the corn r BR : 111 the world. M. liloch. .says (hat the African war has demonstrated nothing except the abandonment of the close formation of troops anil the superiority of marksmanship and a knowledge of the topography of the battletlelil over mere numbers. ... ... j. - r ... Lincoln Thf composition of the next council is a momentous matter. Why not nominate men who have some stake in the city? All the taxes paid by the present councilmen amount to an in significant sum. Two contemporary councilmen wen- obliged to purchase lots in the wards they represent before they could take their places as mem bers of the city council. A dollar or two changed hands. The transfer was made in order to comply with the law that each councilman shall hold real estate in the ward he represents. As at present constituted some of the councilmen are engaged in an organ ized attempt to make their positions pay. The pirates who Killed the seas ran up a black Hag with a skull and ci oss-bones painted on it. Before they boarded a merchantman they ran up the traditional pennant of plunder. Kvery Tuesday morning The Journal prints the doings of the council meet ings held on Monday night. Kvery citizen who reads the report sees again the black Hag and the horribly grin ning skull and cross-bones. The same old crew of Portuguese and Malays are pieparing to ship for another cruise in the ship in which we are only passen gers and have not a word to say. With their knives in their teeth they are ad vancing and they'll set us adrift on a raf with a bottle of water because there is no one in particular to get the passengers together and concentrate their overwhelming strength against the pirates. Mr. M. Weil of the Fouith ward is mentioned to take the place of Mr. Hacon who, as chairman of the claims committee, signed a claim made by his son for $73.00 for ten days' clerical work. The change would be a ver grateful one both to the Fourth ward anil to the city. Mr. Weil is a busi ness man of demonstrated probity and ability. There are other men in the city whom everyone respects who knows an honest man from a robber. There is Mr. II. Wittmann of the sec ond ward, a man of patience, courage, foresight and unimpeachable integrity. As councilman he would be taking the lii st step to the mayoralty, an otlice which, judging by the activity in coun cil matteis of a defeated politician, has again excited his cupidity. Mr. Wittmann has lived in this cit for more than twenty-five years. He belongs to the few men who accept without question the conditions of life as clever players accept the rules of a game, play it and win. Lincoln men could, if they cared enough about it. put men like this one in the council. They care about it spasmodic ally: when they are reading the reports of the city council meetings; when they go to their work in the morning and find raihoad t nicks in the middle of a. down town street and learn that the people's prop erty has been given away without af fording them an opportunity to object: when they pay their taxes, which are in many instances, about a third larger than they were last year, and on other occasions that demonstrate we are a badly governed, a plundered people. Kvery ward in the city has a large proportion of respectable residents. Itobbers aie an insignificant minority. In every ward there are a few men with a liking for politics and office, any one of whom would represent his ward with distinction. Yet only a few of this latter type have eluded the vig ilance of the minority who are in poli tics for plunder and are now doing their best to save the city from the at tacks of the most unscrupulous crew that ever attempted to divert taxes fiom the treasury to their own and their sons' pockets. "Just before Christmas I am as good as good can be." This refrain of the had little boy's monotonous (limit just befoie the season when he expects his if la lives to present him with the things he longs for. Is recalled bj the promise of the councihnen just befoie election "to deal with business mat ters in a business way. ' Ity their own confession six or seven members of the council have, since their election, voted on matters concerning the welfare of the city according to the dictates of petty spite against the mayor, and without considering the interests of the city. One of the councilman said in speaking of their corporate change "f heart. "The council gang has been dissolved and business will be done on business principles hereafter." Oh, people of I.im olu. be not deceived ill regard to the character of the present council! Their conduct just befoiv election is not typical. It will not de ceive the people who read the papers. There are agiicultui ists who still buy gold bricks and bri k blocks when tliey go to the metropolis, but most lesi dents of Imcaster county. Nebraska, take a weekly paper ami a wry large proportion take a daily. safety of the I'liiliil Stalls Tin sanu oiiHidc i.ttious which led to the war with Spain now ieiiiie that a com mercial arrangement be made undcr whltii Cuba can live.' I'lesideut Koo.-evelt said 111 his mes sage to ongress "I most earnestly ask your attention to the wlsdim. In deed to the vital need of piovidiug for a substantial reduction in the tariff duties on Cuban imports Into the Cult ed States. Ctfba lias in her ituistitu tion alliriiled what we desiled, that she should stand in international matteis. in closer and more fiieudly relations with us than with any other powei . and we me bound by every consideia tion of honor and expediency to pass commercial measures in the luteiest of her material well-being." President McKinlej's last message to America said the same thing in the simple, stlong words of the address delivered at lEuffalo a few moments before he was assassinated. It really looks as though the tnai hi nations of the politii ians in collusion with the beet-sugar innmifai tuicrs .ire r WILL THE KING FORGIVE AND FORGET? Miy'--.-mrML iiiP11 i1 Wl ' ' I 'I I ' 1 mzmgm an -I, h i 1 g' u !