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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 2, 1921)
THE BEE: OMAHA, TUESDAY, AUGUST SJ, mi. TheOmaha Bee daily imorning) evening sunuai: THE 8ER P08Lt8HIN0 COMPANY NELSON B. UPDIKE. Publiahar. MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Tha aMooiatafl Pnu, of whirb T6 Baa l Bnkr. It elm'ulj auiitlad to U um for cubllntloa of l) nrw irthta eradliad lo II or nl othtratM erwtil4 In una oapar, aod alao Ikf Imal Dwi mbliihtd kmln. All nctu el Dubllcalioa ol oaf avaatW liMtelMt art alao nmi. BEE TELEPHONES -MnW Branca iMuit Art for . AT lanlie 1000 lot UaoartaMol or Ptnoa Wulii ,MU 1VW Far NUbt Calla Altar 10 p. .! Editorial DtparUMnt 4T luUo 10U Of IKI OFFICES OF THE BEE Mala Offlra: lTia ana raman ' Condi BlltTa IS Soott St 1 Soum Slda. aUS SoU tlta M Out-of-Tovn Offkaai a Km Totk !M rifta At Wuataaton 1811 0 St Chhttfo Star Bite I Parla. Franca, 4N Boa St. Honor The Bee's Platform 1. New Union Pattengsr Station. 2. Continued improvement of th N braakn Highway, including th pave ment of Main Thoroughfares landing into Omaha with a Brick Surface. 3. A short, lowrata Waterway from lha Cora Bait to tJia Atlantic Ocaaa. 4. Home Rule Charter for Omaha, with City Manager form of Government. Peace for All the World. President Harding found at Plymouth Rock opportunity to express the hope that has been .inspired in him by the response to his call for a ' . disarmament conference. When he was before the people last year, a candidate for the office he now holds, he definitely voiced his aspira tions, and he impressed his sincerity on the world. Americans were unwilling to accept the .Wilson plan; they were dubious as to its de tails, doubts resting on conditions that prc . vailed in Europe, and justified by the outcome of the Paris Peace conference. Our people were unready to cast their lot with those of the Old World, and - are not today prepared to enter Into the compact prepared for them at Paris. Vet they long for' some assurance of durable , oeace, and. .await with open minds the issue of "Mr. Harding's undertaking. The president shows his confidence in the fu ture in this paragraph from his speech at Ply . mouth: 1 .. A new hope looms today; we are slowly but very slowly recovering from the wastes and sorrows and ii'tter disarrangements of a cataclysmical war. Peace is bringing its new assurances; and penitent realization and in ' siste nt conscience will preserve that peace. Our faith is firmer that war's causes may be mini mized and overburdening armament may be largely diminished, And these, too, v;ithou surrender of the nationality which has in-v spired, or the' good conscience which has de fended. The international prospect' is more .. than promising and the distress and deprca .," sion at home are symptomatic of early re covery. Solvent financially, sound economy, .' unrivalled in genius, unexcelled in industry, resolute in determination, and unwavering in faith, the United States will carry, on. ; That is not alone; a message to Americans, but is -intended for the world. The Avar taught Jsomc unavoidable truths with regard to human conduct. Not only must arms and armaments be done Way with, but the various causes of international, friction must be removed as far as ; possible, so that the danger of disputes may be ; minimized. Bickerings between unarmed indi f vidua!? "are quite as likely. to lead to serious " quarrels , if each were prepared for any sort . of combat; more so, because well armed per-" . sons usually exhibit a mutual regard that is :-often omitted by those less ready for the clash of conflict. If peace is to be established and maintained, it will be when a firm foundation for justice is set up between nations. And such a foundation ought to be forthcoming when the delegates assemble at Washington. Bank. Mortality, in the United States. ; A law enacted by the last session of the leg islature, and just suspended by referendum pe tition, had to do with the establishment of new ' banks in Nebraska. It gave the state finance department authority to determine whether the proposed bank was a commercial necessity, or if the needs of the community already were pro vided for by existing institutions; Some wisdom undoubtedly resides ' in the law, although it has been alleged that the. object of lodging such power in the banking board merely was aimed at the talked-of co-operative banks. This is a surmise, and may or may not be justified, only actual experience being definite proof. As to the banking business itself, the report of the comptroller of the currency on national banks affords some interesting information. In the year ending June 30, 1921, 212 na tional banks were chartered, bringing