6 TIIE SUNDAY OREGOXlAJf, PORTLAND, AUGUST 30, 1903.
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CRIMES AND PENAIT1ES.
It Is unquestioned truth, confirmed
amply by experience, as stated by
Frederick Bhusman, in an address be
fore the Bar Association at " Seattle,
that in the administration of criminal
law acquittals increase when the pen
alties are regarded as too severe.
Moreover, there is increasing disposi
tion to regard as too severe many
penalties which formerly were en
forced by juries, almost as matter of
course. This is especially so in our
own country; less so in" England,
where there is more regard for prece
dent and for old custom than with us.
Every one observes that in the United
States convictions for murder in the
first degree are rare, unless robbery
be the object. Then juries seldom
hesitate. Statutory crimes, which
may be said to be created by ordi
nances enacted for the supposed good
of society, as violation of Sunday laws
and ordinances that forbid sale of
liquors, seldom can be punished in
communities where there is most need
of enforcing such regulations. Atlan
' tic City (N. J.) refuses to stop the sale
of liquors on Sunday, and openly de
fies the state law because most of the
people of the town, whose chief busi
ness is that of a seaside resort, find
profit in the liqour traffic, which they
believe cannot be dispensed with as
an attraction of the place; and the
majority of the annual visitors are
much of the same mind. The Mayor,
state's attorney, grand juries and trial
juries tell the Governor, in substance,
that the state law as to sale of liquors
will not be enforced in Atlantic City.
It is interest that creates this senti
ment, not mercy, as in the multitude
of cases where Juries vote acquittal
because they think the penalties too
severe. In nearly all cases of homi
cide, except those wherein robbery
appears to be the purpose, the causes
are found on examination to be of
complex character, involving some de
gree of blame on .the part of the vic
tim. Juries are sure to take all such
circumstances into account, and, ac
tuated by sentiments of pity or mercy,
may often attach more Importance to
them than they deserve. This is a
sure result of the operations of human
nature, under the rule of a people
who direct all the affairs of their
turn vnv0mmpnl H(nifl technical
pleadings and court delays, which are
blamed so often and so much, fall in
very commonly with the popular idea,
and supply method and occasion for
mitigation or obstruction, so as to
"give the culprit a show."
Thus, as Mr. Bausman, remarked,
"our criminal trials have failed both
from the lenience of the Jury and the
technicalities of procedure." In gen
eral the two causes fit In with each
other; yet in particular cases they are
at variance. As a rule, however, the
state, through its Juries, gets such re
sults as average public Judgment de
sires, or at least approves. Wise men
long ago saw that nearest approach
to practical administration of justice
through the Jury system was obtain
able through mitigation of harsh crim
inal laws and avoidance as far as pos
sible of multiplication of statutes that
make or define new crimes, under
penalties that Juries are not willing
to enforce. Yet laxity in this direc
tion may be a mistake as much as te
verity in the other. Human society,
in -nearly every phase of it, is but a
tentative adaptation and ceaseless ex
periment. MILK.
The United States, like the rest of
the civilized world, has to face the
social problems which arise from a
decreasing birth rate combined with a
high infant mortality; If we are to
keep up the proper rate of Increase in
population In this country. It must be
from this time on by saving children
from death and not 'by increasing the
size of families. The principal cause
of "Infant mortality Is impure milk.
This has been demonstrated over and
over again. Infected milk Is the main
cause of those disorders occurring In
warm weather which sweep away chil
dren like chaff. . It communicates
diphtheria, typhoid fever and tubercu
losis, together with numerous other
fatal ailments. The United States Gov
ernment has published a large volume
on "Milk in Its Relation to Public
Health," where many facts of the
above nature are set out for the In
formation of those who are willing to
be Instructed. The trouble l that
some parents seem to prefer to let
their children perish rather than to
provide them with sanitary milk.
Sixteen years ago Nathan Straus, of
New York, demonstrated, that the pro
cess known as pasteurization would
destroy most of the deadly germs In
milk and make it suitable for Infant
food. By distributing pasteurized
milk widely in New York, he reduced
the Infant mortality from 1 to BX
per thousand. In a certain children's
hospital, where with the use of raw
milk the mortality had been 46 per
cent, pasteurized milk reduced It to 19
per cent. In spite of these facts and
many similar ones which may be
found In the Government report, there
are persons. Including some physi
cians, who contend that pasteurization
renders milk unfit for children's diet.
The facts are that It reduces the di
gestibility only slightly, if at all, while
it destroys the poisonous germs so
completely that the 'danger of lnfec
tlcn is almost annihilated. It Is aston
ishing that people will continue to feed
their children raw milk in Portland,
or any other city, with these facts be
fore them. In the usual milkman'
vessels there Is no such thing as pure
milk. It Is all mora or less polluted.
either from hands, clothing, dust and
badly washed cans, or from diseased
cows.
