Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, December 25, 1909, Page 4

| ] (HE BEE: OMAHA, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 25, 1909. _Tue FOUND: AHA DAILY BI BY EDWARD ROSEWATER VIC ‘T()n ROSEWATER, Fvwm at Omaha postoffice as second matter TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION. Dally Bee (without Sunday) o0s yea o Dally Bee and Sunday ear. DELIVIRED By CARRIER, Dally Bee (including Sunday), per week. 16 Dally Bee (without Sunday), per week..100 vening Beo (without Sunday), per week fc Evening Bee (with Sunday), per week...10¢ Surday Hee, one year $2.50 Saturday Bee, one year 1.60 Address all compiaints of irregularities in delivery to City Circulation Department. OFFICES, Omaha—The Bee Bullding. South Omaha—Twenty-fourth and N Council Bluffé—15 Scott Street Lincoln—§18 Little Bullding Chicago—1548 Marquette Bullding. New York—Rooms 1101-1162 No. Thirty-third Street Washington—72 Fourteenth Street, CORRESPONDENCE Communications relating to new torial matter should be addressed Bee, Editorial Department REMITTANCES. Remit by draft, express or postal order Bee Publighing Company roceived in payment of reonal checks, except on not accepted. e 34 West N.W. and edi: Omaha P Only 2-cent stam mail accounts. Omaha or eastern exchanges, STATEMENT OF CTRCULATION. Georgo B. Taschuck. tre Publishing Company, belng duly sWOrn. says that the aetual number of full and complete coples The Dally, Morning. Evening and Sunday Bee printed during the month of Nav*nlvn 100, whs a8 tollows: 1 41,990 43,160 Total. .. Returned WDI.I. . Net Total.. Dally Average..,. GEO, B. TZSCHUCK. Tr surer. Notary Public. Subscribers leaving the eity tem- orarily uld have The B matled to them., Address will be d as often as requested, Merry Christmas to all, There is lbout Zelaya's manifestoes the satisfaction that no one has to read them. % One note of cheer comes out of the ‘Watsons' mess; and that 18 the loyalty of the poet's wife, Still with, only fifty milllons, Mrs. Harriman will not have to worry about the high cost of living. Will Mr. Morgan's .purchase of two soup tureens for $40,000 ténd to make the diet ‘narp popular? When it.comes to deadlocks, the Mis- souri demgerats seem to know both how to make aud how to- break. PITIEII, If Santa’Cla#s aian’t Dring you all you wanted, don’'t worry. Try to get a little pleasure out of what he did for others, Naliling the Stars and Stripes to the pole proves to bring a reward ‘of stars or stripes, according to who wields the hammer. And to think that the innocent candy cane of the Christmas tree is the pos- sible product of the short-weight scales of the custom house! Discovery of the prosaic facts will not interfere with story writers weav- ing fancies about the “‘cannibal’ island in the Gulf of California. Whereas Alexander sighed for more worlds to conquer, Mr. Wu goes back to China discouraged because there are no more questions to ask. John W. now says he never told the Methodists that he was going to turn his back on the gates of the gambling world. Well, who believed it? Having demonstrated its ability to give a square deal, regarless of its own feelings, will Copenhagen supplant The Hague as an arbitration center? e Latest In pomology is the puckerless persimmon, but let us be thankful that there remains one Other cause for puckered 1ips besides the whistle. The African royalty Roosevelt has been receiving on his travels is as nothing compared to the royalty he will recelve on hll writings when he gets home, et s S ot cmx'nth wab “vulgar” for any publisher, to attempt & cheaper edition of the “‘five-foot bookshelf,” but it is a form of‘tvul(srlly that the plebelan pocketbodk can tolerate. 1s it nap strange that railroads, pro- fessedly Nprofluble investments when the go v‘rumenl seeks to correct abuses, -hnnla be so enwerly bought up by the klu- of finance? A son & Jfm Hill has had a harrow- ing nyerbnce treed by a buffalo bull. For an estinet animal, the bison ap- pears to h holding hig own. But you couldn’t Keep the old man up a tree. ' —reee Mrs. C::ll\y may take it a per- sonal vindication of her stand against her artistthusband’s choice of domielle, that the sbffragists are to remove their hudqulr,n to New York from Ohfo. Hlvlh:,’locued to run a daily news- paper, th’-umnuu begin their real troubles, But why ““The Wireless?" If the dear tures expect to make a success | litics, they will find wire- pulling 'Qt/tlie first essentials. - “Merry Chri Perhape the most redeeming trait of human nature is that at least once a | year mankind 1s willing to payse in its a1 rieh and, laying aside &ll animos- |itles, express a general wish for the gool and welfare of all.. Your neigh- bor greets you today with “Merry | Christmas,” and you return his saluta- |tlon. The stranger you encounter ex- presses in his face, his manner and his greeting the cordiality that supports the sincerity of his “Merry Christmas.’ This is not an empty and megning- lese phrase, no matter how trippingly it may fall from the lips. Even its most careless expression has in it something of that element of good that |18 Jatent in all natures. The religious | aspect may mean much or little today. That depends entirely on the viewpoint, but regardless of this fact, the whole- some sentiment conveyed by ‘‘Merry Christmas” is an evidence of the fact that man {8 not essentially all bad, and that even in his lowest state he has the element of good and aspiration for right. Christmas is a day for giving. Even the most selfish nature expands under the genial influence of the seagon and the satisfaction that comes from the bestowal of remembrances at this time is far more enjoyable than that which comes in taking, This trulsm has been 8o often stated that its repetition seems unnecessary, It is the excuse, perhaps, for some extravagance, but extrava- gance that is easily forgotten when one considers the motive that underlies it. To the devout who logk upon the day as the nativity of the blessed Son of God, on whose life of patience and self- sacrifice rests the foundation of the Christian religion, it is doubly signifi- cant. It was this divine man who an- nounced the doctrine of love as the basis of personal conduct. *‘It'is more blessed to give than to receive,” He said, and by His example, as well as precept, He taught the world the sub- limity of His thought. And so the Christian, in contemplation of His birth, sees with eyes of faith the con- summation of His life given in the end that all might through Him recelve life, Thus to mankind, no matter of what condition or in what walk, Christmas is.a day of pecullar and appropriate significance, and to all of these we wish a Merry Christmas, | A Minor Chord. One of the greatest of human hearts is that of our national humorist, who is also recognized by the nations as our most notable author, Dr. Samuel L. Clemens, whose pen-name of Mark Twain, has been a household word for generations. This man more than any other now living has played the har- monies of mirth and good fellowship among our people, and who so gener- ous as he with his serene and joyous outlook on life through a..personal career that has been crowded .with the tragedies that beset the Tlesh and spirit! We know what his message to the world is on this hollday, for it gleams from every page of his books, stored with concentrated sunshine. We can hear his ‘“Merry Christmas” in his whimsical voice, with. his wonderful smile, above which his white locks are an aureole. Kindly, lovable Mark Twain, would that the response of mankind: ¢b awaken in you one touch of the mérri- ment that you have kindled in our uni- versal breast! But not for you the merriment, alone and desolate in your house of mourning; for you only the resignation, and the waiting, and the inner faith and the living love of all men to comfort you at the ashes of your hearth, Not the “'Merry Christ- mas” we would like to say, may we ut- ter; but oh, Mark Twain, the children of your brain and soul, they live for- ever, and contribute to the merry Christmases of mankind throughout the year; and in token of the love the whole troubled world bears to you, we may say “God bless you, Mark Twain, nobleman, let nothing you dismay!"” Chance for Our Youth. The launching of another United States battleship, which is sald to be the most wonderful fighting glammoth now afloat, renews attention to the fact that with our greater navy we need a larger force of trained men fon the mastery of our ships that shall command the respect and obedfence af the rebellious nations. And it is an occasion for ambitious youth fo recog- nize the opportunity for which ny of them have been longing in En in other flelds of endeavor. Among the names which the United States has blazoned in letters of gold all over the world, those shine supreme which had their beginning in the navy. Where is there an array that so stirs our own patriotism as Barry, Jones, Decatur, Farragut, Dewey, with the host of others no less distinguished that i{s encompassed in the annals over which those typical names stretch? The prodigious