the total at the close of the year to 8,178, a net gain of 82 over the preceding year. This would seem to support the view that expanding commerce and industry require the addition of banking facilities. During that year, however, 28 na tional banks failed, 84 were voluntarily liqui dated, and 18 were consolidated with others, which is evidence that the vicissitudes of busi ness extend to the banks as well as to other en terprises. ' " A bank is a necessity. to any community, for its function can be performed as well by no other agency.. Its prosperity depends oft its man agement, just as does that of a grocery store or a shoe shop, with the same element of com petition controlling. Mortality among national banks in the year reported on reached. 130, or two and one-half each week, while the new banks increased the total by four, or a net gain of one " and one-half each 'week. - The con clusion must be that there is room for more banks in America. Self-Denial as a Bludgeon. What is happening out at Bloomfield, where 500 patrons of a telephone line have refused to pay an increase of 23 per cent in rates simply furnishes another demonstration of the power of consumers. Producers in all lines are or ganized, from farmer to laborer and manufac turer. Distributors likewise hive their associa tions, but the ultimate purchaser has always been-' an individualist, asking, "How much," but never strong enough to' say, "111 give you this price and no more." One of the advantages that rests" within the reach of the consumer is that the standard of living is . so high that it is capable of being greatly lowered without imposing unbearable hardships. With regard to many articles of common use the consumer is in the position of the devotee of "personal liberty," who can drink it or leave it alone. This power to shut off or decrease demand furnishes a real problrm for those Alio have something to sell. Russia: Mystery or Muddle? Senator France conies home from Russia after a comparatively short vacation spent there, fully impressed with the desirability of at once establishing such relations between the United States and the soviet government as will lead to early recognition of Lenin and his cohorts as responsible members of the great family of nations. He makes no report on the famine conditions, and deals with the situation in general rather than specific terms. More than this is not to be expected. The senator was not in Russia long enough to make a close inspection nor to become well acquainted with the people. His cursory examination was very likely confined to such things as the Soviets were willing he should see. Whatever con clusions he may have reached are therefore to be liberally discounted because resting on hastily formed impressions. Other American visitors to Russia, quite as well equipped for the purpose, and some even better qualified for intelligent observation and examination, because of their acquaintance with the people and the language, have returned with views" quite at variance with those given out by the senator from Maryland. In fact, the whole fabric of our information regarding Rus sia under the Soviets is shot through with such a mixture of contradictory statements, made by presumably reliable and trustworthy persons, that intelligent opinion is baffled. Strict rules of evidence would exclude most of the testimony offered, and if these be followed, Senator France's share will have to be rejected as hear say. Russia remains either a mystery or a mud' die. The one apparent fact has been presented to the public, by Secretary Hughes, who de scribes the land as an "economic vacuum." In the meantime, political consideration of the problem may be set over until the famine is relieved and the children of the Volga area arc made safe from starvation. Trouble Shooters. The lights die but, the telephone gets out of order, or a motor breaks down miles out in the country. The call goes' out for the trouble man. On his motorcycle or with his truck he hastens to the scene of the emergency. Busi ness concerns of many kinds employ what is called "trouble shooters" experts in repair, work who rush to the relief of unsatisfactory or dangerous conditions. These things that happen to mechanical ap paratus happen also to the machinery of' so ciety. There are weak points in human nature and frequent need for adjustment arises. The social worker is the trouble shooter of human affairs. A story of the many sorts of requests for aid and advice that are brought to Omaha's Board of Public Welfare recently called this to notice. Domestic affairs may become short circuited, friction may arise between individuals or families, the load some one is bearing may become too heavy or