Mr. Straus declares that diseased
cows mean diseased milk, and he .ar
rays a great mass of authority, to prove
that .tuberculosis is communicable
from cattle to human beings. A re
cent writer has said that common
house flies are more deadly to the hu
man race than the cobras of India. It
Is certain that Impure milk is more
deadly than all the venomous insects
and serpents of the world combined,
and the only way to make It safe to
consume is by pasteurization.
KXPOUE THE REAL CTWRITS.
If the authorities of the City of
Portland really wish to reduce the
social evil, let the police be Instructed
to arrest every man .who enters a
house of Ill-fame; let him be fined and
his name published; let every such
house be under close and constant
observation by the authorities, and
subject to entrance without warning
for the arrest of male visitors. If
there are not ordinances sufficiently
drastic for these purposes, then let
Suitable ones toe enacted and strin
gently enforced.
It is high time that our good re
formers, who cry so loudly at all times
for abatement of this evil, to level the
shafts of their displeasure and wrath
at the men who are the creators and
supporters of It, and to cease their
exclusive and bitter persecution of the
women who are but the unfortunate
victims of It. No condition on earth
Is so entitled to pity and compassion
as that of the greater number of these
women, whose original fall was little
their own fault, but who are utterly
unable under existing conditions of
society to recover or escape from the
consequences. It is useless and In
human to drive them from one place
to another. Nor can much be done to
abate the evil, so long 'as the men
who support it are shielded from the
exposure and protected from the dis
grace righteously due to their con
duct. But the evil can be eliminated, or
nearly so, .by arrest of men who go
to these houses, by Imposing fines upon
them and publishing their names to
the world. The Oregonlan stands
ready to do its full part, even to the
publication of such pictures of In
dividuals as would heighten the public
interest in exposure and suppression
of the evil.
MEMORY.
If we forgot every day what we had
lived through the day before, it would
be the same as If we died at night
fall and new beings were created to
take our place the next morning.
Hence, the inquiry whether we have
lived In previous lives or in other
worlds is really futile. What differ
ence does it make, if we have lived
before, since we have forgotten all
about It? Birth, as Wordsworth says,
may be 'but a sleep and a forgetting;
still, if the forgetting is complete, it
might as well be a new creation. . The
great poet of immortality believed
that the forgetting was not complete,
and that we come into the world "not
in complete forgetfulness and not in
utter nakedness, but trailing clouds of
glory" from the other home. . Plato
had also a notion that we now and
then recall things that we have known
In previous worlds, -end he made his
convenient Socrates base a theory of
education upon it. If some facts from
the former life are recalled Incidently,
many more might be recalled if we
went systematically to work to ex
tract them from the caves and dens
in the mind where they hibernate.
Socrates thought the best way to
waken these slumbering ideas was by
seductive questions which should
gradually turn the eyes inward and
urge remlnlscerice ' to deeper and
deeper exploration. Thus all knowl
edge might be drawn out from each
Individual mind and nothing need
ever be put into It, either from books
or from the lectures of the sophists.
The sophists whom Socrates detested
so much and whose business he thus
insidiously sought to ruin, were about
the same sort of people as our uni
versity professors, though there is
some reason to think that they were
not quite so Inhospitable to new Ideas
and, upon the whole, more useful.
The modern university professor, shut
up in his little world of unrealities, has
abdicated most of his Important func
tions, and they have passed over to
the newspapers and ten-cent maga
zines, as Professor James, of Harvard,
pointed out some time ago; whereas
the old sophists mingled with the
crowd in the market place and made
themselves a power In the living
world.
It is dubious whether the modern
university exists in a form which will
endure. It seems almost as If a better
model were to be found in the College
of France, in Paris, which admits
everybody who wishes to come, not
even requiring them to list their names
unless they ask for a degree. Our
colleges make so much of what a per
son knows when he entersand so lit
tle of what he learns while he is there
that they present an aspect half
humorous to the philosophic observer.
Future historians may count them
among the jokes of the nineteenth and
twentieth centuries, though, after all,
the joke would be a little ghastly. It
Is . sad to see great opportunities
wasted, even If it is sometimes also
ludicrous. It Is quite conceivable that
Bishop Vincent, when he invented the
Chautauqua idea, actually began a
revolution in our methods of higher
education. Following out his precept,
the time may come when the colleges
will open their doors wide to every
body; fix their attention upon filling
brains, instead of urging the high
schools to fill them; and learn to
boast of their requirements for gradT
uatlon, Instead of for entrance. Can
didly, Is It not a topsy-turvy world of
education which Is so rigid about the
beginning of the college course and so
flexible about the end?