- Is King Kdward willing to eradii .itt kingly ow once made that a Wttmoi. dining his lifetime? This is the interesting i -tmii ft i gossips of Kngland and this tountiy Tin ippon tin m ..f more, whose mother was the cause of the king- vu the United States special coronation emb.is-s. ni .mm ... esting point. 1 for. t hi- I II ' 'Milt gl itlllg the tiling Wit- lll'-lllller of t'ii inter- Cubin Sugar With Cuban sugar admitted liee beet sugar would still make thirty per cent clear profit. The recently published correspondence between Messrs. Cut ting and Oxnaid shows this. The 0 nard company has been used to making so much mote than this that the pros pect of free sugar frightens them. Mr. Oxnard has suggested a bounty to Cu ban sugar-growers of one cent a pound on their product exported to this coun try. The total of such a bounty, tak ing as a basis the amount of sugai exported from Cuba to this country ami its natural increase if the tax were re moved, would amount to $G,.".00,000 and JT.oOO.OOO annually. Mr. Oxnard's pat riotism is indicated by this proposi tion. He would aid his own industry by presenting public moneys to a for eign people. That is, he wishes to make liis countrymen pay more for sugar and $7,500,000 besides. Secretary Hoofs report reminds con gross that "the peace of Cuba is neces sary to the peace of the I'nited States the health of Cuba is necessary to tin health of the United States, the in dependent e ot Cuba IS necessaiv o I hi stiung i nougn to defeat a national sense of what is light and honorable .piesel b men whom the countrv trusts. The sugar beet glowers in .Ve biaska are oppo.-cd to the 0narl methods and hae asked for a repeal ot the duties on Cuban sugar. Coventor Central Wood In the In dependent refers to the practical bene fits that the prosperity and health of Cuba will confer upon the United States. The obligations to do justii c to Cuba are not all sentimental. The General declare that the present taiiff will cause the failure of Cuba's two chief industries sugar and ti bacio raising and this will result in ruin and disorder. A bankrupt people are of no benefit to anyone. Unless I'ubnn sugar and tobacco me ad mitted free the commercial condition of Cuba will be worse than before we "intervened" to protect the Cubans from the cruelty and rapacity of Spam. Tin- is-.uh in s(ju..nl before tin- peo ple of this country Will tin ke.-p their word to Cuba or let Mi Oxnirl dictate the pollcj of this counfrv in-1 thereby disgr.Kt us imong r .Moo- rum out n. thi...i ,n, i . . . upioot tin tn s.mii.ii). ni i,i civil institutions will. It men tike ;. i, eral Wood mid t'otiiiiel Waring ha. established there Cuba's 1 million import .ili.nn $70.0to,0oo woith every ir. Cn.i.il Wood thinks that Culm can easily sup port twelve million persons who won 1. 1 but several hundred million dollars worth of goods abioad every ear As the United States In the nearest Kieit market most of the Hiipplte would l bought In this count!-). A llbei.il recipiocity policy will Invite Cub.ui customers, with c lose. I pmtH our invi tat Ion Is a mm kery and our promises false. The editoi of the K.in.san City St ir asks if Mr. Oxinird, on behalf of tin sugar InteicHta Is to be allowed to ex pose the southern states to yellow fever anil to prevent the development of a gieat market on our sontli.in coast? If the United State govern uieiil dare not offend this autoti.ti. perhaps It could tompiumUtc with him. Possibly he would pell his light to dictate for a lew million in a lump sum. It would be cheaper for tln I'nited States to buy up his claims f.o .isli than tn allow him to ruin c'libi. it. -v A New Broom I list i lit Attorney .lei nine i imp.i tient at the slowness of Institutions once effective, but now SO hedged about by usage, precedent and tr.idl lion that they do not fulfill the func tions they were created to perform The oi oner's olllce in all I ties of tin iiuintiy needs rejuvenating, readjust mg. tuning, originally. like an iww institutions created in response to .1 need, it worked perfectly. It has grown to be an old machine and for aiding the ipiii k apprehension of a murderer is almost useless. I5y the time the loioner gett around to investigate .1 homicide the murderer Is fully warm I and has fled or has concealed his trail. Theiefore the New York .Ilstm ; .it torney has organized a "Itoiiih nb bureau." If the coroner and his Jur were adjusted to their modern dutie theie would be no need of the "Iniini .id.- buieau." but it ih a long, tap nddeti. circuitous route from a muidet to tin- coroner's inquest. All police st 1 Mons of New York have directions t telephone th luirticulars of every iiiur der .is soon as reported to the "hoim nle hmeau" anil as scin as the new - oiin s in a member of lite new cbpiri men 1 goes to the scene of the inurd- 1 with .1 1 imir.1 and a note book, lb examines witnesses and collects all tt information the coroner is supposed to. hut does not. An institution which serves Its pur pose when llrst organized in the course of time loses its relation to the events it was meant to i ontrol Time mov. and criminals itackty adjust them selves to a nvv institution, but tl latter is fixed and remains stntion.irv while time Hows over it leaving a de posit of mud. rust and debris of all kinds that clog its . tinn. In tin Middle Ages one order of beggim; friars after another was organize! The friars grew ric h fiom donations "i the rich, built monasteries, laid in .1 n-iUtr of rare wines, grew to be ahboi with larger income than their king an I worst of all they grew away from tin people. Then another order would organized, and when that. In turn grew rich, another. It is so with tin 'homicide bureau." Its functions at exactly those which the coroner an I his assistants were organized to j 1 form. Time has rusted the curom -. -joints and obscured his ideas of tin real functions pertaining to his olli. Time will do the same for the "lunin c-ide bureau." But in the meantim and at the beginning the bureau rn.. sesses the energy and zeal of ne Iv organized and mu Ii-neenVl Instn tlons. Wireless Telegraphy Signor Maiii.1.1. who v, ), , .- . 1. 1. cit in .i. - ft-in Kiir" ind bv 111. .!!- V 1 ll 1 - I II II. I, 111 ., l ll .'