advance made in naval construction and equipment since the time when Commodore Barry exe- cuted the exploit of making the first capture of a foreign ship by a commis- sioned officer qf the United States navy, affords vaster opportunities for modera youth than were possible in those days of hand-to-hand confiict, for now the guns of the leviathan hurl pro- Jectiles across miles of distance with accuracy, and the huge mechanism s under exact control at the pressure of a finger applied to electric devices Thus the arts of war afloat have an in- finitude of delicate manipulation call- ing for men of parts to be the brains of the marvelous maohines. And while some may deplore the necessity for fighting ships, it must be remembered that the American has ever been an instrument in the neace of the world and in vhe spread of civilization, Beyond the seas and on the islands in the midst thereof are alien peoples who today have occagion to arise and call the American navy blessed, and in the forceful perpetua- tion of our doctrine of humanity the youth of today has a brilliant oppor- tunity. Our Hero Memorials. Secretary Dickinson’s plea for na- tional memorials at San Juan and other battlefields of Cuba because of the in- dividual and united valor shown by our commanders and our troops at those landmarks of signal victories, s well enough in its way, for tablets at sacred spots where men have laid down thelr lives In a humane cause serve to re- mind the thoughtless of deeds worthy of emulation. But one cannot but reflect that in a larger sense we have reared up a mem- orfal that all the world may read as it runs, in the reconstructed Cuba whose sufferings ‘enlisted our forces In the most unselfish war the world has ever witnessed. Inscriptions of metal may be neces- sary to mark the spots of special valor for the guidance of future generations, but the visible and glorlous monument is already reared to our heroes In the happiness and prosperity of the island- ers whom we liberated from oppression by the very heroism now detailed by officlaldom for congress to recognize. Japanese Assurances. There is a holiday flayor about the greetings brought to Washington by Ambassador Uchida from Japan, and while naturally he could not be ex- pected to discuss the topics that are continually active in the popular mind where Nippon is considered, neverthe- less the hints that he threw out were of a most reassuring nature. We must remember, however, that the baron is first and Jast a shrewd diplomatist, whose training precludes his saying anything but pleasant things and the nice-sounding words of diplomacy fre- quently have been known to conceal guile. For example, touching on the vexed matter of immigration, which caused such a foment on the coast, he remarks that “the existing agreement has no fixed date of expiration,” as though that was a guarantee of perpetuation of good fellowship. As a fact, how- ever, that simply means that it is sub- ject to revocation when either party finds it to its interest to break it, and while the advantage Is mutual, still it does not form a very secure basis for permanency of harmony, Fortunately, the general treaty with Japan does have a fixed date of expira- tion, and the State department is even now considering how best to renew its provisions. May it not be an advan- tageous time for also considering the incorporation of such agreement re- garding immigration and other Japan- ese problems as shall render more def- inite and secure all visible problems which afford possibilities for dispute between ourselves and the nation which Baron Uchida represents? Bread Instead of Bullets. Optimism occasionally gets its op- portunity, even in the zone of warfare, and what a pleasant sight it s to see the United States battleships pouring medical supplies instead of shells ashore at Bluefields, and the American State department superintending the distribution of bread instead of bullets among the famished Nicaraguans. The United States has never given the world a more striking and efficient lesson in the humanities, Prompt as it has been to respond always to succor the victims of calamity, in such rellef matters it has necessarily been a liberal sharer with the rest of the world. But in our neighboring troubled republic it is alone In fits work of cheer and oeneficence, This hospitable manifestation is prompted solely by goodness of heart, and is a spontaneous outburst of fel- lowship and loving kindness aroused by the necessities of the case. Yet it will bear its good fruit, for the event