Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, February 20, 1903, Page 6

‘l"m: OMAHA DAILY BEE. T E ROSEWATER, EDITOR. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNIN TERMS OF BUBSCRIPTION. | \Datly Bee (without Sunday), One Year..$4.00 ily Bee and Sunday, One Year Dustrated Bee, One Year Bunday Bee, One Year Baturday Bee, One Xear Twentleth Cehtury Fatmer, One Year 5 DELIVE BY CARRIER Dally Bee (without Sunday), per copy.. | Daily Bee (without Sunday), per week.. Daily Bee Uncluding Bunday), por week..17c | Bunday Bee, per cop; s | { 100 2¢ A2 Evening Bec (without Sunday), per weck o Evening Bee (ncluding Sunday), per week ... Ll Complaints of irregularities in delivery should be addressed to City Circulation De- partment. OFFICES. Omaha—The Bee Bulldin; South Omana—city Hall Bullding, Twen- ty-fifth and M Streets. Council Bluffs—10) Pear] Street. Chicago—lél Unity Bullding New York—2328 Park Row Bullding. Washington—1 Fourteenth Street. CORRESPONDENCE. Communications relating to news and ed- ftorial matter should be addressed: Omaha Bee, Editorial Department REMITTANCES, Remit by draft, express or postal order, payable to The Bee Publishing Company, Only 2-cent stamps accepted in payment of mail accounts. Perscnal checks, except on Omaha_or eastern exchange, not accepted THE BEE PUBLISHING COMPANY. STATEMENT OF CIRCULATION. State of Nebraska, Douglas County, ss. e B. Taschuck, secretary of The Be Publabing company, belng duls aworn. saya that the actual number of full and complete coples of The Dally, Morming, kvening and SUnday Beo printed during the month of January, 1508, was as follow Total Less unsold and returned cope 0,875 Net total sales. 981,007 Net average sal . 30,051 GEORGE B. TZSCHUCK. Bubscribed In my presence nrd sworn Lo before me this 3ist day of D. M B HUNGAT (Beal.) Notary Punlic E———————— New slogan of the railway tax shirk- rs—What's the constitution between ilways, anyway? S————— We would suggest that before the editor of the World-Herald familiarly calls him “Tom"” he would first learn how to spell his nam For some unfathomable reason no bills to eradicate the Russian thistle pest have bobbed up yet in this session of the Nebraska legislature. Several features of the proposed new revenue law for Nebraska can be im- proved and should be fmproved before the bill is ratified by the legislature. EEe——r The decision of Judge Grosscup on the beef trust injunction discloses at least one federal judge on the bench who can be independent of the corpora- tions. E——— Plans for the meat packers’ merger, which was to have been launched as ‘'soon as the packers won out in their injunction sult, will now have to be re- vised. ———— It dido't require an increase in the salaries of judges on the federal bench to stimulate active competition for every vacancy occurring among their number. Bryan's call to arms does not seem to be reverberating very loudly through the democratic press, If a second call won't bring them, resort, might be had to the draft. The national good roads convention meets at an appropriate time. Season- able object lessons of roads to - be avolded should be plentiful just now in all' parts of the country. e— The powers of Europe will present a Joint vote to the sultan in view ot the sultan’s known financial stringency. They will have to take care or he will ask them to cashrit at once, It Is easy enough to put up a straw man to knock him down and to mis- quote public men in order to lampoon them. The public, however, has little sympathy with such methods. SEE——— Senator Quay has certainly not lost his abllity to make it decidedly uncom- fortable for those who get in the way of his pet schemes, His fight for the statehood bills shows that he is still a stayer. | If the coal strike arbitrators only do a good job by rendering a decision that appeals to the public as eminently just, they will be in position to set up in permanent business as healers of labor CONSTITUTIONAL REVISION. Governor ‘Mickey's position on the question of constitutional revision, as cutlined in the Interview given to The Bee, should command the Immediate and favorable conslderation of the legis- lature. The governor etates clearly the reasons why reviston should proceed through the submission of amendments by the legislature rather than by the submission of a proposition to call a constitutional convention. Summed up, these reasons are: 1. That the amendments needed to remedy the defects in the constitution can be framed as well by the legislative { committees as by the committees of a constitutional convention. That to meet the urgency of the de- mand, revision by amendment can be made effective at least two years earlier than revision by convention. 8. That the expense of the convention, which might reach as high as $200,000, is unnecessary and would be speclally burdensome to the state in its present embarrassing financial condition. 4. That it would be as easy, if not easler, to secure ratification of amend- ments submitted by the legislature as to secure popular endorsement of the proposed call for a convention. 