the way too rough.' The victims may lack the knowledge or the power to rectify matters, and there must .be some one to whom they can come with their troubles. Sometinfes trouble shooters, by their timejy aid and skill, may prevent great loss and'dirm age. A word of advice, instruction or warning may point out a weak place in the mechanism and result in avoiding most .serious conse quences. There is a' good deal of skepticism in some -quarters over welfare work, but the fact is that through, its preventive and remedial ef forts the police, courts, hospitals and morgue are cheated of a good many subjects. The trouble shooter is the one who takes the stitch in time a most sensible and useful institution. At the Turn of the Tide Industry in United States Shows Signs of Revival in All Directions. One Road at a Time. A coincidence sometimes may mount into a calamity. For instance, it is a pleasing thing to note that the Military highway is being re paired, but it is distinctly unpleasant to dis cover that the other main road to Fremont also is torn up, and that whichever route is taken by motorists necessitates a detour. ' This error of judgment on the part of the county authorities and the state engineers can not be corrected in this instance. However, in the future it would be well if the right hand let the left hand know what it was doing. It is praiseworthy that highways should be brought into good condition, but it is desirable that while one main road is blocked by construction work the other should be left open. There is a great deal of traffic along both these routes leading to Fremont, and to force this through country lanes appears unnecessary and perhaps dangerous. Ambassador Harvey is going to attend the supreme council's conference oh Silesia. France, which holds him favorable to England, instead wanted Ambassador Herrick to represent the United States. It is the American understanding that this country will not mix deeply in the Polish dispute, and it furthermore is to be hoped that neither Herrick1 nor Harvey lean to -one side or the other, tut occupy neutral ground and represent only America. President Heinisch of Austria has declared that the central powers'1 would have won the war if the people could have been persuaded to prac tice total alcoholic abstinence, and now it is to be supposed that if Germany should adopt pro hibition France would add another million to its army and issue an ultimatum. Senator Spencer is authority for the state ment that congress has appropriated $871,547,000 less for governmental expenses in the coming year than in the last year. This is quite a be ginning for national' economy. Russia is said to be considering admitting American journalists, but we shall not consent to take the trip unless a clear understanding is given that in addition to letting correspondents in, they will be let out. A socialist speaker in Boone, la., was pelted with pastry; this ought to dispel -the idea that all the pie is being reserved for deserving re Des Moines is one of those towns where a human fly gathers a gaping crowd and gets a lot of publicity in the papers. The Greek army, having taken hold of the wily Turk, now is unable to let go. ' (From the Boston Transcript.) Hope in the minds of many is rapidly chang ing into belief that the nation is at the turn of the tide in business conditions that the worst of the post-bellum depression is behind; and the signs of a brighter future already light up the horizon. . Here and there are those who con tend that low water is here or just ahead and that the turn of the tide may be expected in the early autumn. At the moment the bankers ap pear to be less optimistic than their comrades engaged in production. Doubtless the state of mind in the banking world reflects the losses in the banker's inventory a case of stock-taking in the face of a falling market for his wares, that is, a falling interest-rate. Without resorting to diagrams or tables ' of statistics, without relying upon the words of some well known financier, certain common facts are available to the average citizen which will afford hopeful support to the growinc be lief that the turn for the better is taking place in the world of business. For example, to know the vast amount of securities absorbed by the American public in the last few months is to realize that there is in reserve a vast sav ings fund which will be available as soon as the po'fential investor is gripped by a stronger faith in the future and can buy at what he be lieves to be "a fair price." Many firms, like many individuals, have been imitating the bear of late; the bear puts on fat during the autumn months, and lives on the accumulated fat dur ing the winter. Here and there