shows to even those among whom sus- picion of our intentions lingers, that we have no designs in Central America, but that we are actuated absolutely by desire for the general welfare. All over the world the Christmas bells are ringing, but nowhere s their joyous peal more triumphant with the message of ‘‘Peace upon earth, good will toward men,” than in troubled Nicaragua, where our navy adminis- ters relief to the wounded, and our tighting men bear food to the hungry. Can the Illinois legislature, now in session, hear the voice of the mine ex- plosions demanding safety precautions in the mines? Unless legal restrictions are provided by statute, the Cherry martyrs will have died in vain, —_— The apple is now touted as a cure for applejack appetite and kindred evils. Gradually this much maligned fruit is coming into its own, but it has long trayeled a long lane from the garden of Eden. R Red Spots on the Record. Chicago News. Some rallroads are not going to be able to report this year that they carried mil lons of passengers without Injuring one passenger, | " Burope's Y Kings. New York World. By the dcath of Leopold another is added to the st of amiable young kings on European thrones of whom Alfonso and Manuel are examples. These youthtul monarchs have opportunity to secure their hold on their kingdoms by & wise and temperate adminjstrjtion of their high of- fice. But It will be the part of prudenes Poetic Yuletide Sentiments A Christmas Carol. song in the air! star in the sky! daop Prl or! And_ the Beautiful sing, Fur“lhc- manger at Bethlehem oradles & ng. There's a tumult of Joy Q'er the wonderful birth, For the virgin's sweet boy 1s the Lord of the earth. Ay! the star rains its fire and the Beauti- tul sing, For the ‘manger of Bethiehem cradles a ng. while the In the light of that star Lie the ages impearied; And that song from afar Has swept over the world. Every hearth is aflame and the’ Beautitul sin| In tho homes of the nations that Jesus ia king. We rejolce in the light, And we echo the song That comes down through the night From the heavenly thron Ay! we shout to the lovely e gel they ring, And e u’re-( in His cradle our Savior and King. ~Joslah Gllibert Holla A Song for Christmas. Chant me a rhyme of Christmas— Sing me & jovial s And though 1¢ ia filled with laughter, Let it be pure and strong. SIW of the hearts brlmmnd over ith the story of the r Of the echo of childish volces' That will not die away, Of the blare of the tasseled bugle And the timeless clatter and beat Of the drum that throbs to muster Squadrons of scampering feet. But, O, let your volce fall fainter, Till, blent with a minor tone, You temper your song with the beauty Of the pity Christ hath shown, And sjng one verse for lh. volceless; And yet, ere the song be don A verse for the ears that hear nu'., And a verse for the sightless one. For though it be time for singing LA merry Christmas slee, et a oW, sweet volce o ath Run' through "the melody, O Dotho® —James Whltl.‘nmh Rlley. Lights of Christmas, The lights of Christmas With splendor glow; Out on the gloom, Out on the snow; Streaming from millions Of windows thrown wide; Proclaiming good cheer At Christmas-tide, The lights of cmmmu Gleam on hig) In_millions of lurs That strew the sky; These windcws of heaven Are, too, thrown wi And heaven seems n At Christmas-tide, But tha lights of Christmas That holily shine; rs that lead Child Divine, Stream not from windows And not from the skies, nut f, upa arkle from millions ildren’s eyes, BAYOLL NE TRELE.— An 014 Christman Oh, wake ye, little children, And be of goodlie cheer. Yon sun so high along the sky Hath shone two thousand ynr And once it saw a little child In manger lying undefiled, And all about the cattle mild Did lovingly draw near. So wake ye, little cMMr n, And be ‘of goodlie cheer. or Omah - Carol. Oh, wake ve, little chnaun. And let each heart ‘be Good Will to Mey And why lhmll Awake, awake, Miha stng, AN evect vs dvery iiving thin For man and beast () greet your King On that first Christmas day! Then wako ve, little chilaren, For this is Christmas dav. Everypody's Magazine. u|§ clrolod then, Hark, Ye! Merrie Gleem: Good morrow! men of gay employ, May peace attend your way, And may no note of griet alloy The merrie asure of your joy Upon this Christmas Day. And If, belike, ye only think Of ale and goodly- roast; Then may your songs b Of gold to buy the meat which ye estsem the most. But if beneath the motley coat, Beat hearts for higher things, | Ah! then ye know how weak the note He makes within his strainin