THE COURIER.
gcrs, caresses liis mustache, and who
has very bail and must unattractive
manners.Playwrights really construct
very poor villains. Men who de
liberately seek to fascinate other
men's wives in real life do not wear
so plain a sign of villainy.
The villain should be allowed some'
attractions that appeal to a lady rath
cr than to a barmaid, otherwise the
yielding heroine is not justilied of
her temptation and has no claim up
on our sympathy. In Arizona the
young wife of a grizzled Colonel, a
man of distinguished, impressive
presence, yields to the fascinations of
a captain whose career in the army is
clouded by stories of cheating at
cards, the seduction of servant girls,
and cowardly bullying of subordi
nates. The playwright is at no pains
to conceal his sordid spirit and allows
him no finesse whatever so that when
he comes upon the stage the gallery
hisses It is doubtless necessary, first
of all to convince the gallery. If it
were not so the cat calls, whistles and
hisses, might be badly aimed and hit
the heroine.
If Mr. Augustus Thomas bad left
the villain in Arizona any graces at
all, so that the tempted wife might
have some justification for her taste
the play would take better with the
people on the ground floor. No hu
man being who is not an idol unless
it is the stage villain is absolutely
loathsome. Then when the heroine
finds him charming, the audience
loses respect for her and enjoys her
sufferings, which is not what the
author intended.
Saving this point Arizona is an ex
cellent play written for a whole com
pany and not for a star. The whole
cimpany accomplishes together the ef
fects The plot is an old one which is not
discreditable, as there is nothing new,
but the ranchman is vigorously west
ern and apparently built to satisfy a
New Yorker's ideal of what a ranch
man in Arizona is. Mr. Theo. Rob
erts, as the ranchman, was very well
dressed and made up for the part, but
he read his lines unintelligibly. The
only moderately successful actor can
easily be distinguished by his rapid,
thick, careless elocution. No one has
to wonder what it was old Joe Jef
ferson said, every word Frank Majo
said was understood. Blanche Bates,
Olga Nethersole, acd more than all
Mme. Eleonora Duse, take their time.
Eleanor Robon as Bonita Canby was
understood. She spoke English and
spoke it ell and with more delibera
tion than the average joung lady
who is the object of the attentions of
cavalry officers.
Arizona is an interesting play al
though it is apparent that it was
written by a man who learned all
about ranch and army life from the
stage and from novels. The climax
in the third act is unexpected and
elec-trifying.the atmosphere is breezy
and "ihe action is rap'd. There is no
clown, no Jewish, Irish, or American
parody, though the gallery is amused.
It has the variety of life and stimu
lates the ennuyee.
Postal Reform.
The postal system docs not pay. If
it were not for the money paid in to
the treasury by men and corporations
who run their business at a profit in
stead of at a loss the postal system
would be revised. The postal sjstem
is the favorite example adduced by
reformers who favor government
ownership of railroads, express and
telegraph companies and municipal
ownership of almost everything else.
The franking privilege is abused.
Whole sets of furniture have been
franked through the mails by saving
officials. A curtailmentof this privil
ege would reduce if not destroy the
deficit. 1 he government reports too,
though value to students and spec
ialists are sent to people who do not.
use them. They are large, heavy
books and they cumber the mails more
than country newspapers or the pa
per covered books against which the
bill discriminates.
There is also no reason why coun
try newspapers should pay no postage
at all in the county in which they are
published. In this respect the Loud
bill is admirable but in its other as
pects of opposition to the smaller
newspapers it is unjust, and almost
all country editors arc using what
influence they ha-e to prevent its
passage. The bill prohibits second
class or pound rates to special edi
tions of newspapers, and to sample
copies. Such a bill prohibits the es
tablishment of new magazines and
newspapers. This may not be con
sidered an unmitigated calamity, con
sidering the number and quality of
the publications of all sorts now reg
istered. But, in the last ten years
many va'uable if not indispensab'e
publications" were first issued and
there is no reason to believe that in
the next decade any fewer will be
started. Then the advertisements
and discussions carried on in the
newspapers increase the volume of
letters, postal orders and the sort of
business that is most profitable to the
department. An advertiser esti
mates that it costs him fifteen cents
for each letter he obtains in reply to
an ad, and that he sends five to six
cents in postage on each name thus
obtained. Mr. Loud says the talk of
education in connection with news
papers makes him sick, yet the wisest
statesmen in this country and age
select and use newspapers as the most
effective and quickest method of edu
cating and informing the people.
