PAGE TWO
THE GREAT WHITE PLAGUE
Eminent German Scientist Claims Discovery of Serum
That Will Cure Dreaded Disease
The world looked up in wonder and
breathed a sigh of relief when it was
announced some time ago that an ef
fective serum, secured from the turtle,
which would cure all eases of tubercu
losis except those in the last stages,
had been discovered by Dr. Frederick
Franz Friedmann, a German scientist.
Mr. Friedmann announced that he had
clearly demonstrated the effectiveness
of the serum in a large number of
cases and that he could supply it to
the world at a comparatively nominal
fee. He said also that the supply of
the serum was unlimited and could be
furnished to every physician of the
world in any quantities desired. Tele
grams and cables began pouring in on
Dr. Friedmann, but be has as yet re
fused to give the serum out to the
world. He gives as his reason the fear
that it may come into the hands of
improper parties and that if he an
nounces its dispensation quacks and
fakers will arise and announce, as they
have done in many a former case, that
they possess the coveted remedy. He
fears the medical profession will suffer
from such a result and is undecided
what course to pursue.
The fight against tuberculosis has
been age-long. It will continue just as
long as the sweatshop, the coal mine
IS THERE A LIMIT?
The achievements of wireless during
the short time since its'discovery have
furnished the most startling evidences
of the advance in modern science. Un
less it be the science of aviation, wire
less has made the most signal success.
For the first time in history Christmas
greetings were sent from Mare Island
at San Francisco to the United States
capitol at Washington, December 25
last.
The messnge was from Captain Mayo,
commandant of the Mare Island Navy
Tard, and was received by the giant
radio station at Arlington.
It conveyed the wishes of Captain
' Mayo and other officers at the navy
yard to the secretary of the navy and
the officers of the navy and marine
corps for a "merry Christmas and a
happy New Year."
Skeptics the world over hooted at
wireless before it was a reality. They
hooted at aviation before the Wright
brothers made themselves famous and
established a new mode of travel by
their experiments. So they hooted at
.the steam railway in days past and at
the telephone, telegraph, printing press
and every other thing that has made
the modern specialized systom of labor
and promotion a possibility. And they
will continue to hoot, a few of them,
as long as they live.
Is there a limit to the achievements
of wireless t Men who have followed
its success almost universally 'agree
that there is not. Year after year it
has passed the hopes of its promoters.
Already it has paid for its discovery a
thousand times over in the number of
lives it has saved on the ocean. When
the fated Titanic sank wireless did its
work, and, had the ships that heard
the message heeded the call, all might
have been saved. Scarcely a week
passes that some new achievement is
not recorded. History repeats itself
and there will be no limit to the
achievements of wireless. Indeed, the
most sanguine would predict the even
tual linking of the earth with Mars
by wireless. Certainly on this earth
there is no limit.
FoundsTurkishSociety
With the work of the Red Cross So
ciety as an incentive, Mme. Rijaat
Pasha, Christian wife of a Mohamme
dan representing Turkey at the British
court, has founded a Turkish organiza
tion very similar in purpose. During
the Balkan troubles the society has
been of material assistance in render
ing aid to sick and wounded.
and the dust-laden faetnrv- nmiin.
Frimanlv. It is the child of neplmrt. iir.
norance. alcoholism, but. dAenar than
'
that, the seat of the trouble lies in
"man's inlililnBfiUv If 17
. !
um ub.icbb .re neing invented mat
carry off the dust of factories, legis-
. i.Uu.Fb. uon-cr cuuui-
tions in the coal mines, and it is honed
the "back-to-the-farm" crv will non
relieve the crowded condition of the
... -
tonAmonta nf lnA Tl..,
. xjuw uu-
til these conditions are relieved, the
great white plague will continue to ex
act its toll from tbe ranks of the wage
earner, whose germ-infected body ex
udes the seed of further destruction.
Gratifying as are the results of re-
cent scientific methods of treatment
of the disease, it is still significant
that the death rate among consump
tives is about one in eight. This im
proved ratio is due to the cTAAtnr At
tention to fresh air breathing, better
ventilation in houses and the realiza
tion on the part of weak-luntrnd Hon.
pie that the night air, far from being
injurious, is tbe best air to be bad at
night and that cold air is not neces
sarily injurious. Within a few mnnth
the death rate has been reduced from
one in seven to one in eight. It is
hoped the discovery of an effective
serum will prove indeed a reality.