Just as the colleges are accused of
killing literary gifts, so, also, it is said,
that they destroy the memory- In
fatuated with giving lectures and
making students take notes of what
they might more easily and lucidly
read In books, they concentrate atten
tion upon the mechanics of speedy
writing and distract it from what the
teacher says. Sometimes It is just as
well. Little is lost, because there is
little to lose, but occasionally there is
a college lecturer who is almost as
good as a text book, and then the
student misses a good deal by being
compelled to scribble hieroglyphics
when he ought to be attending, which
Is a very different thing from mere
listening. To make out a case for
their mistaken system, college profes
sors are apt to decry what they call
"mere memory," Just as pietists have
nothing good to say of "mere moral
ity," but memory and morallty.humble
as they are, still play a useful part
In life and it would be difficult to get
along without them. The professional
excuse for a ruined memory is that
the person "knows where to look for
his facts, and that is enough." It is
not enough. The mar whose mind Is
well . stored with facts, .ready to his
mental hand has an enormous advan
tage over the one who must always
run to the cyclopedia. The education
which does not store the brain with
well classified facts Is a failure.
We all. know how puny the modern
memory is In comparison with the
boys of Athens. They could sit down
and recite the whole Iliad, while, if
we learn half a dozen short quotations
from Shakespeare, a line or two from
Milton and Mary's lamb in school, we
think it Is wonderful. Here and there
one runs across a modern man with a
real memory, and he Is -a perennial
Joy and marvel. In so far as a person
has no memory, he is virtually aeaa.
since life from moment to moment is
little more than the accumulated rem
iniscence of the past. It is full In
proportion as much of the past ex
pands the present Instant. It is thin
and weak when the past fades out. He
who lives only in the present has no
more than the life of a brute. At each
moment ho dies, so far as his Inner
life Is. concerned, and is continually
being "born. Thus he Is always a child,
having kelther memory . nor fore
thought. Hence, If we forget every
thing when we die, as we did when
we were born, of what Interest to us
s the question of the future life?
Even if we do live on. It will be as
new beings. There Is no practical dif
ference between dying and staying
dead, and dying to be born again in
complete oblivion of all that went be
fore. So that if the future life is to
have any value for us,, we must carry
memory with us across the dark river.
GOMPERS AND CHAIRMAN MACK.
A Washnigton (D. C.) dispatch
(August 26) reports this: "Norman
Mack (chairman of the Democratlo
National Committee) dropped into
Washington today from Indianapolis
for the express purpose, he said, of
having a three hours' talk with Gem
pers and arranging to have the entire
labor vote of the country delivered to
Bryan." "Gompers," said Mack, "has
the finest political organization in the
country. Neither Hitchcock nor my
self has been able to come anywhere
near it."
It Is evident that the play of the
Bryan campaign is for "the labor
vote." B,y this term Is meant the
vote of the organized wageworkers of
the country.
First, however, the wageworkers
are not 'all organized or unionized,
nor more than one-third of them, If
so many. Second, it is certain that
the whole of the organized or union
ized labor vote cannot be delivered
to Bryan, or to any candidate no
matter who attempts It. Third, If the
attempt to do it should be made, and
should 'be even measurably success
ful, it -would deeply injure, and for a
time would practically ruin, the cause
of organized or unionized labor.
. This is a government of all of us
and for all of us. It is not to be a
government, of the - wageworkers of
the country alone, still less of organ
ised or unionized wageworkers, who
are by no means a majority of the
working people of the country. It Is
a society and government of a com
munity and balance of Interests, and
not a society or government of any
one of them. A labor trust, attempt
ing to control the government of the
country, would be as objectionable as
any other, and working people of Just
views would neither want nor ex
pect It.
Since Mr. Mack, manager for Mr.
Bryan, Is so anxious for Justice to
labor, he should turn his attention to
the Democratic Southern States and
make his greatest effort there; for in
those states laws for protection of la
'bor are notoriously fewer and less ef
fective than in any other part of the
country. Truth is, the states of the
South, that are counted as sure for
Bryan, have virtually no laws for pro
tection of labor.
SHALL A CHILD WORK?
On another page of this issue ap
pears a communication from W. 8.
.Varnum, of Shllton, Wash., censuring
the state for not assuming co-guardianship
with parents over children in
the matter of labor. His remarks
were called forth 'by a recent editorial
on parental responsibility. The Ore
gonlan holding to the principle that
the state can Interpose only In the
rarest cases and cruelist conditions.