a concern im providently conducted has failed, but through out "boom" times the instinct for saving as serted itself and many firms and individuals ac cumulated a surplus. It is only very recently that there has been a reduction in savings de posits. Attention in the business world has been gradually changing from present troubles to future prospects; discussion is more and more developing a belief that future prices and fu ture wages will soon be as good as or better than pre-war prices and pre-war wages. All this points to a mental turn that necessarily precedes the upward turn in business. Making powerfully for better times is the fact that the producer is well aware that his future depends upon economical production. The example which Secretary Weeks is setting in the administration of the War department is one that producers the country over are emu latingcutting down costs, speeding up ef ficiency. With the knowledge of this necessity has come the. opportunity to put new economies into effect. Our ' manufacturers and our farm-1 ers have known for the last four years that they were paying extravagant prices 'for inferior help, for delayed transportation and for unsat isfactory service of one sort or another.. Along with the drop in the price of commodities, came the opportunity to hire skilled help, and in the place of crowded manufacturings space' there came ample room for. a more economical ar rangement of machines and methods. Another indication of the return of better times is the expanding realization that a falling market is not a danger if the fall in. production costs can keep ahead of the fall in prices. To sell an article for a dollar that costs 75 cents to produce is not so good as to sell the same arti; cle for 50 cents when its production cost is 25 cents. Stories of drops in production costs that should surprise are becoming so numerous that they no longer surprise. The elimination of waste in production is today a popular goal toward which the best minds of the business world are pressing by many different routes. Seven vears of quantity production naturally made the producer forget how economically really skilled help under proper conditions can produce when the emphasis is changed from rmantitv oroduction to economical production. This is again the day of the rediscovery of the skilled mechanic, of the skilled wage earner in many' lines of endeavor. And the rediscovery has been made bv the reappearance of the skilled producer, the building world affords an example Of rediscovery for there builders are surprising themselves by making money on bids which when made the bidders feared were too low. Similar economies are to be found on the farm, in the office and in the factory more and more they are being resorted to in the home. Then, too, skilled labor requires less supervision than the unskilled, and the result is, a reduction in overhead. Freight is moving much more rapidly and the day of vast traffic departments is disappearing. The personnel problem is less intricate than it was because the supply , of labor of the best sort still exceeds the demand. Purchasing is no longer the delicate, diplomatic job that it was a short time ago. Business is, "running easier," to use a phrase current in its world, than for some time past. And one of the first "steps in that direction was the- drastic reduction in overhead compelled at the begin ning of the post-bellum depression. On every side the return of.confidence is evi-' dent a confidence based upon the knowledge that America is fundamentally sound; its wealth is intact, larger markets lie just ahead. To oc cupy them calls not for new repords in quantity production, but for new economies in produc-! tion that will command the patronage ol dis criminating buyers. The gospel of hard, hon--est work that will bring well-earned rewards is now preached in high places, and its echoes are more and more heard , and heeded in the far corners of our national household. The change from a reluctance to buy at any price, to a willingness to buy at "the right' price" is already general. A year ago today many sales would not have been made because that con fidence which is the forerunner ' of healthy prosperity was absent then; and today it is re turning upon the first ripples of a rising tide. World Sobering Off The summer of 1921 may easily loom large in the history of the twentieth century. If things go smoothly it may conceivably be re membered as the time when the Irish question" was finally settled, when a reorganization of the British empire was begun, when naval disarma ment was first seriously undertaken, when the Japanese question was adjusted and the straight ening out of the Pacific question commenced. It