Who feels not what he sings. And il the glees and merrie trolls That ye may sing today, Avs pothing ta tha sona That, rolls Unheard by men, from grateful souls Of simple folk who pray. Thl- duy upon 8 ed orn' the Godly Bo Whowe blood. ancther d That Souls that hungered might b6 fed To their eternal joy. 8o, it your glees small comfort bring, Your hunger to allay, Jour souls may sull be tmquoun.. If ye the sweeter song will Of simple folk who pray. A. Daly. 1 11l my pipe and sit me down beside the bonny open fire. ‘Tis Christmas ev that mortal heatts What, all? Yes, there's not a nln Il‘ thing 1 need, And yet somehow what iines are those that in the leaping flames I read? desire; Why should a grate fire cnrkle ®o and bliss iaugh at ail my sing Why there s Jack! Five Jon wo roomed together, he and Full many a midnight romp little cared how time would fly Where are the steins we used to rllnk ana where the songs we used to sing? Ah, Jack! dear Jack! I'm all alone, is the meseage now you bring? For there you are as big as life, slippered Just_as you used to be, Great Scoti! old man, don't tell me now that they are yours--those children three. what ] ‘The published statement of November 16, '09, . hofe' O UL LATEL I R showed that this' bank had outstanding in- r Ana oS t cools your fevered head? terest bearing certificates totalling $1,088,810. y Gearge, my boy, have you Are thoes her soft white pandet your pillow with such graclous care? 111 a8 you are, you're better off than I am, Jim.,’ tonight. 1 sweary you dle, you're not alone; you will not be, "0!‘l though et 's change is this the open fire' brings over me? Now there Is George, my pal of old, the very first to vlead our cause, You Held that single blise was best and now you're playing Santa Claus; 1 hardly recognized you through that cot- ton batting fringe you wear, And there's o little boy and giri now walt: ing for you on the stalr, Go down to them with laugh and son go maks those ittls youngsters glad, I realize ‘at last my boy, I've not the wealth I thought I had. —Detroit Free Press. Is There a Santa Claust a Santy Claus He pins me for an answer; An' 1s his reindeers all got names from Blitzen ug to Prancer; An' does he shake like jelly does, with all his joliy laughter?— A dozen questions every hour, a-comin’ after! I try to tell him not to vex and fret a “Is the an’ more ody &0, “Is there a Santy Claus?" Th' 1 don’t know! a book says to ted th' ’eo‘o r is 1I'ble lg idle word o' his, accordin’ to truth; a But seems ln me it never hurts to say a word that's pleu nt, An' what ain't 8o some other day s rob’bly true at present. An' gere her; lookin' at dependin’ on Wi “Is lhen a Blnty Claus?" I've heard. Remember whon we's little tikes, an' Christmas was min a-com! to wish th' days to Christmas y would go a-hummin’; Th' llraplll:n. th' hangin' crane, th' stock- all a-waitin'— We lllyed at home on Christmas eve, an’ never went a-skatin’; We set around an’ watched th' fire dle down into a glow— “Is there a Santy Claus?”’ Mebbe so. An' Christmas mornin'—well, We'd dreamt about th' ti Of hi igh bells, an' we got up while s were still a-twinklin'. ‘We was sure o' him them days as I am that I'm livin', An' that made half the goodness of the gettin’ an’ givin'. There's sperrits that is Dlrl of us an' ork: 88— We ul he'd comel nklin e8! fibur D, Nesbit. hen Christmas Comes. ‘When Christmas comes we one and all Our days of bglm‘m youth recall. ;',ho?oflilear ol d 0 fading memory destroy: But keeps secure in [nldul thrall, No matter what stern fate befall, Not all Ilf s wormwood nor its gall One bit_of their past charm alloys ‘When Christmas comes, ‘We see again the festal hall, Green garlands hung about its wall; The gift-bowed tree, the wealth of toys, ‘We once again are girls and boys, ‘When Christmas comes. ” —Geol rge Beers King. Tragedy of the Candles. A _little Eskimo once came To share our happy home, Brought by an Arctic traveler Across the frozen foam. On Christmas eve we dressed a tree As every home should do, With toys and snow and ‘lmnrinz things, And candles red and blu da The room was shut till Christm: When, after dinner time, All were to dance around the tree— That spectacle sublime! But ah! when the father hurried in The little wicks to Ilfht. In vain, the taper in his hand— No candle met his sight. “Hi, therel” he orles, “what joko s thi The candles, where are they And ail who helped to dress e tree Btood speechless with dismay. “The candles! There were forty-eight, Four dozen,” mother sald, 'Anfl not a single one is lef( A