This correspondent misses entirely
the spirit of the discussion. ' The state
did not establish ."child slavery." It
is not true that child labor is found
only among the most ill-paid working
class. Every normal child on the
farm, boy and girl. Is taught to work
from the time he Is able to scatter
grain to chickens or pull weeds. As
children advance In years, dally duties
are multiplied. Even among well-to-do
and rich farmers, children, 13 to
IS, do an adult's work, engaging long
hours In labor that fatigues. A girl
who at 15 isn't her motherts right
hand Is considered lazy and shiftless.
According to this correspondent, the
state should assume rights as co
guardian and forbid parents to derive
aid and profit from their children's
labor. Let one or the other of the
great political parties propose such a
reform and what will the farmers"
answer be?
And It may be asked, what manner
of citizens these farmers' children,
who must work every day, ex
cept while at school, become? Will
they be less useful, less healthful or
less happy than if they had been
"brought up to spend their spare time
In Idleness? True, as Mr. Varnum
says, mortals can not see ten or
twenty years Into the future, but It
requires no seer to foretell the ulti
mate failure of every child that isn't
taught to work.
If your child is not taught to work
until he enters on man's' estate, what
will he be fit for In after life? The
parent, however poor or rich, who
neglects to set a daily task for his
child and insist upon its performance,
wrongs that child and injures society
to the extent of forcing on It a useless
member. By the very nature 6f
things, society cannot teach Immature
persons to be Industrious. This re
sponsibility rests solely with the
parent.
The state should and it does pro
tect the child against abuse. Excep
tions" are to . be noted in certain sec
tions of the South, where manual
labor for 300 years has been held by
patricians as degrading, .and in cer
tain mining regions where European
immigrants demand too much from
their offspring. These are local.
North of the Ohio there Is small cause
for protest from professional agita
tors and misguided philanthropists. .
Every child is entitled to pure air,
wholesome food and protective cloth
ing; to opportunity for rational de
velopment of muscle which may be
attained by splitting wood or plowing
corn, as well as by football or calis
thenics; by bending over the wash
board or roller skating. The child is
entitled to preserve health by work
and by play, not more In the one than
in the other. The proposition that the
state shall say to the parent, "You
must not permit your child to work,"
Is sentimental nonsense.
BRYAN AS ROOSEVELT'S HEIR. .
The spectacle of Mr. Bryan posing
as the exponent of Rooseveltian poli
cies and the natural heir to the sup
port of Roosevelt's admirers is amus
ing indeed, but It Is not surprising,
since the whole Democratic campaign
is a series of contradictions and incon
sistencies. The conservative Demo
crats explain their support of Bryan by
saying he is not the same Bryan who
made free silver the paramount issue
In IS 96 and anti-imperialism the Issue
in 1900, yet Mr. Bryan himself de
clared in the most emphatic manner
that his adherence to the old princi
ples and policies has been strength
ened by his renomination. The radi
cals are asked to support him because
he Is a radical and the conservatives
because he 1b a conservative. He says
that Taft is not the natural heir to
Rooseveltian support, notwithstand
ing Roosevelt secured Taft's nomina
tion for no other reason than that he
believed Taft the best man to carry
out those principles and policies
which have been so popular during
the Roosevelt administration.
Does any one think for a moment
that Roosevelt did not know what he
was doing when he commended Taft
to the favorable consideration of the
Republicans of the country? Roose
velt, more than any other man, was
In a position to know Taft's ability as
a statesman and an executive officer.
He knew Taft's Ideas of government
and could Judge of his political prin
ciples. As everybody knows, Roose
velt is too earnestly devoted to the
successful prosecution of the policies
he has urged ever to give his support
to one who would not strive effectual
ly to carry out those policies In the
coming administration. If Roosevelt
had believed La Follette, Dolliver or
Hughes a better man than Taft to ad
minister the affairs of this Govern
ment, there can be no doubt that he
would have supported one of these
men for the nomination. After study
ing the situation and the men, he gave
approval to the candidacy of Taft and
the Republican party nominated
Roosevelt's choice by a vote that
would have been unanimous but for
the desire to compliment favorite sons.
Mr. Bryan strives to gain Republi
can support by giving implied indorse
ment to the Roosevelt administration.
The Insincerity of all this will become
apparent at once if the reader will ask
himself what Bryan would be saying
now if Roosevelt had been renomi
nated. Would he then approve the
Roosevelt administration? What pre
dicament would he be in If Mr. Taft
should die and Roosevelt should be
placed on the ticket in his stead? It
is easy to commend Roosevelt when
Roosevelt Is not a candidate, but when
everybody knows that Bryan would
not do this If Roosevelt had been
nominated, the shallowness of it is
clear to all.