may stand out as the period in which the English-speaking world entered upon a new period of rapprochement and the foundation for a real peace association was laid at Washington. All these things and others of scarcely less importance are in the wind. Where the wind will blow some of them is a big question, but today among those who are steering the ships of state there is fortunately a new understand ing of the needs of the world and what is prac tical and desirable. The world is sobering down also. The hysteria that was part of the after math of the war is disappearing. There is far less visionary idealism and far less uncontrolled passion and a great deal more practical common sense than there was in 1918, and the prospect for real achievement is correspondingly brighter. Besides this there is a deep, brooding realization of necessity that Sobers men and urges them to the great work of reconstruction. Detroit Free Press. How to Keep Well Br OR. W. A. EVANS Queatioaa caacarninf hrtlana, aanitatioa and pravantion of diaaaaa, aubmittad to Dr. Evana by r radar a ol The Baa, will ba anawarad pcraonally, aubjact to propar limitation, whare a atampad addraaaad envelopa ia encloaad. Dr Evana will aot m a diafaoala or praacriba lor individual diacaaaa. Addreaa lattara ia care of 't ba Baa. Copyright, 1931. by Or. W. A. Evana Know Thy Times What We're Saving For. There may be an obstacle in the way of Secretary Hoover's plan to utilize the nation's savings in building houses. The citizens who have the savings are counting on using them to pay their taxes. Kansas City Times. Speaks Distinctly. One of the very pleasant things about Pres ident Harding is his ability to speak so that there is no necessity for an official interpreter. Detroit Free Press. MORE ADVICE FOR VACATIONISTS. Those going into strange places will do well to consider the advan tages of being vaccinated -against typhoid fever. The army experi ence proves that this vaccination renders a person safe against ty phoid for a number of years. When the vaccine is a combination of ty phoid and paratyphoids, A and 1?. the party vaccinated ia protected against some forms of blood poison ing as well. Health departments do this vac cination on those who apply free of charge, as a rule. Vaccination with paratyphoid does not protect against botulism. Since campers eat a good deal of canned j food, botulism is a danger to be guarded against. It is well to eat no food from swollen cans or cans that do not look right, or food that does not smell, taste, or look right But these guides rs to food quality are not ample protection against botulism. Cooking destroys the poison of that bacillus; therefore cooking of preserved foods is ample protection along that line. Do not patronize a badly fly in tested hotel. Such a hotel is not clean or the flies would not be there, rts kitchen is nut what it should be and its garbage is not properly dis posed of; therefore play safe and bestow your patronage elsewhere. The hotel keepers of the State of Maine realize that the resorters come for a rest and recreation and not for typhoid and other vacation diseases, and employ a sanitarian to inspect the hotels and advise them how to make their places safe as well as attractive. The hotels in other sections would do well to pro vide themselves with the same service unless the state supplies it. Detached units of the army use a Lyster bag as a water container. This bag, empty, weighs seven and a half pounds. It hold 40 gallons of water. The bag is suspended from a limb of a tree and filled with water.- To the water Is added a table spoonful of hypochlorite of lime. After the " water has stood for 80 minutes it is safe and ready for use. The bag is provided with faucets. Ordinary small wounds are paint ed with tincture of Iodine. The iodine should get well down into the wound Itself. The wound 'is then covered with a light gauze Coracle dressing: Dressings which ate heavy enough to exclude the air entirely are harmful. Old cuts and wounds are smeared with balsam of Peru and covered with a light dressing. Balsam of Peru 13 capable of doubling smeared around the. legs of tables it drives ants away. An ordinary icebox will keep things colder than a refrigerator Wilt. To make one take a cracker box and fill It with sawdust. Set a lard can In the center of the saw dust. Set the ice and the milk and the meat -in the lard box. Cover well. Keep the sawdust dry. This style of box keeps the temperature low because the cold air docs not roll out when it is opened, as is the case when the door of a refrigerator i opened. The best fly poison, according to Foreman, is 3 per cent aniiin in water. Mix with an squal quantity of syrup. But ordinary Sticky fly