5. That revision by convention must irun the gauntlet of endorsement at the polls twice, first to call the convention, and then to ratify its work, while re- vision by amendment can be accom- plished by one submission to the people. Governor Mickey's enumeration of needed amendments includes the most important, although one or two other subjects should be added. One amendment should be submitted providing for an gncrease in the number of supreme court judges. Another amendment should revise the schedule of salaries paid to state officers, or, perbaps, leave the determi- nation of these salaries within certain limits to the, legislature. Another amendment should deal with the investment of the state school moneys and forever put an end to the practice of farming out the trust funds on the plea that legltimate investment is barred by constitutional prohibition. Still another amendment should pro- vide a way for municipal home rule for all cities whose populations entitle them to the full measure of local self-govern- ment. On most of these subjects the amend- ments drawn and submitted by the leg- islature of 1895, and which failed of ratification because of the disturbing facters of the presidential election, would still be serviceable with possibly a few modifications. The committees on constitutional re- vision in the two houses of the legisla- ture should at once make a careful and thordugh study of the constitution and formulate the amendments which will make that document conform to the present needs of the state. ¢ O —— THE BEEF TRUST INJUNCTION. The decision rendered by Judge Grosscup In granting a temporary in- Junction against the so-called Beef trust, in the case instituted under the Sherman anti-trust law, lucidly and forcibly sets forth the facts and circum- stances which show the existence of a combination in restraint of trade. Hav- ing explhined the nature of the business of the defendants and the method of conducting it, the court said that the averments in the petition of the govern- ment state a case of combination and whether ‘or not this was unlawful de- pends not upon prices, with which the law as interpreted by the supreme court has ne concern, but whether it is in re- straint of trade. “Whatever combination,” sald Judge Grosscup, “has the direct and necessary effect of restricting competition s, within the meaning of the Sherman act as now interpreted, r?llrlll’l of trade.” He held that the agreements of defend- ants were nothing less than restraints upon competition and therefore combi- nation in restraint of trade. Hence a case under the law ‘of 1800 had been made out. The very clear exposition given by Judge Grosscup must remove whatever doubt there has been in the public mind, and it has been by no means general, as to a combination of beef packers, and it seems also to as- sure the final success of the govern- ment's case. At all events the granting of the temporary Injunction Is a justi- fication of the proceedings instituted and it will not be very surprising if the defendants allow the Injunction to be- come permanent, though this is thought to be improbable. A4 DECLINING TRADE BALANCE. The trade balance In favor of the Umited States has declined during the troubles. S If the Great Western needs a Mis- souri river bridge to come into Omaha, what's the matter with the South Omaba alr line for which Our Dave presented the charter to Tom Black- burn about a year s Governor Mickey Is clear-sighted on the question of coustitutional revision. It will be just as easy to carry amend- ments to the constitution direct as to secure the popular vote necessary to call a coustitutional convention, ————— It is given out at the Interior depart: wment that in view of congressional in- action on the subject, prevarations will b made at once to execute the law agalost the {llegal fencing of the public domain. Colonel Mosby may have a chance to eall out his cavalry yet, _—— The Real Estate exchange has shown itself to be the most live business or- ganization in Omaha. If it sets about in earnest to erect a speecial office bulld- 1ng to be occupled by its members, we may put it down that the project will carried through te successful com- last few months, though not to any very serious extent, and it is still what any ofher country would regard as ex- tremely satisfactory. While our ex- ports of merchandise have recently shown a reviving tendency, the value of these for January being larger by several million dollars than for the same month last year, the import move- ment has been very heavy. There have been eight successive months of the heaviest imports on record, the result of the great trade activity and pros- perity of this country, It is stated that our purchases of forelgn luxuries have been on an unusual scale. Still the ex- cess of exports over imports for last month was more than $48,000,000, not yery much less than a year ago. Dur- fug the seven nonths of the current fiscal year the trade