THE COURIER.
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are frequently placed where they are
unsightly, and the electric light wires
are attached to corners and roofs of
private down town buildings without
the consent of the owners thereof.
But many holdcts of gas stock, on the
other hand arc public spirited citizens
whose character and efforts have made
Lincoln the city it is
In buying artificial light of the city
for a year it Is the duty of the coun
cil to buy it as cheaply as possible.
Mr. Thompson has a trust to fulfil.
Tiie stock holders of the gas company
have elected him president of the
company and he would be recreant
and faithless if he were to make a
poor bargain with the city. This
principle is reiterated because the
prejudice created by Mr. Thompson's
methods of securing the present city
lighting contract is obstructing an
understanding with the gas company
now.
The lighting committee of the coun
cil lias made a proposition to the com
pany which involves a decrease of the
cost of illuminating gas of ten cents a
year until the price reaches the cost
of fuel gas. If the company accepts,
in four years the rate will have reach
ed the price of the ordinance gas. It
has also been proposed that the com
pany remit $3,500 of the price of this
year's gas, otherwise there will be a
deficit. Of course the present council
can not make any proposition which
will bind next year's council, but a
recommendation of the present coun
ellwand negotiations made without
prejudice may be effective with new
members, and of course, the council
will not consist entirely of new men.
It has been frequently urged, in dis
cussing street car matters, that the
owners were non resident capitalist
who bought the stock as a cold blooded
investment and that the city should
in consequence, get as much from
them as the law allows and a little
more. The Courier has at all times
disapproved of such indirect and im
material arguments, nevertheless they
have accomplished the delay of an ad
justment of the street car company's
dispute with the city. In contradis
tinction, the gas company is composed
of citizens of high esta'e, who are a
credit to the city. No member of the
council and no citizen wishes to
injure their business, but it is
foolish to pay ten thousand dol
lars more than our income for
lights than we have and to be obliged
to borrow the rest. The interest we
have to pay on the money we have
already borrowed consumes so large a
share of the annual income of the city,
that we cannot afford to hire a com
petent tire chief, we are obliged to
measure out water to the citizens by
the gallon, we have no city park or
city recreation grounds of any kind,
such as down town play grounds or
summer free kindergartens for the
children of the poor. If the genera
tions continue to borrow money to
pay for gas or anything else, the
inevitable climax will surely arrive.
The Circus,
It is becoming more and more the
custom hero to get up at five o'clock
on circus morning to watch the cars
unloaded at the railroad station.
Nothing that the ground and lofty
tumblers, the equestrians, the trap
csists and the trained quadrupeds do,
Is so wonderful as the team work of
the humble tent men and drivers.
The six Itlngllng brothers whose
circus was in Lincoln on Wednesday
have accomplished a remarkablo sys
tem which assigns to every man a
place and insists upon a perfect per
formance of all duties. Nothing in
the profiles of the slxblaek-moustach-
cd brothers displayed in diagonal per
spective on all the billboards in Lin
coln, indicate the energy and execu
tive ability they must possess. Their
home is In Baraboo, Wisconsin, and
the show winters there. The father
of the six brothers Is a harness maker
and lie makes harnesses for t ho mon
keys, dogs, elephants and camels, as
well as for the horses. In winter the
show is a little community. The ani
mals are learning new tricks and the
tent-men turn painters, carpenters
and leather workers.
After and during the night perfor
mance the show is loaded into the
cars and by two A. M. the workers
are In their bunks asleep. At live
o clock the trains arrive at their next
slopping place and there is no more
sleep until after the unloading, the
erection of the tent, and the parade.
When Mr. Ringling mis questioned
about the number of hours his em
ployes slept lie laughed and said they
slept in the winter time, that it was a
shock for a showman to hear employes
making demands for sleep in the sum
mer time when everybody who knew
anything at all about the business
realizes that there are only three
hours of the night, and during those
of the afternoon performance that 'a
circus employe can be spared. Two
performances a day, except Sundays,
involve a daily putting up of miles of
canvas and a daily taking down of
the same. Men who have worked all
the afternoon assisted by the hired
girl and the lady of the house, to put
up a little shade tent on the lawn can
appreciate the miracle accomplished
by these Ringling driven men.
The afternoon performance is the
most interesting. At night the ani
mals arc in brilliant light and deep
shadow and their huge forms loom
out of and lapse into darkness like the
grotesqueries of a dream or the buga
boos of tremens. In the afternoon
the tent is decorated and illuminated
with children to whom the world-old
antics of the clown arc new. to whom
the ladles on horseback arc angels and
their glittering belts and skirts arc
jewel-starred. Then the blazzy
grown up people can watch the chil
dren and be legitimately and really
happy too. In the evening the tent
is rather oppressively full of tough
looking men and overdressed women.
