3.00
and this tidy sum contributed Its full
share toward th support of every pubUo
school, public highway and other revenue
expense of tho state.
In round figures, th rail rosds of Ne
braska ar valued at approximately $276,.
000,000 money which, in ywara gon by.
was Invested in those great arterlea of
commerc by thousands of men and
women who live all over the United States
and In Europe and without whose finan
cial aid the wonderful progress of our
great commonwealth would hav been
Impossible.
During the last year th railroads of
Nebrsska smployed 80.634 men and women
In this state, and paid to them over $30,.
000,000 In salaries and the millions did
their full ehur to create a profitable mar
ket for Nebraska farm products and to
uphold the volume of business of Ne
braska grocers, clothiers, dry goods men
and others who depend upon publlo
patronage. .
In other words, when the people of Ne
brsska look at their railroads' In tha
light of an industry when they look at
the figures on the other side of the ledger
they will find that not only do the rail
roads return to them m on way and
another practically every dollar they col
lect within the state for freight and pas
senger service, but that a number of
lines are actually doing this business at
a loss, while with others the margin of
profit Is so small that it doesn't begin to
pay a fair -return upon ths capital In
vested. In this connection, we wish to digress
for a moment to quot some statistics
wh'ch should hav had a place In a for
mer article. ' It costs an averag of T
mills per milm to haul a ton of freight in
tho United States, whereas In England it
costs 133 cents. In Germany 1.42 cents and
In France 1.41 cents. In tha United States
tho average wages paid to railroad em
ployes are $3.3 per day. In England $1..
and In Germany and Franc not over $1
per day. Tha English railroads are cant-
$137,000 per mile. In Germany at $114,185
wnii in th United States the stock and
bond capitalisation averages only $63,000
comparison, do American railroads de
sorvs th wholesale denunciation which
has ben heaped upon thom ;
Loases Vadcr rrsnt RstN.
As evldeno of th Justlc of the plea
of th Nebraska lines that S-cent paasetw
gr rates should be restored, during th
fiscal year ending June 80, 1913, th Mis.
sour! Paclfto lost flSt,M In th total vol
umo of Its Nebraska business both state
and Interstate Included. Tho Missouri
Paolflo has U miles of railroad In th
State, and th above deficit means that it
sustained an actual operating loss of SIM
per mile upon properties valund by th
engineer of tho ptat Railway commission
at IC2.63J.90 per mile. During this Urns It
pa'd t!.3tr7,2n.4 n salaries to Its Nebraska
employes and over $106,000 In taia.
During th calendar year ending De
cember 31. 1913, tha St. Joseph & Grand
Island railway sustained an actual operat
ing loss of 136,494, or a deficit of IT 9 pr
nil on properties valued by the engineer
of tho State Railway commission at 3,.
596.4S per mil.
During the same periodt the Rock Is
liind, which has 216 miles of road within
the state, showed net earning of only
1194 per mMes upon properties valued by
J the State Railway commission at $43,643.9;
! por mile. During the year 1!14, tho Rock
Island earned only aUlttl mor than
IK.OOO on all Its Nebraska business, whll
In th meantime it paid out more than
11.600,000 In salaries, taxes, for ties, fuel
and vther supplies otid material.
The Northwestern, which Is one of the
stronger line of the state, has 1.0W miles
of road In Nebraska, upon which during
th calendar year ending December 81,
1913, It earned 31,130 per mil. The phvajf
cal valuation placed upon tha North
western Is f,436.33 per mile, which means
that on this bsnl It sarned oaly a little
better than 3 per cent on Its Investment.
In a greater or less degree the samo con
dition prevail with reference to several
other lines, tmce ths abov figures were
complied and they are taken from the
reporf of the Nebraska Railway commis
sion and therefor should ,b entitled to
the highest public confidence as to thlr
conservatism a reduction of 20 per cent
Intrastate freight, known as Order No.