paper is good enough. Might Drink Less Tea. ' J. W. K. writes: "1. Is the tak ing of a dose of salts once a week injurious? I find that for me It is the only relief for habitual consti pation. It physics m for two days and then I am bound up again. "2. For breakfast I eat an orange, a cereal (oatmeal or Post toasties), two slices of bread, and I drink two rups of coffee with sugar and cream. For dinner I have a small piece of steak or a pork or lamb chop, with potato and some other vegetable and a simple pudding of rice or tapioca. My supper consists usually of two slices of toast and two cups of tea without milk or sugar. T am 80 years old and have never been seriously sielaj since I was a boy of 5. when I had scarlet fever, except an attack of eczema some 10 years ago. I have tried the much vaunted water drinking cure, but that only made me urinate profusely, espe claly at night." REPLY. 1. It is as you show in your let ter. Keep your bowels regular by eating bran as a cereal and as bread, also vegetables, fruit and sour milk. If this does not suffice take mineral cil in addition. If necessary take enemas. Old people must be care ful to avoid constipation. 2. Could you not lessen your daily allowance of coffee and tea somewhat? On Gaining Weight. Three Pals write: "For the bene fit and welfare of a few of my per sonal friends as well as myself, we would appreciate very much 1f you will advise us if boys weighing ill pounds. 118 pounds, and 1201;. pounds, each 20 years of age, can build themselves up to the normal weight for that age? If so. can you suggest some diet or exercise, or both?" REPLY. As a rule a person can bring his) weight to the normal for his age height, nationality and family. To do so let him sleep nine hours, go to bed at a regular time, get plenty of exercise in the open air and eat properly both as to time and way of eating and as to foods. It is best rot to drink coffee of to smoke. It is advisable to drink between a pint and a quart of milk a day. Eat a bowl of cereal besides meat, bread, vegetables and fruit. (From tha Philadelphia Lcdurr.) School Superintendent Shain baugh, of Dauphin county, intro duced a novelty in his recent ex amination of teachers for renewal of their certificates, lie prepared a long list of questions dealing with current events, In addition to the usual questions, and told the teach ers that If they could not answer them it would not count against them, but that if they did answer them it would improve their murks. Accordingly, many a pedagogical brow was wrinkled over the demand to "tell what you know about Tap, the Volstead act, bootleggers, Sinn Kelners, batting averages, Soviets, full crew" and a score more things. The Dauphin county superintend ent will probably be attacked for his questions by the classicists in educa tion and praised by the liberals. The tendency he makes manifest, how ever, will find many supporters among those who have no opinion whatever on the theoretical -.aspects of pedagogy. Too often has it been said that teachers are "not practical enough" as a profession. .The re proach is not merited on the whole, but you cannot get all the people to believe that. If it were customary, however, for a teacher to prove he, or she, knew exactly what was go ing on In the world outside the schoolroom by some such means ns Superintendent Shambaugh's test, there would be no position but to believe It. Then, too, the careful parent would be relieved of anxiety that his offspring was Imbibing notions of public affairs from one of those vol umes like MiSB Somebodyorother's "Civics for the Grammar tirades" or another of those curious educational contraptions which now and then shows up on your library table after the young hopefuls have finished their nightly studies. Such subjects are not well taught young children out of a text-book. They are either contributed from the teacher's own know-ledge by incidental reference or they are not learned. So some of us will be entirely J Ford's Genius. rrwm the Nr-w lark Herald. Henry Ford Is one of the buslnesa and economic geniuses of the cen tury. He buys a railroad and In creases wages on that property when all other wages are being marked oown. ne csia Dunnes low rrelgnt rales on his road when other carriers are striving to mako both ends meet with high rates. But then Henry Ford knows a good workur Is worthy of his hire; he knows a poor worker draws a dear wage, however low it is, ami isn't worth his salt. And whether It Is in his motor car plants or at his farms or on his railroad Henry Ford in one way or another, labor unions or no labor unions, labor boards or no boards, gets rid of the worker that does not deliver the goods. Thus the producer can got. and doea