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VOL J2 NO
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THE COURIER PRINTING AND PUBLISHING GO
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SAUA1I iMURRIP.
DORA RAC11EL.LER
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Rasinc Munascr
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g OBSERVATIONS. g
The row between l lie two Kentucky
girlsover the selection tiTsi sponsor to
break the dedicatory bottle over the
prowyif the new battle-ship. Ken
tucky, relleets credit on only one or
them. Miss Bradlex. the governor's
daughter, to all appearances, is intlif
ferent. Miss Richardson, who posed
before Secretary Herbert as a Ken
tucky lielle. anil persisted in taking
his gallant speech at a theatre jiarty
as equivalent to an ollicial uotilication
that she had been selected to christen
the Kentucky, is said to belong to an
old family." "When it was thought
ii.?st that the governor's prelt y daugh
ter should break the bottle of wine
over the Kentucky's noble prow. Miss
lliehardson wrote t,he story of her
wrongs to the newspapers and sent
her picture. Hy Mich conduct she
proed to everybody that she was not
a fit person Tor such an honor. Her
photograf was evidence enough that
she would not decorate the occasion
and her conduct has made the public
aware that the secretary or the navy
was right in oirering the honor to
.somebody else, to anybody eNe. Even
the newspapers which print her re
proaches, and evidence that she was
imitcd.areshc.ckcd by her manners
and her unwarrantable vanity. The
way to the prow ola ship is won by
luauty and grace, not b using the
column of the newspaiwrs to vituper
ate a man who passed a compliment
and forgot it. There is no doubt after
reading the impel that Kentucky
will be pleased to have Miss Hmdley
act asspoiisor for the Kentucky and
disgusted if the secretary of the navy
nominates 31 i - Itichardson.
Section 13 of the constitution of the
state of Xebrr.ska reads: -No peison
elected to the legislature shall receive
any civil appointment within this
state from the governor and senate
during the term for which he has
been elected. And all appointments
and all votes given forauv such mem
ber, for any such otlice or appoint
ment, shall lie void." This is plain
and explicit, yet the legislative com
mittee appointed by the governor has
drawn nearly ten 'houaud dollars
since the adjournment of the legisla
ture. This clause :f the state con
stitution is intended to prevent legis
lators from passing bills whose elfecl
will secure places ;md profit for them
selves, orfroui creat inganycommit tee
orolliceand lilling it at the expense
of the state. The reformers of the
last legislature felt that they were
there to prolong their' period of ser
vice to the state a long as bill- and
gubernatorial appointments would
serve.
Another instance of this disjo
sition on the part of the late legis
lature is in the matter of the state
printing. An act to.ptqvide for fur
nishing state stationerv n:i- intro
duced by legislator: Sheldon, and Mr.
Sheldon is now draw ing a salary from
the board. These instances of viola
tion of the state constitution will
multiply, unless the. people realize
what a grave danger such a precedent
establishes. If Mutz. Heal. Moran.
"Wheeler. Zimmerman and Sheldon are
allowed to introduce bills which pre -long
their period of usefulness fr m
one hundred das to three hundred
and sixty-live, there is no reason why
the other one hundred and tvetit
seven memliers of the house ami sen
ate should not provide themselves
with a year's job ;;No. 31 r. Sheldon is
drawing tiflj dollars a lhontll: one
hundred and thirty-three times six
bundled is STu.POO. And there is no
guarantee that the legislators, would
restrict themselves to iifty dollars a
month.
Mr. Sheldon's bill provides for
the employment of a state printer
at one thousand dollars a vear. Hav
ing secured the asage or this bill, in
which he was the beneticiary. ,Wr.
Sheldon felt that he had done all that
was necessary to secure himself fioin
want for one year at least. Uut. he
neglected to "influence" an appropria
tion to pay the state printer. The
salary which he is now receiving is
unauthorized by law. The printing
beard., which consists uf the state-
auditor, the state t reasiirer and the
secretary or state, is rendeiing itseir
liable to legal proceeding, in giving
Mr. Sheldon a salary out of a fund
from which the legislat undesignated
no siu It draft. It is less than three
years ago that Mr. Morton Smith,
then the editor of Tin: CorniKK. be
gan investigations which convinced
him that thestate treasurer was not,
complying with the law in regard to
the placing or the state Hinds. Tiik
Courii:k was tbe first paper in the
state to warn the people that
the state treasurer was breaking
the law and that when he came to
turn over his trust to his successor,
t here would be. -Uarge deficit Tor the
people to make up by increased taxa
tion. At that time Mr. Smith point
ed out that Mr. Hartley was using
every means to secure the nomination
of a tool who would not insist upon
a strict account or the money sup.
posed to be in his keeping. While no
one sUsiK.cted that the lobbery
amounted to hair a million the very
plain statements in regaid to the il
legal methods employed by the state
treasiirercrvstalized the opposition to
any I'artloj nominee and made the
success or.siieh a candidate impossible.
The law isa wall around thepeople's
property and rights. An ollicial who
makes a bleach in that wall. fer what
ever purpose, is unworthy of hi trust
and gives Iiic!iemiescgitimatecaue
for impeachment. The present state
administration shows an indifference
tothestatecoustitutioii. In the afore
mentioned instances the state oniccrs
have lieen willing to ignore the con
stitution for the sake or gaining ac
cess to a fund which they are forbid
den to touch. With no realiza
tion or the meaning or a public or
fice except as a means uf piivate
revenue, the reronn movement of
the present administration began
and ended with "turning the rascals
out." '1 he clauses of t he cf list itut ion
are ignored, the departments are fill
ed with cousins, sons. wies. si-.tt.r.s
and more or less distant relatives or
the elected ollicers. and the whole at
mosphere of the state house is pa
lliated bythesentiineiit: 4,Eory man
ror himself and family and the devil
take thestate."
Tinted States army officers are in
the habit of deploring the laxity or
military discipline in this oiiutry as
compared with that in European coun
tries. They say if it were not Tor the
newspapers, wiuch imarinhly take the
part of the- enlisted soldier when he
has trouble with an ollicer, discipline
would he much more severe and there
fore, from the ollicers jsoirt of view,
more effective in producing an invin
cible sold ier. I r it had not been Tor
the unhcrsal ucwsaper cnudcmiiu
tiouof Captain Lou-ring in his un
dignified and unwarrantable assault.
iiM)ii Private Hammond the ollicers
who composed the court martial,
might have recommended to secretary
Alger that a letter of couimendat ion
and approval be sent to the brave Cap
tain who kicked a prostrate man and
Itrodded him with his sword while he
was being dragged bv the heels to the
court room of the barracks. Cut Secre
tary Algerstauds nearer to the peo
ple than army ollicers. He kmrws that.
the sentence found by the court,
martial that Captain Loering be
publicly reprimanded for "conduct
prejudicial to good order and military
discipline" will not satisfy either the
privates in thcarim or the people out
side it. that justice has l.eeii done.
The secretary s.i: "It isdisappoint
ing that an nireuc so grae and as an
example so far reaching as thisshould
have 'jcen visited with o light a
penalty. The histon or great cam
paigns d es not show that armies of
men drilled to the point of mechani
cal perfection win when opposed to a
soldiery inspired and stimulated and
made patient by a I.e of country'.
The Swis. the Hutch, the Colonial
Americans were patriots as well as
soldiers, and thev conquered in every
case the mast highly (iiscipHnedannies
at that time in existence. Emj;eror
William's forces are said to be the
best disciplined military in the pos
session of any goxoruuient today.
Vet it isa question, if their patriot
ism would stand the strain i.r a pro
longed war. Absolutism is destroying
theloeor country and the soldiers
light like mercenaries. They lack the
desix'rate courage of the man who
Sights for everything that makes life
worth living. Why should tliey rallr
rrom a defeat when it is jiM a ih-H
to syne one master as another?
in this connection, it is interesting
to rec rd the fact that ('eruiau
liberals prophesy that when William
goes to war the Iteichs'ag will seize
the opjxirtunity afforded that bodv :is
Ihesotiiceofsiipjilh-s to circumscribe
the divine right of Kings which Wil
liam claims is reason enough Tor his
arbitrary and prep sU-ronr. conduct.
In consideration of alt tiiCM-things it
may lie said that am thing which
mako the sta'e.a. represented by the
nlliceis. de'estable to a private soldier,
decrease his elllciency as. a lighting
unit, and encourages desertion and
treasi n. The newspajiers and Secre
tary Alger have tried Captain hovering
and their sentence is indeterminate,
but it exceeds a public repremand.' It
is somewhere between being deprived
(Continued 6i.li 11
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