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1 OBSERVATIONS 1
Judge Cunningham R. Scott of
Omaha disapproves of the platform
adopted by Ihe republican convention
in St. Louis, and he makes a plat
form himself. It Is a pretty small plat
form, but Judge Scott can stand on it
without any difficulty, for the judge
Is a rather small man.
Rev. E. H. Chapin, of the Univer
salist church. .preached his farewell
sermon last Sunday. It may or
may not be significant that
the pastors of three prominent
city churches have resigned
within the last year. Mr. Chapin has
been a faithful pastor. He has fine
ability and undoubted sincerity. He
has labored unceasingly and with
much effect in the upbuilding of the
church. He has taken a proper inter
est in the public affairs of the city, and
has been particularly active in all
movements for good government. Mr.
Chapin, in addition to being a good
pastor and able preaches-, is an ex
cellent citizen, public spirited, out
spokeji, courageous. He is the kind of
man Lincoln cannot afford to lose.
Next week the political party that
enjoys the distinguished honor of hav
ing been pulverized by Grover Cleve
land will assemble Its fragments in
Chicago for the purpose of adding its
quota to the prevailing unpleasant
ness in national politics. The large,
determined man destined to be known
In history as the predecessor of Will
iam McKinley is notorious to all the
feathered tribes as Old-Death-to-Ducks.
He is quite as disastrous to
the democratic party as he is to ducks.
Three years ago when Mr. Cleveland
took up the democratic party it was
strong and hearty and reasonably well
fastened together. Today the party Is
pulverized and poisoned. And the
presidential duck shooter did it. The
old party that was wont to stand on
its own bottom and spar with the re
publican party for points is now dis
integrated and demoralized and de
crepit. Its leaders abandoned its old
time traditions and. In despair, are
ready to seduce or be seduced by pop
ulism and anarchy. Democratic frag
ments are waiting to fasten them
selves onto free silver or any old thing
that holds out hope. The party, anx
ious to keep the remaining vestiges of
life that ace In It, Is treating or ready
to treat with anybody or anything,
and is no more bothered by the en
forced surrender of historic principles
than is the mincing strumpet beset with
conscience qualms.
Col. A. K. McClure, editor of the
Philadelphia Times, was a republican
who was proselyted to democratic
faith. Since the St. Louis convention
he has returned to republicanism.
Colonel McClure Is a strong, vigorous
writer. Recently a correspondent
asked him, "Why are all the million
aires. Wall street gamblers, railroad
wreckers and possessors of Inherited
wealth the most determined upholders
of the gold standard?" The editor re
plied as follows:
"The assumption of Mr. Brown that
millionaires. Wall street gamblers,
railroad wreckers and possessors of
Inherited wealth are the chief sup
porters of the gold standard in this
country Is simply a repetition of the
demagogic utterances made by knaves
and fools in every section of the land.
All the millionaires, Wall street
gamblers and railroad wreckers In the
entire country do not aggregate one
per cent of the population of the
United States, and they are less po
tent In shaping the political destiny
of the country than any like number
of American citizens of average intel
ligence. "No class would profit more by free
sliver than the millionaires. The ma
jor portion of their property would be
nominally doubled in value, and they
would reap a rich harvest with their
ready millions from the bankruptcy
that would inevitably fall upon an
overwhelming number of those less
favored by fortune. Wall street gamb
lers would have everything to gain by
the unsettling of values that would
attend the adoption of free silver.
Anything that disturbs the tranquility
of commerce and trade Is grist to the
mill of the stock gambler. Railroad
wreckers would only have their busi
ness multiplied by the acceptance of
the free silver convulsion. As a rule
they would have, everything to gain
by our degradation to the silver stand
ard, as they are shrewd enough to
have all their obligations issued in the
reorganization of railways payable in
gold, while, under free silver, they
would pay their own debts in money
worth 50 cents on the dollar.
"The possessors of inherited wealth
embrace one-half the people of the
United States, differing only In the
amount of their inheritance, and most
of those who acquire It by industry,
appreciate its value and seek to main
tain it. The intelligent and industrious
mechanics and other wcrkingmen who
have acquired their own homes and
paid for them by their own labor are
In favor of the gold standard because
it is the. only standard of honest money
throughout the civilized world. They
know also that In no country on the
face of the earth, where the silver
standard of money is accepted, can
any mechanic or warkingman ever ac
quire a home by his own labor. They
know that under free silver wages
would be but little advanced, if at all.
while it would require two dollars of
their earnings to but the necessaries
of life now purchased by one dollar.
"If we were to call upon Mr. Brown
to explain to the people of the country
why every red-handed anarchist of the
land is a blatant free silwrite; why
every agrarian who despises the sanc
tity of honestly acquiring property Is
a free sliverite; why every idle and
vicious lounger In the community is a
free sliverite. and why every dishonest
bankrupt or debtor Is a free sllverlte,
it might require of him much study to
Invent a plausible answer, because a
truthful one could not be given with
out putting him to shame. Our cor
respondent has been misled by dema
gogues, and he should not add to his
errror the crime of helping to mislead
others."