Considering the amount of capital
invested in the newspaper business
aod the amount of energy and talent
expended the profit is relatively
small. On the whole and speaking in
a large way and making full allow
ance for sensational journalism there
is no other secular institution to
which tne people owe so much. Tho
newspaper is the poor man's college
and his orae'e. It develops the intel
ligence of the youngsters who leave
school forever at ten years. Any bill
which tlueatens the growing news
paper circulation of this country is
vicious and has, on th:s account, smal'
chance of being enacted.
It is said that Mr. Loud has model
ed his bill upon the system in use in
monarchical cuntries which he
visited in his investigation of postal
systems last summer. In foreign
countries the publishers have no priv
ileges not extended to merchandise of
all kinds. There are therefore a few
publications of enormous circulation
and practically no weekly papers like
those of the United States which
have made it the most intelligent
country in the world. The second
class postal laws of the United States
today are not as favorable to the pub
lishers as those in force in Canada
and Mexico, and yet Mr. Loud pro
poses to take a step backward.
Morality and Sapho.
It was hinted by many editors
when Miss Nethersole was arrested
and brought before a New York po
lice court like any other offender
against decency that the arrest was
instigated by her manager for ad
vertising reasons. Publishers are be
sieged every day in the week by peo
ple who want to get advertising for
nothing. They are, therefore, mor
bidly suspicious. If the attempt to
suppress Sapho was for the purpose
of securing advertising it has suc
ceeded, but fifty towns in the eastern
states have cancelled the engagement
with the Nethersole management
after the New York engagement is
over. Every place, to be sure, lias a
standard of morality, ami tastes diff
er, but Miss Ncthersole's acting in
Sapho if transferred from the stage
to the streets, even of New York
would defy the laws governing tte
conduct of women in public places.
Right and wrong are truly not abso
lute, but comparative standards, ad
justable to climate, race, azO stage of
development. But if l.e conduct of
Miss Nethersyle's Siitio breaks the
law, the common police court law of
every city in this country.it is enough
to condemn it and it should be sup
pressed. It is not suppressed just
because of the decent people who go
to see it. The vicious cannot sup
port or make popular any enterprise.
The curosity of the decent people who
wish to see if the play is as base as
they say and who are fascinated by
Miss Nethersole's talent go to the
play by thousands and furnish her
and her manager with the amunition
to fight the moral sentiment which
would suppress a poisonous play.
What would you do if Miss Nether
sole came to Lincoln ?
The Arbitrator.
The somewhat unreliable telegrams
from Africa contain the information
that Presidents Kruger and Steyn
have cabled everyone of the great
powers asking each one to arbitate
the differences between the South
African Republics and Great Britain.
Professional diplomacy in this coun
try is a new and feeble plant. Not
one of the other countries responded
to the invitation, but the United
States has briskly sent to Ambassador
Choate the terms of Boer capitulation
offered by Presidents Kruger and
Steyn. The other powers are silent.
Even France, who has unofficially
insulted the aged Queen of England,
makes no reply to Vic Boer invita
tion. France and the other powers
understand the uncomfortable and
thankless function of an abitrator.