The clowns realize that they are no
longer amusing the innocent and the
unsophisticated for their evening
jokes are as broad as they were in
ocuous in the afternoon.
The End of Vacation.
It is cruel to put children back into
school after the relaxation of three
months, in so hot a time as Septem
ber. The children can not study, and
the parents who are forced to return
with them from cool retreats to a hot
city are also martyrs to a school
board's Inflexibility. It has been
frequently stated that the climate is
changing. It Is a matter of observa
tion that the coolness reaches further
into tha summer and the heat extends
further into the fall than formerly.
The real summer months arc July,
August, and September with the cli
max of heat and dryness In September,
yet September belongs to the autumn
denomination, and we expect cool
wrather after the thirty first of Au
gust. But in September even the re
freshing dews fail and the morning
hours arc not refreshing but stale as
yesterdays.
There would doubtless be many ob
jections In Juno If school should be
prolonged to the last of that month,
but the school board would receive
thanks and congratulations In Sep
ternber from motherc and children on
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Tty State's Receptimi to ttje V
.... First Regiment. .
K
SEPTEMBER 13. 14 15.
The First regiment will arrive in squads
on special trains on Wednesday from York,
Beatrice Nelson, Madison, Fullerton, David
Oity, Geneva, Columbus, Omaha, Broken
Bow and other points.
It will be the sight of a life time to wit
ness the greeting on the old camp ground be
tween the old fighters of '61 and these
young men late from the battle line in Luzon.
'Etofi Batto or Manila
will be on three nights, Wednesday, Thurs
day, and Friday evening, commencing at
eight thirty. This is the greatest scenic fire
display ever Invented. The committee has
undertajcen to provide this entertainment
for the benefit of the public, at the expense
of 3,000. The price of admission will be
2c, for there is no business speculation in
this enterprise; the committee desiring
only to come out even on the venture.
The soldier guests of course will go 1n free
THIS BATTLE OF MANILA is a great
show, and there is no entertainment given any
where in the world in this line that excels it. No
one can afford to miss it. It will be the event of
the year to Lincoln people in the way of enter
tainment. They are making- the lake at the Fair
Grounds now.
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farms and in the mountains. Sooner
or later this will have to be done since
.Mine is what May used to oe and .luly
is.luae, August is .luly, and Septem
ber is August.
Reception to the First.
The news that Senator Hay ward ex
pects to be present at the reception to
the First next week is received
with pleasure Senator Hayward is
recovering rapidly from the effects of
the heat prostration. The members
of the reception committee expect to
see three thousand soldiers in line, a
larger number than most of the resi
dents of Lincoln have ever seen. It
will be the sight of a lifetime and the
streets will be crowded with the fam
ilies, friends, and admirers of the sol.
dlcrsofl80 and of the soldiers of
1809. As the veterans fall into lino
and throw back the shoulders which
bore heavier burdens in the Rebellion
than the First's have had to bear, the
sense of die continuing,uninterrupted,
virile patriotism of a volunteer army
which is the same today as in 18(10,
will thrill the stay at-homes with hope
and conviction which the hot weather
has withered. And speaking of the
stay-at-homes it is precisely because
members of the First Nebraska are
true types that we are so proud of
them. They enlisted from no one
school, nor did one part of the sta'e
more than another contribute flowers
of Its youth. It is the universal
type which rejoices us. Aud the stay-at-homes
have the same courage, lofty
patriotism, faich and idealism which
distinguishes the members of the
Flrfit. I know at least twenty young
men with stout arms and stouter
hearts who longed to enlist but who
stayed at home to support a mother
or sister, or to aid a father. These
boys, when the people are cheering
and going wild over the First, need
not feel that their moral courage is
net appreciated. 1 have occasionally
seen a shame-faced look on one of
these deep breasted young men who
arc brave enougli to run the risk of
being called or thought a coward. The
look is without excuse. Jn celebrat
ing the return and the exploits of the
First we are celebrating the quality
of Nebraska's young manhood, those
who went west, those who went
cast and those who stayed
at home. If the country were In
need of thetr services, if a foreign
power threatened, and the president
called for thirty times the number of
men from Nebraska we have sent to
tliis war he would get them. Popu
lists. Democrats, Republicans, in
their hearts burn an unquenchable
llame of love of country upon which
varying opinions as to free silver, ex
pansion, etc., have no effect.
Women love soldiers and conquer
ors. Because they are cowards they
love hcros, because they are weak
they welcome the strong. But the
real new woman is not to be dccleved
In the evidences of strength. The
young fellows who have stayed at
home because they were too brave
and tender to desert a commonplace,
monotonous duty, are wearing halos
too, which their discriminating
sweethearts havo placed thora.
A Well-Drawn Conclusion.
"Tom, I believe you have designs on
that young helrtsi." "Well, what if
I have? You know I am the archi
tect of my own fortune. "Philadel
phia Bulletin.
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