The most interesting personality at
the American Whist congress held
during last week at the Oriental hotel,
Manhattan beach, was Mr. Henry
Jones of London, England. This name
means nothing to the average whist
player, but It Is as "Cavendish" that
Mr. Jones is known wherever four
people 3it down together in the game
of whist. The Infallibility of "Caven
dish" in defining the laws of whist is
unquestioned wherever the game Is
played. He is the law in England and
in the United States and Australia,
and translated into French. German,
Spanish or Italian, he is yet the law.
Mr. Jones or "Cavendish" Is a landed
gentleman who for thirty-five years
has conducted the whist department
of England's standard sportsmen's
newspaper. The Field of London,
which department is recognized in the
world of whist as gospel. He also pre
sides over the department of cards and
pastimes in the columns of The Queen,
a leading illustrated periodical devoted
to women and her fashions. "Cavend
ish" visited the United States during
the year of the world's fair, attended
the whist congress, and in the course
of an extended tour of the country,
met the leading whist players of the
American league, which today Is an
affiliation of 100 clubs formed for the
study and enjoyment of this game
The former visit of "Cavendish" gave
whist a decided impetus in America.
In a match or championship game he
sits up to the table stiff, prim, moving
with precision and in a mechanical
manner that does not vary in the.
slightest degree. "I endeavor on such
occasions to avoid conversation, and
in the handling of the cards I appear
to be a machine. Whist is a game in
which the cards should furnish the
conversation. No matter what the sit
uation. I give no sign of either to my
self or partner by my manner. Al
though I detest all round games of
cards, I have frequently been called
upon to admire the silent. Impassive,
mechanical sphinx-like demeanor of
your best American poker players."
Yet with all the freedom of a social
game. "Cavendish" is a stickler for the.
etiquette of the board. He plays, as a
rule. In the simplest manner. He. is
a stickler for the exact position in
which the counters shall be placed up
on the board. In a thousand games
their position. Just so far from the end
or Inner edge of the table, would not
vary a fraction of an Inch.
Mr. Jones smokes cigarettes of
Turkish tobacco with Russian mouth
pieces during his play, and at critical
points In the game pauses to take a
few reflective whiffs. His movements
ace slow, but are without flourish. He
reminds one as he reaches for a trick
or leads a card of the school book defi
nition: "A straight line Is the shortest
distance between two points." He
holds his cards loosely carelessly, an
American poker player would say, but
this is only In appearance, for, as a
matter of fact, while he spreads them
out, he holds his hand close up to his
breast, and under no circumstances do
his adversaries get a glimpse of their
faces. During play he holds his cards
in the left hand, leading with the right
by a short, easy movement, the hand
being about three Inches above the.
table. He lays the card down quietly,
never dropping It. In gathering in a
trick he does so by a comprehensive
spreading of the fingers, dragging the
cards to the edge of the table, where
by a single movement he bunches and
then turns them over. The last card
he plays with his left hand. In the
arrangement of the tricks Into books
he is a stickler for the form shown In
the last of the Illustrations. The ex
act number of tricks taken is revealed
to the player and onlooker at a glance.
The glass of brandy and wattr which
accompanies "Cavendish" into the
card room rests on a chair by his side,
and Is only consulted between deals,
when a mere sip of the decoction is
taken. "Cavendish" has played whist
so long that every movement of the
game Is to him second nature. He
does not Impress the spectator as being
an expert In the manipulation of the
cards. He Is not. In an effort to show
how the deck may be divided and the
cards put through what is known as
the "book shuffle" without changing
their position In the deck, he bungled
badly. His favorite shuffle Is to divide
the deck evenly, standing one-half on
end against the table and well pro
tected by the left hand, while the other
half, placed to the end. Is gently forced
through the deck. This Is a very com
mon and satisfactory way of mixing
the cards.
The state convention marked the
passing of men who in times not so
long ago past exercised a potent influ
ence in republican state politics. Tom
Majors, who two years ago surmounted
every difficulty, including E. Rose
water, and wooed a nomination for
governor from a party that was coy,
was notable by his obscurity in the
deliberations this week. And Church
Howe, who has boasted for years that
he is "out of politics," seemed to tx
entirely so. It is singular that these
two men. Majors and Howe, who have
kept up a feud for years, should both
suffer eclipse at the same time. Fate
has been impartial to them. Both have
been prominent, but circumstances
raised a wall In front of each's ambi
tion. Majors has yearned to be gov
ernor. Howe; has dreamed for twenty
years of the delight of adding M. C.
to his name. Two years ago both
came near the realization of their de
sires. Howe was within a fe.w votes
of the nomination for congress. Had
he been nominated he would have been