balance in favor of the United States has exceeded $258,- 000,000, It is remarked that aside from our crop fallure in 1901 the decline in the trade balance is due to abnormal trade activity and high prices in the United Btates, colneldent with depression in Europe. Of course this cannot go on indefinitely. The New York Journal of Commerce says that gvld»gtly natural forces are at work hldlu reaction and counteracting the extraordinary conditions that have prevailed in this country for the past five years. “As goon as supply overtakes demand more normal conditions must be expected to prevall, although It must be acknowl- edged that that contingency is mot yet| at close range.” Indeed it seems to be | remote and the decline in the trade bal ance I8 by no means significant of an approaching reaction. —_— MORE POWER FUR THE PRESIDENT. The power conferred upon the p dent of the United States by the law creating the bureau of corporations ap- pears to be regarded in some quarters —and doubtless by the corporations generally—as dangerous. The law gives the president authority to make public, in his discretion, Information obtained by the bureau in regard to the organiza- tion, conduct and management of cof- porations, other than common carriers. The Investigation required to be made, under the direction of the secretary of commerce and labor, {8 intended to sup- ply the president with such information as he may need in order to intelligently recommend legislation respecting the corporations. If he deems such informa- tion to be of public interest he may give it, or so much of it as he thinks proper, publicity. It was thought better to thus make publicity permissive, relying upon the judgment of the chlef executive, than to make it mandatory. The New York Commercial calls it ‘“a tremendous power.”. under which the president may make or break a good many corporations at will, and says: “Not that the facts about a company's affairs are always in themselves repre- hensible or damaging to its reputation, but their use in certain hands and at certain times might ruin almost any corporation. Think for a moment what might result to the average company doing an interstate business if some fine morning Its bank, its attorney and fits managers and employes should exploit in print all they know. Yet the presi- dent, under this law, can learn and make public all that these persons could.” Now a company or corporation that is doing an interstate business lawfully and on an honest basis would not suffer from having the facts regarding its or- ganization and business conduct made publie, but it is not the intentlon of the law that information regarding corpora- tions of this kind shall be given pub- lieity. The purpose i8 to expose any corporation that is found not to be law- fully and honestly conducted and it is in the discretion of the president to de- termine how far this shall be done. For the sound corporations the law is really a protection. The Information. these will give will be secure. Only the un- sound or unlawful corporations have anything to fear from the operation of the law and these should be exposed. Those who see danger in the power thus conferred upon the president as- sume that at some time we may have a chief executive who will want to de- stroy all corporations. Rational people will have no apprehension on this score. It is a possibility, it indeed it be possi- ble, far too remote for present atten- tion. So far as President Roosevelt is concerned, no corporation organized and conducted in compliance with the laws and which deals fairly and honestly with the public has anything” to fear at his hands. He is not an enemy of such corporations. On the other hand those that are not complying with the laws must expect that he will exercise fully and firmly the power conferred on him. The assurance of this will doubtless have a most salutary effect. WHY? The principal purpose of the Omaha charter amendment bill fathered by the Douglas delegation In the legislature seems to be to effect a readjustment of the salaries paid various city officers. And the principal purpose of the salary readjustment seems’ to be to almost double the salary of the city comp- troller” by raising it from $1,800 to $8,000. The salary of the governor of Ne- braska is $2500. Why should the comptroller of the city of Omaha be paid as much and more than the state's chief executive? The salary of the chief justice of our supreme court is $2.500. Why should the comptroller of the city of Omaha be paid more than an occupant of the supreme bench? The salary of the auditor of state is $2,500. Why should the auditing offi- cer of the city be paid more than the auditor of state? The salary of the city attorney is $2,500 and the position requires a law- yer of thorough tralning and tried ex- perfence. Why should the city comp- troller, who is simply an accountant, be paild more than the corporation’s legal adviser? The salary of the city engineer is $2,500 and the position requires techni- cal skill and practical