beam of light to shed.” Then spake the little Eskimo: ‘‘Me sorry what me done; Me very hungry in the night, Me ate them every one. ~The Delineator. for them to dwell lightly on the ‘“‘divine right”" of their rule. That theory has be- come pretty well attenuated, Every Little Helpa. St. Paul Ploneer-Press. Any other trust that feels consclence stricken or is afraid of the law should come up and hand a Christmas present to Uncle Sam. The total receipts from that source for the present year already ag- gregate over $3,000000 and all the crooks have not yet reported. Stretched to the Limit, Boston Transcript. Secretary Meyer's statistical method of Justifylng our naval expenditure is rather dangerous, The ratio of cost of the navy to the number of dollars worth of prop- erty In the United States theoretically pro- tected thereby, 1s, of course, abruptly small. But It is easy in this way to pal- late anything. e ——— ) Delicate War Question. Boston Transoript. The general staff has taken up for con- sideration a delicate subject in declding to draw up a project for regulating the rela- tions of war correspondents to the gov- ernment. It vecognizes that the people “want the news,” but that the purpose of a commander and the success of his plans may be put in jeopardy if the correspond- ents are allowed to gratity all the de- mands of thelr readers. The press has rights and #o has the government, and to find where the line of demarcation can be drawn as to' be permanent is the quest of the general staff, A free conference with the press ls suggested as one way for reaching & modus vivendi, and there is one great precedent, at least, favoring this course. Profound Discov Philadelphia Record The learned congressional commission of immigration in its latest repart has made & disquisition on the anthropologieal changes that take place In immigrants after their acclimatization in this country. For example, the blond dolichocephall, or long-headed races, frequently change into the brunette brachistocephali, or flat- headed, or vice versa. Another profound discovery of the commission is that the immigrants for the most part fare better In this country than they do in their na- tve homes. Who wil say that all this science s not worth more than twice the cost of the commission to the public treas- ury? Unless congress ghould intervene and Inopportunely stop the public printer the country is promised still more of it in future reports. \ —_— ! Enriching Speech. Boston Globe. speech, already opulent In is belng dally enriched. One of'its latest accumulations is the new ad- Jeotive “‘tafty,” signifying complaisant. “He was a good clerk,” sald a New Yorker, “but he was 80 good-natured to everybody, 80 tafty, that he neglected the interests of our corporation, and we had to let him 80." English synonyms, THE OMNIPRESENT FACTOR. Adjusting Wages to the High Cost of Living. Boston Herald, A great strike of rallway employes s threatened in support of a demand for a 10 per cent increase in wages. The man- agement of the larger rallway systems reply that business does not warrant such an increase, and that not until tuey have recovered trom the depression of busine and have met the demands on theiwr income for malntenance and new equipment can they consider the request for an increase. To which the workmen reply that the cost of llving has increased to such an oxtent that the 10 per cent increase is & necessity. It is probable that & careful and impartial Investigation would confirm the truth of the statements of both sides. The workingman needs a higher wage to meet the higher prices of the necessitios of life. The average rallroad Is not war- ranted by present conditions in permanent increase of its cost of operation. But the workingman must live. The cost of his ilving Is & factor in the question. If cap- ital deinands & reasonable profit, labor also rightly demands a reasonable return on its Investment, and that reasonable demand is determined by the required cost of his living which is the variant. If the cost of living 15 high be must get higher wages than when it is low. It Is for the Interests of every employer of labor, every industrial manager, or commercial director into whose ealculations a payroll enters, that the cost of living be subjected to expert Investiga- tion and that every unnecessary expense and every unreasonable profit be eliminated and here am 1 with all that gold can buy; times, -na thelr rare joys |' Established in 1857 as Kountze Bros, Nationalized in 1863, Charter No. 209 One of the Safest