get, end ought to get, what formerly went to the incompetent or the slacker. And Henry Ford knows that what gets the business is the right rrlce. He knows, whether it is his auto mobile, his tractor or his railroad, that unless he operates to capacity he cannot operate with economic ef ficiency. He knows that unless his price sells the motor cars and trac tors It Is a wore price for him than for anybody else. He knows that un less his freight rates bring traffic for his road to haul they are a heav ier burden for his carrier than for the shippers. So Henry Ford gets the support of the public, which means the busi ness, and a large slice of all the money in the, country. And all the while perhaps 99 9-10 of the rest of the population go around cussing their luck because fabulous riches don't fall into their laps as they fall Into Henry Ford's! , , , satisfied that the Dauphin county authorities were doing a good thing when they asked those questions. Noting the superintendent's careful suggestion that if the teachers could not answer the questolns It would not be counted against them, on is more than ordinarily inclined to wish for a peep at the examination capers. Bonus BUI and Gold. Omaha, July 28. To the Editor of The Bee: Secretary Mellon of the treasury warns that it will be dis astrous to all government securities Including Liberty series if a soldier bonus bill is passed based on a bona Issue; then if Secretary Mellon is so desirous of reducing the burdens of American taxation, why would it not be a good plan for him to ad vocate the exchange of Liberty bonds for federal reserve notes, which should be a medium of cir culation for the payment of all pub lic and private debt. In this manner the Interest on the Liberty oona is sues would be discontinued and this would save the American public a sum of $1,000,000,000" annually now being paid to the moneyed interests of the nation who are now buying Liberty bonds at S7 cents on he dollar. A soldier's bonus bill, which would permit the payment of $500 in gold to each of the 4,000,000 enlisted ex- service men could be placed In ef fect, without the Issuing of bonds or the tax of a solitary cent by in creasing the'Dresent gold standard from $20.67 per onunce to $41.34 per ounce and using the surplus thus created for the payment Of a sol dier's bonus. This would, also per mit foreign 'nations Indebted to the United States to pay their debts In gold for the reason It would in crease -their . present holdings to double the' present amount, which would give them practically - $14, 000.000.000 to pay their debts with but will the republican congress do it? ROY M. HARROP, That Hair Cutting Episode. Omaha, July 25. To the Editor of The Bee: On the 19th of July the Omaha World-Herald and the Omaha Daily Bee came out in their regular edititons and on the front page announced in large headlines that a little girl by the name of Shaw, living at Second and Center streets, had been attacked and her hair clipped off, adding that three colored men and one white man were being held in connection with the crime. This was repeated in the issues of the next day, .having the desired effect and result of adding to the already tense racial condition in the minds of a Certain element of citizens of this city. As, president of the N..-A. A. C. P. I was requested to investigate the case, which I did. I now ask space in your raper to make the follow ing report: . In company with an attorney and one other friend we -went to Fourth and Center streets where a Mr. Smith operates a grocery store On the south side (or-the side of the store) the children of the neigh borhood congregate to play. Just across the street stand four resi dences, all occupied, and there are also, two or three more residences directly to the south, which are all occupied. None of those whom we questioned had seen any strangers all that day and, not a single person interviewed had heard any outcry or anything that savored of assault, at tack or disturbance, or that any thing out of the unusual was taking place. We learned that a great many of the little girls in the neighborhood have had their hair bobbed, in fact. we ourselves saw six or seven girls with bobbed hair. After this little girl ran home she claimed her as sailant had held one hand over her mouth, dragged her to the rear of the store from off the front porch, and that he had clipped her hair with the other disengaged hand. Mr. Shaw, the girl's father, re turned to the scene of the alleged act, and from statements of wit nesses, as well as his own statement, gathered up the hair from the ground and carried It home. He said he had a hat full of hair, and he informed us that he picked the hair up from various places