But It is the policy of the managers
of this Democratlo campaign to play
fast and loose, blow hot and blow cold,
be everything to everybody In the des
perate effort to get votes. Bryan of
fers special reasons why he should
have the support of the Socialists. He
has made his bid for the votes of the
Prohibitionists. He expects to get the
support of negro Republicans in the
North and retain the support of white
Democrats in the South. He thinks
he is entitled to the support of labor
when history shows that the ascend
ency of the Democratic party brought
hunger and suffering to laboring peo
ple in every part of the country. He
declares that the people should rule
when there Is no part of the country
where the people rule less than In
the section entirely under Democratic
dominion. He cries "down with the
bosses," at the same time welcoming
the aid of the New York bosses, whoae
superiors in the art of political -bossing
were never known,. He has re
sorted to almost every scheme known
to the political craftsman except that
of claiming to be a non-partisan, and
doubtless he will make this claim if
he thinks he -can do so without dan
ger of losing the exceedingly parti
san Southern States.
CHECKING THE CIGARETTE HABIT.
Tiiara I a hnnA now f n i" reform in
tha oiirarertn hnhlt The superintend
ent of the Rock Island Railroad is
sued an order this week forbidding all
employes to smoke cigarettes under
penalty of dismissal. It may be ex
pected that other railway superin
t.n.ni. will follow this lead at once.
As a rule the confirmed cigarette
smoker can t do as mucn worn, us me
vt smoke, and what he
does is not so well done. Railroad
managers nowadays demand ana nave
o .ukt tn riamnnd the maximum of
efficiency from trainmen and office
employes. The cigarette slave is nan
dlcanped. and the older he grows the
heavier the load.
imorinn railroads pioneeran the
n-t cronnlno reform In the whisky
habit. It has been tremendously ef
fective. When it was maae Known
that ihA aurvirA nf no man who drank
alcohol in any of its forms would be
retained, the employes suDmlttea,
most of them reluctantly; still they
quit drinking rum except in greatest
privacy. The habit at least was
checked. It was more profitable for
tha mn tn eive ud whisky than to
surrender their Jobs. 'Railroads set a
pattern that other corporations and
individuals who are large employers of
labor followed, with tne result mat
there is now no permanent place for
the skilled laborer who uses strong
iimmr ha hit nail v. All the moral in
fluences combined were far less effec
tive than the railroad and its follow
ers. t ! tn ha honed that the movement
tn nil off ciararette smoking may lead
to Ilka results. No doubt we shall
soon hear of similar orders from other
nnrm-no rr1.A hon.fnl . o Vii f will he
i checked. State laws prohibiting sale
of cigarettes to minors will save a
I multitude of boys. Knowledge that
no reputaDie Dusiness man wanin m
hire them will keep many boys from
taking up the cigarette after they have
reached their majority.
THE MORAL OF IT.
Some men give up life easily. For
example, there vis, or was, August Mil-
i ler, whose suicide was told of In Fri
'. day's Morning Oregonian. A black
, smith by trade and of necessity phys
J Ically able to withstand any of the
stresses of life, 34 years old and mar
' rled. In a fit of despondency because
I he feared his wife no longer loved
' him, he drank the contents of three
i bottles of carbolic acid and joined the
majority. With due regard to custom
that would prevent one's saying any
thing but good of the dead. Miller -was
a fool. Recently his wife made a
visit to the Old Country and during
her absence, the story goes, "he
brooded terribly" and ' feared . she
would never return. A fair interpre
tation would mean that he "boozed
terribly," for it seems she came back
to find him out of work and going
rapidly down hill. No doubt. That
Is the way of many men when their
wives are away. They think It a time
for relaxation and general loosening
up of hitherto steady habits. "A
fierce quarrel ensued," the story goes
on. It always will run about that
way. That is where the moral begins
to be obvious.
The wives of some men should stay
at home. There Is no mention
of children of these young peo
ple. Another moral breaks In. A
child or two Is an excellent balance
wheel and governor combined. The
greatest man in the Nation says so.
There is nothing like it to smooth
away the raw edges of .domestic life.
Another moral Is partly visible. Some
people should not marry, but as mar
rying is a trait of humanity that can
not be eradicated. It is useless to say
much against It.
HOW TO MAKE A CITY BEAUTIFUL.
The task of beautifying a city is
one which cannot be accomplished by
municipal government alone, nor by a
small number of enterprising citizens.
Without the co-operation of the city
authorities and practically all the
people of the municipality, there will
always ' remain many of those un
sightly buildings and neglected vacant
lots which destroy the pleasing effect
of beautiful surroundings. Though
city ordinances may compel a property-owner
to abate nuisances, no
authority can compel him to go
further and beautify the lot or block
under his control. The Individual
citizen who is negligent in this re
spect may be led but he cannot be
driven. The Mayor of Birmingham,
Alabama, seems to have realized this
situation, for he has undertaken a
plan of organization which is said to
have enlisted the co-operation of
practically all the people of that city
in a civic improvement campaign. By
tactful leadership he is accomplishing
what he could not If coercion were
attempted.