Forms of Investment Is a 3% Certificate of Deposit In This Bank, Which Has Over $12,000,000 of Assets. <> irst National ol Bankof Omaha from it. The problem of the cost of living 4nn priority over other industrial and soclal problems. It is the omnipresent factor. MORGAN AT THE 'PHONE, Getting Busy on Stray Lines Beyond “ae Bell. B timore American. The activity of J. P. Morgan & Co. dur- ing the last two weeks in buying up tele- phone companles scattered through Ohio and Indlana has aroused speculative query In every financlal center. Folowing the acquisition of the United States Long Dis- tance and the Cuyahoga Telephone com- panies announcement was made near the close of last week that a controlling in- terest had been obtained by the New York banking firm of six other independent com- panies. The system thus adquired em- braces 40,00 miles of long-distance lines and represents a capitalization of $11,000,00 common stock, $4,600,00 of preferred stock and a bond Issue of $12,600,00. The most generally accepted guess has been that the purchases have been made in the lnlereutq of the Bell company, which recenty bought out the telegraphic lines of the Goulds. It is emphatically denied, however, in what seems to be an authorized state- ment that there is any purpose in view to turn the properties over to the Bell cor- poration. Clarence Brown, general counsel for Morgan & Co., has declared that the properties were purchased as an invest- ment by the New York banking firm with- out consultation or arrangement with any other interests. The consolidated com- panles, it will be observed, constitute an important system, ramifyfg a thickly populated territory, and it is a reasonable conclusion that i the lines have not been purchased with the expectation of merging with the Bell system there s a purpose to make the acquisition the basis of a much more expansive system. If J. P. Morgan & Co. are to go Into the telephone business to stay, there is reason for the assumption that it will not be in a sma’l way. A FOOLISH PLEA. Unigue Argument of Corporation At- torney. New York Evening Post. Acoording to common bellef. the lawyer's functions consist in belng as clever as he can in behalf of his client. We some- times overlook the fact that a lawyer's duty may call upon him to make himself as ridiculous as he can. How well he occasionally succeeds is demonstrated by the attorney of a great rallroad who ap- peared before a legislative committee to argue that if an employers' llability law were In force rallway employes would de- Iiberately maim themselves In order that they might thereafter lead a life of great ease at the expense of the company. The temptation to grow angry with such rea- soning is quickly swallowed up by the temptation to laugh. Such a statement could very properly be characterized as callous and inhuman, it not for the fast that it Is much more properly classed as idlotic. There are doubtless reasons to bring forward against the proposed meas- ure. The rallways may not be able to atford it; it might depress actual wages; it might encourage thriftlessness and care- lessness among the men. But it has been left for a corporation lawyer to assert that workmen cannot be Insured against acci- dent because men are sure to cripple them- selves to earn the insurance. Perhaps the 360 men who perished in the St. Paul mine, at Cherry, started the fire with the object of attracting newspaper attention. SOME OF TAFT'S GOOD WORK. Achie nts that Make for Good, Clean Government. Des Molnes Capital. The Arbuckles have glady refunded to the United States government $600,000 in settlement of the government's claim against the firm on account of cheating by short welghts In paying import duties. The government has not compromised any right to prosecute the Arbuckles criminally. Put this down as a triumph for the Taft administration, which s doing its duty without a brass band. Upon trial five employes of the Sugar trust have been convicted of defrauding the customs, A jury found them gullty after a fair trial. A maximum penalty is $10,000 fine and four years 'lmpiison- ment or both. These are some of the achievements of the Taft administration in the interest of | good, clean government. Bvery man Is required to do his duty. But the Taft administration makes no noise in regard to its achlevements. The administration is also laboring to reduce the number of employes and to cut down the expenses of the government, which have tremendously grown during the last ten years. Let the fault-finders go on. They oan- not