and that it was not found all in one spot. Does it sound reasonable that any one would cut off a child's hair and scatter it around for the pleasure of it? I reported to police headquar ters and asked about the accused men, and was Informed they had been discharged. Now I ask In all sincerity and fairness, should not the press proclaim in equal manner the innocence of those men and In the future make a more thorough in vestigation of such accusations be fore coming before the' public with such stories, which so easily influ ence vicious, weak and ; prejudiced persons? Out. of all' the. cases of hair clipping reported this is the first Instance wherethe clipper left the hair scattered oh the ground. In every other case the hair has been clipped off and stolen. ' An assailant . could not have ap proached this girl without her at least securing a glimpse of him, and when he released her . she could easily have noted whether he was white or black. It was either a colored or a white man. Then why did the police hold three colored men and one white man? It Is instinct for a person, Who has been attacked, to seek the nearest aid and shelter. In this case it would have be n the store or a house in the immediate vicinity. Yet the girl ran several blocks to her. own home Had a man, white or black, been so vicious and evil-minded as to com mit the deed as described by the girl he would have carried her into the lonely clump of bushes or weeds be hind the store and not to the open spot behind the store. ' Let us co-operate and try to bet ter conditions and understanding be tween the races. A crime by a col ored man casts no more odium over the whole colored race than Is cast over the white race by the crime of a white man. Let us. have the truth at all times, and not flaring headlines, which may prove to be untrue, after, un told harm has been done or accom plished. As our great daily papers wield and mold public opinion It is a se rious thing to print any matter con cerning crimes by members of any race unless the statements have first been proved true. - - HENRY W. BLACK. Money to Loan On Omaha Real Estate Low rates of interest. Favorable repayment terms. Preference given on home loans of $5,000.00 and less. CONSERVATIVE Savings & loan association j si & r n oy PAUL W. KUHNS, Praaidant. E. A. BA1RD, Vica Preaident. J. A. LYONS, Secralary. ' J. H. M'MILLAN, Traasuicr. Cowardice in Congress From the Boston Transcript. In the confessedly feeble hope that the house of representatives would take cognizance of the cowardly at tempt at assault upon a witness of which Representative "Ben" John son of Kentucky was guilty several days ago we have withheld comment upon the matter. But neither the special committee of which John son is a member nor any member of the house has to date lifted even a voice in condemnation of the guilty member. Apparently our congress men, even the members of the New England delegation, think that the people will soon froget about the whole aflair. Possibly they will, but their forgetfulness would only add tc the affair's disgrace. The facts in the case appear to be as follows: A witness was testify ing in the Bergdom inquiry. He was accused by Johnson of making false statements, and the witness rejoined witn the charge thathis accuser was "a liar." Thereupon Johnson at tempted to get at the witness, and thrust his right hand into his trou sers pocket. He ia reported as sav ing, "i wouia have killed him in a second if I had not been held back." Upon what theory of law or order do the New England members of the house of representatives defend their own and the failure of the house to take cognizance of this attempt by one of their colleagues upon the life of a witness testifying before a con gressional committee? The control of the house is overwhelmingly re publican, and the blame tor its cowardice In the premises is no less overwhelmingly republican. Worst Is Yet to Come. Ambassador Harvey is shocking English aristocracy with his demo cratic ways, but he has yet to don a pair of plush pants. Los Angeles Times. II I TB- rL V I A KJ Still two months of good summer vacation weather in Colorado! Two months before the King Frost splashes the green slopes with orange, gold and scarlet. Take the tim- now to re-energize after the summer's withering heat, and make ready for thr winter's grind. It is always cool in Colorado, the air always bracing. Will you go? Low Summer Fares 3 Daily Trains Write or illustrated bookUis. "Colorado 's Mountain Playground " end "Rocky Mountain National (Estcs) Park, " Far information, aak Union Depot Coniolldatod Ticket Offica, or A. K. Curta, City Pa. Afent. U. P. Syatam. 1418 Dodfo St., Omaha HMon Pacific System -i --fr-- -.., wf v:
