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8 OBSERVATIONS. ' 8
fljence will encourage the council to
impeach the mayor and Exciseman
Vaill and perhaps a few others. "With
the old ring discredited It will bedifii
cultforany member of it to secure a
nomination this spring, though I have
heard it stated that there is at least
one saloonkeeper listed for council
man. His election would not be sur
prising on account of the outgrown
districting of the city into wards
which allow the small saloon wards as
large a representation as those in
habited by live or six times as many
voters. It is a question which Mr.
AbbDtt, the city attorney, declines to
answer, pleading a lack of informa
tion, whether the council has the
right to redistrict the city. But if it
could be done before election it would
render the work of reform more effec
tive and easier of accomplishment.
Of courso as soon as the Hamilton
club has put its shoulder to the car of
progress and rolled it over the present
obstructions, the members will cease
to be inspired by indignation, love of
justice and the necessity of economy.
They will return to their ordinary oc
cupations and the same old set, or men
just like them, will resume their sway
over the health and pockets of the
men, women and children thatr consti
tute the city of Lincoln. But in the
meantime we will hare had an in
terim in which men of integrity and
ability were in control and it may
teach the expediency of continuous
exertion that we may have good gov
ernment all the time.
If the grand jury will take advant
age of the discoveries of the council
investigating committee and put
Mayor Graham on the stand, It may
be able to find out why he was so
anxious for the failure of the A street
well plan. If the badgered and baited
mayor can be induced to tell who paid
him for his services in obstructing im
provements in the water service of
Lincoln, the thousands who have suf
fered directly and indirectly from the
looting of the Capital National bank,
will be gratified at last by a sight of
the real villain. Their money is gone
forever and no punishment of the
thief can restore it, but the rankling
knowledge that they have been bam-b-)ozbd
by a man clever enough to
keep out of the reach of the law and to
place his property so far avay that, in
case of detection, he can flee to it,
will be soothed by this man's compul
sory exile. There is nothing truer
t Jan that "misery likes company."
more of questions (as the poems vary
in length) at the end of each poem.
The questions direct tho student's
attention to the words, phrases or
sentences by whi'jh the poet accomp
lishes his effects. The questions, al
though not in every case easy to an
swer and in some cases answered by a
reasoning contrary to the one de
manledby thccommcntator, perform
the functions of setting the stage for
the student for no one but a student,
eithcrof human nature or literature,
reads Browning. The questions then
are a map, they locate the actors in
the drama, they reveal the situation
and frequently the relative position
of the poet to the people and events of
his poetry. Browning's ihic try so sel
dom deals with anything but human
and all-dramatic situations that this
kind of a quest ion map is as necessary
to his students as a geogaaphy to the
historical student. Men and events
arc so related to topography and the
weather that it is difficult to appre
ciate, even a poetic treatment of them
without an atlas such as Dr. Peter
son's questions furnish. The object
of studying poetry in tills way, Dr.
Peterson says in the preface, is to de
termine how the mind operates in ap
preciating and loving it, and the
questions lead it to operating that
way. In reading the book I have
found that it was necessary to do so
with undivided attention or the sub
tle, under the surface meanings elude
one. Much of this sort of reading
would teach -the most superficial to
exclude the irrelevant and immaterial
and to learn the lesson of the hour
with a single mind. So that Induc
tive Studies in Browning both
strengthens the mind, instructs it, and
enlarges the capacity of appreciation.
The eighty-two charter members of
the Hamilton club represent the
strongest and best components of the
republican party in this city. Less
than a fifth of them are or have been
office holders. For the most part they
are men who have attained success by
attending to their own business, and
allowing the plug uglies who are now
apparently in charge of affairs to run
the city into its present difficulties.
The members of the club have only
been aroused from an exclusive atten
tion to their own business by a con
stantly increasing tax assessment and
by the conviction that the plug uglies
would soon make Lincoln the resort of
the vicious and, in consequence, an
undesirable place of residence. There
is no reasonable doubt that their in-
This last retirement from office of
ex-Water Commissioner Byer will
probably be permanent though it is
not the only one occasioned by an In
vestigation into his venal conduct of
city business. Byer and Melick are
old familiar names in Lincoln politics
and their retirement from maladmin
istration marks a new era in city poli
tics. Although Mr. Melick is still en
joying official position it is only as a
reward for silence and as scon as Mr.
Graham is removed his successor will
very likely not be able to appreciate
the necessity of Mr. Melick.
J
Inductive Studies in Browning, by
Dr. Hans" C. Peterson, is a most in
teresting and instructive volume, con
taining'about twenty-one of the longer
poems of Browning, with a page or
An editorial of some length in a re
cent Chicago daily paper, written
while the National Federation of
Musical clubs was in session, stated
that the federation was rent by inter
nal differences of opinion as to who
should be president. There was no
difference of opinion strong enough to
destroy the concord of the federation
except in the opinion of the defeated
candidate forpresident who communi
cated her, views to the papers. The
facts are' that Mrs. Sutro, a wealthy
and philanthropic New York lady, ad
dressed the federation and announced
her candidacy. She was gowned, al
though it was a dark and stormy day,
in white broadcloth and a plumed hat.
She said that she was the only mem
ber of the federation who possessed
enough wealth, culture and a suffic
iently exalted position to fit one for
president of the federation. She
made this somewhat remarkable
T'ech, with the aplomb of a devout
believer reciting his creed, but there
were heretics to the number of eighty
In the federation and Mrs. Sutro re
vived only eighteen votes.
oOne of the greatest, If not the great
est, result or women's clubs Is the de
struction of caste and the growth of
democracy among women who have
Heretofore Insisted on keeping the
lines or social position distinct.
Especially in the west are such
distinctions ignored, and if it
cni3 known that a candidate
for any offlc3 Is counting upon
position or wealth to secure votes
fiat very fact is enough to de
f .'at her. The possession of the gifts
of rortune does not disqualify but It
cirtainly does not elect. The exam
pie of Mrs. Sutro whose name is dis
tinguished in New York for gifts to
benevolent institutions and for orig
inating several worthy charities,
should be an example to other aspir
ants to keep their possessions in tho
background when asking for the votes
of members of the national federation
at Denver. Though club women want
a woman of affairs, with a clear head
and executive ability q-jalitles not
very often developed In a housewife
whose education and experiences have
oeen restricted by poverty they re
will have noneof them in theirofficers.
The General Federation of Women's
clubs meets at Denver the twenty
first of June. Already there is much
discussion as to the different candi
dates for president. Mrs. Henrotin of
Chicago lias held the place since the
organization of the federation, and Is
not a candidate for re-election. Mrs.
Alice Ives Breed, vice-president for
the last two years, announces that she
will appear at the Denver biennial ast
the successor to Mrs. Henrotin.
Among western women the president
of the Women's club of Denver K
spoken of witli more enthusiasm than
any other candidate. She has shown
great ability as presiding officer of
that club, and has stimulated the
members by example and nroot.t,
aid in making Denver a cleaner and
better place to live in. The Denver
A omen's club has grown to be one of
the largest and most efficient in this
country. Of course this is due to the
membership, but the members recog
nize that much of the activity is in
spired by Mrs. Piatt and give her the
creditor what she is the first to dis
claim. There are othercandidas tor
the position, but these two name
have had the widestpubliclty. tK
few remarks are addressed not to a?
candidate in particular, but aSy
woman who wishes to hold a nositfon
bestowed by a large vote will dowS to
ponder the easy transformation of he?
name into mud by a number Twomen
w ho consider themselves patronized
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