The city government does Its part,
of course, in Improving streets and
keeping them clean to the extent that
city streets are usually cleaned. But
the Improvement of private property
Is left to the voluntary action of the
sev.eral owners, under the stimulating
and encouraging influence, however,
of what are called block improvement
clubs. All the residents of a block
are formed into a separate club,
which organization takes particular
pains to see that its own small por
tion of the city Is kept in creditable
condition and appearance. Responsi
bility is directly placed upon each
person for the cleanliness and order
of his own heme surroundings, and
each man's immediate neighbors are
given a special interest in seeing that
he performs his part of the work of
making the ri:.y more pleasing to thy
eye. This plan of organization is said
to enlist the aid of a much larger
proportion of the people than any
other that has ever been attempted,
but, of course, it is scarcely, to be
assumed that all people fall into line
and bear their part of the burden.
Negligence and procrastination are
the chief causes for the dilapidated
condition of property, either city or
country. Very few people really in
tend to let their homes become eye
sores to the rest of the community,
but they put off repairs and the
"cleaning-up" process until a more
convenient season. They become ac
customed to the Ill-appearance of
their property, and do not realize how
displeasing It Is In the sight of others.
Realizing that this, rather than a de
liberate carelessness, accounts for
much of the disorder to be found on
private premises, the Mayor of Bir
mingham Issued a circular letter ad
dressed to the members of the several
clubs, specifically calling attention to
the various items of Improvement that
can ordinarily be made upon a city
lot. It Is urged that old fences be
torn down and that the city authori
ties be depended upon to keep cows
off the lawn. But If for any reason
property-owners do not wish to part
with the fence that was deemed nec
essary by a past generation, the
owners are asked to apply a coat of
paint, and the painting suggestion ex
tends to all buildings on the premises.
"Paint everything you can and white
wash what you can't paint," Is the
rule laid down by the circular.
Every man is asked to keep his
own sidewalk In repair and to report
to the city authorities any defect In
any other man's sidewalk. Sugges
tions are made as to the planting of
ornamental trees and shrubs, the
growing of climbing vines where they
will cover the sides of out-buildings,
and the making of flower 'beds in side
and back yards. The children are en
listed in the work, and it Is said that
they very readily become deeply in
terested laborers In the task of
beautifying the city instead of being
despoilers, as Is too frequently the
case. The circular letter, written In
a good-natured tone, serves to call
attention to the particulars In which
property generally needs repairing or
improvement, ' and property-owners
who would otherwise overlook the
dilapidated condition of their side
walks, lawns and buildings are re
minded of the opportunity they have
to aid in making the whole city more
attractive.
The defect In the plan of proclaims
lng a "clean-up" day once a year Is
that the cleaning up is spasmodic,
only a portion of the people find It
convenient to clean thalr premises at
that time, and a large majority neg
lect the work all the rest of the year.
In Birmingham every day is a "clean
up" day. It is made so through the
local block organizations and by the
circular letters which are sent to any
man who becomes negligent. No man
is. given an excuse to put off his re
pairs or cleanlng-up until some par
ticular day in the year, when he may
be sick or 'away from home, but he is
constantly reminded of the little
things he can do to help along the
movement for the making of a City
Beautiful. Not on particular days but
on any day the city refuse carts will
call for waste material which property-owners
have gathered up to have
hauled away.
The principle upon which the
Birmingham plan is based is that the
people need not be driven or goaded,
but that they must be reminded of
their duty from time to time and
taught how to improve their property.
Tactful leadership is depended upon
more than the exercise of legal
authority. At the same time, author
ity is employed, so far as possible,
whenever good-natured persuasion
will not have the desired effect. Un
der this plan Birmingham has been
not only cleaned up, but Is kept clean,
this latter achievement being the one
which most cities find difficult.
A "leak" by which a Supreme Court
decision becomes known in advance
of its formal announcement may and
may not Indicate the presence of unfit
men upon the bench. A stenographer
may carelessly or intentionally dis
close the nature of a forthcoming de
cision. A Judge, with many decisions
in mind, may Inadvertently speak of
one in which the decision has been
determined, but not announced, and
thus the nature of the decision be
made known. An unscrupulous jani
tor or clerk might secure the desired
information in consideration of re
ward. Though a court must be re
sponsible for the safe-keeping of its
secrets, failure to prevent disclosures
does not always carry with it a pre
sumption of Intentional wrong.