V)',' ba gon Into efftot, and this moans,
therefore, that fronv this tint forward
th showing of tho various roads will be
much lower than th figure cited abov,
which were based upon railroad Incomes
be for th 20 per rent freight reduction
went Into effect. While both freight and
passenger rates have been Inadequate for
a number of years In Nebraska and ad
Joining statrs yet In th passer.ger de
partment they are nothing short of con
BE A SWAPPER
Make saps for profit. Look into the
"Swapper's Column"
fiscatory, and hence th plea of the rail
roads that the J-oent 'passenger rates be
restored. In view of- the fact and fig
ures quoted abov, is there a single fair
minded cltlsen In th state of Nebraska
who will contend that th railroads aro
not entitled to help Is not the present
situation an Impossible on and does it
not mean Inevitable wreck and ruin to
several thousand miles of railroad which
ar Intensely essential to th well being
of hundreds of towns and farming com
munities throughout th stato?
Loaaea (.rawing ((laaally.
From these figures, which ar open to
absolute pioof. It can b seen that th
Nebraska lines ar not only sustaining a
loss amounting to thousands of dollars
annually on their traffic, but that with
an over Increasing cost of operation the
losses sr constantly growing hsavlsr
and If th servle to th pubUo Is to re
main efficient and adaquat, and if th
railroad Investments of ths stat ar not
to b driven to th point of confiscation,
th people of Nebraska must, through
their rat-maklng authorities, consent to
a return to 3-cent . passanger far,
which wsa abolished without a du re
gard for Increasing labor and supply cost,
or sn adsquat Interest return upon th
millions. Invested In Nebraska railroad
properties. What Industry , It ther in th
nation which eould hav tolerated a re
duction of one-third In Its Incom en a
large volume of its business during th
last few years without coming to grief?
Four years sgo, aa governor of New
Tork, Justlc liughas of ths VniUd Bute
suprem court vetoed a s-cent passenger
law enacted by th legislature on th
ground that It was a arbitrary proced
ure which did not take Into consideration
a fair return upon the railroad properties
of thst stat and few men stand higher
in tha esteem of th American peopl than
this grt jurist, who did perhaps as
much as any other man In th country to
break ip illegal and unfair practices on
the part of larg corporations.
Do, too, th suproma court of Pennsyl
vania held that a B-cent passenger far
was unconstitutional; in that stat be
cause It was essentially confiscatory. This
high oourt took ths position that capital
Invested In railroads, as wsll aa in other
lines of privat property, is entitled to
earn pr cent en a fair capitalisation
and that th arbitrary cnaotmant et a
2-cent fare rendered such a return upon
th lines of th Pennsylvania Impossible.
It also took ths position that railroads
not only hav th right to Insist upon a
fair return upon both freight and pas
sender business, but that It Is their duty
to do so In order that ene class ef patrons
may not be compelled to Py an Inequit
able rate to make up the loss snstalnad
in another department.
It th arbitrary enactment of a I-oent
passenger rata 1. unfair to th railroads
of New Tork and Pennsylvania, where
there, ar large centers ef population and
where the nation's greatest density ef
freight tonnage naturally exists, how
much more unfair la such a rate In a
purely- agricultural state like Nebraska,
which has a total population ot only a
m'Ulon and a quarter with no large man
ufacturing centers T
The reader Is familiar with the recent 5
per cent Increase In freight rates granted
by the Interstate Commerce commission
to eastern lines and again, as th com.
mission wisely says. If ths precarious
financial conditions created by th Euro
pean war renders this Increase nc.esry,
how much mor ar th weaker western
lines, which are compelled to xst almost
altogether upon an agricultural pal unage,
entitled to tome substantial relief?' Th
population per square mile In Massachu
setts U 441, In New Tork SW. In Pennsyl
vania 181, In Ohio 13, while In Nebraska
It Is only 16. If under these circum
stances ths sastern lines need relief, can
there ba any doubt about th Justine of
the plea mad by the western roads?