experience in construction of public works. Why should the city comptroller, who *at most supervises three or four office clerks, be paid more than the engineer in charge of all the city's construction? Under the existing Omaha charter the city comptroller, the eity clerk and the city electriclan all recelve the same sal- arles. Why should the salary of the city electrician be reduced $300 and that of the city clerk be increased $200, while the salary of the city comptroller is in- creased §1,2007 Why? Em———————— South Dakota's legislature is provid- ing by law for keeping a complete in- ventory of all property belonging to the state in any of its departmepts or in- stitutions and for having the lsts checked up periodically. This is a good idea that should commend itself to law- makers in this and other states. The strong as formerly, but there is no ques- tlon that much loss is still sustained in this manver. If a plan can be devised to put a complete stop to it, it should be readily adopted. The assertion of Attorney Ben White of the Elkhorn that the terminal prop- erty of railroads has no value aside from its connection with the main line is on a par with the assertion of Attor- ney Baldwin of the Union Pacific that the value of the terminals is insepara- ble from the value of the entire road. We have right here in Omaha a strik- ing object lesson of the value of rail- way terminals aside from their connec- tion with the remainder of the system in the leases by the Union Pacific to the Chicago trunk lines, giving them the use of the Omaha depot facilities for a stipulated annual payment. In St. Lonis the raflway terminals converging in the union station are all owned by a separate corporation distinet from the railroads entering over them, which pay a rental for the privileges enjoyed. Not only are the terminals in St. Louls sep- arately owned, but they are separately valued. Some idea of the real value of such properties may be obtained from the fact that the St. Louls Terminal Rallroad assoclation has issuned $18,000,- 000 in bonds, with an additional out- standing issue of $17,500,000, making the total amount of bonds on which it pays 4 per cent interest $35500,000, to say mnothing of the shares of stock which may claim dividends. The most difficult thing for the rallroads enter- ing Omaha to explain is how they were able to estimate the value of the Omaha terminals and figure out their earnings for the purpose of defeating the maxi- mum freight rate bill ten years ago, while they now insist the terminal values are Inseparable for taxation. St In a speech at Baltimore, Willlam Jen- nings Bryan declared that if his friends can ever get entire control of the na- tional government they will Institute so many reforms that the republicans will rot obtain a foothold in a generation. If ‘we remember rightly, the same promises were made with reference to the con- trol of the state government here in Nebraska by the Bryanites, but when they were once in the saddle they for- got all about reform, with. the result that the republicans regained not only a foothold, but the whole thing. S Measurements by County Surveyor Edquist of rallway mileage in Douglas county do mnot tally with the returns made by the roads for purposes of tax- ation. But that is not surprising. In making up their schedules the pald tax evaders of the roads are accustomed to dropping all the franchise values and big blocks of rolling stock, and it is only in keeping with their practice to forget a few miles of trackage here and' there. etk Will Have, Harned a Rafse. 8t. Louts, Globe-Democrat. If President Roosevelt shall succeed in settling the strike problem and regulating the trusts nobdy ‘will feel like objecting to the proposed fnérease of his salary to $100,000. —_— The Welght of Evidence. New York World. An fssue of veracity raised between President Baer on the one hand and the Civic Federation, headed by Grover Oleve- land, Bishop Potter, Archbishop Ireland and men of like prominence, is unfortunate —for somebody. Promoting Good Roads, New York Tribune. The demand for broad tires should keep pace with the active and encouraging prog- gress of the agitation for good roads. Ruts in the highways would be comparatively few and cause comparatively little trouble were it practicable to abolish entirely nar- row tires on vehicles | An Approprinie Combinatio; Chicago Post. A Dbill has been introduced in the Wis- consin senate providing for the distribu- tion in the schools of a history of the Standard Oll company and of the United States senate. We must admit that our backwoods statesmen may be pardoned for assuming that these two things may be most appropriately studied together. No Occasion for Surprise. Philadelphia Record. There is no reason why the president and Secretary Root should have been sur- prised, they are reported to have been, at the “Interesting discovery” that the globe which stands in, the cabinet room, and which was prepared from British Ad- miralty charts, ‘“sustalns the contention