A man who Intends to Invest money
In an addition to his property, and
must borrow the money, does not
usually do the borrowing until he is
ready to spend the money. There is
nothing gained but much lost by be
ginning to pay Interest on money
which must lie idle in his safe or in
the bank. Why should a city act
upon different principles? The water
bonds should be issued only as fast
as the city needs the money to pay
for construction work. There is no
doubt about the ability of the city to
borrow any time it so desires.
It would Improve the respect In which
lawyers are held if they would make
It a rule never to speak to or of a
witness In court in any manner that
they would not dare employ out of
court. Many a lawyer has taken ad
vantage of the Judicial presence to
call a witness a liar when he would
have the head thumped off him If he
dared to do It elsewhere.
The best way to stop the drift from
the country to the city is to convince
the country boys and girls that town
people are not as prosperous, con
tented or happy as they look. Fine
clothes bought on credit, board bills
In arrears and the eternal rush for
success in keen competition are not
conducive to peace of mind.
If every man who is thinking o
runnlriB- for the Governorship In 19H
should keep quiet about It until he
heard a demand for him from all
nnrrn nf the state, we should have a
very prolonged silence. Somehow or
other the "logical candidate" is not
very conspicuous.
A nolltlcian should be grateful to a
newspaper for cutting his speech,
down from half a dozen columns to
one column. Not one reader In a
thousand will begin to read a full
page speech, while a large majority
will read all of a one-column address.
A code of legal ethics is somewhat
in the nature , of a New Year's reso
lution which must be adopted anew
every year and which cannot be ex
pected to have perpetual effect. Like
any other stimulant, the dose must be
repeated occasionally.
The old injunction to "hitch your
wagon to a star" may not be so Im
aginative as we have always sup
posed. There is no knowing what
Yankee Ingenuity will accomplish
when It sets about making air ve
hicles. F. P. Earle, who whipped his "affin
ity" wife, says that two days in Jail
unsettled his nerves. Perhaps after
two days of freedom he will regain
his nerve so that he can beat the
woman again.
The extrema desire of a class of Mr.
Bryan's supporters to deliver him
from his record of free coinage of sil
ver Is becoming already one of the
features of the Democratic campaign.
The fleet is soon to visit Japan and
Mr. Hobson is not in the limelight.
Has he deserted and left the country,
to be devoured by the tawny Nip
ponese? A French cable company has been
fined $5,000,000 for aiding a revolu
tion in Venezuela. Wonder what kind
of appellate courts they have In Vene
zuela. A rain late In August Is a pretty
good assurance of clear weather for
hopplcklng and the State Fair.
A few parks decently maintained
are better than twice as many badly
neglected.
Lawyers, can now tell right from
wr0ng a code of ethics has been
adopted.
Temperature of Europe Falling;.
Indianapolis News.
Europe Is growing colder, says M. Ca
milla Flammarion, the French astrono
mer. He declares that from actual fig
ures recently obtained he has become
certain that the temperature of Europe
has been falling. France has been suf
ferlng for a long time from an excess
of cold weather, the temperature at Paris
having been 1 degree below the normal.
Other readings show even less favorable
results. The fall is more noticeable in
the Spring than at other- periods of the
year. Similar conditions are recorded in
England. Belgium, Spain, Italy, Austria
ajid Germany.
MARGfNALIA
BY HARRY MURPHY.
The Viewpoint.
A dweller on a star
Sighed to the Earth afar,
"From this dull place would 1
To thee, fair orb, might fly!"
t t t
An optimist Is one who heeds
The world's professions, not its deeds,
t t t
Virtue's not sincere.
Born of hope or fear,
t t t
Truth.
I am the Truth and I shall come at
last;
And from their shrines the shapes or
clay I'll cast;
Into the depths of dun old Gods rll
send;
The rusted fetters of the world 1 11
rend;
1'll.break the clutch of Greed at throats
of men.
I'll be a Judge who must be answered
tnen, ii
By all betrayers of the people's weal. Q
Nor shall the canopy of kings conceal
. .... j . i .. . r
The deed unjust or conaemnH.ni"
Fmm him who has misspent his broth- r.
For I am Truth I am the Soul of
Things.
I am astir In storms: I am the wings
Of lightning; the raptured reach of
song; the blush
Of the rose; the menace of the sea; the
hush'
Of evening; the patience of the poor.
I am of Brotherhood of Thinker
Doer. I sire the seasons and tell the stars
their way;
I am the Final-Fact whom none gain-.,
say.
see
There are ncrsons who find their"
pleasure in exposing the faults and
, , . - . i . .,, ., .i , i vi.
IOIOieS Ol lllU lllUSliiuua urau. a --
rlplv vlmt o-nnd is aceomrjllshed by
asserting that Grant drank whisky
that Lincoln had a passion for obscene
stories; that Franklin plagarlzed hi
Jokes: that Washington was not as im
maculate after all. etc.. Is not clear.