Facia Orav Frofclesas.
Unquestionably w are facing soma of
th gravest problems that ever confronted
us as a nation ud the problems grow
largely out of a jwar which is without a
precedent in history. Tru. with a rapidly
Increasing cost of operation on th on
hand and reduced rates en ths other, It
was merely a matter of time until th
rsllroad question was bound to beoom
pressing, but th great tragedy across
ths seas has suddenly resolved Int. n
acute crisis a problem which might oth
erwise hav been solved gradually and
wunout any
turbanoe.
far-reaching industrial dis-
- The United States Is heavy debtor na
tion. During tre average year our bal
ance of trade against the rest of the
world amounts to approximately IMO.OOO.-
CC0, but on top of this w always w Ap
proximately another soo,rjQ,ooo, which
heretofore we have been abl to stand
off by selling kTurop Industrial securities
to that amount. Now. however, the great
warring countri hav served notice that
they hot only expect us t pay our debts
abovs our trad balances la gold, but that
in audll'on they look to us to buy back
from them hundreds ef millions of dal-
lars' worth of American securities which
are now held abroad. It was to deliver
this grim meissge that Kir Georg Paish,
of the English exchequer, psld hi recent
visit ta ths United fctaUs, and whan h
got through making hts statement to a
greup of big Nw Tork bankers, an old
veteran financier, who had survived many
a financial storm, remarked to his pro
foundly silent sudltore. "Th shorlff, with
a writ. Is on ths doorstep."
That a great ntlon-wde rrop pest year
will glv us the Irgt trad balance ws
hav vr known is undoubtsdiy tns
and ft. w'tb having to finance all our
monetary nd at home front this time
on and buying back millions ef foreign
owned securities, th future at best Is
precarious. Howsver, th heaviest strain
of ail will eome when th war cease and
when Europe begins to rebuild th hun
dred of million of dollars' worth of
property which. lm hern destroyed for
thin period is rertsln lo forco th high
est Interest itea the world has ever
known, and If at that tim American
railroad securities are not earning a fair
return iien the Investment, nothing can
prevent them go! n Into the financial
scrap heap and It In to rrrrwro for this
rmcrrrnry to keep railroad securities
from becoming a point of national weak
ness, which will bring th wholj temple
of American Investment tumbling down
over our heads to protect the hundreds
of banks, Hi and fir Insursnc com
panies, etc., whoa sssets ar largely In
vested In railroads bond, mm well as the
railroads themselves this Is the fear
wh'ch I gripping hundreds of financiers,
and students of economic conditions In
tho present hour-men, many ot whom
Jirretofor havo never seriously concerned
themsolve ever the troubles of American
railroads. In th present Instsnfe. there
fore, the rallroal crisis Is of tremendous
' importance because In It Is lnvolve.1 the
' still greater problem of the Integrity ai d
safety of the whole superstructure
American business. That w cannot shove
It astds by a broadsld of demagogic
! hl.tlttij.. n w I i i ,. w.. i , ....
mi iMiiiiiiii.ii uy vinpioying ine
strategy of an oslrlrh I apparent to all
thinking citlsens who ar seriously con
cerned In their en and th country's
future welfare.
Vb e people of Nebraska.
In fw other ststes have the railroads
hsd a larger share In progress and de
velopment then In Nebraska, whose broad
prairie they helped to convert from th
habitat of. roving herds of buffalo and
savag Indianaand from that hour to
this they hav contributed their full share)
to a story ef thrift and enterprise which
swell with pride the breast of vry tru
Nebraskan.