of the United States in all particulars” to the Alaskan bounda: It 1s an ele mentary part of the case of the United States that British maps, and even Cana- dian maps made not many years ago, show the Alaskan boundary just where the United States government has alw it was. The Canadian claim is only a dozen or fifteen years old. WEALTH IN FARM ANIMALS, Number and Value Incr Tremendous Pace. Louisville Courler-Journal. impressive {llustration of the creese of actual wealth that has been go- ing on in this country during the last few years is shown in the estimate of the num- ber and value of farm animals at the be- An in- ginning of 1903, just lssued by ‘the statis: ticlan of the Agricultural department. According to his figures there was a gain of 487,573 in the number of animals over the previous year, and a gain of $119,345,- 450 in their value. As the value is estimated at the tremend- ous sum of $3,108,515.740, seen what an important element of our na- tional wealth is to be found in these an mals. in number and value with the exception of “other cattle,”” mules and swine. Milch cows have galned, but other cattle show a falling off of thirty-one cents per head in value, and a decline of 68,591 in number. Horses have advanced $3.64 in value per head and galned 26,149 In number. Mules have gained $4.52 per head In value, and though they have lost 28,927 in number, presumably on account of the British buy- {ng, they now represent an aggregate value of $197,763,327. as compared with $186,411,704 for January 1, 1802. Swine galved seventy-five cents in average value and $22852,908 in the aggregate, but lost 1,776,266 in pumber, tendency of public property bought with mopey out of the publie treasury to dis- appear mysteriously 1s perhaps not as These figures when taken in connection with the vast sum represented by the value of the 1902 farm crops, show that the crea- tion of the actual weslth on the farm has been golug on at & tremendous pace. 1a | it can be readily | Every item on the list has increased | THE OMAHA DAILY BEE: FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1903. ROUND ABOUT NEW YORK, the Current of Life in the Metrop: An unnamed comie opera soprano in New Yogk, who has an abundance of money and a Wwicked penchant for imitation, shock- ingly offends the dignity of the elite by imitating Mrs. John Jacob Astor in every way possible. Never since the ancient house discarded peltry as a business have the Astors been so annoyed. And that, too, by a comic opera singer. The climax eame last week, when the woman of fashion added to her stable accoutrements of a horse cover of fine seal leather with the Astor crest wrought Inconsplcuously in brass in one corner. Every one walted for the burlesque queen to do likewise. The next time she appeared her horse was covered by the leather trappings, But the crest was as big as a saucer. A practical joker or a man of unsound mind made victims of four churches in Brooklyn last week, mailing to each pastor a check for $5,000, drawn on the First Na- tios bank of Brooklyn. Payment was refused on presentation. The four churches are the Jones Methodist Episcopal church, Rev. Otho F. Bartholow, pastor; Bushwick Reformed church, Rev. Edward Niles; the Bouth Second Street Methodist Episcopal, Rev. Frederick Saunders, and the Plymouth, Rev. Newton Dwight Hillis, pastor. All four pastors recelved their checks on Friday and informed their congregations of the good fortune that had befallen their churches at the Friday night prayer meet- ing. At the Bushwick avenue church the meet- ing was turned into one of thanksgiving and “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow” was sung. All the checks were presented for pay- ment on Saturday. All of them were re- turned to the depositors marked “No ac- count.” The checks were signed Robert Schoeider, jr. Public curiosity bids fair to be aroused to an unusual degree by an excavation soon to be made on the property at the junction of Pearl and Beaver streets, New York, be- cause on that spot, according to report, once stood the house where lived Captain K14d when he was not busy with his “long, low, rakish craft.” Not only will an ex- cavation be made, but, as a fifteen-story ‘building is to be built on the site, caissons will probably be put down, so that if the late Captain Kidd stored his treasure there nothing can prevent its discovery. In Kidd's time the shore of East river was between what are now Pear] and Water street 11 beyond that on the present map belng “made ground”—and the present own- ers of the plot in question say that the report of K1dd's possession of it at one time {s well authenticated. The plot is flat- tron in shape. Of the millions of bottles used every year about one-half are lost, and the other half used again. They are collected by servants, janitors, rag pickers, dump pick- ers and small boys, and sold at a half cent, a cent, or two cents, to a junk dealer, who disposes of them to a bottle dealer, from whose place, when they are cleaned and assorted, they