WILL LOWER LIVING
Not everyone realizes the exact sig-
nuicance of tbe Panama Canal from
the standpoint of shortened distancA
between Atlantic and Pacific ports. It
tancs considerable time for the hnnvv
freight steamors to bo from Now York
to the Orogon and Washington ports
arouna tne Horn, a distance of over
14,000 miles. Whon the Panama CatiaI
is completed this distance will have
Deon cut down to approximately 6000
miles, thus affording a saving in time
ujuhb oi iour-seventns of the former
time. When the vast saving in ex
pense of transportation is considered,
the full meaning of this trreat ventim
of Uncle Sam can be realized and the
public should benefit by that saving.
In fact, it is freely predicted that the
effect of the reduction of carrying
ratos that will result from the opening
up of the canal will ereatlv affect the
high cost of living aguinst which there
is so great an outcry all over the coun
try. His Name Meant Business Too.
It was just before election, and ho
wandered into the headquarters of his
political party in the thriving Long
Island town. He was warmly welcomed
by the local leader, who otahtipiI hi
hand and said:
"Make yourself right at home, sir.
Do you know all these gentlemen This
is Mr. Scales, inspector of weights and
measures; and this is Mr. Oaves, our
local undertaker: and this is Mr Td.v
the locksmith; and this is Mr. House,
the builder; and Mr. Wall, the con
tracting stone mason; and Mr. Cutler,
the hardware merchant. And now, sir,
if you please, what may your name
bet"
"Who, met Why, I'm Schmell, the
sKiink. farmer. Just started a place
nil union t east oi nerei"
What He Got for Boasting.
"Father," boasted the farmer's son
home from college for over the hnll
days, I m the strongest man in our
fnWantk fl.ia If
uu..Ku kino JD1,
"You don't mean to tell me!"
"Yes; thev tested me with Aiftar.
' - -
cnt kinds of strength-testing machines
in me gymnasium, and mv mmtA ihnwa
i -
t hat I tn the strongest student enrolled
there this vaat. . Tho niini.oi
, .v.,,w., u,i,,
says I m a modern Hercules.' "
'
My son, I'm glad to hear the crood I
news. Instead of troino- hnrlc fn nl.
B B
lege you can stay home here and help
ma lift tl. -CM it m
niuiiiagu uii. me iarm."
'Hea HaW."
A locturnr xvah nnnnva Vv a m nn i I
j - iu
the audience who inn'mfafl nn viaiti
w ...Ug uu i
asking questions.
Sit down, you ass!" said a second
man, jumping up.
- - "
Sit down you, too!" cried a third
n-an; "yon are both asses."
"There seems to be plentv nf
about tonight," put in the Wtni-or
cnlmly; "but for heaven's sake let us
near one at a time."
"Well, you go on then," said the
first man, resuming his seat. Boston
Transcript.
Nothing Doing.
"My next immuttashun," said the
vaudeville topliner, "will be an im
muttashun of the Senate Committee at
Washington enligtening the public on
the result of its investigation of cam.
paign funds."
The staee was then left for twn mi.
utes in total darkness. Chicago Rec-
oru.
Oh, Pmnea.
"Are yon any vood at dateaf '
the man with the poor memory.
"no," replied the man with the
poor digestion, "but thanks to my
boarding house experiences, I'm very
well acquainted with prunes."
Mrs. Cawker fsevarelv M.rU aa
you accept a kiss from Mr. 8mith last
nignii
Marie Cawker (hesltatlngly)Tes,
mamma, but it was pressed upon me.
Convict Leasing
System Given
a Hard Jolt
(Continued from page one)
...i- i :
I i tl. a i -i
ivjimi guuui xuo ouubu was Diva, xroiu
its long period of deprivations. Crime
I . ...
wa increasing, for tbe crafty were
quick to take advantage of conditions,
The new problem of the negro stared
them , tne fa(,e( ignorance, supersti
t u. j .
I ..:jj .: v
i khiugu uuiiuu ui 11 1 a ucn uuaiuuu 11 a
-1M started the erstwhile slave on a
I . . .. .
series or crimes and misdemeanors that
threatened another great war one in
B
which the pent-up passions of race ha'
tred would find full sway. The South
was bankrupt and crime was never be
fore so rampant. So when the sugges
tion of a new servitude for the crim
inal negro was presented, the South
seized upon it and the convict-leasing
system was established.