Every other country realizes that it
has troubles of its own. Why the
United States should accept this in
vitation to stand between two armies
and run the chance of incurring the
hostility of both and of all the other
countries more or less interested is
puzzling. Abitration is only advisa
b e to an arbitrator who is able to
whip both of the contestants in case
of trouble. Henry Loomis Nelson
who is opposed to the war in the F li
pines says that its cost is 864,617 2G7
in 1809. According to present day
methods this war was necessary and
the United States participation in it
was unavoidable, but these arbitra
tion invitations to trouble can be
dodged. The Boers have been get
ting ready for this war for eight
years. They have spent a large part
of the taxes, (nine-tenths of which
were contributed by the outlanders)
for the latest and deadliest guns, for
smokeless powder and for iron balls,
and they have selected and trained
military leaders of great ability.
Tiie Boera have used the public rev
enue derived from the English and
their own time in order to keep what
is Dutch for a most rigid autocracy,
from becoming a republic. On the
other hand, and facts show the justice
of it, the English claim that where
English residents contribute nine-
tenths of the taxes and have develop
ed the resources of the country a
hundred per cent, the English resi
dents have certain inalienable rights.
The Dutch are seeking to gratify an
hereditary prejudice against the Eng-
d
lish. Their victory can only postpone
the establ shment of a real republic
in the Transvaal, yet they are willing
to fight and expend their savings in
tte hope of victory. The English are
undoubtedly correct in supposing
that English triumph in the Trans
vaal will make of tbat country a more
profitable place to do business in for
England and for every other nation
According to both peoples, then, war
is worth the lives and money it has
and will cost, to the one who gains
the day. But what has the United
States to dowitli it? As an abitra
tor, its representative must do justice
to one or injustice to both. And for
the arbitrator there is nothirg but
criticism from either the Dutch, Irish
or English resident in this country.
and d.ssatisfaction on the part of the
Boers in Africa, the English in Afri- -
ca, the Dutch in Holland, the Irish
in Ireland, and all the ramifying and
endless connections commercial and
consanguineous, of both the parties
involved.
Poetry.
A poet and his poetry are fertile
subjeitiof discussion and disagree
ment. Edwin Markham and "The
Man with the Hoe," were for some
time regarded as a poet and a poem.
Subsequent stanzas of Mr Markham's
have bien printed in a magazine that
returned his M. S attached to a
printed slip informing him that the
yard-and a-half of poetry was return
ed to him with no intention of there
Ly signifying its poor quality, but
because it was not suited to the pe
culiar requirements of the particular
magazine, etc, etc. The poetry that
the magaz'ne has printed since the
appearance of 'The Man with the
Hoe," has but confirmed the good
judgment of the publisher who sent
the printed regrets.
Mr. Housman's poetry, some of
which was quoted in last week's is
sue of this paper, has the merit of sim
plicity and of feeling The poet is
acquainted with grief and on speak
ing terms with rural life and coun
trymen. His youth is unforgotten
and he has temperament the indis
pensable. Yet, if one were disposed
to criticism in the poem on Narcissus,
the use of the word "'gazes'' as a noun
and modified by sad, is absurd and
unworthy who rhymes as he walks:
With downcast eye and gazes sad,
Stands, amid the glancing showers,
A jonquil, not a Grecian lad.
National Delegates.
It is proposed to send Judge Reese
and Mr. Billingsley as delegates to
the national convention. Their loyal
services to the republican party in
sures the faithful performance of acv
mission intrusted to them. A delt
gate to the national convention is one
of many but it has frequently hap
pened that the faithfulness of "one
out of many" has secured a nomina
tion or prevented one that seemed
inevitable.
Mr. Thompson's Candidacy.
The struggle that Mr. Thompson
has begun and carried on by himself
since the time some four years ago
when it was suspected that Mr.
Thompson wanted to be United
States senator, has a quality which is
admirable and unusual. There are in
Lincoln five and perhaps six men who
might be elected by the legislature to
the position of United States senatcr.
Yet of them all Mr. Thompson is the
only candidate who has not allowed
his purpose to be affected by other
plans and propositions. With his
vision fixed on this one point he has
steadily moved forward since last
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