go back agaln into trade. “The busines: sald a dealer quoted by the Evening Post, “looks simpler than it really is. Collecting is easy, and cleaning presents no difficulties. ‘When a bottle is very dirty, say, where it contains paint, it costs more to clean it than it will sell for when cleaned. Such bottles are never bought. The assorting demands considerable trade knowledge. All bottles which have names blown in the glass are put by themselves, They are purchased by their original owners, and sometimes by imitators. “Drug store or prescription bottles maks & class. We don't care much for them, they are so cheap originally that the profit is very emall. Rhine wine and Moselle bottles are in large demand, as they are nearly all imported. Whiskey and gin bottles make good stock. They go to the distilleries, bucket shops and cheap saloons. Champagne bottles are not quite so profit~ able. They are used by American cham- pagne makers, cider bottlers and mineral water men. Cologne and fancy perfumery bottles go to the BEast Side, where cheap scents are manufactured. Many patent medicine bottles, especlally those of odd design, are bought by the manufacturers. The same rule applies to ink ard mucilage bottles, but only to larger sizes. Magnums and extra chiantis always find a ready ‘market. “Another important point is the attitude of a customer. Many bottlers, saloons, and drug stores will receive our goods delivered in open baskets. It does not hurt their trade for the public to know that they use second-hand bottles. Others are very different, and insist on their bottles being packed in boxes and crates, as if they came from the glass works. Formerly we laige business in beer and milk bot- trades have organized an excellent system of co-operative collecting and distributing which was, of course, at our expense, We do not utilize broken bottles. In Burope they are mixed with mortar and laid on the top of low walls, where they make an insurmountable bar- rier. They are also broken finely, mixed with plaster of Paris and poured or rammed into ratholes. When the plaster sets, no rat will ever gnaw it. Mixed with cement, broken bottles make a good beton or con- crete for military wi PERSONAL NOTES, The business to be handled by the new Department of Commerce will aggregate about $20,000,000,000 this year. Secretary Cortelyou may have to remove his coat. The North Dakota legislature passed suitable resolutions on the death of Cap- tain Alexander Griggs, the ploneer steam- boat captain of the Red river, who founded the town of Grand Forks. Commenting on the statement of Presi- dent Eliot of Harvard that the average of Harvard graduates two, Miss Susan B. Anthony says: “That is quite emough. Harvard graduates do not always make the best fathers.” Although the women of the kindergarten bazar turned up thelr noses at the cotton bandkerchief Mrs. Roosevelt sent them, the Texas legislature 1s of the opinion that the gift s not to be sneezed at, representing, as it does, the chief staple product of the south. James G. Stewart, the official photog- rapher of Abraham Lincoln, and during whose campaign for the presidency he made over half a million plctures, s still living in Bloomington, Ill. He owns one of the finest collections of Lincoln photographs in existence. Senator McComas was pressing an amend- ment to a pending bill when there were about half a score other members on the floor. It came to a vote at length and only Mr. McComas responded to the call for ayes. No one voted “no’’ and President Pro Tem Frye gravely proclaimed: “The aye has it." Since the recent agitation of the t perance question in the United States senate Mr. Clark of Montana has come to be called “the walking speak easy.” The rule against selling liquor in the senate cafe is being rigidly enforced, but the Montana man carries in his pocket a small looking but capacious flask of fne old Scotch whisky. He never takes luncheon alone, but al invites & colleague, with whom he shares the contents of his fSask ore they begin thelr midday meal. children is less than | SOME UNFIT INDIAN AGENTS, How the Kickapoos Were Worked by & Kansas Hust Indianapolie Newe. The latest report of the Indian Rights association Indicates that there fs still need of improvement in our Indian service, and especially in the appointment of Indi agents, which is still on a political basis, and a bad one. A blehop of the Episcopal church recently spoke from & Philadelphia pulpit of an agent known to him who *“lay drunk on the ground,” exposed to public view—an unfortunate cxample to Indians, who should look to him for protection and guidance as the representative of the great father. Another agent who violated a United States statute and rendered himself liable to a fine and imprisonment—which, by the way, was never imposed—was only removed after more than & year's per- sistent effort on the part of the associa- tion. A man at one time agent at Fort Belknap, Mont., s under indictment for malfeasance in office. His predecessor in office