The condition thus imposed upon the
necrro was. in mnnv rennetA. whtm
than slavery. His master was, as a rule,
or tne type who represented the worst
of the former sIava ownnrn. TTa lnokerl
to the business end of the transaction.
It was cheap labor he secured for the
plantations and turpentine camps. He
paid the state from $100 to $300 per
year for each prisoner and the state
cared little what became of him. The
prisoner was taken far into the wil
derness, was chained to bis fellow,
made to work from fourteen to twenty
hours a day and then prepare his own
supper at night. Doctors were expen
sive and convicts were, cheap. So it
was cheaper to let the sick convict die
than to secure medical assistance and
save him. It was cheaper to make
him sleep in his chains in a stuffy
room without windows than to hire a
guard to keep him from Tunning away
at night. It was cheaper to make him
fry his own scant piece of bacon over
a smouldering log in the chill night
wind than to provide a cook and a
comfortable shelter.
As time went on and the system was
perfected, sheriffs, justices and juries
became part and parcel of it. When
the five-year contract was made in
Gooreia in 1904. bv the terms of which
hundreds of prisoners were turned over
to contractors, the newspapers flared
before the public eve the intellis-enca
that the Btate would be the richer bv
a net profit of $225,000. Vain hopel
A review of the history of the system
shows that in later years the state re
ceived very little of the amount paid
by the contractor. The county got no
money until the sheriff, deputy sher
iff, county solicitor, bailiff, court clerk,
justice, constable and other officers
naa eacn received bis share. All the
political machinery stood in with the
contractors, who were, in some cases,
members of the legislature. And this
with the knowledge that the money
was nothincr less than blood mnnev ex
torted at the expense of the helpless
convict. Sorry fate! Out of those
leased to contractors for five years
many never came back. In some of
the camps one out of every four per
ishedkilled by the heavy toil, by the
fever of the swamp or by the cruelty
of heartless masters. The death rate
In private camps was double that in the
county gangs. And in the face of
these facts, the perpetrators were
shielded and saved from indictment by
a machinery that knew nothing of jus-
tice but to pervert it,
In some of the counties of the Smith.
ern states, justices could sentence men
convicted of a misdemeanor to hard
labor for a period not exceeding twelve
months. In many of these' courts the
charge was never proven
... . '
Poor, il
literate, withut knowledge of the work
inns of the Courts, without, th manna
'- to employ counsel, the unfortunate ne
.u vvuuaoi, but) uuiuriuiiate no'
gro was at the mercy of the system
tta . J...
.iumv umi, iyu t ittj worse man
denth, for, in all probability, there
u i. , ., . .
nuiuu us uu ena to nis sentence, oucn
was the outraire of inatice cnmmittAil
"wo V..U uiHinD UI JUOtlUe CUUUUIIslOU
in flinso rmirfa thnf ih nfn.
w11 lnti1nA : i it., j
"w. e UIO DlgU OUUVO IIIO UUUi.
"All hope abandon, ye who enter
i . .....
here." He left the court bound for
a rlnnfl hnnidn whiMi Ttonta'a TnfnmA
waa narnrlioa TXTkn V:. 4.ij. j
;a.imA v .
oB uj, ma employer provOKea
V.tn,!, vt s - i .
" duu mm rqu a uroiner con
vict and both were immediatelv hauled
before the justice and meted out a new
twelve-month sentence. Thus the law
- - ' - "' " t-wi.i vj, mug lug law
was satisfied, the public protected, the
contractor and the state enriched
Again, planters needed help. It was
a simple mattor to go out and capture
a pair of burly negroes, haul them be
fore the justice and register the charge
of 'debt against them. What chance
had the negro f The practice was com'
mon amonir planters and it waa a aim,
pie matter to retain the nrvlc nf th
captive, for as soon as his fine had
oeen worked out a new charge was
brought against him, witnesses were
produced to prove his guilt, the sen
tence was repeated and the unfortunate
negro expiated his imaginary crime to
the profit of the planter. A fine of
$50 waa often imposed for a trivial of
fense. The planter paid the fine and
carried off the offender to work it out
at the rate of fifteen cents a day.