The sordid details of character are
around us in abundance. We should,
thank time and the grave for chasten
ing away what was unlovely in the llv-;
ing man.
But more than this, mankind em
bodies its ideals in Its great men, an
ideals are sacred. Its heroes are Its
standai-a of excellence. They are an'
epic whence lofty virtues and splendid
deeds derive their inspiration ancljf
efficacy. Let malice seek anotherl
mark. f
e e e K.
When Henry James recently rewrote
Ills earner nuuna, ji t-n unmui jr jm i o -
vlwed this nassae which occurs in
one of them: "Hawthorne afterwardsn
polished his style to a Etlll higher d-j
gree; but in his later productions ly
is almost always the cast in a writer's
later productions there is a touch ot
mannerism." ,
The talents of Ambrose Blerce have
never received the recognition whlclv
Is their due. In the long array of
contemporary American authors Mr,
Biei.ce Is conspicuous for genuine llt-
At-ow mrU XnmA VARrs orn he mh-
llshed a volume of weird stories.
(1ia Mlrlst of Life." which for artistic
workmanship belongs to the class of
Poe, Hawthorne and Harte. These
Btories are virtually unknown, while"
those of a hundred trumpery prosors
are household possessions. As a mas
ter of ironv. Mr. Blerce has never been
urpaesed in this country. Irony, how
ever, is more a business of the under
standing than of the feelings,
here obviously is the reason or nif
want of success with the multitude of
readers, with those who can be reacheu
only by an appeal to the animal na
ture: he addresses the head, rather",
than the heart. It is perhaps true that
there Is a want of sympathy in hl
genius: it Is not without an excesslv
decision; but this we can pardon tliH
more readily considering the host of
writers at the other extreme. ,
In his recent book. "Through th
Magic Door," Conan Doyle says of Mr J
Blerce: "I have, one of his works there
This man had a flavor qutto his owi
and was a (treat artist In his way.. 1'
is not cheering reading, but it leave
the mark upon you and that is that
proof of good work." I
Mr. Blerce, it is said, has more rearlf
ers In England than here; this ie no
surprising. One would expect him ty
be peculiarly attractive to the austcrl
and thorough-going countrymen
Swift and Pope.
The multitude is never so ridlculou
as in its enthusiasm for thlnsrs mil!
.ary. Regular military establishment
ave done more to retard the advance
ment of mankind than all other cause
combined.
e e
if wmiM ha r iroori idea If author
WOU1U inc. K . .... ..
with their portraits. Nothing throw-
i j ........ .lial,. wmrf iiit rtn
so much light on his works as ;
ffllmn.. nf tliA U-rttPr'l Tl ll V S I O fifll O 111 V
And then think how niuny a dul
proper, loiewarnea, uau nwuiuitu.
e e e
A man whose intelligence transcend
ed that of all other men at all point
would be as completely isolated from
his kind as if he were imprisoned he
neath a mountain.
e e e
An envious man Is never satlsPe
unless he is endeavoring to stir u
the envy of everyone else, lou ma
always know him by his magnifying
to you the virtues of others for h
supposes, of course, that excellence 1'
another is poison to you, as It Is t
him.
e e e
a arn.if nf literature to be irrea
v. a .i.vatlnfr- not. of course, h 1
intlouslv advanced or
cepts of conduct no, for it 'must 1
art but rather because of a bacll
pround which, without calling atterl
tion to itself, yet pervades and
lion lu ii.ni.-ii, yw. ""v. T
lumincs the picture with moral beaur?
www
tka Amovl.m ;tinnfll ceremonv
honrt-Khnklnfir 1m as much the result
surplus self-consciousness a genlalit
in. I
WWW f
t. I ...... I th. n.n.hiint Allthm
have for a particular word; "surldenly1
for instance witn rtugo: u
Hawthorne; "radiant" with Poe: "hij
man" with Shelley; "sweet ' witn Burn
the suffix "less" with Byron, etc.
tka,o crvnnunus longshoreni
urned literateurs should ponder IhH
by Ruskin, "Art is not an appeal
. i
the constant animal reelings.
The present civilization suggests 1
i.. o theater: the brutal ari
m m w
selnsh come out wim-i ...
srontle and the magnanimous are trarfj
... ... a ... U I ' .-. 1
pled to death.
WWW
n..kiurii achieves Its nerfeet flow
. . mmnnw the wealthv. but amori
heir servitors their flunkies, tallorj
ihopkeepers. etc.
A
New York Times.,
t ncrfoot his camnaicn contributl
scheme, -Mr. Bryan has borrowed ii
wisdom Ot the aepravea coiporau
magnate. The latter HKes io r.ava
'i
great many Small investors lor
partners