charged with similar offences com- mitted suicide when this agent was in- dicted, rather than risk & similar fate. But most of the agents do not commit sulclde. They hang on as long as there is a cent to be made. An interesting speocification s made in the case of the Kickapoo Indlans, formerly of this state, but now in Kansas. A mis- sionary among them charges that the agent, who is also president of a local bank, was privately interested in the pur- chase of the allotted lands of deceased Indians; that all ehecks given to the In- dians for annuities, ete., must be presented at the agent’s bank for payment; that the trader stands by the paying teller when such payments are made, and the amount alleged to be due him from each individual s deducted before the Indian is given any money. It is further clalmed that when the law permitting the sale of the lands of deceased allottees was passed by congr the agent and two of his business asso- clates formed a ocompany for speculative purposes, and that through misrepresenta- tion, duress and the use of money, options were secured on nearly every available plece of land at prices ranging from 40 to 60 per cent less than the real value. These business associates of the agent had free access to the agency records describing the available tracts, together with the names of the heirs, while other parties wishing to secure the land found it impossible to get information necessary to comply with the regulations of the department in this matter. Competition was therefore vir- tually forced to sign agreements to sell these tracts for the price offered. Where money was given to secure the Indlan's consent, it 18 sald that such amount was to be deducted from the stipulated price when settlement was made. One instance is given where these en- terprising speculators, upon learning of the death of a young girl, went to the house while the funeral services were being held and endeavored to induce the parents to sign an agreement for a sale of thelr daughter's allotment. They were unsuc- cessful at the time, but shortly after that the father of the dead girl, while Intoxi- cated, gave his consent to a sale of the land. Subsequently the man’'s wife was taken to the agent’s banking office and kept there until she finally signed the agreement. Of course the great majority of the people of the United States want the Indians treated with at least common de- cency, but there does not seem to be much hope for it so long they bhave anything to be cheated out of, and the chance to do the cheating is made a political plum. Somebody once suggested that only Sev- enth-day Adventists should be appointed Indian agents—because they belleve the day of judgment is in progress. It might be worth while to try them. ——— EAST AND WE! New England Plea for Toler: Coratality. Boston Globe. We are older than the west, we know, and young America is disposed to be some- what impatient of age. This is the only real difference between the two sections, a difference for which neither 1s responsible. It is not our fault that we are the elders in the sisterhood of states, and the west cannot help being young. But this gap between us in years influences and estranges our temperaments more than the gap betwen us in miles. * * o “I can,” 1 the boast of the wes Too often New England has foolishly r plied, “'You can’ That never s worth while. To tell a man he can’t do this or that is only to challenge and spur him on. When the westerners seek to do something that the east belleves to be unwise, we should not tell them they ean’t do it, but rather that they ought not to do it. Age should study to meet youth halt way in the gult of time that separates them. There is nothing so pitiable and useless and hopeless in this world as the old man who permits the past to form a shell about him and isolate him from the present and the tuture. New England must look more to the west than it is Its habit to do. It must not measure American projects either by the standards ot Old England or by those of New England, but by the American stand- erd. There are too many of our peqple who regard the continent lying beyond the Hudson as @ terra incognita. Those who have mot seen the west should see it, and many of those who have traversed it should go again with more open minds, It is worse than useless to go anywhere with our own little private and arbitrary tape measure forever in our hands, chang- ing our skies without changing our minds. That was the trouble with the celebrated lady who went to heaven and complained because it was not llke Boston. It is just as absurd to Institute such a comparison in Omaha or In Rome. Seasonable Hini Indianapolis News. If Queen Wilhelmina names the umpire in the Venezuelan case, it is to be hoped that she will not select any of the cdg- nomens that are applied by the bleachers when the home team is losing. GREATEST YRAR POR WHEAT, —_— Granaries Toaded with Last Year's Crop Onlculated to Boom Th Cleveland Leader. Bxperts in the grain trade have coms quite gemerally