Within the last few years, publie
sentiment has become so bitter Auain.t
the system that its abuses have been
greatly reduced. .But there is still
enough of evil in it to compel a whole
sale pardoning of prisoners by the out
going governor of Arkansas. His act
will precipitate action on the part of
the legislature InnVlnir ti..
abandonment of the practice. The end
will doubtless justify the means, for
the knell of the convict-leasing sys
tem has sounded.
SHERMAN ANTI-TRUST LAW IN OPERATION
Supreme Court Makes Important Decision in Patten Case and Indictment Are
Returned Against Heads of Railroads
The recent decision of the United1
States Supreme Court, affirming the
indictment in the New York Federal
Court of James Fatten and his associates
for cornering the cotton market in
1910, is in line with an awakened ten
dency throughout the ennntrv in Yinlil
responsible masters of high finance,
wno carry on tneir monopolistic opera
tions with impunity at the expense of
their less fortunate neighbors Mr
Patten and his associates will have to
stand trial for violation of the Sher
man anti-trust law, for the decision
roferred to declares that to corner in
terstate commodities, such as clothing
and food, is, in effect, a restraint of
trade. Chief Justice White and Jus
tices Lurton and Holmes dissented
from the majority opinion.
The case is significant, in that it is
one of a chain of events that herald
the doom of the stock exchange. Dur
ing the past ten years an ever-increasing
cry haB gone up from the Ameri
can people for relief from the condi
tions arising out of our financial pol
icy. A few men have amassed enor
mous sums of money by the skillful
operation of which on the stock at.
change they are able to control the
price or commodities. They do this
by buying up the entire sunplv of a
given commodity and withholding it
irom me puDiie lor a snort time, thus
giving the law of suddIv and
a chance to work, with the result that
me price or the commodity begins to
soar. Then they unload the goods at
the increased price and nocket tha
plus. The consumer pavs the hill
Briefly, this is the storv of Mr. Pf,
ton 's manipulation. The Sherman anti
trust law nas been brought to bear
against him and he will have tn tor,A
trial. The action of the ormrt ;n
have the approval of the masses of
American people and tlm niitnnmi f
the trial will be watched with interest.
lhe defense made the content; that
a control of the supply of cotton would
have a stimulating effect upon the
...aiivou j.ney claimed also that there
was no intent to restrain intemtoto
trade. In replying to the former con
tention, Justice Vandevanter said that,
while this might be true for a while,'
me corner was forbidden by the act
because it thwarted the llRllAl nnavo.
tion of the laws of supply and demand,
Quality is
In the Varnish World the
Murphy name is a Guarantee
"Murphy Varnish Company," on the can or on the label of
any Finishing Material, settles the question of Value.
It means that the Varnish, Color, Stain, Enamel, Konkreto,
or whatever else, is the Most Reliable Product of the kind.
This Reputation has been Secured at Great Cost, through
many years of persistence in the realizing of an Ideal.
You needn't be at all afraid that the Murphy Standard will
ever be lowered. It is worth all it has cost.
This Quality Reputation must be lived up to. Any Ques
tioning of it would sacrifice the Biggest Asset in the Murphy
Business.
CHICAGO, ILLS.
The Varnish that Lasts Longest
Make the
Run your farm on a business basis and it will pay big
dividends.
Let me help you to weed out unprofitable crops and
ventures to so plan your work as to make your farm
more profitable.
I have perfected an easy-to-keep Record Book which
will show yon at a glance
What your profits are on live stock and individual
crops the cost of labor and miscellaneous expenses
which cost is too great for what it produces acreage
yields monthly and yearly gain or loss how much yon
owe .nd others owe you, etc., etc. '
This Record is the Best, Easiest and Simplest ever de
vised for the Grain, Truck and Fruit Farmer, Stock
Breeder, Dairy and Poultry Man. It costs but little and
will be worth hundreds of dollars to yon each season.
withdrew the commodity from the nor
mal current of trade, enhanced prices
and produced practically the same evils
as the suppression of competition. As
to the latter argument, the court said
it made no difference that there waa
no allegation of a specific intent to
restrain interstate trade, or ' ' the con
spirators must be held to have in'
tended the necessary and direct con
sequences of their acts and cannot be.
heard to say to the contrary."