much longer, contend against the achlevements of the Taft administration. SAGE STUFFING. i 8ame to you! ¥ Look up and cheer the while, Put some heart In the greeting. Hearts ness sweetens hot alr. A pair of Christmas slippers that will fit are a joy while they last Feast on Christmas poetry today. To the morgue, tomorrow, for a year. Never measure the gift by the price tag It may be a marked-down figure. The old rellable red necktie continues the warmest bloom on the Christmas tree. No matter what the Danes decree, popu- lar confidence in the cook cannot be shaken today. Christmas sentiments are all their place, but Christmas reaches the spot. If you are still in doubt about who got there first, pull Santa Claus Into a corncr and start a quiz. The Christmas purse is not as fat as it was, but much fmproved in appearance. A surgical operation helps in a erisis Archeologists say that suspenders were invented before Christmas trees, Why they persistently hang together s not explained, The maker of the calendar did not im- prove his reputation as a prophet when he put the shortest day five days ahead of the actual one. A large assortment of Christmas gags to- day give their farewell scream for a year. Should you find them too much for your teeth, get an exe. Treasure the joys and forget the annoy- ances of the holiday rush. A diversion from the beeten path puts ginger where it will do the most good. It you get what you looked for, exult heartily; if not, don’t “holler.”” Herolsm had Its beginning In greeting disappoint- ment with a happy smile. Mark Twain's remark, “I'm behaving as good as I can,” and Gene Field's “I'm as good as 1 can be,” are excellent companion pleces for a cheery decoration. gl ) A MONEY MONOPOLY. right in substance Control of Vast Sources of Insurance Wenlth. New York World. No man, whether he be J. Plerpont Mor- gan or Thomas . Rydf) ¢HEUTA™te " per mitted to own a great life-fnsurarice com- pany. There is no man in the country who can safely be trusted with such power over $460,000,000 of other people’'s money, no matter what safeguards an insurance code may provide. Yet this is what the state of New York permits. In the case of the KEquitable the entive stock i only $100,000 and the dividends are limited by law to 7 per cent; yet Mr. Ryan paid James Hazen Hydo $2,500,000 for $50,200 of this $00,000 in stock. The legitimate earnings from the investment were only , $3514 a year. The Interest on $2,600,000 at the very modest rate of 4 per cent s $100,000 a year. Nominally Mr. Ryan's investment meant & loss of at least $96,48 annually: vet he was very glad to get the Hyde stock for $2600,000, and other bidders had previously offered twice as much There is no public information as to what Mr. Morgan paid for the Ryan hold- ings but nobody assumes that it was less than Mr. Ryan pald Mr. Hyde plus & reasonable return on the investment. No- body has assumed, either, that Mr. Ryan or Mr. Morgan in acquiring the Equitable was Influenced by philanthroplc considera- tlon for the widows and orphans of policy- holders. SPICED PUDDING. Mrs. Chugwater nudged her husband. “Joshia,” "she asked, In a low voice, at is that man in uniform doing?" {e's bottling a sample of the atmo: phere in this cary"” answer Mr. Chugwater. “What's he doing that for?" “He's going to use It as a fertilizer, What did you suppose?’—Chicago Tribune. “Do you belleve In a future pu ment of everlasting fire and brl msic “Only for my nelghbors,” replied (ho party of the egotistical part.—Chicago News. “Did you observe anything peeullar about that explorer’s observations?' asked one Arctic expert, “Yes,” repiied the other. ‘‘Most of them were personal and somewhat profa Washington Star. “I am told that King Edward sends a dally message to his chef complimenting him his dinner. “Yes," answel Mr. Crosslots. “We are all of one common hui y. Even a king has to go out of his way to jolly the ecook."—Washington Star. “I fear tha: “What nov “He wants to Hand letter."—Ka hoy of mine Is Incorrigible.” d Santa Claus a Black as City Journal. Tubb—0ld boy, want to gongratulate you on your specch at the banguet last night. 0'8udds (after walting a moment)—1 Know do, pard, and you're awfully sorry you can't do It truthfully. 1 sppreciate the effort, just the same.” Nasty weather, lsn't {t7—Chicago Tribun We wish you Very ‘Branine Yy Merry Christmas Qur store will be closed all day Christmas. A Merry Christmas! one and all a King &C2 OLOTHING, FURNIBHINGS AND HATS, / FIFTEENTH anp DOUGLAS STREETS, OMAHA, B. 8. WILCOX, Manager, -~