to the opinton that the world’s production of wheat last year ex- ceeded the lary crops of all other sea- sons, It Is thought that the yleld was about © per cent bigger than that of the greatest harvest previously recorded, which made 1898 famous in the grain markets. This {8 an important factor in the com- fort and welfare of the oivilized world, ‘where nearly all of the wheat fs grown. It 18 a strong Influence on the side of economy and abundance in food, and it means much, in & business sense, for many millions of farmers in various parts of Burope, Amer- fca, Australla and Asia. Africa grows little wheat. It is interesting, also, to note that the United Btates, though exceeding any other country in the production of wheat, did not have a record-breaking crop last year, un- less the statisticlans are in error. It was the third best wheat yield in this coun- try, though not far behind the unmatched barvest of 1901. But in Russia. Austria. Hungary, Germany, Roumania, Spain and Canada, besides a few countries of less importance in wheat growing, the crop of last year beat all others. It will be noticed that of these lands which came to the highest point they have over reached in wheat production, Canada mlope is new. Bome of the others are among the oldest, in point of ofvilization and tillage, in the world. When Spain can’ beat all records in growing wheat, what shall be aaid of the predictions made, from time to time, that the world would be cropped to exhaustion tn a comparatively short perfod, and would then bacome unfit to sustain such a population as it already supports? There is good cheer for those who like to look far ahead Into the future of the race in such facts as the increasing pro. ductivenéss of ancient lands like Spain and Italy. It all means that with tolerable care man will never use up the capital which the globe he inhabits has given, TICKLISH THOUGHR. Wright—Is your naw book pure fiction? EW 11 vv}xe mld by, istake. I e ve o a mistake. It' g::l{)(her kind that pays.""—Yonkers B\llelT First urmon—'rhn Blder Smudge is a wlsaowes. l;'l‘ t h econ rrasa_Preity _mi three-ourths.—New \'ork’E s el (M brother carries the bratns of the flh&—Dfiem'l make him round shouldered, does 1t?7—Yonkers Statesman # “Can I put up here tonight?" asked the seedy man 'ho was slxn‘f‘ his name in m.Yhmhn ald the lerk. lvan “Yes, 8ir, gald the clerk. “In advance." —Chicago Trtbune. e ‘It seems he was a gay old rake, aftér Two_widows have turned up, I hear,/' 'Yes. Which Fmv?! that sometimes it's the ‘better hal (hnl doesn't know how the other half lives.”—Philadelphia Press: “Don't spen’ all yoh mune on clothes,” sald Unole Eben. “It's a good deal ke spendin' yoh las' dollar 'Oh a pocket l\ook an' den discoverin' dat you ain’ got no mo' use ‘foh 1"~ Washington Star. “But, my dear husband, it really is un- !mt of yau to_abuse mothers-in-law so. good ones.” “Well—well, never mind. anything against grumbling about.” 'First of all,” sald Dr. Pricé-Price, “I fll.ll Invo to take your temperature.' M ' crltsd ths {‘:j:' l:l‘en! b you' e purty near woryml 1 had, but ye tter. cure. me me YW l‘lt ymlr pay.'" icago Tribune. Miss Kmeh—x ov-rhal.rd 81y Adaglo remark thet 1 had on axiapraliay volos 1 haven't sald ours; it's only mie I'm Boston Transcript. Philadelp! A WORLD OF LITTLE THINGS. A. J. Waterhouse in New York Times. A nme il nt laughter, a chord in na~ A Mitlo decd of nnuoou'nu- to stand against the wrol A little duty heeded; & little honor won: A Mo S lun—onnded. and a little kind- ness don A llllle labor daily; a little prayer and raise; A lflsle t of kindness to gladden weary ays And so the whole creation to its ceaseless heaven swing: s, For little man is living in & world of little things. A little hope to cheer us, although it walt- A Htlla nre fl comfort when winter nights are A lttle dream, God-given, to bless us on the wa: A m&ae vdv:lycnma walting us at ending of A little purpose shining through every deed A little .bunch of roses to overspread the A little ‘peace surpassing to which the spirit clings, For little man is iving in a world of little things. A lttle hone. & little love, a lttle toil and A lml- ‘glimpse beyond the vell, a little blem guesse A llule faith, & e ‘doubt, a lttle blindea A llllle Illl(ln‘ Journey, and a little of ite us A utle lnc'lofln merely of little ways we A mns drn.m of heaven awaiting at the A ||nle '"“1'"" upward, although on broks ngs, ¥or little man is living in s world of little ngs. E———— THERE’S A FRAME For every nose. You get the proper shape from us, fitted with the proper lenses. The right glasses would be wrung unless fitted before the eyes in exactly the right position. J. €. HUTESON & CO., 213 8. 16th St, Paxton Block. ——— Not too late If itis not too late for you to get a Winter Overcoat we've some up-to-date Swagger Coats and regular lengths too, that are reduced. A mighty good purchase if you want one for the rest of the season and all of the next. NO CLOTHING FITS LIKE OURS. Browning, King & Co, R. 8. Wilcoz, Mgr. i & — P =