Th last federal census report shows
that from ItOO to 110 the general value
of Nebraska farm land Increased 1M per
ent and In view of theee facta, hsd the
men and women who put hundreds 'of
millions of dollars Int Nebraska rail
road securities years age Invested thftr
money In Nebraska farm lands, would not
ths Investment have proven Infinitely
more profitable for them? ' And have not
the railroads played a tremendous part
I these advancing land values In the past,
and will they not also have much to do
with the vain which will b added from
this time forward? Have not tha Interests
of the farmer and the railroads always
gone hand In hand In this great western
country? Did they not conquer th wild
erness together and would the progress
of one hav been posslbl without the
other?. Should not the railroad ef this
stat. therefor, hav th good will nl
frlndshlp of the farmer when all they
ask is that they be permitted to earn a
reasonable income upon their Investment?
Splendid a ha been our progress tn.
th past, Nebraska today stands merely
on the threshold of He true destiny. We
have ample rooro for thousands ot addi
tional tllUrs of th soil. Bo. too, our
splendid Inland towns and cities plead
for factories In order that we may, our
selves, produce much of th finished mer
chandis for which our people spend ,
many millions of dollars annually. Again,
we sUU need hundreds of miles ot new
railroad mileage before w shall fee able
to make the most of our. agricultural and
commercial possibilities and the millions
necessary for tho construction of these
factories and these added i transportation
facilities will not ba forthcoming unless
ws treat fairly the millions already In
vested within our midst
No state can rise higher than Its peo
ple. Th stat Is what Its people make
It. ' " H dependent upon each other.
The welfare of the town and the sur
rounding farms depends upon a spirit
of kindly cy-operatlon between those who
llv In town and those who live upon th
farm. Without splendid llttl Inland
towns w would hav a rural atmosphere
which would drlv every bright country
boy and girl to the cltles-ewhlle without (
th farms th towns would wither and
di. Even so It Is with our great com.
monwealth a a whole commonwealth
which for its own sake and for which
It Is a part should contribute It full
share to the "New Day" to which the
president referred so sutifully tn a re
cent sddress-a dy fraught with
broader understanding an Justice for
every man or Interest, whether great or
small. At this moment there are a half
million men out of work la New Tork
City, nearly WO.COO in Chicago, almost
100,00 In St. louts, while the Kansas City
Comrneretal erub for th first titme m the
history of thst splendid city is grappllng
with the problem of thousands of idle
men. Truly U is v time to thick!
The Coarse f Empire.
. Slowly but surely th course of smplrs
Is moving westward. Its lands Irapowsr
Ished In fertility, New England, a wll
as ths (rest nations of th old world,
today look to ths com belt for foodstuff
and sooner or later th center of this -mighty
nation's walth will be feund her
amid th rich valleys ef th Missouri and
th Mississippi, which, to point of pre- J
ductivenese. ar without an equal In any
similar area pon th habitable globe.
Here oup' people are assured that nature
will always sooner or later amply reward
honest thrift and industry. Here our
famllle ar farthest removwd from
those influence which corrode and cor
rupt civilisation. Her America man
hood and womanhood find their broad
est opportunity, and with a eommon
wealth so rich In promise and so much'
In need of additional capital with which
to develop Its resources, can it peopss do
a wiser thing than to ay to th World
that every dollar Invested , In Nebraska
enterprise and Industry shall be per-,
mlttad to ears a fair return for its owner
from this tlms toward? Would not such,,
a declaration bs fair? Would it not be
inflntely wis aa a matter of pure busi
ness policy on behalf of cur great state.' ;
It is because Nebrsska railroad be- .
Ilv that Nebraska peopl will b gen- '
roust y fair one Ibey know tha truth
about this great nuistloe that ha prr
suaded them to rnsks this appeal through
tha publio presa In doing so they hove
tried to stst their elds ot the story .
fairly. They hav mad no attack upon
aayon or sought to appeal to prejudice-'
and thst ths reader may accord to them
the same credit for sincerity which he
claims for himself that be nisy b will ,
ing to rals hi vole In dtenr of their
right h would expect others to do
in hi behalf under similar circumstances
this is all ths railroad ot Nsbraaku
ask. (Paid advertisement)
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