The manipulation of necessities such
as clothing and foodstuffs is the mostj
far-reaching and baneful of all the!
stock-gambling devices. The public
pays the bill in any event, but it can
stand a raise in the price of steel far,
better than a raise in cotton, wool or
wheat. An increase of a cent a pound
in the price of cotton does not bring
a great burden upon the individual
who buys a shirt made from this cot
ton, but' when it happens in a dozen
different commodities, and keeps on
happening, his pocketbook very' soon
feels the drain upon it. Furthermore,
the matter of a cent a pound looks like
a small profit to the man who makes
the raise in price, but when it is con
sidered that this increase is npon every
pound in the country, an idea of the
profit can be had. This is the princi
pie of stock-gambledom and this is the
thing the American people have set
themselves to rectify.
Most conspicuous among the railroad
prosecutions of the past five years is
the indictment of Charles S. Mellen,
president of the New York, New Haven
& Hartford, and Boston ft Maine Bail
roads, and Edson J. Chamberlin, presi
dent of the Grand Trunk Railway of
Canada. The act of which these gen
tlemen are accused is that of unlaw
fully agreeing ",to prevent the con
struction and completion of any of the
Grand Trunk New England extensions,
to prevent the operation of the Grand-
Trunk steamship line" between New
lork and Providence, "and to prevent
the transportation of persons and prop
erty in interstate and foreign com
merce over said lines of railroads and
steamships." Mr. A. W. Smithers,
chairman of the board of directors of
the Grand Trunk, is also named in the
indictment.
The thing that actually happened and
that shows again the immense prestige
Economy
Murphy Varnish Company
FRANKLIN MURPHY. Pre.id.mt '
Aociled with DouiaII Varniih Company. Limited, Monacal. Cnd
NEWARK.
Farm Pay More Money
Mr. E. J. Novak, First National Bank km. nut
who operates a farm in the South, wrote m.A
19th, 1912: "Some time ago I purchased n.n? ApWt
er's Simplex Records and coCiTJXJT
ment I have ever made.' I don't see hn- .belt 1"
get along without it." ,ee how nyody an
As an owner of my Simplex T?n.j
me a. often as you wish about thKefuW1"'9 to
Business problems which eonfrouAK ? TWr
ing I will give yon the benefit of year. i i.nn,WOT
solving of the Farmers' business diffTcultfe. 64 th'
Write me today. You obliirate vnni i '
I will give you information thatH b' nf"0 a7' ,nd
to you. 111 1,9 of much value
, A. O. REICH, P.pt I, B 0hJeago
held by men of wealth, was the enter
ing into an agreement whereby New
England was sliced up and diveded
among the railroads involved, with the
understanding that each company was
to keep out of the field of the others
and all operations and constructions
under way were to be abandoned. So
it happened that bridges, cuts and
grades were left in a half-finished con
dition. Needless to say, New England
was thoroughly aroused. Providence
was torn up to make a place for the
tracks of the Grand Trunk, construc
tion being well under way. But the
railroad suddenly announced that it
had withdrawn from the field and
would not complete its line. Expected
railroad develnnmAnt Krinfr. ATtanatv
building along all lines and the in
jury wrought by the sudden withdrawal
of the Grand Trunk was far-reaching.
The effect of the whole arrangement
was a comer of traffic to the extent
that competition was practically killed.
Hence the indictment, which is meet
ing with approval in New England,
Another incident in connection with
the New Haven road is the announce
ment by President Mellen that the road
would sell its steamship lines in 1914.
The Panama act is responsible for this
announcement. In this bill is a pro
vision prohibiting railroads from own
ing and operating coasting steamship
lines unless they can justify such own
ership before the Interstate Commerce
Commission. Mr. Luther Conant, Jr.,
commissioner of corporations, in a re
cent report, gives figures to show that
the New Haven Railroad stands first
among the several roads controlling the
coast and river navigation of the coun
try. The report says:
"In acquiring their extensive con
trol over domestic water-carriers, rail
roads have had in general three pur
poses: First, to eliminate the compe
tition of water carriers; second, to ob
tain an entrance into territory not open
to their rail lines; and, third, to secure
valuable feeders, mainly local lines.
"In the case of the New Haven sys
tem all these purposes are apparent.
For some time past the New Haven
system has pursued a determined policy
of suppressing any effective competi
tion on Long Island Sound; several, at
least, of its recent acquisitions must
be regarded as due to this policy."
N. J.
I